4,250 Unread Messages

Apparently Joel and I have similar methods of not dealing with stuff.

So this explains why I never got an answer when I sent you that irrefutable evidence of secret government contact with space aliens somewhere in the Nevada Desert.

Hmm, probably shouldn't have deleted those pics.

Every year I attempt to get myself Totally Organized. You know, do things besides keep a file cabinet filled with random documents with the words "Important stuff" stenciled on the outside.

RD, when Joel gets to responding, he will probably be writing in "new" English.

Someone must have told the Washington Post that filling their writers' mail boxes with spam will make them all much more productive.

Joel, you definitely need to have some consideration for your future biographers, your own personal Boswell. If you don't leave them notes, he/they will have to make stuff up, and I question whether his/their inventiveness would be sufficiently entertaining.

Jury duty! I recall that the ScienceSpouse has been called up for jury duty, but I think we have misplaced the notice during holiday frenetics. I guess we'd better find that thing.

I just recieved a notice for petit jury duty myself -- starting Feb 9th, I think.

I'm unsure of exactly what a petit jury is -- is there a sign next to the sequestration room door that says, "Must be below this line or under xxx pounds to serve on this Jury?"

On a football note - as I noted over gumbo at Chez Nuke, all of the teams in the NFL playoffs must be playing good defense right now, otherwise they wouldn't still be playing. The Cardinals didn't have great defensive play during the regular season but they're playing excellent defense now (just ask Atlanta and Carolina fans). Peaking at the right time, I'd say.

bc

I have it on the authority of two gay gentlemen that appear on CBC Television that clothes should be discarded if they hasn't been used in a year. The same holds true for Cheez-Whiz and leftover pieces of fried squash, though I don't remember where I heard that.

SCC 'who appear'

I got a notice from my daughter's school: "What time is it? It's FAFSA Time!!" and even though I've been celebrating for 12 months the fact that I have FILLED OUT MY LAST FAFSA, EVER, that notice still gave me a little blood pressure spike. The FAFSA's not so bad, really (especially for someone like me who has no assets or investments or property to speak of)--what's bad is the pressure to do the income tax return first so it will match up because if you don't, everything gets another layer of complexity. So for the past 4 years I've been filing my IRS returns in early January. But this year, I am in no hurry.

Good luck to you, Joel, and to everybody else who has kids in college next year. I feel your pain.

Petit jury as opposed to Grand Jury? This is silly.
I got the usual "Your mailbox has exceeded the storage limit set by your administrator and you may not be able to send or receive messages" this morning. then I requested and got more storage space, for maybe the 5th times in 4 years. All the other engineers are doing it too, so I suspect the IT department is playing darts with our pictures or shooting aliens with familiar faces.
The lulls around Christmas and the dog days of summer used to be a good time to do the clean-ups. But those lulls are gone, killed by globalization or sumthing. It's only server space after all...

The secret to getting out of jury duty is to appear either excessively analytical or clinically insane. But to be safe, I always do both.

And I find that the best way to prevent excessive e-mails is to make sure that very few people actually know your e-mail address.

Y'know Joel, if you switched to Linux you'd never see a BSOD again. Your IT handlers would probably have a hissy fit (if they're the MSCE types, otherwise they'd rejoice) and the Post would probably save about a thousand bucks on software licensing for your seat alone. If they were to roll that out over the whole organization... Just sayin'.

I've decided to take the rest of the day off. Shipping is done, confirmations sent out, patterns for the next batch of doors are printed and I've got a big ball of dough rising that will soon be a loaf of bread (I hope). I may head out to the shop when Mrs. M gets home from work (much more peaceful out there), but for now I plan to do nothing and enjoy it until Little Bean's bus drops her off in an hour.

There's beer in the fridge, a bottle of hootch under my desk and a decent cigar I got for Xmas just begging to be fired up -- ya just can't ask for a better excuse to sit still for a while.

Peace out :-)

Tomorrow is garbage pickup day. For the fourth week in a row, our humongous rollout can is full, to the point that I can't empty the trash in the house till the big can is emptied. I hope this is the week we get back to normal in trash and recycling. Trash overflowing, another holiday stressor.

I'm deep in writing law enforcement crash case studies. Let me tell you, autopsy reports make such FUN reading, you wouldn't believe it.

Dear Joel:

Pay.the.Austrialian.fines..they..are..our..friends..!

Rule of thumb on stuff. If you haven't used it in three years, get rid of it. Space is money. Exception for me is a few clothes waiting for me to lose 10 lbs.

Regarding your Goodwill gesture, our Yesterday's Rose in Fairfax does not accept old keyboards, monitors, speakers, etc. We tried to dump my mother's ibm selectric typewriter there, but they would have no part of it.

I have been helping my Mother downsize for over a year now and it has dawned on us that we need to do the same. I have come to believe in empty closets and empty drawers.

Can't help with your work, save all your outlines and writings, of course.

Jury duty is interesting and your responsibility. I was called for the last time in 2008, now that I am 70, I'm too old to be called.

CqP, the PBS clips won't play outside the US. Too bad- I read TOTD'U for the first time last year and thought it was great.

Speaking of great defense, CqP, how is d'Urberville's defense? Do they have good depth in the linebacker and skill positions? What is their average yardage (in gingham or taffeta) per carry? Can Tess go deep? What kind of a guy is named "Angel Clare," fa cryin' out loud? Can D-ville handle Emmister or the formidible Talbothays Cowboys? Is Mercy Chant a person or an audible, or a crowd cheer like "The Wave"? Can Tess break out of Winstoncester prison? Is Liza-Lu related to Lucy Liu? Will d'Urberville make it to the Super Bowl at Stonehenge?

Oh, I just have so many questions!

I've been called for jury duty twice, but the last time I didn't have to go. The first time, I took Jane Austen with me and sat around all day and read while people were called for cases all around me. Not bad at all.

Okay, back to cop crashes.

