I graduated highschool for a reason, and it wasn't to go to college.
… Quite like that of a Leafs win. Unfortunately, however, it would have been their own undoing if they didn't, since it was against Atlanta, of all teams, and well, let's just say Toronto has had their number, ever since the, like, 1 time they won in… oh… 2003 or so. I only wish I'd watched the game. Ah well, that's what the internet's for. One hockey replay coming up. In the meantime, though, I dare say we had fun–see my last entry. I'll write another one later, probably. If I don't fall asleep.
Stuck under Thrashers, maple leafs by James at 5:10 PM
Hockey reference aside, I have found the place with a 98% chance of me moving in. The rent's a little steep, but… after doing a little bit of numbers work thanks largely to the fact I have a pretty good idea what my monthly income's gonna be, it won't be impossible to pull off. Actually, it'll be fairly easy to pull off, after the first month. So now, I just have to finish making certain arangements, and… as of 11/15/2006, I will hopefully be moved out of this place. Or, at least, it will be in my name and partly payed for. Gives me about… 5 days or so to sort things out, then it's to the job site with me. Of course, there will be a few days of internetless lollyblogging, but that won't be avoidable. Much. Because, well, I will be plenty busted 'til my second paycheck. But I'll be moved! And employed!
Stuck under Moving by James at 4:41 PM
In the span of about 48 hours, I've assembled a record 5 apartments to look at tomorrow. My previous record being 0, and then 3. And after tomorrow, I suspect strongly things will be made easier. At least, until moving day. But by then, I'll have forgotten I'm supposed to be stressing out over it. Yay distractions!
Stuck under Moving by James at 2:56 PM
My day just wouldn't be complete without pointing out the obvious stupidity that seems to congrigate in the unlikeliest of places. In this case, a German court, where apparently you can be a complete and utter idiot and believe in a magical cure for a bad relationship, then sue the nut who thinks she's a witch when it inevitably does not work. Folks, I worry about the inteligence of the people around me. Although, to be blatantly honest, I'm not sure which I find more amusing. The lunatic who thought she was a witch or the idiot who believed her. You be the judge.
Stuck under fubars, oops by James at 11:39 AM
After running around trying to get a few more questions answered and finding very little in the way of actual information we like, mom has apparently decided we're going to Ottawa tonight. Not that I'm complaining–I hate early mornings as much as the next guy. But I'm gonna miss my hockey game, dammit!
Stuck under Moving by James at 11:30 AM
Somewhere around 1:30 we ended up losing power, for reasons I still don't exactly know. Well, other than that Pembroke/Pettawawa's hydro system sucks royally. So, needless to say, it was not fun when the temperature outside happens to be hovering at or just barely above freezing. I don't know exactly, but hey, if it was snowing, and it was (er, uh, still is), then… I guess freezing or just slightly above it is. Fortunately, much like our last attempt at a snow fall, it didn't stick around. Thank the gods… I'm still too damn lazy to be shoveling. By 4 we were getting pretty close to being fed up with it. And, of course, it was looking more and more like the ever so helpful hydro company estimate would yet again be just a little tiny bit off the mark. By this time now we're tossing around ideas for supper, taking into account the fact we can't cook, microwave, or otherwise put any effort into actually making something–thank you, hydro company. We ended up going out instead, since… well, you know, it beat spending the rest of the evening sitting around a powerless house and slowly freezing. And, as Murphy's law would have it, not even 10 minutes after we get back, we have power again. It almost never fails. Almost, of course, meaning except for, you know, that spell of 24 hours wherein we had no power. *That* was fun. In a… never again kinda way. At least we didn't freeze that time. And now… I suppose I should get back to what I couldn't be doing while we were in the dark. Namely, more house hunting.
We aren't in any of the named areas, but are right between a couple of them, so I suspect strongly we got hit by this mess.
Stuck under fubars, only in pembroke, oops, rantings by James at 6:43 PM
Apparently, she who shall remain nameless save the various titles I've already asigned her on this blog is now officially engaged to my brother. Certain members of my slightly misguided family are still thinking (hoping, perhaps?) they won't actually end up getting married. I, however, expect it. And am definitely not looking forward to it. Ah well. It's not like I'll have to see either of them in like a week or so, so I suppose it isn't *too* horrible. But still, I can't help but wonder if it's too late to replace her…
Stuck under family, fubars by James at 12:06 PM
Somehow, that doesn't quite seem all that… uh, well, fair. But, as my brother shockingly put it best, we choked. Again. And a 4 2 lead ended up being 4 4 going into a shootout. Guh. We can't keep doing that and expecting to win… thank the gods we got away with it this time. And even better still, Toronto's season opening record is still safe, if shared. Chew on that notion for a while, Erin!
Stuck under Canadians, Sabres, maple leafs by James at 11:42 AM
By what must be a grose miscalculation, this little randomly opinionating spot of mine has somehow managed to attract over a thousand unique visitors so far this month. That's… um… well, I suppose that's a good thing. O'course, they don't come much more unique than me! *cackle*
Okay, I'm done. For now.
Stuck under random crap by James at 3:52 PM
That makes two games in a row I couldn't watch all the way through. And I didn't even watch the last one from the beginning, either… I did, however, watch enough of it to see both Toronto goals in a less than thrilling losing effort. I'm trying to find something positive, but really, other than Raycroft playing slightly better, well, there ain't much. And, um, any improvement in the goaltending department was cancelled out by the crappyness that was the defensive play. But, on the up side, for a second game in a row there were no Senator-induced injuries. I guess someone finally told mister Dany it's not nice to try to break people's legs. Add to this, the punch in the gut that was goddamn Buffalo tying Toronto's season start record. All I can say… is… son of a bitch.
Stuck under Sabres, Senators, maple leafs by James at 1:33 PM
Shortest conversation I ever had with my brother:
Him: How is it my dog managed to get into so much garbage without you hearing him?
Me: Simple, really. It's not my job to mind him.
*silence*
Ah, lessons learned with live demonstration. No guarantee it'll be successful, of course, but at least this time he knew better than to argue with me.
