The shorter, wider, not-very-deep cabinet on one wall (holding linens) was clearly not holding its weight. Table linens are important -- and, also, that cabinet was holding dice and other small gaming supplies -- so eliminating that function wouldn't do. What I really wanted was a taller, narrower chest of drawers. This turns out to be hard; everyone expects your dining-room storage to be low and wide so that you can put a lighted glass shelving unit on top of it to show off your fine china. But recently we prevailed -- the magic phrase turns out to be "lingerie cupboard" and you find it as part of a very few bedroom sets -- and the resulting chest of drawers, a glorious 52" or so high and about 22" wide, was delivered a few days ago. The original cabinet has been unloaded into it, leaving a stretch of wall that can hold two half-height bookcases. (Other features of the room prevent full-height bookcases.)

Now, the wall with this cabinet is about four feet wide before large windows kick in, so this leaves room for a 24" bookcase. That shouldn't be hard, right? Most bookcases are 30" or 36" wide; most 24" ones are also short. We found one that's 48" high online in a color that doesn't clash with the rest of the room (or, most importantly, the cupboard that will be right next to it), so tonight we ordered it. We'll have to assemble it ourselves, but bookcases aren't too bad for that. The vendor has a sense of humor: returns are permitted within 30 days in the original packaging.

In the end this project should net us roughly 24 shelf-feet of bookcase, which I'm sure we will fill up distressingly quickly. Such are the challenges faced by bibliophiles.

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loosecanon

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If you want to participate, post a comment asking to be interviewed and I'll ask you questions, which you'll then answer in your own journal.

The book contains a lot of good advice and analysis of the nitty-gritty of being a manager (or, sometimes, a managee) in the high-tech world. His experience is colored by acquiring all of it in Silicon Valley, but I still found myself nodding a lot. The chapters on meetings, detecting agendas, and figuring out where people are coming from (incrementalists/completionists, organics/mechanics, etc) are valuable for anyone. I found myself rethinking my weekly team meeting, my one-on-one ineteractions with my direct reports, and my nearly-non-existent one-on-one meetings with my own manager.

Sometimes the author draws black-and-white lines where, in reality, there are many shades of gray. Almost no one is either an incrementalist or a completionist, for example; most of us are in the middle. But I have seen exactly those tensions play out on the projects I've worked on, enough to find value in the distinctions. He over-simplifies, presumably for rhetorical effect (for example, saying that incrementalists lack vision); there's usually a grain of truth, but don't take any of this as gospel. My take on it is that if it gets me thinking, it's done its job -- even if I disagree on the details.

The writing style is informal, occasionally vulgar, and humorous (as promised in the title). The chapters are short (most originated as blog entries), so it's easy to take it in bite-sized chunks. (That said, I read it cover to cover in two sittings.)

One criticism of the publication rather than the content: Michael, Michael, Michael... people would pay a little extra for the increased page-count that would come with a civilized font size. Trust me. Ouch. (I'm not sure if it's 8pt or 9pt, but it is certainly smaller than I am used to.)

I highly recommend this book to anyone in the high-tech industry. Or, if you don't want to get the book, at least check out the blog.

So, bottom line: if you're a ba'al t'shuvah, go read Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz's Teshuvah instead. If you're the relative or friend of someone who's become more observant and you want to grok this, and just talking with your family member or friend isn't an option, read one of the dozens of intro-to-Judaism books (if your Jewish knowledge is weak) or look up specific topics (like kashrut) at reputable web sites. And if you find yourself holding What Do You Mean... in your hands, by all means go ahead and mine it for the practical advice if you like, but be prepared to skip most of the exposition.

Our congregation is currently looking for an associate rabbi, and I managed to get myself onto the search committee. I'm glad to be able to play this role, and I'm glad to have the opportunity to see this process up close. We conducted our first phone interview this morning; in some ways it's not that different from interviewing programmers. Sure, the domain is rather different, but either way, you want to try to figure out how the candidate goes about solving problems, how he works with others, and so on.

The user interface on my cell phone is worse than it first appears. Someone left me voice mail, which I listened to but didn't immediately act on. I figured I could always go back to the "recent messages" menu item to re-hear it. Nope -- no way to do that through that interface. The secret for getting to the voice-mail box is that it's on speead-dial #1 -- which is in the manual, but I shouldn't have to consult the manual for something like that. Putting it on speed-dial is fine, but it should also be linked from the menu that is otherwise about messages. Sheesh.

Dani brought home a book of poetry called Now We Are Sick. That, and that it is edited by Neil Gaiman (and Stephen Jones, who I otherwise don't know) should tell you something about the amount of twistedness in the content.

My copy of "Clam Chowder: Kosher" (new DVD) arrived yesterday. This is a collection of songs from several years' worth of concerts that they actually have publication rights for (mostly traditional, out-of-copyright, and self-written material). It's a good collection. That it was recorded from the back of the hall is obvious; the resolution isn't as good as you'd expect from settings where they can put cameras everywhere they want. But it's good enough. The only regret I have in watching it is that I know there were some fun "audience gags" at some of those concerts (I was there), but none of those were included. Some can't be becuase the songs weren't; for example, the Vegetable Liberation Front, or maybe it was People for the Ethical Treatment of Vegetables, showed up for "Carrot Juice is Murder" one year, but that song isn't on the DVD. On the other hand, I remember uniformed flag-waving folks parading in for one performance of "Ye Jacobites By Name", which is on the DVD, but that's not the version they used. One of the things that makes Clam Chowder special is the relationship they have with the audience; I wish that had come out more on the DVD.

For people who just want easy food to take to SCA pot-lucks (that didn't come from a bakery or out of a can), I recommend Traveling Dysshes by patsmor. I think she's done a good job of compiling accessible information for entry-level cooks. I was one of her kibbitzers for the first edition some years ago, and there's now a second edition.