Thursday, July 23, 2009

Equal Opportunity Hack

It's not in my DNA to join anything.

So it is that I have no political affiliation, neither Republican nor Democrat nor Libertarian. People who know me might say I'm a Libertarian, but that's wrong. Or that I lean Democrat, but that's only partly true. The fact that I have never voted for a Republican in my life, proves nothing.

I am, in fact, a Goldwater conservative. I will vote for the person who says, "Get the government off our backs - legalize drugs."

Even if it's a Republican.

Monday, July 20, 2009

Them that has don't need you

Google doesn't advertise. That's OK, Microsoft didn't advertise for years. But their reasons for not advertising were different.

Gates, being a geek, didn't think he needed to advertise. Like all programmers, he figured, if you don't like my code, hey, don't use it.

Google doesn't advertise, because they don't have to. They know that every block they plug into that Great Mandala they're building, just makes the thing spin faster. And you're already on board.

Google doesn't have to tell you what to do. Google knows what you're going to do.

Sunday, July 19, 2009

Prayer to Yahweh

Your Omnipotence,

We saw what you did with Susan Boyle on that British talent show. That was great. Everybody cried.

And then you brought other nobodies out of the woodwork, singing their hearts out, and that was great, too. I'm in awe of what you have wrought.

Now, I just played a video of a nine-year-old kid, named Tallan Noble Latz, who has been listening to Hendrix and Stevie Ray since he was five, and learning his axe, which is taller than he is, and he comes out on the American version of the show and plays that stuff better than anybody, and the audience stands up and cries and yells and dances in the aisles, while the judges quietly sob.

All I can say is, you did it again. You are a deity.

But I'm wondering how long the world can keep going nuts over these miracles. You might want to take a break for a while. Go back on your mountain. Write a few more Commandments.

Amen.

Thursday, July 16, 2009

Post Eve

A good, solid report.

Eric and the boys should be very proud. Jonathan Rosenberg, too. Listening to him on the call, it's obvious these guys know what they're doing. Smart guy, Rosenberg. I wouldn't be surprised if he gets to use the hot tub when Larry and Sergey are out of town.

Of course, there was the anti-GOOG constituency. Mostly traders, walking wounded zombies, who nodded off when Rosenberg stood up. To my wife, I cursed them for selling Google short in the after-hours. Clumsy louts with no appreciation for the longer term.

My wife said, "If you're in for the long term, what do you care what happens tonight?"

She had me, there.

Wednesday, July 15, 2009

Google Eve

I almost forgot about Google Eve.

Not much to say, this time.

In search of a theme, I googled "Google Eve" and got last year's post, from a darker clime, swept up with confused alarms of struggle and flight.

It seems an ocean away now. Back when I was interested in money.

Monday, July 6, 2009

My Wife's iPod Playlist

How long has the iPod been around? Five Years? I don't know.

Over the weekend, I bought my first iPod.

My wife, who prefers to go unnamed, had a birthday. For years, I've been trying to talk her into an iPod. She always said she didn't want anything that was a device. This year, she mentioned iPod before I did. So I got her one.

First, I had to learn how to do it and then I could show her how to do it. I got iTunes and turned it on. It was brilliant. But I didn't know what to do first, or how. I'm always like that with new things. I struggled and did everything the hard way.

Eventually, it clicked and I saw iTunes in the Sky, there to help me in every way.

So, now, I'm teaching my wife and she's getting it.

Today, I came home and she said she'd bought 20 tunes for 99 cents each. I began to see the dark side of iTunes.

Luckily, our kids had thrown in an iTunes Gift Card, along with their best birthday wishes, so there was no shortage of funds. But, you know how it goes. A Gift Card here, a Gift Card there, and when they run out, you're talking about real money.

Anyway, I asked my wife if I could publish her playlist, but she declined.

Wednesday, July 1, 2009

Another hard luck story that you're gonna hear

Interviewer: "Mr. Blumen, it's been said that, lately, you have been writing more about things you did years ago, before most people were born, and less about all the stupid investing things you've done."

Blumen: "I haven't done them all."

Interviewer: "Yes. But there are some who would like to see more stupid investing things."

Blumen: "I'll make a note."

Interviewer: "Yes. And some have observed that, when you run out of things to write about, you post another fraudulent interview with yourself."

Blumen: "That's right."

Interviewer: "Yes. And a few have accused you of harboring literary pretensions."

Blumen: "Well, I'm not doing it to make a living."

Interviewer: "No?"

Blumen: "Yes."