Highly Kaffeinated

The plan for today’s episode fell behind last night when I started experiencing some minor complications after my surgical procedure. It went completely awry when I got in this morning to an email from the folks at Apture letting us know that going forward we would no longer be able to edit and deliver content in the manner this site is built around unless we rebuild it, and all of its arms, in another location from the ground up. We had no warning of this, and they’ve failed to specify a timeline.

Right now we’re scrambling to compensate, and waiting with baited breath on a response from someone in support as to whether they have a solution or are just leaving us, friends, and associates out in the cold to clean up the mess. As a result, today’s episode is being delayed until Monday. I’m sorry guys, but it was unavoidable. The things we can control are running soothly, but the things we can’t, like Apture, are in limbo. This on top of my own recovery has proven a bit much.

We’ll keep you posted as the situation develops, and talk more about it on the podcast this Monday.

Update on Friday, January 29, 2010 at 4:42PM by Kaffeinated

Just spoke to someone at Apture, and I think we’re going to be just fine. They’ve got some great stuff coming in the future, and between their offerings and our design team, things are looking better - not worse. I’m thrilled to be able to stick with Apture for what we’re doing, though in some ways it will be changing forms.

Keep an eye on these guys, and expect great things to come. Their responsiveness, willingness to communicate, and ability to work with us took a negative experience and turned it over, leaving them standing head and shoulders above most web companies. The whole issue can probably be put down to one poorly worded email, but in light of how exceptionally well they’ve handled it we consider it completely forgivable.

Our recommendation still stands: If you’re not using Apture on your site or blog already, you should.

As some of you may have heard, over the last few days I’ve been having chest pains, which ultimately caused me to cave in and see a cardiologist. I’m glad I did. During my first visit and round of tests, multiple abnormalities were found with my heart. In essence, a portion of my ticker is grossly enlarged, and there are indications that there is a hole or tear between chambers. Currently I’m being medicated to lower the risk of an issue while I get ready for my first procedure.

Relax, I’m not about to drop dead yet. This is correctable, and that’s exactly what we’re doing.

As a result of all this, our Wednesday broadcasts had to be cut short, and my first ever TV appearance had to be postponed. Currently I am prepping for a cardiac catheterization procedure on Monday and a round of tests tomorrow. As a result, the podcast and live shows will be taking a break for about a week, and we expect to return to you on Friday the 29th with our first “post-op” episode. In the meantime, our contributors will be handling the site, pimping our new charity fund, and handling communications for me.

In the course of all this I have received over 100 emails in less than 24 hours, numerous phone calls, and a whole lot of well wishing. I even got a message from a conservative preacher letting me know that he was praying I’d die on the table “to save America.”

To our audience and our fans: THANK YOU. I cannot express this as deeply as I’d like to in a simple blog post. I am here because of you. I’ve hung on through all of this with the suport and love of my friends and family and the rallying cries of my listeners. I will not stop. I will not back down, and I will not give up — every time I stumble I need only look at my inbox to remind myself of why. It’s because of you guys that I have the strength to get through this, and I could never thank you enough.

-Neils