Farming and growing things appeals to some base instinct for me. But when I am busy, running around the sprawling suburban strip-mall world, I feel guilty when I eat crappy long distance food. Eating nutritionally questionable food prepared by minimum wage workers, served up in a fluorescent homogeneity, gets me feeling bad about my squishy belly. It hangs over my waistband, just enough to make me uneasy. That wad of fat equates to heart risk and a shorter life and every crappy meal is a decision to ignore it. What’s one more installment of Five Guys? To hell with running today, I’m going to eat some Cheetos. That’s the wrong answer and I know it. So why the hell can’t I stop? It has a lot to do with my being a crappy food addict.
I am addicted to sugar, and saturated fat. I am addicted to the weird feeling of relaxed fullness after eating total crap food. It is a physical sensation which differs completely from the lack of sensation I get after eating healthy food. To get a warm feeling from healthy foods, fruits and vegetables, whole grains, nuts and beans, I must have a little bit of patience. But as a wealthy American, patience was never something I was taught about much. For my entire time on earth I have had a lack for nothing. Any food which I desired has always been available to me. These choices have robbed me of gratitude and patience.
I want to go back to farming, but it needs to be sustainable. It should be human scale because quality and size are impossible partners. More on this to come I think...
Sunday, March 7, 2010
Sunday, January 10, 2010
TD Bank Customers: Why you should move your money
Why TD Bank Sucks
Most banks charge customers for overdrawing an account, unless they take advantage of overdraft protection. Understandable. But TD Bank is taking $15 from certain accounts in “service fees” when the balance goes below $100. Apparently, when TD Banknorth changed into TD Bank back in the fall they instituted this new policy.
Grassroots Move to Community Banks
The Huffington Post reports that we should all move our money to smaller community banks. TD Bank and Bank of America are stealing your money.
Most banks charge customers for overdrawing an account, unless they take advantage of overdraft protection. Understandable. But TD Bank is taking $15 from certain accounts in “service fees” when the balance goes below $100. Apparently, when TD Banknorth changed into TD Bank back in the fall they instituted this new policy.
Grassroots Move to Community Banks
The Huffington Post reports that we should all move our money to smaller community banks. TD Bank and Bank of America are stealing your money.
Saturday, January 9, 2010
SEO Article Writing and Rewriting: 3rd World Wages
Registering for oDesk has been an education. Article writing seems like a way to make some money. My command of basic English writing skills, so I thought, may be in demand. As I prepare to graduate from my university experience I need to figure the new writing career out. Here are the goals:
So I scored a job on oDesk rewriting articles. $10 for 10 article rewrites, 250 words per article. Well, I had a look at the articles, and I even did one. It took me an hour. So I may be a right brained sort of person, focused on the big picture and all that goes with that, but that remains $1 per hour. No thanks.
This blog entry puts the world on notice: I can write good content on anything. Try me. You send me an email and tell me about what you are looking for. I will send you an email back telling you how much and how soon. Sounds good, right? We will see.
- Exterminate Need to be Supervised
- Work in Pajamas
- Continue be Stay at Home Dad
- Feed Family
So I scored a job on oDesk rewriting articles. $10 for 10 article rewrites, 250 words per article. Well, I had a look at the articles, and I even did one. It took me an hour. So I may be a right brained sort of person, focused on the big picture and all that goes with that, but that remains $1 per hour. No thanks.
This blog entry puts the world on notice: I can write good content on anything. Try me. You send me an email and tell me about what you are looking for. I will send you an email back telling you how much and how soon. Sounds good, right? We will see.
Monday, January 4, 2010
New website
I just found this stupid chat window open in my browser. Funny that they would be so pushy, all i did was look at their price schedule...
Simon: This is your online writing consultant. Let me assist you with a custom paper...
Simon: hi
you: I am researching the availability of prohibited academic work for an article about the decline in American standards of education. I do all my own writing, so... I guess this is a bit awkward. Comments?
Simon: This is your online writing consultant. Let me assist you with a custom paper...
Simon: hi
you: I am researching the availability of prohibited academic work for an article about the decline in American standards of education. I do all my own writing, so... I guess this is a bit awkward. Comments?
Sunday, December 27, 2009
TechCrunch, Twitter and Digital Age Ethics
The first question that comes to mind pertaining to the TechCrunch publication of internal Twitter communication really has little to do with Twitter’s strategic planning. How did this seemingly enormous data dump happen to land in TechCrunch’s lap? According to TechCruch, their receipt of the material in question originated with a hacker, who intends to go public. It seems strange that upon receiving zip files loaded with illegally procured files there would be any consideration of publication whatsoever. Any blog or journalistic outlet must consider the role it plays in these situations, particularly when shielding illegal activity. To flirt with the TechCrunch logic it follows that if any unscrupulous hacker manages to gain access to confidential data, publication ought go to the highest bidder, thus provoking a foreseeably real market for blogworthy secrets. This position is preposterous, and TechCrunch has pried open the debate about business ethics in the digital age.
