Showing posts with label work. Show all posts
Showing posts with label work. Show all posts
Thursday, June 16, 2011
Corp America(tm)
This is a bit of satire that I wrote last night, but like all good satire it has a degree of truth… But for the record I have no means to establish Corp America and it is not a real entity.
I am tired of dancing around the issue. The current system of smoke and mirrors controlling our politics is inefficient and a bit childish. So I’m going to call a spade a spade and design a better system. I’m going to establish Corp America™*.
Corp America is going to have one purpose; to absolutely control American politics and policy. I’m not going to flinch from that fact at all. Corp America is out to buy votes, make laws, and secure our interests. Buying stock in Corp America will allow every share holder to exercise more voting power than they have ever had at the ballot box. Working for Corp America will put you on the front line of political influence and impact to our society. Our agenda will be clear, published, and voted in by the share holders.
Our capital will be used in strategic investments to make profits and foster our agenda. Our intent will be to make the USA better for Americans, a more respectful member of the global community, and an earnest proponent of profits for the middle-class. We will have a legal department, HR, accountants, consultants, assistants, executives, project managers, and a healthy benefit package. We will strive to be the America we want the US to become. Our physical projects will focus on improving America’s infrastructure (transport, utilities, and resources). Our soft products will focus on improving education and access to education. As an employee, it will be your job to get smarter. Corp America projects would emphasize green energy sources, technologies to reduce emissions, secondary education facilities, and projects to develop public transportation. Corp America will participate in the stock market, investments, and a company credit union.
Our headquarters will be located as close to Congress, the Whitehouse, and Supreme Court as is financially possible. Bonus pay will be given based on traceable influence to policy makers. We will never be covert. All of our salaries will be public knowledge. We will stand out. We will be visible, vocal, and determined. All of our profits will be spent on gaining control of the US government—including placing our employees in to the government. Our employees in government will continue to earn Corp America paychecks as long as they voluntarily continue to participate in Corp America policies set by the shareholders.
Corp America will not discriminate on the basis of sex, religion, orientation, race, shirt size, pet preference, or favorite color. We will not seek to influence these areas of society other than to insure there is no discrimination in America for anyone.
We are neither Republican nor Democrat. We seek to be neither Conservative nor Liberal. We speak for all Americans with focus on restoring the middle-class and working to move more from poverty up and more from ultra rich down. Equality of economics is not the goal, just a smoothing of the curve. There will always be rich and there will always be poor. We will endeavour to do all we can to limit the extremes.
All employees will be required to participate in all elections. Individuals must vote to their conscience, but we would hope that conscience aligns with Corp America™ shareholder policy. Voting is a minimal condition to receiving any bonus pay. To be clear you can earn your bonus for any vote on any issue—you simply must vote. Each member of your household must vote if they are legally allowed to do so. Our corporate training will focus on getting the best information and education around our agenda issues to our employees. We will maintain a website detailing how our corporation wishes to vote on all issues on the ballot in every district where we operate. Again, you always vote the way you wish, but we will document what we feel is the best vote and back it up with unbiased reasoning and analysis freely available to Corp America employees and publicly posted on our web presence.
The workers of Corp America will automatically be unionized as a free benefit for the first year of employment. After the first year, the employee will be responsible for dues to be set by the Corp America Union. Corp America will establish a pay ratio between the highest paid and lowest paid employee regardless of where that employee sits in the organization.
Should you gain elected office as a Corp America employee, your immediate duties will cease and you will assume your new role as a public official. You will uphold all legal and ethical obligations to your post. Your job at Corp America will become being an effective leader in your role. You will gain access to our political advisors and educational resources. Corp America will determine what actions to take should you violate the law or ethical policies—this may include termination and notification of proper legal authorities. Corp America will not attempt to hide any of your actions and will actively seek to bring all such actions to public view.
Buy American. Shed the illusion of democracy and embrace the real democracy of our times. Invest in Corp America. Recruiting today!
