Earth Hour

I received an email at work encouraging all employees to participate in something I had never heard of: Earth Hour 2010. (http://www.earthhour.org/)

Here’s the rundown:

On March 27, 2010, from 8:30-9:30 PM -- for your own time zone, people all over the world will be turning off all of their electricity as a protest against climate change.

In 2008, countries all over the world participated. According to the website, “Global landmarks such as the, Sydney Harbour Bridge, The CN Tower in Toronto, The Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, and Rome’s Colosseum, all stood in darkness.”

I understand the concept – to show our reliance on electricity and power; and subsequently its global impact. Hopefully, it would encourage more people to use less electricity – or at least show them how much they really rely on it.

Along with most people, I’m guilty of wasting energy. On top of electricity, I’m talking about water and fuel too. I leave lights on all over the house (Gregor can attest – and I’m sure he will), my laptop and the television are constantly on when I’m at home, I wash dishes with the water running.

That’s not to say I haven’t taken steps to stop wasting energy too. I’ve used my cruise control more on highways (saves gas, fewer run-ins with the 5-0s); I try to grab all the items I need from the refrigerator at once when I’m making a meal; I turn the water off when I brush my teeth.

So this March 27, I’m going to try turning the lights out for an hour. Maybe I can get a little creative, and figure out what to do for an hour in the dark.

Get your head out of the gutter.

Why we need newspapers

In last week’s issue of Time magazine, I read about how Advance Publications decided to stop printing Ann Arbor News, out of Ann Arbor, Michigan. You can read the story here.

The opportunity for the community to save their newspaper is well-founded, and admirable, if not important for saving journalistic integrity.

See, I have no problem with online news. I read jsonline.com on a weekly basis. It’s how I get most of my news. I’ve set up Google reader to pull newsfeeds from my favorite sites. If anything, I’ve got all the news I need at my fingertips. The problem? INFORMATION OVERLOAD.

When people received their daily newspaper on their front doorstep, they could enjoy a cup of coffee while they read what happened in their community, and all over the world. You could choose what you wanted more information about just by reading headlines. If you wanted to know more, you read on. Of course, online stories have this same format. But, staring at a computer screen is a far cry from holding a tangible object in your hands. You also had someone else choosing the most important news that you should be reading, versus looking up hundreds of different news stories. Or worse, multiple stories on the same subject.

So in all fairness, Ann Arbor News is still in most respects alive. They’ll still print two issues per week on top of having all their content available online. As a business, it’s probably the best thing to do for a floundering art. But it also makes me realize that without having an actual newspaper to read, the Internet bombards me with information I don’t really need, every single day.

Bills, pills, pills

I started taking the BCP about five months ago, and my doctor said if I had any questions, wanted to switch up the type of prescription or awkwardly talk about the weather with my pants off again, I should give her a call. A few weeks ago, I decided I'd had enough with the current pill and wanted to try something else.

I called the doctor's office to explain what I wanted (a new prescription) and why (because it makes me crazies/go blind/not sleep). The woman on the other end of the line said it was absolutely necessary for me to see the doctor. But not before making me feel like an idiot because my symptoms sounded ludicrous.


*Three weeks later, after hassling with a reschedule.*

I go in for my appointment, tell the Dr. my problems and she goes over the options. We decide on a low-dose BCP. Problem is, there are no generics. That means spending at least 50 percent more for the EXACT SAME THING. (Think Tylenol versus Target brand acetaminophen -- there's no difference, they just use different color dye for the pills.)

Next day, I head to Walgreen's to pick up the prescription. But in exchange for those 28 little baby blockers, they want $60. WHAT?!!? That's more than my food budget for the WEEK. I ask them to call the office back and ask for a prescription of the second option we discussed. But they don't call doctors at Walgreens, they fax them. It's 2009, not 1991. But whatevs. They tell me the request should go through and to come back tomorrow.

Day three: On top of not hearing back from the doctor, Walgreens refuses to call to confirm. I have to call. It's 4:55, the doctor's office closes at 5 PM and I have to get home to look up the number first. UGGH. No dice.

