In unrelated news: Does anybody have any guesses as to who will not be asking me to write a shopping list ever again?
P.S. To the best of my knowledge, I am not schizophrenic.
Monday, March 13, 2006
I bought this new bicycle earlier this year, and it has been hanging in the garage. All that changed today, when I officially became a commuter. Had I known I would be riding to work (as opposed to competing on the circuit) I might have bought a more practical bike...oh well. I've loaded it up pretty well. I'll post a picture when I have one...probably when those bastards at Amazon decide to send my camera.
In unrelated news: Does anybody have any guesses as to who will not be asking me to write a shopping list ever again?
P.S. To the best of my knowledge, I am not schizophrenic.
In unrelated news: Does anybody have any guesses as to who will not be asking me to write a shopping list ever again?
P.S. To the best of my knowledge, I am not schizophrenic.
Friday, March 10, 2006
Friday, February 10, 2006
After nearly 9 months of chronic daily headaches, I am going back to my old job...which just so happens to be in the same company. Here's the email that went around today (written either by my boss, or a secretary):
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Michael has decided to transfer back to customer service, where he initially joined Prescription Solutions as a consulting pharmacist. During the past year with Formulary Development, Michael has been instrumental in developing our Part D formularies, performing Part D analyses, and participating in many P&T meetings. Although he was a relatively new member to our team, he jumped in with both feet and performed well. Aside from being a clinically strong pharmacist, Michael could probably beat all of us in Trivial Pursuit. His knowledge base is vast and wide.
Michael's last day will be Thursday, February 23. Please join me in wishing Michael much success and happiness in his new/old position.
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So, in my very first ever web poll, I would like to know what my five loyal readers think of think of this farewell greeting.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Michael has decided to transfer back to customer service, where he initially joined Prescription Solutions as a consulting pharmacist. During the past year with Formulary Development, Michael has been instrumental in developing our Part D formularies, performing Part D analyses, and participating in many P&T meetings. Although he was a relatively new member to our team, he jumped in with both feet and performed well. Aside from being a clinically strong pharmacist, Michael could probably beat all of us in Trivial Pursuit. His knowledge base is vast and wide.
Michael's last day will be Thursday, February 23. Please join me in wishing Michael much success and happiness in his new/old position.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
So, in my very first ever web poll, I would like to know what my five loyal readers think of think of this farewell greeting.
Saturday, February 04, 2006
And I do not believe in snow...
Other titles making the short list for consideration:
"How I spent my winter"
and "They have Starbucks up here?"
Nico and I took a trip up to the Pacific Northwest, as I had been promising a friend (who used to live in Portland) that I would visit him for the last 3 or 4 years. He recently moved to Seattle, so (aside from the blistering cold that these people call Winter) it seemed like a good time for a vacation.
Although I do not much care for heights or overly touristy attractions, the Space Needle was slightly cooler than you would imagine. Here's a couple of pictures I took with our cheap camera (for the second one, I used a 4 second exposure time, and a table as a brace):
Other touristy things we did in Seattle included a vistit to the Pike Place Fish Market. If you have ever worked a customer service job, you have probably seen one of their videos...you know, with all the fish projectiles. It was not terribly busy when we stopped by, so there was very little fish throwing. Here's me in a rare picture with glasses. Two things I have concluded: 1) I am going to stop wearing glasses, and 2) Nico is not the skilled photographer that I am.
Speaking of touristy, what could be more touristy than the very first Starbucks?
We did not buy any coffee, as I am still boycotting Starbucks. If you would like to join me as part owner of Diedrich Coffee, now is your chance. You can currently buy a share of stock for about the same price as a cup of coffee.
Too many pictures already, and "Oh My God, I've just stepped in the Gum Wall!"
There was a cool song Gum Wall song. It went something like "Gum Wall, Gum Wall, Gum Wall..."
Briefly, we took side trips to Vancouver and Walla Walla; the picture is of me learning how to ice skate backwards atop Grouse Mountain. I thought I was getting good at it, until I realized that I could only do it in one direction (downhill).
I can't believe I have no pictures of all the snow I had to drive through to get back to Seattle from Walla Walla. They closed the interstate down due to an avalanch, and we nearly missed our flight. Here's the Marcus Whitman, the most luxurious hotel in all of Walla Walla.
Other titles making the short list for consideration:
"How I spent my winter"
and "They have Starbucks up here?"
