War & Words
The National Museum of Language in College Park, MD is curating an exhibit on the role of the War of 1812 in the development of American English. (Thanks to the Visual Thesaurus for the tip)
The role of the museum is to promote a better understanding of language and its role in history, contemporary affairs, and the future. Orin Hargraves' post highlights some interesting history on the plight of Noah Webster to further separate his language from that of established Samuel Johnson.
From the Language Lounge on Visual Thesaurus:
Perhaps the greatest lexical victor of the war was the much older word spangled, which got promoted to a plush job that it will keep forever. Francis Scott Key, unavoidably detained on a ship in Chesapeake Bay on a September night in 1814 and compelled to watch the bombardment of Fort McHenry by Royal Navy ships, was moved to write the words that eventually became the national anthem. The epithet "star-spangled," interestingly, goes back to the 16th century but never seems to have been applied to anything but the sky until Key's moment of inspiration for the Star-Spangled Banner.
Recipe: Mallow-Topped Sweet Potatoes
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Kraft, the world's second largest food and beverage company is one of the world's most trusted food brands. For over fifty years, Kraft's Jet-Puffed Marshmallows have been a part of traditional American cooking as a key ingredient in seasonal sweet potato recipes. Add some sweetness to your Thanksgiving side dishes with this classic holiday food.
Prep Time: 10 min
Total Time: 30 min
Makes: 6 servings, about 1/2 cup each
Ingredients:
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter or margarine, melted
1/4 cup orange juice
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
2 cans (15 oz. each) sweet potatoes, drained
15 Jet-Puffed Marshmallows (about 2 cups)
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Mix butter, orange juice and cinnamon in lightly greased 1-qt. baking dish until well blended.
Add sweet potatoes; mix lightly. Top with marshmallows.
Bake 15 to 20 min. or unitl sweet potatoes are heated through and marshmallows are lightly browned.
Enjoy!
Contributed by Ashley Popham
For the Love of Words ...
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Here at Addison Whitney, the Verbal Branding Department is geared up and ready for National Dictionary Day celebrated on October 16th, 2009! This day in history has been dubbed Dictionary Day in honor of the birthday of Noah Webster, Father of the Dictionary.
How do you plan on spending this National Holiday? Here are a few suggestions: Play a game of Scrabble, Make a list of all your favorite words, Complete a crossword puzzle, or Eat a bowl of alphabet soup. Whatever is it you choose to do, at least take a moment to pause and think what a different place our world would be without words and the meanings we have attached to them ...
Contributed by: Carrie Friedrich
Swim at your Own Risk
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Shark Week Returns
Summer vacation is drawing to a close, and the start of a new school year is just around the corner. Hopefully you have been able to take a nice, relaxing trip to the beach ... and survive. The time has come again for the annual terrifying, yet thrilling, Shark Week on the Discovery Channel. The 'fear returns' on August 2nd, 2009 with an action packed week filled with informative shark facts, attack stories, myths, shark tracking strategies, and much much more.
Conveniently enough, our family vacations usually fell around the first week in August, the general time for Shark Week to be aired on the Discovery Channel. Nothing says relaxation like curling up with a blanket and popcorn watching shark attack stories, only to fearfully head out on a boogie board the next morning. You know you have seen enough Shark Week when a plastic bottle floating atop the water sends you running out of the ocean shrieking with fear, convinced that the fin of a Great White Shark was lurking in your direction... Especially when Read more
Tea Freaks
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Attention all Sweet Tea Lovers ...McAlister's Deli has heard your demand!
July 23, 2009 has been dubbed FREE TEA DAY. On this day, participating McAlister's Deli locations (participation may vary) will be giving away free tea. Obviously there is a 'one per guest limit,' and the offer is not valid for catering orders or gallon purchases... but who wouldn't love a refreshing sweet tea to cool down during these hot summer days? Besides, everything tastes better when it's free!
Check out the official Tea Freaks website for more information surrounding this event. Here you will find weekly "Free Tea" episodes, and Tea Freak merchandise, such as tshirts, being sold on the site.
So find a participating McAlister's Deli near you and enjoy some FREE TEA!
Contributed by Carrie Friedrich
Quack for a Cause
If you’re looking for something fun to do this weekend check out Kindermourn’s Duck Race at the U.S. National Whitewater Center. A local non-profit agency that assists parents who have lost children, Kindermourn established the duck race five years ago to raise awareness and funds for their organization. The race enlists adopted rubber duckies in a healthy watersport competition, each competing for the grand prize: A Smart Fortwo car generously donated by Felix Sabates’ Smart Center in Charlotte.
The Fifth Annual Hope Floats Duck Race
Sunday, April 19, 2009
U.S. National Whitewater Center
2:00 to 5:00 PM
AW Helping Hands Spring 2009 Event
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On Saturday, March 7th, AW Helping Hands participated in the 1st Annual Extreme Mission Makeover at the Charlotte Rescue Mission. The Charlotte Rescue Mission helps individuals caught in the cycle of poverty, homelessness, and chemical addictions. Click here to learn more about this organization.
The goals for the Extreme Mission Makeover were to repurpose a basement into 6 dorm rooms and a bathroom, re-carpet a classroom, paint multiple rooms, repurpose the gym, and landscape the grounds. Volunteers from Addison Whitney, Bella Tunno, and Ashland Custom Homes were split upRead more
Super Bowl Brands: GoDaddy
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Move over Janet Jackson, your wardrobe malfunction isn’t the only risqué entry in the Super Bowl history books. GoDaddy.com, the world’s largest online domain name registrar, will run one 30 second advertisement during the 2009 Super Bowl that will be sure to catch your eye—if it airs.
GoDaddy has a losing record against the FOX network. Last year, Fox refused to air GoDaddy’s “Exposure” ad starring IndyCar® Series driver Danica Patrick. Instead, GoDaddy ran another ad directing viewers to visit the GoDaddy site to see “Exposure”. Also, in 2005 Fox refused to give a GoDaddy ad its encore performance after NFL officials questioned content.
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Super Bowl Brands: Audi
Does Audi Have Another Winner?
Last year, Audi’s Super Bowl spot featured its R8 sport car in a spoof of “The Godfather.” Audi saw quite the ROI on this 60 second spot, earning Audi a second place finish in “total buzz” after the game and successfully drove traffic to Audi’s website.
Audi’s 2008 ad featured the tagline: “Old luxury just got put on notice.” Audi’s ad agency, San Francisco-based Venables Bell & Partners, created this year’s ad though “it’s not public yet.” Rumor has it that is will show a progression through time using vintage to modern models of Audi vehicles. Do you think it will play off the same tagline as last year and focus on modern luxury or will it attempt to win customers over by focusing on the heritage of the brand? Check out the game’s first quarter to see how Audi spins this year’s spot.
By: Rebecca Parker
Super Bowl Brands: Pepsi
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PepsiCo has initiated some intense renovations since the end of its 40-year relationship with Ad agency BBDO. With several of its beverage brands undergoing facelifts, Pepsi may use Super Bowl 44 as a bit of a debutante ball.
Pepsi Cola, famous for using comical celebrity endorsements in its super bowl spots, will likely put a different spin on its ads this year. The brand seems to be borrowing a bit of President Obama’s ‘hope’ equity with a new, optimistic, “Refresh everything” theme as well as a new logo. While last year’s ad dragged Justin Timberlake across NYC, this year may employ a more inspirational theme.
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