Negative Margins

A Place for Giant Files

2011-03-06T19:36:00.000-08:00

How timely: my iPad goes fritzomatic just in time for the release of the iPad2. In the course of my half-hearted attempts to fix it, I manage to fill my start-up drive to the point of crashing (notwithstanding I have an entire terabyte of media storage and another full terabyte of backup). I think the entire Library of Congress would fit on a few terabytes. What the heck is all this stuff? Insomnia and internet addiction are a fatal storage-eating combination. I tend to have odd research binges at 3:00 am, wildly downloading and storing all kinds of files in connection with whatever fleeting obsession catches me before the dawn. A few years ago, I stumbled on a new edition of my great-grandfather's novel (from a publisher likely inspired by Obama's election, since the protagonist in some ways resembles him more than 100 years later). Public domain is a bitch. Anyway, that spurred some serious midnight OCD, wherein I found this photo on the Jacksonville University web archive. Remarkably enough, there's my great-grandmother, the undertaker Mrs R.G. Walker (nee Holmes), proudly displaying her cars and corporate headquarters in one of the massive files that has been clogging up my hard drive. I guess burying black folks in the South was pretty good business at that time. Well, I had to do something with the file before I put in the black hole that is my media archive drive. There it is.

Bread from Levain

2011-02-27T07:35:00.001-08:00

DSC00630.JPG, originally uploaded by defmonk2007.

I've screwed around extensively with the Sullivan Street no-knead method. More than pleased with consistently delicious results, subject to the amendments in my earlier post, bread from levain is my new challenge.

A close cousin of sourdough, this bread's irresistible appeal is the simplicity of ingredients: water, salt, flour. No yeast - the first step in producing this loaf is "hunting" the wild yeasts already carrying on in my kitchen. The wonderful starter I've captured is the sort of thing I hope to pass on to my children, along with my indestructible Dutch bike, my watch and my Saddleback Leather case, provided I can keep up with the weekly "feedings" for the next thirty years or so.

The result of this new project (and my recent acquisition of a French lame) is this beautiful two-pound boule. The lame, basically a double-edged razor on a stick, paid for itself in the marital harmony engendered by the flamboyant "V" inscribed on the top of the loaf. Suddenly, the lovely Vanessa is a bit more tolerant of the cloud of flour dust I throw off each weekend.

Two weeks after building my starter daily, I'm rewarded with a loaf of exceptional substance, complexity and depth of flavor. Reinhardt's recipes from Crust and Crumb are excellent. Kudos for the simplicity and purity of his work.

Branded and Better: Yahoo! News

2011-01-13T12:16:00.000-08:00

Today's online audiences are looking for experiences that are more personal, social and engaging than ever — and that's just as true for advertising as it is for anything else.

This is the age of branded programming.

Uncompromising integrity is central to the success of such entertainment. A dynamic understanding of audiences’ desire to know, plus active conversations with advertising partners during the development of these highly customized programs, ensures that the programs will fulfill the needs of both the audience and the advertiser; neither is left out.

At Yahoo! News, we've become not just a thoughtful aggregator of newswire articles but the robust home of “only on Yahoo!” features and content. At the heart of this transformation: We've leveraged original news video, broad social activation interactive polling, exclusive reporting and analysis, and real-time blogging to appeal to a broad, highly engaged audience — all while uniquely serving the needs of advertising partners.

In the news realm, content providers can serve advertising partners' objectives by putting the brand messaging within an important, timely news frame. It's this editorially legitimate context that elevates the credibility of branded news programming far above mere "advertorial" content (which draws increasing skepticism from an ever more sophisticated Web audience).

Working creatively with agencies and advertisers, the savviest content providers can find unique ways to align their programs with brands without compromising the editorial integrity of their own products.

At Yahoo! News, one of our most unique and comprehensive branded programs is “Weekend Edition,” sponsored by Buick. It's a tour-de-force of partner and original content, including three distinct video series starring, respectively, Olympic gold medalist Dominique Dawes, irrepressible road warrior Harry Hurt, and heroic adventurer Jim Brasher. The show has become a destination, helping to reinvent our site on the weekends with the lighter lifestyle-oriented news programming that our internal insights tell us is popular with audiences after a long workweek.

“Weekend Edition” features several levels of innovative brand integration: using Buick’s focus on “discovery” in the opening bumper with the tagline “Weekend Edition, Discovered by Buick”; a branded segment after each video that provides an actionable item or “did you know” about something featured in the video; and, in the travel portions of the video, use of Buick cars and trucks in — just where the cars' presence was organic and natural.

This year, our approach yielded many of the Web's top-performing original video programs:

“Who Knew?,” sponsored by Toyota, and “Upgrade Your Life,” sponsored by Lexus. These include clever post-video branded segments that are relevant to the original video.
“Second Act,” sponsored by General Mills, about people who have reinvented themselves. A very active, athletic baby boomer was profiled in one episode, tying in with a Dannon tagline that focused on having strong bones.
“Odd News,” sponsored by Allstate. The closing segment of the show covers a “Mayhem Moment” to align with Allstate’s "Mayhem" theme.

