Vacation Deficit Disorder

U.S. workers average two weeks longer on the job than the second most overworked group in the world, the Japanese. An estimated half of all U.S. workers are suffering symptoms of burnout. According to a survey by the Families and Work Institute, 63 percent of Americans want to work less, up from 46 percent in 1992.

I definitely suffer from this.

hummanah? huh-mah-nah? hum-a-nah?

I spent the evening last night packing up all my food and plants and medicines and anything else I thought might be negatively affected by the poison gas that is probably being pumped into my apartment right now, and imposing myself on my friends. Fun, fun, fun.

But it doesn't stop there. Tonight and tomorrow night, I get to sleep in someone else's house and eat their food (it's a different place than where my food went) and mess up their morning routine.

And then on Saturday, I get to pick up all my stuff again and move it back into my apartment. Again. For the second time in a month.

Oh, and the place currently looks ransacked, since I had to open every cabinet, closet, and drawer, as well as take the lids off of or open every box in my apartment this morning. All that's missing is clothes and papers all over the floor. Ooh, wait, those are always all over the floor.

This has stressed me out much more than I would have expected it to and I want to be angry at someone, but there's no one to be angry at except the termites, and they're suffering enough for what they've done.

I'm lucky to have the friends I do, though, who will be much less bothered by my impositions than I will be by imposing.

Six Degrees of Blogeration [via Pardue]

I am ashamed at how long I watched this before realizing it was a loop. I kept waiting for them to get somewhere.

What's happened to Elise?!?!? And In Passing?!!?

Speaking of talking about work and co-workers:

The president of my company just bought a red flashing light, like the kind you might find atop a cop car, for one of our products that can turn stuff on and off. They plugged it in to make sure it works, and now they're acting like kids with a new toy, thinking up ways to annoy me with it.

Ha! Epitaph.

[via Tara]

puddle jumping

I left looking for simplicity, and I found it in a puddle of rainwater.

Reflections of San Francisco, the latest Gallery Project, by Derek.

(Oops, I missed Judith's gallery. Enjoy!)

Oh, and I heard on the radio this morning that Musee Mecanique might be closing for the last time in September when they have to shut down for a facelift of the park around and including the Cliff House. That was one of the first attractions I saw when I moved to the City, and the one that brings the most joy when I take visitor friends there. So sad.

Eau d'esparation

Heather lost her job because of her website

At what point does my personal website, regardless of what I've published on the site, affect my professional life? If I am not responsible for the two colliding (meaning, an anonymous person tips off my employer that I run a personal weblog), is it right that my employer should condemn me for expressing personal dissatisfaction? Would it be any different if someone found a notepad on which I had scribbled things about my job and turned it in to my boss?

I guess I'm lucky in this regard. My boss is the one responsible for getting me into blogging in the first place. Although, while I do blog at work, I don't generally blog about work or my co-workers except in the most general terms possible. But that's as much a friend issue as a politics issue. There are lots of things I don't talk about here because my family and friends read this site and it's not good friend politics to say everything that's going on in my mind all the time.

But If I ever moved on into another job, I would expect to be allowed to say what I like about that job on my site, as long as I followed the unwritten rule to never refer to anyone by name, which is exactly what Heather did. Her employers crossed a line and personally, I think she'd have a case if she wanted to sue for wrongful termination.

What's real? Jish wants to know.

Monobrow.com. Play the Monomatch Game (I finished it in 2.38!) [via Mike]

How do you become the Top Scientist?

I was going to complain (again) about how boring I am and how boring this site is by extension. Then I found and took the What Sex Toy Are You? test [via Blogdex] and decided I wasn't that boring after all. And then I found the Post-It Theater, [via Brian] which is pretty cute, and thought maybe it would make my site look not that boring.

So I might still be boring, and this site certainly is for the most part, but at least I read interesting stuff.

Everyday means something. Go check it out.

