To Do: Just One Project Today

First quarter, things were so crazy I had gone to blocking off specific days for specific projects. I had gotten into a comfortable rhythm with my schedule and was able to move quite a few things forward quickly.

Second quarter, things lightened up a bit and I went back to blocking off multiple projects per day in 2-3 hour chunks.

Then this week, two deadlines have me – unexpectedly – back to dedicating entire days to a project (and it’s only Tuesday!).

I had forgotten the sense of accomplishment and flow that comes with plowing through one thing, uninterrupted for 6 hours.

So, yes, I’ll be instituting 1 project / day on the calendar moving forward.

This is also consistent with both the Pomodoro Technique and the Cult of Done.

Are Groupon’s Investors Asking for a Public Bailout?

Over the past couple years, I’ve consulting on a number of projects (at least 4) in the same space as Groupon (et al).

This model of providing a heavily discounted coupon on local merchants just doesn’t sit right with me – for two reasons.

  • it applies significant downward pressure on the merchant’s overall prices (even more-so when the coupon distributor takes a double-digit percentage off the top.
  • it sends the wrong type of people (those only looking for a firesale) into the merchants doors.
  • the slashdot-effect this causes it almost always makes the customer-merchant experience less enjoyable.

Groupon’s S-1 filing has exposed the downside remarkable hyper-growth strategy they’ve pursued – $230,000,000 in the red.

With how many competitors on their tail? At least 10 in a mid-sized market like Minneapolis – and that’s not counting the ones that haven’t launched

It’s a hot space. An overheating space running the risk of exhausting everyone – fifteen minutes from now.

Before then, Groupon’s series G investors sure would like to get their return.

Where do you turn when you desperately need a huge infusion of cash just to keep the lights on and you’ve already executed a G-round?
The public market!

And if you’re already a public company?
Congress!

Elsewhere:

“This IPO game isn’t about finding value, it’s about finding a greater fool” – Sucharita Mulpuru

Spring in the Browser

Last autumn, inspired by a conversation with Jamie Thinglestad, I took a couple lunch hours and hacked together a tool that dramatically improves my web browsing experience.

Since then, I hadn’t used it much. Nor have I revisited it to polish it up. Jamie and I have shared it with a small handful of people – maybe you.

This morning, in frustration, I turned it back on. For the rest of the day – it felt like the sun had finally come out after a harsh, bitter winter.

Why Can’t Smart Phones Read?

I’ve been investigating useful uses for QR codes and while I’ve got a couple…they still feel rather flimsy. Like the QR Code is being used as a cute novelty – rather than a way to enhance communication.

QR Codes are inherently temporary (as in, tomorrow a better encoding technology will exist and today’s readers aren’t future proof). People can’t read QR Codes. Only machines can. Text has a much longer lifespan. It’s more portable and more usable. In most cases the QR Code is linking to a URL or a short snippet of text anyway, so…..

Why can’t smartphones just read the text?

Rather than pointing your mobile device’s camera at a fugly barcode – what if you pointed it at a written out URL. The camera recognized it and asked you want you wanted to do w/ it (visit, send, save, copy).

Mobile OCR projects exist:

John’s Phone

To this day – the Palm Treo, for all it’s flaws, was my favorite phone. The team that designed the phone UI – had experience actually making phone calls. Every phone I’ve had since – including my current one – I’m less confident of that.

Instead, I have a pocket-size computer that always promises to improve my every moment – with all sorts of ‘productivity tools’. When what it really wants to do is distract me from being productive. And compel me with how needy it is. Smart phone? – No. Needy phone? yes.

So, I’m always on the look out for bold devices eschewing complexity.

My favorite part:

“The back of the phone features a small opening with an address book and pen – two unique features you can use even when your phone is switched off.”

Unlocked & €70.

Brilliance in what’s missing.

Impression

I had a really fun lunch today at the Bewiched Deli (I highly recommend the roast beef w/ horseradish sandwich).

