Rut-Cassie MacLennan

I am proud to say that this was my first public bus experience!

I have ridden the school bus a couple times for school fieldtrips and things but I have never rode a city bus!

I actually was not allowed to ride the bus growing up, if that says anything.

My mom always said scary people rode the bus and so I was not allowed.

My husband and I rode the bus from our apartment to the mall.  We got our laundry quarters and headed to the bus stop.  First off I have to say that they could really  make the stops and charts and their website more user friendly.  I don't know why they make it so hard to find out which bus you need to take and what stop you need to get off.  The bus came about ten minutes after we had been sitting there and I think we may have gotten on the wrong bus because they took a really long route to the mall, although maybe buses just do that to optimize thier stops and people.

I think my mom was wrong all these years, there were not scary people on the bus, that could be the whole Provo thing though too. There was only about 4 other people on the bus, they were all alone and all kept to themselves.  The buses were clean, had some ads, and were comfortable and warm enough. 

It looked like people had a lot of time to think while riding the bus, my husband rested his eyes and I just thought and played on my phone.  

On the way home from the mall the bus was much more crowded, some teeny bopper junior high girls who propbably caught the bus to the mall from school were having the time of their life.  I could not believe their conversation, I forgot that junior high girls talked like that, they talked all about boys and other girls and they were horribly mean to each other and snobby and I honestly just wanted to stop them and say BE NICE, YOU ARE SO UNATTRACTIVE SOUNDING BEING MEAN!  But i didn't. 

Needless to say I did not have a peaceful nice thoughtful experience on the way back.

Overall I think it much more convienent to drive your car anywhere, if you don't have the option then I think buses are a great way to travel.  The one advantage for me was that since someone else is driving you can kind of just sit back and think and relax and not worry about anything about driving, unless of course three girls are babbling n your ear about how skany their halloween costumes are going to be that they are going to change in at school so their parents don't see! HA

Transportation Rut- Dan Tygard

I ran out the door Saturday evening hoping that I could catch a bus at the stop down the street from my house.  A girl waited patiently.  I engaged in friendly conversation, and asked her when the next bus was coming since I did no research prior to leaving my house.  She had useful information.  She had been waiting for an hour and a half and still no bus.  We waited another 20 or so minutes, and finally the 811 showed up.  I boarded the bus not knowing where it was headed.  After striking up conversation with the bus driver,  who by the way started his career in the transportation industry back in Alaska as a tour bus driver where he just happened to meet Mr. Tom Green, anyway the driver told me that the 811 goes all the way up to Sandy.  I did not want to go all the way up to Sandy, so I got off at the UVU campus stop.  It was a good ride and I met some good people.  The experience made me grateful for my car, and even more grateful that I live close enough to just about everything that I can pedal power to any destination.

This is me.

It was a smooth ride, so I never had to use the barf bag.

Me with more people in the background on the good ol 811.

Rut #7 - The Bus

So the reason I'm posting this late is because the bus that was supposed to take me back to campus never showed up. I walked back from Center street. So despite this exercise failing to cure me of my dislike of the public transportation system in Utah, it was a good thing to get me out of my rut.

I've taken the bus many times before to Salt Lake and back so this was not a new experience for me. I wanted to go someplace new though so I decided to take the bus westward towards the lake. The bus was empty most of the way, but I got to talk to the driver for a bit and get a good look at an area of Utah Valley I hadn't seen before. There are some beautiful little parks on the west side of Provo by the way. I was surprised that on this route the bus didn't stick to main roads, we wound through some quiet residential neighborhoods.

The bus driver was a little confused why I didn't get off at the last stop. I told him I was riding the bus for the sake of riding the bus. I needed to do something different and get out of my rut. He nodded his head like he understood where I was coming from, but gave me a look like I was completely nuts at the same time.

One of the stops on the way back was at an elderly persons home and a bunch of old people got on. That was a lot of fun, I got to talk to a guy who was catching a ride to downtown Provo to sell music. There was also a very funny guy in a wheelchair who was good friends with the bus driver.

So it was a fun little adventure for sure. I'm not a big fan of public transportation when I'm trying to go somewhere, but its not half bad if you're just looking for an adventure.

