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Daring Fireball: Universe Dented, Grass Underfoot

daringfireball.net

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Re: Daring Fireball: Universe Dented, Grass Underfoot

#91
post #58
post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In January 2009 I was Stage 5 chronic kidney disease, in July 2009 I had a kidney transplant. Looking back there were so many telltale signs that I had over the last six months, which I was ignoring as I was busy building my startup. A regular health check has the potential to catch a problem like this. I now nag each of my friends and family in having an annual health check. Its the best time you can spend. This was…

I'm curious about the the eye thing. Did you just need glasses? It wouldn't ruin your eyes if you could see well enough form the first row, would it?

In children, myopia typically starts as a small problem and gradually grows as the child grows. The flaw wouldn't necessarily get more serious without glasses, it's a matter of knowing that the child has it and possibly needs glasses. Not being able to see the board clearly can be an educational problem.

In my elementary school, we had mandatory semi-informal eye exams. My myopia got diagnosed around grade two or three in one of these exams.

Re: Daring Fireball: Universe Dented, Grass Underfoot

#92
post #72

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think the stress and pressure of running a company also may have contributed to Job's health. He may have had pancreatic problems nonetheless, but the stress, lack of sleep, eating fast food at his desk, etc couldn't have been beneficial. Jobs may have contributed a lot to society, but he probably paid a huge price for it.

First of all, if you know a little bit about Steve Jobs, you'll know he wasn't likely a big fast food eater. Secondly, I think Steve Jobs would have been much worse off if he had stepped down as CEO. Steve Jobs needed Apple as much as Apple needed Steve Jobs.

I don't know about his diet, but I do know it's virtually impossible to have healthy lifestyle with the responsibilities he has. He might have needed Apple, but there is a chance he put his body over the limit and ignored symptoms

Re: Daring Fireball: Universe Dented, Grass Underfoot

#93
post #83

Gruber uses the word 'Raconteur' in his Twitter Bio. I didn't know what the word meant, I looked it up. Well, for me, he is truly a raconteur (along with Joel). RIP, Steve.

FWIW, Lion users on new-ish hardware should be able to use three fingers to double-tap on words to define them: http://cl.ly/3w2r3p42261w1z2j1X3F

This function has been there at least since Leopard and the old shortcut still works: cmd+shift+D. Saddens me that Chrome still doesn't support it at all, and it breaks in Safari when web-fonts are involved.

With additional dictionaries, this feature is pure gold for language learners.

Re: Daring Fireball: Universe Dented, Grass Underfoot

#96
post #25

Many years ago a colleague, Steve Holtzman, suddenly discovered he had colon cancer. Within a year he had faded away (it seemed almost literally) and was gone. He had money and access to the best doctors, but he wasn't vigilant (he had ignored odd weight loss and bowel trouble) and so it was too late. Although Jobs didn't die of a "man's disease" there are lots of men killers out there that can be stopped if you look…

In January 2009 I was Stage 5 chronic kidney disease, in July 2009 I had a kidney transplant. Looking back there were so many telltale signs that I had over the last six months, which I was ignoring as I was busy building my startup. A regular health check has the potential to catch a problem like this. I now nag each of my friends and family in having an annual health check. Its the best time you can spend. This was…

What were the signs?

Re: Daring Fireball: Universe Dented, Grass Underfoot

#97
post #80

"There is no grass in Moscone West." There's a gigantic grass lawn right next door, in Moscone Center. Steve Jobs was a great man, but this remembrance hit a sour note for me. It's not about Steve Jobs, so much as it's about an outsider's fantasy of what Jobs' (very private) inner life was like. And if this bears no resemblance to reality, it's not a remembrance at all. It could even be offensive to the people who kn…

Jobs' (very private) inner life. [..] Remember the man for the person that he was, not for the person that you imagined him to be.

Do you not see a problem in pointing out his very private nature, then scorning people for imagining that instead of knowing it?

It could even be offensive to the people who knew him best.

And now you're chastising people for fantasizing about SJ because of how you fantasize his friends reacting? Come on.

Re: Daring Fireball: Universe Dented, Grass Underfoot

#99
post #78

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Very surprising to read this. Was there anything in particular that bugged you about it? To me, Gruber captures Jobs as both a loving family man and a visionary who is selective with his attention to detail. This is a nice lesson, as I often spend time focusing on the wrong details. Even the structure of the article -- a vignette with a narrative device built from a small detail -- is a tribute to Jobs's legendary fo…

> a loving family man He denied paternity of his daughter Lisa, even testifying in court that he was infertile. Lisa's mother was on welfare for a time because of this. So if you are going to say he was a loving father, you should also mention that he was a neglectful one. Hero worship is empty. If you want to admire something, admire the man, not some two dimensional pr bullshit.

When he was 23. I think Lisa and her mother would forgive him for that long time ago.

In his own words about his biography: I’ve done a lot of things I’m not proud of, such as getting my girlfriend pregnant when I was 23 and the way I handled that. But I don’t have any skeletons in my closet that can’t be allowed out.

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