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It’s been a week, getting back into the swing of things.  At work we kicked off a new project for a kick ass client (Queen Bee Creations) and dropped a frustrating project (with a full refund).  We have a handful of potential clients in the incubator, and we’re working on staying in touch with everyone else (hooray for Facebook and LinkedIn).  I synced up with the two startups I’m also working with, both of which have big hairy goals, and both of which should be releasing their first public sites in the next few months.   Nova and I are prepping a joint webinar for her communication consulting biz, and we’re gathering ideas and materials for future presentations down the road.

So, I think my schedule is full right now — comfortably full, not crazy full, and that’s great.  And there’s no way I can handle all of it without the right partner.

One of the things Nova and I have worked out over the last few months is our roles in our business.  She’s very good at understanding goals and working through them, keeping in touch with clients, holding people to their word, and managing little problems before they get out of hand.  I enjoy meeting new people, getting excited about their ideas, and turning big piles of goals into workable specifications.  It turns out we compliment each other in our roles, and since we’ve embraced them, we’ve been getting a lot more done.

Anyhow.  It’s good to be back in Portland.

Happy weekend!

I don't have too much time to write, but it's been a very good week. The third term of school ended last Friday, and my wonderful girlfriend flew in from the States on Saturday. It's good to see her — six months of separation wasn't particularly good for my sanity, and it's been a whole lot of fun showing her around Christchurch. In the process I've discovered some nice restaurants I think I'll be frequenting from now on. Anyhow, we've been having a great time, and we're quite excited about The Big Move, when she comes down to join me for the entire year.It's been a long time since I've taken any pictures. Part of it is laziness on my part, and part of it is the distinct lack of my studio equipment. Fortunately, the equipment part of the equation arrived today. Well, half of it, at least. Light stands, soft boxes, and umbrellas are great … but pretty worthless without the flash heads. Hopefully those will be arriving tomorrow.

I've been thinking about turning the server I run into a real business, although I'm slightly hesitant to take on the responsibility of clients who aren't close friends of mine. Still, it's not a bad idea. I can administer the machines from anywhere in the world, and I certainly could use another source of income … anyhow, if you're interested in helping set up a non-profit hosting service, drop me a line.

I had an interesting discussion about violence tonight. What is violence? How do we precieve violence? It's an interesting question, especially as someone who's despises violence, but eagerly plays paintball, and loves studying jiu-jitsu.

Jiu-jitsu was probably the hardest to reconcile with my belief in non-violence. It's been on my mind for a few weeks now, particularly after the session where I ended up with a swollen eye and severe nausea from being dazed and choked. It was a pretty direct example of the point of jiu-jitsu, which has been developed over thousands of years as a brutally effective way to inflict pain, disable, and kill people — and only people.

So how the heck can I study it as a pacifist, being conscious of what it is? What does pacifism actually mean to me? Does it mean I'm not supposed to hit people, or does it mean I'm not supposed to hurt people? When is pain a sensation, and when is it violence?

I used to think that physical pain was the same as violence, but I couldn't find the violence in sore muscles after a good work out. I also knew that moving to a foreign country and getting to know a bunch of new people would be a somewhat painful experience … but it wasn't a bad one, and it certainly wasn't violent. More directly, if someone else inflicts pain upon me, do I necessarily feel it's a violent act?

Certainly not. When I get shot in the head with a paintball, or when a sparring partner throws me on the mat, it can be painful, but I rarely feel offended or personally violated; I think it only becomes violence if my boundaries of acceptance are broken without my permission. I know when I walk into the dojo that I'm going to go home with bruises and sore joints, but I don't feel like it's pushing too far, and I know I'll be able to stop the process if I become too uncomfortable. It's a voluntary sport between willing contestants. Within the context of the dojo, I think Jiu-jitsu is safe and enjoyable, and that's the only place and way I feel good practicing it.

So why didn't I take up Aikido, or Tai Chi, or another less painful and offensively destructive martial art? I'm not going to be getting into any bar brawls, nor do I have any mortal enemies, so what's the point of studying a martial art with such violent design?

On one hand, it's about making choices and demonstrating what I actually believe in. Choosing to avoid a fight when I know I can't fight is a much, much different choice than avoiding a fight when I know I could end it decisively in my favor. When I have the option, it becomes a personal test of what I believe in — my maturity, my desires, and how I want to live my life. It also serves a very potent message about non-violent resolution.

On the other hand, it's about developing ideas to their fullest. If I want to learn about hand to hand combat, then I should learn an effective and comprehensive system. There's no point in misleading myself, or becoming good at something not suited for what I want. Jiu-jitsu is undoubtedly one of the best offensive and defensive martial arts, so it serves my purposes well.

