Metromint Blog

On Track: Award-Dinner for Tamalpais Athletes Powered by Metromint

5/13/09
by Sam McMillan, Metromint Wordsmith

108 members of the Tamalpais High School track team celebrated their 2009 season with a pot-luck, covered dish dinner on Monday, June 3rd. Among the awards for most improved, hardest working, and most valuable team members, were five cases of Mintwater, donated by Metromint.

Standouts of the season at Tam include Dan Milechman, a 10th-grader who will be competing at the California State finals in the 1600, and Lilla McMillan, a 9th grader who won the Marin County track championship in the 100 and 200 meter dash.

According to Lilla McMillan, "Our coaches are always telling us how important it is to stay hydrated when we train. The mint in Mintwater makes it really refreshing, which is great during a meet in hot weather."

blooms of possibilities

5/13/09
by Michele Thorne, Wellness & Outreach Director

A few weeks ago Jaime, Jenn, and I decided to get out of the office for our Monday morning team meeting. We took a field trip around the corner to Brickhouse restaurant and met over a light breakfast.

The sun was shining beautifully through the big windows and we sat right up front to bask in it. As we were discussing our current projects, I looked up to see three beautiful paintings on the wall, one with a Metromint bottle painted in as one of the subjects. The paintings were created by Hiroko Sakai. She is native to Japan, but lives here in SF now. I decided to interview her via email.

MT: How long have you been painting?
HS: I’ve been painting since I can remember, but my professional art career started in the early 1990’s. In the beginning of my career, I forced myself to “never say I can’t”. Whatever project I got, the first thing I would say is “OK. I can do it!”.

MT: What brought you to San Francisco?
HS: Well, I was in Japan working when I had a medical condition that landed me in the hospital. During that time, I met a man (who was from America) and he encouraged and supported my healing. We had a whirlwind romance and we married in Japan. Shortly after, I moved to San Francisco. I was pregnant when I moved here and it was a huge change. My relationship became abusive and I knew I had to leave. I went to the Asian Women’s Shelter in San Francisco with my 4 month-old baby, which saved my life.

MT: How did you get back to painting after that?
HS: I began drawing to sweep out my stuck emotions which had piled up inside. At first, my sketches were colorless, and then one by one, they slowly came back to my paper. My art was healing.

MT: What was your inspiration to include Metromint in your painting?
HS: I always enjoy doing something fun and playful in my paintings; adapting edgy and/or traditional elements with things that people feel common or familiar with. The painting you saw in the café is called “Mystery” and the inspiration was a parody of the famous statue “Venus de Milo”. I thought it would be fun to add some modern imaginations on her lost arms. Then, I thought Metromint is one of the things that represents a modern, fashionable girl’s life.

MT: Generally, what inspires you?
HS: Life!

Thanks Hiroko! You are an inspiration! Check out Hiroko’s work around town: http://www.hirokosfart.com/Bio/Bio.html

the power of "thank you"

3/26/09
by Michele Thorne, Wellness & Outreach Director

Last Thursday, the temperature was warm, sunny and clear. Jenn and I were invited to Mountain View, CA to spread the Metromint love with some really smart and savvy Googlers (as they call themselves). If you didn’t know, Googlers have some pretty good benefits, including unlimited access to an awesome, on site cafeteria and lots of micro kitchens around their campuses. For fun and variety, Google asks their employees to vote in 20% of what they stock in those kitchens by hosting a food fair where a variety of food and drink producers get invited to sample exclusively to them. Over 4,500 employees came out during lunch to sample Chocolatemint and Spearmint Metromint.
 
I am sure you have heard me say this before, but I get to meet consumers a lot. Often when I am out in the field giving product and Metromint swag away, there is a general sense of gratitude in the air, but that day it went over the top. There was thank you after thank you, and on and on for at least 90 minutes! While I was giving away our reusable shopping tote bags, there were folks lined up beside me and Jenn hydrated them with some chilled Metromint as they waited in the warm sun.
 
Needless to say, I was so pleased to meet all of these Googlers personally and let them know how grateful we were that they invited us to sample, and in return each of them thanked us for sharing! Someone even gave us a shout out on Twitter! I must say, the power of resounding appreciation simply made my day. So in the spirit of reciprocity, I say to both brand new and long-time Metromint fans (Googlers included), our distributors, retailers, our awesome Metromint team nationwide and to everyone who helps to make these wonderful things happen~THANK YOU!
 

valentine's haiku winners!

2/26/09
by Jaime Borschuk, Web & Print Manager

I would like to thank everyone who submitted a poem or video to us for this contest! It was hard for us to narrow it down to 3 winners, so we chose 3 written haikus and 2 videos. Without further ado, here they are:

Cooling sensations Metromint tickles your tongue No sweeteners, just love --Charlene Jennings

Sorry, Valentine. Metromint has won my heart. I sip. I sigh. Love! --Patricia Gilmore

On Valentine's Day Fill my bath with Metromint Then leave me alone. --PF Dumanis

we love our fans

2/5/09
by Michele Thorne, Wellness & Outreach Director

Seriously, this is the BEST part of my job. Every now and again, we will get a stellar email, phone call or letter from a Metromint fan letting us know how they feel about Metromint, and we remember why we do what we do. Today there was an exceptional example, and I am compelled to write about it.

