Tuesday, February 24, 2009

Top 5 Restaurants in Vancouver in past 12 months

Though I'm trying to save money, I do end up eating out a lot. There are so many new ones in Vancouver all the time, that I hardly ever eat at the same place twice! Here are my fave dining spots I've tried in Vancouver in the past year or so.

1. Chow in South Granville
Great service, great tasty food. You might look at the menu items and think "WTF"? Just talk to your server and take their recommendations. If you're walking on Granville - watch carefully as it's a hidden spot that's easy to miss.

2. Market in the new Shangri-La Hotel
Went here for lunch the other day with girls from DNA. 3 course lunch for $28. Pricier than a normal lunch, but fantastic flavors if you're looking for a nice place to take staff or clients. Try the tuna tartar on their appetizer list and beef tenderloin for mains. And if you have a group of 8 - ask for the private room in the back. It gets noisy in the main part of the restaurant, so it's nice to have the quiet of this private room.

3. Hapa Izakaya - Kits Beach location
Best fusion Japanese in town. Since we don't have Nobu or Koi in Vancouver, go here. Not as expensive! So flavorful and interesting blends. Another option is Kingyo in the West End - very similiar, copycat restaurant.

4. Italian Kitchen - Downtown location
OK, this is one spot I go to repeatedly. Love the atmosphere and food. Not your mama's Italian restaurant, but modern and tasty. My fave is always the beef carpaccio pizza... mmmmm...!

5. Cobre in Gastown
If you're a Vancouverite, you won't mind the streets of Gastown, but I'm always weary to take out of towners there. If you do get to the trendiest neighborhood for new restaurants these days, definitely check out Cobre. Not as good as Asia de Cuba, but worth checking out. Interesting blends of flavors and a surprisingly quiet environment to sit back and enjoy the company of friends.


Sunday, February 22, 2009

Top 5 Oscar Disappointments

Not too many surprises tonight, but couple of things did disappoint.

1. Penelope Cruz for Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Are you kidding me? I just saw this movie this week, and though she is good, how much of a stretch is it for her to play a Spanish crazy artist woman? What about Taraji Henson - the woman's performance in Benjamin Button was absolutely brilliant. She made you want her as a mother, and truly made you believe in her motherly love for Benjamin.

2. Too many Slumdog, throw Benjamin Button a bone
Don't get me wrong, I liked Slumdog. And Benjamin Button walked away with Makeup, Visual Effects, Art Direction - fine. And though I don't think they should've gotten Brad Pitt or best picture, I did really like this movie. I don't care what people say about Benjamin vs. Forrest - this character was much more likeable and it moved me emotionally more than Slumdog.

3. Jennifer Aniston appearance
First, it was disappointing that she appeared. And then her appearance itself with the sideways braid was disappointing. You are average looking and make average movies. The Oscars are not for you.

4. High School musical kids on the show
Maybe I'm getting old, but Zac Efron and Vanessa Hudgens definitely did not belong on this show. At least Jennifer Aniston has been in movies. Have these people done anything besides be in a Disney musical and appear in People magazine holding hands, keeping Zac in the closet? And what's with her comment on "I feel like a young Audrey Hepburn" - you're not supposed to say those things about yourself, you wait for others to make those comments about you! Don't take credit for something like that!

5. Musical tribute with canes and top-hats
Did they actually need some filler this year? Did not fit in with anything this year. Keep Beyonce, Zac, and Vanessa at home next year.

Top 5 Oscar Moments

The Oscars this year didn't have too many surprises. It was nice to see the little picture (Slumdog) win big. But it was also nice to see alot of Hollywood royalty in the new format. Here are my top 5s from tonight's Oscars.

1. New format for Actress/Actor categories
Love the new format! I hope they keep it this way. So much better than the dry just standing up there having last year's winner of the opposite sex present to this year's winner. Way to change it up! Not only is it awesome for people like us in the audience to see Hollywood heavies like Robert DeNiro, Michael Douglas, Sophia Loren, Goldie Hawn - all up on stage together. But in particular, I liked that each of them did their personal shout-out to one nominee, giving a personal touch to their commentary (ie - DeNiro's joking to Sean Penn about his "gentle handling of the paparazzi").

2. Pineapple Express montage of comedies
WTF was this?! Bold move, loved it! Nice way to pull in audience that may not be into the heavy dramas that typically get nominated. Normally, you'd think the Academy wouldn't want the silliness of the weed-ridden scene, but pulling in James Franco and Seth Rogen for this was brilliant. Nice that the Academy is checking in with the reality of what people watch!

