Monday, June 27, 2011
British PM Cameron's Joke Brings Down House Of Commons
In this video posted today at itNews on YouTube, British Prime Minister David Cameron issues a joke about it being his duty to "give pleasure" to a constituent who was pleased at England would not get involved in the bailout of Greece. It's a hilarious blast that brought the "house" down - literally.
It's good to see a PM with a sense of humor. Remains to be seen how England't decision, or his joke, will impact its relationship with Greece.
Still, even if England and other nations took action, the Bank of England governor warned that it would not stop the European Debt Crisis.
Stay tuned.
Sunday, June 26, 2011
The Black Holes of Healthcare, Lemonade,...And My Plan!
HI Your Fit Day Friends:
I hope you're all enjoying the spring weather. Here in the Bay Area we've had some pretty picture-perfect days. And the days are still getting longer.
Hey! You know what that means, don't you? More daylight hours... for... ex-er-cising! So no excuses; at least for the next 6 months, anyway.
Go enjoy the great outdoors and make fitness fun. Grab your kids-or someone else's-and Go Go Go. Visit your National parks, (hurry, while you still time, since many are set to close in September). Play on the swing-sets. Bike the trails, and run in them thar hills!!
Hey! Speaking of running...that's something I won't be able to do for a while, and I wanted to give you an update on your trainer's life.
My Hippy News
In my Part I of Key to Pain Free I mentioned seeing a second surgeon after I was 'misdiagnosed' by the first. The first surgeon, let's call him Dr. Compassion (not!), advised Motrin daily; told me to come back in six months if I was still in pain; and, without even looking at an X ray or MRI, told me I was too young for any type of surgery and to come back when I was closer to age 60, and sent me packing.
Huh? I see. At my HMO it's obviously all about patient care!
Let me give you a brief synopsis of our email conversations:
Dr. Compassion: (no x-ray to look at, but moves my leg around, taking all of 1 minute) "Yup, just as I thought, you have arthritis."
Debby: "Gee doc, everyone my age and even younger has a little bit of arthritis. I'm in a lot of pain. It came on suddenly. I had a weight training injury in June of 2010, I train a lot. I really think we should think about stress fracture of hip and/or possible labral tear, seeing that I have been quite an avid runner all my life, as well as a myriad of other sports."
Dr. C.: "Nope. Even I have it.(he's sitting back down at his computer now) It's arthritis. Do you get pain in here?" He says, talking to his computer screen and pointing to his lower back. I'm assuming the statement is directed towards me, but with no eye contact it's kind of hard to tell. He keeps scrolling back and forth, up and down looking for something, obviously not my X-ray. I just keep wondering... 'what's so much more important than his live patient in front of him?'
Debby: "Huh? No, I don't. It' in my hip, the top of my butt. I can't squat right", as I get up off the table and hobble two steps over to the door, the only free space in the room.
"Look, watch me squat; look at my right leg, how it doesn't rotate out like the left. It's stuck. This makes it hard to work. And look at my hips. I'm like a tea kettle when poured, off kilter. Something isn't right. I can feel it, look Dr. _...", I'm pleading. He turns his head around for a split second as I'm squatting, then quickly turns back to the computer screen. What on earth is on that screen? What is so much more interesting to evaluate than his live deformed patient, standing sqautting right in front of him?
Dr. C.: "Yah, arthritis, like I said. That happens."
Wha..?
Debby: "Listen, I know my body and something is going on here more than a little arthritis. I need this fixed. I need to be able to do my job, teach my boot camp style class that I just licensed, and build out my new fitness website with my workout videos for online training. I need to be able to move without pain, be nimble...you know, be in good form for presenting great content to my viewers, who depend on me for their workouts. This is my job."
Dr. C.: "Well, my advice to you is to change your lifestyle. You can stand on the sidelines like the football coaches who yell at the players, and do just like they do. And I'm not going to give you surgery so you can do some You Tube videos and teach a 'boot camp'. My suggestion is to start thinking about your lifestyle and change it. Do yoga, swim, walk. Now, go home, take Motrin. Then, stretch it when you don't feel pain, and keep stretching farther and farther, and maybe some of that flexibility will come back."
Huh? Did he just tell me what I think he did? Stretching is his answer? Stand around and yell? Don't they have a reality show for that?
Debby: "Listen Dr. C. I've been in the fitness industry my entire life. I'm young, strong and extremely athletic. I have many more years. I'm not here to talk about career changes. I'm here to rule out the possibility of a stress fracture or labral tear that could be casuing this malfunctioning hip. [OK?] I need resolution. And even if I were to take Motrin-which I will not-how long am I supposed to take it for? What's your plan? Do you even have a plan?"
Do HMO's have a plan for patients anyway, or is all the bottom line for the HMO? This is NOT a trick question.
Dr. C.: "I would say come back in six months. And if it's still the same or worse then we can do an MRI, maybe. But I want to see the X-ray first. And if it's arthritis, like I'm sure it is, then we wouldn't fix a labral tear anyway."
Debby: "Well, I don't want to take Motrin indefinitely if you have no game plan, and you won't give me an MRI. That's ridiculous. I need to know NOW what this is. And if the X-ray doesn't show a stress fracture then I want an MRI; I am entitled to one."
Dr. C.: "Get the X-ray. I'm sure I am right. Oh, and don't bother making another appointment. You can just email me and we can discuss your options online. Save your co-pay . Now, I have to get going I'm late."
And he slid out the door trying to make a getaway.
Late? I waited for over an hour, he spends 15 minutes with me, max, and he's late? This is my hip.This is my life. 'I'm in pain here Doc', I was screaming inside.(I had just started with M.A.T. again)
I shoved all my stuff into my backpack, slung it over my shoulder, half open, and I rushed after him down the hall.
Debby: "Wait, what do you mean I can just email you? What about patient/doctor relationships? Why are you so concerned with my co-pay?" And he was through.
