Peapod Twitter Wisdom

Posted on December 1, 2010 by Alicia Hamilton 
Filed Under Social Media | 2 Comments

This is not the blog post you are supposed to be reading, this is a placeholder idea because the blog post you should be reading was really good. The writing was ok but the information contained within the post was of the highest importance and could change lives. But you know how important information doesn’t always come across to people in the exact same way. Sure everyone hears the same words, in the same order but somehow the information gets skewed and for whatever the reason someone gets a hate on for the particular project.

You have all heard of a PSA, generally this acronym stands for Public Service Announcement but in this case it stands for Peapod Shares Advice. Peapod Studios has a lot of things they would like to say at the moment, some of them good, some of them bad and some of them might come out looking like weird characters in thought bubbles above our heads. So in the spirit of speaking our minds and speaking our truths you will find a few key gems that we here at Peapod Studios have offered via Twitter and free of charge.

@Brundle_fly PSA’s





@aliyah613 PSA’s



@makangus PSA’s



@alinicham PSA’s



@Peapodstudios PSA’s

The idea of this post was to remind everyone that what you say and what you don’t say matters. You can change the outcome of so many things just by stating an opinion. People can add value to the world around them just by being who they are and sharing their advice.

HoHoTO from the Spirit Train to the Gravy Train

Posted on November 3, 2010 by Alicia Hamilton 
Filed Under Community, Design, Social Media, The Web | 1 Comment

If you were to think of the one Christmas story that impacted your life, you would probably refer back to Charles Dickens “A Christmas Carol”. This story would stick out in your mind for various reasons, but what if I asked you to think about the part in the story that truly shaped your idea of Christmas. Would it be the beginning when Ebenezer Scrooge demeans Bob Cratchit or would it be one of the four ghosts (Jacob Marley, Ghost of Christmas Past, Ghost of Christmas Present, Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come) or would it be when Scrooge wakes up Christmas morning with love and joy in his heart and he finally does the right thing?

The site

For all of us here at Peapod Studios it is the Ghost of Christmas Present that sticks out in our minds the most. Scrooge sees how impoverished the Cratchit family is and how Tiny Tim through all his struggles is still full of joy. He sees the Cratchit’s make due with what they have, though their Christmas meal is not nearly enough to feed the whole family properly. This is a scene that doesn’t just happen in the storybooks of our childhoods. This scene is happening daily in homes all around this great country and in every city we reside in.

In real life The Ghost of Christmas Present is actually played by a variety of people and organizations. This year Peapod Studios was asked to design the HoHoTO website and we jumped on the chance to be able to show the real Scrooges of the world just how important this cause is. HoHoTO has been in existence for almost three years now, raising money, awareness and donating food for the Toronto Daily Bread Food Bank. The first HoHoTO was organized in less than 20 days and had 600 attendees, it has been dubbed “the party that Twitter built” but in all honesty I think we can realize that its “the party that human compassion and selflessness built.”

HoHoTO has raised more than $80,000 and collected about four tons of food (That is roughly the weight of your average African Elephant or 65 extremely well fed pigs) for the Toronto Daily Bread Food Bank. These numbers are pretty astounding but to most people the numbers, the weight none of that is really what they care about. What the average person cares about is “Why do they do it?”. So we asked a few very important HoHoTo members just why they do it.

The responses to the question “Why are you a part of HoHoTO?” were as genuine as they come.

Ryan Taylor

“It’s been 2+ years since I enthusiastically asked that we use the hashtag #hohoto to continue the twitter conversation about an event to feed the needy. I was heading into my studio that night, worried myself about feeding my family.

I feel there are a lot of people we care about here in Toronto quietly suffering, embarrassed by their position who are in or have been very close to poverty.

When you have been one step away from needing a service like the Daily Bread Food Bank, it makes being an organizer that much more satisfying when we hand the giant cheque over at the end of the night.”

Follow Ryan on twitter @ryantaylor

Rob Hyndman

“I’m a part of HoHoTO because there are few other things I can do that will make as much of a difference, for so little effort.  HoHoTO is marvellous because with just a bit of effort, we can make an enormous difference in the lives of vulnerable people in our community.  I’m involved because it’s our responsibility to make sure that the awesome people at the Daily Bread Food Bank have the tools to do their work.  This is our community, these are our neighbours.  How can you not help?”

