rationale

Monday, June 21, 2004

"Can't you just ...?"

That's a question I never like to hear, because it assumes that my job is so easy, all I have to do is push a couple of buttons and someone can have what they want. It also assumes that I don't know how to do my job, or that I'm not doing it as well as I could. (That last is quite possibly true, at least some of the time. But even Pete Rose didn't run out every ground ball. Did he?)

The question often means I'm going to have to spend my day doing something I don't really want to do. (No, not "my job." Sheesh.) If I haven't done something that you asked for, I'm sure I have a good reason. If I could "just" do it, I would have already.

And if you'd stop bothering me with questions about whether I can just do it, I'd probably be quicker to get around to it. So there.

D.J. on his bike in the court.

The only thing worse than "Can't you just ...?" is "Why can't you just ...?", because if you answer that question, you're making excuses. It's either "I can't, because ..." or "I can, but I won't." There's no way to wiggle your way out of that particular karmic gunny sack.

bunt sign

Stuff

The Giants went to the ninth inning tonight leading the Dodgers, 2-1, but there are no quick and easy finishes between these two longtime rivals. The Dodgers were down to their last out before tying the score; another run would have brought their lights-out closer, Eric Gagne, into the game, and it would have been all but over. Gagne hasn't blown a save since Arnold was an actor. But the Giants held on, then loaded the bases for a most unlikely hero. Rookie infielder Cody Ransom's single up the middle brought in the run that gave the Giants a 3-2 win and brought them to within a half-game of the first place Dodgers. With three more games to go in this series, it's only the beginning.

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"I just pretended I was king of the world, and my subjects backed off when they saw me coming. I should give lessons."

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