Good morning folks,
{slurp}
I'm continuing on with my living a better life theme today. I have been struggling on what areas in "life" I wanted to cover but this morning I finally found my inspiration.
{slurp}
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Thursday, September 25, 2008
Bring on the WAR
Just recently started playing WAR (Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning). I'm still not entirely sure if this will be my next MMO but I plan on giving it the good ol' try to see if it comes around. I swore I would never buy a game at release again... when will I learn my lesson? :)
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
v20.1 - Living a Better Life
Morning Folks,
{slurp}
It is a beautiful sunny day today in the city of Halifax. My new desk at work overlooks the harbor (sort of) and right now I can see the sun reflecting off the surface of the water as one of the Metro Transit ferries crosses. It is times like this that make me really happy I moved here.
{slurp}
I plan on dedicating the new few musings to a new series of musings I've been wanting to write. I want to talk about how we, as people, can live better lives and get the most out of living. Whether you're just a teenager or an elderly person in your 80s, there is always something in life to experience and I hope I can show you how to do that.
{slurp}
I watched a documentary on television the other night about Manners; you can read about it HERE
I won't say it was a huge eye opener for me, but it did get me thinking a lot about how a simple shift in a person's manners can shift others around them. A simple wave when someone lets you pull into a spot in traffic can change that entire commute for that person (and possibly for you). The documentary talks about people in general and how we've strayed away from such simple manners and holding the door for others. What happened?
{slurp}
So what is the secret to having a better life? Well, one of the things that I can guarantee will give you a more fulfilling and better life is to remember your manners and be kind to those around you. You could almost apply the "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you" biblical lesson to your day-to-day life.
{slurp}
But what about those who are always rude? How can you possibly be nice to someone who is constantly kicking people down (emotionally of course) and being rude all the time? Well, I'm no expert here but if you put a smile on your face and ignore the negativity that person emits, you will have a better day. Why let someone else ruin your day? Why let someone else rob you from the enjoyment of your life? Take a step back and say, "Does this person have the right to rob joy and happiness from me?". Put a smile on your face, make the best out of every situation and choose to ignore negativity. These things will not only make you feel better inside, but make people around you feel better.
{slurp}
In this day in age, negativity begets negativity. How many times have you been at your place of work (or home, or wherever) and you've heard someone being negative to someone else. Perhaps it was a manager yelling at a co-worker for doing a bad job or making a simple mistake. Immediately that person is put in a negative light and a whole slew of negative emotions are beginning to manifest themselves. Once that manager leaves, that person is now in a negative state and typically will find another co-worker or friend to talk to. The topic of discussion? You guessed it, negativity. Now not only is the Manager emitting negativity, but the employee beings to emit it around them and 'infects" everyone they come in contact with. Stop the negative monster in it's tracks and as soon as something negative presents itself in your life, dismiss it and turn it around. Put a smile on your face.
{slurp}
I knew a guy when I was in my late teens/early 20s. He was ALWAYS happy regardless of any situation that would come his way. I thought he was crazy and was going to suggest he admit himself to a mental institution for help. He had something though; something a lot of us lack today. He was able to take anything negative and turn it around. Rain was "liquid sunshine" to him and no matter what happened, this person was able to turn it around and make the best out of any situation. It was annoying because being around him felt good. Sometimes people just want to feel bad and feel negative. Well this guy would let it happen and as a result you had a much better day just being around. Are you like this person?
{slurp}
Anyway folks, I'm going to wrap up this musing for today. Really think about the things I've said here. Life is a gift and if you spend the majority of it wrapped up in anger or negativity, you're really not living life, you're just passing through. Find a positive outlet for your negativity. If you can't find one, BE one for others. I'm willing to bet that if you starting making a serious effort to be more positive in your day-to-day activities, you will attract others to you and your positive influence will spread to others. You will have more laughs and enjoy other people's company more. Give it a try, it doesn't cost you any money and you only stand to feel better about life.
