Overpass Experiences

Social Media Fatigue

Eric Wroolie — Tue, 17 Aug 2010 13:09:11 +0000

It’s been over a month since I’ve posted anything. I can’t really say that I’ve been too busy—I’ve been enjoying the summer. Since the kids got out of school, it’s difficult to get much work done. So, everything is on hold until September.

I haven’t even been tweeting lately. I guess I feel social media fatigue and am waning a little on Twitter, Facebook, blogging, etc. Everything I think of to write about seems too mundane to write once I start typing it. So, I don’t write it. This is not what a blog is all about. A blog should allow you to write what you want regardless of whether it is worthy of someone’s attention—if they want to read it, they will (or won’t). I seem to be experiencing an inexplicable self-consciousness whenever I start writing something lately. It will pass soon, I’m sure.

On the tech side, I’ve been playing around with Silverlight a lot. I have a hot and cold relationship with it. Sometimes it seems like such a gimmicky technology which flies in the face of web standards. At other times it seems like something that is so cool, you shouldn’t ignore it. I’m getting a lot of agents calling me about WPF work in the banking sector—so it may be picking up soon (since WPF will probably lead to Silverlight work).

I just got back from a week-long holiday in Paris—well, actually most of it was spent at Disneyland. I listened to some Michel Thomas French CDs before going over and tried to use French as much as possible with varying levels of success. Despite learning Mandarin and Vietnamese, I failed the only semester I took of French in high school and always had trouble with masculine and feminine nouns (I had the same trouble when learning Hindi and Spanish). I think I learned more in the past few weeks than I did that entire high school course. Still, my French knowledge is really lacking—but having finally visited France, I am motivated to learn more of it. It was a lot of fun, and very easy to travel to from London on the Eurostar.

Now that summer is drawing to a close, it’s time to get back to work. I’m going to either start looking for more Overpass clients or find a contract somewhere. The next few weeks will be pretty busy.

The Cornbury Festival 2010

Eric Wroolie — Sat, 10 Jul 2010 10:07:21 +0000

Last weekend I took my family to the Cornbury Music Festival near Witney in Oxfordshire. It was my first music festival—there weren’t many (I don’t know if there were any) near San Diego when I was growing up. There are loads of festivals in England—they call this the festival season. We saw some great bands like Squeeze, the Blockheads, Joshua Radin, etc. I get the impression it’s a festival for the older crowds (30s and 40s), but there were some younger crowds too.

Cornbury was recommended as one of the most family-friendly festivals there are. It has three stages. This is only the 7th year, but they’ve had some big names play it. This year the headliners were Jackson Browne and David Gray. The kids loved it. This was their first camping experience.

One of the highlights was watching Charly Coombes & The New Breed on the Riverside Stage (the small stage). I had never heard of them before and there was only a small crowd watching. They are obviously a pretty new band, but I’m sure we will be seeing more of them. I’ve already bought their album on Amazon. Here’s a video I found on YouTube:

It was a great festival and the weather was reasonably nice. It was very cool to bring some blankets and a football into the Arena where we could watch the bands while kids could play football off the side if they were bored. I highly recommend it—especially if you have small children.

Baseball Ambassador

Eric Wroolie — Thu, 08 Jul 2010 04:57:06 +0000

On Tuesday I gave a talk at the primary school to a bunch of six-year-olds. Each class year was learning about specific country for the entire week. The year 1 one classes (first graders) were learning about America. So, I went in and gave them a little introduction to my favourite sport—baseball.

I loaded up a gym bag with a few bats, some bases, a couple of gloves, and some balls from my baseball collection. I gave a short little presentation on what I liked to do at their age. When I was little, my hero wasn’t Wayne Rooney—it was Tony Gwynn. We didn’t play football, we played baseball. I told them about my little league team. I let them each hold a baseball and feel what the gloves and bats felt like. I showed them my special foul ball I caught at a Padre game in 1996 after years of taking my glove to the ballpark (still in a protective case).

