What is your favourite ________?
Fill in the blank with anything you want, anything you can think of. Food, drink, band, TV show, cheese, yoga position, shampoo, whatever. Just answer the question as you would normally:
What is your favourite ________?
Got the answer? Good.
Now another question:
If you could only use one ________ for the rest of your life, which one would it be?
(Replace the verb "use" with a more appropriate verb if necessary, e.g. eat, drink, watch, listen to - whatever goes best with the noun in the blank)
Are the answers the same?
Try with something else in the blank. Are the answers still the same?
For me, sometimes they are the same, sometimes they aren't. That's really weird.
Friday, April 06, 2007
Garbage
The City of Toronto recently had an idea of issuing each household a small garbage bin, and charging them more money if they want a larger one. There are several problems with this plan, but the one I haven't seen mentioned yet is: what happens under exceptional circumstances that generate far more garbage than usual?
I generate very little garbage. Probably one big green bag a month, including organics. However, as I prepare to move, I find myself having to throw out quite a few largish things that can't be recycled or donated to charity. My old olive green pots and pans (originally my father's from his first apartment in the early 70s), whose non-stick is coming off. The original keyboard from my first computer, whose M key doesn't work. Hopelessly stained clothing that charities won't accept. Basically four years worth of stuff that I held on to because they aren't 100% useless (I am, after all, the child of an immigrant) but that I'm ultimately not going to use ever again. This is a one-time increase in my household garbage and probably won't happen again for another several years. It doesn't mean I need a larger bin 100% of the time, but I would need more for one garbage collection. Does this plan take these kinds of things into account?
I've been spending some time lurking around web communities devoted to frugality and waste reduction, in the hopes of finding leads on places where I can donate or recycle these kinds of bulky useless items. One surprising idea that kept coming up was to make craft projects out of stuff. I'm sorry, but I don't think this counts. I have all these old clothes that are too stained to donate. If I make, say, rag dolls out of them, then I'd have a bunch of rag dolls. But I don't need rag dolls. I couldn't donate or regift the rag dolls because they're made out of old stained clothes - you don't give a child a doll with your stains on it! I have no use for rag dolls in my home. It doesn't contribute to the decor - it's not like I look around and say "You know what this place really needs? Some rag dolls!" So while, technically, I have reused my useless old clothes, reusing being a frugal and environmentally friendly act, I don't actually get any points for it. I've just turned one useless thing into another useless thing that looks slightly less like garbage. I think craft projects should only count if the end product fills a need that you would have had to fill even if you didn't have the items you were making the craft out of. In other words, my hypothetical rag doll project would count only if, had I not had all these old stained clothes on hand, I would have had to go buy rag dolls or rags to make dolls out of.
I think the problem with society in general is that not generating waste is a virtue, frugally saving things until you can reuse them is a virtue, but being clutter-free is also a virtue.
I generate very little garbage. Probably one big green bag a month, including organics. However, as I prepare to move, I find myself having to throw out quite a few largish things that can't be recycled or donated to charity. My old olive green pots and pans (originally my father's from his first apartment in the early 70s), whose non-stick is coming off. The original keyboard from my first computer, whose M key doesn't work. Hopelessly stained clothing that charities won't accept. Basically four years worth of stuff that I held on to because they aren't 100% useless (I am, after all, the child of an immigrant) but that I'm ultimately not going to use ever again. This is a one-time increase in my household garbage and probably won't happen again for another several years. It doesn't mean I need a larger bin 100% of the time, but I would need more for one garbage collection. Does this plan take these kinds of things into account?
I've been spending some time lurking around web communities devoted to frugality and waste reduction, in the hopes of finding leads on places where I can donate or recycle these kinds of bulky useless items. One surprising idea that kept coming up was to make craft projects out of stuff. I'm sorry, but I don't think this counts. I have all these old clothes that are too stained to donate. If I make, say, rag dolls out of them, then I'd have a bunch of rag dolls. But I don't need rag dolls. I couldn't donate or regift the rag dolls because they're made out of old stained clothes - you don't give a child a doll with your stains on it! I have no use for rag dolls in my home. It doesn't contribute to the decor - it's not like I look around and say "You know what this place really needs? Some rag dolls!" So while, technically, I have reused my useless old clothes, reusing being a frugal and environmentally friendly act, I don't actually get any points for it. I've just turned one useless thing into another useless thing that looks slightly less like garbage. I think craft projects should only count if the end product fills a need that you would have had to fill even if you didn't have the items you were making the craft out of. In other words, my hypothetical rag doll project would count only if, had I not had all these old stained clothes on hand, I would have had to go buy rag dolls or rags to make dolls out of.