*nodding very approvingly at Boko's 1:27*

Throw stuff out? We're supposed to throw stuff out?

How come I nver get these memos?

Howdy y'all. I'm impressed that you have 4,000 of anything, Joel. Surely that is worth some kind of points somewhere.

I'm jealous of all you folks who get called for jury duty. Here you have the chance to fulfill one of the great civic responsibilities, participate in the glue which really holds the legal system together. Around these parts, lawyers can't get called. I could go in and stomp my little foot and insist and they'd laugh. I blame the legislators who were lawyers and saw the chance to get out of jury duty Forever.

I'm with you on the autopsy reports, Slyness. I hope you don't have to look at the pictures too. I usually do that first with a new case, just to get it out of the way.

Not to undercut WaPo classifieds, but if you post something on the "Free" section of craigslist, you would be amazed what you can get rid of. I recently put up two rather badly stained couches and had a half-dozen takers within a few hours.

I've been cleaning up the Vast Mess left by kitchen refurbishment. All sorts of things that had disappeared into the drifts of detritus have reappeared and may stay that way, ensconced in findable permanent homes.

VL... you should take all the stuff Goodwill doesn't want out to your local flea market. That Selectric alone would probably fetch $10 to $20. Me and Mrs. M actually made a living doing the markets around here a few years back and still go out every once in a while to sell off the things that didn't sell on eBay and are now just taking up space. It can be fun, too. Oh, the people you meet... you just have to make sure they don't follow you home.

I've never been called up for jury duty, but if I ever am I'm not worried about it. For one, I'd probably get a kick out of it and would likely end up in jail for contempt of court from heckling the lawyers. For two, they'd probably send me home right away anyway based on my unsavory looks. I'm three-quarters of the way to ZZ-Top beardom and well past hippie/biker long-hairdom and damn proud of it. I figure in another ten years Crystal Gale will be envying my greying tresses (assuming I don't trip over them and break my neck or get them caught in the router blade).

This cigar is very tasty, btw... subtle hints of caramel and vanilla and cognac. Me likes.

RD, were those the couches that were listed as previously owned by Brad and Jennifer and neither could have the couches in their house?

I wondered if they were the old couches from the bunker; if people knew what goes on in there, there would have been no market for them.

VL, sometimes a typewriter might fetch upwards of $50 to $75 to the right folks. Check out those people who do consignment sales on eBay. The do everything and you get a check.

In addition to Craigslist, there's also freecycle.com -- I've used it a couple of times and found it very gratifying to give away unwanted stuff to someone who specifically wants it, rather than just dumping it at Salvation Army. I don't use the flip side of freecycle, but it's interesting: once you've given something away, you are eligible to claim the free stuff that other people are offering on the site.

Martooni, I wonder if you ever hear of cigars that evoke the sense of bubblegum or Lilac?

To me, I think of RD's old couches under attack by an acetylene torch, but I don't smoke.

daveotc, does this mean that the kitchen is finished? You know, like, completely done? Are you happy with it?

The couches in the bunker have bneen used for disreputable purposes? I was unaware...

But now I understand our steam-cleaning expenses a little better.

Thanks Mudge.
Worrisomely, I missed the other mistake.

CqP (I so like the Q in there), very interesting bit on Tess's hair. It does look wrong to me too, but I couldn't have said why.

You should be teaching theatre history one of those days, emphasis on needlecraft.

RD Padouk, our federal gunmint, in its wisdom, publishes our e-mail adresses on our website. Repeatedly and on multiple locations in my case. Then the IT department complains that 25-35% of our e-mail traffic is junkmail. Go figure.

I try to clean house as I go, I should do the same for e-mails.

A co-worker is stuck with the mother of all house clean-up. His parents got into the house in the late forties and never moved. And apparently they never threw anything out either. The old couple was living in the kitchen and a small room adjacent to the kitchen on the first floor toward the end of their stay in the house. The rest of the house is packed with stuff. Now the lady has been dead more that a year and the gentleman, in his mid-nineties, has almost abandoned his hope of returning home so the clean-up should begin. But the 3 kids cannot gather the resolve to start this monumental task.

SCC, I meant freecycle.org. But you knew that.

russianthistle... I shy away from the "flavored" cigars. Well, most of them, anyway. My favorite is actually very cheap and frowned upon by cigar afficionados... "Backwoods" is the brand and "Sweet Black" is my preference. They're about 3 or 4 bucks for a pack of 8, smell like a dead wet dog (to Mrs. M, anyway) and I love'em (maybe because she hates them). I like Parodis, too, but only because my Grandpa smoked them (and still does) and they seem to provoke an olfactory-driven sense of nostalgia in me. The Parodis are only allowed in the shop (the "no Mrs. M zone"). Otherwise I may be forced to sleep out there.

Bush said this morning that our moral standing in the world is undamaged.

Phew, that's a relief. For a while there I thought maybe our use of torture, attacking the wrong country, failing to rescue/clean up Katrina, wiretapping, bullying, lying, and general unsavory overseas conduct might have hurt us a wee bit.

Guess not.

SD, I have sympathy for that family. It only took Mr.T and his brother three and a half years to clean out their mother's house, which is 3900 square feet and a full basement. Amazing, what children of the Great Depression keep. I have promised my children I won't do that to them. Slowly but surely, I'm cleaning out the closets and cabinets. The attic is done; the only things up there are the Christmas decorations.

Ivansmom, no grisly photos with this group, I'm glad to say. Just a few totaled vehicles.

Back to it.

I was happy with Parodis. I thought they both tasted good and smelled good too. My usual rule of thumb is that if they smell good they taste bad, and vice versa.

The solution to your problem, Joel, involves a minor WaPo rule-breaking: get liquored up in the office, and then just delete the emails. A definitive blasphemy should be uttered at the moment the key is pressed. This is the only way I can clear them at home.

