It rained for a little while yesterday. Not as much as I would have liked, but a decent amount. I am definitely feeling sick. My throat this morning is killing me. Yesterday it was the sinuses with a headache, today they throat. I did try to relax a bit yesterday including taking some dayquil and a decent nap. I got some work stuff done, but not as much as I would have liked. I was having trouble focusing.
We had leftover Indian for dinner. I put together a menu for the week and am trying to minimize how much we spend on groceries as we leave in one week. We will be gone for 8 days and I don't want to have things go bad while we're out of town.
Didn't do much of anything else. I got an email from the concert venue I am going to in October. Lineup confirmations with stage and times. With the exception of two bands, we shouldn't have any issues going from one location to the other or to being at the rail. We'll see how that goes.
Today I think we are going to the cider mill. I promised B this like 2 months ago and this is the only day I have free to do it. It's about a 2.5 hour drive so I want to leave fairly early. Hopefully I can wake her up in time.
Saturday, September 30, 2017
Friday, September 29, 2017
Y9 D126
I think I am catching a cold and this fucking sucks. I have one week to get over it before we leave for Vegas. My throat hurts, can't breathe out of my right nostril, have the pressure in my head. Not cool man, not cool. This is what happens when you spend you days in tiny tubes.
My day was long but not very exciting. My first flight was no big deal. Went from JAX to DFW. On time. Had breakfast one. Had about an hour to kill in between flights so I headed to terminal A and relaxed in the Admiral's Club. My departure gate was right outside the door and I didn't have to rush.
Boarded flight two and was a little frustrated to see a baby sitting with his parents and sibling right in row 3. I knew what was about to come in 3 hours and I was right. For the last hour of the flight all of us up front got to listen to a screaming child. Lovely. Thank god for loud music and good headphones.
Landed around 11, took the train, got home around 12:30. Did laundry. Opened the present B got for me which was unexpected and nice. The weather was way too hot for my taste yesterday but it is supposed to cool down and start raining today. Let's see if it lives up to the promise.
We went and had Indian food for dinner giving us leftovers for a couple of days at least. We leave Saturday morning and we need about 5 days of food in the house. I need to go see what we have so I can go shopping if needed.
Went to bed around 10. Both of us. B had a long day as well and we were both exhausted. Today is an admin kind of day. I have classes T-Thurs next week which will fill things in nicely. For this weekend, if I am up to it tomorrow, we might drive to WA and go to the cider mill. We'll see how we're feeling.
My day was long but not very exciting. My first flight was no big deal. Went from JAX to DFW. On time. Had breakfast one. Had about an hour to kill in between flights so I headed to terminal A and relaxed in the Admiral's Club. My departure gate was right outside the door and I didn't have to rush.
Boarded flight two and was a little frustrated to see a baby sitting with his parents and sibling right in row 3. I knew what was about to come in 3 hours and I was right. For the last hour of the flight all of us up front got to listen to a screaming child. Lovely. Thank god for loud music and good headphones.
Landed around 11, took the train, got home around 12:30. Did laundry. Opened the present B got for me which was unexpected and nice. The weather was way too hot for my taste yesterday but it is supposed to cool down and start raining today. Let's see if it lives up to the promise.
We went and had Indian food for dinner giving us leftovers for a couple of days at least. We leave Saturday morning and we need about 5 days of food in the house. I need to go see what we have so I can go shopping if needed.
Went to bed around 10. Both of us. B had a long day as well and we were both exhausted. Today is an admin kind of day. I have classes T-Thurs next week which will fill things in nicely. For this weekend, if I am up to it tomorrow, we might drive to WA and go to the cider mill. We'll see how we're feeling.
Thursday, September 28, 2017
Y9 D125
I don't think I missed any posts on this trip but this is another one of those pre-written ones which won't get posted until after 3am EST. Currently 1:23am.
Taught my class. Only a half day session. The guy who hated me was back again in full force. He just didn't like someone from the outside pointing out all the flaws in his work. Look buddy, the way you did it 15 years ago is not how you do things today. Sorry, it just isn't. Don't shoot the messenger. Don't blame me because your company doesn't give you adequate time or resources to fix things. Blame your bosses, not me.
Got out of there as fast as I could. Got back to the hotel, watched some tv, had dinner, went to be around 8. Not much else going on.
Leave here at 2:30, fly out at 5, home around noon. Full day of travel ahead of me.
EDIT - It's now 3:06am. At airport. Security opens in an hour. I have confirmed upgrades on both flights today so no stress there. Only have an hour between flights which means no long waits. But it's plenty of time for them to change gates/terminals on me because, well it's DFW. So yeah. I should get home today around 1pm PST. Like in 13 hours. Such fun.
Next trip is in one week. Vegas. That will be fun even if I have to kill someone.
Taught my class. Only a half day session. The guy who hated me was back again in full force. He just didn't like someone from the outside pointing out all the flaws in his work. Look buddy, the way you did it 15 years ago is not how you do things today. Sorry, it just isn't. Don't shoot the messenger. Don't blame me because your company doesn't give you adequate time or resources to fix things. Blame your bosses, not me.
Got out of there as fast as I could. Got back to the hotel, watched some tv, had dinner, went to be around 8. Not much else going on.
Leave here at 2:30, fly out at 5, home around noon. Full day of travel ahead of me.
EDIT - It's now 3:06am. At airport. Security opens in an hour. I have confirmed upgrades on both flights today so no stress there. Only have an hour between flights which means no long waits. But it's plenty of time for them to change gates/terminals on me because, well it's DFW. So yeah. I should get home today around 1pm PST. Like in 13 hours. Such fun.
Next trip is in one week. Vegas. That will be fun even if I have to kill someone.
Wednesday, September 27, 2017
Y9 D124
I have been kind of worried about hitting my status numbers for this year due to losing the one trip a couple of weeks ago to here because of the hurricane. I was right on the edge of hitting everything based on that trip. A few thousand miles short on AA, 2 nights short at Hilton, etc. Well those fears are pretty much gone. I will be going back to NJ in November. To teach a class as a guest lecturer at Princeton. Yeah, that Princeton. You never think about the random places your life is going to take you and then one day you wake up and find yourself being invited to teach professors and people with much higher degrees of learning than you at fucking Princeton University. Not too shabby. Plus I will get 4 hotel nights, 5000 miles of flight, and one more car rental.
Speaking of car rentals, I tried calling to see if I could exchange the van of doom and all six locations in this area are sold out of vehicles. WTF? What a joke. I hate this state.
Taught my class. Pissed off one of my students. I was making suggestions for improvements and he took it personally since he built all of the stuff. But as I tried to gently point out, he built much of it 10+ years ago and sorry dude, it needs some clean up. Stop being a whiny bitch.
Finished around 4:30, headed back to the hotel. Had dinner at Bob Evans, relaxed in the room, went to bed around 10.
Leave tomorrow. One upgrade confirmed, one not. Oh well. I can sleep on the second flight then. Then it's off to Vegas in a week and we get to see Britney!
Speaking of car rentals, I tried calling to see if I could exchange the van of doom and all six locations in this area are sold out of vehicles. WTF? What a joke. I hate this state.
Taught my class. Pissed off one of my students. I was making suggestions for improvements and he took it personally since he built all of the stuff. But as I tried to gently point out, he built much of it 10+ years ago and sorry dude, it needs some clean up. Stop being a whiny bitch.
Finished around 4:30, headed back to the hotel. Had dinner at Bob Evans, relaxed in the room, went to bed around 10.
Leave tomorrow. One upgrade confirmed, one not. Oh well. I can sleep on the second flight then. Then it's off to Vegas in a week and we get to see Britney!
Tuesday, September 26, 2017
Y9 D123
Why is it too much to ask to get a place with decent internet? Fucking hate AT&T. Man, there's so many things that drive me nuts, it's just another in a long ass list. So why should I even be surprised any more?
Unrelated, I am glad I have been keeping this blog. I was thinking last night when I went to bed (and then laid there for two hours tossing and turning) about all the little things we forget in our life. It's so many memories and trying to remember the minutia of every day is almost impossible. It's al locked in our heads, but it's so much it would make you explode trying to remember everything. At least I have written down a lot of it. I wish I had started doing this when I was a kid. I finally get why people do this when they are younger. Not that I really want to remember yesterday...
Oh where to start. How about with my rental 'car'? I say car that way because I actually have a 12 person transit van. Yep. I am driving a fucking shuttle bus because Avis ran out of cars. All they had was about a dozen vans left. With no ETA on when they would have more cars. What a fucking joke. I had already waited an hour when this announcement was made. My hotel and client are too far from the airport for me to have nothing so I had to suck it up and take what I could. I am driving around Florida looking like a fucking shuttle driver. Lovely.
Then of course there was the standard DFW gate change bullshit. I wouldn't mind if the gates were a few over. Oh no. They have to change TERMINALS too. Hey it's 20 minutes before your flight, let's make you go from C to A. Not a problem, right? Just run rabbit, run.
My flight in was without issue. Just too goddamn early. I was up from 1am to 12am (PST to EST) yesterday. Loads of fun.
It's hot here. There's too many old people and it smells. I figured out I will travel 30 hours for 12 hours of teaching. What a load of shit.
