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1. Last month, my co-workers and I found out that a healthy portion of our emails were not being delivered, and we were not receiving all the messages intended for us. This led to numerous awkward moments where someone thought someone else was intentionally blowing them off, and it cost our readers the chance to find out which former NFL great is a member of the Electoral College (Ethan’s ‘Where Are They Now? Super Bowl Legends’ article never got through.) I think the problem has been resolved, but can’t say for sure. So let’s use this as a jumping off point for our first question – has anyone ever been really angry at you without your knowledge? How’d you find out?
2. When I think about all the jobs I didn’t get – and there were plenty, especially in the few years right after college – I’m very thankful in retrospect. Of course the rejections stung at the time. But I was interviewing for a lot of jobs in fields I had no real interest in, jobs that would have started me up ladders I had no desire to climb. When you look back at your career and life, is there a job you didn’t get that now seems like a blessing in disguise?
3. Kara’s latest TVHolic post inspired a few readers to chime in with their favorite individual episodes of their favorite shows. “Episode Four” of The Office (UK version) was mentioned by several people, and I must concur. I think we’ve already covered this topic here before, but I’ll throw it out there again and use this as an excuse to play a clip of the role-playing exercise with David Brent and corporate training guru Rowan:
(The question: what’s your favorite episode in TV history?)
4. Ellen, Charlotte, Bailey and I are a few weeks away from moving, and it’s hard not to compare everything in our current house to everything in the new one. In most ways, the new house comes out on top. However, there are a few things this house does extraordinarily well. We’d never think to put it in the real estate listing, but because of the way the house faces, the rising sun cleans up any half-hearted shoveling job by lunch. Our across-the-street neighbors are so jealous, clutching their railing and skating towards the car.
Unfortunately, the new house faces the opposite direction, which means I might need to trade in the crappy $3.99 shovel I bought at ShopRite four years ago. What’s one hidden attribute or underrated feature of your house/apartment/dorm room/retirement home/commune?
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1. Why would anyone be mad at me? I am very likable.
2. I interviewed as a Well’s Fargo Mortgage Broker back in 2004. The job was in Lake Charles, LA. If I had taken it I would be paying state income taxes, my city would have been devastated by hurricanes TWICE! (granted Ike wrecked my roof and destroyed parts of my fence, but the damage could have been worse, and it was only once) And finally I don’t know of any mortgage brokers who are doing exceptionally well right now.
3. The Office (US) when Michael outs Oscar. “Maybe we can get together for a beer sometime and you can tell me how you do that to a dude.”
4. I live so close to the refineries in the Houston Ship channel that I don’t even need to turn on my porch light.
posted by Witty Nickname on 3-6-2009 at 11:45 am
2. I interviewed to be Financial Development Director for a community theater where I live. (Financial Development Director=guy who begs people for money.) I’m not into sales, and am reluctant to ask for money even when it’s owed to me. Community theaters are great and all, but with all the good causes out there, just how to you pitch that? “I know Hospice is a good cause, but, um, . . . did I mention we’re doing ‘Annie’ this year?”
3. I’m trying to go through all the Simpsons episodes in my head but getting nothing, so I’ll go with the WKRP where Venus explains the atom to his punk nephew. I haven’t seen it for probably 25 years, but I remember as a 10 year old thinking it was so cool and so moving. Probably best that I never see it again — I’d probably think it was pretty hokey now that I’m a jaded old man.
4. Our kitchen area is huge. I know people realize that is a good thing, but until you have it you don’t realize just how good a thing it is. It’s where you spend all of your time.
posted by EV on 3-6-2009 at 12:05 pm
1. Yeah…I just lost a friend and I really have no idea other than the vague our friendship was “too hard”
2. Um I’ve only had one interview for a job that I didnt end up being hired and it was for a bank…
4. Our house has an awesome sledding hill…although it also is on a corner lot so I have lots of shoveling to do. Oh an for some people I think this is hidden we have a huge Lilac bush that looks pretty gross during the winter and just like a huge green thing in the summer…but in the spring its filled with delicious smelling lilac.
posted by Julia on 3-6-2009 at 12:06 pm
2 – If I had been offered a full-time position at the library I started at as a student, I’d have a curator that hated me (he always hated me), a boss who worked in the office next to mine, and 6 months of snow. Now, before I’ve even finished my MLIS, I run a library, my boss works in an entirely different city, and I get all 4 seasons.
