Many people make a big deal about not being labeled. And yet, we all are, constantly.

1. Pick one label that you think does describe you (race, religion, hobby, etc.).

Researcher. I do a lot of research at my job and at home and I am damn good at what I do. And the most important label that describes me: Mother.

2. Pick one label that is often put on you, that you really think is inaccurate.

Stuck up. People at work think this of me until they get to know me.

3. Pick one label you wish could be put on you.

Wife.

4. What is one kind of label that you think is universally wrong to use (race, gender, height)?

Racist labels and derogatory labels about the disabled.

5. Labels, used intelligently, can be a convenient rhetorical shorthand for identifying how a given person will fit into (or react to) a given situation. Labels, used incorrectly, can be an excuse for dismissing the differences still inherent in the people to whom the label is applied. Discuss.

Huh?

http://www.livejournal.com/community/thefridayfive/1466.html

Oh no, say it ain’t so folks. Agloco.com ran out of funds? I once had an AllAdvantage account and even received a check. I guess my gut told me otherwise about Agloco. After months of waiting on Agloco to give me a link to download the toolbar, I finally got the email, installed the toolbar and only used it once. I have not looked back since. My instincts were kicking in.

I received the below email, earlier this week:

from: AGLOCO.com Service
to: Rashaan
date: Dec 11, 2007 4:53 PM
subject: AGLOCO Update Notice
mailed-by: agloco.com

AGLOCO Development Team

What the hell happened? I wonder how many people contacted them to pursue continuing the operations…

Goodness.

Week 253

Say … and I think … ?

1. Master:: He-Man… Master of the Universe. Remember that cartoon?

2. Tour :: My current tour of duty at my job is 8:15 – 4:45, Monday through Friday.

3. Input :: I provide a lot of feedback and input in group meetings… sometimes too much.

4. Downtown :: Seems like the powers that be are working on getting Downtown St. Louis back together, with reconstruction of lofts, construction of new homes, but I do not see many positive things in the job market.

5. Pricey :: Food is very pricey in the grocery store these days. Particularly, a gallon of of milk ($4.00 at Family Dollar, but only slightly over $3.00 at Walmart), cheese, eggs and meat (poultry and beef). If I could afford organic foods on a regular basis, I would buy them… but they are even more costly than the regular hormone-stuffed foods.

6. Acceptable :: Do you keep up with your job’s acceptable quality level?

7. Terrace :: Here is a terrace with a beautiful view in Switzerland.

8. Sunday :: I love Sundays because I am off from work… but hate Sunday nights because I am that much closer to going to work on Monday.

9. Payoff :: I really wish that I could payoff my student loans.

10. Jack and Jill :: went up the hill to fetch a pail of water. Jack fell down and broke his crown, and Jill came tumbling after.

http://subliminal.lunanina.com/um/ind/week_253/

Do you ever feel like you are living an episode of the Twilight Zone?

Work was tolerable. I am still in training, so that is by default better than the normal daily duties. On the other hand, training itself was completely exhausting today. I struggled staying focus this afternoon. No word on if eating left over Red Lobster during lunch factored in on my ability to stay focused.

This evening was crazy. I feel like I was the only sane one of the bunch… meanwhile JT, William and Keisha were acting like very weird. More weird than normal.

After it was all said and done, I was able to find out the cause of what brought me into the Zone. Be that as it may, only time will tell if there is resolution.

In other news, I hear that the Administration (code for Bush) will let us off on Christmas Eve. Political move or not, I am thankful for this decision. Since I am in training, I do not have access to my work email, so I did not see the actual memorandum. I picked up the information from a reliable source though, so I feel pretty confident that this is true.

Local meteorologists predicted bad weather heading our way. Does not appear that enough will come tonight to be called off from work tomorrow. Ugh.

Last but not least, JT told me that one of his cousins and her boyfriend were in an accident today. A truck hit them. All I know is that she (cousin) is not hurt, but her boyfriend was seriously injured. I do not know if he is critical or stable condition. I also know that her baby was not in the car. Thank goodness for that. I do not know any other details. My thoughts and prayers are with them.

I am so proud of William… while we were out for dinner, I asked William to write his name with the crayon. He hesitated then paused. I then asked him to write the letter his name starts with. He wrote a perfect W. I yelled and screamed with excitement. I bet all of the customers wondered what was wrong with the crazy ass mother.

I could care less because my son was writing his name for the first time.

Then William drew an IL. Three letters down son… you are almost there.

I am so proud of you William.

I had a beautiful day, but I cannot share the news just yet. Let the suspense begin…

Do you ever have so much going on in your personal and work life that when you sit down and try to blog… nothing clearly comes to mind?

My thoughts have been a bit cluttered over the last week.

Crap at work. There is nothing really knew in itself about that, but it continues to bother me. I have made a decision to stick things out the term is up next fall or I move on to better things. If I resign now then there is no positive outcome from this. Not resign from my job, but resign from my other elected duties.

Stuff at home. Working on better communication has been an on-going effort for a large part of our relationship. I definitely think things are better for us now, than this time 3 years ago… and even a year and a half ago. Still feels like an uphill journey… a journey that I am willing to continue.

Finances. Well, shit not much to say there. I believe that JT and I have the same long-term goals. Just a struggle getting there. The holiday season brings us all together, but definitely puts a strain on the wallets. We need to continue to cutback on unnecessary expenses. For example, JT mentioned us considering Vonage where the plan is $24.95 a month. Sounds fine and dandy until I need to figure out what to do with our existing Charter plan which includes not only phone, but also internet and cable television. Perhaps Charter has a reasonable plan with only cable television and high-speed internet.

Me. I am a complicated individual. JT told me the other day that my goal is to not be understood. I really do not agree, but it did make me sit back and ponder about why he feels that way. I have not come to any conclusions.

Well, I started this post being a little speechless, but it turned out that I had more to say than I thought.