Right outside Reno, Nevada on the Steamboat Trail.
An interesting way of showing appreciation for environmental protection.
Conversation in the grocery store checkout line:
Oh, I’m good on the plastic bag.
“Oh sir, I just put it in there to keep it from spilling on the other items.”
It’s fine, that’s why I have plenty of extra cloth bags. Just put it one of the extras.
“Sir, we are required to put all meat and fish in a separate bag.”
Does it have to be plastic?
“That is my understanding, sir.”
No worries, I won’t tell anyone. I really don’t want that plastic bag.
“Sir, there are certain bacteria and things that can infect other foods. I should really put it in a secure plastic bag.”
You know, I’m just going to take it out at home and put in a refrigerator with a bunch of other things.
“Yes, but that is outside of our control.”
Your control? This is my food which I have now paid for and can choose to do what I want with it. I specifically bring cloth bags to the grocery store to avoid using plastic bags I don’t need. Please put my items in the cloth bags provided.
“Sir, there is no reason to overreact.”
Note: I am not against the use of plastic. Obviously, I depend on it every day for a variety of reasons. What I am against is the notion that uses and practices are absolute. Don’t use when you don’t have to, or when there is a more efficient alternative. Generally, a little effort to conserve isn’t really that much effort, and a little can go a long way. And finally, people need to get over this bizarre idea that those who seek to conserve are somehow hippies or anti-establishment. Stop getting bothered by conservation because you somehow feel that it is a direct threat to your rights as a human being to use whatever you want, whenever and wherever you want. And finally, if you feel that your actions have no influence on the course of this planet or the environment then, well, that is just sad.
There are so many beautiful and wild areas in the state of Nevada, and yet many Americans are not aware. Fortunately, there are people who are passionate about protecting these unique areas, despite significant challenges in the form of development, water rights, and numerous other interests.
Here’s a great video from the folks at Nevada Wilderness Project (NWP). A few memorable quotes from the video:
“Wilderness is a place for relaxation and sanity…a place where I have always gone to get my bearings.”
“I love politics, and I love sleeping in the dirt.”
“As Americans we have the right to petition our government for change.”
“When it is about protecting your backyard wilderness, and protecting what’s best about America, we feel like that is one of the finest kinds of patriotism around.”
May the force be with you, NWP!
These two pictures were taken in the same day. Both are chasing and playing with something, but for different reasons.
A woman rides the wind at Sunset Beach just south of Tarpon Springs, Florida.
A Dolphin pursues a Jack along the battery of Bayshore Boulevard in Tampa, Florida.
Originating in China more than 2000 years ago, Dragon Boat Racing is one of mankind’s oldest organized sports. Each year there are competitions held in numerous locations around the world in celebration of the Duanwu Festival. In Tampa, there is actually a Dragon Boat Institute. They have a wonderful Vision, which among other things is – To be a model waterfront community.
I was rather surprised to see how many people came out to race and observe. Up and down the channel they went, blades cutting into the water in unison while one individual ruddered and another beat the skin of a drum to keep time. Meanwhile, the Asian Festival was underway on the square of the St Pete Times Forum, and choreographed dances and delicious food were a great complement to the competition.
When people ask me what I like most about Tampa I generally reply, the cultural diversity. Throughout the year there are numerous events surrounding the Cuban, Spanish, Italian, Indian, Greek, African, and American cultures that have shaped everything from the architecture to the events of Tampa Bay.
If you plan to go to next year’s races then stop in to the new Tampa Bay History Center where you will begin to unravel this rich past. What’s more, there is a Columbia Restaurant as part of the Center where you can sit on the deck adjacent to the water, watch the Dragon Boat Races, sip a Mojito, and enjoy Cuban food like they have been preparing since 1905.
In honor of the Dragon Boat Races, there was a fantastic metal statue placed on the promenade of Cotanchobee Fort Brooke Park. I just had to take a picture of it for my old whitewater rafting and kayaking friends, especially those that did and do paddle class V. After a little fun with Photoshop, I think it conveys that not-so-subtle feeling one can get above a must make move.
On the weekends, especially in April and May, Clearwater Beach is a scene. Want solitude? Not the place. Want to see and be seen? Bingo.
Top 5 Sightings:
Oh, and middle-aged fathers like me contending with their curious, cranky, crazy but OH SO cute kids. My suggestion to all of you parents out there who are ready to roll to the beach with their little bouncing babies – buy a shade tent. It will make your life so much easier and quite possibly liberate you from feeling like you just can’t go to the beach with a young child. Your little one will have a safe play place out of the sun, and if the wind is blowing then it will act as a nice shelter for you and your gear. If you get really lucky then it might even serve as a salubrious spot for a nap.