4 – I’m moving next month too. My kitchen, while hiding under piles of dirty roommate dishes and an incredibly ugly yellow, is HUGE for a townhouse. My new apartment’s kitchen is teeny tiny and doesn’t even have a range, I’ll be using a hot plate. However, it is ALL mine, with no roommates to mess with it or battle for space. I don’t think I’ll mind too terribly.
posted by AmandaStretch on 3-6-2009 at 12:12 pm
RE #4:
I love that my apt has a very “open” design, especially in the living room, but it still keeps the “dining area” and “living room” separate. I love light and it’s very light, open with lots of room for my son to make train tracks all over!
posted by Sarah in CA on 3-6-2009 at 12:14 pm
1. The thing that comes to my mind is the couple of times I’ve been in dating relationships that seemed to be going really well only to be blindsided by getting very suddenly dumped with no other confrontation. I don’t know if it qualifies as someone being “really angry,” but it still is no fun.
3. In the first season of “Scrubs,” there was an episode where all of the young doctors, new to the real-world workings of patient care, each lost a patient to death. I haven’t seen it in years, but I remember it being an amazingly touching look at death and how it’s a completely inevitable aspect of life but still incredibly difficult to face. And I think it made me cry each time I saw it… which was at least three times.
4. Off of our master bedroom, which is in the back of the house overlooking our backyard, there is a balcony. This is obviously a nice feature, but what has unexpectedly come in handy is that in lieu of an attractive railing, the “rail” is composed of a wall and siding about 3 1/2 feet high. It doesn’t do too much for the view (you can’t really see the backyard while sitting in a chair) but offers complete privacy from neighbors if you’re willing to put a blanket down on the floor. In the middle of a pretty dense neighborhood in a major US city, a truly private space under the open sky is a unique feature. We’ve even been able to sleep out there on really hot summer nights without anyone being able to see us.
posted by KB on 3-6-2009 at 12:35 pm
1 – My roommate during my sophmore year in college got mad at me for some unknown reason (which i still dont know some 6 years later) and refused to speak to me for a whole semester. it was pretty aweful having to stay in a dorm room that was about 12×12 with someone that refuses to talk to you. Needless to say, i spent as much time away from there as i could.
3 – One of the greatest Simpsons episodes is when all the kids go into Shelbyville to get their lemon tree back.
“Looks like Springfield has a discipline problem”
“I guess that why we beat your football team nearly half the time”
I’m also a big fan of the episode in season 1 of the Wire (the greatest TV show ever made) when Bunk and McNulty investigate an old crime scene and basically have an entire conversation by only saying “F**K”…pure genius.
4. I live in a tiny 1 bedroom apartment above a bar. One thing about living above a bar that is pretty fun is listening to all the drunk people’s ridiculously stupid conversations when then come outside to smoke. This can also suck really bad when it’s past midnight and i’m trying to sleep and i have to work the next morning. Especially becasue drunk people like to talk EXTREMELY loud, even when they are standing two feet away from eachother.
posted by Andy on 3-6-2009 at 1:00 pm
3. Sex and the City’s “The Post-it Always Sticks Twice”-hilarious. Also love “Barely Legal” from Family Guy (sorry, it’s so hard to pick one episode from one series!)
posted by Bored on 3-6-2009 at 1:11 pm
3. “The Constant” from Season 4 of Lost
posted by Jeremy on 3-6-2009 at 1:16 pm
1. Not that I know of, but I did just get a talking to from my boss because a co-worker misinterpreted an email and thought I was directly requesting something when I was just wondering whether he knew about a new acquisition. My boss sent a long email (obviously rather annoyed) to the entire department going over how we’re supposed to go through this particular kind of request, and I guess I just found out it was about me?