Scratch that. He just tried to tell me his dog was better behaved than our two. Of course… the mess on the floor caught him in the biggest lie of his life. I love it when he makes kicking his ass in a conversation easy.
Stuck under family by James at 11:04 AM
Nothing ever gets done in Canada's parliament. I've made that implication before. But now, it's an implication all parties involved, at least, think about acknowledging. So what's their solution? Well, they *could* agree to start prioritizing things, giving room for the bills with the least likelyhood to be completely and totally torn apart by one side or the other to actually get past. Or, they could just blame each other. This has become yet another conservative versus liberals faceoff, much akin to the dog comment–by the way, no one really gives a fuck about that either. I don't want to be waving my right to vote, but damn… if this keeps up, people are gonna end up voting for the Green party not because they agree with their platform, but because they're sick and tired of the big players acting more like 5th-graders. I've said it before, and I'll say it again. This be why I won't vote conservative, or liberal. I won't even vote NDP if it can be avoided–I'd rather vote for an independant. At least it has a better chance of not being wasted.
Stuck under politics, rantings by James at 9:18 PM
I'm bored. *shrugs*
Your Chances of Being a Multimillionaire: 68% You have a good chance of being a multimillionaire. Better than most people.
You simply have a natural knack for money and the personality for success.
Stuck under quizes by James at 5:47 PM
In the 2 days since I got the job offer, I've made and received more phone calls than I ever have in a year before that. And now, almost every single one of them is waiting for a response of some variety or another. And not from me, either. I've got 3 possibilities for places to live so far. Well, 2 now, since one won't be ready until the first of December and well, I'm hoping to be moved long before then. On top of that, I have information that needs to be updated, and people that need to call me back with information I need. *then*, I get to call the office back I'll be working for, so they can throw paperwork at me, and so we can do this all over again. Fun stuff, really. On the up side, though, it took only about an hour and a half to get a hold of people I needed to this morning. The down side? I've been waiting ever since for most of them to call me back. And this be why I usually don't like to rely on other people. I want this over with already dammit! Ah well. At least if it isn't going 50 miles an hour I won't be stressing about it too much. But I'd like it if it went faster than half a mile per hour…
Stuck under Moving by James at 2:59 PM
Canada 1, idiotic US judge 0. After being willingly tossed from the US, a convicted sex offender found himself rather quickly arrested at the border. And all I can say is, oh, hell, yes. I wonder if this creap will see jail time after all… *rubs his hands together*
Stuck under musings by James at 1:18 PM
So I started my looking for a place today. And so far, I found one that's a definite possibility. Yay for the internet and family members who know the city! Or… something. Now, I just need to figure out when I've got a free day, book the appointment to actually see the place, and then, if it doesn't make me wanna run in the opposite direction, put together first and last. Shouldn't be difficult to do, I wouldn't think. And, getting from there to the Dell office I'll be working at doesn't require half a dozen buses and a sharp u-turn. That's always a good thing. Hm. I could be moved out inside of 2 weeks. That's… frightening.
Stuck under Moving by James at 3:23 PM
But I sure turned it off last night. I figure, 30 minutes of absolute brutality is enough for any fan of any team. I can see I was right, because… well, the game didn't really improve much after that. Typical Ottawa/Toronto game from last year. Ottawa does the cheap shot dance, there be at least one fight, and the score ended up lopsided in Ottawa's favour. By the time I couldn't watch anymore it was 5 nothing and they'd all but collapsed. Then apparently they tried to come back and collapsed again, because by the end of it all, 'twas 6 freakin' 2. Much like at least two people, I wait for the eventual beating in retaliation that's sure to result from Thursday's game in Ottawa, if this year's trend of 1 continues. Unlike these two, however, I'm not holding my breath. Why? One word. Raycroft. Enough said? I thought so. I look for Aubin to start Thursday. But if not, then I *really* hope Raycroft is awake… or I'll have to abandon my hockey game for a second night in a row. It's bad enough I'm already gonna miss half of it thanks to previous commitments (see: guitar lessons, taking of). Hey, ironicly, I missed half of it when they won in Ottawa the last time, too. And for the same reason.
Stuck under Senators, maple leafs by James at 11:08 AM
I believe I've mentioned to a few people a passing interest I have in law. That goes along with the interest I have in politics, as evidenced by, well, just about everything in this category, and a few entries I'm too lazy to look for to include in said category. Well, that interest in law has lead me to take special notice of this article in the news. Nearly 300 sex charges, ranging from sexual assault to, well, just plain assault. Um, just how much would a defense lawyer want to get paid to try and make this guy look like he might not be guilty? Since I don't really think there will be a plea bargain. Why am I writing about this when there's a hockey game on, you may be asking? Well, um… uh well… they're losing. So I'm getting ready to write it off. And it's only the end of the first period.
Stuck under fubars by James at 8:10 PM
You did in fact read that correctly. I am no longer, well, at least in an unofficial sense, an unemployed sod. Just half an hour ago, I got off the phone with… I'm assuming is one of the HR people for Dell. And she just got finished extending to me a conditional offer of employment. By conditional, of course, she means formality… you know the drill, background check, criminal record/educational/employment varification kinda thing, all that fun stuff. So basicly, my foot's in the door, and now, I could wind up starting as early as November 6th, and as late as December 4th. Which means, I'd better get my ass in gear and find me a place to live. Damn, this feels good.
Stuck under employment by James at 9:45 AM
I have to find something to do today. This should not amuse me.
Stuck under random crap by James at 3:33 PM
So apparently, a US judge doesn't think all too highly of Canada, judging by the fact he gave a man convicted of having sex with a 15-year-old girl the choice between spending a year in jail, and spending the next 3 years exiled to Canada. Of course, the defense lawyer raises a good concern with that–now that he has a criminal record, and with a charge like that, Canada may yet not refuse him. In fact, I hope they don't. Canada does not want the US's trash, folks. We have enough of it already thanks in large part to the current government. I don't care that this guy's got a wife and kids in Fort Erie, where he's apparently to be exiled to. In fact, *because* he has kids of his own, he should be tossed in jail, no questions asked, answered, or thought about. But, instead, it would appear the lovely dumbasses in charge have apparently not yet learned to solve their own goddamn problems. I know people in Fort Erie, for crying out loud. I don't want an American lunatic living there. Toss that sucker in jail for a few years, then ship him off to Mexico. Maybe we'll all get lucky and he'll wind up missing. And the judge that gave him that choice should be shot. Twice. Three times for good measure.
