Tag Archives: Commentary

Proximity to Greatness = Effective!

I was fortunate enough to attend a Social Media Breakfast at which the wonderful Julia Rosien spoke about SEO (Search Engine Optimization) and general social media presence for businesses. Even though I’m
not a start-up, or a business, or even a small business, there was one point in her talk where a light bulb went off in my head. It was not so much a “Eureka!” as it was an “Ah ha!” (there’s a difference).  It was the moment where I finally realized exactly what problem I was trying to solve.

Part of my recent foray into the social media world is to network,  be more involved, and better enjoy and appreciate my community and the people within it.  In addition to that, I’ve been trying to establish (for lack of a better phrase) a fan base. A readership, if you will.

You see, there are stories I want to tell, and as much as I say I would get all the satisfaction I require out of simply writing them down, I know that’s not true. I want people to read them, and the best way I can come up with for getting someone to read something you’ve written is write something that they actually want to read.

My “Ah ha!” moment came during Julia’s talk when she said the easiest thing to do for a small business with a website was to add a search bar and keep track of what people were searching for.

That statement, along with the feedback from my last post, convinced me that I would continue to blog about anything and everything I wanted to, but I would hereinafter do it with my senses more aware of what was going on around me.  Further to that, it brought be back to a conversation I had with a good friend of mine about a screenplay I was writing.

He asked me why I wasn’t writing it as a book and I didn’t have a good answer. It’s just always been a movie to me. Every story I have ever told has been a movie (in my mind at least). Any story I would ever want to tell would be a movie.  Only it’s not a movie. That’s not what the search box in my brain is telling me. It’s a book. And now that I know that much, so much more is becoming clear. Ideas and character development and plot points are pouring out of me like some literary keg with a broken tap.

So what does this have to do with proximity to greatness? Well, I know I am writing quite the love story about Twitter lately, but it was once again the jumping off point for me (and now I’m starting to recognize a trend).

Twitter allows me to completely immerse myself with wonderfully interesting and amazing people who are willing to share their thoughts and ideas and feedback candidly and honestly.  Twitter can be remarkably useful, if you choose to use it to accomplish something useful.

In order for me to do this I have uncovered some very important rules:

  1. Pay attention
  2. Go outside your comfort zone
  3. Allow yourself to be wrong
  4. Allow others to be right
  5. Allow yourself to be heard
  6. Allow others to be heard first

When I got to sit in a room with a hundred people from Twitter you could just sense that there were more ideas than people sitting there with you. It was as if just being around awesome people allowed all kinds of ideas to form. Ideas aren’t just born out of the ether though, not even the ones accompanied by a “Eureka!”

I would argue that there are very few ideas that live within a single mind that ever make it out into the world. Certainly the ones that do are memorable – the heliocentric model of the solar system and E=MC² are two that immediately come to mind – but even both of those needed a little help from others before making their impact. They needed to be challenged and shared with a larger community before they would realize their full potential.

The seeds for a good many ideas – the good ones at least – are often planted deep within the mind, and then cultivated as their host explores and interacts with the world and people around them. It can hardly be considered a surprise when really great ideas come from people who not only are great or aspire to be great, but who also surround themselves with greatness.

Twitter isn’t just mindless chatter. Facebook isn’t just birthday reminders and noticing how you’ve aged way better than many of your high school friends. Active listening on social media might just be the most important skill you can acquire. Your phones aren’t smart – you are. So plant your idea and let it take root. Give it food and nurturing to help it evolve. Keep a close eye on it, pay attention, and stay engaged.

If all else fails hunt it down ruthlessly and don’t give up. Greatness will be yours.

More Than Tweets the Eye

Some people don’t “get” Twitter, which is understandable if you’ve only ever scratched the surface. I have been on Twitter since sometime in 2009, and it wasn’t until recently that I started becoming more active, and it wasn’t until very recently that I started to see its real value.  I can honestly say I this point that Twitter is improving the quality of my life, and I can point to two key moments that opened my eyes to this.

I’m not being overly dramatic just to appease my readership (all 7 of you!) either. Read this short article on ways Twitter can change your life. It may over state some of the claims but the key message behind each one is true. What it fails to outline however is that if you are planning on using Twitter for more than just random updates about friends’ lunches or celebrity gossip then you’ve got to use Twitter just like you would any other tool.

