RonVitale.com

Hurricane Relief and Writing Thoughts

I am uneasy. I did not think that the Hurricane damage to New Orleans was so wide-spread and complete with such utter destruction. I understand that the news media interviews people who are in the midst of crisis to help their ratings, but there’s something harrowing about hearing the anguish of a man who lost his wife and is in shock.

The human tragedy that is unfolding is overwhelming. I just did not believe that the damage was that bad. Again, I ask you to do something to help. If throwing money at a problem isn’t to your liking, then find a way to volunteer your time at a local chapter of the Red Cross. Or see if organizations are shipping food/medical supplies to the survivors. Now is the time to step up and help. Don’t waste time. Please act. Yesterday I donated funds to the American Red Cross for the 2005 Hurricane Fund. I urge you to do the same. Every bit helps. Please act now.

In other news: I have some tentative story ideas that have been bouncing around in my mind. I jotted a few of the ideas down, but I haven’t had much time. I’ve been working on the house and last night I was rebuilding one of my PCs. I’m nearly finished, but I need to install a few more programs on the system and need to take an image of the completed PC. All of this work is in preparation for building my new PC when the replacement motherboard arrives in the mail (should come within a week). For anyone who has rebuilt a PC, you know my pain of going through and getting the latest updates from Windows, installing all the programs, configuring the system, etc. Even if everything goes well, the process of rebuilding a PC takes time. And then after it’s all finished, I then need to copy all my data over. That in itself takes hours.

But enough of computer stuff. Such work is taking a huge amount of my time these days, but it’s not very exciting.

On Monday a friend of mine introduced me to the "I Should Be Writing" podcast by Mur Lafferty. She also puts together the Geek Fu Action Grip podcast. I haven’t listened to the Geek Fu podcast, but I did listen to the “I Should Be Writing” one. Very interesting. Yet again, here’s another writer struggling to make time to write and expressing her thoughts/frustrations about the joy of writing. I found the podcast to be honest, interesting, and not too preachy. I didn’t agree with all the comments she made and thought that some of her advice was a bit off (suggesting that her listeners pay for an online writing critique group. Other groups have the save features but are free). But this is just a minor point. What I found most interesting is her reaching out to the writer community. I had made a decision a little while back not to do my own podcast even though I’d love to try one. I came to the realization that if I were to create my own podcast I just wouldn’t have time to do any writing! With my work schedule, I don’t have much free time and I couldn’t imagine getting up any earlier than 5:00 – 5:30 a.m. Even as it is now, I’m pushing myself to do my blog writing each day. I can’t imagine when I would have time to talk for 30 minutes about writing and then spend the time to produce the show.

On a personal level, I think it would be great fun to experiment with, but as a weekly show—I just can’t commit to spending that amount of time. I had hoped that I could find someone to help share the work load with, but I haven’t been able to pull that off yet. Still I have a few ideas in the back of my mind. I haven’t written off doing a podcast (even a one shot show for a special event) in the future. I have the technology, some of the ability, and would just need some recording software (I think Cast Blaster would work fine for me) to help me pull the idea all together.

But what I’m not sure about is: What the heck would I talk about for 20-30 minutes? I sure can write to my heart’s content about whatever the hell I want, but talking for that amount of time would require that I generate content ideas. Again, not a problem, but when would I make time to do this? There’s a lot that I would like to do, but then I need to ask myself the important questions like: When am I going to make time to write? Last week I wrote up a short (1,100) article for a travel site. I’ve been keeping up with my blog and I do have a story idea that I’m playing around with in my head. But there’s questions of:

Do I keep working on short stories and articles?
When do I make time to go back and rewrite the novel?

There’s some personal time issues on the home front that are causing me to hold off on the novel. I’m making a short term decision to keep working on short projects while the time issues are worked out. However, I might need to revisit this in a month. At some point, I’m going to have to say: “There’s never going to be more time so I need to just sit down and start rewriting the first draft of my 2nd novel.” That day will come. It’s not today though. And not tomorrow. So in the meantime, I’ll start working on that story idea I have. I have a general plot but it’s filled with holes. I have a character in my head, have a situation that will result, but I’m not sure who the main character is. I’m not sure what she will be doing. Well, I know some of what she’ll be doing and what she believes, but not how I can make the story short and interesting. I’d like to keep the story under 6,000 words. I’ll let the idea brew in my head and keep jotting down ideas as they come along so I don’t lose the thread of the story. Have a good one and keep the survivors of Hurricane Katrina in your prayers.

Hurricane Katrina

(Pseudo-color IR image of Katrina in the Gulf from NASA GOES-12; processing by University of Wisconsin, Cooperative Institute for Meteorological Satellite Studies.)