Stuck under rantings by James at 2:10 PM
In… October? The second day of autumn? Something just isn't right around here. But yet, step outside, and we will be snowed. I'm not sure I like this. I'm too damn lazy to be shoveling! Damn it all right to hell.
Stuck under oops by James at 1:19 PM
Neither team was really awake during the first period and a half or so… but after that, well, again, things started to get interesting. Unfortunately for my Leafs, they were apparently still tired after last night's game (see: Blue Jackets, beating of), and ended up coughing up a lead. Then giving them the lead. Then dying in the shootout. But, I suppose, they got a point, if nothing else. They've played, now, a total of 9 games, and all except the first one, they've managed at least a point. The good thing… we get Ottawa on Tuesday. Ordinarily I'd cringe, particularly after last year–in how many languages can you say "creamed"? But, so far at least, we don't seem to be doing too… uh, well, terribly. Of course, by that, I mean we've managed to come away with a pretty even record against them so far this year. Granted it's only been two games, but… still. That's one more than we won against them last year. And about 6 games earlier than we won it last year. That's promising, if absolutely nothing else. I love that philosophy. Get pissed off we couldn't beat New York, even though we came damn close at times, and take it out on Ottawa. I only wish I could see the game. Hey, anyone wanna toss a couple tickets my way?
Stuck under Rangers, Senators, maple leafs by James at 11:23 PM
I've heard way too much already about the debate as to whether or not Quebec should seperate or stick with the rest of Canada, and quite frankly, either way, I could really care less. I have no reason to bother with Quebec, I have no reason so far to bother learning french. I used to know it, then you know, I lived in BC for like 3 years and it all went to hell in a handbag. But I'm getting off-topic already. So apparently the Quebec wing of the liberal party just passed a motion recognising Quebec as a nation. I say, then, good on them. So Quebec is now a country in and of itself, according to them. Well, in that case, they can pack up their shit and pull out of the debate to run my country. Because, to be perfectly honest, as much as I don't care either way for it, if it all pans out and Quebec ends up becoming a nation in and of itself, then IMHO they give up their Canadian citizenship, in favour of a *Quebec* citizenship, and if they want to keep their Canadian citizenship they should have to go through the same damn red tape as any other immigrant. And all these lunatics who're running for national political parties and screaming about how Quebec doesn't belong to the rest of Canada should form their own damn national parties for the sake of governing Quebec, and let someone who gives a damn about the rest of us take their place. Let me say right here and now I have no problem with Quebec, with people from Quebec, with the french language, or anything like that. But for crying out loud if you're gonna scream seperation, then at least do it while not occupying a seat in the national parliament that would be better occupied doing something that's actually going to help the rest of Canada. There's a reason, folks, why we don't hear much out of the Block Quebecois except vaguely when election time comes around. No one outside of Quebec probably even cares whether they stay or go. But if they're gonna go, then… see ya. Stop beating a dead horse and just get it over with already. And by the way, when Quebec does finally seperate, if it happens, I really hope it forces the disbandment of parties like the Block Quebecois. If they wanna run their own country… they've got no place here. Bye.
Stuck under politics, rantings by James at 5:09 PM
I'm assuming the answer to that is a resounding yes. Now, add to the mix, in place of the odd idiot who'll just accidentally on purpose whip the ball at your head (never happened to me, but I've seen it happen), several idiots with shopping carts who're concentrating more on attempting desperately to control their misbehaving children than, you know, watching where they're going. You can see where this is heading, and quickly. This would be why I avoid going to Wallmart on a weekend if at all possible. The place is hard enough to navigate on a good day, never mind trying to do that *and* dodge morons who should not be allowed to push a shopping cart. And I'm talking about trying to navigate around that with sight… no way in hell will I bother doing that on my own. And that's saying something, because… well, me asking for help with something just… doesn't happen often. And just to make it more interesting, we had to dodge a kid or two who's parents seem to have lost all control of them. Which is why you should not bring your children to Wallmart. At least, not when the goal is to teach them to be better behaved. It makes you look like an idiot, and it pisses those of us who don't have children and do have things to get accomplished before we turn 90 right the hell off. Just food for thought. 'Cuz I still have to do the thinking for some people around here.
Stuck under fubars, rantings by James at 3:04 PM
No scoring through pretty much half the game, then a combined 6 goals through the other half, with a second goal for the Blue Jackets coming in the last minute of the game, but still in a losing effort. That's what I call a hockey game, folks. And I even sat down to watch that game last night. Of course, that's to be expected… hockey is, for all intents and purposes, the closest thing to a religion I follow. Tonight is another night of worship at the hockey shrine, so my plans are officially made. Now here's hoping life doesn't crop up to change them.
Stuck under Blue Jackets, maple leafs by James at 11:34 AM
And all I can say is God help us if they give him a gun.
Stuck under family by James at 4:13 PM
Already, he did the first smart thing I've seen any liberal do in quite a while. He made blatantly obvious the fact that everyone's favourite president–taken with as much or as little sarcasm as you please–is a disaster. Hm, I've said that at least twice on here that I can specificly remember, though not in those exact words. Now, if he were the leader of the NDP, he'd get my full congratulations. But, instead, he's a goddamn liberal and I'm sick of them screwing us over. Ah well, can't have it all.
Stuck under fubars, musings, politics by James at 1:01 PM
Of course, after that, they all went to shit, and my Leafs eventually work their way into an ass kicking the likes of which I did not want to see on a night when Sundin was being honoured for the fact he 1: scored his 500th career goal, 2: scored his 345th goal as a Leaf tying him for second all time as a Leaf, and 3: did both of those while notching the game-winning goal and the third to a hat trick on Saturday. Suggestion: They should drop all this ceremony crap before games. So far, Toronto is 0 and 2 after the pregame festivities, dating back to the embarrassing game that was opening night. I should have just watched CSI.
