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Happy Monday!
It’s the 26th Annual “Shark Week!”
Just in case you missed the “Megalodon: The Monster Shark That Lives” show last night (hey, nobody thought a tornado with sharks could happen either…), you’ll recognize those classic six-words that may be uttered by someone this week on the Discovery Channel in true Police Chief Brody style:
Dun-Dun…
Happy “Shark Week” Everyone!
The Two Scariest Words: Dun-Dun
Since I missed the world premiere of, “Sharknado,” tonight’s encore viewing at 7:00 p.m. on the SyFy Channel will give me the opportunity do a full body dip into a world where sharks are swept up into a giant tornado and subsequently scattered throughout the terrified city of Los Angeles.
“Sharknado!”
Few things on this planet can paralyze people like a shark. Actually, few things on this planet can paralyze like the idea of a shark. Pause for a moment and reflect on that sentence…We do not need to visibly see or definitively know a shark is nearby to be struck with fear and for our heart’s to pound right through our bodies. We can all thank the brilliant Steven Spielberg for this.
Oceans are magnificent, full of everlasting mystery and intrigue. Anyone who has swam in the ocean along a coast or at a resort can attest that it’s a refreshing feeling. Most of us do not live by the ocean, so it’s an adventurous luxury. Still, how many of us venture farther than where we can touch our toes to the bottom?
It was about six years ago when my family and I went on vacation to Hawaii. The laid-back state in the middle of the Pacific Ocean is stunningly beautiful with exotic treats and gorgeous women at every turn…Anyways, my sister and I were coaxed into swimming about a quarter-mile into the Ocean by our Dad. Let me put it this way: there was zero chance of our feet touching the bottom.
And why did we explore well beyond the sandy beach? Because our Dad had heard that were whales nearby and he wanted to swim out to try to see them in all their massive glory. It as a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
Admittedly, whales were the last thing I was thinking about as we paced further and further from the beach. There was one thing on repeat the entire time in my head and it went like this…
During every single stroke of this watery trek, I was trying my best not to imagine all the creatures that lived in the ocean. I did my absolute best to rationalize that we weren’t really far enough from the beach to see a dorsal fin with a pointed top. I took as many deep breaths as any human being could to remain calm and not panic as I’m swimming with nothing but open water below my gliding body.
And then…
We saw something on the horizon break the ocean’s glassy surface. Looking more closely, it was a gigantic whale and we saw it slowly rise and fall back into the depths of the ocean. It was a majestic sight.
After basking in the glorious event, I quickly coaxed my sister and Dad to turn around and swim back (slowly and calmly) to the beach resort.
More than a decade ago, my family and I were on vacation down-under in Australia. Talk about an amazing country. One night in Darwin, we ate dinner at a wonderful restaurant at the end of a pier, which was about ten feet above the ocean. The food was delicious.
As we were walking back across the pier, my Mom told me to, cautiously, look down. A safe distance from the edge, I gently leaned over and saw the splash she was referring to. Puzzled, I asked her if it was just waves crashing? Why did she want me to see that?
She replied it wasn’t and told me to look more intently. I did and noticed something peering out of the water…it was a dorsal fin of a Great White Shark! Absolutely insane!
Initially, it startled me. Just a second or two later though, I was fascinated and completely in awe.
It’s somewhat mind-boggling how it’s the very idea of a shark, not necessarily the sight of one, that can strike a paralyzing fear and cause out-of-body heart pounding. This dynamic perfectly lends itself to being a superb psychiatric study.
Was there a big shark swimming relatively close to us during our oceanic adventure to see the whale in Hawaii? I have no doubt. And I didn’t have to see a fin for it to scare the hell out of me!
Usually, I Order a Coke with No Ice…
In partnership with Ogilvy & Mather Bogota, Coca-Cola may have just started a cool sustainability revolution with its ice bottle. According to a July 9, 2013 Foxnews.com article, “Coca-Cola unveils new bottle made of ice,” the popular soda/pop (a serious debate, I know) maker gave the sweating populace of Colombia the rare icicle-like treat.
The ice bottle appears to be precisely what you would imagine it to be: ice that is frozen in the shape of a Coca-Cola bottle, with a rubber band around the middle for holding and drinking convenience, with the refreshing soda/pop cooled to the perfect temperature inside.
Just as long as it is easy to drink with an ice bottle opening and that famous scene from “A Christmas Story” doesn’t occur, then the general public should be in good shape. If need be, adjustments then have to be made.
It’s hot outside. What feels good on a hot summer day? Ice. What’s even better than ice? Ice with chilled Coca-Cola! But here’s the genius of it all: The outer and inner contents of the ice bottle will refreshingly chill your heat soaked bones. It’s a win-win. Actually though, since the bottle is made of ice, that means once you are finished drinking or using the bottle, it simply melts away without becoming trash.
It’s a win-win-win!
With the number of countries throughout the world that experience hot weather all year-round or even just seasonally hot weather like in the United States of America, the potential for this commercial product could be astronomical. Imagine the continents of South America, Africa and Australia for starters. Middle Eastern countries also tend to be on the slightly warmer side. Specifically, Dubai is always looking to the future and embraces some Western ideas and tendencies.
Imagine going to the beach during Summer vacation and instead of having to lug around a cooler filled with empty soda/pop bottles or cans at the end of the day…well, now you don’t have to. The cooler would be significantly lighter. Incredibly, this idea could spread to adult beverages. Because water is a key ingredient in beer, it is manageable. The recipe would have to be altered and thoroughly tested, but it is workable.
Wouldn’t you try a Coca-Cola or a Corona in an ice bottle on a hot Summer day?
Environmental sustainability is a vitally important issue and Coca-Cola’s seemingly simple ice bottle could be the practical product the public embraces globally just like Coca-Cola itself. Having traveled all around the world, I will speak from extensive experience when I say American consumer goods, like Coca-Cola, Pepsi and McDonald’s are very popular. In the case of the Coca-Cola ice bottle, the brand is already well-established and a favorite with millions of people.
If managed properly (cost, distribution, etc.) and affordable pricing is offered to the public, then we could be on the cusp of a global effort to positively and realistically preserve the environment.
Some of our worries could just melt away…
P.S. Two suggestions to Coca-Cola: don’t use a rubber band (use something recyclable) and make the gripping band larger so it can be hand-held, not finger-held.
Jimmy's Daily Planet 