Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Apple, Christians, iPhone, Pope, US Naval Shipyard
Good Week
iPhone Users: iOS 7.0 brings a dramatically improved look and feel to iPhones. Yes, it DOES make iPhones more Android-like, but only the best user-interface elements (and not all the complexity). Not only is my phone now prettier, but the most important functions are easier to access. Well done Apple!
Gay Christians: The Pope declares that the church should not “interfere spiritually” with LGBT Christians. He goes on to say that many (homophobic) churches and pastors get caught up in “small-minded things.” Finally, INCLUSIVE leadership from the church. I fervently hope that this will help bring peace to members of my community that “believe” but have been alienated by their religion.
Bad Week
San Francisco Forty-Niners: All the Niner eggs are in the Kaepernick basket and now we see that he may not be the Superman who can carry the franchise on his back (duh). Not only did the very impressive Seattle Seahawks beat us (that sentence is painful to type), but the Niners also lost the game… defense, offense and special teams share the responsibility. It was ugly all around.
US Naval Shipyard: The US Navy ignored warnings that they might be attacked and 13 people didn’t get to go home after work on Monday. It sounds an awful lot like the fallout from 911 when it was clear that the US ignored warnings of that attack too.
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Bangladesh seamstress, Cleveland women, Golden State Warriors, Jodi Arias, San Antonio Spurs
Good Week
It was a good week for four women who fell on hard times.
3 Cleveland Women: After 10 years in a rapist’s house, 3 women are free. This week is good, very good, but what about all the weeks and years to follow? How can anyone recover from such an ordeal?
Bangladesh seamstress: Here is a true testament to the human spirit. She lived for 17 days in a collapsed building on dried fruit and very little water. She was pulled from the building largely unharmed and in a beautiful dress and scarf no less.
Bad Week
San Antonio Spurs: The remarkable San Antonio NBA team has long dominated the sport, but they must now accept that championship experience cannot completely overcome age. The young and very talented Golden State Warrior team is quite literally running circles around them. After only 2 games, I predict a berth in the Western Conference finals for the Warriors against OKC.
Jodi Arias: Arias shot, stabbed (30 times) and slit the throat of her boyfriend. Then she toddled off to Utah for a rendezvous with another man. She was found guilty of 1st degree murder this week. She says that she prefers the death penalty to life in prison. It’s tempting to give her life.
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: 2013 Masters, Boston, Dayna Verstegen, Golden State Warriors, Outside Lands
Good Week
Golden State Warriors: They are wrapping up the regular season with some nice wins, including over the Spurs (maybe SA’s coach sent home a couple stars early?). Now on to the post-season!!
Outside Lands: RIDICULOUS line-up for August music festival in Golden Gate Park. Paul McCartney, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Daryl Hall & John Oates, Willie Nelson, and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. Every year it just keeps getting better.
Bad Week
Boston: Once again terrorists target innocent people. Bostonians won’t let the gloom last long though; they have a LONG history of telling bullies to fuck off.
The Masters: An Australian wins for the first time, but too many unexpected penalties mar the fun.
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Billboard 100, Hugh Jackman, Inflation, Oscar Pistorius, YouTube
Good Week
Unknown Musical Artists: The Billboard 100 will now count song plays on YouTube. If you can go viral (Harlem Shake anyone?), your name will now reach a much larger global audience. You’ll be LEGIT. Too legit to quit (I couldn’t resist)!
Hugh Jackman: Win or lose, have you ever seen anyone enjoy the Oscar season as much as Hugh Jackman. He got to play the role that he dreamed of from childhood and now is the odds on favorite for a nice gold statue. Could it happen to a better guy?!
Bad Week
Oscar Pistorius: He’s out on bail, but his life is over. Why must so many athletes disappoint us with their behavior?
U.S. Inflation: Marketplace did a eulogy for Inflation on Wednesday night after consumer index numbers finally fell to 0.0. I’m not sure if I will miss it, but I shouldn’t speak ill of the dead. If you’re heartbroken, go to Zimbabwe where I understand it’s alive and well there.
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Dayna Verstegen, Lance Armstrong, Mitt Romney, Ross Mirkarimi, San Francisco 49ers
Bad Week
San Francisco Women – Ross Mirkarimi has been reinstated as San Francisco Sheriff. How can we POSSIBLY have a sheriff who just pled guilty to domestic violence? Isn’t his job (and responsibility as a human being) to be one of the good guys? This vote by the San Francisco Board of Supervisors sends a very troubling message to all women that domestic violence is just not a big deal in the eyes of the San Francisco government.
Lance Armstrong – Ever since Lance Armstrong announced last summer that he would no longer fight the charges against him, I wondered why. He claimed that he needed to move on with his life. But walk away from the fight to save his name, records and all his life’s work?! That doesn’t sound like the incredibly competitive man that we have been watching for years. But now it is clear why. He quit because he is guilty. I read the articles and reports and the evidence is overwhelming. What a shame.
Good Week
The San Francisco 49ers – Can these guys be stopped? It is remarkable how good they are on both sides of the ball. They are playing with poise and confidence and barring any major injuries, I expect a strong playoff run.
Mitt Romney – Mitt Romney was aggressive and not always truthful but apparently that’s what America wants because he was declared the winner of the first presidential debate by everyone (even my man Jon Stewart). It is as if we are back in the days of Teddy Roosevelt when ideas and dignity no longer matter… only machismo. Enjoy the bump Mitt because Barack Obama is not only a better man than you but he is also a hell of a lot smarter. I expect the next debate will be a very different story.