Hurricane Katrina, a category 4 hurricane with winds of 150 mph, made landfall yesterday in New Orleans.  The devastation, at this time, isn’t fully known.  I’ve seen pictures of people sitting on their roofs with water up to the eaves of the house.  Power is out across areas, flooding is widespread, houses were washed away, cars were pilled up on top of each other, boats were pulled from their moorings and crashed into house—the damage is estimate to be at least $9 billion. 

My thoughts and prayers go out to all of those people who have lost family members, their homes, and everything they ever had.  Houses used to be on the beach were washed away.  Once I hear of the Red Cross effort to help collect donations or foodstuffs, my family and I will be doing what we can to help others.  When the Tsunami hit and so many people lost their lives, my wife and I did the same.  I know that the small amount of what we can give won’t solve all the problems, but if people can come together and offer what they can, then I believe this effort will make a bigger impact in the long run.

To lose everything that you ever had in your home (pictures that can’t be replaced, all your possessions, and the house itself!) is a tremendous strain.  While listening to Adam Curry’s podcast, I heard him talk about podcasters thinking about coming together to have 2 minutes of their upcoming shows to ask for people to donate to the Red Cross to help the victims of this horrible storm.

Watching the television coverage on the hurricane, I’m reminded of the day after September 11, 2001.  My work had closed for the day and I visited my family and then went to the local Red Cross location.  I waited in line to give blood for over 6 hours because I (and the hundreds of people with me) wanted to do something to help.  I remember how people just jumped on trains and headed up to New York to volunteer their time, seeing the pictures of the missing put up on the bulletin boards, and people like myself donating blood.  Yes, I overreacted and I do understand that not all of that blood was used that day because so many people turned out to help.  But I felt helpless.  I wanted to do something positive besides giving money to help the survivors.

Hurricane Katrina is not a terrorist attack, but when I see the widespread damage that has taken place in the southern portion of the United States, I am humbled.  In September 11, 2001, damage occurred in New York, the Pentagon, and in a Pennsylvanian field.  Yesterday, a hurricane ripped through several states and damage is on a scale that I can’t fully comprehend.  The damage is so intensive and widespread that the full estimate to the loss of life and property destruction may take over a week.  Several weeks ago I saw a news report that talked about how members of a town were still having a hard time in getting by a year after a hurricane hit their town.  Insurance claims had not been worked out, some people had chosen to move away while others weren’t able to rebuild and were still living in temporary shelter.

I suspect that the long term effects of the hurricane are going to severely hurt and hinder those in the affected areas.  People who lost their homes will need to rebuild, bury their dead, and start all over again.  I can only hope and pray that many people didn’t lose their lives from flooding.  One report from an eye witness told of how the flood waters rose so quickly that he didn’t even have time to grab his shoes before he and his family had to climb onto the roof to save them from drowning.

If you’re not from the United States, I ask that you take a moment to consider helping out in even a small way.  For those of you who are in the United States, let’s do something positive to help the families there.  I suspect that in the next few days more information regarding donations and supplies that are needed will be posted online.  Take some time out to look up the information on the American Red Cross website and help.  Please reach out and offer your aid.  Please.

Clouds, the Night, and Decisions

It all started with the twilight colored sky.  During my college years, I would go out late at night sometime late in August and I would just listen to the night.  I used to live in my grandparents’ row home and there wasn’t much privacy or a feeling of being out in the woods.  Make no mistake about it: I was in the city.  But that didn’t matter.  I would stand in the driveway in front of the garage and I would look up.  In late August, the temperate would change late at night.  On a crisp, clear night, I’d see low hanging clouds quickly moving on their way out of the city as though they were late for an appointment or party.  The clouds appeared a faded ruddy color and were low but fast moving.  Above them I could make out a few stars.  Living in a city all of my life, I’ve been impressed that I could even see the Pleiades from my backyard. 

Each year before going back to college, I would take a peek out my window and look at the sky.  When the sky was clear and the temperature was cool enough, I would know that I had found the right type of night.  I’d rush outside and put my hands in my pockets and then just look up, watching and listening.  I’d open myself up and just let myself think about whatever crossed my mind.  Typically, I’d be nervous about school starting up again and I’d worry about how I’d do in my classes, what I would do with my life, and if I had enough strength in me to “make it.”  Whatever “make it” meant at the time.  Looking back now (it’s been about 14 years since I did the night sky routine), I can almost time travel back into the past to myself.

Here I am writing this and I can see my young self looking up at the sky, wondering all the big questions in life: Would I ever find love?  Would I complete school and find a job?  Would I ever achieve some of the dreams that I had been dreaming?  Those nights being out in the late summer air used to calm and help relax me.  I never had to worry about anyone judging me or anyone bothering me.  I simply went out there and relaxed to be with as much of nature as I could, taking in the big dark sky and holding that moment tight.  I don’t have much time to enjoy moments like that these days and many people in my neighborhood like to keep their back lights on all night long.  The light pollution is pretty bad.  Trying to star watch isn’t easy to do now.  Not that it was ever easier to do back then in the city, but I believe more people didn’t keep their lights on all night long.  Now with fear of crime or security, many home owners opt to light up their backyards all night.

