LinkedIn, Facebook and the Creepy Factor

Today I was amused by a bit of LinkedIn email. 

Going through the morning online work, I spotted a piece of email from LinkedIn.  Most of us are familiar with Facebook by now.  Consider LinkedIn a Facebook for the Professional Set.  If you have a career instead of a job, you need to be on there.  The account that I use on there could be more effectively used, I am somewhat low on contacts.   Since I'm so busy maintaining the presence of Wilton Manors Main Street on Facebook and their Blog and watching over that of New Divine Mercy Church on Facebook, their Blog, as well as my own blog here, I tend to take a passive outlook.   If someone spots me, friends me, I accept, smile at the "good thoughts" and move on with a new relationship.

I don't usually search for people unless there is a reason.  Once I found a whole wing of the family in Nebraska and another in Washington State, as well as being told of a branch that moved to Saskatchewan and set down roots.

This particular email was asking me if I knew some people.  Specifically it was the Mayor of Wilton Manors and one of the Commissioners.  Yep!  I know them both, but since I don't tend to "bother" people without a good reason I chuckled and deleted the email. 

We're all busy, right?  Why bother people...

That got me thinking about the ability to use social media for online stalking.  If the software knew that I should know the Mayor and the Commissioner and was right, what else does this online database know about us.

Privacy is done for.  Actually that isn't completely true, you could always cut your credit cards and pay cash for everything.  With the laws in place for health and other records in the United States, if that information got out about you, you could make a tidy sum suing the company that had an "accidental" breach of your personal information, many people have.

Online privacy is non-existent.  As soon as someone posts their personal information on a website, and it is found by a search engine, you're public.  May as well put it on a post-it or on one of those stickers that say "Hello, My Name Is" because it is that open.   Email is a Post Card medium.  It is sent out mostly unencrypted out to the world and anyone who wants to learn about you can find it with the right technology. 

Sure there are secured Email sites for such people who work in the Health Care and Insurance Industries for example, but they are not used by "normal folk" like you and me.

So what can you do about it?   Practically nothing these days.  If you use an email that is free and advertisement based, then your information is already out there including your private thoughts.  They aren't private, no matter what.  This blog is public, it is scanned by all the search engines, and I do employ some Search Engine Optimization techniques to make sure that the articles I post aren't just read today.   It also is hosted on Blogger which is a Google site.  Google finds my posts and scans them and indexes them.  That benefits me because it brings people in a wider audience than just my friends and family.

Now what happens to those databases?  You tell me...

The indexes and databases of websites and emails and all the other detritus of our lives that are online are a very good representation of our personal thoughts.  Go onto Facebook and like something and you establish a relationship.  That relationship can be inconsequential when you "Like" Food.  It could be something we consider positive when we Like our own nation or an allied nation.  It could be negative when we like a hate group - find them on your own, I won't help you there. 

The bottom line is that it builds a very good psychological description of an individual.  This sort of thing has not gone unnoticed, and there are many people out there working in Social Networking and the analysis of the psychology of Social Networking.  After all, you can sell this information or protect your country against people who are out to commit crimes simply by looking over their shoulders at what they say about themselves.

The best thing you can do is step back next time you see that email or the friendly "Like" button and consider what it says about you.  After all, it is easier than trying to do it the Old School way.  Who among us has actually written a physical paper letter to a company telling them how well they did lately?  I know I haven't!

Wilton Manors Rally for Fairness and Equality and Alan West

Last night at rush hour, the Coalition for Fairness and Equality had a rally to speak out against US Representative Alan West.

The rally was well attended, and there were, as speaker Dean Trantalis (at the microphone) said, people from both the Democratic and Republican Parties there to speak out against the comments that Alan West made in the past.

This was at Wilton Manors City Hall, and featured War Veterans, people from both sides of the aisle, and elected officials.

It's good to see that people are beginning to finally shake off the Fox News mindset and start to speak up.