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
{slurp}
It is a beautiful sunny day today in the city of Halifax. My new desk at work overlooks the harbor (sort of) and right now I can see the sun reflecting off the surface of the water as one of the Metro Transit ferries crosses. It is times like this that make me really happy I moved here.
{slurp}
I plan on dedicating the new few musings to a new series of musings I've been wanting to write. I want to talk about how we, as people, can live better lives and get the most out of living. Whether you're just a teenager or an elderly person in your 80s, there is always something in life to experience and I hope I can show you how to do that.
{slurp}
I watched a documentary on television the other night about Manners; you can read about it HERE
I won't say it was a huge eye opener for me, but it did get me thinking a lot about how a simple shift in a person's manners can shift others around them. A simple wave when someone lets you pull into a spot in traffic can change that entire commute for that person (and possibly for you). The documentary talks about people in general and how we've strayed away from such simple manners and holding the door for others. What happened?
{slurp}
So what is the secret to having a better life? Well, one of the things that I can guarantee will give you a more fulfilling and better life is to remember your manners and be kind to those around you. You could almost apply the "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you" biblical lesson to your day-to-day life.
{slurp}
But what about those who are always rude? How can you possibly be nice to someone who is constantly kicking people down (emotionally of course) and being rude all the time? Well, I'm no expert here but if you put a smile on your face and ignore the negativity that person emits, you will have a better day. Why let someone else ruin your day? Why let someone else rob you from the enjoyment of your life? Take a step back and say, "Does this person have the right to rob joy and happiness from me?". Put a smile on your face, make the best out of every situation and choose to ignore negativity. These things will not only make you feel better inside, but make people around you feel better.
{slurp}
In this day in age, negativity begets negativity. How many times have you been at your place of work (or home, or wherever) and you've heard someone being negative to someone else. Perhaps it was a manager yelling at a co-worker for doing a bad job or making a simple mistake. Immediately that person is put in a negative light and a whole slew of negative emotions are beginning to manifest themselves. Once that manager leaves, that person is now in a negative state and typically will find another co-worker or friend to talk to. The topic of discussion? You guessed it, negativity. Now not only is the Manager emitting negativity, but the employee beings to emit it around them and 'infects" everyone they come in contact with. Stop the negative monster in it's tracks and as soon as something negative presents itself in your life, dismiss it and turn it around. Put a smile on your face.
{slurp}
I knew a guy when I was in my late teens/early 20s. He was ALWAYS happy regardless of any situation that would come his way. I thought he was crazy and was going to suggest he admit himself to a mental institution for help. He had something though; something a lot of us lack today. He was able to take anything negative and turn it around. Rain was "liquid sunshine" to him and no matter what happened, this person was able to turn it around and make the best out of any situation. It was annoying because being around him felt good. Sometimes people just want to feel bad and feel negative. Well this guy would let it happen and as a result you had a much better day just being around. Are you like this person?
{slurp}
Anyway folks, I'm going to wrap up this musing for today. Really think about the things I've said here. Life is a gift and if you spend the majority of it wrapped up in anger or negativity, you're really not living life, you're just passing through. Find a positive outlet for your negativity. If you can't find one, BE one for others. I'm willing to bet that if you starting making a serious effort to be more positive in your day-to-day activities, you will attract others to you and your positive influence will spread to others. You will have more laughs and enjoy other people's company more. Give it a try, it doesn't cost you any money and you only stand to feel better about life.
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
Thursday, September 18, 2008
v20.0 - Al-san is Sick
Good morning folks,
{slurp}
Al-san is sick today. I was sick yesterday too, but today I had to come to work which only makes me more ill. I also had a commute of over an hour this morning due to accidents and traffic so that didn't help my mood either. Luckily I had my friends at CBC Radio 1 to help me through the long gruesome commute.
