"How do you pronounce 'carabiner' anyways?"

     I was thinking about that today while staring at my carabiner keychain for a few minutes during lunch. It's one of my most useful promotional items I have ever received. It hangs from one of my belt loops and keeps my house keys attached to me at all times. I have a knack for losing those.

     I was thinking about the above question because I overheard the sales people here at Motivators on the their phones. Several of them were on the phone with customers interested in purchasing some promotional carabiners. Periodically throughout their conversations with their customers, I would hear them pronounce "carabiner" differently from each other. Some were pronouncing it with a long "I" sound in the middle of the word, while others used a long "E" sound. This intrigued me.

     Well, after many, many nanoseconds of searching on Google (32 to be exact), I found the answer. According to Dictionary.com, the correct way to pronounce "carabiner" is as follows (drumroll please):

     [kar-uh-bee-ner]

     So you can all breathe again, put your mind at ease, and squash that fear you had about using the word incorrectly, for I have saved the day! People can use the word proudly and freely, knowing that they will no longer face the any embarassment or humiliation of using the word incorrectly ever again.

I dont know about any one else but my desk has tons of different items scattered all over the place. I wanted to introduce you to my latest find this week and it is the promotional multi-function "Desk Buddy Highlighter". This is one of my favorite items and it is great for keeping my desk tidier. My desk buddy has 4 neon highlighters, a retractable brush for cleaning the key board and a computer screen cleaner. Not to mention, the desk buddy looks alot like two of my co-workers, what do you think?  :-)

Jeremy Lin continues to make headlines despite a loss to the Nets. He still managed to put up a good amount of points and assists. How odd is it that the Kicks can beat top tier teams, but lose to sub par teams. I am eagerly anticipating tomorrow's game against the heat. I'm sure it will be electrifying. If the Knicks can beat the Heat, they can be a playoff contender. Lin's jersey has been the hottest selling item in the NBA so far. Vendor's set up there trade show tents with Lin's items everywhere you go. I've been seeing a lot of Jeremy Lin promotional T-shirts with different Lin words. So if your a Knicks fan, lets cheer for them in tonights game against the Atlanta Hawks.

Unless you've got a heart made of stone, you've got to admit a baby playing with an iPad is one of the cutest things ever.  The glow of the screen only highlights the look of true awe on a child's face as he or she navigates through the powerful device.

That's why two 22-year-old guys created a one-of-a-kind Tumblr page -- Babies With iPads.  Stelios Phili and Jeff Luppino-Esposito, the blog's co-creators, have compiled nine pages' worth of adorable photos, each complemented by an amusing caption.  "Whenever we see babies with iPads, we view them as social media rockstars in the making," Phili, a web producer for GQ magazine, told Mashable. "Right now, they look real innocent … but really, they’re just preparing to take over the world. We think that’s cute."

Let's take a look at some of my favorite snapshots of babies with iPads! 

Which image do you love the most?  Leave a comment below!

This past weekend has been the last weekend I spent in my house which I have gotten to call home for the last 22 years. It is a bitter sweet good bye, I really loved that house, but my parents are ready to move away to the hills of Pennsylvania. I get to move on to apartment living. And unfortunately this past weekend was a whirl wind of crazy.  I had a wedding on Saturday which was a blast. And the same day I had to bring my dog for emergency surgery to remove a tumor in his stomach.  Then on Sunday I had to help move 80% of the furniture in my house to store at my Grandma's house. And then on Monday I got to relax and bring my dog home from the hospital, which meant watching him stare at the wall because he was on so many medications.  So much for a relaxing 3 day weekend!  Every one of my nails is broken and my emotions are hanging on by a thread.  This is my cry for help! Does anybody know a good way to get dogs to take pills? Or does anyone have moving tips?  

Few people can hear the word "Munch" without thinking of promotional food products. But for those who are very passionate about the arts, those that hear "Munch" may refer to expressionist artist Edvard Munch. 

While Edvard Munch may not be as much of a house-hold name as his inspirations and idolizers but one of his works is regarded as the most recognizable piece in modern art history.

Entitled "The Scream" this piece that showcases the plight of modern man has been printed and sold on promotional t-shirts and promotional mousepads world-wide. Despite the mass-produced prints, there are only four known originals. Three of these copies have ties to museums in Norway but those who are willing can try to score the fourth original by Munch himself.

