by | November 24, 2011

a dose of dickens

http://www.culturecompass.co.uk/2011/11/23/dickens-on-screen-and-for-christmas

Before the world is seemingly going to go Dickens-mad (if you haven’t read my feature above, we are celebrating 200 years since the day the great story-teller was born), I thought you might be interested in a tip off.  I know someone (rather well) who sells beautiful first editions by Dickens.  He informs me:  ‘Prices of copies in contemporary 19th century bindings, including leather, are surprisingly modest and there should be scope for increases in value after such events as the 200th anniversary of his birth.’ 

In an unsettled economy, always buy investments from a trusty source. Contact Ian Hodgkins & Co, leading specialists in 19th Century books, by emailing simon@ianhodgkins.com  Quote ‘lifeofyablon’ so that they know i sent you

 

 

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by | November 16, 2011

Di-vine De-stress

We’re so English.  The idea of welcoming a stranger into our home, taking off our clothes and lying almost butt-naked for an hour would fill us with dread.

Enter Alexia.

She is yogic, immediately bare foot and exudes calmness in everything she says and does.  Seamlessly, she has magically hot-footed upstairs and, within minutes, has turned our guest room into a spa haven with dimmed lights, a candle and hypnotic music.

As a working mother, I have always considered myself to be an extraordinarily effective multi-tasker.  Only recently, I have realized that, by squeezing hour-long tasks into 30 minute slots, I am an obvious culprit of the newly revealed ‘over-multitasking’.  Hence the stress, which Alexia discovers accumulating in my shoulders. She sets to work to untangle my tense body.

I drift away to a far-off land.  My deadlines, the kids’ homework and an empty fridge are simply a vague
memory.  The only frustration is that Alexia is great company and has many a good yarn to tell of her travels, but
she politely suggests I don’t chat in order to gain maximum benefit from her relaxation magic.

An hour later, I am transformed.  I am convinced that massage is the drug of today and Alexia is the goddess of all massages.

We all need a fix.  Contact Alexia before she goes exploring the world, again. Mobile: 07508025112

(quote: lifeofyablon)

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by | November 13, 2011

are we twits to tweet?

It’s curious to sit (and not tweet) and wonder what we did in a world before we broadcasted our lesser thoughts across the Twitter highway?  How did we spend our extra minutes or hours (if we are twit-obsessed) in the olden days? Did we ever wonder what someone we didn’t know was thinking?

Today I am writing as a director of www.evolvdigital.com  where we advise all our clients to
allocate budget/time to social media activity. We know, as a fact, that this will increase their an effective way for them to listen to their customers’ feedback or even carry out market research.  Many consumer-facing businesses use these channels to announce new products,
promotions, competitions and even publicise new hires.

But there is no doubt that this aspect of a marketing campaign takes investment in the form of time and effort.  Unlike a TV advertising campaign, a network of core supporters cannot be bought in the same way as a media spot.  Followers need to be as relevant as the tweets released and brand credibility can only be achieved with the right attitude and tone of voice, often only appropriate within the context of social media.

Clearly, for businesses, Twitter is a necessary evil.  Yet the real drivers behind this adrenalized broadcasting system are the celebrities and media worlds entwined. Well known household names tell us what they eating, reading and thinking in this ungoverned forum and we, as
followers, are hooked.

I wonder what is the future of Twitter?  Is this stream of consciousness, refreshed every few seconds, a mind-blowingly cool time capsule or just an extraordinary time-waster?

Try and answer me in 140 characters.

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by | November 11, 2011

a record of a rock star life

http://www.culturecompass.co.uk/2011/11/11/ronnie-wood-retrospective-review/

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