Useless Conversation

[Rasix]

I got out of one of the most depressing work meetings ever. 

"9 out of 24 of you are going to have to work 7 days a week until GA because development can't give us a stable build.  The rest of you might not have anything to do at all due to machine shortages. "  

Just in time for Father's Day!    Still employed at least, but I'd rather be in the sleep-in, eat cheerios, enjoy-the-weekend group.

[Merusk]

Wow, glad I'm not one of the people putting those things together. 

I was just thinking that would be a pretty fun job.   

I wish I had the connections to do that job because it would, indeed, be insanely fun.  Even a bad day building Lego is better than a long day behind a computer.

Did they add any new Lego Sculptures?

Yes, there is a fantastic Snow White set of sculptures.
http://attractionsmagazine.com/blog/2011/04/19/remodeled-lego-store/

My wife and I were there when the sea serpent was in the parking lot of Downtown Disney and we had no idea what it was at the time.

While I'm a little depressed to see those sculptures go after almost 20 years (I remember seeing them there the first time when I went with a GF in college.) the ones they replaced them with are awesome.  The Maleficent/ Philip statue.  I want it.

[SurfD]

I seem to recall that they had little animated diorama type things of various cities along the walls (newyork, paris, london) and the like, as seen from the side.  any idea if those are still there, or did they get replaced?

[Soln]

for all the Bat Country parents:  Audible has Samuel L. Jackson reading this book.  Free download.   

[Yegolev]

I seem to recall that they had little animated diorama type things of various cities along the walls (newyork, paris, london) and the like, as seen from the side.  any idea if those are still there, or did they get replaced?

I don't remember seeing them but I was so amazed I could get inside the store, plus the new sculptures, that I didn't specifically notice.  I did note that the LEGO Store has very nice copper gutters and downspouts.

Also there is a distinct absence of McDonald's now.  The McD next to LEGO is something else now, and you can't get fries in Adventure Land anymore.

[WayAbvPar]

Well, I reiterated my distinct lack of enthusiasm about serving as a juror on a case long enough to use all my paid leave (and then into unpaid absence) during voir dire. Judge and attorneys went into sidebar in the judge's chambers, came back 10 minutes later and excused about 10 jurors, including me. Yay! I would really like to serve in the future if/when I can afford the time; I think the process is really interesting and I feel like it is a civic duty as well.

After being excused I found a couple of news stories about the case-

http://community.seattletimes.nwsource.com/mobile/?type=story&id=2012609410&

http://www.seattlepi.com/local/sound/article/Three-men-charged-in-Skyway-rape-robbery-883230.php

Kinda glad I didn't have to hear any details.

[Morat20]

Holy Flying Crap, I got offered the job I interviewed for yesterday. I'm fucking thrilled. It was the best possible outcome I could have hoped for, short of winning the lottery.

Same contract, keep the same company, just move to a different building six blocks away, and get to play with an award-winning piece of science and engineering software (I'll be one of the GUI designers using some C++ GUI library I probably should have heard of. I know fuck-all about GUIs. I apparently got this on the strength of knowing C++, having a heavier math background than most applicants, and apparently realizing that "Team" means "You're not a fucking lone wolf" and "GUI" means "It has to work for both the customers and the guys doing the actual analysis coding. Make it awesome and pretty if you can, but make it useable for the important people first.").

I'm fucking stoked. And as soon as the paperwork is signed, I'm replacing my POS 9 year old PC. I'm trying to remind myself that alienware is overpriced LED-strewn crap, but my internal monitor is saying "Yes, but it's SHINY" and "You don't have to build it yourself!".

[Yegolev]

Great news!

[Reg]

Congrats Morat! Get your wife those ridiculous knives and buy TWO Alienwares! 

[JWIV]

Congrats Morat!

[Lantyssa]

Woo!  Years of video games payed off!

[Morat20]

Congrats Morat! Get your wife those ridiculous knives and buy TWO Alienwares! 

lol. Sadly I'm merely not facing unemployment. I might get a tiny pay bump out of it, but unlikely. But I have salted away quite a bit of money the last 18 months, and while I fully plan to be responsible and keep the bulk of my "oh shit, sudden unemployment/car wreck/house explodes" cash safely stored, I think I can arrange for a thousand or so to find it's way to a new PC.

It really is amazing how much money you can save when you're worried. Currently it's only about 4 months salary, but even tapping it for a new computer and a few major expenses I've been putting off, I should have it to six months by this time next year. It also doubles as my "If I want to get a new house down-payment money".

[Soln]

congrats Sir

[RhyssaFireheart]

Congrats, Morat!

[Merusk]

It really is amazing how much money you can save when you're worried.

