Seth Godin, Santa Claus Is A Linchpin!

Posted by Lady Mel On Friday, December 24, 2010 0 comments

I’ve come to realize that Santa Claus is not real after I recognized my mother’s signature on a letter intended for Santa one year. However, I’ve come to appreciate the face behind modern holiday materialism, not as Jolly Old St. Nick, but as one of the greatest ‘fictional’ linchpins of all time.

So what is a linchpin? A linchpin, according to marketing guru Seth Godin, is someone that you should aspire to be. Linchpins stand out by creating ‘art’ (meaningful work) through emotional work and are not afraid to challenge the status quo. With this economic recession, a lot of people including myself, are reevaluating our career choices. People are leaving their jobs to launch start-ups and other ventures. If this had happened 50 years ago,  these people would have been outcasts. Why would they leave their secure jobs with good 401K plans, health insurance, and retirement pensions to start a company? Now answer this question. How many current “jobs” have these same financial benefits? Very few. Fast forward. So wait, Santa Claus performs meaningful work? Think about it.


For centuries, he has influenced Western culture from blockbuster movies and music to the holiday branding of retail stores, charities, companies, social media platforms, malls, and human behavior. He loves what he does for a living. He takes a year to deliver presents to all the good little girls and boys around the world. He does his job not for the money or for the power, but for his passion to change lives. He inspires others to get into the Christmas spirit and dress up as him to inspire the hearts of children and the less fortunate every year. Real linchpins and game changers are passionate about what they do and how they promote their causes to their audiences, leaving money out in the back-burner. Santa Claus does not care about material things. If he did, he would be the most wealthiest person alive right now.

Recently Melinda Pfeiffer, an unemployed North Carolina woman, sent a Santa letter to her local newspaper, asking Santa Claus to give her job for Christmas. I don’t know if she truly believes in Santa or marketed her distinctive skill set to local readers of the newspaper, but if you are an adult woman writing to Santa Claus for a job, even though he is a myth, the image of Santa Claus is still powerful

In Tribes: What Need You to Lead Us, Godin discusses that a leader of a tribe or community should encourage his/her members to be leaders themselves and inspire their audiences to lead and connect ideas. Santa Claus’s tribe consists of two groups: the elves and the rest of us. The elves are the foundation of the Santa Claus brand. Without their 'art', there will no toys and gadgets for the little boys and girls and holiday conspicuous consumption would be at an all time low. The rest of us are the people responsible for keeping the myth alive by believing in the myth and instilling Christmas spirit and hope in others. With communication, delegation, and leadership, the legend of Saint Nicholas leaves on.......until 2012 arrives and the world ends.

Today, people create blogs and social profiles to leverage average consumers, future employers, and industry experts. Santa pretty much does need to use social media like we do because his brand has already developed through centuries of folklore, not YouTube. But if he were real and wanted to get with the times, a strong social media presence would be beneficial because he could connect with millions of his fellow admirers online.

Do you know how many tweets and Facebook comments he would get from people? Trillions. Epic Twitter shut-down! But for Santa Claus, it would just be a day in the life of a linchpin, reinventing himself one character at a time.


What are your holiday plans for Christmas and New Years this year? How has Santa Claus change your life? And Happy Holidays everyone! :D

The Top Five Blog Posts of 2010

Posted by Lady Mel On Monday, December 20, 2010 0 comments

I have been writing for years. For weeks after a time. At work. At home. Inside my head at night. I write  blog posts not only because I enjoy writing but because I want you, the follower, to gain access to what's going on in this amazing mind. This year, I have had some creative bouts of imagination and I want to honor five blog posts that channeled this creativity. I plan to write more bizarre and insightful posts over the next year. Here is what I think are the best blog posts of the year:

1. Alice in Twitterland: How to Tweet Like a Rockstar (March 15th)

2. Your Guide to Becoming a Socially, Relevant Blogger (April 8th)

3. The Tweetbag Wars (February 18th)

4. Every Movie Should be An Inception (August 23rd)

5. The Social Network: The Movie Behind the Brand (October 5th)

Relive these posts. Cherish them. You know I have. As a follower, I want to know what are your favorite blog posts this year and tell us why you liked them. I would like your feedback because I want my blog and this community to do bigger things in 2011. Tell me what you like about this blog and what things I should work on to better promote this platform. The art of branding never ends!

Picture of the Week

Posted by Lady Mel On Friday, December 17, 2010 2 comments


You are going to break Jake's heart or
Vice Versa.
And then make millions off of writing 
An album about your relationship with him.
It's inevitable.
Is your 15 minutes of fame up now?

Hugh Jackman Rides Edward and Bella!

