(no subject)

[fredericks]

Quick update, because I keep opening up the text box and not inputting anything:

-Had an awesome weekend. captainschlumpy and I met up and made a trip to Ikea (I love Ikea!), where I got a neat fold-up bed and the opportunity to indulge in swedish meatballs with lingonberry sauce. The Cap'n be good people.

-All the openings at work are now filled. No more pressure on my part about what might have been, since my ships have sailed.

-Had my first union rep meeting with management and a nurse today. The nurse screwed himself, there was nothing I could I have done, he was given his walking papers. The union will stand for you, but if you majorly dick around all we'll do is give you a shoulder to cry on after you hand in your laptop and ID.

-Today was my dad's birthday. Somehow the evening ended with a room of folk with a median age of about 55 watching Silent Library, my mom's new favorite show. Quite disconcerting.

-An "IMHO" note: when your fic posts start getting labeled "Part 68/?" you need to slow down and hunt for an ending. Seriously.

-Chuck Klosterman is not as funny as he believes himself to be. Joke's on me, since I bought his latest book. Funny, but definitely borrow material.

Comments

[fredericks.livejournal.com]

Klosterman gets a pass from me for his review of Chinese Democracy (http://www.avclub.com/articles/chuck-klosterman-reviews-chinese-democracy,2539/), but the bulk of his essays come of as a bit too smug.

Reviewing Chinese Democracy is not like reviewing music. It's more like reviewing a unicorn. Should I primarily be blown away that it exists at all? Am I supposed to compare it to conventional horses? To a rhinoceros? Does its pre-existing mythology impact its actual value, or must it be examined inside a cultural vacuum, as if this creature is no more (or less) special than the remainder of the animal kingdom?

And the rep stuff I ended up signing up for because I was bored. It's fascinating how often our employer asks us to do stuff that is explicitly outside of our contract. So I decided I'd try to help those nurses who might not have been in the know in regards to what we were supposed to be doing work-wise. Our organization is unionized (under the Federation of Teachers umbrella, actually, which is interesting in and of itself) and they were constantly looking for reps. I ended up getting voted for meetings and committees simply by knowing people and having my name thrown into the mix. Story of my life, lucking out into opportunities.

[paradise-city.livejournal.com]

Late comment, but I loved Klosterman's review of Chinese Democracy. I was far more impressed than I thought I'd be, but I still don't know if I like it. I feel like he had a similar reaction.

And thanks for explaining the union stuff. I worked in a hospital for a couple of years and I saw similar things in terms of nurses being asked to do things that were clearly outside their purview. I think it's awesome that you're an activist for your peers.