Minnesota Twins fans don’t have much to cheer about these days. Their team is in 4th place in the AL Central, and they have a new outdoor stadium, which is problematic when you remember that playing baseball outdoors in Minnesota may not be fun in April or September. But, there is temporary relief. Today is National Hot Dog Day – I didn’t know, either – and Schweigert Meats, which produces the official hot dog of the Twins, has used the special occasion to release a couple of short video spots that show how the brand’s meat is “overly uncomplicated.” The brand is opting for a tongue-in-cheek tone with the videos and slogan as the campaign expands over the next few months with digital, print, and TV ads in the extended Minnesota region.

The campaign comes from Austin-based Proof Advertising and seems to appeal to a certain Northern blue-collar rural population that may find humor in the soft irony of things that are overly uncomplicated. But when it comes to Minnesota Twins advertising, Proof and Schweigert will have to step up their collective game to surpass the ability of the dandruffless Joe Mauer. Credits after the jump.

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Normally, a made-up holiday like Independence Eve would be some sort of patriotic money grab, but for Newcastle Brown Ale and Droga5, it’s actually a tongue-in-cheek U.K. money grab. Independence Eve – the latest part of the No Bollocks campaign – celebrates the last day of British rule, one day before John Hancocks were signed and European monarchies renounced.

Across the States, Americans (and immigrants, legal and illegal) can buy a Revolutionary Koozie, which features both the British and American flags on the bottle. I’m not sure how many Americans would willingly drink a British beer the day before July 4th, but I think we’ve buried the hatchet 237 years later. You see, revolutions can be humorous once enough time has passed. So in the next decade, everybody get ready to chug some Edelweiss and giggle over the French Revolution. Credits after the jump.

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Conveniently timed for the 4th of July, Arnold Worldwide and New Balance have launched a campaign celebrating the latter’s commitment to the United States. In a four-video series titled, “Our U.S. Factory Workers vs. Their U.S. Factory Workers,” actual NB factory workers compete in a hot-dog eating contest, ping-point match, basketball game, and ice hockey challenge. The pitch is their home factory, and the catch is that they have no opponents.

According to the parties involved, while 25 percent of New Balance shoes are made or assembled in the U.S., their competitors represent an embarrassing goose egg: NB employs more than 1300 U.S. factory workers, while their competitors employ none.

One-fourth still isn’t a huge amount, but it’s clearly not an exaggeration to say NB wins the game when it comes to patriotism. That makes for a lot of pride, and a lonely hot dog eating contest.

Credits and other videos after the jump

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This Father’s Day, Oscar Mayer has decided that bacon is to men as diamonds are to women. Thus, they have wrapped bacon like Tiffany’s bracelets and created a campaign parodying sappy jewelry commercials. A woman presents her husband with a velvet box as they’re sitting in a horse-drawn carriage, a waistcoated jewelry store manager proffers a platter of prime pork to a giggly couple.

The best part of this campaign (a collaboration between 360i and Olson)  is that “Say it With Bacon” is real. For under $30.00, fathers everywhere can get The Commander, The Matador, or The Woodsman, packages of hardwood smoked bacon plus a money clip, cufflinks, or multi-tool, respectively. Father’s Day is maybe the hardest holiday to shop for, unless your dad has a serious hobby requiring unending accessories (see: golf). Oscar Mayer hits a sweet spot with an item that is perfect for serious bacon lovers, but just as applicable to breakfast-eaters with a sense of humor.

For now, your guess is as good as ours, but apparently, a great reveal is on the way some time today from Mother, which for obvious reasons celebrates Mother’s Day (which is this Sunday, the 12th in case you forgot) as if it were Christmas. Case in point, we’ve been told that the agency is even closing shop this coming Monday so we’re assuming some Sunday revelry will be in order. We’re not sure what the hell that all entails exactly but in the meantime, see the teaser above to get a glimpse at what agency’s got in store today. We’ll update with the full reveal once we receive. We don’t know about you, but a “Momtract” kinda scares us.

