Yes, that was really me in The Wall Street Journal today. It should come as no surprise to anybody that such a respectable and upstanding publication is reading Blogography... all the really important people end up here eventually (and doesn't that make you feel special?). All I know is that if I were looking for a "Voice of Authority" for my article, the first person I would seek out would be me... so it all makes perfect sense.
So now I'm famous.
Famous and soon to be rich!
That's because the incomparable Liz over at Everyday Goddess has sent me a "god of wealth" coin. This guy in Japan is sending out coins so people can make a wish for wealth and then pass along to somebody else. Then, at the end of the year, people will return the coins and he'll visit a shrine to offer them to the god of wealth (whose name is Daikoku) so our wishes can be heard. Sweet!
Now... before all the nut-jobs out there decide to send me an email which condemns me to hell for worshiping pagan idols or some crap like that... please repeat after me... IT'S JUST FOR FUN!!
Though, if I were to go shopping for a god, I think anybody branded "the god of wealth" would be at the top of my list.
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God of Wealth? hell ive been trying to make deals with the devil… bout time someone clued me in!
Point some of that wealth my way.
*Heads out for a copy of the WSJ.
So is there a list or something where we can sign up to participate in this wealth coin tour? I saw it on Liz’ blog last week and forgot to ask her. And you were in WSJ? Rock on, dude.
So, just what topic are you the “voice of authority” ON? I mean, there are so many to choose from, so many things at which you are an expert, and your kung-fu is strong…
And can we read the article online?
I love the coin idea, it sounds like a lot of fun.
Famous, rich, what else do you need? To be lucky in love, maybe. But hey, you’ve always got evil monkey for company…
Thanks for participating in this little activity and happy to see the coin has reached another destination. Can’t wait to see where else it eventually ends up…
so for us uncool nonamericans, will you show the wsj-article?
Hey, my boss brought in a ganesh pendant, and hung it up on the wall to bring in the customers. 🙂
Wouah, I know someone who’s famous !!! Congratulations !
Of course, you’re special.
Dave2,
How can you be sure that the coin that you wished on will be sent back? I’d be too scared to pass it on, incase it ended up in the hands of those people that will no doubt be sending you hate mail and they bin it!
Am I pessimist or what?
Wall Street Journal? What am I missing?
BTW, I have that exact same coin on my keychain. It’s been there for years. Never knew the whole God of Wealth thing, but I actually found mine out at Coit Tower in San Francisco.
Hey Dave. Send the coin to me and Firda (or is it Firda and I) next. We could use some wealth 🙂
Hmm… apparently I’ve been wasting an awful lot of time focusing on other “deities”…. that figures!
I’m not sure what part of this post I like better, bad monkey’s lucky coin mouth or your reasoning on being a “voice of authority”… either way delightful 🙂
Yeah – my subscription to the WSJ ran out… about 8 years ago. What’s the article about? I suspect it’s Dave’s take on the Enron verdict, or perhaps some stock tips.
Congrats on climbing that ladder to obscene fame and fortune!
Bow down to Adena:
Codes on Sites ‘Captcha’ Anger of Web Users.
By David Kesmodel. -The Wall Street Journal.
“Dave Simmer is a computer-savvy graphic designer. Yet when he surfs the Internet, he often gets stumped by the distorted jumbles of letters and numbers that some Web sites ask users to retype to gain access. … The visually impaired have long decried these codes, which protect sites such as Yahoo.com and Ticketmaster.com from computer programs that create scores of email accounts for spammers or buy hundreds of concert tickets for scalpers … Captcha is an acronym for Completely Automated Public Turing Test to Tell Computers and Humans Apart. Computer scientists at Carnegie Mellon University coined the term in 2000 to describe codes they created to help Internet giant Yahoo Inc. thwart a spam problem. ‘Turing’ refers to Alan Turing, a mathematician famous for his codebreaking work during World War II and, later, as a pioneer in artificial intelligence. In 1950, Turing wrote a paper that proposed a test in which a person in one room would ask questions of both a human and a computer in another to try to determine which of the respondents was human. If the judge couldn’t tell which was which, the computer could be said to be able to think.”
Congrats on getting a mention in the WSJ. I still tell people about being quoted as an expert in the New York Times, and that was four years ago!
The writer wanted a quote because of an entry I wrote about how much captchas are sucking lately.
Apparently all you need to do to get attention these days is to whine about something in your blog. 🙂
Hey! That’s pretty cool.
Dave – now that Blogography is getting prime time press, I’m in when you offer an IPO! Just saying for the record.
Go Adena! I was wondering where the hell this article was.
So, Dave, they just read your blog entry and then used you in their story? They didn’t contact you first? Because — and I might be wrong here — according to that blog entry, I didn’t get the impression that the captchas “stumped” you; more like they annoyed the crap out of you.
Good luck with the wealth and all that 😉
Nope… he called me, so it’s all good.
And captchas DO stump me. I can’t tell you the number of times that I’ve entered the code only to have it rejected. Very annoying.
The comment I made which I most wish was included in the article was this:
“Captchas were created to distinguish actual humans from malicious computer scripts. Unfortunately, captchas are getting so complicated that machines actually have a better chance of deciphering them than actual humans do.”
It pretty much sums up the problem.
you turned the monkey into a blow up doll.
Yeah… he makes a nice match to my existing blow-up girlfriend.
Congrats, Mr. Famous!!
Just remember us little people when you’re Mr. Big Shot!
Dang it. I need that coin, but need it within 2 weeks. I’m going to Vegas, baby!
Of course, I’d probably get drunk and accidentally stick the coin in a slot machine and lose it anyway. So, um, maybe not a good idea.
Glad to hear I wasn’t the only important person visiting this mecca of information. About fame…you have been famous for a long time… that is how I found your writings. And when you do become rich hopefully you do not forget us who are your faithful followers
You *are* the man!
🙂
That is very cool, Dave. Congrats. Hey when you become rich, can we all get cars? Seriously, we have been here commenting and reading when you but a wee blogographer. When is that payoff coming? I would like some sort of Mercedes. Not sure which kind, surprise me.
The Wall Street Journal, huh? What’s next…PLAYBOY?
Just step one in taking over the world…?
Will you be autographing copies of today’s WSJ at Davecago?
Right now I’d settle for an Angel of Pocket Change.
Congrats on the WSJ. Bill O’Reilly should be calling next.
Congrats on the mention in WSJ.
The best I’ve gotten so far is Newsweek back 11 years ago when they profiled me for a portable computing spread they did. I got a couple of sentences in.
And thx to adena for posting the piece. *bowing down*
Wow. You ARE god, or something.
I got emailed once by The Economist to be interviewed for an article on ex-pat bloggers, but could not do the interview due to an unfortunate mix of my traveling, crappy French hotel phone systems, a watch set on the wrong time and a really, truly horrible hangover. It’s a long story. But, I coulda been a contenda…