Nico and I took a trip up to the Pacific Northwest, as I had been promising a friend (who used to live in Portland) that I would visit him for the last 3 or 4 years. He recently moved to Seattle, so (aside from the blistering cold that these people call Winter) it seemed like a good time for a vacation.
Although I do not much care for heights or overly touristy attractions, the Space Needle was slightly cooler than you would imagine. Here's a couple of pictures I took with our cheap camera (for the second one, I used a 4 second exposure time, and a table as a brace):
Other touristy things we did in Seattle included a vistit to the Pike Place Fish Market. If you have ever worked a customer service job, you have probably seen one of their videos...you know, with all the fish projectiles. It was not terribly busy when we stopped by, so there was very little fish throwing. Here's me in a rare picture with glasses. Two things I have concluded: 1) I am going to stop wearing glasses, and 2) Nico is not the skilled photographer that I am.
Speaking of touristy, what could be more touristy than the very first Starbucks?
We did not buy any coffee, as I am still boycotting Starbucks. If you would like to join me as part owner of Diedrich Coffee, now is your chance. You can currently buy a share of stock for about the same price as a cup of coffee.Too many pictures already, and "Oh My God, I've just stepped in the Gum Wall!"
There was a cool song Gum Wall song. It went something like "Gum Wall, Gum Wall, Gum Wall..."Briefly, we took side trips to Vancouver and Walla Walla; the picture is of me learning how to ice skate backwards atop Grouse Mountain. I thought I was getting good at it, until I realized that I could only do it in one direction (downhill).
I can't believe I have no pictures of all the snow I had to drive through to get back to Seattle from Walla Walla. They closed the interstate down due to an avalanch, and we nearly missed our flight. Here's the Marcus Whitman, the most luxurious hotel in all of Walla Walla.
Tuesday, January 17, 2006
Nico and I spent Martin Luther King Day tandeming from Seal Beach to the Santa Fe Dam via the San Gabriel River Bike Path. We had planned on bicycling all the way to Monrovia, but made a wrong turn at the dam and ended up at an airport for model airplanes (NO BICYCLES ALLOWED). We were a little tired after 35 miles and decided to head home.
Thing I observed on the bike path:
1) There are a lot of people living under bridges along the San Gabriel River.
2) Peddling down hill is much easier than peddling up hill.
3) Taco Bell is better than you would think after 55 miles of bicycling.
Top things overheard during the ride:
1) Shut up and pedal.
2) Your job is to pedal.
3) Why aren't you pedaling?
Thing I observed on the bike path:
1) There are a lot of people living under bridges along the San Gabriel River.
2) Peddling down hill is much easier than peddling up hill.
3) Taco Bell is better than you would think after 55 miles of bicycling.
Top things overheard during the ride:
1) Shut up and pedal.
2) Your job is to pedal.
3) Why aren't you pedaling?
Wednesday, January 04, 2006
Does anybody else think Diedrich Coffee is much better than Starbucks? In addition to better coffee, Diedrich has free wi-fi. What could be better than free wireless internet access? So I decided to by some Diedrich stock (DDRX). Evidently, the company has been mismanaged, so the stock is very cheap. They just appointed a new CEO: Stephen Coffey. Can't think of a better man to turn around a struggling coffee chain.
In other news, I decided to clear the garage of some excess bicycles. Zebra bike and the old tandem are both gone.
I shall miss them both. Interestingly, either the ebay listing, or my add in the recycler triggered this email scam. It is so complicated, I am not even sure how I'm being scammed. Or maybe it's just early:
Hi,
I am a sports and leasure equipments dealer from London with clients all over U K. I have offices in most U K Cities. I have a client who's interested in your product and pleased to let you know that we are O.K with your price.
SHIPPING:
I have a shipping agent that handles all my shipments in the U.S, the shipping agent will pick up product from whatever location and have it shipped to my office.
PAYMENT:
Inrespect of payment i have a client in the USA who is owing me $5,500.00 All i need to do to make payment easier and faster is to instruct him to procure a cashier's check in your name and mail it to you. But i would want to know if i can trust you to send the remainder of the funds to my shipper via Western Union Money Transfer as soon as the check get cashed so that my shipper will make arrangement for the pick up at your location.