Great morning today:
- I overslept.
- Breakfast of Champions consisted of cookies and milk.
- My power went out just as I was finishing said breakfast. I don't know when it'll be back on.
- I drove through an intersection with no lights, not realizing there were no lights. I'm lucky to be alive right now.
- I'm having a Bad Hair Day, so the mop is in pigtails, which you'd think would look cute, but it doesn't. Not today.

I'm not sure why I overslept. I got to bed early enough. I think I'm entering my narcoleptic phase, where I pounce on every opportunity to close my eyes, regardless of how much other stuff I have to do.

As for breakfast, well, 1) my building is being tented on Thursday and 2) I have to pack up all my food by tomorrow night, and 3) I ate the last of my oatmeal yesterday after discovering a mysterious white substance on my bagels, hence no real breakfast food.

So, in an effort to not have to pack up so much food, I have not gone shopping for the past several days, and I am trying to eat as much of the leftover random food I have laying around the house, e.g. cookies. I think dinner is going to be toast and macaroni tonight. Although if the power doesn't come back on soon, I may not have to worry about packing up the fridge. I can just throw it all out.

Responding to that letter I posted last week: John has an answer for every question. Wow.

Remember that party I went to? Eric has made an audioblog entry for it! Partyblog. I think he pretty well summed up the spirit of the party here.

Swabbers is now at 80 members!!! Woohoo! In a world where one's status? popularity? good idea? is measured by the size of their Yahoo group, I think this is pretty good for a humble little social thing made up of people who have little more in common than that most of them operate web sites.

I just got a hit from The Mirror Project - I had forgotten about that picture from the night of Denise's and Charles' visit to SF. What a great picture!

The Bleat on why a deal with the devil is a dumb idea:

Why? For earthly advancement? Wouldn’t college be easier? You can default on your loans, after all, without being clawed apart by the Six-Winged Bloodfeasters of Aabolath. And even if you did have power, you’d have to hide it. You couldn’t fly, or kill people by snapping your fingers, or make worms flow from the ground and smother your foe. You’d have to sit there smiling like any normal person, thinking: if only you knew I had talons on loan from Satan, my friend. It’s the spiritual equivalent of wearing women’s underwear, I guess. If only they knew! And it makes me feel so naughty.

I’ve never understood making a deal with the devil. He’s not known for his trustworthiness. And even if he keeps his word, you get 60 years of fun here and then an eternity bobbing in a pit of boiling urine. And what did these mortal minions actually get for their bargain? Power! They got to be - doctors! Lawyers! It must have been a hard time during the office Christmas party, looking around at all the people who hadn’t sold their soul for a partnership in the zoning law division. They didn’t have to go to hell. They didn’t have to worry about finding a fresh baby every fourth Friday night. Lucky bastards.

Also covered: the other aspects of bad horror flicks, such as the effect of good vs. bad cool, bogus child-abuse charges, and other intersting stuff. Really. Check it out.

why didn't wil take eretria with him

I don't know. Does anyone else?

I just received Life is Beautiful and Images of Sound from Mark, what wonderful gifts!

Looking through the book, I came across a soft-focus photo of a couple dancing, she in a white gauzy sleeveless dress, and he in a black tux ... both swirling through the steps of their dance. Next to it is a little poem on the nature of dance and sin:

All who take part in a waltz or cotillion
Are mounted for hell on the devil's own pavilion,
Who, as every true orthodox Christian well knows,
Approaches the heart through the door of the toes.
James Russel Lowell (1819-1891)

If that's the case, then I'm not just on the pavilion, I'm somewhere up near the prow. Speaking of which, I need to dust off my dancin' shoes and get moving. I've been out of the swing of things too long.

Get it? Swing! I crack myself up.

Speaking of which, does anyone in the South San Francisco Bay like to go country dancing? Or go to places where people dance to country music? Or just like country music and can be persuaded to go to a country bar? Anyone? Hello?

Remember that night I stood for 5 hours? My feet still hurt. Poor me. *cue violin music*

How To Get Over A Break-Up

To get through a break up you just have to realize that even though you're abandoned now, you won't be abandoned forever. Abandonment is really more of a discrete event, occurring at a single moment. You will be lonely forever.

