Mina's Musings

Work Conference

2009-05-07T21:17:45Z

Today I am at a conference for work on information technology. Basically, the techie side of the library. I wanted to go so that they can impact their wisdom to my tech newbie self. However, apparently either the information was not well advertised or I missed an important e-mail or two.

It goes like this…I get up at 8:15 to attend the get together breakfast/registration at 8:45-9:30. | go down to the hotel lobby and see a buffet style set up and a few chairs. I grab myself a little something and sit down to eat. However, I am starting to be concerned that there is no visible registration area and there is only one other person in their restaurant area. My concern grows as an employee casually drops a folder with the bill for my breakfast on the table. I explain to her that I am part of the conference and was told that breakfast was included and I show her the agenda that I dutifully printed out before leaving work yesterday to drive here. She goes to check with management and I end up stuck paying the bill. I have to run all the way back up to my room to get the credit card in order to pay because I never carry a purse.

After I finish I am alarmed that no one has yet shown up and the staff seems to have no idea what I’m talking about so I go to talk to the front desk people. I tell them that I’m part of the conference and ask where registration is happening. They stare at me blankly. *blink blink* Now I’m really worried. I ask them to confirm that this is the only Marriott on this particular road and am told yes. They then begin looking stuff up. I find out that there are apparently only 4 people from the group staying here. I ask if they can call one of them and am told no but am given another number. I run back upstairs again to call from my room phone because they don’t want me calling from the desk phone. I find out that the meeting is actually down the street.

I hurry up and rush to the conference center and luckily it hadn’t started yet even though I was 10 minutes late. Whew! I met a lady from Yale’s library and several people from the Chicago area. I even met one person from the Schamburg library. I thought about mentioning that her town was nice but that might result in her asking how I know about it. The only reason I know is because I have attended a furry convention there and I don’t think that would go over very well. Oh well.

We talked about a lot of things and I realized that I have barely scratched the surface of librarianship. They were tossing out acronyms left and right. Some of which I knew but many I didn’t or had only briefly encountered in my library class. I don’t know really how much I am actually learning but I am gathering a huge list of things to investigate.
I’m going out later to a networking dinner at an Indian place so hopefully that will be good.

Missing my guy

2009-04-24T02:20:53Z

My honey comes home from his business trip tomorrow. I haven't seen him in over a week with my vacation and his trip. He couldn't go on the trip because of work. Rattling around in this big old house isn't the same without him.

Coachella Concert Day 1

2009-04-24T02:09:28Z

We all got up way too early at 8 am as we were still adjusting to the three hour time difference. WE got ready and had breakfast at an IHOP. It takes quite a while to get our food and by that time some of the younger Coachella goers start filing in. A group is seated next to us and I can’t help but overhear their chatter about goof things (pranks pulled on each other, etc.) Aah to be that young again. We finish and head back to the motel to liberally slather ourselves with sun block. After all, it is the desert people. On the way I notice 2-3 yoga studios and every restaurant has outdoor seating. We are definitely in California. It was a neat change of scenery.

The first band doesn’t start till 1:30 to avoid the noon day desert sun and so I thought our leaving at around 11:30 was way early but the only other thing we could have done was to hang around the motel. We drove and drove and drove. I had no idea that the concert site was 45 minutes away. It’s on a polo field in the next town over from where we were staying AND they have a noise curfew but we’ll get to that later.

We park and see a field of white tents in the distance. I’m excited but the 97 degree heat tempers it a bit. I actually put on a hat and I hate wearing hats. I don’t think I look right in them. We had each bought a bottle of water to take in with us but had to throw it away at the gate as they weren’t letting in any outside water even if it was sealed. :P Instead they had a water program where you buy their souvenir sports bottle for $10 and you get free filtered water fill ups for the weekend. Not a bad deal.

In through the gate you see a huge metal stage with screens on either side to show the performer. I wasn’t expecting something quite so elaborate. We take a look around and see that they have a bunch of art installations. There is a little temple made of found objects, 2 Tesla coils (that I discovered that night arch purple lightening), a 30 ft tall robotic hand that picks up a car and drops it every hour, several things involving flames including a giant metal snake. Thankfully, several of the art pieces were designed to provide shade.

There were five stages with different bands about every 1 hour to an hour and a half. We watched Alberta Cross, We Are Scientists, Connor Oberst, Franz Ferdinand, Morrissey and of course the pièce de résistance, Paul McCartney. I recommend We Are Scientists if you haven’t heard them. Franz Ferdinand was pretty good too. Their show was really energetic. Paul McCartney was awesome! The rest were okay but I didn’t really dig them. I know that its sacrilegious to some of you that I’m not a Morrissey fan. Sorry.