What do you think? Write to me.
Twitter: @daynev
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Mitt, Mitt Romney, NFL, Revolution, Tammy Baldwin
Good Week
Revolution: This new fall NBC show premiered last Monday night. It was a very solid start. Yes, it’s another post-apocalyptic drama, but this one, thus far, is striking a nice balance of mystery with interesting characters. The gorgeous and elaborate sets look big budget. I only hope they can avoid the absurdity of Lost and the snail’s pace suffered by Heroes (second season). And please, please producers, don’t make this a love story… the psychological and sociological elements are so much more interesting. One last request, more plot lines for the Google guy!
Tammy Baldwin: Tammy Baldwin stepped down from her Congressional seat in Wisconsin to run for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Herb Kohl. If she wins, she will be the first openly gay person elected to the U.S. Senate. In a state that has been crawling with the likes of Scott Walker and growing increasingly conservative in the last decase, it certainly looked like a long-shot. Over the last week, however, as Mitt Romney has not only shot himself in the foot, but blown off his whole leg and the blast pattern has begun to reach other Republican candidates. According to CNN, Romney is dragging WI Republican Senate candidate Tommy Thompson down with him and we have seen an 18 point shift in popularity. Tammy was 9 down 30 days ago and this week she is 9 points up. Go Mitt! Keep talking.
Tammy Baldwin is running for the U.S. Senate in Wisconsin
Bad Week
Mitt Romney: I don’t have to have to rant about his faults, he’s showing them all just fine on his own. I am looking forward to November 7 when we won’t have to hear his name so often. I predict an embarrassing loss. If there was an independent alternative for all the reasonable Republicans (and yes, I do believe there are many), this guy wouldn’t get 40% of the vote.
The NFL: I was going to title this section “NFL referees” but it’s not their fault. These people have been thrown into a difficult position. They are filling in for a job that requires years and years of experience to do well. But now they are beginning to effect the outcome of the entire season. The calls are that bad. The BAD goes on the NFL and its executives who have not found a way to settle this lock-out. You better do it soon friends or this entire season will require an asterisk next to the results.
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: African Queen, Application Craft, Freddy May, Humphrey Bogart, Katherine Hepburn, Mobile 2.0 event, San Francisco, Willie Nelson
One of my favorite features of the Sunday San Francisco Chronicle is their Good Week/Bad Week list in the Insight section. Here are my selections for the last week:
Good Week
The launch of Application Craft. In 11 short weeks, we transitioned a good, solid beta to a commercial project, built a new website and created every key element of a marketing program. On September 11, during the Mobile 2.0 event in San Francisco, my clever and fastidious CEO Freddy May, presented our platform to a room of developers, tech executives and venture capitalists. He did even make it to the hallway after without 2 VCs business cards in his hand. We’re off to a great start.
The African Queen (1951) starring Humphrey Bogart and Katherine Hepburn. Yes, I know this movie is more than 60 years old, but the Dame I watched it this weekend and were truly moved. Here are the basics: a Canuck (Bogart) and a Limey (Hepburn who didn’t bother with the accent) end up on a 30-foot craft floating down a hazardous African River at the start of WWI. Using their tiny craft, they intend to sink a massive German military boat. The beauty is in the relationship between the two main characters: Charlie and Rosie make a difference in the world by first helping the other realize their full potential. If you have never seen it, I highly recommend.
Bad Week
Americans in the Middle East. I understand that as a nation, we have perhaps earned some of the mistrust, even hatred that many in the Middle East feel for us, but I cannot forgive opportunistic stupidity. We now see bullies in Libya, Egypt and Yemen attacking Americans and American embassies for a movie that was not made in America or by an American, and not even funded by Americans! Apparently these terrorists don’t even need a reason to start a fight. Not only are they irrational and violent, they are apparently just dumb.
Willie Nelson. I fulfilled a dream of many years last week seeing the legendary country singer at Mountain Winery in Saratoga, but I use that term lightly. Which term? Well, “singer.” It is a heartbreaking truth that Willie Nelson can no longer sing. I don’t know if it’s his age or colorful use of, shall we say, additives, throughout his life, but he now only talks his songs, dropping the end of EVERY SINGLE LINE down several notes. Oh, and did I mention that nearly every song is performed at double-time? I guess to lessen the need of melody and harmony or whatever those musical terms are.
Filed under: Uncategorized
And so it begins. I have left the comfortable career in corporate marketing that I have been building for 15 years and taken the job of editor for the Bay Times newspaper and effectively ended the beginning of my life. For the first time I have made a turn and taken an unexpected step. The title for my blog is in fact a quote from a Marriage Equality activist. To explain: on my first day on the job with the Bay Times, at 7:30 AM, I was in front of the Federal Courthouse in downtown San Francisco for a rally supporting same-sex marriage. Later that morning, the Chief Judge of the 9th Circuit Court would hear a motion to vacate the ruling made by Judge Vaughn Walker declaring Proposition 8 unconstitutional (the motion failed). During the rally, Ellen Pontac (pictured here in the green shirt)
Ellen Pontac & Shelly Bailes, together 37 years
uttered these words that were not only apt for the situation, but also my life. A new adventure has begun and I am thrilled and terrified and so very happy. In fairness, I should probably say “terrified” again.
The End of the Beginning 