In the big picture, when you want a resolution, that co-pay is insignificant. And emailing your provider at my HMO only allows 1000 characters per email. Now, assuming you've been reading my blogs that's hardly a conversation for this blogger.
I want one-to-one interaction; I'm entitled to one-to-one interaction with my provider; And, hey! I pay my HMO membership!
Well, I didn't wait for him to email me, nor did I set up that one to one with him. I high tailed it online to my former shoulder surgeon, and in under 1000 characters she was able to find me a wonderful, compassionate, caring female orthopedic surgeon who happened to be a competitive runner, skier, swimmer herself, and was privy to my pleas for help. Let's call her Dr. Yours Truly Compassionate.
But I wasn't going to see Dr. Yours Truly until I made sure I had my MRI. And getting that was like finding water on Mars.
The Expansion Of Black Holes
Sometimes, trying to get through the HMO system is like falling into a black hole. And once you get stuck in their vortex you have to be pretty strong to pull yourself out to get something done, and in a timely manner.
Well, since I was stuck in the HMO vortex, for now, I had to resort to their emailing system. And since I could only write 1000 characters at a time, I was usually cut off mid sentence, even half word. So it took me quite a few emails to finally get through to that first doc and get my MRI.
Here's how that conversation went:
Debby: "O.K. Dr.C., so you say I have moderate arthritis. But I am entitled to an MRI, and I'm entitled to a second opinion. And I'd like to have the MRI first. I need to see exactly what is going on inside my body so I can move forward, make a plan, and visualize the healing and get on with the process."
Doc: "Like I said, take the Motrin and if that doesn't work then we can go in a different direction. There is nothing you can do about the arthritis. Change your lifestyle. You may have to give up some things"
Debby: " I'm telling you, something is wrong with the structure of my body. I can tell. And I can't move forward if I don't know what's wrong. I can't start my group exercise camps. At least if I have an MRI we can rule out what it's not. I use my body to make my income. People are depending on me to provide workouts on my website. I depend on my body like you do on your hands for surgery. Please, I want my MRI."
Am I actually begging my HMO?!
Doc: " I am 100% sure that it is only arthritis as we see it in the X-ray. And it's moderate arthritis at that. You are not a candidate for surgery with moderate arthritis. There is no reason for an MRI. "
Debby: "Listen, nobody is 100% sure unless they are God!. Just please order the MRI. Look at it this way, if there is nothing in the MRI then you can pat yourself on the back, and you were right. But if something else shows up then we will all be happy, and we can move forward and fix the problem. But I can't wait 6 months to find out. And you should not make me wait six months. Well, if you don't order the MRI now, then I might have to hold my HMO accountable for anything that happens to my body from the day that I saw you."
You've Got Mail
- Almost as slow as Snail Mail
Well, the next day I had, in my HMO Patient Inbox, a referral to the NMRI department. (The N stands for Nuclear, by the way). I finally got my MRI. Then I had a second opinion from the compassionate female orthopedist. Just for the record I'll rate her a 10 on the scale of 1-5!. Well, that was the visit where the Dr. yours Truly read the MRI.
And folks, it doesn't look good. I'd include the actual MRI but it's a bit too graphic for this G-rated blog. But here's what the X-ray looked like:
- What do YOU see?
Cool, Huh?
Now, if you're like me you have no idea what you're looking at.
What's not so cool is that I don't have many options, and not a lot of time to decide, given my age and progression of the osteoarthritis. and the pain and lack freedom it causes me.
Options:
- Do nothing and become a cripple
- Learn how to hop on one leg. Great for training but not very convenient in the real world day to day existence.
- Get the top of my femur chopped off and replaced with ceramic total hip replacement, THR, which is great for the avid golfer but not the active multi sport fitness gu-ress and trainer like moi.
- Go with the new innovative technology of hip resurfacing,HR, which saves most of your bone, the head of your femur and allows for full activities after a year of rehab (Weight training, running, skiing, martial arts, surfing, splits, and all other sports).I can basically do everything except skydiving. Note to self: Set up sky dive session before surgery.
What would you do? This is NOT another trick question.:)
It's kind of a no brainer, wouldn't ya think?
Although the HR is a more complicated, it saves most of the bone so there is more to work with in case of a revision down the road (ie. chop off the head of my femur, lots of thigh bone, and replace it with total hip). However, if the HR is done with precision, and by the right surgeon, who has logged 1000's of procedures, and uses the correct prosthesis best suited for women, especially on small framed women such as your princess of fitness here, the chance for the best possible outcome is optimal.
Just My Luck
Well, not only did my HMO 'mis diagnose' me as having just some arthritis, they didn't even notice in the MRI that I had congenital hip displasia-or they forgot to tell me-which of course changes the playing field when considering what device to place in my hip, not to mention the experience of the surgeon placing it.
So before even consulting with a possible surgeon-who is NO. 3 below-I logged about 60 hours online researching procedures, prostheses, and the top surgeons around the world who had performed thousands of hip resurfacing, with a high percentage of them on female patients like me.
And when I finally talked to Surgeon No. 3 , I came prepared with a file busting at the seems with documentation on the pros and cons of the two most commonly used devices: the BHR and the Conserve Plus. The research for the Conserve Plus shows that it is better suited for small women with hip displasia cases; it comes in many size increments; and there is less potential for rubbing and leaking ions.
The research shows that the BHR is suited for larger men; or women who are 5ft 8 inches and heavy boned. I am 5ft, 6 inches, if that.
And I am small boned. The BHR is large and bulky and does not have as many of the smaller sized options suited for women my size.
There is also documentation showing a higher number of cases of ions being created when the particular metals that are used in the manufacturing of the BHR ball and socket are rubbed together. These ions would leak into my bloodstream. They can never be cleared.
My life's work is about keeping the body toxin free and creating a life free of disease for others as well as myself; not creating a potential breeding ground for cancer, or...whatever else.
Compared to the Conserve Plus device, the BHR has also been documented to show more groin pain after full recovery from surgery, limiting activities. The point of the hip resurfacing is to restore my lifestyle back to a fully active one... pain free!.
