Dullness and Depression
Not working has got to be the most consistently dull situation of all. A boring job would be less dull than the tediousness of looking at the same jobs advertised week after week after day after day, not to mention the depression of not getting any of them (sorry, so many candidates - and you're not one of them). Sure, I could sit around and watch t.v. all day; I could even watch endless videos if I had the income to support the rental volume required. I am reading "Look Homeward, Angel," and that will take up a bit of intellectual effort and the time dripping through my fingers, but I think more is needed for a fulfilling life than catching up on re-reading my entire library. Unfortunately, blogging doesn't seem to pay (not that I have a large enough audience to even warrant sticking a Paypal account link here). Perhaps I should learn a musical instrument. Recorders are probably pretty inexpensive. Twinkle, twinkle, little bat . . . now I know I'm losing it.
30 October 2003
23 October 2003
Hands Across the Waters
I've added Expats Against Bush to my weblog community block, although I'm not technically an expat myself. It seems worthwhile, however, to remind and provide a resource for expats who may come here that Bush II is bad for America in the world at large and there are others out there - a support group of a kind.
I've added Expats Against Bush to my weblog community block, although I'm not technically an expat myself. It seems worthwhile, however, to remind and provide a resource for expats who may come here that Bush II is bad for America in the world at large and there are others out there - a support group of a kind.
22 October 2003
Years
I don’t know how I missed it, although the flu may have had an effect, but it’s been a year since I moved to Sydney. A lot has happened: M.’s grandfather, Johnny, died, we got a new apartment, I got a job and the job dried up and blew away. . . . A year’s a long time, although it doesn’t seem so when you look back at it. When I think of all the years yet to come, depending on the perspective I bring to it, the next twenty can seem short or long, but I know that there will be a lot happening in the future that will affect me (even more that won’t), and I know that as each year passes I’ll look back on it and wonder where the time all went to. It’ll probably be a while yet before I have an Australian accent, but.
I don’t know how I missed it, although the flu may have had an effect, but it’s been a year since I moved to Sydney. A lot has happened: M.’s grandfather, Johnny, died, we got a new apartment, I got a job and the job dried up and blew away. . . . A year’s a long time, although it doesn’t seem so when you look back at it. When I think of all the years yet to come, depending on the perspective I bring to it, the next twenty can seem short or long, but I know that there will be a lot happening in the future that will affect me (even more that won’t), and I know that as each year passes I’ll look back on it and wonder where the time all went to. It’ll probably be a while yet before I have an Australian accent, but.
21 October 2003
Have a Copy of Argosy While You Wait
When Bush II was still just the dauphin, running for office against Gore, I lived in fear the country would be stupid enough to elect him. It was a very close thing, close enough that he did become President. Even at my far remove geographically from the incipient race of ’04, I take great interest in the Democratic doings, particularly those of Dean, Kerry, and Edwards. I don’t put much stock in Gephardt, and none in Mosely-Braun or Sharpton or the little UFOlogist, but the others look like the contenders needed to unseat the usurper, so I’m keeping my eye on them. I was put on to Edwards by an article in the New Yorker, and I still find him a viable candidate for all his campaign’s lack of momentum, such as that enjoyed by Dean. David Brooks’ op-ed piece in the NY Times points out a failing in my party that I think Dean ought to look at, but probably won’t. Although Gore had the election stolen by the Supremes, and arguably Bush won in the Electoral College, the popular vote is what swings these events if you have the real numbers – not a few hundred or a thousand in Florida, but the big numbers in the fly-over states. Edwards’ campaign may have the appeal in those places more than Dean’s, but if the doctor could get in with Floyd the barber just as well. It also makes me think of Flannery O’Connor stories, but that’s a fear with a slightly different source, so we’ll let that pass for now.
