By Lindsey Campbell, Captains of Industry

Hey Captains’ Readers,

I hope you can read this through your Mexicoma-like hangover haze (you know who you are). Here’s your Thursday Deal:

1. Hallelujah for Viral Video

Nothing brings people together like great music. But with the countless meetings, practices, deadlines, and commitments that inundate everyone’s schedules these days, it can be difficult for any musical group to nail down a time to jam. However American composer, Eric Whitacre and 22-year old, Scott Haines not only found a way to make beautiful music together, but they got 185 people from 12 different countries to create “Lux Aurumqu,” a beautifully haunting hymn. Whitacre kicked off the project by sending out a video of himself conducting the piece. He then reached out to the online community and asked capable singers to download his sheet music and submit a web video of themselves singing a specific part. Once they received all the submissions, Haines complied them on Adobe After Effects and created the masterpiece by what is now being called the “Virtual Choir.”

Since the video’s debut on March 21st, there have been 732,064 views, hundreds of comments, and countless news reports of the Carnegie Hall-worthy performance. The video was even featured on this morning’s NBC Today Show. It just goes to show how far web videos can go, not just geographically, but to showcase your brand, business, or even your talent.

Read more Share This

By Lindsey Campbell, Captains of Industry

Hey Captains’ Readers,

Feliz Cinco de Mayo! If you’re looking to knock back some tequila or indulge in a black bean-eating contest today, you’re in luck. There are tons of things going on around Boston. Here’s a couple just to get you started:

•    Dick’s Last Resort in Quincy Market is hosting their First Annual Mustache Bash, complete with a Black Bean Eatin’ Contest, $3 Marg-O’-Ritas and Not So Macho Nachos for a buck. Olay!

•    Or for a more traditional holiday, try Mi Casa Bee Casa at The Beehive. It’s a caliente celebration with good Mexican grub, booze, and Mariachi band complete with charro suits.

Read more Share This

By Lindsey Campbell, Captains of Industry

Hey Captains’ Readers,

Here’s your Tuesday Deal:

1. No water? No problem.

In honor of National Drinking Water Week, Massachusetts got the best present ever: drinking water. If the past few days of pilfering bottled water and showering with my mouth tightly closed has taught me anything, it’s to appreciate the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority for fixing a water main the size of my apartment so I could have clean water running through my pipes again in less than 3 days.

But besides the fact that an unforeseen catastrophe struck Massachusetts’ water, the situation didn’t seem as dire as it actually was. Here’s why. The MWRA had a real-time crisis plan for just this kind of situation. In fact, David Meerman Scott reported in his latest post that he not only received a reverse 911 call on Sunday morning that alerted him of the emergency, but also another on Monday with even more updates. And when Scott went digging online for more information, he didn’t have to go far to find that the MWRA created a “special site that pointed to detailed information available in English, Spanish, and Portuguese.” Along with websites and emergency phone calls, Fred Laskey, executive director of the MWRA, appeared on news programs with the latest details, and was extremely careful not to make any promises or guarantees that might lead anxious residents to come to their own conclusions. If there’s any way to handle a crisis, MWRA hit it out of the park. If only the MBTA could follow suit.

Read more Share This

By Lindsey Campbell, Captains of Industry

Hey Captain’s Readers,

Here’s your Daily Deal:

1. The F word

For anyone who’s been 10 years old, it comes as no surprise that it’s the more rotund children that are getting hit with the worst zingers on the playground. And if you were hoping that your kid’s sparkling personality would trump any extra baby fat they’re carrying, then you haven’t been hanging at the monkey bars lately. A recent study concerning bullying and obesity reported that “obese children are bullied more often even if they possess qualities that can discourage bullies, such as having good social skills or doing well in school.” As if being verbally assaulted about your body when you’re in 5th grade isn’t already scarring. Interestingly enough, however, the study picked up that most kids don’t just decide to pick on their overweight peers for no reason. They’re actually picking up behaviors from…you guessed it…adults. It looks like playground taunting won’t end until the grownups grow up.

Read more Share This

By Lindsey Campbell, Captains of Industry

Hey Captain’s Readers,

Here’s your Friday Deal:

1. I will not die in this tin can!

Ever since I can remember, a mangled mess of metal and rubber that was once some teenager’s beat up car has been strategically placed in front of my high school’s entrance—conveniently, right before prom. When you’re high on the excitement of prom, the thought of dying a slow, painful death in a drunk driving accident can be a major buzz kill. But guess what—scaring the crap out of people totally works. When I caught a glimpse of the heap before my own prom, I would have never admitted it then, but my pre-prom plans of Twisted Ts and Smirnoff Ices began to seem like a stupid idea. I didn’t want to die in car! I wanted to go to college. I wanted to learn stuff. I wanted to get drunk on the safe haven of a college campus and not have to worry about things like broken limbs and internal bleeding.
Read more Share This

By Jean Levasseur, Captains of Industry

Like many 25 year olds, I’m a regular user of facebook. I have farmed (using multiple applications), I have warred against rival mobs, I have Word Scrambled, and I have tracked Trips. But lately I’ve been looking back on the fond memories of a simpler time when facebook didn’t know anything about me, and I just used it to plan and track social events with my college friends, and my mother couldn’t see any compromising pictures of me. Ah for the good old days.

