Greetings from Playa del Carmen, Mexico. We just got to the resort, and it looks great. Our room is beautiful and pretty big, which is nice. I think we're going to have a lot of fun here...That is, as soon as I can buy a swimsuit. I realized after we got off the plane that I had forgotten to pack one. That's a bit of a problem when your room is a swim-out suite and just a couple hundred yards from the beach. Oops.
I need to pay more attention to my packing next time. I accidentally packed a long-sleeve golf shirt, thinking it was something else. Every t-shirt I packed is black. I don't have enough of the kinds of shirts I like to wear in hot weather. Serves me right for packing early this morning rather than before I went to bed last night. Oops again.
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Thursday, April 9, 2009
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Sunday, April 5, 2009
when will this end?
As much as I like snow, this is getting really old. Enough already.
It does afford some good opportunities for taking pictures, like I did at 6am this morning. Using a tripod and playing with longer exposures is pretty entertaining.
We're leaving for Mexico on Wednesday morning, and I'm really looking forward to the change in climate. Hopefully, the weather will stay nice. I just checked the forecast for Playa del Carmen, and it's supposed to be in the high 80's all week long. I don't typically like weather that hot, but when I'm on the beach and have a room right next to the pool, that's just fine by me.
It does afford some good opportunities for taking pictures, like I did at 6am this morning. Using a tripod and playing with longer exposures is pretty entertaining.
We're leaving for Mexico on Wednesday morning, and I'm really looking forward to the change in climate. Hopefully, the weather will stay nice. I just checked the forecast for Playa del Carmen, and it's supposed to be in the high 80's all week long. I don't typically like weather that hot, but when I'm on the beach and have a room right next to the pool, that's just fine by me.
Sunday, March 29, 2009
Knowing
If you were planning on seeing this movie in the theater, save your money and rent it instead.
I wasn't expecting it to be as creepy as it was. I was under the impression that it would take a more scientific/historical tack, with Nicholas Cage's character uncovering clues about what would happen in the future. It turns out, however, that the codes Cage finds have been whispered to children by aliens (with all the whispering driving them crazy, of course), and signal the dates and locations of disasters around the world, with the last disaster predicted being the end of the world. In this case, the end of the world is caused by massive solar flares that destroy the face of the planet. This is a fate for mankind that I hadn't previously seen in a movie, but being the fan of apocalyptic situations that I am, I enjoyed it.
I did not enjoy the Christian references in the movie. The aliens save some people in order to give mankind a chance to start all over, but only "those who listened" are saved. In the final scene of the movie, Cage's son and another girl are shown running through a field toward a glowing tree, with a large moon in the background. This is presumably the new planet where mankind will rebuild. The tree and situation, in general, were reminiscent of the Garden of Eden or the tree of life. The scene was really cool, but I don't like feeling like I'm being preached to, no matter what the subject is.
Knowing: C+
I wasn't expecting it to be as creepy as it was. I was under the impression that it would take a more scientific/historical tack, with Nicholas Cage's character uncovering clues about what would happen in the future. It turns out, however, that the codes Cage finds have been whispered to children by aliens (with all the whispering driving them crazy, of course), and signal the dates and locations of disasters around the world, with the last disaster predicted being the end of the world. In this case, the end of the world is caused by massive solar flares that destroy the face of the planet. This is a fate for mankind that I hadn't previously seen in a movie, but being the fan of apocalyptic situations that I am, I enjoyed it.
I did not enjoy the Christian references in the movie. The aliens save some people in order to give mankind a chance to start all over, but only "those who listened" are saved. In the final scene of the movie, Cage's son and another girl are shown running through a field toward a glowing tree, with a large moon in the background. This is presumably the new planet where mankind will rebuild. The tree and situation, in general, were reminiscent of the Garden of Eden or the tree of life. The scene was really cool, but I don't like feeling like I'm being preached to, no matter what the subject is.
Knowing: C+
Monday, March 23, 2009
True North Pistachio Crisps: RECOMMENDED
When I was in grad school, I heard a statistic once regarding new product launches. A ridiculous percentage of new products (something like 80-90%) fail and are removed from the marketplace within a year of launch. That being the case, it's easy to try new products and criticize them. It's much less frequent that I try something new and am genuinely impressed. That leads me to today's review.
The same day that I purchased the repulsive Progresso soup I reviewed in my previous post, I also decided to get a new snack for the little lady to enjoy. I had never heard of True North before, but was intrigued by the fact that the main flavor in this snack was pistachio. I don't think I'd ever heard of a cracker or chip based on nuts prior to that, so I decided to give them a whirl.
I had started my diet by that time, and said pistachio crisps should have been off-limits. After the little lady raved about them, however, I decided to put weight loss on hold and indulge myself. Unfortunately, this snack had an effect similar to Pringles: I couldn't eat just one. Until the bag was gone, I'd sneak a few here and there every time I saw the bag. They were crispy; they were salty, but not in an obnoxious way; they never left me feeling gross like most snacks do. I was obsessed.
I was surprised to learn that True North is a Frito-Lay brand. The same purveyors of fattening, addictive chips and snacks like Cool Ranch Doritos and Peppercorn Ranch Sun Chips (more on those later) have blessed us with a righteous bounty of natural, tasty snacks kissed by crystals of sea salt and a touch of love.
When times are tough, when the sky is dark, when all hope is lost, roll your old bones on over to Super Target and pick yourself up a bag of these hallowed crisps. You'll be glad you did. Your tastebuds need not be bored senseless any longer.
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Progresso Reduced Sodium Chicken Noodle Soup: Epic Fail
The day that President Obama was inaugurated was a day of sickness in our home. The little lady was deathly ill, and the planets aligned such that I was able to stay home from work and take her to the doctor. On the way home, we stopped at Target to pick up her prescriptions and some food. One of the items I picked up was Progresso's reduced sodium chicken noodle soup.
The next time she went to work, she took a can of this soup for her lunch. She later complained that she felt like throwing up after she ate it. She has a lot of (what I consider to be) strange food hang-ups, so I attributed this negative reaction to her weirdness and illness. She refused to eat any more of said soup, so the remaining cans sat on the pantry shelf, gathering dust.
Fast forward to today. I was in the mood for something different, so I pulled out some of this soup and heated up a bowl for dinner. I was shocked at how bland it was when I took my first bite. I might as well have been eating water with some rubbery chicken and mushy carrots and noodles added for color. I ran back to the kitchen and grabbed my trusty sea salt grinder, and began to grind...and grind...and grind...and grind. After a few twists, I'd taste the soup again. Nothing. More twists...nothing...more twists...Finally, after about four rounds of twisting, I had something that was sort of worth eating. I suppose I could have just ground a pile of salt onto a plate and eaten that. The nutritional value would have been about the same, and it wouldn't have been nearly as filling.
Reduced sodium soup (especially chicken noodle) makes about as much sense as soup without water. It's bland, boring and has no business being served to humans...at least, not the kind that have tongues. The idea of canned soup is gross enough without removing one of its key ingredients.
So, the next time you're in the mood for a hearty crock of disappointment, treat yourself to a can of Progresso's reduced sodium fare. Yes, I'm extending the F- failing grade to the entire product line. Bon appetit.
The next time she went to work, she took a can of this soup for her lunch. She later complained that she felt like throwing up after she ate it. She has a lot of (what I consider to be) strange food hang-ups, so I attributed this negative reaction to her weirdness and illness. She refused to eat any more of said soup, so the remaining cans sat on the pantry shelf, gathering dust.
Fast forward to today. I was in the mood for something different, so I pulled out some of this soup and heated up a bowl for dinner. I was shocked at how bland it was when I took my first bite. I might as well have been eating water with some rubbery chicken and mushy carrots and noodles added for color. I ran back to the kitchen and grabbed my trusty sea salt grinder, and began to grind...and grind...and grind...and grind. After a few twists, I'd taste the soup again. Nothing. More twists...nothing...more twists...Finally, after about four rounds of twisting, I had something that was sort of worth eating. I suppose I could have just ground a pile of salt onto a plate and eaten that. The nutritional value would have been about the same, and it wouldn't have been nearly as filling.
Reduced sodium soup (especially chicken noodle) makes about as much sense as soup without water. It's bland, boring and has no business being served to humans...at least, not the kind that have tongues. The idea of canned soup is gross enough without removing one of its key ingredients.
So, the next time you're in the mood for a hearty crock of disappointment, treat yourself to a can of Progresso's reduced sodium fare. Yes, I'm extending the F- failing grade to the entire product line. Bon appetit.
Sunday, March 15, 2009
denim lament
The diet I've been on since January is working. Current clothes are starting to fit better. Old clothes are starting to fit again. I could only do about three pushups at a time when I started, but can now do 15. I sleep better, look better (I think) and feel better. These are all the intended and hoped for benefits of dieting, and I'm glad that I have them.
This should all be a cause for celebration, but in one way, it's not. You see, my favorite pair of jeans is the pair that I wear when I'm at my heaviest. They're the perfect shade of indigo--not too dark, and not obscenely faded. The pant legs are whiskered in places, and the edges are frayed. They've got a slight bootcut--a feature I once mocked relentlessly, but have come to love. There are no flashy designs on the pockets, nothing on the front or back that would draw attention to them or me. These jeans are not without fault, however. I've never liked the placement of the belt loops, which causes me to be constantly adjusting them at the waist. They're a bit baggy in the rear, but maybe that's just my diet. These jeans have character, and I love them.
I've never found another pair of jeans like them, and believe me, I've tried. Perhaps the problem has been that stylish clothes usually aren't made for the overweight. Whiskers, flares and the like aren't exactly the styles Big & Tall's target demographic crave, after all. In the place I've been in the continuum of obesity, I've had to order every pair of jeans I've owned for this reason. I'll spend a lot of money to find the right pair of jeans, and while I've made many attempts and even kept a pair or two, nothing has come close to this beloved pair of jeans.
I have them on now. I just looked at myself in the mirror, and this blessed garment is starting to look a little ridiculous on me. I have to pull the belt really tight to keep them from falling off, so the cloth bunches up around my waist. I could probably fit a gallon or two of milk in the rear. They touch the floor just a tad too much for my tastes.
Today might be the last time I wear them, at least, until I gain weight again. As much as I'd like to believe that this will be my last diet ever, the more likely scenario is that I'll hop on the roller coaster of weight gain/loss once again in a year or two. If this does happen, it's also possible that my dear jeans will no longer be en vogue. It's happened with all my other diets, after all. What a depressing thought.
This should all be a cause for celebration, but in one way, it's not. You see, my favorite pair of jeans is the pair that I wear when I'm at my heaviest. They're the perfect shade of indigo--not too dark, and not obscenely faded. The pant legs are whiskered in places, and the edges are frayed. They've got a slight bootcut--a feature I once mocked relentlessly, but have come to love. There are no flashy designs on the pockets, nothing on the front or back that would draw attention to them or me. These jeans are not without fault, however. I've never liked the placement of the belt loops, which causes me to be constantly adjusting them at the waist. They're a bit baggy in the rear, but maybe that's just my diet. These jeans have character, and I love them.
I've never found another pair of jeans like them, and believe me, I've tried. Perhaps the problem has been that stylish clothes usually aren't made for the overweight. Whiskers, flares and the like aren't exactly the styles Big & Tall's target demographic crave, after all. In the place I've been in the continuum of obesity, I've had to order every pair of jeans I've owned for this reason. I'll spend a lot of money to find the right pair of jeans, and while I've made many attempts and even kept a pair or two, nothing has come close to this beloved pair of jeans.
I have them on now. I just looked at myself in the mirror, and this blessed garment is starting to look a little ridiculous on me. I have to pull the belt really tight to keep them from falling off, so the cloth bunches up around my waist. I could probably fit a gallon or two of milk in the rear. They touch the floor just a tad too much for my tastes.
Today might be the last time I wear them, at least, until I gain weight again. As much as I'd like to believe that this will be my last diet ever, the more likely scenario is that I'll hop on the roller coaster of weight gain/loss once again in a year or two. If this does happen, it's also possible that my dear jeans will no longer be en vogue. It's happened with all my other diets, after all. What a depressing thought.
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
responding to dark times
If you're like me, you're tired of hearing about the economy, tired of hearing about the stock market, tired of hearing about real estate, tired of hearing about layoffs, tired of hearing about Iraq, tired of hearing about what Barack Obama is having for breakfast, and so forth. These are dark, troubling times we live in, and the end of the tunnel doesn't appear to be anywhere in sight.
When the economy started to really tank in late September/early October, I think people were more shocked than anything. In my line of work, sales plummeted almost overnight. We scratched our heads, shrugged our shoulders, and then continued with our normal routines, assuming this was merely a momentary blip that would correct itself in a few weeks. Boy, were we wrong.
I can see economic troubles really starting to affect people. I, like many people, work for a company that has recently laid people off. Personally, I don't think we've seen the last of the layoffs in my company. I still feel safe, but I wonder what will happen to my friends. Members of my family are worried about their companies and their jobs. Some of my friends have been laid off from their jobs or their companies have gone out of business. I worry for them, too. I probably worry less than most people, though. I can tell that people are changing. They're being more cautious, and they seem less happy. If this means a permanent change in the way Americans manage their money, then it's a good thing. It's too bad that it couldn't have happened under more pleasant circumstances, though.
We all respond to this kind of stress differently. I wrote a few months ago about how I decided to turn off political talk radio and switch to Howard Stern and comedy instead. That continues to this day, and I'm still glad I made the switch. I've also cut way back on my news intake and the amount of time I spend reading two of my favorite publications, Fortune and The Wall Street Journal. There's only so much doom and gloom a person can take, and I got my fill a couple months ago. I've also been looking for lighter music. Right now, I can't get enough Jack Johnson. Anything he's recorded, anything on which he's appeared--I must have it all. I think the little lady thinks I've gone insane with this Jack Johnson kick, but I can't help it. It's laid back, generally positive, and it reminds me of being on vacation or on the beach. I can't think of a better distraction.
Shopping has also become a distraction. Shopping for clothes (dieting has made this a little more palatable), shopping for electronics, shopping for vacations, shopping for whatever. Feeling empty? Economy got you down? My advice to you is to buy more stuff. You'll be helping the economy and keeping soulless corporate stooges like me gainfully employed.