*A real trademark will be selected later; suggestions welcome.
Thursday, July 15, 2010
All things Work and Home
It's been a while since I posted here. As I've commented before, the "micro" blogging tools like Facebook and Twitter seem to reduce the need to write--probably artificially. No excuses--just saying.
So what's been up? Too much work. I have a large project that just hit it's busy stride in May/June/July. I think it should calm down a bit, but the project wounds are still fresh so much smaller annoyances seem to derail me with greater effect. It's hard to put so much energy and time in on a thing only watch it flounder. This difficult enough by itself, but there was about a 30 day stretch where it appeared I was being held personally responsible for a degree of the failures. I suppose in the Royal We way I am part of the project so I am part of the team. But this was particularly hard to take as it seemed the customer was quite happy with what was happening. My own management team was not. Of course, in business you have to keep your bosses happy and I suppose that was my mistake. I still find this de-motivating. But that's business when you work for someone else.
Aside from work we've been shivering our way through a cold winter in Wellington. I've seen frost on several days this year. It was even so cold that my motorcycle wouldn't start for a week.
My father-in-law flew in for his usual trip in July/Aug to see us, the grandson, and participate in the grandson's birthday. I feel a bit sorry for the old guy this year as the weather has been awful! But even bad weather in Wellington is pretty mild.
We took a few days to drive up the west coast to Hawera again. We visited the museum there with my folks a year ago, but Don (father-in-law) had not seen it yet. On the way we stopped in Wanganui and Patea. I can't tell for sure, but I think a hear an unspoken "aw yuck" in front of Wanganui whenever I mention it. LOL. I get the impression that most Kiwi's aren't impressed with the city. While it doesn't offer a ton, it is nice stopping point and does have a pretty fun kid park with great, dare I say, vintage playground equipment and a whizbang flying fox. On this trip we did make time to see the local museums which were interesting if not huge.
Patea isn't far north of Wanganui, but is barely a spec on the map... and let me tell you, the specs on NZ maps are specs indeed. I think Patea is all of 6 blocks long. Its primary feature is the road to its beach. There is a river mouth here which was one of the first sea ports used in New Zealand, but this port was completely abandoned in 1956. Patea certainly hasn't thrived since. What remans is a partially protected swimming beach with massive waves. Outside the sea walls you have some of the rawest ocean I've experienced in New Zealand. Waves larger than a man or 2 men. This stretch is one of my favourites. The sand here is deep black with sparkling flecks of mica. The shore stretches north to high vertical cliffs. The view is even complete with a ship wreck of some ridiculously old vessel containing a boiler. Another interesting bit was we found heaps of rock with deep "pock" marks in them. The kind of thing you'd expect to see in a cave that dripped on soft stone over a million years. Looking at the cliffs I'm guessing there are a few sea caves there and these rocks probably started in them. Each place we go has so much to discover.
The Tawhiti Museum continues to be excellent. They even added something completely new this year. A Whalers & Traders "river" ride. They built a huge shed and dug a channel through it for a river. Then they filled it with life sized scenes of NZ whaling themed events. There was a ship trading muskets to Moari, gun/cannon fight in the bush, and a Maori village trading with white settlers. The detail was amazing. Hawera is barely more than a spec itself--maybe 6 specs collectively. But this is still one of the best museums covering NZ history that I've found. Of course, I have not tried to fully explore Auckland yet. I would expect the countries largest city to have something pretty grand.
On the way home we drove through Palmerston and again I was struck by what nice towns NZ has. Palmerston had quite a bit of stuff to do for being a "small" city. This really is small in New Zealand. But they did have a Harley shop and a Steam Museum which we'll have to check out again later.
Amy and I have managed to get out to a couple movies. I seem to have no lack of pizza in my life so all is good.
We are waiting for the last bit of immigration paperwork and then I think we're clear. We're talking tentatively about having Chandler come stay with us in 2011 to go to school here and then swap to have Sabrina for a year too. I really hope that works out, but it all still discussions for now.
