Work, Pleasure & Money

Charles Baudelaire has always been one of my favorite poets. He wrote Les Fleurs de Mal (Flowers of Evil) in 1857:

“We are weighed down, every moment, by the conception and the sensation of Time. And there are but two means of escaping and forgetting this nightmare: pleasure and work. Pleasure consumes us. Work strengthens us. Let us choose.”

Then I read a post on LinkedIn, arguing that money is energy. Hmm – money is nothing but a currency to enable global trade: x for y.

But I do agree on pleasure and work. It’s life.

Foie Gras Silliness

Go Mayor Richard M. Daley!

Letter from a VC

I just got this email via LinkedIn from a Swedish VC. That got me thinking about what my college acquiantances are currently doing. So I started to track some of them down via LinkedIn and realized that most of them are still in… Sweden. Which was quite a disappointment. Especially seeing some of them in suits, flustering their best Colgate smiles on their company websites.

Most of them have become their parents, desiring the same kind of corporate paybacks: careers, club memberships, company cars… Spending more time at the office has become an societal award.

And then I think about my own life: carefree, jeans and t-shirt, startup life, California sun, no memberships, no old world desires, freedom of expression, outside of ratrace, access to beach…

Yeah, I got the shorter stick!

Hyde Street Bistro

Man, we headed off to the Hyde Street Bistro for some celebration yesterday. A few victories had been won among the circle of friends that deserved good food and wine. Hyde makes the best steak fritte outside of France so that was my choice, accompanied with a few bottles of Lalande de Pomerol. In addition I had a rabbit pate for starter and a fondant for dessert with some sweet dessert wine. And within walking distance.

Why I Love California

I got Bob Dylan’s Hurricane on from his Desire album. The Missus just dropped of a few bottles of Baron de Ley from 2001. And I got some sweet ribeye’s to throw on the barbie. In addition some french fries properly fried in duck fat.

It’s mid-March and the sun has been reviving every human, plant and animal across Northern California for the past 2-3 weeks. This weekend is going to be all shorts and t-shirt toasty.

My plan is flip-flops, cigar and just chillin’ w/ my homies. When it’s time it’s time. Life is short and the California sun is free!

The Clash is Live

Man, three weeks after the launch of Black Sabbath we are rolling out The Clash. That is hyper speed and supremely impressive. I’m starting to feel the right kind of urgency and focus as we had back in the early days of the Internet.

I once in a while run into other folks that work at new startups (post bust) and most of them are doing 9-5 and justify that by now it’s different. No way – if you want to survive and grow in a cut-throat marketplace you have to run faster, better and smarter than any of your competitors. I don’t buy the 9-5 story – any company that foster that kind of mentality will die.

It’s all about speed, execution and teamwork!

Holy St. Patty’s

My St. Patrick’s day was filled with work until about 5pm when I left for a BBQ and a crazy night on the town. I realized while walking through North Beach that everyone and their uncle celebrated this year’s St. Patty’s, that also happened to be on a Saturday.

The North Beach was filled with people wearing green and drinking Guinness. It was clear that most folks had a few hours on me. But who am I to give up? A few hours later I had caught up pretty well myself and had run into a bunch of really cool and fun people. Call me an old traditionalist but few things beats a great conversion over a few drinks.

I met this really cool couple that live their life to the fullest. They love their jobs, they stay away from over-consumption, they travel a lot and they feel bad cause they have money left in the end of the month. To me that is true wealth. Important to notice is that these guys were fairly regular white collar knowledge workers. And the reason they felt bad was that they felt that they should consume as a reward but didn’t want to.

Another couple had exchanged their car for a vespa to cruise around the city. Dirt cheap and very effective. They rent a car when they need to move stuff or go places. To them that was quality of life.

Man, I love that kind of attitudes: out-of-the-box thinking, breaking conventions, innovate life et cetera. It gave my energy, strength and a darn hangover.

Thoughts on War

“They wrote in the old days that it is sweet and fitting to die for one’s country. But in modern war, there is nothing sweet nor fitting in your dying. You will die like a dog for no good reason.”

- Ernest Hemmingway

Go Germany!

Could not agreee with Marc Bongers more: Slowpokes and women on cell phones should not be allowed to drive. And keep the Autobahn speed limit free.

Finally – It’s Springtime!

The time between November 15 and March 15 is when I hybernate like the grympiest bear. Just ask the Missus. She would tell you that yours truly is a big pain in the bootie during these 4 months. Once the sun comes out, the birds start to sing and the flip-flops are out – it’s a whole other story. Our hero becomes filled with life and passion.

As you can see from above, this weekend is the start of the spring and it looks like the above 20 C / 70F is going to last for another 20 days. In addition to these great news, K&L has got Lalande-Borie again and the Ferry Building Gabitou cheese.  What more could a man ask for? Star Wars VII?