Praying For Peace in Sochi

Posted on February 5, 2014 by brent

Although I would watch the least significant sport in the Summer Olympics over the most significant sport in the Winter Olympics it doesn’t mean that I won’t watch the Sochi games. Although I have many reasons for liking the summer games over the winter games, what will occur in two days is still a world event that will match athletes across the planet against each other for the chance at Olympic gold. Just because I don’t care for cold, snow, and ice doesn’t mean I can’t appreciate what I like more than anything else…high level competition.

Because I deeply value this special level of competition that only the Olympics can provide please excuse me if I say that I am a little concerned about the Sochi games. For the past six months all I have read about are problems that are plaguing the 2014 Winter Olympics. Issues such as corruption, unready facilities, unsafe courses, inequality for some athletes, lack of planning, and stray dogs running all over the place keep getting a lot of play in the media. These obstacles are serious and could tarnish the games. However, if dealt with head on during the next two and a half weeks I believe Sochi can manage to keep them out of the public eye and make a respectable lasting impression. While it will take a lot of work I think Russia can do it.

What scares me the most is terrorism. With many experts forecasting doubt on the safety and current political climate of Sochi, I have my concerns. And not that the average person living in the U.S. has a superior grasp on foreign security measures but for what it is worth a CNN poll recently came out that shows 57% of Americans think a terror attack is likely at this year’s games. I hate to say it and I never like to overreact but I do have an uneasy feeling in my stomach about whether the games will go on peacefully from the time the cauldron is lit to when it is ultimately extinguished.

Although it happened over 14 years before I was born I have that eerie image engrained in my head of that one masked assailant at the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich looking down from the balcony as he helped his terrorist group hold the Israeli athletes hostage. Even after September 11 I still associate that image as the face of terrorism. I still get chills just thinking about. To think of something like that repeating itself in 2014 scares me.

Of course foreign Olympic host countries aren’t the only ones vulnerable to an attack. The bombing during the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta is a tragic event that I remember very well even though I was only ten. These horrific events can happen anywhere at any time and I think that is what worries me most about Sochi…whereas no one thought an attack would occur in Atlanta many people think an attack will occur in Sochi. See where I am going? If a terrorist plot succeeded in an Olympic city that people thought was untouchable than surely a terrorist plot can succeed in an Olympic city that already has grave concerns about safety.

May the 2014 Winter Olympics be safe and joyous. While analysts and former security big shots around the world can point fingers at Sochi right now, we all really have no idea what type of sophisticated measures and tactics are being planned behind closed doors. Pray for peace! Don’t Blink.

My Disdain for the Current Jeopardy Champion

Posted on February 4, 2014 by brent

Growing up in my family whenever we all happened to be in the house when it came on we all liked to watch “Jeopardy” together. Actually, I should rephrase that. We all liked to compete against each other. When it came to us kids more than once fights broke out about who answered the clue first, who had answered the most clues correctly, and what penalty should be levied for blurting out wrong answers. We went as far as to participate in Final Jeopardy by writing our answers on computer paper and to reveal them as the actual contestants did. Shoot, our parents even bought us a Jeopardy computer game one Christmas. After a couple months it was pretty much useless because we had played it so much that we had all memorized every single answer in the game.

When I went home for Christmas this past December my brother, dad, and I got to reignite our game show rivalry by watching a couple episodes of Jeopardy. With my brother and I now more caught up to my dad’s knowledge it became a contest of out of the three of us who could read the clue at warp speed and spit out the answer before Alex Trebeck could even get out the first couple words. It got intense.

I bring all of this up to illustrate that I am a Jeopardy fan. I mean come on, if you take the time to read Ken Jenning’s book it pretty much goes without saying, right? Well anyway I want to use my Jeopardy loyalty status to serve as my right to weigh in on the newest Jeopardy champion. His name is Arthur Chu and to put it nicely, he is kind of a tool.

Chu is currently a four day champion with over $100k in winnings. After a special “Battle of the Decades” tournament that started this week he will return on February 24 in an attempt to win his fifth straight game and qualify for the champions tournament. As he has dominated the competition over the course of four nights he has gained haters mostly because of his unorthodox play and arrogance.

