Cup of Coffee

January 14, 2013: The Grind

58 Comments

Back to it after three days off that felt way too quick. That's always the way, but something about it made it seem faster than usual.

I'm also coming to terms with the fact that I desperately want out of retail, so I can do something that matters, or at least not be owned by a major corporation. If this really ends up being my career, I'm going to completely hate myself by the time I retire.

58 thoughts on “January 14, 2013: The Grind”

  1. If this really ends up being my career, I'm going to completely hate myself by the time I retire.

    spooky, in all seriousness, do not allow that to happen. I know a person has to make a living, and I'm not suggesting you quit today, but do not allow that to happen. You have too much intelligence and ability to get trapped that way, and life is far too short to spend it doing something you don't like.

    1. This. Secondy-second to everything Jeff wrote.

      Obviously we're on different career paths and such, but let me say that this community has been simply amazing as I've struggled with my current employer, and as I'm searching for something different. There's more lawyers than actors around here, but folks have been sending me all sorts of leads and such, and I love 'em for it. If you need anything on this, I'd love to be whatever kind of a resource I can be.

      And I wasn't kidding about that TNG idea I sent you and Beau...

        2. I still can't believe I made a TNG joke in Survivor and no one got it. I love obscurity!!!!

  2. I see Brian Dozier is going out on the Twins Winter Caravan. I don't want to make too much of that, but at the same time, I assume they would not send him out on the Winter Caravan if they expected him to spend the season in Rochester.

      1. Dozier, who had been drafted by baseball's Detroit Tigers after high school, had decided early in his football career to chase his baseball dream during the off seasons.

        He signed as an amateur free agent with the New York Mets in 1990, played in his hometown for the Tidewater Tides and made it to the majors for 25 games in 1992.

        Later, Dozier was traded to the San Diego Padres and then to the St. Louis Cardinals. He never played in the majors for either team, retiring in 1994 from both sports to spend a pair of seasons coaching at Rock Academy in Virginia Beach before joining a ministry out of Orlando, Fla.

  3. Interesting music discussion happened yesterday on They Might Be Giants' Facebook page; John Flansburgh was wondering if Alan White's playing on "Instant Karma!" was the first appearance of the "glam beat" ("bomb-ba-kuh-ka"). After some heavy discussion, Norman Greenbaum's "Spirit in the Sky" was mentioned, but dismissed as not quite. Eventually, it was decided that it was U.K. Jones "Let Me Tell Ya" that was earliest.

    Incidentally, it was suggested that it may have originated much earlier used as a backdrop for this kind of activity.

  4. Happiness can be found in the most unlikely of places. I hope, spooky, that you do get your big break. But, if you don't, you don't. Sure, you may want to change your job and even if the big break doesn't come, maybe a more satisfying career will. But, even if that doesn't happen, work is not everything.

      1. This is part of what got me thinking about leaving. I love making beer. I love that I'm right now watching my Cynic as it conditions in my carboy.

        Also, this three-day weekend where the Milkmaid and I attended indie theater, one-location restaurants with actual style and a farmer's market full of uniqueness really got my mind moving in this direction. The thought of going back to a non-challenging job where I answer the "What's the difference between LED and LCD?" question about fifteen times a day just seemed like too much to bear. I don't dislike my job, but I dislike that I'm doing something that most people can be trained to do, even though I do it very well.

        I have a meeting coming up that could end up changing my life (it was supposed to be today, but that isn't going to work), but I don't want all my eggs to be in that basket. I want out of what I'm doing and into something that makes me feel like I'm doing something that not just anyone can learn to do.

  5. the Timberwolves season went from 'hey, this team is kind of exciting' to 'I wish Mark Madsen was jacking up 3's to add some excitement ' pretty damned quick.

    1. Yeah, I didn't even realize there was a game last night. I just hope that Kevin Love doesn't get all whiny about missing the playoffs again and trashes everyone because of it because I worry it would put me firmly in the "Trade Kevin Love" camp.

      1. there is a game tonight too!

        Injuries (obviously) is a huge part of the storyline this season. But this past week, its been unwatchable basketball. Who knew that players would get gassed because of a 7 man rotation.

        Also, a 50% healthy Kevin Love still makes this team competitive.

