Making Ripples: post-corporate adventures in Floyd County Virginia

Jim Zumbo - object lesson for bloggers

This is not about guns or gun ownership. It is a tale about the power of blogging and what happens when you use your online publishing power unwisely.

Jim Zumbo was one of the "good old boys" of hunting. He was a well-respected writer, a life-long hunter and wrote an incredibly popular column for Outdoor Life until he revealed how out of touch he had become with his audience of hunters and gun owners.

On Friday, February 23, 2007, Jim wrote an article on the Outdoor Life website in which he categorized a large segment of his readership as "terrorists" because they enjoyed the use of semiautomatic weapons, which he called "assault" weapons. He apparently viewed his choice of bolt-action rifles as the only manly way to hunt. As of that Friday night he was employed by Outdoor Life and was the spokesperson for Remington Arms. The original article has been removed, but you can use Google News to find all about it.

Without going astray on classes of weapons, I'd like to point out that this was viewed as a betrayal on the large number of readers who own weapons that fire each time the trigger is pulled. These semiautomatic weapons have been common since the 1950's and have been used for hunting or protection in one form or another since then.

Jim Zumbo's elitist views on the subject of guns based on their appearance was made worse by the fact that gun control legislation is in the works and his words could give the anti-gun crowd another tool to use against legitimate gun ownership.

The number of angry comments on the Outdoor Life site was already in the thousands when I saw it Sunday. The anger was directed at Zumbo, but there was also some hard questions for Remington and Outdoor life as to whether they supported Zumbo's views.

By Monday morning, Remington's main web page was altered to announce the canning of Jim Zumbo. Gun enthusiasts all across the net announced their intention to buy Remington products in support of the company's actions.

Today, Outdoor life has removed all of Jim Zumbo's articles and there is a tactfully written notice of his resignation titled Outdoor Life And Jim Zumbo Part Ways.

It took Jim only three days to slide from the top of the trade to being out on the street, all because of what he had published on his blog. Ouch!

Now, before anyone hyperventilates about guns being bad, or necessary, I'd like you to consider the effect of any blogger with a following deciding that he or she would like to let it all hang out about those of their readers who don't seem to measure up in some way.

Creating imaginary differences has always been the work of petty tyrants. "Life would be so much better without those Liberals, or Conservatives, or Hippies, or old people...you fill in the rest."

Tyrants and politicians can make this game work for a while, because there are always some people who will believe that their troubles are caused by others.

For bloggers, firing up your readership about an issue can backfire badly. If you work for someone else, it doesn't MATTER that your blog is private. People will associate your words and feelings with those who employ you and it will be very bad for their business. If they are smart, they will fire you and move on.

Jim Zumbo still has his books and his website and his most loyal followers, but his credibility has taken a terrible hit in the general gun owning community.

It didn't help that his apology was seen as a defensive move and not as a sincere action. He may still redeem himself, as there plenty of people who are willing to help him rehabilitate himself as an authority, but his actions will be closely scrutinized for years to come. He will have to come up with a major amends project in order to put this behind him.

I hope he makes it. He has become a sobering object lesson for all bloggers. Don't mess with your readership!

Kimber has the final word:

You can mess with your own readership all you want, just don't mess with your boss' readership.

When you work at home, you don't get sick leave

Now, back to our regular programming...

For better or worse, working at home changes many rules in the workplace environment.

Sure, you can call in to a client and tell them you are too sick, or too contagious, to show up for a meeting, but the work still has to be done on schedule and in most cases you don't have anyone to turn over the tasks to.

It is a rare self-employed consultant who can turn to a family member and ask, "Can you flesh out this project schedule while I get a few hours of sleep?" You may be able to get a little proofreading, or a beverage of choice, but that's as far as it goes.

On the other hand, you can work away until your head fills up and your wastebasket is full of used tissues, then knock off for a few hours of sleep until you are ready to work again and nobody is going to complain that you slacking.

I have been doing this routine for the last 24 hours and while it seems arduous, it allows me to keep producing efficiently, if not consistently.

I also find that the enforced breaks make me look at the problems very carefully and I try to work smarter, rather than harder. When I don't have the stamina for a 8-hour design marathon, I try to see if I can break the task into more manageable pieces.

Most of the time, I can.

Scones!

While I was writing the earlier post, Gretchen was happily occupied in the kitchen making scones. This was her first effort and they are fantastic!

