Archive for January, 2007

Start me up

Published
by
duncan
on January 25, 2007
in Geekery and Work
. 5 Comments

I’m attending a tech startup conference in Quebec City Friday and Saturday this week. The event is presented in partnership with the new Canadian affiliate of Garage Technology Ventures, whose managing director, Guy Kawasaki, will be making a presentation. His book, The Art of the Start, was one of the more important things I read in the last couple of years, in terms of thought-provoking advice to would-be entrepreneurs and “anyone starting anything.”

Seeing Kawasaki in person, however interesting it may be, is not my sole motivation for attending however. When I was in Silicon Valley earlier this month, I was approached by a group of engineers and technologists. I agreed to collaborate with them on a very exciting venture about which I will have to be vague for the time being. My responsibility is brand development. So here I am, hoping to learn from the presentations and make some connections that will be useful later on down the road…

NOTE: You can download the first chapter of the Art of the Start for free here.

Time to travel

Published
by
duncan
on January 23, 2007
in Travel
. 1 Comment

2007 seems destined to be a year of travel. Don’t get me wrong: I love Montreal. But I always seems to appreciate a place more when I give myself the opportunity to miss it a little.

I was already planning on heading west to see family and friends in British Columbia (where I grew up) and Seattle. So when Air Canada announced a 2-month unlimited travel flight pass in North America, I needed little convincing. I was a somewhat skeptical at first, but seat availability has not been a problem.

First stop: San Francisco and area for a week earlier this month. More on that later.

The year that began with a bang

Published
by
duncan
on January 14, 2007
in Navel-Gazing
. 4 Comments

Hey folks, I hope the new year is treating you well so far. I can’t complain, but it’s been quite a wild ride so far, and we’re only two weeks into it… For me, 2007 is the year that started with a bang.

If you’re thinking champagne corks, you’re only partly right. I did enjoy a little Veuve Clicquot on the 31st after a very tasty dinner at Luce’s place. Then I headed across town to a private loft party put on by some friends. Round about 3, some of us decided to head to another party where Eloi Brunelle, Pheek and Mossa were playing. Failing to find a taxi, we came back to the loft. That’s when things got weird.

Seems that, hearing the music from the street, some random people had infiltrated the party. One of those people thought I was picking a fight with a friend of mine (which is laughable for anyone who knows me) but we were just horsing around. Anyhow, this guy shoved me violently, I went flying back and landed on a concrete floor, on which I seriously banged the back of my head. I didn’t pass out, so no-one thought anything more of it, but the rest of the evening is a confused blur. The next day, it was confirmed that I had a concussion. In some ways, having a concussion is like temporary madness. Symptoms include erratic and aggressive behaviour, anxiety, confusion, slurred speech, etc. So that would explain things if you saw me that night and thought I was acting weird or super-drunk.

But things get stranger still. I suppose the guy could have killed me perhaps, but he just may have saved my life — 20 years from now. After I developed increasingly intense migraines 36 hours following the incident, I was admitted to the hospital and had my head scanned (CT) the following morning. Fortunately, they found nothing serious. But they did find something else that is “benign” now but could, if left undetected, cause me problems 20 years from now. Maybe, maybe not. But now that I know about it, it’s much less of an issue — and maybe not an issue at all. So I am strangely grateful to the guy who pushed me, whoever he is.

All of which goes to show you that there is a reason for everything; we just have to understand what it is. This year, I hope we all learn to spot the silver lining in any clouds that come our way.