Morning Thoughts

My Pro Non-Vegas List

Things that make me happy about not living in Las Vegas:

• I don't have to live in air conditioning, and can actually have windows open all day and night without the house turning into a dust bowl 
• I haven't heard gun shots, sirens, or police helicopters for over a week 
• I can answer the door if someone knocks 
• I've learned that two wheel drive Hummers, Dodge Magnums, and Corvettes are in fact, not the best selling cars in America 
• I haven't seen cheesy custom wheels on an Escalade or Range Rover 
• I can have coffee at Peet's in the morning, and yes it really is the best coffee on the planet
• Riding bikes IS cool 
• Riding the bus IS cool 
• Using the bus and your bike IS REALLY cool 
• I get to wake up with my girlfriend every morning
• Grant really does have the best looking and most functional Tahoe in the US  
• Most importantly, I'm not in Vegas 

- Justin 

Moving to Seattle, Catching Up, and Being Copied

Well, I've finally made my move here (to Seattle), and have been enjoying each day. I feel so relieved being away from the hell that is Las Vegas. I haven't been writing any blogs, nor in my journal for that matter - just been too busy. Coming up this next week:

• First on the list is the final part of my Hyperlocal series. This week I have received a few emails asking if or when I will post the last part of my Hyperlocal series. I'm going to work on that this weekend, and have it posted Monday or Tuesday. For the last part, I asked Shields Bialasik for his input on where he thinks Hyperlocal is going. He started Locals Guide, a Hyperlocal Media Machine in Ashland, Oregon - a truly hyperlocal community. The site is great, they have an accompanying magazine, and it continually gets better and better. 

• Web 2.0 is great, but companies aren't making much (if any) money in it. Everyone is jumping on the 2.0 bandwagon, but no one has come up with a viable formula for creating profits. 2.0 is cool, but Web 3.0 is what I'm more interested in. I'm hoping Justin Says will fit in with the 3.0 model. 

• Justin Says is my new startup, and the biggest reason for coming back to the Northwest. According to a few friends, there are some people trying to copy my idea and launch a business of their own both here and back in Las Vegas. Sounds fun, I can forward my business plan if needed.... More on this later.

Those are some of my upcoming posts, but today I'm doing work right now and for the next few weeks on Local Discount Cards, one of my companies. Currently, I help youth programs with fundraising opportunities that benefits the kids, local businesses, and the local community in general. The business has been going for nearly two years, and now I'm looking into the next stage of growth - working with corporations. The idea is still in its infancy, and I only have one client so far, but you need to start somewhere! I'm also looking for a web designer/developer to update my Discount Card website. I created the current one, which was a fun learning experience, but I'm looking for a professional now. If you know anyone, send them my way!

I need to get back to work, there are people out there that need my ideas!

- Justin

My Pick: My Custom Moleskine

Ever since I was a kid, I've been intrigued by technology. I remember when a Future Shop was being built in a nearby strip mall, I knew it was going to be full of all sorts of gadgets and electronics. Unfortunately for me - as well as the future of Future Shop - it was full of junk that no one bought. The only cool thing about the store was that you could sit at the CD bar and screen any of the CDs you were thinking about buying, which I thought was the most innovative idea when I was 15. Needless to say, Future Shop had a short life, at least in my city. If there are still any of them out there, I apologize...I'm sure you sell some great products...

Like many people in my generation (Y), I use my computer for everything. I'm always doing something with my phone, and prefer plastic cards to cash. I write 12 checks a year, and all to the same person. I go to school sans notebooks and paper, relying on my Mac to do all my dirty work. If I'm at a stoplight, I'll either be texting, checking the weather, or simply just seeing how accurately the iPhone's Mapquest widget locates me. The point is, I am always doing something electronic. It doesn't matter what the task is, I always feel I need to be connected somewhere. 

For the most part, this makes life exponentially easier. If I need directions, just use the phone. If I need to do some research, just log online. If I need to pay some bills, well that happens automatically. It's so easy to be efficient, and with technology getting better and better, I just figured that I would just get the newest gadget, making everything I do now seem irrelevant or antiquated. Then I woke up. 

Downtown Los Angeles

This morning I started my journey to Seattle, leaving Vegas at about 6:00 to LA. The drive was pretty painless, however, when I left Vegas it was something like 76, then about an hour and a half from LA it was 41 and monsoon like showers that created a lake on the interstate! Traffic came to a crawl for about 30 minutes, but then it was smooth sailing from there.

