Tue Aug 31:
I started work so early today that I was done my eight just before noon. I went back to bed to sleep but nope. No rest of the tired. I been sleeping even less this last week than usual – maybe two hours a night if Iâm lucky. Iâm getting just enough sleep to not go insane and ha-loose-en-ate to death.
Iâve been experimenting with other media – today I used graphite and I love it. Still have to try charcoal and pastel.
I really want to pick up Japanese again but I feel like it might set me back with French, even though they are very different languages – so they are perfect for learning together, but I donât want to mess with my French deadline – once I get to intermediate French I will start with Japanese again.
Today I learned that you only say bonne nuit just before going to bed.
A bientĂŽt!
Mon Aug 30:
Today I cried and I didnât even consult the stupid emotion wheel to know whatâs happening. I cry once or twice a year about work related stuff, thatâs not so bad right?
It is better to have cried and go back to bed for a few minutes – 15 min tops – than to never have cried at all. Iâd rather cry about work stuff than personal stuff. The older I get the more I realize there are lots of things about people I still donât get. I. DONâT. GET. PEOPLE. đ
Sometimes I wonder if everyone thinks Iâm stupid. I am doing my best to NOT let one incident dictate how I feel about everything else – I hate how itâs all or nothing for me – it takes more energy for me to think in tones than in vivid colours – my palette is fucked! uuuuuuuuup! But itâs more fun to think vividly.
I told the LinkedIn recruiter lady that I wasnât looking to make a move right now and she thanked me for responding đ ⊠Then I saw another inmail for senior pm role. Really bitch! The act of project managing I am over – I do it because I must, but I donât consider myself a project manager anymore. I want to move into portfolio management and more strategy stuff.
Still have to decide which poems to convert to French for reading to my instructor – I might do two – one serious and one fun.
Had a dream that I was a political activist slash unisex addict and in preparation for my conference I was handing out tiny books that came in a purple silicone sleeve called Man Jungle or Jungle Man.
I signed up for more information on this MIT online course – the guy called me to chat but I havenât read the program brochure yet. Maybe this data science/machine learning stuff will take me in a whole new direction ⊠Iâm open, but still exploring.
Sun Aug 29:
The desire to conquer, I do not understand.
If you could only drink one juice for the rest of your life, what juice would it be? Mine would be pineapple.
I wish theyâd stop showing people holding other peoples heads in toilets – porcelain throne torture. It is not possible for someoneâs entire face and head to be covered in toilet water. The water doesnât come up that high. Ugh! So annoying!!! You cannot drown anybody in a toilet. If you donât believe me, try it for yourself.
My poem slowly coming along it is. Last week I read that famous poets were thirty times more likely than the rest of the population to have some form of manic-depressive type mental issues ⊠Well what do you know, I can be a famous poet!
I am going to create my own still life from stuff in the apartment because I spend a lot of time looking for something to draw.
Is Monday still Monday if you say it in French? Lundi! Hmmm âŠ. I donât think it is.
Sat Aug 28:
All my Netflix previews/trailers are maintenant en français.
Fun w/ French: Ătes-vous mĂ©decin? Non. Je suis un cheval.
Itâs fun to watch the loaches. They mange beaucoup et they chase each other and the other fish all over the tank. I now know how to say one of my all time favourite words in français – merde! đđđ Merci Ă The Old Ways.
Merde! Merde! Merde!
Fri Aug 27:
Bite me! Bite me! Bite me! Bite me! Bite me! Candyman was just ok. A six point five out of ten. The part that bugged me was minor.
Spoiler alert ⊠Dude gets stung by a bee and his hand keeps getting grosser and grosser and nobody says anything. Really! That could have been just a few words added to the script and I would have felt better ⊠âBabe! That arm appears to be putrefying. Please get it checked out.â
Maybe he doesnât go cause he doesnât have insurance or maybe itâs cause he thinks itâs not serious, but at least it gets addressed. Simple as that, and I would have given it an eight. UGH ⊠and itâs still annoying!
Movie theatre popcorn hurts my estomac. My first theatre movie post COVID. It was supposed to be Donât Breathe 2.
Dré introduced me to Korean version of manga. Anytime he sees something that will give me ideas and examples he send them to me. Thank you Pookie!
A few words for a poem popped into my head while showering – I go write.
Thu Aug 26:
Snap to grid bitch. SNAP TO THE MUTHAFUCKIN’ GRID!!!
What am I doing with my life? What’s the point of sleeping if I still feel like crap when I wake up? Why are gamers so flippin’ loud?
Do you know all the things you do that may drain your energy? Do less of that and more of what charges you up!
Breaking News! DrĂ© has recognized his laziness. What is he going to do about it? Nothing! His Manscape 3.0 finally showed up. “Mom! I’ve ascended to a new level of manhood.”
I am done rearranging charts in Excel for now and I will be taking tomorrow afternoon off cause it’s Candyman Day – I’m gonna sleep from 1:00 pm to 4:00 pm, wake up feeling wonderful and then watch my movie and eat popcorn. The simple life. Glowbee is growing like a weed – she wanted to eat a car for lunch! My boss must be starving the poor child. lol.
Breaking News Too! Did I tell you that I have THREE different textures of hair on my ONE head? It is more noticeable now because it’s chemical free. How does that even happen?
Yo! I really had to force myself to draw today … AND I used graphite with the blending pencil thing. I think my sketch pencil is too hard or I’m pressing too hard.
Jer’s nickname for me: Sapantha đ
Wed Aug 25:
I bought my first original movie poster … Black Panther đ Should be able to pick it up sometime this week. đ¶ Spider-Man, Spider-Man. Friendly neighborhood Spider-Man. Spins a web, any size, catches thieves just like flies, look out, here comes the Spider-Man. Is he strong? Listen up, he’s got radioactive blood. Can he swing from a thread? Take a look overhead. Hey there. There goes the Spider-Man. đ¶
Roadmap session two went well BUT I feel I could have done better … Don’t you hate it when you fail to explain yourself properly to people (concise and succinct) AND when you fail to understand what people are trying to say? It happens to me all the time and I feel like I failed somehow, and I dwell – thinking about what I could have said and what they may have meant. smh. AND I think I repeat myself too much. The less sleep I get the harder it is for me to communicate. I should have a job where I interact with no-one ever. Let’s talk about something fun yeah!