Clearly many bloggers don’t toe the same ethical lines that real journalism does, given the tools and training involved this comes as no surprise. But what about the real motivation behind the publication of the hacked material? Nothing other than that most coveted currency of traffic and viewership motivated this clearly unethical post. Given the clearly sensitive nature of the information Twitter stands to take at least some modest blows in terms of perception on the street, not to mention the carefully managed relationships with high profile stakeholders such as Diddy. Media moguls like Diddy rely first and foremost upon the credibility afforded by the millions of young, financially liquid consumers that drive their business. The language within these Twitter documents marginalizes him and his status, tarnishing both his and the Twitter brand simultaneously. Who is the responsible party for any real balance sheet damage? Any good lawyer will quickly point toward the deepest pockets responsible, doubtfully ”Hacker Croll”, especially given the likely rise in revenues to TechCrunch as a result of this editorial decision.
The paranoia found within corporate culture comes justified with this news.
Clearly many bloggers don’t toe the same ethical lines that real journalism does, given the tools and training involved this comes as no surprise. But what about the real motivation behind the publication of the hacked material? Nothing other than that most coveted currency of traffic and viewership motivated this clearly unethical post. Given the clearly sensitive nature of the information Twitter stands to take at least some modest blows in terms of perception on the street, not to mention the carefully managed relationships with high profile stakeholders such as Diddy. Media moguls like Diddy rely first and foremost upon the credibility afforded by the millions of young, financially liquid consumers that drive their business. The language within these Twitter documents marginalizes him and his status, tarnishing both his and the Twitter brand simultaneously. Who is the responsible party for any real balance sheet damage? Any good lawyer will quickly point toward the deepest pockets responsible, doubtfully ”Hacker Croll”, especially given the likely rise in revenues to TechCrunch as a result of this editorial decision.
The paranoia found within corporate culture comes justified with this news.
Elite Socialism revamps the communist experiment
Elite Access Only
When access remains limited to the privileged few, the pall of socialism cannot be invoked. Kelly neglects the important consideration of access. Becker indicates the vast divide between who will have access to Kelly’s means of production. The very lack of access for so many precludes any socialism. Socialism may have traditionally depended on the vanguard to manage the centralized government as an effort to protect the people, but simply the presence of cooperation, collaborative work, and sharing do not prove a case for socialism.
Ownership: Means of Production
Where in Kelly’s model of Socialism do the proletariat control the means of production? Access to the means of production for an elite few remains a far cry from the control of production falling into the hands of the working class. The elite within the Wiki world clearly maintain access to the means of production, but very few own the hardware and infrastructure which comprise the nessessary conditions for this utopian "new socialism." Even granting that there may be an automatic inevitablity of the internet going forward, the access remains limited to those with access to a network node. When the company providing broadband access decides to limit bandwidth thanking to profit margins, the elite will grow smaller yet. Socialsim? No, because already limited access depends on the captial concerns of the corporate gatekeepers. Digital divide remains and it prevents socialism.
Faceless Meritocracies
Kelly got one thing right: “we have faceless meritocracies.” Socialism rejects elitism, and the meritocracy finds its ranks among the elite with access. No meritocracy exists which incorporates all possible perspectives when the tools of production remain outside the scope of so many directly affected.
Socialism may fit within many contexts, but in this case Kevin Kelly reforms the term to fit into a world exclusive of many. Kelly writes in "The New Socialism: Global Collectivist Society Is Coming Online" that open source efforts and collective media have coalesced into a neo-socialist hybrid, neither naughty communism nor evil capitalism. Many of the wiki style cannons and the open source software projects thrive on both altruism and unexpectedly self-sacrificing behavior, he says.
http://harrisoncenter.us/wikipage/new-socialism-global-collectivist-soci...
Works Cited:
Becker, Henry Jay. "Who's Wired and Who's Not: Children's Access to and use of Computer Technology." The Future of Children 10.2, Children and Computer Technology (2000): 44-75. Print.
Kelly, Kevin. "The New Socialism: Global Collectivist Society Is Coming Online." Wired Magazine 22 05 2009: 1-4. Web. 13 Oct 2009. <http://www.wired.com/culture/culturereviews/magazine/17-06/nep_newsocialism>
Malecki, Edward, . "Economic Geography of the Internet's Infrastructure." Economic Geography 78.4 (2002): 399- 424. Web. 14 Sep 2009. <http://www.jstor.org/stable/4140796?cookieSet=1>
Saturday, August 22, 2009
College At 35
Being a 35 year old college student has some interesting advantages. The obvious benefits relate to seriousness, dedication, efficient time management, and overall focus. One underlying angle that only just occurred to me connects to personal empowerment. When I was 18 or 20 I had no idea that anything and everything was possible. 15 years of life experience can have some very dramatic effects upon the bearer, and the most valuable relates to this growing grasp on the sheer possibilities in life. I am not a victim of circumstance, but the purveyor of my own destiny.