Unrelated, I am glad I have been keeping this blog. I was thinking last night when I went to bed (and then laid there for two hours tossing and turning) about all the little things we forget in our life. It's so many memories and trying to remember the minutia of every day is almost impossible. It's al locked in our heads, but it's so much it would make you explode trying to remember everything. At least I have written down a lot of it. I wish I had started doing this when I was a kid. I finally get why people do this when they are younger. Not that I really want to remember yesterday...
Oh where to start. How about with my rental 'car'? I say car that way because I actually have a 12 person transit van. Yep. I am driving a fucking shuttle bus because Avis ran out of cars. All they had was about a dozen vans left. With no ETA on when they would have more cars. What a fucking joke. I had already waited an hour when this announcement was made. My hotel and client are too far from the airport for me to have nothing so I had to suck it up and take what I could. I am driving around Florida looking like a fucking shuttle driver. Lovely.
Then of course there was the standard DFW gate change bullshit. I wouldn't mind if the gates were a few over. Oh no. They have to change TERMINALS too. Hey it's 20 minutes before your flight, let's make you go from C to A. Not a problem, right? Just run rabbit, run.
My flight in was without issue. Just too goddamn early. I was up from 1am to 12am (PST to EST) yesterday. Loads of fun.
It's hot here. There's too many old people and it smells. I figured out I will travel 30 hours for 12 hours of teaching. What a load of shit.
Monday, September 25, 2017
Y9 D122
We stayed out until 3:30pm yesterday to avoid that fucking airshow but it wasn't enough. Poor B got the last 5 minutes of it and it was enough to drive her into the closet with a pillow over her head. Can you imagine someone not knowing this was going on and with today's political climate freaking out? I know I would. I read about cheeto instigating tiny spoiled man and the dick waving is going to get us all killed. Imagine jets flying over your house right now and you didn't know why. You'd shit your pants wouldn't you? That's what it's like for her. So fuck any of you who criticize. It's hard and I tried my best to keep her out of the house. I could handle five minutes, I couldn't have handled an entire weekend.
We got up, had breakfast, checked out of the hotel around 11. Stopped at this little smoked fish place on the way out (which I need to bring with me this morning if I can), then we drove home slowly. Hit the mall, grabbed subs on the way home for dinner, and then got home as aforementioned. I unpacked everything while she freaked.
All that done, I went to bed at 8. I just had 5 hours of sleep and it was better than the sleep I had all weekend. I love our bed. Best investment ever. We also got a message from a friend in the bay area who just bought one this weekend and used us as a reference so we will be getting a $100 gift card. I will believe it when I see it, but if we do, that's nice.
Off to the airport in 2 hours, land in FL 6:30pm EST. What a fun day ahead for me.
We got up, had breakfast, checked out of the hotel around 11. Stopped at this little smoked fish place on the way out (which I need to bring with me this morning if I can), then we drove home slowly. Hit the mall, grabbed subs on the way home for dinner, and then got home as aforementioned. I unpacked everything while she freaked.
All that done, I went to bed at 8. I just had 5 hours of sleep and it was better than the sleep I had all weekend. I love our bed. Best investment ever. We also got a message from a friend in the bay area who just bought one this weekend and used us as a reference so we will be getting a $100 gift card. I will believe it when I see it, but if we do, that's nice.
Off to the airport in 2 hours, land in FL 6:30pm EST. What a fun day ahead for me.
Sunday, September 24, 2017
Y9 D121
I slept so bad last night it's not even funny. I can't breathe at all right now. We don't have the air on but it's so dry in this room. I am sure I caused B to have a rough night too but there's not a whole lot I could do.
We had a fun day yesterday. Had breakfast then headed out around 10 for Seaside. Went to the aquarium where we fed seals, then had a nice lunch, wandered the shops and headed back around 2. We took a nap, then went for a drive. We have been considering this area for a home purchase for quite a while and we may have found one that we could actually qualify for that meets all of our needs. It's a 3/3 and because it has a finished basement, it's 3100 sq ft. Garage/shop. But the best part? It's on an acre of land away from everyone. No immediate neighbor, private driveway. It's $300k which is right on the cusp of what I believe I can qualify for with the bank. The only issue is the commute to the airport. That's the only thing we'd have to figure out. But it's nice to have possibilities.
We had pig n pancake for dinner which was great. Then we came back and I fired up the whirlpool tub in the room. Dropped in a bath bomb and boom. Nice nice.
Went to bed around 10 but again, tossed and turned and slept like shit.
We are taking our time getting home today. Want to avoid being around for the air show at all costs. It's over some time this afternoon. Hopefully we will miss the whole thing.
We had a fun day yesterday. Had breakfast then headed out around 10 for Seaside. Went to the aquarium where we fed seals, then had a nice lunch, wandered the shops and headed back around 2. We took a nap, then went for a drive. We have been considering this area for a home purchase for quite a while and we may have found one that we could actually qualify for that meets all of our needs. It's a 3/3 and because it has a finished basement, it's 3100 sq ft. Garage/shop. But the best part? It's on an acre of land away from everyone. No immediate neighbor, private driveway. It's $300k which is right on the cusp of what I believe I can qualify for with the bank. The only issue is the commute to the airport. That's the only thing we'd have to figure out. But it's nice to have possibilities.
We had pig n pancake for dinner which was great. Then we came back and I fired up the whirlpool tub in the room. Dropped in a bath bomb and boom. Nice nice.
Went to bed around 10 but again, tossed and turned and slept like shit.
We are taking our time getting home today. Want to avoid being around for the air show at all costs. It's over some time this afternoon. Hopefully we will miss the whole thing.
Saturday, September 23, 2017
Y9 D120
We are in one of the nicest hotel rooms I have had in a long time. This room reminds me of the really nice one we had in Canada. It's a corner room with a giant whirlpool tube, excellent view of the river, and away from most humans. We had some issues with people above us, but a quick phone call ended that.
Got up yesterday and took my car in for service. They wanted to charge me $235 for a '15k' service which included 'computer updates'. When I pushed on what that meant no one could answer me. I decided to do things a la carte. Things I actually knew what they were. Like an oil change, tire rotation, and air filter. I spent $100 thank you very much. On the list of 'recommended procedures' they gave me when I checked out, they had change cabin air filter with an estimate of $53. I looked it up on Amazon. $9. Yeah, screw you.
I was also unhappy that my car sat for 23 minutes before anyone told me it was done. I was watching it and they pulled it over but no one came for me. I was cranky about that. I got home around 10 and we headed out around 11.
Stopped at Tillamook for some lunch and got to Astoria at 3. Checked in, took a nap, then went and had sushi for dinner. They changed up the restaurant and we weren't 100% happy with the service. The food was okay, but our waitress sucked. I left a 10% tip which I very rarely do.
Got back, relaxed, and went to bed around 10.
Today we are driving to Seaside after breakfast and feeding seals. Yay seals! All this so we don't have to be in town and hear the fucking planes. That's why we're out of town this weekend you know. Not because we needed a vacation or anything. Nope. This is airplane weekend and we didn't want to suffer through another incident like last year. We are hoping they will be done by the time we get home tomorrow. It's going to be close for sure. Stupid planes.
Got up yesterday and took my car in for service. They wanted to charge me $235 for a '15k' service which included 'computer updates'. When I pushed on what that meant no one could answer me. I decided to do things a la carte. Things I actually knew what they were. Like an oil change, tire rotation, and air filter. I spent $100 thank you very much. On the list of 'recommended procedures' they gave me when I checked out, they had change cabin air filter with an estimate of $53. I looked it up on Amazon. $9. Yeah, screw you.
I was also unhappy that my car sat for 23 minutes before anyone told me it was done. I was watching it and they pulled it over but no one came for me. I was cranky about that. I got home around 10 and we headed out around 11.
Stopped at Tillamook for some lunch and got to Astoria at 3. Checked in, took a nap, then went and had sushi for dinner. They changed up the restaurant and we weren't 100% happy with the service. The food was okay, but our waitress sucked. I left a 10% tip which I very rarely do.
Got back, relaxed, and went to bed around 10.
Today we are driving to Seaside after breakfast and feeding seals. Yay seals! All this so we don't have to be in town and hear the fucking planes. That's why we're out of town this weekend you know. Not because we needed a vacation or anything. Nope. This is airplane weekend and we didn't want to suffer through another incident like last year. We are hoping they will be done by the time we get home tomorrow. It's going to be close for sure. Stupid planes.
Friday, September 22, 2017
Y9 D119
Okay, look, I am in the right time zone now, today is Friday, and this post is on time. I don't know how I missed the other day. And I could have technically avoided it had I posted the original one from yesterday when I wrote it. Fucking idiot I am. I did rectify the situation with an additional post so at least the day count is correct.
Here we go:
2:30am EST - Left hotel
3:00am EST - Arrive at airport, deal with snotty ass security person who didn't feel that Priority or Pre should be able to have their own line until her boss came down and told her off. Went from 20th in line to 2nd. Fucking bitch.
4:30am EST - Board first flight. Land in Charlotte at 6:44am, have 15 minutes to go 12 gates. Make it with 4 to spare.