Rather than deal with Walgreen's ineptitude toward customer service, or using any ounce of common sense, I decide to go the mail route and order the pills via NextRX. Although it takes about two weeks to fill, an entire 3-month supply costs $90.

Then a week ago, I got a bill in the mail. (See... ...Medical Bill Errors: Fighting Mistakes, it happens more than you think.)

Because I was, IMHO, forced to make an appointment to see my doctor in person, versus a simple chat on the phone, I have to pay $20. I didn't know that. Funny -- last time I checked, swindling people out of cash was a crime.

Per a conversation with mi madre, it's best to request to talk to the doctor if at all necessary to avoid an extra trip to the clinic. She said I should also be thankful my co-pay's only $20, instead of $200. Yikes.

Or maybe I should just follow the rest of America and bend over while health care takes advantage.

April fool

Tuesday night, I had planned on heading to my friend Kim's house in Milwaukee with Michelle, so we could see a concert at Turner Hall. (Margot& the Nuclear So-and-Sos and Cloud Cult were both amazing.) Kim's apartment has four parking spaces; because her downstairs neighbors have two cars, one parks in the garage next to Kim, and the other usually takes up the entire cement parking slab. Kim said it'd be cool to park on the cement slab in her alley because it was designed for two vehicles.

We get home from the concert around 11:30 PM and start winding down for bed, only to get a knock at the door about a half hour later. The downstairs neighbor just got off of her second shift and wondered why there was someone parked in her spot. Kim explained the situation, apologized and agreed to move her car from the garage out onto the street for the night, so the neighbor could park next to her boyfriend's car in the garage. Cool.

But after Kim took care of the situation and moved her car, we looked out the back window to see the neighbor's car still parked in the alley.

But see, the thing was, it wasn't just parked in the alley -- but perpendicular to my car, parking me in completely.

We were wiped, and headed to bed thinking she might just move it and everything would be taken care of in time to leave for work in the morning.

I previously set up with my editor to work from home yesterday, and had decided I'd head to Gregor's Wednesday morning to work from his computer.

Before Kim and Michelle left for the office, Kim knocked on the neighbor's door around 7 AM. No answer. She wrote a note explaining the situation, asking if they could move the car as soon as the boyfriend was up, seeing as he usually left for work before 9 AM.

I sat around Kim's apartment, checked my work email, got a few things done. Around 8 AM, I went downstairs myself and knocked on the door. The note was still hanging there. Quiet. No answer.

At 9 AM I tried again. I walked downstairs, knocked at three separate times, and rang the doorbell. Then the dog started whimpering on the other side of the door. I rang the doorbell again. The dog barked a few times.

Then I heard a woman's muffled voice, calling the dog away from the door. And that was it. I knocked at least another five times, and rang the doorbell. WTF.

I wasn't sure if maybe she couldn't come to the door. It crossed my mind for a minute that she might be in trouble. No such luck.

I walked back upstairs, called Kim and explained everything. She decided to call her landlord and get their direct number. She called the guy, who had already left for work and explained to him what was going on.

In the meantime, I decided to try knocking again, rang the back doorbell, and headed to the front, ringing that doorbell too.

Kim called back. The dude neighbor told her, blantantly, that his girlfriend wasn't moving the car. That also meant that he left the house and saw the note, but also refused to be the bigger person by moving his GF's car.

At this point, I'm livid. Not only had we tried to remedy the situation the night before, but this chic was being a crass bitch who refused to move her car out of spite. And was doing it to a complete stranger.

I called Gregor around 9:30, who had called in sick to work (really, because he was sick :(), and told him what happened. He agreed to pick me up, and we'd pick up my car later that afternoon when the neighbor left for her second shift again.

Ugh.

I can't believe that any person would have the audacity to deliberately choose to be that spiteful, or inconsiderate.

All I have to say is, Karma's a bitch.

On Wisconsin

For some reason, I thought Wisconsin's slogan was always "Forward." But that's a motto. I don't know what the difference is.

