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(For those of you playing along in one of those weird countries... 79 degrees Fahrenheit.)

Bless this country.

One day, I'll remember that the delicious as fuck Apricot Chicken Meatballs recipe that I love to make actually feeds four, and Pæs and I are only two.

One day.

I'd be into recording some audio, if y'all can understand my crazy accent.

I can't even...

http://freethoughtblogs.com/greta/2012/12/29/had-the-girl-simply-surrendered/

Had the girl simply surrendered (and not resisted) when surrounded by six men, she would not have lost her intestine. Why was she out with her boyfriend at 10 pm?" These comments made by an agricultural scientist [Dr Anita Shukla] at a seminar organised by the police provoked an outrage in Madhya Pradesh on Thursday, and demands for punitive action against her.

I honest to fuck can not believe someone masquerading as a human being would say something like that.

So basically, even when we follow all the bullshit fucking rules about our dress, behaviour, etc, it's still our fault.

All right, then.

Statement from the hospital says she "died peacefully".

Apparently they have a different definition of "peaceful" to what I do.

Sounds delicious! Also, it is an auspicious introduction, this recipe-sharing one.

Yeah, but I don't like him anyway. 

Come to think of it, I don't like any of these fuckers.  With the exception of Nigel, ECH, and Richter, everyone off my planet.

Fuck that.  I'm going too.

I need 7 billion of those things in your avatar.

I was going to correct you to 3.5 billion.

Then I thought about it.

[But in the final months of her employment, he complained that her tight clothing was distracting, once telling her that if his pants were bulging that was a sign her clothes were too revealing, according to the opinion.]

Nelson, 32, worked for Knight for 10 years, and he considered her a stellar worker. But in the final months of her employment, he complained that her tight clothing was distracting, once telling her that if his pants were bulging that was a sign her clothes were too revealing, according to the opinion.

He also once allegedly remarked about her infrequent sex life by saying, "that's like having a Lamborghini in the garage and never driving it."

Knight and Nelson — both married with children — started exchanging text messages, mostly about personal matters, such as their families. Knight's wife, who also worked in the dental office, found out about the messages and demanded Nelson be fired. The Knights consulted with their pastor, who agreed that terminating Nelson was appropriate.

Knight fired Nelson and gave her one month's severance. He later told Nelson's husband that he worried he was getting too personally attached and feared he would eventually try to start an affair with her.

How is this not sexual harassment? Also, it seems like he's not really in control here, since it was his wife's and his pastor's idea to fire her.

I kinda see Nigel's point, but considering the rest of the article, I can't agree with the court's ruling.

Yeah, this. I mean, on one hand, she has quite clearly said that, to her, it didn't reach the level of sexual harassment. And that's awesome, and I don't want to try and label someone else's experiences. But I don't think it's much of a leap to say that someone else in that situation would have absolutely found his comments to be sexual harassment. Which is why, IMO, saying that talking about sexual harassment in this specific instance is a strawman is somewhat disingenuous.

Tucson's police department has announced that it no longer has the manpower to respond to accidents unless:

1.  At least one person has a life-threatening injury, or

2.  At least one car is immobile and blocking traffic.

Those... Seem like polar opposites on a scale of incidents police might be required at.

I just went on a fantastic 3-hour hike with my best friend, my ex-boyfriend's girlfriend and mom, and our dogs.

Now, I'm making donuts.

It's a great day!

Oh, fuck you Nigel. Now I want donuts.

Hm. I'm of mixed feelings on this. Before y'all jump me, let me explain.

In a larger business setting and you find that you're in an awkward relational or emotional situation with an employee, you kind of have to suck it up... but you also have a built-in support network of other coworkers and management. When you are a small business owner such as a dentist or, as in my own case as a small glass supply business, you are working alone with maybe one to five other employees present at a time.

I am a firm believer in small businesses (under, say, 50 employees) being able to let employees go for issues as trivial as personality clashes or sexual distraction. Working with a guy or chick you hate (or like too much) could make a huge difference in the bottom line... at that level, you're talking about YOUR business, YOUR ability to focus, in relation to your business success. You CAN'T get away from them in a small business that size. I let go of a guy who simply bugged the shit out of me. If I had been unable to let him go (we're still friends BTW) I would have gladly collapsed the whole business and sacked everyone in order to not work with him anymore.

