Thursday, October 31, 2013

BOO! Hahaha....Nailed It



“I Am In The Office”


Well, I can't say this is the most original Sametime Status you've ever come up with.  I also can't say it's the worst.  


Well, strictly speaking, it's my Sametime Status's Halloween costume.  It's going as a standard, boring Sametime Status.


I would like to amend my previous opinion.  This is also not the worst Halloween costume you've come up with.  Remember that time you wore a green shirt and put a flashlight on your head to go as the Green Lantern?


That was funny!


Or that time you drew an H on your forehead and said you were Arnold Rimmer's hologram from Red Dwarf?


Also hilarious!  I really fail to see your point.  Happy Halloween, everybody!       

Tuesday, October 29, 2013

Stupid, Stupid Jeremy!



No, I’m not the Jeremy from those cell phone commercials


That's too bad.  I always like when you get publicly shamed on national television.  


Any how many times has that happened?


Just the once, as far as I know.


Wait, what?  

Anyway, I've Mentioned Before about how some people named Jeremy give the rest of us Jeremys a bad name.  They cause people to yell at them by doing stupid and/or obnoxious things in public.  Well, now, T-Mobile has gone too far and made the subject of their Nationally Televised Ridicule a chump named Jeremy.  Apparently, this other Jeremy (who I'm assuming is entirely fictitious) is traipsing around Europe ringing up huge cell phone bills because he doesn't have the right carrier.  

Well, let me assure you that I've been to Europe.  Several times.  And let me also assure you that prior to going there, I did a little research on whether or not my phone would even work on their cell networks, let alone whether there would be additional charges.  I'm smart like that.  As a result, I incurred precisely zero extra fees on my cell phone bill during my travels.  Not like that other Jeremy...jerk.  

So feel free to stop asking me if I'm that idiot Jeremy who doesn't know how to read a cell phone coverage map.  I'm a little better than that, thank you very much.   

Monday, October 28, 2013

There Was A Stalker Named Subzero In The Movie



Stephen King has apparently retired from writing and now plays goalie for the Edmonton Oilers


Wait...Stephen King doing something that doesn't involve the state of Maine?  This seems unlikely.  


So let's leave Stephen King alone for just a moment and talk about another writer by the name of Richard Bachman.  Bachman is an accomplished horror fiction writer, with such works as "Thinner," "The Running Man" (Later made into an action blockbuster starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, though the movie had precious little to do with the book, but I digress), and "Blaze."  Bachman was thought to have died of cancer shortly after "Thinner" was published in 1984, but two additional manuscripts were found and published posthumously in 1996 and 2007. 

Richard Bachman was Stephen King.  Most people know this, but since 52% Of People Think Lasers Work By Focusing Sound Waves, I take nothing for granted.  At the time of "Thinner"'s publication, an astute book reviewer noted similarities between King's and Bachman's writing style, and was granted an interview by King himself who revealed his pen name.  The prevailing theory of the time was that a publisher would only release one book per year per author so as to not saturate the literary market with one author's work.  This has since been widely debunked, but it was the feeling at the time.  King wrote as himself and as Bachman as a way to skirt this issue, to at least some success.  The official cause of death for Bachman was listed by the Washington Post as "cancer of the pseudonym."  King chose the name Bachman because the song "You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet" by Bachman Turner Overdrive was playing when he was asked to choose his nom de plume.  True story. 

So I told you that story so I can tell you this story.  Richard Bachman is also the name of an ice hockey goaltender.  He had played a toal of 19 games for the Dallas Stars prior to this season, and I had never heard of him.  He signed with the Edmonton Oilers this past off-season and made his Oilers debut last night against the LA Kings.  I was listening to the game on the radio and was forced to laugh every time they mentioned the name "Richard Bachman."  It made me think Stephen King had suited up for the Oilers and something really really bad was about to happen to the Kings. 

