There was an interesting quote in a book I just finished reading. It went something like this,
“Physics majors see something and will ask, ‘why does that work.’ Engineering majors will ask, ‘why does that work?’ A psychology major will ask, ‘do you want fries with that?'” If you like, you could substitute the word “psychology” with just about…
This weekend I told to someone caffeine was a recent vice. It was subsequently suggested my recent obsession with America’s Favorite Stimulant was less vice and more love at first sip.
What, doesn’t everyone plan their daily menu around each item’s relative stimulating effect?
History teachers would have you believe the pilgrims came to the new land for religious freedom, but could they be…
The doctor wanted to see us again in two months. As we were leaving, the receptionist offered us the date of October 29th. Her two-tone hairstyle and youthful detachment lent an “I won’t be working here much longer” air to her demeanor. I asked if she had something on November 5th. She dutifully advised me that two months would be October 29th. I said I wanted November 5th. The…
I was sitting at work and I was desperate for a postage stamp. I don’t normally conduct personal business at work (these entries being a notable exception), so I’m not used to carrying stamps to the office – let alone using them. I broadcast an APB for a stamp and got an immediate reply. A stamp had been seen in the office next door. My coworker dutifully gave me a single stamp…
In Word, I typed “its” – the contraction of “it is” not the possessive of “it.” In its infinite wisdom, Word “autocorrected” my word to “it’s” which apparently was correct. The contraction of “it is” has an apostrophe, the possessive version of “it” does not (or so says the English Grammar Rules…
I was driving to work, and I was late. I was pulling onto the highway and signaled my intent to switch lanes. Alumni from the New York School of Big City Driving know that this was my first mistake. Signaling, turning your head, making eye contact, or any other means of contact with the driver behind you is a sign of weakness; and you know what a predator does with the weak member of the herd…
This entry started with a comment made on NPR. Frank Deford appears on NPR once a week to provide a piece of commentary on sports. This week he made an appearance in the studio for a brief interview in which he discussed the sporting events he’s following this summer. Near the end of the interview he was asked if he was following baseball, and he replied that he was following Baltimore…
I really wish it would just rain already. It’s been three weeks since I last rode my bike to work. We’ve had three weeks of high rain probabilities and sporadic engagements that require my car during the day. Yet the last several days have been mostly sunny, and it’s driving me bonkers. The sun has been shining in my window all morning, uninterrupted, mocking me.
Don’t you…
Something very strange has happened to me this morning. I had settled down into what had been a pretty typical rainy workday morning. I was peacefully plugging away at my desk, quietly jamming to the output of my too cool iPod, when suddenly, and inexplicably, I find my desk eerily barren. My pile of emergencies is gone. My low priority problem pile has similarly vanished. My shelf of garden…