Posted by Lady Mel On Thursday, December 16, 2010 2 comments

Hugh Jackson is one of the most versatile actors of my generation. He can act all manly and macro as Wolverine in the X-Men movie series or sing his heart out on Broadway. But when he got injured after his stunt went wrong during Oprah's Australian extravaganza earlier this week, I thought nothing of it. I knew he was okay. But then I saw this epic image of Jackman photoshopped behind Twilight's Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart and understood that my deep hatred of the teen book series would live on. I am surprised someone from Tumblr or Buzzfeed has not gotten on the "Hugh Jackman Can Ride Anything" meme bandwagon yet. Enjoy your day!

Video of the Week

Posted by Lady Mel On Friday, December 10, 2010 2 comments



I have to tap my hat to actress Helen Mirren, this year's Sherry Lansing Leadership Award recipient, at the 19th annual Women in Entertainment Power 100 breakfast in Beverly Hills. Her bluntness towards Hollywood's double standards and the lack of strong roles for female actors (of all ages) is a breath of fresh air. Although I am over 100 miles away from my alta mater, Smith College, I am glad that I was not taught to be the cookie cutter model of the modern woman and that there are women out there that challenge society's notions of womanhood each and every day! 


Like I mentioned in my previous post, why do consumers take traditional roles for women and men at face value and don't analyze what the media or their inner circles tell them? Mirren's acceptance speech is a part of my life and I hope you share her words of wisdom with others. Bravo!

I Just Saw Avatar and Eclipse, Now What?

Posted by Lady Mel On Thursday, December 9, 2010 4 comments

I have reviewed many movies on this blog. A movie is suppose to take you somewhere, elevate your senses and expectations. I still hold to that principle every way I go. Recently I had the luxury of watching two films that I strongly rejected from watching in the past: Avatar and Twilight: Eclipse. For Avatar, the best scene of the movie was the epic Na'vu revolt against the humans at the end of the film. The CGI graphics were pretty amazing, but like I said before, the plot-line was boring. Here is how the movie went.


Boy enters a new world. Boy meets girl, a tribe chief's daughter. Sounds familiar? Boy was suppose to kill or undermine the tribe's people to take their minerals, but then falls in love with the girl. Boy's people did not like that, and boy works with the tribe to defeat his former colleagues. Boy and girl live happily ever after. If I had seen this movie last December and written a review, I could have saved you $20. If Avatar came on HBO again, I would not see it. That is how bad the film is to me. I think that twenty years from now, Avatar will be celebrated for its breathtaking imagery and not for its storytelling. Avatar is not our 21st century version of Blade Runner or the Matrix.



Now those movies were classics ahead of their time; walking philosophical vessels of ourselves, reminding us of our humanity and will to create and accept our destinies. I can watch them over and over again. I cannot say this for Avatar and I certainly cannot say this in Twilight or its third movie adaptation, Twilight: Eclipse. Same concept; Boy meets girl. Boy happens to be a vampire with sparkling skin walks in the daylight. Boy's love for girl is so predatory and co-dependent that he will do anything to protect her from danger, even from the girl's best friend who happens to love her as well. Eventually, the girl becomes a vampire, gives birth to a half-vampire child, and lives happily ever after with her one true love, but I digress.



These movies are not for everyone, but for a core group of people. Lately we have become a society that tolerates the predictability and orthodoxy of the entertainment industry. 
In some respects, the art of film making is dead. Canadian actor Ryan Gosling understands that Hollywood is sexist, racist, and misogynistic. Do you see him on the cover of Star Magazine or on Dancing With the Stars? Hardly. He worries more about his acting craft than the money and fame. 


Twilight fans should take a minute and realize that romantic love isn't all peachy and clean in real life. Avatar fans should take a minute and realize that James Cameron needs to write/direct better stuff. Do people even think critically about what's going on in the world anymore? But what about personal preference? People have the right to watch and enjoy these films. My personal preference is watching non-regurgitated Hollywood trashy movies. I over-analyze films and I am aware of the garbage movie executives put forth to the public because I know it's mostly garbage. People these just days consume culture (technology, movies, books, news media, etc.) without knowing the consequences. Now that's the truth. 


What do you think about the notion that people take the lessons and cultural representations of the self, race, sex, gender, class,etc. from films at face value?

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!

Posted by Lady Mel On Thursday, November 25, 2010 1 comments


I am anxiously waiting for the food to stop cooking so I can eat the food that I deserve. I want to wish everyone a wondering Thanksgiving and a well-deserved break from work and school. Now is the time to be thankful for the things you have and aim to do in the near future! Enjoy this time with your family and friends and eat with a bang!



What are you thankful for this holiday season?

Did You Miss Me? Update

Posted by Lady Mel On Saturday, November 20, 2010 0 comments

Next Thursday is Thanksgiving and since I have days off next week, I will have time to spice things up around here with a week of good, stimulating content for you guys. Here is you should expect this week:


1. American Music Awards Review 
2. Possible Guest Blog Post! :)
3. Harry Potter and the Deadly Hallows Review or Preview???
4. Thanksgiving Message
5. Another Lady Mel in the City post


Do you want me to cover something else? I appreciate your feedback. :)

Lady Mel in the City

Posted by Lady Mel On Saturday, November 13, 2010 0 comments

Hi everyone! The one and only Lady Mel is here to give you the latest in my awesome world. Lets get down to business!