Chu’s strategy centers on him jumping all over the board selecting random categories and dollar amounts. This gives him a better chance to find the crucial daily doubles while also preventing his opponents from getting into any sort of a rhythm. Chu’s arrogance hinges on him showing apathy on the set and cockiness off it. In the interviews he has given over the past few days he seems about as likeable as Jim Harbaugh.

I don’t like the guy’s style of play for the exact same reason his opponents, Alex Trebek, the producers, and Jeopardy purists don’t like it: unpredictability. His opponents have no idea what clue is coming next, Alex has to search frantically for the note card he must pull, the producers know more editing will need to be done, and Jeopardy purists have a heart attack when the $200 clue in “American Potpourri” is not followed by the $400 clue in “American Potpourri”. Personally it messes with my Jeopardy Mojo when I am playing along as well. I feel smarter when I can answer three or four consecutive clues from a category that I know rather than get iced while Chu takes a tour around the board. I also just hate the sight of a Jeopardy board that has blank clues in the most random spots rather than orderly blanked out columns.

But make no mistake about It, the guy has a sound strategy and it has won him $102,000. I don’t blame him one bit for utilizing a smart and legitimate game plan to win a lot of money. Well done.

But what I can’t tolerate is the less than respectful way he conducts himself on stage. I don’t have as much of an issue with his comments he makes to the media outside of the studio as I do with what he does on set. You can win a lot of money and stand leaps and bounds above the competition while doing so with class. Ken Jennings did it for 74 nights. Arthur Chu couldn’t even do it through the first segment of the first show he appeared on. He acts disinterested and aloof. He has little concern for his opponents. But what I can’t stand the most is his disrespect for the God of game shows, Mr. Alex Trebek. While Chu calls Alex a “national treasure” you would never know it by watching him during the episodes. Besides speaking over Trebek when giving answers he also had a very bush league moment during a daily double clue that he didn’t know. When Trebek asked Chu how much he wanted to wager on a daily double based on a sports category the four time champ responded with $5. Jeopardy purist or not, that is a very disrespectful bet and should anger even the casual Jeopardy viewer. Then, to make matters worse, Chu responded “I don’t know” before Alex could even finish reading the clue. Pure classlessness.

While I don’t like Arthur Chu’s playing style I respect it. However, no one on this planet has the right to disrespect Alex Trebek. On February 24 I hope Chu loses. In fact I hope he suffers a humiliating defeat. For all I care he can end Double Jeopardy with an incorrect answer that will leave him with a negative amount thus disqualifying him from even participating in Final Jeopardy. No one crosses Trebek. Don’t Blink.

Thursday Night Run Down

Posted on January 30, 2014 by brent

Time of the week to once again cover a few random topics. You ready? LEGGGGOOOO…

Rock Concert at Gym: These days on social media a big topic people like to parody are gym stereotypes (never mind that I wrote about it over two years ago). One of the stereotypes that you always hear about is the “singing guy”. This individual decides to sing along with whatever is on his iPod. Sometimes he belts the whole song out, sometimes he goes in and out with the chorus, or sometimes he will just randomly yell one or two phrases from the song. Today I witnessed a spin-off of the singing guy.

During my noon workout a dude with a tattered cut up black shirt and ball cap walked into the gym with a big ol’ set of headphones on. Although it wasn’t his wardrobe that made him standout. Rather his exaggerated motions of playing the air guitar and pounding on the imaginary drums caused enough people in the crowded area to step out of his way that others couldn’t help but look. He must have had angry, powerful music playing or just been on drugs (or both) because this guy looked like he was playing the concert of his life. Guitar one second, drums the next…over and over. I hit the track to run and when I came back to the weight area of the facility he was still pacing back and forth rocking out. I usually never smile at the gym but today I did.

Welcome Back Winter Weather: By all accounts we have had a relatively mild winter in Montana. Yesterday, however, the cold and snow came back. Today the cold, snow, AND wind came back. It was an absolutely brutal day to venture outdoors. Just my walk from my car to my office gave me about all I could handle. Never underestimate the life-sucking power of the Montana Hellgate winds. Of course I had to return a rental so that added another unpleasant 20 foot walk in the elements for me. I didn’t particularly enjoy my drive home this evening either. Blowing snow, slick roads, and low visibility made for an adventure.

