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| So we have a big region meeting tomorrow in the EU. Girl who was running it? Caught H1N1 in Russia, and is confined home under doctors orders. And guess who gets to put all the presentations together for an emergency back up to be given by my boss? Yeah, that would be me. So much for the plan to work on the house after I get home tonight. And oh my god am I glad I got the shot last weekend. SO glad. | ||||||
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Just two hours to save the world. Like four minutes, but with commercial breaks.
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November 20th, 2009
November 19th, 2009
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| Forget my other whining. It's 42 degrees. I had my bedroom window open for the last five hours. And I just went to close it. And to turn on the electric blanket. In about 10 minutes I'm going to go sink down into a warm warm bed in the chill air. And that's pretty awesome. | ||||||
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| You know, when Glee isn't hitting my humiliation squick this week, it's making me cry. That's an adventure. I'm supposed to be working on the house, cleaning the kitchen, doing all sorts of things like that. The bathtub isn't going to scour itself. Meanwhile, I'm watching Glee and Modern Family on Hulu. And eating triscuits with cheese, just like my Grandma. Because it turns out that one's taste in snack foods is genetically pre-determined. Some day, decades from now, my hypothetical future children will spend a Thursday night in front of a screen watching some sort of musical comedy, and eating cheese and triscuts. It's nice to think of the distance a family legacy can go. Utterly unrelated: THEY MAKE PLAID CONVERSE SNEAKERS AGAIN. I'm desperate for a pair, because my last pair of plaid flannel converse died at some point in the late 90's. Unfortunately, unlike in the 90's, I have fully accepted that Converse don't actually fit my feet all that well. I'm stuck waiting until Simple makes a pair. And currently the only plaid women's shoes they have are high tops. Men can get plaid sandals, low rise sneakers, and matching backpacks. Not yet for women. I have hopes. I actually enjoy the fact that I have deliberately limited my choices. I will buy Simples, and no other shoe. I know they fit. I know I like the styles. And I can identify them at 1000 paces. After a decade, I can wear no other. It's freeing. The only time I need to even look at other shoes is when I need something Simple doesn't make- ie, running shoes, snow boots, and heels. And I'm all stocked up on those. I am much happier with my deliberately limited choices. And unrelated part II: Damn, I wish I could wear clothing from the Gap. They have suckered me in with the new "It's 1993, but with low rise pants" marketing for the holidays, despite the fact that nothing they sell will fit. Sad face. | ||||||
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November 18th, 2009
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| I registered to take the GMAT on December 30th. Figured I needed to bite the bullet. I spent the afternoon taking the full sample exam. And I scored a 570 total. 30 math, 38 verbal. And I'm PISSED. Because 570 is the exact global average by some studies. It's the 61st to 75th percentile by others. The average score at the top 25 business schools? 700. I just took the test cold, no thought or serious prep. Did better than I expected on the math- but got caught by a couple of computational errors. What kills me is the verbal. I should have a near perfect score on the verbal. And I don't. All the questions I missed were of the same two types: Proper grammar, and "Which of these bits of additional information most discredits the argument above". Proper grammar- you have read my LJ. It's pretty obvious my problem. First, I tend towards the stylize. Second, I've rarely met a comma I didn't love. And Third, if you stare at the sentences, even sounding them out, they all start to look and sound the same. Discredits the argument- THEY ALL DO. Most of them didn't really have an easy value judgement, as most of them were stupid. I've clearly spent too many years in internet arguments. They didn't even have "the lurkers support me in email" as an option. - The problem is that of the things I'm good at on this earth, standardized tests are one of them. I'm really really really good at them. And I dislike getting an unacceptably low score in the verbal section- I was prepared to miss the math questions. But the verbal? That is rubbing salt in my wounds here. The GMAT score is either going to make or break any plans I have for business school. My GPA is a 3.2 in my major, 3.0 outside- aka utterly unremarkable. And it's 15 years old. I'm not being sponsored by a large business that would pay for the degree. And I had my test taking skills as the ace in the hole. GRRRRRRRR. It's gonna be a long month. Further research shows that my Verbal is in the 80th percentile, my math in the 20th. I just need to get the math to 50, and the verbal to 99. | ||||||
