What you did today

[Calax]

What, they couldn't just use concrete?

Old town was built in 1848 ish.

 

The freaking gold rush trail ended here. (actually highway 50 is the old trail.)

[theslug]

I got back to work today after 2 weeks off and there's been a lot of changes.

 

My cubicle hallway of infinite solitude has been ravaged. It's been....inhabited. Used up like a turkish prostitute then tossed into streets cold and hungry. It breaks my heart.

 

We also got like 4 or 5 more lecturers and people I've never seen or heard of before in the office. The student worker next to me was someone in my math class and group I'm pretty sure but we didn't greet each other so it was a little awkward. If he continually works there I'll step it up I guess so it'll be nice to finally have a "friend" in the office but he drinks monster energy drinks so I'll have to dock some points off.

 

There was also 63 or so missed calls on my phone and I came in at 9:50 even though I think I was supposed to come in at 9 but I saw my boss on the way in and she didn't mention it so I'm not sure what I'm supposed to do especially since I don't want to come in at 9.

 

I also was hunched over filing for about an hour and 45 minutes and I still have about a stack of 150 more papers to go.

 

It was an awesome day, especially the part where I didn't take a lunch break except for the 5 minutes I ate half of my sandwich and I got my work migraine but since there was another worker nearby I couldn't stop and lie my head down for 10 minutes.

 

Awesome.

[Bokishi]

Got 2 buyers for my old 8800s, just one more now..

[Walsingham]

Good one, GD. I hope the job is as good as it sounds.

[Enoch]

I have always found settlement patterns interesting, in terms of where cities grow. The key factor in most cases is a break in means of transportation. New Orleans, for example, had to arise where it did, because that's really the only place where you can switch cargo between Mississippi River-going vessels and sea-going vessels. In many ways, the economic development of much of the central U.S. depended on New Orleans being where it is. Another common location for cities is at the "fall line" of major rivers-- the point where falls or rapids or whatever make the river non-navigable to boats of any reasonable size. Thus, goods could be shipped up the river on boats, but had to transition to land transportation (or different boats on canals) at that point. Washington, DC is at such a location on the Potomac, as is Albany on the Hudson, and Philadelphia on the Delaware.

 

That's bloody interesting. At least to me. I was working on a logistics problem last year and I got SO CLOSE to this realisation. But of course it's obvious. You stockpile where transportation changes. You change transportation where transport mediums change. I said as much, but didn't make the connections. I'd feel more stupid, but I'm not a logistics expert.

I'm hardly an expert either. The concept was covered in a college course I took on American economic history. We talked a bit about the settlement patterns in the colonial period, and the professor pointed out that all the early cities were founded either on natural harbors or on the fall line of navigable waterways. Because the economy at the time was largely based on agricultural production (mostly of grain and tobacco), and because transportation by boat was far far more efficient than any kind of land transportation, the settlement patterns pushed inward as far as they possibly could up every waterway, to minimize the shipping distance that had to be covered by wagon. Once that light went on in my brain, I started noticing it everywhere.

 

Anyhow, speaking of transportation, this is now the second straight day that I have had a significant subway delay in getting to work. I am not looking forward to the delays that will inevitably result once all the crowds start getting to town for the inauguration in 2 weeks.

[Guard Dog]

I am not looking forward to the delays that will inevitably result once all the crowds start getting to town for the inauguration in 2 weeks.

 

Are you going to have to go in on inauguration day? I would think all of North Va and Southern MD and everything in between will be at a standstill this time.

[Enoch]

I am not looking forward to the delays that will inevitably result once all the crowds start getting to town for the inauguration in 2 weeks.

 

Are you going to have to go in on inauguration day? I would think all of North Va and Southern MD and everything in between will be at a standstill this time.

Bonus holiday! 5 U.S.C. 6103(c ):

January 20 of each fourth year after 1965, Inauguration Day, is a legal public holiday for the purpose of statutes relating to pay and leave of employees as defined by section 2105 of this title and individuals employed by the government of the District of Columbia employed in the District of Columbia, Montgomery and Prince Georges Counties in Maryland, Arlington and Fairfax Counties in Virginia, and the cities of Alexandria and Falls Church in Virginia. When January 20 of any fourth year after 1965 falls on Sunday, the next succeeding day selected for the public observance of the inauguration of the President is a legal public holiday for the purpose of this subsection.

