November 2007

e-what?!

Monday, November 19th, 2007

ecooter.jpgBehold the unfortunately-named E-Cooter, a four-wheeled, single-person electric car, something like a cross between a Vespa and a Mini. It can rotate 360 degrees and has cameras installed on all sides for such maneuvering. The
E-Cooter (hey, I’m sort of getting used to typing that now) has a lithium battery with a 62-mile range.

Taiwan’s Industrial Technology Research Institute isn’t quite ready to open the E-Cooter to the public, but they’re looking into leasing options.

Hmm, in this country we have a name for people who rent out their cooters.

For more lost-in-translation fun, see Engrish.com

Saturday is Vocab Improvement Day

Monday, November 19th, 2007

cock-a-hoop \kah-kuh-HOOP\ adjective

*1 : triumphantly boastful : exulting
2 : awry

Example sentence:
Team members, still cock-a-hoop over last week’s
victory, need to regain their focus and win one more
game for the championship.

Did you know?
The adjective “cock-a-hoop” comes from a curious 16th-
and 17th-century expression, “to set cock a hoop,”
which meant “to be festive” or “to drink or celebrate
without restraint.” Etymologists, however, are not
entirely certain about the origin of that old
expression. Although no one knows if it originally had
any connection with the “rooster” sense of “cock,”
many people thought it did — and this perceived
association influenced the current meaning of
“cock-a-hoop.” The cock is known for its triumphant
crow, and “cock-a-hoop” is now used to refer to
something triumphantly boastful.

(ripped from an old word-of-the-day email forward)

Stamps are cool

Sunday, November 18th, 2007

You’d never guess from reading Ibsen’s plays that his mutton chops were so….MASSIVE.p3090003.jpg

I miss these girls

Sunday, November 18th, 2007

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Still phoning it in

Friday, November 16th, 2007

This thing is kicking my butt, and I would like to stop with the daily posting, especially when I have nothing at all to say. However, that hasn’t stopped me for the last (all?) several posts, so here we go again. Here’s a fewies.

1. I feel a little embarassed that the person from that teacher-funding charity left a thank-you comment, since the previous post was a little risque. She must think me a brassy humanitarian with Tourette’s.

2. Also, I’d like to clarify that that book is about lab experiments you don’t expect to find science grant money being spent on: sex science. That would be a drier topic than the titillating one you’d expect, but the author is demonstrably hilarious and a smartass to boot, so it will be well worth a read.

I feel there should be more sex science. Aside from how-tos, maintenance, and emotional psychology, has there really been much since Kinsey and Masters & Johnson? Having not been around during the 60s, I really don’t know what I’m talking about, but it seems like the last 20 years have been all “we can/we will” vs. “we shouldn’t/we don’t.” I’m guessing a lot of problems could be avoided if people knew exactly what the parts were and what they do and how. Less therapy, less counseling, fewer meds.

3. It’s 12:33am and I can’t wait to come home from work tomorrow. The weekend has a few highlights: breakfast with someone who “wants to get to know us,” visit from the ringbearers (not hobbits, though they are rather small boys), and dinner at La Bella Vita in NA with some of P’s friends.

11.14.78

Thursday, November 15th, 2007

Also, today is P’s birthday.  He shall be wined, dined, and gifted this evening. 

practice practicality

Thursday, November 15th, 2007

I just heard about a great Christmas alternative.  Instead of giving people crap they don’t need, you can go to www.donorschoose.org and find local teachers with specific needs for their classrooms, then make a donation in your giftee’s name.  Also, there’s probably- oh, I dunno- hungry and beat-up and downtrodden people here and there, also, if you’ve still got present money to blow. 

Since I’m not quite that highly actualized, though, you can search PogoNotes for my shared gift registry.  Wait! I mean, give to the poor!

Musty old claptrap

Thursday, November 15th, 2007

1. One foreign company I did business with at work was called Vagionakis. 

2. My sister was a nanny for a curious 3-year-old, who had just learned about her bits and one day decided to joyfully holler, “Vagina! Vagina! Vagina!” at the top of her voice while J3 was minding her.  Unfortunately, the child’s mother was upstairs and came running immediately (wouldn’t you?).  J3’s face must have been one big blotchy combination of horror, embarassment, defensiveness and amusement.  I’m sorry I missed that. 

3.  The best part.  Today’s author completely conquered our sales conference and secured her place in our company’s heart when she incorporated audience participation by handing out giant cards (think “MR. SCHNAFFENFLUFFER” signs that drivers hold up at airports) that read “VAGINA,” “ORGASM,” “MASTURBATION,” “INTERCOURSE,” and “CLITORIS.” (PENIS was omitted on the basis that is “has become a household word, like ’dog’ or ‘cat’).  That wasn’t half the fun.  While she related some anecdotes from her book research, sign-holders were meant to sing out their particular buzzword when called upon. 

We squirmed a bit at first, even the president looking as nervous as a 6th grader in sex-ed, but the volunteers gathered courage, and soon even the stern sales director was putting a delay in his resonant “ORGASM   !” for effect, and the rest of us were guffawing loudly. 

Forget falling asleep– that was the best sales conference of all time.  I even called P, so he got to overhear someone yell, “BUTTHOLE” when the CLITORIS person was too slow. 

Alibi

Thursday, November 15th, 2007

I have completely fallen off the wagon, but since there are prizes involved (I think?), here’s my attempt to chase it down, throw a leg up, fall, and hoist myself back on– likely with my buttcrack hanging off the end. 

At work, we’ve been having our bi-annual sales conference, which means free, good food, a steady supply of tea and coffee, lots of sitting and listening and trying not to zone out and sleep or pick your nose or fart while the editors pitch the books they’ll be publishing in the coming season. 

Also, each day we get to hear 2 of our top authors talk about their projects and see for ourselves how media-savvy they are as far as promotion goes. 

Tuesday’s best quote came from author #2, whom I’d never read on account of his Oprah book club status, but with whom I immediately fell in love.  A character in his new book is an unfortunate stripper with a heart of gold who needs the money to support her darling little girl.  Naturally, such things require research, so off went the wholesome, devoted husband and father to seedy clubs in Florida:

 ”It’s not so bad, actually, kicking back with a whiskey, watching naked women.” 

Commuter shoes

Monday, November 12th, 2007

I just bought these for $40 less on ebay.
shoe.jpg