So, last year I had a look back at 2006 once it was 3/4 of the way through. I'm doing this again, except 2007 is the year of Lindsay and I want to see how true I've stayed to that.
(+) Fell in love with a great guy who saw my darkest, most horrible days and still wanted me.
(+) Branched out friend-wise in Boston and really established a solid network of girlfriends for the first time in my post-academic life.
(+) Got a new job at a start-up.
(+) Was the Maid of Honor in Kristina's wedding.
(+) Was asked to be the Maid of Honor in another friend's wedding.
(+/-) Moved to NYC.
(-) Lost more friends to different coasts and continents.
(-) Realized how much I would miss Boston only after I left.
(-) Finding out that random roommates are not always the best idea and having to live with that for the next 6 months at least.
(-) Hearing that one of my only girlfriends in NYC is leaving in a year.
(-) Not getting into the grad school I wanted to on the first try.
2007 is pretty neck-and-neck so far... the rest of the year has the potential to be amazing or horrific. Stay tuned.
26 September 2007
09 July 2007
Who needs a big purple dinosaur when kids have Hip Hop Harry? Your new urban friend who teaches you about friendship, emotions, and... how important it is to drink water? Seriously?
Seriously.
Seriously.
12 June 2007
PowerPoint and Daydreaming of Mac
I truly believe this to be true.
Currently I am creating pie chart after graph after pie chart in PowerPoint and I want to either cry or claw my own eyes out (I expect that the latter would result in the former, assuming that its possible with so much damage to my tear ducts - anyways).
Instead of doing either of the above, I'm chosing instead to initiate Option 3: Procrastination By Way of Blog.
Specifically, I am reading a ton of blogs on wired.com -- my favorites being Underwire (pop culure), Listening Post (music blog), and finally Cult of Mac (self explanatory).
So anyways, I'm reading through Cult of Mac, learning all about how the WWDC and how pissed off developers are at Mr. Jobs for not releasing an SDK and all I can think is, how awesome would it be to work at Apple in Product Marketing?
The answer? Super awesome.
I'm sure it's TONS of work and that it's long hours and blah blah blah, but whatever.
It's Apple.
Instead of working on boring software (no offense, tech company with great benefits and yadda yadda but your software is just not as sexy as Apple's hardware... or it's software for that matter) I could work on things like the iPhone, Safari beta for Windows, or the holy grail of products, the iPod.
Good thing for my current job working at Apple would require a move to the Silicon Valley - something that I'm just not down for right now. I like seasons. And I like being on the same coast as the majority of my friends and Boyfriend.
Maybe in a few years Apple and I will have a conversation. In the meantime, it's all dull software, all the time.
...back to the PowerPoint.
Currently I am creating pie chart after graph after pie chart in PowerPoint and I want to either cry or claw my own eyes out (I expect that the latter would result in the former, assuming that its possible with so much damage to my tear ducts - anyways).
Instead of doing either of the above, I'm chosing instead to initiate Option 3: Procrastination By Way of Blog.
Specifically, I am reading a ton of blogs on wired.com -- my favorites being Underwire (pop culure), Listening Post (music blog), and finally Cult of Mac (self explanatory).
So anyways, I'm reading through Cult of Mac, learning all about how the WWDC and how pissed off developers are at Mr. Jobs for not releasing an SDK and all I can think is, how awesome would it be to work at Apple in Product Marketing?
The answer? Super awesome.
I'm sure it's TONS of work and that it's long hours and blah blah blah, but whatever.
It's Apple.
Instead of working on boring software (no offense, tech company with great benefits and yadda yadda but your software is just not as sexy as Apple's hardware... or it's software for that matter) I could work on things like the iPhone, Safari beta for Windows, or the holy grail of products, the iPod.
Good thing for my current job working at Apple would require a move to the Silicon Valley - something that I'm just not down for right now. I like seasons. And I like being on the same coast as the majority of my friends and Boyfriend.
Maybe in a few years Apple and I will have a conversation. In the meantime, it's all dull software, all the time.
...back to the PowerPoint.
08 June 2007
Cubicle Wars
So, whenever someone in my work group of friends is out of town on fun or business my Young Professional Colleagues and I routinely invade their cubicles, leaving random presents hanging up.
Examples of our cubicle wars include:
Examples of our cubicle wars include:
- Filling every drawer and cabinet with 50lbs of orange shredded paper
- Leaving a wrapped present from a store called Hubba Hubba.
- Hanging up a random poster that takes up the entire wall.
- Leaving a cheap talking frame permanently attached to a cube wall with a non-work appropriate recorded message.
