Happy Festivus: Grievances Anyone?

I guess I don’t have all that much to complain about. I hit the concrete for my five-mile run at 5 a.m. on what is a seasonally cold and still morning in NE Ohio. And I can report that nary a human or a vehicle — save the solitary garbage truck — distracted me during my hour-long endorphin-enhancing journey. What a great way to start my annual celebration of Festivus.

Ah, “A Festivus for the Rest of Us” — a day set aside to “air our grievances.” Gotta love it. But for those not yet into the spirit of Festivus, here’s the back-story:

“Happy Festivus” is the traditional greeting of Festivus a holiday featured in “The Strike” episode of Seinfeld. The episode first aired on December 18, 1997. Since then many people have been inspired by the goodness of the Seinfeld holiday and they now celebrate Festivus as any other holiday.

According to the Seinfeld model, Festivus is celebrated each year on December 23rd. However many people celebrate it other times in December and even at other times throughout the year.

The original slogan of Festivus is “A Festivus for the rest of us!” Instead of a tree an unadorned aluminum pole is used, in contrast to normal holiday materialism. Those attending Festivus may also participate in the “Airing of Grievances” which is an opportunity to tell others how they have disappointed you in the past year, followed by a Festivus dinner, and then completed by the “Feats of Strength” where the head of the household must be pinned. All of these traditions are based upon the events in the Seinfeld episode.

And here’s a story from the Chicago Tribune that gives even more perspective on the history of Festivus and its original creator.

For a pajama-clad citizen journalist could there be a more fitting holiday than one designed to air grievances? Let’s see: health-care reform, Afghanistan, Government Motors, Wall Street Fat Cats, Pittsburgh Steelers, and on and on.  Wow. What a great holiday! Wonder if the Republicans have the traditional Festivus aluminium pole set up in the Senate in advance of tomorrow’s vote on health care. Oops. I digress.

So Happy Festivus.

And while I know this isn’t the politically correct thing to say these days — Merry Christmas.

Hope everyone navigates the holidays without encountering any real grievances.

The Holidays, Working and Shopping

I couldn’t think of a compelling headline this morning. Maybe my nerves are still frayed from yesterday’s first — and for me at least, last — holiday shopping excursion of the year to a local mall. Hey, what happened to the Great Recession? I expected a modest crowd, not a scene that resembled the finale of Braveheart.

Oh well. I guess it’s good for me to leave the mother ship on occasion and mingle with the masses. No point adding recluse to my list of personality quirks. And even being quasi-retired, I have to concede that this is one of the least productive working weeks of the year. Might as well push back from the computer, pocket the BlackBerry, silence that damn chirping sound and venture out into the real world.

And I’ll admit it. It’s kinda of fun to get swept up in the frenzy of trying to find the best possible item at the lowest possible price. Forget baseball, football and so on. Isn’t discount shopping now the great American pastime? Hey. I’m being robbed unless the price tag proclaims 50 percent off or more. Don’t you feel the same way? Woot.

But for all the merriment and mirth, holiday shopping is big business and extremely important to our economy and to jobs. The National Retail Federation estimates that we spend some $437 billion in retail sales — online and in stores — during the holidays. And that’s why last weekend’s snowstorm that brought life on the East Coast (except in the Senate) to a halt raises some big concerns for retail outlets — with maybe $2 billion in lost sales.

Hey. This year we bailed out the Wizards of Wall Street and bought a controlling interest in Government Motors on the premise that they were too big to fail. Better add holiday shopping to the list.

So c’mon folks. Let’s go for it.

And the spending on holiday gifts is good for the economy and jobs.

Are the holidays too big to fail? Clearly.

Health Care and Snow Days: Kinda Weird

Well, let’s see. Some snow falls over the weekend Inside the Beltway and the federal government and just about everything else in the DC area comes to a halt. Yet members of the Senate hunker down, brave the storm, and work day and night to pass their version of a health care bill. That strikes me as being somewhat weird — and ironic — given that Congress doesn’t appear to accomplish much any other time. Go figure.

Hey, maybe as a matter of public policy and governance we need more snow days.

Or maybe not — depending on how you view the Senate legislation that is now gaining speed like a sled heading down a slippery slope for a Xmas Eve vote.

Does anyone really know what is in this bill — or the one that passed the House in November? I sure don’t. And it doesn’t appear to me that anyone is all that enthusiastic about it — liberals or conservatives, Democrats or Republicans. Full disclosure: I would have liked to have seen some form of a public option — recognizing that we would have to raise taxes  on incomes below the $250,000 a year threshold to pay for it.