If you could have a disease for a pet, what disease would you choose? I have two in mind … wish I could draw them for you. One day perhaps. The first would be heart disease and the second ebola (cause I like how it sounds). Heart disease would be a snake/jellyfish type creature named CardiA (short for cardiac arrest) and ebola would be a horse/dragon/dog/bat named I don’t know yet. Sic em boy! Sic em! DrĂ© said he would like herpes and AIDS. I don’t know what made me think of that question but there it is.
I had my French lesson today đ – homework: books I love to read, translate one of my poems to French (maybe two, cause it will be hard for me to pick – and then they won’t rhyme the same in français đ but it could also sound better too. Got some new artist to listen to AND I got a French poem to read and translate. For books I think I will start from when I was a kid with Highlights magazine and Tintin and Sherlock Holmes and Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys and Choose Your Own Adventure books. Then as a teen I read lots of erotic fiction and horror (the two go well together). Stephen King and Dean Koontz. I think I told you about the time my mom found my erotic fiction stash. Now I read lots of business books, pretty much anything non-fiction and fables/fairy tales from different countries.
Fun w/ French: Le chien est dans la valise. C’est mort!
I learned “valise” and “voiture” in Duolingo today. And I feel like I’m getting the hang of this masculine/feminine thing, but I’m not gonna make a big deal about it either way.
Do fewer things, but do them better. Business owners, managers, employees and students can become overwhelmed, distracted and frustrated by trying to do too many things well. When having difficulty maintaining quality standards, achieving desired outcomes, meeting schedule and cost targets, or getting others to prioritize and perform well, try reducing the number of things being attempted, and focus on doing those fewer things better.
There are important tasks that must be done promptly, unimportant tasks that must be done promptly, important tasks with no particular rush, and unimportant tasks with no particular rush; and sometimes there are things that seem crucial but may not need doing at all.
Thing # 85 of 101 Things I Learned In Business School
It’s 7:23 pm, I didn’t nap today. Hai! – I go draw.
Tue Aug 24:
Bonjour Mademoiselle! I think I am confusing Google with my French and English and sometimes Japanese. I started seeing YouTube commercials in French again and I went to Amazon.ca and it was in French. lol. I tried to do what I needed to do in my third language but had to translate the page to complete my orders.
About yesterday … I reserved a 9′ cube van to get my stuff outta storage. For some reason I started the reservation at 11:00 am, which, in hindsight made no sense cause, my meeting started at 11. We get to U-Haul and the guy points out the truck I’m gonna be renting, (dude was wearing this super cute Black Panther mask – said his friend made it for him.) Right after dude shows me the truck, DrĂ© says, “Mom are you sure that’s big enough?”
“Yeah no problem.” I say, flicking his concern to the wind with one swipe of my hand. “There was lots of space left in the last truck, we don’t need one so big.” Well what do you know. by the time we’re ready to put the double box spring into the van, I look ahead to my right and say, “Shit! I don’t think it’s gonna fit!” We put the box spring down, DrĂ© turns to survey the van, then staring at me, he tilts his head to the side,
“What was that? We don’t need a bigger truck? What?”
We ended up having to make two trips, returning for the box spring and mattress. After the drop off, DrĂ© and I went to Best Buy because the bezel is coming apart from the cover on Matt’s laptop AND the keyboard stopped working on DrĂ©’s … I bought him a new laptop and sent Matt’s out for repair. I let both of them know that, unless these machines die naturally of old age, I am not replacing/repairing them. (like how the fuck do you “spill” egg on your keyboard?) Next, the three of us met at Ikea, because Matt’s been bugging me for a dresser, and the van only has two seats.
Finally, I went to Big Al’s to get more fish – I am now the proud owner of six cobra guppies, four red honey gourami and three weather loaches, they’re so cute, like baby tigers. They remind me of DJ but he was golden, these guys are brown with black spots.
Today I am doing creative spreadsheet work all day đ Yesterday a recruiter contacted me on LinkedIn and I was surprised because I am not looking new opportunity – she just gave me a teaser, it’s a PMO director type role but, I like where I am, especially cause I don’t do just one thing, I get to float and learn and have fun – I don’t ever want to do just one job at work – I couldn’t do that at a large company, (I like working for young companies) then the deciding factor was, having 12 direct reports – Maybe I need to rethink what it means to be a manager, but it really doesn’t appeal to me. I just want to do my work and not have to worry about other people and their problems in that way. Being a manager of people is a humongous responsibility; it is not a frivlious undertaking. Maybe I shouldn’t look at it as being a parent but I do.
Risk seeks its own level. Risk homeostasis theory says that people have an innate sense of the level of risk they consider acceptable in a given activity. When the activity is made safer, they behave more recklessly, at least partly nullifying the safety gains. A study at the University of Bath, found that drivers drove measurably closer to bicyclists who were wearing helmets than those without. Another study found that Munich taxicab drivers of vehicles with antilock brakes took corners faster and left shorter reaction zones than drivers of cabs with conventional brakes. The two groups ultimately had the same crash rate.
Risk appetite is the willingness or desire to take risk. Risk tolerance is the ability to manage the downside of a risk.
Thing # 88 of 101 Things I Learned in Business School
A new Black Panther movie is slated for 2022. đ
It’s so hot! Again x Again!
Mon Aug 23:
J’aime lundi.
đ¶ Oh, my, my, my. I’m feeling high. My money’s gone. I’m all alone. Too much to see. The world keeps turnin’… Peace and blessings manifest with every lesson learned. If your knowledge were your wealth then it would be well-earned … Oh, what a day. What a day, what a day. đ¶
I left home at 12:30 pm, got home at 9:30 pm and jumped in the shower – I didn’t take off my clothes, shoes, glasses, nothin’ – my Charlie Brown Vans are clean. đ We will discuss my moving day adventure tomorrow. I’m glad it’s over. Have some adjustments to make to the exec dash but I think it was well received. Yay me!!! I did that shit from scratch all by myself (with help from YouTube Ladies) and it looks hella pretty. đ
I am happy, smelling yummy and tired AF.
Bonne nuit!
Sun Aug 22:
C’est dimanche!