Hey Winter, I talked to like six people today and they all said that you didn’t need to come back to Montana this season. We would all love it very much if you left for good now. We didn’t mind sunny skies and 35 degree temperatures.

Montana Basketball Update: One of the reasons why I am doing a quick post tonight is because our men’s basketball team is just about to tip off against Southern Utah in Cedar City. You can view my updates by following the official Twitter account of Griz basketball, @UMGRIZZLIES_BB. The men’s team needs this win tonight to climb up the conference standings a bit and to gain some momentum for Monday night’s Griz-Cat game in Bozeman.

The Lady Griz host Southern Utah on Saturday evening as they attempt to build on a successful season so far. They will then play Montana State in Dahlberg Arena on Monday evening. Yes, it is a very unfortunate arrangement. This year the Griz-Cat basketball games aren’t held at the same site on the same day as the result of an unbalanced travel partner schedule. Thus on Monday evening the men’s basketball team will square off against Montana State in Bozeman at the exact same time that the Lady Griz will tip off against MSU in Dahlberg Arena. With Idaho entering the league next year this problem will be resolved.

Fighting For a Parking Spot: School is back in session at the University of Montana and that means the parking lots are filled to capacity by 9 a.m. each day. I do get the luxury of picking my spot in the morning but if I happen to leave work for any reason during the day I have to fight and strategize to get a spot when I return. In order to secure a space in a timely manner I make sure to practice a few tricks.

First off I never stalk someone the second I see them possibly walking to their car but I do keep an eye out and set myself up for an easy route if they are in fact leaving. The second I see them click their door opener and I see the lights on the car blink I slam on the accelerator, turn on my blinker, and wait the person out. If I am competing against other cars for potential spots I am getting as far away as possible from them and covering as many rows as possible to find a vacant spot. It does no good to scour a row that a competing car just went down and it does no good to go at the same pace as a competing car either. Efficiency and speed! If a spot opens up and I get to it the second that another car does I always defer the space to the other person if the driver is a female. If the driver is my gender I will try to force the car that is leaving to back out in the direction of the opposing car so I can slip in before the driver shifts into drive (I am actually lying, I always try to allow the other person to take the spot).

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Have a great night everyone! Drive safe in the winter weather and finish out the work week strong tomorrow. Don’t Blink.

The Time I Met My True Double

Posted on January 29, 2014 by brent

Last night I had fun writing about the similarity in physical appearance that some people feel Russell Wilson and I share. I know very well that the similarities only go so far and that if he and I stood next to each other it probably would be night and day. However, a decade ago I stood next to my true double after we both found ourselves in the same small town in Washington.

The year was 2004 and I was a junior at Mead High School. During the spring I competed in track and field. Each year we would travel to Richland, Washington, to compete in a season opening meet that drew schools from all over the eastern part of the state. If not for the experience I had during this particular year I would always remember that meet for its annual horrendous weather and consistent knack of always falling behind schedule.

Me during my track career.

Because the meet lasted all day and because our coaches would never think about sending athletes home before the very last kid finished competing at 8 p.m., we had a lot of downtime. Most years my competition schedule ended by 1 p.m. At this particular venue the track and all the pits were located inside the football stadium. There was a lot of space for teams to separate and isolate themselves from the competition.

My school would usually set up shop on a grassy hill in the corner of the stadium, away from the bleachers. On this day I sat with a few of my teammates on the hill when a couple of our distance runners came by on their cool down to alert me that they had thought they entered the Twilight Zone by seeing myself dressed in the warm ups of a different high school. When they saw me in my Mead uniform with my Mead teammates and when they looked across the stadium to where this impostor still stood they concluded that they had discovered my long lost twin.

By their pure hysteria I knew I had to go investigate. With the teammates who were sitting next to me along for the ride we started to navigate through the meet and to the other side of the stadium. As we made our way across a couple more people associated with my high school alerted me of the eerie similarity. As my supposed look-alike came into view my teammates started to freak out. They couldn’t believe how similar we looked. To be honest, I didn’t really see that much of a striking resemblance but everyone else did. As we got closer we didn’t have the guts to just go right up to him so we camped out inside the track by the discus area. Surrounded by three or four girls, the guy stood behind the track, about midway up another hill.

