Of Course

Of Course:

In a simpler and more optimistic sense, what happens is that you stop quitting; you have to be made to quit.

That’s a big difference, and it can end up changing not only who you are as a rider but who you are as a person. The acclaim you receive for this, however, is as subtle as the transformation is monumental: You become taken for granted as a cyclist. Those who are always there when there’s a there worth being there for assume you always will be there with them. That’s your reward: you become ordinary.

[Many people pray for ordinary all the time. I love ordinary in my life as much as love extraordinary. And while the amounts don’t balance (I prefer ordinary in abundance and extraordinary in measured amounts), the reality is you can’t have one without the other.]

The Post Office: Neither snow nor rain | The Economist

The Post Office: Neither snow nor rain | The Economist:

Quasi-independent since 1970, the post gets no public money. And yet it is obliged (as FedEx and UPS are not) to visit every mailbox, no matter how remote, six days a week. This has driven the average cost of each piece of mail up from 34 cents in 2006 to 41 cents. Yet the post is not allowed to raise prices (of stamps and such) willy-nilly; a 2006 law set formulas for that. So in effect, the post cannot control either its costs or its revenues.

[New phrase for hamstrung projects where the business wants to control all sides of the delivery triangle (cost/time/features) “Don’t postal the project.”]

The Happiness Project: Frank Lloyd Wright’s 10-Point Manifesto for His Apprentices.

The Happiness Project: Frank Lloyd Wright’s 10-Point Manifesto for His Apprentices.:

I recently read Frank Lloyd Wright’s Autobiography — a very thought-provoking work. In it, he includes a list of the “Fellowship Assets” that he outlined for the architecture apprentices he worked with at Taliesin, his summer home, studio, and school.

  1. An honest ego in a healthy body.
  2. An eye to see nature
  3. A heart to feel nature
  4. Courage to follow nature
  5. The sense of proportion (humor)
  6. Appreciation of work as idea and idea as work
  7. Fertility of imagination
  8. Capacity for faith and rebellion
  9. Disregard for commonplace (inorganic) elegance
  10. Instinctive cooperation

[Lots to think about here to be sure. BTW, I really like the Happiness Project and have read the book. Recommended.]

Monsanto Corn May Be Failing to Kill Bugs, EPA Says – Businessweek

Monsanto Corn May Be Failing to Kill Bugs, EPA Says – Businessweek:

Monsanto should enact a remedial action plan in fields where resistance to its Bt insecticide is suspected, the EPA said. That includes having growers use conventional pesticide to kill adult rootworm beetles late in the season and alternate pest control methods in the following season.

Monsanto tested rootworms for resistance in Nebraska, Illinois and Iowa and should expand the monitoring to Colorado, Minnesota, South Dakota and western Wisconsin because questions about the performance of Bt corn extends to all seven states, the EPA said in the memo.

Monsanto’s most advanced resistance problem is with crops engineered to tolerate its Roundup herbicide. Weeds that are no longer killed by Roundup have invaded 14 million acres of U.S. cotton, soybean and corn, according to Syngenta AG, a Swiss chemical maker. A Dow Chemical Co. study this year found as many as 20 million acres of corn and soybeans may be infested.

[What an incredible mess is being made with this. Life always finds a way. Try your best not to buy and eat these products (easier said than done, I know).]

In everything is a chance

Is there something morally pure or preferable about a painful intricate construction, rather than the brisk, functional way most people toss off a task?

Is there a beauty in seriousness?

It would appear it is something that I can’t fail to be touched by. A shorthand lesson plan on how I wish to live.

When there is no compromise with expediency, no taking for granted of power structures, nothing but rigorous honesty and tireless interrogation; there is some feeling or hope that if I could put every single thing under the sun into this moment I could head off sorrow, frustration, resentment, missed communication, and thwarted ambition.

It is way easier of course to walk past, to not examine, to not take apart: There is a social use in seeing an ambulance rushing by without imagining who is inside it, in buying a quart of milk without thinking too deeply about the guy behind the counter, or how the cow was treated. The fish who is thinking obsessively “What is water?” is, no doubt, a little less likely to swim very far.