Saying all that — we get back to what is always a key point and issue: trust.

I sincerely believe that virtually all elected officials view what they are doing to be in the public interest. And health care — like most — is an extremely complex issue without simple solutions. Yet it troubles me when I read about some of the concessions that were made to various senators to gain their support for this measure. And having firsthand experience of how the business community and insurance industry drove a stake into the heart of Hillary Care a decade ago, I find some of the allegations that members of Congress caved to industry lobbyists to have more than a measure of credibility.

So it goes.

What we really need is more trust — a fewer snow days.

Snowstorms and E-mail: A Holiday Present?

OK. What’s everyone in the DC area complaining about? When you live here in the heartland, you expect the snow and, sheesh, look forward to it. Remember the light dusting of 17 to 20 inches we had in early 2008? Well I do. Here’s the view from my front window. Wonder if I ran outside that day?

Actually, I was thinking about that while running on the modestly snow-covered concrete early this morning. There’s something even more relaxing and peaceful about running in the winter and in the freshly fallen snow.

Clearly the storm that ripped through the East Coast is a serious matter. Several have died as a result of the snowstorm, travel and shopping plans have been disrupted, and I know from experience that digging out from something like this is not all that easy or fun.

Still, if you have the opportunity, relax and enjoy the snowstorm. And I’m starting to embrace the notion that sometimes we need unexpected events to force us out of our routines and take a few minutes to relax. I opined on that early this week — and then chuckled when BlackBerry users (myself included) experienced an e-mail outage.

And I was thinking about that again early this a.m. during my usual routine of scanning the various online news sites and so on. In a WaPo series of articles, John Freeman called out the BlackBerry as one of “The Worst Ideas of the Decade.” Woot. Here’s from the article:

Enabled by an umbilical attachment to the hand-held, the average office worker sent and received 100 e-mails a day in 2009 – almost as many telegrams as a high-output operator sent in Western Union’s heyday.

But those operators simply passed messages along. We’re supposed to think and respond and sort as well. How are we doing? Not very well, considering how many of us spend our mornings and nights and weekends replying to e-mails in an effort to get to the bottom of our inbox.

The problem is, the more e-mails we send, the more we receive. So the empty inbox is a phantom, an impossibility – and the attempt to achieve it the ultimate Sisyphean task.

For those enjoying the East Coast snowstorm and elsewhere, go ahead. Shut down the smart phone. Turn off the computer. And enjoy and relax.

Consider it an early holiday present.

Do You Really Want To Work From Home?

Even in my quasi-retirement, I manage to keep to a fairly rigid set schedule. I get up around 3:30 a.m.; scan e-mail, Web sites, Twitter and so on; quaff a pot of coffee; and then hit the concrete or the elliptical trainer for an hour or so. And hey. I still manage to get to the office most days by 7:30 or so.

Short commute: 13 stairs, and generally no traffic heading in either direction. Sound ideal? Well, for the most part it is. But it’s a big change, particularly after 40 some years of jumping in a car every workday and racing to and from a real-world office. And I’m not convinced it’s ideal for everyone.

I was thinking about that this morning after I read an article by Petula Dvorak in The Washington Post, “Dispelling the fantasy of working from home.” Dvorak is a WaPo reporter who worked at home while her office at the newspaper was being renovated. Her take on what she describes as “the home office fantasy”: It ain’t easy working at home — given family pressures and interruptions.

Then there is the issue of being isolated — of only being connected to others via the Internet, e-mail and mobile phones. I’ll admit it. I’m delighted — for the most part — that I’m not commuting to Kent State every day now — but I miss the contact with students and faculty.

And I expect this idea of being removed and isolated from associates and workplace friends will become an increasingly important issue and concern as more people work from home (either for an organization or on their own) or as they join the nation of nomads who work — or in many cases these days, look for work — out of coffee shops, book stores and so on.

Here’s from Dvorak’s article:

The coffee shop owners are in a tight spot, their stores serving as the new harbor for a good deal of the recession’s white-collar detritus. The people laid off are haunting the java joints with their laptops, searching for a routine that gets them out of pajamas and away from “Wheel of Fortune.”

Or they are now freelancers and consultants who create their own cubicle, complete with Wi-Fi, electrical power and a latte for just $4. The baristas call them campers or squatters. And I became one. I know where the free Wi-Fi is, where they kick you off the system after two hours, where the outlets are ample and the seats comfortable.

