This tips differs from other traditional productivity tips. While many people swear by the “I’m going to do my to-do-list as soon as I get to the office“, it’s not what has worked for me. What works for me is to create a “what do I have to do the next day” kind of list.
Why is this kind of time frame important? Because it allows you to come in to the office (or start your day if you’re working from home) with a set of tasks that you are going to try and accomplish during the day. If you spend time during the workday PLANNING the set of tasks that you want to accomplish, you are actually wasting valuable time that could be best spent in DOING actual tasks.
If you prepare this list BEFORE you go to bed, you can just grab it on the way to the office (or simply open it if you use some sort of software for “To Do” lists) in the morning, as soon as you hit the office or decide to start working from your home office.
This has worked for me like a charm. On a personal level, what I do is I never go to bed without washing the dishes. I prepare myself for the next day by knowing that I won’t have to do any tasks that I really hate doing, and starting “with a clean slate” so to speak. So, prepare yourself for the next day by creating your “to do list” the night before.
I hope you’re enjoying this series, and let me know how these tips are working for you!
Credit: Keira-Anne
Keira is not only beautiful in the outside, but also beautiful on the inside. She is one of Rebecca’s best friends, and I’ve also managed to create a meaningful and sweet friendship with her. Although we don’t hang out nearly enough, I am very grateful for having her in my life. Keira, all the best to you today and forever. Love and hugs, 🙂
December 2nd, 2008 in
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Credit: Ianiv and Arieanna (Flickr)
Twitter and my blog both have brought me many good things, and one of them is new friends. Ianiv and Arieanna Schweber are two of the great friends who are also very involved with the Vancouver tech community. We have had the opportunity to hang out not only at local Vancouver social media/tech/PR events but also outside those avenues.
We recently went to Bin 942 and Browns Social House in West Vancouver, enjoyed some retail therapy at Pacific Centre and had dinner at The Red Sea Cafe. I was also lucky to enjoy Ianiv’s birthday party with them (even though I was really, REALLY sick that weekend).
I’m very glad that you and Ianiv are in my life, Arieanna, and I do sincerely hope that you have a wonderful birthday. And of course I’ll come to your birthday celebration even if, erm, I’m NOT on Facebook 🙂
Credit: Robert Miller
For a long time, the spread of the Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS) epidemic had been associated and blamed primarily on homosexual sex, mostly derived from unprotected intercourse amongst men. The stigma that surrounds HIV (Human Immunodefficiency Virus) and AIDS is still highly prevalent. Admittedly, given the transmission pathways (semen, blood and milk), it would appear as though the gay population may be at highest risk.
I am very passionate about HIV prevention and treatment causes, and in particular, I Blogathoned for A Loving Spoonful in 2007. I spent 24 hours writing a blog post every half hour to raise funds for this charity, which provides meals to people in the Vancouver area afflicted with the deadly disease.
From the World AIDS website, these couple of paragraphs really resonated with me, because of the stigma that has been created around AIDS.
People living with HIV may find it hard to tell others about their condition as they worry that people will reject them, or they will experience prejudice from friends, family and colleagues. People living with HIV can also experience discrimination in their workplace, in healthcare settings (e.g., GPs and dentists), from members of their local community and through the media.
HIV prejudice is often the result of ignorance about how HIV is passed on and unfounded fear of becoming infected. Encouraging those around us to talk about HIV and find out the facts can help overcome this.
I would like to encourage my readers to donate to charities related to AIDS, educate yourselves about the disease, how it can be transmitted (and prevented) and remember that people you love may be living with HIV/AIDS, so be sensitive, understanding, supportive and above all, love them just the same, because the stigma is unfounded and just plain stupid.
This year’s theme is “Respect and Protect”.
Respect & Protect inspires individuals to consider the different roles they can play:
* Show respect by always treating people living with HIV fairly, respecting their confidentiality and challenging prejudice wherever it occurs.
* Respect themselves and their partners by always practising safe sex to protect their sexual health.
