Training in seattle

Hey dear readers,
My training out here in seattle is going well. i'm learning a lot about people management that I hadn't really thougt about much. i'll post more about what we're covering tomorrow. But i'm feeling much more ready to take on a sponsoree here at avanade.

V

Murphy is a prick.

2 quick things. i'm at the airport going to seatle for some management training. And it never fails that when you are early, you'll hit ever green light amd make it to a deserted airport (except the line for ice cream... grumble). But when your late... it's all red lights and crowds.

Second, the luggage company that I bought my good bag from just called. Guess what. it's fixed. And they only called me two hours after it would be useful, and 3 hours after I was AT that mall for lunch.

Murphey is a total ass. ;-)

Mid week status

Hi everybody,

        Well, I’m here in CA and the project team is really cool.  I’m going to enjoy working with these people over the next 6+ weeks.  A couple of points, I finally got access to the TFS (Team Foundation Services … look it up on MS) Overall I think things are going well.  I had to pull SQL server completely off my machine and re-install it as I had a crazy blend of 2000 and 2005 on my machine from my last project. 

        I’ve got my year end review coming up.  I’ve put out some requests to former clients that I fostered a good relationship with for some letters of recommendation.  I REALLY want a promotion this year.  Once I hit the next level, I’ll probably be there for a long time, as the next level up doesn’t have many vacancies that come up often.  But frankly, if I do get the promotion I can see myself being happy there for quite some time. 

        The guy was supposed to come by and paint my house yesterday.  I’ll get home tomorrow night to see what it looks like.  He did a fine job on all of my neighbors, so I’m not even remotely worried. I found out that he doesn’t take credit cards, so I’m going to have to shuffle around some funds to make it work, but that’s life.  I have to paint, as the HOA is very angry at me. At least I found a really good cheap noodle bowl at the asian market I shop at.

        The part I don’t like about being on the road is that I miss my fuzzballs.  I still find myself waiting for Patches to jump on the hotel bed begging for petties.  I so look forward to seeing her on Thursday night.

        Anyhow, my install is finished.  Gotta Blaze.

V

New Photo of Me.

At the last Mammoth game of the year, a pro photographer (who has taken some GREAT sports shots... just check out the rest of his site) wanted to take some shots of the Tar Pit Crew.  WOW I like the way these came out.  On the right of the screen is my dear friend Pebbles and on the left is Spike.  Surrounded by these crazies, Voodoo looks downright sinister... I LOVE it. 

 

Heres the site.

 

V

Latest Deployment

Well, I'm here in southern California again, this time on a different project. Overall, this is a phenominal team that I am on and am looking forward to digging into the tasks at hand.  This is looking like a shorter engagement where I'll only be here for 6 weeks at the max.  My guess is that this will be a heavy lifting deployment then I'll roll off.  So I'm only here to help it through crunch time.  Should be fun.

 

The hotel I'm at now is stunning,  it's a full resort / spa and while the rooms are a little smaller than the Hilton, the ammenities are very cool. 

 

at the moment I'm installing all the tools that I'm going to need to work in this environment.  major snore fest... I'm also finding the desire to take a nap.  Most unfortunate that I got used to them over my vacation.  C'est La Vie.

 

V

Money money money...monay

Whelp, my days of free spending are over for a while. I admit I was enjoying being on a per diem while travelling to CA.  (I’m getting deployed again on the 18^th, to the same geographic locale, but a different project).  While I was able to pay down a lot of my CC debt, I also got to have a significant amount of fun money.  (bought my Wii, which is a BLAST) But I just got the estimate on painting the house (required by HOA), and it’s more than expected.  Last year it was a spot estimate that was VERY reasonable, but I was unable to do it more through my own procrastination than anything.  The guy just dropped the estimate on me for now, and it’s just over twice what was quoted last year.  Oh well, that’ll teach me procrastinate.  I’ll have to use the money I was saving for turf in my backyard to pay for this and tighten the belt a little for the next month or two.  C’est la vie. 

The funny part is, I KNEW this was going to happen.  All three aspects of my life have been running fantastic lately.  Work has been fulfilling and productive, my finances were great shape as well, and I’ve been dating this wonderful woman who seems to care for me as much as I care for her.  Since I don’t think I’ve ever had all three legs of the triangle strong like that… I just KNEW something bad was going to happen in some way.  I even told a friend of mine “I almost expect my house to explode, because everything else is going so well” J But of all the things that could go wrong, I’d choose having to pay extra for paint as a VERY strong first. So I’m still grinning like a fool… I’m just a poorer fool now.

V

Fantastic Find!!!

