I hate to be a complainer, but Yahoo Messenger just keeps going to sleep on me. I don’t understand. Google Talk sometimes doesn’t let me connect, but once it does it doesn’t just go and die all the time. I understand that I’m the one with the finicky internet connection, but Yahoo could make this connection problem a whole lot better for me if they tried: How about automatic resign-in? How about not killing my away message when I am automatically signed out? How about not putting the messenger window on top of what I am currently working on when it signs out? Well? How about it?
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Yahoo is sleeeeeping
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San Diego deals with major fires
Here’s to all my friends in San Diego coping with the fires. I went to NYTimes.com today and found that Bonita, CA (my friend Jason’s hometown) had made the front page.
We dealt with fires in San Diego four years ago when I was at UCSD, and let me tell you, it is no fun. Smoke and ash everywhere, gray skies…yuck. You feel really cooped up inside with all the windows closed.
Anyway, I hope all you San Diegans are doing alright…let’s hope the damage is minimal.
Current San Diego Area Fire Maps
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Our deepest fear
Time for a quote:
Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, ‘Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?’ Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It is not just in some of us; it is in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others”
– Marianne Williamson
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Doing Good Enough
One of the greatest things about being in Israel is the abundance of amazing hummos places. These small restaurants sometimes serve foods other than hummos, but many times it’s the main course. The hummos here is different than in the US. It’s smooth & creamy, with actual garbanzo or other beans in tact.
Of course, as a tourist I have found myself in a number of the highest quality hummos places here. Places that can be compared to In-N-Out burger in California…there’s always a line and they never disappoint.
But if you come in after 1 PM, you might not get any food at all.
In the morning, the restaurants make a good amount of hummos. When they run out, the restaurant closes. The owners know that their product is amazing, and they know they could sell just about any amount that they make, but they don’t. This is amazing to me.
This is a mindset one rarely sees in the US. The common line of thought is that if you’re selling out today, then tomorrow you should sell out more. The thing is, the fact that these restaurants sell out every day actually helps their brand. People are willing to stand in line in the heat, and come earlier than they would have liked…just to have some of that great hummos.
Anyway, this was an inspiring situation to me. A business that strived not just for money, but for balance as well.
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Israir Flight 102, Ten minutes after takeoff
“Ding!” And immediately the belts were undone. Ten of them, at least, simultaneously unlatched. One man shoots up, his tsitsit swaying, as he opens up the bin above his head to pull out his suitcase. A woman next to me opens her overhead bin, and down fall blankets on to Eyttan’s head and lap.
It’s just these little things, I remember, that remind me I’ve left my place of comfort. I’m going somewhere old, but still new. What will I find, and what will I refind? Will memories of 7 year ago awaken, or lie dormant? Who knows. But I am headed away, to an unfamiliar place that I might like, or might not. My head leads me in one direction, but will my heart advise another?
We’ve hit 10,000 feet, and already I know I’m no longer home.
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Where is Josh these days?
Great question, weblog.
Well, for the past few weeks I’ve been in Chicago, toiling away on the ThoughtWorks beach. Man, I never feel so busy as when I’m on the beach (the time you get when you’re not on a project). There are always a ton of projects to work on…people constantly asking for some time. But it’s fun. I get to see a lot of new stuff, and occasionally get the feeling that I really am helping. But that’s work, and I want to talk about play…
Right now I’m in Phoenix, AZ, preparing for my cousin Lindsay’s Bat Mitzvah, which is tomorrow morning. She’s gonna rock it. Until then I’m working and hanging with family.
Then it gets interesting. After Lindsay’s party tomorrow evening, I’m headed straight to the airport. Then I’ll jump on a redeye flight to New York, which will put me there in time to catch another flight to Israel. “ISRAEL!?” I hear you say. Yup, cool huh?
Karen’s already there and we’re going to be doing some real, relaxing vacationing. Can you tell I’m psyched? Well I am.
