“Brackin: fine, sexy, hott, fione, bootylicious

DAMN, that girl is brackin”

The Urban Dictionary, April 19th, 2006.

People didn’t understand what I mean’t when I noticed in the past that my surname (which happens to be how most people refer to me) is actually a slang term. A twitter search provides more context. According to Google trends it’s most popular in Alabama.

Some uses of the word:

Today I’m here to quite literally spread ‘the’ word and offer my stamp of approval. Which I’m sure this community has been waiting for with bated breath since it first appeared on the Urban Dictionary in 2003.

Now, go forth and stay brackin.

Recently I’ve really started to get really annoyed by subscription services. In fact, as I start to write this blogpost I’m already in fear by the thought of what I’m paying for on a monthly basis.

I’ve nixed most of it but it’s not easy to track everything (monthly, yearly or quarterly). I’m going to have to go through everything in the next few days but it’s not a great experience.

Because most of my dealings are in the US these days, I’ve let certain subscriptions in my UK account lay dormant and some of it is semi-hidden as it goes through PayPal (although this is far easier to track and stop).

I’ll happily pay for content and services on the web but I think I’m going to think carefully before starting any services in the future, I’d rather pay more but outright. Even if I think it’s that valuable. It’s probably not worth the effort.

Almost all of this is my fault, of course...

Something I’ve been thinking about recently is how I’ve stopped taking time to pause and think. As I stay up later and later I find that I no longer lie in bed pondering my day, thinking about solutions to problems and what I want to achieve but instead fall straight asleep.

When I wake up I quickly jump in the shower to get on with my day.

I no longer sit and think on the train (now Muni) but now listen to podcasts while I partake in the 21st century equivalent of twiddling my thumbs by playing a mobile game. Even If I’m resting somewhere I’ll probably be listening to music.

I hope my new habit will be to put my headphones away when moving around the world and taking time to stop and think. I used to solve a lot of problems in these segments of the day.

A positive change for me has been that I spend an increasing amount of time in discussion with others but I still think...

People are talking about competition hurting Apple, that new Android phones are stealing their lunch.

That Apple isn’t innovating, that the new iPhone is no different to the last. That the Galaxy S IIII has a larger display, lets one control it by hovering a finger over it and has a plethora of other “S” branded features.

My year old iPhone 5 doesn’t feel like a less superior product with the latest release. It’s as solid as the day I bought it. People are still buying its predecessor the 4S in stores today.

Yet if you buy Samsung’s latest offering you can bet that they’ll release a refreshed product six months later, maybe sooner in a different line of theirs. The device could go unsupported with splashy features abandoned.

Previous iterations of iOS weren’t working in that the limitations of the platform were getting in the way of developers. With the M7 chip, new API’s and a...

SAN BRUNO, Calif. – April 26, 2012 – Walmart (NYSE: WMT) today announced the launch of “Pay with Cash” offering online startup investing in partnership with AngelList (Angel.co) in the United States. Now, customers can invest in a broad selection of companies online – at Angel.co and pay for them with cash (bagged or brief-cased) at all Walmart stores in the U.S. and also in Neighborhood Markets.

Walmart is the first major retailer to offer startup investing without the need for banking services or a credit, debit or prepaid card. “Pay with Cash” will help millions who rely on cash transactions, as well as those who are wary of using credit cards online, to invest in Angel.co’s affordable and expanded database of Instagram clones and subscription doggy hat startups.

Full Press Release

Note: If you live in the SF Bay Area make sure to sign up for the beta for my driveway sharing...

June 21, 2013 — Bark, a XLabs-backed company that lets cats and small dogs share their status, track steps and receive messages without taking their owners’ phone out of their pocket on a tiny smart-watch has raised $4M from a number of well known venture capitalists including Dwight Huffman from Y Ventures, Chip Bayson from Z Capital and prolific angel and former CTO of Petz.net, Ivyonne Rayne.

The company will also produce promotional cone hats and eye googles to concede with the launch, each user will receive a complimentary pet kit after signup. More hats can be purchased using their virtual “bubble” currency.

According to CEO, Lane Yanful the company is growing by 300% each month in terms of bubbles shared on the messaging element of the service (each user is awarded 125 bubbles and can purchase more in increments of 10). According to Yanful at this time bubbles can only be...

From Silicon Valley to London the walls of some music-related startups seem to be crumbling. Yet people are listening to as much music as they ever have so how are startups able to build a business in this huge market with the gatekeepers and steep licensing fees in the way.

“On Monday, Cumulus Media, which operates 525 radio stations, will announce a deal with Rdio, a subscription music service from the founders of Skype, that will give Cumulus an online outlet and help Rdio compete against more established players like Spotify. Cumulus will also sell advertising for a free version of the service in the United States.”

- NY Times

In some respects this story reminds me of when Color announced a “multi-year deal” for their video chat app to come pre-installed on every Verizon Android phone. The problem was that it wasn’t any better just because it was in front of a million people.

...

It’s an exciting time to be in San Francisco. I’m living in a house where every week people list their room on Airbnb. They meet new people and make a nice chunk of side income. It’s especially useful when going on a trip and you’re paying for travel and residential costs.

On the flip side I open Sidecar or Lyft almost every day to grab a ride from someone I’ve (usually) never met. I’ve used Exec to help me assemble furniture, Fluc to deliver dinner and Instacart for groceries and when required FlightCar or GetAround will lend a car.

Don’t be deceived into thinking this trend is about vanity. Although some products may seem to fix ‘menial problems’ or may be more transactional than shared, they all fit together embracing a change in consumer behaviour.

People are able to achieve/request more on demand and freelancers are taking control of their employment or are just gaining...