A friend had to clean up the home of her father, a former editor of the defunct newspaper. He had several tons of extremely valuable (to him) news archived everywhere. His life's work.

My home e-mail was cleaned up quite effectively with the hard drive crash. At first, I didn't know what I would do without the contents. Then it felt strangely liberating--the hundreds of emails in the inbox and thousands of others in folders were no longer taunting me.

As for work, I've found that changing employers every few years pretty much does the trick.

Yoki,
The dishwasher and over-the-stove micro should be installed this week, along with lights, several doors, some remaining toekick, a few baseboards, and a small floor tile repair. That's all that's left.

I bought the cabinets at Ikea in June, before the roof turned out to need replacing. So the cabinet boxes languished until the roof was finished.

An opportunity came up to have demolition, drywall work, and floor installation done while I was out on vacation--probably a good idea, even if it was a financial stretch.

With the project nearly finished, I love the 47" Blanco sink with its own drainboard and chopping block (a scratch & dent bargain), the base cabinets with drawers (no more hands-and-knees rummaging around), the pull-out pantry cabinets, and I guess the granite countertops. At least the counters made for a cool experience, picking out an individual slab of stone with the fabricator's representative.

Jumper... getting liquored up at the office is an infraction of the Rules? I am so fired.

Waitaminute... I work for myself.

If I fire myself, can I collect unemployment?

Fortunately, I have the privilege of controlling dissemination of my e-mail accounts. My work e-mail is known to hardly anyone. At home we have three accounts. One for the family, one for my son, and one just for me. The latter is shared with naught but a select few. Just friends and family members. (The latter whom really could write a bit more often you know? Jeezy Peezy I had to learn that my home town was almost flooded from CNN ferchristsakes. But I digress.)

And so I am left with the situation where to receive e-mail is still considered something a treat. Of course, some messages more than others.

dave, I am frenvious of the drawers in the base cabinets, but the blanco sink really pushes me into something close to envy envy.

"Two gay gentlemen who appear on CBC Television"?

Cherry & Mansbridge?

I KNEW IT!

If I fire myself, can I collect unemployment?

Posted by: martooni | January 12, 2009 3:03 PM

****

It's a moot point: You've got the boss by the short and curlies. He can't fire you because not only does he lose his best worker, you can take him down with you by exposing his lubricant-friendly activities. It's a Catch-22. (That's the best Catch there is.)

I propose a toast to Catch-22. L'chaim!

I'm laughing out loud, byoolin! Too funny.

...and here I was thinking Hannity and Colmes.

This discussion of gentleman on CBC suddenly made me flash back to watching "Wayne and Schuster" as a kid.

Just wrote the first check of the new year, and was so proud of myself that I didn't forget the year change. Then noticed I put the month down as 12. D'oh.

Did you really, RD? I had no idea they were seen anywhere outside Canada.

Some of their early stuff was really good. They just went on a little too long, cultural institutions that they were.

See how pathetic Canadians are? We're always thrilled when Americans know anything, anything at all, about us.

I'll have you know that I do not partake of any "lubricant friendly" activities.

I come from the "John Wayne School for Prematurely Bearded Boys", where sandpaper rules and we're rough and tough and don't take-a no guano off-a nobody (I got-a my doctorate from-a St. Corleone University, btw).

It's not that I'm against lubricant friendly activities, per se. I just need to convince Mrs. M that it might be fun if she'd participate.

Did I just say too much?

Dang.

Yoki, see Rosie DiManno today, funny article about how excited we get about being noticed - re Obama's visit.

Yoki, Wayne and Shuster used to be on the Ed Sullivan Show pretty often. I remember seeming them fairly often, and liked them. Didn't realize until this moment they were Canuckis, though. (Sullivan may well have said so, but it didn't register as being relevant to anything back then.)

Yoki - remember I hail from the Pacific Northwest. We were no stranger to the CBC. Wayne and Schuster. Hockey Night in Canada. Curling. "The Beach Combers." "The King of Kensington." We watched them all.

Geez, 'toon, the "lubricant" I meant usually has a number and "proof" somewhere on the label, so perhaps you did say too much. But now, having been hoist on your own petard, as it were, I'm sure you'll be grateful for whatever kinds of lubricants the other revelers bring.

(Boodle, avert your eyes. I don't think any of us want to see this...)

Now, to borrow a phrase from a great man, "peace out."

When I was self-employed I complained to everyone that my boss was an a$$h===.

Jim Rice made it into Cooperstown on his final try!!!! WOOOOOHOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!

*major Snoopy dances in front of the Green Monster*

:-)

Speaking of comedy - Joe the Plummer on journalists in war zones.

http://www.salon.com/politics/war_room/2009/01/12/joe_reporting/index.html

I am *so* glad Mrs. M doesn't read this blog.

You practically qualify as an honourary Canadian, RD.

'Mudge, I think you have a little way to go, but with tutoring I'm sure you'll make it into this exclusive club. We didn't set to make it exclusive, but most people we induct immediately ask to be deducted.

Mudge, you were asking about Tess and next season. Here you go:

U of Devonshire set to turn last year’s sorrow into championship year
By Parson Tringham

Going into the 2009-2010 season, the University of Devonshire’s Fighting Crinolines are looking very strong. Coach Hardy is on record saying this to be the Crinolines’ best year yet.

Tess Durbeyfield will lead the Crinolines at QB. Many thought Tess’s approach last season was too passive and particularly weak at watching for the blitz, but watch her to come out strong this year. Says Coach Hardy: “she’s spent her time in the wilderness - she’ll be back with a killer instinct.” While this reporter is not usually willing to hang his hat on statements like this, I’m willing to stick my neck out on this one.

Angel Clare, at wide receiver, was briefly seen in the off-season and from all reports is looking very good. Watch for big things coming from this kid. Rumor has it that he’s been at an intensive training camp in Brazil. A little known fact is that Angel Clare is actually a legacy - his father was the legendary Crinoline running back “Preacher” James Clare.