There will be a lot going on in Israel, touristy stuff, a wedding here and there, and some hanging out with family. Good times. I should still have regular internet access though, so feel free to drop a line. 🙂
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A day at the ballpark
Today was a great day. Jason and I headed to a Cubs game at Wrigley. Man, that place knows how to turn a relatively slow, boring game into an unforgettable experience. There’s just something about the old fashioned style, the sense of history and cameraderie. You can’t help but feel like a life-long fan.
I think even Jason, a true San Diego Padre fan, felt like a real Cubs fan almost immediately. I could tell not only by the sweet Cubs hat he bought before the game, but also by the two Cubs shirts he left the game with. I’m pretty sure Jason will cheer for the Cubs this October, after all, It Could Happen.
Excellent job Wrigley, and excellent job Cubbies, who beat the Mets 6-2. Have a look at my photos from the game.
I’m gonna go back to chillin with my good friend Jason. Here’s to old friends in new cities. 🙂
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I’m Addicted to GoodReads
You know, every once in a while you start to use a really great social networking tool, like LinkedIn or Facebook, and the time just flies by. Thanks wholly to Karen, I found a new one…GoodReads. There’s a lot to like.
I’m constantly on the lookout for a good tool for keeping an index of my personal library. For a while there I was using Delicious Library on my mac. It is a pretty sweet and full-featured app. If I had a web-cam on my computer I’d even be able to add books by simply taking a picture. Now if that’s not a cool feature, I don’t know what is. The problem is, I don’t have a web-cam, and there’s nothing all that rewarding about taking a picture of a book I just read.
Conversely, it is nice to be able to tell my friends about a book I just read. Using a tool like GoodReads allows me to keep my personal index, and also talk with friends (and non-friends) about the books I’ve read. There’s also this little side effect where I’m in a pseudo competition with my friends about how many books I’ve read. Though I probably shouldn’t start a competition like that…my friends are waaay smarter than me. 🙂
Of course, GoodReads has all the standard social networky features that we’ve all come to expect. It’s still new, though, so don’t expect all the bells & whistles just yet. At times it’s still a little buggy, especially in Safari on my mac. (Side note: why do websites have to use non-standard buttons? The ones built in to the browsers/OSes are nice, and they always work perfectly.)
Anyway, check out GoodReads. Check out what I’m reading, then start an account for yourself.
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Turn off your Blackberry
If you’re going to accept a meeting invitation and come to the meeting, make sure you’re not sending mail on your Blackberry throughout said meeting. Get off the phone, and pay attention. Please. Oh, and if you pick up the phone when it rings, I swear I’ll…
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Never a City So Real
I’m generally not the kind of person that makes a it a point to read books about cities. Even if I’m visiting or traveling to or even living in an interesting place in the world, I haven’t been known to read about that place.
A few weeks ago I picked up Never a City So Real by Alex Kotlowitz at Powell’s, the local used book store. It was brand new, never read, and only five bucks. The purchase was not a mistake.
If you’ve been to Chicago before, you’ve probably seen all the hot tourist spots: Millennium Park, Sears Tower, Navy Pier. The list goes on. None of these places are mentioned in the book.
What are discussed in the book are the stories of a number of everyday Chicagoans. People from the Far South Side’s steel mills and the West Side’s Soul Food scene. There are stories about the downtown courthouse and Cicero’s politics. These places are not famous, and never will be. But as a Chicagoan, this book was important. It’s a celebration of the everyday style of life that this city affords. We’re not classy or stylish the way New York is, nor are we glitzy like LA. Sure we’ve got all the accoutrements of a major city…but in the end we’re all regular people.
That’s why I love Chicago. And that’s why I loved the book.
Quotable Quote:
Jack loved the city for its ingenuity, as well as for its easygoing demeanor. ‘I can’t see why anyone would want to live anywhere else in the world,’ he used to say. And he relished its tussles, large and small. He hustled, peddling his V-Vax, embracing the underdog, finding ways to reinvent himself—not for the purpose of self-aggrandizement, but rather because life is short and sometimes another path seems enticing and just worth the try.”
