I'm only writing this since it's really annoying to me. I just posted a blog post and I can see it clearly but it's not showing up in the blog list as updated.
I've quit copying and pasting from another "notepad" but write my posts in blogger window (that was suggested to being one of the problems) but since that doesn't seem to be the thing..... I'm not saying I have a lot of readers - as you my lovely group of follwers know - but it isn't really helping to keep you if you don't see that I have finally posted something new....
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well, it's in the list now..... 56 mins later... I guess that is ok, sort of.... at least it's not a day behind....
Thursday, September 29, 2011
private, not government, leads to what?
It's not the best title, and as former ScienceBear wrote on her blog, it's been very busy and even when I have had the time to "save draft" with some thoughts and ideas I have obviously not done anything with it. So, today I'll try a new approach and just make a short post about something I read this morning in the paper. I think that if I link it, it's free for access....
The main problem I have with this, not surprising maybe since I grew up (and was groomed) in a country with a kind government that promises to take care of you and your family, might be that I like some things to be state driven. I don't view the government as evil per se and I might even like the State a little too much... Then it's my background (PoliSci and philosophy) where there are some thoughts about "what are the minimum requirements for a state to function?" and "what are the responsibilities for the state towards the people?" among other things that pop up when I read these kind of articles.
Personally, I have a hard time with this "long term storage" of people. I don't really distinguish between being locked up in a hotel (nice) or "behind barbed wire in a camp" (not so nice). It's pretty obvious what kind of image the writer wants you to get, and in this case I would've liked not to have that image since it takes away the focus on the real problem imho. "Who is responsible, when the system was built with control functions for the state driven things (prisons for example) but now shifted into private driven things?"
(I'm sure the questions can be formulated way way better but I'm under time contraints...)
I mean, it scares the beejeezus out of me to think what would happen if I end up in one of those private run places since if something were to happen, as history and experience show, there is no system in place for accountability since "we are not responsible since we bought the service from them" and "we only provided the service they wanted to buy" ... and then go on and on and on since most likely you (the 'little people' as so famously said by BigCo CEO) don't have the money or resources to go to the legal system, which you wouldn't have had to if it was the state.... since that system is in place....
Not to mention what a waste it is to keep people locked up/detained without decisions for several years and leaving them in limbo. I mean, not only thinking of these people, but from "my view as a citizen", but how much money is thrown at these private companies to keep these people in a secure place and they need food and living space etc but won't be able to work or provide for themselves. Although, I guess having these detention centers with "have to work to be here" might be very obvious why thesecampscenters leave a bitter taste in my mouth. Then again, I am a huge proponent of calling a spade a spade and not spray rose scent on a wilted flower to make it seem nicer....
Only a few thoughts on a Thursday when I am staring at my assay C, which will have to be qualified and cleared for usage within too short a time and I am not really sure on how I will make it work since I do have some* other things to do as well....
*a few more projects with deadlines looming before Xmas. There's nothing like projects all converging at the same time, right?
The main problem I have with this, not surprising maybe since I grew up (and was groomed) in a country with a kind government that promises to take care of you and your family, might be that I like some things to be state driven. I don't view the government as evil per se and I might even like the State a little too much... Then it's my background (PoliSci and philosophy) where there are some thoughts about "what are the minimum requirements for a state to function?" and "what are the responsibilities for the state towards the people?" among other things that pop up when I read these kind of articles.
Personally, I have a hard time with this "long term storage" of people. I don't really distinguish between being locked up in a hotel (nice) or "behind barbed wire in a camp" (not so nice). It's pretty obvious what kind of image the writer wants you to get, and in this case I would've liked not to have that image since it takes away the focus on the real problem imho. "Who is responsible, when the system was built with control functions for the state driven things (prisons for example) but now shifted into private driven things?"
(I'm sure the questions can be formulated way way better but I'm under time contraints...)
I mean, it scares the beejeezus out of me to think what would happen if I end up in one of those private run places since if something were to happen, as history and experience show, there is no system in place for accountability since "we are not responsible since we bought the service from them" and "we only provided the service they wanted to buy" ... and then go on and on and on since most likely you (the 'little people' as so famously said by BigCo CEO) don't have the money or resources to go to the legal system, which you wouldn't have had to if it was the state.... since that system is in place....
