Or not…But let’s face it, Apple can plunk pink posies on a hot little screen and I’m still not kickin’ in $200 smackeroos even if it IS as their e-note says, “love at first sight.” (Cute promo though)
Maybe a $15 itunes gift card…or a $5 hot pink cell gel case on ebay, but sheesh, since when did ‘pink think’ for kids get so pricey?
Never fear, Acme Labs heartmaker is here! I love this customizable, freeware imagery, but keep it short-n-sweet as you can only create 4 characters/2 lines! (here’s the ‘real deal’ for next year as it’s a little late in the game for custom heart candy)
How about an e-kiss? Choose what kind of kiss you’d like to send, (shape, color, pattern, level of wackiness) add a message, zap it to an admired one with a “kisscode” to retrieve and voilà …love on a budget. Or go global and say I love you in multiple languages translated from every continent and numerous regions…
Teens might get a kick out of the “Virtual Kiss” site too, complete with kissing definitions, dos and don’ts, a kissing school, ‘kiss or clobber’ Cupid interactive, love coupons, quizzes, stories of ‘best, first, and worst’ kiss, and um, well, lotsa kissing games, articles and stuff. (PG)
Honest e-kiss techno-candor too, “Q: Can you tell me who my ‘secret admirer’ is? A: NO. If you can’t figure out who sent you the e-kiss, then there is no way we can help. Sorry, but you’re on your own.” Hey, at least they’re upfront, and the e-kisses last for up to 5 days. (gosh, that beats Kevin Costner’s famous movie line about “long wet kisses that last for 3 days” in Bull Durham)
Ahem…kids…yes, back to the kids…
For more emoticon and avatar fun, Smiley Central’s article lists tons of links and ideas and Jeff Cambron pinged me with this note, “In the Facebook era, how do you say “I love you” to a friend-list of over 100? Smiley Central (an IAC CAP company, along with Zwinky and iWon.com) has compiled a list of ideas for showing you care, without emptying your wallet…”
Forget the fact that you’re using the term too loosely if you can say ‘I love you’ to hundreds of people, but assuming you’re in ‘friendly fun form’ I’ll still toss in a toolbar warning from last year’s Zwinktopia article…Recall?
Smiley Central auto-installs the MyWebSearch Toolbar as an ad revenue element derived from click throughs on toolbar icons, which is why it’s free and kids love it, but I find controlling. When I experimented with the whole Zwinky fashionista virtual paper doll/avatar bit for kids, I wrote:
“They say it’s ‘optional’ but when I created my own Zwinky, it quickly hijacked my toolbar adding free icons unannounced. (Smiley Central, Zwinky, Screensavers, Cursor Mania, Webfetti and Fun Cards all part of a package…You can uninstall it but then you can’t access your Zwinky. Huh? What’s optional there?
ANY technology that doesn’t ask permission, then crashes into my world and tries to boss me and over-ride my system tweaks the heck out of me…”
Again, parents need to be aware if junior’s hacking on their system, but kids DON’T seem to mind the auto-installation, as they love free IM buddy icons and gizmos…
Just be aware that ‘nothing in life is free’…(except this blog, but that’s why I’m going to need to cut back or go on hiatus soon to get serious about funding/benign underwriting …so ping me if you’ve done ‘due dilligence’ on companies that might be viable? Yes, I know, I’m still picky…)
Which reminds me…now it’s YOUR turn.
What Family Fun ideas or free games or puzzles/printouts (cute ‘lil black dog icon) have you picked for kids this season?
For cause-worthy Valentines, you can spread the love with our friends at Mercado Global “making a difference never looked so good.” Give love and care via One Warm Coat …and of course support the pink ribbon cancer causes, including this fabulous social media effort for fellow blogger Susan Reynolds that started with a bag of Frozen Peas and quickly lit up the blogosphere.
No secret I prefer freebie media to affluenza marketing (pricey ipod nanos—sparkling pink-hearted fuzzy Care Bears even if it is a “25th year limited edition” —pink toy VTech laptops—pink ‘LeapFrog L-Max’ Learning Game System for (gulp) a hundred bucks, or pink Nintendo DS Lite for $130…egad…
Whatever happened to the $5 holiday with hand-scrawled poetry, a homemade card, dark chocolate decadence and shoebox-private mail slots where you’d save back your glittery fave?
Although now we also have lots of FREE media, affordable tunes, open source digital downloads and some really clever chocolate marketing…My favorite one this year? Chocolate Scrabble. Yum!
I’ll start a ‘resource list’ of favorite Valentine celebrations/site links today and the winner with the most contributions (or most unusual freebie find!) will receive a hardback copy of Packaging Girlhood…
Packaging Girlhood is all about “pink think,” marketing ethics and consumerism…written by two of our Shaping Youth advisors, Sharon Lamb, Ed.D. & Lyn Mikel Brown, Ed.D.
Packaging Boyhood is coming soon in 2009. As I mentioned in this article, if you participate in their “Life Through Boys’ Eyes” research survey for their book, you can receive a free copy of their current book from me, if you leave a comment here on the blog and let me know you (or your son) contributed insights—it’s my way of supporting their stellar efforts and thanking our readership, too.
Happy Valentine’s Day!
Virtual Hugs to you all, —Amy
Scrabble tip/visual: Away With Words & Verbatim
I have clicked on numerous links you have here, Amy, and read a lot. Totally interesting articles, especially relating to Valentine’s Day, family values, and the art of giving.
I so much enjoy the media resources you provide us readers. Sending you a virtual hug right back.
Your pal, Lisa