That's the update from the South! Talk at y'all later.
So what's been up? Too much work. I have a large project that just hit it's busy stride in May/June/July. I think it should calm down a bit, but the project wounds are still fresh so much smaller annoyances seem to derail me with greater effect. It's hard to put so much energy and time in on a thing only watch it flounder. This difficult enough by itself, but there was about a 30 day stretch where it appeared I was being held personally responsible for a degree of the failures. I suppose in the Royal We way I am part of the project so I am part of the team. But this was particularly hard to take as it seemed the customer was quite happy with what was happening. My own management team was not. Of course, in business you have to keep your bosses happy and I suppose that was my mistake. I still find this de-motivating. But that's business when you work for someone else.
Aside from work we've been shivering our way through a cold winter in Wellington. I've seen frost on several days this year. It was even so cold that my motorcycle wouldn't start for a week.
My father-in-law flew in for his usual trip in July/Aug to see us, the grandson, and participate in the grandson's birthday. I feel a bit sorry for the old guy this year as the weather has been awful! But even bad weather in Wellington is pretty mild.
We took a few days to drive up the west coast to Hawera again. We visited the museum there with my folks a year ago, but Don (father-in-law) had not seen it yet. On the way we stopped in Wanganui and Patea. I can't tell for sure, but I think a hear an unspoken "aw yuck" in front of Wanganui whenever I mention it. LOL. I get the impression that most Kiwi's aren't impressed with the city. While it doesn't offer a ton, it is nice stopping point and does have a pretty fun kid park with great, dare I say, vintage playground equipment and a whizbang flying fox. On this trip we did make time to see the local museums which were interesting if not huge.
Patea isn't far north of Wanganui, but is barely a spec on the map... and let me tell you, the specs on NZ maps are specs indeed. I think Patea is all of 6 blocks long. Its primary feature is the road to its beach. There is a river mouth here which was one of the first sea ports used in New Zealand, but this port was completely abandoned in 1956. Patea certainly hasn't thrived since. What remans is a partially protected swimming beach with massive waves. Outside the sea walls you have some of the rawest ocean I've experienced in New Zealand. Waves larger than a man or 2 men. This stretch is one of my favourites. The sand here is deep black with sparkling flecks of mica. The shore stretches north to high vertical cliffs. The view is even complete with a ship wreck of some ridiculously old vessel containing a boiler. Another interesting bit was we found heaps of rock with deep "pock" marks in them. The kind of thing you'd expect to see in a cave that dripped on soft stone over a million years. Looking at the cliffs I'm guessing there are a few sea caves there and these rocks probably started in them. Each place we go has so much to discover.
The Tawhiti Museum continues to be excellent. They even added something completely new this year. A Whalers & Traders "river" ride. They built a huge shed and dug a channel through it for a river. Then they filled it with life sized scenes of NZ whaling themed events. There was a ship trading muskets to Moari, gun/cannon fight in the bush, and a Maori village trading with white settlers. The detail was amazing. Hawera is barely more than a spec itself--maybe 6 specs collectively. But this is still one of the best museums covering NZ history that I've found. Of course, I have not tried to fully explore Auckland yet. I would expect the countries largest city to have something pretty grand.
On the way home we drove through Palmerston and again I was struck by what nice towns NZ has. Palmerston had quite a bit of stuff to do for being a "small" city. This really is small in New Zealand. But they did have a Harley shop and a Steam Museum which we'll have to check out again later.
Amy and I have managed to get out to a couple movies. I seem to have no lack of pizza in my life so all is good.
We are waiting for the last bit of immigration paperwork and then I think we're clear. We're talking tentatively about having Chandler come stay with us in 2011 to go to school here and then swap to have Sabrina for a year too. I really hope that works out, but it all still discussions for now.
That's the update from the South! Talk at y'all later.
