Below are the 20 most recent journal entries recorded in realberserker's LiveJournal:

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Saturday, September 10th, 2011
2:14 pm	Is Green Monster a Scam? First off: I'm doing some active freelancing work and still searching for a full-time position (or even a part-time job that could lead to something long-term). If you have any suggestions, no matter how oddball, please drop me a line. Advertising developments: It looks like Saatchi & Saatchi LA is going to get their hands slapped for an overly immersive ad campaign on behalf of Toyota. It certainly seems like this one was over the top, but I wonder if S&S LA has any kind of incentive in the contract for generating news stories that stem from the campaign. If so, I hope Toyota wrote in a clause to deduct legal costs. Searching for work: There are a lot of scams out there. When you're looking for a job, you have to put a lot of yourself out there. Legitimate employers want personal information like job history, addresses, references, birthdays and the like. Unfortunately, con artists posing as employers can do a lot of harm with that information. Some of the common scams to watch out for are advance fee scams, 'work-from-home' cons, and 'background checks' that seek a little too much information. I mention this, because even with my paranoia, I got burned. I took a job with a company called Green Monster, doing in-home sales presentations for energy conservation products (solar water heaters, UV window film, and radiant barriers). It was commission only, and had some pretty insane driving (150 miles a day or so). So, I did the presentations, racked up some bills, and was supposed to wait for commission checks to come in 2-4 weeks after each sale. After working with Green Monster for ~2 months doing sales presentations, I had made a few sales but hadn't gotten a single paycheck. I threw good money after bad, working long after I should have walked away. When "the check is in the mail" got old, I told my manager he needed to pay me or stop sending me leads. After the leads quit coming, I opened a case with the Texas Pay Day Law division to try and get my backwages. So, let this be a warning to you - not all 'scam' jobs are obvious even when you go in with your eyes wide open. Here's another scam to add to the list: 'paid' jobs that are really volunteer work. In other news: The loans that I made on Prosper.com have now either paid me back or defaulted. Overall, I'm glad that I got my money back, but disappointed that I didn't do much more than break even. I did help fund some worthwhile investments, and I didn't lose as much as I could have by investing in the stock market at the same time. If Prosper becomes available in Texas again, I think I would put some more money on the line. Guilty admission of the month: I went hog hunting with my dad on a deer lease recently, and we didn't see anything bigger than a roadrunner. And, you know what? I was okay with that. Just camping out and enjoying the cold front was all right with me. Strangest Thing I've Seen On eBay Recently: I decided to use the "sort by most-to-least expensive" option, and found that the highest starting price for a coin goes to this bizarre gem: a Ruble reputed to be stained with the blood of the last Czar. Activism ideas: The Tarrant Area Food Bank is now sponsoring Community Gardens. I wonder if there's any being built up by North Richland Hills. Rant of the month: McDonald's oatmeal is a terrible mix of sicky sweet ingredients and is a parody of health food. But it probably isn't the least natural thing on their menu. If I could go anywhere in the world right now, I’d head to: The New York Academy of Art to check out their exhbits. I also just found out that they're holding their 20th annual Take Home a Nude charity auction this year (probably sometime in October). If I had a time machine I’d head to: Broadway in 1926 to see Jeanne Eagels play Sadie Thompson in Rain. She was an Ziegfeld Follies alumn who had toured with Rain for two seasons, and gave a farewell performance on Broadway in 1926. The strangest YouTube video I've seen lately: Weight Watch: 220. Top 10 movies in my Netflix queue: Burn Notice: S2: D2 Three Sheets: S4: D2 Citizen Kane Loot The True Story of Marion Davies Get Low No Strings Attached The Man Who Would Be King True Grit Scream 4 A Quote to leave you with: "I spent 33 years and four months in active military service and during that period I spent most of my time as a high class thug for Big Business, for Wall Street and the bankers. In short, I was a racketeer, a gangster for capitalism." -Major General Smedley Butler, Medal of Honor, Marine Corps Brevet Medal, Army Distinguished Service Medal, Navy Distinguished Service Medal, French Order of the Black Star. (Comment on this)
Wednesday, March 9th, 2011
8:37 am	Jennifer Aniston's Sex Tape & other advertising genius First off: Work is going well, and I'm coming up on my 90 day review. Wish me luck! I'm a bit worried, because the JC Penney/Searchdex/Google affair is putting a pall over the whole SEO industry. Advertising developments: Google Instant is hosing some leading organic search result leaders. For example, searching for "Office..." of "Office Supplies" will never pull up Staples. Ditto for Lowes vs. Home Depot, SYMS vs. Men's Wearhouse, and anyone else competing with a company that internalizes common search terms into their product name. I also enjoyed the linkbait that is Jennifer Aniston's Sex Tape. It's not what you think; instead it's a barrage of internet memes wrapped up in a self-mocking commercial for Smart Water. Closer to home (for me), the Attorney General of Texas is trying to get a peek inside Google's black box for AdWords. The list of requested documentation is worth perusing, just because it illustrates how many different factors and agents are involved in setting the price of Google's online ads. Here's an interesting read about How to use Social Media to lose friends and alienate people. I'm assuming it's a list of what not to do, but I can only imagine someone using it at face value. Here are a few banner ads that I found interesting: First up is an ad for a Hydroponics company. Why is it that all of these ads always look like headshop advertisement? Okay, know thy market, but there are people who are trying to grow grains & veggies hydroponically. The crude penis that appears in this layout doesn't help either. Penny stocks (in my opinion) are big scams. So, a penny stock tip website is going to be pretty scammy. But, how could you turn down advice from a beautiful woman? Gotta love ads that try to use the glow effect. Some ads are so bizarre that they make me question the credibility of the site that I found them on. This Gold / Food shortage paranoia banner ad is a pretty good example. The diagonal placement of the company name isn't helping the ad either. Searching for work: Do you dread interview questions that are about way more than they seem to be about? Well, here are the 15 hardest interview questions, answered. So, quit your dreading. A company has recently launched that aims to be the Experian of online reputation. MyWebCareer offers a free social media credit score, based on your Facebook or LinkedIn profile. There are quite a few additional elements that I think they're missing, but it seems like an intriguing start. Based on my Facebook profile alone, I have a meager 436 point score. How do you rank? In other news: I'm a bit concerned about the expansion of government powers in regulating the internet. Here's a news story that slipped almost completely below the radar: ICE froze all of the accounts managed by a top level registrar and knocked their customers off-line for 72-96 hours. This may have been part of an attempt to seize evidence for a huge child pornography sting; but it doesn't seem like the ICE agency should have the authority to go around due process like this (especially when their actions impacted so many uninvolved parties). I'm also interested in the idea of "Naked Therapy". I wonder if my insurance would pay for a session with the gorgeous Sarah White. Fareed Zakaria raises an interesting point about our budget priorities - why are we spending on consumption instead of investment? We're currently spending $4 or $5 on Boomers for every dollar that we spend on the youth (childhood immunizations / education / kids nutrition programs). Why is that? And how can we fix it? Guilty admission of the month: I'm as guilty as the next blogger of falling prey to princess syndrome. Strangest Thing I've Seen On eBay Recently: Apparently, PleasureHorse.co is worth about $6,950, while Fingering.co is worth a mere $695. Activism ideas: I'm angry that Congress is trying to defund NPR. If you have just a minute, please contact your senator and ask them to vote against the bill robbing funding from National Public Radio and other arts programs. I'm fully behind balancing the budget: I'd like to see cuts in a lot of other areas before we see public discourse get slashed. Rant of the month: Some people are really paranoid about their gold... and this guy really doesn't think using a bank safety deposit box is a good idea in this day of DHS anti-terrorism powers. The part about a gag rule on bank employees is really bizarre and over the top. It does make me wonder though - what would happen if your box was being searched and you showed up at the bank to access it? Awk-ward. Also, is there anything like an auto-club that you can install inside your safety deposit box to prevent unwanted access? Something that blocks the access port and can't be easily cut apart might be effective (ie; a security grate like they drop in front of shop doors, or a recessed telescoping bar that holds a smaller box within your box). Knockout gas paired with a radio beacon might also do the trick. I was surprised to find out that most banks do not insure the contents of a safety deposit box unless they are negligent (ie; a pipe bursts and floods the box, or the bank gives access to the wrong person but good luck proving that!). Even more surprising: many home owners and rental insurance policies do cover safety deposit boxes. If I could go anywhere in the world right now: I'd visit the Playboy club in Macao to celebrate the Year of the Rabbit. If I had a time machine I’d head to: 1931 for the opening of Eaton's Ninth Floor Restaurant. Eaton is a defunct Canadian department store that seems very similar in history and scope to Sears in the US. The restaurant at their flagship store was inspired by the Art Deco designs of the SS Ile de France cruise ship. My favorite YouTube video of the moment: shows Felicia Day and Jonathan Coulton singing 'Still Alive'... this is so full of win, that it may cause your computer to crash, reboot, and autodetect a hard drive full of pictures of topless redheaded schoolgirls wrestling each other on a trampoline made of whipped cream. It's a distinct possibility. Weight Watch: 211. I'm boosting my workouts, and my body has built muscle without ditching fat, so far. Top 10 movies in my Netflix queue: Red Warehouse 13: Season 1: Disc 3 Killers Gold Diggers of 1933 Chloe Constantine The Outlaw Sealab 2021: Season 1: Disc 1 Olive Thomas: The Flapper Harry Brown Oh, and this Netflix bomb on a cheating ex-girlfriend is pretty hilarious. A Quote to leave you with: "Our gross national product ... if we should judge America by that - counts air pollution and cigarette advertising, and ambulances to clear our highways of carnage. It counts special locks for our doors and the jails for those who break them. It counts the destruction of our redwoods and the loss of our natural wonder in chaotic sprawl. It counts napalm and the cost of a nuclear warhead, and armored cars for police who fight riots in our streets. It counts Whitman's rifle and Speck's knife, and the television programs which glorify violence in order to sell toys to our children. Yet the gross national product does not allow for the health of our children, the quality of their education, or the joy of their play. It does not include the beauty of our poetry or the strength of our marriages; the intelligence of our public debate or the integrity of our public officials. It measures neither our wit nor our courage; neither our wisdom nor our learning; neither our compassion nor our devotion to our country; it measures everything, in short, except that which makes life worthwhile. And it tells us everything about America except why we are proud that we are Americans." -Robert Kennedy (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Wednesday, February 2nd, 2011
