holiday traffic

holiday traffic is pretty much annoying. there should be some sort of rule that says if you are traveling for a holiday, you cannot travel during normal commuting hours. you must leave after 9 am and stop driving between 4 pm and 6 pm.

no more news

i have decided to try to stop looking at headlines or watching the news. only because there seems to be a lot of horrifying stories involving the death of babies. i know i'm more sensitive to this because i am a new mom. that new sensitivity is crushing though. these stories were disturbing before, but now they make me physically ill. heartbreaking. i cannot comprehend hurting an innocent child, much less kill another human being. i never gave much thought to the death penalty until i became a mom. now i'm pretty much all for it.

ok, i will get off my soapbox now.

dream job

I wish i could find a job that would pay me to listen to music all day. that is my dream job. i would even listen to country and bluegrass, wouldn't matter.

headphones = no small talk

Why would you talk to someone with headphones on? And when they barely respond and/or fail to remove the headphones, why would you continue to talk to them? Can there be a more obvious sign that you are not in a talkative mood? Take a (big) hint already!

is it laziness?

do people lay in wait for a new pot of coffee? i can walk by the pot 6 times, and there will be less than a cup on there. But if I make a new pot, it disappears within minutes, sometimes before I even get a cup myself.

So the question is twofold - one, are people hiding around the corner, hoping someone else will take that last half of a cup? because if you empty the pot, you should feel obligated to make a new one. and two, how lazy are you that you will spend more effort on avoiding making a pot than actually making the pot of coffee?

TPOD: gawkers

enough said.

TPOD: oh no, a curve!

I hate being behind drivers that can only go fast when going straight. 10 miles an hour under for any and all curves, 5 miles over on all straightaways.

so irritating.

TPOD: blinkers aren't optional

Since when did blinkers become optional? I really think it's useful to know when someone is about to cut over in front of me. I would like to be prepared to stop. Or if I'm waiting for you to pass me so that I can pull out of my driveway, but it turns out you are turning at the corner right before my house - would have been nice of you to let me know.

TPOD: Leapfrogging

More people should use their cruise control. Peeve of the day is when someone speeds up, then slows down, then speeds up, etc, so that you end up passing them and getting passed by them repeatedly. The car equivalent of playing leapfrog.

Use your cruise control. When you pass them, you should keep on going. And don't look back.

Punctuality Myths

• Being a few minutes late is a terrible offense that one can not atone for by working a few minutes later.
• Being late is a sign of disrespect for one's boss.
• If one person is late, everyone will think that it is ok to be late.
• It is ok to leave your desk a few minutes early so that you can be at the time clock at the exact minute your shift is over, but if you are not at your desk at the start of your shift, you are late.

Work ethic should not be judged by punctuality. It should be judge by perseverance, productivity, professionalism, performance, probity, you get the idea.

traffic peeve of the day

People who slow down to under the speed limit when they see a police car. I have to say that by the time you see them, they have already clocked you.

Also, under the speed limit? For real? I don't think that they average your speed - "Oh, that guy was going 10 over, now he's going 10 under, so it averages out to the speed limit. I'll let him go."

If you are so worried about getting a ticket, don't take the risk in the first place. And if you do speed, be prepared to pay the price.

Now get the fuck out of the left lane.