- Hanging up a subway ad for drug addiction on the outer wall of the cubicle
06 June 2007
£400,000 Worth of Seizures
Apparently, the new logo for the 2012 Olympics in London is causing seizures when animated.From The Daily Mail Online:
"As animated footage promoting the London 2012 Olympics is removed from its official website amid claims that it could trigger epileptic seizures, Sportsmail readers are giving the official 2012 logo the big thumbs-down.
Allegations have been made by the BBC that footage involving a diver plunging into a pool has already caused seizures.
The footage controversy follows widespread ridicule surrounding the 2012 logo. The bold, jagged £400,000 brand, which is a modern take on the Olympic colours, took a year to research, including consumer testing.Organisers have hailed it as dynamic and vibrant, but other people have said it resembles a "toileting monkey" or a "broken swastika"."
A year of research and this is what they came up with? What sort of research did they do? Focus groups that consisted of 5-year olds and aging nazis?
FOR SHAME, LONDON, FOR SHAME.
04 June 2007
Don't Neglect to Notice the Convenient "Give Online" Button
The day I graduated from Boston University, the Telefund office called me for an Alumni donation.
As in, I was in line to receive my diploma from Professor Berkovitz and my mobile was ringing off the hook with a summer work study student asking for my money, you know, now that I was an alumni and all. I politely told Little Miss No Tact that I was, in fact, not an alumni because I was still waiting in line to receive my diploma and that even if I had, you know, walked across the stage already I was still not going to give her any cash - my donations would be starting in 6 months in the form of massive student loans, checks payable to Boston University thankyouverymuch.
Of course, this hasn't stopped them from trying. Just today I recieved the below charming gem from a recent COM grad who seems to have taken a note out of the SMG book and sold his soul for a little cash.
From: "Boston University"
To: "Boston University Alumni"
Subject: A Message from a BU Student
Date: Mon, 4 Jun 2007 14:31:15 -0400 (EDT)
Excitement. Discoveries. Opportunities. My four years at Boston University were filled with these and much more. At BU, I grew from a shaky adolescent, unsure of what I wanted, into an informed adult ready to take on the world.
Many of the technological improvements, extracurricular activities, and educational opportunities that enriched my BU experience were made possible by contributions from generous alumni. Because of this, I decided to make my first contribution to BU, through the Class of 2007 Gift Program. Combined with the gifts of my classmates, my seemingly small donation will do much to improve my school. I see it as the start of me giving back to the place that has given me so much.
As a student supervisor in the Telefund office, I've called thousands of alumni and understand the various reasons people have for not giving, but I've also seen firsthand how current students have benefited from alumni support. I am writing to you now no longer as a student, but as a new member of the alumni community, and I want to encourage you to join me in giving back to BU. Even a small gift can go a long way.
Thank you for your support,
Brian Anthony Pitre
COM’ 07
As in, I was in line to receive my diploma from Professor Berkovitz and my mobile was ringing off the hook with a summer work study student asking for my money, you know, now that I was an alumni and all. I politely told Little Miss No Tact that I was, in fact, not an alumni because I was still waiting in line to receive my diploma and that even if I had, you know, walked across the stage already I was still not going to give her any cash - my donations would be starting in 6 months in the form of massive student loans, checks payable to Boston University thankyouverymuch.
Of course, this hasn't stopped them from trying. Just today I recieved the below charming gem from a recent COM grad who seems to have taken a note out of the SMG book and sold his soul for a little cash.
From: "Boston University"
To: "Boston University Alumni"
Subject: A Message from a BU Student
Date: Mon, 4 Jun 2007 14:31:15 -0400 (EDT)
Excitement. Discoveries. Opportunities. My four years at Boston University were filled with these and much more. At BU, I grew from a shaky adolescent, unsure of what I wanted, into an informed adult ready to take on the world.
Many of the technological improvements, extracurricular activities, and educational opportunities that enriched my BU experience were made possible by contributions from generous alumni. Because of this, I decided to make my first contribution to BU, through the Class of 2007 Gift Program. Combined with the gifts of my classmates, my seemingly small donation will do much to improve my school. I see it as the start of me giving back to the place that has given me so much.
As a student supervisor in the Telefund office, I've called thousands of alumni and understand the various reasons people have for not giving, but I've also seen firsthand how current students have benefited from alumni support. I am writing to you now no longer as a student, but as a new member of the alumni community, and I want to encourage you to join me in giving back to BU. Even a small gift can go a long way.
Thank you for your support,
Brian Anthony Pitre
COM’ 07
Boston University Annual Giving| Boston, MA
www.bu.edu/annualfund
31 May 2007
May Movies, also known as why i haven't blogged for a month.
So, I realize that I have been MIA for the entire month of May - longer if you don't count the How to Charm Me entry. So, why the absence?
