My Old Flame

For the few horrid days I was returned to being among the wretched iPhone-less. Fortunately, my old Treo took me back with open arms like an old lover still pining for my return. Oh sure, we both knew it'd only be for a few days, but we didn't want to talk about that.

He rolled out all his old tricks, "Remember how much you liked to play backgammon and solitaire with my stylus? That other guy can't give you Vindigo like I can."

"Oh you're so cute, Treo. And you never change. I've missed your maps on local storage that don't require a cell signal and work underground. But I just don't have the heart to tell you that your stylus is awkward, your stamina isn't what it used to be, your age is showing and I've moved on to much better games like Bubble Bash and Spore. Let's just pretend like it's old times again for this little while."

"Of course, I'll have to break your heart again when my new lover comes back to town. You understand, don't you? You still make a great alarm clock. Being on my nightstand is better than being in a drawer with my old Sony Ericsson so I don't wanna hear any whining. I'm sorry. That was cruel, wasn't it?"

"We had great times together, you and me, baby. I'll always remember you fondly. It's just I've moved on. Please don't hate me for falling out of love with you. These things just happen."

"What? No. I love your stylus. Really. Why would you ask that?"

Anything But Silence

I never travel without music or podcasts anymore. My iPhone needed service and so I was to be without media player for three days. It's embarrassing to admit the idea of silence had become a bit spooky. So filled with anxiety was I over the prospect of having to travel the city without the ability to jam sound in my ears I didn't put the iPhone into its shipping container until I'd actually arrived at the drop off.

But New York City is anything but silent, it teems with sound ... people, traffic, machinery. I'd forgotten the sounds of the subways ... the squeal of brakes, the screech of wheels on rails, the hiss of compressors, the lurch of the cars. Mechanical things always fascinate me.

And I'd forgotten the little games we play on public transportation ... "Guess My Ethnicity" ... "How Stupid and/or Crazy Am I?" ... "Eavesdropping as a Public Sport". The small sounds of the passengers and the loud sounds of the crazy passengers were all fresh again, like when I was new to the city. And I remembered what it felt like to feel connected to the diversity of humankind in a city brimming with people.

The experience has been interesting and not so scary after all. I finished reading the book I'd put down a few months ago. And I found a welcome calmness that I'd perhaps forgotten.

On the whole, I prefer having my media. But perhaps in the future I'll leave my iPhone home once a month, just for the human experience of it.

WTF, Steve?

I compared the browser loading speeds of an original iPhone and an iPhone 3G side by side. The new iPhone with 3G was consistently slower. With 3G off and both phones using EDGE the newer phone was still slower.

WTF?

How embarrassing for Apple's "Twice as Fast" ads.

I'm guessing this is a software optimization issue that will be addressed in the coming firmware patch.

The iPhone Camera Needs Zoom

This was as close as I could get to the sexy frisbee boys without my surreptitious photography being detected.

Downpour!

Through the generous efforts of a kind friend I scored a coveted ticket for Shakespeare in the Park. Hooray!



Alas, because of this ...



... instead of Hamlet, I got this ...



... a view of a rain-soaked stage. There had been an open flame in the center of the stage which was snuffed out by the deluge.

Immediately after I snapped this picture, an usher ran up and said that photos were prohibited and demanded I delete the image in front of her. I chose a different pic and then showed her the big red delete button as I pressed it. She was too clever for my trick and said "that wasn't the photo you took." But as we were both getting soaked to the core, she gave up when I just played stupid and ignored her.

Later I emailed the photo to my home computer in case she sent the Unauthorized-Photo Goons after me.

So what do a gang of nerds all do when they're waiting to see if their theater is going to be canceled due to rain?



Everyone checks the weather radar on their iPhone, of course.

In NYC, the short, sad little life of a cheap umbrella usually ends something like this....

The Next Big Thing

If you thought the iPhone was big ... the Apple Phone is gonna be huge! (on view at the MoMA)

One Singular Confusion

There's something very odd about being photographed with and receiving an autograph from a person one is told is a celebrity when one in fact has no idea who the alleged celebrity is.

I would have preferred a photo with the dancer boy with the amazingly tight ... um ... technique.

Nick gets extra props from me for having iPhone wallpaper of himself available for download from his website. That's hawt. And this is just plain off the hook.

I am so gay for the iPhone