consequential

i definitely didn't sleep enough last night, but that's not the real issue. the real issue is that aota convinced me to try a tim horton's donut this morning and in a twisted turn of fate it was filled with custard. i *LOVE* custard! and i'm allergic to dairy. i couldn't help myself and i ate a couple of bites before finally binning it, but by then the damage was done and a couple of hours later my body began to crash in a way it hasn't done since the last time i overdid dairy. i don't remember when that was.

dear mr. horton.

i am trying to immigrate to canada, and unfortunately there's one aspect of life here that i cannot fully participate in: eating your doughnuts! i would be exceedingly grateful if you could produce a vegan-friendly doughnut. just one type, it's all i ask.

yours faithfully...

i had a short (but heavenly) nap before training and between that and the energy drink i was mostly on form. which reminds me that i haven't stopped thinking about the conversation i had with ceh in the afternoon about caffeine addiction and its effects on the brain. i wish i could drop it "cold turkey" but i well remember what happened last time i did that (in 2001)... two weeks of non-stop migraines? no thanks. perhaps if i lose my job.

---speaking of which, as i mentioned yesterday i interviewed a potential replacement this morning. the interview was going spectacularly well and i was rating him an A before the technical question. as the first interviewee to start with an iterative solution to our "big" problem he had me convinced that this was going well, but then he stumbled. stumbling brought him down to an A- or a B+ in my book, only after stumbling he just gave up and even though megaman continued to push him* he just couldn't dust himself off and get back on the horse. i was sorely disappointed.

* courtesy, i guess, because the dude had come all the way from ottawa just to see us

i had lunch with megaman - let's not discuss how odd that was - and he shared the same view. what was interesting to hear is that he won't pick someone for the job unless they're strong enough to earn the team's trust immediately. he's still kinda looking for me to step up and save the day but the more he describes the role the more i realize that i'm not the man to take it. perhaps in another environment with different values and less politics, but not in this company with these guys at the helm.

---aota came over to inform me that another month of inexplicable data usage has gone by. it's been decided that my phone is faulty and i'm being sent a replacement... an iphone 5. here's hoping it's in good nick!

speaking of things being nicked, i don't know if it bothers me more that there are dishonest people in my company or that they're so pathetically obvious about it. megaman and his crew with their machinations are so transparent and bloody arrogant about it, like we're all totally stupid and oblivious. but the it guy? he keeps stealing equipment, and his explanations and excuses are so crap it's like he isn't even trying to hide it.

---things i hate today:

1. tortoisesvn for mysterious, non-stop tree conflicts when merging that it would take me ages to figure out... they've overhauled their merging dialog box again. the first option used to be the wrong one, but the second option's new and looks suspiciously like the old second option (which used to be the right one). good ux job, guys. well done.

2. google, whose search results were so useless and irrelevant when looking up perl configuration issues that i resorted to trying bing. which actually did the trick, for once, and i wasn't looking for porn. [i think i'd heard about that before, but creeper did his bit and made sure i knew. he also shouted over the cubicle wall that now that i'm aware of the service i can just start... oh, never mind. it was grossly inappropriate as usual.]

---i left on time for training and was held back by a long sob story from one of my developers... he has sickly pets and a new car that's giving him trouble. it may have been a bit heartless of me, but i explained to him that that's precisely why i don't have pets or a car. pets are an enormous responsibility and you need to be ready for them to need (sometimes very expensive) care and attention. cars are more trouble than they're worth. they're expensive just to own and maintain, you have to worry about parking, snow shovelling and designating a driver if you go out for drinks. it's cheaper to use taxis or rent a car on the odd occasion that actually justifies a personal vehicle.

"but in our culture everyone owns a car!"
"in everyone's culture, that doesn't make it the right thing to do."

i *just* missed the train because of that.

---training was really tough. i learned a lot of important things that i'm going to need to consolidate...

how very interesting: the older woman i worked with a while back (why can't i find the post?) was asking how my work was going, and it turns out she has aerospace connections. this could be good!

what a feeling, to get into a hot bath post-training after a whole day of knowing i'd need it. my back is really hurting and i need to get my muscles functioning again. a few weeks of illness and everything went to hell :(

...

holy crap! it's 11pm and i'm ready for bed! aside from the bit when i'll get up in a couple of hours to deal with the mortgage bank, that's very impressive.

---this complaint to virgin airlines really is brilliant.

...

the dangers of birth control: this is pretty scary. like, holy shit, how have woman been using these things without knowing what's at stake?! like in this world people need another cause for anxiety...