and now, a brief pause

One of our BD guys, Pooj Preena, called me tonight. He and I are tight and talk quite often, so it's not unexpected to get a call from him on Monday at 7 a.m. or Saturday at noon. I love talking to him.

This time, I ignored his call. My hands were elbow-deep in dishwater, getting ready for a weekend food foray. A few minutes later, I called him back.

He has a spare ticket for the Prince concert tonight. His wife isn't up to par, and he, Michael, and Michael's wife are headed out soon to the party.

I look over at my daughter -- all sassy, smart, and sometimes-still-clingy 12 years of her -- and for one half-second consider the sitter.

This is the girl who's endured me as I've worked every night for months. This is the girl who hints at her desire for my company by simply saying, from the other room, "Hey, a new show is on!" This is the girl who is fast becoming a young woman, the baby who threw up down my tie 11 years ago, the toddler to whom I gave a horrible, slanted hair cut with dull scissors when she was three and we were just starting out together by ourselves.

"I can't go, Pooj -- no way I can get a sitter on this short of notice."

That was true.

Equally true is that fact that there's no way I would've wanted to hire one.

Instead, she and I laughed and cuddled and had fun like it was 1999, watching bad TV re-runs.

Thanks, Poojay -- hope you guys had fun, too.

here, there, everywhere with jangl

And you thought I died.

Never.

• Jangl was today named as one of 12 "Connected Innovators" at Supernova 2007, Kevin Werbach's and Michael Arrington's huge deal in late June in SF. Classy guys. (Thanks to them for hearing out "what Jangl is now" versus "what we'll be in a few weeks." We are truly honored and looking forward to the mixer next week, too, so hit us up if you want to talk.
• Jangl was awarded as a Red Herring 100 winner last month. Again, we're pleased to be part of the crowd, and part of the legacy overall. Michael went to Monterey and it sucked I couldn't join, because I love that place.
• The Tagged and TypePad deals have been amazing for us -- numbers through the roof. Both groups have been a total pleasure to work with -- it still fascinates me to see how other internal teams operate, myself having spent so long on the agency end. But these guys were great. Kudos to Rudy and Ginger.
• And another deal of which I cannot speak yet -- but keep your ears tuned.
• And in the run-up to a pending launch, CEOs and CTOs and everyone else wanting answers, directions, guidance, background, pictures, spreadsheets, phone numbers. . .did I mention I freaking love this job? Too many interviews to count.

Now you want the grist, right?

• I used to thrive on personal connections with bloggers in particular, but I don't have the hours to do this properly anymore. Help! We've always prided ourselves on"touching" each personally, because that's the way it oughta be done. Logistics are starting to preclude that.
• One blogger in particular continues to "accidentally" violate NDAs. Cmon, folks. I'm only asking that everyone be put on fair, equal ground. I don't want to hear excuses. Play fair, or don't play at all. Cool?
• I guess, when I was agency-side, I sent some "vendor emails." I'd like to think they were constructive and concise and relevant. Tell you what: on the "in-house" side, the deluge is stunning. Even more so, the ramrod, slipshod, "no, i-have-no-clue-what-your-company-does" approach is rampant. Ninety-nine percent of vendors kill themselves with the very first contact. Delete.

One last thing: there's a FNG at Jangl (although not so new): Aaron Burcell, who comes most recently from Podshow and, before that Stata Labs (think Bloomba). One of the best and brightest, and a guy who "gets" corp comm and PR. Hallelujah. He's been nailing stuff up ever since he joined.

Train's moving fast. I'll try to keep up.

Extra Extra: Check Out the New Jangl Widget and Call Me?

Jangl's looking for folks to try our new widget, give us feedback, and talk to us about what's coming in the next few weeks.

Where can you find the new widget? Look over to the right and plop in your cell phone number, then hit "Go." Then call the number that appears.

With the stuff we have coming between now and June, I'm looking at getting people up to speed again, after weeks of being heads-down at work. If you've chatted with us before, Jangl me with the widget or drop me a note. Otherwise, trust that I'll be in touch very, very soon.

