Monday, March 31, 2003

Trust No One Part II

I find it curious that I've lived my whole life with very few dental visits -- and have had no problems or cavities up to this point -- but when I finally start seeing a dentist on a regular basis, I mysteriously need fillings and all of my wisdom teeth pulled and a visit to an orthodontist. Neither the dentist nor the hygenist mentioned anything about fillings two visits ago.

This goes without saying, but I hate going to the dentist.

And speaking of the dentist, why does he have to be so damn perky? It's sadistic the way he greets you with his wide, beaming smile, then proceeds to sear into your teeth with a buzzsaw.

Posted by Lynniechan @ 12:15 PM EST [Link]

 

Rock steady

The iPod officially rules. It's awesome to be able to have potentially an entire CD collection in your purse.

I've started the tedious task of copying my favorite CDs over to the iPod. I should be done in about 2 years.

I'd like to figure out a way to post my playlist on the blog automatically. It's quite possible that some crafty person out there has posted a script.

Posted by Lynniechan @ 10:07 AM EST [Link]

 

Friday, March 28, 2003

Racial profiling update

Phonemail was waiting for me when I got back into town from my newspaper design class. It was M. from The Company's human resources department, asking me to call her back regarding my request, placed through the company's intranet weeks ago, to change my ethnicity from "Asian/Pacific Islander" to "no answer" or "other" or whatever non-specific option they're calling it these days.

M.'s message explained that HR has been instructed by corporate not to change the "ethnicity code" to N/A until after all of the options have been spelled out to the employee one by one. Only after I've heard all of the options and still don't think any are a "good fit," she said, are they allowed to change the code.

Dear God. I really am just a number and a piece of census data to some bean counter in an office tower, aren't I.

I called M. back, and she said she hadn't heard from me in so long (I was out of town), she had followed up by sending me an e-mail listing and detailing each of the company's ethnicity codes. She explained that corporate uses the same ethnicity codes as the government. They're woefully archaic, and I hadn't been the first person to complain about the rigid, compartmentalized, black-and-white (no pun intended) delineations. HR is working on "updating" them (for lack of a better word) to reflect the changing population and to be more sensitive to people of mixed race. To her credit, she was very nice, and I know M. was just following orders.

But in the meantime, she asked me one more time to look at the options, and if I still didn't feel as though I could comfortably choose, she would go ahead and change my ethnicity code to N/A.

She said something about if an employee's ethnicity code is listed in the company's system as N/A, it would be an "outstanding issue," but I didn't catch it all. That concerns me a little. I got the impression that they would hit me up again in the future to choose one.

At any rate, I answered the e-mail. Here is the response.

Posted by Lynniechan @ 05:42 AM EST [Link]

 

Alphabet soup

My rowing team and I are coming up on our first regatta of the season, and our practices have been getting tougher and tougher. My legs are sore, but it's a good sore. In mock races, we've been beating the other boat with whom we practice about half the time. That's very encouraging for us -- typically, they spank us without so much as breaking a sweat, then our coach proceeds to lay into us because "we're better than that." Grrr.
 
They're the "A" boat, you see, and we're the "B" boat. The women in the A boat for the most part have rowed together for years. Many of them have well-off husbands, so they don't necessarily have to work. They are the Beautiful People who have brunch at Brio in Winter Park Village every weekend. They are the ladies who before working out check to see whether their lipstick is smudged (I am not exaggerating). They also were once were referred to as "the stewardesses" by competing crews at a regatta. Not having to work also frees them up to go to the gym and practice more often than us.

Our boat, on the other hand, is an ever-rotating lineup of a few women who don't work and others, mainly younger women, who work full time. Because of all the work schedules and commitments, we have some who can only row on certain days, so our lineup shifts with just about every practice. I'm sure we're adversely affected by that, even though I and the other women in my boat fully support our intention to let everyone who wants to participate row regularly. In the meantime, we do our best to go to a gym or do an erg workout on off days if we can. We're all willing to work with each other's schedules, even if it means being the B boat indefinitely.
 
Today, we beat the other boat handily. Every race. And the coach even complimented us! We've been beating them, or at least hanging with them, more often than we ever have. In their defense, the A boat did not have their normal lineup; they had two substitutes for rowers who were out. In our defense, we had one sub. And that said, the A boat has beaten us with subs before. They're that good.