Should you be interested in this transaction, kindly mail me the name to purchase your check, the address you wish to receive it and your contact phone number(s), so I can forward it to my client who will purchase the check for the payment.
Thank you.
Richard Winston.
In other news, I decided to clear the garage of some excess bicycles. Zebra bike and the old tandem are both gone.
I shall miss them both. Interestingly, either the ebay listing, or my add in the recycler triggered this email scam. It is so complicated, I am not even sure how I'm being scammed. Or maybe it's just early:
Hi,
I am a sports and leasure equipments dealer from London with clients all over U K. I have offices in most U K Cities. I have a client who's interested in your product and pleased to let you know that we are O.K with your price.
SHIPPING:
I have a shipping agent that handles all my shipments in the U.S, the shipping agent will pick up product from whatever location and have it shipped to my office.
PAYMENT:
Inrespect of payment i have a client in the USA who is owing me $5,500.00 All i need to do to make payment easier and faster is to instruct him to procure a cashier's check in your name and mail it to you. But i would want to know if i can trust you to send the remainder of the funds to my shipper via Western Union Money Transfer as soon as the check get cashed so that my shipper will make arrangement for the pick up at your location.
Should you be interested in this transaction, kindly mail me the name to purchase your check, the address you wish to receive it and your contact phone number(s), so I can forward it to my client who will purchase the check for the payment.
Thank you.
Richard Winston.
Thursday, December 29, 2005
Yet another reason the British are better than us:
From the British Medical Journal's annual Christmas Cheer edition (full articles are currently free). Also, check out BMJ.com for a "Interventions for preventing and treating a hangover", and "Epidemiology and prognosis of coma in daytime television dramas".
The case of the disappearing teaspoons: longitudinal cohort study of the displacement of teaspoons in an Australian research institute
Objectives To determine the overall rate of loss of workplace teaspoons and whether attrition and displacement are correlated with the relative value of the teaspoons or type of tearoom.
Design Longitudinal cohort study.
Setting Research institute employing about 140 people.
Subjects 70 discreetly numbered teaspoons placed in tearooms around the institute and observed weekly over five months.
Main outcome measures Incidence of teaspoon loss per 100 teaspoon years and teaspoon half life.
Results 56 (80%) of the 70 teaspoons disappeared during the study. The half life of the teaspoons was 81 days. The half life of teaspoons in communal tearooms (42 days) was significantly shorter than for those in rooms associated with particular research groups (77 days). The rate of loss was not influenced by the teaspoons' value. The incidence of teaspoon loss over the period of observation was 360.62 per 100 teaspoon years. At this rate, an estimated 250 teaspoons would need to be purchased annually to maintain a practical institute-wide population of 70 teaspoons.
Conclusions The loss of workplace teaspoons was rapid, showing that their availability, and hence office culture in general, is constantly threatened.
and
Shape of glass and amount of alcohol poured: comparative study of effect of practice and concentration
Objective To determine whether people pour different amounts into short, wide glasses than into tall, slender ones.
Design College students practised pouring alcohol into a standard glass before pouring into larger glasses; bartenders poured alcohol for four mixed drinks either with no instructions or after being told to take their time.
Setting University town and large city, United States.
Participants 198 college students and 86 bartenders.
Main outcome measures Volume of alcohol poured into short, wide and tall, slender glasses.
Results Aiming to pour a "shot" of alcohol (1.5 ounces, 44.3 ml), both students and bartenders poured more into short, wide glasses than into tall slender glasses (46.1 ml v 44.7 ml and 54.6 ml v 46.4 ml, respectively). Practice reduced the tendency to overpour, but not for short, wide glasses. Despite an average of six years of experience, bartenders poured 20.5% more into short, wide glasses than tall, slender ones; paying careful attention reduced but did not eliminate the effect.
Conclusions To avoid overpouring, use tall, narrow glasses or ones on which the alcohol level is premarked. To avoid underestimating the amount of alcohol consumed, studies using self reports of standard drinks should ask about the shape of the glass.
From the British Medical Journal's annual Christmas Cheer edition (full articles are currently free). Also, check out BMJ.com for a "Interventions for preventing and treating a hangover", and "Epidemiology and prognosis of coma in daytime television dramas".
The case of the disappearing teaspoons: longitudinal cohort study of the displacement of teaspoons in an Australian research institute
Objectives To determine the overall rate of loss of workplace teaspoons and whether attrition and displacement are correlated with the relative value of the teaspoons or type of tearoom.
