- Bought a gift certificate for my dad's birthday, since I couldn't think of anything else to get him after a week of trying.
- Learned that instead of five weeks away, my next turn at the front counter is in two weeks.
- Got a new plan for how to use the new system at work, by using the new system as little as possible!
- Took a pee. In the potty! Aimed for the freakin' bee. Left a pee for the next guy to take.
- Took one break 30 minutes late and didn't get a chance to take the other.
- Felt grateful for my parents.
- Even the best option is worse than the old system.
- Didn't talk like a fucking pirate once!
- Read not nearly enough pages of my book.
- Ate the last of some leftovers, this was day five. Don't think I'm sick of the meal, though.
- Resisted the urge to explain to my supervisor why rotation is stupid and specialization would work better.
- Listened as the left earphone died.
- Thought about cheesy, garlicky, mashed potatoes that will be made tomorrow.
- Moved all my crap back to my desk from the front counter desk.
- Walked around clicking my pen.
- Wondered why people I work with don't read much.
- Worried about the state's budget, even if it does get signed this time.
- Disappointed in my reaction to learning my cousin was in the hospital. Am I only occasionally such a bad person or am I always such a bad person?
- Thought horrible thoughts.
- Hopefully helped some people at the front counter.
- Farted.
Friday, September 19, 2008
Things I Did Today...
Thursday, September 18, 2008
Can The End Times Move a Bit Faster? Please?
Last week, it was fun to complain with others about the shit-tastic program that we're forced to use. This week, it's more sad.
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
"MY VETO!"
The beginning of this article:
California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger risked further political isolation yesterday when he announced that he would veto a budget deal reached by Republicans and Democrats in the state legislature.This month, I was supposed to get my yearly pay increase.
The deal aimed to put an end to an 80-day impasse over the state's $15.2bn (£8.4bn) budget gap. But Schwarzenegger rejected the compromise dubbing it a "tax increase with a smoke screen on it", and saying that it would push the problems into next year.
"It kicks that can down the alley," Schwarzenegger told a press conference in Sacramento. "I say enough is enough. Californians have been through this roller-coaster ride too many times and so this is why, when they send me a budget, I will veto it."
But legislators from both parties promised to oppose a veto and immediately return the budget to the governor's desk. Assembly leaders professed confidence that they could muster the two-thirds majority necessary to challenge the governor.
In turn Schwarzenegger said he would respond by sending "the hundreds of bills that sit on my desk back to legislators with my veto".
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
Lended
Got my student loan statement/bill yesterday. I owe $3001.20. I have more than that in my savings account. Would really like to pay the damn thing off.
Should I?
Should I?
Monday, September 15, 2008
Sausted
Haven't slept well since this whole thing started. Weird dreams. (Question: Do you more often dream in the first or third person?) Erratically waking in the night even when I don't need to pee. Don't wake up more tired, but don't feel rested, either.
Work saps much brain power. Leave here very tired.
Sometimes don't want to go back to my apartment, but where else would I go?
Sorry for shitty life posts.
Work saps much brain power. Leave here very tired.
Sometimes don't want to go back to my apartment, but where else would I go?
Sorry for shitty life posts.
Sunday, September 14, 2008
Saturday, September 13, 2008
Friday, September 12, 2008
3 Fucking Years
Yesterday completed three full years at this job. 1096 days with this job. 157840 minutes.
God, I wish I were happy about this.
Three years ago, I'm not supposed to be here still.
Here was my reasonable, if a little rose colored, plan:
1. Work and do a good job.
2. Take any tests that were available to me.
3. 12 to 18 months after being hired, find a job somewhere there is potential for growth.
4. Move to other job, perhaps in the same clerking position, but hopefully in a higher class.
5. Work and do a good job.
6. Take tests that could move me up the pay ladder.
7. In time bump up a level because they know I do my work.
8. Buy a house with a healthy bit of land five to seven years later.
9. Retire when I'm 65.
What's happened:
1. Worked hard and did a pretty good job.
2. Took the one test I'm qualified for, that was offered in the last three years, only to have the score eliminated six month, and two failed interviews, later even though the score was supposed to last for two years.
3. Been to about a dozen more interviews.
4. Paid off two student loans and pulled down my credit card debt to a point where I can pay it in full each month and now have actual money in savings account.
5. Broke a car miles from anywhere, got it towed, repaired it, engine started smoking.
6. Spent twenty dollars and saw my brother happier and more excited than I ever remember seeing him.
7. Free car from my parents, tire pops on way to their house for Christmas. Also tore the break line.
8. Tortured by worst computer program I've ever worked with.
9. Between those things, amassed a largish (to me) DVD collection with alternates between making me depressed and happy, which depresses a whole other way.
If the things that I dreamed that seemed reasonable don't happen, even when I work hard to make them happen, what does that mean for the more outlandish, but in the realm of possibility, dreams?
'Course that a rhetorical question. I know what it means.
I shouldn't have come today. I should have stayed in my apartment and just wallowed. I didn't want to feel weak, though.
God, I wish I were happy about this.
Three years ago, I'm not supposed to be here still.
Here was my reasonable, if a little rose colored, plan:
1. Work and do a good job.
2. Take any tests that were available to me.
3. 12 to 18 months after being hired, find a job somewhere there is potential for growth.
4. Move to other job, perhaps in the same clerking position, but hopefully in a higher class.
5. Work and do a good job.
6. Take tests that could move me up the pay ladder.
7. In time bump up a level because they know I do my work.
8. Buy a house with a healthy bit of land five to seven years later.
9. Retire when I'm 65.
What's happened:
1. Worked hard and did a pretty good job.
2. Took the one test I'm qualified for, that was offered in the last three years, only to have the score eliminated six month, and two failed interviews, later even though the score was supposed to last for two years.
3. Been to about a dozen more interviews.
4. Paid off two student loans and pulled down my credit card debt to a point where I can pay it in full each month and now have actual money in savings account.
5. Broke a car miles from anywhere, got it towed, repaired it, engine started smoking.
6. Spent twenty dollars and saw my brother happier and more excited than I ever remember seeing him.
7. Free car from my parents, tire pops on way to their house for Christmas. Also tore the break line.
8. Tortured by worst computer program I've ever worked with.
9. Between those things, amassed a largish (to me) DVD collection with alternates between making me depressed and happy, which depresses a whole other way.
If the things that I dreamed that seemed reasonable don't happen, even when I work hard to make them happen, what does that mean for the more outlandish, but in the realm of possibility, dreams?
'Course that a rhetorical question. I know what it means.
I shouldn't have come today. I should have stayed in my apartment and just wallowed. I didn't want to feel weak, though.
Thursday, September 11, 2008
Today, Like It Appears Yearly, or Something
When I woke up this morning and showered and walked to work and sat at my desk and turned on my computer, it was just the eleventh. Then I started reading my feed and was reminded that today's the eleventh of September.
I leaned back in my chair for a moment and thought about what happened so many years ago. I leaned forward in my chair, read another post and realized that to me, today's just the eleventh. There's no difference between today and yesterday except the shadows are a little longer when I walk to my apartment after work.
I'm not sure when that happened. So, I wondered, has November 22nd ever been just the twenty-second for people born in the US in 1955 or earlier? Did it just sort of happen? Does it ever just not matter?
And, in my twisted way, what makes me feel guilty is how I don't feel guilty for thinking today was like any other piece-of-shit workday.
Anyone else feel like this?
I leaned back in my chair for a moment and thought about what happened so many years ago. I leaned forward in my chair, read another post and realized that to me, today's just the eleventh. There's no difference between today and yesterday except the shadows are a little longer when I walk to my apartment after work.
I'm not sure when that happened. So, I wondered, has November 22nd ever been just the twenty-second for people born in the US in 1955 or earlier? Did it just sort of happen? Does it ever just not matter?
And, in my twisted way, what makes me feel guilty is how I don't feel guilty for thinking today was like any other piece-of-shit workday.
Anyone else feel like this?
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Tuesday, September 09, 2008
Not Commenting
In my experience with computers and various programs, the more you use the easier things get. At the very best, you learn shortcuts you can use to make things go faster and you learn how more advanced features can make things better. At the worst, you get used to it and you work around the problems to finish what needs to get done. Either way, things get easier.
It hasn't worked this way with the new program at work.
Yes, it's only been two and a half weeks, but even in two and a half weeks of using a program, the things you do most often should seem easier because you know the steps.
Nothing has gotten easier. For anyone.
There are not shortcuts. Only the long way.
All the documents in the clerk work queue are called "Document Other Pull" so we have to click to bring up the page where we scroll down so we can click on the name of the doc that opens a new window where we click to allow us to see non-secure items which allows the document to be displayed in a shit Java MSPaint-wanna-be program where the document is way to small to read and we can't just click to make it bigger even though the mouse looks like a magnifying glass because that only makes the image smaller so we have to adjust the percentage or click the plus symbol and then adjust by grabbing the scroll bar, which is way to sensitive and as long as you keep pushing up, it keeps creating more white space to move up in. Oh, and I forgot to mention the 10-30 seconds worth of waiting in between each page or window for the damn thing to load.
And that's all to just view (Yeah, I split a fucking infinitive. English can do it and we should do it. Fucking Normans and their fucking stupid fucking French and its fucking influence on the English language.) the thing to see what it is. After that we decide what we should do with it. Sometimes that mean closing the task (one click) but mostly it means sending it to someone else (like 10 clicks intermixed with typing and searching).
During the last two weeks: I have heard two of the secretaries sob over this. One told me that she's cried more than once. I watched a court reporter throw her mouse at her keyboard. Instances of cussing have increased several times among everyone, and some have stopped doing it under their breath. And one day I felt like grabbing a man, dragging him out of the office and throwing him over the balcony.
I haven't written or replied to any e-mails during these last two weeks and I think I only wrote one response to a blog post. Sure, I'm still reading, but anytime I think of a response, it's more sarcastic than usual or just plain mean. Seems that I've been doing a good job of keeping the meanness and sarcasticness out of the replies I write here, but if it creeps in, it's my fucking blog and I can call a person a shit eating baby fucker if I want to.
It's been real hard to think positive or even neutral.
And at the rate I'm being offered new jobs, I'll never be positive again.
It hasn't worked this way with the new program at work.
Yes, it's only been two and a half weeks, but even in two and a half weeks of using a program, the things you do most often should seem easier because you know the steps.
Nothing has gotten easier. For anyone.
There are not shortcuts. Only the long way.
All the documents in the clerk work queue are called "Document Other Pull" so we have to click to bring up the page where we scroll down so we can click on the name of the doc that opens a new window where we click to allow us to see non-secure items which allows the document to be displayed in a shit Java MSPaint-wanna-be program where the document is way to small to read and we can't just click to make it bigger even though the mouse looks like a magnifying glass because that only makes the image smaller so we have to adjust the percentage or click the plus symbol and then adjust by grabbing the scroll bar, which is way to sensitive and as long as you keep pushing up, it keeps creating more white space to move up in. Oh, and I forgot to mention the 10-30 seconds worth of waiting in between each page or window for the damn thing to load.
