We were there on behalf of cog motive, since the site is still relatively new, and we wanted to both be there to answer any specific questions, as well as weigh in if there was anyway we could make it easier for them to do their thing. Also, it is just good to be exposed to something new, I think. I don’t feel like I know enough about building a news site to give advice on it, such as best practices and such, but that is the goal for me. I want to connect with the people using the tools I build, so I can make them better.

Interestingly enough, the meeting was similar to how I would have run it, so I guess even I slightly romantisize how journalists work. It was obviously not in a press room, like in the movies, just a bunch of folks around a large dinner table talking about their beats and stories that should be covered. In fact, it was very similar to cog motive meetings (since we all live together, our “meeting room” is the living room).

Despite being there to assist in technical matters, I was jazzed to hear how they are planning to grow Oakland Local, with partnerships and creative marketing, and some really interesting stories as well. I particularly like some of the stuff about interviews. I am particularly sensitized to folks’ particular stories, and I look forward to reading more about the various cultures converging (and emerging) in Oakland. ^_^

On one hand we have the one-shots, someone needs a logo, or a brochure, or a static site with a few pages and a contact form. They are the people we get referred to us, or we hear them mention they need something done and we drop a business card on them. It is generally mediocre work (the actual work, since it is the thing we do all the time), and after it is said and done, everyone moves on.

There is are our ongoing clients, where we seem less like a consulting firm, and more like, well, a department. We are integrated in many of the procedures of how things work, either hatching up creative solutions for difficult problems, or even just commenting on a particular workflow. This is how I operate with Oakland Local and SVBC.

I like it. Besides just being more meaningful, I think that I have a nice niche where I can have that creative input without any of the real responsibility for implementation except where I shine, the technical. That is a large part of where the appeal comes in. I get the guilt-free association with the community-based crowd, which cares more about what I can do under their restraints than say, how I dress, or who I associate with. Basically, the things that bar me from certain corporate and/or political work are generally non-existent with these folks.

I begin to wonder what it is that creates this kind of work relationship. I am sure it is somewhat dependant on my personality. I set boundaries well, generally communicate clearly, and I find that most people get along with me, at least professionally. I also notice trends among the people I work with (in the client organizations), but that is for a different post. I am seeing these patterns, and I think I am close to figuring it out.

I think that to make cog motive sustainable we will a few more clients like this. I am not sure how one goes about finding them, that is the hard part, of course. It is about who you know, but not in the way that always made me feel sick to my stomach when I thought about how one advances their career. It is about who you know, and how you know them, and how your beliefs and vision align. Just like, you know, everyone else in your life.

One thing that I do know, the more clients we can get that share similar technical challenges (of which there are many common challenges out there), the more value we provide to all of them. The offsetting of cost for development is pretty substantial, and I am working to develop easy-to-use design patterns that we can share, in hopes that they will be improved upon as well as helpful for other developer/community-based organization communities out there.

After all, legacy is greater than currency.

So, why would I mention this, a company’s online survey, one among many that are posted everyday? To start, it was enjoyable. It made me laugh. It made me think (and not just about their product; see below [after you have filled out the survey])! And above all it made me feel that there were real people behind this, and that is something that resonates with me. I imagine (and am kinda betting on) that other people feel the same way.

Among the normal questions about “how do you use this” or “how can they improve that” were gems that cut through and broke up the monotony of the survey. The first one that caught me was “How’s your day going?”, which included answers like “Best day in a while” and “None of your effen business”. At the end there was even a place to enter a haiku competition. Fun stuff.

I was inspired to share two answers of mine, but they ask you to define these words without looking it up first, so if you are going to fill out the survey, don’t read below just yet.

Spoiler.

Spoiler.

Spoiler.

Okay.

The first word to be defined was nudiustertian.

maiki’s answer: Transparency in political action.

Wiktionary says: of the day before yesterday

Second word was tyrotoxism.

maiki’s answer: Physical symptons resulting from radiation exposure in zero-gravity environment.

Wiktionary says: Poisoning by cheese or other dairy products.

I… wasn’t even close on the first one.

If you are interested in using Basecamp, and would like to use cog motive as a referral, our code is

, or you can use our referral link.

So, I kinda crashed today. We still have plenty of work to do, but I don’t feel rushed at the moment. That is partially why I am going over July events, so I get an idea of what is coming up.

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince comes out on the 15th. I hardly ever watch blockbusters on their release day, and as you can below I will be busy for the days after it, so I am not sure when I will be getting out to see it. However, seeing the wicked people on the side of buses is exciting, and I am looking forward to magic-broom/smoke-balls of darkness scenes that I saw in the preview. I haven’t read the books, and I don’t think much about Harry Potter outside of the theater, so it is just fun and quick entertainment for me.

On the 17th I have a date with a judge in Oakland. I will leave there and head to the DMV to get an ID with my new name on it. maiki interi is how I’ve introduced myself to people for years, so not much will change, except for the awkward moments at convention name tag pick-up tables.

That weekend (18th and 19th) I will be at the Community Leadership Summit in San Jose. I missed Fanime this year, so I guess I decided to go that convention center with hundreds of other people in the middle summer in San Jose due to some sick sense of consistency. Seriously though, I heard about the event through a few different channels, and it is being thrown together by Jono Bacon, community manager for Ubuntu, and overall nice guy. Tim is going with me, the other cogs having other obligations that weekend (or avoiding the sun, which is understandable).

The next Friday (24th), Ponyo will be showing at UC Berkeley. Susan got tickets as soon as she heard about it. Studio Ghibli films are some of my favorites to see in theaters, and by looking at the seating chart for Zellerbach Hall, it should be quite the event. It was like opera seating, so I almost want to dress up for it.

A week after that on the 31st we are having a winter holiday celebration for a variety of reasons. This will include the purchase of an evergreen (or something) tree to decorate with strings if lights. I don’t know the specifics at the moment, but I am trying something new with regard to holiday observance. I am sure photos will follow that event.

These events, combined with weekly evenings for role-playing and media consumption (anime, select TV shows, and video gaming) will keep me busy. Additionally, I am going to try to get out more in a social capacity. My pendulum is swinging back towards extrovert. I read about all these dinners and cafe hangout sessions on the SFBay-Poly list, and I have promised more than a handful of people that we would have a dinner party at Highwind, so I will have to work those in somehow. ^_^