billso.com

From tomorrow’s New York Times comes a sobering examination of the dominant blogging business model.

“I haven’t died yet,” said Michael Arrington, the founder and co-editor of TechCrunch, a popular technology blog. The site has brought in millions in advertising revenue, but there has been a hefty cost. Mr. Arrington says he has gained 30 pounds in the last three years, developed a severe sleeping disorder and turned his home into an office for him and four employees. “At some point, I’ll have a nervous breakdown and be admitted to the hospital, or something else will happen.”

“This is not sustainable,” he said.

I discussed blogging for a living on 27 March 2008, but I didn’t discuss stress. Two prominent technology bloggers, Russell Shaw and March Orchant, have died in the last 5 months.

Some bloggers have decided to chase the headlines, and post up-to-the-minute comments about news events. For a solo blogger who is also managing their own comments and web site, the duties can pile up. Another blogger mentioned in the Times article, 22-year old Matt Buchanan of Gizmodo, sleeps about 5 hours a day, and drinks protein supplement lattes to stay buzzed.

“There’s no time ever — including when you’re sleeping — when you’re not worried about missing a story,” Mr. Arrington said.

“Wouldn’t it be great if we said no blogger or journalist could write a story between 8 p.m. Pacific time and dawn? Then we could all take a break,” he added. “But that’s never going to happen.”

One advantage of blogging in Honolulu is that I can check the news later in the day, before the East Coast bloggers really get rolling.

Exercise also helps me a lot. I go running early in the morning, partly to get away from the computer as the US news cycle is full swing.

On Tuesday, 8 April 2008, I’ll post an article about how I manage billso.com and avoid some of the issues I’ve discussed in this article. When that a

One of my HPU colleagues, Sam Chepkevich, appears in this morning’s Honolulu Star-Bulletin. A photographer got a nice picture of Sam on his morning run around Diamond Head.

The accompanying article discusses the Hawaii Physical Activity and Nutrition Surveillance Report, which was released yesterday. The study’s results are another piece of evidence that many Hawaii residents do not exercise enough, nor do they eat properly.

Children aren’t getting enough exercise, which sets them up for a lifetime of health problems including obesity, hypertension and diabetes. I see plenty of overweight children and young adults every day, as I drive, walk and run around town. I’m surprised that some of these kids can get so heavy, since they cannot seem to sit still for a minute or two. They’d rather fidget and run around, even when they are eating a meal.

Guess who foots the bill for their health care? Everyone else in the state, through increased prices that help cover our mounting health insurance bills. Here’s a picture of a Chinese teenager who is a fine example.

Health: Research done at the European Space Agency indicates that if you don’t use your back muscles regularly, they “turn off” and become inactive. People can reactivate the muscles through visualization techniques and exercise. Astronauts often suffer from back pain.

Tech: The Merci Retriever removes blood clots from the brain. If you start tasting almonds when you’re not eating anything, you might be having a stroke. Get to the ER fast.

World: According to Boing Boing, only 25% of condoms are used “properly” in India. India has been passing a billion free condoms each year, but resourceful indians use these prophylactics for portable water storage, waterproofing roads and roofs, convenient machinery lubrication, and gun barrel dust covers. So much for protecting the public health.