Friday, October 25, 2013

May The Force Be With You While You Live Long And Prosper



My idea for Star Wars - Episode IX: End scene, roll credits, fade in to Spock waking up in his quarters and saying, “Woah, I just had the worst dream…”  Fade to black 


I would almost agree that this is a good idea, in a nerd trolling sort of way, but I'm afraid that there would be riots.  There are probably already going to angry emails sent your direction.


I should be a screenwriter.  My book and movie ideas would sell millions, if only for the pure hatred of the concepts.  A while back, I came up with my idea for the end of the Harry Potter series in which the whole show comes to a very abrupt end with Voldemort killing Harry and taking over the magical world.  Imagine that...nearly 7 books and untold billions of dollars invested in a series, movies that had already been cast and had directors hired before the final book ever came out...and it all ends with on incredibly short prank ending.  People had already devoted their lives to the series, only to have the rug pulled out from under them in one glorious swoop.  There would have been massive panic in the streets outside of my house, but I'd be living someplace far away in my incredibly giant mansion, laughing all the way to the bank.  

J.J. Abrams is in a rather unique position to do something just as bold and shocking.  We all know that geekdom is highly segregated between the Star Wars fans and the Star Trek fans.  Both are multi billion dollar franchises, both function entirely on their own merits, but ask any nerd to compare the two, and their answer will be one sided and more emotional than you're expecting (Heaven help you if you search the internet for which ship would win a battle between the Enterprise and the Millennium Falcon).  Star Trek recently saw its universe rebooted with the 2009 film (with one sequel released and at least one more to come), and recent buzz surrounds the upcoming Star Wars sequel trilogy, episodes 7, 8, and 9, due to start being dumped on us in 2015.  Quite honestly, nobody needs more of either series.  Right around the time Lone Star married Princess Vespa, Captain Kirk met God, and Jar Jar Binks showed up, we all knew we'd reached the end of what could reasonably be expected.  Yet, here we are, with more movies planned, and more money about to be shoveled towards Hollywood for producing roughly nothing new.  Not all that long ago, when it was announced that J.J. Abrams would be directing Star Wars, Episode VII, hot on the heels of his directing the new Star Trek movies, I thought the world was going to implode.  How could the universe expect these two series to coexist under one director?  

Well, since there is plenty of speculation about the plots and characters of the upcoming Star Wars sequels, I thought I'd put in my two cents (Considerably more after I'm granted writing credit and royalties).  I think it would be Genius if the Star Wars series would end as a nightmare in the mind of Spock.  It's not such a bad thing, since it's not as if the Star Wars series has any integrity left anyway...not after Episodes 1-3.  They've already rendered the entire series unwatchable, so why not go out with a controversy for the ages?  

I chose Spock for one very important reason...recognizability.  Since the reboot, the image of Captain Kirk has changed enough going from William Shatner to Chris Pine that he might not be immediately recognized.  But Zach Quinto looks enough like Leonard Nimoy that, especially with the iconic pointy Vulcan ears, the character of Spock will be unmistakable for anyone who has ever watched Science Fiction.  It just makes sense.  

It would be as if millions of nerdy voices all cried out at once, and they'd never be silenced again.  J.J. Abrams and I can then laugh all the way to the bank.  

Thursday, October 24, 2013

More Than You Wanted To Know



Somebody may now explain to me why I have the theme song to Disney’s “Bonkers” stuck in my head
 


If you actually think anybody here is going to explain what's going on in your head, I have some really bad news for you....


So, Bonkers was a Disney cartoon that ran back in the mid 90's about a cartoon character who was pushed out of the cartoon business and ended up with a job as a police officer in a place called "Toon Town."  If this sounds like a bit of a cross between several Warner Brothers characters of the same era (Yakko, Wakko, and Dot mized with Slappy Squirrel), well, a case could be made that you're right.  There is also plenty of resemblance to the film "Who Framed Roger Rabbit" which came out 5 years earlier.  Generally speaking, the whole premise of the show was nothing unique at the time. 