I cannot wait to watch Snake Eyes (2021) – I bought the movie today but it is deux heure long. An origin movie about a ninja badass, how timely! I learned two new words from Lucifer today , ‘Comment ça.” and “D’accord.” đ … Lupin is so good!!! Thank God for moving pictures, otherwise I’d be totally lost. Sometimes, I hear words I know but I can’t remember what they mean and sometimes the dialogue is so fast I can’t keep up. Can you imagine watching a movie in slow motion so you can follow the conversation? lol.
Do you have a readlist? I didn’t dance today đ At this very moment, I really don’t want to move anything out of storage tomorrow. I also don’t want to have to pay for another month … so. I should have hired someone to teleport my stuff. Once at storage, I plan to only bring back stuff I need, everything else is give away or garbage. I also have to take the BBQ and the bike over to Dee’s place.
If you only had cinq minutes to pack some stuff and leave your domicile forever, what would you take? As much as I love paper books, I might stop buying them and stick to Kindle. I can rent books from Amazon via Kindle @ 15$ a month. Not all books are available and you can only take out 15 at a time – most of my rented books right now are on art and drawing. I am excited for releasing the exec dash into the wild, I’ve already gotten some meaningful feedback, I am looking forward to how it will mature đ
I decided I’d teach the boys how to use OKRs. They write down their goals but they don’t have enough details and no dates to follow-through. AndrĂ©’s post-it goals that I helped him with earlier this year are still on the wall; he’s done nothing in furtherance of them. He was up all night playing some video game cause he wanted to get the flaming sword of some shit. Since Friday he asked me if I could help him with his resume, he asked me again yesterday, but acquiring the flaming shit sword was more important and I am over chasing, reminding, etc. That’s on you!
Matt wants to work at McDonalds, I helped him with his resume and cover letter last week. He insisted on writing a cover letter.
Substitutes are competitors. When evaluating competitors, consider indirect competition as carefully as direct competition. Competition from substitutes can occur at many levels, including product, ingredient, service and convenience. Plastic, for example, is a common product or ingredient substitute for metal, glass and ceramics and thereby competes with them. Grocery stores providing take-away food are convenience substitutes for traditional fast food restaurants. Even a clothesline is a substitute competitor for a clothes dryer.
Thing # 64 of 101 Things I Learned in Business School
So far I haven’t come across Porter’s Five Forces – they’re talking about it, like in thing # 64 but they haven’t mentioned it outright – But I’m not done with the book yet.
I am grateful for my ability to follow through! Merci! Merci!
This Friday Matt and I are gonna see Candyman (2021) – mmmm movie theatre popcorn.
Salut!
Sat Aug 21:
⊠and just like that (snap), itâs almost Septembert. I am going to give every month a person name.
Since I took yesterday off, I had to spend two hours and fifteen minutes working. I updated the spreadsheet, added another chart and icon – I kinda wanna add more but not sure – I will look at it again tomorrow.
Couldnât do any storage moving today ⊠no trucks!!! Well, specifically cargo vans. The last time I rented. Bigger van but I didnât need it. Reserved for Monday afternoon instead.
Wrote a poem today as promised, Stellar. Trying to draw by manipulating shapes is difficult but Iâm working on it – have a long way to go. I will share my sketchbook pages with you tomorrow.
Bonne nuit!
Fri Aug 20:
Sorry! I fell asleep when I should have started talking to you. DrĂ© and I are fasting. I showed Matt how to strip thyme and cut broccoli into bite sized pieces – he made the last Hello Fresh dish.
Good news! I didn’t sleep today, but that’s probably because I went to bed mad late, like 2:00 am, Thursday night when I was trying to finish Bravo. Took the day off, cause by noon I hadn’t done any work and I wasn’t willing to do a full 8 hrs into the evening. Had a difficult time getting the engine going, but I think it’s only because I went to bed so late. 2:00 am is usually when I am waking up. I have to look at the exec dash sheet this weekend though and make sure the charts are in proper working order now that folks are making changes and adding real data – I don’t want to wait till Monday morning to find out something is wacky. I can be wacky but not the datasets or the visuals.
Painting is silent poetry and poetry is painting that speaks
Plutarch – Greek philosopher
Isn’t that beautiful! Does he mean I shouldn’t add art to my poems? Hmmm, I don’t think so. And anyway, it’s my poem, I can do whatever I want! I like experimenting gosh! Since poetry is painting, I will do my best to paint a detailed picture with my words. What color do you think “utilitarian” would be? Green? What about “perplexed? Tie-dye? lol.
Did my research and I now officially sorta have a good idea of how long it will take for me to learn French and Japanese. https://www.state.gov/foreign-language-training/ For fluency I will be using their definition “… reach âProfessional Working Proficiencyâ in the language, or a score of âSpeaking-3/Reading-3â on the Interagency Language Roundtable scale.” (I probably don’t have access to the interagency scale to self-assess but I didn’t check.)
- Speak French fluently by Q2 2022 (6-8 months – French is category 1)
- Italian and Spanish are the only other languages I am interested in from category 1
- Speak Japanese fluently by Q4 2024 (22-24 months – Japanese is category 4) đ
- Also in category 4 is Korean which is on my list – Arabic and Chinese are there too
I had to pick the most difficult language to start with. BTW Russian is also on my list but that is a category all by itself, C3. My love of Japanese dictates that I get it done next (or with?). I have a feeling it might be good to focus on one language at a time but I am not sure yet – I feel like if they are in the same category then you can stack them, but then you’d need about an hour a day for each. Plus I’m thinking that since French and Japanese are so different I can’t get confused. At the same time I want to do what’s most efficient, so I don’t waste time learning either one.
They say Japanese is “a super-hard language that is exceptionally difficult for English speakers to learn, but I found it to be much easier than French, probably because I find the masculine/feminine in French difficult to grasp and in Japanese you can say things without using pronouns, for example: “I” is understood so you usually don’t need to state it. – I can still count to five and I remember most greetings and yes (hai!) and certain body parts. I know how to say green tea, fermented soybeans and manga and emoji …
Of course I still have my arting practice and I must do that everyday and I guess that isn’t really an ultimate goal but milestones, so every quarter I will see how I can gauge my progress.
Watched the first episode of Luipen on Netflix in all French – audio and subtitles, as recommended by my French instructor. I plan to write a poem this weekend, one a week as I promised myself, and I also have to get our stuff out of storage tomorrow. We will walk to pick up the truck. Not looking forward to it cause it’s supposed to be another hot day.
