NaNoWriMo

It's a novel. Written in a month.

I have no idea how to write a I novel. I have both written words and read many novels, so I suppose it can't be too hard.

My story? Mostly True Tales from my Somewhat Fictional Life. It's me and what I've done, only...better. I won't lie, but I might embellish a bit (her tits were huge!, for example) for effect.

Goddamn I'm excited. I've never even written with a writing partner before. Cool stuff.

Small businesses the real casualty of credit mess

For week we've been hearing about mortgage companies shut down, banks being bailed out and corporations being forced into bankruptcy.

No one can pay their bills, but those at the top are getting enough money not only to keep going, but not lay off anyone either.

So who pays? Small businesses. They are so low on the totem pole, no one cares about them. They don't have enough money to send their late clients to court, nor do they have enough clout to shame them into paying.

Here's an example. Let's say a developer secured high-interest, short term loans from a private lender. While this is risky, when you want to get money and build fast, it's a standard practice.

So developer gets his loan but then private lender goes bankrupt. Developers stop paying their employees, their bills and those small businesses they've signed contracts with.

So what bills get paid? Hard costs, like rent, power, etc.

The small businesses who don't have large reserves of cash are screwed. They have to file bankruptcy and no one is there to bail them out. The companies THEY work with have more than enough money to send them to court for money they don't have.

Eventually the developer will get his money, but the small business gets none of it.

Wasn't America built on small businesses? What's next?

Simmonberry and Wikipedia

Wikipedia users need to get a life.

Simmonberry, a slang term for ESPN personalities Bill Simmons (The Sports Guy) and Matthew Berry (The Talented Mr. Roto) was deleted by user Tone because the neologism was unknown to Google and allegedly had no sources.

Does Tone listen to the BS Report (Simmons's weekly podcast)? Probably not. Just because it doesn't exist on Google doesn't mean it's not out there.

New tshirt from durtbagz.com

I am the proud owner of a "A donkey, a rabbi and a priest walk into a bar..." shirt from durtbagz. It's comfy, it fits correctly and it was only $20.

Buy many, buy them often. They're witty so you don't have to be.

http://www.durtbagz.com

The ledge

It wasn't too far away. He could could see over, could see everything on the other side. Hope, despair, success and failure, it was all there.

Which road he took depended entirely on how hard he was willing to work. It was possible, however unlikely, that he was ready for it.

His entire life had been spent on autopilot. seldom kicking into high gear. There had been flashes of brilliance, moments of clarity that anyone would recognize as near genius.

He never knew how this happened, which was part of the magic. Being in the zone, well, that was easy to imagine. He'd done it playing sports, more than once. Tennis, in the match against the #1 team, he'd averaged three aces a game. His serves hit the SIDE fence. Kick serves can be brutal. Basketball, too. Downing three entire water bottles at half time? No cramping after? The league's leading scorer being held to seven points? That was him.

This was different. While sports was great, he was never good enough to really take them seriously. Writing was something that could carry him, take him places he'd always wanted to go but never had the courage to. When he let himself go...there was never a need to worry about courage. It came naturally.

And it was beautiful.

Cell phones have ruined social outings

Next time you're out at a coffee shop, a bar or anywhere groups of people hang out, take note of how many of us are texting, talking or in some other way using their phones to communicate with someone not even there.

Not going to lie, I do this too. If I'm not twittering/texting, I'm usually trying to take a picture. While I appreciate the ability to look back on a fun night, doesn't the very act of recording something affect whatever a group is doing?

Can't any of us keep our cell phones in our damn pockets and only talk to those in our vicinity?

Thoughts on time

How often do we spend time doing the things we really want to do? Should do?

Why has the internet replaced TV, playing outside, reading and any other social activity?

Is being constantly connected a good thing?

Why do we complain so much about things we can't control?