Eureka makes a decent one that even has little sand bags you can fill and bury for extra stability against high winds. Sets up in just a few minutes and comes with a stuff sack that also acts as a sling you can carry over your shoulder.
Whether you are kicking it on the shores of Lake Tahoe, exploring the beaches of Hawaii, or battling for a spot at your favorite Florida beach the shade tent is a must have.
Or so says the Reynolds School of Journalism. And we wholeheartedly agree. Coming on the heels of the Salt Lake City Wordcamp, we were pleased to be a part of another informative and inspiring gathering of the best and brightest WordPress designers and developers. If you missed it, well, there will most likely be another one soon. Until then, enjoy some of our CEO’s Flickr photos of the event, and read the School’s report in full below.
Reno-Tahoe Wordcamp a Big Success
April 27,2009
Matt Mullenweg, founding developer of WordPress and UNR student Colin Loretz, the driving force behind Reno-Tahoe Wordcamp. Photo by David LaPlante.
As Matt Mullenweg described how he came to develop the popular software WordPress, some of the 70-plus attendees in Saturday’s Reno-Tahoe Wordcamp twittered Matt’s geocities page, scrolled through his photo blog and checked out his demo sites on Automattic.
Mullenweg, who wrote the original code for WordPress and is still intimately connected with upgrading and expanding the capabilities of the original idea, previewed upcoming products that allow for multiple users and more social networking.
“We create things and we have no idea how people will use them,” he said. “It’s amazing to hear what people are doing with these tools.”
Saturday’s Wordcamp, sponsored by Twelve Horses and the Reynolds School of Journalism, featured a day-long series of speakers on using WordPress, developing a personal brand and understanding social media.
In his keynote address, Mullenweg described the history of WordPress and how much the process of open-source software development influenced his interest and direction.
In another popular session, David LaPlante, CEO of TwelveHorses, described an epiphany his company had as they watched site useage over the past few years. “People care about people,” he said. “Trust is the first thing we need to do business together. It comes with connecting with you as an individual.”
LaPlante emphasized his view that information is getting more personal, transparent and authentic. He noticed that on the sites they build, “about us” pages that feature personal insights about the individuals in the company attract a lot more page views.
RSJ alumna Annie Flanzraich asked LaPlante how to navigate the online emphasis on personal and transparent disclosure among journalists or bosses who don’t understand – or agree with — this kind of personal divulgence.
“The water is moving that way quickly,” LaPlante said. He described a disequilibrium in the marketplace as we move from one set of expectations to another. He pointed out the fastest growing demographic on Facebook is women over 55. “The stronger your brand, the more you will connect with some and disconnect with others,” LaPlante said.
RSJ Professor Bob Felten organized the school sponsorship of the event and helped host a welcome breakfast for attendees. “It was an amazing day,” Felten said. “We want RSJ to be at the center of this conversation in the community, and Saturday was a great demonstration of why that’s important.”
Couldn’t make it? Many Wordcamp videos have been posted on WordPress.tv. Copies of the presentations from Saturday’s Wordcamp will be available online in the next few days. Check out http://renowordcamp.wordpress.com for updates.
At a recent TED conference, best-selling author of Eat, Pray, Love, Elizabeth Gilbert stated, “we have completely internalized and accepted collectively this notion that creativity and suffering are somehow inherently linked.” She goes on to further frame “the utter, maddening, capriciousness of the creative process” by suggesting that we pull from something greater than ourselves. Maybe Gilbert was thinking of the late Carl Jung who once said, “Art is a kind of innate drive that seizes a human being and makes him its instrument.”?
When it comes to email marketing, designing for your objectives can be a little maddening. If you do pull from something greater than yourself, and then translate that perfect vision to strategy and paper, you may find that your creative team is not realizing it. So, back and forth you go until there is no time left. A deadline is a deadline. But there is no doubt that the battle for the inbox – and your customer’s attention – requires engaging, actionable designs. What can you do to minimize your suffering and help aid that creative process along?
Through personalization, you no doubt consider who you’re addressing with every send. But who really is your audience, and what are they expecting from you? If you have a sizeable database with varying preferences, this is where you can not only practice segmentation, but also employ different designs and messages for each segment. What a great way to make your audience feel like you are personally interested in their needs and goals. Not to mention leveraging different designs for newsletters, promotions, events, and important notifications, as many businesses do.