Sunday, May 23, 2010
Two and Half Years in New Zealand
This June our original 30 month Work to Residence application is up. We arrived in Jan 2008 from Overland Park, KS. We sold our house, gave away about a third of everything we owned and attempted to sell our 2 cars. At the time of our decision the exchange rate was in the 80's and even with all things considered it was an income cut to move. We had 6 weeks of a Serviced Apartment booked in Wellington, our 6 suitcases, and the 3 of us.
We found a home to rent in about 3 weeks. We had a car leased in 4 weeks. We used the small bit of cash we had to pay for a few new appliances in our home. A co-worker generously let us borrow a trailer load of "camping" gear to live with until our container arrived. The rest of our stuff appeared in record time about 6 weeks after we arrived. No one I've talked to got their stuff faster. Our son enrolled in Waterloo Primary School and started in Feb with the rest of the class. Within about 2 months we were, more or less, fully established in Lower Hutt just on the east side of the Wellington harbour.
The first 6 months was a constant exercise in "What is different?" Everything from ketchup, to banking, to eating out, to politics were all different in small to significant ways. It took a good year before I stopped noticing the differences in everything. Change is stressful, even when desired and good. We all struggled at some point. We missed family. We missed Mexican food. We missed the ease we had from familiarity. It took a while to get used to.
Financially the story gets alarming. The costs were higher than we expected and we expected high costs. But we did adjust. We've not really suffered, but we certainly have prioritized. The exchange rate dropped from 80 to 60 to 70 then to 50 before making a slow recovery to 70 again; recently it is dropping again below 70. Dramatic shifts made paying bills difficult and then impossible. We had to rework a lot of things and even cashed out retirement funds to make settlement payments to the bank. The worst part was our 2 cars never sold and all we could do was let the finance companies re-claim them. After 2 and half years, I think we're mostly stable. We are not losing money, but we are not saving effectively either. We still rent the same place. We ended the lease on the NZ car after about year. It was cheaper to buy one with cash. Our biggest bills are US debt, Rent, Gas/Electric, and groceries (in that order).
Our story started with a job offer from Telecom NZ so I had employment immediately. Amy struggled for over a year to find a job. It proved difficult to get interviews as an immigrant. However, once you did get hired, work history helped smooth the way for other employment. In general, the work here has an easier pace compared to the US. All the employers I've talked to seem to understand a more natural rhythm to families and work. Holidays are bunched up at the end of the year being summer school vacation, Christmas, New Year's, and Waitangi Day (sort of the NZ founding day). This makes the work load from November to February pretty light.
New Zealand today (and historically) seems to be shaped by two major themes; small population and geographic remoteness. Everything seems like a small town. Truly remote areas are so sparsely populated you might not see another human for miles. But even a short 45 minute trip out of Wellington can get you to an empty coast line or scenic rolling hills. Small populations mean small economies. Folks don't move to NZ to get rich. It might be comparable to moving to Montana or South Dakota; mostly rural with only a few focal points of wealth. Being a remote country and really not even "on the way" to anywhere means that, unless you're really trying to get to New Zealand, you won't end up there. Without the same profit motivations as say, Australia, growth in NZ is slower. Markets are mostly saturated and there are not going to be "new" markets. What you see is what you get in New Zealand.
We have watched the politics of NZ unfold around us and we are certainly affected by the changes, but we haven't really participated much. The long established Labour party was voted out and replaced by the National party. I don't know that either of them have great platforms... so about the same as the US.
One big change for me is that I can barely read US news sources any more. The stories are horrific by comparison. The details of torture, murder, and gruesome death have become just too shocking to read. The scandals of top politicians, hate mongering, and religious zealotry are hard for me to acknowledge. I struggle to comprehend that I am from that place. NZ has its share of social issues, but seems to completely lack carnage, seedy scandal, or extremism. Violent crimes occur. Horrible things still happen in bad circumstances. But there still is plenty of room for other news.