It's going to be nuts. They're closing pretty much all of the bridges, and the Metro is going to be absolutely flooded with people. Personally, I have no desire to stand out in a crowd in the cold for 8 hours just so that I can say I was there. I can understand the emotional involvment that a lot of people have, but for my part, there's nothing wrong with the high-def view from my living room.

Edited January 9, 2009 by Enoch

[Shryke]

argh went out to karaoke with some girl i'd hooked up with in the past and a couple of her friends, and now she's just txted me saying one of her not so attractive mates wants my number

[CoM_Solaufein]

A score is a score right?

[Shryke]

nope not always

 

and argh i'm having to cover for admin again at work. they should pay me more for this dammit!

[theslug]

nope not always

 

and argh i'm having to cover for admin again at work. they should pay me more for this dammit!

rofl pay the guy who comes into work half plastered from the night before on a regular basis more. awesome managerial decision

[Matthew Rorie]

I set up Twitter and facebook and everything on my new blackberry. They don't call these things crackberries for nothing. I never thought I would ever post on twitter but now that it's mobile I figure it's better to do that than be all bored while I'm waiting for someone somewhere, etc.

[Shryke]

nope not always

 

and argh i'm having to cover for admin again at work. they should pay me more for this dammit!

rofl pay the guy who comes into work half plastered from the night before on a regular basis more. awesome managerial decision

 

if they keep expecting me to cover their butts, then yes!

 

even hungover i can do a better job then them most of the time (hell i taught my current manager the ins and outs of most of the systems he needs to use)

[Bokishi]

Goin clubbin in Hollywood 2morrow nite, I gonna try to stay sober, unlike shryke

[Shryke]

^^ i didn't actually get drunk at the party last night

 

it was interesting to say the least. lots of semi naked girls and only like 2 other guys there, both in sailor suits. so i ended up being the only guy there walking around in my underwear

[Guard Dog]

I slept late today, got up at 11. I fed the dogs, made chicken salad for lunch, went on Amazon and ordered Battlestar Galactica Season 4, and a few books. I spent a few hours playing ball with the dogs then carried a glass, a bowl of ice and a bottle of Knob Creek and sat on my porch and just watched the rain. I've got the game on but just can't get into it. I think I'll sepnd a few hours working on my NWN2 mod. All in all, a good day.

[CoM_Solaufein]

Played games, watched tv. Its been snowing none stop. Next week is week number four of being laid off.

[theslug]

Well it's that time of year when all the young bright eyed college students get back to school but I guess I'm going to be a little late seeing as the university is a bunch of incompetents and probably coordinating some kind of universal phenomenon in which I inevitably get screwed. I officially applied to be an accounting major 2 weeks ago which if accepted would allow me to start taking upper division courses. But first of course I had to get my transcripts and transfer the last prerequisite needed to get me into the program. I of course got my acceptance email yesterday and when trying to register for courses it said I didn't meet the requirements except for the fact that to be in the major you have all the requirements and I'm angry. So now I have to freakin go into school on monday with my transcripts and hope the classes I want to get into aren't full even though I've already waited too late for this crap. Absolute power, corrupts large capital generating entities into complete a holes. I'm angry.

 

I'm also going to set my gym membership up tomorrow and I'm about 3 episodes away from catching up with battlestar galactica as well.

 

I'm still angry.

Edited January 11, 2009 by theslug

[Deraldin]

Well it's that time of year when all the young bright eyed college students get back to school but I guess I'm going to be a little late seeing as the university is a bunch of incompetents and probably coordinating some kind of universal phenomenon in which I inevitably get screwed. I officially applied to be an accounting major 2 weeks ago which if accepted would allow me to start taking upper division courses. But first of course I had to get my transcripts and transfer the last prerequisite needed to get me into the program. I of course got my acceptance email yesterday and when trying to register for courses it said I didn't meet the requirements except for the fact that to be in the major you have all the requirements and I'm angry. So now I have to freakin go into school on monday with my transcripts and hope the classes I want to get into aren't full even though I've already waited too late for this crap. Absolute power, corrupts large capital generating entities into complete a holes. I'm angry.