3. Anne Hathaway singing
New respect for this girl. She even changed out of her fancy Armani gown that she wore on the red carpet, so she could do her little song and dance with Hugh.

4. Milk Screenwriter's acceptance speech
When Dustin Lance Black won the award for best original screenplay, so nice to hear him tie it back to the big picture of equal right for gays and lesbians. Rather than rattling off a list of everyone that has helped him in his career since his high school drama teacher - yah, no one knows those names and it's not going to make a difference. Nice work Dustin.

5. Hugh Jackman, nice surprise
I was doubtful as to what the hell this Australian host was going to bring to the awards. Refreshingly charming, classy and funny. For the Oscars, as much of a fan of Chris Rock as I am, he was much more appropriate. Modern and multi-skilled with his hosting, some dancing and singing (though that dance number had to go).

Monday, February 16, 2009

Top 5 Celebrity Douchebag Recoveries

In light of Chris Brown exposing himself as a girlfriend-beating douchebag, I thought I'd put together the top 5 celebrities that were once considered douchebags, but put together miraculous PR blitzes to save their reputations. Magic of their PR firms in hiding their douchebag-ness, or were they just misunderstood from the beginning?


1. Alec Baldwin

Leaked voicemail left for his 10-year old daughter one year. Following couple of years, the movie star morphes himself into a TV star on 30 Rock, boosted by the year of Tina Fey, top that off with bringing said daughter to SAG awards and voila - no more douchebag-ness.


2. Kevin Federline

He looked like a greasy rat. Literally. What court would give this douchebag custody rights, you'd think. But did he ever look like the perfect daddy when Britney fell off her rocker, shaved her head and spiral downhill so fast she was suicide candidate #1.

3. Mickey Rourke


Still looks like a douchebag. Sounds like a douchebag. I'd put money on that he smells like a douchebag. But he must NOT be a douchebag if he won a Golden Globe and is nominated for an Oscar, right? Right?


4. Tom Cruise

OK, he didn't really have the douchebag image problem. More like the crazy koo-koo image problem. Nonetheless, he clearly realized that hiring his sister as his PR manager was a big mistake. Hide your true self behind closed doors, Tom. Your new PR agent making you do the rounds and smile your big smile in promoting your Nazi movie is doing you wonders. This is the Tom Cruise the public fell in love with.


5. Celebrity douchebags that need new PR agents
I couldn't think of any others that have recovered. But maybe the following people can take some hints from the above 4 guys and either REALLY get their act together, or get their PR agents to spin some magic: Brody Jenner and Spencer Pratt (because I have no idea why these 2 people walk around like they're famous and I wish their 15 minutes would go away), Sean Avery (because he should just stay quiet like all good hockey players), Russell Crowe, Mel Gibson, Criss Angel.

Saturday, February 14, 2009

Top 5 Shopping Spots in LA

Having just left LA and now stuck in Portland on a stopover (extended by another delay - remind me to always get a direct flight!), here are my top 5 shoppings spots in LA. I was going to do a Top 5 Things to Do in LA posting, but who's kidding who - the main thing I do when I'm there is shop.

1. Melrose Ave.
Go to Melrose for boutique stores that have unique clothes at reasonable prices. If you're heading there via La Cienega, make sure you go far enough past the brand name stores like Marc Jacobs, even past Paul Frank. Park around Martel Ave. and you can hit the good shops in that area, like Diva Boutique - unique clothes, wicked shoes, and nice guys that run it!

2. 3rd Street Promenade in Santa Monica
I hadn't been there in recent trips, but made my way there yesterday with my friend Jenn, opting for the outdoor shopping there rather than the Beverly Center this time. If not for anything else, the main reason to come here is the LARGEST Forever 21 I have ever seen. I didn't know they made them this big. The one here is better than the one in the Beverly Center. 3 floors and an overwhelming amount of clothes. Be prepared to be there for at least 2 hours so you can narrow down your selection!

I've never seen a celebrity there, but this site says they go there. I'm probably too busy shopping to see them.

3. Barney's warehouse sale (@ Santa Monica airport)
I wish I would have checked this out on this trip. It probably would've made me spend money that I shouldn't be. My friend Jenn went today and got a pair of $1100 Manolo's for 75% off. Brings it down to prices for normal people! This economy is good for something!