A few weeks ago I got an email from Jirod Greene, lead singer of Austin, TX rock band The Ars Supernova. Jirod shared with me his love for Metromint, but that's not what got me intrigued. He mentioned that his band founded The Soundwave Organization to donate proceeds from live shows and album sales to worthy causes. The Soundwave Organization, through A Glimmer of Hope and H20 Africa, has already donated enough money to build a well that supplies clean water for a village in rural Ethiopia. Currently, The Soundwave Organization is raising college tuition money for passionate high school artists and musicians living in Austin, TX. How awesome is that? Wait, there's more.

Today, I got an email from Jirod with a link to his blog. I was again humbled and delighted to know how he feels about Metromint! His blog is thoughtful, funny and informative, and we deeply appreciate the love! Check it out, especially the video.

 
After sharing this blog with the office today, I finally got Jirod on the phone and talked to him for a bit. I had to personally thank him and also find out what is the meaning of his band’s name. He explained that the word “ars” is Latin for art, and that a "supernova" is a star that explodes and becomes extremely luminous in the process. Essentially, it dies and is reborn. Hence, “The Ars Supernova”, according to Jirod, means “the rebirth of art”. The message they want folks to know is that they are creating music “outside of the ordinary”. In my humble opinion, they are not only creating music outside of the ordinary, they are raising the bar musically and socially! Thanks for sharing your music and passion about your “must haves” with us Jirod but, most importantly, to you, David, Ross, Matt, Alejandra and Deitrich: shine on y’all!

a little imagination and some tape

1/15/09
by Michele Thorne, Wellness & Outreach Director
 
Every now and again I have to bring my son to the office. It's not because he just wants to hang out with me, nor is it because there is anything especially child friendly about our office. When he is here, though, he finds a way to be creative, and it is inspiring.
 
With palettes of Metromint and Metroelectro, boxes for sending out samples, and of course desks and people, our office doesn’t seem at first sight to be the most creative place. It is a loft with cement, bricks, high ceilings…but there is something. You can feel it when you walk around. Maybe it's the skylight, or maybe it’s Rio's energy, but whenever employees' kids are here, they are moved to create and inspire us too.

If you ever come to our office, which is often mistaken for a café, you might notice a handful of drawings made by our children. If you come on a day when one of them is here, you might see a Metroelectro roboticon with a hydration laser and extra Metromint energy packs! It is amazing what a little imagination and some tape can do!

holiday spirit

12/24/08
by Michele Thorne, Wellness & Outreach Director

We are two companies in one office. Yep. Soma Beverage Co., and David Rio Inc. Needless to say, with two companies under one roof, our office can get hectic sometimes, so festivities are often welcome!

Donna is the accounting guru for David Rio, and she is the queen of office festivities! She constantly keeps all of us guessing and smiling. Last Halloween Donna surprised us with her Halloween costume and song…she appeared as “LD the Wrapper”, yes Wrapper with a W, complete with theme costume and a rap about accounting (sorry, no picture to share). This year, she has again gifted us with office holiday festivities: a blinking light necklace! Though she had no holiday song to sing, nor rap to rhyme, she made us laugh and smile with holiday cheer. Thanks Donna, and from all of us at Soma Beverage Co. and David Rio Inc., to all of you, Happy Holidays!

 

winter wheelies

12/8/08
by Jaime Borschuk, Web & Print Manager

Last night The San Francisco Bicycle Coalition held it's 13th annual Winterfest member party, auction, art show, and fundraiser at SOMArts Gallery here in San Francisco. An avid city cyclist myself, I was thrilled to attend as a Metromint sponsor and as a member of the Coalition.

This was my first year at Winterfest, and it was great to see so many bicycle enthusiasts in one place. The Coalition, as they often do, did a great job managing the two-wheeled traffic with free valet parking. The auction offered cute, mostly bicycle-themed paintings, photos, and sculptures, as well as some drool-worthy bicycles. Based on the final numbers, everything proved to be a hit with bidders. I missed out on the much talked about photo booth, but I did make it on time to catch a pint from the last keg of New Belgium beer. Yum!

Ride Safe San Francisco.

jingle bell runners: break a sweat

12/5/08 
by Michele Thorne, Wellness & Outreach Director

As chilly as it feels to me today, I am thankful to be in a climate where 56°F feels like 56°F. Since I am a fan of 80°F and higher, I have my sights set on the steam room and sauna after my workout at the gym in just a few moments. It’s good to get your joints moving, get a bit of exercise and sweat, right?

Well, this Sunday, we are happy to support the Jingle Bell Run in Chicago, IL. To say the least, it is going to be a little chilly, but it will be a good time to raise that heart rate and body temperature along with some support for the Arthritis Foundation.

I am certain there will be quite a chill factor of at least 23°F, and it might feel like all of 8°F, brrrrrrrr…either way, to all participating, have an awesome run!

thankful for the little things

11/25/08
by Michele Thorne, Wellness & Outreach Director

Today our controller, Lara, came up to me and said, “you have $7 plus tax." Since she is in control of the money around here, I pondered first before I asked for clarification. With the Mexican take out menu in one hand and a list of orders from every one else in the office in the other, I figured today’s lunch was going to be gifted! An awesome (and delish) surprise when I least expected one!

After placing my veggie fajita burrito order, I asked what was the special occasion? Turns out, we take the bottles from the Metromint we drink in the office to our local recycling facility, and between this month and last month we made back enough cash to buy everyone in the office lunch from our favorite neighborhood mexican eatery, Mexico Au Parc!

Thanks team Metromint. It feels good to appreciate the little things.