Regardless, this cartoon was a major divergence from Disney's usual brand of cartoon into the more off-the-wall slapstick type of humor that Warner Brothers had been putting out very successfully for many years.  (See: Bunny, Bugs)  Only problem with this is that while this type of cartoon is right in WB's wheelhouse, Disney wasn't particularly good at it.  Overall, the show fell pretty flat and lasted the standard 65 episode limit of many Disney shows before Bonkers D. Bobcat was retired for good. 

As is also typical of Disney's cartoons, much effort was put into the Opening Theme Song.  (See, Rescue Rangers, Gargolyes, Darkwing Duck)  The result was arguably the best part of the show.  While this is all well and good...I have no explanation for why it's been in my head lately. 




Wednesday, October 23, 2013

Ready For Spring



Sadly, it looks like I’m going to have to turn the heat on


One more in the Win column for Mother Nature, that bitter old crank.  


I don't really know why I do this to myself.  I mean...I know why, but I also very much don't.  Every  year about this time, I engage in a battle of wills with the weather to see just how long I can go without turning the heat on in my house.  Ostensibly, it's because heat can get expensive, but that fact doesn't much cross my mind when I'm getting ready for work in a 62 degree house thinking I can hold out one more week to make it into November.  I'm not so much concerned about saving the couple of dollars (absolute max) it will run me to bump the temperature up 8 degrees or so for an hour in the morning as I am having my human spirit triumph by not flipping one little switch.  

I don't know why I do this to myself.  

I prefer summer over winter, and while there's something noble about not giving up on summer just yet, the leaves all over my yard and the frost on the leaves all over my yard don't lie.  Summer is finished, the temperatures won't be going up again for a little while, and I will simply have to turn to fossil fuels to provide my heat for a little while.

I'm miserable and whiny when I'm cold.  

So why do I force cold upon myself in the name of a futile gesture against the forces of nature?  I'm not happy about it, nor do I really have any chance of winning.  I really should just bite the bullet and flip the thermostat to "On"...but I just can't yet.  I've almost made it to November!

Monday, October 21, 2013

The Real Star Was, Of Course, A Car



Thanks for the spoiler alert, Waylon Jennings


How dare you accuse The Balladeer of anything untoward!  He's just telling us about two good ol' boys who never mean any harm.  


My bigger issue is with an issue later on in the song...but first a little background.

Waylon Jennings is very well known for his performance singing the theme song to the classic TV show "The Dukes of Hazzard."  It's a show about two cousins Bo and Luke Duke who live with their uncle Jesse and other cousin Daisy.  They're on probation or something and live their lives trying to be upstanding members of the community.  Standing in their way is what stands for the authority figures in their county, which consists of a corrupt rich guy ("Boss" J.D. Hogg) who wants to own and run everything and a remarkably incompetent sheriff (Roscoe P. Coltrane).  Every episode consists of some scheme run by the rich guy and the sheriff to arrest the Dukes and take their farm.  We then live in suspense about whether the Dukes are going to be able to avoid the sheriff and foil the scheme.

Here's the problem:  Waylon Jennings tells us at the start of every episode that, as far as the Dukes are concerned, "someday the mountain might get 'em, but the law never will."  So, we know right off the bat that the Dukes are going to get away scot-free, regardless of what plat or scheme has been concocted by Boss Hogg and Sheriff Coltrane.  

True story, I once had to yell at my radio because some guy called into the morning show talking about "Rosco Picotrain."  He said it several times, and he was wrong.  I had enough.

So anyway, every episode of The Dukes of Hazzard has been ruined right from the start by the theme song with nary a mention of "Spoiler Alert."  Thanks, Waylon Jennings. 

Friday, October 18, 2013

So Far, 5 People Have Asked For The Punchline



What do you get when you cross a joke with a rhetorical question?  


An awful Sametime Status and a continuation of a horrible trend of Friday Blag entries?


You're so negative.  What's gotten you so grumpy?


Rhetorical Friday always makes me grumpy.  I don't know why.


Well, everyone else loves it!


