Monday, December 31, 2007
Woohoo!
11% raise and instructions to work on my interpersonal relationships. I've also been told (yet again) to use my indoor voice. Sometime in the next 6 months, I'm supposed to take a business communications class or seminar. The company will pay for both my time and my attendance. If I find a really good one, my department head wants to take it too. Must do some research... I'd like to get a weekend at a business retreat out of this deal!
Happy New Year
Annual Performance Review in 1 hour, 24 minutes. I've been told to bring a "crying towel."
...I'll let you know how that goes.
...I'll let you know how that goes.
Sunday, December 23, 2007
Christmas Tree
My Christmas tree, with presents.
The presents are color coded. Snowmen go to D&B, Trees to my MILs, Snowflakes to my mother's, and the silver one is for Justin. Yes, I realize I'm a bit of a nerd...
Friday, December 21, 2007
Raises and Promotions
My company has just shifted from a single review by date to a yearly review by department. That means everyone in the department gets a review in the last 2 weeks of December. Any raises or promotions will take effect on February 1 with everyone moving up at the same time. Also, HR now takes a direct hand in the reviews, typing them up for the department managers and revising them before they are sent to the company head. Everyone is reviewed by their department's senior management, rather than the person they report to.
Based on all this information, you are correct in surmising that my review should have been this week, but due to vacations and signature delays and the holidays, it has been postponed again until next week.
One of my direct reports, whose review has been delayed since August, finally got her review yesterday while I was gone to Girl Scouts. She tells me she will receive a raise and a promotion. Her promotion will be to "Senior Designer," which is one position below the my current position. Her raise is quite significant; she's jumping by 10%. That means she will make more than I do!
Here's hoping I will get a raise, and knowing I won't find out until after the holidays.
Based on all this information, you are correct in surmising that my review should have been this week, but due to vacations and signature delays and the holidays, it has been postponed again until next week.
One of my direct reports, whose review has been delayed since August, finally got her review yesterday while I was gone to Girl Scouts. She tells me she will receive a raise and a promotion. Her promotion will be to "Senior Designer," which is one position below the my current position. Her raise is quite significant; she's jumping by 10%. That means she will make more than I do!
Here's hoping I will get a raise, and knowing I won't find out until after the holidays.
Monday, December 17, 2007
I'm a Funhouse?
| You Are a Funhouse |
 Self reflective and honest, you're able to take a hard, objective look at yourself (even if you don't like what you see!). In relationships, you are a bit of a narcissist. But you can't really help it... You're by far the most interesting person you know! Your life is a bit perplexing. Things aren't always what they seem - even to you. You've successfully cultivated an enigmatic reputation. But you're still a mystery to yourself. Deep down, you often feel a little lost in the world. And you're okay with that. Trapdoors and dead ends are something you expect. You just enjoy figuring out what it all means. At your best, you are self aware and savvy. You know yourself well... including where you've been and where you're going. At your worst, you are vain, self centered, and egotistical. You sometimes look so far inward... it's the only thing you see. |
http://www.blogthings.com/whatcarnivalrideareyouquiz/"
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
Teasing
Webster's says:
Tease (v): To irritate with with taunts, mockery, pretended offers, etc., often in sport
Oxford says:
Tease (v): to annoy persistently, pester, tantalize
Dictionary.com says:
1.to irritate or provoke with persistent petty distractions, trifling raillery, or other annoyance, often in sport.
6.to provoke or disturb a person or animal by importunity or persistent petty annoyances.
I say:
Think about that before you say you are just teasing!
Tease (v): To irritate with with taunts, mockery, pretended offers, etc., often in sport
Oxford says:
Tease (v): to annoy persistently, pester, tantalize
Dictionary.com says:
1.to irritate or provoke with persistent petty distractions, trifling raillery, or other annoyance, often in sport.
6.to provoke or disturb a person or animal by importunity or persistent petty annoyances.
I say:
Think about that before you say you are just teasing!
Monday, December 10, 2007
Things I learned from my boss
Over the past week, I caught myself thinking that this job was a waste of time, on the grounds that I was learning nothing from my boss. Then I realized my fallacy. Learning is in the mind of the student, not the quality of the teacher. Also, as the sign on my cubicle wall says, "If you can't be a good example, you'll just have to be a horrible warning." And, as always, ::insert trite saying here::. My point is, I MUST be learning, even learning good, important things, even with a senile boss. So here's my list of what I have learned so far, since he became my boss in August. Mostly, it's how to manage a department and conduct yourself in a business situation. Actually, it's mostly disguised complaining. At least I took the trouble to disguise it this time, though! In no particular order, I have learned:
1. If you want your employees to respect you, speak clearly. Do not mumble. Do not make your direct reports stand around while you mumble into your (unorganized) paperwork. See also numbers 3 and 6.
2. Moderate the amount of information you provide based on the skill level of the employee. Know your direct reports well enough to understand their strengths and weaknesses. Challenge them, yes, but do not overwhelm a lower level employee with more background information than they can handle. See also numbers 5 and 6.
3. Be organized!* Keep your desk and space moderately tidy. Know where your paperwork is. Do not lose items your direct reports have turned in. Do not keep people waiting by your desk while you hunt through your paperwork because you don't know where an item is. Do not ask people to reprint items just because you lost them. See also number 7.
4. Discipline your direct reports when you are calm and level headed. If you are not feeling calm, give yourself a breather before calling them aside. Never accuse someone of causing your anger, even if they did, as it will make you sound abusive. Do not shake your finger in their face, nor threaten to fire them, as this will sour their attitude toward you and make them work inefficiently on purpose. See also numbers 7 and 10.
5. Know the job titles and duties of your direct reports. If you are unsure, never threaten to discipline someone by taking away a future promotion. You may become the office joke. See also number 4 and number 8.
6. Be concise. While giving directions, be clear, but limit yourself to describing the instructions at hand. Only repeat the instructions when it is clear they were not understood. Do not tell stories. Do not provide overwhelming information. Do not interrupt their work except to give directions. See also number 2.
7. Be prepared.* By preparing your work for your direct reports before meeting with them, you will be better able to convey clear directions. You will also make your directional meetings more efficient, therefore saving the firm's money. See also number 9.
8. Make appointments with members of other departments. If you walk in and interrupt their meetings to demand information or to pull one of your direct reports from the meeting, they will be annoyed. They will also make you the butt of their jokes. See also number 1, which may cause further laughter damage.
9. Save paper, money and the environment by reading your emails on the computer.* It is more efficient to read emails on the computer than it is to print then read. Also, you will save a lot of trees and file space by not keeping copies of all emails. See also number 3.
10. Keep your mind organized.* By thinking clearly, you will avoid repeating yourself, mumbling, and ineffient instructions. You will also guard yourself against people thinking you are senile or stupid. It helps if you think before you speak. See also numbers 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7 and 8.
*Technically, these are items I am already good at. I am simply stating them here because I did not previously recognize their full value, nor the damage the lack of these skills would have on my professional status.
1. If you want your employees to respect you, speak clearly. Do not mumble. Do not make your direct reports stand around while you mumble into your (unorganized) paperwork. See also numbers 3 and 6.
2. Moderate the amount of information you provide based on the skill level of the employee. Know your direct reports well enough to understand their strengths and weaknesses. Challenge them, yes, but do not overwhelm a lower level employee with more background information than they can handle. See also numbers 5 and 6.
3. Be organized!* Keep your desk and space moderately tidy. Know where your paperwork is. Do not lose items your direct reports have turned in. Do not keep people waiting by your desk while you hunt through your paperwork because you don't know where an item is. Do not ask people to reprint items just because you lost them. See also number 7.
4. Discipline your direct reports when you are calm and level headed. If you are not feeling calm, give yourself a breather before calling them aside. Never accuse someone of causing your anger, even if they did, as it will make you sound abusive. Do not shake your finger in their face, nor threaten to fire them, as this will sour their attitude toward you and make them work inefficiently on purpose. See also numbers 7 and 10.
5. Know the job titles and duties of your direct reports. If you are unsure, never threaten to discipline someone by taking away a future promotion. You may become the office joke. See also number 4 and number 8.
6. Be concise. While giving directions, be clear, but limit yourself to describing the instructions at hand. Only repeat the instructions when it is clear they were not understood. Do not tell stories. Do not provide overwhelming information. Do not interrupt their work except to give directions. See also number 2.
7. Be prepared.* By preparing your work for your direct reports before meeting with them, you will be better able to convey clear directions. You will also make your directional meetings more efficient, therefore saving the firm's money. See also number 9.
8. Make appointments with members of other departments. If you walk in and interrupt their meetings to demand information or to pull one of your direct reports from the meeting, they will be annoyed. They will also make you the butt of their jokes. See also number 1, which may cause further laughter damage.
9. Save paper, money and the environment by reading your emails on the computer.* It is more efficient to read emails on the computer than it is to print then read. Also, you will save a lot of trees and file space by not keeping copies of all emails. See also number 3.
10. Keep your mind organized.* By thinking clearly, you will avoid repeating yourself, mumbling, and ineffient instructions. You will also guard yourself against people thinking you are senile or stupid. It helps if you think before you speak. See also numbers 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7 and 8.
*Technically, these are items I am already good at. I am simply stating them here because I did not previously recognize their full value, nor the damage the lack of these skills would have on my professional status.
Wednesday, December 5, 2007
The Holidays
Woohoo! I've been tagged with my first meme! I promise not to do this too often. However, I am looking for some ways to be creative with my posts. This blog is becoming too much like a journal for my taste.
1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? Wrapping Paper if I can, gift bags if the gift is too lumpy.
2. Real or Artificial tree? I'd really prefer real... Justin's allergic. Also? We'd probably not clean up after it properly. Ick, shedding needles everywhere! The cats chew on our (ugly) artificial one, too.
3. When do you put up the tree? Yesterday was the first time we put up a tree in 5 years. The last time we had a tree, the cats peed on the skirt, and all the gifts sitting on it! We didn't put a skirt down this time...
4. When do you take the tree down? I'm not at all sure. Last time we had it up, it stayed up until January 8.
5. Do you like Eggnog? Yes, but I mix it with milk so it isn't as rich.
6. Favorite Gift you received as a child? I think my best present ever was my first nintendo.
7. Do you have a nativity scene? No, and I bet my cats would chew on their heads if I did. I would love to set up an Advent wreath, though. I have fond memories of lighting the candles each Sunday and singing with my family.
8. Hardest person to buy for? My in-laws, especially my father-in-law. What is it with the Earp males and buying anything with "I'm giving you this as a gift" vibes?
9. Easiest person to buy for? My husband. I just keep track of video game releases in November and December.
10. Worst Christmas gift ever received? A moldy orange. It seems Santa was trying to get the jump on things by filling my stocking in late November.
11. Christmas Cards...Snail mail or Email? Not applicable - I don't send christmas cards and I never plan to start.
12. Favorite Christmas Movie? It Happened One Christmas (remake of It's a wonderful Life, but starring Marlo Thomas) I like it better because I like Marlo Thomas and color film.
13. When do you start shopping for Christmas? Sometime in December, when Justin suddenly realizes that I've bought my 4 family gifts and he's still got 12 people to buy for. I don't consider my 4 family gifts "shopping" since there is no browsing involved.
14. Have you ever 'recycled' a Christmas present? I've definitely regifted some things. I've also used them in craft projects for the girl scouts. If something contains potpourri, I throw it straight in the trash. Forget recycling!
15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? Pumpkin pie! Also mashed potatoes.
16. Clear lights or colored on the tree? Colored! I miss the old lights from my childhood - the bigger glass bulbs. We have twinkly small ones instead.
17. Favorite Christmas Song? To sing, Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer, though I think The First Noel has to be the most fun to play on the violin.
18. Travel at Christmas or Stay Home? Travelling. It used to be a marathon of Christmas travel - Justin would get off work at 4pm on Christmas Eve, then we would hightail it to D&Bs for dinner, rush to my mom's to visit for 5-10 minutes, then rush off again to get to my mil's in time to sleep and watch Justin's little sisters open their stockings. Now that we live closer, there will be less rushing around and more sleeping in our own beds, but we will still be visiting 3 different households. Also, my father is coming to stay with us on Christmas Eve, so I have to make an airport run that day. CURSES! (I'm just playing; I'm quite excited to spend the first Christmas with my dad in 23 years. So excited that I don't even mind an airport run!)
19. Can you name Santa's Reindeer? Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner, Blitzen, Rudolph. (What kind of a question is this for a meme? The answer was already in the email my cousin sent me! I sung the song under my breath just to check she was right, though.)
20. Do you have an Angel or a Star on top of your tree? I believe it's an extremely ugly star that Justin picked. As I said though, we haven't had a tree in 5 years, so I may be mistaken.