* Find out the facts about HIV, spread the Respect & Protect message and encourage others to do the same.
I’ve been very impressed with the recent Vancouver Board of Trade events. I will admit that I hadn’t been exposed to their work (perhaps because for the longest time, before I started blogging and social networking on Twitter I was just focusing on one specific realm, environmental studies and academia). Shane Gibson (whom I consider a friend, but also a very knowledgeable guy) invited me to attend his recent talk within the Manager’s Toolbox speaker series.
Shane spoke on the topic of “How to Succeed in Turbulent Economic Times”. I had previously praised Shane for the kind of work that he did, both with the Vancouver Sales Performance Meetup, and along with Steve Jagger (whom I also consider a good friend), in the Vancouver Real Estate Tech Meetup.
In this particular talk, Shane offered numerous insights that are worth discussing, but there are two in particular that left quite an impression on me. The first one, he made it clear through a historical analysis, that turbulent economic times have been upon us throughout the century! Turbulence is not a sign of our times. It’s been a sign of ALL times!
The second insight that left me pondering was the sheer power of relationship-building. Shane spoke about building relationships online and then bringing them to real life. I think that’s one of the things I like the most about this approach, creating relationships, not looking at people as “clients” or “customers” but as individuals whom you can help reach their goals.
Overall, I was really positively impressed by Shane’s talk, it was very engaging and motivating. And as I told him, that’s one of the reasons why I love participating in the meetups that Steve and him organize: I learn something new every time I attend, I learn something new. I doubt that I would have ever attended a Vancouver Board of Trade event if it hadn’t been for Shane (and Steve as well, as he has given talks for the VBoT several times). It’s good to network outside of your silo, that’s for sure!
I’ve talked about this with all my academic friends who blog. Kate Milberry, for example, has blogs about her research. Beth Snow, has a personal blog. And recently, in a brunch conversation with Dale and MJ, I came to realize that I have followed a strange pathway in the merging of my academic and blogging world.
At the beginning, I would blog only about my personal stuff, local events, etc. More recently, I’ve begun to write about my research and I even created a “My Research Posts” page. Furthermore, I’ve been sharing a recent book chapter I wrote on environmental non-governmental organizations with a few of my blogosphere friends, and it’s felt really good, particularly because now my social media/tech/PR friends can know more about what I do for my “day job”.
Interestingly enough, being an academic who blogs has brought me some freelance and consulting work. While I am not entirely shocked (and I’m rather, very pleased) it’s still something I did not expect at the beginning. So, as I told MJ and Dale, I am now creating a separate research blog that will contain entries that are much more specific to my research. Definitely still trying to keep the technical language (jargon) to a bare minimum.
I’d be curious to know what people think of keeping a separate research/teaching/consulting blog (focused on my environmental work) and this personal blog. Should they cross-link?
December 1st, 2008 in
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Credit: rissdemeanor
You may remember a post I recently wrote about the social media campaign that Darren, Julie and Monica are putting together to help Greenpeace, Forest Ethics and Sierra Club of Canada to influence the Provincial Government of British Columbia to help protect the Great Bear Forest.
[Brief editor’s note – if you haven’t followed the Spirit Bear on Twitter, submitted your photo to the Flickr contest or joined the Facebook Group or sent an email to the Premier of British Columbia, do it NOW. Ok, good. Continue]
I picked up the most recent ‘The Vancouver Courier‘ (an outlet I really like, even though I am going to have to admit my fondness for the 24 Hrs, The Georgia Straight and the Vancouver Sun, all of whom have been very kind to me and provided me with coverage), and guess which topic was the lead story? Simon Jackson and the Spirit Bear!
I talked to Simon earlier this year during EPIC 2008 (I even got a photo of myself with him, which I suppose I should email to him sometime!), and it was so nice to see that despite his fame, he is still very much down to earth.
It is very nice to see that mainstream media and social media can act synergistically to help such a worthy cause.
I actually swear that I had written this entry but somehow disappeared from my drafts and scheduled posts. Weird. Anyhow, it’s not a problem. I re-wrote it from scratch.