When Bush II was still just the dauphin, running for office against Gore, I lived in fear the country would be stupid enough to elect him. It was a very close thing, close enough that he did become President. Even at my far remove geographically from the incipient race of ’04, I take great interest in the Democratic doings, particularly those of Dean, Kerry, and Edwards. I don’t put much stock in Gephardt, and none in Mosely-Braun or Sharpton or the little UFOlogist, but the others look like the contenders needed to unseat the usurper, so I’m keeping my eye on them. I was put on to Edwards by an article in the New Yorker, and I still find him a viable candidate for all his campaign’s lack of momentum, such as that enjoyed by Dean. David Brooks’ op-ed piece in the NY Times points out a failing in my party that I think Dean ought to look at, but probably won’t. Although Gore had the election stolen by the Supremes, and arguably Bush won in the Electoral College, the popular vote is what swings these events if you have the real numbers – not a few hundred or a thousand in Florida, but the big numbers in the fly-over states. Edwards’ campaign may have the appeal in those places more than Dean’s, but if the doctor could get in with Floyd the barber just as well. It also makes me think of Flannery O’Connor stories, but that’s a fear with a slightly different source, so we’ll let that pass for now.
350 Covers and Beyond
Back in the day, when Outside Counsel and The Knitter were living in Brooklyn, Smith Street wasn’t much of a place one wanted to be after dark, neither was it noted for the culinary arts, despite the corner grocery with the fresh smoked mozzarella. For the past few years, this area has been coming up, by all food critic accounts, and suddenly, it’s got the best restaurant in town. Statistically, anyway, and we all know about statistics.
Back in the day, when Outside Counsel and The Knitter were living in Brooklyn, Smith Street wasn’t much of a place one wanted to be after dark, neither was it noted for the culinary arts, despite the corner grocery with the fresh smoked mozzarella. For the past few years, this area has been coming up, by all food critic accounts, and suddenly, it’s got the best restaurant in town. Statistically, anyway, and we all know about statistics.
Provocation
When you are a professional athlete – even a baseball player (they’re more athletic than they often appear) – you have an obligation to conduct yourself with non-athletes with physical restraint. You are likely to be stronger, and unless your sport is boxing, fighting isn’t what you’re employed to do anyway. If anything marred the post-season this year, it was the conduct of the Yankees and Red Sox in the playoffs. Beanings are “part of baseball” (fatuous – there’s no need to throw at anyone’s head), but brawling with the grounds crew? It’s only right that the police charge Jeff Nelson and Karim Garcia. They’re not children that some taunts from a guy with a rake should send them into such a fury.
When you are a professional athlete – even a baseball player (they’re more athletic than they often appear) – you have an obligation to conduct yourself with non-athletes with physical restraint. You are likely to be stronger, and unless your sport is boxing, fighting isn’t what you’re employed to do anyway. If anything marred the post-season this year, it was the conduct of the Yankees and Red Sox in the playoffs. Beanings are “part of baseball” (fatuous – there’s no need to throw at anyone’s head), but brawling with the grounds crew? It’s only right that the police charge Jeff Nelson and Karim Garcia. They’re not children that some taunts from a guy with a rake should send them into such a fury.
20 October 2003
Laid Off, Laid Out, Lay About
While the job search continues (if not apace or aplenty, it is yet afoot), M. and I spent last week down with more ‘flu than seems absolutely necessary, so when we could muster the strength to do so, we’d gather a few videos in and spend our sick time on a film festival of sorts: Zelig plus Sweet and Lowdown, both of which I’ve seen (S&L with M.), but which share the false documentary stylings of Woody Allen, which can be entertaining indeed and which I think make S&L a better movie than it would have been otherwise. We also watched Punch Drunk Love, the touted Paul Thomas Anderson movie with Adam Sandler. I think it was touted because Sandler’s movies are usually unwatchable and the role was a significant departure for him – call it the Jim Carrey/Truman Show effect. PDL was very pretty, even poetic, but not a great filmic experience.
Now that M. & I are back on our feet, time is spent in productive pursuits – at least from an income perspective, we hope so.
