Intern Greg here. A few weeks ago, I entered an "Ode to SEO" poetry contest put on by interactive marketing firm Vertical Measure. The assignment was to write a poem using as many SEO/internet/social media keywords as possible. First prize was the choice between $1000 or an iPad. My poem came in second, and the prize was being allowed to post it on the Keane blog (along with $250). Hope you enjoy it!

44 Tweets About 22 Women
A Tribute to Love in the Age of Social Media

I followed @Lauren on Twitter / In hopes she’d tweet me back
I told @Anna that I wanted love / She said “There’s an app for that”

I met @Kelly on Facebook / And poked her for a while
@Debbie found me using Google / I found her on Dogpile

@Sarah had a YouTube hit / Lip-dubbing Miley Cyrus
@Ellie sent me Farmville gifts / That turned out to be a virus

@Alyssa ran a music blog / And hipsters loved to comment
I subscribed to @Lindsey’s RSS / And somehow wound up on it

@Tess was a Mayor on Foursquare / When I unseated her
@Ally posted links to Digg / So I retweeted her

@Jen worked in social media / And search engine optimization
A friend request from lovely @Britt / Once caused me great elation

@Elizabeth untagged our pics / She said I was a jerk
@BritneyVids was just a tease / But still Not Safe For Work

@Mandy mentioned me in posts / And said our love was classic
And though @Megan linked to my content / She just wanted to drive traffic

With 140 characters / I won the heart of @Jan
But @Katie’s online mailing list / Filled my inbox up with spam

@Trisha at the agency / Worked with contextual ads
@Sandra loved to write new Wikis / On the latest sexual fads

@Christina knew my login codes / She hacked my accounts, I bet
But I met @Maria in real life / Somehow without the Internet

Keane agrees with Oscar Wilde: Work is the curse of the drinking class.

We were thinking that a man of Mr. Wilde's stature deserves a public holiday, at the very least. We were surprised to find, however, that no such observance exists in the US (though, apparently, Baron Freidrich von Steuben and some guy named Rosh Hashanah made the cut).

To rectify the situation, Keane submits this Resolution before the General Assembly of Blog Readers:

We've taken a head count, folks, and we have the votes. Please join us next Friday, February 26th, at 5:00PM as we sign this bill into law.

New work for our client, Southwest Solar Technologies. The smell of a fresh press sheet really wakes you up in the morning.

We printed these on Neenah's Coronado SST line of stock – an uncoated, Green Seal-certified sheet that lovingly coddles the ink and feels quite phenomenal in the hand with the stipple finish. I am now jealous of our own client.

For everyone still rocking the pay phones, we now have a toll-free number! 877-YO-KEANE (965-3263).
We welcome any collect calls from abroad.

Get your translators ready. The pack seen here, now empty, was a gift from Samantha during her vacation back down to Mexico City in December. When I looked further into Faros – which means lighthouse – I found an intriguing story about the power of tradition and the deep roots brands can push down into the social soil. In the end, though, it's just an interesting story about Mexican cigarettes.

Faros, a 90 year-old brand, is one of most well-known in Mexico. Its long and storied history begets a product intimately entangled with Mexican culture – the most salient evidence of which is a widely-used idiom, "Ya chupó faros," indicating that someone has smoked his/her last Faros. Apparently, it originated during early-20th century Mexican wartime; facing the firing squad or other undesirable death scenarios, those held captive were offered one last cigarette before they were executed. It pops up everywhere, from blogs on the day Michael Jackson died to Twitter updates to expressions in song lyrics.

A more interesting tidbit, however, concerns the illustration on the pack. A worldly man stands contemplating the seaward view before him: two lighthouses, firmly anchored in the foreground and background, casting rays of light onto the busy harbor under their guard. It's a nostalgic scene, one complemented by the bucolic rope border and red/white checkered pattern wrapping the sides. If you look closely, however, you'll notice a strange inconsistency on that central ship – the flags atop her masts are flying in one direction, while the smoke from the smokestacks drifts the opposite direction.

The story goes that back in the 50s, when the brand's ownership had changed hands, a designer noticed the mistake and Faros decided to correct it. When the new packaging had hit the market, however, merchants and cigarette smokers rejected the new product, sending it back to the shipper because they took the altered illustration as a sign the product was a fake. You know, like $20 Louis Vuitton bags. They changed it back – and that's how it stands today.

In 2005, the brand underwent a respositioning phase wherein it was repackaged in tins rather than the soft pack. Faros also introduced several sub-flavors – tropical fruit, chocolate, and menthol, among others – which, just like in the States, are probably short-lived ancillary products (cool-building fodder) rather than an actual long-term brand extensions. The strategy here is to push the classic Faros look – still true to its history – toward the vintage-chic adoration of youth.

[ERRATUM: The happy hour will still be at RA, but may be relocated indoors. You know, rain and all. Just be on the lookout for a big yellow K – that's when you know you're in the right place.]

Attention: The very first Keane Happy Hour of the year will commence at 5:00PM sharp on the back patio of RA, right down the block from our home on Mill Avenue. Feel the need to share the ups and downs of the new millennium's first decade? Need to get rid of all the gross leftover holiday candy you'll never eat (you know, those lemon and lime ones)? Or maybe you just want to gawk at Russ Maloney's beard-less (and smile-less) face?

This is as good a time as any. Come one, come all – and for the 164th time, happy New Year to you!

Some additional images from our mosey through Phoenix Trotting Park.

Perhaps many of you have noted the lonely and massive concrete structure in Goodyear just south of the 10 – The Phoenix Trotting Park, once a lofty polestar for a space-age track racing experience, now just a roadside curio for the Los Angeles-bound. Even today the track seems oddly remote, but just think about how isolated it was back in 1965 – and therein, the story goes, lies the reason it closed. After reaching the Park via miles and miles of unpaved roads, racegoers then steeped in the nasty heat and/or the Fall dust storms and monsoon rains. All told, the track was only operational for two seasons.

Many an adventurer have hopped these fences and smuggled out illicit film – including Diana Rothery, photographer hottie, and Connor McSheffrey, former Keane intern. Wonderful images from these two; indeed, their bravery is for the good of all mankind.

                 

Click here to download:

Halcyon_Days_3.zip (7692 KB)