Some day

Disclaimer: The following thoughts consisting of the following words are many and not all of my own creation. Some come from creative songwriters who have triggered congruent thoughts in my head.

Some day, yeah,
We’ll put it together and we’ll get it undone.
Some day,
When your head is much lighter

your head is much lighter now

Many jobs require set hours. I worked those types of jobs too, but the time-card punching ones fortunately were left for better ones long ago. Often during my career a work crisis/deadline would pressure me to work long hours. Sometimes those extra hours paid off. The downside of crisis managed work is burnout. I left one job because of feeling burned-out. Burning out goes along with heavier thoughts, not a lighter head.

Now my head is much lighter (many parts do seem heavier though). Being retired is a 24 hour, 7 day gig. My mind is going but often my joints resist where it wants to go. My point is my current gig offers plenty of time to ponder. Maybe too much time.



Good lyrics and pondering time mix to create thoughts which I attempt to record/share here on this blog of mine.

You need a pulse to act on an impulse.

While not perfect, a one track mind does have direction.

We’ll put it together once we agree on the direction.

(one more that I have posted before) If your glass is always half empty - get a smaller glass.

In addition to listening to music we now have tweets twittered to the throngs. I’m still holding out of joining the twitter world but Eric Zorn of the Chicago Tribune shares his favorites. Here’s a two recent ones:

"If I ever owned a funeral home, I would name it 'Remains To Be Seen.'

Back in my day, the only people who said stuff like "back in my day" were old people. I sure am glad that's changed

knew him since he was a baby

You know that feeling? Why it seems like just yesterday I was helping him with his homework. I had helped him with math homework while he was in high school. I considered him excellent at math. I encouraged him to pursue math or engineering. My influence was limited as just an uncle. Who knows it might have backfired if he listened.

Now he's starring in a romantic comedy called "Petey".

My nephew, Justin is wearing the red shirt

When I first heard that my nephew, Justin, wanted to work in the movie industry I thought "Yeah right kid, I wanted to be a spy and later a rock star too." We had traveled up to his high school to watch him perform a Shakespeare play once. I think it was "Macbeth". After just doing a quick look-up on "Macbeth" I know it was that one because I remember the wicked wife character (wicked women - it's a warning kid). Justin starred in that performance too and he was good. But hey I'm no talent scout, movie agent. Occasionally I'll drop some money on a ticket. Often I just wait for the DVD.

Justin finished college picked up some part time jobs but kept his focus on his dream of working in the movie industry. I thought he might get his script picked up someday. I heard he had a few advertising gigs. This star role (He plays Petey if you didn't pick that up from the poster) really surprised me. I was surprised because I've never known a movie actor. I wish him success but I hope it doesn't come too fast.

Here's the web site about the movie with clips and behind the scenes photos - Petey the Movie

Oh, Justin, if you had time to read this during your busy shooting (I heard it's not completely finished) and promotion activities, remember me when you need some investment advice. And this movie thing goes really big - I can drive your car.



Full disclosure: I have not received any compensation for this movie recommendation although free passes would be most appreciated (Justin are you reading this?).

truth stranger than fiction

I considered using a title such as “outsmarting the man” or “taking advantage”.

(little background) 
This true story involves a high tech software job and networking. Being involved in these areas during my engineering career I could understand and relate to what had happened. One acronym that is key to the story is “VPN” which stands for a Virtual Private Network. I have used VPN’s and they are common tools for mobile workers. Using encryption techniques a VPN creates a private network over a public network (internet).

Ok, hopefully I didn’t scare any non-technical readers away.  Now on to the story.

A well paid software developer outsourced his own job to a contractor in China. The irony here is the employee not the employer initiated the outsourcing. I’ll summarize and leave the story link at the end.

The Verizon Business security services risk team was contacted by one of their customers to help them investigate an anomaly they discovered in their network equipment logs. The Verizon customer was seeing a daily VPN log-in from China. The log information tracked the VPN credentials to a certain software developer within the company who had been issued a VPN for occasional remote work. They noticed the Chinese log-in was active while the employee was not working remote but visibly at his desk.

The next step to investigate was analysing the employee’s computer memory. There they found a surprising smoking gun. The found hundreds of invoices from a Chinese contractor in the employee’s computer.

This developer was spending about $50,000 to have his assignments done for him in China while he made a good six-figure salary. They then checked his web activities and piece together a picture of his typical day. It included facebook, ebay and cat videos.