5:55 am	Times Square advertising, a new coin website, and assorted news First off: I love the cold weather, but can't stand icy roads. What's the deal with snow in Texas? It's only February! Advertising developments: Everyone is gearing up for the Superbowl, and I recently came across a news story that irks me. The Superbowl flyover in 2011 will cost taxpayers upwards of $450,000 for a (possible) 5 second appearance on national TV. For some idiotic reason, the Navy is flying 5 F-18s all the way from Virginia Beach, Virginia instead of using the wing stationed next door at Fort Worth Naval Air Station. Granted, Superbowl airtime is valuable, but that's enough dough to pay 10 decent salaries... or 30 entry-level advertising employees! I also am paying attention to news about Univision. The Spanish language station is growing rapidly, which suggests that there's going to be continuing growth in Spanish language ads for the Hispanic market. Despite the recession, infomercials continue to have a strong showing. I suspect that the number of hours spent in front of a TV has risen even faster than disposable income has fallen. Personally, I'm as busy as I've ever been before, and I haven't seen an infomercial in months. I recently launched a website for my Coin Collecting hobby, and I've been trying out some new SEO and advertising techniques on it. For instance, I created my first Facebook ad campaign at the end of January. As of this morning, I've spent $7.37 for 130,199 impressions and 35 clicks. The CTR for my best performing ad is 0.036%, so I need to kick it up a notch. It looks like opting to pay for CPM over CPC (ie; impressions instead of clicks) generates a very high repetition rate per viewer. Is there a way to put a cap on that? I'd like more unique impressions if I'm going to pay for each one. Speaking of Facebook ads - I recently took part in a Corona Light promotion that put my mug up on a billboard in Times Square. Check it out here, here, and here. With Facebook "likes" turning into more than a popularity contest, I expect to see more campaigns that deliver something to consumers in exchange for their value indicator. Searching for work: If you're looking for a job, you might want to worry about what the HR department will find when they do a search for your name. I've tried to deal with this by building profiles and touchstones that gather the positive information about me in easy to find locations, but what can you do if you have an evil twin? Or, worse yet, if you have a common name that links to all sorts of people (good and bad)? Here's a real eye-opener of how badly tainted your name can be... Guilty admission of the month: I drove to work on Tuesday (the day of the ice storm) and spent an hour going each way to put in 3 hours at the office. In hindsight... not the smartest thing I've ever done. Strangest Thing I've Seen On eBay Recently: Apparently, anvils are collectible. Compared to other investments, I imagine security is less of a concern with this collectible, and transportation/storage is much greater of a concern. Rant of the month: Here's a pretty good explanation of how US labor law is like pay-as-you-go toilets. Yes, you read that correctly. If I could go anywhere in the world right now: I'd visit Central Park in NYC, because concerts like this are going on there all the time. If I had a time machine I’d head to: September 1st, 2010. I'd take a short hop back to see a Sci-Fi themed burlesque show that I missed at the Lakewood Theater. Princess Leia, striptease? How did I not hear about this?! Then, I'd take a side trip to Coco Cay to see the Silversun Pickups, the Dan Band, Nelly, and lots of drunken nudity. Weight Watch: 211 (down from 214 at New Years). Phrase of the day: "Tall Poppy Syndrome". This concept refers to how groups often cut down people with superior abilities simply because they are outstanding. I also think the historical reference is pretty cold (even if it is a bit garbled). Top 10 movies in my Netflix queue: Going the Distance Olive Thomas: The Flapper Red Inception Knight & Day Killers Foyle's War; Set 6: Disc 3: The Hide Family Guy: Something, Something... Dark Side Young Indiana Jones: Vol 1: Disc 2: Passion for Life The Killer Inside Me A Quote to leave you with: "My loyalty to my party ends where my loyalty to my country begins." -Manuel Quezon Current Mood: 8 ] (Comment on this)
Thursday, December 23rd, 2010
3:13 pm	Now with 100% more Watauga! It's been entirely too long since I posted an update here, so I just wanted to note that I've moved out to Watauga, TX (a suburb in the midcities area of the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex). I've started a new SEO job, moved into a new/bigger/cheaper house, and am hosting a New Year's Party this year. Drop me a line if you're interested. We've been here for nearly a month and still haven't unpacked everything. Well, today I finally ran a network speed test, and I'm happy to note an improvement. According to Speakeasy's DSL test, I'm getting 2.57 Mb/s download and 0.43 Mb/s upload speeds. So, I've really got no excuse for slacking with updates. Oh, I am working on a new website. There's not much up yet, but I hope to do some fun things with MyCoins.co Current Mood: relaxed (Comment on this)
Wednesday, September 22nd, 2010
7:40 pm	Should I buy a house to beat inflation? And other musings... First off: 2 weeks ago, I started a new job. And now I'm unemployed again. Well, the job I started was working as a co-manager at a retirement center with my wife. On our 3rd day of training, she got a MUCH better job offer, and the employer didn't have any provisions in place to accommodate a single employee. When my wife withdrew from the training program, I was let go. It was actually going pretty well (even though the hours were brutal) and I was getting my mind wrapped around working in a very different field. Now, I'm kind of left feeling like the rug was yanked out from under me. Advertising developments: It looks like the US Senate is stepping in to regulate the volume of TV commercials. This has been coming for a while, and I don't really buy the argument from TV channels/cable companies that the challenge is SO technically difficult that they can't possibly achieve an even volume from different inputs. What do you think? Advertising that targets children has long been an ethical morass. The latest report from the American Academy of Pediatrics is likely to sway more parents opinions than the last dozen from media watchgroups though... On a more cheerful note - I cracked up when I realized that KFC is engaging in some truth-in-assvertising! Their new campaign for the double down involves sweatpants for coeds with a logo emblazoned on the ass. Finally, they're admitting that fried food goes straight to the hips! In other news: It looks like there's not going to be no Social Security price increase in 2011. That's going to be rough for Boomers, but THANK GOODNESS. Also, I'm considering buying a house. Now, I'm one of the last people in my circle of friends to even think about drinking the kool-aid. I was cautioning people about buying houses for about a year before the phrase "housing-bubble" started showing up on the nightly news. Here's a pretty good overview of the reasons that I prefer to be a renter. My list would start out with the nuisance/cost of maintenance, and, in Texas, property/school taxes are a particularly pointed concern, but it's still a good list. Yet, I'm starting to worry about inflation. I suspect that the 0.25% Federal Funds Rate is going to backfire with a vengeance, and it's hard to stop inflation once it gets rolling. When inflation gets started again, I wouldn't be surprised to see a few quarters of double digit price increases. As a renter, I might be able to benefit for a few months until my contract came up for renewal, but my monthly budget would be very exposed to changes in housing prices. Bearing that in mind, I've been looking at some of the HUD foreclosure listings, and I was really surprised to find that I may be able to get a 3 or 4 bedroom house for under $80,000 that isn't in the back of beyond or in a Detroit/Gotham-esque neighborhood. I ran some back of the napkin calculations, and payments on a thirty year note work out to less than half of what I'm paying in rent for a duplex in downtown Dallas. Even after adding in a few hundred dollars a month for tax and maintenance costs, that works out to pretty significant savings (and that's before considering the accrued principal). There's something else important to consider - how inflation will affect the real cos of a fixed rate payment. Exchanging my rental agreement for a mortgage offers the opportunity to get a house now and pay for it in devalued currency later. Assuming that salaries rise when inflation kicks in, that means I'd come out ahead even if the real value of the house declines (up to a point). With 0% interest, an inflation adjusted $500 mortgage wouldn't change over the course of the loan. But with 3%, 5%, or even 10% average interest, look what happens at the 10 and 20 year marks: 3%: $500 --> $371 --> $274 5%: $500 --> $300 --> $180 10%: $500 --> $174 --> $61 Guilty admission of the month: In order to get the clutter in my house under control, I've already started packing for our move at the end of November. If I could go anywhere in the world right now: I'd be scuba diving in Borneo while staying on a converted oil platform/hotel. Sweet! If I had a time machine I’d head to: 1810 to check out the original Oktoberfest. I did sign up for the BJ's rewards card - they're offering a chance to win airfare and hotels in Munich at next year's festival (but I have to imagine that it will be tough to exceed the 200 year anniversary this year). Weight Watch: 199. Word of the day:bas·ti·na·do: –noun 1. a mode of punishment consisting of blows with a stick on the soles of the feet or on the buttocks. 2. a blow or a beating with a stick, cudgel, etc. 3. a stick or cudgel. –verb (used with object) 4. to beat with a stick, cane, etc., esp. on the soles of the feet or on the buttocks. Top 10 movies in my Netflix queue: Supernatural: Season 5: Disc 3 Clash of the Titans The Joneses Harry Brown And Starring Pancho Villa As Himself The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnasus The Sand Pebbles Funny People Adventureland Cold Souls A Quote to leave you with: "One who is too insistent on his own views finds few to agree with him." -Lao-Tzu Current Mood: sleepy (Comment on this)
