bits n' pieces

God, so much to catch up on. Lots of things I wanted to point out in the world at large, and I've forgotten most of them...

First, the me stuff...

Work continues to be an interesting barrage. With the spectre of a possible promotion on the horizon thanks to BossLady's pregnancy, I've been gently asserting myself in an effort to get people more gradually accustomed to my style. I tend to be a lot less tolerant of people who make themselves useless, and my boss has acted as a buffer to my occasionally overzealous approach. It's a very good thing, because it has taught me the value of fairness and measured judgment. I've learned that idiots do not need to be exposed -- they reveal themselves much more quickly most of the time. So I began the gradual process of letting people know where I stood, measured over the next four months to allow them an opportunity to know what the score was going to be when I took over.

Until Wednesday, when BossLady confided in me that she will not be leaving in August... no, indeed, she will be making her exit in APRIL.

This also coincides with organizational changes the company has been tossing around, and now it looks like my location gets to be the guinea pig to see if it works. The new model removes the role of general manager and splits it amongst the remaining deparment heads. The role I will be stepping into: Operations Manager. Most of the split up duties will fall onto my plate. Better still, the stuff I'm not too keen on (sales) is OFF my screen. There's still a lot of undefined turf that will have to be hammered out over the next two weeks, but I'm quite intrigued by the potential: a position that will, in effect, be created and defined specifically for and by me.

Neat.

In other news, I cashed in some of my savings and bought a new bike. It will be a process learning how to trust my own reflexes again. My body lost its sense memory over the last two years, too, so I'm trying to re-adjust to certain things..not the least of which: I've lost my crotch callous. I've been walking bowlegged for the last two days. I expect my brothers to run wild with that line, but anyone who bikes knows what I'm talking about.

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On the political front, I'd like to draw everyone's attention to KnightsOut.org. Knights Out is a group comprised mainly of West Point Military Academy alumni who have served within the military, either currently enlisted or retired. The public face of the group, Dan Choi, is an combat veteran in the Iraq war and an infantry platoon leader with the National Guard. He graduated West Point majoring in Arabic language and environmental engineering, which have served our country well in our current conflict.

Two nights ago on national television, Choi openly defied Title 10, Part II of the U.S. Code -- better known as the Don't Ask, Don't Tell policy. He went and told everyone without being asked. There is now justifiable cause (in the purest legal sense) to discharge him from the military. Aside from that Choi has a clean record and proved himself of great value, acting as a translator in town meetings and winning the confidence of many locals in Iraq.

As his coming out has been such a public affair, the scrutiny around any possible dismissal will be massive, and as such I somehow doubt he will actually be removed from his post. If he is, it goes to prove his point, that valuable soldiers are being tossed away. If he is not, it goes to show that the Don't Ask, Don't Tell policy is a joke, a policy applied in a fashion that can only be described as arbitrary.

Obama has promised to repeal the measure, and I hope he makes a move on it soon. To date, 11,694 soldiers have been removed from their posts under invocation of this policy. Perhaps some were reasonable discharges to address transgressions beyond the mere mention of sexuality, but when a dismissal is centered on a part of the human psyche which can not be altered and has no bearing on a person's ability or performance as opposed to the REAL transgressions, it is not justice nor justifiable. It is discrimination, and it must end now.

back in the saddle?

I've been considering it for a few days... I have a little extra cash in my savings at the moment, and god knows I need the outlet...

I'm thinking about buying a new bike.

You may recall my old bike was stolen four months after my accident. I never got the opportunity to fix it up or ride it again. It's just as well, though, because in my consideration of buying a new one, I've realized something.

I'm still scared shitless of it. The crash was pretty traumatic -- it was the first time I went to the emergency room and had to stay -- four days, no less. Major reconstructive surgery, piles of painkillers. And while it made for great conversation, it is something I never want to repeat. The pain was excruciating and the lasting impact of having to replace my teeth haunts me to this day (remember my apicoectomy last summer? Owwww...).

But then... this little philly (well, Raleigh) spoke to me from a shop window. And I remembered how much I really enjoyed the ride. And as I've gained a little extra heft since my bout with pneumonia, I have to get my exercise in somehow.

"But, but, but you work in a gym!" you may say... true. But when you spend eight-ten hours a day working in the place, the last thing you want to do is hang out for another 90 minutes. And knowing myself and my patterns, I will never start anything up unless it is an ingrained part of my daily routine. Biking to work would take about the same amount of time as taking MARTA, with the added bonus of physical activity. The nifty side effect of biking to work was that I actually had the desire to do a real workout at the gym, regardless of the ten hour day.

But still... scared.