So what now? Well, we've applied to become Residents. We have to make all the same immigration hurdles we made the first time. This is quite expensive to pay for again (well over $3000 total), but should be the last "serious" round of checks. My job offer with Telecom is indefinite. I do good work and while Telecom has plenty of problems, I feel like I can make it better. I don't know how much longer we'll stay. Perhaps another couple of years. I would like to take the stability we've had and turn it back in to a retirements savings and investments. That could take another 5 years. If that plan worked out, then I think we would all be just fine with it. Sometimes I wish New Zealand wasn't quite so far away or quite so under populated... but then I remember that New Zealand would be none of the things I love if it was.
We found a home to rent in about 3 weeks. We had a car leased in 4 weeks. We used the small bit of cash we had to pay for a few new appliances in our home. A co-worker generously let us borrow a trailer load of "camping" gear to live with until our container arrived. The rest of our stuff appeared in record time about 6 weeks after we arrived. No one I've talked to got their stuff faster. Our son enrolled in Waterloo Primary School and started in Feb with the rest of the class. Within about 2 months we were, more or less, fully established in Lower Hutt just on the east side of the Wellington harbour.
The first 6 months was a constant exercise in "What is different?" Everything from ketchup, to banking, to eating out, to politics were all different in small to significant ways. It took a good year before I stopped noticing the differences in everything. Change is stressful, even when desired and good. We all struggled at some point. We missed family. We missed Mexican food. We missed the ease we had from familiarity. It took a while to get used to.
Financially the story gets alarming. The costs were higher than we expected and we expected high costs. But we did adjust. We've not really suffered, but we certainly have prioritized. The exchange rate dropped from 80 to 60 to 70 then to 50 before making a slow recovery to 70 again; recently it is dropping again below 70. Dramatic shifts made paying bills difficult and then impossible. We had to rework a lot of things and even cashed out retirement funds to make settlement payments to the bank. The worst part was our 2 cars never sold and all we could do was let the finance companies re-claim them. After 2 and half years, I think we're mostly stable. We are not losing money, but we are not saving effectively either. We still rent the same place. We ended the lease on the NZ car after about year. It was cheaper to buy one with cash. Our biggest bills are US debt, Rent, Gas/Electric, and groceries (in that order).
Our story started with a job offer from Telecom NZ so I had employment immediately. Amy struggled for over a year to find a job. It proved difficult to get interviews as an immigrant. However, once you did get hired, work history helped smooth the way for other employment. In general, the work here has an easier pace compared to the US. All the employers I've talked to seem to understand a more natural rhythm to families and work. Holidays are bunched up at the end of the year being summer school vacation, Christmas, New Year's, and Waitangi Day (sort of the NZ founding day). This makes the work load from November to February pretty light.
New Zealand today (and historically) seems to be shaped by two major themes; small population and geographic remoteness. Everything seems like a small town. Truly remote areas are so sparsely populated you might not see another human for miles. But even a short 45 minute trip out of Wellington can get you to an empty coast line or scenic rolling hills. Small populations mean small economies. Folks don't move to NZ to get rich. It might be comparable to moving to Montana or South Dakota; mostly rural with only a few focal points of wealth. Being a remote country and really not even "on the way" to anywhere means that, unless you're really trying to get to New Zealand, you won't end up there. Without the same profit motivations as say, Australia, growth in NZ is slower. Markets are mostly saturated and there are not going to be "new" markets. What you see is what you get in New Zealand.
We have watched the politics of NZ unfold around us and we are certainly affected by the changes, but we haven't really participated much. The long established Labour party was voted out and replaced by the National party. I don't know that either of them have great platforms... so about the same as the US.
One big change for me is that I can barely read US news sources any more. The stories are horrific by comparison. The details of torture, murder, and gruesome death have become just too shocking to read. The scandals of top politicians, hate mongering, and religious zealotry are hard for me to acknowledge. I struggle to comprehend that I am from that place. NZ has its share of social issues, but seems to completely lack carnage, seedy scandal, or extremism. Violent crimes occur. Horrible things still happen in bad circumstances. But there still is plenty of room for other news.