We have always enjoyed eating them at our favorite local coffee shops and she has been looking for a recipe that appealed to her for many months.

The confluence of an ice storm and the recent arrival of the March issue of Southern Living provided the perfect opportunity to try out the recipe on a willing subject.

Since I took this picture, I chomped off the end of one of these scones and they are exactly what I have wanted for years. Slightly sweet, with lots of currants and they have the perfect fresh scone texture, firm but crumbly when you bite into them.

I know that scones can be eaten when they have assumed the consistency of well-fired bricks. I have done this on a number of occasions and lived to tell the tale. I am not sure that scones even have a sell-by date, as long as you have a cuppa coffee to dip them in.

These scones, however, will not last through the day unless I am physically restrained from eating them. Oops! Somebody seems to have eaten the one I was writing about! Time to get another and make sure they are all up to snuff.

UPDATE: Reader Christine Kim requested that we share the recipe for the scones and we are happy to do so. You will note that Gretchen made a few small changes in the recipe, so you might want to try the original version also. See complete recipe after the jump:

Ice Storm 2 - the sequel

We have been experiencing snow and sleet ever since 4 am this morning. The ice accumulation is less than last time, but the temperature is near 32 and the ice continues to build on trees and flat surfaces. The driveway is covered with a clear coat of ice, so we plan to stay home and get some chores done.

We are better prepared this time with an emergency generator ready to go and it has a full tank of gas. We have 18 gallons of drinking water, plus a bathtub full of general purpose water, so I do not expect any shortages there this time.

The porch rack is full of firewood and the stove is burning brightly as I write this, so I think we are good to go for several days.

Unless we get cabin fever, we have plenty of work to do and no place we need to go. The Internet connection is on backup power, so I can use this ice storm to get some work done for clients who need new website designs.

One of the tremendous advantages of working at home is that we can work on "snow days" and declare a "holiday" on a weekday when the sun is shining.

Have a good weekend, everyone. Stay dry and inside if you can!

Keeping track of business

A few days ago I wrote about installing a Secs desktop timer program to remind me when it's time to get up from the computer and put another log on the fire. I've made some interesting discoveries since then.

I was so pleased with the results that I investigated several other products from Sinner Computing in hopes that I might keep better track of the tasks I am juggling. They have a pot load of shareware programs including more complex counters, but in the end I realized that my requirements didn't fit any of their more complex products.

My needs are quite simple:

In order to track what I am spending time on, I need highly visible task timers which allow me to switch instantly between tasks with one or two mouse clicks.

I went back to the original Secs Desktop timer and found that this tiny application does exactly what I need. The only cost for me is screen space, but my second monitor does an admirable job of displaying all of my current tasks and allows for insertion and substitution of other tasks in a few seconds.

I just fire up as many instances of Secs as I have tasks to monitor, making sure that I have distinctive colors for each task. In normal use, the timers are much smaller than what I've shown here. I expanded them so you could see clearly what I was monitoring.

In the close-up view of my task timing panel, you can see timers for the activities I perform at my desk plus a Stove Alert timer which reminds me to break off working and reload the woodstove before the fire dies down too far.

At the end of a  work period, I have a good idea of what I can do to improve my output or my mood, whichever is lagging.

By the way, these timers will run in minimized mode, but I like them to be visible so I can keep an eye on where the time is going so I can change tasks if necessary.

I am sure that some of you will come up with more imaginative schemes for tracking your production and I welcome your thoughts on the subject.

By the way, the stove timer is an unqualified success. The stove has not gone out since I started using it.

This is another item you might want to consider, a custom made card holder.

I want to thank my friend Teri Walters for creating this business card holder. I have used all sorts of card holders over the years and they all got lost in the shuffle of papers on my desks. This "Helping Hand" card holder keeps business cards right where my guests can see them and easily take one. It is weighted properly so it stays where it is put and won't tip over.

This is an original design which gives me a great deal of satisfaction. I am sure Teri would be happy to design a hand to suit your particular desk decor.

How NOT to use the Internet

I was talking with a local beverage maker today and she told me that she was in the midst of bottling last year's production.

That caught my interest, as it would make an interesting story about a recent startup that appears to be making headway.

I asked if anyone was writing about their operation and she said that they had been talking to some people, but hadn't made any decisions yet.

I asked if she would be willing to have me write an article about their operation with a few pictures of what was happening.

She said, "Not now, we are really slammed. Perhaps we could do something after the bottling is over."

