To Be Continued: The random search effect I

"Progress isn't made by early risers. It's made by [ambitiously] "lazy" men trying to find easier ways to do something." -RAH

Today starts a new feature on WWED called "The Random Search Effect". It is, in essence, exactly what it says and refers to the notion that sometimes I just find things that match my thoughts at the moment or thoughts I've had in the past by no intent whatsoever. The quote above comes from JA Heinlein of the Heinlein Publishing Group in Colorado, and I found it while following a link for Hugh MacLeod's new book, Ignore Everybody. And I am of course, looking for a publisher for Wild Wild East, so what the heck - this random thing works pretty well - but what I like about the quote is that it closely parallels a thought by Lech Walesa, former President of Poland, that I had written about earlier this year in a story called "Workers of the World Unite - A Recession Re-imagined - The Individual Collectivist is Born". Walesa said, "I'm lazy. But it's the lazy people who invented the wheel and the bicycle because they didn't like walking or carrying things." I like both of those expressions of the same thought but in reference to my own way of working, would describe myself in terms of a thought by Madison Avenue's Bill Bernbach. "I spend many hours, making up for not being a genius".

So here's to random search. To happy accidents. To just foraging around in a mass of non-directional information until the right idea just presents itself - and you think that you're a fucking genius just for finding it. I'll just put in my hours, thank you very much.

For more in the Random Search Effect series see:

To be continued: The Random Search Effect I
Children & Unselfishness: The Random Search Effect II
Your Inner Fire: The Random Search Effect III
Mystery Google: The Random Search Effect IV
Warren Buffet: The Random Search Effect V

Word Up! - Never Mind The Bollocks Blogs

The Word is out - The Word meaning the monthly arts and culture magazine published by Nick Ross right here in Saigon. And no sooner did the Word get out that the entire staff here at the Wild Wild East Dailies (that means me) was happy to see their story on The Death of Print by Tim Russel. Causes of death, similar to those of the Michael Jackson case, have yet to be determined but the prime subjects in the investigation are blogs. Blogs like this one. The story begins like this: "Newspapers, apparently, are dying. Just as 30 years ago the punk hordes swept away the dinosaurs of progressive rock, so today the traditional press is being blown out of the water by news feeds, bloggers and citizen journalists." Make sure to give the story a look. The Wild Wild East Dailies are nicely mentioned and the race to the top of the journalistic pile is on. Also notice the crafty illustration of Othello Kanh, deep in thought at his laptop. Luckily, I've never referred to the writings here as anything remotely close to journalism and with your help I intend to keep it that way. I'm continuously pleased by the comments and notes I receive from you all that encourage me to stay on the fringe, report from the left and generally wallow in the seemingly marijuana induced stupor that has become the style du jour at WWED. You can join the group FOWWED (Friends of the Wild Wild East Dailies) on Facebook or get a free subscription in the sidebar here. Word up! My friends. Read it and weep.

For more on blogs, blogging and bloggers, check here:

Advertising People & Blogs - The Travis Diaries VI
How to Write the Best Damn Blog in the World
Throw That Blog a Bone!
If Blogs Are Free Are They Worthless?
What If Gutenberg Had a Blog?
If You Like the Blog, Read the Book>/a>
2008 Annual Report - The Wild Wild East Dailies
Blog Redesign WWED
BarCamp Saigon 2008
Attraction vs. Conversion - How to Power Your Blog
Are the Bloggerati Missing the Market?

My Roller Coaster

For those of you who know me you'll know that my life as of late has been a bit of a roller coaster. Ups and downs, all around (you can see it in my blog posts) - but hopefully, all with a better purpose in the end. Living in Vietnam, the novel The Quiet American bears an omnipresent resonance here. In my search for a picture of a roller coaster, I came upon the blog of My Cocaine, a literary critic in Arizona. His/her account of The Quiet American is here:

"In a work like The Quiet American, the roller coaster is much different. Greene wants us to go down, down, down psychologically, corresponding to the up, up, up of a roller coaster like The Superman, that rises seemingly indefinitely until it plummets back to the surface. It’s during this free fall that we realize with spine-shuddering certainty the mess we’re in as human beings, the mess Greene is trying to present to us. The regret – no, the sadness that Thomas Fowler expresses in the final paragraphs is the same sadness we sometimes realize when presented with the world in all its miserable, desolate glory. The book, in other words, does not move even slightly into the realm of optimism at the end, but remains firmly entrenched in the pessimism that humans are and always will be wretched creatures."

And it's interesting, with the weeks I've had, that I do not agree with this interpretation of the human condition. I fundamentally believe that we are all essentially good and our sorry, painful and loathsome spirits are only ignited in the pursuit of that goodness. And that's how I will exit this week. With hope. With love. With dedication to improve my condition. An that of those around me. I understand the reference to Cocaine in reference to blogging. This is my drug. My addiction. My healthy obsession. Thanks for coming along for the ride. This is the only place I can go to seek total refuge from the world around me and I'm happy you all choose to share it with me - my sanctuary - my cocaine, as well - my roller coaster of life.

