Am I Too "Old School?"

I will admit to being a stickler about timeliness. Some of it undoubtedly comes from my controlling personality. And I like to think some of it comes from being raised to respect others while being responsible and honoring your commitments. Which is why I started today a little pissed off. OK, more than a little...

I was scheduled to teach a class this morning that started at 9 AM. The office we were using is about 30 miles from my house, which accounting for LA traffic is at least an hour drive on a good day, and can be as much as an hour and a half. So I got up at 5 AM and left the house by 6 to make sure I had plenty of time to get there. Gotta leave time for my morning Starbucks stop, which adds about 15 minutes to the process. Traffic was a little heavier than I expected for a Friday, so by the time I parked and got up to the classroom is was 8 AM - two hours after I left the house. That left me plenty of time to get ready for my students.

Speaking of my students, they have their own commute issues. But they have nothing extra to do to get ready, they only need to arrive, sit down and turn on their computers by 9 AM when class is scheduled to start. Apparently this is more complicated a task than it seems, because out of 10 students, only 4 managed to make it on time. That's right...less than 50%.

When I was a proud member of the JMU Marching Royal Dukes in college (yes I am a proud band geek), our director Dr. Rooney had a rule -- 15 minutes early is on time. That meant you were truly ready to go when rehearsal started, not still getting your instrument out of its case, or still warming up. You were ready. Even outside of band, I never would have dreamed of walking into a class late. Or being late to a group meeting. Or being late to ANYTHING!

I don't know how this lack of consideration for time has crept into our society. Is it because cell phones make it so easy to tell people you're running late? Are we stretched too thin for the hours in the day, and being late is simply a fact of life? Is it just an LA thing...traffic gets to be the excuse for everything? Or is it just basic disrespect for others?

Or am I just too much of a time Nazi with unrealistic expectations? Send me a comment and let me know what you think.

Our Historic Moment

The inauguration of our nation's 44th president rightfully dominated the landscape today. I could hardly talk to anyone, watch TV, listen to the radio, or read anything printed or electronic without considering the social and historic impact of that president being the first black male to hold the post powerful elected position in our country. And as I continued to ponder this monumental event as the day went on, a couple of thoughts occurred to me.

The first thought I had is, "Why is inauguration day not a national holiday?" Granted, it doesn't happen every year, but it's certainly more important than some of the holidays we celebrate. Then, I thought it should actually go beyond a national holiday -- it should be a total national work stoppage day so every American can watch the entire event. I actually missed the live version of the excitement since I was teaching a class today. But that wouldn't work, since it probably takes thousands of people working to make the entire event happen. Really, what would an inauguration ball be without bartenders?

The second thought I had was a more profound one. I realized this inauguration is the first truly history altering event MY generation has been actively involved in making happen. Even though many historic events have happened since I was born - the Vietnam War, the civil rights movement, or man walking on the moon, for example - those events happened because of the actions of my parents generation. For all the apathy and immaturity we've demonstrated in other situations, this time we got it right. We own this one.

Now it's time to work together on the next piece of history. I'm ready. Are you?

Back in Time

I'd like to think that the start of a new year means moving forward, but today it seems I'm getting sent back in time 15 years. Because that's how long it's been since I've washed my clothes in a laundromat!



I left work early today, feeling like I was coming down with the flu. Not good since I have a solid meeting schedule the rest of the month, part of which involves flying. So after napping for a few hours and feeling marginally better, I figured I'd better get some work done while I had motivation. But when I hauled my laundry basket down to the garage, I found a pink Post-it note from Rosie saying the washer wouldn't drain and she was calling for help to fix it. Unsure how long it would take for "help" to arrive and having not done laundry since Christmas break at my Mom's, I was a little desperate. And pissed off. Now in the grand scheme of things, this is simply one of life's little inconveniences. I'm not dying of cancer or anything. But when you're already not feeling great, even the little problems suck harder, dammit!

So I loaded my laundry and detergent into the car, scrounged up some dollar bills (a challenge for someone who pays for EVERYTHING with plastic), and drove a block down the street to the nearest working washing machines.



The next hurdle was the machine directions. What do you mean I have to add fabric softener ONLY during the rinse cycle! My magic washer at home adds it automatically! Now I have to pay attention to what I'm doing....ugh!!!!!

There was some good news. People with interesting lives and working appliances don't generally do laundry on Friday nights, so it was pretty empty, and I got three loads washed in just under 30 minutes. And the dryer at home still works, so at least I didn't have to spend very long in laundry hell. And now I have clean clothes!

