A Moment in Time with my Zune. It was the day after Election Day 2008 and I was walking the dog, still buzzed about the history I witnessed the night before. How could I listen to a podcast of Rachel Maddow or Olbermann or Brokaw recorded before the world changed at 11:00 PM? So I tuned my Zune's radio to Vermont Public Radio and listened to live post-analysis of the election. In this instance my Zune was so real time and the iPod so...yesterday.
Best Election Night 2008 quote. I was watching CNN on the tube and MSNBC on my laptop at 11:00 PM when the election was called. The commentary was poignant on both networks I thought, but the quote that struck me was Chris Matthews a few minutes before 11:00. "The world will look at us -- thank God -- with wonder again. 'My God, how they do it. How do these Americans do it?'"
Craigslist for fun and retribution. I'm enjoying the heck out of Craigslist these days. As you can see from my Craigslist feeds, I'm on the hunt for a popup camper, big rugs, free stuff, accordions, and anything with "Nordic" in the description. (The two "jobs" feeds are just to keep me aware of what's going on out there, as I'm definitely NOT looking for a real job.) I was going to point you to a post titled "DO NOT WORK FOR [some local farming operation]!!!" as an example of Craigslist being used for retribution to complain about getting screwed by a local business as seemed to be the case here, but the post was flagged for removal. I guess I have a lot to learn about Craigslist.
The freelancer's death knell of a steady gig. A valuable message to freelancers from Freelance Switch, "How to Not Lose Yourself in a Steady Gig." I keep telling myself I'm going to work on client stuff only 4 days a week, but I don't do it because I know myself well enough to know I have to focus on a task until it's done, whether it's client or personal. One day a week doesn't cut it. And I can't take off a week or two because I'd feel too guilty about not earning a paycheck. The legacy of being a son of parents who lived through the Great Depression, I guess.
Having a consistent message. "Branding 101: How to Promote Your Blog like the Big Guys Do" was about blog promotion, but the point it stressed about having a consistent message extends beyond branding. I certainly failed at having a consistent message at dbvt.com the last few months. The heart is willing, but things sometime take longer to materialize than we might like. If only I could blow-off my day job for a few months I'm sure I'd find the consistent message I seek. Damned Great Depression.
The Future of Blogging Revealed. There's something important about the concept of lifestreaming in this ReadWriteWeb post, though I'm not sharp enough to truly grasp it. Look at the pictures like I did and maybe something will come to you.
Cuckoo for Roku Puffs! I'm still the happy cereal consumer and Roku viewer. Currently watching "Empires of Industry: Brewed in America." While having nothing to do with beer, I thought this MSNBC.COM quote was quite insightful, "'Netflix has really stumbled upon something that's pretty clever,' Pachter said. 'It's kind of a win for everyone because the customer gets the instant gratification of watching a movie over the Internet, studios get more licensing fees and Netflix saves money.'" Then again, I think Negroponte already made that point in "Being Digital" 10 years ago.