Stuck under Avalanche, maple leafs by James at 11:02 PM
And this is why I won't join any particular political party. Offering opinions on a weblog, which as just about anyone knows I do quite frequently, could stand to get you the boot. Hm, a politician grows some balls and he's no longer *really* a politician. Too bad, really. It was starting to show some promis. Ah well, file this under the category of idiots I did not elect. It's amazing the crap you find when you can actually have time to breathe.
Stuck under oops, politics, rantings by James at 4:10 PM
I should complain about there being nothing particularly blog worthy coming from the morons in newsland more often. People go and pull crap like this then. I dunno. Maybe I'm just uber odd for thinking it, but tongue piercing just begs for all kinds of problems. Why people even bother doing it is really and truely beyond me. Why people bother doing it then think it'll be found sexy is just out of the realm of any possible comprehension. That's a real good way to turn me off, anyway. But, lack of sexyness and outright stupidity aside, I'll bet the real problem behind it doesn't even register with half these people. It can kill you. Or at least make things supremely awkward for you. I dunno. I always thought tongue rings were just a complete waste of your money, and I didn't even have to get one. Does that make me an exception?
Stuck under fubars, oops, rantings by James at 11:05 AM
I of course wouldn't hold my breath, but by the looks of it… that dog of my brother's is here again. So that should give an indication. Fortunately, though, the two that actually belong here are outside… so there's no constant battle of him wanting to take one of their noses off and them wanting to have him for lunch. It's pretty sad, though, when my idea of peace and quiet is sitting here listening to him do that puppy pouting thing he does when he wants out. Of course, we all know he only wants out because that's where they are… and I'm *not* chasing him out there, thankya much. As usual, his owners are downstairs sleeping, and as I've discovered the last 6 times they've done this to me, sending him downstairs lasts until he starts barking, then they send him back upstairs and we do this dance all over again. So, until either all 3 of them get tired and go to sleep or the owners of the odd dog out actually wake up, my patience will be stretched very, very thin. And that's difficult to do. Ah well, there's nothing else blog worthy to bring up so I guess that'll have to do. Hell, there aren't even any obviously moronic people in the news so far that I can laugh at on this thing. And until if I ever actually get a life, there won't be much original content coming out of this corner. I'm running out of ways to say I hope those two downstairs never have kids…
Stuck under family, fubars, rantings by James at 10:51 AM
You would think people would kind of make sure that, if not everyone in the vehicle is at least *wearing* a seatbelt, there are enough in the vehicle that everyone could actually do that. You would also think you wouldn't try cramming 10 people into a vehicle that only actually seats 7, wouldn't you? Apparently they need to make a law here in Ontario for it, because certain morons slept through common sense 101. And it only took 4 people in a minivan being killed before that apparent loophole in the trafic act was spotted and subsequently worked towards being plugged. Well, on the bright side, it's now illegal to be a stupid fucking idiot. It's about time.
Stuck under fubars, rantings by James at 5:23 PM
Because I can't think of anything else to put here.
Your Dominant Intelligence is Musical Intelligence Every part of your life has a beat, and you're often tapping your fingers or toes.
You enjoy sounds of all types, but you also find sound can distract you at the wrong time.
You are probably a gifted musician of some sort - even if you haven't realized it.
Also a music lover, you tend to appreciate artists of all kinds.
You would make a great musician, disc jockey, singer, or composer.
Stuck under quizes by James at 4:34 PM
It's only October 16th. So why, then, am I going outside and nearly losing the feeling in my fingers? Blarg… winter's coming too early! I miss the 30 degrees…
Stuck under fubars, oops, rantings by James at 11:46 AM
5 4 Leafs. Enough said. Sundin's 500th career goal. Also enough said. Sundin's hat trick. That's why he's the captain, folks. Long story short: Calgary is my bitch. *nods*
Stuck under Flames, maple leafs by James at 10:46 PM
Now, let's see if MT will play nice with this new toy… hm. Has anyone ever actually used Blog Desk? If so, opinions?
I've decided it's not worth my time. It's doing bad things that invalidate my HTML… I do enough of that on my own!
Stuck under random crap by James at 12:32 PM
I didn't expect she'd actually do it. But, she did. And now, I think I need to do some musical research. Eh, later. I'm lazy.
Stuck under random crap by James at 9:04 PM
Okay, so I didn't watch much more than 3 minutes of the third period, and the extra frames. But… what in the 7 levels of hell? Rarely do I see a team up 6 3 going into the third period, like the Leafs were, only to lose 7 6 because of stupidity. The few minutes at the end of the game were an example of that one… save in the overtime period, the puck seemed to spend most of its time in the wrong end of the bloody rink. I can't really comment on much more than that, because… well, while they were playing, I was driving home. But, to lose like that in a game in which they were clearly dominating, something had to have fucked up. I should catch a replay and figure out exactly what the hell broke in the third period… because that was just absolutely rediculous in the extreme.
Stuck under Devils, maple leafs, rantings by James at 9:52 AM
Okay, now that I can pretend to be awake, let me see if I can't… at least summarize yesterday without making myself look and sound like an idiot. It'll be damn near impossible, but hey, I could pull off a miracle. Possibly.