I think the problem with society in general is that not generating waste is a virtue, frugally saving things until you can reuse them is a virtue, but being clutter-free is also a virtue.
Wednesday, April 04, 2007
Open Letter to Salon
Dear Salon:
With your new letters policy, you've lost me as a commenter. It seems you valued me as a commenter, given that about half my letters got red stars (which seems significant in light of the fact that your policy is to favour signed letters). That's probably because I comment only when I seem to be the only one who has thought to say what I have to say.
Given the combination of the size of your readership, and the hatefulness of certain parts of your readership, and the fact that every comment I have to make that's worth making is either highly personal or highly political, and the fact that I must retain a certain anonymity WRT my real-life identity for the sake of my loved ones, and the fact that I must maintain the impression of a certain political neutrality WRT my real-life identity for professional purposes, and the fact that if you collected together all my comments it really would show a lot of myself, I'm just not comfortable with that.
I censor myself a lot when I'm posting under a consistent identity - yes, even here, yes, even in other online communities. I wasn't censoring myself that much in the Salon comments in order to produce unique and insightful comments. If I do censor myself as much as necessary, what I can permit myself to say there wouldn't be worth saying.
Yes, I have this blog, but I only get 10-20 hits a day (mostly from people googling for pictures I once linked to), plus I don't seem to get that many nasty trolls. There are more nasty trolls in a single Salon letters page than I've gotten in the entire history of this blog. I'm just not up for exposing myself to them under any consistent identity.
PS: On top of all this, I have also noticed that the most annoying posters do use consistent handles.
With your new letters policy, you've lost me as a commenter. It seems you valued me as a commenter, given that about half my letters got red stars (which seems significant in light of the fact that your policy is to favour signed letters). That's probably because I comment only when I seem to be the only one who has thought to say what I have to say.
Given the combination of the size of your readership, and the hatefulness of certain parts of your readership, and the fact that every comment I have to make that's worth making is either highly personal or highly political, and the fact that I must retain a certain anonymity WRT my real-life identity for the sake of my loved ones, and the fact that I must maintain the impression of a certain political neutrality WRT my real-life identity for professional purposes, and the fact that if you collected together all my comments it really would show a lot of myself, I'm just not comfortable with that.
I censor myself a lot when I'm posting under a consistent identity - yes, even here, yes, even in other online communities. I wasn't censoring myself that much in the Salon comments in order to produce unique and insightful comments. If I do censor myself as much as necessary, what I can permit myself to say there wouldn't be worth saying.
Yes, I have this blog, but I only get 10-20 hits a day (mostly from people googling for pictures I once linked to), plus I don't seem to get that many nasty trolls. There are more nasty trolls in a single Salon letters page than I've gotten in the entire history of this blog. I'm just not up for exposing myself to them under any consistent identity.
PS: On top of all this, I have also noticed that the most annoying posters do use consistent handles.
Sunday, April 01, 2007
Judasnape
Salon writes about the recently-found Gospel of Judas.
My first thought: that is almost exactly the character arc of Snape!
But if Snape's Judas, that makes Dumbledore the messiah. So what does that make Harry?
My first thought: that is almost exactly the character arc of Snape!
But if Snape's Judas, that makes Dumbledore the messiah. So what does that make Harry?
April Fool's joke, free for the taking
Scott Adams asked his readers to submit April Fool's jokes.
Inspired by some of the readers' suggestions about how to fuck with other people's computers, I have a harmless but effective joke. It will be immediately noticeable to the victim, but it won't hurt anything or cause significant delay, and the victim will be able to remedy the situation themselves.
On the victim's keyboard, move the little cover things on the F and J keys one line up. Make sure to keep them in the same row and with two spaces in between them.
As you know, the F and J keys have those little sticky-up things on them to show touch typists where to put their fingers. So if your victim is a touch typist, they'll start typing with their fingers on the wrong keys qhe 3f3465y8ht 28oo d9j3 975 o8i3 5y8wl.
Inspired by some of the readers' suggestions about how to fuck with other people's computers, I have a harmless but effective joke. It will be immediately noticeable to the victim, but it won't hurt anything or cause significant delay, and the victim will be able to remedy the situation themselves.
On the victim's keyboard, move the little cover things on the F and J keys one line up. Make sure to keep them in the same row and with two spaces in between them.