How are you responding to the stress and worries of our times? Any tips or strategies for coping? If so, please do share.
When the economy started to really tank in late September/early October, I think people were more shocked than anything. In my line of work, sales plummeted almost overnight. We scratched our heads, shrugged our shoulders, and then continued with our normal routines, assuming this was merely a momentary blip that would correct itself in a few weeks. Boy, were we wrong.
I can see economic troubles really starting to affect people. I, like many people, work for a company that has recently laid people off. Personally, I don't think we've seen the last of the layoffs in my company. I still feel safe, but I wonder what will happen to my friends. Members of my family are worried about their companies and their jobs. Some of my friends have been laid off from their jobs or their companies have gone out of business. I worry for them, too. I probably worry less than most people, though. I can tell that people are changing. They're being more cautious, and they seem less happy. If this means a permanent change in the way Americans manage their money, then it's a good thing. It's too bad that it couldn't have happened under more pleasant circumstances, though.
We all respond to this kind of stress differently. I wrote a few months ago about how I decided to turn off political talk radio and switch to Howard Stern and comedy instead. That continues to this day, and I'm still glad I made the switch. I've also cut way back on my news intake and the amount of time I spend reading two of my favorite publications, Fortune and The Wall Street Journal. There's only so much doom and gloom a person can take, and I got my fill a couple months ago. I've also been looking for lighter music. Right now, I can't get enough Jack Johnson. Anything he's recorded, anything on which he's appeared--I must have it all. I think the little lady thinks I've gone insane with this Jack Johnson kick, but I can't help it. It's laid back, generally positive, and it reminds me of being on vacation or on the beach. I can't think of a better distraction.
Shopping has also become a distraction. Shopping for clothes (dieting has made this a little more palatable), shopping for electronics, shopping for vacations, shopping for whatever. Feeling empty? Economy got you down? My advice to you is to buy more stuff. You'll be helping the economy and keeping soulless corporate stooges like me gainfully employed.
How are you responding to the stress and worries of our times? Any tips or strategies for coping? If so, please do share.
Monday, March 9, 2009
the poser
The gym is a great place to observe human behavior. There are the guys who stare at themselves in the mirror, whether it's the bathroom mirror or the mirrors by the weights (there's one guy in particular who seems to make about 10 trips per visit to the bathroom to admire his biceps). There are the women who talk on their cell phones or text while they're on the treadmill (annoying). There are the men who come with their wives but then only work out half the time that they're there. There are the women who come in only to tan, and then quickly leave. There are the hardcore guys who do all sorts of exotic moves with weights and mats and other gym-related paraphernalia. All are fascinating to watch, and for the most part, I have no problem with them.
There's one particular guy I've seen at the gym a couple times that really bothers me, however. We'll call him The Poser. The Poser comes in with his wife, and his wife only walks on the treadmill. The Poser, however, is all over the place, making use of at least 75% of the machines/equipment while he visits. The Poser's entire persona drives me crazy. He starts off his routine by doing all sorts of ridiculous stretches and moving his head around to get himself ready for a big workout. He then proceeds to walk 1 mph for five minutes on the treadmill. He follows this up by climbing about .1 mph on the stairmaster for another five minutes. Now that he's gotten all worked up, it's time to do some more stretches. He follows this up by lifting a few weights, after which he takes off his t-shirt to reveal a tight wife-beater. This is, of course, completely unnecessary since The Poser has barely done anything since he set foot in the gym, other than make a big deal out of his being there. In short, The Poser is a fake. A phony. An impostor. The Poser needs a beating, and I'd love to be the person to administer it.
There's one particular guy I've seen at the gym a couple times that really bothers me, however. We'll call him The Poser. The Poser comes in with his wife, and his wife only walks on the treadmill. The Poser, however, is all over the place, making use of at least 75% of the machines/equipment while he visits. The Poser's entire persona drives me crazy. He starts off his routine by doing all sorts of ridiculous stretches and moving his head around to get himself ready for a big workout. He then proceeds to walk 1 mph for five minutes on the treadmill. He follows this up by climbing about .1 mph on the stairmaster for another five minutes. Now that he's gotten all worked up, it's time to do some more stretches. He follows this up by lifting a few weights, after which he takes off his t-shirt to reveal a tight wife-beater. This is, of course, completely unnecessary since The Poser has barely done anything since he set foot in the gym, other than make a big deal out of his being there. In short, The Poser is a fake. A phony. An impostor. The Poser needs a beating, and I'd love to be the person to administer it.
Watchmen: DO NOT SEE THIS MOVIE
It sucked.
As I've mentioned previously, I've been going to the movies like crazy since I graduated in December. I'm running out of decent movies to watch, however, so I decided to take a chance on "Watchmen" on Friday afternoon. Other than the fact that it was based on a graphic novel (Why can't they just call it a comic book, for the love of Peter?) and that it had superheroes and a few big explosions, I didn't know much more about it than the fact that there was a lot of hype surrounding it.
I should have studied up a bit more. I wasn't prepared for the blood, the limbs being hacked off, the extreme violence, or the kind of weird sex scene where one superhero is shagging another in their floating hovervehicle thingy. I was also not prepared for all the going back and forth in time. I mean, seriously, if people want to do that, they should get a time machine rather than a videocamera. And then there was the length--almost three hours of this mess. After I got home from the movie, I read a review of it where the critic called it "interminable". Yes, that's an excellent way to put it.
I must admit that there were some cool explosions (I will overlook the flaws of most movies that contain nuclear explosions--that's the quickest way to my heart that I know of--but not this one) and some interesting special effects (save the crappy animation on the blue guy's mouth, where his words were out of sync with his mouth), but it just wasn't enough to save "Watchmen" from the dustbin of film history.
Save your money. Save yourselves. Do not see "Watchmen". It's a colossal failure.
As I've mentioned previously, I've been going to the movies like crazy since I graduated in December. I'm running out of decent movies to watch, however, so I decided to take a chance on "Watchmen" on Friday afternoon. Other than the fact that it was based on a graphic novel (Why can't they just call it a comic book, for the love of Peter?) and that it had superheroes and a few big explosions, I didn't know much more about it than the fact that there was a lot of hype surrounding it.
I should have studied up a bit more. I wasn't prepared for the blood, the limbs being hacked off, the extreme violence, or the kind of weird sex scene where one superhero is shagging another in their floating hovervehicle thingy. I was also not prepared for all the going back and forth in time. I mean, seriously, if people want to do that, they should get a time machine rather than a videocamera. And then there was the length--almost three hours of this mess. After I got home from the movie, I read a review of it where the critic called it "interminable". Yes, that's an excellent way to put it.
I must admit that there were some cool explosions (I will overlook the flaws of most movies that contain nuclear explosions--that's the quickest way to my heart that I know of--but not this one) and some interesting special effects (save the crappy animation on the blue guy's mouth, where his words were out of sync with his mouth), but it just wasn't enough to save "Watchmen" from the dustbin of film history.
Save your money. Save yourselves. Do not see "Watchmen". It's a colossal failure.
Saturday, March 7, 2009
a miracle for our time
We have an elliptical in our garage. After I ran on it last night, I put my iPod and headphones on the bottom of my car's windshield so that I would remember to put them back in my gym bag, which was in the car's trunk. And then I drove to work this morning...and to the mall...and back home again...and to dinner tonight...and all the while, my iPod and headphones were still on the windshield. I didn't realize this until the little lady saw them when we were getting back in the car after dinner. Miraculously, even with all the driving I did today, they never moved from the bottom of the windshield. I was relieved when I realized what had happened, since the iPod is less than a month old and since the headphones cost more than the iPod did.
In the future, I think I'll just put my stuff away when I'm done with it.
In the future, I think I'll just put my stuff away when I'm done with it.
Friday, March 6, 2009
10 years gone by
Yesterday marked 10 years from the day that three of the four people in this picture left Hong Kong, the odd man out being me. I actually had to extend a week or two, as that was the earliest my parents could come. It was worth it to see Beijing and Xi'an (I met them in Beijing) and to show them around Hong Kong, but my friends were none too happy with me for my "lack of devotion" to leaving the first possible day I could. Good times.
Few days go by where I don't think about my time in Hong Kong. I suppose it's fitting that I bought my plane ticket for my first trip back in nine years yesterday. Most of my time in Asia will be spent in Shenzhen, Xiamen and Taipei, but at least I'll be going back and seeing a few new cities, along with spending at least one night in one of my favorite places in the world.
Thursday, March 5, 2009
world traveler
I got my visa back from the Chinese embassy this morning, so I guess that makes it official: I'm going to China. I'm going to be super busy with travels this year. Here's what I have scheduled so far:
April 8-13: Mexico
April 15-29: China, Hong Kong and Taiwan
July 2-5: Los Angeles
July 23-31: Seattle, Alaska cruise
We're probably going to go to Utah for Christmas as well, and I'll go on to Los Angeles by myself the day after Christmas (I always do this when it's a Utah visit year). And I've already been to New York and New Jersey this year, too.
Considering my undying love for all things Chinese, I'm not looking forward to the China trip. It's for work, and the vast majority of my time will be spent in factories and meetings, and when I'm not doing those things, I'll be trying desperately to catch up on email. That means little or no time for friends, wandering around or whatever else I would typically do if I was free. The major upside to all of this, however, is the frequent flyer miles. I'll be flying business class the whole way, so I'm going to rack up some serious miles on this trip. Awesome.
It wouldn't surprise me if I went to China again in the fall. And there might be some more domestic travel, too. What a year it's going to be.
April 8-13: Mexico
April 15-29: China, Hong Kong and Taiwan
July 2-5: Los Angeles
July 23-31: Seattle, Alaska cruise
We're probably going to go to Utah for Christmas as well, and I'll go on to Los Angeles by myself the day after Christmas (I always do this when it's a Utah visit year). And I've already been to New York and New Jersey this year, too.
Considering my undying love for all things Chinese, I'm not looking forward to the China trip. It's for work, and the vast majority of my time will be spent in factories and meetings, and when I'm not doing those things, I'll be trying desperately to catch up on email. That means little or no time for friends, wandering around or whatever else I would typically do if I was free. The major upside to all of this, however, is the frequent flyer miles. I'll be flying business class the whole way, so I'm going to rack up some serious miles on this trip. Awesome.
It wouldn't surprise me if I went to China again in the fall. And there might be some more domestic travel, too. What a year it's going to be.
Thursday, February 26, 2009
seventh generation glass cleaner: epic fail
The little lady seems to bug me frequently about trying new cleaning products. She doesn't like harsh fumes, and neither do I. I assume this was her motivation for buying Seventh Generation glass cleaner as a more earth-friendly alternative to our usual Windex.
I was irritated the last time I needed Windex because I couldn't find the bottle. I'm used to having Windex's unearthly shades of blue and other wild colors (depending on the flavor you buy) scream at me from the basket of cleaning products above our washing machine. Seventh Generation glass cleaner comes in a white bottle, and I think of white bottles when I'm cleaning toilets, showers and the like. Not like I really do that much these days (bless you, Becca), but I digress...
I needed glass cleaner for the inside of my car windows. I don't consider this a tough job for a cleaner. After all, there's no snot, mud, popped zit material or anything else like that on the inside of my car windows. As simple as the task was, Seventh Generation couldn't handle the job. I think my windows actually looked worse after I got through with them. The smudges were still there, and I was downright frustrated. The only benefit I got from this experience was burning a lot of calories trying to get my windows clean with this god-forsaken liquid.
I'm all for buying and using environmentally friendly products if they're of comparable or superior quality and the difference in cost is minimal. When I can come up with a better glass cleaner using the Southwest Minneapolis metro area's ridiculously hard water in my garage, however, then we've got a problem. For now, I want my toxic fumes and Mother Earth-destroying Windex back. I may be leaving a dirty, toxic world for my hypothetical children and grandchildren, but at least I'll have clean windows and mirrors.
Do yourself a favor: don't buy this product. Other Seventh Generation stuff might work (please do chime in if that's the case--I wouldn't know), but this particular product is a sham. Amen.
I was irritated the last time I needed Windex because I couldn't find the bottle. I'm used to having Windex's unearthly shades of blue and other wild colors (depending on the flavor you buy) scream at me from the basket of cleaning products above our washing machine. Seventh Generation glass cleaner comes in a white bottle, and I think of white bottles when I'm cleaning toilets, showers and the like. Not like I really do that much these days (bless you, Becca), but I digress...
I needed glass cleaner for the inside of my car windows. I don't consider this a tough job for a cleaner. After all, there's no snot, mud, popped zit material or anything else like that on the inside of my car windows. As simple as the task was, Seventh Generation couldn't handle the job. I think my windows actually looked worse after I got through with them. The smudges were still there, and I was downright frustrated. The only benefit I got from this experience was burning a lot of calories trying to get my windows clean with this god-forsaken liquid.
I'm all for buying and using environmentally friendly products if they're of comparable or superior quality and the difference in cost is minimal. When I can come up with a better glass cleaner using the Southwest Minneapolis metro area's ridiculously hard water in my garage, however, then we've got a problem. For now, I want my toxic fumes and Mother Earth-destroying Windex back. I may be leaving a dirty, toxic world for my hypothetical children and grandchildren, but at least I'll have clean windows and mirrors.
Do yourself a favor: don't buy this product. Other Seventh Generation stuff might work (please do chime in if that's the case--I wouldn't know), but this particular product is a sham. Amen.
Monday, February 23, 2009
no more bare walls
We've been living in our townhome for over three years now, and other than a traditional Samoan cloth that Becca had framed and hung in our dining room (and which I, incidentally, really dislike), we've had nothing on our walls--no artwork, no paint, nothing. I've been too busy with other things to think about it, so I haven't really cared. As I'm sure the rest of you have noticed, the worsening economy has meant more coupons are available, and we've gotten some great coupons for custom framing at Michael's. So, I decided to have a few things framed for my home office:
An abstract original painting by one of my high school classmates, Maria Trakovsky. As I wrote a few weeks ago, this is the first original work of art I've purchased, and I'm very excited about it:
The album cover to one of my favorite CDs of 2008, The Dillinger Escape Plan's "Ire Works":
I ordered a special edition of a concert DVD that one of my favorite bands, Opeth, recently put out. It came with these cool postcards, so I decided to have them framed:
Kind of an eclectic mix of artwork for one room, but I figured it would be better to just put up things that I really like instead of coming up with a consistent theme. I wish I had more room in my office to hang stuff up, but my CD racks cover most of the wall space. I guess I'll have to move on to another room to do further decorating.
