Meta Monday: Free Money!

Courtesy flickr: melindashelton

Courtesy flickr: melindashelton

So, it’s been nearly a month – again – since I’ve posted anything. That makes me super sad. So I think I’m going to steal an idea from The Book of Wooby and toss an offer out there. See, Francis has this thing where he promises to post once each week (Assuming he’s not overrun with other stuff) and if he doesn’t, he sends one of his commenters $20.00. I like that idea… And have been trying to light a fire under my seat for a while to post more often. So I’m going to steal and tweak it a little.

The Promise

I’m committing to post once at least every 3 days. So today is Monday, meaning you’ll get another post on Thursday. Then Sunday, Wednesday, Saturday and so on. Like Francis, I’m offering a $20.00 (CAD) reward to a random meaningful commenter (No “Good job” or “I like this” comments allowed) if I don’t post – but the commenters I look at will only be in the past 3 weeks starting with this post. Yes, that means you have to comment regularly to stay in the draw. I’ll end this if I end up run too poor, so get in while the getting is good. Yeah… This just ain’t happening anymore.

Topical Texts

One of the other things I’m trying to do is get a little more topical with the blog’s subject matter. I’m doing this with alliterative topics for each day of the week. Today, for example, is ‘Meta Monday’ – where I can talk about the projects I’m involved in, site changes, updates and so on. I’ve also got ‘WordPress Wednesday’ planned and ‘Follow Friday’ will probably show up.

But I’m stuck on the Ts and Ses and am open to suggestions. Feedback is welcome – and hey, if you do it via comment, you get entered into that lovely potential cash giveaway!

Of ‘Press and Snowmen

A couple of weeks ago now, I launched a new look over at the WPBTM site. The site is now looking more like how I’d wanted it to look for a long while, and has some handy new features like the front carousel and the availability meter on the side bar. With the new site came a re-structuring of the monthly services offer, new pricing across the board and (By request) the option to bring us in on a retainer. Oh yeah – and I say ‘us’ because there are two part-time developers working on the project, too.

We’ve also dressed the site up for the holidays with a snowman and some falling snow. :)

25 Random Things About Me

So, if you’ve got a Facebook account, you’ve probably seen the ’25 things’ post before. The deal is pretty simple: You write a note, include 25 things about you, then tag 25 people to do the same.

Well, this isn’t being published in Facebook, and I’m not tagging anyone… But I turn 25 today – so what a better day to do post this?