Trax Ride

Saturday Night I took advantage of having to ridepublic transportation and insisted that me and my boyfriend go to Sandy and ride the trax from Sandy to SLC to have dinner. I thought this would be easier then riding the bus ( to be honest but, it sounds like I had just as much of an Experience as anyone else)

First, we struggled to find the station and place to park. Once we found it we had to figure out

how to purchase tickets. Even though we thought we were prepared becuase we watched a video on the UTA website. It didn't end up being the same.

Not to worry we finally figured it out. Then we learned a hard lesson on knowing when the trains come and go, because we waited in the cold for about 15 min! In the mean time we witnessed a lady asking around if anyone had seen her phone and this teenage kid was like yea i got it. I couldn't tell what he was planning on doing with the phone, but I was impressed that he gave it back to her, because he could have totally ignored her.

Once we got on the train, I was impressed on how nice the train was. I spent the time people watching and on my phone trying to figure out where we were going to get off. My boyfriend and I talked about how by the time we got on

the train we probably could have already been in SLC if we had continued driving on the interstate. ( He wasn't really feeling this whole experience, I was trying to embrace it) After a 20

min ride we made it to downtown.

After dinner we decided to hear back to the station, because it was about 10:30 and we knew the last train was at 11 and wanted to be safe.

A train came within 3 min, but it wasn't the right one and we were shocked to she it PACKED with Asians. We started talking to this man who said the last train was like that too. But he was an experienced Trax rider and said the next train would be the next one to Sandy. While we

waited for this train ( another 20 min wait) we had a some entertainment.)

The train came and again is was PACKED but we just had to squish on. Luckily all of these people got off on the next stop and we could sit down.

One the way back it was a little more relaxing because I already knew where we needed to get off. I had the time to realize how handicap accessible the train was. Every door was able to have a wheel chair to go on and off. ( I saw it twice)

I felt like for the price and the time I spent waiting it wasn't worth. But I could see how for commuters it might be, because you could sit there and get whatever you need to get done done. ANd wouldn't have to worry about parking.

UTA Bus ride

The first thing that impressed me was how clean the buses actually were. I always pictured them having nasty seats like the ones from a bus I rode in New York.  The only people talking on my bus were two girls and they were speaking an Asian language so I couldn't understand anything. Everybody else was dead silent.

The only negative experience I had was that I had a hard time figuring out the schedule and ended up waiting for more than ten minutes outside in the cold. That was probably the only real negative thing and I wouldn't mind riding the bus once it starts snowing so that I don't have to walk in the crazy cold.

UTA Anit-Rut James Taylor

Work comes early on Monday morning. I need to be at the MTC at 7 am, which meant catching a bus around 6:09 am in Springville. Getting on the bus was easy enough, just tap my debit card and take a seat. As I looked around the bus most everyone was drifting in and out  of sleep with the rocking of the bus. One guy was talking to the bus driver and as he got off at a stop told her it was a pleasure and asked her to not get in a crash.

Another guy started talking to a man about going to the VA. He mentioned a story about a vet who lost his leg after 18 years of service in the military and didn't get retirement (you get it after 20 years of service). I mentioned how sad that was and then the man started talking to me. He had spent 16 years in the military, from Vietnam to Desert Storm. Apparently his pension has been cut over the past few years from $1600 to about $600. His daughter had asked him for a hefty amount of money to bail her son out of jail and he wouldn't do it. His grandson had stolen a car and gone for a joy ride. Then he told me most new cars have gps trackers in them, like the one his grandson broke into.

I talked to the bus driver after and found out that I missed a stop because I was talking away. To my credit though, the stop wasn't listed on the UTA website. Overall, this experience was a great one. I would ride the bus more frequently if I could still get a greatly subsidized bus pass. It was fun to meet someone new and get a new perspective on life.

UTA Public Transit

Because the syllabus didn't say when this was due I did it about two weeks ago fearing I had just missed the memo or something. My family lives in Tooele, UT and because I don't have a car, I take public transit to Salt Lake, my dad brings me home after work, and then I ride UTA back to Provo. I usually insert my ear buds and listen to blaring music but this time I listened to everything. I left on a Friday and returned on a Saturday:

I took bus 811 which travels between Provo and the TRAX at Sego Lily in Sandy. I got on at the University Avenue/1060 bus stop which is right in front of the IPF. Waiting for the bus was pretty uneventful. Once I got on the bus, I sat near the back.

