Tretakoff Musings
Saturday, January 28, 2006
In Praise of QuickNews
A while ago, I wrote a piece on my Palm TX , and how it replaced so many other devices I had. I am further making it an independent gadget, with QuickNews. QuickNews is an RSS reader for the Palm, but it also automatically can "wake up" and download the latest RSS feeds you subscribe to. Better, it handles Podcasts natively.
So, no more complicated podcasts syncing with Windows Media Player, or manual copying to the 1GB card. Instead, now, every day, my podcasts are downloaded and waiting for me, without any PC or Mac. Slick!
So, no more complicated podcasts syncing with Windows Media Player, or manual copying to the 1GB card. Instead, now, every day, my podcasts are downloaded and waiting for me, without any PC or Mac. Slick!
The Sports Guy Exercise Program
It's a new year. Time for resolutions, and the most popular: lose weight. I'm no exception: I lead a, well, let's call it what it is: a "sedentary lifestyle." I haven't worked out in years. This year, I couldn’t take it anymore: that had to change.
I started with the easiest, lowest cost exercise program I could think of: walking. Every morning, I got up, and went for a walk in our neighborhood. Sounds easy, right? Except we live in a special section of the Marin Headlands, part of the Golden Gate Nature Preserve: our street alone rises and falls over 200 feet! Going for a walk is a serious workout. However, I persevered.
One of the benefits of where we live is that we have close access to the trails that cover the Headlands. In 10 minutes, I can be on a trail that overlooks the entire Bay: Mt. Tamalpais to the North, Mt. Diablo to the East, and San Francisco to the South. Isolated, you can see the Pacific just past the legendary Golden Gate. I love those trails, and that perfect mix of nature and civilization.
The sun, rising over the East Bay Hills, on one of my morning hikes.
Clouds emerging from the layer of fog in the North Bay, as seen from the trails near my house, on another morning hike.
The downside of the Headlands is they truly are a nature preserve. Mountain lions are not uncommon. So, when hiking there in the pre-dawn hours, the nocturnal predators are not always so understanding of New Year's resolutions. Alas, solitude only contributes to this: there is NO ONE around for miles. At Amy's behest, I abandoned the trails, for the safer confines of the neighborhood.
What you should know about me is that I am odd in many ways, but one of the ways that baffle most people is that I love to walk in the rain. A good hat, good shoes, and a dry jacket, and I am a happy man. So, the first few days walking in our neighborhood, I was OK: it rained, it was quiet, and I listened to my podcasts. Then, after a few days, I realized something about walking in my neighborhood.
IT…WAS…BORING.
AS ALL HELL.
I started to dread the walks. I tried a different approach: I would hike 800 feet down our hill, then walk about 1/2 a mile to the nearest Starbucks. Buy a coffee, then trudge back up the hill. Good exercise, and having a destination certainly helped, but the tedium of pavement and poor sidewalks still numbed my brain, no matter how many Engadget or On The Media podcasts I listened to. I resigned myself to the inevitable truth that this is the penalty one must pay for trying to live a healthier lifestyle (no wonder I resisted it for so long!).
And then it happened. Like a bolt from the blue. My muse spoke to me. In one sentence, my life changed.
I was reading The Sports Guy's (Bill Simmons) column, about writer's block. He was trying to make NFL playoff picks, and he was enumerating all of the things he did to prepare. And one lifted off the screen and into my brain:
"I changed into workout clothes and hopped on the treadmill, hoping to sweat out four picks during an obligatory Jags-Pats game on Madden."
What?
Did I just read that?
You can be on a treadmill…and play a videogame? Not just any videogame, but…MADDEN FREAKING FOOTBALL?
And with that, my life changed. I was a man possessed. I would combine one of my longtime time wasters…and make it my new exercise goal. Boredom would be gone. Physical fitness would be mine. And all of the skills developed in the last 25+ years at football videogames would be put into use. I had…my holy grail.
From there, it was off to eBay: treadmills are some of those things that get bought for hundreds of dollars, and then put in a yard sale for $10 just to hide the shame of non-use. Since they are so big and heavy, they can't be shipped, so there are not usually a lot of bidders. Of course, this makes them some of the greatest deals ever. And, within 1 week, I was the winning bidder of a full sized treadmill, for the princely sum of $26. I retrieved it from the South Bay, and set it up.
