snowgoose

It’s the last ThurFriday for a while today. From next week onwards, we Saffers are back to 5 day weeks. So to relax you in anticipation of your long weekend, I have for you: a Twitter Cartoon!

I’ve been fighting with LinkedIn and it’s stupid crap for the past 2 weeks so this cartoon made me laugh out loud (not LOL, actually laugh, out loud.):

But wait! That’s not all! In light of the recent NerdMag article by my friend Exmi and the storm of commentary that followed it, I’d like to add another twitter one. This one’s for you”Anonymoron”:

hehe…

I finally started my new job at Quirk eMarketing after what felt like an eternity of waiting and, to be honest, I was completely blown away. Now I know that everyone agrees that Quirk is possibly the best eMarketing agency in the industry and I’m sure you want to know what it is actually like being a QuirkStar.

So here they are, my first impressions of this incredible company:

Fast-paced: The understatement of the year

While working at Standard Bank, I always thought we worked extremely hard and anyone who said that corporate employees had it easy was completely misinformed. I stand by what I said. The people at the Bank do work hard and there is a lot of pressure; but not nearly at the level of an agency (and I suspect this agency outpaces most). Before I even arrived people were sending me emails and assignments for me to do. My first few days were beyond frantic and on day 3 I already had over 158 emails in my inbox, all urgent.I have spent almost every night since trying to get caught up and at inbox zero. Something I suspect I will never do.

They are called Quirk for a reason

Everyone is completely nuts. They make me look sane, conservative and quiet… and I love it! My name is officially Goose and it’s even on my email signature! All new employees are called n00bs for their first few months and there is a culture of openess and friendliness that I have not experienced anywhere else. Debate and open discussion is encouraged and people I have not even met yet are already my friends. And something that is even more refreshing than any of this is that employees are encouraged to be individuals and grow their personal brand, both within and outside of work hours. There is no such thing as a QuirkClone. Ever single one of us is a star in our own right and is given full support to fulfill our dreams, no matter what they are. Seriously, it is beyond amazing. Don’t believe me? Just take a look at my “corporate profile”. Nuts huh?

Nothing is incidental or done ‘by mistake’

Every single action Quirk takes is either to improve our position online, to better the lives of our clients or to grow our client base. Everything. I know this sounds like something every company does but in reality, it’s quite rare. SEO in particular is a big focus. I had absolutely no idea there were so many things you could do to improve your SEO (a surprising number of them; ‘offline’ activities). Quirk has literally written the book on this subject and the dedication poured into every aspect of the business is mind-blowing.

So next time you pick up your copy of the eMarketing textbook, read the GottaQuirk blog, or have a chat to Rob on Twitter, remember this: It has all been thought out to the tiniest detail to improve your life, our rankings and our clients’ reputations. But we are all still natural and spontaneous people, Quirk is in no way cold and calculated; just carefully considered and executed with passion.

It may be too soon to tell, but I think I’ve found my home.

I’ve always enjoyed my job, no matter where I worked; life is too short to hate what you do. I was always the quirky arty person who swam against the tide and people always marveled at my weirdness. At the time I thought this was the best thing ever; why be like everyone else, even if everyone else is normal? But the problem with being so radically different from your colleagues, is that you never really fit in. Now I feel like I’ve found 50 other people like me, and it’s a great feeling. Not because they are exactly like me, they aren’t. But because you swim faster and further against the tide when you have 50 other fish swimming with you, even if they aren’t all salmon. (Brilliant, now I’m gonna see fish every time I look at my fellow QuirkStars!)

These are my first impressions of Quirk. I’m sure I’ll have many more and I’ll share my growth at this amazing place with you.

P.S. No, I wasn’t paid or asked to say any of this, in fact; Quirk will read this at the same time as you (after having picked it up with BrandsEye, no doubt… Hi Tim!). I am just a passionate person who doesn’t believe in hiding anything. So if you are like me and my post has made you a little jealous… Just click here.

No – its not a play on my surname. We had a fabulous Easter lunch at my oldest sister’s house today and I want to share it with you in a few pictures.

My beautiful 6 year old neice and her dad share a special moment:

My nephew, Ruben, proud to be a “Springbokkie”. I can’t believe he’s almost 3. It honestly feels like yesterday I was holding a newborn baby:

Esli has vowed to learn how to do a head-stand before she goes back to school. After some instruction from Aunt Romy and ‘Uncle’ Shaun, she got very close today. A few more days of practice and I’m sure she’ll be able to do it without leaning against the wall. Ruben, however, needs a few more years.

We ended the day off with a breathtaking African sunset:

I’ve got loads more pics but I’ll pop those on my Flickr stream during the week. These ones captured the day for me. Good food, great company and a little silliness: Just what Easter should be.

Oh! I almost forgot: My family are avid readers of this blog. They always comment about it, even though they don’t always understand what I’m on about. That is really awesome and I’m really grateful. So… Hi Family!

