Thank You and Goodbye PCG

PCG Digital MarketingWhether you know it or not, I’ve decided to leave PCG Digital Marketing. I’ve been employed by PCG since March 0f 2011 when I joined the team as a Content Writer and got promoted up to Project Manager in April 2013.

Now that a lot of my work is done and I explained my clients to people at work, it feels sort of surreal. The last time I left a full-time job was in 2009 when I got laid off along with a quarter of my company.

We had a happy hour at the Houlihan’s by my job today in my honor and it showed me the reason why I enjoyed working at PCG: the people. They made some of the good moments even better and some of the bad moments more bearable.

I’ve enjoyed talking with and working with various team members throughout the years, whether they’re still working at the company or decided to move on and pursue other endeavors like I have. I have a lot of fond memories of work, whether it’s through the relationships I’ve had or some of the achievements I’ve done professionally.

I’m not mentioning any specific names because I don’t want to make anyone feel left out, but there are so many people that helped me along the way to learn more about writing content, managing projects and SEO in general. I thank them all since they helped me become the professional I am today.

I’ve learned from mistakes I’ve made and have become a better person for it. PCG has made me a better person and I thank everyone there for it.

Goodbye, PCG.

Great Choice, No Misteak About It

Char SteakhouseLast weekend, I went to a birthday dinner with Beth’s family to Char Steakhouse in Raritan. This is a high-end restaurant (also with a location in Red Bank) that is all about the steak and the right wines and beers to complement said steaks.

And I am not a fan of steaks.

In fact, the only time I eat steak is if I’m at a wedding, Beth wants to get the chicken and steak is the only other option that will fill me up. But I digress.

I saw enough menu items on here that I would have a good meal. I started off with a cocktail and some escargot, which grossed the entire table out besides me. I first had escargot in Paris and enjoyed it, so I ordered it and was not disappointed.

Char Steakhouse Raritan NJThen, for dinner, I ate the roasted chicken that was called “Griggstown Organic” because it came from a local market in Princeton. On the side, we all shared grilled asparagus, creamed spinach, mac n’ cheese (that I did not eat) and potato gratin. All of it was delicious, especially since the chicken came with a side of roasted garlic that looked like a whole bulb of it. It was awesome.

Anybody who knows me knows that I’m a garlic fiend.

And to cap it all off, two desserts were shared: apple cobbler and brownie, both ala mode. Desserts are desserts, so of course they tasted good. The only flaws about all of this quality food were having to wait about 10 minutes for a table even with a reservation and the high bill.

But I didn’t pay for any of it, so this may have been the best free meal I’ve had in a while.

Hitting the Motherload (A While Ago)

Business CardsI mentioned in a previous blog post that some of my friends and family actually collect business cards for me from their adventures. I’ve procrastinated writing this for a couple of months just because other business cards I’ve collected have taken precedent.

Anyway, I got a mother load of business cards from my Uncle Skip and Aunt Ellen a couple of months ago when I last saw them. I don’t see them often, but they usually bring me a heaping pile of business cards when I do.

My uncle recently retired, as did my aunt, so they have been taking some pretty nifty vacations. What does that mean? I get business cards from some pretty interesting places that I would never see otherwise.

Business CardsBut that’s not the only thing that I get. I also get to know their habits through the amount of times I see certain business cards, such as a a bunch of business cards from a Staples… sound familiar?

For example, these eight business cards are places that I’ve seen for years. I know I’ve seen some of them at least 10 times. Hell, there are multiple copies of each of these.

I see this from other people I get cards from also. Is it sad that I know the eating habits of people I don’t see often?

Probably.

Business CardsMy uncle also likes to humor me when giving me a bunch of business cards.

He throws in some non-business cards just to be funny keep me entertained while sorting through them. Whether it’s an expired credit card, a coupon or even those old-style phone cards (who uses those anymore?), I can always expect some surprises when sorting through the cards I get from them.

I appreciate all of the business cards I get from them, whether they’re from Long Island, Queens, Manhattan, Wildwood, Massachusetts, Hawaii, St. Maarten, St. Martin (yes, they’re different places) or even Australia.

