I've got 99 problems.
...and school ain't one. Yet.
I thought that work--and work only--all summer would mean no worries about anything. But I've been worrying a great deal about a great deal the past several weeks. From shady subletters and questionable checks to worn tires and creaking brakes, at one point everything just got overwhelming. Certainly, these things pale in comparison to other people's concerns. But I'm just so tired of everything, especially traffic. I've gotten to the point of actually being content with one-hour commutes that in late morning or middle of the night would take only a quarter of an hour. One hour and fifteen minutes is where I draw the line between annoyance and moodiness. It's just terrible. And the way that some people drive these days is ridiculous. I like to think that I have been driving more safely--I wouldn't say "better" just because I never drove "poorly" to have to get "better"--lately; for instance, I used to drive at least 80 mph when the road allowed, but now 65 seems all too fast sometimes... But perhaps that's due to the inexplicable slowness that is 405-freeway and 10-freeway traffic. In comparison to that, no store or restaurant line ever seems so bad anymore!
Speaking of restaurant, I finally went to The Misfit Restaurant + Bar in Santa Monica earlier. I had had it bookmarked on Yelp for nearly a year, and sort of unexpectedly ended up there. I felt like such an adult, going in dressed in my work clothes, having gone straight there from work, and then sitting down to eagerly partake in happy hour. Its happy hour is quite great--half off all cocktails, with PIMM's (you England folks know what I'm talking about!) for only $3.50! Oh, goodness gracious. And then afterward, I walked down the street to Ye Old King's Shoppe and saw a bunch of (frozen) meat pies. Although I didn't much enjoy meat pies in England, I have a deep appreciation for anything that reminds me of that endlessly wonderful country.
I have a serious case of wanderlust. Every time I see someone's travel picture on Instagram, I immediately stop scrolling and admire the image, wishing with all my might that I could be there instead of here for even just a moment. I really would love to start saving up to plan another trip around Europe next summer, this time starting with Italy and ending with the United Kingdom. For now, I'll settle for establishing an income. I guess that's the sensible, albeit boring, thing to do.
But really, work hasn't been all that boring. Although upon introduction and orientation human resources didn't parallel what I expected, I rather enjoy it. I'm a people-person and a busy-body, so constantly having to do things that pertain to various people appeals to my curiosity and interests. Being on the other side of the interview process definitely presents a different perspective on the job-seeking process, and I have learned an invaluable amount about how to say what (whereas before, I knew only what to say, and then used pretty words to articulate it). It's fascinating, human resources.
In the only political science class I understood and liked, we had a few lectures about Heidegger, who I've referred to before and who in The Question Concerning Technology points out that we are so technological we capitalize ourselves as resources, ready to be used to contribute to society at any given time. That bit led me to see human resources as simply mechanical and thus monotonous. But that's only in text. In reality, it is far from mechanical--notwithstanding the many computers we use--and monotonous--notwithstanding the black-and-white printers we have. You never know what to expect, and I love that kind of thing.
Recently, I realized how fascinating it is that we understand the extent to which we mean something when we say, "How (insert adjective here)" or "What a (insert noun here)" to each other. "How" and "what" are technically question words, in which case both sayings would be inquiring of the extent to which we mean what we are about to say. But no! We make statements initiated by these words and expect--reasonably, I suppose--our interlocutors to immediately and accurately interpret and comprehend exactly how much. It appears that from time to time, "How (insert adjective here)" and "What a (insert noun here)" could also act as questions, given that something like "...is that?" follows the parenthesized suggestions. In this case, both utterances become a seemingly rhetorical question, which, obviously, expects no answer at all. And by this lack of expectation of answer, we are again expecting our conversant to understand exactly what extent our question-statements signify! Crazy.
Additionally, some people say "I've got (insert noun here)" or "I've got to (insert verb phrase here)". I find that quite redundant, since "got" means the same as the contracted "have" in "I've". So, "I"ve got" is short for "I have got", which is the same as "I have have". Unless you say this in a British accent, it just doesn't sound right. And it just isn't right in general! Sure, one could argue that "have got" acts as emphasis, but it's kind of like "overexaggerating". To exaggerate is already to go over the top. To over-exaggerate is... what? To top the top the top, ad infinitum?
My apologies if my mess of thoughts confused you. But these are the things that keep me up at night and during traffic. And on that note, good night, all!