7am EST - Board second flight. Have a nice breakfast. Try to drown out the four women surrounding me who WON'T FUCKING SHUT UP. Seriously. I had woman in the two seats in front, 2 seats behind, and one next to me. It was like a fucking nail salon up in this bitch. I just wanted to eat and sleep.
9:40am PST - Land, get on train, get home around 11.
Do laundry, check in for today's hotel, ran to the store for an errand, got pizza for dinner, fell asleep at 9:30. Excitement abounds.
Today I am taking the car in for service and then we are headed to Astoria for the weekend. This is the weekend of the air show here and we do not want to be anywhere near. If you don't remember, last year when this hit, B lost it. She was a mess. It's costing me $500 for this hotel stay, but it will be worth it. I can't have another incident like last year.
Here we go:
2:30am EST - Left hotel
3:00am EST - Arrive at airport, deal with snotty ass security person who didn't feel that Priority or Pre should be able to have their own line until her boss came down and told her off. Went from 20th in line to 2nd. Fucking bitch.
4:30am EST - Board first flight. Land in Charlotte at 6:44am, have 15 minutes to go 12 gates. Make it with 4 to spare.
7am EST - Board second flight. Have a nice breakfast. Try to drown out the four women surrounding me who WON'T FUCKING SHUT UP. Seriously. I had woman in the two seats in front, 2 seats behind, and one next to me. It was like a fucking nail salon up in this bitch. I just wanted to eat and sleep.
9:40am PST - Land, get on train, get home around 11.
Do laundry, check in for today's hotel, ran to the store for an errand, got pizza for dinner, fell asleep at 9:30. Excitement abounds.
Today I am taking the car in for service and then we are headed to Astoria for the weekend. This is the weekend of the air show here and we do not want to be anywhere near. If you don't remember, last year when this hit, B lost it. She was a mess. It's costing me $500 for this hotel stay, but it will be worth it. I can't have another incident like last year.
Thursday, September 21, 2017
Y9 D118
Well apparently I missed a day for the first time in 9 years. Shit. Nothing exciting happened on Monday except that I paid $42 for a room service sandwich and dealt with all day Tuesday. They tried to give me points to make me happy. Still not happy. Taught class all day, got back to hotel at 5pm, had dinner at a spanish place with really good rabbit. This second post is just to make the day count right. Deal with it.
Y9 D117
(Pre-written post - currently 12:55am EST)
I'm up. Off to the airport soon. I have very tight flights today. The first one the issue will be security. They open at 4 and I board at 4:30. Lovely. For my second flight I will have 15 minutes to go 12 gates assuming nothing moves. Fun shit. Upside is I won't be sitting at airports much today. Travel will be travel. Stressful, but travel.
Taught all day, got back to my room around 5:30, ate leftovers, went to bed at 8. My life.
Side note - I used to think I saw X2 everywhere until I realized it's just because she's a basic bitch. What I mean by that is she is a clone of a clone of a clone of all the J Crew/Anthro/Ann Taylor bitches out there. She has the same look, same fashion sense, etc. So yeah, I do see "her" everywhere. Because she looks just like everyone else.
Epiphanies at the early morning.
You ever watch a movie and can't tell if it's good or not? I am watching "Let Me Make You a Martyr" and it's taken me three days and I am still not done with it. Why? Because I can't tell if I like it or not. It tries to be deep but right when you think it's good, it crosses into emo goth territory and ruins the moment. The only reason I started watching it was because Marilyn Manson is in it. He's alright but a minor character. I have about 30 minutes left and will probably finish it, but man it's hard.
29 minutes until security opens. Killing me smalls, you're killing me.
Have so much to do when I get home. Laundry, timesheet, expenses, bills. Fuck today in the ear. I am hoping I get some sleep on my second flight. I didn't sleep well at all.
I'm up. Off to the airport soon. I have very tight flights today. The first one the issue will be security. They open at 4 and I board at 4:30. Lovely. For my second flight I will have 15 minutes to go 12 gates assuming nothing moves. Fun shit. Upside is I won't be sitting at airports much today. Travel will be travel. Stressful, but travel.
Taught all day, got back to my room around 5:30, ate leftovers, went to bed at 8. My life.
Side note - I used to think I saw X2 everywhere until I realized it's just because she's a basic bitch. What I mean by that is she is a clone of a clone of a clone of all the J Crew/Anthro/Ann Taylor bitches out there. She has the same look, same fashion sense, etc. So yeah, I do see "her" everywhere. Because she looks just like everyone else.
Epiphanies at the early morning.
You ever watch a movie and can't tell if it's good or not? I am watching "Let Me Make You a Martyr" and it's taken me three days and I am still not done with it. Why? Because I can't tell if I like it or not. It tries to be deep but right when you think it's good, it crosses into emo goth territory and ruins the moment. The only reason I started watching it was because Marilyn Manson is in it. He's alright but a minor character. I have about 30 minutes left and will probably finish it, but man it's hard.
29 minutes until security opens. Killing me smalls, you're killing me.
Have so much to do when I get home. Laundry, timesheet, expenses, bills. Fuck today in the ear. I am hoping I get some sleep on my second flight. I didn't sleep well at all.
Tuesday, September 19, 2017
Y9 D116
Just got an email saying my upgrades for both flights on thursday have been confirmed. That's a nice way to start the day. Especially since I only got one on my last trip. I was jammed into a tiny seat from PHX to EWR for 5 hours yesterday. PDX to PHX wasn't a problem. Got upgraded there and had food. But man, PHX is a mess. It feels like everyone there has status. More Group 2 people on one flight than I see at all other airports combined. It's crazy. But I made it here, back pain and all, with no real issues. Didn't have to wait long between flights and was not delayed anywhere. Small victories.
Not much else to report on that front. B had dinner with her cousin. Turns out her life is falling apart. She mostly broke up with her boyfriend, she lost her job, and is getting kicked out of her apartment because she has way too many animals. Welcome to adulthood. Shit happens and you either roll or you break. Not much in between unfortunately.
The kid got her phone issue resolved. $232 to pay off her old one, and she got a samsung J3 for $168 full retail. She now owns her own phone. Apparently they aren't doing subsidized 2 year contract pricing any more? She only had monthly or full retail as options. Weird. I have until January for mine but whatever. We will see what's what then.
I was pretty pissed at the hotel last night and have been talking with support on twitter. $42 for room service. Except there's no more room service. Instead there's a guy with a bag of food inside take away containers. What the fuck? If I had wanted to go food I would have walked down there myself. You don't get to charge full price and then give me that. I mean a small charge fine, but not the full room service charges. It's bullshit. Lack of service.
Time to shower, eat, and head off. Long day ahead.
Not much else to report on that front. B had dinner with her cousin. Turns out her life is falling apart. She mostly broke up with her boyfriend, she lost her job, and is getting kicked out of her apartment because she has way too many animals. Welcome to adulthood. Shit happens and you either roll or you break. Not much in between unfortunately.
The kid got her phone issue resolved. $232 to pay off her old one, and she got a samsung J3 for $168 full retail. She now owns her own phone. Apparently they aren't doing subsidized 2 year contract pricing any more? She only had monthly or full retail as options. Weird. I have until January for mine but whatever. We will see what's what then.
I was pretty pissed at the hotel last night and have been talking with support on twitter. $42 for room service. Except there's no more room service. Instead there's a guy with a bag of food inside take away containers. What the fuck? If I had wanted to go food I would have walked down there myself. You don't get to charge full price and then give me that. I mean a small charge fine, but not the full room service charges. It's bullshit. Lack of service.
Time to shower, eat, and head off. Long day ahead.
Monday, September 18, 2017
Y9 D115
Cat sitting while we're gone has been arranged. Unfortunately it's B's cousin who, while nice, is not all there. But she's doing us a favor and I will keep my mouth shut.
Yes, it's 1:30am and yes I am awake. Leave for the airport in 90 minutes. Board in 3 hours. NJ here I come. I am looking forward to this trip. Familiar client, familiar location, good topic. This should be straight forward. Going through PHX which will be interesting, but it is what it is. I will sleep if I can.
I went grocery shopping in the morning but otherwise we stayed in most of the day. We made B's hippie vegan tacos for dinner. They were pretty good. We had trouble making the tortillas though. First we used the wrong kind of mix then we just couldn't get them flat enough. In the end we did okay.
Watched some tv and went to bed at 8:30. Living that crazy life.
Yes, it's 1:30am and yes I am awake. Leave for the airport in 90 minutes. Board in 3 hours. NJ here I come. I am looking forward to this trip. Familiar client, familiar location, good topic. This should be straight forward. Going through PHX which will be interesting, but it is what it is. I will sleep if I can.
I went grocery shopping in the morning but otherwise we stayed in most of the day. We made B's hippie vegan tacos for dinner. They were pretty good. We had trouble making the tortillas though. First we used the wrong kind of mix then we just couldn't get them flat enough. In the end we did okay.
Watched some tv and went to bed at 8:30. Living that crazy life.
Sunday, September 17, 2017
Y9 D114
I am not too happy with the kid right now. She needs a new phone. Why? Because she washed hers. Yep. It was mixed in with her sheets and went through the laundry. She still owes on hers. $232. This is why I fucking hate the monthly payment option. It's such bullshit. It is 100% in the favor of the provider. After many discussions last night I told her I would help with that portion of it, but she is on her own for a new phone. She gets what she can afford. In full. No monthly bullshit. She is going today to see what she can do.
