OT April 20, 2011-- In my spare time, I...

I’ve watched the first season and half of the second, and it feels much more like a chore than like something that has engaged me. It’s very heavy – I know, that’s the point – but the heaviness isn’t really leavened with anything, so it’s more like a non-stop bleakfest. Which is fine, but at the rate I’m going it’ll take me 10 years to finish the series and I’m OK with that.

It turned out to be his favorite, and I tasted it when toasting his memory this winter. Good flavor (to my uneducated palate) and not expensive, even for a handmade vodka

Someone recently hipped me to Pinnacle Whipped Cream-flavored vodka. Dangerous.

the best vodka to dollar ratio you get is from Russian Standard which has recently started to see some distribution in the US and Ketel One. Both can be got for about $20/750mL, and Russkiy Standart would be one of the top vodkas in Russia even, if not for Putinka, which is as good but cheaper.

Thanks for putting in that time.

11 pages into my screenplay! It’s not easy for me to get started back up again, but I force myself to at least write a page each day. If I can force myself to do that little bit, then I’ll never lose that momentum and some days I’ll write 20 pages.

It’s a great place to start and you’ll watch a helluva lot of enjoyable flicks.

I’m really glad I did, if only because it opened me up to genres and films I never would have bothered with otherwise. Like Cinema Paradiso – you read the synopsis for that, and it looks like the dullest film on earth.

Especially when one of your knots fails, the pull string unthreads from the blinds completely and you have to spend 45 minutes threading it back through correctly and hoping to God it works.

In addition, probably some landscaping and planting (we have virtually no plants on our property) and possibly building a shed.

Owning a house is really hard when you’re mechanically inept and know jack shit about tools, fixing things, or building things.

We tore out the grass last summer, but the weather turned crap before we could do anything with what is now a weed-filled mud bog. So we’re putting in some planter boxes, some flowering plants, and just generally making it look like someone lives in our house for a change. We’re also going to be landscaping our parking strip out front, and if all that goes quickly then we’ll start tiling our bathrooms.

Oatmeal-colored rugs in an apartment? not a good idea.

New bed, new couch, replacing shitty old furniture with decent furniture, getting rid of old crap, going to the dump and Goodwill a fair amount, and trying to live a less cluttered life. Learning how to sew, also. So I can repair clothing and do simple things like make new curtains for the house.

In only two hours! It was my first solo flight with electricity. This spring, I head into the crawlspace and try my hand at insulation. As nice as our crawlspace is, comparatively, gotta say I’m not looking forward to it.

And for 29.95 a nice seat/lid will make your bathroom look like a million bucks. Fixing the grade on the big dirt pile the city left in the yard when they replaced my stop-n-waste this winter. Post emergent weed and feeding, aerating, adding soil and reseeding the abortion that passes for my lawn (moved here last November). Grubbing out and extending the beds around the house, putting a lame drip system off the hose bib w/ a timer for the plants. Oh and apparently buying a new lawn mower because some asshat made off with mine today or yesterday (no storage at this rental house so it was parked under the back deck) and I just noticed when I got home from work. >:(

The size of (or lack of) our library branches here is sad compared to Seattle or other big cities. I’d spend a week in the Library of Congress given the chance.

They cheered you when you did good. Maybe you can find some causation there to find out how to stop the booing.

I can’t seem to find an indoor one in the Seattle area, which is stupid because duh rain.

When I was kid, my dad and I would go to Grand Slam in downtown Puyallup all the time. That placed ruled, not sure if it’s still open though.

270 South Hanford Street, Seattle, WA 98134
(206) 624-8030

There’s one in Bellevue, and I guess Mukilteo. I’ve been to the one in Bellevue.
http://www.stods.com/

someone should make a batting cage equivalent for Kickball. I feel like there’s a market for it.

At least I have a nice, ergonomic chair and wrist pads.

Someone tell my employer to try this.

I’ve kind of wanted to try sitting on one of those big balance balls, but I have a feeling my employer would frown on that also.

My wife is a nurse, and she’s on her feet for 12 hour shifts. I think every nurse she knows has some kind of chronic foot, ankle, leg, or back problem. Not saying standing is a bad idea, but if you’re thinking of trying it long-term, invest in the right shoes and don’t ignore small aches and pains.

and when not standing he sat on a really tall stool

With this specific reason in mind. Its a nice change of pace.

this morning brought this story

Thought I was going to die.

