tales from the rock

communication is an art, and like a more traditional art like say, painting, when practiced by an amateur, it is painfully obvious.  take written communication.  I for one, clearly have no passion for it, hence, the large breaks between posts here - a place where I was supposed to be practicing how to communicate.  I still send 50 emails a day, but they often looks like this:

• “yep, sounds good.”
• “let me get back to you”
• “…..” (ignored email)

spoken communication is even trickier, because so much of it is made up of context, and subtleties that are expressed through other means.  intonation, rising and falling pitch, excitable gestures, etc.

 for example, the word “conflict” takes 2 basic forms.  the first is that of a noun, (a fight, battle, or war).  it’s easy to pick this usage out due to the accent and extension of the first syllable;  CONflict.

the other form is that of intransitive verb, (competitive or opposing action of incompatibles : antagonistic state or action (as of divergent ideas, interests, or persons) b: mental struggle resulting from incompatible or opposing needs, drives, wishes, or external or internal demands.)  again, fairly easy to pick out due to the accent on the second syllable;  conFLICT.

you would think this is straighforward enough for any reasonably skilled adult to handle - doesn’t take Tony Robbins to pull this one off in front of a crowd.

however

if you are the fucking hack bitch that insists on saying the fucking word the same way in either usage (conFLICT), especially when you mostly use it as a noun, then the fucking act of sound coming out of your god damn mouth inflicts pain on every other person in the room as we are forced to translate english from your mother tongue of dumbfuck because you keep saying things like, “the conFLICT between the vendor and us is mostly due to a previous conFLICT that involved another person, and that conFLICT is what is causing this new conFLICT….”

like a needle through the ear into my brain.

most of the people I associate with are successful due to effort.  everyone is bright, but I think we all carry a certain old school work ethic, have pride in our work, and work that is associated with us, and also have good perspective on our impact as part of the grander scheme.

coincidentally, no one is particulary driven, so while our efforts fuel comfortable lives, it doesn’t appear that anyone is going to be in an significant positions of power or control.

one of the reasons I certainly don’t/can’t/won’t light that fire, is that realistically, my talents are pretty limited.  I cover this by painting with a broad brush, but in any one discipline, I’m really a hack.  now, at this point, my broad experience allows my voice to carry a certain sophistication, but it doesn’t make me any better at what I actually do.  the effort I would have to invest to masquerade as someone better than myself is just too great.

I’ve also worked with a handful of people who are truly skilled.  it’s not that they could see solutions to complex problems, or even execute them - not a functional skill;  it’s that the solutions they see have a certain elegance - they reduce the overall complexity of system when executed.  this can manifest in many different ways, but to boil it down, it’s the difference between doing a job as a craft (which is what I think I am), or as an art.

a craftsman is no less skilled, or important in whatever trade you want to use as your example.  a carpenter for example is a classic craftsman.  as you learn your trade, it becomes more and more natural.  as you see and solve problems, they are no longer hinderances in accomplishing your objective.

and that may be where the line is drawn.  as an artist, you work less towards defined objectives as part of a task, and more toward some idea you want to achieve or express.  it’s not carpenter vs architect though, it’s really more like that master stairbuilder, who can build a solid path from floor to floor, and the builder of the Loretto Staircase, whose stairs seem to be a byproduct of some other vision.

so what’s the point?  those of us on the outside looking in often will think that “if I had that kind of talent, I would ….”, with the “…” usually refering to solving some profound issue that has plagued us for some time.  unfortunately, a lot of these potential ‘artists’ seem content to expend just enough energy to be no better than anyone else they work with!  classic underachiever (relative to personal potential), without the Bart Simpson like antics.  sometimes flying just under the radar, popping up every now and then to remind everyone what they ‘could have been.’

it drives me mad to have to work with someone who cannot get excited about what they are doing when they are clearly very skilled at doing in.  some even go so far as to treat their talent like a curse that traps them in the position they hold.  usually though, it’s enough that they just take the easy way out, milking drops of their greatness and cashing in for gallons of praise.  jealousy?  maybe.  in fact, yes. 