One additional kicker to the story - the developer had outstanding performance reviews and was considered the best developer in the building. I’m guessing he was also the go-to guy for good cat videos too.

At a basic level he was a highly paid dishonest cheat which is not unknown in executive circles. Do you view him as a shrewd operator that sought a good deal? Because he violated the security of the company’s private information entrusted to him, I consider him very close to a corporate spy.

Just speculating with my limited knowledge, I say his boss didn’t have a clue about the nature and details of work required of his subordinates. Outsmarting your boss can be too easy in many situations.

Here’s a link to the story on the Verizon Security Blog.

I enjoy music on PBS

I've been laid-off or sacked as the British like to say, twice in my career.  But fortunately both times the kids were not little and the wife was still working.  Everyone's situation is unique but I was watching music performance of Keb' Mo' on PBS the other night.  He did this song, "We Don't Need It" and it really hit some emotional parts of me.

The PBS program is called, "Infinity Hall Live".

Here's the Keb' Mo' web page. 

another circus with clips 

unusual quilt

At the start of October I posted pictures from the ArtPrize event held in Grand Rapids MI. I intentionally left out these pictures below. All the art displayed there was new and unique but I want to highlight my connection to this one. This piece was inside the big Amway Hotel and because of my engineering background I saw more than memory chips.  Actually memories flashed back in my head.

On the surface the art medium is just mass produced circuit boards mostly from computers. They look like little cities from the side.

Having worked for years in development of telecommunication equipment I’ve experienced the trial, error and time pressure of designing circuit boards. Sometimes a mistake gets the attention of the whole lab as smoke drifts up from a fried board.

High tech cutting edge quickly becomes scrap in which another person finds completely different things. The artist is Eric Celarier.

Like photos from around the internet? Go to Unknown Mami’s place on Sundays and you’ll find a collection of them.
 

who needs them

Dress up (Ladies I feel your pain), drag myself through sub-zero wind chill weather, just to spend time answering questions.

Press conference? No just a job interview.

I’ve been on both sides of the table for interviewing and not surprisingly I would rather be the interviewer. I assume it’s my age but who knows maybe certain interview questions were just a passing trend. I was NOT asked where I would see myself in five years. I wish I was asked. My answer would have included warm sand and drinks with little paper umbrellas.

I guess it went well. I talked to three different people. Having multiple interviewers is good idea because everyone has a slightly different approach.

Cut to the chase - Those words didn’t come out but the thought was hanging there in my brain. If I had a cartoon bubble over my head they could have read it. Cut to the chase and tell me if I’m even in the running for this job.

When I think about interviewing this true but very unusual story surfaces from my deep memory.

Many years ago our development was looking to expand. I was part of the interview team.  I felt a little excited to share my interview discovery with the others in the post interview discussion.

I remember telling the others that I was shocked by what I had learned. I don’t remember if any of the others heard the same information but I think at least one other did.

The shocking revelation from the interview - this guy lived with a wolf. This was Illinois and I don’t think we even had wolves in the wild at the time. It could have been that all the wolves had taken in by guys like this guy. One man, one apartment, one wolf.

It was a deciding factor for me. Reject this one.  This was an engineering group, not a zoo. I don’t know if PETA was even around back then but they would not have approved.

Strange thing happened at the end of the hiring discussion. Wolf man was hired.

He lasted a few months but surprise, surprise he didn’t seem to get along with others in the group. It wasn’t looking too good for wolf man as the year ending.

Then on Christmas Eve, I received the strangest call. Wolf man calls me (before cellphones) while I was at my mother’s house. He has tripped the security alarm at the office. Why was he even at the office on Christmas Eve? I don’t know maybe wolves don’t celebrate Christmas. I had to call my boss who being closer was able to go over and reset the alarm.

A few weeks later wolf man was fired. Bad wolf. Dumb choice.

Oh, they didn't ask if I lived with a wolf but I recommend adding that one to your list of questions.

grateful they take our calls

Back in July 2009, I found this customer revenge story. It’s very interesting and you might find yourself singing along to the song from it. (click over to my past post on it for more)

But that’s just the background for this post.  The song writer was Canadian musician Dave Carroll.  Joining his fan email list lead to today’s post.

Today I found this announcement about a new song from Dave in my inbox.

