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You searched for: Aquisition Source 100th Anniversary Office Remove constraint Aquisition Source: 100th Anniversary Office Corporate Names West Virginia University. Woodburn Hall. Remove constraint Corporate Names: West Virginia University. Woodburn Hall. Personal Names Gluck, Joseph. Remove constraint Personal Names: Gluck, Joseph. Topical Subjects U.S.S. West Virginia. Remove constraint Topical Subjects: U.S.S. West Virginia.
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My niece thought this dress was HILARIOUS. I wanted it because it reminded me of TGIF.
Light Saber Son
Brain Fart
Ginger (My in laws dog that our whole family loves)
If you want to keep up with me even when I'm not fully plugged into the internet follow me on Instagram :) I'm never far away from my phone (which has a camera)!
This week I've been playing around in Storyline 2. I knew I wanted to participate in Challenge #60 - Progress Meters but I also wanted to try out Markers. My original idea was to have a game like interaction where if you picked a nasty food your "person" started looking sick. The goal was going to be healthy. I abonded the idea after I realized how much research I was going to have to do and not being able to find free vectors. I ended up going with a mini module that focuses on what to look for in the prepartion of food at a resturant that makes it healthy. I incorporated the progress bar on the slide where you click through the menu items to learn more. Check out the demo below:

subset: commoncrawl


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Found 1 collection related to Astrology -- Early modern, 1500-1700
Manuscripts and Archives Division | MssCol 143
.21 linear feet (1 volume)
Manuscript written in England in 1674 by an unknown author, divided into chapters which respond to criticisms and alleged misunderstandings of astrology. Contains many Biblical allusions and argues that astrology is not witchcraft. Includes "An... more
Indicates that portions of this collection have been
digitized and are available online.
digitized and are available online.


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Found the video I was referencing in class yesterday… It wasn't on No Film School after all (hence the delay!)
The important thing(s) to remember is(are) that the storyboard is:
a) pretty essential,
b) a guide to visualise your filming,
c) a working document… not a work of art! You really don't have to be good at drawing.
If you want to use a template, a quick Google* image search for 'storyboard templates' will give you plenty to choose from/adapt/etc…
Happy storyboarding!


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Archive for the 'Pop Culture' Category
Oh, that we all could…August 28, 2012
How Abin Sur *Really* Died…April 14, 2011
Alright, so we've all heard the ridiculous story of Abin Sur crashing on Earth, and eventually dying from the injuries suffered in that crash. And, it looks like they are going to continue this charade in the upcoming Green Lantern movie staring Ryan Reynolds.
The story is bologna.
We here at the Steve Austin Book Club have uncovered the truth, and in our tireless efforts to keep you, our loyal readers, informed, we offer this never-before-seen bit of comic book history that was covered up by the Powers That Be!
Behold, the biggest shock since it was discovered that JFK was actually mauled to death by a tiger:
Wonder Woman: The New Duds RevisitedApril 1, 2011
EG: Alright, folks, it isn't that often we revisit a topic, but that is EXACTLY what we are doing today. What earthshaking developments have taken place that drive us to do so?
Wonder Woman.
That's right, folks. Our pleas, in part have been heard. In the most recent images released from the upcoming TV tragedy of epic proportions, Wonder Woman, the costume has been changed.
I'll say it again, slowly: The. Costume. Has. Been. Changed.
Thanks to the very comments and concerns expressed right here on this blog, the Steve Austin Book Club has convinced the Dark Forces working on this series to (at least partially) fix the costume.
OG: Huzzah!!! Er, well, that is, Partial Huzzah!!!
EG: I'm sure that some of the other bloggers out there that made some comments had a slight impact on the decision as well, but I'm hereby claiming credit for this advancement in the voice of fandom for this blog. We, OG and EG got this done for you, our people.
You are welcome.
OG: Yes, that's right! Big shot Hollywood muckety-muck David E. Kelly and those ninnies at NBC have buckled under the mounting pressure from our rarely updated and virtually unknown blog! OUR INFLUENCE CANNOT BE DENIED ANY LONGER!!!
EG: So, let's take a look at the updated costume!
EG: There she is, determinedly running! First off, let me say, I know it isn't perfect. The top is still shiny. I still wish they'd gone with a more dull, leather-like top. But, look at the improvements – the pants are darker, and no longer made of vinyl. And the boots! We got the red boots! And not the hooker-heels that the blue boots were! That right there was such a vast improvement I can almost forgive the shortcomings.
OG: Indeed, on the whole, it is a significant improvement. The only reason I wish they had held their ground on the original costume is that we could have seen shots of her running awkwardly in vinyl pants and trying to jump up on cars in stilettos. Certainly the comedy of that would have been delightful!
EG: But, I did mention shortcomings. With the replacement of just the pants material/tone, the costume now seems a bit less cohesive. As much as I didn't like the shiny elements of the original picture released, the costume had a flow to it. Yes, a cheap Halloween-esque plastic-y flow, but a flow nonetheless. That said, I still think this is better.
OG: 'Tis a very good point EG. It does look very much disjointed. But, with such a short span of time between the initial release of the original costume image and these new images, I think the changes they made were the only ones they could do on the quick.
On a side-note, as much as I celebrate our victory in getting them to make changes, it is clear evidence that they don't have a firm creative vision for this show nor the confidence to stick to their guns that such a vision would give them. And, with it being NBC, it feels like Heroes all over again – Changing and modifying their show based on the whims of fandom ultimately results in an even worse product. Does that make any sense?
EG: I get what you are saying, but I think you have to consider that this is *just* a costume modification, and not necessarily an indication of any lack of vision. Frankly, I'm more inclined to believe that they released the images just early enough so that they could make modifications based on fan reaction. If you think of that as an affirmative decision, it becomes less wishy-washy and more tactical.
And, if you are paranoid like me and follow that line of thinking to a darker conclusion, maybe those initial image drops were released *just* to get the fans to react in the way they did, that these changes were always going to come down the line, but now the studio can claim they actually listened to fans…
What? Too much?
OG: Anyway, putting that aside. What else?
EG: Nitpicking, I really do wish they'd gone with the silver on the boots instead of the gold. But, that is such a minor concern, it doesn't even need to be mentioned. Along that same line, the stars on the pants would stand out more in silver as well.
OG: Hmm, I can see what you're saying and certainly wouldn't be opposed to that. But, the gold does fall in line with the iconography of the character, making a revised look to the character still fall within the bounds of what we expect from a Wonder Woman costume.
EG: But, let's take note of the other aspect of this show we are seeing in these images – Wonder Woman is running. That implies that there is actually going to be action in the TV show! As an occasional viewer of Smallville, I'm used to a superhero show that barely has any action most of the time, and this show, we are already seeing action! I'll admit, I feared, given David Kelly's record of doing mostly courtroom dramas, that we'd never get around to any superheroic action scenes, so I'm suddenly filled with cautious optimism for this show.
OG: Well, we probably shouldn't get ahead of ourselves just yet. This is the Pilot after all which is generally a more action-y affair in this type of show anyway. I don't recall the Smallville Pilot (I believe the only episode I ever watched) but I gotta think that had some promising action in it as well. Also, running? Really? I mean, isn't this situation tailor-made for Wonder Woman to show off her lasso skills? Ah, looks like I found another nit to pick. Please, carry on.
EG: Hey, how about a clip from the filming of the show?
OG: Let's do it!
EG: Yowch! Busted knees are never fun!
OG: I have to say, she looks 1000 times less silly in action then I thought she would. Apparently, this ain't just gonna be Ally McBeal with tights. That said, the shiny top does look significantly goofier in action than the pants. Despite that, it's pretty encouraging overall.
EG: It does bolster my pie-eyed optimism. I know it isn't much, but I did expected so little.
OG: Me too. But, I have to say, though we have no context for this clip, I do get worried in any superhero project where the hero/heroine is chasing some random thug. I like my superheroes to fight dudes that are equal to or even superior to them in ability. Of course, he mounted that last car with a lot more skill then she did (she looked pretty winded, right?), so I should probably reserve judgment there.
EG: Before we finish, let's take a look at two more images. First, this:
EG: Now, that's not even right. I know that Adrianne Palicki is more attractive than this bizarre shot lets on. I'm just saying – not an attractive angle.
OG: I'm going to venture to say that Ms. Palicki has probably already lodged a complaint about this angle. Yikes.
EG: And, finally, this image:
EG: I don't know if this photo was darkened on purpose, or if it was just the particular lighting, but, wow, this image shows the potential for awesome this costume has. The colors in this one are dead on what they should be for the live action, the shine is more easily overlooked, and the flow of the costume is much better. If this is how the costume comes across on-screen, I'll be thrilled!
OG: And, that's not counting the wonders (I think this leaves me with 4 or 5 more crappy puns for the year based on the strict new crappy pun policy we put into effect recently) they can do to the color and look in post production enhancement work. So, I'm thinking this aspect of the show will be the least of our worries.
EG: I can't believe I'm going to say this, but I'm starting to actually look forward to this series. I know the potential for it stinking is huge, but, seriously, the makers listened to geekdom about the costume. They WANT this show to be successful, they WANT to please the fans. How often does that happen, people? I mean, seriously? For that reason, I'm going to watch this show. That's right – I'm declaring right now that I'm going to watch this show, good or bad!
OG: I'm with you. But, I must reiterate my concerns about how wishy-washy they've proved themselves to be already. But, you are right. A certain amount of respect for the fans opinions is healthy and can lead to a better show. No doubt. I just hope that outside of the costume they have a fresh and interesting take on the world of the character and give us something worth tuning into each week. So, I'm going to go ahead and join you in some good old-fashioned "cautious optimism."
EG: For the changes to this costume, I'm driving my rating four and a half Running Steves. If the red bodice were changed to a duller leather look, I'd make it five in a heartbeat.
