Autumn Reading #3

Robert Bly is my new friend. Over the past few weeks he's been convincing me to become a professional writer. Bly makes a very clear case that freelance writing is not only possible for those who love to write and are willing to work at it, but that you can be paid quite well if you are working in a lucrative niche market.

The basis for your pay as a freelance writer is: can you save someone enormous amounts of time and bring benefit to their business by selling your writing and research skills to them?

Have you ever

• yawned your way through a professional journal or trade publication?
• trashed your employer newsletter because it is redundant and boring?
• had your eyes glaze over looking at a dry-as-dust annual report?
• read an ad that actually turned you off of a product or brand?
• looked at a web site that shouted out "amateur!" on every click and page view?
• wished that you had some superb printed materials to sell your product or idea?
• read EnRoute magazine in an Air Canada plane and wondered Who pays for this?

Fact is, writers hold the key to solving all of these business problems. A company will pay very well to have their public image shaped positively, and the companies who understand this will hire good writers and pay them well.

How you say something is even more important than what you say. Enter the freelance writer.

It's Only a Matter of Degree

The Band is playing for eight weekends in a row. That's a first for the Ron Palangio Group, and in my humble opinion, not bad for a bunch of hobby freelance musicians! Here's the setup, for the record:

1. The Innsville
2. The Brassie Pub
3. Waltz Live Music
4. The Old Powerhouse
5. Private Party
6. The Innsville
7. Winchester Arms Pub
8. Magna International Corp. Christmas Dance

We finally get a weekend off on December 10th, but if we had our way we would book up for that night as well. We must love what we're doing.

Tonight is a first for us, however, because we're taking a stab at self-promotion. Waltz Live Music and Eatery is an established joint located downtown in Jackson Square.

A few of us went in on Karaoke night last Thursday to check out the PA. Sketchy setting: About 25 regulars scattered across the 125 seat room, one guy singing not too bad, and one guy on the dance floor dancing with himself. Oh well, I guess the regulars feel pretty comfortable!

Looks like we're going to have a "real" sound system tonight, which takes the performance angst up a notch. Usually, with our own PA, we're pretty comfortable, but with the new "showcase" concept and a new PA, I'm feeling nervous/excited.

That is a good thing. Way better than being bored with the gig and with the songs. Boredom would ruin our show and our edge. We need just enough UNCERTAINTY to keep us on our toes and in the moment. We must constantly eradicate the "ho-hum" factor. These 8 weeks in a row will be a success if we keep our edge, and keep it fresh.

The Ron Palangio Group, August 2011

Autumn Reading #2

This is one of the most recommended books for those who want to learn how to write advertising copy.

As it turns out, I'm discovering that I really enjoy writing. Duh, I'm a blogger, so that's no surprise to the 5 people who read this blog. However, I've never thought that it was possible to make money writing, but Bly has got me thinking otherwise.

He's got me analyzing advertising copy that I see everywhere, and it's surprising to see that a lot of writing for advertising is NOT done by a professional copywriter. You can tell pretty quick, because the ad is boring, it doesn't get you thinking, it arouses no curiosity about the product, and it doesn't clearly convince you about how you may benefit from the product. The fact remains that companies will pay for the skill of having good advertisements written. Let me give you an example of what I think is one of the best Human Resources ads I've seen:

Director of Marketing

We're looking for a Director of Marketing who probably never thought about being the Director of Marketing at a community college. Instead, you've been busy creating amazing end-to-end customer experiences in challenging environments. Leading successful teams to accomplish impossible things. Inspiring others throughout your organization. And now you're ready to commit your legendary energy to help amp up the ongoing transformation of one of the most innovative community colleges in the country.

We are Nova Scotia Community College. Our mission is to help "Build Nova Scotia's economy and quality of life through education and innovation." We offer 120 advanced skill programs in five academic schools, serving the whole province through a network of 13 campuses. Fully 87% of our graduates are employed, most in their field of choice; 94% have chosen to live and work in Nova Scotia. We are looking for someone to lead the College's marketing function; working to strengthen the NSCC brand and stakeholder experience across all marketing channels and customer interactions. Someone who supports the growth and success of a dynamic team of marketing and web professionals. A natural and collaborative leader who builds relationships easily. An innovative thinker with a bias for action and a lifelong commitment to learning. Someone with at least ten years of senior leadership experience in marketing and most importantly, in delighting customers.