@iHeartChina- LadyMel, I know this is old news, but did you vote in the 2010 midterm elections and which party did you vote 4?

China, would you be pissed if I did not vote this year? Ya, I was filming an commercial for my new shoe line in Hong Kong that day. It was not worth the effort or time really. When I am confident about the economy, and the direction of this country, then I will.

@PrinceAndrew482 - Gerard Butler's birthday is today. U attending his many b-day parties?

I will be attending a couple tonight in LA. Gerard is a good friend of mine. We met months before his "Law Abriding Citizen" film came out. Just friends. Never dated him. Not his female toddy. But he is a nice piece of ass though. ;]

@Kicca_Dane- What is wrong with Kanye West? The "Today Show" appearance ftl.

I honestly do not know. Mommy issues? Egotistical Douchebag Syndrome ? He is just a waste of time for me. Next.

Before I leave for the week, I want to thank Randomista  for presenting me with this:  the IDGAF Blog Award. I want everyone to check out here blog. She is amazing. IDGAF, if you don't know by now means, "I Don't Give a F$$$." And what the negativity around me at times, I don't give a F$$$$ about them. It's all about me. Picture of the Week personified. Have a nice weekend everyone!

Five Things I've Learned From the 2010 Mid-Term Elections

Posted by Lady Mel On Wednesday, November 3, 2010 3 comments

From 8:00pm to 4:00am this morning, I was busy watching the CNN, FOX, MSNBC, and CNBC coverage of the 2010 U.S midterms elections. My views challenged, swaying back and forth like a loose track because I kept whipping my hair like Willow Smith! I personally think that there are some lessons that can be learned from the politics that everyone can learn from, including President Obama.


1. If the government wants to recreate jobs, stop corporations from shipping them overseas first.


2. Bipartisanship is the Democrats and Republicans new friend! Don't forgot it.Republicans, you have knocked down Democratic incumbents and have taken the House of Representatives. If you don't want to be called "The Party of No", start working with the Democrats. You did not sway independents and Reagan Democrats for nothing. You got the votes, now listen to the American people.


3. The government has to regain the trust of the Americans who did not vote in yesterday's elections because this future shift in power includes every American people when creating new laws and policies. Some people have been so fed up with the partisan bickering on Washington for so long that they have lost faith in the "democratic" process. (Note: I personally don't think the U.S is not a true democracy yet. We are slowly getting there, but we have not reach our true potential.)  If Washington does not want this country to get into a second Great Depression or does not want the Democrat or Republican party to lose party members in 2012, now is the time to have everyone aboard.


4. The people have spoken, but will the two political parties listen to the average Joe or continue to rally with special interest groups and lobbyists? 


5. The American people will now need to keep the government on its toes. Read and research. They must know what really is going on on the local level, the state level, and the national level. If they want their voices heard like in this past elections, you have to continue challenging your elective officials. Don't just sit back and wait for the government to fix Medicaid or the educational system. Action, not inaction. 


What are your thoughts on the election results? What do you think about the current U.S political system?


Guess Who I Will Be For Halloween?

Posted by Lady Mel On Wednesday, October 27, 2010 5 comments

Me.
There is no room.
For Lady Gaga or
Snookie costumes.
Just Me.
Me.

I have decided not to dress up for Halloween this year. Booo Booo. Halloween is just one of those days where a woman can be a slut and its acceptable. Why do I want to be a slut for a day when I can be yourself? I am just going to enjoy the candy, the movies, the escapism without wearing a mask. Plus, I'm too old and I have better things to do. Like building my empire and personal worth. When that's established, then  I can trick and treat all I want.

So don't worry about me.
Have fun
With your latex and Halloween candy.
Enjoy.

Just some food for thought. What will you be this Halloween season?

Lady Mel in the City

Posted by Lady Mel On Saturday, October 16, 2010 3 comments

Hi everyone! This is the lovely Lady Mel! I will now start every Friday or Saturday with the "Lady Mel's Corner". It's a space where I get to answer three Twitter questions from my lovely fans! And I'll conclude each session with my most favorite picture or word or something of every week. It's more of a weekly recap of all things happening in my world. Lets begin! (Disclaimer: LadyMel is MY alter ego. We will have slight differences of opinion sometimes, but that is why alter egos are oh so awesome. Carry on.)



1. @HappyGoLucky- What do you think about this week's Glee episode?


I absolutely loveddd it! All the duets were awesome especially Kurt's solo, and Santana's and Mercedes's. However I find it rude that Santana and Mercedes sung together and there was not a problem but since Kurt is openly gay and wanted to sing with Sam [isn't he hot?!?!] , it becomes a major problem on the show. I don't blame the creator, it's our society.


2. @PrincessDivine45- Which movie this weekend are you looking forward to see?  XOXOXO


Red! Redddddd! Watch it. No one can resist Bruce Willis's and Helen Mirren's ultimate badassness. It's a comedy/action packed film. 