As we were sharing some of the projects ideas we’re working on he stops the conversation suddenly and commands:

“Stay away from advertising. If I have to beat it into you – I will. Stay. Away. From. Advertising.”

Fermenting: Sour Cider (Mach I)

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I’ve been itching to make a cider. Yet, since it’s off season, I don’t feel like going too crazy. So, I thought I’d make a nice simple recipe. If successful, this should be ready around Thanksgiving. If really successful, it’ll be gone by then.

    Sour Cider (Mach I)

  • 4 gallons Indian Summer apple cider
  • ~2 tbsp Brettanomyces (aka dregs of 2 Orval bottles)

Update 15 June 2011
The Orval bugs are still going strong. A fresh layer of krausen has been ebbing and flowing twice a day for the past week. If/When it stalls out, I’ll bottle.

Update 09 July 2011
Bottled today. FG: 1.004
A little funkiness on the nose, smooth full body. Real easy to drink – even before the carbonation.

Elsewhere:
The Mad Fermentationist’s Sour Cider

Fermenting: Aloysius Amber Rye

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Turns out, I’m addicted to Hopville’s Beer Calculus in much the same way others are addicted to Angry Birds. And the game play (get a group of ingredients to match a beer style) I find just as engaging.

The first of many recipes I’ve been working on is this Amber Rye in dedicated to my grandfather.

    Aloysius Amber Rye

  • 8# Briess Amber LME
  • 2# Rye Malt
  • 1# Crystal 50-60L
  • 8oz Flaked Rye
  • 0.5oz Chinook @ 60
  • 1.5oz Sterling @ 30
  • 1.0oz Ahtanum @ 15
  • Wyeast Headwaters Ale
  • Original Gravity: 1060. (Hopville estimated it @ 1074 – makes me think I could have done a better job of milling the rye.)
  • ABV: 7.5
  • IBU: 43
  • BU/GU: 0.59

This was also my first attempt at a DeathBrewer-style partial mash. It’s just the bridge I was looking for into all grain brewing. The process was straightforward and much more ‘Relax, don’t worry, have a homebrew‘ than many of the other partial mash processes I’d been reading up on (even in step 2 DeathBrewer reminds us to be comfortable).

The fermentation was strong by morning, and now – 24 hrs later is going full bore. I’m thankful this batch is in a 7 gallon brew bucket – rather than a 5 gallon carboy.

Here’s the Aloysius Amber Rye on Hopville

Update 9 July 2011:
F.G: 1.020
Medium brown in color.
Pre-carbonation: Tasting notes – Sharp black pepper & caramally-sweetness right away. Finishes clean.

Success: Actual Size

For the past 8 years, I’ve run my own company. A digital product consulting company. Across those 8 years, I’ve launched 3 products of my own that I’m very proud of – while doing interesting client work, that I’m also very proud of.

I’ve also become a father of 3.

As I write this, my third child is nearly a year old. Experience has told me – a newborn in the house is demanding enough – there’s no reason to purposefully add more. Whether that be the demands of launching a startup or anything else. It just makes everything that much more difficult and everyone that much more unhappy. I want more happiness – not less.

Thankfully – I’m able to work in a way that I’m most productive. On projects I’m interested in and still be there when the 5 yr old finds his first toad in the backyard.

This is why I live in Minnesota.

“If you can build a six-figure lifestyle business, chances are you can build a million-dollar business, but only if you want to. How big you build the business is up to you because you’re calling all the shots, for better or worse.” – Corbett Barr

“When you need thirty people to create a company, venture capital is important. When you need three, it isn’t….we’re three middle-aged fathers…we decided that we wanted to make enough money so that none of us had to change our standard of living.” – Dan Grigsby

“I’ve been doing one kind of startup or another for pretty much my entire adult life, so being an entrepreneur is really the only way that I know how to live and that’s with or without kids.” – Jason Roberts