So what now? Well, we've applied to become Residents. We have to make all the same immigration hurdles we made the first time. This is quite expensive to pay for again (well over $3000 total), but should be the last "serious" round of checks. My job offer with Telecom is indefinite. I do good work and while Telecom has plenty of problems, I feel like I can make it better. I don't know how much longer we'll stay. Perhaps another couple of years. I would like to take the stability we've had and turn it back in to a retirements savings and investments. That could take another 5 years. If that plan worked out, then I think we would all be just fine with it. Sometimes I wish New Zealand wasn't quite so far away or quite so under populated... but then I remember that New Zealand would be none of the things I love if it was.
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Micro-Blog
I have so much I want to write about that I am paralyzed with it. So in an effort to dislodge I'm going to blast out micro-blogs on each topic. Hopefully I can expand again later...
My Dad:
Dying, but looking pretty good. Chemo was stopped so that makes you feel better. Visit was emotionally complex, but ultimately good.
My Kids:
Totally awesome to see them. Great to spend so much time just following them around from school to home and such. Good to talk with their teachers. Field trip with Sabrina was one of the best times I've had. I put 2000 miles on the car I borrowed from my in-laws (Thanks Judith and Cindy!)
Vegas:
Still the same. The Bellagio may be my favorite hotel of all time.
The US:
It was actually hard going back. Vegas didn't help as it is an exaggerated version of all things excess in America. I was battered by it somewhat. Everyone I visited with was working harder than before, more stressed, and generally stretched. It was an incredible favor to be able to stay with Carey and Graham while I was there (thanks!).
Wall Street:
I read an article about how fundamentally illegal market manipulation may have collapsed 3 of the 5 big banks in America. The article was posted in Rolling Stone which I found odd. But despite the most glaring and flagrant manipulation no official investigation was underway. Most concerning is that if you looked at who had the most to gain such an act you would see the other 2 banks. There were many suspicious dealing by these 2 leading up to the collapse. I am appalled to now think these crooks will never be held accountable and the money they stole from Americans will never be given back.
NZ History:
I have been reading "The Penguin History of New Zealand" (Penguin is a book publisher here) by Michael King. It is insightful and well written. I am delighted to read about the amazing journey NZ has taken. I am surprised to discover that for at least a generation, NZ did not teach this history which is rich in culture and identity.
NZ Stock Exchange:
I have begun to write letters to the NZX to ask if the scheme above could happen in NZ. I would push them to make sure it is not.
NaNoWrMo:
Yes, it is coming up. But I again don't think it is something I can push for. But I am sure to write some. I will likely work more on Threshold--the projected I started last NaNoWrMo.
The Ex:
While in the US I also had to work on a new agreement with my ex. Such things are always stressful, but we worked really well together. As a result of the compressed schedule we had to spent more time together than we have in probably 10 years. It was weird, but it was also good to demonstrate how much we had both changed and moved on.
Motorbikes, Trains and Automobiles:
We bought a small cheap car to replace our leased car. This will give us more cash back per month. With the motorbike option I can actually commute cheaper than the the train. But NZ weather can be unpredictable so I keep a 10-trip pass handy for the worst of days. Overall though, the new set up looks good. Amy drives the car to work and I take the bike/train. Gabe goes to good kiwi gal's house after school 3 days a week.
US Shopping:
I did take advantage of US shopping to get a few goods. Mostly bulk Ibuprofen and Asprin. But I did stop at a western outfitter and pick up stuff you truly can not get in NZ... I got new boots with silver tips, several western shirts, and new jeans.
Work:
Busy as, but doing well.
Kiwi Spring:
Cold as, bro.
