Silicon Valley Moms Blog

The Momforce

It's easy to forget that all of us who are lucky enough to take advantage of flex-time, part-time, job-share, and work-from-home might have not had that choice not very long ago.  I was at a little get-together last weekend with a bunch of my old friends from my TV news days and we were trying to remember who the working moms in the newsroom were in the early to mid-80's.  We could only come up with two, and one of them was actually a freelance reporter.  Fast forward to today, when one of those same friends manages an international television news network's operation right from home.  Have Blackberry - will stay put? Sure, sometimes her days can last extra long when she has to talk to people in Beijing, Paris, Dubai and New York, but she can also go pick up her daughter at school every day.

TV News is full of "on-scene" jobs from producing news shows, to dispatching reporters, to anchoring and reporting.  But the number of working families that are part of it now has really multiplied.  A lot of it is due to technology, but it's also a change in attitude.  When I think back to 1988, I had a job-share with another producer, I do remember feeling pretty revolutionary, and so was my male news director who came up with the idea. He changed stations in a couple of years, the new guy who came in in 1991 nixed the plan which eventually led to me quitting, going freelance and then about 5 years later eventually transitioning into Public Relations to get a little more control of my time (I also had 4 kids by this point).

Running from the Plastic Bag Monster

As Michelle pointed out the other day, we all make the efforts we can when it comes to saving the world and living green. Throw out less, recycle and reuse more and most important, teach our kids not to be wasteful (although they get a lot of that at school, and you'll often find them coming home and scolding you!).

My big hang-up these days is grocery store shopping bags, paper and/or plastic.  I have so many 2nd and sometimes 3rd, 4th, 5th uses for them, I'd be really stuck without them. Then I saw the picture in Fortune of "the plastic bag monster" a person "wearing" the 500 plastic bags each person uses annually. (the story is called "Bag Revolution" and it's not online yet, but should be in a week or so.)

The paper bags are my kitchen garbage bags.  Live under my sink, goes to the big outside garbage can when full or wet.  What would replace that?  A metal can lined with a much less environmentally-friendly plastic bag?

The plastic bags get used repeatedly as lunch bags for my 2 kids that like to bring their lunch to school.

Running on Empty

Why is it always the same story?

If I'm doing well at work, I'm messing up at home.  And vice-versa.

I'm doing great at work, making gains for my PR agency,  getting my clients high-profile, big name media exposure, writing blog posts that people like.  But right now I'm sitting at my desk and I just want to cry.  I know I should take some time off, but it's never a good time, and now is especially bad. On the other side of the coin, if I take too much time off, or spend too many days working from home, I'll fall behind and get into trouble at the office.

Here's what tipped me over. My teenage daughter has been reminding me for WEEKS to sign her up for a particular summer school class, something she really wants to get out of the way before her junior year.  I've told her don't worry, I always sign up late and it's fine.  Well guess what, it's not.  Today was the deadline and when I called to get the number to fax my forms in, they told me the class has been so full for a while, they're not even taking any more names for the waiting list.

Thank you (again) Elizabeth Edwards

Bravo to Elizabeth Edwards for taking on the media in her op-ed piece in the Sunday New York Times. I used to be the political producer for local TV news and I am also wishing that the national folks would just do their jobs.  Edwards rightly points out that the campaign coverage is all so much focused on trivia, the issues have been all but forgotten. I agree with James Fallows that it was the most important story in the Sunday NYT. The op-ed should be required reading in every newsroom, and the graphic of the remote that so clearly demonstrates what political news on TV is all about these days should be shamefully examined.  A day later, it remains the #1 "Most Blogged About" on the list the Times maintains and #7 in "Most Emailed".

I got out of the TV News business in the early 90's, just as it was starting to go almost totally tabloid. I watched the last Obama-Clinton debate in ABC (the network where I worked for more than 12 years) and while I was not quite as horrified as Hendrik Hertzberg in the New Yorker,  I thought it was pretty bad. Not because they were so tough on Obama, but the subject matter and repeated questions on all this "junk news" bordered on the ridiculous.  I don't think all these stories reflect on the character of the candidates as much as the overhwhelming drive in the media to give their readers and viewers what they want , as opposed to what they may possibly need.  It's even more horrifying to believe that the American public could be that shallow.