I genuinely feel optimistic that our crew can be the A boat sometime this year. Optimism is an unusual feeling for me. I prefer to be pessimistic and proven wrong rather than unprepared for disappointment. It's a good feeling not to allow my doom-and-gloom attitude beat me up for once.

Posted by Lynniechan @ 04:33 AM EST [Link]

 

Conspiracy theory

Yes, I'm still obsessing about how a co-worker with whom I hardly ever talk, S., could have found the blog...

Crafty buddy Toucan offered a likely scenario: S. searched online for someone whom I listed by name (whose desk is next to S.) in my rail of links, and my blog came up in his results.

I have since removed that link.

The real names that are left are of those who don't have anything to do with my office (lucky you). Those shouldn't set off any alarms, fingers crossed.

It's another learn-the-hard-way (why is that the only way I learn things?) reminder not to use real or full names on the blog, even in a link to a domain name that is a person's name.

Posted by Lynniechan @ 03:34 AM EST [Link]

 

Wednesday, March 26, 2003

News from the front

Funny stuff from RJ, if you haven't already seen: http://saddamhussein.blogspot.com

Posted by Lynniechan @ 06:48 PM EST [Link]

 

Reminder

I guess this is obvious, but in light of the e-mail I sent to everybody earlier: Please don't share this blog address, especially if you work with me. :) And to those who work with me: Watch out for lurkers -- a reminder that I myself need to heed. I probably sabotaged myself when I put the domain name in a huge graphic at the top of the Web site. (It's still there now, but I shrunk it a bit, and at least it no longer accurately reflects the domain name.)

Posted by Lynniechan @ 06:42 PM EST [Link]

 

We've moved!

As you can see, I've moved, and I've decided to change up the blog's look a bit. Basically, I caught wind of the fact that there were people at work with whom I was uncomfortable knowing about the blog. That's mainly a lack of carefulness on my part. I told myself that I didn't want to hold back or be pressured into censoring myself too much here, but I probably should be less specific about people and situations that have to do with work.

The archives still look like version 2.0, but I plan to go in and change the colors around during the next few days. At least I didn't lose my site while transferring to the new domain...

Posted by Lynniechan @ 04:25 AM EST [Link]

 

Tuesday, March 25, 2003

Sign of the apocalypse (one in an occasional series)

Shepard Smith, Fox News' hip, saucy, cheerleading anchor du jour, saying on the air that he gives "mad props" to the troops in Iraq.

Posted by Lynniechan @ 04:33 AM EST [Link]

 

Monday, March 24, 2003

All dressed up and nowhere to go (story of my life)

I am the very excited owner of an iPod.

But alas, it's going to be lonely for a while. I'm too busy to tinker with it.

Posted by Lynniechan @ 10:51 PM EST [Link]

 

Sunday, March 23, 2003

Divided nation

I'm disheartened and admittedly mildly insulted that those who support the war carry signs with slogans such as, "Deport anti-war protesters."

I'm not sure how anti-war came to mean anti-American.

I love my country, and that's precisely why I disagree with what my government is doing (see Sen. Robert Byrd quote).

Posted by Lynniechan @ 06:10 PM EST [Link]

 

Sorry for the inconvenience

Posts will be intermittent and/or sporadic while I'm preoccupied with work and dealing with some major housekeeping issues with the blog. Details to come.

Posted by Lynniechan @ 05:57 PM EST [Link]

 

Image is everything revisited

From infinitefetish, after I commented that I was uncomfortable with the media continually using the White House-given name "Operation Iraqi Freedom," which smacks of PR: http://www-csli.stanford.edu/~nunberg/operations.html

The names our government comes up with for these "operations," or military actions, is not unlike how corporations have bought sponsorships to sports arenas so that media are forced to use the brand name in coverage, such as TD Waterhouse Centre -- what else do you call it, Orlando's arena? -- Conseco Fieldhouse, Minute Maid Park and 3Com Park.

Posted by Lynniechan @ 05:39 PM EST [Link]

 

Image is everything

WH unhappy with BBC for airing Bush hair styling footage
Washington Post
BBC has apologized for airing live video of President Bush getting his hair done in the Oval Office as he practiced on the teleprompter just before Wednesday night's speech. Lloyd Grove says the footage, which aired for 1 minute and 37 seconds, showed "[Bush's] eyes darting to and fro as a female stylist sprayed, combed and patted down his hair."

