In terms of blogging, I have pretty much written off the year 2008. Oddly enough, I am finding it hard to wrap up my professional endeavors, spend time and say goodbye to my close friends, plan a move down the West Coast and find a moment and clear thought to blog. One of my 2009 resolutions will be to get back to writing regular blog entries again. Sort of like in 2008.

So, here’s my blog entry for the month of December with random thoughts, in no comprehensive order - drafted on an old fashion yellow notepad while sitting at LAX.

Life without a cell phone didn’t work so well

If you’re about to cancel your cell phone plan, don’t. While I certainly enjoyed life without a cell phone for a couple of months, there is one major obstacle to doing so effectively. SMS messages. Here’s why. I have about 300 people who I communicate with on a somewhat regular basis (some through this blog) - most of which I sent my Vonage phone as my updated phone number. Then I had about 30 close friends who I sent my pay-as-you-go phone. Why didn’t that work? The better part of those 300 people kept sending text messages to my Vonage phone - which essentially is a landline. I didn’t get those messages, which led to all sorts of communication mishaps - such as missed meetings, solo dinners and at least one pissed off Montana rancher. So, now I have an iPhone.

Moving back to Los Angeles

I am moving back to the city of angels for my next professional engagement - being the principal in an advertising agency. Smog aside, LA isn’t half bad and this is an opportunity that I simply couldn’t turn down at all. I will be going back to my roots and former employer, WONGDOODY, and all the wonderful people who make it such a great place. Jen, Otto and I will make the drive down there right after Christmas.

Living in a 1950s resort

I am actually in California right now, where I am finishing up a 2-day apartment hunt (Thanks Mark for keeping me sane). The result. A 1 bedroom + den apartment in West Los Angeles, only minutes from the beach. The place has the feel of a 1950s resort and my balcony is overlooking all those old ladies in their swim suits. You should come and visit some time.

I sort of bought a toaster

It’s a really big one. One that is going to get me from place to place in Southern California. I am not a big fan of car ownership but this multi-functional SportsWagon evolution might just be weird enough for me to love it.

Now storing crab nets

At some point I will be renting out my sweet loft. Hence, I thought it would be a good idea to make my storage space secure, which will allow me to keep some of my non-California-essentials safe and sound (crab nets, etc). Having no idea what it would take to build a lockable door mechanism and having two left hands to begin with, Jen’s dad jumped in and pretty much single-handedly build me a storage closet - while I was vacuuming wood chips and keeping the joint juice flowing. Let’s just say that it would have been a disaster had I attempted to build this myself, so a million thanks to Jay. I will plead the fifth if the Homeowner’s Association asks any question about the chainsaw noises coming out of my loft.

Great friends

On Friday Jen organized a little farewell party for me at my apartment. It’s hard to say goodbye to people as nice as my friends here in Portland. But there is a pretty good chance that I will be back here someday since life never holds me in the same place for too long. Regardless, I have the best girl and some of the best friends in the world. I know I don’t deserve Jen. And I am truly thankful for all the people who I can call my friend. Thank you. America would be no fun without you.

Otto

Just like every good blog entry, this one also ends with a few words about my cat, Otto von Bismarck. Having never really had anybody who’s life depended on mine, I might be taking this cat ownership thing a little over the top. He will be traveling to California in a custom-ordered carrier without having to spend a single night in a hotel. And when we get there, his new home will have three west-facing, sun-filled windows to look out of for him. And if he’s lucky, he might even get to see an old cougar or two at the pool. Either way, his bag is packed.

Thanks to the Oregonian for following up on this story.

A trip to Texas
Two weeks ago I traveled to Dallas,  Texas to visit my buddy Jerry’s daughter and his future son in law. Lots of bbq, line-dancing, blue skies, golf and giant bugs. There’s something very unique about Texas, but Dallas is probably not a place where I could ever live. Thank you for making this happen Jerry - and happy birthday.