Anyway, Governor Doyle, et al, enlisted a company to come up with a new state slogan for the Department of Tourism. What'd they come up with? This:

"Live like you mean it." It reminds me of a Killers song. And what's with that dude doing a cartwheel?

Creative? Not really. Catchy? Meh. Scrutinized by the public majority? Oh, you betcha.

Check out what Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel columnst Jim Stingl has to say about the new slogan:New state slogan raises ridicule to a sport.

What was wrong with the old one, "Life's so Good?" Why fix something that's not broken. Not that that one took much either. Besides, the Department of Tourism already laid off all of the meet-n-greeters at state border visitor centers.

But wait a tick -- this isn't the first time that slogan has been used. Back in 2005, Bacardi came up with a marketing scheme based on that same phrase. Fitting I suppose, since we're known as the state of drunks.

Here are a few examples of other potential slogans I've found on different message boards, or heard on the radio during "Kramp & Adler" on 102.1.

-Wisconsin: The other white state.
-Eat cheese or die.
-Wisconsin, where it's always windy because Minnesota blows and Michigan sucks.
-I love dairy air./Smell our dairy air.
-Honk if you love cheeses

And, my favorite:

-Wisconsin: the state shaped like an oven mit.

The last one

Yesterday my friend Kim baked some delicious Irish Soda Bread for St. Patrick's Day.

I ran over as soon as she hit "send" on the email announcing her baked goodies to pick up a piece. But what struck me as odd happened about three hours later; the fact that there was still a slice sitting on top of the filing cabinet. Just one slice.

It happens a lot with food -- That last tasty nacho chip, the last bite of a sammich, the last slice of pizza. (Man, now I'm hungry.) But I've also seen it at stores. The last magazine on the shelf, or the last bottle of shampoo.

It seems like the last of anything is there for a reason. It's somehow tainted and has remained neglected by everyone else. What's wrong with it? Why doesn't anyone want it?

Stand by... for news

Back when I was a young tyke, my mom helped my brother and I avoid sweltering Milwaukee summers, where we'd inadvertently be stuck inside, blasting AC and watching TV. She sent us to stay with our grandparents each summer on the lake in Door County.

Every day at lunch, my grandpa turned on his beige Bose stereo to the local radio station, WDOR, tuning in to hear radio news broadcaster Paul Harvey announce and discuss the day's headlines.

After the announcement for News and Comment, "This is Paul Harvey (pregnant pause)... stand by for news!" we didn't say much at the table. Everyone sat facing the radio as we ate and listened -- sometimes my grandpa would grumble or make some comment. Otherwise, we willingly obliged to keep the noise down.

We even kept quiet during the commercials, which Harvey read with the same enthusiasm and voice inflection as the news. The one I remember most was Bose radio; which is why I'm sure my grandpa had one too.

Harvey had a distinct voice, and announced with clear pronunciation. Although he was pretty conservative; from what I remember, he still broadcast the news without a noticeable bias (Then again, I was only eight). Harvey had a way of explaining what was going on with the rest of the world, and helped me appreciate that I wasn't so isolated stuck in a cottage near a lake in northeastern Wisconsin -- even if he was thousands of miles away.

I think it's also why to this day I like hearing news on the radio (like NPR) instead of watching it. At eight years old, I didn't understand how adults could sit through an entire half hour of local news on TV. What about Tail Spin and Duck Tales? But I still listened to Paul Harvey.

In the afternoons, we had to keep the TV down, go outside, or keep quiet in the kitchen, so grandpa could listen to Harvey's The Rest of the Story. Since the show broadcast at 3 PM -- snack time! --, I'd sometimes opt to sit in front of the radio with grandpa with my two gingersnaps or some juicy slices of watermelon.

I liked The Rest of the Story program more, because each segment focused on a certain person, place or thing. They were short interest-pieces, with a twist at the end, where Harvey would finish with "And now you know, the rest of the story." (See: News and Comment is to New York Times, as The Rest of the Story is to Time magazine.)