  1. I once owned a full-sized arcade cabinet. I can’t remember which game it was – it wasn’t very good. I saved up 40,000 tickets at the arcade for it, though. Then I sold it to buy a Wii.
  2. Speaking of which, I’ve never owned a non-Nintendo console. Portable or home, all of my systems have come from them and I don’t picture that changing any time soon.
  3. I often relax by folding origami… And have done so for years. I don’t memorize models, but love the activity of folding them. I just started work on a big project, too.
  4. I’m a Disney fan – and that applies pretty much across the board. My iTunes has specific playlists for Disney music and my DVDs were (and will likely be again) sorted Disney-first for the longest time.
  5. Pixar comes before Disney. While they’re the same company now… they weren’t always. I’ve seen almost every pixar in theatres – most of those on opening day… Some of them several times.
  6. I also adore board games. A night of Monopoly, Blokus, Scene It, Bohnanza and Reversi trump a night out at a bar any day.
  7. Though I’m very much a dog person – I considered owning a cat for a brief period after I left school. I was working a hectic schedule, and didn’t feel I’d have time for proper dog care… but missed the companionship. The ‘no pets’ rule where I was living quashed that plan, anyway.
  8. I built my first personal computer in 2001 using a bunch of parts I was given, and $5.40 for a power cable. It ran for 4 years as my desktop and is still in use today (Though, with new hard drives and a new case) as my home theatre PC.
  9. Through high school, I was much of a “shutter bug”  and ALWAYS kept a camera around. I ended up with hundreds of pictures… mostly of floors, ceilings and fingers… And no longer carry a camera most of the time.
  10. I did go to college for four months – then left with a smile on my face. After speaking with the professors and dean, I realized that I already knew much of was was going to be taught to me… And concluded that simply paying in time and money for a piece of paper was silly.
  11. I’ve known my wife since we were both young. We met at the campground our parents had sites at and saw each other every summer until my family stopped camping there. Her parents are still there, and we make it back up the the campground every summer now.
  12. I’m a regular blood donor and a volunteer with Canadian Blood Services. One of my best friends got me interested in donating blood just after my 17th birthday.
  13. I recently committed to running the triathlon in August of next year, though will be falling back on a duathlon if I can’t nail the swimming bit.
  14. I really like making people smile. It brings me nothing but pleasure to know – even if someone won’t admit it – that I’ve brightened up their day… or even just a part of it. I want to do this more often.
  15. My music tastes very WILDLY. So much so that iTunes shuffle simply doesn’t work. Country and techno are among the top genres in the collection… But I’ve got everything from acapella to musicals to Disney (see #4) in it too.
  16. I am an Olympics nut – but not for the sports… I love the spirit of the games. The thought of wars, battle and fights pausing for a few weeks so that every nationality can come together in peace to play appeals greatly to me. I actually have an Olympic flag I’ll ‘fly’ in some form during the games, and used to have the Olympic anthem as my cell ring tone.
  17. Speaking of cell phones – I hate them. That’ll surprise some people, given how long I’ve owned one. I love being connected to people, places and the web all of the time… but hate that pretty much every phone I’ve owned is a pain to setup or use.And I ALWAYS forget to charge them.
  18. I swam in the Atlantic ocean during my honeymoon and intend to swim in the Pacific someday. While on the subject of travel goals, I want to see all 14 of our capital cities. Ideally, from both the ground… and the air.
  19. I once weighed 265 pounds, and worked off 65 of those with Dance Dance Revolution, a steady (Same thing daily) diet, and the help of a dietitian. I’ve bounced back up a little, but am working on it again.
  20. That said, if you want to win me over with food? Chicken fingers, plum sauce, poutine and beer. Unless I’m staying sober that night… Then it’s root beer.
  21. I have a strange thing about my hair. I like to use it… almost as an identity. It’s been various colours, lengths and styles through the years, and I change it up periodically… But only after an insane amount of thought has gone into it.
  22. I really enjoy pet fish. I was given my first ones from a co-worker years ago, and have almost always had fish around ever since. As a result, while I enjoy the sport and people aspect of fishing, I would much rather throw every fish caught back than eat them.
  23. I -LOVE- getting personal mail. Not email, actual go-through-the-system-and-arrive-at-the-door mail. Especially postcards.
  24. Speaking of cards – a card is often the part of the gift that matters most to me. And, as such, I would much rather get JUST a well thought out, well selected card… Than a post-it note on a really cool gift.
  25. I don’t like being the centre of attention, really, and though I take my birthday in good humour now – I used to absolutely HATE my birthday. I was surprised with a birthday party when my hatred for my birthday was just about to hit it’s tipping point, and have been more OK with it ever since. My web connections are making it easier, too.

That’s it! Do any of these apply to you?

Crowdsourcing Glasses

So, it’s been eight years since I’ve owned a new pair of glasses. Eight. Freaking. Years. That is WAY too long. So, while I’m in need of new glasses, I thought I’d try a bit of an experiment.

I recently discovered an online glasses (and contact lens) store that I’m keen on ordering from, but I can’t make up my mind.

A list of all of their men’s frames can be found here and I’m attaching a recent (rather grumpy, apparently) picture to this post.

Your mission is to pick a (few) pair(s) of glasses, then comment on this post to let me know which you like. While I (And, let’s be honest, my wife) retain veto rights, I’m pretty open to anything, so the pair that seems to gather the most attention has a darn good shot of being my new pair. Also, while I’m not going to say ‘money isn’t an object’, I do have benefits that’ll be covering the purchase.

So spread the word and help me go shopping!

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Resume Redux

This post is short and an almost direct copy/paste – please forgive me, I’m at the cottage until tomorrow. I’ll have something original then.

I’ve always found the standard, single-page, single-sided resumé to be rather… dull. All you ever get is a single cover letter, and then one page to explain your skills, knowledge, history and… well… everything.

This two-page setup hardly gives an applicant the chance to show the employer anything about them. Because of the lack of space, their personality, their creativity… and even relevant skills end up forgotten. Most people compensate by having several versions of their cover letter and resumé so that they can select the right pair for any given job application. But even in these scenarios things are ignored – it’s just a different set of ignored items depending on which resumé/cover letter pair is used.