Yes, it has been all I have hoped for. It's perfect: my body works out, my mind is somewhere else, and the frustrated football god inside me keeps them separated. I finish a game, and have walked over 5 miles. At high speed. On an incline. I'm drenched in sweat, and I have no idea how it happened. Exercise nirvana.
Some funny things I have noticed about the Sports Guy Exercise program:
- Usually, I play videogames in a chair. When walking or jogging, I notice the body language is much more accentuated. How, you ask? The treadmill has a little tether you clip on to yourself, to ensure if you get towards the back, it pulls a lever and off goes the treadmill. Hence, no cartoon-like launching across the room. But, while playing the video game, the quarterback tends to drop back…and I tend to drop back. POP! goes the treadmill.
- On the completion of a game, I shut the treadmill down...and I am vibrating. It's like being on a boat: you get off, and you still feel as if you are on.
- Sound doesn't matter. Normally playing videogames, sound is an essential part of the system. When on the treadmill, the comforting drone of the crowd or Madden's occasional cries of "Boom!" are enough.
- I never realized how much time a football game on the PlayStation takes! I thought, 20 minutes max. But I look up, and 45 minutes are gone…and I have to get to work!
So, wish me well on this new ritual. I've lost 11 pounds since the start of the year, and we'll see how I do!
I started with the easiest, lowest cost exercise program I could think of: walking. Every morning, I got up, and went for a walk in our neighborhood. Sounds easy, right? Except we live in a special section of the Marin Headlands, part of the Golden Gate Nature Preserve: our street alone rises and falls over 200 feet! Going for a walk is a serious workout. However, I persevered.
One of the benefits of where we live is that we have close access to the trails that cover the Headlands. In 10 minutes, I can be on a trail that overlooks the entire Bay: Mt. Tamalpais to the North, Mt. Diablo to the East, and San Francisco to the South. Isolated, you can see the Pacific just past the legendary Golden Gate. I love those trails, and that perfect mix of nature and civilization.
The sun, rising over the East Bay Hills, on one of my morning hikes.
Clouds emerging from the layer of fog in the North Bay, as seen from the trails near my house, on another morning hike.The downside of the Headlands is they truly are a nature preserve. Mountain lions are not uncommon. So, when hiking there in the pre-dawn hours, the nocturnal predators are not always so understanding of New Year's resolutions. Alas, solitude only contributes to this: there is NO ONE around for miles. At Amy's behest, I abandoned the trails, for the safer confines of the neighborhood.
What you should know about me is that I am odd in many ways, but one of the ways that baffle most people is that I love to walk in the rain. A good hat, good shoes, and a dry jacket, and I am a happy man. So, the first few days walking in our neighborhood, I was OK: it rained, it was quiet, and I listened to my podcasts. Then, after a few days, I realized something about walking in my neighborhood.
IT…WAS…BORING.
AS ALL HELL.
I started to dread the walks. I tried a different approach: I would hike 800 feet down our hill, then walk about 1/2 a mile to the nearest Starbucks. Buy a coffee, then trudge back up the hill. Good exercise, and having a destination certainly helped, but the tedium of pavement and poor sidewalks still numbed my brain, no matter how many Engadget or On The Media podcasts I listened to. I resigned myself to the inevitable truth that this is the penalty one must pay for trying to live a healthier lifestyle (no wonder I resisted it for so long!).
And then it happened. Like a bolt from the blue. My muse spoke to me. In one sentence, my life changed.
I was reading The Sports Guy's (Bill Simmons) column, about writer's block. He was trying to make NFL playoff picks, and he was enumerating all of the things he did to prepare. And one lifted off the screen and into my brain:
"I changed into workout clothes and hopped on the treadmill, hoping to sweat out four picks during an obligatory Jags-Pats game on Madden."
What?
Did I just read that?
You can be on a treadmill…and play a videogame? Not just any videogame, but…MADDEN FREAKING FOOTBALL?
And with that, my life changed. I was a man possessed. I would combine one of my longtime time wasters…and make it my new exercise goal. Boredom would be gone. Physical fitness would be mine. And all of the skills developed in the last 25+ years at football videogames would be put into use. I had…my holy grail.
