stellargirl returns

not the sharpest knife in the drawer

This post is for the tools topic on @weeklyblogpost...

I have a lot of fun tools to work with in the kitchen. I've built my collection over the years while passing through places like Foster's, browsing Amazon, etc.  I often add a new kitchen utensil when I find myself saying, "boy if i had ____, this would really be a lot easier." (Can you say microplane zester? Cookie scoop? SILPAT!!!)

There's one tool that I reach for, without fail, every time I cook. It's not the garlic press or the spatula or even the best wooden spoon.  I reach for an old crappy $2 knife that one of my old college roommates bought at the dollar store (guess that means it was actually $1).

It's your run of the mill utility knife, looks somewhat like a steak knife, often comes in sets of 4 or 6.  This one came on its own, with a slightly serrated edge and a sturdy black handle.  I only have one, I've never purchased more. 

I've got two chef's knives (French and Japanese), a paring knife, and a bunch of butter knives, but none are as satisfying and reliable as my trusty old utility knife.

Viva la utility knife!

the two scoop conundrum

When I am in a good workout routine, I like to followup my exercise (specifically weights) with a whey protein smoothie when I get home from the gym.  For the longest time, the serving amount was 2 scoops of protein powder. Then one day, I opened a new can of protein powder and the scoop was twice the size! Yay! The directions said to use just one scoop. Easy.

Fast forward to today, a brand new can, and let's be honest, I've been in a little bit of a slump and haven't been working out as much.  The scoop looks bigger than normal. I think it's the double size, but I can't be sure. I check the directions to confirm that one (big) scoop is all that is needed, but it says TWO scoops!

Now I'm really confused!

Do you think it's a misprint?

support new ways of working, learning & collaboration @indyhall

Today is a big day in the history of Independents Hall, the next milestone in a series of great moments the community has shared since its inception two years ago. 

Here's what's happening: the original Indy Hall space at 32 Strawberry Street in Old City is literally bursting at the seams. Membership has expanded by leaps and bounds. On a typical day, the space is at capacity. There is a waiting list for full time members, and the list of people curious to check out the space grows every day.

There's no avoiding that the time has come to move into a bigger space. As luck (or serendipity) would have it, Alex and Geoff found a completely ideal space for a bigger, better (faster) Indy Hall, and it's just one block away!

As you can imagine, bigger space also means bigger bills. That's where we, the community, come in. We've got TODAY to pull together and show our support, by committing to some form of membership.  I'll admit, I let my basic membership lapse over the last year, but I believe in this community in a big way, and I want to be a part of helping take it to the next level, so I signed myself up for some more Indy Hall.

After attending last week's Town Hall meeting, there was one element in particular that got me really excited. With a new space for Indy Hall, and a freshly signed lease on the old space, there's an opportunity to have a dedicated event space at 32 Strawberry Street.  Indy Hall has had some GREAT events over the years, movie nights, game nights, Net Tuesdays, failcamp, workshops, educational events, social events, and I'm merely scratching the surface here. The potential for this space, coupled with the new space, is pretty massive.  Want to learn jQuery? Be a better designer?  Rock out playing Rock Band?  Learn how to build iPhone apps? Indy Hall has established itself as ground zero for the people and the players to make these things happen.

Help continue to raise the profile of Philadelphia by investing in your own enrichment, in your fellow collaborators, in the future of Indy Hall -- and ultimately the future of Philadelphia.

Read more about today's membership drive on the Indy Hall website. 

my current muse: UX Book Club

A few weeks ago, I attended the inaugural meeting of UX Book Club Philadelphia, organized by our very own Livia Labate. Our first book selection was Sketching User Experiences: Getting the Design Right and the Right Design by Bill Buxton.  I didn't finish the book in time for the meeting (and neither did anyone else) but that didn't stop us from having a lively discussion about what we had read so far.

Recently I have been trying to figure out exactly what User Experience means, how it fits into my career path, and how I can learn more about it.  As much as I'd love to drop everything and go to one of the great graduate programs out there (that sadly are not in Philadelphia), I'm also not really in a place where I want to hit the pause button on my life for two years to immerse myself in learning the discipline.  That's why events like UX Book Club, which are conversational and enriching, are extremely valuable.  My mind has been going a million miles a minute since we met, which definitely classifies it as MUSE territory.

Much like doing this whole @weeklyblogpost thing (forcing myself to blog!), UX Book Club got me to finally pick up a book I had been meaning to read, and to have the chance to exercise my brain a bit. I found myself waxing philosophical with my fellow book clubbers about education and urban planning, as well as positive (and negative) user experiences we've had.  Sitting at a table full of UX practioners and enthusiasts makes for engaging conversation, trust me!