Party I want to have:
I want to host a Battlestar Galactica party featuring a few episodes, a BBQ, and some play of the BSG board game. Not sure I will... but I think of it fondly.
My Dad:
Dying, but looking pretty good. Chemo was stopped so that makes you feel better. Visit was emotionally complex, but ultimately good.
My Kids:
Totally awesome to see them. Great to spend so much time just following them around from school to home and such. Good to talk with their teachers. Field trip with Sabrina was one of the best times I've had. I put 2000 miles on the car I borrowed from my in-laws (Thanks Judith and Cindy!)
Vegas:
Still the same. The Bellagio may be my favorite hotel of all time.
The US:
It was actually hard going back. Vegas didn't help as it is an exaggerated version of all things excess in America. I was battered by it somewhat. Everyone I visited with was working harder than before, more stressed, and generally stretched. It was an incredible favor to be able to stay with Carey and Graham while I was there (thanks!).
Wall Street:
I read an article about how fundamentally illegal market manipulation may have collapsed 3 of the 5 big banks in America. The article was posted in Rolling Stone which I found odd. But despite the most glaring and flagrant manipulation no official investigation was underway. Most concerning is that if you looked at who had the most to gain such an act you would see the other 2 banks. There were many suspicious dealing by these 2 leading up to the collapse. I am appalled to now think these crooks will never be held accountable and the money they stole from Americans will never be given back.
NZ History:
I have been reading "The Penguin History of New Zealand" (Penguin is a book publisher here) by Michael King. It is insightful and well written. I am delighted to read about the amazing journey NZ has taken. I am surprised to discover that for at least a generation, NZ did not teach this history which is rich in culture and identity.
NZ Stock Exchange:
I have begun to write letters to the NZX to ask if the scheme above could happen in NZ. I would push them to make sure it is not.
NaNoWrMo:
Yes, it is coming up. But I again don't think it is something I can push for. But I am sure to write some. I will likely work more on Threshold--the projected I started last NaNoWrMo.
The Ex:
While in the US I also had to work on a new agreement with my ex. Such things are always stressful, but we worked really well together. As a result of the compressed schedule we had to spent more time together than we have in probably 10 years. It was weird, but it was also good to demonstrate how much we had both changed and moved on.
Motorbikes, Trains and Automobiles:
We bought a small cheap car to replace our leased car. This will give us more cash back per month. With the motorbike option I can actually commute cheaper than the the train. But NZ weather can be unpredictable so I keep a 10-trip pass handy for the worst of days. Overall though, the new set up looks good. Amy drives the car to work and I take the bike/train. Gabe goes to good kiwi gal's house after school 3 days a week.
US Shopping:
I did take advantage of US shopping to get a few goods. Mostly bulk Ibuprofen and Asprin. But I did stop at a western outfitter and pick up stuff you truly can not get in NZ... I got new boots with silver tips, several western shirts, and new jeans.
Work:
Busy as, but doing well.
Kiwi Spring:
Cold as, bro.
Party I want to have:
I want to host a Battlestar Galactica party featuring a few episodes, a BBQ, and some play of the BSG board game. Not sure I will... but I think of it fondly.
Monday, February 23, 2009
Adult Content Warning
So I decided to share a piece of cyberpunky fiction with some friends who ask for it. I wrote the whole thing on my spare time, but kept the file on my work laptop for convenience. I haven't opened the file since before our Holiday break in December nor did I open it today. I simply attached it and forwarded it. About a second later I got this automated message...
Your email message RE: Cyberpunk? to "Ben Wilson" has been delivered.
However it was identified by our content filtering processes as containing language that may be considered inappropriate for business-like communication. It is possible that the recipient(s) may not have received it if they run similar filtering processes. You may want to confirm with the recipient(s) that they have received the email correctly.
A copy of this email has been redirected to an administration queue which is randomly scanned for inappropriate mail and objectionable material.
Email that fails to comply with ******* corporate policy may result in disciplinary action being taken.