Thu Aug 19:
Finally learned not to wait for my boss. I realized that he will accept the meeting if he can make it and won’t if he can’t. I didn’t bother to start the call today. Why did it take me so long? Well … sometimes my boss is unpredictable.
Guess what? I had my first French lesson today … I was so happy and grateful to our business developer guy and I have homework đ đ¶H is for homework that’s gonna make me smart-er see. Homework, homework, homework starts with E. đ¶
I had fun talking to our CTO and HR lady about data today. I enjoy thinking and doing and helping! EXCEPT if I have to think about the boys or help them do shit! I read today that you should only have about four goals at a time – that is enough juggling of stuffs. Obviously, I suspect you already know what my goals are but I will list them for you:
- Speak French fluently by Q4 2022
- Speak Japanese fluently by Q4 2022
- Draw like a boss by Q2 2022
- Make silent stop motion movies
I have to break down me goals into quarterly milestones but I am aiming to be fluent in French and Japanese by December 27, 2022 … that would be the best birthday present I could give myself. Reading and writing in those languages would be wonderful too but focus is on speaking/understanding. AND I am hoping to be able to draw from my imagination ASAP. I will have to see how many silent movies I can do per quarter, but I don’t want it to interfere with my other stuff that I am learning.
I have lots of other things I want to do of course (get back to my healthy weight, learn about AI and data science, find a third language to speak, etc, etc. Although ultramarathoning is a dream of mine, I haven’t been training nearly as much as I should and it is less important to me than the things in the list – Right now I have other high-value things to spend my time on. Training for a marathon will take up lots of hours in my days and before I can even attempt an ultramarathon, I have to have run at least three marathons (officially or unofficially, once I cover the distance) Dancing is my cardio. I am going to make a massive list of goals – all goals ever, no matter how ridiculous and keep prioritizing them as I go – when I can cross one thing off my list, I will add something else.
BTW … I found the poems I want to turn into weird fiction. Begin and Sweep Begin is longer than I remembered which is good.
Woke up from my Zacnap with words to a poem in my head – that hasn’t happened in a while. I am grateful đ …. Gonna get to writing đ Do you remember I said I would write a poem a week – I think I picked haiku/senryu/tanka so I gotta get back to that, and why haven’t I done it? I don’t know, sometimes I get into these moods where nothing feels worthwhile – thank goodness they don’t last long enough to cause permanent damage. But also, I started illustrating my poems so it takes a bit more time , I don’t have to illustrate everything, I know, but I feel like it. (maybe that is just an excuse, I think even if I illustrate I can still do one a week.)
“DrĂ©, when you wash the dishes you also have to clean up your cooking mess. Wipe down the counters and stove top.”
“I did that.”
“No you didn’t. There’s still dried tomato sauce on the stove.”
“Oh! Matt must have put tomatoes in his cake.”
Wed Aug 18:
Today I learned that French also has formal and informal ways to say the same things. e.g. “et toi” is casual and “et vous” is formal both meaning “and you”. I think in Japanese, formal would be considered “the polite way,” like when talking to your boss – but I don’t recall seeing “formal” in my Japanese lessons. Do you remember the book about a chicken (I think it was a baby chick) who went around looking for its mother?
Fun w/ French: Bonsoir Chaval! Vous avez choisi parler Japonais? (Good evening Horse. Have you decided to speak Japanese?) I can’t remember if a horse is masculine or feminine, which I believe would cause me to spell Japonais differently. I think. I am also getting use to writing with the appropriate accent.
I’ve been watching Tintin on Prime. I use to read the books when I was a kid. Today I felt discouraged, like I’m never going to get good at art. When that happens I still force myself to practice but the feeling sucks.
The philosophy of business and business philosophy. The philosophy of business is concerned with the nature and significance of business as a human endeavour, such as whether it is fundamentally an economic or social phenomenon, the moral obligations it has to society, the degree to which governments should regulate businesses and the differences in business operations and meanings in capitalist and socialist economies.
Business philosophy refers to the values or approach of a particular company (e.g., ABC Widget believes in educating customers before selling to them) or the dynamics of a market segment (the widget industry demands balanced attention to product and service)
Thing #9 of 101 Things I Learned in Business School
Missed out on the corporate pool party. Hopefully by this time next year, I will be well rested. Or maybe December, if we have a Holiday fĂȘte. The last time we met in December I think I stayed in London for the weekend, which is better than having to drive up and back the same day!
Started my data scientist research … I recall a tiny little bit of SQL, (used to have to do my own database searches at two companies in my past) and Excel (which is used quite a bit in the industry) AND I started learning PowerBI initially for the exec dashboard I was working on but I would also have to learn Python, maybe some Java and there are so many variations of what a data scientist can do and the type of data they work with AND the name of the role could also be different even though your responsibilities are the same. But this only what I learned today, I have to keep digging.
I think I can teach myself all those things. I would also have to be good at stats/math, (currently I break out in hives if I have to do maths in front of people.) I think they said some careers translate better, for example, if you are moving from engineering or accounting into data science it would be easier because you have the math background but those folks would still have to learn SQL and Python or R or Tableau or etc. I was surprised to see how many application are out there and I was also surprised to see Excel at the top of the list (that make me hopeful).
Tue Aug 17:
Oh the TTC … I still hate thee. Fuckin’ strollers! DON”T YOU FUCKIN’ STROLL THAT SHIT OVER MY VANS! I’LL KILL YOU AND YOUR UGLY ASS BABY! And no body is even paying attention to the “don’t sit here cause a COVID” signs. And I don’t see the point anyway cause the bus is packed as shit and people still DON’T FUCKIN’ KNOW HOW TO WEAR A MUTHAFUCKIN’ MASK!!!! – Are you fuckin’ retarded? It’s simple! LOOK AT THE PICTURE YOU SHIT! That shit’s supposed to cover your nose, mouth and chin. God! God! I’m still patiently waiting for my RR Phantom w/ driver. UGH! So furiously exasperated! People annoy me!
