Follow-up

Sigh. I got a very polite rejection e-mail today. It probably would have been wiser to wait until I got home to check this particular e-mail. Instead, I became aware of it when I was on my way to the grocery store and my iPod's volume dipped for a second, a sign that something landed in my inbox. I get inside the store and check the message and see the bad news.

There's the initial "Aw, maaaaaan," but then it really hits again about 45 seconds later. Of course, the Universe can't leave well enough alone and has to try to make this a friggin' MOMENT. I'm standing in the frozen pizza aisle across from rows and rows of alcohol. I make a conscious decision not to pick up anything named Jack. Then friggin' PIANO MAN starts playing on the PA system. Now I'm just getting angry. Shut up, Universe.

The good news is I now have a contact at ESPN who would like to meet with me when I get to the City. The people I interviewed with were impressed with me, so it is helpful to know that I'm making progress. Still: Aw, maaaaaan.

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Telephone

Many of the career guides I've consulted have equated the jobhunting process with the process of dating. You can understand why my baseline anxiety level, which was already pretty high, has elevated in the last five months.

Right now I'm in the waiting-by-the-telephone phase. The first date interview with ESPN went fine, and I had a second interview that went better. It's taken a few practice runs, but at this point I'm getting the hang of dating interviewing mores. Mores such as the neurotic internal dialogue:

"I thought we had a great time -- why hasn't he called? Maybe he's busy, he'll call tomorrow. Maybe he's out of town. Oh God, was it something I said?" He feverishly replays the entire encounter in his head. "...I thought that was charming, maybe it wasn't...He seemed to respond positively to that...he can't think you're fat, he hasn't even seen you in person..."

I'm blurring the line -- that's not helping.

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Comments

I just finished reading an article on Yahoo News from U.S. News and World Report mentioning more unemployment doom and gloom. Here is the first comment at the end of the article:

"president kennedy was a real hero,the others are just puppets... most politicians today are nothing but fat dirty rats,especially republicans they brain washyou and used u and abused you...it will get worst,starting with arizona "amaricas bigest embarrasment in history>>1070".."

Um, [sic].

Things not mentioned in the article:

President Kennedy

Heroes

Politicians

Republicans

Arizona

Yahoo's default setting is to have the most recent comment posted first, so this is joining in the conversation mid-stream. Let's take a look at the actual first comment:

"Here are the 5 real reasons why companies aren't hiring...

1) obama

2) pelosi

3) dodd

4) Franks

5) Geithner"

Sigh.

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Costume

I realize it's kinda early (4 months or so), but I need to start thinking about what my Halloween costume should be for this year. I am not a half-asser when it comes to these sort of things. Here is last year's costume:



(That's Simon from Frisky Dingo, just FYI)

Other previous costumes have included:







Now I need your help. What should I go as this year?


I've narrowed it down to three options. Here they are, with some Pros and Cons listed.

1) Captain Jack Harkness from Torchwood



Pros: My wardrobe will get bumped up a couple notches in the class department with the inclusion of the captain's trench coat and suspenders. Also, there is quite a bit of sex appeal, especially if I really strive for accuracy.

Cons: This will likely be an expensive costume. A couple of people also mentioned the obscurity issue, but considering the previous examples I don't really see it as a dealbreaker except if there are costume contests involved.

2) Lorenzo St. Dubois (LSD) from The Producers



Pros: I think this one will be a real crowd pleaser and probably the most fun of the options. Also, I assume that most, if not all, of the costume will be acquired at thrift stores so it will be super cheap.

Cons: This would require the most dedication to staying in character. Also, I'm not sure if I will be able to find anything close to those boots.

3) Professor Chaos from South Park



Pros: This is probably the least obscure of the three, and everybody loves Butters.

Cons: This might be a little too similar to last year's costume, at least in terms of characterization. Also, careful construction will be required so it doesn't look super cheap.



Cast your vote in the comments! If you have other suggestions (other costumes or where I can find elements for cheap), feel free to share those, too. Also, have you thought about your costume yet?

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Not really OK, Cupid

"We are very pleased to report that you are in the top half of OkCupid's most attractive users. The scales recently tipped in your favor, and we thought you'd like to know."

Um, thanks. I had no idea.

"How can we say this with confidence? We've tracked click-thrus on your photo and analyzed other people's reactions to you in QuickMatch and Quiver."

Oh, so it's simply mathematical? Whew, I thought I was going to have to go through yet another body image crisis.

"Your new elite status comes with one important privilege:
You will now see more attractive people in your match results."

Wait, what? So before random stalker dude clicked on my profile, possibly by accident, I was getting what y'all consider to be the less desirable selections? And now that I've hit some arbitrary benchmark y'all have so graciously bumped me into the VIP section? That's not weird or offensive.

"This new status won't affect your actual match percentages, which are still based purely on your answers and desired match's answers. But the people we recommend will be more attractive. Also! You'll be shown to more attractive people in their match results."

