With BarCampBoston3 coming up this weekend, I thought it would be a good time to do a little introductory post for anyone who doesn’t know me.
I’m Justin. I graduated from the University of Maine in 2005 with a major in new media and minors in computer science and psychology. I’m currently employed at Sephone Internet Solutions, a Web design and development company in downtown Bangor, Maine.
One of my weaknesses is that I’ve always been interested in too many things. In addition to Web development, I spend quite a bit of time doing nature and event photography around Maine (as seen on Flickr or Pine Tree Photography, my gallery site). There’s also a lot of evidence around the Web of small projects I’ve started and all-but-abandoned due to my struggle with Application-ADD.
I love having good conversations. I love people who are passionate about what they do and people who try to make the world better. I have a wide variety of focus topics, but a few always rise to the top:
Uses of today’s emerging technologies in tomorrow’s mainstream
Organization of complex data in understandable ways
Development and applications of creativity
Want to get a little better feel for who I am? Check out my Twitterstream or Collage, my aggregated collection of posts from around the Web. You can also always get in touch with me by e-mailing mail (at) justinrussell [dot] com. If you see me, feel free to say hi!
Y’know, I was 3/4 done a post about politics and then I decided to scrap it. It just didn’t sound right. This is my second try.
I don’t enjoy talking about politics in the course of normal discussion. The simple reason is because people are often so closed-minded when it comes to debatable issues that they very seldom open their minds enough to risk a change of opinion.
As I see it, there are just too many facets of government to be able to know everything about everything. I’ve developed a set of beliefs based on my past experience, but I like to think that I’m open enough to able to change my opinion if a better set of beliefs is presented to me.
Abortion is the perfect example for me. I’m pro-choice. Laura, one of my best friends, is most definitely not. For the past couple of years, we’ve had an ongoing e-mail conversation covering just about every detail of the topic: what we believe, why we believe it, what we believe should be done. After really diving into the discussion, I realized that although our views of the subject appear to differ quite a bit at the surface, there are really only one or two differences in our beliefs… the most notable of which being the point at which life actually begins.
In the end I believe real progress on political issues will only be achieved with a through, heartfelt conversation over the differences people have on any given topic. There are a lot of smart people in the world, and not all of them share the same views. In other words, there’s a very good chance that there are some very good reasons why people disagree with you on any given topic. Shouldn’t we all invest a little time to hear why others feel the way they do?
In 2004 I thought of an idea for a site that would act as sort of a political MySpace… a place where candidates for any race could sign up for a page, list their thoughts on issues, and allow people to find the best candidate. Facebook has done something like it, but I had wanted to open it up to anyone from presidential candidates to local sheriffs or school board members. I was quite honestly tired of not knowing what any of the local candidates on the ballot really believed. In rethinking my idea, I think I’d also want to open up a sort of issues garden: a place where people could go to thoughtfully supply the reasoning for their personal beliefs without attacks on the other side of the issue.
Obama said something that resonated with me during his little overflow rally this afternoon. It’s actually the first line in this video:
For those of you on dialup:
I will listen to you even when we disagree. We’re not going to agree all the time.
There needs to be less talking and more listening in politics. Maybe that’s what would get me interested in it again.
I don’t want to be just another person spouting off my political thoughts until November. Instead, I want to start a little mini-project to cause you to rethink some of the beliefs you may have. I’ll occasionally write a blog or a Twitter post marked “Politics Unusual” (and they’ll be in Collage, of course); these will be things that I believe will either strengthen your beliefs or cause you to reconsider them. If you have any thoughts for me, let me know.
I’ll admit it: I was planning to let my subscription of Wired run out.
This month’s Wired cover story features Sarah Silverman helping readers understand why so many parts of the world suck. I’m always impressed by their stories; they’re topical, fun, and really comprehensive. This month’s issue also includes the paper version of the iPhone story, so I thought I’d flip through and see which pictures they decided to use and how they decided to lay the story out. (I’m a bit of a page layout geek, too.)