The bus was filled with mostly older people. No one spoke until we got to the UVU stop. College students are LOUD! One guy was on his phone when he got on and was talking intensely about some business assignment (or actual transaction, I couldn't tell). He didn't seem to think about everyone else that was around him because he was practically yelling into the phone and everyone was looking at him a little annoyed.

On the TRAX, this kid got on with short dreadlocks; several piercings and tattoos; a black, over-sized hoodie; and baggy black jeans. I am pretty sure he was high. He kept staring at me. Then he asked me what I did for business. I forgot I was in business clothes from work. I told him I was a student and he wouldn't believe me. Around Murray, sister missionaries got on. He got all excited and started talking to one of them. It was fun watching the super awkward missionary approach. I knew she was trying to fit the gospel into everything he was saying but he kept changing subjects and not following any of the conversations she was trying to start. I felt kind of guilty not jumping in and being the "member present" but I wanted to watch the interaction. Their attempts didn't get anywhere.

The best moment was when I was going home on Saturday. There was this bald, plump man wearing a button-up shirt, fisherman hat (the kind with the full brim and the string that goes under the chin to hold it on), and slacks. He was going from seat to seat just chatting it up with everyone. When one person would get off, he'd jump to the next seat and talk, talk, talk. I crossed my fingers he wouldn't come talk with me because the guy just rubbed me wrong. He spoke pretty crass and had one of those grating voices. I got away with not talking to him on the TRAX but when I went to wait at the bus stop - he got me!

He introduced himself as Steven and then starting asking me question after question. I told him I was a BYU student and he started ripping BYU, the Honor Code, and the Mormon church. His wife was a member but he hated those F-ing Mormons. "We should all be able to believe however we want. No one should tell us there's only one way to get to heaven". I tried to teach him a bit but he was DEFINITELY not interested.

He then told me about how he was an architect but then switched over to carpentry. He taught me how you cut all the pieces for furniture, explaining that you can't cut it while it's wet or it will warp when it dries. Then he talked about his schooling. After an hour, I was thinking I was going to go crazy! I was also wondering where the heck the bus was. Come to find out, I had gotten to the bus stop a little after 8:30 pm which is after the second to last bus leaves. The next one wouldn't come until 9:50!

Then the guy asked me if he could borrow my phone! I wasn't sure what to say. I ended up letting him. He called his wife and told her that the bus wasn't going to come for another long while and that she should come pick him AND HIS NEW FRIEND up!? I was kind of freaking out at that point, thinking he was a creeper. He got a lot more friendly after I let him use my phone and even gave some money to this skater who came over and asked us for money. Then his wife arrived.

I was sick of waiting at that point and a bit afraid the last bus would never come meaning I'd be stranded in Sandy. She seemed pretty normal and they didn't throw me into a bag or gag me so I figured it was safe. His wife's name was Jill. She was a VERY patient woman. He was loud and obnoxious to her, and she put him in his place. Their relationship was interesting. It was disfunctional but endearing.

It was kind of weird riding back to Provo with them but I was grateful at the same time. I actually got to a point where I liked the guy even though he was so obnoxious and crass. He gave me his e-mail when I got to Provo. After I got out, I asked where they lived and they told me they lived back in Draper! I was then really humbled by their generosity.

Rut - Cristina Gonzales

I don't have a car, so back in the days I used to ride the bus all the time. But recently my friends give rides all the time, so it's been a while since I rode one. I took the bus from my house to the mall on Friday  morning, and not many people were in the bus, maybe because it was 10 a.m. I don't know...

But it was very interesting seing few people in the bus, there were some asian people. I wish I would know their language... they were laughing and I wanted to know the joke... There was this Mexican woman going to work, and she was kind of angry while she was talking on the phone with her son about her getting late to work because of her husband, it was kind of funny...

I forgot to mention that I was with my friend Joao, he is form Brazil and by the time that we sat down a handicap lady that was sitting in front of us asked where we from and I told her I was from Peru and Joao told her he was from Brazil. When she heard that we were from South America, she smiled and told us her son was coming back from his mission in Argentina in 2 more months. She was very exited and you could see in her face that she loved him so much and she was counting down the days to see her son again.