While the job search continues (if not apace or aplenty, it is yet afoot), M. and I spent last week down with more ‘flu than seems absolutely necessary, so when we could muster the strength to do so, we’d gather a few videos in and spend our sick time on a film festival of sorts: Zelig plus Sweet and Lowdown, both of which I’ve seen (S&L with M.), but which share the false documentary stylings of Woody Allen, which can be entertaining indeed and which I think make S&L a better movie than it would have been otherwise. We also watched Punch Drunk Love, the touted Paul Thomas Anderson movie with Adam Sandler. I think it was touted because Sandler’s movies are usually unwatchable and the role was a significant departure for him – call it the Jim Carrey/Truman Show effect. PDL was very pretty, even poetic, but not a great filmic experience.
Now that M. & I are back on our feet, time is spent in productive pursuits – at least from an income perspective, we hope so.
15 October 2003
09 October 2003
The Government You Deserve
Schwarzenegger is Governor of California. If Pumping Iron is any indicator – and not his fictional roles (Hercules in NY, Conan, etc.) – then I suppose politically he might be quite an adept operator. As for effective governance, Outside Counsel is probably correct in that Arnold will be the front man to a group of pros. But I don’t expect to see any positive results, really, because the man’s a Republican and bills himself as a businessman. That’s the same profile GWB uses.
Schwarzenegger is Governor of California. If Pumping Iron is any indicator – and not his fictional roles (Hercules in NY, Conan, etc.) – then I suppose politically he might be quite an adept operator. As for effective governance, Outside Counsel is probably correct in that Arnold will be the front man to a group of pros. But I don’t expect to see any positive results, really, because the man’s a Republican and bills himself as a businessman. That’s the same profile GWB uses.
05 October 2003
Which Way the Wind Blows
Last night our friend George stopped by on his way to the cinema and we ended up making a night out of it, getting some lovely Thai stir-fries and being among all of ten people tops at the early evening showing of The Weather Underground, a new documentary on the SDS radicals who attempted to "bring the war home" and include America in the perceived world revolution going on during 1969-75. Along with the cringe-inducing exploration of the state-sponsored repression of dissent in the U.S. at the time - more than sometimes violent, and including the use of police as de facto death squads - and the ludicrous rhetoric of the far left movement, the movie also manages to allow a real understanding of the kind of ethical dilemmas faced by these individuals. How do you allow your country, a democratic nation founded essentially on the principle that the government represents the people, acts on their behalf - how do you allow that country to perpetrate and persist in an unjust war? And how, then, do you act, if you want to ensure that war is ended? Can you not be a participant in the violence if you do not act out? Especially frightening is listening to Nixon stand firm against the many hundreds of thousands protesting his policies and actions in Vietnam and Southeast Asia with exactly the same words and determination Bush II uses today defending his policies and actions in Iraq. We may not need a weatherman to tell which way the wind blows, as the Dylan song goes that gave these radicals their name, but maybe we need a little of the determination of the Weathermen to get us into the streets again. Without the pipe bombs, of course.
Last night our friend George stopped by on his way to the cinema and we ended up making a night out of it, getting some lovely Thai stir-fries and being among all of ten people tops at the early evening showing of The Weather Underground, a new documentary on the SDS radicals who attempted to "bring the war home" and include America in the perceived world revolution going on during 1969-75. Along with the cringe-inducing exploration of the state-sponsored repression of dissent in the U.S. at the time - more than sometimes violent, and including the use of police as de facto death squads - and the ludicrous rhetoric of the far left movement, the movie also manages to allow a real understanding of the kind of ethical dilemmas faced by these individuals. How do you allow your country, a democratic nation founded essentially on the principle that the government represents the people, acts on their behalf - how do you allow that country to perpetrate and persist in an unjust war? And how, then, do you act, if you want to ensure that war is ended? Can you not be a participant in the violence if you do not act out? Especially frightening is listening to Nixon stand firm against the many hundreds of thousands protesting his policies and actions in Vietnam and Southeast Asia with exactly the same words and determination Bush II uses today defending his policies and actions in Iraq. We may not need a weatherman to tell which way the wind blows, as the Dylan song goes that gave these radicals their name, but maybe we need a little of the determination of the Weathermen to get us into the streets again. Without the pipe bombs, of course.