The wonderful Julia Rosien of Social North put together this quick read. It begins, “Whether it’s a hammer or Twitter, a tool is only as good as the person wielding it.” I’ll take this a step further and suggest that any tool, used for its intended purpose, has the potential to be a very valuable tool. Sure, a pocket knife can open a can of beans, but it’s a much less useful pocket knife if the blade is all dull and bent and you’re sporting a 2 inch gash because the bean juice got on your hand and the knife slipped and now the helpful nurse in the ER is asking you, “Why not just use a can opener?“.  Why not indeed.

More to the point (and hopefully getting us closer to those two eye opening Twitter moments) Twitter users are now using the tool in remarkable ways, 140 characters at a time, FOR FREE. That’s right. Free. Twitter does not charge you to advertise, promote, share, recommend, endorse, or spam, though that last one will get you kicked off (and rightfully so). I don’t know too many other services out there that have the potential to capture such a globally diverse audience, in real time, with no charge.

Celebrities such as Kevin Smith have actually started using Twitter to promote their brand and business. Hell, Kev’s gone a step further and is practically pinning the hopes of his latest movie on word of mouth  advertising, and Twitter was his jumping off point. With over 1.8 million followers on Twitter and a flick that’s looking like it will be in the black before it’s even released it’s hard to argue against the value of the tweet.

It is really just a question of knowing what problem you’re trying to solve:

  • How can I reach a larger, more diverse audience?
  • How can I get immediate feedback on an idea?
  • How can I become more involved with my community?
  • How do I get more than 7 people reading my blog?

My coming out party on Twitter started when I saw this tweet.  It was from a friend of mine that I haven’t been seeing enough of. He works hard and has a family, I’m lazy and have a family. Life just gets in the way sometimes, but after reading about his awesome news I ran straight out and joined the celebration, and you know what? I met some truly amazing people. Friends of friends, and interesting and remarkable people right in my own backyard: Mike, Ben, Melanie, just to name a few.

That led to me hearing about a scotch tasting at the KW Art Gallery where I got to meet Robb, Mark, and Dave, which was followed up by an invite (sent out via Twitter) to Start Up Drinks Waterloo where I had some great conversations with Matt “Dennick” about Twitter as well as good talks with Craig and Tera (who shares my crazy obsession with getting a Twitter @ mention. It’s like crack, I tells ya).  Soon I’ll be off to the Social Media Breakfast and then Ignite Waterloo.

To think this all started with one Tweet.

The other defining moment for me came when I spent a couple weeks putting together a song using some online music creating software. I wrote a 54 second instrumental in the hopes that Kevin Smith would “buy” it and use it for one of his podcast introductions. I tweeted him this, and all he did was tweet this a few minutes later, and within a half hour of me posting the blog entry I 500 hits and the song had over 200 plays. Next thing I knew I was exchanging emails with Jordan Monsanto. Awesomely surreal.  The whole experience showed me that Twitter in the hands of the right people can be a powerful tool indeed.

So whatever problem you’re trying to solve, or whatever it is you’re looking for, all I can say is that Twitter can help. Identify the problem you want to solve, read up on how other people are using Twitter to solve similar problems, and get on there and start getting engaged.  Well, not necessarily THIS type of engaged.  I can think of much better ways to propose, though I do highly recommend sharing the good news on Twitter afterwards.

Am I the only one who thinks this is wrong?

Well unless something outrageous happens in the next 4 years there will not be many more political posts. Thanks to everyone who stopped by before, during, and after the election.

This post is not political (though some might categorize it as such). It deals with what I think are completely insane people, some of whom happen to turn a bill into law in the United States of America.

I was born and raised a stone’s throw from Toronto, Ontario, Canada, and I can honestly say that I know of very few people with an unhealthy obsession for firearms. I know plenty of folks with long guns suitable for hunting (deer, moose, etc…). But a hand gun? Not so much. Part of this reason – and I’m going out on a limb to say it’s probably an extremely large part – is that they are ILLEGAL. There are cases where you can get one legally (for example, collecting) but chances are if you see someone (that’s not in law enforcement) in Canada with a hand gun, then you’re probably best to get your butt somewhere else – quickly.

Now for our neighbours to the south there is the infamous second amendment to the constitution. In a nutshell it gives Americans the right to bear arms. There is considerable debate that occurs between the advocates of this constitutional right and those opposed to it, but I don’t want to get into that here. What I do want to get is a sense for whether or not anyone else out there thinks the following is completely wrong:

Utah and Arizona have state firearms.

That’s right, along with a state motto (“Industry”), bird (California gull), flower (sego lily), nickname (“the beehive state”), tree (blue spruce), gem (topaz), and a whole host of other things, Utah has a state firearm (M1911 pistol).