Not to mention what a waste it is to keep people locked up/detained without decisions for several years and leaving them in limbo. I mean, not only thinking of these people, but from "my view as a citizen", but how much money is thrown at these private companies to keep these people in a secure place and they need food and living space etc but won't be able to work or provide for themselves. Although, I guess having these detention centers with "have to work to be here" might be very obvious why these
Only a few thoughts on a Thursday when I am staring at my assay C, which will have to be qualified and cleared for usage within too short a time and I am not really sure on how I will make it work since I do have some* other things to do as well....
*a few more projects with deadlines looming before Xmas. There's nothing like projects all converging at the same time, right?
Thursday, September 22, 2011
is it called "feeling smug"?
After a workday of 11 hours for the first time after being home in the sick bed I wanted to go home and sleep. Or I wanted to grab a beer on happy hour with some friends... but instead I realised that the gym and I had a long overdue date. Said and done, I changed at work and went to the gym for a work out.
Now, feeling slightly sleepy and delightfully tired in my muscles, I am also feeling a little smug and content that I did do what I knew I should've done. It is really that easy for me to try and get back into work out mode after a long "vacation" away since the time in far away country consisted of walking, walking (some train rides) and more walks, alas no "real" work outs.
So, now I only need to go back to the gym Saturday or Sunday. Although, it is football Sunday.... hmm... football and beer is looking very tempting... maybe work out first and relaxing afterwards? ^
Now, feeling slightly sleepy and delightfully tired in my muscles, I am also feeling a little smug and content that I did do what I knew I should've done. It is really that easy for me to try and get back into work out mode after a long "vacation" away since the time in far away country consisted of walking, walking (some train rides) and more walks, alas no "real" work outs.
So, now I only need to go back to the gym Saturday or Sunday. Although, it is football Sunday.... hmm... football and beer is looking very tempting... maybe work out first and relaxing afterwards? ^
Monday, September 19, 2011
How sick do you need to be to stay home?
I have a hard time being home on a sick day. Somehow it's always "do I have a fever?" and if that's not the case, I buckle up and go to work. Being a grad student and a post doc in these cases made it slightly easier since then I could even go into work when I had a fever - experiments depending. In short, I am not good at admitting defeat to my body.
This morning I woke up with stuffed nose and red eyes, throat itching and sneezing and a massive head ache to go with that. I decided not to be a silly person (like I was Friday since I knew I had to finish some experiments and thought it would be a "quick day in the lab" - yeah, not so much) but called in and then promptly fell asleep and woke up in the middle of the afternoon. Clearly I needed some sleep?!
Now I wonder if I should stay home tomorrow as well or buckle up and go in and do those assays that are needed to be run? I should wait until tomorrow morning to decide, of course, but I am a little curious on how people think about this "sick leave"*. When do you stay home and how sick "should" one be for it to be ok?
(I am a little surprised myself for wondering but I've realised the older I get, the more it seems to be OK to go into work with coughing, sniffles and looking positively "not well". Anyone else on the "as long as there is no fever" train?)
*I'm lucky in this country since I have both vacation and sick leave, on different accounts so I don't loose pay if I am sick. That said, it's not that I think I want to waste any days since they might come in handy some time... and if I'm not sick I'm not allowed to take them off. Obviously, since they are sick days.
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On another note. Anyone has any ideas on why my posts show up on my blog, but not on the RSS feed?!? Or at least not more than randomly and several days later?
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
depending on machines...
Sometimes I get reminded why depending on anything, but most often machines, is an irritating idea. Especially when I live where I currently do. This morning for example, getting outside and preparing to go to work, when my car made an interesting sound when I turned the key in the ignition....
Yes, it was that sound a boat motor makes (my first point of reference when I tried to explain to a mechanic what had happened) when you pull the string (ok, so I never had a big boat) and it huffs and puffs but does not make the "connecting" sound... as when the motor actually starts...
No, my car didn't start. And I yet again was happy that I live within walking distance from work so I wasn't totally stranded. Well, I didn't walk to work this morning (making everyone happy at work since I wasn't too late, and the added joy of making a little bit of fun of little me) but rather walking home and enjoying the lovely sunset. Sure enough though, I missed my country from farfar away too soon... there I wouldn't have been eaten alive by vicious mosquitos and sweaty in the warm weather but it didn't rain or was a thunderstorm.