21. Open the Presents Christmas Eve or Morning? Historically, my sister and I opened our gifts Christmas morning with our mother, then on Boxing Day with our father and stepmother. Once I got married, things changed: Justin and I did gifts on the winter solstice, then opened our gifts with D&B on Christmas Eve, my mother sometime in there, and my mil & family on Christmas morning. This year will be different again: I'll be with my family on the solstice, D&B and my father on Christmas Eve, Justin and my father on Christmas Morning, and my mil & family on Christmas afternoon.
22. Most annoying thing about this time of the year? Worrying about how we can afford gifts for Justin's entire family. I enjoy just about everything else, even the crowds at the stores.
23. Shopping...Mall or on-line? Gifts to my father's household are purchased online to save me a trip to the post office. Gifts for California relatives usually came from local stores or WalMart, because that was all we had. This year, it seems to be a combination of Target and the mall.
24. Do you decorate outside for Christmas or just inside? Mostly, we haven't decorated anywhere. What was the point, since we wouldn't be home to enjoy it? This year, I'm doing inside, though I really want to put a (real) wreath on the door. He can't be allergic to the smell OUTSIDE!!
25. Favorite Christmas cookie? I love to eat the seven layer bars from my mom's recipe, but my favorites to make are the ones I can decorate! My sister and mother and I used to make cookies all together to hand out to family friends. This year we are restarting the tradition by getting together to bake cookies on the 16th.
26. Do you own Christmassy clothing or jewelry? I have some socks with snowflakes on them. I don't think they count, though; I wear them year round whenever my feet get cold because they are the only wool socks I have.
27. Do you believe in Santa? I think I stopped believing in Santa when I was about 3 or 4. I do believe in the spirit of Christmas, and the magic in observing our traditions. Christmas is a special time, and Santa and stockings are a part of that specialness. We don't have to believe in Santa to understand how magical the season truly is.
1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? Wrapping Paper if I can, gift bags if the gift is too lumpy.
2. Real or Artificial tree? I'd really prefer real... Justin's allergic. Also? We'd probably not clean up after it properly. Ick, shedding needles everywhere! The cats chew on our (ugly) artificial one, too.
3. When do you put up the tree? Yesterday was the first time we put up a tree in 5 years. The last time we had a tree, the cats peed on the skirt, and all the gifts sitting on it! We didn't put a skirt down this time...
4. When do you take the tree down? I'm not at all sure. Last time we had it up, it stayed up until January 8.
5. Do you like Eggnog? Yes, but I mix it with milk so it isn't as rich.
6. Favorite Gift you received as a child? I think my best present ever was my first nintendo.
7. Do you have a nativity scene? No, and I bet my cats would chew on their heads if I did. I would love to set up an Advent wreath, though. I have fond memories of lighting the candles each Sunday and singing with my family.
8. Hardest person to buy for? My in-laws, especially my father-in-law. What is it with the Earp males and buying anything with "I'm giving you this as a gift" vibes?
9. Easiest person to buy for? My husband. I just keep track of video game releases in November and December.
10. Worst Christmas gift ever received? A moldy orange. It seems Santa was trying to get the jump on things by filling my stocking in late November.
11. Christmas Cards...Snail mail or Email? Not applicable - I don't send christmas cards and I never plan to start.
12. Favorite Christmas Movie? It Happened One Christmas (remake of It's a wonderful Life, but starring Marlo Thomas) I like it better because I like Marlo Thomas and color film.
13. When do you start shopping for Christmas? Sometime in December, when Justin suddenly realizes that I've bought my 4 family gifts and he's still got 12 people to buy for. I don't consider my 4 family gifts "shopping" since there is no browsing involved.
14. Have you ever 'recycled' a Christmas present? I've definitely regifted some things. I've also used them in craft projects for the girl scouts. If something contains potpourri, I throw it straight in the trash. Forget recycling!
15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? Pumpkin pie! Also mashed potatoes.
16. Clear lights or colored on the tree? Colored! I miss the old lights from my childhood - the bigger glass bulbs. We have twinkly small ones instead.
17. Favorite Christmas Song? To sing, Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer, though I think The First Noel has to be the most fun to play on the violin.
18. Travel at Christmas or Stay Home? Travelling. It used to be a marathon of Christmas travel - Justin would get off work at 4pm on Christmas Eve, then we would hightail it to D&Bs for dinner, rush to my mom's to visit for 5-10 minutes, then rush off again to get to my mil's in time to sleep and watch Justin's little sisters open their stockings. Now that we live closer, there will be less rushing around and more sleeping in our own beds, but we will still be visiting 3 different households. Also, my father is coming to stay with us on Christmas Eve, so I have to make an airport run that day. CURSES! (I'm just playing; I'm quite excited to spend the first Christmas with my dad in 23 years. So excited that I don't even mind an airport run!)
19. Can you name Santa's Reindeer? Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner, Blitzen, Rudolph. (What kind of a question is this for a meme? The answer was already in the email my cousin sent me! I sung the song under my breath just to check she was right, though.)
20. Do you have an Angel or a Star on top of your tree? I believe it's an extremely ugly star that Justin picked. As I said though, we haven't had a tree in 5 years, so I may be mistaken.
21. Open the Presents Christmas Eve or Morning? Historically, my sister and I opened our gifts Christmas morning with our mother, then on Boxing Day with our father and stepmother. Once I got married, things changed: Justin and I did gifts on the winter solstice, then opened our gifts with D&B on Christmas Eve, my mother sometime in there, and my mil & family on Christmas morning. This year will be different again: I'll be with my family on the solstice, D&B and my father on Christmas Eve, Justin and my father on Christmas Morning, and my mil & family on Christmas afternoon.
22. Most annoying thing about this time of the year? Worrying about how we can afford gifts for Justin's entire family. I enjoy just about everything else, even the crowds at the stores.
23. Shopping...Mall or on-line? Gifts to my father's household are purchased online to save me a trip to the post office. Gifts for California relatives usually came from local stores or WalMart, because that was all we had. This year, it seems to be a combination of Target and the mall.
24. Do you decorate outside for Christmas or just inside? Mostly, we haven't decorated anywhere. What was the point, since we wouldn't be home to enjoy it? This year, I'm doing inside, though I really want to put a (real) wreath on the door. He can't be allergic to the smell OUTSIDE!!
25. Favorite Christmas cookie? I love to eat the seven layer bars from my mom's recipe, but my favorites to make are the ones I can decorate! My sister and mother and I used to make cookies all together to hand out to family friends. This year we are restarting the tradition by getting together to bake cookies on the 16th.
26. Do you own Christmassy clothing or jewelry? I have some socks with snowflakes on them. I don't think they count, though; I wear them year round whenever my feet get cold because they are the only wool socks I have.
27. Do you believe in Santa? I think I stopped believing in Santa when I was about 3 or 4. I do believe in the spirit of Christmas, and the magic in observing our traditions. Christmas is a special time, and Santa and stockings are a part of that specialness. We don't have to believe in Santa to understand how magical the season truly is.
Saturday, December 1, 2007
Oops
I have no excuses for not posting this time. None.
Thursday, at scouts, we had a investiture/reinvestiture ceremony. The girls picked a poem and read it, SO CUTE! I tried to teach them the announcements song, but I guess it's too hard at that age without prompting. I told them I would never prompt them to stick to it, so I'll have to stick to it. In the meantime, they didn't pick up their cue during the ceremony. Maybe when they have the big girls setting an example it will work out.
I came home afterwards exhausted, with terribly sinus pressure, and fell asleep on the couch. That's really abnormal for me. I might be getting sick, or just dealing with allergies for the first time in years. It's been almost 8 years since I was in the bay area for winter. I don't think the heaters are agreeing with me.
Friday we got bonuses at work... mine was $100 minus taxes. If you don't get a christmas present from us this year, you know why. I hang my hopes on my boss giving me a raise during my performance review, which should be coming up within the next 2 weeks. I'll let you know how that goes >.>;
Today I had a "review class" for the LEED accredidation exam. It was a very LOOOOOONG boring class, but I did learn a few things at least. However, by the end of the class, I had decided not to take the exam at this time. The company paid for the review materials and gave them to me, so I can study them any old time. However, my department head pointed out that my study time would be better spent on the CSE. I agree, and not just because my credit card is too maxed out to pay for the exam.
I really do need to start studying for the oral exam. I'll spend 2-3 hours tomorrow putting together a review schedule. Hopefully I can manage 20 hours studying per week for the next 2 months, ramping up to 30 hours/week in February and 40 in March. My department head said I can probably take a little time off to study for the exam, so I will take advantage of that near crunch time.
WIR: Squire. 'Nuff said.
Thursday, at scouts, we had a investiture/reinvestiture ceremony. The girls picked a poem and read it, SO CUTE! I tried to teach them the announcements song, but I guess it's too hard at that age without prompting. I told them I would never prompt them to stick to it, so I'll have to stick to it. In the meantime, they didn't pick up their cue during the ceremony. Maybe when they have the big girls setting an example it will work out.
I came home afterwards exhausted, with terribly sinus pressure, and fell asleep on the couch. That's really abnormal for me. I might be getting sick, or just dealing with allergies for the first time in years. It's been almost 8 years since I was in the bay area for winter. I don't think the heaters are agreeing with me.
Friday we got bonuses at work... mine was $100 minus taxes. If you don't get a christmas present from us this year, you know why. I hang my hopes on my boss giving me a raise during my performance review, which should be coming up within the next 2 weeks. I'll let you know how that goes >.>;
Today I had a "review class" for the LEED accredidation exam. It was a very LOOOOOONG boring class, but I did learn a few things at least. However, by the end of the class, I had decided not to take the exam at this time. The company paid for the review materials and gave them to me, so I can study them any old time. However, my department head pointed out that my study time would be better spent on the CSE. I agree, and not just because my credit card is too maxed out to pay for the exam.
I really do need to start studying for the oral exam. I'll spend 2-3 hours tomorrow putting together a review schedule. Hopefully I can manage 20 hours studying per week for the next 2 months, ramping up to 30 hours/week in February and 40 in March. My department head said I can probably take a little time off to study for the exam, so I will take advantage of that near crunch time.
WIR: Squire. 'Nuff said.
Wednesday, November 28, 2007
Trivial
Worked late last night, then Justin and I went out for dinner. I still haven't finished the rank up quest for Assault. I did do BCG and beat it, but didn't want to wait for the next game day right then. I'll get that tonight. I also was paid 20k for tractoring someone up to the cavernous maw in Sauromogue. Apparently noone else wants to walk through garlaige either.
WIR: Finished Page, moved on to Squire, which has to be my favorite book in the world. Only had a few minutes before work to read it. Great book, though.
WIR: Finished Page, moved on to Squire, which has to be my favorite book in the world. Only had a few minutes before work to read it. Great book, though.
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
Tuesday? It's Tuesday already?!
I'm terrible, I know! No posts since Friday. I'm already slacking on the blog, and I've only made 17 posts! In my defence, I was busy playing Ratchet and Clank whenever I was home this weekend.
Saturday I had planned to explore the new areas of WotG, but instead we ended up going to a car show at the Moscone Center with my in-laws. The most interesting display was the one about alternative fuels, which we looked at for about 10 minutes. That place was HUGE! We were all tired afterward. After our trip to San Francisco, we had dinner with them. We ate at Buffalo Bills. Definitely not my favorite. I happened to have Mastermind in the car still, so I taught my 6yo brother in law to play. He got the hang of the rules after the first game, but didn't really start to get the hang of the strategy until the 4th or 5th game. My father-in-law bought the game after we left, apparently. I bet that kid will know the strategies thoroughly before I see him again.
After dinner, Justin decided we'd stay there overnight - without asking my opinion. It's not that I dislike staying at their house, but I don't like having such things sprung on me at the last minute. I don't like sleeping in my clothes. I don't like being on my period in someone else's house. I don't like having dog nose in my clean hair. I don't like staying up late. I don't like movies... in other words, I was in a VERY bad mood by Sunday morning. I think I fought with all of my friends that day, including Justin. Sunday was just a bad day. If you were one of the people I yelled at, my apologies.
I did manage to beat Ratchet and Clank at about 1 on Sunday. The ending left a lot to be desired. One character is abducted by robots to learn his "purpose in life" and the others are left stranded on a planet with no idea where they are. Also, one of the characters who was told that he would learn his "purpose in life" (wtf are they talking about, "pupose in life?" It's a video game!) ends up killing the alien who claimed to be able to explain it to him. The whole ending screamed "We blocked ourselves with our storyline! Watch for the sequel because we can't end the story!" I was extremely disappointed. I doubt that helped my mood along, either.
Later, Dragon and I started in on the WotG expansion stuff. We got about 3/4 of the way to Sandy in the past and I died twice in a row in Jugner (S)! A pixie raised me, which was kinda cute. Dragon somehow ended up on the wrong side of the river in Jugner (S), which sucked as much as dying twice. We also went to Limbus, though I almost didn't make it in. My computer is "all broked together" and was trying to d/c me before I could get in.
