more random thoughts

Not sure how it happened, but it seems that I have entered a phase of my life when I need to write recommendations for others. Back in August, a friend asked me to write a recommendation for his business school applications. I spent considerable time on it because he deserved to have a good recommendation. In the end, I thought I wrote him something pretty darn good.

"The problem," as Broadway pointed out, "when you do a good job is that people come back asking for more."

Which is exactly what happened. The friend was shocked at how good he thought it was and asked if I would be willing to modify it for his application to another school Then another. Now, worrying that his first round MBA applications may not pan out, he's applying to two more schools and wants my recommendation for those as well. Most of it is just rearranging what I already wrote, but every school has its own unique questions. This time around, I have to answer "If you could change one thing about the applicant, what would it be?"

How do you answer a question like that? Maybe "I wish I hadn't given him a copy of the original recommendation to read." But that's actually something I would change about myself, not him.

A former student also asked me recently to write a recommendation for something he is applying for in graduate school. I really like the kid, so again, I want to write something that deserves him. But I didn't know him all that well, so I feel a bit stressed about that.

In other news, my parents took me to Arby's for lunch today because I love their roast beef sandwiches. My dad also ordered two fries for all of us, but didn't specify the size when he ordered. The lady at the registered assumed two small fries, and my dad only realized the mistake after having already paid. He asked her if it's possible to change our order, and she kinda thought about it at the register, then without saying a word just went and filled 2 large fries containers without charging us anything extra.

When she came back, my dad gave her a dollar bill (actually the exact cost difference) and thanked her. She smiled really big.

That made me happy, much happier than if we had just ordered everything correctly the first time around. I'm glad we made her smile so big.

I also asked Broadway today what, if anything, are we going to do on New Year's Eve. He said he wasn't sure, so I mentioned this cruise thing that I had heard about (and some fringe acquaintances were going to). I didn't think he would be interested, I said. Not surprisingly, he agreed, but it didn't stop me from being curious about the cruise nonetheless.

So I went in search of Boston New Year's Eve events and found this website. As much as I'd like to bash the silly people who don their holiday dresses and go to these events, I was part of that crowd myself just a couple of years ago. Some high school friends and I went to an expensive bash down here in the South, going because it was The Ball to attend if you were anybody in this town. It made me wonder if I was over all this stuff mainly because I'm older now and don't really care or mainly because Broadway doesn't like these things.

Regardless, I visited the event ticket sites to see what there was to see ... and was surprised that there is a $25 discount on this. I would deduce from this that they're not selling that many tickets, or as many as they're used to selling in previous years. The economy's so bad that people don't even want to celebrate New Year's Eve.

Or maybe in these lean economic times, more people are realizing the frivolity of these "society" balls.

wrapping up the week

I now measure my weeks based on TV shows. I shouldn't have time to watch TV (there's always more work to be done), but I somehow always make time. It's made easier by bittorrent--I download the shows to my computer and watch whenever it is convenient for me. Still, it's a bit of a shocker that I have no picked up 7, yes seven, shows that I download and watch weekly. It just goes to show how much I suck in the self-control department.

So I now measure the "busyness" of my weeks by how many episodes of TV I have remaining, unwatched, on my computer by Sunday. This 1) reflects how much "free" time I had during the week, and 2) how many deadlines I actually had that I couldn't procrastinate through. This second point is important. Really, I never should be watching TV, but I always procrastinate work by watching a show (and then another and then another).

Two weeks ago, I was twiddling my thumbs on Thursday because I had no more shows left on my computer. By Thursday that week, I had spent 7 hours watching TV (well maybe a little less since the bittorrent files don't have commercials). That was a light week, or at least a week when a lot of things could be punted.

By comparison, this week, I still have 5 shows left to watch, and it's Saturday night. That gives you an idea what kind of week this one has been. No "free" time, and not even any time to procrastinate.

I did find a new hero (there's always time for web surfing, right?). His name is Ben Dorn, and he lives right here in Boston. I found him via YesWeCarve.com, and his pumpkin is here. The site is cute, and the people who send in their carved pumpkins are cute. But Ben Dorn beyond cute. Ben Dorn is my hero. Before Ben Dorn, I didn't even know shading was an option on pumpkins.

