Conversations From the Professional Front Lines

[Terralthra]

IPA: ni:ʒɛər

[Kanastrous]

Always wonder how many people can actually read the special phonetic characters without resorting to an index. I sure can't.

[Psawhn]

From what I remember from my introductory linguistics class, that just turns it into Neee-zher. The colon means the 'eee' sound is longer, and the ʒ makes a sound like the french "Je". I'm a little confused by the ɛə combination, but I'm guessing it sounds 'descending' like "Cher"? Of course, one of the actual linguists on this board will probably prove me wrong.

And if I'm posting in this thread: actual story.

Years ago, I'm 18 years-old, working at a 7-Eleven. A really fine-looking woman (all I remember is that she had dark hair, and I remember thinking "wow" or something like that) comes up to the counter to check out. I remember thinking "if she ordered cigarettes then I could sneak her number from her ID" but, to my surprise, she actually did. I never actually looked at her address/number, nor did I look at her birthdate except to check that the it was over 18 years ago. (I promptly forgot it; I don't remember what her age was). I gave her the cigarettes, checked out whatever else she had (just a couple food items), she paid, and went on her way.

The man behind her in line was older (40s/50s), and I don't know if he saw me staring, or if he was thinking the exact thing I was, but the first thing he said after she was out of earshot summed up my thoughts exactly:
"Damn. Woman like that, then you find out she smokes."

[aerius]

Boss: <sniff> have you been drinking on the clock?
Me: No, I was on lunch break when I had a couple beers at the strip joint
Boss: Welcome to the club

[LadyTevar]

Co-Worker: Look at this kid's name! How are you supposed to say that!
Me, looking at it: It's Jeremy spelled backwards. See, baby-daddy is named Jeremy. So, Y'merej (ye-meer-ek)


Poor kid, imagine spelling that at school.

[The Yosemite Bear]

Y'Merej spokr in class today...

[Dalton]

Oh for the love of god Bear.

[CaptainChewbacca]

Y'Merej spokr in class today...

I laughed WAY harder at that than I should have.

[Enigma]

Y'Merej spokr in class today...

I laughed WAY harder at that than I should have.

I.........don't get it.

[CaptainChewbacca]

Jeremy is a Pearl Jam song about a troubled teen named Jeremy Richardson who shot himself in front of his entire class. The phrase 'Jeremy spoke in class today' was the metaphor for the actual suicide incident, and I think its one of the most powerful lines in any song ever written, and its ranked by mtv as one of the 20 greatest songs of all time.

So when Bear wrote that, he was indicating that by naming the child Ymerej he was dooming him to such a sad, dramatic, and ultimately self-defeating life.

[The Yosemite Bear]

thanks chewie, sometimes I think those fucked up names is a form of child abuse....

[tim31]

One of my staff was relating to me how he managed to remove the 'My Family' stickers from a car he recently bought.

BUTTERS: So using gum remover and a paint scraper...

(female colleague walks into office)

BUTTERS: ...I managed to get it off, but it took an hour an my hand was cramped by the end.

(female colleage wordlessly leaves)

[The Yosemite Bear]

the new exec chef hands me two good job cards

What are these none of us have seen these since Bush was in office.

[The Yosemite Bear]

Bartender: Back in the Bar we're getting hammered
Chef: They don't let us drink on the Job

edit yes it was that stressfull of a monday today....

[madd0ct0r]

dear boss - much as i enjoy the intellectual challenge of creating infographs and research for you, i don't appreciate receiving rude emails telling me to hurry up on sunday morning.

[fgalkin]

So, my boss showed me his new watch- some kind of overpriced monstrosity with a transparent front and back showing the gears, the numbers and hands almost entirely invisible amongst the clutter. "Can you actually tell time with this?" I asked him.

He responded by telling me a story how of how he and a friend were in Switzerland, and after a few drinks, his friend decided to buy this watch. So, they meet the Vice President of Patek Phillipe. Each watch is handmade and is ordered years in advance, so there are none available. The friend offers him $2 million and is put on a waiting list. Then, he is shown the watch itself. He puts it on and frowns, "This is kinda uncomfortable to tell time with," he says. The VP of Patek Philipe laughs. "Who the fuck buys a watch to tell time?"