OG: I'll bump from 3 ½ to four. They can certainly still change the top after the pilot is done and I'll gladly revise upwards should that happen.
EG: Alright, Mr. Kelly and NBC… you've got us… can you hold on to us?
Wonder Woman: The New DudsMarch 20, 2011
EG: Welcome, all, to the All-New "We're gonna reboot this blog again" Extravaganza here at the Steve Austin Book Club. No lousy excuses here – we (OG and EG, your unreliable hosts here at the SABC) are bad people.
Not serial killer bad or kick-your-puppy bad, but easily-distracted-from-this-blog-and-not-post-anything-new-for-more-than-a-full-calendar-year bad.
Doesn't exactly roll off the tongue, does it?
OG: I actually think our lack of posting is quite beautiful. Think about it – despite our numerous bionic upgrades, we are still deeply human. Just because our blogging abilities are cybernetically enhanced doesn't mean that we aren't also imbued with the inherent flaws of Original Sin. Also, we plainly suck.
EG: Anyway, what could POSSIBLY cause us to jump back into this? What event of geekdom would push us over the edge from our regular thoughts of "we really should bring the SABC back" to actually putting butts-to-chair and doing it?
EG: It's… it's so… shiny. Uh… yeah.
OG: When my browser first loaded the image I actually heard the squeaking of vinyl before I saw the costume.
EG: In case you didn't know, David Kelly is making a new Wonder Woman TV show for NBC, and the info that has been leaked about the show, up to this point, has been… underwhelming.
OG: Yes, in defiance of everything that Marvel Studios is doing to create a seamless film universe populated by their great panoply of characters shown in contemporary and dynamic ways, Warner Brothers (not counting the Batman films) is doing it's level best to meet the demands of the late 90's with the filmed versions of the heroes of DC!
EG: Now we get this costume. Don't get me wrong, as a red-blooded American male, there is an… appreciation for this costume, but…
OG: Yes, EG. The gal is truly fetching and she has "wonder"ful attributes that make her a real stand-out in the role! (I hate myself for typing that) And, to really make a statement of who this character is, I see that David E. Kelly made the effort to order a Wonder Woman costume from Target's expansive collection.
EG: You know, it does look a lot like one of those "Deluxe Sexy Superhero Costumes" that come out for women to slut around in every Halloween.
EG: The bad thing is… the one for Wonder Woman is actually less over-the-top than the new TV show costume.
OG: But, what they both have in common is their complete look of having been bought at a store. But, I'm being too negative here. I mean, I do want to say that I think there are things they've done right here. Kind of.
EG: I think I understand what is happening here. This entire thing is the nefarious plot of Jim Lee to get the public to accept, nay, CELEBRATE his redesign of the Wonder Woman costume.
And, you know what, OG? It is working. I almost wish they had gone with this costume for this TV show.
OG: I agree completely. I actually liked his design of the character and feels like it is almost tailor made for live-action. And so, I do applaud the inclusion of some of the elements. From what I understand of the plot for the new series, it is going to be more of a street-level superhero story and to that end, they started in the right direction but apparently felt the need to split the difference by bringing in more of the shiny, dare I say cheesy parts of the iconography.
EG: OG, I know you don't watch Smallville…
OG: It is one of the few things in life that give me true pride.
EG: …and, really, I only catch about two full episodes a season, but they actually put Lois Lane (Erica Durance) in a Wonder Woman-esque costume that I really liked:
Now, I don't mean to be snide (actually, yeah, I do), but when Smallville, the show that put Green Arrow in a hoodie –
And Superman in black trench coat –
Manages to come up with a better costume, you know you are in trouble.
OG: Not bad at all! I like the more leather look. Reminds me very much of what Marvel Studios is doing so amazingly right (at least from what I've seen) with the Captain America costume. I mean, in some ways Wonder Woman has a lot in common visually with Captain America. They have really in your face, bombastic, brightly colored, symbolically rich costumes that are hard to translate to film. Perhaps this is a good time for you to reach in to EG's Treasure Trove of Superhero Costume Photo Reference and show us what Captain America looks like when done oh so very wrong…
EG: In an effort to be positive, though, let me say that the DESIGN of the costume is actually pretty good. I like that they went with pants… sorta… well, fully-covered legs, anyway. I like that they went with the recognizable and classic bustier. And, while I like the shade of red used in the costume, the blue could stand a little muting, perhaps some darkening… but it is hard to tell from the glare! I think, if they could have de-shine-ified them (yeah, I made that word up), I'd appreciate the entire costume a lot more. The costume really isn't *that* horrible.
Except the boots. The blue boots do not work. Hey, OG, wanna see this costume become about 90% better?
EG: There. How's that?
OG: If you were to tie me up in your lasso of truth (please don't) I would be forced to say that this is amazing! You almost completely fixed it. Mute the colors on the costume and then make it the more leather look we discussed earlier and you've got yourself a PERFECT Wonder Woman costume for the screen, which makes me a little hopeful. I mean, lit and photographed correctly, many of the more obnoxious aspects of the costume (brightness & shininess primarily) might be mitigated. Assuming they do that, the only other pitfall they'd need to avoid would be getting someone like the creator of Ally McBeal to run the show. Now that would be a travesty!
EG: Well, we can only hope! Actually… I have to admit, after looking at the costume for a while, and changing the boots, I could really see something like this working. I'd really like the colors toned down to the tones in the Smallville version. Let me take a try at that:
I still hate the shiny, latex-look, but the whole thing is growing on me.
Or, maybe it is just the fact that I've been looking at the image of a beautiful woman dressed up in a shiny latex Wonder Woman costume long enough that I don't really care anymore.
OG: Well, while my first reaction was 100% negative I have to say you've kind of won me over here. I'm not hating it. In fact, I'll go ahead and give this costume 3 fully loaded Running Steve's.
And, just to go on the record, I'll go ahead and give the show itself a presumptive ZERO Running Steves. Really predicting "Birds of Prey" levels of craptitude here man.
EG: I'll second the three Running Steve's, and I'm gonna say that people will be wishing Birds of Prey was still around to cleanse their palate from this doomed version of Wonder Woman.
NBC, feel free to surprise us and produce an amazing show… but don't expect us to be holding our breath.
Movie Time: ZombielandOctober 22, 2009
Directed by Ruben Fleischer
Starring Jesse Eisenberg, Woody Harrelson, Emma Stone, and Abigal Breslin
How to sum up this movie? In a post-apocalyptic world filled with zombies, four individuals join up… sorta… in search of a safe place that at least 75% of them don't even believe exists. And Twinkies. Oh, and along the way, they learn a little about themselves, family, and they kill zombies.
And, honestly, that's about it.
If you are looking for anything more than that, Zombieland is going to be a great disappointment. If you are just looking for a relatively fun film with some zombie killing, you'll probably like it. But (and, this is where I differ from about 90% of the people that see this movie), if you are looking for a great zombie movie, you'll probably be a little let down.
Parts of the movie were fantastic. Early on in the film, we are introduced to Columbus (Eisenberg), in all his nerdiness, and his rules for surviving in the new status quo, which is really funny.
(By the way, I find that Eisenberg:
… is completely interchangeable with Micheal Cera:
… who I originally thought was in this movie before I actually saw the film. Just sayin'.)
And, when Tallahassee (Harrelson) and Columbus are in the early stages of their road trip, the film takes total advantage of the contrast between the characters. The comic chemistry between the two was fantastic, and the zombie killin' they commence to doin' is top notch and entertaining.
If the whole film had been just that, I would've enjoyed the whole thing much more.
Once Tallahassee and Columbus meet up with Wichita and Little Rock (Emma Stone and Abigal Breslin), though, the focus shifts away from zombies almost altogether to the bonding of the group of four individuals… which isn't a horrible thing, but it kinda sapped away my enjoyment of the movie in the manner it was shoehorned into the middle of the film.
At this point, you get the weakest portions of the movie – a sequence of destruction of a souvenir shop that was pretty "eh", and the Cameo (which you likely already know about, but I'm not going to spoil). The Cameo was surprising to me (because I was fortunate enough not to have heard a thing about it), but it was also only mildly amusing. And, then you get more character bonding (which is undermined by some less than stellar humor).
Which then leads up to the big finale, where two of the characters, in maybe the greatest display of stupidity in the entire film, run off to an amusement park and turn every light and noise-maker on, so they can play for a while. This, of course, attracts every zombie for miles around, and the two idiots have to be rescued by the only two other remaining people on earth (okay, we aren't expressly told that, but it is implied). This rescue, though, lacks the creative and comic sense of the zombie kills early in the film, and kinda seems a little easy, despite the overwhelming numbers involved.
I enjoyed the movie as a sort of mindless popcorn film, but I wasn't as blown away by it as most folks. As a result, I can only give Zombieland two and a half out of five Running Steves.
I just wish they had kept up the momentum from early on in the film.
Movie Time: FidoOctober 20, 2009
Directed by Andrew Currie
Starring Billy Connolly, Carrie-Ann Moss, Dylan Baker, K'Sun Ray, Henry Czerny
Combining the nostalgia of Leave It to Beaver and the tender mercies of Dawn of the Dead, Fido is the story of a boy and his zombie.
In an alternative 1950's era, the world is perfect in its innocence after recovering from the Zombie Wars (a time when the world was ravaged by space-dust reanimated dead). And, thanks to innovative technological advances, everyone can now even have their very own zombie servants!
Sure, every once in a while, a zombie goes bad and has to be taken care of, but folks are prepared. Children hone their shooting skills during the school day, and there is always ZomCom, the company that makes the control collars for the zombies, and their security division that keeps normal folks safe.
In the idyllic setting, we meet the Robinsons – Bill, Helen, and their son, Timmy. Bill is the responsible father, making sure that each member of his family have a funeral savings, ensuring that they will not revert to zombies after their deaths. Helen is a loving wife and mother, perhaps a little too concerned with keeping up with the Joneses. And Timmy? Timmy is the average boy, who'd just like to play catch with his dad.
