In Cities and Ambition, essayist and hacker extraordanaire Paul Graham puts forward the idea that a city sends cues to its inhabitants on how to behave and what to strive for: New York says you should be richer, Cambridge says you should be smarter, etc.
So what message does Portland send?
For me, I think Portland tells its citizens that they should improve themselves. We should be greener, we should be more active, we should be weirder.
What do you think?
Trivia corporate espionage, that is.
Went with some friends to check out a trivia night at Peter’s 19th Hole last night. It was ok, but definitely not as fun as the Chez Jose night. No smack talking. No table service. Silly physical challenge. Weird all or nothing point rounds.
The hostess was ok. Apparently she does this five nights a week. I expected a better delivery from her. She had very little rapport with the teams and seemed a bit unorganized. She did manage not to spill any of the answers, so I guess thats a point in her favor (but not mine).
Enjoyable, but not necessarily worth a repeat visit.
Looks like a group of us are going to check out Barack at Waterfront Park on Sunday.
If you’re in town, we’ll be leaving from my place in The Pearl around 11:45am and walking down to the park. Weather should be nice and warm. Come join us!
Last night didn’t fare so well for us. After pulling virtual goose eggs in two categories running, we only ended up second – second to a lone participant even. Rumours have it that he had help from various quarters, but it doesn’t dull the sting. We turned to booze and lots of it to drown our sorrows.
but next week – oh next week – we shall rise victorious….
Let me get this out of the way – I love Portland. I love all of its idiosyncracies and weirdness and public art. My software development office is housed in an artist’s loft building and I am surrounded by installations.
This latest “addition” to our city, as reported by the AP, just leaves me empty. A New York expat has decided to erect giant acupuncture needles around the city to “see the city in a holistic way” and “choosing locations where the city’s chi could use some help”.
I guess to buy into it, I have to buy into the underlying premise that acupuncture is something more than sticking needles into your body and actually has curative properties. And I’m not talking from inexperience. At one point when I was in constant pain from chronic fatigue, I tried every remedy that I could think of. I went to an acupuncturist with an open mind and a sincere desire for it to work. The most I got out of it was being forced to lie still for 35 minutes once or twice a week.
The rest of the article is a nice intro to other weirdness here in the city including Zoo Bombers, Velveteria, and the 24 Hour Church of Elvis (which now lives in my building). Check it out.
The New Yorker took a handful of their classic one panel cartoons (eg. On the internet, no one knows you’re a dog) and turned them into 10 second animations.
Why?
Most of these cartoons are best when they’re mulled over, considered, played out in your head. Giving them the YouTube treatment basically turns them into throw away jokes. Granted – none of these were knee slappers to begin with, but still.
So, keep that in mind XKCD… We don’t need stick figure animations of bell curves and equations.
Linking to Expelled in response to this call to action. Who me googlebomb?
So, season 4 (or as the brits would say series 4) is underway, and after the goofy first episode, its getting back into the groove of aliens and what not.
My question is: When did the Doctor agree to have an overweight tranny fishmonger’s wife as a companion? Maybe this is a reflection on British taste? Maybe they like looking at a shrill sea donkey for 50 minutes every week?
Hell, after seeing who was elected Miss Surrey, I am inclined to believe it.
C’mon – resurrect Kylie Minogue’s character from the Christmas Special, throw Noble into some SpacePit™, and let’s look forward to series 5. Heck, I would settle for the muppet-mouthed Rose to come back.