Joan Durbeyfield is once again the linchpin of the Crinolines’ offensive line. Joan, leader of the so-called “Stonehenge” O-line for the Crinolines is a real locker-room leader and will unquestionably be turned to by Hardy to keep this team going strong.

Alec Stoke-D’Urberville remains something of a question mark for this season, however. The unquestioned natural abilities of this former star slotback have been squandered, say many critics. Stoke-D’Urberville’s Bad Boy antics are bound to catch up with him and the question will be whether his disruptive behavior off the field will cast a pall over his future.

I<3 Engelmanm, truly I do, and I say here.

Simply outstanding report, E-man. My nominee for post-of-the-month.

I think you had me at "Crinolines."

I have jury duty on Friday.

I'm looking forward to it--full pay, cellphone and beeper turned off and hiding in one of the city's little lockers, lunch @ the Reading Terminal Market, a briefcase holding 2-3 books I actually want to read, the convivial atmosphere shared by every initial group I've been in.

And it would be cool if I actually got picked too.

'Mudge, somebody ought to page Gene of Poolness and tell him that

game. set. match.

Engelmann just proves it. Joel has the best retinue.

That was brilliant! I'm so glad I get to hang out here.

Engelmann, and for Clare, well, very much a disappointment even if he reflects the zeitgeist of his cohort and culture. He tends be late on the insight factor, which again, lets down an essential player in the pinch.

Wilbrod! You named truthiness. i am a costume scholar with a full class, here on the boodle.

Also find myself a student at time for football, hockey, things Canadianne, etc.

Wayne and Shuster were well known in the States:
"They first performed on The Ed Sullivan Show in the United States in 1958, and set a record there by appearing 67 times over the next 11 years."

Many of the producers and writers who worked on W&S's Canadian TV shows moved south and were influential in American movie and TV comedy. Hee Haw, for instance, was the brain child of two.....

I'm sorry.
Some people just go bad when they go down there. Unfortunately, Cherry has come back.

E-man doesn't post all that often -- but post-for-post his quality ratio is quite possibly unparalleled.

CqP, I might want to trade for Horace Labadie, but I think he's the only one I'd want to draft from the Gene Pool. One wonders if Gene isn't already aware that he's outflanked.

Thank you, Yoki; I am humbled.

Fighting Crinolines, eh?

Coincidentally Claude Berri, producer of Polanski's 1979 'Tess', died this morning. He was also a director of talent. ('Tchao pantin' is one I love)
I still love Nastassja Kinski from the 'Tess' movie. I liked her father Klaus 'Crazy Phack' Kinski (Nosferatu!) but loved Nastassja.

I met her once, shriek! She was filming in Montreal, and my firm did all the entertainment tax for the production company. She was *stunning* in person.

Dibs on the dredge-to-post ratio!

Yoki, you've shared oxygen with a divinity, I AM frenvious!

You're not even close, Shriek.

Fun Fact:
Shuster was a cousin of comic book artist Joe Shuster, who co-created Superman with writer Jerry Siegel.

CqP,

Angel shows all the bad aspects of the junior program with the Crinolines. He looks good and is an excellent technical player, but he lacks the ability to take hits as well as to give them. He says all the right things - says he’s behind Tess at QB 110% - but you have to wonder if he’s prepared to go for that high ball crossing the middle when he hears footsteps. A missed play like that can make all the difference. While I have the confidence he has the intestinal fortitude to dig deep in the fourth quarter, a few dropped balls can lose the game in the meantime.

Tess’ younger sister is also reported to be up-and-coming. Maybe Angel and her can make a better team. You also have to wonder if this is just perpetuating the problems with the junior program, however.

I want to watch the 1979 Tess again, with an eye for costume and art direction. Upon remembrance, I think the scene where Tess (Natasha) leaves the sheaves-field to nurse wee baby Sorrow is better. But, want to see both films in tandem.

About the neckline and bodices for this PBS version, bravo for NOT tarting up the the look by lowering the neckline. That is often done as a teaser for modern audiences. Blechhhhh. I think costume drama should be historical. I also think that characters should be historical too. Blogs everywhere are slamming the PBS production for the sexist nature of the plot etc.

HELLO! Hardy wanted to show the wretched double standard at work:

boys will, good women forgive them.
girls who do, are bad forever and ever. AMEN.

He also used Angel Clare's transcendental attitude to showcase the psychological limitations of man who can talk the talk, but not walk the walk (I hate that I wrote that!).

I think that the 1979 Tess might be truer to Hardy's vision of a doomed Tess who knows she is cast in this hard lot. I think the accents in this one seem West Country, and thank God, not upper crust Londoney....but cannot really tell about such details.

Engelmann,

Spot on (with British upon it). And, thanks to Mudge for tipping the blog to the boodle-dash mash up of

Thomas Hardy through a PBS Masterpiece lens (All homage to Alistar Cooke.) and

American Football chalk talk (a nod to John Madden and Sonny Jorgenson).

Mudge -- fix the spelling on SJ before Gene comes over to weep. Mr. Cooke's moniker might be wrong too.

Mentioning Klaus Kinski reminded me that the plot of "Tess" kinda reminds me of the plot of "Die Strafe des Schweigens" (one of the very few German movies Kinski didn't star in).

Or maybe not.

Jurgensen, Alistair. Done.

Je cours pour l'autobus.

CqP, in place of that offensive phrase, I offer a new coining:

"..men who got plenty of lip, but no guts?"

"All the windmilling, but no follow-through" (To be baseballian)

Never read Tess d'Ubervilles, which I should remedy, really.

CqP, I just check the cast of Polanski's Tess. Except for the delightful Nastassja all the actors are from places named x-shires. Accents should be OK.
Nastassja has a daughter, Sonja. The model Sonja Kinski. Old Klaus must have procreated with a divinity to have such a spectacular progeny. I mean, he was seriously ugly.

