Last week I had two occurrences which made me contemplate the information revolution and how it might effect our lives in some unique ways.  Sometimes the technology comes at us so fast we forget that it hasn’t been with us for very long.  I can hardly imagine myself without a cell phone – but less than a decade ago I had never held one – let alone an iPhone on which I check my email while taking the Max into work.  So it’s equally challenging sometimes to imagine how radically different our lives will be a mere decade from now.

On Tuesday I was sitting in the corner of the Green Dragon pub having a pint with a friend when I decided to get up to use the restroom.  While heading to the men’s room, I happened to bump into an old colleague of mine who I hadn’t seen in probably four years.  We chatted for a few minutes, exchanged business cards and agreed to meet up for coffee soon. It was a great coincidence that our paths had crossed.

I’ve always been fascinated by the “bump-in”.  Not so much by the folks I bump into on occasion, but moreso by all the countless folks who must have been close – but I never noticed.  On any given day – how many friends are only a block away?  How often am I at an event in which someone I’d enjoy seeing is there – but I just never happen to realize it.

It seems to reason that in the near future – those sort of situations will be greatly assisted by software.  There are already sites like FourSquare where people check-in at various locations. Of course, there are also sites like Please Rob Me that take that data and use it against you (albeit in a funny manner).

While I don’t think I would be comfortable posting my whereabouts to everyone – I can certainly see myself allowing a select group of folks to know my location at certain times.  It could be useful in an office so co-workers know where you’re at in the building. Useful at concerts to find friends (expected or unexpected).  Suddenly you have a whole new insight at networking events – you can see the entire crowd indexed by your contact list.

As smartphones with GPS become more the standard – all types of information about WHERE you do, what you do will become available – and entirely new types of software will be developed to make use of all that data.  Just as police might now investigate phone records when a crime has been committed – in the near future I wouldn’t be surprised if GPS data of where a defendant was will become standard evidence in a trial.  By looking at entire collections of data – irrespective of the individuals – we will be able to learn volumes about how folks migrate around a city or community.  This information could greatly assist city planners, event organizers, or even transportation officials.

The second occurrence that struck me as funny occurred while riding the #70 bus in the morning.  I looked over at the passenger sitting across from me and noticed he had a name-tag hanging from his waist.  Anytime I see a name tag I’m immediately brought back to my mom’s teaching about kidnappers (whom to my young mind were all about – and ready to pounce at any moment).  Anytime I had a name-tag on, she cautioned – be extra careful that you know an individual, if they say your name. A solid lesson in fear – but wise words none the less.

And indeed, at one time, I suppose an unscrupulous type could approach an unsuspecting person and could possibly con them into believing they were an acquaintance – but for how long?  Today, however, a name can get me a lot further.  As I have no desire to lay out a full stalking of an unsuspecting fellow Tri-Met rider, I will reverse the cards and look up “Greg Spies, Portland” in Google.

Well hello.  Looks like I have some info.  In fact I have:

• My company name, what my business does and most of my clients
• My bio and entire resume from LinkedIn
• Names of fellow past co-workers from LinkedIn
• The college I attended and degree from LinkedIn
• All my Twitter posts, discussing numerous aspects of my job and life.
• Some of my friends and the groups/pages I’m a fan of on Facebook

And that’s just in the first 4 links.  With some effort I’m sure there is more (no, seriously, I’m sure there is more – I Google myself regularly… I admit it).

Now how long could someone keep a conversation going with me?  It’s a bit scary. However it’s also pretty interesting. Information is neutral – it’s what we do with it that counts.

Social media is going to expand beyond just sitting at your computer reading Facebook posts.  It will continue to infiltrate smart phones – and then eventually iPads and all the touch-screen devices that will follow.  Now if I’m in a Group on Facebook – that Group can exist in the non-virtual world as well.  If there is someone else in the coffeeshop who thinks that poodle with tinfoil on it’s head can get more fans than Glen Beck – the two of you could opt to chat about it over a latte.

