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Journal (The Ember Update)

Wednesday, October 30

Knocked Out

We saw Punch Drunk Love.

If, like me, you've avoided exposure to ads, go see the movie before you know anything more.

I'm amazed to find myself saying that not only did I see a movie starring Adam Sandler—I was really surprised 'cause I knew nothing going into the theater—but I thought the movie was very, very good. I've rarely had the beginning of a movie grip me so immediately and tightly (others which come to mind: the short skit at the beginning of The Twilight Zone Movie, and maybe Harold and Maude and Death Trap). After the stellar start, the movie kept on ticking and had me completely enthralled throughout.

The site has cool stuff available; primarily MP3 downloads of several tunes from the fairly ambient soundtrack (which I have to buy), ads, and clips as weird as the movie ... some nearly complete stretches of the psychedelic visual breaks alone.

Big Sur

What a fabulous time Rash and I had last weekend camping in Big Sur!

(Sorry, no photos, but check out some of the links. I can't find my camera battery charger, so I took the mini-disc recorder along to capture ambient sounds. Will try to post some of those soon.)

On the way South we traveled the Old Coastal Highway over Bixby Canyon on the very large single-arch Bixby Creek Bridge, Rash reading from Jack Kerouac's novel Big Sur while I drove.

Rash had made reservations for us at Ventana Wilderness Campground, which he chose in part for the available showers (I, on the other hand, like to be dirty in the woods :o). We found our campsite, #60, almost to the end where we thought it might be quieter. It wasn't particularly private, but it was right next to a babbling brook and among redwoods as far as the eye could see. I've never been to such a nature-noisy campground. Scolding squirrels, loud sneetches, woodpeckers, and songbirds abounded. We set up the tent—plastic ground cover, tent with rain flap, blanket lining the entire floor, inflated pad, and my sleeping bag lined with a sheet and wrapped in my great-grandmother's hand-quilted wool and flannel blanket ... mmm toasty!

Our main point of interest for a visit was Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park, site of much natural beauty.

There are ancient Redwoods that were not harvested 125 years ago because they had anomalies—like twisted trunks or great burl out growths that diminished their commercial values. But left to grow they are magnificent reminders of what the forest was like. They are like huge holy creatures. The forest floor is a soft bed of fluffy needles accented by glossy green ferns, sunlight beaming through the forest canopy onto the busy, gurgling stream—which is flopping over colorful, mossy rocks in a gentle meander to its thunderous fate in the spectacular falls into the Pacific Ocean.

If you do not see it for yourself, you will not believe it.

Maybe this will ring a bell: You've likely seen one of the many gorgeous photographs of a beautiful waterfall tumbling 80' from the cliff above onto the sandy beach, or into the ocean at high tide. That's McWay Falls. It's part of what makes the park area so stunning.

In addition we started the Ewoldsen trail (the sun was setting so we didn't tarry), which brought us to the McWay Grove, a lovely stand of redwoods. A short distance beyond was a 4-tier waterfall, with a large, well-used hunk of a bench nearby, whereupon I sat and alternated my gaze between the waterfall and the lacy fan of redwood branches high above me. I've seen photos of this kind of stuff before, but, well, if you do not see it for yourself, you will not believe it.

This article about the park tells more about things we overlooked which I hope to see next time we go.

Back at camp Rash started up his old kerosene stove, plus a campfire in the fire-ring, and we had a tasty dinner after which we turned in for the evening.

Sad to say, the night wasn't as idyllic as the day, for not only was Rash disturbed by distant partying, but in the dead of night a passing vehicle got stuck, and lots of shouting went on while our neighboring campers helped them get unstuck. But other than that we were happy and cozy in my tent.

Sunday brunch was at the Bleu Spoon in Aptos, our second time there. It's got great Googie architecture, cobalt glass, and fabulous food.

We're both looking forward to our next Big Sur excursion.

Friday, October 25

[Updated Wednesday, October 29]

I'm very sad to hear about Senator Wellstone's death (along with his wife and daughter, staff members, and pilots). His was one of the campaigns I'd donated to, and I was just reading more about him last night. Crap.

Nevada's Question 9

Please help fight marijuana prohibition by making a small donation (even $10 helps) to Nevadans for Responsible Law Enforcement. Their ballot initiative—which appears on Nevada's 2002 general election ballot—removes the threat of arrest for responsible marijuana use and punishes irresponsible use.

As pointed out by NORML (emphases mine):

In 2000, state and local law enforcement arrested 734,498 people for marijuana violations. This is an increase of 800 percent since 1980, and is the highest ever recorded by the FBI.

