The Weekly List - Things I Don't Understand

Saturday, June 29, 2013
1. The Infield Fly rule.

2. Why people who don't do what they say they're going to do don't feel bad about it.

3. Modified Newtonian Dynamics (MOND).

4. How incredibly selfish people can feel good about themselves.

5. How I can be up for hours in the middle of the night with insomnia and still can't sleep later than 6:15 a.m.

6. Hoarding.

7. Why I feel guilty that my birth control pills - which I don't take for birth control - are still covered with no copay on a mandatory basis under the Affordable Care Act.

8. Road rage.

9. Mitochondrial myopathies. 

10.The evolutionary road that led to carnivorous kangaroos.

Free Shit Friday - Amazing Apple Butter of Awesome

Friday, June 28, 2013

It's time for Janiece's Amazing Apple Butter of Awesome!

da Rules.

Victory!

Wednesday, June 26, 2013
Today, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled that the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) is unconstitutional. They also determined that the Proposition 8 decision was to be dismissed on standing, and same-sex marriage has been restored in California.

I've written before on how this decision personally affects me and the people I love. And now that it's done, now that justice has been served and we're finally, finally on the right side of history, I can only weep with joy and relief. For the activists who have spent their lives fighting for the rights of this persecuted minority, for the straight allies who have opened their minds and changed their hearts, but mostly for my daughter, an incredible human being who is now on the road to be afforded the same rights and privileges as her brother.

An amazing, spectacular, very good day.


Last Night's Conversation

Tuesday, June 25, 2013
The Smart Man is taking today off to manage some things here at the Big Yellow House, and so I had to set my own alarm last night.
Me: Ugh! This is set for 5:00 a.m.! I'm not getting up at 5:00 a.m.!
Smart Man: Then don't.
Me: I'm not going to! You can't make me get up at 5:00 a.m.!
Smart Man: What is wrong with you?
Me: You don't want me to sleep in!
Smart Man: That must be it.
Me: You want me to suffer!
Smart Man: I'm starting to, yes.
And then I had horrible insomnia last night and still woke up before the alarm.

The end. 

Miscellaneous Monday

Monday, June 24, 2013

Getting on the Bandwagon

There are now 4 Summer Reading Programs linked on the Hot Chicks and Smart Men Dig Reading page. FOUR. I love it when good ideas spread - the point of origin for all these programs was Todd Wheeler's Virtual Summer Reading Program, and now there's five programs in total, all benefiting libraries and literacy. THIS is what the Internet is good for, people. Well, this and LOLZ cats.

Chick Stuff - Lessons from the Boutique

There's a boutique near the Big Yellow House called Parker Panache. I've been in a few times, but never bought anything because their merchandise is pricey, and I've always told myself that with my chronically fluctuating weight, I shouldn't spend that much on clothes. Instead I buy from Kohl's, and then give away garments as they become too small or too big.

Here's the problem with that strategy. In spite of the fact that I buy "affordable" brands, I still end up spending a ton of money on clothes because I don't carry garments from one season to the next, and occasionally I ended up giving away an outfit that I just loved.

So now I have a new strategy. I'm going to start spending more money on my non-casual attire, but I'm only going to buy items that I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE. And since I LOVE them, I'm not going to give anything away, but store them until I can wear them again. Basically, I'm extending my shoe/handbag strategy to my clothes. Here's my first foray:

Joseph Ribkoff is my new Platonic Boyfriend.

The Weekly List - Why I Dislike Conferences

Saturday, June 22, 2013
1. I never seem to have enough time to exercise.

2. Attending the requisite "Cocktail Party" makes me want to start cutting myself.

3. Even though I'm well into my forties and always wear a wedding band, it's a safe bet I'm going to get hit on by at least one chowderhead who thinks professional conferences are the perfect place to pick up chicks. Bow-chicka-bow-wow.

4. The Good Ole Boy network is always out in full force. An example of an actual question asked of me during one of these events: "What the hell are you doing here?" Charming.

5. Maintaining the "always on" energy level makes me tired and cranky.

6. Sometimes there is distinct lack of...quality control...in terms of session content.

7. Deep fried everything. 

8. Giving out hundreds of business cards means I have to spend the next three months unsubscribing from marketing E:mail lists.


9. I miss my family and friends.

10. The level of intelligence gathering at these events borders on industrial espionage, although the level of competence more closely resembles Spy vs. Spy.

It's That Time of Year - Let's READ!

Thursday, June 20, 2013
It's that time of year! Time for the Third Annual Hot Chicks and Smart Men Dig Reading Summer Reading Program in Honor of Debby Faught, brought to you by Hot Chicks Dig Smart Men! 
 
