Al Gore is a Man You Can Tell Your Kids About
Richard Cohen writes a syndicated column for the Washington Post, and he wrote today about a true American hero: Al Gore. Like a billion others, I watched Al up there on the Oscar stage, and I agree with Cohen–Gore’s a winner, regardless of what happened back in 2000. “Now it […]
Podcasting from New Zealand
Plans are being laid for our upcoming trip: this includes recording podcasts and interviews, daily blogging on the Newzealand.com website, and picking and choosing which doodads and gizmos to bring on the trip. So far one little item, a flashlight called a Flaresafe, with a built-in smoke detector, has made […]
Eric and Bill Await in LA
Today was a fantastic day in the cafe, waves of people came in to admire the new space. I am working this afternoon but I still had time to make plans for our New Zealand adventure that begins on Friday. Cindy and I fly to LA and will meet up […]
Equity Firm Buyout Signals Climate Change Shift
Today’s NY Times and Business Wire included an inspiring story about the largest leveraged buyout ever–and one that will benefit the environment, since it involves one of the biggest utility companies in the US. TXU corporation has agreed to be purchased by a team of private equity firms and abandon […]
They Used To Grind the Coffee in Starbucks
Howard Schultz wrote a long memo last week that was described in a Wall Street Journal article about customer disenchantment with Starbucks. Schultz is the company’s chairman, and he warned fellow executives that all of the efficiencies brought on by their rapid growth has diluted the experience, and that they […]
Talk about Bad Karma!
The AP included a story today about a salesman has a pattern: he tells his bosses that his son has cancer or has died, and then goofs off for months. He’s done it three times, and this last episode landed him in court, he has to repay $50K. “Lancope Inc. […]
Looking Out from the Cafe
The Daily Hampshire Gazette interviewed me about the newly renovated cafe. But they didn’t send a photog and reporter Cris Carl told me she was only writing a short little piece, and didn’t shoot any photos. So here is what would be in the paper if they included a photo.
Stokin’ the Star Makin Machinery at the Cafe
Jacylyn Stevenson is one of our favorite writers who is writing a feature about blogging for Business West Magazine. I was happy to speak with her again, she wrote a detailed story about the GoNOMAD travel website when we moved into our first office in town in 2004. I told […]
Breathe….Plenty of Room to Breathe in the Cafe
The cafe expansion is expanding people’s minds as our physical space has grown. It feels like now you can come inside and stretch your hands out by your sides and not still not feel crowded. Space, it seems, is good. I visited with my friends, brothers Darren and Sean Pierce, […]
The Wows Have it in the Expanded Cafe
Even though I didn’t hit the pillow until about 2 am, it was up, up, up even before little early riser Nathan (but after his dad Francisco who plowed out of the driveway at 5:24 am)to return to the cafe. I was groggy but excited. I was excited the way […]
My God, it’s ALMOST time for Coffee Again
Here I sit, it’s 12:51 am, and we’re FINALLY finished (almost) renovating the cafe. Jim Taylor, my project manager, has gone home with Barry, his able-bodied assistant, Joe trundled off to bed after a long battle finally won reconnecting the internet…Liz finished her mopping and putting away around 12:15, and […]
I Bet This Guy Wishes He Spoke French
The Nigerian Times had a story about the value of speaking more than one language tonight. “A fast-thinking pilot, with the help of passengers, fooled a gunman who had hijacked a jetliner flying from Africa to the Canary Islands, braking hard upon landing then quickly accelerating to knock the man […]
"I Got People" is an Excellent Ad Campaign
Joe O’Rourke and I used to enjoy reading Bob Garfield’s ad reviews in Advertising Age when we both worked in ad sales at the Daily Hampshire Gazette. Here is Garfield’s review of a new ad campaign. “Millions of Americans are intimidated or overwhelmed by this annual [tax prep] chore, and […]
You Can Do a Lot with 12-foot Ceilings
Progress, progress, the cafe is moving ahead and we can’t wait to show it all off on Tuesday. Last night I joined about 70 of my neighbors at a fundraiser on Crestview Drive. This is a wide street with underground utility wires (the mark of a high rent district) located […]
Building a College in Kabul
Johannes Brongers wants to help. So he’s going to Afghanistan to do his job in a far less tranquil environment. In June, he leaves with his wife Janet to live in Kabul and help run the American University in Afghanistan. There are only 58 students now, they hope to expand […]
Snake River Canyon, Idaho
I was pleased to read a draft of new GoNOMAD blogger Paul Shoul’s story about his trip to Boise. I was even more pleased when I saw his collection of photos, which, as usual, are stunning and fit right in with his text. Shoul understands the tone and tenor of […]
Sore Feet are Proof of a Hard Day’s Work
Tonight as I sit here in my big chair my feet ache. I’ve been working very hard at the cafe all day, and we’ve got encouraging results to show for our labors. This morning, as the wind whipped the snow around, I hired a young man from the neighborhood named […]