Wait! We've still got, like, two weeks!

Just in the last couple of days, I've started to notice the clear signs of summer's end here in Colorado. I'm sure the same sorts of things were happening this time last August, but I probably wasn't paying attention because I wasn't quite as dismayed to see the harbingers of eventual winter.

There's a tree down the street that's started to change color, and I've seen at least two groups of Canadian geese fly by my deck. Yeah, it's still 90 degrees outside every day, but autumn's in the mail, for sure. Pretty soon Chris will get all starry-eyed at the thought of not having to mow the lawn for six months, and I'll make my dog look ridiculous by dressing her in pajamas at night. Good times, people. I'm still not used to living somewhere with seasons, but I will say it's a nice way for nature to mark the passage of time.

They're getting pretty cheeky

The marketers at Coca-Cola, that's who. Soda sales must really be in the toilet for them to slap the following ridiculous copy on the side of each and every one of their 12-packs:

Who know soft drinks could be hydrating?

It's true. All beverages hydrate, including soft drinks. So if you are looking for hydration, but want the delicious and refreshing tase you get form Coca-Cola, don't compromise -- go for it. You'll be hydrating your body with each and every sip.

We offer over 80 ways to hydrate, energize, nourish, relax, or enjoy every drop of life. For more information on the benefits of hydration, go to: hydration.thecoca-colacompany.com

Are they serious? "All beverages hydrate" is the biggest half-truth I've ever seen. Sure they do. Am I the only one that thinks this copy comes dangerously close to "all beverages hydrate equally"? Some more equally than others, obviously. I included the link to their website because it's late and I can't adequately convey my incredulity. It shows a picture of a woman in front of the ocean, drinking water, for heaven sake. They go on and on about the importance of hydration, even offering a hydration calculator to help me figure out how much liquid I need every day. Turns out it's 91 ounces... of water, energy drinks, black coffee, or even refreshing Coca-Cola! Who knew how many choices I had!

I can sleep well tonight, knowing that the benevolent Coca-Cola company has my hydration needs squarely at heart. Well, not sleep, exactly. I've just finished 8 cans of Coke so I can get a head start on tomorrow's hydration needs.

And here's just a quick heads-up -- if you happen to see the word "hydration" any time in the next two weeks, you've now been fully brainwashed to start yearning for one of 80 Coca-Cola products. You've been warned.

Iowa State Fair!

It's Wednesday, so that means I'm just about recovered from the awesome experience of attending the Iowa State Fair. It was everything I had hoped for -- bluegrass, fried things, old architechture, and lots of the other bits of America that I don't hate. I got two new states out of this trip (the other one being Nebraska), and Chris managed to check off Iowa as his 49th state. We didn't get a picture because the western state line is over a river. Ah, well.

For everyone's viewing pleasure, we stuck together a quick slide show of some of our pictures. I didn't even get pictures of lots of the cool stuff we saw. They have separate horse, cattle, and sheep buildings, and one building that just housed pregnant animals and ones that had recently given birth -- they showed videos on big screens of goats being born from the day before, and we saw some piglets that were just a couple of hours old. People are just a whole lot more involved in livestock in Iowa. It sounds obvious, but there you have it. Another thing they take very seriously is 4-H. An entire building was devoted to 4-H projects and shows -- the canoe you see in the video was built by a 13-year-old girl (with a little help from her dad). I guess when you live in the middle of nowhere, you've got a little extra time on your hands.

I'm so glad we went -- it's probably the best fair I'll ever see in my life.


A couple words about the video. If you can, turn your sound on for the full bluegrass experience. Also, that big yellow cow? The one that looks like it's made out of butter? It is. They also had a butter Harry Potter and lots of his butter accessories, including butter Hedwig, a butter Fat Lady portrait, and a butter Care of Magical Creatures book. Is there NOTHING butter can't do? USA! USA! USA!

Funny client name of the day

I have no idea what these people do or what they're all about, but they have a seriously entertaining company name: Additives Plus, Inc. It's additives... plus. Think about it enough, and your head will explode.