3. @JohnAHoe- I go to Yale. Did you hear about the Yale Delta Kappa Epsilon sexist fiasco?


Of course I have. And what makes it sad is that these young men will one day become our next executives, leaders, and future presidents. I did not know the state of manhood was this bad. But never fear, John! Since I am a loyal Jezebel.com fan, I wrote a counterargument in the form of a rant similar to the one the fraternity boys were raging in the video. You can find it here just scroll down.


My name is Kat (not really lol)
And I hate these frats
I'll challenge all of them
In the name of feminism!

No means yes
Yes makes you have issues

Fuck patriarchy!
Fuck patriarchy!
(repeats)

Fucking douchebags
Fucking douchebags
(repeats)

Jezebel!
Jezebel!




Finally, here is my Picture of the Week! Isn't he precious?! 


New Windows Phone 7 Ad is Brilliant!

Posted by Lady Mel On Tuesday, October 12, 2010 2 comments

 

Smart-phone users are insane. My sister is one and I can imagine how much time she spends on her Sprint E-Vo everyday. I recently participated in a Harvard Business Review discussion on Linkedin.com about the use of texting while in a meeting or other social function. People these days are using technology and forgetting how to conduct themselves in even the most intimate settings like the bedroom as shown in the YouTube clip. I am a product of this phenomenon, I admit. Five seconds after watching "The Social Network", I told Radale that I was going to log onto Facebook to check my updates once I returned home, despite my harsh criticism of the film. And I did.

Luckily, I do not have the luxury of owning or using a smart phone because of my financial situation or I would have been enchanted by the screen of a iPhone 4 or Android. I am aware of Microsoft's slow process to produce a reliable smart phone over the years, but I guess now you have to save say the best for last, right? But this commercial is absolutely brilliant.

From a marketing perspective, Microsoft wants us to understand as the audience that, "Smart phones are bad, but smart phone users are even worse. We have to mock other smart phone brands like Apple and RIM because it is fun and legal. But the new Windows 7 Phone is also a smart phone but who cares because our commercial is so epic." Love the concept, Microsoft!

How did you like the commercial?

The Social Network: The Movie Behind the Brand

Posted by Lady Mel On Tuesday, October 5, 2010 1 comments

This is more than just a movie review. This is a critical social analysis of my generation. Generation Y. By now, almost everyone you know uses Facebook. I do. You do. Probably your mom or stalker ex-boyfriend will by the time you finish reading this post. But that's not the point. The point is that the "The Social Network" provides not only a pretty accurate account of the way my generation sees the world, but the way in which the world will see us once we take ownership of it. (Disclaimer: When I analyzed this film, I talked about the actors and their fictional characters, not the actual people the film was roughly based on.)


As I  was watching this movie with my friend Radale Sunday night, I made a mental note on certain themes that played throughout the film and profoundly aroused my curiosity. Curiosity killed the cat, I guess. 


1. This is Our Time. When I heard Sean Parker (Justin Timberlake) said that line to Mark Zuckerberg (Jesse Einserberg) at a Silicon Valley nightclub, I knew it would speak volumes. The founding of Facebook pivoted a cornerstone in the social media revolution; the urgency to create change and rattle the status quo. Facebook embodies the Generation Y culture, and the future of other young innovators, leaders, and entrepreneurs like Mark Zuckenburg and Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin (Andrew Garfield). Zuckerberg had a clever idea, the idea to create an online social space that connected people with members of their own tribes (as Seth Godin would digest). And as I saw Facebook's transition in the film as a brand from the dorm rooms of the prestigious Harvard University to Silicon Valley, the innovative hub for tech start-ups, I understood that this social revolution was bigger than anything I could have imagined of. 




2. The Tortured Creative Genius or the Jerk. I believed Zuckerberg represented two dichotomous identities: the tortured victim and the jerk. I do not know if the real Mark Zuckerberg is this way as in person, but the fictional Zuckerberg clearly was a jerk. From the moment I tried to decipher the opening dialogue between Zuckerberg and his ex-girlfriend Erica Albright, I knew that he was a hard person "socially" to deal with. But was he also a tortured soul because he was a nerd and did not quite fit into the Harvard social scene? Did Zuckerberg create Facebook to fit in with his peers or achieve fame, power, or greed? We will never know.


But this film drew more questions about Facebook and Zuckerberg than answers in my opinion. What bothered me the most was that why was a computer science genius somewhat "antisocial", when his Internet empire is all about interconnectivity and social networking? 


My answer: Radale and I concluded that Zuckerberg was not an efficient communicator at all. In the movie, he manipulated Saverine, probably the only friend he even had, from knowing about the Winklevoss lawsuit at first and then the Facebook contracts. He humiliated Albright by blogging about her on his "FaceMash.com" experiment. Does anyone found it ironic that Zuckerberg did this to Albright long before cyber bullying and the use of Facebook as a cyber bulling tool became major national investments? What a coincidence.