Before I get into anything, though, I'll say right now anyone who tells me being up and actually on the road for 15 hours is fun deserves to be shot, pissed on, and strung up by their hair. Now, with that having been said, getting up at 6 to be in Ottawa by 9 for an interview that started at 1 is no fun. Fortunately, mom had an appointment she had to get out of the way, so we were able to get that done and still had time to swing by a decent restaurant for breakfast (by the way, Cora's (probably misspelled) is bad if you expect to eat a light breakfast). Then it was to the interview, which was a whole adventure in itself. First off, the directions we got were a bit misleading, so we thought the place I had to be was actually closer than it was. To look at the directions, it looked like the office complex was kinda right on the corner of two streets, in an area where, you know, it'd be hard to miss. Wrong answer. So we ended up guessing at exactly where the place was. We weren't far off, though, so it only really took us, maybe, about 5 minutes longer than it should have. And 3 of that was finding a place to park (visitors' parking is just not heard of in Ottawa, apparently). So we finally get in there, and keep in mind I had to be there 15 minutes early for the interview, I guess to give me time to clear the security checkpoints and such, and the first thing they want me to go through apparently is a manager's meeting. Okay, so no problem. Figure it'd take that maybe half an hour. Well, it did. Unfortunately, it took 10 minutes longer than it should have for it to start–I was there on time, but where was he? God only knows.
We finally got that out of the way, though, relatively painlessly, and he ended up asking me a lot of primarily technical/work experience questions (since when the hell do we still use MS DOS on a regular basis, anyway?). I think I did alright with that, though, considering the oddness of some of the questions. Then I waited another 5-10 minutes (they do like their waiting games) for the HR person who set up this whole thing so we could get onto the customer service assessment/simulation/thing, whatever the fuck it is you wanna call it. To say that was brutally tedius would be a grose understatement. I mean, I know the job itself calls for some degree of tedium, but that was just… over the top. It started alright enough, though, with anywhere from 150 to 200 questions related to the kind of person you are and work experience/preferences, that kinda thing–think personality survey. I think I did alright with that. Then they put me through 7 simulated customer service situations, 1 via a simulated chat environment, and 6 pre-recorded script-driven calls, or somesuch, for a fictional GPS tracking company. If you've never done call center/customer service work, I'll warn you right now–bring a notebook or a good memory. That was a simulation for an interview and I still had a hell of a lot of crapola to memorise. I managed, though, considering I only had 5 minutes to memorise it, and the only particulars I had to look at were the minor, customer-specific things, for obvious reasons. I think, with the exception of 1 or 2 where I know I kinda fubared the answers a little, I did alright on that section. We shall have to see, though. It was pretty rappid fire–you'd get done one simulated exchange, then they'd sorta quiz you on it. Then you'd move right into the next one. So at least in that regard I didn't have time to think about where I could have maybe done things a bit differently.
All told, the interview must have lasted a good 3 and a half hours, easily. Officially the longest interview on my personal record to date. I'll hopefully hear back, the HR person told me, in anywhere from 5 to 10 days, so… we shall see. 'Twas a learning experience, though, if nothing else, and definitely showed me that's something I'd at the very least like to learn more about doing, if not make a career out of it. It seems to be a bit more… I dunno, relaxed than what I thought, which is kinda a good thing. In between meetings, I was sitting in the front lobby talking with someone who's doing the same job I was being interviewed for, just kinda killing a few minutes before we had to go do our own things–apparently, he was applying to move to a different position–and I'm guessing they don't try to enforce a strict average call time. Either that or he just got unlucky… we were both rather amused over a call he took the night before that took him 3 hours to resolve, and it ended up being something rediculously simple–the laptop the customer bought had a network card his router wouldn't support. That'd be a kick in the teeth… 3 hours just to be told to replace the card or get a new router. So that was a decent distraction, anyway.
Of course, after the interview was over came the mandatory 3 hours of boredom–my mother and my aunt, in the same vehicle, in a city with at least 6 malls, maybe more. You can see where this is going. Lots of wandering through stores I have no interest in, and no actually buying anything. So after that interview, I got to try to stay awake for 3 hours while they browsed supposedly decent-looking art work, and other asorted pictures, then went clothing/jewelry shopping. My uncle, who had an appointment at the same time as my interview so at least they had something else to do while I was occupied, was probably less enthused with the idea than I was, and he can see the damn things. We'd planned to swing past my cousin's place, but apparently there was no one home… so we ended up going out for supper (by the way, Montana's is just bad, period) instead, then we headed home. And then I caught the last 5 minutes of a hockey game (rant about that mess to follow in a few minutes), thought about updating, half-ass attempted to update, and passed out. And now, I shall stay home today, and actually inside, unless I absolutely have to leave… because it is fucking *freezing* out there.
Stuck under employment, family, fubars, musings, rantings by James at 8:43 AM
And still, at least for the moment, not disqualified. More informative entry to come. Tomorrow. Passing out now.
Stuck under employment by James at 10:46 PM
Shamelessly stolen from Erin, who shamelessly stole it from someone else, so it works! Yes, these are all numbered 1. Yes, it's done on purpose. No, I'm not changing it.
1. Men ARE not mind readers.1. Learn to work the toilet seat. You're a big girl. If it's up, put it down. We need it up, you need it down. You don't hear us complaining about you leaving it down.
1. Sunday sports. It's like the full moon or the changing of the tides. Let it be.
1. Shopping is NOT a sport. And no, we are never going to think of it that way.
1. Crying is blackmail.
1. Ask for what you want. Let us be clear on this one: Subtle hints do not work! Strong hints do not work! Obvious hints do not work! Just say it!
1. Yes and No are perfectly Acceptable answers to almost every question.
1. Come to us with a problem only If you want help solving it. That's what we do. Sympathy is what your girlfriends are for.
1. A headache that lasts for 17 months is a problem . See a doctor.
1. Anything we said 6 months ago is inadmissible in an argument. In fact, all comments become null and void after 7 Days.
1. If you won't dress like the Victoria's Secret girls, don't Expect us to act like soap opera guys.
1. If you think you're fat, you probably are. Don't ask us.
1. If something we said can be interpreted two ways and one of the ways makes you sad or angry, we meant the other one
1. You can either ask us to do something Or tell us how you want it done. Not both. If you already know best how to do it, just do it yourself.
1. Whenever possible, Please say whatever you have to say during commercials.
1. Christopher Columbus did NOT need directions and neither do we.
1. ALL men see in only 16 colors, like Windows default settings. Peach, for example, is a fruit, not a color. Pumpkin is also a fruit. We have no idea what mauve is.