Source: Wikipedia

Immediately to the south of Utah, in Arizona, they have a motto (“God Enriches”), bird (cactus wren), flower (saguaro cactus blossom), nickname (“the grand canyon state”), tree (palo verde), gem (turquoise), a whole host of other things, and a state firearm (Colt Single Action Army, a.k.a Colt 45).

Source: Wikipedia

In fact, there was a race between the two states to see who would get the “honor” of becoming the first state to pass into law the naming of a state firearm. Utah won, but Arizona still pressed on. Even after 13 people were wounded (including a congresswoman), and 6 people were killed (including a child) in January they passed into law the name of a state firearm with the nickname “peacemaker” – in April. I wonder if the congresswoman thinks about rescinding that law as she rehabilitates.

The whole thing just has me at a loss for words (present post excepted I suppose). I read about the tragedy in Arizona and then I read about a toddler getting his hands on a loaded gun and accidentally killing his brother and then I think about the tens of thousands of people murdered every year (including the 12,632 in 2007 alone) and I can’t help but wonder what having a state firearm is saying to the families of all those victims. “God bless America?”

Anyone Else Feel Like This?

Monday night I went to bed later than usual, with this feeling that I had just left a teenage boy alone for the weekend, with my keys to the car, my credit card, and the liquor cabinet unlocked. 

What could possibly go wrong? 

I could come back on Sunday night and find the car in the driveway, the keys on the table, the floors swept, and the boy finishing up his homework. However, it’s just as likely I come home and half my house is blown to smithereens, the boy, my car, and my credit card are nowhere to be found, and the cops are on the front lawn taking statements from the neighbours.

Welcome to the moments after Canada’s latest federal election.

As you read this, there are literally tens of thousands of people smirking in their [right] wing back chairs dismissing more than 60% of the voting population with a casual wave of the hand. “That will be all now. Thank you, and good night. Gladly go fuck yourselves for 4 years“. Some other comments include, “You lost. Get over it” and “It’s called democracy”. Nice touch with that last one (democracy should be in quotes though).

I, for one, was not surprised in the least. If you follow me on Twitter (@andrewbutters) you may recall this tweet.

“It’s all about who wants it more. Is the desire to not lose greater than the desire to win? #elxn41 #NHLPlayoffs”

What many people not paying attention may have missed was the #elxn41 hashtag. This election, much like many of the great hockey games played in the NHL playoffs, was just as much determined by the team with the most to lose – and their desire to not lose it – as it was by the skill and principles and desire to win for the team desperately trying to avoid the dreaded “Participant” ribbon.

The Conservatives and their faithful, with everything to lose, would rather die than let the Liberals (or anyone else) rule the house. The left was well…left over. Bickering with themselves and trying to figure a way to just get their toe back in the door and working the mathematical models like some freaky autistic savant. “Majority is 155 seats. Definitely 155. Gotta win Southern Ontario and Quebec to prevent a Tory Majority. Definitely.”

After the votes were counted I was disenchanted with the result (see previous post), but I was not entirely shocked either. Anyone who asked me to predict the outcome would have received a “strong minority or majority Conservative parliament” response. They wanted it more, they were more organized, and they got the right people off their asses and out voting – for them. Which is more than we can say for just about everyone else with the exception of Quebec. The rest of the country didn’t want it badly enough (which is common), or didn’t think it was possible (which is understandable), or just didn’t care (which is sad).

Silver lining time.

Those of us not thrilled with the result have a good 4 years to figure out how to beat the system.

I think this guy summed it up really well. Harper has one chance to not screw this up. The system is broken and now we’ve got 4 years to figure out how to work around it. A party that receives 9% less of the popular vote received almost 50% less representation. The Conservatives were in the same boat not too long ago and they united their side of the political spectrum and now one of theirs – the rightest of the right wing even – is Prime Minister. Has been for 5 years and is safe for another 4.

Some options for the rest are to unite the left or find away to turn 15-20% of Conservative voters that the colour orange is that much better than blue. There may be other options, but don’t count on electoral reform being one of them. The only thing in that area that we’re going to see different is a possibly title change from Prime Minister to Supreme Overlord.

The Bloc is gone!

They lost official party status by dropping down to only 4 seats and there are a TON of Canadians that are especially thrilled with this. Don’t get too excited though, the NDP (who replaced the lions share of the Bloc incumbents) has the same amount of time with Quebec as Harper has with the entire nation. There is some hope that the Bloc is gone for good though. Several of their newly elected Memebers of Parliament are first timers and are so young they can’t legally drink in the US or even rent a car. When you kick someone out who has been representing you for 20 years and replace them with a bunch of newbies that’s sending a message. Hell, they even elected a non-French speaking person who ran their campaign while on a trip to Las Vegas! Now that’s REALLY sending a message.