Ultimately, it's Yahoo! News' world-class editorial staff that empowers us to stay true to our independent news judgment while delivering our advertisers’ objectives.

Homemade Organic Boule

2010-12-12T10:27:00.001-08:00

Homemade Organic Boule, originally uploaded by defmonk2007.

After no fewer than 60 loaves and as many methodologies, I finally pulled a nearly perfect loaf of a simple organic bread from my cheap pseudo-commercial oven. A combination of methods, it's largely based on the Sullivan Street Bakery's (www.sullivanstreetbakery.com) no-knead recipe first popularized by the NYT (despite my stubborn initial refusal to embrace the simplicity of that approach).

My desire to make bread from high-quality, but very simple ingredients, started this madness. It's hard to resist something so exquisite made solely from salt, water, yeast and flour.

The shortcomings of a pure Sullivan Street-style "no-knead" bread are: while passed off as "rustic" in appearance, the loaves are a bit sloppy, the attempt to make this method accessible creates some variation in result and the finished loaf lacks the "yeasty" smell and flavor of great artisan bread.

A generously floured round willow proofing basket, to my mind, yields a better-looking loaf. The regular concentric dusting circles, and light ridges, reft by irregular rising cracks are worth the extra effort. So, rather than all the dusted dishtowels Jim Lahey recommends, I just shape the dough and toss it into a dusted proofing basket.

I get highly consistent results simply by experimenting to find the best ingredients and working out careful weight measures. I've settled on Great River Organic Stone-Ground Bread Flour greatrivermilling.com/downloads/Organic_Bread_Flours_Great_River.pdf), Smart Water (good pH balance for the yeast), Fleur de Mer grey sea salt and a combination of cake yeast/Red Star active yeast. The liquids add up to 1-2/3 cups (rather than 1-5/8 cups) to 450g (rather than 3 cups) of flour.

I've bumped up the bread flavor by borrowing from the sourdough and "pain sur poolish" techniques. I start by mixing 8g of cake yeast with 3 Tbs of warm Smart Water and adding about a tsp of organic clover honey (agh, cheating...but it's worth it). I put this aside for some hours until the yeast activity subsides and the mixture has a strong fermented smell. I throw this mixture in a measuring cup, which I then top up with more Smart Water to reach the 1-2/3 cups of liquid required for my version of the recipe.

Overall, this produces an attractive, flavorful loaf, with all of the user-friendliness of the Sullivan Street revolution and without its shortcomings.

America Speaks on Key Election Issues

2010-11-04T08:40:00.001-07:00

America Speaks on Key Election Issues, originally uploaded by Ask America.

The only thing that could lift me from the post-election doldrums is a spectacular infographic like this. It's really a fitting tribute to Ask America, our contribution to enabling real discourse and expression around the issues Americans care about. We're a complex bunch of folks and our views on key elections issues reveal this. Enjoy!

America speaks: The top issues by region

2010-11-01T22:31:00.001-07:00

America speaks: The top issues by region, originally uploaded by Ask America.

This new infographic leaves you scratching your head. Sure, Floridians care about Charlie Crist and his political antics. But why do Westerners care so much? Is it the Arizona-Florida house slipper and rhinestone pipeline? Heck if I know.

Ask America InfoGraphic, Part Deux

2010-10-08T15:44:00.001-07:00

Yahoo-outlookjob-10.8.10, originally uploaded by Ask America.

Nearly 8 million votes prove the enduring truth of the greatest political barometer-arator of all times: "It's the economy, stupid."

JESS3’s Data Visualization of Ask America

2010-09-28T14:48:00.001-07:00

Infographic created by JESS3’s Data Visualization team, originally uploaded by Ask America.

Another awesome infographic from JESS3. The people have spoken through Ask America...a whole lot.

Bike Commute Photojournal

2010-07-31T11:08:00.000-07:00

Created with Admarket's flickrSLiDR.

My new Eye-Fi wireless SD card (which automatically uploads photos directly from my camera when a Wi-Fi network is present) and my My-Fi (3G mobile wireless access point) inspired me to do something I've been threatening to do for some time - create a real-time photo journal of my daily bike commute. So I tucked the My-Fi in my bike bag and turned my camera to try to capture the wonder of a daily commute by bike. Some mornings I've lived an entire day before work. It's magical. A homeless couple boogeying with abandon to 70s tunes before 8 am. The guy salvaging his inboard motor from his boat grounded a quarter mile up the beach. The perfect spike. A surfer popping out of a barrel. The smell of baking bread.

