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This post might offend some people. If it does, just try to hear me out before you get angry and vow to never read my blog again. I have this theory that there are a lot of things that are popular in this culture simply because we think we’re supposed to like those things. For instance, when I was in high school, some friends and I made up a fake band and started raving about them to some of our other friends. Within a short time, some of our oblivious friends were raving about how awesome that band was. They even claimed to have all their albums and songs. Unfortunately, that band was made up. They simply liked them because some of their friends did.

Just because something makes this list does not mean that you’re a poser and only like it because your friends do. In fact, most things in life are “liked” because of a chain reaction. I truly believe that there are genuine fans of these shows, movies, products, etc. The following list (in no particular order) contains things that I think our society has overrated, simply because people think they’re supposed to like those things.

1. Coldplay
And here come the hateful comments. I do think a lot of people like Coldplay for their music. However, I think a lot of people buy into Coldplay because “everyone” thinks Coldplay is “cool” and let’s face it, we all want to be cool.

2. Dane Cook
He’s not funny! But somewhere along the way, someone really popular said he liked Dane Cook. And the snowball effect has taken place.

3. Lost
Too soon? I will admit that I’m a fan of Lost. However, sometimes I think Lost gets overhyped because people think they are supposed to be obsessed with it. It’s a great show…but some go just a little bit overboard with it.

4. The New York Yankees
You either love them or hate them…and a lot of people that love them came to love them by jumping on the bandwagon. They’ve almost become more of a fashion accessory than a baseball team. If you see someone wearing a flat-billed cap turned sideways, chances are it’s a Yankees hat.

5. Avatar
It was in 3D. It featured blue people. But is it really a “great” movie? Is it Golden Globe worthy? Academy Award worthy? I think the media made a lot of us buy into this one.

6. Lady Gaga
People call her a freak, yet her music sells. Someone must be buying it. I guess she could be the very opposite of this last and everyone buying her music is a closet fan afraid to admit it.

7. The North Carolina Tar Heels
This one is tough to put on here because I’d like to think of myself as one of the biggest Tar Heel fans on the planet. (I even came home from the hospital wrapped in a Tar Heel blanket when I was born.) However, much like the Yankees, the Heels have become a bandwagon-ridden team. This is mostly in part to Michael Jordan. Nonetheless, there’s a lot of Heels fans out there who are Heels fans simply because they want to fit in with their peers and culture.

8. Kim Kardashian
I’m pretty sure she’s only popular for being popular. Yet Kim, as well as any other “reality-TV” celeb on the E! channel have become overnight sensations. Their shows and stories are pitiful, materialistic, and vain, yet their popular keeps growing. Do we really like this people, or do we simply like them because our friends like them?

9. Hot Wings
This probably applies to guys more than anyone. Wings are a “guy’s” food. And to be honest, they’re good. But there’s a level of pride in guys that says they have to eat the hottest wings possible to keep their standing as “one of the guys.” Anything mild makes them a wuss. So even though they’re mouth is on fire, they’ll swallow their pride (literally) and pretend like everything is fine.

10. Rap music
A lot of people truly enjoy rap music. But a lot of people only listen to it because their friends are listening to it. You know who I’m talking about too. They’re very easy to spot.

11. Alcohol
If none of your friends drank alcohol, would you? Even more, if all of your friends thought alcohol was disgusting and detestable, would you touch it? Probably not. You’d have no need to.

12. The Super Bowl
The Super Bowl is much more than a game these days. It’s 2 weeks of media coverage, and a 3 hour social gathering for most people. There’s nothing wrong with that. In fact, it’s fun for people to get together for the game, even if they care nothing about the game. But since a lot of people show interest in it just to blend in with the crowd, it makes this list.

13. MMA
UFC has a huge following, as well as the rest of MMA. It’s a sport that’s on the rise. But in a sport that’s becoming so popular, you know there has to be a large chunk of the audience that only watch because it’s the “cool” and “manly” thing to do. Also, wearing Tapout and Affliction t-shirts fits in here too.

14. Abercrombie & Fitch
Why do people buy overpriced clothing? Because they’re friends are buying overpriced clothing and because the media says that is what we need to wear to be cool.

15. Dave Matthews Band
See Coldplay

16. American Idol
For many of us, we watch because our friends and co-workers watch. After all, we don’t want to be left without a word during the talk around the water cooler.

