The Writing on the Wall (Sep 21 to Sep 22)

These are some posts I found interesting over the last few days.

( Sep 21 through Sep 22 )

• "Thought helmets" could enable voiceless troop communication -
• Google Books Now Embeddable [Google] -
• The 2009 Compact Calendar Now Available [Printables] -

  
  Designer David Seah has updated his Compact Calendar spreadsheet for 2009 (already!). Download this excellent "candy bar of time" printable calendar for a quick, consolidated view of the entire year with U.S. holidays built right in. I've been using the 2008 version to track a long-term project that needs work every day, and it's a fabulous little tool for just X'ing off days as you go in a linear fashion. The 2009 Compact Calendar is a free download, and the template should work in just about any modern spreadsheet app.

  Compact Calendar [David Seah]

  
  

• What Advertising Can -
• ‘Nuh-Uh, My Mom Thinks I’m Cool’ -
• She -

  

• How Democracies Become Dictatorships -
• BREAKING: Obama Campaign Organizers Trying To Win Election Instead of Get You Yard Signs - In a controversial move sure to upset millions of people, Barack Obama’s campaign has decided to forgo the traditional time-wasting distribution of chum (yard signs, bumper stickers, etc.) to try and win the election.

  Settling on what they call a “get voters to register by approaching them on the phone and at the door with an army of volunteers” strategy, Obama’s senior staff has directed state, regional, and local field organizers to use their finite time to make tangible progress toward winning.

  It’s an approach that has ruffled some Democratic feathers.
  

  That got me concerned, and I headed out to the Leesburg, Virginia, Obama office to see about getting myself one, thinking that some visibility for the Democratic ticket on my street was more critical than ever. My neighbors sometimes need "permission" to display their Democratic preferences, even though our Republican friends don't seem to wait for anyone's invitation.

  Despite Obama’s 100% name recognition, opponents of the “maybe worry about visibility after registration deadlines close” strategy pronounced the situation “dire” on the front page of Daily Kos yesterday.
  

  So dire was the situation that volunteers in the office were taking up collections to have their own signs printed.

  Asked about this dire situation in Virginia, Obama campaign manager David Plouffe responded*, “You have got to be $@!#ing kidding me. Is this a joke? I’m busy, I have to go.”

  The Obama campaign goal has been to register and track over 300,000 new voters in Virginia, including the direly-situated Leesburg. Though they are on pace to achieve this goal, some Democrats are concerned that people will see more McCain signs and feel dispirited.

  Top Obama strategist David Axelrod, when reached for comment Sunday, noted*, “these yard sign questions are making my brain bleed. Please stop.”

  Still, concerned Democrats are up in arms.
  

  I need to know what's up with this. I know a lot of people don't think yard signs mean anything at all, but where I live, they're a critical part of the ground game — like I said, giving less political or less outspoken neighbors the permission they need to open up about their support. (emphasis added)

  Obama campaign strategists believe that, with their massive months-long, grinding-it-out-every-day registration plan, that 80 percent of those new registrations would vote for Obama, and that 75% of the newly registered voters will turn out. If 75% of an 80-20 split on 300,000 new registrants turns out, that’s Barack Obama adding 135,000 bonus votes to his total in Virginia alone. Organizers in Obama’s Virginia campaign offices have been sternly instructed to focus on those numbers by spending long, exhausting days recruiting volunteers instead of spending their limited time worrying about whether there are enough yard signs to go around.

  Still, some concerned Democrats need to know what the heck these guys are thinking, because “feeling good” is really important.

  Concernedly, they stress that seeing a yard sign is one way for neighbors to have conversations with one another about politics. Since most people tend to vote or not vote based on visibility peer pressure**, Dems may be in danger of losing the tender flower swing vote to McCain.

  In South Carolina’s crushing Obama primary win, there were a measly 1,000 Obama yard signs in the entire state. But asked whether an “up mood” via yard sign is a “critical part of the ground game in Virginia,” National Field Director Temo Figeroa began laughing until the end of time*.

  *Note: Made-up quotes. But not inaccurate, wanna wager?
  **Note: Absolutely false

  *-*

  Listen.

  Organizers – the people out there killing themselves to win this election – hate yard signs with the white-hot intensity of a thousand suns.

  Barack Obama’s organizers hate them. John McCain’s organizers hate them. It’s because yard signs don’t vote – but they do generate a ridiculous amount of complaining that must be patiently listened to. Until yard signs sprout little legs and go to the polls on Election Day, in a presidential election with universal name recognition they are just a nice little decoration.

  They’re little feel good things, making you feel like you’re on the team. There is nothing wrong with that – that’s not the objection. The objection is that there is limited time for organizers to accomplish a wide array of prioritized tasks, and in this election they’ve chosen to prioritize identifying, registering, persuading and getting their voters to the polls. Yard signs cut into the organizer’s sleep time – literally.

  A lot of people aren’t going to like hearing this truth, but organizers recognize that the majority of people who walk into offices for yard signs are, for volunteering purposes – and this is a technical term – useless. In the majority, these people are not going to knock, they’re not going to make phone calls. Instead, they are going to throw the organizer’s incredibly precious, sleep-deprived time down a bottomless abyss of irretrievability.

  People who plant yard signs are maybe going to make their neighbors aware that they support a particular candidate, and in theory, if they live near voters who cede their opinions to peer pressure, they could theoretically be shading the influence of a vote here or there.