4. Beverly Center
If you're on Melrose and want to easily hit another spot with lots of good stores and don't want to navigate your way around LA and worry about LA traffic, Beverly Center is a good bet. They've got everything from low-end (Forever 21 of course), to mid-range (like Kenneth Cole) to high-end (like Gucci) to suit your various levels of fashion flavor and budget.

It's at La Cienega and Beverly/3rd Street, more info here.

5. Century City Mall
I'm stretching it by listing this one as fifth, because it can be hit or miss. But can't think of another realistic area, since other sites will list areas like Robertson or Rodeo, which are not realistic for most. Here, it's an outdoor mall (unlike Beverly, which is an indoor mall). The MNG/Mango store there makes it worthwhile. After hitting the department stores there, credit card ready, and nothing to buy - I went a little crazy in the Mango store last fall.

So next time I'm there, if I experience a better one, Century City may have to fall off this list.

Wednesday, February 11, 2009

Top 5 Things I Hate

I actually hate alot of things. Not that I'm hugely pessimistic, I'm just very particular with what I like, and what I don't like. So let's try to narrow it down to the top 5.



1. UFC

I was guilted into going to Vegas 2 weeks ago while a UFC fight was going on. I hate it so much that I at first refused to go on the trip at all, based on the sole fact that the guys were going down to watch UFC. I want nothing to do with it. And making me watch it comes with a price. A big price if I am forced to watch it.



2. Feet

Men's feet in particular, but girls feet are gross too. Ratty socks, or no socks. I hate it when people have their feet near my line of sight. Like on the coffee table when I have to look past their feet to watch TV. Or if I'm laying on the ground watching TV and someone's feet are near my face. Disgusting.



3. Reality TV

Can we get back to regular drama and comedies. It's much more entertaining and mind stimulating to watch actors than listen to the non-sense drizzle of real people who never went to college. I'd like for these fast grabs of 15 minutes of fame to be over. Do it on YouTube, fine. But let's stop the networks from airing this crap.



4. Blood and guts

CSI is one of my faves. It's a real show with real actors with real storylines and writing. But when the morgue and cadaver scenes come up, I have to look away. That's probably why I barely know who this fat Santa Claus looking character is on CSI when he shows up in other scenes. Oh, right - he's the doctor that pulls apart the blood and guts.



5. People who hug, kiss-on-the-cheek too much

I don't need to hug and kiss every time I see my friends. A simple hello is sufficient. It's only acceptable and within my norms of behavior if it's a friend from out of town or one that you haven't seen in a long time. Otherwise, just say hi.

Top 5 Male Actors: Talent and Hotness

1. Leonardo DiCaprio

  • Talent best displayed in: What's Eating Gilbert Grape
  • Talent disappointment: Revolutionary Road
  • Hottest in: The Departed and Blood Diamond (hello Seth Efricen accent!)
  • Not hot in: Titanic (too clean, too blonde)
  • Should really not: Slick back his hair for every awards show he shows up to

2. Colin Farrell


  • Talent best displayed in: In Bruges?
  • Talent disappointment: The stupid movie with Salma Hayek where he's a writer and she's a waitress
  • Hottest in: Miami Vice (hello handlebar moustache!)
  • Not hot in: a stupid fedora hat
  • Should really not: Dirty hair is fine. Dirty long long hair is gross.

3. Kiefer Sutherland

  • Talent best displayed in: 24
  • Talent disappointment: Don't even remember his old movies...
  • Hottest in: 24 Season 1 and 2; Ford Canada commercials
  • Not hot in: Stand By Me
  • Should really not: Do another season of 24. Move on to something else that leverages your talent and your hotness

4. Mark Wahlberg

  • Talent best displayed in: The Departed (even though he was wearing too much clothes)
  • Talent disappointment: When he wears too much clothes, or The Happening
  • Hottest in: The Italian Job
  • Not hot in: Too much clothes
  • Should really not: Wear too much clothes

5. Ben Affleck

  • Talent best displayed in: Boiler Room?
  • Talent disappointment: Playing Jack Ryan in Sum of All Fears - it was handed to you on a silver platter passed down from Harrison Ford and you screwed it up
  • Hottest in: Armageddon
  • Not hot in: Standing next to J. Lo (blech!)
  • Should really not: Have gotten married and had 2 children

Tuesday, February 10, 2009

Top 5 Reasons Vancouver & Whistler Could be Screwed for the Olympics

When I was at the Frost & Sullivan conference this week in Anaheim, some Americans asked me if Vancouver was ready for the Olympics. Come to think of it, we're not, I thought. And we could be screwed. Why?

