I've been running a Karma deficit for a while. I've been taking a lot from the world, leaning heavily on various connections. This is necessary at times, but after a while down in that k-hole you lose some self-respect, you start to worry about burning up all your social capital. You start struggling -- the most important thing is to stop struggling -- and you dig in even deeper. It can turn into quite the little negative feedback loop.

I think I'm back on top of it now though. I have done some contributing to my favorite open-source project, where my #drupal karma was waaaay off. I helped Mark out with the Sixto surgery fundraiser, which felt especially good as I was the one horsing around with the dog when he had the accident. I need to dig in and do some shitwork at the office, where I've been leaning too hard on my colleagues, but just knowing that I think I can get it right.

The world is a nicer place when you're a nice person. It's true: look it up.

Life, or at least life-well-lived, is partly about Service. Often times I take that word with demeaning overtones. My first thought is Wal*Mart and the condition of servitude implied by that which we call the service industry. My second thought is of the way I hate being with people who hassle waiters even when they're not paying us enough attention. But there's another side to this -- which would probably be higher on my mind if I were a religious sonofabitch -- in that humanity is not an ego-centric enterprise.