This technique has proved outstanding. My productivity increases exponentially whenever I stick to this rule. One item, one process. That is, never keep things in your Inbox. Process them as they arrive and deal with them. Either FILE the item, FORWARD the item, DELEGATE the task or ENGAGE in the task.
For example, with my banking – I ALWAYS process ALL the credit card statements and ALL the bills at the same time. I open the statement’s envelope, check the amount I need to pay, and do all the banking in one swift barrage of key strokes. That way, I have peace of mind, knowing that I have dealt with everything related to money, and I’m usually able to file 6-7 bank statements and bills at the same time.
Use this technique with everything. An email to invite you to a work function or a social media event? Not a problem. Answer right there and then. No “oh I will come back to this email when I have the time to check my calendar“. Open up your Google Calendar (or iCal) and schedule (or inform the person who is inviting you that you won’t be able to make it/reschedule/whatever).
In the field of social media, I admit that I’ve been guilty of not following this technique all the time, as I often manage to double-book myself. But whenever I have applied it, it works like a charm. And implementing a “one item, one process” system allows me to check items off my To-Do list faster.
Let me know if these tips work for you, would love to hear your own experiences!
Some people ask me how do I find the time to blog, Twitter, write, do research, consulting, socialize, organize meetups, etc. (AND look for more work!). Well, there is an answer to that. Without tooting my own horn too much, I am pretty organized. Moreover, I am pretty driven. I *love* doing things, and I love being good at them. I can’t be static at all.
The period from 2004 to 2006 was definitely one of my most productive periods. I think that overall, I published 3 journal articles per year, wrote 3 conference papers, wrote one book (single author), attended 8 international meetings, gave between 12-16 talks (all academic) and supervised and graduated an undergraduate honors student per year. That’s decently productive by academic standards, I think.
My 2007 and 2008 productivity are most definitely lower than that, but I can safely say that I feel now like 2009 will be a very successful and productive year. In writing about this, I thought I’d share some of the tips that made my 2004-2006 years so successful and in doing so, I hope to take this as a self-reflective exercise that allows me to further my career.
So, in the next few days, I’ll be publishing one blog post a day giving a productivity tip. Maybe you’ve heard about these tips elsewhere or read them on the Internet. That’s ok. I am just sharing my own experiences. I hope you like the series. I am hoping to keep these posts interspersed with other content, so you won’t be bored 🙂
Have a nice weekend everyone!
Many of you dear readers may (or may not) know that one of my research areas is the governance of wastewater. You may also have heard about the plans for a wastewater treatment plant in the city of Victoria (British Columbia, Canada). The city of Victoria currently dumps its wastewater untreated into the ocean, although plans are being made to build a wastewater treatment plant. Some people agree and would like this to happen, some people disagree.
Although I’ve seen reports by some scientists that this effluent has no negative impact whatsoever (a concept very much in line with the old US Environmental Protection Agency saying “the solution to pollution is dilution“), I am somewhat skeptical and thus would like to explore this issue more. One of my former undergraduate students wrote her term paper about this topic but that was a year and a half ago, so I’m looking to actually do this research on my own.
If you live in Victoria (or in Vancouver Island) and know of some people who’d be interested in sharing their opinions, please feel free to forward this post and/or give them my email address (hummingbird604 AT gmail.com).
[One of the things I love about Twitter and blogging is that I can reach far more people using Web 2.0 tools than I could by just using plain old cold calling or emails]
November 30th, 2008 in
academic life,
wastewater,
water,
water policy | tags:
British Columbia,
Canada,
sanitary engineering,
Victoria,
wastewater,
water governance,
water policy |
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I had the pleasure of having dinner at Kaide Sushi last night along with three of my closest civilian friends for our good friend ML’s birthday. One of the attributes that makes ML so special is her fierce loyalty and her sense of responsibility. She has single-handedly saved more people than I can possibly describe in these few lines.
