ZingIT » fun

Michigan Beach in February

Billie — Fri, 25 Feb 2011 16:04:06 +0000

Elph went on vacation to Vieques. He sent pictures of the view. We had to show him that he didn’t need to leave the office to get a lovely beach scene.

Featuring 140 blue balloons for water, packing peanuts for sand, green crepe paper palm trees, a beach chair, Joe the cabana boy and a message in a bottle.

Museum Day is September 25

JoeG — Tue, 14 Sep 2010 15:02:42 +0000

Museum Day is an annual event hosted by Smithsonian Media in which participating museums across the country open their doors for free to anyone presenting a Museum Day Ticket. In the Ann Arbor area you can get into the Matthaei Botanical Gardens, UM Museum of Art, and UM Exhibit Museum of Natural History. Get your ticket and find more participating museums at Smithsonian Magazine.

Google Dunks

JoeG — Thu, 27 May 2010 19:51:43 +0000

Brass Monki makes some boss sneakers, they recently did a custom pair of Nike Dunks with a Google theme. I want them.

USB Cufflinks

JoeG — Thu, 27 May 2010 13:21:45 +0000

So James Bond.

Designed by Ravi Ratan, 2GB USB Flash Drive Cufflinks (2 GB each, total 4 GB) and can be engraved with up to 8 characters, available in gunmetal and gold finishes. $195.00/per pair. Feature functional USB drives making it possible for you to keep all of your must-have presentations and important documents with you wherever you go.

via

Google Fiber for A2, iPad for you!

Billie — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 13:35:36 +0000

Right on the heels of Zingerman’s Mail Order’s Balsamic Vinegar Video Contest (there’s still time!), Lunch Ann Arbor Marketing (LA2M) launched a really cool YouTube contest supporting Ann Arbor’s bid for Google Fiber.

Think about how high speed internet connectivity will change your business, life, attitude — then show us in a creative, entertaining and informative 30 – 90 second video how Google Fiber will make your life better. The creator of the winning video will receive a grand prize. There will be multiple runner up videos as well. And the top videos will all have a chance to win an Apple iPad. Videos can be uploaded to YouTube for judging beginning March 17, 2010. The deadline for submission is 1 p.m. EST on March 26, 2010.

Betsy, Zingerman’s graphic designer, jokes, “Can I submit the balsamic video I’m making?” Why not? Balsamic vinegar adds rich sweet flavor to your salads, while Google Fiber in A2 would be just plain SWEEEEET! Let’s win it!

He hadn’t lost his IT skillz in the wilds of Australia

Billie — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 18:33:13 +0000

Elph’s been hopping around with the kangaroos and koalas in Australia for almost an entire month. He flew back on Tuesday. We were waiting for him.

Wednesday, March 3rd
9 am We assembled at the Roadhouse.

9:19 am Recruited the Roadhouse staff to help us with our prank.

9:22 am Calling Elph. He doesn’t pick up.
9:56 am Text message from Elph to Brian: “In tomorrow.” Groans all around.
9:58 am Decide to have a working breakfast anyway.

Thursday, March 4th

9:00 am Are we going to try again? Sure.

9:45 am Waiting at the Roadhouse for Elph to pop on Google Chat (sure sign that he’s in)

9:50 am Jennie places the call: “Elph? Help! The basement’s flooded! And the investors are here! What do I do? I don’t want Chef to get mad! Please someone come help!!”

9:50 am Mass text message from Elph

9:59 am We settle in the comfy end booth with some coffee and OJ.

10:00 am We laugh watching Elph run across the parking lot to save the Roadhouse!

10:01 am He rushes down and encounters a dry basement. Jennie saves him and directs him to the fireplace room. Time check: 11 minutes. Not bad, not bad.

10:02 am Welcome back Elph! Hope you had a great trip.

IT Dinner #13: Pizza

Billie — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 20:34:37 +0000

November 30, 2009
Billie’s House

Head Chef JoeG brought toppings, Whole Foods pizza dough, homemade sauce, salad and vino. Elph brought his own cauliflower crust. We made 8(?) pizzas including a calzone and a dessert pizza with cinnamon sugar and chocolate bits.

Geek Music

Billie — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 03:26:46 +0000

In addition to being tech geeks, most of us in ZingIT are music geeks as well. JoeG’s got his growing record collection (pretty sweet I’ve been told), Craig’s in on all the indie bands and obscure artists, Elph’s a patron of the Ann Arbor Folk Festival, Brian’s got Sirius in his car. Then there’s me. My music collection consists primarily of six CDs from college and a handful of Starbucks Pick of the Week downloads.

But I do have a secret playlist that I like to play for a quick pick-me-up. I go nuts for catchy tunes with witty funny geeky lyrics. First of all, there’s the uber-talented and prolific Jonathan Coulton who brought us the adorable Code Monkey and my personal favorite anthem of the moment re: Your Brains (somehow I feel Elph will enjoy this one too because he’s that kind of guy).

Then recently, I came across this bit of girl-lovin’ nerdcore. Yeah, I’m a Coder Girl!

But this is the song that plays in my head at random times of the day.

I can’t help it. I’m a geek and a nerd. Rock on, geeks of music!