Update: Well, the agency seems to have been delayed a bit, but as promised, here’s a full clip promoting Mother’s “Momtract,” which, yes, still scares us, as it’s a contract that “gives mothers back the power they woefully lost as their children aged.” Well, we do remember at a certain point in high school the folks saying that “just because you’re taller than us, doesn’t mean we can’t tell you what to do” (for real). Yep, this just refines that notion, we think. See promo below and, if you dare, draw up your own “Momtract” here:

We’ve been told that Chicago’s Energy BBDO is behind this rather busy, yet timely site called “God Was Here,” which comes to us a ahead of one of the holiest of days and tracks mentions of “god” on social media–mainly Twitter–seemingly in real-time. We figure this is a good way to wind down Good Friday, so feel free to click around on this silly, but somewhat intriguing entry.

Update: We’ve been told the “God Was Here” site is actually a side project from folks across multiple agencies, not just Energy BBDO.

Rabbis around the world just collectively shuddered, but the conservative kids who struggle to sit through a Passover seder have something unique to look forward to. The Haggadah, the prayer book that tells the story of Passover, has just been remixed by Nathan Phillips, a senior writer at SS+K. You may be familiar with a Lena Dunham ad he wrote and directed for Barack Obama‘s reelection campaign last fall. Now, with the help of Art Director and shiksa Jessica Stewart, Phillips has unleashed a cool, creative affront to Jewish grandmothers: Bob Marley Passover.

Yes, Bob Marley Passover…as in, Bob Marley Passover. So brazen, it just might work. You can see the project site and download the haggadah here. Don’t forget to #BobMarleyPassover, which is further evidence that hashtagging has gotten way out of hand. But the haggadah itself is legitimate, if not light-hearted and full of a sense of humor bound to clash with almost anyone over 30.

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For those of you still woozy from New Year’s, how about a little whiskey-filled clip to soothe what ails you? Here’s a little ditty from those organic foods-loving folks at DUMBO-based Carrot Creative, who celebrate their apparent success in 2012 and bring good wishes in 2013 by gifting whiskey to those who’ve helped them along the way. The woozy, melancholic music from Matt & Kim fits the bill rather nicely as we watch Carrot staffers slowly brand and package the spirits, which were provided by their fellow Brooklynites at Breuckelen Distilling (who keep on truckin’ despite being “significantly affected” by Hurricane Sandy). Sure, it’s lethargic, and rightly so, as we imagine many of you out there aren’t feeling any different at the moment.

Yo ho ho and a bottle of eggnog, here we are at long last – the final Friday before the agency world shutters for a few short moments in remembrance of Christ’s birth, or more accurately, the Pagan holiday for sun worship (I think). Whatever you celebrate, make sure it includes a nice tall glass of your favorite booze or alcohol free beverage. Raise your glass to friends and family near, far, and gone. Take a moment to reflect, if your memory allows it, on those few fleeting moments from the last year that meant something. That furtive kiss from a now-lost lover; the hope of a better tomorrow, tomorrow; and the knowledge that whatever happens in this world, one day it will all be forgotten – so make every moment last. Because as they say, a man dies twice – once when his heart ceases to beat, and again when the last remaining man on earth who knew him breathes his last breath.

The Apoc is thwarted, but that changes nothing. Live, friends, in the knowledge that we’re all on a path to some final end, somewhere. In an elevator shaft, a movie theater, a war zone, a school room, or in a death bed in your sleep. It’s coming, so let this be a reminder to you – to take risks and enjoy whatever comes of them. You’re worth more than all this, and we here at AgencySpy love you. In the now-famous words of Mark D. Sanders and Tia Sillers, famously sung by country starlet Lee Ann Womack, “I hope you dance”. Dance in the snow, or in memory of it. Dance with your mothers and your fathers and sisters and brothers and cousins and aunts and uncles and old friends. Dance because your feet demand it, your eyes delight in it, and your heart deserves it. Dance, friends, and be happy if you can. We’re all counting on it – the world needs it. Happy days, friends. We’ll see you soon.

When I first saw that T3′s holiday card involved a 3-D printer, I hoped that it would finally answer the question, “If you use a 3-D printer to create budget $1 sex toys, at what point do you start making a reasonable profit?”

While T3 disappoints in this sense, it succeeds in being adorable. With the aid of their 3-D printer, T3 creates a miniature version of Santa’s workshop, complete with stop-motion storytelling and elves pitching holiday-themed copy. It must have cost a damn fortune to make, which is why they should still consider the $1 sex toy thing. But, it’s cute, and that’s what matters. That’s always what matters.