Random Access

Friday – 19 December 2007
The end of the work week is upon us. Selah.

Yesterday was a good day. No monkeys. No real problems. Last night, I indulged in a steak burrito from Barbacoa before heading to watch CSI: with . New episode. New agent: Mike Keppler, a new transfer from Baltimore (w00t!). The case followed the investigation of a series of Jane Doe murders, over 30 years. It was good.

So far, today’s been good, as well. This evening, I will be skipping Clitorati (*gasp*) because our company Winter Party will be occurring at the same time. In Park City. I should be back in time for post-Clitorati food… in theory. We’ll see.

Stray Toasters

• “Where’s my super-suit?”
• Honeymonkeys.
• From the LEGO “Build It” ad campaign (click for larger images):
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• PC Magazines Top 101 Web Sites
• Why are Pepperidge Farms Goldfish so damned tasty?
• Ghetto Hicks, as coined by : “You’d best step off, y’all…”

Speaking of stepping off, I’m out.

Namaste.

I saw this and it reminded me of ….

…from

Wednesday (coda)
Today was good. It was monkey-free, too.

After work, I continued Furniture Trek. I stopped in a couple of John Paras stores; they had some nice things… though some were a little pricey. *shrug* Best feature of the stores: The sales people. They approached me when I entered the store – or a given area – and when I told them that I was just looking… they acknowledged that and left me alone to peruse their offerings. It was a very nice change of pace from yesterday.

I also stopped to pick up this week’s four-color goodness. Yes, I went a day early. I had the time and opportunity, so I took advantage of them. This week’s haul was good. Capsule reviews:

• 52: Week Thirty-Seven – I really have to hand it to DC. So far, they have done something that I wasn’t sure they would be able to pull off: They have stayed on-schedule (unlike Marvel’s Civil Bore… I mean “War”) and managed to make the stories interesting. Sure, there have been a couple of slow or off weeks, but on the whole, they have done a very good job of storytelling. And… I was right about the identity of Supernova. I talked it over with (coworker) Matt after reading 52: Week Thirty-One and said that I’d wait to see how it panned out. I wasn’t 100% spot-on with the hows and wherefores, but I got the basics right.
• Ultimate Spider-Man #104 – This was a pretty solid issue, too. Doc Ock. Peter/Spidey. Jessica, the female Peter clone (who, I’m guessing will be “Ultimate Spider-Woman” when she grows up). Oh… and General Nick Fury. And the Fantastic Four. Not to mention a cliffhanger that I didn’t see coming.
• Ultimate X-Men #78 – Teen X-Men in Love. Or something like that. This issue was basically just a big fight between the X-kids and the Ultimate Universe’s version of the Six Pack. And Bishop. And things that go “BOOM!” This issue was kind of lackluster to me. Maybe I should reread it at some point and attempt to give it a more impassive, critical look.
• X-Men: First Class (5 of 8) – The original X-Men: Scott, Jean, Warren, Hank and Bobby. And a frost giant. And Thor. The writing was crisp. The dialogue was good. This was, quite simply, fun. Period.
• Fantastic Four #542 – Yet another Civil Bore… I mean “War”… crossover issue. But, this was a good issue. It starts out with Reed and Johnny – on opposite sides of the issue – in a coffee shop… and ends with Reed trying to explain (once again) to Sue why he supports the Superhuman Registration Act. One of the best exchanges in the issues comes from Reed and Johnny,who is in disguise:
  

  Johnny: Here you go, Reed. Decaf, because you’re so grumpy lately.
  Reed: Why are we here, Johnny?
  Johnny: You kidding me? Do you see that girl at the counter?
  Reed: No, I am not, in any way, kidding. You’re important to me, you wanted to meet somewhere away from the Baxter Building, so here I am. But, I’m very busy, I don’t have time for ga– Why are you wearing glasses?
  Johnny: It’s a disguise. So I won’t be recognized.
  Reed: That can’t possibly work.
  Johnny: Oh, and I guess that fishing hat makes you the Man of a Thousand Faces.
  Reed: This isn’t a disguise. I like this hat.

  Take that, Mr. Kent!

• Green Lantern #16 – Green Lantern. Sentinel. And a rather unhappy Justice League. What more could you want?

The Scales of Justice
Tonight, a new champion appeared on the streets of Paragon City: The Hand of Nefer-Tem.