Saturday, July 24th, 2010
9:20 am	Jobs with benefits, and security theater First off: Work is winding down at my current job, and I'm really kicking my job search up into a higher gear. One of the most promising jobs I've applied for recently is offering benefits that outweigh the salary, and I was wondering - how do you weigh the true value of benefits with a job? For me, the value of health insurance, lodging, and a meal plan is only equivalent to the amount that I would spend on each of those categories on my own. I mean, if an employer offers a $400 a month insurance plan, but you were doing just fine on a $100 a month private plan, is the benefit really worth $400 or $100? Advertising developments: Despite their genius and popularity, it looks like the Old Spice Man ads aren't having the intended effect. Hmm. Could this be because men typically buy their own personal products? It seems like this whole campaign was written for women, by women, which pretty much misses the point. Some of the coolest ads I've seen recently surfaced in a London subway. This unused section acted as a time capsule to preserve the old ads. I wonder what slices of todays ad space are likewise going to be preserved? In other news: Whole Foods is rolling out more fuel cell power systems at their stores. I still want to know why sewage/methane systems aren't more widespread. Guilty admission of the month: I've entered more than 100 different sweepstakes this month and dropped almost $200 at Winstar Casino. Winning a big prize really motivates you to waste time on those things, I guess. Activism ideas: I still want to form an urban gleaning program to harvest fruit and nuts for local food shelters. Anyone have an idea of where to start with that? Rant of the month: I rode American Airlines out to California, and the baggage fees / security BS just felt cheap. I had to go outside the security checkpoint and mail some cheese graters to myself that were included in a cheese board we were carrying with us - that's just idiocy. Anyway, here's a good rant about Security Theater and the TSA. If I could go anywhere in the world right now: I'd be somewhere cooler, like Greenland. If I had a time machine I’d head to: 1268, to visit the Dunhuang Buddhist Caves at their peak. It would also be amazing to visit the site around 1880, when it was buried under the sands and just waiting to be rediscovered. Weight Watch: 196. I was pushing 200 at my doctor's exam last week, and I was a bit offended when he said "I'm sure you've heard this before, but you need to lose weight." Actually, no! I went from not receiving that message at all, to it being generally understood? Ouch. Top 10 movies in my Netflix queue: Inglorious Basterds Three Sheets Season 2: Disc 2 Grey's Anatomy Season 5: Disc 3 Psych Season 2: Disc 1 White Noise 2 Duplicity Balls of Fury 10th Victim Before Sunrise Sweet Revenge A Quote to leave you with: "Good judgment comes with experience, but experience comes from bad judgment." - Rita Mae Brown Current Mood: relieved (Comment on this)
Tuesday, June 1st, 2010
12:09 am	Have you updated your bucket list? There are quite a few things I hope to accomplish before they throw dirt over me, and I've barely scratched the surface. So, I sat down and updated this list to take stock of how I'm doing on achieving my goals. Are there any things on here that you've done and I haven't? If so, I'd appreciate your advice on how to achieve them. Also, are there any things on this list that you would never do, even if someone paid you thousands of dollars? Here's my list (in no particular order): Travel to all 7 continents Learn to sail a boat Win a fencing competition Go to the Olympics Get ranked in the top 10 in the state in my Tennis age division Attend a World's Fair / Expo Tame a wild horse Ride in a hot air balloon Go hang gliding BASE jump Soar in a human flying squirrel suit Walk on the moon (or an asteroid in a pinch) Learn Spanish Get more than 10 people at a Meetup event that I organize Eat a Chicken Fried Steak in all 50 states Eat a Chicken Fried Steak in 10 countries Patent something Get a Gold NASTAR skiing medal (or at least another silver) Build a lifesized snowman Enter a sandcastle sculpting contest Experience weightlessness Make a whole meal out of food I grew or caught Vote for someone I believe without reservations Write a piece of legislation to be proud of Win a mint design contest Make an ice sculpture Sell an artwork for more than the cost of materials Go waterskiing Ski down a double black diamond trail Sell a book manuscript for publication Get my name onto movie credits Earn enough income to file a return in the top tax bracket Fly in a zeppelin or self propelled blimp Commission a painting Win a disc golf tournament Beat Yang and Tim both by double digits in a round of disc golf Win a photo contest prize Win more than $5 on a lottery ticket Shake the hand of someone who's been to the moon Win a writing contest Go to more than 100 countries Get my motorcycle license Earn a fellowship Teach a class as a guest speaker Win a court case Crash a party Earn a certification Learn to play a guitar Brew Mead that's drinkable Win a beer brewing prize Forge a sword Grow a third generation plant Discover (or rediscover) an unknown plant or animal Spend a week in the Louvre (sleeping elsewhere if necessary) Go skydiving Visit the Eagle River Ice Palace Go bungee jumping (bonus: strapped to a jetpack) Find an undiscovered shipwreck / ID an unknown wreck Shoot a deer (but only if it deserves it and looks tasty) Author a neologism into Webster's dictionary (I'm partial to "Fidiot") Appear on TV (preferably not COPS or America's Most Wanted) Call-in to a radio show Enter the Olympic Team Trials in Epee Take a whitewater rafting trip Go to the Olympics in some unknown sport Learn to surf & windsurf Scuba dive again (I hurt my ears during an emergency assent, but it's past time to get back on that horse) Walk under Kapoloa Falls Go snowboarding Design and mint a medal Name a planet Adopt a pet from a shelter Grow myself a spice rack Run for office (losing spectacularly builds character!) Fly first class Volunteer at an archaeological dig Pillow fight in zero-g Get on the cover of Wired Attend the MIT Time Travelers Convention: May 7th, 2005, 10:00 EDT (42:21:36.025 degrees N, 71:05:16.332 degrees W) Correspond with a WWI vet (only about 4 are left in the US, so I need to get cracking on this) Visit the Unclaimed Baggage Center in Scottsboro, Alabama Buy a package at a USPS auction Scuba dive on White Crane Ridge (China) Attend Bergkirchweih (beer festival in Germany) Some things I've checked off the list: Start a blog -- Done on: 12/2/2005 Fly in a helicopter -- Done on: 8/16/2003 Pet a tiger/lion/leopard/bear/cheetah/bobcat -- Done on: 11/6/2004 (a dead bobcat; not really what I had in mind) Shoot a bullseye at 100 yards -- Done on: 11/8/2004 Publish something for pay -- Done on: 9/2005 (in the spring 2006 issue of Texas Highway Patrol Magazine) Get a post greenlit on Fark -- Done on: 7/13/2008 Get married without going into debt -- 4/11/2009, with everything paid off by the end of the next month Win a sweepstakes drawing -- 1/4/2010; I won a $5,000 contest sponsored by the Cheeses of France for a trip to Napa, a 2 day stay in the Auberge de Soleil ($1400 a night rooms), a private culinary lesson, breakfast champagne toast, and hot air balloon ride at dawn. I'm also gradually working on the list in the book 101 Things To Do Before You Die. The things I've done are marked in bold.) [1. Write a best seller] [2. Swim with the scariest, biggest, and most colorful creatures in the sea] [3. Win an award, trophy or prize] [4. Catch a fish with your bare hands] [5. Make a discovery] [6. Throw a house party] [7. Be part of a threesome] [8. Realize your childhood dream] [9. Learn that instrument] [10. Leave your mark in graffiti] [11. Storm chase a tornado] [12. Get a piece of art into an exhibition] [13. Meet someone with your own name] [14. Ride the world's biggest roller coasters] [15. Stage dive or crowd surf] [16. Get into the Guinness book of world records] [17. Own a pointless collection] [18. Study the Kama Sutra and put theory into practice] [19. Master poker and win big in casino] [20. Get backstage and get off with a rock god] [21. Be a human guinea pig] [22. Go up in a hot air balloon] [23. Get arrested] [24. See a space shuttle launch] [25. Capture the moment in an award-winning photograph] [26. Bungee jump] [27. See an erupting volcano] [28. Sky dive] [29. Meet your idol] [30. Stay in the best suite in a five star hotel] [31. Experience weightlessness] [32. See the Aurora Borealis] [33. Get the score a hole in one] [34. Design your own cocktail] [35. Play a part of your favorite TV show] [36. Visit every country] [37. Make fire without matches] [38. See these animals in the wild...] [39. Go to the dogs] [40. Get a free upgrade on a plane] [41. Be friends with your ex] [42. Hit your targets] [43. Throw a dart into a map and travel where it lands] [44. Attend a film premiere] [45. Do a runner from a fancy restaurant] [46. Scuba Dive] [47. Milk a cow] [48. Be present when your country wins the world cup] [49. See both the solar and lunar eclipses] [50. Write your name over a star on the walk of fame] [51. Learn another language] [52. Read the greatest books ever written] I've read 7 out of 85. Kinda sad, really. [53. Complete a coast to coast road trip across America] [54. Make at least one huge purchase you can't afford] [55. Score the winning goal/try/basket] [56. Gatecrash a fancy party] [57. See the All-time greatest films] I've seen 58 out of 132 [58. Live in a place you love] [59. Leave a job you hate] [60. Take a part in a police line-up] [61. Get away with the perfect practical joke or hoax] [62. Join the mile high club] [63. Make the front page of a national paper] [64. Drive a car a top speed] [65. Shout "Drinks are on me" in a pub or bar] [66. Be part of a flash mob] [67. Visit the new Wonders of the World] [68. Save someone's life] [69. In various language learn to say... ] [70. Invent a word that makes it into a dictionary] [71. Have adventurous sex] [72. Have enough money to do all the things in the list] [73. Stand on the international date line] [74. Learn to fly a plane] [75. Get a tattoo and/or a piercing] (not sure if I'll do this one) [76. Invent something] [77. Learn astronomy and read the night sky] [78. Drink a vintage wine] [79. Answer a personal ad] [80. Spend christmas on the beach] [81. Get barred from a pub or a bar] [82. Build your own house] [83. Skinny dip at midnight] [84. Sell all your junk on eBay and make a profit] [85. Visit the world's tallest buildings] [86. Run a marathon] [87. Conquer your fear] [88. Get married unusually] [89. Throw away the instant noodles] [90. Join the 16-Mile high club] [91. Publish a cult website] [92. Own an original work of art] [93. Complete the monopoly pub crawl] [94. Get something named after you] [95. Get revenge] [96. Be an extra in a film] [97. Live out of a van] [98. Go on a demonstration] [99. Confess] [100. Reach 100 years of age] [101. Continue your gene pool] Current Mood: creative (Comment on this)
