Class V

Live From New York

I've been in Manhattan since the beginning of the month, and will be here for a few weeks more.  All related to my new career.  There has been virtually no time to blog, but it is all good.  More later.

In the meantime, I've come to the conclusion that there is no way to be obese when you live in Manhattan.  You walk everywhere, and the urban running scene in Central Park and along Riverside Park is too ideal to pass up the opportunity for a morning jog.

I personally could never live here, at least on a permanent basis.  The other night, I enjoyed a discussion with a couple of good friends, and was asked how much money would I have to make in a year, for me to be willing to live in New York for a year.  Let's just say the number was high enough that I don't think I will be relocating anytime soon, and I meant it ... not even for a dollar less than that target, would I do it.  Immediate access to the ocean and waves, to wide open spaces free of traffic ... these are as vital to my own life as I imagine some of the things that make New York a truly world-class city, are vital to the life of its permanent residents.

But I definitely plan on sticking around, at least through the All Star Game.  [wink]

Technorati Tags: New York, Manhattan

Precinct Politics

Those who are political science or government majors in college, and are of legal voting age, should actively volunteer for a politician of their choice and receive academic credit for their efforts.

Returned to Texas last week for the first time since moving to California last year, to campaign for Obama.  Did it all: called strangers, knocked on their doors, talked to those who didn't slam their doors in my face about the strange "Texas Two Step" process to determine delegate representation, attended a meeting with Michelle Obama, held rally signs by the highway outside a polling station, and observed my first caucus.

While I was of course disappointed with the actual primary results at the state level, the caucus results - which are still being counted - seem to indicate that Obama might actually end up with more delegates from Texas than Clinton.

(At least in the precint that I actively worked, there were 52 delegates at stake to the county convention, and they went 30 for Obama, 22 for Clinton.)

More important than the actual results, however, was the experience.  To be this passionately involved in a process that so many Americans either take for granted or approach with such cynicsm was, simply, awesome.  You can read all of the newspapers, listen to the Sunday morning television analysts, and opine by the water cooler ... there is nothing quite like engaging with actual voters, who cut across every imaginable socioeconomic, ethnic, and religious line, to make one appreciate just how powerful the democratic voting process can be.  Which is why I now seriously believe that college students who are majoring in government or political science should receive academic credit for actively volunteering with a campaign ... my four days in Texas taught me far more about American politics than any other experience I can think of.

Technorati Tags: primary election, politics, campaign volunteering

In Search Of ...

Day One of the TED Conference, and I couldn't be happier to see old friends and make new ones.  Highlight of the day among the TED Talks was Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor, a neuroanatomist who suffered a stroke, but recovered in such a vibrant and creative manner over an eight year period.  The TED Blog does an excellent job summarizing her powerful talk here.

On a purely selfish note, I am using the power of technology, and User Generated Content such as my Flickr account, to seek my "bag twin".  My TED2008 bag is pictured to the right, and if you're my "bag twin", I'd love for you to find me via the e-mail address available through this blog's "About Me" page.  The photo does no justice to how cool these bags in fact are; the story of these bags - including this concept of "bag twins" - is featured here.  Will be very curious to see if this experiment works ...

Technorati Tags: TED2008, Jill Taylor, Rickshaw Bagworks

Follow Ups

1.  I was right about the traffic* spike related to this (rather uninteresting) blog post.  Have no idea why some of these message board members are so interested in my (rather uninteresting) musings, but boredom can explain a lot, I guess.  (I personally do not subscribe to the jealousy theories, because I find it beyond comprehension that someone could be jealous of a person he or she does not even know, outside of a message board.) 

*By traffic, I am referring to overall blog and post visits, and not the number of comments.  I am grateful to all who take the time to post thoughtful, constructive comments and so my thinly veiled criticisms are in no way directed at those who posted comments.

2.  The Democratic primary is great for political junkies like me.  While I was disappointed that my candidate did not win my state, Obama earned a significant number of delegates regardless (and he did carry my county).  Furthermore, this particular fundraising development from his opponent's campaign yesterday inspired me to contribute even more money last night to Obama.  What this development also tells me is that those who support Clinton do so with only a minimum of personal commitment or passion.  Even with her acceptance of PAC funds and the so called "institutional party backing" she enjoys, Obama is earning more financial support.   And earning is the right term.  He is not just getting his supporters to turn out to the polls, but to open their wallets as well.  In these uncertain economic times, that's saying something.

I find it amusing (and predictable) that Clinton now wants to debate Obama every week.  Does anyone want to see that many debates between just two candidates?  I know it's the cheapest form of television exposure she can get, but still ...

Technorati Tags: boredom, Obama

New Beginnings

One of my blog's readers - who has asked me to not identify him or her - asked me to write a post entitled New Beginnings.  I guess mostly because he or she is aware of the fact that I am undergoing several major changes, professional and personal.

However, because these changes are literally still in process, I have nothing witty to write on a public forum such as this one, except:

• the best kind of transitions involve equal parts anticipation and fear; and
• growth is not possible without change.

And I'm not even sure if I would consider those observations all that witty.