Off to take a hot bath. Had to thaw a bit. Hot water on cold digits is a major no no. But, Canookies know this. Marylanders, not so much.

Snow out there, in tiny flurries and a stiff wind in the steam valleys were the new bike path is located....Swung way up toward Moose and even to the Howard County Line, wherein YJ nests.

Like Yoki, love it here when the boodle magic happens. Guys, now you HAVE to read Tess or at least watch it. Good job, Engelmann, your work here, for now, is done.

I don't know about seriously ugly. He was sort of hot in that intense, dangerous way that can be irresistable to some women. I don't know any of those women, of course...

Yoki,
I pointed out the big, visible dents on the Big Blanco Kitchen Sink to the appraiser today and noted that if the house is ever for sale, some prospective buyer will take umbrage at the imperfections. I figure that an affordable Blanco is worth a few dents.

What looks like a neat book arrived today: "The Better to Eat You With, Fear in the Animal World" by Joel Berger.

Is there a chapter in there about venus flytraps and other scary plants, Dave? Because that would be awesome--as long as they don't include lyrics from "The little shop of horrors."

I went for jury duty two years ago and was going through the questioning by the prosecuting and defense attorneys. I was hoping they wouldn't pick me but was honest with all of my answers. The defense attny started badgering me about what I thought about the police department, which was relevant to the case, trying to lead me to say things I didn't believe to be true. So, I pushed back at him. Needless to say, he booted me from the pool first chance he got. That was fun!

Re: Canadian writers involved in HeeHaw, I am sorry for that :-)

Vaguely remember Wayne and Shuster.

Sorry Boko I see you already apologized for HeeHaw.

Can't believe Shriek thought he could be me in dredge to post ratio - I strive to rise to at least sludge once in a while.

I saw Catpeople as my only Kinski movie - really wasn't interested in watching any movies with her involved after that.

I can understand that, dmd. I couldn't even watch the whole of Catpeople. And yet some other movies in that vein I have admired for purely artistic reasons. I'm a critic!

Didn't Bowie do the theme for "Catpeople?"

I remember the lyric "Putting out the fire... With gasoline!"

Oh, silly, silly people. When it comes to dredge to post ratio, none of you are even close to being in contention. Two words, mon amis: Lone Mule.

Isn't it mes amis? I only took a year of French, what do I know?

Ya know, Mudge, I kinda miss the Lone Mule.

"This blog STINKS!"

He had a sense of humor, you have to admit that.

Is it mes amis? I dunno. I always thought the plural of me was us. But I'm not real good at this French stuff.

Yeah, I suppose the Lone Mule did possess a certain jenny say quah.

Hi all... no time to backboodle.. gotta finish packing for my cross-country trek, but I heard this tonight on NPR and thought I needed to share it with y'all. Does it sound familiar?

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=99172304

I've been attacking the piles of paper with something that passes for gusto of late, mostly because I now have the "leisure" to do so. After 11 years, my employer reduced its force by giving me the heave-ho. Such is (or was) life in the banking industry.

I suppose the worst part of being unemployed is worrying about paying bills, but since I'm not under a bridge yet, boredom and bootlicking are the main contenders for the Worst Part of Being Unemployed title.

MY GOD, APPLYING FOR JOBS IS AWFUL. Tweak the resume to make it look like I'm Neo, then tackle the loathesome cover letter, inserting disgusting HR words like "skillset" into a mewling (yet upbeat!) missive. Every time I finish one, I want to take a hot shower. With Lava. If Dante lived today, applying for jobs would surely qualify for one of the deeper circles.

And then there's the boredom ... the stultifying hours of Nuthin' Ta Do (punctuated by Helpful Suggestions from PEOPLE WHO HAVE A JOB). Why is it that shredding four years of credit card statements is satisfyingly productive when you have a jillion other things to do ... like GO TO WORK ... but when you have all the time in the world, it's horrible. ::start Arthur Bach voice:: HORRIBLE! ::end Arthur Bach voice::

So I spend a lot of time day-dreaming about getting a job via a miracle. Like Obama stumbling across my MySpace blog (mostly dog stories) and calling me up to offer me a $95K/yr job caring for the yet-to-be-selected family pooch. Or having the head of some multi-national company that does good for all humanity approach me at the grocery store. "I see you selected the store brand of oat bread, rather than the expensive, popular brand. You clearly are a woman of great discernment, which I can also see in your clear, hawk's eyes. Come. Work with me."

Well, it's one way to beat back boredom!

Cool story, TBG. Yes, it *does* sound like the boodle.

Have a safe trip! I'm looking forward to seeing you.

Good luck on the job search, Kathryn. You are not the first amongst us to be in the job seeking situation. I'm ready for all this bad economy stuff to pass, and for us to get back to bringing prosperity to the whole world.

Ms. Page, do you live in/near Washington, and do you know anything about contract pricing?

I actually never thought Lone Mule hated Joel or us. I always thought its hatred was ironic love for the Kit and Boodle.

KathrynAPage, you rawk!

Please spend more time here.

Wicked awesome.

Ms. Page,

I believe Elizabeth Warren needs all the help she can get with her activities associated with the Congressional Oversight Panel:

What is Treasury's strategy?

Is the strategy working to stablilize markets?

Is the strategy helping reduce foreclosures?

What have financial institutions done wtih taxpayers' money received so far?

Is the public receiving a fair deal?

What is Treasury doing to help the American family?

Is Treasury imposing reforms on financial institutions that are taking taxpayer money?

How is Treasury deciding which institutions receive the money?

What is the scope of Treasury's statutory authority?

Is Treasury looking ahead?

I think the Lone Mule liked the Kits but felt that perhaps the Boodle's hygene could stand some improvement.

I disagree with that position myself, but not only is cleanliness next to Godliness, it's relative.

bc

Hygiene is highly overrated. Dog drool is a nice anti-allergy treatment, maybe. If so, I'm in good shape. Allergists now suggest to let the kids play in the barnyard. I think it make sense, humanity was raised with with ruminants and poultry in the house. We may need them as much for their dandruff as for their meat.

