Tuesday, January 27, 2004
Stolen from infinitefetish
The states in which I've lived, visited, had a layover or driven through:
Create your own
Current mood: Hungry
Posted by Lynniechan @ 12:06 AM EST [Link]
Monday, January 19, 2004
In just 6 weeks, you too can look like a fitness model
Our Bowflex just arrived! 7 boxes, 5 of them huge and too heavy for me to lift. It'll probably take hours to put it together, which means that the boxes will have to sit there for days, taunting me, until we both have time to commit to its assembly.
I can't wait to get started.
Current mood: Excited
Posted by Lynniechan @ 02:53 PM EST [Link]
Baby shower
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. -- A woman pregnant with sextuplets has given birth to the five remaining babies more than a week after delivering the first, a hospital official said. The four boys and two girls were three months premature. Amy Van Houten delivered four babies Friday and one Saturday morning, Spectrum Hospital spokesman Bruce Rossman said Saturday. All were in critical condition, weighing between 1 pound, 4 ounces and 2 pounds, 1 ounce. Van Houten used fertility drugs to become pregnant. "The Lord just blessed us abundantly," said father Ben Van Houten.
No, the Lord apparently didn't intend for you to have children naturally, much less six at one time. You can thank the Lord, though, for blessing you with enough money to afford the fertility treatments.
I am angered when people thank God for things He didn't mean for humans to have, like litters of children. Meanwhile, there are countless babies out there who would love to call someone Mama and Papa. I guess some couples will do anything not to have to adopt.
Current mood: Full
Current music: iTunes --> Radio --> Electronica --> Groove Salad --> Underworld | Dark Train
Posted by Lynniechan @ 01:17 AM EST [Link]
Saturday, January 17, 2004
The airwaves are not free
Now that there is free Wi-Fi in the core part of downtown, I bet there still will be idiots who will pay $6 an hour for access at the two Starbucks within (or at least on the edge of) the free area.
Current mood: Sleepy
Current music: Lamb | Scratch Bass
Posted by Lynniechan @ 03:17 AM EST [Link]
Thursday, January 15, 2004
Set me free
I now have an Airport Extreme wireless card in the laptop. I am at a coffeehouse that offers free Wi-Fi. This rules.
Current mood: Indescribable
Current music: Cacophony of live musicians with their endless sound check
Posted by Lynniechan @ 07:45 PM EST [Link]
Jump this
I can't hear "Jump Around" by House of Pain any more without getting a craving for Pringles. Damn marketers.
Current mood: Starving
Current music: Sound check from live musicians setting up
Posted by Lynniechan @ 07:42 PM EST [Link]
Eh
I haven't written much on rowing lately because, well, I haven't been rowing much. We've had a number of practices canceled because it's been too cold. Our official cutoff temperature -- the temperature at which we scrub practice -- is 44 degrees (don't laugh, Northerners; you try riding in an open boat at 25 mph, arms and legs wet).
And honestly, I haven't missed it that much. More than the rowing, I miss the camaraderie a small group of us shared late last year. We worked our asses off. We shared in each other's pain. We drank. We laughed; we cried. Seriously, though, ever since the Charles regatta in October, it hasn't quite been the same. I rarely see my two closest rowing pals, my roomies in Boston, any more. L. is training for an erg competition (yes, a rowing machine "race") in February and has taken a hiatus from team rowing, and J. is back to rowing (very) part-time. Heck, at least half of the Boston crew is doing other things. N. is preggers, and R. has taken several months' break from rowing. She said she'd be back by February, but I often find that when one takes that much time off, she doesn't come back. She's a competitive (I think semi-pro) beach volleyball player, so she has other athletic passions. I almost feel like part of a small group of college best friends who spent every waking moment together and now graduated, and they have reluctantly moved on to a new chapter of their lives.
I miss you all.
I've also been bumped back a bit in the team's lineup. We have two boats of experienced women, an "A" boat and a "B" boat. For the time being, the new coach has placed me at the head of the B boat, while several of my old A boat buddies are still there. That doesn't bother me, though as a competitive rower, it should. I no longer have the same passion and desire (read "unhealthy obsession" by my concerned BF) to succeed as I had last season. That's partially because of the lack of team bonding I described, but it's also because I've checked off "row at the Charles" on my all-time list of rowing dreams. What's left?
Current mood: Hungry
Posted by Lynniechan @ 07:38 PM EST [Link]
Wednesday, January 14, 2004
On the menu in Vendoland
Vile item spotted in the office vending machine: Pineapple and cheese pound cake.
