Moving on...From NAHB to Be The Change, Inc.

Over the last year or so, I've been working at the National Association of Home Builders as a Developer.  Tomorrow will mark my last day there.  For me, NAHB was the perfect second job out of school.  While there,  I had the opportunity to work with some great people and develop my technical skills as well as my interpersonal skills.  Everyone in my department took great pride in servicing our clients, which were the various departments, and working harmoniously with our vendors and vendors selected by our clients. Moreover, I moved closer to reaching an equilibrium between life and work or as the girlfriend would probably say "between work and more work." I will truly miss working with the people at NAHB

As of Monday, I will be employed with Be The Change, Inc. as Director of Web Technology.  Be The Change is a startup non profit focused on public service and was founded by Alan Khazei who also founded CityYear.  The Organization's two key missions are:

Crafting a bold and innovative policy agenda that is rooted in the practical experience of social entrepreneurs and civic leaders and sets a pragmatic ten-year time horizon for major systemic change.

  and

Building a broad-based, web-fueled, citizens’ movement that will campaign for better public policies, promote active citizenship and citizen democracy, and give Americans who are frustrated with the status quo a place to channel their ideas and activism.

I was introduced to Be The Change, Inc. through a friend and I have been working with them as a "pro-bono consultant," for a lack of better word since the summer.  I have an understanding of where the organization is, what it aims to become and how I can help. Needless to say I still have a lot learn about the organization and the rest of the team.  And as with any new endeavor, there will be challenges.  Regardless, I'm very excited for this opportunity and ready for my first week¹.

 

1. I will be slightly distracted on Tsunami Tuesday.  Are you registered to vote?

 

Technorati Tags: NAHB,Be The Change,Career

Volunteering for Obama in SC - The Memorable encounters

This the second article of a three part series that I'm doing on my experience volunteering for the Obama Campaign. You can read the first article here.

While in SC, I have several interesting  encounters that I thought I'd share.  For the purpose of this article, we will refer to my friends as "John" and "Meg". I did not ask for approval to use their real names therefore I feel that it would be inappropriate to do so.  It is worth noting that John is black while Meg is White.

The first of these encounter happened at Huck's post-primary party.  John, Meg and I exited from the ballroom and into the main corridor.  Unfortunately, there was not sighting of the legend that is Chuck Norris.  John decides to stop to purchase a couple of Huckapins.  Disinterested, Meg and I continued to walk down the main corridor.  About half way down the hall, a white lady(WL) approach us and the conversation goes something like this:

WL: Excuse me (This was directed in my direction and she got up to started walking towards me. so I stop)
ME: Yes?
WL: Are you for Gov. Huckabee?
ME: <at this point I think I know enough for talk about the Gov. standing on the issues, so why not go along? plus I'm at his party> Yea I am.
WL: Can you tell me why there are not more of your kind here? 
<The audience at the party was very diverse in age but not in race. Is she talking about my race? Is this lady serious? At this point I'm trying to figure what to say.  First thought that came to mind was to pretend that I'm dating Meg and claim that she dragged me to this all white event.  But Meg was so offended by the question that she ran back to John who was still purchasing Huckapins.  Left with no witty comebacks, I decided to not be offended and address the question. I can't remember what exactly what I said but it was something like the following>
ME: Well we have one our own running right now and his message is appealing and that's very exciting. Also, while The Gov's message does resonate with some conservatives black community but post-primary parties are not exactly the most advertised event on TV.
<She asked about to which church I belong to, to which I answered that I was in from DC to see the Huck speak. But I am attending church up here. She asked a couple more questions that I'm answered.  The end of the conversation went something like that this.>
WL: Blacks are going to be important in one and Gov has a nice message.
ME: Yea we are.  have a good one.
<exit stage right>

When I twittered about having an O'reilly moment that is the conversation I was referring to. It was very surprising that the woman felt comfortable enough to approach me and asked me a question worded in such a manner.  The lady was not trying to offended or insinuate anything negative about the African Americans.  Moreover, I truly believe that the question itself was relevant however the manner in which it was asked displays some sort of ignorance about race relations in that part of the country. More surprising than the actual question was the genuineness behind the question. Part of me wanted to shake her and ask her what hole she had been living in. Regardless, I hope she learned something, because I know I definitely did.