There is nothing worse than a well-designed email that just doesn’t render right. Ask yourself whether your recipients are primarily businesses or consumers? This will determine if the majority is using say, Microsoft Outlook vs. Gmail or Hotmail, or perhaps even receiving their emails on a mobile device – keep in mind that 30% of B-to-B recipients are receiving emails on their mobile devices. Regardless, it is impossible to get an email design, or the content offer itself, to render perfectly in all email clients, so you want to shoot for the top 2 or 3 and then make sure you test – test – test before you launch.
Remember less can be more. It’s especially important not to overuse graphics in an email to the point that images constitute the entire message. It is that much easier to delete an email message if nothing at all captures the consumer’s attention before they have opted to download images. Ask yourself, what are recipients going to see above the fold? Does it stand out? Does it speak to their needs? Call upon Maslow’s hierarchy of needs if you need some help with this.
Great designs fall flat without good content. No amount of slick design skilz are going to carry your customer over the line if the message doesn’t add value to the recipient’s life. Subject lines, headlines, offers and calls to action are all crucial to a successful campaign. With one quick glance of these elements a recipient will understand what the value is immediately upon viewing the email. Easier said than done, but if you solidify the messaging first, establishing a strong supporting design can be made much easier.
Don’t be afraid to test a few different designs early on in the game. Many email marketers get their template and design down to a point where everyone internally is pleased with the outcome. But no one has any idea what the customer really thinks! Each time a client has pursued A/B testing, it was completely obvious which email design performed the best. Also, don’t be afraid to test offers and subject lines. As you achieve greater relevance it will have a direct result on your clickthrough rates. Yes, you may have to invest more time in creating additional versions at the outset, but the payoff will be greater conversions with the final send.
The email marketing industry loves to apply various rules and best practices by which we should guide our “online lives”. While it’s great to have a foundation to work from, don’t let best practices become a burden either. At the end of the day, your job is to move the needle more than you did the last time, so don’t be afraid to experiment with the experiential and maybe even defy conventional wisdom.
Considering these factors during the early stages of an email marketing campaign will lessen the suffering and assist you in finding the drive to make email a more effective instrument.
The Port Tampa City Library is a prominent feature in the “South Side” of Tampa, Florida. It used to be the Commerce Bank Building, which was constructed by James G. Yeats in 1926 for his First Bank of Port Tampa City.
I often pass it on my way to Picnic Island, and it draws my eye for the sheer fact that there is not a single structure within miles that even remotely resembles it. It dominates. Finally decided to stop and take a picture.
Alongside the eastbound lanes of Interstate 4 in Dover, Florida, an individual by the name of Frank Bates buried eight Airstream travel trailers nose-down. It is not far from Tampa, and I often pass it on the way to Orlando and beyond. I finally decided to pull over and take a picture of this creation because it might not be there for much longer. Hillsborough County code inspectors and several of Gates’ neighbors want it gone.
When it comes to ART, our tastes, perspectives, and emotions vary; or, as some of us like to say, “beauty is in the eyes of the beholder.” There are certain elements of design, whether contrived by humans or nature, that we can all generally agree on as beautiful. On the opposite end of the spectrum, I am sure you have been in an individual’s home and wondered if the aesthetic gene went missing in them. Of course, as long as their taste, or misplaced taste, is confined to their personal space then no harm no foul. But when it enters public domain then we have some issues.
Even though I side with Hillsbourough County in this case, I truly appreciate the vision and motivation that manifested in Gates to the point where he took a nondescript and unused area of his personal property and created public amusement. There are so many people that fall prey to laziness or ineptness that they never pursue freedom of expression. Even though “freedom of expression” is a contradiction.
The problem is – there is no true freedom of expression in public domain unless permission to express is first obtained. Otherwise, you suffer the consequences, however small or large they may be. Gates may have gotten his way if he had pursued appropriate actions and received approval. He thought since it was on his land that he could do whatever he so chose. But just like when you don’t pay your property taxes, you quickly find out how far the boundaries, or limitations, of personal property extend.
Gates was bold and creative. He demonstrated good form but bad execution; or is it the opposite? I side with the law because people would otherwise express themselves in distasteful ways far beyond what looks like art. No matter the intentions, I think so many of us enjoy people like Gates who give the system a little test every now and again. By sheer presentation, those Airstreams seem to be giving the law a little bit of the old fuck you. Obviously, they got the message.