Monday was a busy day at work. I got lots of phone calls and emails about a project that is bidding on Thursday. We also had a new project to start. Got it all done, though.
After work I managed to run some errands. Then Dragon and Elhaym and I went and did some exploring of the new areas. I registered 5 of the cavernous maws, completed the first three WotG missions, and allied myself with Sandy for Campaign. For some reason, Justin is not interested in coming with us to explore or do missions. I think he's too busy soloing his dnc, which is now level 17.
WIR: Still Page, which got left at home when we went out for the day on Saturday. I really need to start reading my study materials for the CSE soon. I'm thinking that maybe I should study on Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays. That seems like a schedule I can keep up while still doing Limbus, even when acting classes start back up again in January. I plan to start that schedule December 1.
Saturday I had planned to explore the new areas of WotG, but instead we ended up going to a car show at the Moscone Center with my in-laws. The most interesting display was the one about alternative fuels, which we looked at for about 10 minutes. That place was HUGE! We were all tired afterward. After our trip to San Francisco, we had dinner with them. We ate at Buffalo Bills. Definitely not my favorite. I happened to have Mastermind in the car still, so I taught my 6yo brother in law to play. He got the hang of the rules after the first game, but didn't really start to get the hang of the strategy until the 4th or 5th game. My father-in-law bought the game after we left, apparently. I bet that kid will know the strategies thoroughly before I see him again.
After dinner, Justin decided we'd stay there overnight - without asking my opinion. It's not that I dislike staying at their house, but I don't like having such things sprung on me at the last minute. I don't like sleeping in my clothes. I don't like being on my period in someone else's house. I don't like having dog nose in my clean hair. I don't like staying up late. I don't like movies... in other words, I was in a VERY bad mood by Sunday morning. I think I fought with all of my friends that day, including Justin. Sunday was just a bad day. If you were one of the people I yelled at, my apologies.
I did manage to beat Ratchet and Clank at about 1 on Sunday. The ending left a lot to be desired. One character is abducted by robots to learn his "purpose in life" and the others are left stranded on a planet with no idea where they are. Also, one of the characters who was told that he would learn his "purpose in life" (wtf are they talking about, "pupose in life?" It's a video game!) ends up killing the alien who claimed to be able to explain it to him. The whole ending screamed "We blocked ourselves with our storyline! Watch for the sequel because we can't end the story!" I was extremely disappointed. I doubt that helped my mood along, either.
Later, Dragon and I started in on the WotG expansion stuff. We got about 3/4 of the way to Sandy in the past and I died twice in a row in Jugner (S)! A pixie raised me, which was kinda cute. Dragon somehow ended up on the wrong side of the river in Jugner (S), which sucked as much as dying twice. We also went to Limbus, though I almost didn't make it in. My computer is "all broked together" and was trying to d/c me before I could get in.
Monday was a busy day at work. I got lots of phone calls and emails about a project that is bidding on Thursday. We also had a new project to start. Got it all done, though.
After work I managed to run some errands. Then Dragon and Elhaym and I went and did some exploring of the new areas. I registered 5 of the cavernous maws, completed the first three WotG missions, and allied myself with Sandy for Campaign. For some reason, Justin is not interested in coming with us to explore or do missions. I think he's too busy soloing his dnc, which is now level 17.
WIR: Still Page, which got left at home when we went out for the day on Saturday. I really need to start reading my study materials for the CSE soon. I'm thinking that maybe I should study on Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays. That seems like a schedule I can keep up while still doing Limbus, even when acting classes start back up again in January. I plan to start that schedule December 1.
Friday, November 23, 2007
Shopping
Happy late Thanksgiving!
We drove up to my aunt's house to visit with my family yesterday. I love going up there. Once we've crossed the central valley and really get into the mountains, the scenery is beautiful. It was such a nice autumn day yesterday: cold, clear and crisp. Justin went with me for Thanksgiving for the first time ever. When we were living so far away, Thanksgiving at my aunt's was always a 3-4 day trip. Since Justin works retail, he ALWAYS has to work the Friday after Thanksgiving, and couldn't go. I was glad of his company on the drive, even though he slept most of the way there and back. The food was wonderful, my family was there, and the weather was nice. I was disappointed that I still can't convince anyone to walk to the creek with me. It's a pretty nice walk. Next time I should just go alone ;;. I enjoyed the day, even though I was bone tired from staying up so late Wednesday night.
Wednesday, after Limbus, Dragon and I went to help an old friend, Epic, with ToAU mission 35. It only took us 2 tries! The first time we failed miserably; a couple of the party members were just STUPID! ("Look, I'm kiting," the pup says as the mobs kill someone else. Yeah... even I can kite better than that!) The second time, Dragon came as drk/sam, kitted out with his homam haste gear. I was brd to cast march x2. We both 2-houred at about 55%, and he smacked Gessho with souleater from here to kingdom come. We beat the record for our server at something like 6 minutes, even though the sam and the (dumb) pup died 2 minutes into the fight without reraise. It was totally awesome. A fully hasted drk is an amazing sight indeed. I went to bed so pepped up over it that it took me almost 30 minutes to fall asleep, even though it was 11:30 by then. That's why I was so tired on Thanksgiving.
After driving home (2:30 hours each way, and I did both drives) yesterday, I went straight to bed. It was only 8:30, but I still fell asleep almost immediately. I woke up at 3:15 am today to go shopping with my mom and my sis. I spent way too much money, but ended up with most of what I went there for. New work shirts for me, new jeans for Justin, 2 copies of WoTG for PS2 (yay torrent!) and a hair straightener. The straighteners were 2 for 1, so I have my xmas gift for my sister. After I got home, I realized I forgot Dragon's birthday gift, so I went back out again for a third copy of WoTG. After all that, I took a nap.
I need to clean the house sometime today, but I'm pretty tired still. Tomorrow my in-laws are bringing their 6yo son and we are all going to go to the car museum. Justin may or may not be planning to cook them a full Thanksgiving dinner. I can't really tell at this point. We still have half a pie, at least. MMM... my pumpkin pie turned out GREAT! (even though I was cooking it during the ToAU mission =P)
WIR: Finished First Test this morning. Moved on to Page. Anyone want to join me for a book discussion? Anyone?
We drove up to my aunt's house to visit with my family yesterday. I love going up there. Once we've crossed the central valley and really get into the mountains, the scenery is beautiful. It was such a nice autumn day yesterday: cold, clear and crisp. Justin went with me for Thanksgiving for the first time ever. When we were living so far away, Thanksgiving at my aunt's was always a 3-4 day trip. Since Justin works retail, he ALWAYS has to work the Friday after Thanksgiving, and couldn't go. I was glad of his company on the drive, even though he slept most of the way there and back. The food was wonderful, my family was there, and the weather was nice. I was disappointed that I still can't convince anyone to walk to the creek with me. It's a pretty nice walk. Next time I should just go alone ;;. I enjoyed the day, even though I was bone tired from staying up so late Wednesday night.
Wednesday, after Limbus, Dragon and I went to help an old friend, Epic, with ToAU mission 35. It only took us 2 tries! The first time we failed miserably; a couple of the party members were just STUPID! ("Look, I'm kiting," the pup says as the mobs kill someone else. Yeah... even I can kite better than that!) The second time, Dragon came as drk/sam, kitted out with his homam haste gear. I was brd to cast march x2. We both 2-houred at about 55%, and he smacked Gessho with souleater from here to kingdom come. We beat the record for our server at something like 6 minutes, even though the sam and the (dumb) pup died 2 minutes into the fight without reraise. It was totally awesome. A fully hasted drk is an amazing sight indeed. I went to bed so pepped up over it that it took me almost 30 minutes to fall asleep, even though it was 11:30 by then. That's why I was so tired on Thanksgiving.
After driving home (2:30 hours each way, and I did both drives) yesterday, I went straight to bed. It was only 8:30, but I still fell asleep almost immediately. I woke up at 3:15 am today to go shopping with my mom and my sis. I spent way too much money, but ended up with most of what I went there for. New work shirts for me, new jeans for Justin, 2 copies of WoTG for PS2 (yay torrent!) and a hair straightener. The straighteners were 2 for 1, so I have my xmas gift for my sister. After I got home, I realized I forgot Dragon's birthday gift, so I went back out again for a third copy of WoTG. After all that, I took a nap.
I need to clean the house sometime today, but I'm pretty tired still. Tomorrow my in-laws are bringing their 6yo son and we are all going to go to the car museum. Justin may or may not be planning to cook them a full Thanksgiving dinner. I can't really tell at this point. We still have half a pie, at least. MMM... my pumpkin pie turned out GREAT! (even though I was cooking it during the ToAU mission =P)
WIR: Finished First Test this morning. Moved on to Page. Anyone want to join me for a book discussion? Anyone?
Wednesday, November 21, 2007
Nothing to see here, move along
I have SUCH a boring life. I do nothing but work, read and play video games, apparently. Yesterday I did all three.
At the moment I'm working on getting an addendum out, which means coordinating the efforts of the consultants and getting my changes drafted up. It's taking 100% of my time, though for some reason, my department head thinks I could do it in "the two hours from 5pm to 7pm, after you've worked your regular 8 hours." I don't know what he thinks I will work on in those 8 hours, since my direct supervisor seems not to understand my job. At least he's got my job title right now. That's right, he's no longer offering me a promotion to my own job. At least the addendum is something I already know how to do, and can take the reigns on without requesting any help from my boss. However, it's taken me 17 hours so far this week to get it to the point where it can be issued today. It needs to be ready by 8:30. I still have to work in the structural changes, so I'm going in to work at 7 this morning. I guess they are even further behind than I am.
After work, I gave a coworker a ride home, then played FFXI. Dragon and I farmed mistletoe for 3 hours. We made about 170k gil, and split it evenly. That more the doubles the amount of gil I had, although I think I'm probably still short for leveling sch and getting more gobbiebags. I wonder if I can squeeze in more farming in addition to baking a pumpkin pie tonight.
Our family has a potluck tradition at all major gatherings. For Thanksgiving, my personal contribution since graduation has been a can of cranberry sauce and turning my mother's can of Libby's into a pie. This year, I bought my own can of Libby's and plan to make my own crust, too. The last crust turned out pretty good, even if the filling wasn't.
WIR: First Test ... and I am thinking about rereading Terrier after, instead of Golden Compass. I'm bad, I know. I bet I'm probably avoiding that book for a reason. If only I could remember what it is.
At the moment I'm working on getting an addendum out, which means coordinating the efforts of the consultants and getting my changes drafted up. It's taking 100% of my time, though for some reason, my department head thinks I could do it in "the two hours from 5pm to 7pm, after you've worked your regular 8 hours." I don't know what he thinks I will work on in those 8 hours, since my direct supervisor seems not to understand my job. At least he's got my job title right now. That's right, he's no longer offering me a promotion to my own job. At least the addendum is something I already know how to do, and can take the reigns on without requesting any help from my boss. However, it's taken me 17 hours so far this week to get it to the point where it can be issued today. It needs to be ready by 8:30. I still have to work in the structural changes, so I'm going in to work at 7 this morning. I guess they are even further behind than I am.
After work, I gave a coworker a ride home, then played FFXI. Dragon and I farmed mistletoe for 3 hours. We made about 170k gil, and split it evenly. That more the doubles the amount of gil I had, although I think I'm probably still short for leveling sch and getting more gobbiebags. I wonder if I can squeeze in more farming in addition to baking a pumpkin pie tonight.
Our family has a potluck tradition at all major gatherings. For Thanksgiving, my personal contribution since graduation has been a can of cranberry sauce and turning my mother's can of Libby's into a pie. This year, I bought my own can of Libby's and plan to make my own crust, too. The last crust turned out pretty good, even if the filling wasn't.
WIR: First Test ... and I am thinking about rereading Terrier after, instead of Golden Compass. I'm bad, I know. I bet I'm probably avoiding that book for a reason. If only I could remember what it is.
Tuesday, November 20, 2007
Games, Games, and More Games
I'm not done with Ratchet and Clank 5 yet. I think I played all day Sunday, except when I was in Limbus. I woke up early yesterday, around 5:30, when Justin got up, and couldn't go back to sleep. I eventually went and played for another hour. I set a timer so I wouldn't be late for work. I've made myself late for work reading before, but never from playing a video game.
RC5 is way better than RC3 or 4. It's back to the style they used in RC1 and 2. The only thing it's missing is the skateboarding. Instead, there's flying, but not on a track. I miss the skateboarding, even though it was hard for me. I like collecting things. I'm enjoying how easy it is to level up weapons and upgrade them. One of my biggest complaints about RC4 is that they made you repeat levels to level your weapons up. This game, you still have to level your weapons up, but if you are collecting bolts and raritanium seriously, you don't have to worry. Also, it's pretty easy to level weapons. You just have to use the same one for several levels. That's a big improvement!