My second encounter was with two older gentlemen at the MLK march. I ran into a small coffee shop to get some coffee and tea. While waiting for my beverages, I asked two gentlemen what they thought about the speeches given by the NAACP representative. Basically, they told me they had conflicted feelings. They said that they appreciated that the NAACP was pointing out some of the discrepancies that exist is South Carolina today. They felt that a lot of the younger generation are not exposed to the history of the state to comprehend some of the subtleties of the racial tensions that still exist today. However, they felt that the NAACP would not do much. They felt that its leaders are more selfish than they have been in the past. Moreover, they felt the leaders were using the MLK holiday, along with the presence of Presidential candidates to get their 15 minutes of fame.  They rebuke the NAACP leader for constantly evoking, King's name and ideals while falling well short of them. For me, this encounter presented a new perspective because I always thought that only young people like myself think that the NAACP is losing its greatness by the hour.

My last encounter was with a gentlemen protesting that the confederate flag should stay up. John and I had a discussion about the flag the night before.  We have a different stance as the what the faith of the flag should be.  Regardless,  John first approached and asked about the gentlemen stance on the issue.  The gentleman stated he wanted the flag flying over the state capitol building like it used to.  I tend jumped and asked why?  his answer was something like "because that's were it belongs."  I told him he was wrong for unconditionally wanting to flag to stay up, and the NAACP was wrong for unconditionally wanting the flag to come down.  The fact of the matter is that the flag means  different things to both groups and neither group should impose its will on the other.  I continued by stating that since both party would back down from their current position, it would be much useful  approach the problem from another angle.  I suggested forming an education panel comprised of people from both camps, that would talk about how schools in SC should teach the about the flag.  And in that process, they may come with a solution about the faith of the flag.  Another gentleman protesting with the gentleman I was talking to agreed with my point.  As for the gentleman I was talking to, he took a second to think about what I said, and then presented another argument which I then countered.  Eventually, we said  goodbye and left.  I doubt anything will come of that conversation.  That being said, it showed me if you come open minded about issue and are willing to offer an alternative way to look at problem, they will listen.  And that's the first step to solving any issue.

While not very memorable as the title would suggest, these encounters brought home the reality of racial tensions in certain parts of the country. Living in a city such as Washington, DC and being in an inter-racial relationship often makes it easy to lose sight of what some parts of the country are still going through.   That's being said, I believe that there things we can do to soften those tensions, like talk to each other and instead of yelling at each other and being offended by every thing we see.

 

Technorati Tags: election 2008,South Carolina Primary,NAACP,Confederate Flag

Volunteering for Obama in SC - The itinerary

I've been following the primary on both side for what seems like forever now.  So when a friend who is involved for MD for for Obama group called me to ask to go volunteer for Obama in South Carolina I jumped on the chance.  We agreed to go down on MLK  weekend.   We left Friday after work, drove down to NC and spent the night at my friend's uncle place near Raleigh, NC.   Saturday, we left around 2 pm and headed down to Columbia, SC.  We checked in the most ghetto hotel available. The TV didn't work in the first room and we were moved to another.  Since we had not contacted the Obama campaign before going down, we did not know what they had planned for the evening.  We decided to watch some political shows.  After about 2 hours, we were bored and I suggested that we go party hop around all the Republican primary parties.  We started at Fred Thompson's Headquarters then to his party.  Fred's Party was really sad.  They were about 30 people there  and at least 10 of them were members of the Media.  My friend and I provided all the diversity for that party.  When we were  there we could Fred was going to drop-out  of the race.  As we were leaving, a Giuliani aide/volunteer was recruiting one of Thompson aide for Florida. 

Rumors of the street had it that Mike Huckabee's (a.k.a "The Huck") party had good cookies and brownies, so we decided to head there next.  The Huckaparty was much more happening then Fred's.  The Huckabus was huge, although the C-SPAN bus held its own.  We barely missed the Huck's speech but managed to get a few pictures as he exited stage right.  Since McCain was in Charleston and the rest of Republicans were to lazy to compete in SC, that was all she wrote for that night.  We got some food and headed to the ghetto hotel only to find 10 cops in the hallway.

On Sunday, we woke up bright and early to run some errands only find out that county law does not allow for sale of general goods before 1:30 PM on Sunday.  No lie.  We headed to Obama's headquarters.  As soon as we walked in a gentleman said that we would be volunteering at an event where the senator was to speak.   GREAT!  At the event we were assigned to be Press volunteers or Press chaperone and bouncers as I called it.   We help set up, we regulated rowdy photographers with the help of secret service, but mostly we took pictures and help ADA individuals.

On Monday, We woke up bright and early to march in the freezing cold and listen to Clinton, Edwards and Obama speak as well as some less than impressive NAACP leaders.  At the end of Clinton's  speech we bolted out of there.  The trip felt a bit rushed, I wish I could have stayed a bit longer, maybe till the primary.  Unfortunately work and other obligations called. I would def do it again. Although, I think I would have to be at least sympathetic to majority of the the candidate's views.  It's just too much work for someone whose idea you disagree with.