Despite Bill being against it (for pretty good reasons when you see the movie), Helen orders a zombie after the head of ZomCom's security division moves into the neighborhood. After a short period, Timmy becomes truly attached to the zombie and names him Fido.
Unfortunately, Fido's control collar goes on the fritz, and he attacks and kills a neighbor. Despite the best efforts of Timmy to keep this under wraps, it is eventually found out, and Fido is recalled to ZomCom. Then, it is up to Timmy to rescue Fido.
I have to admit, when I decided to watch this film, I wasn't expecting much. I had seen the preview, and thought, okay, I'll give it a shot.
I'm very glad I did.
The look of this film is unbelievable. Despite the low budget, the feel is captured every bit as well, if not better, than in most movies that try the same. Everything from the costumes to the houses are era-perfect. It is a beautiful and lush setting, full of bright, synthetic colors that make for a great contrasting look with the zombies, clad in blues and grays to match their skin tones.
The acting throughout the film is pretty top notch. I wasn't annoyed by the kid actor playing Timmy (which is a feat), and Carrie-Ann Moss as the mother was really fantastic, as, perhaps, the most dynamic character of the entire film.
Henry Czerny stole every seen he was in as spot-on casting for no-nonsense Head of Security Mr. Bottoms. The delightfully creepy Tim Blake Nelson as Mr. Theopolis, neighbor to the Robinsons, is worth the price of admission!
If there was any fault in the cast, I'd have to give that to Dylan Baker, who I usually really enjoy. In this movie, though, he seemed to be the only one playing a bit over the top, which was a contrast to the other actors that seemed to be playing the ridiculous as straight.
Still, overall, no major complaints.
Oh, and, let me just say that it blows me away that Fido:
Was played by this Billy Connolly:
Which was a fact I didn't realize until very nearly the end of the film! I knew Billy Connolly was in the film, but I just didn't connect it until late in the movie.
For better or worse (depending entirely on your tastes), the gore of this film was very understated overall (especially considering that it is a zombie movie). As a result, if you are looking for a bloody mess of a movie, you'll probably be disappointed. On the other hand, if you are looking for a zombie movie that non-horror fans might enjoy, this is a heart-warming film (with a nice touch of satire and a bit of gore) that will probably fit the bill.
I'm giving Fido three and a half out of five Running Steves.
While this film isn't quite up to the level of brilliance of the amazing Shaun of the Dead, it is certainly high up on the list of wonderful zombie comedies. Check it out if you have a chance!
Micro-Hero of the Week: Zombie Edition!October 19, 2009
Welcome, friends, to the first of two very special weeks here at The Steve Austin Book Club. This week, we focus on the life-challenged brain-cravers everyone loves – ZOMBIES!
And, to start us out this week, a special micro-hero from EG. For those of you that have not seen the cinema masterpiece known as Plan 9 From Outer Space, you have lived far too sheltered a life. Rectify this missing part of your life as soon as possible.
For those of you that have seen this epic film, we are proud to present one of the greatest zombies of all time – Tor Johnson as Inspector Daniel Clay:
Stay tuned throughout the week for more zombie fun!
It is a Mystery!October 9, 2009
There is a mystery in Geekdom.
DC Direct has been producing some pretty neat action figures in relation to the Blackest Night mega-event that is taking place in the Green Lantern titles (and, soon, the entire DCU… my wallet is already crying).
In the first batch of toys, we were treated to a "mystery figure" in all the promotion:
Soon enough, we learned it was Kal L, Superman of Earth 2 as a Black Lantern:
In the next wave, we had another mystery figure:
Turned out, it was Black Lantern Martian Manhunter:
The next wave included Black Lantern Aquaman, but I don't think his promo was blacked out. It might have been, but I don't recall. The wave of figures after that, though, is where the real mystery is.
In that image, we see the Black Lantern Firestorm, but there is another figure blacked out. The solicitation for this wave says:
"This series includes Wonder Woman, who is surprisingly transformed by the happenings of the Blackest Night (Read the comics to learn more!)"
What makes this figure so mysterious is that, unlike the previously blacked-out figures, this one hasn't been spoiled. Kal L and Martian Manhunter were uncovered within weeks of the initial promo. This figure… it is well over two months now.
Don't get me wrong, it is nice to NOT be spoiled… but it raises a lot of questions. All of the previous mystery figures were Black Lanterns, does this mean Wonder Woman will be a Black Lantern? But, each wave up until this one only has one Black Lantern, and this wave already has Black Lantern Firestorm.
Which leaves us to wonder (get it? wonder? ha!) if Wonder Woman will be getting a ring, and if so, which one?
A lot of folks are thinking that Wonder Woman will become a Star Sapphire. This is based on an image tucked away in the massive two page spread found in Green Lantern #25:
See it? No? Down in the left hand corner. Still no? Okay, how about blown up a bit:
As far as I can tell, the only thing that people are going by to connect this image and Wonder Woman is the mystery figure:
Looking at the figure, it seems to have the same skirting that is seen in the drawing. And, thus a lot of folks seem to make a massive leap to say that the figure must be that Star Sapphire, and since the solicitation for the figure says it is Wonder Woman, Wonder Woman will be a Star Sapphire!
That… is a pretty flimsy reason to make that leap.
The whole "Power of Love" (man, I love Huey Lewis and the News) thing the Star Sapphires have going on doesn't mesh with my idea of Wonder Woman. Plus, the ouline of the figure doesn't really match up with that Star Sapphire costume.
A lot of folks think Wonder Woman may become a Blue Lantern. But, as passive as those Lanterns are, I don't see that either.
Green seems unlikely. Red? An angry Wonder Woman is a thing to behold, and might work. Yellow is possible, but less likely. Sure, she can inspire fear, but as an ambassador to the world, it seems against her nature. Orange? Nah.
Which leaves Indigo. And, while attaching an Amazon Warrior to the Indigo Tribe seems like a more natural fit, I'm not buying it either.
I've never seen Wonder Woman as a mercy killer.
Then what? Well… I propose that the solicit is deceiving. (That's right, solicit! I'm calling you out!)
After all, Diana Prince isn't the only woman ever to be Wonder Woman.
Alternate option #1: Wonder Woman of Earth 2
She was seen again back during Infinite Crisis, so maybe she is coming back to take care of the Black Lantern Superman of Earth 2.
Alternate option #2: Hippolyta, Queen of the Amazons, and Mother of Diana
That's right – for a time, Diana's mother served as Wonder Woman. She even traveled back in time and served with the original Justice Society of America. I'm not sure if any of this has been retconned, but it is a possibility.
Alternate Option #3: Artemis
Ah, the 90's, when superheroines all had gravity-defying hair and broken backs! Yes, Artemis, the grim-and-gritty version of Wonder Woman! She served as Wonder Woman after Queen Hippolyta called for a new contest for the title of Wonder Woman in an effort to protect Diana. Could be her… and, she's already dead, so she'd be able to slip into a Black Lantern costume pretty easily… which is necessary with that back condition.
Alternate Option #4: Donna Troy
During the year that Diana took off for 52, Donna served as Wonder Woman in this far-superior costume! (Yeah, personal opinion, but, c'mon! That IS a much cooler costume!) Plus, if you are reading the Blackest Night: Titans comic, you'll know that there is a real possibility here. Plus, she seems to be wearing the correct skirt (or possibly the sword) that is seen in the mystery figure.
Which is why Donna is my odds on favorite for this figure – a Donna Troy as Black Lantern Wonder Woman. Why as Wonder Woman? Well, her other costumes have been generally unremarkable. The Wonder Woman outfit is more distinctive, and should mess with the minds of the other heroes quite a bit, too.
To give an idea of what the figure might look like, I took this image:
And, with a quick, not too detailed mock-up, I came up with this:
I know – not the best, but it gives the idea. I could be completely off base here, but we'll see!
I've come here to help you; I have what you need. My prices are low, and I work with great speed, and my work is one hundred per cent guaranteed!October 8, 2009
Any Dr. Suess fans out there?
On a side note, we here at The Steve Austin Book Club would support the addition of many other colors of Hulk in the comics.
Except fleshtone.
A musclebound angry guy who was fleshtoned would just look like some bodybuilder in the midst of 'roid rage.
And that's not something we want to see.


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Puerto del Carmen Resort
A fun holiday villa destination in Lanzarote
Puerto del Carmen
Villa Holiday Information
Puerto del Carmen stretches for approximateley 3km along the east coast of the island. The resort is split into smaller zones. To choose the best area for a Puerto del Carmen villa holiday please see the following:-
Old Town and Los Mojones
Los Mojones is a peaceful, residential villa area with easy walking distance to both the new town and old town of Puerto del Carmen. The winding lanes and detached properties are separated by volcanic stone walls which give you the impression that you are in a rural location. The old town and new town have an abundance of restaurants and bars for those holidaymakers wishing to venture a little further from their villa. The old town harbour is better know for its fish restaurants and small local bars and the new town for its selection of different types of cuisine. The small beach of Playa Chica is on the headland between the harbour and the start of the avenida and the beach of Playa Grande.
New Town
The larger, sandy beach of Playa Grande can be found in the new town with a great selection of activities from paragliding to pedalos. The main avenida stretches approximatively 3 kilometres starting around the Hotel Fariones and finishing around the Hotel San Antonio. This area has a good selection of shops and stores offering souvenirs, designer goods and of course, duty free.
Los Pocillos
This area stretches from the Hotel San Antonio towards the Hotel Jameos Playa with a large, flat, sandy beach. This section of Puerto del Carmen is a predominantly flat area, so its ideal for guests with walking difficulties. Towards the quieter end there is the commercial centre of Costa Mar which has a selection of restaurants, bars and a EuroSpar supermarket.
