Candyhog blog

What's right with this picture?

Several things!

1. As always, Gmail themes
2. Conversation view turned off
3. Priority Inbox

Other great Gmail things not seen in this image:

1. Labs: Undo send enabled
2. Labs: Default Reply all enabled
3. Labs: Advanced attachment options enabled

Working hard and hardly working

Time to cry myself a river.

This has been an amazing — and I don't mean that in a good way — couple of years. For me, the recession has meant:

Too much work. Having to do a lot of side jobs even when I have full-time work, so that I have work when the full-time stuff dries up. Working with startups is fulfilling in some ways, but so insecure.

Too little work. Working with startups is fulfilling in some ways, but so insecure. Too many hours I could be working, when I am not working.

Too little predictability. Sometime too much work, sometimes too little, no ability to look ahead and plan accordingly.

Too little play. No money, no predictable time to set aside for play.

Sorry about the complaints. My cheerfulness will return.

Could the Republicans be so lucky in a new leader?

If the world inverts, Meghan McCain will reshape the Republican Party and lead it back to sanity. I'm in no danger of swinging Republican, but I do appreciate honest discourse, courage, and a worthy opponent.

She's pro-choice ("pro sex," even), against religion permeating public life (abstinence-only sex education anyone?), interested in civil rights.  Meghan McCain has famously refused to discuss Sarah Palin (say no more), and she has variously dismissed Karl Rove as as a "Twitter creep," Ann Coulter as a "train wreck," and has been unshy about her distaste for Joe the Plumber:

Shortly before McCain sat for this interview, Samuel Wurzelbacher, aka Joe the Plumber, gave an interview to Christianity Today in which he complained about “queers” and declared, “I wouldn’t have them anywhere near my children.” Unprompted, McCain rails against the man her father’s presidential campaign touted as an American everyman and made a showpiece in the weeks before the election. “Joe the Plumber — you can quote me — is a dumbass."

...

Although she says she has no political aspirations, McCain has an astute understanding of her own generation — one more inclined to identify with her bright, bushy-tailed enthusiasm than with the GOP’s grumpy old men.

That was from Out Magazine, in which she vociferously supports gay rights and marriage equality. So is this:

Given her youth, her lack of political experience, and that she’s the daughter of the Republican politician most reviled by his fellow Republicans, it’s doubtful, at least for the time being, that McCain has the ability to sway conservatives on any issue, never mind gay equality. As they did with her father, many prominent conservatives have called her conservative bona fides into question, pointing out that she only recently registered as a Republican, voted for John Kerry in 2004, and spends more time attacking Republicans than she does Democrats. And despite the battle scars she’s already earned, McCain recognizes that she has yet to win over gays. “A lot of people in the gay community are skeptical of me as a Republican,” she says, mindful of her mission to promote the idea that being Republican and supporting gay marriage are not mutually exclusive.

“Homophobia is the last socially accepted prejudice,” McCain says, repeating it for emphasis. So it’s only natural that she also views the fight for gay equality as “my generation’s civil rights movement.” At a time when California can constitutionally ban gay marriage and the current presidential administration — having vowed so much — has yet to fulfill its promises, it’s hard not to be won over by this bubbly optimist. “In general, I don’t get a good response from the conservative movement,” she admits, unfazed. “But there are a lot of people who have said, ‘I’m Republican and I’m pro–gay marriage. Thank you for showing that you don’t have to be anti–gay marriage to be a Republican.’ ”

Today's Must-Read

Reminiscent of the McCain Golf Gear Product-Reviews-as-Artform episode, Amazon's #1-selling apparel item has 333 product reviews, and counting. A striking majority of them are masterpieces! A couple of examples are excerpted below, but do yourself a favor and read them all.

Great compliment for my skin art

Unfortunately I already had this exact picture tattooed on my chest, but this shirt is very useful in colder weather.

Why can't Amazon have more stars? 5 ain't enough!

So I'm looking for threads that say, "Hey baby...I'm real boss!" when I stumble upon this epic creation. The wolves spoke to me in a language all their own; it was like German, Mongol, and Bitchin all mixed together. I mean, one wolf howlin at the moon is major...but three???

I ordered next-day air (if only there was same day!), and, of course, a size smaller than usual to ensure the closeness of the wolves to my chest hair. When the package arrived, I tore it open, and I SWEAR angels sang. I think it was Freebird. I immediately removed my "No Fat Chicks" shirt, and replaced it with this finery. Lemme tell you: AW YEAH.

I'll spare the details of my conquests since I started wearing this shrit; suffice to say, I'm swimming in a sea of babes the likes of which are usually found on those K-Tel infomercials. I'm also more confident at work, and expect to be promoted to cashier soon. I owe everything to this shirt (I should say "shirts", since I now own 23 of them).

A couple of essays

Patience rewarded!

After a long break — sorry about that, folks — I'm back with a very serious issue with which I need help. Richard made us a scallop lunch today and plated it two different ways. Can you believe that?!