Yeah, I cannot fly with this one, sorry. Mostly because I have been the young girl (17) who was being sexually harassed by her boss (and when I finally worked up the courage to report him I was asked what I did to make him think his behaviour would be welcome, but that's a different story). I cannot get on board with the idea that because Person A finds Person B sexually attractive, a feeling that is not reciprocated, Person B should lose their job. Seriously, why should I be punished -- lost my freaking job -- because my boss has decided I'm fuckable?

I've worked in small businesses where I've been attracted to someone. I've also worked in small businesses with incompetent, bigoted assholes. I think it's harder with the personality clashes, and I do see your point there Nigel, although I think there should be a time limit on it. In this case, the woman had worked in this dental office for ten years, so I'm not sure how she suddenly became such a distraction that he had to let her go. But in cases where you're attracted to a coworker? You suck it the fuck up and move on. It is possible to maintain a professional working relationship with someone you want to drag into bed; I've done it more than once (and hell, Pæs and I work in the same office!)

This woman's argument that she couldn't have been let go if she had been a man is, in this context, flawed because it assumes that business owners are never attracted to men. She presumes that there is never a situation in a small business setting where a business owner could be attracted to a male employee to such an extent that it jeopardizes the well-being of the owner and therefore of the business. That's manifestly incorrect.

Agreed, and that argument struck me as a little odd. I got what she was trying to say -- that it was a gender-based firing because her presumably heterosexual boss wouldn't have wanted to stick it to her if she'd been a man -- but the argument as she made it is flawed.

Oh cool, Pæs and I just got to call the cops on a fistfight opposite our apartment.

Apparently, the guy who was instigating the fight thought the other guy was on drugs, or takes drugs, or something, IDK. And he really, really doesn't like people who take drugs. So he was slamming the possible drug-taker into a wall in the middle of the main drag, which is a perfectly rational response.

Though, within ten minutes of calling emergency services, there were five police officers on foot, plus a paddy wagon, there to sort it all out, so that's something.

Saturday night! But yeah, I was pretty surprised. Though because we're right in the center of town there are usually lots of cops around on Friday/Saturday nights, so.
wow, your police don't fuck about on a Friday night!

Wow, sounds like

Oh cool, Pæs and I just got to call the cops on a fistfight opposite our apartment.

Apparently, the guy who was instigating the fight thought the other guy was on drugs, or takes drugs, or something, IDK. And he really, really doesn't like people who take drugs. So he was slamming the possible drug-taker into a wall in the middle of the main drag, which is a perfectly rational response.

Though, within ten minutes of calling emergency services, there were five police officers on foot, plus a paddy wagon, there to sort it all out, so that's something.

This is mostly for LMNO, but is good for everyone: http://www.murderfuck.com/

DYING.

[even if the employees have not engaged in flirtatious behavior or otherwise done anything wrong]

http://news.nationalpost.com/2012/12/21/bosses-can-legally-fire-employees-they-see-as-an-irresistible-attraction-iowa-court/

A dentist acted legally when he fired an assistant that he found attractive simply because he and his wife viewed the woman as a threat to their marriage, the all-male Iowa Supreme Court ruled Friday.

The court ruled 7-0 that bosses can fire employees they see as an "irresistible attraction," even if the employees have not engaged in flirtatious behavior or otherwise done anything wrong. Such firings may be unfair, but they are not unlawful discrimination under the Iowa Civil Rights Act because they are motivated by feelings and emotions, not gender, Justice Edward Mansfield wrote.

An attorney for Fort Dodge dentist James Knight said the decision, the first of its kind in Iowa, is a victory for family values because Knight fired Melissa Nelson in the interest of saving his marriage, not because she was a woman.

The rest of the article is even better. 

Setting up contents insurance tonight, the customer services rep asked if I live with anyone. When I said "my partner", the response was, "Great! We just need his or her details. What's their surname?"

Sometimes it's the little things that make you feel good.