I am going to look into becoming a data scientist – I don’t know how/if that will merge into my current role/career but I really do enjoy working with information. Researching. Dissecting (bisecting, trisecting). Analyzing. Collating/Summarizing. Presenting. I will see what I can find tomorrow. Every time I work with Excel, as challenging as it is to grasp, I love it. And even when shit gets vexingly difficult, I don’t feel discouraged. When my boss says, “see what you can learn about …” đ¶Heaven. I’m in heavenđ¶
Hell for me is an assembly line where I do the same shit day in and day out, till I kill myself or get murdered. (and also having sex with some gross excessively sweaty dude – ewwww.) Heaven is getting to experiment and experience different things all the time. Never ending change.
I do project manager stuff cause I have to, but I don’t really consider myself a project manager anymore. I enjoy running the PMO and portfolio management/strategic planning type stuff. I am sure data science can be incorporated into strategy and PPM stuff. And you know, maybe I can do data science without being a data scientist. I can take my time and decide – no rush.
I feel like the best of my life is waiting for me to live it! Cool right!
Mon Aug 16:
After posting my nipple machine, I (mis)remembered a Ren & Stimpy episode where they were nipple sales men and they tried to sell nipples to a horse but he already had them. That show made me feel happy and nauseously crappy equally!
I think itâs been two weeks, maybe more, since Iâve had alcohol. Yay! Although I was tempted to head/come out to the LCBOQIA+ ⊠I didnât Yay#2!
The boys are over the KiwiCo crates so now Iâm gonna have to build a printing press, a pinball machine, a wooden crane, hand pump and stereo headphones all by myself. Looking forward to the first two mostly.
BTW – do you wanna know where the terms uppercase and lowercase come from? Well ⊠back in the day printers (the printing people) stored their letter stamps in separate cases within a cabinet – capital letters on the top shelf and small letters on the bottom shelf. And sometimes they would store lowercapital cases along with punctuations on the middle shelf (jk)
DrĂ© is such a pain, the Boy cyah follow simple Hello Fresh instructions âŠ
âMom! Wanna help me cook.â
âNo.â
âMom! How do I cut these potatoes into wedges?â
âMom! What time is it?â
âMom. What temperature is roast?â
âWhat do you mean?â
âIt just says to roast for 10-12 minutes but it doesnât say what temp the oven should be at.â
âHow can it not tell you the temp!?â
âIt doesnât!â
Reluctantly, I get up ⊠âLook! It says, âSTART HERE. Preheat oven to 450.â Jesus!â
âMom! Could you help me with this third last part – I donât understand what itâs telling me to do.â
FML – Can I do nothing in peace. I went to help him again and in the process I tried to break the Hello Fresh instructions with my head.
âMom!!! What is wrong with you!!! The paper was pristine, now it looks like I gave it to a child.â
Sun Aug 15:
Discovered a book genre called weird fiction via The Willows by Algernon Blackwood. I was never a fan of HP Lovecraft but I may revisit his books ⊠There are a few poems Iâve written that would translate well into a weird fiction microburst.
DrĂ© decided to try Hello Fresh. I feel maybe he didnât realize he still has to cook. smh. Letâs see what happens ⊠he got three dishes in his first box.
I havenât been keeping very good track of my poems – I have too many places to write/put stuff. I thought I had figured this out already. I need to think where I want to keep my writing things. My art stuff is in Procreate and sketchbooks, but I write wherever I can at the moment – I donât always grab my bedside book. Discipline!!!
Sat Aug 14:
As I work to redefine myself once again đ¶ a seven nation army couldn’t hold me back đ¶:
- Sam the Conscientious:
- Minimalist Artist
- Vegan (forever this time)
- Environmentalists
- Buddhist
- Helper
- Multilingualist
- Fish in the Pond of Plenty Who is Worth Catching (according to me)
- Defender of All Those What Need Defending (Peoples, Animals, Ideas, Languages, Corny Jokes)
I have more but I will leave with those for now …
Sometimes I wonder if I found the thing I was born to do, but then I feel like, I wasn’t born to do just one thing – kinda like how people have different roles, you can be born to do many things – I think maybe you know your thing when it feels right. Writing, arting, creating, feels right. I had a difficult time staying out of bed and focusing today. Why couldn’t I be one of those depressed people who lose their appetite? Well, we are not going to go down that road again.
I hate it when the boys come in my room and touch my stuff, or move shit or sit in my chairs. I can feel my body tensing – please leave. NOW!!! We can meet in the living room if you wanna hang out! Do males ever mature?
đ¶ Find yourself a girl and settle down. live a simple life in a quiet town. steady as she goes đ¶
Added a few more lines to my hair poem and finally got unblocked for my ninja comic – Part of the problem may be that I cannot draw from my imagination yet, BUT I can clearly see what I want to produce – so … as I go looking for things to trace, nothing ever feels quite right – Do you think I will be able to draw from my imagination in the next six months or so?
Have to create a presentation for PMBOK 7 stuff – I love putting together presentations as they also help me to solidify my understanding, which always feels grrrrrrrrate! I used to wish Tony the Tiger was my boyfriend. I thought he was super cool!
One day many people will tell me, “Your French and Japanese are fantastic!!!!” đ¶ Can’t stop addicted to the shindig đ¶
Write it once. A well-written contract defines or explains each term or condition only once. Subsequent mentions of what that term or condition refer to, or are presumed to refer to, the original explanation. Repeating contract language in an effort to impart greater emphasis is dangerous, as differences in context can lead to confusion in meaning and an unfavourable interpretation in a court of law. Further, because negotiations invariably require the editing of a contract draft, a redundantly worded document will require changes in multiple locations – leading to the possibility that one location will be missed and an inconsistent final contract will result.
Thing # 83 of 101 Things I Learned in Business School
Fri Aug 13:
Hooray for the weekend – It is too hot for anything and everything, including laughing out loud đ
Since it is so hot, the timing is perfect for me to rant about the douches I live with. Matt’s been washing his dishes but AndrĂ© not really and because of that, I guess Matt figures he shouldn’t wash anything other than his own. So …. this morning I washed my prized cast iron pots, dried them and put them in a box, sealed the box and put the box under my bed :). I did the same for a number of utensils, plates, ramekins, serving dishes, mason jars and other miscellaneous kitchen items. I threw out a bunch of random bottles from my “I need to collect stuff” periods that will continue to come and go as long as I live.
