1) I haven't posted for awhile. Shame on me. Getting settled in a new job and new apt in NYC while trying to be a good husband and raise a toddler is no excuse! How does the saying go... "To be a writer, write." To be a blogger, blog.
2) The streets here are full of scents. Well, stenches actually. This is something I'm still adjusting to. I often catch myself holding my breath as I pass a pile of trash or whatever (though usually the source is unseen) only to find no relief when I pass it. Especially lately as the summer air is thick and hot. I imagine what things would look like if I could see scent. There would be colorful clouds hanging in the air everywhere.
The most vivid may be right outside the building where I work. There is a service entrance that houses and dispatches hot dog carts. All day long the carts are coming and going, refueling and as many of us suspect, dumping their used hot dog water into the gutter somewhere. Some say the puddles glow at night. I wouldn't be surprised because the place smells awful. The kind of thing that inspires thoughts of becoming a vegetarian.
3) Am I the only one who thinks, "Is it me or is that PowerPoint projection a bit out of focus?"
4) I got a new TiVo and have been exploring new content. There's a feature where you can download loads of video content from the web. It's slightly strange experience to lean back on your couch and watch things throught the TiVo menu that you'd normally watch online. Stuff that would never make it to broadcast or even cable television, such as the Cranky Geeks show or a cheesy New York Times Vows video. But I love it. The Long Tail in top form.
5) I am not a religious person but I absolutely love living across the street from a beautiful church and hearing the bells ring every 30 minutes. The picture is from my home office window and the belltower is out of the frame to the right.
6) Facebook's mobile application for BlackBerry is solid. A simple, fast, elegant alternative to their mobile site.
7) Groceries? Dry cleaning? Kitty litter? Yeah, they'll deliver that. The other night I ordered Indian food and it was in the door 18 minutes after I called.
8) Living in a much smaller space makes you reassess your relationship to objects. I'm much more reluctant to buy something now because I know I'll have to find a place for it. On the flipside, I'm selling and giving away things like mad in order to lighten the load. Say no to paid storage... give it away!
9) Podcasts have become my commute media of choice. I have to walk ten minutes, take the train (standing room only) for another ten, then walk another ten. It's just not conducive to reading. And I've found that when I do listen to music it is nearly impossible to find a genre that doesn't seem to perfectly accompany a walk through the city. I guess it's a kind of aural adaptation. Sound and sight are such strong senses that our mind melds them together. Perhaps with so much stimulation here visually, the brain picks out the bits that go well with the music. I don't know. But it always sounds and feels like a good combination.
10) I feel better already. The next time I have blogger's block I'm going to just list ten things on my mind.
I recently stumbled across a video of the Payatas trash village outside Manila, Philippines. If you haven't heard Payatas, it has a population of over 80,000 that lives on and around the monstrous trash heap. It recycles and resells much of what it finds there.