I also love the new graphics. The levels remind me of the early RC games, but with stronger colors and a more realistic feel to the landscape. Also, they put thought into which colors to use, so the levels are fun to look at. My only complaint is that there isn't enough light when you go through shadows. The shadows are really deep; it's often hard to tell where the edge is or where mobs are. I did like one level in which you are in a VERY dark tunnel and everything was lighted on the edges in green. It really did look like things glowed in the dark, including the mob's green eyes. Once I got used to not being able to see anything but the lights, I found I enjoyed playing in the dark.
The controls are pretty good, though I had to switch them around to manipulate the camera. Three years of using the FFXI camera has made me want to turn the camera backward. I remember how much I hated that when I started FFXI. However, when I reversed the camera controls, I apparently also reversed the sixaxis controls that control clank's laser beam. I have a hard time using it to open peep walls. I'm also having a hard time with the sixaxis controls in other ways, though. They're not as intuitive as the wiimote. Flying, free falling and the marble tilt are all a lot harder than they should be, simply because the sixaxis controls are taking my fingers a long time to learn.
Besides enjoying RC5, I xp'd with Dragon and Justin yesterday. WHM 75 finally! It only took me three years...
A new whm spell "repose" came out in the update. It seemed to only stick about 1/3 the time for me. I really need to level divine, which is at 181. I haven't looked it up, but if whm has A+ divine skill, I'm about 90 under cap. I'll have to go to besieged several times and cast flash until the buttons wear out. I really ought to do this with my enfeebling and healing skills too. None of my magic skills are capped on whm except elemental, from leveling blm 45 levels.
I'm looking forward to WoTG, hopefully later this week. We didn't reserve it anywhere, so we'll just have to look around until we find it. I'm going to level scholar, although Justin's been doing his best to talk me out of it. He seems to think it will be a worthless job. At the very least, from what he's been telling me, I'm not sure it's subbable. No matter. We can't all be dancers anyway. Even if I were the only one of our group leveling dnc, I wouldn't want to. It's definitely not a back line mage job.
WIR: I ought to finish reading Silver on the Tree and start my reread of The Golden Compass. Instead, I went and picked up First Test, because I want to reread Squire and Lady Knight. Now I'll have to reread the entire series before I go back to my other list. Otoh, at least I'm enjoying what I read!
RC5 is way better than RC3 or 4. It's back to the style they used in RC1 and 2. The only thing it's missing is the skateboarding. Instead, there's flying, but not on a track. I miss the skateboarding, even though it was hard for me. I like collecting things. I'm enjoying how easy it is to level up weapons and upgrade them. One of my biggest complaints about RC4 is that they made you repeat levels to level your weapons up. This game, you still have to level your weapons up, but if you are collecting bolts and raritanium seriously, you don't have to worry. Also, it's pretty easy to level weapons. You just have to use the same one for several levels. That's a big improvement!
I also love the new graphics. The levels remind me of the early RC games, but with stronger colors and a more realistic feel to the landscape. Also, they put thought into which colors to use, so the levels are fun to look at. My only complaint is that there isn't enough light when you go through shadows. The shadows are really deep; it's often hard to tell where the edge is or where mobs are. I did like one level in which you are in a VERY dark tunnel and everything was lighted on the edges in green. It really did look like things glowed in the dark, including the mob's green eyes. Once I got used to not being able to see anything but the lights, I found I enjoyed playing in the dark.
The controls are pretty good, though I had to switch them around to manipulate the camera. Three years of using the FFXI camera has made me want to turn the camera backward. I remember how much I hated that when I started FFXI. However, when I reversed the camera controls, I apparently also reversed the sixaxis controls that control clank's laser beam. I have a hard time using it to open peep walls. I'm also having a hard time with the sixaxis controls in other ways, though. They're not as intuitive as the wiimote. Flying, free falling and the marble tilt are all a lot harder than they should be, simply because the sixaxis controls are taking my fingers a long time to learn.
Besides enjoying RC5, I xp'd with Dragon and Justin yesterday. WHM 75 finally! It only took me three years...
A new whm spell "repose" came out in the update. It seemed to only stick about 1/3 the time for me. I really need to level divine, which is at 181. I haven't looked it up, but if whm has A+ divine skill, I'm about 90 under cap. I'll have to go to besieged several times and cast flash until the buttons wear out. I really ought to do this with my enfeebling and healing skills too. None of my magic skills are capped on whm except elemental, from leveling blm 45 levels.
I'm looking forward to WoTG, hopefully later this week. We didn't reserve it anywhere, so we'll just have to look around until we find it. I'm going to level scholar, although Justin's been doing his best to talk me out of it. He seems to think it will be a worthless job. At the very least, from what he's been telling me, I'm not sure it's subbable. No matter. We can't all be dancers anyway. Even if I were the only one of our group leveling dnc, I wouldn't want to. It's definitely not a back line mage job.
WIR: I ought to finish reading Silver on the Tree and start my reread of The Golden Compass. Instead, I went and picked up First Test, because I want to reread Squire and Lady Knight. Now I'll have to reread the entire series before I go back to my other list. Otoh, at least I'm enjoying what I read!
Saturday, November 17, 2007
Can't talk now, I'm gaming
This is going to be a short post, because I am very busy doing nothing useful. (I say that every time, don't I? It's not true this time, either.) I missed several posts now, so here's an abbreviated version of what I've been doing:
Thursday: short day at work. Boss acted weird by shaking my hand when I left. No clue what that was about. Girl Scouts after work. We did some planning, voted on our next few try-its, and made invitations to the investiture ceremony. We have a new girl, and my coleader didn't show. I was actually lucky about the new girl; we're always supposed to have 2 adults at any meeting. Her mom wanted to sit in on the meeting. Whew! I would have held the meeting anyway, though. Don't tell the girl scout council!
After girl scouts, Justin, Dragon, Elhaym and I went out to get some xp. We partied in the mire as a 73-75 party. It wasn't terribly slow xp, but it was frustrating due to the lack of mobs and the yucky nature of the flies. At some point, we had massacred everything but the flies and had to start killing them. Highest chain was 24, iirc. I got whm level 74, so it all worked out. There was a really nice static pair that joined us. An awesome rdm and a drg who kept forgetting to call his pet.
Friday: No work! As planned, I got up at a decent hour (I wanted to sleep in, but Justin can't ever find the alarm's off button ;;) and went to play Spyro. Turned on the ps2... disk read error. Tried a PS2 game... disk read error... banged on it a bit... PS2 game worked... Spyro still didn't. ARG! Justin could see how disappointed I was, so he gave me his credit card to buy a PS3. I was worried about using the card , because although I'm an authorized signer, my name isn't printed on the card. It worked out though. Target never even checked my ID, which I'm not really sure is a good thing. Came home, hooked it up, and spent most of the morning and afternoon playing Spyro 1. The machine itself is pretty sexy looking, although the original PS1 games look rather pixelated, especially when you get up close to the TV. The cord to charge the PS3 controller is about 3.5 feet long, so I was up close to the TV for a good 3 hours. I love the PS3s on/off and eject sensors. Way cooler than buttons!
When I got tired of Spyro, I went to tele-taxi for about 1.5 hours. I only made about 22k, all in the first hour. There was too much competition after that for my slow fingers. Then Justin, Elhaym, Dragon and I went out to xp again. I didn't get 75, although Justin's war finally did. Dragon got pld 74, too. We cut the party short about 2 hours so we could go assault. Noone ranked up, but it was fun.
My computer's been having problems lately. Some kind of glitch or bug or something is causing it to seize up and not let me do anything, on a regular basis. It annoyed me constantly all evening, eventually leading to Dragon's death. It also has been loading the game very slowly, causing various people to believe I've already zoned into an area, without me being able to actually do anything. This seems dangerous to me, but it hasn't led to anything but frustration yet.
Today: Spyro is almost done now, but I've stopped playing it. Justin came home for lunch about 20 minutes ago with a new game for each of us. I'm trying to keep this short (per day?) so I can go play Ratchet and Clank 5: Tools of Destruction. I am not sure about this game. I'm really excited about it, but RC3 and RC4 weren't that great; there was too much emphasis on the weapons. I don't think I even finished RC4. I got tired of "leveling up" the weapons. If I want to level something up, I'll go play FFXI! At least that way I can talk to other people while I'm "working" at a video game. Justin got himself Folklore, which he'll presumably play while I'm off babysitting his 6yo brother this evening. I'll be there all evening, so I'll have to play more rc5 tomorrow. After that, it'll be Friday before I can really play it again.
WIR: Finished The Grey King finally. I liked the ending way more than the beginning. I can't remember now which day I finished Devil in the White City but I did that, too. I've now moved on to Silver on the Tree, the last of the Dark is Rising sequence. I still need to finish Birth House, and then I will reread Golden Compass before going to see the movie.
Gotta run and go collect some bolts!
Thursday: short day at work. Boss acted weird by shaking my hand when I left. No clue what that was about. Girl Scouts after work. We did some planning, voted on our next few try-its, and made invitations to the investiture ceremony. We have a new girl, and my coleader didn't show. I was actually lucky about the new girl; we're always supposed to have 2 adults at any meeting. Her mom wanted to sit in on the meeting. Whew! I would have held the meeting anyway, though. Don't tell the girl scout council!
After girl scouts, Justin, Dragon, Elhaym and I went out to get some xp. We partied in the mire as a 73-75 party. It wasn't terribly slow xp, but it was frustrating due to the lack of mobs and the yucky nature of the flies. At some point, we had massacred everything but the flies and had to start killing them. Highest chain was 24, iirc. I got whm level 74, so it all worked out. There was a really nice static pair that joined us. An awesome rdm and a drg who kept forgetting to call his pet.
Friday: No work! As planned, I got up at a decent hour (I wanted to sleep in, but Justin can't ever find the alarm's off button ;;) and went to play Spyro. Turned on the ps2... disk read error. Tried a PS2 game... disk read error... banged on it a bit... PS2 game worked... Spyro still didn't. ARG! Justin could see how disappointed I was, so he gave me his credit card to buy a PS3. I was worried about using the card , because although I'm an authorized signer, my name isn't printed on the card. It worked out though. Target never even checked my ID, which I'm not really sure is a good thing. Came home, hooked it up, and spent most of the morning and afternoon playing Spyro 1. The machine itself is pretty sexy looking, although the original PS1 games look rather pixelated, especially when you get up close to the TV. The cord to charge the PS3 controller is about 3.5 feet long, so I was up close to the TV for a good 3 hours. I love the PS3s on/off and eject sensors. Way cooler than buttons!
When I got tired of Spyro, I went to tele-taxi for about 1.5 hours. I only made about 22k, all in the first hour. There was too much competition after that for my slow fingers. Then Justin, Elhaym, Dragon and I went out to xp again. I didn't get 75, although Justin's war finally did. Dragon got pld 74, too. We cut the party short about 2 hours so we could go assault. Noone ranked up, but it was fun.
My computer's been having problems lately. Some kind of glitch or bug or something is causing it to seize up and not let me do anything, on a regular basis. It annoyed me constantly all evening, eventually leading to Dragon's death. It also has been loading the game very slowly, causing various people to believe I've already zoned into an area, without me being able to actually do anything. This seems dangerous to me, but it hasn't led to anything but frustration yet.
Today: Spyro is almost done now, but I've stopped playing it. Justin came home for lunch about 20 minutes ago with a new game for each of us. I'm trying to keep this short (per day?) so I can go play Ratchet and Clank 5: Tools of Destruction. I am not sure about this game. I'm really excited about it, but RC3 and RC4 weren't that great; there was too much emphasis on the weapons. I don't think I even finished RC4. I got tired of "leveling up" the weapons. If I want to level something up, I'll go play FFXI! At least that way I can talk to other people while I'm "working" at a video game. Justin got himself Folklore, which he'll presumably play while I'm off babysitting his 6yo brother this evening. I'll be there all evening, so I'll have to play more rc5 tomorrow. After that, it'll be Friday before I can really play it again.
WIR: Finished The Grey King finally. I liked the ending way more than the beginning. I can't remember now which day I finished Devil in the White City but I did that, too. I've now moved on to Silver on the Tree, the last of the Dark is Rising sequence. I still need to finish Birth House, and then I will reread Golden Compass before going to see the movie.
Gotta run and go collect some bolts!
Wednesday, November 14, 2007
Work
I'm doing nothing but work this week, it seems. The big project that I wrote about on Monday didn't go out yesterday as planned. I worked 14 hours on Monday, but by Tuesday afternoon it was clear that it wouldn't be perfect. My department head, the one who caused this by holding the project on his desk for 3 weeks, said he'll call in a favor and get us a postponement until today. I wish he'd said that before I worked last Sunday. On the other hand, I asked him if everyone from my level and down in the department could take Friday off. That's just 3 of us, but we only have a department of 7. He agreed, saying that we'd earned a day off.