At some point during the day, despite the water and the hat, I started feeling nauseous and dizzy. I think I was on the verge of heat stroke so I sat in one of the open tents they were using as a dining hall and listened to the bands from there. After the sun went down a little and I rested up I felt better and was able to watch most of Franz Ferdinand’s show. Towards the end of the show my sister and I started moving up in the crowd to get a better spot for McCartney who would be on in 2.5 hours or so while my brother went off to see other bands on other stages.

We stood for an hour and then Morrissey came on. We had a great spot about 10 rows back from the stage. However, it started getting crowded. I was shoulder to shoulder with sweaty strangers but I didn’t mind ‘cause I was going to see Paul no matter what. Towards the end of Morrissey’s show, some dude started dancing and weaving his way through the crowd. He started dancing/pushing the girl next to me (not like dancing with her but trying to move her). I thought buddy think again if you think I’m going to move. He tried anyway and then managed to shove the lady in back of me to get around me. He got about 5 people away from me and started crowd surfing. If you know me, then you know I am NOT the mosh pit type. I started to get nervous that it was getting a little wild and that I would get a foot in the face or worse but I was willing to stick it out. Morrissey was finally done and we had 30 minutes to wait for them to set up for McCartney. During that half hour it got crazy. Scores of people started amassing and pushing everyone towards the front. It got so tight that it was hard to move and there was barely an inch between you and the person in front of you. The heat from hundreds of people that close made it hard to breathe and then they started shoving. People were trying to move up from the back to occupy non-existent spaces. They grabbed each other’s arms and pulled and clawed their way through. I got pushed a couple of times and started yelling at them to stop before someone gets hurt as images of a Who concert reenactment ran through my head. In the end I panicked and grabbed my little sister to pull us to safety. I was greatly annoyed at losing my spot but when Paul came on I put that aside and tried to enjoy the moment. It turns out that my brother was able to get a closer spot than we ended up getting even though he came in late. Grrrrr.

The show was awesome underneath the stars. Paul played some of his old stuff and some from his newer albums. I’m not really a fan of the newest stuff. I like his Beatles stuff obviously and his Wings stuff but the last new thing I’ve liked from him is his Flowers in the Dirt album. He played “My Love” and I found myself wishing that halfelf could’ve been there too. He had a fireworks show for “Live and Let Die” like he does for the arena concerts he usually does. I wasn’t expecting that in the middle of the desert. Later he played not one but two encores and I found out recently that the town is trying to punish him by fining him $51, 000 ($1000 for each minute he played past their noise curfew). I say that’s crap.

I had a great time and then we went back to the motel and collapsed.

Coachella Report Part 1: The Journey

2009-04-22T03:45:15Z

I was invited to go to Coachella this year by my younger brother and sister. My brother is into indy music and has gone for the past 5 years. For those of you who haven’t heard of it, it’s a three day long music festival with mostly independent bands but they always have a big headliner each day. I hadn’t been on vacation in three years and I was dying to go somewhere. What clinched it for me was that Paul McCartney was going to be one of the headliners. I’ve been a huge Beatle fan since middle school so I jumped at the opportunity.

It all began last Thursday when the three of us trekked up to the local airport. My little sister is a flight attendant so she scored us some cheap tickets to Cali. The only kicker is that they are standby tickets so if the plane is booked you don’t get on. I knew it would be difficult to get three on the plane so we asked my sister to give up her seat to one of us if necessary and have her take another flight. Unfortunately, she had to do just that as there were only two unclaimed seats and not three. However, she made it to the Orange County airport about the same time that we made it to L.A.

We then picked up our rental car. We decided to upgrade to a hybrid, I mean why not it was only $5 and it saves on gas. This is where comedy ensues. The agent asks my brother to get in so she can demonstrate the controls. She tells me that she has to reach over him and asks if I mind. I told “I don’t care, he’s my brother.” She nervously giggles and explains that she has to ask because one time she reached over somebody’s man and they came unglued. She told us that the lady went to her manager etc, etc. Wow, was all I thought. Anyway, the lady leaves and we try to start the car but I guess her story distracted us from fully listening because we push all the buttons (it doesn’t really have a typical “key”) and nothing happens. My brother is being a typical guy and refuses to call the girl back. I try to look it up in the manual but can’t find it. After about 7 or 8 attempts, he lets me get an agent. It turns out we were forgetting to put a foot on the brake and its safety lock won’t let you start it without it.