It’s titled “Everyday Heroes”.   I included the very moving music video below.  It really makes me grateful for all the first responders ready to help us.  Knowing that some are volunteers (Dave was a volunteer fireman in the past) reinforces my belief that the vast majority of people are good.  Check out his site 911song.com.

Thanks and God Bless to all the everyday heroes.

another circus         solar info link

   

I’m not a farmer but my friends want me to be

I know I have a reader or two who actually know first hand about farms.  I’ve been on a real farm.  I’ve hunted on farmland in the past.

image from zynga.com

No disrespect to farmers but I never wanted to be one.  Also, it’s general knowledge that leaving the farm has been an ongoing trend for almost a 100 years.  There was a time back in the counterculture 60’s that moving to a farm was cool.  I’m sure those hippies were not your typical farmer.

So why do I have (you too I bet) friends and family asking me to join them on their farm?

Just about every time I log into Facebook (FB) I see requests from farming friends.  They all started farms over in Farmville.  I searched google maps and found Farmville VA.  I don’t how they can do remote farming.   Are the farm robots that good?

(oh they also seem to play Family Feud more times than a whole season of episodes)

After a little googling and reading I’ve discovered that Farmville is run by a company named Zynga.  (I’m hoping the next woodstock festival is on Zynga’s farm)  

People this is BIG $$ business.  Based on a CNN news article that is months old, it has 75 million active every month.  According to a US government site, there are only about 960,000 persons claiming farming as their principal occupation.  Of course, Farmville on FB is worldwide.

image from zynga.com

Zynga now sells game cards at retailers like 7-eleven and Target.  Designed for consumers who don’t have access to credit cards or bank accounts to buy in-game items. The $10 or $25 cards can also be purchased as gifts and can be redeemed for in-game currency to get items like tractors, energy packs and furniture.

Do you have Farmville game cards on your Christmas list?

A quote from that same CNN article:

"We built the games so they could be played in a tab on your browser while you're on a conference call," said Pincus, a veteran Web entrepreneur who created Zynga in 2007.

I might play Farmville if I could get a government subsidy for running it.
OR
If I’m on a boring conference call.

Lisleman reads the paper

I spotted this perusing the Chicago Tribune.  They offered this explanation inside a graphic.

“A government team of fish sniffers, who determine whether seafood contains oil and other contaminants by smelling it ....”

I never knew ‘fish sniffer’ was a career option.

 

“Mom, I’m dropping out of college.  I’ve found my calling as a fish sniffer.”

“Oh, son makes us proud.”

So like any blogger worth their sea salt, I went to google for answers.

Top of the list was www.fishsniffer.com. Wow there’s a web site dedicated to fish sniffing. Well, not quite, that site helps the fisherman find good fishing holes.

I little digging further down the list I found another article related to this story. Do you know, there are between 60 and 70 people in the U.S. trained as expert seafood sensory assessors? Please if there are any fish sniffers reading this please leave a comment. I would love to interview you.

Another item all over the paper lately -

The Blago ( Blagojevich to those good at pronunciation ) trial has reached the level of causing media sickness for most in Chicago.  Change the channel I'm going to get sick.

My favorite columnist, Mary Schmich, (she has a FB page) wrote a poem about it.

I especially like this verse:

The allegations are unfair! 

At least the ladies like my hair.

Perhaps you think that I'm a goof

But what's my crime and where's the proof?

With my hair I might of had a chance at governor. 

The prosecutors should borrow one of those fish sniffers and have them stand over Blago.  The rotten smell would roll them over.

Want to talk about it? Ask Lisleman - talk to the eye

bet you would like one

I like robots.

I suspect many people don't share the same amazement I do watching them.

Trying to control movement and understanding the movement of other objects is not an easy task.  Humans and many other animals have developed skills that are difficult for a chunk of machinery to perform.

After you watch this clip (no sound in it) I bet many of you would like to own this robot. I wish I had developed this.

solar info link

from a friend's blog

I can't really pin it down when, but at some point in my career I found myself thinking about all the various ways people earn their living.  Most of the unusual jobs are legal too.

Remember the butcher, the baker, the candle stick maker?  I don't think I've ever met a candle stick maker but there's plenty of candles so I guess somebody is making them.

So I was over at a favorite blog called OneStonedCrow and saw this picture.

Can you read that warning?

It says "Poisonous Snakes In Transit".

>>  "Honey, I'm home."

<<  "Oh how were the snakes today dear?"

Can you imagine being a snake transporter?  I sure hope it comes with good health insurance.