I’m jealous because “if I had that kind of talent…”, the effort I already expend would have that much more impact.  my comfort and satisfaction comes from knowing that I work hard, and have positive impact.  holding anything back gives me nothing, and usually just sabotages the work you do - it’s like lying, where the problems only get worse, except in this case, you are lying to yourself.

some people can’t be motivated.  if it’s not worth it to themselves, then I just can’t waste time and money trying to make it so.  ultimately, they will just fuck you when you need them the most.

so folks, find something to do where you can drink the kool-aid - it will be worth it to be where you should be, and definitely worth it to not be where you shouldn’t.

got back from the trip, and the camcorder refuses to release the fricken tape!  I sense a mastercard commercial coming up - definitely priceless footage.

Canon says they will fix it for a flat rate of about $150 (assuming nothing else is wrong with the camera), and they claim to return everything that gets sent in, but the question now is should we risk sending it the mail and having someone else lose the tape anyway.

the new camera I would buy to replace it is about $800, so it’s not really that close.  I’m not really into spending the money right now, but this is the excuse I’ve been waiting for I suppose.  funny how when I’m shopping, I wish I had an excuse, and now that I do, I can’t stand that I’m being forced into making a move, so I’m still gunshy.

the other problem, is that I’ll have to destroy the first camera to retrieve the tape.  I tried removing about 50 little screws, but the damn thing is still solidly together.  why I feel the need to take care of this little machine that doesn’t even work that well anymore is beyond me.  must be my hereditary collector psychosis coming out.  for some reason, if I could guarantee the tape return, I’d probably pay to repair the camera AND buy the new one.

now I have to start my OCD style electronics shopping regimen - shopping around, watching for coupons, never being happy with any discount because I feel someone else got a better deal…  it’s horribly sickening.  I’ll also never compromise  on any feature set.  I can get last years almost identical camera for about $100 less, but it doesn’t have some connector I won’t even use on the new one.

if I was rich like the G, or fearless like the Tom, I’d have the new camera in my hand already.

this end to this vacation has only just begun….

well, I’m on the annual business trip, this time in Anaheim, CA.  been a while since I’ve spent real time in soCal.  interesting to see what has become of this place.  around Disney, things are really nice - the area has been totally redeveloped to support the park and convention center.  as you move away into areas like Brea, you can see where the money is spilling over in spots with luxury condos going up, or little housing tracts, but it’s still in the middle of what was probably upper lower class neighborhoods - interesting mix.  pretty clean overall, and I’m sure Disney has the cops in check, cracking down on hoodlums.

booking this trip was a complicated mess, as I wanted to fly into one airport, then leave from another.  wife and baby joining me midway, so they are on a seperate itinerary.  add a commuter flight in between for the 3 of us, and 2 airlines going out of business, and you can understand the amount of coordination required to book a trip for under a couple thousand dollars!

in the past, something like this would make a travel agents fee worthwhile.  before the internets, working with the airlines was not something the ordinary person would do - if you did, you weren’t getting a great price.  finding the best fares, routes, and schedules was something left to a ‘pro.’  these days, there are so many travel tools available, an ordinary person online can build these complicated travel plans with no assistance.  because of this, no one can staff agents, and so the entire service sector of the industry slowly dies off.

so while you can book travel quickly and easily, when something goes wrong, you have no one on your side to work shit out for you.  for example, once I was going through Denver, and as expected, weather started fucking with the flights.  as soon as I saw the buzz behind the desk, I was on the phone to the corporate travel desk, and rather than wait in the mile long line to find out they desk agent couldn’t do a thing, our travel agent had alread rerouted my around the problems.

