Archive for the 'Tropophilia' Category

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You Wouldn’t Get This From Any Other Guy

Published by Jarred on December 3, 2008 in Tropophilia. View Comments

Dear Blog,

Hi. I know you’re not happy with me. I know I’ve been ignoring you, putting my job and bike riding and everything else before you. Between moving and the election and work and… no… no you’re right. No more excuses. I’m either in or I’m out. I’m in, Blog. I choose you. I choose us.

To show you how commited I am to you, I went out and worked real hard and bought you this brand new design. I didn’t even do my laundry tonight. I haven’t even eaten dinner yet. That’s how dedicated I am to you, Blog, making sure everything looks just right. You look oh-so-fine in it. I hope you like it. I sure do.

Trust me blog, you and I will start spending some good quality time together. But for now, I just wanted to let you know I’m still here.

Love,

Jarred

P.S. I’m sure you didn’t miss it, Blog, but here’s the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade video that’s got teh webz all abuzz. Never gonna give you up, Blog.

All Is Well

Published by Taylor on October 28, 2008 in Tropophilia. View Comments

We’re still here, just experiencing a bit of blog-lag as a result of travel.

Every time I see Wordle on another site I’m reminded of what a cool tool it is. And, as we get back into the swing of writing, it’s a good reminder of what we’ve been talking about lately on Tropophilia. No big surprises here, except maybe the fact that “change” doesn’t make a larger splash; we sure love the web, food, and (strangely) Glassbooth:

Tropophilia Speaks, Google Listens

Published by Jarred on August 14, 2008 in Google and Tropophilia. View Comments

Today, Google released granular sharing controls for its Reader product. Allowing users on a contact-by-contact basis to determine who they share items with (and, in turn, who can share items with them), this upgrade arrived in explicit response to widespread user outcry over a previous upgrade that didn’t give users enough control over their sharing. That was about eight months ago, and the very first post on this blog chronicled and discussed the reaction.

Yeah, that’s right. In only three weeks of employment with Google, I have taken the message of the good ship Tropophilia to the higher-ups and shaken the foundations of the Web itself.

If only.

Joel on Tony Snow

Published by Taylor on July 21, 2008 in Politics and Tropophilia. View Comments

Occasional Tropophilia contributor Joel‘s letter to the Washington Post was published yesterday. As someone who witnessed the “sparring” that Joel mentions, the fact that Mr. Snow went out of his way to lend a helping hand to an irreverent undergrad (I mean that lovingly) says a lot. Well said, Joel:

Howard Kurtz’s appreciation of Tony Snow ["As Good as His Words," Style, July 14] hit the right notes in honoring Mr. Snow’s public service and private life by remembering the “relentless cheerfulness” he displayed at all times and his well-deserved reputation among his colleagues for being a “really genuine guy.”

Yet Tony was at his kindest when nobody important was looking. In spring 2007, while I was still a student at Davidson College, Tony’s alma mater, he befriended me after we sparred — substantively but tactfully — at a student question-and-answer session on campus. Upon hearing that I was moving to Washington, he gave me his number and said, “Give me a call! We’ll bring you into the office.”

“The office,” of course, was the West Wing. For 45 minutes, Tony and I talked about our alma mater, our families, mutual friends and our futures — and it was there that he paid me the greatest compliment anyone ever has, when he mentioned that I reminded him of himself as a young man. I can only begin to hope that my life will be as full of love and friendship as his was.

JOEL HEWETT

Washington