Words That Annoy

I think this will be an ongoing list of words/phrases that for one reason or another (or for no real reason at all) annoy the hell out of me.

Jogging: I'm sorry (actually no, I'm not sorry), but I just loathe this word. I don't know. Jog. Jogging. Out for a jog. Jogging suit. Vomit. Vomit. Vomit. To illustrate how much I despise this word (and all its derivatives), I freak out every time someone uses it, ESPECIALLY if it is in some way directed at my (Mommom!?). As in, "Do you still go jogging around the monuments?" NO, damnit, I go RUNNING. Ugh.

Teachable moment/Take-away: As in, "How can we make this a teachable moment?" or "What can the take-away here be?" I think my loathing for these phrases started during my summer 2005 internship at State. Okay, fine, FINE, FINE! Yes we were working on a center/museum, with the focus being to make it accessible to the public and whatnot. So, yeah I get the need for teachable moments and take-aways, but O.M.G. Do we have to look at EVERYTHING in these terms? What would be the take-away from this exhibit? What kind of teachable moments can we squeeze out of the Cuban Missile Crisis? Again, I figuratively vomit. J.F.C.

Papers: As in, "We filed some papers with the Court" or "Some papers came in from opposing counsel." I'm not really sure why this bothers me. I think it's just because I'm used to hearing the word "document" or "filing" instead of "paper." Paper just seems like such a...je ne sais pas, a generic word, perhaps? I much prefer phrases like "We just received a document filed by opposing counsel" or "We have a filing due today." Really, I know, there isn't all that much difference in the terms, but seriously, my skin hurts when I hear or read the "paper" phrase. Oh, this includes the phrase "motion papers." Why not just say "motion." Isn't the PAPER implied? What, is this to dispel any possible confusion that one might be submitting a motion on something OTHER THAN PAPER? Why not then go one step further, and be even more specific, say: "We filed some premium multipurpose 99.99% jam free extra bright 20 lb 8 1/2 x 11" PAPERS with the Court today."

I also particularly dislike the term "issue-spotting," but, thankfully, since I'm no longer in LS, I really don't encounter it.

Speaking of legal matters, can someone explain the origin of the phrase "Image File Wrapper" (a la the USPTO)? I obviously understand what it is and what it contains, but what's the deal with the "wrapper" part? Yes, they are images. And yes, they are from a file. But wrapper? I feel like it sort of makes sense in the abtract...since the wrapper theoretically contains all the file history of a patent application, it's sort of like an invisible force field wrapping around all the documents in that file? Sort of. Not really. Meh.

More to come.

Weekend Wrap-up and Some Random Thoughts

Pretty lazy weekend overall, thought I did accomplish four of the five items on my retroactively-created "to do" list: (1) see State of Play, (2) do beaucoup de laundry, (3) return some stuff to J.Crew, and (4) buy new running socks. The one thing I didn't get to was to go to the NGA to see this exhibition, which I've been dying to see but just haven't had the chance yet. Only got two more weeks to see it, so I'm already planning to go this coming weekend.

FYI, State of Play was really really good. Definitely one of the better films I've seen so far this year. I highly recommend it. Just make sure you pay attention, otherwise you might get confused. I love movies like this, but I overheard a couple of women talking about how confused they were, after the movie had ended. Anyway, great story, excellent cast, stunning setting (DC, of course, haha!).

I'm really frustrated with the washing machines, or with my laundry detergent, or with both. I can't really figure it out. There tends to be detergent residue left on clothes that I take out of the washer and let air dry. It is soooo annoying, because basically I find myself having to rinse out the clothes in the sink. I suppose another option is to run everything again on a rinse-only cycle (thank you Mom advice), but that's just so annoying too, I am not going to start spending another $1.25 just to rinse this stuff out again. The washers are definitely smaller than the ones in my previous building, but I try to not pack the clothes in too much. I feel like these washers don't work as well as they could...but, I also wonder if it's the detergent I use. I dunno, I started using different detergent when I moved to my current place, it's that double strength stuff, so you're suppose to use half of what you would otherwise use. Which I do, there's even a line thing on the cap so you can measure properly. I still wonder if maybe I'm using too much, since that detergent residue crap still shows up on some of my clothes. Today was particularly annoying because I washed one of my running jackets (made out of that swishy material, whatever it's called), and I air dried it, and it had all this crap all over it. Reminded me of a car's dirty windshield after a rainstorm. Such a pain. I rinsed it off but it's still on there. Whatever, I'm over it.

Went to Friendship Heights to return a couple things to J.Crew. Didn't buy anything except some new Puma running socks, but I almost (almost!) bought some really random stuff from World Market. LOVE World Market. I managed to find a lot of fun pineapple stuff today, in general (wall hanging at World Market, lamps at Stein Mart, etc.) but held back. I really like shopping in Friendship Heights and the neighborhood in general. Really like the Borders there. And it's like department store heaven. Aside from it being super close to where I live, it basically has everything (every store) you could feasibly want. And the Cheesecake Factory! Except, I guess, kind of bummed that Linens & Things went out of business...kind of hoping they'll put a Bed Bath & Beyond in that empty spot, but I'm guessing probably not, since there's that huge one in Columbia Heights, plus the other one in Chinatown. 

Ergh...why does it seem like it's perpetually Sunday night? I so dislike Sunday nights...weekend is nearly over, another week upon us. Blahh. Hoping this week goes by quickly!

Went to Starbucks today...I definitely don't go nearly as often as I used to. The last time I went was 2-3 weeks ago now. I just don't feel like I really need it, if that makes sense? It's sort of surprising though, since there's a Starbucks right across from my office, but maybe since it requires crossing the street (as opposed to the Starbucks literally attached to my old office building...), and I'm lazy...it just doesn't happen. Except now I go to Chop't at least once a week, which is not really good...except it is soooo good.

I would really like to make it a goal to run a half marathon within the next year. I'm eyeing the SunTrust one, which is next March (2010). The major roadblock here is that, in order to qualify, I have to run a 5k in 31:00 (actually...that's the 2009 qualifying standard, I dunno if it will be lower for 2010...). That essentially means that I need to shave 4-5 minutes off my current 5k time (based on the Cherry Blossom 5k), which is a LOT of time to work off. Eek. Ideally I'd like to try and do this with one of the two upcoming 5ks (Police Week, Komen), but I think that might be way too optimistic. Oh, the reason why I'd like to accomplish this sooner rather than later is that registration for SunTrust opens in July. I'm getting way better at running longer distances, but I really need to focus on improving speed, even if I have to sacrifice distance, at least for now. Hmm...

That's about it... Off to enjoy the precious few hours left of this weekend :-)