HEY! YOU’RE BACK! AGAIN!

I know, I know.

I’m apparently not a man of my word on this blog.

Truth be told, things have been pretty crazy for me the last little while. My initial idea for reinventing this blog — a regular post on an historical or science-related topic — kind of fell by the wayside, since I realized that there’s a) this little thing called Wikipedia that’s far, far, far better than anything I could ever contribute, and b) I’m not exactly giving it my all on here.

I’m actually mulling over these days a few things: since blogging remains such a vital activity online, how does one define their niche in a sea of them?

I’ve got some things I have to think about still when it comes to writing on here.

MAD MEN: This season has gone by so incredibly fast. I can’t believe the season finale to this wild, crazy third season is next Sunday. I think I fell even more in love with the show this year (if that’s even possible).

A NEW START ON THE BLOG

I write on here a lot less often than I used to for a lot of reasons.

Most often, it’s because I don’t really feel like there’s a lot of amazing things to say that contribute directly to the dialogues and debates of the day. I used to think I had to contribute every single week to this blog on every possibly conceived news item. It got really boring. More to the point, it wasn’t as if I was getting many comments. Writing on a blog and getting a low number of comments kind of defeats the purpose and takes the wind out of your sails when it comes to posting.

So, here’s the deal: I’m going to try something different. Again. Yes, I’ve tried reinvention on this blog before. So what I’m going to do this time is go unabashedly high-end. I’m going to transform this blog, again, into a more purpose-driven forum.

I’m going to write three times a week on why a certain historical, scientific or idea has practical utility in your daily life. I’m not going to attempt to replicate Wikipedia. I’m just going to take a cue from a very smart man I paid a lot of attention to back in my youth and give it a Web 2.0 spin. I’ll take a topic and relate it to contemporary, everyday life in ways you may not expect. I have this brain of mine that has largely gone unappreciated and underused for years; I might as well put it to good use.

I don’t know if it is going to work, but it will give this blog a purpose again and will be fun for me. The operative term here is “fun,” because why else am I doing it?

So, check out the blog tomorrow for a brand new start on here. Oh, and if you don’t mind, feel free to comment so I can get a sense there’s some people reading it. Mmm-kay?

WHAT’S NEW?

Ha! Didn’t think I was coming back here, did ya?

Well, I will admit I’ve been sorely lacking in the posting department here on my blog. Life’s been a bit crazy again. This summer — aside from the profoundly crappy weather Toronto’s been having — has been a big one, full of lots of ongoings.

You know how I’ve written on here in past posts in a very contemplative, introspective fashion about my life? There’s been a point to this. If 2007 was the year it all fell down, and 2008 was the year things sunk into a black hole I had to fight like an angry dog from hell to climb out of, then 2009 has been a year of revelations and self-discoveries. I’m not going to whine and moan about how life’s been tough. Sure, it has been, but who else doesn’t go through this kind of pain at least once in their lives? Well, I know a few, actually. You’re unlucky to have lived such an unexamined life, if you can believe it. Everyone needs to face this kind of thing, I figure.

Anyway, enough of that self-righteous chatter.

MAD MEN: It’s fitting that I’m listening to Amy Winehouse’s You Know I’m No Good right now, considering it was Mad Men’s unofficial theme song to the first season back in 2007. And now… after months and months and months of waiting, Season Three starts this Sunday. My work colleague Irwin — a major fan himself — and I are watching the season premiere together. Yes, we’re major geeks. Still, after all the time I spend on the Lipp sisters’ MM site, I pretty much know the show backwards and forwards. I can actually quote entire scenes, that’s how much of a MM nerd I am. And please don’t question why I’m addicted to this show like heroin. If you know me well enough, you probably already know why.

J-SCHOOL: Here’s a link to an article on Gawker — yes, I know, it’s Gawker — about the travails of investing in a journalism degree in America in this time of total and complete implosion of the journalism industry in America (and to a lesser extent, Canada). I’d laugh, but you know. Probably in poor taste.

Alright, that’s enough for now. I’m going to get back into this regular posting thing soon. Well, as regular as I can be. I’m kind of fluttery on here, as any quasi-regular reader knows.

4CHAN: A site that I have a very complicated relationship with, 4Chan, has been profiled by Douglas Rushkoff. In case you’ve never heard of 4Chan, it’s the online location where Anonymous — the organization loosely formed around declaring war against Scientology — was founded. The best and most apt comparison I have for this kind of site is that if 4Chan was a musical genre, it would be hard-boiled, Sex Pistols-esque Punk.

