Confessions of a former hand coder
Back in the day, before web editors, NotePad and WordPad were my best friends. I spent hours, literally, inserting every line break and paragraph break and religiously conformed to the standards set out in my HTML book - HTML 3.2. Somewhere along the line, I think I graduated to version 4, but I've always been more comfortable with 3.2, simply because tags get deprecated and added so quickly and the browser wars continue to this day (but not so bad as it was in Days of Yore). Hand coding was something really cool. It meant I could do something most people back in '97 couldn't do.
I'm not saying it was pretty, because those who have hand coded tables know that there is nothing easy about doing that. I think I had nightmares at the time of tds and trs, with the occasional th to stir things up. And at the time, I was constantly checking out the W3C, the standards organization before I realized that Microsoft and Netscape were simply paying Tim Berners-Lee and friends lip service and I'd still have to serve up two different pages for every one page in order to get my site to render properly. I still have horrors of writing the javascript necessary for browser detection - these days, I can do it easily, but in those days, I was still a wee one online and all of those semi-colons and brackets made my eyes bleed and I cursed Bill Gates (though, I did applaud Microsoft for deprecating the blink tag - thank you. Now if we could just get frames to go away...). I do still look at the W3C on occasion, but I no longer have to be anal-retentive about it, simply because I've sold my hand-coding soul over to Macromedia.
Life with Dreamweaver is, for the lack of a better word, a dream. My pages work (mostly) all of the time. I can set it up to use my favorite HTML version, 3.2 (because, at this point, most of 3.2 is accepted by the most recent browsers) and if I decide to go with funky javascript (which I don't, as now the only code I have is to avoid being "framed" and another little snippet that prevents my windows from being resized when the visitor is using Netscape and not IE), Dreamweaver lets me know which browsers my script is compatible with. So I no longer need to have 80 million different browsers on my computer - I simply use Netscape, occasionally view my site in IE, but usually Dreamweaver catches me if I do something that will render, say, maroon in a lovely puce color (it has happened). I used CSS at work (this site doesn't use CSS, due to browser incompatibility issues, sorry, Jemima) as we all used the same version of IE and I used to write those out as well and alignment used to make my head hurt. Dreamweaver does those for me too. And I use layers now. I could never code layers by hand (not that I tried, but it scares me to even try).
Every now and then, I still hand code. I'm not a hand coder, like say Jemima is, but if I need to, I can get in there and fix it. Dreamweaver is lovely, but every now and then it refuses to do what I command it to do and in that case, the only thing a girl can do is get into the Code Inspector and rewrite the HTML herself. The school computers in the masters' lab lack HTML editors - not even FrontPage Express (bah! Evil!) or Netscape Composer (only slightly less evil than FrontPage) - and so that's where I do most of my hand coding, if at all. These days we have to close tags that we once would have left open because the browsers would have rendered them okay anyway, so inserting paragraphs now takes forever and a day on a 50 or 60 page story. Back in the day when I used to host other people's work on my site, I used to spend a good chunk of every Saturday not only reading the submissions but also hand coding them until I thought my fingers would fall off.
So while I respect the hand coding warriors and was proud to be a member of them at one time (to the point that I actually had a "proud hand coder" button on my site), I can't deny the quickness Dreamweaver provides me in updating, how it auto-updates all of my links for me, dynamically changes consistent parts of my site when I change just one little thing - it's beautiful. The site is over 400 pages now, so it's impossible to keep track of what is where. For that reason, I have to confess, I've gone over to the dark side and given up the proud, true ways of hand coding.
Friday, January 10, 2003
Thursday, January 09, 2003
I spent today working on my application for Masters Number Two (someone, stop me). Luckily, I got out of having to order and pay for official transcripts from my current U, thanks to the fact that when you apply from there, the school just pulls your record on its own. However, wasn't so lucky with the GMAT score and now, I'm truly convinced that ETS is the outfit from hell. Not only do they lack customer service - ie, giving me wrong information and then refusing to correct it and refund my money - but they have the website and phone system from hell. But at any rate, that part of my application is finished.
I also spent the day calling hotels and caterers for a Very Big Event this spring. This type of stuff brought back memories of The Job and I had a scary fugue moment where I was remembering details of doing everything from booking hotels to wrapping gifts for the speakers. I only spent the money though, someone else actually handled paying the bills. Except for that one speaker with the weird travel itinerary. That was one conversation everyone in my department heard because it was possibly the most furious I'd ever been at work. It went something like this.
I had hired a speaker to come to an event in the summer of 2001. In his contract, I said I would pay him his fee ($8,000) for 3 hours of speaking and his transportation, room and board expenses. This guy was quite a piece of work. I had a room booked for him at the hotel (which, btw, is a national historical landmark and costs $300/night - we had a negotiated rate that was a bit less than that) but he went and made his own arrangements (grrr...) at the full rate, not the negotiated rate. But the kicker was his plane ticket. He was flying here from Ohio. The ticket invoice he sent me was for $1,600.
Eh? $1,600?
He flew first class. Okay. I didn't approve first class, but okay - he was a big guy. But what got me was how he calculated the ticket. He flew here from Ohio, then from here to Minnesota and then on to about 9 other cities in the continental United States. So the way I saw it, I was on the hook for a one-way ticket from Ohio to here (as he had a speaking engagement in Minnesota and theoretically, the other company ought to be paying for that ticket) and that one way ticket was only $750.
