That Russian Guy

I just finished reading Night Watch by Sergei Lukyanenko and I thought it was excellent. I had never seen it before in my local bookstore and I prowl the shelves there quite a bit. I think that I'll need to pick up the other two books in the series, Day Watch and Twilight Watch. I also had someone loan me a copy of the Traveler by John Twelve Hawks, or something like that. I don't know if it is any good or not, but I'll give it a go and report back. (As if there is anyone else out there reading this.) I also saw a book by Neal Stephenson, but I didn't pick it up. I loved Cryptonomicon and liked Snow Crash, but the three books of the Baroque cycle disappointed me, again if anyone is out there let me know if you liked the Baroque Cycle, because maybe it was just me.

As I was writing about the other day my Union is in negotiations with management and this brought me in mind of a quote that sums up the Corporations position at the moment. "What is the good of having servants if one must treat them as human beings?" George Bernard Shaw I think. They believe that in the current economic state, anyone who has a good paying job should be so pleased that no matter what management requires of you the employee should take it with a smile and say, "Thank you, may I have another?" Well the UAW was founded on the ideals of not just higher pay and better benefits but safer, more humane work environment that would raise people up not grind them down. To all my fellow Unionists out there going through this same thing I say, Don't Let the Bastards Grind you Down!

You went to school?

So now that I have a blog I've started actually looking at other blogs by going to the Blogs of Note and I have to say I find the Caffeinated Librarian a entertaining read. I don't understand why she likes Herman Melville but to each their own. I should maybe go back and read "Moby Dick" again, I didn't really like it that much, I liked Omoo better but on the whole I can take or leave Melville. But, since many of the other books she called her favorites I really like I might just give it a reread. Today I started reading a book called NightWatch by some Russian author I whose name escapes me, it is a pretty good read so far. Like I think I mentioned before my Local is currently in negotiations for a new contract and I have had some experiences that I have found educational. For example, who would have guessed that Labor Relations actually has a scorecard on which they get ratings on all sorts of areas of the Contract they bargain. I find this fascinating. We as Union Reps. have a scorecard too, it is called the Ballot box, honestly, the idea that the Corporation cares about how liberal our transfer, or shift preference rights are seems almost surreal. As long as the quality and throughput are meeting or exceeding standards I can't see why they would care. Logic does not apply to management apparently. It is just like I tell my constituents when I write them a grievance, especially if it seems like there is no way management could possibly deny violating the Agreement, being right doesn't go very far sometimes. What people fail to understand is that I, and I would say the vast majority of Union Reps. as well, have bargained on a grievance only to have the manager look at me and say, "You know. . . you are absolutely right, but, I'm still going to deny this grievance." It can be frustrating. Gee, it just struck me that I was going to work in a quote each blog. . . okay how about this one "Always the surprised tone." This brings me in mind of a story about one of my dealings with management. This manager that I was dealing with was in her mid-twenties and I was talking to her about some work she was doing that was contractually bargaining unit work, after we were done talking she got on the subject of a class she was taking in Corporate Culture at Michigan State University when she mentioned the professors name I said that I had taken two of his classes and really enjoyed them. She looked at me and with complete and honest surprise said, "You went to school?" The other workers who were there just about fell out of their chairs. The manager was quite embarrassed and tried to explain what she meant, but, to this day, one of those guys every time he sees me the first words out of his mouth are "You went to school?" Hell, in hind sight that would have been a good name for my Blog.

Ramblin' man

I just finished reading Ink by Hal Duncan, and it made me wonder. Do authors think that being difficult to follow and extremely vague about things makes them more "serious"? Honestly, this is the Pynchon theory (anybody out there read V recently), where after spending hundreds of pages telling a story the reader goes away confused as to the point of the story, not that there has to be a point. I used to enjoy these sorts of literary exercises more when I was younger and more pretentious about my reading, now I don't have quite the same patience for it. I guess I have come to see that a book can be just as important, deep, and meaningful without being completely incomprehensible. I think any book a person reads adds to that persons humanity. Some people don't feel this way though. This puts me in mind of a story. I had a supervisor a few years back who was basically a functional illiterate who disliked the fact that I had a college degree. He used to make fun of the fact I read books at break instead of playing Euchre or smoking cigarettes. Treated the rest of his old school tradesmen who liked hunting, fishing, NASCAR and the like better than those of us who didn't. (Hey, when one redneck favors the other rednecks unfairly in the workplace would that be called napeitism?) Anyway, one time he asked me in his most condescending tone, "Hey, you think reading all those books makes you smart don't you?" When I replied, "Naw, but if I die tomorrow I don't want Clifford the Big Red Dog to be the last book I ever read." he seemed to thing that I was insulting him somehow. (I was. . . but I didn't think he'd figure that out.) I had to explain that I had no idea that Clifford had been the last book he read and that I thought that Emily Elizabeth was a hoot. Somehow that didn't make it any better. Shortly after that I got forced to 2nd shift. . . was it something I said?