I thought that work--and work only--all summer would mean no worries about anything. But I've been worrying a great deal about a great deal the past several weeks. From shady subletters and questionable checks to worn tires and creaking brakes, at one point everything just got overwhelming. Certainly, these things pale in comparison to other people's concerns. But I'm just so tired of everything, especially traffic. I've gotten to the point of actually being content with one-hour commutes that in late morning or middle of the night would take only a quarter of an hour. One hour and fifteen minutes is where I draw the line between annoyance and moodiness. It's just terrible. And the way that some people drive these days is ridiculous. I like to think that I have been driving more safely--I wouldn't say "better" just because I never drove "poorly" to have to get "better"--lately; for instance, I used to drive at least 80 mph when the road allowed, but now 65 seems all too fast sometimes... But perhaps that's due to the inexplicable slowness that is 405-freeway and 10-freeway traffic. In comparison to that, no store or restaurant line ever seems so bad anymore!
Speaking of restaurant, I finally went to The Misfit Restaurant + Bar in Santa Monica earlier. I had had it bookmarked on Yelp for nearly a year, and sort of unexpectedly ended up there. I felt like such an adult, going in dressed in my work clothes, having gone straight there from work, and then sitting down to eagerly partake in happy hour. Its happy hour is quite great--half off all cocktails, with PIMM's (you England folks know what I'm talking about!) for only $3.50! Oh, goodness gracious. And then afterward, I walked down the street to Ye Old King's Shoppe and saw a bunch of (frozen) meat pies. Although I didn't much enjoy meat pies in England, I have a deep appreciation for anything that reminds me of that endlessly wonderful country.
I have a serious case of wanderlust. Every time I see someone's travel picture on Instagram, I immediately stop scrolling and admire the image, wishing with all my might that I could be there instead of here for even just a moment. I really would love to start saving up to plan another trip around Europe next summer, this time starting with Italy and ending with the United Kingdom. For now, I'll settle for establishing an income. I guess that's the sensible, albeit boring, thing to do.
But really, work hasn't been all that boring. Although upon introduction and orientation human resources didn't parallel what I expected, I rather enjoy it. I'm a people-person and a busy-body, so constantly having to do things that pertain to various people appeals to my curiosity and interests. Being on the other side of the interview process definitely presents a different perspective on the job-seeking process, and I have learned an invaluable amount about how to say what (whereas before, I knew only what to say, and then used pretty words to articulate it). It's fascinating, human resources.
In the only political science class I understood and liked, we had a few lectures about Heidegger, who I've referred to before and who in The Question Concerning Technology points out that we are so technological we capitalize ourselves as resources, ready to be used to contribute to society at any given time. That bit led me to see human resources as simply mechanical and thus monotonous. But that's only in text. In reality, it is far from mechanical--notwithstanding the many computers we use--and monotonous--notwithstanding the black-and-white printers we have. You never know what to expect, and I love that kind of thing.
Recently, I realized how fascinating it is that we understand the extent to which we mean something when we say, "How (insert adjective here)" or "What a (insert noun here)" to each other. "How" and "what" are technically question words, in which case both sayings would be inquiring of the extent to which we mean what we are about to say. But no! We make statements initiated by these words and expect--reasonably, I suppose--our interlocutors to immediately and accurately interpret and comprehend exactly how much. It appears that from time to time, "How (insert adjective here)" and "What a (insert noun here)" could also act as questions, given that something like "...is that?" follows the parenthesized suggestions. In this case, both utterances become a seemingly rhetorical question, which, obviously, expects no answer at all. And by this lack of expectation of answer, we are again expecting our conversant to understand exactly what extent our question-statements signify! Crazy.
Additionally, some people say "I've got (insert noun here)" or "I've got to (insert verb phrase here)". I find that quite redundant, since "got" means the same as the contracted "have" in "I've". So, "I"ve got" is short for "I have got", which is the same as "I have have". Unless you say this in a British accent, it just doesn't sound right. And it just isn't right in general! Sure, one could argue that "have got" acts as emphasis, but it's kind of like "overexaggerating". To exaggerate is already to go over the top. To over-exaggerate is... what? To top the top the top, ad infinitum?
My apologies if my mess of thoughts confused you. But these are the things that keep me up at night and during traffic. And on that note, good night, all!
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