{slurp}
A funny thing happened this morning as I was going through the hundreds of emails I missed because I was out sick yesterday. Since the company I work for is global we tend to get requests coming in from all corners of the globe. I was assisting some people in Japan earlier this week and I noticed an email from them this morning in response to my assistance. The response wasn't what caught my eye though, it was what they called me that surprised me; Al-san. Never in all my years have I ever (seriously anyway) been called Al-san. This, of course, sparked my interest in the word so I just had to do some digging to find out what kind of "title" this actually gave me.
{slurp}
Unfortunately my research was quick as my Google skills are great. The san is an honorific showing respect. Similar to the way we would call someone Mr. or Mrs. here in the "West". Of course, when someone refers to themselves using San, it is considered childish or vain. I also found out that the number 3 can also mean san (since san is 3 in Japanese). If you ever see an internet handle with the number 3 at the end, it is the same as adding the san. For example, Al3 is the same as Al-san. Interesting!
{slurp}
As I mentioned earlier, I'm sick. I have this wicked head cold that has infected my nasal cavities and is causing this intense pain. I've taken sinus medication, pain killers and various other drugs to combat this thing; nothing seems to work. I took yesterday off sick from work because I was weak and my joints and muscles all ached. Today I am feeling the same (with a cough this time) and had to come into work because my employer decided to enforce a new policy only allowing a certain number of sick days per year. I've used up my "quota" of sick days this year and in order to take any more it would have to be unpaid. While losing 1 day pay isn't going to kill me, I came into work anyway to prove a point. The policy SUCKS! Sometimes people get sick and have to stay home, sometimes people get sick and SHOULD stay home. I hate those self righteous bastards who come to work regardless of they're sick or not. They bring in a box of Kleenex, some meds and setup shop at the desk next to you. You then have to listen to them sniffle, cough and all the other symptoms sick people exhibit. Not only is this a serious distraction, it is also a health hazard to everyone else because they are spreading their germs around. Seriously folks, the only reason I'm sick today is because of people like the above.
{slurp}
Now I have an excuse to be sick and come into work. I have no more sick days and don't want to take a day off without pay. These other people who came into work sick anyway, have quite a few sick days left they can take this year. Why did they come in? Personally, I'd rather sit home, recover and not get others sick which is why I'm out of sick days and these people are not. Who is the bad person here? In fact, I was even pulled aside at work a few months back to let me know that I was approaching the limit on my sick days. My response was simple, "So?". If I'm sick, I'm taking a sick day, it is easy at that. I don't use sick days to stay home because I don't feel like working. This is supposed to be a professional working environment where we work with other professionals yet we are treated like school children and when one person abuses something the rest of us get punished for it.
{slurp}
I digress and never intended to go off on such a tangent there. Bottom line, I'm sick and I'm at work and I'm that asshole that everyone hates because I came to work sick and now stand to infect everyone around me. Sorry guys, but I'm here because I have to be and if things were different, I'd be home in bed resting right now.
{slurp}
Now that I've got that off my chest, it's time to go :) I'm not sure if you've been watching the stock markets lately but things are getting fairly bad out there. I'm about to go and watch a webcast by the CEO for the company I work for to talk about this. Should be interesting.
{slurp}
Until next time folks.
Cheers,
Al
{slurp}
Al-san is sick today. I was sick yesterday too, but today I had to come to work which only makes me more ill. I also had a commute of over an hour this morning due to accidents and traffic so that didn't help my mood either. Luckily I had my friends at CBC Radio 1 to help me through the long gruesome commute.
{slurp}
A funny thing happened this morning as I was going through the hundreds of emails I missed because I was out sick yesterday. Since the company I work for is global we tend to get requests coming in from all corners of the globe. I was assisting some people in Japan earlier this week and I noticed an email from them this morning in response to my assistance. The response wasn't what caught my eye though, it was what they called me that surprised me; Al-san. Never in all my years have I ever (seriously anyway) been called Al-san. This, of course, sparked my interest in the word so I just had to do some digging to find out what kind of "title" this actually gave me.
