Marc Sirkin's Mindnumbing Thoughts

As a father of 2 girls, it strikes me that it is both the best of times and just the beginning for women in our world. I both revel in the opportunities they have that their ancestors did not while fearing for them at the same time. Since I don't have boys, I don't know if I'd feel differently with sons. Last weekend, we spent last a few days in Concord, MA, mostly touring old battlefields, bridges and homes. What surprised me however, was learning more about the real story behind "Little Women" and Louisa May Alcott. Most interestingly for me was learning about her pops, Bronson Alcott . According to the stories, Bronson was quite a character. My favorite story was that he'd hang out near Orchard House (photos below) in the road with a bag of apples. As people would pass by, he's bend their ear to talk politics, education or whatever else was on his mind. Bronson was a dreamer and a philosopher, and he clearly impacted his daughters in significa

The quantity and quality of online video and video sites continues to skyrocket. This video is hysterical, and perhaps makes some good points to boot. Yes, of course I'm on Google+ , you can find me here and chat me up, hangout with me or put me in various circles. Beware, collegehumor.com is extremely addicting - be sure to also check out the Photoshop Rap as well the amazing  Game of Thrones videos. Enjoy.

Met some GREAT people last week at a conference and found myself in a very funny, non-linear conversation over beers. Topics included social media, marketing, work, culture, getting mugged and perhaps most importantly, what would happen if the power went out, and stayed out. For good. Here's where "white collar doom" comes from: we lost power for more than a few days after Hurricane Irene in late 2011. During that time it did occur to me on more than one occasion that if the power had not come back on - I'd be pretty well doomed. In fact, if you are reading this blog, it's quite possible that you are just like me... essentially incapable of survival without power, credit cards and the internets. Here's how I think about it; I'm an information worker who spends his days in front of a computer, tapping little plastic buttons. I've not done physical labor of any sort since high school (worked in a variety of places including a furniture store). I