Of course, the most entertaining part of visiting a laundromat in my neck of the woods is the language gap. Even though all the instructions on the washers are in English, everything else in the place is in Spanish. So if you don't speak English, you know what detergent to buy but have no idea how to wash your clothes? HMMMMM......



I hope our washer is working soon... At least I'm a little less pissed off now that I've vented!

The Last-Minute Drama Before Vacation Theorem

So it's the middle of the night, I leave for LAX (Los Angeles International Airport for you non-regular world travelers) in 6 hours to go home for vacation, and I am STRESSED! My Christmas cards are addressed and stuffed, but I haven't finished my year in review Christmas message and I have no inspiration to write it. I still need one more gift idea for my 5 year old nephew. I need to set the "Out of Office" message on my work computer. I'm worried I'm so sleep deprived that if I go to bed I'll fall into a sleep coma and miss all 3 alarms I have set on my cell phone, thereby missing the plane and ruining my vacation, losing 40,000 hard earned frequent flyer miles in the process. And as I'm sitting here trying to unmuddle my brain long enough to find a solution to all this, I suddenly realize I've been here before...multiple times....

In fact, this same scenario has happened before every vacation I've taken in recent memory. Which makes me start thinking about the statistical odds of this happening. And somehow I recall my hated days as a high school sophomore studying geometry, and start remembering how much I hated doing proofs. Proofs, as I recall, lead to theorems. Hence, the "Last Minute Drama Before Vacation" theorem was born.

Theorem, as defined by Wikipedia.....
In mathematics, a theorem is a statement proven on the basis of previously accepted or established statements. In mathematical logic, theorems are modeled as formulas that can be derived according to the derivation rules of a fixed formal system.

In this case, the previously established statements are my direct experiences on the day before every vacation I've taken in the past 10 years. No matter how well I plan, how far in advance I pack, how many checklists I have, something always blows up the day before I leave and sends me into a tailspin. I suppose I should actually start looking forward to it, like some kind of bizarre confirmation that my vacation will in fact be happening. Or maybe, as is the case this year, my years of experience remind me to focus on what has to get done and not worry about the rest of it, because no one else will know the difference.

So I update my "Out of Office," decide the Christmas card message will be in my blog this year (I'll describe it as my attempt to "Go Green"), and go to bed, resting easier knowing that my stress is just a result of mathematical certainty, not a personality flaw.

Now let's just hope I hear the alarm....

Coffee, Civics and Confessions

My day started this morning at 4:30 AM when I woke to the sound of falling rain. Normally I would roll over and go back to bed, but I got up for two reasons. I had a load of laundry to move to the dryer, and I already wanted to be up by 5 AM so I could head to the polls early and cast my vote for change. News reports from early voting this weekend included huge lines, and while I'm blessed to work for a company that allows me the flexibility to work from home so I could have time to vote today, I am not by nature a very patient person, so I wasn't looking forward to standing in line for 3 hours to exercise my civic duty. Especially in the rain.

So after I got the laundry tackled, I hopped in the shower, found my rain gear, and ventured out to Starbucks, where I start at least 340 of my 365 mornings a year. If I'm going to stand in line, I need coffee.



I arrived at my voting location at 6 AM, and thankfully found only 4 other people as motivated as me to get up that early. The poll workers were enthusiastic and funny, and we all chatted cordially while they were getting set up. Some of the folks were voting for the first time and couldn't figure out which line to be in, so the trainer in me kicked in and I did my best to help out. One young woman standing in front of me in line was one of the first timers, and she grinned from ear to ear as I helped her through the process.

I felt joy and guilt at the same time. She probably looked at me thinking I was a motivated citizen, an expert in civic affairs. In fact, this election is the first one I've bothered to vote in for 8 years. Yep...the woes of the past 2 terms of this president are partly my fault. Me and all the other apathetic people like me that don't always take their role seriously.

So how did it happen? Did I stop caring? Do I not have a heart, any opinions? None of the above. Like a lot of people, I made excuses. I had just moved to CA. I was trying madly to climb the ladder of success, and the only future that mattered to me was one involving a promotion. Besides, what difference can one person make? You know the drill. Sad but true, I was one of "those people." Especially sad since my father fought in a war (WWII) to ensure the freedoms and democracy I take for granted too often.

It's sad that it took a crisis of our country's latest proportions to wake me from my apathy coma. But now that I'm awake, I'm committed that the change doesn't stop here. We all matter, and we all need to be part of the solution. So last night I researched every candidate and ballot measure so I could make my vote count. This election is historic because of the Presidential candidates, but it's also the start of my new civic history. I'll never miss another election again.



So if you haven't already, get out and vote!! And stop by Starbucks for your free tall coffee...