And that's all to just view (Yeah, I split a fucking infinitive. English can do it and we should do it. Fucking Normans and their fucking stupid fucking French and its fucking influence on the English language.) the thing to see what it is. After that we decide what we should do with it. Sometimes that mean closing the task (one click) but mostly it means sending it to someone else (like 10 clicks intermixed with typing and searching).
During the last two weeks: I have heard two of the secretaries sob over this. One told me that she's cried more than once. I watched a court reporter throw her mouse at her keyboard. Instances of cussing have increased several times among everyone, and some have stopped doing it under their breath. And one day I felt like grabbing a man, dragging him out of the office and throwing him over the balcony.
I haven't written or replied to any e-mails during these last two weeks and I think I only wrote one response to a blog post. Sure, I'm still reading, but anytime I think of a response, it's more sarcastic than usual or just plain mean. Seems that I've been doing a good job of keeping the meanness and sarcasticness out of the replies I write here, but if it creeps in, it's my fucking blog and I can call a person a shit eating baby fucker if I want to.
It's been real hard to think positive or even neutral.
And at the rate I'm being offered new jobs, I'll never be positive again.
Monday, September 08, 2008
Travel Plans: 3 Months, 3 Travelings
Not that they're exciting.
October: Celebrate Columbus Day by leaving work at 1PM on Friday and staying to Cowtown until Monday. Only two things planned: 1. A brief visit with Grandparents (Friday before I head up to parents' house, or over the weekend if there's already a planned visit with parents and other possible family). 2. Wash laundry without having to bring $10+ in quarters.
November: Early morning flight on a Tuesday to Oregon (theoretically 90 minutes later, which is much better than a 12 hour drive) to spend Thanksgiving with brother (some great art from him) and his girlyfriend. Also hope to buy an on sale Wii and/or DS. I wonder if there's a Wal*Mart near where they live?
December: Christmas in Cowtown. I think brother back east is coming out with his girlyfriend.
If I had the money, the courage, the self-esteem, a passport, etc., I'd go to Taipei in January. I don't have any of those things, though.
October: Celebrate Columbus Day by leaving work at 1PM on Friday and staying to Cowtown until Monday. Only two things planned: 1. A brief visit with Grandparents (Friday before I head up to parents' house, or over the weekend if there's already a planned visit with parents and other possible family). 2. Wash laundry without having to bring $10+ in quarters.
November: Early morning flight on a Tuesday to Oregon (theoretically 90 minutes later, which is much better than a 12 hour drive) to spend Thanksgiving with brother (some great art from him) and his girlyfriend. Also hope to buy an on sale Wii and/or DS. I wonder if there's a Wal*Mart near where they live?
December: Christmas in Cowtown. I think brother back east is coming out with his girlyfriend.
If I had the money, the courage, the self-esteem, a passport, etc., I'd go to Taipei in January. I don't have any of those things, though.
Sunday, September 07, 2008
Thursday, September 04, 2008
More Other
Still don't want to go on about the horrible.
So, saw the new X-Files movie. Before watching it, kept saying the subtitle as "I want to be good," rather than the actual "I Want To Believe." Was pretty good. Nice to see Mulder and Scully again. *Spoiler* Odd to watch them sleep in same bed and then in next scene call each other "Mulder" and "Scully" rather than "Fox" and "Dana." Do many lovers, who have been lovers for years, call each other by family name? *End Spoiler* Psychic guy was cool, but not as cool as Peter Boyle's psychic on the show. Villain properly freaky with properly freaky attack animal. Skinner still = awesome. Like with show, sort of wish science/logic right rather than creepy sci-fi/fantasy always right. Still, enjoyed the movie. Like one of the good episodes that didn't involve any of the ongoing conspiracies.
So, saw the new X-Files movie. Before watching it, kept saying the subtitle as "I want to be good," rather than the actual "I Want To Believe." Was pretty good. Nice to see Mulder and Scully again. *Spoiler* Odd to watch them sleep in same bed and then in next scene call each other "Mulder" and "Scully" rather than "Fox" and "Dana." Do many lovers, who have been lovers for years, call each other by family name? *End Spoiler* Psychic guy was cool, but not as cool as Peter Boyle's psychic on the show. Villain properly freaky with properly freaky attack animal. Skinner still = awesome. Like with show, sort of wish science/logic right rather than creepy sci-fi/fantasy always right. Still, enjoyed the movie. Like one of the good episodes that didn't involve any of the ongoing conspiracies.
Wednesday, September 03, 2008
Other
Very tired of repeating myself.
So, think I should say that new Batman movie was pretty good. Joker is a liar and a killer and fun, but not as fun as Joker in '90s cartoon. Batman voice annoying. Two Face face horrible in both wonderful way and annoying way. Fun to see Scarecrow again. Chicago as Gotham much better than BS Gotham in last movie, but still not as good as Gothic-deco Gotham from the '89 movie. Batmobile dying reminder of that rocket thing in the movie with The Penguin, hopefully ugly car totally dead now. Hong Kong = breath taking. Gordon is the real hero. Alfred should have upper crust accent, but Caine so danged good.
So, think I should say that new Batman movie was pretty good. Joker is a liar and a killer and fun, but not as fun as Joker in '90s cartoon. Batman voice annoying. Two Face face horrible in both wonderful way and annoying way. Fun to see Scarecrow again. Chicago as Gotham much better than BS Gotham in last movie, but still not as good as Gothic-deco Gotham from the '89 movie. Batmobile dying reminder of that rocket thing in the movie with The Penguin, hopefully ugly car totally dead now. Hong Kong = breath taking. Gordon is the real hero. Alfred should have upper crust accent, but Caine so danged good.
The Next...
Swiped from Daily Kos:
Jon: Senior Female and Women's Issues Correspondent Samantha Bee joins us now with more. Obviously, I know how moved you were by Senator Hillary Clinton's run for the presidency. How are you feeling now about this extraordinary moment?You can also watch it:
Samantha: It's amazing, Jon. As a proud Vagina American myself, I can tell you I'll be voting for McCain in November.
Jon: That's it? You just vote for whoever has a ...
Samantha: A fun pouch.
Jon: The ...
Samantha: The Love Pita
Jon: Right. But in many ways Governor Palin is the ideological opposite of Senator Clinton.
Samantha: Oh yes, but she's her gynecological twin. You see the thing is. Let me explain. They both have vaginas ...
Jon: Yeah, yeah. No, no. I understand. I understand. But Senator McCain is somebody who voted against equal pay for equal work.
Samantha: Boobies (making circular gestures around her chest). They both have boobies.
Jon: But both Palin and McCain believe that Roe v. Wade should be over turned.
Samantha: Ow, ow, ow. Can you just stop overloading my lady brain? Ow. John McCain chose a woman who is almost completely unprepared for the job and who disagrees with me on every core value I believe in, but I will be voting McCain in November because he understands. Woman don't vote with the big head (pointing to her head). They vote with the little hood (pointing downward). Am I right ladies? You're with me! (Applause from crowd).
Tuesday, September 02, 2008
Fuck Work
Do you know what would help with work, besides an icepick jabbed through my temple? A fruit pie. Like the Hostess things. Berry or chocolate or coconut or lemon or vanilla. Yeah, that'd be good.
Friday, August 29, 2008
Want OUT!
You know, I've wanted to leave here for a long time. Mostly because I'd like to live somewhere where pretension is low(er) and trees are high(er). Now I want to leave because of my job.
I've hated this job before.
Now I HATE this job.
I've hated this job before.
Now I HATE this job.
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Work
I think I have never hated my job as much as I hate it right now.
I'm sure it doesn't help that I didn't get that last job I interviewed for, but that'd be a very small part of it.
I'm sure it doesn't help that I didn't get that last job I interviewed for, but that'd be a very small part of it.
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
TESTS!
Guess what I did with my morning!
Your result for The Perception Personality Image Test...
NBPS - The Idealist
Nature, Background, Big Picture, and Shape
You perceive the world with particular attention to nature. You focus on the hidden treasures of life (the background) and how that fits into the larger picture. You are also particularly drawn towards the shapes around you. Because of the value you place on nature, you tend to find comfort in more subdued settings and find energy in solitude. You like to ponder ideas and imagine the many possibilities of your life without worrying about the details or specifics. You are in tune with all that is around you and understand your life as part of a larger whole. You prefer a structured environment within which to live and you like things to be predictable.
The Perception Personality Types:
Take The Perception Personality Image Test at HelloQuizzy
Your result for The Supervillain Archetype Test...
The Professional
Cool, Levelheaded, Lethal
The Professional is the most dangerous of all villains. You do what you do better than anyone, because, as a Professional, you have standards.
The Professional is like the Crook in that they both desire money. But the Professional wants more than that. The Professional wants job satisfaction. It isn't sadism really, he just wants to be sure that the job is done, and done well. No hard feelings, it's just business. Professionals prefer to work alone, but will work in groups if given incentive.
The greatest weakness of a Professional is risk. A Professional is business-like, but can't resist a challenge. They often use the word "worthy opponent". People like that are easily baited. And if a Professional is eventually cornered (not easy to do), they might lose it.
Sample Professionals: Deathstroke, Bullseye, Revanche
Take The Supervillain Archetype Test at HelloQuizzy
Your result for The Godzilla Personality Test!...
Biollante: Killer Plant!!
Science+Love+Madness=Biollante
Bad News: You're a flower monster....plain and simple. You've been created by mixing Godzilla genes, little girl genes, and a rose bush. Not the coolest of creations, is it?
Good News: You almost ATE Godzilla. That's right. So even though you're a sissy flower monster, noone is going to call you that to your face, because you're big, you're mean, and you are one cool looking bitch. I mean look at that picture!
Take The Godzilla Personality Test! at HelloQuizzy
Your result for The Well Rounded Geek Quiz...
The Companion
78% Geekiness!
See that beautiful girl in the picture above? That's you. You are smart, you are savvy and you've got the common sense needed to be a very well rounded geek indeed. But not QUITE at that higher echelon yet. But you're in good company. Chances are you know at least one good, well rounded and worldy person to glean some information from so stick with them, through time travel and dimensional hopping. You'll come out the otherside weathered and FANTASTIC.
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
"[T]he kids, like all kids, love the dog."
Dear Politicians,
Please stop insisting that your first priority is to us, the people.
I don't believe you. Anyone with an ounce of cynicism doesn't believe you. The only people who believe you are too drunk or stoned to actually perceive the world beyond two feet of themselves or dewy-eyed college students who still think one person will make a difference.
You want to know what would probably be more appealing to the cynics out there? Tell them that your first priority is to your family because if you have a family, and it seems that the vast majority of you do, they really should be your priority.
How can anyone argue with you getting a huge kickback from a chemical processing plant for your vote in opposition to stricter clean air rules if you use the cash (or at least say you used the cash) to send your kid to a university?
Nixon had Checkers; you can have college for your kid.
It makes you sound like you have real family values, which everyone, even the few commies out there, can support.
*hugs*
ticknart
Please stop insisting that your first priority is to us, the people.
I don't believe you. Anyone with an ounce of cynicism doesn't believe you. The only people who believe you are too drunk or stoned to actually perceive the world beyond two feet of themselves or dewy-eyed college students who still think one person will make a difference.
