WTF Foodie Moment 8: The Gift

I received this email from one of the community managers of a review site in my city. It sounds good. But is it good? Is it innocent? Below the real, but edited, emails. 

(...) I’m So-and-So, one of the community managers from X site. I just wanted to get in touch to say hey and congrats on being one of our top reviewers in city X!

We would love to send you a little so-and-so gift to thanks for your awesome posting. If you could reply with your full name and postal address that would be fantastic. (...)

My reply:

Hi So-and-So

Thanks a million for the detail.

Unfortunately, I don't give my personal details online, especially to people I don't know and are managing network online sites. I am very conscious about data collection online and no "gift" is going to change that, especially when X site could easily give a voucher for the fortunate to collect the goodies in person or just a gift voucher. I always love those.

Having said that. I appreciate the good will. 

(...)

The question is, how many of the fortunate people who have received this email have said no?

THE FOLLOW UP

After my email the same manager wrote to me saying that she totally understand :O and offering me to go to their office to collect the gift in person, and that the gift is some vouchers from some business they work with. So I am not hurrying to collect anything. A block of French pate would make me happy :D. 

GIFTS THAT ARE NOT GIFTS BUT A WAY OF MANIPULATING

If you want to give me a gift. Great. Send me an email voucher that does not require of me giving my personal details to an stranger and, even worse, to a website partly financed by local businesses, which would be thrilled to get a positive review or just a review. Because you carry the voucher, they would treat you like a queen/king, very differently from the rest of mortals, so that you leave feeling that they have the best customer service ever. 

This sort of free gift policy is very similar to the polices implemented in Yelp. Although Yelp is way more generous and many of the freebies do not come with a suggestion to make a review afterwards (but they would end with one), many of the exclusive invitations to restaurants and the Elite Events are given with an explicit request to write a review, and you letting yourself being photographed no matter you don't want because it is in the Terms & Conditions and by being there "for free" you are selling your image to them for a plate of food.

Nobody forces you to review those places, of course. nobody tells you, I give you this free ticket in exchange for a review, the request is implicit, though, in many of the gifts received. However, most people being invited to an Elite event are explicitly requested to write a review about the business. High ratings are the result. There is no problem with that when the business and the product deserve it, as this benefits both parts. I can count the many times I really enjoyed the event and I was more than happy to give high ratings to a business. The problem arises when you do not like the business/product/service, or you think it is just mediocre, but you feel psychologically obliged to be grateful by rating higher than you would if you were paying for the same. This psychological bias affects us all, even if you aren't aware of, and marketers know how to exploit it. 

In the last two free activities I attended in Yelp most people I talked to thought that the food was OK and the business giving the tickets not really good. In the first one several people told me just that, explicitly, but added: "I feel bad after all the special treatment and food we have received, giving them a low rating and saying what I really think". However, most people wrote four and five-star reviews full of babble. Almost nobody said that the food was amazing or deserving of five stars, just that the evening was great and thanks to the business for organising it. I myself did so with a 4-star review (when I thought 3 would had been fair), and I felt that I was betraying myself. I did not like the feeling. The second time, I was on an outing organised by a new foodie business that gave free tickets to yelpers; as soon as the event started yelpers were explicitly required to write a review. None of the people who attended did so because, talking among ourselves, we thought that the rating would be low and that would be a bit ungrateful. However, this request was enough for me not to write anything and quit Yelp and erase my whole account. There were other important reasons why I quit the site, but the "gift for a review" weighed in my final decision. My quitting did not happen without the resistance of Yelp itself, something that convinced even more that I was doing the right thing.  In fact, Yelp does not have a cancel-your-account button you can press when you want, and you have to request it by email, and the USA and local Yelp managers contact you on this trying to convince you not to quit, as the site is really good for you (BS) and question you about why. Why do I need to give an explanation at all? Isn't my wish reason enough? Am I not a free person? Am I not an adult? Their closing-account policy is similar to that of the data-sucker flock-manipulator Facebook, and I don't like it a bit.

A gift is a gift, give it freely, not as a subtle way of manipulating people to get what you want. 

