Posts (page 2)

I recently read an article on the concept of collective consciousness.

This refers to the shared beliefs and moral attitudes which operate as a unifying force. An energy if you will. The examples talked of how collective consciousness can influence things... actually everything we do, and how powerful this unifying force or energy really is.

The first example is the Dot Com boom... Everyone was a savvy stock market expert... given the fact that you could essentially throw a dart, pick a stock and double your money.  All  without any relative understanding of the fundamentals of the market or investment strategies such as puts, calls, covered calls etc. Every cocktail party or social get together included investing as a main topic of discussion. So in theory the collective consciousness or power of the shared beliefs helped drive the market.

This was also evident with the real estate boom. Tampa a historically flat market for years, the exception being waterfront, realized one of the strongest increases in values in the country. So once again collective consciousness played a part. Everyone was soon a savvy real estate investor. Flipping houses, buying and selling and making 200% profit without blinking an eye. All without any history or experience in real estate investing. So this is powerful stuff... even in the other direction. Now the market is horrible... every news report is telling we, the 'collective consciousness' exactly how bad it is. So it is just horrible. This is one of THE worst markets in history! Once again, we are the experts and regurgitate what we hear... all in complete agreement and all in unison.

Is it really that bad, and is the concept and power of collective consciousness really helping drive the market down turn???  And how bad is the market???  My neighbor was having that discussion this week. "The market is just horrible" Really??? How bad is it? How much did he pay for his house? Under $120,000. What is it worth today? Around $295,000.. But at the peak of the boom it was worth well over $350,000 so is it such a horrible loss? During the peak, houses typically were on the market for only a matter of days, now they are on the market for 8-13 months.

So once again the media love to feed on the negative, in turn we agree and tend to be in consensus, and seek comfort in the fact that our peer group is in complete agreement... we all can't be wrong. After all everyone agrees... Hence the power of collective consciousness.

It would just be nice if we could always point that power in a positive direction. Perhaps these dramatic downturns would not be sooooo bad.

Perception is reality!

A while back I read a very good blog about a late night commercial for a Gentleman's Club called The Lodge. The Lodge is located in Dallas, and I travel there on biz quite often... Dallas, not The Lodge.

Scenario: A woman, ostensibly, a man's wife takes his "balls," that are in a box, out of the safe in the wall and hands them to him. They both look very serious. I think the guy says he's going out with the guys or something.

The copy then says: "Take back your balls...at the Lodge." Cut to The Lodge where a big bOObed woman is doing a back bend in some kind of Vegas attire with feathers and the commercial continues: "Where there are women...where you can have manly steaks, cigars..." Cut to steak and bad, heart clogging food. "And women." Then we end with the logo.

So I rarely frequent such Establishments... Places where "After a long day in the Underbrush of the Business World." "A Gentleman can relax." "A placed where he is in his Element." "A place where he can satisfy just about every vice at one time." 'The Mansion of Men's Clubs."  Ok I'm busted. I Googled The Lodge :)

So let me define 'rarely frequent'. I am in the technology business and work on the engineering/sales side. I deal with people in the Data Centers of large IT infrastructures and people higher in the corporate food chain.. Managers and CxO types. Sometimes "After a long day in the Underbrush of the Business World."  I need to visit a place like this with my customers. Part of the job I guess. A perk?. I don't think so.

So there is a standing joke in my industry... you will never find a Victoria Secret Super Model in a Data Center... Generally speaking a very true statement. The inverse is also very true.. I seldom see a Matthew McConaughey type, pulling floor tiles and running network cables.. and the developer types these days typically have names like Kumar and Balaaditya... They work 120 hours per week, so not much spare time for Kumar to "Take back his Balls"

So if you look at the bell curve of IT professionals... The data center for the most part houses the geekiest of the species. Mensa IQs' and the Social Acumen of a Soap Dish. The type who think nothing of proudly sporting a greeezy burrito stain on their shirt, after visiting Taco Bell... "A place where he is in his Element"  "A place where he can satisfy just about every vice at one time". And they think nothing of wearing that same shirt the very next day... Leftovers are always better the second day!  There is another exception to this stereotype....  That is the new generation of Tech Weenies... They are much cooler, as they sport piercings, tats and multi-colored hair... Very young, smart and typically unemployable in a customer facing job.... Fun none the less!

So on the other end of the Bell curve are those Geeks who typically posses less technical skills or show more business and management potential via some canned HR test. They are 'groomed" for management. Remember they may have started in the data center. Not to generalize but physical patterns and characteristics usually ring true. Fat, balding, Off the Rack clothing from - Enter disocount store here -

In the event I get hammered by every IT professional who reads this, let me qualify my statements.. Not all IT guys fit the above profiles.. Many are very normal, and really cool people. We are talking the masses here and not the exceptions.

Lets revisit the 'I rarely frequent part'.  Based on my occasional visits to places where "A Gentleman can relax" , I often love to people watch... So without question the dancers are some of the most pretty girls on the planet... But how messed up must their lives be for them to do what they do? Abuse, drugs, whatever, something went terribly off the tracks somewhere along the line for them to end up spinning out of control, naked on a poll.   If they are 'truly' dancers and study the art then they could follow a path to Broadway or a Dance company, or teach. OK there are IQ issues and I understand that... It is however, rare that you would overhear the Dancer's talking of Alvin Alley... I also find it hard to believe the money thing... and the "They make $3,000 per night" statements. Then why is there an oil stain under your $500 Toyota? The profession is very sad in itself... Like any business it is driven by supply and demand.