In the near-term, we'll try to use your feedback to improve the widget before we announce some new stuff next month and beyond. At the same time, we want to give you the whole story, too, because the widget makes more sense that way.

If you haven't chatted with us before, but want to, the same applies. Our doors are open 24x7.

And if you happen to be around Pulver's Spring VON in San Jose this week, Michael Cerda is presenting at the Solutions Theater (Booth 1431) Wednesday at 2:15 p.m., and again on a panel at 1 p.m. on Thursday. We hope to have some video up as early as tomorrow night. I'll update here.

Update: If you want to get your own widget, you need to go here and sign-up (don't worry, it's easy and -- for now -- free). If you simply want more info about the widget, go here.

Been Away Too Long

I knew this day was gonna come.

I knew, when I started this blog, that there were going to be times I just wanted to spill the beans about what's to come at Jangl.

And I know what you're thinking: "Of course he says that. He's a Jangl evangelist."

But seriously.

I mean it.

Today was finally a day to decompress a bit, hang with Daughter, sample a very cool NY-style pizza place right down the boulevard, and replenish the closet at the daunting Valley Fair.

But all of this came after a week of messaging, planning, watching engineering unveil some very cool new stuff, hearing MC closing new deals just a few feet from my cube, and getting down into the trenches with my new boss (yes, it's likely you've heard of him -- but more on that another time).

Lots of work to do. Lots. Despite this, I'll be better about staying in touch here.

For now, however, this past week was like the relentless click-clack-click of a roller-coaster slowly going uphill. It seems slow and easy, but it's pure effort, and all the real fun is on the other side.

Wanna come along? Subscribe. If you don't, well, then don't say I didn't warn you.

V2V: Text for Wine

Though a foodie, I'm not much of a wine conniseu. . .conno. . .I'm not much of a wino.

But when I read Ted's post about a new "wine meets phone" deal, I had to try it out, so I texted "vino 2002 gallo" to 44636. The response, courtesy of 4INFO? "2002 Gallo of Sonoma, Chardonnay Sonoma County Reserve, V2V-79 (corky, musty)." In talking with Ted, I learned that V2V-79 is not a new bird flu variant but rather a "wine score" -- not too super, in this case, which is further explained by adjectives like "corky" and "musty." Later, I texted "vino 2001 sangiovese" and received multiples options, with my friends Corky and Musty nowhere to be found.

Wouldn't it be cool if a wine-moron like me could somehow crunch a recipe into a box, click "Go," and have the recipe intelligently analyzed, with wine recommendations coming out the other side? Heck, I'd settle for easily browsing my recipe collection from my phone -- a virtual shopping list for those moments when inspiration hits only after I've arrived at the produce section.

What's cool is that Jangl will, over time, be doing a lot of very nifty SMS functions that will essentially allow you to really personalize your phone experience. So say tuned for that.

In the meantime, text for wine. It's the coolest little "wine tool" since. . .um. . .me.

Love is in the Air. . .In 36 Days

Say what you want about Valentine's Day, but Spring is really the season of love, is it not? So what the hell -- we're going to have some fun with this before Spring comes along.

Let me explain.

One of the cool things that Jangl does is to let two people talk on the phone without ever giving out their private phone number. That is, your real phone, not some head-set or other gizmo. Right now, it's free, and works on any U.S. phone.

This comes in handy in lots of different ways -- if you're buying or selling something, if you're posting your resume online, if you blog or keep a social networking profile and want other people to connect to you via your phone instead of IM or endless emails.

But the most obvious use is dating, whether using Match.com or out clubbing. That's why Match actually uses Jangl to let its subscribers connect via phone, securely (though its free and easy to get Jangl directly without being a Match member).

Why is this important? If you're emailing or chatting online, you want a secondary step -- before the in-person meeting -- that lets you better judge your potential mate. If you're out and want to stay in touch with a new acquaintance, it's probably better to give them your Jangl ID instead of a phone, simply to avoid being phalked (phone + stalked).

