h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Sorry to hear about your job loss, Marv. But I agree with the general sentiment that everyone else has been expressing - that it is probably for the best. You have been unhappy in that job for a long time, so it is good to be out of it. Now you have limitless possibilities ahead of you. You could go and live anywhere. You could pursue any of your dreams. For instance, haven't you dreamed of becoming a chef? Well, here's your opportunity. I don't know the process (do you go to chef school, or apprentice with a chef?), but you are now free to follow your heart. And in my opinion, that's always the best course.

On books, someone mentioned the Three Musketeers. I loved those books and could never part with them. I also quite liked the books by Hugo that I read. I used to read mysteries (and liked Agatha Christie and P.D. James and the Kinsey Milone ones and John D. MacDonald and...), but got tired of the genre - once you reach the end of the book, the solutions always seem so simple that it feels like you were just strung along for way longer than necessary.

My candidate for the Bonfire of the Bores is Thomas Hardy (sorry, Z). He is just so long-winded that it takes forever to get anywhere. I can only take so many 3 page setting descriptions. I would also throw on Homer and Virgil. The Odyssey and the Aeneid had interesting stories, but were told in a very dry manner.

Marv, for a daily positive message, go here:
http://greatday.com/
Today's is pretty good.

I've found that the messages there are excellent. Also click on the "Right now" presentation.

[dw2]

I agree with GL, Marv -- cooking school. You and I have already discussed this on IM. What's happening to the jerk who made you so angry? And I am amazed by Bryce's comment about it being perceived as a joke -- don't these yocks feel the cold breath of severance on their own napes?

So much backlog for me to catch up on that I've forgotten who said what, but I agree that Zola is a great read. Some of Balzac's novels are also terrific, too. But I disagree about Henry James being the King of Bores; I find his stuff very "right" about the age of manners. The Golden Bowl is a horror story, as is Portrait of a Lady. Events of terrible psychological violence occur in his novels.

But Faulkner, I agree, is a terrible bore. So is James Fennimore Cooper, although, if Cooper hadn't written, we would not have Mark Twain's superbly hilarious essay about him.

The planet workshop opens on Monday.

And now I have more work to do. I have to say that the money I am earning from my art means a world more to me than the salary I took home when I worked for the school.

Marv, if you want to come to the UK to study, the place to look is the British Council website http://www.britishcouncil.org/

Garius I do quite like the whole long winded side of books thought, after three pages of description for a while you get a much better sense of place. I loved "The portrait of Dorian Gray" for this reason. I suppose, going to a comprehensive school, we were never forced to read classics at school, so I always wanted to read the books I've choosen to read.

I don't know about in the US, but I know that here you can go to Catering college if you want to be a chef, it's FE so there are fees to pay if you're employed, but non if you're unemployed.

Amy if you're working out, and feel fitter, and really aren't overweight to begin with try not to get obbessed with your weight. I'm sure it will be gaining muscle, so you probably will gain a little weight, but you'll look and feel better for it anyway.

Bryce, Love does very strange things to you're perception of religon, when I was dating a pagan girl I would happily have converted to paganism and if she wanted had a pagan wedding. The relgion was really quite simalar to the neo-hinduism I was brought up in anyway. Now I can't even think of paganism without feeling thinking of her, so I'm rather glad I didn't.

The unempolyement paradox, I call it, is odd. When you're unempolyed the things that you would previously got done in your lunch hour, such as writing letters to the bank, getting a hair cut etc, can expand to take up the whole day. If you let them do this for a while you just wonder where you're going to get the time for job seeking.

It also happens if you're working from home, my Dad who's a full time artist, (and quite frankly getting mentioned far too often in this thread) solves it by setting one day aside for "admin and practical stuff" a week and refusing to do anything of that nature until that day. This is really quite annoying if I need a form signed for my student loan or something but I can understand where it's coming from and why he does it. - I expect Lil has her own techniques for solving this as well.

[dw2]

I know I've given Marv this link before, but I think it bears repeating. It's for the Atlantic Culinary Academy.

http://www.atlantic.edu/aca/

Oh I forgot to tell you all, I don't know if you'll be interested, but I had my last exam today. It was an oral one,and I let myself down badly on one of the stations. He asked the side effects of Lithum treatment, I remembered learning them, I remembered disccussing them with a Registrar in Clinic, but for the life of me I couldn't remember more than 3, when there are about 10 or more.

I don't think I've done badly enough to fail, at least I hope not, still the results should be out around early next week.

Interview went well, and now I must go and catch my train. I see my Private Life on Monday, so things are looking up all round!

B

for Ben, we need an applause smily though really I wouldn't be able to spell it even if we did have one.

marv, there are lots of culinary schools. There's an excellent one in AZ (although it's in the deathly hot Phoenix valley), and a couple out here in CA. And then, of course, there's the CIA in where? New York, isn't it? Most of them have financial aid, too.

Is that more subtle pressure to get Marv to move?

ah, the hell with subtle. Notice, however, that I did include stuff that wasn't in CA!

Bryce, did it seem like they actually liked/loved eachother? Or did it look like a marriage of security?

Marv, there is a good culinary school in Portland, Oregon, the Western Culinary Institute (I myself have considered going there) http://www.houseofedu.com/wc/index.jsp

And if you go, you'll inspire me to finally do something with my life and go too!

Again, thanks all. It does help to have friends keeping up the spirit.

From what I have been told by the idiots that manage us, severence is taxed at a higher rate than standard wage as it is not required by law to even offer severence. Maybey this changes from state to state.

Hypatia, I am always looking for options, so forward the companies name to my email. Let me know if you need the address.

Marv, you might want to check into that statement, because frankly, I think it's a load of crap.

[{Courtesy}]
*nods head sagely regarding MRs statement about taxes*

Just faxed stuff to the accountant so that he can let me know the next tax bill I have to pay.

W*rking at home isn't easy and I have to set myself dead lines such as completing a letter by 10 a.m. or whatever, otherwise I would fritter away the day on Diablo LOD or Icewind Dale II!

I also seem to spend a lot of time opening and closing the door into the garden by my desk for Cassie who prefers that to using her flap.

Marv if you don't have any ties or financial commitments to stay in your area, then the world is your oyster, or lobster as Arthur Daley in 'Minder' used to say.