His behavior led me to more questions. Even if Eduardo was not an effective business manager and a Facebook co-founder, why did Zuckerberg tell him directly about this idea called Facebook and why did not he tell Saverine that he was inefficient before the final confrontation in the movie where Eduardo confronted Sean Parker and Zuckerberg about his lose of Facebook stock? Communication is a must to becoming a leader of the future and for Zuckerberg to be portrayed in this light is quite paradoxical to the current times.  Honesty should be a major priority when dealing with starting a business with your friends because I know that sometimes mixing friendship with business causes problems down the road. So in other words, creating a marketing brand requires transparency and communication.


3. Where are the women?  I am not surprised by the the limited role(s) for women in this film. To Mr. David Fincher, why groupies? For instance, if you say to someone that you went to Harvard, people will perceive you as extremely smart and privileged, regardless of background. If Harvard women are smart and I bet many are, why did Fincher portrayed these women as the typical gender norm: young, sexually curious women with the sore purpose of attending exclusive Harvard parties to get laid. Who remembers the strip poker and the Katy Perry's I Kiss a Harvard Girl esque scenes at the beginning of the film? Almost every female in the movie except Albright and Delpy (Rashida Jones) were half-naked, child-like, and sought male attention and the "male gaze" from Zuckerberg, Saverin, Parker, and other male actors in the film. 



Albright was the only female in the film that eloquently challenged Zuckerberg's ego the most (and in some respects his social equal), yet Zuckerberg humiliated her for those opinions online for emasculating him at the pub. Hollywood [or society]  hates it when a powerful female character speaks her mind, but then has to be ridiculed for it. I would have loved to have seen intelligent Harvard women in conversations with Zuckerberg, Parker, and Saverin about Facebook, the state of the digitalization of information and other Millennium (Generation Y) issues. But no! I had to watch a female Facebook intern snorted cocaine off of another female Facebook intern's bare chest instead! 


When will Hollywood ever learn that female actors should be not used or defined as background noise for a male-centric film? Young women these days are using Facebook in great numbers and to have women misrepresented in this film, in the social entrepreneurial scene, in American college culture, and in the greater society is truly troubling given that there are fewer women running Fortune 500 companies, majoring in math and the sciences, and starting their own businesses. I think the lack of good female roles in this film was one of its major flaws. 


Overall, it was a good movie to watch and I encourage those who haven't seen the film yet to see it with their own set of eyes. Remember, these are my opinions. Everyone is entitled to their own point of view. I think decades down the line, we will have sociologists, economists, and researchers analyse this film to reflect on the generational impacts of Generation Y in the first decades of the 21st century. Only problem is that I beat them to it! 


What are your thoughts about this movie? Zuckerberg? Facebook? The Lawsuits? Do you agree or disagree with the questions and points I brought up in this discussion?

October Blogging Schedule: Sheer Epicness!

Posted by Lady Mel On Monday, October 4, 2010 0 comments

For this month, I've decided to tailor my blogging schedule a bit differently:

October 4th-October 9th- 1-2 blog posts
October 10th-October 16th- 1-2 blog posts
October 17th-October 23rd- 1-2 blog posts
October 24th-October 31st- 5 blog posts, all tailored to Halloween week!

Due to volunteer work, you will see fewer blog posts from me. I did not want to create blog posts without substance and without my signature blogging style, so the ones that I will produce will not be garbage. If you are a new reader, last October, I dedicated the last week of October to Halloween. I wrote this insane story about a Halloween "triple homicide" party and even my Halloween costume picks. I hope this year I can top it off with even more sheer madness. If you want to check out my cool story, look no further: 

Murder at the Million Dollar Halloween Party, Part I, Part II, Part III, and Part IV.

So don't worry about whether or not I will finally get my driver's license or finish reading my Seth Godin books. I won't anymore. Life is in the now. So expect some surprises and maybe a special guest or two this month. Muhahahahahaha!

Hi everyone! I know you all missed me.


Ok, so everyone has been buzzing about Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerburg's 100 million donation to the City of Newark. If you have not noticed, I currently live in Newark. I was born and raise in Newark and I am very excited that there are billionaire entrepreneurs out there that are willing to donate their money to the less fortunate. Perhaps Zuckerburg can integrate his social media interface into getting these students to learn and think big. Newark public schools need it, especially in this recession. 


However, I fear that Mayor Cory Booker and his administration are going to mishandle that money and use it for their own purposes. So Mark Zuckerberg, if you are out there, make damn sure you have a thorough business plan to implement that money into the Newark public school system the right way. Newark is known for its political corruption. Newark is possibly the only city in the state of New Jersey that does not have a mall. Malls create jobs. They may not create high paying jobs, but given that 43.6 million are living below the poverty line in this country alone, something is better than nothing, and I think even with the new Prudential Arena, more needs to be done. We have the land, we just have stubborn, greedy individuals in power that have used the politics of fear to blind the public of reality for the last forty years. I do not understand why Oprah Winfrey does not see the truth either.  