As we kept sneaking glances back at the guy while my teammates laughed something became obvious. We weren’t the only ones creeping. He and his female posse had definitely noticed me as well and they were taking turns looking in our direction. Finally our eyes met and on cue we started walking in their direction and they started walking in our direction until we met just right off the track. We shook hands, not really even mentioning why we were doing so. Up close some of our distinguishing features came a little more pronounced. For starters, I think he was of Hispanic descent. He also had brown eyes compared to my hazel eyes. But our same mop of curly hair with identical body build and similar mannerisms proved too perfect for our teammates and friends to ignore.

By this time a small crowd had gathered around us, including a person with a camera. For whatever reason the yearbook class sent a student on the three hour bus ride to cover the most boring meet of the season. I imagine the most entertainment he got all day was the opportunity to take that picture of the double and I. Even though our yearbook seemed like it was over a 1,000 pages, that shot never made the final cut. I never saw a copy of the photo either.

Too bad that I don’t have that photo at my disposal. Talk about a great piece to share on social media ten years later! The cliché goes that everyone has a double. Even though I don’t have a keepsake of that unique moment I feel fortunate that I got to meet mine! Don’t Blink.

My Look-Alike: Russell Wilson

Posted on January 28, 2014 by brent

You don’t understand. Rarely does someone tell me that I look like a celebrity. The couple times it has happened the comparisons have been, how shall I put it, less than flattering. Howard from “The Big Bang Theory” and Dory from “Finding Nemo” are the person and fish that I supposedly look like. So, after over a quarter century of life without ever hearing someone tell me that I look like a desirable famous person that all changed on Sunday night.

I don’t like being compared to these two.

If Russell Wilson ever needs a double to walk through the streets of San Francisco for him, I am his man! Yep, you heard it right. Apparently I strike an uncanny resemblance to the NFC Champion quarterback of the Seattle Seahawks. Forget that the Seahawks are my favorite professional team and that I am a huge fan of Wilson myself, I am just beyond pleased that someone would say that I look like an athletic, good looking guy.

I would like to introduce you to my double, Russell Wilson.

Let me fill you in on the backstory real fast. On Sunday night I was engaged in a Twitter conversation. One of the participants in this conversation was Mike Nugent (@MikeMNugent), a respected realtor in Missoula. While talking about Super Bowl preferences he noted my resemblance to Russell Wilson. Taken aback I asked him to confirm it and sure enough he did!

It was confirmed that I look like Russell Wilson.

This excited me a great deal! In fact, it led me to hastily put together a collage comparing myself with Wilson. I then tweeted it out asking if anyone else could verify Mike’s belief.

I sent this out to my Twitter followers.

I tagged my harshest critic, my brother, just so I get his sarcastic and mean tweets in response to my new discovery. Of course he delivered by entirely shooting down Mike’s thought and insulting me along the way. However, all of Glen’s barbs at me couldn’t match what my dad responded with when my brother asked him about the resemblance:

Classic response from my dad.

Just because my own family doesn’t buy into the Russell Wilson/Brent Reser comparison doesn’t mean it lacks validity. I have known Mike for about eight years now dating back to when we both worked for Residence Life. He has seen me in person numerous times and even though he wears glasses he is not blind. In fact the other person involved in the original Twitter conversation, Jordan Treece (@JTreece13), also agreed with the resemblance. Sounds like we are onto something here!

Jordan confirmed everything.

That night I did spend a little time in front of the mirror analyzing my physical traits. Acting impartial here, I actually saw some similarities! Our eye features are similar and our hair both turns the same type of curly when it starts to grow out. Although I am naturally not as dark as Wilson, give me an hour out in the sun during the summer and we have the same complexion. Standing at just 5’11 he is only two inches taller than me and weighs about twenty-five pounds more. I am sure we bench the same and he might run the forty just a tad faster than me.

You have to be convinced that we are pretty much twins by now, right?