2. I interviewed for one other job out of college-doing exit polling, specifically for the presidential election. Because the primary season kicked up in January I would have been pulling long hours in December, which would not be good since I had a vacation already planned. Plus I wouldn’t have been able to take much time off for Christmas. I was glad when they didn’t call me.
4. Our fridge doesn’t leak. The one in our old apartment had something wrong with it where water would collect on the bottom shelf and spill over onto the floor when you opened the door (or sometimes even with the door closed). Management kept telling us to defrost the freezer, except there was no frost in the freezer. EV-having a good kitchen is KEY and seriously one of my favorite things about our new place.
posted by Kate on 3-6-2009 at 1:18 pm
#1 – A female friend of mine sent an e-mail addressed to me to an ex of mine and was “agreeing” with things about him that I never actually said. He printed it out and threw it at me a week later and I realised why everyone thought I was a wee bit crazy over him. Lost the friendship with her, became friends again with him when we realised she liked him and was trying to get me out of the way…
#2 – Didn’t get one of the PR jobs at the bank I (still) work for. Wouldn’t that be depressing right now? My current dept has barely been affected by the crunch (lucky for me!)
#3 – You Only Move Twice episode from The Simpsons with Hank Scorpio. Best. Episode. Ever.
Homer: Do you have any sugar?
Scorpio: (reaches in his pants pocket and pours sugar in Homer’s hands) Sorry it’s not in packages. Do you want any cream?
Homer: Mmmmmmmnnnnnnno.
#4: our condo is tucked in the corner of the building (inside corner, not the sweet outside corner with all the sunlight). So, despite the lack of daylight, the floor plan has interesting angles, is roomy and definitely not a box, pretty rare for condos/apartments. It’s nice not to be able to stand at any one point and actually see just how small your home is.
posted by ac on 3-6-2009 at 1:49 pm
2. I applied for a job in a healthcare facility for an esteemed hospital. I thought I was going to be admitted patients or doing a secretarial job. I went to the interview and found out it was a glorified 24-Hour Fitness job. I had to get people to sign up for membership and collect dues. Let’s just say I’m glad I didn’t get the job.
3. Now how can you ask that question and have people just pick one episode!! I’ll have to go with a Friends episode, which I just saw on last night, which never happens!! It’s the one where Ross tells Rachel and Phoebe about Oonagi, or a state or mind where you are aware of everything and you can’t get scared. Then Rachel and Phoebe jump out and scare Ross. “Ahhhhh, Salmon Skin Roll.”
4. I love that my parents’ house is on a corner lot. There is a neighbor behind them that has a couple of noisy dogs, but the other side is a dirt lot. I was thought that was cool that we only had one neighbor.
posted by Colene on 3-6-2009 at 1:50 pm
1) A couple of times…Usually a friend or co-worker tells me.
2) I was temping at a place for about 4 or 5 months. Really hated the place, and the room I worked in had no windows. They never issued me a security card, so I always had to get other people to open the door for me. Anyway, one Friday the boss tells me he wants to see me before I left for the day. I was pretty sure that they were going to hire me on at that point. Well, I got sick over the weekend and had to call in on Monday. Then Tuesday. When I called in on Wednesday, they said “Um, we don’t need you any more”. The one job (of two – so far) that I was happy to be let go from.
3)Probably an episode of the IT Crowd. Any of them, really. Wait… Flight of the Conchords. No. Venture Bros… Uh uh. Um… Black Books. Oh, I’ve got it… The Young Ones “Sick”.
4)The fact that there is a porch off of the kitchen makes it really great for grilling. The converted attic is a nice bonus, too.
posted by Stuart on 3-6-2009 at 2:02 pm
1. Nothing worth writing about.
2. I got a job through a temp agency put never got picked up full-time at the end of the contract. That ‘turning point’ led to my college degree which lead to a great job in another state, which lead to me meeting my wife, which lead to my son….
