A few more parts. Its been too long since the last one.
He always appreciated a gift. The first one she gave him was a six-pack of his beer of choice. Later, after he quit drinking, it was a pack of cigarettes, a pizza, a laptop bag. When she first met him, when she didn't know him very well, he told her about the sweatshirt he got as a gift.
"Nice shirt," she said.
"Its from my sister. She sent it too me for Christmas. Its my favorite team."
In winter he wore it every day. Over the years it started to look worn. Then started to look too big when he lost the beer belly.
When she was at his apartment he always talked about the things people had given him. A sign in the shape of an arrow that said "Fenway Park". Probably filled with memories of going to the park as a kid. She always meant to ask, but never did as he would move on to the next thing. Each thing a new story. A story he loved to tell.
He rarely talked about his life in a direct way. She, probably most people, learned about him from the gifts he was given. Or mayby that was just her impression, perhaps he did talk about himself but she just didn't remember.
He kept all his gifts on the shelves above the bed. He lived in a studio apartment. He took the doors off a closet to create the alcove for the shelves. He would reach over and pick up some object then start talking about it. "You see this..."
He loaned her a CD once. "Be careful with this. Someone gave this to me. Its special." Then he would talk about the person who gave it to him. One of the regulars from the pub. One of the "day crowd". He gave him CDs, and funny t-shirts. He treasured every one.
He gave gifts too. Not material things, those things disappear. She had a leaky facuet and, instead of just calling the landlord to have it fixed, she decided to fix it herself. It made her feel independent. She turned off the water to her apartment, removed the fixture, went to the hardware store, and purchased the correct parts. Only find out she didn't have the strength nor the correct tools to complete the job. She called him.
"Sorry, I just don't know who else to call. You're the only one I know who knows about these things and has the proper tools. Could you come over and help me fix my sink?" She had blabbered on, he stopped her.
"No, you're not bothering me. I'm glad you called me. I'd be honored to help you. You've done so much for me," he had said. He really did say he would "be honored". She almost laughed until she realized he was serious. Such chivilary. He enjoyed the chance to be able to help. She can still picture him, wearing the sweatshirt, sitting on the floor in front of the sink, with the wrentch on the pipe asking, "Do you really want me to try this? If this old pipe breaks, we are screwed." She did, and luck was with him. The old nut turned away cleanly from the pipe. "You are so lucky," he said.
Thursday, August 19, 2010
Monday, August 16, 2010
There Are No Stupid Users, Just Stupid Systems
I've been complaining a lot lately. Well, I've been in kind of a pissy mood but that's for another post.
I went to a local coffee shop this evening. Not the one in my neighborhood; one a little farther away for a little bit longer of a ride. I was going to get a cuppa joe, then sit outside and read my book. But first, I needed to use the restroom.
That's the problem. For the second time in four days, both the women's and the men's room were closed for cleaning. I understand that; the restrooms need to be cleaned. However, there was only one person cleaning both restrooms. Like me, she can only multitask in the vitual world. She cannot split herself in two and clean both rooms at the same time. Then why were both restrooms closed? (If the women's room is closed or occupied, I have no trouble using the men's. I just ignore the extra fixture.)
Well, long story short, the babe got a little snippy with me and I decided to send a note to the corporate headquarters of the coffee shop. I went to their website and started filling out the form. Name, no problem. email, no problem. Address, no problem. Then I ran into this:
"date of visit" Two things wrong here. Exactly what format should I be entering the date in? Is it "mm/dd/yyyy" or "mm/dd/yy"? Secondly, why am I "cleaning" your data for you? If I enter 8/16/10 and your database requires 08/16/2010, why can't you just parse the input text and format it for me? It is possible to do that - I've written code that parses text myself, and I'm not even a code monkey. (I'm a User Experience Professional - we don't write code, we just draw pictures of software. Hence the usability rant here.)
"time of visit" I'm not in the military, but I respect those who are. I admire them and not just because they know what time 21:00 is. I always have to do the math, and I don't do math well in my head. I always get it wrong. So why should I enter the time in military time?
I'm already rippin' mad, don't tick me off any more with your poor usability.
I went to a local coffee shop this evening. Not the one in my neighborhood; one a little farther away for a little bit longer of a ride. I was going to get a cuppa joe, then sit outside and read my book. But first, I needed to use the restroom.
That's the problem. For the second time in four days, both the women's and the men's room were closed for cleaning. I understand that; the restrooms need to be cleaned. However, there was only one person cleaning both restrooms. Like me, she can only multitask in the vitual world. She cannot split herself in two and clean both rooms at the same time. Then why were both restrooms closed? (If the women's room is closed or occupied, I have no trouble using the men's. I just ignore the extra fixture.)
