Feb. 20, 2026

My boss, to be frank, openly talks shit about her staff. I remember thinking when she first shared an unflattering take on a colleague with me that I, too, will not be immune from this behavior. I don't tend to agree or disagree with her when she airs her thoughts. I just appear to listen. If the language were couched in concern or was, somehow, productive, I wouldn't mind as much, I guess. (I would rather she not do it all.) Some of it seems like school-yard bully behavior and has absolutely no place at work like the time she made fun of my co-worker's walk when he was away on break. Yes, she DID that. My boss and I are the same age, share some similarities in terms of how we were both raised and espouse similar political beliefs. I wish, however, that she would treat me, all of us, as if we were her equals. I don't mean that we should all be 'the boss', but what I mean is that we all have unique strengths in the work place and that should be acknowledged and fostered. I tend to want to take ownership of what I'm doing and not constantly want to check in before making a decision, but the boss will undercut one's autonomy either by blocking physically or verbally. It's to the degree that I find myself walking on egg shells a bit in order to avoid being told that I'm doing something that she thinks should not be done. For example, taking out a full bin, time permitting, should be allowed. If she thinks the bin isn't full enough, then she'll block your move. If she wants to go on a small walk-about, then she'll take the bin out (now it's full enough, amirite?) and go 'round the market hall before coming back. I guess it kinda comes down to 'do what I say, not as I do' and working under that proviso can be wearing.  

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My sign has done fuck-all to stop dogs from using this California poppy plant as a pissoir. 

After one particularly rainy and windy night I went down to the beach to look for driftwood with which to decorate my garden. I came home with the below beauties-- 

Drift log!