Fiercely Anticipating… June 24th What happens on June 24th you ask? Well then you clearly don’t have the borderline-unhealthy Aaron Sorkin obsession that I do. That’s right kids, the Emmy and Oscar Winner’s latest TV offering, The Newsroom, premieres on HBO in just a few short weeks, and I, for one, can’t wait. The pithy banter, the speechifying, the pediconferencing (walking and talking, for the uninitiated), the orchestral music swelling under climaxes of righteousness and do-goodery… What’s not to love? OK, yes, that’s not how people really talk. But don’t you wish it were? Wouldn’t it be nice if we all walked around our respective workplaces engaging in informed and witty discourse on the moral and ethical dilemmas of our day? Everyone in Shakespeare’s time didn’t speak in iambic pentameter and incessantly debate the nature of the soul, but that guy’s plays were still wicked popular. I’m not saying Sorkin is Shakespeare (though the authorship debate is so whack-a-doodle I bet someone out there is), but there’s something to be said for theatricality, especially when it renders entertainment that is thought-provoking rather than mind-numbing. That being said, nobody likes being preached at, and Sorkin is at his worst when ideology trumps character-driven storytelling (hostage negotiations from the green room of a sketch comedy show? Seriously Studio 60?). But The Newsroom, much like The West Wing before it, places its characters in an environment where big issues are the order of the day. After all, the news shapes our view of the world. I certainly hope the people that broadcast it are conscientious and concerned. And if the current spat of cable news programs seems to indicate otherwise, at least in Sorkin’s newsroom we’ll be able to pretend. Trepidatious About… My Birthday Don’t worry; this...

Dear HorroR Stories, I hate my HR Department, they are so strict and I don’t understand why. I never got a dental insurance card and when I went to them to ask about it, they said I never signed up for dental insurance. And then they said I couldn’t just add it on, but I had to wait until the end of the year. Why? I think they are just being bitches. –Crooked teeth Dear Crooked, My first reaction to reading your question was: “Huh, that HR Department doesn’t communicate very well with its employees.” I mean, if you are going to prevent someone from enrolling in the dental plan, you should at least explain why. But then I thought about it for a minute, I looked back on the past 15 years of my professional life and changed my mind. Nope, I’ve got your HR Department’s back on this one. So, just for fun, open up Outlook the next time you are at work and click on “All Mail Items” and then in the search box type: “Open Enrollment.” Depending on how long you’ve been at the company, and how much storage space they allow you to keep in Outlook, you should see at least one email per year pop up. Nothing shuts off employees’ ears like the words “Open Enrollment.” It never ceases to amaze me, I mean we are talking about benefits, which by definition, are good things. Why don’t you care? For those of you who automatically delete any email you get from HR, I guess I should explain what Open Enrollment is before I go any further. Your company has a benefit year, usually it’s the same as the calendar year, but sometimes it isn’t. Toward the end of...