29 September 2003
Careering
Part of the cost of terminating the project I was working on was for the company to hire an outplacement firm to counsel all the redundant staff. I get a lovely little portfolio, essentially unlimited internet time, a copier and fax machine and printer - all the amenities. I'm not sure but I'd rather they spent the money by handing me more cash, but I'm not particularly hopeful they'd have done it, so I'll take what I can get. Outplacement is another of those terms that don't seem to quite fit with what they mean. In this case, I'm already "out" and looking for placement elsewhere, and the service provided is largely a do-it-yourself program. We make the best of these things. I can dress down all the time now, for example. It's not much, but at least I'm comfortable. And as for becoming a jackaroo, as has been suggested, well if some molly-coddle British royal can do it, so can I! Yippie-yi-yo.
Part of the cost of terminating the project I was working on was for the company to hire an outplacement firm to counsel all the redundant staff. I get a lovely little portfolio, essentially unlimited internet time, a copier and fax machine and printer - all the amenities. I'm not sure but I'd rather they spent the money by handing me more cash, but I'm not particularly hopeful they'd have done it, so I'll take what I can get. Outplacement is another of those terms that don't seem to quite fit with what they mean. In this case, I'm already "out" and looking for placement elsewhere, and the service provided is largely a do-it-yourself program. We make the best of these things. I can dress down all the time now, for example. It's not much, but at least I'm comfortable. And as for becoming a jackaroo, as has been suggested, well if some molly-coddle British royal can do it, so can I! Yippie-yi-yo.
26 September 2003
Suit and Tie
If nothing else, I get to forego the corporate uniform for a while. Actually, it was kind of interesting to observe the cultural shift moving from the Soho-based publisher in NYC to the global behemoth in the Sydney suburbs, in that a suit was mandatory. Turns out that was the influence of the South African military-trained project director more than anything else, and when he was gone, the ties mostly went, too. Nevertheless, now that I'm spending time in Martin Place, kind of the heart of the CBD, I see that the standard is very broad indeed, if not quite so liberal as extended to Soho. Next up: a beer on the balcony.
If nothing else, I get to forego the corporate uniform for a while. Actually, it was kind of interesting to observe the cultural shift moving from the Soho-based publisher in NYC to the global behemoth in the Sydney suburbs, in that a suit was mandatory. Turns out that was the influence of the South African military-trained project director more than anything else, and when he was gone, the ties mostly went, too. Nevertheless, now that I'm spending time in Martin Place, kind of the heart of the CBD, I see that the standard is very broad indeed, if not quite so liberal as extended to Soho. Next up: a beer on the balcony.
25 September 2003
Redundant
I've never quite understood the British usage of this word. To me, redundant means extra, superfluous, duplicative. When an employee is made redundant, however, it isn't because the company's hired someone else to do that job (ostensibly, although I'm sure it happens), but rather that the job itself is eliminated, usually along with a few others. Not by computers, mind you, which don't actually replace workers as displace them, similar to the effect computers have had on office paper production (which was to increase it dramatically). Similarly, "retrenched" - what does that mean? If there are meant to be connotations with trench warfare, wouldn't a worker be retrenched by moving them from one job to another, that is, moving them from one trench to another? It doesn't matter, I guess, so long as you get your redundancy payout. And I'm still out of a job. Well, at least I can still say I've never been fired, since technically I've been "let go." (As if they could have stopped me, given half a chance - never mind, I'm being bitter.) Well, there's some benefit in having survived the past four months since the first layoffs, in that most of them will have gotten jobs by now, so I don't face quite as much competition as I would have. Meanwhile, once I've got a few resumes out the door, this looks like a good time to preview the beach. Perhaps tomorrow while I'm out and about papering my resume around the CBD, I'll stop and get a cheap Eski (n.b. to non-Australian readers: think about the abbreviation, and it will come clear. Yes, Eskimo, so ice, and therefore cooler. It all makes sense, doesn't it?).
