The January issue of Business West came by mail, thanks to the Chamber of Commerce whose members now get it free. Inside was a sad story similar to the New Coke disaster of 1985–The Spaulding Ball Bummer of 2006. Local company Spaulding introduced a new basketball to be used in […]
I got the news the other day that Gib Fullerton had passed away. Gib was the guy who hired me for my first newspaper job, back when the Valley Advocate was located in downtown Amherst. I remember applying for the job once, then not getting it, and coming back a […]
Arnold Schwartzeneger has become the most progressive and clear-headed governor on the environment. He was profiled by the Washington Post today. “This year he signed the nation’s first environmental law of its kind, committing the state to lowering its greenhouse gas production to 1990 levels by 2020 and setting up […]
We met the bespectacled Andreas in Goteborg, and enjoyed dinner with him and his wife Elin. He develops internet ad campaigns and one of them was fascinating, it was for an ice cream company. He showed us how a Swedish cellphone customer can send a tiny bar code to a […]
Today I took some wise advice from my sister Jenny. I wrote out cards to all of my employees and told them why I value them, and added some crisp bills to make it really feel good. You wanna know how to get into the Christmas spirit? Write cards and […]
Winging our way back home from Sweden, in this Airbus 330 I am able to recap all of the things this trip has inspired me to think about. In the internet and cafe business, you meet people and see ideas in action that make you think you should try them. […]
We are sitting in Copenhagen’s airport with our flight delayed two hours. No announcement told us, we just learned this by overhearing another passenger, then seeing it for ourselves on the board. Thanks a lot! I always like to watch the planes come and go and see what the workers […]
Random thoughts on Sweden: One cool thing I saw here were heated sidewalks, that eliminate the need for snow shoveling. And when we went into the cafes (there are almost 700 in Goteborg), no one was working on laptops except us. Our friend Bo told us that people never bring […]
We’re bunking down in the room called Christina in the Thorskogs Slott Castle outside of Goteborg. This was once a family residence, now it has 30 rooms for lucky travelers to sleep in. No TV, but WiFi and elegant canopy beds and clawfoot bathtubs. Tonight we enjoyed the Swedish Christmas […]
Bo Kjellberg is a high tech entrepreneur who lives in Goteborg. We joined him for lunch in a restaurant in a crowded market called called Saluhallen. All around us were shoppers picking out hams, fresh fruit, little lobsters, prawns and hundreds of kinds of cheese. The place has the bustle […]
Last night we had dinner in the home of a Swedish couple named Elin and Andreas. We took a taxi far out into the suburbs, (the driver didn’t know how to get there) and as the meter ticked and ticked, we finally popped out of the cab $44 lighter but […]
God Jul as they say in Goteborg, this is the Christmas video show that is projected on the massive wall of the Kunstmuseum. It is sound, motion and holiday cheer, and three times a night crowds stream up the main avenue to watch it.