No, I would not say the comparison of looks between Russell Wilson and myself is a big stretch. I appreciate that Mike identified my doppelganger for me. What do my readers say? Think I would pass the look test if I suited up in a #3 jersey on Sunday? If anyone wants to pay a modest sum to have a Russell Wilson look-alike come liven up your Super Bowl party on Sunday let me know…I am still working on the impression. Don’t Blink.

My Personal and Business Guidelines for Liking/Favoriting on Social Media

Posted on January 27, 2014 by brent

Yesterday I described my policy for “liking” photos on Instagram. Basically I explained that I only like photos where I can tell that a degree of effort was put forth in producing the posted image. When it comes to Facebook statuses/comments and Tweets I am a little more lenient. Let me explain.

When it comes to Facebook statuses I make it a habit to like the big news conveyers. You know, when people announce via a Facebook status that they got a job, got engaged, graduated, had a baby, etcetera. It is important to celebrate other people’s success and sometimes liking the status announcing it is the only way to do so. I also like funny, creative, and informative statuses as well. I am pretty much down to like anything as long as it is not a rant, a ploy to get sympathy/pity, or a “20 things you didn’t know about me” disaster.

I am even more liberal on comments, especially if someone leaves one underneath one of my statuses. I appreciate engagement on the content I post and if someone takes the time to leave a comment I will make sure 98% of the time to like it. The 2% exception comes from a friend of mine who has a knack for responding with “no one cares,” “loser,” or “get a life,” each time I post a link to my blog. But for the most part, even if someone is disagreeing with me, I will like the comment as a token of appreciation for taking the time to respond.

With my post yesterday I explained that while on Instagram I won’t go blindly through my feed liking photos. However, I almost find myself doing the exact opposite when it comes to Twitter. I don’t have a problem favoriting tweets. I think the discrepancy between liking/favoriting on the two services for me is that people are just more refined with Twitter at this point. Because Twitter has graced our lives for much longer than Instagram I think we do a much better job composing quality tweets as opposed to quality Instagram photos. Similarly with me liking comments on my Facebook posts I will almost always favorite tweets that are directed my way. Again, it is just my small way of saying thank you.

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My feel good approach to liking and favoriting comments and tweets on a personal level does not extend to how I administer them while running social media accounts on a business level though. Rather, when it comes to Facebook and Twitter for Grizzly Athletics I use tough standards similar to what I impose for my personal Instagram use when recognizing responses.

I always respond to questions and inquiries with Griz Social Media. However, when it comes to Facebook comments and tweets I am only liking/favoriting the cream of the crop. You see, we get so many fans who contribute to our social media outlets in varying degrees of quality that I feel it is our responsibility to reward those who go above and beyond while encouraging the others to reach that same level.

When a fan pours a lot of effort into crafting a thorough, supportive, and rich response to a Facebook question or feature he/she will receive a like from the Montana Grizzlies. Although we very much appreciate the standard “Go Griz” response the user who quickly types that out will not get a like. Many organizations and brands believe that every comment or tweet deserves a like or favorite because it gives the user “a special connection to his/her favorite team” but I don’t subscribe to that thinking and this is why:

Don’t you find great validation when your boss tells you great job on a project that you worked your butt off to complete and that you exerted a lot of effort into? Okay, what if your boss took time to tell you great job on a project that you hastily completed and that you knew very well didn’t reflect your best work? On ensuing upcoming projects that might encourage you to continue to put forth mediocre efforts. I don’t want to get into that pattern with fans. I want Griz Nation to strive for that coveted like or favorite each time they comment on Facebook or tweet at us knowing that only the very best will get recognized.

A great social media program is composed not just of great content provided by the brand but by great content provided by the customers/fans as well. While doing my best to enrich the content that Grizzly Athletics puts out on a social media level I also want to continue to push our fans to do the same. When quality keeps rising on both ends, the program keeps getting better and better.