1. Transportation Nightmare a la Pemberton Festival


You think Vancouver traffic is already bad. Have you tried driving up to Whistler from Vancouver of a Friday night lately? We got stuck 5 km south of Squamish in what we thought must have been a big car accident. 45 minutes later, we realized that it was just the traffic slowing down at the 2 traffic lights leading up to Squamish. Are you kidding me? Was Pemberton Festival not a clear lesson in 10,000 people not fitting on a single-lane street?



2. Street People Shooting Up in Broad Daylight

Now that I drive from East Van to Downtown every day and back from home to work, I pass through Hastings and Main every day. And every day, I see the same shit right across the street from the police station. Some advice to tourists - keep your eyes forward, do not look them in the eye, do not hit them, do not honk when they jay-walk right in front of your car, do not unlock your car doors. Residents understand that this is a complex problem to solve. But it's not good for those right-wing American tourists.

3. Restaurant shortage in Whistler

When we were in Whistler last weekend, we stayed at the fabulous Nita Lake Lodge (by the way, which have the most kick-ass bathrooms that I've ever seen!). Since one of the couples in our group had their baby with them, our plan was to get some nice take-out Thai or Chinese, and have a nice night in. We called 5 places. 5. All of them said they would NOT deliver. Could not deliver. Their kitchens were too busy with dine-in guests. WTF - are you serioues? The volume of people in town was for Gay Ski Week. There may be lots of gay people in town. But this is not the Olympics people. Can we get some food please??

4. Cab Shortage

You think it's hard getting a cab in Vancouver or Whistler now? Wait till all the tourists and athletes hit our city!

5. Residents vs. Tourists: Get a Move On, People!

Couldn't think of anything else, except to say that there are going to be so many tourists in our city, that I don't think us residents understand the sheer volume of people that will be here, and the congestion it will cause all over the city. Not just traffic, not just in restaurants and hotels, not just getting a cab. But I get the feeling that having so many people here is going to be a little annoying for those of us used to moving around quickly in our own city. Even yesterday, for example, coming home from LA and arriving at YVR, I was right behind 2 big flights that had just landed from London and Taiwan. Large groups of winter tourists with snowboards and ski bags in their carts, walking ever so slowly through the luggage, customs and exit area. Too many people, walking too slowly, looking around. A little annoying for those of us that just want to get out and get home. I'm looking forward to the Olympics, but not looking forward to these types of crowds!

Top 5 Reasons to Hit Vegas

I was in Vegas 2 weekends ago, so here goes on my Vegas Top 5 roundup. Aside from playing Texas Holdem with friends occasionally, I'm not a big gambler, so didn't hit the casinos. But here are some good things to hit in Vegas.

1. Morel's French Steakhouse (in the Palazzo Hotel)

Wicked food, wicked service. In the group of 11 of us, everyone (except the half-Chinese guy that can't eat beef without rolling around in the fetus position for the rest of the night), agreed that the steak was excellent. Service was outstanding - have never had 3 dedicated waiters to my table in my life. Not sure if that was due to the restaurant being surprisingly empty on the Saturday night of fight night and Superbowl, or whether everyone always gets 3 waiters per table.

2. Mixx at Mandalay Bay


Chill lounge with best view of the Strip from rooftop bar. Again, a little quiet for a Friday night, but a sign of the times in Vegas I suppose. For girls, check out the ladies' rooms and use the 2 stalls on the far right.

3. Tryst at Wynn

Tryst wasn't the celeb hotspot that my husband and his friends experienced last year, but a cool hot spot nonetheless. The crowd here was alot more upscale than Pure. But you have to truly buy yourself in. And DO NOT be fooled by the dudes on the Strip selling you VIP passes to night clubs because that shit doesn't work. You won't get past the degrading lineups unless you pay a personal Vegas concierge/host to literally walk you past the lineups and through the bouncers. You don't have to buy bottle service, but be prepared to pay.

The VIP lineup at Pure was a joke, with bouncer-monkeys doing the typical "I'm more important than you" attitude. Annoying because they got Ds and barely passed high school. More annoying because there were 12 of us (including 5 beautiful girls in the group), we were staying at Caesar's, and we were given VIP passes from various people. VIP must mean Very Idiotic Person to the dudes running Pure, because it was just a bunch of broke-ass hoochies hanging around the VIP "lineup" (actually, a totally disorganized mass of people trying to get the bouncer-monkey's attention).