As you know, the F and J keys have those little sticky-up things on them to show touch typists where to put their fingers. So if your victim is a touch typist, they'll start typing with their fingers on the wrong keys qhe 3f3465y8ht 28oo d9j3 975 o8i3 5y8wl.
Saturday, March 31, 2007
Not dead yet
I've just come off the week from hell at work and then I took possession of the apartment today. So I haven't had time to blog any of the zillions of things floating around in my head, or look at my comments, or look at other people's blogs, or generally participate in online or IRL social life. There will be more apartment fuss this weekend, but I do expect to come back to the land of the living shortly.
Compared with this process I'm going through, I'm astounded at how uncivilized our move-in process for res was in university. We were treated like cattle on an assembly line. When we had to move from winter res to summer res, we were given one day's notice without consideration for the fact that we may have other obligations that day. I compare this with my current process where I call or pop in, and they just know who I am and why I'm there and act like they're happy to see me. I wonder if they treat the uni students worse because we'd most likely never lived away from our parents before so we had no idea how well people might be treated for housing out in the grownup world?
PS: To everyone I told that my phone number is changing: my phone number is NOT changing. Apparently Rogers can just take over my Bell number, so I get to keep my 416 cred instead of looking like some 647 newbie. Even though I really am I newbie. Well, I have been here for nearly 7 years...hey, that's over 25% of my life! Maybe I'm not a newbie!
Compared with this process I'm going through, I'm astounded at how uncivilized our move-in process for res was in university. We were treated like cattle on an assembly line. When we had to move from winter res to summer res, we were given one day's notice without consideration for the fact that we may have other obligations that day. I compare this with my current process where I call or pop in, and they just know who I am and why I'm there and act like they're happy to see me. I wonder if they treat the uni students worse because we'd most likely never lived away from our parents before so we had no idea how well people might be treated for housing out in the grownup world?
PS: To everyone I told that my phone number is changing: my phone number is NOT changing. Apparently Rogers can just take over my Bell number, so I get to keep my 416 cred instead of looking like some 647 newbie. Even though I really am I newbie. Well, I have been here for nearly 7 years...hey, that's over 25% of my life! Maybe I'm not a newbie!
Saturday, March 24, 2007
Sweetness in the Belly by Camilla Gibb
Read this book! Read it for the cultural anthropology. It's an absolutely fascinating explanation of another culture without getting all condescending or preachy.
The protagonist is a British girl who was orphaned in Africa when her hippie parents were killed in a drug deal, then brought up in a Muslim community and then taken to Ethiopia for some reason. The book explores her life as an adolescent living with a widow and her daughters in Harar, Ethopia in the 1970s. This story alternates with the story of the protagonist in the 1980s, now back "home" in London, where she works as a nurse and helps refugees.
My description doesn't do it justice. It is fascinating and compelling, but what I like best is that it describes life in Harar (and life in London, for that matter) in a very matter-of-fact way. Usually when books talk about Other Cultures, there's either a condescending colonial tone or a preachy "noble savages" tone. This one doesn't. It just describes what's happening, quietly making sure to do so in a way I'll understand while sitting in the subway in Toronto, but never passing judgement on the culture being described or on me from being unfamiliar with it. And I left wanting to find out what else happened to the characters in the book, which is always a good sign.
The protagonist is a British girl who was orphaned in Africa when her hippie parents were killed in a drug deal, then brought up in a Muslim community and then taken to Ethiopia for some reason. The book explores her life as an adolescent living with a widow and her daughters in Harar, Ethopia in the 1970s. This story alternates with the story of the protagonist in the 1980s, now back "home" in London, where she works as a nurse and helps refugees.
My description doesn't do it justice. It is fascinating and compelling, but what I like best is that it describes life in Harar (and life in London, for that matter) in a very matter-of-fact way. Usually when books talk about Other Cultures, there's either a condescending colonial tone or a preachy "noble savages" tone. This one doesn't. It just describes what's happening, quietly making sure to do so in a way I'll understand while sitting in the subway in Toronto, but never passing judgement on the culture being described or on me from being unfamiliar with it. And I left wanting to find out what else happened to the characters in the book, which is always a good sign.
Bad analogy
The Globe and Mail has an article about a Muslim student who refused to do life drawing for religious reasons. Near the end of the article, they draw a parallel with xian students who don't want to read more graphic literature.