But 14 years ago, this wasn’t a problem for me.  I would hearing an answer come from inside, telling me that I would be okay.  I would make it.  I would find what and who I was looking for.  And the irony of it all is that there wasn’t any outside voice that I was trying to hear.  No, I was listening for my own inner voice.  I needed to connect with myself and know that I could make it through the rough times.  And I did.

The time of year is changing.  The temperature is starting to be a little bit cooler at night.  The humidity is starting to go down.  The moon is up high in the sky casting its light on me and I am wondering if I will find a night to go out, look up, and listen.  Maybe I’ll look to the past and listen to what I had thought back then instead of searching for the future.  Or maybe I’ll acknowledge the present and be in the moment for once rather than worrying about “how will I do this” or “what am I going to do about that?”  I can spin my wheels a long, long time, wondering about such unanswerable problems or I can just accept that I can’t control the future and might as well enjoy the moment—before it’s gone.

When I was younger, I’d look up into that sky and I would be making a deal with myself and the powers that control he universe.  Those moments of communing with nature would present me with a simple means to enter my own private rite of passage.  It was me, the row house behind me, and the sky, clouds, and stars above.  That’s it.  When I was 21 years old, I’d desperately want to know how was I going to climb out of my shy shell and succeed in the “big bad” world of college and the working world.  I need to find a way to look into the infinite and see my curious self looking back at me.  I realized out there late at night that I would be okay.  I could make it and that I would do well.  Friends and family who know me might see the mistakes that I’ve made, the successes I’ve accomplished, but I wonder how much they know of my introspective side.  The part of me that does look up into the night sky and wonders, questions or just listens to what’s around me.  That cricket in the backyard, the car turning the corner, a wind chime singing in the night, or the sound of my own breathing.

Many, many years I would go outside and look up at the stars (I love astronomy) and although I’m a little older, grayer, and heavier, I still keep looking up.  Not so much to look outward, but to reflect what’s inward.  I stare up so that I can mirror my spirit against the brilliant night sky and smile.  It’s that simple.

Digital Divide

With driving into work this week, I’ve had more time to listen to podcasts than I typically do. I’ve loaded up on the Daily Source Code and have also begun listening to Cinecast. Cinecast is a fun movie review podcast from two guys out in Chicago. I don’t necessarily always agree with their reviews, but I respect their opinions enough and enjoy the banter between the two of them that I’ve subscribed to their bi-weekly podcast. I know I’m driving this home again and again, but I believe it’s important to say: Podcasts are well worth looking into and checking out. For free content, I’ve learned more about movies, technology, and the world than I could ever possibly hope to do by watching the crappy television. I think what draws me so much to podcasts is that the shows aren’t scripted. They’re off the cuff and fun to listen to. Sure, Cinecast has an opening in which the hosts read an intro, but after that, the discussion is free and open. They bring you into their movie review world and you get sucked into the fun.

But that’s the great thing about podcasts: You can learn more about the world through the show. I remember listening to one of the Catholic Insider's podcasts and I learned some extremely interesting facts about Rome. It’s not often that you get to listen to a Catholic priest give you a tour of some of the publicly closed sections of the Vatican. Even the media is starting to pick up on the popularity of podcasting. CNN recently interviewed Father Roderick from the Catholic Insider podcast last week.

I sometimes think our world is growing in leaps and bounds with all this new technology. The problem is that those who don’t have the ability to access the Internet are being left in the dust. The digital divide has been talked about for the last 10 years, but hopefully there will be initiatives to push broadband service in low income sections of cities. Today with access to the Internet and a computer, you can communicate with individuals from nearly anywhere in the world. If I can easily chat with people and play games with people online so have doctors found ways to examine patients from across the globe. However, not having access to the Internet could cause poorer individuals to be left out on obtaining new jobs skills.

I can’t imagine working in which suddenly I had no e-mail or Internet access. I wouldn’t be able to do my job. But what about those children growing up in low income families? I started listening to the This Week in Tech podcast this morning http://thisweekintech.com/ and the host discussed rumors that Google is planning on rolling out wireless broadband across the United States. If I recall correctly, I believe this service would be free.

In many local cities, companies are trying to put together free hotspots that would allow users to jump onto the Internet. Putting such a service in place in a low income area could help give the children growing up in these homes the tools they need to learn and grow in ways that they might not have been able to in the past. Of course, low income families will still need a computer, but with computers being so cheap these days it’s not impossible for a family to purchase a good PC for under $500. Granted that might still be beyond the means of some families, but I’ve been to computer shows and have seen old systems sell for under $200. The point is that the Internet is a tool that will help young people advance and climb above their environment. What I would like to see is universal access for all—either through your local library or for companies to provide free hotspot wireless access.