 

Technorati tags: Election 2008, Obama, South Carolina

Restaurant Review: Ceiba

This week is Restaurant Week here in DC. If you're not familiar with the concept, a bunch of DC's fancy restaurant's agree to do a 3 course meal for cheap--$20.08 for lunch and $30.08 for dinner. It is a funny way to get to eat at some restaurants that are clearly out of our price range on a daily basis. To take advantage of that, one night we dined at a restaurant called Ceiba. It's a Latin American restaurant, seeming to specialize in seafood.

The only reservation we could get was for 5:30, earlier than a normal dinner. This was only odd because there were empty tables the entire time we were in the restaurant, so clearly we could have gotten a later seating. But regardless, we ate early. The ambiance of the restaurant is nice, very soothing, with lots of mirrors that make the several small dining rooms seem bigger. The meal began with some pita-like chips and a dip that resembled a spicy hummers. We quickly devoured two baskets of the chips, so clearly they were good. For cocktails, my friends chose a Mojito and a beer, but I decided to be daring and chose a drink called a pisco sour, which involved many things, including egg white powder. A little strange, but actually quite good.

One of the nice things about Ceiba is that for Restaurant Week, instead of having a limited number of dishes to choose from, they let you pick any entree off the menu. It's a nice touch. For my dinner, I had a ceviche to start, and a crispy whole red snapper as my entree. The ceviche was delicious, a bit spicy while still having the great taste of the fish. The snapper was also cooked very well. I was a little nervous, as they literally brought the entire fish to me in a platter, head and all (pictured right).....yikes. But, under the skin, the fish was very moist and the accompanying sauce and vegetables were great as well (although I was nervous about accidentally eating the fish's brain).

My dining companions both chose different meals. One friend, a vegetarian, had a mixed green salad to start and some sort of vegetable tamale. She said both were quite good. My other dining companion chose a shrimp cocktail (which he said was very good and spicy) and an Mahi tuna dish. Despite a little nervousness regarding the rawness of the tuna, and a general dislike of mashed potatoes, he also enjoyed his meal. Dessert was also quite good, with two of us choosing a guava cake (more like a banana bread) that was served with a cream cheese panna cotta, and the third choosing a Brazilian carrot cake served with chocolate ice cream. It was certainly a filling end to the meal.

Overall, I think we all agreed that Ceiba was quite a good restaurant. Of course, it was not a place to eat everyday, but it was a good Restaurant Week choice.

 

~ The GFF

Technorati Tags: Restaurant Week,eating out,Ceiba

2008 Resolutions

1.  Maintain a GPA above a 3.5 - I'm enjoying my classes in my MBA program.  I've learned a great deal and hopefully I will continue to do so.  With Law school as a possibility after my MBA, I need to maintain the highest possible GPA to help me get in the best law schools.  It's true that my LSAT score will probably be a bigger factor than my GPA, but It doesn't hurt to keep it high.

2.  Read 6 books (outside the classroom) and write about them on here  - This is important to me. I've found that I enjoy reading and it's relaxing.  The girl, as it turns out, has superb taste in books.  I love borrowing the books that's she's read.  Moreover, It's refreshing not to be reading on a computer screen.  Between twitter, coding, blogging, and typing papers, I'm constantly in front of PC.   A change of scenery for my eyes can't be that bad.

3.  Reconnect with 5 or more family members back home - I want to continue to build on the progress that I made last year.  I was able to reconnect with some family members and actually talk to them on a regular basis.  This has still not brought any closure to some unfinished business that I left but its good to know how every one is doing what they are up to.

4.  Record all financial data for the entire year - I'm always good for this till about June or July.  Around then, I usually go some big spending spree and get lazy about recording it.  Next thing I know it's been three months.  My goal is to keep up with this all year.  I think it will be beneficial to financial planning and all that good jazz.

5.  Bring in 10K to 15K through freelancing - This is an interesting goal.  I've recently partnered with a friend under the b•seen communication & media umbrella.  She does the graphics (print and web) and I do the programming.  We are mostly looking for small to medium size projects.  If you know anyone who needs some work done, contact me.

6.  Open an IRA or Home buying fund - By all measurements, I've been pretty good about the 401k thing.  Now it's time to expand.  The end goal is to buy an overpriced condo either now or when I retire.  Regardless, the to get there, I need open an investment account outside the work place and contribute to it on a regular basis.  This is what happens when you read too many PF blogs.