{slurp}
Unfortunately my research was quick as my Google skills are great. The san is an honorific showing respect. Similar to the way we would call someone Mr. or Mrs. here in the "West". Of course, when someone refers to themselves using San, it is considered childish or vain. I also found out that the number 3 can also mean san (since san is 3 in Japanese). If you ever see an internet handle with the number 3 at the end, it is the same as adding the san. For example, Al3 is the same as Al-san. Interesting!
{slurp}
As I mentioned earlier, I'm sick. I have this wicked head cold that has infected my nasal cavities and is causing this intense pain. I've taken sinus medication, pain killers and various other drugs to combat this thing; nothing seems to work. I took yesterday off sick from work because I was weak and my joints and muscles all ached. Today I am feeling the same (with a cough this time) and had to come into work because my employer decided to enforce a new policy only allowing a certain number of sick days per year. I've used up my "quota" of sick days this year and in order to take any more it would have to be unpaid. While losing 1 day pay isn't going to kill me, I came into work anyway to prove a point. The policy SUCKS! Sometimes people get sick and have to stay home, sometimes people get sick and SHOULD stay home. I hate those self righteous bastards who come to work regardless of they're sick or not. They bring in a box of Kleenex, some meds and setup shop at the desk next to you. You then have to listen to them sniffle, cough and all the other symptoms sick people exhibit. Not only is this a serious distraction, it is also a health hazard to everyone else because they are spreading their germs around. Seriously folks, the only reason I'm sick today is because of people like the above.
{slurp}
Now I have an excuse to be sick and come into work. I have no more sick days and don't want to take a day off without pay. These other people who came into work sick anyway, have quite a few sick days left they can take this year. Why did they come in? Personally, I'd rather sit home, recover and not get others sick which is why I'm out of sick days and these people are not. Who is the bad person here? In fact, I was even pulled aside at work a few months back to let me know that I was approaching the limit on my sick days. My response was simple, "So?". If I'm sick, I'm taking a sick day, it is easy at that. I don't use sick days to stay home because I don't feel like working. This is supposed to be a professional working environment where we work with other professionals yet we are treated like school children and when one person abuses something the rest of us get punished for it.
{slurp}
I digress and never intended to go off on such a tangent there. Bottom line, I'm sick and I'm at work and I'm that asshole that everyone hates because I came to work sick and now stand to infect everyone around me. Sorry guys, but I'm here because I have to be and if things were different, I'd be home in bed resting right now.
{slurp}
Now that I've got that off my chest, it's time to go :) I'm not sure if you've been watching the stock markets lately but things are getting fairly bad out there. I'm about to go and watch a webcast by the CEO for the company I work for to talk about this. Should be interesting.
{slurp}
Until next time folks.
Cheers,
Al
Monday, September 15, 2008
v19.9 - When to Rip and when not to...
Howdy folks,
{slurp}
Well it's Monday and here we are, doing a GOTO 10 in our BASIC routine and starting another week. For those of you who know what GOTO 10 means, I'm sorry. For those who don't, you're not missing much.
{slurp}
A lot to be said about a good title. Something catchy that brings the reader in and allows them to immerse themselves in what you have to say. Today I'm going to talk about when to Rip and when not to Rip.
Rip what you ask?
Well, this past weekend there was some discussion about the differences between a Rip Saw and a Crosscut Saw. I'm talking about those hand held things that people rarely use anymore and when they do use them, they have no idea whether they're holding a Rip saw or a Crosscut saw.
{slurp}
First off, what is the difference? Well, to put it simply, a Rip saw used when you are cutting wood along the grain and a Crosscut Saw (as the name suggests) is for cutting wood across the grain. Ever notice when you're cutting wood with a saw on some pieces it seems like the wood is "harder" and doesn't cut as well? Or when you cut wood you slice through it really fast but it leaves being splinters and jagged edges? This is the typical outcome when you're using the wrong saw for the job. I urge you to read this Wiki article if you're really that interested in the differences and how to spot them.
