This post has nothing to do with workers’ compensation whatsoever. So, you know, you might enjoy it. ;)
Long story short: Joss Wheedon, the guy who brought us Serenity, Firefly, Buffy the Vampire Slayer (the movie), Buffy the Vampire Slayer (the T.V. show), decided to put together a short internet movie during the writer’s strike. The result is Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog – a kind of three act musical comic book.
Starring Neil Patrick Harris of Doogie Howser M.D. fame. Seriously.
Why, oh why, have I posted about this? I watched the videos when they were released for free for a limited time – but only just before they they expired. They have just been posted again for free on the Dr. Horrible website.
These damned songs have been stuck in my head ever since I watched it. My nominations:
Best song: “Brand New Day”
Best quote not from a song: “Dude. You’re NOT my nemesis.”
Best line from a song: “That’s the plan. Rule the world. You and me. Any day. <wink>”
Gordon Ramsey, the super duper chef and Fox network star, has a show called, “Kitchen Nightmares.” I watched an episode last night. Its about what you’d expect from a Fox reality show – a slow motion train wreck from which your eyes cannot be pried away.
Nevertheless, I watched it.
It featured a pizzeria owner who had a failing and tragically flawed restaurant which was entirely supported by his wife’s income. The owner prided himself on his stubbornness and his ability to do anything he set his mind to. He had dreams of turning his establishment’s business model into a global franchise.
He kept running this restaurant for two and a half years. Some might admire his persistence. I think he probably would have learned a lot more about building a successful business by failing spectacularly, rather than throwing time and money at a losing proposition. As best as I can tell, successful people take risks. Throwing good money after a bad proposition just doesn’t seem risky or brave.
My thought: When your business doesn’t make money, its just a hobby. An expensive and time consuming hobby. A friend once referred to this as “feeding the beast,” when your business turns from a money making proposition to something that will eat your savings, free time, mortgage, second mortgage, and marriage. (Thanks anonymous!)
This may seem contradictory to my prior post where I quoted, “do what you love and the money will follow.” Now, I may be a victim of Fox’s incredible ability to edit footage, but that guy didn’t seem to love what he was doing. He seemed to love the idea of what he was doing – playing at being a chef and restaurateur. The reality of his situation seemed to be escaping him.
I’m rather lucky with this little hobby/business of mine. There is no beast to feed. I have no office, no staff, no programmers, no graphic design team, and no ad department. ((Reminds me of the song “Turning Japanese” by “The Vapors.”)) Of course, I did have a significant upfront time investment. But, I said I didn’t want to talk about that. :)
Perhaps that trite phrase is better stated as, “do what you love and the money won’t matter.”
Warning! Technobabble! Warning!Permanent brain damage could result! If you’re not into technobabble, please just skip this post.
In order to put up the Articles page, I had to modify the WordPress theme I’m using. The WordPress Themer Kit is a really really great tool for the design-challenged. ((I think the bald guy is going to win.)) ((My wife watches the show. Sounds like a lame disclaimer, I know.))
You don’t have to have any special design skill, just the ability to tinker with cascading style sheets. ((I warned you! Didn’t I warn you about the technobabble!?!))
Melty calculators
Up until now, I’ve tried to keep the theme modifications to a minimum. I’ve done this before – such as to add the nifty little rounded corners to the tops and bottom of each page. One little error and your entire blog looks like alphabet soup or, worse, a Dali painting.
Don’t get me wrong – I like Dali. I just think my calculators would be more difficult to use if they went all melty.
P.S. Don’t leave your website calculators out in the sun.
I’m looking forward to publishing articles from California workers’ compensation professionals. I have a few requirements, but they’re nothing onerous. So, if you’re a doctor, attorney, claims examiner, judge, hearing representative, lien claimant, or anyone else who makes your living through Workers’ compensation, drop me a line.