I’m so friggin happy at the moment.  I just spent about $400 on a gas trimmer, a brush cutting attachment for it, new work boots, and a few other various sundries… and I started reclaiming my back yard.  In doing so, I’m swiping back and forth, enjoying the ease with which this new tool glides through the cambodian undergrowth that is my backyard. When through my allergy assulted nose doth come a most familiar scent.  Why, that’s mint.  I look closely, and a large patch of mint has started growing in the back corner. Even better is that the weeds seem to have miraculously left the mint patch un-molested.  My intentions, as an avid mojito maker, are not nearly so pure! J  Now rather than just drinking our way through my friends front yard, we can do my back yeard as well… WOOT!

V

chuckles

A few of my friends get their news from the Fox News Channel… and here is one of many reasons that scares me.  I’ll try not to post anymore “simple link” posts (I prefer to use my own words), but this one is so blatant that I’m just a little perturbed by it.  Sorry.

V

Took too long

I’ve talked about governmental corruption before.  I have to say I think it took WAY too long to bring charges against Rep William Jefferson, but at least it’s happened.  (details).  I don’t care your political affiliation, if you take bribes (and I view lobbyists as legal bribery… they’ve gotta go), you should be gone.  I realize this would wash away most, if not all, of congress… so be it.  Congress (and most forms of government officials) serve at OUR electing, they should serve US… not those who have the $$$.   This frustrates me beyond reason.  I can donate as much of my hard earned money as I can, volunteer, and vote for an elected official.  If they win, none of my previous effort matters a hill of beans.  Since one corporation will come in, offer millions and then the representative is now far more indebted to them than they are to me.  Makes you just want to give up… at least there is a chance if we start locking these guys up, they’ll start getting the picture.  Sigh.

V

This about sums it up

This comic sums up my sentiments pretty well.  As I’ve previously stated though, I think we DO still need to let it go till September and see what comes out the other end.  My cynicism is telling me that there’s little hope of anything good or useful coming out the rear end of this, but the generals are saying give us till September.  So I’m willing to support them in a wait and see mode. 

However, if the likely event of no significant progress is made, then we MUST start scaling back troops in Iraq.  I’ve posted before the plan that Howard Dean has laid out, and that is a very logical way of proceeding.  Until then, cross your fingers and pray to whatever gods are willing to listen. 

On that note, yesterday I got the address for my very young friend that has gone into the Army. (I’ll call him Link after a role playing character of his, you all know I don’t like to use real names on my blog to protect the guilty J ).  He scored MASSIVE on his LAB (Language Aptitude Battery), to the point where intelligence was a viable choice for him to go into.  However, he wants to be a Green Beret. I wish him all the best. He’s already in pretty good shape, I’m going to hate and love to see how cut he gets after boot.  I have a friend who was a little chubby in HS and enlisted right after… he came back and all that chubby migrated a foot and a half north.  To this day Draconis is among the strongest and fittest of my friends.  Link, may the gods protect you and grant you the strength you need to grow and attain your dreams… and DON’T GET SHOT!!!

That’s all for this morning. 

V

Two things that are sticking in my craw

        First, watching some news this morning and there was an interesting story.  It seems that Ft. Lewis has stopped doing individual memorial services because there are too many deaths from that fort to handle.  They are shifting from individual memorials to a group memorial once a month.  This is coming more than 1400 days after “Mission Accomplished”.  Can we finally admit that this “war” is not going well.  I know at least 3 in 4 people get it… but how can the other 25% stick their heads in the sand and say we are winning.  Specialist David Williams, in a conversation with Sen Joe Lieberman, said that every soldier he worked with begged him to as the Senator when they were getting out of here.  Another unnamed soldier commented “We’re not making any progress, it just seems like we’re driving around waiting to get shot at” (Source : MSNBC – again, I know they lean left, but this is what our soldiers are saying! So if you resort to the “left-wing media” argument… stuff it). It’s time to get out of that country.  I heard a plan from Howard Dean that makes perfect sense.  Get out of Iraq, by years end, and put a contigent of 25,000 troops in the region (not IRAQ, More like Kuwait) to be protect borders and respond to emergencies, and perhaps finish stabalizing Afghanistan. Seems quite rational to me.

        Second, yesterday Bush came out and FINALLY said that something needs to be done about global warming.  His comments, involving zero details, were that industrialized nations must work together to reduce emissions and affect change.  He continued that within the next year or two the US will lead an initiative to accomplish this.  To President Bush, you are a frakking idiot… What you have just proposed is called the Kyoto Treaty and WE THE US are the ONLY nation to have NOT signed it.  The fact that we in the US are not on board with this embarrases me… and then to have our moronic leader stand up and say this is what we need to do is insulting to us and the world.  Just sign the gorram treaty you frakktard.

V