A member of the Green Party was elected!

One really good thing was that Elizabeth May showed that with a little forethought and a bit of help from people who know how to work the system that you can accomplish something remarkable. Okay, maybe not remarkable, but still quite good. Parliament will be better with her in it.

So, in summary, we have:
  • a government run by a guy who has done all this 
  • 40% of all those who voted supporting him
  • 40% of the voting population still finding something better to do on election day
  • a severely wounded Liberal party
  • an extreme left wing opposition with more than double their previous best representation
  • the (almost) birth of an environmental social conscience in Canadian parliament
  • the (almost) death of the most polarizing party of the past 2 decades.
And six weeks ago people thought that this election was going to be boring.

Canada Votes 2011 #3 – What Canada Do YOU Want to Live In?

If you’ve used Vote Compass like I have you’ll see where you sit on the political grid (or where the CBC thinks you should sit). I sit smack dab in the middle. Pretty much equidistant from both the Conservatives (CPC) and the rest (ABC: Anything But Conservative). In some ways I appreciate and (somewhat) benefit from one side, and in different ways I appreciate and (somewhat) respect the other.

Sadly, the first-past-the-post system we have in place at the moment pretty much guarantees that it doesn’t matter what I do. Every vote is counted, but not every one matters, and even that’s questionable. Call me crazy though, but I think regardless of the party in power most Canadians will get screwed over on the actual issues at one point or another.

With the election is less than 3 days away I have to say I’m genuinely conflicted. Up to this point I’ve tried very hard to keep my political cards close to my chest (I’m more than happy discussing certain issues, or democracy in general with anyone, but discussing politics? Not so much). However, with voting day looming it’s time I figured it out. Here’s how I feel about it, and I’m hoping that there are comments coming from the 8 people that read this.

For many people in the country this election is a two horse race between the CBC and ABC (minus the Greens). What makes this tricky is that even a majority ABC will result in a minority CPC House of Commons. So, either the ABC is too fractured or the electoral system in place is horribly broken. I believe it’s a little from column ‘A’ and a little from column ‘B’. A separatist Bloc party getting in the way does not help matters either, but that’s a rant for another day.

I happen to be in a riding that, after the Liberal plummet, switched over to the Conservatives and hasn’t looked back. It’s not even close actually (last election it’s one of the few ridings where the winner garnered about 50% of the votes, and the projection for this year seems to indicate more of the same). Apparently the sponsorship “scandal” was too much for this lot, and a united right wing seemed to be a favourable alternative.

So the conflicting part of this for me is that for a couple years (since I moved back to this region) I have been seeing the benefits of the CPC right in my backyard and there are many little things that give me hope that my local candidate speaks loud and clear for the people that voted for him. I would love for these things to continue as they are now (or in some similar and just as noticeable way), but the problem is that a CPC government does not, for me at least, represent what I think a Canadian government should be.

I recently read this article by Margaret Atwood. Having grown up in Canada her stuff is pretty much mandatory reading from birth. Generally speaking I have mixed opinions on her work, but this article really resonated as I read it. She writes about the kind of country she would like to live in and she’s voting based on which party she thinks would bring those qualities to the forefront. For the undecided this is a great way to go about it, and let’s face it folks, the people who knew who they were voting for the instant the election was called aren’t changing their minds now.
I’ve been leaning one particular direction but keeping an open mind, paying attention and reading articles from a variety of sources and forming an opinion based on what matters to me. Much like Ms. Atwood I have my own paper napkin and here it is (in no particular order):
  • Honest
  • Hard working
  • Approachable
  • Transparent
  • Empathetic
  • Innovative
  • Creative

Sadly, I would argue that at any given moment neither the CPC nor any part the ABC simultaneously exhibit all of these traits. It is also my honest opinion that the CPC doesn’t exhibit any of them – and they never will – and what’s worse is I don’t think they ever want to.

What Canada do YOU want to live in?

(Head) Shot Across the Bow

Head shots and player safety are hot topics when it comes to hockey these days. A simple Google search of “nhl headshots” yields 250,000 results. GM’s are talking, owners are writing angry letters to the league, and sponsors and fans are talking about it more than ever. I wonder though if the collective bark is worse than the bite.  

What’s it going to take?