From there, it was off to eBay: treadmills are some of those things that get bought for hundreds of dollars, and then put in a yard sale for $10 just to hide the shame of non-use. Since they are so big and heavy, they can't be shipped, so there are not usually a lot of bidders. Of course, this makes them some of the greatest deals ever. And, within 1 week, I was the winning bidder of a full sized treadmill, for the princely sum of $26. I retrieved it from the South Bay, and set it up.
Yes, it has been all I have hoped for. It's perfect: my body works out, my mind is somewhere else, and the frustrated football god inside me keeps them separated. I finish a game, and have walked over 5 miles. At high speed. On an incline. I'm drenched in sweat, and I have no idea how it happened. Exercise nirvana.
Some funny things I have noticed about the Sports Guy Exercise program:
- Usually, I play videogames in a chair. When walking or jogging, I notice the body language is much more accentuated. How, you ask? The treadmill has a little tether you clip on to yourself, to ensure if you get towards the back, it pulls a lever and off goes the treadmill. Hence, no cartoon-like launching across the room. But, while playing the video game, the quarterback tends to drop back…and I tend to drop back. POP! goes the treadmill.
- On the completion of a game, I shut the treadmill down...and I am vibrating. It's like being on a boat: you get off, and you still feel as if you are on.
- Sound doesn't matter. Normally playing videogames, sound is an essential part of the system. When on the treadmill, the comforting drone of the crowd or Madden's occasional cries of "Boom!" are enough.
- I never realized how much time a football game on the PlayStation takes! I thought, 20 minutes max. But I look up, and 45 minutes are gone…and I have to get to work!
So, wish me well on this new ritual. I've lost 11 pounds since the start of the year, and we'll see how I do!
Sunday, January 22, 2006
A HowTo on eating Sushi
Easy, right? Chopsticks. :-)
Seriously, I love sushi. Amy has come to love it, as well, after years of resistence. The texture, the flavor, the ritual: it's a great sensual experience. For some folks, they can't get past the "raw fish" thing. But for many others, they just find it intimidating, and it can be: there are rituals, secret code words, and more.
Luckily, this fellow has created a guide on how to eat sushi, from picking the restaurant, to ordering, to eating. It's a comprehensive look at the way to eat sushi that, even after 15 years of sushi consumption, I learned quite a bit.
I'll still never get my mother and stepfather to go try it again, but at least he liked the wasabi!
Our favorite sushi places:
Sushi Ran
Ebisu
Hotei (technically, a Japanese restauarant, but they get the sushi from Ebisu: great if there's a massive wait at Ebisu)
Yu Sheng (Yes, it's chinese & japanese but REALLY good, inexpensive suhi. Try the crab special!)
Seriously, I love sushi. Amy has come to love it, as well, after years of resistence. The texture, the flavor, the ritual: it's a great sensual experience. For some folks, they can't get past the "raw fish" thing. But for many others, they just find it intimidating, and it can be: there are rituals, secret code words, and more.
Luckily, this fellow has created a guide on how to eat sushi, from picking the restaurant, to ordering, to eating. It's a comprehensive look at the way to eat sushi that, even after 15 years of sushi consumption, I learned quite a bit.
I'll still never get my mother and stepfather to go try it again, but at least he liked the wasabi!
Our favorite sushi places:
Sushi Ran
Ebisu
Hotei (technically, a Japanese restauarant, but they get the sushi from Ebisu: great if there's a massive wait at Ebisu)
Yu Sheng (Yes, it's chinese & japanese but REALLY good, inexpensive suhi. Try the crab special!)
The human movie encyclopedia starts a blog!
Some people, like me, have no memory. Others are just the opposite: they never let you forget a thing. ;-) And then, there's Lani: she remembers everything, especially actors, movies, and television shows. Got a question on that guy who was in that movie about that thing? Screw IMDB: Lani?
Now, she's started a blog, mostly focusing on these movies. On a side note, she spent a decade or so working for The Sharper Image (as did I), but unlike me, she remembers all of it. Every person. every name, every day. If any ex-TSI folks read this, go ahead and try to stump her...I dare you. :-)
Now, she's started a blog, mostly focusing on these movies. On a side note, she spent a decade or so working for The Sharper Image (as did I), but unlike me, she remembers all of it. Every person. every name, every day. If any ex-TSI folks read this, go ahead and try to stump her...I dare you. :-)
Monday, January 16, 2006
Online 20/20?
