Saturday, October 30, 2004
|Thursday, October 28, 2004
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RETURN OF THE DICK
(See October 12 post)
Mr. Jack & Ginger P.I. was in the bar again last night. If he was on the job, he was a lot trickier this time, because I couldn't figure out who he was tailing. Maybe he just likes the bartender.
Ya think?
(See October 12 post)
Mr. Jack & Ginger P.I. was in the bar again last night. If he was on the job, he was a lot trickier this time, because I couldn't figure out who he was tailing. Maybe he just likes the bartender.
Ya think?
Tuesday, October 26, 2004
|
WAR OR PEACE
There is talk about acts of terrorism to disrupt our elections between now and next week but unlike the situation in Spain, it is doubtful that terrorists would know how our election might swing if they were to create chaos.
Who knows how insane people reason but it seems logical that terrorist forces would love to see George Bush in office for another four years to be a lightning rod to attract new terrorist recruits from Muslim extremists because of his invasion of Iraq.
There is talk about acts of terrorism to disrupt our elections between now and next week but unlike the situation in Spain, it is doubtful that terrorists would know how our election might swing if they were to create chaos.
Who knows how insane people reason but it seems logical that terrorist forces would love to see George Bush in office for another four years to be a lightning rod to attract new terrorist recruits from Muslim extremists because of his invasion of Iraq.
Tuesday, October 19, 2004
|
PATH LEADS TO PATH
When something is on my mind, that's generally where my conversation wanders unless someone directs it elsewhere. I've been thinking about career choices lately. About how people make a choice of what course of study to follow, and then how they go about pursuing a career in that field of study.
Conversations about this have led me to conclude that more often than not, chance is a big factor. Even people who have a clear idea from an early age of what they want to do (which seems to be uncommon) often end up taking a path that leads them to something quite different from what they imagined.
Had a chat with a nice middle-aged man at the bar last night. He works for one of the upper upscale chains that you find (so I'm told) on Fifth Avenue and Rodeo Drive. It seems the local shop (shoppe?) had a computer malfunction and Bill was dispatched from HQ in New York to fix it. Since March, he's made trips to San Francisco, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, and St. Bart's.
Doesn't sound like a bad job to me. We had an interesting discussion about the series of connections that got him there.
When something is on my mind, that's generally where my conversation wanders unless someone directs it elsewhere. I've been thinking about career choices lately. About how people make a choice of what course of study to follow, and then how they go about pursuing a career in that field of study.
Conversations about this have led me to conclude that more often than not, chance is a big factor. Even people who have a clear idea from an early age of what they want to do (which seems to be uncommon) often end up taking a path that leads them to something quite different from what they imagined.
Had a chat with a nice middle-aged man at the bar last night. He works for one of the upper upscale chains that you find (so I'm told) on Fifth Avenue and Rodeo Drive. It seems the local shop (shoppe?) had a computer malfunction and Bill was dispatched from HQ in New York to fix it. Since March, he's made trips to San Francisco, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, and St. Bart's.
Doesn't sound like a bad job to me. We had an interesting discussion about the series of connections that got him there.
Wednesday, October 13, 2004
|
AFFIRMATION?
Interesting development at my part-time bank job. A supervisor approached me about the possibility of being part of a "management trainee" program. She said that management believes that I have the potential for greater responsibility and that there are openings in the management program. It would involve a sort of internship in different departments.
It's flattering that they talked to me about it, but I am not really drawn to the banking industry as a career. It would increase my wages, but they would want me to work full time, and I'm not at all sure that's a good idea.
Tending bar suits me.
Interesting development at my part-time bank job. A supervisor approached me about the possibility of being part of a "management trainee" program. She said that management believes that I have the potential for greater responsibility and that there are openings in the management program. It would involve a sort of internship in different departments.
It's flattering that they talked to me about it, but I am not really drawn to the banking industry as a career. It would increase my wages, but they would want me to work full time, and I'm not at all sure that's a good idea.
Tending bar suits me.
Tuesday, October 12, 2004
|
IS THERE A DICK IN THE HOUSE?
Maybe I’m overly suspicious, but I think I spotted a private detective at the bar last night. I’ve seen this man in the bar before, maybe twice. His appearance isn’t especially distinguished, but he drinks Jack &Ginger and that’s how I remembered him.
