barrow-dot-me

There is the old saying, "If you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all." That is the general explanation of how I have felt about blogging. In my case, however, "nice" means "with useful content that will move the human race forward." I have been on the Internet for quite a while (since maybe August 1989) and have definitely played a part in many of the major themes and memes, but never consistently blogged. I have always considered myself a fairly decent communicator and everyone that knows me can testify that I am in no way an introvert. So, why not get up on a virtual soapbox and scream diatribes at the top of my lungs? Because I didn't want to be *that* guy. In geek culture, there's tons of *that* guys and gals. It is a bit strange that in a group that is known for having lots of introverts that there is a significant sub-population that is willing to stand up and give you a 50 point dissertation on why you

Overall, I am pretty happy to see the high level of interest in entrepreneurship these days. I actually think that we need more of it and wish that more teenagers were getting into it instead of just being passive consumers -- but that's another rant for another time. Out here in Silicon Valley, practically everyone here has a side job doing something entrepreneurial -- even if it's just writing mobile applications. As I wander about the Valley meeting people and asking about their startup efforts, they all comment that they're starting (or have started) a "company." Some of the ideas behind these efforts are really compelling while others are -- shall we say -- not so compelling. Perhaps I'm a harsh grader because I lived through the extravagant excess of the dot-bomb era. If you weren't in the game back then, let me take a brief detour to explain... Back in the mid to late '90s, everyone and their mother was crapping out a company. B-schoo

My wife just told me today that our local library branch would no longer be open on Saturdays. I almost shed a tear. Not only does my daughter love going their for Story Hour after her class at Little Gym, but because I remember the great many hours I spent at the library on Saturdays when I was a kid. Back in NYC, my family didn't have a lot of money, so I found the library an excellent source of entertainment. Heck, you couldn't beat the price! I feel a little sad for today's kids that are like I was: low on cash, but high on desire to learn more about the world. Someday -- soon I hope -- we will learn to make education a priority. Hopefully before we really get our clocks cleaned...