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November 17th, 2009
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| I needed to create a throw away email address, so I could check out a site without forever getting stuck on the mailing list. So I created a gmail account. The name I gave the person? Mary Sue. It makes me giggle anyway. | ||||||
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November 16th, 2009
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| We WON! Team "Yes, I am James T. Kirk, why do you ask?" got victory. Alas, this means that next weeks special topic is "Chicago Aldermen". I'm out on that one. And now I'm going to go to bed because if I'm gonna get yelled at by my Mom this weekend, at least I will be well rested. | ||||||
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November 15th, 2009
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| These boys, a pair of 17 year old identical twins named John and Edward- or "Jedward" to fans- are in line to win X-Factor, the UK version of American Idol. Under Pressure/Ice Ice Baby. And last week? It was Ghostbusters time. Look for the Sigourney Weaver look alike half way through! And they were saved from elimination via Rock DJ! In which even Robbie is boggled Simon Cowell is getting the just retribution for a decade of the Idol quests for stars approved by the public. And I guarantee this is an act that isn't gonna translate well to America- but I expect to see it duplicated by some local enterprising fame whores eventually. And anytime anyone ever starts to go off about the decline and fall of American culture and how much more civilized things are in Europe? I'm going to put these videos on replay. | ||||||
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November 14th, 2009
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| Sprint doesn't have "3" as an available ring tone. I was willing to pay $2.99 for the right to be lazy, but clearly now must take matters into my own editing software. I am super far behind responding to comments, but everytime I sit to type, my wrists start to kill me. I want my new keyboard. NOW. Cannot live without ergonomic bliss. Finally, I'm about half way through this: The retail revolution : how Wal-Mart created a brave new world of business by Nelson Lichenstein. I'm fascinated, because I'm in a field that is tangentially involved in logistics, so a lot of the innovations- bar codes, satellite information, cross docking, distibution facilities, all of the supply chain management stuff, I'm familiar with. And the logistical angles of supply chain management, the ability to track and use data to predict sales and to get goods from point a to point b? That's actually really awesome. But then you start talking about the rest of the stuff Wal-Mart has done.... I rec it highly. | ||||||
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| Last night I went to bed at 6:30 pm. I woke up this morning at 6:30 am, feeling a million times better. Chicago has free H1N1 flu shots available at the community colleges on Saturday mornings. This is the fourth? of them. I got to Wright College at 8:45, spent 15 minutes getting parking behind a honda who's average passenger age was 102, and got in line at 9:02 am. The clinics officially opened at 9. I was person 877 in line. At 10:30, I walked away, freshly vaccinated. It might have taken another 30 minutes, but at the end I got to glide in front of a bunch of family groups. It takes almost no time to do the paperwork if you are only attempting to do it for one- the families in front and behind me were taking considerably longer. So 14 days from today, I should be relatively swine flu free! Yippie! Follow this up with a trip to the Korean Grocery Store- either Chicago Food or the Joong Boo Market depending on what the sign says at any given time. I'm sitting there at the tiny cafe, eating my soup and kimchee, and I get a message from god. Or at least the kimchee. Because suddenly through the noise, I hear a sound, one I thought was originally in my head, or somebody's ring tone. The PA system was playing Britney Spear's 3 Was it Jesus? Was it Kimchee? Either way, I'm going to be using it as my new ring tone. And on top of all of this, I bought a chicken. I'm going to try making the Zuni Cafe roast chicken ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} sparkymonster was extolling. Yum. | ||||||
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November 13th, 2009
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| I'm so tired it took a 20 minute nap in the car to get me awake enough to go inside. The dog is walked. The dog is fed. And I am off to bed. | ||||||
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November 12th, 2009
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| I'm at Amazon.com. I'm purchasing a much needed replacement keyboard. And I need to spend $7 on something to get free shipping. And I'm having trouble thinking of anything I really want. I never ever thought I would have this problem. | ||||||