I love having a week day off work. There's something about being off work when I ought to be there that makes the day automatically pleasant. It doesn't matter what I am doing, at that point, just as long as I'm doing it while everyone else has to go in to the office. In this case, I plan to play some Spyro for a while and then finish leveling my whm. I want to get whm to 75 this weekend. The WoTG expansion comes out next Tuesday, and I would like to be free to level sch. Also, I have this theory that whm will become even less desirable once people start getting dnc and sch to the 70s. It's hard enough to get a party for whm as it is, but it'll be harder when there are more mage options to choose from. I'd just as soon finish up before it's impossible to get a party. I figure everyone will be out meritting like mad this weekend, so it should be a good weekend to /inv. The camps will all be packed, but that's a risk I'm willing to take. Not caring about overcrowding has nothing to do with the fact that I won't be bard and therefore not pulling. Of course not!
WIR: Still reading The White City. I'm on the part now where the fair has just ended and their finally thinking about catching the serial killer. I'll finish that, The Grey King, and Birth House this weekend, I hope. It depends how long I spend playing Spyro and FFXI.
I love having a week day off work. There's something about being off work when I ought to be there that makes the day automatically pleasant. It doesn't matter what I am doing, at that point, just as long as I'm doing it while everyone else has to go in to the office. In this case, I plan to play some Spyro for a while and then finish leveling my whm. I want to get whm to 75 this weekend. The WoTG expansion comes out next Tuesday, and I would like to be free to level sch. Also, I have this theory that whm will become even less desirable once people start getting dnc and sch to the 70s. It's hard enough to get a party for whm as it is, but it'll be harder when there are more mage options to choose from. I'd just as soon finish up before it's impossible to get a party. I figure everyone will be out meritting like mad this weekend, so it should be a good weekend to /inv. The camps will all be packed, but that's a risk I'm willing to take. Not caring about overcrowding has nothing to do with the fact that I won't be bard and therefore not pulling. Of course not!
WIR: Still reading The White City. I'm on the part now where the fair has just ended and their finally thinking about catching the serial killer. I'll finish that, The Grey King, and Birth House this weekend, I hope. It depends how long I spend playing Spyro and FFXI.
Monday, November 12, 2007
Fortunately, Unfortunately
Unfortunately, I've been at work for 3 and a half hours, and it's only 10:30am.
Fortunately, my department head praised the work I did yesterday. Woot, I don't have to do it over!
Unfortunately, I'm currently redoing the work we did Friday.
Fortunately, our main (only) drafter in the department worked 0n his laptop over the weekend, so we actually have a good starting point.
Unfortunately, when he works without supervision, he generally doesn't do a good job. So I spent a good hour redmarking his drawings. Let's see if he'll listen this time.
Fortunately, based on the comments from the department head, I was able to develop a checklist for work that still needs to be completed.
Unfortunately, the list is 12 items long.
Fortunately, I like checklists.
Unfortunately, this is still due tomorrow morning by 10am, including coloring in photoshop.
Fortunately, I don't have any plans tonight that I'll have to cancel.
Unfortunately, I still haven't finished the story of my trip to Portland.
Fortunately, noone reads this blog, so I'm not disappointing anyone!
WIR: Still The White City. I'm a little more than halfway. I keep stopping to read bits of The Grey King. I will finish both these books before starting another. I will!
Fortunately, my department head praised the work I did yesterday. Woot, I don't have to do it over!
Unfortunately, I'm currently redoing the work we did Friday.
Fortunately, our main (only) drafter in the department worked 0n his laptop over the weekend, so we actually have a good starting point.
Unfortunately, when he works without supervision, he generally doesn't do a good job. So I spent a good hour redmarking his drawings. Let's see if he'll listen this time.
Fortunately, based on the comments from the department head, I was able to develop a checklist for work that still needs to be completed.
Unfortunately, the list is 12 items long.
Fortunately, I like checklists.
Unfortunately, this is still due tomorrow morning by 10am, including coloring in photoshop.
Fortunately, I don't have any plans tonight that I'll have to cancel.
Unfortunately, I still haven't finished the story of my trip to Portland.
Fortunately, noone reads this blog, so I'm not disappointing anyone!
WIR: Still The White City. I'm a little more than halfway. I keep stopping to read bits of The Grey King. I will finish both these books before starting another. I will!
Saturday, November 10, 2007
Feeling better
I slept badly last night, but still woke up feeling way better than I have in a few days. Short post (no, really.) this time, because I need to run and shower before going to that birthday party. I decided I will be going in to work tomorrow, even though I told them I wouldn't be there. I'll come up with a cover story.
Quote of the Day: "But I'm the Lord of the Night!"
(Gotta love a parasomniac.... they say such cute things)
Still reading The White City. Really ought to start reading my study material.
Quote of the Day: "But I'm the Lord of the Night!"
(Gotta love a parasomniac.... they say such cute things)
Still reading The White City. Really ought to start reading my study material.
Friday, November 9, 2007
I'm having trouble caring...
I'm having one of those days where every little thing seems to annoy me. It's the end of a very loooooong week. Even though I had Monday off, I'm extremely tired and cross. It's probably because of the time change, or possibly getting up at 6am to be at work for 10 hour days. The weird thing is that the project we are working on seems to be going reasonably smoothly. We're behind, but we're always behind on these things, so I'm having trouble caring.
I'm also having trouble caring because I'm feeling down. Yesterday, I got in a fight with my best ffxi friend. We both said some mean things, and I get impression that our friendship is over, especially since I've been blocked on gchat. I've also got money troubles again. For the first time in my life, I bounced a rent check. The sad thing is that I didn't notice for 8 days, what with the trip and then not looking at my account when I got back. You'd think that since I haven't spent any money for 2 weeks, I couldn't bounce anything. Well, it turns out that someone held one of my checks for 3 weeks before depositing it. It wasn't a large check, but it was enough to take me under for the rent. I really should start keeping a check register, as I have no idea who the check was written out to, so I can't go ask them not to do that to me again.
Tonight Justin is going to dogsit for his dad. I haven't decided if I am going yet, what with everything I have to do tomorrow. First I'm going to visit my mother and sister, then there is a family party for my cousin's son. Luckily, my sister and I did the shopping and wrapping for that 2 weeks ago. One less thing to do in the morning! Which reminds me. I really ought to look up what time I'm supposed to be there, but for some reason, I'm having trouble caring.
I'm also having trouble caring because I'm feeling down. Yesterday, I got in a fight with my best ffxi friend. We both said some mean things, and I get impression that our friendship is over, especially since I've been blocked on gchat. I've also got money troubles again. For the first time in my life, I bounced a rent check. The sad thing is that I didn't notice for 8 days, what with the trip and then not looking at my account when I got back. You'd think that since I haven't spent any money for 2 weeks, I couldn't bounce anything. Well, it turns out that someone held one of my checks for 3 weeks before depositing it. It wasn't a large check, but it was enough to take me under for the rent. I really should start keeping a check register, as I have no idea who the check was written out to, so I can't go ask them not to do that to me again.
Tonight Justin is going to dogsit for his dad. I haven't decided if I am going yet, what with everything I have to do tomorrow. First I'm going to visit my mother and sister, then there is a family party for my cousin's son. Luckily, my sister and I did the shopping and wrapping for that 2 weeks ago. One less thing to do in the morning! Which reminds me. I really ought to look up what time I'm supposed to be there, but for some reason, I'm having trouble caring.
Wednesday, November 7, 2007
Senior Exit Exam: Good or Bad?
No time for a real post now, but here's a thought for you. I heard on the way home on NPR that the drop-out rate from California high schools has increased 4% in 2007 over 2006, largely due to the students' inability to pass the exit exam. This past year was the first it was required for students to graduate. It's been administered for several years, but it has not, in the past, been a graduation requirement.
I almost feel that it's a good thing. If these 4% of students won't stick it out an extra year to study for and pass their exams, are they really the people we want to have a diploma? I've felt for years now that there are FAR too many students going to college who don't deserve to be there. I don't mean monetarily; I mean that they don't have the basic skills required for college education and are not willing to study (ie. a classmate who asked for a calculator to figure out 6x9). I feel the same way about a high school diploma. Where will our nation be in 50 years, if the value of a diploma drops the way the dollar is?
On the other hand, I'm saddened to hear that 4% more students have dropped out due to a test. I hate to think about who these kids are. For some reason, I don't think it is the kids who had a good school and a decent home life. Are we failing out the impoverished people just because they are poor? I know that basic algebra is required on that test. I also knew plenty of my classmates in high school graduated with only a barely passing grade in pre-algebra.
Now we're back to the test is good, though. If the test had forced some of my classmates to buck up and study 2 years of math in high school instead of the obligatory "Pre-algebra," wouldn't that have been a good thing? Also, if the kids who are poor don't pass the first time, shouldn't they study harder and try again instead of dropping out?
Yes, their lives are way harder than mine ever was. We're back to "the test is bad" again. Now I'm worrying that I'm starting to sound like a republican. ARGH! I ask you... is the test good or bad? Consider that for me while I run off to improv class.
What I'm reading: Still haven't finished The Grey King or Birth House. Instead of reading either, I started Devil in the White City. So far, it's pretty good, but I can't figure out why they listed Central Park as being worked on from 1856 to 1868. I'm reasonably sure it was 1811. I must research this, but another time.
PS: I'm terribly bad at the short posts, aren't I?
I almost feel that it's a good thing. If these 4% of students won't stick it out an extra year to study for and pass their exams, are they really the people we want to have a diploma? I've felt for years now that there are FAR too many students going to college who don't deserve to be there. I don't mean monetarily; I mean that they don't have the basic skills required for college education and are not willing to study (ie. a classmate who asked for a calculator to figure out 6x9). I feel the same way about a high school diploma. Where will our nation be in 50 years, if the value of a diploma drops the way the dollar is?
On the other hand, I'm saddened to hear that 4% more students have dropped out due to a test. I hate to think about who these kids are. For some reason, I don't think it is the kids who had a good school and a decent home life. Are we failing out the impoverished people just because they are poor? I know that basic algebra is required on that test. I also knew plenty of my classmates in high school graduated with only a barely passing grade in pre-algebra.
Now we're back to the test is good, though. If the test had forced some of my classmates to buck up and study 2 years of math in high school instead of the obligatory "Pre-algebra," wouldn't that have been a good thing? Also, if the kids who are poor don't pass the first time, shouldn't they study harder and try again instead of dropping out?
Yes, their lives are way harder than mine ever was. We're back to "the test is bad" again. Now I'm worrying that I'm starting to sound like a republican. ARGH! I ask you... is the test good or bad? Consider that for me while I run off to improv class.
What I'm reading: Still haven't finished The Grey King or Birth House. Instead of reading either, I started Devil in the White City. So far, it's pretty good, but I can't figure out why they listed Central Park as being worked on from 1856 to 1868. I'm reasonably sure it was 1811. I must research this, but another time.
PS: I'm terribly bad at the short posts, aren't I?
Tuesday, November 6, 2007
Midday Feminist Work Rant
What is it about some men that gives them the power to make me doubt myself? I don't get it. In general, I'm a pretty confident person, who strongly believes in herself. Sometimes, though, I present an idea, expecting them to follow my lead, and walk away doubting myself . Just now, for example, I went to discuss an issue with a subconsultant, who should answer to me, as an architect. His response was that what I was saying couldn't possibly be true, and he argued with me for 10 minutes. Even though I had gotten the information from a trusted source, his response, his insistence that he was right, was enough to make me wonder if I was wrong. I recently got in a bit of trouble for arguing with this man, so I just walked away from the argument, but I knew I was right; I have back-up research to prove it. I hate, hate, HATE having to ask my boss or department head to solve this kind of issue for me! Why can't I just be confident enough to insist on my answer being correct?
Road Trip!
I'm back! Actually, I've been back since late on Sunday, but we had guests in the house yesterday. I couldn't find either the energy or the time to start my post on the trip. Overall, we had a great time on the trip. I doubt I have time to tell everything that happened in this post, since I have to leave for work in 45 minutes.
Wednesday:
I took the car to the dealership. They confirmed the transmission issue and fixed the slippage. Unfortunately, I believe their "fix" took the variable part out of the CVT. Now it's just a continuous transmission. It is nice not to have it slip every time I accelerate, but it doesn't really help my hybrid engine any. I really wish I bought a Prius in the first place. Any bets on when I will learn patience?