His story: Karim al-Farrad is the latest in a line of hereditary champions. Members of his bloodline are the divine agents of the Judges of Ma’at. Each generation is groomed for the day when he or she will assume the mantle. When the old champion is dying, s/he and the champion-to-be journey to the Middle East. There, a ritual is performed where the tem-akh – the spirit of the dying elder – is bound to his or her mortal successor. This creates something more than human. The tem-akh carries with it knowledge from its life as well as the spirits and combined knowledge of those who have come before it.

At some point, Karim was bound to a Kheldian nictus, becoming a Warshade. The combining of the three lives – old, new and alien – created something even more powerful than the Amenti, or mummy, he had become as the agent of Nefer-Tem. The three points of view offer him a unique perspective on the world around him, the people in it and the meaning of justice, mortal and immortal.

Stray Toasters
I have a few – quite a few – to post, but they’ll keep until later.

Namaste.

Wednesday – 17 January 2007
Last night, I stopped off to take a look at – and potentially buy – a new dining room set. I had been to the store over the weekend and had narrowed my search to four or five sets. I walked in, was greeted by the store’s… um… greeter and then headed to the dining room furniture area. There was a sales associate there, an older lady, who asked if I needed any assistance. I told her no – and thanked her – and went about my business. Over the course of the next twenty or so minutes, I had no less than four other associates come up and ask if I needed help. I’m okay with that; it’s their job.

What I did not care for was the fact that the last associate hovered around me after I told him that I did not require any help. Just… standing there. Lurking. Watching. Waiting…

*grblsnrx*

I have worked in retail sales before.
More specifically, I worked commission retail sales.
And, according to my managers and some of my regular customers, I was pretty good at it.

One of the things that I learned, fairly early on: Customers do not like to be hounded. If they say that they don’t need help, that generally means – hang on, this could get a little dicey for some – that they don’t need help and would like to browse in peace. If it turns out that they later need help, they usually know to look for someone with a name tag. It’s not rocket science.

When a customer entered my department, I would greet them. I wouldn’t start off with “May I help you,” because that most often elicited a “No, just looking” response, right off the bat. Instead, I would say “Hello” or “Good afternoon” or something that should have fired a synapse or two in the customer’s brain. Most of the time, it worked and they would actually return the greeting before saying whether or not they needed assistance. If they needed it, I’d offer it. If not, I’d tell them to enjoy their shopping and to feel free to ask for help if they needed it. And then… I’d go away.

Maybe I’m expecting too much when I think that a well-trained sales associate should understand that concept. Maybe I’m expecting too much in thinking that they have been well-trained. I don’t know. I do know that sales, especially commission sales, are competitive. I was competitive when I was doing them, too… to a point. I earned a commission on certain sales, on top of my regular wage. If I made a sale that was eligible for commission, that money was just icing on the cake. Either way – sale or no sale – I still got paid. Many sales associates today seem to be too… cutthroat. “MUST…MAKE…SALE!!! MUST…EARN…COMMISSION!!!”

One of the fastest and most easy ways to guarantee that I will not buy something from you – and possibly even your establishment – is to simply treat me like a dollar sign. Don’t hover over me. Don’t watch for my hand to hit my wallet. (Or, if you do, at least wipe the drool from your chin.) Let. Me. Shop. In peace. If I have a question or want to purchase something – more importantly, if I want to purchase something from you – I will find you and ask you.

I was Ivory Soap ready to purchase the dining set last night, when I glommed on to what the young man was doing. As I was deciding on which of my final two options I wanted to go with, another salesman walked up. Then the two started talking about how much they had earned in commissions during their shifts. It was just plain tacky, in my opinion, to stand there – within easy earshot of a customer (no more than ten feet!) – talking about how much money they had made on sales during the day.

And… it was the straw that broke the camel’s back.

I looked for the older lady – the one who had been in the department when I first walked in – to see if she was around. I was willing to buy from her. I would have happily done so. And, I would have done it in front of the young man. I wasn’t able to find her. And I was sorely tempted to ask the young associate to find her. I didn’t because I couldn’t remember enough of what she looked like – nor had I seen her name tag – to have him find her easily.

Instead, I walked out of the store.

I haven’t decided if I’ll go back and purchase the dining set there or if I’ll go someplace else. If I do go back, I know from whom I will not purchase anything – I checked the name tags of the two commission-hungry salesmen. Hopefully, I’d be able to find the lady who had first greeted me.