I wonder why they used the homosexuality analogy, because that's a massive red herring. If a book has graphic sex scenes, that has to do with how explicit it is. It is possible for reading too-graphic written sex scenes to be contrary to a person's sexual morality, which would make it an appropriate analogy with not doing life drawing. (Aside: I haven't read Henry Miller, but I do wonder if you can still study the book effectively if you skip the sex scenes?) However, if a book portrays homosexuality favourably, that's a completely different thing. That's the theme and message expressed by the book. You are welcome to disagree with the theme and message of the book - that makes for good essay fodder! - but just because you don't agree with it doesn't mean you should be excused from reading it.
This would have been a perfectly reasonable analogy if they'd stopped at the Henry Miller. Muslim students don't want to draw nudes, xian students don't want to read sex scenes. But then they went on to the false analogy of books that portray homosexuality favourably, which made a huge dent in their credibility. You'd think academics would be better at analogizing.
Aside: I wonder why life drawing has to be of nude models? I wonder why they can't have the models wear underwear or a bathing suit or a leotard? Surely the human body presents enough challenges even if you don't expose the genitals.
Ms. Okruhlik said she and her academic colleagues have dealt with Christian students who don't want to read Henry Miller (who wrote detailed accounts of sexual experiences) or literature that portrays homosexuality favourably.
"And we say to those students, 'No, we value diversity and plurality, but we also value academic freedom. So if you want to take this course, you have to read the assigned reading,' she said.
"It's hard for us to see how equal treatment means we can say to some students, 'No, I'm sorry you have to read that novel that portrays homosexuality in a favourable light -- but, no, you don't have to do that drawing.' "
I wonder why they used the homosexuality analogy, because that's a massive red herring. If a book has graphic sex scenes, that has to do with how explicit it is. It is possible for reading too-graphic written sex scenes to be contrary to a person's sexual morality, which would make it an appropriate analogy with not doing life drawing. (Aside: I haven't read Henry Miller, but I do wonder if you can still study the book effectively if you skip the sex scenes?) However, if a book portrays homosexuality favourably, that's a completely different thing. That's the theme and message expressed by the book. You are welcome to disagree with the theme and message of the book - that makes for good essay fodder! - but just because you don't agree with it doesn't mean you should be excused from reading it.
This would have been a perfectly reasonable analogy if they'd stopped at the Henry Miller. Muslim students don't want to draw nudes, xian students don't want to read sex scenes. But then they went on to the false analogy of books that portray homosexuality favourably, which made a huge dent in their credibility. You'd think academics would be better at analogizing.
Aside: I wonder why life drawing has to be of nude models? I wonder why they can't have the models wear underwear or a bathing suit or a leotard? Surely the human body presents enough challenges even if you don't expose the genitals.
My greatest weakness
I've always had trouble with the "What's your greatest weakness?" question in job interviews. My real greatest weaknesses have always been too great a weakness to emphasize like that, and none of the standard workarounds applied to me in any convincing manner.
But today in the shower, it came to me:
My greatest weakness is that I overthink things.
This is a good answer because it's true - or at least it's the general consensus of people around me that a) I overthink things and b) this is a problem. It can also be easily spun into a positive.
In translation, I'm always reading my work from the point of view of an unsympathetic reader who is determined to take offence at the content of the work or the quality of the translation, or who is going to be poring over the text looking specifically for weaknesses or loopholes. Isn't that a quality you'd want in someone who's responsible for your communications?
In real life, I'm always thinking of a myriad of consequences to whatever action is proposed. Someone says "Hey, I have an idea!" and I'm all "But what about the logistics? And the environmental impact? And the political implications? Do we really want to be manipulating market forces that way? And what if someone involved has a cochlear implant?" This tends to infuriate people IRL, but isn't it a quality you'd want in an employee?
But today in the shower, it came to me:
My greatest weakness is that I overthink things.
This is a good answer because it's true - or at least it's the general consensus of people around me that a) I overthink things and b) this is a problem. It can also be easily spun into a positive.
In translation, I'm always reading my work from the point of view of an unsympathetic reader who is determined to take offence at the content of the work or the quality of the translation, or who is going to be poring over the text looking specifically for weaknesses or loopholes. Isn't that a quality you'd want in someone who's responsible for your communications?
In real life, I'm always thinking of a myriad of consequences to whatever action is proposed. Someone says "Hey, I have an idea!" and I'm all "But what about the logistics? And the environmental impact? And the political implications? Do we really want to be manipulating market forces that way? And what if someone involved has a cochlear implant?" This tends to infuriate people IRL, but isn't it a quality you'd want in an employee?
How to shock people
I have a lot of opinions about a lot of things. Most of my opinions are controversial to some people, and some of my opinions are controversial to most people. I tend to question societal norms, and follow them only if they meet my own needs.