Song of the Jabulani

2010-06-24T14:41:00.000-07:00

I really have to speak out on behalf of the Jabulani. It's wonderful that Adidas' pursuit of perfection - the perfectly round football - has so fundamentally changed the way the game must be played. For the most part, the reaction from outfield players and goalkeepers (generally not under contract to the German apparel company) alike has been, in the words of "El Niño" Torres:

"We need to practice a bit more with this Jabulani because we are having a bit of bother with it" (www.bbc.co.uk)

Yeah, it's more than a bit of a bother to any European team, other than the Germans. Mysteriously enough, Die Mannschaft and the Bundesliga have been rolling the Jabulani around for some time (Adidas). And it shows. The Germans seem to be among the few European teams who've actually unlocked this thing.

The Jabulani strikes at the heart of the muscular European style of England and Italy. There's no Beckham and no bending. Collapsing in a writhing heap 30 yards outside the goal, after slight contact, only grants your side the opportunity to fly another Jabulani free kick well over the crossbar. Change-of-field passes flying 60 yards or more bounce harmlessly out of reach of the attacking wingers. Sides have to keep the ball on the pitch and work their passes to decipher the defense.

The Jabulani gets powerful assistance from lowered aerodynamic effects at altitude and firm, perfect South African pitches. The groundskeepers should be given lifetime engagements at Wembley when this is all done. I can't remember balls running on the pitch so fast and true in international competition. It's not surprising, then, that the Latin American sides have seen great success through the group phase. The ball simply favors incessant passing on the turf and attacking creativity.

I think this is good for the game. I don't mind if fewer goals are scored from set pieces, corner kicks or 35-yard banana rockets. Or, that players have less incentive to roll-around on the pitch because they've been knocked in the shins. Let's see the quick low passes and shots that created the beautiful USA goal against Algeria. Love the Jabulani.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Love, Fútbol & Africa

2010-06-08T05:09:00.000-07:00

This is less a meaningful blog entry than my own shameful ode to the iPad.
I've tried not to become a Fan Boy. Ardently (check my prior posts for some meaningful Apple bashing, literally). I'm in the airport lounge typing away a rare blog entry. This is the first time this device has left my bag. No laptop-into-the-bin-through-security struggle. I'm rather Clooney-esque as I zip through the security line. Grumbling at the laptop-wielding cretins who held me up was entirely satisfying. How great is this thing? Great. Sorry.

That's not the point of this entry. I'm on my way to the mother continent to soak in a few days of futbol. Right here I'd like to insert some Roots-y reference to transcending 400 years of slavery to return to the homeland in its moment of glory. It's not true. My great-grandfather was a rabid Pan-Africanist, who shuttled back and forth to the continent. I'm always puzzled that he never lived out his convictions by actually moving to Liberia or something. Last man standing?

That's not the point of this entry either. This is mainly a response to the somewhat quizzical lemon-face that is a common response to futbol-fandom in the US. The lemon-face tightens on the mention of South Africa, along the lines of telling your folks you were moving to New York in the 80s. Why suffer hooligans, car-jackings and terrorist threats to watch a sport played mainly by small children and foreigners? If the egregious ball kick-and-chase isn't yet illegal in Arizona, it soon will be.

It's basically this: I speak one other language poorly (that's English) and three others barely enough to utter a few common phrases (or, in the case of Spanish, just enough to decipher the clever metaphorical insults of my in-laws, I think). My verbal expression is constipated. Futbol is the language I speak fluently. Most of the folks on the planet understand it. It's my own little Mandarin.

It leads to peace at home, for the most part. My entire fandom can generally be resolved between the hours on 5 am and 10 am on the weekends, leaving me free to my pursuit of ideal parenting and spousing. Cheerfully attending brunches and family dinners without score-check fumbling with my smartphone under the table or fighting for the seat facing the TV over the bar. No conflicts with Fantasy on Ice or other forms of men in sequins and feathers (except that the esteemed Martin Rogers, fútbol writer of the highest calibre,
inexplicably turns to figure skating every four years: Beats me). Mexico playing the US does not lead to household harmony. Glad that doesn't happen so often.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Location:Post Way, Los Angeles, United States

Joe Wilson Ends the World

2009-09-22T07:30:00.000-07:00

Michael Lind on Salon.com:

Like today's right, the '60s and '70s left was emotional, expressivist and anti-intellectual. (One of its bibles was Abbie Hoffman's "Steal This Book!") Like today's right, the '70s left favored theatrical protest over discussion and debate. The prophets of the Age of Aquarius and the "population explosion" were every bit as apocalyptic as Glenn Beck. And just as today's right-wing radicals play at Boston Tea Parties, so Abbie Hoffman dressed up as Uncle Sam. The teabaggers are the Yippies of the right.