Many months ago I posted about "the best job in the world".  It did sound good and it still does.

What's the strangest job you know of or possibly did?

I would like to thank

I feel honored and surprised. Ok maybe not as much President Obama did with the Nobel Peace Prize but still it's nice to be recognized.

Blogger friend, Fantastic Forrest over at Traveling Through Time and Space has awarded my blog the Honest Scrap Award.  Thanks FF, this gave me some ideas for the blog.

I'll be doing a post on scrap very soon.

This award comes with some rules.  (is that common?  an award with rules?)

First off you need to thank the blogger that awarded you and link back (see above).  Next you must list ten things about yourself.

Ok things about myself:

1.  I dislike running.  I hated the track sessions in High School and later in Officer Training School the required running times about broke me.  I always thought exercise should be combined with a game like baseball or tennis.  Of course running is part of most sports but when there is a game involved it's more interesting.  I thought the running story in the "Forrest Gump" movie was hilarious.

2.  After seeing a few James Bond movies growing up, I thought being a spy would be the greatest career.  They all got fast cars and fast women - right?  Part of my Air Force career included cryptography (I can't say anymore or I'd have to kill you).  It was interesting stuff but didn't include any fast cars or women.

3.  lighten up already - nobody gets out alive - I don't like people who take themselves so seriously that they become arrogant, boring, and a jerk.  Chill out - I heard or read the following once about someone: "Often in error, never in doubt."

4.  I would rather read non-fiction than fiction.  True stories can be stranger than fiction.  One of my favorite stories was Serpico (also a great movie).

5.  I listen to song lyrics.  The best ones are the ones that make you think.  Such as the song by "Police", "De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da".  (lighten up already)

6.  I don't spell well.  I consider it a sign of being a better engineer.  That's my excuse and I'm sticking to it.  I thought about blaming my bad spelling on the French.  Faux is really a fake word.

7.  I don't understand why people like lists.  A few paragraphs about myself would be better than this list.  The best ten things, the top 100 places, etc. are just opinions and everyone has one.

8.  I believe our brains are wiring to find patterns.  So we deceive ourselves by seeing/finding things that we want or are trying to see.  My best example is that tragic things come in threes.  Who thought that one up?  Some victim of a tragedy that was looking for company?

9.  One of the best things of my life (everyone's I think) is learning.  Don't ever stop because there is an endless amount to learn.  I'm very proud that a couple of our daughters are teachers.

10.  I served 10 years in US Air Force.  Started enlisted and finished an officer.  It bothers me that many people today don't even know the difference between those categories.  More importantly I wish more people would accept that you can support the troops and still be against a war.  I believe there have been some necessary wars and some unnecessary wars.  Unnecessary and sacrifice of life do not go together.

11.  Oh no I broke the rule of 10 things.  I'm on roll here people, just bear with me.  I would jump at the chance to go into space.  I might even consider some running if I knew I had a chance.  Doing a loop in a plane would be cool too.

The last step of the rules is to award ten fellow bloggers.  I consider this the "complete the sharing" step.  Now some of these ten bloggers have already been presented this award but you can get awards multiple times.

Please welcome these award winning blogs with a visit:

Two Yorks and a Bean

pearl whyyoulittle

Flying Pinto

Sick Days

Live High

gone bananas

The Fifty Factor

Unknown Mami

ONESTONEDCROW

Lilly's Life

short notes on halloween

Just a few short notes on halloween and halloween past. Taking notes is typically a good thing. Never know could be a halloween test or more likely I'll just want to remember someday.

1. As a kid halloween was much longer. I recall going for TWO nights of roaming the neighborhoods. We always used old pillow cases and on a good night fill them until they were hard to carry.
2. My older brother (oh thanks for putting up with me) and I for a number of years dress-up the same. As hobos (less nice term = bums) we relied on mom to fix (unfix?) our outfits. The best part was burning the end of a cork and blackening our faces with ash.
3. I even enjoyed getting the homemade caramel corn balls. You would probably be reported today if you handed out homemade anything. Most parents would discard any non-wrapped items.
4. Our mom would make pumpkin pie from the guts of the pumpkin.  My kids have enjoyed baking the pumpkin seeds, but I am typically the one that eats most of them since they are not a big hit.
   