Each year, Hot Chicks Dig Smart Men sponsors a summer reading program in honor of my beloved Auntie Debby, whom we lost much too young. Auntie loved to read, and I love her, so this is my way of preserving some small part of her memory.


AND I love reading. I read on my Kindle, on my iPad, on the Internet. I listen to Audiobooks whenever it's not practical to read words in a row. I'd read while I was sleeping if I could stay conscious. So once again, I'm sponsoring this reading program to benefit the Douglas County Library through the Douglas County Library Foundation,* in my beloved Auntie's name. Last year my amazing local library accrued $226.00 due to our efforts, and this year I'm hoping for even better results.  
Here's da rules:
  1. The contest will run from June 21th (the summer solstice! Yay!) to September 3th (the first working day after Labor Day. Boo.). That's TOMORROW for those of you playing along at home. TOMORROW!
  2. When you read a new book, post a comment at the Reading Program Page, also linked at the top of the blog, with the title and author of the book. One comment, one book. PLEASE do not post your books here. If you do, they won't be counted.
  3. Audiobooks count. eBooks count. ANY book counts, including books read to youngsters, although I'd ask that you use good judgement. If you read Green Eggs and Ham to your nephew for the THOUSANDTH TIME, you probably shouldn't enter it to win.
  4. For each book that is read and registered in the comments by me and my readers, I will donate $1 to the Douglas County Library Foundation, up to $250.00
  5. When the contest ends, I will use a random number generator to find THE WINNERS. THE WINNERS will each get $25.00 gift certificates to Amazon, so that you might buy more books. Each unique comment (one comment, one book) will be an entry for the gift certificate, so the more you read, the better chance you have to win.
  6. If the number of comments exceeds 250 (the ceiling on the donation), the subsequent comments will still be considered for the gift certificate. 
READ! READ! READ!

And don't be stingy with your reading, folks. There are lots of summer reading programs** out there:
_____________
*Disclaimer: The Douglas County Library and the Douglas County Library Foundation have no idea who I am and I'm not affiliated with either organization. Ask any employee over there if they've heard of me and my website, and I'm quite sure the answer would be "Who?" and "We don't allow those kinds of websites here," respectively.

**If you have a summer reading program you'd like me to promote, just send me a note. Let's read!

The Weekly List - Why my Life is Awesome

Saturday, June 15, 2013
1. I'm not Theon Greyjoy.

2. I have friends that think my decision to "bedazzle" my MLB hat to designate ballparks where I've seen a game live does not make me white trash.

3. This week I was a good friend to someone I care about.

4. The Hot Chicks and Smart Men Dig Reading Summer Reading Program begins in just 7 days. 

5. I have friends and family that "get" me. And they still love me.

6. I live in a world that contains soft carnitas tacos. With avocados.

7. This week I got to perform ACTUAL ENGINEERING WORK. For MONEY.

8. I was reminded that each of us has the power to affect the lives of others, for good or for ill.

9. I'm finally caught up on my podcasts.

10. Starting tomorrow, I get to wear Fluevogs every day for four days in a row.

An Open Letter to Sebastien de la Cruz

Friday, June 14, 2013
Dear Sebastien,

When you sang the National Anthem for game three of the NBA Finals, I was appalled at the reaction of the on-line community. To hurl such degrading and insulting rhetoric at anyone is simply beyond the pale, and the fact that you're a child made it that much worse, in my opinion. I thought, "How awful that these racist dirtbags should sully such an exciting and special event for this youngster. I hope he doesn't assume that everyone feels that way about his presence at the game."

But I underestimated you, and your parents, too. You, young sir, are a class act. You returned to the Spurs' Arena, and performed beautifully once again, wearing the cultural garb of your forefathers. You did so with pride, and with a poise I would not expect from a much older person. You did not allow the racists to silence your voice, and reacted in a way that shamed those who wanted to shame you for your pride in your heritage.

Keep singing, Sebastien. Sing for yourself, and your parents, and your community, and for all of us who believe that a diverse America is a strong America.

Sing.

Grow, Janiece, Grow

Wednesday, June 12, 2013

Count your blessings, you stabby bitch

I think the busier my life becomes, the more quickly I tend to go to a place where I'm not fully aware of just how fabulous my life is. When a plane is late, when I'm performing work and my colleagues do not meet my expectations, when I get poor customer service - these first world issues tend to overwhelm all the amazing and enviable aspects of my life and I get crankier and crankier.

This is not a recipe for living in joy.

For me, perspective is the key for this growth opportunity. Even if things aren't going as well as I hope, even if someone else's bad day is negatively impacting mine, that doesn't mean that ZOMG MY ENTIRE LIFE BLOWS. It means I'm in the middle of an unfortunate event, one that will almost certainly give me an opportunity to be a better person. I've been working on keeping this in my mind when things go wrong, and sometimes I even succeed.