But in all these places, what was missing was real human contact, something beyond “tall, skim, cap.” We all came there to be together, away from our homes, but once inside, we didn’t interact. There is something essential about having a community of people. And for parents, if possible, having adult time, adult space.

Wow. “There is something essential about having a community of people.”

Go figure.

Back to Reality and Technology

Well, that was fun. My post on Tuesday –”Are We Really Becoming Digital Zombies?” — managed to find its way to the WordPress homepage. As a result, I had an all-time high of more than 2,000 readers. I don’t expect that will happen anytime soon, if ever. So from that standpoint at least I’m back to reality.

But clearly the notion of being so constantly plugged into digital technology and communication media that we lose a sense of our physical reality — and in some instances actual real-world relationships — resonated with many. I was taken back by the thoughtfulness of the comments posted here and the willingness of so many to share personal experiences.

I’m not advocating a return to a time when we didn’t have access to so many forms of communication. We benefit from the Internet and all its news, information and entertainment venues.  And there is nothing inherently wrong with the connectivity provided by e-mail, smart phones, Twitter, Facebook and so on.

But I sense that many are starting to look for balance. They — and include me here — want to have the option to unplug — to walk in the park without the cellphone jingling — to take a vacation or spend the weekend without being a slave to e-mail.

I recognize that much of this is personal choice. Hey, there’s no law that says you have to drive with a cellphone tethered to your ear. If fact, the opposite appears to be true in a growing number of communities. But some of the inability to get off the grid is directly related to employer expectations — and to the expectations of friends and family.

And then there is the other extreme. I was in DC for the day yesterday, taking a Continental Airlines shuttle from Cleveland Hopkins to Reagan National and back. And on the return flight, a young woman across and one row in front of me worked the BlackBerry the entire trip. (Where’s Chuck Schumer when you need him? I digress.)

I’ll admit I chuckled as I watched her reading, typing, texting, sending and on and on.

Oh well. Back to reality.

Update (at 11:45 a.m.) and full disclosure: I had nothing to do with the problems that BlackBerry users (including me) are having with e-mail this morning. But gee. I’ll enjoy the peace and quiet while it lasts.

Are We Really Becoming Digital Zombies?

Decisions. Decisions. At 5 a.m. this morning I had a decision to make. I could run outside in the cold drizzle of a dark NE Ohio mid-December morning. Or I could head to the fitness center and chase the belt on the treadmill while soaking in the sights and sounds of the morning TV shows. I hit the concrete.

And one reason is that I treasure the time alone and off the grid. I relish not being plugged into audio and video, not tethered to my BlackBerry, and not squirming over the most recent e-mail that demands my immediate attention and reply. It’s both exhilarating and calming to be enveloped in silence. I expect many don’t agree.

Before embarking on my self-propelled tour of the neighborhood, I read an interesting Washington Post online article by Adrian Higgins, “We can’t see the forest for the T-Mobiles.”  Here’s from the article:

Technology has drawn us into our interconnected webs, in the office, on the street, on the park bench, to the point that we exist virtually everywhere except in the physical world. Robert Harrison, a professor of Italian literature at Stanford University, laments that when students pass through the school’s visually stimulating campus, iPhones, BlackBerrys and all the evolving devices and apps draw them into their blinkered personal realms. “Most of the groves, courtyards, gardens, fountains, artworks, open spaces and architectural complexes have disappeared behind a cloaking device, it would seem,” he writes in his book “Gardens: An Essay on the Human Condition.”

This retreat from the natural world is most evident in the young, but it is not a generational phenomenon, he argues. Instead, the ubiquity of the computer is changing the very essence of the human animal. We are in the midst of a historical change in “our mode of vision,” he says, “which is bound up with our mode of being.”

And then Higgins opines: “We have become digital zombies.”

Ouch. But you know what — she has a point. I don’t get out in the real world all that much these days, but when I do — in a restaurant or at the airport — it’s striking how many people are engaged not with each other, but with their magic phones texting, e-mailing, surfing the Web, talking and so on.

And that must be true virtually everywhere — at home, work, on vacation and among all age groups.

A recent NYT article by Nick Bilton says that “the average American consumes about 34 gigabytes of data and information each day.” (Note to self: No wonder it is so difficult for any organization to communicate effectively — on just about any subject to anyone. Go figure.)  Here’s from the article:

According to calculations in the report (by researchers at the University of California, San Diego), that daily information diet includes about 100,000 words, both those read in print and on the Web as well as those heard on television and the radio. By comparison, Tolstoy’s “War and Peace” contains about 460,000 words.