Matagorda is the newest development in Puerto del Carmen, situated just 10 minutes drive from the airport. This area is quite flat compared to the old and new town. You can walk easily from your accommodation to the beach. The beaches are sandy and there is a small commercial centre offering a variety of restaurants, bars and souvenier shops. Bike hire is very popular here and you can take a trip along the walk way without any traffic. Heading towards Los Pocillos you will also find a variety of shops, bars and restaurants.
Puerto del Carmen Beaches
Playa Chica
This is a small sandy cove in between the new town and old town of Puerto del Carmen. Ideal for scuba diving and great for children. There are sunbeds and parasols available for a charge. There is also a diving school and toilets close by.
Playa Grande
Long expanse of sand with sunbeds and parasols at a cost. Activities include paragliding, jet skis and pedalos. Next to the main avenida where you can get refreshments and ice cream. There are also toilets, showers and changing rooms.
Los Pocillos
A large stretch of beach, Los Pocillos means little puddles, formed on the beach when the tide is high. Sunbeds and parasols are available for hire.
The white sandy beach stretches from the airport to Los Pocillos which is approximately 2km. There are areas with sunbeds and parasols for rent and also toilets and showers.
Shopping in Puerto del Carmen
Euro Spar – Groceries, newspapers, dairy products, alcohol, toiletries, fresh meat counter.
Lidl – Groceries, dairy products, alcohol, toiletries.
Hiperdino – Groceries, newspapers, dairy products, alcohol, toiletries, fresh meat counter.
A mixture of designer clothes stores, perfumeries and bazaars for souvenirs. There is also a small commercial centre called Biosfera with a variety of stores such as Zara, Berska, Pull & Bear and Footlocker.
Eating Out
The old town is most popular for the traditional fish restaurants and Spanish cuisine.
The new town has a great selection of restaurants including, steakhouses, Chinese, Indian, Italian, Mexican, fish restaurants, tapas, pizza bars and snack bars.
A mixture of English and German bars offering TV and sport channels, also snacks. There are also lounge bars, music bars and cocktail bars. The clubs and disco bars are situated in one area central Puerto del Carmen in a commercial centre called Centro Atlantico, open until 4 o'clock in the morning. There is also a casino with bar and restaurant.
Puerto del Carmen Transport
Playa Blanca resort is approximatively 1 hour and 15 minutes away.
Costa Teguise resort is approximately 40 minutes away.
Teguise village (market on Sundays) 1 hour away.
Playa Honda (Comercial center) 20 minutes away.
Arrecife (Capital) 30 minutes) away.
Readily available in resort with ranks at different locations. Green light means they are vacant and you can flag them down to stop and pick you up. Cheap to get around the resort.
Medical services
Hospiten – Private hospital in Puerto del Carmen
There are also various medical clinics around the resort for non emergencies
Theme Parks
Ranco Texas has a small water park, zoo with animal shows and also offers evening BBQ excursions with full entertainment programme.
Other Activities
Crazy Golf, bike hire, car hire, trampolines, amusement arcades, Golf, Go Karting, windsurfing, diving, water sports
Available Properties
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LVC202782 | Villa in Puerto del Carmen | Los Mojones
Area: Puerto del Carmen | Beds: 4 | Sleeps: 8
2021- 15% OFF in January


text:
I've a new obsession.
So I've made one... or twenty.
These babies aren't cold, don't melt, and feel like a present each time you open them.
If you google 'paper snowflake pattern' you'll find all sorts of ways to make a 4, 5, or six-pointed snowflake, and you too, will have snowflake
I'm so easily side-tracked, I didn't actually come here to talk about snowflakes...
I wanted to tell you something I've been thinking about lately...
Last year The Girl joined the Girl Scouts. The first half of the year she enjoyed all the things she learned at the meetings, but had trouble connecting with the other girls. By mid-February she was ready to quit.
I was beginning to wear thin of all the prodding I was having to do on meeting days, but I was also very worried about the spring camping trip...the one I would send The Girl to alone...y'all know that I was fretful. I was thinking about letting her quit just so I wouldn't have to face my own fears about letting her go.
I'm so glad I didn't allow her (or me!) to quit.
It was on that camping trip that she met The BBFF or British Best Friend Forever (her mother doesn't know I'm writing about her, so I'll keep her somewhat anon)
The BBFF and her family are living in America for an interim, and since last March these two have come to be great friends.
When these girls are together, they are truly connected at the hip.
The amazing part is that I've had the privilege to get to know The BBFF's mum, Alison, who has been willing to spend some time with me and has patiently put up with all my inquiry: What is Cricket? Where do you shop? Why is William the Prince of Wales when he lives in London? Do you eat peanut butter? Was it hard to learn to drive on the 'right' side of the road? What is Marmite?
What she doesn't realize is that she is teaching me far more than answering the silly questions of an American coffee drinker. My tea-times with her have been so enjoyable and helped me to see that she and I have far more in-common than not. With each visit I've been given a glimpse of God's providence.
I could have quit Girls Scouts last year, when it might have been easier... but at the loss of many wonderful things, including a new friend. Not just for the girls, but for Alison and me.
Yesterday afternoon she stopped by with a gift: homemade lemon curd...what a treat!
I can't wait to make some proper scones...
This morning my heart is full of thanks: for tea-times, new friends, and reaping the benefits of lessons learned.


text: Your binder is like an online shopping cart for Cravath content. But right now it's empty. To add something, go to any page (a matter, a partner bio, an article in the careers section, etc.) and click the "Add to Binder" button. Once you add a few items of interest, come back here and choose what to do with it by clicking one of the buttons below.


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Monday, June 1, 2009
So Distracted
Last week my team (work) had our annual two day retreat in Urbana. We spent the working hours developing our strategic plan for the coming year. We discussed, roles changes, goals, and policies and procedures. It's a big to do and is exhausting to say the least. One good thing is it keeps us on task and gives us a clearer view of the expectations of each team member and the group as a whole. The second good thing is no evaluations this year. No money, no increases, no evaluations. Only glad about the no evaluations. Typically, each person evaluates themselves. Then meets with the project manager, who has also prepared an evaluation, to discuss all of the "stuff" discussed at the retreat from an individual point of view.
Mid-June three of us (team) will travel to Albany, NY, for the annual User Group Meeting. I've cut out a some pants to wear during the conference. I'm hoping to make two new outfits for the trip.
Memorial Day Weekend - Both Hancock's and JoAnn's had great sales. Of course, I bought a few patterns and cuts of fabrics. I'm sure most of my sewing and blogging buddies took advantage of the sales. I haven't read many blogs lately, but plan to catch up this week.
Plans within plans - Quite a few sewists/designers have posted reviews of making jeans, all have done a fabulous job of creating unique designs and sharing techniques. I plan to jump on the jean band wagon this summer too. Also plan to make a few garments from vintage patterns. Two weeks ago, while searching through my vintage patterns I found a Plamer/Pletsch vintage jean pattern. It's loaded with tips and techniques for making a great pair of jeans. I used this pattern over twenty-five years ago to make jeans for my mom. Back then I didn't pay close attention to all the benefits. I'm glad I kept this one and will share the tips and techniques with you.
More later and Happy Sewing!
8 comments:
Welcome back! I have that Butterick pattern. I made it when I was in high school. Is it considered "vintage" today? LOLReplyDelete
You must be anxious to sew! It's a good stress reliever after traveling so much. Love the vintage patterns, and what is old is new again!ReplyDelete
I know I hah this pattern. When I sold my house 15 years ago to start a new life with the man of my dreams, I thew out most of my old patterns and have been kicking my self ever since.ReplyDelete
Looking forward to seeing what you'll sew next.
A jeans pattern that fits perfectly is such a rare gem! Look forward to seeing your jeans!ReplyDelete
I love that Advance pattern! Will you be working on that anytime soon?ReplyDelete
Thanks, Ladies.ReplyDelete
Carolyn - I plan to make the Advance outfit for my birthday this year. So I'll make it August, September.
Love the vintage patterns..most of them are looking like clothes that are being worn today.ReplyDelete
Looks like you have some wonderful choices picked out.Your B-Day outfit will be gorgeous!ReplyDelete


text:
How many times have you read that on someone's blog?
I have to admit: facebook did it.
I realized today that I've posted many things on my fb page that might have otherwise gone here, PLUS! I had to limit my word count!
Still, the discipline of having to write in short blurbs, a la twitter (which I do not do), is sometimes liberating, certainly challenging.
I also had to sum my self up for an online application form lately; serious editing there: from 450 characters down to 200. 200 characters to describe, for instance, my past experiences, and things I've learned from Writing! in 200 characters???
I didn't do too badly, either – might use it on a resume someday.
One of the annoying things about filling out job applications is, you spend a lot of time working on, perfecting your resume, and what happens? You're asked to fill out, by hand, all over again, all the stuff that you so carefully parsed for that nicely designed document that is now rendered redundant. jeez.
…and then there was the 25 minute fairly invasive questionnaire I had to fill out for a retail job at Macy's! the first three questions were about whether or not I obeyed rules, and my superiors, and authorities in general – I really wish I'd cut and pasted the whole thing.
Way more fun than that was filling out a personally designed set of questions for a music/video store. I wasn't even sure I wanted a job there, but I just loved answering their questions: 5 fave movies, fave cds, interests, and so on.
Meanwhile, been tinkering around with a blog site for the radio show I'm doing for the summer at least. Plans in my head for podcasts too.
The world is really crazy right now, and I wake up to BBC World Have Your Say every week day – my time live it's 10 am (bbc time I believe it's 6pm).
I'm still ranting, but I'm also dancing.
Hope you are too.