You want to know what would probably be more appealing to the cynics out there? Tell them that your first priority is to your family because if you have a family, and it seems that the vast majority of you do, they really should be your priority.
How can anyone argue with you getting a huge kickback from a chemical processing plant for your vote in opposition to stricter clean air rules if you use the cash (or at least say you used the cash) to send your kid to a university?
Nixon had Checkers; you can have college for your kid.
It makes you sound like you have real family values, which everyone, even the few commies out there, can support.
*hugs*
ticknart
Friday, August 22, 2008
A Few Reasons for a Significant Other
In thought order.
- A fourth for Euchre when visiting my parents.
- Someone with whom to learn to dance.
- Semi-regular sex. (2 times a week is all I'm asking.) (Not to say that more wouldn't be welcome, but I don't want to be greedy.) (Hell, one time a week is more than I'm getting now, so I hope I wouldn't complain much.)
- Someone to walk with.
- A partner for Bridge and Spades.
- A pillow the smells like someone else.
- Someone who can discuss music, movies, plays, and such, with me.
- Someone to cook for and with.
Thursday, August 21, 2008
Well...
What can be said to something like that?
Edit, 1504 hours: I said something. Dunno if I had to or if it was helpful, but I said it.
Edit Again, 1508 hours: I am an asshole.
Edit, 1504 hours: I said something. Dunno if I had to or if it was helpful, but I said it.
Edit Again, 1508 hours: I am an asshole.
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
How Stupid Have We Become?
SCHOOL -- 1957 vs. 2007How stupid have we become?
Scenario:
Jack goes quail hunting before school, pulls into school parking lot with shotgun in gun rack.
1957 - Vice Principal comes over, looks at Jack's shotgun, goes to his car and gets his shotgun to show Jack.
2007 - School goes into lock down, FBI called, Jack hauled off to jail and never sees his truck or gun again. Counselors called in for traumatized students and teachers.
Scenario:
Johnny and Mark get into a fistfight after school.
1957 - Crowd gathers. Mark wins. Johnny and Mark shake hands and end up buddies.
2007 - Police called, SWAT team arrives, arrests Johnny and Mark. Charge them with assault, both expelled even though Johnny started it.
Scenario:
Jeffrey won't be still in class, disrupts other students.
1957 - Jeffrey sent to office and given a good paddling by the Principal. Returns to class, sits still and does not disrupt class again.
2007 - Jeffrey given huge doses of Ritalin Becomes a zombie. Tested for ADD. School gets extra money from state because Jeffrey has a disability.
Scenario:
Billy breaks a window in his neighbor's car and his Dad gives him a whipping with his belt.
1957 - Billy is more careful next time, grows up normal, goes to college, and becomes a successful businessman.
2007 - Billy's dad is arrested for child abuse. Billy removed to foster care and joins a gang. State psychologist tells Billy's sister that she remembers being abused herself and their dad goes to prison Billy's mom has affair with psychologist.
Scenario:
Mark gets a headache and takes some aspirin to school.
1957 - Mark shares aspirin with Principal out on the smoking dock.
2007 - Police called, Mark expelled from school for drug violations. Car searched for drugs and weapons.
Scenario:
Pedro fails high school English.
1957 - Pedro goes to summer school, passes English, goes to college.
2007 - Pedro's cause is taken up by state. Newspaper articles appear nationally explaining that teaching English as a requirement for graduation is racist. ACLU files class action lawsuit against state school system and Pedro's English teacher. English banned from core curriculum. Pedro given diploma anyway but ends up mowing lawns for a living because he cannot speak English.
Scenario:
Johnny takes apart leftover firecrackers from 4th of July, puts them in a model airplane paint bottle, blows up a red ant bed.
1957 - Ants die.
2007 - BATF, Homeland Security, FBI called. Johnny charged with domestic terrorism, FBI investigates parents, siblings removed from home, computers confiscated, Johnny's Dad goes on a terror watch list and is never allowed to fly again.
Scenario:
Johnny falls while running during recess and scrapes his knee. He is found crying by his teacher, Mary. Mary hugs him to comfort him.
1957 - In a short time, Johnny feels better and goes on playing.
2007 - Mary is accused of being a sexual predator and loses her job. She faces 3 years in State Prison. Johnny undergoes 5 years of therapy.
This should hit every e-mail to show how stupid we have become!
And if we do not wake up and take our country back - WE will not have a country , nor a society to grow old in or for our children to grow up in
Think about it!
Someone, somewhere, took the time to create this and decided to glorify a time where men of color were lynched for talking to a white woman partially because of institutional racism. A time when women weren't allowed to serve on juries in many states. A time when HUAC still encouraged citizens to accuse neighbors of being communist.
How stupid have we become?
My coworker took the time to forward this to me. She added a note about how true it is. (Funny, she was only a few years old in 1957, so how would she know?) She thought I'd be one of the people who agree, even though I've told her, several times, not to send me crap like this.
How stupid have we become?
I think we're just as stupid as we've ever been.
Monday, August 18, 2008
Into the Red
Do any of you out there have a good recipe for pizza sauce your willing to share with me?
I'd like one that's not too sweet and is on the thicker side, if you have it.
I'd like one that's not too sweet and is on the thicker side, if you have it.
Damn!
My brother, the one who moved to Oregon, has mailed me his new address. He's living like three block from the beach.
For the moment, my jealousy meter is in the red.
For the moment, my jealousy meter is in the red.
Friday, August 15, 2008
No Hoo-Hahs Here
Work is almost at an end and so is my time connected to the intervurb. I have no stories about hoo-hahs. I could complain more about work, but I don't want to. I have no crazy pets. I don't particularly care about the new Star Wars movie. And I haven't thought about the Olympics until just now and that was only because I wanted another sentence.
Still a little filler is better than not posting again, especially when I have time. Even though it's not much time.
Other than laundry and shopping I have no idea what I'll be doing this weekend. Not much, I expect. Hope yours was/is filled with great things.
Still a little filler is better than not posting again, especially when I have time. Even though it's not much time.
Other than laundry and shopping I have no idea what I'll be doing this weekend. Not much, I expect. Hope yours was/is filled with great things.
Thursday, August 14, 2008
Ends in Odds
One of my brothers is up in Washington for the summer. He's there with his girlfriend at her parents' place. If I remember correctly, it's some island near Seattle, but it isn't exactly Seattle. (I wonder if they have to take a ferry to get to the island?) When school starts, they move to Oregon. I'm not sure where. All I know is that the place they move is like three hours from Portland, so the next time they show the Too Much Coffee Man Opera, I won't have a cheap place to stay.
Don't know why I wrote that.
'Course, don't know why I'm writing anything today.
Work has been weird. We're in that nebulous period between our old computer system and the new one where they've shut down the old and no one can actually use the new. Yeah, it's fucking stupid and a real fucking pain in the ass. Some of the trainers refuse to accept that it's a pain in the ass, though, and keep telling us that we just need more practice and that we'll get it eventually.
Fuckers.
Don't know why I wrote that.
'Course, don't know why I'm writing anything today.
Work has been weird. We're in that nebulous period between our old computer system and the new one where they've shut down the old and no one can actually use the new. Yeah, it's fucking stupid and a real fucking pain in the ass. Some of the trainers refuse to accept that it's a pain in the ass, though, and keep telling us that we just need more practice and that we'll get it eventually.
Fuckers.
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Sound and Shadow
About five and a half months ago, I wrote, "I'd like to be a studio musician for my day job and in the evening I paint and draw what ever I want and occasionally sell something."
A few of months later, Rude Cactus asked, "If money was no object, what's your ideal gig?"
After some thought I put my reply up and said, "It's not money that keeps me from doing what, for the moment, I would like to do, it's the fact that that I can't sight-read music, or draw." (Although, honestly, the money would stop me, too. I just don't have to think about the money, at all.)
He wrote back, "Those are luckily things - mostly - you can learn."
The "mostly" is what stopped me from snarking back. Still his comment has stuck with me since first reading it. (Almost as much as a comment my Uncle mad to me at Easter. Cripes.)
On the sight-reading front, I did marching band for three years in high school. Trumpet. I was a competent player. Nothing spectacular. My range went from several bars below the staff to just above the top. On the trumpet, though, the higher, the better. Still, I was very solid backup for the first chair. Give me a third or second part and I could harmonize and support the difficult work the first part played as well as anyone.
I liked being a second or third chair player. We may not have always played the full melody, but the parts were always interesting.
And then one day, in my third year, I was asked by the teacher to try out for the advanced jazz band. (I think it mostly happened because my best friend was the A1, top of the heap, best soprano sax player we had, not because I was really that good, but I was still flattered.) The only thing was that I'd have to try out along with the other possible trumpets. We all showed up one afternoon. He handed us each a piece of music then one at a time told us to stand up and play what we saw.
To say I screwed up insults all the people who screw things up. I was horrible. What I played hardly sounded like music. Oh, sure, there were changes in pitch and tempo and there was some sort of rhythm, but nothing like what appeared on sheet in front of me. The teacher was so embarrassed, or ashamed, at my performance that he hardly spoke to me for the next two weeks. (Which was really a blessing. He was often a creep once you grew out of enjoying his childish behavior.) I wasn't surprised, though, because I knew I couldn't sight-read.
For those who don't know, sight-reading is the act of looking at a piece of music and being able to hear it in your head and then play the tune as you're first looking at it. (Also called sight playing or sight singing.) These people see the note and hear the rhythm they make and pitches they represent and then recreate it. I couldn't, and can't, do either of those things.
I can look at a new piece of music and say, out loud, what the note's called. I can point and say, "That's a quarter note. It's a G flat. Then there's another quarter note, C, followed by a half note tied into a whole note in the next measure, an E." I can't clap the rhythm. I can't hum or sing the correct pitch for any of the notes named. I can read the marks on the sheet, it's not gibberish to me, but I can't tell what it's supposed to sound like.
In college, I took a semester of piano. I worked around my sight-reading problem by having the teacher or her TA play the piece for me before I started practicing the music. That way I'd hear it and when I looked at the sheet, I could hear the music as well as just read it. And I had a lot of fun playing music again. So, when the semester was over, I bought my self a decent keyboard so I could keep practicing.
It didn't work out so well. I could practice and get better at the stuff I already knew, but I couldn't play anything new. I'd leaf through my beginner/intermediate book and look at all the things we didn't play and try my damnedest, but I wasn't playing music. It was just sound.
Eventually, I just stopped. It wasn't fun playing the same things over and over again. I didn't know how to do something new and noodling around got boring.
Other than the ceramics stuff I bought and mixed in with my mother's ceramics stuff, I think that keyboard is the only thing I left at my parent's house after I moved out the last time.
The drawing thing, well, I'll do my best to explain.
I can sketch and doodle and cartoon a little. My people look like people. My faces tend to turn out masculine. And the houses I draw are the simple kind with a big square, a triangle, a rectangle, and a couple of little squares for windows.
One of my problems, when I draw or paint or anything, is that I don't have a steady, consistent hand. I can't consistently duplicate anything. Even when I want to draw the same person, the second drawing looks totally different from the first. Of course, anyone who's seen my hand writing can tell stories about that. The first "a" I write looks similar but distinctly different from the second, from the third, from the last. I suppose that means I have very little control over my hand.
