Sep 2006, 275 entries

Buster Mcleod posted a photo:

Buster Mcleod posted a photo:

It's very sad.

This was Maggie’s idea, but she might have taken it from The Artist’s Way. But it’s slightly different here… I’m combining it with some of the silent retreat rules. One day a week (either Friday or Saturday or Sunday, depending on if I work on Friday and other things) will be spent on a media diet, which I’m going to take to mean:

• No internet


• No books, magazines, newspapers


• No music


• No movies or television

The idea is to instead spend the day without media distrations and as sort of a Sabbath for lost souls. Tomorrow will be the first such day.

I can’t remember what we talked about at lunch today. That’s either because we didn’t sustain a single subject long enough for it to matter, or because I daydreamed about regaining my financial footing after this string of Credit Card Roulette losses. The problem with a serious losing streak is giving up the gambler’s fallacy and accepting that randomness has no memory. There is no mathematical fairness to CCR unless we play the game an infinite number of times. Randomness does not “owe me” a string of winning, free lunches to make everything even. Instead, we start from statistical scratch every time we play the game.

This problem, the vanishing past, is a sticking point for some, and a liberating opportunity for others. Some say that what we think of as The Past is just an assemblage of memories, evidence, and the stories we tell, and that those things are just aspects of the present – malleable ones at that. The past ceases to exist but leaves behind a plastic residue. I have a sense that Josh, our resident historian, rails against this notion. As for me, I like that we are always starting from scratch. I’m heeding the bumper sticker that states “forgiveness is giving up hope for a better past.” Lady Luck didn’t owe me anything due to our past, but she still let me win CCR today. Now, how does that past victory continue to exist? I have a memory of Josh’s card being picked, I have evidence in my wallet that I got lunch for free, and I have completed my assignment to add a story to our blog.

Todd is on a crazy losing streak. He lost again at Ballet yesterday. He even lost out on the opportunity to make Daniel pay for failing to pick someone to write the blog post after Daniel bought us all delicious Pizza. Thanks for lunch Daniel and Todd!

What else is going on at the Robot Co-op this week? We had a great conversation about habits and habit forming. Todd & I have both been experimenting with taking the bus and walking to work. Daniel has been rehearsing with his new band. Eric swam in a volcano. Buster got sick. Ivan told us a crazy story about a cherry tree. And Geoffrey Grosenbach is hanging out at the Co-op to help us with some graphs.

• How to choose achievable goals
  Our first guest post on Lifehacker. I hope there will be more!
  (tags: goalmaking lifehacker 43things)

Shipped on 09/28/06.

• Reporting from the World Rock, Paper, Scissors tournament
  I love this game.
  (tags: rps rockpaperscissors tournament chance strategy)
• Queercents » Ten Money Questions
  fun interview series
  (tags: money, interviewing)

Buster McLeod went to this event.

Back again at Town Hall, we are thoroughly delighted to present this welcome Seattle return by one of the most enjoyably engaging writers at work today, Bill Bryson. The North American heartland native, who years ago decamped for the British Isles, has been writing about there and here in numerous bestselling books. He is here tonight with The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid: A Memoir (Broadway), a distinctly-voiced look back at a time and place. “Travel humorist Bryson took a decisive stand regarding his hometown almost 20 years ago when he published the story ‘Fat Girls in Des Moines’...Now the author of A Walk in the Woods and I’m a Stranger Here Myself delves more deeply into his Midwestern roots in a bittersweet, laugh-out-loud recollection of his growing-up years…This affectionate portrait wistfully recalls the bygone days of Burns and Allen and downtown department stores but with a good-natured elbow to the ribs.” – Laura Tillotson, Booklist. $5 tickets are available at Elliott Bay starting September 30.

Buster McLeod went to this event.

The Moth, “New York’s hottest and hippest literary ticket” (The Wall Street Journal), makes its first appearance in Seattle! The evening features several well-known raconteurs, including Dan Savage, Sherman Alexie, and Jonathan Ames, as well as other favorite storytellers from New York city including Sherman OT Powell (retired pickpocket), Steve Osborne (NYPD lieutenant), and Michaela Murphy (writer and director of Something Blue). Author and storyteller par excellence Jonathan Ames, hosts the evening. Each participant tells a ten-minute, first-person narrative without script or notes. Audience members and storytellers continue swapping stories over beer and wine (available for purchase) after the show. The Moth Story Tour is presented by TNT. Co-presenters are Kiehl’s and The Stranger.

Buster McLeod went to this event.

Presented in affiliation with TOWN HALL SEATTLE and MOUNT ZION BAPTIST CHURCH. We are honored and thrilled to present this special evening, featuring a talk and booksigning, with U.S. Senator Barack Obama, for his greatly anticipated new book, The Audacity of Hope (Crown). See below or call Elliott Bay at (206) 624-6600, for details on tickets and booksigning guidelines. There are special procedures in place for this evening. Thank you for your understanding. Benaroya Hall is located at 200 University Street in downtown Seattle.

$5 Event tickets will go on sale at 9:00 a.m. at the bookstore on October 17th.

THESE EVENT TICKETS ARE FOR EVENT ENTRY ONLY and do not include the signing.

All tickets must be purchased in person at the bookstore prior to the event. There will be no phone orders, no willcall, nor can tickets be charged and mailed for this event. NO EXCEPTIONS.

Senator Obama is expected to talk for thirty minutes, including a brief Q&A session.

Also on October 17th, the bookstore will release a limited number of autographing vouchers on a first come first serve basis with the purchase of Senator Obama’s NEW book AND the purchase of a ticket to the event. The number of autographing vouchers will be limited because the Senator has a set amount of time to sign books at the event. Autographing vouchers are expected to sell out quickly.

Senator Obama will sign one copy of The Audacity of Hope for each person with an autographing voucher. He will also sign one copy of Dreams from my Father, if The Audacity of Hope is being signed as well.

No Photos are allowed. Books may not be personalized and nothing else other than the featured books will be autographed.

These are rules and guidelines set by the publisher as are many of the aspects of this special event.