The May Report: 8/23/2011: Neil Kane, you get the day off from being lambasted since I have a real crook to talk about: Chris Tomes; Bob “Bubba” Geras hits the big 7-4 on August 22nd and he had his latest parasite surgically removed — just in time — Neil “tumor” Kane; Paul May to join Neil in the TMR stockade since he is the genius who suggested that I use Comcast for cable, internet, and phone and that storm on Saturday knocked out my phone and internet; What’s all this talk about Groupon owning a piece of Chicago’s inner sanctum on Michigan Avenue with the Wrigley building?

_________________________________
**********************************
Starting a Drupal Project?
Managing a Drupal Website?

Day 1: Managing Enterprise Drupal Projects

FOR: Marketing or IT Professionals embarking on an enterprise Drupal development project.

Learn how to orchestrate, budget and launch your Drupal project without draining the budget and the development teams.

Thursday, September 22, 2011. Full Day training $295

www.duoconsulting.com/training/successfully-managing-enterprise-drupal-projects

Day 2: Drupal 6 Site Administration

FOR: Companies and organizations looking to learn more about Drupal.

Understand content types and website construction using the Drupal framework.

Friday, September 23, 2011 Full Day training: $295

www.duoconsulting.com/training/drupal-6-site-administration

****************************************
__________________________
TABLE OF CONTENTS
The Scoop section:
– Groupon Isn’t Moving to Wrigley Building
– Christopher Tomes
– Robert Leshner: Introduction to drawn.to
– Wed. August 24: Social Media Club Chicago
– Wed. August 24: Bootstrappers Breakfast – Chicago Meetup
– Mon. August 29: MoMo Networking Mixer & App Demo

[Editor's Note: May here. The frustration of the last few days is hard to describe. That thunderstorm on Saturday knocked out my internet connection and my phone lines. Comcast, which is a piece of **it, says they will be at my apartment between 10am and 1pm Wednesday. My plan is to hightail it down to the Bootstrappers'Breakfast at 7:30am and get back before 10am. Then, once my computer is up and running, I have a lot of material for you, including my write-up on Kevin Willer and the CEC, three or four stacks of cards collected at Tech Week and Tech Cocktail. Then I'm planning to go to SMCC on N. Southport. Tim Courtney, I will email you for a press pass for SocDevCamp this weekend, but I won't be able to get there until mid-afternoon on saturday since I have dialysis. I would also like to attend MoMo on Monday.

The party on Thursday at the new office space for Doejo was so good and stimulating I was thinking of following in the footsteps of Chris Tomes (see below) but I don't have his kind of money or stamina, if you know what I mean. I have a complete "hot babe" list for you from that party. I went home around 11pm but when I left a lot of people were just getting there. On Monday, because of my computer situation, I went to the offices of Doejo and they were kind enough to give me a mac to work on. I was also there on Friday to do a voice-over for the planned May Day Roast on October 14th and we did have a good time on Friday afternoon. Monday, to be honest, they were hard at work and I didn't really want to bother them. I'm still trying to get a good head count. I would be willing to believe that they have at least 25 employees, but it could be as high as 35, because a number of people work off-site and they have people circulating in and out all the time. My information is that Phil Tadros is planning to drop a dime on NelsonCash for absconding with one of their prized clients, Strobe out of San Fransisco. Doejo did the branding and logo and, I believe, that NelsonCash is doing the web development. I made a point of talking to the staff of Doejo when Phil was not in the office, so that people could speak more freely. The general sense that I got was that the people in the office do not respect the guys who left to start NelsonCash because they walked off with existing business. Now as I understand it, there was a venture capital guy from Russia named Yuri Ratner who appeared out of left field and attempted to pick off some Doejo people and for all I know Yuri Ratner could be funding NelsonCash.

There is much more to talk about, but this computer is costing me six dollars per hour and the typing services of my friend Julia, who has done a very good job typing the cards.

Paul must be feeling guilty about Comcast, because today he promised me a brand new laptop, fully loaded which I can take with me to various coffee shops and to meetings, and he's been pushing for me to get an iPhone. Plus a new TV since the screen on my TV went out some time in April. For most of what I listen to it doesn't matter, I don't need to see Brian Williams. It would have helped for the Royal Wedding, which I saw at the dialysis clinic and I am sure that Wimbeldon, the Masters and the US Open would have been easier to watch with a screen, but you would be amazed by how much more carefully I "watch" movies on TMC when I don't have a picture. So maybe this four days of aggravation will pay off since my brother's guilt feelings will result in much better gadgetry. Lastly, one of my top priorities is to get the new web site launched by Labor Day.]
____________________________
The Scoop section:
_________________
Groupon Isn’t Moving to Wrigley Building

blogs.wsj.com/deals/2011/08/22/groupon-isnt-moving-to-wrigley-building/

Groupon Isn’t Moving to Wrigley Building

Don’t look for a Groupon deal on moving vans anytime soon.