The biggest problem I've found, since I started looking more closely at art and trying to understand it and do it, are shadows.
In most really great drawings and paintings, the artist works like a sculptor. The artist uses the blacks and grays of shadows to carve away the white of the paper and bring out a form. With charcoal or water color they start with the shadow light and then add layer after layer to darken gradually so it shows the curve of the person or object. They see shadows as gradual shifts from white to black.
I see shadows as shapes. After I draw the shape, I have a hard time figuring out how to shade the interior to add depth. Even with art classes, I haven't been able to get past this.
A few of months later, Rude Cactus asked, "If money was no object, what's your ideal gig?"
After some thought I put my reply up and said, "It's not money that keeps me from doing what, for the moment, I would like to do, it's the fact that that I can't sight-read music, or draw." (Although, honestly, the money would stop me, too. I just don't have to think about the money, at all.)
He wrote back, "Those are luckily things - mostly - you can learn."
The "mostly" is what stopped me from snarking back. Still his comment has stuck with me since first reading it. (Almost as much as a comment my Uncle mad to me at Easter. Cripes.)
On the sight-reading front, I did marching band for three years in high school. Trumpet. I was a competent player. Nothing spectacular. My range went from several bars below the staff to just above the top. On the trumpet, though, the higher, the better. Still, I was very solid backup for the first chair. Give me a third or second part and I could harmonize and support the difficult work the first part played as well as anyone.
I liked being a second or third chair player. We may not have always played the full melody, but the parts were always interesting.
And then one day, in my third year, I was asked by the teacher to try out for the advanced jazz band. (I think it mostly happened because my best friend was the A1, top of the heap, best soprano sax player we had, not because I was really that good, but I was still flattered.) The only thing was that I'd have to try out along with the other possible trumpets. We all showed up one afternoon. He handed us each a piece of music then one at a time told us to stand up and play what we saw.
To say I screwed up insults all the people who screw things up. I was horrible. What I played hardly sounded like music. Oh, sure, there were changes in pitch and tempo and there was some sort of rhythm, but nothing like what appeared on sheet in front of me. The teacher was so embarrassed, or ashamed, at my performance that he hardly spoke to me for the next two weeks. (Which was really a blessing. He was often a creep once you grew out of enjoying his childish behavior.) I wasn't surprised, though, because I knew I couldn't sight-read.
For those who don't know, sight-reading is the act of looking at a piece of music and being able to hear it in your head and then play the tune as you're first looking at it. (Also called sight playing or sight singing.) These people see the note and hear the rhythm they make and pitches they represent and then recreate it. I couldn't, and can't, do either of those things.
I can look at a new piece of music and say, out loud, what the note's called. I can point and say, "That's a quarter note. It's a G flat. Then there's another quarter note, C, followed by a half note tied into a whole note in the next measure, an E." I can't clap the rhythm. I can't hum or sing the correct pitch for any of the notes named. I can read the marks on the sheet, it's not gibberish to me, but I can't tell what it's supposed to sound like.
In college, I took a semester of piano. I worked around my sight-reading problem by having the teacher or her TA play the piece for me before I started practicing the music. That way I'd hear it and when I looked at the sheet, I could hear the music as well as just read it. And I had a lot of fun playing music again. So, when the semester was over, I bought my self a decent keyboard so I could keep practicing.
It didn't work out so well. I could practice and get better at the stuff I already knew, but I couldn't play anything new. I'd leaf through my beginner/intermediate book and look at all the things we didn't play and try my damnedest, but I wasn't playing music. It was just sound.
Eventually, I just stopped. It wasn't fun playing the same things over and over again. I didn't know how to do something new and noodling around got boring.
Other than the ceramics stuff I bought and mixed in with my mother's ceramics stuff, I think that keyboard is the only thing I left at my parent's house after I moved out the last time.
The drawing thing, well, I'll do my best to explain.
I can sketch and doodle and cartoon a little. My people look like people. My faces tend to turn out masculine. And the houses I draw are the simple kind with a big square, a triangle, a rectangle, and a couple of little squares for windows.
One of my problems, when I draw or paint or anything, is that I don't have a steady, consistent hand. I can't consistently duplicate anything. Even when I want to draw the same person, the second drawing looks totally different from the first. Of course, anyone who's seen my hand writing can tell stories about that. The first "a" I write looks similar but distinctly different from the second, from the third, from the last. I suppose that means I have very little control over my hand.
The biggest problem I've found, since I started looking more closely at art and trying to understand it and do it, are shadows.
In most really great drawings and paintings, the artist works like a sculptor. The artist uses the blacks and grays of shadows to carve away the white of the paper and bring out a form. With charcoal or water color they start with the shadow light and then add layer after layer to darken gradually so it shows the curve of the person or object. They see shadows as gradual shifts from white to black.
I see shadows as shapes. After I draw the shape, I have a hard time figuring out how to shade the interior to add depth. Even with art classes, I haven't been able to get past this.
Friday, August 08, 2008
Wednesday, August 06, 2008
Stip Raise
Just got the notification that I've been approved for my hey-he's-worked-another-year-with-us raise starting on the September paycheck.
Don't know if I should laugh.
Don't know if I should laugh.
Tuesday, August 05, 2008
Blah-Blogging
It's that time again!
The time when I start questioning why, exactly, I come to this website and write things. Things about stuff. You know, whatever stuff.
I know that at least a fistful (that five, for those who can't count) of people choose to stop by on a nearly daily basis and it's times like these (see the last paragraph) that I can't figure out what makes them come back.
Not that it matters, really.
Besides, after nearly 4 and 5/6th years and nearly 2 and 1/2 score posts from a 8 and 1/3rd gross posts total I think I'm pretty much going to continue blah-blahing about stuff, you know, things, whatever things. Doesn't stop me from wondering why the hell I do it though.
A while ago, I wrote, "I've written much about many different things, but don't know how much I've actually said."
Yeah, that's still pretty much true.
The time when I start questioning why, exactly, I come to this website and write things. Things about stuff. You know, whatever stuff.
I know that at least a fistful (that five, for those who can't count) of people choose to stop by on a nearly daily basis and it's times like these (see the last paragraph) that I can't figure out what makes them come back.
Not that it matters, really.
Besides, after nearly 4 and 5/6th years and nearly 2 and 1/2 score posts from a 8 and 1/3rd gross posts total I think I'm pretty much going to continue blah-blahing about stuff, you know, things, whatever things. Doesn't stop me from wondering why the hell I do it though.
A while ago, I wrote, "I've written much about many different things, but don't know how much I've actually said."
Yeah, that's still pretty much true.
Monday, August 04, 2008
Budget Woes
Any who perused this place last week probably saw that I may, or may not, have had my pay cut to $6.55 an hour. And if I haven't, I only haven't had it cut until the September. (Although I'm not sure if it's my paycheck for September, which comes out on the 30th, or the check for October which would first be affected.) Something that I haven't mentioned, though, is all the "vets" who keep telling me not to worry about this budget thing and that it happens all the time.
I get that this state never passes a budget on time. It's supposed to be passed in January (to, you know, spell out what spending will be like for the next fiscal year, you know, before the fiscal year actually starts), but it's not late until July 1st. I don't think it's ever been passed before June. If it has, well, color me surprised.
Okay, so the June deadline comes and goes, no big deal. We meander our way through July wondering why the Assembly and Senate are allowed to take time off without a budget passed, but we let it go. All the while, in the back of our heads, we think about what might happen to us in November because usually there aren't any announcements or major concerns until then.
Then it's the last full week in July and there are rumors floating around that the governor is thinking about cutting our pay to minimum wage, not the state's minimum wage, but the federal one which is nearly $1.50 less. We talk and we worry, but very few of us believe that the governor is that desperate. He won't do it. It's just a threat to get the legislature moving.
Besides, if something is going to happen, it'll be more like what's been done in the past. He's going to ask each employee to take a 10% cut in pay, but make up for it in vacation time, like the state did five or so years ago. He's going to do mandatory time off, so we only have a four day work week for a while, like the state did ten or so years ago. Or, if nothing's resolved by December, he's going to shut down all but the most essential government services to force the issue and get a budget passed, like the state did fifteen or so years ago. But nothing like any of those things, will happen until the beginning of October because it'd be nuts to do it in the beginning of August when the budget is only one month late.
And then it's the last day of July and the first day of a new pay period and the man a plurality of people voted to be in charge of the executive branch signs an order that cuts pay to almost all full time civil servants and fires all part timers and student helpers and retired annuitants.
So the employees get outraged, but in a quiet way. We bitch and moan to each other because, for everyone left, pay has been cut drastically. It's the main thing we talk about with our friends and family. Even when we're sick of hearing and talking and thinking about it, it's all we can focus on because it's a big deal. And even though we're whining about the cut, we know that we're lucky because we still have our jobs. We will get paid something. And when the budget gets passed, we get everything back that we lost, except for the interest we would have made while it sat in the bank and the interest we accumulated because some weren't very well prepared and had to use their credit cards to buy food and pay other bills.
When we finally do shut up about the pay-cut, we watch TV or read (yeah, right) the newspaper and we see the average citizen's reaction. Sure, the average person's upset about the lay-offs at the DMV, where probably one third of the workforce is part time, because the hours have been cut and less staff means more time waiting in line. Other than that, they don't care as long as it doesn't inconvenience them too much. Some people even think that state employees are too well paid and we deserve what's happening. While those people may think civil servants deserve a livable wage, they don't think we should get the benefits and retirement package we have because regular folks don't get 'em.
Of course, we all know we're a political football to be tossed around during times of stress, like every single election ever, and then left to go flat in the corner when saying how greedy and horrible we are won't gain any political clout for anyone. We know we piss people off because we enforce the rule and regulations. We know we hurt families when we cut off unemployment or disability payments because the time has run out. We know that we annoy those who make a comfortable living by making them deal with the lines at the DMV. Before we started working for the state, we made all the same jokes everyone else does.
Doesn't mean we like it, though. It's just a shitty part of the job we put up with. I'm sure it happens at every job. At least we come in knowing about it.
This is the first, and probably not the last, time my paycheck is used by jackass politicians. I'm trying not to worry. I'm trying really hard because if I worry I'll start baking and if I start baking I'll start eating because it'd be a waste to eat the baking and I really don't need to do any extra eating.
I do worry, though.
How can I not?
If I do only get $6.55 an hour, my paycheck will have been cut by about two thirds its usual amount. The pay I take home will be less than my rent. Deductions for medical and retirement, which I want, will hurt a lot more.
Yes, I have savings. Right now I have more money saved than I've ever saved in my life. Sure, I wanted to get a new car in a week or two and then take a few days to go to Las Vegas to check out Star Trek: The Experience before it leave on the first of September, but I guess I don't need to do something fun.
I get that this state never passes a budget on time. It's supposed to be passed in January (to, you know, spell out what spending will be like for the next fiscal year, you know, before the fiscal year actually starts), but it's not late until July 1st. I don't think it's ever been passed before June. If it has, well, color me surprised.
