Saturday, June 30, 2012
Friday, June 29, 2012
The other day I stumbled across Rolling Stone's list "Women Who Rock: The 50 Greatest Albums of All Time". On a whim, I decided that I'm going to listen though the whole list. (Well, as much of it as I can access on Spotify, anyway.) I kicked off today with #50: Alanis Morissette's Jagged Little Pill. I don't think I've actually listened to this since college, when (confession) I pretty much had it memorised. In fact, freshman year I went on a road trip to Michigan to see Alanis in concert. Listening to these songs reminds me of who I was back then. They're very much of that time period, aren't they? I feel the need to put on some flannel...
Somebody Reddit says, "Please explain Obamacare to me like I'm a 5-year-old." And somebody did. I definitely remember reading through it (especially if you think you're against it). Also, I was really, really happy and proud to wake up and see the Supreme Court decision. I highly recommend that all the conservatives who are frothing at the mouth over this move to another Western democracy without universal health care. OH WAIT, THERE ISN'T ONE.
 Zucchini bread. Co-workers: you can thank me in the morning. Powered by Webstagram Thursday, June 28, 2012
Wednesday, June 27, 2012
This morning over breakfast I saw another post on Ravelry from a parent asking for paper topic ideas for their (high school aged) child. Seriously? It's great that she's involved in her kid's schoolwork, but I just find it mind-boggling that these people (and there have been a few) post on Internet forums asking for this stuff. I couldn't decide if I should be proud or indignant that my parents never went to such lengths to help me out with my homework. And then I read this article at lunch about how American kids are spoiled rotten and grow into "adultescents" who are incapable of taking care of themselves. Really? This actually happens? I think it's probably unfair to label it as an American issue; there are no doubt parents in Australia and other places who behave similarly. Nor do I think all US parents are like that; I know that Staci and Nat aren't raising their kids that way. Even with those caveats, the article rankles. WHO ARE THESE PEOPLE!? I was getting dressed and doing my own homework and, hell, washing the dishes when I was in grade school. If I'd demanded my parents to untie my shoes for me, they probably would've laughed in my face. I guess the old "It builds character" excuse for doing chores really is accurate. So thanks, Mom and Dad, for making me do the dishes and start the washing machine and rake the leaves in the yard and decide my own essay topics. I've grown into a more capable adult that most of the kids in the article will.
 Nathan had to be That Guy. The one who orients the 24" widescreen monitor vertically so he can see 200 lines of code at once. Powered by Webstagram
Tuesday, June 26, 2012
Monday, June 25, 2012
 Nearly forgot: this is the other vintage dress I got on the weekend. I like it! Powered by Webstagram Sunday, June 24, 2012
Saturday, June 23, 2012
 Contemplating a mountain of poutine. HELLZ YEAH. Powered by Webstagram
 What do you take to a classy 70's party? Rosé, of course! Powered by Webstagram
 Going to a 1970's themed party. I LOVE THIS DRESS. Powered by Webstagram
Friday, June 22, 2012
 Sometimes my job has perks, like getting to drive a brand new secret unreleased sports car. :) Powered by Webstagram
 My kitchen asploded in schmoopy tonight. Powered by Webstagram Thursday, June 21, 2012
 Rainbow lorikeets on our balcony today! Powered by Webstagram
Wednesday, June 20, 2012
 Sugar cookies are my damn Everest, I swear. These are okay, but a little too brown. Powered by Webstagram
Tuesday, June 19, 2012
 Spotted just now on a shelf in our office kitchen. Wait, what?! Powered by Webstagram
Monday, June 18, 2012
Sunday, June 17, 2012
 The Big Potato in Robertson is quite literally the crappiest Big Thing I've ever seen. Powered by Webstagram Saturday, June 16, 2012
 Mr Snook tries to ignore the giant wooden emu staring at his burger. Powered by Webstagram
Friday, June 15, 2012
Thursday, June 14, 2012
 Paper Dolls is off the needles! Now to slice it up the front and add some buttons...  Maple Brown Sugar Oatmeal Cookies for @konvict67 tomorrow... Powered by Webstagram
Wednesday, June 13, 2012
 The artist at work. (Okay, I now totally love the chalkboard wall.) Powered by Webstagram Tuesday, June 12, 2012
Monday, June 11, 2012
Sunday, June 10, 2012
 Did some embroidery tonight. Feeling like quite the Renaissance woman! Powered by Webstagram Saturday, June 9, 2012