 

I'm also going to set my gym membership up tomorrow and I'm about 3 episodes away from catching up with battlestar galactica as well.

 

I'm still angry.

 

I got my marks back for the first semester and it turns out that those mid terms that I bombed a couple months ago really hurt! The dropped my final grades from high 70s/low 80s down to low-mid 60s. At least it appears that I did well on my final exams. I've got three more business administration courses this semester that I'll need to improve upon. At least one of them I really need to study for the test. My Organization Theory course only had three marks, two of which are test that will together determine 80% of my final grade in the course. Bombing a test is really not an option there.

[Walsingham]

I just wokle up after sleeping for nearly 14 hours straight. I used old old and unused meditation techniques to put myself under (and a glass of brandy). I may do it again tonight, depending.

 

I don't like using the meditation any more, because I found I was getting hooked on it. I had to do it every day or I got really cranky.

 

GD, your day sounds awesome. I aim to have days like that.

[theslug]

These meditation techniques Wals....perhaps you could indulge me on the secret of enlightenment. I've tried meditating before both for relaxing and sleep but I didn't find it very effective.

 

And deraldin I always forget, what are you majoring in again? And 2 part question how many classes do you take a semester and what course work do you have left to graduate?

[Walsingham]

These meditation techniques Wals....perhaps you could indulge me on the secret of enlightenment. I've tried meditating before both for relaxing and sleep but I didn't find it very effective.

 

And deraldin I always forget, what are you majoring in again? And 2 part question how many classes do you take a semester and what course work do you have left to graduate?

 

I bastardised self-hypnotic techniques I used to beat asthma. You basically do the following

 

1. Concentrate on relaxing each set of muscles in your body

2. Count down from ten into the condition of focus

3. Focus on nothing except the unmoving concept of something. A drop of water, a sock, a basketball. Think about nothing not directly relevant to the object.

4. Try to stay focussed for ten minutes.

 

At first it was a real struggle. Later it was too easy. I once went in for ten minutes, ignored my alarm, and woke up four hours later in the middle of an enormous thunderstorm. It felt absolutely incredible. But basically, who has four hours to throw away on a single concept?

[Deraldin]

And deraldin I always forget, what are you majoring in again? And 2 part question how many classes do you take a semester and what course work do you have left to graduate?

 

You haven't forgotten, because I've never mentioned what my major is, not that I've officially declared my major yet anyway. I'm currently headed toward a major in Business Administration. There are options to specialize in Human Resource Management, or Indigenous Management & Economic Development, neither of which really seem all that interesting at this point in time.

 

For the second part of your question, a full course load for a semester is 5 courses. I had some trouble signing up for a couple classes so I only ended up with 3 courses in the first semester, but I've got the full five for the spring semester. I'm only half way through my second year right now, so I've still got another two full years + a couple extra courses to make up for the ones that I didn't have last semester.

Edited January 11, 2009 by Deraldin

[theslug]

I see well good luck. I'm currently going into my second semester of my 3rd year and I still need roughly 2 years to graduate because I only take 4 classes which is still considered a full course load. It's funny on friday the business adviser at my work started questioning me about this coming semester. Felt like a freakin interrogation just like last time. I registered for a management 301 course with another professor even though she had one open with fewer students and she also wanted to know what area of bs admin I wanted to go into and I had no idea our school had areas of concentration. I suppose eventually I may have to straight up tell her that I have no interest in getting an admin degree so I can eventually go work at mcdonalds making 22(?) an hour. Not that that is a bad thing, it's just that I have higher aspirations than that and a good deal of successful ceo's made their start in accounting. But anyways good luck Deraldin. I believe in you friend.

[Daaave]

I have a Computing exam in about an hour and a half, and I know none of it =/

 

Oh how I love the ability to do resits.