I already choose as many do, to show that I’m online with Facebook.  I occasionally mention I’m going to an event or a bar.  It’s not a far leap for me to add a bit of GPS data from time to time to pinpoint my location when I’m out and about.  I would certainly GPS my photos so folks could see where they were taken.  I think as we begin to dip our toes into the hot waters of the information age, we will get used to sharing what at one time seemed personal.  Much of what folks share on Facebook and Twitter were moments we would have considered private a mere decade ago.  I have witnessed break-ups, engagements, babies, death and all the tiny details in between from hundreds of people who would be little more than strangers if we weren’t modern day friends of the information age.

Maybe privacy is the bi-product of a lonesome, isolated age – where a lack of communication forced us to suffer and celebrate in small, if not singular parties.  In this new age, we can be connected not only virtually with those around us as we are today – but also in person.  We can discover our old friend is only a few tables over – we can make a lunch decision by seeing where co-workers are at – and we can discover others nearby who share our interests.  Striking up a conversation with a stranger perhaps gets a bit easier when you have some topics to start with.

Or, as always, we can press the off switch and take a few hours to ourselves.  The key, as always, is moderation.

These are things the elderly woman sitting beside me on my 3.5 hour flight from Houston (a stop-over on my flight from Philadelphia) told me. I won’t bother to detail which points I agree with or disagree with. The point of this exercise is that we are all bat-shit crazy, and should probably just learn to smile more and listen for the sake of the story.

• She was born in Chicago, but moved to Missouri
• She was 1 of 11 children.
• She acquired the job of head editor for her high school newspaper because the girl who had received the position originally was lazy. When a famous riverboat performer came to do an assembly at the school and refused to give interviews because of limitations on her time, she had offered to help the woman pack up her stuff, and in the process recorded short notes. When the performer noticed this, she suggested that because the packing had gone so smooth, she now had time for an interview. With story in hand, she took the position right out from under that other lazy gal.
• She has 3 children. One lives in Portland, one lives in Honduras working as a missionary and the other lives in California.
• There are various types of fish oil vitamins on the market, but only one in the US that uses purely Salmon.
• Her favorite bible passage is Matthew 21:22 And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.
• While she and her husband and two of the kids were stationed in West Germany in the 50s, they took a two week camping trip through 9 countries. They purchased a German VW which they eventually had shipped back to the states when they attempted to homestead in Alaska.
• Cell phone towers only exist in the US. Everywhere else people just use their cell phones and there are no towers. She knows it sounds a bit crazy, but she believes the towers are probably used to track us using those very cell phones.
• She sold the German VW several years later for $500. A local car salesman had offered her only $150, but she felt she could sell as good as him and proved that. She was offered $250… she was offered $400… but she held out till the morning and sure enough got what she wanted.
• When she and one of her sons went to attend her daughter’s wedding in Honduras she had him stay with this older couple and a young man. Unbeknown to her, the young man had a sister, who on the second day stopped by, and though she spoke no English, and apparently he no Spanish, by year’s end and after three trips down, they were engaged.
• She hiked the base of the grand canyon in two days. It was her 3rd attempt. The first time, her group was too large with 28 individuals, so she offered to stay behind. The second time, her knee began to hurt right before the hike, and had to pull-out. The third time was with her brother. He had done it before alone in a single day. She says if she had done it alone, she would still be there.
• As a child, she wrote to the head of the local dentistry school at the haste of her mother, and he was so moved by the letter he allowed her to get braces at the school at no cost, even though she needed stage 3 braces, which the school wasn’t totally qualified for. She couldn’t stand the delay, so when not in the presence of authority figures, she would tie as many as 8 rubber-bands on each of the braces. When the braces came off, the doctor told her to put on some lipstick. “No, more he said. A girl is told she has a nice smile, she starts thinking about her hair – she cares about her hair, suddenly she starts dressing nice. Boys start to pay attention. She went from being on the 5th rung (1st Rung: Popular kids, 2nd Rung: Athletic Kids, 3rd Rung: Kids with money, 4th Rung: Nerds and Bookwords, 5th Rung: Nobodies) to the 1st rung – a real popular girl.
• 98% of women who have abortions are later diagnosed with breast cancer
• Sales runs in the family apparently, because when she posted her truck for sale (now living south of Eugene Oregon) a farmer from outside Portland drove all the way down after talking to her son on the phone, unaware that the voice on the other end was that of a 11 year old. He had to wait around till she got home from work to close the deal.
• People with Vitamin B deficiencies have a long canal running down the middle of their tongue. Upon closer inspection, my tongue suggests I am VERY deficient in Vitamin B and while she’s not saying this about me in particular… people like me are often short-tempered, easily irritated, and while they might be super nice to an old lady they don’t know, such as herself, we can be super cruel to our own mothers and the people who love us. It’s easy to pretend to like a stranger, but when we, the vitamin B deficient, know someone loves us, we can afford to be quick with them and often quite mean, because we know they won’t abandon us.
• By the very fact that President Obama can not produce a birth certificate, he must be a foreigner and untrustworthy.
• She hadn’t been raised religious, that was more her husband’s thing. But he had been attending a church and they asked if they could come over after dinner a few times a week to chat with her about God and her faith. They explained that they wanted her to sign this card to pledge her devotion to God. She said she would probably never do that, but agreed to listen to them, and invited them into her house. The first evening, they chatted a bit about life and family and work, but they spoke a good deal about God. When the meeting concluded, they asked her what she had though – and she said she wished they’d done 80% real issues and 20% faith discussions, and not the other way around. But she agreed to meet again. They did this for three weeks, when she suddenly woke in the middle of the night and knew she had to sign that card. She didn’t know why – she just felt compelled by God to do so.
• In response to an article that downplayed the use of vitamins in curing certain kidney ailments, she wrote an editorial that was read by a deacon in her Church, who apparently was associated with a vitamin company and asked her to become a rep, a job she has till this day.
• Many of our health issues comes from aluminum something both the industry and the government has been suppressing for almost a century now.
• She sold encyclopedias for a brief time, but never had much luck. The crutch of the sales pitch was showing how important it was for children to be able to get information when they are inspired in the moment – a service your local library just can’t provide. She never had a sale, although her husband did sell one set to a co-worker for her, but she doesn’t feel that counts.
• On the prior flight from Honduras to Houston, the gentlemen beside her was an intern for a senator, who had sent him there to monitor the elections. Apparently he was not associated with ACORN.
• She was married to her husband for 27 years, then one day he said he just couldn’t stand to be tied down any more and asked for a divorce. Several years later he came back and admitted he had been foolish and asked her to take him back. She said if he could be faithful and a good husband for a year, she would agree to marry him again. He stayed for five months and then left again. She gets asked out for coffee from time to time by gentlemen, and that’s all well and good. But coffee leads to dinner, and multiple dinners lead to the bedroom, and she has no intention of going there. Sure, she can keep a conversation with a guy like myself, but I’m her youngest son’s age, so the pressure isn’t there (and I shouldn’t be offended by that). If it’s God’s plan for her husband to come back, she doesn’t want to be tied down to someone else when it happens.

