Gordy.com

he’d probably look like this BPStealth.  Almost my bike for the season, but doesn’t fit me quite right.  But, sure does look cool and has lots of carbon fiber.

 

 

   

 

 so, training is coming along well.  still can’t really swim freestyle, but getting there.  The fact that I can get air into my lungs has been a big help.  Biggest observation so far - i spend as much time washing socks as I do training.  A minor exaggeration, but probably not much.

A month ago, I decided that i was going to give Triatlons a try.  Some friends and I are climbing Mount Rainer towards the end of June and i’m convinced that if i’m in shape for that, I’m mostly there.   I remember my high school gym teacher, Heisler, calling me Mary-Lou.  I would have been insulted, but that’s what he called everybody.  Pretty sure it was a reference to Mary Lou Retton, who was big in the 80s.  Pulling off a long-course tri would be redemption, of sorts. 

 The only thing holding me back at the moment is that i’m a non-swimmer - and this event is an open water swim.  I used to have ear troubles as a kid and never learned to swim with my head in the water.    I’m ok at the breast stroke, but was assured that is not a suitable triathlon stroke.  It’s a bit humbling taking swimming lessons as an adult, but as they say, never too late to teach an old dog new tricks.  Maybe next year i’ll learn to play tha banjo stashed under my sofa.

If I stick with the training all season, i’ll probably treat myself to a slick tri-bike.  Not that i’d benefit from a bike like that, but they are just beyond cool.  I’d rather have a bike like that on my wall than some piece of ‘art’. I’ll probably pick it up on ebay.

Don’t expect much journaling here, there are only a few variations:

• worked out really hard today and felt great
• worked out really hard today and now i’m beat
• just didn’t feel like training, so took the day off

If something different happens, i’ll let you know.

Time to go retro on the audio.  My fancy dolby, coffee making, theatre receiver is out and my new-to-me vintage Marantz is in.  Don’t worry, this isn’t going to balloon out of control like the adding machines, these are way to expensive and risky to ship on a whim. The action on these parts is amazing, esp. the gyroscopic tuner.

 

 
Outgoing:  Marantz sr7500 multi-media beast

 

Incoming:  Marantz 2270, circa 1972 

 

I have a pretty good answer to the question ‘did you do anything cool for new years’.  As a matter of fact, yes I did.  Spent 10 days in Sanitago, Chile & Buenos Aires.  Have some more writing to do here, but a few observations on Santiago. 

• it’s a very laid back city that doesn’t have a signature attraction.  While I can’t say it was exciting, it certainly was very livable.  Perhaps more noteworthy than what I saw was what I didn’t see:  no bluetooth, no ipods, and almost no preoccuption with cellphones and text messaging. 
• i am tall, but not towering.
• young couples are very affectionate with each other - which is nice to see.  there are also many toddlers.
• if you are the cowboy leading a horse tour in the Andes, it´s required to have a big-ass machete that´s used for both clearing trail debris, eating lunch, and removing gristle from between your teeth.  A one-shot pistol the size of a bic lighter must also be carried - just in case the horses are attacked by Pumas.

 

    

• Astroglide and jewfro are 2 difficult terms (and concepts) to explain (not demonstrate) with only 3 years of high school Spanish.  Fortunately, they don’t come up often in conversation.
• Being taken seriously as a goth in the US is difficult.  it´s much harder to pull it off in other countries.
• Why bother with friend chicken parts when you can just dunk the whole thing?

I’m loving this city and it’s really starting to feel like a home.  But, then I experience things that remind me it’s an up and coming city that still needs a bit of polish.  In Vegas, an attended bathroom has everything you could ever need and you know the host invested time and money setting up thS spread.  You tip well for that.  In Seattle, it looks like this guy pulled some stuff from his momma’s cabinet and the rest from the backseat of his car.  Only think he had the I needed was a photo - I was probably the only tip of the night. 

 

(mouth rinse, some sort of putty, aquanet, generic bandaids, and free clinic condoms)

 

and I wasn’t even looking. 

He was hanging out in an all-season plexiglass enclosure on Wyckoff ave in Brooklyn.  We exchanged pleasantries, snapped a few photos, then i was off to the  bagel joint around the corner for a nice whitefish salad on a toasted poppy bagel.

 

Caption:  (me) left in Dylan shirt.  (Christ) Safron robe in box.

Thanks for asking.  My lobby is not well. On friday, a truck drove over the curb, through the glass, and directly into the lobby of my building. Not exactly sure what happened, but we think somebody left their truck in drive when they hopped out to have an altercation on the street.  Friday night belltown is about as amateur as things get.

Sort of reminds me of the time the parking brake on my old audi slipped, and it drifted perpendicularly across Mass. Ave in DC and bumped a telephone pole.   But, sort of not because that car really did have a mind of its own.