7.  Go to 12 museums - I've come to the realization that while a live in a city with a million museums, I can only recall going to two.  Since they are open 364 days of the year (according to my sources, they close on Christmas), there is no reason why I can't go once a month.  Clearly, the gff will be in charge of making this happen (She doesn't know that yet).  Mostly because I don't even know what museums are around... I KNOW...very pathetic.

8.  Learn Ruby on Rails - It's the new hotness.  I only do hot things. 

9.  Be a better boyfriend/Better Work life balance - This is going to be a tough one.  By all accounts, I'm workaholic who barely sleeps or eats. Between school, work, freelancing, and other engagements, my relationship and friends sometimes takes a backseat.  This is clearly unfair the lady friend and my crew.  Moreover, while it would be great to be big time, it really would not be good to lose any more hair due to stress.   So we need to work on remedying this.  If it means cutting back on some commitments so be it. 

10. Get Management Position in IT or Public Policy - By the end of the year, I will be about 60 percent done with my program.  With under my belt and my work experience, I feel like I'm ready to test the waters with management.  With all these theories going on in my head now, I feel that it's time to apply them to the real world.   While exploring that I will also be looking to get into public policy since I'm addicted to all things politics.  My only dilemma there is that I have to narrow down my interests.  The world can only be fixed one issue at time.

 

Technorati Tags: 2008 resolutions

Who cares about Scoble's facebook account?

On a historical day in the history of this nation, much of the talk in the tech blog world was about how Robert Scoble, a prominent tech blogger, lost access to Facebook while testing a beta version of Plaxo pulse, which is a script that will allow you harvest contact information of all your friends to store them elsewhere.  Too see how many other  bloggers beside Scoble that covered the story, just Google "Robert Scoble and Facebook."  I was really disappointed to find the day of the Iowa primary this was much of the talk in the tech blog world.  The result of this presidential election will affect the future of the Internet will greatly affect the future on the Internet and how technology as a whole will be viewed/used in this country and by the government.  Aside from TechCrunch, none of these other tech bloggers have interviewed any of the dozen of presidential hopefuls on either side of the isle.  If these candidates can pander that to every other constituency in the country to get their vote, why isn't the geek community, with the exception of the Google, Microsoft and Yahoo of the worlds, also demand the attention of the future president.  Net Neutrality, Identity Theft, Use of voting machines, How to address the technology divide in our public school system, media consolidation, upgrading federal government IT infrastructure are just some of the few issues that the next president will have to address.  Without the bloggers and the rest of the tech world exercising any pressure or forcing the candidates to be better educated about these issues, big tech companies will be only ones to have a say on how these issues unfold. 
Moreover, since this election has be dubbed the "technology election", I would imagine on the day of the first caucus the tech blogging world would be a conversation about creating objective measures that could be used to examine exactly what affect technology will have and has had on the election.  More frustrating than not being able to vote in this election, to no fault of my own, is people squandering the opportunity to bring important issues to the light before it's too late.  Today's coverage of "Scoble-Facebook gate" was would be equivalent to something like CNN covering Britney's latest night of debauchery instead of covering Bhutto's assassination.

Sorry Scoble but I really don't care that Facebook banned you for breaking the rules that you agreed to uphold in the first place.

 

Technorati Tags: Facebook,Election 2008,blogging

Pro-bloggers should be more professional

Over the years the number of blogs I read on a regular basis has increased. However, the quality of the posts and the quality of the writing has remained stagnant.  Why is that?  I don't  have the answer.  If I did, I'd write a book and try to get deal for it.  Maybe it's just me but I think that if you're going to call yourself a professional blogger your writing and your research should be at the level of a professional.  Over the last two days, I've watched an interview on a profession tech blog where the interviewer was irritating. I'm not going to link to it because it's a new venture and I've the pleasure to meet the gentleman who is behind it.  Nice guy.  His niceness aside, his interviews are terrible.  On the ones that I've watched the questions were similar to that of five-year old interviewing his/her parents for a school project.  What made the recent interview even more unbearable to watch was the fact that interviewer kept interrupting the interviewee and made "huh-uh" noise after every sentence.  Now to be fair to him, he is not the only guilty of crappy interviewing of the web.  There are many more out there.   I wouldn't have such a problem with this if these people would refer to themselves as amateur bloggers as opposed to professional bloggers. To all who claim to be professional bloggers; please take a writing class, an interview class and a research class.  Calling yourself a professional requires more than the ability to copy and paste from a site larger than yours (with or without two lines of your own) or post low qualities videos and call them interviews.  To put out such crappy work, undermines your blog and insults your readership.  Then again it's  very possible that I have a twisted definition of  the word "professional."

 

Technorati Tags: blogging,new media,bloggers