Owww

I must have gotten sunburn on my early morning run along the beach.
Or during my sunset walk. Or while buying myself really cool pants and shirts this afternoon. Thank you January, SoCal. Now if only this fever blister would go away.

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The Morning After

I began a new job yesterday. My 9am meeting with HR was less painful then I anticipated (good). But I have 2 spend 2 days next week downtown at "corporate" for the mega-marathon of benefits and "worklife" seminars (bad). Those are the days where you are sitting with everyone else hired by the monolithic organization and watch video tapes about POS plans and 401K options.
But you have to love it when the head of HR snickers as he tells you that about the mandatory 2-hour online course on Sexual Harassment in the workplace. Or when, as an afterthought he slides you a document and mumbles, "oh yeah and here's the Drug Free thing...." as it were the most useless application of ink to paper ever.

I will say, the place is tight. My office was waiting for me (!) absolutely stripped bare but within an hour, I had a brand new phone installed with working #'s, a decent MacBookPro to toodle with, and a very comfy and highly adjustable deskchair to play with for the greater part of the hour. IT came by (more on them later) and showered me with the appropriate amount of derision and pity that is to be expected while they sorted me out with my email account, telcom stuff, computing requirements, etc. Oh, and unless you see someone standing naked, you can never be sure what their gender is. Proceed with caution when using 3rd person pronouns.

I have decided for this latest chapter of my employed life (sooo messed up), I'm going to be channeling 1 part Franklin Hart*, 1 part Pam from the Office (although I desperately want to walk around acting like Angela), and 1 part Jason Bourne. In all seriousness, I've landed a very decent gig and I'm quite fortunate and pleased to be working there. The pay is good, the people are smart, the work is interesting, there is a gym on site, and I may very well be able to ride a bike to work during the spring/summer months.

Some observations from a formerly retired young(ish) man:

1. Start a new job on a Friday. Trust me on this. Just do it.
   
2. There seems to be a law of physics manifest in an office between the hours from 2.30 - 4.30pm where time seems to stand still. I learned that this is a good time to sneak peeks at your coworkers iTunes Shared libraries over the network.
3. Working a regular (>40 hrs/wk) job is going to wreak havoc on my fitness and nutritional accomplishments. Case in point: I haven't worked out since Wednesday AND I ate a "burrito" for lunch yesterday with my colleagues [shudder]. Cut to me in 6 months driving one of those fatty-scooters into the building as my pendulous manbreasts slap against my abdomen. ew.
4. Starting a new job at 36 beats the hell out of starting a new job at say, 24. The latter is an idiot aside from being the noob on site regardless, where the former has been around the block long enough to figure most things out on his/her own and can walk in confidently with experience to assess whether the new environ is up to snuff.
5. I need music in my office. That is all.
6. I need a vacation.
   

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It's been a crazy busy week (omfg I saw Tegan & Sara perform Wed) and this post is all over the place but that's cause it's the wee hours Sat morning. I got home from work at like 6.30 !!>:(
last night and proceeded to knock back a couple glasses of champy before enjoying fine wines with (and after) dinner.


*If you don't get this reference, you are too young to be reading this. Go catch up on your classics.

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Memoirs of a Ctrl-Freak

My week is pretty free-formed at this point. I'm waiting to hear about a possible job prospect so...I'm trying to keep myself busy. I'm also trying to quit smoking cigarettes. I went for a long, hot run in the sun this morning. Here's where I ran to:

View Larger Map

Then, in an effort to keep busy, I spent the better part of 20 minutes putting these socks on this morning:
I got a pumpkin today, in anticipation of carving atrocities that will be committed in the spirit of Halloween. Don't have a sense of the pattern yet though. I've been toying with the idea of non-penetrative carving (!) this season. Like only shaving down the skin with an exacto and sculpting loop, you know?

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Cause Magnum PR Was Uncomfortable With the "My New Tattoo" Post Loading Above The Fold

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Polygonum multiflorum

or "Fo Ti" is a root/herb of Chinese origin. I've been taking it for years as a supplement. I think back in college I read somewhere that it was good for "male vitality" (ahem). I've never had a problem with my "vitality" but I figured hell, it can only help, right?

Anyways, back to Fo Ti -- it's also known as Chinese Knotweed (heh heh) or he shou wu (何首乌), named after the first man known to have ingested it. Who lived to be 132 years old. (And also had his his gray hair turn back to black, apparently.) I looked further into this alleged "elixir of life" and discovered that it is known for benefits other then the aforementioned.."vitality". The stuff is even better then I originally thought. [from Drug Digest]

• In animal studies, unprocessed fo-ti has showed some ability to improve memory, affect immune function, and protect the liver from toxins. All these effects are probably due to antioxidant properties of unprocessed fo-ti.

• ...processed fo-ti contains protein-sugar complexes known as lectins. Because they attach to specific arrangements of carbohydrates on cells in the body, lectins act like antibodies, but they do not cause allergy symptoms like most antibodies do. The lectins in processed fo-ti may affect fat levels in the blood, helping to prevent or delay heart disease by blocking the formation of plaques in blood vessels. Plaques are accumulations of fat and other cells that restrict the size of blood vessels and limit the flexibility of their walls. In animal studies, processed fo-ti also reduced the amount of fat that deposited in the liver. It may also protect the liver from damage by toxins such as dry cleaning fluid. Processed fo-ti may also have immune system effects.

and here's the fine print:

• However, both unprocessed fo-ti and processed fo-ti have some similar effects. Both have been shown in animal and human studies to lower blood levels of “bad” low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol and raise the levels of “good” high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol. Antioxidant effects are believed to be involved, in addition to lectin’s activity. Although early results look promising, more studies are needed to prove the cholesterol-lowering effects of fo-ti.

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Euphilotes battoides allyni

Rare butterfly makes comeback on L.A.-area beaches [LA Times]

The tiny El Segundo blue has returned to two locations where it has not been seen in decades. Scientists are surprised at the resurgence.

I shall endeavor to shoot and capture a specimen.

*With my CAMERA* LOLOLOL (mwah-mwah)

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A Selfishly Convenient Truth

It's pretty sweet I must admit, to come back from the end of summer in Argentina to this:

[LA Times] It's still winter, but in Southern California it's feeling more and more like summer.

The National Weather Service is forecasting a heat wave over the next three days that will push temperatures into the 90s in some places, probably breaking records.

The forecast is the latest twist in a period of unseasonable weather, with the Southland on pace to experience its driest year on record.

From my understanding, back in NYC it's the cold dark heart of winter.
I do, however, miss living in a city proper.

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View from the Driver's Seat

Having these 2 air 'fresheners' [1 lemon lime, the other 'hunk'] hanging from my rear-view is one small, but effective way of ensuring that I do not take myself too seriously -- specifically when it comes to worrying about what others may think of me.

One of them I purchased while waiting at a car wash, the other was a stocking stuffer from my father.

Hint: It's opposite of what you think.

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