The fires are back here and we tried going out in the early evening and it nearly killed both of us. The smoke was so bad neither of us could breathe. It made us both cranky and grumpy. We ran some errands, but otherwise didn't do much of anything. B as predicted had a fucked up sleep schedule. Nobody listens to me.
Last night as I was trying to go to bed she had a major freak out. "WE HAVE NO ONE TO WATCH THE CATS WHILE IN VEGAS!" Okay calm down. It's 3.5 weeks away. NO WE MUST DO IT NOW. Sigh okay. I just sent my buddy a message. Hopefully he can do it. Otherwise we have to rely on her cousin which we don't want to do.
Didn't sleep enough. Didn't go to bed until after 11 and here I am up at 4am. Have to check in for flights, hotels, and finish packing. Also need to hit the grocery store. Fun stuff maynard. When I get back though, I am taking a nap. Maybe. I have to be up at 1:30 tomorrow so who knows. The more tired I am throughout the day the better.
The fires are back here and we tried going out in the early evening and it nearly killed both of us. The smoke was so bad neither of us could breathe. It made us both cranky and grumpy. We ran some errands, but otherwise didn't do much of anything. B as predicted had a fucked up sleep schedule. Nobody listens to me.
Last night as I was trying to go to bed she had a major freak out. "WE HAVE NO ONE TO WATCH THE CATS WHILE IN VEGAS!" Okay calm down. It's 3.5 weeks away. NO WE MUST DO IT NOW. Sigh okay. I just sent my buddy a message. Hopefully he can do it. Otherwise we have to rely on her cousin which we don't want to do.
Didn't sleep enough. Didn't go to bed until after 11 and here I am up at 4am. Have to check in for flights, hotels, and finish packing. Also need to hit the grocery store. Fun stuff maynard. When I get back though, I am taking a nap. Maybe. I have to be up at 1:30 tomorrow so who knows. The more tired I am throughout the day the better.
Saturday, September 16, 2017
Y9 D113
Yesterday ended up being a very long day. I was up at 2:48 and didn't go to bed until almost 10:30. Long day.
First part of the day was teaching the second half of the class to the folks in Florida. That went as well as could be expected. Some of the demos once more had performance issues, then there were security issues, but we got through it in one piece. I was done with my day around 9am. At least with the formal part. There was then a back and forth of 'discussions' of how everything went. That went on for the next two hours. I had hoped to take a nap but nope. Not happening.
The maintenance guy came by around 1pm to fix some weatherstripping on our door and in the process fucked our doorjamb up. It now requires you to press the door pretty hard to lock the deadbolt. I need to find some better stuff this weekend. Can't have the door being that hard to use. His attitude was 'this is what they're sending me'. Okay bud. It's fine. I will fix it.
Around 4 I finally heard back on the whole insurance issue. Apparently we did fire someone from the consulting side of things. There are only like 3 of us up here and I think I know who it was. I'm not close to him in any way and won't be reaching out but it still sucks. As for me, I still have insurance.
At 4:30 we headed out for Feast. I wanted to be excited but I was annoyed at the prospect of spending 2.5 hours taking trains there and back for what would end up being maybe 2 hours on site. It was another one of those times where I was annoyed at living in the fucking suburbs. But don't think I can ever get B to change. She's a suburb person and that's the way it is. Regardless, I was more annoyed than excited when we left.
We got to the site where it was happening around 5:40 and there was already a line to get in. We were about 50th or so in line. Not counting the early entry VIP and special ticket holders. My tickets were common folk and we had to go stand in line and wait. Joy. The other issue was it held in essentially a gravel lot which made walking difficult at best. B was wearing sandals and they were a mess and her feet were killing her just walking from the train station to the line.
Got in at 6. Imagine a farmer's market with chefs and lines. Some of the stuff we ate was good. Most was unmemorable to be honest. Best thing I had was ice cream in a churro bowl. The theme was latin american and that meant way too much spice on everything. We did have surprisingly a vegan taco that was really good.
We left around 7:15 and got home about 8:40. B was exhausted and fell asleep. I tried to warn her not to do it, but she did. And now she has been awake since 3:30am and is sitting in bed. If she falls back to sleep now, she will be out of it until noon. Fun stuff.
Nothing to do today. Tomorrow is flight check in and the like. No upgrades received yet. I am not expecting any to be honest. It's a PHX flight which isn't always the best. But I am glad to be going on the road even if it is to NJ.
First part of the day was teaching the second half of the class to the folks in Florida. That went as well as could be expected. Some of the demos once more had performance issues, then there were security issues, but we got through it in one piece. I was done with my day around 9am. At least with the formal part. There was then a back and forth of 'discussions' of how everything went. That went on for the next two hours. I had hoped to take a nap but nope. Not happening.
The maintenance guy came by around 1pm to fix some weatherstripping on our door and in the process fucked our doorjamb up. It now requires you to press the door pretty hard to lock the deadbolt. I need to find some better stuff this weekend. Can't have the door being that hard to use. His attitude was 'this is what they're sending me'. Okay bud. It's fine. I will fix it.
Around 4 I finally heard back on the whole insurance issue. Apparently we did fire someone from the consulting side of things. There are only like 3 of us up here and I think I know who it was. I'm not close to him in any way and won't be reaching out but it still sucks. As for me, I still have insurance.
At 4:30 we headed out for Feast. I wanted to be excited but I was annoyed at the prospect of spending 2.5 hours taking trains there and back for what would end up being maybe 2 hours on site. It was another one of those times where I was annoyed at living in the fucking suburbs. But don't think I can ever get B to change. She's a suburb person and that's the way it is. Regardless, I was more annoyed than excited when we left.
We got to the site where it was happening around 5:40 and there was already a line to get in. We were about 50th or so in line. Not counting the early entry VIP and special ticket holders. My tickets were common folk and we had to go stand in line and wait. Joy. The other issue was it held in essentially a gravel lot which made walking difficult at best. B was wearing sandals and they were a mess and her feet were killing her just walking from the train station to the line.
Got in at 6. Imagine a farmer's market with chefs and lines. Some of the stuff we ate was good. Most was unmemorable to be honest. Best thing I had was ice cream in a churro bowl. The theme was latin american and that meant way too much spice on everything. We did have surprisingly a vegan taco that was really good.
We left around 7:15 and got home about 8:40. B was exhausted and fell asleep. I tried to warn her not to do it, but she did. And now she has been awake since 3:30am and is sitting in bed. If she falls back to sleep now, she will be out of it until noon. Fun stuff.
Nothing to do today. Tomorrow is flight check in and the like. No upgrades received yet. I am not expecting any to be honest. It's a PHX flight which isn't always the best. But I am glad to be going on the road even if it is to NJ.
Friday, September 15, 2017
Y9 D112
As I was getting up just now, B's words to me were "2:43 is perfectly reasonable time to GO to bed, not GET UP." Gee, thanks. Tell me something I don't know butthole. Because here it is, 2:55am and I am awake. Heck in 3 days I will be leaving at this time. Whee. Such fun.
Did day one yesterday and boy was THAT fun. They changed the environment on us last minute so nothing matched. None of my numbers lined up, my filter values were off, but more importantly, the performance was WAY different. That was the biggest issue. I had to think quickly and get things moving. I ended up changing 4 or 5 demos on the fly as a result. Oh and my '12' students was actually 16. Fun stuff. But I got through it. We started pretty close to 5am and finished about 12:40. That was the nice part. I won't lie. My day is over before 1pm. Like today, my day will be done around 8:30am. As most people are getting to work, my day will be done. And my boss is in MN so I really don't have to worry about anything popping up on my plate last minute.
I did get a bit of a scare yesterday afternoon. I went to the mail and there was a letter from Kaiser stating my insurance is being terminated as of 9/30. WTF? Am I getting fired and not know about it? Is the company going away? This would all be interesting since I have three trips coming up and classes booked until January. I sent off emails and made phone calls. Apparently someone fucked up. I have the insurance people looking into it but until it's resolved there's a bit of panic in my brain. Hopefully I will have answers today.
Tonight is Feast night downtown! Looking forward to that. We will head down around 4pm and should be home by 10. This should be a fun night. I just have to make it through the day.
Did day one yesterday and boy was THAT fun. They changed the environment on us last minute so nothing matched. None of my numbers lined up, my filter values were off, but more importantly, the performance was WAY different. That was the biggest issue. I had to think quickly and get things moving. I ended up changing 4 or 5 demos on the fly as a result. Oh and my '12' students was actually 16. Fun stuff. But I got through it. We started pretty close to 5am and finished about 12:40. That was the nice part. I won't lie. My day is over before 1pm. Like today, my day will be done around 8:30am. As most people are getting to work, my day will be done. And my boss is in MN so I really don't have to worry about anything popping up on my plate last minute.
