Filed under: A Bit Of Inspiration, Apathy, Attitude & Aptitude, Authenticity, Brand Suicide, Business, Communication Strategy, Confidence, Content, Context, Creative Development, Creativity, Culture, Distinction, Education, Effectiveness, Experience, Facebook, Fake Attitude, Honesty, Innovation, Management, Marketing, Marketing Fail, Money, New Product Mentalness, Perspective, Planners, Relevance, Resonance, Scam, Social Media, Standards, Technology
After the amazing drama of yesterday, I need to calm things down.
Not for you, but for me … because my heart can’t take nerves like that.
And yet it’s going to have to do just that in a little over a week.
Bloody hell.
So to slow things down, let me take you back in time …
Back in 1985, the band Dire Straits launched a song called Money For Nothing.
It became famous for a whole host of reasons.
It was the first song of theirs that actually sounded slightly modern.
It had ‘modern’ day references in the lyrics.
It had Sting – from The Police – singing on it.
It had this video …
Did you watch it?
You didn’t did you?
You lazy bastards …
Well, to get back to the point of this post, here’s a screen grab from it …
Now while that image may not strike you as cutting edge, back in 1985, it was revolutionary.
Digital characters living in a digital world, where their universe was a blend of normality and possibility.
Hang on, does that sound like something else?
Something that a huge amount of the tech and marketing industry have been wetting their pants over?
Something that sounds suspiciously close to this …
Did you watch this?
You didn’t did you?
You über-lazy assholes …
Well, to get back to the point of this post, here’s a screen grab from it …
Yep.
Yep it does.
A music video from 1985 by the most snooze-rock band ever formed, not only communicated the metaverse, it did it in a style pretty close to what Facebook and every other brand have shown as ‘the standard’.
How terrifyingly embarrassing is that?
All these hip, technologists, futurists and strategists trying to look like they’re on the edge of culture creation and all the bollocks they’re banging on about was expressed by bloody Dire Straits 37 years earlier.
THIRTY SEVEN YEARS.
Hahahahahahahahaha.
I mean … when that Zuck video first broke, I wrote a post about how it was missing the point by showing things we can already do, but now – thanks to errrrrm, Dire Straits, I realise it was even worse than I imagined.
Don’t get me wrong, I believe technology and – the metaverse, even though what is being celebrated as it, isn’t what it is – will have the possibility to make a huge, positive difference to humanity. Eventually.
But making – and lauding – a film and idea that looks awfully similar to a bloody 1985 music video isn’t doing them any favours. If anything, it shows how much of this industry is filled with individuals who crave attention or adoration or just desperately seek relevance.
Not helped when you learn that, unsurprisingly, the main reason Zuck is so into the Metaverse is not for changing the world but upping his bank account.
Given how much Facebook tried to label Apple as ‘anti-business’ for the amount they charged creators and partners – which is a lot less than 47.5% – it makes the whole Meta situation even more laughable.
Don’t get me wrong, I know the new is often misunderstood.
And new technology should not be judged by the standards of established technology.
But when the ‘icons and industry leaders’ stand on soapboxes and stages to promote the future in a similar way that Dire Straits brought to the World almost 4 decades ago … it’s only fair to question if these people care about the future or simply their own career image.
Even though, sadly, we keep seeing hyping can get better career growth, than grafting.
If the Metaverse could fix that, then maybe we’d all sign up.
Then again …
Bottom of the league after 7 games.
Worst start in 108 years.
Team down and out.
And yet, since the brilliant Steve Cooper came in as manager, we have fought our way to a position where we are going to Wembley to play in the Championship final with the prize being a seat at the Premiership table.
Last time I saw Forest at Wembley … it was a different millennium and Wembley was a different stadium.
[We lost, thanks to an own goal – in fact the only goal he scored in his entire carer – from Forest defender Des Walker. Not to mention the ref not sending off Gascoigne when he blatantly fouled one of our players so Spurs didn’t end up going down to 10 men. But hey, am I bitter? Errrrrm, yes … yes I am actually]
But all that aside, this is amazing.
As in, truly, truly amazing.
I was definitely scared for a moment … especially when it went to penalties, but we did it.
Win or lose, this is a season that will long live in the memory. Up their with our most glories of glory years.
And yes, I cried. Sue me.
Need to go and lie down, my blood pressure is threatening a nuclear meltdown.
You fucking beautiful reds!!!
Later today – or in NZ time, very early tomorrow morning – Nottingham Forest play the second leg of the Championship Playoff against Sheffield United.
We played the first leg at their ground last Saturday and won, 1-2.
It should have been 2 nil … but it wouldn’t be Forest without letting in a needless goal on the 90th minute so they still have a chance to scupper us.
And don’t think I’m just being a doom-fan, they did just that in 2003 when we were in this position … beating us 4-3 at home. ARGHHHHHH.
But beating them tonight isn’t just about revenge.
Nor is it even about getting closer to the Premiership.
It would be another way I can get my revenge at the RHCP for sacking me.
What am I talking about?