As has been the case throughout the 1990s, the overwhelming majority of those charged with marijuana violations in 2000—646,042 Americans (88 %)—were for simple possession. The remaining 12% (88,456 Americans) were for "sale/manufacture", an FBI category which includes marijuana grown for personal use or purely medical purposes. These new FBI statistics indicate that one marijuana smoker is arrested every 45 seconds in America.

Taken together, the total number of marijuana arrests for 2000 far exceeded the combined number of arrests for violent crimes, including murder, manslaughter, forcible rape, robbery and aggravated assault.

In addition, government studies show that marijuana is less addictive and less harmful than either alcohol or tobacco. [1, 2]

The War on Drugs is a war against Americans.

Regarding the Nevada initiative, yesterday Rob Kampia of MPP wrote:

"The latest statewide poll of 600 Nevada voters—completed on Tuesday night—shows that our ballot initiative is still trailing by a mere 44% to 46%, with 10% undecided. We have been 2% down since the polls opened statewide on Saturday.

"Our opponents are sitting on $100,000 of the $200,000 they have raised for their TV ad campaign. They are going to use their remaining $100,000 to blitz the Nevada electorate with deceptive TV ads next week, and they need only maintain their 2% margin over us during these last 12 days to defeat us.

"Would you please visit http://www.NRLE.org to donate some of the remaining $75,500 that is needed to finish off this campaign and achieve victory on November 5?

"A donation of $10 will mean that 600 Nevada voters will see one of our TV ads one time each; a donation of $50 means that 3,000 voters will see our ad once. And a $250 donation—which will pay for 15,000 voter impressions—can be tax-deductible by visiting http://www.NRLE.org/donate.html and checking the appropriate box."

Please help if you can. Thanks.

BTW, the best information I've found on the effects and impact of the War on Drugs is Drug War Facts. The information they present is culled from government studies and reports, as well as those by educational and research institutions worldwide.

[1] "Marijuana and Medicine: Assessing the Science Base," Division of Neuroscience and Behavioral Research, Institute of Medicine (National Academy Press, 1999)
[2] "Is Nicotine Addictive? It depends on Whose Criteria You Use," Jack E. Henningfield, PhD for NIDA, Reported by Philip J. Hilts, New York Times, Aug. 2, 1994.

Thursday, October 24

Charles Schulz Museum and Ice Rink

Since I don't have much to talk about this week (or rather the time to write it all down), here are a few photos of the Charles Schulz Museum and Schulz's Redwood Empire Ice Arena.

Rash and I visited the museum 4 days after it opened, on the way up to Mendocino in September. The museum is just across the street from Schulz's three decade old rink. Apparently the rink can be quickly converted to a concert hall, and has hosted performances by the likes of Liberace and Bill Cosby.

We couldn't really photograph inside the museum, but here are a couple pictures showing the cartoon tiles used to decorate a large wall and inside the bathrooms. The large ice rink has a decidedly Swiss Chalet influence, outside and in, and has a cafe in front (selling things like coffee and hot dogs):

1. Schulz Museum sign.
2. Schulz Museum facade.
3. Cartoon wall, made up of tiles of individual strips.
4. Strip close-up in the men's room.
5. Schulz Ice Rink building.
6. Rink facade (Happiness is a Warm Puppy [Cafe]).
7. Rink from the Warm Puppy Cafe cafe windows.
8. The cafe's stained glass windows.
9. Snoopy statue in the rink entrance.
10. View of the rink.
11. Ice rink seats and decoration.
12. Swiss banners on the rink wall.

Wednesday, October 16

Politics Unusual

Yesterday I heard Michael Moore (I thought on Fresh Air, but the site seems to disagree with me) comment on Bush's dismissive attitude toward gun fingerprinting: "That's because Bush's corporate supporters [the gun lobby] come first, and our safety comes second.... They're all about themselves and their money, not about the American people."

Bingo.

That's why we aren't hearing Bush talk about the economy. It seem he thinks (at least in part) that hyping up the supposed threat from Iraq is an effective diversion from what we're experiencing in our daily lives: a stock market crash which has hurt young and old and everyone between, high unemployment, and low confidence—not just as consumers, but as investors in the American Dream, and much more profoundly as citizens in our supposedly safe haven.

That's not all on our minds. There's fear of more suicide bombers, anthrax, smallpox, other biological or chemical warfare, and now snipers in our capital, plus nukes in North Korea.

Every credible expert I've heard address the pending Iraq war has advised against it, saying it'll have the exact opposite effect that Bush claims: in essence, that terrorism against the West will mushroom if we attack Iraq.

Do the Buddhists have to be right, that life is suffering (I suppose so)? Did the theologians get Armageddon off by a few years? We all want peace, don't we?

