The topics ranged from collecting local art (heyshari.com), to everything you wanted to know about redheads (@valerielm), to why you should own a dog (@dmburrows), to a compelling prison entrepreneurship program (@mikeorren), to the confessions of a Widespread Panic addict (@kacewrangler).

It made you think. It made you laugh. It was never boring. And it proved a great opportunity to connect with some interesting new people right here in our hometown.

We look forward to the next one coming this summer. Check back here or keep an eye on our tweets (@firehouseagency) for details.

Check out how Sierra Mist decided to “go green”.

Over 3,000 plants were put into individual fabric pockets and hung on vertical frames. The board did not have a water source so a watering reservoir and pump system were built to pump water and food to the plants at pre-programmed times.  Did you catch that? They had to FEED the outdoor board.

As a person with a keen appreciation for the production process, I am floored by the details of the execution, and jealous of the team that got to make it happen.

So let’s all raise a watering can to  Goodby, Silverstein & Partners for a cool idea, and send a huge shout-out to Sierra Mist for letting that great idea come to life. LITERALLY.

Last Thursday, something bigger than words can describe started here at Firehouse. It’s an initiative born out of Mark’s belief that big ideas can make a difference, and that the power of prayer is, well, powerful – and can be life changing.

Anna Basso is a 16-year-old girl who lives in Dallas and whose family also lives next door to Mark – they have been neighbors for 10 years. She’s been battling Stage 4 Ewing’s Sarcoma (a rare type of bone cancer) since November 2009 and has a tough fight ahead.

Anna has become an inspiration to us all, and while she is getting terrific medical care, it’s going to take more than that to help her win this fight.

To encourage Anna in her battle against cancer, the agency set a lofty goal of getting one million prayers for her. It all comes together at http://www.1millionprayers.com, where friends, family and even strangers are pledging to pray for Anna and sending their collective goodwill her way.

Please join us in supporting this amazing young woman, day in and day out. A special time has been set aside every day to pray – 12:12 p.m. This time is a direct reference to Romans 12:12 – Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Anna can really feel the strength of each individual behind her.

Pledge to pray for Anna on the website (1millionprayers.com), and help us spread the word via Facebook and Twitter (#1million4anna).

This news clip does a great job of telling the story of the 1 Million 4 Anna project, with footage from a party we hosted for Anna on April 22.

In the dark ages (ten years ago), the only way to spread your idea on a large scale was to do it yourself. This required large buckets of money and lots and lots of ads.

Today, clients get all sweaty thinking about how this magically happens, virally, for free. If it were only that easy.

What’s interesting is that different products and ideas are spread by different groups of people. There isn’t just one professional association of idea spreaders, with everyone else being passive.

For instance, if your authentic little Italian restaurant gets hot, it’s going to be because the chowhounds, the folks who love to talk about the next great place, are buzzing about it. On the other hand, if your blog gets a lot of traffic, it might just be because a few key bloggers are going on about it, spreading the idea.

As gatekeepers to our clients’ businesses, we have to stop and ask ourselves, “What am I doing about it? Have I figured out which portion of my user base are the talkers? Is it possible to focus my efforts on actually making something that they like? Or, am I confusing the people who talk about the competition, with the people I need to reach?” After all, these folks might not be from the same tribe…

Unfortunately, ideas oftentimes fail to spread. However, this may not be a result of their content, but rather, because they don’t have a committed group of people spreading the word about them. If you treat everyone the same, you’re not increasing the odds that some people will step up on your behalf.

The first question to ask someone who is frustrated at the rate their idea is spreading: “Who are you hoping will talk about you?” If you don’t know, it’s unlikely to happen all by itself. On the other hand, being smart about finding, courting and delighting the group most likely to spread the idea, is time well spent.

You see, we’re in the idea business. And we love what we do.

You may also notice (if you’ve seen our client list) that we have a great deal of restaurant experience. In fact, not just experience, but a real passion for the dining industry and tackling the unique challenges restaurant brands face.

So as the economy started going south and the media kept banging the gong of doom, people started hunkering down, staying home and spending less. But for some reason, things didn’t get a whole lot better.

Our planning and insights team started taking a hard look at behaviors, trends, statistics and a whole lot of other factors in order to see if something could be done to help not just our clients, but everyone else as well.

And as we dug, and learned and uncovered…an idea began to form.

Waiting around for bailouts and handouts isn’t the answer. The answer is us. All of us.

Our intent is to create a movement. One based on the simple premise of reminding people that they can contribute to the economic recovery by doing very normal things.

Like eating out at a restaurant.

Take a look at this video. Let us know what you think.

And eat out for a change, will ya?

The first idea that caught my eye came from a creative team down at George Patterson Y&R in Australia. A writer and art director teamed up to prove once and for all that creativity makes good business sense.

You may have seen this already and if so you likely got a laugh, but equally important – the results of the Wicked Sick BMX experiment are impressive. This really is brilliant.

The second idea I came across this month blew me away. It was the most engaging thing I’ve seen in a while. And as far as I can tell there was no commercial application to it. It was simply an incredibly dynamic example of what the medium of social media is capable of producing.

I dare you to try and only watch one time. It captures a few minutes of a single morning earlier this year at a train station in Belgium. I really don’t think you can watch it only once.

Two terrific ideas. Each amazing in its ability to engage the audience.

Well, hard to pick between these two, both are fantastic. But this month the official Cheers goes to the guys down in Australia, not only well crafted copy to make a compelling ad, they positioned the bike apart from the competitive asset, and man did it get results!

That’s creativity at work.

I recently saw these two things merge with Southwest Porch, a pop-up eatery in Bryant Park (NYC). What a great launch tactic, integrating into people’s lifestyles while being able to promote their expanded service to NYC. As I read more, similar eateries are gaining popularity everywhere.