I don't want to be in that position ever again. Well, ever again is perhaps a too-bold assertion. If I was on the dole or had a low salary, I would be happy to grab restaurant invitations. If I was offered a voucher to visit the best restaurant in town, I would grab it closed eyes, too, but this rarely happens as top restaurants do not need of those tactics to get high ratings. Until then, I am independent in my reviews without the pressure of going against my gut to be grateful. I feel that doing the contrary is betraying myself and I don't like how that tastes after the meal.

NB: A friend told me just today that somebody (i.e. yelpers) could be upset because of my words. Really? I find it puzzling. I am not responsible for other people's feelings, especially when this is a personal blog and what I say is my personal view of how I see things, and how things affect me.  I hate preaching or being preached, in the same way I hate being bllxited and manipulated. This is just my opinion. There are things that annoy me and I don't like. That might not be the case of other people, who really don't mind anything and are happy with the system. Well, I respect that. I really liked my Yelp "friends" and at a personal level I have nothing but praise for them. Yet, if somebody feels upset because of what I've written here, well, don't read me back :). 

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Fashion Magazines' Beauty Advice - 3

Final words, after the first and second entries on this topic.

A confession - I do love some luxury beauty products -especially make-up- advertised in fashion magazines, mostly because of the glamorous packaging and design, and their wonderful scents.

Another confession - My life at University extended longer than for most students. I was poor when I was a student, a postgraduate student and a PhD. student. Too poor, too long. I used to go to stores and use perfume and make-up testers for my beauty purposes. The expensive ones. I can be very cheeky. That is a virtue when you are poor, believe me. I could only afford things like Maybelline or cheaper brands. Being able to have something luxury today is not only a pleasure, it is an indication that I have reached a point in life that I dreamt about when I was poor. Kudos to me. 

This does not change a thing what I have said about beauty products in the previous entries.  

If you like luxury items be clear why you do buy them. Do not fool yourself thinking that they will have a bigger impact on your physical beauty, or the state of your skin, hair or nails. Sometimes they do, sometimes they do not.  I'd say, most times they do not.

An example of positive difference I find it in MAC eye shadows, which are a bit pricey -even if bought online- but they don't smudge, last the whole day and don't irritate my skin.  Way better than any other brand I have tried.

An example of no difference can be found in the Chanel Foundation powder and Revlon Mineral Foundation I use in summer or the Revlon Photoready airbrush mousse and Lancôme Vitalumière foundations that I use in winter. The colouring is the only difference, and they both do a great job.

An example of negative difference. I cannot tolerate most Lancôme moisturisers, which have a burning effect on my skin. However, my skin does not react or have a problem with moisturisers from L'Oreal, Neutrogena, Nivea, Dove, Sukin and other "cheapies".

***

Fact  - Chanel and Bourjois are part of the same brand and produced in the same facilities, but packaged and marketed differently.

Fact - L'Oreal owns not just L'Oreal mainstream products, but also Lancôme, Yves Saint Laurent, Giorgio Armani, Biotherm, Cacharel, Diesel, Kiehl's, Stella McCartney, Garnier, Maybelline, Vichy, La Roche, Kerastase, Redken, among many other luxury, medium quality and natural-beauty brands. Sometimes they are the same thing packaged differently with different colouring, and scent.

This being the case, if you find a medium-quality product from these holdings, there is a high probability that they have been produced in the same facilities, are good quality, and have similar qualities, minus the glamorous packaging and high price.

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Fashion Magazines' Beauty Advice - 2

Despite the ever-growing Beauty sections in fashion magazines and normal newspapers, most of the beauty secrets that work long-term and make you beautiful outside do not need of advertisement. They are free or economical, and they are based on a holistic view of what beauty is. No cream, serum, make-up or fashion item can work if you do not have a healthy (or healthy-ish) lifestyle and your self does not come out from within. Unless you are really deformed, have an obvious birth mark or burnt, you do not need any special beauty product. Do not let the fashion magazines tell you differently.

