I saw the gumball machine. That settled it.That sealed the deal for me in needing to work at Me.dium.I’m not kidding. Seeing the red gumball machine sitting there in the entry way to the area where all ‘the big guys’ worked (at their very fashonable 3′ by 6′ plastic folding table desks) was all the rest I needed to know.I still had a couple of interviews to complete (including the one which was about to happen with Kimbal, the CEO) so I felt a bit of added pressure on myself along the lines of “Okay Birdsong, don’t mess up here.”Kimbal and I talked mostly about gourmet cooking (he is a chef and so was my father), and the latest Disney/Pixar movie, “Ratatouille” (I’m a life-long animation fanatic).The significance of the red gumball machine is this: my wife and I own a yellow gumball machine which is nearly identical to the “Me.dium gumball”, except for color, of course. Our yellow gumball machine has always been an indicator for me of the ‘true spirit’ of my employer at a given time.If I brought it into my office and it was accepted with open arms, I knew I was off to a good start. You would think that would be a ‘no brainer’ since I always introduced it to the office full of gumballs, or M&M’s, but you would be sadly surprised.Folks at Me.dium loved having a second gumball machine in the office. “Step One” accomplished.The second test is always the telling one. Will coworkers help refill the machine after it has been emptied for the first time? To me, that has always spoken volumes about the real environment of company and workplace. I’ve been at too many places where they failed the second test miserably.Here at Me.dium, it has been a ’slam dunk’ / ‘aced the test’ result. Even though some people in the office have (rightfully) accused me to being the biggest consumer of candy from the gumball machines; the machines never run empty. Someone in the office ALWAYS makes sure there are several types of M&M’s, etc. in the yellow gumball machine.To me, that says everything. It is not the ‘grand and flashy’ things that people do that have a positive influence. It is the little and everyday things that show you everyone believes we are in this ‘quest for social browsing’ together, and that we will help make the “Web 2.0″ a real and important technology inovation.Enough preaching on my part, but seriously I do love my job here at Me.dium.

Dudeofmusic here with this week’s music pick, The New Deal’s self-titled debut album, “The New Deal.” I had initially intended to review Interpol’s latest album, “Our Love to Admire,” but I felt that we all needed a bit of a musical pick-me-up with it being Monday and all. So with that in mind, have a listen to the live instrumental house insanity that is The New Deal. The trio’s grooves are largely improvisational, so if you like what you hear, then seeing these guys live is the next step.From a musician’s perspective, The New Deal has mastered three key elements to playing this style of live house music. The first element is understanding the role of your instrument. Obviously this element is intrinsic to any style of music, but in live improvisational house music it is vital. For instance, if you’re the bassist then you’re responsible for keeping bodies in motion. You are the medium between the rhythmic and melodic aspects of the music. As George Clinton would say, you’ve got to be, “dedicated to the preservation of the motion of hips.” Often this involves playing simple and repetitive bass lines, which can become quite monotonous. But once you master your role, you can indulge your creative impulses.This leads us to the second key element, listening to the other instruments. In terms of live improvisational house music, the melodic instruments will generally play simple themes and repetitive phrases. As the bassist you have to react to these themes in the context of your role (keeping bodies in motion). Your reaction will influence what the drummer plays as well as what the melodic instrument plays. In this sense the flow and feel of the music is constantly in flux as you are continuously reacting to the other instruments. Think of it in terms of a conversation between three people - one person talks, another responds, and so on. Sometimes there are lulls in the conversation, while other times the conversation becomes intense. But you can’t have a successful conversation unless all the participants are listening.And this takes us to the third and perhaps key element of live house music - the build. In a nutshell the build is basically where the music intensifies and the energy of the song climbs to a peak and pops - it’s the climax of the song. Have a listen to “Technobeam” on “The New Deal.” The first six and a half minutes of this song are an intricate build. For a build to be successful, the musicians must know the role of their particular instrument, and be able to listen and respond effectively to the other instruments. The bassist reacts to the melody, the drummer reacts to the bassist’s reaction, which in turn influences the bassist and keyboardist and so on. For example, let’s say the keyboardist repeats a simple theme, which influences the bassist to play a repetitive single note. The drummer may respond by cutting out the bass drum while lightly tapping on the high hat. Slowly through this interplay the music will take on different dimensions as the musicians continually react to each other in the context of their instrument’s role. Eventually the build up will lead to a breaking point, where the musicians embrace a central theme and rhythm. And that is the build. Check out “Self Orbit” on “The New Deal” for another great example.Also, be sure to check out The New Deal on Rhapsody where they feature a great live set from 2005. I leave you with The New Deal’s 2002 highlight video. Enjoy!

At least that was my idea at the end of January 2007. I had worked for three different ’start up’ high technology companies in just over nine years. Two of them are now incredibly successful, and the third is well on its way. I thought I needed a break for a few months.I just wanted to volunteer for the Lance Armstrong Foundation (LAF)2007 LIVESTRONG Challenges, get a job in my local favorite bike shop, ride my bicycle 2500 miles across much of the USA this August, and raise a TON of money for cancer foundations that have helped us over the years. My wife and I are both cancer survivors.Plans don’t always come together the way you think they will. On the plus side, I am a “Regional Mentor” for the 2007 LIVESTRONG Challenges, and I am on schedule in raising money for the LAF. On the “wait ’til next year” side, the bike shop was fully staffed, and my scheduled is now filled for August. While the bike shop passed on me, Me.dium found my resume’ on the Internet in early June (I had forgotten it was there), and wanted to talk to me. “The Sidebar” and the opportunity were just too great to pass up an interview. From the beginning people in Me.dium have been very interested in my work with the LAF and the idea of corporate philanthropy in general.One thing led to another. A week and a half into my new job as a C++ “Softwarist” on Microsoft Vista here at Me.dium, I approached Dean with a rather unusual marketing idea. “Why don’t we turn our next product release into a philanthropy event? We are not a ‘typical’ type of company. Why not do something different, and make a difference?”Plans are in the works here at Me.dium and moving beyond any ideas and hopes I initally had. Stay tuned, this part of the important and cool stuff that needs to be part of “Web 2.0″. I will do everything I can to help.So the 2500 mile ride on US Route 66 won’t happen this year, but I still plan to raise as much money for the Lance Armstrong Foundation and the John Wayne Cancer Foundation.Stay tuned.

We feature a different user each week as our Me. of the Week and give them an open mic to share their online world with the entire Me.dium community. Just shout if you’d like to be featured.We’ve got a special treat this week as Michael Birdsong - aka songbird in Me.dium - is the first Me.dium employee to be featured. He describes himself as a tall, slow marathon runner and road cyclist who works as a software engineer in Colorado to make ends meet. He’s also proud to be a Regional Mentor (CO, KS, MT, NE, WY) for the Lance Armstrong Foundation LIVESTRONG Challenge Events this year.Take it away, Michael…

Our friends over at Feed Me. Bubbe have some news that they’ll be announcing live in Me.dium today at 1:30 PM Eastern (GMT -4). Please join Bubbe and Avrom (rpggame to the Me.dium crowd) in the chat over at Chalutz Productions to get the inside scope.See you there.