Things that go Wump in the Night..

I like this blogging application ( typo ) but I don’t LOVE it.

There are certain things that “bug” me:

• Sometimes you get stuck in Cache Hell in the production environment where you just can’t get the thing to update!
• Performance is really horrible.. and I don’t know why. A blog is an incredibly simple application from a data architecture perspecitve. Even with caching, typo is slooooow. In the development environment it’s painful

That’s the worst of it and only half of the reason I’m building a new blog. The other half of the reason is:

• There is still no KILLER rails blog application. Typo is OK and Mephisto seems to be a dead project
• Why not. It’s creative, and I need that right now
• There are some features that I really want out of a blog that NO blogs do

So - it has begun. Already happily up and running in a development environment and will be rolled out in Beta for a listingly blog. It’s FAST, it’s INNOVATIVE and it’s DIFFERENT without being too different.

I’m learning more and more about my work habit right now with most of my time going to one client, and the occasional side project. Today is a perfect example that makes it loud and clear as my wife and I tag team looking after our ( sick ) kid. She takes a two hour slot and fits in two hours of work. I take a two hour slot, and at the end am just readdy to get stuck in.

So, I am NOT one of those people who get stuff done by squeezing in 15 minutes here and 30 minutes there in between other things.

No. Sadly no. I am one of those people who spend 2 hours sneaking up on a task then achieve three hours work in 60 minutes, often with some manic trance music blaring.

What is the ethical way to bill this? I need to triple my hourly rate.

MIVA, my last employer and the people who bought out my business in 2004 have done something right!

I thought they were sent to this earth to remind me that I’m not good employee material and piddle away their shareholders money, but it seems that maybe there is more to it than that.

Clearly when “focusing on core business” means “compete with google in the PPC space when you are insignificant in size and didn’t take advantage of being in the right place at the right time and not it’s too late”, then focusing on core business is not the right step. Someone over at MIVA has therefore wondered.. what else can we focus on?

Spill.com is the only original movie review site I’ve seen in a long time. Movie reviews consist of a bunch of animated characters, each with their own personality, discussing the flick. I like it.

Good Job MIVA! Even Motley Fool have taken a break from bashing you on this one!

As a follow up to my story on beaters, here’s why I think it’s a good idea to buy a cheap old beater. Sometimes, it turns into a project and becomes a long term part of your life.

When my wife said she wanted to buy a house, I decided I needed a truck first. I’d seen some of these more rare early Jeep Cherokees, but until I started researching I hadn’t realized how hard they were to find. There are lots of Wagoneers of the same era, but finding these 2 door “wide track” Cherokees is becoming increasing difficult.

In the middle of a hunt I spotted this jeep DEEP in the corner of a lot south on Broadway in Denver. Here is a photo that I took with my state-of-the-art-at-the-time digital camera!

I didn’t take a photo from the other side, because it was all bent up - as was the back. It ran horribly, and the guy tried in vain to talk me out of buying it from him, but $400 later I was driving it home on temporary plates. That was one scary drive.. as the revs dipped, the power steering and brake servos crapped out, and I was suddenly fighting a monstor.

For about a year it sat in the driveway as I worked on the body one panel at a time. When we actually did by the new house, I dropped about $500 into some engine work, and miraculously I had my emissions pass and was on the road!

For THREE YEARS it looked like this!

It was my primary vehicle, although I had a motorbike for thrills, but in the same vein, it was a 1978 Honda CB750 picked up for $1000 that, after some love, looked much better than it was.

I modified this 1982 Jeep to 70s spec at the front for that retro grill and round headlights, and over three years probably spent about $300 / year on it. Parts came from the scrap yard if I needed them, and I did most of my own work - but it needs little to keep it going.

Eventually with all the dents and dings straightened out of it I setup a make shift cover in my driveway, bought a compressor and shot it with a weather resistant primer.

It stayed like this for a couple of years, but then one magical day, I dropped it off at Macco for this Orange paint job. It came out pretty well.

With the purchase price, engine work, new wheels, paint job and bits and pieces, I’d say that over the course of 8 years this jeep has cost me probably $3000 TOTAL, and on a good day I could sell it for that. It’s one of the reasons I’m sold on old cars.. I’ve got a Triumph Spitfire too, but it’s not the same dependable work horse as the Jeep, and I’m happy to leave the Porsche 911 Convertible in the garage all winter, and tootle around in Big Orange.