So. . .in honor of the unattached Valentine's Day haters still seeking that special someone, we're gonna throw a little party.

I need your best tips on how to have a good phone conversation.

You see, I was never really good at it. Most conversations of my youth went like this:

Me: "Hi."

Her: "Hi."

Me: "So. What are you doing?"

Her: "Not much. What are you doing?"

That won't work here. This is, in fact, largely responsible for my still being single.

The whole point of being able to talk without giving your real number is that you can be yourself. And being yourself involves being a good conversationalist, so people can see the real you -- and so you can see the real "them."

Some tips:

Pair up with a friend -- opposite sex or same sex -- and think this through. Then, have one of you submit a comment as a team.

Be original. A Google search turns up a lot of advice skewed toward players, a little that's more-or-less neutral, and some that is downright retro and office-oriented. If you're going to repurpose something, then give credit and put your own, personal spin on it.

Think about you on the phone, with a new "somebody." How would you get over a little awkwardness? How would you share yourself, and what would you want to hear from the other person?

Want to try it first? Look over in my sidebar for the "Jangl Me" widget. Click it. Call me. I'll never get your real number, and you'll never get mine (an even better widget is coming soon).
If you're really shy, email me with your tip(s) here.

The top 10 tips will be posted here on March 11 -- just in time for Spring. You may win something very cool. Maybe you'll just get really smart about phone conversations. We'll see.

So go tell someone and send me your ideas already!

Markus, Mark and Jangl @ Community Next

One more quick Community Next snapshot, very specific to Jangl, was Plentyoffish founder Markus Frind hanging out all morning with dating site analyst Mark Brooks, who also represents several vendors, including Vumber (note claims made in that post, and my comments following).

Ironically, Mark also has a nice interview with Match.com CEO Jim Safka, in which Safka talks about how popular the matchTalk service [powered by Jangl] has been.

Today, there are some interesting thoughts going on over at Markus' blog about social networking vs. dating sites.

But. . .based on Saturday alone. . .how long until Plentyoffish users have to use Vumber?

C'mon, Markus (or any Plentyoffish customer). Jangl us. My widget is over in the sidebar.

Wink.

My Thoughts on Community Next

I spent the day at Community Next at Stanford on a grey, drizzly Saturday. Jangl had sponsored, and thus had a table there and a five minute presentation by Michael.

Woke at 6 a.m. and roused my daughter. She was okay with spending the day at her cousin's house, but not thrilled with the early wake-up. Just like Dad.

Hug and smooch and we said our goodbyes. She threw her arm around my neck and hugged me -- that was nice.

Our table was pretty jammed up all day -- that's a good thing, of course. A long, fluoro-lit hallway, with offshoots to the main auditorium and the "masticating room," deemed such by the young and insanely optomistic CN organizers. The room was loaded with bagels and coffee and other beverages of all sorts. Noah and his massive crew wore bright orange shirts and were everywhere. Everywhere. At one point, I went to the restroom and half-expected an orange shirt to be standing there saying, "Was that okay? Do you feel better?" Amazing hosts in all the right ways.

Highlights:

Threadless: Jeffrey and Jake talking about their Four Commandments. (Your Project is Not Good Enough)

Noah's morning routine, waking everyone up. "I had a girlfriend in high school -- she cheated on me several times. . .she was apparently VERY interested in community/people."

Josh and Aaron, of Spear Creative Group and Brandplay, respectively. Bordered on too-cute sometimes, but ended up being damned nice. Congrats and thank you.

Mark Jacobstein of loopt -- nice job, nice app. Seems like a killer fit for Jangl, too.

Top thing? Meeting tons of Great People (communitizing?). Folks like AOL, ActiveVibe, Meetro, WSJ, grad students doing amazing things, and many more. Thanks to Jeremy for all of the intros to the people I'm too stupid to know already.