Let us go back to another point in time when mild mannered Canadians went berserk… When oil prices where on the rise and the price of gas in Canada was creeping towards 70 cents a litre. We all cried, “outrage and collusion!”, and demanded an immediate government investigation. People were paying for gas with bags of pennies in protest, perhaps forgetting that your minimum wage gas jockey is probably the furthest person from the problem, and in most cases higher than Charlie Sheen.

So we got our inquiry, and do you know what it uncovered? Nothing! There was no funny business going on, and certainly not any collusion. It was all just a classic example of good ol’ fashioned supply and demand. The same supply that also happens to demand that gas prices go up on every long weekend, and go up when current oil prices go up (even though when the oil used to make the gas in the pumps it was bought at the market rates from months before), and go up on days that end in “y”, and go slightly down when the market is flat and people are generally more concerned about something else.

You’d expect a bit more outrage. At least I expected it, but you know what happened? Nothing! People kind of grumbled and went on with their day and continued to take abuse in areas where the sun doth not shine. I always thought it was because we all needed to keep spending money on gas (what the hell were we supposed to do, walk?) but there was clearly more at play than simple supply and demand. Canada has a shit-ton of oil, so high oil prices are kind of to our advantage. Plus, the government taxes the living hell out of consumer transportation petroleum so as long as we’re buying it they’re making money. Lots of money. I mean lots.

Fast forward from that time to the present day and take a closer look at another Canadian controversy, Internet usage based billing (UBB).

There has been much hullabaloo here over a recent decision by the CRTC that would essentially allow the backbone provider of the Internet impose usage based billing, effectively eliminating any unlimited download internet accounts, and allowing them to charge all other Internet providers and individuals exorbitant fees based on per gigabyte use. Funny how at the heart of all this, when people are starting to download and stream more movies and TV shows, the very same company is desperately trying to sell you satellite TV. You see what’s going on here? One way or another Canadians are taking it in places they don’t want it – and here’s a hint – the sun doth not shine there either.

Since all the DSL internet providers must use Ma Bell’s infrastructure they are at their mercy when it comes to fees – something the Canadian government and the CRTC is supposed to keep an eye on so that Bell doesn’t get out of line (it’s what Canadians get for having a single company lay the only wire in the ground 100 years ago). The recent decision meant that all other providers would be charged based on gigabyte usage, effectively allowing Bell Canada to run amok – while still gouging consumers for all their other services. Once this decision was made public Canadians did something for which they’re not quite known…

They went bat-shit crazy.

With the exception of the outward display of senseless looting and violence exhibited during the G20, this was a hissy fit of historical proportions. The strange thing about this is that even though there wasn’t a massive threat to stop using services or somehow hurt company profits the decision was still overturned by the government and they are being forced to go back and come up with something a bit more palatable. But how? I’ll tell you how… 

Canadians went to their politicians and yelled and screamed and put reams and reams of paper and petitions in front of their members of parliament. Two things are important here:
  1. Canada is run by a minority government. There are more opposed to this government than those in support and if only they had a common issue to form their rally cry around they could really make some noise heading into an election. Also, if the ruling government didn’t listen to reason they’d be crucified in the media, so they needed to at least feign interest and show that they were in touch with the average Canadian.

  2. Politicians were forced to work. If it’s one thing I know about politicians it’s they really don’t like to do much more work than necessary, and piles of paperwork streaming in, and screaming constituents knocking on their doors were starting to cramp their cushy day jobs.
So, the only way to get everything back to normal was for the government to step in and overturn the decision. Everyone wins in point #1 (or everyone involved at least thinks they’ve won), and it also makes the headache of #2 go away. Say what you want, but I think a well manipulated minority government can be a great way to get stuff done, and whether it was known at the time or not Canadians found the straw that broke the camel’s back. Something they failed to accomplish back when they started taking out second mortgages to put gas in the car.

Now let’s go back to the issue of headshots and player safety in the NHL. Historically, it has taken a serious event (death or near death) for any major change in hockey to be adopted. It took a girl in the stands dying from getting hit in the head with the puck before they put in nets above the glass. Magnetic or flexible post holders were introduced only after countless players were seriously injured and/or had careers come to an end after being wrapped around the iron bars of the net.

So short of something tragic happening on the ice, what’s it going to take? We’ve got sponsors (Air Canada and Via Rail) writing letters and tossing around idle threats, owners writing letters and blogging (blogging!), and let’s not forget the NHL meetings where there is lots of talk, and committees, and promises to book a meeting about sitting down to possibly discuss something.

It’s going to take money, or rather a lack of it. 