{slurp}
Another example of when to Rip and when not to can also be applied to flatulations; which was also discovered this past weekend. There are times when you can just let one rip and then there are times when you should keep it to yourself. Unfortunately, my family doesn't necessarily adhere to this rule and we just let it rip whenever the mood strikes. Of course this can lead to many interesting get togethers and some memorable experiences. Some of which still wake me in the middle of the night covered in sweat holding my nose.
{slurp}
Well folks, short but sweet today. I promised I would have something out today about saws so here you go :) Feel free to leave a comment or chime in with your own different kinds of "Rips".
Until next time...
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
{slurp}
Well it's Monday and here we are, doing a GOTO 10 in our BASIC routine and starting another week. For those of you who know what GOTO 10 means, I'm sorry. For those who don't, you're not missing much.
{slurp}
A lot to be said about a good title. Something catchy that brings the reader in and allows them to immerse themselves in what you have to say. Today I'm going to talk about when to Rip and when not to Rip.
Rip what you ask?
Well, this past weekend there was some discussion about the differences between a Rip Saw and a Crosscut Saw. I'm talking about those hand held things that people rarely use anymore and when they do use them, they have no idea whether they're holding a Rip saw or a Crosscut saw.
{slurp}
First off, what is the difference? Well, to put it simply, a Rip saw used when you are cutting wood along the grain and a Crosscut Saw (as the name suggests) is for cutting wood across the grain. Ever notice when you're cutting wood with a saw on some pieces it seems like the wood is "harder" and doesn't cut as well? Or when you cut wood you slice through it really fast but it leaves being splinters and jagged edges? This is the typical outcome when you're using the wrong saw for the job. I urge you to read this Wiki article if you're really that interested in the differences and how to spot them.
{slurp}
Another example of when to Rip and when not to can also be applied to flatulations; which was also discovered this past weekend. There are times when you can just let one rip and then there are times when you should keep it to yourself. Unfortunately, my family doesn't necessarily adhere to this rule and we just let it rip whenever the mood strikes. Of course this can lead to many interesting get togethers and some memorable experiences. Some of which still wake me in the middle of the night covered in sweat holding my nose.
{slurp}
Well folks, short but sweet today. I promised I would have something out today about saws so here you go :) Feel free to leave a comment or chime in with your own different kinds of "Rips".
Until next time...
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
Thursday, September 4, 2008
v19.8 - Moved!
Howdy folks,
{slurp}
We are finally all moved in! Last Saturday a few family members showed up to lend a hand and together we were able to move everything in one shot. It was a long day, but we enjoyed each others company and made the day fun instead of dreadful. After we were done we all had a chance to enjoy some time in the pool. The water was cold, but refreshing and fun, couldn't have asked for a better day to move.
{slurp}
Of course I'm not going to talk about Moving in the physical sense today, I want touch on moving in an emotional sense. People are moved in different ways by different things. Some people can be moved by a song, some by an emotional scene in a movie. I've seen people moved in many ways by many different things and I feel it is something that defines us as human beings. I'm sure you've felt that 'ping' within you while watching a movie.
{slurp}
Remember the first time you watched a good martial arts action movie? When you got up out of the chair afterwards did you attempt to mimik a kick or karate chop? Did you hurt yourself? :) To be moved emotionally is to shift your perspective to look at things from a different angle. Some emotional moves are permanent while others are temporary and only last a short time. A great example of a permanent shift is experiencing the birth of your child. I made sure I was present for both of my children's births and I can honestly say the first changed me forever. To watch this life you helped create become an independent part of this world, to hear the first cry, to see them move for the first time is a very emotional and moving experience. Just writing about it is a moving experience for me because of how much of a permanent shift it was.
{slurp}
Think back over your life and remind yourself of the permanent shifts you experienced in your past. Perhaps you had a near death experience or something simple like heard a song that changed your life. Feel free to share these experiences with your friends and family. If the reason for the move was because of someone, share it with them. I can guarantee that by sharing it, you stand a good chance of causing a move in someone else.
