The Extraordinarily Ordinary

Know your (social media) audience

jtal — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 18:55:34 +0000

One of my biggest mottos of social media is: do not annoy your friends. Or your “Friends.” It’s kind of like do no harm, and I think the fastest way to break the motto is to inundate your followers with the same message. That inlcudes repeating the same tweet nine times in six days, “In [...]

On New Year’s resolutions

jtal — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 14:02:17 +0000

I know it’s a little late for New Year’s resolutions. GUESS WHAT–this is not a post about my New Year’s resolutions. And let me tell you why not: I don’t believe in them. It’s partly because they’re only made to be broken, partly because I’m too lazy to think of anything, but mostly because I [...]

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 [...]

How to be mean with purpose

jtal — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 19:13:53 +0000

Sometimes I ask myself, what is it that I can give back to the world? Some people endeavor to pass on their gift of optimism, seeing the good in everything. Some people share their sense of style and evangelize confidence while staying true to yourself. But me? What am I good at, that people need [...]

Herp-y Holidays!

jtal — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 19:21:51 +0000

I guess I didn’t have much to say in November…that’s a bad blogger. Here’s one last post before December hits us like a sack of coal, to get you in the mood for the holidays!

I drew this just for you.

I think this perfectly captures my feelings towards the holidays this year. Thanksgiving’s [...]

A costumed life

jtal — Sun, 20 Nov 2011 02:00:51 +0000

I was wondering, after this year’s round of Halloween parties and subsequent photos, how many years of Halloween pictures could I collect?

19. 19 years out of 27…but some years included more than one costume, so there are in fact 21 different costumes represented. THAT’S SO MANY! You could tell a story with that many [...]

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 #4: destroy

jtal — Wed, 05 Oct 2011 15:52:58 +0000

So you’ve tried explaining why you need someone to do their job. You’ve tried bribing them with treats. You’ve tried threatening them with the consequences of their actions and STILL you’re on the ass end of missing your project’s deadlines.

It is now time to rain down the pain. It’s time to make good on [...]

Jtal’s management tip #3: threats

jtal — Mon, 03 Oct 2011 01:34:14 +0000

Maybe ‘threats’ is a strong word. Maybe I could call it the sterner side of reasoning. But that would be less interesting, probably. Sometimes playing nice will get you nowhere, sometimes being kind and reasonable and nurturing and food-giving leads people to think you’re a pushover.

Well guess what, people. I’m not.

It is now [...]