The kitchen cupboards remind me of when I first moved into my own place and had just enough housewares to fill one shelf – I think I’d gotten some dishes from the Salvation Army or other such service. When things break I am not replacing them. Fuck it! If it weren’t for the planet, we’d have disposable everything. By the time I am ready to get my own place again, all my stuff will be packed. Well, except for my books and art stuff.
You know, when Dee was here, there was this silent understanding between us, no one had to ask anyone to wash the dishes or do any other household chores for that matter. We just shared the load. With the dishes, sometimes I’d start and she’d finish or vice versa. If something needs doing just do it. Don’t wait to be told. Don’t expect anything in return, including appreciation. ugh!!! I know appreciation feels good but don’t do what you do expecting to be appreciated for it – then when you don’t get the praise you’re seeking you get all bent and don’t want to do the thing anymore even though it’s the right thing to do.
I feel like the attitude they have at home will spill over into their work and relationship lives. No one is going to take the initiative because they will pretend to forget, pretend not to see, because it is not their job. Because they are waiting for a promotion first. Because, because …
Grrrrr. Bonne nuit!
Thu Aug 12:
Fun w/ French: BientĂŽt j’Ă©tudie. Excuse moi. Bonne journee! (Soon I am studying. Excuse me. Have a good day!)
In my previous life, I would have been wondering , “What did I do to my boss? Is he avoiding me? Does he hate me? Why is he avoiding/hating me?” (this line of thought applies to everyone, including my children – as soon as things start to feel different, I spiral) But I am aware of this “thing” I do. Remember the time I thought our CTO hated me for whatever reason and I was crying like a dumbass (but I think I cried that time cause I was feeling really shitty and that thought just made everything worse.) Anyboo …
I KNOW my boss is busy with important business/family stuff, so I can remind myself that it is not avoidance and it is NOT about me. Which in the past, would have been difficult for me to do. I think most times I appreciate our 1:1 because I am not always sure when I may be overstepping. I am never sure actually, it’s a huge guessing game and I rarely ever err on the side of caution. AND since I can NEVER tell, that feeling of “OMG! Maybe I did something to piss him/her (person x) off and they are not telling me, but instead avoiding me at every turn. What do I do!?!?!” But … even though I still think that way, it doesn’t consume me (as much), or make me blow things out of proportion or dictate my behaviour (I hope). Which is a step in the right direction. Thank you very much. Hooray for self-awareness (and Prozac maybe?). And I still have to complete my therapy homework
Adobe wants to buy some of Dee’s online art stuff, not sure exactly what, but she messaged me all excited. AND she named my teddy from yesterday, CanniBear. I am going to take it a step further and imagine … what if babies were born cannibals. Not all babies, just some and there was no way for us to know a cannibal baby from a non-cannibal baby until you discover a massacre in the NICU or on the Labour and Delivery floor. And what would parents do with their cannibal babies? How are you supposed to care for a cannibal? These days babies stay with their parents, unless there is some issue that would cause them to be in the NICU, they will have to go from room to room. Is it every twelve minutes that a baby is born? (I think maybe I might have made that up) I’ve read that some babies are born with teeth – I’m pretty sure the source was reputable but I cannot remember … Thinking about deranged baby cannibals running around ending lives reminds me of Chucky. “Awwwww … look at the cute baby!”
Speaking of cute babies, just by chance today while looking for images of our old office for my one and only favourite HR Lady, I came across a pic of our European PM’s baby, maybe she was a few days old at the time. Now she’s running around feeding farm animals đ My … how time makes babies grow! xoxoxox. I should make up a nickname for her, but I don’t see her very often. I wonder if they have baby goats, I need recruits for my Gloat Escort Service.
I will see if I can dig up a baby pic of Matt – For the longest time he looked like an alien to me and DrĂ© looked like a grotesquely overweight pipe smokin’ grandpa. Who knew I could love an alien and an obese grandpa so much. Speaking of grotesquely overweight, I feel like watching Seven. I started laying out my comic yesterday, but I feel stuck – not sure why.
Finally repotted two plants – poor things were punishing in their original pots for what feels like a year. I suspect they should be happy now. Do you remember my baby avocado plant, she’s huge now. I will show you before and after soon.
Wed Aug 11:
Fun w/ French: Enchante! Je voudrais un(e) toilette s’il vous plait (Nice to meet you. I would like a toilet please.) BTW – I’m the only one who thinks this is funny.
Don’t have much to parle today, so I will leave you with my most recent masterpiece …
Tue Aug 10:
Bienvenue!
I was freakinâ out for like an hour today, I thought I lost all my notes and highlighted sections of books in Notability ⊠Alas, all is not lost. It had something to do with Apple sync. Glad I donât have to start my readings all over again. Parfait!!! (Perfect) I learned a few other French words today – wrote them down but they havenât stuck yet.
When was the last time you intentionally jumped into a massive puddle of water (ha, you thought I was going to say alcohol!) I love going out on rainy monsoon days, in my best outfit. Cowboy boots, black tux ⊠no umbrella. To stand and feel the rain, pounding my head, shoulders, back. Sometimes I get lucky and WOOSH!!! The rain hits me sideways, POW!!! right in the gut and Iâm down for the count.
Closer to the earthy smell. I inhale, catch my breath and feeling the prickly gravel digging into my palms, I bear crawl to the nearest puddle, on the lookout for worms at every step. Carefully, on my hands and knees, checking for tadpoles. One time I saw Plankton and I had to take him all the way back to the ocean. Certain now, there are no microorganisms in this particular puddle. I listen, enjoying the sound of the rain, the cars sloshing by. I make it to my feet and jump for all Iâm worth. SPLASH!!! (Iâm gonna turn this into a comic)
Hmmm ⊠writing with all my senses is gonna take some work.
Keeping a log book is fun – something I learned from one of Austin Kleonâs books. I am so behind on my art homework – still have to draw my tattooed self and my shape-shifting ninja. I donât want to move on to the next lesson without completing those first or I might never do it.
Quality, price, service: Pick two. The quality of a product, its price and the level of service its seller provides are interdependent. No seller can offer the best of all three – highest quality, lowest price, and the best service and remain in business. A discount store that offers high-quality merchandise at low prices will necessarily provide minimal personal service. A store selling the same merchandise with a high level of attention from staff will charge a higher price.