Here the secrets to any lady's long lasting beauty:

1. Go to the gym regularly, so your skin cleanses itself from inside out and blood is pumped to it fast. If you are not into gyms, jogging or having any other fitness routine should do. The after-workout glow is amazing! No cream or facial has ever done the same for my skin.
2. Walk to most places, and take the steps not the lift. 
3. Eat well, everything you fancy but in moderation. Avoid living on junk food and take-away food. Do not diet unless you are obese. 
4. Drink water, limit the amount of fizzy drinks you have, and drink alcohol in moderation.  
5. Do not smoke and do not take drugs.
6. Sleep soundly and at least 7 hours a day. Do not over-sleep!
7. Clean your skin every day. You need water and a bit of mild soap/cleanser. There are plenty of cheap hypo-allergenic products out there.  
8. Moisturise regularly (any medium brand would do; choose the brand that better suits your skin).
9. Apply make-up to highlight your best features not to turn you into somebody that is difficult to recognise once you remove it. (Any medium brand would do, adjust it to the specific needs of your skin).
10. Use ammonia-free hair colouring, translucent colour-free shampoos and mild masks and conditioners.
11. Avoid baking under the sun in the hottest hours of the day, especially in summer.
12. Use mild +30 sun-block or a sun-smart moisturiser. Most brands are good. Some of them are allergenic, so choose the one that suits you, specifically. Price does nothing to do with their quality.
13. Use beauty products that are low in chemicals.
14. Use Aluminium-free deodorants. There is an increasing number of alternative  cheap plant-based brands that do not irritate your skin.
15. Dress for your body shape and dress age wise.
16. Smile and laugh as much as you can. Those wrinkles make you even more beautiful.
17. Keep your stress levels under control. Do not stress for what is not under your direct control, and learn to cope with those people or circumstances that are making your life stressful. 
18. Learn to relax doing whatever activity relaxes you.
19. Live a life that fulfils you - that gives you a happy beautiful glow that no cream would ever do. 
20. Most importantly, feed your soul and brain, so the beauty you have comes from within, not just from your body, and you still will have it when you are 50, 60, 70 or 80y.o.a.

It sounds obvious. It is! 

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Fashion Magazines' Beauty Advice - 1

If you are into fashion magazines and you purchase or browse them regularly you might have noticed three facts that make of our delight less passionate.
 
FACT NUMBER ONE. Most magazines seem to have the same content, cover celebrities, products, and articles. There is a reason for that. Big corporations hold most women's magazines. Just to use an example, the Hearst Corporation owns, amongst many others, Harper's Bazaar, ELLE, Marie Claire, Cosmopolitan,  and Woman's Day; Condé Nast owns the Vogue and Glamour magazines, while Time Inc owns Instyle and Mariclaire UK among others.  

FACT NUMBER TWO. They preach one thing and do another regarding women body issues. They preach and talk about real women, women accepting our bodies no matter the size and the dimples, and about women needing to love ourselves. However, they keep featuring models and celebrities that are extremely thin, women that represent a minuscule percentage of the population. Not only that, those celebrities showcased are airbrushed to remove any sign of imperfection and humanity from their physique, so we feel -in comparison- inadequate, big, fat, and ugly. No wonder why we avidly peruse the beauty section to fix ourselves.

FACT NUMBER THREE AND THE POINT OF THIS ENTRY. The number of explicit, implicit and coveted marketing ads has been multiplying progressively, and the marketing techniques used are every day cleverer at reaching our psyche. Which sort of advertisement do we find in our favourite fashion magazines?

1/ Direct explicit advertisement.  Wonderful stylish, lavish creative photos that not only sell a product, they do reflect the brand's style, philosophy, age group, luxe level and social group to whom the ad is directed.

2/ Promotional paid spaces that clearly state they are. For example, a page devoted to a new cosmetic cream in which the scientific research and testing of the product are specifically mentioned, and comments from celebrities or consumers provided. They are still ads, but masked by a "scientific" coat. They do not lie, just showcase anything good about the product and disregard the rest.  

3/ Promotional spaces that do not say to be so, but they are. A clear example is the article "Art of Happiness" by Eugenie Kelly published in the December 2012 Harper's Bazaar (pages 112-113). The article has a full page with a photo of a bottle of  "La Vie est Belle", the latest perfume by Lancôme, and a page devoted to the creation of the perfume and Julia Roberts' direct involvement in it; there is an interview with her, but her photo cannot be seen anywhere. The article is all about the perfume. No promo sign is to be seen anywhere. I consider this a coveted promotion disguised as journalism, which would make sense in a marketing magazine or a magazine just devoted to perfume, not a fashion magazine directed to the general public. How do we know it is advertisement? Easy! Go go page 205 in the same magazine, to the Bazaar's gift list section, and there you have the same perfume. Your eyes are drawn to this specific perfume immediately because its positioned right in the centre of the page, and there is a read heading over it. 

