Phone greeting (1) Mar 20, 2008
Since I sometimes sound like a robot when I answer the phone, I often think about the right way to answer the phone.  At home, it's pretty simple:  "Hello?"  I don't have caller ID, and I don't want to give out any personal information because the idiots that call my home phone are usually trying to sell me something (except you, Wendy's mom [and you're not an idiot]), so I stick with something plain and simple.  My cell phone has caller ID, and of the two or three calls I receive each month, I always know the caller, so I greet them by name. 

That leaves my work phone.  Many of the people I work with have a habit of using an official greeting.  They pick up the phone and simply state the group we work in.  No "Hi."  No "This is [X]."  It's like the Cosby Show:  "Huxtable residence."  But we have caller ID at work, and these same people use the same greeting for everyone, which is stupid, especially if the caller doesn't work where we work.  It was especially annoying with a guy who used to work near me.  He would get a few hundred phone calls every day, and every single one of them was a personal call.  But he would still do his stupid official greeting every time.  I always thought, "You barely work for our group, so you probably shouldn't be using our name to represent yourself." 

Update (2008-03-21 2:32pm):  This post is lacking.  Here are a few examples of good phone greetings: 
  1. Tom Miller (from KRHS):  "Whooo is it?"
  2. Kramer (from Seinfeld):  "Go."
  3. "Talk to me."
That is all. #technology
Rain vs. snow Mar 20, 2008
I'm sorry God, but I sort of hate rain.  I know it's good for plants and generally necessary for all life, but it's really unappealing.  Perhaps I should clarify:  I hate cold rain.  If I had a choice between cold and raining or cold and snowing, I'd choose the snow any day.  Snow usually feels less cold than rain.  This probably has something to do with humidity ratios and heat transfer coefficients, but it doesn't take a genius to notice that cold rain feels colder than cold snow.  Plus, rain is the one weather condition that's directly related to a human emotion:  Depression.  Snow, on the other hand, seems to always bring happiness.  I consistently feel like a little kid when I walk outside in the snow, hoping work or school will be canceled so I can run around outside and play in the magical white stuff.  If I had a choice, I'd probably choose to live on a warm tropical island, but since I'm in New Jersey, please, less cold rain, more snow. #nature
Skim milk Mar 20, 2008
Skim milk shouldn't even be classified as a milk.  It's a disappointing attempt at mimicry. #food