Writing This Blog Was Not So Urgent

Family First Urgent CareIt took me a couple of weeks, but I finally fixed a minor nagging issue that I had with my elbow. I had what they call tennis elbow, even though I don’t play tennis. I knew that this issue was probably over my regular doctor’s head. My regular doctor is not the best, but that’s for another blog.

That’s when I decided to go to First Family Urgent Care one day after work. I wasn’t sure if I dislocated my elbow or something, so I wanted to see what was going on. I could move it easily, so I had no idea what was wrong.

Eventually, after 2 hours, I got called in and waited for about 40 minutes to see a doctor. She looked at my arm and said to get an X-ray. That took a little while, too and they were really nice. They didn’t have a business card though, only a piece of paper. Family First Urgent CareI told them that wasn’t good enough. Then, they charged me $300+ for the X-ray. Thanks guys.

After the X-ray, it took another 30-40 minutes before the doctor saw me, sprayed cold stuff on my arm and took 12 CCs of liquid out of my elbow, all while trying to be funny in whispering broken English.

Overall, I would go back there again if I had an issue needing an urgent care, but would probably not go there at 5 pm after work. Or I would go somewhere else if I was closer to home since I already got a bunch of business cards, as you can plainly see.

Got a Supercut on My Price

Supercuts NJI can’t believe this is my second time blogging about getting a haircut. I only get it done once a month, but here I am going on and on about it.

This specific blog is about a great customer service experience that I received at the Supercuts in Piscataway NJ this week. For 2 years, I’ve been going to this location on and off. It was evident by the card I had in my wallet that was going to get me a free haircut after 12 visits.

Well, that is until I was told “I’m sorry, but we stopped this program on June 30.” Womp womp womp.

However, they did give me a discount (half off) because I had the card (great customer service, good conversation while in the chair, will go back again). And a nice haircut for the wedding I’m going to on Sunday. I hope to bring some cards back from the Boston area since that’s where the wedding will be.

Like a Kid in a Candy Store

I went to Staples with Beth and I felt like a kid in a candy store. Well, a kid in an office supply store that happens to sell candy at the cash register in the “impulse buy” section along with noise-making key chains and wacky Post-It Notes.

I’ve been to enough Staples stores to know the drill about finding the most business cards. Step one was straight to the Copy & Print center, which yielded some good booty:

Staples NJ

I snagged seven business cards in a matter of 15 seconds. One associate asks “can I help you?” Nope, I’m good. Finally found my girlfriend and as we walked to the register, we passed the mobile section.

Staples NJ

Looks like I grabbed a couple of more. Of course, being a weekend, there’s a line. Out of the corner of my eye, I see the Easy Tech section, as well as…

Staples NJ

Another three cards, including the last one of an employee who was not listed as someone who works there anymore. That’s a real score in my book. I’m thrilled to add 12 more unique business cards to my collection.

I didn’t buy any candy though, so it wasn’t a total win.

Car Shopping Confusion

Sansone Auto NetworkI’ve had a couple of experiences shopping for a car, two used ones that wound up dying in a year and a half of ownership and one new one that I was forced to get after the second car had crapped out while crossing the Tappan Zee Bridge.

But, I digress. Beth and I are starting the car shopping process since her 2002 Kia Rio is pretty much the equivalent of one of those cars attached to the front of a shopping cart.

Since there were so many models that she wanted to test out, we decided to go to Sansone Auto Network because they had a few brands she liked. And the Toyota Prius c that I wanted to test out.

One of the cars Beth liked was the Hyundai Elantra GT. So, we went to Sansone to test drive one and of course, I scoured for business cards.

I grabbed a bunch from the dealership and noticed something strange: they were all different. Quite different, as you can see from the photo. Where’s the consistent marketing message?

It looks like the sales force has to print up their own business cards. Is this the norm for car dealers? Or is this to “show off their individual personalities”? Who knows, but I just see it as 4 more cards for the collection.

Cha-ching.

Popping the Crepe Cherry

Crepes du NordMy girlfriend Beth and I went to Bridgewater Commons yesterday and we went out to lunch to California Pizza Kitchen, which was sub par because the pizza was not very good compared to an independent pizzeria. Then, we did a little shopping and decided that we wanted dessert.