So I called his people and asked what the hey was going on. They told me that they were charging me the estimated refundable, changeable, first class fare from Ohio to here. Mind you, not the ticket that they bought, but one that they could have bought but didn't. What they bought was $750. Big difference. I asked him how he wanted me to explain this to Accounting? I had nightmares of the conversation.
"Um, yes, this is a receipt for a ticket that was never purchased, but if I called Delta and asked for a one way, refundable, changeable, first class fare from Ohio to here, then it would cost $1,600, so you should reimburse this guy that much money even though he didn't spend that much money and the ticket receipt clearly reads $750."
Not to mention, if he was charging all ten companies he had bundled together $1,600, he was clearly making a killing on travel. I also pointed out that it was unfair of him to put my company into a "tour" package without telling me first. Had I known, I would have had Corporate travel make the arrangements the same way I did for one of the speakers I flew in from California. I also pointed out that we had to pay for two hotel rooms for him - one that had been booked by us at the negotiated rate and then the one that had been booked by him at the full price.
I think he got the message; not only did he not go over well as a speaker, we were clearly unhappy with the way he charged us. So I ended up reimbursing him for the one-way ticket from Ohio and for his airport shuttle, and of course, the meals he ate which weren't already provided by us at the hotel.
I just realized how nightmarish that month must have been - I did not blog for an entire month. An entire month of nothing because I was chasing receipts, wrapping gifts, and angsting over how my agendas were printed on a slightly different color paper than the rest of my materials. Nah, I don't miss the job. Only the money. The money I miss, the job I don't.
I also spent the day calling hotels and caterers for a Very Big Event this spring. This type of stuff brought back memories of The Job and I had a scary fugue moment where I was remembering details of doing everything from booking hotels to wrapping gifts for the speakers. I only spent the money though, someone else actually handled paying the bills. Except for that one speaker with the weird travel itinerary. That was one conversation everyone in my department heard because it was possibly the most furious I'd ever been at work. It went something like this.
I had hired a speaker to come to an event in the summer of 2001. In his contract, I said I would pay him his fee ($8,000) for 3 hours of speaking and his transportation, room and board expenses. This guy was quite a piece of work. I had a room booked for him at the hotel (which, btw, is a national historical landmark and costs $300/night - we had a negotiated rate that was a bit less than that) but he went and made his own arrangements (grrr...) at the full rate, not the negotiated rate. But the kicker was his plane ticket. He was flying here from Ohio. The ticket invoice he sent me was for $1,600.
Eh? $1,600?
He flew first class. Okay. I didn't approve first class, but okay - he was a big guy. But what got me was how he calculated the ticket. He flew here from Ohio, then from here to Minnesota and then on to about 9 other cities in the continental United States. So the way I saw it, I was on the hook for a one-way ticket from Ohio to here (as he had a speaking engagement in Minnesota and theoretically, the other company ought to be paying for that ticket) and that one way ticket was only $750.
So I called his people and asked what the hey was going on. They told me that they were charging me the estimated refundable, changeable, first class fare from Ohio to here. Mind you, not the ticket that they bought, but one that they could have bought but didn't. What they bought was $750. Big difference. I asked him how he wanted me to explain this to Accounting? I had nightmares of the conversation.
"Um, yes, this is a receipt for a ticket that was never purchased, but if I called Delta and asked for a one way, refundable, changeable, first class fare from Ohio to here, then it would cost $1,600, so you should reimburse this guy that much money even though he didn't spend that much money and the ticket receipt clearly reads $750."
Not to mention, if he was charging all ten companies he had bundled together $1,600, he was clearly making a killing on travel. I also pointed out that it was unfair of him to put my company into a "tour" package without telling me first. Had I known, I would have had Corporate travel make the arrangements the same way I did for one of the speakers I flew in from California. I also pointed out that we had to pay for two hotel rooms for him - one that had been booked by us at the negotiated rate and then the one that had been booked by him at the full price.
I think he got the message; not only did he not go over well as a speaker, we were clearly unhappy with the way he charged us. So I ended up reimbursing him for the one-way ticket from Ohio and for his airport shuttle, and of course, the meals he ate which weren't already provided by us at the hotel.
I just realized how nightmarish that month must have been - I did not blog for an entire month. An entire month of nothing because I was chasing receipts, wrapping gifts, and angsting over how my agendas were printed on a slightly different color paper than the rest of my materials. Nah, I don't miss the job. Only the money. The money I miss, the job I don't.
Bloggy Dodgy Blog
I'm so rusty with this blogging thing given my two week hiatus, I haven't got much to say. I've been amusing myself by lurking at forums, and reveling in the prevalence of self-absorption in some. It occasionally takes much will power (and a resounding NO from Jerie) to pull me away from said forums so I don't post something inflammatory (or with the potential to erupt into a flame war). I also have this thing about posting to mailing lists - I'm always angsty about it afterwards and wondering if everyone else on the list thinks I'm a total moron for saying anything. Especially when the post is greeted with - nothing. And then it's like, "Uh oh, I said something stupid and no one wants to tell me so."
But there seem to be plenty of people out there who don't have a posting complex, who post lots of stuff and don't even think about how it comes off or whether it even makes sense to say what they're saying. Coherence and/or respect for differing POVs don't seem to prevail in certain forums these days. There really ought to be a site devoted to dodgy forums, baseless accusations and gratuitious fawning - a 'best of', per se. I'd start one myself, but my fic taxes are already piling up and I'm reluctant to add more. Still, it would be nice.
