Archive: October, 2011

Faster than Google

October 24th, 2011 4 comments

So I’m walking the streets of Palo Alto and I pull up to a crosswalk, and this guy pulls up next to me, and we begin to share a brief standing ceremony. Me, standing there, trying with all my might to not have any purpose or direction, and him, about to engage his device.

I am a big appreciator of devices, and especially of the people who keep coming up with such useful uses. My device has the same new feature that the guy next to me had. I haven’t yet remembered I have it. I think now I will. Into his device, my neighbor said, “Google search, Tamarine restaurant, Palo Alto.”

Soon, he was about to learn from his device everything he could ever want to know about the relationship between where he was, and where the restaurant was. But not soon enough…

I looked at him, got his attention, pointed, and said, “Cross street. Turn left. 2.5 blocks. Walk time: 1.9 minutes.”

He smiled and put his device away.


Joe Tall’s Wiltless Chip

October 7th, 2011 2 comments

This is a before and after story.

Before Joe Tall co-founded Deucescracked.com and became known throughout the land for the poker expert and righteous man that he is, he hired me to coach him. When the initial program was over, I gave him my standard-issue diploma. It looks like this:





Yesterday, Joe sent me a text. It came with a picture. What he wrote was, “Still Tiltless after six years!” And the picture he sent was…



I asked, “How did the part that looks like lava get that way?”

And Joe replied, “The chip has a way of finding me over and over for 6 years now. I usually never worry about its whereabouts. This time, it got caught in the lint filter of the dryer (as it often ends up in the laundry) and the hot air turned it into a ‘plasma’. When I picked it out, I could have folded it in two easily. Now it’s hard as a rock again.”