Happy Halloween

I don't particularly care for Halloween, mostly because I think the idea of adults in costumes is indeed creepy.

I'm often asked if I give out candy to children who knock on my door. The answer is no. I'm the guy who turns off the porch light and closes the blinds. For those who ignore these cues, I've been known to distribute items that I have laying around the house such as paperclips, hotel soap, and grocery coupons. Sometimes if I'm feeling social, I'll deliver a lecture on the dangers of entitlements and the destructive effect of hand-outs. Over time, I find that magically, fewer and fewer kids come to my door.

The foregoing notwithstanding, I think kids in costumes are great. Especially when the kids are among my favorites ... like my Godson, the Hurricane. Click here for more on Hurricane Harry. This little guy could easily coax a candystore of loot from his Padrino.

Germeridian October Mix

The Germeridian was booked solid this weekend, and I promised my guests a mix of the songs playing over the Apple TV. Not to be out-done by the SoHo Grand, I've created the first of what will be monthly Germeridian iTunes mixes. Book a room, get a mix of great music and the best margarita around.

Sunday Morning Musing

Yesterday while watching a friend get married, I had an epiphany about getting older: that there are some benefits.

I know, I know ... this isn't revolutionary thinking, but it is for me. Here are a few things that dawned on me at some point between here-comes-the-bride and the breaking of the glass.

I like having friends who have been with me for many years. 22-year-olds haven't had adult friends long enough to know which ones might stand the test of time.

And speaking of the test of time, I value the things that I have learned to be true because I have experienced them over and over again. The theories about life that we hold in our twenties begin to prove true or false in our thirties. We aren't just guessing anymore ... we are starting to know.

And having accumulated these bits of information, I realize that younger people want to know them and they are asking. This is a nice change from just thinking I know it all and telling people who haven't asked (note the name of this blog).

I'm also starting to realize that time gives memories a certain patina that makes the happy ones sweeter and the painful ones bearable and sometimes even lovely. For the first time I'm starting to enjoy looking back. But I would enjoy looking back a lot more if I wasn't so sore and the the path behind me wasn't strewn with all the hair that has fallen off my head!

Mark, what are you thinking?

I have never seen "Dancing with the Stars", and so you can imagine my surprise when I saw this picture of billionaire cool guy Mark Cuban headlining my Yahoo homepage. Now look, I'm all for trying new things and expanding one's horizons - I mean, what good is money if it can't give you access to opportunities to do things like spend months learning to ballroom dance, if that's what you're into. But this picture is a really good reason to be very judicious about which opportunities to pursue. Yikes.

Top 5 Reasons why Leopard will be Apple's tipping point

Apple posted record profits and sales yesterday, driven largely by increased Mac computer sales. Check out this article on Mac's new operating system due out this week (click below to route through digg).

read more digg story

70's POP

Nostalgia is great. It's just too bad that you have to get old before you can experience it. In the 80's we thought that the 70's were full of terrible clothes, music and movies. It turns out the 80's were worse than the 70's and that the 70's were actually not that bad.

Here are some of my favorites POP hits from the 70's.

facebook fan

I'm not going to be ashamed anymore. I'm proud to admit that I. Am. A. facebook. User.

I love it. I think it's a genius service and that kid who invented it deserves to make a bundle. I can't wait for the IPO.

And facebook isn't just for teens anymore. There's lots of print about how oldies like me are flocking to facebook to keep up with more acquaintances and friends in a more meaningful way than the annual Christmas card. Let the kids laugh!

Though LinkedIn is the professional's network utility, and I'm on LinkedIn also, facebook is just more fun and less stuffy, and has a lot of features like photo sharing and messaging that LinkedIn does not, for good reason. There are a lot of people I would have on my LinkedIn account that I would not "friend" on facebook.

There is also some facebook backlash, even from super-fun Girl con Queso, but I think it's only temporary as people learn how to use facebook in the way that makes sense for them.

If you are snickering right now, you should stop, because the odds are you'll be on in a matter of months, and I LOVE to say I told you so. So go ahead, all the cool kids are doing it.

NYC Vacation, Take 2

You just can't beat a cool, lazy evening in downtown Manhattan. After finishing three - yes THREE - days of work on my vacation GRRRR, I finally put away my IJM stuff, grabbed my camera, and took a really long walk as the sun was starting to set over the Village and SoHo. The weekdays are the best time to be in SoHo without all the tourist shoppers. The streets are half empty and without all the cars, you can see the cobblestone streets.

Unfortunately, I don't have much to report since I've been working so much, but I do have some pics, and pictures are worth a thousand blog words. Here are a few, and you can click here to see a few more.

A few new-to-me discoveries ...

A Salt and Battery: great fish and chips in the North Village.

The Mud Truck: a portable coffee shop parked by the Christopher street stop. The truck is much better than their shop in the East Village.

Sixpoint Sweet Action beer: my new favorite. I've never heard of it, which makes people in New York laugh, but better late than never. I hope I can find it in DC.