3. The episode of M*A*S*H in which Radar announcences to everyone in the operating room that Henry died in a plane crash on the way home.
4. That it hasn’t dropped in value and I’m able to sell it for more than what I paid for it 4 years ago to buy our new home.
-JLH
posted by TXCherokee on 3-6-2009 at 2:06 pm
1 – I worked as a counselor at an ESL camp one year, and had a feeling that my co-counselor was a bit irked with me. When I asked her about it, she flipped out and started crying, saying that she was upset that the kids liked me more than they liked her. We discussed a few things that we could both do to help the situation…and even after I tried my hardest, she continued to openly hate me. She left notes on my door, talked about me to other counselors…eventually my boss got fed up with it and sent her packing (she was also a little…not well suited for the job). To this day I have no idea how I upset her — I really was trying to make her life easy as possible and make things work!
2 – I auditioned for a play once and didn’t make the cut. Later on, a friend had told me she had gone to see it and it was pretty bad – got bad reviews too. I was happy I didn’t get the part.
4 – We have a huge balcony off the second floor of our apartment that gets sun from about 8am-8pm (in the summer)…it’s not hidden or underrated at all! I guess a “hidden” gem would be that there is a huge tree in our front yard that shades the living room window and keeps the living room nice and cool in the summer.
posted by Jenny on 3-6-2009 at 2:08 pm
#1
I was mildly dating this girl when I was about 19 and still living at home. I was happy with our relationship because she was SMOKING hot and I was a simple-minded teen looking for nothing other than a hot girlfriend. One night we went to her house for a party and her ex b/f was there (I didn’t see the red flag). He kind of did his thing and I did mine…no drama. We had a great night together and I ended up going home early the next morning. The next couple of days I tried calling her but she never answered or called me back which I thought was weird. Then one night at about 3am on a week night, she caled my parents house. Luckily, I was awake to answer the call. She just started screaming at me that she was calling the cops and that I was a creep and going on and on about how I was in trouble without explaining what I had done. Ten minutes later, a police officer calls my house and keeps asking me about the cell phone I stole from her and the sexual threats I was making. I explained again and again that I had no idea what he was talking about. After threatening me several times he finally left me alone. Eventually I received a call from the girl a couple of days later apologizing for the whole ordeal. Appaently, at the party I mentioned earlier, her ex b/f stole her phone and kept contacting her making these sexual threats and acting like it was me. Can you say “complete psycho”? Long story short, I didn’t accept her apology because at that point, I was done with her and her baggage (and hottness for that matter). And if this girl is reading this by some chance, I still think you’re a psycho. Get some help!
posted by BW on 3-6-2009 at 2:09 pm
2) Executive Assistant to Elliot Spitzer. Enough said.
ReCaptcha: Other Fruits lol
posted by Elegguasito on 3-6-2009 at 2:10 pm
2. In 2007, i was temping at an engineering company, and interviewed for a big insurance company. When I didn’t get that job, I started working at a homebuilder, who laid me off since the housing market is so abysmal here in Phoenix. Following the layoff, I started temping at the engineering firm again, met my husband, and interviewed for a different job at the same insurance company I had interviewed with before. This time, I got the job, which has me working for someone higher up in the company who is the best boss I have ever had. SO if i hadn’t been passed over for the forst one, i wouldn’t have the job I have now, and i wouldn’t have met my husband. :-)
3. there was an episode of “who’s line is it anyway” where Ryan broke the lights on the host’s desk with his head. He was ok, but that entire episode had me in tears!
4. I have to say, the reason i picked my apartment is because it looks out over 2 things: about 50 uncovered parking spaces, 4 deep, and it faces South Mountain to the west. I can see the sunset over the mountains every night from my living room.
bekka
posted by Mrs. Begay on 3-6-2009 at 2:26 pm
Elegguasito, are you serious? How creepy that would have been. Somebody with the midset to do the weird thing that he did has the potential do do a lot of other weird things too. if you’re serious, congratulations on not taking the job/bombing your interview.
posted by BW on 3-6-2009 at 2:34 pm
#3 A Hogan’s Heroes episode where Schultz is to be transferred to the Russian Front.