An abstract original painting by one of my high school classmates, Maria Trakovsky. As I wrote a few weeks ago, this is the first original work of art I've purchased, and I'm very excited about it:
The album cover to one of my favorite CDs of 2008, The Dillinger Escape Plan's "Ire Works":
I ordered a special edition of a concert DVD that one of my favorite bands, Opeth, recently put out. It came with these cool postcards, so I decided to have them framed:
Kind of an eclectic mix of artwork for one room, but I figured it would be better to just put up things that I really like instead of coming up with a consistent theme. I wish I had more room in my office to hang stuff up, but my CD racks cover most of the wall space. I guess I'll have to move on to another room to do further decorating.
Friday, February 20, 2009
still gainfully employed
Coming into the office this morning, I had no idea what was going to happen. I had one meeting on my calendar--30 minutes with my boss--and nothing else. By 9am, I had a 10am meeting with my boss's team and then an 11:30 meeting with my VP's team.
In the 10am meeting, my boss told us that no one under him would be let go. A few jobs would be eliminated (including my old job--the one I've still been doing despite my promotion back in December), but the people with that position would immediately transition to a different position at the same level and pay.
Naturally, I was ecstatic. No co-workers gone, no turmoil, no drama. I celebrated by going back to my desk and immediately putting a down payment on another vacation. Yes, the little lady and I will be going on another cruise. Alaska, here we come. This will be even more awesome than the Mexico trip we have coming up, I think. We'll be celebrating our 8th anniversary while we're on the cruise. Should be awesome.
In the 11:30 meeting, we learned that no one on our larger team would be laid off, and that a couple jobs would be added. Yes, we were all very happy about that. We also heard that 250 jobs at the corporate office would be eliminated, but that 210 would be created. This was much better than the 500+ layoffs that had been rumored.
By 2pm, most of the office had cleared out. People were stressed out, and they weren't doing much work. I expect the parking lot to be pretty empty, too. By the time I left, I had heard of only one person I personally knew that lost their job. It had long been rumored that she was going to lose her job, so I wasn't all that surprised.
It was an emotionally taxing day, to say the least. I decided the best way to end the day was to sit in the bathtub for a couple hours with the jets on--just me and the latest edition of Esquire magazine. All in all, today was a good day. A few downs, but a lot of ups. And I still have a paycheck.
In the 10am meeting, my boss told us that no one under him would be let go. A few jobs would be eliminated (including my old job--the one I've still been doing despite my promotion back in December), but the people with that position would immediately transition to a different position at the same level and pay.
Naturally, I was ecstatic. No co-workers gone, no turmoil, no drama. I celebrated by going back to my desk and immediately putting a down payment on another vacation. Yes, the little lady and I will be going on another cruise. Alaska, here we come. This will be even more awesome than the Mexico trip we have coming up, I think. We'll be celebrating our 8th anniversary while we're on the cruise. Should be awesome.
In the 11:30 meeting, we learned that no one on our larger team would be laid off, and that a couple jobs would be added. Yes, we were all very happy about that. We also heard that 250 jobs at the corporate office would be eliminated, but that 210 would be created. This was much better than the 500+ layoffs that had been rumored.
By 2pm, most of the office had cleared out. People were stressed out, and they weren't doing much work. I expect the parking lot to be pretty empty, too. By the time I left, I had heard of only one person I personally knew that lost their job. It had long been rumored that she was going to lose her job, so I wasn't all that surprised.
It was an emotionally taxing day, to say the least. I decided the best way to end the day was to sit in the bathtub for a couple hours with the jets on--just me and the latest edition of Esquire magazine. All in all, today was a good day. A few downs, but a lot of ups. And I still have a paycheck.
Thursday, February 19, 2009
judgment night 2: a good day to start drinking
After a month or so of waiting, February 19 is almost here. And what is February 19? The day my employer announces layoffs. Everyone has been on edge since it was first announced that there would be involuntary layoffs, so I'm glad that tomorrow is almost here. There will be large group meetings, individual meetings, some chaos and probably a fair amount of tears. Those who still have jobs will be thrilled; those who lose their jobs will have opportunities to apply for the new jobs that are supposedly being created, but more than half will likely be out of a job altogether.
This week has been a dark week. The office has been a dreary place. There are lots of quiet whispers, hallway conversations and watercooler gatherings, everyone wondering what's going to happen to them. Honestly, I haven't been too worried, but I do want closure. I always need closure.
A co-worker joked to me that today would be a good day for me to start drinking. He's probably right.
This week has been a dark week. The office has been a dreary place. There are lots of quiet whispers, hallway conversations and watercooler gatherings, everyone wondering what's going to happen to them. Honestly, I haven't been too worried, but I do want closure. I always need closure.
A co-worker joked to me that today would be a good day for me to start drinking. He's probably right.
Sunday, February 15, 2009
one last night
I was looking for some action a couple weeks ago and I didn't think my skin could take more tanning or my hair another perm, so I decided to check out the Ticketmaster website to see if there were any interesting concerts coming up. This turned out to be quite fortuitous, as two of my favorite metal bands were coming to town. I bought a ticket (I rarely go to concerts with anyone else, as I don't know anyone that shares my taste in music). I later learned that the concert had sold out, so my timing turned out to be even better than I originally thought.
My timing in getting to the concert, however, was not that great. I always try to be early everywhere I go, and at concerts, that's never a good thing (unless you're going to the orchestra, which always seems to start right on time). I got to Station 4 right when the concert was supposed to start, at 8pm. Right away, I noticed that something was off. For a show that had sold out, the place (the smallest venue I've ever been in, by far) was surprisingly empty. Two drum kits had been set up on the stage, but nothing else was being prepared. I ended up having to stand there (there were no seats, except for at the bar) for an hour. I had thought about bringing my iPod just in case something like that happened, but ended up not doing so. Big mistake.
Being early to a general admission show does have its advantages, though. I was pretty close to the stage, and since I always like watching the musicians carefully, that was a good thing. The first band to go on, The Faceless, had an amazing lead guitarist and drummer, so I got a kick out of seeing them up close. I'd never heard of them before that night, but I'll be picking up one of their CDs soon.
Once The Faceless finished their brief set, it was another 30 minutes until the next band came on. I've been listening to that band, Cynic, since they released their first album in the early 90's. They broke up not long after its release, and only recently reformed and released their second album--15 years later. So, seeing them was something of a childhood dream for me, and they didn't disappoint. Their music is an odd mix of death metal, jazz and new age chants, and all three were present during their set--blast beats, Hindu-esque prayers, and commentary by Paramahansa Yogananda in between songs. Cynic has developed quite the cult following over the years, and that was apparent by the reception they received.
The main act, and the primary reason I was at the show, was Meshuggah (weird name, I know--it's Yiddish). They didn't take the stage until 11:15--more than three hours after the show was supposed to start, and I was really tired by then. Meshuggah is truly legendary--few bands are more original--and the crowd went crazy. I've never seen a wilder crowd in any concert I've been to. I've never moshed, but I had to push people off me (I had wisely chosen a position against the wall) many times during their set.
Unfortunately, Station 4 doesn't have very good ventilation. All the moshing and sweating people quickly raised the temperature in the room. I started to feel nauseated, and by the fifth song or so, I had to leave--I felt too tired and too ill to stay. They probably played for another 60-90 minutes after I left, so it's unfortunate that I couldn't take it. I'm such a wimp. Anyway, it was cold outside--temperatures were in the teens--and I felt a little better after walking a couple blocks, so I drove home, half falling asleep the entire way.
At least I got a t-shirt with my favorite Meshuggah album cover on it:
That was probably the last metal concert I'll ever attend. I just can't focus on one thing for that long, even when I love the music and the bands and own everything they've ever recorded, as was the case for two of the three bands playing. In fact, that might be the last concert I ever attend. If so, then it was definitely a good way to go out.
My timing in getting to the concert, however, was not that great. I always try to be early everywhere I go, and at concerts, that's never a good thing (unless you're going to the orchestra, which always seems to start right on time). I got to Station 4 right when the concert was supposed to start, at 8pm. Right away, I noticed that something was off. For a show that had sold out, the place (the smallest venue I've ever been in, by far) was surprisingly empty. Two drum kits had been set up on the stage, but nothing else was being prepared. I ended up having to stand there (there were no seats, except for at the bar) for an hour. I had thought about bringing my iPod just in case something like that happened, but ended up not doing so. Big mistake.
Being early to a general admission show does have its advantages, though. I was pretty close to the stage, and since I always like watching the musicians carefully, that was a good thing. The first band to go on, The Faceless, had an amazing lead guitarist and drummer, so I got a kick out of seeing them up close. I'd never heard of them before that night, but I'll be picking up one of their CDs soon.
Once The Faceless finished their brief set, it was another 30 minutes until the next band came on. I've been listening to that band, Cynic, since they released their first album in the early 90's. They broke up not long after its release, and only recently reformed and released their second album--15 years later. So, seeing them was something of a childhood dream for me, and they didn't disappoint. Their music is an odd mix of death metal, jazz and new age chants, and all three were present during their set--blast beats, Hindu-esque prayers, and commentary by Paramahansa Yogananda in between songs. Cynic has developed quite the cult following over the years, and that was apparent by the reception they received.
The main act, and the primary reason I was at the show, was Meshuggah (weird name, I know--it's Yiddish). They didn't take the stage until 11:15--more than three hours after the show was supposed to start, and I was really tired by then. Meshuggah is truly legendary--few bands are more original--and the crowd went crazy. I've never seen a wilder crowd in any concert I've been to. I've never moshed, but I had to push people off me (I had wisely chosen a position against the wall) many times during their set.
Unfortunately, Station 4 doesn't have very good ventilation. All the moshing and sweating people quickly raised the temperature in the room. I started to feel nauseated, and by the fifth song or so, I had to leave--I felt too tired and too ill to stay. They probably played for another 60-90 minutes after I left, so it's unfortunate that I couldn't take it. I'm such a wimp. Anyway, it was cold outside--temperatures were in the teens--and I felt a little better after walking a couple blocks, so I drove home, half falling asleep the entire way.
At least I got a t-shirt with my favorite Meshuggah album cover on it:
That was probably the last metal concert I'll ever attend. I just can't focus on one thing for that long, even when I love the music and the bands and own everything they've ever recorded, as was the case for two of the three bands playing. In fact, that might be the last concert I ever attend. If so, then it was definitely a good way to go out.
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
cooking lessons
When I was younger (junior high, I think?), my mother paid for a few of my siblings and me to take cooking lessons. We never made anything too complicated, but these lessons provided us opportunities to try new foods and become acquainted with the preparation of food. I can remember days where I dreaded going to those lessons, but most of the time, I really enjoyed it.
It was in my teacher's drab, cramped kitchen that I learned the one lesson that has always stuck with me from back then: don't put aluminum foil in the microwave. I had no idea this wasn't supposed to happen until one fateful day when I put a bowl covered in foil into my teacher's microwave. Sure, all those sparks coming out of the foil looked cool, but it probably wasn't too good for the microwave.
Over the years, other unfortunate incidents have taught me important lessons about cooking:
Lesson 2: Macaroni 'n' cheese doesn't have water in it. I was babysitting my cousins when I was in 6th or 7th grade, and decide to cook them macaroni 'n' cheese for dinner. I didn't strain the water out of the macaroni when I was done cooking it, so we all enjoyed macaroni 'n' cheese soup for dinner that night. Disgusting.
Lesson 3: Two wrongs don't make a right. When the little lady and I were first married, she kept pestering me about trying this calzone recipe. The calzones were to contain prosciutto, roasted red peppers and spinach. I find the latter two ingredients particularly disgusting, so I refused to allow her to try the recipe. I finally got sick of the pestering, however, and relented. These calzones were so nasty that even she didn't like them. To teach her a lesson, however, I made her eat them for the next day or two. I haven't gotten too much lip about eating foods I dislike since.
Lesson 4: Table salt and kosher salt are not the same thing. The little lady offered to cook a new chicken recipe that I found on the internet last Sunday. The chicken smelled great, but when I bit into it, it tasted like a salt lick. I asked her if the recipe called for kosher salt, which it did, and which she didn't have. So, instead of a couple teaspoons of kosher salt, the chicken got a couple teaspoons of table salt--at least 20% too much. I can't help but wonder if tablespoons were also substituted for teaspoons, but I guess we'll never know.
Lesson 5: Kitchen equipment can make a difference. I worked as assistant chef in a BYU cafeteria for a semester. I quickly got to the point where the head chef would let me cook whatever I wanted to put on the lunch buffet, which was a great experience for me. My specialty was soups, especially cream soups. I made a mean cream of broccoli soup and a rockin' clam chowder. Unfortunately, however, I've never been able to duplicate my successes outside of that kitchen. Every attempt I've made since then to cook a cream soup or alfredo sauce has completely bombed. I believe the steam-heated giant mixing bowls that I used to cook everything in made the difference--good working space, even heating, etc. I also got one of the nastiest burns of my life on one of those bowls.
It was in my teacher's drab, cramped kitchen that I learned the one lesson that has always stuck with me from back then: don't put aluminum foil in the microwave. I had no idea this wasn't supposed to happen until one fateful day when I put a bowl covered in foil into my teacher's microwave. Sure, all those sparks coming out of the foil looked cool, but it probably wasn't too good for the microwave.
Over the years, other unfortunate incidents have taught me important lessons about cooking:
Lesson 2: Macaroni 'n' cheese doesn't have water in it. I was babysitting my cousins when I was in 6th or 7th grade, and decide to cook them macaroni 'n' cheese for dinner. I didn't strain the water out of the macaroni when I was done cooking it, so we all enjoyed macaroni 'n' cheese soup for dinner that night. Disgusting.