Lowlights:

Honestly? Tara Hunt was nearly incoherent. Several walked out, including me. I heard from at least 10 people later that day that she was, umm. Whatever. I don't like people who overpromote when they can't deliver -- and she's apparently talking a lot these days. But, Gross Domestic Product in her presentation? Right. I'm sure to incite flames here, since she's the speaker du jour.

Catered lunch by Hukilau was great, but the line was wayyyy long. I ditched it only to find that Tresidder (student cafeteria) was already overloaded with a bunch of high school debate team members queued up at two Subways. Texted my daughter, who'd been with a sitter all day -- "You okay? I love ya." No response. Returned to Community Next buffet in the drizzle -- cold Hawaiian bbq -- yum.

A rainy, gloomy day with tons of life exploding inside Annenberg Auditorium. The vibe was extraordinarily positive, friendly, and collaborative. You get the sense that many of these folks are thinking Big Thoughts, and that a few will succeed spectacularly.

Drove home in the rain and dusk, missing my daughter but utterly fired up about what I'd witnessed today. Fielded about five phone calls on the way home. Made about eight.

And then decompressed with my girl over dinner. I'd picked her up and she was craving sushi. As I'd neglected her all day, I granted her wish, of course. We were watching little boats go round and round. The Community Next cocktail hour was in progress, 20 miles north, but Jangl had it covered, and the day was almost done.

"Did your day go okay?" she asked, grabbing a shrimp tempura.

"It did, sweetie. Thank you for asking."

"Did you talk in front of a bunch of people again?"

She equates this with "stardom," of course. I'm obviously no star -- my job is to do that for others.

"I talked to a ton of great people, but no, not in front of a crowd. I just did my thing. It was a good day. But tell me more about yours. . ."

She sighed a little. Maybe it was just my paranoia that heard it. Is Dad boring?

She threw her arm around my neck and smooched my cheek.

And then she told me more about her day.

Just like I've told you about mine.

Thanks, Noah and team and everyone.

Former MobileCrunch Writer Oliver Starr -- New Blog?

Andy and Christine are two big bloggers who covered the fact that Oliver Starr -- the mobile guru formerly of Michael Arrington's Crunch properties over at MobileCrunch -- is joining Chris Shipley's Guidewire Group.

So with way too much time on my hands, I did some digging. If you check out a WHOIS filed for mobilestarr (dot) com, you see Oliver himself, filed just a few days ago.

I haven't had a chance yet to confirm this with Oliver directly, but it certainly appears that he is ready to spread his wings again -- and not just with Guidewire.

Another source confirms he's staying at Foldera, too.

Kudos to Oliver. Stay tuned.

Q&A: Noah Kagan and Community Next

Since joining Jangl in July, I've had the good fortune to meet a lot of very smart and very kind folks, and I hope to write about as many as possible in the coming months. But this time around, the spotlight is on Noah Kagan, who is not only very smart and kind, but uber-creative, tireless, funny, optomistic and inspiring, as well.

Noah formerly worked at Facebook and Intel in product management and marketing roles, and currently consults with online personal finance site MyMint. His blog is rife with juicy, random marketing ideas and thoughts on having meaningful conversations, but also serves as a shared pulpit for those who want to get and give advice. This blog truly does have a community feel, and it is a helluva fun read. (Noah also likes burritos, which means he needs to see my post below, even though he's a good ol' South Bay native like yours truly.)

But first and foremost these days, Noah is spearheading one of Silicon Valley's most-anticipated events, the Community Next gathering in Palo Alto this Friday and Saturday. When Jangl caught wind of the event, it was an utter no-brainer that we were there, so we jumped onboard as a sponsor immediately. Michael will be joining the VIP dinner at Il Fornaio on Friday night, and taking the stage at the event on Saturday shortly after lunch (tent.). We're fortunate to be in good company, with folks like Guy Kawasaki, Tara Hunt, and Markus Frind, and companies like Offermatica, Slide, VideoEgg, and Pat and team's Roam4Free.

But Community Next wouldn't be happening without Noah Kagan, and he was kind enough to talk with us a little bit despite his crazed schedule.