For certain definitions of "everyone."


Well, it's time to be happy.  It's Friday afternoon, it's fall, and we're currently at the peak of leaf peeping season here in the Greater Jeremy Area.  They actually told me that on the radio this morning.  It'll be the weekend soon, and there's a whole world of happiness to explore.


And instead of exploring any of it, you give us more Rhetorical Friday.


It's what I do!  Have a good weekend, everybody! 

Wednesday, October 16, 2013

Politicians Are Not Welcome On My Lake



When the government defaults tonight, I call dibs on repossessing Lake Tahoe!


I just want a new car.  One of the congressional limos should do just fine.


So here we are, on the brink of self-induced financial disaster, and still listening to speeches of talking points and rhetoric.  If any of my loyal readers out there thought this would be any different, I feel bad for you and offer whatever services are at my disposal to help you.  

Tonight at midnight is the time the country goes into default for the first time ever, violating the 14th Amendment to the same Constitution that everyone loves to throw in the face of the other side.  While I'm not an economics expert, nor am I an expert in loan default (thought I have often considered the fact that it would be in my best interests to allow my mortgage to go into foreclosure, but that's beside the point entirely), I have come up with a scenario that I believe works out well for me.  If the country defaults, we get to use the country as collateral to collect.  

So, in order to get the ball rolling, I've claimed Lake Tahoe.  It's in sunny Nevada, it's a prime vacation spot with sunny beaches, boats, night life, casinos and everything a person of leisure could possibly want.  It seems like the perfect place for me, so it's mine.  I called it.  The country has a lot of other great stuff...what do you want to stake your claim to?  

Monday, October 14, 2013

How About It, Kellogg's?



How can there be two different sizes of Mini Wheats? 


They're all the same.  Some of them just haven't grown up all the way yet.


I have a confession to make.  Today's Sametime Status is incorrect.  I wrote it this morning without full knowledge of what I was talking about, and I made an error.  It happens, let's move on. 

There are three different sizes of Mini Wheats. 

So, I don't eat cereal very often, but it happens on occasion.  I don't have a specific cereal that I always get...it very much depends on what kind of mood I was in the last time I was in the grocery store.  Sometimes it's Raisin Bran (The kind with the little crunchies in it, not just the regular stuff), sometimes it's Frosted Flakes, sometimes Peanut Butter Puffs...I vary.  I have no idea at what point in my life I realized that Frosted Mini Wheats were good, but it happened somewhere along the way.  I also can't accurately recall the last time I bought a box of Frosted Mini Wheats, but I can guarantee you it has been several years.  Unlike Frosted Flakes or Cocoa Pebbles, which haven't changed in seemingly forever, I was unprepared for the fact that Frosted Mini Wheats now came in a ludicrous number of varieties. 

There are Brown Sugar ones, Maple Brown Sugar ones, Blueberry, Strawberry, Raspberry, Mixed Berry, Cinnamon...who knows what else.  I'm okay with adding flavors to the cereal, since it doesn't change the nature of the product, just adds a little variety.  But when I looked back at the row of boxes to make sure I had grabbed regular plain old Frosted Mini Wheats, I saw another, redder box of regular plain old Frosted Mini Wheats (For the record, my box was orange).  Both boxes said Frosted Mini Wheats.  Both boxes said "Regular."    So why was my box different?  Well, unbeknownst to me, Mini Wheats now came in multiple sizes, and mine weren't the regular size.  

So, now, in addition to having Mini Wheats, we have Mini Wheats "Little Bites" and Mini Wheats "Big Bites."  This is nonsense.  I'm an engineer, and we engineers deal in both precision and standards.  Once the standard for "Mini" has been set, you can't simply change it all willy-nilly.  Mini is a very specific size of Wheat, and if you are going to shift gears and make a completely different size of Wheat, you can no longer call it "Mini."  Especially if it's considerably larger, then it's just "Wheat."  Except for the fact that the standard for "Shredded Wheat" has also already been established, and It's Monstrous.  So maybe we jumped the gun on the whole "Mini Wheat" concept, and should have left ourselves with something a little more granular to describe the size of our Wheat?  Either way, you can't just go around making different sizes of Mini Wheat and still call it Mini Wheat.