17. Political Activism
Whether it’s a fight for social justice or politics, a lot of people take a side they know nothing about and march, protest, complain, etc because that’s what everyone else is doing. This really seems to spring up around election time. If you really want to see it in action, wait until October 2012. Whether people love Obama or hate Obama, they will be out in full force…with absolute ignorance as their guide. Any guesses on how many of those people actually read the newspaper or watch Fox News and/or CNN regularly?

18. President Barack Obama
I’m not bashing or endorsing the president here. However, in many circles, it’s fairly obvious that people make up their opinions about the president based on the opinions of their friends or others in their “social group.” Very few people actually know how to think politically for themselves. Instead, they either hate or love the president based on what they think they are supposed to do to be accepted in certain circles.

19. Twilight
Need I say more?

20. Michael Jackson
It’s sad that Michael Jackson died at an early age. It’s amazing how many people became fans after he died. Some people just couldn’t stand to fall behind a trend.

Thanks for those that contributed. I want to give you credit, but I don’t want to put your name down if you wished to remain anonymous. So, feel free to claim your submission. If there’s anything to add, feel free. If you disagree, I would love to hear about it.

This post is a plea. Maybe by now you’re sick of hearing coverage about Haiti. Maybe you’re tired of seeing all of the Facebook statuses, tweets, CNN headlines, commercials asking you to text to donate $10 to the Red Cross. But the truth is, this is still a major problem. The earthquake in Haiti was only the beginning of the problems.

The people that survived the quake are now facing starvation because there is no food. Gas prices are now around $14/gallon. Think about that for a minute…the people in Haiti survive on less than $2 per day and now gas prices are $14/gallon.

In addition, people are hurt and there are not enough doctors or medical supplies to meet these needs. This is a serious serious issue.

My friend Ryan Akers has close connections with Mountain Faith Mission in Haiti. Both him and his father have been over to the country and interacted, worshiped, and fellowshipped with the people. These same people, including children at an orphanage, are now facing possible death if they do not get the supplies they need.

Here’s what Ryan wrote recently on his blog: http://run4haiti.wordpress.com/

This past week has been a big distraction for me, simply because I work with a mission that’s involved in Haiti. I can only imagine, and definitely pray for those, who are living in the midst of this nightmare.

I am truly heart-broken. My mind stays so distracted by Haiti that I feel useless in other areas. Presently, there’s about 4-5 Americans with MFM who are emailing and strategizing the best way to be very effective on the central plateau. The earthquake has happened, damaged buildings horribly, and killed numerous people. That seems bad enough, but now, as the email from yesterday proclaimed, the food supplies are being slowly shut up. There is simply not enough coming in, and what is, seems to be staying in Port-au-Prince.

That’s simply put. Here’s my way of telling you what I’m trying to say. If you are a Christian, and you have not given to this effort, then you need to. I don’t care if it’s thru MFM or some other organization, but you should be giving. It’s Biblical to give. It’s Christ-like to give.

We’re assessing how the best way to go about getting things to the people is. Honestly, there’s no simple way to do it. Roads are blocked. Air is blocked. Ports are shut down. We’re working hard to contact, make connections, and trying to get stuff down to our people. Some thoughts are to fly in to an airport in the north if at all possible. Other thoughts are to find somewhere above the compound on the mountain to have a brave soul land a plane with supplies. Other thoughts are to mobilize a truck to head to the Dominican to buy food. In truth, all of these are super difficult. Fuel is scarce. Food is scarce.

Please donate. And please pray. Pray for open doors.

Here’s what is happening. People are dying. People are dying from injuries. People are dying from hunger. People are dying from basic things that you can easily access as you read this. Think this is a guilt trip? Maybe it is. But the point is…you should be involved. I don’t care if you mail a check, donate on PayPal, or work with a local group to organize a fundraiser to give. Just do something. Move, work. In the name of Christ, look at the faces of the children in our mission. Do it for them. Feed them. Be moved by these scenes. Don’t be disconnected. Team with MFM and let’s further the kingdom.

Please do what you can to help the Mountain Faith Mission of Haiti or some other organization in Haiti. These men and women and children need your help. Even just $5 can go a long way. Put yourself in their scenario. Imagine you were not hurt by the earthquake but everything you had was destroyed. While things might initially seem okay, imagine if you had no food and there was no promise of food on its way. Now add to that injuries, disease, the death of loved ones, etc and that’s a fraction of what the people in Haiti are dealing with.

If you can give anything at all, here is the website for  Mountain Faith Mission: http://www.mountainfaithmission.com/

Ryan has set the site up to accept PayPal donations. You can also send a check. PayPal has verified the site as a non-profit organization so your donation is secure. Simply click on the “Donate” tab on the web site.

Please help!