We then drive the 45 minutes to an hour to the Orange County airport to pick up my sister. Luckily, we got in early so we didn’t have to fight LA rush hour traffic. From there we have to drive another 2- 2 ½ hours to get to Palm Springs where we were staying. I was a little skeptical about this because my brother made the arrangements and booked a Motel 6. I had images of bed bugs, stained sheets and all kinds of nastiness running through my head. However, our room was serviceable if a little run down. There was a little grime between the tiles in the shower but nothing major thankfully.

We had dinner in a Mexican restaurant called Consuela’s. Apparently, we went to a different Consuela’s then we were originally directed to by the hotel employee. As we found out later, there are a BUNCH of Mexican restaurants down there with this name but they are not a chain. Everything they made was authentic and tasty.

Later we found out that they were closing off some of the streets to hold a street carnival. My brother and sister decided to check it out but I was too jet lagged and stayed in to catch up on some zzzzs.

More to follow tomorrow. Tired, must sleep.

Vindication at Last

2009-04-09T03:23:05Z

I was amused this evening at work.

A new lady started working at my company a few months ago and from day one she has been a pain in my butt. She is demanding, rude and pushy. She immediately began asking for perks that not even every senior employee there has. Since that time she has volunteered for committees and projects but always manages to shift any of the real work to others. To top it all off, she tried to take credit for helping me on a project that she never ended up helping with in front of my boss. Up to this point it seemed that everyone was blind to her shenanigans.

Today I stopped by to chat with another co-worker and see if she needed anything and she went off about the pushy lady doing the same thing to her as she did to me. It felt better to have others to commiserate with as I thought I was the only one she had been trying to pull this crap with. This lady put pushy lady in her place and stood up for me which was awesome. :)

Random Questions

2009-04-02T03:41:57Z

Let's try this again. I'll try to be more social.

1.ONE OF YOUR SCARS: HOW DID YOU GET IT?
My right knee, I fell on a toothpick diorama that I made as a doll house when I was 7 or 8.

2.WHAT IS ON THE WALLS IN YOUR ROOM?
Nothing currently, we just moved recently and I’m not sure what color I want for the walls and I need better, more sophisticated art.

3. DO YOU SNORE, GRIND YOUR TEETH, OR TALK IN YOUR SLEEP?
I occasionally mumble and only snore if I have a cold.

4. WHAT TYPE OF MUSIC DO YOU LISTEN TO?
A variety of things, mostly country but also the Killers, Rhianna, 80s, Beatles and musicals.

5. DO YOU KNOW WHAT TIME YOU WERE BORN?
It was 11:23 am; I’ve had my astrological chart done so I had to know this.

6. WHAT DO YOU MISS?
Holding court at the gaming club and being queen bee. Doing stupid, reckless, youthful stuff.

7. WHAT IS YOUR MOST PRIZED POSSESSION(S)?
Pictures of my family, wedding etc. Many childhood pictures were destroyed in a flood once so the ones I have are precious.

8. HOW TALL ARE YOU?
5’ 6”

9. DO YOU GET CLAUSTROPHOBIC?
Not so much, but I hate crowds when you can’t take a step in front of you without bumping into someone like at festivals.

10. DO YOU GET SCARED IN THE DARK?
Not unless it’s a haunted house.

11. THE LAST PERSON TO MAKE YOU CRY?
My spouse but we’re better now.

12. WHAT ARE YOUR INITIALS?
ABS

13. LIKE MUSIC?
Very much so.

14. MOST LISTENED TO BAND?
It depends on my mood. I like the Dixie Chicks a lot and Sarah McLachlan.

15. COFFEE OR ENERGY DRINK?
Neither. I mostly try to stay caffeine free.

16. FAVORITE PIZZA TOPPING?
Green Olives

17. IF YOU COULD EAT ANYTHING RIGHT NOW, WHAT WOULD IT BE?
Chef Salad with blue cheese dressing

18. HAVE YOU EVER EATEN A GOLDFISH?
No, and eeewwww.

19. WHAT WAS THE FIRST MEANINGFUL GIFT YOU'VE EVER RECEIVED?
Monogrammed locket from my high school boyfriend now spouse.

20. DO YOU LOOK LIKE ANYBODY?
My Mom but no one famous

21. ARE YOU DOUBLE JOINTED?
No

22. FAVORITE CLOTHING BRAND?
I’m not really a clothes horse kind of person. If I find something I like and it fits, the brand doesn’t matter. I don’t purposefully look for labels.

