None other than Matt Cybulsky sent me this clip of a true prodigy named Jennifer Lin playing some classical stuff in front of a large audience, but to really see what makes this girl stand out, you need to scroll about 2/3 of the way through the clip and see what she does to interact with the audience (and what famous audience member participates in her little stunt) ... very, very incredible. The girl is very self-aware about how she creates her art (listen to her speak somewhere around the middle of the clip) and it shows in her limitless range on the keys and ability to go from graceful, delicate tones to all-out displays of power and then back again. Hard to believe she's only 14 years old.

On another musical note, I caught some of American Idol while waiting for Lori to return from her short course tonight at Vandy and was amazed to see the show allow a 60-something man "audition" by singing a song to his late wife. It was a moment of rare dignity for a show known more for the way it destroys all dignity of various contestants during the audition process. It was jarring to see something of that worth inbetween "the female Taylor Hicks" (don't ask, or watch, for that matter) and "Sparkles" (again, a horrific experience that I would hate to pass along to anyone else who was fortunate enough to not see it).

Tomorrow, off to Birmingham. Now, off to bed.

10-song playlist on the ol' iPod for heading out of Phoenix tomorrow after a great meeting this morning:

John Mayer - Stop This Train
Angie Aparo - Green Into Gold
Black Lab - Dream In Color (one of my favorite songs, like, EVER)
A Perfect Circle - 3 Libras
Billy Joel - Famous Last Words
The Fray - All At Once
Ben Folds - Zak and Sara
White Stripes - Blue Orchid
Smashing Pumpkins - 1979
Guster - Either Way

Relaxing in a hotel room in downtown Phoenix...never been to this city before, but I was a huge fan from the moment I walked off the airplane. 70 degree weather in January is like the gift that keeps on giving...

Memo to MSNBC.com editors: I am not interested in Barbaro.
Another related memo to MSNBC.com editors: I will NEVER be interested in reading about Barbaro.
Another somewhat-related memo to MSNBC.com editors: There are more important news stories to report on than having a column about Barbaro's "legacy" headline your front page for the entire day. We have soldiers dying in Iraq, a red-hot political scene unfolding in Washington, and another awesome 24 episode to report about.

This is a horse. I don't want to see articles opining about the prospects of cloning Barbaro (also to be found on MSNBC.com right now) or anything else pertaining to ANY ANIMAL OF ANY TYPE LEAVING A "LEGACY" ... unbelievable.

To the reporter who actually wrote the column about Barbaro's "legacy," you just wasted hours you could've been reporting on the "legacy" of a soldier that got killed in Iraq today. Or the "legacy" of Hillary Rodham Clinton's failed campaign (oh wait, I'm a couple of years too early here) or the "legacy" of our current President ... or the "legacy" of Jessica Simpson's DirectTV commercials ("I don't know what that is, BUT I WANT IT) ... or not ...

MSNBC, you're generally pretty good about not including garbage on your front page, but not today. Maybe I should publish my own news page and write about the "legacy" of my sandwich for lunch, the "legacy" of my meeting with Qwest tomorrow morning, the "legacy" of my fairly tasty snack on Southwest airlines, the "legacy" of me ironing my shirt in preparation for tomorrow, the "legacy" of this soft bed I'm about to go to sleep on, and the "legacy" of a blog post gone horribly wrong.

Little did I know that the Prince video site I linked to in the last post would be shut down so quickly...here's another link. For those on MySpace, this may be easier to access from logging in and searching for "prince musicology tonight show" or something like that in the videos section.

Try this, for anyone else: http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=1375854149

It's just too good to miss.

This week, its off to Arizona for a telecom meeting and then, toward the end of the week, heading with the iTest crew to Columbus, Georgia. Back on Sunday in time for the Super Bowl.

Quick post before heading off to bed...

I'm excited much, much more than usual about the Super Bowl halftime show, for one simple reason: Prince!

Most people don't know anything about Prince. Oh, they think they do, though: isn't he the sexual deviant that wrote "Purple Rain," oh and maybe that one other song that we heard all the time back in 1999?

Uh, no.

The only thing you need to know about Prince is that a) he's the greatest guitar player in mainstream music and b) one of the greatest songwriters alive. Oh, and let's not forget c) he has a classic, old-school thing for practicing and perfecting live performance.

I'd be really surprised if Prince doesn't perform "Musicology" as part of the halftime show, which is one of his most fun, energetic live songs he's written. If you haven't seen the video of him performing the song on the otherwise boring-as-hell Jay Leno show, watch it NOW: http://www.dailymotion.com/tag/prince+music/video/xvfwn_prince-musicology-live-at-jay-leno

Incredible performance. I mean, what can you say about this guy? He is awesome and is surrounded by all-stars on various other instruments. I love watching this video over and over again.