I certainly could have used their help with this trip.  while I booked everything with no problem, when I showed up to the MOTHER FUCKING MARRIOTT ANAHEIM at 1:00am, I was told there were no rooms at the inn.  now, this happens, and I’ve experienced it before, and usually the 3 star and above hotels will accomodate you appropriately -walking you to another comparable hotel (even a competitor), and transfering the booking.  in this case, they decided, that comparable to their FUCKED UP HOTEL on the grounds of the convention center I needed to be in and out of all day, they sent me in a taxi to a motor lodge 2 miles down the road.

there is only so much I can do with the 20 year old prick stuck working the graveyard shift in an oversold hotel, so I had no choice but the check in at the other dump, just so I can get some rest for the next day.  had I a competitant travel desk to call, I could have had someone working on the issue while I slept, and hopefully giving me good news the next morning.  since we book all our own travel at the P, all I could do was lay restlessly all night, working on the fit I was going to throw the next day.

long story short, the MARRIOTT ANAHEIM SUCKS DICK, and it certainly wasn’t mine they were sucking.  at least I didn’t have to pay for it - the entire booking has been comped, in large part only to arguments I know to make with my inside info.

unlike the SHITTY MARRIOTT ANAHEIM, Orion Limo Service in the greater LA metropolitan area is awesome - (888) 431-5466.

as happy as I am with Sprint mobile, paying my bill every month annoys me to death.  the reason is, they have a form with those little boxes to fill in - 1 digit per box - to tell you how much you are paying, and for some reason, they have 9 boxes!  I can totally understand 5 boxes, and 6 is not unreasonable I suppose, but 9?!?  who is paying a million dollar cell phone bill, and why are they paying it through the same means I am?  sure, I suppose some corp account could be ringing up a mill a month - at that point, you may want to shop around for a better deal though - but if 1 million is in range, why stop there?

the problem for me of course - the only person that matters - is that I want to fill in my boxes left to right, and each month, I have to figure out where to start.  I have to count the digits in my payment (usually 4), count back from the right, then fill in my amount, which I have since forgotten, so I look away, and have to start all over again.

if there was some kind of math involved, I would probably fill it in from right to left, but there is no math, and no lines or numbers above the boxes to indicate anyone would be doing math.

other bills handle this issue a lot better.  a checkbox to pay full amount.  my amex bill paints the correct number of boxes to handle the full amount owed - if you are in the 1ks, it paints 6 boxes, under 1 k, 5 boxes, etc.  most of my bills that ask me to fill in the amount don’t even have boxes.

this is a perfect example of the design process gone bad - too many factors considered, and no one sane enough to just say - we don’t have to be prepared for EVERY bill, we just need to be able to handle MOST of them this way.  now they are prepared for all their bills, and annoying ALL their customers.

well, me at least, and i’m the only one that matters.

so my mom just returned from a trip to Japan, and on behalf of America, I’d like to apologize to Japan.  I have no specific examples of bad american behavior, but based on her explaining what her version of Japan is like, I’m sure there is plenty to apologize for.  on top of all that, she’s a teacher - I’ve gone into that before.

having worked in a large, international company, and actually spending time with people from other countries, I think I have a good feel for how to behave when there may be some cultural clash.  the first lesson of course, is learning when to recognize a different culture is present!  hint #1 - when you go to another country, there is a chance things will be different!

this applies to industrialized countries of course - if you go to some 3rd world hellhole, survival should be your first priority - being offensive is excusable.

anyway, having traveled the world, I’m sure I’ve made my share of errors, but I’ve witnessed much more horrible examples than I am capable of, and the vast majority are by ignorant americans.

anyway, here are a couple examples of why I’m sure mom embarrased us:

1)  for some reason, she wanted to buy a kimono.  her guided tour took her from Tokyo, to Kyoto - that’s 2 major cities, on a single island, on the same line of train track.  mom’s version of the story says she shopped ‘ALL OVER JAPAN’.  You don’t shop in SF and LA and proclaim that America is out of Hellman’s mayo.