Lesson 3: Two wrongs don't make a right. When the little lady and I were first married, she kept pestering me about trying this calzone recipe. The calzones were to contain prosciutto, roasted red peppers and spinach. I find the latter two ingredients particularly disgusting, so I refused to allow her to try the recipe. I finally got sick of the pestering, however, and relented. These calzones were so nasty that even she didn't like them. To teach her a lesson, however, I made her eat them for the next day or two. I haven't gotten too much lip about eating foods I dislike since.
Lesson 4: Table salt and kosher salt are not the same thing. The little lady offered to cook a new chicken recipe that I found on the internet last Sunday. The chicken smelled great, but when I bit into it, it tasted like a salt lick. I asked her if the recipe called for kosher salt, which it did, and which she didn't have. So, instead of a couple teaspoons of kosher salt, the chicken got a couple teaspoons of table salt--at least 20% too much. I can't help but wonder if tablespoons were also substituted for teaspoons, but I guess we'll never know.
Lesson 5: Kitchen equipment can make a difference. I worked as assistant chef in a BYU cafeteria for a semester. I quickly got to the point where the head chef would let me cook whatever I wanted to put on the lunch buffet, which was a great experience for me. My specialty was soups, especially cream soups. I made a mean cream of broccoli soup and a rockin' clam chowder. Unfortunately, however, I've never been able to duplicate my successes outside of that kitchen. Every attempt I've made since then to cook a cream soup or alfredo sauce has completely bombed. I believe the steam-heated giant mixing bowls that I used to cook everything in made the difference--good working space, even heating, etc. I also got one of the nastiest burns of my life on one of those bowls.
Monday, February 9, 2009
in my dreams
I had a couple of dreams last night that are a good example of how daily events can creep into the realm of dreams. I rarely remember what I dream about, so I thought I'd write about these two dreams.
My first dream of the evening occurred shortly after I fell asleep on the couch. We had been watching "Mythbusters", and as is frequently the case on the show, they had been blowing stuff up. One explosion that we saw had a mushroom cloud. I believe I previously mentioned in a post or a tag that I had dreams about disasters and apocalyptic events, and that's what this first dream was--a nuclear war. There was one mushroom cloud in the distance, and then another and another...and then a shockwave knocked me into a wall. Being knocked into the wall in my dream actually woke me up. I asked the little lady, who was still sitting on the couch and reading, if there had been any loud noises or anything else that could have woken me up, and there hadn't been. I guess some dreams are pretty powerful.
I went to bed shortly after I woke up from the nuclear holocaust, and had another dream in which I was at a friend's house, in her backyard. I was on one side of the backyard, and her children were on the other. Even though I did or offered to do nice things for her, she ignored me as if I wasn't there. I finally went up to her and looked her in the eye, only to discover that cataracts covered most of her eyes. The only part of her eyes that wasn't covered was a part on the left side which would allow her to see her children. Now, why she couldn't hear me remains a mystery, as I woke up shortly after discovering the cataracts.
There were a number of things I saw or discussed with the little lady yesterday that I believe contributed to this dream. First, I watched "The Messenger", a movie about Joan of Arc. She was burned alive by the Catholic church for supposed heresy--something that I can't recall being condoned anywhere in the Bible. Later, I discussed with the little lady how the Spaniards quickly conquered the Incan empire in the early 1500s. The Spaniards killed hundreds of thousands, if not millions of people, and when you read their personal accounts, they believed they were fully justified in their killing due to the fact that the Incans were "infidels"--also not condoned by the Bible. Shortly thereafter, we watched "He's Just Not That Into You". In the movie, one of the characters becomes uncomfortable talking to a woman who isn't his wife, but later decides to be her friend when he decides that there's no reason why being married should mean that a person can no longer talk to members of the opposite sex. Now, he ends up having an affair with this woman, but that's beside the point. More often than not, this is not the case.
To me, the unifying theme in all of these examples is a poor choice or an opportunity lost due to personally held but untested/incorrect beliefs or notions. My dream was most closely related to the example of the married spouse not being friends with a member of the opposite sex, but also had a twist of religious reasoning thrown in.
Fortunately, neither dream is all that realistic. I've had dreams in the past that were so close to reality (such dreams are usually work-related) that I've mistakenly confused dreams with reality. Not a good thing. And even if neither dream was all that pleasant, I'd rather dream about thermonuclear detonations and having my friendship rejected than work--the usual subject of my dreams these days.
My first dream of the evening occurred shortly after I fell asleep on the couch. We had been watching "Mythbusters", and as is frequently the case on the show, they had been blowing stuff up. One explosion that we saw had a mushroom cloud. I believe I previously mentioned in a post or a tag that I had dreams about disasters and apocalyptic events, and that's what this first dream was--a nuclear war. There was one mushroom cloud in the distance, and then another and another...and then a shockwave knocked me into a wall. Being knocked into the wall in my dream actually woke me up. I asked the little lady, who was still sitting on the couch and reading, if there had been any loud noises or anything else that could have woken me up, and there hadn't been. I guess some dreams are pretty powerful.
I went to bed shortly after I woke up from the nuclear holocaust, and had another dream in which I was at a friend's house, in her backyard. I was on one side of the backyard, and her children were on the other. Even though I did or offered to do nice things for her, she ignored me as if I wasn't there. I finally went up to her and looked her in the eye, only to discover that cataracts covered most of her eyes. The only part of her eyes that wasn't covered was a part on the left side which would allow her to see her children. Now, why she couldn't hear me remains a mystery, as I woke up shortly after discovering the cataracts.
There were a number of things I saw or discussed with the little lady yesterday that I believe contributed to this dream. First, I watched "The Messenger", a movie about Joan of Arc. She was burned alive by the Catholic church for supposed heresy--something that I can't recall being condoned anywhere in the Bible. Later, I discussed with the little lady how the Spaniards quickly conquered the Incan empire in the early 1500s. The Spaniards killed hundreds of thousands, if not millions of people, and when you read their personal accounts, they believed they were fully justified in their killing due to the fact that the Incans were "infidels"--also not condoned by the Bible. Shortly thereafter, we watched "He's Just Not That Into You". In the movie, one of the characters becomes uncomfortable talking to a woman who isn't his wife, but later decides to be her friend when he decides that there's no reason why being married should mean that a person can no longer talk to members of the opposite sex. Now, he ends up having an affair with this woman, but that's beside the point. More often than not, this is not the case.
To me, the unifying theme in all of these examples is a poor choice or an opportunity lost due to personally held but untested/incorrect beliefs or notions. My dream was most closely related to the example of the married spouse not being friends with a member of the opposite sex, but also had a twist of religious reasoning thrown in.
Fortunately, neither dream is all that realistic. I've had dreams in the past that were so close to reality (such dreams are usually work-related) that I've mistakenly confused dreams with reality. Not a good thing. And even if neither dream was all that pleasant, I'd rather dream about thermonuclear detonations and having my friendship rejected than work--the usual subject of my dreams these days.
Sunday, February 8, 2009
closure
Although I finished my last final almost two months ago, it wasn't until yesterday that I finally felt complete closure on my master's degree saga. An envelope marked "Do Not Bend" was waiting for me when I got home from work, and sure enough, it was my diploma. Master of Business Administration. Hmmm...Sounds nice, but I certainly don't feel like a master.
Although my application to graduate was accepted months ago and I've known for over a month what grades I earned last semester, I had a fear deep down that something would go wrong, resulting in my having to go back to class. It's a feeling similar to those dreams that many of us have where we show up for class and realize we haven't studied for the exam (in my case, I always remember at the end of the semester that there was a class I'd registered for but forgotten to attend--not an unlikely scenario considering the 18 to 21 credit loads I typically took while at BYU). In any case, I'm glad to have closure. Now I just have to figure out what to do with that expensive piece of paper.
Although my application to graduate was accepted months ago and I've known for over a month what grades I earned last semester, I had a fear deep down that something would go wrong, resulting in my having to go back to class. It's a feeling similar to those dreams that many of us have where we show up for class and realize we haven't studied for the exam (in my case, I always remember at the end of the semester that there was a class I'd registered for but forgotten to attend--not an unlikely scenario considering the 18 to 21 credit loads I typically took while at BYU). In any case, I'm glad to have closure. Now I just have to figure out what to do with that expensive piece of paper.
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
accuracy in weather forecasting
When we first moved to Minnesota, I was often surprised at how far off weather forecasts were from reality. Rain predicted, sunny skies. Snow predicted, not a flake. You get the idea. Having grown up in Los Angeles, where weather forecasts always seemed to be extremely accurate (how hard can it be to forecast sunshine almost every day?), it's been frustrating, if not a little disappointing. Having not had much rain or snow growing up, I still get excited about both and run to the window when there's a big storm. So, when the forecast calls for a storm and there isn't one, I get really bummed out.
Sometimes, the lack of accuracy is just laughable. Take right now, for example:
In case you missed that, I've circled the current temperature:
And here's the forecast circled:
Only 17 degrees off. I wish I could get away with accuracy like this in my job.
Oh, and it's been really freakin' cold the last few days. I'm ready for something warmer. Only 63 days left until Mexico.
Sometimes, the lack of accuracy is just laughable. Take right now, for example:
In case you missed that, I've circled the current temperature:
And here's the forecast circled:
Only 17 degrees off. I wish I could get away with accuracy like this in my job.
Oh, and it's been really freakin' cold the last few days. I'm ready for something warmer. Only 63 days left until Mexico.
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
conformity and responsibility
I saw "Revolutionary Road" last Saturday. To be honest, I didn't really like it that much. It was a slow drama, and while its depiction of life in 1950's suburban America was probably very accurate, it was difficult for me to digest. Also, the characters weren't particularly likable, despite the fact that I've been a fan of Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio in other movies. All in all, the movie was well done and the actors' performances were excellent. I just didn't connect with the movie. Despite this, I was really affected by the story and by the ending. That's never really happened with a film I didn't get really excited about.
In the movie, the two aforementioned actors are husband and wife. He's got a corporate job that he hates. She's the housewife trying to create the image of a perfect marriage with a perfect household and perfect children. In short, everything they do seems to be for the sake of appearance and conformity. Of the two, she's the only one who seems to realize how much they both hate what their lives have become, so she convinces him to quit his job and sell the house so that they can move to France. Their intent is to "truly experience life" and to do things they really like and enjoy.
Over the course of the next few weeks, they begin preparing for the move. They tell their friends and co-workers, all of whom think they're crazy or immature. In the midst of all this, he ends up getting offered a big promotion at work, and she ends up getting pregnant. While he wants to go to France, he ultimately chooses the promotion because of the responsibility he feels to move up in the world and provide for his family. She, of course, is unhappy with his decision. They begin fighting, and ultimately she ends up dying after trying to give herself an abortion at home. He moves to the city and moves up the corporate ladder. The End.
Ultimately, I guess I did connect with the characters, but not by liking them. I've had struggles similar to theirs, and I've occasionally written about them here. I've got the corporate job that I've been liking less and less over the last year. I frequently daydream about doing something else, but I don't know what that something else could be (my daydreams usually involve white sand beaches and turquoise water or a mansion with stunning views of the Tetons, and those obviously aren't jobs). I don't have kids, but I feel that I'm responsible for earning the majority of the money. And, of course, with a mortgage and car and student loans to pay, I can't exactly walk away from this American Dream I've created for myself.
I walked out of the theater and strolled around the mall for a while after that. The whole time, all I could think of was how pointless and futile my life is, and how the best (and possibly only) solution might be suicide. I'm not suicidal, but I couldn't shake the thought. A few days later, I realize that maybe the best solution is to just pay off all my debts and then build up enough savings so that I can walk away from it all and go somewhere that I really like. Maybe I could go someplace warm, like Hawaii, Greece or Italy and work part-time, making sandwiches. Something simple with limited responsibility. A few hours of work each day just to get by, and then I could spend the rest doing...well, who knows...whatever.
Maybe...
In the movie, the two aforementioned actors are husband and wife. He's got a corporate job that he hates. She's the housewife trying to create the image of a perfect marriage with a perfect household and perfect children. In short, everything they do seems to be for the sake of appearance and conformity. Of the two, she's the only one who seems to realize how much they both hate what their lives have become, so she convinces him to quit his job and sell the house so that they can move to France. Their intent is to "truly experience life" and to do things they really like and enjoy.
Over the course of the next few weeks, they begin preparing for the move. They tell their friends and co-workers, all of whom think they're crazy or immature. In the midst of all this, he ends up getting offered a big promotion at work, and she ends up getting pregnant. While he wants to go to France, he ultimately chooses the promotion because of the responsibility he feels to move up in the world and provide for his family. She, of course, is unhappy with his decision. They begin fighting, and ultimately she ends up dying after trying to give herself an abortion at home. He moves to the city and moves up the corporate ladder. The End.
Ultimately, I guess I did connect with the characters, but not by liking them. I've had struggles similar to theirs, and I've occasionally written about them here. I've got the corporate job that I've been liking less and less over the last year. I frequently daydream about doing something else, but I don't know what that something else could be (my daydreams usually involve white sand beaches and turquoise water or a mansion with stunning views of the Tetons, and those obviously aren't jobs). I don't have kids, but I feel that I'm responsible for earning the majority of the money. And, of course, with a mortgage and car and student loans to pay, I can't exactly walk away from this American Dream I've created for myself.
I walked out of the theater and strolled around the mall for a while after that. The whole time, all I could think of was how pointless and futile my life is, and how the best (and possibly only) solution might be suicide. I'm not suicidal, but I couldn't shake the thought. A few days later, I realize that maybe the best solution is to just pay off all my debts and then build up enough savings so that I can walk away from it all and go somewhere that I really like. Maybe I could go someplace warm, like Hawaii, Greece or Italy and work part-time, making sandwiches. Something simple with limited responsibility. A few hours of work each day just to get by, and then I could spend the rest doing...well, who knows...whatever.
Maybe...
Friday, January 30, 2009
baby's first painting
As has been the case for so many people, I've recently connected with a lot of old and long lost friends through Facebook. One of these friends is the daughter of one of my high school teachers and someone with whom I had a few classes when I was in high school. After trading a few notes, we decided to meet up when I was back in my hometown for Christmas. The little lady and I hung out with her for a while at a bakery that was popular when I was in high school, which was a lot of fun. I hadn't seen her in almost 15 years, so it was great to catch up and take a stroll down memory lane.