Yesterday I wrote about the worst Halloween Candy. Today, I flip things around and write about the best Halloween candy. The following results come me, myself, and I. Feel free to disagree!

10. Nestle Crunch Bars
Nothing like a great crunch to a candy bar. They usually come in one piece that’s dividable, but let’s be honest, we all eat the whole thing at once.

9. Three Musketeers
This is probably the healthiest of the non-healthy candy bars. It’s reminiscent of the old “Milkshake” candy bars of days before.

8. Almond Joy
I’m not a huge coconut fan, but there’s something about chocolate, coconut, and 1 almond that tastes delicious!

7. Twix
After forgotten in the realm of the major candy bars, Twix still tastes like one of the best. The new peanut butter flavor tastes incredible too!

6. Skittles
Had to veer away from chocolate at some point, didn’t I? Some divide them by color, some eat them one by one, and some eat the whole pack at once. No matter your method, this fruit candy is quite satisfying!

5. Butterfinger
A favorite of Bart Simpson and many others. It crumbles when you eat and and can make a mess. It also seems to get stuck in your teeth. Yet there’s something so delicious about a Butterfinger that we can’t pass up.

4. Kit-Kat
“Give me a break, give me a break, break me off a piece of that…” Great taste, and it comes in packs of 2’s and 4’s so you actually feel like you get more than one candy bar in a pack.

3. M&Ms
Their commercials are awesome and they are awesome. Even though they all taste the same, we all have a favorite color anyway.

2. Reese’s Cups
Peanut butter and chocolate. This is classic! It came very close to capturing the top spot but just couldn’t pull it out. Still, this is one of the greatest candies you can find any time of the year.

1. Snickers
Variations have been tried with Snickers, and they’ve all been wonderful! Whether you eat it with almonds, fudge, crunch, dark chocolate, or a weird Transformers add-in, Snickers can always satisfy your hunger. Hungry? Why Wait? Grab a Snickers!

Honorable mentions:

Baby Ruth
Milky Way
Junior Mints
Hershey’s Miniatures
Starbursts
Nerds
Sour Patch Kids

What is the worst Halloween candy? Here is a Top 10 List of the Worst Halloween Candy ever according to Kidzworld.com:

10. Apples
9. Raisins
8. Candy Corn
7. Baked Goods
6. Dum Dum Suckers
5. Toothbrushes
4. Tootsie Rolls
3. Misc. Hard Candy
2. Dusty Jelly Beans
1. Fun-Sized Chocolate

Since I happen to disagree with most of that list, I thought I would make my own:

10. Raisins
Yes, I know they’re healthy, but they also come in box the size of a postage stamp. When kids are craving chocolate and sugar, 10 raisins that have been squished together to make 1 giant size ball of gunk is not too appealing.

9. Candy Corn
Candy Corn can be good, but for some reason, on Halloween it never is. I enjoy eating the pumpkin variations of Candy Corn, and even some Candy Corn that is fresh and right out of the bag tastes good. But for some reason, the Candy Corn you receive on Halloween is always stale, hard, and tastes like rocks.

8. Pennies
Not the candy, the food. Seriously, what am I going to do with 6 pennies?

7. Circus Peanuts
The texture isn’t even describable. I would have to guess that it’s comparable to eating insulation. However, I wouldn’t suggest either for safety reasons.

6. Smarties
These things are like the red-headed stepchild of Sweet Tarts. They’re not tangy, they’re not sour…they just taste like nasty sugar that’s gone bad. Has anyone ever eaten these things and not made that “Eww” face afterward?

5. Black Licorice
WHY do they sell this stuff? Only 4 people in the world have ever liked it, and I’m pretty sure they’re not alive anymore. As if it’s not bad enough, some wise guy decided to make scented black markers smell just like this stuff. Gross!

4. Mary Jane’s
Shares it’s name with marijuana. Both are bad for you. Just say “no.”

3. Dots (or anything that is “supposed” to be chewy)
Throw Dots, Mike and Ike’s, Good and Plenty, and all that “chewy” junk in here. If it’s supposed to be chewy, but Halloween it’s probably not. The only thing worse than eating these things was trying to get them out of my teeth. I tried a toothbrush, floss, a paint scraper, an ice pick, and even a dentist visit and still couldn’t get that gummy stuff out of my teeth. I don’t think they have even flavor…they just stick to every part of you like superglue.

2. Bit-O-Honey
I’ve never met someone who ate honey for the fun of it. So why make a candy that is strictly honey? No chocolate, no nuts, just honey. Bit-O-Blah!

