SEI Design Group BlogBlog about news, information, happenings and mojo at SEI Design Group

The Albany office threw a shower for Laura in advance of her upcoming wedding.  Looks like a good time was had by all, and the decorations were very well coordinated!

It was all in good fun when we decided to have a surprise April Fool’s Party.  Brian led the charge with the grill in the parking lot for a great lunch and then we had some funny April Fool’s Day trinkets for all.  It wouldn’t be April Fool’s Day without some pranks, but the studio didn’t take kindly to one of the little annoyances, or rather the “annoyatron”.  Brian got the payback, but it wasn’t even his gig.  By the time they figured out that it was orchestrated by yours truly, there was a big payback being planned.  It was certainly more creative than the former antic.  Jimmi made 3 Star Wars movies with the partners taking parts from Brian as Luke Skywalker to myself as Princess Leia as you can see in the picture.

I promise to take an official picture once my hair is done up in that “doo”.  Unfortunately I didn’t publish this in a timely fashion, therefor the “uncle”.  An upcoming post will explain the ramifications.

As in 2009, and 2008, SEI Design Group participated in the The Chase Corporate Challenge 2010.  Congrats to all who finished the race despite the rain during the race.  As the race was finishing, the sun appeared and there was a beautiful rainbow.  Team Captain Ted Mountain says he doesn’t smoke, but here is Smokin’ Hot Ted in all his glory at the end of his 5K run.

The Amazon Kindle is always a wanted gift.   Or for someone who already has a Kindle, get a case like the standard black one, or a funky red one.

Sometimes great things come in small packages!  The Chill Pill RapCap is just such a delight.  This tiny microphone for your iPod comes in so many colors, it is hard to decide!

Two SEIers were researching new digital cameras and came up with the same result without even discussing in advance!  Now everyone has to upgrade to this Panasonic Lumix camera.  You don’t have to get red, but Ted did!

And if all else fails, an Amazon Gift Card will do the trick.  After all, who can’t find what they want on Amazon, and you can email or even print the gift card yourself if you run out of time.

So get busy since you only have a few days left and finish that shopping!

As promised, here is the 2nd installment from your personal shopper!  In Part I of the Holiday Gift Ideas, we were tech free, and that is not the case here!  Friend Skeeter helped us with the next two suggestions.  First is a tool that will help you remember information since you can record it in multiple ways.  Livescribe makes a smartpen that is a great idea for students or anyone who wants to record thoughts or information.  His second recommendation is the HP DreamScreen.  Check out the videos on both items.

A new  iPod Touch (the 3rd generation) is the best iPod ever, and will be cherished as a gift.  A small item that can hold lots of music, videos (including TV and movies), your email, games, and a zillion apps.  Basically it does everything the iPhone does without the phone.  The built in speaker is also handy as is the ability to record voice memos or make free skype calls.  There are tons of to keep you informed and entertained.

Our favorite earphones for your iPod (or computer) have a great design and come in five colors.  You get 6 sets of silicon earpads so you can customize the fit, a cable winder, and a small, thin case with this luxurious lightweight  earphone set.   After 2 years, these are still going strong!  The noise canceling properties enhance the excellent reproduction of treble and midrange.  Rock bottom price for these!

As always, we bring you holiday gift ideas to ease your shopping chaos.  This will be a 3-part series with ideas and hints for the season.  Part 1 will focus on non-tech related gifts.  Shocker!  Included are gifts for the architect within you!   First up is a little pricey, but if you love architecture and buildings, then you can’t avoid these – large models of famous buildings including some Lego construction sets.  You could also get these stone coasters of Frank Lloyd Wright textile blocks.  We could shop in the MOMA Store for hours, but these 2 items caught our eye: a really neat blueprint paperweight, and these cool poster hangers.

Stay tuned to Part II and III in upcoming posts from your personal shopper.

It would be really hard to go hungry at SEI.  If you are wondering what a good food day looks like, here you go!  And this was totally unplanned – you can just imagine what happens when planning occurs.  Thanks to Karen, Michele, Paula, and Brian for the goodies!

Perhaps a good lesson for our next Canstruction???