OK. I do not expect anyone to comment on this, I just feel the need to vent a little.
I am taking a class this semester: "Legal Issues in Business and Management". I am actually interested in the content. (I like rules, after all.) Unfortunately, since there are over twenty of us signed up for the online course, the instructor decided that we needed to do our discussions in groups that she assigned. We have five, two week, modules throughout the term. For each module, each group is expected to come to a consensus and post to a main forum and comment, as a group, on another group's posting. Modules begin on a Saturday and end 14 days later on a Friday.
Thus far, my group has posted its consensus first, by the mid-point of the module. We felt that it was only fair, in order to give other groups ample opportunity to comment on our postings. However, the other groups feel that it is acceptable to post their stuff on Wednesday (or even Thursday), thus giving the other groups about 48 hours to come to a consensus and respond.
All groups can see the other groups' discussions. My group is the busiest, most prolific discussion board. We also utilize the chat facility to schedule a time to come to a consensus on our posts.
This evening, our intrepid instructor posted a general note saying how well we were ALL doing. Um???? EXCUSE ME!!! One group is working its butt off while the others are doing the minimum. How the heck is that a good job?
GRRRR....
It really doesn't take much to succeed in this world, does it?
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
Monday, April 28, 2008
Religious persecution verses child protection
I don't know that I can bring myself to say much about the FDLS issue in Texas. If fully grown adult women have such a low opinion of themselves that they are willing to commit themselves to second-class citizenhood in a polygamous marriage, so be it.
Why do we NEVER hear of polygamist situations that involve multiple men married to one woman? Simply put: Polygamy is mostly about power. Traditionally women have had less power then men (at least on the surface). Therefore, historically, polygamy is a situation where one man has multiple wives. Some women would say that having 'sisters in marriage' is a good thing, in that it gives them a rest from the lout they were all foolish enough to commit to.
What I can say something about the treatment of children in the FDLS. I typically stand by parents' rights to raise their children as they see fit, so long as they do not physically or mentally abuse their children. Some would say that taking the FDLS kids into Texas state custody interfered with parent rights. Let's think on that as we read on.
It was announced today that 31 out of 53 teenaged FDLS girls were either mothers already or pregnant at the time they were taken into custody. The definition of 'teenaged girls' here is 14 to 17 years old. Encouraging, or possibly forcing/coercing, 14 to 17 year old girls into 'marriage' and parenthood is right up there with physical and psychological abuse in my book. Even by Texas standards, this is intolerable.
WTF?!?
Why do we NEVER hear of polygamist situations that involve multiple men married to one woman? Simply put: Polygamy is mostly about power. Traditionally women have had less power then men (at least on the surface). Therefore, historically, polygamy is a situation where one man has multiple wives. Some women would say that having 'sisters in marriage' is a good thing, in that it gives them a rest from the lout they were all foolish enough to commit to.
What I can say something about the treatment of children in the FDLS. I typically stand by parents' rights to raise their children as they see fit, so long as they do not physically or mentally abuse their children. Some would say that taking the FDLS kids into Texas state custody interfered with parent rights. Let's think on that as we read on.
It was announced today that 31 out of 53 teenaged FDLS girls were either mothers already or pregnant at the time they were taken into custody. The definition of 'teenaged girls' here is 14 to 17 years old. Encouraging, or possibly forcing/coercing, 14 to 17 year old girls into 'marriage' and parenthood is right up there with physical and psychological abuse in my book. Even by Texas standards, this is intolerable.
WTF?!?
Sunday, April 27, 2008
Sunday night blahs
Sorry, all. I'm a bit whiny and exhausted. Late last week I picked up a spring cold. I called in sick on Friday, but I feel somewhat compelled to drag myself in for at least part of the day tomorrow.
I haven't been getting enough sleep, being all snuffly and achy. I'm not even all that sleepy right now. But, I know that I am tired. I walked past a mirror earlier this evening and I look like a creature from a George Romero movie (re: "Night of the Living Dead"). I have HUGE dark circles under my eyes.
Work is very stressful right now. A project that I have been working on for almost a year is about to implode. Apparently, the person who put the requirements together was smoking crack, big time. The product we bought to go into production with just isn't going to cut the mustard at this point. On one level I know that it is not my fault. On the other hand, I feel like I should have recognized the issue long ago.
Maybe my body is wallowing in this illness as a means of avoidance. I need to communicate the issue with management, but I REALLY don't want to. A lot was riding on the successful completion of this project. Now, it's kind of a bust. Throwing more money at it might save the situation. However, the person who initially started this project has left the organization, and management was glad to see her go. They'll probably chalk this failure up to her more than me. On the other hand, a lot of people were counting on this project/product being delivered. We needed the tools that it would have given us to improve a lot of processes. Now, we'll probably have to continue to limp by with the inadequate tools we're currently using for at least another six to nine months while we wait for new budget allocations and a project refresh.
At least I'm getting a little chuckle right now as I can clearly hear Han Solo in my head, "It's not my fault!" I just hope my upper management agrees (after the initial knee jerk explosion that usually comes with the presentation of bad news).
Why, oh why, doesn't night time cold medicine make me drowsy?
I haven't been getting enough sleep, being all snuffly and achy. I'm not even all that sleepy right now. But, I know that I am tired. I walked past a mirror earlier this evening and I look like a creature from a George Romero movie (re: "Night of the Living Dead"). I have HUGE dark circles under my eyes.