1. If it itches, it will Be scratched. We do that.
1. If we ask what is wrong and you say "nothing," We will act like nothing's wrong. We know you are lying, but it is just not worth the hassle.
1. If you ask a question you don't want an answer to, Expect an answer you don't want to hear.
1. When we have to go somewhere, absolutely anything you wear Is fine… Really.
1. Don't ask us what we're thinking about unless you are prepared to discuss such topics as baseball, the shotgun formation, or golf.
1. You have enough clothes.
1. You have too many shoes.
1. I am in shape. Round IS a shape!
1. Thank you for reading this.
Yes, I know, I have to sleep on the couch tonight; But did you know men really don't mind that? It's like camping.
Oddly, there's a few of these that don't apply to me…. but I make up for them more than enough with my own opinions on things. 'Cuz it's what I do.
Stuck under random crap by James at 1:39 PM
Thanks a lot, Stacie. *rolls his eyes*
List seven songs you are into right now. No matter what the genre, whether or not they have words, or even if they’re not any good, but the must be songs you’re really enjoying now. Post these instructions in your blog along with your seven songs. Then tag seven other people to see what they’re listening to.
Well, here goes. This will be random.
Now, who'll actually answer this sucker… that's a good question. Let's see…
Stuck under quizes by James at 12:50 PM
So why am I about the interview tomorrow? I mean, only a little… but… eh. Still. Nervous is not me. I think it's a lot to do with the fact it took, like… 2 months to get this far, but I dunno. I'm not worried about not getting this job, I mean someone thinks I'll land it if they already went out of their way to make arangements so I could get their computer assessment thing done, which the HR person makes sound like it's just a formality anyway. Ah well, we'll know in about… 28 hours whether or not I bombed the interview completely. In the meantime, I'm going to distract myself. If you have no clue what the hell job interview I'm talking about, look at the calendar entry for that date (that's why it's plastered on the site, after all), or read back through these entries. And now, I turn my attention to figuring out why it is a country band will go and remake a song that's less than 10 years old. Random, yes. Blame the station I'm listening to.
Stuck under employment, musings, random crap by James at 12:01 PM
After spending, roughly, a day or so tinkering with Word Press (No, I'm not abandoning my Moveable Type yet), I have discovered in that way that really makes me wonder what the hell I do with my free time 3 things I didn't know about me and blogging software.
I learned a lot, though, surprisingly. It's kind of amazing how much you can find out just by taking a couple hours and messing around with software and crap. And that's what I've been doing for the last couple days, instead of popping up with all kinds of sarcasm and other such randomness on this site–I know, I know, the 3 of you who read this didn't miss me much anyway. I've learned, though, it's not the kind of thing I'd want running this blog. Although, I suspect, that's primarily because I *just* got finished beating my head against the wall figuring out MT's inner workings so I didn't break this site–not for the first time–while I'm attempting to change something. I don't wanna go through all that with a new system again! Well, okay, so maybe eventually I will. If, for whatever reason, a natural disaster happens to come up and this blog's completely and totally whiped out. Hm… but since I'm on the topic, anyone want a free blog? I've got the space for it…
Stuck under musings by James at 3:28 PM
Ordinarily I wouldn't bother bringing mention of things like this, I mean I already beat the issue to death with my several references to Iran's stupidity, but you know, half this crap wouldn't be going on if it wasn't for the kinds of policies the US and its allies are trying to push onto other countries. It's always been a belief of mine that absolutely no one should be allowed to possess or use nuclear technology. But, since only a select few countries are, any country found to be doing research in the field is automaticly on the hit list of the countries who've already done said research. I don't want to see nuclear weapons in the hands of North Korea's whackjobs either, but then again, I don't want to see them in the hands of the US, or Britain, at the same time. Admitedly for different reasons, but the thought's still the same. I mentioned before exactly what I think of the hypocrisy of the US. My opinion hasn't changed. And neither has the US. Figures.
Stuck under rantings by James at 10:17 AM
Unfortunately, as amusing as it is for me, I'd imagine the Ontario family it happened to is outright pissed. A funeral scheduled for this weekend had to be postponed, because the mother it was for was going to be a little late. And I thought my great uncle was the only one who'd actually end up being late to his own funeral. My aunt *did* warn him of that, too… and he was. Gotta love Canada Post.
Stuck under oops by James at 9:19 AM
In spite of the fact it went to a shootout on the 4th, and again just yesterday, both of which didn't net them the extra point. I'm starting to worry about Toronto's shootout skills yet again, but… at least we still managed to come away with 4 points in 3 games. The difference is, and I will continue to blame it for the next week, that damn goal post being in the way. Tucker and Wellwood could have both ended it if that post hadn't moved, dammit! Ah well. There's always Monday.
Stuck under Canadians, maple leafs by James at 9:10 AM
Between the baking, shopping, and just generally lazing around that's been done today, and the fact in just under 2.5 hours there will be hockey on at least one TV set, you'd certainly get that impression. But, no, this is just our premature thanksgiving dinner, done tonight rather than Monday when it traditionally would be done because tonight's the only night wherein people will actually be home. We've almost been going non-stop since early-ish this morning–when we do something like this, we generally like to overdo it. Translation: there will be food left over to feed a family twice our size for a week. There's usually plenty to do, and we often don't have to worry about everyone not finding something with which to keep themselves busy. That I have time to sit here and write this surprises me, really. It's a little out of the ordinary, how we're doing it this year, but oh well. All that means is come Monday, it'll be just another day for us, and we'll be ready for the grind that is going to be the next week. I have a feeling I'm going to be quite thankful when Friday gets back around to us…
Stuck under Hockey, family, musings by James at 4:34 PM
When they say a political campaign should catch the attention of the voters, I'm… quite sure they didn't think someone would actually take it at skin value. But, I was told once the spanish do have a tendency to take things very… uh, literally. Hey, the public and even the opposition isn't objecting to it, so… whatever works. I wish people around here were that creative sometimes. Of course, that said, some people around here would be shot if they were that creative. For those people, I'm just thankful I can't see.