Alas, those days are but a distant memory. Today, as I was perusing facebook (on my lunchbreak, Ted, don’t worry), I received a few gems of ads. The first asked me if I wanted to donate sperm (awkward – no, thanks). Then I was asked if I was an expectant father (again, no). Finally, I was asked if I was interested in diamonds. Why do you ask, facebook? Because I’m over 25 and I’ve been in a relationship for over a year? The amount of almost-right information that facebook has on me is annoying.
Read more Share This

By Lindsey Campbell, Captains of Industry

Hey Captain’s Readers,

Here’s your Thursday Deal:

1. To the first of many

It’s been 9 years in the making, but the $1 billion Cape Wind project finally got the go-ahead from U.S. Interior Secretary Kenneth Salazar yesterday. Not only will this be the nation’s first offshore wind farm, but according to Salazar, but it’ll be the “first of many projects up and down the Atlantic Coast.” Cape Wind Associates will serve as project developer and plans on beginning construction of the 130 turbines off Nantucket Sound in Cape Cod by the end of the year.

The Captains of Industry would just like to say congratulations to Cape Wind. As avid renewable energy advocates and believers, we’re proud to live and work in the state of Massachusetts, a place where revolutions are born. Hopefully this will be just the beginning of many more offshore wind farms to come. Cheers!

Read more Share This

By Lindsey Campbell, Captains of Industry

Hi Captains Readers,

First of all, I apologize if you felt like I dropped you like a bad habit last week. However, I can assure you that my absence was not in vain. I traveled thousands of miles, braved stifling temperatures, hair-curling humidity, and angry mobs of hot, angry and (very) sweaty people just to bring all of you the latest and greatest green news from one of the most treacherous places…er…happiest places on earth, Walt Disney World! So if you were thinking I ditched the Daily Deal for some “vacation,” you’re forgiven. Now on to a special edition of the Deal brought to you by my research at the Disney World theme parks.
Read more Share This

By Ted Page, Captains of Industry


A recent experiment using Google’s free translation service, Google Translate, speaks volumes about why America as a country is often misinterpreted, our people maligned, and our global standing degraded beyond repair. I input the original text of Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg address into Google, then translated it into Italian, then the Italian into Finish, then Russian, Chinese, Slovenian, Afrikans, then back English.

Here, unedited, is the opening to the Gettysburg address as it would appear to other countries:
Read more Share This

By Ted Page, Captains of Industry

According to a recent report, U.S. solar installations grew by 37% in 2009, arguably the worst year overall for business since the great depression.

Why is solar growing fast? It’s a combination of government incentives and the desire by more and more people, both homeowners and businesses, to do the right thing for the environment. When people do the math these days, from California to New Jersey, they see that installing solar makes perfect sense from a financial perspective. People can help save the earth, and save money at the same time. The scale has tipped. Change is happening all around us.

Thank God – and Uncle Sam.

By Lindsey Campbell, Captains of Industry

Hello Captains’ Readers,

Here’s your Daily Deal:

1. Chillin’ Like a Villain With Umbra

Eyes lid spasms. Stiff neck. Constant headache. If any of these symptoms sound familiar, it’s likely you’ve got a case of the “I’m-super-stressed-out-blues.” But lucky for you, that quirky, loveable, and environmentally obsessed red head from Grist has provided us with a list of ways to say goodbye to twitchy eyelids and hello to relaxation while still being environmentally conscious.

Read more Share This

By Lindsey Campbell, Captains of Industry

Ahoy Captain’s Readers,

Here’s your Daily Deal:

1. You Have to Be Smart. You Have to Be Nice. But Above All, You Have to Fit In.

Have you ever worked with someone you just didn’t click with? You know, those people who just give you a vacant stare or a befuddled look rather than laughing at your jokes? Or maybe you’re the one with “confused” written all over your face while the rest of the conference room is in stitches. It’s in those uncomfortable moments that you realize you’re just not on the same page. Hell, maybe you’re not even in the same book.

And that’s OK. Not everyone is going to “get” each other. But when you get right down to it, wouldn’t you rather have fun and feel comfortable with the people you spend most of your day with? Make that, most of your LIFE with? Well according to Jeanne Bliss from MarketingProfs, studies show that “the single greatest contributor to performance failure and job dissatisfaction is lack of fit with organizational culture.” When you don’t feel comfortable with your fellow comrades, it’s not only difficult to make effective relationships, but impossible to deliver your company’s “special blend of magic” to prospective clients.

Read more Share This