Mes amis, of course, would be the plural possessive form.

this is bc's theory of relativity. Quite agree.

Rhetorical questions?

Why?

What purpose does this serve?

Why, let me tell you...

KAPage, I've been there, and how.

Peddling your wares is never fun and it's ten times worse when you're running the gauntlet in Survivor: He1l.

I never thought to daydream like that, though. It might have helped. Don't all those success quacks claim that if you dream it, it will come?

And now to banish the electric demons so I may sleep once again, unbitten by tiny pitchforks.

Evening all
Beautiful moonlit drive home tonight,moonshines sparkling on all that had ice on it.The valley was kissed in moonshine as well and I saw the 3 lamp lights of a east bound train.But way too cold to stop and enjoy it's sound.

KathrynAPage: //(punctuated by Helpful Suggestions from PEOPLE WHO HAVE A JOB).//

Not to mention the same from people who don't have jobs and aren't looking.

I hear you, having been there myself. Where are you? Give me a shout at trishaunderscore2154nospaceatnospaceyahoodotcom.

i hope k. page actually comes back and reads the comments.

joel, i don't know how you cope with all the email. your profession sure brings a lot of it. hope you've got the whole filter/rule thing down pat.

dear friends,

if you are bored and looking for another online addiction, i heartily recommend online boggle:

http://www.wordtwist.org/init5.php

yours,

l.a. lurker

Since I'm up at this God-awful hour for no apparent reason, I suppose I should make myself useful by de-icing the Dawn Patrol's flyers and put the coffee on.

Sheesh. All I ask for is 6 to 8 hours of sleep, uninterrupted. What do I get? 4. Will I be taking a nap this afternoon? You betcha.

I know what you mean.

I think I'll practise for this afternoon's nap right now.
Wake me for Kelly.

'Morning, Boodle. Nice to see martooni and Jumper joining us this morning. Boko was here for about 20 seconds, then he went back to bed. I am frenvious.

Some good and well-deserved Bush bashing on the op-eds, but even with all that, it still seems kind of irrelevant now, like it has finally become a waste of breath trashing him even though he deserves every second of it. I suppose next weekend he'll issue all his pardons, and they'll get drowned out by all the Inaugural hoopla, which may be just as well.

OK, martooni has put the coffee on; thank you, sir. Let's get going.

'morning all. The place to be this morning is Stony Rapids SK, with a balmy -42C/-43F. That is without the windchill factor by the way. The worst thing is that it's heading our way. *sigh*

I watched Dubya in his last press conference last night. He's so disarticulate, it's painful to watch. He's sorry for details (bring it on, mission accomplished, flying over NO etc) but has absolutely no regrets over the huge messes he leaves behind. It was telling that he was in an excellent mood.

I happened to mention to my 13 year old that Bush had no real regrets, she just laughed.

Morning all, soft snow this morning with temps expected to dip during the day, really cold the next few days but not South Dakota cold.

moonshine kiss on ice
chilled, sparkling everclear
fatal attraction

G'morning all. Still pretty dark outside, it must be overcast. Weather.com says it's 32; we're waiting for that Alberta Clipper to arrive tomorrow and make it really cold around here. I'm still working with cop wrecks. What is it with cops and speed? First one to write up today involves a young cop who lost control at 117 mph, speed at impact estimated at 85 mph.

Okay, I've got bagels and cream cheese in the ready room. The coffee is ready and the water is hot for tea. Let's go, folks.

God loves us so much more than we can imagine through Him that died for all, Jesus Christ.

Good morning, friends. I got a call last night from the daughter. She had to take the g-girl to the emergency room. It seems her finger got slammed in the car door. It's not broken, but the bone is chipped, although that sounds like broke to me. Mom's going to keep her home today, so she may end up here, if Mom has to work. Poor thing, I know it hurts.

I think I mentioned here that I have a captioning phone. Well, I can use it with my regular phone line, but it requires a bunch of numbers to call in order for the captioniong to work. I called my local phone provider to get another line so that one only has to dial my number. I'm thinking my dad is not going to remember to dial all those numbers if he needs me. Another line will cost, but I don't have to have all the bells and whistles, just a plain line. I'm going to try and see about that today. I can't really afford that, but I can't hear on the phone anymore, it's just awful and I need it desperately. Sometimes I dont' even hear the phone ring. And I would love to be able to hear my grandsons when I do get a chance to talk to them. I can't believe how big they are now. One of them has more hair than grandma!

I read Robinson's oped about Bush's leaving, and I agree that the newly elected President should find out exactly what Bush and Cheney did while in office even if they're not charged with anything. I don't know if we want to know this, but we should know. The President didn't take responsibility for anything that went wrong, just kind ignored the reality of the situation now. Robinson does talk about Bush's good work, and I agree with that also. President Bush's commitment to the AIDS crisis was perhaps his biggest accomplishment. I don't think President Bush is a bad person, per se, just think he made some bad choices, and so many people were impacted in a bad way by those choices.

I walked yesterday, and it was cold. Coughing this morning, but will still try to walk. I'm not going down, Mudge, without a fight. This thing may beat me, but it will be work.

Slyness, Yoki, Martooni, Scotty, Mudge, and all the gang, hope it's warm where you are.*waving*

I've talked a lot this morning. Must be the cold.(smile)

Time to walk.

Wow, everything was de-iced this morning! How'd that happen? And where did this extra little door to the cockpit come from?

Properly chilly this morning, and looking forward to the deep-freeze later this week!

*seeking-coffee-and-other-goodies Grover waves* :-)

Full day but ust report this:

Hondo coffee delivered three packets of coffee sometime late last night. I stumbled over them this morning. And, a good thing this is. Apparently, some fairy-imp ate cereal late last night and left no milk for coffee.

