dcinput daily for Wed 6th Dec, 2006
Happy Saint Nicholas everyone!
When I was growing up I spent many 6th of December in Brussels opening presents and eating lots of speculoos biscuits. As far as I remember there were also oranges in your sox and generally it was kind of a pre-christmas. Always good to warm up this time of year.
Biggest Speculoos in the World! Thanks to Shauna MacAllister for the link.
You can find some Saint Nicholas songs here and this is one of my favorites, that I’m sure I must have sang a primary school:
Ô grand Saint Nicolas,
Patron des écoliers,
Apporte-moi des pommes
Dans mon petit panier.
Je serai toujours sage
Comme une petite image.
J’apprendrai mes leçons
Pour avoir des bonbons.
Venez, venez, Saint Nicolas,
Venez, venez Saint Nicolas,
Venez, venez, Saint Nicolas, Et tra la la…
Ô grand Saint Nicolas,
Patron des écoliers
Apporte-moi des jouets
Dans mon petit panier.
Je serai toujours sage
Comme un petit mouton.
J’apprendrai mes leçons
Pour avoir des bonbons.
Venez, venez Saint Nicolas,
Venez, venez, Saint Nicolas, Et tra la la…
Shopping till you drop is no fun
I was shopping this past Sunday all up and down Oxford Street. It was awfull. I’m no fan of shopping normally and of course the Christmas rush just highlights a point which just has to be right: shopping is just so inneficient. I don’t think you could make it a worse experience if you tried: 99% of the stuff that is there is not what I want and when you do miraculously find something you like, they don’t have it in your size. It’s physically and mentally exausting and it just takes so long. Imagine having to navigate the web without google and without hyperlinks - that’s shopping.
It’s just a shame that online shopping isn’t up to scratch. Business Weeks new Cutting Edge podcast have a piece on shoping, I’ll let you know if they figured out a better way.
Doc Searls and Dave Winer are pushing the Vender Relationship Management (VRM) idea. Probably something to watch.
CNN Money: “Buzz from bloggers, viral videos, instant messaging, and subtle product placement in TV shows and movies are proving to be just as effective for some products […] The Internet is an interactive medium, of course, and toymakers are also tapping fanboys for product ideas they can turn into must-have gadgets”.
I had an Amazon delivery this morning of the Cluetain Manifesto. I’ve been reading Doc Searls‘ blog and listening to him on podcasts for so long, I thought it was high time I found out what the fuss he and the other 3 that wrote the book created was all about. The preface is very good. So far I’m liking it a lot.