Crime in Wilton Manors - When Drunks Dumpster Dive

For years, in the Shoppes of Wilton Manors, there was a thrift store.  Poverello was a great place to get odds and ends at a deep discount even if the place was dark, dirty and dingy.  They have since moved away to new digs on Dixie Highway, about a half mile from the old store.

The old store would collect bags of donations that would mysteriously show up after hours.  Sometimes great piles of furniture of questionable value would show up in front of the place that would leave us scratching our heads and saying that it's just going into the dumpster.

That dumpster also collected donations that were in no way sellable.  There have been people coming into the back parking lot for years and dumping their cast offs because they didn't want to pay for the trouble of getting a bulk trash hauler to pick up their worn-out garbage furniture that is missing a leg, cracked supports, or just stained.  Some of the things that were out front as a donation were downright insulting, the pieces that ended up out back were usually even worse.

After Poverello moved, the "donations" to the dumpster slowed but continued.  The dumpster was quickly removed so the dumpers would merely leave things in the spot that the dumpster was at.  For a while the gate to the back lot was closed and locked which stopped the growing pile, but parking is too scarce a commodity here so recently the 20 or so free spots were opened up with the gate on "Bar Nights".

It was on one of those bar nights that it arrived.   A giant styrofoam drink cosy that someone thought they could leave back there.   It was the insulation and support for a hot tub.  Junk came and left that corner, but the giant 5 foot plus drink cozy stayed there. 

Until yesterday.

Around dinner time, they came and spotted it.  In their alcohol fueled minds they thought it might be something useful so they began rolling it out of the back lot and down the street.   Getting about 250 feet away, they stopped at a vacant lot and rested.

After all, when you roll a giant black styrofoam donut down the road in a tropical climate on a summer night, you get tired.

While they rested they drew attention.  We called the Wilton Manors Police dispatch to let them know what was going on while all the neighbors came out and watched one after another. 

One neighbor took his puppy out for a walk at that time. 
We took the picture here.
Another was watching outside her window and then called us when the police appeared.

No, we're fine, but we did call.  We have a very cohesive block on this end of the street.  We tend to watch out for each other, trade recipes and baked goods across the fence and the street, watch over each other's dogs that sometimes get lost.

More neighbors came out.  The giant drink cozy was doing its job, giving the guys a place to lean.

They got on the phone and apparently called for reinforcements.  They arrived just before the police officer did, white panel van in store.

When the police came to the door we filled him in and he went out to investigate.  It seems the story was that these two drunken guys acting like frat boys saw this giant donut and decided to roll it home.  When it got too heavy, they stopped, sipped more drinks from their "Fat Tuesday" party cups, took some video footage, and called for the van. 

They were trying to stuff this monster into the van when the second policeman arrived.  More of an amusement than anything else, they all stood around laughing and shaking their heads as they realized the thing was just too big to stuff into a van.

As the second officer left, they weighed their options.   Problem solved as they rolled the giant down the street like a tire toward their later destination.

For the most part Wilton Manors is a predictably safe place to live.  When Crime visits, it comes in from Fort Lauderdale and rolls down the block.  Sometimes with a sippy cup and a big donut.  Other times, it's different opportunistic things.  You just have to watch yourself so you don't get run over by a run away hot tub.

The Five Simple Rules For Happiness

Velma sent me these five simple rules for a happy life the other day. 

Maybe she's trying to tell me something... Short and sweet, there's the list:


Remember the five simple rules to be happy:
1. Free your heart from hatred.
2. Free your mind from worries.
3. Live simply.
4. Give more.
5. Expect less.

Have a blessed day, unless you already have other plans.

Velma Approves of this Picture

Every morning, and some afternoons I was fortunate enough to ride home from work with this smiling face.

Warm and engaging, Velma started my days off with a smile.  Once we got going, I would want to stay on the train with her and our friends that were made over the years of riding from my house on the R7 Chestnut Hill West train to my office at Temple University.

It has been 6 years since I moved away, but Velma has stuck with me and kept writing emails and sending me most of the jokes that I post here. 