TJ: You must be slammed right now. What's your typical day/night been like in the last few weeks? (Stream of consciousness permitted!)

NK: I wake up around 10 a.m. Go to work at MyMint. They know I am doing the conference and are extremely supportive so during the day I make calls (to you), coordinate things and get the work I promised them I would do. Leave the office around 8 - 9 p.m. and go to the gym for my marathon training (Mar 4, Napa Valley Marathon). Leave around 11 p.m. and then go home and work on the conference until 3:30 - 5 a.m. It is early at 2:15 a.m. today but won't sleep until later. :)

TJ: You once wrote that Facebook was one of the top 9 companies it was cool to say you worked for. Is it cooler now to say you used to work for them?

NK: I think it always cool to say you work(ed) at Facebook. They are more respected now which is nice for me. I think to work there might be different now with so many people and more policies to follow.

TJ: At VentureBeat last year, you advised community "stewards" to think about two things. 1) Are you involving or considering your community members when you move forward with your business and 2) Are you making an effort to strengthen, empower and/or possibly create your community?" Do you have any examples of folks who are doing the best jobs in those two areas right now?

NK: Wow. Deep stuff. I wouldn't say I am a community expert and anyone who does I would question. I think a lot about community is authenticity and just knowing your personal and communal needs. I think Meebo has done a great job. Ted (Rheingold) from Dogster (ed: also a Community Next sponsor) is great at keeping people updated, listening to his user and acting on it. I don't think enough sites empower their audience. This is giving them tools to promote, the right tools for their needs (running log for a running community, measurements for a clothing community, etc.). It is late so my answers could be incomprehensible but I would stick to what I said.

TJ: Community Next succeeds beyond your wildest dreams -- what exactly does that look like?

NK: What it looks like now! It has really blown me away at this point, the waiting list for tickets, sponsor involvement and everyone chipping in. My ultimate goal is that everyone has fun and we have a high percentage of attendees/sponsors who want to come back next year.

TJ: Any tricks up your sleeve after Community Next? WNFN (What's next for Noah?)

NK: Just working on MyMint and seeing if me and the crew are going to plan another shindig. I am going to keep training for my marathon March 4 and rest for a bit after that. And by resting I mean a day or two. :)

Nice job, Noah Kagan and team. Looking forward to Saturday!

Weekend Food: Bolognese. . .er, Sugo. . .er, Tomato and Meat Sauce

If you're not interested in cooking or food, you should skip this post.

I'm a total junkie when it comes to cooking and food. That doesn't mean I'm any good at the former, though I'm pretty decent at the latter. In particular, I'm a huge fan of Italian food -- this despite the fact that I've never been to Italy.

But over the past ten years, as my interest in cooking grew, I cooked more, acquired more hardware in the form of pots and pans and useless gadgets, more software in the form of innumerable bookmarks and cookbooks, and several more burns and cuts than is normal for any human being except one.

And I've developed a peculiar (for me) left-brain way of doing things.

After reading and viewing and researching a recipe, I make what seems to me an agreed-upon "classic" version. I write this up in a Word document and deem it 1.0. And I take serious notes after that, create a new, 2.0 version, and try that. And the note-taking and testing repeats.

Yes. It's weird. I understand that. It's only been exacerbated by working at Jangl.

So I'm well-aware that the "bolognese sauce" I'm making tonight is inauthentic. A "real" bolognese features very little tomato -- in fact, in final form, it usually appears less as a "sauce" and more like a finely-chopped or ground meat bound together by a flavorful glaze, with only the smallest blush of tomato-red. It also generally shuns garlic and includes pancetta.

But there a million variations. Some might be deemed authentic, and others not. Probably only the Bolognese know best. And I haven't met them yet.

Me? I'm on variation 6.0 (below), preparing for tomorrow's Super Bowl. I like tomatoes and garlic, so they're plentiful here. This is an amalgam of Marcella Hazan, Lynne Rossetto Kasper, Mario Batali (gasp), and folks like Elise at SimplyRecipes and Cook's Illustrated (sub required for the recipe).

