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Technology improves all — This weekend’s globe-trotting adventures

On our way from New York to Sydney, Australia, Susan commented that technology has made flying much better.

Getting onto a plane, flying to somewhere is the same it’s always been. No faster.  Same delays. Same bumps. Same jet lag.

But technology has alleviated the misery. There’s electronic check-in. There’s electronic notice boards.

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There’s noise-cancelling headphones. Bose are the best. There’s amazing new entertainment systems, And now there’s the Internet.

I’m a thousand miles from Sydney in the middle of an empty Pacific Ocean and I’m on the Internet, downloading emails, checking who won the Federer/Nadal match (Federer), eyeing Donald’s latest escapades. Only $19 for the entire 14 hour trip. Panasonic is the provider.

Read that again. I’m in the middle of nowhere on a hurtling aluminum tube at nearly 600 MPH and I’m emailing my daughter.

We’re now in Sydney airport. Free WiFi. A few button pushes and we’re on FaceTime with granddaughter Eleanor in Portland, Oregon and Sophie in Boston. The video and audio are crystal clear. And totally free. Steve Jobs should be very happy with all the pleasure he’s brought to geographically diverse families, and especially doting grandparents.. We once called them nuclear families. Now Apple’s FaceTime and Photostream have made them feel as though everyone lives on the same street. Also free.

I bring along much reading. Much different to what I read every day. Mostly I read emailed stuff sent by automatic feeds — the New York Times, the Washington Post, the Economist, Bloomberg BusinessWeek, MarketWatch/the Wall Street Journal, BusinessInsider. Big mistake! Too passive. They bombard me with their obsessions. Not  active. I need to be more aggressive, actively researching and reading, reading.

FastCompany magazine just did its:
50MostInnovative
This is an amazing list. Here’s how the magazine bills their work:

This year marks the 10th edition of the Fast Company World’s Most Innovative Companies ranking. Our reporting team sifts through thousands of enterprises each year, searching for those that tap both heartstrings and purse strings and use the engine of commerce to make a difference in the world. Impact is among our key criteria.

Here are their top eight:

TopEight

You couldn’t do wrong, owning shares in these eight. Worth reading more on them at FastCompany’s site. 

It may be that the race is not always to the swift nor the battle to the strong — but that is the way to bet.
— Damon Runyon.

Lessons:

+ Technology makes companies better. Embrace companies that embrace it. Even if they’re not technology companies.

+ If you run a company, study how Amazon pleases its customers.

+ Tell your kids to learn marketing and programming.

Trip tips

+ Laptop batteries wear out after a few hundred charges. Buy yourself a new battery every year. Easier than carrying two.

+ If you drop your phone down the side of your airline seat, don’t fish for it. Call the attendant. Virgin Australia tells I’d be blown away if I knew how many people seriously damage their hands fishing phones out. Apparently, as people fish for their dropped phone,  their neighbor adjusts their seat and bingo… Virgin Australia forces it cabin attendants to two hours training on fishing phones. I don’t make this up. In short, Don’t Do Stupid.

+ Despite the Internet, the best personal service is always achieved in person or on the phone with flattery, and money.

Protection from dirty bombs.

My friend has Stage IV cancer. She had just returned from her radiation treatment and was walking by Lincoln Center. Within seconds, she’s surrounded by six cops, their guns drawn. They’re serious. She’s laughing. So much she cries. She gingerly reaches into her purse and removes her Medical Radiation Card.

Apparently, New York is brimming with radiation detection devices.

She was not carrying a dirty bomb. But it’s nice to know we’re protected.

I loved Allied, the movie. I saw it on American Airlines.

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I cried and cried. It’s a beautiful love story, with several neat twists. It’s the perfect plane movie. After I watched it, I fell asleep and cried more in my dreams.

This is amazing story

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To read the mother’s story, click here.

The Jewish genie

A a Friday night dinner at the home of a learned and distinguished rabbi. The candles glow softly, the table is crowded with family, congregants, and visitors.

Suddenly, a flash of light, and the angel of the Lord appears.

“Rebbe,” says the angel. “For your life of unselfish service and exemplary behavior, you are to be rewarded. You have the choice of infinite wealth, boundless wisdom or utter beauty. Pick one.”

Without hesitating, the rabbi says, “Wisdom.”

“Done!” says the angel, and disappears in a cloud of smoke and a bolt of lightning.

All heads wheel to the rabbi, who sits, stunned, an expression of dawning comprehension breaking across his shocked features.

There is a long silence. Finally his teenage grandson speaks. “Papi, please say something wise.”

The old rabbi looks around the table and says, “I should have taken the money.”

HarryNewton
Harry Newton, now in Bryon Bay, the most Eastern part of Australia, where it’s torrential rain, with consequences. This river is few miles away:

Flooding

4 Comments

  1. Al Gore says:

    I’m surprised that someone who cares so deeply about global warming, climate change, ozone layer, & leaving a carbon footprint, would do such a careless and reckless act of flying on an evil airplane. How dare you pollute my beautiful earth! Mike Bloomberg is right. You should use a bicycle instead. Whether it’s to get to Australia and back, or deliver a new couch, or to bring concrete to a job site. Bicycles are the way to go. We must eliminate cars, trucks, airplanes, helicopters, Republicans, air-conditioners, etc… from our midst. These evil inventions are destroying our future and our children’s future.

  2. Jerry says:

    Speaking of flying this would be a great time to post your list of How To Avoid Getting Sick When TRaveling By Plane.

    Do you fly first class or coach? I alternate. I prefer first class but it is not worth the large difference in price.

  3. Lucky says:

    Have a great trip Harry…keep dry and safe…