I have to admit that I did some facebook stalking of Ben Dorn. It seems that Ben is somewhat the Michael Phelps of pumpkin carving (isn't that comparison all the rage these days?) and a Red Sox Fan. Speaking of the Red Sox, they're winning Game 6, and it's bottom of the 8th.

In more productive news, my job interview took place Friday. I met with two people, back to back. The first interview was a bit shaky, definitely not stellar, but hopefully passable. The second one was super good, I thought, but then it's always hard to tell as the interviewee, isn't it?

At least this time, they won't make us wait long. The final round of interviews is next Thursday, so I should find out on Monday whether or not I made it. Keeping my fingers crossed on this one ... *sigh* if only the first interview had also gone swimmingly.

cell phone tricks

It's been another bad week at work ... in the meantime, enjoy some cell phone tricks a friend sent to me. No guarantees that they work--I haven't tried them myself--but at least they sound cool and magical ...

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There are a few things that can be done in times of grave emergencies.Your mobile phone can actually be a life saver or an emergency tool for survival. Check out the things that you can do with it:

FIRST
The Emergency Number worldwide for Mobile is 112. If you findyourself out of the coverage area of your mobile network and there is an emergency, dial 112, and the mobile will search any existing network to establish the emergency number for you. Interestingly, this number 112 can be dialed even if the keypad is locked.

SECOND
Have you locked your keys in the car? Does your car have remote keyless entry? This may come in handy someday. Good reason to own a cell phone: If you lock your keys in the car and the spare keys are at home, call someone at home on their cell phone from your cell phone. Hold your cell phone about a foot from your car door and have the person at your home press the unlock button, holding it near the mobile phone on their end. Your car will unlock. Saves someone from having to drive your keys to you. Distance is no object. You could be hundreds of miles away, and if you can reach someone who has the other 'remote' for your car, you can unlock the doors (or the trunk).

THIRD - Hidden Battery Power
Imagine your cell battery is very low. To activate, press the keys *3370#. Your cell phone will restart with this reserve and the instrumentwill show a 50% increase in battery. This reserve will get charged when you charge your cell phone next time.

FOURTH - How to disable a STOLEN mobile phone?
To check your Mobile phone's serial number, key in the following digits on your phone: *#06#. A 15-digit code will appear on the screen. This number is unique to your handset. Write it down and keep it somewhere safe. When your phone gets stolen, you can phone your service provider and give them this code. They will then be able to block your handset so even if the thief changes the SIM card, your phone will be totally useless. You probably won't get your phone back, but at least you know that whoever stole it can't use/sell it either. If everybody does this , there would be no point in people stealing mobile phones.

And Finally....

FIFTH - Free Directory Service for Cells
Cell phone companies are charging us $1.00 to $1.75 or more for411 information calls when they don't have to. Most of us do not carry a telephone directory in our vehicle, which makes this situation even more of a problem. When you need to use the 411 information option, simply dial: (800)FREE411, or (800)373-3411, without incurring any charge at all. Program this into your cell phone now.

weddings & bridesmaids ... oh yeah, and the new year

Two friends got engaged over the holidays, one last night on New Year's Eve. I didn't even know this was a popular time of the year to get a rock. I think I'm on the short list for bridesmaids this time around ... but no need to get my hopes up (wait, I WANT to be a bridesmaid?). It's only the short list.

In other New Year's related news ... heard on "New Year's Rockin' Eve" last night:

Ryan Seacrest: I'm now here with the mayor Michael Bloomberg and his ... friend
(camera pans to Bloomberg with an attractive, but VERY YOUNG girl )
Michael Bloomberg: (cough) This here, this here is my daughter, Ryan. My daughter, Georgina.
Seacrest: Oh my! Your daughter! Georgina! How are you, Georgina?

Definintely hilarious. Tact-full/less? You decide :)

Also, Earth to Seacrest: Encyclopedia Brown called: he wants his sleuth weathervane back.