Picon Punch at the Star

Sometimes I miss Picon Punches. I don't think it is the drink as much as the memories that go with it.

it really ties the back together

it really ties the back together, originally uploaded by briPod >.

Wow

Hi again

I read Brian's blog tonight and can't seem to go to bed without writing in response. I like the Wii post, but I am referring to the Dooce post that i had previously read, but I guess not read the end of. I got Brian interested in blogging but he encourages me to keep going when I am slacking. It's like a symbiotic blogging relationship. I'm not sure who is Eddie Brock and who is the alien symbiote.

His little mention reminded me that I haven't been blogging much. I like blogging. I like writing which is why I started. I need practice, which is why I want to keep going. I have been too caught up in work and haven't done a lot of the things that I really love. But as much as I miss my friends, nevada, photography, blogging, reading, motorcycling, etc. I really love my job and I am having fun being part of something. I work at Flickr. I started because I loved using Flickr and it changed my life and got me into photography. I also love helping people. This I love more than anything else in the world and always have. I help the users because I work in customer service. But I also help the other people answering emails becuase I write training, and track down problems. I really believe that most people just want to do a good job. When there are people that want to do a good job, and just need the tools to do it, that is really important to me. I want to do whatever I can to help them and if I know that they don't have that, and their desire to do a good job is wasted and flittering away. It is hard for me to sleep. So I love doing what I can to make sure they have what they need. Which makes it so other people can do what they want. On Flickr which I think is a great site and enjoyed by so many. It is very fulfilling for me. I think that is the closest I have come yet to explaining why I enjoy my job so much.

I won't work too hard forever. I always go back to a balance but for now I am doing such good work I don't really want to stop. I feel like I am on a roll to something good. My confidence rises everyday. There is an idea brewing in my head that is slowly solidifying, I now really know I am capable of working hard enough to maybe really pull it off. That is what is driving me. I am in the place I am supposed to be. If I didn't think so I would go find adventure somewhere. I have never had much and I think its time. But there is something I have to do first and I am in the perfect place to try.

I think I'll do my norm and not spell check or proofread. Just stream of conscience.

I miss you all. You know who you are.

The best Wiki I have found so far

Professional wrestling attacks

If you don't agree with me I will have to use an illegal testicular claw on you.

USS Winnemucca

NEVER FORGET!!

Scarface

I think this is going all around the blogs right now but I'll add one more link to it because it is awesome.

Whats the most popular t-shirt for a mugshot?

Also, make sure you check out their post about a shirt that is apparently some kind of synthetic Mithril.

cuarto san telmo

cuarto san telmo, originally uploaded by mauricio asial.

I have become obsessed with the idea of a Camera Obscura

Flickr Calendar 2007

I really enjoy my job. I think there is something special about Flickr. I cant really explain it to people. When I tell them it is a place to share photos you dont really get it until you go on flickr and search for something that matters to you. Your favorite pet breed, sport, or hometown. Or even just "flower." you wont believe the kind of pictures you will find that are being taken by people just like you. And you will find more variety and more that speaks to you personally than any museum you go to.

It's hard to explain but with that description and this video maybe you can get a little better idea. Each photo was uploaded to flickr on a different day of the year. Over 3,000 pictures are uploaded every minute and here are a few of those lives.

Patrick Swayze Has Pancreatic Cancer

which I have heard is painful. This is very sad but I bet Patrick isn't worried

PAIN DON'T HURT!

I hope you feel better Patrick. If it will help, you can rip my throat out.

O'Zack

O'Zack, originally uploaded by Zack Sheppard.

Crown & Coke is so smooth!

I am watching The Last Waltz which reminds me of my parents and Sara. I have been watching it for about 3 hours (which means I started over yes). The music is fucking awesome. My parents tried to get me to watch it YEEAARS AGO (ok so I am a little more than buzzed) but i shunned it. Sara then sat me down and we watched it at her house with her parents and I was blown away. She showed me this amazing thing i wouldnt accept from my parents. Making my life better in a couple ways.

I also got to talk to Laser Butter tonight who is wonderful and makes me laugh. She showed me the beauty of photobooth and is just fun to talk to (did i mention that she makes me laugh).

