It has been a busy weekend, starting Friday afternoon. The men's group at my church held a retreat at an event center not far from a great caching park. The spiritual leader of the weekend was John Baker, who is now in Alexandria, VA, but was at my church when I first starting attending. [ He also used to own a car repair shop that is still open and still called by the original name - Baker Auto. ] It was a great weekend for all, but especially for me, I think, because one of the greatest disadvantages to being in a church choir is that you don't get a chance to meet a lot of the other folks in church, in spite of the fact that you're often there more often (or at least more consistently) than many of the members. So I enjoyed actually meeting a lot of familiar faces.
Today (Sunday) was also the day for the 'other' singing group that I'm in. We elected to have a professional photographer shoot our promotional photo that we will use in our advertisements and other marketing collateral. I am curious as to how the photos will turn out; we certainly did spent quite a bit of time arranging the members and selecting a variety of locations.
After the shoot we gathered at the director's house for a potluck supper that ended up being quite a feast. Hopefully this (sans the photo shoot) will become a 5th Sunday tradition!
Sunday, April 29, 2007
GeoGreeting
BDD posted a link to a fun url - GeoGreeting. It's a yet another site that allows you construct personalized messages, but in this case the letters are actually overhead shots of buildings.
Here's an example.
Here's an example.
My Personal Blog
For those of you reading along at home: this is my personal blog. Since I am independent consultant, I don't need to say this, but the opinions expressed herein are mine and do not necessarily reflect the views of my employers.
Since it is my personal blog, I feel entitled to write whatever I want. In fact, that's the only reason that this blog exists: to allow me a public forum in which to state whatever I want to say. To suggest otherwise is ludicrous.
By extension, I have no qualms about moderating any comments left on this blog (though I have yet to do so). Visitors have no first amendment rights here. If you have something to say, say it, but if I don't like it, tough. Start your own blog and say whatever you want to say there if you have a strong desire to make yourself heard. It's cheap and easy.
It is only in the Commons, such as community forums and the like, that anyone should have any expectation of privilege.
Since it is my personal blog, I feel entitled to write whatever I want. In fact, that's the only reason that this blog exists: to allow me a public forum in which to state whatever I want to say. To suggest otherwise is ludicrous.
By extension, I have no qualms about moderating any comments left on this blog (though I have yet to do so). Visitors have no first amendment rights here. If you have something to say, say it, but if I don't like it, tough. Start your own blog and say whatever you want to say there if you have a strong desire to make yourself heard. It's cheap and easy.
It is only in the Commons, such as community forums and the like, that anyone should have any expectation of privilege.
Thursday, April 26, 2007
Geocaching & People
I am a geocacher. To those of you unfamiliar with the term, suffice it to say that I use billion-dollar military satellite technology to find tupperware containers hidden in the woods. Hey, everybody needs a hobby. I belong to several geocaching organizations, including the Geocachers Of West Tennessee, founded by my friend Steve Spencer aka spencersb and the Jackson Area Geocachers, founded by my friend Damon Mays, aka BigDaddyD.
There is some tension between the two organizations, which is strange when you consider that belonging to a geocaching organization is optional and of little real value. Really, there appears to be some tension/dislike/animosity/hate between specific individuals in the two organizations. The situation is not pleasant, and occasionally it is difficult, especially when you hear or read people from one side say ugly things about the other. All of which is to say that I've determined that my geocaching experience, at least as it regards to cachers, is a lot like my work experience, as it regards to workers. To wit:
Substitute geocache for work and the axioms hold. Some of my feelings are driven by differences in opinion on what geocaching means. The first and the fourth are obvious, but the second and the third have made work - and geocaching - more interesting. I've had co-workers who were interesting, kind, good-hearted people, but who were completely inept in their jobs. I've had co-workers who were skilled professionals, but unethical, callous, and rude.
For those who haven't geocached, trust me when I say that there is quite a variety of opinions about the trivia of geocaching: what it means to claim the finding of a geocache, what is the intent of placing a geocache, where should they be placed, even what size container is appropriate. Ultimately these are petty distinctions, though. Geocaching is voluntary, and the specifics of hiding and searching for geocaches enjoys remarkable liberty. These differences aren't what are driving the the GOWT vs. JAG feud, though. I think the reasons for those fights are more universal and rooted in fear, mistrust, greed, and lust.
There is some tension between the two organizations, which is strange when you consider that belonging to a geocaching organization is optional and of little real value. Really, there appears to be some tension/dislike/animosity/hate between specific individuals in the two organizations. The situation is not pleasant, and occasionally it is difficult, especially when you hear or read people from one side say ugly things about the other. All of which is to say that I've determined that my geocaching experience, at least as it regards to cachers, is a lot like my work experience, as it regards to workers. To wit:
- There are people that I like that I like to work with.
