Work

Overtime over the past 4 weeks--yeah!

Sworn in!

Apex not going to be at swearing in--wtf is up with him?

Not enough time spent at gym--boo!

Doing so much more at this job than before. Moved beyond being a click monkey to putting together depo binders, etc. Lots and lots of paper. Wasteful amounts of paper yet it costs less (in hourly pay) to print another than to look for a previously printed copy. And the printer never has problems! Lexmark--rave reviews here.

The firm has so much work in this office they are looking to hire another associate, a mid-level.

I am consistently putting in 10 hour days and have been cleared for home work, too. More responsibility and never get time off!!

Best letter in the Minneapolis Tribune

I think ever:
Dear Pat Robertson, I know that you know that all press is good press, so I appreciate the shout-out. And you make God look like a big mean bully who kicks people when they are down, so I'm all over that action. But when you say that Haiti has made a pact with me, it is totally humiliating. I may be evil incarnate, but I'm no welcher. The way you put it, making a deal with me leaves folks desperate and impoverished. Sure, in the afterlife, but when I strike bargains with people, they first get something here on earth -- glamour, beauty, talent, wealth, fame, glory, a golden fiddle. Those Haitians have nothing, and I mean nothing. And that was before the earthquake. Haven't you seen "Crossroads"? Or "Damn Yankees"? If I had a thing going with Haiti, there'd be lots of banks, skyscrapers, SUVs, exclusive night clubs, Botox -- that kind of thing. An 80 percent poverty rate is so not my style. Nothing against it -- I'm just saying: Not how I roll. You're doing great work, Pat, and I don't want to clip your wings -- just, come on, you're making me look bad. And not the good kind of bad. Keep blaming God. That's working. But leave me out of it, please. Or we may need to renegotiate your own contract. Best, Satan
LILY COYLE, MINNEAPOLIS

Elpidio

I left work with 20 minutes to get from the elevators of the office to the train station. As I put my bike bag on the rack I cursed the crummy velcro straps that succeeded only in securing the straps to the bag but not to the rack. I climbed and started up the ramp out of the parking garage. Pedaling quickly, I made good time down to 4th and Harrison, at the Whole Foods. In front of my I saw a Toyota with its blinker on to enter traffic, from the left curb. I knew the driver wouldn't notice me, a cyclist with a flashing headlight, so I prepared to dodge. Sure enough, she guns it, I swerve enough to avoid her, pull in front of her car and drop the bird. I get to the station without further incident to find--no bike bag.

Which meant no wallet, no phone, no money, no train ticket, no office key. Heart sinking and stomach tightening I start back the way I came, riding into traffic, hoping against reality to see my bag on the street. The streets held no bike bag. I figured it might have fallen when I did the hard swerve at Whole Foods or at the very start of the trip. No bag at Whole Foods. I returned to the Embarcadero ramp, went to the pay booth and saw--my bag! The attendant was about to call 24 hour fitness, after finding my card in the bag, when I arrived. He said a customer was leaving the garage and found the bag on the ramp. The customer stopped his car and walked the bag back down to the booth and handed it in. I thanked the attendant profusely. He insisted I check to see that everything was there.

I asked his name and he answered Elpidio.

Like a scene out of a movie.

2 lessons learned this year

1. Work can be fun when the goal is clearly delineated and you surround yourself with (or only pay attention to) those who support your goal and are working similar goals.
2. Wear underwear when you run in a race.

Christmas Gift

Prosperity, peace, and success to all.

I got my letter from the state--I am moral enough to bomb women and children! No, wait, that's to become a soldier in the Vietnam War.

I passed the moral character and fitness!!

you in the back, stop laughing.

Lazy American Students?

The author in the Boston Globe(linked to in the title of this post) op-ed piece laments at the lazy and disrespectful American students she teaches in Rhetoric and History at Babson. I have the same experiences as the author.
Public speaking and ability to communicate is consistently ranked by employers as one of the top skills their employees should have. Yet students continually blow off public speaking as unimportant and whine about the writing requirement in a speaking class. My international/non-native English speaking students do better at public speaking than my native English speaking students. Overall, my international students do better in the speeches, they do better on the exams, and they are much more engaged in class.I don't attribute this disparity to nationality (and based on comments from those who have taught in other countries I wise to avoid doing so). I do attribute this difference to the initiative and drive my international students exhibited to even GET to the US. Many have immigrated here from Asia, former Soviet Union, or South America. They are hungry for knowledge, for jobs, and are willing to work hard to get those. Americans--meh. Whatever dood.To me, the examplar of American students is one whose goal was to get into Cal Business school. He was continually late with assignments, rarely followed explicit instructions on what his "employer" (me) was looking for. When he came to ask for additional time to hand in an assignment his excuse was "I took this class for an easy A. I want to get into business so economics is more important than this class. Please let me hand this in late." Epic persuasion FAIL.

Hello SF!

Back at work. Small firm, short-term. Same pay rate as 2008 (yeah!). And the view from my window is of the SF Bay, sailboats, and Marin County.