text:
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As described by the seller on eBay Motors:
This 2001 Porsche Boxster S is in great condition. It is Metallic Silver with black leather interior. It has AM/FM stereo, CD, cruise control, power windows, all available airbags, dual power seats, power mirrors, and wind screen. The engine is a six-cylinder S with a six-speed manual transmission. There is a remaining factory warranty. Chrome "turbo look" wheels are fitted and the tires are in excellent condition. The interior and exterior are in great shape, with less-than-normal wear. The car has 2,871 miles.


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This is a sort of trip report. I started on a journey in 2002, and in the ensuing 10 years traversed a lot of territory, met many interesting people, and learned a great deal. The journey certainly changed me. Whether the change is for the better is still an open question. I'm talking about my journey with, alongside, around, and sometimes against the grain of the "agile" movement.
With the Agile 2012 conference just around the corner, I thought this might be an appropriate time for a personal retrospective. I've presented at the last five consecutive Agile conferences, and found them to be enriching experiences. This year's event takes place about 2 miles from my former home near Dallas, Texas. It would be great to see the old familiar places and visit old friends in the area. It would be great, as well, to show some of the friends I've made on my "agile" journey around the town.
I won't be there.
My "agile" journey began in 2002. In 2001 I accepted a job as an enterprise architect at a medium-sized US financial holding company that owned banks, mortgage companies, investment companies, and the like. The total size of the corporation was around 33,000 and the IT department had about 1,300 people, including some 300-400 software development people (inclusive of all roles). The place was a bureaucratic nightmare, and the formal delivery process appeared to have been designed intentionally to burn up as much budget as possible while preventing anything whatsoever from happening. I didn't know anything about Lean thinking at that time, but in hindsight I would guess the process cycle efficiency of their software development process was around 1% on a good day…and they didn't have many good days.
At the time I had about 24 years total experience in IT and had been a contractor and consultant for the previous 17 years. I had done a range of different things from writing code to managing multiple projects to managing a business unit that did technical training and provided a lab environment for a consulting firm. I had seen the insides of around 30 companies before I ever heard of "agile." I thought of myself as fairly senior. Today I look back on that experience and it seems like someone else's life.
By 2002 I was ready to quit. I don't mean quit the job; I mean quit the IT field. It had devolved into nothing more than a soul-crushing bureaucracy. In my job, I had no contact with stakeholders or any downstream consumers of my work products. I had no idea whether the things I did added any value to anyone, or if people downstream from me had to re-work everything I had handed off. I felt isolated and disconnected from the business and from the people who used my output. I knew that many managers in the lines of business were frustrated with the whole routine. They couldn't get anything out of the IT department in a reasonable time or at reasonable cost. In my experience up to that time, this was what corporate IT was all about. I could change companies, but that wouldn't change the nature of IT work. It wasn't worth getting up in the morning anymore.
My wife and I were looking into small business franchise opportunities. We considered opening a box-and-mail storefront, or a venetian blinds store, or one of those places where kids go to play arcade games, bowl, and have birthday parties. Nothing super-interesting, I guess, but at least nothing soul-crushing, either.
It was at that time a colleague approached me with an unusual proposition. He said he knew I was thinking of quitting, and he asked me to join him in a project he was setting up before I did so. He wanted to examine the IT function of the business in detail, understand its costs and the value it brought to the enterprise, and then devise ways to improve it. A mid-level manager in the IT department had agreed to provide "air cover," which meant that if anyone asked how we were spending our time, he would tell them we were on a project of his.
If we were ultimately successful, then the whole thing would have been his idea; otherwise, he would disclaim any knowledge of what we were up to. He reasoned that if we were successful, he could ride that success to a big career boost; and he could hedge his bet in case things didn't work out well. It sounded intriguing. It was politically risky to do something like that in a company that operated as that one did, but at that stage I was beyond caring about political risk. I joined the group of six and we embarked on the covert mission to fix enterprise IT.
Before long we determined that one of the core problems with the delivery process was the large number of narrowly-defined functional silos, the formal sign-offs between the silos, and the cumbersome system of quality gates and approvals. The people who created work products were assigned to as many as 30 projects concurrently, depending on role. All they could do was to copy and modify boilerplate artifacts as fast as possible and hand them down the line.
The people who signed things off had no idea what they were signing off, and so every quality gate was an exercise in blame-shifting and theatrical displays of "caring," culminating in sign-off "with reservations" and a show of phony reluctance. We further determined that a key reason no one understood anyone's business needs or had any feedback about results was that no one had an overarching view of any initiative. Everyone's view of the world was limited by the functional silo within which they worked.
In fact, if you examined the various documentation artifacts closely, you would find them to be incomplete, inconsistent, and contradictory. In some cases they were obviously wrong, and in some cases the authors didn't bother to cover their copy-and-paste tracks at all. It didn't make any difference. No one ever received any feedback about work that they had handed off.
The IT portfolio was managed in this way: In January, 300-odd projects were launched simultaneously. They raced to see which ones would be canceled first. In a given year, about 70% of the projects that were started in January were never finished.
We figured it would be better if a single team that included people with all the skills necessary for delivery took ownership of an initiative from inception through production support, and that the team would just focus on the one initiative and not be assigned to 30 projects at a time. That way, a group of people with shared responsibility and accountability would have all the information they needed to understand the effectiveness of the solution and of the delivery process itself, could focus on delivery of just the one solution, and would be in a position to ensure stakeholders received the benefits they were paying for. We also reasoned that if key stakeholders were involved throughout the project, they could more effectively steer the solution to align with their needs, rather than depending on an abstract description of requirements written in advance. Furthermore, we reasoned that if the organization would start, say, 10 to 15 projects in January and get them done, then they would have resources available to tackle the next 10 to 15 projects in the portfolio, and so forth. This could enable the department to complete a higher percentage of the initiatives in the portfolio.
Recognize any of that? Sure, I knew you would.
These things seemed sensible to us. We had never heard of "agile" or "lean." They just seemed sensible on the merits. The problem was that this approach violated every written and unwritten rule in the organization. We needed a project sponsor who was willing to do something "on the side."
We found a line of business manager who had an idea for a business initiative that required IT support, and who was willing to take a chance on this unproven approach, working under the radar and going around the formal IT process. She controlled enough budget to fund a small project without attracting the wrong sort of attention from the bureaucracy. Some of the guys on the technical staff had stashed decommissioned servers and other equipment under their desks over the years, just in case they might need them someday. "Someday" had arrived. We had to get someone involved from the infrastructure group because we needed a Blackberry server. He thought it was cool to be part of a clandestine operation. We started working on her project.
It was only then that one of us discovered the Agile Manifesto. He showed it to the rest of us, and we immediately realized it stated the same values and principles that we were coming to see as critical success factors for effective software delivery in a corporate IT environment. We reasoned that if people had gone to the trouble to write all this down, then there must be others out in the world who already knew how to approach the work in this sensible way. Rather than trying to re-invent the wheel, we looked for help. We found ThoughtWorks.
ThoughtWorks had a proven method for approaching software development in this way. We asked them to teach us their method. They explained that wasn't their business model. They just placed teams of their own people at clients to carry out specific projects. Then the teams moved on to other assignments. After some back and forth, we agreed that we would create a project team comprising 50% ThoughtWorkers and 50% our own people so that we could start to learn their method. There were some hiccups as we filtered through a few ThoughtWorkers before we ended up with individuals who were interested in mentoring us as well as in delivering code. Then we were good to go. That's when I learned test-driven development, continuous integration, pair programming, and all the rest of it.
One thing we took care to do was to measure the relative value delivered by the nascent "agile" process as compared with the established process. We did this by having each project sponsor submit a request to the IT department through the normal channels. This resulted in a bid or estimate from the IT department for the proposed project. We used that as the baseline to compare the costs and benefits we actually delivered with the new process. It was a comparison of an estimate with an actual result, but it was as close to apples and apples as we could come. If anything the actual result from the traditional process would have cost more and taken longer than they estimated. That was the typical pattern historically, anyway.
Over the course of a dozen or so small-scale projects, we delivered on average 9x the return on investment that the IT department estimated it could have delivered. One project sponsor remarked (in an executive team meeting), "I've been working with IT departments for 32 years, and this is the first methodology I've seen that worked."
There were a couple of outliers.
On the positive side, one small project delivered 27x the estimated ROI. This was mainly due to the fact the IT department padded their estimate to cover possible challenges in implementing a new technology, while we just went ahead and did it. It was only "new" to this company; the technology was already in use in thousands of other firms around the world. It wasn't really a "risk." The IT department just didn't want to get blamed for anything, so they padded. It helped our numbers.
The outlier on the negative side was a large-scale development project. It was our first attempt at scaling agile beyond a single team, and we stumbled. We tried to scale by adding individuals to a single team. It caused a lot of friction and stress and team members were relieved when the project was over. We learned that the way to scale "agile" development is to use multiple small teams. That project only delivered 4x the ROI that the IT department estimated they could have delivered with their process. In other words, by far the worst result we achieved was 4x better than the IT department believed was possible.
By the end of the three-year growth period, IT management had decided the new approach was worthwhile. They took ownership of it, labeled the traditional procedures with "agile" buzzwords, dismantled the agile group, and pissed everyone off. Within 6 months, only 4 of the 60-70 people who had taken part in the "agile" initiative were still employed at the company. After another 6 months, the IT managers had "leveraged" their "agile expertise" to land better-paying jobs elsewhere. All institutional knowledge of lightweight methods was lost.
Personally, I used the three-year growth period as a sort of "university of agile." Impressed with the results from our first pilot project, I set out to learn the method in depth. I went out of my way to be assigned in each of the roles on at least one real project. This was feasible for all the technical roles, as they were all under the same management hierarchy. That covered architect, team lead, programmer, and tester.
