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In honor of Valentine's Day I've set my filter on Lovey Dovey

The BootsnAll gang updated their blogging software so things are a bit strange around here: Comments are going to SPAM even though I have the filter set on “Lovey Dovey” (and yes that is the actual setting’s name); and the Latest Comments section of the home page is empty for some reason. Here’s what they said:

The initial step is moving your current blog over. We’ve done enough testing that this should be a seamless process and you should barely notice a blip. Of course, now that we’ve said that it could all come crashing down 🙂 We’ll be making the switch later this evening (Tuesday, Feb 12th).

To which I thought: “Crap it’s the 14th and I’m still having issues.”

Apologies to Rachael who continues to be banished time…

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Anti-gaters unite!

We have a -gate on our hands, and you might remember that I’ve vowed to put an end to all -gates.

This one is Nannygate and the object of my ire is ESPN journalist Jayson Stark. While blogging at the Clemens-McNamee hearing, he used “Nannygate” in reference to the controversy of whether Clemens’s nanny kids and himself attended a party hosted by Jose “Juiced” Canseco.

Stark’s misdeed:

1:36 p.m. ET
Nannygate erupts again.
Rep. Tom Davis asked Clemens to clear up how he came to invite the nanny back to his house last week and we learned from Clemens “it was great to see her.”
But as the Nannygate questioning rolled along to center around whether Clemens’ family was at Canseco’s increasingly famous party, Clemens did suggest he came to “believe…

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I should be writing…

…but I just spend 1.5 hours watching the Clemens-McNamee hearing. I don’t even like baseball!

The sad thing is that someone could and (probably will) bind the transcript of the hearing, put Clemens on the cover, and sell a hundred times more books than the book I’m supposed to be writing.

Of course, maybe if I admit to using HGH to enhance my thumb-twiddling abilities, which fuels my creativity, I could sell a lot more books.

How about this for a title:

Where am I wearing?: a global quest to meet the people that made my clothes…I use HGH

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Scalzi on writing and money

Science-fiction writer John Scalzi delivers some “unasked-for advice to new writers about money” on his blog Whatever.

You gotta give Scalzi some credit, few people talk about money, especially writers who often work a lot to make very little. Although, I suspect, it’s easier to talk about money when you make as much as Scalzi. But Scalzi has paid his dues. Here’s a list of his Science Fiction earnings. In 1999 he earned $400 in 2007 $67,000. (Note: he supplements this income with a fair amount of corporate writing, blogging, non fiction writing, so he was able to feed his family in 1999.)

Anyhow, here’s my favorite point of his unasked-for advice:

8. Unless you have a truly compelling reason to be there, get the…

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Obama’s T-Shirts: Made in USA

I can look out the window of my day job’s office in Greenville, Ohio, and see the company (Tiger Eye Design) that’s printing and shipping T-shirts, buttons, key chains, and other swag to Obama-backers everywhere. All the products are made in the USA by union workers.

The company was featured in Time Magazine and also on the local news:

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Hard to swallow, my flip flops

The people that make our flip flops often work 15-16 hours per day seven days a week. I don’t imagine that this complies with any worker laws, regulations, or compliances anywhere in the world. That’s why I gave the passage below from Deckers Outdoor’s webpage the ol’ “bullshit” sneeze.

Deckers We do not manufacture our footwear. We outsource the manufacturing of our Teva, Simple and UGG footwear to independent manufacturers in China. We also outsource the manufacturing of our UGG footwear to independent manufacturers in New Zealand and Australia. We require our independent contract manufacturers and designated suppliers to adopt our Factory Charter and to comply with all local laws and regulations governing human rights, working conditions and environmental compliance, before we are willing to place business…

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The sweat-laborer of the publishing industry

Who makes a book’s index?

I had no idea. I just hoped and prayed that it wouldn’t fall on my shoulders. I am anything but organized and deciding what should or should not be listed in the index sounded like an impossible task. Have you ever really look at an index?

I posed the question to my editor:

KT: Do I have to do the Index?

Editor: No, the Indexers will do that.

KT: There are Indexers?

Editor: Yep, they are pretty much the garment workers of the publishing industry.

Who knew? There is even an American Society of Indexers. They have conferences. Boy, those must be a hoot….

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Honoring me or a coincidence?

Today, is the Chinese New Year, but since today was yesterday in China that means 1.3 billion Chinese were bringing in the New Year on my birthday. So, I ask, does the New Year just happen to fall on my birthday or is the world’s most populous nation honoring my recent visit?…

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