Well, long story short, the babe got a little snippy with me and I decided to send a note to the corporate headquarters of the coffee shop. I went to their website and started filling out the form. Name, no problem. email, no problem. Address, no problem. Then I ran into this:
"date of visit" Two things wrong here. Exactly what format should I be entering the date in? Is it "mm/dd/yyyy" or "mm/dd/yy"? Secondly, why am I "cleaning" your data for you? If I enter 8/16/10 and your database requires 08/16/2010, why can't you just parse the input text and format it for me? It is possible to do that - I've written code that parses text myself, and I'm not even a code monkey. (I'm a User Experience Professional - we don't write code, we just draw pictures of software. Hence the usability rant here.)
"time of visit" I'm not in the military, but I respect those who are. I admire them and not just because they know what time 21:00 is. I always have to do the math, and I don't do math well in my head. I always get it wrong. So why should I enter the time in military time?
I'm already rippin' mad, don't tick me off any more with your poor usability.
Sunday, August 8, 2010
Being single is a lot wiser than being in a WRONG relationship!
At the risk of being accused of being a weak, dependant, needy woman, I'm going to have to break bad and disagree with this statement.
I've seen this posted on facebook page by various friends, all of which, except for one, are not single. They have been happily married since their 20s, or are in and have been in long term relationships for a long time. Do y'all even remember what is was like to be single? Do you even remember what is was like to be single for long periods of time? I'm not talking weeks or months, I'm talking years, decades.
Do you remember a time when you took your "coupled" friends' advice and "just treated yourself and when out to dinner by yourself." Do you remember what it feels like to have the owner of the place offer to buy you a drink at the bar because, "I really need this booth." You need this booth for the couples waiting in line. Was my money not green enough? I just spent about $40.00 in your place. (The government thinks my money is greener; as a single I pay more in taxes than marrieds.) Do you ever get tired of hearing "just one" when you walk into a restaurant?
And what exactly is a "WRONG" relationship? If the statement was "Its better to be single than to be with a partner who uses you as a punching bag." or "Its better to be single than to be in a relationship where your partner is stealing from your bank account." then I would be all in.
But simply saying "WRONG"; not so much. Is a "WRONG" relationship one in which your mate worries about you but you define that at jealousy? How about if your mate is giving you good advice like "sure you could handle going back to school" or "they won't know what a good employee you are until you are gone". Do you call that "trying to change me, trying to run my life". Or is a "WRONG" relationship one defined by money, possessions, looks? For people enmeshed in this bling culture a statement like this simply gives them an excuse. "He's just wrong for me, he doesn't have a job, any money, enough time for me.
How many "WRONG" relationships could have turned into "RIGHT" relationships if only the parties had compromised and worked together. "Baby I know finals are coming up, maybe we can do something to celebrate when they are done." "I know you're broke, I have some burgers in the freezer, let's just grill them and chill out tonight." "I don't like musicals, but I'll go with you to see Cats. I know how important it is to you."
I type this on a Saturday night at Starbucks. Single. Alone. Its the same thing I did Friday night and it will probably be the same thing I do Sunday night.
Which is really the lesser of two evils?
I've seen this posted on facebook page by various friends, all of which, except for one, are not single. They have been happily married since their 20s, or are in and have been in long term relationships for a long time. Do y'all even remember what is was like to be single? Do you even remember what is was like to be single for long periods of time? I'm not talking weeks or months, I'm talking years, decades.
Do you remember a time when you took your "coupled" friends' advice and "just treated yourself and when out to dinner by yourself." Do you remember what it feels like to have the owner of the place offer to buy you a drink at the bar because, "I really need this booth." You need this booth for the couples waiting in line. Was my money not green enough? I just spent about $40.00 in your place. (The government thinks my money is greener; as a single I pay more in taxes than marrieds.) Do you ever get tired of hearing "just one" when you walk into a restaurant?
And what exactly is a "WRONG" relationship? If the statement was "Its better to be single than to be with a partner who uses you as a punching bag." or "Its better to be single than to be in a relationship where your partner is stealing from your bank account." then I would be all in.
But simply saying "WRONG"; not so much. Is a "WRONG" relationship one in which your mate worries about you but you define that at jealousy? How about if your mate is giving you good advice like "sure you could handle going back to school" or "they won't know what a good employee you are until you are gone". Do you call that "trying to change me, trying to run my life". Or is a "WRONG" relationship one defined by money, possessions, looks? For people enmeshed in this bling culture a statement like this simply gives them an excuse. "He's just wrong for me, he doesn't have a job, any money, enough time for me.
How many "WRONG" relationships could have turned into "RIGHT" relationships if only the parties had compromised and worked together. "Baby I know finals are coming up, maybe we can do something to celebrate when they are done." "I know you're broke, I have some burgers in the freezer, let's just grill them and chill out tonight." "I don't like musicals, but I'll go with you to see Cats. I know how important it is to you."
I type this on a Saturday night at Starbucks. Single. Alone. Its the same thing I did Friday night and it will probably be the same thing I do Sunday night.
Which is really the lesser of two evils?
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