I attended the Broadripple Art Fair with a few friends this weekend. It was a good time. I also had drinks at The Rathskellar, rode a mechanical bull, drank margaritias at La Jolla, watched the Pacer’s game with a date, and enjoyed a BBQ at Al and Clara’s.
It was a good weekend. Next weekend: the Indianapolis 500!
How much is an invitation to open a coveted Gmail account worth? The answer is $76.
Since April 22, I have been one of the fortunate few who have had access to Google’s new e-mail service called Gmail. Announced April 1, 2004, Google said Gmail would offer 1 gigabyte of e-mail storage for free.
Google further stated that only a handful of people will test the service before making it available to the rest of the public in the coming months. I became a lucky tester because I have been using Blogger for years, which is owned by Google.
A few weeks ago, I noticed within my Gmail account that I could invite two others to try out this exclusive service. After offering an account to my brother, I read this story from Wired: “My Left Arm for a Gmail Account.”
Curious to see just how much a Gmail account is worth, I posted my invitation up for sale on eBay. My offer sold right away for $76. Pretty cool.
More Peace Corps irony.
Twice this week I received requests from Peace Corps volunteers asking for help in building Peace Corps related websites (either for volunteers or the communities they are serving).
Though I’m flattered, it seems people are forgetting that I got kicked out of the Peace Corps for building websites (e.g. this very site you are reading right now).
But will I help? Most likely, I will. These sites will either assist a local community or provide greater support to Peace Corps volunteers.
After all, I joined the Peace Corps to help others with Information Technology. Sadly, I’m confined to help remotely from the comfort of my air-conditioned home instead of doing so in Guyana under the confines of a bug net.
I know that sounds like a backward thing to say, but that’s how the Peace Corps runs things in Guyana.
Today was no fun at all. I woke, came downstairs, and was greeted by a standing pool of water. Not just any water, but sewage water.
I spent most of the day trying to mop up water at a pace that was faster than it would appear. Finally, the city fixed a stopped-up sewage line and things began to drain.
Though most of the damage is confined to the downstairs guest bathroom, it’s still going to be a mess getting everything back to normal. Some of the walls have stains at their base, the floorboard appear to show some warping, and the carpet is still soaked.
Not fun. Not fun at all.
My conference in Chicago this weekend went well. Called CFEA, the College Fraternity Editors Association is really for editors of fraternal publications. I used to be editor of Lambda Chi Alpha’s publication the Cross and Crescent, but now focus solely on web content. Regardless, I wanted to go and had a great time.
In addition to having a great time, I added a few more things to my plate. I’m going to chair CFEA’s Information Technology Committee this year, which means I’m in charge of cfea.org, a site I designed nearly three years ago. I was also re-elected to the board. I’ve always enjoyed this organization, so serving a fourth year on the board will be a pleasure.
My brother was also in Chicago this weekend, but we were unable to connect. Between his crazy schedule on set for a Nicholas Cage movie and my conference schedule, it just wasn’t likely that we’d have the time. Plus, my brother kept calling my old cell phone number; so I didn’t get his messages until I returned to Indianapolis.