Okay, so the June deadline comes and goes, no big deal. We meander our way through July wondering why the Assembly and Senate are allowed to take time off without a budget passed, but we let it go. All the while, in the back of our heads, we think about what might happen to us in November because usually there aren't any announcements or major concerns until then.
Then it's the last full week in July and there are rumors floating around that the governor is thinking about cutting our pay to minimum wage, not the state's minimum wage, but the federal one which is nearly $1.50 less. We talk and we worry, but very few of us believe that the governor is that desperate. He won't do it. It's just a threat to get the legislature moving.
Besides, if something is going to happen, it'll be more like what's been done in the past. He's going to ask each employee to take a 10% cut in pay, but make up for it in vacation time, like the state did five or so years ago. He's going to do mandatory time off, so we only have a four day work week for a while, like the state did ten or so years ago. Or, if nothing's resolved by December, he's going to shut down all but the most essential government services to force the issue and get a budget passed, like the state did fifteen or so years ago. But nothing like any of those things, will happen until the beginning of October because it'd be nuts to do it in the beginning of August when the budget is only one month late.
And then it's the last day of July and the first day of a new pay period and the man a plurality of people voted to be in charge of the executive branch signs an order that cuts pay to almost all full time civil servants and fires all part timers and student helpers and retired annuitants.
So the employees get outraged, but in a quiet way. We bitch and moan to each other because, for everyone left, pay has been cut drastically. It's the main thing we talk about with our friends and family. Even when we're sick of hearing and talking and thinking about it, it's all we can focus on because it's a big deal. And even though we're whining about the cut, we know that we're lucky because we still have our jobs. We will get paid something. And when the budget gets passed, we get everything back that we lost, except for the interest we would have made while it sat in the bank and the interest we accumulated because some weren't very well prepared and had to use their credit cards to buy food and pay other bills.
When we finally do shut up about the pay-cut, we watch TV or read (yeah, right) the newspaper and we see the average citizen's reaction. Sure, the average person's upset about the lay-offs at the DMV, where probably one third of the workforce is part time, because the hours have been cut and less staff means more time waiting in line. Other than that, they don't care as long as it doesn't inconvenience them too much. Some people even think that state employees are too well paid and we deserve what's happening. While those people may think civil servants deserve a livable wage, they don't think we should get the benefits and retirement package we have because regular folks don't get 'em.
Of course, we all know we're a political football to be tossed around during times of stress, like every single election ever, and then left to go flat in the corner when saying how greedy and horrible we are won't gain any political clout for anyone. We know we piss people off because we enforce the rule and regulations. We know we hurt families when we cut off unemployment or disability payments because the time has run out. We know that we annoy those who make a comfortable living by making them deal with the lines at the DMV. Before we started working for the state, we made all the same jokes everyone else does.
Doesn't mean we like it, though. It's just a shitty part of the job we put up with. I'm sure it happens at every job. At least we come in knowing about it.
This is the first, and probably not the last, time my paycheck is used by jackass politicians. I'm trying not to worry. I'm trying really hard because if I worry I'll start baking and if I start baking I'll start eating because it'd be a waste to eat the baking and I really don't need to do any extra eating.
I do worry, though.
How can I not?
If I do only get $6.55 an hour, my paycheck will have been cut by about two thirds its usual amount. The pay I take home will be less than my rent. Deductions for medical and retirement, which I want, will hurt a lot more.
Yes, I have savings. Right now I have more money saved than I've ever saved in my life. Sure, I wanted to get a new car in a week or two and then take a few days to go to Las Vegas to check out Star Trek: The Experience before it leave on the first of September, but I guess I don't need to do something fun.
Friday, August 01, 2008
Many Plays, 2
There's still plenty to do, but I have to take some time for myself. Which is funny since I'm at work and getting paid, sort of, maybe, that should be my focus, but I'm going a little crazy.
Anyway, like I wrote before, this last month I went to see a lot of plays and I thought it'd be fun (for me) to go over what I saw and what I liked and didn't like about each.
The Women:
At its most, it's the story of a bunch of women in New York and how they deal with men. Divorce, cheating, dating, and remarriage are all big parts of the story. Not that the play's a downer, because it's not. It's really funny. The only real problem with it is that the playwright didn't do a very good job of transitioning from comedy to the drama and them back. It's like laugh, laugh, laugh, and then get hit upside the head with melodrama and weeping; new scene: laugh, laugh, laugh, hit with melodrama. And it does this over and over again.
Still the good far out weighed the overwrought drama and most of the women were spectacular at the comedy and those that weren't were really only important to the drama aspects.
The Producers:
Only one of the most fun musicals ever written. People cheating old ladies out of lots money after having sex with them to put on the worst play ever and after it closes take the extra cash and run off to Rio, with flaming gay men, a Nazi, and songs, what's not to enjoy?
In fact, I enjoyed this version almost as much as I did the touring company Wings and I saw years ago in SF. I did wish that Ulla had a better blonde wig and that we could see the dancers in their swastika formations during "Springtime for Hitler," but an overhead mirror would have cost too much for this little theater.
The Crucible:
This power of this play, when it's performed, rest on the shoulders of one character: John Proctor. Which was the problem with this performance. The guy playing John was too young and he just wasn't that good of an actor. When he's having dinner with his wife, Elizabeth, and she's poking at him because he screwed around on her, John should be played with righteous fury, like he's about to blame his affair on Elizabeth because she got sick and he couldn't have sex with his wife; the actor played it more like a teenager whining to his girlfriend about how sick he is of her teasing. The lust between John and Abigail Williams should be hot and animalistic; she draws him in with her sex appeal and he simply can't resist, but, again, this actor played it more like a first time crush, all awkward and bumbling and clammy.
The rest of the cast was spectacular, though. They took the words of Arthur Miller and really turned them into a morality tale and saved me from being totally bored with the play.
Kiss Me, Kate:
With this play, Cole Porter was trying to move his writing from what Broadway used to be -- a show with songs that were good, but had little to do with the plot -- to what they were becoming -- shows with songs that were integral to the characters or plot -- but didn't quite succeed. There may not be a lot of songs that are useless to the story, but the very first one, "Another Op'nin', Another Show" sure is and so is one of Porter's best songs ever, "Too Darn Hot." And it really bugs me.
Yeah, I enjoyed the show and really all the songs are wonderful, and the actors were great, especially the women who played Lilly/Katherine and Lois/Bianca and the show are extremely strong. I guess that why the non important song, like "Brush Up Your Shakespeare," bother me so much, the play is nearly perfect and these songs, as fun as they are, just take me right out of the story.
A Chorus Line:
Talk about you musical for those who love musicals.
It's all about the casting of a chorus for a play. It's one act of like 17 characters standing on an empty stage dancing, and talking about themselves or their love of dance, and practicing. And the dancing is amazing. From the perfect solo dances, to the practice groups where people misstep, to the high kicking finale.
Spectacular.
Snoopy!!! The Musical:
This play so wanted to be You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown, but it just couldn't be and doesn't ever come close.
Frankly, to me, Snoopy is the most boring character in Peanuts. Yes I like his imagination, but everything always works out for him, or, if it doesn't, he just says it did and then moves on to something else. He's just so boring.
So is the play. Between the songs are short sketch like things that are supposed to be like a daily strip brought to life. Some of them are funny, but none of them connect to each other except that they include Charlie Brown, Lucy, Sally, Linus, Peppermint Patty, and Snoopy, other than that, nothing.
Most of the songs are light and airy and useless. Snoopy almost always sings about how great his life is or how great he is and how everything should focus on him.
And then there are the two songs that Focus on Peppermint Patty that completely mischaracterize the Peppermint Patty I remember from the strips. She has a crush on Charlie Brown. We all know it. (And yes, I'm aware of the lesbian jokes with her and Marcie, and even if Peppermint Patty's gay she can have a crush on a boy that's kind to her. I'm sure it happens all the time out there in the real world.) In the strips she constantly denied it, but she also called him up or sat under a tree with him and talked about love to him, but he never got the hint and she'd get frustrated. She'd never admit to the crush, though. But in this play she first asks him about her looks and when he mentions her big nose and how she might grow into it she then sings a song about how she wants her face to catch-up to her nose and later she sings Charlie Brown a song where she calls him "poor, sweet baby." It was all just so overt. The strip tended to balance her crush by having Marcie mock Peppermint Patty by insisting the crush was there. The play just has Peppermint Patty throw the crush in the audience's faces.
The last song, "Just One Person," while having a nice message, wasn't earned. You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown earned the sweetness of it's final song, "Happiness," by sort of tearing down Charlie Brown and showing him as a failure, so him and his friends finding happiness in little, everyday things was earned. This Snoopy!!! play shows some disappointment, but every time something happens to him, Snoopy turns it into a victory up to the point where he's actually proclaimed the Head Beagle. There is just too much winning to then delve into such a super sweet song.
The acting was decent. The guy who played Snoopy really hammed it up, but the woman who played Peppermint Patty was wonderful, I wish she'd had a bigger role in one of the other plays. It's too bad they had such a poor play to perform in.
And there we have it. All the plays I've seen in the last month, or so. It's pretty obvious which one I saw last, isn’t it? Here's hoping, if I'm still around then, next year is as enjoyable.
Anyway, like I wrote before, this last month I went to see a lot of plays and I thought it'd be fun (for me) to go over what I saw and what I liked and didn't like about each.
The Women:
At its most, it's the story of a bunch of women in New York and how they deal with men. Divorce, cheating, dating, and remarriage are all big parts of the story. Not that the play's a downer, because it's not. It's really funny. The only real problem with it is that the playwright didn't do a very good job of transitioning from comedy to the drama and them back. It's like laugh, laugh, laugh, and then get hit upside the head with melodrama and weeping; new scene: laugh, laugh, laugh, hit with melodrama. And it does this over and over again.
Still the good far out weighed the overwrought drama and most of the women were spectacular at the comedy and those that weren't were really only important to the drama aspects.
The Producers:
Only one of the most fun musicals ever written. People cheating old ladies out of lots money after having sex with them to put on the worst play ever and after it closes take the extra cash and run off to Rio, with flaming gay men, a Nazi, and songs, what's not to enjoy?
In fact, I enjoyed this version almost as much as I did the touring company Wings and I saw years ago in SF. I did wish that Ulla had a better blonde wig and that we could see the dancers in their swastika formations during "Springtime for Hitler," but an overhead mirror would have cost too much for this little theater.
The Crucible:
This power of this play, when it's performed, rest on the shoulders of one character: John Proctor. Which was the problem with this performance. The guy playing John was too young and he just wasn't that good of an actor. When he's having dinner with his wife, Elizabeth, and she's poking at him because he screwed around on her, John should be played with righteous fury, like he's about to blame his affair on Elizabeth because she got sick and he couldn't have sex with his wife; the actor played it more like a teenager whining to his girlfriend about how sick he is of her teasing. The lust between John and Abigail Williams should be hot and animalistic; she draws him in with her sex appeal and he simply can't resist, but, again, this actor played it more like a first time crush, all awkward and bumbling and clammy.
The rest of the cast was spectacular, though. They took the words of Arthur Miller and really turned them into a morality tale and saved me from being totally bored with the play.