I blame the cinema and boyfriend - they're like a Lindsay-stealing tag team of entertainment and fun that keeps me away from my keyboard. And, while I can't do a 'Worst and Best Of...' for boyfriend, I can do a 'Worst and Best of...' for movies I've seen this month.
28 Weeks Later: Possibly the worst sequel to an amazing movie ever made. Ever. Honestly, I hate horror movies but I loved 28 Days Later... and not just because I got to see Cillian Murphy take it all off (though that didn't hurt).
28 Days Later had a very clear plot line, characters I cared about, and, most of all, it had a very human vein running right down it's center. Yes, there was gore, but it was warranted to some extent.
28 Weeks Later had only one of the above elements and I'm sure you can guess which one. Did you guess gore? If you did it means you're not retarded.
This is an unnecessary and graphic gore-fest of a movie (for real. There was one scene that was so disgusting someone in the back of our theatre puked) with plot holes so large I could fly the new Boeing 787 Dreamliner through them.
Just like 28 Days Later we were left with questions --except this time they weren't philisophically based, they were psychologically based. As in, "Why in the world did Danny Boyle allow this to happen to his franchise?"
Hot Fuzz: This movie was just the breath of fresh air that boyfriend and I needed after being so completely stressed out from 28 Weeks Later (ok, so that was just me.)
Done by the same camp that brought us Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz is a great comedy that continuously pokes fun at all of those Bad Boys/Fast and the Furious type movies out there. You know the ones - your boyfriend drags you to them as revenge for forcing him to sit through the vocal stylings of Hugh Grant and Drew Barrymore in Music & Lyrics the week before.
Anyways, if you like British comedy - dry, wry, and self-depricating - you'll love this movie. Honestly, I never laugh out loud at films and this one had me rolling in the aisles. The pairing of Simon Pegg and Nick Frost worked in Shaun and it works again in Hot Fuzz. God, I just love it so much I wish they'd get married or something.
Bonus points for the cameos by Martin Freeman (Tim in The Office and Arthur in Hitchiker's Guide to the Galaxy) and Bill Nighy (Billy Mack in Love, Actually and Shaun's stepfather in Shaun of the Dead).
Mega bonus points for incorporating "...by the power of Grayskull" into the script multiple times.
I blame the cinema and boyfriend - they're like a Lindsay-stealing tag team of entertainment and fun that keeps me away from my keyboard. And, while I can't do a 'Worst and Best Of...' for boyfriend, I can do a 'Worst and Best of...' for movies I've seen this month.
28 Weeks Later: Possibly the worst sequel to an amazing movie ever made. Ever. Honestly, I hate horror movies but I loved 28 Days Later... and not just because I got to see Cillian Murphy take it all off (though that didn't hurt).28 Days Later had a very clear plot line, characters I cared about, and, most of all, it had a very human vein running right down it's center. Yes, there was gore, but it was warranted to some extent.
28 Weeks Later had only one of the above elements and I'm sure you can guess which one. Did you guess gore? If you did it means you're not retarded.
This is an unnecessary and graphic gore-fest of a movie (for real. There was one scene that was so disgusting someone in the back of our theatre puked) with plot holes so large I could fly the new Boeing 787 Dreamliner through them.
Just like 28 Days Later we were left with questions --except this time they weren't philisophically based, they were psychologically based. As in, "Why in the world did Danny Boyle allow this to happen to his franchise?"
Hot Fuzz: This movie was just the breath of fresh air that boyfriend and I needed after being so completely stressed out from 28 Weeks Later (ok, so that was just me.)Done by the same camp that brought us Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz is a great comedy that continuously pokes fun at all of those Bad Boys/Fast and the Furious type movies out there. You know the ones - your boyfriend drags you to them as revenge for forcing him to sit through the vocal stylings of Hugh Grant and Drew Barrymore in Music & Lyrics the week before.
Anyways, if you like British comedy - dry, wry, and self-depricating - you'll love this movie. Honestly, I never laugh out loud at films and this one had me rolling in the aisles. The pairing of Simon Pegg and Nick Frost worked in Shaun and it works again in Hot Fuzz. God, I just love it so much I wish they'd get married or something.
Bonus points for the cameos by Martin Freeman (Tim in The Office and Arthur in Hitchiker's Guide to the Galaxy) and Bill Nighy (Billy Mack in Love, Actually and Shaun's stepfather in Shaun of the Dead).
Mega bonus points for incorporating "...by the power of Grayskull" into the script multiple times.
01 May 2007
30 April 2007
In Response to the NY Times article: Young, Gifted, and Not Getting Into Harvard
For the past few years all that I've seen regarding collegiate admissions are flawless children; exceptionally privileged young Americans, raised in a white house with a picket fence and a two car garage. They attend private schools, overload on extracurriculars and AP courses, and stay up until the early hours researching Kant and Rousseau.