Klink: Sgt. Schultz, it is a great honor that you are getting to serve the Fuhrer by fighting at the Russian Front!
Schultz: Colonel, I don’t want to go. I am old, overweight, I have a heart condition, poor eyesight, bad hearing, and flat feet!
Klink: Schultz, don’t be silly.
Schultz: I’m silly too!
It cracks me up every time!
posted by Tex on 3-6-2009 at 2:50 pm
KB, good call!
3. I think it was called “My Old Lady” and it was only the third of fourth episode of Scrubs. Starts with JD’s monologue about how 1 out of every 3 patients who enter the hospital will die there as we see the three main characters each meet a new patient. Then it ends with all 3 patients dying as “Hallelujah” plays. Really well done episode and still makes me cry every time I see it.
posted by Rachel on 3-6-2009 at 3:38 pm
1. Once in college, while hanging out with friends, I made a sarcastic comment that was meant to be a spoof of homophobia. I thought the sarcasm was pretty evident by the way I rolled my eyes and the tone of my voice when I said it, but I found out days later that one of my friends, whose father happened to have just come out of the closet recently, didn’t catch the sarcasm and thought I was a “gay-hater”. It took a little while to convince her otherwise.
posted by Craig on 3-6-2009 at 3:40 pm
2. Yes, I praise God that I did not get that job in corporate acquisitions!
3. “The Constant” from Lost and “The Bridal Shower” from Laverne & Shirley
4. It has really deep windowsills which are great for flowers.
posted by DB on 3-6-2009 at 3:44 pm
1 – So when I was in elementary school this really snotty girl hated me for some reason, never knew why because I never talked to her, but one day I was walking home from school and a group of girls told me that she was waiting to fight me on the play ground. I, of course, blew it off didn’t go back to fight her. It was so lame and just too pathetic that she would talk crap about me the way she did and then schedule a fight and tell everyone but me. I think she got knocked up when she was 15 or something – Karma’s a bitch!
2 – I took the job that I shouldn’t have taken. Doh! Lesson learned: Beware of jobs that are so simply offered. Actually I was aware that I might not want the job and rejected the first offer but took it after the second time so… Revised Lesson Learned: Beware of Twice simply offered jobs. I believe a big part of what makes a job a dream job is if you had to fight for it – then you know you wanted it. Well maybe that’s not necessarily true in this economy but…
3 – I love Family Guy episodes where Stewie and Brian antagonize each other about how the novel is coming along.
4 – I actually appreciate windowless bathrooms that can be made completely dark anytime of day. It’s the perfect place to go when a migraine comes on and the slightest bit of light can drive me absolutely crazy.
posted by Erin on 3-6-2009 at 3:58 pm
#3. The first episode of Cheers. There are so many great moments with Coach. My two Favories are when the phone rings and Coach answers then looks up and yells “Is there an Ernie Pantusso here?” From off camera you hear Sam yell “That’s you Coach” and he says “Oh Yeah! Hello?”
But the best is when a Diane’s fiance walks up and asks Coach “Excuse me, where’s your bathroom?” and Coach looks up and says “Next to my bedroom” then goes back to washing dishes…
Kills me every time!
posted by Ben on 3-6-2009 at 4:00 pm
3. I love the episode of Whose Line mentioned by Mrs. Begay above. I’ll second that one.
4. A couple years ago my husband and I were running out of time to get a Christmas tree after being busy at work and fighting colds. We also were planning to paint our front room a light green color, so we had a gallon of green paint and decided to use it to paint a Christmas tree in the corner where we usually put the live tree. We got a cheap, shiny garland and stapled it back and forth on the wall like a string of lights, and we folded our tree skirt underneath so there was a place to put gifts. It worked out so well that we actually left it up all year, and last Christmas we added a second garland to mark its second year. So I think a permanent bit of Christmas cheer would qualify as an unexpected attribute of a house. The cable repairman who came over last summer certainly got a kick out of it!