Friday, April 16th, 2010
8:56 am	Downgraded my DSL speed - ouch I recently downgraded my DSL speed (because the promotional period with AT&T ended, and $35 a month is a bit steep for 1.5 mbps). I'm supposed to be getting 750k, but my connection seems suspiciously slow. Here are some test results from different sites: From http://support.primus.ca/en/dsl/speedtest.php3 Time Elapsed: 20.246188879013 Seconds Transfered: 1086976 bytes 419.44 KiloBits / Second Do you think the problem is on my end, or do I need to contact AT&T and ask what's going on? Current Mood: cranky (Comment on this)
Tuesday, March 30th, 2010
9:00 am	Got a new job, but I'm still searching for something long-term First off: I've started a new job, but it isn't going to last for long. Not to get into specifics, but let's say that I'm working for a government agency that hires a lot of people once a decade (and I'm not talking about the Department of Defense). At work, I've been making phone calls to a bunch of potential job applicants. The phone etiquette that many job seekers use is fighteningly bad. Based on my HR experience, here are a few helpful tips for job seekers: 1) Leave a good callback number. This seems like a no-brainer, but an amazing number of people fumble a digit or put the wrong area code. If you leave the wrong number, there's not much point in waiting for the phone to ring. 2) Use your own phone number. If I reach your husband, best friend, or Great Aunt Clara, I'm going to assume that I have the wrong number. So, if you don't have your own phone, make sure that the person whose phone line you use knows that you're using their number. Also, their phone etiquette becomes just as important as your own. 3) Answer the phone politely. "Whazzup," "Yo boy," and "Who the fuck is this?" are not good lines to open the conversation with. 4) Don't answer the phone if you can't talk. If you're at work, in the bathroom, driving, at a strip club, or otherwise in the wrong place at the wrong time, let your phone go to voicemail. 5) Set up your voicemail or install an answering machine. When I hear "This user has not set up their voicemail box," I really hear "This prospective employee is lazy, technologically challenged, or both." And there are few things more annoying than an endlessly ringing phone. 6) Make sure to empty your voicemail or put in a new tape when your machine is full. If you're circulating your resume all around town, then maybe you don't need to hear from me after all. 7) Record a professional message. Keep your message short and respectful - long messages waste the time of whoever is calling and are particularly tedious for repeated phone calls. Caller's don't need to hear your life story, they don't care how cute your kid's voices are, and they don't need fancy sound effects. This seems obvious to me, but some people I called this week had rants directed against telemarketers, dire warnings that I better not be one of their stalkers, and even a poetry recitation. 8) Use a professional ring tone. Call me old fashioned, but when I call a phone number, I expect to hear the line ringing. I already dislike phones that play music instead of a ring tone, so bad music is a second strike. When you're looking for work, it isn't a good idea to entertain callers with a techno version of "Baby Got Back" or "Pearl Necklace". 9) Pay your bills. If your phone bill is past due, there's a good chance that the phone company will cut off incoming calls. If you're dodging bill collectors, that can also make it hard to catch a phone call from an unknown number. 10) Keep regular hours. Even if you're unemployed, that's no excuse to sleep in past noon. Not only do newly-awakened people have poor phone skills, but it can also rub a caller the wrong way. If I have to be at work at 8 am, then I take perverse pride in waking anyone up who got to sleep in. On a related note - here are 50 Things Not-To-Do In a Job Interview. Guilty admission of the month: Have you ever gotten dressed in the dark, only to regret your clothing decisions in the light of day? Well, I had a doozy the other day. When I went to take my lunch break, I realized that I'd been wearing two belts all day (one over the other). Rant of the month: It looks like Walmart may be putting some real muscle behind their "Heritage Agriculture" program. Could the House that Sam Built really turn into a driving force in local food? WTF? If I could go anywhere in the world right now: I'd go check out the Cloud 9 tethered balloon in Vegas. This thing sounds cool (although I might need to go check it out last week, since it just crashed to the ground pretty spectacularly). If I had a time machine I’d head to: Australia for the Melbourne Food and Wine Festival. On March 12th, there was a cool event billed as the "World's Longest Lunch". A long table covered in white cloth is going to be set up along Little Bourke Street with 1,000 seats. That would be a fun way to get in the Guinness Book of World Records. Or, you could always go with the Great Guinness Toast on 2/10/2010... Weight Watch: 199 I tried out a new scale this week that says I have 8.7% body fat. I don't know if I believe that - it certainly seems like I have more than 17 lbs of fat to lose. Top 10 movies in my Netflix queue: Inglorious Basterds Three Sheets Season 2: Disc 2 Grey's Anatomy Season 5: Disc 3 Psych Season 2: Disc 1 White Noise 2 Duplicity Balls of Fury 10th Victim Before Sunrise Sweet Revenge A video that caught my eye: This CareerBuilder ad resonated with me: "Isn't it time that someone lit a fire under you?" A Quote to leave you with: “A good traveler has no fixed plans, and is not intent on arriving.” -Lao Tzu (Comment on this)
Monday, January 25th, 2010
4:29 pm	Rediscovering the job market, c.2010 First off: I'm looking for a new job after about a two year hiatus. My Christmas bonus this year was a 2 week severance package, so I'm starting the year with a boot to my backside and all the encouragement you could ask for to find a better paying gig. Since my last search, the job hunting field has changed a bit, and there are a lot of different web tools available. Here are some of the job search sites that I'm using: *Craigslist.com - There seem to be a lot more scams on the site lately, but there are some gems if you're willing to dig *Indeed.com - Has a great meta-search feel, like kayak for job seekers *Monster.com - I just updated my profile on this venerable site; we'll see if it generates any useful leads. *CareerBuilder.com - Unlike some other sites I signed up for, their e-mail notifications are based on a useful logarithm. Instead of recommending plumbing and real estate jobs to me, it actually includes notifications about jobs I'd be interested in applying for (which is refreshing). *GreenJobs.com - Has a lot of exciting cleantech opportunities, but most of the jobs require professional certifications and engineering degrees. I'm still keeping my eyes peeled for some marketing work in that field though! *USAJobs.com - good for seasonal work: it's how I got my job with the National Park Service a few years ago A few others that have been recommended include: *Dice.com *Jobing.com *Hotjobs.com I'm sure there are dozens of other sites that I'm missing. What do you recommend? Are there any D/FW centered sites that I should check out? I'm still avoiding the WorkInTexas job bank run by Texas Workforce. When I tried using it 2 years ago, it was a total time suck. The only jobs that were ever listed were manual labor and minimum wage "careers". Worst of all, if you are recommended for a job on the site, you MUST apply or risk losing your UI benefits. Which idiot thought up that idea? Advertising developments: Superbowl weekend is coming up soon, which means that some of the biggest budget ads of the year are coming. There's going to be one spot that's not like the others in 2010... turns out that CBS changed a longstanding policy banning advocacy ads and sold 30 seconds of Superbowl XLIV to an anti-abortion group. This may open the door for other controversial ads, but how many advocacy groups have nearly $3M to throw around? I came across this floating logo technology a while back, but still haven't seen it deployed. Can you think of some interesting applications for it? Perhaps making hearts over a couples store for Valentine's Day? Or spelling out messages one letter at a time? In other news: What ever happened with the news coverage of Colony Collapse Disorder? I've been keeping a lookout for news on this topic, but there haven't been any major developments in the news recently. The latest research has been unable to pin down a particular pathogen causing the collapse, but affected bees have massive pathogen loads hinting at a weakened immune system. So, it seems like bees are getting hit with something that has HIV like effects. The falling interest in the subject is just another way in which CCD is like AIDS - after the initial panic, concern about this issue has just tapered away. Something startling: Zane Lamprey is going on tour. I might have to catch his Dallas (or Austin) appearance. Guilty admission of the month: I haven't given a dime to Haiti. Honestly - there are many more people who die worldwide from malnutrition, poor indoor air, pollution, and other causes that I think we need to work on, and I really don't feel Haiti tugging on my heart strings. Then again, the recent loss of my job might also have something to do with it, along with the fact that I'm a frugal SOB who primarily donates to political candidates and nature conservation groups... Activism ideas: I hate companies trying to bait and switch me. The Miles by Discover Card is an example of some shady business practices that left me angry enough to write the FTC and issue a complaint. Here's what I sent to the Feds (and I urge you to make a similar complaint - they only investigate these issues when enough people make a stink): "Discover Card Credit Services sent a flier in the mail promoting their Miles by Discover Card with "Free Tickets - Unlimited