One of the myriad reasons that Firefox is superior to Internet Explorer is the ability to extend the browser with Add-Ons. Add-Ons take the form of extensions, themes or plug-ins. You can add a GMail notifier, a Facebook toolbar, an extension that allows you to save any video embedded in a page to your hard drive. You can get developer extensions that allow you to debug, test the load-time of a page, or write scripts that are loaded on specific pages, allowing you to customize any web site. In short, Add-Ons are right on (Power to the People).

Today, I saw a mention on Webmonkey of an a new extension from Mozilla Labs called Ubiquity. I don't generally get excited about extensions, unless we're talking about hair extensions, because my sister-in-law is a hairderesser and I just think they are FABULOUS, but Ubiquity is really stinking cool. What Ubiquity does is give you a key command that pulls up a command line type interface where you can type in simple english language commands to return information from the web. For example, if you type in google hillbilly hercules, Ubiquity returns a thumbnail and description of one of the greatest films of all time. Type in "map okinawa health club louisville" and Ubiquity returns a map for each location of the famed Oriental health spa and Gentleman's club (bet you didn't know there were two locations did you? Neither did I - thanks Google!).

The thing that makes this so cool is the speed with which it executes. You don't have to go to a website and load all the javascripts and the flash files, not to mention the superfluous graphics - you can do things quickly. Of course this won't preclude you from actually visiting a site. If I'm looking for something very specific, like a Doctor's office phone number, I can get it quickly without leaving the page I'm on. Not such a great time-saver, but damned convenient.

It is still in beta, and so is a little buggy. Some of the text is hard to read as well, but all in all, this is my new favorite extension. There are already a bunch of commands and Mozilla Labs has an editor where you can create your own. Download it and try it out. It may not change your life, but it will change the way you surf the web.

I couldn't believe my eyes earlier this week. McDonald's ran a commercial featuring Olympic Athletes who've been waiting and training for the Games all their lives. It was a spot that roped me in for a few seconds, and then they did what? They put a fried chicken sandwich in the Athletes' hands.

Oh my, they have really sunk to a new low. It was such a disconnect for me. Here are these unbelievable people who've so much discipline in their training, and what they consume, in order to attain the most efficient body for their particular passion. Does anybody actually think these folks believe a McDonald's fried chicken sandwich is like gold?

I was instantly disgusted with the spot and thought the agency should be fired. It's not that the idea is bad or even poorly executed — it's paired with the wrong product!

If these athletes were standing up there and the product revealed was a vitamin-enhanced water, I might believe they actually use it. But a fried chicken sandwich???

It's a busy time here at the ole' CM, but I carved out a speck of time to jam with our illustrious Associate Creative Director, Dennis Bonifer. I don't have space to demonstrate all of his sweet peculiarities, but you should know that he's our resident SEC/UK sports expert, a SuperFan 99 of the NCAA basketball tournament (goes every year and gets his picture taken with a rubber ducky and any celebrity he can locate) and the proud father of a bouncing 8-month old shorty.

CM: What are you doing?
DB: Working on a Save the Date card for our Halloween party (interviewer's note: this party is only the most zany affair this side of the big pond).

CM: What's your favorite website?
DB: (After long period of contemplation) Kentucky Sports Radio. It's full of good UK information on recruiting and player insight. It's also pretty tongue-in-cheek and they do a great job of updating the site a few times a day.
(Dennis gets a little giggly at this point; he's a pretty giggly kind of guy).
My secret addiction is also Quicktime movie trailers. I will sometimes watch trailers all morning.

CM: Where is your dock located?
DB: At the bottom, where God intended it.

CM: What dock icon do you click most?
DB: The most? All things CS3.

CM: What dock icon is the prettiest?
DB: My "Clients" folder - it's a sweet Fat Elvis.

At this stage in the interview, the discussion digresses into a lengthy discourse about SEC football, traveling to Gainesville, Auburn and Athens and general jocularity. That dirty Dennis, he's so funny.

Anywho, back to the lecture at hand.

CM: MySpace? Facebook? Plaxo?
DB: Facebook and LinkedIn.
On Facebook, I have reconnected with a couple of friends I haven't talked to in 10 years. Other than that, I'm not sure I really get Facebook.
On LinkedIn, I have reconnected with a couple of friends I haven't talked to in 10 years. Other than that, I'm not sure I really get LinkedIn.
(Yeah, that's right, he said the same thing for both.)

CM: And, finally, what's your problem?
DB: My Mac at home. It's not f****** working. The Mac geniuses are not so genius-like.

Oh, my, DOG! I have the cutest puppy in the whole world!

I came back to work after a week's vacation and there she was.

Looks just like me when I was little.

And she's here every morning, just like me.

They call her "Molly" and fuss at her for potty issues.

Now that I'm almost 7 years old (1 human year), I'm WAY past the potty thing.

We have the best time!

We run in and out of the creative department and make people laugh.

I'm thinkin' I need a few pairs of these:

RUFFWEAR

It can be a RUFF day when you have your own pup to play with.

She WEARS me out!

… and back to work for many of our clients. The summer affords us some "down time" so that we, too, can take time off and enjoy a vacation. And, as we've seen year after year, September picks right back up where May left off in terms of projects and business.

