Off and on I have the pleasure of bringing you cool contests and fun prizes. Today’s post is no exception. The folks over at Charter never rest when it comes to imagination and innovation. Their recent HDTV-A-Day contest was such a success that right on its heels they are currently running a 2-month extended Laptop-a-Day Sweepstakes!

Don’t worry, you’re not late to enter… You have from July 15 through September 15th to get your entry in to win a laptop AND they are adding bonuses – $25-$100 free gift cards with special online deals.

Back to school students and all business people on the go love laptops. Laptops rank right up there with cell phones, don’t they. So what better time (school wise) to check out the potential for getting one of these necessities, for free, from Charter Communications

Wondering what sort of laptop you can enter to win? It’s a HP 550 Notebook 15-inch with Windows Vista, and it comes with a NeoTec Compu Backpack.

In addition, the clothing, home and accessories, restaurants and more free gift cards are from major retailers… no off-brand names there!

Laptops, Xbox 360 game systems, HDTV’s and even a 2009 Honda Civic Hybrid... those crazy people at Charter, you’ve just got to love them!

Entering is easy. Just visit charter.com/laptop to review the rules and register today.

And since Charter is on a roll, you’d be crazy not to follow Charter on Facebook and Charter on Twitter.

What will they think of next?!

I promise this will be a marketing post, but I’m going to use a few real life – non-marketing examples – to make my point.

Having never heard of Susan Boyle before my father sent me an email of her YouTube audition, I never dreamed I’d get this wrapped up in a show that isn’t even based where I live (the U.S.). I know there are millions of American Idol fans out there, but I’ve just never gotten into the whole AI thing. Frankly, it is the (American) judging team that turns me off, particularly Simon Crowell (when he’s in the United States). However, in Britain on BGT, Simon turns into a completely different person. He’s insightful, helpful, and a nice guy… go figure.

But this isn’t about Simon, this is about fame coming too fast, cold feet, internet marketing (yes I promised), and examples of what happens when you don’t really think things through. (more…)

Last month I had the opportunity of letting you know about Charter Cable’s April Sweepstakes and it turns out the fun never stops over at Charter!

While I didn’t think anything could top the huge package they gave away last month, May is turning into another one of those “holy cow!” don’t miss opportunities for everyone looking to switch their cable services.

My first suggestion is you visit their page and read all about Charter’s Free Gift Card Sweepstakes. It’s so easy to register and wait until you hear what you can win:

o $5,000 grand prize worth of gift cards
o $1,000 weekly prizes worth of gift cards

Now how exactly could you use that many gift cards if (when?!) you’re the lucky winner? Well, of course, you could start with your family and friends giving them gift cards to Charter Cable, and THEN move on to your clients and customers! What a great business incentive gift! And all those gift cards would not have cost you a dime.

Oh, and I don’t want to forget to tell you that, of course, entering to win is, as always, free. So you’d be insane not to enter. Literally, “The contest is open to anyone and no purchase is necessary.”

But Charter Cable doesn’t stop there. So many other cable companies never give a hoot about existing customers, but as an existing customer if you order anything online at Charter throughout the month of May you are automatically entered into their “win to receive $75 or $150″ worth of gift cards, too! And, in addition to entering via the contest page above, each new customer is also entered into this part of their May contest I just mentioned.

Think of the wild, unexpected birthday gift to give to Aunt Sally or Uncle John! And in this economy, they most certainly would appreciate it

And… Did you also know that it’s easy to keep up with Charter Cable on Twitter? Yep, they have made it easy for you to FollowCharter on Twitter, so be sure to add them to your Twitter account so you never miss a beat.

Last month, an HDTV a day, a grand prize of a home theater system, and one year of their service with HD programming.

This month, up to $5,000 in gift cards! What will they think of next?!

If there is one thing I need, and need desperately, it’s a vacation! A real, get away, something we’ve never done before, totally unique experience.

Manta could very well be that “most unique of all” experience. For roller coaster lovers and sea life fanatics alike, SeaWorld Orlando is putting these two experiences together, literally turning it (and you) on its head!

With (at this writing) less than 22 days and 17 hours to go, Manta (ride the flying ray) opens at their Orlando location.

For those making summer plans, consider Manta. For those wishing they could, head on over and participate in their contest.

Either way, enter to win “front of the line” passes, just for visiting their website and clicking on the “Participate & Win” yellow button.

You’ll be asked to create an account and add them to your Twitter. Then you have three shots at taking a few questions quiz (took me three tries). All the answers to the questions are right there on their web site. It’s like a treasure hunt

Don’t let this quiz keep you from trying because:

1. It’s not that long (the quiz)
2. You’ll learn some amazing facts
3. You’ll truly enjoy hunting for the answers
4. You can watch some incredible videos^*
5. It’s not a large website so looking for clues isn’t hard.

^*You do not have to watch the videos to get any of the answers – but the videos are tons of fun to watch

So if hoping to plan a super cool vacation when school lets out or just want a unique experience to share with someone special, this just might be your summer ticket to fun!

Enjoy!

I’m doing something I’ve got to grab moments to do, stumbling my way through random posts at Stumbleupon. If you don’t do this, you are missing out on some extremely spectular webpages, posts, pictures, humor and more. And if you do click the link above, be sure to send me a friend request!

But that’s not my reason for this post… not by a long shot.

Just now The Cab Ride I’ll Never Forget had me riveted. If you’re wondering if compassion is a lost art, look no further than this post (or afterward, keep looking compassion is alive and well).

This is my short post for Saturday (where I take the liberty over the weekend to find items of interest outside the realm of advertising and marketing), but if you read nothing else at all for the rest of the weekend, this will have been worth your trip!