Indeed.  It's also amazing how much you can save on monthly expenses when you stop working.  After the last bout with unemployment in January-March I've cut the home expenses back even more because of that realization. I should probably start sending this extra to student loans instead of sitting on it, tempting myself.

[Yegolev]

The thing that irritates me is how certain unnamed family members aren't worried at all about saving money until incomes start declining.  Motherfuckers are not complaining that the house is too warm now that we're on a budget.

[Merusk]

On that note I discovered my daughter turned the house down to 69 the other day (she's 12 and stays at home now while we work)  because it was "too hot" on the 2nd floor at 3pm in the west-facing game room when she was sitting in the sun.

 There are times when parents consider harm to their kids as lessons..

[Morat20]

On that note I discovered my daughter turned the house down to 69 the other day (she's 12 and stays at home now while we work)  because it was "too hot" on the 2nd floor at 3pm in the west-facing game room when she was sitting in the sun.

 There are times when parents consider harm to their kids as lessons..

I'm planting a  tree  -- possibly two -- to fix exactly that problem. Bradford Pear, I think is the name of the tree I decided on. My home improvements for this year are the trees, re-weatherstriping my doors, and having my AC properly balanced.

Also, I just ordered u-verse. AGAIN. Hopefully third-time is the time where "The system shows you are in range" and "actually being in range" are identical. I know they've been upgrading the neighborhood.

[Yegolev]

Bradford Pear

A.k.a. the tree that The Happening was based on or perhaps written by.

Also, I just ordered u-verse. AGAIN. Hopefully third-time is the time where "The system shows you are in range" and "actually being in range" are identical. I know they've been upgrading the neighborhood.

Wire quality is a bitch with VDSL.  My initial measurement was 5000+ which is completely wrong since I can see the DSLAM from my house.  The temp cable measured much closer, and the shielded/trenched one measured perhaps even closer than the real distance.  So... good luck!

[Morat20]

By the way, anyone ever heard of or have any experience with wxWidgets?

[WayAbvPar]

Grats Morat! hi-5, Diablo 3 buddy 

[Morat20]

Grats Morat! hi-5, Diablo 3 buddy 

That, Starcraft 2 and LoTRO did cross my mind.

[Ingmar]

The crown replacement was $100 cheaper than they initially told me, yay?

Altho, my faith ith numb. Worst part about dental work.

[Sand]

Has anyone else noticed people these days having much thinner skins?

I have a board meeting in D.C. this weekend. Leaving tomorrow for it.
Lots of financial difficulties some of which occurred under members still serving on the board, yet they get their panties in a wad when I ask for physical paperwork on certain financial situations.
"What you dont trust me?!?"
No fuck nuts I dont. If you were trustworthy or had an iota of brain cells we wouldnt be in the present financial mess we are in. 
Dont even get me started on the idiot board members who dont want to do any actual work and are only on the board to pad their resumes/social contacts.
If I get through the weekend without stabbing someone in the face with a ball point pen I will consider it a success.


Wife got her annual review today. No promotion to partner but got a 30% pay raise instead. We can now afford the bathroom remodel and the thought of children. 

[Paelos]

That's the life of an auditor.

Me: "Can you tell me where you keep XYZ documents?"
Them: "Why?"
Me: "...Because I'm auditing those areas."
Them: "Why don't I find them and email them to you later?"
Me: "I need them now to finish this section."
Them: "What you don't trust us to get them to you?"
Me: "I did before we had this conversation."

[Morat20]

*snort*. I had this come down the pike today:

MANAGEMENT:" LISTEN UP YOU LIST OF 40 PEOPLE, WHY DIDN'T YOU TAKE THIS SURVEY TWO MONTHS AGO?"
US: "Because it looked like yet another mass company email about a voluntary survey and we didn't click on it, because we have work to do?"
MANAGEMENT: "IT WASN'T VOLUNTARY. UPPER MANAGEMENT WANTS TO KNOW WHAT YOU THOUGHT WAS SO IMPORTANT YOU COULDN'T DO THE SURVEY. DO IT NOW."
Us: "Jesus, it's done. Maybe you should somehow differentiate 'Shit management will care about' from 'shit that's voluntary'."
MANAGEMENT: "EMAIL US A SCREENCAP OF YOUR COMPELETED SURVEY. APPARENTLY IT'S ALL SCREWED UP AND NOT TELLING US YOU'RE DONE"
Us: "And this is the sort of reason we don't like doing your surveys...."

Seriously, apparently my name has floated to the top because I missed a mandatory survey that floated by in February. The survey itself, no shit, amounted to "Do you know you're not allowed to be bribed?" with three responses "Yes." "Yes, but I'd like more information on what constitutes bribery, have HR contact me" and "Yes, also I've seen someone take a bribe".