I also got to talk to Sara, Vic, and Ferd today. All wonderful friends. I got a nice card from my Dad reminding me to remember photography which he knows I love. That reminded me of my pal the Daddy Ninja. I loved his post about his sons treasure map. There is such awesome stuff in the world and I am lucky to be surrounded by so much of it.

I met a dude that said "I am going to this photography symposium in a couple weeks in this place you probably never heard of called Winnemucca"

My jaw hit the floor.

He said he loves the Mucc. (obviously a wise man).

And I was productive all day at work. I am working now. Writing new HotKeys to help my friends in Rosario. I kinda don't want to stop, I am being creative, helping people, and being productive. Great day. Grandpa Buckie is right, work is the best thing. I love being busy.

$98 billion, not including Flickr

I stay away from all the BS hype around the Microsoft wants Yahoo! thing. But THIS GUY knows what he is talking about

Kevin Sites

For those of you that do not know about Kevin's project, here is an excerpt from the Mission Statement

To cover every armed conflict* in the world within one year, and in doing so to provide a clear idea of the combatants, victims, causes, and costs of each of these struggles - and their global impact. With honest, thoughtful reporting we'll strive to establish Kevin Sites in the Hot Zone as a forum for information and involvement. Users will not only learn about the scope of world conflict, but will find ways to be part of the solutions- through dialogue, debate, and avenues for action.

Kevin went, alone, to conflict zones around the world.

I recently saw him speak at Yahoo!'s main campus. One of the things he talked about is that how actual battles are such a small part of war. Battles are easy to report on. There is action, death, victors, losers. But when the battle is over the news moves on. If you really want to know what war is about and what it does you have to talk to the people living in it, the civilians who are trying to raise a family and make a living. Another excerpt,

War poses as combat but is really collateral damage...[S]ocieties are encouraged by their leaders to romanticize warriors and their weapons...while avoiding thoughts of the legacy of civil destruction they also bring.

The book is a collection of stories from the people he met in all the places that you have heard of on the news but maybe don't really understand the politics and history so it is hard to follow, he went there. This is the other great thing that this book is doing for me. I know there is something bad happening in Somalia, the Congo, Columbia, etc. But I don't really know what and I can't keep it straight. In telling these people's stories Kevin gives background on what is going on in their country. It is great because it is just enough to help you understand but not overwhelm.

If you are looking for a good book that will help you learn a little more about the world or even just a page turner this is a great book. It's not getting a bunch of press, you wont hear about it in many places. But check out the website, read the Amazon reviews to see if it is interesting to you.

To me this was a great idea in what internet journalism could be. The stories you will find on the web are good but will leave you wanting a little more. The book fills that. And there is a free DVD. :)

Postcard - Downtown Winnemucca, Nevada - 1956

Postcard - Downtown Wimmemucca, Nevada - 1956
Originally uploaded by kocojim

I love this postcard from Winnemucca in the 50s. Roadsidepictures has lots of great old Winnemucca postcards but this downtown scene that kocojim found is gorgeous. I wish I could have seen Winnemucca in the 50s. From what I have heard the casinos were more popular and entertainers used to perform. There was more music and dancing. It sounds kinda perfect.

Hell, maybe I would have run into my grandparents going out to a dance or a movie.

Make sure you check it out large.

Corruption

I have not talked too much about Creative Commons here. It is fairly easy to explain the idea, but it to really explain the implications of it and why I think it is important is more difficult.

I have all of my photography licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike license. I do not charge for redistribution of my work. Other people can use it as long as they attribute it to me. And they are welcome to modify it, even for profit, but they are required to apply the same license to it.

There are different types of licenses. I could apply one where I do not let others make money on it. But for me as an amateur photographer I think that this type of license serves me the best. I have been published numerous times and have never been paid. But I am still an amateur. If the publications wanted to pay they in most cases would have used a professional. So this license has given me exposure that I would not have otherwise received.