But there's one statement which above and beyond shocks the most people. Of all the things I've said in my life, it has made the most people gasp, clutch their metaphorical pearls, say "You don't mean that!", try to convince me otherwise, and think there's something serious wrong with me for feeling this way.
Here is the statement:
"I don't care at all, in any way whatsoever, what colour my walls are painted."
But there's one statement which above and beyond shocks the most people. Of all the things I've said in my life, it has made the most people gasp, clutch their metaphorical pearls, say "You don't mean that!", try to convince me otherwise, and think there's something serious wrong with me for feeling this way.
Here is the statement:
"I don't care at all, in any way whatsoever, what colour my walls are painted."
Monday, March 19, 2007
Open Letter to the TTC
Dear TTC:
Please stop putting that "TTC Maps and Info Available Here" insert in with my Metropass. That same information is already printed on the paper that the Metropass is attached to! You're just wasting paper and precious $$$ that could better be used for other things.
Please stop putting that "TTC Maps and Info Available Here" insert in with my Metropass. That same information is already printed on the paper that the Metropass is attached to! You're just wasting paper and precious $$$ that could better be used for other things.
Open Letter to Postsecret
Dear Postsecret:
I'd really appreciate it if you'd keep your page worksafe. Or, if that's not possible, post a NSFW warning above any NSFW pictures.
I know I really shouldn't be looking at it at work, but I can't work 8 hours straight through without a mental break, and it's a good thing to look at when I need a mental break since it only takes a minute to read and I don't get sucked in.
But if you make it NSFW, that changes everything. It's suddenly not a random, innocent diversion, instead it's a violation of my network use TOS. So please, give me a warning?
I'd really appreciate it if you'd keep your page worksafe. Or, if that's not possible, post a NSFW warning above any NSFW pictures.
I know I really shouldn't be looking at it at work, but I can't work 8 hours straight through without a mental break, and it's a good thing to look at when I need a mental break since it only takes a minute to read and I don't get sucked in.
But if you make it NSFW, that changes everything. It's suddenly not a random, innocent diversion, instead it's a violation of my network use TOS. So please, give me a warning?
Sunday, March 18, 2007
More on Test the Nation
1. On a 20 inch, non-HD TV, the pictures for the puzzle questions aren't clear enough.
2. The little CBC logo in the corner gets in the way sometimes
3. One of the millionaires runs a dating service that pairs up rich men with hot women. Tastefulness aside, and aside from the fact that I wouldn't want to date someone who wanted me only for my money/body, I couldn't imagine dating someone who was willing to date someone who wanted them only for their money/body. "Hi, I have no higher expectations from my personal life than to be used in a prostitution-style transaction." Not attractive.
Edit:
4. They really should explain HOW you're supposed to arrive at the answer. Some of them really did require explanation for people who didn't get them. The one with the sequence of numbers where they asked which one didn't belong, and the one that didn't belong was 8, I really didn't get the logic behind that, even with the correct answer in hand. I hope they post explanations on their website.
5. In the IQ calculation chart gives older people a few more IQ points for the same number of questions than younger people (and I don't mean OLD old people - the oldest demographic category was 55+). I wonder why? You'd think a few more years of life experience would make it easier to answer some of these questions, so older people with lower IQs would be able to answer more questions rather than vice versa.
6. The highest possible scores seem low to me. The highest someone older than 55 could get is 156, and the highest someone under 24 could get is 141. All the official testing I've done has been in the context of a gifted education program, so I'm used to seeing people jockeying around among higher scores. But seriously, there must be some people out who are under 24 with an IQ well over 141. It's statistically rare, true, but it's common enough that they wouldn't write you up in the newspaper as a human interest story or anything.
2. The little CBC logo in the corner gets in the way sometimes
3. One of the millionaires runs a dating service that pairs up rich men with hot women. Tastefulness aside, and aside from the fact that I wouldn't want to date someone who wanted me only for my money/body, I couldn't imagine dating someone who was willing to date someone who wanted them only for their money/body. "Hi, I have no higher expectations from my personal life than to be used in a prostitution-style transaction." Not attractive.
Edit:
4. They really should explain HOW you're supposed to arrive at the answer. Some of them really did require explanation for people who didn't get them. The one with the sequence of numbers where they asked which one didn't belong, and the one that didn't belong was 8, I really didn't get the logic behind that, even with the correct answer in hand. I hope they post explanations on their website.