I guess it all boils down to the idea that even though Jiu-jitsu is of violent design, it can be used non-violently, and because of it's violent design it can be used as a powerful message of non-violence. Fascinating stuff, for me at least.

I'm really interested in hearing what other people think — send some email to peat@peat.org.

Strange things are afoot at the Pages o' Peat. It's been redesigned .. again! Yargh! I think this has been happening about every six months for the past seven years, so that would make this the 14th edition. Wow. I can't believe I lasted longer than suck.com, the finest site that ever was. R.I.P.

What's this site have that the previous didn't? Running travelogues from my adventures around the world. Photographs. Witty commentary. A sleek, stylish, extra sexy new look that just screams "I'm rich and professional." How's that for ironic?

But enough about that — what else is new in the world of Peat? Well, yesterday was ANZAC day, so the University closed down. Getting back into the swing of things after a three week vacation is proving harder than I previously thought. The university people seem determined to prevent us students from staying too busy, I suppose. It may have something to do with their budget: they've fired lots of staff members, and I think they're running several million dollars in debt. Ouch. I'm pretty certain the government will step in pretty soon to rectify things, but for now tensions will be running a little high around campus.

In other news, I'm starting in on a new photography project. I'm going to be taking head shots of notable people I've met down here — some of my professors, jiu-jitsu instructors, fellow students, and other assorted troublemakers. The problem is that I don't have any of my fancy lighting equipment down here, so I'm trying to figure out if I should build some of my own, or have my stuff in the States shipped to me. I'll probably end up doing both. The piece I'm considering building is a square version of a fashion ring light, built with fluorescent light fixtures. We'll see what the budget has to say about it.

My birthday came and went, and I haven't been rivered yet, so I'm keeping my lips sealed. I have no desire to get tossed in that muddy canal they call a river. Thanks to those who sent me cards and presents! They're wonderful. The space-age foam pillow Nova sent me was particularly cool. I used to steal her's in the middle of the night, and I've been missing it since I left.

Dinner tonight will probably be skip-able. They always cook up something greasy and extra starchy on Fridays, in an attempt to prevent the unfortunate consequences of "youthful exuberance at the bottle shop and in pubs." That's straight from the student handbook. Anyhow, I've got the hankering for some soup — I've been on a real soup kick recently, after visiting a Cambodian restaurant and devouring a bowl of chicken satay soup. Wow. Delicious. Goes well with all sorts of forms of youthful exuberance.

The weather's starting to get cold and damp. It's weird thinking that winter is right around the corner .. I mean, it's late April, spring should be in the air. I'm going to have some difficulty dealing with a winter without Thanksgiving, Halloween, or Christmas, three of my favorite holidays. Hopefully the snowboarding will be good, otherwise all will have been lost.

My mission for this week is to take more pictures of my friends and the places I hang out, so that all ya'll can see what is I do and see on a regular basis. If you browse through previous entries on this site, you'll find that I've added some images to spice things up a little. In particular, I've added some to the Hong Kong series, and you'll find a couple with the others about New Zealand.

Anyhow, it's time to go find something to nibble on. Have a good weekend!

Happy New Years! I spent mine in Whistler and had an amazing time. 5 days of partying, snowboarding, and adventuring. What more could I ask for? Anyhow, considering the power is still on and my toilet still flushes, I figure I should stop using y2k as an excuse to procrastinate and work on my website a little.

It's business as (un)usual .. more hirings for my company, cool new products in the pipeline, and a new camera and snowboard at home. It looks like I'll be spending my New Years in Vancouver, BC and doing a little snowboarding at Whistler besides. Busy busy busy ..

July was a crazy month. The start-up company I work for found oodles of investors, so we're hiring a bunch of people and gearing up production. A friend of mine is now my room mate. I've taken up inline skating. I'm also working on a photography website, xchange, which is in extreme alpha stages.

Things are gearing up for the Fourth of July, the blessed holiday that gives hooligans like myself the opportunity to blow the heck out of inanimate objects in my fair city. As an added bonus, I recently bought some real lights for my studio, and a new camera is next on my list ..

Hey, more excitement: I moved! Previously, I was living illegally in a warehouse in north-west Portland. However, The Man (in the guise of a fire marshal) discovered my whereabouts, and so I've found a lovely two bedroom apartment on the opposite side of the river, in south-east. The groovy part about the new place is that I'm slowly converting the larger bedroom into a studio.

W’hoo! Cinco de Mayo. Much partying going on, and the carnival is mere blocks from where I work .. unfortunately we release our product at the end of the week, so no play time for Peat. But, as you can see, I’ve managed to aquire peat.org .. horray!