Last Sunday, February 28, Paul Harvey passed away. He started broadcasting on April 1, 1951, and continued up until a week before he died. He was 91 years old.

Mixing business and pleasure

I remember the first time I heard about Facebook -- the summer before my senior year of college. My friend Amanda, who went to UW-Oshkosh, told me I should join. I hopped online and went to the site. I couldn't for the life of me figure out how in the hell to sign up. Turns out, UW-Stevens Point hadn't even been added to the list of FB-friendly colleges yet.

Back in 2005, the networking site was set up solely for college students; and not even all universities had the luxury of joining. Profiles were limited. Customization was non-existent. Members had a place for their picture, a wall for friends to send public messages to, and a section to fill out basic personal info like interests, movies and quotes.

As the networking site expanded, so did its members. Now, more and more people are joining Facebook. First with the addition of high schools, then expanding to the entire interactive community. That's all well and good, but what do you do when acquaintances at work, or professionals from your industry request to be your friend.

I never personally seek out anyone on Facebook. If I went to high school with you -- we'll leave it at that. No offense, but if we haven't talked in eight years, and barely conversed in high school, what do you think we have to discuss now? I don't care if you're "shopping at the mall!!!" or "have an aweful cold." Those everyday things can be left to your real friends.

In order to limit my invasion of privacy, I've severely limited my information posted online. I still have pictures up from drunken debacles in college, or family holidays. But, only about 30 people can see that information. If you can, consider yourselves lucky. If you can't -- don't be offended. The only way you know about those pictures is by that stupid newsfeed anyway. Not many people actually log on with the intention of looking at my personal page. If they do, they have full access anyway.

I'm reluctant to add friends by request too. Lately, more and more people from work add me to Facebook. My publisher, sales reps, cube neighbors... where do I draw the line?

I already set up the "Limited Profile" section, but to avoid embarrassing or more personal information from leaking out at work, I set up a "Work Profile" for people whom I hardly talk with, or have even had a conversation in person.

If you're not my friend, my picture and networks don't even show up.

A couple months ago, my editor decided to join Facebook. Once he established himself in the interactive community, he knew I was familiar with the site and came to me wondering how we could get our two magazines more face time with younger readers.

I was initially excited -- then reluctant. I set up Fan Pages for both magazines, added links to all the back issues, video of tool reviews and product previews, listed upcoming events. But that meant I also had to be a fan.

The Fan Pages are still a work-in-progress, but readers who are familiar with the networking site are becoming fans of our magazines.

It's a double-edged sword. The project itself has become my baby. And it looks good to integrate different communication mediums for our readers. But now, the lines are blurred.

So don't take it personally, this is strictly professional. If I don't know you, I just don't want to be your friend.

Thems the banks...

Rant #2 for the week. SRY.

Read this first: Associated Bank plans its own fiesta after bailout party.

That's right, Wisconsin's own Associated Bank has joined the list of bailout offenders to use federal aid to send 100 employees on a vacation TO A RESORT IN PUERTO RICO.

WTF.

President and CEO of Associated Bank, Paul Beidemann justified not canceling the trip by saying these "top performers" deserved to go, namely because the bank still pulled a profit last quarter.

Wait a tick; I thought I read you received $525 million from the federal government. That's millions of dollars of taxpayers money, being spent for bank employees to spend more than a week drinking watered-down daiquiris and getting sunburnt.

I'm not saying that employees shouldn't be rewarded for a job well done; but there's a time and a place. Give them a weekend getaway to a waterpark in GB, or a $100 gift certificate to Best Buy.

As a preferred stock holder and past employee of the company, I'm a little sore. As far as I'm concerned, the bank has two options:

#1. Take me on a vacation to Puerto Rico too. Or,
#2. Let me sell my stock for the price I initially paid, so I can stop supporting such an inept business.

Throw away your television

As some of you might know, Congress passed a law pushing back the DTV Transition conversion date from Feb. 17 to June 12. What this means is television stations broadcasting in analog will be forced to switch to digital no later than that date. If you want to know more, visit www.dtv.gov.

