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For billytea, Sean, other gamers: Motivational Posters for Gamers

That's a good archive. Mostly funny stuff, though a few things threw in references for games I've never played. This one, however rings very true to me. That game once reduced me to tears trying to build a friggin' car.

Edit: to make the link a link, and not italics. I plead distractedness.

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I can identify far too many of the products in this picture.

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everyone's links go to odd pages. puttui.

I just spent lots of time on the phone with DH - one of the things I like about him being away is the long ramblin' phone conversations. Sadly, even though i sent DH to bed, I 'm not sure I wanna go to bed. my brain wants to be awake. silly brain

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Beverly, I'm glad StE's fever is down.

I've forgotten protocol--does one bring up LJ here? All of you who backed up my bristling at the definitely intrusive, invasive, unwanted visitor yesterday are so very much my favorite people. If I had the energy I'd thank each and every one of you, but I don't, so I'm doing it collectively, here.

I think the only time people worry about that is when it's back channel-y sorts of stuff. This topic was a personal one, and it's your journal, and your right to bring it up. I'm so sorry that happened to you. I can't imagine visiting without a call first, unless I knew for sure I was wanted, and expected.

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Ok, I want everyone to go back to Fay's eBay listing and make note of the city the backpack is located is in.

Oh, that's fantastic!

(I must confess, though, that it isn't THAT specific bag I have. The bag I have arrived yesterday, from a UK seller - that was just the first pic that came up when I googled to show y'all my booty. No, not that booty. God, you people!)

It is a very nice bag. I think I shall test drive it today.

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I can identify far too many of the products in this picture.

I can put my hands on far too many of the products in this picture right now in my house.

Beverly, I just backtracked through LJ to find what you are referring to, and I think you handled it very well. Not a lot of compassion in that visitor, I think.

Mememe, mostly:

We just got our sponsor assignment for this summer. It's a couple transferring from a SE Asian country. He's the gov't employee, and basically on his retirement tour; she's his wife of 5 months, a citizen of the SE Asian country, and this is her first time away from home. This means that I'll have a little more to do sponsor-wise than usual, as she'll be in need of a little more help, what with assimilating into the USG culture at the same time as the Greek culture.

The general idea is that sponsors should be similar to sponsees in age and family makeup (a single twentysomething won't have much information about daycare, for example), and in Athens, it's also important that you live in the same area so you can show them around and give them rides and stuff.

So what do we have in common with this new couple? Well, not much. We all speak some English, and three of us have security clearances of some level or another and work in the same building. They live in a completely different neighborhood, have no kids, he's 52, she's 26. We're the perfect age to not relate to either of them.

Argh. At least I'm starting to figure out the bus routes and stuff to their neighborhood.

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So what you have in common is that you are married and in USG culture? That's it?

And Timelies everyone!

It's a gloomy yet cool Friday morning -- my last regular Friday off. I feel like I should be sleeping in but allergies and the cats woke me up early.

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...he's 52, she's 26.

If I manage to come away from Thailand not despising men, it's going to be a miracle. No reflection upon the individuals concerned, Raq, just - man, I have little enough patience with white heterosexual male entitlement shit as it is.

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How did you know it was Thailand?

Did I ever tell you how my best friend's father bought her mother (again, Thailand) for 2 rifles and $50? Or the time that the embassy security officer had to break down the door of an embassy apartment (again, Thailand) because the husband had locked the wife out as he was hell-bent on living with the maid?

No reflection upon the individuals concerned

No worries. I have my own concerns about him for this and other reasons. It's one of the reasons I want to do a little extra in the way of looking out for her. At least it's only his second marriage, so he's not a new-wife-every-two-years guy. And they've been dating for a while, and both speak English.

We used to get American men in the consular section in Romania who were cranky that "mail-order bride" didn't mean she was delivered to their door by post. The engaged couple would sometimes meet for the first time in the consular office, and would almost never share a language. We'd mention that she was going to be his 8th wife, and she'd shrug. Then we'd just really hope she'd survive the two years until she could dump him and still be USian.

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