optional attendance

question of the day: why do salt and vinegar miniature rice cakes need milk ingredients???

---i gulped down the vega one this morning, and it was far easier to swallow. i'm not sure that counts as a positive review, but it's definitely better than not getting enough essentials.

four below zero is meaningfully colder than three below. my nose hurt and i thought it was going to be properly red by the time i got into the metro. by comparison, one below in the afternoon was nothing worse than "bracing".

i had a lot of database stuff to do today and instead got caught up in fine-tuning jira. the good news is that the development head is getting comfortable with my processes, and his suggestions are easy to integrate because we seem to be thinking along the same lines. i'm very pleased.

i pitched an idea to the money guy today, and i hope it's valid. other than that, we had a long status meeting in the afternoon after which i introduced myself to the new guy; i'm very excited because it seems that we share a common vision regarding the company's transparency and cultural integration, which i believe is really important.

i met up with pg at the apartment, we put the table together and began on the bed but then ran out of time and hurried back for dinner. she and my aunt went shopping today and organized everything we need except for an internet connection. i'll get to that in the morning (now that i know who i want to call).

---dinner was surprisingly pleasant, good-humoured and friendly-like, but when my cousin and i started arguing* my uncle decided that i'm an offensive know-it-all and i argue with everyone on principle. talk about the pot calling the kettle black. my cousin and i were using the internets to make our cases while his father continued to mouth off and eventually he agreed that he was in the wrong.

but that didn't matter, my uncle had had a bad day and had been taking it out on everyone else before dinner, so i guess it was my turn after. in the moment of calm afterwards my cousin and i had a serious talk about life, the universe and kak fathers, and i think we're finally on the same team again. as for my uncle, that's three of us that'll be all too happy to get out of here ASAP. pg and i have a bed to put together, and sheets that my aunt has presented us, and the cutlery and crockery that they bought together today, so i guess the internet connection really is the last hurdle.

* the calibration error that shook the world with neutrinos travelling faster than light, which was little more than sensationalism and dodgy science (google is your friend)
* that jellyfish aren't considered a life-form (seriously?)
* that sharks are incapable of swimming under three-foot tall shark nets (google is your friend)

---i fired off an email to the ceo in an attempt to salvage options that i *forgot* to negotiate, and i hope it's not too late. i hope and pray that my request doesn't cause offense.