I'm so rusty with this blogging thing given my two week hiatus, I haven't got much to say. I've been amusing myself by lurking at forums, and reveling in the prevalence of self-absorption in some. It occasionally takes much will power (and a resounding NO from Jerie) to pull me away from said forums so I don't post something inflammatory (or with the potential to erupt into a flame war). I also have this thing about posting to mailing lists - I'm always angsty about it afterwards and wondering if everyone else on the list thinks I'm a total moron for saying anything. Especially when the post is greeted with - nothing. And then it's like, "Uh oh, I said something stupid and no one wants to tell me so."
But there seem to be plenty of people out there who don't have a posting complex, who post lots of stuff and don't even think about how it comes off or whether it even makes sense to say what they're saying. Coherence and/or respect for differing POVs don't seem to prevail in certain forums these days. There really ought to be a site devoted to dodgy forums, baseless accusations and gratuitious fawning - a 'best of', per se. I'd start one myself, but my fic taxes are already piling up and I'm reluctant to add more. Still, it would be nice.
Tuesday, January 07, 2003
And here's Seeeeeeeeeeeeeeema!
I'm back! Yes, after two weeks (7 airports, 6 flights, 3 cities), I'm back on terra firma. The inbox frightens me greatly, the beta reading queue (six fics) terrifies me, and I just realized that school starts on Monday and I have no idea what my schedule looks like. At any rate, my friends on the East Coast blame me for the snow storms of the last two weeks - I take full responsibility for that. Now that I'm home, it's highly doubtful I will see snow here. At any rate, I'm back, in one piece, but not necessarily sane. And tired, dreadfully tired. Did I mention that I slept in 7 different beds over the two weeks? Twice in my clothes?
I'm back! Yes, after two weeks (7 airports, 6 flights, 3 cities), I'm back on terra firma. The inbox frightens me greatly, the beta reading queue (six fics) terrifies me, and I just realized that school starts on Monday and I have no idea what my schedule looks like. At any rate, my friends on the East Coast blame me for the snow storms of the last two weeks - I take full responsibility for that. Now that I'm home, it's highly doubtful I will see snow here. At any rate, I'm back, in one piece, but not necessarily sane. And tired, dreadfully tired. Did I mention that I slept in 7 different beds over the two weeks? Twice in my clothes?
Monday, December 23, 2002
I dyed my hair today. Or rather highlighted. With hair like mine, it's really the same difference. I'm a kinda red-head now. Or maybe a dark-brown red. Something like that. I've seen one patch where I 'painted' badly and I'm hoping no one will notice (or probably wouldn't notice if I hadn't blogged about it). At any rate, it came out better than I thought it would and this time, I didn't end up dying my face as well (long story - don't ask).
I still haven't started packing. Nothing like putting it off until the last minute, I suppose. I have no idea what to take - or rather, I'm thinking of taking *too* much. I went to Europe for six weeks with a suitcase that fits in an overhead bin (and I had 2 extra pairs of shoes in that bag in addition to the ones on my feet). I kid you not. Now, I'm just going away for 12 days and I'm thinking I'm going to have to take several suitcases. Part of it is because of the kiddos. Have I mentioned the kiddos? There are seven of them - ranging in age from 11 months to 12 or 13 years. I have gifts for all of them. Including two rather large teddy bears. The teddy bears themselves will need their own suitcase, I think.
Hmmm...
Must think on this a bit longer and harder.
I still haven't started packing. Nothing like putting it off until the last minute, I suppose. I have no idea what to take - or rather, I'm thinking of taking *too* much. I went to Europe for six weeks with a suitcase that fits in an overhead bin (and I had 2 extra pairs of shoes in that bag in addition to the ones on my feet). I kid you not. Now, I'm just going away for 12 days and I'm thinking I'm going to have to take several suitcases. Part of it is because of the kiddos. Have I mentioned the kiddos? There are seven of them - ranging in age from 11 months to 12 or 13 years. I have gifts for all of them. Including two rather large teddy bears. The teddy bears themselves will need their own suitcase, I think.
Hmmm...
Must think on this a bit longer and harder.
Sunday, December 22, 2002
Another item for my Christmas wish list
I just found out about a fund based in New York City that is designed to replace the $34 million that the US has withdrawn from the UN's plans on population control - and not because of budgetry reasons either. This includes birth control, education, and AIDS-prevention. According to a December 20th Ellen Goodman column, the $34 million would have "helped prevent 2 million unwanted pregnancies, 800,000 abortions, 4,700 maternal deaths," not to mention 77,000 infant and child deaths. How is this not a good thing? For more information on what the fund actually provides for, check the UNFPA website. You can find about more about the 34 Million Friends campaign specifically here. Note, this fund does not support abortion or fund abortion in any way; its goal is to prevent the spread of AIDs and decrease unwanted pregnancies through the use of education and contraceptives.