So come to Nova Scotia. Your energy will be felt. Your leadership will make a difference. Your horizons will be as limitless as the sea itself. And if this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity isn't enough to convince you, go to novascotia.com. Allow yourself to be reminded ­ this isn't just any college, this is Nova Scotia's community college. Take the job and we'll throw in the entire province.

What a great piece of writing! It makes me want to be that person.

Autumn Reading #1

Steven Scott is taking me on quite an adventure! My curiosity got the better of me when I saw this book, and I just had to see what he had to say.
Three days into the book now, and I've already started a loose leaf binder and am filling it with notes!

Stay tuned...

Summer reading #9

This one took me a couple of weeks to slowly wade through. This probably has shaped my thinking around the reality of current marketing trends more than anything else I've read.
A huge variety of helpful bits of information.
Good overview of Adwords and the philosophy behind it; but not just about Google - the book connects to what other internet companies are doing to understand their potential customers better.
I'm fascinated by the manner in which companies are developing a higher degree of respect for their potential customers. Since there are so many choices open to people, and so many times at which they can be exposed to the possible connection that they may have to you as their vendor, you really have to know your target audience.
4 stars out of 5

Summer reading #8

How do you wrap your head around the fact that 750 million people in the world have chosen to reveal all kinds of personal information about themselves?
How can you also reconcile the fact that the founder and controlling owner of Facebook, Mark Zuckerberg, refuses to put monetary gain ahead of the principal of free choice?
The amount of demographic data that is contained within Facebook's servers is staggering. The fact that Facebook refuses to capitalize on it by selling it to third parties, as a matter of principle, is fascinating.
Zuckerberg is interested in seeing people in contact with one another in virtual communities all around the world. He is convinced that openness and transparency, by people acting online with their real names, and with people choosing exactly what information they release and share by managing their privacy controls, is the way to go.
It will be interesting to see if the threatened "takedown" of Facebook by hackers on November 2 of this year will in fact take place. There are those who refuse to believe that Facebook is innocent, and that it will someday be taken over by the government, or some other evil entity. The hackers supposedly are going to prove to Facebook users (and owners) that it is not as secure as they all think.
Stay tuned....

Summer reading #7

Funny how certain themes seem to overtake me. I see one book, and then am prompted to balance out what I've learned with something related. This book is directly connected to my reading of The Moneyless Man and Who Killed the Grand Banks? 

In this very detailed book, Cunningham begins by setting the perspective. Until recent years, ALL global economic activity has been built upon using up the earth's resources, and maintaining the things that have been built using those resources. Now, there is a growing amount of economic activity and opportunity built upon re-using, re-newing, and re-storing.

More to come...

Summer reading #6

The author perfectly illustrates how the long-term presence of a performing musical group results in boosting of academic performance across the curriculum. The key idea here is that the musicians are employed NOT just as a one-off entertainment event that pulls kids out of class and into a school assembly, etc. Rather, and this is the key difference, the musicians are involved with the teachers on a long term basis. They sit down with the teacher and plan how their musical activity and the music itself can be used to teach and connect with a wide variety of the school curriculue. For example, concept of patterning in mathematics can be very abstract and difficult to grasp for even the brightest mind. But, when the concept of patterning is illustrated in musical forms and rhythms, there is an instant connection. Likewise, social skills are hard to see as relevant when taught in isolation, but when students understand, see and hear the give and take and sharing/synergy that happens in a musical ensemble, not only in the rehearsal process but in the performance itself, they get it: social skills are the very tools of "life performance," just like musicianship is the basic tool of musical performance. There are hundreds of other equally powerful ways that a musical ensemble can deeply enrich a school program IF (and this is the big if) the teachers and musicians share the responsibility and opportunity to bring their music to the service of all learning, and if the musicians and teachers are willing to be involved in the project on a long-term basis. (At least a full school year, if not two or three.)

I need to read this book again and again. Perhaps then, I will find the courage to try some of these ideas in his own classroom, in partnership with other musicians and teachers.
Five stars out of five.