Thursday, October 10, 2013

Only Woke Up Because Of The Blue Moon In My Eyes



It’s a little sad to watch the slow, painful death of my alarm clock


Is that why you were late for work yesterday?


In fact, it is.  But only by a few minutes...it wasn't so bad.  


Downright refreshing for some of us.


So what appears to be happening is the power amplifier of my alarm clock is dying for some unknown reason.  The electronics all work fine, but the final output, in terms of sound, is an ever-decreasing amount of sound.  Sure, the left channel speakers haven't worked in some time (which makes for remarkably interesting music when the radio station plays Bohemian Rhapsody in the morning), but I assume this is an unrelated event.  So yesterday, my alarm clock started playing it's little beeping noises, but the volume was so low, I didn't notice it for like 20 minutes.  I turned up the volume, but the output today was less than was expected.  I fully expect the sound output to be zero within the next couple of days.  This is a bad thing as far as alarm clocks are concerned.  So, I set out on my quest to procure a new alarm clock.  This is so much worse than you might expect.  

You see, my current alarm clock is so much more than an alarm clock.  It's all fancy and stuff.  It not only has a "Gentle Wake" feature so the beeping starts at a low volume and slowly increases until you wake up, but is also has a "Weekend Sleeper" function which can be set to automatically not go off on Saturday and Sunday.  It had a pleasant blue face which was not annoying while sleeping, it had a CD player which I even used like twice, and it actually had totally decent sound for a small radio.  It was a good and faithful multi-featured alarm clock.  People don't make these anymore. 

As I'm quickly finding out, electronics companies have realized that a lot of people simply use their smartphones as alarm clocks now, so the options in terms of clock radios are fairly slim.  Many of the upper-echelon clock radios out there are made to be compatible with iPhones, which I don't have.  At least partially because all of these radios use Apple's moronic proprietary connecter which just changed last year, so any iPhone-compatible clock radio you bought before the even more moronic "Lightning Connector" is now useless.  You have to buy a new radio to be compatible with the new phone you just bought because Apple is too greedy to/can't be bothered to use a universal dock.  All of these clock radios are out. 

Also available are clock radios with a USB connection for those of us with Android phones or any other device which uses USB.  This would seem to be the way to go, except that most don't actually connect your device to the amplifier using the USB...they're simply charging connections.  Also, very few of these have built-in radios, so regardless, you're relying on your cell phone for virtually all of the audio functions of the unit.  

I just want an alarm clock that can charge my phone, connect to it to play music if I want, have a radio if I want that, has decent sound so I can listen to the aforementioned radio while I get ready for work, has two different alarm settings, a gentle-wake feature and an automatic weekend mode.  This is clearly too much to ask, because I've been searching for a day and a half now and have found precisely bupkus. 

Tuesday, October 8, 2013

I Hear James Van Der Beek Is Free



Attention, makers of “Sharknado”...“Bird Flu Bee Hive.”  You’re welcome


Coming soon, to theaters in all the towns where people you hate live...


So, we're all familiar with "The Asylum" by now, right?  They're the bargain basement film production company responsible for trashterpieces like "Snakes on a Train," "Mega Shark vs. Crocasaurus," "Mega Python vs Gateroid," and of course, "Sharknado."  Many of these films spend their lives going direct to video or being broadcast on the SyFy channel, formerly known as SciFi before they morally had to remove any semblance of the word "science" from their name.  

Well, after the smash hit that was "Sharknado," my friends at "The Asylum"...


Who else can't believe it's taken Jeremy this long to use the phrase "My friends at the asylum?"  Show of hands?