Though their wallets are more than adequate in size, theirs is a world that consists of a handful of possibilities: Harvard. Yale. Brown. Dartmouth. Georgetown. Cornell. A semester abroad at Oxford, perhaps, before the first job at Morgan Stanley and the daily commute made easier by the Audi S4 procured as a graduation gift.
On the outside, this looks like a great life. A charmed life, certainly; full of the Ivy League, summers spent on Martha's Vineyard, winter breaks snuggled up next to a fire in Aspen, starting salaries of $80k the day after graduation.
But what about on the inside?
The pressure that these exceptional students feel to succeed are pressures that never touched me in my solidly middle class family living in a lower class community. Of course, there was never a question of continuing my education after high school - but there was a question of where and for what.
State school for art or education?
The private institution for communications and english literature?
My parents supported whichever decision I made, regardless of their actual views on the subject. I never had to worry that by pursuing the arts I would be disappointing my parents and branding myself as the "free spirit" (re: disappointment) of the family.
For perhaps the first time I can see just how easy I have it.
Though their wallets are more than adequate in size, theirs is a world that consists of a handful of possibilities: Harvard. Yale. Brown. Dartmouth. Georgetown. Cornell. A semester abroad at Oxford, perhaps, before the first job at Morgan Stanley and the daily commute made easier by the Audi S4 procured as a graduation gift.
On the outside, this looks like a great life. A charmed life, certainly; full of the Ivy League, summers spent on Martha's Vineyard, winter breaks snuggled up next to a fire in Aspen, starting salaries of $80k the day after graduation.
But what about on the inside?
The pressure that these exceptional students feel to succeed are pressures that never touched me in my solidly middle class family living in a lower class community. Of course, there was never a question of continuing my education after high school - but there was a question of where and for what.
State school for art or education?
The private institution for communications and english literature?
My parents supported whichever decision I made, regardless of their actual views on the subject. I never had to worry that by pursuing the arts I would be disappointing my parents and branding myself as the "free spirit" (re: disappointment) of the family.
For perhaps the first time I can see just how easy I have it.
25 April 2007
Idle Hands.... (you know the rest)
-----Original Message-----
From: Seat Filler
Sent: Wednesday, April 25, 2007 4:22 PM
To: Chasing Ordinary
Subject:
does (Boyfriend), to your knowledge, have any difficult, high-volume or otherwise infuriating work to do this Friday?
-----Original Message-----
From: Chasing Ordinary
Sent: Wednesday, April 25, 2007 4:31 PM
To: Seat Filler
Subject: RE:
Not that I know of... Por que?
-----Original Message-----
From: Seat Filler
Sent: Wednesday, April 25, 2007 4:34 PM
To: Chasing Ordinary
Subject: RE:
I was thinking I might rearrange the letters on his keyboard to spell "ULOVEDICK" or something equally childish. But that would render his keyboard all but useless unless he's a complete touch typist.
Honestly, the ideal solution would be some sort of second keyboard so that in event he needed one that had not been mauled, he could use it. Though, I suppose since he has a laptop, this is kind of built-in.
-----Original Message-----
From: Chasing Ordinary
Sent: Wednesday, April 25, 2007 4:36 PM
To: Seat Filler
Subject: RE:
...are you really that bored?
-----Original Message-----
From: Seat Filler
Sent: Wednesday, April 25, 2007 4:42 PM
To: Chasing Ordinary
Subject: RE:
uh, obvi.
From: Seat Filler
Sent: Wednesday, April 25, 2007 4:22 PM
To: Chasing Ordinary
Subject:
does (Boyfriend), to your knowledge, have any difficult, high-volume or otherwise infuriating work to do this Friday?
-----Original Message-----
From: Chasing Ordinary
Sent: Wednesday, April 25, 2007 4:31 PM
To: Seat Filler
Subject: RE:
Not that I know of... Por que?
-----Original Message-----
From: Seat Filler
Sent: Wednesday, April 25, 2007 4:34 PM
To: Chasing Ordinary
Subject: RE:
I was thinking I might rearrange the letters on his keyboard to spell "ULOVEDICK" or something equally childish. But that would render his keyboard all but useless unless he's a complete touch typist.
Honestly, the ideal solution would be some sort of second keyboard so that in event he needed one that had not been mauled, he could use it. Though, I suppose since he has a laptop, this is kind of built-in.
-----Original Message-----
From: Chasing Ordinary
Sent: Wednesday, April 25, 2007 4:36 PM
To: Seat Filler
Subject: RE:
...are you really that bored?
-----Original Message-----
From: Seat Filler
Sent: Wednesday, April 25, 2007 4:42 PM
To: Chasing Ordinary
Subject: RE:
uh, obvi.
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