I pride myself in being a good friend and in being fiercely loyal. You don’t want to cross me or any of my loved ones. Unfortunately, I think that the concept of “sense of loyalty” has been somewhat lost in recent years. How often do you reflect on where your allegiances lie? What do you do when someone betrays his/her loyalty towards your friends?
I have admitted in the past here on my blog that I am very over-protective. I’m the kind of guy who will ask you to text me back (or tweet me if you’re on Twitter) or call me to let me know that you arrived home safe and sound. Even if I’m the one taking transit and you are driving. I’ve always had this feeling that I need to protect my family, my friends and my loved ones. Sometimes people ask me “well, and who protects YOU?” – and that answer is quite easy. In principle, I protect myself, I take care of myself. But also, I’ve been lucky enough to have built a critical mass of good friends who will protect me if need be.
That’s loyalty, to me.
November 30th, 2008 in
Uncategorized |
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So, what do you do when you’re feeling “not that sexy” in Vancity? Well, you DM your friends who write the blog “Sexy in VanCity“. Written by Emme Rogers and Lola May, Sexy in VanCity is a blog intended to empower women (and men) of all sizes, colors and ethnicities, religious creds, etc. to feel sexy. You don’t need to have a perfect body, you just need to feel it inside you.
So, I mentioned to Emme how I was feeling and she said that she wouldn’t mind checking out the crafts fair at Heritage Hall on Main and 15th Avenue so we headed there. 
We saw many wonderful little craft vendors, but one of the ones that really stuck with us because she was amazingly sweet was Kelly from Bad Girl Chocolates. Yes, you heard right. Bad Girl Chocolates is a small business that creates amazing stuff out of chocolate.
Bad Girl Chocolates is committed to the highest level of quality. All products are produced in small batches using only the finest and freshest ingredients. All fruits are local and organic if possible. Only pure bittersweet French couverture chocolate is used in the making of our chocolates and truffles. [From the Bad Girl Chocolates]
I *love* and support any small business, but hey a small business with an adorable nice owner AND a great business with sustainable, ethical mindset is even better! Emme had a chance to pose with a few creations from the Bad Girl Chocolates collection, you can check her Flickr and also the photo below… YUMMY!
I also got to meet Lola May for the very first time, she’s such a sweetheart. Thanks for inviting me out, Emme!
November 30th, 2008 in
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Dayna tagged me and I’m never one to refuse a tag from a friend, particularly Dayna in this case, as she is a Canadian from beautiful British Columbia who is now living in Kiwiland (aka New Zealand). The meme consists of inserting the 6th photo of the 6th page of your Flickr stream, so here it is.
Not very exciting, right? Well, it is indeed a beautiful restaurant, and one of my very favorites, The Crime Lab, which has been resurrected. I celebrated my birthday this year with 8 of my closest civilian friends there, and they treated me like royalty. Luckily for The Crime Lab, my review of their establishment is the most popular ever of my restaurant reviews on UrbanSpoon, so I am sure I’m bringing them some good traffic 🙂
Ok, and now to tag another six people. The great thing about knowing so many people in the Vancouver tech community (and abroad) is that I can tag friends with ease. So, I do hope they do the meme, and here we go!
Don (StudioYVR, who recently went self-hosted like I did!)
Sarah Marchildon (who is currently in Japan!)
Dr. Beth Snow (who just published a book!)
Jenn Lowther (whose company just launched BrightKit!)
Phaedra McEachren (who recently got a new job!)
Arjana (who recently visited Montreal!)
November 29th, 2008 in
blogosphere | tags:
b,
memes |
4 Comments
There are many reasons why I love the UBC Farm. First, I’m a UBC alumnus (Masters and PhD). Second, I’ve taught at UBC too. Third, I’m an enviro-geek. Fourth, the UBC Farm is considered the last working urban farm in Vancouver, and it may be in danger of being transformed and urbanized.