Onto other news, I finally got an interview with Apple Retail. Saturday morning! 10:00am. Upper West Side store! Very excited. I have come a long way to not be nervous. I know what I have to do. Wish me good luck and everyone have a lovely weekend! 


Oooo I forgot, this is the picture of the week. I am a fallen soul, an awesome soul, full of passion and dreams.


What do you think about this Facebook announcement? What do you know about Newark politics? What will you do this weekend?


Dear MTV, I Want My Life Back.

Posted by Lady Mel On Monday, September 13, 2010 2 comments

First and foremost, I want to thank Lady Gaga for sweeping the award shows with 8 awards including Video of the Year! I love the name of her next album, "Born This Way",  her outfits especially this late Alexander McQueen ensemble from his last collection and her ten second ballad of her "Born This Way" single. I want to know why MTV did not allow her to perform. I would trade this show for a two-hour Lady Gaga performance in a heartbeat. Usher and Florence and the Machines had the best performances of the night.




If I have not mentioned any one else, you either sucked and were extremely boring to watch. My worst critiques:
  • I love Chelsea Handler but as a VMAs host, she does not work for me. There were few laughs coming my way and I think at the beginning of the show, she seemed very nervous. 
  • Taylor Swift looked like a 30 year old woman with heavy makeup on stage. I wished Kanye West had interrupted her again. It would have been more entertaining. Was she playing the guitar?
  • Rihanna looked like a ginger hot tranny mess with no singing talent. Eminem and Rihanna do not make a good music collaboration.
  • Ciara gave a very random and weak thirty second performance. 
  • Justin Bieber lip-synced.
I will not watch another VMAs unless it is held at NYC's Radio City Music Hall. As discussed with other fans via BlogTV, the best Video Music Awards, the most memorable VMAs moments, happened in the heart of the Big Apple.


I had high hopes for this year's ceremony, but it was as stale as bread. And it is disappointing because I can't trust MTV to provide me with the best music video experience anymore. If I had to rate this show, I would give it a 5/10 and that is because Lady Gaga was there. If she was nominated but did not show up, I would not have watched it. Way to go MTV.

What do you think about this VMAs? What could have been better about it?

One Year Later, The 2010 VMAs Strikes Back!

Posted by Lady Mel On Friday, September 10, 2010 1 comments

I started this blog over three years ago. I played with the idea that I can write for a larger audience. On and off. On and off. It was not until around this time last year that I made blogging top priority with my hilarious 2009 VMAs post. Things have changed over the course of the year with volunteer work, a new perspective on life, and an opportunity to gossip about popular culture like it is no one's business. And now I am here to bring that fun and passionate personality once again with a stellar preview of this year's MTV 2010 VMAs Awards.

I used to be a big MTV fan in the 1990s and early 2000s. Undressed. TRL. The early Real World seasons. Fanatic. You named it. I saw pretty much saw it. Now I barely watch it because of MTV's commitment to reality-TV programming than actual music. However, I do carve out some time every year to watch the Video Music Awards because many of my favorite artists either present awards, win awards, or perform on stage like beggers wanting an award. I forecast this year will be different. Here are the top three reasons why you should watch the 2010 MTV Video Music Awards:

1. This is the year of the Lady Gaga.


Not the year of Beyonce (that was last year) or the year of Justin Bieber. If you do not know who Lady Gaga is right now, you must be living under a rock in the outskirts of outer space. She is everywhere. She is the most popular pop star and social media queen of our generation so far. When mankind invented the word "ubiquitous" for the English language, you can see her picture inside a Webster dictionary next to the word. Currently, she holds the title of Twitter Queen with over six million followers and counting, beating out the ubiquitous crowned Twitter prince, Justin Bieber. Sweet

I thought about this long and hard. Why did not Lady Gaga win any VMAs last year? Well she was still in her underground phrase of her career. People knew about her but did not catch on until her VMA debut "Paparazzi" performance last September. With eleven thirteen nominations under her belt including Video of the Year, Lady Gaga will reign as this year's Moon Man queen. I wonder, with her ridiculous sense of fashion, who and what will she wear to the event? Entertain us Gaga, although you are not performing this year! Maybe she will. :)

2. Chelsea Handler, A Funny Female Host for Once


What does Chelsea Handler and I have in common besides being Jersey girls? We love dark humor, sarcasm, celebrity gossip and brutal honesty. I watch her amazing show, "Chelsea Lately" on the E! Show occasionally every week and I think her little antics and sarcasm will reshape MTV, its VMA image, and its low ratings.

I tweeted her once. It read along the lines of, "If anyone could save the VMAs, its u @chelseahandler! Grats I will be watching and Chelsea, if Kanye interrupts u, beat his ass for me. :)". I hope Chuy is on stage with her. And speaking of Kanye West, here is my top reason why you should watch the VMA's this year.