*decompress*

The rest of my night, was good: I had dinner at Outback with and and then headed to and Chris’ place to set up for our new game.  It’s going to be set in the Warhammer 40,000 universe and based on the All Flesh Must Be Eaten game setting. It should be interesting… and, hopefully, fun.

Back to the grind.

Namaste.

Tuesday – 16 January 2007
And so, the work week begins.

This morning’s fight with the road monkeys wasn’t bad. Traffic flowed pretty well. NPR’s Morning Edition kept me company. And, despite the onset of an inversion, it was a sunny day. Not at all bad for a “Monday.”

The weekend, on the whole, was good. I…

• …had a good time at Clitorati. Jason (a coworker), his wife and one of their kids joined us. Hopefully, they’ll come back again.
• …slept in Saturday morning and then met Perry for coffee.
• …picked up this week’s four-color crack. I also picked up X-Wing and Y-Wing miniatures from the new Star Wars collectible game. The clerk even threw in four minifigs from the SW Miniatures game.
  
• …looked at some furniture (and came to the realization that some people on commission sales don’t quite grok the concept of “Leave the potential customer alone…”)
• …finally picked up Rush in Rio and Marvel Ultimate Alliance
• …introduced to Rush, by way of the aforementioned RiR, and to the joy that is 24.
• …played a few hours’ worth of Utlimate Alliance with Chris.
• …patrolled Paragon City, cleaning up the criminal element.

…and just had an all-around good and restful weekend.

The High-Flying Adventures of Indigo Bolt –
While fighting crime in Paragon City yesterday, a funny thing happened…

I hit Security Level 50.

It was a good feeling when I went to Luminary, to train up to my new level and she said, “There is nothing more I can teach you.” That and the fact that I have now unlocked the epic archetypes: Peacebringer and Warshade. Next, I’ll create the character whose concept I’ve been pondering since I created Indi’s Hallowe’en costume (1, 2, 3): a Warshade whose human host is the hereditary champion of one of the Judges of Ma’at, adapted from Egyptian mythology and White Wolf’s Mummy: the Resurrection. I just have to determine which of the judges he will represent.

And with that… back to the work-a-day grind.

Namaste.

Monday – 15 January 2007
Today is Martin Luther King Day in the U.S.
(Previous MLK Day-related posts: 2006, 2005, 2004, 2003, 2002)

I am taking the day off from work. I joked with (or “teased” or “taunted”) some of my coworkers that I was taking “I’m Black, You’re Not Day” off. I said it mostly to see their reactions; I wasn’t disappointed – it disarmed and confused them for a few moments. There was, however, more of a reason behind it than just trying to catch them off-guard: I did it to make them think.

A couple of them actually got it.

I am the sole Black employee – and one of a few (less than five, I think) non-LDS employees – in our office. There are times, I think, when some of them fail to consider the impact of being so much of a minority in an environment: Most of the employees in our office are, to quote Ben Folds: “…male, middle-class, and White.” And LDS. It’s Utah… that’s to be somewhat expected. I have been told, point-blank, that there are times when some of them don’t really think about what it means to be an “outsider.” I find this odd and somewhat amusing since many of these people – or members of their immediate families – at one time served a mission for the LDS Church, which made them a distinct minority in whichever community/state/country they served.

Do I wish to be treated differently or preferrentially because I am different? No.

Do I think that the differences between us should be swept under the rug or ignored? No.

Do I think that that we should be comfortable enough with each other to accept and appreciate the things that make us different? Yes.

To that end, I talk with my coworkers about things that I don’t understand about the local culture. Some of them, in turn, feel comfortable to ask me about things they don’t know/understand about my background. That’s a good thing; I actually enjoy that kind of dialogue. I wish that more people were able to do that.

What am I going to do with my day? I don’t know.

Thanks to the efforts of Dr. King – and many others who do not have holidays named in their honor – I am free to do whatever I choose. I can spend it in the company of friends. I can go out and enjoy the City Library. I can… just go for a drive (too cold to go for a walk or a bike ride), if I choose. If I choose to do nothing, I’m free to do that, as well.

If you have never had to worry about the freedom to do these things, why not take a moment to consider what it means to live in a country where people have had to fight for their freedoms and equality.

Be good to yourself.
Be good to others.

Namaste.