5. In the IQ calculation chart gives older people a few more IQ points for the same number of questions than younger people (and I don't mean OLD old people - the oldest demographic category was 55+). I wonder why? You'd think a few more years of life experience would make it easier to answer some of these questions, so older people with lower IQs would be able to answer more questions rather than vice versa.
6. The highest possible scores seem low to me. The highest someone older than 55 could get is 156, and the highest someone under 24 could get is 141. All the official testing I've done has been in the context of a gifted education program, so I'm used to seeing people jockeying around among higher scores. But seriously, there must be some people out who are under 24 with an IQ well over 141. It's statistically rare, true, but it's common enough that they wouldn't write you up in the newspaper as a human interest story or anything.
Test the Nation
First of all, I'd like to apologize to all 26-year-olds, women, Ontarians, brunettes, right-handed people, night people, vegetarians, wine-drinkers, first-born children, and whoever matched my demographics for the other demographic questions (I forget what they all were now). I misread two logic questions and one math question, and that brought my score (and consequently the score for my entire demographic) down to 132, even though I've always tested over 135 under official conditions. (My understanding is this is important because 135 is some kind of threshold.) The online test seems to give the user less time than official IQ tests do, because I've never felt pressed for time taking a real-life IQ test. Either that, or real-life IQ tests don't mix up, for example, synonym and antonym questions. I don't know if they do or not because it's been over a decade since I've been tested officially, but I've never had to be so aware of what the question is actually answering before.
I found that the memory questions, and to a lesser extent the pattern recognition questions, weren't so much about memory and pattern recognition as they were about being familiar with the kinds of questions they might ask in a memory or pattern recognition test. I wasn't actually memorizing in the memory section, I was looking for questions they might ask. I don't think that tests real-life memory, because in real-life you don't deliberately look for those kinds of details. They just test how well you test.
I found that the memory questions, and to a lesser extent the pattern recognition questions, weren't so much about memory and pattern recognition as they were about being familiar with the kinds of questions they might ask in a memory or pattern recognition test. I wasn't actually memorizing in the memory section, I was looking for questions they might ask. I don't think that tests real-life memory, because in real-life you don't deliberately look for those kinds of details. They just test how well you test.
Teach me how to tip my movers
This is the first time I've ever hired movers, and I'm not certain about the tipping dance.
1. The general consensus of the internet seems to be that $20-30 for each guy is an appropriate tip. But is this a flat-rate tip, or is it based on a percentage of the bill? The company I've chosen is one of the more expensive ones out there - I decided I'm willing to pay for a good reputation - so as tips go this isn't actually a respectable percentage of the bill. Do I need to be tipping 20% of the bill, and if so do I need to give that to each guy, or in total?
2. Like most reputable companies, the one I've chosen has a minimum number of hours for which they charge you. Because my apartment is small and my move is short, it's going to take less than the minimum number of hours. I've decided this is acceptable, especially considering the poor repuations of companies who don't have minimum charges. But if the tip is supposed to be a percentage of the bill, do I tip as a percentage of the actual bill (which will be for more hours than they actually worked), or as a percentage of what the bill would be if there was no minimum charge?
3. How exactly do I give the tip to the mover? When I go to a restaurant, I tip by leaving money on the table. When I order a pizza or take a taxi, I tip by telling them to keep the change. I've never been in a situation where I have to actually hand the tip to the person. I'm not comfortable with this - it feels kind of like an insult to their dignity. Do I just hand them a wad of cash or put it in an envelope? Do I say "Here's your tip" or do I just hand it to them? Do I give them each their own tip separately or just give it to the head guy?
4. I might have them working through lunch. The internet tells me that the polite thing to do is feed them, but this is logistically difficult. I happen to have in my possession some gift certificates for a place where they can get some (fast and cheap) lunch. I'm never going to use them because I'm embarrassed to use gift certificates for such a small purchase. Would it be a good idea or a bad idea for me to include these in the tip (in addition to, not as a substitute for, an appropriate amount of money)? I think it might be a good idea because it will cover the lunch thing, but I think it might be a bad idea because it's something I'm embarrassed to use myelf.
I'd appreciate any insight anyone might have on these questions.
1. The general consensus of the internet seems to be that $20-30 for each guy is an appropriate tip. But is this a flat-rate tip, or is it based on a percentage of the bill? The company I've chosen is one of the more expensive ones out there - I decided I'm willing to pay for a good reputation - so as tips go this isn't actually a respectable percentage of the bill. Do I need to be tipping 20% of the bill, and if so do I need to give that to each guy, or in total?