Follow Rob on twitter @rhh

Michael O’Connor Clarke

“HoHoTO represents a really simple equation: you drink, they eat. Considering how absurdly wealthy Toronto is, it’s just plain wrong that so many people in our city don’t have enough to eat. Throwing a big, drunken Holiday party might seem like an odd way to draw attention to this, but it works.”

Follow Michael on twitter @michaelocc

Leila Boujnane

I believe that I can extend a helping hand and make a difference with HoHoTO. Ending hunger in our community starts with a single act of kindness: caring. And year after year, HoHoTO has brought our entire caring community out to lend a hand. You would be insane not to want to be part of such an incredible group!

Follow Leila on twitter @leilaboujnane

HoHoTO is being held December 16th 2010 at The Mod Club (722 College St, Toronto, ON) the tickets go on sale December 1, 2010, but you don’t have to wait till then to get involved. You can click here to access the sponsor page and become one of this years gracious sponsors. There are six levels you can choose from ranging from the Santa level ($10,000.00) to the Candy Cane level ($250.00) or you can start collecting canned goods etc. at your office to donate to the Daily Bread Food Bank.

This event exists because of people like you who take the time to not just think of others but to pass along this message to your entire network be it through Twitter, Facebook, email or even as simple as talking to a stranger on the street. So start following @hohoto or using the #HoHoTO hashtag to spread the word ( or if you are not on Twitter there is a Facebook page ) and Be like the Ghost of Christmas Present to show the Scrooges of the world just what really matters.

One Lonely Blackberry in a Sea of Apples

Posted on October 22, 2010 by Alicia Hamilton 
Filed Under Apple, Nerd Alert, Tech | Leave a Comment

dueling devices

Peapod Studios is a total Apple environment, everywhere I look there is an Apple product. Oh look there is an iMac, iPad, Macbook Pro, Macbook Air or an iPhone4. I have always been ok with the relationship I have with my Blackberry, in fact you might actually say I love my Blackberry (or is that loved?).

As I sit here day after day though I am starting to realize that my mobile device is not as awesome as I once thought. Take away the whole mobile carrier issue (yes I am with Bell while it seems everyone else is with Rogers) and what you are left with is the devices themselves. Three months ago when I started at Peapod Studios everyone in the office had an iPhone3. I will admit I was jealous of their touch screens and the awesome applications they had access to but the one thing I knew I had on all of them was wicked battery life and an equally crappy camera.

spock

With the introduction to the iPhone4′s at Peapod Studios it is really starting to show me that my Blackberry just isn’t up to par with the rest. When I took a picture of our office Spock I thought “Man that looks pretty rad” and then Alistair came in with his big bad awesome iPhone4 and showed me who was the Photo Boss. After having the opportunity to gaze lovingly at the screen of the iPhone4 I realize that I can no longer look at my Blackberry Curve 8330 screen in the same way. I feel its blurring pixels mocking me and its tiny screen trying its very best to make me squint (which it has succeeded at many times). While everyone else is Facetiming each other I am left sitting at my desk wishing for someones face to pop up on my phone. I used to be proud of my fast typing ability, having a raised keyboard has always put my far above the rest when it came to sending out a message with speed and accuracy and then the iPhone4 came along and put me in my place. I’m not sure that the touch screen keyboard is any better than my raised keyboard but after a typing war between a coworker it ended up pretty much a tie.

Everything that I thought made my Blackberry great has slowly dissolved. I am the only one with BBM which means I cant interact with any of my coworkers unless I download WhatsUp or Kik or some other sort of cross platform messaging system. My Blackberry is an older model though so many applications just wont work or even if I can download them and they do work they tend to freeze my Blackberry. I have a trackball while everyone else has a touch screen. Even in the winter it is easier to use a touchscreen than roll a ball with a mitten on. Sure my Blackberry is red which gives it a little pizzaz but the iPhone4 beats that with its creative and interesting cases. I cant pretend that I don’t love my Blackberry for what it has been able to help me with. Its a smartphone which has given me the opportunity to access the internet while I am out and about, I can access emails and text faster then most of my peers. Without it I wouldn’t have this opportunity at Peapod Studios.