Money makes the world go ’round, and that is something that should be a factor in every decision an NHL sponsor or fan makes. Is going to see an NHL hockey game worth it? Is putting up sponsorship dollars worth it? Sponsors dropped Tiger Woods like a bad habit so their images would not be tarnished, and every NHL sponsor should take a long hard look at whether or not the NHL and the game of hockey best represents their image.  The fans in Long Island have been making that value-based decision all season and the Islanders have their ledgers filled with red ink to show for it. 

I want someone to ask Islanders owner Charles Wang and GM Garth Snow, “If the NHL proposed a stiffer headshot penalty and it guaranteed you 2000 more seats were filled every game, would you vote in favour of it?”

The team on the ice has everything to do with business. The team on the ice is put together by General Managers who are at the mercy of fiscally concerned owners trying to maximize ticket sales while minimizing costs. Brian Burke is told by MLSE how much rope he has to work with to build a team. If it results in winning, then great. If not, MLSE has already done the arithmetic and ensured that the Ontario Teachers Pension Plan will see their stock dividends just as promised, and all of this appears to be OK because there seems to be enough sponsorship and corporate support and people content to shell out for tickets and merchandise no matter what.

The only way to get head-shots and player safety addressed any quicker than the existing glacial pace is for:

  • sponsors to stop sponsoring; 
  • companies to stop filling corporate boxes and season seats; and 
  • fans to stay home and read a book instead

The Big Idea

So lately I’ve been reading a lot of screenplays lately (but always keep going back to Pulp Fiction. Man, what a great flick that is – to read or to watch), and listening to audio books on how to write screenplays, and reading books on how to write screenplays. What I haven’t been doing enough of is actually writing my screenplay. Hmmm…

As it turns out there’s a lot of reading and research and good old fashioned learning that you need to commit yourself to before you can just bang out the next Oscar winner. As it stands, I’m in the middle of writing the treatment for my idea (not the big one, that’s coming soon) and almost have enough of the major action firmed up to the point where I can lay out some scenes and get Act 1 on its way.

All that is considerably less exciting than the other project I have just undertaken. Suffice it to say that it’s the single most ambitious thing I have ever attempted in my whole life (and I studied Applied Physics at the University of Waterloo!)

The problem with The Big Idea is I can’t share it with the one person that would appreciate and support the most. Why? Because the end result of this project is for her, and I want it to be a surprise. She’s also my biggest and toughest critic, and she’s smart as hell. Both qualities that would come in really handy when trying to pull this off.

To give those of you that don’t know her (or me), her brother died on my birthday in March, she has a birthday in August, our anniversary is in early November, and after more than 11 years of marriage I still really love her. That should at least provide some sort of idea as to why I’m doing this (for the less quick: birthday, memorial, anniversary, just because I love her).

I can only be cryptic on this blog on the off chance she’s one of the 3 people reading it, but soon I will have a separate website up with a giant splash page that reads something like “IF YOU ARE MY WIFE, PLEASE LEAVE. IT’S A SURPRISE. TRUST ME. If you are not my wife, then please continue. Seriously Jodi, just close the browser, you’ll spoil all the fun.”

So the fun begins. Actually, it began yesterday, and the idea was conceived over the Christmas holidays (I sent out a quick tweet about that. Follow me @PotatoChipMath). I will post a link to the site when it’s up and you can go there for all the Big Idea progress. I’ve already pitched this to a few people (friends and other likely more objective acquaintances) and the response has been overwhelmingly positive. One guy even jumped at the chance to be involved in any way. Very cool.

It’s going to be LEGEN…. wait for it… DARY!

Brick Walls, New Beginnings

“Is it possible that there are no coincidences?”
Signs, 2002

An excellent question, and one that I am beginning to think can be answered in the affirmative.  I would assert that not only is it possible, that it is entirely probable.  How am I so sure?  Another good question, and one whose answer relies more on a gut feel than empirical fact.  A gut feel, and some happenings that would otherwise be dismissed as benign, had I not been paying attention.  They are:

  • Reading an article written by sports columnist Bob McKenzie
  • Befriending an old public school acquaintance on Facebook
  • Watching Kevin Smith perform at Kitchener’s Centre in the Square
  • Reading a Chazz Writes blog post written after he saw that same Kevin Smith show in Kitchener
  • A friend and co-worker from another lifetime offers to do me a favour

“The brick walls are there to let us show how badly we want something”
– Randy Pausch, Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams

I stumbled upon the above YouTube video in one of the most unlikely ways, but given that hindsight has a tendency to be 20/20 maybe it wasn’t so unlikely after all.