The researchers, who built their work on previous studies of information consumption, found that Americans take in data through various channels, including the television, radio, the Web, text messages and video games. Most of this time is spent in front of screens watching TV-related content, averaging nearly five hours of daily consumption.

Second is radio, which the average American listens to for about 2.2 hours a day. The computer comes in third, at just under two hours a day. Video games take up about an hour, and reading takes up 36 minutes.

Most of these experiences happen simultaneously, like talking on the phone while checking e-mail, or instant messaging while watching TV.

I’m going to stick to running — unplugged — for as long as I can.

Even a digital zombie like me deserves a safe haven. You deserve one too.

Tiger Woods: Too Big to Fail?

I guess it really is mid-December in NE Ohio. Had a great early a.m. run Saturday when it was cold, clear and amazingly silent. Then Sunday morning I fretted about what to do as I listened to the pitter-patter of freezing rain at 5 a.m. So I ended up chasing the belt on the treadmill. And I couldn’t avoid watching the recycled news shows with stories and commentary about Tiger Woods and his liaisons, hiatus from the pro golf tour and falling out with sponsors and, it appears, the world writ large.

Whew. Who’d a thunk it? Not me. For dead-tree scribblers, TV Talking Heads, pajama-clad citizen journalists and people everywhere, this story is the content gift that just keeps giving. And there is no end in sight.

So some random thoughts as we wait for the next disclosure and development:

• When this story first surfaced and began to spread, the PR and crisis management gurus advised Tiger to spill his guts, tell all — and quickly. Would that have ended the story? No. One affair, maybe. But too many women involved — each, apparently, with a story to tell. To give advice — legal, PR, whatever — you really need all the facts — and there needs to be a two-way relationship of trust. Clearly none of that applied initially. And may not apply now with Woods and his advisers.
• When I worked at Goodrich until a decade ago, we faced some tough and negative stories. The objective from a media and management standpoint was to make sure that the story never lasted for more than one day — at that time, realistically, that was the news cycle. That’s no longer true — and a story can go on indefinitely, no matter what you say or do. Just too many organizations and people out there now with megaphones and the ability to shout at or with an audience.
• Why are we so fascinated with Tiger Woods? And why is there a sense that at some level he has deceived us, let down the public? At the most basic level he has hurt his wife and family. It’s interesting to me that we hold Woods, a sports figure, to a higher standard than we hold elected officials. And that’s a theme that I have opined on previously. There is a strong emotional bond with sports teams at all levels — and with athletes. But sure looks like there is a cautionary tale here with advertisers.
• Is Tiger Woods too big to fail? Estimates put his endorsement income in the range of $100 million a year. But that doesn’t speak to the millions that he generates in sales for sponsors or the money he generates for charities. And how much in TV ratings (and income) and prize money at tour events is riding on Woods? I don’t know. But when you add it up, Woods might just be too big to let fail. Hey. We saved Government Motors. Why not Tiger?
• And in the frenzy over the Woods story — which really does have it all: sex, sports, betrayal and money — does anyone else think it is ironic that there is a new member of the journalism fraternity. It’s Ashley Dupre, of Eliot Spitzer fame, who has a new gig writing a sex column for The New York Post. Woods appears to enjoy posting on his Web site. Maybe there is a career opportunity lurking here as well. Woot.

Oh well. This is what happens to small minds like mine when the pro football season is over — and you sit in front of the TV all afternoon wishing and hoping for just one goal so Akron would win the NCAA soccer title. Certainly a disappointing loss. But congrats to the Akron players and coaches for a great season.

And pretty soon the weekends will be filled with telecasts of golf tournaments.

Wonder if Tiger will be allowed out to play?

White-Knuckles and High-Fives

This has been a tough week for someone who is quasi-retired and spending his early a.m post-run hours as a pajama-clad citizen journalist. Yesterday I wrote one of the greatest blog posts since Al Gore invented the Internet. But for the second time in two weeks, when I hit the WordPress publish button, the digital words vanished into the black hole of cyberspace. Just like Nancy Pelosi’s commitment to the health care public option.

Oh well. As Jimmy Carter opined — life isn’t fair. And sometimes it’s more of a struggle than it should be.

Take my return trip from D.C. to Cleveland Wednesday night as both an example and as a cautionary tale about how situations beyond most anyone’s control can alter behavior. It was white-knuckle time at both the airport and on the airplane.