The world of online gaming and I are not well acquainted, as I have very little spare time for such, but I am fascinated by them. In games like Everquest, there is an entire economy, and it spills over into the "real world:" people buy and sell goods in the game, on eBay and the like.
Now comes this book, Only A Game: Online Worlds and the Virtual Journalist Who Knew Too Much, where jounalist goes undercover in this world, only to expose the seedy underside...and get booted by the company that runs it!
Now comes this book, Only A Game: Online Worlds and the Virtual Journalist Who Knew Too Much, where jounalist goes undercover in this world, only to expose the seedy underside...and get booted by the company that runs it!
Wednesday, January 11, 2006
A USEFUL mashup: PackageMapper.com
Many of these Mash-ups are kinds silly (The Yahoo Maps/Pirate Map one, for instance), but some are downright brilliant (the Craigslist rentals/Google Maps one). Here's one that straddles those two: fun, but useful: PackageMapper.com. Want to see where your package is? Let Google maps show you!
Tuesday, January 10, 2006
egoSurf - ego surfing without the guilt.
This has to be a first. egoSurf lets you see what Google thinks of you, and presents it in a nice, easy to use meter. Type in your name, and watch it work.
For me, it was a little disheartening. :-)
For me, it was a little disheartening. :-)
Sunday, January 08, 2006
TROOPS - Google Video
Thanks to Google Video, you can view one of the best humorous and great fan movies made. TROOPS is a 10 minute movie, set in the Star Wars world, but in the COPS tv show format. Quality is excellent. I forgot all about this gem!
Read more at video.google.com/videop...
Thursday, January 05, 2006
Bag Of Crap: Truth in Advertising
Well, my long-coveted Woot Bag 'O Crap arrived today. And, as promised, it's crap. Allow me to regale you with the riches that is my long lusted after Bag:
What can I say? These guys are fun, and don't bullshit. Better luck for me next time!
Well, my long-coveted Woot Bag 'O Crap arrived today. And, as promised, it's crap. Allow me to regale you with the riches that is my long lusted after Bag:
What can I say? These guys are fun, and don't bullshit. Better luck for me next time!
The Sports Guy: an intro
If you've read this blog every so often, you see I focus on the Sports Guy a lot (Bill Simmons). Ever wonder how to get up to speed on the wisdom of The Sports Guy? Look no further: Welcome to the glossary, which will get you right up to speed.
Monday, January 02, 2006
The return of Guy Kawasaki
If you were ever a Mac enthusiast, the name Guy Kawasaki does not conjure images of a motorcycle caricature, but a passionate, insightful leader. Guy was at the forefront of Apple's expansion into the everyday, in the 80's and early 90's. After a long silence, he has started his blog, where he recounts his experiences as a venture capitalist. For instance, in providing guidance on an optimal PowerPoint presentations, he advocates no more than 10 slides:
1. Problem
2. Your solution
3. Business model
4. Underlying magic/technology
5. Marketing and sales
6. Competition
7. Team
8. Projections and milestones
9. Status and timeline
10. Summary and call to action
Not a revolutionary man, just a smart one. And worth reading.
1. Problem
2. Your solution
3. Business model
4. Underlying magic/technology
5. Marketing and sales
6. Competition
7. Team
8. Projections and milestones
9. Status and timeline
10. Summary and call to action
Not a revolutionary man, just a smart one. And worth reading.
Farewell to Monday Night Football
With tonight's final Dallas Cowboys game (and a big congrats on a promising start to next year!), I realize I forgot to mention that, for the first time in about 10 years, I actually sat down and watched a full Monday Night football game: the last one on ABC. In reality, it's hardly the "last" anything: the game is moving to ESPN next season. In a world where 96% of the country views TV on satellite or cable, it's just a different channel.
However, it made me think: why had I not sat through a single, continuous MNF in 10 years for me? This used to be an EVENT: you'd plan your week around it. Heck, when I was managing retail, I made sure I was off or late on Tuesdays, just for that! It was somehow a shared importance: it transcended football, transcended sports: it was one of the few national requirements.