2. Like most reputable companies, the one I've chosen has a minimum number of hours for which they charge you. Because my apartment is small and my move is short, it's going to take less than the minimum number of hours. I've decided this is acceptable, especially considering the poor repuations of companies who don't have minimum charges. But if the tip is supposed to be a percentage of the bill, do I tip as a percentage of the actual bill (which will be for more hours than they actually worked), or as a percentage of what the bill would be if there was no minimum charge?
3. How exactly do I give the tip to the mover? When I go to a restaurant, I tip by leaving money on the table. When I order a pizza or take a taxi, I tip by telling them to keep the change. I've never been in a situation where I have to actually hand the tip to the person. I'm not comfortable with this - it feels kind of like an insult to their dignity. Do I just hand them a wad of cash or put it in an envelope? Do I say "Here's your tip" or do I just hand it to them? Do I give them each their own tip separately or just give it to the head guy?
4. I might have them working through lunch. The internet tells me that the polite thing to do is feed them, but this is logistically difficult. I happen to have in my possession some gift certificates for a place where they can get some (fast and cheap) lunch. I'm never going to use them because I'm embarrassed to use gift certificates for such a small purchase. Would it be a good idea or a bad idea for me to include these in the tip (in addition to, not as a substitute for, an appropriate amount of money)? I think it might be a good idea because it will cover the lunch thing, but I think it might be a bad idea because it's something I'm embarrassed to use myelf.
I'd appreciate any insight anyone might have on these questions.
Free cookies!
If you happen to visit a certain website where you have to either buy a membership or watch a commercial to gain access, it may interest you to know that you can expedite the process by cookieing yourself. (Yeah, I think the E looks funny in that word too, but if I left it out it would be cooking.)
Next time you watch the commercial, watch your URL bar. As you are granted access to the site, you will see the cookieing process reflected in the URL bar. Next time you need a cookie, you can simply manipulate the URL manually, and it should let you in.
Next time you watch the commercial, watch your URL bar. As you are granted access to the site, you will see the cookieing process reflected in the URL bar. Next time you need a cookie, you can simply manipulate the URL manually, and it should let you in.
Saturday, March 17, 2007
The bottom layer
I've been slowly sorting through everything in my apartment, culling piles and throwing out stuff I don't use. But whenever I get to the bottom layer I get sad and don't want to throw the stuff out.
The bottom layer is the stuff from when I first moved in here, from the last little bit of university. There are university projects that I foolishly thought would make a good portfolio, my planner from 4th year uni (which ended up being the last time in my life that I ever used a planner), bits of administrative minutiae - things of no further importance and no sentimental value by any standards.
And yet finding them makes me sad.
I don't know why. The time they are from was not good. It was uncertain and terrifying and angst-ridden. Now is much better. My life is not changing, I'm just moving to a nicer apartment. I don't know if I'm picking up on residual sadness from back then or if I'm feeling some irrational sadness now, but this is most inconvenient.
The bottom layer is the stuff from when I first moved in here, from the last little bit of university. There are university projects that I foolishly thought would make a good portfolio, my planner from 4th year uni (which ended up being the last time in my life that I ever used a planner), bits of administrative minutiae - things of no further importance and no sentimental value by any standards.
And yet finding them makes me sad.
I don't know why. The time they are from was not good. It was uncertain and terrifying and angst-ridden. Now is much better. My life is not changing, I'm just moving to a nicer apartment. I don't know if I'm picking up on residual sadness from back then or if I'm feeling some irrational sadness now, but this is most inconvenient.
New taxes
Toronto is considering eight possible new taxes (article, graphic summary in PDF form).
Here's what I think:
Tobacco, billboard, and vehicle taxes: These don't and never will affect me.
Alcohol tax: This does affect me, but I recognize that it's a sin tax and am willing to accept that. You can tax my alcohol as much as you'd like, and if it becomes a burden I'll cut down my drinking.
Entertainment tax: I'm not sure about the advisability of this. Conventional wisdom is that taxing something serves as a disincentive. Given that entertainment in Toronto is already expensive, and that Toronto is always trying to attract more tourists, I don't think an additional tax on entertainment will help. The only way it might serve as a disincentive to me personally is that it might make me more choosy in the movies and theatre that I consume, but I'm already choosy - I don't go to movies or plays that are "this might be good," I hold out for "this will be good." I have my reservations, but I'm willing to let people who know more about the effect of taxation on human behaviour decide.