I was reading one of my favourite sports columnists Bob McKenzie about the non-passing of the hockey legend Pat Burns.  Typically when a person continues to live on day after day this isn’t column-worthy material, but this case was unique.  The media had falsely reported that Pat Burns had finally succumbed to cancer – again.  That was a whole story unto itself, and Bob did a remarkable job of spinning the tale, but as he did he mentioned Randy Pausch’s lecture and trusting that Mr. McKenzie would not lead me astray I watched it.  I watched it in complete awe, and one particular moment jumped right out of the screen at me.  It was the moment where he emphasized the quote above and added, “(Because) the brick walls are there to stop the people who don’t want it badly enough”.

The next day I wrote that quote on my white board at work.  Begging people to ask me of its origin just so I could point them to Randy’s lecture and hope that they ask themselves what it is they want so badly that they would tear down a brick wall.

I’ve been flirting with the idea of writing a proper story for quite a while but years and years have passed and I keep staring at the wall.

“It’s been great for me and essentially, I am the audience”
– Billie Mintz

I then befriended an old school acquaintance on Facebook, Billie Mintz.  When I was in grade 3 Billie kicked my Batman lunch box down the sidewalk.  He’s an artist now, composing music, writing commercials, shooting movies – and he’s really damn good.

I wrote a fake commercial once and even got some rough footage shot with the help of a friend but I never edited the raw footage and the files are who-knows-where on my computer now.  That was years ago, and I keep staring at the wall.

“Go where the puck is going to be”
– Walter Gretzky (father of Wayne), by way of Kevin Smith

I am a big Wayne Gretzky fan.  I consider him to be the greatest hockey player of all time. and as it turns out, I am not alone in my admiration for Wayne.

My wife was starting out the window at work one day and over the shoulder of her co-worker she sees a sign for a Kevin Smith appearance at Kitchener’s Centre in the Square (smodcast episode #144 recaps his gig).  She calls me immediately and within minutes I had secured seats for the Q&A session to take place two days before our 11th anniversary.  Now poop jokes aren’t exactly on the list of anniversary presents (possibly for something like the 61st, but certainly not the 11th), but you can’t go wrong with laughter to bring a couple closer together, and there was definitely lots of laughter.

I have been a Kevin Smith fan since Clerks, and while I am by no stretch of the imagination a Die Hard fan (pseudo inside joke there for anyone at the show), I do keep up on his career, and genuinely admire and respect how he has built his brand – and done so on his own terms.  Who else could make a movie and pay for it entirely on credit cards?  Kevin Fucking Smith.  That’s who.

I used to write content for a trivia-based video game. I used to keep a notebook with all my ideas in it.  I took a screen writing course once and even mapped out a few rough ideas.  I own two books on screen writing by Syd Field, both of which are covered in dust.  On occasion I’ll stare at them just sitting there on the wall.

“Develop your craft and work on your dream”
Robert Chute

Until a few minutes ago I don’t even know this guy’s name, only that he did a blog post after seeing the same Kevin Smith show that I did and his Twitter account is @RChazzChute – and he’s a writer.  His post outlines some of the many things he took away from the show and was somewhat amazed that Robert wrote about many of the same thoughts that had popped into my head throughout the course of the show and in the hours and days that followed.

Kevin replied to Robert’s post and that spawned a follow-up post in which he writes, “An Evening with Kevin Smith really was an eye-opener and course correction for me and I’m already working away on that. (I hope some of you stick around or swing by once in a while to see my progress.)”  This is significant to me because those could have easily been my words had I not been stuck on my couch, sitting there, passive…. staring at the wall.

“If you ever want me to read something, just let me know”
– A Friend

Robert also writes in his Kevin Smith retrospective, “Don’t give the critics too much credit, especially when they make you feel bad about yourself or decrease art’s productivity.” and “Make friends”.

A former colleague and friend just got back from a month-long vacation to Australia.  We were catching up on Facebook, chatting away when I asked her, “So now what?”  She’s in-between jobs, getting married soon, and selling a house.  She’s thinking about moving to France, which is not surprising as she’s always struck me as someone who follows her dreams and is undaunted by the obstructions life can sometimes put in your way.

She asked me if I had done any more writing and I said, “Not really, but I’m thinking about it”, and I had every intention of telling her the story you have just read, but I had to go read books to my wonderful daughter and I didn’t get the chance.  Before I signed off though she managed to type, “If you ever want me to read something, just let me know”.

“How’s your writing going?”
– Another Friend

A dinner with some long-time friends happened yesterday and right before dessert, that’s what Trevor asked me.  I gave him the Cole’s Notes version of the Kevin Smith show and the subsequent blog post by Robert.