5. I don't remember many parents going out with their kids. Now it's the opposite. It's rare to see kids at the door without a parent in the background.
6. I recall some pranks like soap on windows. I apologize. Bad judgment on my part. Oh, the item above (parents in the background) really reduced the prank level.
7. I thought halloween was just for kids until I was no longer a kid. I discovered a whole different side to halloween with the costume party. Probably the only time a sucking vampire could pick-up girls.
8. We didn't have the halloween movie cycle back then.  I think scary movies would come out all during the year.  "Wait until dark" (it was released in Oct. guess I didn't make the connection) and "The Birds" were good ones.  (in my best old man voice) Even the scary movies had real acting back then! 
   
9. Last October (2008) the scariest thing out there was the stock market and economy.  That's a little better this year.
   
10. Lastly, I think this a fun improvement - Halloween pets.  Here's a funny story with some links about sexy costumes for pets.
    

These dogs look cute or funny but sexy just doesn't come to my mind.

This one is my favorite - 

going as another species.

How did they get that pose?

Check out the lace on this number:

 

Sorta disturbing - doesn't make me want eat:

 

You'll find more halloween fun over at the spin cycle

life - walks game cycle

The diversity of life provides me constant amazement. Just looking at human life reveals such a variety of options and directions. The many types of people and what they do makes the world interesting (and sometimes dangerous).

Each of us get a unique view of the world.

What's your walk of life?
What role do you play in the game of life?

I was thinking how people within the same culture/society can live in different worlds. Your job, family, location, gender, etc. shape your day.

You know the expression, "walk in my shoes".

Not being part of one of these 'worlds' doesn't stop us from commenting about somebody when hear of or see an event. For example, I watched a clip of our impeached governor Blagojevich on the Bonnie Hunt show and thought what a sociopath!

But then, what do I really know of his world. Politics and power, books, news conferences, talk shows - nothing of that in my experience.

Still with me?

Let's switch to another 'walk of life'. Not really a part of mine either, but maybe a little closer. At least I respect this industry more - a scientist. Also, I've been fortunate enough to talk with a few.

At the end of the summer my wife and I visited Argonne National Labs for their open house. I was not expecting anything as big as it was.

I felt like I went to Disney World. People, tents, shuttle buses, lines, just no Mickey or Minnie (well we didn't see one). It was well organized. But I just expected something about a tenth the size.

The big crowd is really good news because it shows some interest in science. We should have arrived earlier, because we were short of time to see even half of the exhibits.

Photo by Wes Agresta/Courtesy Argonne National Laboratory.

I'm glad we made it to the Advanced Photon Source. It's the size of a major league baseball stadium and produces this nation’s most brilliant x-ray beams for research in almost all scientific disciplines. The above picture is the main entrance to the APS.

Just as the open house was coming to a close. I decided to peek into the physics building. I'm very glad I did. I knew time was short so I just picked a room that had people talking, charts, and displays.

I walk over to this table covered with a poster that made no sense to me. It had this waterfall type of look to it. So I asked, "what's this about?"

The gentleman on the other side of the table tells me it's about the structure of atomic nuclei.

Ok, I'm thinking interesting but still wondering what's being explained on the poster.

Then the man identifies himself as one of the authors of the research behind the poster. He is Dr. R. B. Wiringa. We went to the same school (U of I), except I point out that I only got a BS degree (engineering) there.

So here is a poster summarizing a life long quest researching nuclei structure. He's been creating models and simulating neutrons and protons since they had supercomputers. ALL ON A SHEET OF GLOSSY PAPER - your life quest. (nice poster multi colored - hey what do I have? a blog?)

After hearing about the years of simulation and prediction followed by experimental support, I realized the poster didn't do their effort justice. Think of a diagram of the Eiffel tower as describing the whole effort of Mr. Eiffel. There is so much more behind the scenes and the challenges.

I asked questions and I followed his explanations but I could have used up even more of his time. I learned something about neutron stars. The protons are transformed into neutrons.

There was another contributor there too, Kenneth M. Nollett. He talked with us some too.

Here's a link to page about Dr. Wiringa.

Ok so maybe I'll suggest sending Blago to Argonne and getting his head (and hair) x-rayed. I think he would do it if there was a TV camera in the room.

Better trips

Back in the early 90's I joined a company starting up an exciting service. Ok, I and many others thought it was exciting but over time and after further advances in technology it's appeal dropped to the point of people questioning if it was ever used. It was used.
I'm referring to Airfone. When I joined the company the name was GTE Airfone.  
This post is not so much about the business or even the technology. I would happy to answer questions about that. Just leave your question in the comments. Today I just want to reminisce about some great travel memories I had while working for them.
I suspect other biz travelers out there long for the way air travel was back in the 90's. There was good competition for grabbing bigger biz travel market share. The airlines tried to out perform each other's service and the traveler benefited.
Any of you remember seeing this?