1. Walking/Biking Into Work

When I was kid we lived out in the country, about a 20 minute drive from school.  So when the day would end, I’d have to run to catch a bus while my local friends would socialize out front and slowly meander back to their homes.  As silly as it seems, I dreamed of an adult life where I would bike to work and would never have to commute back and forth again.  However, back east that didn’t seem like an option. My father had a 45 minute commute to work each day and I know folks who live in Connecticut who drive almost two hours to work in NYC and back. The first time I rode down beneath the Burnside Bridge, along the stretch of floating walkway on the Willamette on my 10 minute ride to work, I knew I had found my place.

I sold my car more than a year ago and have never looked back.  Most days I walk to work because I enjoy the 20 minutes of quiet contemplation prior to starting my workday.  I take a slightly different route each day, decided typically on impulse and hardly a day passes that I don’t come across something unique on my way in.  Whereas sitting in my car blaring the stereo, or cramped on the morning bus with my iPod pumping, separated me from the city on my way into work – I am always very present on my walk, noticing new shops, bumping into colleagues and friends, or even just exchanging a pleasant glance with a passer-by.  It’s typically the highlight of my day.

2. My Awesome Studio/Building/Area

I’ve worked in a variety of places around Portland and beyond.  From incubators to cubicles – windowless rooms to coffee-shops, I’ve probably tried them all.  But I’ve never felt more at home and productive then at 431 NW Flanders.

