At Home He's a Tourist

He fills his head with culture/ He gives himself an ulcer.

Saturday, May 28, 2005

Although last year I vowed to spread out my purchases across the year, I still ended up facing a big surplus with the end of the FY looming near. After a hectic few weeks (at least relative to the usual leisurely pace of library work) I managed to spend all our money. The last-minute big ticket items included $10,000 in music scores, $3,000 for "die cuts," and $5,000 for a collection of e-books. Next year I'll do better!

Otherwise things are much the same in our humble little bibliotheque--Old Curmudgeon keeps pestering us with the same questions about Yahoo Mail, student workers continue to do a less-than-half-assed job shelving books, and I'm still on the lookout for another job. K.L., our tech guy, is also interviewing elsewhere. Turnover is pretty high here, for obvious reasons. I hope I get the position in southern cal (and that the salary is liveable).

Currentlies...


  • Reading: Phillip Roth, The Professor of Desire. The first half is almost as good as Portnoy's Complaint, but the book bogs down towards the end.
  • Listening: Stereolab, Miss Modular. An EP I picked up used in Nagoya. Beatles, Revolver. I finally found a used copy of the CD. Yes, The Yes Album. If only "Roundabout" were on here this would be the only necessary Yes disc.
  • Watching: Tokyo Story, Holiday, I [heart] Huckabees (the last is interesting for having Isabelle Huppert perform in literally the dirtiest sex scene ever filmed).
  • Practicing: Bach, Suite BWV 1006a.
  • Drinking: KWV 2001 Shiraz.

Sunday, May 22, 2005

I'm going to California next month for a job interview. If offered, should I take it? I don't know the salary range yet, but giving the cost of living I could face a significant loss of net income. Still, it might be worth forsaking a few thousand dollars a year for the possibility of getting a life.

I just walked out of Revenge of the Sith. Terrible!