These potential problems, as well as ions streaming through my body, is not my idea of fixing the problem.
And based on a report written by Dr. Koen De Smet, who is one of the top-five leading hip resurfacing surgeons in the world, (and speaking with him through extensive emails, where, by the way, I was allowed as many characters as I could possibly write), I am NOT a candidate for the BHR.
Guess what folks?
My HMO only uses the BHR.
Synopsis:
I saw three doctors. The first told me to go home. The second told me I had to have surgery, but did not perform that particular type. The third looked at my X ray, told me I hip resurfacing was difficult on women, that he had not done manywomen out of his 300 surgeries, and after looking at my MRI forgot to mention I had a congenital hip displasia. On top of that, even though I had shown him the report comparing the two devices and the how the Conserve Plus had a better track record for women he could only use the BHR.
It's quite obvious that it's not in the best interest of my only right hip, and my future as a fitness professional, to use my HMO's one option, or even their surgeons.
What would you do?
Make Lemons out of Lemonade
Well, that's what Dr. Koen De Smet, the surgeon who wrote the comparison report, and the doctor who I have picked to do my surgery, can apparently do. Make the lemons whole again. Kind of like putting Humpty back together again!
- Who doesn't like Lemonade?!
As for me, I'll stick to making lemonade out of lemons and take this as an opportunity to find a silver lining.
I have spent thirty plus years of honing my body and mind and, well... I was born with my spirit! So now, I must take on another great challenge in this life of mine. (If you know me personally you know the others).
But I think of it like this: I will take it on like any other challenging leg day sat the gym; attack it with a plan and put in max effort.
And while I am still fairly mobile and can control the pain I'll prepare for the battle and have the best positive experience that I can doing it.
Yup! You heard me right. Stay positive. Look towards the future. Make lemonade. And here's how...
The Plan
Anyone going into battle has to have a plan. And this woman warrior is no different. So from May until September's surgery I will work on getting into the best PREHAB shape of my life, given the limitations with my hip and the pain, of course.
Since I'm a girl who likes to lift heavy objects with my legs, and since that is no longer an option I am learning new methods of training for my lower body.
(And NOTE to all the ladies out there: lifting weights does help keep body fat off your body).
I am also finding alternatives to running too. Plus, this will be a good time to explore other new ways to keep my body and mind strong and centered.
Eating healthy whole foods and maintaining my 23 years of an unprocessed and sugar free diet to fuel my body is a no brainer!
The Team
Back to the lemonade!
I decided to compile a team of experts who could help me get into the best shape of my life pre surgery, as well as post rehab conditioning.
And here's where the new experiences come into play!
It's obvious that I am limited in my mobility now, and I will not be able to go to the gym right after surgery. But it's paramount that I be able to stay in shape and do progressive athletic prehab and rehab. So setting up a system that I can use at home, or even in my backyard, or anywhere for that matter, is really important.
So to date, with the help from sponsorships by TRX,
- TRX Suspension Training Pro Pack
- Kangoo Jumps
and Kangoojumps, as well as pre and post rehab conditioning programs from Josh Henkin of Ultimate Sandbag Systems, and Ed Le Cara of Sports Plus, I'll be ready for battle.
What You Get!
Remember, this is a team effort and you are part of it. If I don't win, you don't win. So, I will be chronicling my experience through this blog and You Tube channel Your Fit Day , pre and post surgery. All of the workouts I do with the Ninja equipment will be workouts that YOU, too, can do. Right now. At home. Anywhere. No excuses!!
So I want all of you to workout along with me. I plan to incorporate all of the prehab and post rehab exercises into exciting kick-butt workouts, show you knew techniques, and post periodic updates and videos...all to help you get in and stay in the best shape of your life.
And as I bring you along on my journey I hope to be an inspiration to all of you out there who may have limiting beliefs around getting into the best shape of your life. You can do it. Trust me. But you may have to dig down a little deeper this time.
Remember, I'll be working out as hard as I can to stay in shape. I'm not going to let hip surgery steer me off course. Not for a minute. I'll just be working smart, and around the pain of my hip.
But I will never give up what I have achieved and I don't want you to give up on reaching your fitness goals either. We can do this together.
What It's All About
Although I'm a super fit chick, remember this: I still have to work hard at it every day. It doesn't come easy. I live and breathe health and fitness every day. Every minute!
But know this too: being in the best shape of my life every day will make it easier both physically and mentally to get through this challenge and bounce back.
And that is why it is so important for you to get in and stay in the best shape of your life, every day. Nobody has a crystal ball, and you don't know what curve balls life will bring.
Be prepared. Be Strong. Both physically and mentally. Be ready to play ball.
And that is what this blog is all about: To inspire YOU to stay on a path that will lead you to a lifestyle of health and fitness where you will never give up on yourself in becoming the best YOU.
You Give Me Inspiration
And while I'm rehabbing, I want you to inspire me.
Tell me about your workouts and your accomplishments and how YOU feel. I'll be here to cheer you on in your quest for your bad ass bod.
Tell me, what is your greatest challenge right now?
Leave a comment below.
Saturday, June 25, 2011
New York Passes Gay Marriage; California Should Split State
In the wake of New York State's successful and historic passage of Gay Marriage, it has to be said that California looks.. Well... Bad.
We're literally raised to think that California, the Golden State. The place of dreams. The place where you can be you. Will let you be you.
Now, in the wake of New York's action to allow something that should not even be an issue for any truly secure person (sorry), California just looks like a different place. The illusion has been shattered and the emperor has no clothes.
Or maybe the emperor's a confused cross-dresser: conservative one moment, liberal the next. Sorely in need of some way to split their personality.
And by that, I mean the much talked about California split-state movement.
In the past, I wasn't for a split-state movement, thinking that the state could get it's collective act together over such issues as water-rights and gay marriage. But age has a way of making a person impatient, and that's certainly the case with this blogger.