I could do little but concede the argument.

Have a very nice day.
-fgalkin

[Kanastrous]

Yes, judging by the design of their products it's long been clear that chronography is not really what Patek Phillipe's customers are actually in the market for.

[Dalton]

Hah. Movado watches don't even have fucking numbers.

[fgalkin]

Hah. Movado watches don't even have fucking numbers.

Well, my current watch, a Seiko Coutura doesn't have them either, but I've gotten used to it. Maybe I shouldn't be complaining.

Yes, judging by the design of their products it's long been clear that chronography is not really what Patek Phillipe's customers are actually in the market for.

Well, I had a quality (like $400 worth) Patek fake, with a transparent back, motion-based wind-up and everything. It wasn't so bad (as in, it had numbers when my current watch doesn't), but then again, I wasn't shelling out $2 million for it. (In case you're wondering, it worked for about 2 years, then one of the hands fell off. But it was a perfect replica of a $20k mechanism built somewhere in China, so I don't exactly blame them).

On that matter, I looked at some Vertu phones for a friend in Russia a few months back (he wanted to know if they're cheaper here. They're not). When you get one, you're paying almost $20k for what is essentially a glorified RAZR. But, apparently, you're not taken seriously in Russia unless you have one.

Luxury goods are entirely about showing off.

Have a very nice day.
-fgalkin

[Dalton]

Hah. Movado watches don't even have fucking numbers.

Well, my current watch, a Seiko Coutura doesn't have them either, but I've gotten used to it. Maybe I shouldn't be complaining.

Yes, but it has marks and dials. Several Movados are essentially blank faces with nothing but a mark at the 12. Truly a watch meant more for decoration than functionality.

[Zaune]

"This is kinda uncomfortable to tell time with," he says. The VP of Patek Philipe laughs. "Who the fuck buys a watch to tell time?"

Everyone in the world except rich idiots who want to impress other rich idiots?

[PeZook]

Actually, a watch is one of the few pieces of jewelry that it is acceptable for men to wear, which means it's an important accessory to a suit in certain situations when you need to look smashing.

So there is, in fact, a subset of men who won't spend two million bucks (Jesus christ!) on a watch who nevertheless don't think telling time is its primary function.

[Spoonist]

Not really any more. Watches are slowly disappearing. Check the sales figures if you don't believe me.

There is a whole generation growing up who thinks watches is a non-item. precisely because its a one function unit and usually a bad one at that.

[PeZook]

Not really any more. Watches are slowly disappearing. Check the sales figures if you don't believe me.

There is a whole generation growing up who thinks watches is a non-item. precisely because its a one function unit and usually a bad one at that.

Well, until that generation grows up and thus the fashion changes, they will continue to function as an accessory even if not worth two million bucks

[fgalkin]

Not really any more. Watches are slowly disappearing. Check the sales figures if you don't believe me.

There is a whole generation growing up who thinks watches is a non-item. precisely because its a one function unit and usually a bad one at that.

Oh really?

However, this recent growth actually may not be contradicting, but rather, supporting your argument. Observe:

Steel watches played an important role in Swiss
watch exports in 2011, recording a value of 7.0
billion francs. This accounted for one third of the
total and represented an increase of 13.9% compared
to 2010. Gold watches recorded above average
growth (+26.5%). They featured prominently,
posting a value of 6.0 billion francs. Bimetallic
timepieces – often made of gold and steel – also
performed strongly, with an increase of 24.7%
taking their annual value to 3.1 billion francs.

The watches in question are those of high-quality steel, gold-steel, and pure gold. We are not talking about cheap Timex pieces here, but watches costing several hundred dollars and above. In other words, watches that serve as status symbols and jewlery.

The VP of Patek is correct and Zaune is not. People don't buy watches to tell time anymore, they buy them for decorative purposes.

Have a very nice day.
-fgalkin