January 2009

There were 71 posts published in January 2009 (this is page 4 of 8).

The badge of unemployment

On my way home I picked up some takeout from a place in Cameron Village. Waiting for my turn to pay, I noticed a man holding the familiar MasterCard with the Cardinal photograph and “North Carolina” on it. It was an icon to the jobless in North Carolina: the unemployment insurance debit card.

“Hey, I used to have one of those,” I said to him, maybe looking to boost his spirits, or drum up camaraderie.

“Yeah,” he nodded, seeming a bit embarrassed. “The design industry isn’t doing so well these days . . .”

He trailed off, but it didn’t matter. I knew exactly how he felt.

“Good luck,” I offered as he turned to pick up his food, and he thanked me.

It’s tough out there and a lot of people are just barely hanging on.

Highlights of 2008: Rocket

I ended last year on a sad note when we said goodbye to my longtime feline companion, Smitty. Then in the following months we moved into a new home (and judged the kids ready for a pet), so we decided it was time to get a dog.

We met Rocket through a Lab rescue organization, and decided to “test-drive” him for an hour one evening. It wasn’t long after then that Rocket joined our family for good.

He’s led us on romps through the neighborhood, kept good company, become a great car traveler, learned a few tricks, and pretty much been everything we could’ve hoped for in a dog.

Paycheck!

I got my first paycheck in a long while today. What a feeling that is!

Social media madness

Two years ago my shipmate Dave Bullock signed me up to Facebook. I took a look around and forgot about it until another shipmate, Matt Feath, hit me up again a few weeks ago. Now I’m hooked, and I’m finding people I haven’t crossed paths with in many, many years.

I’d long ago set up a LinkedIn profile but have begun drifting away from it. LinkedIn began to seem kind of static. I use Twitter from time to time, too. I like the immediacy it offers. I don’t do much SMS texting but I can see that it would be a great tool if I did.

Facebook, on the other hand, offers what LinkedIn and Twitter do all in one package – plus so much more. So much more, in fact, that it could easily become a Major Time Sink.

I once scoffed at the idea that Facebook could be worth $15 billion. I’m not scoffing any more.

Commuting by bike versus car

Given a choice between commuting through I-40 traffic in my car and commuting on downtown Raleigh streets on my bike, I’ll take my bike any day.

Drivers on I-40 are constantly panicked that two miles ahead some massive accident will make them two hours late. Thus they drive like any minute now they’ll grind to a halt. Frequently it’s a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Contrast this with downtown Raleigh streets. Most drivers know they’re only a mile or two away from their destination. They know that anything that blocks traffic can be easily driven around. And the speed limit is 35 MPH (and many one-way streets), so there’s much less kinetic energy involved. Not to mention wide streets that are friendly to sharing the road with bikes.

I actually feel safer biking downtown than I do commuting on I-40.

Yet another credit card offer

Well, either the economy isn’t as bad as its cracked up to be or Wall Street doesn’t care that I was out of work for two months. I got an offer for a Discover card in the mail today.