I've never quite understood the British usage of this word. To me, redundant means extra, superfluous, duplicative. When an employee is made redundant, however, it isn't because the company's hired someone else to do that job (ostensibly, although I'm sure it happens), but rather that the job itself is eliminated, usually along with a few others. Not by computers, mind you, which don't actually replace workers as displace them, similar to the effect computers have had on office paper production (which was to increase it dramatically). Similarly, "retrenched" - what does that mean? If there are meant to be connotations with trench warfare, wouldn't a worker be retrenched by moving them from one job to another, that is, moving them from one trench to another? It doesn't matter, I guess, so long as you get your redundancy payout. And I'm still out of a job. Well, at least I can still say I've never been fired, since technically I've been "let go." (As if they could have stopped me, given half a chance - never mind, I'm being bitter.) Well, there's some benefit in having survived the past four months since the first layoffs, in that most of them will have gotten jobs by now, so I don't face quite as much competition as I would have. Meanwhile, once I've got a few resumes out the door, this looks like a good time to preview the beach. Perhaps tomorrow while I'm out and about papering my resume around the CBD, I'll stop and get a cheap Eski (n.b. to non-Australian readers: think about the abbreviation, and it will come clear. Yes, Eskimo, so ice, and therefore cooler. It all makes sense, doesn't it?).
22 September 2003
Swans on the Grass, Alas
For all the time I spent out by the Olympic Park when I first started working, I didn’t make much effort to walk around and see it. For the most part, the grounds are dominated by the (now) Telstra Stadium, a gigantic venue holding about 80,000. So Saturday night was a bit of a tourist venture as well as an opportunity to attend the Swans bid to go to the Grand Finals of Aussie Rules football. Only 71,000 were in attendance, but even at that it was quite a crowd, with quite a lot of red-and-white on display. (I have to give the Park designers some credit, as well as to the overall Aussie character, in that everyone proceeded in and out along the roadways and parking garages smoothly and efficiently.) The field of play is significantly larger than the Swans home field at the Sydney Cricket Grounds, but unlike American “gridiron,” the goal posts are set at the ends of the oval regardless of its size. This may have been a factor in the humiliating loss the Swans suffered at the hands of the Brisbane Lions. Sure, I enjoyed the game, and I don’t have the dilemma of being asked if I’d like to buy a ticket for the Grand Final (which would have been expensive as well as hard to resist), but it was too bad they didn’t win. The Lions, with the assistance of what appeared to be some pretty dodgy calls in the first quarter, handled the ball very well indeed, especially in the air, while Sydney never managed their air game well at all, except perhaps in the third quarter, where they overcame a significant deficit, only to lose it all again and more in the 4th. Their ground game, where AFL is at its least effective from what I can see, was spent mostly on the bottom of a tackle. I figure the week off they had put Sydney at an over-rested disadvantage, which combined with Brisbane’s squad of veteran players probably meant the outcome was never as much in doubt as I’d gone in thinking.
For all the time I spent out by the Olympic Park when I first started working, I didn’t make much effort to walk around and see it. For the most part, the grounds are dominated by the (now) Telstra Stadium, a gigantic venue holding about 80,000. So Saturday night was a bit of a tourist venture as well as an opportunity to attend the Swans bid to go to the Grand Finals of Aussie Rules football. Only 71,000 were in attendance, but even at that it was quite a crowd, with quite a lot of red-and-white on display. (I have to give the Park designers some credit, as well as to the overall Aussie character, in that everyone proceeded in and out along the roadways and parking garages smoothly and efficiently.) The field of play is significantly larger than the Swans home field at the Sydney Cricket Grounds, but unlike American “gridiron,” the goal posts are set at the ends of the oval regardless of its size. This may have been a factor in the humiliating loss the Swans suffered at the hands of the Brisbane Lions. Sure, I enjoyed the game, and I don’t have the dilemma of being asked if I’d like to buy a ticket for the Grand Final (which would have been expensive as well as hard to resist), but it was too bad they didn’t win. The Lions, with the assistance of what appeared to be some pretty dodgy calls in the first quarter, handled the ball very well indeed, especially in the air, while Sydney never managed their air game well at all, except perhaps in the third quarter, where they overcame a significant deficit, only to lose it all again and more in the 4th. Their ground game, where AFL is at its least effective from what I can see, was spent mostly on the bottom of a tackle. I figure the week off they had put Sydney at an over-rested disadvantage, which combined with Brisbane’s squad of veteran players probably meant the outcome was never as much in doubt as I’d gone in thinking.