Companion Airline Tickets for a Full Year" printed across the top. This promotion (promotion code DALU) seems to be a clear scam. I contacted the agent to find out the particulars of the redemption process, and she referred me to Affinion Loyalty Group. When I called that number, I found that tickets cost twice as much as they do on outside travel sites. If it costs $240 to buy an airline ticket on Delta.com, and $500 to buy a ticket with a "free companion fare," then how is their advertising truthful?" Rant of the month: This may be a bit dated, but it was an incredibly timely diatribe about the housing bubble. If I could go anywhere in the world right now: I'd go check out Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon, Myanmar. The pagoda is decorated with thousands of diamonds and rubies, and swathed in gold - all products of more than 500 years of donation from Buddhist pilgrims. If I had a time machine I’d head to: Portland, Oregon on November 24th, 1971. How cool would it be to take a flight with DB Cooper? Or to spike his bourbon soda? Weight Watch: 199 I tried out a new scale this week that says I have 8.7% body fat. I don't know if I believe that - it certainly seems like I have more than 17 lbs of fat to lose. Top 10 movies in my Netflix queue: Cry Wolf Surrogates Inglorious Basterds Grey's Anatomy Season 5: Disc 1 The Girl Next Door Psych Season 1: Disc 3 Three Sheets Season 2: Disc 2 10th Victim Before Sunrise Sweet Revenge A video that caught my eye: This is an amazing use of webcams - synchronizing this must have been a total nightmare! A Quote to leave you with: "You get what you don't pay for." -Jack Bogle (founder of Vanguard Group, an investment company that focuses on delivering low fees to boost client returns) Current Mood: busy (Comment on this)
Thursday, November 26th, 2009
7:28 am	I lost my wedding ring... d'oh! First off: I'm finally on Facebook (MySpace has been turning into a virtual ghost town - will the last person out please turn off the lights?). If I haven't found your profile on there, will you please drop me a line so we can connect? Advertising developments: I took part in the Dreamfund chili cookoff last weekend. That's a pretty cool group, and one that I hope to get more involved with. In other news: If you paid an IMAX surcharge at the movie theater, how pissed would you be if you went into the theater and found an itty bitty IMAX screen. Apparently, some of the theater screens are only 22% the size of full screens and the only way to find out the size is to buy a ticket and go inside. Oh, and I'm doubly concerned about eating sushi now. Several studies done using DNA samples have found that sushi bars aren't even using the fish that they claim to be selling! Something startling: It looks like PR flacks may pick up the baton of investigative journalism. Guilty admission of the month: I lost my wedding ring in the friggin' Gulf of Mexico. I stupidly forgot to take it off before going on a late night stroll on the beach, and it slipped right off (about 300 feet east of Bob Hall Pier in Corpus Christi). Bugger all! If you happen to be in the area with a metal detector, I'm offering a $100 reward plus beer every time I go down there to visit my relatives. Activism ideas: Blood diamonds and oil aren't the only scarce resources fueling conflict. A major cause of the conflict in Sudan is the exploitation of tantalite ore supplies in the region (Tantalum is a rare metal that's widely used in consumer electronics). The good news is that there's something that you can do about this - contact major electronic manufacturers and urge them to boycott tantalum from Sudan. Rant of the month: Palin seems to inspire some pretty strong emotions, and this comparison between Palin and Nixon is very well written. Oh, and there's also a SNL video smashup worth watching - they combined footage from the disaster movie 2012 and Palin's campaign speeches. If I could go anywhere in the world right now: I'd head to Hellbrunn Palace in Austria. The water palace is pretty amazing engineering for the 17th and 18th century. On a related note, it would be fun to swing by Rome and check out the Villa d'Este. If I had a time machine I’d head to: New York City in 1912. That was when the first H&H automat opened in the US. It was right off Times Square, and was quite a sensation at the time. Weight Watch: 196 Top 10 movies in my Netflix queue: Eureka: Season 2: Disc 3 Doctor Who: The Infinite Quest Dexter: Season 3: Disc 1 Supernatural: Season 4: Disc 1 Long Way Round: Disc 1 X-Men Origins: Wolverine The Man Who Never Was Wall Street (it's on the list of movies to See Before You Die, according to Richard Home) Inherit The Wind Three Sheets: Season 1: Disc 2 A video that caught my eye: A Quote to leave you with: "With the national debt now topping $12 trillion, the White House estimates that the government's tab for servicing the debt will exceed $700 billion a year in 2019, up from $202 billion this year, even if annual budget deficits shrink drastically." - Edmund Andrews (Comment on this)
Saturday, July 25th, 2009
12:09 pm	Advertising in bathrooms, hunting wooly mammoths, and other ideas First off: We're about 90% unpacked at the new house (it takes forever to decimate piles of boxes) and will be having a house warming party soon. Keep your schedule clear for August 14th! Advertising developments: For advertising, the bathroom is sometimes seen as the final frontier. Some consumers don't want to be disturbed by even a hint of marketing while they do their business, and many advertisers don't want to be associated with the restroom. But, some people treat the bathroom as a creative challenge. My favorite ad in this gallery is the one for Schizophrenia Awareness, but I think it could have been so much better. What do you think of a lenticular mirror cling that "moves" as people move through the bathroom? This week, the AAF is going to announce new privacy rules regarding online advertising. This is a good step forward, but I don't expect it to do much to affect consumer confidence in data mining. For one thing, very few people will get the message (getting the word out is one thing that you would think the AAF would be better at). For another, consumers have no way of verifying if the companies they interact with are following any privacy guidelines. Lately, there have been a lot of sexually charged ads. I'm a fan. It does seem strange to use sex to sell food (outside of certain fetish friendly audiences), but here's an interesting roundup of hot bodies promoting grub. One of my favorite campaigns from Burger King is the posters promoting their Seven Incher Burgers. Is that Allison Mack? A handful of banner ads caught my eye. These are all examples of inverse text online, which annoys the heck out of me. Why use a text that's hard to read and going to turn away eyeballs? 1 - Sigourney Weaver for the Mandarin Oriental 2 - Forbes Traveler - When was the last time you got away? 3 - I Forgot - Buckle Up, Texas Something startling: Did you know that the breast cancer drug Taxol was derived from the Pacific yew? The yew is an endangered tree that was nearly wiped out by logging. So, the next time someone says something ignorant about the high cost of preserving endangered species, you can point out that wildlife often has unforeseen value. Guilty admission of the month: I watched the whole series "Harper's Island" in about 3 days (thank you Netflix). And while I halfway guessed the killer by episode 5, I fell for 2 red herrings before that. SPOILERS FOLLOW: What I want to know, is why did Chloe and Cal have to die? And how did that brat of a kid survive!!! Activism ideas: If you live in the Dallas area, you should be paying attention to the latest DART developments. I urge you to study the two proposed routes for the green line linkage with the existing blue and red lines, and contact the city council to support the better route. I think the subway route will do a much better job of promoting high density development, but I'm afraid that the owners of the Convention Center are going to ride roughshod over what's best for the Metroplex. Please join me in preventing that from happening. On a totally unrelated note - have you heard about the rising risk of Meth houses? After I moved into a new house, I read this terrifying discussion of the dangers posed by former shake and bake labs. It turns out that there are very few laws governing foreclosed meth labs, and many people who buy these toxic time bombs have no warning of the health risks. Detoxing a meth home can cost $60,000-200,000, and all of the furnishings are often contaminated beyond repair. Whoa. It seems like we can do better at dealing with these homes than following a "buyer beware" strategy. We require notification for renters and buyers when a house has even minute traces of lead paint, so by that standard, I think traces of Meth should require a neon sign on the front door! Getting this changed is going to require some legislation at the state level. I'm writing to my legislators and asking what they're doing to protect homebuyers against meth contamination. This probably isn't on the radar of most state lawmakers, but I'd like to get the ball rolling before the next legislative session. There's another project I'm working on - an urban gleaning project in the Metroplex. Want to help me pick fruit and nuts from residential trees? Rather than let the food go to waste, I'd like to donate it to local food pantries. Rant of the month: Using a cell phone has got to be one of the dumbest things a driver can do. If I could go anywhere in the world right now: I'd go to Lake Tanganyika in Tanzania. There's a ferry that crosses the lake that used to be a WWI German warship. If I had a time machine I’d head to: 30,000 BCE, and go hunting for mammoths along the North American tundra. Weight Watch: 194 Top 10 movies in my Netflix queue: Tru Blood: Season 1: Disc 4 The Pirate Movie Doctor Who: Planet of the Dead Reaper: Season 2: Disc 4 Three Sheets: Season 1: Disc 1 Treasure Planet Chronos Cloverfield David Spade - Take the Hit Wall Street (it's on the list of movies to See Before You Die, according to Richard Home) A video that caught my eye: A Quote to leave you with: The more we sweat in peace the less we bleed in war. -Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit Current Mood: chipper (Comment on this)
Wednesday, July 1st, 2009