I'm not going into the differences, or the benefits of either type of broadcasting. Strictly speaking from a societal perspective, postponing the inevitable is just a damn silly idea.

The government has already spent millions of dollars on marketing to notify Americans of the change. Commercial after amateur-quality commercial has littered local stations for the past 18 months. Broadcasters have been advising viewers that they need to make sure they have one of the following:

1. Cable/Dish. If you already have an auxiliary jack flowing precious sitcom after sitcom to your TV, you're fine.

2. A TV that accepts digital broadcasts. I know some retailers have taken advantage of this, but they were forced to put up signs advising customers about the switch, and which TVs support the switch, sometime back in late 2007.

3. A digital conversion box. These are available at retailers too. And, the government will provide you a voucher for reimbursement.

One of the issues pushing the law back was the fact that the government is having trouble reimbursing vouchers for the $40 conversion boxes eligible to every American household. Fine. Hand them out for free then.

The fact is, only your grandma doesn't have cable; and you've probably already gone over to her house to set up her digital conversion box, or brand-new 42" HDTV with a remote she'll think is a telephone.

If by God's grace and having your head stuck up your ass for the last year and a half, you haven't heard the news, you will when you don't get a signal on your TV.

You've already been watching that much TV, so you must have seen the commercials. You should be prepared. I don't want to hear it. Stop wasting time and spending my hard-earned money to cater to a couch-potato society.

Dealing with Uncle Sam

I'm sure almost everyone has received their necessary tax forms over the last month. That includes W-2s, 1099-DIVs, 1099-INTs and 1098 something-or-others for mortgages. Not to mention student loan forms for debt, or forms if you contribute to your HSA, 401k and IRAs after Jan. 1.

Now you have until April 15 to gather all those forms, fill out the information, and file your taxes. Ugh.

I already filed my taxes; which was motivated by the fact that I knew I was getting a return for both state and federal. This year, I only had two forms: one W-2 and one 1099-DIV. That's IT. Total time I'll never get back: 45 minutes. But I'm DONE!

I have three reasons why I can appreciate my situation as an adult come tax season:

#1.) My mom taught me how to file my taxes.
Since I started getting W-2s, she's been there to help me figure out how to fill out the proper paperwork for state and federal taxes. Up until about three years ago, she filed everything by hand. (It's a bitch, don't do it.) I opted to file my taxes online. She insisted I read every page and all the directions, to make sure I didn't skip anything.

#2.) I've been filing my own taxes since I was 18 years old.
I've been employed since the age of 14, but because I didn't work that much for most of middle school and high school, the government kept their hands off most of my money. You're only required to file a tax return if you make more than a certain amount. Even if you don't meet that requirement, you can still opt to file if you think you'll get money back. Or, if you want to pay because they didn't take out enough. But that'd be damn foolish.

#3.) I worked at a bank for more than two years.
A call center to be more exact, and it was bitch come tax season. From mid-January until the end of April, people would call about forms they received, how much interest they earned, and how to file taxes. We couldn't help with the last one -- you're supposed to talk to a tax advisor. But, we had hours of training on what forms go with what accounts, and when people receive certain tax forms for savings accounts, HSAs, 401Ks, IRAs and CDs, or some loans.

Still have to file? Here are a few tips:

-Make sure you have ALL of the proper forms and information before getting started. That means W-2s, even from PT jobs (Did you work for a lawn service for two months last summer? Get paid for some after-school program with kids?); interest earned on stock dividends and savings accounts (But only if it's more than 10.00); and student loan forms. You'll need your SSN, and bank account and routing number too, if you opt for direct deposit.

-If you're getting a refund, go with direct deposit. You'll get your money in about 7-10 days, instead of 4-6 weeks.

-Most people don't have to worry about itemizing deductions on your return. That'll usually happen if you've collected a lot of unemployment over the year, own a house or make a shit-ton of money. But either way, many filing programs can help you with both.

-You have to file your federal taxes before your state.

