It's Over -- Part II

I've been through layoffs before. I was laid off in 2003 during the dot com bust.

Today I discovered that most of my former co-workers at Intracorp were laid off -- all at once. It was a sad day -- not because it was so surprising or unexpected, but because it means that the dream is over. Now, I realize that the dream has been over in other parts of the country now for months -- even years, but we somehow managed to dodge that bullet until now. Now -- this thing is very real to me.

True -- everyone will be fine. People are not destitute nor do they have life-threatening illnesses, but the magnitude of this thing is LARGE -- and I think we've only seen the tip of the iceburg --- THAT'S what really scares me.

Put on your life jackets, gang, it's going to be a rough ride...

Pancake Frisbee

Whenever I make pancakes, I take all of the leftover batter and pour one giant pancake for Sugar. My mom used to do this when we were growing up for our dog, Muffin. The super-pancake was often bigger than his little Pekingese/Poodle-mix head.

This morning was no different. Rich peeled the supercake off the griddle, made Sugar go stand at the other end of the hallway and wait obediently until the thing cooled off, then fired away..... This pic from back in Tampa is the best one I have to properly illustrate the act -- look at the trajectory of that thing!

Happy Saturday.

Has anyone seen an aircraft carrier around here?

Hey - hola - HI. I haven't blogged in a while and I have a damn good reason for it --- we have been working ferociously on the site and have now launched. HOLLER! <www.stylous.com>

Working on the site has been somewhat of a roller coaster (I won't say emotional roller coaster because that would make me sound too emotional), but a roller coaster nonetheless.

The first major issue that we had was that we were getting rejected from several affiliate programs, such as Piperlime, Bluefly and then Zappos. This was scary because that was kinda sorta the whole premise of the silly little money-making bit of the business. Just a minor thing, you know. However, we have overcome that to some extent and it is no longer a threat (I hope).

The second minor catastrophe was that the framework that the site is based on (Cappuccino) was a complete disaster in Internet Explorer -- and that is a HUGE deal because most lame Americans still use IE. Rich and Steve are now working on completely re-writing a new homemade framework based on Javascript called Domino (don't worry I don't really know what that means either).

Anyhoo --- things are going much better. We launched (quietly & slowly) yesterday and are getting a plethora of users. Now if we can just figure out how to pay rent.....

Holiday Joy

I am very surprised that more people do not commit suicide at airports.

I am going on record to say that flying these days is downright oppressive. This is by far the worst part of living 2,500 miles from our family. Sometimes you can trick yourself into thinking that flying cross-country is easy and doable -- and really NBD (no big deal), but this is a bunch of horseshit, unfortunately.

Like many, I have NO idea what this year will bring. None. I feel like there's a hurricane coming and we have to stock up on canned goods and board games. When life sends you a hurricane, have a hurricane party -- n'est-ce pas?

In search of the perfect SF neighborhood

We have lived here in the City now for 2.5 years and have thoroughly enjoyed it. We live in Duboce Triangle, which is lovely, but frankly we need a change of scenery. Living half a block from Market Street has its pros and its cons -- and lately, the cons (and ex-cons) seem to be winning.

Yes, I am talking about crackheads again, dear friends -- or, to be technical: meth-heads. There is something about meth that makes people so bat-shit crazy, it is unbelievable. But this post is not about crackhead stories (there are so many good ones -- yes, I know this), rather this is about finding a good place to live....

After 2 years of meticulous study, the criteria for "the right neighborhood" are as follows:

1. Shall not be O-M-G expensive (this rules out Nob Hill, Russian Hill and probably Presidio Heights. (Great 'cause I didnt want to live there anyway, see #5))

2. Shall not have incidences of moop on the streets > .5 per block (yah that's right -- human excrement) -- (this rules out the Tenderloin, the Haight, the Mission)

3. Shall not have incidences of smahed car windows > 1 per block/per day (the official scientific abbreviation is SCW/bl*d) --- (goodbye Bayview, SOMA, Western Addition and other neghborhoods I cant pronounce, like Visatacion Valley)....