At least getting the car to the dealership and picking it up went all right. It wasn't as smooth as Tuesday's pick-up, though. Both Justin and I were late for work because of traffic. Who knew there was traffic in town? Then the pick up had to be scheduled in the middle of the day. That meant I had to drop what I was doing at work and disappear for an hour. I did like the pick-up process they have, though. They gave me a flower in a tube and washed the car! Of course, it's dirty again now, but it's cleaner than it would have been.
Wednesday was a horrible day at work, which is why you had no posts from me. I actually did write one, but it was so whiny and so full of personal information about other people that I shall never publish it. Let's just leave it with this: the boss I had to evaluate, well, I had to evaluate him for a reason. On top of being generally incapable, he's also a very mean man!
Luckily, the evening went a lot better. We got about 10 trick-or-treaters before we shut up shop. That's more than all the other years put together! Then we ran errands and drove off into the sunset. Err... ok, it was more like driving off into the dark. The drive was REALLY long, especially for Justin, who wouldn't consent to pulling over and letting me drive. I'm not sure whether I'm happy about that or not.
Thursday:
We got to Portland around 7:15, and startled my stepmother, who was still in her pajamas. Apparently she hadn't heard me say what time we would be there. After a good 4 hour nap, we went for a long walk and did soduko puzzles. My stepsister brought her new baby over for dinner. My nephew is the cutest thing ever! Yes, it was a boring day. I think we were too tired from the drive to be interesting.
Friday:
Justin slept 13 hours. This beats all my "well" records by a long shot. I only managed 10, but I think you get the idea that we were tired! We went to the Japanese Gardens with my dad. I don't remember if I have ever been there before in the fall. I think that I won't go back this late in the fall again. Most of the trees had already dropped their leaves, so it wasn't as colorful as I was expecting. Also, they seemed to be doing repair work on some of the ponds and streams, which involved having the streams run dry. This made the overall feeling in the garden somewhat less pleasant than my previous summer trips. I did like seeing the garden again, though.
After our trip to the gardens, we ate lunch on NW 23rd at a cute little restaurant called Rose's. I liked the food; Justin didn't. Then we parked downtown and went on a quest to find Justin's sister, who works at one of the Starbucks. We walked through much of Southwest Portland. It was a beautiful day for a walk; clear and cool with no rain. Portland is undergoing a LOT of construction right now. Whole city blocks were closed off to pedestrians and vehicles right in the middle of downtown.
While I didn't care for the construction, I did get to see a lot of Portland that I had never noticed before. The only building that I can remember by name at the moment is the Micheal Graves Building, which isn't even one that I like! I don't have any particular affinity for high rises anyway, but I dislike the use of color and random shapes stuck to the outside. What amuses me about the building is the fact that Justin knows which one it is. Maybe he was listening after all! My dad also pointed out the statue of the sea goddess on the old city hall building. That statue is HUGE. I want to know how they attached it at the back. What kind of bolt is big enough, and what kind of backing? I'm assuming she's hollow, but even so, she must be pretty heavy! I also love the performing theater with the glass at street level, looking into the lobby. Several years back, my dad and I gave ourselves a walking tour of the inside. I still cannot remember which theater it is. Downtown Portland seems to have theaters everywhere I look!
Later Friday evening, we met up with my sister-in-law and her boyfriend to go see the Nightmare Before Christmas in 3D. It was a good movie; I had never seen it before. In general, I don't like movies. I think Justin is finally getting used to the idea that I hate not knowing how they end. He roughly sketched the plot out for me on the way over to his sister's house. Instead of worrying about the plot, I got to listen to the music. That's better than the way I usually (don't) watch movies.
Well, I'm now officially late for work. I'd better run, I still haven't brushed my hair. I'll tell you about the rest of the trip later!
What I'm reading:
I accidentally left my copy of The Grey King at work on Wednesday. Instead I read a book I am supposed to lend to my sister on Saturday: The Birth House. I haven't finished it yet; there was too much going on. I can't decide if I like it or not. I do know that I am hearing WAY too much about what makes a midwife better than a doctor. I'd best stop reading books like these if I even want to consider having a baby in a hospital someday! I couldn't find my copy of The Birth House this morning when I got up. I probably left it in the car. Instead, I started reading The White City over breakfast. So far, I like that better than The Birth House. I might have to finish reading it before going back to the last book. ARG! 3 books started. I really need to get my reading straight! (Also spotted 2 books at a bookstore on Sunday that I would love to get for Christmas, but I'll tell you that when I'm not REALLY late for work.)
Wednesday:
I took the car to the dealership. They confirmed the transmission issue and fixed the slippage. Unfortunately, I believe their "fix" took the variable part out of the CVT. Now it's just a continuous transmission. It is nice not to have it slip every time I accelerate, but it doesn't really help my hybrid engine any. I really wish I bought a Prius in the first place. Any bets on when I will learn patience?
At least getting the car to the dealership and picking it up went all right. It wasn't as smooth as Tuesday's pick-up, though. Both Justin and I were late for work because of traffic. Who knew there was traffic in town? Then the pick up had to be scheduled in the middle of the day. That meant I had to drop what I was doing at work and disappear for an hour. I did like the pick-up process they have, though. They gave me a flower in a tube and washed the car! Of course, it's dirty again now, but it's cleaner than it would have been.
Wednesday was a horrible day at work, which is why you had no posts from me. I actually did write one, but it was so whiny and so full of personal information about other people that I shall never publish it. Let's just leave it with this: the boss I had to evaluate, well, I had to evaluate him for a reason. On top of being generally incapable, he's also a very mean man!
Luckily, the evening went a lot better. We got about 10 trick-or-treaters before we shut up shop. That's more than all the other years put together! Then we ran errands and drove off into the sunset. Err... ok, it was more like driving off into the dark. The drive was REALLY long, especially for Justin, who wouldn't consent to pulling over and letting me drive. I'm not sure whether I'm happy about that or not.
Thursday:
We got to Portland around 7:15, and startled my stepmother, who was still in her pajamas. Apparently she hadn't heard me say what time we would be there. After a good 4 hour nap, we went for a long walk and did soduko puzzles. My stepsister brought her new baby over for dinner. My nephew is the cutest thing ever! Yes, it was a boring day. I think we were too tired from the drive to be interesting.
Friday:
Justin slept 13 hours. This beats all my "well" records by a long shot. I only managed 10, but I think you get the idea that we were tired! We went to the Japanese Gardens with my dad. I don't remember if I have ever been there before in the fall. I think that I won't go back this late in the fall again. Most of the trees had already dropped their leaves, so it wasn't as colorful as I was expecting. Also, they seemed to be doing repair work on some of the ponds and streams, which involved having the streams run dry. This made the overall feeling in the garden somewhat less pleasant than my previous summer trips. I did like seeing the garden again, though.
After our trip to the gardens, we ate lunch on NW 23rd at a cute little restaurant called Rose's. I liked the food; Justin didn't. Then we parked downtown and went on a quest to find Justin's sister, who works at one of the Starbucks. We walked through much of Southwest Portland. It was a beautiful day for a walk; clear and cool with no rain. Portland is undergoing a LOT of construction right now. Whole city blocks were closed off to pedestrians and vehicles right in the middle of downtown.
While I didn't care for the construction, I did get to see a lot of Portland that I had never noticed before. The only building that I can remember by name at the moment is the Micheal Graves Building, which isn't even one that I like! I don't have any particular affinity for high rises anyway, but I dislike the use of color and random shapes stuck to the outside. What amuses me about the building is the fact that Justin knows which one it is. Maybe he was listening after all! My dad also pointed out the statue of the sea goddess on the old city hall building. That statue is HUGE. I want to know how they attached it at the back. What kind of bolt is big enough, and what kind of backing? I'm assuming she's hollow, but even so, she must be pretty heavy! I also love the performing theater with the glass at street level, looking into the lobby. Several years back, my dad and I gave ourselves a walking tour of the inside. I still cannot remember which theater it is. Downtown Portland seems to have theaters everywhere I look!
Later Friday evening, we met up with my sister-in-law and her boyfriend to go see the Nightmare Before Christmas in 3D. It was a good movie; I had never seen it before. In general, I don't like movies. I think Justin is finally getting used to the idea that I hate not knowing how they end. He roughly sketched the plot out for me on the way over to his sister's house. Instead of worrying about the plot, I got to listen to the music. That's better than the way I usually (don't) watch movies.
Well, I'm now officially late for work. I'd better run, I still haven't brushed my hair. I'll tell you about the rest of the trip later!
What I'm reading:
I accidentally left my copy of The Grey King at work on Wednesday. Instead I read a book I am supposed to lend to my sister on Saturday: The Birth House. I haven't finished it yet; there was too much going on. I can't decide if I like it or not. I do know that I am hearing WAY too much about what makes a midwife better than a doctor. I'd best stop reading books like these if I even want to consider having a baby in a hospital someday! I couldn't find my copy of The Birth House this morning when I got up. I probably left it in the car. Instead, I started reading The White City over breakfast. So far, I like that better than The Birth House. I might have to finish reading it before going back to the last book. ARG! 3 books started. I really need to get my reading straight! (Also spotted 2 books at a bookstore on Sunday that I would love to get for Christmas, but I'll tell you that when I'm not REALLY late for work.)
Wednesday, October 31, 2007
The Boss Man
I'm a quick person. Everything about me is fast. I walk fast, I talk fast, I do my work fast, I think fast. I get frustrated with people who cannot think fast. Normally, this doesn't matter. Despite what my husband will say, I do manage to hide my frustrations sometimes, especially at work.
Just when I thought things were getting better between my boss and me, they actually got worse. For a variety of reasons, he lost any respect I may have had for him within the first 2 weeks he was my boss. I mean, c'mon, he can't even remember my job title. At least twice he's threatened to take away a promotion to my OWN job, on the grounds that I am lower level than that. For the record, I do have a promotion coming up, but he doesn't have a say in it. Also, it's a promotion to Project Architect, not a promotion to my current level.
Among other things, he's the slowest person I have ever met. When I'm stressed, I speed up even more than normal; today I was stressed about a deadline I needed to meet at noon. When he took 10 minutes to answer a 1 minute response ("Go ask someone else, I don't know.) I got frustrated and rude. I'm not normally rude to my bosses. It's a bad idea to piss off someone who will evaluate you. On the other hand, I don't want to work the way he does. 10 minutes to answer that he doesn't know the answer is extremely excessive and a waste of both our time.
In response to my rudeness, he hauled me off to the conference room for a "discussion" of our conflict. The discussion turned out to be him yelling at me for being snippy. Ok, ok, I was being snippy. To quote Alanna "If you are going to be rude, do it for a reason and only if it will get you the right results." Unfortunately, these were not the results I wanted. He spent about 20 minutes yelling, including multiple threats to fire me and shaking his finger in my face. (In my face! Really!) Actually, he does not have the ability to fire me. In addition, when I talked to the HR manager, which is the first place I went afterward, it turns out they are actually pleased with my work. Good to know. The HR manager sent me for a walk. Then she talked to both my boss and the department manager.
Anyway, I don't feel the conflict is resolved, but I'm glad I talked to HR about it. This isn't the first time he's had a "private discussion" with me, and I'm sure it won't be the last. At least this way it is being recorded.
Just when I thought things were getting better between my boss and me, they actually got worse. For a variety of reasons, he lost any respect I may have had for him within the first 2 weeks he was my boss. I mean, c'mon, he can't even remember my job title. At least twice he's threatened to take away a promotion to my OWN job, on the grounds that I am lower level than that. For the record, I do have a promotion coming up, but he doesn't have a say in it. Also, it's a promotion to Project Architect, not a promotion to my current level.
Among other things, he's the slowest person I have ever met. When I'm stressed, I speed up even more than normal; today I was stressed about a deadline I needed to meet at noon. When he took 10 minutes to answer a 1 minute response ("Go ask someone else, I don't know.) I got frustrated and rude. I'm not normally rude to my bosses. It's a bad idea to piss off someone who will evaluate you. On the other hand, I don't want to work the way he does. 10 minutes to answer that he doesn't know the answer is extremely excessive and a waste of both our time.
In response to my rudeness, he hauled me off to the conference room for a "discussion" of our conflict. The discussion turned out to be him yelling at me for being snippy. Ok, ok, I was being snippy. To quote Alanna "If you are going to be rude, do it for a reason and only if it will get you the right results." Unfortunately, these were not the results I wanted. He spent about 20 minutes yelling, including multiple threats to fire me and shaking his finger in my face. (In my face! Really!) Actually, he does not have the ability to fire me. In addition, when I talked to the HR manager, which is the first place I went afterward, it turns out they are actually pleased with my work. Good to know. The HR manager sent me for a walk. Then she talked to both my boss and the department manager.
Anyway, I don't feel the conflict is resolved, but I'm glad I talked to HR about it. This isn't the first time he's had a "private discussion" with me, and I'm sure it won't be the last. At least this way it is being recorded.