The vanilla bean coffee is so smooth, with just a hint of the magic bean, that not having milk is not a chore.

Delish: and just the thing to give shy persons the strength to get up and face the day.

Hondo approaches the sustainability trifecta sweepstakes:

fairly traded, with consideration for worker dignity and livelihood;

ecologically appropriate, using a mix of shade-grown, IPM, and permaculture practices;

LOCALLY roasted in VA, which gives us locals a chance a locavore status.

One of my resolutions this year is to look at my ongoing purchases and see if I can tweak them toward justice and right living: I can spend more on coffee, signaling that I want my roast to be BOTH fair to people and reasonable to the Earth.

www.hondocoffee.com

Local farmers markets too; perhaps Whole foods.

In other news, looks to be cold for InaugDay. Brrr. Makes the bike plan a bit trickier.

On this snowy morning I remembered that I forgot to mention my drive to work yesterday, it was nice and clear with the sun shining on the fresh snow. One of those days where it seems there is diamond dust on top of the snow. As I approach work I am at the top of the escarpment, in the Green Belt area just behind the Royal Botantical Gardens, it was quite cold and there was hoar frost on the the long grasses and trees sparkling in the sunshine. Gorgeous just gorgeous.

Cassandra hope you get your phone set up for you. Hugs to the grandaughter.

slyness... no offense to those who died in the line of duty, but it may be those "Type A" personalities. Alpha males tend to go overboard without much provocation (or reason) and seem to be drawn to dangerous jobs.

I used to have coffee every morning with a bunch of cops -- PA state troopers and local township guys -- and they were all nuts to a man. Brave and well-meaning and the kind of guys who would jump into a fire to save a kitten, but nuts nonetheless. It's like they have two speeds of operation: fast and faster. No off button.

Anyway, good luck with the case studies. I don't envy your task.

Mudge: no (Texas) and no. However, as you can see from my enclosed resume, my diverse work experience has provided me with a broad skillset, and I’m looking forward to new challenges in a team-centric environment. Also I’m a self-starter.

:-)

Re: kids and barnyards. When my niece was a baby, I visited my sister who owns an equine vet practice in KY. At the time, she was caring for a sickly newborn filly. We packed the baby into one of those jogging strollers (with the big, nubby tires) and slogged thru the April mud up to the barn. Parking the baby just outside the stall, we entered the stall and began our work. When I stepped out to grap some medical gizmo, I found the baby happily peeling mud from the stroller tires ... and eating it. Alarmed, I alerted Sis. She didn't even stand up. "That kid's gonna have a helluvan immune system," she said.

CqP... I swear I had nothing to do with the missing milk. I'm a lactose intolerant Gnome. Maybe it was the 900 year old fella with the blue bottom who dunnit.

Or Scotty. He's always up before everybody else. ;-)

Spotted in the comments section of the WaPo article on parade crowd control:

"Security officals will announce January 17 that the amount of oxygen available in downtown DC will be drastically reduced on January 20. A new prototype technology developed by the CIA (with the assistance of the Bush administration's EPA ) known as "O2-AWAY" will be tested for the first time on a large scale.
The Secret Service noted that oxygen is a critical element of explosives and fire, thereby limiting its availability should prove to further reduce threats. When asked how spectators could be expected to cope with lower oxygen levels, officals said that they had not really given it much thought.
Enterprising spectators considered bringing plants with them, but no plants will be permitted on account of security reasons. In contrast, VIPs and other dignitaries will be provided with official 2009 inaugural respirators."

*L*

Good morning Boodle, Cassandra, all. *Grumbles about the expression 'Alberta Clipper.'*

Such a delightful morning chez Yoki. The weather is fine, the roads are wet but not icy, and it is Tuesday.

I had a zen moment at my desk earlier. I accept that while I am dealing with the backlog, more is being created. It is never all going to be done! This is a revelation to me.

Warm best wishes to you all for a happy day.

That's the existential conundrum of the working world, Yoki. Work never stops piling up. It's like painting the house of Murphy Brown. (Or my house for that matter.)

This is one of the reasons I have a hard time enjoying a vacation - I know that when I return there will be an awful price to pay.

Of course, one can also look upon this as a Wilde-type blessing. The only thing worse than having too much work to do is having no work at all to do.

For the latter situation can lead to a permanent vacation. Which are *really* hard to enjoy.

Yoki... if it's any consolation, NBC is calling it an "Arctic Blast". Personally, I just call it effin' cold. What northern region it originates from or the semantics used to describe it are lost on me when my fingers go numb while running a saw or the router.

I'm now sufficiently longjohned and booted, coffeed, Irished and as ready as I can be for the freezer. Time to make the sawdust...

Peace out :-)

Thanks for 'locavore', CP. I'll add it to the other new one I heard on the radio this morning.
'Recessionista' is someone who's lost their job in the Bush Economy.

Yep it's not just to blame Alberta, the cold is clearly coming from Saskatchewan this time. We'll blame AB for global warming instead (ain't that rich, blaming Alberta for warming up the place!)

Pretty snow coming down hard now, to make a mess of the afternoon commute. To be followed by a 20 degrees dip in temperature. I love winter. Nope.

Getting behinder and behinder at work is stressful. Back in the 2003-2005 period I was either 1 minion short or completely minionless. Watching the backlog piling up day after day with no hope of ever catching up was sucking away all the joy of working.

Martooni, take care!

Don't want to be the routee.

Wilbrod, I believe if you'll check back, you'll see that CqP said it was a fairy imp who took the last of the milk. You've met me. Do I look like a fairy imp to you?

OK, don't answer that.

*scratching Wilbrodog's head affectionately but whispering in his ear to bite a certain person if her head shows any upward-downward movement whatsoever*

CqP!!!!

Thanks for all the info and the bang up review. We try to start with a premium S. American bean and then treat it with care.

Your coffee was roasted Saturday morning very early, I believe.

