Lesson #1:
If you want to be involved with your HOA at any level (and not a) frustrated out of your mind, and b) not have your time wasted) don't bother going to the regular meetings (for the general membership).
The meetings are about 20% substance, and 80% annoyance. It is a very good example of why "pure" democracy is not ideal. Too many "votes that count" from the uninformed (despite every effort to inform).
Go to the board meetings and vote by proxy. Be involved, but be efficient!
29 November 2007
26 November 2007
some fine quotes for the day...
From my Google page, but I thought I'd share anyway:
We Americans live in a nation where the medical-care system is second to none in the world, unless you count maybe 25 or 30 little scuzzball countries like Scotland that we could vaporize in seconds if we felt like it.
- Dave Barry
The only thing that scares me more than space aliens is the idea that there aren't any space aliens. We can't be the best that creation has to offer. I pray we're not all there is. If so, we're in big trouble.
- Ellen DeGeneres
If man does find the solution for world peace it will be the most revolutionary reversal of his record we have ever known.
- George C. Marshall
We Americans live in a nation where the medical-care system is second to none in the world, unless you count maybe 25 or 30 little scuzzball countries like Scotland that we could vaporize in seconds if we felt like it.
- Dave Barry
The only thing that scares me more than space aliens is the idea that there aren't any space aliens. We can't be the best that creation has to offer. I pray we're not all there is. If so, we're in big trouble.
- Ellen DeGeneres
If man does find the solution for world peace it will be the most revolutionary reversal of his record we have ever known.
- George C. Marshall
25 November 2007
Laundry!
I know that the fact I don't mind doing laundry makes me strange (though I don't like to fold). I can't remember ever damaging any clothes I have, or really screwing up in any big way. There are just a few rules and tricks I make sure to employ.
1) I very rarely use hot water
Unless the load is all whites, I don't ever go over "warm". Modern laundry detergents are orders of magnitude better than the "Tide" of yesteryear when in warm and even cold water. Hotter water encourages colors to fade more quickly.
2) Silkscreen-printed items are turned inside-out
I have an inordinate amount of T-shirts, accumulated over years at high school and college. Some are thus almost 20 years old - and the silkscreen is largely intact. Put the print on the inside, and it is subject to far less physical wear from other items in the wash.
3) Don't overload the washer
As tempting as it is to get through that wash more quickly, it really compromises the ability for the soapy water to flush through laundry when the machine has too much in it. Start filling the washer with the largest items and work down to the smallest.
4) Don't use too much/too little detergent
Read the recommendations on the detergent package and realize that they are a generalization (for an "average" wash), and adjust up and down as necessary. Clothes won't get much cleaner if you put in tons of soap - in fact, it can create a mess, and your washer may not be able to get all the detergent out without an extra rinse.
5) Use good detergent
Generally speaking, any major brand (Tide, All, etc) will do a good job of cleaning your clothes. The few dollars you save (across many loads of laundry) buying lousy detergent is not efficient use of your time or money. Do some research and find one of the major or store brands that works well, smells the way you like it to, and satisfies your budget. I currently use the Costco house brand "Kirkland - Free and Clear" liquid. I prefer the unscented, as I don't want to smell like... laundry soap.
6) "Boost" your detergent
I'm dubious of just about anything that sells itself via infomercial, but somehow I started using Oxy-Clean - and after it performed a few miracles, I became a believer. I had a few cotton dress shirts that had some stains that didn't want to go away - and I figured I had nothing to lose. Filled up my 40+ year old laundry sink with hot water, put in 10 or so scoops of Oxy-Clean, dropped in the shirts, and let them soak for several hours, after which I ran them through a normal wash - and they came out looking practically brand new. Stains gone, color brighter. And the laundry tub was much cleaner as well!
1) I very rarely use hot water
Unless the load is all whites, I don't ever go over "warm". Modern laundry detergents are orders of magnitude better than the "Tide" of yesteryear when in warm and even cold water. Hotter water encourages colors to fade more quickly.
2) Silkscreen-printed items are turned inside-out
I have an inordinate amount of T-shirts, accumulated over years at high school and college. Some are thus almost 20 years old - and the silkscreen is largely intact. Put the print on the inside, and it is subject to far less physical wear from other items in the wash.
3) Don't overload the washer
As tempting as it is to get through that wash more quickly, it really compromises the ability for the soapy water to flush through laundry when the machine has too much in it. Start filling the washer with the largest items and work down to the smallest.
4) Don't use too much/too little detergent
Read the recommendations on the detergent package and realize that they are a generalization (for an "average" wash), and adjust up and down as necessary. Clothes won't get much cleaner if you put in tons of soap - in fact, it can create a mess, and your washer may not be able to get all the detergent out without an extra rinse.