-The most important: File online -- FOR FREE.
No matter what they say, most people don't have to pay to have your taxes done. If you made less than $56,000 in 2007, even better.
Go to irs.gov and answer some questions about your financial status. The site then automatically redirects you to one of many free tax filing service sites most suitable for you. I've been using H&R Block for the last three years.

-Do NOT pay an additional charge on the federal site you use, to file your state taxes. You can pay $30 for convenience, or spend another 20 minutes filing on a separate site. Just google your state and "free file" or "e-z file". Wisconsinites can go to www.revenue.wi.gov.

Fine china

I apologize for all the links in advance... but I promise most of them are interesting.
In a disputably controversial move, the current President, George W. Bush, and his wife decided to make a half a million dollar investment, two weeks before departing from the White House: two sets of fine Presidential china. Total price tag? $567,000.

In Laura Bush's defense, they ordered the dishes before the economy went sour; it just took longer than anticipated to be delivered. Plus, the purchase was privately funded by a historical group. Usually only two-term can afford the luxury of ordering such lavish accessories for dinner parties. Mostly because it takes so long to create handcrafted dinnerware. (THAT COSTS HALF A MILLION DOLLARS.)

Other Presidents, like Monroe and Truman, also had customized China made for formal dinner parties. G.W. Bush prefers using Lyndon B.'s, or Reagan's.

The purchase might seem (and IMHO, is) pretty frivolous; but, unnecessary additions to 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. have their place in history, defining a particular era and term of that President, as well as their personal taste in what looked good.

Now the Texas governor turned second generation President will be forever remembered not only for his disputed misdeeds and Bushisms, but for purchasing some exquisitely tasteful cups and plates, too.

In 20 years, the general public will look back at trivial facts or useless knowledge (GW owned the Texas Rangers, and attended every game for 12 years; or, he's the only President who was also a Cub Scout), instead of bills vetoed (Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act) and passed (No Child Left Behind Act), or epic failures (Hurricane Katrina, the Iraq War).

So what about those other guys? What do we really know about past Presidents?

Name a favorite. A lot of people liked Washington, Lincoln, Roosevelt (Teddy and FDR) and Reagan.

A few were a little more notorious.

--Pierce sucked it up for being a doughface, causing his party to stop supporting him. Once he left office, Buchanan directly followed, trumping Pierce by inadvertently allowing the only Civil War in United States history to occur, because of his southern sympathies (FAIL).

--Andrew Johnson and Bill Clinton were the only two Presidents in history to be impeached. (Both were acquitted.)

--Calvin Coolidge took a five hour nap every day, on top of sleeping ten hours each night. I bet him and Matthias would make good friends.

--JFK was known for his sexual nature and drug use, while his White House staff attempted to cover up his misdeeds. It's rumored he had relations with Marylin Monroe and family friend Angie Dickinson, among others.

--Nixon was almost impeached too. "He was a notorious micro-manager and could never relax..." He was also a part of the Watergate scandal. Many liberal Americans during the time hated the guy... followed by most of the U.S. population. He might have been smart, but he lacked moral fiber, and was forced to resign.

And here's a snippet directly from Little Known Facts About 20th Century Presidents:

Warren G Harding (1912-23) might have been the worst President in American history. His father once said "If you were a Girl Warren, you could never say no!". Though Prohibition was effect the White House poker parties always had alcohol and there was an unofficial bootlegger on the staff. Harding may also have fathered an illegitimate child in one of the White House coat rooms.Harding once bet four priceless sets of Presidential china in a White House poker game. (he won the hand with two pair).

He was criticized for being associated with members of his office accepting bribes, and his involvement of the Teapot Dome oil scandal.

He's generally ranked as the worst President in the United States.

Those are just the big ones. Even G.W.'s Bushisms have covered up Dan Quayle's articulate vocabulary. In two decades, half the population won't even remember half the crap George actually did.

But maybe we'll remember he bought some fine dishes.

Closing time

I closed up shop for the last time at my PT job yesterday.

After weeks of cutting hours and giving me only waitressing shifts, I decided it was time to hang up the towel and put in my notice. For my one last hurrah, I got to bartend -- which I enjoy doing just a little bit more than serving food. (I'm a terrible waitress.), and hadn't done since about mid-October.