I saw this meme on Exmi’s blog. I wasn’t tagged in it but I thought I’d post it anyway cos I’m a sucker for lists.

Wathaba Rainbow Falls

1. Do you like Blue Cheese?
It depends. I like gorgonzola but not the very strong blue cheeses.

2. Have you ever smoked heroin?
OK – what kind of a question is that!?!? Of course not!

3. Do you own a gun?
Not yet. I was on the Transvaal shooting team at school and I’m inheriting my Gran’s gun. Now I just need a licence.

4: This number is missing.
Okaaaaaay. Whatever

5. Do you get nervous before doctor appointments?
Nah, just bored cos I usually have to wait for 45 minutes to get in.

6. Real or fake nails?
Real. I had fake ones once and it took my real ones 4 months to recover. Never again.

7. Favorite Christmas song?
“Santa Baby.”

8. What do you prefer to drink in the morning?
French Champagne. But I usually settle for water.

9. Can you do push ups?
Yes. Girly ones, but I can do 30 of those.

10. What’s your favorite piece of jewellery?
My serpentine-type bendy necklaces that I can bend into any shape I want.

11. Favourite hobby?
Twitter.

12. Do you have A.D.D.?
Um… well… huh? What was the question?

13. What’s one trait that you hate about yourself?
I don’t know when to stop talking. And my lack of self-discipline.

14. Middle Name?
I Don’t have one – my parent’s decided it was better that way. What’s the point of a middle name anyway?

15. Name 3 thoughts at this exact moment:
I wish I was lying on the couch instead of working. I hope the cats don’t notice the Chameleon is out of his cage. Where is my blanket?

16. Name 3 drinks you regularly drink:
Wine, Coke Zero, Wine.

17. Current worry right now?
I need to get motivation to finish these projects before the weekend is out.

18. Current hate right now?
Hypocrisy. It’s always hypocrisy.

19. Favourite place to be?
Wathaba Rainbow Falls in Mpumalanga. It is the most beautiful place I have ever been.

20. How did you bring in the New Year?
At a friend’s braai, dancing in the rain.

21. Like to go?
Yes but I have to complete this stupid thing first.

22. Name three people who will complete this:
no clue.

23. Do you own slippers?
Yes. They’re blue and fluffy. I suspect my sister may have stolen them.

24. What colour shirt are you wearing?
It was pink, but the maid washed it with my black pants so now it’s pink and grey tie-dye.

25. Do you like sleeping on satin sheets?
Never done it so I wouldn’t know.

26. Can you whistle?
No. I whistle like a 4 year old, I suck air in.

27. Favourite colour?
I don’t have one. It depends on my mood.

28. Would you be a pirate?
Arrrrr…. Let me think about that matey. A Somali pirate? No. A ‘Pirates of the Carribean’ pirate? Definitely.

29. What songs do you sing in the shower?
I don’t sing in the shower.

30. Favourite girl’s name?
Claire

31. Favourite boy’s name?
Christopher

32. What’s in your pocket right now?
Nothing. I’m not big on pockets.

33. Last person that made you laugh?
The stupid morons on “Don’t forget the lyrics”.

34. Worst injury you’ve ever had?
I Cut my head open on the soap dish by falling into the shower. Dork.

35. Do you love where you live?
I like the inside of my house but I hate the complex & the neighbourhood.

36. How many TV’s do you have in your house?
One. I will never allow a TV in the bedroom.

37. Who is your loudest friend?
Kirsten

38. How many pets do you have?
Four. Two cats, a Bearded Dragon and a Veiled Chameleon.

39. Someone have a crush on you?
I know of one. We joke about it a lot.

40. What is your favourite book?
Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption. (That is the book’s real name)

41. What is your favourite candy?
Lemon drops.

42. Favourite Sports Team?
The Blue Bulls!!

43. What were you doing at 12AM last night?
Driving home from a friend’s braai.

44. What was the first thing you thought of when you woke up?
Where is my phone? What is happening in the Twittersphere?

45. Worst habit?
Scratching a mosquito bite until I have no skin left. Gross and stupid – I know.

46. Do you play an instrument?
No, unless you count Guitar Hero. 

47 . How long does it take you to get to work?
It used to take me an hour and a half or more, now it’s 30 minutes – tops. Another reason why working at Quirk rocks!

48. Plans for the weekend?
Well, it is halfway through y’know. So I had drinks with my new boss on Thursday, went to a braai on Friday, I worked on design stuff yesterday, @Exmi is coming over today and I have a family braai tomorrow.

49 If you could eat anything in the world right this second?
Lindt dark chocolate with Chilli.

50. Do you like the person who sent this to you?
Nobody sent this to me. I never get tagged in memes.

These are the people I tag:

1.  Blondore

2. SnappingTurtle

3. FeistyFemale

4. MelAttree

5. DarwinsHome

…this shirt:

Its super awesome. Its from Think Geek, who make the coolest geeky stuff ever.

Just putting it out there.