ONE. MORE. MONTH.

Oh man. Today the second season DVDs come out. Here’s a review. Needless to say, it’s awesome.

And, of course, here’s the first public evidence of Season Three. I’m both excited and unnerved by what this image means…

NEDA

Those eyes.

Two days after I first cast my eyes on the YouTube video that’s making waves around the world, I’m still haunted by it. Rarely is this the case for me. The raw power of the Neda video is so intense, alarming and haunting that you’d be forgiven if you can’t view it. I’ve seen it. I’m a different person now.

Those eyes.

Even now, I’m watching the video of Neda Agha-Soltan in her dying moments with an unsettled, angry, awful feeling at work.

She casts a knowing, piercing look at the camera that is recording her. I’m not sure what she was thinking at that moment, nor do I want to know. Perhaps she was wondering why she was being filmed. Or what kind of gaze she was imparting to the world when she looked into the camera. I don’t know. She glances over at us, telling us the raw horror of the moment. I can’t pretend I’ll know what that feeling is. I feel guilt for watching such a private moment.

Those eyes.

What’s happening in Iran right now is transformative in ways that are rarely understood nowadays. In the age of Facebook and Twitter, it’s undeniable that we’re facing the first Internet-led major revolution, well, ever.

But now I look upon the video of Neda — a now-global symbol that is spawning outrage across the world for the vicious, terrible death to an innocent at the hands of twisted, theocratic tyrants and their cronies in the Revolutionary Guard — and I get the power once again of what one single image, video or sound can do.

These moments in time — fleeting moments, indeed — are always brief, for they’re impossible to replicate and profound in their affectation. It’s a temporary, albeit fleeting, unmasking of a truth we’re generally afraid of facing. It’s why we look upon such devastating moments in history, sometimes, by looking away. It is profoundly uncomfortable to face this kind of truth. It’s raw truth, and history, especially in the 20th century and beyond has had a few moments like these:

Rest in Peace, Neda. The revolution seems to be coming in your name.

For those of you who haven’t seen this video, here’s a link (Warning: Very Graphic)

SOME WORDLE FUN

I love all the crazy artistic/linguistic visualization tools out there. One of the best ones is Wordle — it generates “word clouds” that give greater emphasis on words that appear often in your blog.

Well, here’s mine. Not sure what this says about me or my writing style, but hey, I find it kind of interesting.

NEED A JOB? WANT SOME APPS? HERE’S YOUR PLACE

Last night, Attack of the Show — one of my favourite shows, an ultimate geek paradise on the geekiest station — profiled two job sites that are actually worth checking out for those folks looking for work in this economy of ours (in short: the recovery’s not coming until 2010 at least, but it’s a good time for new innovations and new opportunities at least. Oh, and if you’re a blue collar worker, it might be time to consider going back to school now, as those industrial jobs aren’t coming back, possibly ever).

Indeed.ca — it’s the Google of job searching sites! This is easily the finest job searching site I’ve seen online anywhere (word to the wise: Workopolis, Monster and a few others aren’t bad sites, but they’re the online versions of the D.V.P. during rush hours — everyone’s there at the same time and all the opportunities get snagged quickly). Highly, highly recommended.

Jobserf.com — yes, it’s a site that involves paying people to find you jobs. Personally, not my cup of tea per se, but it’s a great site for people who need help finding opportunities.

Oh, and that app site I mentioned earlier…

Wakoopa.com — using the Web maxim of “goofy name, good product” to its fullest extent, this is a great, great site that aggregates all the best and newest apps online. You can write up recommendations, reviews and sample some undiscovered online gems. Really cool.

“WHO ARE YOU, REALLY?”

Authenticity and perseverance.

Those two words have dawned on me recently as the only things that truly matter when it comes to making stuff happen in your life. Kissing ass is pointless in the long-term: people are going to do whatever it is they want on the basis of some abstract, intuitive principle they themselves know. You’re just part of the world that keeps going on without giving a shit about what you say or think, thank you very much.

As the years have gone on and the full realization of how a person lives their life is based on two entirely contradictory and extreme themes — on one hand, the world is so random and focused on timing for a person’s fortunes, while on the other hand it’s also about pushing forward with total regard to your own self-interest and fighting like a cat in a corner as hard as you can, especially against opposing figures — has dawned on me, I’ve wondered if the only impediment for success is not knowing who you are and what you’re really made of.