- There are people that I do not like that I like to work with.
- There are people that I like that I do not like to work with.
- There are people that I do not like that I do not like to work with.
Substitute geocache for work and the axioms hold. Some of my feelings are driven by differences in opinion on what geocaching means. The first and the fourth are obvious, but the second and the third have made work - and geocaching - more interesting. I've had co-workers who were interesting, kind, good-hearted people, but who were completely inept in their jobs. I've had co-workers who were skilled professionals, but unethical, callous, and rude.
For those who haven't geocached, trust me when I say that there is quite a variety of opinions about the trivia of geocaching: what it means to claim the finding of a geocache, what is the intent of placing a geocache, where should they be placed, even what size container is appropriate. Ultimately these are petty distinctions, though. Geocaching is voluntary, and the specifics of hiding and searching for geocaches enjoys remarkable liberty. These differences aren't what are driving the the GOWT vs. JAG feud, though. I think the reasons for those fights are more universal and rooted in fear, mistrust, greed, and lust.
Saturday, April 21, 2007
Cache Maintenance and the Felling of Trees
This morning I got up early and went out to do a little cache maintenance. A friend from grad school has recently started caching; he told me that the log for Arc d' Memphis was full, so I replaced it. I then drove over to do a little work on In the Middle of East Memphis.
Recently I had visited IMEM to check on the container, which had been reported missing. Sure enough, the container, which was suspended 20 feet up in a tree and attached by wire cable, was gone. Fortunately, there were plenty of clues as to who took it, as the surrounding area was filled with pot-smoking kids, some sitting in the tree next to where I was standing. They had driven a vehicle back into the park and had the doors wide open, playing the stereo. Did I mention that there was a park picnic table mounted up in one of the trees?
This morning I returned to the park to find a new situation. Shortly after walking back to the original container site, a park service vehicle drove by, followed shortly thereafter by two dump trucks and a front-end loader. The real change, though, was that the park commission has cut all of the lower limbs off of the magnolias and is cleaning up the debris.
On one of the trees youths had already nailed 2x4's to re-create the steps provided by the branches. They had even painted a message on them, something like "Patrick and Drew will find a way" and "why did you do this to our trees" and some insults for the park commission. Maybe they will get to enjoy the trees. I hope that this is the beginning of a better Audubon park.
Recently I had visited IMEM to check on the container, which had been reported missing. Sure enough, the container, which was suspended 20 feet up in a tree and attached by wire cable, was gone. Fortunately, there were plenty of clues as to who took it, as the surrounding area was filled with pot-smoking kids, some sitting in the tree next to where I was standing. They had driven a vehicle back into the park and had the doors wide open, playing the stereo. Did I mention that there was a park picnic table mounted up in one of the trees?
This morning I returned to the park to find a new situation. Shortly after walking back to the original container site, a park service vehicle drove by, followed shortly thereafter by two dump trucks and a front-end loader. The real change, though, was that the park commission has cut all of the lower limbs off of the magnolias and is cleaning up the debris.
On one of the trees youths had already nailed 2x4's to re-create the steps provided by the branches. They had even painted a message on them, something like "Patrick and Drew will find a way" and "why did you do this to our trees" and some insults for the park commission. Maybe they will get to enjoy the trees. I hope that this is the beginning of a better Audubon park.
Sunday, April 15, 2007
CITO and #800
Yesterday I woke early, dressed in some old clothes (including my favorite long sleeved shirt), and drove out a little past Jackson, TN to Natchez Trace State Park. The park is the largest state park in TN and home to several lakes, lots of trails of the equestrian and hiking kind, several campsites and less rustic places to stay. It was also the site of the first Jackson Area Geocachers CITO event, which was the reason for my visit. The 2 hour drive was uneventful except for the threat of rain and the chance encounter (!) of cgeek and Mackheath making their way to Jackson for a day of caching. I, on the otherhand, encountered a couple of turkeys on the road into the park, and was followed closely by the event organizer, BigDaddyD, and his wife Mrs. T. We were joined shortly thereafter by LilLuckyClover, Dalls, and Yogi. With various implements of destruction in hand we traversed a couple of the local trails and removed encroaching plantlife and trash. Along the way I picked up a couple of caches. After completing one trail, LLC and I hitched a ride and were driven to a couple of cache sites in the park; it's always handy to be riding with the cache maintainer, and BDD is also on the board of the 'Friends' association of the park. After lunch Yogi led/followed me as I picked up 5 more caches. A low total for the day perhaps (10), but just enough to bring my total number of finds to 800, which was my other goal for the day. I still have plenty of caches to find in the park, and what I've learned about the amenities is enough to convince my wife that she and I need to plan a visit during the summer.