Stuck under musings, oops, politics by James at 4:10 PM
In fact, I should probably be a little frightened. Two of the seven currently recorded searches for this month that lead people here are merijuana, and medical merijuana. I blame it all on this entry. But at least it's not, you know, death to america or something. Apparently the government watches for that in people's blogs now. Oh, uh, oops.
Stuck under oops, random crap by James at 5:38 PM
Someone obviously thinks we do. It's being circulated that they've come to some kind of an agreement with Boyd Devereaux, who used to play for the Coyotes and before that the Red Wings. Well, I guess we'll find out eventually if we need yet another body plugging the hole at center. Like, say, if someone ends up victimised by another Dany Heatley. In the meantime, though… uh, well, at least the minor league team's got an experienced man. I suppose.
Stuck under Red Wings, Senators, maple leafs, musings by James at 4:53 PM
Unless, of course, you wouldn't consider 6 nothing to be a convincing win. Funnily enough, though, I don't find as much satisfaction in that win as I thought I would. I find perhaps a little bit more satisfaction in what the Senators coach said after the game.
"We play Saturday night," Senators coach Bryan Murray said. "That's about all you can say."
Awesome. Absolutely awesome. Now *that* is how you make up for losing your own home opener.
Stuck under Senators, maple leafs by James at 10:53 AM
He won't say. But, there be speculation afoot, and his being all smiles when they scored last night is certainly fueling that fire. Can't say it'd surprise me, seeing as he *is* Toronto born, but… the irony of it is just too amusing. I wonder if this will spark the all too familiar Senators crowd's irritation level a little…
Stuck under Hockey, Senators, maple leafs, musings, politics by James at 12:22 PM
This damn dog of my brother's is supposed to be leaving at 2. Provided, of course, I don't kill him before then. God it can't come fast enough…
Stuck under musings by James at 11:15 AM
Why else would circumstances present themselves just right for my brother to be in town just long enough for his damn dog to piss on my floor? Freakin' 3 months old and still just going where he stands. Murphy must be specificly out to piss me off today. Retribution, perhaps, for landing a job interview?
Stuck under family, fubars, rantings by James at 9:43 AM
But at least this time we didn't just roll over and die. I mean, it sucked royally, including the empty net goal in the last minute of the game which just further goes to show Alfredson can't score with a goalie actually minding the net, but considering I'm used to, you know, 4 0, 8 0, and at least one player ending up injured in the exchanges… that wasn't all too terrible. It's only one game out of 82… and it might have been right after a huge pregame ceremony, but I still think this season might turn out a little differently. Hey, we'll know tonight, when they take the game up the highway to Ottawa. I only wish I had tickets. Anyone wanna volunteer a couple?
Stuck under Senators, maple leafs by James at 9:02 AM
I can play around with my guitar for 20 minutes or so, and by the time my fingers get to hurting (Yes, they still hurt after only 20 minutes–I am a wimp.) the dogs will have decided they want in. Proof I can still have something of a hobby and still look after the little ones. And that I have too much time on my hands.
Stuck under random crap by James at 6:22 PM
And instead, will take their daughter to another state under the pretense of a shopping trip in order for her to miss the wedding they already objected to. So now, they lose twice; the daughter gets married, and they get charged with kidnapping. And they all lived happily ever after. Eventually.
Stuck under fubars, oops by James at 10:42 AM
I've ranted about the stupidity of DRM plenty before, so we'll just leave that topic alone. But I would just like to point out the amusement factor that comes with the topic. Particularly in the form of the nod from Slashdot that my web host's latest down with DRM got them. I knew there was a reason I picked these guys that wasn't solely based on the fact everyone else would have fried my account ages ago just based on disk usage alone. Sorry, 150 MB just doesn't cover it nowadays. Hm… which reminds me. I have another post to make in a bit…
Stuck under musings by James at 9:53 AM
After spending nearly an hour in wallmart when I only had to go there for, like, 1 or 2 things but my mother decided she'd buy something from every sale coming, which I suppose shouldn't surprise me but anyway, we finally got into the music store so the guitar that's been threatened to be bought could actually be purchased. It was worth the wait, though… it plays well, as evidenced by the fact anyone who's ever picked up a guitar just had to try it out. So that's one more thing to be taken off my to do list. I've already pretty well numbed my fingers picking at the thing today, and I plan to get back to it… eh… a bit later on. It's not bad, though. For about $313, after taxes and what have you, I walked out of the store with what I figure is a fairly decent deal. The guitar itself was supposed to be something like $249 or something, but the guy selling it to me knocked $20 off the price, then tossed a case, extra strings, and picks for about $40. Not bad, when you consider the strings themselves were originally $13. It amused me, though, to a degree… I've only been there a grand total of maybe 3 or 4 times in the 3 years I've lived here. Yet the guy doing the selling to me recognised me from one of those times, presumeably when I bought my piano from there, because I decided to kill like 15 minutes dinking around on one of their display models. It was all kinds of nifty and such. And completely irelevant to the entry as a whole, but like I care. We ended up just shooting the shit about all kinds of crap, and I got the number off him for a piano teacher that does her instructing kind of on her own but through them, some kind of arangement where she just rents the studio space from them but takes care of her own affairs, so I can talk to her probably tomorrow, and tell this dimwit I'm finishing up with tomorrow that I'm sick of taking my lessons at a different time each week or not at all–explanations of a clarifying nature to come when I'm bored. So yeah, today was actually a surprisingly productive day. Not bad for a lazy sack-o-crap.
And, because I'm due for a random topic jump, more positive news. My brother's gone to basic training in…. *checks* 33 days. I'll get into the specifics of hours, minutes and seconds when it actually gets decided exactly when he's being kicked out. In the meantime, though, the countdown begins! Maybe he'll come out of basic a bit more mature…. eh, one can always hope. I do have to kind of feel sorry for my mother in a way, though. With him going to the millitary, my dad usually on the road and me hopefully getting this job, there doesn't exist much company for mom, who'll pretty much have the place to herself when we all clear outa here. And the girl can't even go anywhere because someone still needs to stick around and make sure the bills get paid, and such. But, on the bright side I suppose, she'll have more reason to spend her days off in, say, Ottawa. Or Quebec. Or… take a couple weeks' vacation and go travel with dad. Ah, who am I kidding? She won't even notice we're gone. Much.