6:37 pm	Riding a Bicycle in downtown Dallas and Small Claims Court First off: For this post, I'm taking a break from advertising and branding news. I have plenty of thoughts to share, but need some time to organize my thoughts. In other news: I won my first court case - I was awarded $1000 plus court fees from a telemarketer who wouldn't stop calling me. The TCPA is a pretty awesome law, although I don't think the judge "got it". Now, I just need to file a writ of execution and collect my money (although it's tempting to wait and collect that 5% interest instead of putting it in the bank earning 1.5% or less). Also, I've started biking to work. It's about 5 miles each way, so it's no picnic, but I like the energy boost that biking gives me. Did you know that there's even a federal tax break to promote commuting by bicycle? It's a paltry $20 a month, and an exemption rather than a credit (so it's worth even less), but it's something. Now I just need to figure out how to claim it - if I'm reading the law right, your boss has to offer the bike commuting payment as a benefit, and I don't know if I can pay it to myself tax free. So, how am I biking in the big city? There's a really awesome biking/hiking/rollerblading trail that goes right through downtown Dallas. The KT trail has a very eclectic mix of people too, with an emphasis on young, fit eyecandy to motivate me to get in shape. It's built on ground that used to by owned by a railroad, so there's a cool story about reclaiming wasted space too. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that the extention to the trail becomes a reality, or that it hooks up with the Trinity River trail that's being planned. Something startling that I learned recently: Da Vinci may have painted several nude versions of the Mona Lisa. Guilty admission of the month: Now that I'm biking into work, I often bring a change of clothes with me. Last week, after I got home I realized that I'd put on a new shirt inside out and no one in the office pointed this out to me. Hopefully, that's because no one noticed. Realistically, it was probably because they were laughing too hard to tell me. Also, I have to accept a few hard facts in life. One of them is that I will never be as hardcore as Col. Kenneth L. Reusser. Rest easy, Marine. Activism ideas: I didn't know this, but Taiwan is a huge player in the trade of endangered species. Since CITES is a UN treaty, Taiwan is in a unique position where it can't sign the agreement (since China claims that Taiwan is part of it's territory). This loophole in the treaty threatens the survival of many endangered species in east Asia. That's terrible, because China has a huge demand for exotic animals and animal products, and Taiwan is positioned to supply at arms length so that no one is accountable. There are two solutions that I can see. 1) CITES could be amended so that entities not recognized by the UN can sign on. That's a pretty high burden, and may face opposition from China depending on the wording. 2) Taiwan needs to adopt CITES standards (or more stringent rules) as their own. This seems like a more easily achieved goal. I'm writing my representative and urging that any future aid to Taiwan is conditioned on the country adopting strict laws against the trade in endangered species. Rant of the month: If you like Elvis or the Beatles but can't stand fuddy duddies, this is pretty funny. If I could go anywhere in the world right now: How about a cross country pub crawl? Men's Fitness has 5 pubs to get started with, but I think the commute time between these would be a buzz kill. If I had a time machine I’d head to: August 27, 1965. Imagine how much money you could have made by planting a camera and tape deck in this room. "The Beatles visit lasted 4 hours during which time they told stories, joked and listened to records. The five of them even had an impromptu jam session (that is, the Beatles and Elvis) - at the time no one thought to record the historical event." Weight Watch: 199 Top 10 movies in my Netflix qeue: Reaper: Season 2: Disc 2 Tru Blood: Season 1: Disc 1 Blue Gold: World Water Wars Push Doctor Who: Planet of the Dead The Great Buck Howard Alpha Dog David Spade - Take the Hit Wall Street (it's on the list of movies to See Before You Die, according to Richard Home) One Hell of a Guy A video that caught my eye: A Quote to leave you with: "Laziness grows on people; it begins in cobwebs and ends in iron chains." -Sir Thomas Buxton (Comment on this)
Saturday, June 6th, 2009
11:04 am	Moving update - we're into the new house, surrounded by triffid like boxes My wife and I are unpacking like crazy this weekend - we moved into our new place about 2 weeks ago, and this is the first weekend with working utilities (getting the water turned on took forever, and it's amazing how difficult it is to get by without aqua on tap). Anyway, just wanted to let everyone know that we're still alive, and will probably be holding a house warming party in the next 3 weeks. Our new house is in the Knox-Henderson area of Dallas - we're renting the ground floor of a duplex. How is it that 1300 square feet (with moving boxes) feels so much smaller than 950 square feet (sans boxes)? One good thing - the internet speed here seems to be much faster. As I write this, I'm downloading a video at 170k. I ran a few diagnostic tools and found that they can't agree on anything! http://www.bandwidth.com/tools/speedTest/ Download: 1398 kbps Upload: 307 kbps http://www.hardwaregeeks.com/old/modules.php?modname=custompage&name=speedtest Your current bandwidth reading is: 798.80 kbps which means you can download at 99.85 KB/sec. from our servers. This one is based in Dallas, but seems to be giving oddball results: http://www.testmy.net/tools/test/results.php Download Connection is:: 344 Kbps about 0.34 Mbps (tested with 512 kB) Download Speed is:: 42 kB/s Upload Connection is:: 316 Kbps about 0.3 Mbps (tested with 579 kB) Upload Speed is:: 39 kB/s http://www.austin.rr.com/speedtest/ Loaded 1356258 bytes in 11.521 seconds. Your throughput is 942 kilobits per second. Is there a better download/upload measurement tool that will give an accurate read? If you know of one, please drop me a line! Current Mood: full (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Wednesday, May 20th, 2009
10:44 am	Want to take an island vacation? Then check out this sweepstakes I'd normally wait to share this until my monthly blog post, but the contest has a daily entry and I wont be posting this months blog until the weekend (at the earliest). So, check out this contest (and runway gallery of swimsuit models) from Lands End. Current Mood: chipper (Comment on this)
Saturday, May 16th, 2009
5:46 pm	My sense of humor (not as dark or vulgar as I expected) Your result for The 3 Variable Funny Test... the Wit your humor style: CLEAN | COMPLEX | DARK You like things edgy, subtle, and smart. I guess that means you're probably an intellectual, but don't take that to mean pretentious. You realize 'dumb' can be witty--after all isn't that the Simpsons' philosophy?--but rudeness for its own sake, 'gross-out' humor and most other things found in a fraternity leave you totally flat. I guess you just have a more cerebral approach than most. You have the perfect mindset for a joke writer or staff writer. Your sense of humor takes the most thought to appreciate, but it's also the best, in my opinion. You probably loved the Office. If you don't know what I'm talking about, check it out here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/comedy/theoffice/. PEOPLE LIKE YOU: Jon Stewart - Woody Allen - Ricky Gervais The 3-Variable Funny Test! - it rules - Take The 3 Variable Funny Test at HelloQuizzy Current Mood: restless (Comment on this)
Friday, May 8th, 2009
2:48 pm	Apparently, I look a lot like Dean Cain, John Cusack, and John Denver.. Which celebrities do you look alike? MyHeritage.com (a genealogy site) has a nifty little facial recognition tool that I tried out. What do you think? And if you say that Robbie Coltrane is a dead ringer... well, I'll put down my snack cake and chase you with a stick! Current Mood: hungry (Comment on this)
Saturday, May 2nd, 2009
10:58 am	The dreamers of the day are dangerous men First off: I'm married! This is my first blog post after my wedding, and I want to thank everyone who came to Dallas to share our big day (or just thought of us and wished they were there). The ceremony went well, and I've got the first round of Thank You cards on the way (glorious loot!!!). Recent advertising developments: The biggest change on the airwaves lately is that advertisers have been aggressively shifting their budgets. Ad dollars are flowing away from flashy products to staples. Decreased ad spending also seems to correspond with reduced fact checking. Here's an illustrative example of how competing companies police each others advertising. Wrigleys and Cadbury seem to do a good job keeping themselves honest, but what about a market segment without major competitors? Another flaw in our current system is that potentially misleading information is rarely retracted, and once bad information is out there, it often takes on a life of its own. What do you think of a pre-approval system? In some markets, advertisers have to get approval of all new spots from a television standards board before they run. I don't know if that would fly in the US, simply because of our tradition of free speech. There is some precedent though - the FTC is stepping up to radically change testimonial ads by enforcing strict truthfulness standard. Now, these ads are going to be required to show typical results. IMO, that's bad news for snake oil salesmen, but good news for consumers. Recent advertising, dissected: Here are 3 gorgeous ads from the backissues of magazines that I'm still digging through: Lexus - 2010 RX: Good to see that some auto makers are still willing to spend money to get customers (and this "reinventing awareness" ad is sleek). Visa Signature - Elvis Costello: This ad plays well to two audiences - those who know who Elvis Costello is, and those who only know what a guitar is. Jones New York: this image ad makes me jealous of people in New York. And that doesn't happen very often. I didn't see this billboard myself, but the picture made me snort orange juice out of my nose. In other news: It looks like Congress is finally doing something to regulate credit card companies. Here's an example of why I think we need a Credit Card Bill of Rights - Chase decided to switch rates around on customers who had locked in balance transfer rates. Does that seem legitimate to you? Building your personal brand: Google recently launched a new tool for controlling your personal brand image. I took a lot of the links from my Touchstone page and made the following Google Profile. What do you think? On a related note, here are some additional ways to control your online profile. My 2 cents - it's always easier to add new, positive content than it is to remove old, negative content. Things I want: I've held off on drooling over Threadless t-shirts for a while, but I can't hold back any more. These designs all made me laugh, smile, or twitch a bit: Bye Bye Apocalypse: What the fashionistas will be wearing at the end of the world. While You Were Reading My Shirt: Truth in advertising probably doesn't help your average pickpocket... Royal Bluff: Since the Simpson's have "royal sampler" copyrighted, this is the next best thing. Occupational Hazard: Remember Donkey Kong? We used to have the old school arcade game at the country club where my parents worked. I don't think I ever got past level 4... but it was awesome! Smoke and Mirrors: This explains a lot about local politics... Muppets seem to be controlling the senators