Ashley Richards

Reading some of the Vancouver blogs today there seems to be a little mudslinging going on over some personal squabble between two people that wound up online. Right now there seems to be only one side of the story out there, but from what it says it looks like both sides need to walk in each other shoes. But why do I bring this up?

When I left here for California in 2004, no one was really blogging. If you were, then it was like being employee #5 at Google. Of course as this blogging thing took off you’d earn more and more readership, your stock would go up and then you’d become “rich and famous” online. (At least in your topic area.) Easy to do then when there’s not much competition in what would become the blogosphere.

Fast forward to today. A lot of Vancouver bloggers are just that – bloggers about Vancouver. Maybe they talk about a particular scene, but they confine it to their city. Their topic area is fairly small. And so the number of people that know them is a lot smaller than, say, Daily Kos. Well, a few Vancouver bloggers that I’ve met seem to have an inflated sense of their place in this world. After meeting them, I’ve stopped following them or trying to talk to them. For some reason, the meeting was just as warm as if they were a movie star in a bathroom stall and I was trying to get an autograph.

They have a nice little following and attention in Vancouver. I don’t deny that takes dedication to your blog. But if anyone is honest, Vancouver is really just a big small town. Everyone knows everyone else. Everyone knows everyone else’s business. And if you’re an expert in something…most likely you’re the only one in town that’s the expert.  But they’re not the “rich and famous” of the blogosphere. They’re the popular kids of Vancouver. And well…like in any small town the popular kids can get a little bitchy.

And looking at today’s blogging gossip, I’m not surprised this is happening but I was reminded of a quote that is frequently attributed to Henry Kissinger:

“University politics are vicious precisely because the stakes are so small.”

This is a very long overdue post. I didn’t realize until last week that I haven’t posted here for nearly a year.

Well, last week I went to BookCamp Vancouver. It was good to be around people who’s lives don’t revolve around technology and social media. I felt like the overarching theme in the conversations had to do with how publishers can remain relevant when anyone can produce their own book and what do digital formats mean for copyright. Bascially, if someone had been at a newspaper conference 5 to 6 years ago you’d probably be hearing similar things about blogging.

I don’t have crystal ball. Maybe the publishing industry will go the same way as newpaper industry. Who knows. But as long as publishers are looking for ways to adapt, experiment and figure out how to take advantage of digital format – and learn from the newspaper industry – they might be okay.

It seems that Facebook has brought back the social pressure of having to acknowledge people that you barely know or haven’t spoken to in years and didn’t hang out with all that much back then. What do you do if someone that you were acquainted with 10 or more years ago tries to connect to you and you know that if you rejected them it would cause a flurry of email and IM gossip of how bitchy you are? There doesn’t seem to be any guidelines out there. An old friend and I were chatting about it this evening, how it’s all a little weird, and forces you to say you’re “friends” with people because you don’t want to be mean. But I really just want a little privacy. 

The Victorians had a name for the act of ignoring people you know. (I basically majored in Victorian literature, so that’s why I know it.) It’s the cut direct, and I’m not sure why we ever got rid of the phrase.

THE “CUT DIRECT” – For one person to look directly at another and not acknowledge the other’s bow is such a breach of civility that only an unforgivable misdemeanor can warrant the rebuke. Nor without the gravest cause may a lady “cut” a gentleman. But there are no circumstances under which a gentleman may “cut” any woman who, even by courtesy, can be called a lady. On the other hand, one must not confuse absent-mindedness, or a forgetful memory with an intentional “cut.” Anyone who is preoccupied is apt to pass others without being aware of them, and without the least want of friendly regard. Others who have bad memories forget even those by whom they were much attracted. This does not excuse the bad memory, but it explains the seeming rudeness. A “cut” is very different. It is a direct stare of blank refusal, and is not only insulting to its victim but embarrassing to every witness. Happily it is practically unknown in polite society.

4. Salutations of Courtesy. Post, Emily. 1922. Etiquette

So basically today’s equivalent of the cut direct, or cut, is not accepting a friend request, LinkedIn invite or even an IM request. Facebook does have the ability for you to add them to your “friends” list and limit what they can see. It’s not super well known since I’ve talked to a number of people this past month who didn’t even know it existed – and really wished they had before.

But for the other services out there….it’s not like I can add you to my IM list and select when only you or the group you belong to can see when I am online. Ultimately everyone becomes a victim or perpetrator of the cut direct. I don’t think the Emily Post people have any guidelines on how to deal with this. And there needs to be some little handbook on this. Anyone know of one?

You can see the guidelines here: http://tinyurl.com/6begcx

It took me 9 years to discover this? And the only reason is because I actually looked at the receipt from Urban Fare today.

I finally got my ballot in the mail today. I got to vote for President and NO on 8! Hopefully I’ll be able to get it back to San Jose by 8pm on Nov 4.

Funny thing is that they give you an “I voted” sticker. I’ll proudly wear mine around Vancouver next Tuesday.

This weekend I “soft launched” Ch.ai. It’s a tea blog. Basically I drink so much tea, find so many little tid bits related to tea, that I could fill a whole blog talking about it. And I don’t put it all here otherwise it would become rather clear just how crazy I am when it comes to tea. I don’t claim to be an expert on it. I’ll leave that to the professionals that go to Asia, India, Sri Lanka and Africa to source the tea, but I hope to entertain other tea lovers with my finds.

There are about a dozen posts over on my tea blog – stuff that I’ve been bookmarking for a while now.I’m slowly getting through it all.