An original post to Silicon Valley Mom's Blog

Viva Las Vegas. Not.

The other day I learned I may have to go to Las Vegas in a couple of weeks.  As much as I enjoy the escape of the occasional business trip, I cringed.

I hate Las Vegas.

I've only gone there for work, never with my husband or girlfriends and definitely not with my family.

Now I'm sure there are some nice people living there, but it's the strip - the part of the city that never sleeps that I just can't stand. Vegas is just overwhelming to me, and not in a good way. And there are so many things I dislike.

Life with Diabetes Age 11 Years, 9 Months

My younger daughter has Type 1 Diabetes, also known as Juvenile Diabetes.

She's almost 12 now, she was diagnosed when she was 5.  I remember we knew she was sick, but thought it might be something psychological or maybe thyroid-related.  She was thin with a bloated belly, very clingy and cold, thirsty and peeing a lot.  When we went to the pediatrician, we were in the waiting room and she had to go to the bathroom.  I asked the nurse for a cup and she said "why- she's not here for a urinary tract infection, is she".  I just said I had a feeling it would be something they were going to ask for and she relented.  Of course they then knew right away.

Get OVER Yourself Ralph Nader

Warning: this is a very partisan post.

There he goes again.

I can not believe Ralph Nader is running for President AGAIN.

How stupid is he?  His ego is so huge he doesn't care that all he will do is help elect a Republican? That's what happened last time.  I remember in '04 walking the dog daily past a neighbor who's car had a Nader sticker, cursing to myself: "Tell me you honestly don't believe that only some nutty wing of the Democrats, Independents, etc. that would never in a million years cast a GOP vote are the ones you'll get? "Plus maybe some spite votes. The Green Party doesn't even want him.

And then he goes and picks former San Francisco Supervisor Matt Gonzalez as his running mate?

That'll get the whacko vote.

Sorry for spewing, but this really makes this Silicon Valley Mom mad. ALL CAPS AND BOLD MAD.

Where in the world are Gustavo Dudamel tickets?

I've always considered myself up with the latest in pop culture.  My brain is filled with useless trivia and I usually know who and what's the latest, greatest, hottest, most famous.

Until yesterday.

One of my kids (yes, the expensive one) told me what he wanted for his 16th birthday which is just a few weeks away. He wants tickets to the sold-out performance of Gustavo Dudamel conducting Stravinsky's Firebird at the San Francisco Symphony, March 20-23rd.

I'm sorry, but who?

The Best Restaurant Review I've Ever Read

I didn't pick up the Dining section of the Wednesday New York Times till I was sitting on the couch last night ignoring Fox News, which my husband was watching.

Side note - did I ever talk about sort-of working with Bill O'Reilly many, many years ago when he was an ABC News correspondent based in San Francisco(imagine that now) and I worked at the local ABC station?  Pompous and full of himself then too. And don't even get me started on Bernie Goldberg and what's happened to him since we were actually long, long ago friends.

OK, off the politics, back to food.

I'm excited to hear that the new Second Avenue Deli has finally opened in New York City (even though it's on 33rd street)  I never missed going there any time I was in NY, and once nearly bowed down to the chicken soup the time I happened to have a bad head cold. I was sorry to hear the tragic story of the owner's murder, and then not too long after that, it shut down due to high rents.

In the Moment with Bruce

I feel like I'm 20 again.

I put it on my calendar, even had a text message reminder sent to me.

So I was right there on Ticketmaster at 10 a.m. Monday when tickets for the Bruce Springsteen concert here in April went on sale.

Yes, I did recently go see him a few months ago across the bay, but I'm a died-in-the-wool Jersey Girl when it comes to Bruce. You'd understand if you've been to one of his concerts. Who knows when there will be another tour?

And guess what?  I got floor tickets.