23. DO YOU HAVE A PET?
Yes, an adorable but evil cat.

24. WHAT KIND IS IT?
See question 23.

25. WOULD YOU FALL IN LOVE KNOWING THAT THE PERSON IS LEAVING?
Yes, I don’t think that you can stop falling in love past a certain point. You could cut it off and not ever let yourself get to know someone, but once you know them it is too late. Love is worth the pain.

26. WHAT IS THE BEST WAY TO TELL SOMEONE HOW MUCH THEY MEAN TO YOU?
Just tell them, but also do little nice things often to let them know they’re important.

27. SAY A NUMBER FROM ONE TO A HUNDRED:
22

28. BLONDS OR BRUNETTES??
Neither, redheads are the way to go.

29. WHAT IS THE ONE NUMBER YOU CALL MOST OFTEN?
My parents

30. WHAT ANNOYS YOU MOST?
Rude people.

31. HAVE YOU BEEN OUT OF THE COUNTRY?
Yes, to England, Ireland and Mexico.

32. YOUR WEAKNESSES?
I’m too hard on myself (perfectionist) and afraid of being vulnerable.

33. MET ANYONE FAMOUS?
No.

34. FIRST JOB?
Babysitter

35. EVER DONE A PRANK CALL?
Yes, hasn’t everyone when you’re young.

36. WHAT WERE YOU DOING BEFORE YOU FILLED THIS OUT?
Watching T.V.

37. HAVE YOU EVER HAD SURGERY?
Nope, and I hope I never have to.

38. WHAT DO YOU GET COMPLIMENTED ABOUT MOST?
That I'm organized and efficient.

39. HAVE YOU EVER HAD BRACES?
No, but I probably should have as one of my front teeth is now being pushed toward the one next to it.

40. WHAT DO YOU WANT FOR YOUR BIRTHDAY?
A vacation.

41. HOW MANY KIDS DO YOU WANT?
Two

42. WERE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE?
The Little Women, my Mom liked the names.

43. DO YOU WISH ON STARS?
Yes, it can’t hurt.

44. WHAT KIND OF SHAMPOO DO YOU USE?
Any kind as long as it smells nice. I loved this Revlon shampoo that smelled like some kind of lavender but I can’t find it anymore. I think it was discontinued.

45. DO YOU LIKE YOUR HANDWRITING?
No, it’s sloppy and not cutsie girl handwriting.

46. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE LUNCH MEAT?
Honey roasted turkey

47. ANY BAD HABITS?
Procrastination

48. WHAT CD ARE YOU MOST EMBARRASSED TO HAVE ON YOUR SHELF?
Brittany Spears

49. IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON, WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOU?
I think so.

50. DO LOOKS MATTER?
Yes, to a certain extent but personality plays a factor too. A person should not be completely unattractive but an average looking (ordinary) person with a great personality can be hot.

51. HOW DO YOU RELEASE ANGER?
Yell and sometimes throw things.

52. WHERE IS YOUR SECOND HOME?
England. Not for real of course, but when we visited everyone made us feel so welcome and I was in awe of all the history.

53. WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORITE TOY AS A CHILD?
My Little Pony Castle. Mine was accidently packed with two queen ponies so there were twin queen ponies. I know gag. *laughs*

54. HOW MANY NUMBERS ARE IN YOUR CELL PHONE?
I don’t currently have a cell phone. I know, I live in the Dark Ages.

55. WERE YOU A FAN OF BARNEY AS A LITTLE KID?
No, I was all grown up and out of college when Barney came out.

56. DO YOU USE SARCASM?
Definitely. All the time.

57. MASHED POTATOES OR MACARONI AND CHEESE?
Mashed potatoes

58. WHAT DO YOU LOOK FOR IN A GUY/GIRL?
Understanding, similar interests, comfort, a good heart.

59. WHAT ARE YOUR NICKNAMES?
I don’t have any.

60. WHAT'S YOUR FAVORITE BAND/SINGER?
I don't really pick a favorite but I do have several CDs of Reba McEntire, Rascal Flatts, Sarah McLachlan and Dido.

61. WHAT ARE YOUR FAVORITE TV SHOWS?
I’m a fan of Joss Wedon’s stuff other than that I love the Tudors and Dr. Who, Secret Diary of a Call Girl and Life on Mars. Anything that’s paranormal I’m into usually.