Getting assigned as a business analyst proved to be a political challenge, as they were under a different management hierarchy. The business analysis group was very closed and secretive. When I finally managed to land an assignment as an analyst, the other analysts were extremely suspicious. Why would I want to move from programming to analysis? they wondered. Was I up to something devious? It turned out that they had good reason to be secretive about their work. They had no idea how to "analyze" anything. They spent all their time formatting documents and diagrams. For instance, we spent three hours in a meeting to decide which fonts to use for User Stories.
In one case, the analysts had spent four months charting out swim lane diagrams and so forth for a proposed system to support the sale of vehicles the bank had claimed as collateral for auto loans in default. At the time, there was a dip in the economy and a lot of people defaulted on auto loans. Most of them declared bankruptcy and would be out of the credit market for the next seven years. Others learned a lesson and weren't interested in high-end loans for cars. There was no need for a new system. It was only a temporary bump in workload for the collateral sales department. I suggested the manager of that department should just hire a temp for a few weeks to put the cars on eBay. Problem solved. Savings: $8 million. The analyst group hated me viscerally for that.
In another case, the analysts had proposed that a certain department implement an enterprise-class fax system to handle inbound loan documents. They had spent four months charting out swim lane diagrams and so forth for the new solution. When I visited the work site, I learned that relatively few documents arrived via fax. Of those, all were received on the same fax machine and picked up by the same middle-aged woman. She had to walk about 50 feet to the fax machine and 50 feet back to her desk a couple of times daily. That was the business problem to be solved. I unplugged the fax machine, placed it on her credenza, and plugged it in. Problem solved. Savings: $2 million. The analyst group hated me viscerally for that.
In a third case, the analysts spent four months charting out swim lane diagrams and so forth that ostensibly described a proposed new solution, but turned out to be a description of the current state. Observing one of the workers using the old system, I noticed that she typed a number from a query in a Windows-fronted application into a field in a CICS application, ran a query on that application, and typed the result into another field in the first application. I asked her if it would be easier for her if the system just went and got that value under the covers for her.
She was surprised that such a thing was possible. The analysts hadn't even thought of it, in four months of "analysis." We had WebMethods in house, and I had recently done something similar on another project, in the role of programmer. I knew it would not increase scope at all. It was a half-hour task. The users estimated it would save them 30 seconds per document they processed, times 200 documents per day, times 40 workers. That's 4,000 person-minutes per day, or one million person-minutes per year, at an average fully-burdened employee cost of $9/hour. Savings: $150,000 annually. The analyst group hated me viscerally for that.
There were many other instructive experiences, as well. After the first few projects I became one of the internal people who helped new teams ramp up and learn the method. It seemed natural as I had direct experience in each role on an "agile" team. That was the time when I discovered my love for helping others excel; it was the beginning of my reinvention as a coach and mentor.
I visited one team that was mid-way through a project, and discovered that one pair of programmers had been working together non-stop for several days. That raised a flag in my mind. Why had they not switched partners in all that time? Why had no one mentioned it to them? They were stuck on a front-end development challenge. At every daily stand-up, they reported that they believed they could finish the task by the end of the day. Finally, they delivered something, it passed QA testing, and the Product Owner accepted it.
They delivered a solution after some three weeks of thrashing. The UI presented a list of selections. When the user made a selection from the list, a second list was populated with relevant choices. When the user made a selection from that list, a third list was populated. In the solution the pair delivered while I was there, every time you clicked on a checkbox, the screen went completely blank for a quarter of a second. It turned out that they were sending a request to the server on every click.
I chastised everyone. The pair that got stuck never asked for help. Two other team members who were proficient at front-end development never stepped up to offer help. The PM never questioned the first pair about dragging the User Story on for days. The analysts never included non-functional requirements. The testers didn't check for usability or non-functional requirements. The Product Owner used business software packages all the time and should have known better than to accept the solution with that odd behavior.
I sat down then and there, located and downloaded a JavaScript unit testing framework, and coded the solution three different ways. It took about 30 minutes. I demonstrated the options to the Product Owner and asked her to choose which UI style suited her; checkboxes, radio groups, or drop-downs. The lists were short and the values were static, so there was no need for any complexities such as Ajax calls or magic widgets that populate themselves. It took another hour to get the code integrated and all tests passing. The analysts hated me viscerally for it. The testers hated me viscerally for it. The programmers hated me viscerally for it. The PM hated me viscerally for it. The Product Owner thanked me.
On another project, the PM approached me excitedly one day to show me a query he had developed for Visual Studio Team Server. He could track the fact that Roger had worked on User Story #129 on Wednesday. So what? I asked. Well, in Tuesday's stand-up Roger had claimed he would work on User Story #129 on Tuesday. He didn't work on it until Wednesday. Did the team as a whole deliver on its iteration commitment? I asked. Yes, he replied. So, there's no problem? No, there's no problem. Why are you tracking that information, then? Well, somebody might want to know someday. You mean, five years after the project is done, somebody will want to know why Roger worked on Story 129 on a Wednesday instead of a Tuesday, even though it had no impact on anything? What sort of business decision would that information support? Give me an example. The PM turned a lovely shade of red. He turned and strode away, receding into the distance like a beautiful red sunset. He didn't look me in the eye or speak to me for the next six months.
You might point out that isn't a particularly empathetic coaching style. I told you, that was when I was first learning. I've come a long way since then. I'm empathetic as hell now, dammit! I just don't suffer fools gladly, that's all.
Those early "agile" experiences conditioned my thinking about the approach in certain ways. It is a very different introduction to "agile" than the majority of people in the community have had. Most of them started with small projects in a small setting. The idea of extending "agile" to the enterprise has been a challenge throughout the "agile" movement, and remains a challenge to this day. There are books and roadmaps and frameworks and what-not for scaling "agile." Corporate IT is the environment where I learned this stuff. It seems perfectly normal to use "agile" methods "at scale." When people ask whether "agile" can possibly work in that environment, it always strikes me as a very strange question. With my background in enterprise architecture, questions about whether "agile" can work for architectural work also strike me as very strange. It's hard to imagine it not working.
After IT management took ownership of the "agile" practice and destroyed it, I looked for work doing what I had discovered to be my passion: Helping others excel. I paid my own way to a CSM course taught by Ken Schwaber, to help qualify myself for the kind of job I wanted. I joined a company called Valtech Technologies that was getting into "agile" transformation and coaching pretty heavily at the time. That was mid-2006. That was the time I started to get involved with the "agile" community, too. I gave an experience report about the company described above at XP Days London, and a talk on quantifying the business value of "agile" methods with Jurgen Ahting at XP Days Germany. Since then I've participated in conferences and user group meetings whenever I could, although clients tend not to appreciate absences from work for such things.
I had a great time coaching, delivering, and learning with Valtech. In 2008, their US operation overreached itself in the marketing area, spending a lot on marketing events that didn't generate the hoped-for sales leads. By fourth quarter, the company had no cushion to absorb the blow of the financial crisis. When clients cancelled initiatives and looked for places to hide until the economy rebounded, Valtech US laid of 20-25% of its workforce, including me. I was in the process of being picked up by Valtech UK when the ripple from the US crash hit Europe. Valtech UK went into layoff mode, too.
I've stayed as independent as possible since 2008, and until 2012 didn't really have much difficulty finding work. It was during these years that I started to take coaching more seriously, and attended coaching camps and seminars to improve my "people skills." I incorporated Lean principles and the fledgling Kanban method into my work as a consultant, trainer, and coach, and I've found it to be extremely powerful and beneficial.
I became, if I may say so, pretty good at coaching teams and helping delivery organizations improve their effectiveness. In doing so, I discovered another learning opportunity. Most of the emphasis in "agile" literature and presentations has to do with introducing the method to people who are unfamiliar with it in organizations that have never tried it. Most of those who do coaching work in this area have a lot of experience doing that, but little experience with what happens when you go beyond the introductory level.
Two or three of the teams I've coached improved themselves to such an extent that they pushed the edge of the envelope with regard to some of the canonical "agile" practices. I've heard it said that you really can't know how far is too far until you go there. I can tell you it's possible to go too far with "agile." When a team becomes so proficient at delivery that it is out of sync with the rest of the organization, it causes friction. Organizational friction leads to undesirable outcomes.
I've learned that it is important to pace the improvements in process and in technical practices so that the whole organization improves together. Otherwise, the high-performing team will not last long, and the people will become disillusioned with the whole thing. Why have I experienced this with only two or three teams? Because I learned my lesson. Now, I hold some teams back and encourage others to move ahead, trying to keep improvement synchronized across the organization.
It was also from 2008-2012 that I became aware of Lean thinking and found it to be a very useful school of thought for the goal of effective delivery of value. I've gotten more and more interested in this school of thought, as well as Systems Thinking, Beyond Budgeting, Real Options, and other practical approaches to delivering value. And that's where I started to run afoul of the "agile" community. They don't like to hear "agile" characterized as one school of thought among many that might be useful under certain circumstances. Them's fightin' words.
One area I became interested in from 2008 onward is metrics. I'm very interested in process improvement, and I think measurement is important. I might even go so far as to say that when changing a process, if you don't have measurements, you don't have anything. I wanted to learn how to measure effectively, both for steering initiatives and for guiding continuous improvement.
The more I looked into this, the more I realized that few people in the IT industry (not just the "agile" community) have paid much attention to metrics during their careers. I started to share what I was learning on the job at conferences and user group meetings, and was surprised at the strongly positive response. At one of the Agile conferences, my session on metrics was standing room only, with people standing along the walls and crowded around the door of the uncomfortably warm room. When the overhead projector failed, I continued the talk using flip charts, and nobody left. The organizers had to throw us out of the room when we went over time.