Petter Olsen, a Norwegian businessman whose father was a friend of Munch's, will be submitting the work to a Sotherby's auction on May 2nd of this year. The Web is already buzzing - with predictions of the piece's value at around $80 million. 

The work, which features a hand-painted frame by Munch himself, will be on display in both the UK and NY before being auctioned off.

For more information on the auction and how to get your shot at this work of art, visit the Sotherby's website.  

There are a lot of things from my college days that I still yearn for -- the independence, the fun, and even (sometimes) going to class!  But one thing I truly do not miss is carrying around dozens of bulky textbooks every day.  I'm convinced that schlepping the heavy course books has permanently messed up my posture, but that's besides the point.

As eReaders continue to grow in popularity, the days when students were forced to haul around 20-pound backpacks may be coming to an end.  If you've got an eBook (like the Kindle or Nook), there are several services that allow you to purchase digital textbooks.

Mashable suggests using one of five digital textbook services to help make life a little easier for students and readers on the move.

1.  Project Gutenberg

A library of digital books, the site offers more than 38,000 free works in plain text, HTML and PDF formats.

2.  eCampus

The great thing about eCampus is that it not only allows consumers to purchase online textbooks at competitive rates, but it also allows them to highlight text and take Internet notes.  Over 100,000 digital pieces are available.

3.  Google Books

Wow -- Google really does do everything.  Google Books allows users to peruse through over 2 million titles on any mobile device.  It's easy to access and well-organized.

4.  Kno

This eBook service is unique in that provides users with 3D diagrams and a "Quiz Me" option that tests readers' knowledge of textbooks' information.

5.  Zinio

The company's slogan is "Read Anywhere, Anytime," and it holds true.  Zinio's Web site allows users to download digitized magazines to Apple mobile devices as well as those powered by Android.

As you can see, thanks to eReaders and digital book services, students and heavy readers alike no longer have to lug their branded books around all day!  Not to mention the fact that eBooks can also help you save a few bucks.  Do you ever purchase digital texts?

My wife and I just got back from a mini vacation to Lake Tahoe, CA.  We went snowboarding at Heavenly Mountian.  It was a great time even with the lack of snow.  The " Tahoe " sun was out all 4 days.  A suntan was the last thing I was thinking about when I went snowboarding, so I was not prepared.  As lunch time rolled around.. I took a look at myself in the mirror and realized I was going to be in for a world of hurt.  I headed directly to the shop and picked up some promotional sunblock.  They were cool they were branded with the mountain logo and cool image of a snowboarder and they had a sport clip so I could clip it to my board bag and never be without it.  and of course I paid a premium being @ 10,000 feet.  The good news is they even threw in some promotional candy to help heal the pain of the sunburn.

This morning at Motivators was an exciting one!  We had a visit from John Cudahy, a representative from one of our warehouses.  He brought in many interesting promotional products that will sure be a hit with our customers.  We saw new promotional flashlights, promotional cutlery and many diffrent types of promotional drinkware.  The one item that really stood out was the hand blown glass pilsner mugs.  They were extremely light and gave the liquid inside them a "floating" look.  These are sure to be a poplular seller for a wide array of our customers.  I also think our whole team is looking forward to getting a few samples for the office! 

Yesterday, I stumbled upon an interesting collection of Pinterest boards.  The page contained a variety of images, from vintage historical photographs to motivational sayings.  After a few minutes of browsing, I realized the boards belonged to no average user.  No, they were photos and images pinned by none other than the U.S. Army. 

According to the army's Pinterest page, those who follow their boards "will find the most recent news stories, videos and photos that are pinned by the U.S. Army's Office of the Chief of Public Affairs."  The boards include photos of families, soldiers, training, and even fashion!

But my favorite U.S. Army Pinterest board by far is one called "Homecoming."

The heart-wrenching photos remind us that those fighting overseas are real people, not just numbers.  They're men and women with spouses, children, and homes, and yet they give all that up to protect our nation's freedom.  The photographs really had an impact on me -- to put it mildly, they're filled with emotion. 

Of course, the U.S. Army's Pinterest page is also most likely a means through which to recruit new soldiers.  But, as we all know, there's absolutely nothing wrong with promoting your company or organization via social media!  I'm actually pretty impressed that the military is doing so well on the social network.  What do you think of the U.S. Army's Pinterest account?