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| I'm watching Glee! And I have a burning desire for a cupcake. But why are there no cupcakes at my house? Why? | ||||||
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| So- I am about to say the most awful shallow thing ever, but first some back story; The historical racial segregation of American society, and by extension of the American music industry is bumming me out. First, because racism=bad, and the long an awful history of black artists being completely screwed over. Second because the continuing levels or racism and segregation- both formal and informal- of the music industry extend to this day. When broken down to my favorite subject- very expensive music videos done by major pop/r&b/rap/rock stars (ie, mega famous musician types)- the result is this: Generally speaking, 75% or more of the people in the video will be of the same racial breakdown as the primary artist(s). While there are exceptions, they are conspicuous by their rarity. At the most shallow awful level, the result of hundreds of years of history is: When Beyonce Knowles is in a music video, most of the cast is black. When Britney Spears is in a music video, most of the cast is white. And if you wanted to splice them together in some sort of magical dance off? You are stuck with the fact that it's essentially a black vs. white dance off. No matter the videos you use of the artists, it happens. And it's more obvious when you go from the solo artist to shots of the artist with Thus making the idea of splicing together a bunch of big pop videos (or just photoshopping a storyboard)really problematic. Because the racial politics are not the point of the mash up- I want to retell a myth, or fairytale, or legend, but not one that is explicitly about race. Effectively it kills the project. The places where the 75% rule doesn't apply pretty much prove it- you see Eminem in videos with a largely black supporting cast. Gwen Stefani has her Asian back up dancers- who are a whole different issue of racial fail. But how many other major artists are there where this happens? Unsurprisingly the most integrated videos tend to be those of groups like the Black Eyed Peas and the Pussycat Dolls, where the band is explicitly multiracial. But they compose a very small number of bands. And I loathe the Pussycat Dolls. So the project is nipped in the bud. Stop being racist America! Reach true pop music integration! Let me have my mega video of awesome! Because lord knows, of all the reasons to wish for a more just society "ease of splicing together party scenes from music videos" is one of the more important and legitimate ones, when compared to education, health, employment, pay, and being subject to penalties for driving while black. Side note of interest: Robbie Williams: Come Undone. & Black Eyed Peas: I Gotta Feeling. EXACT SAME HOUSE. Wil I Am spends a good chunk of the video in front of the same awful red and silver wall paper Robbie does. Further proof? Orange Counter tops, loud leaf wall paper, the hanging clear bubble chair with the orange cushion. SAME POOL. Robbie's Party is just the one that starts after the Pea's finally collapse- note the compatible endings, with the passed out girls on the lawn. ( Videos ) | ||||||
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November 10th, 2009
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| sisabet just posted a new video. It's a Merlin/Arthur vid, set to Beyonce & Jay-Z's "Crazy in Love. It's pretty awesome. But you know what would be even more awesome? A Beyonce/Jay-Z AU. In which Beyonce's King Arthur, Jay-Z is Guenivere, and Rhianna is Lancelot. Kanye West can play Merlin. Ego=Magical powers, and everyone can agree Jesus Walks is pretty impressive. Which means that the slash dragon (or in this case, the absurdly fertile het dragon) will be played by Lil' Wanye. And they can steal the sets from Kings, and be a modern monarchy in modern NYC. Picture 99 Problems recast as battle footage. Picture Irreplaceable as the song for when she discovers the cheating. (It's the "to the left, to the left" song). Hard Knock Life? Can keep the chorus of singing peasants. Run This Town? NOTHING would change. AT ALL. It's better than J.Lo & Puffy as the King & Queen of Elfland. You have a larger song catalog, a better supporting cast, and a whole lot of spin off options. | ||||||
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November 9th, 2009
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| So co-worker needs a name and I went to Pub Trivia tonight. We lost. Which is ok. Loser picks the special topic. The special topic for next week: SHATNER! This is gonna be acres and acres of fun. I am given to understand that NIMOY! Will be appearing as a part of the quizmasters choice. | ||||||
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November 8th, 2009