The UBC Farm is a 24 hectare learning and research farm located on the University of British Columbia’s Campus in Vancouver, Canada. The farm is student-driven and integrated with the wider community. As the only working farmland within the city of Vancouver, the UBC Farm is an urban agrarian gem, featuring a landscape of unique beauty.[About the UBC Farm]
The phenomenon of transforming agricultural land into bedroom communities is not new. Research has shown that increasing pressure for residential use leads to changes in zoning and land policy that reduce how much land is available for agricultural use (if you’re interested, I can point you out to some academic articles on the subject). My own PhD research focused on industrial/urban transformation, so I read all about this body of literature as well.
Luckily, there are many people out there who are working really hard to help, groups like the Friends of the UBC Farm, and individuals such as Anthony Nicalo (Farmstead Wines), whom I consider a friend, and whom I admire for his passion for sustainability. Anthony recently hosted a dinner to raise funds to help save the UBC Farm, and from what I read on the Farmstead blog, it was a great success!
Congratulations, Anthony, and thank you for contributing to such noble efforts.
Credit: Derek K. Miller on Flickr
From November 25th to December 28th, the Hyatt Regency Vancouver (near Burrard Skytrain station) is hosting again the Gingerbread Lane. It’s a beautiful series of gingerbread houses, many of which are absolute works of art. I was lucky to be invited to be a judge thanks to my friend Gus Fosarolli, who asked me to fill in for him. I can’t thank you enough, Gus!
I had an absolutely wonderful time, and it was really hard to decide on any particular gingerbread house. Three categories (professional, amateur and school) didn’t make our judging any easier. Some of the amateur houses were simply unbelievable. Same with the schools. I wish my nephews and nieces lived closer so that I could show them how wonderful the Gingerbread Lane is.
I was also lucky to read my friend David Drucker’s summary and preview (I didn’t know he was referring to the same event I was about to judge!). This is a wonderful charity event, as the donations you provide help raise money for the Make A Wish Foundation.
The most decadent lane in the city, filled with pounds of eye-candy and signature treats re-opens at Hyatt Regency Vancouver, November 25th thru December 28th, 2008. Once home to the world’s tallest gingerbread man, Gingerbread Lane welcomes over 20,000 visitors each year and has earned its place in the Guinness Book of World Records. More than an attraction, Gingerbread Lane has helped to raise thousands for the Make-A-Wish Foundation to date.[Hyatt Regency Press Release]
If you haven’t been yet, I suggest you head down there RIGHT NOW. Well, maybe not now but this weekend, for sure. Take your friends, your family, your kids. It’s free entertainment and totally worth the visit. And don’t forget to vote for your favorite gingerbread house, along with a small donation.
All rights reserved 2008 (c) I Am Brownsugar
UPDATE – I just received word of the 2008 photos, so check them out here 🙂 Please note that all of those photos are (c) All Rights Reserved and not a traditional Creative Commons, so if you want to use any of them, please do as I did and contact the photographer via Flickr 🙂 Thanks!
Call me a hopeless romantic, but I can’t help but think that this quote encapsulates the way I feel about love. It’s uttered by Carrie Bradshaw at the end of the movie “Sex and The City). I know, it’s a chick flick (and I DID review it on here!). But it’s a movie that has music and a lot of ideas that I absolutely adore.
I am privileged in that I have not 3 or 4 friends. I have LOTS of them, and I do my very best to keep in touch and close with the vast majority. Occasionally I fail to stay in touch with one or a few, but I always come back, and I always have them in my mind and my heart.
I have been heartbroken only once, but I never feel so disappointed in love that I think I will never love again (in the romantic sense of the word). I am pretty sure I will. It just takes time.
November 28th, 2008 in
personal life | tags:
love |
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Last year, even before we became friends in real life, my good friend and blogging Jedi Master Rebecca Bollwitt honored me as the winner of “Best of 604 Local Edition” as “Best New Blog (To Me) Restaurant Reviews: Raul’s dining out category”. This year, she is again giving out a “Best of 604” award, but this year she is actually holding a voting competition.