It's as if the school calendar becomes a way of life — as does summer vacation — in that everything slows down to accommodate for the season. It's important that everyone gets a break from the office, even if it's a "staycation." I sometimes like vacations at home because we get so much done that we just can't seem to get to over the weekends. Bigger projects that we put off, paperwork that piles up, even just lying around the house and doing nothing feels great. During the school year each weekend is packed with family visits, laundry, house cleaning, haircuts and often a date night. By the time you squeeze all that in, it's time to go back to work!

I look forward to September, when everyone gets back into the groove and back in the game. The team is all working together again. There's a sense that we're refreshed and ready to finish the year feeling strong. Football starts up, so we have something to cheer and "talk smack" about. The weather gets cooler and the promise of Fall is in the air. The thought of getting out the "cold-weather clothing" excites me because I feel like I get a whole new wardrobe!

If you have a teen, like me, "Back to School" time ensures no more sleeping until early afternoon. I welcome it, and the change in season, each year. I've lived in a climate where there's very little change and, frankly, it's boring. It never feels quite like Halloween, Thanksgiving or Christmas if you've grown up with very distinct seasons.

Outside of the traffic and getting out the door a bit earlier, back to school brings us all back to family and work "routines" and that's a welcome change!

So, I'm pretty much addicted (at least until The Hills comes back) to a "reality" show on MTV called From G's to Gents. It's exactly like it sounds. Fourteen real-life gangstas including D-Boy, E6, Shotta, J Boogie, The Truth and my own personal fave, Creepa try to prove that they can leave their gangbanging ways behind for a new, gentlemanly lifestyle - and $100,000. Fonzworth Bentley (P. Diddy's former man servant) is there to give them lessons on the finer things and hosts weekly challenges for the G's to showcase their new skills.

During this week's episode the contestants learned how to write a resume, practiced interviewing skills and were then challenged to create a marketing plan for a new international hip-hop group called The Thunderkatz and then "present their presentations", as one contestant said, to Irv Gotti, the founder of Murder Inc. Records.

Group one's marketing plan is to create a music video for their first single. And... Nope, that's is. All the marketing that this group needs is a music video and they're set. Next.

Group two's plan is a little more robust. Their strategy included calling radio stations and DJs to solicit airplay and scheduling a concert in Miami. I'm sure making a video was in their plan too. Next.

That brings me to group three. I have to say, the point of this entire blog was to make fun of their marketing plan, but this group pleasantly surprised me. Their plan included making pages for the band on Facebook and MySpace, along with an interactive game that could be played on the sites. Hey, that might be something our office would recommend too.

It was interesting to watch people with no formal training or experience in this industry, create a marketing plan. My point is that a big part of this job is education and the knowledge you pick up along the way, but you have to have a bit of intuition and definitely be passionate about what you do to be successful.

(Also, a note to the ownership group: we may seriously want to consider hiring the winner of this competition. Go Creepa!)

A few months ago the iPhone became a truly “smart phone” with the addition of 3rd party applications and I am not too proud to admit that I have become more than a little dependent on a few of them. Here are three that I use daily.

1. Twitterific - My best friend and I have traded Larry King-style e-mails for years. Daily lists of  non-sequiturs that didn’t merit a phone call or an e-mail, but that needed to be shared. Twitter replaced all of that and Twitterific made if mobile. If you ever wanted to know what I’m listening to or what I thought about the latest episode of Heroes, you can find out by following me with Twitterific. For about ten bucks, you can buy the premium version, or download the free version that displays the occasional, unobtrusive ad.

2.  ScoreMobile - I’m a big sports fan (Yankees, Buccaneers and UofL) and ScoreMobile puts up-to-the-minute game information at my fingertips. Everything from pre-game betting lines (for entertainment purposes only, of course) to starting pitchers and injury reports, this is a must-have for the sports fan. I can't wait to get back to Vegas and hit the sports book with this little gem. Coverage includes MLB, NFL, NCAAF, NBA, NCAAB, NHL and CFL.

3. Urbanspoon – Having trouble deciding where to have lunch? Wondering if there is a restaurant that offers vegetarian dishes in the Clifton area? Then you’ll want to check out Urbanspoon.  Just select your city (or let the built-in GPS find you if you are rocking the new 3G iPhone) and three slot machine-style dials let you select a neighborhood, a type of food and a price range. Lock in a choice in any of the reels and “shake” your phone and the gods of fate will pick a place that fits your parameters. Don’t like the choice? Just shake again and see what comes up. Once you settle on a restaurant, Urbanspoon can give you an address, phone number and reviews and a “Like it” score. You can also take chance out of the mix and browse the lists manually.

All three of these apps are free and can be found on iTunes.

Of course, everyone knows WAVE has the opening ceremonies of the Olympics tonight. So, I thought I'd check out what the other stations are offering in opposition.

WLKY is running "Ghost Whisperer" - the typical Friday night program, so nothing too crazy there.

WDRB is showing "Hellboy." Okay, I can see that too. They are shooting for a totally different audience than the Olympics Opening Ceremony.

But "War of the Worlds" on WHAS?!? WOW! Isn't the Olympics a time of international brotherhood/sisterhood (would that be "humanhood?")...a spectacle of global comradery...a beacon of light in the darkness that is the current state of the world? And the programming choice against that is a film about the destruction of the earth? Well, I guess that kind of makes sense.