      2. I just hope that Kevin Love doesn't get all whiny about missing the playoffs again and trashes everyone because of it because I worry it would put me firmly in the "Trade Kevin Love" camp.

        You and me both. I just hope they don't do something idiotic re: Pek in the offseason, and I hope they can keep AK and Buddinger.

        1. AK has a player option. So its sort of out of team hands if he is back (could he make more money becoming a free agent?)

        2. I think I said early on that Bud was the biggest signing of the off-season. (Though I think that, long term, Shved was bigger.) If Bud is healthy all year, the Wolves have more wins than losses since their biggest problem is crappy shooting. I'm hoping he can come back in March, gel instantly with Rubio and Shved and think how awesome playing with those guys would be over a full season and signs for a three year contract.

    1. Context here is key. If said money recipient gave me a delicious beer or a rare trinket in return for those five dollars, that might be notable enough to post on Facebook.

        1. and that way too many people take BookFace either far too seriously or far too un-seriously.

  7. Gophers now ninth in AP poll, but move up to tied for third in RPI with Arizona. Gophers currently have the third toughest schedule in the country. Miami (Fla.) is first and Duke is second.

      2. Great post.

        Up in ManchVegas today - 55F and sunny outside - IM'd the wife that the weather was absolutely wonderful.

      3. I have become such a wuss when it comes to cold. We keep our house at 69 during the day, and I still have to wear a hoodie jacket over a sweater or sweatshirt and either an extra pair of socks or I just keep my shoes on. Ever since I moved here, one of my favorite ways to entertain natives is to tell horror stories of Minnesota winters.

    1. Of the top 49 all-time in YPP, 18 are in the HOF, and 9 are still active. The top ranking retired QBs in YPP not in the HOF include
      Kurt Warner (6-tied),
      Ed Brown (6th-tied, played for the Bears and Steelers in the 1950s and early 1960s and made two Pro Bowls);
      Bob Berry (11-tied, Vikings and Falcons; really only started for 3 seasons);
      Earl Morrall (16th-tied, 6 teams, including two Super Bowls, won an MVP in 1968 when he took the Colts to the SB loss against the Jets; 2-time All-Pro 1st team);
      Trent Green (20th-tied);
      and
      Daunte Culpepper (20th-tied).

      Those rankings may not impress you all that much. How about Net YPP ((passing yards-yards lost on sacks)/(pass attempts - sacks))?

      Of the top 51 all-time, only 10 are in the HOF. 16 are active. The top-ranked retired QBs include Kurt Warner (3rd-tied), Trent Green (14th-tied), John Brodie (17th), Mark Rypien (18th), Steve Grogan (20th), Daryle Lamonica (22nd), Boomer Esiason (25th-tied) and Daunte Culpepper (25th-tied).

      Some of those guys (Warner) will be in the HOF soon; some probably deserve to be (Brodie, Lamonica, Morrall). Others, not so much.

      1. Since Herschel wasn't half the back that AP is, I say 16 picks, Murray, and about five other dudes. Unsure if that should include Tony Romo.

          1. fwiw, Alex Smith ranks 152nd on the all-time list for career net yards per pass attempt. Mark Sanchez is 134th. TRADE AP TO THE JETSSSSS!!!!

  11. I was rejected from yet another 'slam dunk' job today. I say 'slam dunk' because that's what the dude who told me to apply said when I asked if they would actually hire me. At this point the crushing defeat is almost too much to bear. I'm rethinking my goals and aspirations, but I don't have a clue what to do next. I know for an almost certainty that I'll never be able to teach at the college level. I've done everything I can, and now Iam faced with the reality of my choices. Bills, both for services rendered and psychological in nature, are coming due in short order. I've given this a good run, and now it's time to find something else to do with my life.

      1. Yeah, funny (and even more soul crushing) story about the JuCo and them essentially asking me to work for free.

        1. that's pretty awesome.

          So, I guess you will just have to be a Kept Man who makes art in his basement and someday gets discovered accidentally and becomes a NOLA icon. Hopefully not waiting until posthumous discovery.

        2. I wish I could say that surprised me. At all.

          This really sucks, meat, and like bS, I wish I had more words that might be of some consolation. I also wish to hell we valued art more than D-list celebrity in this country.

    2. Sorry to hear this meat. The academic search process is frustrating even when it goes well. Hope you can bounce back from this and find something that fulfills you.

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