I am very grateful to be nominated again, this time in the Best Personal Blog category. Admittedly, I feel very flattered. I am also in great company in the category, and since the vast majority of nominees in all categories are my friends (including Best Personal Blog), I would like to go and check their blogs and vote for those who you like the best.
And of course, should you decide to nominate me (and when the time comes, vote for me), I will be forever in your debt 🙂
November 27th, 2008 in
blogosphere | tags:
Best of 604 |
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I have two brothers who currently live in the US, and luckily they are spending the American Thanksgiving holiday together. The three eldest of my brothers did their graduate degrees in the US and thus have adjusted to life there quite well. I even have nieces and nephews born in the US!
My involvement with the Vancouver tech community has brought along numerous American friends who are now Canadian (or permanent residents of Canada). I am thankful for their friendship and thus would like to wish them all (and all my American readers) a Happy American Thanksgiving!
I had been talking about it for months. You had been waiting with baited breath. Everyone was wondering when it would happen. Well, it has happened now! Welcome to the new and improved Hummingbird604.com!
With the outstanding and very capable help of my friend J. Karen Parker, who did the customization of the theme, taught me how to do the FTP’ing and stuff, and helped me fix a number of issues with the self-hosted WP install (otherwise I would have been stuck in .htaccess hell!), I am now able to do way more than I could before (including CSS editing and theme customization, plugins, etc.)
As you may notice, the DevArt theme has been customized to better fit my blog. The hummingbird604 logo that Rebecca kindly customized for my previous theme remains instact. Luckily, this WP.org install allows me to use Javascript, plugins and do a number of things that I wanted to do but was unable to, for a long while.
Thanks a million to Karen for all her help, to everyone who encouraged me to go self-hosted and I hope you enjoy the new layout! Feedback, of course, is always appreciated.
Vancouver’s 3rd Annual AIDS Benedict brunch weekend is happening this weekend (November 29th and 30th). Participating restaurants include the following (I would have done all the linking but I’m exhausted and have a ton of work to do). Hat tips to Raincoaster who informed me of this event.
I am a very big supporter of HIV/AIDS-related charities (as I demonstrated by doing a 24 hour Blogathon in 2007 to raise funds for A Loving Spoonful). Now I’d like to draw your attention to another charitable event: The AIDS Benedict brunch weekend.
YouthCO AIDS Society and Camp Moomba, two non-profit organizations that support and empower children and youth impacted by HIV and AIDS, have teamed up for Vancouver’s 3rd Annual AIDS Benedict brunch weekend. Collectively sponsored by local restaurants, this “eggsellent” event blends scrumptious eggs benedict with public education to help raise awareness about children and youth in BC impacted by HIV and AIDS.
Donations from participating restaurants will give children and youth impacted by HIV and AIDS access to year-long programs and supports that they might not otherwise have access to. Participation in the two-day eggs-travaganza is eggstremely simple: fill your belly with eggs benedict or other promotional items at one (or more!) of the participating establishments on November 29th and November 30th.
Abigail’s Party 1685 Yew Street www.abigailsparty.ca
Alibi Room 157 Alexander Street www.alibi.ca
Bayside Lounge 1755 Davie Street www.bestwesternsandshotelvancouver.com
Checker’s 1755 Davie Street www.bestwesternsandshotelvancouver.com
Chopper’s 3298 East 1st Avenue no website
Elixir 350 Davie Street www.elixirvancouver.ca
Fish House 8901 Stanley Park Drive www.fishhousestanleypark.com
Fountainhead 1025 Davie Street .www.thefountainheadpub.com
Hell’s Kitchen 2041 4th Avenue www.hells-kitchen.ca
Main Cafe 4210 Main Street www.themainonmain.com
Marmalade 3-1010 Beach Avenue www.marmaladekb.com
Nu 1661 Granville Street www.whatisnu.com
Ocean’s 6 Seventeen 617 Stamps Landing www.oceans617.com
Provence Marinaside 1177 Marinaside Crescent www.provencevancouver.com
Provence Mediterranean Grill 4473 West 10th Avenue www.provencevancouver.com
Raincity Grill 1193 Denman Street www.raincitygrill.com
Seb’s Market cafe 592 East Broadway www.hotstuffcatering.com
Slickity Jim’s 2513 Main Street www.findmycraving.com/icrave/slickity
So.cial at Le Magasin 332 Water Street www.socialatlemagasin.com
Subeez 891 Homer Street www.subeez.com
Twisted Fork 1147 Granville Street no website
WaaZuBee 1622 Commercial Drive www.waazubee.com/main.php
The Whip 209 East 6th Avenue www.thewhiprestaurant.com
I’ve decided that I haven’t tried The Alibi Room for brunch in like, forever. So, if you want to participate, drop me a comment, send me an email or a tweet and let me know so that I can make reservations. PLEASE NOTE I CHANGED THE DATE TO SUNDAY!
