Monthly Archives: October 2004

New Apartment

Asides

I’m sitting inside my new place in San Francisco. The weather is cold but I don’t feel it a bit. The water is hot, the internet is fast, and furniture should get here in a few days. What more do you need? I wish you all could see this big goofy grin on my face.

Solid Connection

Asides

My kingdom for a connection faster than 9.6k. This is killing me! We got a little lost today in the mountains above LA, but they were so gorgeous it was worth it. Connectivity right now is spotty at best and my inbox is larger than it has been in a very long time, so I apologize if it takes longer than normal to get back to you.

Houston Press and CNET

Personal, WordPress,

(Also known as Announcements Two and Three. See part one.)

Matt Mullenweg may be underage, but he knows how to get into a bar.

That’s the opening line from the Houston Press feature called The Blog Age, subtitled “Matt Mullenweg helps usher in the real information revolution, one Web log at a time.” Modest, eh? It should be on newstands tomorrow so if you’re in Houston pick up a copy. Otherwise read it online.

Though it’s a little embarassing for me in parts, it’s a really good article that covers everything from Open Source to my fellow H-Town bloggers to political blogging at the national conventions. I’ve been talking to Cathy (the author) off and on since August and the strangest thing is how much has changed since we first met in a small coffee shop in Montrose. There are a few points I’d like to expand on or clarify but I’m exhausted from today’s travel right now.

The Other Big News

If you’ve read the article already you’ll notice that it breaks a juicy tidbit that hasn’t been published before: I’ve accepted a job with CNET Networks. That’s the reason I’m moving to San Francisco. There were a lot of ways things could have gone and honestly I wasn’t even planning on leaving Houston originally, but over the course of the past 3-4 months I’ve been talking to CNET and an opportunity came up I just couldn’t pass. As it says in the article part of what they’re paying me for is working on WordPress just like I do now. The rest of my time I’ll be working on various projects, most of them probably so top-secret I can’t breathe a word in advance.

The reason I’m excited about working with CNET is how what I’ll be doing meshes with my thoughts and ideals regarding Open Source, standards, and communities. My principles aren’t changing just because my paycheck is. You can expect the same sort of content here on PhotoMatt.net you’ve seen in the past — namely unfiltered personal thoughts, jabs, and observations not connected with any corporate entity. This is obviously a pretty significant move for both myself and WordPress so I’ll do my best to entertain any questions you may have in the comments.

Best Route

Asides

Blogging to you live from Arizona. We’re going to stop in Tucson for the night and I wanted to solicit feedback on what’s the prettiest drive from there to San Francisco. Until now the plan has been “Get on I-10, go West” but I remember some very specific advice from people on what roads to take and not to take once in California, I just can’t remember what the advice was. I’d like to avoid LA if possible, but other than that I’m open to anything. Any suggestions?

Jane Kim for School Board

Asides

One of the people I had the pleasure of meeting while in San Francisco was Jane Kim, who’s running for school board there. If you’re voting in that area in this upcoming election I would highly recommend checking out where she stands on the issues and keep Jane Kim in mind when you visit the polls. If you get a chance to meet her before the election you’ll also get to see what a neat person she is, if not you’ll just have to take my word for it.

Dumb Lawyers

Asides

I like lawyers, I consider a few to be friends, but I have to question how some of these people made it into college, much less pass the bar. I got a letter today regarding Agilepeople, which I have never even heard of until today, and they decided apparently since the site uses WordPress I was the “hosting company” and I should provide the “name, address, and telephone number of the owner of agilepeople.org. If we cannot secure the information from you regarding the identity of person or persons who are infringing on our client’s legal rights, we will have no other recourse but to consider litigation.” But wait, it gets better! I call the number on the stationary and apparently the lawyer who sent this doesn’t even have the correct number on the letter.

Announcement Part 1

Personal

So I guess now is as good a time as any for the first annoucement I’ve been promising: In a couple of days I’m going to be driving cross-country to San Francisco and settle down there. I was in SF the past few days to find a place and I found something that’s perfect for me. This is a permanent relocation, though I’m sure I’ll be back to Texas often. (As often as I can. I love TX. :)) Loose ends have been tied, phone plan has been changed, life is in order. I’m going to miss my people and family in Houston very dearly, but I’m still incredibly excited about the move.

If you live on the route between Houston and San Francisco drop me a note and maybe we can meet up on my trip.

Baggage Handlers

Asides

Still at the airport waiting. A plane just arrived and tehy’re loading and unloading the luggageand it’s really shocking — they’re really chunking it. They pick it up and literally throw it so it hits the back of the luggage card. I’ll have to remember that next time I pack.