4/ Editor's Pics section. Who better than a beauty editor to tell us about the virtues of any beauty product, the latest products released, and what's not? We guess a magazine's beauty editor receive tons of samples from gazillion beauty brands. I have not doubt that they know the latest of the latest. However, there is no guarantee that those showcased in a magazine are the best, or that the product has been thoroughly tested by the editor or the magazine team before being recommended. Many times they pass the info package provided by the brand without further addition. Not always, but many times. On the other hand, there is a tendency to recommend luxury (from fashion corporations) items, those that are burden to our wallets.

5/ Products of the Year Awards pages. Many magazines have this sort of awards held yearly or half-yearly. They gather a panel of professional make-up artists. beauticians and fashion experts -most of them with direct links to the beauty industry- to decide on the best products: face make up, hair, nails, body, and perfumes. There is not a clear description of why they are chosen. They are professionals and I trust them; however, the opinion of consumers is rarely asked, and if it is -like in In Style- is just an addenda. 

I am not saying that the products recommended are not good. I am saying, that I have tried plenty of the things you find recommended from big brands, and many of of them are as remarkable as the medium-quality brands we buy from any supermarket or beauty store. To me, my opinion on a beauty product is better than the one of a professional because a) has no commercial interest behind it b) it is based on direct experimentation on me for a certain period of time. 

Recommendations on perfumes and creams are especially silly, as the perfume react to your specific skin's Ph, and smells differently on different people. A moisturiser or serum could be heaven for your skin, but hell for mine whether it is de luxe or not.  

6/ Interviews with celebrities about their beauty's case, beauty routine, or favourite beauty products. Most of these celebrities are openly sponsoring certain brands, which means that they are being paid to be the face of a brand or product, to say that they use it, and to be photographed using it. So, if a  magazine interviews them, which products do you think they are going to recommend? Right, you've got it. 

***

I do love creative advertisement and fashion photography. So much so that I enjoy watching TV and photo ads. However, what most fashion magazines are doing at the moment is not fair dinkum. The consumer and reader psychologically approaches any given advertisement with different levels of trustworthiness and openness regarding the explicitness of the ad. The normal ads, we tell ourselves, are selling things to us, so we decide whether we are interested or not - consciously. The other ones go directly into your subconscious and convince you of the goodness of an ad based on apparently scientific, honest, and sincere reviews and recommendations. They have a bigger impact on your psyche. How do I know? Despite being very aware of this issue, I have found myself frozen in space, my hand holding one of those very beauty products that I have seen showcased and recommended by a fashion magazine. Oh Dear. I am human. I am not alone. thousands of women are doing the same without even realising that what they call choosing is subconsciously induced by publicity.

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The WA Opera 2013's Poster Photos

Have you seen the posters, photos and images accompanying the program of the WA Opera season 2013? The "Year of the Divo" is the counterpart to this year's "Year of the Diva", and will showcase operas in which male characters are the protagonist. 

If you check the program and photos of this year's season and the ones of the coming season, you will certainly notice a few things:

* The photos are gorgeous. The sort of photo you find in Vogue or Harpers Bazaar with beautiful models, awesome make-up, hairdos, accessories, apparel and backgrounds.

* Each photo has a person representing the main character of any of the coming operas. This year's program has gorgeous women in expressive photos, and next one has gorgeous men.

* The person photographed for each opera is not the leading singer, but a model.

* The models and photos of this year have men in sexy and erotic poses showing a bit of flesh. 

First reaction -  Wow, what a hunky. 

Second reaction - What what what?! 

1 - I do love photos of gorgeous men lightly dressed, even naked :O if aesthetically done, but this is not a fashion or photographic magazine. I hate the objectification of women in Society; should I have a double standard regarding the objectification of men? If it is correct to showcase men in erotic attitudes and slightly dressed for an Opera program, why not doing the same with women? If that was happening there would be much more media attention and social discontent, that is for sure.