Summer reading #5

After visiting Newfoundland this past July, it made sense to wrap my head around this important part of the province's history. The one thing that sticks out to me is how close I came to seeing some of the bad policies in action, even though it is 10 years after the cod fishery was stopped. This is a picture of a shrimp boat, heading out of Twillingate Harbour. There are about half a dozen of these big boats working out of Twillingate. They are the mainstay of the harbour activity these days. Problem: The shrimp boats use huge, weighted "dragger" type nets that scrape along the bottom and scoop up everything off the ocean floor, because that is where the shrimp are feeding. It is this very same kind of big boat, government subsidized dragging that killed off the huge numbers of cod in the 80s. Because the gov't gave in to political pressure to help make it happen, all in the name of jobs for Newfoundlanders, the cod fishery was ruined. The draggers dig up the plant and animal detritus that is the basis of the food chain for cod and other species. Now, ironically, the same destructive, dragging method is being used to harvest shrimp, which is even more valuable than cod once were. Hello people? The cod used to eat the shrimp. Now that the cod are gone, you are taking all the shrimp! Will there ever be a chance for the species to renew itself?

Alex Rose says the answer will take political will-power, and a renewal of Newfoundlanders' philosophy of the future: A ban on all habitat-destroying fishing methods, a possible middle term ban on all fishing, and then a move into a quota-based system. Newfoundlanders need to envision a future that is not built around taking and taking and taking. They need to diversify into methods of renewal and enterpreneurship in other sectors. Tourism is one example.

I am now more aware of the issues facing the global fishing business. There is more demand for fish than ever before, and more habitat destruction and deep ocean renegade fishing practices than ever before. National governments need to put fisheries on their agenda right up beside global warming.
Three stars out of five. (A bit too repetitive; confusing in places; rambling in others.)

Solo Skydive - Toronto Skydiving School

One day I decided to jump out of a plane...

The instructions were to push myself out sideways, and then spread eagle into an arch, while counting, "Arch thousand, two thousand, three thousand, four thousand, check thousand." My jumpmaster, Baxter, shouted into my ear moments before I jumped, "Smile for the camera!" This is how you smile when there is a 100 mph wind in yer face. Baxter has his hand on my static line and will pull it in as soon as it detaches from my chute.

Things are happening really fast at this point. I'm forcing myself to complete my count, while the wind whips me sideways. I can feel the tug on my rig as the pin gets pulled and releases the chute from the pack.

Is it there?

Is it square?

Will it flare?

They taught us that when jumping from 3000 feet, we have about 21 seconds of free fall time before hitting the ground. After completing our count, 6 seconds were used up. By that point our chute should be fully open and we begin a visual 3 point check, "Is it there? Is it square? Will it flare? (Flare refers to the control check where I grab the control toggles and pull them down to see if the "brakes" work.)

If the control check is good, then I was free for the next 4 or 5 minutes to fly around and enjoy the view before landing. I was in radio contact with the ground, and he instructed me where to steer as I neared the ground. "Right toggle.... left toggle....more...more....and let it up.....Landing position.....OK....and......flaaaaarrrrrre" Those commands are what brought me into line and then slowed down my forward motion at the last few moments for a soft, easy landing.

The control check is extremely important. I needed to know as soon as my chute opened that it was controllable, otherwise there could be lots of risk of not being able to land safely. I could land slowly, but would have no control over where I landed (e.g. slamming into a building, a tree, a power line, or landing in the middle of Highway 48 - none of these prospects are good!) 

If, during the "Will it flare?" part of the control check, there was a "low-speed" problem and I was unable to steer the chute properly, then I would immediately have to cut the main chute, using the emergency release handle on my right strap, then pull the reserve handle. This is not something you want to delay, since as soon as you cut away the main chute, you begin a free fall!

