I’m trying for the umpteenth time to implement the principles from David Allen’s “Getting Things Done”. It’s a system for keeping track of obligations and projects, and while I’ve initiated the attempt several times in the past, I’ve never really followed through.

One of the main principles of GTD is to get all the “have to”, “should”, and “want to” items out of your head and into a trusted system that you’ll check regularly. Otherwise they keep floating around in the back (or forefront) of your mind and distract you from being able to focus on specific things you could and should be doing.

Allen defines a “project” as anything that will take more than one step to accomplish, and another principle of GTD is that you can’t really “do” a project – at any given time, you can only do one piece of the project. So he advises thinking about any given project and then identifying the “next action” that will move the project along. Doing so provides a sense of focus in the moment, without thinking or worrying about things which can wait or aren’t yet actionable.

So it was in that mental context that I read this morning’s “Deeper Walk” email devotional from Relevant magazine. The topic was “Simple Obedience”, and here’s an excerpt:

I want God to wave the magic wand and make me whole again. So far, He hasn’t. God will help me. God will guide me. But, as far as I can see, He plans to only tell me the next step, the next truth. The how and the where and the when of my redemption cannot be my concern. The question for me is this: When God speaks, will I obey?

I’m amazed and humbled when Big Concepts come together from disparate directions, like a light bulb clicking on inside my head. May I focus on what I can do TODAY, and not worry so much about tomorrow.

Last evening I spent a whole lot of time on things that, in the grand scheme of things, really don’t matter.

For a while now I’ve been toying with the idea – and resisting the urge – of upgrading my cell phone to something newer, sexier. I currently have a Palm Treo 755p, the final Treo running the venerable PalmOS. I’ve had a PalmOS device of some kind since the mid-90s. In all honesty, the Treo is working just fine. It runs the Palm apps I’ve accumulated over the years. It has a rudimentary web browser. It allows me to make and receive calls, and to send and receive texts.

Yet I found myself driving to the Verizon store to look at phones. I currently have a grandfathered monthly plan from the Alltel days, and a sweet employee discount that was also grandfathered (probably beneath the notice of Verizon). So I was curious/concerned about whether switching phones would require changing plans, whether I would be able to keep my discount, etc. I waited 20 minutes in a mostly empty Verizon store before a salesperson came over to help me. By that time I had scoped out some phones and gained some hands-on experience of them. The salesperson couldn’t answer my questions and concerns to my satisfaction, so I left.

When I got home, rather than putting the issue aside, I called Verizon’s toll-free number to pose the same questions. I did eventually get a fairly helpful representative named Elizabeth, but that exploration led to a discovery of an anomaly on my forthcoming bill. Sorting out that anomaly took 20 minutes in and of itself. Then we spent another 20 minutes sorting through the what-ifs of changing phones/plans.

By the time I got done, I had spent nearly 2 hours of my life on the question of potentially replacing my phone, when my current phone really works OK. Technology, and the time spent chasing/acquiring/learning/troubleshooting it, can be a curse. There are thousand ways I could have better spent that 2 hours: attending to some overdue house cleaning, reading a worthwhile book, catching up with a friend.

Did I end up replacing my phone? Yep, it’s on order. Will I spend precious time learning to use it – time I could spend on more worthwhile things? Undoubtedly. Will I ever learn to be content with what I have? Lord, I hope so.

Windows 2000 was officially retired this week. Long my favorite version of Windows for its down-to-business, no-nonsense GUI and its modest hardware requirements, I’m sad to see it go.

XP was basically a gussied-up version of Windows 2000, and shared most of the same code base. But where XP tried to be prettier and fancier for mainstream computer users, plain-jane 2000 was content to just get the job done.

Windows 2000 lost any additional feature upgrades starting in the summer of 2005, and was only getting security updates since that time. But on July 13th, 2010, Microsoft stopped issuing those as well.

While I generally prefer living in the linux world these days (PCLinuxOS, to be exact), I do still have some ties to Redmond. I’m running Windows 7 on my media center PC to take advantage of the integrated Netflix streaming in Windows Media Center. And I have found Windows 7 to be pretty solid as an operating system.

So I raise a toast to Windows 2000. It served me well for many years.