Land transfer tax: I don't much like this one. What I don't like about the process of buying property in general is that there are other costs on top of the price you pay for the real estate, but it's difficult to find out what they are. I know that if I ever buy, basically my entire life's savings will be used as a downpayment, thus greatly hindering my ability to absorb unexpected extra costs. (There's no way to avoid this - when I run my salary through a mortgage calculator, the amount of mortgage they're willing to give me is nowhere near the price of anywhere I might want to live, so I'll need a huge downpayment to make up the difference.) As a prospective owner, this makes my life more difficult. As a consumer, I don't like it because I don't like any measure (including regular sales taxes and telecommunications pricing) where there are additional fees on top of the advertised purchase price. There's also the fact that, of these eight things, real estate (i.e. shelter) is the greatest necessity. Living somewhere is a necessity, and therefore buying and selling real estate is a necessity. (Yes, some people do it as financial speculation, but for others it is a necessary part of life.) Although owning is less common in Toronto, I don't think it should be treated as a luxury. Pricey as it may be, it's still your home.
Here's what I think:
Tobacco, billboard, and vehicle taxes: These don't and never will affect me.
Alcohol tax: This does affect me, but I recognize that it's a sin tax and am willing to accept that. You can tax my alcohol as much as you'd like, and if it becomes a burden I'll cut down my drinking.
Entertainment tax: I'm not sure about the advisability of this. Conventional wisdom is that taxing something serves as a disincentive. Given that entertainment in Toronto is already expensive, and that Toronto is always trying to attract more tourists, I don't think an additional tax on entertainment will help. The only way it might serve as a disincentive to me personally is that it might make me more choosy in the movies and theatre that I consume, but I'm already choosy - I don't go to movies or plays that are "this might be good," I hold out for "this will be good." I have my reservations, but I'm willing to let people who know more about the effect of taxation on human behaviour decide.
Land transfer tax: I don't much like this one. What I don't like about the process of buying property in general is that there are other costs on top of the price you pay for the real estate, but it's difficult to find out what they are. I know that if I ever buy, basically my entire life's savings will be used as a downpayment, thus greatly hindering my ability to absorb unexpected extra costs. (There's no way to avoid this - when I run my salary through a mortgage calculator, the amount of mortgage they're willing to give me is nowhere near the price of anywhere I might want to live, so I'll need a huge downpayment to make up the difference.) As a prospective owner, this makes my life more difficult. As a consumer, I don't like it because I don't like any measure (including regular sales taxes and telecommunications pricing) where there are additional fees on top of the advertised purchase price. There's also the fact that, of these eight things, real estate (i.e. shelter) is the greatest necessity. Living somewhere is a necessity, and therefore buying and selling real estate is a necessity. (Yes, some people do it as financial speculation, but for others it is a necessary part of life.) Although owning is less common in Toronto, I don't think it should be treated as a luxury. Pricey as it may be, it's still your home.
Friday, March 16, 2007
LRT!
Know what excites me about the new transit plan? The Eglinton Crosstown line! If they build this (they're dependent on funding from other levels of government, so I'm still using the conditional) I'll be able to walk a block from my front door and step on a train that will take me directly to the airport! Instead of a $40 taxi ride, I'd swipe my metropass! This is also a convenient link to the University-Spadina line (now it's an annoying bus ride, or a trip down to Bloor and back up). Plus, it might reduce my environmental foot print. If I can travel back and forth along Eglinton by rail, I'll be more likely to return my bottles to the Beer Store instead of recycling them (although I still might be embarrassed to do so for just a few cents), and I'll be more likely to go out to Canadian Tire/Home Depot to look for fluorescent lightbulbs instead of buying incandescent when the fluroescents I need aren't available at the grocery store or Shopper's. (Yes, I know it's a relatively short bus trip, but I'm only human and don't like to go out of my way, especially not by bus).
I do wonder about property values though. Would the introduction of a second subway line make property values increase significantly? Would they increase significantly in anticipation? Or would the people who'd move here in anticipation of a second line have already done so in the 1990s when they last tried to build an Eglinton subway line? I don't mean to be one of those NIMBYistes who freaks out whenever property values change, but I don't want to be priced out of my own neighbourhood either.
I do wonder about property values though. Would the introduction of a second subway line make property values increase significantly? Would they increase significantly in anticipation? Or would the people who'd move here in anticipation of a second line have already done so in the 1990s when they last tried to build an Eglinton subway line? I don't mean to be one of those NIMBYistes who freaks out whenever property values change, but I don't want to be priced out of my own neighbourhood either.
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