Beth told me that we should go to Crepes du Nord because I got excited when I saw the place when passing it by. On our way, she told me that she never had crepes before.

My thought was, “you’ve never had crepes?!” I told her that it’s essentially fried dough in the form of a thin-crust pancake topped with dessert goodness. Or you can get something savory with it, but I digress.

So, now we had to get some. I ate one with Nutella and bananas, while hers had dark chocolate and strawberries. After the first bite, now a crepe maker has been added onto our imaginary wedding registry.

I told her about the first time I ate crepes. It was when I was studying and interning in London in 2005, where I had easy access from my internship since a street cart vendor was selling crepes that I got regularly with cinnamon and a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top. I remember it melting in my mouth and being the perfect end to my lunch breaks.

I don’t remember eating crepes at any other time until yesterday. What was your first crepe experience?

OMG, Celebs in the House (Sort Of)

Modern Nails & Spa

My girlfriend Beth had Martin Luther King Day off on Monday, so she decided to go to Hoboken to see one of her friends. I, on the other hand, went to work and came down with a bad case of the Mondays. I receive a text message from her saying that she went to get her nails done at Modern Nails & Spa and almost met Kim Kardashian.

I don’t get the appeal of her, but Beth is a huge Kardashian fan, along with the Real Housewives of Whocaresville, Mob Wives and other clearly phony reality shows. I ask “how did you almost meet her?” The response:

Kim KardashianShe posts a photo of the most famous Kardashian standing with the owners of this nail salon, similar to how celebs give autographed 8x10s to diners or dry cleaners that they frequent (yes, two different Seinfeld references), on her Facebook page.

But, I digress. I don’t understand the obsession that people have over celebrities. Being on television, in movies or doing whatever it is that makes them famous is their job by choice, just like how my job is to write content in the digital marketing field. I know that being famous for any reason is a good thing since it means that you’re remembered forever.

Unless you’re a serial killer, but this is a happy blog. See? 😀 Moving on…

I’ve met a number of celebs and have spoken to them like normal people. And by celebs, I mean professional wrestlers who I’ve met during my weekend escapades.

But, I can understand people’s point of view because seeing someone on TV or in a movie makes you feel as if there’s a personal connection based on a character. In the case of reality TV stars, their characters are themselves (exaggerated for the sake of ratings, of course).

What is your opinion of the hype (or should I say overhype) of celebs?

And a note to Modern Nails & Spa, the website on your business card is not valid and it doesn’t seem that you claimed your business on Google+, so sorry I couldn’t link back to you to enhance your (nonexistent) online presence.

And a note to Beth, thank you for letting me use the photo you took without your permission since you posted it online, thank you for the additional business card to my collection (she took the last one, I love the feeling of taking the only card left) and your nails look great!

Seinfeld and Skylark

Seinfeld is one of my favorite TV shows that I used to watch with my dad. We used to watch it together when reruns were in syndication. It’s one of the great memories that I have with my father, who passed away three years ago today. I honestly only got back into watching Seinfeld reruns in the past month. I guess it was a subconscious reminder of good times.

Seinfeld

But, as soon as I learned about Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee, Jerry Seinfeld’s new entertainment venture, I had to watch. The title pretty much sums it up, but doesn’t explain how funny it actually is. With such funny people as Mel Brooks (one of my favorites), Larry David and Michael Richards joining him in a different classic car talking over coffee, it’s just the cure for boredom and something to take your mind off of life for a few minutes.

Skylark DinerSo, what does my business card collecting habit have to do with Seinfeld? Well, one of the episodes of Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee was filmed at the Skylark Diner in Edison NJ. This happens to be one of my favorite diners.

I eat there pretty frequently and actually have a variety of Skylark Diner business cards in my collection, including these two of the restaurant itself and others of the managerial staff who work(ed) there. The food is great and there’s a lot on the menu that I choose to eat there.

It’s also a very pleasant atmosphere to eat in and I would recommend it over other diners in the area. I’ve only been to a couple of other diners, one of which closed down for good reason.

A New Year’s Resolution that I made for myself was to write more frequently on my off time.