WHAT – AIDS Benedict brunch
WHY – Because I am a firm supporter of AIDS/HIV charities.
WHERE – The Alibi Room (157 Alexander)
WHEN – Sunday November 30th, 11:00am
Be there or be square. Even if you can’t attend brunch at The Alibi Room on Saturday (for example, if you’re doing DotComPho or some other event), I’d encourage you to do brunch at any other of the participating restaurants. It’s for a good cause.
WHEN – Thursday November 27th, 7:30am to 9:00am
WHAT – Metro Vancouver Sustainability Breakfast “The Opportunities for Urban Density”
WHERE – BCIT Downtown Campus.
WHY – Because urban density is a key issue in the future of the Metro Vancouver regional development.
I would have linked to the Metro Vancouver website but guess what? It’s DOWN! Argh. See you there (despite the fact that it’s going to be the second time I have to be at an event at-7.30-in-the-morning). I am SO not a morning person.
My very good friend (and next-door-neighbour) DMcN often says that I like “fluffy” music. True, I do have some Top-40 tunes always in my head, and I know that she thinks that deep house music ain’t all that and a bag of chips. But I also think I do have a little bit of an edge in regards to the music I listen to, so I present to you another of my favorites: Tick Tick Boom by The Hives. Surprised? Shocked? Yeah, I *love* this tune.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TqkJ30Kh7ZM&hl=en&fs=1]
November 25th, 2008 in
music | tags:
music,
The Hives |
No Comments
I’ve been tagged by Keira-Anne, so here goes my response (sorry it’s SO late!)
1.- I follow exactly the same routine at night, EVERY SINGLE NIGHT.
– Check the doors are locked (outside and in my apartment)
– Brush my teeth and floss.
– Drink water.
– Choose my clothes for the following day.
– Go to sleep.
2.- In the past year, I’ve started to check my blogging Gmail BEFORE my personal or research emails. Yeah, I’m first a blogger and then everything else. Weird!
3.- I hate waiting for anyone to pick me up, so I’ll walk outside my house and stand there. I know, if you watch the water all the time will never boil. It’s painful.
4.- I lit candles in my apartment regardless of whether I have company or not. Sometimes I do it just for the sake of feeling calm and relaxed.
5.- I prefer to book slots of time for friends than to have a fly-by-the-seat-of-my-pants kind of schedule. Makes my life somewhat complicated sometimes as I have a pretty active social life. And the tech community loves to do things in the spur of the moment (on Twitter!)
6.- I say “REALLY?” a lot. I think what I actually mean is “mmmmhmmmm”.
This time, I’m tagging people who may (or may not) expect me to tag them. I can’t tag Rebecca as she’s already been tagged, so here are who I’m tagging.
Andy Peatling
Duane Storey
Tyler Ingram
Gus Fosarolli
Ianiv and Arieanna Schweber
Tanya Davis
There you go! You didn’t expect me to tag you, did you? 🙂
The results of the Canadian Blog Awards first round of voting for 2008 have been just published, and I’m very honored to be nominated in 3 categories: Best Blog, Best Local Blog and Best Personal Blog. Thank you all for the vote of confidence. Of course, I would be happy if you voted for me, but the nomination itself is pretty big in my books, and I’m really flattered.