...are scrambling to find their next great idea.  The only thing they seem to have come up with, aside from 13/13/13 (The shocking sequel to the apocalyptic thriller "12/12/12"), Alone For Christmas, The Bell Witch Haunting, Wonderland, and Atilla, is a sequel named...and I wish I was making this up..."Sharknado 2, The Second One."  Yes, the well is running dry.  So, I've taken it upon myself to supply them with the next big thing, because that's just the kind of guy I am.


Sadistic?  Evil?  Sociopathic?


Generous with my creativity!  The idea is Genius.  The single greatest threat surrounding mankind is the upcoming Bird Flu Pandemic...everyone knows this.  People are also currently scared by the swarms of Giant Killer Hornets currently marauding their way through China.  So, combine the two into one massively horrifying film spectacular!  A queen bee gets infected with Bird Flu while stinging a rogue chicken that escaped from being culled.  The queen infects the rest of the hive, and Bird Flu-laced hornets proceed to wreak havoc over the entire global population, swarming and spreading deadly Bird Flu everywhere.  The film practically writes itself.  So, when can I expect my first royalty check, and how soon after that can I put this idea on my IMBD page? 

Monday, October 7, 2013

Keanu Reeves Plays Spock


Well, it’s official.  WALL-E is better at flying a fire extinguisher than Sandra Bullock  


It's also official!  Jeremy is going to disparage one of the best-reviewed movies of the year.  Have at it, Jeremy.


As of this writing, "Gravity" is chugging along with a tidy 98% Tomato Meter.  They don't get a whole lot better than that, but I have an issue with that number.  I'm pretty sure that the reviewers are artificially giving it a good review based on cinematics and visuals rather than the quality of the movie itself.  The film is basically the next sequel to "Speed," but up in space and with fewer bad guys.  The idea is that Sandra Bullock and George Clooney are astronauts fixing the Hubble Space Telescope in the not-entirely-too-far-off-future.  Either the Chinese or the Russians (I honestly forget who) blow up a satellite which causes a deadly storm of space-shrapnel to destroy everything in orbit in a series of chain-reaction barrages in Null-G.  Our heroes must then find a way back to earth.  Adventure ensues.  

So, let's leave aside some of the more nit-picky scientific inaccuracies such as the orbital physics of the Hubble Telescope versus the International Space Station and how it's basically impossible to jump from one to the next, and just deal with Null-G training.  It is implied that our heroes have been in space for a considerable amount of time....on the order of weeks.  It stands to reason that people entrusted with that job would be familiar with some of the basic concepts of working while in orbit.  It's shown that they do have some training when it comes to using tools and the whole equal and opposite reaction thing.  So why is it that when it's time to put out a fire, Sandra Bullock thinks that just floating in the middle of the room and spraying a fire extinguisher isn't going to have consequences?  She quickly learns the hard way that she goes flying the other direction and smacks her head into the wall.  Seems like the kind of thing that should be second-nature to astronauts. 

Turns out, we learn why a little later, when she's adrift in space and uses the fire extinguisher to proper herself toward the next orbiting satellite.  This was an incredibly unique cinematic achievement, as we haven't had a scene like that in a film ever...since 2008, when WALL-E did the exact same thing but in a Far More Adorable Way.  I'm not a rocket scientist, so maybe there's some major difference between the mechanics of flying with a fire extinguisher while in low earth orbit versus flying with a fire extinguisher adrift in deep space, but the average audience probably won't care.  

Overall, the story of this movie falls a little flat.  There some remarkably forced back-story about Sandra Bullock and her character's deceased child which involves the kind of emotional detachment that would probably make somebody unfit for NASA service.  There's the formulaic triumph over tragedy drama build-up that we've seen over and over and over in Hollywood.  There's the ridiculous Sandra Bullock-as-an-embryo metaphoric scene.  There's the 3D effects for the sake of 3D effects...there's really not a lot to like about this movie.  