Joe Wilson's guttural outburst in Congress deeply unsettled me. Sure, initially I, too, was disgusted at the absence of respect for the institution played out before the watchful eyes of the entire world (and, not at all surprised when the likes of Osama bin Laden and Vladimir Putin immediately joined the rousing chorus of disrespect). The "racist" angle really didn't offer much relief either -- even as endorsed by the prophet, and sometimes musician, Dave Matthews himself.

The right's rush to rationalize this buffoonery helped me out a bit. The basic defense turns on a flawed syllogism that concludes: "We've put up with all forms of civil disobedience from the left all of these years, so the right can give as good as it gets." There's the rub.

At the core of our democracy is the quasi-static equilibrium balancing conservative and progressive forces. It's a Kabuki piece where each player, acting out his prescribed role, insures that we will adapt to radical changes in a tolerable and predictable fashion. The conservative forces are meant to be the proponents of order, of the status quo, of our national traditions. Progressives urge us forward, ask us to question where we are, where we intend to go and shake our very social foundations in the process. Everybody has a role.

That conservative forces, with their tea parties and Congressional outbursts, have become this era's Yippies is dangerous and contrary to conservative tenets. It is a nuclear instability that will destroy our social construct as surely as any WMD. What is right for left-wing Yippies is wrong for social conservatives -- conservatives, sit down and speak rationally with the voice of our traditions.

Godwin and the End of the Democracy

2009-08-20T07:03:00.000-07:00

The American political dynamic always seems to strike an uncomfortable equilibrium, making me exceedingly proud and deeply ashamed in similar portions. And, the greatest pride is generally followed by the deepest shame.

I'm ashamed.

I walked a little taller abroad, knowing that our profound commitment to democratic ideals made history last year and, more than any military invasion of foreign autocracies, made those ideals palpable to despots worldwide.

The source of my shame is complex. Did our Framers not understand that the precipitous decline in civil culture would twist the First Amendment so that pernicious reductio ad Hitlerum, criminal slander in more civilized nations, would become a staple of public policy discourse? Or, that the Second Amendment would be so malleable that the ill-intentioned could openly stalk our leaders in public with loaded semi-automatic assault weapons?

I bash the media gently and with great care. I'm one of them. I know that it's very hard to turn away from a train wreck. And, appreciating the recursive irony of this very post, I'm not sure that we should so readily give voice to these destructive slanders and self-accelerating excursions past civility.

I can't stop CNN. Nor, in another brush with irony, could I actually stop Yahoo!. But, I do think that our newer media have a deeper understanding of these cultural indicators. And, we can contextualize them in a manner that enhances understanding, rather than conceding to the prurient voyeurism of network news.

I watched the accompanying clip in disbelief. That an entire panel of network journalists could analyze this "Nazi" drivel without reference to Godwin's Law is incredible to anyone who's ever actually used "those Internets."

Godwin got it, in the old Usenet days, by identifying basic digital mob behavior:

As a Usenet discussion grows longer, the probability of a comparison involving Nazis or Hitler approaches 1.

As "those Internets" grew to include sophisticated commenting, it wasn't hard to see that Godwin's initially-humorous Law had legs. Check out any good-sized chain on HuffPo. My man was dead on. The Law applies to meat-space, too.

So, my point is that the MSM pundits missed the key conclusion, derived from the "jumping the shark" corollary to Godwin's Law:

For example, there is a tradition in many newsgroups and other Internet discussion forums that once such a comparison is made, the thread is finished [.]

I guess, then, the remaining question is which "thread" has ended in this application of Godwin's Law? Is it our democracy generally? The healthcare debate more specifically? Our culture and civility?

Fistfulatechrevolt!

2009-08-03T07:37:00.000-07:00

I chuckled a little when TechCrunch's Michael Arrington, presumably in a fit of pompous rage, announced that:

I have loved the iPhone, but now I am quitting the iPhone.

Truth is, this train left the station a while ago. Before Om Malik and Arrington, anyone following the incessant tweeting of my man, @iancr, or his fistfulatyen blog got the distinct, sinking feeling that all was not well in the iPhoniverse of Apple acolytes (in early October of last year):

Anyone wanna buy a three week old iPhone 3G, 16GB? You don’t even have to stick with AT&T for two years to get a cheap price. Make me an offer.

I'm moving against the tide, having just picked up an iPhone after they added the Fat Finger Feature (horizontal keyboard).

The Gates of Hell

2009-07-31T14:44:00.001-07:00

Obama/Gates '08?, originally uploaded by tabomabi12.

Oh, wait, that's Bill Gates. Not the esteemed Harvard professor, Henry Louis Gates, but the Harvard dropout who likely has never locked himself out of his massive estate nor managed a wry disaffection while posing for a mug shot.

The really cool thing is if you haughtily insult the mildly educated, working class lout who's come, bristling with sticks, sprays and bullets, to protect your personal wealth from people who look like you --- you get to have not just a beer, but the beer of your own choosing, with the POTUS and said lout. They'll even throw in a loose-lipped Veep to provide the entertainment. This country rocks. This sh*t never happens in Jamaica.

