Breckenridge Craft Spirits Festival

I continue to contribute guest posts over at the Breck Connection blog and my latest is about the upcoming Craft Spirits Festival to be held in Breckenridge next weekend. Go check it out!

I’m bummed that I can’t make it myself (I’ll be in Maine at Monktoberfest, so, I still win) but would encourage anyone interested in imbibing to check it out.

Passion Projects Viewing Party at Crowd Favorite this Thursday

Denver friends, you’re cordially invited to a viewing party at the Crowd Favorite offices this Thursday. The excellent Passion Projects talk series presented by GitHub (to surface and celebrate women in technology) will be live-streamed.

Hurry and register now to watch Leslie Bradshaw’s talk. It should be excellent but we have limited space available.

“Play your own game” by the Delighted team

This is the concise series of points I wish one of my drafts had become (after chatting with and listening to folks from “competing” firms such as Voce Platforms, 10up, WebDevStudios, and others):

There’s no limit on the number of companies that can be successful, because there isn’t a universal definition of success. Some companies strive for the lowest prices, others to provide the most jobs, some to be the most efficient, and some strive for the highest possible quality. There are endless possible combinations. And that is a great thing to be celebrated.

Well said. The entire thing is a great read.

Monktoberfest 2013

The Monktoberfest, my favorite conference at the confluence of technology and beer, is back for 2013 in lovely Portlane, Maine. Tickets just went on sale and there’s only a few dozen left. Prior speakers and companies in attendance include ZenDesk, GitHub, Untappd, Mozilla, Facebook, and more.

Here’s some photos from the inaugural Monktoberfest in 2011.

car2go in Denver

I was one of the earliest to register for B-Cycle (Denver’s bike sharing system) and now I’m excited to sign up for car2go in Denver.

Different from some existing car sharing services (which I’ve also tried), car2go has worked out a local ‘zone’ where if you park on the street (even in metered areas), you can leave the car there instead of being tied to specific parking lots of spots in the city. So, I can literally park in front of my house after taking a trip and use the app to find the nearest car (which may be in my neighborhood or on the same street where I work). It’s a great service and made me think of this quote:

A developed country is not a place where the poor have cars. It’s where the rich use public transportation — Enrique Penalosa, Mayor of Bogota

For a limited time, the $35 registration fee is waived if you use offer code “ROCKIES”. Check out car2go in Denver.

How do I monetize Colorado Snow?

A local research firm reached out to ask some questions about how I monetize my “other blog”, Colorado Snow (cosnow.com). It turned into what I think is a good Q&A session around what has become, essentially, a part-time hobby.

Read on if you’re interested in why I started (and continue to run) Colorado Snow (hint: it’s not the money).

Allow Tesla Motors to sell directly to consumers in all 50 states

A WhiteHouse.gov petition:

States should not be allowed to prevent Tesla Motors from selling cars directly to customers. The state legislators are trying to unfairly protect automobile dealers in their states from competition. Tesla is providing competition, which is good for consumers.

I’ve never appreciated the laws and relationships between car manufacturers, dealers, etc. I want to buy my cars directly. The established groups typically require legislation to maintain the status quo and I’d certainly like cars to be ‘disrupted’ by a company like Tesla.

I feel the same is starting to happen in the alcohol industry…