[Via Evhead]

I met Eric Rice this weekend, which was fun.

From Philip Marchand’s Ripostes:

It is unlikely that our schools will ever have much luck in directly stimulating an appetite for literature among our young, but they can do a great deal by focusing their attention on rival media. As Marshall McLuhan once observed, if schools can ruin Shakespeare and Dickens for students, they can surely do the same for television shows. […]

Students should not be encouraged to simply air their opinions about television shows, but should be made to write analytically about the stylistic and formal properties of these shows – with marks off for spelling and grammar mistakes.

[via Open Brackets]

Catching up from the Lost Weekend:

When blogs collide, Bill's fantasies of what happens when certain blog personalities come together. (Yes, I'm citing this because I'm mentioned).

Control Freaks [And how to fuck with them], from one control freak to those who like to mess with them.

And my weekend? The notable part was a party on Saturday night. Too many bloggers there to link, but Min Jung and Philo were there, among many other friends who I won't name, for fear of missing someone and offending them. Suffice to say it was a lot of fun, and I managed to spill my root beer all over myself despite being completely sober. I got quite a few good pics also from it, but those will have to wait till I can justify the time spent on posting them to the site.

Yesterday I took a loooooonnnnnggg walk around Shoreline Park and took many more pics, but I'll tell ya about that later too.

Back at work again today. Turns out it really was just allergies. Yay, adult-onset allergies! Loving those decongestants and the accompanying dehydration!!

Naturally, the day I decide to stay home sick is the same day the leaf-blowers need to do their job right next to my window. Never mind the hammering.

I am suffering from online withdrawls. I'm used to getting 5 days on then two off. However, I'm getting offline soon. Sleep is paramount at the moment.

Random Links:

Exceptions to the Laws of Physics. Well worth the time to read.

Burrito Blues

Ok, off to bed now. Later alligators.

Guess what!! I'm sick.

It started yesterday with more-than-usual sneezing, and progressed to full-on stuffiness last night. By the time I went to bed, my chest felt heavy and I was starting to cough.

This morning, it's post-nasal drip from hell, swollen glands (the ones in my neck), and the beginning of that brain-sqeezing pressure we like to call a sinus headache.

I hope it's allergies.

However, given the experience of Kevin, Dinah, and JessaJune, I am well-prepared to spend several days in bed.

I hope I'm over this by SXSW. Can't play kickball or go nighttime geocaching with this killer cold.

...he'd take a warehouse full of purple hippos for a year under an honest sky.

To combat those who criticise Harry Potter as a satanic text, we find that Harry Potter fans warn against dangerous effects of Bible.

Makes you think. Sort of.

Via Sanity Check

Behold! The first picture I took with my new camera.

As soon as I get that whole gallery thing worked out, I'll post the rest of them. I've put the rest in a directory you can see. Most are flowers, two are from my endtable, and a few are from my desk here at work.

It's amazing - this camera takes good pictures in spite of me. I love it!

Pentagon 'ready to lie' to win War on Terror

The Pentagon has set up a covert unit to wage an information war that could include feeding false stories to foreign media, according to a report yesterday.

A senior Pentagon official was quoted as saying that the information battle “goes from the blackest of black programmes to the whitest of white”.

Via Laura.

Random song line of the Day:

Baby, you're my Cadillac in the auto show of Love.

- Deke Dickerson, You're My Cadillac

Sophisticated linkslutting. I like it.

Remember the night of the Galaxy Girl show? Here's a picture of the whole gang.

From my co-worker, An open letter to Dr. Laura, or "Why can't I own Canadians?".

We laughed out loud while reading this. I'd point out some of my favorite lines, but really, they're all my favorite lines. Oh hell heck, here's the letter:

Dear Dr. Laura,

Thank you for doing so much to educate people regarding God's Law. I have learned a great deal from your show, and I try to share that knowledge with as many people as I can. When someone tries to defend the homosexual lifestyle, for example, I simply remind him that Leviticus 18:22 clearly states it to be an abomination. End of debate.