Dry-Eyed and Bushy-Tailed

2008-11-06T03:45:00.000-08:00

I wept. I admit it. Leatherneck-toughs like Colin Powell and Condi Rice did too. But it was hardly some grand personal catharsis. Give me a break.

The thought of this hapless pair, needle sharp instruments pressed into service as dull right-wing ear wax pickers, reminds me to give ol' W a few props. Sure ol' W carelessly played chicken with the $10 trillion public debt death train, ensuring an easy win for any quivering mass of protoplasm that the DNC could pile up behind the podium (to our great fortune, the DNC delivered an Obama, rather than a steaming pile). Both the MSM and Repub-pologists proffer this trite and vastly inane analysis of Obama's overwhelming victory. But, admirably and incomprehensibly, ol' W first gave light to smart wonks in blackface. And, it is this light that shines on Obamadom.

In spite of all the good words of Democratic administrations, it took the second Bush to transcend bare tokenism in the non-HUD political appointment of black folks (mercifully limiting abject ineptitude to his white appointees for the most part). Geez, from the Clinton administration riding a big, black wave, you get a lilly white cabinet -- save the resume-lite token Ron Brown. And from 41 you get the monumentally under-qualified proto-jurist Clarence "Coke Can" Thomas. I could recruit more articulate and knowledgeable brothers at my barber shop.

Ol' W gives you Condi Rice and Colin Powell, duly qualified and exuding competence, and hands them real honest-to-goodness meaty cabinet jobs. (Ironically, this competence made them perfect shills for delivering on Bushie's moronic policy excursions). (As an aside, I was lucky enough to have Condi teach me an obscure graduate course in the sunny Western US. Even in those days, when you couldn't imagine a future outside of teaching or authoring for even the most capable black academician, I had little doubt that this clear-thinking, Russian-fluent, concert pianist was headed somewhere huge. She is truly one of the most remarkable people I've ever encountered. Colin, like me, is a second-generation Jamaican, so...). The upshot is that Collier's 94-year grandmother, G-d bless her soul, turns on her TV in East Texas, sees black folks competently working in the international sphere and pulls the lever for Obama. A sea change begins.

That the "other white folks" demurrer was never flung along with the other McCain dirt missiles gives this some credence. The "other white folks" demurrer goes like this "we're OK with this, but we're just worried about the other white folks who aren't enlightened as we are." Although OWF has largely lost it's domestic legs (except when some NYC power-Betty steals my cab, blaming the racism of the unwashed immigrant behind the wheel), it still works in the international sphere. But for Condi and Colin, we undoubtedly would have heard the poison strains of how the monkey chanting, Nazi saluting football (ugh, soccer) thugs that populate our EU allies are not quite ready for our enlightened political selection. Instead, we get 200,000 Germans screaming for Obama without a single monkey chant. Samuel Eto'o should be so lucky.

Thanks, Colin. Thanks, Condi. Thank you, Shrub.

PC's Perfect Storm

2008-09-05T08:05:00.000-07:00

An American election devolves into a seamless confluence of political correctness? I'd like to show you a Venn diagram of the vast territory of acceptable political discourse at the intersection of the buffer zones carved out in this election around ageism, sexism and racism, but my monitor's resolution is not fine enough to illustrate that sliver. If you add the culturally unassigned zone (I can't think of the "ism") that protects the Vietnam veterans and the dynamically-defined "war hero," that sliver evaporates.

Poor Joe Biden, middle-aged, white male left out in the cold to fend for himself, without a PC blanket to give him warmth.

In a good-faith effort to have everyone get along in our diverse and potentially volatile society, we've all retreated into little PC shells. Even our last, best hopes against PC hegemony, the rappers and the Republicans, have cleaned up their discourse. Snoop Dogg is busting country tunes n-word free (see infra below) and the GOP, finally, has warmed up to MLK (Geez, did anyone else see the Bubbas cheering wildly for the RNC intro video?).

I do want to Kumbaya with y'all, but, heck, I don't want the war of the "isms" to get in the way of meaningful discourse and inquiry. The non-Fox press (assuming that the Fox drivel-mongers still get credentials with a big "P") are getting pummeled with their own PC stick and can't even gin-up a respectable probing question to any non-Biden candidate. Get real.

Welcome to Wasillia

2008-08-29T21:46:00.000-07:00

This is Wasillia, Alaska. Apparently, if you crawl to the top of the heap of ambitious young politicos in this hotbed of democracy, you learn to lead the free world.

You know, history will be made this election because, no matter who wins, there will be a respectable roundballer in the halls of power. Booyaka.

All Together Now...

