40­42 They had new office furniture, clean carpets, an attractive lobby, and free breakfast cereal. Free! Begin Rant: I have to say, by comparison, our office is dumpy! We've got dingy paint, stained carpets, and a lobby that looks like it has not been redecorated since 1967. We need to move to a new building or redo this place! End Rant. Anyway, I had a good time in California, and, as you can tell, it really got me thinking about where we work and what we can do to have a better work environment. Best, Conan The intention of a responsible rant is to express strong feelings without deliberately upsetting, shocking, or insulting anybody--the opposite of what a flame does. Hot Hint Keep in mind that any e-mail has the potential to be accessed by any person, so if you would not want your message read by everyone and anyone, think twice before putting your woes in writing. 42 Keep Cultural Differences in Mind Because the rules of business and social etiquette vary around the world, it is with good reason that companies send employees 113