I am also honored to be in great company this year. Last year, my friend Rebecca Bollwitt was nominated to the Canadian Blog Awards 2007 and won 3rd Best Local Blog (nation-wide). This year, she is nominated again, and a bunch of other colleagues and friends are in various other categories. I didn’t scan them in thorough detail, so if I’ve missed someone, please do let me know.
PARTIAL LIST OF METRO VANCOUVER NOMINEES FOR 2008 CANADIAN BLOG AWARDS
(If I’ve linked to a site once on the list, I won’t repeat the link, but I’ll mention the blog again – you can vote in each category by clicking on the name of the category and then voting on the Canadian Blog Awards website)
Best Blog
Miss604.com (Rebecca Bollwitt)
Hummingbird604.com (e.g. me)
Matthewgood.org
Best Humor Blog
Noise to Signal
aka Rob Cottingham
Best Local Blog
Hummingbird604.com
Miss604.com
Tenth To The Fraser (New West-focused)
Frances Bula
VanCityBuzz
Kitsilano.ca
Best New Blog
VanCityBuzz
Best Personal Blog
Hummingbird604.com
Letters Home to You ( written by Ian in Hamburg, but he is Canadian 🙂 )
Matthew Good
CreamPuff Revolution
Best Political Blog
Best Podcaster/Vlogger
Choogle On With Uncle Weed
Ephemeral Feasthouse
Row Three
Best Professional/Career Blog
Get Elastic (Elastic Path)
My Name is Kate
Best Sci/Tech Blog
A View from the Isle by Tris Hussey
TechVibes
DeSmogBlog
Of course, there were MANY really worthy and awesome blogs and podcasts in Vancouver that didn’t get nominated. Jodi mentioned on Twitter one that I am particularly fond of, Lip Gloss and Laptops. I was also shocked not to see Beyond Robson nominated in the Best Group Blog category. Sean Orr’s series (Morning Brew) SHOULD have been nominated. The Crazy Canucks‘ blog and podcast should have been nominated.
Many really awesome blogs and podcasts were deserving of a nomination, and I am truly grateful just by the fact that I’ve been nominated and I’m a finalist. Congratulations to my fellow nominees, and let’s hope that there are several categories were Metro Vancouverites are winners! 🙂
While this week (and weekend) has been incredibly busy, I still managed to see Joe Solomon and Jonathon Narvey for a really quick coffee. Both Joe and Jonathon live fairly close to me, and we tend to hang out at JJ Beans. It’s such a cool coffee shop. They were there to play chess, and I just did a mega-ultra-quick visit to catch up with them in real life.
At some point in our conversation a couple of nights ago we discussed the bi-directionality of Web 2.0 and Twitter. I indicated that in fact I DO know many, many of my Twitter friends in real life, and that I’m actually friends with them. Karen Parker and I mentioned it to Shane Gibson at the recent Tweetup: our usage of Twitter is much more social and less business-oriented. Arieanna and Ianiv mentioned this point to Ianiv’s family one night when we were having dinner: we have been able to develop our friendship through the use of Twitter, because it keeps us connected even though we are in remote places.
David Drucker actually suggested this theme as a potential topic for Northern Voice 2009: how to stay connected when you’re far away (if you remember, I was away from Canada this past summer for about 1.5 months to attend a funeral and be with my family). Even though I wasn’t really in Vancouver, I kept my connections with my friends through Web 2.0 tools – Twitter, my blog, GTalk, Flickr, etc.
One element that Jonathon, Joe and I were musing about is the need for bi-directionality in Web 2.0. In the case of many politicians, their use of Web 2.0 was dismal. Broadcasting your very next move is not what Web 2.0 is all about. It’s about bi-directionality. You speak, I answer. You drop a comment on my blog, I respond (or I monitor the discussion so that I can jump into the conversation at some point). You tweet at me. I tweet back. It’s a 2-way street. I just hope politicians and newcomers to Twitter and the rest of the Web 2.0 applications can understand that.
