I’m not afraid to admit that I’m one of those people who carries a little bottle of Purell hand sanitizer wherever I go. My reasons for doing so are quite straightforward: using hand sanitizer is a very effective way to avoid getting sick, especially when traveling. So why do I still feel self-conscious about using […]

I spent a few days in a Hyatt hotel this week. Overall, the experience was pretty solid, but I was surprised by some of the basic things they got wrong. I’m not expecting incredible innovation. Instead, I’m talking about basic stuff that all of us take for granted at home or at work. You know, […]

I’m not sure if they still do it, but Range Rover used to provide a special test drive area at their dealerships. The idea was to let potential buyers drive the cars over rocks, up slopes, and through other harsh conditions — much worse than most people would ever use their vehicle in — to […]

There’s a wonderful sushi restaurant near me that I like to visit on Sunday nights. Although they’re pretty busy during the rest of the weekend, Sunday evenings are always dead, especially during the winter months. I always found this surprising, since the food and atmosphere are great, and the prices are quite reasonable. The restaurant […]

Virtually every time I go to Target, I end up looking for some simple household item they don’t carry. Usually these items fall into the category of “hardware,” and they have apparently deemed them too obscure to carry even in a megastore environment. When I ask an associate for help, they inevitably refer me to […]

A few weeks ago, I sent detailed feedback to several websites that I use. In each case, I gave them 5-10 suggestions and bug reports. One of the companies wrote back the very same day, with their customer support department thanking me for my comments. I even got a separate reply from my account manager, […]

Don’t you just love when you call a company during regular business hours, only to find out that every person who might be able to help you is unavailable? Sometimes, it’s “All the managers are in a meeting.” Or perhaps you’ll hear that “The executive team is attending an important trade show.” And my personal […]

While trying to kill some time before a movie last weekend, I wandered into a Starbucks that I had never seen before. I’m not sure how long this particular location has been there, but it’s on a busy corner with lots of foot traffic. When I went inside, I noticed that the seating area was […]