Work is very stressful right now. A project that I have been working on for almost a year is about to implode. Apparently, the person who put the requirements together was smoking crack, big time. The product we bought to go into production with just isn't going to cut the mustard at this point. On one level I know that it is not my fault. On the other hand, I feel like I should have recognized the issue long ago.
Maybe my body is wallowing in this illness as a means of avoidance. I need to communicate the issue with management, but I REALLY don't want to. A lot was riding on the successful completion of this project. Now, it's kind of a bust. Throwing more money at it might save the situation. However, the person who initially started this project has left the organization, and management was glad to see her go. They'll probably chalk this failure up to her more than me. On the other hand, a lot of people were counting on this project/product being delivered. We needed the tools that it would have given us to improve a lot of processes. Now, we'll probably have to continue to limp by with the inadequate tools we're currently using for at least another six to nine months while we wait for new budget allocations and a project refresh.
At least I'm getting a little chuckle right now as I can clearly hear Han Solo in my head, "It's not my fault!" I just hope my upper management agrees (after the initial knee jerk explosion that usually comes with the presentation of bad news).
Why, oh why, doesn't night time cold medicine make me drowsy?
The most sophisticated piece of technology...
You really have to love when a company doesn't take itself too seriously.
Last night, we were watching junk television (I think it was E!) when this totally stunning commercial hit us from out of the blue. Well, out of the Clear Blue Easy, that is.
I still can't believe that some ad man pitched this line and the company bought it: "It is the most sophisticated piece of technology you will ever pee on."
And, come on, do we REALLY need digital pregnancy tests? Don't we have enough throwaway crap as it is? Did someone really need to come up with a "sophisticated piece of technology" that gets urinated on and tossed in the waste basket that quickly? Aren't we throwing away enough high tech junk quickly enough?
On the other hand, we just couldn't stop laughing about the tag line for hours afterwards. B knew I would have to blog about it. And, he was right.
Last night, we were watching junk television (I think it was E!) when this totally stunning commercial hit us from out of the blue. Well, out of the Clear Blue Easy, that is.
I still can't believe that some ad man pitched this line and the company bought it: "It is the most sophisticated piece of technology you will ever pee on."
And, come on, do we REALLY need digital pregnancy tests? Don't we have enough throwaway crap as it is? Did someone really need to come up with a "sophisticated piece of technology" that gets urinated on and tossed in the waste basket that quickly? Aren't we throwing away enough high tech junk quickly enough?
On the other hand, we just couldn't stop laughing about the tag line for hours afterwards. B knew I would have to blog about it. And, he was right.
Friday, April 25, 2008
A blog name, my "K"ingdom for a blog name!
Some of us try not to advertise our full identities on our blogs. In addition, we try to protect our family's privacy by not divulging too much about them, especially not their full names. So, when I refer to my husband I will usually refer to him as "B" or "my husband". And, when I refer to my son I will usually refer to him as "K" or "my son". However, my good friend Briwei has challenged me to come up with a blog name for my son. I think it is probably appropriate, since I DO seem to blog about the woes of parenting him so frequently. (grin)
So, here are some ideas I have. Let me know if there are any that you particularly like:
So, who is this "K" of which I speak?
This week was K's fifteenth birthday, as hard as that is to believe. We got him "Rock Band" for the Xbox360. His other relatives sent him some much appreciated cash. He is about to go away for the weekend with his youth group. When he gets back, we promised to take him out for a belated birthday dinner at a restaurant he has wanted to try out. Oh, and school vacation is next week as well. However, he's volunteering at the YMCA (sort of a required servitude for kids who want to get into the camp counselor program).
He's on the tennis team while trying to keep his grades at B's and better. He's also pretty into his guitar lessons. He also likes skateboarding, and has a wild affinity for the sloppy slacker clothes that skateboarders wear. He likes to waste time on the Internet (particularly chat, myspace, and facebook - though he is currently banned from chat due to some school work concerns). He has several TV shows he likes to watch, some of which we also like to watch - though he prefers to watch them without us.
He can be a pretty humorous kid at times. Though, he is also forgetful, argumentative, and sullen. I guess being a teen is tough. But, so is parenting one.
So, here are some ideas I have. Let me know if there are any that you particularly like:
- Special K
- Kid K
- The Kid
- Dobbie (see previous post
- The King
- Albatross
- Grendel
- The Wall
- My Apathetic Greasey-headed Early-Onset Alzheimer's Curmudgeon (too long, I know)
- Borgin (the greasy-haired forgetful dark arts proprietor of Borgin and Burkes from Harry Potter)
- ???
So, who is this "K" of which I speak?
This week was K's fifteenth birthday, as hard as that is to believe. We got him "Rock Band" for the Xbox360. His other relatives sent him some much appreciated cash. He is about to go away for the weekend with his youth group. When he gets back, we promised to take him out for a belated birthday dinner at a restaurant he has wanted to try out. Oh, and school vacation is next week as well. However, he's volunteering at the YMCA (sort of a required servitude for kids who want to get into the camp counselor program).
He's on the tennis team while trying to keep his grades at B's and better. He's also pretty into his guitar lessons. He also likes skateboarding, and has a wild affinity for the sloppy slacker clothes that skateboarders wear. He likes to waste time on the Internet (particularly chat, myspace, and facebook - though he is currently banned from chat due to some school work concerns). He has several TV shows he likes to watch, some of which we also like to watch - though he prefers to watch them without us.
He can be a pretty humorous kid at times. Though, he is also forgetful, argumentative, and sullen. I guess being a teen is tough. But, so is parenting one.
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