In project management, three similar factors are in play: quality, price and time; you can only prioritize two of them. And if one of the factors is changed after the projectâs begun, i.e., a tighter budget, a demand for better or more work, a budget cut – you must change two of them – a request for higher quality means you will have to increase the budget or extend the schedule., etc.
Thing # 87 of 101 Things I learned at Business School
A bientot!
Mon Aug 09:
Happy International Indigenous Peoples Day đ I love Indigenous art and I have my favourite, all time favourite artist so far, Norval Morrisseau aka Copper Thunderbird (isn’t that beautiful!). AND he was self-taught, which gives me hope đ
Well … I am slightly disappointed but I decided not to go to our pool party. Everyone isn’t gonna be there! You know!!! We are a small company, I was hoping for to see the entire team, like when we had our May event a few years back and everyone came from everywhere – Of course, I knew our European folks would be there in spirit only. If I lived in London I’d go, but to drive about six hours round trip for a five hr. party is not economical, especially since I am sleepy. If I am going to risk my life for a party, I’d like to be able to see everyone – hopefully I’d make it to the party and die on the way home vs dying on the way there, cause that would suck!!! I am also looking forward to having lunch with our HR lady – we will talk about food and exercise and have push-up competitions between courses.
BTW – I prefer the word expire when talking about death – The last few funerals I went to had Sunrise and Sunset for birth and death days. I would like Manufactured and Expired on my funeral invitations. I don’t know how to say those words in French or Japanese. I should design my funeral party flyer (just jotted that little to-do in my Beside Me book).
Wouldn’t it be nice if you could plan a funeral like you would a wedding? Kinda like how both sports teams have all their winning gear even before they know who is going to come out on top. AND you can invite whoever you like, ensuring riff-raff or people who cry ugly don’t attend and spoil everything. You can cry if you want to but, as you know, that’s not the kinda funeral I plan to have. Do they have funeral practice sessions? Funeral dry runs! “OMG MICHAEL!!! This is like the fourth practice and you are STILL standing in the wrong place. To the right of the casket. TO THE RIGHT! God!!!”
Remember I told you how DrĂ© refuses to put his food in the fridge, well he kinda started doing it now, but he doesn’t put the food in a container or cover it. He just leaves it on the plate and puts it in the fridge – he doesn’t even arrange the food nice and neatly you know. But … although ewwwwed out from seeing leftover egg scramble scattered about with partially eaten bread pieces on display (caveman food art), I am not going to say anything yet because we did make a step forward, I don’t want to discourage him and have him go back to leaving his disgusting partially eaten plate on the table. I covered it for him. Sometimes at the dinner table he burps so loud and nasty and he thinks it’s funny. Yesterday I asked him …
“Why are you gross?” He just laughed like I was being funny. (then when I make actual jokes … silence!)
And then there’s Matt, who farts, doesn’t excuse himself and pretends he didn’t know he needed to and will only laugh in acknowledgement AFTER I smell it and ask, “Did you fart?!?!?” ugh! I wish I was the one who moved out and Dee was still living here. I will call her and ask if she wants to trade places!
Those who think theory “isn’t the real world” don’t understand what theory is. A theory explains real phenomena. It organizes diverse bits of information into generalized patterns, identifies underlying reasons for why things happen as they do, and suggests the deeper nature of the things we know and those we do not quite know. Theories help transfer knowledge from one enterprise to another and suggest the likely outcomes of new and future situations.
Those who are averse to theory may thrive in business as long as the parameters familiar to them remain in place. Those who embrace theory are more likely to seek out, adapt to and benefit from new situations.
Thing # 32 of 101 Things I Learned in Business School
I am writing a poem for DJ.
Sun Aug 08:
Oi! Itâs probably been about a month since I wrote a poem; maybe more.
I feel like the weekend went by uber fast and I didnât do much. For the rest of the year, most of my work time will be spent reading and taking notes.
For my next movie, I decided for sure that I wonât create any new props, I donât think. I will try using the images Stop Motion Studio provides and I also read I can draw and insert my own images. BUT ⊠I do need new armatures and I will try using other media too, paper maybe – the boys old Lego; if I can find it.
Hope you had a good weekend.
Bonne nuit!
Sat Aug 07:
Fun w/ French: s’il vous plait ne pas mange(s) le chien! (please don’t eat the dog!) lol. That sentence is probably not grammatically correct.
Can you tell ?!?!?!?! … I am gonna have a hella good time with every language I learn. Mizu onegaishimasu (water please) I almost forgot how to say please but I will never forget how to say water cause I love the word mizu – I love how it looks, I love how it sounds and how it taste, unless it’s Dasani or Aquafina. Worst tasting waters ever!!! My plan was to do my Japanese lessons in the evening but i’m not consistent yet. AND ALSO …
I love trying to think in a different language. I look silly when I’m thinking hard đ I may have to drive to London for our corporate pool party, not looking forward to the drive. Anytime I have to drive when tired I avoid the highways, believing that if I were to get into an accident, it would be less severe on the road vs the highway. Ideally, I would like our CTO to pick me up in his sexy blue Tesla. I’m pretty sure it was blue. Anyway … that’s not gonna happen so …
I will just down a few gallons of Red Bull and fly over. That’s my current plan.
The Round Box: I have a brown cylindrical container named Hako. He sits on my desk and stares at me while I work. Annoying!!! Likely, he might be made of walnut tree wood. Of course … he refuses to come when I call him. Vexing!!! But, I cannot stay mad because he is beautiful. The fine lines, tiny nuances and color variations make him uniquely him. Hako shines in the sun, reflects light and smells like varnish on the outside and a dark musty drawer in. Yesterday, he licked my fingers. Reflexively, I licked him in return and surprisingly he tasted like Breyers butterscotch ripple ice cream. Unfortunately for him, I took a bite. When he yelped, I came to my senses and apologized profusely. “Hako! Gomennasai!”
The top of my round box cannot be completely removed. Hako has to be held at the right angle and pushed delicately before twisting open and closing with a “click” due to his magnetic lips. Otherwise, you may find yourself wondering if it’s locked. My container is smooth … I can wrap my hands around it in the same way you would a cup of hot chocolate on a cold, cozy day. This winter I will snuggle up with Hako and inhale his butterscotchy rippleness.
That was me trying to use all my senses when writing.