See, in my mind, there’s no capitalist conspiracy or some undergraduate-level thesis about rich assholes sitting in an alabaster-tabled room talking about how to screw working folks out of their money. Conspiracies may have worked 50 years ago when it wasn’t possible to instantly disclose information online.

No, the problem is that staying busy and being “well-adjusted” to the realities of modern commercial life is really about not focusing on things that really matter. Not knowing who you are and getting a fix on your identity isn’t some New Age-like quest; it’s just sensible and reasonable for you to try doing.

Anyway, back on point: I’m starting to see that since life is essentially one long, big trail of contradictions and confusions, so the only way to make your way through it is simply to go through some really tough times.

You have to live life at its most brutal, most difficult, for otherwise you’re never going to figure out who you really are. Coming Through Slaughter, as it were. I’m starting to understand more and more what Plato was really getting at when he talked about his cave allegory. It’s not just about factual knowledge — it’s personal, revealed truths as well.

In this respect, I’m glad the last two and a half years have been so rough. I’ve survived. I’ve become a lot stronger because of it. Sure, I’m not always as nice and deferential as I was before. There’s some people out there who have a right to be pissed at me. I’ve been a selfish person at times and you could make a compelling case that I’ve been far too willing to say things that aren’t what you’d call diplomatic.

But there’s been something at work here in the past few years. Maybe it was the way of the world, who knows: we all have to face up to certain realities, sooner or later, that bad habits and ways of thinking that no longer fit with your way of doing things need to be confronted.

In spite of the pain, the sadness and the sense of defeat I’ve faced, I’m seeing what went down in a different light now.

It’s a brighter light. A shiny one, just as the day breaks.

THE INSPIRED AND INANE

Hope everyone had a nice weekend! Now, of course, I’ve been essentially using Twitter to update as writing big posts in such nice weather is kind of, well, time-consuming. But, alas, I’ve got to make with the posting here.

WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENTS DINNER: Remember a few years back when Stephen Colbert made the Single Greatest Speech Ever at the annual White House Correspondents Dinner (essentially a collection of America’s elite journalists, businesspeople, writers and actors for one night… looks like a pretty good time had by all, must say)? How can you not — it was one of the single most subversive, funny and nasty speeches ever done without Bush Era vetting and press control. It was awesome to watch. Like, transgressive awesome.

Anyway, it’s three years later and there’s this, um, new guy in the White House. And guess what? He’s actually very, very funny and self-deprecating, in addition to being a thoroughly strong leader during a time of unprecedented fiscal/housing/resource/economic crisis in America. Honestly, is there anything Obama can’t do? Here’s the first clip of three in his actually-pretty-funny speech:

WEBBY AWARDS: It was announced last week, but it’s worth mentioning again — a former colleague at Golden Words (I worked there for a small stint back in 2000) has won a Webby for his terrific blog, 1000 Awesome Things. It’s a regular visit for me and should entirely be a part of your regular web visits. It’s funny and so very true in observations. Congrats to Neil!

JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE: Why don’t they just make him a permanent cast member on SNL? Seriously, they threw *everything* into this latest JT-hosted SNL. Even cameos by cast members of Star Trek (which I’m dying — DYING! — to see and it sucks I have not yet seen it)…

Of course, there’s one inane topic here…

TV VS. PORN: What a strange story by Gawker.

THE Q AND POSSIBLY A…

One of the big trends coming down the Intertubes over the next few years will be the gradual rise of the Semantic Web — the more Intelligent, conversation-oriented web that can create, access and deliver information in a more naturalistic fashion. What I mean by this, in less technologic-sounding language, is that the Semantic Web will be like this: when I ask a question online, such as “How high is the CN Tower?” in a web search, an answer link will come up in the search results that indicates the exact answer. In other words, no more hunting around for an answer.

The first service to make this possible has finally arrived: Wolfram Alpha.

It’s a very promising site that’s not fully active until next month, but a team of experts have allegedly said that it could be as promising as Google.Very interesting stuff.

* Here’s yet another piece of evidence that seems to indicate that the only real and concrete way to measure human behaviour is by understanding the nature of our brains first and social theory second: students may not like or engage in school simply because our brains aren’t designed for the work done in it. Great article.

* David Foster Wallace, one of my favourites, did a commencement speech at Kenyon College in 2005. It was his only speech, but it was a very good one.Definitely some words worth heeding.

Oh, and finally: I recently wrote a post for Deb and Ro over at Basket of Kisses — yes, the Mad Men fan site which is more awesome than AMC’s site, dare I say — on the nature of Mad Men viewers outside of the United States. I hope you like it.