Posted by Lynniechan @ 05:30 PM EST [Link]

 

Hm

"This is real terrorism. Innocent people are sitting in their homes and bombs fall on their heads. I ask America, isn't this terrorism?" said one Baghdad resident.

Posted by Lynniechan @ 04:33 PM EST [Link]

 

Friday, March 21, 2003

Station identification

War has pre-empted regularly scheduled programming. We will return soon.

Posted by Lynniechan @ 05:21 PM EST [Link]

 

Wednesday, March 19, 2003

Words of wisdom

"Today I weep for my country," West Virginia Democrat Sen. Robert Byrd said. "No more is the image of America one of strong, yet benevolent peacekeeper. ... Around the globe, our friends mistrust us, our word is disputed, our intentions are questioned. We flaunt our superpower status with arrogance," Byrd said, adding: "After war has ended the United States will have to rebuild much more than the country of Iraq. We will have to rebuild America's image around the globe."

Posted by Lynniechan @ 09:15 PM EST [Link]

 

I can stop any time

More tales of geekdom...

The first thing I do when I wake up in the morning (or afternoon) isn't to turn on the TV but to boot up the computer.

And when I want news, I'm much more likely to search Web sites than turn on CNN or MSNBC.

I'm likely to be let go from work early tonight (I'm back in the office, BTW, thanks to tonight's not-so-breaking news) so that I will be fresh enough to come back at the crack of dawn. My initial reaction was, "Hey, when I get home I can go online and shop..." but then I stopped in my tracks.

I was thinking of hanging out online instead of getting my first good night's sleep of the week.

Pathetically, the thought having to go straight to bed instead of playing on my computer on a night off mildly disappoints me.

Posted by Lynniechan @ 09:01 PM EST [Link]

 

Monday, March 17, 2003

Blame Florida

The latest take I've heard on the imminent war: "If it weren't for Florida and its hanging chads, we wouldn't be in this mess."

Posted by Lynniechan @ 10:13 PM EST [Link]

 

Phun with Photoshop

Note the .fr domain: http://winstars.free.fr/english/bush.html

Posted by Lynniechan @ 07:14 PM EST [Link]

 

Uh oh

Just tried to order something online, and the browser crashed right after I typed in my credit card number and hit "submit." That's A Very Bad Thing.

Posted by Lynniechan @ 06:56 PM EST [Link]

 

It's been nice knowing you

I'm at the aforementioned newspaper design class, between class sessions. We're breaking for an hour and a half, after which we're to gather for dinner and listen to Dubya all but declare war ((cringe)). I may or may not have to drive home tonight -- cutting short my class -- depending on when the bombs fall.

I will be disappointed if I have to leave. I've had a great, productive time. But I'll leave satisfied nonetheless.

At first, I was nervous about coming here -- I recoil at having to speak publicly and despise having to talk about myself -- although I knew I would benefit from this class. It's lived up to my expectations and then some. Today, I've felt as artistic and creative as when I took two drawing classes at Crealde a few months back. And it's just been one day's worth of work.

Our exercise today was something I don't often get a chance to do: a picture page with one short 6-inch story. We were told to do whatever we want -- there are no sacred cows. I struggled at first, because I am not used to working without very strict parameters handed to me. What do I do?!?!? Will the instructor pick on me?!?!? I have a hard time making up my own rules. But the object was to break ourselves out of our routine, which is something into which I very easily fall. I've felt trapped in that at work for quite some time.

My design workshop may be cut short, but I'll leave refreshed. It was a good breather from the mundane.

Posted by Lynniechan @ 06:31 PM EST [Link]

 

Friday, March 14, 2003

Club Get-A-Life reunion tour in full effect

OMG I just got an e-mail from an old friend of mine, P., who had been Googling old friends and found me and my blog.

Welcome, P.!

He and a few of our former co-workers from the newspaper's old online department would jokingly call ourselves lifetime members of Club Get-A-Life, since none of us had one thanks to our jobs. So we hung out a lot together -- we didn't have time to hang out with anyone else. We amused ourselves by talking about how we were going to buy up that domain name, create a Web site and make t-shirts and mouse pads. Yes, we needed a life. (Some of us still do.)

