Randomness

The snow came on and off today. Is it a good sign when the Weather Channel's "Local on the 8's" has no reports for any of the weather stations around you? Probably not. Last night we drove back from the niece's musical (South Pacific, and it was pretty darn good for a high school presentation) in about two inches of slush. It wasn't all that bad except for the people who wanted to drive on twenty miles per hour. Yeah, notice that long line of cars behind you, it means you're going too damn slow. I think we need to pass a state law that if you're followed closely by three or more vehicles you need to pull over and let them pass.

Some Republican Governors are preparing to "Just Say No" to stimulus money. Back in November we had a pretty bad snowstorm, and our area of the state was declared a disaster area. Which means we qualified for FEMA money (which we were approached to apply for). Now, that money could only cover our costs, manpower and materials, that we used to clear snow or help people out. But that amounted to a few thousand dollars. Some local mayors and councils refused the money (very few). So, I think the term I used for these "principlists" back then is apropos for these governors. That word was "Idiot." Say, can we have some of their money? We could use it here. Heck, the governor of Washington was just quoted saying that a 10% drop in revenue was equal to "the sky falling." I'll just say I wish our tax revenue only dropped 10%. Right now it's north of 18% and accelerating.

Avoiding doing work today. Well, trying to. However I have sent many emails. This week is full of meetings, including my committee (which may have to be broken into two meetings) and appropriations. That last one is going to be a fun one. I expect much haggling and maybe a few recriminations. Of course, it could also go very smoothly. However with the cuts needed to fit within our revenues it could be very emotionally draining. With the freelance, there might be some quick work coming up this week. That might help a little. However, I owe the client some quid pro quo, so it might be more of a bonus to the vendors. But maybe it'll lead to some more work from people who actually still have money.

Did I mention that my work computer died on Friday. Hopefully the tech will come tomorrow and it's just be a loose internal cable. If not it's going to be a rough week of recreating a working machine. In the mean time work will be difficult. A lot of what I do requires email. And I think I said how much of a brain killing application the Outlook Web App is. My guess is that the Microsoft severance pay problems are linked to their software.

On the plus side of the economic downturn (see, I told you I was trying to be lighter) is if you have money, there are great deals to be had now. I expect in two years our retail landscape will be much different than today's.

There is some writing news, or potential news. Once things are solidified I can say something. So speaking of writing, I guess I've procrastinated enough and should get back to it.