This friend is currently working on a master's degree in film history at NYU, and is quite the artist--something I had totally forgotten about. I asked her to show me some of her artwork, and after reviewing it and liking a few pieces, I decided to buy one. It came in the mail yesterday, and here it is:
This friend is currently working on a master's degree in film history at NYU, and is quite the artist--something I had totally forgotten about. I asked her to show me some of her artwork, and after reviewing it and liking a few pieces, I decided to buy one. It came in the mail yesterday, and here it is:
I've never purchased an original work of art before, so I'm pretty excited to have it. Abstract art isn't for everyone (admittedly, I'm not a huge fan of it myself), but I really liked a few of her pieces because of the mix of colors and patterns, as well as the overall bleak feeling--no happy artwork for this crotchety 32 year-old, thank you very much.
It'll be up on my wall very soon.
It'll be up on my wall very soon.
Thursday, January 29, 2009
25 random things
I've been tagged. I'm supposed to write 25 random facts or whatever about myself.
1. Between my freshman year of high school and the end of undergrad, I studied Spanish, Portuguese, French, Latin, Mandarin, Cantonese and Korean for various lengths of time. My degree is in Mandarin, so I guess you could say that I'm a linguist. I really miss actively studying languages.
2. When I was a baby, I choked on water (I think), turned blue and almost died. To this day, I still have problems with liquids going down the wrong pipe, and end up choking at least once or twice a month. I probably just need to slow down.
3. I've dieted like crazy over the last six years or so. If you took the absolute value of my weight gains and losses, it would probably be over 300 lbs. I just need to lose weight and learn how to keep it off.
4. I'm very particular about the order in which I do things when I get ready in the morning: brush teeth, shower, weigh myself, put deodorant on, shave, and so on. If I deviate from this order, like shower before brushing my teeth, I usually end up forgetting to do one or more things.
5. I always put my socks on before I put my pants on, unless I've already worn the pants in question once.
6. I won a photo printer in a drawing at the office a few years ago. It's pretty cool, but I've never used it. The little lady seems to like it a lot, though.
7. On one of our first dates, the little lady and I were walking on the hill at the south end of the BYU campus (Maeser Hill?). It was dark, and a deer jumped out of the bushes. I pushed her in front of me to make sure that I wouldn't get hurt. There's nothing like a little "every man for himself" in a relationship. And she didn't even dump me.
8. Our first date was dinner in the Red Lantern Chinese buffet, near BYU. I think she was nervous (either because I made her use chopsticks, or because it was our first date, or both), and didn't end up eating very much. We also went to the same place the first time our parents met.
9. How did we meet? I was Becca's supervisor. "Want a promotion? How about a date?"
10. I originally planned on majoring in biochemistry when I started college, with the intent of eventually going to med school. I dropped the idea after talking to my doctor uncle, who advised me to find something else to do if I only cared about the money. Good advice--money was really all I was thinking about at the time. I do sometimes wish that I had a job where I really made a difference in people's lives, though.
11. I love teaching/training people, but prefer to do it one-on-one or in small groups. It's hard to give people individualized training and attention when you're dealing with a large group.
12. I've often told people that have worked for me that they know they're doing a good job when they no longer need to talk to me at all during the day. That might sound rude, but what I really mean is "When you're competent enough to have earned my trust and to be able to make decisions for yourself, then you don't have to ask me questions any more, and we can each focus on our own work."
13. I've always been a collector: stamps, rocks, glass, sports cards, Garbage Pail kids cards, books, CDs, and watches are just a few of the things I've collected.
14. When I'm in Hawaii, I love to order Portuguese sausage and rice for breakfast at McDonald's. Not your typical breakfast, but then, I never really cared about only eating certain foods at certain times of the day.
15. I became a much happier person when I stopped hating myself for liking heavy/death/speed/thrash/whatever metal. When I was in high school, I used to tell people I'd someday stop. These days, I listen to it more than ever.
16. When I was in Hong Kong, the police knocked on my door one night. They were looking for some "kids" that had been spotting pedestrians with a laser pen and then dropping bags of rice and saimailo (a grain used to make a certain drink) out the window (I lived in a high-rise building). I truthfully told them that no kids lived in my apartment, and they left. My roommates and I stopped dropping stuff out the window for a while after that.
17. I was hit by a car while riding my bike home from my grandparents' house when I was in seventh grade. I don't remember much, but I do remember that I kept asking about the state of my brand new bike while my dad and the paramedics were helping me out. It was a purple and yellow Centurion Ironman, and it was damaged beyond repair. I wasn't able to find another like it when my dad took me to get a new one. That still bums me out when I think about it.
18. I love Star Trek. LOVE it. I own almost every Star Trek DVD that's ever been produced--probably more than 150, by now. But, I would never go to a Star Trek convention or dress up like Captain Kirk or whatever. I think that stuff is totally lame.
19. One of my biggest regrets in life was turning down an offer to study Latin at Pomona College (one of the nation's top liberal arts colleges) for only $100 in tuition my senior year of high school. I turned it down to spite my high school Latin teacher, whom I did not like. Talk about stupid.
20. Becca is the only girl not of Asian descent that I ever dated. Cue the "yellow fever" jokes.
21. I'm fascinated by apocalyptic ideas and scenarios, like nuclear war. I used to have dreams about such things all the time when I was younger, but not as much now. The closest thing I dream about now is witnessing a plane crash. I have that dream a lot.
22. I love coats and shoes. I have more of either than Becca does, I think. Kind of weird for a guy, but I enjoy the variety.
23. Even though jeans are permitted in my office (either on casual Fridays or if you have a "casual sticker"), it took me almost four years of employment before I finally wore them, having previously deemed the idea completely unacceptable. I now wear jeans multiple times per week since I'm in a phase of fashion laziness.
24. When I was in 10th grade, I read the entire world history textbook on the first night of school. Man, do I love history.
25. I've long had an obsession with words, grammar, spelling, etc. My siblings still make fun of me for reading the Spanish dictionary on a regular basis when I was in high school.
I tag:
Becca
Holly
Terina
Abish
Meredith
Kalola
Casey
1. Between my freshman year of high school and the end of undergrad, I studied Spanish, Portuguese, French, Latin, Mandarin, Cantonese and Korean for various lengths of time. My degree is in Mandarin, so I guess you could say that I'm a linguist. I really miss actively studying languages.
2. When I was a baby, I choked on water (I think), turned blue and almost died. To this day, I still have problems with liquids going down the wrong pipe, and end up choking at least once or twice a month. I probably just need to slow down.
3. I've dieted like crazy over the last six years or so. If you took the absolute value of my weight gains and losses, it would probably be over 300 lbs. I just need to lose weight and learn how to keep it off.
4. I'm very particular about the order in which I do things when I get ready in the morning: brush teeth, shower, weigh myself, put deodorant on, shave, and so on. If I deviate from this order, like shower before brushing my teeth, I usually end up forgetting to do one or more things.
5. I always put my socks on before I put my pants on, unless I've already worn the pants in question once.
6. I won a photo printer in a drawing at the office a few years ago. It's pretty cool, but I've never used it. The little lady seems to like it a lot, though.
7. On one of our first dates, the little lady and I were walking on the hill at the south end of the BYU campus (Maeser Hill?). It was dark, and a deer jumped out of the bushes. I pushed her in front of me to make sure that I wouldn't get hurt. There's nothing like a little "every man for himself" in a relationship. And she didn't even dump me.
8. Our first date was dinner in the Red Lantern Chinese buffet, near BYU. I think she was nervous (either because I made her use chopsticks, or because it was our first date, or both), and didn't end up eating very much. We also went to the same place the first time our parents met.
9. How did we meet? I was Becca's supervisor. "Want a promotion? How about a date?"
10. I originally planned on majoring in biochemistry when I started college, with the intent of eventually going to med school. I dropped the idea after talking to my doctor uncle, who advised me to find something else to do if I only cared about the money. Good advice--money was really all I was thinking about at the time. I do sometimes wish that I had a job where I really made a difference in people's lives, though.
11. I love teaching/training people, but prefer to do it one-on-one or in small groups. It's hard to give people individualized training and attention when you're dealing with a large group.
12. I've often told people that have worked for me that they know they're doing a good job when they no longer need to talk to me at all during the day. That might sound rude, but what I really mean is "When you're competent enough to have earned my trust and to be able to make decisions for yourself, then you don't have to ask me questions any more, and we can each focus on our own work."
13. I've always been a collector: stamps, rocks, glass, sports cards, Garbage Pail kids cards, books, CDs, and watches are just a few of the things I've collected.
14. When I'm in Hawaii, I love to order Portuguese sausage and rice for breakfast at McDonald's. Not your typical breakfast, but then, I never really cared about only eating certain foods at certain times of the day.
15. I became a much happier person when I stopped hating myself for liking heavy/death/speed/thrash/whatever metal. When I was in high school, I used to tell people I'd someday stop. These days, I listen to it more than ever.
16. When I was in Hong Kong, the police knocked on my door one night. They were looking for some "kids" that had been spotting pedestrians with a laser pen and then dropping bags of rice and saimailo (a grain used to make a certain drink) out the window (I lived in a high-rise building). I truthfully told them that no kids lived in my apartment, and they left. My roommates and I stopped dropping stuff out the window for a while after that.
17. I was hit by a car while riding my bike home from my grandparents' house when I was in seventh grade. I don't remember much, but I do remember that I kept asking about the state of my brand new bike while my dad and the paramedics were helping me out. It was a purple and yellow Centurion Ironman, and it was damaged beyond repair. I wasn't able to find another like it when my dad took me to get a new one. That still bums me out when I think about it.
18. I love Star Trek. LOVE it. I own almost every Star Trek DVD that's ever been produced--probably more than 150, by now. But, I would never go to a Star Trek convention or dress up like Captain Kirk or whatever. I think that stuff is totally lame.
19. One of my biggest regrets in life was turning down an offer to study Latin at Pomona College (one of the nation's top liberal arts colleges) for only $100 in tuition my senior year of high school. I turned it down to spite my high school Latin teacher, whom I did not like. Talk about stupid.
20. Becca is the only girl not of Asian descent that I ever dated. Cue the "yellow fever" jokes.
21. I'm fascinated by apocalyptic ideas and scenarios, like nuclear war. I used to have dreams about such things all the time when I was younger, but not as much now. The closest thing I dream about now is witnessing a plane crash. I have that dream a lot.
22. I love coats and shoes. I have more of either than Becca does, I think. Kind of weird for a guy, but I enjoy the variety.
23. Even though jeans are permitted in my office (either on casual Fridays or if you have a "casual sticker"), it took me almost four years of employment before I finally wore them, having previously deemed the idea completely unacceptable. I now wear jeans multiple times per week since I'm in a phase of fashion laziness.
24. When I was in 10th grade, I read the entire world history textbook on the first night of school. Man, do I love history.
25. I've long had an obsession with words, grammar, spelling, etc. My siblings still make fun of me for reading the Spanish dictionary on a regular basis when I was in high school.
I tag:
Becca
Holly
Terina
Abish
Meredith
Kalola
Casey
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
old friends
My quest to do something other than work and study is going pretty well. Even if I'm not getting a ton of physical activity, I'm proud of myself for putting the computer down and doing something different for a change.
This morning, I did something I haven't done in years: I finished reading a book. A regular book. "Kitchen Confidential", by Anthony Bourdain. I went through a period from late 2006 to the middle of last year where I was obsessed with his TV show, "No Reservations", so I thought I would read his book. It was entertaining and an eye-opening look at what goes on in restaurant kitchens.
The last couple of nights, I've spent at least an hour reading, with music going in the background and no computer on. It's been a lot of fun, and I think it's helping my overall state of mind. Years of multitasking have taken their toll--I'm rarely able to focus on any one thing for too long. Turning off a few gadgets and just reading has been great. I think I'll continue.
January has been movie madness month here. I've seen more movies than I can remember this month, but here are some of them:
Omega Man
The Great Debaters (which it right now)
Slumdog Millionaire
Doubt
Gran Torino
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Wrestler
Eagle Eye
Thunderball
For Your Eyes Only
Meet Bill
Vantage Point
Maxed Out
Outsourced
Silent Running
The Professional
The King of California
Jackass 2.5
The Illusionist
Tortilla Soup
Seven Years in Tibet
War, Inc.
The Women
Forgetting Sarah Marshall
The best of all these? "Gran Torino", hands down. Good story, funny, a bit of a surprise ending. "Slumdog Millionaire" would be a close second. Any praise you hear for either of these movies is well justified. Anyway, I'm sure I'll be seeing more movies soon.
With spring only five months away, I'm looking forward to having more opportunities to do different things. I've been itching to get into photography more, and my bike has been gathering dust for over a year, so it's time to pull it out. Time will other what other adventures lurk outside my computer and office.
This morning, I did something I haven't done in years: I finished reading a book. A regular book. "Kitchen Confidential", by Anthony Bourdain. I went through a period from late 2006 to the middle of last year where I was obsessed with his TV show, "No Reservations", so I thought I would read his book. It was entertaining and an eye-opening look at what goes on in restaurant kitchens.
The last couple of nights, I've spent at least an hour reading, with music going in the background and no computer on. It's been a lot of fun, and I think it's helping my overall state of mind. Years of multitasking have taken their toll--I'm rarely able to focus on any one thing for too long. Turning off a few gadgets and just reading has been great. I think I'll continue.
January has been movie madness month here. I've seen more movies than I can remember this month, but here are some of them:
Omega Man
The Great Debaters (which it right now)
Slumdog Millionaire
Doubt
Gran Torino
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Wrestler
Eagle Eye
Thunderball
For Your Eyes Only
Meet Bill
Vantage Point
Maxed Out
Outsourced
Silent Running
The Professional
The King of California
Jackass 2.5
The Illusionist
Tortilla Soup
Seven Years in Tibet
War, Inc.
The Women
Forgetting Sarah Marshall
The best of all these? "Gran Torino", hands down. Good story, funny, a bit of a surprise ending. "Slumdog Millionaire" would be a close second. Any praise you hear for either of these movies is well justified. Anyway, I'm sure I'll be seeing more movies soon.