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So if you missed it, let me recap everything:
Level of Difficulty Getting Me to Like Your Instagram Photo: Hard
Level of Difficulty Getting Me to Like Your Facebook Status: Medium
Level of Difficulty Getting Me to Like Your Facebook Comment: Easy
Level of Difficulty Getting Me to Favorite Your Tweet: Easy
Level of Difficulty Getting Montana Grizzlies to Like Your Facebook Comment: Intermediate
Level of Difficulty Getting Montana Grizzlies to Favorite Your Tweet: Intermediate
Level of Difficulty Admitting to Others That You Read My Blog: Hard

Don’t Blink.

My Personal Policy for “Liking” Instagram Photos

Posted on January 26, 2014 by brent

Not long ago I wrote a post about my quest for Instagram likes and my fascination with people about five years my junior and younger that can pull in triple digit likes with as much as a grainy selfie. While I highlighted my desire to receive big time likes for myself at that time, I hold no animosity towards the people who scroll past my food pictures and arena images without pressing that “like” button. Quite the opposite, I actually applaud you.

I am a big believer in sparingly distributing “likes”. You see, when I go through my Instagram or Facebook feeds my thumb is not going up and down clicking away. I don’t give out likes in the way that I give out candy. Rather I reward them based on the best content that I see. That means I am not liking someone’s Snap Chat screen captured photo they post to Facebook. Or I am not liking an Instagram photo that someone took of another photo that carries with it an awful glare. Or I am not liking a photo of someone’s dog that was taken while the animal was jumping up and down resulting in a blurry mess. I refuse to pad someone’s “like count” when they are producing garbage.

Someone will get my seal of approval with a quality, creative, or appealing image. By my best estimation, I probably like one photo for every four that I see. What separates the fourth of pictures I like from the other 75% that I just pass by? Effort. As I explained at the beginning of this paragraph I need to see an attempt at a meaningful photo. You and I both know the distinction between a good photo and a bad image. If someone I follow took a quality photo of his young kid in an intimate moment I am going to like it. If someone rearranged her desk items in a creative pattern and applied a sweet filter I am going to like it. If a girl I follow who I find attractive posts an appealing image of herself I am going to like it.

I don’t do “likes for likes”. I don’t give in to people who solicit them (unless they ask me personally, then I will). I don’t have people I follow who will receive a like from me no matter what they post. Plain and simple I distribute likes to images that deserve them. When I like a photo, it is a compliment to the person who took it.

SIDE NOTE: There is one time I will like my own Instagram photo. If I post an image and it has garnered 9 likes I will go ahead and like it myself so it will display “10 likes” under the image as opposed to a long slew of nine usernames. True stuff.

I do change my philosophy up a little bit when it comes to liking Facebook comments and favoriting Tweets. But that is a blog post for tomorrow! I hold my standards high for social media photography and I think that is a good thing. Don’t Blink.

Before I Had My Blog

Posted on January 23, 2014 by brent

I just finished work for the night as the Lady Griz soundly defeated Idaho State 67-48 in Dahlberg Arena to cap off a 14 hour day. As I am a little fatigued I don’t feel like putting the energy into writing a regular post. Instead I much rather take the much less demanding route and provide all of you a true Throwback Thursday to my first ever “published” piece of writing.

The year was 1998 and I was a fourth grader at Farwell Elementary in Spokane, Washington. My class of exceptional writers (sarcasm) put together a compilation of our best work into an 8.5 by 11 inch spiral-bound booklet. We called our masterpiece “It’s Funny, It’s Tall Taley, It’s Animally and Cook Bookie”. We then sold copies as a class fundraiser for $5 each. My contribution fell under the “Animally” part of the book.

Would you pay $5 for this?

For your reading pleasure, here is a photo of my entry with the text typed out underneath it:

Not my best work ever.

MONKEYING AROUND
By Brent

Hi, I’m Brent and I’m going to tell you about a trip to the zoo I will never forget.

One hot summer day I was walking by the monkey cage when I saw a grizzly bear in the monkey cage. I quickly opened the cage and took the monkeys out. There were only three. Their names were Jake, Alex, and Peanut. I quickly scared the bear away, But then something horrible happened. The cage was locked shut. I would have to find the zoo keeper, but I couldn’t find him. Right away the monkeys were trouble. Alex started teasing the elephant, and Peanut took cotton candy from the tourists, and Jake squirted people with the hose. But then something good actually happened. The zoo keeper came by. I tried to stop him but he got away. But luckily the zoo keeper had bananas in his hands. The monkeys went over to the zoo keeper. Now those troublesome monkeys are all locked up. The end.