1. Peanut Butter Kisses (The black and orange wrapped peanut butter junk)
These things are almost famous for being disgusting! No one is quite sure what they are. They say peanut butter, but I’d beg to differ. When I was younger my parents tried to keep me from eating them. They told me bad people might unwrap them and put razor blades in them and wrap them back up. I don’t think they really believed that. I think they just wanted to keep me from eating the nastiest stuff ever.

Honorable Mentions:

Peeps
This is an Easter candy; not a Halloween candy. But at any time, it’s still fake marshmallows coated in sugar. They’re really just a heart attack in a box.

Gospel Tracts
Even as a Christian kid, I hated getting tracts in my bag that said “Halloween is Satanic! Turn or burn!!!” If you really wanted to get my attention you’d put a verse of Scripture on a Snickers bar.

Unlabeled Hard Candy
If you were ever skeptical about this stuff, good! It seems like old people always carry this kind of candy in their pocket. Maybe the lack of a label is supposed to surprise us, but tasting rotten butterscotch or expired strawberry isn’t exactly on my list of great things.

For those of you who follow this blog, I have some exciting news: Sonic finally responded to my call. If you have no idea what I’m talking about, click here to read the original story about my horrible experience at Sonic.

The response I received wasn’t exactly what I thought it would be. You can see the actual postcard above. If you can’t read it, here’s what it says:

Thank You. A SuperSONIC Experience. Thank you for your recent contact with SONIC, America’s Drive-In. We sincerely appreciate your feedback and look forward to making every effort possible to make your next visit a pleasurable one.

Please accept this postcard for a free sandwich of your choice on your next visit to SONIC. Simply mention that you have a “SuperSONIC Experience” postcard when you place your order and present this postcard when your meal is delivered. Thanks again for visiting SONIC, America’s Drive-In.

There’s several observations that immediately came to mind when I saw this. First, this was not personal at all. It’s obviously a generic card that send out to anyone who calls their feedback number. Second, this came straight from their corporate headquarters in Atlanta, not the actual restaurant that messed up. Third, a free sandwich doesn’t reimburse me for the banana split I paid for and never received. If I’m not mistaken, the banana splits are more expensive than most of their sandwiches.

Although it may surprise you, I don’t have a complaint with the postcard. The card was sent out by the corporate office hoping to make partial amends for what happened. According to the girl I spoke to, the actual restaurant was/is supposed to contact me about the actual problem that happened and set things straight. It seems like the corporate office was trying to go a little further to make things right, assuming the actual restaurant would fix things first. Unfortunately, I still haven’t heard from the restaurant. Kudos to Sonic’s corporate office for doing this. As for the actual restaurant…that’s sad.

The big idea behind the whole issue was to see how Sonic would respond. Would they do it in a personal manner? Would they do it in an automated generic manner? Would they do nothing at all? So far, I’ve seen automated generic + nothing.

I talked to my dad about this issue and he said it’s not surprising. Fast food places really don’t care who they hire anymore, as long as they have someone working. When the service is bad, many managers don’t care because a loss of 1 or 2 customers will not really hurt business, and definitely won’t change individual paychecks.

Believe it or not, I saw this firsthand when I went to Taco Bell last night. I ordered a soft taco with NO lettuce. The guy repeated my order back to me and said it exactly how I ordered it. Therefore my order should have consisted of: Soft taco shell, beef, shredded cheese. Instead I received a soft taco covered in lettuce, onions, nacho cheese, with a pinch of beef. By asking for no lettuce, did I actually annoy someone enough that they decided to add extra ingredients?

I thought about going back thru the drive-thru or calling the restaurant, but if they were jerks enough to intentionally mess up my order, there’s no way I’m going back and asking them to fix it.

Customer Service is definitely dead!

Last night a friend and I decided to go to Sonic to get ice cream. When we pulled into the parking lot, there were about 2-3 cars parked, and a few people outside ordering food. Didn’t seem like a busy night. After a few minutes, I pressed the big red button and ordered. My friend ordered a strawberry-banana fruit smoothie, and I ordered a banana split. 

It seemed to take a lot longer than usual to get our food. In fact, it was about 15 minutes before the girl brought it to us. However, 15 minutes wasn’t that big of a deal. She handed us the smoothie–no problem. That’s where the fun stopped. She handed me the banana split which was surrounded by 10-15 napkins (I’m not exaggerating). The napkins were covered in chocolate syrup. Apparently someone had filled the container too full and it was leaking out of every side. When she handed it to me, it immediately dripped through the closed container and onto my pants. After pulling it into my car, the banana split and the napkins leaked even more onto my pants, my car, and my friend. It was a mess!

