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April 27, 2007

FOUR FOR FRIDAY

Q1 - Life: Earlier this week, European astronomers announced that they had discovered the first potentially habitable Earth-like planet outside of our solar system, where they say conditions are so ideal that oceans, and thus life, may be possible. Do you believe intelligent life currently exists on other planets?

Q2 - Clothes: A co-worker came to work today sporting a new short-sleeved shirt from The North Face. This got me thinking... did he plan to wear that shirt today or was it a choice he made just this morning. Hmmm. Do you know before you go to sleep what you'll be wearing to work the next day, or do you choose your wears on-the-fly the morning of?

Q3 ñ Music: Do you listen to music at work, and if so, do you use an iPod (or similar device), play them through your office computer, or do you just listen to them via a separate radio you keep nearby?

Q4 - Wall Street: The Dow Jones industrial average rose on Thursday as a fresh wave of better-than-expected profits from publicly-held companies propelled the index to its second straight close above 13,000 points (a new record for the blue-chip indicator). Two questions here: 1. Do you even know what that means (that the index hit 13,000 points), and 2. Do you care?

Posted by Mikal at 9:21 AM | Comments (15) | TrackBack

April 25, 2007

ANOTHER EDITION OF 'GETTING TO KNOW YOUR FRIENDS'

My friend Keith Hann from Denver just sent me the latest version of 'Getting to Know Your Friends.' Rather than send it chain letter style to 10 people, I am choosing to post it here for anyone who may be interested in repurposing it for their own blog or email chain.

What time did you get up this morning? 5:15 a.m.
How do you like your steak? Medium-well
What was the last film you saw at the cinema? I do not remember (I know, how sad).
What is your favorite TV show? Reruns of 'Everybody Loves Raymond' and the original CSI
What did you have for breakfast? A meal replacement shake
What is your middle name? Evan
What is your favorite cuisine? Food :-)
What foods do you dislike? Anything that incorporates refried beans
What are your favorite chips? White Cheddar Popcorn
What is your favorite CD at the moment? No CDs for me (I'm a one trick pony - iTunes)
What kind of car do you drive? Honda Civic
What is your favorite sandwich? The "Philly & Everything" from "The Italian Place
What characteristics do you despise? Moral superiority, indifference, narrow-mindedness, immodesty, and a lack of empathy
What are your favorite clothes? I do not have any favorites right now. I treat them all equally.
If you could go anywhere in the world on vacation, where would it be? Vancouver, B.C. or Santorini, Greece
Favorite brand of clothing? I cannot believe that I become so uninterested but I have. I do not have a favorite brand of clothing.
Where would you want to retire? Anywhere compelling (Florida is not compelling)
Favorite time of day? It's a tie between the moment my head hits the pillow, and dusk
Where were you born? Back east
What is your favorite sport to watch? College and pro football, and Cycling
Pepsi or coke? Coke (but only with pizza)
Ducks or beavers? Ducks rule
Are you a morning person or a night owl? Morning
Pedicure or manicure? Pedicure, hands down
Any new and exciting news you'd like to share? I recently noticed that I have eleven toes and only nine fingers
What did you want to be when you were little? A clown in the circus and an architect
What is your best childhood memory? Fourth of July on Lake Waramaug, and driving around New England with my Mom playing Geography along the way.
Piercing? None
Ever been to Africa? No
Ever been toilet papering? But of course
Been in a car accident? Yes
Favorite day of the week? Friday
Favorite restaurant? Chain: The Cheesecake Factory; Independent: Mama Carolla's (Indianapolis)
Favorite flower? Tulips.
Favorite ice cream? Ben & Jerry's Oatmeal, or anyone else's Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
Favorite fast food? Wendy's
How many times did your fail your driver's test? 0
From whom did you get your last e-mail? Roman McAllen
Which store would you choose to max out your credit card? The Sharper Image
Bedtime? Yes, I believe in the concept
Last person you went out to dinner with? Jared Sidwell
What are you listening to right now? 'Everybody Loves Raymond'
What is your favorite color? I don't really have one
How many tattoos do you have? 0
Favorite magazine? The Robb Report and Business 2.0

Posted by Mikal at 10:40 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack

April 21, 2007

Later this morning I will be running in my sixth half-marathon. The Salt Lake City Marathon and Half Marathon is said to attract top runners from around the world who all enjoy crisp, cool running weather in April, in a setting surrounded with snow-capped peaks contrasting with spring blossoms, all along a flat and slightly downhill 26.2 / 13.3 mile course.

I of course am not one of the world's top runners. In fact, I would not describe what I do, during a race like this, as "running." Finishing is my only goal, as is not killing myself. My previous half-marathon results are:

I have always improved my time, but I think that trend will end today. I convinced a couple of co-workers to join me in today's race, and I think all of us will be happy with just finishing.

Greg Cox, Jake Sabey, and I finished the Salt Lake City Half Marathon in less time than I had predicted. Our unofficial times were:

It looks like the official race results wont be posted to the Salt Lake City Marathon website until early next week, so I'll post one final update on Monday or Tuesday.

In the meantime, I have to say that because of the company I kept--Greg and Jake--this was one of the most pleasurable half marathons I have ever run. The three of us kept ourselves occupied with a killer game of Geography, lots of laughs, and interesting conversations with other runners, volunteers, and supporters.

For now, and I'm sure I speak for Greg and Jake on this one; it's time for some serious one-on-one couch time ("one-on-one" = suffering human and their couch).