2 - If the program and main posters is/are about promoting and attracting public to the Opera, why does the WA Opera need to photograph pretty people whose only talent is being pretty, while those hyper-talented performers are not in the poster? Are they deformed? Are they super-ugly? Are they obese? Some of them are photographed in the inner pages of the program, that is great, but not in the posters that will be reproduced everywhere.

3- I doubt that the general public -those who are not Opera aficionados or hardcore fans- will feel more tempted to go to the Opera after seeing these posters. I won't. If the singer and the hunky were the same person, the answer might be different.

4- If the Opera season is not bringing much people to the theatres, and the WA Opera wants to attract more, why not asking themselves those basic common questions that might help to attract more people. Questions like:

• Are the prices high in general? Are the prices too expensive for students, families and pensioners? Are the season subscriptions too expensive?
• Are the showing times convenient and attractive to different groups of people?
• Is the program  attractive enough in general?
• Are the individual operas attractive enough?
• Are the operas' stage design, wardrobe, lighting and ambience cool enough?
• Is His Majesty's Theatre a good place to represent the specific operas chosen? 
• Do the specific operas showcase themes and stories that connect with the modern spectator?

***

I do love Opera, without me being an expert or connoisseur. I attended several shows last year and even more the previous years. I enjoy the dressing up, His Majesty's and the shows. I have always found myself wowed by the talent of the musicians of the WASO, which plays in most shows. Sometimes, I find myself moved by the singing qualities and performance of the night. I always leave the theatre thinking how fortunate I am to attend, live, a show in which the players needed of years of study, practice, many different skills, plus an unbelievable innate talent to do just that. They should be in the poster photos, dressed in those gorgeous outfits they use to perform in. After all, they are the ones that will bring the public to the Opera, and make you want to return, not pretty boys and girls. Their voices and talent, not their pretty faces or gorgeous bodies.

Still, I understand why Opera is not attracting young people, why many old people snooze soundly while attending -yes, they do!-, and why I, myself, feel sometimes emotionally disconnected from what I am watching and listening to. A reason why I haven't gone to the Opera this year.

I do value the classics and enjoy classic operas and some of their arias and stories, but most classic operas do not speak to modern sensibilities, or my sensibility, beyond the artistic quality of the show as a whole. Sometimes, the scripts are sexist or simplistic, some others are a reflection of the issues, themes, characters, places, ways of living and fashion that were in vogue at the time the opera was written. In fact, those operas were super-cool, the last big thing, at the time - avant-garde or contemporary. 

However, we are not living in the 17th, 18th or 19th century. Our time knows the wonders of experimental and mainstream cinema and theatre, musical theatre and cabaret, TV soap operas, music bands, and much more. Thus, a simple opera needs more than good music, good lyrics, and good performers to move us - to connect. Pretty posters with contemporary fashion-style photos won't turn a program based on old classics into a contemporary thing, simply because the program is not contemporary. Oxymoron!

I think the WA Opera needs of better pricing to attract people with not many means, needs of more shows, more showing times; most importantly, it needs to reinvent itself and start offering operas that, despite not being so popular or known -the favourites- have a more contemporary feeling, modern stage and wardrobe design, and stories that are closer to the world, feelings, worries, and issues of the citizens of the 21st century.

I am not saying that old classic operas are invalid or that do not have universal themes. Some of them are and have. I am saying that the WA Opera, and Opera venues and companies in general, need to think out of the square, think more about the present and the future and less about the past. That would be super-cool. Cooler than investing in a marketing campaign that showcases the beauty of the models and of the photos, instead of the incredible talent  of the persons who are behind the music, voices and theatre of the WA Opera as a whole.

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Charities Marketing Practices

If you live in Perth and move around the CBD and the Cultural Centre you surely have found young people from different charities and NGOs trying to get you to sign as a member.

Two things will catch your attention: They are very good looking, and they seem to have a passion for their cause. They are my kind of hero...  However, once the blindness of their beauty and friendliness wanes, and your analytical power switch on again, you start noticing a few oddities. 

1/ They are not only good-looking, but they can even flirt with you... Oh gosh I am that gorgeous and attractive to have a guy who is in his early or mid twenties flirting with me? No, Not really. They do the same to everybody. They use reverse psychology techniques and compliments to make you stop. For ex. I love your bag/pendant/dress. Or ask you open questions like, "Do you care for the environment?" They are very friendly, and greet you hyper-friendly at 9am, when most people, or at least me,  are struggling to even talk.