Well I recently saw this article in a Yorkshire newspaper …
… and while Flea was pretty decent to me, at this point – with the scale of this result at stake – all alliances are well and truly off, hahaha.
But even with that, this is already beyond our wildest dreams.
At the start of the season, we were rock-solid bottom of the league with just 1 miserly point after 7 games played..
It was our worst start in 108 years.
ONE HUNDRED AND EIGHT.
So to be in this position is beyond anything anyone could have hoped for – especially as we all expected it would be a relegation battle season, rather than a chance at getting in the Premiership.
For all our amazing success, Forest have been fucking pants for 2 decades.
Even a couple of years ago, when we were in the playoff position for basically the whole season, we managed to lose the very last game by enough goals to ensure we ended up outside the playoff position
I honestly took over a year to recover from that … but here we are, potentially 180 minutes from the big time. Back where I would like to say we belong but have not been there for 23 years.
Hell, if we had not just had a meltdown against Bournemouth a couple of weeks ago, we could have even made automatic promotion – and that would have just been nuts.
So while I still am burned from 23+ years of broken dreams and false promises, I hope they make it. I still feel they’ll slip up as that is just what I’ve been conditioned to expect – but it would be amazing for them, the manager and the city as a whole if they didn’t.
I would cry.
Proper cry.
Not just because I’d be so proud of them, but it would take me back to being a kid when being from Nottingham meant you were part of Clough’s all-conquering team and that felt so special.
And while they will never win the European Cup again, getting back to the Premiership would be something worth celebrating for years.
But even that wouldn’t be as huge as this teams ability to make me – and the whole city of Nottingham – fall in love with Forest and football again.
The scenes this year are arguably better than anything I saw even in the glory years … so while I desperately want to see them win, in some ways, they already have.
Good luck Forest.
Come on your reds.
Filed under: Comment, Happiness, Love, Martin Weigel, Mercedes, Wedding
A week ago, this post was not going to be written.
Circumstances – some real, some assumed – were working against me.
From Forest missing out on automatic promotion to NZ immigration issues stopping me from attending the wedding of someone hugely important to me as well as seeing the first born of another person who is hugely important to me.
I had begrudgingly come to terms with it, but then – like magic – it all changed.
Forest – somehow – managed to get to the playoff final and border restrictions got changed earlier than imagined.
And what does this mean?
It means I’m flying to Europe on Sunday.
It means – thanks to NIKE getting me tickets – I get to see Forest play at Wembley.
It means I get interviewed on the Nottingham Evening News about my trip. [That’s not a joke]
It means I get to do this with my best friend Paul who I’ve not seen since September 2020.
It means I meet the first born of my dear friend and incredible planner – Paula Bloodworth.
[Made better by her husband being from Nottingham and Forest fan, which kills her. Ha]
It means I can give you 10 days of freedom from this blog.
TEN DAYS!!
But the icing on the cake is that I also get to see my beloved Martin Weigel marry his beautiful and wonderful Mercedes.
He might not want me to talk about this, but he’s probably so stressed trying to sort out the final arrangements that he will either not see this or not care.
But after trying to make this wedding happen for THREE YEARS – fuck you COVID – next Wednesday, in Portugal, we finally get to celebrate the most wonderful day of the year.
And I include the unlikely possibility of Forest getting into the Premiership in that statement.
Put simply, Martin and Mercedes are genuinely amazing and wonderful humans.
Yes, I know Weigel can come across as a miserable bastard intellectual … but the reality is he’s one of the most wonderful and warm people I’ve ever met. Of course I’m not supposed to say that – but it’s true – after all, how else would he get to marry such an amazing woman?!
People may think Martin and I are an odd couple, but everyone knows Martin and Mercedes are the perfect couple and I cannot sum up how happy I am for them.
Up until a couple of days ago, I didn’t think I could go.
I was invited, but visa and immigration issues were messing with it.
But now – on the day Forest won the match to get into the Championship playoff final – things changed and I’ll be there and I’m overwhelmed about it.
Not just because marriages are always wonderful.
But because marriage is important.
I’ve written about this before.
Of course everyone has their own opinion, but based on my experience, it has been the single best thing that’s ever happened to me.
Did it change anything when we’d been living together for years?
Actually it did.
Emotionally.
For the better.
It made me feel more secure, more cared for, more together.
And while that may not be the case for everyone, I have a sneaky suspicion it will be for Martin and Mercedes. And so it should, because they’re wonderful and right now … I am the 3rd happiest person in the whole wide World.
Thanks to them.
And because of them.
So to my dear M&M – but not Eminem – congratulations.
At a time where the planet is in a bit of a state, what you are doing next week – and what we all will celebrate – is a reminder that there’s beauty, happiness and hope out there.
I’m so glad you found each other.
I’m so glad you’re in my life.
I’m so glad I’ll be there.
Masses of love to you both.
Good luck to Forest.
Here’s to one of the most important and special weeks of my life.
A week I never expected to have, just a few days ago.
Which is a reminder of how awesome life can be.
As proven by the fact I’ll see you on the 2nd June.
Ta-ra lovelies.
Rx