I rowed when I lived in Seattle but in NY the only clubs are basically pre elite. I don’t like gyms so I go jogging in Central Park. Took a while to build up some endurance but now I can do 6-7 miles without killing myself and 10 miles if I have time. Also, CP is gorgeous right now. My ultimate goal is to be able to do a half marathon at 7:00 – 7:15 per mile, but I can’t really run more than a couple times a week at most on account of work and being a single parent. I don’t think I can every do a full marathon – got completely flat arches.

Recent article trying to determine the “single best workout”

Haven’t gone running in forever because I just can’t run right. Turns out it’s still an issue. I guess I naturally plant my right foot at a 30 degree angle. It never bothers me walking or even running in short bursts (racquetball, basketball, baseball) but running for extended periods fucks up my ankle, shin and knees and makes me feel like I want to collapse.

I tried consciously straightening out my foot but that just made things worse.

So I guess I’m looking into basketball or swimming now.

I got to the point where I could run 20 minutes without stopping at 5000 feet, then went back to Wyoming at 7220 feet and wasn’t able to overcome the psychological barrier of the altitude (other possibility: I hated running with every bit of my being and used altitude as an excuse to stop)

Most of what I do is just walk places or get a work out from walking around all day at work. I always feel like I wouldn’t know what to do at a gym and look like an idiot, as lame as that sounds. I haven’t gained any weight for awhile and I like where I’m at but I’m not sure it’s good weight.

It’s like raa-ain, on your wedding day. Or something.

Ramos’s tweet is what really makes it.

Stats and numbers as a comparison to your coworkers is a good start, but also tell stories about specific projects you’ve worked on and the benefit or savings (in productivity or in dollars or whatever) that those projects have realized for the company. Quantify what you do not just in terms of your department but to the organization as a whole.

COL might be kind of a tough sell at this point because you’ve already made the move – but definitely bring it up.

Lead with data, not emotion – and cost of living is a good piece of information. Don’t get indignant. If you have a good enough relationship with your boss, point out that adequate pay is an important factor in keeping you and your co-workers in place and that recruiting/training is expensive. Make it matter-of-fact, not a threat.

However, it’s quite possible that your boss just can’t give you a raise, not matter how well you negotiate – perhaps the budget is frozen. So before you go in, make a wish list that goes beyond salary. If they acknowledge that you should be paid more but they can’t swing a raise, it’s useful to be able to still get something of value in exchange – extra vacation or sick time, the ability to work a more flexible schedule, that sort of thing. That doesn’t incur a hard salary cost, but it still gives you a benefit and proves to them that you don’t just roll over and accept their flat denial.

You do work for the cheapest company in the world. Glassdoor says so!

If there’s any consolation, at least you can have this conversation. I was getting really jaded at my job as I have no real way of discussing a raise. I can talk to my boss and his boss and even get them to sympathize, but they don’t have the power to give raises. It’s all handled by Compensation in HR, and they decide to give out raises en masse. Those raises do account for merit, but it’s on a fixed scale (so for example the worst employees will get a 1% raise and the best a 5% raise) with no accounting for special circumstances. No discussion is ever had, just a “Nobody is getting raises this year” announcement or a letter stating “You got this, end of story” with no set date or communication.

I’ve been at my current job almost 4 years and only got one nearly non-existent raise. I think it was mostly frustrating since I see the raise as a way for the company showing they value you and care about what you do. It’s hard to push yourself to do better if it seems like nobody notices.

I finally did get a decent raise just recently but the system is still the same (top down, controlled by a different department, no communication) so while I’m mollified for now I figure this will be an issue as long as I work here.

Anyway, I just wanted to chime in because I’d been thinking about a lot of the same things you are (my worth to the company, how to justify it, knowing I am worth it, etc). Again, best of luck.

But I quit my job when I felt like I wasn’t having any fun anymore and I didn’t really like the direction the company was going. I left to work as a summer camp counselor which I get less money but I had fun every day. After two months my old job asked me to come back and gave me a raise and promotion. I got super lucky since the ones who replaced me might be the dumbest people I have ever met and that made me look great by comparison

is a formula one driver, that is unexpected.

it’s a brilliant idea.

While the idea is great I’m not a fan of the new parking laws. I don’t mind the price increase but the extended hours is annoying.