Bananas

Alex and I have mentioned on a few occasions that we are corporate drones. (Note: Drone is a bit of an exaggeration, but we like to wallow in self-pity sometimes.) The good company that employs us could be compared to something seen in the movie Office Space. So, if we came in tomorrow morning and saw a "Is this good for the company?" banner hanging, no one would be in shock.

With that said, we LOVE the people who work beside us every day. Energetic, creative types who like to interject a little mirth into this beige, cube-walled world. These are folks who eschew "forced-fun" and act on random ideas. A few years ago, one of these inspirations was a bake-off. It has become an annual event in the creative group. We have competed with peanut butter cookies, brownies, chocolate chip cookies...and today was banana bread!

How the heck do you keep the mixer from waking everyone up at 5:30 am?

Today I woke up a half-hour early to bake mine fresh. The house was quiet, the breeze coming through the open window was cool and smelled like dew, and I felt very at peace. I am not an early riser so this quiet morning house was sort of new to me. I was groggy...but I loved it. I may become a morning person just yet.

Sifted flour is so pretty.

I'm pretty fond of my banana bread recipe. I got it from Heather at the Craftlit podcast many years ago. She shared it with her listeners on one episode and told us not to broadcast it (because it was her grandmamas) and I have kept true to my vow. I will tell you that it is delicious. If you want the recipe you will have to go back to her archives and listen from the beginning. (But be warned, you will get hooked on this podcast!)

My entry is in the forefront...the crown on the table is for the victor!

Melissa won the Cookie Monster today! It will be proudly displayed at her desk
for the next year. Thick skins are a prerequisite for this game.

The judging was fair and the competition was stiff. I did not win today, but I made a good showing. The winner gets a tiara (see above) and the person with the least votes gets a plush Cookie Monster holding a sign that says "I Hate You" (see above again)...  Yeah...that's how we roll here. Even the "least favorite" gets a prize. Most of all, I love that we make our own fun here at Company X. Life is good.


–Cassandra

Worlds Collide

As we've mentioned here and there, Alex and I work at Company X. It is a big place, very corporate, very typical. We are creatives in a sea of non-creatives. Sometimes that can be a little lonely and, occasionally, frustrating. But, there are moments when we hit the happiness jackpot... and it keeps us sane. Yesterday we had one of those moments.

First some background: A few years back, we did an ad campaign that featured squirrels. There were huge squirrels on billboards, small ones on mailers, millions of them on newspaper inserts, and chattering squirrels on radio ads. The "sales" response rate was respectable, but the emotional response it generated was amazing. It was the only time we've ever had customers show up in our lobby looking to meet our creative/marketing staff, and to see if they could get their hands on more printed copies. The most notable of these visitors were the local firefighters from Ladder 2 who showed up, in full gear, after having responded to a call across the street. We were so proud. Then sales started dropping, and reluctantly we had to move on to a new, non-squirrel campaign. But, we always hoped to resurrect the squirrels again at some point.

Our Spokesquirrel: Chopper Crazypaws

Time shift to this past summer: Our senior-management team was out in the field. They were visiting offices around the country and they kept hearing how much people loved the squirrels and hoped to see them again. When they came back and reported this to marketing, a testing plan was hatched. Fourth quarter this year, we pulled out a sample group to send a "squirrel" version against our (non-squirrel) control. I am sad to report that the control was the winner and the squirrels will not be gracing billboards anytime soon. But, at the end of the day, it was amazing that customers had such an emotional tie to these "characters" that we actually took the time to test the campaign again.

What does this have to do with crafting, you ask? Well, as a result of this latest squirrel test, one of our customers sent us some hand-made goodness. I'm telling you the truth! Because she was responding to a "holiday card" (which was a thinly disguised sales message about our latest promotion) she sent us a crocheted angel ornament AND a crocheted squirrel magnet! The "card" that she was responding to was co-signed by the president of our company and our spokes-squirrel, Chopper Crazypaws - so she wanted to send both a gift. How sweet is that?

Crocheted Squirrel Magnet on Whiteboard

Crocheted Angel Ornament in Corporate Setting

Like the title of this post says, worlds collide. As marketing people, Alex and I are just amazed at how fond people are of a silly promotional tool like the squirrels. As crafters, we are especially touched by this gesture from one, loyal and sweet customer. It is one thing to give a gift, yet another to give such a thoughtful hand-made gift. So...Miss Nancy from Indiana, thank you! You are a treasure.

–Cassandra