doctoral candidate in rhetoric and scientific and technical communication
Archive for April, 2003
Wednesday April 2, 2003
0Today’s blog is just going to be some fun stuff….
Some of this was totally me (the rainbow shirt and roller skates, for sure!). 
Comments in the parentheses are mine. *chuckle*
YOU WERE A LITTLE GIRL IN THE 70′S IF…..
you wore that rainbow shirt that was half-sleeves, the rainbow went up one sleeve, across your chest, and down the other. (I wonder where I could get one of these!!!) 
you made baby chocolate cakes in your Easy Bake Oven. You washed them down with snow cones from your Snoopy Snow Cone Machine. (I wasn’t really a domestic kind of girl back then.)
you had that Fisher Price Doctor’s Kit with a stethoscope that actually worked. (Nope, but I had a chemistry set that I LOVED!)
you owned a bicycle with a banana seat and a basket. (Well, yeah…of course!)
you even owned roller skates with metal wheels. (And a skate key…remember those???)
you thought Gopher from Love Boat was cute.(Ewwww!)
you had nightmares after watching Fantasy Island. (Oh, gosh, no…I had nightmares after Flash Gordon!)
you had rubber boots for rainy/snowy days – remember Moon Boots(you then advanced to Duck Shoes in the 80s)? (Moon Boots…ahhh…those were the days. )
you had either a “bowl cut” or a “pixie”, not to mention the “Dorothy Hamill” because your mom was sick of braiding your hair. How traumatic when people thought you were a boy. (I always had long hair.)
your Holly Hobbie sleeping bag was your most prized possession. (Nope, I had a regular sleeping bag…we lived in Montana and I needed something GOOD.)
you wore a poncho, gauchos, and knickers. (Oh, man…I loved gauchos!!!)
you begged Santa for the electronic game, Simon. (Simon was COOL.)
you had the Donnie and Marie dolls with those pink and purple shredded outfits. (Eww…I had the Sunshine Family. Pulease!)
you spent hours out back on your metal swing set with the trapeze. (Heh…those were the days!)
you had homemade ribbon barrettes in every imaginable color. (I don’t remember this…maybe I did…)
you even had a pair of Doctor Scholl’s sandals (the ones with hard sole & the buckle). (Those things hurt, didn’t they???)
you wanted to be Laura Ingalls Wilder really bad; you wore that Little House on the Prairie-inspired plaid, ruffle shirt with the highneck in at least one school picture; and you despised Nellie Olson! (I didn’t want to be her…except as a writer.)
you wanted your first kiss to be at the roller rink. (Hmmmm…maybe it was. 
)
your hairstyle was described as having “wings” and you kept it “pretty” with the comb you kept in your back pocket. (Oh, yeah…those long-handled combs.)
you know who Strawberry Shortcake is, as well as her friends, Blueberry Muffin and Huckleberry Pie. (Is this a bad thing???)
you carried a Muppets lunch box to school. (Nope…Muppets weren’t my thing.)
you and your girlfriends would fight over which of the Dukes of Hazzard was your boyfriend.
(Well…I just wanted to look like Daisy. *snort*)
YOU had Star Wars action figures, too. (Back when Star Wars was IT.)
it was a big event in your household each year when the “Wizard of Oz” would come on TV. Your mom would break out the popcorn and sleeping bags! (*laughing* It always came on after the Walk-a-Thon and we’d crash watching it…)
you even asked your Magic-8 Ball the question: “Who will I marry…Shawn Cassidy, Leif Garrett, or Rick Springfield?” (This one is for VelvetGlove!!! )
you completely wore out your Grease, Saturday Night Fever, and Fame soundtrack albums. (Oh, yeah…Saturday Night Fever – I loved the Bee Gees – did I just write that down???)
you made Shrinky-Dinks! (Nope…but I always wanted to!)
you used to tape record songs off the radio by holding your portable tape recorder up to the speaker. (And here I thought I was innovative! )
you couldn’t wait to get the free animal poster that came when you ordered books from the Weekly Reader book club. (*laughing* I loved those things!)
you learned everything you needed to know about girl issues from Judy Blume books (Are you there God? It’s me, Margaret.) (Well, I did like those books but my mom was pretty explanatory, also.)
you thought Olivia Newton John’s song, “Physical” was about aerobics. (It wasn’t???)
you wore friendship pins on your tennis shoes, or shoelaces with heart or rainbow designs. (I remember them but I was too much of a tomboy to wear them.)
you wanted to be a Solid Gold dancer. (Ewwww, yuck.)
you had a Big Wheel with a brake on the side, and a Sit-n-Spin. (Well, yeah…who didn’t???)
you had subscriptions to Dynamite and Tiger Beat. (Nope, but I read them at other people’s houses).