My university, a state school with pockets of both ineptitude and brilliance also ranks very high in terms of value. For $10,000/year I have access to a fairly broad selection of classes, decent library resources online (great for the aspiring researcher or obsessive scanner), subsidized health insurance, some really bright educators (I do stress SOME), and classrooms filled with sleepy young people 15 years my junior. This last point, the typical college student body, presents the very best opportunity for the “non-traditional” student. A huge advantage exists when 85% of your classmates only show up half the time. First, the class size immediately shrinks providing more relative time per student during the allotted period. Want to leverage this? Sit up front and never miss a class. I treat this mid-life education exactly like I treated all my jobs, with total ownership and responsibility. When I show up for every single class and I am literally face to face with the professor it makes a serious impression. These overworked and sometimes underwhelmed teachers come to expect apathy from their students, yet when cogent adults present bright attentive behavior and salient questions consistently they tend to remember this at the end of the semester when calculating grades. This continues to be my top tactic in earning the dean’s list every semester without sacrificing in the many other aspects of life (kids, wife, house, job, staying out of trouble, hobbies, sleep).
The obvious point often missed by my younger peers is that I actually absorb more by being there all the time, cutting down and even eliminating the need to spend time on course material outside of class. This applies most particularly to the general education requirements of freshmen and sophomore level courses. Last semester I took a 100 level American History class at 8am. I drop my children off at school at 8am every weekday anyway, and their school allows for half hour early drop off for folks needing to get to work. How difficult was it to get my kids up a 30 minutes early vs. the payoff of being one of the only students to consistently show up for an 8 o’clock class? Easy beans, considering my past careers have demanded far earlier attendance than this, it still strikes me a practically sleeping in to get to the earliest classes offered. I love to hear them whine about how early that is when the day is actually half over with.
Since beginning a blog in earnest, my interest in improving my web design skills grows. While my university does have a well respected school of engineering complete with computer science curriculum, there lacks a really good web design class for those of us not within that track. For English Majors such as myself, the closest thing to what I was interested was “Web and Presentation Writing”, a perfectly tuned class for the skill I’m after. Except the class filled up with upperclassmen long before I could get a crack at it. I want these skills now because I want to build an awesome blog now, not 2 months before I graduate and wander back out into the cruel world. If I can build my readership before getting out of school, I might stand a chance at some income generation before we become a starving family. Okay, so we likely won’t starve, but you get my point.
So how to get into the fall class that filled up before summer break? Easy. I’m going to show up, attend the class anyway and utilize my growing rhetorical chops to convince the professor why I ought to be in his class. He has the ultimate say, and we both know at least a few of the currently registered students will never show up. Okay, see you in ENL 368.
My university, a state school with pockets of both ineptitude and brilliance also ranks very high in terms of value. For $10,000/year I have access to a fairly broad selection of classes, decent library resources online (great for the aspiring researcher or obsessive scanner), subsidized health insurance, some really bright educators (I do stress SOME), and classrooms filled with sleepy young people 15 years my junior. This last point, the typical college student body, presents the very best opportunity for the “non-traditional” student. A huge advantage exists when 85% of your classmates only show up half the time. First, the class size immediately shrinks providing more relative time per student during the allotted period. Want to leverage this? Sit up front and never miss a class. I treat this mid-life education exactly like I treated all my jobs, with total ownership and responsibility. When I show up for every single class and I am literally face to face with the professor it makes a serious impression. These overworked and sometimes underwhelmed teachers come to expect apathy from their students, yet when cogent adults present bright attentive behavior and salient questions consistently they tend to remember this at the end of the semester when calculating grades. This continues to be my top tactic in earning the dean’s list every semester without sacrificing in the many other aspects of life (kids, wife, house, job, staying out of trouble, hobbies, sleep).
The obvious point often missed by my younger peers is that I actually absorb more by being there all the time, cutting down and even eliminating the need to spend time on course material outside of class. This applies most particularly to the general education requirements of freshmen and sophomore level courses. Last semester I took a 100 level American History class at 8am. I drop my children off at school at 8am every weekday anyway, and their school allows for half hour early drop off for folks needing to get to work. How difficult was it to get my kids up a 30 minutes early vs. the payoff of being one of the only students to consistently show up for an 8 o’clock class? Easy beans, considering my past careers have demanded far earlier attendance than this, it still strikes me a practically sleeping in to get to the earliest classes offered. I love to hear them whine about how early that is when the day is actually half over with.
Since beginning a blog in earnest, my interest in improving my web design skills grows. While my university does have a well respected school of engineering complete with computer science curriculum, there lacks a really good web design class for those of us not within that track. For English Majors such as myself, the closest thing to what I was interested was “Web and Presentation Writing”, a perfectly tuned class for the skill I’m after. Except the class filled up with upperclassmen long before I could get a crack at it. I want these skills now because I want to build an awesome blog now, not 2 months before I graduate and wander back out into the cruel world. If I can build my readership before getting out of school, I might stand a chance at some income generation before we become a starving family. Okay, so we likely won’t starve, but you get my point.
So how to get into the fall class that filled up before summer break? Easy. I’m going to show up, attend the class anyway and utilize my growing rhetorical chops to convince the professor why I ought to be in his class. He has the ultimate say, and we both know at least a few of the currently registered students will never show up. Okay, see you in ENL 368.
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