The "Share Alike" part of the license is important too. Because anyone that used my work has to apply the same license, they can't put it in a clip art collection and make it "All Rights Reserved". It is the exact same model as the GNU GPL that Linux uses. The GPL makes Linux free but also makes it so Microsoft or some other company can't make a modification and copyright it. And derevations of Linux have to use the GPL as well. The Creative Commons share alike license applies this to art as well. In a society where the ability to create media is becoming cheaper and more accessible to everyone the Creative Commons licenses have a part to play because they allow people top share and build upon the work of others.

I want the big media companies to have less control of information and culture. I think that Creative Commons is a part of what can make this happen.

The man who founded the Creative Commons is Lawrence Lessig. He founded Creative Commons 5 years ago and has been involved in the Free Culture movement for 10 years. He is a law professor at Stanford and has published 4 books. The latest of which has just been released for free under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial license. (actually all 4 of his books are availible for free under CC licenses)

The idea being the exact same one that you discuss with your friends every time you talk about ripping a CD or downloading a song. Most people are willing to pay for the music/books/movies that matter to them. For those special artists that are in your heart you want to buy it because they deserve it. Here with his books, I assume the rational is that it was availible for purchase. Those that really wanted to get it and wanted it right away will pay for it. After money has been made on it, release it to people, no need to be greedy. Also the buzz can create more sales. This is an issue that is important enough to me that I will be buying the book anyway.

Well after 10 years in the Free Culture Movement Larry has announced that he is giving his final talk on Free Culture.

I took the day off to go to it. He is someone I really respect and admire. Being able to see things like this is why I moved out here.

Also, and this is just as amazing if not more so than the CC stuff, he basically has said, I have decided to move on and try and tackle corruption.

First, to just be someone who spends 10 years changing minds on culture and how it is distributed is amazing.

To then say, I think I'll go try to tackle corruption. Well that is someone I want to help and be a part of that if I can.

Not just because it is amazing and ballsy and wonderful. But corruption has been troubling me more and more lately. And I actually think that getting a little better control of the media and how information is distributed is the foundation that would be needed to do that. To me, the work he has done is the perfect groundwork to tackle the challenge he is taking on next.

I also think that the Net is the place where we can regain control of our culture. Wikis, blogs, social networks and amalgams of those that we have not yet considered will let us do that.

But what is Mr. Lessig thinking about corruption?

I just did a google search on Lawrence Lessig corruption. In the true style of someone who believes that putting ideas out to the world and letting you help them refine them, you will find "Corruption Lecture - alpha version (Lessig Blog)" along with the other links.

I will be reading these over the next week and I will be looking for how I can help.

Action shot!

Action shot!
Originally uploaded by Zack Sheppard

This weekend I had lots of fun going out, seeing old friends, seeing my family, going to Unionville. But I think my favorite part was going out to the Sand dunes behind Winnemucca Mountain with my brother and taking pics at night for a few hours. I am in a weekly photo contest and just going out to try to take something for the contest so often creates ideas i never would have thought of if I wasn't out there in a photog mindset.

Thanks to the contest and thanks to Clay. (also thanks to Brian for reminding me to get my ass back on the blogging)

I'm not there

I saw I'm not there yesterday. If you have not heard of it, it is a movie about Bob Dylan where 6 different actors play 6 different aspects of Dylan's personality. Each actor sort of plays him in different time periods of his life. But not exactly. There is a lot of overlap in time periods. And time periods are not defined. It would be more accurate to say each actor plays a different version of Dylan.

Normally when you go see a movie or read a book, you are given a character whose actions you can get to know and rely on. Maybe even feel that you know. The author defines this person for you. Just like when you get to know someone, you are trying to understand them, define them, find out what they believe and what their story is. But no one has just one part that they play.

That is what I loved about the movie. The director didn't try to define time periods for each Dylan. Their scenes were intermixed but still not chronological. It was confusing for a bit, but when you stopped trying to figure out where you were in the plot or in his life, it started to make sense. It was beautiful. Each actor/character/dylan was solid and definable (mostly) in their own scenes and for the people relating to them. But with the stories intermixing (I should also note, each actors Dylan had a different name in honor of people that influenced him. No one was actually Bob Dylan) you had to wrestle with all of these being the same person.

