Tag: advertising

Swag and Merch for M’s Adventures

M's Adventures
Screenshot from the video.

Once in a while I get creative about swag, or “merch” as it’s called these days because everyone is selling t-shirts advertising their YouTube channels. I have done this in the past and made mugs, pens, mouse pads, t-shirts, notebooks, magnets, and whatever I could easily put a logo and design on. But, now, it’s for real. Maybe I will start selling “merch”? If you want to watch the video featuring the the new t-shirt, click here.

Front of the t-shirt at a beer tasting.

The easiest was making a t-shirt.

But I also wanted to make a dining scarf (instead of wearing a bib).

Two types of scarves.

I made all these designs on Canva. I’ve been unleashed on Canva and it is a joy. Compared to the days when one could not afford Photoshop or InDesign, now, it’s free or inexpensive. All these sites (Capcut, Canva, etc.) also make plain old business cards too.

Good old fashioned business cards.

Instant Noodle on the Street

M's Adventures

This stir fried noodle stand was in Kuala Lumpur
This stir fried noodle stand was in Kuala Lumpur

One of the foods found almost everywhere is the instant ramen noodle. Except in India and Bangladesh. But that may be changing. I recently saw a commercial for Maggi brand noodles with the patriarch of Bollywood eating instant noodles. Ramen is a soup in Japan and Korea. To sell these in India, the instant noodle dish in the commercial was less soupy. Using the noodles for a stir fry is how the noodles are used in Malaysia (that magician at the night market made the best I’ve had) or Cambodia, and so on. Since the culture in South Asia is to eat with the hand, I would have thought that advertisers would push something handheld, but maybe that’s the next part of the ad campaign (this is not an advertisement for any brand). In the U.S., instant noodle is sold in cups making it easily handheld and easily eaten with a fork. Many other ways to eat the ramen noodle and 27 of those ways are here. One way not mentioned here is wrapped around prawns and deep fried like at Goong.

Why are instant noodles so good even if they are not good for us? It’s “umami” which is the Japanese word for that something special that makes food so delicious.

Umami making in Cambodia.
Umami making in Cambodia.