If you're interested in contributing to the fund to make up for the United States' withdrawal, you can send your tax-deductible donation here:
U.S. Committee for UNFPA
220 East 42nd Street, 28th floor
New York, NY 10017
I just found out about a fund based in New York City that is designed to replace the $34 million that the US has withdrawn from the UN's plans on population control - and not because of budgetry reasons either. This includes birth control, education, and AIDS-prevention. According to a December 20th Ellen Goodman column, the $34 million would have "helped prevent 2 million unwanted pregnancies, 800,000 abortions, 4,700 maternal deaths," not to mention 77,000 infant and child deaths. How is this not a good thing? For more information on what the fund actually provides for, check the UNFPA website. You can find about more about the 34 Million Friends campaign specifically here. Note, this fund does not support abortion or fund abortion in any way; its goal is to prevent the spread of AIDs and decrease unwanted pregnancies through the use of education and contraceptives.
If you're interested in contributing to the fund to make up for the United States' withdrawal, you can send your tax-deductible donation here:
U.S. Committee for UNFPA
220 East 42nd Street, 28th floor
New York, NY 10017
Saturday, December 21, 2002
Is it just me or did the amount of spam on the Internet just increase? It could be that, as Lori says, the Internet is dead, and so I'm noticing the amount of spam much, much, much more - but really, it's got to be a crime that I get more spam than email I want to read. I want to email Jerry (whoever he is) and tell him I barely can handle buying tires on my own, letting own buying the auto repair shop he thinks I'm interested in. Katie really wants me to come and watch her on her web cam (Sorry, Katie, dial-up and all that, and so I've got to pass. But thanks for asking me to stop by!). I understand that Mrs. Sesko Sesko needs my help urgently enough that she needs to send me five or six emails a day asking for it (on a related note, so you all don't think I'm completely heartless, I did email Mrs. Sesko Sesko back and agreed to transmit all of my financial information to her for a 30 percent cut of the money and for her to come here, rather than me going to Nigeria - she never responded. I can only imagine that her dire circumstances have prevented her from reading email).
The viagra people are insistent that they can help me; I hate to burst their bubble, but no. The dieters claim I can lose up to 25 pounds in five days. Now there's a deal I can't turn down. Someone with no vowels in his names wants to help me succeed on E-Bay. Daniel Williams wants me to "reply now" - sorry, Daniel, I ignore friends and bulkmailers equally, so please don't take it personally. Henry has a way of tripling my portfolio; he obviously hasn't heard about the stock market's effect on my portfolio - how do you triple zero? Great Deals is offering me pasta (Pasta Pro is the best!) for the bargain price of $14.95 (eh, the grocery store sells a bag of spaghetti for about 83 cents. Unemployed me will have to pass on the high class pasta). Carl has tricks to teach me on winning at casino games - great, Carl, but I got your email a few months too late; where were you when I was playing the slots in Monte Carlo this summer? We could have made a killing together! (Actually, I did make six euros in Monte Carlo, after recouping my admission price to the casino and the amount I put into the slot machine at the same time. I also attracted a group of curious Italians who kept speaking to me in, you guessed it, Italian. I think there was a rumble for my slot machine after I finished).
And is anyone else as amused as me if you type in "spam" in the IE address toolbar for a search, the number one result comes back for MSN's new Internet service?
I present to you a fic rerun in dishonor of spam: How to Succeed in Hard Times...
The viagra people are insistent that they can help me; I hate to burst their bubble, but no. The dieters claim I can lose up to 25 pounds in five days. Now there's a deal I can't turn down. Someone with no vowels in his names wants to help me succeed on E-Bay. Daniel Williams wants me to "reply now" - sorry, Daniel, I ignore friends and bulkmailers equally, so please don't take it personally. Henry has a way of tripling my portfolio; he obviously hasn't heard about the stock market's effect on my portfolio - how do you triple zero? Great Deals is offering me pasta (Pasta Pro is the best!) for the bargain price of $14.95 (eh, the grocery store sells a bag of spaghetti for about 83 cents. Unemployed me will have to pass on the high class pasta). Carl has tricks to teach me on winning at casino games - great, Carl, but I got your email a few months too late; where were you when I was playing the slots in Monte Carlo this summer? We could have made a killing together! (Actually, I did make six euros in Monte Carlo, after recouping my admission price to the casino and the amount I put into the slot machine at the same time. I also attracted a group of curious Italians who kept speaking to me in, you guessed it, Italian. I think there was a rumble for my slot machine after I finished).
And is anyone else as amused as me if you type in "spam" in the IE address toolbar for a search, the number one result comes back for MSN's new Internet service?
I present to you a fic rerun in dishonor of spam: How to Succeed in Hard Times...
Friday, December 20, 2002
Whew, finally finished off my holiday cards. Usually I'm done with all this by now but because I didn't finish with exams until the 20th, I only got started yesterday and finished this morning. Now it's time to run to the post office and mail packages off, including a few cards overseas and to Canada for epals. I've already done the "fight the parking lot" dance several times and frankly, I feel rather predatory the way I stalk people coming out of stores in my car, but what's a girl to do?
I have lunch dates set up for next week. One with former coworkers, one down at the capitol to see lots and lots of tuba players and I'm still trying to track down my friend Sarah for coffee for Sunday. Wednesday, I jet. So, those of you in the New York/Boston/St. Louis area, how cold is it? Mind you, I've lived here for almost 5 years now and I've lost most of my New England resistance to cold. And oh yes, it's 70 degrees F at the moment. And sunny. And blue skies.