Since things were getting nasty, I had to get out of the car. Once I got out, I started looking at the banana split. For some reason, all of the toppings were on the bottom of the container. It makes me think that the container got flipped upside down at some point. Also, the ice cream and whipped cream was not visible. Instead, there was a banana floating in a tub filled with milk. Either the thing had completely melted, or they filled it with a half-gallon of 2%. 

While I tried to lick the stickiness off my hands, my friend asked the waitress if I could get another banana split because mine was melted, leaking all over, and frankly a bowl of cereal without the cereal. She said sure and went back inside. Once again we waited…and waited…and waited…and waited…

After 20 minutes, I still had no banana split, even though I had ordered and paid about 40 minutes earlier. We finally decided to leave. My friend went inside Sonic and told them we were leaving. They told her they had completely forgotten about it and offered to make another one. She politely told them no thank you. One of the girls working asked if my friend if we had already paid. She nicely told them yes, but we were going to go somewhere else. 

We got in the car to leave, and I half-expected someone to come running out with my money, some ice cream, or coupons. None of that happened. Instead, I went down the road to McDonalds, where they got my order right…and delivered my food in less than 2 minutes. Thank you McDonalds.

I’m a pretty big stickler for Customer Service. I believe it is the job of employees to provide you with the service you pay for. I also believe people are human and make mistakes and we do have to understand that. However, when mistakes are made, I believe it is the job of the company/person/service to make things right. 

I called Sonic this afternoon to explain last night’s events. I didn’t call with a mean or demanding attitude. I called in a respectful manner to inform their Customer Service department of what had taken place. The girl I talked to was very nice and understanding. For someone who probably deals with complaints and angry customers all day, she did a great job of doing her job. She apologized several times, took down my information, and sent it to the management of the particular Sonic restaurant.

I hope to follow up with this story soon. I have no idea what Sonic will do, if they even will do something. But, in my eyes, they do have a chance to make things right. If they do respond, I’m curious if it will be in a personable way, or in an automated  ”this is standard procedure” way. Do they care about making things right with each individual customer, or do they care more about not making people mad?

Stay tuned… 

(For the record, if the picture above is what a banana split is supposed to look like, I have no idea what they brought me!)

Do you have plans for Valentine’s Day yet? 

Everyone knows you need flowers (probably red roses), chocolates, lots of hearts, and maybe even a cute stuffed animal. But do you have dinner plans yet? Have you made reservations?

If not, why not try White Castle? That White Castle? Yes, that White Castle!

On Valentine’s Day, several White Castle restaurants around the nation will be transforming from fast food to pseudo-gourmet. Make your reservations from 5-9 PM and you can have a candlelit dinner complete with your very own waiter.

There is only one catch: The food is still from White Castle.

Here’s a question for the ladies: If a guy took you to White Castle for Valentine’s Day, would he still have a girlfriend on February 15?

The picture below is part of a new marketing campaign for PepsiMax, a highly caffeinated soda that only has 1 calorie.

As you can see in the picture, the lone calorie is looking for ways to kill himself because he is the only calorie left. If you look closely, you can see a bullet has gone through his head, his arm is bandaged from apparently trying to cut himself, there is a noose around his neck, and he is holding a bottle of poison in his hand. 

Has Pepsi gone over the line with this ad, or is this just all in fun?

What kind of message is this sending to youth?

I want to hear your thoughts and opinions about this.

Signs You’re Addicted to Pop Culture:

- You’ve cooked from an Easy-Bake Oven…twice!

- You tried to install a flux capacitor in your car

- You didn’t fall asleep during Star Wars Episodes I-III

- You know which musician used to star on You Can’t Do That on Television

- You actually remember You Can’t Do That on Television

- You’re convinced MacGyver and Jack Bauer are blood brothers

- You tried Crystal Clear Pepsi and liked it

- You know the connection between Dr. Pepper and Chinese Democracy

- You remember the pain of stepping on a Lite-Brite peg

- You actually took the plastic off your Ruben Studdard album

- In your heart, Madden football games will always be 2nd to Tecmo Super Bowl Read more…

What does your typical dinner look like? Do you sit down as a family and talk about the day? Is there complete silence, with the exception of munching and chewing? Is everyone distracted by what’s on TV? Does it go by unplanned with each individual family member being responsible for finding his or her own food?

A new study shows your meal times could explain a lot about your family and where your teen may be headed. According to the Calgary Herald, the more meals a family eats together, the less chance their teen will be involved in risky sex. Read more…