Stuck under family, guitar, musings, piano, rantings by James at 5:35 PM
An immigration judge and former politicion (go figure, eh?) pretty much said the only way a South Korean woman would not be deported is if she had an affair with him, and told absolutely no one. Now, keep in mind that while she was being propositioned, her boyfriend, who was also one of the people she was explicitly told not to tell, was standing presumeably a few feet away–close enough, at least, that the exchange was able to be recorded. Sorry, judge, but Canada is *not* such a perfectly paradise-like country wherein anyone would be desperate enough to actually do that just to stay here. Neverminding the fact that no decent person would just let any decision that resulted from that conversation stand. I'm quite sure they could have held that video and royally fucked him over when he tried to have her deported, much like he was trying to fuck her over by threatening her with it, but obviously she was raised better than that. Well, now, not only does the judge not get laid, but he'll probably either be fired or forced to resign, and my guess is whatever's left of his marriage is about to go right down the crapper. No need for an affair now, pal. You're about to be single again. We shall add your name to the list of good-for-nothing losers deserving of being lined up and summarily shot for lacking in a brain. I still plan to motion we shoot one every Wednesday…
Stuck under fubars, politics, rantings by James at 11:19 AM
Okay, so explain to me this, since it's gone over my head entirely. How is it that, for taking a golf swing at Bell's foot, Ottawa's Dany Heatley gets off pretty much unskathed, while Bell gets to spend the first few games of the preseason on the injured list, yet for an alleged cross check (you show me where there was a cross check) on Jiri Hudler, Kubina gets handed a game's suspension? That's just a little lopsided, if you ask me. And no one ever does, but I really don't give a shit. Making it even more of a pissoff, never mind the severity of the offense, but Bell had to leave the game due to the injury, and he's still out. Hudler, on the other hand, came right back and played on the powerplay that resulted from the major penalty Kubina's supposed chross check drew. I'd bet any money if Kubina took a golf swing at Hudler's foot instead of just supposedly chross checking him, he'd get at least the first 3 games. Let's see some objectivity, here, for crying out freaking loud.
Stuck under Hockey, Red Wings, Senators, maple leafs, rantings by James at 7:01 PM
You Are 60% Intuitive Your intuition is often right, and you use it more than you may realize.
Your gut feelings are usually a good guide, but you need more to go on when making a decision.
You'll often check to see if the facts back up your feelings.
And when your intuition is wrong, you work to improve it for the future.
Stuck under quizes by James at 4:50 PM
I need more things to do during the day.
Stuck under random crap by James at 4:39 PM
The preseason is over and we can actually get down to the playing for real, for a bloody change. Even if it did end with a second loss in a row to Detroit. But it was a shootout, anyway. That's, uh… well, progress. And they weren't shut out in the shootout, for… the first time since shootouts decided tie games. Well, okay, so maybe it wasn't *quite* that bad. I do believe the Leafs never actually won a shootout, though. They didn't win this one either… but at least Sundin found the net this time! That in itself was a problem last year… a *huge* problem. Fortunately, we won't need to worry about seeing them again until December. Unfortunately, we've got 2 games back to back with the Senators, and I'm gonna be forced to miss half of both of them. Bastards.
Stuck under Red Wings, maple leafs by James at 9:17 AM
Mister Hillier seems to believe we're in full support of the goings on in Afghanistan, in spite of a survey that clearly says otherwise. Speculation from the opinionated is simply that maybe he just can't read? Or, perhaps, he figures that because he says, not for the first time, that they're doing the right thing, that survey/pole/whatever you want to call it must be wrong. Well, whichever it is, he's still managed to demonstrate a remarkable ability to blow sunshine up his own ass. Perhaps he should reread that survey a time or two more…
Stuck under politics, rantings by James at 9:00 AM
The original plan was to drop my brother off at work, then get a bit of household shopping out of the way, before we went to at least price out a decent-sounding guitar so I can actually give my uncle's back to him. Well, we managed to get 2 of the 3 accomplished, getting the shopping and such done by about noon, so figured the music store which, actually, is the only real decent place around here to buy things like that (no duh, right?) would have to be open by now. You'd think they would. Unless, of course, they weren't open at all on Sundays, which just so happened to be the case. Irritating, but it's Pembroke. I should have expected that. The alternative was Wallmart and, well, of all the things I'm likely to buy from Wallmart, a guitar is most definitely not one of them. Specificly because they overcharge for crap like that, and then you end up paying $150 for a guitar that sounds like it's only worth about $75. No thanks. So, it's back to square 1, and waiting for the music store to actually be open late enough that we can get in after we get the rest of the week's bullshit out of the way. One of these days, I'll manage to get everything accomplished that I left the house to get accomplished. One of these days. Just not any time soon.
Stuck under family, fubars, guitar, music, musings, only in pembroke, rantings by James at 2:22 PM
Otherwise, last night's loss would have been exceedingly hard to swallow. I mean, that it's the preseason doesn't make it any less of a bitch, but at least I don't have to resort to multiple 4-letter words and the like. I'd criticise, but… well, there isn't much to criticise, really. Raycroft can't play the puck. We knew this. Antropov can't play. We knew this. Suglobov doesn't pass. I wish I didn't know this. McCabe will eventually put it in the net. Everyone knows this. Even if it takes him 4 tries to do it. We probably shouldn't have lost the game last night… but eh. At least it's only the preseason. Now if we could just get Raycroft to worry more about *stopping* the puck, rather than trying to make a neat little pass which we all know he can't make…
Stuck under Red Wings, maple leafs by James at 2:07 PM
A little nod to them there people I like to spy on... I mean read; give 'em a look over. It's good for you.
Everything here is copyright by me. Keep the disclaimer in mind.
Web hosting provided far too generously by DreamHost.