3. The Unpredictability of the Show:

Remember in 2003 when Britney Spears gave that infamous lip-lock to Madonna on stage? Remember the infamous "Taylor Swift, I am going to let you finish" comments Kanye West made to Taylor Swift before she made her Best Female Award speech last year? Those little moments in VMA history will always be a part of the collective consciousness and American pop culture. These moments keep tabloids busy and wealthy, the paparazzi the celebrity fiasco they drive for, and the American public a reason to read those tabloids and view those paparazzi photos. This year, Glee cast members and True Blood's Joe Manganiellio (squeals ^_^) will be award presenters. You never know what is going to happen or who will show up.


Although I do not like the direction that MTV, as a channel and global brand, has headed in the last five to ten years, I will say is that the MTV Video Music Awards is one of the last MTV gems that I will continue to watch until it gets stale like bread. For the last five years from moving to Miami to Las Vegas back to its home in NYC, the VMAs was heading in that direction, but last year's VMAs revived the craziness that is the VMAs. We just have to watch the Jersey Shore cast but seriously, I do not know why MTVs thinks these people are entertaining enough to produce two seasons of a reality show around their lives and then invite them to this award show. Oh, I forgot, $$$.

So sit back and relax. The 2010 MTV Video Awards will premiere live this Sunday, September 12th at 9:00pm EST in LA. Performers include Justin Bieber, Usher, Paramore, and Drake. To find out more information about the show and the ways you, the viewer, can vote on your favorite artists, click here.

I am so excited! Who are you excited to see at this year's VMAs and why?

Picture of The Week: Do It

Posted by Lady Mel On Saturday, September 4, 2010 2 comments


Happy a wonderful Labor Day weekend and live life to the fullest!

My Fall Schedule: Back to Work

Posted by Lady Mel On Monday, August 30, 2010 2 comments

Hello everyone. This week is special. This week marks my 1st anniversary revival of this blog, but we will get to that a little later this week. This week also highlights the zenith of my unemployment days. It's almost fall. Kids are going back to school. Ambitious individuals are heading back to college or starting their careers at graduate school. I, for the other hand will probably start a new industrious life in the next 3 weeks....as a part-time paying employee at a retail store. I am in between interviews and anticipated phone calls at the moment.

My long hours of YouTube viewing, Hulu-watching, WoW playing are almost over. Within the next month, I will be working long hours like the rest of you guys out there making a living. Today marks this new beginning and I want to start this fall with a fresh schedule, outlook on life and several objectives to accomplish. Here they are:

September and October Goals

1. Reconnect with Smith College Alum Clubs in NYC and NJ and attend their networking events.
2. Blog up to 2 days per week.
2. Get the interview, grab the audience, be the awesome person that you are, and win.
3. Start saving money so I can leave this house by next May (ultimate goal).
4. Network and meet new people at my new part-time job (When I get the green light).
5. Continue reading Seth Godin's book and other inspirational books.
6. Take 1-2 days out of each week to myself to leave the house and go out and explore and have fun. Life is too short.

July and August Goals 
1. Take 1-2 days out of each week to myself to leave the house and go out and explore and have fun. Life is too short.
2. Actually study for the Driver's License Test and then take the writing exam in the fall.
3. Walk more, eat healthy.
4. Find a part-time, paying job before September 1st. At this point in my career, I do not care what I get, at least as I start saving money. 
5. Be an indispensable worker in my career and as a volunteer worker.
6. Finish reading Seth Godin's "Linchpin, Are You Dispensable" book.
7. Build my portfolio and skills so that when I find my dream job down the road, I'll be ready. :)
8.  Relearn my French skills.
9. Blog at least 2 times per week. Write more engaging blog posts!

I have been slipping these last 2 months! Oh well, not the end of the world.  

What are your fall plans or plans for the rest of the year. Hows the job market for you? Looking for a new job or career path? What do you like your current position?

Picture of the Week: A Brilliant Haiku

Posted by Lady Mel On Friday, August 27, 2010 0 comments




 Give us liberty
or fall victim to self-hate
We will live the dream!

Every Movie Should Be An Inception

Posted by Lady Mel On Monday, August 23, 2010 2 comments

Over the course of this summer, I have seen these particular movies:


Sex and the City 2
Clash of the Titans
Kick-Ass
The A-Team
Dinner with Schmuck
Salt 
Iron Man 2
The Last Airblender
The Expendables
Get Him to the Greek

Some were rather funny, while others some were overrated. But nothing and I mean nothing could not compare to Christopher Nolan's masterpiece, Inception. I can go on for hours maybe days giving you reason after reason why I love Inception but it would be a waste of a good blog post and your time. So I truncated everything into two strong points: (Disclaimer: If you have not seen this movie, please read this review after you've seen the movie.) 