One question, three choices. I actually dug back to the original email -- it was formatted exactly the same as the two or three company wide feedback surveys they do a month. The 'this is mandatory' was at the bottom of the email, which I didn't get to, having tuned out at 'company wide survey'.

[JWIV]

*snort*. I had this come down the pike today:

MANAGEMENT:" LISTEN UP YOU LIST OF 40 PEOPLE, WHY DIDN'T YOU TAKE THIS SURVEY TWO MONTHS AGO?"
US: "Because it looked like yet another mass company email about a voluntary survey and we didn't click on it, because we have work to do?"
MANAGEMENT: "IT WASN'T VOLUNTARY. UPPER MANAGEMENT WANTS TO KNOW WHAT YOU THOUGHT WAS SO IMPORTANT YOU COULDN'T DO THE SURVEY. DO IT NOW."
Us: "Jesus, it's done. Maybe you should somehow differentiate 'Shit management will care about' from 'shit that's voluntary'."
MANAGEMENT: "EMAIL US A SCREENCAP OF YOUR COMPELETED SURVEY. APPARENTLY IT'S ALL SCREWED UP AND NOT TELLING US YOU'RE DONE"
Us: "And this is the sort of reason we don't like doing your surveys...."

Seriously, apparently my name has floated to the top because I missed a mandatory survey that floated by in February. The survey itself, no shit, amounted to "Do you know you're not allowed to be bribed?" with three responses "Yes." "Yes, but I'd like more information on what constitutes bribery, have HR contact me" and "Yes, also I've seen someone take a bribe".

One question, three choices. I actually dug back to the original email -- it was formatted exactly the same as the two or three company wide feedback surveys they do a month. The 'this is mandatory' was at the bottom of the email, which I didn't get to, having tuned out at 'company wide survey'.

We had something similar here - only ours was actually labelled voluntary, nobody did it, and then upper management got their panties in a wad that nobody took their stupid voluntary survey.  At which point, it came down the food chain that we were all required to complete the survey immediately.

[Paelos]

That's awful

[Bunk]

On the other hand, people in offices are horrible at reading thier emails and actually comprehending them.

I've actually sent out an email that stated "This is a test to see if you read my emails, please reply to it to show that you do." and gotten around a 50% response rate. This is not to peers either mind you, this is to people who are actually required to listen to me.

[Lantyssa]

I've taken to asking my questions numbered and in short phrases, else they'll give me half an answer, and never for the bit I actually need direction on.

Even then I'm lucky if they give me what I need.

[RhyssaFireheart]

Ugh, company surveys rather make me glad I'm a contractor, since we get weeded out for some of those.

And today's department pot luck was simply delicious!  MmMmmMmmMmmmm!  I think it's funtastic to try out different kinds of food and since the dept is about 50% Indian, it's even better because I love Indian food.  There was this rice pudding that isn't anything like "typical" rice pudding.. and other treats.  But my pretzel jello was a big hit, so I'm happy with that, too.

[Morat20]

On the other hand, people in offices are horrible at reading thier emails and actually comprehending them.

I've actually sent out an email that stated "This is a test to see if you read my emails, please reply to it to show that you do." and gotten around a 50% response rate. This is not to peers either mind you, this is to people who are actually required to listen to me.

Here's a hint: Put something useful in the title. In my experience, the more recipeients an email has, the less likely it is to be read. Same with regular emails (reoccuring meeting invitations, etc).

I read every personal email. I skim meeting emails, and generally disregard the "Company Today" type stuff.

[Bunk]

Yea I know, I do what I can to make the important ones catch their attention. It bugs me the most, because I'm one of those anal types regarding company email that has 2.5 GBs worth of PST folders on my machine, with every email I've gotten back to 2003.

And yes, I have had to open those archives up and locate five year old emails for actual important reasons on more than one occasion. Then I get the joy of dealing with customers that can't locate an email the supposedly sent to us three weeks ago.

[HaemishM]

On the other hand, people in offices are horrible at reading thier emails and actually comprehending them.

I've actually sent out an email that stated "This is a test to see if you read my emails, please reply to it to show that you do." and gotten around a 50% response rate. This is not to peers either mind you, this is to people who are actually required to listen to me.

If they are like me, they are so goddamn busy, everybody in the office knows you are super busy yet they will send you piddling emails that amount to 5 seconds of work but to do that 5 seconds will break your flow on everything else you have to do so you skim the email until someone comes to bitch about you not doing the piddling thing. I get those a lot. If it's really that important, you'll follow up with me when I forget.

[Paelos]

Email is a terrible way to get results from anyone. Proven fact.