I have lunch dates set up for next week. One with former coworkers, one down at the capitol to see lots and lots of tuba players and I'm still trying to track down my friend Sarah for coffee for Sunday. Wednesday, I jet. So, those of you in the New York/Boston/St. Louis area, how cold is it? Mind you, I've lived here for almost 5 years now and I've lost most of my New England resistance to cold. And oh yes, it's 70 degrees F at the moment. And sunny. And blue skies.
Wednesday, December 18, 2002
I have an exam today. The very last one of the semester. This was the optional exam I'd hoped to avoid taking, but alas, it wasn't so. It only covers 3 chapters worth of material - 2 of those chapters covering statistics and one chapter on how to write a report. My favorite chapter is the last one, of course.
Tuesday, December 17, 2002
No baking powder. I'm halfway through finishing up the dough for sugar cookies and I have no baking powder. Can I use baking soda instead?
Thing I learned today: if you start a phone call during your Anytime minutes time frame and then cross into your Night & Weekend time frame, your phone call is still billed at the Anytime minutes rate. I just learned that the hard way. A phone call I made - talked 73 minutes - at 8:35 pm in the evening cost me a whooping $30 this month, despite the fact only 25 of those minutes were done during my Anytime minutes time frame (Nights begin for me at 9 pm). Ouch. Anyway, I called the cell phone people and they actually knocked off the charges because I had no idea that that was indeed the case and this was my first time. But boy, talk about sticker shock...
Thing I learned today: if you start a phone call during your Anytime minutes time frame and then cross into your Night & Weekend time frame, your phone call is still billed at the Anytime minutes rate. I just learned that the hard way. A phone call I made - talked 73 minutes - at 8:35 pm in the evening cost me a whooping $30 this month, despite the fact only 25 of those minutes were done during my Anytime minutes time frame (Nights begin for me at 9 pm). Ouch. Anyway, I called the cell phone people and they actually knocked off the charges because I had no idea that that was indeed the case and this was my first time. But boy, talk about sticker shock...
Monday, December 16, 2002
My Christmas Wish List
The things I would like for Christmas. If you were thinking of getting me something, that is. I'd ask you not to, please. I've gotten to a point in my life where 'things' no longer make me happy (well, except for warm socks - I will never turn down a pair of socks). 'Things' do not compare to good health, family and friends. I already have more Parker, Cross and Waterman pens than I know what to do with. My bookshelves are overflowing, my closet is stuffed with clothes I rarely wear. I listen to the same CDs over and over again - don't need anymore. So, if I'm on your Christmas list, these are the things I ask for this year:
These are the things I ask for.
The things I would like for Christmas. If you were thinking of getting me something, that is. I'd ask you not to, please. I've gotten to a point in my life where 'things' no longer make me happy (well, except for warm socks - I will never turn down a pair of socks). 'Things' do not compare to good health, family and friends. I already have more Parker, Cross and Waterman pens than I know what to do with. My bookshelves are overflowing, my closet is stuffed with clothes I rarely wear. I listen to the same CDs over and over again - don't need anymore. So, if I'm on your Christmas list, these are the things I ask for this year:
- Become registered with the American Bone Donor Registry or your country's registry. Please. It takes literally 15 minutes of your time and it's less than two vials of blood. You could save a life. Especially if you're a member of a minority group - minorities are underrepresented in the Donor Bank. So please, if you're between the ages of 18 and 60, consider become a registered member.
- Talk to your family about becoming an organ donor. Twenty thousand people die every year while waiting for a transplant. Consider that by becoming an organ donor, there is the possibility of improving the quality of life for up to 50 people.
- Volunteer for Habitat for Humanity. It's a wonderful opportunity to give back to the community and to help build something that is long-lasting and permanent contribution. And all for just 2 or 3 hours on a Saturday morning.
- December isn't the only time to be generous of spirit, time and money. Another month works just as well, if not better.
- Check all of the batteries in your smoke alarms. And while you're at it, invest in a carbon monoxide detector.
- Do something nice and unexpected for someone you care about. Take them out to lunch, make them cookies, clean up, etc.
- When driving, stop to let pedestrians cross the street. Yield the right of way.
These are the things I ask for.
Sunday, December 15, 2002
The Friend Meme
Gacked from Melina, among others. Can you pick yourself out? Includes LJ and blog people both.
1. One of my oldest and dearest friends online. The only person to have read The Fic That Shall Not Be Mentioned Or Posted. A super-duper beta too who taught me how to spell 'raktajino.'
2. You write novels that I love to print because the small screen simply doesn't do them justice. You're so good at what you do, it's easy to think that a Certain Pairing That Shall Not Be Named, though canon, is so completely wrong.
3. You introduced me to my very first mailing list when I was still going by various nicks. It's been wonderful finding you again.
4. I just met you but already I think you're very cool. And after reading your "Alias" and "X-Files" fics, I'm determined to be you when I grow up.
5. You're stylish and just very cool in that black cape of yours. Not to mention your smurf flares. It's not nice to covet your neighbor's possessions, but if I could just have a bit o'style...
6. You're possibly the best meta blogger out there, the one who continues to be endlessly fascinating no matter what fandom you're talking about.
7. Your Voyager fanfiction made me a fan, not to mention, late for meetings. It was the first time I ever sent FB to someone from work, I was so enthralled by your fanfic. You are missed in Voyager.
8. You filk like no one else. And you're yellow. And lego. You know CSS and you're a Mac user. What's not to love?
9. You gave a list with no purpose a purpose. And then you kept us on purpose even when we started to deviate. Have a good time in London.