Thanks again CqP for the very nice coffee review. For all the whining folks do about immigrants, we really don't do a good job making sure everyone gets a fair living out of the products that they produce and/or grow in neighboring countries.

Heck our goal is to visit Honduras and enjoy that country. Farmers shouldn't have to get out of the growing business and move to the USA just to make a better wage and that's what our buying practices are doing to Hondurans and coffee growers in the rest of Central America.

You are absolutely right about the cops being nuts, Martooni. Great guys, just crazy. The oldest one I've encountered so far was 34, so it seems to be a young man's disease. The worst was the woman who was hit on the shoulder of an interstate by a drunk. She was knocked off an overpass to the service road 20 feet below. The drunk - he was 24 - got 11 years.

I suppose this qualifies as breaking news. Joel has new bosses:

Washington Post Appoints Two Managing Editors

By Howard Kurtz
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, January 13, 2009; 9:00 AM

The Washington Post named two managing editors today, one of them the first woman to hold that title in the paper's history, in an effort to speed the merger of the company's print and online newsrooms.

Elizabeth Spayd, who has been a top editor on both sides of the Potomac River that separates the two newsrooms, will be responsible for the hard-news sections of the newspaper, located on The Post's fifth floor. Raju Narisetti, a former deputy managing editor of the Wall Street Journal, will oversee the fourth floor, which includes Style and other feature sections. Executive Editor Marcus Brauchli, who made the announcement, is pairing a longtime insider with someone who is unknown to journalists at The Post.

Spayd, 50, said it feels "pretty cool" to break the gender barrier and that she hopes to increase The Post's appeal to female readers.

Narisetti, 42, launched a national business newspaper in India in 2007. The Indian-American worked with Brauchli in several roles at the Journal, the newspaper where Brauchli was the top editor until owner Rupert Murdoch helped pressure him into leaving last spring.

"Liz knows the newsroom," Brauchli said. "She knows, I believe, how to think about both the print and online sides of the house. She's well-respected and an accomplished journalist."

Narisetti, he said, "is quite a visionary in journalistic terms. He understands where the media is going. [If so, he's the only one, sez me.] The combination of these two should prove very strong for The Post in the near term. In the longer term, both of these people are just outstanding journalists."

Scottynuke, I must take the bait and respond humorlessly to that post about O2-AWAY: I have now heard several cases in which folks suggest the thought that chemical explosives depend on available free oxygen to do their work. Take away the oxygen, goes the thinking, and no explosion occurs. This is absolute nonsense. Bullets fire when an explosion is generated inside a sealed metal capsule. Explosives are detonated under water for demolitions and in military activities. "Pyrotechnics" are operated in spacecraft to actuate one-time devices that need to operate forcefully. Explosives contain their full complement of reagents within the explosive compound, waiting for a shockwave or other sudden event to tip them over the edge into a runaway chemical reaction. They *cannot* depend on available free oxygen, as the explosive shockwave travels faster than sound and thus actually moves the air away from the source of the explosion. A high-explosive detonation is fundamentally different from a fast-burning fire. Fuel-air explosives *do* use available oxygen, but this is a rather specialized case.

Thank you. This has been your tedious didactic moment of the day. Whatever else happens to you today, it probably won't be this tedious (you may hope).

New Kit

Thanks Tim,

I don't know if I should be relieved or not...

I may not be able to breathe, but I still can be blowed up.

Mudge... you *are* an imp (at least from what I've heard about ya). Not that you stole the last of the milk or that being impish is a bad thing. Some of my bestest friends are imps. ;-)

It's surprisingly comfy out in the shop this morning. Haven't even turned on the space heater. It probably helps that I'm a little more Irished up than usual (though running a jigsaw with one eye closed and the other severely squinted is a bit of a challenge). Focus focus focus.

As far as I can tell, all digits are intact, which is good.

Regarding coffee... I've been buying a cheap off-brand by the name of "McDaniel's" or summat like that -- $4.99 for a two-pound can -- and it's surprisingly good. Beats the pants off of $tarbucks, though that might be because I use a vintage 1950's percolator to brew it. I love the sound of that monster in the morning... cough cough pttttthhhhht... gurgle gurgle gurgle... (repeat several dozen times).

Better get back to it. Two window blanks cut and a door traced out and ready to go... must... maintain... productivity...

Peace out :-)

Narisetti is obviously someone Brauchli feels comfortable with--given their previous working relationship at the Wall Street Journal. However, given Narisetti's strong business background, putting Narisetti into a position at the Washington Post that oversees Style and features seems like a very odd coupling to me.

http://newsblaze.com/story/2007020112224600001.pz/topstory.html

NEW DELHI, India and NEW YORK, Feb. 1, 2007 -- 'Mint', the new business newspaper published by India's HT Media Ltd in association with The Wall Street Journal, debuts in New Delhi and Mumbai today.

Published in English and with an initial circulation of around 80,000 copies, 'Mint' delivers global and regional business and economic news to Indian readers Monday-Saturday each week. Every weekday, 'Mint' will also carry four pages of branded international business news and analysis from The Wall Street Journal ...

Designed by well-known newspaper designer Dr. Mario Garcia (who was also responsible for the redesigns of The Wall Street Journal's U.S. and international editions) and edited by former Wall Street Journal deputy managing editor and European editor Raju Narisetti, 'Mint' is published in a unique compact format designed to give readers a more convenient way to access the daily business news that matters most to them.

"The idea behind the launch of 'Mint' is that a print newspaper should provide readers with an early morning briefing that includes not only the most vital news, but also analysis, commentary and opinion that only a newspaper edited for a special business audience can provide," said Mr. Narisetti. ...

Okay, as an archivist I feel I need to tell you that having an archive and being a pack rat are not the same thing. Archives don't keep everything and neither should you! Letters from 13 years ago??? Unless it was signed by Obama or is from your long-lost father telling you you were put up for adoption at birth, it probably needs to go.