I got a similar response giving a talk about metrics to meetings of the APLN in Washington, DC, and Oklahoma City, OK. Both groups asked for repeat appearances. Both groups wanted a follow-up session going into more depth. I did a webinar on the subject, and although it's doesn't have high production values, people bought recordings of it for the next couple of years. At the moment I'm working on a book about software development metrics. Metrics seems to be a topic of interest, although there is nothing sexy or fascinating about it. It just happens to be a critical success factor. It also happens to be something the "agile" community just doesn't seem to focus on. It's ironic, as some of the most useful metrics for adaptive development were devised to support "agile" methods; things like velocity and earned business value, for instance. Strangely, the majority of agile practitioners don't really understand how to use those metrics.
And that's another way I've run afoul of the "agile" community recently; at least, the US community. Combining my interest in Lean/Kanban and metrics, I proposed a talk this year about how to extract useful metrics from Kanban boards and use them to guide continuous improvement. I've presented the same material in the form of a training class to clients, with very positive feedback. The talk has been accepted at one conference later in 2012 and is receiving positive feedback by reviewers for a second, but it has not been accepted at any US conference. Feedback on the submission to Agile 2012 suggests that the organizers just don't see any value in spending time on metrics. I suspect this is a corollary to the stereotypical "agile" view that management in all its manifestations is the spawn of the devil. Metrics is seen as a management thing, so there you have it. Besides, metrics are boring. They're clearly more boring than sticking colorful slips of paper to the wall and thinking up clever team names. (By the way, one team that I coached wanted to call themselves Sharks With Frickin' Laser Beams, and the PM wouldn't allow it. No sense of humor, I guess.)
Here are some lessons I've learned in my journey so far:
- When changing a process, if you don't have measurements, you don't have anything.
- Be sure you are measuring meaningful things. Don't waste time measuring useless things. Life's too short. So is your project.
- Organizational structure has more to do with positive/negative outcomes than any other factor, including process framework and technical practices.
- Business people are already "agile" because they are responsible for revenue generation. IT managers are a stumbling block because they are responsible for burning down a budget someone else gives them.
- There's more bang for the buck in scaling down than scaling up.
- Scale down by decomposing programs into smaller projects if you can.
- Scale up by defining workstreams to be as independent as possible and forming multiple small teams rather than one large team.
- If you build larger and larger teams, they will tend to split apart naturally when they reach a size of 12-15 people. You might as well do that on purpose rather than waiting until it happens to you in an uncontrolled way.
- Throwing a bunch of people into a room doesn't make them a "team."
- A lightweight management process doesn't justify a lack of engineering rigor at ground level.
- At least one side of the Iron Triangle (scope, schedule, budget) is going to move no matter how carefully you plan. You might as well control that movement rather than waiting until it happens to you in an uncontrolled way.
- Don't mix infrastructure development with application development in the same project.
- There's no such thing as a "re-write." Don't kid yourself.
- When changing a process, if you don't have measurements, you don't have anything.
- The ScrumMaster role (by whatever name) is not the same as the Project Manager role. PMs will not evolve into SMs, despite some claims (or hopes).
- The Generalizing Specialist model is not that difficult. For typical business application development, any reasonably intelligent person can perform the work of analysis, programming, testing, project management, and the less-specialized tasks of database administrators, network administrators, and others. Of those roles, all require specific skills that have to be learned, programming (in which I include technical design) has the most challenging learning curve, and none is out of reach for a person who really wants to try. Most people just don't want to try. They'd rather spend the day doing whichever tiny slice of development work happens to be the most fun for them, so they act as if that slice is a highly arcane specialization in its own right and no one else could possibly comprehend it short of a gazillion years experience. That's bullshit, but I've learned to leave people alone and let them enjoy their jobs. That's more important than maximizing mechanical efficiency.
- Regardless of team organization (hierarchical vs. self-organizing), whoever has the responsibility to make decisions must develop the knowledge and skill to make the right decisions. Whether a team lead has that responsibility or it's a group responsibility, good decisions are not automatic. Like any other skill, it takes guidance and practice to develop.
- Self-organization doesn't automatically mean a team of peers. Team members may recognize that their skills are unequal, and choose a lead.
- Hierarchical team organization doesn't automatically preclude a team of peers. The lead may recognize that team members are skilled enough to function autonomously.
- There are differences between self-management, self-organization, and self-assembly. Self-organization doesn't mean anarchy.
- Some development techniques are useful in nearly all contexts while others are sensitive to context. Dogmatists can't tell the difference. Therefore, dogmatists are not interesting.
- Don't try to do too many things at the same time.
- "Agile" is not an all-or-nothing proposition. Feel free to pick and choose individual ideas and practices from "agile" and other approaches according to your own needs. Just be aware of cases when two practices conflict with one another.
- "Agile" is a means to an end, not an end in itself. The end is effective delivery of value through IT work. "Agile" is one school of thought that can be helpful in achieving that end.
- Direct collaboration with stakeholders is nothing new. We used to work that way in the 1970s, before IT became bureaucratized. "Agile" is Back to the Future.
- When changing a process, if you don't have measurements, you don't have anything.
- When changing a process, if you don't have measurements,
- you
- don't
- have
- anything.
As of today, I'm still keenly interested in discovering ways to improve the effectiveness of value delivery through IT work. Meanwhile, the US "agile" community seems to be mainly interested in the Late Majority and Laggard groups, who are in the process of catching up with the rest of the industry by stenciling the word "agile" on their office furniture. To appeal to that market, the US "agile" community mostly offers standardized packages of training and coaching based on first-generation "agile" thinking to help their clients prepare for the year 2001, which might return someday, what with the universe being such a mysterious place, and all. Of course, there are individual exceptions. In contrast, the "agile" communities of Europe and Latin America continue to be open-minded, innovative, and interested in exploring the leading edge of good practices in software delivery.
At the same time, the so-called "post-agile" folks are eager to throw out the "agile" baby with the bathwater, offering absolutely nothing of value as an alternative. I'm not in that community, either.
So my journey continues. It won't take me to Dallas this year, though. Instead, it's taking me along the same roads as the Lean/Kanban community and the Stoos movement. I still have my "agile" tools with me. I haven't abandoned them, but I don't see every problem as an "agile" nail.


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Catching Up10/02/2010 02:00:00 AM Edit This 4 Comments »
I know, I know!! I am WAY behind on the blog. Every time I thought I would have a minute to catch up life got in the way. So let's give this a shot and see how far I get.
This is one of my favorite pictures from the trip down to Texas. Yes we had another trip to go to a family reunion in Galveston and then to await the arrival of the twins and to help after they got home. This was one of the many times the kids were playing around. So silly and it really says a lot about their dynamics.
Now the first morning we got up, of course Lexie had to put her princess outfit on. Well Blakie insisted he needed one too. So of course I just happened to have a spare. Here he is Princess Snow Blake.....
I think he makes a fabulous princess and clearly so does he. Then Lexie insisted that she had to put "glass" slippers on him and she was the Grand Duke (yes she knows Cinderella by heart and is clearly mixing up her princesses.)
Then Mackenzie had to get her finery out and everyone practiced the correct way to curtsy.
And this was my brother-in-law Jim's reaction when he came home to find his youngest son in a dress. Oh please Jim. I say better to let him wear a dress when he's two than when he's twenty-two!
Blake asked for Snow White all the time. I mean every morning he'd come into our room asking for it and several times during the day. Sadly Snow White was kidnapped by the Big Bad Daddy and has never been seen again. (By the way Jim, let me know what the ransom is so I can get Lexie back her outfit!)
After a couple of days of visiting at Angie and Jim's we were off to Galveston for the family reunion. Angie was not allowed to be more than 15 minutes from her hospital so she stayed home with Jim & Blake. I took Cody & Mackenzie along with Lexie and Mom and my Aunt Mary Lou (seen in the picture above with Jim & Blake) who was down from Michigan on down to Galveston where we meet up with some of the rest of the family. Only about 25 of the over 90 Schutter/Kopmeyer/Quast family managed to get down for this one. But it was wonderful to see everyone that did make it. And for Lexie to finally meet some of her extended family.
My little gang getting ready to hit the heat I mean beach for a LOT of sun. Did I mention it was in the 100s most of the weekend. Oh yeah!
We also walked around old town Galveston and I couldn't pass up this shot. Pretty cool hue? Especially since Cody will start taking trumpet in band when he starts in Middle school this year.
Further down the street my cousin Jeff showed us this sad reminder of the history of the island. Just two years before the water was that high after hurricane Ike. Scary!
Saturday night Jeff sitting to the left of mom (who he and his wife Betsy arranged the whole reunion - great job guys!!) set up a wonderful dinner for everyone. Here is the seniors table. Sorry Jeff & Debbie.
Mom and Erin who is the lucky one of Mark's five girls who got to come. Maureen stayed home with the other 5 kids. How did you pull that off Mark? And how did your kids grow up so fast?
Here is the famous Mark with younger sister Mary Beth (how did you like the younger part MB?) And yes they are the blond "happy" part of the family. Maureen that was a virgin hurricane....no really!
Here are a few of the cousin's and second cousins. Lexie and I are lucky girls to be part of such a terrific family.
And here are the original Schutters. Uncle Bob, Mom, Aunt Mary Lou and Uncle Jerry. Who would have thought these 4 would have 21 kids between them and those 21 kids would have 42 kids (more or less I think) and there are even a few great grand kids in the family. Nice Job!!
This is two of those grand kids Tammy & Jake two of Jeff's kids.
And here is part of the gang that came. Lexie & I are off to the left but the waitress who took the picture for us.....well she should keep her current job.
And where there are QKS there is poker. That's right we even travel with poker chips. All us grand kids learned our numbers from cards so it was all about education. That's right - educational poker. That's our story and we're sticking to it.
It was great seeing everyone and we look forward to making the next one in two years!