Just five quick thoughts:

1. Even by fourth grade standards, my writing was awful.
2. Obviously I always knew I would one day become a Griz as I couldn’t help but feature one in “Monkeying Around”.
3. Don’t you love my repetition?….One hot summer day I was walking by the monkey cage when I saw a grizzly bear in the monkey cage.
4. Why couldn’t I stop the zoo keeper? Was he sprinting? Maybe deaf? Did I really even try to stop him in the first place?
5. While my writing improved, my drawing skills never did. If you gave me a piece of paper and a pencil I would be lucky to come up with something better than that sunglass-wearing monkey.

I apologize to anyone who got swindled out of $5 to buy our fourth grade disaster. Don’t Blink.

My Preference For Three Day Weekends

Posted on January 22, 2014 by brent

Sometimes the thoughts I have had the longest take the longest to get written down on this blog. After 30+ months of authoring Don’t Blink I find it mildly shocking that I haven’t brought up this recurring thought of mine that infiltrates my head about ten times a year. I am talking about my preference when it comes to the start and end of three day weekends.

First off let me point out that it doesn’t matter when the three day weekend starts, if I am able to take it I am always very thankful and happy. Working for a state institution, we do get all of the federal holidays off. However, because I do work for an athletic department where games must be played and tasks must be completed, it is not out of the question that these long weekends are sometimes wiped out. Therefore I especially appreciate it when I am able to take full advantage of three straight days off.

Three day weekends work either by way of enjoying Friday through Sunday off or Saturday through Monday off. While both options have great advantages, I think the makers of our calendar knew what they were doing by positioning practically all federal holidays on Monday. Personally, I would much rather have a Saturday through Monday weekend as opposed to a Friday through Sunday one.

Don’t get me wrong, I love having Friday off. Although most federal holidays are observed on Mondays, three day weekends starting on Friday are very prevalent as well. If you are in elementary through high school you probably enjoy several “learning improvement days” where teachers have to show up for training but you get the Friday off. If you are in the working world, I would wager that the day you take off the most is that day that will forever be remembered by a horrible Rebecca Black song. It goes without saying that we all have vast experience with three day weekends that incorporate both Friday and Monday.

Friday three day weekends are nice because it shortens up the week. On Sunday evening before your four day work week is about to start you can reason with yourself that the battle won’t be as tough as most weeks. You can count your Monday as a Tuesday, your Tuesday as a Wednesday, your Wednesday as a Thursday etc. Also, let’s face it, there is much more fun to be had on a full Friday off as opposed to a full Monday off.

But beware of the Friday three day weekend empty feeling that hits that next Sunday evening. Your three days of bliss are gone and you now have a full five day week ahead of you. The anticipation you had a week ago at this time is now replaced with dread.

I just really prefer three day weekends resulting in a Monday off. It all starts on that previous Friday when leaving the office. Walking to the car you have a sense of accomplishment that you put in a solid week of work and now you get rewarded with a three day weekend. I love the feeling I get on Saturday and Sunday when I start thinking about what I need to do at work on Monday and then that sweet realization comes that I won’t be doing anything. Or I love watching Sunday Night Football in a complete relaxation state without the worry of the game serving as my last hurrah before the work week starts. Or who doesn’t love the feeling of waking up early in the morning on Monday and as you start to get out of bed to jump in the shower that heavenly epiphany hits that you can get back under the warm covers and sleep for several more hours? Who doesn’t love converting the most dreaded day of the week into the most relaxing one?

My favorite part though about three day weekends ending in Monday is how it frames my thinking for the following work week and how it makes it fly by. Although three day weekends starting with Friday definitely shorten the work week, it doesn’t do it in the way that three day weekends ending on Monday do. With the latter, you don’t have to count your Monday as a Tuesday like I described earlier. Rather, the first day of your work week is actually a Tuesday. The best thing about it? You think of it as a Monday! The chain just keeps repeating itself…I probably thought five different times today that it was a Tuesday instead of a Wednesday. Sitting here right now I am still coming to grips that tomorrow is Thursday and a Lady Griz gameday. As Pete Carroll would say, tonight is the “night before the night before” of the first night of the weekend. The week has flown by….and I imagine I have confused the heck out of you with this last paragraph.