2008-08-18T11:40:00.000-07:00

This is the best. Thirty-odd aggregate years of parenting actualized in an instant. Diapers, dad-I-hate-yous and summer camp deposits all seem small. I can't remember the terror of last week or worry about the next.

Ronaldo and Me

2008-07-17T08:57:00.001-07:00

Ronaldo and Me, originally uploaded by defmonk2007.

I've never done this before, because I'm rarely a sports fan in the sense that relates to the glorification of an individual. But, I'm so appreciative of Ronaldo's (yes, I think he no longer requires a first name to distinguish him from the Brazilian international) season in the Premiership. As much as I despise Man U, his headed goal in the Champions League final was a beautiful sports spectacle - control, power, grace, timing, intelligence. I can't wait to see him in a Los Blancos kit.

History is Funny That Way...

2008-06-04T08:12:00.000-07:00

From the poster, Democrat, on MSNBC:

You have two choices for president:

The first one has one of the longest lines of political experience in history. He is exceedingly popular in congress. He was a soldier who volunteered to defend the United States in the Navy.

The second one has no real political experience outside of Illinois. He is tall and lanky with big ears. He even lost a few of his first attempts at gaining political office. He is an excellent speechwriter and orator. He is a good attorney and has a successful law practice.

So which one would you choose?

This is a trick question because both were already Presidents of the United States. The first one is the 15th President of the United States, James Buchannan. He is the President who mired us in the Civil War by declaring the action illegal but doing nothing when the south decided to seceed from the Union. He is largely considered by historians as being the worst President in American history.

He was followed by the other man who became the 16th President of the United States: Abraham Lincoln. Abraham Lincoln is credited with the end of slavery, the end of the Civil War, and unification of the nation. He became president at a dark time when our country was deeply divided over very polarizing issues. He had no experience in Washington prior to his Presidency. He is widely considered by historians as one of the best Presidents in American History.

Which one would you prefer as your President now? We have an almost identical choice before us today between Senator Obama and Senator McCain.

The single meanest thing you can do...

2008-05-27T14:59:00.001-07:00

The single meanest thing you can do..., originally uploaded by defmonk2007.

It's over for the poor kid. What kind of indignities is he made to suffer by virtue of his small size and sunny disposition? I don't know how he will ever live this down...will his Mom whip this out to discourage his dates?

Pole Jumping and More Earthly Pleasures...

2008-05-18T10:52:00.001-07:00

Yahoo! Entertainment Offsite
Originally uploaded by defmonk2007

Like the love child of a Malibu wedding and a BellSouth field staff training camp, the Yahoo! Entertainment offsite embodied the best of both (I presume, since I've experienced neither) rubber chicken and pole climbing antics. I'm sooooo down with this -- my college years testify as to the high value of transcending momentary terror for a whole afternoon of free beer and picnic sports. I hobbled away smiling from this awesomely great day, having learned that messing with the Forza Azzurri in futbol and bocce is vastly more dangerous than a little pole work.

El Son te llamó...

2008-03-26T19:45:00.000-07:00

I really did swear I was going to make a series of substantive posts before I resorted to the indulgent satisfaction of idolizing my own little family, but the lure of new gadgets and willing subjects were way to strong. So, here is the latest installment of the growing hundreds of indulgent images, with credit to my new nifty little flash camcorder and YouTube.

Johnny Cash Doggy Dog

2008-03-18T14:58:00.000-07:00

I can't imagine my reaction if, in the early days of West Coast stylee, someone had told me:

"You will work for a large company that makes products that you can't hold in your hand. This company will tape performances of LA gangsta rappers in furtherance of the sale of luxury automobiles designed for soccer moms. Snoop Dog will offer props to the legendary country artist Johnny Cash and then bust his own twangy country rhyme replete with slide guitar. A black man named Obama will run against the wife of a philandering ex-President for the highest office in the land"

I am living in the future -- and it is sicker than I ever could have imagined. Sheitz, my iPhone rocks the Star Trek communicator hands down. As if you needed proof, here's our Live Sets taping of Snoop's down-home chicken and waffles country jam:

Don't Mess Wid Mah Monkey!

2008-03-06T14:35:00.001-08:00

Last Weeks of Feb 2008, originally uploaded by defmonk2007.

I'm sure that buying a fuzzy electric monkey for an infant could lead to foster care.

Spa Life

2008-02-26T15:06:00.000-08:00

Under the Wire, 18 February 2007 - 6 February 2008: Golden Pig

2008-02-22T21:40:00.000-08:00

"Babies born in the "year of the golden pig" are believed to have good fortune and will lead a comfortable and wealthy life. [...]

People who believe in the year of the golden pig say the special year comes every 600 years. They came to this conclusion through calculations, using a combination of the Chinese zodiac and the yin and yang theory."

http://blog.foreignpolicy.com/node/3482

"My family already has two pigs, including my father, and I want to add one more pig," said a pregnant 28-year-old Beijing secretary who identified herself only as Ms. Lian.