I arrived at the Kyoto Hotel in Little Tokyo around 10:00, checked in, and grabbed my notebook and backpack to go for a little downtown excursion. Downtown LA isn't the most aesthetically pleasing landscape, but it's a hipster heaven. I've been to LA quite a few times - never really liked it - and I am just now starting to understand (from an outsider's perspective of course) the attraction to this city. 

Just a Couple of Quotes

I've been working on finishing up some things here in Vegas this past week or so before my move to Seattle, which happens this Friday. I most likely won't have a post until after the weekend. To hold you over, here are a couple of quotes from a fantastic book I recently finished, The Alchemist. I wrote them in my journal, so I hope they are accurate.  

"When you possess great treasures within you, and try to tell others of them, seldom are you believed" 

"There is only one thing that makes a dream impossible to achieve, the fear of failure."

- Justin

My Pick: All Over Coffee by Paul Madonna

I stumbled on My Pick for this week by complete accident. I was at the bookstore hoping to replace a copy of the Qur'an I lost on the bus last week when Paul Madonna's book grabbed my eye. I'm not a big comic reader, but the beautiful cover alone was worth the purchase price. All Over Coffee is quirky in the sense that it's not like your typical comic strip. There are no people anywhere in the book, only San Francisco city and landscape ink sketches - unbelievably detailed one. Although, the lack of people doesn't mean there aren't any characters. What I am enjoying most about this book is how Madonna's amazing architectural details are juxtaposed with all too familiar dialogue that, after exploring, isn't as random as it first appears. His commentary makes you feel like you're actually a part of the culture and urban landscape that makes up San Francisco. - Justin Below are three of my favorites so far (click to enlarge them):  

A Conversation with Stasha

Yesterday while I was working on my business plan, I was blessed with a surprise message from my girlfriend on MSN messenger. Some of my friends that haven't met Stasha have asked what she's like, so I decided to post one of our typical conversations...

Bill Gate's Last Day at Microsoft

I came across this funny video this morning made by Bill Gates and friends - Bono, Jay-Z, Obama, Clinton, Gore, Spielberg, to name a few - to show what his last day at Microsoft will be like. Bill's last day of employment is slated to be the end of June, and this video shows us a human side of him that I'm not sure if any of us imagined possible. We, or maybe just I, tend to see Bill Gates as an icon of human achievement, not because of his wealth, but more for his humble nature and caring for human beings. He is truly an inspiring innovator, and whether you're a Microsoft user or not, you can't help but to be impressed by his tenacity for greatness. Plus, this video is pretty funny.

- Justin

In the Air by Malcolm Gladwell

My Pick is the newest category in my blog, which I decided to add about three minutes ago. Every week, I usually come across an article, essay, movie, person, or idea that I find fascinating or inspiring. I tend to file these fascination bits away for future reference, and am always eager to tell people about my great find - almost like I'm the only one who knows about it! Instead, I'm just going to start sharing them on my blog each week, probably posting on Sundays, but I'm too impatient to wait that long for my first one, so I'll do it this morning.

Since The New Yorker is my favorite magazine, it's only fitting that my first pick come from there, and last week's issue made this easy.

What I'm Reading

The last few weeks I've been walking and riding the bus, and consequently, reading much more than usual, which is nothing to complain about. Yesterday and today I have been enjoying Ludmila's Broken English, which is impossible to put down. Pierre's elegant prose captivates me, one of my favorite passages below describing Ludmila in her bedroom after a figh with her familyt:

"Ludmila stood naked behind her curtain, fussing through the clothes in their musty holdall. Irina had hidden it outdoors overnight, dampening its contents. Ludmila rummaged idly, sucking in the malty dark of her home, the smoke of her vanished childhood. A blade of light crossed the room to burn the edge of the curtain; she drew the curtain back to splash herself in the light, flexing before her mirror to make it pool and play around her hollows and curves. She met herself staring, and pouted."

Just thought I'd share that little bit...

- Justin

New Book Review

Today I posted my second book review, a short one, on the Persepolis by Marjane Satropi. I'm not sure how often I will be able to post over the next two weeks, I'm in the late stages of trying to secure investors and funding for my new startup, Justin Says, but I'll try my best.

- Justin

Paintball in Las Vegas

A couple of weeks ago, I asked Kevin, my little brother, what he wanted to do next time we hang out. I can always come with some entertainment for myself or my friends, but that's pretty easy. Las Vegas is Disneyland for adults, but closer to a library for kids. Everything is 24 hour, and if you can imagine it, you can do it here - well, if you're 21 that is. So when I challenged Kevin, 15, to come up with something he wants to do, I expected to get options like going to the arcade, a show, some batting cages, movies, or maybe even some go-karts. I was completely off, he chose paintball!