Wednesday, April 04, 2007
What I get out of caching
Recently I had occasion to talk to a bunch of fellow geocachers. I asked them a bunch of questions, but the most interesting point of the exchange was when one of them finally turned the tables and asked a question of the form, "What do you expect to get out of X?", where X is a geocaching group. I hadn't really considered the question before, though I had a fair idea, inspired, in part, by GOLUM, a Linux user group I formed years ago. A friend of mine even joked once that "[I'm] an organization man" and, in some ways, I guess I am. Perhaps this will be repetitious to some (all) of the readers of this entry, but I'll repeat myself if only to preserve my thoughts. My central premise is this:
When I organized GOLUM, I formed it chiefly to help draw out like-minded individuals in my community. I assumed that some of them knew more than I did about a particular subject of interest - Linux - and I thought that by providing a group I could meet them, facilitate an exchange of ideas, and teach myself and others a few new tricks. The Linux part was useful - it gave the group a common purpose - but I really expected a much broader benefit. I'm happy to say that I was right in that regard, as GOLUM members are diverse, bright and eclectic. Some of the members have had a tremendous impact on my life.
Now, I started caching because I thought the idea of a high-tech treasure hunt was cool - and it is. The very idea that orbiting satellites are providing real-time location information to a tiny, handheld radio is wonderful. Geocaching searches have taken me to obscure, interesting, dangerous, even beautiful places that I likely would never had seen. Still, at the end of the day I prefer caching with a friend to caching alone, and I think that talking about caching with other cachers is an important part of the game. I hope, though, that caching extends beyond that, in truly useful ways. I'm a believer in CITO for that reason: I think it extends geocaching to the surround community is a socially beneficial way. The caching crowd is another social/business network, but most of the cachers that I actually know go beyond trying to assess "who's who" or "who can do what for me." Yes, some of the sharing is superficial, but some of it is real, not for all, but for those who seek it.
So, what do I want out of a geocaching group? I want a chance for these sorts of interactions to occur. Real life bleeds into hobbies. Groups are a good way to take advantage of that.
I believe that most clubs are social in nature.
When I organized GOLUM, I formed it chiefly to help draw out like-minded individuals in my community. I assumed that some of them knew more than I did about a particular subject of interest - Linux - and I thought that by providing a group I could meet them, facilitate an exchange of ideas, and teach myself and others a few new tricks. The Linux part was useful - it gave the group a common purpose - but I really expected a much broader benefit. I'm happy to say that I was right in that regard, as GOLUM members are diverse, bright and eclectic. Some of the members have had a tremendous impact on my life.
Now, I started caching because I thought the idea of a high-tech treasure hunt was cool - and it is. The very idea that orbiting satellites are providing real-time location information to a tiny, handheld radio is wonderful. Geocaching searches have taken me to obscure, interesting, dangerous, even beautiful places that I likely would never had seen. Still, at the end of the day I prefer caching with a friend to caching alone, and I think that talking about caching with other cachers is an important part of the game. I hope, though, that caching extends beyond that, in truly useful ways. I'm a believer in CITO for that reason: I think it extends geocaching to the surround community is a socially beneficial way. The caching crowd is another social/business network, but most of the cachers that I actually know go beyond trying to assess "who's who" or "who can do what for me." Yes, some of the sharing is superficial, but some of it is real, not for all, but for those who seek it.
So, what do I want out of a geocaching group? I want a chance for these sorts of interactions to occur. Real life bleeds into hobbies. Groups are a good way to take advantage of that.
Sunday
Singing updates: last Sunday was Hoiby's Let This Mind Be in You, because of the associated NT reading. All in all it went well.
Later that afternoon was a Happy Birthday that doesn't quite count.
Chorale rehearsal focused on Down by the Salley Gardens, Persichetti's Song of Peace, and Lennon and McCartney's Yesterday. The Salley Gardens is coming along, though it is a bit sentimental for my tastes. Song of Peace still needs a little work, but I think it will be a very strong piece for us. Yesterday was suprisingly difficult to sing the first time, chiefly, I suspect, because so many of us were familiar with it. I, for one, kept singing what I expected (from years of radio exposure) rather than what was written. The second pass was markedly better, though, as the quarter vs. dotted quarter rhythms were corrected.
Later that afternoon was a Happy Birthday that doesn't quite count.
Chorale rehearsal focused on Down by the Salley Gardens, Persichetti's Song of Peace, and Lennon and McCartney's Yesterday. The Salley Gardens is coming along, though it is a bit sentimental for my tastes. Song of Peace still needs a little work, but I think it will be a very strong piece for us. Yesterday was suprisingly difficult to sing the first time, chiefly, I suspect, because so many of us were familiar with it. I, for one, kept singing what I expected (from years of radio exposure) rather than what was written. The second pass was markedly better, though, as the quarter vs. dotted quarter rhythms were corrected.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)