Design Longitudinal cohort study.
Setting Research institute employing about 140 people.
Subjects 70 discreetly numbered teaspoons placed in tearooms around the institute and observed weekly over five months.
Main outcome measures Incidence of teaspoon loss per 100 teaspoon years and teaspoon half life.
Results 56 (80%) of the 70 teaspoons disappeared during the study. The half life of the teaspoons was 81 days. The half life of teaspoons in communal tearooms (42 days) was significantly shorter than for those in rooms associated with particular research groups (77 days). The rate of loss was not influenced by the teaspoons' value. The incidence of teaspoon loss over the period of observation was 360.62 per 100 teaspoon years. At this rate, an estimated 250 teaspoons would need to be purchased annually to maintain a practical institute-wide population of 70 teaspoons.
Conclusions The loss of workplace teaspoons was rapid, showing that their availability, and hence office culture in general, is constantly threatened.
and
Shape of glass and amount of alcohol poured: comparative study of effect of practice and concentration
Objective To determine whether people pour different amounts into short, wide glasses than into tall, slender ones.
Design College students practised pouring alcohol into a standard glass before pouring into larger glasses; bartenders poured alcohol for four mixed drinks either with no instructions or after being told to take their time.
Setting University town and large city, United States.
Participants 198 college students and 86 bartenders.
Main outcome measures Volume of alcohol poured into short, wide and tall, slender glasses.
Results Aiming to pour a "shot" of alcohol (1.5 ounces, 44.3 ml), both students and bartenders poured more into short, wide glasses than into tall slender glasses (46.1 ml v 44.7 ml and 54.6 ml v 46.4 ml, respectively). Practice reduced the tendency to overpour, but not for short, wide glasses. Despite an average of six years of experience, bartenders poured 20.5% more into short, wide glasses than tall, slender ones; paying careful attention reduced but did not eliminate the effect.
Conclusions To avoid overpouring, use tall, narrow glasses or ones on which the alcohol level is premarked. To avoid underestimating the amount of alcohol consumed, studies using self reports of standard drinks should ask about the shape of the glass.
Sunday, December 11, 2005
Welcome to the Real OC, Bitch!
I went to pick up my Dodgers Seats yesterday. I've been looking to buy a couple for several years; the Dodgers finally cooperated by replacing all their seats this off season. I am now the proud owner of M 7 and M 8. They are quite authentic, with real gum and everything.
As we were already in LA, we decided to take a tour of the Real OC. Sorry I didn't bring the camera. Here's a picture of the Redondo Beach Pier:
It's a really weird shaped pier. Rebecca's father died there, and I think Ryan punched somebody. We had breakfast at the Redondo Beach Coffee Shop, and sat at Ryan and Seth's table. Seth and Ryan just call the place "the Coffee Shop". Calling it the Redondo Beach Coffee Shop might be a little absurd, no? The Bait Shop was closed.
I went to pick up my Dodgers Seats yesterday. I've been looking to buy a couple for several years; the Dodgers finally cooperated by replacing all their seats this off season. I am now the proud owner of M 7 and M 8. They are quite authentic, with real gum and everything.
As we were already in LA, we decided to take a tour of the Real OC. Sorry I didn't bring the camera. Here's a picture of the Redondo Beach Pier:
It's a really weird shaped pier. Rebecca's father died there, and I think Ryan punched somebody. We had breakfast at the Redondo Beach Coffee Shop, and sat at Ryan and Seth's table. Seth and Ryan just call the place "the Coffee Shop". Calling it the Redondo Beach Coffee Shop might be a little absurd, no? The Bait Shop was closed.
Tuesday, December 06, 2005
It begins...
Next door neighbor (cube neighbor, not regular neighbor) brings in a tiny Christmas tree and places it on the top shelf so it will be clearly visible from my cube. To counteract, I am forced to stick up a manilla folder (you know, to block my view). My side says: "Don't Look Here!!!" in 82 font, or something like that. Her side? Oogie Boogie:
Next door neighbor (cube neighbor, not regular neighbor) brings in a tiny Christmas tree and places it on the top shelf so it will be clearly visible from my cube. To counteract, I am forced to stick up a manilla folder (you know, to block my view). My side says: "Don't Look Here!!!" in 82 font, or something like that. Her side? Oogie Boogie:
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