Now, this is a company that spends a great deal of effort on promotion and maybe she thought I was offering to write a press release for her.

I didn't have time to explain that an independently written article on the internet is worth ten press releases and is an incredibly cost effective way of getting the word out about a company and its products.

I am sure this company advertises in Southern Living and Virginia Living to attract the attention of affluent customers with cultivated tastes. Perhaps the owner doesn't realize that an increasing number of prospects use Google and Yahoo to find products.

A mention of your company or product on the Internet stays live for years, while your ad in Southern Living is good for a few months at most. A Google search is more likely to show a mention of your company in a weblog than to show your website itself!

Weblog mentions rank higher in Google than all but the most heavily publicized websites.

If you have a product or service that is unusual or newsworthy, let your local bloggers know about it and invite them to experience it and write about it. You may be surprised at how many will take you up on your invitation.

This does not mean sending them press releases. I get those every day and they are rarely worth writing about as they are manufactured news. Bloggers write about things that interest them or provoke their ire.

Most bloggers write with passion about the topics that interest them. Readers follow certain bloggers because they write about things these readers find relevant. If you find that a blogger wants to write about you, I would suggest that you let them take a shot at it. All you need to do is to make sure they get all of the important data right, and you can do that by being prepared and having background material for them to take with them.

After all, bloggers are not reporters. They are independent publishers who will spend as much time on a story as they wish. They have no column inch restrictions and they will usually accept comments on their story after it appears.

If you feel they left something important out, you are free to make things right in the comments.

In short, if a blogger offers to write about you, take up the offer!

Still preparing for winter storms

I have upgraded my emergency power system to the point where I can activate it in about five minutes. This upgrade is a major improvement as most of the work can be done indoors where it is dry and warm and only the final stage requires me to go outside and start the generator.

Previously, it would take me an hour to set up the emergency generator and all of the extension cables required to power the refrigerator, stove blower, and other essential appliances. Furthermore, doors and windows would have to left ajar to accommodate the cables feeding power to the house.

I realize, of course, that upgrading my emergency power system may have ensured that we will experience no more neighborhood power outages in 2007. That is OK with me. I don't mind having emergency backup systems that remain unused. The peace of mind will be well worth the cost and effort.

I eventually want a hard-wired switching system that will allow us to switch from utility power to emergency power either automatically or manually. That will require major rewiring of our switch panel and the services of currently scarce electricians.

My current solution involves mating a 25 foot generator extension cable to a 4 foot dryer cable so that I could back-feed power into my house through the dryer connection - after disconnecting my house from outside power.

This was not a trivial task. I spent an hour checking connections and breaker settings with the help of neighbor Tom King, before I ventured to actually go through the procedure and switch from utility to generator power. Then I had to mark breakers and document what steps to take and in what order so that I could do it reliably the next time. I took the view that I would probably be doing it in the dark and in terrible weather with all kinds of distractions so my instructions to self on switching to emergency power had to be crystal clear and essentially foolproof.

This is not something I would suggest for the inexperienced as it can result in blowing up your generator or damaging your house if incorrectly done. The local building inspector says that a properly wired switch is the only way to accomplish transferring from utility power to generator power safely. I heartily agree with him.

As soon as we can arrange for an electrician to set up a hard-wired switchover system, we will have one installed. Meanwhile, we are prepared for whatever comes.

Before the memory of the ice storm fades...

Now that my power is back on, I am able to upload the images that capture the feeling of the recent ice storm, as it appeared in our part of Floyd County.

I could also use a little of that Global Warming right now because the temperature has remained below freezing for at least a week.

Ice collected on every surface and kept accumulating over a period of several days because the temperatures stayed well below freezing even when we had rain falling from the sky.

Unlike other ice storms I have seen, this one covered the landscape for several days. From bird feeders to entire farms, the world was captured in a crystalline mantle. Strong winds made it hazardous to venture out as there was a constant shower of ice from the swaying trees.

I took a video clip of the ice-covered trees swaying in the wind and you can hear a chorus of creaking limbs and tinkling shards falling as the overloaded trees were driven back and forth.

After the second day, there was more than ice falling. Our street was blocked several times by falling tree parts, but neighbors with chain saws made short work of the barricades.

We had a few days of roughing it without running water or electricity, but we kept our spirits up by swapping storm stories with friends and neighbors.

Our good friends Doug and Amy Thompson touched our hearts by inviting us over to use their shower after hearing that we were roughing it. I can tell you that hot water never felt so good!

