On caffeine

I don't like coffee. I really don't like the taste unless you cover it by enough dairy and sugar that you can no longer taste the coffee. I also drink caffeine infrequently enough that it tends to affect me fairly dramatically--I get a headache if I drink an entire 20 oz bottle of Coke out of a vending machine.

I have caffeine maybe once or twice a month at work, when I've slept really badly for a few nights running and really need to focus.

What does it say that lately I've been having no caffeine at work, and the only times I really need it are on the weekend? After a couple hours of running after ARR, I need to stop by one of the neighborhood coffee shops to be able to face the afternoon.

Beginning to look a lot like Macy's

They use the Macy's in our mall as the test store for the holiday decorations each year. It makes a certain amount of sense--it's laid out like an average suburban mall Macy's, and it's not as high visibility as the Manhattan flagship, but it's an easy PATH/Uber ride across the river from headquarters.

Which is why, this morning as I was walking through the mall on my way to work, I stumbled into what was clearly the grand unveiling. Continental breakfast, milling bigwigs (all in black, mind you--no one was wearing any color at all, it was like a stylish funeral).

And a fully decorated-for-Christmas Macy's.

I understand why they do it so early--it gives them time to make any changes in time to order supplies for every other store in the country.

But oy. Fully decorated-for-Christmas Macy's. In September.

Happy shopping, folks!