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Construct your identity through collected friends and directed advertising."

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As of December 07 2007 this journal is Friends Only and all posts prior to December 07 2007 have been made private.

I twitter publicly as strand206.

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I just received this email. I've never signed up for a Joe Mallahan email list. I have never heard of him. How did they get my email address? Who would vote for a spammer?

from Joe Mallahan <mallahanformayor@gmail.com>
sender-time Sent at 11:35 AM (GMT-07:00). Current time there: 11:37 AM. ✆
reply-to mallahanformayor@gmail.com
to B Strand <myemail@gmail.com>
date Wed, Jul 8, 2009 at 11:35 AM
subject Joe Mallahan for Mayor
hide details 11:35 AM (1 minute ago)
Images are not displayed.
Display images below - Always display images from mallahanformayor@gmail.com


Dear Supporter:

The Mayoral race has really heated up in the past couple of weeks as we build toward victory on August 18th. Thank you so much for the support you have provided, which has allowed me to emerge as the clear challenger to the incumbent.

I bring to the table fresh ideas and executive experience that will be valuable to the City of Seattle and make the city a better place to live and work.

You can help me achieve these goals by going online today and contributing to my campaign here. A contribution of $25, $50, $100, or more will provide a significant boost to my efforts to bring that new perspective to the Mayor's office.

I have assembled a great team and the attached video, which we released last week, is just one indication of the level of professionalism we are achieving: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sr3N1-ExoHU. Supporters like you make it possible for me to promote my candidacy and my vision for a better Seattle. A contribution today will allow us to maintain a top-notch campaign.

The Seattle Times has recognized my efforts to repeal the Head Tax in Seattle, saying "Joe Mallahan gets legitimate credit for shaming the mayor and council into a planned repeal of the tax." I will continue to fight for small business owners and work to bring city services back to the residents of Seattle.

My opponents recognize I am the challenger to beat. I have received the endorsement of the 37th District Democrats and have been the top vote getter in the 46th District Democrats, the King County Democrats, and the Metropolitan Democratic Club. I am the only candidate talking about improving, and restoring, basic city services to the people of Seattle. These services are as simple as making our neighborhoods safer or upgrading our roads and sidewalks throughout the city, and as broad as ensuring our city is prepared for the next security emergency (snowstorm or otherwise). Our city government has lost sight of the people it is elected to serve. I will return that vision to City Hall.

Your contribution today will help me to the Mayor's office where, together, we can clear a path to a better Seattle.

Warmest regards,

Joe


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I had a dream a few weeks ago. I dreamt that I was at a car lot at sunset and spotted an awesome black VW van. The dealer made me an offer: come back at six AM with five hundred dollars cash and it's yours. I woke up in a panic, it was seven twelve and I was still in bed, I hadn't gone out in the predawn to buy the dream van.

I don't normally dream about vehicles, normally I dislike cars and everything that goes with them, maintenance, insurance, gas, parking... it's all so much of a chore, for what? Expediency? I'd rather take a bus or a train. I think a Nova special on the future of the car I'd watched the night before had got me thinking.

I like to run numbers on hypotheticals, and I'd done the math on what it would cost me to own or lease a relatively new car with decent mileage, and I estimated the expense at a doable three to five hundred a month. I still have no interest in owning a car, but the perspective of ownership expense encouraged me to do something I've been meaning to do for awhile. I signed up for Zipcar, and earlier this week I tried it out for the first time.

I've signed up for their 50$ a month plan, which gets you reduced rates (8.55/hr for most cars, 9.45/hr for some, and 6.30/hr for Priuses). I knew my first trip would be down to IKEA, and on Monday I looked at my options. I could wait until Tuesday evening to borrow a Prius near my house, or I could borrow a Civic near my work that evening. I got a special overnight rate on the Civic of 34$ (from 6pm to 8:30am) and after fees and taxes it ate up about forty dollars of my credit.

I got to the parking spot around five fifty and checked out the car. There was a scrape on the front bumper that I called in on their easy to use phone system.The Civic itself was roomy enough, but the driver's wheel seemed to low, and traffic at six around Seattle was nerve-inducing. I got on I-5 South, got lost around Renton, and eventually ended up at IKEA around seven. I was a little out of it from traffic-nerves and couldn't figure out how to open the trunk to stow my bag.¹ While I was fiddling with the trunk (I'd popped the hood, thinking that was a trunk release) I dropped my iPhone onto the concrete lot. The screen's glass cracked, but the display itself is still working fine.²

I headed into IKEA, had dinner, and did some shopping. I planned on buying some frames, and impulse bought a desk. Thankfully I was able to fit everything perfectly in the back seat, though next time I'll carry a tape measure, and concern myself with the dimensions of the vehicle.

I drove back to Seattle, stopping over at QFC and grabbed some groceries. I bought some larger items -- a twelve pack of beer and TP -- and was thankful that I had a car to take home those items. I drove home and unloaded the car. Parking wasn't hard to find but earlier in the evening it would definitely have been difficult. I knew I had to get to bed soon, so that I could return the car before eight thirty.

Overall, I found the Zipcar easy to use and convenient, the day rates are a bit too high for my tastes and even the overnight special was a little too high. In the future I'll plan ahead and reserve the Prius that lives two blocks from my apartment for trips of three to five hours at a time.

I love the flexibilty of being a pedestrian and bus-rider. It means never having to find parking, and being able to change your plans on the fly without worrying about where you parked. Still there are a few times where having a car to help run errands makes life a lot more convenient. I expect those to happen once or twice a month, and when they come up, I'll rely on Zipcar to let me have the freedom to bring home more than a few bags of groceries or visit my friends in the suburbs.

1. I eventually figured it out. You use a Zipcard to lock and unlock the car. The key is affixed to the dash on a cord, but can be detatched from the cord... I didn't realize that you could take the key out to unlock the trunk until I got it home.
2. Unsurprisingly, Apple will not fix it.