Kiss Me, Kate:
With this play, Cole Porter was trying to move his writing from what Broadway used to be -- a show with songs that were good, but had little to do with the plot -- to what they were becoming -- shows with songs that were integral to the characters or plot -- but didn't quite succeed. There may not be a lot of songs that are useless to the story, but the very first one, "Another Op'nin', Another Show" sure is and so is one of Porter's best songs ever, "Too Darn Hot." And it really bugs me.
Yeah, I enjoyed the show and really all the songs are wonderful, and the actors were great, especially the women who played Lilly/Katherine and Lois/Bianca and the show are extremely strong. I guess that why the non important song, like "Brush Up Your Shakespeare," bother me so much, the play is nearly perfect and these songs, as fun as they are, just take me right out of the story.
A Chorus Line:
Talk about you musical for those who love musicals.
It's all about the casting of a chorus for a play. It's one act of like 17 characters standing on an empty stage dancing, and talking about themselves or their love of dance, and practicing. And the dancing is amazing. From the perfect solo dances, to the practice groups where people misstep, to the high kicking finale.
Spectacular.
Snoopy!!! The Musical:
This play so wanted to be You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown, but it just couldn't be and doesn't ever come close.
Frankly, to me, Snoopy is the most boring character in Peanuts. Yes I like his imagination, but everything always works out for him, or, if it doesn't, he just says it did and then moves on to something else. He's just so boring.
So is the play. Between the songs are short sketch like things that are supposed to be like a daily strip brought to life. Some of them are funny, but none of them connect to each other except that they include Charlie Brown, Lucy, Sally, Linus, Peppermint Patty, and Snoopy, other than that, nothing.
Most of the songs are light and airy and useless. Snoopy almost always sings about how great his life is or how great he is and how everything should focus on him.
And then there are the two songs that Focus on Peppermint Patty that completely mischaracterize the Peppermint Patty I remember from the strips. She has a crush on Charlie Brown. We all know it. (And yes, I'm aware of the lesbian jokes with her and Marcie, and even if Peppermint Patty's gay she can have a crush on a boy that's kind to her. I'm sure it happens all the time out there in the real world.) In the strips she constantly denied it, but she also called him up or sat under a tree with him and talked about love to him, but he never got the hint and she'd get frustrated. She'd never admit to the crush, though. But in this play she first asks him about her looks and when he mentions her big nose and how she might grow into it she then sings a song about how she wants her face to catch-up to her nose and later she sings Charlie Brown a song where she calls him "poor, sweet baby." It was all just so overt. The strip tended to balance her crush by having Marcie mock Peppermint Patty by insisting the crush was there. The play just has Peppermint Patty throw the crush in the audience's faces.
The last song, "Just One Person," while having a nice message, wasn't earned. You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown earned the sweetness of it's final song, "Happiness," by sort of tearing down Charlie Brown and showing him as a failure, so him and his friends finding happiness in little, everyday things was earned. This Snoopy!!! play shows some disappointment, but every time something happens to him, Snoopy turns it into a victory up to the point where he's actually proclaimed the Head Beagle. There is just too much winning to then delve into such a super sweet song.
The acting was decent. The guy who played Snoopy really hammed it up, but the woman who played Peppermint Patty was wonderful, I wish she'd had a bigger role in one of the other plays. It's too bad they had such a poor play to perform in.
And there we have it. All the plays I've seen in the last month, or so. It's pretty obvious which one I saw last, isn’t it? Here's hoping, if I'm still around then, next year is as enjoyable.
EXECUTIVE ORDER S-09-08
by the
Governor of the State of California
ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER
Governor of California
ATTEST:
DEBRA BOWEN
Secretary of State
Governor of the State of California
WHEREAS the constitutional deadline for enacting a state budget for Fiscal Year 2008-09 has passed without the enactment of a budget; and
WHEREAS in the absence of a budget, State government is constitutionally prohibited from making payments that are not compelled by either the State Constitution or federal law; and
WHEREAS until there is a state budget, the State has no authority to pay the following payments: (1) Vendors and Contractors for goods and services chargeable to Fiscal Year 2008-09; (2) Payroll for legislative staff, appointees, and exempt employees; (3) Payroll for other state employees beyond that required by federal labor law; (4) Highway User Taxes that are apportioned to the state, cities and counties for highway and road improvement projects; (5) Cal Grants to students in higher education; (6) Transfers to the Trial Courts; (7) Transfers to University of California, California State University, and Community Colleges; (8) Transportation Revolving Fund disbursements; (9) Non-revenue limit school payments; and (10) Payments for non-federally mandated social services programs such as Community Care Licensing, Adult Protective Services, State Only Foster Care; State Only Adoptions Assistance, and Cash Assistance Program for Immigrants; and (11) tax relief payments to low income seniors and disabled persons; and
WHEREAS on May 1, 2003, the California Supreme Court, in White v. Davis, issued a decision that, in conjunction with other pre-existing court orders, clarified that during a period that there is no state budget in place, federal labor laws require the State to pay its nonexempt FLSA employees either federal minimum wage or, for those employees that work overtime, their full salaries plus overtime; and
WHEREAS it is not known when a budget will be adopted for Fiscal Year 2008-09; and
WHEREAS as a result of the late budget, there is a real and substantial risk that the State will have insufficient cash to pay for state expenditures; and
WHEREAS since June 2008, the unprecedented number and size of fires in California has created states of emergency that have required additional and substantial expenditures of cash to ensure that there are sufficient resources to effectively fight these fires and save lives and homes; and
WHEREAS it is critical that the State be able to meet any unforeseen emergency such as fire, flood or public health emergency and to continue to make timely payments on constitutionally and federally-mandated obligations and existing obligations to pay holders of state bonds; and
WHEREAS due to the impending cash crisis and budget delay, the State may be forced to consider a Revenue Anticipation Warrant (RAW) at an exorbitant cost to the State, including hundreds of millions of dollars in credit enhancements, in order to make sure there is sufficient cash to pay for state expenditures; and
WHEREAS after the late adoption of a budget, there will be additional cash demands because all of the deferred payments that were not permitted to be made during the budget impasse will become due and payable; and
WHEREAS the late budget has resulted in loss of savings to the State in the amount of $164 million for July, and failure to enact a budget in August will result in additional loss of savings in the amount of $323 million; and
WHEREAS as a result of the late budget, additional mitigation measures must be implemented to offset the loss of savings and to ensure that there is sufficient cash to make the State's payments; and
WHEREAS the State employs nearly 22,000 retired annuitants, permanent intermittent employees, and seasonal employees and the State hires new employees at the rate of approximately 1,700 per month; and
WHEREAS except for services and functions of state government deemed critical by this Order, additional mitigation measures need to be taken to immediately reduce expenditures and preserve cash, including the following: (1) halting all hiring, transfers and promotions of employees, and contracting for individuals to perform services; (2) prohibition of overtime; (3) termination of the services of retired annuitants, permanent intermittent employees, seasonal employees, temporary help workers and, student assistants; and (4) suspension of personal services contracts.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER, Governor of the State of California, in accordance with the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the statutes of the State of California, do hereby issue the following orders to become effective immediately:
IT IS ORDERED that the services and functions of state government directly related to the preservation and protection of human life and safety, including but not limited to emergency and disaster response activities and the provision of 24-hour medical care, shall be deemed critical and exempt from this Order.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that except for services and functions of state government deemed critical and exempt by this Order, all State agencies and departments under my direct executive authority take immediate action effective July 31, 2008 to cease and desist hiring of employees (except in instances in which there is a bona fide offer and acceptance prior to the effective date of this Order), transferring employees between State agencies and departments, promoting employees, and contracting for individuals to perform services.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that except for services and functions of state government deemed critical and exempt by this Order and emergent situations to preserve and protect human life and safety, all State agencies and departments under my direct executive authority take immediate action to cease and desist authorization of all overtime for employees effective July 31, 2008.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that except for services and functions of state government deemed critical and exempt by this Order, all State agencies and departments under my direct executive authority take immediate action to terminate the services of the following five categories of employees and individuals effective July 31, 2008: (1) Retired Annuitants; (2) Permanent Intermittent Employees; (3) Seasonal Employees; (4) Temporary Help Workers; and (5) Student Assistants.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that except for services and functions of state government deemed critical and exempt by this Order and except for services provided pursuant to multi-year contracts for Information Technology systems and services, all State agencies and departments under my direct executive authority take immediate action to suspend all personal services contracts effective July 31, 2008.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that all Agency Secretaries and Department Directors shall take immediate action to implement this Order, and any other action that will reduce state expenditures.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the Director of the Department of Finance shall establish an exemption process that Agency Secretaries shall utilize to determine if an exemption is justified based on critical services and functions, which may include either cost-reducing or revenue-producing services and functions that will help ensure that there is sufficient cash for the State to make its payments.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that Agency Secretaries and Cabinet-level Directors shall report their exemptions to the Cabinet Secretary and the Director of the Department of Finance within 24 hours of approving an exemption.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the Director of the Department of Finance and Director of the Department of Personnel Administration shall work with the State Controller to develop and implement the necessary mechanisms, including but not limited to pay letters and computer programs, to comply with the California Supreme Court's White v. Davis opinion to pay federal minimum wage to those nonexempt FLSA employees who did not work any overtime.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the necessary mechanisms to ensure compliance with the White v. Davis opinion must be in place to be effective for the August 2008 payroll.
IT IS HEREBY REQUESTED that during this budget impasse, the State Treasurer shall take all actions necessary to maintain the State's ability to pay its bond obligations, including payment of principal and interest with funds in the State Treasury, and shall take all actions that are necessary to protect the State's funds and investments.
IT IS FURTHER REQUESTED that other entities of State government not under my direct executive authority, including the California Public Utilities Commission, the University of California, the California State University, California Community Colleges, constitutional officers, the legislative branch (including the Legislative Counsel Bureau), and judicial branch, assist in the implementation of this Order and implement similar mitigation measures that will help to preserve the State's cash supply during this budget impasse.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that this Order shall remain in effect until such time as both a Fiscal Year 2008-09 Budget is adopted and the Director of the Department of Finance confirms an adequate cash balance exists to meet the State's fiscal obligations.
I FURTHER DIRECT that as soon as hereafter possible, this Order be filed in the Office of the Secretary of State and that widespread publicity and notice be given to this Order.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF I have hereunto set my hand and caused the Great Seal of the State of California to be affixed this 31st day of July 2008.ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER
Governor of California
ATTEST:
DEBRA BOWEN
Secretary of State
Thursday, July 31, 2008
Hope?
This letter was forwarded to me by a coworker. It was a PDF, so I saved the pages as JPGs to share with the world. Click on 'em to get a bigger and more readable picture.
Edit: Oh, yeah. It's a letter from Controller John Chiang to the Governator about the executive order that was signed earlier today.
Edit: Oh, yeah. It's a letter from Controller John Chiang to the Governator about the executive order that was signed earlier today.
Forwarded From The PJ
Governor will address budget, pay cuts at morning news conference
By Bill Lindelof - blindelof@sacbee.com
Published 6:25 am PDT Thursday, July 31, 2008
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who has threatened to cut state workers salaries by executive order, will hold a press conference today to discuss the state's 2008-09 budget at 11:15 a.m. at the State Capitol.
