songs about rainbows

Too many thoughts circulating to make one post...

1. Boredom Numbs the Work World
Lack of Stimulation Infects Humble and High-Ranking Jobs Alike

By Amy Joyce
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, August 10, 2005; Page D01

..."We know that 55 percent of all U.S. employees are not engaged at work. They are basically in a holding pattern. They feel like their capabilities aren't being tapped into and utilized and therefore, they really don't have a psychological connection to the organization," said Curt W. Coffman, global practice leader at the Gallup Organization, whose large polling group measured employee engagement.

...That problem -- a lack of autonomy and a job that has very specific instructions -- hits workers from the highest to lowest echelons of the working world. Many spend their days surfing the Internet, writing e-mails or taking care of personal business.

Basically, this article proved what I had already known - that most employees get bored at work and look toward the internet, books, playing hookie or taking extra long lunch breaks to break up the monotony of the day. I have done all of these things this summer. Some times I was quite busy and didn't have time for anything, and other times I had just enough work to be pacing myself and working comfortably. But, for a good portion of my summer here, I have been underworked and bored. My JMC classes and the work I produce for them and for the Optimist have been much harder than anything I've done here. But I guess that's the life of an intern. My only goal now is to find a field and an workplace where I will be both challenged and happy, if that's possible. I think it is, it is just not as common as most people would like.

2. Bookstores such as Barnes & Noble are already displaying the tons of extra copies of The Chronicles of Narnia they've ordered in preparation to The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe's theatrical release in December. I also saw there yesterday a book called Finding God in the Land of Narnia, by the authors who wrote Finding God in The Lord of the Rings. This is upsetting to me. Of course, the Chronicles have been well-read by many who know the tales of Aslan, but still, it was not prevalent in our pop culture in my opinion. Daniel once said about The Lord of the Rings, now every idiot knows what a hobbit is, and I feel like I've lost something - or words similar to the effect. Now that they have a mass market campaign to sell Narnia as a fantasy land, saying it's a great story and liking it to Rings or even, which doesn't make sense to me, Harry Potter, everyone will know who Mr. Tumnus is, or Mr. and Mrs. Beaver, and all the other characters and stories. I feel like I've lost something. Do we need a book in order to find God in the Chronicles? They're pretty blatant Christian allegories if you ask me, and the series means so much to a lot of people. Rings wasn't overtly Christian and Tolkein even said it wasn't. That book was dumbed down for the masses in its movies, and I can only hope that the movie version of The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe won't be as well. The previews look promising, so we'll see. I'm an elitist and I'm not apologizing for it. I just love my books and don't like them being ripped apart for the silver screen.

[stepping off my soapbox...]

3. National Treasure is a surprisingly entertaining movie. What makes it "great" is how the makers went full throttle after the idea of an invisible map on the Declaration of Independence. They didn't shy away from crazy conspiracy theories - they embraced them. The map was a freaking hologram, and secret decoder glasses that Benjamin Franklin designed and hid inside of a brick on a wall at Constitution Hall in Philly show where the treasure is - treasure that's been hidden for thousands of years and worth about $10 billion. Brilliant! They went for it, played with the idea and came out with a product that was both family friendly and entertaining. Of course I was skeptical at first, but I enjoyed it.

4. Congrats to Daniel on his new job at The Hollywood Reporter. Way to be awesome, and thanks again for the present you sent me.

5. I can't wait for Taco Cabana. Five days!