Still, every time I tinker with some aspect of my life working toward it being, acceptable, professional, workable, move-on-able, I think “Maybe I’ll do it a little better this time.”

And I’ve come to realize that it is that which I cherish in people, companies, workshops, and craft. Making it a priority that the every day approach is “How can I do this better this time?” and is a fundamental path. The warp and weft of process. The chance to make the work, the hour, the day sacred in some truest sense, because through that improvement, we succeed at seizing the moment.

Inspiration vs. Imitation

Inspiration vs. Imitation:

1. It’s OK to copy people’s work.[GIANT ASTERISK!]

2. Not everything you make should be on the internet.

3. Diversify your inspirations.

4. History is important.

5. Train your eye.

6. Just because it’s not illegal doesn’t mean it’s ethical.

7. Everybody knows everybody.

Most of the time the offenders aren’t aware of how obvious their inspiration sources are. We’re all guilty of it when we’re starting out, but hopefully this article will remind some of you to keep that practice work out of your portfolio, which will keep the angry blog commenters off your back.

Always keep practicing (and practicing, and practicing), keep looking at beautiful work, keep researching others to look up to and be inspired by. In no time you’ll be making beautiful original work of your own.

[There’s a lot more to this piece. And the issues are often complicated. But no doubt there is value in being yourself. First and foremost is… no one can be a better you than you.]
Source: Jessica Hische

The economics of Christmas lights

The economics of Christmas lights:

Two asides: First, it’s interesting to note that no one (zero) gets paid to put up Christmas lights, but some towns are awash in them.

and second, I think there’s a parallel to the broken windows theory here. Broken Windows asserts that in cities with small acts of vandalism and unrepaired facades, crime goes up. The Christmas Light corollary might be that in towns (or online communities) where there’s a higher rate of profit-free community contribution, happiness and productivity go up as well.

[Nice.]
Source: Seth’s Blog

Firefox faces uncertain future as Google deal apparently ends

Firefox faces uncertain future as Google deal apparently ends:

It might be worthwhile for Google just to keep Microsoft from buying that promotion for Bing. Because if anyone’s willing to throw massive piles of money at gaining marketshare that isn’t worth anywhere near what they spent to gain it, it’s Microsoft. Given the history between Firefox and Internet Explorer, though, it would be pretty entertaining if Microsoft made such a deal, effectively sponsoring Firefox’s continued development.

I’m a bit sad for Firefox. It used to be the fast, powerful, progressive browser that finally broke IE’s era of stagnant dominance and saved web developers’ sanity. Now, it’s a bloated, slow, unstable monster that’s often a pain in this web developer’s ass.

It’s losing marketshare to Chrome for very good reasons. There’s no place for it in mobile, where most of the growth and action is happening in the industry, and most of their other recent attempts at new platforms and products have fizzled out.

I’m not sure Firefox can be saved. It might continue for a long time as a fringe browser choice, like Opera, but I don’t see how its marketshare will ever increase again.

[It certainly lost a lot of ground with my circle of developers. They went from using it as their only browser, to also using it alongside of others. Trust me to know these guys, that’s two miles of bad road. Ya know? Onward!]
Source: Marco.org

Fresh Goods: Soul Poles Bamboo Ski Poles

Fresh Goods: Soul Poles Bamboo Ski Poles:

Everything old is new again: Soul Poles has gone back to one of the original materials used to make ski poles, bamboo, and there are compelling arguments in its favor, aside from the fact that the poles look bitchin’. The fledgling brand, launched by World Cup skiers Erik Schlopy and Bryon Friedman, makes the sticks by hand in Utah from sustainable bamboo and mostly recycled materials, including a recycled polypro strap, recycled plastic in the basket, and 80 percent recycled aluminum in the tip. SP is also a member of One Percent for the Planet and Protect Our Winters and good on ‘em for it.

$99-$295 LINK

[Bamboo is everywhere these days. Nice.]
Source: adventure journal