Even the military are unhappy—with Donald Rumsfeld! The Washington Post says:

Indeed, nearly two dozen current and former top officers and civilian officials said in interviews that there is a huge discrepancy between the outside perception of Rumsfeld—the crisp, no-nonsense defense secretary who became a media star through his briefings on the Afghan war—and the way he is seen inside the Pentagon. Many senior officers on the Joint Staff and in all branches of the military describe Rumsfeld as frequently abusive and indecisive, trusting only a tiny circle of close advisers, seemingly eager to slap down officers with decades of distinguished service. The unhappiness is so pervasive that all three service secretaries are said to be deeply frustrated by a lack of autonomy and contemplating leaving by the end of the year.

Despite all that, WE ARE NOT HELPLESS. We can become or continue to be informed and share our opinions with our representatives (thanks to everyone who called their congressmen/women!). And while it had never occurred to me before, yesterday I donated $10 each to four Democratic candidates I'd like to see unseat their Republican Senate challengers. Since I can't vote in their states, donating was the least I could do. If you would at all consider doing the same, now is about the best and last real chance you have before the upcoming election. I suggest you look at Move On PAC. Also, though I have mixed feelings about him, I sure would like to see Bill McBride unseat George W's brother Jeb Bush in Florida.

But back to my point: I guess our president is hyping Iraq 'cause he's been largely ineffective with regard to the real threat: Al Qaeda. Remember them? Bush seems to have forgotten, at least for a little while, so now they—and similarly-minded terrorist groups—are trying to remind Bush and the rest of the West, with the last week's bombings in Indonesia, Yemen and Kuwait.

Either way, I think the American people are getting the message.

I'm probably going to vote libertarian for California governor, and if I have an opportunity to vote for Barbara Boxer I will (but not Feinstein for backing Bush).

But wasn't I saying something about Bush and guns? Oh yeah....

Did you know 40 people are shot EVERY DAY in the US? I guess some people get more attention for it, right when they shouldn't be (but fat chance that that'll ever change). This sniper who is scaring me and everyone I love back home shouldn't be getting publicity for it. Gavin DeBecker explains why in more detail, along with lots of other very useful insights in his book The Gift of Fear. As I've said previously, it's a very worthwhile read.

On a completely different topic, I had a wonderful time while my mom was visiting. I think I have the happiest Mommy in the world! She agreed that neither she nor my dad had a depressed bone in their bodies. I've decided it's time to take more inspiration from her cheerfulness.

Wednesday, October 9

Stress

I'd like to put in a nice long entry for you kind readers, but I am just exhausted. At work we're supposed to launch in less than a week and a half (when our first full-page print ad hits the magazine stands), and I've been worrying over my employer's willingness to spend what *I* think is a ton of money at this stage, when the products and market are unproven. At least it's not my money.

Over the course of my lifetime I've watched entrepreneurial friends—as well as my dad—try their hands at producing and marketing various goods or services, and I've seen many mistakes made and failures happen. I've worked for three start-ups: one failed and the other two are struggling. Yes I've seen some successes too, but never by luck ... only by deliberate investigation, wisdom and diligence. And NEVER by being in too much of a hurry. Mistakes are inevitable on the way to success—after all, a good baseball hitter with a 300 average fails 70% of the time. I'd like to think that with my close exposure to family, friends and companies starting ventures that I've absorbed some wisdom on the matter. I hope my wisdom has impact somewhere useful.

For my Internet Strategy and Marketing class I've got a book on tape by Michael Dell, Direct from Dell - Strategies that Revolutionized an Industry, and on the back is a list of bullet points. The first is, "Why it's infinitely better for any business starting out to have too little capital, rather than too much." I suspect one reason is because capital-rich companies throw money at problems rather than coming up with creative (and less-costly) solutions.

Reminds me of that Eno quote, "Spending lots of money is often an admission of lack of research, preparation and imagination."

I'm afraid when I listen to the tape it'll be too late for me to impart some of the critical stuff I learn. (I'm currently listening to Mary Modahl's excellent Now or Never, which I think is important material for anyone with influence working for a company on-line.)

On another note, tonight I had dinner with my elderly friend E. He's not doing as well these days as he (and I) would like. He reports that most nights he awakens after 2 hours of sleep. That's it for the night, and he can't nap during the day either. He commented on how he increasingly forgets things (which I've noticed too). He has more and more trouble pushing himself out of chairs, etc. This last point became especially apparent tonight, because as he was walking from the car into the house, he suddenly tipped over and fell. I couldn't get E up, but luckily his renter appeared and was able to help.

Is that what I have to look forward to, if I were to live another 50 years? God, it seems the process of aging and the inevitability of death are too often in my thoughts.

On a happier note, my mom arrives Friday for a 5-day visit. I can't wait!

But more stress....

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