2/ They have tons of photos and booklets and that they start talking very fast, like repeating a script without much breathing. Like telemarketers but a bit more paused. They are convincing, as most charities support a good cause, and you cannot deny them that. I think the tactic is to overwhelm your senses so you feel so overwhelmed and trapped that you want to get rid of them by signing whatever they want you to sign. It works. That is why they do it.

3/ They can lie to you... bluntly. Well, most marketers will tell you half-truths or sugar-coat anything on a daily basis. Still, when it comes to charities, I find that really shocking. I have specific examples. Like you have to become a member to sign a petition against concentration camps in North Korea, they swear on their mother's grave that you cannot do so online for free even you tell them that this is not the case. Or give you wrong statistics about nett income going from donations to the cause. Many of them openly criticise Worldvision and their millionaire add, but Worlvision does not pay salaries to people to be on the streets and their adds are very limited. Then you go online, check the website of their charity and see that you were being lied. In fact you are online because you already knew that they were lying to you.

4/ Their cause.... is a job. Because, as a gorgeous guy put it, "I have to pay my bills". Well, so do I, sweetie. So I get a job and then I support my causes with my salary. You can even volunteer, you know. That is passion.

I do give quite a bit of my money to several charities and I have had a sponsored child in Malawi for a few years now. I consider giving to local and international charities an obligation and nothing to be praised about because I am lucky enough to have a good salary, live decently and have my basic needs covered. Still, I want charities to sell me their cause in another way.

Do not take me wrong, I stop most times just to say no in a graceful way, because I think it takes lots of guts approaching unknown people early in the morning despite some people being quite rude at that sort of approaches. As one of the girls told me, "you are the first person who has been nice to me this morning, and I have been here for an hour. I just wanted somebody to return my good morning and be nice to me". It is not an easy job.

Still, I find disgraceful using flirting and choosing good-looking people or giving me compliments on my bag to get my attention and sell a cause. You sell me the cause, you convince me with arguments, and you talk to me like a person who has a brain. You are not selling snuggies, are you? There is nothing better than a genuine person telling you how wonderful what they do is because they do it out of passion and love and not because they are being paid to say just that.

The first time I donated to Medicins Sans Frontiers was during one of those infamous international war-food crisis in Africa; there was an item of news on TV, nothing related to the charity, but the logo of MSF was on every medical tent in the field. MSF did not have any add on TV that day or any other day, or gorgeous-looking marketers in the city centre. But their work and their being there was enough reason for me to donate. Nobody was selling me their cause. They were too busy helping those in need. Can you see the difference?

Call me a romantic, but you  do not have to sell me a cause, a cause sells itself. My causes, the ones that get my money are those that touch me for whatever reason. The only time I have signed through one of these guys was recently, and despite me believing in their cause, I regretted it immediately, because of all the things I have said above. 

The line you have to use with the most insisting guys is "I am already a member", and they will let you go. Be nice to them. After all they are nice guys making a living and working hard for something they believe in. Still, choose your charity and donate to them based on your preferences, not on marketed lies and aggressive marketing practices.

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Funky Cute Perth Blackboards

Perth is blooming with arty people, Arts and artsy blackboards, written with colourful chalks. New businesses are joining the "movement", and old ones are catching up, too, with chalkboards popping up like mushrooms in our Perthian urban forest. Forget about the traditional laminated ones with the logo, motto and open-close signs that are so widespread in Perth. Chalkboards are the latest coolest thing.

They are much more dynamic than the traditional ones - a cheap fun way of marketing any business in general by informing of opening hours, specials, sales, news, sending any message to the outer world or just a means to gave way to the creativity of the people behind the business. They are also more versatile and more beautiful! They have that old school feeling that is really charming. In general, they are cute with drawings, cartoons inspired characters, bold typos, and funny artsy details added to the written message. Some are truly artistic, others intriguing, others wordy and thoughtful, others kitsch, while others are as plain boring as the laminated ones. 

Blackboard spotting has become a visual hobby of mine when walking the streets.   When I take my camera or mobile out, people look at me as if I was landing from Pluto, but some of them really deserve my landing.

Keep up the good work and the creativity businesses of Perth!

A Little slideshow with some photos

 

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