Then we went outside to hit balls and run the basis. I used wiffle balls and a foam bat. We set the bases out in a small diamond and had all the kids stand in a semi-circle in the outfield. Each child came up to the plate to hit the ball while the others cheered them on. I threw underhand and most of them were able to hit it and run the bases. It was a great time.

Most people in England don’t know very much about baseball (the same way most people in the States don’t know much about Cricket). It was one of the things I missed the most when I moved here 12 years ago. No baseball.

Baseball is such a big part of American life. Even if you are not a fan, you have a general idea how the game works. It’s woven into our culture. Television programmes make occasional references to baseball. We use baseball terms in common speech. So, when kids over here watch American TV programmes, they don’t always understand when there is a baseball reference. I was watching Arthur (the cartoon—not the Dudley Moore movie) with my kids and they were playing baseball on the show. My kids are familiar with baseball, but many of their friends are not.

But kids here love football (okay, soccer). Even at six-years-old, they knew a lot about the World Cup.

Surprisingly, the classes I spoke to knew a little bit about baseball from Wii Sports. That was their exposure to it. At the end of playing with one of the classes, a little girl who hit the ball pretty well said to me “I never hit the ball on the Wii, but I hit the ball today.” She had a big smile on her face.

I’ve done my part as ambassador.

Fixed my iPod Nano

Eric Wroolie — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 14:35:18 +0000

Four years ago, my colleagues at BNP Paribas gave me an iPod Nano as a leaving gift. It worked great and I use it all the time for running. I have a big iPod Classic too, but this little 1Gb gadget is perfect for my runs (since it has the flash memory and I find it easy to navigate the music while running than I did when running with an iPhone.

The problem is that a few years ago, after running with it through the rain, the click wheel stopped working properly. It works eventually but you have to fiddle with it. For example, the menu button wouldn’t work until you clicked it about 5 times. It was annoying, but I learned to live with it. I thought about replacing it, but it hardly I couldn’t really justify the expense to myself to get a new one.

So the other day, I stumbled upon some videos on how to fix various problems with iPods, iPhones, etc. Since my Nano was probably way outside any warranty anyway, I decided to fix it myself. Around my house, I’m known for fixing things and making them worse (like flooding my own kitchen or making a small leaky tap to a large leaky tap), so it went against my better judgement—but I tried it anyway..

I bought a new click wheel for £3.99 from http://www.appleiphoneparts.co.uk/. It was tiny and it came in an envelope the next day. They have loads of parts I also bought a iPhone toolkit from E-Cell on ebay (http://stores.ebay.co.uk/E-Cell-Global) for £2.95.

I then watched a video made by DigiExpress in the US (http://www.digiexpress.us/) which walks through how to replace it:

I had to pause this video loads of times at each step, but I got it to work. It took me about 20 minutes. My 4-year-old Nano is just like new. When the battery goes out on it, I will be able to replace that too. I’m chuffed about saving some money by fixing myself, but I’m more pleased that I didn’t have to add yet one more piece of technology to a landfill somewhere.

California weather in England

Eric Wroolie — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 16:58:47 +0000

The weather here in Oxfordshire has been fantastic the past few weeks. It’s not like English weather at all, but a lot more like the California summers I’ve grown up with. The weather has been sunny and about 80 degrees Farrenheit. The other day while I was driving with the windows down in the car and the music blaring, it reminded me of taking long drives in the States—except that I was sitting on what should have been the passenger seat and driving in the lane that should have had oncoming traffic.

One of the things people ask me a lot (during small talk, of course) is if I miss the California weather. I do, but not so much. One thing I’ve found since moving here is that English people are a lot more concerned with the weather than people who grow up in California. The weather in San Diego was always nice, so there was never a need to chat about it. Sometimes it rained, but not so often. In England I can see why there is an obsession with weather. It’s not that the weather is rainy all the time, it’s just that you get a lot of gray, bleak, days. When the weather is nice, you feel like you need to really enjoy it.