April 20, 2007

Q1 - Your Life: If life were an audition for a movie, what part would you say you were auditioning for, and what part do you think you'd be offered?

Q3 - Law: European Union nations agreed yesterday on new laws they say will combat racism and hate crimes across the 27-nation bloc, including setting jail sentences of up to three years for anyone who denies or trivializes the Holocaust. What do you think about that?

Q4 - Dress Code: If you just started working in an office that had a "business casual" dress code, and to the best of your knowledge no one had ever asked the boss (who has an open door policy) if it would be okay to dress down on Friday, would you bring it up or not touch it with a 10-foot pole?

April 13, 2007

Q1 - Child Support: If a parent who is responsible for paying court-ordered child support fails to pay his or her due, do you think that the parent in question should be prohibited from seeing their child?

Q2 - Company Policy: Motivated by the fear of harassment claims, many companies now prohibit men and women from meeting one-on-one inside of offices or conference rooms that do not have a window to an outside hallway or area where others can see into the room. What do you think about that? Good move because it protects everyone involved, or an unwarranted overreaction driven by nothing more than overreaching morals and fear?

Q3 - Annoyances: Which bothers you more: a slow Internet connection or a dropped cell phone call?

Q4 - Travel: Butch Cassidy, the last of the great western train-robbers, was born 141 years ago today. If time weren't an issue, how would you choose to travel from one coast to another: by train, air, auto, RV, motorcycle, bicycle, horseback, or thumb?

April 11, 2007

When you wake up at 4:45 a.m. with your lip looking like this, it's best to call in sick, take a few pictures to show your doctor (and just for kicks, your Mom and friends too), and go back to bed:

The first time this happened to me was when I was in college. A college chum drove me to a emergency room where a bunch of doctors and medical interns proceeded to point, probe, and proudly commit to statements like, "I have no idea," and "Wow, that must really hurt!"

Years later, it still happens, and I've been able to unprofessionally narrow its cause to a few culprits, including Coriander (Coriandrum sativum), also commonly known as Cilantro; Jalapeï¿½o, which is a cultivar of the species Capsicum annuum; certain types of red peppers (also part of the Capsicum genus of plants); and maybe even Splenda.

If anyone else has experienced this sort of reaction, please leave a comment below. Outside of going to a doctor or allergist who will to stick me with a large number of needles, I'm interested in finding out exactly what causes this and what sort of remedies are available for the associated pain and swelling. A few years ago, I posted something similar to this blog about an allergic reaction I was having to Splenda. To date, 207 individual comments have left on that post. Perhaps the same will eventually occur on this one.

April 6, 2007

Q1 - Motivation: Professionally speaking, what motivates you? Is it money, the ability to contribute to the decision-making process, a job well done, perks like a break room stocked with yummy foods and soft drinks, engaging and solving problems with co-workers, or something else?

Q2 - Foreign Affairs: Earlier this week, the Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi, along with a small Congressional delegation, toured the Middle East, which included a stop in Syria for a face-to-face meeting with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Vice President Dick Cheney, speaking on Thursday with radio talk show host Rush Limbaugh, said Pelosi exhibited "bad behavior" by meeting with the Syrian President, while other critics of the Speaker charge her with undermining Presidential power, freelancing Middle East diplomacy, appeasing a terrorist regime, and even surrendering to Islamist radicalism by donning a head scarf. Even if this is the first you're hearing of Pelosi's visit, do you think the criticism she is receiving is fair? Should the Speaker of the House's role be limited to domestic affairs, or as the Speaker of the House (a body which represents all U.S. Citizens), is it appropriate for her to meet with Foreign dignitaries one-on-one, outside of the White House's oversight?

Q3 - Pets and Recalls: Three weeks after a massive pet food recall began, there's appears to be no end in sight. Pet food processor Menu Foods has expanded its recall to include more varieties of food, while another manufacturer--Sunshine Mills--just issued a recall for more than 20 dog biscuit brands sold by Wal-Mart. As the recall expands, the Food and Drug Administration is reportedly struggling to deal with a growing number of consumer complaints, along with calls to investigate pet food on a national scale. Do you own any pets, and if so, how has your care or feeding of them changed since the recall began?

Q4 - Names: According to the Associated Press, Michael and Karolina Tomaro are locked in a court battle with Swedish authorities, which rejected their application to name their six-month-old child after the legendary rock band Metallica. Although the baby has already been baptized as "Metallica," the Swedish National Tax Board refused to register the name, saying it was associated with both the rock group and the word "metal," and was therefore deemed inappropriate. What are your thoughts on the matter? Should parents be allowed to name a child whatever they choose, or are some name so absurd and inappropriate that government should stand in the way?

April 5, 2007

April 1, 2007

When I call my Mom on a Thursday or Friday afternoon, she always asks me the same thing: "So what sort of exciting plans do you have for the weekend?"

My response...well, if you know me, you know it's almost universally the same: "Nothing too exciting. I'll probably come into the office and do some work, run errands, clean my apartment, and then do some laundry. You know, the usual.. To which she always sarcastically replies, "How exciting!"

This past Friday was no different--same question, same answer--except that this time rather than dropping the "How exciting!" line, she reminded me that I need to get out more often and have some fun. Using her words as inspiration, here's one of the things I did for fun on Saturday (after spending the morning at the office):

Granted, the lady who cut my hair had a lot more fun than I did, but I really enjoyed seeing her laugh and get all creative on my head. (As a side note, the lady who cut my hair has been cutting hair professionally for five years, and yesterday was the first time anyone had ever asked her to take it all off [well, you know what I mean]).