Then while back at Angie's waiting for the babies, Lexie and I got to finally meet in person another soon to be adoptive Kazakh mom, Lisa. We have had hours of "conversations" through email and blogs as well as on the phone during her extended wait to finally travel to meet her daughter Stella Sabrina. It was wonderful to finally sit across the table from her and talk face to face. It felt like we were old friends. Thanks for driving down to see us Lisa. Next time Lexie & I will come see you and Stella!
She will be returning in just about a week to finally bring home her sweet baby Stella from Almaty Kazakhstan. Lexie & I can hardly wait to meet her.
Safe travels back to Almaty Lisa!
Then it was a couple of days of helping Angie with some last minute nesting and then the big day arrived - Aug 16. My job was to keep the 4 kids occupied during the wait for news of babies. As every good Aunt (& Mommy) knows snacks are good for at least 20 minutes of waiting time.
Finally out comes the proud papa of 5. And yes I think he's still in shock even though he knew there were two babies coming. And I'm not sure if he's out of shock yet.
For more details on the twins check out the post before this. It has lots of pictures of their first 2 days of life. Here is a picture of the new family of 7 (plus cousin Lexie!)
The kids and I were planning a welcome home party but sleep deprived Daddy Jim pushed to get out of the hospital 48 hours after the twins were born so we had to scramble. We made BIG Brother, Sister & Cousin shirts which the kids looks great in!
We even made little onies, hats and bibs for Maddie,
and Maddox.
Then signs, balloons, decorations and a diaper cake where thrown together as we called mom to pick up a cake. It was crazy but we all had fun.
And the big brothers & sister were very excited to have the twins come home.
Finally they arrived!
After that is was all fun and games.
The kids wanted to make sure the twins knew that they lived in a fun house. So they swam...
And of course danced....
all while the twins just sleep....during the day that is. We won't go in to how much FUN the nights where.
So the Sunday before Cody & Mackenzie were going to start back to school I took the 4 big kids to the Houston Aquarium and we had a great day.
The aquarium is really pretty small which was a bit of a surprise but it was set up very nicely in little vignettes of different types of environments where you'd find the fish as well as reptiles, insects and even white tigers. This was the entry - all aboard Captains Z & Lexie!
I love this of Blake. He was just amazed at how big the fish were.
Then we were off to the bayou for a tour by cajun Cody of the swamps.
Then we went under the sea where the boys were interested in the fish..
(you can get an idea of how each room sets the scene)
Now the girls they went straight for the treasure....mermaid treasure I was told.
Then we were off to the rainforest.
Including a HUGE python (so not my thing!)
Blakie clearly had no idea this guy could eat him in one bite!
Then the girls went deep sea diving...
here's diver Lexie reporting for duty.
While Cody was much more interested in touching the sharks & rays.
Then they all met up in a bubble under the tank. They had some really great hands on activities.
And you can't go to the aquarium without seeing the great white....
tiger. I know, it's a little unusual but well put together. There are 5 tigers living inside but then one got away and the kids chased after it. Thank goodness they found him and wrestled him back in his cage. And yes all the kids are starting acting lessons in the fall.
Since we saw the tigers inside the aquarium in only made sense that we would have to go outside to ride the train through a tunnel of sharks.
Lexie thought this was some kind of roller coaster. Oh my little dare devil!
But the tunnel of sharks was pretty amazing....
especially the saw fish. Don't you love the almost human like mouth and the cool saw nose?
So we were done with the aquarium proper but right outside the building is a small amusement park with a ferries wheel, some rides and a beautiful carousel which of course they begged to ride on.
Blake just had to have the big shark and Cody was all about the sweet seal.
Of course the girls had to pick the beautiful sea horses.
I have to say they were some of the most beautiful carousel creatures I've seen.
Even the alligator locked real and the detail was amazing (no child was eaten in the taking of this picture.)
Now for my favorite part of the day and it was a pretty terrific day. They had caricature artist sitting on the very hot (yes it was still around 100 degrees) sidewalks drawing pictures. Naturally I had to have the kids done.
Blakie wasn't so sure about it but the big kids....no problem.
Lexie was an old pro.
Here she is almost done. I didn't get a picture of the other kids finished picture but it was great. I have a copy so I'll have to take a picture and add it.
Here it is - pretty cute hue?
Here it is - pretty cute hue?
So I mentioned it was hot. Well after a stop to get ice cream the kids notice the shoot up fountains and since I'm the cool aunt (and Mommy) I decided what the heck. It's hot - what's a little water?
Okay - it was a bit more than a little water.
They were running and sliding and dancing to the music.
Needless to say they had a ball.
Blake wasn't so sure about it which really surprised me. He loves the pool at home and splashing everyone near him.
But Lexie more than made up for him.
She couldn't get enough of it.
The kids told me it was the best last day of summer ever. I had them home when Angie asked me to, even if they were a little.....damper than when we left.
Okay that's all I can do in one sitting (and I'm more than sure you feel the same way.) So I'll try to get part two of catching up done before Lexie goes to high school!
Happy Fall!!!
Okay that's all I can do in one sitting (and I'm more than sure you feel the same way.) So I'll try to get part two of catching up done before Lexie goes to high school!
Happy Fall!!!


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Dating site dissed you? Tango takes on the touchy subject.
Anyone who's tried online dating knows that sooner or later, they'll probably be rejected—by a potential suitor. Yet over one million would-be daters have been blocked from joining online dating site eHarmony.
Now rival dating site Chemistry.com is capitalizing on the site's rejection policy, with a 10 million dollar ad campaign calling attention to the fact, and positioning itself as a welcoming, come-one-date-all alternative.
Dave Evans, an online dating industry consultant calls the ads "an eye opener." eHarmony's rejections were "never a secret, but people didn't realize that they were doing this," he says.
One ad directly addresses eHarmony's stated policy of refusing gays. Another suggests that the site rejects non-Christians, and those with other seemingly random personality quirks.
In actuality, about one in five people who answer all 436 of eHarmony's probing questions receive an immediate electronic Dear John letter reading "We are unable to match you at this time."
The company, which has about 14 million registered users and claims "thousands" of happy marriages, says that about a third of the people they reject are married, and almost another third are under 21. They also screen out applicants who have been divorced several times, and people whose multiple choice answers, according to the company's algorithm, indicate that they may be depressed or dishonest.
The site, founded by evangelical Christian Dr. Neil Clark Warren, has publicly denied that it discriminates based on religion. In an online essay, Warren emphasizes that eHarmony's goal is good marriages and fewer divorces, whether you're Christian, aspiritual or "belong to a small sect of Judaism or Hinduism or Protestantism."
eHarmony maintains that its criteria are consistent and based on research designed to lead to long-term, stable marriages, and have asked media outlets to stop carrying the ads. So far, most have refused. And in this day and age, damage is viral—and done.
The videos are on YouTube, and the issue is on the table: Is eHarmony obligated to find a match for everybody? And what kind of fallout will recriminations, or lawsuits, from spurned members have on the site's future?
Despite the site's it's-not-you-it's-us disclaimer ("We are not able to make our profiles work for you"), eHarmony's cast-offs often report feeling stung by the brush-off, like one woman who joked that she would "wear a big R on her chest the next day," and a man who sighed, "Well, I guess I am hopeless."
Susan Isaacs, who blogs at susanisaacs.blogspot.com, is a self-described "Jesus loving gal," and she was rejected by eHarmony three times. Isaacs suspects she was booted for answering questions "too honestly" at a time when "life sometimes felt meaningless." Finally, she got in, after telling one little white lie: I "fibbed a bit that 'life is always great!'" she says. Then, after all but giving up on internet dating, she met her husband on the site Christian Cafe.
"I don't know which of my answers flunked me," says Texan Barbara Szalkowski, adding, "I was devastated. Being told I was 'unmatchable' was pretty harsh."
Harsh, but unfair? "We judge people in real life, and this site is doing that for you," says Evans, who blogs at onlinedatingpost.com. "Technically, no, it's not fair. But it's their company, and they're private."
California lawyer Jeremy Pasternak disagrees. "People have this impression that private businesses can do whatever they want, but it's just not true. We have non-discrimination laws that apply to companies, and they have to be enforced," says Pasternak, who is petitioning for a class action lawsuit against eHarmony after one would-be user, Linda Carlson, discovered that the site refused to help her find a lesbian match.
The obvious question: Why not seek out any of number of sites catering to your dating needs? Say, those targeted at gays and lesbians? Pasternak makes the distinction that eHarmony is not simply a niche singles' marketplace that allows people to browse and self-select at will, but a company selling a proprietary matchmaking method.
"They've spent tens of millions in advertising money saying that there's no one selling their matchmaking method," Pasternak says, "and when you're selling a service, you can't decide who you sell your service to."
Non-discrimination law covers sexual orientation in the state of California, but not in most other states. What then? And what about those banished for slightly fuzzier reasons?
Clay Shirky, from NYU's Interactive Telecommunication Program says the issue points to new questions that life on the web brings to light. Legality aside, he says "There's an issue of 'okay-ness,' and I think that's where the fight is to be fought."
Internet interactions mirror the real life friction society has always had between what is allowed, and what people find acceptable. "That problem of 'okay-ness' is probably centered around eHarmony's seemingly inclusive ad campaigns—and exclusive practices. Their advertising is pervasive in a way that other niche sites aren't," he explains. "It's kind of in your face with ads everywhere, and then you get there and find out it's behind some kind of velvet rope. That doesn't sit well with people."
Tango's Take: Just as it's taboo—but not illegal—to lie to a potential date about your age, marital status, or amount of remaining hair, a dating site should present itself honestly. If eHarmony has succeeded in crafting an algorithm that helps you weed out unsuitable partners, why not tout the fact that membership is quasi-exclusive?
The controversy here seems to lie in the gulf between perception and practice. eHarmony should be free to reject you or me, for just cause, but suggesting they've rolled out the red carpet to anyone looking to shake their single status is a bit misleading.
This article was originally published at . Reprinted with permission from the author.