10. If I ever do a research project with anyone ever again, it'll be you. Because, you do things in Excel that make me quake in fear. That was one impressive "if then" statement.
11. You have a beautiful and lyrical flow to your writing and you make such ordinary scenes so extraordinary.
12. I don't know you well, but you're on zendom and I stop by your LJ often. I always find something interesting there to read.
13. You've been very patient to wade through most of my fics for the last couple years and I'm still impressed that I haven't scared you away. Even with C/7. I applaud your courage and patience both.
14. I don't know you too well, but I think you write beautiful fic for ENT and should write more. Yes, more. And post to ASC.
15. You. Have. Talent. Don't. Make. Me. Come. Over. There. And. Make. You. Post.
16. You're a good person, kind FBer and fun chatter but somehow you still manage to come out with a very forceful 'no.' How do you do it?
17. You're enormously cool. And you're named after one of my all-time heroines. Hope to see you back around soon. You are missed.
18. I don't know you that well either, but your blog has interesting things in it. I found it when you linked to me. Thanks for sharing your interesting thoughts as it's always pleasant to stop by.
19. I hear wonderful things about you from the Stylish One. Word o' mouth has it that you're a totally fantastic beta.
20. I know you back in VOY fandom and you wrote some of my favorite fanfic in both VOY, Sports Night and X-Files. You're possibly one of the most fluid and stylistic writers I've come across.
21. You saved VOY for me. And you're constantly surprising me with all the sweet things you do. So glad to have found you again and so glad to have a friend like you.
22. Individually, you people absolutely and totally rock. Collectively, you guys are a force of nature, inclined to start blog wars on a moment's notice and go to bat for a friend when necessary. I knew that before, but the Monster Chat o' Doom proved it.
Gacked from Melina, among others. Can you pick yourself out? Includes LJ and blog people both.
1. One of my oldest and dearest friends online. The only person to have read The Fic That Shall Not Be Mentioned Or Posted. A super-duper beta too who taught me how to spell 'raktajino.'
2. You write novels that I love to print because the small screen simply doesn't do them justice. You're so good at what you do, it's easy to think that a Certain Pairing That Shall Not Be Named, though canon, is so completely wrong.
3. You introduced me to my very first mailing list when I was still going by various nicks. It's been wonderful finding you again.
4. I just met you but already I think you're very cool. And after reading your "Alias" and "X-Files" fics, I'm determined to be you when I grow up.
5. You're stylish and just very cool in that black cape of yours. Not to mention your smurf flares. It's not nice to covet your neighbor's possessions, but if I could just have a bit o'style...
6. You're possibly the best meta blogger out there, the one who continues to be endlessly fascinating no matter what fandom you're talking about.
7. Your Voyager fanfiction made me a fan, not to mention, late for meetings. It was the first time I ever sent FB to someone from work, I was so enthralled by your fanfic. You are missed in Voyager.
8. You filk like no one else. And you're yellow. And lego. You know CSS and you're a Mac user. What's not to love?
9. You gave a list with no purpose a purpose. And then you kept us on purpose even when we started to deviate. Have a good time in London.
10. If I ever do a research project with anyone ever again, it'll be you. Because, you do things in Excel that make me quake in fear. That was one impressive "if then" statement.
11. You have a beautiful and lyrical flow to your writing and you make such ordinary scenes so extraordinary.
12. I don't know you well, but you're on zendom and I stop by your LJ often. I always find something interesting there to read.
13. You've been very patient to wade through most of my fics for the last couple years and I'm still impressed that I haven't scared you away. Even with C/7. I applaud your courage and patience both.
14. I don't know you too well, but I think you write beautiful fic for ENT and should write more. Yes, more. And post to ASC.
15. You. Have. Talent. Don't. Make. Me. Come. Over. There. And. Make. You. Post.
16. You're a good person, kind FBer and fun chatter but somehow you still manage to come out with a very forceful 'no.' How do you do it?
17. You're enormously cool. And you're named after one of my all-time heroines. Hope to see you back around soon. You are missed.
18. I don't know you that well either, but your blog has interesting things in it. I found it when you linked to me. Thanks for sharing your interesting thoughts as it's always pleasant to stop by.
19. I hear wonderful things about you from the Stylish One. Word o' mouth has it that you're a totally fantastic beta.
20. I know you back in VOY fandom and you wrote some of my favorite fanfic in both VOY, Sports Night and X-Files. You're possibly one of the most fluid and stylistic writers I've come across.
21. You saved VOY for me. And you're constantly surprising me with all the sweet things you do. So glad to have found you again and so glad to have a friend like you.
22. Individually, you people absolutely and totally rock. Collectively, you guys are a force of nature, inclined to start blog wars on a moment's notice and go to bat for a friend when necessary. I knew that before, but the Monster Chat o' Doom proved it.
Saturday, December 14, 2002
Twenty-three of my classmates have graduated. Yesterday, at the strategy final, was possibly one of the last times I'd see them. One of them has already left the area to return to her native country. It makes me unbelievably sad. I wasn't friends with all of these people, but I was on teams with a few of them, and we did share good times and hard times alike.
I remember seeing some of these people at 3 in the morning. We shared pizzas. We spotted each other money when someone was running short. We were there when something went disasterously, and we were there when things went beautifully. And unlike the outside world, we understood what it really meant to be a first year and what a struggle it was to get through each day; it's impossible to even put into words how much we needed each other even when we didn't necessarily like each other that much. But we always managed to get past the conflicts and the petty arguments to pull it together and get through. And now a fourth of the class - a fourth of the people who survived the first year - are gone.