OK, it’s been quite a while since I made a regular blog post here. The arrival of the new year seems like a good reason to establish a more regular habit, so here goes…

I just completed the setup of YNAB3. I’ve been using the basic version of YNAB (a spreadsheet that can be used in Excel or OpenOffice) for about 18 months. Even though there was a newer YNAB Windows app, I stayed with the basic version because I’ve been primarily using Linux during that time, and the spreadsheet file can be easily used cross-platform. YNAB3 is now cross platform as well since it runs on top of Adobe Air, so I decided to upgrade and take advantage of the extra features.

I’m also hoping it will serve as an impetus for making (and keeping) a commitment to staying with a budget. While I’ve been setting a budget each month, I’ve generally been lousy at keeping within the boundaries of my spending plan. I mean, I haven’t completely sucked – I did finally pay off all my debts except the house last month. But I could have done it sooner if I didn’t habitually over-spend each month in different categories, from groceries to entertainment to the catch-all “misc” category. So I’m striving to become a better steward.

After I get my recent cataract surgery bills finalized with the insurance company and paid in full, I’ll work to build up a solid emergency fund, start saving for a new (used) vehicle purchase in 2-3 years, increase my charitable giving, etc.

Here’s to some discipline in the new year!

In the spring of 2007 I opened an account at twitter.com. At the time it was all the buzz among Silicon Valley types, so I thought I’d see what all the hub-bub was about. The “prompt question” on Twitter was “What are you doing right now?”, and the idea was for people to send text messages from their mobile phones throughout the day in answer to that question. The idea became known as microblogging – short posts that generally consist of fleeting thoughts or status updates. Because Twitter was designed around SMS text messages, Twitter established a 140-character limit for each post – the same limit that exists for SMS messages. Users could also choose to “follow” (or subscribe to) others peoples’ Twitter feeds.

I did a couple of “tweets” (the annoying term for posts on Twitter), and left it at that. The idea of continually posting the trivialities of my day seemed a bit too narcissistic for me. And there became a juvenile contest among tech insiders to see who could get the most followers on Twitter. Because I already had a standard blog, and a Facebook account (where I could post status updates if I wanted), Twitter seemed largely redundant and unnecessary.

Of course, for whatever reason, Twitter – like Facebook before it – has now started to catch on among the mainstream public, and the continual references to it have prompted me to reflect a bit on technology and culture. As I’ve stated in other forums, it’s been difficult for me to see Twitter as much more than a narcissistic, mutual-masturbatory echo chamber. I will concede that other people find it useful – perhaps even I will at some point. But some of the comments in support of Twitter have left me scratching my head, and have caused me to wonder about how we adopt new technologies without much rigorous reflection.

For example, a discussion of Twitter (and an argument for its usefulness) came up a few weeks ago on an email discussion group I participate in. It was right about the time that the U.S. Air jet crash landed in New York’s Hudson river. Somebody stated that, thanks to Twitter, they knew about the crash within minutes of it happening. It was simply assumed that this was an incredibly useful thing – all made possible by Twitter.

One question I have is this: Why do I need to know that the U.S. Air jet went down in the Hudson at the moment it happened? Unless I had a friend or loved one on the flight (extremely unlikely, given the limited number of people in the world I personally know, the number of flights on any given day, and the rarity of plane crashes), or I was in a position to render immediate physical assistance in the rescue operation (again, extremely unlikely given the total surface area of the earth and rarity of plane crashes), I have no immediate need to know about the crash. Aside from the rather childish “bragging rights” for having heard about it before anyone else, what purpose can that immediacy possibly serve?

Some might respond with, “Well, you could immediately start praying for those on board the plane, and those involved in the rescue operation”. And that’s certainly true – I believe very much in the power of prayer. But since I believe that God exists outside of our timeline, and isn’t constrained by temporal considerations, I believe that I can pray about it after the fact and that the prayer still “counts”. God isn’t bound by immediacy.

A broader subject that doesn’t seem to receive much serious reflection is how new communications technologies – including things like Twitter and Facebook – affect the ways in which we interact, live out our communal lives, process ideas, and view concepts such as friendship (and other relationships). There seems to always be two camps when it comes to new communications technologies: one predicting the demise of culture because of the new technologies, and another uncritically adopting the new technologies while regarding those in the first camp clueless, alarmist Luddites. But as these two camps cite studies supporting their position, and lob verbal grenades at one another, there never seems to be any middle ground of calm, rational dialogue about both the potential benefits and pitfalls of the technologies.

