Tall Plumbers

Have you ever noticed how tall your toilet is?

I hadn't... at least not until I took my most recent job...

There's a decent 3-4 inch hight difference between work and home. Figuring I notice the difference most on my height below the knee, and that height is roughly 1/3 to 1/4 of my total height.. That puts the work toilet sized for someone 9-12 inches taller than I am. By no means am I the tallest guy on the block, but add 9" to me, and you have 6'5". I've got to assume there aren't enough 6 foot 5 guys out there to justify all of our toilets at work being that high.

Interesting side note.. The handicap toilet is of a normal height. Maybe the installer just did it backwards..

so obviously I've thought about this too much. But considering the topic matter, and how little else there generally is to think about during said occasions, yeah.. I've thought about this too much.. Sorry for sharing..

stop the insanity

So the holidays have made everything really busy. Thus, it's December 26th, my first post in over a week.. or maybe two..

This is my tenth holiday season in and around NYC, and by far this one has been the most insane. Over the past few weeks, I've actually gone clothes shopping in lieu of doing laundry. You know how everyone has that one item of clothing that forces them to do laundry. Socks, underwear, whatever.. Well, for me that item is now the size of my laundry bag. I didn't do laundry a single time between Thanksgiving and Christmas, and no I'm not over sharing right now. (I finally did last night BTW) Beyond that, I haven't had the time or brain cells to post. Yes, there has been a bit of liquefied holiday cheer this year. uum something on the order of 17 days straight.

So.. to let you know.. below is the list of post topics I've started, jotted something about, or just not finished over the past days/weeks. They'll probably all see the light of day eventually, but for now this is what you get..

• Fireworks
• turtleneck necklaces
• Tall plumbers
• Friends are the new family
• The pursuit of Happiness
• Resolutions
• The wisdom of crowds
• Stranger than fiction
  

Come back for more soon..

p.s. I realize the graphics are a bit off.. blogger's graphics didn't allow for a wider format and I just can't stand 800 pixels wide anymore. So I fixed the template but have yet to fix the little corner rounder things. Sorry.. I know that was really bugging you too.

holiday party recap

tis the season, and both of the work related parties I was invited to were on the same day. That day was yesterday, and I was sure to mortgage a bit of today in the celebratory process.

the first party was for my day job. that formula worked something like 200+ men, 5 women, add lots of alcohol in the form of easy to make drinks (nothing with more than 2 ingredients), serve the food a bit late, turn up the stereo a few notches every 20 minutes, and keep it open an hour later than promised. this all resulted in a somewhat amusing (sadistically) display of gyrating bodies on a dance floor that used to be cool a long long time ago.

the second party was in many ways different. it was half birthday and half holiday party for a friend in the entertainment industry. the 80's was the theme, many of the guests were born in said decade, and fun was everywhere. it didn't hurt that there were two very talented djs (who normally pack events with hundreds/thousands of house and techno fans) bringing the 80's back to life musically. there were My Little Pony party hats, pigs in a blanket, and party favors with pop rocks and fun dip.

so that ran late. happily late. and today was long. so very long. but there's no reason not to take advantage of experiences as they present themselves.

I passed

So the worst part of Monday was indeed the lack of food. Everything went remarkably well, though the procedure room could have been a bit warmer. I'm not sure why they're always cold, and I'm never the type to be cold. But they are and I was.

In the scary world of me vis the big C, I've escaped unscathed excepting the 8 lbs I lost preparing for the test.

I'm a huge advocate for getting tested when tests are called for, yet no matter what I'm being tested for, there's always that what if.

I will say though, that I know more now. I took every part of this experience as an opportunity to learn more, just in case. In case I needed to ask the next question. I wanted to be prepared to ask that next question.. Just in case..

Now it's time for a little liver bashing. Somehow both of the xmas holiday parties I have this year are tonight. Back to back. And of course there's a meeting tomorrow morning at work which will set the tone for the next few months. Wish me luck.

Scary Doctors...

So last week I went to the doctor.. Something wasn't right, and with insurance the $20 copay is worth figuring things out.

The doctor I went to is of the general family type. I was there for maybe 5 minutes, answering questions, telling them quick history and describing the symptom that brought me in. Then the dr left the room for a minute. When she returned, she told me that she'd made an appointment with another specialist doctor for me, and that they were expecting me. As in Now.

So dial the self concern up a notch. But I went. Best to go, and possibly better that I didn't have lead time to think about the second appointment.

Second doctor was pleasant, especially considering his specialty. Lets just say that everyone in the waiting room was roughly twice as old as I am. I went through the symptoms with him, answered questions about my family history, and yeah... So he kept asking me if it hurt. Or where I felt pain. The trick though, I didn't. Not one bit. And this seemed to be something to be concerned about, if I read him correctly.

So he did a quick diagnostic test. Saw some things he didn't like, but wanted me to come back for a full test on Monday (today) that I had to prepare for. Preparation involves 36+ hours of a "clear diet". Basically I haven't eaten anything besides yellow jello, chicken broth, and water since Saturday, and that may in the end of all of this be the worst part. I'm so hungry, albeit much of it being mental. Watching my roommates have dinner, then ice cream and popcorn last night was like torture.

I go in at 11 today. They're going to knock me out, but since I live in nyc I can take a taxi home and don't need to be picked up. It's a lot to ask of someone to be that person who picks you up and basically is responsible for your life if something goes wrong. I'm somewhat relieved to not have to find a person for that role this time around, but I do wonder who I'd have asked were it to be required.

So wish me luck. Today's just a test, but one has to hope they don't find anything, nor miss anything.

A beginning...

Every blog seems to start out with a vague reason for existence, a "hi, I'm here", or some strange goal of being the first out there to do something new..

I can't promise much at this moment other than I have a desire to say things. Perhaps there's a lot going on in my head. Perhaps I long for the conversations I've never had. Whichever the case, this is a place for me to say what I want to say..

The title.. Have you ever been asked for directions while walking around? It happens to me all the time. Everywhere! I live in NYC, and to be asked where anything is here is quite normal. At any time of the day or night. But I've also been asked directions while in Chicago, Boston, DC, Austin, San Francisco, London, Spain, Paris, and Tokyo.. Yes Tokyo.. (I don't look a bit Japanese by the way)..

My only guess is that I tend to look people in the eyes when walking around.. I suppose that's not exactly the norm in NYC, and when tourist types see a non scary face who actually makes eye contact, they feel safe enough to ask if they're in need of assistance.

And that's when I hear... "Excuse me sir..."