I did get a bit of a scare yesterday afternoon. I went to the mail and there was a letter from Kaiser stating my insurance is being terminated as of 9/30. WTF? Am I getting fired and not know about it? Is the company going away? This would all be interesting since I have three trips coming up and classes booked until January. I sent off emails and made phone calls. Apparently someone fucked up. I have the insurance people looking into it but until it's resolved there's a bit of panic in my brain. Hopefully I will have answers today.
Tonight is Feast night downtown! Looking forward to that. We will head down around 4pm and should be home by 10. This should be a fun night. I just have to make it through the day.
Thursday, September 14, 2017
Y9 D111
Yes, I am up at 3:00am on a Thursday. Because Florida. As dreaded, I am doing a 1.5 day remote session for them starting at 5am. Such fun. But hey, I get to try out my new mic. It arrived in one piece this time. I spent my morning cleaning as I knew the anxiety of strangers coming into our home for the annual inspection would drive B nuts. I was right it did. Caused her to be off all day. They showed up at noon btw and we're gone in under 5 minutes. They looked on our patio, checked our smoke alarms, tested the hot water heater, bye. I hope they didn't turn it down. I had it up higher than normal. Now I have to go check that.
I spent the first part of my day dealing with a barrage, and yes, that's a perfect word to describe it, of emails from Florida. Back and forth. In the end I am now doing these classes remote followed by a non-modified trip in two weeks. We had thought they might make me extend my trip but not happening. Good.
I spent time setting up my new mic and testing it, then I moved it and didn't retest it. This should be interesting once the users login. I may have to do some on the fly adjustments. It should be okay where I moved it, but we will see.
Made carne asada for dinner. Watched some tv, went to bed at 9 so I could be up now. Doing the same for tomorrow and then tomorrow night is Feast! Saturday and Sunday should be relatively clear but early bed on Sunday as I leave at this time Monday for NJ.
I really need to check the weather here and there. I think it should be mild here until I leave. It's probably storming there. We shall see.
I spent the first part of my day dealing with a barrage, and yes, that's a perfect word to describe it, of emails from Florida. Back and forth. In the end I am now doing these classes remote followed by a non-modified trip in two weeks. We had thought they might make me extend my trip but not happening. Good.
I spent time setting up my new mic and testing it, then I moved it and didn't retest it. This should be interesting once the users login. I may have to do some on the fly adjustments. It should be okay where I moved it, but we will see.
Made carne asada for dinner. Watched some tv, went to bed at 9 so I could be up now. Doing the same for tomorrow and then tomorrow night is Feast! Saturday and Sunday should be relatively clear but early bed on Sunday as I leave at this time Monday for NJ.
I really need to check the weather here and there. I think it should be mild here until I leave. It's probably storming there. We shall see.
Wednesday, September 13, 2017
Y9 D110
I am extremely sleepy this morning. Not in a bad way, just tired.
I finished my class I was working on yesterday. As soon as my boss has a chance to review it I will begin the recordings. That's assuming the new microphone arrives at a decent time and isn't broken this time. It's currently in IN according to FedEx's website. Not sure how that's going to make it here by 8pm. We shall see.
B made peppers for dinner. Watched some tv. We did have a bit of a scare in the evening. The kid had to go to urgent care for a side pain. Turns out she has a stomach muscle cramp. Sigh. Only her. At least it's not anything serious. But I was freaking out inside for a while. Figuring out how long to drive down there, how long to drive back. Changing flights again. All of that was going through my head. But she's okay and life is good.
Not much else going on in my head today. Things are quiet up there right now. That's a good and bad thing. Who knows what self doubting horrors it will come at me with when it's ready. Bad brain. Be good. Who am I kidding. It's never good.
Today we have annual apartment inspections. This will be fun. They are checking smoke alarms, making sure you're not hoarders, checking patios for junk, etc. Hopefully they will be in and out of here in five minutes. I know some people are going to have a rough time of it. Especially the ones who keep crap on their patios. Just desserts I say.
I finished my class I was working on yesterday. As soon as my boss has a chance to review it I will begin the recordings. That's assuming the new microphone arrives at a decent time and isn't broken this time. It's currently in IN according to FedEx's website. Not sure how that's going to make it here by 8pm. We shall see.
B made peppers for dinner. Watched some tv. We did have a bit of a scare in the evening. The kid had to go to urgent care for a side pain. Turns out she has a stomach muscle cramp. Sigh. Only her. At least it's not anything serious. But I was freaking out inside for a while. Figuring out how long to drive down there, how long to drive back. Changing flights again. All of that was going through my head. But she's okay and life is good.
Not much else going on in my head today. Things are quiet up there right now. That's a good and bad thing. Who knows what self doubting horrors it will come at me with when it's ready. Bad brain. Be good. Who am I kidding. It's never good.
Today we have annual apartment inspections. This will be fun. They are checking smoke alarms, making sure you're not hoarders, checking patios for junk, etc. Hopefully they will be in and out of here in five minutes. I know some people are going to have a rough time of it. Especially the ones who keep crap on their patios. Just desserts I say.
Tuesday, September 12, 2017
Y9 D109
Had a productive day yesterday. Finally finished one class I have been working on since the end of July. It took so long because it kept getting pushed to the back-burner. But I know as soon as we roll it out it will do well. I expect it to bring in 20-30k before year end if we can put it on our schedules before October. I promised a 4th quarter delivery and here it is. I have one more like that which I am hoping to finish soon too. Same thing in revenue if we could get it out the door. I also put together the framework for the CBT class. I need to finish that one today to begin recording on Wednesday.
Speaking of recording, my new microphone arrived yesterday only to be broken. The base was cracked and it wouldn't stay up right. I was pissed off. It showed up at 6pm and then it was busted. Talk about sucky moments.
That was pretty much my whole day. B has been off lately so she didn't do much either. Stupid weather turned hot again for the day climbing up into the 90s. That should have been a one day blip as it gets back into the 60s later this week.
Not much else to report. We did hear from Florida folks. They are officially closed today as well and we will talk again on Wednesday. Let's see what happens there.
Speaking of recording, my new microphone arrived yesterday only to be broken. The base was cracked and it wouldn't stay up right. I was pissed off. It showed up at 6pm and then it was busted. Talk about sucky moments.
That was pretty much my whole day. B has been off lately so she didn't do much either. Stupid weather turned hot again for the day climbing up into the 90s. That should have been a one day blip as it gets back into the 60s later this week.
Not much else to report. We did hear from Florida folks. They are officially closed today as well and we will talk again on Wednesday. Let's see what happens there.
Monday, September 11, 2017
Y9 D108
I decided to take advantage of the fact that I am not traveling or teaching and sleep in this morning. I am watching the news very carefully in anticipation that it clears up and I have to immediately get to the airport and on a flight to Florida. We're supposed to touch base today or tomorrow with them to get a status, but we shall see.
This goes hand in hand with a couple of things I read and experienced yesterday. Let's start with what I read:
- I read an article about how employers now in interviews are 'testing' people by texting them on like the Sunday after an interview or at 9 or 10pm after an interview and seeing how long they take to respond.
- I also saw a picture someone took of a post in their breakroom from Pizza Hut saying how they're expected to work up to 12 hours before the storm 'really hits' and if they've been evacuated how they have to be back at their store within 72 hours.
Then here's what happened last night:
- around 6:30 an email comes through as a reply all to something send Thursday which consisted of "Awesome thanks", followed by another one from a different person an hour later saying "looks good". So I replied "please remove me from this thread unless there's something important". Well the original sender replies "if you're going to the conference then it's ALL important". A note - there were 7 of us on the thread: 4 sales, 1 marketing, me, and my boss. I exploded on him like a double barrel. First off I didn't reply all, but I did tell him:
That's a direct copy and paste of my response. I full expect to get my ass chewed out this morning but whatever. I am right.
The point of all this? First off, when I was younger and email was a new thing, there were guides and books passed around at companies to help people get used to this wacky new technology. One of the first things it taught was DO NOT USE REPLY ALL. Some questions like:
- does everyone need to see this
- does this information benefit everyones
- am I adding to the conversation
were basic things you asked before not only sending an email but especially when using reply all. Here we are 25-30 years later and everyone treats email like a fucking facebook response. Use some basic manners. Part of it is that all three of the responders to me on a Sunday were the sales people. EVERYTHING is important to them at all times. Fuck right off.
As for the other stuff, same thing. Fuck. Right. Off. You don't send me texts on a sunday to 'test' me. If you are wanting me to be available 24/7 for a fucking job where I am simply making money for some old rich white dude to be richer and whiter than his circle of evil, then go to hell. This mentality that we owe our souls to companies is pushing me to the edge. It's a damn joke. Enough is enough people.
End Rant.
As for me and B, we did some thrift store hunting yesterday. We are looking for a small table for the living room and we have this place here called the Garage Sale Warehouse. Imagine a flea market but indoors and stocked with regular folk stuff. It's fucking awesome. It's like going to 500 yard sales all at once. We didn't find a table but we did find a handheld Wheel of Fortune game. Plus there's a british store there that has the best crumpets. I wanted to do tea but it was too late in the afternoon.
We had Zoup for dinner, watched some TV, went to bed around 11. Today I am working on finishing up a new class and starting CBTs once my new microphone arrives. Pretty excited about that. And preparing for an ass chewing.
