Guest DaveNet
Dave asked me if he could run my last megnut column on blogging as a DaveNet piece the other day. I happily assented and O'Reilly did as well. It will be interesting to see what different pieces the column will reach through this channel. I'm sure there will be some fresh perspectives and feedback because of it. And that's exactly why I agreed to let him run it.
Penn Station Bathroom Memories
My post about the Bryant Park bathroom brought an email response from my aunt, who used to live in NYC. She writes,
Your comments brought this incredibly vivid memory sweeping back to me. You and your mother had come to visit me on the train, and I was picking you up at Penn Station. You had to go to the bathroom, and much to my dismay, we went into the public restroom in Penn Station. For me, it was like a scene out of the dark ages- dark shapes of women lined the sides kind of moaning and definitely stinking. You were quick and we got out alive.
It's funny to hear that memory since, though I remember a lot from those magical trips to NY to visit my aunt, I don't recall that bathroom visit. It must not have been *that* bad if I don't even remember it. I do remember one time when my mom, brother and I ran for the subway but only I made it, and the door closed behind me, catching my bag in the middle. The door re-opened quickly, just enough time for me to pull my bag in. I still remember the look of horror on my mother's face as the train pulled away from the station with her nine year old daughter on board (who had no money, no ID, and no idea where her aunt's apartment was, aside from "the upper west side").
But my favorite 1980's NYC memory is buying Nintendo Game & Watch handhelds from one of the zillions of electronics stores all over Manhattan. Parachute (close-up of box) was the first we got and between my brother, my mom and I, there was always a fight over who got to play and who held the high score. Another memory is of the first time I had sushi, but that one's not nearly as good. Probably more akin to the yuck of the bathroom at Penn Station.
Subway update
For those that need closure on the NYC subway anecdote: I got off at the next stop and waited. Several trains passed through the station, and eventually (though I'm sure it wasn't more than ten minutes or so) my mom and brother stepped out of one. I think my mom was a little surprised to see me; she said she assumed I'd just take the train all the way to my aunt's and meet them there. Funny thing is, I don't even remember being scared at all. Just annoyed that my mom and brother were such slow runners.
Opus Creative Commons
Opus: "Opus seeks to build a creative commons with a community of media practitioners, artists, authors and the public from all over the world. Here people can present their own work and make it open for transformation, besides intervening and transforming the work of others by bringing in new materials, practices and insights. The Discussion forums are there to open out the works to comments and reflections. Opus follows the same rules as those that operate in all free software communities - i.e. the freedom to view, to download, to modify and to redistribute. The source(code), in this case the video, image, sound or text, is free to use, to edit and to redistribute."
Mail is back
Forgot to mention: mail is back. If you sent something on Friday, you might want to resend to make sure I got it.
The Biscuit
Sometimes when I read a book, I get infatuated with a character or person in the story and I can't stop thinking or talking about him or her. Last fall when I read The Making of a Chef, Thomas Keller became the object of my obsession. Back then it was, "Thomas Keller does..." and "Did you know that Thomas Keller..." non-stop.
Now it's Seabiscuit, or The Biscuit. Did you know most horses sleep standing up? But not The Biscuit -- he liked to bed down in a big ol' pile of hay. And The Biscuit liked to eat the hay even though he'd already had dinner. And The Biscuit had funny front legs that didn't straighten quite right so people thought he couldn't run fast. And did you know that The Biscuit...
Email Ist Kaput
It looks like my email is down for some reason, so if you're expecting to hear from me via email, please reset your expectations. Not sure what's up.
Lost Gloss
I hate it when things like this happen: I've had this Bloom lip gloss in 'Cutie Pie' for ages, and don't even wear it much. For some reason, I decided to bring it along on this trip and discovered it's perfect for wear both day and night. Not too glam and not too bright, it was just right and I was so pleased. But it appears it was not meant to be -- after 24 hours of new-found love and rekindled appreciation for its glossing abilities, I lost it last night in a bar in SOHO.
Bryant Park Blogging
I [heart] NY wireless. How nice is this -- to be sitting at a little green French table beneath the trees in Bryant Park, blogging and emailing courtesy of Intel and NYC Wireless. Thanks folks!
Seabiscuit: An American Legend
Yesterday on the way to the airport I realized I'd forgotten to bring a book (since I'm between books, I put-off my final decision on what to read next until the morning of departure, having narrowed down my choices the evening before) to read on the plane. Faced the the grim prospect of purchasing something in the airport bookstore, I slogged in, expecting to settle for the latest from Oprah's book club. Imagine my delight when I saw two copies of Seabiscuit: An American Legend sitting on the display table.
I'd put Seabiscuit on my wish list ages ago, when it first came out. So I snapped it up and settled in for some good reading over breakfast on my way to New York. What a book! "A first-rate piece of storytelling" says the New York Times, and I couldn't agree more. I'm already half-way through and would like nothing more than to spend the rest of the day reading about the Depression and horse racing.
