Web 2.0 approach to online training 

You know how consumer web applications these days are almost always free at first, then they either figure out how to make money or don't? That doesn't seem to happen with online training; it's all commercial from the get-go. I was thinking of choosing some kind of mandatory compliance training, maybe on sexual harassment for supervisors, and making a simple free course from available government materials. It's required by some states with California's standards as the usual model.

Inner rebel 

It would be a fun exercise to make the training compliant by covering the required topics, but let it be outrageous in other respects. California does this with traffic school, or used to when I lived in L.A. You could go to classes taught by stand-up comedians, or at high-end restaurants, to ease the pain.

My dad and I once pipedreamed a different kind of screwing with the particulars while following the letter of the law. He would have preferred to be a carpenter rather than a banker. We thought we'd like to play with the Florida law that lets owners of mobile homes avoid property taxes, no matter how fixed or landscaped the property becomes. We'd design cute little wooden Beverly Hillbillies cabins with wheels and license plates, and arrange them in neighborhood fashion around an ol' swimmin' hole.

Followup on the New Yorker fiction podcast 

I loved it. I'm subscribed. First two are: a great older John Cheever story and a newer Junot Díaz story. Each podcast includes discussion by the magazine's fiction editor with another author.

At the office 

Looking forward to seeing the Ministry of Magic in the new Harry Potter movie: witches and wizards in cubicles and offices, memos flying around as paper airplanes. I don't see any pictures of it on the Warner Bros. site, though.

If they skipped those scenes I'll be disappointed, but that's what happens in adaptations and I've become philosophical about it. You can't get all pissed off because your favorite bit was left out; some things have to go. Just as Rick and Ilsa will always have Paris, you'll always have the scene in your imagination. I don't suppose the slice of alternate universe office life would be all that interesting to kids, balanced against the expense.

Imelda Staunton will play Dolores Umbridge, the defense against the dark arts teacher and pro-ministry plant at Hogwarts (equivilent of a loyal Bushie). Perfect.

I decided to do an abbreviated refresher reading, just books 5 and 6 in prep for the new movie and book. Still over 1,500 pages but it goes fast.