I liked this Rut, it was interesting and fun :)

Rut - Harper Anderson

So, this was an interesting one. I don't have a picture, because I didn't know where I would find the opportunity when the time wouldn't be awkward. Anyway, so there happens to be a bus stop right outside my house, and I got on and went to the provo library. I didn't actually go in the library, but I got off at that stop.

The ride was pretty uneventful, and I must have gone at a bad time because there were only two other people on the bus, and two other people got on while I was on. Nobody really made eye contact, and the bus driver didn't really acknowledge me when I said thank you. Not surprising, and I'm not sure why, but for some reason I wouldn't really expect a bus driver to acknowledge me. Their job must suck.

Anyway that was it. It was good. I feel un-rutted. Thank you Cutri.

Rut #7-Rob Witt

I love the experience public transportation brings, especially in large cities like DC, Philadelphia, and New York. I am rather confident when it comes to riding the Metro through DC, and getting around SEPTA in Philly but ask me about UTA and I am clueless. Thank goodness for the internet.

I live on 700 East where a bus stop is literally at the end of my driveway. However with the never-ending construction that has been going on, the route has been detoured to who knows where. So I decided to catch the next closest bus route. I caught the 832 by the WILK. I chose this route for two reasons: first, a friend recommended I take this bus because she rides it every day for work. And second, route 832 goes past University Mall. On Friday I had to pick up my runner’s packet for the Halloween Half Marathon so I figured I would make the most of this public transportation journey and travel to a place I needed to get too.

A few things I learned was my cousin Brook rides the bus! I ran into her while I was getting on the bus, she was on her way to Wyview where the majority of bus riders got off. The bus was unexpectedly full for a Friday evening, particularly with females. I thought that was interesting but there were much more females then males in that particular bus.

I was surprised at how people amused themselves while riding the bus, I honestly thought more people would entertain themselves by talking/texting/browsing on their phone but only a few were distracted with their phones. A good number of people were engaged in conversations with other bus cruisers, and one group was even singing some tunes…

Find It - James Taylor

Sorry I'm so late. I know I tried to think of some cool ways to make a bus stop look differently with our last assignment. Here is one example I liked the most out of a sight I looked at. It's for Ikea.

Find It 8-Rob Witt

I love the art direction behind these ads. The ads do a great job of visually combining two very unique images. Interesting combination of flavors but the pictures really go well together.

The copy says "One pizza, two different flavors."

Find it-Cassie MacLennan

This is my favorite commerical of all time and I am pretty sure not a

lot of you have seen it because of it's origin...

It might not all make sense haha

but it is truly inspiring haha

 lets admit it, beer commercials are always the best!

Ps-if you want your day made please go watch this video-it is so hysterical (not related to advertising but i just wanted to share)

http://www.hulu.com/watch/284927/saturday-night-live-taste-test

Find it 8 - Cristina Gonzales

"Be conscious. Disconnected."

Last week I got in car accident. Actually my friend was driving very slowly and he got distracted for 2 seconds to look his Facebook account, and that's why we got into the accident. I just saw the ads after that, and I think it is a good way to increase awareness while driving. 

Find It- Dan Tygard

Surf art is something that I have a growing interest in.  I came across an artist by the name of Chris Robb.  I like his work.  Here's a taste of it.  

Find It 8

So I saw this while scanning through Yahoo News one day and I thought it was pretty cool. This girl paints on real people and then she photographs them so that they look two dimensional. I thought it was an interesting twist and I hope y'all enjoy.

So this last picture is just so you can see how the paint is applied and what the real person looks like.

The artist is Alexa Meade and this is her website if y'all want to see more. http://alexameade.com/portfolio.html

Find it - Harper Anderson

The first time I ever saw this picture was at a house on my mission in Mexico. It took me a little bit to get it, but I loved it. I'm not entirely sure why, but It seems like the people in each of their profiles is their younger selves. That's just what I thought. Really cool painting nonetheless.

Here is the video for my comment below

Find it - Central Park

The Central Park Conservancy was able to use a new media to gain younger audiences.