4. Weather: Let's be real, I need some sunlight if I have any hope of metabolising vitamin E and thus maintaining a healthy mental state. That's not asking for much, right? (adios any neighborhood prefaced by the word "Outer" AND the following: Balboa Park, Western Portal, Ingleside, andTwin Peaks). Brrr.

Ok, that was simple. Here's where it gets a little tricky: the social dynamics of a place.

5. You see, the reason I love SF is because of the rich diversity. Hence, I do not wish to live in a neghborhood where everyone is like me (i.e. a bunch of lame wasps) -- this eliminates Pac Heights, Laurel Heights, Noe Valley, Marina, Cow Hollow, and Sausalito, as lovely as they are...

6. Having said that, I don't want to be in the super-minorty either. Why? Because that would make me a bit alienated and thus, sad. This eliminates the Castro, Chinatown, the Sunset, and the Richmond. Call me what you will -- I am just being honest.

Ok, we are making progress.

7. Bodegas: I need a good shopkeep. Neighborhood must have several mom-and-pop shops -- somewhere where they will know my name, give treats to my dog, and (if you really want to go the extra mile, like my shopkeep does) -- help me break into my place when I've locked myself out. Said neighborhood must also contain at least 1 Irish Pub or acceptable substitution. This rules out Mission Bay and the FiDi (do people actually live in the FiDi? Don't know).

After applying my 7 simple rules, this doesn't leave us with much. So far, I am counting: Bernal Heights, Hayes Valley (which may fall victim of Rule #3, I'm not sure yet), North Beach, Potrero Hill, and Cole Valley. These are the 5 finalists on the short list. Who will be the lucky winner?

Stay tuned.

Doctors: who needs 'em

So -- here's the thing. I used to think that people were bone-headed for refusing to go to the doctor. My grandfather -- who WAS a doctor -- would not go to the doctor. Eh? I've had other close family members do the same. I used to think this was the most ridiculous phenomenon in the world until.....

I was recently faced with the prospect of not having health insurance. Don't get me wrong: I do not in any way, shape or form suggest that being without health insurance is a good idea. It's not. Long story short, I did manage to get health insurance. It was incredibly difficult and complicated and I have sudden empathy for people who are without.

Onward. I was forced to ask myself the question: what has a doctor ever done for me that has actually helped (i.e. told me something or did something to me) that I could not have done on my own? Surprisingly, I came up with only 1 thing: prescribing drugs (which actually technically would not even be on the list if I lived in - say, Mexico). Yes, there may come a time when you are really f'ed up for whatever reason and need surgery. But seriosuly -- for day to day, year to year stuff -- what does a doctor really do for you?

Both Rich and I have been experiencing various annoying health-related issues lately. Me with my hip and back (am I 80?) and Rich's knee, which has been the source of endless pain and angst. He actually went to the doctor before when we had the "good" insurance. He was told to get an MRI, come back, and they can decide what to do. Umm, ok. Here's how I envision this:

Doc: "yup, your knee is swollen -- looks like you have tendinitis or even a torn ligament"

Rich: "ok, what should I do?"

Doc: "well, we can do surgery -- OR, you could just stop heaving 245 lbs over your head when you work out -- that could have something to do with it"

YOU THINK??

Not to ridicule Rich because I think everyone's knee-jerk reaction (no pun intended) when they are injured is to run to the doc. I guess what I'm saying is: if you stop and think about it, you can probably determine on your very own what you should really do to help yourself. It's usually fairly common sense.

Do you agree? Shoot me a comment and tell me what a doctor has done for you lately (ER room visits don't count). Cheers.

The Japanese real estate bubble analogy

The x-axis denotes the years during the Japanese economic crisis. The red are the analagous dates in the US. It's a long way down, my friends.

I have been watching the Ken Burns series "The War" about WWII, which I think every American should see. It is sponsored in part by Bank of America. In their ad, they say "Bank of America: only when we study the past can we avoid the mistakes of the future." Ironic.

Disclaimer: I'm not usually this negative. I heard the Alvin and the Chipmunks Christmas song today and it made me absolutely insane.