Now, I only hope that I can get my car fixed sort of soonish though, since even if I can walk to and from work - no car seriously diminishes my options on buying food, meeting with people and living my life... alas, it's not a disaster - but considering the US dollar value in the exchange rate I don't really look forward spending too much on repairs since my 'vacation' did end up being if not too pricy still fairly expensive ^^ ah well, perspective is a good thing right? I only need to remember that a car is not an option where I live - it's a needed thing to function - at least when your bike has two blown tires and you haven't fixed it yet (either).
And I thought I was a planning girl.... duh.... well, time to do laundry and unpacking since a vacation seems to lead to lots of those things to fix before home looks like 'normal'.
Yes, it was that sound a boat motor makes (my first point of reference when I tried to explain to a mechanic what had happened) when you pull the string (ok, so I never had a big boat) and it huffs and puffs but does not make the "connecting" sound... as when the motor actually starts...
No, my car didn't start. And I yet again was happy that I live within walking distance from work so I wasn't totally stranded. Well, I didn't walk to work this morning (making everyone happy at work since I wasn't too late, and the added joy of making a little bit of fun of little me) but rather walking home and enjoying the lovely sunset. Sure enough though, I missed my country from farfar away too soon... there I wouldn't have been eaten alive by vicious mosquitos and sweaty in the warm weather but it didn't rain or was a thunderstorm.
Now, I only hope that I can get my car fixed sort of soonish though, since even if I can walk to and from work - no car seriously diminishes my options on buying food, meeting with people and living my life... alas, it's not a disaster - but considering the US dollar value in the exchange rate I don't really look forward spending too much on repairs since my 'vacation' did end up being if not too pricy still fairly expensive ^^ ah well, perspective is a good thing right? I only need to remember that a car is not an option where I live - it's a needed thing to function - at least when your bike has two blown tires and you haven't fixed it yet (either).
And I thought I was a planning girl.... duh.... well, time to do laundry and unpacking since a vacation seems to lead to lots of those things to fix before home looks like 'normal'.
Thursday, September 08, 2011
things that happen in vegas...
...stay in Vegas... maybe the same in other places? (aka "across the ocean in far-away-country") :)
Random pieces from the last couple of days left me with a very interesting night mare the night to last. Not only involving lots of people I've met with but also fairly commonly known stressors as "not being dressed enough in public" and "babies screaming and creating panic" ... not to mention people being angry and upset with (dream)me. Very realistic to me, and I had to think about it for a second when I woke up - if it was real or not. All in all, a great relaxing night for my brain I'm sure.
Then there are those times where I feel oddly giggling. as when I left one friend from one of the poshest addresses in town in a cab to go to another friend in a not-so-posh (read "poor") part of town to pick up a bag and hang out a bit. Odd, yes. Both are really good friends of mine. But oh so different lives they live....
And the oddest questions yet; "...So, are you married, having a boy friend, single or?? And by the way, do you have any siblings?" It's not illegal in a work related interview, but not appropriate... but who am I to say?
Weather wise it's interesting; one day 85F and sunny, the other rain and 55F and windy.... and my jogging shoes are not good at keeping water out ^^
I'm looking forward to the football Sunday - I can watch it from the living room!! All in all, awesome times - if not a little tiresome with all meetings, networking and friends and family.... but oh so nice!
Random pieces from the last couple of days left me with a very interesting night mare the night to last. Not only involving lots of people I've met with but also fairly commonly known stressors as "not being dressed enough in public" and "babies screaming and creating panic" ... not to mention people being angry and upset with (dream)me. Very realistic to me, and I had to think about it for a second when I woke up - if it was real or not. All in all, a great relaxing night for my brain I'm sure.
Then there are those times where I feel oddly giggling. as when I left one friend from one of the poshest addresses in town in a cab to go to another friend in a not-so-posh (read "poor") part of town to pick up a bag and hang out a bit. Odd, yes. Both are really good friends of mine. But oh so different lives they live....
And the oddest questions yet; "...So, are you married, having a boy friend, single or?? And by the way, do you have any siblings?" It's not illegal in a work related interview, but not appropriate... but who am I to say?
Weather wise it's interesting; one day 85F and sunny, the other rain and 55F and windy.... and my jogging shoes are not good at keeping water out ^^
I'm looking forward to the football Sunday - I can watch it from the living room!! All in all, awesome times - if not a little tiresome with all meetings, networking and friends and family.... but oh so nice!
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