I think that if we all did that more often with the people in our lives we would understand them better. Too often people think, "They did ___. Well maybe they are not who I thought they were."

I know I travel in lots of different circles. And often I think "If these people saw me when I am with those other people they wouldn't know what to think. They would doubt what they 'know' about me." I have been better at trusting people with different sides of myself and usually with great results. But there are still some things you save for certain company. And I'll always be more than one person.

Thats what the movie meant to me. But ask me again tomorrow. I might say something different.

Listening to: De La Soul with Youth - Keepin' The Faith (Just A Touch Edit) So groovy, I couldn't finish the post w/o dancing.

My Friend

I'm at home.
Working.
On a Saturday night.

At times like these I listen to this song which reminds me of good times and keep going.

Elvis + Neil Diamond =

I have been putting off installing something to let me save YouTube vids, but it is time.

Family Business

One whole entire side of my family is in construction. I have done some, but it doesn't really speak to me. I love the Net.

But there was one day a couple months ago where I was home in Winnemucca for the weekend and my dad and brother were working on a Saturday. It was my day off and I drove 6 hours the day before and then partied all night to enjoy Winnemucca, not to work! But something about working with dad and Clay sounded so fun! And I had been behind a desk for a year so physical labor sounded pretty fun too. So I hopped out of bed, unloaded building materials, and operated a forklift with my dad and brother.

Well my friend Brian has days like that all the time. He works with his dad and brother. Because of that day with my dad and brother, and because of what I have seen of them working together, I realize why there are so many business names that end in "... & Sons"

Brian's dad was just interviewed for Nevada Business Journal so I just thought I'd take the opportunity to say, Awesome. :)

We are going to lose our ass and we deserve it

The Seven Gummie Sins: Greed
Originally uploaded by Wiedmaier

I was going to make a note about the american dollar and some of the recent bad signs. But I just got caught in the tractor beam that is the E! channel, and I have something to add to that.

So I just basically watched an hour of television about spoiled rich people. The Kiamora show and the show about the Kardasian girls. (yes i'm misspelling that but a. I don't want to search for how to spell it and b. I like Star Trek references) The shit that these people care about. Kiamora takes 20 pieces of luggage on her trip to Cannes, says that she will probably change 4 times a day. She tells us that she loves yacht. They are one of her "Passions."

Honey, if you can have yachts because your husband is a huge record producer and you happen to have the ability to realistically enjoy spending time on them and getting a different one, that is not a passion. That is just thinking "Holy shit I'm on a yacht! And its mine!" That is what anyone that could afford to have a yacht would think. Its a fucking yacht.

Through the rest of the show she is generaly bossy and has a i know that the hell Im doing attitude while running the new fashion business she is starting.

Next the Kardasians are even worse. They are not ultra rich like Kiamora Simmons but just as snotty and disconnected from the reality that 95% of the world lives in, and the Kardasians are loving it! They get a call from the Girls Gone Wild guy (from jail) asking them to do a swimsuit photoshoot. They take his plane to his house in Puerta Viarta where they are served hand and foot. Meanwhile back at home the little girls that are back home (about 11?) do their GGW impression on the stripper pole that is of course installed in their family home while the brothers manager holds a camera (all in jest) talking about how he will manage them (in jest again). Oh my how hilarious that these girls are playing girls gone wild. Just girls playing harmless games. I'll play along with my stupid guy jokes since I dont see anything wrong with GGW. Im am so funny. I is harmless right!? Right?

On a related note, the dollar is going to drop, soon, and we deserve it.

In the last couple months there have been some signs about the dollar, the Chinese hinted that if they really wanted to they could dump some of their dollar reserves and hints that Saudi Arabia might get out of the dollar currency for their accts and might go to euros (Venezuela and Iran have already done this). Last week the dollar hit an all time low against the Euro and more and more people are saying get out of the dollar.

Dollar, please drop and take these useless fucking people off of the screen.

Postscript: When viewing the IMF chief story, there was an add for a 60 Minutes special "Mansions Gone Wild." Kill me now.