Technorati Tags: change, transition

Update / Personal

Know it's been a while.  Nothing like moving two time zones and starting a new job to make one feel a bit overwhelmed.  So there will be (at least) two blog entries this week: this one will have some random musings generated from my personal life as of late, and the other will contain random musings on the work front.

Random personal musing one: the new single by Maroon 5 is absolutely brilliant.  As is the video.  Both the song and the video captures a vibe I've been into lately: modern meets retro (funk).

Random personal musing two: online dating is a strange, bizarre world.  I've only begun to take baby steps into the whole chaos, and I am certainly not going to post updates on a blog.  But I've got three PSA's (Public Service Announcements) to make here:

1. Men shouldn't describe themselves as attractive or good looking if they are 5'9" and 300 pounds.  Photos with mullets are also suspicious.
2. Unstable girls shouldn't hack into their alleged boyfriends' e-mail accounts and then proceed to send unsolicited, multiple e-mails to women with whom the alleged boyfriends have been corresponding.
3. Men dating unstable girls shouldn't be corresponding with women on dating sites.

Random personal musing three: Injuring your shoulder just before you move to be next to the Pacific Ocean (so that you can surf more frequently) is both ironic and painfully frustrating.

Random personal musing four: New York is a wonderful place to visit, but I never want to live there.  Was honored to be included this past weekend at a world premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival, for a film produced by my good friend SC.  Reminded me that friends are really one of life's greatest blessings: children will eventually grow out of the house, most of us don't meet our spouses until later in life, but some of us are fortunate to have friends we've known before all that and hopefully afterwards too.

Random personal musing five: Daisuke Matsuzaka is not pitching like a $100M player.  Despite this, the Red Sox are beating the snot out of the Yankees, which would normally make me quite smug ... except that it's April.

Technorati Tags: Daisuke Matsuzaka, Maroon 5, New York, online dating

Arrival

There it is, an iconic symbol of my new hometown as seen from just outside the front door of my new apartment.  2,000 miles of Hybrid Living (don't ask) in my new car, and a few days later here I am uploading images from my new gadget: a Nikon D80. 

That's a lot of new. 

The last few weeks have been exhausting, the last few days somewhat emotional (for reasons I do not wish to share here on a public forum).  But I am truly excited!  I think I will allow myself to feel that excitement once I've enjoyed just a few weeks of (relative) stability.

Currently typing this while sitting on the floor of an empty living room, waiting for a new mattress to arrive.  (There I go again with the new!)  Only items that mark this space as mine are two suitcases that were hauled on the road trip and the fact that I have a high speed Internet connection already set up.  Feels so much like my first time in this city, when I was a spanking new college grad with hardly a possession to my name except for a used Corolla.  This feeling of deja vu has compelled me to reflect on the evolution I've gone through in the last twelve or so years, the journey that has ultimately brought me full circle (at least in a geographical sense.)  The thoughts are too personal for a public blog, but they have been significant.

The road trip allowed me to first hit the Pacific in La Jolla, spend a day in la la land with my Mom (who was my road trip companion), and then take the breathtaking Pacific Coast Highway ("PCH") up through Ventura, Morro Bay, Big Sur, Monterey and Santa Cruz.  First impressions of California: waves, the friendly people of Encinitas, sunset, smog, bling on wheels, cliffs, produce, surprising isolation, and finally, the Golden Gate Bridge.

Technorati Tags: road trip, San Francisco, California, change

A New Day

Relaxing along the Pacific coastline in Santa Cruz, California after a morning run on 8 March 2007.

This is not news to many, but for those who don't know: I am moving back to the Bay Area by the end of the month.  (I write "moving back" because I lived in the Bay Area from 1994 to 1996.)  More details to follow later, but I have been blessed to land a terrific new job in downtown San Francisco, have secured a great apartment within walking distance of said job, and  - most importantly - my surfboard has already made it out here and is being safely stored at a good friend's place in Santa Cruz.

UPDATE (13 March 2007): Just haven't had the time to provide further details as noted above.  Very briefly, I will be joining Catamount Ventures as a Principal effective 2 April 2007.  Historically, they have invested in software and Internet companies such as Linden Lab (Second Life).  Going forward, they will continue to invest in these areas, in addition to all things "green", e.g., clean tech, organics.  As I wrote in the original post, I will be both working and living in downtown San Francisco, and not down the Peninsula (Silicon Valley) ... no offense to the fine residents of Palo Alto, but I am thrilled about this on any number of levels.  By San Francisco standards, my apartment is fairly spacious, so blog readers who are also friends in real life are more than encouraged to come visit!

Jack Handley Is No John Mayer

Connecting my last blog entry to the next one, been listening to the new John Mayer album continuously this weekend here in North County.  (I am aware that having deep thoughts over John Mayer lyrics puts me in the company of seventh grade schoolgirls.)  This blog entry is just a quick placeholder until I can do a more thorough review later of my weekend.

Partial Lyrics from "Stop This Train"

So scared of getting older
I’m only good at being young
So I play the numbers game
To find a way to say that life has just begun

The picture to the left is from yesterday, looking south from a sweet longboarding spot in North County called Terramar.  However, as pictured (with moderate crossshore wind and at high tide), it was sweeter to look at than to ride in.

Technorati Tags: John Mayer, Continuum, Terramar