Technologies are almost always a mix of benefits and risks. For example, more opportunities for information and entertainment, while also enabling unhealthy isolation. It’s these types of issues that I’d like to see us, as a whole, become more reflective about, without having to worry about being labeled as too exuberant or too fearful about technology. For example, here are a couple of questions I’ve been pondering:

1. What effect do sites like Facebook and MySpace have on the concept of “friendship”? It’s clear that sites like these allow people to connect with one another in ways never before possible, and that can be a great thing. But is the person I sort of remember meeting at a party two nights ago really my “friend”? What are the characteristics of friendship? How do these sites enhance or distort the idea – and practice – of friendship?

2. As we adapt more to communicating via “tweets”, attempt to follow the feeds of hundreds of Facebook and Twitter friends, and get our general news and information in the form of short summaries delivered via RSS feed, how does that affect our ability – and willingness – to think and communicate deeply about things? In the midst of the constant barrage of input from email, text messages, IM, Facebook, Twitter, phone, radio, TV, video games, and iPods, how do we carve out space to be truly present with other people, and to hear the still, small voice of God?

Anybody care to disengage from the chatter long enough to engage in the dialogue?

I recently read (well, mostly skimmed) a book called The Creative Habit. It was mentioned in a post by Merlin Mann several weeks ago, and while I haven’t gone as ga-ga about it as he has, I thought it made some useful points. Although the book was written by a choreographer, the ideas can be applied to any creative endeavor – art, music, design (of any kind), even programming.

I came away with a couple of main points from the book…

Point #1 – Creativity isn’t a gift reserved just for the chosen few. I’ve seen quotes from some artists suggesting that “you’re born with it or you aren’t”, and that it’s not something that can be learned. Hogwash. Such an attitude is driven either by an over-inflated ego or by a fear that maybe they’re not as uniquely gifted as they’d like to believe. It’s certainly true that some people are more naturally gifted in particular areas than others, but while you may never be “the best”, it’s certainly possible to get better, and maybe even get “good”.

Point #2 – Creativity takes a lot of work. This is the point that served as sort of a wake-up call for me, even though I instinctively knew it to a degree. Creativity isn’t about waiting around for the inspiration to hit. It’s about going through the motions, on a regular basis, whether you’re feeling particularly creative or not. (Hence the name of the book – The Creative Habit).

Here are the implications in terms of my photography hobby: If I wait around to go out and shoot until I’m feeling really creative, I’ll be shooting much less often. And that’s because I never know when the creative muse will come calling, and when it does, there’s a decent chance I can’t act on it because of other responsibilities (e.g., my paying job). So I need to regularly put myself in situations where I can practice creativity – making myself go out and shoot…putting that into my schedule.

That’s why I headed out this morning as the sun was coming up. I’ve been wanting to get some winter countryside shots, and I knew that most of Thursday night’s snow would be melted by this afternoon. (I still want to get some non-snowy winter scenery too – preferably on a cloudy day). It’s also largely what prompted me to try the “photo-a-day for 2009” project. It challenges me to keep my creative eye open for potential photographic opportunities every day.

And I have to say – forcing myself to do it is starting to help me notice more creative possibilities. Just sitting here now on my couch, typing this entry, I noticed 5 potential photographic subjects within about a minute. And that motivates me, and encourages me, and gets my creative juices flowing in a way that sort of feeds on itself. I know there will still be times when I get stuck in a rut creatively. But having the habit – making myself go do it – is the best recipe for getting un-stuck.

So here’s to the hard work of creativity…

A year or so ago I signed up for a $5 subscription to American Photo magazine. I thought it might be interesting/instructive to see what was being featured from other photographers – that maybe I could be inspired or challenged to branch out or try something different.

After several issues, I have to confess that I regard my $5 as pretty much wasted. Because American Photo magazine really isn’t about the fundamental and classic elements of photography – a compelling landscape, and interesting abstract, and candid glimpse of someone. It’s about pushing the boundaries of subject matter. The latest issue that arrived this week, showcasing the winners of an “Images of the Year” competition, featured such gems as a group of body builders sitting at a table in parochial school attire, a girl with a deer head superimposed instead of hers, two Indonesian store owners in their underwear, and a topless pregnant girl wearing a Batman mask.

Really? These were among the “Images of the Year”?

