After Ben Hur, They Just Had to Race Chariots
I felt motivated thinking about the upcoming holiday, so this morning I mowed the lawn to a glorious green sheen. Then I picked up last night’s WSJ and read about chariot racing, an ancient sport that is making a comeback. Matt Moffett wrote a story with a Sao Simao, Brazil […]
The Sign Says…
Sign, Sign, everywhere a sign. Blocking out the scenery breaking my mind. Do this, don’t do that, can’t you read the sign? The Five Man Electrical Band said it so well in 1972….here is the new sign that local artist and signmaker Jim Taylor just made for the cafe. No […]
Cows and Pigs Dine on Kitkats, Trail Mix and Ramen
Last night I got back out on my bike for a 12-mile jaunt. Felt great. I came home and later that night read the WSJ and found out what cows and pigs eat these days. A story by Lauren Etter said they used to eat mostly corn, but today, the […]
A Gorge 10,000 Feet Deep is Driving Hell in China
Navigating China’s deepest gorge: This from MSNBC today, complete with a movie showing the harrowing drive up a gravelly road up a steep mountain. Adrienne Mong wrote this account. “Tiger Leaping Gorge is believed to be the world’s deepest gorge, measuring some 10,000 feet deep, between the Jade Dragon Snow […]
America Can’t Get Enough of Ty
In Costco today, I stopped to read a magazine that was all about one man. That man is Ty Pennington, the host of ABC’s hit show “Extreme Home Makeover” and a pitchman for Sears, and many other brands. He’s a one-man conglomerate and has a finger on the pulse–why else […]
Xeni and the Gang Coin a Jet’s New Name
The co-editors at Boing Boing, one of the world’s most popular blogs, have named a new Virgin America aircraft: Unicorn Chaser. The airline’s first aircraft was named Jefferson Airplane in October by the band’s lead singer, Grace Slick. This is from a press release sent out by this new airline […]
Gray’s Anatomy Sure Beats a Record Contract!
John Jurgenson writes in today’s WSJ about Ingrid Michaelson, a young singer on Staten Island who struck it big in the Web 2.0 way. Secret Road Music Services found her Myspace Page and liked her music. So tonight’s Grey’s Anatomy final episode, the high-rated season ender, will feature her song […]
Just What Vegas Needs: 46,000 New Hotel Rooms
Tonight I looked over a eye-popping chart in the WSJ. It was a list of planned hotel/casinos that are being built in Las Vegas. I counted more than 12,000 planned rooms, and thought, “how could one city possibly fill up that many hotel rooms? But the answer is equally impressive: […]
Victoria White Loved the Dogs, and They Miss Her
A sad story in today’s Daily Hampshire Gazette mentioned Victoria White, who passed away at 51 several months ago. It said that her business, DogHampton, would close soon. It was just too sad without her, her partner Deb Lohmeyer told the paper’s Rachael Hanley. Many dog owners in Northampton will […]
Porn Is Tougher Than It Looks
Browsing Wired.com, I found a story from 2002 about how tough it is to make money in the porn business. Edward Cone did the reporting. “It’s still possible to make a modest income by posting some free pictures and links as part of an affiliate program. “If you have some […]
Marketing Ideas that Dazzle are Par for the Course
Some times the people who work for you amaze you. Such a thing happened yesterday when our cafe manager Liz came up with a brilliant idea. She is going to shoot photos that we’ll enlarge into sepia-toned wall panels showing where we get our food from. I’ll pose with Nora’s […]
Shields Shuts Down Free Store Without Ever Seeing It
Tim Blagg, the editor of the Recorder in Greenfield, MA, wrote a column today that made a whole lot of sense. The subject was the town landfill’s Free Store. This is a place where people can take and leave objects of value, too good to just chuck into the landfill. […]
Why Didn’t the Taxi Drivers Pay for It?
Today we woke to chilly but sunny skies at Green Lane. I read some of the news alerts about airport parking. One item caught my eye, and it made me wonder who is more important. Airport customers or airport vendors? A blogger named Don Singleton wrote about a new policy […]
Wealth Erosion Pits Rich Against Fisherman
Today I took the train into the city from Pelham, just like thousands of other commuters, with my friend Tom Bricker. Tom totes a skateboard to make the last mile a little easier. He works at a top-notch ad agency and their office is full of incredibly talented graphic designers, […]
Halberstam’s Gift: A Big Question Mark
I’m riding the bus again down to NYC. The driver goes right past NY and takes the GW Bridge over to Jersey, then around into the Lincoln tunnel. I guess the extra miles are worth it since traffic is terrible. I ride the bus with a group of immigrants. Up […]
New York’s Bryant Park is the WiFi Refuge
I write this from Bryant Park. Which apparently is the only place in NYC where you can get free WiFi. I am sure there are many more but this was the best and only I could find after much trudging. It’s busy here, people filling up the park, sitting on […]
The Big Boxes Can’t Always Beat the Local Guy
Big box savings? HA! I have a good story to tell anyone who thinks that they’ll always save more money if they shop at the big boxes. The Wal-Marts, the Targets, the big ole stores like Home Depot that so often get our business. I was shopping for a deck […]
Let’s Sing It Again–Happy Birthday Dear Nathan!
Nathan Cosme has decided he loves that song, ‘Happy Birthday to You.’ So on Sunday he asked us all to sing it one more time. Mom Kate on the right and her best friend Jane on the left joined in.