Michael R. Barrick's blog

What an exciting life I lead. I spent my day in my cubicle writing code for a bank's intranet, then I came home and spent my evening writing code for a credit union's intranet. It is possible to interpret some of what I do as being important... the stuff I've made so far, at the moment, directly impacts or will have an impact on about three million people. How weird is that?

Despite my determination to be miserable today was good. My boss was asking me how things were going and clearly concerned that I may not stay on when my contract is up (which I actually haven't made my mind up about). I've been noticing old habits coming back from a few years ago when I last had a job with regular hours. Damnit all to hell anyway. My counter-culture façade of disdain is crumbling under the realization that I make about as much in a day now as I used to live off for a month when I was 17. That's worth eight hours in a cubicle.

As my last entry attests I went to sleep last night just thrilled at the prospect of killing another day of my life in this cubicle. I'm torn between letting myself aquiesce and tolerate this for the time being and railing against it for the sake of my sanity. So I am doing both and neither today. In a fit of meaninless rebellion I am wearing jeans on a Tuesday. The horror.

Duty calls. In a few hours I must get up and trudge across the city and bow to the silicon god for another day. I am a god-damned, freaking, bloody monk. I will practice my asceticism in my grey cubicle and perform my rituals in time with the almighty clock. I will render unto Caesar more than his fair share and give up the rest to pay my tithe to the Unholy Church of the Dreaded Student Loan. It's so much fun. Everybody is doing it.

Oringinal post: http://mbarrick.livejournal.com/52199.html

I've got a few minutes to kill before I bail out of here for the day. Last Friday and today I had pretty tolerable projects to work on and with only a few days left until payday I still have money in my pocket. God forbid, but I think I may be adjusting to all of this. Not that I have ever stayed interested in a job longer than two years, but things being as they are I may actually endure this long enough to get what I want to out of it.

Oringinal post: http://mbarrick.livejournal.com/51758.html

Friday's Vancouver Province Headline:

Majority in BC Support Referendum on Land Claims

Today's Vancouver Province Headline:

Majority in BC Support Legalization of Pot

And the Vancouver Province supports whatever will sell the most newspapers to the hoards of brainless sensualists that infest the suburbs.

Oringinal post: http://mbarrick.livejournal.com/51459.html

I am drinking beer that is not Guinness!

And liking it!

I stopped off at a beer & wine store and they didn't have Guinness so I got "Kootenay Black Lager" - and it's good!

The leprechauns are going to revoke my pointy shoes for my heresy.

Oringinal post: http://mbarrick.livejournal.com/51205.html

Another bout of moodiness endured. I have moments where I want to change the whole damn world all at once and beat myself up for not having done it yet. They don't exactly represent the best parts of my personality, but I've learned over the years that they are integral to my process. The feeling that I haven't done enough keeps me doing things. The feeling that nothing is quite good enough keeps me improving myself.

If only I could be cured of my ridiculous obsession with love.

Oringinal post: http://mbarrick.livejournal.com/50912.html