The Extraordinarily Ordinary » Funny

You know you’re a townie

jtal — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 04:15:10 +0000

I recently had a Twitterversation about when one can call oneself a true Bloomington townie. And then it launched into a bigger Twitterversation, which was really awesome. As one who has lived here all of my life (give or take six months abroad), I feel rather qualified to put forth a few suggestions, but first [...]

Waving evolutions

jtal — Sat, 29 Oct 2011 19:16:05 +0000

When I was a fresh-faced young undergrad, I was still quite shy and a little sketchy–not that I was creepin’ around, giving people the stink-eye–but I mean that I hadn’t fully figured out who I was yet. I’m sure I haven’t fully figured that out even now, but I can safely say I feel more [...]

Why men are in trouble

jtal — Mon, 10 Oct 2011 13:30:59 +0000

I have an overwhelming need to rant about this article that I’ve seen all over the social medias this past week, and I’ve discovered that I have a blog , and that’s probably where I’m allowed to rant.

Why men are in trouble–CNN.com

Basically, this article is saying that men are idiots and women are [...]

Jtal’s management tip #2: bribery

jtal — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 21:37:56 +0000

Listen, sometimes reasoning will get you nowhere. Sometimes people don’t want to listen to rational explanations, and sometimes you’re so stressed you can’t physically hear reason. Sometimes it’s Tuesday morning and all you want to do is kill everything.

If I were writing a book on management and I was only allowed two words, I [...]

Jtal’s management tip #1: reason with them

jtal — Sat, 24 Sep 2011 19:34:41 +0000

It’s not a very entertaining way to start off, but oh well. I do try to treat everyone upon first interaction as though they have a brain and can use it. Despite how judgmental I am, I try to reserve criticisms such as, “Well, you’re an effing idiot,” or “How on earth did you make [...]

Jtal’s managment tips: a series.

jtal — Sat, 24 Sep 2011 19:34:32 +0000

I have not been a manager for many years, but I feel like I’ve gained some experience when it comes to managing creative types in particular. They’re an interesting breed, and while I generally admire their ability to create under pressure, it is not in their nature to give one crap about deadlines or budget [...]

The girl as a young activist

jtal — Sat, 02 Jul 2011 03:08:34 +0000

Believe it or not, I used to be a hippie. Fact. Ask anyone who knew me in the mid-90s. When I was young, naive, unbattered by the winds of this cruel world, I thought that one small person could affect change if they just tried hard enough.

And then the system crushed that one small [...]

Girls making poor decisions

jtal — Thu, 02 Jun 2011 18:29:20 +0000

Last month I participated in College’s Greatest Weekend, otherwise know as the Little 500 at Indiana University. While out and about, we noticed a horrifying trend on the sorostitutes parading around town: neon-colored over-sized ’80s style tee-shirts over (of course) black tights, similarly neon-colored nylon baseball caps, and–I kid you fucking not–FANNY PACKS. This seemed [...]

My friends Excel and Google docs

jtal — Sat, 02 Apr 2011 21:40:24 +0000

As a complete document nerd, I am a big believer in Google docs. I’ve been using them for years now, and I think they are a great way to keep groups of people organized and, literally, on the same page.

However, the more I try to use them as a complete replacement for their Microsoft [...]

A late night conversation

jtal — Sat, 26 Feb 2011 16:10:12 +0000

I’LL bet those last few posts were not very entertaining. So–I present to you: A Late Night Conversation. This was just after the Super Bowl. Timely! Contextual!

ME: Hey, why are they called the Packers? For that matter, why are they called the Steelers?

FIANCE: Well the Packers, something something about meat packing.

ME: Oh, [...]