And you?
fun stuff
0Today’s blog is just going to be some fun stuff….
Some of this was totally me (the rainbow shirt and roller skates, for sure!). Comments in the parentheses are mine. *chuckle*
YOU WERE A LITTLE GIRL IN THE 70′S IF…..
you wore that rainbow shirt that was half-sleeves, the rainbow went up one sleeve, across your chest, and down the other. (I wonder where I could get one of these!!!)
you made baby chocolate cakes in your Easy Bake Oven. You washed them down with snow cones from your Snoopy Snow Cone Machine. (I wasn’t really a domestic kind of girl back then.)
you had that Fisher Price Doctor’s Kit with a stethoscope that actually worked. (Nope, but I had a chemistry set that I LOVED!)
you owned a bicycle with a banana seat and a basket. (Well, yeah…of course!)
you even owned roller skates with metal wheels. (And a skate key…remember those???)
you thought Gopher from Love Boat was cute.(Ewwww!)
you had nightmares after watching Fantasy Island. (Oh, gosh, no…I had nightmares after Flash Gordon!)
you had rubber boots for rainy/snowy days – remember Moon Boots(you then advanced to Duck Shoes in the 80s)? (Moon Boots…ahhh…those were the days. )
you had either a “bowl cut” or a “pixie”, not to mention the “Dorothy Hamill” because your mom was sick of braiding your hair. How traumatic when people thought you were a boy. (I always had long hair.)
your Holly Hobbie sleeping bag was your most prized possession. (Nope, I had a regular sleeping bag…we lived in Montana and I needed something GOOD.)
you wore a poncho, gauchos, and knickers. (Oh, man…I loved gauchos!!!)
you begged Santa for the electronic game, Simon. (Simon was COOL.)
you had the Donnie and Marie dolls with those pink and purple shredded outfits. (Eww…I had the Sunshine Family. Pulease!)
you spent hours out back on your metal swing set with the trapeze. (Heh…those were the days!)
you had homemade ribbon barrettes in every imaginable color. (I don’t remember this…maybe I did…)
you even had a pair of Doctor Scholl’s sandals (the ones with hard sole & the buckle). (Those things hurt, didn’t they???)
you wanted to be Laura Ingalls Wilder really bad; you wore that Little House on the Prairie-inspired plaid, ruffle shirt with the highneck in at least one school picture; and you despised Nellie Olson! (I didn’t want to be her…except as a writer.)
you wanted your first kiss to be at the roller rink. (Hmmmm…maybe it was. )
your hairstyle was described as having “wings” and you kept it “pretty” with the comb you kept in your back pocket. (Oh, yeah…those long-handled combs.)
you know who Strawberry Shortcake is, as well as her friends, Blueberry Muffin and Huckleberry Pie. (Is this a bad thing???)
you carried a Muppets lunch box to school. (Nope…Muppets weren’t my thing.)
you and your girlfriends would fight over which of the Dukes of Hazzard was your boyfriend.
(Well…I just wanted to look like Daisy. *snort*)
YOU had Star Wars action figures, too. (Back when Star Wars was IT.)
it was a big event in your household each year when the “Wizard of Oz” would come on TV. Your mom would break out the popcorn and sleeping bags! (*laughing* It always came on after the Walk-a-Thon and we’d crash watching it…)
you even asked your Magic-8 Ball the question: “Who will I marry…Shawn Cassidy, Leif Garrett, or Rick Springfield?” (This one is for VelvetGlove!!! )
you completely wore out your Grease, Saturday Night Fever, and Fame soundtrack albums. (Oh, yeah…Saturday Night Fever – I loved the Bee Gees – did I just write that down???)
you made Shrinky-Dinks! (Nope…but I always wanted to!)
you used to tape record songs off the radio by holding your portable tape recorder up to the speaker. (And here I thought I was innovative! )
you couldn’t wait to get the free animal poster that came when you ordered books from the Weekly Reader book club. (*laughing* I loved those things!)
you learned everything you needed to know about girl issues from Judy Blume books (Are you there God? It’s me, Margaret.) (Well, I did like those books but my mom was pretty explanatory, also.)
you thought Olivia Newton John’s song, “Physical” was about aerobics. (It wasn’t???)
you wore friendship pins on your tennis shoes, or shoelaces with heart or rainbow designs. (I remember them but I was too much of a tomboy to wear them.)
you wanted to be a Solid Gold dancer. (Ewwww, yuck.)
you had a Big Wheel with a brake on the side, and a Sit-n-Spin. (Well, yeah…who didn’t???)
you had subscriptions to Dynamite and Tiger Beat. (Nope, but I read them at other people’s houses).