Except for the cinematography, which includes some of the most amazing visuals you will ever see on the silver screen.  The fact that nearly the entire movie takes place in low earth orbit and null-gravity makes the filming amazing.  Characters are suspended and spinning wildly out of control the whole time.  Stuff floats around, water beads up (yes, tears bead up, too), Marvin the Martian floats off into space, moving characters and vehicles keep moving without opposing forces.  You have never seen a movie like this before.  You may not see a movie like this again.  Just too bad they didn't make it a better movie.  


This has been another edition of Jeremy Is In The Theatre

Wednesday, October 2, 2013

Yes, Reader. I'm Pointing At Us.



I always point at people when I tell them they’re awesome.  That way, there are always three fingers pointing back at me


I don't think that's how the saying goes...


Sure, the whole point of the phrase is to demean somebody for being negative.  But isn't there a little bit of irony in pointing out the fault in somebody pointing out the fault in somebody else?  I prefer to take the tired old phrase and turn it around into something positive and more optimistic.  I'm also fantastic at being modest.  

Anyway...you've all heard somebody say that you should never point fingers, because there's three other fingers pointing back at you.  As if to insinuate that I'm always to blame when I realize that somebody else screwed up.  That always seemed a little wrong to me, but I guess it works for congress.    So I had always used a slightly different loophole when finger-pointing.  I would instead gesture with my entire hand.  That way, there weren't any fingers pointing back at me when I wasn't the one who fouled things up in the first place.  

Now, I've gone and usurped this little cliche for my own affirmative purposes...and let's be honest, for the truth.  I can certainly accept that there are other awesome people in the world, so I am not loathe to point out their awesomeness to them.  I will point at them, say "You're awesome!" and truly mean it.  But, of course, those other three fingers are pointed right back at myself.  After all, if I'm going to take 3 times the blame for when they suck, I'm going to take 3 times the credit when they're awesome.  


Speaking of awesome...


Yeah, it's pretty awesome that I'm able to type this to you right now.  My computer is on life-support at the moment, functioning minute-by-minute until I get a new hard drive delivered.   I don't know when I'll be getting that, or how much I'll be able to use this thing until the next BSOD, so I'd better post this while I can. 

Tuesday, October 1, 2013

Somebody Thought This Was A Good Idea



Why is Domino's running a commercial showing that the people who answer their phones are incompetent buffoons?  


Have you been to a Domino's lately?  


Oh come on now, be nice.  I'm sure the highly-trained folks at Domino's are perfectly nice and talented people who may read blags on the internets.  Their management may not agree, as it would seem.

So recently, I started seeing a new commercial for Domino's pizza...( Watch It Here, if you'd like ) wherein Domino's is trying to show you how easy and convenient it is to order all of your pizza and pizza-related foodstuffs over the internets on Their Website.  In all fairness, the website ordering is totally decent, though Other Pizza Places have Online Ordering as well, so it's not all that special anymore.  In order to show how great it is to order pizza over the internets, the commercial features a Domino's employee fumbling all over himself trying to take a pizza order over the phone.  

While the point of the commercial is certainly to show how simple and error-proof the online ordering system is, it leads me to believe that Domino's employees are unable to do some of the most basic and vital aspects of their jobs.  Those aspects, of course, being to take an order for a pizza and subsequently create that food for the customer.  Are we to believe that the only viable way to ensure proper food creation now is through online ordering?  That the competence of the Domino's staff has reached such a low point that they can't even be trusted to talk on the phone?  If I can't trust the restaurant staff to properly write down the toppings for a pizza, why should I trust them to actually create my pizza in a correct and sanitary manner?  Your commercial has instilled that much doubt in your abilities.

Or is this entirely be design?  Maybe you don't want that level of customer-employee interaction.  Is it pure laziness that you want me to do your employees' work for you?  If they're busy talking on the phone, they're not busy making pizza...so pass the grunt work off onto the customer?  Or maybe you can get away with having fewer employees staffing your restaurants so you can make a bigger profit?  Either way, I no longer believe that your restaurant is able to meet my pizza-making needs, so I don't think I'll be ordering from you anytime soon.  The Papa John's is closer anyway.