and council members here in Texas. I also like the clever front and back effect of this shirt. There's No "I" In TEAM: Wow - this brings back memories of Academic Decathlon Oh, and we also have about a dozen gift cards to Bed, Bath, and Beyond, JC Penneys, Target, and other stores (courtesy of generous wedding guests). Can you say shopping spree?! We're going to start with the sales rack, and then look at items that were on our registries but didn't get picked. I anticipate that there will be some serious bargaining between the wife and me... Something startling that I learned recently: There's a National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance (NAAFA). Hard to believe they've been around for 40 years... Guilty admission of the month: On the way back from our honeymoon, we totally missed our return flight. So, we had an extra (and unplanned) day in San Jose. Activism ideas: Here's an idea that couldn't hurt - write to some Fast Food companies about revealing their calorie counts. It seems ridiculous to me that Applebees, IHOP, Outback, T.G.I.F. wont even reveal the nutritional info of their menu. The odds that they haven't tested the food are just about nil - they must just not have found anything good in the lab. Here are some contact links: Applebees: 888-59APPLE IHOP: 818-240-6055 (press 1 for Guest Visit issues) Outback Steakhouse T.G.I. Friday's: 800-FRIDAYS Here's another food safety issue - NYC is leading the way to reduce salt content in food. The city was instrumental in eliminating trans fat from food in the area, and a recent law requiring chains to post the calorie count on menus has also been really effective. Since high salt content is a huge public health issue, maybe low-salt efforts will spread to other parts of the country too. It's amazing to me that so few companies offer sick leave to their workers. Now, with swine flu getting national attention (and possibly overexposure, if it turns out to be just another strain of the flu), there's a chance that legislation will pass guaranteeing sick days. Presenteeism is a major problem at companies without sick leave - think about restaurants or grocery stores. Do you want the chef or stockboy coughing on your food when they should be home sick? Rant of the month: This month, I've got 3 great rants that I can't pick between. Two of the rants land solid blows on the idiocy of the April 15th Tea Bag Protests. These were completely asinine, and I'm glad that I was out of the country to get away from all of the tax deadbeats. Bill Maher has a great rant about the GOP where he argues that the 4/15 protests were really protests about losing the election. We're more than 100 days into Obama's first term. It's time for all of the reactionaries to adjust and get used to being in the minority. Weird pictures I found on Flickr: While working on blogs about low rolling resistance tires and recycling used tires, I came across some really odd pictures.Ever wonder why bicycles and cars use different tires? Here's someone who is unclear on the concept of weight:performance ratios. If MC Escher designed a tire, it would look like this. iStockPhotos also has its share of random photo goodness. What the heck happened in this kitchen? And here's one really clever / well fed squirrel. If I could go anywhere in the world right now: Hamburg, Germany has a really impressive model train exhibit. Any time that model trains stretch across multiple floors of a warehouse sized building, that's amazing. If I had a time machine I’d head to: 1650, Madagascar. The elephant bird that roamed the island back then (before human's wiped it out) was about 880 lbs, and 8-10 feet tall. You could make a heck of an omelette with a 2 gallon egg, and it must have been pretty tasty. Oh, and I'd also save a few breeding pairs to re-settle Madagascar with. Here's the best pun I've seen all month: In 1843, when Sir Charles Napier sent a preliminary dispatch of a single word: "peccavi". The reason: his military victory and conquest of the province of Sind (now in Pakistan). His message: "I have Sind". Contests: I just got back from Costa Rica, but I still have the travel bug. If you want to take your own Tico adventure, check out the National Geographic Costa Rica Giveaway. If you want to win a wildlife watching safari in Alaska and have some mad essay skills, check out this contest from Alaska Wildland Adventures. Wyndham Worldwide is offering a vacation for the best lay-off story. So, if you're out of work, here's a good way to get positive exposure and bury your feet in the sand at the same time. I'm going to work with my MeetUp friends to make a vide for the Show Us Your Green contest. $20,000 towards environmentally friendly changes sounds pretty cool. Or, you can let your creative side free and enter an artwork in the ArtPrize contest up in Michigan. You'll be facing some stiff competition though - times are pretty tough up Detroit way, and a lot of people are eyeing the prize money... Weight Watch: 192 Top 10 movies in my Netflix qeue: Reaper: Season 1: Disc 1 The Golden Child (believe it or not, my wife hadn't seen this 80's classic) Night Stalker: Disc 2 Taxi Driver Swiss Family Robinson The Last Supper Leatherheads The Fabulous Baker Boys (it's on the list of movies to See Before You Die, according to Richard Home) Burglar Choker Bali A video that caught my eye: Also, here's a very cool flash video of the ISS assembly. A Quote to leave you with: "The dreamers of the day are dangerous men, for they may act their dream with open eyes, to make it possible." -TE Lawrence. Current Mood: restless (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Saturday, March 21st, 2009
10:25 am	A few recent travel ads and other things that caught my eye First off: My wedding is quickly approaching, so I'm going to keep this short today. Recent advertising developments: It looks like the hard sell is back. Toyota is sponsoring something unusual - a magazine that attempts to duplicate a customized newsfeed. As of Friday, they were still accepting free subscriptions. Recent advertising, dissected: I'm getting ready to take a honeymoon, so I've seen my share of glossy travel brochures. This beautiful ad for Iberostar really stands out though. It's got me thinking - I really hope there aren't any brats at our resort. Also on the theme of travel - this Oakley ad skirts the edge of offensiveness and delivers subtle style and classiness. Kinda like the last person I saw wearing Oakleys. As I write this, I'm still in the afterglow of a delicious guacamole snack. So, it's only fair to include this clever ad from Avocado Mexico. I hate my commute (17 miles each way is a total waste of time and gas), so I should be in the prime target for this Pioneer Ad. Instead, I'm left wondering "what were they thinking?" Building your personal brand: I haven't taken much time to play with them yet, but there are a few online services that offer to control and direct your online image. Take a look at Ziggs.com and see what you think. Also, here's something worth knowing ahead of time. In the event of a lay-off, it's important to write a positive, upbeat e-mail to all of your former co-workers and clients. Here are some positive examples of how the send-off e-mail can build goodwill and how harsh e-mails can wreck connections. Things I want: I guess this is what Geek's buy for their hallway instead of a Medieval suit of armor. Okay, I guess having a suit of armor is pretty geeky to begin with (unless you're a Scottish lord), but Stormtropper armor is far, far stranger. Guilty admission of the month: When I'm gardening, I often have one of those "What the heck was I thinking?" moments. This month, it was when I spent 2 hours digging out a trench for planting raspberries behind the warehouse at work, and then I realized that the spot I chose only gets about 2 hours of sunlight per day. Raspberries need 4-6 hours of sunlight. [facepalm]. Do you know of any good plants that grow well in Texan partial shade conditions? Because I've got a great place for them.... Activism ideas: Normally, apartment foreclosures are a very rare event. Lately though, a lot of apartment management companies are on the ropes. When they go bankrupt, it can be a real nightmare for anyone living in the apartment. The water can be turned off and the garbage trucks can simply stop coming, even if you've paid your bills in full. Worst of all, in many states (including Texas), the apartment management company isn't required to keep deposits in a separate account. So, renters can find themselves in line with all of the other creditors to the complex, just to recover money that's rightfully theirs. I'd like to see that changed. After all, a deposit is supposed to be safe. If you make a deposit n good faith and take care of the place you're renting, why shouldn't you get it back? And, keeping that money in a mandatory separate account would prevent vandalism and facilitate resettlement when a complex goes belly up. Financial developments: I'm happy to hear that AIG's ridiculous bonuses are getting taxed into oblivion (90% federal tax, plus any other withholding), but the whole TARP situation still has me really pissed off. Why did we let any company get "too big to fail"? I'd like to see all of these big banks broken up, and instead the Fed is playing matchmaker between big banks (ie; BoA, Wells Fargo) and struggling smaller banks. That's just setting up another disaster down the road. Ugh. Our lease is up shortly after my wedding, so we're looking for a new place to live (closer to work, I hope!). It looks like we're going to rent a house, because we can get one for about $100-200 less than we're currently paying and get 300-500 more square feet of space. A lot of our friends have been buying homes, but I still think the market has a ways to fall (I've been saying that for a while, and I'll probably still be saying it after we hit the bottom). Anyway, here are 5 reasons why renting trumps buying a home. If I had more money to put down towards a deposit (and knowledge of where my fiancee and I will be working 2 years from now) then I might consider buying a house instead. Rant of the month: This is a bit dated, but it was new to me - a very, very foulmouthed response to Sarah Palin's comments about the 'real' America. If I could go anywhere in the world right now: I'd ski my way across Norway, using their awesome ferry's to get around. The full article isn't online yet, but National Geographic Adventure really made my mouth water for hitting the slopes again (and the description of elegant, wood paneled ferry's with saunas on board sparked my imagination). If I had a time machine I’d head to: October, 1955 and take a cruise on the MV Joyita (with some suitable escape insurance). Contest of the Moment: Win a Mini Cooper with Compass Bank. Here's some info on the alternative means of entry: "To enter without applying, purchase, product activation or transaction: Hand-print your full name, address, city, state, zip, day and evening phone numbers (area codes included), date of birth and the words "Compass