And you?
Tuesday April 1, 2003
0“Character is like a tree and reputation like its shadow. The shadow is what we think of it; the tree is the real thing.”
Abraham Lincoln
This quote speaks volumes to me today. There is an incident that occurred recently that makes me realize how true this is.
I work in the Human Resources department of a small college. While I’m the technical person in this department, there is still a bit of protocol that I must follow as an HR employee. Privacy and discretion are a must. People will come to us and share very personal things that can’t go any further. Even with me, they will share things because they need to talk to someone and I’m in HR.
One of my co-workers has long been someone that I’ve realized didn’t know how to be discrete. She would learn something and she would run to her closest friend and share that information. What was even worse is that she was the benefits coordinator so she knew if someone was sick, was seeking counseling, or any numerous personal issues. It was apparent to a few people that she would spread gossip around about fellow employees but you could never quite prove it. She always said it wasn’t her and our past supervisor believed her each time (and there were numerous accusations).
About 6 months ago, we got a new supervisor. The new director of HR is tough. She is good at what she does but she doesn’t put up with a lot of crap. She is fair and just but will not allow her employees to stand around gossiping or talking when it’s not appropriate.
What happened subsequently was a huge fall out. The aforementioned employee claimed that our new boss was cruel, abusive, and aggressive. She brought her up on charges. She demanded a formal investigation. All of us (well, there are only 4 of us in this department) were called in to make statements. When her complaints didn’t go anywhere and even the college attorneys determined that this situation was a personal vendetta and not a real complaint, things were dropped. This employee, however, would not drop it. She had convinced herself that she was right. She went into the president of the school and said that the current director should be removed from her position…or she would quit. It’s silly in retrospect but I wish she could have heard herself. Our boss had been aquitted of all charges and the employee had then been labeled as a trouble-maker. Her pursuing of this to the president didn’t help.
She ended up giving two days notice and left last Friday. She had a party to celebrate her leaving and I guess she really slammed all of us at that party.
I feel badly for her. She just didn’t get it. She didn’t understand that she was the one making the waves, causing trouble. It was almost as if a weight was lifted off of us and yesterday was a really good day. We all breathed a bit more easily.
Her reputation was a good one. People trusted her. Her character, however, didn’t support her reputation and that came out in the end.
character
0“Character is like a tree and reputation like its shadow. The shadow is what we think of it; the tree is the real thing.”
Abraham Lincoln
This quote speaks volumes to me today. There is an incident that occurred recently that makes me realize how true this is.
I work in the Human Resources department of a small college. While I’m the technical person in this department, there is still a bit of protocol that I must follow as an HR employee. Privacy and discretion are a must. People will come to us and share very personal things that can’t go any further. Even with me, they will share things because they need to talk to someone and I’m in HR.
One of my co-workers has long been someone that I’ve realized didn’t know how to be discrete. She would learn something and she would run to her closest friend and share that information. What was even worse is that she was the benefits coordinator so she knew if someone was sick, was seeking counseling, or any numerous personal issues. It was apparent to a few people that she would spread gossip around about fellow employees but you could never quite prove it. She always said it wasn’t her and our past supervisor believed her each time (and there were numerous accusations).
About 6 months ago, we got a new supervisor. The new director of HR is tough. She is good at what she does but she doesn’t put up with a lot of crap. She is fair and just but will not allow her employees to stand around gossiping or talking when it’s not appropriate.
What happened subsequently was a huge fall out. The aforementioned employee claimed that our new boss was cruel, abusive, and aggressive. She brought her up on charges. She demanded a formal investigation. All of us (well, there are only 4 of us in this department) were called in to make statements. When her complaints didn’t go anywhere and even the college attorneys determined that this situation was a personal vendetta and not a real complaint, things were dropped. This employee, however, would not drop it. She had convinced herself that she was right. She went into the president of the school and said that the current director should be removed from her position…or she would quit. It’s silly in retrospect but I wish she could have heard herself. Our boss had been aquitted of all charges and the employee had then been labeled as a trouble-maker. Her pursuing of this to the president didn’t help.
She ended up giving two days notice and left last Friday. She had a party to celebrate her leaving and I guess she really slammed all of us at that party.
I feel badly for her. She just didn’t get it. She didn’t understand that she was the one making the waves, causing trouble. It was almost as if a weight was lifted off of us and yesterday was a really good day. We all breathed a bit more easily.
Her reputation was a good one. People trusted her. Her character, however, didn’t support her reputation and that came out in the end.