September 20, 2004

• “Bursting the Internet Bubble”: The WebVan Fleet

  
  

  

  
  

  “Your groceries are ready and they want to come over.”

  
  

  Remember WebVan? In the “early days” of the “internet boom”, there were a couple of masterminds who thought people would bo crazy for a chance to shop for groceries on the internet. I still have a refrigerator magnet for HomeGrocer.com, which was soon purchased by the WebVan company, their chief “competition”. Back in the days when the “internet refrigerator” was still a buzzword, some otherwise intelligent businessmen felt that time strapped ”regular folks” really wanted to squeeze virtual produce. The concept of buying groceries online didn’t take off as easily as buying CDs or books.  For some reason, when the WebVan company went out of business, a company in our Business Park bought three of the refrigerated trucks (probably at auction). Every day when I take my “walk” twice around the Business Center perimeter, I pass the back parking lot of the AR Telecom Company, where the trucks are parked. At first, about two years ago, I thought perhaps the company that bought these trucks was going into the internet food delivery service too, but that is not the case. The trucks have been parked in the same space (where they went to die) since they arrived in the park. Each day, when I am on my walk, I have thought of taking some photos of these trucks. It sort of seems like this is an illustration of the Internet Boom and Bust. From the looks of these trucks, there is certainly nothing wrong with them. In fact, they have probably been parked now for most of their existence. A  few weeks ago, the company which now owns the trucks, displayed “For Sale” signs on the windows and on the back doors. This is on a property at the back end of the Business Park, so you would have to be looking very closely to even see that they are for sale.  As the weeks drag by, a bottle brush tree overlooking one of the trucks has shed it’s bristles, covering the top and hood of the nearest truck. I wanted to “show” this anomaly by photographing the trucks. The “photos” I envisioned taking were clearer than what actually turned out, but I finally took these photos on Friday when I had to bring my digital camera in to work to take some “fashion photography” of some of our switches for our corporate website.

  
  

  

  
  

   I wanted to show the “disuse” of the trucks, and it doesn’t really look as desolate to me in the images as it does when I pass by every day, but this is one of the “photo projects” I can now cross off my list. (The other is photographing the many jacaranda trees in bloom in Long Beach during the spring.) This past weekend was uneventful. I’m trying to save money, so I’m relying on rented videos as my “entertainment” instead of going out and spending money. I spend money for the rented videos, but a feature matinee at the AMC (the 20 screen megaplex where I see most first run fare) is now EIGHT DOLLARS. I almost went to see “Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow” on Sunday, but thought better of it, and since the film was Number 1 over the weekend, I’m glad I’m waiting. I don’t like to see popular new releases in a crowded theater. I always wait a few weeks when the “hoopla” has died down, and another film is “movie du jour” with the audience. Healthwise, my left arm is still exhibiting signs of being “asleep” but I almost could summon the strength to cut my fingernails this morning, and I believe the muscles are strengthening again. There is no pain anymore, but I am “careful” not to turn sharply or otherwise “irritate” my left shoulder. The doctor has not called me back on my “nerve tests”, however, and I did call last week as a “reminder” that the condition has not “gone away”. This week I go to an optometrist to have an eye exam, and hopefully get new progressive lenses. I believe the sight in my left eye is “changing” differently than my right, and at times my left sight is quite “blurry”. I know that getting older increases the effect of glaucoma, and a number of other “eye diseases” so I do not treat this cavalierly at all, although I should be going in for a “yearly eye exam” every year, and not when I need glasses. I think I got my progressives about three years ago, and I waited for two years before actually ordering the progressives. I haven’t weighed myself this morning, but I didn’t drink beer last week, and only had a few “malt liquors” over the weekend, so have hopefully dropped a few pounds. I was up over 172 last Monday, after not watching my weight all summer. Now that summer’s almost over, it’s time to start “getting healthy” again. Of course, I do want to go to the L.A. County Fair this coming weekend, and I always eat too much “fair food”, so we’ll see……

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