When it’s 80 degrees, people start to complain about the heat. It’s too hot to do anything. I’ve lived in Texas for a few years—now that was heat. I worked at Sea World of Texas in San Antonio through the Summer where every day reached over 100 degrees. But after living in the UK for the past 12 years, this weather is too hot.

The past few winters have had record snowfall and it has nearly closed London. But it’s nothing compared to the times I’ve visited Minnesota in the winter. But the infrastructure here is not geared for extremes in weather. Most homes don’t have air conditioning and most towns don’t have many snow ploughs.

This weather will end soon, but I’m enjoying it while it lasts. As I write this, I’m sitting on a blanket in a part watching my kids play in park sprinklers. Life couldn’t be better.

I give up on the iPhone fanboy thing

Eric Wroolie — Tue, 22 Jun 2010 05:43:00 +0000

Two years ago, I bought the iPhone 3g. It was awesome. I missed the first rush to buy it, so had to wait for weeks until more were available.

I liked most things about it. I was annoyed that it didn’t sync very well with my Windows machine and it forced me to use iTunes, but it was so cool I overlooked all that. Then it bugged me that I couldn’t tether the phone to laptop so I could surf the web using my 3g connection on the train (so I would have to take out a second contract with O2 for mobile broadband"). But I have to overlook that too.

Six months ago, I got a call from O2 saying my contract was up and asking if I wanted to upgrade. I told them I wanted to wait for the iPhone 4. So, as June 7 approached—I couldn’t wait for the iPhone 4 announcement to see what it would be like. I registered my interest on the site. The new phone would have a clearer display, video editing, a webcam! Apple is touting as a game-changer. The rush is on. The pre-orders have already sold out.

You know what? I don’t want to be a part of this any more. I don’t want to be someone who drools over the next Apple product. These game-changer features are incremental improvements. I never look at my current iPhone and say “Man, the resolution on this thing is awful!” I never once thought—”If only I could edit video on this thing.”

I don’t want to wait for new stock or stand in a queue. I don’t want to pay through the nose for the privilege. I don’t want to read any more news stories about new features. I want to break free.

I got my new phone. It’s an Android phone—the HTC Desire. It does most everything I need it to do and it was much cheaper. Highly recommend it.

My toe

Eric Wroolie — Mon, 21 Jun 2010 05:24:11 +0000

About three weeks ago, I broke the little toe on my right foot while playing around with my kids. I think it’s broken, anyway. It turned purple and swelled to half its size. I never bothered going to the doctor because common wisdom is there is nothing you can do about a broken toe.

Three weeks later it still hurts. I try to let it heal, but I can’t protect it.

All my life I’ve had a tendency to stub my toes on things. Maybe it’s my California background that makes me think I should be able to handle bare-footed-ness better, but I should probably be required to wear shoes 24/7. My tiny outer toes frequently snag on door frames. My big toe always hits one of the bed posts in my room.

There is nothing cool about stubbing your toe. It never happens to action heroes in the movies. Even in the first Die Hard movie where Bruce Willis was barefoot through the whole movie—he stepped on glass and got bloody, but here never jabbed his toe into a door frame while knocking off all the bad guys.

The strange thing about stubbing your toe is that no one realizes you’ve done it. One second, you’re walking and talking and the next second you’re limping very fast—making a sucking sound with your mouth—and swearing.

Bruce Willis I am not.

No related posts.

An update

Eric Wroolie — Wed, 26 May 2010 04:43:23 +0000

So, immediately following my blog post about how great blogging is and how you should get a blog yourself, I go a month without posting anything. Sometimes, although I have loads of energy, the things I think to write about seem either so trivial or so complicated that I don’t want to sit down and write them.

But here’s a patchy update on what is going on with me.

I’ve been working a bit over the last month. I’m just doing some contract work while trying to get some business development going. It’s funny when you’ve not been working a regular job for a while how un-natural it seems to get dressed up everyday and leave your normal life for 12 hours each day.