As long as California is one state, it may take another ten years to make Gay Marriage legal in it. How much harder will it be for California to maintain its entertainment industry as state after state around it expresses little care what people do in their private lives?
At some point, California's got to relax about this. I'm not convinced it's going to happen in the near term, so why not just split the state into what we know it really is: Northern California and Southern California.
That's the best remedy.
We're literally raised to think that California, the Golden State. The place of dreams. The place where you can be you. Will let you be you.
Now, in the wake of New York's action to allow something that should not even be an issue for any truly secure person (sorry), California just looks like a different place. The illusion has been shattered and the emperor has no clothes.
Or maybe the emperor's a confused cross-dresser: conservative one moment, liberal the next. Sorely in need of some way to split their personality.
And by that, I mean the much talked about California split-state movement.
In the past, I wasn't for a split-state movement, thinking that the state could get it's collective act together over such issues as water-rights and gay marriage. But age has a way of making a person impatient, and that's certainly the case with this blogger.
As long as California is one state, it may take another ten years to make Gay Marriage legal in it. How much harder will it be for California to maintain its entertainment industry as state after state around it expresses little care what people do in their private lives?
At some point, California's got to relax about this. I'm not convinced it's going to happen in the near term, so why not just split the state into what we know it really is: Northern California and Southern California.
That's the best remedy.
New York Passes Gay Marriage; California Should Split State
In the wake of New York State's successful and historic passage of Gay Marriage, it has to be said that California looks.. Well... Bad.
We're literally raised to think that California, the Golden State. The place of dreams. The place where you can be you. Will let you be you.
Now, in the wake of New York's action to allow something that should not even be an issue for any truly secure person (sorry), California just looks like a different place. The illusion has been shattered and the emperor has no clothes.
Or maybe the emperor's a confused split-personality: conservative one moment, liberal the next. Sorely in need of some way to split into two people.
And by that, I mean the much talked about California split-state movement.
In the past, I wasn't for a split-state movement, thinking that the state could get it's collective act together over such issues as water-rights and gay marriage. But age has a way of making a person impatient, and that's certainly the case with this blogger.
As long as California is one state, it may take another ten years to make Gay Marriage legal in it. How much harder will it be for California to maintain its entertainment industry as state after state around it expresses little care what people do in their private lives?
At some point, California's got to relax about this. I'm not convinced it's going to happen in the near term, so why not just split the state into what we know it really is: Northern California and Southern California.
That's the best remedy.
Car Driven Into Lake Merritt Oakland, Saturday Morning
According to social media reports, a woman, unidentified, apparently, accidentally drove her car into the waters of Lake Merritt in Oakland, California.
The accident was reported on Twitter and this blogger found it via the use of the social search engine SocialMention.com, and during a search for "Lake Merritt."
The photo was placed by @BarakaBlue and them retweeted by @TjaderDaRaider on Twitter and with this tweet: : "Yes that is a car upside down in lake Merritt."
That it was a woman was reported by @MissKimmie123:
@MissKimmie123 Miss Kimmie
Action by the lake I heard a crash then a splash then hella oh my gods, a woman just drove her car in to Lake Merritt never a dull moment
According to @BarakaBlue a "heroic dude" jumped into the waters of Lake Merritt to pull the woman from her car. Then Oakland Police and what was described as "medic and fire squad" was working to get the car out of the water. The woman was said to have lost control of her car, according to the tweets on Twitter.
Judging by the time reports, the accident happened around 1 AM. Also, by the look of the photo, the accident happened on the Lakeshore Avenue side of Lake Merritt.
As of this writing there are no other reports beyond these tweets. I checked Google News, and a number of blog search programs.
Stay tuned.
Friday, June 24, 2011
Atlanta Social Media Party Links BASHH And Digital Atlanta Meetup
This blogger went out to what was expected to be a small gathering of bloggers at 5 Seasons Westside Brewery, but was a first-time gathering of two digital and social media groups: BASHH, for "Big Ass Social Happy Hour" and the "Digital Atlanta" Meetup. In fact it was a total dive-in and swim experience, where I met a lot of great people, some who I interviewed for the video.
Some brief highlights:
The first person I met was John Peltier, one of the organizers of what he and colleague Anna Gonzalez (who I also interviewed at length) said was a continuation of the BASHH party at SXSW (That's "South-By-South-West," the giant music and tech confab held annually in Austin, Texas.) John says the idea is to have a party that presents a non-threatening place for people curious about blogs and social media to come and find out more about both by meeting people already involved in it. In other words, another excuse to have good drinks, good conversation, and good humor.
Met a lot of great bloggers, for example Cecilia Dominic runs the Atlanta wine blog Random Oenophile , where she highlights "reviews of restaurants and wineries," and from our conversation, has a lot of fun doing it, with some help from her husband Jason. A fun couple to hang with.
Victoria Ellis is a smart, sexy, man-eating riot, who's blog VISHous Life is a diary of dates past and recent, good and bad. Ms. Ellis and her friend Elwyn Lopez left me laughing up a storm, as you will see in the video. Is winding up a subject in Vish's blog's a good thing or a bad thing? Whatever the answer, she's got great material for a TV show, already.
Grace, a junior at Georgia Tech, smartly started a Twitter account that spots deals for Atlanta sports events. Want to know what specials the Atlanta Braves have? You're better off following @ATLSportsDeals than visiting the team's own website.
Nick Valencia is a CNN assignment editor, who describes himself as an "all-round jack of all trades" which is a redundancy, but whatever. Nick's project at CNN is Mexico's drug war, where his collection of blogs and podcasts really constructs and excellent and frankly, very human picture of a problem that's all too often painted in black and white. Take a search look here: LINK.
Terry Coniglio is the Social Media Coordinator at Georgia State University and handles all such activities for the college. That and I observed that she's got a good eye for decent food!
Anna's the ring-leader of the thing - darting, dashing, greeting, and making the event the fun happening it was. When I found out about the meetup, the list I saw read that "9 bloggers" were expected, but it was more like 50 people. I even met two reps of an app called FitRadio.com, that's positioned as a Pandora competitor.