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
Work, Cars and other fun stuff
This is going to be a short post. I got my car back from the dealership in plenty of time to make it to my troop meeting. The price was pretty high - $250 seems steep for a 90k mile tune-up, but perhaps I'm just not used to Bay Area prices yet. Getting to and from the mechanic went quite smoothly; I hope tomorrow's expedition to the dealership goes just as well. I still can't decide if I am hoping for a rental or not. I'd rather not put more miles on my car, but I don't like the idea of having to pay extra for a car that guzzles gas. I'm sure a hybrid is NOT on their list of basic rentals.
I turned in the review I did on my boss today. The department head asked me to put in a few employee specific comments, promised not to show it to the person I reviewed, and complimented me on the inclusion of solutions to the problems I pointed out. He was startled to read that the boss specifically tells people not to take lunch; I don't think the manager realized that mr. boss man actually breaks the labor laws when he feels like it.
In other news, our Haloween candy seems to be multiplying. We're out of mini 3 musketeers bars, but we've now added Smarties and something labeled assorted to our pile. If we don't get some trick or treaters, we'll both contract diabetes!
What I'm reading now: The Grey King. Greenwitch picked up about halfway through, though I still felt dissasociated from the story. I've only just started The Grey King, but I already like it a lot more.
Short post tonight, I'm heading out to Improv class.
I turned in the review I did on my boss today. The department head asked me to put in a few employee specific comments, promised not to show it to the person I reviewed, and complimented me on the inclusion of solutions to the problems I pointed out. He was startled to read that the boss specifically tells people not to take lunch; I don't think the manager realized that mr. boss man actually breaks the labor laws when he feels like it.
In other news, our Haloween candy seems to be multiplying. We're out of mini 3 musketeers bars, but we've now added Smarties and something labeled assorted to our pile. If we don't get some trick or treaters, we'll both contract diabetes!
What I'm reading now: The Grey King. Greenwitch picked up about halfway through, though I still felt dissasociated from the story. I've only just started The Grey King, but I already like it a lot more.
Short post tonight, I'm heading out to Improv class.
Monday, October 29, 2007
Car Woes
Over the weekend, I received a notice from Honda informing me that the warranty on my transmission has been extended to 100,000 miles due to a potential problem with "juddering and slippage." I've been noticing this shuddering feeling when I start up from stoplights for quite some time now. I have no clue how long; I can remember feeling it just after moving up here last February. I'm pretty sure, now that I've read the warranty extension letter, that it applies to my car. I wouldn't have bothered otherwise. The car is completely driveable, and the problem won't cause an accident. I have noticed that my gas mileage has been pretty bad for a hybrid. I hope the two are related. It would be nice to have both fixed in one fell swoop. Yay for free car fixes!
Also, if the car is not driveable according to the dealership, they'll hook me up with a free basic car rental for my trip. I'm not sure what a basic car is, but I heard "free car rental" and began hoping the car really isn't driveable. I plan to ask a mechanic to check the transmission if the dealership claims it's good enough for a trip to Oregon. I wonder how much I'd have to bribe them to say I need the rental...
Well, you say, those don't sound like "woes" at all. If you said that, you are right! The woe part comes in when I start to consider the amount of time (and money) I'm going to be spending at the mechanic this week. Since my car is close to 100,000 miles, I felt it was best to get it in before my Wednesday trip. I made an appointment for the 90k mile tune-up with a mechanic here in town for Tuesday. Luckily, they have a shuttle and will give me a ride to work after I drop off the car. They also have promised to get me back to my car before my scout meeting at 3pm. I haven't ever used this mechanic before, but they are the only in-town ones that specialize in imports.
I've been taking our cars to Landis Automotive for 6 years now, and I miss them terribly. Landis specializes in Hondas. I don't often trust mechanics, but this place is awesome. The first time we drove into their driveway with a problem, the owner got down on his back and went under the car, for free. We weren't pre-existing customers and we didn't know the guy. He just felt that was good service, so he did it. Apparently it was a good decision on his part, since I took both cars there until we moved out of the area. He always remembered me as the co-owner of a white CRX. He had a special affinity for CRX's. Now I have to find a new mechanic, and it's always a gamble.
Anyway, since tomorrow the car is getting a tune-up, that leaves Wednesday for the warranty appointment at the dealership. And do they have a shuttle service, like the mechanic? No! I have to drop the car off and get a ride to work. Luckily, Justin starts work at the same time I do that day, so he can just drop me off a little early. I am afraid that the dealership won't be honest with me about anything, particularly the transmission. I've never had a good experience with a dealership's mechanics. Usually, they overcharge, but I suppose that is par for the course among mechanics. I've taken my car to a dealership that charged labor on a "free tire rotation," dealerships that won't do warranty work unless I buy car accessories, and a dealership that told me up front they didn't care about my car, since I didn't buy it from them. Since the appointment isn't for 2 days, I'm probably going to worry about it until then.
In the meantime, I have a special assignment from my department head. Over the past week, I collected information about my direct supervisor. Tonight, I am supposed to write up a report on him, incorporating the comments from my direct reports. The department head let me know that it is possible, based on my report, that they will censure or demote the guy. Just how is one supposed to write a review of one's boss, knowing that even if he gets demoted, he'll still be my direct supervisor? I mean, admittedly, he is senile, can't work as a team member and has no leadership skills to speak of. But I can't write that, can I? He's still better than the boss at my last job, but mainly because he doesn't have the power to affect my raises or job security. I have just as little respect for him, though. I am glad that the department head realizes he put this guy in too deep, and that he will listen to the comments of the junior staff. I just wish the department head had understood my boss' limitations before hiring him!
Hmm... I seem a little negative today. I suppose the 9 hour work day had something to do with it. Here's a positive: only 2 more days until vacation!
Also, if the car is not driveable according to the dealership, they'll hook me up with a free basic car rental for my trip. I'm not sure what a basic car is, but I heard "free car rental" and began hoping the car really isn't driveable. I plan to ask a mechanic to check the transmission if the dealership claims it's good enough for a trip to Oregon. I wonder how much I'd have to bribe them to say I need the rental...
Well, you say, those don't sound like "woes" at all. If you said that, you are right! The woe part comes in when I start to consider the amount of time (and money) I'm going to be spending at the mechanic this week. Since my car is close to 100,000 miles, I felt it was best to get it in before my Wednesday trip. I made an appointment for the 90k mile tune-up with a mechanic here in town for Tuesday. Luckily, they have a shuttle and will give me a ride to work after I drop off the car. They also have promised to get me back to my car before my scout meeting at 3pm. I haven't ever used this mechanic before, but they are the only in-town ones that specialize in imports.
I've been taking our cars to Landis Automotive for 6 years now, and I miss them terribly. Landis specializes in Hondas. I don't often trust mechanics, but this place is awesome. The first time we drove into their driveway with a problem, the owner got down on his back and went under the car, for free. We weren't pre-existing customers and we didn't know the guy. He just felt that was good service, so he did it. Apparently it was a good decision on his part, since I took both cars there until we moved out of the area. He always remembered me as the co-owner of a white CRX. He had a special affinity for CRX's. Now I have to find a new mechanic, and it's always a gamble.
Anyway, since tomorrow the car is getting a tune-up, that leaves Wednesday for the warranty appointment at the dealership. And do they have a shuttle service, like the mechanic? No! I have to drop the car off and get a ride to work. Luckily, Justin starts work at the same time I do that day, so he can just drop me off a little early. I am afraid that the dealership won't be honest with me about anything, particularly the transmission. I've never had a good experience with a dealership's mechanics. Usually, they overcharge, but I suppose that is par for the course among mechanics. I've taken my car to a dealership that charged labor on a "free tire rotation," dealerships that won't do warranty work unless I buy car accessories, and a dealership that told me up front they didn't care about my car, since I didn't buy it from them. Since the appointment isn't for 2 days, I'm probably going to worry about it until then.
In the meantime, I have a special assignment from my department head. Over the past week, I collected information about my direct supervisor. Tonight, I am supposed to write up a report on him, incorporating the comments from my direct reports. The department head let me know that it is possible, based on my report, that they will censure or demote the guy. Just how is one supposed to write a review of one's boss, knowing that even if he gets demoted, he'll still be my direct supervisor? I mean, admittedly, he is senile, can't work as a team member and has no leadership skills to speak of. But I can't write that, can I? He's still better than the boss at my last job, but mainly because he doesn't have the power to affect my raises or job security. I have just as little respect for him, though. I am glad that the department head realizes he put this guy in too deep, and that he will listen to the comments of the junior staff. I just wish the department head had understood my boss' limitations before hiring him!
Hmm... I seem a little negative today. I suppose the 9 hour work day had something to do with it. Here's a positive: only 2 more days until vacation!
Sunday, October 28, 2007
Chores and other stuff
See? Only 3 posts into this blog and I've already skipped a day. My excuse is that I wore myself out yesterday cleaning the house. By the end of the day, I had this post all written in my head, but no inclination to type it.
I have this weird method of housecleaning. (No, I don't mean the fact that I don't clean until I know someone is coming over. That's not actually all that weird.) I'm talking about my random chore generator. First I make a list of everything I feel needs work, down to the little tetchy bits. For example, I write "Take out bathroom trash; scrub tub; clean toilet; wipe counters; and wash floor" instead of writing "clean the bathroom." On average, I spend about 5 minutes walking around the house before making the list, surveying the messes and deciding what needs doing and what I can skip.
I assign each chore a set of numbers, from 0 to 999, divided evenly, and get someone from FFXI to /random* for me. I have to get someone else to pick the number, otherwise I'm inclined to cheat, leaving chores I don't want to do for the very end in the hopes that they will go away. When Justin is home, he ignores the system completely. I'll go to do a chore and it's already done! This leads to more cheating on my part, which never works out the way I hope. Also, over time I discovered that it is pointless to put either the dishes or the laundry into my lists. Both those chores involve returning to complete them after an hour or two; not suitable when the chore is picked randomly.
Odd as it is, this system really works for me. The chores are so tiny that they only take 5 to 10 minutes each. Then I get to come sit at my computer and joke around for a few minutes until I feel like going back to work. Sometimes my friend Kaze will try to skip ahead and simply give me a new number the second I sit down, but I can just chat for a few minutes and then go do the chore he /random'ed. I don't have to work straight through, I can see the end of my list, and I get to make everyone in-game laugh about crazy Shrugged and her housecleaning. It's a win-win-win situation. I use my chore generator every time I have a lot of housework to do. It even works for packing boxes. When we are moving, the list consists of closets and rooms that need to be packed up, rather than chores to do.
The random chore generator stems from a parenting method my mother used to teach my sister and me household responsibility. Mother would make out chore lists for us, one unique list for each girl. I liked the chore lists a lot because they provided a clear ending point to what seemed like infinite cleaning. I didn't have to worry about when I would get to go play; reaching the bottom of the list meant free time. Also, separate lists delineated which chores we each were assigned. There could be no "Mommy said you have to..." when it was written clearly who did what. The only thing I hated about the lists was when my mother had to add things. This was worst was when I was more than halfway through my list. I was already estimating what time I would finish. New items lengthened the time I'd be spending on chores, and I would have to completely recalculate.
Besides working on my random chore generator list yesterday (it had 12 items, plus laundry and dishes), I also met Justin for lunch at Baja Fresh, baked an apple pie, ranked up to Second Lieutenant in assault**, and tried out two new assaults with Justin and Dragonx. No wonder I was exhausted!
The apple pie turned out okay. It's the first time I tried making pie crust from scratch, and it wasn't as difficult as I had heard. The crust is actually quite good, even though I don't have a blender or a pastry-making-tool-thing. I used a potato masher instead. I've never made apple pie before, either. I was disconcerted by the spiced liquid that came pouring out of the pie when I cut it open. The pie filling tastes really good, but I can't figure out where all the liquid came from! Did I just not cook it long enough? Perhaps it would have evaporated if I cooked it a bit longer. The apples aren't crunchy, so I thought it was done, but I suppose they could get a bit mushier. Is this supposed to happen?
Today should be less busy; my sister and I are going shopping, possibly dragging Justin along. We have to buy gifts for our baby nephew and our father. I also am planning to attend Limbus with Dragonx and Elhaym this evening. Of all the FFXI end-game activities, my favorite is Limbus. It's short, it doesn't require a whole lot of studying strategies ahead of time, at least not for the Bard, and there's always the reward of Ancient Beastcoins at the end. Much better than Sky or Dynamis, where you might only get a reward every 3-6 weeks, and even then only if you are high on the point list. Also, I like that it can be done with as few as 8 people. If all 18 don't show up, we don't have to cancel!
What I'm reading now: Greenwitch, the third book in the Dark is Rising series. I liked the first 2 books much more. I'm actually considering putting this one down for about a week and coming back to it. Hopefully, the fourth book, Grey King will be better.