When I decided it was time to return to the working world after a year of freelancing, this standard setup just didn’t seem to fit me anymore.

So I decided to look up “resumé” and what it meant. It turns out that the official definition says nothing about length, letters or even medium! All it is, it seems, is a written account of personal, educational, and professional qualifications and experiences. Well – that’s pretty easy.

So I decided to do something a little… different with mine. I launched it with a domain name and a WordPress install. At the time of writing, I’m seeking work in customer service or evangelism marketing. Stop on by You Should Hire Tommy, and take a look at the interactive resumé. I’d love your feedback.

Oh! And spread the word! :)

Fit In 15: An Update

So, if June 17th was #fitin15 day 1, that would make today day 7… but I’m allowed to enter tomorrow, too… So I’m confused. In any case, it’s been a few days since I’ve posted a #fitin15 update so I thought I’d break down a small recap.

  • Day 1: June 17th – Went for a 25 minute walk alongside my wife and dog. Media captured was a series of images on Flickr.
  • Day 2: June 18th – Did walks and runs up the stairs of doom for 15 minutes. Captured (then edited) some video, and tossed it onto YouTube.
  • Day 3: June 19th – Went for another walk with my wife today. Media captured? None. Forgot every piece of tech I had at home (Cell phone included). Was kinda nice to unplug.
  • Day 4: June 20th – Took today ‘off’ because my legs were still burning – I blamed the stair exercises from Day 2. Spent 5 hours cleaning the house (Including vacuuming and hauling stuff up and down the stairs). I consider this a missed day, though I probably did more of a workout than most of the others.
  • Day 5: June 21st – Had originally planned on spending ab hour or more wandering aimlessly around the local conservation area. That didn’t happen. So I spent 40 minutes “Fake DDRing” instead. I used the same song and steps that I used to do daily. Captured the video (Full 40+ minutes) and have it on my computer. Not sure yet what to do with it – speeding it up messes up the music.
  • Day 6: June 22nd – I promised myself that I wouldn’t use biking during the #fitin15 challenge – outside of the house, I bike more than I walk. So if I was going to bike, I had to do something extrodinary – a lap around the city, perhaps… Or 15 rides up Fort Henry Hill… Or attaching an extra 15 pounds to the back and going for 15km. I did the later. Why? That’s a long story. Photos of the battery on the bike are on Flickr.

And that brings us today – which will be another post in a little while.

Fit In 15: The Stairs of Doom

So, today’s Fit In 15 was a video. You can find it at the end of the post. I decided that it’d be a lot of fun to run/walk up and down the dtairs for 15 minutes. I wasn’t too concerned. My wife said I was underestimating the challenge. Boy was she ever right.

I mentioned yesterday that I’d go more into my secret weight loss challenge – so here goes. Once upon a time, I weight 264 pounds. Those who only knew me as a real young guy may be laughing – I was skin and bones back then. But it’s true. See, I had discovered not long after getting my first part-time job that spending money = my choice of lunch. And that often was poutine. Or pizza. Or burgers. And chocolate milk. Lots of chocolate milk. When I actually gave up my 10-15L weekly intake of chocolate milk, well, it wasn’t pretty.

In any case, shortly after I graduated high school, I decided it was time to do something about the weight. With the help of a dietician I got my food in line, and then I hit the gym arcade. Really, nobody was fooling anyone – I wasn’t going to be found in a gym. Still wouldn’t. But Dance Dance Revolution? That I could do. The regimen was a strict 42 minutes/day at home, (The length of a specific set of songs) 6 days a week, and a 2-hour free-for-all down at the arcade on Sunday nights. The setup was a blast – I got an incredible amount of exercise and got a guaranteed slot of time with my friends. It was a lot of fun getting an audience around too.

In time, that technique brought me down over 50 pounds. I nearly passed the 200 mark once, but didn’t quite make it, and eventually seemed to settle atound 210. That’s yo-yo’d between 205 and 220, but I’ve yet to see 199 since… thinking about it now… Considering I graduated in 03.. It’s probably been 7 or 8 years.

That’s coming to and end this year. More on the goals and such another time. For now, here’s me making an idiot of myself running and walking up and down the stairs.