Not surprisingly, I was interrupted on my way to the story by a stupid pack of magazine subscription cards stuffed annoyingly into the middle of a story. On the facing page I noticed Sarah out of the corner of my eye. I looked down, and she was surrounded on a couch by a plethora of the very same Wired subscription cards I now held in my hands. I cracked a smile, and I couldn’t help but shake my head and whisper to myself, “There’s no way.” I read the segment of the “Why things suck” story on the page underneath the cards:
“You know all the subscription cards cluttering up this issue of Wired? Well, um… sorry … The worst part about ‘em? They cover up some really good stories.”
I think my jaw dropped at that point. I’m not an expert on magazine design, but they either had to choose that page for the placement of the cards or lay out the issue so that the story would appear at that spot. They addressed an annoyance about the medium and had some fun with it.
I wanted to cancel Wired because each issue takes me about two hours to read and I have a pile of about twenty unread magazines collecting in my bedroom. I literally enjoy the magazine too much. Needless to say, the pile will continue to grow thanks in large part to that little stunt they pulled this month.
The question I’m asked most often is why I’m still in Maine. The answer to this question is a lot more complicated than you might think.
First you have to understand why I still do Web development. Although I have some pretty strong complaints and annoyances with this line of work, the fact is that I like to help people. Above all else, I like to help people. I like helping people understand this new world. I like seeing their face when they say, “You can actually do that?” I tell stories to try to make people understand what makes me excited about it all. And while Web development isn’t the closest match to my real technology interest, it’s a fairly secure way to have some sort of anchor in this world that I adore (and it’s something that I’d like to believe I’m fairly good at). I also like it because it’s a fairly reliable 9-5 job (although that sometimes doesn’t happen). The set schedule allows me to spend my non-work time exploring this space even further, trying new things, and being creative in ways that I just can’t while I’m doing business sites.
So why do I do it in Maine?
I am within a two-hour drive of what I believe to be the best national park in the country, a great city, and one of the best mountains in the East (and within three of one of the coolest areas in the world). We have some of the best people in the world here. We’re independent, we’re opinionated, and we do things our own way. We have snow, we have heat, we have rain, and we have thunder. It’s laid back. I honestly believe there’s no other place in the world that can match the place I am right now.
What happens if you combine the two? I have the chance to help the businesses I’ve grown up watching, visiting, and paying. It’s a way of saying thanks, and it’s a way to let other people know about the businesses that I love.
My final point is this: I do not do what I do where I do it for the money. It’s true that I could be making a lot more dough in the middle of a city, or if I tweaked my job a bit to become more specialized. Instead, I do it so that I can be proud of the work that I do. I do it so that I can enjoy the work that I do. The combination of those two serve as the barometer of my happiness; if I am enjoying work and am proud of it, I’m happy, but if either of those two fade, so does my happiness.
We have a lot of traditions in my family, and I enjoy them all: holiday baking, whale watching in the summer, apple picking in the fall, a hike up Mount Battie in Camden in the spring. We’ve done them for more years than I can remember.
Two years ago I started another tradition: a Christmas Eve trip to South Paris, Maine. I’ve spent the last two Christmas Eves with my friend Melody. We usually grab a bite to eat and catch up on what’s happening in our lives. We also visit the elk farm in West Paris.
The elk at the farm are amazing. They’re beautiful animals, and they’re used to being fed grains by people. They walk right up to the fence and will lick the grain out of your hand if you so choose; you can also throw it into a feeding trough. They seem to like being patted, and they’re lots of fun overall.
The other highlight of the trip is the drive back home. I stay in South Paris until around five, and then I make the three-hour drive back through Rumford, Farmington, and Skowhegan, stopping at the Irving station in Farmington for a cup of hot chocolate and admiring the Route 2 Christmas decorations along the way. On the radio for the trip is WHOM’s “Home for the Holidays.” The leisurely drive on Christmas Eve with Christmas music in my ear makes me smile for the whole trip home.
On Monday I’ll continue my South Paris elk trip tradition. It’s one of the few new traditions I’ve started recently, and it really makes me realize what’s so special about doing the same things year after year: it evokes emotion. The drive back is a quintessential Christmas season experience for me.
Merry Christmas to you all. No matter what you practice, enjoy the season.