As it happened there were two parties, the BASHH event, and the Digital Atlanta meetup, held next door at the correctly-named Octane Coffee cafe. I ran into someone I'd not seen since the 2008 Democratic Convention, and met two of the organizers of Digital Atlanta, set for November 7th 2011.
The idea of Digital Atlanta is to have a "week-long series of events celebrating technology and new media marketing achievements in Atlanta" according to its website. The second annual Digital Atlanta (the 2010 event drew over 3,000 people) is in the planning stages, and, as Susan Berry and Stephanie Frost explain in the video, it's seeking sponsors, so this is a great time to get on board.
In short, I happened to walk-in on a major event in the growth of Atlanta's social media community. I hope this blog and video can help spread the word about what's going on. It's quite exciting.
Stay tuned.
Stolen 1953 Gibson Les Paul Guitar Story Takes A Turn
Someone, either for real or malicious play, has posted a Craigslist ad offering the same 1953 Gibson Les Paul Guitar for sale. This is how the ad reads:
I have for sale a very altered, but very real 1953 Gibson Les Paul.
This is not a gold-top. In the 1950's, it was refitted with an ABR-1 bridge and stop tailpiece, and then refinished, all by Gibson. The green colour in the picture is accurate. It's one of the lightest Gibson Les Pauls, and the only one of its' colour, that I've ever seen.
The ad also uses the same description of how the guitar was altered that Maurice used in the original Craigslist ad, but it leaves a phone number:
Some changes have been made including:
--changed the P-90's to humbuckers
--had the neck thinned and it, the back and the sides were refinished
--replaced worn out machine heads with gold Gibson ones
--added brass switch ring, jack plate, and rear cavity covers that were made for me by my brother-in-law
--added a truss rod cover with "Les Paul" on it
--installed strap-locks
Give me a call on my cell, (515) 460-1400. Headed back to The States soon and I need it gone by then.
That phone number is, interestingly, the same one as used in this ad selling tickets to the Cubs vs. Pirates Opening Day Game:
2 Tickets Cubs Vs Pirates Opening Day 4 1 11 The Loop 40 details visit
04/01/2011
I was planning on going opening day for The Cubs tomorrow vs. The Pirates. Unfortunately work is bringing me home early, and I have two tickets to sell before 11am. First come first serve, $40 for both. I am staying at a hotel in the loop, you would have to be able to get down here in the morning to pick them up. 515-460-1400 Location: The Loop it's NOT ok to contact this poster with services or other commercial interests ...more
When I called the number, the message said "Hi, this is Chris. I can't get to the phone right now, so leave a message. I'll get back to you."
According to the Facebook friends who tipped me off to this story, Maurice was informed of the ad, and called the police.
I just wonder if the phone number itself belongs to someone other than the person who created the ad.
Stay tuned.
Oakland News: Changing State Of Blogs In Oakland, Part One
Oakland News on the changing state of blogs in Oakland - part one.
Oakland Blog Shrinkage
First, what happened to blogs like OaklandSeen and Good News In Oakland? The OaklandSeen blog started by long-time Oakland political activist and KPFA Morning Show star Aimee Allison has not produced a single new blog post since late May - it's June 24th now. And this tweet was issued June 8th and pointed to some kind of problem:
The most recent, most prominent blog post pointed to Oakland Seen's recently gained "Making Democracy Work" award, presented by the Oakland League Of Women Voters. That's the same award given to this blogger for work during the Oakland Mayor's Race - thanks again!
But whatever's happening, and sources have pointed to some difficulties between editorial staff and management, let's hope OaklandSeen makes a come back.
I've said it before, I'll say it again: hyperlocal is hyperstupid. Unless you're going to walk the beat and try and get local businesses to pay more than the website space is worth from a traffic stand-point (hey, there are suckers out there who don't know how to value what they're paying for), you can't make money and sustain a stand-alone blog site that just covers local community news and ignores World News, pop culture, and sports.
And all for the pseudo-intellectual reason of "That's not news." Look, the fact that people look at web items about, I don't know, Heidi Montag, makes it news. This blogger says this all the time to journalists: "Stop whining about it!" People are voyeurs, and so want to read about other people - a web link with a name of a known person will be clicked on more than one about a known place or a thing.
OaklandSeen is still up, but Good News In Oakland is not. It's dead for now, because when you click on the link to the URL, you get a Go Daddy-owned webpage where Good News In Oakland once was. That's sad.
What's happening is that, because the Oakland locals - OaklandSeen, Good News In Oakland, A Better Oakland, Oakland North, Oakland Focus and Oakland Local - largely don't work together, the overall web strength of the total group is poor.
The main problem is that there are a ton of huge egos among Oakland Bloggers that for the most part don't want to really work together, and for the dumbest of reasons.
To point the finger at myself, I've lent a hand to help a number of people, and even invited some Oakland Bloggers to cross-post to my blogs at Oakland Focus and Zennie62.com, and other blogs in my 100-blog network. Some do, but then fall off after a time, and then some bad mouth me for no good reason behind my back.
So I'm supposed to want to help that person in the future? I'd rather not. Life's too short for that.
If I'm asked to come to cover an event by another Oakland blog, I'm there. If I can't make it, I explain why I can't. I've shown many how to video-blog, and some how to blog for traffic - but that's where the rub is. Some can't seem to "get" that the Internet is not print, and people will not come just because you wrote the modern day equivalent to War and Peace. Who cares?
Oakland Bloggers: take your freaking ego out of the equation. You have to write so your work is picked up by search engines and news aggregators. What you want people to accept is a dream - wake up.
According to reports, Good News In Oakland had a fund-drive party on December 18th - I wasn't informed of that. But whatever happened, it didn't raise enough money to sustain the blog site; it's gone for now. And the fact that the URL wasn't purchased is reflective of the lack of value of the name itself; people don't type "Good news in Oakland" in search a lot. Just a fact.