I felt loss when I returned this fall and discovered that some of my classmates had not qualified to return for a second year. Those departures were so abrupt, as we had not been able to say good-bye and good luck to them, in whatever they tried for in the future. And now, another 23 people are gone. I suspect May will be more difficult when all but one of us from the class of 2003 will be leaving.
So long and good luck, friends. And keep in touch.
I remember seeing some of these people at 3 in the morning. We shared pizzas. We spotted each other money when someone was running short. We were there when something went disasterously, and we were there when things went beautifully. And unlike the outside world, we understood what it really meant to be a first year and what a struggle it was to get through each day; it's impossible to even put into words how much we needed each other even when we didn't necessarily like each other that much. But we always managed to get past the conflicts and the petty arguments to pull it together and get through. And now a fourth of the class - a fourth of the people who survived the first year - are gone.
I felt loss when I returned this fall and discovered that some of my classmates had not qualified to return for a second year. Those departures were so abrupt, as we had not been able to say good-bye and good luck to them, in whatever they tried for in the future. And now, another 23 people are gone. I suspect May will be more difficult when all but one of us from the class of 2003 will be leaving.
So long and good luck, friends. And keep in touch.
Friday, December 13, 2002
So the conversation went something like this.
X: "What happened in chapter 14?"
Me: "Chapter 14? There was a chapter 14?"
X: "It comes after chapter 13."
Me: "I don't remember that one either."
X: "Organizational structure, behavior and matching controls to structures."
Me: "Nope, nada."
X: "Functional? Multidomestic? Global-matrix area?"
Me: "Chapter 13?"
X: "No, chapter 10."
Me: "Chapter 10?"
Okay, so a slight exaggeration. But this was pretty much what all of the conversations were like today in school. Part of me was completely flustered as I scored a 20 on the practice quiz on chapter 13 and though I'd read it like 80 million times, for the life of me, I didn't know what I'd read. No big deal - no one else seemed to know what was in chapters 13 and 14 either. It's like we all got to chapter 12 and our brains gave out.
We were prowling the halls, curled up in little nooks throughout the building, frantically memorizing the book (some people had just opened it for the first time this morning) and trying to figure out the differences between international, multidomestic, global and transnational strategies. Because, they only look the same. The pretty pictures tell you otherwise. Everyone had a mental block. Mine happened to be the last two chapters of the text but other people blanked out on other chapters. This is one exam where groupthink would have been a very Good Thing.
But thankfully, hardly anything from chapters 13 and 14 were on the exam and I feel very, very good about it. For once, I think memorizing an entire textbook (don't try this at home, kids!) paid off for me. To the point where I was sitting in the lounge with a couple of friends and reciting entire diagrams from memory. Scary. I'm going to dream about this stuff in my sleep.
X: "What happened in chapter 14?"
Me: "Chapter 14? There was a chapter 14?"
X: "It comes after chapter 13."
Me: "I don't remember that one either."
X: "Organizational structure, behavior and matching controls to structures."
Me: "Nope, nada."
X: "Functional? Multidomestic? Global-matrix area?"
Me: "Chapter 13?"
X: "No, chapter 10."
Me: "Chapter 10?"
Okay, so a slight exaggeration. But this was pretty much what all of the conversations were like today in school. Part of me was completely flustered as I scored a 20 on the practice quiz on chapter 13 and though I'd read it like 80 million times, for the life of me, I didn't know what I'd read. No big deal - no one else seemed to know what was in chapters 13 and 14 either. It's like we all got to chapter 12 and our brains gave out.
We were prowling the halls, curled up in little nooks throughout the building, frantically memorizing the book (some people had just opened it for the first time this morning) and trying to figure out the differences between international, multidomestic, global and transnational strategies. Because, they only look the same. The pretty pictures tell you otherwise. Everyone had a mental block. Mine happened to be the last two chapters of the text but other people blanked out on other chapters. This is one exam where groupthink would have been a very Good Thing.
But thankfully, hardly anything from chapters 13 and 14 were on the exam and I feel very, very good about it. For once, I think memorizing an entire textbook (don't try this at home, kids!) paid off for me. To the point where I was sitting in the lounge with a couple of friends and reciting entire diagrams from memory. Scary. I'm going to dream about this stuff in my sleep.
The 2002 ASC Awards FAQ is available for comment on a newsgroup near you. Check it out. Please note, you have until January 31st at 11:59 pm to post a story in order to be eligible for this year's Awards.
And now for a rather sanctimonious rant from the soapbox...
And sometime I've been pondering - why is it some people simply don't respond to FB? Why don't they acknowledge they received it? There are several people whom I've sent FB to and I have no idea if they ever got the FB. The first time, I don't think much of it. I figure the FB got lost , but multiple times? I stop FBing. I think there are 2 or 3 authors out there whom I no longer FB, regardless of how much I like their stories because I figure that they don't necessarily care that I read their story or for some reason the FB never gets to them, so I don't see the reason why I should take time to FB them, when I have plenty of other wonderful authors (Lori!) whom I should be reading and FBing instead.