The other possibility is a high-speed problem. During the check count, I look and ask, "Is it there?" Obviously, if there is no chute there after a 5 second free fall, I've got 16 seconds left to quickly cut my main chute and pull my reserve handle. If my answer to "Is it there?" is YES, then the next question, "Is it square?" helps me evaluate the condition of my chute. Possibilities here are, 1) YES it is square - continue to "Will it flare?" and control check. Possibility 2)  - NO it has twisted lines. Solution: reach up and untwist yourself by pulling your hands against the straps. Possibility 3) - NO a corner is slightly collapsed. No problem, go on to control check and the corner will open up. 4) NO my chute looks like the proverbial "Ball of shit," meaning it is hopelessly fouled up and tangled. This would also be accompanied by the strange sensation of still falling fast and a big blast of wind all over me. This is a high-speed problem, and to delay making a decision here would be fatal, since there is only about 15 seconds of time before impact. Actually, I would have only about 5 seconds to make a decision, because if I waited too long to cut my main chute, there wouldn't be enough time and altitude for my reserve chute to fully open. So, as we were learning about this, it dawned on me that I was actually going to be fully responsible for my own safety in the event of an emergency. There would be no one there who could help me, rescue me or save me. "You are completely responsible for what happens."

Taken about 300 feet above the ground or so. I'm listening to the ground instructor's last minute instructions to guide me to the landing place. As it turns out I ended up landing just beside the runway and almost took out the photographer because I ended up zooming right towards her!

This the look on my face when I realized what I have just done. It was worth the wait and all the training! I want to share this experience with someone else now.... I wonder who will be "up" to it?

Summer listening #1

This group has come around again, and again, it seems. Simple mix, earnest and intense playing, catchy ideas and tunes. I first realized I had something to listen to when I heard Funk #49 on the radio. As I listened I heard familiar sounds, as if the band was copying Boston, The Eagles, even Led Zeppelin. But no, it's the other way around - Joe Walsh, guitarist in the James Gang, had a lot to do with the band's sound. Walsh went on to join The Eagles and also has had a significant solo career.

Summer reading #4

Mark Boyle, an Irishman living in England, spent a year without spending money, to try to show that money is actually not necessary for survival in the modern world. Underlying Boyle's adventure was a firm belief that money was, and is, a system of convenience. It served a good purpose at first, but eventually became an end in itself, with the added problem that it creates an illusion of security, where we no longer rely on personal relationships and good faith in our local community.

Boyle set himself up with some rules to guide his actions. One interesting rule is that he will not willingly use fossil fuels. Therefore he went off the hydro grid completely. There are many interesting facets to the outworking of that rule alone, well worth the read.

Boyle admits that dumpster diving is not a sustainable way to bolster what's in your pantry, but he explains that he feels responsible for reducing the amount of waste, which the retailers of food - who are out to make profit, and bound by arbitrary food freshness regulations - do not want people to know about.

Most of Boyle's food came from what he was able to grow himself, or barter for by volunteering to work on a local farm, or by foraging wild plants that often grow in our area, are edible and which we no nothing about. He is also a vegan.

For those of us interested in reducing our wastefulness, Boyle reminds us of the burgeoning "freeconomy" movement, which is based trade. Two examples of web sites devoted to this are justfortheloveofit.org and localskillswap.com.

Actually, I was inspired by some of the lessons Boyle learned along the way, one of which was to be less critical of the choices others make, and to really embrace the Pay it Forward philosophy. What Christians refer to as the providential grace of a personal God, Boyle understands as a general principal of the universe: if you give back to mother earth, and its creatures including people, then at the right moment it will give you what you need.

Not an exciting read, not for everyone, but very thought-provoking and full of gems!
4 stars out of 5

Summer reading #3

The book reads like watching the movie: you switch from one chase/fight scene to the next; you're always wondering, "who is this person? are they friend or foe?" The Bourne Dominion was worth the read, keeping me in suspense to the end, but not as thrilling as the fast paced movies. A gift from my mother in law : )
3 stars out of 5

Summer Reading #2

Have to finish before I watch the movie. My trip to Newfoundland has got me thinking about being at sea!
A great read. And the movie, starring George Clooney, definitely does the book justice. Now I need to read more books about sailing and the sea.
4 stars out of 5

Summer Reading #1

Young is a new action-thriller author. His first full novel explores a realistic situation where an air force pilot is shot down while transporting a controversial, high-level mullah with terrorist connections. They end up being chased around the mountains of Afghanistan. It explores stereotypes and sheds light on the way trained soldiers think when under pressure.

3 stars out of 5

One Day at the Seniors' Home

This was on our Parkdale School choir performance, Christmas 2009.