Yeah, usually the Super Bowl halftime show is an automatic turn of the channel ... but not this time. If you miss Prince, you'll be missing what I can guarantee will be an incredible performance by one of the best musicians alive.

Oh, and Bears 24, Colts 21, in overtime.

FORTUNE magazine has just released its 2007 list of Top 100 Employers. This list is always filled with large companies as well as smaller ones that you've never heard of, but all are deserving for the various approaches they take toward attracting and retaining talent.

#1 this year? Google.

They do some predictable things, like allow flexible working arrangements and hours. They do some unpredictable things, like have on-site oil changes and car washes, and even have 11 on-site gourmet cafeterias serving employees meals like fresh salmon, steak, etc. They offer employees $5,000 if they purchase a hybrid vehicle. They just do a lot of creative things within their HR structure.

Of course, they are extremely demanding as well. One problem with Google is a fascination (held by some top consulting firms too) with hiring only Stanford, MIT, or Harvard graduates, and even then, only those with a 3.7 GPA or above. Apparently, it was some big deal when they reduced their GPA requirement from 3.8 to 3.7 ... lol.

They will be denying themselves some top candidates as a result of this policy, but still, this minor error didn't keep them from ascending to the number 1 spot for 2007.

I believe the most important functional area of a company, in the 21st century, is human resources. And I don't think any other business unit is even close in long-term strategic importance to successful companies.

Thanks in large part to the internet, we've moved from a society where employees stayed at one company for entire careers, to one where employees stay at one company for just a few years before moving on. In response, successful HR people realize that retention is now not a reactive game, where employees who receive job offers elsewhere can then be one-upped by their current company and talked into staying, to a PROACTIVE game where companies must always be raising the bar in terms of perks, compensation, and creating a positive culture for success...or else, employees hit the road so fast that there isn't any time to react.

HR is a battle that successful companies have to win on a daily basis. Keeping star talent happy is simply what this economy requires companies to do. Whether its in a football stadium, or in a corporate boardroom, or in the Googleplex out in California, or wherever it is, talent is scarce...and its nice to see FORTUNE magazine acknowledge the companies that hit the HR home runs every year.

The vision for the iTest is to offer free, best-in-class subject tests to high school students across every major academic subject in order to augment the US educational system. If we ever hope to realize that vision, we're going to have to attract premiere talent across every subject area to help us deliver the product we're looking to create. As 2007 is the first year that the iTest is an employer of more people than just myself, I enjoy being challenged by the FORTUNE magazine's list of top employers to offer those giving up their time and energy working for the iTest the best conditions under which to perform as I possibly can.

The iTest staff will be traveling with Vestavia's math team to Columbus, Georgia, in a couple of weeks to observe a math tournament, as well as to have a "corporate retreat" to discuss goals for this year and how we're going to implement them. Additionally, we'll be discussing how best to handle the first true expansion of the iTest - the iTest CS. The iTest's computer science spinoff will go live, permanently, in the Spring of 2008 and we've got to be prepared.

Welcome to the year 2007.

Random thoughts and comments, since I don't have time to sit and write for long:

1) Titans had an excellent 2006 campaign and are the addition of a quality cornerback and defensive end away from a deep playoff run.
2) Boise State's victory over Oklahoma was unreal.
2a) Every year that Division 1-A college football fails to install a playoff system involving at least 8 teams, I will care less and less about it. This year, I haven't even watched more than one half of any game, and I don't see that changing except perhaps for the title game.
3) The Wii is a monstrous homer by Nintendo in its current battle with Sony and Microsoft, and should see some really creative software in the second wave of titles beginning this spring/summer.
4) Go see We Are Marshall.
5) Season 6 of "24" begins on January 14. I am definitely ready.
6) This may be the season I start watching The Apprentice again. YOU'RE FIRED
7) The holidays were great getting to visit family on both sides and having some time to relax as well.
8) Lori and I are contemplating buying a house here in Nashville before this time next year. That will be weird, but is an obvious next step.
9) "Continuum" by John Mayer was the best album released in 2006. Do yourself a favor and go buy it or download it.
10) 2007 predictions: the Chargers win the Super Bowl, the Mets win the World Series, and the economy will hit a snag later this year as the markets top out and the pockets of inflated housing prices collapse around the country.
11) Time to go, I'm tired.