There, a nice long post to make up for not writing one yesterday. I'm still not sure I can keep up a blog, but it's nice to not quit during the first week!
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
*/random: FFXI allows you make your avatar emote through one word commands preceded by a forward slash. For example, /smile makes your character "smile warmly" at whatever you targeted. /bow makes your character bow to your target (it is a japanese game, after all). /random makes a set of pretend dice roll a number between 0 and 999 and announces the results to everyone around you.
**Assault: an element added to FFXI during the expansion 2 years ago. In a party of 3 to 6 players, you go into a special zone with an objective to achieve in a limited amount of time. Sometimes the objective is to kill the monsters, sometimes it's spy work, and sometimes you have to rescue a computer generated character (NPC). There are 10 ranks modeled on army ranks. You start with rank 1, Private Second Class, and work your way up to the 10th rank. Second lieutenant is rank 9. Each rank gets a new set of assaults to try, though you can go back and repeat old ones.
I have this weird method of housecleaning. (No, I don't mean the fact that I don't clean until I know someone is coming over. That's not actually all that weird.) I'm talking about my random chore generator. First I make a list of everything I feel needs work, down to the little tetchy bits. For example, I write "Take out bathroom trash; scrub tub; clean toilet; wipe counters; and wash floor" instead of writing "clean the bathroom." On average, I spend about 5 minutes walking around the house before making the list, surveying the messes and deciding what needs doing and what I can skip.
I assign each chore a set of numbers, from 0 to 999, divided evenly, and get someone from FFXI to /random* for me. I have to get someone else to pick the number, otherwise I'm inclined to cheat, leaving chores I don't want to do for the very end in the hopes that they will go away. When Justin is home, he ignores the system completely. I'll go to do a chore and it's already done! This leads to more cheating on my part, which never works out the way I hope. Also, over time I discovered that it is pointless to put either the dishes or the laundry into my lists. Both those chores involve returning to complete them after an hour or two; not suitable when the chore is picked randomly.
Odd as it is, this system really works for me. The chores are so tiny that they only take 5 to 10 minutes each. Then I get to come sit at my computer and joke around for a few minutes until I feel like going back to work. Sometimes my friend Kaze will try to skip ahead and simply give me a new number the second I sit down, but I can just chat for a few minutes and then go do the chore he /random'ed. I don't have to work straight through, I can see the end of my list, and I get to make everyone in-game laugh about crazy Shrugged and her housecleaning. It's a win-win-win situation. I use my chore generator every time I have a lot of housework to do. It even works for packing boxes. When we are moving, the list consists of closets and rooms that need to be packed up, rather than chores to do.
The random chore generator stems from a parenting method my mother used to teach my sister and me household responsibility. Mother would make out chore lists for us, one unique list for each girl. I liked the chore lists a lot because they provided a clear ending point to what seemed like infinite cleaning. I didn't have to worry about when I would get to go play; reaching the bottom of the list meant free time. Also, separate lists delineated which chores we each were assigned. There could be no "Mommy said you have to..." when it was written clearly who did what. The only thing I hated about the lists was when my mother had to add things. This was worst was when I was more than halfway through my list. I was already estimating what time I would finish. New items lengthened the time I'd be spending on chores, and I would have to completely recalculate.
Besides working on my random chore generator list yesterday (it had 12 items, plus laundry and dishes), I also met Justin for lunch at Baja Fresh, baked an apple pie, ranked up to Second Lieutenant in assault**, and tried out two new assaults with Justin and Dragonx. No wonder I was exhausted!
The apple pie turned out okay. It's the first time I tried making pie crust from scratch, and it wasn't as difficult as I had heard. The crust is actually quite good, even though I don't have a blender or a pastry-making-tool-thing. I used a potato masher instead. I've never made apple pie before, either. I was disconcerted by the spiced liquid that came pouring out of the pie when I cut it open. The pie filling tastes really good, but I can't figure out where all the liquid came from! Did I just not cook it long enough? Perhaps it would have evaporated if I cooked it a bit longer. The apples aren't crunchy, so I thought it was done, but I suppose they could get a bit mushier. Is this supposed to happen?
Today should be less busy; my sister and I are going shopping, possibly dragging Justin along. We have to buy gifts for our baby nephew and our father. I also am planning to attend Limbus with Dragonx and Elhaym this evening. Of all the FFXI end-game activities, my favorite is Limbus. It's short, it doesn't require a whole lot of studying strategies ahead of time, at least not for the Bard, and there's always the reward of Ancient Beastcoins at the end. Much better than Sky or Dynamis, where you might only get a reward every 3-6 weeks, and even then only if you are high on the point list. Also, I like that it can be done with as few as 8 people. If all 18 don't show up, we don't have to cancel!
What I'm reading now: Greenwitch, the third book in the Dark is Rising series. I liked the first 2 books much more. I'm actually considering putting this one down for about a week and coming back to it. Hopefully, the fourth book, Grey King will be better.
There, a nice long post to make up for not writing one yesterday. I'm still not sure I can keep up a blog, but it's nice to not quit during the first week!
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
*/random: FFXI allows you make your avatar emote through one word commands preceded by a forward slash. For example, /smile makes your character "smile warmly" at whatever you targeted. /bow makes your character bow to your target (it is a japanese game, after all). /random makes a set of pretend dice roll a number between 0 and 999 and announces the results to everyone around you.
**Assault: an element added to FFXI during the expansion 2 years ago. In a party of 3 to 6 players, you go into a special zone with an objective to achieve in a limited amount of time. Sometimes the objective is to kill the monsters, sometimes it's spy work, and sometimes you have to rescue a computer generated character (NPC). There are 10 ranks modeled on army ranks. You start with rank 1, Private Second Class, and work your way up to the 10th rank. Second lieutenant is rank 9. Each rank gets a new set of assaults to try, though you can go back and repeat old ones.
Friday, October 26, 2007
Friday at last!
Not much happened today. Well, the administrative assistant in my department was fired for lying on her employment application. Turns out she was a convicted felon. I wonder what she did! She only lasted 4 days, but technically, she was fired yesterday. Yesterday was also our third brownie meeting. The girls made smores over a propane stove. Nothing like that smell of propane to roast those marshmellows! I also let them try lighting a match each, after a short lecture on matches and safety. Third graders playing with matches. Woohoo! Again, that was yesterday. Today was boring!
Tomorrow will be nice and boring too, since all I'll be doing is cleaning the house and getting my tires rotated. My sister is coming over on Sunday to shop for and subsequently wrap gifts for our new nephew and our father, and I want her to think I keep a nice clean house. Plus, this way I will already have the house clean when I leave for Portland. I'm quite looking forward to this trip. It's weird, but I actually like long road trips with my husband. I hear plenty of people say "Oh, I could never take that kind of trip, I'd go crazy!" I like it, though. It seems that we do our best chatting when I am half asleep and he's driving. I do have to buff up on the news for the next few days, or we'll end up complaining about the president again. Not that there's anything wrong with complaining about the president, but it will get old if we have to do it for 9 hours. Send me any outrageous news articles you can!
You know, I think I will have to take up skydiving or something! This is quite possibly the most boring post in the history of the blogosphere!
Tomorrow will be nice and boring too, since all I'll be doing is cleaning the house and getting my tires rotated. My sister is coming over on Sunday to shop for and subsequently wrap gifts for our new nephew and our father, and I want her to think I keep a nice clean house. Plus, this way I will already have the house clean when I leave for Portland. I'm quite looking forward to this trip. It's weird, but I actually like long road trips with my husband. I hear plenty of people say "Oh, I could never take that kind of trip, I'd go crazy!" I like it, though. It seems that we do our best chatting when I am half asleep and he's driving. I do have to buff up on the news for the next few days, or we'll end up complaining about the president again. Not that there's anything wrong with complaining about the president, but it will get old if we have to do it for 9 hours. Send me any outrageous news articles you can!
You know, I think I will have to take up skydiving or something! This is quite possibly the most boring post in the history of the blogosphere!
Thursday, October 25, 2007
Yes, I’ve finally given in. I started a blog. I’m trying to convince myself that being 6 years behind the trendy people means that I’m truly not mindlessly following a trend. If I just think it hard enough, surely I will start to believe it. I’m not at all sure that I can keep up with a blog in any case. I can’t even make a weekly post to my Brownie’s troop website! Who am I to think I can write a daily blog? My favorite blog hasn’t been updated for 12 days now, so perhaps if I skip a day or two, it won’t matter.
I’ve wanted to make a blog since we moved up to the Bay Area last winter. I started walking to work in March, and I realized I wanted to blog so I could complain about all the drivers who don’t respect traffic laws pertaining to pedestrians. (Hello? On a red light, you AREN’T allowed to honk at a pedestrian who is crossing in the crosswalk, with the walk sign!) Then I decided that complaining about drivers wasn’t a good blog premise. Such a blog would get boring really fast for everyone, including its author.
The only reason this has come up again is because my mother pointed out to me yesterday that I should communicate with my family and friends more. Yes, Mother, I am listening to your advice. Don’t go into shock! Apparently some members of my family are hanging around waiting to hear from me (riiiiight). I wouldn’t want to disappoint them!
Mostly, this blog is going to be about conveying what’s going on around me to my family and friends and the random stranger who pokes their nose in. What I have to say isn’t earth shattering; it’s just my life and things that interest me. I want to write about my efforts to become the first female architect in my firm, the engineers who won’t listen to me, the brownie troop I just started, my online FFXI adventures, my (non-existent) soap making skills and anything else I find to in my free time. Once in a while, I promise to slip in some rude comments about drivers who almost run me over and people who drive SUVs. Maybe I’ll even put them in the same post!
On every post (I hope), I’m going to put in a “what I’m reading right now” comment. If you want to read something I’m reading, or you have already read it, I’d love to discuss it with you. So few people enjoy reading the same books I do that I’m beginning to believe I’m crazy. I’d love to read your comments on the books. The only thing I don’t want to read is: “Those are kids’ books!” I read for pleasure, and to distract me from my life and to relax. I don’t care if I’m reading good characterization, good writing, books for adults, long books or challenging books, as long as it’s interesting and the author can spin a good story. I don’t watch TV, smoke or drink. If my worst vice is that I chose to be entertained by books instead of reading something challenging, I think I’m doing pretty well. If I want to be challenged, I will go study for my oral architect’s exam, which is coming up in March.
What I’m reading now: halfway through The Dark is Rising. I read Over Sea, Under Stone Monday and Tuesday. I’m reading the entire 5-book series because I went to see the movie based on the second book a couple weeks ago. If you haven’t seen the movie, don’t bother! Read the book instead.
I’ve wanted to make a blog since we moved up to the Bay Area last winter. I started walking to work in March, and I realized I wanted to blog so I could complain about all the drivers who don’t respect traffic laws pertaining to pedestrians. (Hello? On a red light, you AREN’T allowed to honk at a pedestrian who is crossing in the crosswalk, with the walk sign!) Then I decided that complaining about drivers wasn’t a good blog premise. Such a blog would get boring really fast for everyone, including its author.
The only reason this has come up again is because my mother pointed out to me yesterday that I should communicate with my family and friends more. Yes, Mother, I am listening to your advice. Don’t go into shock! Apparently some members of my family are hanging around waiting to hear from me (riiiiight). I wouldn’t want to disappoint them!
Mostly, this blog is going to be about conveying what’s going on around me to my family and friends and the random stranger who pokes their nose in. What I have to say isn’t earth shattering; it’s just my life and things that interest me. I want to write about my efforts to become the first female architect in my firm, the engineers who won’t listen to me, the brownie troop I just started, my online FFXI adventures, my (non-existent) soap making skills and anything else I find to in my free time. Once in a while, I promise to slip in some rude comments about drivers who almost run me over and people who drive SUVs. Maybe I’ll even put them in the same post!
On every post (I hope), I’m going to put in a “what I’m reading right now” comment. If you want to read something I’m reading, or you have already read it, I’d love to discuss it with you. So few people enjoy reading the same books I do that I’m beginning to believe I’m crazy. I’d love to read your comments on the books. The only thing I don’t want to read is: “Those are kids’ books!” I read for pleasure, and to distract me from my life and to relax. I don’t care if I’m reading good characterization, good writing, books for adults, long books or challenging books, as long as it’s interesting and the author can spin a good story. I don’t watch TV, smoke or drink. If my worst vice is that I chose to be entertained by books instead of reading something challenging, I think I’m doing pretty well. If I want to be challenged, I will go study for my oral architect’s exam, which is coming up in March.
What I’m reading now: halfway through The Dark is Rising. I read Over Sea, Under Stone Monday and Tuesday. I’m reading the entire 5-book series because I went to see the movie based on the second book a couple weeks ago. If you haven’t seen the movie, don’t bother! Read the book instead.
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