I told her a while back that I was using her picture to link up with the jokes and she wanted an upgrade.  The old picture was one that she had sent right after the Philadelphia Eagles had won a particularly important game.  Mondays, after the games in Football Season, she'd be on the train dressed sometimes in Head to Toe Eagles Green and White, smiling and excited talking animatedly about the games.  During holiday seasons sometimes she'd entertain us with a Santa Hat or Red White And Blue pin and tell stories of how she was going to visit with family.

Rarely, she would be missing from that morning perch.  It wasn't quite the same.  I'd go back to doing my reading or listening to an Audio Book, the energy was changed.  Everyone was friendly but it seemed that Velma brought a special spark to that train car.  She'd sit with me in the front seat facing the door, we'd greet our friends as they'd get on the train at their stops and talk about things big and small, but always with a smile.

I can't ever think of her in a down moment, even when someone near was not having a good time.  Water off of a duck's back, the troubles would melt away if Velma was there.

That is why, after all these years that I share her and her humor with you.  A good friend of mine, hopefully she brings some warmth to your day.

So by her request, I've given her a new presence here.  She's dressed up for us, and I'll use this picture for now on or until she wants a change. 

Thanks Velma, I miss you and your warmth and your smile!

Job Recruiters Amuse Me

Having my resume on Dice.Com, Monster.com, and Careerbuilder.com I get to speak with recruiters.

It is like saying you will get wet if you stand outdoors.  Underwater.  Repeatedly.

Yesterday I had two things happen that had me amused.  

I have a Lot of Project Management experience.  I'm doing some consulting for New Divine Mercy church where I have migrated their website off of LAMP and Joomla to Google Sites.  I also act as their videographer, and handle their technology needs.  I also have been the treasurer for a political campaign, and a webmaster for two campaigns.  I have written advertising copy and have been a speech writer - all of which in the last year.

I am also the social media director for Wilton Manors Main Street, maintaining their facebook group and their blog, as well as producing the monthly newsletter.  I produce the newsletter and the embedded newsletter site with content from Krishan Manners and it was my idea to get content from other organizations within the area so that there would be one central place to find the information as well as one newsletter going out instead of five or six.  It is well received and is growing each month.  If you would like to get our next newsletter - click on this link. We don't sell the email addresses to anyone else.

Yesterday I got an email from someone at Robert Half International about a position.  I had read it, shrugged since I thought I was a little "short of the qualifications" and moved on.  A couple hours later I got a phone call from the same "associate" who sent me the email.  After her interviewing me and going past the elevator pitch, I told her my opinion.  I also told her how they typically do their interviews.  After being in the market as long as I have been , I'm a bit more wary of agreeing to go in to talk to recruiters.   They have a habit of wanting to see you, a Meet and Greet, without anything concrete behind it.   Robert Half is guilty of this as are some of the other firms in this field.  I have a hard and fast rule if I have done the Meet and Greet before, I won't do it again unless you are ready to send me out on an interview.   I told her this and thanked her for her interest but since "gasoline is $4 a gallon and this would take two hours out of my day to get there and back, I was not inclined to come in for a face to face but would consider it 'if there was something concrete' involved".

You see if you are interviewing your time is free, theirs is not.

Nothing against this particular recruiter, she was knowledgeable and understanding, she was polite, and she was willing to listen.  I just didn't want to play by the script.

The other wrinkle I found over the time of interviewing is that most recruiters are fairly useless.  There are some exceptions and I write THEM, directly.  These are the ones that after going the first meet and greet contact me about specific opportunities.   I keep their emails on a spreadsheet for easy access.  There simply are too many folks in and out of that career for me to bother with the fly by nights.

Why I consider most fairly useless is that there is a pattern.

First the company needing the new hire will post a direct job specification either on their website or on one of the job search boards.  In Technology, Dice.Com is probably my favorite - I can submit a resume in under 5 minutes, a little more if I have to tweak my resume or my cover letter. The State of Florida has a page that is utterly useless, and the Federal Government's is bad as well but better than Florida's.