It's like Who Wore It Better all over again.

Please vote and let your voice be heard by at least 7 people!!!

Deconstruction

We love Top Chef. So much so that we found ourselves enjoying the following quick[fire] snack the other day:

Deconstructed Nachos!

Ingredients: Doritos, Tillamook Cheddar slab.

I am a sheep

There is no shortage of snowy "Can you believe it?!" photography being passed around the NW today, so let me pile on!

In the picture below, our house looks like a Christmas card...if I weren't so lazy/busy I'd Photoshop in some cheery lights or other signs of habitation.

At the time this was taken, I was huddled over my computer at my desk as usual (when not in Redmond doing things many other people could do just as well for Microsoft), and RT and the boys were sledding on the hill.

The big newsflash there was that the neighbor, Zoe, in Kindergarten this year, won the  Sledding Championship for BOTH our driveway and hers. Watch out world!

Also, regarding Christmas, this is the first year that both boys have been opening their advent calendar windows first thing each morning without needing to be prodded.

OK, OK, I'll include a sledding snapshot. It's not very interesting except to document that our snow was not the usual, wussy almost-snow, it is significant in volume. And though mundane in the extreme, this picture is so much more interesting than the incessant pictures on TV of cars in trouble on bridges, topsy-turvy, etc. Trust me!

— Abigail

A diversion, or a new career direction

Friends, I'm sorry I've been so sparse with posts this month. I've been plowing all my writing energy into the blog at ivi TV, which I am using to explore and build interest in online television broadcasting, something that doesn't quite exist yet, except in fragmented pieces. It would delight me if any of you saw fit to subscribe and comment there, to get conversations flowing.

You can confess your darkest secrets regarding the TV you find yourself watching, anonymously ;-)

 ivi TV is a startup that has in place a solution for delivering encrypted and high-performance (P2P distribution) broadcast TV signals onto PCs. Neat, huh? It's a matter of first signing up broadcasters to join the first Internet Broadcast Network (we're writing the wikipedia page for that as I speak), then getting subscribers...the basic player will be free, and the experience will be as smooth as your traditional TV.

Difference is, you can carry it around on your laptop (and later your mobile device) and eventaully there will be a greater variety of progrtamming than you currently have.

Anyway, I'm thrilled to be part of this interesting venture as it comes together, and am in charge of marketing. If you have any great ideas about how to reach interested people, let me know!

(Skip this part unless you have an interest in marketing: Currently we're blogging and developing a healthy connections on Twitter, at the same time as we are spending time on messaging and material to help broadcasters understand why online TV is part of the future's screen-agnostic approach to viewing content. Articles and event presence will follow.)

I'm still at Microsoft until March, so you can imagine that doing 2 jobs plus everything else (boys, anyone?!) has me a bit busy. Oh yeah, and there are those holidays.

So, fewer blog posts and perhaps a louder silence from the NW than usual when it comes to other communications as well...apologies in advance. But! Email me for updates or with ideas or chat, or call! I can be lifted out of my frenzy for moments of happy catching up!

— Abigail

The somewhat beaten path

Anyone who's visited us in the past year or so will recognize many of the activities included in the New York Times' 36 Hours in Seattle. It's a good round-up of fun things to do.

The dining choices were as sensitive as the activity recommendations, selecting neighborhood haunts that are easy to get to and fairly central, as well as a flashy market-view restaurant that happens also to be a longstanding locals in-the-know favorite: Matt's in the Market. It used to have just 23 seats, so you had to be pretty judicious about not trumpeting its praises, if you ever wanted to eat there again. It was exclusive but neither pricey nor precious.

That's one of the really neat things about the Pike Place Market: It's a co-op or nonprofit or whatever (just the facts here!), so the cold arm of capitalist commerce is kept at bay and restaurants don't have to be mega-sized million-dollar enterprises to pay for the water view locations that are so fun.

In terms of dining, the Times also mentioned Quinn's Pub, which I've enjoyed visiting on two occasions, and Café Presse, among our top three destinations when we're dining in town. Who doesn't love a cold half chicken with mayo and a salad?

— Abigail

Update: replaced the photo with this one of Jordan taken on November 26th at Matt's, proving the point that it's the place to be. He and Pat took my recommendation to have dinner at Lark and loved it as much as I do.

The weekly YouTube addresses are great but...

How much more impressive is the idea of a "craigslist" for community service?! For everyone who workd full time and has a busy family life besides, here is a way to volunteer in piece-work fashion, finding things that you can do and are interested in with ease and without a lot of advance notice or ongoing commitment.

Genius! Our first Internet presidency is going to rock.

All this said, of course, I'm not knocking the presidential YouTube addresses.

— Abigail

OMG, a president who cares about food and food policy

CHOW revels in the wonders of the food-centric responses to the important caught-in-an-elevator-without-the-30-secret-service-guys question that's on everyone's minds:

"If You Had One Minute with Obama, What Would You Say?"

