Seating Rules

A lot of my work time is spent around a large table with my coworkers. I have spent a year examining the social customs, and I have come up with some conclusions. The following are rules to live by if you are working on a bank exam:

1. No matter how big the table is, you could always use more room.

If I’m at a crowded table with not much room, I can get by. I can put papers on my lap, make sure to always close my computer, things like that. But if I have space…there is always something else I could spread out. There is a corollary to this rule:  

1a. If you have the chance to get some space, you have to take it.

Even if you don't need it. Because if you don't, someone else will take it, and you will be uncomfortable for no reason at all. That leads to the second rule....

2. No matter how many people there are, you will always fill up the entire table.

Just like a gas will always spread out to fill the container.

3. It is VERY frowned upon to sit closer to someone than needed.

One time I sat right next to my trainer. I was going to need to show her my work often, so it made sense to me that I sat near her.

We ended up leaving some open space at the end of the table.

Well, I consistently got weird looks and comments from the rest of my co-workers and even the bank employees. Why is there an open space at the end of the table? Why aren’t you sitting over there? What’s wrong with that side of the table? Holy Cow! I was just trying to make work easier! Plus, there was another guy who I knew would be on the exam later that week who I didn't want to sit next to. That leads to the fourth and final rule:

4. You cannot think of future seating requirements in advance.

The first day of an exam is probably the most important. You have to get there on-time/early, because you have to get a good seat.

In addition, as people grab seats, you cannot let the fact that other people are coming affect your decision at all. If there are five seats on the side of a table, and two people are finding seats, they will seat in chairs two and four. Like so:

X     O     X     O     X

X is empty chair, O is filled chair.

Now, both people know that there is a third person that is going to need to sit down. But is that mentioned? NO. It is not allowed. No, instead you have to wait for that awkward moment where the late-comer has to decide which chair he is going to sit in. Even if it makes perfect sense to spread out and anticipate where the third person is going to sit…it is forbidden. You cannot make any plans.

There are fun sorts of social customs like this at every job (or class, sporting event, etc.). A previous blog entry where I made a recycling joke at a staff meeting comes to mind.

So I just found out that JetBlue had an “All You Can Jet” promotion. Unlimited travel for a month for $499, $699 if you want to travel Fridays and Sundays.

Unfortunately, it ended October 6, and today is October 21. Although I had a baby during that month and so it wouldn’t have worked out anyway.

But isn’t that awesome? What a great idea. Travel every weekend – go see different members family for a quick weekend, take a week off and head down to Barbados or somewhere else that JetBlue flies…very quickly this turns into a great idea and well worth the money.

I’m on the lookout now, however, for next year. Unfortunately, JetBlue does not currently fly to Lexington. Or Cincinnati. Or Louisville. Hmm.

What's my Motivation?

I’ve often wondered at the purpose of my blog. Why do I write anything on here? Who is my audience? What should I write about?

Let’s take the birth of my daughter. How much do I want to write about it? Is my blog a journal so that anyone can know about all of the minute details of one of the most important things in my life? Do I make my blog private so that only people I know can read those details? Do I just tell little stories about her to make people laugh?

(I don’t think I want to expose my daughter to the unfettered internet. If I were to do it right now, I’ll probably be making a password-protected blog for people to read about Clara’s progress and maybe see some pictures or video. I think that will be the best way to let friends/family be a part of her life…yet give some privacy. I think I’ll feel a little safer that way.)

Not that I have any real blog-funny stories about Clara. Oh she’s funny, don’t get me wrong. She is MY daughter, after all. It’s just not the type of humor that someone reading a blog would enjoy.

I do have a lot of thoughts about other topics normally associated with blogs. Politics, for example. But am I going to throw out my thoughts on taxation, alternative energy, and foreign policy onto the internet?

Answer: Maybe every once in awhile. I don’t expect a lot of commentary (not that I do on any of my blog entries) but I think that it’s good practice for me to articulate my positions every once in awhile.

Elder Ballard has counseled members of the Church to use social media to talk about our testimonies of the Restored Gospel. Is that something that I feel comfortable talking about? Do I want to use my blog as an outlet for sharing my testimony?

Answer: I probably will, occasionally. I don’t think it will be incredibly overt: “Logan’s Testimony on Tithing and Why You Should Pay it Too” but more like when I talked about how I needed to come up with a new scripture marking system a couple months back. I can talk about the gospel and how it affects my life without being in-your-face about it.

I’ve often talked about sports in the past. I don’t have a lot of outlets to discuss the sports teams that I care about. But does my blog audience care? Do I care if they care?

Answer: I’ll talk about sports occasionally.

To summarize, my blog writing will continue to muddle along. There will be no definitive objective to my blog. I will just keep on stumbling, writing about random things whenever I feel the need to write.

Thank you for your continued patience, my friends.