Domesticated
Now running free in the wild
Wild parrot gangs.
Thankfully, this is only the second time they've shown up at my place in the 5+ years that I've been here. Imagine fifty or sixty once-domesticated parrots deciding to hang outside your house for the weekend. It's like "The Birds" but for reals.
SPOILER: They are super @#%&ing loud.
Sunday, March 17, 2013
Friday, March 15, 2013
Daily Haiku - March 15, 2013
The pie falls apart
But such is the way of things
Baked goods do not lie.
But such is the way of things
Baked goods do not lie.
Thursday, March 14, 2013
Standing for your health
Over the last year I’ve seen a number of articles discussing research that apparently shows that sitting around for excessive amounts of time (e.g. a normal desk job) is incredibly bad for us, leading to all sorts of declines in our health and potentially shaving 10+ years off your life expectancy. If you are looking for a nice summary of the findings, here is a handy-dandy infographic detailing all the terrible things that befall you when sitting on your butt all day.
So as these shocking revelations were making the rounds through the public consciousness, our Legal department picked up a new lawyer who brought with her a love of stand-up desks. This in turn has started a movement within my department to transition to such a work style. Three of the seven negotiators have already switched over to this healthier alternative, and it looks like the rest of the department will follow shortly. We've even had people stop by from other departments asking about them! And not being one to pass up an opportunity to save myself a few more years to waste playing Civilization V, I decided to get into the game myself. So today is the first day of what will hopefully be at least one week of working while standing.
Now whereas the neogitators were able to expense $600 mechanical arms for their computers, allowing them to switch at will between standing and sitting, I suspected such budgetary expenditures were beyond the reach of the assistants, so I set out to build my own (much cheaper) version from scratch. Cue IKEA.
For slightly under $25 and a bit of elbow grease, I was able to put together the lovely contraption you see to the right. It consists of a side table, a shelf, and two shelf brackets. I had to add a couple of reams of paper to get the monitor to the correct height, but other than that it's good to go. I also got a floor mat, but it was cheap enough that I let the office pay for it. :D
So the current plan is to try this format for at least week, hopefully three, before deciding whether or not to stick with it for good. Seven hours into the first day and my heels are already killing me, but hopefully that will subside as my body gets used to standing. I have to stay the alternative seems pretty scary. I haven't seen the actual scientific reports in question but if half of what the news articles say are true, I have no desire to going back to sitting around for 15 hours a day (work + computer time at home). Wish me luck!
So as these shocking revelations were making the rounds through the public consciousness, our Legal department picked up a new lawyer who brought with her a love of stand-up desks. This in turn has started a movement within my department to transition to such a work style. Three of the seven negotiators have already switched over to this healthier alternative, and it looks like the rest of the department will follow shortly. We've even had people stop by from other departments asking about them! And not being one to pass up an opportunity to save myself a few more years to waste playing Civilization V, I decided to get into the game myself. So today is the first day of what will hopefully be at least one week of working while standing.
Now whereas the neogitators were able to expense $600 mechanical arms for their computers, allowing them to switch at will between standing and sitting, I suspected such budgetary expenditures were beyond the reach of the assistants, so I set out to build my own (much cheaper) version from scratch. Cue IKEA.
For slightly under $25 and a bit of elbow grease, I was able to put together the lovely contraption you see to the right. It consists of a side table, a shelf, and two shelf brackets. I had to add a couple of reams of paper to get the monitor to the correct height, but other than that it's good to go. I also got a floor mat, but it was cheap enough that I let the office pay for it. :DSo the current plan is to try this format for at least week, hopefully three, before deciding whether or not to stick with it for good. Seven hours into the first day and my heels are already killing me, but hopefully that will subside as my body gets used to standing. I have to stay the alternative seems pretty scary. I haven't seen the actual scientific reports in question but if half of what the news articles say are true, I have no desire to going back to sitting around for 15 hours a day (work + computer time at home). Wish me luck!
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
Avenues for Imagination
As mentioned previously, I went and saw a show a few weeks ago called "Absolutely Filthy," which was a take on the Peanuts gang twenty years down the road. The story was told from the point of view of Pigpen, now homeless and still plagued by the perpetual dust cloud that helped give him his name. The actor did an excellent job in the role, made even more impressive by the fact that he spent 85% of show constantly hula-hooping. I felt rather foolish that it wasn’t until after the show that I realized the hula-hoop was meant to represent his dust cloud. *facepalm*
As fascinating as the show was, its origin is equally if not more so. Along with their main stage performances, Sacred Fools also has a 21-week series called "Serial Killers" (now in its eighth season). The premise is "five shows enter…three shows leave." At the start of the season five short stories are written and performed for the audience. At the end of the night the audience votes on which three stories should continue on to the following week, with the other two being tossed in the trash bin. The following week those two empty slots are replaced with two new stories, and this voting process continues. The stories that make it through the entire (or majority of) season are often then work-shopped into full-fledged productions for the following year. "Absolutely Filthy" was one of these productions. So was "Watson," which was another excellent production by Sacred Fools, as sequel to which will also becoming out later this year.
Pretty cool, huh? I’ve never heard of such an entertaining process of work-shopping ideas, but now that I have I want to do it myself. Who knows what sort of brilliant crazy bullshit me and my friends could come up with over a 21-week period. And yet, as cool as I think it is, I’ve STILL somehow managed not see a single performance of “Serial Killers.” Hopefully I’ll have that rectified in the next month or two.
Image source: 1.
As fascinating as the show was, its origin is equally if not more so. Along with their main stage performances, Sacred Fools also has a 21-week series called "Serial Killers" (now in its eighth season). The premise is "five shows enter…three shows leave." At the start of the season five short stories are written and performed for the audience. At the end of the night the audience votes on which three stories should continue on to the following week, with the other two being tossed in the trash bin. The following week those two empty slots are replaced with two new stories, and this voting process continues. The stories that make it through the entire (or majority of) season are often then work-shopped into full-fledged productions for the following year. "Absolutely Filthy" was one of these productions. So was "Watson," which was another excellent production by Sacred Fools, as sequel to which will also becoming out later this year.
Pretty cool, huh? I’ve never heard of such an entertaining process of work-shopping ideas, but now that I have I want to do it myself. Who knows what sort of brilliant crazy bullshit me and my friends could come up with over a 21-week period. And yet, as cool as I think it is, I’ve STILL somehow managed not see a single performance of “Serial Killers.” Hopefully I’ll have that rectified in the next month or two.
Image source: 1.
Monday, March 11, 2013
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