Category: just for fun

Saturday Six: because I took Friday off

I blew off my Friday Five this week, but now I’m racked with guilt, so today I’m giving you an extra click for your weekend blog-reading pleasure.

  1. The good, bad and ugly of campus visits, by Tom Hayes of SimpsonScarborough. Hayes is accompanying his daughter on her quest for a college home, and so far they’ve visited 10 campuses, with two more to go. Hayes offers perceptions on the good, bad and ugly of the campus tours.
  2. This blog has been tagged in the thinking bloggers meme that’s been going around. I first read about it on Robert French’s blog. I was shocked — shocked! — that French didn’t mention me as one of the five bloggers who make him think, but he did mention Karine Joly (who would certainly make my list, along with French), and she picked up on the meme theme and mentioned this one. I’m truly honored and humbled by this selection, and must get to work on my acceptance speech post haste.
  3. Diva Marketing celebrates three years of blogging with a look how blogging has changed her business. Happy blogiversary, Diva.
  4. Watch this video or we’ll shoot this puppy! National Lampoon — anyone remember them? — joins the world of viral video by launching an online video network. Global Neighbourhoods provides the scoop, noting that the announcement came in the form of “a very top-down, unfunny business-to-business oriented press release.” That’s pretty sad. Calling P.J. O’Rourke…
  5. While we’re on the subject of viral video, Dennis Miller of Mansfield University posted recently about his second thoughts on posting college-promo video to YouTube (see YouTube: Wrong Channel?). His second thoughts came after a discussion with some female students at Mansfield who told him YouTube was “mainly a guy thing” and used only for catching stupid videos. Karine Joly picks up the topic and ponders whether there might be hope for Miller and Mansfield after all.
  6. After weeks of blogging inactivity, eRelevant‘s Morgan Davis announces a hiatus from blogging so he can “finish some hulking, be-fanged programming projects.” He plans to relaunch the blog in the fall and vows: “It will be less personal, less inflammatory and more topical and content-oriented.” I only hope the inflammation doesn’t disappear completely. That’s part of what makes eRelevant so irreverent.

Bonus link: the latest eduflick, Chalk, looks interesting. Link via EduWonk.

Friday Five: Cinco de Mayo Eve edition

Happy Cinco de Mayo Eve, gentle reader. I don’t know about you, but all week long I’ve been thinking about kicking back on Saturday with some homemade guacamole, a few cervezas and some appropriate music (or, better yet, some Los Straitjackets!) for the holiday. Perhaps it’s more spring fever than anything. Anyway, in honor of this special day, I offer cinco cosas to ponder this Friday:

  • Katie Couric rated ‘most negative’ among network news anchors. So says a new poll (link via I Want Media). Who would’ve thought that perky Katie Couric would be a nattering nabob of negativity? Well, she isn’t, despite the headlines. A full 51 percent of those surveyed said they had a positive view of CBS’ Couric. It’s just that more people surveyed think more highly of NBC’s Brian Williams and ABC’s Charles Gibson.
  • EducationPR provides some good blog coverage of the National Education Writers Association conference in L.A.
  • Three higher ed blogs I’d like to see updated more often: College v2 (last updated in February), University Web Marketing and Usability (last updated March 22) and, of course, eRelevant (silent since March 30).
  • Fuzzy Content discusses social networks growing up and sheds light on a couple new networks. (While we’re on the topic of social networks, don’t forget about the latest one for higher ed PR/marketing practitioners, Higher Ed Experts, which combines social networking with professional development.)
  • My top five albums of 2007, thus far:
    1. Living With the Living, Ted Leo and the Pharmacists. Rock and roll and politics.
    2. Neon Bible, Arcade Fire. I never thought they could improve upon their debut, Funeral. I’m happy to say I was wrong. More Springsteen than the Smiths, but I’m OK with it.
    3. Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer? Of Montreal. Fun, experimental, ebullient stuff from Athens, Georgia’s quirkiest band since the B-52s.
    4. Sermon on Exposition Boulevard, Rickie Lee Jones. A beautiful ragamuffin interpretation of spiritual concepts.
    5. We’ll Never Turn Back, Mavis Staples. Mississippi Delta blues and gospel at its core from one of the Staples Singers.

      6. Interestingly, all are available for download at eMusic, which offers the best deal for independent music lovers. Better than iTunes, IMNSHO.