This goes hand in hand with a couple of things I read and experienced yesterday. Let's start with what I read:
- I read an article about how employers now in interviews are 'testing' people by texting them on like the Sunday after an interview or at 9 or 10pm after an interview and seeing how long they take to respond.
- I also saw a picture someone took of a post in their breakroom from Pizza Hut saying how they're expected to work up to 12 hours before the storm 'really hits' and if they've been evacuated how they have to be back at their store within 72 hours.
Then here's what happened last night:
- around 6:30 an email comes through as a reply all to something send Thursday which consisted of "Awesome thanks", followed by another one from a different person an hour later saying "looks good". So I replied "please remove me from this thread unless there's something important". Well the original sender replies "if you're going to the conference then it's ALL important". A note - there were 7 of us on the thread: 4 sales, 1 marketing, me, and my boss. I exploded on him like a double barrel. First off I didn't reply all, but I did tell him:
I am but:
1. It’s a month away. I have more pressing immediate emails I am waiting for.
2. I am only going to assist at the booth at like lunch times because I am going as an attendee not a booth person. So I can get all this info when I get onsite or as it gets closer.
3. It’s bloody Sunday at 9pm and this can wait
4. One line responses to emails sent to ALL at 9pm on a Sunday are a real poor way to do things
I am more than happy to be part of the conversation when it is something important but to hit REPLY ALL to say “Awesome” is not useful at all. Note I didn’t feel the need to reply all on this as an example. :)
That's a direct copy and paste of my response. I full expect to get my ass chewed out this morning but whatever. I am right.
The point of all this? First off, when I was younger and email was a new thing, there were guides and books passed around at companies to help people get used to this wacky new technology. One of the first things it taught was DO NOT USE REPLY ALL. Some questions like:
- does everyone need to see this
- does this information benefit everyones
- am I adding to the conversation
were basic things you asked before not only sending an email but especially when using reply all. Here we are 25-30 years later and everyone treats email like a fucking facebook response. Use some basic manners. Part of it is that all three of the responders to me on a Sunday were the sales people. EVERYTHING is important to them at all times. Fuck right off.
As for the other stuff, same thing. Fuck. Right. Off. You don't send me texts on a sunday to 'test' me. If you are wanting me to be available 24/7 for a fucking job where I am simply making money for some old rich white dude to be richer and whiter than his circle of evil, then go to hell. This mentality that we owe our souls to companies is pushing me to the edge. It's a damn joke. Enough is enough people.
End Rant.
As for me and B, we did some thrift store hunting yesterday. We are looking for a small table for the living room and we have this place here called the Garage Sale Warehouse. Imagine a flea market but indoors and stocked with regular folk stuff. It's fucking awesome. It's like going to 500 yard sales all at once. We didn't find a table but we did find a handheld Wheel of Fortune game. Plus there's a british store there that has the best crumpets. I wanted to do tea but it was too late in the afternoon.
We had Zoup for dinner, watched some TV, went to bed around 11. Today I am working on finishing up a new class and starting CBTs once my new microphone arrives. Pretty excited about that. And preparing for an ass chewing.
Sunday, September 10, 2017
Y9 D107
Should be about to take off right now, but nope! So much relief you don't even know. I can relax today and not worry about being stuck at airports or you know, dying. Funny that way. Let's see, what did we do yesterday...
Grocery shopping. That's a big one. Now that I am home this week it honestly did throw off my meal planning. I had everything set for B to have food while I was gone and meals planned out, but now I have to adjust as I will be home all week. So I had to plan for 8 meals I hadn't had before. I had 4 already setup for her, but was still short. Plus there's other stuff we needed if I was going to be home. We ended up going shopping and while we were there at the store we decided to change up the guest bathroom. New shower curtain, towels, rugs, etc. It looks really nice and we didn't spend a whole lot doing it. It's been the same since we moved in and it is a refreshing change.
It rained finally last night as we went out. That was a welcome sight for sure. I kind of just stood in it for a few minutes enjoying the rain. I might have looked like an idiot but who cares. It was nice. For the most part we hung around cleaning and organizing. The weather made doing things possible. Today I plan to continue that by doing some more work down in the garage. I shouldn't sweat to death either.
Finished watching The Good Place. Cute show. I am looking forward to season 2. I worry there's only so much they can do with the story line, but am eager to see where it goes.
We played some games, had coconut chicken for dinner. A good Saturday. I have a new mic coming and maybe by any miracle it will come today. That would be fun to setup. Otherwise, no idea what we are planning to do today.
The change in the weather has also affected my mood. It's funny how interlinked those two can be. I feel a weight taken off my shoulders. Between the weather being more hospitable, not having to travel today, and getting all the bills paid, I feel calmer. Maybe it's just a controlled environment kind of thing, but it all helps. Let's me just breathe a little.
Grocery shopping. That's a big one. Now that I am home this week it honestly did throw off my meal planning. I had everything set for B to have food while I was gone and meals planned out, but now I have to adjust as I will be home all week. So I had to plan for 8 meals I hadn't had before. I had 4 already setup for her, but was still short. Plus there's other stuff we needed if I was going to be home. We ended up going shopping and while we were there at the store we decided to change up the guest bathroom. New shower curtain, towels, rugs, etc. It looks really nice and we didn't spend a whole lot doing it. It's been the same since we moved in and it is a refreshing change.
It rained finally last night as we went out. That was a welcome sight for sure. I kind of just stood in it for a few minutes enjoying the rain. I might have looked like an idiot but who cares. It was nice. For the most part we hung around cleaning and organizing. The weather made doing things possible. Today I plan to continue that by doing some more work down in the garage. I shouldn't sweat to death either.
Finished watching The Good Place. Cute show. I am looking forward to season 2. I worry there's only so much they can do with the story line, but am eager to see where it goes.
We played some games, had coconut chicken for dinner. A good Saturday. I have a new mic coming and maybe by any miracle it will come today. That would be fun to setup. Otherwise, no idea what we are planning to do today.
The change in the weather has also affected my mood. It's funny how interlinked those two can be. I feel a weight taken off my shoulders. Between the weather being more hospitable, not having to travel today, and getting all the bills paid, I feel calmer. Maybe it's just a controlled environment kind of thing, but it all helps. Let's me just breathe a little.
Saturday, September 9, 2017
Y9 D106
SO much in my brain right now I need to make sure to remember everything. But first and foremost, guess who has two thumbs and doesn't have to fly into a hurricane?? That's right!! No Florida trip this week.
I got up yesterday and around 6am I got my upgrade confirmation notice for my JAX flight. I'm like okay, I guess it's still happening. I went to American's site, checked flight status, and yep, on time. Like an hour later, my phone bloops - flight cancelled, please choose another flight. Ok. It lets me choose to go from DFW to Charlotte then to Jacksonville. I guess going down was good but not across? I then got my upgrade notice seriously no more than 10 minutes later on that flight. Okay. Out of my mind.
I teach my class, we finish around 2:40 again. Right as class is finishing, I get an email from Tillamook. Apparently I won a contest I entered forever ago! I won two tickets to Portland Feast Night Market!! SWEET! Except... it's Friday night. BOOO! I call the person and ask if I can have until Sunday to confirm. She tells me I can have until Monday. I explained the whole flight thing and if my flights get cancelled how I can go. She totally understands. Cool. I then go to the office as they are doing annual inspections and they want to do it Wednesday and I want them to do it Saturday. Same thing though. I say wait until Sunday and I can tell you what's what.
Get back inside and around 4? Boom. All flights cancelled buddy, you're not going anywhere. Woo! I start frantically making phone calls and sending emails. Flight refunded. Hotel refunded. Car refunded. Car service moved one week out (still going to NJ next week). Client notified. Office notified. Tillamook emailed. Whew. A lot done in a very brief period. Everything is set and settled. I talked to my boss and he is like great, now you can work on CBTs next week. I say fine, as long as I can order the new mic I have been wanting. Approved. I now have a new microphone on its way to me. I am excited about that for sure.
Everything settled down and we had dinner. I had a corned beef cooking in the slow cooker all day which was nice because B put all the dinner stuff together while I was making all these calls. Had dinner, watched tv, went to bed around 10.
Now, one more thing before I forget again. I do not want to seem completely cold hearted. I have been wondering how X2 is fairing. Last I heard she lived right in the path of this thing. Southern Florida is going to be brutally hit compared to Northern Florida. May she be safe and not die. I hope her house blows down and her car flies away, but hey, don't kill her off at least. See how compassionate I am?
Now today I am grocery shopping, paying bills, and just enjoying the ride.
I got up yesterday and around 6am I got my upgrade confirmation notice for my JAX flight. I'm like okay, I guess it's still happening. I went to American's site, checked flight status, and yep, on time. Like an hour later, my phone bloops - flight cancelled, please choose another flight. Ok. It lets me choose to go from DFW to Charlotte then to Jacksonville. I guess going down was good but not across? I then got my upgrade notice seriously no more than 10 minutes later on that flight. Okay. Out of my mind.