I discovered the same thing a couple of years ago after hearing about a new photography magazine starting up called JPG magazine, featuring photos submitted (and voted on) by users. “Cool concept”, I thought to myself, so I plunked down my $20 and signed up for a year. But, again, the agenda was to push subject matter boundaries as far as they can go. One issue’s theme called “Beauty Redefined” really did take some unattractive subject matter and try to spin it as beautiful – a sort of in-your-face “Yeah, well we’re taking all your ordinary sensibilities and telling you you’re WRONG!”.

It’s a shame that photography seems to have become more about pushing boundaries than about light, composition, wonder, and compelling scenes. I’ll be the first to admit that there IS a place for photography to be stark, even uncomfortable – capturing sorrow, depicting injustice, creating empathy. But that’s just a fraction of what photography can and should do – stir the soul towards awe, wonder, longing, comraderie, even action.

Let’s hope that the craft can eventually return to First Things – the fundamentals that have helped stir souls for the past 100+ years. I’ll do my (very) small part towards that end.

I’m scratching my head a little at a local trend of senior photos – especially girls’ photos – being really stylized, over-saturated, and Photoshopped almost to death. I mean, it’s fun to play around with effects for some shots, but every shot?

I can’t help but think that this is a photo fashion trend that will fairly quickly fall out of fashion, as most trendy clothing fashions do. Just as basic color and lines seem to always be regarded as elegant in clothing, I suspect that photographs with classic composition and good exposure will have a timeless quality regardless of the ever-changing winds of trendiness. I also suspect that 5, 10, or 20 years from now, many of these seniors will look back on these photos and wish they didn’t all look quite so “2008″.

I guess on the plus side for would-be photographers, this trend doesn’t require all that much in the way of photography skills – just a little basic Photoshop knowledge.

So here’s a hint to all you trendy seniors who want to save some cash:

* Get a half-way decent digital camera, or find a friend who has one.

* Get Photoshop Elements, and a basic tutorial book. Learn how to crop, rotate, and boost saturation.
* Do a search on Google for “Photoshop lomo plugin”, then download it and install it.

* Head out with a friend and have them take crazy fun pictures of you.

* Afterwards use Photoshop Elements to crop, slightly rotate to an odd angle, over-saturate, and apply the lomo plugin.

There you go. You’ve just saved hundreds of dollars for your senior photos.

I just finally finished watching season 4 of the “unofficial” WKRP DVD set I picked up online some time ago. From what I can tell this was a joint labor of love from a variety of contributers who had videotaped episodes off the air.

For those too young to know, “WKRP In Cincinnati” was a comedy that originally aired in the late 70s and early 80s. It’s centered around an AM radio station, and the mostly oddball collection of people who worked there. Being set at a rock and roll station, at various times during the episodes they would play snippets of actual songs by popular artists Apparently even at that time, the licensing fees were so high that the show was shot on video tape (as opposed to more expensive film) to offset the licensing costs.

After being canceled, the show went into syndication in the early- to mid-80s, and as is usually the case with syndication, 2-3 minutes of each episode was cut to allow for more commercials. After the first syndication run, the original song licensing rights had expired, so for the 2nd syndication run the song snippets for almost all of the original artists were replaced by generic rock music, and in some cases the actors’ voices were overdubbed with different dialog if they even mentioned the name of an artist.

The series is now being incrementally released on official DVDs, but with the generic music.

The “unofficial” DVD set is almost entirely from the 1st syndication run. So the bad news is that 2-3 minutes of each episode is gone. The good news is that all but one of the episodes in the set still has the originally aired music. And even though the video quality of some of the videotaped episodes is pretty low, it’s still preferable to the full episodes with the crappy generic music being released now.

What’s sad is that the full episodes with original music will probably never see the light of day again. The inane licensing policies of the music labels will make it cost prohibitive. And some are saying that even if some reasonable agreement with the labels could be reached, it’s possible that master copies of the non-overdubbed versions of the episodes may not even exist any more.

If the labels could have seen the incredible promotional value of having their artists featured for a few seconds in an episode, this regrettable situation could have been avoided. I mean – please – did they really think that someone hearing a few seconds of a song would deprive the labels of sales? If anything, it would be more likely to boost sales.

So thanks RIAA for ruining what could have been a great official DVD release. The day that the RIAA dies cannot come soon enough for me.

And sincere thanks to the folks who assembled the unofficial set. You’ve at least somewhat salvaged a great show for posterity.

It’s been too long since I engaged in any intentional photography, but I think I’m back in the swing of things.

Photo Friday is returning from vacation…