Yes, it takes a long time, and it kills. The veal adds everything and, yes, I feel guilty. Best over al dente campanelle, because those little chewy tubas collect and hold the sauce perfectly. I like it with a grating of pecorino romano, but taste it first to see if it's for you -- it's pretty heady stuff.

The pot pictured above is my weapon of choice -- a 12 quart, stainless steel, thick-bottomed target. You could get away with a 7-quart pot. I just like a lot of room.

1/4 cup olive oil

1/3 cup butter

2 yellow onions, minced

3 carrots, coarsely grated
3 stalks celery, minced

1 1/2 tbl. fresh thyme leaves, minced
20 ounces ground sirloin

14 ounces ground pork

14 ounces ground veal

1 cup 2 percent milk
1/2 cup heavy cream

1 tsp. kosher salt

1 tsp. ground black pepper
2 (28-ounce) cans San Marzano crushed tomatoes, not drained

1 2/3 cups Sangiovese

6 garlic cloves, minced

1 bay leaf, torn
parmigiano reggiano rind (optional)

white sugar
kosher salt
beef broth
1/3 cup Italian parsley, chopped

Heat the butter and oil in a large, heavy pot to medium heat. Add onion, carrots, celery and thyme, and cook for about 15 minutes. Boost the heat to medium-high, add the meat in chunks and break up/stir occasionally, cooking until grey. Lower the heat to medium, add the milk and cream and simmer, stirring fairly frequently, for about 30 minutes.

Add the salt, pepper, tomatoes, wine, garlic, bay leaf and parm rind (optional). Bring to a gentle boil, and then reduce heat to simmer or low and cook uncovered about 5 hours. Stir about every half hour.

At about the two hour mark, use a ladle to carefully skim off fat and discard it.

At the 5 hour mark, add the sugar and salt to taste. If too thin, boost heat, stirring frequently, until at desired consistency. If too thick, add beef broth in small amounts, cooking until at desired thickeness. Just before finishing, add parsley, stir well, and serve or store.

Your basic soffrito -- onions, celery and carrots (grated) -- with thyme. When the oil and butter are nice and hot, add this.

Simmer those babies for about 15 minutes over medium heat.

After you've browned the meat, add the milk and cream. Once it mostly evaporates, it should look like this.

People Happen: Shel Israel Meets with Jangl

Once we were all jammed into the Jangl conference room for our talk with Shel, it was only right to do introductions. Shel asked each person to discuss whether or not they already blogged and, if not, if and why they might try it in the future. A pretty benign question, right?

A few were there as an academic exercise. They wanted to hear what Shel and others had to say. Fair enough.

Another revealed a passionate interest in World Cup soccer. Apparently, he moderates communities of like-minded fans -- communities that number in the hundreds, if not thousands. Wow. Who knew? Perhaps he'll use blogging to cultivate that community, he said.

One of our finest engineers -- a brilliant, incisive guy who fortunately has become, to me, a friend -- locked in with Shel. As is typical when I speak with this engineer, he was able to strip away blogging and communities to their core. . .he talked in almost ontological terms, discussing communities and connections like they were organisms (they are, I'm learning). Soon my head began to hurt, as I struggled to keep up. This particular friend of mine is a guy who breezes between philosophy, mathematics, sociology, and music like a skilled driver selecting the appropriate gear. Shel seemed to get it totally. I was a little lost -- but awed nonetheless.

Another dodged the question completely, but lasered right in: which U.S. political party has best used blogging to its advantage? For the few of us who are aware of the political leanings present in that room, it was a stunning -- almost provocative -- question. Both Shel and the questioner had viewpoints to espouse and defend, and they did, in a crisp exchange that had everyone leaning forward, listening, listening.

The team here gathers everyday, in varying groups both larger and small, to talk about work, Jangl, the market, the service. We gather over lunch for usually light and random discussions. But what I learned yet again that day was interesting: that when you stick a bunch of smart people into a room and raise a wholly-new and unexplored topic, there's no telling what you'll learn.

