TGIF at Jugnoo – Fun Fridays!

I’ll be honest with you here, gentle readers, about this week’s TGIF. There will be a distinct lack of Jugnoo office culture in this week’s edition.

That’s because last week I was saddled with the sad, laborious task of attending North By Northeast Interactive.

This took me away from the safe confines of my desk and sent me out into that dreaded ‘real life’ I have heard so much about… though usually just when people tweeted about ‘IRL’.

And you know, it’s really not so bad. No, actually, I take that back. I had the most excellent time! They say you learn something new every day. Last week I learned that you can have fun outside of the office, too.

Team Jugnoo, Assemble: Off-site Edition

Bring Your Eating Pants: Toronto Underground Market

This may be my last installment of TGIF, friends… but only because my boss Hessie might take me off assignment when she sees I posted this photo of her eating chocolate-covered bacon (from Leonard Pig Candy) at the Toronto Underground Market (TUM). But how can you keep that expression of pure bliss hidden from the world? Besides, I already posted it on Instagram.

If you have ever been lucky enough to score a ticket to the wildly popular TUM, then you already know what Team Jugnoo was fortunate enough to experience first-hand on Saturday: the incredible food, the delicious drinks, the charming vendors – and all of it set in the beautiful Evergreen Brickworks.

TUM is a uniquely Toronto event: people from all over the city gathering together for the love of handcrafted cuisine.

We’d love to thank every one of the vendors who so kindly took time out of their busy day (after all, those indulgences don’t just prepare themselves) to speak to us about how they are using social media to gain exposure and reach out to their rabid fan base, and serve us some samples of their wares.

And, of course, we would like to thank TUM for inviting us to come and meet their top chefs and home cook superstars. Our waistlines and trainers may still hold a grudge, but as far as we’re concerned? You’re all rare delicacies, one-of-a-kind, and made from scratch with organic ingredients. And that’s really, really good.

And Bring Your Chargers, Too: NXNEi

And if there are two things I love more… wait, no… as much as food, it’s social media and music.

Okay, and cats.

So you can only begin to imagine how excited I was to be asked to attend NXNEi (and, ahem… my band played a full house at the Painted Lady), listen in on all the panels and keynotes, and report back all the news to you.

I’ll be giving you a more comprehensive overview of best of the fest, but to give you a tantalizing tidbit, here are some of the recurring themes in the week’s discussions:

·         How we determine true influence; a popular topic with certain Social Mix 2012 speakers, too!

·         Doing more with less; how creativity and content are becoming more important than a big budget and resources in the social sphere.

·         What engagement means now; determining what our customers want from companies, and how to give them those experiences.

Until that post, however, you can always check out our NXNecessities site for the best in drinks, food, shopping, and more here in Toronto. The festival might be over, but Team Social lovingly compiled this list just for you – and we so rarely get to show off our tour guide muscles.

Jugnoo Speaks: It’s Getting Hot Out Here

It’s a well-known fact that Toronto is a city that can go through all four seasons in 24 hours.

Only two weeks ago we were complaining about the torrential rain, and now it’s the sweltering heat. With the mercury hitting 34 degrees celsius (93.2 fahrenheit for our American readers), some of us are feeling a little trepidation about heading out of the air-conditioned confines of Jugnoo HQ and into the sweaty wilds of the city.

And as a person without an AC unit, I thought I would ask some of the office for inspiration to help me beat the heat. Here’s what some of us are doing to stay cool this weekend:

Timothy, our Project Manager, thinks there’s nothing cooler than being a good friend. He’s helping Arsheya, ‘Director of Fun’, move.

I don’t think that’s going to really work the way he was hoping it would… but regardless, good luck, guys!

Development Team co-op student Azhar suggests making a pilgrimage out to Gerrard Street East for sweet, sweet Malai Kulfi. Now that’s an idea.

This week, Chief Content Officer Lindsay Bell hyped up an email by saying that we’d all be entered to win a draw for a free air conditioner if we did what she was requesting.

**This was a blatant lie to toy with our feelings.

However, over in Business Development, Mirna had me doubting myself when she said she won it, and would spend the weekend installing it. Turns out she’s just going to be sweating on a patio somewhere with the rest of us.

Finally, our resident WordPress expert Andy will be attending the Toronto WordPress June Meetup at Network Orange, where the focus is on Plugins. He assures me that there will be air conditioning, and a lot of WordPress-themed discussion, both of which are very cool. Obviously.

And as for me? My current strategy includes keeping a spray bottle of water in my fridge, weeping uncontrollably, and listening to one of my all-time favourite songs on repeat. Have a great weekend, everyone, and stay cool!

**NOTE: It wasn’t a blatant lie, it was a classic marketing strategy! – Lindsay 

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