5) Use good detergent
Generally speaking, any major brand (Tide, All, etc) will do a good job of cleaning your clothes. The few dollars you save (across many loads of laundry) buying lousy detergent is not efficient use of your time or money. Do some research and find one of the major or store brands that works well, smells the way you like it to, and satisfies your budget. I currently use the Costco house brand "Kirkland - Free and Clear" liquid. I prefer the unscented, as I don't want to smell like... laundry soap.
6) "Boost" your detergent
I'm dubious of just about anything that sells itself via infomercial, but somehow I started using Oxy-Clean - and after it performed a few miracles, I became a believer. I had a few cotton dress shirts that had some stains that didn't want to go away - and I figured I had nothing to lose. Filled up my 40+ year old laundry sink with hot water, put in 10 or so scoops of Oxy-Clean, dropped in the shirts, and let them soak for several hours, after which I ran them through a normal wash - and they came out looking practically brand new. Stains gone, color brighter. And the laundry tub was much cleaner as well!
23 November 2007
Who are you?
We're all "special snowflakes", right? We're unique, just like everybody else.
Details aside, we *can* be categorized. I'm not referring to skin color or religious faith or ethnic origins. Those attributes certainly can flavor our experiences, but for the most part, our behavioral tendencies are based in our genetic code.
Many of us have people in our lives with whom we just "click". They can be friends with whom we'll interact for perhaps a lifetime. But there are just as many (if not more) with whom we just can't get along. What are the differences between us?
Some of us have a very hard time working in particular environments, or always get in trouble for taking things apart, or doing things in a different way than the "standard". Some are natural inventors, while others are more comfortable with steady, consistent work.
Years ago, my dad had me learn about the Meyers-Briggs Temperament Indicator. It is a device that measures 4 aspects of behavior, and ascribes a point value to those categories:
Extraversion/Intraversion (10-point spread)
Intuition/Sensing (20-point spread)
Thinking/Feeling (20-point spread)
Judging/Perceiving (20-point spread)
Typically, the subject takes a 70-question survey, and at the end finds where in the 16 possible "temperament types" he falls. There is no better or worse type, they're just different. It is possible to fall evenly between two or more types, as most people are not extremes of the spectrum.
Read more about it. You may find it odd finding pages and chapters that talk about you (as if written to describe you).
The Meyers-Briggs Foundation
Keirsey Temperament Sorter
A very good book is
"Please Understand Me: Character and Temperament Types".
I haven't read the followup
"Please Understand Me II: Temperament Character Intelligence" but I have heard it is excellent as well.
Each of us has natural tendencies, whether usually living by strict planning, or by the seat-of-the-pants. Some people typically choose from the heart, others from their head. These attributes take attention and diligence to adjust, if you feel some change is needed to suit the role you play.
The starting point is knowing who you are.
Details aside, we *can* be categorized. I'm not referring to skin color or religious faith or ethnic origins. Those attributes certainly can flavor our experiences, but for the most part, our behavioral tendencies are based in our genetic code.
Many of us have people in our lives with whom we just "click". They can be friends with whom we'll interact for perhaps a lifetime. But there are just as many (if not more) with whom we just can't get along. What are the differences between us?
Some of us have a very hard time working in particular environments, or always get in trouble for taking things apart, or doing things in a different way than the "standard". Some are natural inventors, while others are more comfortable with steady, consistent work.
Years ago, my dad had me learn about the Meyers-Briggs Temperament Indicator. It is a device that measures 4 aspects of behavior, and ascribes a point value to those categories:
Extraversion/Intraversion (10-point spread)
Intuition/Sensing (20-point spread)
Thinking/Feeling (20-point spread)
Judging/Perceiving (20-point spread)
Typically, the subject takes a 70-question survey, and at the end finds where in the 16 possible "temperament types" he falls. There is no better or worse type, they're just different. It is possible to fall evenly between two or more types, as most people are not extremes of the spectrum.
Read more about it. You may find it odd finding pages and chapters that talk about you (as if written to describe you).
The Meyers-Briggs Foundation
Keirsey Temperament Sorter
A very good book is
"Please Understand Me: Character and Temperament Types".
I haven't read the followup
"Please Understand Me II: Temperament Character Intelligence" but I have heard it is excellent as well.
Each of us has natural tendencies, whether usually living by strict planning, or by the seat-of-the-pants. Some people typically choose from the heart, others from their head. These attributes take attention and diligence to adjust, if you feel some change is needed to suit the role you play.
The starting point is knowing who you are.
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