So the supply side of the equation is obvious... now the demand. Hmmmm a big fat Cigar...bOObs... In his Element... bOObs.. a 6,000 calorie dinner, just sit back and look at bOObs!  Let it all hang out... including the guy's belly doing its best to test the ultimate strength of the cheap polyester pants... I am sure that 'Amber" is SO hot that she is sticking to the poll, while viewing Fred's bloated paunch and being blinded by the spot light glare from his balding pate. Its really all about the lighting in the biz... really it is.

So the irony here is that Fred's wife and kids are at home watching Dancing with the Stars... WTF, Bruno...where is dee Poll?

She may be washing his poop stained briefs, and trying to soak the pesky sweat stains from the arm pits of his shirt... "A place where she is in her Element."  I hardly think so.

So personally I think it is pretty sad.   I guess I am truly blessed with an amazing Wife, who is more than I can handle, with whom I can discuss my visit to "The Mansion of Men's Clubs"... and laugh about the sadness.

 So as I transition to my golden years... or approach 'double nickels' and AARP discounts, I am finding myself noticing the quirks of the elderly. Perhaps I too am starting to exhibit this behavior... Dunno.. I drink beer, run, lift weights, bike, am socially active with my younger co-workers and seem to fit in. I kinda still see myself as a hopelessly immature 20 something guy with graying hair. I guess a denial based skewed reality.

So aging is an inevitable process with no compelling alternatives... No clear exit strategy. I am not only participating, but watching family friends and relatives navigate. We are close to St Pete and Bradenton Florida which has a huge population of 'Snow Birds' who frequent the sunshine state every winter. We affectionately call them FOP's, an acronym for F**<ing Old People Sleeping. So observation is easy.

What is it about this process of aging? Some things change and I am trying to understand. Firstly when the elderly exit a shopping center or restaurant, they stop in the middle of the doorway? Can't figure that one out... they just stop. Also a mystery is why are they so compelled to discuss in great detail their Bowel habits? That is just too gross. The next one I think I have figured out... they tend to be 'Repeaters'. The same story over and over again..... I think that is a result of watching cable media coverage, where the same stories are repeated over and over again throughout the day. Simply a learned behavior of sorts.

The last one, was just discussed in Newsweek. The propensity to blurt things out at the most inappropriate times. A few weeks ago during a Wal-Mart adventure, an elderly lady getting a cart with her friend, commented on a young female customer... "She is such a pretty thing... too bad she is fat" A comment in direct earshot of not only the girl, but many other customers... So the neurobiological explanation? The frontal lobes responsible for inhibiting unwanted speech shrinks with age... Kinda like a senior Tourette Syndrome...

So I guess we are all destined for this??? Frightening

Today...  Mas Work... out of control week....  my sanity

Listening to:

Pink Martini - Hey Euegene
Papa Grows funk - Mr Patterson's Hat
Kim Kline - www.myspace.com/kimkline - Great unsigned independent artist!!!
Cesaria Evora -- sodade

Watching:

Boston Legal
Tivo'd seasons of Weeds
James taylor "Pull on Over" DVD Concert

Reading:

Tech manuals...
Walter the Farting Dog

I hate political blogs.... In fact I hate all politicians equally, and media who decides that it is their job to support political agendas and further divide our great country.

Then there are the masses..... the blue light special crowd, 'the masses' who are uninformed and make very serious political choices, based on partial truths and intentional misinformation. Politicians are in it for one thing... Power... not money.. ego driven power. They may have started out with the intention of representing us and doing the right things... but most quickly learn that the world of politics are insestual, nepotistic and corrupt.

So enter the 'Stars'. They are in a true position of power and should exercise responsibility. They are in the greatest position to influence 'the masses' of anyone. So is it irresponsible for them to use their power to drive their political agendas??? It saddens me when people look to the Sean Penn's of the world for direction and guidance on foreign policy... WTF does Brittany Spears think and there are people who just might listen???

I think the connection is the disconnect.. Both politicians and celebs are so far removed from our reality, that they will never really see the world form our perspective... So be responsible... Don't blindly believe what you read or hear... Challenge what you read and hear... so do the research and find the truth... the power and truth is in the information and the biggest mistake is to drive change based on what people want you the believe.

Gotta go watch Dancing with the Stars

<RANT></END RANT>

I recently posted a very old picture on Twitter. Interesting how a picture can trigger a point in time. That particular picture was taken in 1980 and was a reference for several events that occurred, one being the loss of John Lennon.

As I reflect on my life, I tend to deal chronologically with spaces versus time. I guess its because things pass so quickly as you find yourself transitioning through life. I measure things in terms of events, changes that those events cause, and the space that surrounds them. For me these are all marked along the way with very memorable checkpoints or milestones... both happy and sad. The loss of friends, meeting my lovely wife, marriage, my daughter's graduation from high school, then college.

Only a few checkpoints, cause vivid reflections of memories. The loss of john Lennon was one of them. I can remember the exact time and place in my life when this tragic event occurred, and its profound impact on myself and my friends. I was playing music for a living in Detroit. I played with many great players and this time was the end of a special era for me. We had played for over ten years in one of Detroit's premier concert clubs called The Inn Between. I remember getting called to play with some touring friends that morning... I remember setting up my drums, how cold it was, and how it was getting dark at around 6:00PM. I remember playing, and I remember the exact friends and conversations. I remember the way the stage lights reflected off of the guitars, and how my cymbals were positioned. I remember the club owner walked on stage interrupting the show... tears streaming down his face as he announced John Lennon's death. Drinks were on the house and the club was essentially silent for an hour or so... many left, many arrived asking if we had heard the news.

This December will mark 27 years since an event that changed the lives on many. Interesting how the recollection of events like this seem like a lifetime ago, and just yesterday in the same instance.