Crain’s Chicago Business reported that founders of the toddler daily-deals company are in discussions to buy one of the Windy City’s most venerable edifices, the 90-year-old Wrigley Building, to house Groupon and other startups. We were looking forward to Groupon’s antics gracing the Magnificent Mile icon.

Too bad. Groupon said it has no plans to move into the Wrigley building.

“Our space needs are more than taken care of for the foreseeable future,” Brad Williams, a spokesman for Groupon, told Deal Journal.

Now, it’s possible that Groupon’s co-founders, Brad Keywell and Eric Lefkofsky, are planning to make a splashy Wrigley Building purchase for Lightbank, their private investment firm. But Groupon won’t be part of those plans. Lefkofsky declined to comment through a spokesman.

Groupon said it has a lease in its current headquarters, the former Montgomery Ward building, until 2017. The company says its HQ and several other buildings give Groupon enough flexibility to keep adding employees. Groupon had 37 employees at the end of June 2009, and more than 9,600 as of June 30 this year.

____________________________
Christopher Tomes

Christopher Tomes
X
Inbox
X
Reply
from Name and E-Mail Withheld even though not requested
to ron@themayreport.com
date Fri, Aug 19, 2011 at 10:23 AM
subject Christopher Tomes
mailed-by comcast.net
Important mainly because of the words in the message.
hide details Aug 19 (5 days ago)

Hi Ron,

Not sure if you are interested but I have some new information on Christopher Tomes. I have seen in the past when he was in Chicago that you identified what a snake he was and continues to be. He moved to Michigan after he was run out of Chicago and this is where my association with him began. Myself and about eight other people bought into his charm and charisma and got involved with his new company ICTV either working for and with him or supported his efforts financially until we all came to our senses and understood that we were being led down the road of being involved with a crook. While we built the software and were trusting him too much (until we discovered more of his past activities) we finally realized he was going to bring us all down with him eventually if we continued. Everyone associated with him left and we formed a new company. Chris was using investor money to support his lifestyle and not paying his developers as he was claiming the money was being used to pay business bills.

We left the beginning of May and started the process of legally trying to recoup our investments. He moved back to Toronto to escape some of these issues and the reason I am reaching out to you is we just uncovered that he has found some new developers to write new apps. Some of these developers are in the Chicago area and while we are aware that getting our money back is going to be next to impossible. We have all decided that we do not want anyone else to be as stupid as we are as we ignored the warning signs and did not investigate him and his background enough. His business model is the same as it has always been and that is to get investment dollars and spend them as they are his for personal use. Our final straw is when one of the employees showed up at his house (home office) and found two h**kers and a pile of coc***e at his house when he owed one specific developer over 100k in back pay.

If you are interested in further details please feel free to respond and I can be more specific to his activities.
____________________________
Robert Leshner: Introduction to drawn.to

from
Robert Leshner robertleshner@yahoo.com
reply-to
Robert Leshner
to
“ron@themayreport.com”
date
Mon, Aug 22, 2011 at 5:12 PM
subject
Introduction to drawn.to
mailed-by
yahoo.com
signed-by
yahoo.com

Important mainly because of the people in the conversation.

hide details 5:12 PM (18 minutes ago)

Ron,

I’m the founder and ceo of drawn.to and we’re a Chicago startup that has been in stealth mode building a social event platform to take on eventbrite and the other ticketing websites. I wanted to introduce myself while we’re still in alpha/proof of concept and quiet. In the next few weeks we’re going to be unveiling a massive site overhaul, some key hires, and some really big news as we open up to the world. I’m a fan of the May Report and dig what you’re doing. If you want a tour of our platform before we release it let me know. Best,

Robert

Robert Leshner
Founder, drawn.to

___________________________________
Wed. August 24: Social Media Club Chicago

socialmediaclub.org/event/social-media-club-chicago-summer-social-0

Social Media Club Chicago “Summer Social”
Wed. August 24 2011
5:30pm – 8:30pm
Crossing Tavern
2548 N. Southport
Chicago, IL
United States
41° 55′ 42.3048″ N, 87° 39′ 48.7404″ W
See map: Google Maps
Tags
Social Media Networking SMCChicago chicago
Summer Social

Social Media Club Chicago is heading to Crossing Tavern on August 24 for a relaxing evening on the patio that will focus on socializing.

5:30 – 6:30 Check-in and Socializing
6:30 – 7:30 Socializing
7:30 – 8:30 More Socializing

Tickets include food, and one ticket for selected beverage.