...and they make it very entertaining. Follow the links!

— Abigail

Spirit of Seattle

On board the Bainbridge ferry this morning, people headed into the city to further the popular demand for equality.

 
 

Speaking of ethical savagery

I mentioned ethical savagery in my last post, but much more important is the ethical Savagery shown here:

So proud to have Dan Savage as the editor of the always-awesome hometown rag The Stranger!

— Abigail

Update: My favorite moments  at 6:15 and 7:15

Joe the Unkind-to-eyeballs

When I read that Joe the Plumber had an awful website built upon his stupidity and the style trends of the fetal Net, I had to hie over there. Wow! It's worse than a bad report can prepare you for, but I encourage you to read them anyway: there are some very, very good writers out there practicing ethical savagery.

Try HuffPo  and Wonkette ... or if you prefer a drier approach in French, Le Monde serves it up well in its Americana blog, tagline "Choses vues en Amérique."

— Abigail

The secret to my moderately fat physique

I will not waste your time an mine by trying to represent myself as other than overweight and in need of more exercise. However, I would be absolutely gargantuan if it wasn't for the last several years having seen me naturally gravitating toward appropriate portions. As in, 50% of what is normally served in a restaurant setting.

When chefs were asked to estimate a typical portion size of penne pasta served in their restaurant, for instance, half of the chefs suggested portions that are six to eight times larger than the U.S.D.A.’s standard 1-ounce serving.

Not only have Americans increased their food intake over the past 20 or so years by at least 30%, but they, like me, have become much more sedentary and thus in need of fewer calories. Note to Americans: Most of us don't need farm food anymore! We don't work gruelling days in the fields!

I think the explosion of portion sizes starts with a single important factor: Americans eat prepared food more often (As of 2006, fewer than a third of Americans were in the habit of making home-cooked dinners from scratch). Prepared food must be marketed and sold. To appear to be a "value" it must give you "more" for whatever the market-will-bear pricepoint is...and the "more" is not likely to be organic, fresh vegetables or high-fiber or high-protein elements. A marketable alternative to (and a relative of)  value is the need for a wow factor, which is likely to be size. A big, bountiful packaged or restaurant meal sells better than a lean, efficient, high quality meal in a small package. 

All that said, I do not subscribe to the idea that there is a correct portion of red wine. Wine is not a food, it's a necessity.

— Abigail

PS > Can we just call me phat insteada, well, you know...

Wow, and BTW, nice cover

This week's entire New Yorker is online FREE this week.

I know, you all subscribe (I couldn't live without the New Yorker under my pillow for when I wake up and want to read, doze, read, doze, etc.) but remember also to visit the online New Yorker for the online-only content.

I love Hertzberg's blog as much if not more than his perfect and addictive Talk of the Town pieces, and there's tons more online that you can't get in print. In fact, the New Yorker seems to have used the past year to make its Web site suitable for visitors (which it really wasn't up until the overhaul) and to very successfully differentiate its print and online brands despite their large overlap.

Hurray for them, and welcome to them  as a polished player in the online age.

— Abigail

I read this reader post at TPM about why/how someone chose not to vote for Obama today, ready to be schooled in some fine point or contrarian rhetoric. What I got was so much better!

 — Your pal Abigail

Reading as thinking

I am guilty of reading for the pleasure of words going by, sometimes (in the wee hours) failing to absorb much or ponder as I sail along. Even so, when reading is reduced to its least influential state, the shape of words, the choice of words, the contrasts between sentences give a meaning that can't be gotten from speech (just as speech gives something unique of its own).

That's why I was so irritated by the poetry trend in the 90s whereby a poem didn't have life until or unless the writer performed in front of a group of people. Those poor audiences got to see a spectacle but they never got to see how the words related to each other as they were recorded, a reproducible record of the writer's intent.

These are the sympathetic prejudices I bring when I read this wonderful piece by Stefan Suricek about Ms. Palin and her reading habits and got a lot of mileage out of it.

And I should note:  If I'd seen these thoughts presented in a YouTube video, I wouldn't have understood them as clearly and powerfully.

— A

My ignorance

I thought/worried for a moment tonight that the flag behind Obama was an Obama-branded version of our national flag, and thought the license it would take to design & produce such a thing, especially one kinda-sorta not-really on-brand, would be unwise/would backfire.

Of course, Obama would do no such silly/unwise thing.

Little did I know, the Ohio Flag is "monogrammed" with a big sans-serif "O." The coincidence is like the coincidence of Oprah breaking with her own tradition and endorsing a candidate, Obama. Yes, she's the owner of the "O" brand, but she's not endorsing  — or not endorsing — Obama for that reason.

The question is: With Ohio so important to electoral success, did the Ohio flag design serve as an inspiration element when they were designing the Obama logo that has been so consistent throughout the campaign? It's sure handy now that the message to Ohioans and the rest of Americans is so cohesive, visually.

And of course, substantially.

— Abigail