Yep, Mondays off as opposed to Fridays off for three day weekends please. Although you won’t have to torture me to accept a Friday three day weekend I just prefer the Monday variety because they motivate me both the week before and the week after. With the Friday variety I am just motivated the week before. Do you get what I am saying? Don’t Blink.

The Successful Tag Team Approach to Social Media

Posted on January 21, 2014 by brent

As social media continues to grow and as people depend on it more than ever for their primary source of information, businesses and organizations must adapt to provide the most efficient and thorough type of coverage possible. In my opinion, great social media coverage is the result of a sound plan and superior organization. While many day-to-day tasks and campaign initiatives within a social media program can usually get tended to by the designated new media person, other situations call for a more collaborative effort from other people on staff.

In my position at Grizzly Athletics I call on my fellow co-workers in the marketing department along with our team of interns to assist me with gameday social media execution. Whereas at one point in the past I used to handle every detail myself it became apparent over time that in order to keep moving our program forward I needed help. This past football season and so far this basketball season our social coverage has consisted of a successful, collaborative effort.

I am trying to push myself to extend our fruitful teamwork oriented social media strategy past just gameday efforts. A huge emphasis for us within Grizzly Athletics is community service. Our student-athletes go above and beyond serving the Missoula community and we make it a priority to showcase the amazing work they are doing through our new media channels. Today our student-athletes took on yet another new community service project. At the same time, Griz Marketing took on a new social media collaboration plan.

This afternoon members from our Griz basketball team and Lady Griz basketball team went to the Missoula YMCA to hang out with kids from the Active 6 program. Our student-athletes shot hoops, played tag, and goofed around with a group of roughly 30 sixth graders. Although I know all the details and although I feel like I know all the kids who were there, I didn’t get anywhere close to the YMCA today. While the Active 6 program kids had a special experience spending time with community heroes like Kareem Jamar and Kellie Cole I stayed holed up in my office. This was of course by design.

At the YMCA covering the event for Grizzly Athletics was Marketing Director Brynn Molloy. While the athletes and kids enjoyed each other’s company, Brynn captured all the action via pictures and video. As she documented the fun she sent the media to me where I sat in my office with my iPhone in hand and desktop computer in front of me. As I received the content I distributed it across three different Twitter accounts, three different Facebook pages, and our main Instagram account. The process worked flawlessly.

The student-athletes and Active 6 kids at the Missoula YMCA today (photo credit Brynn Molloy)

Dividing up these duties no doubt made our coverage more thorough, efficient, and engaging. Brynn had the task of capturing media that told the story of the community service project. I had the duty of taking the content she provided me with and appropriately distributing it throughout our various social media channels. By splitting up these duties we each took different stresses off of each other. Brynn just had to worry about taking compelling photos and videos as opposed to capturing her content and then logging on to various social media services, composing captions, and then posting. That takes a lot of time! Going through that process makes it very easy to miss the action between the student-athletes and kids. I on the other hand had the luxury of sitting in an office and using every tool at my disposal to correctly format the media. If I couldn’t remember the correct spelling of someone’s last name I had the online roster loaded up and ready to go. Instead of hastily typing out everything on my iPhone I could use my desktop keyboard to safeguard against any errors. I didn’t have to worry about my device going dead because I had it plugged in. With high speed internet I never had to fret once about something not posting. We had an organized plan and it worked very well.

Of course both people in an operation like this must have advanced social media knowledge. Not anyone can take photos that are fit for 100,000 people to see (I have seen more than my share of blurry photos or images taken 20 feet from the action). Nor can anyone be trusted to post content (How many times have you seen a post on a Facebook page that you knew didn’t fit?). But if you have the personnel to do something like this go for it! Not only do you upgrade the quality and depth of your content, you also save time. Most importantly though, you get more people contributing. Social media, just like anything else, is more rewarding when it is a collaborative effort. Don’t Blink.

Don't Blink

By Brent Reser