Zabar's Smoothies: healthier than sugar-filled Jamba Juice and perfect after a run in the Park.

Regina Spektor: weird but wonderful album Begin to Hope. Be sure to sample "Better" and "Fidelity".

Vesuvio Bakery: remember, I said new-to-me. Vesuvio Bakery on Prince St. in SoHo has been around for decades, but I've never tried it because I thought it was a tourist trap. Perhaps it is, but the rolls are amazing.

And finally, here is my favorite mix when I'm in NYC. I know listening to songs about New York when you're IN New York is odd, but there you have it ...

NYC Vacation, Take 1

I'm baaa-aaack!

It's great to be back in the Big Apple for a week of too much coffee, too much walking, and way way way too much food. The first few days have been a great start.

Joined by a frequent NYC side-kick, Kyle, I trained into the city EARLY Saturday and checked into a friend of a friend's studio on the upper west side. A quick ride downtown and we were in the Village where we marched promptly to Jack's Stir-n-Brew for the first of many cups of joe. Jack's invention stirs the coffee grounds as they are brewed, which gives the final product a unique flavor. It's my favorite coffee shop in the city.

Next, we got in line at Mary's Fish Camp for a trout sandwich and real lemonade. Mary's is similar to one of my favorite neighborhood places in DC, Hank's Oyster Bar. The trout sandwich was perfect, much better than the over-priced, over-mayoed lobster roll I ordered last time. Onion rings were perfect and our neighbors at the next table had what looked like perfect lobster knuckles that I think I'll try next time.

We went our own ways for the afternoon, and I headed to James Perse for some new t-shirts and then to Washington Square Park for people watching. After a few hours I headed back uptown for a long run through Central Park. By this time, my dogs were barking so it was back to the pad for a nap before Kyle and I headed to Williamsburg, Brooklyn.

Bedford Avenue is a quick ride on the L train and is worth the trip. Brooklyn, especially Williamsburg, is my kind of suburb. Cheese shops, wine stores and bakeries line the streets in this community that is becoming food and drink obsessed. At our friend Dave's advice, we had the best burger on the planet at Dumont Burger, and I'm trying to figure out how to open a similar joint in DC.

With bellies full of red meat and beer, we headed up the road for Dave's loftwarming party. The view of the city from his roof was second-to-none (see pics), and Dave is always side-splitting funny.

Sunday morning came too early. While Kyle headed to church, I slept in (oh stop, Church Lady, I went later in the afternoon). Breakfast was lox and bagel - did you know that "bagel" is both singular and plural? -- from Zabars. Smoked fish doesn't get any better than Zabars and their coffee is pretty great too.

Kyle hopped on the afternoon train back to DC, and I spent some more time down in the Village. I had a late brunch plate of fried oysters, scrambled eggs and bloody mary at Bone Lick Park. After a great sermon at Redeemer Pres., I headed home and turned in early.

It's gonna be a great week.

Yikes.

Ok, you know you have hit rock bottom when a court of law determines that K-Fed is better suited to raise children than you.

I mean, git yourself into some serious counseling and move back to the sticks with your parents FAST girl, because if K-Fed is outpacing you in life-management skills, it's time for some drastic measures.

Truly, truly sad. Here's hoping she gets healthy, buys a big farm in the South near family, and lives happily ever after with her kids and no cameras.

Super Zoe is gittin hitched!

It's time to celebrate! The world's best blog commenter, Super Zoe, just got engaged to Mr. Zoe this past weekend. Pretty exciting indeed. Too bad you can't see that rock in the pic ... it's a beaut.

Super Zoe, or SZ, as I like to call her, assures me that this new development will not interfere with our annual margarita crawl in Austin, during which we usually both talk simultaneously without stopping to breathe, and both of us fight for the spotlight even though it's just the two of us. It's like a comedy slam without an audience.

Luckily, Mr. Zoe is laid-back.

Congratulations Z's!

iPhone Questions Answered

Knowing I'm an Apple nut and an early adopter of the iPhone, many people have contacted me to ask the same questions:

Do you like the iPhone? Definitely.

Is it worth the hype? Absolutely.

Is it worth the price? To me, yes. To others who just want a phone and don't care about the rest, probably not.

Are you angry that they dropped the price $200? Yes, but only because I think they passed up profits which would have helped the stock.

Would you have purchased the iPhone on the first day had you known they were going to drop the price so soon? Absolutely. It was a ton of fun to be in the 5th Avenue store in the middle of the night on the first day. I view it as a $100 ticket to a fun party ($200 minus the rebate).

Have you heard about the woman suing Apple over the drop in price? Yes.

What do you think? Stupid lawsuit. Stupid media for covering it. It will be thrown out immediately.

Did you have trouble activating it as reported in the news? No, I was calling people within 10 minutes of firing it up.

Is the keypad difficult to use? No, it's better than my Treo and as good as any of the Blackberry keyboards, plus it's easier to clean.

Should I buy an iPhone? If you are asking, then you must want one. If you want one, and can afford it, you won't be disappointed.