19 September 2003
It’s a (Too) Small World
If the Disneyification of NYC had continued just a little longer – and it might yet – the subways could have looked quite a bit different than the current model. An interesting example of psychological torture, or an attempt to pre-empt the graffiti taggers? (Thanks, Big White Guy.)
If the Disneyification of NYC had continued just a little longer – and it might yet – the subways could have looked quite a bit different than the current model. An interesting example of psychological torture, or an attempt to pre-empt the graffiti taggers? (Thanks, Big White Guy.)
Eisenhower
There have been only a few career military men in the White House (right now occupied by a hot dogging National Guard AWOL), so the entry of Wesley Clark into the Democratic candidates line-up is an interesting development beyond the fact that it increases the field to an unwieldy 10 potentials. But what does it mean, and is he any good? From where I sit (on the other side of the planet, looking forward to a visit to the embassy next November – no, not really, just an absentee ballot), Dean’s looked like the man to beat. Clark’s hat in the ring seems to reduce Deans’ chances, potentially making better candidates out of Kerry and Edwards, hopefully making it all the move obvious what a bad choice that creep Lieberman would be. There’s also been a good deal of vibe about a Dean-Clark ticket, and I could see that, but only just as much as I can see any of the others doing the same thing. I wonder if a Clark-Dean ticket would be more than just alphabetical?
There have been only a few career military men in the White House (right now occupied by a hot dogging National Guard AWOL), so the entry of Wesley Clark into the Democratic candidates line-up is an interesting development beyond the fact that it increases the field to an unwieldy 10 potentials. But what does it mean, and is he any good? From where I sit (on the other side of the planet, looking forward to a visit to the embassy next November – no, not really, just an absentee ballot), Dean’s looked like the man to beat. Clark’s hat in the ring seems to reduce Deans’ chances, potentially making better candidates out of Kerry and Edwards, hopefully making it all the move obvious what a bad choice that creep Lieberman would be. There’s also been a good deal of vibe about a Dean-Clark ticket, and I could see that, but only just as much as I can see any of the others doing the same thing. I wonder if a Clark-Dean ticket would be more than just alphabetical?
Correction
I really ought to look at this thing more often to see if it's working as expected. Here I saw this great new Blogger feature, a field to enter a title on each post, which was added to the "featureless" product following the elimination of the fee-based Blogger-Pro. No more formatting a headline to my posts, just type and go. Well, it turns out not to be so. I'm not sure what the point of this feature is, and I'm not using it. In fact, I've gone back over the week's posts and added back the headlines that were sitting in the title field, uselessly. I ought to move to a new 'blogging medium, but look what happened to Outside Counsel after he started threatening such a change.
I really ought to look at this thing more often to see if it's working as expected. Here I saw this great new Blogger feature, a field to enter a title on each post, which was added to the "featureless" product following the elimination of the fee-based Blogger-Pro. No more formatting a headline to my posts, just type and go. Well, it turns out not to be so. I'm not sure what the point of this feature is, and I'm not using it. In fact, I've gone back over the week's posts and added back the headlines that were sitting in the title field, uselessly. I ought to move to a new 'blogging medium, but look what happened to Outside Counsel after he started threatening such a change.
Can’t Get Enough of Politics
The DNC is running a weblog, just in case you are so addicted to reading these things that you’ll even follow the content posted by a faceless political organization. The GOP apparently eschews such plebeian technological usages.
The DNC is running a weblog, just in case you are so addicted to reading these things that you’ll even follow the content posted by a faceless political organization. The GOP apparently eschews such plebeian technological usages.
Blue Skies, 25? C
If there’s a rainy season here, I must have missed it. Meanwhile, back in NYC, they’re expecting 60 mph winds and lotsa rain. Looks like it missed M&P, at least the center, anyway.
If there’s a rainy season here, I must have missed it. Meanwhile, back in NYC, they’re expecting 60 mph winds and lotsa rain. Looks like it missed M&P, at least the center, anyway.
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