I just watched this! And unless I missed something crucial, the Mr. Bates subplot proceeded thusly:
Nicholas Higgins / Mr. Bates: You fools CAN'T work for this rich dude! We must hold fast to the strike or die -- LITERALLY DIE, THAT'S RIGHT -- trying!
*time passes*
*time passes*
Mr. Higgins-Bates (sotto voce): Man, it hard getting by without a job...
*time passes*
Mr. Higgins / Bates: I shall work for you again, evil mill-owner, but only because I have gotten to now you on a personal level and realize you are Kind Of A Nice Guy. And thus my principles remain untarnished, due to this little-known exception to the moral code!
FIN
I live in the Bay Area and if it's any small consolation, the local news story took a completely different tenor -- the article in the San Francisco Chronicle focused on the design and maintenance of the balcony and the need, perhaps, for greater oversight, and included this quote: “It seems that those students were just doing what young people do, crowding onto a balcony,” she said. “But it’s up to us, not them, to make this stuff safe. That’s just what kids do. We have a responsibility, not just as citizens of Berkeley but as citizens of the world who send their children here, to make sure our structures are safe.”
Huzzah to no Tina or Jenny! But as far as I'm concerned we should cut out Bette too. *ducks to avoid tomatoes being thrown* She was just smug and boring and I never understood her appeal, except that she's pretty. Maybe she can show up every once in a while to help Kit pay for an expansion of the bar or something. I mean, if Tina is the love of your life, you must be a boring person!! Ipso facto
The one at 7th and Mandela, near the West Oakland Bart, also has bulletproof glass and they have one of those little metal box deedly-bops that slides under the glass -- you put your money in it, slide it over to the other side, they shove your food into it and slide it back to you. Kinda like the drive-through window of a bank.
I'm gonna guess it's a Dave Barry humor column. In fact, he's probably guest editor for a month.
I feel like ASSERTIVENESS!! must be an article about how if you just dress nicely and spend all day going from business to business with your resume and a solid pitch, you will have 10 job offers by the end of the day.
Totally agree with the response to LW1. And another thing: despite how strong your sense of loyalty may be, if you are the last competent person left on a sinking ship, that alone might impair your future job prospects, should you let this current offer pass you by. In my industry, at least, some offices have developed a reputation for being shitshows such that even a stellar candidate would have to overcome some skepticism when they are applying for a job elsewhere.
I literally just guffawed. That is the platonic ideal of Dadness!
Gabi: Toast Editor-in-Chief, 2026