It was like holding old, familiar gems up against a light and an entirely different angle, and seeing them for the first time. And as saccharin as that sounds, that's exactly how it felt. Fucking amazing.

The one person who struck me most deeply? A young woman who matter-of-factly put her hands on her knees, looked down for a moment, and said in a soft voice, "I don't have anything to say. I work. I come home and raise my daughter. And that's it. I don't know what I'd say."

Of course she has something to say.

Doesn't she?

Shel Israel and Jangl on Blogging

Since mid-fall, Shel Israel and Jangl have been talking blogging, thanks to Pat Phelan, who made the introduction late last summer. Shel, as most of the blogosphere already knows, is a prolific, insightful blogger and co-author with Robert Scoble of one of the pre-eminent books on business blogging, Naked Conversations.

The initial idea of sitting with Shel was to take Michael's blog to the next level, though we all knew that I was going to have to get off my ass, too. So Shel gave Michael a ton of good tips and I listened intently. Michael took the tips to heart and made it happen on his blog, and all the while, Shel provided him great feedback, sometimes in meetings, sometimes via late-night email on which I was sometimes copied.

I listened intently.

It wasn't long before Shel swept his gaze my way. I can't remember exactly, but I'll be damned if he wasn't peering over his glasses in utter paternal disapproval.

"What about you?" he asked.

I -- ahem -- listened intently. Beyond that, I'll spare you the details, and spare myself the reliving of a much-deserved ass-kicking.

But the ultimate goal of Jangl and Shel was (and is) to share with everyone at Jangl the power and promise of blogging, to expose a whole variety of folks to how they might express and share themselves and join a much bigger conversation.

So a few minutes after my ass-kicking, I was prepping Shel for what was to follow: a pre-arranged, open discussion between Shel and anyone at Jangl who wanted to talk blogs.

"How many are going to be there?" he asked.

I'd received 7 replies via email.

"Somewhere between 5 and 8," I said.

Fourteen showed up. What a fool am I.

So we spent several minutes slowly and awkwardly squeezing chair after chair into the suddenly-small room. The edges of the table were occupied, so others were pushed to the fringes, swiveling in the corners. Others perched atop a table in the corner. The fire marshal would've objected.

And finally, there we all sat, beancounters, marketers, engineers, administrators, execs. The fluorescents buzzed dimly. The room temperature was already soaring. I had my usual brief terror that the meeting would be stilted and horrible: who knew what would happen?

Wow.

People happened.

More next time.

Burritos in S.F. -- and Media Guerrilla's, Too

We have a lot of talented cooks and devoted foodies at Jangl, and a few of us find ourselves over in San Francisco quite a bit. So sharing "my" secret guide to top burritos in the City by the Bay makes some sense here.


Truth is, when I think of burritos, I think of Mike Manuel (aka Media Guerrilla), my colleague of many years when I was at Voce Communications. I was lucky enough to spend many hours locked in a room with Mike, dreaming up new plans and ideas. In fact, I still remember the night -- both of us on Yahoo! Messenger -- when Mike IMd me something.

"I think I'm going to start a blog."

If you've met Mike online, you know he's smart. If you've met him in person, you know he's like meth disguised as valium, and a genuinely nice guy. Unbeknownst to most, he also harbors a secret burrito recipe that alledges involves a "secret frying step." The burrito is about as big as a linebacker's forearm and exquisitely delicious.

But the best thing is, I've met few whose brains and hearts I admire more than Mike's.

So here's to the Jangl foodies, to Mike Manuel, and to Charles Hodgkins, the S.F. burrito blogger.

Jangl Condom Video, Take One

There has been some internal discussion about characterizing Jangl as a condom for your phone. Truth is, Jangl isn't just about privacy and protection, although that's a big part of it.

There's been even more discussion about whether or not we should show it and, more to the point, where we should show it.

My team won. :) And in fact, I've been scooped by my boss and by Pat Phelan, as well.

But the question is: does this offend? What's your reaction?