I do need some advice from you, however, regarding some of the specific laws and how to best follow them.

a) When I burn a bull on the altar as a sacrifice, I know it creates a pleasing odor for the Lord (Lev 1:9). The problem is my neighbors. They claim the odor is not pleasing to them. Should I smite them?

b) I would like to sell my daughter into slavery, as sanctioned in Exodus 21:7. In this day and age, what do you think would be a fair price for her?

c) I know that I am allowed no contact with a woman while she is in her period of menstrual uncleanliness (Lev 15:19-24). The problem is, how do I tell? I have tried asking, but most women take offense.

d) Lev. 25:44 states that I may indeed possess slaves, both male and female, provided they are purchased from neighboring nations. A friend of mine claims that this applies to Mexicans, but not Canadians. Can you clarify? Why can't I own Canadians?

e) I have a neighbor who insists on working on the Sabbath. Exodus 35:2 clearly states he should be put to death. Am I morally obligated to kill him myself?

f) A friend of mine feels that even though eating shellfish is an Abomination (Lev 11:10), it is a lesser abomination than homosexuality. I don't agree. Can you settle this?

g) Lev 21:20 states that I may not approach the altar of God if I have a defect in my sight. I have to admit that I wear reading glasses. Does my vision have to be 20/20, or is there some wiggle room here?

h) Most of my male friends get their hair trimmed, including the hair around their temples, even though this is expressly forbidden by Lev 19:27. How should they die?

i) I know from Lev 11:6-8 that touching the skin of a dead pig makes me unclean, but may I still play football if I wear gloves?

j) My uncle has a farm. He violates Lev 19:19 by planting two different crops in the same field, as does his wife by wearing garments made of two different kinds of thread (cotton/polyester blend). He also tends to curse and blaspheme a lot. Is it really necessary that we go to all the trouble of getting the whole town together to stone them? (Lev 24:10-16) Couldn't we just burn them to death at a private family affair like we do with people who sleep with their in-laws? (Lev. 20:14)

I know you have studied these things extensively, so I am confident you can help.

Thank you again for reminding us that God's word is eternal and unchanging.

Your devoted disciple and adoring fan.

Geno's my link hookup today with two offerings:

The 100 Worst Films of the 20th Century - I've seen so many of these!!!

and

Which Sesame Street Character Are You?

I am ZOE and I'm in love with love.
"You are ZOE. You are a lover. Romance, flowers, and wine are all you need to enjoy yourself. You are serious about all commitments. A family person. You call your Mom every Sunday, and never forget a Birthday. Don't let your passion for romance get confused with the real thing."

Indeed:

Time and again, it is always the same. I am wrong and someone else is right, and that someone is usually a woman. No wonder the Roman Catholic church developed into a patriarchy. Exclude the women and the men will never know how foolish their own thinking has been.

I had not thought much about Lent this year, but after reading Tim's thoughts on the matter of giving something up for the season, I begin to think perhaps this is something I should consider. After all, I have to fit into that damned bridesmaid dress in April. And besides, it's good to go through a period of deprivation every once in a while. It makes you more aware of how good we have it here, and helps you appreciate what you already have.

Where did Jish go??

And after all that? When I got to my apartment last night, the first thing I did was check my mailbox.

I am such a dork. Ever since I got on the freeway this morning and encountered no traffic, I've been aware that it's a holiday today. When I went home for lunch in record time, I knew that it was a holiday. I've been surfing and surfing and everywhere it's pointed out to me that I'm one of the unlucky ones who have to work today.

Meanwhile, in another part of my brain, I'm still very aware that there are Amazon items out there, on their way to me. And all day I've been wondering where that darn UPS guy is with my loot.

Yeah, it just occurred to me that those two thoughts are very much related.