What remains is a Facebook page "liked" by well-over 9,000 people, including me. It's one reason why I went off on The City Of Oakland's ill-advised press release about its Facebook Page that has barely one-third the number of likes.
The blog A Better Oakland chugs along, unsupported by ads or a wealthy investment banker; V Smoothe (Echa Schnider), the blog's owner, has a full time job with the Oakland Public Library system (which hopefully she will be able to keep). Plus, she has a tight focus and a small, loyal following of people who reallycare about Oakland, even if they always don't agree with each other.
That Echa has outside income is what makes her situation vastly different from the other examples. The other Oakland blogs have tried to generate income from some source; but while Echa has went on a fund-drive or three in the past, it wasn't to "save" the blog from extinction, more to generate some income for the amount of time she spent on it. Still, it's touch and go.
And what about The Oakland Post, the news of Oakland's black community and stalwart since the Jurassic age of news? The online version exists, but that's about it. It's just a collection of blog posts, and with no social media component - Twitter? Ever heard or it? - at all.
The Oakland Post is a sad example of the Oakland Blog landscape - so full of great potential, yet poor in execution because of lack of teamwork. If the vast majority of people in this town would get over their petty crap, the news would be different. But they don't, and the town suffers.
Ask yourself this question: why don't Oakland Local, Oakland North, and A Better Oakland work together? Why did A Better Oakland and Oakland North skip the Code For Oakland event? Was Echa invited? Was Oakland North invited? A look at their content shows that that Code For Oakland wasn't a subject of coverage - I covered it. But then I was invited.
See? Something's really wrong here in Oakland.
Stay tuned for part two, when I focus on Oakland North, that dreaded interloper The Bay Citizen, and some other surprises.
Oakland Blog Shrinkage
First, what happened to blogs like OaklandSeen and Good News In Oakland? The OaklandSeen blog started by long-time Oakland political activist and KPFA Morning Show star Aimee Allison has not produced a single new blog post since late May - it's June 24th now. And this tweet was issued June 8th and pointed to some kind of problem:
OaklandSeen has been undergoing a few technical difficulties. Thank you for your patience. Keep watching this space for more Oakland LOVE...
The most recent, most prominent blog post pointed to Oakland Seen's recently gained "Making Democracy Work" award, presented by the Oakland League Of Women Voters. That's the same award given to this blogger for work during the Oakland Mayor's Race - thanks again!
But whatever's happening, and sources have pointed to some difficulties between editorial staff and management, let's hope OaklandSeen makes a come back.
I've said it before, I'll say it again: hyperlocal is hyperstupid. Unless you're going to walk the beat and try and get local businesses to pay more than the website space is worth from a traffic stand-point (hey, there are suckers out there who don't know how to value what they're paying for), you can't make money and sustain a stand-alone blog site that just covers local community news and ignores World News, pop culture, and sports.
And all for the pseudo-intellectual reason of "That's not news." Look, the fact that people look at web items about, I don't know, Heidi Montag, makes it news. This blogger says this all the time to journalists: "Stop whining about it!" People are voyeurs, and so want to read about other people - a web link with a name of a known person will be clicked on more than one about a known place or a thing.
OaklandSeen is still up, but Good News In Oakland is not. It's dead for now, because when you click on the link to the URL, you get a Go Daddy-owned webpage where Good News In Oakland once was. That's sad.
What's happening is that, because the Oakland locals - OaklandSeen, Good News In Oakland, A Better Oakland, Oakland North, Oakland Focus and Oakland Local - largely don't work together, the overall web strength of the total group is poor.
The main problem is that there are a ton of huge egos among Oakland Bloggers that for the most part don't want to really work together, and for the dumbest of reasons.
To point the finger at myself, I've lent a hand to help a number of people, and even invited some Oakland Bloggers to cross-post to my blogs at Oakland Focus and Zennie62.com, and other blogs in my 100-blog network. Some do, but then fall off after a time, and then some bad mouth me for no good reason behind my back.
So I'm supposed to want to help that person in the future? I'd rather not. Life's too short for that.
If I'm asked to come to cover an event by another Oakland blog, I'm there. If I can't make it, I explain why I can't. I've shown many how to video-blog, and some how to blog for traffic - but that's where the rub is. Some can't seem to "get" that the Internet is not print, and people will not come just because you wrote the modern day equivalent to War and Peace. Who cares?
Oakland Bloggers: take your freaking ego out of the equation. You have to write so your work is picked up by search engines and news aggregators. What you want people to accept is a dream - wake up.
According to reports, Good News In Oakland had a fund-drive party on December 18th - I wasn't informed of that. But whatever happened, it didn't raise enough money to sustain the blog site; it's gone for now. And the fact that the URL wasn't purchased is reflective of the lack of value of the name itself; people don't type "Good news in Oakland" in search a lot. Just a fact.
What remains is a Facebook page "liked" by well-over 9,000 people, including me. It's one reason why I went off on The City Of Oakland's ill-advised press release about its Facebook Page that has barely one-third the number of likes.
The blog A Better Oakland chugs along, unsupported by ads or a wealthy investment banker; V Smoothe (Echa Schnider), the blog's owner, has a full time job with the Oakland Public Library system (which hopefully she will be able to keep). Plus, she has a tight focus and a small, loyal following of people who reallycare about Oakland, even if they always don't agree with each other.
That Echa has outside income is what makes her situation vastly different from the other examples. The other Oakland blogs have tried to generate income from some source; but while Echa has went on a fund-drive or three in the past, it wasn't to "save" the blog from extinction, more to generate some income for the amount of time she spent on it. Still, it's touch and go.
And what about The Oakland Post, the news of Oakland's black community and stalwart since the Jurassic age of news? The online version exists, but that's about it. It's just a collection of blog posts, and with no social media component - Twitter? Ever heard or it? - at all.