After the company posts the specification, recruiters will spot this and contact the company and find out if they are open to recruiters.  That may be as simple as Recruiter A sees Company Posting B at 8AM, claims it as their own and posts it to Recruiting Company internal website and then onto Dice/Monster/Careerbuilder.  That happens usually by 8:01AM.  It can be that fast.

If it is a Project Management or Business Analysis position I know I will have a busy day because I will notice multiple hits on my resume on those boards.  I keep a spreadsheet that tells me what the raw counts are and how many hits there were since yesterday. 

Usually after the local boards send me a feeler, a couple days later the Out Of State recruiters start calling.   They're much later because they're "fishing" for a hit.  The problem with the Out Of State recruiters is that you will never have any kind of a relationship with these peoples.  It is like a door to door contractor showing up and asking if you need your driveway sealed.  That's a call I get every other week, the recruiters are daily.

If there is a phone call on my cell I immediately look to see the caller ID.  I have a definite priority of who I answer.  If you have called me, I add you to the SIM list.  If you haven't then it shows as a raw phone number.  

First Priority are people who I have spoken with before - Friends, Family,  Business Contacts and former recruiters who I have dealt with.

Second Priority are those who have a local area code.  954, 754, 561, 305, and 786 area codes.  I'll consider my own time constraints as it is usually easier for me to go on and let them talk to my phone and I can screen it later.

Lowest priority are out of state first time callers.   If they are from places like NYC Metro, specifically North Jersey I will always let them go to the answering machine.

The lowest priority calls are invariably someone calling from India as a recruiter on a scratchy Voice Over IP phone line trying to pretend that they are here.  If I make the mistake and actually speak with one, I can't hear the accent over the static and tell them that they need to email me, they have my email address on the resume, and that they can expect an answer "shortly".

Then I forget they ever called.

After all, there are people here in the United States who need the jobs more than shipping them overseas.  I know one, intimately. 

So if you need a Project Manager, Business Analyst, COBOL Programmer, Web Developer, Social Media Director, Software Development Manager, or one of about 30 other hats I wear or wore, let me know.  We can work something out.

Did I tell you about the telecommuting organization that I built using Skype and functioned as it's CTO with help from my business partner?

Yeah, I've done it.

Cross Training Home Repair

There are certain things that you do in the course of the day in the kitchen that have some applications in unexpected ways.

I bake, rather a lot.  I'm taking a breather the last few months since all that baking in the holidays was adding weight that hasn't quite all gone away.   It is now, I've lost 8 pounds in two months.  Minor adjustments and limiting myself to a normal diet instead of my usual training diet was what did the trick.

All that baking of cakes and cupcakes, sweets and tarts resulted in my getting passable at cake decoration.  Some of my cakes ended up looking like a wreck, others were surprisingly professional looking.  I would be better at it if I tried a Fondant icing or something similarly easy to decorate, but I don't.  I bake for a small audience and that audience likes a specific fluffy icing.

The problem is like any baker at home will tell you, it never comes out quite perfect.  Every cake I bake, whether from mix or scratch will be a little uneven.  Frustrating to a baker trying to do something nice for a friend, and usually that friend either will not notice it or notice it and take it as the mark of a fine home made treat.

I usually look for those slightly uneven cakes and think "Mark Of Quality".

When I get those slightly taller in the middle cakes, I could slice them even or just live with it by cheating.  Pack the divots in the cake with a little extra icing, and let it chill, then ice and try for a nice even look.

The end result is being able to spackle walls like a pro.  I've managed to get apartment walls so even that they were better than when I moved in. 

The trick is to spackle the walls, then come back about an hour or two later with a wet finger or a damp cloth and "sand" it even.  It can even dry to a shiny texture if all is right.

Results like that are what you expect on walls.  Lately the nemesis of the bathtub caulk has raised it's ugly head.

