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Starting a Business
I decided a month ago to start a business. The funny bit is that my business partner and I had been collaborating for a while- we both worked closely at two different jobs, and many projects together, before deciding to “go legit.” We already had clients, even. We just hadn’t done the paperwork. Between jobs […]
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The Perils of Lack of Diversity (TitStare, Circle Snake)
Last night I learned of the opening demo at TechCrunch’s Disrupt, “TitStare”. An app that takes a photo of you (and you are of course a heterosexual male) staring at a woman’s breasts with or without her consent, doesn’t really matter. Also, an app Circle Snake that ranks your (male) masturbation technique. Got a voicemail […]
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How To Interview For Mobile (When Nobody Knows Mobile)
This Christmas, close to 90% of shopping will occur on a mobile device. Companies are scrambling to get in-house developers. Imagine you’re hiring an in-house team. You’re tired of outsourcing with contractors. You want to be able to walk to someone’s desk and ask them, “Can we do that on Android?” And, in this fantasy, […]
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Train Travel – SF to New Orleans
Tucson, Arizona sunset The Route I took the Coast Starlight to Los Angeles, then the Sunset Limited from LA to New Orleans, and then back again 4 days later. A total of 10 days, mostly spent on the train. Coach class to Los Angeles, which was 13 hrs, and then sleeper (smallest/cheapest) to New Orleans, […]
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What Have Hipsters Brought Us?
One could say that baby-boomers brought us Viagra and IRAs, hippies brought us whole grains and hot tubs, and slackers (my generation) brought us the Internet and WFH. For no apparent reason, some of my friends have been dwelling on the question: “What Have Hipstesr Brought Us?” This is the current list: – Berlin Beer […]
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Getting the Piano
Probably one of the hardest things to coordinate was getting the piano out of my mom’s house- which she had finally sold- and up to my apartment. 150 miles, from a large Victorian in Pacific Grove, to a small 1-bedroom in San Francisco. First, I read an email in line at Trader Joe’s from my […]
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Tips on Working With Diverse Teams: Conversation Style
Look how many women are at Google I/O – this is my world. Let’s change it. I was recently on a call with a developer (woman), and a colleague who was her supervisor (male). This colleague is *very* well-intentioned and the last thing he wanted was to alienate, silence, diminish, humiliate, or shame the developer. […]
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Those Anonymous Buses of Digital Workers, and Commutes
You’ve seen them- large, ghost-like double-decker buses, careening around the narrow streets, in the Mission, or North Beach, picking up nicely dressed young people and carting them off to hinterlands of Silicon Valley. Is it a sign of exclusivity, of belonging, being part of a bigger machine, the companies that can afford their own bus […]
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The Weeds of Bay View
I’ve been working in the northeaster corner of the San Francisco neighborhood, the Bay View for a few months now. It’s an geurilla gardener’s delight. There is so much land- unloved, untilled, un-staked out by seemingly anyone. So, if, for example, you are interested in gardening but the closest community garden has a 5-year waiting […]