It started with David Boreanaz from Bones. And then Brian Littrell from the Backstreet Boys. And now pigs are flying over Wisteria Lane as one of America's favorite Desperate Housewives has been confirmed as having H1N1. Teri Hatcher is the latest celeb to be hit with the swine flu. We'll just pass right over that Backstreet Boys reference I made and we can leave the cheesy boy band jokes out of it. Although, Littrell did make a YouTube video apologizing to fans about cancelling a breast cancer fundraiser that they had scheduled at the Hard Rock Cafe in NY. Oh alright, I watched the video. But not because I wanted to see the guy who I was totally in love with when I was 14, only because I wanted to confirm my suspicions. And I was right. Swine flu makes you look like crap.

Even the super handsome David Boreanaz didn't look himself when he appeared on the Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson a few days after it was leaked that production had shut down on Bones due to swine flu (a statement that was later retracted by exec producer Hart Hanson). If celebrities have taught us anything about germs, isn't it that we should be investing in some promotional hand sanitizer? A little Purell goes a long way. Granted, there's no better way to stop the spread of germs than by washing your hands (which can be promoted with some great National Handwashing Awareness Week giveaways) but when soap and water aren't available, hand sanitizer is the next best thing. Just ask Ferguson. The sanitizer fun starts at about 1:52.

And considering that Boreanaz joking threw some in his hair, it's not surprising the poor guy ended up with swine flu. I'm tempted to quote the wise Dr. Christopher Turk from Scrubs. "Sir, this the reason your headache didn't go away. This is pronounced ah-nal geesic. The pills go in you mouth."

Recently, there's been a slew of debates about just how far NBC's Chuck is taking their Subway sponsorship. Last Month Awesome's bachelor party was catered by Subway and just a few weeks ago, Morgan tempted Big Mike with a Chicken teryaki sandwich. He was even cradling it like a newborn. Regardless, the sponsorship might pay off as some of the most loyal Chuck fans have come up with a campaign to save the show that involves the sandwich shop. From the LA Times:

"In the meantime, "Chuck" fans are taking matters into their own hands. According to Schwartz, there is a push on the Internet to get fans to go to Subway on Monday before the season finale to buy sandwiches in support of the show. Why Subway? Because the sandwich shop was featured prominently in a recent episode. So much for product placement turning off viewers. "It shows a real sophistication on the part of the viewer," Schwartz said."

This is definitely an interesting push. A few years ago there was a huge push with imprinted promotional items being sent to the studios in support of the show Jericho, which eventually faltered but the fans support made it last one more season. Will one more season be enough? Can this go the way of Family Guy and get cancelled only to be brought back by DVD sales? Personally, I hope the subway thing works. Already, Carolina and I are getting lunch there. It might even be on the menu for dinner when I tell my aunt (a huge chuck fan) before I head over for the season finale. And if you think it's just a bunch of loyal fans heading to Subway...think again. Here's video of Zachary Levi (Chuck himself) heading to Subway.

So occasionally we do tend to stray of the topic of promotional items, and that's exactly what happened when I was in the boss's office earlier today. We got to talking about the funniest commercial currently on air. So I had to show the McDonald's filet of fish commercial some love.

Back to your regularly scheduled chatter about promotional products.

I signed into youtube just to check out how our Motivators YouTube page was looking, and I happened to come across this recommended video. I had to post it for a couple reasons. Number 1 in college my nickname was Hammy because someone once said I reminded them of a cute little hamster (I'm assuming it's because I was short). Number 2: One of my best friends loves organic food and is consitently trying to get me to eat it. While I enjoy the occasional Bumble Bar, I can't say I'm all that open to organic food. But after watching hammy go organic, I can safely say, I'd do it too. Organic fruits and veggies are one thing, but all the other stuff...I'll pass. Unless of course we're talking about organic promotional items. Then I'm good!