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back when I had nothing
Friday, November 19 1999
The management system in my workplace has turned me into a something other than the person I used to be. No longer can I justify work that is interesting or elegant; if it doesn't result in big bonuses I'm not interested. If someone comes up to me wanting something for which I am (as our schoolmarmish VP of IT puts it) a "subject matter expert," that person has to cut me in on the project's bonus structure. Since in nearly all such cases I have a complete monopoly on knowledge about the systems I build, I could theoretically charge any amount I choose to. As I've watched my paychecks swell to a point of resembling the Grand Pooh Bah's summer promises, I've paradoxically become less interested in the non-remunerative aspects of the projects I do. Money creates a greed for more money. Back when I had nothing, money meant nothing. Now that I have enough money to buy a new car with cash, I want a house instead.
Somebody with not much time on his hands has determined that today is the last odd day for the next 1111 years. An odd day is a day whose date contains only odd digits, in this case 11-19-1999. The next odd day is November 11th (or January 1st, depending on how you write it) in the year 3111. So if there's anything that needed doing on an odd day, my chance to do it is forever lost. I'm pretty sure I'll never live to the year 3111.
That said, there is still something to look forward to, the first even day since August 28th, 888, which is coming on February 2nd of the year 2000.
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