posted by JD on 3-6-2009 at 4:07 pm
1. my best friend and i drifted apart after she had her first child. when i hadn’t heard from her in a couple months, i sent her an e-mail saying i hoped all was well. she blew up at me, saying some of the most awful things you could imagine… turns out a mutual friend told her that i was seeing the baby’s father, her ex. i was not (it was his brother). it was nearly two years before i was able to convince her that i would never have hooked up with her ex (for a long list of reasons, he was gross). we are friends again now, but i still am pissed about the things she called me.
2. i applied for an admin job in college, didn’t get, so i went to a bar and cocktailed for awhile to get through school. i ended up meeting my fiance there. i also met a regular who hired me as an accountant when i did graduate. yay for dive bars!
3. i can’t pinpoint an episode – but its gotta be of arrested development.
4. my neighborhood has its fair share of foreclosures (score for me, as i bought very low), which leads to many weed filled yards. but the guy right across from me has a beautiful yard. he is out there everyday trimming or raking or spraying something. nice guy and a great view from my front windows.
posted by tiffany on 3-6-2009 at 4:15 pm
1) I had an English Teacher who did not like me at all. I remember her calling me aside in a crowded corridor one morning before hymn practice. I walked over to her, all smiles, thinking she just needed me to do something for her, only to have her scream at me about wearing a hat inside in front of hundreds of girls. It was really odd.
2) I got a job managing a sweet shop and so I resigned from my office job. Before I’d worked through my notice period the sweet shop job fell through, but I left the office anyway (That was a dream job gone unbearably sour experience). In retrospect, what with one thing and another, I probably wouldn’t be married right now if I had got that job.
3) Are you trying to make my head explode? A single episode of my favourite series? That’s just cruel! Just for the sake of argument though, I’ll say the episode of the second season of “Black Books” where Bernard writes “I am on the Phone” on a post it and sticks it on his head when a customer is bugging him. As an ex-bookseller I can’t tell you how many times we were tempted to re-enact that one.
4) Well it doesn’t have anywhere near enough storage, but our house does overlook a small golf course; so we get the smell of fresh mown grass wafting in on a regular basis. That’s lovely, especially when it coincides with a warm Friday evening, a nice glass of wine and a display of fireflies in the trees.
posted by Jen - The Alien Spouse on 3-6-2009 at 4:20 pm
1.) I found out last year that I’d made a co-worker cry the year before. It explained by why she always avoided me, but not why she continued to be an inconsiderate noise-maker.
2.) I work in the legal profession. Of all the jobs I’ve applied for, there are no doubt dozens of lawyers I’m very grateful to not have worked for but just don’t know it. I’m also extremely grateful never to have gotten any of the food service jobs I’ve ever applied for.
3.) Best tv show episode in my opinion is episode two of “Fawlty Towers” when Basil hires the cheaper handymen to do some work and they end up walling off the dining room.
4.) My home’s most unique redeeming quality is that in September when the apple tree outside my bedroom window is laden with apples, I only need to open the window and can pick to my heart’s delight. Whomever planted the tree many years ago got it a little too close to the house!
posted by Beth on 3-6-2009 at 4:24 pm
1. My grandmother is often mad at me or our entire side of the family. I normally don’t find out about it until I see her at a function and try to say Hi. Then I have to go to my mom “what’s with your mother in law?” and get the “oh, she’s not talking to us again” line.
3. Also have to place a vote for the Who’s Line episode where Ryan breaks the lights. Kills me every time.
posted by Danyel D on 3-6-2009 at 4:38 pm
1. A girl who is now a very good friend of mine once misinterpreted something I said to her when we first met. I don’t remember saying it, but she was really scared of me for a long time! But we’re really good friends now, so that’s all the matters, right?