 Ridiculously over-styled for a Knitters Guild meeting. I blame @1funkyknitwit . Powered by Webstagram
Friday, June 8, 2012
After he read my post about inspiring women in I.T., the Snook said to me, "You know, you forgot one." "Which one?" "Your MOM, you ding dong!" Oh good grief. I'm so sorry, Mom! He's totally, 100% right. I may not have known any card-carrying IBM computer programmers when I was growing up, but Mom was the reason we always had a computer in the house. I remember the first actual computer we got - an Atari 800XL that plugged into the television - and waiting for Mom to patiently type in hundreds of lines from a BASIC program in a computer magazine to create an animated picture. When we finally got a computer with a hard drive, Mom was the one who taught me the importance of parking the heads. Mom was the one who worked her way up from the factory floor at an RV manufacturer into a proper engineer and then into the I.T. department. Mom is the reason I can drop phrases like "AS400" and "green screens". Mom got me a summer job in college doing the website for the RV company, which put me on the path to the career I have now. Mom knows way more about tech support and hardware than I do, and sometimes she and Rodd geek out in a way that's even over my head. It's ridiculous that I could forget how influential she was. Where I am strident and political about women in I.T., Mom just quietly made herself a career doing stuff she enjoyed and took care of her family as best she could. And while YouTube videos and initiatives and mentoring programs are great, nothing beats having a supportive parent who encourages kids to pursue their interests. So thanks to my wonderful clever Mom for showing me the way! (And those of you with kids - you should do the same for yours!)
Wednesday, June 6, 2012
On Twitter recently I saw @tammybutow talking about a new project she's launched to highlight female role models in I.T. Tammy's project is affiliated with Go Girl, an I.T. career showcase for high school girls. Her idea is to collect photos of women with I.T. careers and compile them into a video to inspire the students. When I was in high school, I thought computer programmers were just guys in neckties who worked at IBM. I don't remember any girls in the Computer Club, and I certainly didn't join myself. I briefly considered a dual CS major in college but chickened out for fear I wasn't smart enough. I had no idea that one day I'd know lots of cool, smart, funky women who work in I.T. with jobs like "Programmer," "Game Designer," "User Experience Director," "Project Manager," and even "Business Systems Analyst." (That last one is actually ME!) So anyway, this is an issue I feel pretty strongly about. I don't want my nieces growing up to think that computers aren't something girls work with. So I gathered up all the women in the office yesterday morning and corralled them into a photograph. (There are actually more than five, but this is all I could round up on short notice.) I present to you the inspiring women of Sitback!  Full size version here. Thanks to Kunaal for the photograph! From left to right, that's Lindsey (Project Manager), Alison (Group Account Manager), me (Business Systems Analyst + GEEK!), Leanne (User Experience Director), and Elly (Producer). Woo! Go women of Sitback! Updated to add: I can't believe I forgot to mention the most inspiring woman in I.T. I know!
 I made a beautiful, tasty thing tonight. #ratatouille This is Smitten Kitchen's ratatouille, and it's a beautiful thing! Usually we just chunk everything up and throw in a pot, so spending the time to meticulously slice all the veg was an effort. I used a rather large eggplant (cut in two so the slices were half-moons), a big zucchini, and a big red capsicum. This version is also baked rather than cooked on the stove. The Snook was skeptical of all the work, but he was converted when I served it up. Oh! And I put some creamy goat's cheese on top, as the recipe suggests. PERFECTION. That just takes it right over the top... Powered by Webstagram
 Sad hipster at the bus stop on a cold rainy night. Powered by Webstagram
Tuesday, June 5, 2012
Monday, June 4, 2012
Friday, June 1, 2012
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archives
You can search through the archives by post keyword using the form on the left, or you can browse by month using the links at the bottom.
"Moblog" refers to posts and images posted directly from my mobile phone.
"PW Blog" refers to posts recovered from my very first weblog, which dealt with news related to my college dorm. |
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