A draft order states that pay would be cut for about 200,000 state workers to the federal hourly minimum wage of $6.55 until a budget is signed.
After the budget is signed, workers would received their full pay for all the time they worked at the minimum wage.
The governor is banking on a 2003 California Supreme Court case, White v. Davis, to slash state worker pay while the budget impasse continues.
State Controller John Chiang, who has stated that the state has enough cash to pay full salaries through the end of September without a budget agreement, has vowed to defy any executive order to pare back state worker pay.
By Bill Lindelof - blindelof@sacbee.com
Published 6:25 am PDT Thursday, July 31, 2008
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who has threatened to cut state workers salaries by executive order, will hold a press conference today to discuss the state's 2008-09 budget at 11:15 a.m. at the State Capitol.
A draft order states that pay would be cut for about 200,000 state workers to the federal hourly minimum wage of $6.55 until a budget is signed.
After the budget is signed, workers would received their full pay for all the time they worked at the minimum wage.
The governor is banking on a 2003 California Supreme Court case, White v. Davis, to slash state worker pay while the budget impasse continues.
State Controller John Chiang, who has stated that the state has enough cash to pay full salaries through the end of September without a budget agreement, has vowed to defy any executive order to pare back state worker pay.
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Monday, July 28, 2008
Here, Again
Only a few minutes left today. Been busy catching up on a huge pile of work that was left for me after being gone all of last week for training. (Again, yes.) I really want to be angry at the guys who were here last week, but can't muster it because I already knew what kinds of asses they were and I don't actually know how heavy the work flow was while they were here.
Really looking forward to not working when the next weekend comes, already.
Really looking forward to not working when the next weekend comes, already.
Friday, July 18, 2008
Athiesm in the Worlds of the Fantastic, with Super Science
Kalinara wrote up a post about how hard it would be for a person to be an atheist in the DC universe. She hauls out the standard that in a world where people regularly interact with divine beings, it should be impossible, or extremely difficult, to deny the existence of gods or God or other creatures of divinity. (I've used the word "divine" and its derivatives a lot this morning.) Denying those beings as you interact with them would be like standing on the beach in San Diego watching and hearing the surf roll in and out and smelling the sea breeze and denying that there was an ocean out there, right?
It's a classic thought and pretty logical. There's good reason why it's been around so long. For a while, I agreed with it. To pretend that something in front of you doesn't exist is just stupid. I don't think that way anymore.
I decided that just because something is in front of you, doesn't mean you shouldn't question it. Especially when you live in a fantastic world. And most especially when you live in a fantastic world that has tons of super science in it.
I understand that on a world like Middle Earth or Krynn or other such fantasy worlds where the gods and magical beings talk to regular people and no one seems to be out to explain how the universe works through science and mathematics it would be very hard to deny that a being who claims to be divine wasn't divine.
But the DCU isn't like those worlds. The DCU is full of aliens and strange creatures born from the depths of the ocean. Not only do the aliens bring super suits and power rings, but there are villains and heroes who make robots that absorb energies and pills that give people super strength. Hyperspace and wormholes and beams of energy are the normal ways for people to travel between stars and galaxies. Aliens, who look human, fly because their skin absorbs and converts solar energy. Men run faster than the speed of light because chemicals spilled on them as lightening struck. Women turn invisible by pointing a "black light ray projector" at themselves. And then there are so many people who get fantastical abilities because a gene, or combination of genes, becomes active through natural or artificial means.
Super science. That's what so-called gods and divine beings have to contend with. To be taken for what they say they are, they have to convince the people of the world that they aren't just guys and gals with a flight ring or spandex made out of an invulnerable fiber or who drank the wrong (or right, depending on how you look at it) soda and can suddenly lift a bus over their heads. How can they prove that they're magical or divine by summoning a feast when the US army has a transporter that can send a man to the asteroid belt? Hurling bolts of lightening seems less impressive when there's a guy out there who can summon hurricanes and blizzards by waving the mechanical wand he built*. When a robot can age or de-age a man by looking at him, when a group of explorers or a woman invents a ray that can heal all but death or a father can take his severely mutilated son and save his life with cybernetics, why should anyone think those who claim to be divine are?
In that kind or a world, could there be anyone who didn't doubt the existence of the supernatural and divine? Probably, but I think there'd be a lot less of them than there are on our world.
PS The strangest responses to her post were that some people decided that the atheists would probably be more like, "Sure, gods exist, but why should I worship them? What have they done that I should use my precious time and energy to tell them how great they are?"
I don't think a person who say gods exist is an atheist, but, you know, I like to go by the definition of the word.
* I know it's been retconned out, but fuck that.
It's a classic thought and pretty logical. There's good reason why it's been around so long. For a while, I agreed with it. To pretend that something in front of you doesn't exist is just stupid. I don't think that way anymore.
I decided that just because something is in front of you, doesn't mean you shouldn't question it. Especially when you live in a fantastic world. And most especially when you live in a fantastic world that has tons of super science in it.
I understand that on a world like Middle Earth or Krynn or other such fantasy worlds where the gods and magical beings talk to regular people and no one seems to be out to explain how the universe works through science and mathematics it would be very hard to deny that a being who claims to be divine wasn't divine.
But the DCU isn't like those worlds. The DCU is full of aliens and strange creatures born from the depths of the ocean. Not only do the aliens bring super suits and power rings, but there are villains and heroes who make robots that absorb energies and pills that give people super strength. Hyperspace and wormholes and beams of energy are the normal ways for people to travel between stars and galaxies. Aliens, who look human, fly because their skin absorbs and converts solar energy. Men run faster than the speed of light because chemicals spilled on them as lightening struck. Women turn invisible by pointing a "black light ray projector" at themselves. And then there are so many people who get fantastical abilities because a gene, or combination of genes, becomes active through natural or artificial means.
Super science. That's what so-called gods and divine beings have to contend with. To be taken for what they say they are, they have to convince the people of the world that they aren't just guys and gals with a flight ring or spandex made out of an invulnerable fiber or who drank the wrong (or right, depending on how you look at it) soda and can suddenly lift a bus over their heads. How can they prove that they're magical or divine by summoning a feast when the US army has a transporter that can send a man to the asteroid belt? Hurling bolts of lightening seems less impressive when there's a guy out there who can summon hurricanes and blizzards by waving the mechanical wand he built*. When a robot can age or de-age a man by looking at him, when a group of explorers or a woman invents a ray that can heal all but death or a father can take his severely mutilated son and save his life with cybernetics, why should anyone think those who claim to be divine are?
In that kind or a world, could there be anyone who didn't doubt the existence of the supernatural and divine? Probably, but I think there'd be a lot less of them than there are on our world.
PS The strangest responses to her post were that some people decided that the atheists would probably be more like, "Sure, gods exist, but why should I worship them? What have they done that I should use my precious time and energy to tell them how great they are?"
I don't think a person who say gods exist is an atheist, but, you know, I like to go by the definition of the word.
* I know it's been retconned out, but fuck that.
Damn Mickey Ape
The story:I bought the Planet of the Apes set on sale and had it sent to my parents' house because I thought it would get there around the 4th of July, hopefully before, because I didn't want it sitting outside the door of my apartment for the long weekend.
It got there the day after I left, the 8th. I told them that they should open it if they wanted to watch the awesomeness of the Apes. And they did.
This morning, as a welcome back to the interburbs, this picture was in my mail. It was my dad's idea.
Monday, July 14, 2008
3 Days
Going down to The Bay for the next three days. Am prepared to be bored during the day, but for the two evenings am going to play and movie with a friend and friends of the friend. Am very much looking forward to that.
Comics
Edit @ 1:09: Oh, yeah, the last group probably aren't safe for most work places, if, in your work place, there's a good chance of a prude who'll rat you out catching you reading them.
I think I've met this cat before.
I think it's hilarious that he lays on his side.
I really like this strip. Don't you?
Oh, the horror. The Horror! THE HORROR!
But what if they were played on the radio?
I've had almost this dream. And I have had this discussion.
Some things start simple, and end simple.
I'd take that job, and the delusions.
I'd like to give a speech like this, someday.
I want to learn GURPS so much.
Well, things can only get better. Right? RIGHT?
I think I've met this cat before.
I think it's hilarious that he lays on his side.
I really like this strip. Don't you?
Oh, the horror. The Horror! THE HORROR!
But what if they were played on the radio?
I've had almost this dream. And I have had this discussion.
Some things start simple, and end simple.
I'd take that job, and the delusions.
I'd like to give a speech like this, someday.
I want to learn GURPS so much.
Well, things can only get better. Right? RIGHT?
Friday, July 11, 2008
Af-er Lu-ch
And so I went out to lunch. To the pretty good Mexican place that's really fast so I don't have to worry about time during my lunch break. Except it's changed management. The food's not as good. The people who run it don't clear the tables. When I sat down in the upstairs eating area, all the tables against the walls had plates and leftover food and trash, only the two tables in the center were cleared and clean. That's two out of twelve. Not a good ratio.
The biggest problem with lunch time is coming back to work. I really don't like my job. Some of the people are okay, but the job sucks. And I don't want to be stuck here. It's an okay place, but it was supposed to be a short stop on my way to something that actually required thought. If 'Bucks could pay me as much as I get paid here, I think I'd rather be there again because at least there I'd be busy the whole time and I'd get free drinks and beans and a discount on the merchandise.
I need someone to tell me a story. Tell me a story about a job that you really loved. A job that inspired you. A job that fulfilled your passions. A job that you enjoyed going back to each day. And don't give me any of that parenthood as a job crap. I want to hear about a job that paid money.
Please... I'm starting to lose hope that those sorts of jobs exist for anyone, let alone me.
Please?
The biggest problem with lunch time is coming back to work. I really don't like my job. Some of the people are okay, but the job sucks. And I don't want to be stuck here. It's an okay place, but it was supposed to be a short stop on my way to something that actually required thought. If 'Bucks could pay me as much as I get paid here, I think I'd rather be there again because at least there I'd be busy the whole time and I'd get free drinks and beans and a discount on the merchandise.
I need someone to tell me a story. Tell me a story about a job that you really loved. A job that inspired you. A job that fulfilled your passions. A job that you enjoyed going back to each day. And don't give me any of that parenthood as a job crap. I want to hear about a job that paid money.
Please... I'm starting to lose hope that those sorts of jobs exist for anyone, let alone me.
Please?
Lu-ch
I'm not really feeling HUNGRY hungry, but I'd really like to go out for lunch.
I'll let you know.
I'll let you know.
Thursday, July 10, 2008
And Now I'm Bored
Oh, sure, I have work that I could be doing and I go on my lunch break in a few minutes, but finishing that last post and getting lost in the car research was pretty much the most entertaining thing I've done today or yesterday.
Ah, well.
In an attempt to ramble on until I actually go on my lunch break I don't know if I'll write anything coherant.