When Caulking a tub, the tube instructs that the best results are where there is no dirt left over, no water drops, and it is best to remove the old caulk.

Great.  But it's a tub.  Its purpose is to hold water.  That means you're in for a challenge of timing. 

Shower in the morning, then late at night after dinner, do your caulking.  Oh and don't forget that stuff you did yesterday has dried so you have to even that all out first.

Pretending it is a cake, Squirt out a reasonable amount of the caulk along the joint but not too much.  How do you know how much if you don't do this every day?  Simple, yesterday's caulk hasn't dried.

The last time I caulked the tub was last week.  There are spots that were just skinned over and when poked, they poured white latex out over my hand and into the tub.  Heavy handed?  Perhaps, but there's a gap behind that tub - there's some serious hole going on.

I did look in to that gap and it goes on forever.  I thought I saw a sparkle back there, and I believe that it's because I have a small black hole in the wall.  How do I know it's a black hole?  Simple, I can't see it and it's sucking all the caulk into it.

The Singularity of Caulk.  The Black Hole of Tub-Caulkutta.

After trimming the stuff, there's this crack that formed as the surface tension was relieved.  The first places caulk will dry is where it is thinnest.  No matter how good you are, there will be small differences in the thickness... trim and clean it all back with a knife or blade and you end up with a crack.

Go back at it with another bead and repeat as necessary.

A 1 hour home improvement DIY turns into a mulitple week project. 

That's what I get for thinking I can ice a cake!

Looking at the walls, there's this one spot that needs spackle.  Much easier.  Ahhhhh!

Why I Will Not Buy Another Bosch Product

Water Heaters are a conceptually simple device. 

Bring water into an area, add heat, and bring it out once it has gotten "hot enough".

We have been building these things for centuries.   First it was called a kettle or cauldron and sat upon a fire in a hearth.  Then someone got the bright idea to containerize the lot and you have the familiar tank that sits in many homes as a result.  They don't necessarily need electricity, but they do need a source of something to produce heat. 

When I moved into this house it had an ancient washing machine, creaky dryer, and a frightening water heater.

The Water Heater used no electricity at all.  I am in a hurricane zone and this would have allowed hot water and comfortable showers assuming that there were actually water being pumped into the house - which I understand is not a given.   It also was rusty and looked as if it would die at "any second".

What went first was the Washing Machine.  This threw a coupling and could be fixed at a cost greater than a new washer.   All the mechanicals were broken as a result of the coupling breaking and left the carpet in the laundry covered by some rather soapy water.

We went out and bought a Bosch front loading washing machine.  The idea was that we'd get the most water and energy efficient machine we could find and save on water and electricity despite the greater cost. 

There was a problem.  Bosch in their wisdom went with a computer controlled washer.  Their programming was typically German Precise.  Perhaps a bit too precise as if you put too much soap into the machine, it will happily rinse out the extra soap for you.  It will do so by running an intermediate rinse - over and again until it determines that the soap is all washed out.  IT also requires this "HE Detergent" which has the benefit of being in big bright colored containers and costs more. 

Once the clothes have been washed, then spun at 1200 RPM and sounding like a distant Jet Engine threatening to fly them off to Boschland or where every flying washing machines go, it leaves them glued to the inside of the drum to be pealed off and put into the dryer.

The dryer seems to work well if you like to come back to a giant ball of clothes that is an illustration of how not to dry clothes.  Dry on the outside you reach the damp or wet center and put them back in.

This is particularly evident on Thursday Mornings.  I should say Afternoons as last week I pulled the bed apart and started the laundry at 6AM.  XXSanitary mode meant it was run through the hottest water I could provide, then heated electrically to something nearer steam, then washed thoroughly.  Over and Over until it is spun down to give me a wet ball of blanket, sheets, and pillowcase.

Needless to say this wretched machine needed a number of extra spin cycles and didn't finish until 12:30 PM.

6 and one half hours of laundry for "one load" of linens.

