New Year's Eve's Eve @ work

A sad reality check: I guess I don't have this Kronos thing down-pack. I got a surprise on my paycheck -- 4 missed meal penalties! =O It's a great surprise b/c I unintentionally earned an easy $70 (post-tax) on my paycheck. The potential bad surprise is that HR will likely notice, and then I'll get called in soon after. California employment law mandates that we take a lunch break no more than 5 hours after we Kronos in, if we're working at least 6 hours, AND we have to take no less than 30 minutes or else the firm looks like they're promoting a sweat shop, they get fined, etc. etc. With all these regulations and stipulations, it makes lunch stressful. =P

In any case, I maximized my lunch hour today by going to the gym for a speedy work-out. I felt like such an idiot, though. In my rush to get ready to go back to work, I stepped on my pepper spray!!! Yes, the one w/ a safety. I left about 1 oz. of the chemical on the floor. I started panicking b/c the last time that happened, I practically wiped out half of my classmates. I practically bum-rushed outta there, vividly remembering the last time the fumes sneaked into my eyes and throat. Sorry, Arco Tower 24 hour fitnessers.

The rest of the day was a drag. I'm all with what (c) said; why should we stay when we're just going to be unproductive? But I wasn't about to use my vacation hours (thanks to the new policy). Everybody left except me and Stripes, a partner on the other end of the floor that wears -- you guessed it -- stripes practically every day. Yah, I lacked creativity in coming up w/ his nickname. I felt like I was in a TV drama; I'm working away, I'm the only one in view on the floor, and I can hear (his) jazz music playing. It was nice to have some music going on...until my mind started imagining that jazz music being played on TV in an episode where somebody is seducing somebody else. I quickly wiped that thought out of my head and imagined it being played in a coffee shop. I can do jazz in a coffee shop, not jazz for seduction. I love big band jazz, though. It reminds me of one of my favorite dates w/ BF, when we went to a Harry Connick, Jr. concert. (I <3 Harry Connick, Jr.!)

I also thought about generalizations. Just b/c the jazz that was played in "Collateral" was followed by a discussion re: Miles Davis (and b/c I saw a Miles Davis CD in Stripes' office), I instantly thought he was playing Miles Davis. Ignorant generalization: all jazz that sounded like that must be Miles Davis.

The idea of generalizations was in my head from earlier on in the day when TK & I went down to 6 to get our breakfast. The receptionist also gave me a ginormous bag of SBUX French Roast -- just b/c I'm TK's baby ;). Somehow, he got to explaining a study about "generalizations" and how all Asians or Blacks or whatever races "look alike." This reminded me of 1 hypothesis that explains concept formation in young children. Flashback to WWF's COMD 456 last Fall. (Shudder.)

According to the Semantic Feature Hypothesis, a child assumes all referents (layman's term: "things") can be defined by a universal set of semantic features. Those semantic features are based on perceptual features (what the child has perceived the "thing" as). I.e. a child learns what a "dog" is -- something that has 4 legs and a tail. A cat strolls by. The child's never seen a cat. Well, a cat has 4 legs and a tail, so the child thinks: it looks like a dog...hence, it must be a dog. Therefore, the child exclaims: dog! The parent laughs and gushes about how cute his/her pumpkin is and (hopefully) corrects: no, sweetie, that's a cat. As the child matures, they kinda do some verbal math; they "add" or "subtract" semantic features from concepts until it's defined/specific.

Um, is this one of those moments where you want to ask me: wth are you talking about/what do you mean? And who really cares? (I care b/c I'm trying to review a bit here and there b/c school's starting in a few days!)

Fine, forget my tangent. Re: all Asians look alike~
In the beginning, ppl confused me with Swu from Accounting. Don't ask, we look nothing alike. She's taller and skinnier. She's in another dept, for crying out loud.

Then a Korean PL came and ppl confused me w/ her (b/c ppl often swear I'm Korean). When I told Swu, she made a brow-raising comment. She said, "what? People think you're [Korean PL]? That's like saying [R. L.] and [BSD] look alike!! I didn't know whether to be offended or flattered. R.L. is not an attractive atty. On the other hand, lotsa woman -- SANS ME -- think BSD is very cute. Unfortunately, I think he's a little racist, too. He knows TK, my Black twin, yet he never greets her, only greets me. My Floridian metrosexual Latino "twin" also told me that he tried to pick up on our co's friend at a bar -- that he went to alone -- by starting off with: I make lotsa $$ as an atty and I drive this kinda car. Lame. What is he, in HS? Homeboy has like 3 degrees from prestigious schools, and he can't come up with a better pick-up line. Anywho, so did she mean I'm comparable to R.L.or BSD? B/c I didn't think Korean PL was unattractive...but that would mean I'm unattractive! =O

But then Korean PL left, and my Asian "twin" began. Maybe ppl confuse us b/c we both have high voices. I duno. Thank goodness ppl don't confuse me w/ her friends, Ugly Schlepper (who doesn't wash her hands after using the lady's room!! And was seen holding hands with an engaged atty!!) or Missionary Bartender.