Virtue unlocked: Perspective.

Shut up and listen

One of the things I've noticed about myself is that the more competent I feel in a specific situation, the smaller my tendency becomes to just shut the hell up and listen. I've noticed this specifically as it relates to my gig in the Military Industrial Complex - I'm learning many new technologies, and most of the folks on the calls and in the meetings I'm attending know more about what we're discussing than I do. Because I don't really consider my competence in this space to be equal to that of my peers, I tend to do a lot more listening rather than trying to put forth my own opinions and ideas.

This a good thing.

For one thing, it gives me a chance to learn about new technology from a variety of sources, whose understanding may differ from my own. For another, it helps me in my goal of understanding that I'm not the only competent person in the room. Actively listening to others gives me the chance to admire and respect them in their areas of expertise. And perhaps most importantly, it provides excellent practice in learning to value others, a Mr. Rogers-like virtue that has long been on my self-improvement list.

Virtue unlocked: Respect.

A slave to my ambition

I was having lunch with a friend the other day, and we were discussing how our professional ambitions have changed as we've gotten older. I'm no longer particularly interested in being THE VERY BEST SE ON THE PLANET, DON'T YOU THINK THAT I'M NOT. What I am interested in is being the very best SE I can be while still maintaining balance in my life, and providing good value for the compensation I receive. I can never do less than my best, but I no longer think my work needs to dominate and define my life.

I'm also more interested in my personal ambitions than in my professional ones, because working on the former will also provide benefits to the latter. My personal ambitions now include things like "Being a kind person," and "Living an authentic life," and "Being a good friend to those I care about." I think from the perspective of leaving this earth a better place than I found it, my personal ambitions are far more important than my professional ones.

Virtue unlocked: Balance.

Miscellaneous Monday

Monday, June 10, 2013

The plants, they're trying to kill me

I love Spring. Since I'm not a huge fan of the snow and the cold, I'm always so pleased and happy when things start to warm up and I'm able to get outside.

Except for the itchy eyes, runny nose and sneezing, that is.

The plants here in Colorado have always been the enemy of my immune system. Over the years, I've lived and visited many other regions, in many other climates and geographies. But Colorado is the only place I've ever lived where I have hay fever, and Spring is when it's at its worst. SO ANNOYING.

In my mind I'm going to Carolina

Specifically, Charlotte. I'm leaving Friday for a conference, which means I get to have dinner with the erudite and always entertaining Eric while I'm there. Seeing people I wouldn't otherwise get a chance to see is one of the very best things about traveling for me, and I'm looking forward to it.

A poorer place

Today would have been Maurice Sendak's 85th birthday, and the Google Doodle commemorating this event is pretty great.

I always loved Mr. Sendak's books, and the world is a poorer place without him in it.

Miscellaneous Monday

Monday, June 3, 2013

Writer's Block

Or more precisely, writer's apathy. Lately I have been singularly unmotivated to write original, scintillating content for HCDSM.

I suspect the reason is twofold - I only have so much non-professional energy to go around, and I've been focusing on other things rather than writing. Things like running, and baseball, and my Awesome, Awesome Niece, and home improvement projects, and reading.

The second reason is that I think spaces like this tend to ebb and flow in terms of content. Because I don't use this space for self-promotion, it can basically be whatever I want, whenever I want. So when I'm feeling unmotivated content can become a little thin and I won't incur serious repercussions. It's true that I may lose casual readers during these periods, but my regulars have been pretty loyal in terms of waiting me out when my content goes through periods of meh.

I don't know when the meh will abate - hopefully soon, as I'm starting to bore myself.

Run, Janiece, run

I've been slowly increasing my once-weekly "long" run (as compared to my twice-weekly 10K training runs), and yesterday, for the first time, I ran nine miles. I'm hoping to get to thirteen miles before the end of the year, but I am in my late 40's, so we'll see how the body holds up to those demands.

I'm really happy that I've finally reached a point where I see my body as the amazing machine that it is, and take pleasure in its performance, but damn I wish I'd come to this realization when I was still young and strong. Gravity is indeed a spiteful bitch, not to mention aging joints.

Pimpin', yo

While I'm not a huge fan of the short story, I would like to recommend a couple of short stories written by Hot Chick, occasional commenter and all-around good egg Rachael Acks. She's published two Steampunk stories entitled Murder on the Titania and The Ugly Tin Orrery through Musa Publishing and available on Amazon. Rachael has a most amusing turn of phrase that made me snort through my nose more than once while enjoying these stories, so you should totally run right out and buy multiple copies. You know you want to.