Author: sean

I was looking back at what I’d written back in 2017.

On that day, I was writing about the reaction to the 2016 election.

Looking back at that, I have no absolutely no idea what connection I was trying to connect to with that. I think, maybe, I was thinking it was something to do with the 2016 election.

By the time I wrote in 2017, the morass that would have been the first bits of the Trump administration were already starting to swirl.

I could go back through to see if I can find some of the most egregious examples of overreach.

But, why?

Maybe I’d be smart to just forget most of those overreaches. But that’d require separating out what many of the same people excused with regards to the 2020 riots, and COVID.

But my reflex is simply to refuse to associate with the worst examples of overreach on either, or both.

Yeah, I’m just not going to associate with you, much less do business with you.

Maybe that’s unfair, but it’s all I can do in my position.

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I’m subjecting myself to more Joe Rogan because I wanted to hear what JD Vance had so say, even though I voted against him.

Guy can speak. Can’t say that same of any of the other people on the major parties’ tickets.

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I’m really following things at a distance. I’ll elaborate more in a few days.

Similarly, I’m glancing at the NFL scores. Fire Dennis Allen? Um, okay. But it looks like Mike McCarthy should probably go first.

*looks around for the entry where the Mike McCarthy offense-coordinated Saints beat the St. Louis Rams*

Um, yeah, I can’t find it right offhand.

Will I be long-appreciative to the coaching staff that finally brought a playoff win to the Coonasstrodome? Yep. Am I bored as hell by the string of teams that all look like it’s 2000 again? Yep.

Write about things that really bother you

A friend of mine once talked about a job interview he had. This wasn’t for any sort of really-professional job, and it was in Texas, so it makes a bit more sense. The anticipated parts of the interview had gone well, and it looked like he had a good shot at getting the job.

After the HR troll questions were finished, the interviewer thanked him, and said something along the lines of, “I’ve got just one more question, and it’s kind of a personal thing — What really pisses you off?”

This isn’t quite that, but, I’m sure there’s a nails-on-a-chalkboard thing for almost everybody out there.

When it comes to me at work, it’s the oft-proffered, “we have a requirement.”

Oh, yeah? Which one? Where’s it documented? Who approved it? How does it fit into solution design? What are the test cases that demonstrate its satisfaction?

I ended up working more yesterday to finish the ton of yearly training stuff for work. Of course, it’s due right after I’m supposed to get back, while I’m still technically “off.”

And I couldn’t get through it. But I did finally get into the benefits site so I can adjust the bits that are coming out of my paychecks.

Maybe I should do this by levels of annoyance.

1. Human Resources. It’s transformed over the past twenty years or so from a position of trying to get employees what they need to do their jobs to one of creating labyrinth processes to keep employees so busy that they can’t be individuals. Yeah, we’ll help them get what they’re after. After they do these 98 courses that make them into exactly the sort of people we want them to be. During my workout, I got Creep by Radiohead. I’m thinking Fitter Happier might be something that’s on repeat for a lot of these folks.
2. “Negative Impact.” This is an outgrowth from Dr. Santoro in college. In addition to whatever GE class he was teaching, he was really intent on making sure that his students could express themselves well. An “impact” is a collision. Learning to use “affect” and “effect” really improve your writing. With that in mind, “negative impact” started bothering me when I was writing mainly broadcast copy. Several years later, I was working with someone trying to “sexy up” language in something I wrote. He rewrote something, and used “negative impact.” My response was something along the lines of, “A negative impact is a vacuum; it sucks.” That was back when using such language in polite company, much less on TV or radio.
3. Catastrophizing. Sadly, this is in overdrive until Tuesday. I listened to this yesterday, and found myself disagreeing with pretty much all of the guests. I did sent my absentee ballot yesterday.

I probably could continue pounding things out, but I’m tiring of trying to think of things.

I also need to go fill out more paperwork.

I’m not supposed to be doing this again, but I figure it’s something that gets me into the mood for the holidays, and next year.

Things this year aren’t as jam-packed as last year, but I still do have a few things on my plate. I do have some travel the first week of the month, but why am I doing this? Well, some of the things in the Ep. with Susan Cain on EconTalk kind of spoke to some of what I do.

Even after a disgustingly-long day, it’s something I can do to kind of even out my head, as well as stay on track.

A lot of what I’m going to do this year is really recycled stuff from a particularly-low point in life, 2017, but I do have a few other things I want to write agouti.

We’ll see how it all goes, I suppose. There are a few blank spaces left, so I’m soliciting suggestions.

But, off we go. Let’s see what happens.

All that said, I really ought to consider not doing this next year. Fifteen straight years is a bit of an accomplishment, I suppose. Maybe I’ve stuck to this to keep some connection to what life was before everything went to hell.

Obviously, that started immediately after I finished the first month; my dad died. But this was something I did right after getting married, so that, too, fits into major life milestones.

Do I miss having things better set out for me before I started? Yeah, a bit. But I’m not trying to go back to then.

A particularly uninspiring politician is running on a general saying of “not going back.”

Okay, but when what you’ve got is completely screwed up, you do need to review how you got to that place.

I understand, Lessons Learned aren’t good Agile practice, along with things like proper engineering, but…..

Do I apply lessons from previous years to the next effort? Yes.

Let’s see how it goes.