Information on hoax virus emails, email petitions, and email chain letter propagation This post is from an article I wrote way back in the mid-1990s while working for Symantec. Stop! Think Before You Forward. We’ve all seen them: frantic warnings about hidden needles in gas station pumps, “imminent” fees for social media, or heartbreaking stories …
Category: Life in general, and perhaps the Pursuit of Happiness
Comments about life, philosophy, etc…
Dad O’Rourke’s Bench
Here are directions and a link to a map and satellite image of the area. DIRECTIONS: From San Francisco, take 101 North to the Mill Valley/Stinson Beach exit onto Shoreline Highway (route 1). Follow Shoreline Hwy approximately 9 miles up through the hills to Pan Toll Road. Bear Right on Panoramic Highway (NOT towards Muir …
A BETTER Way to Roast a Turkey
The Chef Wolfe Method Physics vs. Tradition Years ago, I had the pleasure of studying Culinary Arts under the direction of Chef Kenneth C. Wolfe. Chef Wolfe was one of the best teachers I’ve ever had; he both taught and inspired many of the great Chefs working in the San Francisco Bay Area and beyond. …
On the Nature of Evil and Empathy
I have been doing a lot of thinking lately about the definition of “evil.” Most times, when we talk about it, it feels big, supernatural, connected to religious stories or mythical figures. Or we point to the extremes – serial killers, historical tyrants. But placing evil only in these far-off or larger-than-life places makes it …
Three Pillars of Burning Man
I’ve been thinking a lot about Burning Man and Black Rock City lately, not just because of the recent news about financial challenges and debates about the event’s management and future, but mainly because this last year marked 30 years since I first attended Burning Man in the Black Rock Desert. When I made my …
The Road Not Raged: A Reflection on Civility
I went to run an errand at lunchtime a few days ago and had an interesting encounter. I was going to the local Habitat for Humanity ReStore to drop off some donations. It’s about a 10-minute drive. About three blocks from my house, I noticed a brand new purple Subaru ahead of me stopped in …
Hoodies and Potential: From Trayvon to Josh
Sixty-Two and the Cycles of Time (Or, How I’m Still Figuring Things Out) This week marks my 62nd birthday, a milestone that feels both surreal and somehow inevitable. It’s hard to reconcile the number with how I feel—mostly, my knees remind me of the passage of time! But I also recognize that I’ve lived long …
Father’s Day…
I wrote on Father’s Day way back in the last century. It was an interesting time….
Two Pennies
“I woke up this morning thinking of coins…”
Two Divergent Paths
Last November, after 23 years, 8 Months and 26 days (but who’s counting) working for the same company, in the same town, in the same organization, I was laid off from my job as a Premium Corporate Support Manager for a large computer tech company. This situation is not an uncommon occurrence in any industry, …