While working there, I worked with and met some awesome people, made mad tips and got to know the town I live in a little better. That's all well and good, but bars and taverns have one of the highest turnover rates out of any service/retail job out there. I'll tell you why:

#1.) It's stressful. You deal with belligerent assholes on a nightly basis. You meet all kinds of drunks. Happy, sad, angry, oblivious... any emotion on the spectrum. When it's busy, you run around like a chicken with your head cut off. Stocking, shuffling, mixing drinks, spilling, yelling, breaking bottles. When you screw up an order, inebriated people are less forgiving, especially after they've waited 10 minutes for a drink.

#2.) Health risks. Steering completely clear of tobacco since August, I now find any type of smoke repulsive. My body shouldn't be subjected to 8.5 hours of secondhand smoke from not just cigarettes, but cigars. After that long of a shift, not only do your clothes smell like bar, YOU smell like bar. It seeps out of my skin 24 hours later for fuck's sake.

Live bands and loud music for hours on end make your cochlea want to explode. Tough shit if you have a headache, you won't be able to hear for the next three days anyway.

#3.) Getting hit on. OHH, you might be thinking, "How flattering!" NO. Well Rico Suave, after that shot of Jack, you suddenly question why I'm working at this shabby old bar. What do I do? Where else do I work? What's my social security number? ... I've received phone numbers on napkins, receipts, matchbooks, and leftover Styrofoam containers. I tell you I'm taken and not interested, but you continue to harass me -- even after I offer conversation segways about sports, weather or movies. This is my job buddy, not match.com.

#4.) Clientele change all the time. Now, you'll have your regulars -- Big Tom who never sits, only stands, at the bar drinking Bud Light. The Jehovah's Witness couple where the husband always orders the drinks and food for the wife. Peter, who works at the newspaper, always enters through the front door, orders only one glass of Pinot Grigio, leaves $0.60 in change and leaves out the back door...

But there are also a bunch of random people who try and get to know you -- after they've had a few. I'm awful at small talk and find it difficult to hold conversations with 40-somethings from small towns, whom I have NOTHING in common with.

#5.) Stingy assholes. This is by far worse on the waitressing end of working at a bar; some people just don't know how to tip. If you've been pleasant, served me in an efficient manner and I'm satisfied with my meal and drinks, I'll let you know. That generally means leaving at least 15, if not 20, percent of the bill for meals, and 50 cents to $1.00 for each order of drinks. Not $2.00 for a fish fry and an entire night of drinking. With you and five of your friends. Asshole.

What will I miss most? The money. Which sounds arrogant, haughty and greedy; but bartending is a tough job.

I've seen my share of bar fights, flying bats, cops, stumblers, flashers, snoozers at the bar, and some of F.A.'s finest, hammered.

All in a night's work.

Urban sprawl

I headed home to Green Bay this past weekend (for free laundry at mi madres, and to visit Biddy in Marinette).

As I pulled off the highway from 43 N, I noticed a change in the skyline of boxed buildings around the off-ramp.

Great, more stores.

I understand the need for shopping centers, grocery stores, gas stations and restaurants, but since moving to Green Bay 12 years ago, there's been significant development, turning the once prairie-grassed, isolated suburb into a full out traffic laden, brick-built, strip-malled, pavement landscape.

And every time I go back, there's a new commercial building being built.

When we moved in, there were three buildings -- Lou's One Stop gas station, the Dorsch Ford dealership and Cliff & Ceil's ballroom -- and they were just beginning to build a Hardee's.

BEFORE:

Now, across County JJ, passed the backyard of my mom's house, cookie cutter homes dot the other side of the road. Not to mention, the following businesses in the area:

-four strip malls
-Menards
-Festival Foods (my H.S. job as a cashier)
-a rebuilt Cliff & Ceils
-TWO more gas stations
-Home Depot
-a hotel
-some Harley Davidson repair center
-two banks
-Tumbleweed, McDonalds, Jimmy Johns, Taco Johns, A&W and Subway

And the newest edition, right across the street: Stein Gardens and Gifts.