So, why had I not watched a full game in 10 years? Partly, it was the move to California: there is still something so strange about waking up late on a Sunday morning and turning on the TV...only to see football on. Heck, I remember visiting CA, and sitting in the St. Francis' bar at 10AM, dunking biscotti, watching football with a few diehard Eat Coasters, and wondering if this explained why Californians were so much more laid back. And MNF at 5:30 PM is a logistical impossibility: you get home or to a bar just in time for the closing minutes of the 2nd half. At that point, you are not tremendously invested, and you're subjected to endless promos for halftime...you're practically checked out.
But there's more to it. It's one of the strange effects of the multichannel, multimedia world we live in: MNF just doesn't matter anymore. Sure, you can argue the games were often blowouts, or the announcers were never the same after Cosell, but the reality is that the entertainment options exploded in the late '80's, and MNF was no longer a touchstone.
And finally, when the hell did MNF became a heartland, country-fied, Republican institution? I mean, with the exception of Dennis Miller (before he turned to the Dark Side), this has been a practical advertisement for the Republican party for the last decade. My muse, Bill Simmons, said it best here:
"With the announcing team failing to set the world on fire, they started taking goofy chances with the halftime show, paving the way for Tim McGraw's "I like it, I love it" highlight song that had hundreds of thousands of country-music haters inadvertently humming the chorus on the way to work this winter, realizing what they were doing, then debating whether to veer into oncoming traffic."
So, after watching the final game, with eerie parallels to the Jets losing by the same score as they lost the first MNF game, and my hopes of seeing Doug Flutie take the national stage one more time, I realized that, while I had not watched a full game in 10 years...I hadn't missed it. Sunday Night Football, which I used to think of as a joke, has become much more what I expected, much more of what I wanted, and I look forward to NBC's version, with their flexible scheduling, and Madden (who will hopefully remember he's supposed to actually show some animation) next season.
Farewell, ABC's MNF. It'll be nice to check in on you, every so often on ESPN, but I don't know that you'll be all that missed. As for this year, go Pats, and look for my 'Boys next season!
However, it made me think: why had I not sat through a single, continuous MNF in 10 years for me? This used to be an EVENT: you'd plan your week around it. Heck, when I was managing retail, I made sure I was off or late on Tuesdays, just for that! It was somehow a shared importance: it transcended football, transcended sports: it was one of the few national requirements.
So, why had I not watched a full game in 10 years? Partly, it was the move to California: there is still something so strange about waking up late on a Sunday morning and turning on the TV...only to see football on. Heck, I remember visiting CA, and sitting in the St. Francis' bar at 10AM, dunking biscotti, watching football with a few diehard Eat Coasters, and wondering if this explained why Californians were so much more laid back. And MNF at 5:30 PM is a logistical impossibility: you get home or to a bar just in time for the closing minutes of the 2nd half. At that point, you are not tremendously invested, and you're subjected to endless promos for halftime...you're practically checked out.
But there's more to it. It's one of the strange effects of the multichannel, multimedia world we live in: MNF just doesn't matter anymore. Sure, you can argue the games were often blowouts, or the announcers were never the same after Cosell, but the reality is that the entertainment options exploded in the late '80's, and MNF was no longer a touchstone.
And finally, when the hell did MNF became a heartland, country-fied, Republican institution? I mean, with the exception of Dennis Miller (before he turned to the Dark Side), this has been a practical advertisement for the Republican party for the last decade. My muse, Bill Simmons, said it best here:
"With the announcing team failing to set the world on fire, they started taking goofy chances with the halftime show, paving the way for Tim McGraw's "I like it, I love it" highlight song that had hundreds of thousands of country-music haters inadvertently humming the chorus on the way to work this winter, realizing what they were doing, then debating whether to veer into oncoming traffic."
So, after watching the final game, with eerie parallels to the Jets losing by the same score as they lost the first MNF game, and my hopes of seeing Doug Flutie take the national stage one more time, I realized that, while I had not watched a full game in 10 years...I hadn't missed it. Sunday Night Football, which I used to think of as a joke, has become much more what I expected, much more of what I wanted, and I look forward to NBC's version, with their flexible scheduling, and Madden (who will hopefully remember he's supposed to actually show some animation) next season.
Farewell, ABC's MNF. It'll be nice to check in on you, every so often on ESPN, but I don't know that you'll be all that missed. As for this year, go Pats, and look for my 'Boys next season!
