13 5 / 2013
"
The financial expenditure by the USA on manufacturing and deploying nuclear weapons from 1945 to 1996 was $5.5 trillion (in 1996 dollars).
Nuclear-weapons spending over this period exceeded the combined total federal spending for education; agriculture; training, employment, and social services; natural resources and the environment; general science, space, and technology; community and regional development (including disaster relief); law enforcement; and energy production and regulation.
"
06 12 / 2012
Gripping business strategy overheard on the R train
1: “I think we need to move past analysis and start on the next steps.”
2: “Yeah, I agree.”
1: “Even if they aren’t the long term next steps, we need to think about the first logical next steps.”
[pause]
2: “It seems like we should think about where we want to go and then think about how to get there.”
1: “Yeah, that’s what I was talking about earlier when I was talking about the grand vision.”
23 11 / 2012
What I learned about Mexico City this week
- Cars don’t signal or wait for a break when merging. They just throw themselves into the fray and hope everyone else moves. Which they do.
- Most food comes with sliced limes on the side.
- Angry Birds is extremely popular here. I saw Angry Birds candles, bouncy balls, t-shirts, plush toys, calendars, and large wafers. I think the wafers were edible, but they looked questionable.
- Houses, clothes, and food often come in colors that would never happen in nature.
- Many women’s shirts have sparkly bits on them.
- Many places have completely unpronounceable Aztec names, with a silly number of “L”s.
- There is incredible live music everywhere.
- When you look like you’re about to park, someone will appear out of nowhere to show you how to park for 5 pesos.
- Most public bathrooms have sinks with faucets that turn on when you push up on the faucet itself. Which is terrible because your hand is then blocking the water, so you just spray water all over yourself.
- The markets have stalls selling fruit salads with piles of whipped cream and wafers on top. It’s like an ice cream sundae with fruit instead of ice cream.
14 8 / 2012
A conversation
Me: “I’m moving!”
Rob: “You’ll need to bring everything with you to your new apartment.”
Me: “Thanks for the tip!”
Rob: “I’ve moved before.”
31 7 / 2012
A poem
I Hate Programming.
I Hate Programming.
I Hate Programming.
It works!
I Love Programming.-Anonymous
19 3 / 2012
via Frank: On Writing a Book
Last week, I sent out a letter to my Kickstarter backers for The Shape of Design. I published it as a backers-only post, but upon rereading it this morning, I thought there was more there that warranted sharing in a more open venue like this blog. In it, I talk a little bit about working on…
29 12 / 2007
"What is hardest to accept about the passage of time is that the people who once mattered the most to us are wrapped up in parentheses."
