the young and old

I work at a mine - for those of you who don't know. not only is the mining industry predominated by men, but it is also flooded with the older folks. these are all those "baby boomers" from back in the day. the big issue in the industry is that these "baby boomers" are getting ready to retire and there is this enormous gap that exists. that gap is the space between the experienced and the non-experienced. those who have worked in the industry for decades and those who just graduated college.

I never thought it was that big of a deal until my time here. here I am, a 22 year old college graduate, in meetings with people who are twice - if not three times - my age. I am pretty confident that I'm the youngest salary paid employee here. you may think that it would be a big deal - older folks thinking I don't know anything (which I pretty much don't) and me possibly trying to push people around. but that's not the case at all. I'm embracing the immense amount of knowledge my coworkers have. and (I think) they appreciate my young and fresh personality. and hopefully they'll appreciate my fresh ideas whenever I come up with some.

although sometimes I feel slightly out of place at work, at the same time I feel right at home. I get along with everyone pretty well and I've started getting used to giving people shit since they've been dishing it to me for quite some time now. and I think people are starting to understand me a bit more. everyone knows I'm the big suns fan. they know that if they wanna talk basketball they can come to my office. and they know that if they need a candy fix to come to my office. it's kinda nice to have people visit you in your office. especially when it's the place you spend more of your time. there's a couple of guys that are in their 20's that I think I can call my friends considering they stop by my office multiple times a day to chat/eat candy. and I have nothing but respect for those guys since they're the ones doing the actual work. I work with the numbers. they create the numbers. they fix things. they are the ones who are making the copper.

so in an environment where things can be awkward and uncomfortable, it is a pleasure to go to work (for the most part). just because there may be a huge age gap between you and your coworkers doesn't mean there will always be tension. it doesn't mean it's impossible to get anything done. but I think it's important for those who are the youngest at work to appreciate their coworkers. they've been there probably before you've even been born. they may not know the technical details of the process, but they have such a vast amount of knowledge. I think it's common for college students just beginning their career to enter the workplace and dismiss their coworker's ideas because they don't have a degree. and I don't agree with that. I think we should go to them for ideas. we should take the opportunity to learn from these people. so what if they don't have a degree? they've been able to be successful and have a steady career for a reason. learn from them rather than push changes without their ideas and opinions. embrace the fact that you are surrounded by older folks. it's not so bad after all.

awesome: this article. finally some recognition.

lame: this article. really mr. obama? are you really already assuming the lakers & celtics are going to be in the finals before game 4 has even begun? disappointing. very disappointing.

you know you're looking at a winna, winna, winna

4

0

oh boy did I win my bet.

game 2

2

0

so far, so good

1

0

making bets

I made a bet. I don't like making bets in fear of the possibility of losing regardless of how confident I am. and not only did I make a bet, I made a bet with the mine manager at my work. the bet? the suns will either (a) win the championship or (b) beat the spurs if they ever play. how stupid I am? I (a) made a bet with my boss's boss's boss's boss & therefore can't talk too much shit since, well he's pretty high up there, (b) made a bet that is very difficult to win since the spurs have beaten the suns the past 4 years we've played them in the playoffs, and (c) made a bet that is soo important to win since I'm the "newbie" and need to impress/gain credibility around the office rather than make stupid bets against someone who has always won bets (the hydromet manager made the same kind of bet last year & lost).

I feel sick. I'm terrified of going to work next week. I know shit's gonna go down & I'm not one who has witty comebacks & even if I did - he's the mine manager! I'm screwed. I prayed the mavericks would beat the spurs last night, but they failed me & even though we won, I felt like calling into work because I know we'll be playing the spurs in round two which starts monday. every game they play I'm gonna be soo stressed out even more than I would normally be. and even though I'm rather confident we can beat the spurs - when we're hot, we've played better defense & we'll have home court advantage - I really don't wanna deal with the spurs beating us. hopefully they won't let me down.
the stakes? suns win - mark (the mine manager) has to wear a suns jersey for a month. spurs win - I'll have to wear a spurs jersey for a month. *shivers*


update: mark showed up to work today with a spurs polo & spurs basketball shorts over his pants. I think this is war.


puppy of the day:I really love the color of this one.

6 month old female lab/pit mix 
crate & potty trained

aww isn't she precious? would be perfect for our humongous yard.





awesome: la roux's "bulletproof."
lame: presentations.

love & basketball

if there's one thing that I'm passionate about (besides music) it's sports. I'm not going to say that I watch espn 24 hours a day or even much at all, but I do love sports. I'm also not going to say that I'm awesome at playing sports - I actually suck pretty bad (although I do enjoy trying to play) - so I just stick to watching them. the excitement, the adrenaline, the competition, the victories, the shouting, the foam fingers, the fans - I love it all. I especially love how it brings strangers together. it's one of the few times you can talk "crap" to someone you don't even know and not get beat up. it's also one of the few times you can hug a complete stranger and not get beat up.

my first sport of choice is basketball. I think it's the suns year this year - to take it all the way. their defense has improved significantly. their offense has remained superior. and their energy is powerful. it's a good feeling to be in an arena with thousands of other fans and hearing the roar we create. and they deserve it (the suns). they have worked hard being the team with the best rating since the all-star break. and I think with their improved defense and amazing support from the fans, we'll take home the championship this year.

damn do I get into basketball. chris and I just renewed our half-season tickets for the suns (squeeeaaal) and I'm beyond excited. I love watching it at home with my parents, but it's a complete different environment watching it live. when I'm there, I get to scream/yell as loud as my voice allows me. I get to jump up and down when stoudemire slams it in an opponents face. I get to see goran's beautiful face in person. I can yell and cuss the refs for ridiculous calls. I get to high five people next to me I barely know. every once in a blue moon, I get free stuff. :) and I get to meet and cheer with other season ticket holders. being a season ticket holder (even if it is just half-season) you really get to know the other season ticket holders around you. you learn who they are and what they do. and it's great because you already know you have something in common with them so getting along is easy. I feel like the people in the couple of rows around us are kinda like a family. and they just adopted us.

I'm proud to be a suns fan. I m orng. r u?