I found an investment

And I'm ready to pay. But the cash register seems closed.

Sometimes the best reaction is no reaction at all

Down periscope sailors.

Wondering: Stream of Subconciousness II - GRACE

(click on photo to enlarge) In a hitherto bookthrough rides a crazy demon. Lord knows his ways, manifestations - center blocked triology - all of the above methinks. There's a blather in my matter and I can't get it, get it, get it - out. Phone off. Needless be the neverminds. Question me to make me blind. I am home now. Writing in the void. ComfortableNothingnessThatMeansTheWorldToMe. So peace becomes. Another birthday past. Can You Spot Rejection? Man said if I didn't get rich by now I am shit. I told about enjoyment, satisfaction, success. He said BS. Back to my hole. Happy in the dark somedays. HappyInTheHope that bounds across the mounds. Witherbe. Simplicity. Look to Facebook for inspiration?: " Marcofantyn Alfonso : I've learned that there are people who will hurt you if you let them - ( even if you don't let them ) ..my simple approach : I PREFER TO CUT OFF PEOPLE WHO WANT TO USE ME , TAKING GRANTED ,TO HURT ME ,rather than continue to give them chances again to go on inflicting pain...life way to short to known such character :)" Or maybe it's Hugh Macleod, from his most recent cartoon above. Or maybe I just need to increase my Twitter activity. Confusion begone. Search for grace.

Grace:

I love the grace of a silk line on a sharp hip
or a wide-brimmed hat on a fair skinned lass.

I love the grace that comes with age making pale the brashness of youth
or the grace of gentle breeding that allows a person to know more than others
yet not behave that way.
I love the grace that rewards substance over style
because making that decision can sometimes be very unpopular.

And I love the grace that grows between couples
when attraction has grown into adoration
has grown into comfort has grown into fulfillment
has grown into unspoken and complete confidence.
Grace can be acquired but not taught.
It can be given but not taken.

Grace can dry tears and calm fears.

Grace is the only virtue that spreads itself evenly
throughout the generations
choosing only to reside in those pure of mind and spirit
oblivious to past sins.

A Birthday - Perspective XXI: The Little Things XIII

Make sure to turn off the podcast in the sidebar before playing the video.



And another birthday comes. Those who know me well will understand that my favourite recording artist, Todd Rundgren, who is 61, and I share a birthday on June 22nd so the video makes perfect sense - but what makes even more sense is the choice of song selection - and those who know the concept of Peter Pan will appreciate it for sure. "I know a place where dreams are born and time is never planned. It's not on any chart, you must find it in your heart - Never-never-land." It's the way I want to feel about this birthday. a) Earlier in the week I found myself sitting with a man who is 54, just a year older than I, and he was rather insistant in telling me that I needed to understand that age was working against me in the employment market and that I needed to lower my standards and expectations - to basically learn to shovel shit and be happy about it. Not the kind of man who takes to discourse and debate well, I decided not to argue with him and just let the comment pass. b) Days later Mads Monsen and I would finish the layouts for our public service campaign and realize we had a real winner - an original idea that is impeccably executed and will not only bring smiles to a lot of faces, but hopefully save a few lives on the roads here in Vietnam. This made me smile and realize that the man I had spoken with earlier was incorrect. Good. c) The term Brand Provocateur showed up again this week in the blog of Mary van de Wiel, a New York marketing consultant and we had a nice meeting over the sharing of an idea. Once our public service campaign gets out I'll have some more illumination on brand provocateuring or is that provocateering? d) Along with a birthday, a few new blog stats: (one) Our Technorati ranking is up to #342,000 and while that may not immediately sound like a best-seller, it is in the top .3% of blogs worldwide so some growth comes along with age. (two) Likewise our subscriber base on Feedburner passed 100 and that's another milestone. Thanks readers. Those are the birthday presents you really don't expect. e) On a totally different front, my old friend Hugh MacLeod released his book "Ignore Everybody", which debuted at #11 on the Wall Street Journal's business book list and has been consistently in the top 100 on Amazon. Congrats Hugh. f) This week also marks my first trip out of town in quite some time and I am way looking forward to it. The plan is to hit the central highlands town of Dalat and stay in an old refurbished French Villa, eat well and maybe do a wine tour or two. Download time. Saigon's "oldest digital man", needs a bit of that. g) A Vietnamese party at the street restaurant near my home hits like a flash flood. 10 motorbikes show up with two people on each bike. The revelers are all in their early 20s and seem to have come from an office of some sort. Arranging the folding tables around to make a long line, the staff braces for the onslaught and starts dragging out cases of beer. As the party goers arrange themselves it reminds me of a high school dance - girls all on one end of the table, boys on the other - so that there is virtually no interaction between the sexes, save for the waves of Mokt, Hai, Ba, Yo! chants (Which means - one, two, three, Go!) as they hoist their glasses in a birthday toast to the birthday boy, another guy. After 90 minutes and the complete destruction of any number of hotpots and beers, the whole things dissipates almost more quickly than it had assembled and they are gone. h) On Friday my Dad turned 80 and I'm very happy that he's in good health and living well. For his birthday he was planning to attend the reunion of all his old Navy pals from the destroyer the USS Dashiel in the Korean war. They call it the Tin Can Reunion. Pretty cool. i) So another year passes with small fanfare. I'm doing a much better job in being selective in my work and personal associations, and basically surrounding myself with healthy, positive influences. The blog has become not only a refuge but an outlet for which I feel an appropriate amount of responsibility to my growing list of readers and friends. Thank you all. You're the best birthday gift I could possibly have.

