We're all racist jerks

So, there's an article on racist costumes.


And damn, there are a ton of overly sensitive people out there. The article mentions geisha, indian, and Mexican costumes. There's a TOOOON of people who think that donning a geisha costume makes you an insensitive, ignorant, racist ass.


Look, if you go looking for racism, you're going to find it. Whether real or imagined, you're going to find it.


Donning an Indian or Geisha costume = not racist. Donning a KKK costume = racist. I think I speak for the masses when I say that when I look at a costume the racism card never comes into play. What does come into play: cuteness, cost, and originality. If I see a costume that'll look cute on, isn't $200 bucks, and isn't something EVERYONE else is wearing, I'm gonna buy it.


Now, these? These are racist costumes.








These are not:








Now, can we move onto more important issues? Like who's handing out crap and who's handing out Snickers this Halloween?

In which my Ice Queen heart melts

So, starting at the ungodly hour of 0200 hours, my immune system decided to revolt. As in nothing could be kept down, and I doused myself in Eau de Cold Sweat. Couple hours later, the shakes showed up to the party.


However, and this is why my Kidlette owns my heart, my baby decided to single-handedly make me feel better.


It started with my sickly ass being parked on the couch, wondering where I could get gunpowder-flavored mouthwash. (Yeah, I'm a whiney little shit when I'm sick.) Kidlette asked, "Mama, you don't feel good? You sick?" Upon hearing my squeaked out, "Yes" she gave up her two prized posessions: Blankey and Bun-Bun. Understand that nobody can so much as touch these two. But, Mama was sick and that warranted an exception. Kidlette tenderly covered me up with her pink Blankey, and them firmly instructed Bun-Bun to take care of me.


I dare you not to squee. It got better.


A few hours and some flat 7-Up later, I slogged over into the TV room, where she was enthralled by Dora the Explorer. I flopped down onto the bed, prepared to just call it a damn day, chug some Nyquil and pass the hell O-U-T.


Kidlette, seeing that Mama was still feeling like a warmed up corpse, felt my forehead and declared, "Mama, you still very sick. You watch Dora with me, I cuddle with you. Be right back." She marched off to go get the two things we've used to make her feel better when she's sick: Juicy-Juice and a gummy worm. Thrusting them into my hand, and diligently making sure I take both, she snuggles on up to me.


I fell asleep to her snuggled in my arms, Kidlette stroking my hair, and whispering, "It's okay, Mama. You'll feel better. I love you."


I love you too, Kidlette. More than words can or will ever express.

Employers: help me help you

As I approach month two of my unemployment, there's a few things I'd like to address with employers out there, about their job postings. Things that will help ME decide if it's even worth my time, and help them get better applicants.




1. Post the name of your company!
When I look at a job posting and I see no name, one word comes to mind: scam. Every single job board is rife with scammers trying to get my SSN and credit card number. If you are a legitimate business, why are you so afraid of posting your name? Is it the fear of having people tromp into your office? Then post: NO WALK INS, APPLICATIONS WILL NOT BE CONSIDERED. Voila! Problem solved.


2. Post the wages!
I refuse to apply for a job that says "TBD" or "DOE". I get it, you're not sure what you're going to pay. Then post a range, damn you! Why waste my time and yours if you're only paying $9? (Which is just above minimum wage, but as of the new year, it'll be below minimum wage.) I need to know if I can support myself on the wages you are willing to pay. Furthermore, I don't want to waste my time and gas only to find out I'd be getting more on unemployment.


3. Be as specific as possible regarding the job duties.
The following is a direct copy from a job posting: "We're looking for a cheerful, computer proficient office extraordinaire to help around our hot tub store.". Oh, well, that certainly narrows it down. That really helps me get a good grasp on what exactly I'll be doing on a daily basis, and what's expected of me. Ideally, when you are writing a job posting, you need to describe what I will be doing on a daily, weekly, and monthly basis. "Typing and answering phones" doesn't cut it, either. What, exactly, will I be typing? How many incoming lines does the phone have? What's the call volume like?


Post the expected hours!
You'd think this would be a no-brainer, but I recently cut an interview short because they didn't post if it was PT or FT, only to find out it was PT. I was pretty upset, because I'd drove 45 minutes to the place, only to find out it was a complete waste. Okay, so you've posted that it's PT/FT. Great! Now, what hours, precisely, am I expected to be here? This is common sense, yet a ton of postings neglect to post this.



Employers, I don't know why this needs to be pointed out. You want to hire somebody, we want to be hired.