I'm really enjoying this book for several reasons: 1) I don't know anything about Seabiscuit, so hearing his story is compelling in and of itself, 2) the book opens up the world of jockeys and Thoroughbred racing, something about which I'm not very familiar, 3) I love it when books do that -- absorb you into unfamiliar surroundings and make it engaging and real, 4) I love this horse! There's a picture of his face about a third of the way through and I found myself thinking, "that's such a Seabiscuit expression!" when I saw it. That's how thoroughly and wonderfully Ms. Hillenbrand pulls you into the world and character of Seabiscuit.
BlogRoots Ch 8 Online
We've decided we're going to post the entire contents of our new book, We Blog: Publishing Online with Weblogs online at the book's website, Blogroots.com. We've posted the first chapter (which isn't the book's first chapter, it's actually the book's eighth) entitled, Using Blogs in Business. I really like this chapter a lot -- it's chock-full of ideas about ways in which weblogs can be used in a business environment and I think it contains some really neat stuff.
Correction: One Million Dollars
Correction: One Million Dollars! Those stupid Friends get $1,000,000 each per episode!! I knew $100,000 seemed too low...and isn't that show finishing up after next season? Couldn't they take just a fraction of the $6M they were spending on each episode and pay Rob Lowe with it? Or are they going to instead pour it into some worthless "The Osbournes" rip-off?
Rob Lowe Leaving The West Wing
Looks like Rob Lowe will be departing the West Wing at the end of the next season because of a salary dispute. Hopefully NBC will realize the error of their ways before this happens and give him a raise. Heck, if those stupid Friends can get $100,000+ per episode, Rob Lowe should be able to. Lowe is great on that show and Sam Seaborn is a wonderful character. I'll be sad to see him go, West Wing is far and away my favorite program on TV these days and I can't get enough of it.
Bryant Park Peeing
Not only does Bryant Park have this amazing free wireless, and tables where you can sit and enjoy it, it also has the most pleasant public bathroom I've *ever* seen anywhere. A huge bouquet of flowers sits at the entrance (huge, like the size you see in hotel lobbies!) in a wonderful raised stand. There was a smaller vase of flowers above the sink in the women's room, and an attendant was cleaning in there as I waited. It smelled nice. It was spotless. And the toilet seats have these cool rotating plastic covers (which I've only ever seen at Chicago's O'Hare airport) which give a fresh sheet to each guest, enabling one to actually sit down without concern. A five-star, two thumbs-up public bathroom experience.
My other thought: if this were San Francisco, the park might have wireless, but it would be so overrun with homeless people that it would be very unpleasant and there's no way the bathroom would be something anyone would dare to enter, unless they too were homeless, or on drugs, or both.
Learning the Mac OS X Terminal Tutorial
There's a really thorough-looking tutorial over at O'Reilly's Mac Dev Center about getting up to speed using the Mac OS X Terminal. For those who are new to the UNIX command line, this looks like a great way to get your feet wet without worrying about doing irreparable damage to your system.
On Rue Tatin
I just finished reading On Rue Tatin: Living and Cooking in a French Town by American cookbook writer Susan Herrmann Loomis. On Rue Tatin explores Ms. Loomis' life living in the Norman town of Louviers as she and her husband fix up their old house and accustom themselves to a life in another culture. It shares several stories with Adam Gopnik's Paris to the Moon, especially in regards to having children in France. It was delicious reading, filled with tales of food and French markets, and each chapter ends with several recipes. Even thinking about it again makes my stomach grumble. Her writing isn't as strong as Gopnick's but the tasty recipes easily make up for it. For those interested in France, food, or both, this is a refreshing, fun, summer read.
French or Foe
Another enjoyable read was French or Foe?: Getting the Most Out of Visiting, Living and Working in France by Polly Platt. This book provides valuable advice on French culture and customs and offers recommendations on how to navigate their intricacies. As I read it, I was struck by how much many modes of interaction reminded me of my time spent in Mexico. There must be a Latin cultural connection that I hadn't realized (for example: kissing, hand shaking, cutting in line and waiting at stores, the surprising unavailability of staple items in the store, etc.) Reading it reminded me of all that's exciting about living abroad: you never know what to expect next and everything is always more of an adventure than you planned it to be. The result is that small things like getting keys made successfully, or flagging down the gas truck, can feel like giant victories. And that always made me really happy.
Siamese kittens
This photo of six Siamese kittens (not Siamese as in the breed, Siamese as in the twins, you know, conjoined...) makes me so sad. I just love kittens and seeing them all stuck together this morning almost made me cry. If there were a way to keep kittens from turning into cats, I'd have about a million of them. Easily.
Jury Duty
All week I've been on-call for jury duty, which in San Francisco means you need to keep checking their web site every night after 6 PM to see if you need to go to the courthouse the next morning. Luckily my number never came up, so I escaped having to go in and wait for hours until they called my name. The sad part is, I'd actually like to serve on a jury, especially if the trial were only a few days. Perhaps another time it will work out.
Books by the Bay
If you're looking for something to do in the Bay Area tomorrow, this Books By the Bay, "A Celebration in Independent Bookselling" looks like it could be fun. It's at Yerba Buena Gardens in downtown San Francisco and it's free! What more could you ask for on a summery Saturday? (I supose you could ask that it not be foggy and cold, but that may be asking too much around here.)
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