For more on the "Perspective" or "Little Things" series, click below:

A Birthday: Perspective XXI - The Little Things XIII
My Morning Wake-up Call: Perspective XX - The Little Things XII
We'll Have A Gay Old Time - Perspective XIX: The Little Things XII
"Rolled Foggy Disposed Ricepaper" - Perspective XVIII: The Little Things XI
Joyeux Noel - Perspective XVII: The Little Things X
Lunch With Obama - Perspective XVI: The Little Things IX
One Motley Crue On The Bus Today - Perspective XV: The Little Things VIII
Attraction vs. Conversion: How To Power Your Blog - Perspective XIV: The Little Things VII
A glass box full of deep fried chicken heads - Perspective XIII: The Little Things VI
Seoul Searching - Perspective XII
He Would Have Shot Me 40 Years Ago - Perspective XI: The Little Things V
Chomsky on Colour & Sleep - Perspective X: The Little Things IV.2
Running With Scizzors - Perspective IX: The Little Things IV
Henry Miler II - Perspective VIII : The Little Things III.1
Henry Miller - Perspective VII: The Little Things III
Big Brother - Perspective VI: The Little Things II
This Carnival of Life! - Perspective V
The Art Walk - Perspective IV: The Little Things
Bentley #5 - Perspective III.2
Bentley vs. Vespa - Perspective III.1
Bentleys Invade Vietnam - Perspective III
Death Of A Colleague - Perspective II
Perspective

I Woke Up Drunk Today: Sweet Dreams VI - Interpretation Please

I woke up drunk today, at 9pm and I could feel all the woosiness of being drunk. But I wasn't drunk, I had just been taking a nap and been dreaming I was drunk. My old buddies from college, Richmond and Wellman and people from early in my career like Dwelle and Valz have missed our train back to civilization from some holiday destination. The are two half eaten hamburger crescents and I am hungry. A large, soft woman with full lips and absolutely gargantuan breasts presses up against me. She is soft and hungry. A wetwarm kiss like a kiss from the largest mother nature you have ever seen ensues. She is beautiful. I am enveloped. A pelvic press. I know who she is now, but I cannot tell you. We must stay for another day because of the train miss, but that's not so bad. Only problem is we are out of beer and probably out of money for beer. And then I wake up.

For more Sweet Dreams Click below:

VI: I Woke Up Drunk Today
V: Homecoming
IV: All In A Mouse's Night
III: Fragmented Fermentations
II: Strange Dreams
I: White Huskies: Interpretation please?

WildWildEast is now my Facebook URL

Yes, this morning in true geek fashion I awoke to set my Facebook URL at 12 midnight Eastern Standard time in the US which turned out to be 11am here in Vietnam. Much has been made over the last week about making sure you register early so no one else can steal your name and as it turns out, that was of importance to me.

DavidCarlson.com is owned by a real estate agent in Los Angeles. WildWildEast.com is owned by a name-squatter in Florida and WildWildEast.blogspot.com is owned by an artist in Japan, so it was important that I own WWE on Facebook. My other choice of course, was WildWildEastDailies, which is the name of the blog but I didn't figure that would be too much in demand and it's already 7 slots on page one when you Google it - and my own name, no matter how you configure it, seems to be doing a good enough job on it's own of helping old friends find me and old bill collectors not find me, so I decided that WildWildEast would be my FB handle, since that is the name of the book and what got this whole enterprise started in the first place.

So here's the ticket: http://www.facebook.com/WildWildEast You should see the picture on this post when you get there.

Check in. Be my friend. Don't sign me up for any stupid "Vampire Bit Me" or "Here's a Virtual-Frigging Drink" games and we'll be good to go. See you on #FB!

This is not a post. Just watch and listen.

And make sure to turn off the podcast in the sidebar before you do.



What he has to say is important. Make sure you stay until the end. It's worth it.