Today I dusted off Syd Field’s “The Foundations of Screenwriting“, found my old ideas book, ignored the TV shows recorded on my DVR, created a new Twitter account (@potatochipmath), email address (potatochipmath@gmail.com), found a quiet spot in the basement, and wrote this.

Wall?  What wall?

Allergy Update #2

OK, so I’m back with another update on the Registered Holistic Allergist and related treatment.  I went back for another reversal, this time for dust and pets and other dirt-type things (last time we reversed a whole whack of grasses pollens and such).  To top it all off I brought my deathly-allergic-to-peanuts son with me.

We get the son out of the way as it was his first visit.  To say that this was the moment I really started to think “this is total horse shit” is a gross understatement.

First, let’s go over The Test:

Place your thumb and ring finger on your dominant hand together tip to tip.  Have the allergist then try to pull your fingers apart.  If this is difficult, then everything is as expected.  Now do this with your hand palm down on the top of your head.  You should get the same result as with no hand on your head.  Oh yeah by the way, you can’t have anything in your pockets, no cell phone or iPod nearby, and for crying out loud don’t cross your legs.  OK, now flip your hand over so the palm is up and the back of your hand is touching the top of your head.  Apparently this draws “energy” away from your other arm and makes it easier to pull your fingers apart.  That’s the baseline.  I shit you not.  Now, holding your fingers together as mentioned, hold up a vile of “energy” (that represents whatever it is you’re allergic to, or having problems with) to your forearm that’s attached to the hand with the fingers together.  If it’s easy to pull your fingers apart, your sensitive/allergic to it.  The easier it is, the more sensitive or allergic you are. If it’s difficult (like it was with palm down on your head or no hand on your head at all), then you’re good.  Repeat for a few hundred things.

Don’t ask me how they mirror the “energy” for all this stuff.  She was unable to tell me how it works, only that they order the vials and they come labeled: ragweed, grass, insomnia (yes, they have one for this), stress (yes, this too), etc…

So because my son is so small and just a kid they do the test with me as the proxy.  I hold his right hand with my left hand and hold my finger tips together (thumb to ring finger) and he holds up a vial to his neck (not sure why.  I asked and she told me it was because it was a location central to his energy or some crap like that).  Then they do the test on me.

Here’s the best part: Their test came back with him only slightly allergic to peanut and peanut products.  In fact, it barely registered.  It was awesome.  They had absolutely no explanation for it.  Keep in mind that I have personally called an ambulance for my son as I watched his face swell up like a balloon after he simply touched peanut putter to his face.  Keep in mind that I had a scratch test done for nuts and other food products done and peanuts reacted so severely that the doctor had a script for an Epi Pen in my hand before he was done testing the kid for other stuff.  So, for the holistic allergist to come up with the result they came up with, well let’s just say I’m leaning toward this being nonsense at best and a freaking swindle at worst.

Now this is where I went from simply skeptical to downright offended that they described this as Science in my presence (and on their website).  You see, I had a loonie in my pocket (that’s a dollar coin for you non-Canadians out there) and my swipe card from work on my belt AND my son was wearing his Epi Pen pouch around his waist.  So, all that was affecting the energy and that’s why the result was off.  So, I took care of all these energy bungling things and had them do the test over again.  Same result.  No explanation.  Anyhow, we continued because we were already there and it was a bugger of a drive out.  Of course, if this does happen to work I will care less how or why it works and just be thankful it does (don’t look a gift horse in the mouth and all that jazz).

But what bugged me the most was that any result that was expected was irrefutable proof that it worked but every result that was not expected was explained away with some lame ass excuse, and that’s NOT science.  Science is a special discipline in that regardless of the results, all of them count.  A result that disproves your hypothesis is just as valid (most of the time more valid) as one that proves it, and as a scientist you have the obligation to count ALL the results, regardless of how right or wrong they make you look.

At any rate, the kid gets his treatment (peanut allergy reversal #1 of 4) and I get “re-tested” for a few things and then have my reversal done.  But then, I start to begin to fight a cold, and it was hard to tell if I’m sneezing and have a scratchy throat because of my allergies or because of that.  Felt like a little bit of both…

Potato Chip Update!

Quick update on my potato chip situation.  The math just got better!!

The discount blue bag chips are back to their regular 2 for $5 price and my reliable favourites have now dropped in price by $0.70 now making them only $0.50 more than the cheap ones – and totally worth every penny.

I am pleased.