Current mood: Disgusted
Posted by Lynniechan @ 12:57 AM EST [Link]
Monday, January 12, 2004
Adverse reactions
Professionally, it's been one hell of an emotional roller coaster for the past month, but the ride seems to have smoothed out a bit. That, or I've become numb to the twists and turns.
Last month saw some of the darkest days of my career, while, on the other hand, I'd put these past two weeks among the top of my list. I've theorized before that for every bad thing that happens, an equally good thing happens, and vice versa, at least for me. It's all one big metaphysical, celestial balancing act. I hate to be such a fatalist, but whenever something good comes my way, I often find myself waiting for the bad thing lurking around the corner that will cancel it out (see "greatest experiences", then "crab" in Boston archive entry). But on the other side of the coin, when something horrible happens, I am able to console myself by thinking that things will get better (by asking whether they could get worse).
The latest calamity in my life has been no exception. Early last month, I was called into an office to be told that I am being transferred -- involuntarily, and with no prior warning, at least officially -- to another department. It's no secret that I wasn't happy in my previous position. But where I'm going is no better, and in many ways, it's far worse. There's a reason why, with very few exceptions, people transfer out of that particular part of the business instead of the other way around.
I promised I wouldn't write about work any more. I still promise that. But work has been a catalyst for something broader, which is why I need to go there.
After I was told, I was horrified, then angry, then depressed. I nearly quit on the spot. This was my reward for years of service, praise, excellent reviews and raises? To have control over my career taken from me?
But somehow, in the past month, my outlook has changed. Not only in my career, but in my life as well. I've never been more confident in myself and my abilities. I can't really explain the change. During my last two weeks at my old job, I created designs I was actually proud of. That's not something I'd ever been able to or want to say before. I received compliments on various things I'd written and items I'd worked on, and more than one person thanked me for ideas I'd contributed. For every question or challenge, I had a solution. I beamed. I felt respected. For once, I liked what I was doing.
I don't know if the sudden flurry of creativity was instigated by my newfound confidence, or whether my confidence jarred something free inside my head that had been a roadblock to creativity. They say that you come out of adversity a stronger, better person. I can't say that I've completely come out of it. But I'm emerging.
In the past, when life handed me lemons, I never made lemonade. I turned it inward and blamed myself. "If you weren't so [fat] [ugly] [dumb], you wouldn't have been treated that way," were three immediate reactions.
But now, I know I deserve better than I was treated. And I know and I will make some good come out of it.
I think this train wreck was the kick in the ass I needed to make things happen with myself and my career. I hope one day to be able to turn this around and say that this was one of the best things to happen to me.
It will get better. I've never been more sure.
Current mood: Optimistic
Posted by Lynniechan @ 05:13 AM EST [Link]
Found
Two Three places hip enough to have free Wi-Fi:
Stardust Video, and -- dammit, I can't remember the name, but -- that new coffee house near the corner of Fairbanks and Mills, near the bowling alley in Winter Park.
OMG, the Village Inn on University and 436 has it too.
Current mood: More tired
Posted by Lynniechan @ 03:45 AM EST [Link]
Age ain't nuttin but a number
Happy (belated) birthday to MDDeath. Hey, at least I remembered!
Love ya. And I do plan to see you this month, as soon as my life settles down a bit.
Current mood: Tired
Current music: 3rd Bass | Gas Face
Posted by Lynniechan @ 03:06 AM EST [Link]
Monday, January 5, 2004
Just plain wrong
The air conditioner is on and ceiling fans are whirring and swirling around at home. I got a ski cap and matching scarf for Christmas that'll never see the light of day.
Current mood: Pissed
Posted by Lynniechan @ 04:55 PM EST [Link]
Atari forever
I have gotten a kick out of my Atari 10-in-1 game joystick, which I got for Christmas (and coincidentally bought for someone else for Christmas as well -- we're all geeks here).
FAMILY FUN FOR EVERYONE!
Boy do I feel old. Did they have to put that on the box?
I doubt anyone younger than 25 would be entertained for more than 5 minutes by this. I played Adventure again after 20 years and was shocked and amused by how simple it is -- not just the graphics, but how simple it is to win. But oh what fun it was to try to recall who did what and what went where. Your "avatar"? A cursor. A big square. Background music? None. A short-attention-span 9-year-old who grew up playing PlayStation2 and surrounded by an endless stream of digital media would get as much entertainment value out of this as a 30-something would a hula hoop. Boredom in minutes. But for me, it has more value in memories than any $50 copy of Grand Theft Auto.
Current mood: Nostalgic
Posted by Lynniechan @ 01:16 AM EST [Link]
Sunday, January 4, 2004
Stank you very much
I think I have a crush on Andre 3000.
((swoon))
Current mood: Is it hot in here?
Posted by Lynniechan @ 10:59 PM EST [Link]