Oh, so many songs I never want to hear again.. so, so many

Whitney Houston's 'I will always love you'

Celine Dion 'My heart will go On' (and on, and on, and on...)

Shania Twain 'That Don't Impress Me'

Vent your spleens..

-- Immy (immy@rocketmail.com), November 15, 1999

Answers

Response to Play it again Sam (and I'll shoot..!!)

Pretty much anything by Shania Twain. But I'm with you on that one particular tune. Too much airplay. I agree with you choices there.But what was that stupid twitty song that Jewel sang not too long ago? It droned on and on. I wanted to reach into the radio and throttle each and every DJ for playing it.Changing the station did absolutely no good. I spent my time fleeing from that song station to station!

-- jenn Hines (jennifer.hines@cwusa.com), November 15, 1999.

Response to Play it again Sam (and I'll shoot..!!)

Jewel - do you mean 'My Hands' - yeah, annoying

'My hands are small I know, but they're not yours they are my own...'

Uh-huh..

Another song I can't listen to is 'Stuck in the Middle with You' by Steelers Wheel because it reminds me of that awful scene in Reservoir Dogs where the policeman is about to lose his ear..

Ugh..

I like that movie actually, but I have to fast forward through that bit. It's just too much to endure.

-- Immy (jealousyw@yahoo.com), November 15, 1999.

- If I had My Way by Big Sugar. The experience at the concert was by far the worse I've ever experienced, and Goodness knows I've been to some "dog-awful" shows.

- Angel with the Scabbed Wings by M. Manson. Simple enough, and the repeatition gets annoying.

- Bob by Nofx. Way overplayed at All ages. Bands assume "hey we can do a cover of Bob, and they'll love us. And we'll be rich." It's pathetic.

- Larger Than Life by the Backstreet Boys. No particular reason other than the obvious annoyance factor.

- That LFO (is that even right?) where these fools go on about Abercrombie and Fitch clad girls?

and without a doubt more than these...

-- m. (identity_withheld@hotmail.com), November 16, 1999.

and IIIIIIIIIIIIIII will always loooove yoooooouuuu....

My ears bleed..

-- Brittly (brittly@yours.dreamhost.com), November 16, 1999.

ARGH! that damn "titanic" song. don't get me started. you know, celine tried to claim that "my heart will go on" is not a song, it's an "experience". yes. the kind of experience that makes me snarl and drool like a rabid dog just asking to be shot.

let's see... anything by cliff richard. blame my mother. she's a psychotic cliff-richard-loving harpy. she has "heathcliff" on video. enough said. (specifically cliff richard: "daddy's home", "my pretty one", and "summer holiday". don't forget "living doll", though i can forgive that because of the young one's version.)

that damn "buses and trains" song by bachelor girl. "i walked under a bus, i got hit by a train"... yes, and it sounds like it, honey.

aha! anything by jimmy barnes. see my rant on the subject.

britney spears... look, merely mentioning her name states the bleeding obvious.

who am i missing... oh yes! "butterfly" and "honey" by mariah carey. will someone impale her already? i've had to save myself from inserting a fork into my eye on more than one occasion because of her caterwauling.

okay, i'm done! for now...

-- sammy (ahtalvik@alphalink.com.au), November 17, 1999.

A pat on the back, an apology to Paul Oves, and lessons learned.

Hi everybody,

I spent most of the last two years studying survival methods because I thought everyone in the evil gubment (grin) and big business were lying to me about Y2k. Up until December, I honestly thought there was a sinister plot to keep me from saving my hide, and life as I knew it would come to a screaming, raging, bloody halt.

Ive never been so wrong, about so many things in my life.

----

Most of all I was wrong about Mr. Paul Oaves, the Public Relations Representative for Tosco.

Paul was kind enough to present at one of the AMG meetings I attended, and during that meeting, I sat in the audience and interrogated him unmercifully. He said his company was ready for 1/1/00, but I thought he had to be lying! Hes a public relations executive, and he works for one of the iron triangle companies!! I was convinced that oil wells were going to blow up, and distribution channels would be crippled. (I was such a doomer.)

Mr. Oaves, I am so sorry. You werent lying; and I will regret doubting you for the rest of my life. If I had listened to you, I would have saved myself a lot of money on preps :o)

I could grovel at Pauls feet for the next three pages, but theres a few people Id like to thank so I can get this letter out today.

-----

Id like to thank Michael Sperling, for chairing the AMG, and being there when I needed information. Without his efforts, Im sure I would be living in Timbuktoo right now, feasting on 5 years of rice and beans instead of 1 (chuckle & groan).

Id like to thank Gary Nikki of the Red Cross. When I was hyperventilating with fear, he said I could call him anytime for assurance. I dont think anyone would ever believe how many times he said to me, "Breathe, Laura. Breathe!" (Thanks, Gary. If I ever do have a real emergency, I hope youre around. Your ability to remain graceful under pressure is commendable.)

Most of all, and most importantly, I want to thank Jim Groark of Pinnacle West. By the end of December, I thought things would be a three on the Likert scale, but could go to an 8 very quickly if APS toasted. His presence in the meetings were reassuring, and his e- mails confirmed that my fear was out of line. Ill be forever grateful to you, Mr. Groark.

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Lessons Ive learned.

Embedded systems could never be the problem I thought they would be. A LOT of the systems I worried about were analog or digital. Ive learned that its easy to get on the internet, look up a chip manufacturer, and find out which ones are date-sensitive. That information was always there, so now Ive learned to look for credible sources (not just opinion!). I also learned that most engineers are smart enough not to put critical equipment in inaccessible places. In short, Ive learned that people do their jobs, do them well, and for the most part, people can rely on each other. (As evidenced by the AMG!)

----

Ive learned that IT is important to the health of every company.

Yeah, Ok, admittedly there are companies out there that didnt do squat, and didnt need to. Their software isnt date-sensitive. However, mainframes that compound interest daily, monthly, hourly, whatever; did need remediation, and so did some other applications. Fortunately, the people who are responsible for the systems that we depend on, are smart enough, capable enough, and responsible enough to hound their managers for enough capital to keep their systems functioning.

----

Aside from Y2k, Ive learned a few more things about IT, and how it affects a companys welfare. Even if your organization isnt dependent upon date-sensitive software, you cant compete if your programs and equipment arent kept up to date The rate at which technology is advancing is almost blinding, and if you dont keep up, you can be damaged by a spoofer, a cracker, or even a simple glitch that dumps files.

Y2k has also taught me not to worry so much anymore. Ill never worry about something I cant control again. I know that there are people all over the world worrying about glitches and the concomitant problems a massive amount of them could cause; but whats the point? It seems to me that we all should take prudent measures to ensure our futures, but preparing for man-made disasters is just plain silly. I, for one, refuse to live my life in fear ever again.

Live in peace and prosper,

-- (no@name.now), March 31, 2000.