Bank's Drive On Sweepstakes" on a 3" x 5" card, and mail in a stamped #10 envelope with proper postage affixed to: Compass Bank Drive On Sweepstakes, P.O. Box 1814, South Bend, IN 46634-0814. No-purchase necessary entry requests must be postmarked by May 30, 2009 and received by June 8, 2009. Limit one (1) entry request per postmarked stamped outer envelope. Each mail-in entry request timely received will count as twenty (20) entries. No mechanical reproductions permitted. Entries become the property of Compass Bank ("Sponsor") and will not be returned." If you're good with earth friendly slogans and doodles, here's a chance to win a Smart car. Olive Garden is giving away a trip to Italy (and $25 daily gift cards) Win a trip to the X Men: Origins Wolverine premier with CondeNast. If you win, can I get the 2nd ticket? Amarillo is doing something unusual to promote hotels - they're offering $1,000 prizes for people who present hotel receipts. If your vacation calendar is already full, you can also enter using the alternate means of entry: "Anyone may enter by writing to A Night in Amarillo on a 3" x 5" postcard their name, address, phone number, and email address and mail it to "A Night in Amarillo", Amarillo Convention & Visitor Council, 1000 Polk Street, Amarillo, TX 79101. Incomplete entries are void. All valid entries must be postmarked by September 30, 2009 and received by October 10, 2009." Weight Watch: 197 Top 10 movies in my Netflix qeue: Early Edition: Season 1: Disc 3 John Adams: Disc 3 Robin Hood: Season 1: Disc 1 The Onion Movie Head In The Clouds Erik the Viking Leatherheads Music and Lyrics John Cleese on How to Irritate People The Postman Always Rings Twice (it's on the list of movies to See Before You Die, according to Richard Home) A video that caught my eye: A Quote to leave you with: "It's never paid to bet against America," he said. "We come through things, but it's not always a smooth ride." -Warren Buffet Current Mood: grateful (Comment on this)
Thursday, March 5th, 2009
8:44 pm	How to reframe the debate - changing minds by changing the subject First off: I'm a bit late posting this blog. February was a short month, and we're really reaching crunch time for my upcoming wedding. Also, since my last blog post, the economic troubles have come a bit closer to home. My fiancee and I are now living in a single income household. If you have any job leads or ideas for a hard worker with a hospitality background, all reasonable ideas are welcome. Recent advertising developments: Do you miss the attack-dog atmosphere of election season? Well, attack ads are going after competitors products in an effort to steal marketshare. Right now, it looks like everyone is running as hard as they can to avoid being the tail dog in the pack. The TED conference had a lot of cool presentations (I'm really jealous of everyone who got invited this year, even though they earned it). One of the presentations was an amazing discussion of how product differentiation can be used as a marketing tool. Have you ever wondered why there are so many varieties of soda, pasta sauce, and vodka? Well, wonder no more. Here's some advertising ethics that seems pretty self explanatory to me. Making outrageous claims is just a bad idea, and it never hurts to claim less than you can prove. Yet, for some reason, certain companies keep having trouble with advertising puffery crossing the line. I'm totally late to the punch about the Superbowl, but I'll put my oar in now that the dust has settled. Did you catch the Pepsi ad with Richard Dean Anderson and the SNL cast? Apparently, Pepsi paid a whole series of ads integrated into Saturday Night Live. Since the mock-ads that run during the show are usually spoofs, this seems like a really bad idea to me. Also, I was pleasantly surprised to see that Doritos gamble paid off. One of their crowd sourced ads got great audience scores and earned the creatives behind it a $1.25M payday. Recent advertising, dissected: This is an evil / well placed subway placard. I love it. Here's a fashion ad that caught my eye, but I'm left with the suspicion that I'm missing something. What's your take-away? Is this one bad ass chick, or someone who's inner lace shows through even when they're covered in grime? I miss the old "Your Vegas is Showing" ad campaign. This Faux Sommelier cracked me up, because I can picture the drinkers reaction when he finds out that he's really drinking 3 Buck Chuck or Boone's Farm. Maybe I'm seeing things, but do you think 1and1.com was deliberately trying to reach out to neo-Nazi's? Here's a clever way to get positive press coverage in tough economic times: when everyone cancels their holiday parties, it's a great idea to throw a party for your competitors workers! Here's a really timely ad for furniture in Illinois. Mix and match banner ads sometimes lead to some really funny juxtapositions. Here's an accidental ad placement that cracked me up. My favorite ad campaigns are the ones that are a little twisted and make me chuckle like an evil James Bond villain. This ad for Harbour House Crabs does that perfectly, and leaves me craving seafood too. Another ad I liked was a PSA encouraging people to change how they think about organ donation. Now, that's a really tricky subject to show. Sick people and medical procedures aren't very pleasant subject matter, and some people have an atavistic fear of donation. But, I really like how Ampla, Recife, Brazil approaches the subject by reframing the debate. It's a great example of lateral thinking. One of these days I'm going to sit down and write up all the lessons I've learned about how to sell on eBay. Here's someone who could use better advice on eBay. Spam doesn't catch my attention very often, but here was a very clever e-mail from Qdoba: Subject: Stinky Brown Bag Attention All Employees, There is a brown paper bag lunch in the break room refrigerator without a name. It’s behind the ranch dressing and it smells like bologna. If this odorous brown bag happens to be yours, PLEASE DISPOSE OF IT IMMEDIATELY. Then go to Qdoba Mexican Grill for lunch. They’re now offering any chicken entree on their menu with handmade chips, a choice of salsas and a regular fountain drink for only $6.99 (click here for the offer). It’s a great value and you can choose from any of their 18 different chicken dishes. So, whoever you are, you no longer have to be the SAD PACKER." In other news: I was amazed to find out that the Air Force is using acupuncture to treat moderate injuries. That's either a really big endorsement of the effectiveness of acupuncture, or a really big red flag about the Air Force's medical budget. With all of the parallels being drawn between 2009 and 1934, victory gardens and Keynesian economics have been all over the news. I'm watching the TV show Carnivale and it seems pretty timely. Yet, a few things have changed in the last 75 years. Here's a site that sums up all of those changes with just the right amount of irony: a guide to modern day hobo codes. Also, no matter what your mother told you, it turns out that chocolate really is awesome for your body. In moderation, of course. Things I want: A camoflauged treehouse is pretty cool. But, a mirrored, near-invisible tree house is even cooler. Guilty admission of the month: The week before I graduated college, I got my photo ID reprinted with a new photo. That way, I could use it for as long as possible to score student discounts. So far, I've recovered about $500 from my college education by using my student ID to get discounted museum and movie tickets. That number also includes quite a few rides on the Austin bus system that I took for a whole semester after I graduated, and discount subscriptions that I've grabbed on magazines, plus quite a few student discounts on Taco Cabana food. Someday, I'll stop asking for those rebates... or my "new" student ID will wear out. Activism ideas: I'm still annoyed by how credit card companies try to sneak in Mandatory Binding Arbitration clauses. Chase bank is trying to do that right now on one of my cards, and I'm really miffed. Here's a letter that I sent to my state representatives: "I'm writing to ask for your help. I've recently had a credit card "upgraded" from WaMu to Chase, and the bank presented me with take-it-or-leave-it changes to the Terms of Service. One of the terms that I strongly object to is a Mandatory Binding Arbitration clause. How long will these companies be allowed to write away our judicial rights? Arbitration has proven itself to be a kangaroo court, with more harms than benefits for consumers. We desperately need state laws that level the playing field here. Why can't I opt out of a MBA clause without having my account frozen? The argument that some credit card companies use is that if I don't like their terms, I should shop around and find another credit card. But these same companies colluded to ensure that there aren't any cards without MBA clauses. They have engaged in monopolistic practices and freely admitted breaking the law. Isn't it time that we held them accountable to the same rules that everyone else is bound by? If these financial companies are allowed to profit from breaking the law and never face any penalties, then the economy is never going to recover. If you want to see this situation change, I strongly encourage you to write to your reps too. Financial developments: It looks like young workers are becoming increasingly risk averse. That's likely to have a lasting impact on the stock market, amplified by the retirement of Baby Boomers. Right now, young workers need to put in more than $1 for every $1 that baby boomers pull out, just to keep the stock market level. What will happen when there are 2 retired Baby Boomers for every worker still in the job market? Rant of the month: Jim Cramer, Rush Limbaugh, and all of the other yapping heads have done enough ranting this month. I'm not going to feed the flames. If I could go anywhere in the world right now: Have you ever been to an eco-resort in Costa Rica? Well, that's where we're going for our honeymoon (very last minute, impulse buy). If I had a time machine I’d head to: Dallas, 1962. Spend an evening at Jack Ruby's Carousel Club, and the classier place next door - the Colony Club. Weight Watch: 198 Top 10 movies in my Netflix qeue: Early Edition: Season 1: Disc 2 John Adams: Disc 3 The X-Files: I Want to Believe Leatherheads Robin Hood: Season 1: Disc 1 Music and Lyrics John Cleese on How to Irritate People Slightly Scarlet The Postman Always Rings Twice (it's on the list of movies to See Before You Die, according to Richard Home) The Fabulous Baker Boys (ditto) A video that caught my eye: Watch out for those Venus Fly Trap style revolving doors: A Quote to leave you with: "You’re neither right nor wrong because other people agree with you. You’re right because your facts are right and your reasoning is right—and that’s the only thing that makes you right. And if your facts and reasoning are right, you don’t have to worry about anybody else." - Benjamin Graham Current Mood: energetic (Comment on this)