I teach my class, we finish around 2:40 again. Right as class is finishing, I get an email from Tillamook. Apparently I won a contest I entered forever ago! I won two tickets to Portland Feast Night Market!! SWEET! Except... it's Friday night. BOOO! I call the person and ask if I can have until Sunday to confirm. She tells me I can have until Monday. I explained the whole flight thing and if my flights get cancelled how I can go. She totally understands. Cool. I then go to the office as they are doing annual inspections and they want to do it Wednesday and I want them to do it Saturday. Same thing though. I say wait until Sunday and I can tell you what's what.
Get back inside and around 4? Boom. All flights cancelled buddy, you're not going anywhere. Woo! I start frantically making phone calls and sending emails. Flight refunded. Hotel refunded. Car refunded. Car service moved one week out (still going to NJ next week). Client notified. Office notified. Tillamook emailed. Whew. A lot done in a very brief period. Everything is set and settled. I talked to my boss and he is like great, now you can work on CBTs next week. I say fine, as long as I can order the new mic I have been wanting. Approved. I now have a new microphone on its way to me. I am excited about that for sure.
Everything settled down and we had dinner. I had a corned beef cooking in the slow cooker all day which was nice because B put all the dinner stuff together while I was making all these calls. Had dinner, watched tv, went to bed around 10.
Now, one more thing before I forget again. I do not want to seem completely cold hearted. I have been wondering how X2 is fairing. Last I heard she lived right in the path of this thing. Southern Florida is going to be brutally hit compared to Northern Florida. May she be safe and not die. I hope her house blows down and her car flies away, but hey, don't kill her off at least. See how compassionate I am?
Now today I am grocery shopping, paying bills, and just enjoying the ride.
Friday, September 8, 2017
Y9 D105
As of right now my flight on Sunday is showing as on time. The one from DFW to JAX. On the weather page it shows 7 inches of rain falling on Sunday but no problems. So I am still heading out as of right now. Two more days and I will know for sure. I have a feeling I will be able to get there, but by mid week I am going to be screwed. I keep telling everyone I am more worried about being able to get out than I am getting in. We shall see.
Had a bit of stress yesterday afternoon. The apartment wants to do an annual inspection of the fire alarms and things like that but they have it scheduled for next week while I am not home. This of course sent B's anxiety through the roof. I went down to the office to see if they could do it today or tomorrow. Haven't heard back from them. On top of that, fucking USPS lost a package. It shows as delivered but nope. Not in the box. It was thursday yesterday which means it was the lame temp mail person. I have a feeling it was delivered but to the wrong box. I opened a claim with USPS but we shall see what happens with that. I do like Amazon's new thing of taking pictures when they drop a package off. It makes it very clear where they left it. No confusion.
Started a new show on Netflix yesterday. The Good Place. Actually pretty funny. I am almost through the first season. It comes back in a couple of weeks with season 2. I was amused by it.
Taught day one of my class. As anticipated I have two duds in the group. One more than the other. One student is fine, one is okay, the third is not paying any attention at all. Asking random questions, asking me to repeat things, asking questions of things I just went over, etc. Annoying. But got through it, finished around 2:40. One more day of this and I am done.
B made meatballs for dinner. The weather is finally changing. It was the first day we only turned the air on for about an hour. It's supposed to be MUCH cooler today and tomorrow. I am excited about that. Maybe go outside and just stand there for a while.
Okay, time to pay bills before class starts. Whee.
Had a bit of stress yesterday afternoon. The apartment wants to do an annual inspection of the fire alarms and things like that but they have it scheduled for next week while I am not home. This of course sent B's anxiety through the roof. I went down to the office to see if they could do it today or tomorrow. Haven't heard back from them. On top of that, fucking USPS lost a package. It shows as delivered but nope. Not in the box. It was thursday yesterday which means it was the lame temp mail person. I have a feeling it was delivered but to the wrong box. I opened a claim with USPS but we shall see what happens with that. I do like Amazon's new thing of taking pictures when they drop a package off. It makes it very clear where they left it. No confusion.
Started a new show on Netflix yesterday. The Good Place. Actually pretty funny. I am almost through the first season. It comes back in a couple of weeks with season 2. I was amused by it.
Taught day one of my class. As anticipated I have two duds in the group. One more than the other. One student is fine, one is okay, the third is not paying any attention at all. Asking random questions, asking me to repeat things, asking questions of things I just went over, etc. Annoying. But got through it, finished around 2:40. One more day of this and I am done.
B made meatballs for dinner. The weather is finally changing. It was the first day we only turned the air on for about an hour. It's supposed to be MUCH cooler today and tomorrow. I am excited about that. Maybe go outside and just stand there for a while.
Okay, time to pay bills before class starts. Whee.
Thursday, September 7, 2017
Y9 D104
So get this - I mentioned that the FL people wanted a "backup" plan, right? Well my boss and I let her have it. Me a lot more politely than he did. He was like "how about the fact that there will be no electricity, my employee will going into a hurricane, and you'll be hunkered down for SAFETY? The backup plan is we do it later". Well she didn't like that answer and went whining to her salesperson again. That sparked emails about how we should be preparing for this blah blah. And that was it - double barreled GFY from both of us. I am about two seconds away from canceling my flight all together. I talked to my boss last night and if I get to DFW on Sunday and there is one fucking drop of rain in FL, I am turning right around and going home. No fucking way I am flying into a hurricane. The arrogance of some people.
Taught day two, went until 4:30. It is slightly better here. There is an all day chance of rain today. It's low, but it's there. You could start to feel it yesterday. We didn't have to run AC except for a couple of hours around dinner time. Which was shrimp for me and pwaffles for B. Pwaffles = pancake waffles. Don't ask.
We played, went to bed around 10:30. 3 student sys admin class then next two days. Then it's the joy of the weekend. We shall see, we shall see.
Taught day two, went until 4:30. It is slightly better here. There is an all day chance of rain today. It's low, but it's there. You could start to feel it yesterday. We didn't have to run AC except for a couple of hours around dinner time. Which was shrimp for me and pwaffles for B. Pwaffles = pancake waffles. Don't ask.
We played, went to bed around 10:30. 3 student sys admin class then next two days. Then it's the joy of the weekend. We shall see, we shall see.
Wednesday, September 6, 2017
Y9 D103
There are currently 24 wildfires raging around us. Hundreds of thousands of acres burning. The sky is nothing but smoke and an orange dot trying to break through. It looked like snow yesterday but it was ash. I went to get the mail and was covered in ash. I live in a post apocalyptic nightmare right now. One of my students is on level 2 alert for evacuation from their home. The fire jumped the Columbia River yesterday and that's not a small river. We can't breathe. I have the windows open right now just to try and air things out but will be closing them shortly. The news has said the closest one is all because of some kids thought it would be fun to light off fireworks in the woods. Thanks for burning down my world assholes.
I taught. 8:30 - 4. I stayed inside and hid. Had tacos for dinner.
The streets are eerily quiet and have been for a couple of days. No sirens. No cars. Just silence.
And then I have the possibility of flying into a hurricane on Sunday. Then storms the following week in NJ.
And the people in FL are worried about a 'backup plan'. Bitch, if this hurricane hits, your backup plan is to shut the fuck up.
Fuck corporations. Fuck stupid people. Moving to a cave somewhere.
I taught. 8:30 - 4. I stayed inside and hid. Had tacos for dinner.
The streets are eerily quiet and have been for a couple of days. No sirens. No cars. Just silence.
And then I have the possibility of flying into a hurricane on Sunday. Then storms the following week in NJ.
And the people in FL are worried about a 'backup plan'. Bitch, if this hurricane hits, your backup plan is to shut the fuck up.
Fuck corporations. Fuck stupid people. Moving to a cave somewhere.
Tuesday, September 5, 2017
Y9 D102
We went out pretty early to try and avoid the worst heat of the day. We still had to deal with the smoke and haze in the air though which made it hard to breathe and see. We went to a couple of thrift shops just to see what we could find. B found 4 books, we found 8 dinner plates in our pattern (for only $6 too!), and we found a book for the kid which I wrapped up. So, as of 9/4, the first Xmas present is wrapped and ready to go. A new record. Something definitely wrong with me.
We were going over the calendar last night looking at all the upcoming trips. We want to go to Funko's new HQ in Everett. But with my travel there's not more than a single day in between anything and it's a 4 hour drive. What we decided is to hold off until 10/27. That's our anniversary weekend and we will spend it at Funko HQ. Yep, we're nerds.
We played some WoW together, hid in the office instead of the bedroom, went to bed around 10:30. I have classes all week, then I leave on Sunday. Today and tomorrow are 8:30-4:30 classes which really sucks. I hate this time. It throws me off. I have 4 hours until class starts. Sigh. But hey, at least it's Tuesday already.
We were going over the calendar last night looking at all the upcoming trips. We want to go to Funko's new HQ in Everett. But with my travel there's not more than a single day in between anything and it's a 4 hour drive. What we decided is to hold off until 10/27. That's our anniversary weekend and we will spend it at Funko HQ. Yep, we're nerds.
We played some WoW together, hid in the office instead of the bedroom, went to bed around 10:30. I have classes all week, then I leave on Sunday. Today and tomorrow are 8:30-4:30 classes which really sucks. I hate this time. It throws me off. I have 4 hours until class starts. Sigh. But hey, at least it's Tuesday already.