AFTER:

Do we really need eight different fast food options, three places to get gas and two DIY stores within a half-mile radius?

Wouldn't it make more sense to construct one large building (AKA a mall), with a whole bunch of stores, instead of completely destroying all of the natural land around the highway?

It was inevitable that development would happen, especially with so many people moving into the area. (It is a suburb, after all).

Not to mention the affects of locally owned stores. Mom and pop shops are completely run out by corporations who build 1 mil.-sq.-ft. facilities, undercut prices, then abandon the building. From personal experience, I saw it happen in Stevens Point as they continued building along Hwy. 10 instead of renovating and continuing to develop the downtown area.

So I say, develop and remodel what's already there, instead of continuing to spread like an epidemic.

With the increased traffic, destruction of land, and the overall loss of aesthetics to the area -- it only supports what I've been thinking recently: it makes more sense to live in a more metropolitan area.

Although you're not exactly removing your carbon footprint by living within city limits, at least you have access to mass transit, stores in close proximity, and the option to live and renovate buildings that are already there.

Build up, not out.

The race

I'm an avid supporter of democracy. I'm talking the pure form of voicing your opinion and the freedom to make your own choice.

I know the media has played a large role in determining how we should view the current presidential candidates. Subtle manipulation might have turned this race into one based on gossip, aesthetics and crowd appeal more than addressing issues and the American people... but there's still a chance we can form our own opinions.

I'm not pretending to be an expert, but here are a few less biased sites to help. And even though the government is heavily bipartisan, there are actually more than two presidential candidates. Check it out.

On The Issues This site lists the opinions of the candidates based on their votes and opinions expressed on debates and interviews about abortion, economics, foreign affairs, the military, immigration, etc.

Project Vote Smart Broken up by state, you can look at what issues candidates have voted for in-office and get a background on their character. Check out state-run elections too.

Factcheck.org Addresses the political ads that all candidates have been running, calling out and explaining inaccuracies, or misinformation.

Candidate calculator. Fill out a questionnaire (with optional links for more information on each issue) to determine the candidate that you agree with most on different issues.

You can also Google the candidates' names to check out their Web sites. Although they'll be extremely biased, you can still decide on some of the issues they're fighting for or against.

Don't forget to check out the 2008 Presidential Debate hosted at the University of Mississippi tomorrow night on TV @ 8 PM.


If you don't take the time to educate yourself and voice your own opinion, don't complain about the current (and future) state of affairs. Go vote.

Snail mail

It costs 42 cents for the USPS to deliver a letter for you. So today I decided to send a card to my friend Amanda. It's not even her birthday.

Since becoming almost completely dependent on the Internet for paying bills, shopping, email, IMs, socializing and almost all other human interaction, I've realized that technology hinders peoples' ability to be sincere -- sans emoticons ;oD

What happened to sending a genuine, poor punctuation-laden, misspelled paper letter?

I remember when I only used to send snail mail.

Until I was 12 years old, my mom sent my brother and I up to Sturgeon Bay every summer to stay in a cottage by the lake with my grandparents. I dreaded it, hated it, loathed it; and despised my mom for sending us there. So isolated, so quiet, so peaceful. How terrible. All summer.

I filled a hot pink pencil box with stickers, pens, postcards, stationery and stamps. Twice a week, I'd sit at the kitchen table and write out letters to my friends, my mom and my dad, my other grandma. I'd mention canoing under a 5 ft. carp, why Matthias was annoying the hell out of me, my newly constructed fort in the woods, or how grandpa wouldn't let us leave the table until we finished our sauerkraut.

I would write out every address and lick every stamp. I'd even write messages on the back of the envelope, after I sealed it. (In case I forgot to mention something.)

I loved writing letters. But more than sending them, I loved getting them. Biking up to the mailbox between 1-3 PM was the highlight of my weekdays.

Funny, the chime of my inbox doesn't really have the same effect...