"I guess three pigs will also bring luck to us," she explained. "Also, I believe people who are born in the Year of the Pig are honest, because my father is such a person."

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/02/28/AR2007022802104.html

Oink, oink, little man.

Don't Be Eyeballin' Me....

2008-02-18T13:58:00.001-08:00

2nd Week of Feb 2008, originally uploaded by defmonk2007.

He refuses to look at all his developmental toys and mobiles. But, geez, if his own hand starts moving (presumably of its own accord) -- oh, it's a party. Beats me.

So, What Happens After He Finds His Feet?

2008-02-10T09:50:00.001-08:00

Older Every Day..., originally uploaded by defmonk2007.

I loaded the kid up with Lamaze-approved equipment scientifically designed to help him "find" his limbs. I'm really not sure what he intends once he finds them. A little salsa dancing? Galaxy open try-outs? A little stroll to pick up some Pinkberry's? Ha.

More Baby Tricks

2008-02-03T11:06:00.001-08:00

More Baby Tricks, originally uploaded by defmonk2007.

Adriano Fires Up the Formula

2008-01-27T15:43:00.001-08:00

IMG_0048.JPG, originally uploaded by defmonk2007.

This kid makes me feel like a three star chef...he's simply ecstatic about anything [ugh, formula] that I whip up for him.

The Siblings Union

2008-01-24T20:53:00.001-08:00

Adriano Day 1, originally uploaded by defmonk2007.

They've all bonded in a way that makes the WGA look like simpering blue-hairs. If they join in revolt....I'm screwed.

BabyWatch: Welcome Adriano

2008-01-24T06:56:00.000-08:00

Very few events deliver on anticipation. Tahiti was one of them, a place every bit as beautiful as the pictures. Adriano is another. As long and cumbersome as this journey has been, he really is great. We're probably programmed to feel that way, but, geez, I am feeling it good.

The other reason is that the end of this process (birth and pregnancy) is the start of another. So, the high anticipation of seeing the face that you've imagined for months is replaced by the anticipation of the potential of this kid. It's hard to feel let down in that cycle. Sure, I'm all Lion King and shietz, but that's what it is.

So, we're headed home today. Last night the IUOS (that is, the International Union of Siblings) made a desperate midnight pitch to add the appellation "Marley" to the kid's name. In a clever move, they argued that (i) this name is a rough concactenation of the names Margaux and Allie (coincidentally, the leaders of the IUOS) and (ii) it should appeal directly to my proud Jamaican hertiage. As in most arguments, number two is the killer. I'm going to make an impassioned plea this morning to fill in the empty middle name field with this one.

Keep your fingers crossed.

BabyWatch: Zero Hour

2008-01-21T19:29:00.000-08:00

I'm packing and blogging at the same time. We're off to the hospital to let the baby loose. In true Neumann fashion, he's decided to be scheduled. None of this waiting for contractions stuff. So, hopefully, by midday tomorrow I'll be holding my son in my arms. I couldn't be happier.

BabyWatch: T minus 6 days

2008-01-18T17:33:00.000-08:00

This kid is going to be named Adriano. Look, this name is way out front in the polling, Brooke C made a special call just to say how much she loved it and his namesake (the great Brazilian striker) scored two goals in his first game after rehab. Talk about alignment of the planets.

Anyway, this project is in neutral. The kid is way too smart to come out. It's like he knows we're at war in Iraq (and bristling at Iran), that the sub-prime mortgage market collapse promises our future enslavement to Asian sovereignty funds and that these Santa Monica mornings have been cold as hell.

Heck, I may call my own Mom to see if I can get a redo.

Experiential Disintermediation: All Reality, All the Time

2008-01-16T15:39:00.000-08:00

Lacking an engaging hobby, I spend far too much time driving the nuances of normal events to conclusions in extremis. You can't share a strong drink anywhere in Los Angeles without a good bellyache over the WGA strike, so I've had lots of opportunity to nuture my proto-hobby.

My two-beer conclusion is that "it'll all be fine." Chasing with two neat Glenfiddichs leads me to conclude that the WGA strike is really the first step in experiential disintermediation.

Maybe in the absence of experiential interpreters (OK, writers), technology can lift us to a place where unfiltered first-person experience replaces replaces regurgitated written stories...

Maybe the surge of reality programming isn't just the dumbing-down of our culture, but a technology driven sea-change accelerated by the willful absence of the WGA writers...

Why should we be seperated from experiences? I mean, does some snotty Ivy-grad-cousin-of-a-producer really see something in the world that I cannot? With a web camera at every vantage point feeding an infinite number of channels, could I click up a comedy or a drama every hour? Can YouTube make me laugh or cry?