2. I have been lucky in all of my jobs. I even had a boss take me to Hawaii with another co-worker and his family as a thank you for all my hard work in the restaurant one summer! Best. Boss. Ever!
3. The episode of Friends where Rachel & Pheobe find out about Monica & Chandler. They go back and forth the whole episode with Pheobe pretending to like Chandler to get him to admit his relationship with Monica.
“They don’t know, we know, they know.”
4. I have NO closets! It suprememly sucks! But it’s my first house, so I can only go up from here!
posted by Mavis on 3-6-2009 at 4:40 pm
Mavis – my fiance took his two employees to Maui this year! I keep telling him he’s way too nice of a boss – but that might just be jealousy :) And that episode of Friends is classic!
posted by tiffany on 3-6-2009 at 5:12 pm
1. Emails are my biggest problem. I now have my email set up to get returned receipts for all emails I send from work. This way I know if a person received it or not. Too many times did this happen before I figured out this great thing you can do with email.
2. I applied for a manager job at a retail store once upon a time and my friend actually got it so I didn’t feel too bad but it was still a bummer. Once she actually started the job I found out soon that I should be even more greatful that she got the position. She started looking elsewhere within a month of starting.
3. My favorite TV episode is from Family Guy. I just about died when I seen the one where Stewie asked Brian to shave his coin purse.
4. My driveway is huge and is a half cirlce off the road which is very convenient. What isn’t convenient is the fact that we have to blow snow to the west and the wind seems to be always blowing to the east. It comes right back onto the driveway!!!
posted by Des on 3-6-2009 at 5:16 pm
1) On a drunken evening, one of my friends thought I joke that I was going to rape her. Totally not what I said. Caused headaches for a few weeks before I finally convinced her.
2) Stock-boy at Gene Juarez salon when I was like 17. I have no idea what I was thinking.
3) “Two Cathedrals” from The West Wing. Best episode of anything. Ever.
4) Vaulted ceilings in the bedrooms. I haven’t yet, but I like knowing I could put up a monstrous poster or wall-hanging. Also, the living room and kitchen are on a different level from the bedrooms. Once you have that, you never want to go back. I can go to bed early when people are over and have no noise issues.
posted by Sean O. on 3-6-2009 at 5:32 pm
2. Many years ago I was a designer in San Francisco, and I was temporarily laid off during a slow stint. I heard about another job in the same building, so I interviewed for the position. Although the guy didn’t say it outright (would have been illegal), it was obvious he didn’t want to hire a female. Later, I went to my old job and told one of the (male) designers about the job upstairs, and though he had no more qualifications than I had, he got the job! So that left an opening at the old place, and I got my job back.
4. I love that my house has a big open concept kitchen and family room, and two spare bedrooms (and no kids!) so my husband has his own office and I have mine.
posted by Stanton on 3-6-2009 at 5:59 pm
1. Everything was going really well with my crush in high school until one day he stopped talking to me, totally out of the blue. I found out that he had overheard me and a friend quoting a Buffy episode in which Buffy says something along the lines of “I hope it was a funny aneurism!”. Apparently he was in the car with a classmate of ours when said classmate’s mother spontaneously died of a brain aneurism. Whoops. My bad.
2. Circuit City.
3. I think my favorite episode of any show ever has to be the Vietnam episode of TopGear. They had to cross the country on very cheaply bought motorbikes, and should their bike break down they would be forced to ride a red-white-and-blue Harley blaring Lee Greenwood. I love watching Brits mock my country:)(Recaptcha: Saigon Roose)
4. Firewalls are a Godsend against noisy neighbors. The downside of my apartment is that is has to be the least bird-friendly ever, a fact which my parrotlet has exploited over and over. The kitchen is not separated from the living room, so she loves to fly toward the sink to play in what I’m sure she thinks is a refreshing Amazonian waterfall, but is actually scalding hot, over-chlorinated city water falling into a basin filled with bleach and chicken fat. We also have windows that span from wall-to-wall, with a lovely view of down-town that has to be permanently covered lest the bird try to make a doomed dash for freedom.