MARKETING SPONSOR

SocialDevCamp Taking place August 26-28, SocialDevCamp Chicago is a weekend conference + unconference + hackathon all about making the most of the social web. It’s the event for social app and platform developers, mobile developers, strategists, evangelists, and enthusiasts. At SocialDevCamp you’ll join hundreds of passionate developers and creators for a weekend of robust talks on social platforms, apps, APIs, mobile experiences, identity management, and new media.

Social Media Club Chicago

Social Media Club [SMC] is a worldwide organization, with local chapters, that serves as connecting organization for anyone interested in social media. Membership is free and open to all levels, including beginners. Chicago’s SMC chapter, launched in October 2008, presents events that mix socializing, networking and learning. Barbara Rozgonyi [@wiredprworks], founder and Jeff Willinger [@jwillie], president, lead the Chicago SMC chapter. Amy Korin [@interactiveamy] coordinates volunteers; Tim McDonald [@tamcdonald] manages communications; Jeannie Walters [@jeanniecw] oversees logistics; and Alex Levine [@alexklevine] student/young professional outreach. Event attendees include entrepreneurs, corporate communicators, journalists, business professionals, publishers, marketers, media creators, citizen journalists, students and technology types. For more information, visit smcchicago.org, email smcchicagonews@gmail.com, follow @smcchicago on twitter, or call 630.207.7530 or 312-970-0846.

_________________________
Wed. August 24: Bootstrappers Breakfast – Chicago Meetup

www.meetup.com/Bootstrappers-Breakfast-Chicago/events/27068681/

Bootstrappers Breakfast – Chicago Meetup
Wednesday, August 24, 2011, 7:30 AM

SELECTED BY: GRIFFIN CAPRIO
Cafe 300
300 N LaSalle St, Chicago, IL (map)

SELECTED BY: GRIFFIN CAPRIO
Price: $5.00/advance $10 at the door
Refund policy

- For first time attendees, read our Rules
- Cost is a small fee to offset the coordination cost, everyone pays for their own meal; we will park ourselves at one or more tables ( as needed ).

- The other attendees will all be in startups. It will be a chance to compare notes on operational, development, and business issues with peers. www.bootstrappersbreakfast.com

Bootstrappers Breakfast Chicago is run by Griffin Caprio, a technologist and entrepreneur who has been helping companies of all shapes and sizes with their technology needs for more than a decade. The other moderators all run Chicago based businesses.

Grab a cup of coffee and join us for great conversation.

____________________________
Mon. August 29: MoMo Networking Mixer & App Demo

www.meetup.com/momo-chicago/events/28173641/

Networking Mixer & App Demo
Monday, August 29, 2011, 6:00 PM

SELECTED BY: TRACE JOHNSON
Bin 36
339 N Dearborn St, Chicago, IL (map)

SELECTED BY: VIVEK VAID

Summer is almost over, the mobile hackathon on Saturday (Aug 27th) will be exhausting. Its time for a drink and some fun.

Our friends from Nokia are hosting a networking mixer and app demo at the classy Bin 36 (yea no pizza this time!). We have Dave Bost – Developer Evangelist, from Microsoft doing a presentation on Mango App Development and a Nokia representative talking about upcoming programs and training.

If anyone wants to demo, please contact me or Sheena at [masked].

Join this Meetup to add comments or questions.

VIVEK VAID

Join this Meetup to add comments or questions.

Will you attend?

Join us! 5 days
left
55 attending

EVENT HOST
Vivek Vaid
organizer

EVENT HOST
Trace Johnson
co-organizer

Wanda

Tim

Nathan Kraft

Fred Smith

Jessica Nelson

Helmut

Bob Kustudik

Sheena Chandok

David Klotz

David I.

Michael

Mark Ferry

David Allen

Nancy Stronczek Hernandez

Ryan Flynn

Kimberly Chulis

Todor Krecu

Nineveh Zoduo

Pallavi Anderson

william romanchek

Veronica Ludwig

Joe Nedumgottil

Bruce Montgomery

Cory James Hohs

Rick

Wee Witthawaskul

Tim Curley

Ji Lucas

Phil Garofalo

Mark Thompson

ap

Hector
+1 guest

Scott Cotter

Nicholas Paredes

Cezar Kolodziej

Emil

Steven Si

YarnUiPhoneApp

Jim Brady
+1 guest

Igor Matlin

David Perczynski

Jessie Hitch

Lisa Brown

Matthew David

Dave Bost

Brian Gillet

Janet

Mike Maddaloni

Chelsey Lambert

John Henkel
+1 guest
______________________________
END OF REPORT