jacquavita's blog

Fifteen Things I Learned From Listening to Heavy Metal

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When I was just a boy, my mom would get annoyed when I listened to my music. Bands such as Van Halen, Quiet Riot, Twisted Sister and Poison ruled the airspace in my bedroom. I can remember her saying lines such as, “What is this cr@p?” and “Turn that sh!t down!” (NOTE TO MOM: What was it with the poop-themed cursing?) She never liked what I was listening to, but then again, if your parents don’t like your music, I suppose that’s the heart of rock and roll.

Stuck in the 80s - Part II

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To follow up on my last blog posting, it seems more and more marketers are realizing that people of my age bracket are now a serious demographic in terms of purchasing power. You don’t even need to be looking out for it; my generation is being fed a constant reminder of our youth on a continual basis.

Stuck in the 80' s

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For several reasons, I am for better or worse, stuck in the 80’s. You can easily chalk it up to nostalgia, but even back in college (mid-90’s), I can recall looking around wondering what happened. (I figured it out: Kurt Cobain and Nirvana.) Where was the music boasting of turning the volume up and having a good time? Why were the Celtics awful? What did these things called “bills” have to do with me exactly?

Working at a “Best Place to Work”

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At its peak, “That 70’s Show” was pretty funny. The father on the show, Red Forman (played perfectly by Kurtwood Smith), was a grouchy curmudgeon who was always fed up about one thing or another. One dialogue exchange that I still remember vividly involved him talking to his son, Eric. Eric was complaining about his job, to which Red replied, “It’s called ‘work’ for a reason. Otherwise, it would be called ‘happy-go-fun-time.’”

Pet Peeves

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As a proofreader, I review a lot of copy. That should go without saying. The overwhelming majority of it is written well. There will always be errors in copy, such as spelling, grammar or syntax mistakes. I can accept that it’s my job to fix them. However, there are some things I see repeatedly that make me want to buy stock in any company that makes red pens.

These are they (in no particular order). I tried to give examples to show what I mean.

The "Work Wife"

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When I was a teenager, I was very close friends with a girl named Christie. We would often talk for hours at a time, seemingly about everything and nothing at all. We discussed who we were dating, our goals, dreams, aspirations, and about the frustrations of being so close to the freedom of adulthood, yet still under our parents’ “oppressive” rule. I was her escort at her Sweet 16, and she was my prom date.

The Social Gathering Interview

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I think people by nature are social creatures. It’s almost as if we come up with excuses to get together and socialize about something, whether it’s sports, the weather, movies, television shows, or just to be in the presence of other people and avoid boredom.

The great thing about socializing is that you are guaranteed to increase your network of friends and acquaintances, especially after you move to a new state. Your opportunities to hang out with new people through work, your neighbors or by introduction from others are there for the taking.

An Ode to "Road House"

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In an office setting, people discuss lots of things, from mundane conversations about the weather, to potential client projects, and every now and then, pop culture. The other day, by chance, I happened to find out that a co-worker of mine, Jon Berry, likes the 1989 Patrick Swayze masterpiece that is simply titled, “Road House.”

A Real Education

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In November, the college where I earned my undergraduate degree will be hosting Homecoming. For me, it marks 15 years since I walked on stage there, received my diploma, and began my life working in the “real world.”

I crunched some numbers, and I never really stopped to think about this until now:

No Internet? No Television? No DVDs? No Problem.

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I had the opportunity to meet with several co-workers during my first week. One thing all the meetings had in common was that they all wanted to get to know me not as a professional proofreader, but as a human being. They wanted to know what makes me who I am, and they shared some personal information about themselves to me.

One co-worker and I discussed our life as parents. He shared that he and his wife were recently in bed awake at 1 a.m., typing furiously at their laptop computers, trying to catch up on miscellaneous odds and ends.

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