Russ Taylor ephemera

"Just spotted colleague Terry Moran in hall. Could wave, but easier to tweet. Hey, dude." 10:49 AM Mar 18th from Tweetdeck

"Bumped into an old stalker of mine at Borders. She'd lost some weight and looked terrific, but I tweeted 911 anyway. Cops arrived from 3 states." 1:43 PM Mar7th from Blackberry

"I refuse to apologize for making time for my kid's ball games, so I usually end up not going." 9:13 AM May 4th from web

"Had close call watching MJ memorial service. They ended 'We are the World' before I could jimmy open my gun closet and blow my brains out." 12:33 PM Jul 7th from web

"While speaking last night, someone threw panties on stage. Or boxers. Whatever. Times like that, always ask myself: What would The Boss do?" 5:13 PM Mar 12th from web

"Kabul. Awakened by huge blast in hotel lobby. Suicide bomber blew up complimentary breakfast buffet. Off to find bagel." 3:14 PM Apr 8th from Tweetdeck

"Accompanying HMMV patrol, used on-board computer to order Ab Rocket. And because I acted when I did, receiving second one absolutely free." 8:01 PM Apr 13th from Blackberry

Phantom of the Fox from Too Busy To Hate on Vimeo.

In February 2001, I was an attorney.  That month I traveled to San Francisco to attend and speak at a media and communications conference.  After the conference ended, I stayed a few more days in that area of California.  I took an ill-advised bus tour of Sonoma and Napa.  I eventually got smart and rented a convertible and drove south on the Pacific Coast Highway.  I stayed a few nights in Carmel (The Pine Inn) and made it somewhere past Nepenthe before eventually turning around and heading back to San Francisco.  I enjoyed some scenic coastal hikes.

By this point in my life I was newly separated and headed for a divorce.  And I had secretly filed a legal case earlier in February 2001 that -- about one year later -- would become public and turn my life upside down.  People often say their life was turned upside down by an event.  I'm not sure what it means for others, but for me it meant not having a plan for the first time in my adult / working life.

So this trip was the calm before the storm, although I did not know it at the time.

These are some photos I snapped along the coast:

Atlanta's People (Semi-homage to Phillip Bloom's Dublin's People) from Chance White.

Where does one shop online for Christmas treats that does not share your personal information with the world?

Omaha Steaks (link) - "[Y]ou may receive mailings from other reputable companies."

Dean and Deluca (link) - "We occasionally make our list of customer names and street addresses available to carefully screened companies and organizations whose product and activities might be of interest to you."

Harry and David (link) - "We may also share and cross-reference our customer information with other companies that provide goods or services that may be of interest to you."

Williams and Sonoma (link) - "[W]e might rent, exchange, share and/or cross-reference information, including contact information about you that will enable such persons or entities to contact you regarding products and services that may be of interest to you."

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UPDATE:  The Savory Pantry has a good privacy policy:

(link) - "If you are placing an order on-line, we ask you to provide us with certain contact information during the checkout process, including name, billing address, shipping address, e-mail address, telephone number and a valid credit card number. We use this information only to verify your account and to process orders. It is not used outside the scope of The Savory Pantry service."

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"Kansas City Steak Company (link) knowingly does not sell, rent or authorize the sale or rental of your personal information to third party companies for any business use."