The ******* corporate email policy can be found at
The content which caused this to happen was
List:Reputation Protection Keywords
Found the expression "porn*" 2 times, at 2 points each, for an expression score of 4 points.
Found the expression "bitch*" 1 times, at 3 points each, for an expression score of 3 points.
Found the expression "*fuck*" 2 times, at 1 points each, for an expression score of 2 points.
Found the expression "Fuck" 4 times, at 9 points each, for an expression score of 36 points.
Found the expression "nasty" 1 times, at 1 points each, for an expression score of 1 points.
Found the expression "rape" 1 times, at 2 points each, for an expression score of 2 points.
Found the expression "sex" 2 times, at 2 points each, for an expression score of 4 points.
Found the expression "shit" 2 times, at 1 points each, for an expression score of 2 points.
Found the expression "naked" 2 times, at 1 points each, for an expression score of 2 points.
=============================================================
Total Message Score: 56 points.
Woo! 56 points on the naughty system!
Of course, I didn't know we had a naughty word scanner on the network... I suppose that was money well spent to find all the folks who might be sending naughty words. I mean if you sent an offensive work message, I bet the recepient would complain to their supervisor. Then they could lookup the naughtiness point value... maybe they have a threshold where 50 points is a misdemeanor and 100 points is a felony.
Just who sat down and coded which words were naughtiest? How exactly did they accomplish this on their own network without tripping their own alarms... What about the autoresponder itself... If I fowarded this to my boss, would it get in trouble too?
Anyway folks... The data gods are watching. A strange irony to be detected in a cyberpunk story...
Adult Content Warning
So I decided to share a piece of cyberpunky fiction with some friends who ask for it. I wrote the whole thing on my spare time, but kept the file on my work laptop for convenience. I haven't opened the file since before our Holiday break in December nor did I open it today. I simply attached it and forwarded it. About a second later I got this automated message...
Your email message RE: Cyberpunk? to "Ben Wilson" has been delivered.
However it was identified by our content filtering processes as containing language that may be considered inappropriate for business-like communication. It is possible that the recipient(s) may not have received it if they run similar filtering processes. You may want to confirm with the recipient(s) that they have received the email correctly.
A copy of this email has been redirected to an administration queue which is randomly scanned for inappropriate mail and objectionable material.
Email that fails to comply with ******* corporate policy may result in disciplinary action being taken.
The ******* corporate email policy can be found at
The content which caused this to happen was
List:Reputation Protection Keywords
Found the expression "porn*" 2 times, at 2 points each, for an expression score of 4 points.
Found the expression "bitch*" 1 times, at 3 points each, for an expression score of 3 points.
Found the expression "*fuck*" 2 times, at 1 points each, for an expression score of 2 points.
Found the expression "Fuck" 4 times, at 9 points each, for an expression score of 36 points.
Found the expression "nasty" 1 times, at 1 points each, for an expression score of 1 points.
Found the expression "rape" 1 times, at 2 points each, for an expression score of 2 points.
Found the expression "sex" 2 times, at 2 points each, for an expression score of 4 points.
Found the expression "shit" 2 times, at 1 points each, for an expression score of 2 points.
Found the expression "naked" 2 times, at 1 points each, for an expression score of 2 points.
=============================================================
Total Message Score: 56 points.
Woo! 56 points on the naughty system!
Of course, I didn't know we had a naughty word scanner on the network... I suppose that was money well spent to find all the folks who might be sending naughty words. I mean if you sent an offensive work message, I bet the recepient would complain to their supervisor. Then they could lookup the naughtiness point value... maybe they have a threshold where 50 points is a misdemeanor and 100 points is a felony.
Just who sat down and coded which words were naughtiest? How exactly did they accomplish this on their own network without tripping their own alarms... What about the autoresponder itself... If I fowarded this to my boss, would it get in trouble too?
Anyway folks... The data gods are watching. A strange irony to be detected in a cyberpunk story...
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