Joe the Plumber is a joke!

Is this man really representative of you, America?
- works in a licenced industry without a licence
- owes back taxes
- but is ready to buy a business with revenues of $250K, the buying price of which would be at least $1 mil.
- does not understand the difference between Revenue and Taxable Income?
- when pressed on issues close to his heart spouted off on Iraq. That matters more than the recession at home? Poor educational systems and lack of reform?

Wow! Is this you, America?

Pay your taxes first, Joe. They go towards building roads that lead to libraries and schools for our kids. You don't want to spread your wealth around? Then stop living off our wealth because we pay our taxes on time.

Bah.

Dammit

RIP, Randy Pausch.

Quotes to remember

The F is not silent

..in fifty. It is not fith-ty. And it is not fith.

When will they learn...

...that you're <> your <> you

Is it my fault...

...that my lips turn down at the edges instead of curving up when I smile?

First spring hailstorm

Hailstorms are a common feature of spring in Colorado. The size of the hail can get as big as a golf ball and make dents in the roof your car if it is parked outside. Gulp! Mine is. Hailstorms are usually accompanied by loud thunder and brilliant lightning. Yesterday's was just a preview of what lies ahead.

Funny thing is that when I was viewing my pictures, I went back to the first picture in the folder in which these are stored. It is from March 2006 and it was snowing!

Notice how much greener the grass is this year! It's a combination of more precipitation and also that the yard was aerated in fall.


Yes, it was a good couple of inches!

Spring is here...

And time to brush the cobwebs off this blog.

:-D

Why didn't I think of that?

It was Curriculum Night last night. I sat at her desk listening intently to her flushed and nervous 3rd Grade teacher talk through her PowerPoint presentation. She finished just in time for the bell for the 2nd session. Before we left, I saw the woman sitting next to me rip out a sheet from her appointment book and write a cute note addressed to her child. She folded it up quickly and put it in her child's desk. Now why didn't I think of doing something really really sweet like that?!

Making it Personal

How do you deal with someone who takes a problem or a crisis and makes it about you? It's taken me several experiences to realize that this is how many people operate. They feel out of control in a given situation so they turn around and lash at the person who is supposed to be resolving the situation. Me.

How do you work with someone who takes a situation at work and makes it personal, when it's not even remotely so?

It's very easy to react and have the situation explode and morph into something it was never meant to be. I'm learning to take a step back and dissociate from the situation so that I am not attached to it anymore. Once I have done that, I can look at it dispassionately and appreciate why we value this person so much. I am free! I feel empowered. I can do my work in peace...