If there’s one thing I dislike about spring, it’s the homeless. Don’t get me wrong, or mistake me for some cold-hearted beast without an iota of human feeling. I’m all in favor of helping people who’ve fallen on hard times. I contribute to the local food bank, I round up items to donate for the homeless shelter’s winter clothes-and-bedding drive. I believe in helping. I think what I’m really getting at here is this: I dislike the people who are pretending to be homeless. Maybe I can explain….
Archive for March, 2010
Man on the Corner
Friday, March 26th, 2010“Team player”… Bull… Durham
Tuesday, March 16th, 2010When I’m feeling optimistic I suppose that people from all walks of life are reading what I write. That would include high brow folks who frown at obscenities. So, before I delve into today’s diatribe, let me just say that I’m borrowing ‘bull durham’ from a dear old gal who’s renowned for not cussing. We can also use the abbreviation ‘b.s.’ – but, ‘bull durham’ is a little funnier. Either way… there you have it. I don’t have anything cheery to say about today’s phrase: team player.
‘Free’ Business Cards Explored
Monday, March 15th, 2010Business cards are handy things. I’ve used more of them over the course of my lifetime as bookmarks than as a means of patronizing anyone’s business… but that’s still finding a use for them. I recently thought I might like to have business cards for my freelancing, and set about investigating the so-called free business card offers online. I’m going to stick with the term so-called and with employing the single quote marks that indicate both falsehood and the speaker’s sarcasm – because even the cheapest of the ‘free’ business cards even out their affordability with endless, endless, endless hassle.
Natural Soap (worth the cost?)
Wednesday, March 10th, 2010People who are seriously into the all-natural hygiene product scene sometimes get excited (by excited I mean disapproving or panicked, depending on their personality) about the potential toxicitiy of commerically-prepared soaps. I’m talking about the ordinary bars of soap a person uses in the shower and buys at the grocery store for a nominal fee – the Dial, Zest, and Irish Spring sorts of soap. These soaps generally come in multi-packs, and the price per bar averages between 50 cents and $1.25, roughly. Without getting into how fast they dissolve and the weights of the average bar of soap, when you compare that to the $3.50 – $6.00 price tag (per bar) on the hand-made, all-natural, or organic soaps out there, you have to ask yourself: “is it really worth that much more?”
Civility, and Chess
Friday, March 5th, 2010I’ve always loved chess. I’m not very good at it, but I like the concentration it requires and the semi-academic sense I always get when playing it. Something about a game of chess suggests refinement and maturity (at least to me) and I’ve been wishing, lately, that more people approached conversation they way they should approach chess.
Product Review – Stash Tea (Green Chai)
Wednesday, March 3rd, 2010I’m a supporter of loose-leaf teas from fancy outfits, not just because they sell a fine product, but I really enjoy the old-timey experience of measuring out loose tea. People were keeping tins of loose tea long before any of us were born… and for some reason, fighting with the lids, botching the measuring, and spilling loose tea on the counter makes me feel a little more connected with the whole human race. (I’m actually really serious, and urge everyone to give it a try. It’s like a visit to a living history museum, right in your own kitchen.) But, we don’t always have the luxury or the time to prepare loose-leaf teas to accompany us to the office, on the trail, or in the car.
Vacations, Pauperdom, and a Measure of Freedom
Tuesday, March 2nd, 2010Within the space of one week, I had plans for 2.5 vacations fall through. I say 2.5 because two were excursions I was involved in planning, and one was an invitation from a third party that I had to turn down. I’ll admit that two and a half vacations in one year seems pretty extravagant. But the idea of going on no vacation at all makes me frown and think the word pauper (yes, in italics and everything). It also makes me think that the plans we make for our spare time and money are so fraught with pitfalls that I might actually prefer furrowing my brow and thinking the word pauper to actually going anywhere.
The tackiest thing on wheels
Tuesday, March 30th, 2010Like any sane freelancer, I try to be as objective as I can. My writing is out here on the internet where anyone – even current and potential employers – could read it. It’s not always easy to balance honesty and tact (to which I know, honestly, I know, some things are better left unsaid). But I have my opinions the same as anyone else, and even if it might alienate someone, I’m saying this anyway: the car-window memorial is just plain tacky. Humans are social creatures and I know that many cultures, past and present, have adopted visual expressions of grief. Anyone passingly familiar with “Gone with the Wind” will recall the practice of dressing in black following the death of a loved one. Something about a tangible reminder of loss seems like the least we could do in memory of someone we cared about. But, emblazoning their name on your vehicle… it’s a step I can’t take. It’s a practice I can’t take seriously. As a historian I try to understand, and to be understanding, but sometimes I can’t. I won’t.
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Tags: rolling garbage can, stickers, tacky
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