Isn’t that like going to meet with a home builder and quizzing her about the carpenters she employs? Sure I expect her to hire the best people, but what I care most about is what I can expect my home to look like and why it’s the best fit for my family and me.

So, I’d like to suggest that a more productive initial discussion might be to focus on how the agency gets to ideas and past examples of great insights, rather than the tools they have at their disposal. Having been a client myself for several years, I know that if I had to pick between an agency dedicated to insights and an agency that employs dozens of Flash developers, I’d go with the first scenario every single time.

So, how do you identify an agency that’s truly committed to building brands based upon identifying stronger and deeper insights? Here are some things to keep your eye on:

See what the agency thinks are great insights. Put them on the spot. Every single piece of work ought to be based upon a key insight into that client’s business, customers or competitive situation. Telling that story should come as second nature.

Follow the money. A pretty clear indication of their commitment is how much they have invested in this area. Do they have Account Planners on staff? How much do they spend in research tools or research facilities? If the head of Account Planning is not present in your first meeting, maybe they’re not really committed to discovering those nuggets.

Ask whose job it is. Oftentimes, agencies play the “it’s everyone’s job” card. While certainly all of an agency’s efforts should be focused on getting smart about the client’s business, their target and their marketplace, truly great agencies treat insight gathering as a separate discipline. If they don’t, then it’s clear that relevant ideas are not seen as the strategic foundation of the organization.

Today’s agencies need to be more insight-centric and far less obsessed with narrow production capabilities. I’m sure we’d all agree an agency shouldn’t be tied into making recommendations based on its capabilities. It goes to the old saying about, “if the only tool you have is a hammer, then everything starts to look like a nail.”

But, don’t take my word for it. In this Ad Age video, Patrick Edson, VP Marketing Innovation, MillerCoors points to hard-to-find insights as the reason behind the success of the Rocky Mountain Cold Refreshment campaign. Funny, he never says a word about his agency’s production capabilities.

The last Thursday of each month we get the entire agency together and take a moment to celebrate the ideas and efforts that helped make the month a success. It’s a way to reinforce the kind of effort, attitude and output that’ll separate our work and ultimately our clients from their competition.

How it works is that over the course of the month everyone takes a moment or two to nominate the individuals or teams they believe have been doing the type of work and achieving the kind of results we all strive for.

Now, I grew up the son of a West Point grad, so for me the reward for a job well done has always been the job done well. Good for getting things done, not so good for managing creative minds in this day and age. So, more than anything Champagne Thursday is an opportunity for me to take the time to see, hear and realize how many great ideas and how much great effort is exerted each and every day to drive our clients’ brands forward. I read all of the “nominations” to the crowd; we all have a laugh and then raise a glass of champagne in a toast. Then the corks are “awarded” to those individuals deemed to be most responsible for that month’s celebration.

It has been a great source of pride for me personally and I think for the entire agency as well. My hope is the people here continue to find creative ways to display their cork collections for all our clients and new hires to see.

Because of that, I want to extend the tradition into this space. A virtual nod each month to “nominate” work, effort or ideas I am seeing out in the marketplace. A way to stop and recognize some people, brands, clients, competitors…anyone or anything that is producing work worthy of recognition.

This is in no way intended to be comprehensive, so add your own thoughts, opinions and nominations. All are welcome.

SO WITHOUT FURTHER ADIEU, THIS MONTH’S NOMINATIONS:

They came right out and said they put the “No” in Innovation. Shredded Wheat’s new work is funny and honest. A trait we all could strive for. It is what it is, and the honesty makes me like and respect the brand more than ever. Let’s face it, you can’t BS someone into thinking Shredded Wheat is cool. But, lo and behold, after seeing this spot they got me there all the same.

Secondly, I watched the US Open over the weekend and I came across IBM’s “Let’s Build a Smarter Planet” campaign. I know it is not new, but I noticed for the first time that the writing and flow of the television are fantastic. If you haven’t seen the particular execution about the medical profession it makes me think they ought to be in charge of healthcare reform, not government (but that’s another post altogether). It’s really timely stuff that continues to move that brand from its history as a purveyor of beige box commodity to a commissary of intelligence and problem solving.

IBM has the tough task of selling service and thinking, and they’re doing it in a way that makes me believe they are really eager thought leaders ready to solve the kind of business problems that may ultimately lead to even bigger solutions than just business success.

And the cork goes to….

Both are great in their own right, but I say “Well done to the team at O&M” for the IBM work. Smart, heady, timely. All in all a great idea well executed.

Eager to here what you think.

In spirit, I agree that award shows are insular and self-serving. In the past few years there’s also been an influx of questionable (fake) entries and overall, I’d say that award shows have become less about “great work that works” and more about “great work we got away with”.

Having said that, I also think Jeff is being naïve (cue lightning strike on my location). Fame, as a measure of greatness, has an awful lot to do with levels of exposure (ie: big budgets, national media buys). It’s a lot easier for Burger King or Hewlett-Packard advertising to get “famous” than it is for a local clothing boutique. Does that mean the work for the boutique is any less creative or great? Of course not. It simply means fewer people will see it because the media budget is measured in dimes instead of dollars.

By Jeff Goodby’s definition, great (famous) advertising will be reserved for big brands with deep pockets. Ripe stuff coming from the principal of an agency that made its reputation on the back of an obscene amount of award show hardware.

The bottom line is that agencies have always needed award shows for self-validation. It’s the one stage where small agencies can compete, idea for idea, with big agencies. They’re an annual barometer of shops and individuals that are hot and executing great ideas.

The trick is keeping it all in perspective and, as an industry, doing our best to keep each other honest.