Ouch? (oh and a question about Deathly Hallows)

(Let me just say that this post asks a Harry Potter question you don't want to read if you haven't finished book 7)
Went in for a root canal this morning, let me just say this about that. . . o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o ooooooooooooow. Okay that will cover the important parts of that. A few hours removed from the procedure it doesn't seem that bad. About the same amount of pain as talking to some of my constituents, or most managers. Although the pain from dealing with management differs in altitude. One quick question for any fellow Harry Potter fans out there who have completely lost themselves in the wilderness of the Blogs, exactly who is this Victorie who is snogging Teddy Lupin and whose kid is she? Is she Bill and Fluer's?

The misperceptions of oneself

Day 2 of my life as a blogger. Is it too early to have writers block? Off down the vast cyber highway and I just realized that I have forgotten my pocket-handkerchiefs. ( I sure hope Balin can loan me one of his.) Let me just say this, in my experience there are 3 things in life that people always think they are better at than they actually are. (Okay more than 3 things but work with me here.) Those three things are Writing, Chess, and Poker. Everyone always overestimates their own talent at these. What particular part of the ego do these activities stroke that makes people convince themselves of their talent? It's a mystery, luckily for me I don't have that problem. . .I am gifted at all three. I'm sitting here typing with PBS on and there is a documentary on International Hairstyling competitions. . . yes sports fans I said International Hairstyling competitions. How did ESPN ever lose the rights to televise this? Its like that Seinfeld where George is investing in a technology to televise opera. I just finished the 7th Harry Potter book and enjoyed it immensely. I also appreciate the fact that Rowling was considerate enough to plug along until the story was finished. On that note, I think that the congress should pass legislation to place any author who is more than 3 books into a series in protective custody until the series is finalized. Yeah I mean you Jordan, you too Martin. Christ, at the pace they are going I'll be buying the conclusions as a program for my holo-deck. On a more serious note we are currently undergoing negotiations at my Local between and a few thoughts have entered my mind. Why is it that management always wants to emulate Toyota when it concerns the pay, benefits, and work rules for workers but never wants to emulate Toyota's management structure. I tell you what when the Corporation starts paying their CEO the same as Toyota, and wittles down the management numbers and compensation to Toyota-like levels and we still can't make money, come see me. Honestly, even worse than that is when management types want to tell me how it works in Mexico or China. Is that our goal, to become a 3rd world nation? Hey here's a question, how many years does a Mexican autoworker have to work to earn the cost of the car they build? Look it up people!

why the name Shop rule violations

I thought I better explain why the name of this blog is "Shop Rule Violations". In my capacity as a Union Rep. I spend my time representing people who have been accused of just that, a shop rule violation, also if I was doing this from a computer at my work place I would this very second be committing a shop rule violation. I would never do that, nor would I encourage you to use the company infrastructure for your own entertainment. (As they say in Ball Four, "Yeah right.") This just occurred to me, but I think that I will attempt to quote a great piece of literature in each of my posts. What, you don't think that Ball Four is great literature? Then maybe I'll quote the muppet show instead. Wukka. . .Wukka. Hey did I mention I'm taking Tylenol 3 with codiene for a root canal at the moment. (This information provided by way of explanation/apology.)

What is a blog for? I guess I will find out. I could just go all Jack Kerouac on the readers. Some sort of string of consciousness type feel. But, I don't really have talent for that. So instead I will just be posting my feelings on different things that are going on. My two major topics will be books and what I am reading and have read, and the Labor Movement and specifically the UAW. If those topics seem completely unrelated and all together disjointed, they are but hey sue me I'm eclectic. (God, does that sound pretentious? It does?) Okay, I'm eclectic and pretentious. Just bear with me while I take this bold (is dipping a single toe in the water bold?) step into cyberspace.