So remember: Tea solves all.

Flickr Photo Download: Ra Tea

Watching McCain’s speech tonight and in the middle of the speech I hear “We believe everyone has something to contribute.” Hmmm…has Meg been giving him some tips on what to say? Meg Whitman that is. That’s eBay’s #2 core value. I should know. I wore it on my badge for nearly 4 years.  And as the speech progressed it sounded like he was building his own Republican core values list. But they didn’t seem so trusting and ideal as the eBay ones.  

Right now in Vancouver it’s incredibly hard to buy gifts for friend’s kids if you saw something you want to get at Pottery Barn Kids. There’s no Canadian website, no catalogue, and no store. So you’d have to call a store in Toronto, already know what you want and hope that they can ship it out to you. Because you can’t order from the U.S. And if I’m buying for friends in the U.S. I get dinged on the exchanged rate.

So I emailed them to ask what was up given that Restoration Hardware seems to have gotten it correct when they launched their kids line. Well it turns out they’re opening a Vancouver store in 2009.  

Thank you for your e-mail and for your feedback. I can tell you that there are plans to open a Pottery Barn Kids in the Vancouver-area in 2009. I apologize for the inconvenience that is caused by not having the catalog or Website available in Canada. I do hope you’ll be on the look out for us next year.

Yay! No more having to pay exchange rates for friends in the U.S., and I’ll be snag a fancy diaper bag to use as a laptop bag.

Yay! Sephora will be opening a store in Vancouver, but not until July 10, 2009. I had emailed them to ask because I heard some rumblings about it. And it seems like the big-brand retailers have finally realized that Vancouver is a pretty large brand-obsessed, shopping-addicted population.  So here was their response:

Good News! There is a Sephora store opening at Pacific Centre in Vancouver, BC on 7/10/2009!

It is not an exclusive event, so no hassle at the door, no lines to stand in. To get the most accurate and up-to-date information on this store opening, make sure that you are signed up for our Sephora.com email blasts.

Besides getting the latest beauty news and trends, the most up-to-date detailed information for the store opening (including date, time, and any special promotions or happenings) will be sent to you about 4 days prior.

 

I would say that until then I’ll have to settle with hopping the border and going shopping down in Washington. But that’s just way too much of a hassle. I’m not one that does regular U.S. shopping expeditions. If you go for a day trip, you’re supposed to declare what you bought and pay import tax on it. Hopefully, they’ll get their pricing right and charge the same for the Sephora products as you in the U.S. One good thing now is that if you order over $120 worth of products online they’ll ship it to you in Canada for free. At least they ship here, unlike some other companies.

Note: I do NOT work for Sephora and this is not a Sephora website. I’m just a fan of the company. So PLEASE stop contacting me asking for a job there. I’m not going to email you back and say you have the wrong site.

Since it’s been feeling like summer here in Vancouver (finally), Brendon and I have been drinking some good old-fashioned sweet tea. There’s only one company on the West Coast that I know that serves it, and it’s the restaurants at the Flying J truck stops on I-5. Since we’re nowhere near one and Vancouver thinks that sweet tea means Nestea or Snapple, I’ve been making my own. It’s one of the few things that makes me want to move to the South – super humid, buggy summers keep me away.

If you want to try making it yourself, you can try my recipe. Everyone has their own and the best way to make it is always a debate.

1. Get yourself a 4 cup Pyrex glass measuring cup.
2. Boil 5 cups of water in a tea kettle.
3. While the water is boiling, put 1 1/4 cup of sugar and a pinch of baking soda into a Pyrex measuring cup. (Baking soda helps to make the tea brew darker and less bitter.)
4. Set aside 7 round Tetley tea bags. (Others swear by Lipton, but I like the round Tetley ones.)
5. Pour the boiling water in a circular motion into the sugar and baking soda.
6. Stir the sugar until the water becomes clear and syrupy looking.
7. Add the 7 tea bags.
8. Gently stir 5 times.
9. Let it sit for 30 minutes.
10. Fill a sealable plastic 2.5 quart (2.4 litre) pitcher with ice. (This will make a super sweet tea. If you don’t want something that tastes like you’re getting cavities, try a gallon pitcher.)
11. Take the tea bags out of the Pyrex cup. DO NOT SQUEEZE THEM. Toss them in the sink and squeeze later if you don’t want all the water in the garbage or compost.  Squeezing causes the tea to be bitter.
12. Pour the tea/sugar syrup into the pitcher with ice.
13. Top it off with cold water.
14. Seal the pitcher and shake.
15. Serve right away over ice if you’re impatient or let it sit in the fridge for a half hour or more. The longer it sits the better it tastes. Always serve with ice. It is called iced tea after all.

Green tea version – Before WWII green tea was the most popular tea in the U.S., and supposedly the first sweet tea recipe used green tea. If you want to try a green tea version, try replacing the Tetley bags with jasmine tea bags. And replace the sugar with 1 cup of honey and 1/4 of sugar.

On the usage of mint – It’s up to you. Sometimes I add it at the same time as the tea bags, and remove it before pouring it into the pitcher. It can add an interesting little flavor. Don’t leave them in the pitcher - it gets gross after a while. 

Filtered or unfiltered water – It’s up to you. I’ve found that filtered water can make a clearer tea, but you miss out on any natural minerals or floride that’s good for you. Vancouver has really good water, so for me it doesn’t necessarily make much of a difference with the taste.

If you think you have a better recipe, you can add it below – or perhaps we’ll just have to face off at the Sweet Tea Challenge.