The Founders of Youtube Deserve the Nobel Prize

Remember these guys? They were front page news on October 9th 2006 when it was announced that Google was buying Youtube for the then princely sum of $1.65 billion. Now they have disappeared into the milieu of The Valley.

Someone needs to dig them out and give them a Nobel Prize. Heres why:

Yes, yes, this video is on Vimeo, not Youtube. But it is a life changer, well worth your 9 minutes right now, even if you've already seen it once. Millions have, though it's hard to know exactly how many because The David Foster Wallace Literary Trust insists it is a copyright violation, so it continues to be taken down and re-posted. (Thats an issue for another day and another post)

• One Video
• Millions of lives changed
• $0 distribution cost to the content producer to put it in front of ∞ eyeballs 
• No editorial barrier to entry

This is the world-changing power that the Youtube revolution brought. 

Ted Talks change lives and make the world a better place. 

Brene Brown - 14 Million Views
Simon Sinek - 16 Million Views
Ron Finley   -  2 Million Views
Dennis Dutton - 1.5 Million Views

In a smaller but more dispersed way Youtube changed the world by empowering us all to do things we'd never attempted before. There are literally hundreds of millions of tutorial videos out there.

And then there is the power to change a single life.

In 2007 Arnel Pineda was literally picked from a life of mediocrity in Manilla to be the lead singer of Journey. All because of a few Youtube videos uploaded by a fan.

"But theres so much time-wasting stuff out there on Youtube"
   Now I'm the first to admit that theres a lot of junk out there, but that doesn't detract from the fact that 0.01% have changed the world immeasurably for the better.  

"But internet video was an idea who's time had come/there are lots of video websites/those guys were just in the right place at the right time"
   Internet video had been around since the mid-nineties, but it was hard to upload, self-hosted, and difficult to watch (remember Real Player?). In fact it was an idea that was overdue, and those who made Youtube did a lot of work to bring the right mix of features and technology together to make internet video work. To the victor go the spoils.

"But they only give out Nobel Prizes for physics, chemistry, medicine, literature and peace"
    True, but over the last 113 years the theme has become that those receiving the prize made achievements in their field which precipitated world changing effects. How 'bout a new prize for those who change the world and help make it a better place? Then we could restore the peace prize to those who work on ending wars, disarmament, and peaceful relations between nations. (If you haven't already noticed, the peace prize has gotten seriously off track in just the past 10 years)

Chad Hurley, Jawed Karim, Steve Chen; you are my laureates.    

Now I'm gonna go watch Katy Perry's Tenage Dream... on Youtube.



       

Perfectionism is Great...

Perfectionism is great...
                                     because I love being me.
                                                                              And I am a perfectionist.

Perfectionism is not always great...
                                     because sometimes it strains my relationship with myself and others.


Today I had plans to meet a friend for lunch. He ran late, I had to get ready for work, normal real-world outcome. However I felt so shamed about the broken plans that I closed myself off and didn't answer his call. He was probably calling to say he was sorry it took so long, I didn't even give him the opportunity to express that.

Today, a co-worker and I were setting up a display. We had different ideas about the proper way to do it. Both ways were totally acceptable. He tried to explain his vision but I went about it my way, and he left in a huff.

I hope that this year is one in which I can overcome the downsides of my perfectionism, while embracing the upsides. I hope to experience a paradigm shift.  

Hoping wont make it so. There is work to be done, I must work to accept my perfectionism for what it is.

A favorite theory of mine of late:

• Step 1: Recognize it
• Step 2: Accept it
• Step 3: Splendid outcomes flow forth

Step 1 requires some careful observation of ones self, but is actually fairly easy. 

Step 2 is difficult and cuts straight to the center

Step 3 requires almost no effort, it is simply the life outcome of acceptance

Step 3 is what you want, its the blank in "I hope ______", but actually it is the emergent result of the process.

Embrace the process, not the goal.

Quake: Preparedness

I wanted to say, 'It was easy, it didn't even take 6 hours!' when I went around waving the banner of Earthquake Awareness Month. Now, having done it, I can say that only one of those is true. It was easy. But it did take time.

What did I do to get prepared? I started by reading information from the Portland Bureau of Emergency Management (PBEM). I found out that I already knew the steps to take, they had seeped in from the zeitgeist:

• Discuss what to do in an emergency with my household
• Pick emergency meeting points: Primary and Secondary
• Build a kit with basics  (H2O, First Aid Kit, Duct Tape, Batteries etc.)

After grasping the concept I called a household meeting, which is always nice to have when you live with roommates. Because they happen so infrequently there are always some things to discuss, but I saved earthquake preparedness for the main course. We all agreed that the house would be the primary meeting point, and that if we were not able to meet at home for some reason, that the secondary meeting point would be at my roommate's business. We decided to split the cost of preparedness supplies. We patted ourselves on the back because our hot water heater was already strapped. We talked about the locations of fire extinguishers, the electrical circuit breaker box, the natural gas shutoff valve and the main water shut off valve. We agreed that shutting off water, gas and electricity would be one of the first things to do after a quake. 