Yeah, still kinda offensive.

Also, considering my track record with your site has been less than stellar, I'm not really brimming with enthusiasm about crashing and burning with teh pretty.

Not Ok, Cupid, not OK.

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Eurovision!

This week is Eurovision week over in Oslo. What do you mean, "so what?" Okay, that's a fair question, considering that Eurovision has only recently gained any sort of coverage here in the States. Yay Globalism! Seriously, if you are any sort of fan of American Idol or ABBA, you will get a kick out of this competition.



The Eurovision Song Contest is an annual international competition where each participating country will submit a song in the hopes of it being selected as the best by the rest of participants. The final features 25 live performances of songs (3 minutes maximum length) broadcast across the continent. The participating countries (including those eliminated in the semi-finals) vote for their favorite, but they are not allowed to vote for their own representative. The top 10 from each country will earn points (12, 10, 8, 7, ... 2, 1) and the country/song with the most points wins the contest. The prize is bragging rights and the option of being the host country for the following year's competition.

Although Eurovision is relatively unknown in American culture, there are some influences. ABBA gained fame for performing the Eurovision 1972 winner "Waterloo". Celine Dion's rise to power came on the heels of performing for Switzerland in the late 1980's. This Saturday night or Sunday morning you will likely see a squib on Yahoo News about this year's winning song. It's egalitarian Europop camp and I absolutely love it.

I actually did quite a bit of research about Eurovision in preparation for my comp exam and have since become obsessed with the last couple of entries from the Ukraine:

2008: Ani Lorak "Shady Lady" (Runner-up):



2009: Svetlana Loboda "Be My Valentine! (Anti-Crisis Girl)":

Submission Video:



I think this video is awesome. The live performance though...yeesh. The semi-final was pretty bad, but the final performance sounded even worse.

Final Performance:



It also didn't help that she immediately followed the winner of the 2009 contest, who earned the second highest winning point total ever.



That's what we in the biz call an uphill battle.

I'll be posting videos of the contenders for this year's contest over at Rube Goldberg's DVR. Y'all should check it out!

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Funemployment

I've been hearing that term a lot lately, now that I am back in Michigan. Call me a pessimist if you must, but the glossiness fades very quickly no matter how big your fake grin is when uttering the word. However, there are some advantages that are worth exploring as I wait for callbacks from the job hunt:

I got to update my half.com inventory with book that I've been meaning to get rid of for years.

I ran all the way from Dearborn Heights to Dearborn and back again Friday morning. Yes, my mom lives 2 blocks from the border, but I ran all the way to Outer Drive and back so that was a mile or so.

I got to read semi-recreationally this afternoon (though it was continue a book from one of my classes this semester)

I get to post stuff to my blog again. Aren't you lucky?

I don't expect to hear anything about the Oberlin job until next week. Let's see what happens until then, shall we?

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Chantix/The Birds

Lemme show you what I've been working on that has been keeping me from updating. Enjoy!

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LAX? I wouldn't say it's lax...

This past Saturday I went to a professional lacrosse game. There are a number of items in the phrase "professional lacrosse game" that need to be discussed. First, can I get a show of hands of people who knew there was such a thing as professional lacrosse? (It doesn't count if you wandered over here by clicking "I feel lucky", but welcome!) Honestly, I didn't even know lacrosse was played much outside of Canada until I went to Oberlin. I also didn't know it was kind of a big deal until I got to Syracuse -- the current reigning champions for men's lacrosse. The concept of a professional league didn't enter my mind until I received an invitation to go Saturday morning.


For those unfamiliar with the game it's basically hockey but played on a field, but it is NOT field hockey. Unlike hockey, there is a thirty second shot clock. Also, it seems all physical contact is allowed as long as it ranks above "sucker punch". I'm sure there are nuances that I am completely missing, but that's what I picked up from my crash course. Really, I want to figure out what some of the ref signals mean, such as the patting on the head or the "Single Ladies" hand waggle (I am not making these up).

Another important item to note: Lacrosse fans are deadly serious about the game. There was a superfan sitting a few rows in front of me who was at full throttle once the clock started. I immediately got the "often ejected from kickball games" vibe from him, but it didn't seem like he was a drunken sports fan. In fact, I kept checking the level on his beer glass and it looked like he didn't touch his drink the entire first half, so his passion was either mostly pure or he has a strong pregaming regimen. Although the other people around me weren't as exuberant as this guy, they all had a number of seemingly informed comments about the quality of play.

What also struck me about the game was the constant soundtrack. I've been to a few hockey games and basketball games and music will play during timeouts, station breaks, intermissions, and to introduce penalties. Music played during the entire game with tracks changing whenever teams switched possession.

All in all, it was a pretty entertaining evening. The home team, the Rochester Knighthawks, didn't win but it was really cool to watch. I would recommend going to a game if you get a chance, but there are only 11 teams and half of them are in Canada so chances are there is not a team near you.

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OK Go

I would be remiss if I didn't post this:

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