Then onto the dryer which knowing that it has a penchant for turning things into a progression chart of wet, I put half the linens into then pressed the button.

The Dryer has a helpful time display of 1 hour and 8 minutes allowing me to count down the time until I have to unroll the ball and put them back in for another cycle.

The bed was finally made at 2:30 in the afternoon.  8 and a half hours for one load - two sheets, a pillow case, a light blanket all washed after being "Extra Rinse Foam"ed and spun until a wet sodden blob.

Once those two pieces were replaced we then bought a Bosch AquaStar Water Heater.  Tankless thing, I have a laptop brief case that is smaller than the heater.  Model number ag 250 sx lp

My contempt for this Water Heater knows no bounds.  AVOID this Water Heater!

It saves Propane by turning itself off with a helpful "E0" error code.   We really are not sure what that means, nor is the internet since the going wisdom is to turn it off then back on to reset the code.

I'm hoping for when the Washer launches to BoschLand it takes that bloody tankless water heater with it.  Right out of the wall and off to what ever dump it ends up in.

You see, while it uses on the order of a quarter of the Propane that the old beast of a water tank used, it doesn't stay on when you need it.  Run the dish washer (thankfully a KitchenAid and very dependable and NOT a Bosch Product) and the water heater model ag 250 sx lp turns itself off.  There's that E0 code.

Go take a shower.  It's a crap shoot whether you will complete it without taking a cold shower as it will turn itself off at least twice a week.   So two in every seven showers are a rude surprise.

Today, it was more cantankerous than usual.   Today this beast of a water heater turned off five times in a rushed 10 minute shower.  It took two people to perform the shower.  When the water ran cold, reset the water heater, then jump back in washing what ever body part is needed and quickly because it would run cold again.

E0 anyone?

So my bottom line recommendation is to avoid Bosch Products.  When these go, I will NOT be replacing them with another Bosch Product.  German Precision aside, these things are not "Suitable for Purpose" as we learned.  The Water Heater came with a 12 year warranty which is a good thing since it hasn't worked right since day one.

Kevin is now saying that they have some sort of fix that he can perform with a voltage meter himself.   This should be entertaining, and at least I Know CPR.

What are they saying here - Picture

Say Again?

Do Not Hump?

Why not?  And just exactly what do you mean, after all, Humpy's Pizza is a rather nice treat!

This was from the side of a train car in a railyard in Jacksonville Florida. 

Like I said, You never know what you're going to see so bring a camera!

*wink*

When Life Gives You Rain, SHOWER

There was a little green blob that floated across the radar and overhead in Wilton Manors this morning.

Being watched from the front room of the house, a woman walked past with her newspaper comics page umbrella and waved hello on her way to the bus stop.

Going back to the normal routine, it was time to get up and make a second mug of coffee. 

Stepping past the parrot cage, the thought was that here is a bird that absolutely enjoys being rained on.  It is one of his favorite things in life.  Orange Wing Amazon Parrots in their normal habitat can get rained on more than once a day, and they seem to truly like having it happen.

It is easy to tell as this particular bird, my Oscar, will spread his feathers wide and quake with excitement as he tries to catch every last drop of precious life giving fluids.

The last time the cage was cleaned, the latches holding the base were left unattached so the top could be easily carried to where ever it was needed. 

Today the light bulb went on.

That gentle shower proceeded to become a downpour and at the peak the cage was brought into the back yard and set next to the pool and the grill.  The surface of the pool water was a riot of water droplets that had smacked against it in rapid succession. 

Oscar was in heaven. 

He spread his wings immediately upon being set down and fluttered gently to wash his feather dust away.  In the feathered world of this particular Orange Wing Amazon, this was indeed heaven.

It was at that time that the kettle called from the kitchen for attention.  The second mug of coffee was made and Oscar could be watched from the window overlooking the back yard.   His joy apparent, Oscar began making slow loops within the cage catching water on every spot of his feathers, every part of his body.

The rain began to ebb to a slow trickle, the morning's joy was complete.  That was one happy parrot.