After power was restored and the roar of the generator died away, Gretchen started tackling the immense pile of dirty clothes that I had created while trying to keep the generator and wood fire going. It seemed that everything I wore ended up smelling like gasoline.

While we were occupied with cleaning up after the storm, Buffy did her part by holding down the pile of folded laundry. It's a tough and demanding job, but somebody has to do it.

Embracing change rather than resisting it

I wrote an article about this topic a year ago and I want to apply what I wrote to the subject of rural development.

I live in a rural area where "development" is a subject that needs to be discussed carefully. It is a highly charged word for some and it is an unparalleled opportunity for others.

Depending on your point of view, development means putting a beautiful house on substantial acreage or cramming as many houses as possible on an acre.

Some people reading this weblog have difficulty distinguishing between the two, or possibly view any change to the landscape as being irreversibly destructive to the "way things were".

I take the viewpoint that change is an ongoing process that needs to be managed. A community or a county prospers to the extent that it uses its natural or cultural resources to support itself, generate income and protect itself from harmful influences.

Floyd used to have a manufacturing base which has departed to places with cheaper labor. Floyd has farms which are constantly evolving in order to remain viable in the face of shifting government subsidies, rising taxes and land costs, and lack of abundant labor.  On the other hand, Floyd has a growing base of talented people who are an attraction for other talented people. Chris Shackelford, at right, has created a craft school at the Jacksonville Center that encourages students and artists to expand their abilities.

Floyd has a major resource in its undeveloped land which is becoming increasingly desirable as population pressure forces upwardly mobile people to look to Southwest Virginia for places to raise their families.

People are going to move to Floyd County for the clean air, the rural and artistic environment, and the small town culture. At the same time, their arrival will slowly but surely cause changes in the county and these changes will improve or worsen conditions in the county depending on how these newcomers are treated.

These newcomers bring talent and money to the county and they are looking for the same things we were looking for when we came here; a sense of belonging, a sense of worth to the community, and a way to fit in to the community and contribute in a meaningful way.

The people in this county who are interested in improving conditions will do well to welcome the newcomers and put them to work on committees and in organizations which are making Floyd special.

Those who resist newcomers and seek to make them less important than people who have "always lived here" are missing the point. It is not how long your family has lived here, but what they have done in that time which makes them important. A vibrant and growing community, like a vibrant and growing organization, derives its power from the people who join it and contribute to it.

A growing community also provides opportunities for young people in the region so they don't have to leave town to achieve financial or artistic success.

There is much more to this topic. I plan on revisiting it several times. Feel free to add your comments.

Floyd County is back on the grid, for now...

This emergency generator is a good start, but don't get complacent!

We have been tested by Mother Nature and many of us were found wanting. This week has been a wake up call for those of us living in Floyd County.

The major lesson learned was that talking about being prepared is not enough. Having an emergency generator full of gas is not enough. These last four days without power or water drove home the point that half-measures just do not cut it when it comes to preparing for severe storms.

Four of my acquaintances had their emergency generators break down or seize up because they had not done any maintenance since the last time they used the generators. 

I was alerted by their experience and discovered that my own generator was badly in need of oil and was able to handle it before any problems occurred.

Our previous power outages were of such short duration that we didn't have time to see how unprepared we were. I had run a few extension cords into the house and these sufficed for a few hours of no utility power.

This time, we were without power or water for four days and it became really apparent that our preparations need a major upgrade.

I may not be ready for the automatic emergency power system that blogger friend Doug Thompson enjoys, but I have been galvanized into creating a system that can be manually activated in just a few minutes.

One interesting note. I am not the only Floydian to have reached this conclusion. All of the electrical supply houses in Floyd and nearby cities have been cleaned out of emergency generators and cables for these generators for days.

This afternoon in Christiansburg, I met several other people from Floyd who were still scouring suppliers for generator parts, water jugs, and emergency supplies. We swapped notes on where these could still be found.

At the gas station on the way home, half of the cars were filling spare gas cans, jugs, even kerosene cans with gas for their emergency generators. The temperature was dropping again and no one wanted to be caught in a cold, dark house if they could avoid it.

I will document the upgrade to my emergency power preparations in a later post in the hopes that it will help others avoid some of the unnecessary effort we went through.

As I write this, the emergency generators have fallen silent for the first time in four days and the inhabitants of Floyd have emerged from their houses to admire the lights in their neighbors windows.