A move back to Los Angeles
While talking about places where I’d ever thought I’d be living (again), I will make the move back to the city of Angels next year where I will help start a digital marketing agency. More on that later.

Some time in Montana
Right now, I am sitting in the living room next to my host dad on a ranch in Hamilton, Montana. My first home in the US.  I arrived in Montana on Wednesday night, gave a couple of presentations to University students on Thursday and then attended board meetings on Friday. It’s been a great trip with lots of good friends, good food (Venison Steaks anyone?) and some unbelievable hospitality. Thank you Vick, Jean, Russ, Alexis, Greg, Jesse, John and Diane. Montana is a very special place.

A few other things

• Life without a cell phone is interesting. It’s not bad when I am in Portland but the whole, pay-by-the-minute concept” hurts the frugal German in me. Poor Jen. When is the next iPhone coming out?
• Jen and I will spend Thanksgiving with her family and then head to the coast next weekend with Ryan and Jeana. That should be a lot of fun.
• Schalke won. The Griz beat up on the Bobcats and Greg Oden is the real deal. Life is good. Here’s to more regular blog entries next week.

Regardless of who you choose to vote for, it’s important that you do vote. Research the candidates. And watch this video.

I talk to people on how to live without a cell phone and how to save a bunch of money. I also try to give advice on how to be romantic, but there isn’t much demand for such. But, despite my lack of an Ivy League college degree, a sometimes incoherent accent and applicants much taller, better looking and smarter than I, I have been able to land a couple of great jobs and am in the midst of a wonderful career. So while absolutely nobody has asked about this, I am going to give my readers some tips on how to get a job. I figure with the economy being what it is, this is more helpful than another entry on why I like to fly with Lufthansa. Here are eight tips that helped me find a job.

1. Make your resume stand out.
And by that I don’t mean that you need a “career objective.” Please don’t use Microsoft Word. Do something different. Stand out. Have one of your nerdy computer buddies build it in Adobe Illustrator for you.

2. Go meet people.
This is the most important aspect of finding a job, and oftentimes the most neglected. When you’re looking for a job, you just need to get out there, be seen and talk to people. Go to networking events, trade shows, happy hours, running groups and speed-dating events. You’ll never know when you’re going to meet someone who will help you make a connection.

3. Don’t get business cards.
Don’t think that if you hand out business cards at networking events, people will take the initiative to contact you. You need to get people’s business cards, write down their contact info or remember their phone number. Then it’s up to you, not them, to follow up and make something happen. It won’t hurt if you get some personal business cards, but don’t think that just handing out business cards will do you any good.

4. Write thank you cards.
I would guesstimate that half of all applicants follow up after an interview, and only about 10% do so with a hand-written thank you card. You could be in that 10%. It’s an easy opportunity, so don’t miss it. This also helps in building relationships with you girlfriend’s parents.

5. Don’t let spelling mistakes happen.
Whether it’s your resume, your LinkedIn profile or your follow-up thank you card, don’t let spelling mistakes happen. Never. It’s the quickest way to stop being considered for a job.

6. Call Alumnis.
If you went to any sort of University (yes Jen, community college counts as well), you need to leverage that education and try to make connections with other alumni. I get a ton of phone calls from University of Montana students, and I help every single one of them. People are emotionally connected to their alma mater, and many paid a lot of money for such and their education. So you need to make use of it. Call your old professors and ask if they know anybody who’s in your profession. Get their contact info and pick up the phone.

7. Pursue five dream jobs.
Let’s face it. Not every job you pursue is in your dream company. Most of them will be random jobs you ran across on Monster.com or referrals from your mother’s friends. But in addition to those random jobs, you need to pursue your dream job with your dream company. That’s what I did, and it worked. How do you do it? Go straight for the top. Write a really smart letter to the Founder, CEO or President of the company and then start following up with weekly phone calls. Your goal is not to get a particular job, but rather to set-up an informational interview with the guy/woman running the company. You need to write a brilliant letter and then follow-up with weekly phone calls. Your letter needs to be extremely well-thought out and communicate your passion for the company and industry. And yes, you need to call the top dog. They’re much more likely to care about your passion and ultimately can make whatever hiring decision they please, regardless of the state of economy and/or your lack of style.