Right now I am one lonely Blackberry in a sea of Apples, there are somedays that I feel pretty left out of all the fun and glamourous times the rest are having but in all honestly I am not ready for the responsibility and power owning an iPhone4 would bring me so until I am ready I will just stick with being the antioxidant in the fibrous fruit salad.

…Cheers!

Posted on June 25, 2010 by Alistair Morton 
Filed Under Branding & Identity, Design, Interface, Marketing, Open Source, Social Media, The Web, User Experience | Leave a Comment

This week Peapod Studios was informed about the acceptance of our proposal to work on the redevelopment and redesign of the Château Des Charmes website.

Chateau Des Charmes Wines.

A Little History

Château des Charmes story began over five generations ago with a family that traces its roots to the Alsace region of France and the vineyards of French Algeria. Thousands of kilometers from its present day vineyards located at Niagara-on-the-Lake.

In these foreign lands, the ancestors of Paul Bosc began a heritage of fine winemaking that would serve the Bosc family for generations to come. This tradition of excellence continues today in the vineyards of Niagara-on-the-Lake where Paul Bosc and his family carry on this rich heritage of meticulous vinification by harmonizing science and art.

A graduate of one of Europe’s finest winemaking schools, the University of Burgundy at Dijon, Paul Bosc came to Canada from France in the 1960′s. He brought the Old World tradition of winemaking to his new home and he grafted that knowledge and tradition to the soils of Niagara.

Renowned British wine writer Hugh Johnson in his book Wine Companion has written:

“Canada was discovered, in fine wine terms, in the 1970′s when old fears and prejudices about which vines could survive were tossed aside. The formidable know-how that had been accumulating in new wine districts around the world provided answers to problems that had seemed insuperable. Paul Bosc became the first to plant a wholly vinifera vineyard. Award winning VQA estate wines include Icewine, late harvest riesling, an impressive range of both white and red varietals as well as méthode traditionnelle sparkling wines.”

We had to try it

Peapod Studios is picky about our clients, we want to work with the best of the best. We seek out companies and projects we can feel good about.

So we headed off to our local LCBO to grab some of the Châteaus offerings. We ended up with the 2005 Old Vine Cabernet- Merlot and the 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon, St. David’s Bench Vineyard.

Nom nom nom

The Cabernet Merlot was simply exquisite, the more it breathed the more fantastic it became, and the Cabernet Sauvignon reminded us of that summer in Rome.

We were hooked, The wine is fantastic, and the scenery and chance to visit and work with a company that is in arguably in the most gorgeous place in Canada. A family run business that returns its wealth to the community and environment. All the things we love and appreciate and aim for being ourselves.

“In the belief that quality and value go hand-in-hand, we at Château des Charmes have been dedicated to producing world-class wines in Canada by growing only the finest grape varieties.”

-The Bosc Family

Photo credit: whatsonmyplate

Wanted: Office Coordinator

Posted on June 10, 2010 by Alistair Morton 
Filed Under Community, Hiring, Nerd Alert | 1 Comment

overworked

The Office Coordinator is the glue that holds Peapod together. An important role that includes managing and coordinating day-to-day tasks such as, organizing the studio, manning the phones, coordinating meetings, ordering office supplies, plus additional administrative tasks.

Skills and Abilities

• Ability to build rapport and work effectively with all studio members and clients
• Able to juggle many tasks within a short timeframe, with effective prioritization
• Positive, mature and professional, can-do attitude
• Detail oriented, self-sufficient and organized
• Must work independently with minimal supervision
• Solid written and verbal communication skills
• Proactive thinker who seeks to create efficiencies within the work environment
• Intermediate knowledge of MS Office Suite

Experience

• 1-2 years experience in an office environment
• Reception and customer service experience an asset
• Basic accounting and payroll

Nice to Have

• Project management experience
• Interest in design and interactive services

If you are interested in this position, please send your resume by email to jobs@peapod.ca

Thank you for your response, only those selected for interview will be contacted.

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