With spring only five months away, I'm looking forward to having more opportunities to do different things. I've been itching to get into photography more, and my bike has been gathering dust for over a year, so it's time to pull it out. Time will other what other adventures lurk outside my computer and office.
Saturday, January 24, 2009
that wasn't too bright
Yesterday, after I finished watching a movie from Netflix ("War, Inc.", by the way. It really sucked), I decided to walk to the mailbox to mail it back before the mailman came. I looked around at my clothing options, and determined that I'd wear shorts, a sweatshirt and slippers outside. After all, putting on pants and buckling a belt can be a lot of effort.
The mailbox is a 1-2 minute walk away. That's not very far unless, of course, temperatures are in the single digits (which I knew) and there's a wind chill advisory in effect (which I didn't know). So, it was probably somewhere between -10 and -20F with the wind chill while I was outside for those few minutes. By the time I got back, I could barely feel my legs. It was kind of a strange sensation, since my legs don't typically get very cold. After all, I'm the guy who's always too hot. The problem is so pronounced that I keep our thermostat at 64F during the winter when I'm awake, and 55F when I'm asleep.
Anyway, I don't recommend shorts for sub-zero weather. I don't recommend even going out in sub-zero weather, but it's kind of unavoidable in Minnesota.
The mailbox is a 1-2 minute walk away. That's not very far unless, of course, temperatures are in the single digits (which I knew) and there's a wind chill advisory in effect (which I didn't know). So, it was probably somewhere between -10 and -20F with the wind chill while I was outside for those few minutes. By the time I got back, I could barely feel my legs. It was kind of a strange sensation, since my legs don't typically get very cold. After all, I'm the guy who's always too hot. The problem is so pronounced that I keep our thermostat at 64F during the winter when I'm awake, and 55F when I'm asleep.
Anyway, I don't recommend shorts for sub-zero weather. I don't recommend even going out in sub-zero weather, but it's kind of unavoidable in Minnesota.
75 days to paradise
For the last few years, I've wanted to take the little lady on vacation early in the year--sometime between February 1 and May 1--since she has a hard time with the long winters here in God's country. And, to be honest, I sometimes tire of them myself. That hasn't been possible, however, with my school schedule. Now that I'm a "high-powered" and "successful" MBA, however, I'm free to do what I want when work's not too bad. So, I've been looking at warm and sunny places to go, and finally booked something today. Here's where we'll be staying:
It's an all-inclusive resort in Playa del Carmen, Mexico. It's right on the beach, and the beach it's on is supposedly one of the top ten in the world. I plan on spending lots of time in the pool or in the ocean.
When life is dark and all hope is lost, there's nothing like a vacation to look forward to and to bring light back into my life. April 8 will not come soon enough.
It's an all-inclusive resort in Playa del Carmen, Mexico. It's right on the beach, and the beach it's on is supposedly one of the top ten in the world. I plan on spending lots of time in the pool or in the ocean.
When life is dark and all hope is lost, there's nothing like a vacation to look forward to and to bring light back into my life. April 8 will not come soon enough.
Friday, January 23, 2009
ho-hum
Every once in a while, the stars and planets align such that something out of the ordinary happens. Tuesday was one of those days. The little lady was deathly ill (still is), and my schedule managed to clear up such that I was able to work from home and take her to the doctor. President Obama was being sworn in right as we turned the TV on when we got back from the doctor's office, and I was able to watch many of the other festivities and goings on while I worked. Normally, none of this would have been possible.
I don't remember ever watching another inauguration. I also don't remember any inauguration being so hyped. I felt like I was witnessing the decline of Western civilization as I listened to idiotic news broadcasts that were dumbed down to the lowest common denominator:
"We really expected Michelle Obama to be wearing something else!"
"Barack Obama's jaw looks a lot tighter today than usual. Must be a lot of pressure!"
"The president-elect and his family are running 23 minutes behind schedule. We don't know how this will affect the rest of his day, but it's going to be a late one!"
The inaugural proceedings were interesting, but weird. Nice hat, Aretha Franklin. Nice witty racist prayer, guy. Way to be inclusive of all Americans with the Lord's Prayer, Rick Warren. And all the tears. I just don't get it, but then, I didn't vote for the guy, either. Sure, he's the first black president. He probably represents many firsts, but I don't really care about that. I vote for the person that I think will do the best job. That wasn't Barack Obama.
Obama's speech was interesting. Thank the previous guy for his service to his country, then come out swinging and criticizing much of what the guy's done during his presidency. If nothing else, Obama succeeded in differentiating himself from his predecessor.
Obama's been busy since he took office. He's following up on things he said he would do, like closing the prison in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. I wonder how much he really knows about the place, or about other things on which he's acting swiftly. It seems like there's only so much you can know about intelligence activities if you're not the president or directly involved in those activities.
So, on from the hype and into the honeymoon. I'll be glad when that's over, too.
I don't remember ever watching another inauguration. I also don't remember any inauguration being so hyped. I felt like I was witnessing the decline of Western civilization as I listened to idiotic news broadcasts that were dumbed down to the lowest common denominator:
"We really expected Michelle Obama to be wearing something else!"
"Barack Obama's jaw looks a lot tighter today than usual. Must be a lot of pressure!"
"The president-elect and his family are running 23 minutes behind schedule. We don't know how this will affect the rest of his day, but it's going to be a late one!"
The inaugural proceedings were interesting, but weird. Nice hat, Aretha Franklin. Nice witty racist prayer, guy. Way to be inclusive of all Americans with the Lord's Prayer, Rick Warren. And all the tears. I just don't get it, but then, I didn't vote for the guy, either. Sure, he's the first black president. He probably represents many firsts, but I don't really care about that. I vote for the person that I think will do the best job. That wasn't Barack Obama.
Obama's speech was interesting. Thank the previous guy for his service to his country, then come out swinging and criticizing much of what the guy's done during his presidency. If nothing else, Obama succeeded in differentiating himself from his predecessor.
Obama's been busy since he took office. He's following up on things he said he would do, like closing the prison in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. I wonder how much he really knows about the place, or about other things on which he's acting swiftly. It seems like there's only so much you can know about intelligence activities if you're not the president or directly involved in those activities.
So, on from the hype and into the honeymoon. I'll be glad when that's over, too.
Sunday, January 18, 2009
fat conspiracy
I've recently been visiting bookstores more frequently in an attempt to reconnect with my non-business self. The bookstores I visit most frequently are Borders and Barnes & Noble, because that's what's close to me. I don't know if it's because of New Year's resolutions, but every bookstore I've been in recently has a huge table of books on dieting/weight loss right as you walk in the door. More of these books can be found around the store, and it doesn't take long to find them, since there's tons of them.
In 2006, CBS News reported that Americans spend $35 billion a year on weight loss products and programs. $35 billion. That's no small number, and it means that we are a really overweight people, or we're completely obsessed with our appearance, or both.
It kind of makes me wonder: if I'm in the business of weight loss, why would I want people to lose weight? If everyone loses weight, I'm out of a job. No more diet plans. No more weight training books. No more Nutrisystem, Jenny Craig or Weight Watchers. No more low-carb, low-fat, low-salt, low-sugar, non-fat, programs (fads) for people to follow.
Consider the effect the popularity of the Atkins diet had on meat prices earlier this decade. The price of beef, in particular, went through the roof. Is it possible that Dr. Atkins and representatives from the beef, pork and chicken industries colluded to come up with a diet that would boost the profits of meat producers? Unlikely, but it's possible. And what about all those snack producers (Frito-Lay, Keebler, etc.) working against Oprah to make her ride a perpetual weigh loss/gain roller coaster? I think I smell a conspiracy. Or maybe that's just the overpriced steaks I have on the grill.
In 2006, CBS News reported that Americans spend $35 billion a year on weight loss products and programs. $35 billion. That's no small number, and it means that we are a really overweight people, or we're completely obsessed with our appearance, or both.
It kind of makes me wonder: if I'm in the business of weight loss, why would I want people to lose weight? If everyone loses weight, I'm out of a job. No more diet plans. No more weight training books. No more Nutrisystem, Jenny Craig or Weight Watchers. No more low-carb, low-fat, low-salt, low-sugar, non-fat, programs (fads) for people to follow.
Consider the effect the popularity of the Atkins diet had on meat prices earlier this decade. The price of beef, in particular, went through the roof. Is it possible that Dr. Atkins and representatives from the beef, pork and chicken industries colluded to come up with a diet that would boost the profits of meat producers? Unlikely, but it's possible. And what about all those snack producers (Frito-Lay, Keebler, etc.) working against Oprah to make her ride a perpetual weigh loss/gain roller coaster? I think I smell a conspiracy. Or maybe that's just the overpriced steaks I have on the grill.
Thursday, January 15, 2009
one night on broadway
Greetings from Times Square in New York City. As usual, my sleep is off, which is unfortunate. It looks like I'll only get about five hours of sleep total, since I'm being driven to New Jersey in an hour and 45 minutes.
This has been an interesting "business" trip thus far. Several colleagues and I landed at JFK at 1:30 yesterday afternoon, and were picked up by a limo at the airport. I was a bit surprised, but it was kind of fun. I haven't been in a stretch limo since I was asked by a girl at church to her senior prom. I still feel kind of bad when I think about how her mom arranged for us to have this nice stretch limo all to ourselves (What was she thinking???), and I fell asleep promptly after we got in the car, but I digress...Anyway, I had gotten a bit of motion sickness during our landing, and thought I was going to puke in the limo. The driver's driving was all over the place, and he got lost once or twice (come on--how do you get lost going to a hotel right next to Times Square?), so there was a fair amount of jerky movement in the car.
By the time we got to our hotel and got settled, it was 3:30. The rest of the group was hungry, so we decided to go get "lunch". We went to a small diner down the street, and I ordered a monte cristo. It sucked, but in typical Steve fashion, I ate it all. I shouldn't have ordered anything, but then, I didn't realize that we'd be having dinner an hour and a half later. Oops.
This was the view looking down the street from Ruby Foo's, the Chinese/sushi joint we ate at:
That's Times Square, in case you can't tell. Somehow, my awesome camera phone just doesn't capture the grandeur of the lights and billboards and such. Imagine that. Anyway, the food was pretty good, but if you know me pretty well, you know what I think of Chinese places that don't have any Chinese people working in them. Anyway, as is typical of any business dinner, we ordered and ate too much (and drank too much--me with my 10 glasses of water, everyone else with wine).
After dinner, we were taken to see a Broadway musical called "Jersey Boys". Again, if you know me, then you know I hate musicals. "Hate" isn't a strong enough word to describe the way I feel about the idea of a story being told primarily with music. This might sound strange coming from a guy who actually sang in musical-type productions in high school and who loves music so much, so I'll just say this: it's a lot more fun when you're doing the singing yourself. Anyway, a member of the group had requested that our vendor take us to this, which I thought was pretty low class in and of itself. One of my other colleagues and I tried to get out of it, but no such luck.
It turned out to not be as bad as I was expecting, but that's not tough when you have zero positive expectations. It tells the story of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, and since I'm familiar with a lot of their hits, I could at least get into the music a bit.
This was our after-musical activity:
This has been an interesting "business" trip thus far. Several colleagues and I landed at JFK at 1:30 yesterday afternoon, and were picked up by a limo at the airport. I was a bit surprised, but it was kind of fun. I haven't been in a stretch limo since I was asked by a girl at church to her senior prom. I still feel kind of bad when I think about how her mom arranged for us to have this nice stretch limo all to ourselves (What was she thinking???), and I fell asleep promptly after we got in the car, but I digress...Anyway, I had gotten a bit of motion sickness during our landing, and thought I was going to puke in the limo. The driver's driving was all over the place, and he got lost once or twice (come on--how do you get lost going to a hotel right next to Times Square?), so there was a fair amount of jerky movement in the car.
By the time we got to our hotel and got settled, it was 3:30. The rest of the group was hungry, so we decided to go get "lunch". We went to a small diner down the street, and I ordered a monte cristo. It sucked, but in typical Steve fashion, I ate it all. I shouldn't have ordered anything, but then, I didn't realize that we'd be having dinner an hour and a half later. Oops.
This was the view looking down the street from Ruby Foo's, the Chinese/sushi joint we ate at:
That's Times Square, in case you can't tell. Somehow, my awesome camera phone just doesn't capture the grandeur of the lights and billboards and such. Imagine that. Anyway, the food was pretty good, but if you know me pretty well, you know what I think of Chinese places that don't have any Chinese people working in them. Anyway, as is typical of any business dinner, we ordered and ate too much (and drank too much--me with my 10 glasses of water, everyone else with wine).
After dinner, we were taken to see a Broadway musical called "Jersey Boys". Again, if you know me, then you know I hate musicals. "Hate" isn't a strong enough word to describe the way I feel about the idea of a story being told primarily with music. This might sound strange coming from a guy who actually sang in musical-type productions in high school and who loves music so much, so I'll just say this: it's a lot more fun when you're doing the singing yourself. Anyway, a member of the group had requested that our vendor take us to this, which I thought was pretty low class in and of itself. One of my other colleagues and I tried to get out of it, but no such luck.
It turned out to not be as bad as I was expecting, but that's not tough when you have zero positive expectations. It tells the story of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, and since I'm familiar with a lot of their hits, I could at least get into the music a bit.
This was our after-musical activity:
A lot of my business trips are like this. It will go like this:
Colleague 1: Hey, do you guys want to go (out for drinks/to happy hour/to a bar)?
Steve: No, not really.
Everyone else: Yeah!!!
Colleague 1: OK, we're going.
Of course, I have to play along and be a good sport, but man, do I hate bars. Sipping a water or lemonade while else imbibes just isn't that exciting, and since I have very limited experience in bars, I'm not very comfortable in them. I doubt I ever will be.
We didn't end up getting back to our hotel until midnight, but at least everything was within walking distance. It was a day of new experiences, and even if the activities weren't my first choice, it's always nice to see and/or try something new.
I'll be flying out of Newark this afternoon, after meetings and a factory visit. The dream lives on...
Colleague 1: Hey, do you guys want to go (out for drinks/to happy hour/to a bar)?