Building the kit was easy, we already had two first aid kits. I checked over the contents and they were both good, so I split the better one off to be part of the kit. At the supermarket I got batteries, duct tape and big plastic trash bags. We already had tape, batteries and bags of course, but the idea behind the kit is to have a separate stash that we don't go to except in an emergency, and to keep it all in one place. No one wants to be hunting through piles of debris to find a roll of tape in an emergency; and of course you'll finally find it only to recall that you had used all but the last yard the week before while fixing a tent. I got a bin at Target, and some reflective markings at The Home Depot. I could have used a box, but I wanted the bin to be waterproof since there will likely be some broken pipes following the earthquake.

I figured that we would need about a gallon of water per day for the 7 day recommend period. 4ppl x 1 Gal/day x 7 days = 28 Gal. We have a dog too, so a few extra gallons for him brings us past 30 gallons. Of course there's always water in the toilet tanks, and the hot water heater, and some bottled and canned beverages lying around but you don't want to include these because they may not be accessible, they're there to push you past the meagerness of a gallon a day existence. I compared the prices of water jugs on Amazon and at the local Army/Navy store. Andy&Bax actually had one type of jug cheaper than Amazon, but the kind I got were definitely the right price. I bought 5 of the 6-gallon jugs to get us to 30 gallons of water. 

One component of the kit was something I hadn't thought about until I walked around Andy&Bax; where to poop? The things they were selling for rafting adventures seemed very expensive for what is in effect a glorified poop bucket. Fortunately a few days later I noticed three blue 5-gallon buckets with matching snap on lids outside the local deli. They smelled like pickles, even after I rinsed them out a bit. Buckets are great to have and after an earthquake we'll be happy to have a few that have the air-tight lids!

The most important piece of kit was the one you cant buy in a store  --  an Emergency Information Sheet. Mine has:

• 2 emergency contact phone numbers for each person
• Appropriate phone numbers for Fire Services, Police, Water Bureau, NW Natural, PGE, PBEM
• The location of the nearest fire stations and Communication Node (Phones wont be much good after The Big One) 
• The locations of meeting places, fire extinguishers and main valves as discussed above 
• Instructions for shutting the gas valve
• Instructions for getting drinking water from a hot water heater tank

The Sheet went on the fridge and inside the lid of the emergency bin. 

After assembling the kit I had to decide where to put everything. I had to think about what things will be like after a MegaQuake: floors could collapse, the house could flood or catch on fire, appliances could be toppled. (more on this in another post) I put the emergency bin in the entryway, that way it will be near the front door for easy accessibility, also passing by it every day reminds you that it's there. Also all my roommates know what it looks like 'cause they pass by it too. The water jugs went in the basement, very near the basement door for access, and next to the hefty tool bench so that if there is a collapse it will bear the brunt preventing the water containers from getting crushed. 

Wow, I know, it sounds like a lot. It probably took more than 12 hours. But each individual part was easy. Tracing the pipes to the main water valve was honestly the hardest part. There are still a few inessential things left, like getting more gauze/bandage and aluminized mylar for the emergency kit. Now that everything is set all I have to do is wait for my phone to beep in 6 months telling me to change the water in the jugs. Hopefully I never have to use any of this, but its reassuring to know its there. 

March Is Oregon Earthquake Awareness Month!

And tsunami awareness month... but theres not much you can do about those.

A brief reminder, we live smack in the middle of the Cascadia Subduction Zone. The subduction event of the Juan de Fuca plate sliding under the North American Plate will trigger a giant tsunami and shake the ground with 8~9 Richter scale force. Thats a pretty serious earthquake, it will be similar to Japan's 2011 Tohoku quake.

Its is apropos to write this post today since my friend posted an article to Fbook this morning warning that based on recent seismic and volcanic activity the time could be soon for 'The Big One'.

The reality is that we have no way to predict when The Big One will hit. It will strike without warning.
What we do know is that the Juan De Fuca plate subducts about every 300 years, the last one was on January 26, 1700... 314 years ago. Scientists estimate that within the next 50 years the risk of a Megathrust Earthquake in Cascadia is between 10% and 40%. I say that based on a certainty of subduction within the next hundred years, the odds of The Big One occurring in any given month are ~1 in 1,500.

For reference: the odds of me winning the Mega Millions jackpot tonight are 1 in 258,890,850
The odds of the quake happening between now (4pm) and the drawing at 8:  1 in       219,145  

So now that you're aware,
what can you do to prepare?

[Dear Reader: I hate to pull the "find out at 11...", but alas I have run out of time before work. I promise to deliver solid measures in the next post. Until then, pray that neither of those extremely unlikely events occur tonight, they would both be hell, and I'm only prepared for one of them]

Its Not A New Album But...

Incorruptible Heart by Lavender Diamond is simply the most beautiful music I have ever listened to. It helps that whoever did the mastering of the album is a master of the trade, tons of high pitched notes and it always sounds beautiful no matter where I listen.

https://soundcloud.com/lavender-diamond

Dried Beans, Not So Hard After All

I've been stumped by dried beans my whole life. I sometimes bought them because they were cheap, but then they would sit in my pantry forever because I wasn't confident enough in what to do with them. 