posted by Mandragora on 3-6-2009 at 6:07 pm
3. Arrested Development episode where Gob Bluth helps George Michael run for student body president against Steve Holt. The Empire Strikes Back reenactment with the brooms had me in tears.
posted by Jorjon21 on 3-6-2009 at 7:07 pm
4 Easy walking distance to a good auto repair place.
posted by PartiallyDeflected on 3-6-2009 at 8:06 pm
I received a call from a head hunter one week back in 94 and he sent me to local establishment that provided food to airlines. I am a maintenance mechanic and electrician and was being looked at as the head of maintenance for this firm. The first interview went well but I heard nothing from them for 3 months. They finally called again and asked me to come in for the 2nd interview. This was with the managers and main office HR director. The interview lasted an hour and we discussed salary and benefits. I was going to get 100k plus a 4 wheel drive pick-up. I was informed that there were other people to be interviewed and it would be 3 more months before I would hear anything.
Just before I was to hear about the position the place was raided by the INS and lost 60% of the work force. They never reopened. Luckily for me I was employed and did not take that job, I would have been out of work!
posted by Owen on 3-6-2009 at 8:43 pm
Wow! I totally agree with Jeremy on the Lost episode.
My dept was going away and I had a chance to take another position there, but I held out. And a few months later I was sent to another location much much closer to home!
This is totally wrong, but the best feature of my house is that the lady that lives next door is extremely beautiful.
posted by mdely on 3-6-2009 at 9:15 pm
Yet another LOST , but for me it’s THE SHAPE OF THINGS TO COME, where Ben gets to be all BAD-A**
posted by CharlesWidmoreMustBeDESTROYED on 3-7-2009 at 12:30 am
Jeremy got my favorite episode of TV ever!! The Constant from Lost was just phenominal. I still get choked up thinking about it.
A close second is on Fresh Prince when Will and Lisa go to couples counciling. The group session with the Jeffersons is classic.
posted by Tricia on 3-7-2009 at 9:21 am
2 – About two months after college, I got offered a job in “editing” from a friend of a friend. I had to apply twice, take an online personality test, do a phone interview, take an editing test, and then fly several states over for an in-person interview. During the interview, they pulled the bait and switch on me, and offered me a medical editing job in lieu of the creative editing position I had been seeking. Had I actually filled the position, I would have spent 40 hours a week editing medical textbooks, prescription warnings, and informational essays about new medications. That sounds, well, awful. Glad to have sidestepped that one.
posted by Elle on 3-7-2009 at 1:39 pm
1. An old roommate was mad at me for a week and she finally told me it was because I planned on moving out at the end of a lease and I’d told the other 2 people in the house before telling her. I wasn’t going to ditch out and I hadn’t seen her since I’d decided. Weird.
3. Buffy the Vampire Slayer – Once More with Feeling
“They got the mustard out!”
4. I just moved into this place in October. It’s smaller than I would like, but it came with free cable and a washer & dryer. Never again will I live in a place without a washer and dryer. Laundromats – boo!
posted by nikki on 3-7-2009 at 3:59 pm
I had interviewed for a PR position at Enron about a year before it’s collapse.. I’m very happy I didnt get that one!!
posted by Debbie on 3-7-2009 at 9:44 pm
1. I’m too lovable to get mad at…
2. Electrician at a Michigan prison. Would have had inmate assistants., anything from a drunk driver to a murderer. Enough about that.
3. One favorite is “Whose Line is it Anyways?” starring Richard Simmons – wet your pants hilarious!! Also Star Trek Voyager. The Dr. is uploaded into 7 of 9’s body. Jerri Ryan did some great acting emulating the Doctor.
4. The natural fireplace, We have a fire almost every night in the winter.
posted by Sparky on 3-8-2009 at 3:38 pm
Yay for the “Two Cathedrals” love!
posted by NYCGirl on 3-9-2009 at 4:41 am