I’m always fascinated by the discussion of the separation of church and state, mainly because people are so passionately quoting things that aren’t actually true.
In any case, I thought “This American Life” did a great job of looking at the issue. You can listen here.
When I first left MS, I became naseous at the thought of even updating my resume. About 3 months later, I got it together to update it to include my last job at MS. Now, I’m to the point where, although I don’t know that I want a full time job again (not because I wouldn’t like the money, mind you), I have been interested in several part time positions, and have even submitted my resume for a few (and I don’t get naseous). Except for one place, which at least interviewed me, and then failed to follow up, none of them have even called me to set up an interview (this is only 2 places).
Here’s one of my problems: it’s an MS resume – it’s littered with technology. At MS, it wouldn’t be considered all that technical, but now that I’m just sort of trying to dip my toe in the water and see what things I might enjoy doing on a part time basis, it doesn’t really work.
I sent my resume to my mother and stepfather, who helped me write my first resume right after college. At that point, I had only really worked for them, so they had a really good grasp on what my work experience had been. I just talked to my mother about my latest resume, and she said “it’s really impressive, although I’m not sure what language it’s written in…” meaning, they don’t even understand it.
So, it’s time to step back and, I guess, write a skills based resume instead of an experience based one. This will be difficult for me, as sometimes I feel like I have no skills, or my skills are undefinable, or when I really start thinking about it, all I can think of are my weaknesses.
Then, there are the things that just plain confuse me. At MS, all Program Managers do “Project Management” in that we have to work with our team to help deliver a defined feature and/or feature set within a set period of time with limited resources and no authority. However, unless one is at a certain level, one does not manage budget (read money) per se, nor does one defining the time period. Rather, one is just pushing the work, prioritizing, and knocking down barriers. Also, it’s not exactly a secret that no one will come in on time, so really everyone just works as hard as they can within limits and within the constraints of all their dependencies.
So, the upshot here is that I feel like I cannot put “project management” as one of my proven skills.
*sigh*
Movie #1: 1776
Please, for the love of this country, watch this movie on or before July 4th. It will remind you why you should love this country and be proud of our heritage. It will also make you feel good about fighting for things the way they should be instead of the way they are now. It will also show you that the states rights vs. union argument has been going on since the very beginning. Plus, the music is good, and it’s funny!
Movie #2: Bigger than the Sky
We rented this movie this week, the week it was released on DVD, because our dear friend Victor is in it. However, it turned out to be really entertaining, and quite funny, especially for those of us who have done theater and love it. Plus it was filmed in lovely Portland and it stars the oh-so-dreamy John Corbett. There’s also an hysterical turn by Patty Duke and her son Sean Astin (who most of you geekozoids know as Sam).
Edit: Sam, not Frodo. I dislike LOTR, sorry.
…that I’m a geek from way back, I’m preparing to sell on Ebay my collection of Star Wars Trading cards – 73 in all. That’s right, 1977 trading cards from Topps and Wonderbread. Oh, and I have Close Encounters trading cards too (and Happy Days and Elvis and Grease and the Muppet Show).
Please, allow the mocking to commence.
I’ve found a cartoon that perfectly describes me perfectly.
I can’t remember if I’ve written about this before or not, but since I don’t know how to search LJ and I don’t add all my entries to memories, I’ll write it anyway. boniblithe is involved with a great many fandoms in a great many ways, and she really opened my eyes to the time, energy, thought, and passion that people put into their various fandoms.
So, I started to think about what shows/movies I care about or have cared about in my life. There have been different levels of attraction, but none has ever driven me to writing fiction, creating videos, or attending conventions. I did, however, resort to reading Star Trek fiction written by other people, and for awhile, when I was really depressed, I would have Star Trek dreams.
There are only a handful of shows I can watch over and over again. M*A*S*H was the first, and still one of the best. I also love other sitcoms from that period, like Mary Tyler Moore, Bob Newhart, and Rhoda.
There is one Britcom which holds a tremendous attraction for me, and that’s As Time Goes By. I love the quiet understanding of the main characters, and the love and respect and humor that all the characters share with each other. There have been so many times that I wished I could end my day having a cocktail with those characters.
I think the show that I’ve become most involved with has to be Northern Exposure. I’ve always loved the show, and now that it’s on the Hallmark channel every night at 11, I Tivo it. When this show first came on, I was intrigued, and I became more so as it progressed. I was so intrigued, that, when I still lived in NJ, and my mother was visiting Seattle, I asked her to drive to Roslyn, WA, so she could visit it and tell me what it was like. I loved the “utopian” society portrayed in this show. I loved the gentle humor, the radio show that played eclectic music (and oh boy do I love Chris in the Morning). Perhaps my greatest tribute to this show is that I actually ended up moving out here. Yes, I came for a job, but I think knowing that it looked like that out here helped. I watch the show now and I realize that every single day I look at the other side of the mountains they’re looking at, and they’re fishing in a river that eventually flows just a few miles past my house. A few years ago on my birthday, the Sweetie brought me out to Roslyn and we enjoyed a quiet day there. They still have the town set up like it is in the show and you can go into Dr. Fleischmann’s office, and look through the window of the radio station.
Anyway, you can see I’m quite devoted (in my own way).
I thought about the shows that I’ve loved, and I realized that they all have some things in common. I’m still digesting what it means. They’re all ensemble shows, with quiet humor, and the characters basically like each other. Here’s the kicker. No kids. None of them have kids in lead roles…heck, Northern Exposure has no kids at all, really.
So, there are my fandoms, Boni, as boring as they may be.
Allegro Con Brio 