It's a lot like thank you notes. It's fun getting gifts for birthday parties, weddings, graduations, etc, but it's no fun writing the thank you notes afterwards. But never underestimate how important that thank you note is in terms of public relations with the person who gave you the gift in the first place. No one needs to give anyone else a gift - it's not a 'required' thing (okay, maybe some situations require a gift) but someone went out of their way to pick something out, wrap it up and then bring it. That deserves acknowledgement, regardless of personal feelings towards the gift in question. So many people don't write thank you notes these days and that's really sad. But then I've always been a bit on the prim side when it comes to thank you notes; my guests are barely out the door before I've sat down to write them all acknowledgements. Trust me. If you don't do a thank you note, people will notice the omission more than they'll notice the acknowledgement.
And now, back to the books. I think another couple hours on strategy and I'm going to have to be done with the subject (My favorite part of the book is in the last chapter where it tells me that if I just follow the strategies written in the book, I can be an effective CEO. Who knew that after reading that book, I now have the potential to be another Jack Welch or Lee Iaccoca or Jaques Nasser or Lou Gerstner?).
And now for a rather sanctimonious rant from the soapbox...
And sometime I've been pondering - why is it some people simply don't respond to FB? Why don't they acknowledge they received it? There are several people whom I've sent FB to and I have no idea if they ever got the FB. The first time, I don't think much of it. I figure the FB got lost , but multiple times? I stop FBing. I think there are 2 or 3 authors out there whom I no longer FB, regardless of how much I like their stories because I figure that they don't necessarily care that I read their story or for some reason the FB never gets to them, so I don't see the reason why I should take time to FB them, when I have plenty of other wonderful authors (Lori!) whom I should be reading and FBing instead.
It's a lot like thank you notes. It's fun getting gifts for birthday parties, weddings, graduations, etc, but it's no fun writing the thank you notes afterwards. But never underestimate how important that thank you note is in terms of public relations with the person who gave you the gift in the first place. No one needs to give anyone else a gift - it's not a 'required' thing (okay, maybe some situations require a gift) but someone went out of their way to pick something out, wrap it up and then bring it. That deserves acknowledgement, regardless of personal feelings towards the gift in question. So many people don't write thank you notes these days and that's really sad. But then I've always been a bit on the prim side when it comes to thank you notes; my guests are barely out the door before I've sat down to write them all acknowledgements. Trust me. If you don't do a thank you note, people will notice the omission more than they'll notice the acknowledgement.
And now, back to the books. I think another couple hours on strategy and I'm going to have to be done with the subject (My favorite part of the book is in the last chapter where it tells me that if I just follow the strategies written in the book, I can be an effective CEO. Who knew that after reading that book, I now have the potential to be another Jack Welch or Lee Iaccoca or Jaques Nasser or Lou Gerstner?).
Thursday, December 12, 2002
I tried Melina's music meme, found that it was hard and that my brain was exhausted from trying to absorb a semester's worth of strategy in one day. It goes back to my theory that everything learned in a class is learned in the 24 hours preceeding the exam - not during the semester (which, theoretically, would be the smart way of doing it).
I just went and banged on my neighbor's door - She of the Loud Music. I could hear the lyrics - not even the beat, but the actual words. It was all in Spanish and I appreciate Spanish music as much as the next person but not tonight. Tonight is Thursday. I was at school studying from 10 am until 6 pm tonight - 500 pages worth of material. Stuff I'm not even sure I remember (value chain, I do know what a value chain is though) and so I'm relatively cranky and all I want to do is curl up on the sofa with my blanket, have popcorn and watch television. I was planning to crank out an hour or so more of studying tonight, but I'll probably do it tomorrow. Exam isn't until 5:30 in the evening, so I've got the whole day to review the things I'm iffy on.
Still think it's nuts to have just one comprehensive exam. It's impossible to memorize it all and some of you know, even on good days, my memory is seriously lacking.
My application for the second masters' program is coming along nicely. I'm still debating why I'm doing this, considering how unbelievably tired I am of school at the moment and what the heck am I going to do with a second masters' degree anyway? Pulling a Bjorn? Over-education is a family joke so perhaps I'm just falling into tradition that way.
We're going to see Nemesis on Saturday evening. 7 pm show. So I'm sure I'll have much to tell afterwards. With approriate spoilers.
I just went and banged on my neighbor's door - She of the Loud Music. I could hear the lyrics - not even the beat, but the actual words. It was all in Spanish and I appreciate Spanish music as much as the next person but not tonight. Tonight is Thursday. I was at school studying from 10 am until 6 pm tonight - 500 pages worth of material. Stuff I'm not even sure I remember (value chain, I do know what a value chain is though) and so I'm relatively cranky and all I want to do is curl up on the sofa with my blanket, have popcorn and watch television. I was planning to crank out an hour or so more of studying tonight, but I'll probably do it tomorrow. Exam isn't until 5:30 in the evening, so I've got the whole day to review the things I'm iffy on.
Still think it's nuts to have just one comprehensive exam. It's impossible to memorize it all and some of you know, even on good days, my memory is seriously lacking.
My application for the second masters' program is coming along nicely. I'm still debating why I'm doing this, considering how unbelievably tired I am of school at the moment and what the heck am I going to do with a second masters' degree anyway? Pulling a Bjorn? Over-education is a family joke so perhaps I'm just falling into tradition that way.
We're going to see Nemesis on Saturday evening. 7 pm show. So I'm sure I'll have much to tell afterwards. With approriate spoilers.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)