There is some sort of convention at the hotel, and I noticed he showed up about the same time as some of the conventioneers the last two nights. At first, I thought he was with them, but he sat alone at a table and when I mixed his drink, I remembered that I’ve seen him before.
He kept watching a man and woman at a nearby table, although he was not rude about it. They looked to me to be flirting with each other, but I could be wrong. The man seemed self-assured and the woman appeared nervous. I probably would not have thought any further about it if the scene had not repeated itself last night.
Mr. Self-Assured and Ms. Nervous came in and sat down at a more private table this time, and within a few minutes, Mr. J&G came in and looked around. He chose a table near the couple and positioned himself so that he could watch surreptitiously and could probably hear them talking.
All right, so this doesn’t constitute proof, but I watched the watcher and saw him write some notes on a pad from his pocket, and he might have taken a picture, but that could be my overactive imagination. When the couple left, he finished his drink and left shortly afterward.
So what do you think?
.
Maybe I’m overly suspicious, but I think I spotted a private detective at the bar last night. I’ve seen this man in the bar before, maybe twice. His appearance isn’t especially distinguished, but he drinks Jack &Ginger and that’s how I remembered him.
There is some sort of convention at the hotel, and I noticed he showed up about the same time as some of the conventioneers the last two nights. At first, I thought he was with them, but he sat alone at a table and when I mixed his drink, I remembered that I’ve seen him before.
He kept watching a man and woman at a nearby table, although he was not rude about it. They looked to me to be flirting with each other, but I could be wrong. The man seemed self-assured and the woman appeared nervous. I probably would not have thought any further about it if the scene had not repeated itself last night.
Mr. Self-Assured and Ms. Nervous came in and sat down at a more private table this time, and within a few minutes, Mr. J&G came in and looked around. He chose a table near the couple and positioned himself so that he could watch surreptitiously and could probably hear them talking.
All right, so this doesn’t constitute proof, but I watched the watcher and saw him write some notes on a pad from his pocket, and he might have taken a picture, but that could be my overactive imagination. When the couple left, he finished his drink and left shortly afterward.
So what do you think?
.
Sunday, October 10, 2004
|
ISLAND ENVY?
I was unaware that I had a reader in Idaho until she sent me the following. It was pretty good, so I decided to share.
YOU KNOW YOU ARE A TRUE IDAHOAN WHEN:
1. "Vacation" means going east or west on I-84 (or I-90) for the weekend.
2. You measure distance in hours.
3. You know several people who have hit a deer more than once.
4. You often switch from "heat" to "A/C" in the same day and back again.
5. You can drive 65 mph through 2 feet of snow during a raging blizzard,without flinching.
6. You see people wearing camouflage at social events (including weddings).
7. You install security lights on your house and garage and leave both unlocked.
8. You carry jumper cables in your car and your girlfriend knows how to use them.
9. You design your kid's Halloween costume to fit over a snowsuit.
10. Driving is better in the winter because the potholes are filled with snow.
11. You know all 4 seasons: almost winter, winter, still winter and road construction.
12. Your idea of creative landscaping is a statue of a deer next to your blue spruce.
13. You were unaware that there is a legal drinking age.
14. Down South to you means Utah or Nevada.
15. A brat is something you eat.
16. Your neighbor throws a party to celebrate his new pole shed.
17. You go out to a tail gate party every Friday.
18. Your 4th of July picnic was moved indoors due to frost.
19. You have more miles on your snow blower than your car.
20. You find 0 degrees "a little chilly."
I was unaware that I had a reader in Idaho until she sent me the following. It was pretty good, so I decided to share.
YOU KNOW YOU ARE A TRUE IDAHOAN WHEN:
1. "Vacation" means going east or west on I-84 (or I-90) for the weekend.
