Aug 26, 2010 Posted by john

Embrace your inner bigot

I recently wrote a post about the upheaval regarding the Muslim Cultural Center in New York. Despite the fact that the post was long and even, at times, inflammatory, it illustrated a point. Unfortunately, I didn’t get around to making the point that I wanted to make. I’m a writer, and in the world of the modern web, my long, essay-like style is sometimes inappropriate. When I sat down to write... read more

Aug 23, 2010 Posted by john

Tight Schedule

I’m having a hard time concentrating today. I’ve just come back from the awesome Gnomedex conference and my head is simultaneously swimming with ideas and ridiculously tired. I tried to jump deeply into work this morning, but couldn’t concentrate, so started writing. 4 hours later, I’m still writing, but suddenly realize that things are not going to get better. I need a break, so... read more

Aug 23, 2010 Posted by john

Mosques in New York

I’ve been really angry lately because of the muslims trying to take over New York City, especially after they killed so many innocent Americans. And there’s the key issue: this argument is completely stupid. They attacked us This is the major argument against the mosque. “They attacked us, and now they want to build a suicide bomber training camp right at ground zero.”1 “If... read more

Aug 6, 2010 Posted by john

What does an hourly rate mean to you?

Recently, I somewhat stupidly made a Facebook posting that was a jest about what I do for a living. It was really about being a programmer and meant to be funny. In this posting, I happened to mention that this new contract is $85/hr. Immediately, I started getting friends and family saying things like “now you’re rich” and “I need to learn to do what you do.” Thus, I want to... read more

Aug 3, 2010 Posted by john

On Genre Names

In a world where readership is dwindling Librarian Nancy Pearl offers a bright light of story suggestions. Today’s Morning Edition was no different, and featured a book titled Under Heaven by the Canadian author Guy Gavriel Kay. This is a book that is written in something like historical fiction but that, as Pearl describes it, “zigs into fantasy.” Pearl expresses frustration that this... read more