Fog!!!

[altivo]

Well, double fog, actually. For more than 24 hours now, we've "enjoyed" a dense fog situation, with visibility under a quarter mile and sometimes under 100 feet. Driving is a joy. Not. Amazing how many people won't even turn on their lights to help make sure they are seen, and even more people won't slow down a bit, even though their reaction time for a sudden stop or slowdown is cut by as much as 90% under these conditions. One wonders how humans have survived at this rate. Well, I guess. The answer is that they reproduce way too fast for such things to slow down the population, they just eliminate individuals.

The other fog was in the meeting room. I had to drive to Rockford in this soup for another library consortium meeting, where we learned that the catalog conversion/merger is on ice until at least August of next year, and more likely December or later, because the vendor is not going to have the software ready. I warned against purchasing vaporware. I warned that the deadlines were being set way too short and that they would never be met. As usual, I was right and no one paid attention to me. I was just accused of having a "negative attitude." Well, I was right. Nya-nya-nya.

Of course next time no one will listen either. The truth is always too inconvenient.

Comments

[darkhorseman.livejournal.com]

God your starting to sound like an IT person now.

And the fog last night was hell. I had maybe 25ft visiblity the whole way home

[altivo.livejournal.com]

That's because I AM an IT person. During my 35 years of library-related experience, about eight years involved database administration and programming and another eight plus of network administration. I've been through library software migrations from both sides, as customer, and as the software provider.

This one is being driven entirely by politics and upper level folks jockeying for position. They're all about to fall into the manure pile too, without any way to blame it on anyone but themselves.

[darkhorseman.livejournal.com]

Ahh but there in is the problem. Upper level management finds new and creative ways of blaming their problems on the people under them... thats why they are management

[altivo.livejournal.com]

Ain't gonna work this time. We already have a growing number of library directors angry and looking into a rebellion. These consortium management types are actually employees, and they are in fact paid by the individual library members in their dues. No one can compel any individual library to remain a member of the group, and several substantial libraries are now entertaining bids from another software vendor, the one we were working with originally and whose software we have been using. This thing is a disaster caused by politicians and power-hungry administrators, and it's about ready to go down in flames.

Even my director, who was unwilling to buck the tide a year ago, is now ready to jump ship if a group of three or four other libraries will join in. Everyone is afraid to be the first one to say "No," but it's gonna happen, one way or another.

Obscure quote:

[calydor.livejournal.com]

"But there has to be more who think like you, who are just waiting for SOMEONE to cross that imaginary line instead of just walking it!"

"Not enough."

Re: Obscure quote:

[altivo.livejournal.com]

Where's that one from?

Re: Obscure quote:

[calydor.livejournal.com]

You wouldn't recognize it.

Stargate 10x03, The Pegasus Project (no pun intended on the episode name).

Daniel Jackson to an Ancient; basically a race of beings not unlike what we'd refer to as gods, but whose most important law is to never interfere in 'our' world.

Re: Obscure quote:

[altivo.livejournal.com]

You're right, that's obscure (to me at least.) ;D

[darkhorseman.livejournal.com]

I have staged a few rebelions myself but unfortunatly it seems in any revolution the first step once power is seized is to shoot the revolutionarys.

[altivo.livejournal.com]

This isn't a revolution. More like a secession. The individual library directors have taken too long to realize it, but they now understand the danger of their present direction. It's one of those floating down the river without realizing that there's a huge waterfall around the next bend scenarios. They've started to hear the rushing water. Those who don't back out now will have to deal with that, but it's their problem, not mine.

I'm not leading a revolution. I just build ammunition here. The directors will do the shooting, if there is any. The consortial powerbrokers aren't going to be toppled, because they remain firmly in control of their original group. They are just gonna find out that they didn't succeed in conquering the territory they invaded. None of them have any real power over us. They can't give orders, even though they've been trying to do it.

[cabcat.livejournal.com]

Strange we very rarely get fog, and the amount of *&%*&ers that have all their spots and fogs on like a light show blinding all oncoming traffic is amazing.

[darkhorseman.livejournal.com]

you cant see with your beams on.. why people drive that way I dont know. Me I am lit up like a christmas tree. I drive a big farm truck so its surrounded with running lights so if you hit me its your fault.

[altivo.livejournal.com]

It's the same here. On a clear night, they drive with the fog lights and bright beams on and won't even dim for you when you approach head-on. On a day like today, when you need some lights on just to be seen at more than 20 paces, they won't turn a thing on. I guess they figure it's daytime, so you don't need lights, even though the fog is so thick it looks like dusk.