{Blogging's great, I don't have to conclude, summarize or even make a great deal of sense}

BabyWatch: T minus 10 days

2008-01-14T10:12:00.000-08:00

Adriano pulled way out ahead in the Baby Naming Derby, with David in a close second. I suspect that some of my colleagues may be stuffing the ballot box (Ashley S.)

For those of you who have a continuing interest in the progress of things...there is none. After last week's fireworks, the whole thing has gone quiet. This kid is just not going to cooperate and emerge at a time that is convenient for me. Geez.

BabyWatch: T minus 14 days

2008-01-10T07:09:00.000-08:00

After a promising weekend contraction fiesta, our still unamed male progeny continues to resist his Mom's creative effort to give birth to him. She powerwalked for an hour and nothing. Not even a little cramp (even though I was cramping all over).

The name derby continues, with the following submissions:

Tristan - too uppity, too Teutonic.

Emiliano - Latin flair, but not that catchy

Cheech - If he didn't blunt so much, I might give this further consideration.

Adriano - I could sneak in this sports name, because it has the Latin thing going, but the world class striker of the same name in now in rehab in Sao Paulo. Ooops.

Some derivation of Al - low flava in this name, but I could give ups to my suegro and my gran compadre at the same time.

All submissions will be considered.

Look, Mom, music on my page....

2008-01-09T17:49:00.001-08:00

Thanks to the geniuses at Yahoo! Music (with some hrefs borrowed from Mr. Rogers), I now have enabled music on my humble little blog....

Courage

Cambiando Lonches

Desperate Measures

2008-01-09T10:31:00.000-08:00

Yes, there is a "Maternity Salad". Well-educated, aware people buy it with the hope that it will send them into labor. And, they drive all the way to Studio City to get it.

Why wouldn't a clever restauranter capture the unbridled consumptive desires of parents-to-be and the desperation late-term moms who just want the little alien to pop out? Heck, any given weekend you can find the sidewalks of Santa Monica jammed with $1000 strollers dangling $800 diaper bags. This pregnancy thing makes your brain weak.

So in the 38 week of pregnancy, I'd even try salad to give my poor love the merest chance of relief from this ill-designed process. (Why didn't Apple design human reproduction? You'd get a tidy little pod delivered to your door that happily morphs into an Ivy League grad).

For you doubters, here it is: http://maternitysalad.com/thesaladarticles.html

No Sight, but Insight

2008-01-08T14:21:00.000-08:00

The Next Generation iPod

2008-01-07T19:38:00.001-08:00

What if physical community ever married digital media?

The Price of Shame....

2008-01-07T16:46:00.000-08:00

Yes, I was squarely aligned to get that most precious prop in the blogosphere....a direct link from the esteeemed http://www.fistfulayen.com/. The shame caught me like this:

"I wanted to link to you somewhere but Defmonk is some rental properties. :)ian

Hey, everyone needs a side gig! Thanks for the props. Totally unnecessary, but greatly appreciated. I really thank you for putting in the effort to create another useful person. It's not easy to do. I hope guys had a great holiday! MLW

Ha! My pleasure!Yeah we're having a great time. You?Just posted my "best of 2007" list: http://www.fistfulayen.com/blog/?p=141 ian "

Like I needed a more forceful reminder that, after more than 15 years of 'net-pimping, my own presence comprised only a hastily assembled FrontPage version-caveman site I threw together to rent some properties I owned (when I rolled like that). I pay for some superzilla hosting package on DomainDirect and that's the best that I've done in three years. Damn.

So, I'm taking the plunge. I'm Blogger-blogging (as if I don't work for Yahoo! and like Google needs another unique).

It's time.

A Tribute to Fistfulayen.....

2008-01-07T14:42:00.001-08:00

Love it.

A couple of things occurred to me.

Proprietary media is a leper colony, around which we’ve built a high fence. Ugh, nobody’s rushing in. The only technologists that want any part of it are the insane and the accolytes. So, we get tremendous innovation around, say, maps not music. Maps?

I am mystified that the geniuses that created html ignored the natural progression of things (text => image => audio => audiovisual => immersive) and left the MediaWeb high and dry. Maybe they knew…

You want the collective genius on a problem? Like you say, create an open standard. Funny how all the best minds these days are working in non-proprietary enviroments. (An aside: I’m always fascinated by industries, like visual or fashion design, that rely more on authenticity, innovation and speed-to-market than proprietary rights — are we there yet?).

IMHO, content owners need to seduce the big, juicy core of innovative technologists (the ones between the raving lunatics and the drooling fanatics). The MediaWeb is half of it, but the other half is the Content Dial Tone.

See, you’ll get your MediaWeb because it is an irresistable idea and seamlessly logical. But, can you imagine if all content is hung out there on APIs with embedded business terms? YouTube go home. The collective genius pulling down content streams to power the MediaWeb? Ouch. Go ahead, content owners, turn the dials on the stream rates to filter out the dreck (the low-rent business models). Still works.