1. Inception is the anti-Avatar. Its been about eight months and I still have not watched Avatar. Why? Like I said. I want movies both amazing storytelling that makes you think. New York Magazine recently coined Inception as the anti-Avatar, and it is. You have a movie that is still discussed among the Twitter crowd as a trending topic. It has made over $250 million domestically, a modest profit compared to James Cameron's megablockbuster Avatar. It's a rare gem; its a movie that was able to pull in big bucks AND enabled you the moviegoer to think about your life, while being entertained by a stellar cast including Leonardo DiCaprio, Ken Watanabe, and Ellen Page. I have not seen this type of avant garde film since the first Matrix film was introduced to the world in 1999. 

Avatar may have had the amazing CGI graphics, but everyone is used to the typical love story. Yes, Dicaprio's character is or was in love with his dead wife, but there is more to the story than that: Dreams, the inception of dreams in our heads, how dreams can transform people's lives, how dreams can imprison us from within the soul. A movie that digs deeps into our philosophical truths, while maintaining a certain humanity and whimsicality is golden to me. It took Christopher Nolan 10 years to complete this film and it all came down to a single idea, a dream. This is what a movie should be.
2. You are your own architect. One of the most surprising parts of the movie was the ending. All David Cobbs (Dicaprio) wanted after the death of his late wife was to be in the lives of his two small children. You think you are getting that typical fairytale ending when you see him with his father (Michael Caine) in the kitchen and the children's faces (finally!) in the backyard. Then you see the spining top on the table...
Now I have talked to a couple of people about this film since I first watched it. Everyone is entitled to his or her opinion and that is one of the many reasons why I love this movie because the ending is so open for interpretation. What I believe happened is that Dicaprio finally let go of this image or vision of his dead wife. Mal (Marion Cotillard) initially controlled his every movements, his ambitions. David's mind was so powerful that he intercepted his world into his minds of his fellow team members and fooled them into thinking they successfully persuaded Robert Fischer (Cillian Murphy) to break his father's business empire. When he first asked Ariadne (Ellen Page) to act as his architect at the beginning of the film in order to get inside Fischer's mind, I automatically knew that the fear itself was consuming and deadly. Mal represented his inability to let go of his past and I think he finally let go of it at the end of the movie. 
What did I get out of this movie? Be the architect of your own life. You, the moviegoer, the blogger, should not let anyone, even the faint memory of a loved one ruin your chances of living a healthier life. I personally am fighting that good fight on my own. I won't get into the details, but I think the most important challenge of our lifetime is to live your own life by our own terms. Live life by the horns. That is the motto of my life at the moment and for a Hollywood film to project this message is extremely rare these days when you have movies like Twilight and The Other Guys. 
I remember one day after coming to work, waiting for the bus, weeks before I saw the movie, without any notion of the movie other than the trailer and I said something along the lines of this, "everyone is talking about this movie. I guess the moral of this story is that no matter how many dreams you have, as long as there are people that get into your way of achieving your dreams, you are pretty much defenseless until you fight back. That what makes the world go around. It is the survival of the fittest and that forces people to crush other people's dreams to reach to the top." I could not be any more right. Dreams are dreams unless you execute them.


What do you think of the movie? Have you seen it yet? If not, what are you waiting for?!

Career Girls Just Want to be Linchpins

Posted by Lady Mel On Wednesday, August 11, 2010 6 comments

As I return from my one-month break, I ask myself, "Do you miss me?, What is the future of this blog?, When will I ever make my mark in the world?". My answer? In all due time.


It has been a month since I last blogged and I miss it and you guys! *Hug*. I came back right in time before the 2010 MTV VMAs! We will hear more about that later, but I have so many announcements. I am just going to shout it out:


1. I am invited to another Apple Retail Career Seminar next week! I submitted my resume on the Apple Career website again and within a week I got an email from an Apple recruiter asking if I can come. If you remember from my last Apple seminar, it did not go so well. Yet,  all my cards will work for me instead of against me this time. I know what to expect and I have an lot to offer to the company. 


2. Last month, I started the Guest Blog Giveaway and only Jessica contacted me with her article. If I do not get a response from Shannon and Nickelnm by Friday, I am going to look elsewhere. You see I think I have learned a lesson while I was on hiatus. Work smarter, not harder. If people were really interested in guest blogging for me, they would have contacted me weeks ago. I am not going to hunt them down. There was ample time for a connection. I know others who are willingly to guest blog and contact me about it. I have no time to find people.


Overall, good things are coming my way and I just know it. Most twenty-something career-orientated women just want to network and find careers that suit their confidence levels. I am not afraid of challenging traditional ideologies of business and thought.  I just want to have fun doing what I love doing best right now:  working persistently and reinventing my brand.


I think with the work I am doing with the New Jersey Medical School right now, all I want is to connect with others and master the art of productivity. As Seth Godin would say (yes I am reading his book at the moment!), today is the age of the linchpin and we must acknowledge and embrace the art and creativity inside of us all. It took me over a year of soul-searching and reexamination to understand this, but I am finally learning what it takes to work hard and to value my own art. It's growing and it should.


I think Cyndi Lauper said it best! Welcome back everyone!