Sing it, P.! (Queuing Pet Shop Boys CD) "Oh, theahh's a loht of oppahtunities...")

Posted by Lynniechan @ 12:51 PM EST [Link]

 

Sayonara

I don't think I've told everyone yet, so I'll announce it here.

We're going to Japan!

Well, I'll take that back -- I don't want to jinx anything. We have tickets to go to Japan.

Anything could happen between now and when we go, considering the state of affairs overseas. Things are heating up in North Korea, and Japan is on edge.

But we're excited nonetheless.

I was last in Japan in 1979. My dad's tour of duty had just ended, and we were headed back to the States. Before we left, we traveled outside of Sendai, where my mom's family lived, to visit her mom. That was the first and last time I met my grandmother Kimi, whom I remember quite vividly despite the short stay.

Stephen and I don't know where we're going yet, but we're flying into Tokyo Narita and staying in Tokyo for most of the trip. We are not looking forward to the 18-hour flight. I'd like to visit one other major city, but we haven't decided which one yet.

I've read it's hard to get around Japan if you're not familiar with how things work there. Aside from the obvious language barrier, many streets aren't named. I don't get lost easily, though, since I rely almost completely on landmarks, buildings and memory to get around rather than compass directions. I think it might be a fun adventure to try to navigate my way around. I can't wait.

Posted by Lynniechan @ 02:07 AM EST [Link]

 

(Sniff)

I have a cold. Stephen had one last week. I thought I had dodged the bullet, until I woke up yesterday with burning eyes and scratchy throat. Oddly, I've felt really energetic the past two days. We had a tough, highly aerobic workout this morning during crew practice. And I worked out legs and shoulders -- my two most dreaded body parts -- yesterday afternoon.

I think it's catching up to me tonight, though. I'm supposed to go to the gym tomorrow, but I may have to pass.

Posted by Lynniechan @ 12:58 AM EST [Link]

 

Good commentary...

... From Roger Ebert on Bush: http://www.suntimes.com/output/eb-feature/cst-edt-ebert13.html

Posted by Lynniechan @ 12:52 AM EST [Link]

 

Wednesday, March 12, 2003

TMI

Overheard from annoyingly loud mommy who sits 20 feet from me at work, when asked to do some research on a story: "I'm going to go down and pump real fast and I'll be right on it..."

Posted by Lynniechan @ 06:55 PM EST [Link]

 

I'm still here

I haven't abandoned ya. Just haven't had much time to be online, at least recreationally, the past few days. I'll get back to posting tonight. I miss it.

Posted by Lynniechan @ 05:55 PM EST [Link]

 

Saturday, March 8, 2003

Fallout

From the Washington Post:

The Pentagon is about to take the first public step toward obtaining a controversial, high-yield, earth-penetrating nuclear weapon that could be aimed at North Korea's underground nuclear and missile production facilities, according to senior Bush administration officials.

Within a week, an Air Force report is to be delivered to the House and Senate Armed Services committees stating the military requirements for the "robust nuclear earth penetrator," a device designed to dig into the ground before it explodes and crushes any facility buried beneath it. Already five times more powerful than the device detonated at Hiroshima, the bomb would have an even greater impact because a nuclear weapon's force is multiplied when its shock wave penetrates the rocky crust of the earth.

Meanwhile, the Pentagon this week sent to Capitol Hill language that would, if approved, lift an eight-year-old congressional restriction on development of a so-called low-yield warhead, one below five kilotons. Such a device would be used to attack facilities holding chemical or biological weapons. In principle, the heat or radiation of the low-yield weapon would destroy the toxicity of the agents before they were spread by the force of the blast.

David Albright, a physicist who is president of the Institute for Science and International Security and an expert on North Korea, said, "It is a bad idea to develop these things, which probably would never be used, and do so openly. It develops a lot of paranoia among proliferating states who believe the U.S. is planning to attack them."

When the "earth penetrator" was first discussed in the 1990s, it was conceived as having a low yield -- a relatively small output of radiation, heat and explosive force -- so that if it exploded in the basement of a palace in the outskirts of Baghdad, it would not create much fallout.

Saddam won't bring Armageddon. We will.