Customers do not make purchases the same way or for the same reason. Marketing experts typically distinguish among consumers by age, geography, interest, income and similar factors. They may use a different marketing mix of the Four P’s to determine how to reach each segment:
Product: an offerings’ features, style, variety (e.g., different types of sugar), packaging (e.g., single packets, two pounds, cubes), and brand name.
Price: the list price, discounts, allowances and payment terms
Promotion: advertising, personal selling, sales promotions and public relations. A product aimed at young buyers may emphasize web-based promos vs print ads.
Place: the venue for purchase and the logistics of moving products from manufacturer to consumer
Some experts use Five P’s (Packaging) or Six P’s (People)
Thing # 55 of 101 Things I Learned In Business School
BTW – I have a new hobby, collecting movie posters. I meant to write a haiku with a complimentary nature scene but I’m not happy with the scene and I didn’t start the poem đ I was thinking about what I wanted to say, while I drew but when the pic started looking like crap, I stopped thinking about my poem. I will continue later.
I go play chess with DrĂ© and watch a movie with Matt – all at the same time đ
Fri Aug 06:
Did you miss me? đ Dee got promoted to Art Director and stopped by for the first time today since moving out. We have to celebrate!
Glad to be feeling a bit better but … Do you think it’s possible that I only need ~ two hours of sleep per night? I still have some unidentified DNA, who knows what I am. I sleep, I wake up, I’m uncomfortable/sad/something not good. I go back to bed. I sleep, I wake up.
đ¶ It’s a hard knock life for us. It’s a hard knock life for us. Instead of treated we get tricked. ‘stead a kisses we get kicked đ¶
All day the last two days, it was really difficult for me to get out of, and stay out of, bed … I felt like I was slowly melting, disappearing, soon to become a silent screaming racket of nothingness. My stomach hurted, my head hurted. I had a little bit of the chills. I wondered if it was some kind of delayed reaction to the COVID vaccine? Am I suffering from alcohol withdrawals? Maybe I caught an intestinal/brain parasite, like that episode of 1000 Ways to Die. Suppose it is all in my head? … I am mentally unwell so I feel physically ill? Why can’t I get up? Get up!!! GET UP! (yelling at myself doesn’t work)
Then when I DO get up it’s like 2:00 am I have to find something to do, either working or creating or rearranging – Yesterday morning I cleaned the kitchen and took down two cupboard doors, something is wrong with the hinges and I don’t feel like putting in a work request for them to fix it. This morning I worked. Why do I have so much energy at two am?
Then sometimes in the evening/night time I get restless and I end up moving stuff, cause I gotta do something with all my pent up energy, or else I’ll explode!!! (I literally feel like I am going to explode) Last night I cleaned out the linen closet – when I rearrange items the boys get mad cause they can’t find anything and I can’t remember where I put stuff until I rediscover things during my next organizing frenzy. “Oh! That’s where that is! Now I’m gonna put it somewhere else and forget all about it again.”
Breaking News: We hired a Satanist! Strap in! The company’s on a fiery, fiery rollercoaster to hell.
BTW: Matt’s on a cleaning spree like he’s about to start some immaculate residential flossin’ service. He probably also has lots of unused energy.
Tue Aug 03:
DJ kicked the water đŠ bucket sometime last night or early this morning. When I came out around 2:00 am he was in the corner of the tank and he was in the same spot when I fed them this morning – I wasnât gonna fall for his play-dead trick this time, but when he didnât move to get his food, I knew it was over.
My longest surviving fish. RIP! Iâm gonna miss his spaz-tastic moments when he runs around the tank like some invisible foe is chasing him – lol.
The first movie I plan to see in theatre is Donât Breathe II. Matt already went to see Black Widow and he will be watching some other movie today.
I feel so shitty; just a general ickyness that wonât leave me alone. I didnât even do my French lessons and I barely made it through the work day. I wondered several times, âAm I dying?â
Days like these remind me to be grateful for the flexibility I have with my work schedule ⊠when sick but also especially when plagued with insomnia or Zacnaps. This weekend Iâm gonna go get my stuff outta storage. One less bill to pay. Hooray!!!
Our CTO is hilarious – like a crazed koala đ Thereâs only 150 days left in the year and my birthday is one of them đ
I hope you had/continue to have a hunky-dory day!
đ¶ I can go anywhere. Take a look, itâs in a book. The Reading Rainbow đ¶
Mon Aug 02:
My supramarginal angular gyres hurt real bad.
I might have to take the day off tomorrow. Since waking, I feel like gum – chewed up, spat out, walked on till pieces of me are one with the sidewalk and the bottom of many shoes. Everything hurts so much, I might write a poem :)))))
I was hoping to finish tracing Stabroek Market pic but no luck.
Is it possible I may have eaten some T-virus infected vegetables? Am I turning into a zombie chicken cat?
I read an article recently, canât remember where, about the importance of soft skills – and I was like, âwow!!! Thatâs me exactly. Iâm what ever employer needs even if they donât know it yet.â lol. The article reminded me of the Nkyinkyim âtwisting/twistedâ Adinkra tattoo on the back of my neck!
Wish me well!
Sun Aug 01:
Well, well, well! Welcome August!
Today was a long day, I’m sweaty and smelly. Shower ready. Been rearranging and cleaning now that I have more space.
I feel lighter, brighter. Kinda wish I was a little bit smarter. Nah. I’m smart enough yuh dun know đ
My work desk is all setup, Matt put it together for me yesterday.
I’m glad tomorrow is a holiday. Even when I don’t sleep I can’t sleep.
I have enough suit jackets, shoes and pants already – I don’t need to do any more clothes shopping, like ever. I style my clothes, my clothes don’t style me – you get me? I now officially have half a closet full of stuff – Sweet right! Gotta make sure it stays that way. No more shopping therapy – I’ll opt for art therapy instead. It’s easier on the wallet; although …
Speaking of wallet, I did celebrate my new found space with fast food – I ordered from DrĂ©’s phone and broke my fast food promise but for good reason. Maybe not – technically I could have walked over to the mall and order the food but that would have taken away from my clean up time. However, it was a conscious decision to order, not an impulsive one. I’m mostly certain about that!
I go shower, drink some tea and go to bed feeling content with my head waaaaaaaaay above the clouds đȘđž
