Category: Life

Sometimes, I feel the need to talk about me (imagine that).

Today was a brillant example of why management sucks. I was working merrily along1 testing a particular area of the software. Then I had to teleconference –he said with extreme venom and hatred– into a meeting for a testing project that I’m not currently working on but that I would much, much rather be on. For extra fun, that teleconference –again said with extreme venom and hatred– call was taken at my desk. A desk which I might add is in a cubicle, a private office. A cubicle which happens to be located next to the loudest @#%&@(^&!#($)^*^()#$^#%&^@$(^#$(^#)(%*@&($#^ f’ing support group in our building. They’ve got email; they’ve got phones; they’ve even got IM but when this group wants to communication; they just scream crap out.

Anyways, I took the conference call and listened in watching my clock count away the wasted minutes of my life. When the meeting was finally over; I got back to working on the @#(%@ project that I am currently assigned to. I’d only gotten a few minutes into working when I get a meeting announcement for another meeting today. In fact, just 20 minutes away but the only information that the announcement gives me about the meeting is a subject line of “Test”. WTF?

It’s coming from one of my managers2 and he’s sent out dozens of meeting announcements before without any problems; so why would he be trying to test the system out that way? 20 minutes later, I got the answer.

Apparently, UPPER management decided that everybody in the company is going to have to take this general aptitude test but had told middle/lower management that they weren’t supposed to say anything yet. Then Human Resources started sending out meeting invitations to schedule people for the test. So our managers were pulling an emergency meeting to do spin-control and fight the rumor mill. There was one problem with that plan.

Some of the team I’m on –including me– work out of a different building, in a different state and we’re not scheduled to take this stupid test until next week. As such and as our HR person isn’t a complete f’ing idiot; she didn’t send out the invites yet because she wasn’t supposed to. So the only thing that the emergency meeting occomplished for me was to start freaking me out instead of helping me stay calm. I hadn’t heard a word about this test until I went to this meeting and then I got treated to roughly an hour of how they couldn’t tell us yet because management said they couldn’t and you have to do what management says and they won’t use this as the sole factor of whether or not you keep your job as that would be nuts and I’ll fight against that thing I said they’d never do tooth and nail. Riiiiiiiiiight. Like I’m going to believe you’re going to fight that hard for me when you just got done saying you didn’t already tell us because management said not to and you have to do what they say.

I feel sooooooooooooooo reassured. *sigh*

1 As merrily as I ever get at work, first thing in the morning.
2 Work isn’t quite as bad for me as it was for Peter Gibbons; I’ve only got 2 direct supervisors instead of 4 (or was it 6?).

Death of Superman

CNN is reporting that actor, Christoper Reeve, died Sunday afternoon. His family has requested that any donations be made to the Christopher Reeve Paralysis Foundation.

Like many people of my generation, Christopher Reeve was Superman. No other actor could ever play the character for us because they weren’t him. He was iconic. He was the massive hero that many of us dreamed of becoming someday. Then when many of us grew up and learned we really were born on Earth and would never develop superpowers; we got somewhat bitter and turned away from our hero. That began to change in 1995 when Christopher Reeve was paralyzed after an equestrian accident.

Christopher Reeve became not the man beneath the cape, not even Clark Kent but rather a regular guy with bigger problems than I hope to ever have to face. And in the face of those problems, Christopher Reeve became a hero again definitively stating that he would walk again, working constantly to try and achieve his goal all the while working to inspire others with to help out those people with similar problems to his.

Mr. Reeve, you will be missed.

AOL hasn’t tried darkening my mailbox in quite some time but when I checked the mail today; there it was another “free trial offer”. Normally, I would have just tossed it directly into the trash since they no longer send their software out on floppies. However as I walked back up to my apartment, the packaging the CD was in reminded me of something I’d seen previously online.

In short, it looked rather much like Jewelboxing’s Kings, Movie-Sized Cases. I tore the case apart to remove all of AOL’s crappy marketing and to examine the case for manufacturing marks. Unfortunately, I didn’t see anything on the case that positively identified it as a one of Jewelboxing’s cases. Is it the real thing? A cheap knock-off? Heck if I know!

What I do know is that I just got a nice DVD size case for free that goes for $49 per pack of 20 ($2.45 each). This will work great for storing some DVDs I’ve burned of fan-subbed anime. *keen*

I was over Heather Armstrong‘s site catching on the current wackiness in her life and her post Of Lima Beans and Pickle Juice cracked me up. More to the point, it reminded me of my own family’s last encounter with the dreaded lima bean.

This was probably about six, maybe 7, years ago. I was having dinner with my folks. Mom had just finished setting the food on the table and was about to take her chair; when Dad dishes himself up some of the mixed vegetables. While dishing the vegetables; he makes a comment –sounding rather excited as he does so– that there are lima beans in the vegetables.

Mom shudders in disgust and finishes sitting down. Dad looks at her somewhat puzzled.

I’m going to stop this narrative momentarily to point something out about my father that was truly amazing to me. That would be his memory. He never forgot anybody’s name and would frequently remember small details from conversations he had with them years ago. He was an active member of the local Masconic lodge and for their ceremonies/ritual; he would memorize the entire thing and do it without resorting to any kind of reference. As I understand it that’s expected of the local Masons but is still something that not all of them are able to do.

Myself, I have to carry a PDA in order to keep track of my own phone numbers and my fiance remembers the names of my cousins better than I do.

Back to the story….

Still looking puzzled, Dad asked “what’s wrong?”

With a mixture of disgust and a hint of confusion on her face; Mom said “I hate lima beans.”

Dad was just floored by this. “You hate lima beans?!? Huh, I never knew that!”

At that point, Mom gave Dad a look that said he was treading on thin ice and which made me glad that I’d just stayed on the sidelines of this conversation. Then she said “In all the years that we’ve been married; have I ever cooked lima beans for you before?”

He sat there for a moment, casting his mind back through all the meals over the years. Finally he looked up at her with a smile and said “No, I don’t believe you have.”

Mom just kept looking at him.

Eventually, Dad had the grace to say “Ah” and we were able to continue on with the meal. The remainder of the meal was uneventful and I couldn’t say what else we were eating that night; but I’ll never forget that moment.