Posted by Lynniechan @ 01:18 AM EST [Link]

 

Call me a doomsayer, too

I find this religious stuff to be bunk, but it's fascinating how people mold scripture to say whatever they want it to say: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A58894-2003Mar7.html

Posted by Lynniechan @ 01:09 AM EST [Link]

 

Coincidence?

I can't get past the notion that our president, with ties to oil, has something personal to gain by invading Iraq. I've read a couple of stories to the contrary, including one in Newsweek. But I still can't separate the two.

Posted by Lynniechan @ 12:10 AM EST [Link]

 

Friday, March 7, 2003

Show's over

The friend who was supposed to go to an Orlando Philharmonic concert with me has canceled again. We were originally supposed to go to a concert late last year. After she gave me a rain check, we rescheduled months ago for this coming Tuesday. Mysteriously, another last-minute appointment has popped up. And it was her idea to go to a concert together to begin with.

She asked me if we could reschedule for later this month. I told her to forget it.

I'm more disappointed in the fact that she once was my best friend, and now she apparently can't even spare one night out with me.

Posted by Lynniechan @ 12:59 AM EST [Link]

 

Wednesday, March 5, 2003

Make up my mind, already

An estimate from a higher higher-up on when Dubya will start dropping bombs on Iraq: the weekend of March 15-16

The date my newspaper design class is scheduled to start: March 16

I'm screwed. Oh well. Honestly, it was nice to know they invited me after all.

Posted by Lynniechan @ 10:52 PM EST [Link]

 

"Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiight..." "Totally..."

Podmate back to maccin' with some honey on the phone. Annoyingly been at it on and off for two hours now. Learning a lot about how many beers it takes to give him and his roommate a buzz.

Posted by Lynniechan @ 10:27 PM EST [Link]

 

Buy stock in Sony

Wired households may be coming within a few years.

Posted by Lynniechan @ 09:26 PM EST [Link]

 

What rowing teams do when they're not rowing

(Image not safe at work or if you have youngsters looking over your shoulder, but you can turn off image display in the browser to read the article) http://www.thecrimson.com/article.aspx?ref=274404

Posted by Lynniechan @ 09:09 PM EST [Link]

 

Tuesday, March 4, 2003

Reminder

I saw this in print somewhere recently, but it's worth repeating: It is not necessary to yell into a cell phone.

Posted by Lynniechan @ 06:12 PM EST [Link]

 

Sleep day

I was disappointed that rain scrubbed rowing practice this morning. I have had a new enthusiasm for it lately, partly because the coach is trying me at stroke seat again, even if it's temporary. He is grooming a port rower (really strong, but a bit green technically) for the job, so he is having me sit in front of her in the boat because he says I have good technique, and he wants her to follow my movements. So the coach has, at least for the next few weeks, had the good boat (not the crappy, rigidly unadjustable one we normally use) rigged "starboard-stroke" to accommodate me and the said port rower.

So I vaguely heard the sound of my cell phone ringing this morning at 3:45 a.m. I heard it in my sleep, and by the time I realized it was real and not a part of my dream, I had missed it. I looked at the caller ID and saw it was C., another rower. I called her back, and she said that it was pouring at K.'s house, who lives in Clermont. K. did not want to drive all the way out just to turn around and drive home.

I don't know how K. does it three mornings a week. She needs to be up at 3:45 and out of her house by 4 a.m. in order to make it to practice on time. She has a husband and two grade-schoolers, who proudly support her. And she is an elementary school teacher, which is more than a 40 hour-a-week job. She must be in bed by 9 p.m. each night or she will not make it through the next day.

She's not our boat's strongest rower or in the best shape. But she's out there with a smile every day. And when we have a bad practice, she's the first to crack a joke and lighten the mood. I envy her heart and energy. Her spirit and enthusiasm is as important as any strong chick in the boat.

Posted by Lynniechan @ 06:09 PM EST [Link]

 

Random pet peeve #3

For those who use or are forced to use MS Outlook (already shared with R.):

People who send out every e-mail with a "High" priority, so that everything you receive from them -- whether it be "Got it, thanks" or "FW: Smile" -- is forced to the top of your Inbox with an "!" in front of it.

Posted by Lynniechan @ 05:20 PM EST [Link]

 

Saturday, March 1, 2003

Bliss

Posted by Lynniechan @ 05:21 AM EST [Link]