I took a semi-intentional vacation from posting over the break. I had the PowerBook with me, and wanted to write, but the holidays aren’t as leisurely as it used to be. I spent most of the long weekend driving between relatives’ homes, and running after dogs and small children. I’m not complaining much; it was five days off work.

As a result of the holiday craziness, this week’s Startup Junkie was a day or so late. I think it’s worth the wait, though — I break down some of the web-based tools that are available to support independent business pursuits. Someday, I’d like to go back and do a detailed writeup of each one.

Check out the goods at Colaspot.

I got another crack at pane (no pun intended), thanks to oneword. This one definitely came out, um, differently.

Email applications generally have three panes. That’s usually two too many. Why do I need to be distracted by all the other messages in my box? Software should get out of my way and let me do what I do at the moment — communicate.

I post onewords in the interest of full disclosure and posterity. Even the best writers can’t be afraid to drop a clunker here and there. I’ve told myself that I’m going to post them all, no matter how bad they suck. This one is the first to really test my resolve, so I’d better pull the trigger on it now before I chicken out.

My head crashed against the window pane. Looking through the chill glass, breath frosting over and obscuring my vision, I didn’t want to see through it anyway.

Here’s your weekly dose of the Startup Junkie. Work giving you that sinking feeling? This week, come on over to Colaspot, and learn when to say when.

He tried the door. Locked. He gave it a savage kick, and succeeded in stabbing his toe with pain. That memory was not going to come out from behind that door without a lot more coaxing.

I don’t know if anyone missed it, but I forgot to do my weekly Startup Junkie plug. Here it is:

SJ5: Give the Vultures the Boot

This one’s about the pros of bootstrapping and the cons of venture capital. It’s a bit more on the rant side than my usual fare. Enjoy.

She glanced at her hair in the mirror. Sideways was as close as she could make herself inspect it. She could barely remember stumbling into the salon. Did she really beg for that awful shade of blonde?

I caught this 37 Signals post while feedsurfing tonight. I couldn’t agree with Jason more. Using the term creative to denote designers, writers, artists and the like is as bad as using IT guy (anyone from a Flash animator to a DBA to a network engineer) or suit. It can be construed as elitist, or even derogatory — neither of which helps your corporate culture much. In my experience, the creatives are valued as partners in the decision-making process, while the IT guys are treated as “implementers” and expected to just do the work they’re handed.

Honestly, that’s no small part of my desire to write for a living. I have something to say, and I think someone could benefit from listening. If we have to pick teams, I’d rather be on the “creative” team.

A word floated at the edge of his memory. Obscure though it may be, it was the perfect word for the situation, the way he was feeling. If only he could chase it from the back of his mind and onto his tongue. What was that word?

(continued from here)

The day was crawling past. Anna’s shift had started at eleven; Tuesday and Thursday mornings were for study group. She would be on until six, then it would be thesis work over takeout. Probably Chinese — there was a decent place on the way home — but maybe Italian, if Jeff stopped by and brought something from Leo’s.

She dropped a mocha off at one of the sidewalk tables (Sylvia, she noted; usually a latte drinker — what’s she celebrating?), wound her way back inside, and thought about calling Jeff. He usually had band practice at eight, so her manicotti was riding on whether his boss would keep him late. She glanced over at her purse before deciding against it. When in doubt, choose independence.