2. You measure distance in hours.
3. You know several people who have hit a deer more than once.
4. You often switch from "heat" to "A/C" in the same day and back again.
5. You can drive 65 mph through 2 feet of snow during a raging blizzard,without flinching.
6. You see people wearing camouflage at social events (including weddings).
7. You install security lights on your house and garage and leave both unlocked.
8. You carry jumper cables in your car and your girlfriend knows how to use them.
9. You design your kid's Halloween costume to fit over a snowsuit.
10. Driving is better in the winter because the potholes are filled with snow.
11. You know all 4 seasons: almost winter, winter, still winter and road construction.
12. Your idea of creative landscaping is a statue of a deer next to your blue spruce.
13. You were unaware that there is a legal drinking age.
14. Down South to you means Utah or Nevada.
15. A brat is something you eat.
16. Your neighbor throws a party to celebrate his new pole shed.
17. You go out to a tail gate party every Friday.
18. Your 4th of July picnic was moved indoors due to frost.
19. You have more miles on your snow blower than your car.
20. You find 0 degrees "a little chilly."
Monday, October 04, 2004
|
OKAY, MAYBE IT'S POLITICAL - SO SUE ME
Check out Political Compass. It's interesting to see where you fit on the graph. But what I liked best was the Iconochasm quiz. Here's a sample:
Who said this ?
"To occupy Iraq would instantly shatter our coalition, turning the whole Arab world against us and make a broken tyrant into a latter-day hero ... assigning young soldiers to a fruitless hunt for a securely entrenched dictator and condemning them to fight in what would be an un-winnable urban guerilla war. It could only plunge that part of the world into even greater instability."
George Bush Sr, in A World Transformed, 1998
I also discovered from a couple of the quotes (see left) that I kind of like President Eisenhower.
Check out Political Compass. It's interesting to see where you fit on the graph. But what I liked best was the Iconochasm quiz. Here's a sample:
Who said this ?
"To occupy Iraq would instantly shatter our coalition, turning the whole Arab world against us and make a broken tyrant into a latter-day hero ... assigning young soldiers to a fruitless hunt for a securely entrenched dictator and condemning them to fight in what would be an un-winnable urban guerilla war. It could only plunge that part of the world into even greater instability."
George Bush Sr, in A World Transformed, 1998
I also discovered from a couple of the quotes (see left) that I kind of like President Eisenhower.
Sunday, October 03, 2004
|
RING OF FIRE
Rumblings from Down Below
Saturday’s Topic du Jour at the bar started with a news report about Mt. St. Helens in Washington State and the predictions of its impending eruption.
I was still in utero during St. Helen’s last big tantrum, so my memory is a little vague, but I’ve always felt a kind of kinship, having arrived in the world the same year she made her big comeback.
It seems unlikely that Hawaiians would be excited about the rumblings of a mountain as far away as St. Helens when they have their own active volcanoes nearby, but at least in Cliff’s case, the reaction is the opposite. Having seen them up close and personal, he is very interested and was ready with stories and information as soon as the subject was broached.
I’ve decided my next island-hop should be to the Big Island to check out Mauna Loa and Kilauea. Thanks to Cliff (and my internet fact-checker), I can tell you with authority that Mauna Loa is the largest volcano on earth and one of the most active. Kilauea is the youngest in these parts, and for a long time was thought to be a satellite of Mauna Loa, but has been shown to have its own magma-plumbing system, so it’s a full-fledged volcano all by itself.
The discussion got me wondering about the volcanoes on Oahu, but Cliff assured me there hasn’t been any volcanic activity at all on this island for at least 10,000 years. I didn’t fact-check him on that, so correct me if he’s wrong. And I’ll start wearing a helmet outside, just in case.
Rumblings from Down Below
Saturday’s Topic du Jour at the bar started with a news report about Mt. St. Helens in Washington State and the predictions of its impending eruption.
I was still in utero during St. Helen’s last big tantrum, so my memory is a little vague, but I’ve always felt a kind of kinship, having arrived in the world the same year she made her big comeback.
It seems unlikely that Hawaiians would be excited about the rumblings of a mountain as far away as St. Helens when they have their own active volcanoes nearby, but at least in Cliff’s case, the reaction is the opposite. Having seen them up close and personal, he is very interested and was ready with stories and information as soon as the subject was broached.
I’ve decided my next island-hop should be to the Big Island to check out Mauna Loa and Kilauea. Thanks to Cliff (and my internet fact-checker), I can tell you with authority that Mauna Loa is the largest volcano on earth and one of the most active. Kilauea is the youngest in these parts, and for a long time was thought to be a satellite of Mauna Loa, but has been shown to have its own magma-plumbing system, so it’s a full-fledged volcano all by itself.
The discussion got me wondering about the volcanoes on Oahu, but Cliff assured me there hasn’t been any volcanic activity at all on this island for at least 10,000 years. I didn’t fact-check him on that, so correct me if he’s wrong. And I’ll start wearing a helmet outside, just in case.