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| So much to my surprise, Johnny and company came back today. I now have a ceiling in my bathroom, painted and everything. They seem to have fixed the toilet guts. And they replaced the sink- except it turns out that the problem with the sink is actually something to do with the drains in the wall- this is why the shower drain is so slow. So he and the dude wandered off to get some sort of plubming supply- he tried to explain to me what it was, but I told him I didn't care- I'm home all day, just go do it. So I'm in my apartment, it's 70 degrees, in November, in Chicago. I don't even know how to deal, but I've got the windows open and breathing while I have the chance. I'm also working to clear out the guest room so that you can walk in it again. Framed pictures are going to be my downfall. I am just unable to deal in a tactile sense. But I did find both my missing black scoop neck t, and my skull polo. So that is at least a thing accomplished. WHICH LEADS to the bad news. My beloved desktop is giving me trouble. Has some error, wants me to hit the keyboard. But it's not recognizing the keyboard. GRRRRR. So now I'm stuck using my laptop which is slow and creepy and I LOATHE. At least until I find my other keyboard and get the desktop working again. Sigh. | ||||||
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November 7th, 2009
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| Thank you Jesus, the healthcare bill passed the house. 220-215. Reproductive rights and trans people were well and truly fucked over, but at least we got something. At this point I will take any small victory I can get. There are now 39 Democrats so high on my shit list, I have no words. Chief among them is Dennis Kuchinich of Ohio, who can die in a fire of the death of progressive ideals. The 179 Republicans are also on my shit list, but the Democrats? I at least thought better of them. Here's to me and my "pre existing conditions" being able to ACTUALLY purchase health insurance for less than $80,000 per year for a policy that doesn't actually cover anything. To universal maternity coverage. To at least a lessening of medical bankruptcy. In short: Here is to at least partially joining the civilized world. | ||||||
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I found this picture via ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/community.gif){kind=small} ohnotheydidnt. That sound you heard was one of my ovaries exploding. He's apparently some dude from Twilight. And his baby. It's the expression on the baby's face that makes it. More pictures of the absurdly hot HERE. This is not a manip. This is the actual adorable baby in a holster, ready to fire cute beams. Boom. Maybe I have a biological clock afterall? 1 1. As always, I'm taking applicants for both the genetic father of my hypothetical future child and co-parent of my hypothetical future child. This does not need to be the same person. Please be aware that the job of co-parent requires a willingness to deal with small dogs, drive a baby about town, and spend significant periods of time in the United States. Also, co-parent should not be a neat freak. | ||||||
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November 6th, 2009
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| There comes a point in the life of every international superstar performer when life gets boring. And you have to make a video. A video that hits the zeitgiest, that matches or tops the high concept weirdness of your previous work. Because you have already been a race car driver, a cult leader, an animated runner, a disolute party boy, a Nicole Kidman sexing Frank Sinatra, a gay cowboy, and very famously, a dancing creature with no skin. In short: There's not much left to do. You Know Me - Robbie Williams (Official full-length video) Robbie Williams | MySpace Video Robbie Williams goes to Wonderland. Bonus points for the women riding carrots, the inexplicable and clearly not Robbie ballet parts. And the singing cabbage. I'm going to be iconing the singing cabbage. All accompanied by the awful sensation that this is gonna be some furries wet dream for decades. Double bonus points: How long until some enterprising RPS writer produces some Rabbit Robbie/Mr. Tumunus of Naria? Hint. | ||||||
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November 5th, 2009
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| I was going to go to DC next weekend, but I am going to have to cancel. I just don't have the stamina, my mother is coming for a week, and work has been a nightmare. I'm sorry, as I'm going to miss everyone, but I'll come in January/Feb. I just can't do it right now. And on that note, to bed. Last night I worked till 8, tonight till only 7. But I went to water aerobics, it's 10 pm, I'm just home, and the dog is barking his self into a coma. So I think that says "early night". And I forgot to pick up my refils. ARGH. | ||||||
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Just two hours to save the world. Like four minutes, but with commercial breaks.
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