March 2010
34 posts
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Per on Convenience
The problem I have with convenience is that it favors personal resources (time, energy and attention) and frustration over quality. It’s more convenient to pick up a ready-made dinner at the local store than cooking something yourself, despite the latter being much more healthy and economical.
It’s convenient for us to take the car to the grocery store but not very good for...
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“Now let me bring you up to speed .. we know nothing! You are now up to speed.”
– Inspector Jacques Clouseau
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Less is More (and it's so true)
I’ve always been told that it’s fine to pursue the compact urban lifestyle as a single but when you marry things will change. Guess what, been married now for 6 years. We both like simplicity and urban spaces.
Then I’m told that everything will change when you have a kid. Guess what, the little guy just wants to eat, sleep, poop and cuddle. He needs intimacy and proximity, not...
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Why I Love The Farm Fresh To You Delivery Box
I’m deeply in love with this company. It’s real passion. Farm Fresh To You is a farm in Capay Valley north of San Francisco which grows and delivers their fruits and veggies directly to your doorstep. It’s real organic food w/o preservatives that will make your kids grow healthy and not develop an extra ear or any nasty diseases.
Every other week we get a box...
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Geekdad
My GeekDad t-shirt arrived today and I’m officially part of this new cool tribe. The things we’ll build, Oliver, the things we’ll build.
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1,000 Days That Changed The World
Few knew that when the iPhone was released 1,000 days ago it would change the world. It became the catalyst for everything mobile and location-based that we had been envisioning since the early days. The rest is history.
Before the iPhone we had badly designed, hard to use and ugly cell phones that were limited to a few things: make and receive calls and text messages. The iPhone changed all this...
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“Science without religion is lame, religion without science is blind.”
– Albert Einstein
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Per on Fatherhood
Ten days into being a first-time dad I’m enamored with the affection and love I’m getting from Oliver. I pick him up when he’s crying and he stops right away to fall asleep, rewarding me with complete trust. He knows me by feel, smell, voice and look. He knows that when I hold him he can put his guard down and get some rest. Completely surrender to a world he doesn’t know...
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Why don't secularist express gratitude?
Alain de Botton wrote a great blog post on The School of Life about Alain de Botton on Gratitude. I share his sentiment that secular parts of the world are or maybe seem less thankful. Since I moved to the US west coast - which is more religious than Europe but less than the Mid-West - I’ve started to be more grateful and say thank you much more often. Particularly to strangers. Even for...
Perspective / Simplicity
I found Seth Godin’s excellent new ebook What Matters Now via the awesome Minimal Mac blog. The book is a compilation of thoughts from 50+ well-known people about what they feel is really important right now. And it’s free to download.
“Simply chill on the bells and whistles because it’s a frickin’ place...”
– Henry David Thoreau
Minimal Mac: It's not a bargain if you don't need... →
The title is taken from a line my Father said to me once in discussing my Grandmother, who thought anything worth having was worth having five of. I have remembered it ever since. I remember it every time I see a tremendous deal that seems just too good to pass up. A sweater on super cheap…
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In the Age of The Caresumer
The next 10 years belongs to the Caresumer; the caring consumer who think it matters not just what is produced but how, where and by whom.
“Rebellious, restless and constantly striving for something more than the...”
– Trey Anastasio, the guitarist and leader of Phish, praised Genesis for during RRHF induction. Who wouldn’t want that epitaph.
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How to Prepare For A New Family Member
Preparing for the arrival of a new family member is like taking a basic survival course; focus on the needs that will ensure a well-fed, secure and warm child getting lots of sleep. Here are the bare necessities we found critical:
Childbirth preparation, new-born parenting, CPR classes and hospital tour
Get crib + changing table, infant bath tub, stroller and car seat (have CHP check...
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7 Extensions Toward Browser Zero
I recently wrote about my minimalist iPhone and Desktop setup. Now it’s time to turn my Chrome browser into a social productivity machine. I’ve picked 7 extensions to replace an infinite number of open tabs. Nothing beats just having one window / one tab open to increase productivity.
Diigo - great to quickly share articles and research with different projects groups. Highlight and...
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When Does a Startup Stop Being a Start-Up?
Either when it fails or succeeds is the most probable short answer.
Let’s face it, working for a startup or even better founding a startup is in vogue. It’s probably the coolest thing you can do sans not working at all. Just paraphrasing our contemporary culture.
A startup is a high-risk, unproven venture; a business that is being started up. Once it’s proven it’s no...
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#8 - The Expectant Father
I’m running behind on my quest to read 101 Books during 2010 due to really sad excuses… but will soon catch up.
The Expectant Father by Armin Brott and Jennifer Ash was a positive surprise in the sea of low-quality and pushy parenting books. New parenting seems to be the area where we gather all our fears of being inadequate and uneducated, taking any advice given at face value. Even...
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Desktop Zero
Our market economy’s abundant offering and ample choice forces us to create restrictions not to drown in excess. The idea that choice is a democratic right assumes that everyone is well-informed and educated. People are not.
I’ve embraced simplicity in everything I do since a few years back. If forces me to think before I buy, use or throw away. A few weeks ago - inspired by Minimal...
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Life in 10 Years
Forecasting the future is always a fun and entertaining activity, tainted with millions of hidden threats of failure. It’s like a game of strategy, taking everything from technology, human behavior and current institutions to emerging bleeding-edge technologies into account. It’s easy - like forecasting the financial markets - to be biased towards what you would like to happen as to...
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No More Schlepping Around Toiletries
Suite Arrival is offering hygiene articles for delivery at your destination per Lifehacker. This is a brilliant idea, fewer things to schlepp around on business trips. But it actually works equally great just to get them from your favorite airport lounge or hotel. Life can be so simple.
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Roasted Potatoes and Much More
Having friends over this evening gave me the opportunity to continue my quest for the perfect roasted potatoes. But with a fridge full of goodness I wanted to mix things up a bit so I threw in carrots, onions, apples and rosemary; soaked in olive oil - all stuff from the local Farmer’s Market. About 350 degrees for 45 minutes, apples and onions tossed in after 30 minutes. Flip every 5-10...
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#7 - The Art of Strategy
The Art of Strategy by Avinash K. Dixit and Barry J. Nalebuff made my gaming brain salivate as soon as I glanced over the cover. The subtitle said it all: A Game Theorist’s Guide to Success in Business and Life. Yum!
This is the most interesting book on strategy I’ve ever read and I’ve been trough most of the classics in business school. Strategy is a way of thinking about...
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#6 - A Theory of Everything
A Theory of Everything by Ken Wilber was the right choice to follow up my exploration of mythology. The book is taking on the quest of explaining everything through the M theory. The most fascinating part is the Human Consciousness Project which is mapping all structures, memes and stages of human consciousness.
There are eight waves of of existence: six first-tier thinking and two second-tier...
Stuff as a Service (SaaS)
The Great Recession is forcing us to rethink and in many ways scale back. Restrictions drive innovation which creates value. It’s all good!
The really exciting consumer trend is Stuff as a Service (SaaS); having access to stuff w/o the cost of ownership. Beg, Borrow and Steal, Zipcar and Netflix are just a few examples of services that replaces ownership. More to come.
Anything with...
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Getting excited about the iPad
I’m critical by nature. When I first saw the iPad I was no better than Bill Gates (“this thing will bomb”). But as I’m pushing my iMac, Air and iPhone to their limits I realize that there is a nice little need for something in-between. It’s more vision than routine which makes it hard to get your head around this new thang.
One of my buddies - ex-technical Yahoo! -...
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