The Oakland Post is a sad example of the Oakland Blog landscape - so full of great potential, yet poor in execution because of lack of teamwork. If the vast majority of people in this town would get over their petty crap, the news would be different. But they don't, and the town suffers.
Ask yourself this question: why don't Oakland Local, Oakland North, and A Better Oakland work together? Why did A Better Oakland and Oakland North skip the Code For Oakland event? Was Echa invited? Was Oakland North invited? A look at their content shows that that Code For Oakland wasn't a subject of coverage - I covered it. But then I was invited.
See? Something's really wrong here in Oakland.
Stay tuned for part two, when I focus on Oakland North, that dreaded interloper The Bay Citizen, and some other surprises.
Thursday, June 23, 2011
Stolen 1953 Gibson Les Paul Guitar: Man Using Facebook, Craigslist To Get It Back
Stolen 1953 Gibson Les Paul Guitar: Man Using Facebook, Craigslist To Get It Back 3, a photo by zennie62 on Flickr.
This is the sad story of a man, Maurice in Vancouver, B.C., who had his 1953 Gibson Les Paul Guitar stolen on June 5th, along with other valuables. The theft has left Maurice without the ability to produce his music, let alone continue his occupation in the way he has done for so many years.
Maurice took to Craigslist and Facebook for help in recovering his 1953 Gibson Les Paul, and while it's not yet been returned, his cry has gone viral: a friend of mine urged me to make the video above to inform the public.
What Maurice writes on Craigslist will make you angry with the person who took his prized possession. He writes:
It's my most personal possession, and I have always planned for my son to have it one day. By the way, the other Mesa Boogie Dual Rectifier head you took was his.
It's not of much value to you, but to me, I can't buy another Les Paul like it because another one doesn't exist.. Here's a thought:
Have some decency and redeem some karma. Bring my guitar back. You've fucked my studio up and stolen a life-time collection of my shit. You stole my guitar rig, which was MY sound that I've spent years achieving.
You haven't ripped off a money making business. You've ripped off my life and my spirit immeasurably by taking away the tools of the pursuit of my passion. I've worked extremely hard for my whole life to earn my right to do so, and you took it all away in an hour or two. You've also ripped off my son, now, and in the future. I don't have the money to replace the gear, so it's just gone.
Just give it back - NO QUESTIONS ASKED. PLEASE
So, if you see a guitar that looks like the one here, call the police and make sure it's returned to Maurice. You can reach him via the Facebook or Craiglist page links in this blog.
Stay tuned.
City Of Oakland's Social Media Strategy Is A Joke
This blogger just received an email that added up to an unfortunate joke. The email consists of a press release that starts out like this:
And then goes on to read: "The City of Oakland, CA has ventured into the world of social media by launching a new Facebook page (http://on.fb.me/kJsg2B) “where people who live or work in Oakland connect with each other to discover and share all that makes our city great.” After just a few weeks, the page is already nearing 2,000 fans who are eagerly sharing commentary on topics ranging from arts, culture and family fun to expressing support for local businesses and standing up for Oakland when overlooked or maligned. The result is a robust community dialogue emanating from legions of fans passionate about Oakland.
If a "social media strategy" consists of one Facebook page, then there are millions of social media strategies, just because some Joe Blow started a Facebook page. The main problem, to cut to the chase, before I continue, is that a social media strategy is much more. I've talked about this before:
And even though the video's geared toward the individual, the rules can be easily adopted for any municipal business like The City of Oakland.
What's really sad is that my friend Samee Roberts, the City of Oakland's Marketing Director, went out and put her name on this really, really, tearfully terrible approach. Well, I guess I have to get after a friend, so be it, but Samee informs is that the City spent time and money conducting a survey to tell them they needed a Facebook page!
I'm not kidding, and I'm really disappointed in Samee here. And Karen Wertman, of the consulting firm "Indelible Branding" had the never to make this statement:
"We wanted to make sure that every decision about how to proceed with social media was informed by what matters to people who actually live and work here. We found that as a whole, Oaklanders are incredibly passionate about their city and feel bonded by that appreciation."
It took a survey to learn that?
Oakland's social media strategy is a massive sham if this is all it is. Samee just emailed and said it was a start; that's good.
Just the other day, I looked for Oakland's Twitter page, and that photo on the left shows what I found.
That's right, the photo reveals a Twitter page with zero tweets, and no followers. An apparently someone had started the thing recently, because the page has one Twitter account followed: that of Oakland Mayor Jean Quan. Other than that, the page reads:
Then, when I checked Twitter Grader, I learned that the City of Oakland's Twitter page has been in existence for 2 years, 2 months, and 2 days.
So someone at the City of Oakland started this Twitter page and basically never maintained it, except for following Mayor Quan.
Wild, man.
I am not going to spend this space giving the City of Oakland free consulting work, and there are those within the City walls who think that when I give advice I'm telling them everything I know, or so other friends hace told me.
Heck, I remember Alameda County Supervisor Scott Haggerty saying to me "thanks" for the "free" Coliseum website advice he thinks I gave the County way back in late 2001. Then, on the urging of then-Oakland City Manager Robert Bobb, I applied to be the Coliseum Executive Director, even though, given the players involved, I didn't expect to get the job.
I saw Scott at the Coliseum box during an Oakland Raiders game that year, and of course the Supervisor couldn't resist being a Smart Alec to me at the time. I didn't have the heart to tell him he got very little out of what I wrote, because he was being so nasty to me at the time.
Sorry, no love from me - I've been around too long - just the truth. We have to do better.
And that something better should be a task force. There are so many people in Oakland who already DO social media well, why hire a consulting firm? A task force is better.
And in closing, something else.
Since the World discovered Twitter and Facebook, I've seen an alarming number of old media-oriented organizations send out press releases on their "social media strategy" only to be hammered by the tech community, of which I'm a part - even have a CrunchBase Profile.">CrunchBase Profile.
The one rule is, if you're new to tech, and don't know what it means to be "disrupted," then stick your neck out to say "Look at me. what do you think?," get ready to be disrupted.