I’ve also been getting interested in meditation. I’ve been meditating twice daily for two and a half weeks now. It was difficult at first, but I’m getting better at it. I’ve read so much, researched so much, and had so many experiences that I will write a post on this in the future. I feel more calm and free from some of the anxiety I feel from time to time. I’m really enjoying it, but it hasn’t been easy getting started (for me, at least).

I’m still getting up early. I’m still running. I still have my American accent, but am experimenting with using the word ‘fortnight’ more often. Life is good.

The New Blog (and why you need one)

Eric Wroolie — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 06:15:22 +0000

It’s been a while since I’ve posted anything here, so I’ll just give a quick update on what I’ve been working on.

I’ve still been blogging, but I’ve created a new blog for the Overpass site. This is a place I can post all of my more technical posts. It’s located at http://blog.overpass.co.uk/

I’ve been posting to this blog for over 6 years now—everything from personal stories to technical posts. My friends aren’t interested in what I think of .Net 4, and the developers don’t care that I’ve run a half-marathon. So, I’ve created a new site for the technical posts and can use this one for more personal posts.

This blog gets between 20 and 50 new hits a day from search engines. Most are from people who have a problem that I’ve had before and found a solution to. Nothing gives me more satisfaction than getting an email or a comment from someone who says “I’ve been trying to solve this problem for hours. Your post really helped. Thanks.” It’s nice to think that there are posts I’ve written 3 or 4 years ago that still help some people now—long after I’ve forgotten about them.

I might as well have some of that traffic go to by company site.

You need a blog!

When I started this blog, I was mocked. “Eric, why do you need a blog?” Obviously, he thought I had nothing worth saying. No one needs one.

I think that everyone should have a blog. Even if they don’t often post. A blog just a place to put down what you think where anyone can read it. It’s not like you run a newspaper where you have to build a subscription base and keep readers entertained. Most of your readers are not regular visitors anyway, but find your posts through a search engine. Contrary to what these “Social Media Consultants” will tell you, a blog is not always about self-marketing.

If you go to a bad restaurant, tell the world about it. If you have a good experience, tell the world. If you get screwed over by a company who won’t give you a refund for a bad product, tell the world. If you find a cool site online, tell the world. It’s not likely that people will follow you or read everything you write. It’s more likely that people will find your post when they are researching things on Google. Think of it as giving back to the web community.

If I’m thinking about buying a product or service which requires any heavy contemplation, I Google it. I Google every company to see what people think about them before I go work with them. If no one has said anything (except the company itself on a crappy brochure site), I worry.

As a person in a technical industry, it’s even more vital you have a blog. If I ever spend hours trying to solve a problem and finally find a solution in the end, I consider it my civic duty to post the solution online so others don’t have to go through the same trial-and-error process I did. In my job, I rely on Google and the generosity of people all over the world who have taken time to post their solutions to problems online. It would be wrong not to do the same.

A blog is not the same as Facebook or Twitter or forums or any of the other social media sites out there. Facebook is too closed (and it should be). I update Facebook for my friends. Twitter is too fleeting. No one reads a tweet written two months ago. Forums are more about debate and back-and-forth than about expressing ideas (a dialogue instead of a monologue). A blog is a place you can write something down and have it stay there forever.

Of course, since a blog is open to all, it’s not a place for pictures of your kids or tell people when you’ll be out of the house. It’s not a place to discuss personal problems (unless they could help others and don’t infringe on the privacy of others). But it is a place to express your opinions and relate experiences that could be helpful to others. I’m surprised more people don’t use alias’s so they can get really personal. A blog is also a great place to put your CV.

But just because you have a blog, it doesn’t mean you think you’re Bill Gates, or Steve Jobs, or Walter Kronkite. It just means you are one of 6 billion people in the world who has something to say. That’s what the internet is all about.

Anyway, if you enjoy reading the technical posts here, you can now find them showing up on http://blog.overpass.co.uk/

America’s Future Job Market

Eric Wroolie — Mon, 29 Mar 2010 04:27:32 +0000

Just watched this video on Youtube of America’s job market.

Funny and sad at the same time.