"on Oct. 13, under a light mist, the agency(mcgerrybowen) projection-mapped a visually stunning, five-minute, 3-D love letter to the park, narrated by Kevin Bacon (with music by Sting), on to the facade of Bethesda Terrace"

http://youtu.be/ZXpSZY-6h-k

Find It 8- greg lloyd

So, this is something that actually just got posted by VW Canada a few days ago... in other words, it is the cutting edge. And it is pretty cool in my opinion. They use digital mobile media in a way to interact with traditional outdoor. I have been looking for cool Canadian agencies (that's where I am from) and either am not searching hard enough, or there isn't much out there, so I was happy to find this ad.

Enjoy.

Find It - 8

In honor of Halloween and just because this is the most creative ad I have ever seen for this kind of a product, I have posted Dirt Devil - the Exorcism. Please enjoy. The ad does an amazing job of communicating a message and doing it in probably the most creative way I have ever seen. Let me know what you guys think.

Find It 7

So I saw these pictures after clicking on a link of a tweet. I thought it was hilarious and it made me wish I was more witty. Here is the link in case you would like to see more stuff. http://funni.ly/mtq8q0

P.S. sometimes there is colorful language so beware.

Guerilla!-FIND IT-CASSIE MACLENNAN

Since we have been talking about alternative ads, I wanted to share these one's I found.  These kind of ads are my favorite because you can be so creative, play with anything that exists and really get your message across!

Find it #7-Rob Witt

Ads That Stick... Literally

I love stickers-I put them all over my notebooks, folders, snowboard, pretty much anywhere there is a boring surface. I wish more brands and companies gave stickers out for free more often. Such a simple yet powerful way to advertise your name, product, or service. I decided to find creative ways to advertise through stickers. Here were a few of my favorites from a website I foundhttp://www.toxel.com/inspiration/2010/03/02/clever-uses-of-stickers-in-advertising/.

I liked this one because it shows the power of the batteries in a clever and humorous way. Image the amount of people that take this particular escalator and most likely everyone saw that add and thought about batteries.

This sticker ad is found in an airport and does an excellent job in giving those who are sitting waiting around to think about their next flying adventure.

Find It- Greg Lloyd

I just found these and really liked the idea of turning their ad into something educational while still being creative. Sometimes we don't realize how much could be done by just one simple act. I think there are lots of people who try to point that out and I like how they did it here.

If everyone in New York City washed their laundry in cold water for just one day, the energy savings could be 5.7 million kWh. Enough to power every light in the Empire State Building for an entire month. Save loads of energy. Tide Coldwater.

If everyone in Los Angeles washed their laundry in cold water for just one day, the energy savings could be 11.8 million kWh. Enough to power a cruise ship from Los Angeles all the way to Hawaii. Save loads of energy. Tide Coldwater.

f everyone in Chicago washed their laundry in cold water for just one day, the energy savings could be 1.9 million kWh. Enough to power the lights for an extra-inning game at Wrigley Field lasting two months. Save loads of energy. Tide Coldwater.

Find it - Harper Anderson

I love this commercial. There's a more condensed version that's been playing lately, but I think the first time I saw it was last year and it was this full version. I think it's hilarious/creepy for halloween. It makes me want to eat snickers.

Find It - James Taylor

So my Mother-in-law is into knitting and she sent me this commercial. It is a great way to convey the message and, I think it probably took forever to make.

Find it 7 - Cristina Gonzales

I really like this comercial, though there might be a couple of things that I might want to change (like the font of the letters at the end of it and the length of the music tracks) I still think that the idea is good and funny.

Find it #7 - Sleep

Well, I'm quite sleepy right now so this looks really appealing to me. Just another great example of a super simple idea done really well.

Find It - 7

This week I wanted to look for a print ad which had a compelling image and a crystal, clear meaning. I'm looking for these types of ads because my ads are lacking in the compelling image department and as such they lose their power of communication. SO, I looked at print ads that won Gold Lions at the Cannes awards. This one is by far my favorite. It was a Chinese ad done for Samsonite by JWT Shanghai entitled "Heaven and Hell". It is brilliant. I'm not going to say anything, the picture does the talking. Enjoy!

Find It- Dan Tygard

I found these out of home ads that were placed in the airport security check bins.  I guess that Zappos, which is a shoe ecommerce site was a sponsor of the PSA.  Anyway I thought the ads were interesting, but I thought that the medium was very useful. 

Fint it- Packaging

I have a love affair with creative packaging, I am know for buying a certain water bottle if it looks cool. So here are some creative packages I have found.