I'm still plugging away on Bill Buxton's book, and very much looking forward to our next gathering.

From the UX Book Club website:

The UX Book Club idea was formed by Steve Baty and others on a couple of mailing lists late in 2008. The idea was that people could get together to talk about their favourite user experience books - and other books of interest to user experience people - and share their views, learning from one another.

Get more information about meetups in your city by checking out the UX Book Club wiki.

overthinking transit and change

The inspiration for writing about transit began when I made a point to notice this sign as I descended the stairs at the Tasker-Morris stop on the Broad Street Line last week: Exact fare only. The cashier has no change.

This is not a very friendly message. Since I have a monthly unlimited transpass, I can ignore that sign and keep moving. A few years ago, when I wasn't on the monthly plan, that sign used to anger me every day. Not only did this station require exact change, they did not have token machines either. Unless you're a seasoned rider, you would not know until you get to the cashier that the fare is $2. And if you had a $5 or a $20 bill, it didn't matter. $2 in bills or coins was all that would get you through that turnstile.

As I was pondering this frustration the other day, I realized (to SEPTA's credit) that in the years since I used to visit this stop regularly, they have gotten token machines! Yes, I have seen them many times, but it dawned on me that they did solve one part of the problem. Technically you don't need exact change anymore. If you have a $5 bill, you can put it in the machine and get a few tokens to be used for future trips.

But if you want to buy some tokens with all those quarters you've stashed for a rainy day, forget it! This machine does not accept coins.

Well SEPTA, you are trying.

I'm still holding out for NYC's MTA plan: MetroCards with declining balances that can be filled up at any station at any time, with cash or credit. Now that's convenient.

weekly blog topic kickoff! week 1: transit

I'm not sure about you, but I always mean to blog more than I actually do. Sometimes I draft posts, make mental notes, scribble things in my rhodia notebook, etc.  The actual conversion rate of idea to blog post can be very low. Perhaps this is a familiar scenario.

Let's change that today, starting right now.

I challenge you to participate in this experiment. One weekly topic, one blog post (or several) from you. I'll post the topic Sunday night, you have until the following Saturday to write your post.  Are you game?

Topic #1 (because I've got a doozy of a post in my head) is TRANSIT.

Write about whatever that means to you: Septa, cars, bikes, the nightclub, changing careers, inertia, movement, art. Enlighten us.

Please comment on this post when you've fulfilled the task.

Go!

(stay tuned to @weeklyblogpost for more info)

how to be a better public speaker

Guess what? I have no idea how to be a better public speaker. Or even a halfway decent public speaker. I do know that it's something I should probably work on. People see me as an incredibly social person (which I am) but I'm more or less terrified to stand in front of a large gathering of people and say much of anything.

In order to tackle this problem, I decided to poll some of my twitter friends for their take on public speaking:

I received a TON of extremely valuable feedback to this question. Luckily, I know a lot of people who have some great experience in this area.

Here are some of my favorite tips and tricks:

Find ways to relax while staying connected to the audience.

I am sure Dave has really cultivated his public speaking over the last year doing Two Guys on Beer. Even though it's a video podcast, Dave has mastered speaking clearly and knowledgeably on a topic he cares about. Maybe downing a few sips of beer is his real secret! ;)

Don't script yourself, refer to an outline.

Earlier this month, I got to see Phil Charron present at Refresh Philly about experience design. I'm sure Phil gets a ton of practice presenting to clients, but perhaps a bigger challenge is presenting to the students he teaches at Philadelphia University. I'm pretty sure I saw the outline method in practice and it seemed to work really well.

Don't sweat the small mistakes.

Oh really, people won't notice? Too bad I am the kind of person who likes to point out my own messups! This is a good reminder not to do that.

Practice in front of forgiving audiences.

For those not in the know, PACS is Philly's oldest computer user group, started in 1976. I've not been there personally, but it sounds like a good testing ground for tech presentations not only to improve speaking skills, but to share emerging technologies that you might have more of a chance to work with on a daily basis. I think it's really awesome that Kelani takes the time and effort to share her crazy web skills.

Speak about what you know and are passionate about.

Mason loves Drupal, a lot. Drupal is an open source content management platform that is all about community. Besides using the web, online forums and listservs, one of the key ways to share knowledge about an open source project like Drupal is through presentations at meetups and conferences. I got to see Mason speak at Drupaldelphia recently about something he is very passionate about. He did a great job!