Friday – 12 January 2007
So far, it’s been a rather decent day. The road monkeys didn’t have me swearing every epithet known to man, Winathian or Daxamite on the way to work. I consider that a “good” thing. I have been able to track down most of the problem children in one of our inventory databases. Also a good thing. One not-so-good thing, however, was the condition in which an allegedly working system was brought to me. Parts missing. Some parts broken off. *sigh* Did I mention that it was “allegedly working?” I did? Okay. Just wanted to be sure. *rolling up sleeves* Time to do my Geordi LaForge impression and (try to) bring this pile of parts back to life.

I’m still not sure whether or not I’ll have to replace Intrepid‘s drive, but I have been fairly successful at migrating all (to this point) of its data to another drive. I may wind up losing a few things, but that’s better than having it be a complete wash. I also discovered that its video card had stopped working. More specifically, the fan on the card seized up. I was afraid that I’d have to buy a new card. Fortunately, it seems as though I can get a replacement fan for it for a fraction of the cost. I think that I’ll follow up on that option.

This evening holds the promise of a little time in Paragon City before heading to Clitorati.

Tomorrow, the Ravens take on the Colts… or, as might put it: “Baltimore 1.0 versus Baltimore 2.0” Although, I wonder if the Ravens would actually be “Baltimore 3.0,” since they had a USFL team after the Colts snuck out of Baltimore in the middle of the night and relocated to Indianapolis. Thanks to a timely reminder from , I remembered to dress appropriately for Purple Friday.

And with that… back to the grind.

Thursday – 11 January 2007
Yesterday wasn’t bad, but I wound down kind of early.  After I made it home (with a Barbacoa steak burrito in hand) I made a drink and my way to Paragon City.  I teamed with a few Super Group members and we took on a couple of Praetorian Arch-Villains, Marauder and Nightstar.  We experienced multiple casualties, but made it through… finally.  By the time I finished the last mission, I was half-playing the game/half-studying my inner eyelids.  I called it a relatively early night.

This morning I was up fairly early.  I started brewing hot caffeination, observed the hygiene rituals and started getting under way… when I realized that Intrepid wasn’t on.  õ,Ô  It was on when I went to bed.  *headscratch*  So, I tried rebooting.  No go, Flight.  Again.  Nothing.  So, I brought it to work so I could try a few things on it.  It’s still kaput – and it may be a problem with the hard drive.  The less-than-a-year-old hard drive.  *sigh*  I’m running tests to see if it’s recoverable to any degree.  This isn’t “bad” news, per se… but it is somewhat annoying.  Most of the things on the drive are easily replaceable, but I have a few things – mostly audio and video files – that may not be quite as easy to recover.

The rest of the work day – including the workout – has been good.

And it’s snowing.
Again.

Back to the grind.

Namaste.

Today’s groove break is more like a groove-a-thon: I’m playing music videos on one of my monitors.

Fatboy Slim’s Weapon of Choice was just playing.
Oingo Boingo’s Dead Man’s Party is on now.
Gorillaz’ 19-2000 was on a couple of videos back.

Today is a good day to make like Al Jarreau and get your boogie down.

Tuesday – 09 January 2006
Today was rather quiet at work.  And, as I mentioned in my last post, the lunch time workout was very good.

After work, I had dinner with , and Chris before we tonight’s game.  A game which we didn’t wind up playing because we were sitting around gabbing.  No harm, no foul.  Instead, we watched a few episodes of Roughnecks: Starship Troopers Chronicles and talked about comics, movies and other bits of geekdom.

The High-Flying Adventures of Indigo Bolt
Following the game, I made a stop in Paragon City.  The night was young-ish and I was only 480,000 points away from Level 49.  I spent a lot of time waiting for someone with whom I could team; I wound up getting messaged by an old partner.  She and I started out on a Praetorian Arch-Villain mission… and shortly after we started, we realized that we would need a little more help.  So, I recruited my Super Group’s leader (not to mention a regular teammate of mine).  We didn’t exactly waltz through the mission, nor was it exactly the Electric Slide, but we made it through.  We followed this up with another AV mission.  This time, however, we bolstered our ranks a bit.  By mission’s end, I had made it to Security Level 49.

Stray Toasters
Check back tomorrow.
Namaste.

Guess who bench pressed 205 lbs. at the gym this afternoon.

I did.

I only managed to get five (5) reps out of it, but I picked the bar up and put it down. Five times.

The measure of the moment
Is a difference of degree
Just one little victory
A spirit breaking free
One little victory
The greatest act can be
One little victory

   “One Little Victory” by Rush, from the CD Vapor Trails