  Here’s a little secret: there will always be exceptions, but people who spend a lot of time volunteering in campaign offices tend to get yard signs. Organizers know and love these people dearly, and they take care of them.

  Every single person pouring real effort into this campaign knows what I’m writing is true. In every office we stop into, we ask both sides about yard signs. It’s unanimous. In good old purple Colorado, in Montezuma County, the Republican women volunteering at the local office pointed out how their signs read, “Paid for by the Montezuma County Republican Party.” They, too, had to generate their own local signs, and have to deal with unhappy people who stop in to get their prize but go away empty handed.

  Yes, of course it would be nice to have more yard signs. If organizers had an infinite amount of time, they would be happy to pester their bosses up the ladder to see when they’re coming in. Then they’d love to chat with you about how someone stole or defaced them, and run a bunch of replacements right out.

  But in the very purple, exurban Northern Virginia neighborhoods there is a problem. There’s a walk list sitting in a campaign office not being walked and knocked, and a newly-registered voter who projects as .45 of a vote for Obama is not being registered.

  That one was for you, Every Organizer in America. Love ya, you magnificent bastards.
  

• MST3K Young Man -

• On Reading Well [Ungeek To Live] -

  
  If you're anything like me, then you have a difficult time tearing yourself away from the work you do for any length of time. Like Jack Nicholson in The Shining, all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. Indeed. That's why I refuse to read business books. Not for lack of interest. There's many a Drucker that has me drooling. Lord knows I need the advice. But if I'm going to read, then it's going to be for relaxation, stimulation, and escape. Work has enough of my mental cycles. Why not lend a few to the world of inspiration as well? Photo by furryjumpergirl

  Booklists
  
  Photo by eoshinsky
  Simply said, the best place to find out about new books is from your friends. Yes, there are social networks for that kind of thing. I prefer an old school, top-down approach. If you're buying dead-tree technology, the old world system still works handily for getting the cream to rise to the top. The age-old dance between Writers, Agents, Editors, Publishers and You has its charms. For my money, there is no substitute for the Sunday New York Times Book Review. There is also the New York Review of Books. Both of those are the staples of the elite and will keep you in the know if not also inspire you to pick up a title from time to time.

  Aside from those, the widest range of book reviews comes from the larger local rags. I'm talking the Chron, the Miami Herald, Chicago Sun-Times, LA Times, and more. Stay tuned to what the literati are writing. They are paid to know what's up. Whether you're looking for crime fiction or sports, memoir or fantasy, all of these sources are committing a good deal of effort in keeping you interested in reading.

  Bookstores
  
  Photo by brewbooks
  B. Dalton's is not a bookstore. If it's in an airport, it's crap. Don't go to Borders or Barnes & Noble. The books that the NY Times are going to review, you'll be able to find them at your local used bookstore too. Find that shop. In Portland, Powell's. In London, Hatchard's. I've found used booksellers in the smallest towns a hundred miles from civilization. If you have roads, you have books. But more importantly, find your local bookstore owner. Give her a hug. Visit frequently, even if only to buy one book at time. If you should find yourself walking out with an arm-load of tomes, keep in mind that a wall of (unread) books makes for excellent decor. In my mind, there is no worthier cause for support than the investment you are making into someone who's sole goal in life is the stack books behind the counter that she might think you like. Go, on, don't be shy. Bibliophiles do not bite.

  Reading Hour
  
  Photo by Moriza
  Do it. If your goal is to unwind, TV can be awful tempting. Resist. You've got your favorite shows. You've got TiVo. Save the TV time for social hour at home. Watch TV with friends. But if you have time to steal away for yourself, pick up a book instead.

  If you're the scheduling type, and you put everything in your calendar, the put this in your calendar too: reading hour. Set aside one hour every night for you, yourself and thou. No TV. Pour a glass of wine. Put on some something ambient. Pick up some pages, pops, it's reading hour.

  Oh, do Toilet
  
  Photo bybrimelow
  If you can't read for an hour, then try ten minutes a day. I, too, have an incredibly short attention span. I find it difficult to sit and read and just plain relax. If I am reading, it's guaranteed to be interrupted. Ten minutes alone is a luxury usually only afforded while adorning the throne. Ah, yes, here I'm talking about the toilet read. It's the epitome of relaxation. The very face of edification.

  What characterizes the toilet read above others is the brevity of chapters. My favorites are usually non-fiction in variety and can be opened at any page to be enjoyed and understood.

  Here's a shortlist of contenders:
  A Natural History of the Senses by Diane Ackerman
  DSM-V
  The Intellectual Devotional (now a series of books)
  The Bible (King James edition)
  Encyclopedia of Rock n' Roll

  You can never go wrong with the great essayists of the modern era:
  Joan Didion on culture and relationships
  Bruce Chatwin on travel, art and architecture
  Anthony Lane, on film, books, theater and pop culture
  Nick Tosches, on music
  Richard Meltzer, on music
  Julian Barnes, on London

  Now We're Talking!
  Leave some comments, yeah? Do you have a favorite toilet read? What genres do you find help take your mind off work? What books provide the most inspiration? What are your favorite local bookstore haunts?

  Kelly Abbott is the founder of Dandelife. His weekend series, Ungeek to Live, highlights ways you can get things done without always involving tech.