Sneaky Facebook

So you're creeping around on Facebook, looking at your friends' pictures from last weekend's BBQ, seeing who's breaking up with who, or just aiming for the high-score in Bejeweled Blitz, when all of a sudden you see an advertisement on your screen for sexy singles in your area.

Of course, that sort of thing doesn't interest you. You're in a happy marriage, and you don't care to meet singles online. Although it probably should interest you, considering the image on the Facebook ad is of your wife!

"Fortunately, he has a sense of humor. Otherwise it could have played out very differently," says Cheryl Smith, the wife of the confused Lynchburg, Virginia man who experienced first-hand how social media is becoming really creepy.

So, why was Cheryl's image being used to meet singles online? It would appear that a company advertising with the social media giant yanked the image off of Facebook and "legally" used it.

Huh? Is that right? Should Facebook be able to use your image however they see fit?

Read the full story on MSNBC.

Is Facebook, the world's most popular free social media tool, starting to infringe on your privacy? Let us know what you think.

Sneaky Starbucks

Starbucks has taken a surprising new step towards world domination. They have opened a new coffeehouse (obviously this is not the surprising part). The new coffeehouse is called 15th Ave. Coffee & Tea. This is an attempt by Starbucks to "create a distinct, bespoke, of-the-neighbourhood coffeehouse"... all qualities that you wouldn't associate with your run-of-the-mill Starbucks. Blogger Peter Merholz believes this new venture by Starbucks is "doomed to failure, because there's no way a corporate coffee chain can create an authentic neighborhood coffeehouse experience." I would agree. I feel bad for those coffeehouses that ARE authentic. Not only do they have to worry about regular Starbucks outlets, but now they have to worry about Starbucks outlets masquerading as neighbourhood coffeehouses!

Even here in Ottawa, there are at least 27 Starbucks outlets. I must admit, when it gets a bit colder outside, I frequent Starbucks for their pumpkin spice lattes. I'm reminded of when I'd bring a Starbucks cup into my graduate classes at Carleton University, much to the dismay of my socially-conscious classmates who saw this as a major faux-pas. While I do think it is great to support local businesses and less great to support a faceless, super-powerful corporation, you can't fight the fact that they serve some delicious beverages! However, while I can't help but love Starbucks, I think they should stick to what they do well and not try to take what little the little guys out there have left.

Travel Destinations in Our Own Backyard

The other day, I happened upon a web banner for the "Locals Know" campaign. Since I was, at the time, planning a mini vacation to Toronto, I clicked the link to check out what the website has to offer. The main messaging of the website urges Canadians to "Discover the Canada you don't know." Is that a challenge, Canadian Tourism Commission? As their press release for the campaign explains, they aim to inspire Canadians to explore Canada's "surprises and secrets" such as "desert-like dunes in the middle of the country", "volcanoes on the verge of the Pacific", and "tropic-like waters within hours of vibrant cities." Tell me more!

Visitors to LocalsKnow.ca are encouraged to post their own "spots" - they must be in Canada and they should be places that "most people have never heard of." As I perused through the photos, I noticed that there were in fact intriguing Canadian hot spots that I was unaware of. For example, check out this photo of beautiful turquoise water. Can you believe that this is an Ontario destination? Crazy!

The website also boasts travel deals from "partners" of the campaign. Most of the deals here in Ottawa are care of Ottawa Tourism. The great thing about Ottawa is that, as Canada's Capital, there are countless tourist attractions. That said, these attractions are not just for tourists! People come from miles around to see our great museums, check out the Byward Market or Parliament Hill, attend Bluesfest or the Jazz Festival or the Casino du Lac-Leamy Sound of Light festival... I could go on forever! What's your favourite Ottawa attraction or activity? (My favourite attraction is Saunder's Farm at Halloween-time, located just outside of the city in Munster.)

Although I didn't end up finding any deals to take advantage of for my upcoming trip, I did find that the site was inspiring in that it reminded me that you don't need an expensive plane ticket to experience something new and exciting!

Stone Temple Pilots rocks Ottawa!

Hello Ottawa, it's a me, Luigi!

My a good friends over at The Daily Breakthrough have asked me to write a little review from last night's Bluesfest concert! Here a goes nothing:

Almost 20,000 people crowded LeBreton Flats last night to see one of the biggest acts of the 1990s play for a very enthusiastic Bluesfest crowd. And the band did not disappoint.

After a 10-year hiatus, Stone Temple Pilots, led by charismatic front man Scott Weiland, rocked the Ottawa crowd despite the unusually damp and cold weather. The stage was lit by blinding lights and the sound was an ear splitting treat for my cartoon ears!

In my small town in Italy, we did not have such music. But I must say, it was a special evening for everyone in attendance, including myself. Ottawa really knows how to have fun!

The concert was capped off when dozens of concertgoers made there way over to Pubwells at the corner of Preston Street and Spruce Street for wings and birra!

It was a perfect evening. Thanks Bluesfest for bringing such a good acts to Ottawa.

Ciao for now!

P.S. If you send me a pic from last night's concert to catchluigi@prestonstreet.com, I will put you in the weekly draw for a gift certificate on Preston Street!


Who is Luigi? Find out at Catch Luigi.

Hope Beach Summerfest gets soggy, but raises money!

Another Hope Beach Summerfest has come and gone, but this one was like no other!

By 9:00 a.m. on Saturday, July 11, 2009, Mooney's Bay beach was packed with Ottawa's budding volleyball pros, ready to impress their friends, family and co-workers with their polished skills.

By 11:45 a.m. everyone was drenched and up to their ankles in mud. For the first time in Hope Beach Volleyball Summerfest's history, the games were canceled. Rain and lightning made it too dangerous to play.

As people began to make the wet walk back to their cars and head home, the true spirit of Hope Beach Volleyball shone through the thick clouds...everyone began to celebrate the yearly event in the only way possible: By getting dirty.

Although it was a smaller crowd than most years, thousands of people stayed in the rain to enjoy the concerts and madness of the "Woodstock"-like event.

All six charities that depend on $25,000 each from the tournament will still receive their funds, as pledges and entrance fees had already been collected from the 10,000 registered volleyball players.

Of course, in the mix was the Marketing Breakthroughs team who spent the day enjoying the great event despite the rain and mess.

"Taking part in community events is just another one of the great things that make MB unique," says Elise Goodhoofd, MB's graphic designer. "We'll be back next year, armed with our impressive volleyball skills and perhaps an umbrella just to be safe."

The Secret's Out!

This past Friday, Vito Pilieci of the Ottawa Citizen broke the news that "Apple Inc. is secretly building a new Apple Store at the Rideau Centre." The word on the street is that it will be opening next month. Pilieci reports that "Apple has refused to comment on the opening of the store, despite having numerous postings on its website giving away the shop's location and tentative opening date." Apple has allegedly "forced the Rideau Centre to sign restrictive non-disclosure agreements forbidding officials from talking about the new retail outlet."

At first, I thought "what's the big deal, Apple?" But then I did a bit of Googling and found that these openings ARE a big deal for some people. Apparently, hardcore Apple fans have been known to fly across the world to attend Apple store openings.

I will definitely be keeping an eye out for any promotion for this new Ottawa store over the next few weeks, if/once Apple decides to start putting the word out. It should be interesting to see what strategies and technology they employ!