Steve: No, not really.
Everyone else: Yeah!!!
Colleague 1: OK, we're going.
Of course, I have to play along and be a good sport, but man, do I hate bars. Sipping a water or lemonade while else imbibes just isn't that exciting, and since I have very limited experience in bars, I'm not very comfortable in them. I doubt I ever will be.
We didn't end up getting back to our hotel until midnight, but at least everything was within walking distance. It was a day of new experiences, and even if the activities weren't my first choice, it's always nice to see and/or try something new.
I'll be flying out of Newark this afternoon, after meetings and a factory visit. The dream lives on...
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
second-guessing myself
I don't typically second-guess myself. Second-guessing is a waste of time, unless you're one of those few people that has the ability to travel back in time. Personally, I haven't mastered that yet, but I digress. Anyway, I second-guessed myself for a while on the way to work. It all started with this:
I took this picture of my speedometer/display while waiting at the stoplight outside my neighborhood. In case you missed it, that's "-21 degrees Fahrenheit" in the middle of the display. No, not -21F with the wind chill. -21F straight up. That's freakin' cold. That's the coldest it's been all winter, although I'm sure we haven't seen the worst of it yet.
I left home just before 7am. At this time of day, it would normally take me 20-25 minutes to get to work. Today, however, it took me an hour and 35 minutes to get to work. That's a 280% increase in the amount of time it took to make the trip. It wouldn't have been as bad if there was a bad snowstorm or freezing rain or a severe car accident. Nope. Nothing.
I was supposed to have breakfast with a friend, but had to cancel. My 9am meeting had to be canceled as well, since the other person in the meeting was stuck in traffic.
So, what was I second-guessing? If you haven't figured it out already, I'll tell you: the decision we made to move to Minnesota. I really like having seasons, but sometimes the cold weather is a bit too much, and I miss the warmth of southern California winters. How I'd love to be on a beach somewhere right now...
I left home just before 7am. At this time of day, it would normally take me 20-25 minutes to get to work. Today, however, it took me an hour and 35 minutes to get to work. That's a 280% increase in the amount of time it took to make the trip. It wouldn't have been as bad if there was a bad snowstorm or freezing rain or a severe car accident. Nope. Nothing.
I was supposed to have breakfast with a friend, but had to cancel. My 9am meeting had to be canceled as well, since the other person in the meeting was stuck in traffic.
So, what was I second-guessing? If you haven't figured it out already, I'll tell you: the decision we made to move to Minnesota. I really like having seasons, but sometimes the cold weather is a bit too much, and I miss the warmth of southern California winters. How I'd love to be on a beach somewhere right now...
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
yup, still winter
We got 5-6" of snow in Chaska today. It started around 8am and didn't stop until after 5pm. I saw five cars or so in the ditch as I was coming home, and another three or four that were in accidents. That's worse than any other storm I've seen in my seven years here.
I like it when it snows. My fascination with snow hasn't worn off despite all the storms I've seen by now. It may never wear off.
I like it when it snows. My fascination with snow hasn't worn off despite all the storms I've seen by now. It may never wear off.
Friday, January 9, 2009
rips and slams
A lot of people these days are partially blaming the media for the problems we're having with the economy. I tend to agree. After all, much of a person's willingness to spend money is based on his perception of whether or not he will continue to have money in the future. If you watch/read the news frequently, then all you're going to hear about is how bad the economy is: bankruptcies, foreclosures, layoffs, companies collapsing, inflation, etc. None of this is positive, and none of it is going to lead you to believe that you'll have a job, or a house, or any semblance of financial security in the months and years to come. So, you save your money. You pay down debt. You live in fear, and you contribute to economic stagnation.
Negativity in the news is what gets people's attention. How many people died? How many people are sick? How many people lost their jobs? How much money was lost? After a while, you get used it, and you don't even care that it happens, unless it's an extreme occurrence. I remember coming here and laughing because a big deal was made on the local news because there was one murder that day. Coming from LA, one murder is peanuts. You'd be grateful for one murder, for one day of such unprecedented peace and calm in the city. Not here, however. It was a big deal, and you know what? It's sad that anyone would get to a point where they don't care about such things.
In any case, the media knows about desensitization, and they believe you won't continue to tune in unless you continue to be overstimulated. This is my problem with the media. Not the negativity, but the continual increase in "volume". The hype. The distortion. You can see it in words like this:
rips
slams
tumbles
plunges
plummets
Someone says they don't like something, and it becomes a "slam". The price of oil drops a couple bucks, and it "plummets". One person might be killed, and it becomes a "rampage".
I wouldn't have a problem with this if we all talked that way, but we don't. In fact, I don't know anyone who talks like this--at least, no one that people don't think is full of crap. That's just what people think of those who exaggerate.
I'm tired of it, but I feel like I need to be connected. Maybe I'll just tune in less.
Negativity in the news is what gets people's attention. How many people died? How many people are sick? How many people lost their jobs? How much money was lost? After a while, you get used it, and you don't even care that it happens, unless it's an extreme occurrence. I remember coming here and laughing because a big deal was made on the local news because there was one murder that day. Coming from LA, one murder is peanuts. You'd be grateful for one murder, for one day of such unprecedented peace and calm in the city. Not here, however. It was a big deal, and you know what? It's sad that anyone would get to a point where they don't care about such things.
In any case, the media knows about desensitization, and they believe you won't continue to tune in unless you continue to be overstimulated. This is my problem with the media. Not the negativity, but the continual increase in "volume". The hype. The distortion. You can see it in words like this:
rips
slams
tumbles
plunges
plummets
Someone says they don't like something, and it becomes a "slam". The price of oil drops a couple bucks, and it "plummets". One person might be killed, and it becomes a "rampage".
I wouldn't have a problem with this if we all talked that way, but we don't. In fact, I don't know anyone who talks like this--at least, no one that people don't think is full of crap. That's just what people think of those who exaggerate.
I'm tired of it, but I feel like I need to be connected. Maybe I'll just tune in less.
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
the temptation of sloth
Like many companies, my company is looking to cut costs due to economic pressures. Rather than lay people off right away, however, it devised a "voluntary separation" program under which any corporate employee could take a buyout package. The length and terms of that package would be based on factors such as title and length of service. We were told that if enough employees applied for the buyout package, then there would be few or no involuntary layoffs. Not a bad deal, if you ask me.
The deadline to apply for this package was yesterday, and until yesterday, I never really considered it. My team is productive and growing--faster than any other initiative in the company, I think. Productive/profitable team = safe from layoffs. As I came back to work from vacation, however, it suddenly hit me that I'm not very happy with the way things are right now. In short, I'm being taken advantage of and not receiving much for it. My friends and colleagues are shocked at my workload.
I spent much of yesterday daydreaming of what my life would be like if I didn't have to work at all for a few months. I'd go on a diet. I'd participate in a "biggest loser" contest and dominate my competitors. I'd read books, watch movies and go to a few museums. I'd play guitar like crazy. Maybe I'd take a trip. In short, life would be pretty great. Best of all, I think I'd learn to be "me" again. "Me" before I became a soulless corporate stooge. "Me" before I became obsessed with leadership, profitability, inventory turnover and the like.
I spoke with the little lady, and she wasn't having it. "Too risky", she said. Too bad--few worthwhile things in life are without some measure of risk. Alas, I woke up this morning and was still the corporate whore I was when I asleep the night before.
Today was a new day, however. Productivity sunk to depths never before seen as people gossiped about who had taken the buyout. The list of executives was lengthy (mostly rumors, right now), and in some cases, a shock. Rumor has it that more people than necessary applied for the buyout, so I wonder what will happen next. Just because a person applied doesn't mean that he'll be given the package.
It was tempting. Soooo tempting. I could really have gone for a few months of nothing. Maybe next time...
The deadline to apply for this package was yesterday, and until yesterday, I never really considered it. My team is productive and growing--faster than any other initiative in the company, I think. Productive/profitable team = safe from layoffs. As I came back to work from vacation, however, it suddenly hit me that I'm not very happy with the way things are right now. In short, I'm being taken advantage of and not receiving much for it. My friends and colleagues are shocked at my workload.
I spent much of yesterday daydreaming of what my life would be like if I didn't have to work at all for a few months. I'd go on a diet. I'd participate in a "biggest loser" contest and dominate my competitors. I'd read books, watch movies and go to a few museums. I'd play guitar like crazy. Maybe I'd take a trip. In short, life would be pretty great. Best of all, I think I'd learn to be "me" again. "Me" before I became a soulless corporate stooge. "Me" before I became obsessed with leadership, profitability, inventory turnover and the like.
I spoke with the little lady, and she wasn't having it. "Too risky", she said. Too bad--few worthwhile things in life are without some measure of risk. Alas, I woke up this morning and was still the corporate whore I was when I asleep the night before.
Today was a new day, however. Productivity sunk to depths never before seen as people gossiped about who had taken the buyout. The list of executives was lengthy (mostly rumors, right now), and in some cases, a shock. Rumor has it that more people than necessary applied for the buyout, so I wonder what will happen next. Just because a person applied doesn't mean that he'll be given the package.
It was tempting. Soooo tempting. I could really have gone for a few months of nothing. Maybe next time...
Monday, January 5, 2009
catalina days and nights
I decided a few months ago that I was going to need to some time away from it all after I finished grad school, so I decided to take a few days while we were in California to go to Catalina Island, which is an hour-long ferry ride from Los Angeles.
I'd been to Catalina for boy scout camp a couple times when I was younger, but I'd never been to Avalon, where we would be staying. It took me a while to find a decent looking hotel online, but what I found was pretty good, if somewhat overpriced. For a few months of my Hong Kong sojourn, I lived near a beach and sometimes spent time on the roof, watching the boats go back and forth and the weather change (this was also the only way I could get any time alone). I decided I wanted similar views for our Catalina stay, so I sprung for a room with a balcony overlooking the ocean. This is what I saw the first time I walked out onto the balcony:
The balcony turned out to be a good choice. I spent a lot of time sitting out on the balcony, surfing the internet, working and/or listening to music. The view also made up for the fact that our room wasn't much larger than our walk-in closet at home (I had been expecting something much larger, based on the pictures on the hotel's website). Anyway, the balcony was nice for sunrises and sunsets:
Notice the fog in the last couple of pictures. It arrived late in the morning of our second day there, and appeared again on the morning of the third day. It didn't burn off until late in the day on the second day, and we left before it burned off on the third day. This put a damper on our plans to see the interior of the island, since we wouldn't have been able to see anything had we taken one of the available tours.
We did pay a visit to the local botanical gardens on the second day, however. It was during our search for the gardens that I slipped and fell, banging up my knee pretty badly in the process. Anyway, we finally got to the gardens, but they weren't what we were expecting. When I hear "garden", I usually think of flowers and the like. What we saw, however, was much different:
This is my favorite of the photos I took on the trip:
After we finished at the gardens, we went to lunch at Jack's, a local restaurant that appeared to specialize in breakfast foods. After a fattening feast of breakfast fare including eggs benedict, Portuguese sausage, biscuits and gravy, and hash browns, we went back to the hotel and passed out for the rest of the afternoon. We only went out again to go to dinner at El Galleon, another local restaurant which appeared to be a bit more upscale. This turned out to be a bad idea, as the food was both the most expensive and the worst of our trip. Remind me to go back to El Galleon if I'm ever in the mood for fettucine alfredo soup again.
Our ferry back to the mainland left at 1pm on the third day, and we didn't do much that morning, other than walk by the casino-turned-movie theater and down the shore.
Catalina was fairly relaxing, but I felt like the trip was a bit of a bust. The fog was a problem, and there really wasn't much to do in Avalon. While that was kind of the point, I had been expecting more excitement and entertainment options. As much as I'd like to see the seals, buffalo and other wildlife in the interior of the island, I doubt we'll go back any time soon. I'm still glad we got away for a few days, though.
I'd been to Catalina for boy scout camp a couple times when I was younger, but I'd never been to Avalon, where we would be staying. It took me a while to find a decent looking hotel online, but what I found was pretty good, if somewhat overpriced. For a few months of my Hong Kong sojourn, I lived near a beach and sometimes spent time on the roof, watching the boats go back and forth and the weather change (this was also the only way I could get any time alone). I decided I wanted similar views for our Catalina stay, so I sprung for a room with a balcony overlooking the ocean. This is what I saw the first time I walked out onto the balcony:
The balcony turned out to be a good choice. I spent a lot of time sitting out on the balcony, surfing the internet, working and/or listening to music. The view also made up for the fact that our room wasn't much larger than our walk-in closet at home (I had been expecting something much larger, based on the pictures on the hotel's website). Anyway, the balcony was nice for sunrises and sunsets:
Notice the fog in the last couple of pictures. It arrived late in the morning of our second day there, and appeared again on the morning of the third day. It didn't burn off until late in the day on the second day, and we left before it burned off on the third day. This put a damper on our plans to see the interior of the island, since we wouldn't have been able to see anything had we taken one of the available tours.
We did pay a visit to the local botanical gardens on the second day, however. It was during our search for the gardens that I slipped and fell, banging up my knee pretty badly in the process. Anyway, we finally got to the gardens, but they weren't what we were expecting. When I hear "garden", I usually think of flowers and the like. What we saw, however, was much different:
This is my favorite of the photos I took on the trip:
After we finished at the gardens, we went to lunch at Jack's, a local restaurant that appeared to specialize in breakfast foods. After a fattening feast of breakfast fare including eggs benedict, Portuguese sausage, biscuits and gravy, and hash browns, we went back to the hotel and passed out for the rest of the afternoon. We only went out again to go to dinner at El Galleon, another local restaurant which appeared to be a bit more upscale. This turned out to be a bad idea, as the food was both the most expensive and the worst of our trip. Remind me to go back to El Galleon if I'm ever in the mood for fettucine alfredo soup again.
Our ferry back to the mainland left at 1pm on the third day, and we didn't do much that morning, other than walk by the casino-turned-movie theater and down the shore.
Catalina was fairly relaxing, but I felt like the trip was a bit of a bust. The fog was a problem, and there really wasn't much to do in Avalon. While that was kind of the point, I had been expecting more excitement and entertainment options. As much as I'd like to see the seals, buffalo and other wildlife in the interior of the island, I doubt we'll go back any time soon. I'm still glad we got away for a few days, though.
