Arrived home today to find a mysterious package with a jar inside and a handwritten note that read:
This jar holds a story-
The story of a single tragic incident that needs to be unlocked.
Dive in, investigate the evidence and discover what lies beneath the surface of frenziedwaters.com
Oooo… so viral.
I unscrewed the lid, hoping for some demonic force to be unleashed. Or at the least a sexy genie (ideally wearing the Princess Leia slave costume). Instead, item at the top of the packed jar was a rusty key attached to a floatabable key ring with the label, “Discovery Marina SW09.”
The second item was somewhat chilling… a clipping from a newspaper with MY obituary on it, albeit dated today, July 9th. Not simply my name that was cut and pasted into a form obit – but a mini bio including numerous details of my work history. Cause of death: “of a savage shark attack on San Onofre Beach,” located just south of Los Angeles.
Next up, a pair of swimshorts. Actually quite nice. Except for the giant bite that had clearly ripped through one of the leggings. This is a gentle reminder as to why I hate swimming in ocean waters (although, honestly, I’m more buggered out by horseshoe crabs than sharks – creepy mofos).
Also inside: a sharktooth attached to a metal plate with the previously mentioned url stamped on: frenziedwaters.com.
And finally, a 2’x2′ paper sign warning that the beach was closed, swim at your own risk, and for detailed closure info to call 386-675-0342. A phone message there advised me that authorities were hunting something in the water, but advised citizens to remain away from the beach.
If you want to explore the mystery on your own, go ahead, but just a warning – under the image of all items from the jar are some of the answers to what this is all about – so if you don’t want to be spoiled, stop reading here!
SW09 is the big clue that this is a viral promo for the Discovery Channel’s 20th annual Shark Week, beginning August 2nd, and the jar is apparently part of an interactive game or story that is still unfolding. The good news: just go to the site, and you can play along.
Visiting frenziedwaters.com, you’ll see four jars floating in ocean water, with dates or info above them. Only two are clickable: the first, reading “Asbury Park, 1916,” will allow you to see a day at the beach gone horribly wrong from a first person perspective. The other clickable one asks you to connect Frenzied Waters with Facebook… I allowed it, but have yet to see any activity as a result. The two remaining dates are 7/13 and 7/20, which I’m guessing indicates that the links will work on those dates.
This viral promotion, which a web search indicates also hit a number of other bloggers, was assembled by Campfire NYC, a marketing firm behind Bloodcopy, a blog assuming vampires are real, that they partnered on with Gawker to promote HBO’s “True Blood.” Campfire also produced digital marketing for “Terminator Salvation.”