When I head to D.C. these days, I go via plane from Cleveland or Akron-Canton to Reagan National and back. And generally no major issues. I’ve learned to go through security barefoot like one of the Hare Krishnas who used to greet travelers with flowers and inspiration during the 70s. And I’ll admit it. At my age the occasional strip search is, well, kind of exhilarating. It’s like being invited to join a live performance of Hair.

Yet when I made my way to Reagan National late Wednesday afternoon I wasn’t prepared to wait in the security queue for almost an hour. Tick. Tick. Tick. Tick. Would I make the flight? Would I have time for a couple of Yuenglings at the National Airport Grill?

And what might the problem be? Well, apparently the security folks were being extra cautious following the revelation that some Transportation Safety Officials managed to let the agency’s security screening procedures get posted on a blog. Here’s from a BBC News report:

The document revealed which passengers should always be given extra screening unless specifically exempted, including people with passports from Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Syria, Somalia and other countries.

It said prosthetic devices, medical dressings, wheelchairs, scooters and surgical footwear may be exempt from screening for explosives at certain times.

It also said that at busy travel periods, screening procedures could at times be reduced to 25% of normal levels and that properly accredited flight crew were not subject to restrictions on carrying liquids and gels on to aircraft.

Certain US politicians and members of the military were exempt from additional screening, it said.

Whoa. I can’t take a loaf of cranberry bread through security but the congressional pooh-bahs and gasbags can go unchecked? I digress.

OK. I made it to both the National Airport Grill and the airplane on time. Then the real fun started.

The flight should have been renamed the White-Knuckle Express. We came into Cleveland facing 40 to 5o mph wind — and no bronco rider in the rodeo had a tougher mount. Woot.

And think of the landing much like the description of the new roller coaster at Kennywood Park near Pittsburgh.

Kennywood’s new launch coaster will feature many exciting and unique features including three inversions and a 0-50mph launch in three seconds! After the high-speed launch, riders will experience a vertical ascent to 95ft before a brief cliffhanger pause at the top and a 90-degree drop into a maximum G-force pullout. The riders then enjoy extended airtime as the train races into an inverted top hat element, passes into a barrel roll and goes vertical again through a twist up leading to another pause.

Riders experience a second vertical free fall followed by another maximum G-force pullout on the way into a highly banked fan curve. After a traditional corkscrew, a curve to a zero gravity hill, and a series of wave turns, riders finally return to the station.

Ah, barf bag anyone? But we made it. And in all the years I’ve been on airplanes, this was the first time that the passengers cheered and applauded wildly on landing — and saluted one another with a high-five or two. It was like the good old days. When the Steelers manhandled the Browns.

Like I said. Tough week.

In D.C.: The Big Stories

Well, I’m Inside the Beltway today, with fingers and toes crossed that snow, wind and ice (oh my) won’t prevent me from getting back to NE Ohio this afternoon. And I guess some things transcend geographic location. I managed to chase the belt on the Marriott’s treadmill at 5:30 a.m. with only a few other refugees from parts unknown stirring at that hour. Go figure.

At least the Marriott has figured out that real people need real coffee — and plenty of it — before the sun comes up. During some recent visits here finding a decent cup of brew early a.m. was more difficult than finding a senator willing to commit to the health care public option.

Anyway — what are the primary topics being discussed in my limited world here of meetings and dinners? Well, there is some talk of health care, Afghanistan, jobs, the economy and so on. But from my perspective as a pajama-clad citizen journalist now sitting for a brief time in the power alley of D.C. (around K Street), two stories dominate: Tiger Woods and the college BCS rankings.

I really believed that the Tiger story would just fade away. But no evidence of that happening anytime soon. Yet here’s an interesting perspective — via The Huffington Post. What’s the role of the media — and ultimately this gets to ethics — of the media (traditional and new) in a story like this?

And then there is this story that gets the tongues wagging at dinner. Congress is taking a look at the BCS rankings and playoffs — with a House panel taking to the playing field. Here’s from the Associated Press story:

WASHINGTON — A top official of the Bowl Championship Series says there are more important things for Congress to worry about than pressing for a playoff system for college football.

But lawmakers were taking a crack at it anyway Wednesday. A House panel was to consider a proposal to ban the promotion of a postseason NCAA Division I football game as a national championship unless it’s the outcome of a playoff.

“With everything going on in the country, I can’t believe that Congress is wasting time and spending taxpayers’ money on football,” Bill Hancock, the BCS executive director, said in a phone interview. “We feel strongly that managing of college sports is best left to the people in higher education.”

As I read it, part of the problem is that lawmakers object to calling it a “national championship.”

Maybe they could call it a — public option.

Go figure.