Author: Carl Setzer

A writer I admire, Chuck Sigars, posted a piece about the people who passed this year that he will miss. I thought I would craft my own. This is not meant to be an exhaustive list, just those that strike me.

I must start with Mary Travers. As a livelong Peter, Paul and Mary fan, her death deeply saddens me.

Patrick Swayze

Dom Deluise

Eunice Shriver

Walter Cronkite

On a final note, I was struck by a story I heard on NPR this evening about the very brief life of Baruch Levi. The story of his 10 minutes of life, his mother and the photographer who came to capture those precious minutes deeply struck me.

I’ve been taking a PhotoShop class (properly Digital Art and Design) this semester. Exploring all the different elements of PS has been both eye-opening and exhausting. I’ve fiddled with prior versions of PS, but never done much more than the very basic. Now, we’ve spent the better part of three months diving deep. And the main thing I’ve learned is how little I know.

This was a silly thing I zapped out, considering the season. It was fun to make, if a bit cheesy. (For some reason, the animation is not showing up in the blog post. Click on the link and you can see it in it’s full glory.)

A friend of mine and I developed a rating scale for puns. Rated 1-10 where 1=mild groaning, 10=potential internal bleeding. This warrants at least an 8, and should come with a surgeon general warning. And, of course, it delights me.

Just in time for Christmas, here’s your link to my Amazon’s Wish List. My family is pretty big on Christmas lists, so this should be a decent tool for them. With this button, you can upload non-Amazon “stuff” to the site as well. Thusly, you have a comprehensive database of all your desires, available to your most fervent fans, 24/7. Now everyone will have the ability to delight you with items that align with your tastes and sensibilities. The universe is now gloriously aligned. You may return to your regularly scheduled shopping.

Ages ago, it seems, I started exploring FriendFeed. I started messing with it after Robert Scoble sang it’s praises. (Perhaps you’ve noticed the FriendFeed badge on the right hand column of my blog?) I like the notion of consolidating the various social network streams, as well as the ability to combine the comment threads into one place. Currently, My FriendFeed combines my Twitter feed, my Flickr stream, my Delicious bookmarks and this blog. One challenge I’ve pondered regarding the plethora of social media sites is keeping this mess organized. Heck, I’ve been wondering how I can avoid neglecting any of them. By smooshing the different threads together, FF provides that common place to follow your work. So far, so good.

I wonder, though, if there is an iPhone app, like Twitter has? It would be nice, if addictive, to have access to these threads remotely. Eh, who needs this “life” stuff, anyways.

From my friend Digitalzen over at Digital Dharma. (I LOVE Leonard Cohen! Especially Hallelujah).

“Ring the bells that still can ring
Forget your perfect offering
There is a crack in everything
That’s how the light gets in.”
~ Leonard Cohen

Ms. Vasilakis, one of the presenters on Classical Destinations here performs Bloch. Lovely, simply lovely.

I received an email today asks “should a business be on Twitter”. Fortunately, no one was home since I swore I would scream the next time I saw/heard that. Jeez, folks, old, old news. However, for the sake of venting here’s my two-cents on this.

“Should a business be on Twitter” (or insert your social media site of choice: Facebook, blogging, blah blah) should only get one answer: “it depends”. If you’re fretting because you’re not playing with the latest toys, get over it. Twitter is one tool amidst thousands. Therefore, it should depend on your strategy. Before you run around blasting tweets, updating your Facebook site, think about a strategy. Who are you trying to reach? How often are you trying to reach them? What are you trying to tell them? Twitter has some significant limitations (most obvious: 140 characters), so it’s not ideal for everything.

I feel compelled to add one other note. Twitter can be used to see what people are saying about you, you’re favorite politician, celebrity criminal, whatever. Even if you are blasting tweets, the tools can still be quite useful and powerful.

Eternal Earth-Bound Pets, USA

You’ve committed your life to Jesus. You know you’re saved. But when the Rapture comes what’s to become of your loving pets who are left behind? Eternal Earth-Bound Pets takes that burden off your mind.

We are a group of dedicated animal lovers, and atheists. Each
Eternal Earth-Bound Pet representative is a confirmed atheist, and as such will still be here on Earth after you’ve received your reward.

Perhaps somewhat sacrilegious (ok, ok…nuke the “somewhat”), but I found this hysterical. I wonder, though, if they’ve made any money.