2)  again for the kimono (realize she is on a guided bus tour), for some reason she expected the roadside crap stands that exist wherever tour busses stop to be selling high quality kimono, because of course, they are only made by 100 yr old ladies, stitching them by hand, in between selling a plastic model of Mt. Fuji.  “They only make them out of polyester these days,” mom reports back from Japan.  that’s what ‘They’ told her.

(the kimono she ended up bringing home was a cheap knockoff of an offensive halloween costume.  the obi was a clashing pink strip of ribbon)

3)   “that’s what they are known for,” was the line attached to every piece of whatever mom bought in Japan.  first consider that it’s impossible to attach that label to something from say, Tokyo, but also just as ridiculous to attach it to a specific piece of handmade anything from say, Hakone (which has as part of it’s community, and active artist population.)

I’m kind of sorry she didn’t get to see the real Japan - although going on a guided bus tour should set a certain expectation.   it’s a little annoying to have to listen to her version of Japan, since it’s so comically wrong at times.  but man, I just cringe thinking about the uneasiness she inflicted on people while over there.

so, note to American’s traveling the world: there is practically no case where they weren’t there first - you’re the different one.

given the fact that the crap-ton girl is going to be losing her job this christmas, and the fact that I am currently dealing with the retard employees at Sprint, I’d like to ammend/clarify my comments from the previous post.

first of all, not everyone needs to be CEO of something.  it’s like the myth of college prep in public schools - you aren’t failing at anything if you don’t apply/don’t get in.  this chick was good at her job, she appeared to be enjoying it, and the company was benefiting.  too bad they have to shut down now.

second, a bad employee will totally fuck up whatever value you offer a customer.  I use Sprint because of the amazing SERO plan I am on.  my Treo 700p is good PDA phone.  Sprint customer service (telephone) is pretty good too.  put together, it’s a killer combo.  I had a problem though that required me to walk into a retail store/service center, and the fuckers that staff the place are so useless, that after 1 hour, I was ready to say fuck it, and go iPhone.  it would cost me twice as much per month, and I’d have to be an Apple fanboy, but it would give me a way to escape the hell that was Sprint.

so in summary, ms. crap-ton got me to spend more money at CompUSA in 10 minutes than I had spent there in the last 5 years at least (and I spend a ton on technology every year), while Retard McDickinass at Sprint almost made me spend $600 on a device and double my monthly costs WITH ANOTHER VENDOR because he was prick.

long day today.

started off with a call from a friend - not someone I talk to often, but someone whom for whatever reason I’m pretty close to.

a few months ago, he sent his oldest daughter off to start college.  last weekend, he sent her to rehab.

this guy has a lot of experience with this.  his family has what you would call a genetic predisposition to addiction.  on one hand, he can calmly and analytically deal with this problem.  on the other, he knows that she has virtually no chance in this life.

there’s always hope - that’s what people like to believe.  work a program, follow some steps, and you step into ‘recovery’.  here’s the reality for him;  3 siblings, 2 addicts, 1 already lost to suicide.  one uncle OD’d.  another killed in a DUI.

here’s how his worst fears are confirmed.  campus police calls him at 3:00 am to report a misdemeanor possesion charge.  the reason he called was because he observed his daughter in an alley with 3 boys whom she did not know.  the observed interaction suggested she was not in control of the situation, and during the investigation, the officer determined she was not in control of her own actions. 

so now instead of the beginning of her adult life, he faces the beginning of a second childhood - one that will never end for her, and won’t be much fun.

how do you deal with the loss of a child, when you know she’s never going to leave?

G Thang and Tombo have an ongoing blog battle that is very funny to observe.  part of what kills the G, is that Tombolicious often misinterprets, or simply twists a statement, observation, or personal opinion of his into something else, then goes off about how terrible a person he is for thinking that.

I can sympathize with G, because every once in a while, I get pulled into it also!