Eventually they would call out to me and I would fly by a recipe from the back of the packaging or from the internet that promised fully cooked beans in almost no time, just boil, simmer and voilà.
The beans never came out though, they were always undercooked. 

One of the huge benefits of living with roommates is that you can learn their culinary techniques through osmosis. So finally I have learned to master the lowly dried bean thanks to my roommate Dave. 

Step 1: Soak Your Beans
Submerged by a couple inches of water, sat on the counter overnight. By the time I was ready to cook the beans had expanded and absorbed almost all the water.

Step 2: Make Your Base
I wasn't going for creativity on this project so I started out the way I start almost every meal, by chopping onions. 

I diced them fine and sweated them in a mixture of butter and camelina oil in the liner of the crock pot over medium stovetop heat. After 5 or 10 minutes I transferred the liner to the crock-pot. Of course a more imaginative and interesting base would have been cool too, next time maybe.

Step 3: Crock-Pot!
Here is the magic of the whole operation: Low and Slow. I added the beans, water, salt, a few crushed cloves of garlic, a bay leaf, and a smoked uncured pork hock, yum.

I set it to low and walked away.
By the time I got in late that night the whole house smelled delicious and the bean juice was properly dank.

24 hours on the crock-pot and lunch was served.

The beans were velvety through and came with a terrific bean juice that had soaked up that pork flavor.  Honestly they were better than canned.
After lunch I adjusted the seasoning by adding a full packet of Sazon Goya. It is a blend of NaCl and MSG with a few spices. I mean the beans already had plenty of umami from the ham hock, but to me its just not arroz frijol without Sazon Goya.

I broke up the pork so that the meat would come in bite sized chunks mixed in with the beans and then removed the bone.

For safe storage I transferred the beans to a thin-walled steel pot with a lid and placed it in an ice bath in my sink for an hour and a half. This cooled it down quickly so that bacteria had no time to invade. Then it went in the fridge for fine yumminess all week!  


Now if you don't own a slow cooker, you may be wondering how you too can enjoy the miracle of dried beans. If you have an electric stovetop you can use the same methodology with the pot simmering on a low setting (1.5~2 out of 10) for 24 hours. If you have a gas stove, it honestly is not safe to walk away for that long with the stove running... get a slow cooker... or borrow your neighbors.

Burning Man is a Drug... and we're all addicted.

Us burners that is. Addicted to that feeling, we chase it like a crazed junky.

Seriously... Did we forget that there is no playa? That Burning Man is 365 days a year. That we must carry the lessons through our lives every moment, not just once a week or around certain people or in August.
Through Julia Child's eyes, "Life itself is the proper binge."

Sometimes we put The Burn on a pedestal, I'm as guilty as the rest.

The Burn is a tool to teach the lessons to initiates... and a million other things.

But sometimes I feel like we put it on a pedestal... so this is my rant.

Andy Never Forgets and thats why he is awesome ; )

Posts You Wish You Could Smell

4 Yards of freshly chipped wood.

Delivered to our house this morning, Gratis.
The different trees combine to create an intoxicating aroma of Doug Fir, Alder, fresh sap. Earthy and green tones intermingling on the palate.
Thank you Harrity Tree Specialists.

Almost worth it just for the scent, but of course we have bigger plans.

Spring has sprung, this week is proof of that, and March is the month for prepping the soil, but this year we are going with a radical no-till approach. Dave and I were made to watch the documentary Back To Eden last Sunday by Dave's mom Kai.

At first we didn't open ourselves up to the film because of its christian themes. Its amazing how well our generation was trained to lock down and shut off at the slightest hint of christian proselytizing. True open-mindedness is stronger than that reflex and I'm still working on this.

By the end of the film we were both "converted" to Paul Gautschi's no-till, wood chip method. I won't try and summarize the methodology here, thats why theres a whole movie, but I love that it's a plan rooted in long term thinking and sustainability. [I guess thats why the they invented the word permaculture]

Portland Cheap Eats Map 2014

Willamette Week published a thorough guide to cheap restaurants and food carts a few weeks ago. Reading the whole guide was mouthwatering and tiresome and of course resulted in a 'short list' of places to check out that was anything but short. In fact it was so long that I wouldn't have been able to use it at all to go to any of these places.

Curate and Compile [the massive flood of data we are presented every instant]... this is the challenge of the web today.

I wish Willamette Week had made a map/App for their cheap eats guide, as I have seen in other cities, but part of me is glad that they didn't, 'cause I got to do this fun project and make my map. I threw in two of my personal faves, and will probably update it over time.


View Portland Cheap Eats 2014 in a larger map
Fast Food icon is for food carts and places that are mostly take out.

This project already paid off tonight when I was driving in northeast and remembered that I was near a place on the map. Dinner at Angel Food & Fun was terrific. I had actually gotten a burrito there once when I lived in NE and thought it was OK. The pick from the cheap eats guide - Relleno Negro - was astoundingly good. Turkey and pork/egg patty floating in a pool of rich negro sauce, spiced (but not spicy), loaded with umami from the turkey fat, sopped onto the super fresh tortillas, the sauce was the star of the dish.