City of Oakland, you've been disrupted.
Of course, I expect the attacks from "anonymous" using whatever they can come up with; so be it.
Stay tuned.
City of Oakland Launches Social Media Strategy with a Twist
New Oakland Facebook Page an Instant Hit
And then goes on to read: "The City of Oakland, CA has ventured into the world of social media by launching a new Facebook page (http://on.fb.me/kJsg2B) “where people who live or work in Oakland connect with each other to discover and share all that makes our city great.” After just a few weeks, the page is already nearing 2,000 fans who are eagerly sharing commentary on topics ranging from arts, culture and family fun to expressing support for local businesses and standing up for Oakland when overlooked or maligned. The result is a robust community dialogue emanating from legions of fans passionate about Oakland.
If a "social media strategy" consists of one Facebook page, then there are millions of social media strategies, just because some Joe Blow started a Facebook page. The main problem, to cut to the chase, before I continue, is that a social media strategy is much more. I've talked about this before:
And even though the video's geared toward the individual, the rules can be easily adopted for any municipal business like The City of Oakland.
What's really sad is that my friend Samee Roberts, the City of Oakland's Marketing Director, went out and put her name on this really, really, tearfully terrible approach. Well, I guess I have to get after a friend, so be it, but Samee informs is that the City spent time and money conducting a survey to tell them they needed a Facebook page!
I'm not kidding, and I'm really disappointed in Samee here. And Karen Wertman, of the consulting firm "Indelible Branding" had the never to make this statement:
"We wanted to make sure that every decision about how to proceed with social media was informed by what matters to people who actually live and work here. We found that as a whole, Oaklanders are incredibly passionate about their city and feel bonded by that appreciation."
It took a survey to learn that?
Just the other day, I looked for Oakland's Twitter page, and that photo on the left shows what I found.
That's right, the photo reveals a Twitter page with zero tweets, and no followers. An apparently someone had started the thing recently, because the page has one Twitter account followed: that of Oakland Mayor Jean Quan. Other than that, the page reads:
@cityofoakland hasn't tweeted yet.
Then, when I checked Twitter Grader, I learned that the City of Oakland's Twitter page has been in existence for 2 years, 2 months, and 2 days.
So someone at the City of Oakland started this Twitter page and basically never maintained it, except for following Mayor Quan.
Wild, man.
I am not going to spend this space giving the City of Oakland free consulting work, and there are those within the City walls who think that when I give advice I'm telling them everything I know, or so other friends hace told me.
Heck, I remember Alameda County Supervisor Scott Haggerty saying to me "thanks" for the "free" Coliseum website advice he thinks I gave the County way back in late 2001. Then, on the urging of then-Oakland City Manager Robert Bobb, I applied to be the Coliseum Executive Director, even though, given the players involved, I didn't expect to get the job.
I saw Scott at the Coliseum box during an Oakland Raiders game that year, and of course the Supervisor couldn't resist being a Smart Alec to me at the time. I didn't have the heart to tell him he got very little out of what I wrote, because he was being so nasty to me at the time.
Sorry, no love from me - I've been around too long - just the truth. We have to do better.
And that something better should be a task force. There are so many people in Oakland who already DO social media well, why hire a consulting firm? A task force is better.
And in closing, something else.
Since the World discovered Twitter and Facebook, I've seen an alarming number of old media-oriented organizations send out press releases on their "social media strategy" only to be hammered by the tech community, of which I'm a part - even have a CrunchBase Profile.">CrunchBase Profile.
The one rule is, if you're new to tech, and don't know what it means to be "disrupted," then stick your neck out to say "Look at me. what do you think?," get ready to be disrupted.
City of Oakland, you've been disrupted.
Of course, I expect the attacks from "anonymous" using whatever they can come up with; so be it.
Stay tuned.
Whitey Bulger, Subject Of The Departed, Arrested By FBI
Bulger's due to appear before a Federal judge in a Los Angeles court room on charges of of murder, conspiracy to commit murder, narcotics distribution, extortion and money laundering, according to RadarOnline.com.
Here's the ABC World News Now video from YouTube (as a note, ABC thankfully allows bloggers to embed their videos, and is a YouTube Partner, which means they gain revenue from the additional views from the embeds):
The FBI went around the World in pursuit of Bulger and at one point thought they had him in Europe, only to have taken in a German couple.
Not In Good Health
When The FBI finally caught up with Bulger, he was said not to be in good health, according to the Boston Globe - he's 81 years old and his girlfriend, who faces a charge of "harboring a fugitive" is 60 years old. Bulger reportedly didn't put up a fight with the FBI and confessed on the spot.
Reads like he wanted to get caught.
Played by Jack Nicholson
James "Whitey" Bulger was played by legendary actor Jack Nicholson in the 2006 Oscar Best Picture-winning movie The Departed, with Leonardo DiCaprio. Here's a scene from that film:
Stay tuned.
Cal Baseball News: Virginia Rematch, , David Esquer Coach OF The Year, New Video
After defeating Texas A&M 7 to 3 on Tuesday in the College World Series, Cal Baseball continues its amazing storybook season today, with a rematch game against Virginia. The two teams played Sunday, with Virginia getting by Cal 4 to 1; today's game starts at 7 PM EST on ESPN 2 and ESPN 3.
Cal goes into today's revenge, er, rematch game starting right-hander Dixon Anderson (4 - 3, 3.90 ERA, 41 SO/23 BB in 67 IP), a six-six junior who was drafted by The Washington Nationals.
Cal Baseball Coach Gets Coach Of The Year
According to the California Golden Blogs, Cal Baseball Coach David Esquer was named Coach Of The Year by the National College Baseball Writers Association, and will likely get a contract extension.
Here's the video from Bear Territory:
A New Cal Baseball Video!
Finally, and as you can at the top, Cal Baseball has a new video!
You can still donate to Save Cal Baseball at their website here: Save Cal Baseball!
GO BEARS! BEAT VIRGINIA!
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