For example, today, Tombo was writing about people making money in the market, and how now that we are on another bull run, everyone thinks it is easy.  what goes up, may very well come down, and many of these people are not prepared for a crash.  he then goes on to explain that you should find a true passion, and not focus on money.  in the middle of that, he includes some quotes from people about the market:

This year i have been hearing about market this and that day and night.. for example. 

and in his quote list, he has one from me:

10/29/2007 “they have so much money, it falls out of their pockets as they walk around…”

now, the problem with my quote appearing in that context, is that 1) I was talking about someone else, and 2) it was about how hard that couple works to earn their money, and not about how easy it is (their opinion or mine) to make it in the stock market.

now, he doesn’t credit me with the quote, so it’s not like he is directly calling me out, but he does include it with the ‘people talking about the market’, and then follows it up with how we should find a passion.  again - I wasn’t talking about the market, and I was just updating him (or his wife really), on the current situation of a classmate.  my life is full of passion (or ‘work’ as I like to call it), and devoid of money.

just goes to show you - all bloggers are liars.  clearly.

so international superstar and poseur extraordinaire marc ecko is the dude that bought Barry’s record breaking home run ball. that’s right, I said it - record breaking. like him or hate him, the guy has hit 756+ home runs.

now ecko, in his quest to appear deviant without actually doing anything wrong (remember the air farce one tag video) has put up a site where you can vote on what happens to the ball - either he donates it to the hall, marks it and donates it, or destroys it - http://www.vote756.com

while I am not a rabid baseball fan, Barry fan, or even sports fan, I do believe in the spirit of sport, and I don’t believe ecko is doing anything here in the best interest of any of these things.

talk about moral grandstanding - this fucker surely doesn’t give a shit about the spirit of the game, the weight of the accomplishment, or what Barry did (or didn’t do), nor what anyone who cam before him surely did (and they certainly did.)

first of all, there are some bottom line technicalities. the most important being that steroids were not against the rules, so if that’s your only beef against Barry, you have no case. what we all pretty know for sure is that Barry was on the juice, so does that somehow taint the record? that’s only if you assume everyone else was clean. guess what - we know that’s not true either. guys have been doping up for as long as dope has existed. manufactured advantages have always been present. you could argue with greater success that this type of ‘cheating’ is actually part of the game!

there are a couple other important perspectives to consider when you look at the old record, and Barry’s record now. first of all, when Hank Aaron was on his chase (you could argue his whole career), it was only partially about baseball. the guy was fighting real racism. real hate. people did not want him to succeed, much less own the Babe’s record.

the baseball part of Barry’s chase was one of those runs against an unbreakable record. you could give any other player every manufactured advantage in the book and there is a good chance they couldn’t get it done. the social aspect was this idea that Barry was not a good enough person to replace Aaron - the man who fought racism with baseball.

Barry doesn’t have a platform, except ‘I Love Barry’. but so what. No one forgot Babe Ruth. No one is going to forget Hank Aaron. Barry Bonds is now part of baseball.

we already have an unresolvable argument when comparing players from different eras.  you can’t do it, since EVERYTHING is different.  Ruth was the first home run king, because before him, no one gave a shit about home runs.  can you believe there were fans that felt Ruth was fucking with the fabric of the game by hitting the ball out of the park?  add to this the fact that skills at each position change over time (pitchers get better and worse, the science of hitting makes strides, the rules change to open up or close the game, etc.)

Barry Bonds is the greatest home run hitter of his era.  He has hit more home runs in his career than anyone else.  These are separate assertions that happen to go together.  Neither discounts the accomplishments or personas of Babe Ruth or Henry Aaron.

ecko wants to steal a slice of this pie, because let’s face it - most people don’t know who the fuck he is, and most of those probably don’t even care. the guy is finally getting to live out his ‘abused skater boi revenge againse the jocks’ fantasy, dangling this piece of leather and twine that only has value to those truly fanatical people who hold baseball and sport as religion in front of them like a carrot, screaming ‘look at me, look at me.’

don’t fuck with baseball - you haven’t done anything to deserve a piece of it.

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