In the Philadelphia metropolitan area, I believe the wireless throughout the city will cost $20 per month. Personally, I think that’s way too expensive. Someone living in a low income family is going to have a hard time coming up with that extra money each month. But on the positive side, $20 a month is much more inexpensive than paying the normal cable modem rates in the area (around $42 a month).

When the Internet first cropped up on our radar screens 10 or so years ago, people were primarily using it for e-mail and to surf the Web. Now people can use it for distance learning, communication, paying bills, setting up a small business, educational/research purposes, and a whole host of other uses. What will be important is for the children of this new generation to be educated on what the Web will be used for. When I was growing up, I was limited with my inability to easily communicate with people across the world. I would not have been able to talk with someone from a foreign country because of the cost. Now I can use Yahoo’s instant messenger and plug in a headset to easily talk with someone thousands of miles away. Putting the Internet to use for educational purposes is extremely important for the youth of today. Let’s hope that they’ll use it for more than playing Quake 4.

Throw a Magic Sealed Deck Party

Want to take your Magic games to the next level? Throw a sealed deck party! Before you roll your eyes and click off the page, take a moment to think about it. Invite a bunch of your friends, pick the card set, make some food, and you’ll all have a blast. Of course, you can order pizza and eat leftover hamburgers from two days ago, but why not make this a full fledged party? Celebrate in style.

Don’t Worry

Depending on your group of friends, you can do this one of two ways: You could either just invite the hardcore Magic friends you have or open it up and invite experienced and new players. If it were my party, I’d invite both people who knew how to play and those who didn’t. It’s your call on this. My rationale for inviting people who don’t know how to play is to find those people who might be new blood for your group.

Now before anyone gets all upset, let’s take a step back and break the party apart into various age categories:

--Young teenager who lives at home. Still living with mommy and daddy and don’t have the funds to pull this off? Sit down with your parents and ask them if they would host the party for you. Be honest with them. Tell them that you want to invite 6 of your buddies over and you want to order some pizzas and have some fun. With parents worried about their kids doing drugs and knocking back the old moonshine, I bet they might be impressed with your asking for help to pull off a party. (And if your parents won’t house the party, then maybe one of your friends’s parents will.) If your funds are limited, then make the best of it. Make your own pizzas, buy the packs of cards in advance, and have a blast. Poor and out of luck? Grab those commons you and your friends have sitting around and play some Peasant Magic. Remember, use your imagination and have fun.

--College student who lives at home or in a dorm. Sure, hanging out playing Magic isn’t considered cool, but it’s what you like to do. Gather your friends together and make a go of it. You’re coming together to have fun. But instead of doing the same old thing and playing the same decks you saw your friend have last week, throw a party. Make the food (more on that later), decide on the card stock, and go to town. You’ll have a blast.

--Live on one’s own and are single or married. If you have your own apartment or house, then you’re good to go. Send the invitations out, buy the cards in advance, and make some food. You’re in an excellent position to host a great party.

Invitations

Do it up right: Don’t just send out an e-mail or give people a phone call for your party. That’s lame. Send them an invite through e-mail. Here is a list of sites you can visit to send out (and keep track) of your invitations:

--Evite
--RSVPHQ
--Sendomatic

If you don’t like any of the sites listed above, then perform a Google search and find another or make up your own invitation as a .jpg attachment with a cool picture.

When you invite people to your sealed deck party, tell them exactly what they need to know. For example, if you’re covering the cost of the cards, then you ask that they pick from a list of items that you need brought to the party (soda, beer, dessert, etc.). The cool thing about online invitational sites is that some of them will keep track of who is bringing what. But if your party is small enough, you could keep track by hand. Just be sure that you’re direct and clear in your invitation:

--List the date, time, phone number, address, and directions to the party. Be sure that you list an approximate time for when the party will be over.

--Inform your guests that they will either need to bring their own unopened packs or whether you will pay for them (or they need to bring you a specific sum of money and purchase the cards off of you at the party). Again, this all depends on your financial status. If you have money, buy a box of cards and split them up among your guests. If you have no money to spend, tell your guests specifically what they need to bring. Make sure this is all worked out ahead of time. You don’t want to waste time the night of the party with gathering cards: “But I thought YOU were going to be bringing the Blue pile of commons….”

--Be specific on what you’d like people to bring: favorite drinks, food, desserts, supplies (paper plates, napkins, etc.). I’d suggest that you ask people to bring different types of drinks and desserts. This makes things easier for you in the planning of your party. Remember, be specific: “John, let me know if you could bring an apple pie.”

--RSVP date. In the invitation, be sure to tell your friends when they need to reply to let them know if they’re coming to your party. Give yourself plenty of time so that you’re not stuck with having bought too many packs of cards or food.