8. Get online
This is actually the least important facet, as in order to find a job, it really comes down to the personal connection that you make with people. Regardless, it’s important to make use of the many tools available to job seekers nowadays. Use sites such as monster.com and careerbuilder.com to apply for all sorts of random jobs. You never know who you might meet in a random interview, and it’s always worth the practice. Create a LinkedIn page and clean up your Facebook account. Type in your name on Google and go through all of your social networking profiles and make sure there are no simple spelling/grammatical mistakes or social media comments about you doing kegstands at some nudist new year’s eve party.

That’s it for now. Good luck, and email me or comment here with any questions.

Considering I travel quite a bit for work and personal reasons, it might be somewhat surprising that I am getting rid of my cell phone. That’s what this blog entry is for - to explain my rationale for nixing my cell phone. And who knows, maybe it will inspire some of you to live without a permanent cell phone. Here are five reasons why I got rid of my cell phone contract.

Cell phones are distracting
I spend 12-14 hours a day being completely connected via either phone or my computer. There’s email, Twitter, Facebook, Instant Messenger, my mum, Otto etc. I constantly get interrupted by something. Oftentimes the only time I have to be by myself and with my own thought is when I am running errands or traveling from one distraction to the next. But not when I am carrying my cell phone. By taking away my cell phone, I now have at least 1-2 hours a day where nobody can get a hold of me and my brain can function without interruption. I can think again.

Cell phones cause brain cancer
While this is  not confirmed, many doctors and scientists predict that cell phone radiation ought to have some negative effects on our brains. To me it’s common sense - having those levels of radiation near my brain can’t be good. Just like inhaling smoke into your lungs can’t be healthy. Check out this video for proof.

Cell phones are expensive
Since I also used my cell phone for email, my monthly  bill was usually around $80 (all those government fees were ridiculous). If I put $80 every month into my savings account for the next 30 years and earn 4% interest, I will have saved $55,000+.

Digital phone service is dirt cheap
I use Vonage at home. It costs me $35 a month and I can call whoever I want from wherever I want - including my friends and family in Germany. Also, if I really wanted to, I could take my phone and line to wherever I go. (Yes, I can take my Vonage phone to Germany, hook it into my parents’ Internet connection and talk to you with my Portland number). Your cable company would be happy to supply you with a digital phone line for $20-$30 a month. If you’re even more guerilla, you can try using Skype which is only a few bucks a month. It should be noted that because of my International calling, just having cell phone service was never enough.

You can have a cell phone without the contract or monthly payment
I am cheating a bit here, but I did sign up for an AT&T GoPhone. It costs me 10 cents a minute with no monthly fee. I bought a $100 worth of minutes, which I am hoping will last me for a year. I also signed up for a separate text messaging service, where for $5 a month  (taken right out of $100 balance) a month I get 200 text messages. My new phone is not nearly as cool as my old phone and I am paying every time I use it, so I won’t carry it with me or use it as often as my old phone. Less distraction, same emergency backup, more healthy brain cells.

How do you do it?

1. Wait until your cell phone contract is up, then cancel. If your contract isn’t up for a long time, you might be able to fake military service or deportation. Neither of which is a particularly smart idea.

2. Sell your old cell phone on eBay. I will get $150 for mine, which will actually pay for my new cell phone and service for over a year.

3. Get a Pay-As-You-Go Phone. Virgin Mobile, Boost Mobile, AT&T, T-Mobile all have cheap phones. I got a Nokia 2610 for $19. It works with a SMS card, so I can even use it in Europe if I want to.

4. Tell your close friends your number and let everybody else know that you nixed your cell phone.

By the way, my home phone number is 503-336-1181.

That’s it. I might post more about this, as my life without cell phone begins. Do you see any advantages to still having a permanent cell phone plan?