62. WHAT'S YOUR FAVORITE ICE CREAM FLAVOR?
Toffee chip or Orange Sherbert

63. DO YOU HAVE ALL YOUR FINGERS AND TOES?
Yes.

64. WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU WORKED OUT?
Yesterday at the Y.

65. PLANS FOR TONIGHT?
Read a chapter in “The Girl with No Shadow” which is the sequel to Chocolat.

66. WHAT'S THE FASTEST YOU HAVE GONE IN A CAR?
110 mph, I wasn’t driving. A group of friends and I were coming back from a college road trip.

67. DO YOU WANT EVERYONE TO ANSWER THESE QUESTIONS?
If they want, it’s a lot of questions. It’s really just an icebreaker to try to get me to write more in my journal. I’m really bad at posting. I never know what to say.

68. WHAT ARE YOU LISTENING TO?
My cat yelling at me to let her crawl up in my lap.

69. LAST THING YOU DRANK?
water

70. LAST PERSON YOU TALKED TO ON THE PHONE?
My spouse

71. THE FIRST THING YOU NOTICE IN THE OPPOSITE/SAME SEX?
Eyes

72. FAVORITE THOUGHT PROVOKING SONG?
Same Old Lang Syne by, Dan Folgelberg. I’m sure I can think of a better one but I always found this poignant and bittersweet.

73. FAVORITE THING TO HATE?
Snobby, stuck up people

74. FAVORITE MONTH OF THE YEAR?
October, I love to feel the crispness of the air and the see the leaves change color.

75. ZODIAC SIGN?
Leo and my Chinese sign is a Tiger for total kitty protection.

76. WHAT IS YOUR HAIR COLOR?
Brown.

77. EYE COLOR?
Hazel

78. SHOE SIZE
9.5 but it depends on the manufacturer I’ve worn 8.5 and 10 in some brands

79. FAVORITE FAST FOOD PLACE?
Panera Bread

80. FAVORITE RESTAURANT?
Ruby Tuesdays, their salad bar is awesome

81. DO YOU LIKE SUSHI?
Not really. I’ve eaten it before and if it’s really fresh it doesn’t leave as much of a fishy taste behind which is good.

82. LAST THING YOU WATCHED?
Lost

83. FAVORITE DAY OF THE YEAR?
Christmas, it’s nice to be with family

84. PLAY ANY MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS?
No, I took flute lessons for a short while in elementary school but I didn’t stick with it.

85. ADMINISTRATION OR OPPOSITION?
Depends on what it is.

86. KISSES OR HUGS?
Both

87. RELATIONSHIPS OR ONE NIGHT STANDS?
Relationships

88. WHAT WAS THE LAST THING YOU BOUGHT?
Used CDs

89. WHAT KIND OF CAR DO YOU HAVE?
Sonata

90. WHAT BOOK ARE YOU READING?
The Girl with No Shadow

91. DESCRIBE YOUR LOVE LIFE?
Great

92. SCARY MOVIES OR HAPPY ENDINGS?
Happy endings, I’m sappy and besides scary movies can still give me nightmares.

93. WINTER OR SUMMER?
Neither, fall is my favorite time of year.

94. FAVORITE SMELLS?
New mown grass, new books, vanilla and rain

95. WOULD YOU BUNGEE JUMP?
No way! I like to live.

96. WINDOW SEAT OR AISLE?
Window, I like to see everything get very small.

97. HAVE YOU EVER GIVEN MONEY TO A BEGGAR?
Yes.

98. HAVE YOU EVER RIDDEN IN AN AMBULANCE?
Yes, every Friday for 1.5 years. I used to be an EMT.

99. CAN YOU TANGO?
No, but I’d love to learn to ballroom dance.

100. GOLD OR SILVER?
If it’s real then gold but otherwise silver.

Anthrocon

2006-06-20T20:03:14Z

Well we have returned safe and sound from Anthrocon. This was my first furry con so I wasn't exactly sure what to expect. I was pleasantly surprised to find some of the sweetest people and the most talented artists that I have met in a long time. The only jerk I met was in the Eye of Argon reading. There was this drunk guy who thought it was really some kind of serious competion and started shouting and trying to make the other people laugh during their reading. He eventually got bored and left.
I also got to see Rafferty's fame first hand. We tease and often make Raff the butt of our good natured jokes in our gaming group but at the con he was a tiny god. It was really amusing to see people fawning over him. I'm glad he's not another Rodney Dangerfield everywhere.
Another good development was that I got to meet Lionpaw and Chris Lynx. They were really cool people and I enjoyed hanging out with them. I'm looking forward to the next con and a chance to meet the other people that I know on the Muck but have not met in person.