This is the letter I wrote CBS after I read and watched the piece:
I’ll be bluntly honest: I was offended by your 60 Minutes “Millienials” piece. As a 24-year-old Web developer, I find it outrageous that you stereotyped a whole generation based largely on the accounts of two twenty-somethings who make a living coaching its least productive workers.
Why, in a piece covering 12- to 27-year-olds, were a large majority of the interviewees not contained within that age range? Why was all the video footage of our generation illustrating the carefree, priority-lacking members of our generation instead of showing some of us who are passionate about the work that we do or individuals who have already had great success starting their own businesses and companies?
While watching the piece, I couldn’t help but think of those old sitcoms with a grandfather whose only line in the show was “kids these days” or “get off my lawn, you scoundrels.” I can only imagine what older generations would have said as the Baby Boomers and Gen-Xers entered the workforce for the first time. I imagine they lacked the faith in you that you obviously lack in our generation.
There’s no question why the people of our generation don’t watch much television - especially shows like 60 Minutes. Your “Millenials” piece makes it tragically clear that these kinds of shows are not for us. These kinds of shows can’t stand us.
A pair of questions for everyone who has interacted with me in any way over an extended period of time:
Out of all your interactions with me, when was I the most passionate about something (and what was it)? What would you say I’m the most passionate about in general?
I’d really appreciate a response via any means (comment, e-mail, Facebook message, 206-350-HI-JR, etc. etc.).
By far my favorite photo project of 2006 was a little effort I coined 30holidays. The idea is quite simple: take one holiday or winter-related photo each day from November 26 through December 25, then upload the photos to Flickr. After the holidays passed, I had been a part of a strange coincidence, documented my holiday season, and just had a better appreciation of how we celebrate such a wonderful time of the year. I loved it.
As hard as it is to believe, November 26 is just over two weeks away. Starting that Monday, I will once again be bringing along my cameras everywhere I go to capture a single photo each day until Christmas. (This year, I hopefully won’t miss a day like I did on December 21, 2006.)
Here’s the thing: I don’t want to do this alone. If you like photography or if you just like the holiday season, please try this out, too. It’s a lot of fun. It’s as simple as registering for a free Flickr account, taking photos, and then uploading them to the site.
When you let me loose in a city like Boston, strange things will happen.
On Saturday, Kelley and Ian took me to a fantastic restaurant called FiRE + iCE. This place was about the closest thing to a new media grill as one could get; you fill a bowl full of raw meat, pasta, veggies, rice, or whatever else you’d like, fill a smaller bowl with any of about a dozen sauces, and take it to a grill at the center of the restaurant. The cooks grill the contents of the large bowl, throw on the sauce, and you have a customized meal. It’s a next-generation buffet. It never gets boring. And man, was it tasty. I’ll definitely be going back.
On Saturday night, I realized that I could spend Sunday doing more than just PodCamp in the big city. I e-mailed a few of my friends in the greater Boston area, and my good friend Laura called to invite me out to her church the next morning.
For many people, church on a Sunday morning wouldn’t be a big deal. For me, though, it was quite the change of pace; I hadn’t been to a Sunday service in about a decade. (I’m not really that much of an organized religion guy, and I religion is one of the topics I consciously don’t talk much about on this blog.)
So to the complete disbelief of anyone who knows me well, I spent Sunday morning at Vineyard in Cambridge. Like FiRE + iCE, it was a type of establishment I could never imagine taking hold in Bangor; it was the first church service I’d ever attended with plain-clothes pastors and references to YouTube and the Red Sox (it is Boston, after all). I told Laura after the service that I found it to be refreshing, and I was very glad I attended. The church did a wonderful job of delivering a message while leaving the sermon open to some interpretation; unlike some other congregations, it really seemed as though Vineyard was trying consciously to be open to a lot of people. The fact that the sermon included video clips and contemporary music definitely appealed to the new media part of me.
I’m not doing the church justice with my brief explanation, but I wanted to mention both it and the restaurant due to the differences they both showed from traditional institutions of their types. Boston definitely seems like a place that appeals to a younger, more creative population.
With BarCampBoston3 coming up this weekend, I thought it would be a good time to do a little introductory post for anyone who doesn’t know me.
I’ll admit it: I was planning to let my subscription of 