 

This is me, on stage at the Showbox, in the finals for most creative halloween costume.  Scrabble Guy.  Would have went over better with the crowd if they could see the game was interactive (and came with real-time running commentary).  Good thing they didn’t see me debut this in SF 2002.   Scrabble guy _had_ a hat, but it fell off when I somersaulted across the stage. 

 

. . .I must be made.

Here are 27 of my favorite pair, excluding running / hiking shoes. Probably have another 8-10 pair not pictured. and, not a pair of Kenneth Cole, Steve Maddens, Skechers, or Banana Republics in the bunch.

Now it’s time to get back to work. Back in 2000, I attended a conference hosted by the American Society for Information Sciences. While traditionally librarians, during the gravy days of 2000, it was brimming with IA-types. I was the second person to present at what is now generally considered the first IA conference. I gave a quick 15 minute presentation titled Is it Possible to Over Architect an Experience?.

I wanted to discuss the perils of being so meticulous in categorization that it came at the expense of serendipity and exploration. There was an implied warning: Don’t categorize the fun out of the web (this is before the search engine frenzy took hold). The presentation was based around a few photos I shot of a seemingly chaotic table of books (ask me that story sometime, it’s a great one!). One of those photos made it into the boook Information Architecture for the World Wide Web, but Rosenfeld and Moreville.

It’s also where I met Michael Kopcsak, who has since become a respected colleague and one of my closest friends. (note: wow, getting old now the I can call people in my field colleagues). Our field has evolved considerably in those 8 years and it’s time to expand some of our conference topics, especially into the realm of management.

We are introducing and co-hosting the Management track at the 2008 IA Summit in Miami, April 10th-14th. If you’re a UX Manager, I strongly encourage you to submit a proposal for a speaking topic, panel, or lunch break out. So long as you have an idea, submit it. Don’t worry if you aren’t on the public speaking circuit - we can help you with that. Not only will your peers respect and admire you for your contribution, we’ll comp your admission. I can also write a note to your boss explaining why you need 4 days in Miami to attend the conference.

In support of the management track, we are also working on an interview article for Boxes & Arrows that focuses on the daily management of a UX team.

Through the power of modern digital technology, I captured a few decent snapshots at BM07. This picture mostly took itself, so I can’t claim too much credit, but I do like the way it came out. Looks intentional and dignified.

Lots of folks are busy blogging about their recent playa experience, so I’ll chime in with a few words. Amazing how much enjoyment and playfulness happen when people transplant from their comfortable urban landscapes into a remote desert environment. Sort of like giving the SnowGlobe a little shake. Say what you will, but the playa remains home to 2 of the best parties ever - El Circo and the Deep End.

If I make another trip out, will probably be from sunday night - thursday, completely missing the night of the burn and the frenzy the friday prior. No real noteworthy stories to tell - just good ol’ dusty fun with all the people I wanted to be with.

Urban Cycling is a dangerous sport. One of the best ways to protect yourself is to be highly visible. Bright colors, distinctive patterns, and crazyman hair all help contribute to overall rider safety and wellbeing.. This combination helps so much in fact, that wearing a helmet is overkill.

Seen on the Streets of Seattle - 2nd and Pine. Crazy man on flourescent Yellow Diamond Back roadbike in a Dayglo Singlet. Maybe you’ve seen him too!

I live in a social building where people like to have a good time. And, drinking booze, beer and wine is all part of the fun. Here’s a photo of our glass recycling bin on almost any given day. Not sure if you can tell, but those 2 huge recycling bins are 90%+ alcohol bottles, with maybe 4-5 empty jars of spaghetti sauce. There’s 3 Guinness Draft bottles in there. I drank those.

Cheers Belltown!

Just got a birthday care package from mom, let’s see what’s in the box.

• Albacore Steak in a mylar bag
• Alocasia odara (elephant ear) bulb for the rooftop garden
• Tooth Tunes toothbrush, music in your mouth. “Let’s get it started - Black Eyed Peas’
• Tooth-tat-2
• Lacoste Essential Shower Gel
• Preserved Tangerine Skin
• Life of Riley article

I love just about everything in the box, but am a bit scared by the tangerine skin. I had a sugared plum once and it was assnasty. Hope this isn’t a repeat.
When was the last time your momma sent you a care package? Pass on a link to this entry and maybe she’ll be inspired to send you something good, but only if you deserve it. Thanks Mom!

As reported in the Seattle PI The beautiful day on Good Friday was one for the books. it was a perfect evening to have a rooftop birthday celebration. And, even better than the weather was the fact that one of my first college friends, Dani, was in town to help me drink the keg. I’ve known her almost 1/2 my life.