I've never really been paintballing, but I liked the idea. The fact that I could run around and splatter my friends - not for long - with a gun full of paint was all the convincing I needed. I began searching the web, and after speaking with a few facilities, I decided we would go to Las Vegas Premier Paintball.

Bison Killings in Colorado

I lived in Colorado from 2001-2007, and am convinced it's one of the best places to live and raise a family. The people are passionate about the cities they live in, and nearly everyone is in tune to local news and events. I always have a tough time convincing people to take a look at Denver when thinking about relocating, mostly because you never hear about it.

People don't understand why Colorado is such a beautiful place, but that's the way I liked it. The entire state is quiet, clean, friendly, and conscious. The only real problem with Colorado is, it only gets press coverage when things go bad. Columbine, Kobe Bryant, Police beatings, the Rockies losing, and now this. C'mon Colorado!

Redesigned Site and Book Review

Yesterday I was tired of working on, well, work stuff, so I decided to redesign my personal website. I decided to take the easy way out, and tryout my iWeb software from Apple. The program is so cool because any idiot, as I've proven today, can make a website by just typing in text and dragging and dropping media wherever I want.

The site also includes my life list and reading list along with reviews.

Grand Theft Auto IV Breaks All Entertainment Records

The Financial Times today reported that Grand Theft Auto IV has broken all entertainment records during its first week of sales, raking in about $500m. The previous record was for the release of Halo 3 at $300m for its opening week.

The game's US publisher, Take-Two Games, has been in talks with Electronic Arts over a $2bn EA buyout, which, like the Yahoo-Microsoft talks, have gone nowhere due to Take-Two's belief of EA undervaluing the company, which may change with the release of these numbers. But this isn't what most interests me about GTA's release. I'm more interested in what I've seen on the news about the game destroying kids' lives.

The Declining Newspaper and Why I Cancelled the WSJ

Yesterday I joined the ever growing club - with thousands of new members daily - of those that cancel their newspaper subscriptions. My victim, The Wall Street Journal. The funny thing about my entrance into this club, the WSJ is one of the few papers that actually experienced any sort of growth in their circulation numbers over the past year or so. Rupert Murdoch, who owns the Journal, may very well be one of the only paper moguls sleeping with a smile at night.

, the leading reporter of print circulation, released a report stating that US daily newspaper circulation is down 3.6% (as of March 31) with the Sunday circulation down even more at 4.6% compared to a year ago. In 2000, the newspaper industry enjoyed revenues in the neighborhood of $49b, today they hover around $42b, still loads of greenbacks, but far below what they once were. With overall ad spending following a similar route, one has to wonder how long the traditional newspaper can stay afloat?

Virgin Airlines, My New Favorite?

I was taking a break from work today some time today and started to look a little more into Virgin Airlines. I see Sir Richard Branson as one of the most innovative, unique, and inspiring people to ever walk this earth. The guy is a machine and continues to hit home runs with every pitch. He owns something like 300 businesses, and is a walking poster of never giving up and to always follow your dreams.

I need to buy an airline ticket in the next month, so I decided to just go straight to Virgin America and see what all the hype is about. Their customer service philosophy - Loyalty is hard to earn...but easy to lose - serves as their guidance for taking over the low fare airline market.

Justin's Quarterly Review, a Work in Progress

My last few months have been spent researching, planning and developing my new hyperlocal startup, which will also include a quarterly magazine of local arts, culture, literature and events. The planning has been fun, meeting and working with business leaders, mentors, and investors has been inspiring, and the huge amounts of support has been overwhelming at times. In total, the process has been a wonderful learning experience and has provided me with a better understanding of myself, my future, and what I am capable of.

Lately I've been working on the concept for my quarterly publication, and while I glean a variety of magazines, there are a handful that I subscribe to and consider to be in the upper echelon in the world of journalism.

I like School, but it's not that great

While working on my new startup, there have been countless times that I have been very stressed out, worried about finances, feasibility, deadlines, and that I may be dreaming too big. What I have come to realize though, is that you can never dream big enough. I've come across many entrepreneurs that were afraid of dreaming too big, safely making goals that they know are easily attainable, never having to fail. While this works for some, I'm not an active proponent of these lazy methods. I just don't believe there is room for complacency in entrepreneurship. Though complacency provides a nice safety net, very few people have achieved great things with that mentality, save that for the corporate world.

Las Vegas Public Transportation

A little over a week ago I was involved in a car accident minor enough to walk away from (and the 20' to my front door), but major enough expedite my experience with Las Vegas public transportation. To make a long story short, the accident and subsequent loss of my wallet (no credit cards, no rental car) has provided me with an opportunity to ride the bus like millions of other Americans.