Get excited!

Focus on the good stuff, the reason you want to speak in the first place. Don't dread it or worry about it going horribly wrong, go in there pumped and excited!

Practice, Practice, Practice. Now GO!

We all knew the triple practice mantra was coming. You know what they say, practice makes perfect! The key piece of advice here, however, is in the action: commit to speaking in public! Find an audience, talk about what you know, remain calm and get excited! You can do it!

While I haven't quite signed up for a presentation myself, I am moderating the next PANMA event this Thursday January 29th! The topic is Making Philly Work for You: Resources for Creative Professionals. The event takes place at the Painted Bride Art Center in Old City from 6 to 8pm. Come see me crash & burn! Or better yet, see me use some of these tips that you've shared with me!

get off your duff!

Together we ran 2 great races in 2008, the Clean Air 5K in the spring and the Parkway Run in the fall.  It's time to get ready for our first run of 2009 and the name could not be more appropriate! That's right, Get Your Rear in Gear, taking place on Sunday March 22nd.  Get Your Rear in Gear supports the Colon Cancer Coalition, a nonprofit organization dedicated to raising awareness and screening of colon cancer. I've formed a new team this year called Get Off Your Duff! What better time to get off your duff than a new year!

I know what some of you are probably thinking, "A 5K? Me? Never! I can''t do it!" I'm here to tell you that YOU CAN DO IT. A 5K run is 3.1 miles, and you've got two months to build up the endurance and stamina to run/jog/walk/skip the entire race!  Running is tough at first, but you begin to see results really quickly. You'll find that each time you run, it gets a little easier than the time before. Depending on your natural or existing physical abilities, you may be drawn to training to go faster, or for longer durations. Running is a form of fitness that you can do just about anywhere, requires minimal investment (other than a good pair of sneakers) and improves your cardiovascular health in a big way.

Still with me?  I've got some steps for you if you're thinking about taking the plunge.

• Check out the Cool Running Couch to 5K Running Plan. This plan will take you from zero to 5K in 2 months.  You might actually get there much faster, you never know unless you try!

• Register for team Get Off Your Duff! on the official race registration page.

• Join the Get Off Your Duff! google group. Share motivation, training tips and questions. Stay tuned for some planned groups runs as well!

• Sign up for dailymile!  Dailymile is a great social training site to log your miles and track your workouts. Cross-training and weights will also improve your runs. Keep track of everything here! There are also helpful discussion forums for all levels of experience.

Are you ready to rock?! I know you can do it, so make the choice today and let's get started!

Get Your Rear in Gear
Sunday March 22nd
9:30am
MLK Drive aka West River Drive
Course Map

2009, a fresh start indeed

So hey wow yeah 2008 was flipping awesome! 2009, what's your deal?

I believe everything happens for a reason, so here goes: I was laid off from my job last week.

It wasn't entirely unexpected as these tough economic times have affected many friends of mine, and people all over the country. I am already following up on a lot of great leads, which I have access to through being a member of this solidly amazing creative community in Philadelphia. (You can read more about Philly's geeky awesomeness in this great article from last week's Philadelphia Weekly).

I am sure something interesting will pan out, just wanted to give you all a heads up, because maybe there's something exciting out there I don't know about (how could I not know about it!?). In the meanwhile, I will briefly contemplate the indie lifestyle, and look for my next adventure.

(update 1.28.09: job acquired!)

Refresh Philly starts tonight!

Refresh Philly, part of the Refreshing Cities phenomenon, has come to our fine city, starting tonight!

The Refresh Manifesto is as follows:

• Let's Gather Great Minds
• Let's Share All Of Our Knowledge
• Let's All Grow And Learn
• Let's Promote Local Talent
• Let's Be More Than We Think Can Be
• Let's Make Our Cities Better

Our premiere event includes two great presentations. Tom Boutell of P'unk Ave will be leading a talk on Symfony and Phil Charron & Russ Starke of Think Brownstone will be inspiring us with Experience Design!

I am really excited to be a part of kicking off what will surely be an exciting series of speakers. Mark your calendars for future dates, Refresh Philly will take place on the first Monday of each month at the Comcast Center. January is the exception, but we'll be back again on February 2nd!

If you'd like to attend tonight, please RSVP on Facebook.  Stay tuned to @refreshphilly on Twitter for up to the minute updates and information, including a link to watch a live stream tonight!

REFRESH PHILLY
Tonight!
6:00 to 8:30pm
The Comcast Center

1701 John F Kennedy Blvd
RSVP REQUIRED