Over at Comics Should Be Good!, a guy wrote about the stereotypical comic fan things he does not enjoy. Part of me really enjoyed reading his list and part of me felt like it was a sort of self-hating fan backlash post. I don't think the guy's self-hating so much as hating those who do fall into the more stereotypical comic fan world and him getting lumped into it just because he likes comics. I kind of get that, but what is it that bothers him so much when it's assumed he likes Star Wars or has read Asimov?
Me? I fall into quite a bit of those comic book stereotypes. I'm cool with that. But I also consider myself more of a pop-culture junkie than just a comic book fan. Give me a TV and a weeks worth of watching time and I'll be able to rattle off way more current pop-culture info than most people could stand. Hell, even I know how unhealthy my pop-culture retention factor can be, that's why I'm not all in peoples' faces about it.
Ah, well.
In an attempt to ramble on until I actually go on my lunch break I don't know if I'll write anything coherant.
Over at Comics Should Be Good!, a guy wrote about the stereotypical comic fan things he does not enjoy. Part of me really enjoyed reading his list and part of me felt like it was a sort of self-hating fan backlash post. I don't think the guy's self-hating so much as hating those who do fall into the more stereotypical comic fan world and him getting lumped into it just because he likes comics. I kind of get that, but what is it that bothers him so much when it's assumed he likes Star Wars or has read Asimov?
Me? I fall into quite a bit of those comic book stereotypes. I'm cool with that. But I also consider myself more of a pop-culture junkie than just a comic book fan. Give me a TV and a weeks worth of watching time and I'll be able to rattle off way more current pop-culture info than most people could stand. Hell, even I know how unhealthy my pop-culture retention factor can be, that's why I'm not all in peoples' faces about it.
The Road
I really want a new car.
The longer I drive the car I'm in, the closer the word "want" gets to "need."
This month is the 18th anniversary of when my current car was bought. I can remember spending the day at my grandparents' house, with my brothers, waiting for our parents to get back from Cowcity. When they got there, we were in awe. The three of us piled in as our parents got out and played Star Tours because it reminded us of the shuttle from that ride. (If our parents had bought it a year later, we would have played Star Trek, but we hadn't quite discovered the wondrous world of The Next Generation, yet.)
That's not what matters, though. It's getting old. It makes funny whine in four out of the five gears. Stuff leaks. And, frankly, I'd just like to feel cool driving a newer car.
If I had the money, I'd buy a brand new Prius or some other kind of hybrid. I figure that no new hybrid will sell for less than $23000. (Unless I get the teeny-tiny Yaris, but I'd really like to seat four people comfortably in my car, even if no one else ever rides with me.) I couldn't put more than $3000 as a down payment. That means if I want to pay it off in a reasonable amount of time, I'd have to pay more than $400 a month. I do not have an extra $400 a month in my budget, especially since my insurance would at least triple.
So, what about pre-owned? Well, since hybrids haven't been around very long, the used ones are all selling for more than $10000. All the ones at dealers, that I've seen on the interblub, are $16000 or more. My payment would be closer to $250 a month, which I could probably handle, but I wouldn't be putting much, if anything, in my savings during that time and I'd have to put paying my student loan on a much slower schedule. At a dealership, though, it's possible.
The hybrids that owners are selling are cheaper. Sure, still hovering around that $10000 mark, but that's thousands less than the dealer wants. The problem is that if I bought from someone who owns the car they're going to want the all the money the day I buy it from them. The fastest that I could save up $10000 is five months. Of course, that's five months without paying rent or utilities or car insurance or buying food or comics or gasoline. Five months with me not spending money at all. (Okay, if I drained my savings all the way to zero, it'd be closer to three months. But then I'd have no money at all. That seems like a stupid plan to me.)
Then I move on.
What type of car would I like to have if I can't have a hybrid?
Well, I'd like something that has the room to hold stuff. A car that can carry me and three other adults comfortably. I'd like reasonable gas mileage, like over 25 MPG. And, since I still hope to move up to Cowtown, 4-wheel drive would be a nice option for those all too common times that the county doesn't plow the roads until the morning after the night where all the snow that stuck froze solid and all the plows do is pack the icy snow down harder so when it starts to thaw, instead of melting away, it just creates a thin film of water making the roads even slicker than they would have been before the plows went by and then when it refreezes overnight the ice is even harder and therefore more slippery the next day when the sun comes out to tease a freezing world with its rays. (Also, they use sand in Cowtown, not salt, on the roads, which is fine when the ice is thin and going to be mostly melted away by that after noon, but not so good when the compacted snow/ice is half an inch thick.)
A car with space, reasonable mileage, and 4-wheel drive? Well, the only one that comes to mind is that Subaru Outback. I had a teacher who drove one of those when I was at JC. She was a graphic designer by trade, and used her car to pick up things that were printed and to travel to semi-faraway places to meet with clients. She really liked the car, too. Also, I used to drive Subaru Wagon, from, you know, the mid 80s. It was a pretty good car. (Yes, there were a few very expensive problems. One of the problems was caused by the previous owner putting a water tube on backwards so it was up against the hot engine so it melted and the car overheated and the engine because useless and then I got an engine, that wasn't rebuilt, just dropped into the car, and this led to other expensive problems because I don't think they really put in the same sort of engine. I really hated the place that "repaired" my car.) I could live pretty comfortably for several years driving an Outback that's five to ten years old.
Ah, but then there's the pricing. The cheapest, in my admittedly brief search, came up with a '97 for about $4900 sold by its owner. The pre '00 to '02 were all priced closer to $6000, though. Most of the dealer ones were $8500 or more. I could handle a car payment that would come off of that price. I'd rather just be able to buy it right out, though.
*sigh*
This weekend, I'm thinking of a test drive.
The longer I drive the car I'm in, the closer the word "want" gets to "need."
This month is the 18th anniversary of when my current car was bought. I can remember spending the day at my grandparents' house, with my brothers, waiting for our parents to get back from Cowcity. When they got there, we were in awe. The three of us piled in as our parents got out and played Star Tours because it reminded us of the shuttle from that ride. (If our parents had bought it a year later, we would have played Star Trek, but we hadn't quite discovered the wondrous world of The Next Generation, yet.)
That's not what matters, though. It's getting old. It makes funny whine in four out of the five gears. Stuff leaks. And, frankly, I'd just like to feel cool driving a newer car.
If I had the money, I'd buy a brand new Prius or some other kind of hybrid. I figure that no new hybrid will sell for less than $23000. (Unless I get the teeny-tiny Yaris, but I'd really like to seat four people comfortably in my car, even if no one else ever rides with me.) I couldn't put more than $3000 as a down payment. That means if I want to pay it off in a reasonable amount of time, I'd have to pay more than $400 a month. I do not have an extra $400 a month in my budget, especially since my insurance would at least triple.
So, what about pre-owned? Well, since hybrids haven't been around very long, the used ones are all selling for more than $10000. All the ones at dealers, that I've seen on the interblub, are $16000 or more. My payment would be closer to $250 a month, which I could probably handle, but I wouldn't be putting much, if anything, in my savings during that time and I'd have to put paying my student loan on a much slower schedule. At a dealership, though, it's possible.
The hybrids that owners are selling are cheaper. Sure, still hovering around that $10000 mark, but that's thousands less than the dealer wants. The problem is that if I bought from someone who owns the car they're going to want the all the money the day I buy it from them. The fastest that I could save up $10000 is five months. Of course, that's five months without paying rent or utilities or car insurance or buying food or comics or gasoline. Five months with me not spending money at all. (Okay, if I drained my savings all the way to zero, it'd be closer to three months. But then I'd have no money at all. That seems like a stupid plan to me.)
Then I move on.
What type of car would I like to have if I can't have a hybrid?
Well, I'd like something that has the room to hold stuff. A car that can carry me and three other adults comfortably. I'd like reasonable gas mileage, like over 25 MPG. And, since I still hope to move up to Cowtown, 4-wheel drive would be a nice option for those all too common times that the county doesn't plow the roads until the morning after the night where all the snow that stuck froze solid and all the plows do is pack the icy snow down harder so when it starts to thaw, instead of melting away, it just creates a thin film of water making the roads even slicker than they would have been before the plows went by and then when it refreezes overnight the ice is even harder and therefore more slippery the next day when the sun comes out to tease a freezing world with its rays. (Also, they use sand in Cowtown, not salt, on the roads, which is fine when the ice is thin and going to be mostly melted away by that after noon, but not so good when the compacted snow/ice is half an inch thick.)
A car with space, reasonable mileage, and 4-wheel drive? Well, the only one that comes to mind is that Subaru Outback. I had a teacher who drove one of those when I was at JC. She was a graphic designer by trade, and used her car to pick up things that were printed and to travel to semi-faraway places to meet with clients. She really liked the car, too. Also, I used to drive Subaru Wagon, from, you know, the mid 80s. It was a pretty good car. (Yes, there were a few very expensive problems. One of the problems was caused by the previous owner putting a water tube on backwards so it was up against the hot engine so it melted and the car overheated and the engine because useless and then I got an engine, that wasn't rebuilt, just dropped into the car, and this led to other expensive problems because I don't think they really put in the same sort of engine. I really hated the place that "repaired" my car.) I could live pretty comfortably for several years driving an Outback that's five to ten years old.
Ah, but then there's the pricing. The cheapest, in my admittedly brief search, came up with a '97 for about $4900 sold by its owner. The pre '00 to '02 were all priced closer to $6000, though. Most of the dealer ones were $8500 or more. I could handle a car payment that would come off of that price. I'd rather just be able to buy it right out, though.
*sigh*
This weekend, I'm thinking of a test drive.
Wednesday, July 09, 2008
Welp
I couldn't finish the post I was working on before five. Will do so tomorrow, unless I decide to call in sick.
*hugs*
*hugs*
Tuesday, July 08, 2008
As Described to Heels About 2 Hours Ago
Interview felt like it went well. There was much smiling and some laughing and I think (i.e. hope) that I asked some surprising questions and made some good observations. The woman who was asking some questions, along with the two guys, recognized me from a previous interview I had, maybe two of them. When she saw, and recognized, me sitting on a chair waiting she said she was surprised that I hadn't found a job out there, yet. Here's to hoping that this'll be the one.
Wednesday, July 02, 2008
Brain Fart
In the unfortunate event of a brain fart, please post a picture of an angry cat.Thank you.
From here.
Tuesday, July 01, 2008
Dr. Horrible
Here's a great article about Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog, Joss Whedon's internet musical.
Whedon described it like this: "It's the story of a low-rent super-villain, the hero who keeps beating him up, and the cute girl from the laundromat he's too shy to talk to."
And I'm going to miss it. Sure, I've watched the trailer, but I'll be away for work the week it's posted and the next and by the time I get back it'll be taken offline.
Guess I'll just wait for the DVD. *sigh*
Whedon described it like this: "It's the story of a low-rent super-villain, the hero who keeps beating him up, and the cute girl from the laundromat he's too shy to talk to."
And I'm going to miss it. Sure, I've watched the trailer, but I'll be away for work the week it's posted and the next and by the time I get back it'll be taken offline.
Guess I'll just wait for the DVD. *sigh*
Falstaff
In my dream, I declared myself Falstaff.
My brothers were Henry.
And we were quickly approaching the end of Part 2.
My brothers were Henry.
And we were quickly approaching the end of Part 2.
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