More 2007 Greatness: Ben Harper and the Innocent Criminals - Lifeline

For well over a decade Ben Harper has been pushing the boundaries of music. He regularly experiments with genres and styles, all the while, bringing his own signature soulful sound to the mix. In 2007 Ben hooked up with his longtime band, the Innocent Criminals, and released “Lifeline”. This album comes on the heels of his brilliant 2006 double album “Both Sides of A Gun,” which was edgy, political, and very much right in your face. In contrast, Lifeline is a more soulful, melodic, uplifting album - and perhaps even more brilliant that its predecessor. The album evokes warm sounds of Ray Charles, the 70’s era Rolling Stones, the Black Crowes, Van Morrison, and Otis Redding. In typical Ben Harper form, the lyrics are brilliant and meaningful, the arrangements are exceptional, and the songs are creative, catchy, and inspirational. I have used the album’s first track “Fight Outta You” to pull me out of many an early morning funk. There is a great lyric in the chorus of that song that really speaks to me “I would rather take your punch, than not give you a shot… I’d rather find out who you are than who you’re not.” This one is well worth the 12 bucks. Was this one of your favorites of 2007? What other albums, songs or books moved you and why?

The Official Ben Harper Website : Ben Harper and the Innocent Criminals

Making the Cut (and Paste) - Kwout

Thanks, yet again, to Lifehacker for the tip on the awesome web based cut and paste tool, Kwout. With Kwout, you simply place a bookmark, which they provide for you on their site, in your toolbar, and then when you see an image or piece of a web site that you want to grab click on the button. Next you simply highlight the area of the page you want to feature, and Kwout spits out the code you need to copy the area anywhere. It will even embed links with the area you select. This tools is extremely simple to use, and is quite useful. I am looking forward to more of trying out Kwout - a brilliant way to quote.

 

Milk Fortified with Vitamin G - Remember the Milk integrates with Gmail

I was scanning the latest posts from the Google Operating System blog today only to realize that Remember the Milk - an awesome, web based, task management tool - now has the ability to integrate directly into Gmail. It looks as this is the first step towards integrating task management into Gmail, which hopefully will happen in 2008. The ability to use Remember the Milk within Gmail is wonderful in that you can easily move from email to tasks in one place. So many of the emails I receive have some “to do” item that results, which forces me to either have an inbox cluttered with old emails to serve as reminders, or to leave my mail to enter or complete a task somewhere else. This all in one solution, though not perfect, will help to reduce distraction, eliminate duplication of efforts, and better organize my busy life. Remember the Milk also integrates into the igoogle homepage and google calendar, both of which I use daily. I look forward to further integration of tasks into Gmail and Gcal. What do you think of Remember the Milk, Gmail, Gcal, and what do you hope to see in the near future of task management?

Remember the Googley Milk

End Package Rage with a Can Opener

One of the best Christmas gifts I received this year came in the form of a blog post from Lifehacker. As a dad, I am tasked with the unenviable task of opening presents for my children. This typically results in spilled coffee, wounded appendages, swearing, and other less than ideal Christmas parenting moments. Besides the ridiculous use of use of twist ties and fastening devices, the most common culprit for package rage has been the Clamshell Package. This molded plastic nemesis has been the downfall of many a skilled father. No amount of pulling, twisting, tearing, chopping, and or tugging seems to weaken the Clamshell - until now. Lifehacker unveiled what amounts to Clam Shell Kryptonite, the simple handheld Can Opener. It is as easy as this. Take the Clamshell Package. Clamp the can opener at a point on the edge of it. Twist it, just like you are cranking open a can of beenie weenies, and voila. Package Opened. It is amazing. For a dad, this is one of the best Christmas gifts I could have received. In fact, as Christmas went on with extended family, my eyes lit up every time someone had a Clam Shell package - giving me an opportunity to share my newly learned skill. Thanks Lifehacker for once again making my life better.

Clever Uses: Open Clamshell Packaging with a Can Opener

Berry Christmas: Google Sync

Before the iphone, we were the “cool kids.” You know us, we’re BlackBerry owners. Well as we BlackBerry users wait for our contracts to expire and iphone prices to continue to fall, here is a great new application from Google. It is Google Sync - a free program that keeps the Blackberry Calendar in sync with the web based Google Calendar. I have been anxiously awaiting the arrival of this application since I bought my BlackBerry last year. While I try to keep most of my information in a web based environment, there are times when I need the speed of desktop (or phone top) access. For example, you are sitting across the table from a client and they ask, “When can we get together again?” Rather than having to go through the process of jumping on the net, logging in, scrolling to the right time frame, and then entering the data, I can simply check the desktop calendar and go. The real beauty is that because the software auto-syncs to my BlackBerry to my GCal, I am always up to speed on where to be and when. Oh the nerdy things that excite me! Not sure if I should celebrate or cry. Alas, this is a great app - worth checking out.

There are also a number of other new desktop applications for BlackBerry that can be downloaded from Google. Picassa, Reader, Docs, and more - now with desktop icons for the mobile device. Stay up to date on all of them by subscribing to the Google Mobile Blog.  Merry Christmas to all. (Is that on the 25th this year?…let me check my calendar…yep!) and to all a good night.