Friday, January 2, 2009
pool party 2009
My youngest brother and I decided to end all the talk and get into the pool yesterday morning. I estimated that the water was about 40F, so it was painfully cold. Getting out of the pool felt more comfortable than getting into it. That said, we had fun for the 15 minutes or so that we were in the pool, and my dad even joined us for a while, despite having repeatedly stating that there was no way he was going to get into water that cold.
The slide worked great, and the rock setup was great for diving and big cannonballs. This pool is going to rock when the water is a bit warmer.
In the evening, my nephews wanted to have a fire in the fire pit, so grandpa gladly obliged. There's a gas line in the pit, so there's no wood mess or anything else to worry about. Pretty cool.
Flames in the dark:
The slide worked great, and the rock setup was great for diving and big cannonballs. This pool is going to rock when the water is a bit warmer.
In the evening, my nephews wanted to have a fire in the fire pit, so grandpa gladly obliged. There's a gas line in the pit, so there's no wood mess or anything else to worry about. Pretty cool.
Flames in the dark:
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
2008: a year in review
What a year it’s been. I’ve experienced some of the highest highs and the lowest lows of my life this year. When things were good, they were REALLY good. When they were bad, they were REALLY bad.
January – I’ll probably remember January 2008 as one of the worst months I’ve ever had. At work, I had to help manage the PR and logistics of a very public product recall that got a lot of attention in the national media. This took up a lot of time (that I already didn’t have) and was very stressful. On the personal front, my car was rear-ended early in the month. Only a couple days after I got it back from the shop, it was hit again. My Midas touch didn’t stop there. I had a natural gas problem and a propane tank problem at my place; lightbulbs were going out when I walked in the room; I ended up getting a defective copy of one of my favorite movies when I ordered it on HD DVD. It seemed like everything that could go wrong did go wrong in January.
February – Comparatively uneventful. I participated in my first caucus ever, and I came away having even less faith in our election process than I had prior to going in. There weren’t enough pencils or ballots for people; I couldn’t hear the person leading the caucus, because several precincts were caucusing in the same room. The guy I voted for won Minnesota on the Republican side, but ended up dropping out of the race not too long after. Oh well.
March – A pretty good month. I went to Vancouver on business, and while that trip was fairly lame due to my co-workers, I like Vancouver quite a bit. After years of lusting over one, I finally bought a Gibson Les Paul guitar, which I named Melinda. I had laser eye surgery toward the end of the month, and while the next couple of months were pretty rough with all the eye drops, eye exams and frequent discomfort, the end result has been wonderful. I’m glad I got over my fear and finally did it. Not wearing glasses has been great.
April – I was mostly focused on school during this month. I finished my complex negotiations course in April, and it will forever remain one of my favorite courses…and not just because I got to wear my ridiculous red Hawaiian shirt to class on the final day. April was also great because we sold off or threw away a bunch of stuff via a yard sale, eBay, Craigslist and other internet methods. I parted with some rare CD collections I’d been holding on to, but I made over $2000 from CDs alone. In total, I think we made between $3500-4000 from all these sales. Awesome.
May – May was definitely a month to remember. We went on our first cruise, which had stops in Italy, Greece and Turkey. We ate a lot of great food and saw many interesting and wonderful things that I thought I’d never see. I can’t say enough good things about that trip.
June/July/August – These were pretty rough months, and I think coming down from the Mediterranean cruise high had a lot to do with that. On the school front, I hit the wall in late July, and I don’t think I ever fully recovered. It’s a good thing I finished up and graduated the following semester. I finally snapped out of my post-vacation funk at the end of August, and I think buying a new car had a lot to do with that. Man, do I love that car. I’ve always loved driving, but I REALLY look forward to driving now. It doesn’t matter what’s going on in my life or what the weather’s like. Ah, the futility of capitalism. Or maybe that’s consumerism. Whatever.
September – Back to school after a short break, and while I didn’t really want to be back, it was in September that I finally saw the light at the end of the tunnel. It was also in September that I stopped listening to political talk radio. I switched over to listening to comedy, and I haven’t looked back. Sure, I’m less informed, but I’m a much happier person for it.
October – It wasn’t like there was a ton of stuff going on, but I think it was a pretty good month. It was certainly my most prolific month ever, from a blogging perspective. I wrote 24 entries on this blog alone (I do have another one), and I felt like I had so much to say about the world and life, in general. Sure, the stock market and the economy went to hell in a handbasket, but that’s OK. It was bound to happen sometime.
November – What a lame month. Barack Obama won the presidency, and while I don’t think it’s the end of the world, I didn’t vote for him and am not a fan of the policies he was proposing. Uncle Sid, my co-worker with whom I had a love/hate (mostly hate) relationship, left the company and I was forced to take on all his work in addition to my own. Work responsibilities cast a very dark shadow over otherwise happy Thanksgiving festivities. My parents and sister came to MN for the holiday, and that was great.
December – What can I say? I was super busy, but I finished my master’s degree. I got promoted at work. I can’t complain too much, right? I’ve been in California for a week, and while I’ve had to work almost every day, it’s great to be here and away from MN for a while. I don’t mind the snow and cold of MN, but I also like variety. I’m currently sitting on a hotel balcony, looking out at the ocean, the boats and the fog on Catalina Island. What a great way to end the year.
To all my friends and family who read this blog, thanks for reading and for being there for me in 2008. Here’s to a better year in 2009. Happy New Year!
January – I’ll probably remember January 2008 as one of the worst months I’ve ever had. At work, I had to help manage the PR and logistics of a very public product recall that got a lot of attention in the national media. This took up a lot of time (that I already didn’t have) and was very stressful. On the personal front, my car was rear-ended early in the month. Only a couple days after I got it back from the shop, it was hit again. My Midas touch didn’t stop there. I had a natural gas problem and a propane tank problem at my place; lightbulbs were going out when I walked in the room; I ended up getting a defective copy of one of my favorite movies when I ordered it on HD DVD. It seemed like everything that could go wrong did go wrong in January.
February – Comparatively uneventful. I participated in my first caucus ever, and I came away having even less faith in our election process than I had prior to going in. There weren’t enough pencils or ballots for people; I couldn’t hear the person leading the caucus, because several precincts were caucusing in the same room. The guy I voted for won Minnesota on the Republican side, but ended up dropping out of the race not too long after. Oh well.
March – A pretty good month. I went to Vancouver on business, and while that trip was fairly lame due to my co-workers, I like Vancouver quite a bit. After years of lusting over one, I finally bought a Gibson Les Paul guitar, which I named Melinda. I had laser eye surgery toward the end of the month, and while the next couple of months were pretty rough with all the eye drops, eye exams and frequent discomfort, the end result has been wonderful. I’m glad I got over my fear and finally did it. Not wearing glasses has been great.
April – I was mostly focused on school during this month. I finished my complex negotiations course in April, and it will forever remain one of my favorite courses…and not just because I got to wear my ridiculous red Hawaiian shirt to class on the final day. April was also great because we sold off or threw away a bunch of stuff via a yard sale, eBay, Craigslist and other internet methods. I parted with some rare CD collections I’d been holding on to, but I made over $2000 from CDs alone. In total, I think we made between $3500-4000 from all these sales. Awesome.
May – May was definitely a month to remember. We went on our first cruise, which had stops in Italy, Greece and Turkey. We ate a lot of great food and saw many interesting and wonderful things that I thought I’d never see. I can’t say enough good things about that trip.
June/July/August – These were pretty rough months, and I think coming down from the Mediterranean cruise high had a lot to do with that. On the school front, I hit the wall in late July, and I don’t think I ever fully recovered. It’s a good thing I finished up and graduated the following semester. I finally snapped out of my post-vacation funk at the end of August, and I think buying a new car had a lot to do with that. Man, do I love that car. I’ve always loved driving, but I REALLY look forward to driving now. It doesn’t matter what’s going on in my life or what the weather’s like. Ah, the futility of capitalism. Or maybe that’s consumerism. Whatever.
September – Back to school after a short break, and while I didn’t really want to be back, it was in September that I finally saw the light at the end of the tunnel. It was also in September that I stopped listening to political talk radio. I switched over to listening to comedy, and I haven’t looked back. Sure, I’m less informed, but I’m a much happier person for it.
October – It wasn’t like there was a ton of stuff going on, but I think it was a pretty good month. It was certainly my most prolific month ever, from a blogging perspective. I wrote 24 entries on this blog alone (I do have another one), and I felt like I had so much to say about the world and life, in general. Sure, the stock market and the economy went to hell in a handbasket, but that’s OK. It was bound to happen sometime.
November – What a lame month. Barack Obama won the presidency, and while I don’t think it’s the end of the world, I didn’t vote for him and am not a fan of the policies he was proposing. Uncle Sid, my co-worker with whom I had a love/hate (mostly hate) relationship, left the company and I was forced to take on all his work in addition to my own. Work responsibilities cast a very dark shadow over otherwise happy Thanksgiving festivities. My parents and sister came to MN for the holiday, and that was great.
December – What can I say? I was super busy, but I finished my master’s degree. I got promoted at work. I can’t complain too much, right? I’ve been in California for a week, and while I’ve had to work almost every day, it’s great to be here and away from MN for a while. I don’t mind the snow and cold of MN, but I also like variety. I’m currently sitting on a hotel balcony, looking out at the ocean, the boats and the fog on Catalina Island. What a great way to end the year.
To all my friends and family who read this blog, thanks for reading and for being there for me in 2008. Here’s to a better year in 2009. Happy New Year!
the pride before the fall
The little lady and I were trying to find the local botanical gardens this morning. Neither of us bothered to get directions before we left the hotel, but we each had an assumption about where they were. We (I) decided to follow my assumption and head up the street on which the hotel was located.
When we got to the top of the street, we quickly realized that it was a dead end, and that there were no gardens to be found. The ol' ball and chain was pretty irritated that we had gone the wrong way, but rather than admit defeat, I just told her to calm down, since we had plenty of time and needed the exercise anyway. Right after we turned around, I slipped on the wet sidewalk and fell down. I ended up with a sore, bloody knee.
Becca had slipped and fallen in the shower earlier in the morning. She says she's going to have a nice, big bruise on her rear. Maybe we both need to humble ourselves.
When we got to the top of the street, we quickly realized that it was a dead end, and that there were no gardens to be found. The ol' ball and chain was pretty irritated that we had gone the wrong way, but rather than admit defeat, I just told her to calm down, since we had plenty of time and needed the exercise anyway. Right after we turned around, I slipped on the wet sidewalk and fell down. I ended up with a sore, bloody knee.
Becca had slipped and fallen in the shower earlier in the morning. She says she's going to have a nice, big bruise on her rear. Maybe we both need to humble ourselves.
Saturday, December 27, 2008
holidays in the sun
Earlier this year, my parents sold the home I grew up in and in which they had lived since 1983 and moved to a new house. The new house is just a few miles from the old one, and is in the same city as the old one, so "going home" still feels like going home.
The new home is beautiful, and is the kind of house I always wished we lived in when I was a kid. The yard is big, the ceiling are high, and there's lots of space. What's more, it's right next to the mountains, and I've always loved the mountains.
The house has become my parents' new project, and I'm glad. They seemed really bored with life before this new house thing came along. My father's part of the project has been the yard. My mother essentially told him to do whatever he wants with it, so he has. It's finally nearing completion, and it's beautiful--a place where you really want to spend some time.
A view of the neighborhood (and my dad and youngest brother) from the front courtyard:
The front of the house:
One of my favorite features is this creek/pond that my dad had put in the front yard:
Unfinished covered area in the back yard:
The pool. There are two rock fountains that go into it, and a slide--something I always wished we had on our old pool:
Looking down from the top of the slide:
Looking to the northeast from the top of the slide. You can sort of see the snow-covered mountains in the background:
You can't really tell, but this is a wading area my dad had put in the pool for his grandchildren:
The spa, with a blown-over palm tree in the background. We got heavy rain (heavy for southern California, anyway) on Christmas Day, and the new palm tree didn't make out so well:
Another unfinished covered area, with furniture and fireplace. This will be a really cool place to hang out when it's done:
The built-in grill is connected to the house's gas lines, which means no more propane tanks to fill. I would love that kind of convenience. There's also a built-in refrigerator and ice maker. Nice touches, but we'll see how much they actually get used:
It looks sunny in the picture, but the weather hasn't been the warmest--50F or below since I've been here. As I mentioned in a previous post, the pool can't be heated yet, but we're going to go in anyway. I think today is the day.
The new home is beautiful, and is the kind of house I always wished we lived in when I was a kid. The yard is big, the ceiling are high, and there's lots of space. What's more, it's right next to the mountains, and I've always loved the mountains.
The house has become my parents' new project, and I'm glad. They seemed really bored with life before this new house thing came along. My father's part of the project has been the yard. My mother essentially told him to do whatever he wants with it, so he has. It's finally nearing completion, and it's beautiful--a place where you really want to spend some time.
A view of the neighborhood (and my dad and youngest brother) from the front courtyard:
The front of the house:
One of my favorite features is this creek/pond that my dad had put in the front yard:
Unfinished covered area in the back yard:
The pool. There are two rock fountains that go into it, and a slide--something I always wished we had on our old pool:
Looking down from the top of the slide:
Looking to the northeast from the top of the slide. You can sort of see the snow-covered mountains in the background:
You can't really tell, but this is a wading area my dad had put in the pool for his grandchildren:
The spa, with a blown-over palm tree in the background. We got heavy rain (heavy for southern California, anyway) on Christmas Day, and the new palm tree didn't make out so well:
Another unfinished covered area, with furniture and fireplace. This will be a really cool place to hang out when it's done:
The built-in grill is connected to the house's gas lines, which means no more propane tanks to fill. I would love that kind of convenience. There's also a built-in refrigerator and ice maker. Nice touches, but we'll see how much they actually get used:
It looks sunny in the picture, but the weather hasn't been the warmest--50F or below since I've been here. As I mentioned in a previous post, the pool can't be heated yet, but we're going to go in anyway. I think today is the day.
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