Are powdered turds and diamonds the new cocaine?

We were watching The Amazing Race on cbs.com and this commercial played. When the woman in the fur coat and bikini blew powder out of her hand, my wife asked, “is this for real?” But then this shot appeared:

"Are you kidding me?" I blurted. But it seems to be a real promotion for this blog post at chow.com.

UPDATE: Chow.com is owned by CBS interactive. But I’m not sure if that makes me feel better or worse about this video.

Do cross-dressing pro-wrestlers make good spokespeople?

They do if you're trying to show how tough your floor is: Pergo XP put their floor to the test versus some harsh challengers in the middle of Venice Beach, California. You can see them all at PergoXPvs.com.

Before I turn 40

Today is my 39th birthday. Here’s what I want to achieve in the next year.

6. Become a creative director.
I love building brands and helping each member of my team do their best work. So I want to do my best too.

5. Buy a house.
We’re ready to put down roots. (And to stop paying for a storage unit full of stuff we might want once we have a house to put it in.)

4. Prioritize and execute my side projects.
Too many half-baked ideas and projects floating around. Either knock them out or let them go.

3. Touch my toes.
I don’t have any sudden desire to run a marathon, but it’d be nice to get in better shape before my midlife crisis kicks in.

2. Be a more patient and active listener with my wife.
She’s amazing and my best friend, so she deserves my respect and attention more than anything that pops into my head or on my phone.

1. Be present for my daughter every day – and fully engaged every minute we spend together.
Nothing brings me more joy and fulfillment. Enjoy each fleeting moment.

Is this the best social media contest ever?

Mini Cooper has teamed up with Smith Magazine of Six Word Memoir fame to award "the best test drive ever." Submit your six word long idea, @SmithMag will judge the entries and Mini will make one of them happen.

Not every brand can pull off letting people pick their own prize, but here's two other things they got right:
-The clear contraint on the length is sure to inspire creative entries and is ideal for sharing.
-They don't force you to post, like or retweet to enter.

The fact that they also teamed up with someecards to promote it doesn't hurt either.

Here's my entry:

Submit your own at their site.

As usual with the Mini brand, design goes a long way. Even their emails look cool.

Would you rather see an ad or art?

It's a nice change to see artists displayed on Austin billboards.

You can see them all at AustinArtBoards.org.

Art has also been displayed in cabs in New York with vinyl panels and taxi top ads.