Mobile

Favorite Things 2007 Continued: Wincing the Night Away: The Shins

2007 was a great year for new music for me.  One of the records that got a lot of play in the ipod was Wincing the Night Away, by The Shins.  The album is an innovative rock masterpiece.  It led me to purchase the other 2 albums by the band, Chutes Too Narrow, and Oh Inverted World, which are equally exceptional.  (Interestingly enough, I noticed the other day that one of the iphone commercials shows the hands flipping through the itunes library of the supposed owner, only to have him stop on Chutes Too Narrow.  Look for it the next time you see the commercial - should not take too long.)  The sound of the Shins brings 80’s new wave together with the harmonies of the early Beatles sounds, to create something completely fresh.  The lyrics are not contrived or trite, and the melodic lines are often surprising and catchy as hell.  Of particular note on this album is the second song, Australia.  The song is rich with orchestration and instrumentation.  It took me a few dozen listens to pick up on the banjo in the background.  There are countless gems on this one, and it truly defines synthesis by putting together disparate elements into a thing of beauty.  What was your favorite musical offering of 2007?  More of mine to come…

Amazon.com: Wincing the Night Away: Music: The Shins

Epilepsy Foundation of Western Ohio

 Last Friday, I was named as the newest member of the board of the Epilepsy Foundation of Western Ohio.  I am honored to be part of the organization, and I look forward to making a positive difference in the lives of those afflicted with Epilepsy.   This group has a special meaning to me.  Gone unchecked, Epilepsy can be frightening and debilitating.  Through proper medical care and education, epilepsy can be managed and overcome.  I thank the board for choosing me to help further the cause.

I also want to mention that the Foundation will be hosting a Mardi Gras Gala on Tuesday, February 5th.  The event will help to fund the operations of the foundation for the coming year.  I encourage you to attend.  For more information please visit www.daytonmardigras.com.   I hope to see you there.

Epilepsy Foundation of Western Ohio

Impossible Germany, Incredible Band…Wilco

Wilco, Sky Blue Sky - Favorite Things 2007

While working today, I had Wilco’s Sky Blue Sky playing in the background. What an amazing album. Truly one of the musical gems of 2007 if not of the modern era of rock. As I type this, I am listening to the amazing guitar solo on “Impossible Germany,” envious, mesmerized, and completely delighted to be given the chance to soak in such beauty. I picked this album up the day it came out, and have damn near worn the thing out now that December is here. Melancholy and hopeful, melodic yet inventive, this is one of my favorite things for 2007. Every time I listen I discover some new subtle nuance about the album. From the haunting vocal harmonies on You Are My Face, to the gritty “Hate It Here” - which evokes warm sounds of the late Beatles / early John Lennon, to the hopeful lyrics of “White Light” the album is a work of beauty and a creative masterpiece.

What are your favorite things about 2007 - musical and otherwise?

More to come from me on this…

MBA Hooray!

Yesterday I completed the MBA program at the University of Dayton. What an experience. I have learned so much, met so many wonderful people, and pushed myself further than I ever thought possible. The whole experience has been life changing, and I am so glad that I made the decision to embark on accomplishing this goal. I would like to thank my wife for supporting me through all those late nights, weekend study groups, weeknight project meetings, and being there when I needed inspiration. I could not, and probably would not, have done it without you. Thanks also to my family and friends for your encouragement along the way. You can’t imagine how much it has meant. I did it! Woo Hoo!

University of Dayton MBA

Higer Price, Less Service…

I do not ride the bus, nor do I plan on it any time soon. My job requires a considerable amount of local travel, often without much notice. My car is basically an office on wheels. Thus, I am not particularly well suited for mass transit - so take this as solely the outside, uneducated opinion of a casual observer.

There is an article in the Dayton paper today about RTA, in which it expresses an intent to raise bus fare while simultaneously cutting service. Pay more, get less. They apparently have a shortfall of funds and need to increase prices and prune routes and personnel to make up for the lack of revenue. Again, I am no expert on this - but if I was hoping to increase demand for anything would charging more and offering less work? It seems that with gas prices regularly above $3.00 and showing no signs of decreasing, RTA has an amazing opportunity, albeit a difficult one. For RTA to increase its user base, it needs to change the fundamental behavioral patterns of human beings who love the freedom afforded by an automobile. That is hard to do. Some would argue it is darn near impossible. So logically, it will take something remarkable to change the fate of mass transit, change consumer behavior, and ultimately make RTA viable. Incremental rate increases and pruning are futile and actually counter-productive long term. RTA needs a game changing idea. Remember, freedom (i.e. the freedome to drive a gasoline powered vehicle) comes at a price - again currently over $3.oo per gallon. So here are a few of my thoughts.

• Make it Free! What if for 1 month RTA charged nothing. Ride for free. Learn that you won’t get killed on the bus. Learn that bus travel is clean, safe, low stress, and gets you to your office and back on time. Stress free commuting. Stimulate demand. Change user behavior and perception, and make people consider the cost of driving relative to the alternative. Once the promotional period has ended, go back to the normal fares - perhaps even increase them to cover loss of the promotional period. First and foremost build a user community.
• Make it Fun! Bucher on the bus. Radio on the bus. Networking on the bus. Trivia on the bus. Folk Singers on the bus. Rappers on the bus. Bagels - sold on the bus for profit. Coffee - sold on the bus for profit. Newspapers - sold on the bus for profit. Wifi on the bus, available with a bus pass. Corporate bus memberships at a reduced rate. Bloggers on the bus, telling the world about our cool buses, real time, twitter on the bus. The list goes on. The idea would be to make the bus the most amazing part of the day. Make it a place for business to happen. Make it a place where friendships are forged. Make it more than mass transit connecting a to b - make it about connecting the experience of the bus to the consumer and the consumers to one another.

Yes, there are countless flaws in the theory, but it is about the mentality. Reinvent what “riding the bus” means. Give more. Make it remarkable, and create a real future.  As Weird Al so wisely said….”Another one rides the bus.  And another gets on and another gets on, another one rides the bus…”   Showing my age.  I digress.

What would it take for you to ride the bus?

RTA may raise fares, cut service

Next Page »