So much for Caesar's Palace. We'll be checking in somewhere else next time, thanks. Maybe the guy I met this week at the conference that works for Venetian/Palazzo would appreciate a call.

4. Stand-Up Comedian
We saw Jerry Seinfeld at the Colisseum. I'd see an act like that over any other cheesy show in Vegas any time. And it's cheaper.

5. Buy Real Estate
Next time I'm down there, I'm bringing my credit card to buy a house. Seriously, I could actually buy a house with the current prices and my current credit line on my Visa. Vancouver real estate prices this is not.

Monday, February 9, 2009

Top 5 Things I Learned at the Frost & Sullivan Sales & Marketing Executives MindXchange

Today, I'm at the Frost & Sullivan Sales & Marketing Executive MindXchange in Anaheim. A little smaller than expected, there are only about 50 people here. Nonetheless, it's a nice interactive format where sessions are discussions, rather than monologues. For me, nice to be able to open my mouth and hear my own thoughts and questions during a session, rather than being talked at for 8 hours.

So with all the speakers and discussions today, here are the most interesting things I've heard or learned. Some perhaps applicable to my job, others just interesting.

1. The next killer app for mobile devices? Mobility.
WTF was my first thought. Allen Kupetz, who gave us all his book "The Future of Less", proposes that "it is not individually email, or movies, or text messaging, or even voice calls that continue to drive the wireless revolution, but a combination of all of these in a mobile environment. People want to be able to do what they want when and where they want." Hmm... we've been saying that all along, but still wondering what the killer app is. Nice summary Allen.

2. Changing market perception starts with employees.
Both Alicia Dietsch (AT&T) and Sue de Leeuw (Blue Shield of California) focused on how the launch of their new brand in the marketplace, all started with their employees. Focusing on internal communications campaigns to ensure that employees are living the brand, and delivering the brand at all customer touchpoints. Both ladies presented case histories that had incredible content and solid results. They both really showed how brand value is much more than just pretty new logos. I only wish I had the manpower and the budgets to execute on something like this!

3. Big companies do long-term planning well.
Again, in both AT&T and Blue Shield presentations (as well as the value-based selling presentation by BP Products), there were long-term timelines for rolling out various phases of a plan. And I'm not talking Q1, Q2, Q3... I'm talking Year 1, Year 2, Year 3... I'm not sure if it's a sympton of me, or a symptom of my organization, but I don't have good long-term annual planning or outlook. Yes, my industry changes rapidly, having to re-align priorities based on market changes. At the same time, my company is also focused more on short-term quarterly achievements rather than a 3-year horizon on goals. Moreover, my own ADD personality is aligned this way so that I'm too impatient to give a project a 3-year timeline. Heck, I probably wouldn't be around to see something through it if was planned with that long of a horizon. But I do admire companies and people that have the patience and the tenacity to pull off a long-term roll-out like that.

4. Others in my company are inward focused.
Some other management in my company have been there for so long, that their view of the world is too entrenched in our product and our features. They need to get out into the real world more - see our customers, talk to our partners, come to conferences like this and hear about other companies challenges with CRM, sales, and marketing processes. Even our forward-looking plans still focus on features and challenges that are too old, and not progress enough. Even discussions with customers are too focused on challenges with our current product, but we should really be elevating the conversation to discuss the challenges in their business, and how our solution can address those today and in the future. This is how we will build a valuable product that people will pay money for. Now, it's one of my challenges to raise that level of conversation.

5. It's great to get validation.
Sometimes I think I'm smart. Other times, I wonder if my instincts are wrong. Today, it was great to get validation from other companies that they are doing things successfully, in areas where I have only talked about - not executed on. For example, Don Fowler from Siemens Medical talked about their strategic accounts program. Where they are providing on-site "consultation" or "audits" of how their customers are using their products, in order to understand where the gaps in their utilization are, or recommend other products. If that even results in saying that they don't need to order anything right now, than so be it. This is similar to the concept of the CRM Audit that we have discussed, which would be a simple audit, and can even be performed by an account manager (not necessarily a consultant). Sometimes, just hearing that another company is doing something successfully, gives me confidence to push things internally. And I suspect that others (in the management team and others in general) also feel this way, so me providing this third-party validation shoudl provide additional confidence in what we are doing so we can now focus on rolling it out.

So there we have it. My first "Top 5" blog posting.

If anything, at least this forces me to collect my thoughts at the end of the evening and summarize my thoughts so I can rest better at night without thoughts running through my head.