First off, the Old Town/Chinatown neighborhood (which I like to refer to as The Interactive District) is alive with all sorts of energy.  The combination of art galleries, boutiques, restaurants, architecture firms, web development studios and the Chinese Gardens makes this a creative’s dream.  Anytime I’m at a loss for inspiration, a quick walk around the neighborhood is always enough to get me back on track. I’ve also had the great honor to work with Central City Concern the past two years – and so every day I can see the progress they are making on the great challenges facing our community.  I pass by the amazing residences they’ve cleaned up and improved, and run into people who have made it through their programs and I’m inspired by the potential for change - both within humans and a city.

As for the building itself – could you ask for anything better?  High ceilings, great views of downtown, all sorts of insanely talented folks (and their crazy dogs) working together in one place.  I started out working in the corner of the basement when the first floor was occupied by Livengood/Nowack.  I now share a suite on the 2nd floor with my partner in crime, Pail Design.

Plus our landlord Steve Bloch is about as great as they get – not to mention a spectacular photographer.  All in all – the perfect spot to work.

3. The Carts

SERIOUSLY… how awesome are the carts?  An endless variety of cheap, delicious eats all located in a few central spots.  A stroll along the promenade takes you from India to Mexico, from Thailand to Philly – and a few places I didn’t even know existed. Go there with a group and everyone gets what they want – and can meet back up to share in the delights.

I have NEVER gone to the carts and not run into someone I know – it’s the grand dining hall of downtown Portland whether rain or shine (although of course we all prefer it in the sun).  While Portland certainly has no shortage of great restaurants – when it comes to lunchtime – nothing beats the carts. I considered listing my personal favorites – but I honestly don’t have one.  It’s the pure variety that makes this spot so special. While my passion for cheese steaks and Pad Thai typically dominate my lunch choices when not at the carts – something about this spot always pushes me to try something new.  Rarely am I disappointed.

4. A Creative and Cooperative Culture

I’m not a competitive person. Sure I want to do well, but not at the expense of others. I’d rather work in conjunction with others, using all our best talents and ideas together.  No other place I’ve been shares that passion more than Portland, Oregon.

In any other city, other web development studios like Metal Toad Media, eROI, Rose Coloured Glasses or Enact Development might be seen as “the competition“.  In PDX they are collaborators, partners, resources and inspiration.  I can send my clients to them when the work requires it – and vice versa.  I’m excited to see the work they produce and eager to assist or utilize their talents when the opportunity arises.

This culture of shared success is nurtured and reinforced by an almost endless collection of networking events, meet-ups, Tweet-ups, creative conferences and social gatherings (see #5).  Because Portland is smaller than most major cities, it didn’t take long to recognize faces and create meaningful partnerships with other talented creatives.  Folks who offer the same services as you are quick to introduce you to those they know and connecting the dots between talent and business is almost a past-time of sorts.

Never has this been truer than in the past year, as a rough economy has forced some to close their doors and other to create new doors to open.  I’ve been amazed to see where folks have ended up – the new partnerships that have formed – and the general spirit of community within the creative culture of Portland.  Challenges become opportunities in an instant: new ideas form – creative events emerge – and a community that works together only grows stronger through adversity.

5. Proximity to Great Bars For Happy Hour

When the work-day is done, it’s time for a cold beer.  Originally from NY, the choices afforded me there were the corporate suds of Bud, Miller, Coors or worse, the light versions of all three.  In Portland that is most certainly not the case.  Within a mile of my studio are more bars, microbreweries, wine bistros, cocktail lounges, saloons, taprooms and taverns then I could ever possibly list, let alone visit.

Portland has a distinct happy hour culture.  Walk the streets from 4pm on and you’ll see bars bustling with activity.  Cheap eats, delicious IPAs and eclectic atmospheres hell-bent on keeping Portland weird and beer’d put you in the unique position of not deciding whether to have a pint, but rather, which locale to drink it in. In the summer we search out patios, in the winter we escape from the rain in a comfy booth. We sit at long tables where conversations with strangers inevitably ensue over mouth-watering cocktails.  Whether it’s networking at dMob or $5 Aviation cocktails at Recession Proof Mixology events – the bars are where it’s happening in PDX and the perfect place to end your work day.