Central Heating

The woman and the cat have found their own solution: because I am the largest source of heat in the place and will lie still for ages if I have a book, I am quite in demand as a sort of hot water bottle that makes tea, keeps bowls full, and scratches backs. I cannot hold still for ten minutes without becoming someone's furniture. I am being slept upon.

I've known about this work of art since around the time I graduated from grad school, but it's still as good as new:

Why you should fall to your knees and worship a librarian

I used to have this printed out and posted on the wall of my cubicle. Without cubicles, though, there's not much opportunity to let my officemates know how they should feel about librarians. Maybe I could tape it to their monitors. Yeah. Just like that.

[via Bill]

I like this site's background. Simple and pretty. Like I'd like to be. *sigh*

A new take on people who want to believe those emails calling for help that everyone most of us know are hoaxes. I hadn't thought of it this way before, but that's perhaps because I have already been sucked in by the cynical side of the world we live in where "snide puerile pleasure [is] ... derived from making people victims of their own good will."

Pretty cool. I've got an icon over at Planet MR2. I'm not sure why it's a milk jug, but hey, milk does a body good, right? That's gotta be a good thing.

Strange job, strange questions. [via Matt]

Damn! Talk about getting bitten in the ass by some dumb idea. My ex, my first love, the man who taught me about respect and love and all that good stuff, just wrote back to me and let me know that he is engaged to be married. To the chick he went on a date with a week before he broke up with me.

Rather than get all upset about that, though, mostly I am just amused. I honestly didn't think he'd write back, and I certainly didn't think he'd write back to tell me that.

However, I am heartened by my reaction, as a year ago I would have been all broken up with this news (after all, she was supposed to be a symptom of our problems, not the answer to his dreams). In fact, when I found out a year ago that they were living together, I did get all broken up about it. Now I'm just happy that he's found someone who is everything he was looking for all those years. My turn will come one of these days.

So yeah, in other news:

This was the weekend I celebrated my birthday. Friday night, Jish and Amit and I went to see the Indigo Girls at Slim's. I got my tickets from the venue when I was notified by Pollstar that they were appearing there, and I had never been there before, and I didn't know that it was a KFOG private concert, and that it was a CD launch party, and we found out a week beforehand that there were fake tickets to the show floating around. What does this mean? It means that 1) we got there by 7 for a show that was supposed to start at 9, doors opening at 8, 2) as a CD launch party, at 9 they started playing the cd, 3) the Indigo Girls did not make an appearance till 10!!, 4) the show lasted almost until midnight, 5) we were on our feet the whole time.

My feet still hurt. It was (almost) worth it, though, to see them. They are a great pair of women, funny and talented and very entertaining. I'm gonna buy the upcoming cd when it's released March 12.

Saturday night was the night of my birthday celebration. I went out with a bunch of friends and my parents to a Chinese place in Mountain View, where much food was served and mostly eaten, and fun was had. Most of us then retired to a local pub, where SWABbers joined us and we watched the speed skating and drank a lot. Or at least I did. Thanks so much to Jish and Amit and Mark and Bill and Bill and Min Jung and Faisal for coming and celebrating with me.

And after all that, last night we went to see the Galaxy Girls in Larkspur. A great show and a wonderful time. I finally got to meet Dave, although all I could muster up in the way of conversation was "you live in the South Bay too, right? The drive up here sucks, doesn't it?" Inspired. I also got to meet Ariel and Cami. I'm glad I went, despite the lack of sleep and the need to spend more than an hour at a time in my still-new apartment.

Back to work now.

THE ABOLITION OF WORK

Want to get rid of the ads on your AIM client?? Try Aim Ad removal (if you don't feel comfortable downloading the files, they also give instructions on how to do it manually. It worked for me. [via Unxmaal]

Christine has a new design up, and I am so enamoured of it. I wish I could draw.

Ha! Ariel has created a fan club for one of my favorite reads, Dave. I've joined. Why don't you?

So cool. A very long article, made up entirely of one-syllable words: Game for Small Sounds, with a sound recording of the author reading the piece no less. [via Textism]