Back then, I even held PREMIER status once. Now they make me feel like I rank just below dirt bag.
Well back before there were laptops on the tray tables. We were equipping the major US airlines with seat phones. I traveled on those airlines at least once a month. Many trips to the UK., the west coast, and even one to China (China Southern Airlines).


I had the privilege of having a network test card so I could call anywhere in the US on the Airfone system from my seat. I would typically do a test call to home or some other family member. I think the calls sometimes became annoying for them.
I soon realized I had something worth trading with the flight attendants (FA). This trading for a drink, food, or first class desert would often work then because the flights then often were 1/2 or 3/4 full, so the FA about half way or so into the flight would be able to sit back and relax in the back. That's when I would suggest a deal.

One flight coming back late from California, I eagerly waited to demonstrate the power of this card to a new co-worker. Ok, I wanted to show off a bit.

After I was able to explain the deal to the FA, she was more than willing to get both of us these huge fudge sundaes (in real glassware) from first class. We got a good laugh when she stopped by and explained why we needed to wait just a little longer - she had to serve them to first class first. The other funny thing was after we landed she or another FA seem to have lost my test card. I'll never know if it was true, but they did tear apart a few rows of seats looking.

Other flying treats I miss: Free class upgrades, free passes to the airport lounge, empty seats in my row. Please share any good times you had in the air in the comments.

short disney news

I heard this short piece of news awhile ago (May 09) and thought I should post it. Sometimes it takes awhile to get from my notes to my blog.

Disney Parks Stop Scans for Topless Riders

They have reassigned employees at Disneyland and Disney's California Adventure who watched for breast-baring riders because "actual inappropriate behaviors by guests are rare."

What a job? I'm always amazed about the unusual jobs in the world. The article didn't mention Disney World in Florida.

Here's a picture I took on a trip to Disney World.

Is this an excited dwarf looking for a flasher in the crowd?

Hey remember the SEVEN DWARFS ???

Not Bashful

but Happy

as in HAPPY TO SEE YA

It's not what it appears it might be - but I had to do a double take and then I took some pictures to share. It's just a camera angle problem really.

(oh if you dare you can click on the picture for a larger image - but then again you might not want to)

Share a smile

driveby downsizing scary

Just this week I learned of two more friends hit by driveby downsizing. Scary times.

Things better turn around soon or we will be looking like this poor guy below.
I found this funny postcard at jafagirls.
I need to send these to my green friends.

Share a smile

background story

For those readers wondering about this blog and maybe who is an xfoner.
Please read this.

when you think of odd job

What comes to mind?

Among other influences, your age would be a factor. If you grew up as a oo7 fan, then odd job is this guy from "Goldfinger":



But today with high unemployment touching most everyone in someway, odd job might be the only job. I heard about this new site Odd Job Nation the other day.

I like their odd humor approach on work. Looks like they are making a youtube series (is that a new term?) about odd jobs and being out of work. This first one is great. Put on your headphones and take a look:




Still with me?

Maybe the site has some type of deal with Craigslist - I don't know. But they offer a link to search for odd jobs on Craigslist (I know you could do this without their front end web site but hey, their humor puts you in a better mood).

Anyway, one odd job that got my attention was, "House Manager, Live-In (Gold Coast)". Now, I think "house manager" is a marketing/resume/HR dept. term for MAID. But here's a piece from that ad:

We provide a 2-bedroom apartment.
Work schedule Monday-Friday, 8-4.
Location: Gold Coast
Compensation: $60,000 - $70,000/year

Hmm - apartment on Chicago Gold Coast with some decent pay - maybe I should learn to cook and clean.

toy factory unrest - not talking elves here

This global financial crisis has (no surprise) hit the Chinese factories. Workers being let go are understandingly not happy. (just an observation - those Chinese Police cars look much too light)



From the news reports on the internet, I found out that the factory made nerf toys.

There would be less injuries if the protesters and security would all limit themselves to the nerf toys. But I guess a nerf toy doesn't do it if you are really angry. However, I think the media would love covering a story of a big nerf battle, so they might get more attention.



Here's some news links:
workers protest
chinadaily
Workers riot