Monday, September 4, 2017
Y9 D101
I've been trying to figure out what's bothering me lately and I can't quite put my finger on a specific thing. It's a combination of things. This is a tight pay period because we made a purchase and I wanted it paid off instead of having more credit. We were able to afford it, but it's been making for a tougher than normal pay period. For those interested we bought a Bose Soundtouch 300 soundbar. Ours was starting to flake and driving us both crazy and we were planning on the Bose being our Christmas present this year, but we pulled the trigger early. Love the bar, hate what it did to this month's budget. But that will be rectified in 4 days. Regardless, that's issue 1.
Issue 2 is the state of the world. I wake up and read how South Korea is detonating hydrogen bombs. WTF? Seriously? We have two spoiled brat children in a pissing match with all of our lives at stake. So not fucking cool.
Then there's the elephant in the room. This fucking weather. I am staring down the barrel of two days in a row at 102 degrees. FINALLY there's some respite on Thursday from all this, but man, I can't make it to Thursday. I am fucking dying. When I lived in the Hellhole with X1, I couldn't take the heat then either. I spent most days in bars and hiding because I couldn't fucking take it.
Which brings us to another point. I don't drink any more. So much of these things used to stay buried under alcohol and anger. Now I just have the anger which I look at and can't take so it turns to depression. It turns into being frustrated at the lack of control I have over so many aspects of life. I can't change tiny hands from deciding to destroy the world. I can't blot out the sun. Boy would I like to. I can control our budget and trying to focus my attention there. It helps, a little.
The last thing and one of the biggest is the lack of social circle we have here. I need to fix that somehow but I don't know how. It's extremely frustrating.
We had a friend in town yesterday. Not to see us of course. No, they were here for other reasons and were 'kind' enough to give us an hour to have a late lunch. I fucking hate that. But whatever. We left the comfort of our bedroom for a moment to visit. I am not kidding about the bedroom thing. B leaves it for like 20 minutes right now. I have been dragging my computer in there to be in a cooler space.
It's fucking ridiculous. It's gotta go.
Sigh. I don't know what we're doing today. It will in fact be 102, there's a heat advisory in place until 10pm tomorrow night. I know; we'll probably hide in the bedroom again. Fun.
Issue 2 is the state of the world. I wake up and read how South Korea is detonating hydrogen bombs. WTF? Seriously? We have two spoiled brat children in a pissing match with all of our lives at stake. So not fucking cool.
Then there's the elephant in the room. This fucking weather. I am staring down the barrel of two days in a row at 102 degrees. FINALLY there's some respite on Thursday from all this, but man, I can't make it to Thursday. I am fucking dying. When I lived in the Hellhole with X1, I couldn't take the heat then either. I spent most days in bars and hiding because I couldn't fucking take it.
Which brings us to another point. I don't drink any more. So much of these things used to stay buried under alcohol and anger. Now I just have the anger which I look at and can't take so it turns to depression. It turns into being frustrated at the lack of control I have over so many aspects of life. I can't change tiny hands from deciding to destroy the world. I can't blot out the sun. Boy would I like to. I can control our budget and trying to focus my attention there. It helps, a little.
The last thing and one of the biggest is the lack of social circle we have here. I need to fix that somehow but I don't know how. It's extremely frustrating.
We had a friend in town yesterday. Not to see us of course. No, they were here for other reasons and were 'kind' enough to give us an hour to have a late lunch. I fucking hate that. But whatever. We left the comfort of our bedroom for a moment to visit. I am not kidding about the bedroom thing. B leaves it for like 20 minutes right now. I have been dragging my computer in there to be in a cooler space.
It's fucking ridiculous. It's gotta go.
Sigh. I don't know what we're doing today. It will in fact be 102, there's a heat advisory in place until 10pm tomorrow night. I know; we'll probably hide in the bedroom again. Fun.
Sunday, September 3, 2017
Y9 D100
Grocery store. Worked in the garage as early as possible before the melting hours.
I feel like I am in a dystopian novel; "you can't be outside between 2pm and 10pm. That's when the radiation is at it's highest and will melt your face!". It's already 78 in this office at 5:33am. Will this fucking 'summer' ever end? It was 106 in SAN FRANCISCO yesterday. In my entire life I have never been in the city over 100. Ridiculous.
But let me say it one more time - man made climate change is fake news.
Worked on the astro sonic. Bad capacitor on one of the boards. Need to remove it and take it to a shop. There's a vintage radio shop in town believe it or not. They can help rebuild.
I slow cooked pork ribs in salsa verde for dinner, or its proper name, costillas en salsa verde. Turned out pretty good.
B started pulling out halloween decorations. It was so hot that after coming back from the store for ice cream, we both hid in the bedroom with the cats. I even brought my laptop in and worked on a tv tray. Such fun.
I don't know what's in store for today, but we're looking at another day close if not over 100. So not really doing anything after noon.
If I say one negative thing in the winter, you can all bitch slap me, ok?
I feel like I am in a dystopian novel; "you can't be outside between 2pm and 10pm. That's when the radiation is at it's highest and will melt your face!". It's already 78 in this office at 5:33am. Will this fucking 'summer' ever end? It was 106 in SAN FRANCISCO yesterday. In my entire life I have never been in the city over 100. Ridiculous.
But let me say it one more time - man made climate change is fake news.
Worked on the astro sonic. Bad capacitor on one of the boards. Need to remove it and take it to a shop. There's a vintage radio shop in town believe it or not. They can help rebuild.
I slow cooked pork ribs in salsa verde for dinner, or its proper name, costillas en salsa verde. Turned out pretty good.
B started pulling out halloween decorations. It was so hot that after coming back from the store for ice cream, we both hid in the bedroom with the cats. I even brought my laptop in and worked on a tv tray. Such fun.
I don't know what's in store for today, but we're looking at another day close if not over 100. So not really doing anything after noon.
If I say one negative thing in the winter, you can all bitch slap me, ok?
Saturday, September 2, 2017
Y9 D99
Year nine, day ninety nine. The upside down day of the beast?
Prove to me,
that there's something after all this.
That when this meat machine decides to fail that there is a point.
The kid doesn't need eye surgery. Good news.
Her local optometrist exaggerated the urgency of the condition. At 1000 an eye, I can see why. But if I ever see him, he will need new eyes.
My sister should have known better. She knows why.
I fear sleeping sometimes. Because I fear I will never wake up. Is this why I can only get 4 hours of sleep a night? I survive on the bare minimum because I don't want the unknown?
It must be nice to be ignorant or to be able to follow the fantasy. But I say once more:
Prove it to me.
Brought the Astro-sonic up from the garage. 1967. Something older than me. It still works. Need to take the back off an re-solder some wires.
What happens next? Is there a next? Why is there a next? Why can't this be the all and not the start? Why do we delude ourselves into believing there is a next?
Florida is done. Sign off is achieved. They can piss right off.
One more week and I go away again.
Prove to me,
that there's something after all this.
That when this meat machine decides to fail that there is a point.
The kid doesn't need eye surgery. Good news.
Her local optometrist exaggerated the urgency of the condition. At 1000 an eye, I can see why. But if I ever see him, he will need new eyes.
My sister should have known better. She knows why.
I fear sleeping sometimes. Because I fear I will never wake up. Is this why I can only get 4 hours of sleep a night? I survive on the bare minimum because I don't want the unknown?
It must be nice to be ignorant or to be able to follow the fantasy. But I say once more:
Prove it to me.
Brought the Astro-sonic up from the garage. 1967. Something older than me. It still works. Need to take the back off an re-solder some wires.
What happens next? Is there a next? Why is there a next? Why can't this be the all and not the start? Why do we delude ourselves into believing there is a next?
Florida is done. Sign off is achieved. They can piss right off.
One more week and I go away again.
Friday, September 1, 2017
Y9 D98
My day started with my phone ringing at 6:30am. The salesperson for the Florida people wanted to make sure I knew that I better do everything they want me to do or else. Or else seems like a stupid fucking thing to say to someone like me. Believe me, she regretted saying that shit to me. After a whole lot of back and forth and a whole lot of bullshit, I am doing final changes. Realistic ones too. Things like "on this page you say this field but then it says this on the next page". That's perfect. That's exactly the feedback I want. That's the shit I am happy to fix. So they are going through and I am doing final cleanup. As for the salesperson? She knows now to never call me directly again. Ever. On penalty of death.
We got a new coffee table yesterday. It's nice. It has drawers. It's white. That makes me happy.
I was so exhausted from everything I went to bed at 9. My frustration and sadness has turned into anger though. I was on edge all day and was short with B and the rest of the world. It hasn't gone away yet.
Three day weekend ahead. Followed by four full days of training, then off to see these FL people face to face. 3 weeks straight. 6 flights. 15,000 miles. FL/NJ/FL. 14 hotel nights. Such fun.
We got a new coffee table yesterday. It's nice. It has drawers. It's white. That makes me happy.
I was so exhausted from everything I went to bed at 9. My frustration and sadness has turned into anger though. I was on edge all day and was short with B and the rest of the world. It hasn't gone away yet.
Three day weekend ahead. Followed by four full days of training, then off to see these FL people face to face. 3 weeks straight. 6 flights. 15,000 miles. FL/NJ/FL. 14 hotel nights. Such fun.
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