Lens Launch (Squidiversary Edition): LOST Gifts and Gun Stickers

7 year trophyToday is my 7th Squidiversary on Squidoo! Here’s a shot of my new 7 year trophy.  It looks suspiciously like the 6 year trophy. Maybe HQ figures that any lensmaster this old is color blind by now.

Two new lenses launched in celebration of this milestone.

The first is Gifts for LOST Fans. Yes, the tide of interest in the TV show LOST went out a long time ago. This had been on my lens idea list since before the show ended. It was now or never time to build and I wanted it to complement my books seen on LOST lens.

The second new lens shot from idea to creation in a few days. It’s for people looking to buy gun window decals and stickers. I see lots of bumper stickers on my daily commute and the gun themed ones are usually funny.

Lens Launch: Five Guys Burgers & Fries

Pregnant at Five GuysDo you love eating at Five Guys? I do.

And now there’s a lens where fellow fans can vote for their favorite things about Five Guys. You’ll find a description and poll for each thing that makes Five Guys deliciously unique. There are also mouth watering photos to get your belly growling.

This lens took months to build. Partly because the Flickr fiasco hit soon after I started, but mostly because when I started working on it, I’d get a sudden craving for a bacon cheeseburger and order of fries.

Image credit: brownpau, used under Creative Commons

Lens Launch: Signs and Symptoms of a Stroke (My 100th Squidoo Lens)

One hundred lenses. Finally. It took a long time to reach this milestone, nearly seven years. Although it’s a symbolic one, I wanted to mark it with a lens that meant something.

Both my grandmothers died as a result of stroke. Both my grandmothers-in-law have suffered a stroke and are dealing with its debilitating effects on them.

The damage caused by a stroke can be reduced if it’s caught early. Everyone should learn how to recognize a stroke. That’s why my 100th lens is on the warning signs of a stroke.

Yes, there are already lots of websites and publications with this information. No, it won’t rake in big earnings. That’s not its purpose. Hopefully, someone somewhere will read it and be prepared to recognize when someone near them is suffering a stroke and get them the care they need in time to make a difference.

This is the most personal lens I’ve written. It’s dedicated to my wonderful grandmothers and grandmothers-in-law.

Time to go work on lens #101…

Lens Launch: Anti Stick Figure Family Stickers

We Ate Your Stick FamilyWhile driving home recently, I spotted a stick figure family sticker on the car in front of me. Only this was different. The stick figures were running.

At the next stop light I realized they were being chased by another stick figure in a hockey mask wielding a chainsaw! Underneath were the words, “Nobody Cares About Your Stick Figure Family”.

I laughed. It was the comic relief I needed driving home from a long day at work. A few days later I saw a zombie version like the one pictured.

Stick family stickers were kinda cool when they first came out but now it seems that every other car has one. These “nobody cares” anti-stick family stickers are a funny way to tell the world that the stick figure family trend has reached its peak.

What lens ideas have you gotten while sitting in traffic?

Image credit: darinrmcclure, used under Creative Commons.

Lens Launch: Fantasy Baseball T-Shirts

Buy at Art.comOpening day of baseball season is just over a month away. That means fantasy baseball players have started joining leagues and preparing for their drafts. A fun way to impress your league-mates is with a fantasy baseball t-shirt.

I searched through lots of different baseball shirts. This lens features the best and funniest that I found, including some shirts and onesies for the kids so they can share the fun with their parents. These t-shirts also make a cool gift for your favorite fantasy baseball player.

Image: “Mickey Mantle, 1956”, available at Art.com

Lens Launch: Jet Age Review and Fantasy Football Trophies

Two new lenses launched from the harbor in time to catch the last tide of 2011.

Buy at Art.comThe first is a book review of Jet Age: The Comet, the 707 and the Race to Shrink the World. The book covers the true story of the race to start flying jet powered airliners after World War II. It’s a great overview of the history of commercial aviation up to the early part of the Jet Age.

For readers who want to learn more, the lens includes some cool old videos I found featuring the Comet and 707, the two main aircraft in the book.

This season I won my second fantasy football championship! Unfortunately, that league doesn’t give its winner a trophy. For fantasy leagues that do, I put together a selection of fantasy football trophies. There are even some funny gag trophies for the losingest team.

These two bring my total to 96 featured lenses. I’m slowly getting to 100.

Have a happy New Year!

Lens Launch: Graveyard Ghoul Costumes

BOO!

Did I scare you? Probably not.

Grave Ghoul Adult CostumeBut if I was haunting a graveyard on Halloween in a graveyard ghoul costume like this one, you’d be scared.

There are lots of costume lenses on Squidoo so it helps to put your own spin on a genre. Otherwise your lens gets lost in the crowd.

I chose graveyard ghouls because it complements my existing Halloween graveyard decoration lenses.

Lens Launch: Fantasy Football Auction Draft Tips

More action. More fun. More strategy. More fair. More challenging.

Those are the reasons why many fantasy football leagues are giving auction drafts a try.

One of my leagues made the switch to an auction draft last year. The auction format lived up to the hype plus I drafted a good team. My successes and mistakes in that first draft taught me a lot about auction draft strategy.

So while preparing for this season’s draft, I put those lessons into a fantasy football auction draft strategy tutorial. It’s a good guide to help first time auction drafters avoid rookie mistakes and draft a competitive fantasy team.