{slurp}
Until next time...
Cheers,
Al
{slurp}
We are finally all moved in! Last Saturday a few family members showed up to lend a hand and together we were able to move everything in one shot. It was a long day, but we enjoyed each others company and made the day fun instead of dreadful. After we were done we all had a chance to enjoy some time in the pool. The water was cold, but refreshing and fun, couldn't have asked for a better day to move.
{slurp}
Of course I'm not going to talk about Moving in the physical sense today, I want touch on moving in an emotional sense. People are moved in different ways by different things. Some people can be moved by a song, some by an emotional scene in a movie. I've seen people moved in many ways by many different things and I feel it is something that defines us as human beings. I'm sure you've felt that 'ping' within you while watching a movie.
{slurp}
Remember the first time you watched a good martial arts action movie? When you got up out of the chair afterwards did you attempt to mimik a kick or karate chop? Did you hurt yourself? :) To be moved emotionally is to shift your perspective to look at things from a different angle. Some emotional moves are permanent while others are temporary and only last a short time. A great example of a permanent shift is experiencing the birth of your child. I made sure I was present for both of my children's births and I can honestly say the first changed me forever. To watch this life you helped create become an independent part of this world, to hear the first cry, to see them move for the first time is a very emotional and moving experience. Just writing about it is a moving experience for me because of how much of a permanent shift it was.
{slurp}
Think back over your life and remind yourself of the permanent shifts you experienced in your past. Perhaps you had a near death experience or something simple like heard a song that changed your life. Feel free to share these experiences with your friends and family. If the reason for the move was because of someone, share it with them. I can guarantee that by sharing it, you stand a good chance of causing a move in someone else.
{slurp}
Until next time...
Cheers,
Al
Thursday, August 28, 2008
v19.7 - Preparing to Move
Good morning folks,
{slurp}
We're preparing to move! Yesterday we finally closed on our new house and we're thrilled to be the proud owners of our very first home. The end of one journey has completed and the beginning of our next journey has just begun.
{slurp}
I still can't believe we're finally home owners. After sitting on it for so many years, it is hard to believe we've finally found a place. Of course, it also helps that we got a GREAT deal thanks to my Realtor and the place is just amazing. Overall, we're excited and happy and can't wait for the moving to be completed. For now, we're just happy to have the place and we've slowly begun moving boxes and bags over to get rid of some of the clutter at our old place.
{slurp}
So how do you prepare to pick up your life and move it? This isn't the first move I've done, and it isn't the biggest move I've done either. I was pondering last night about moving and what prompts moves and how people do them. I think you'll mostly find 3 types "moving people":
1) The "I'm Prepared For Everything" mover who has everything written down, all the boxes are packed, labeled and ready for moving. These people will also typically have the new location mapped out with furniture and things because they're very prepared for this move. While it is nice to have things laid out exactly how you want them to happen, these people typically put so much time and effort into their work that when things mess up or there is an issue, they have a mental break down and can't handle the chaos.
2) The "I'm Prepared For Everything" mover who thinks they're prepared. I believe the majority of people who move these days fall into this category. You thought you had everything planned out, you had thought of everything and all the necessary preparations were made. Then on the day of the move (or just before) you realize you forgot a crucial piece and are left with only minutes to complete tasks. By the end of the day, you are throwing loose clothing into the back of your car just to get it moved.
3) The "I'm Moving?" mover is the person who, on the day before they move, decides it is time to start packing stuff. These individuals are usually the same ones who claim they hardly have anything to pack and it should only take them a few minutes to throw everything into boxes. Unfortunately, they are also the same people who forget things like packing tape and sometimes boxes. If you've ever worked for a grocery store and had someone show up in the late evening looking for boxes, there's a good chance this person is moving the next day and just realized they didn't have any boxes to move with.
So which mover type are you?
{slurp}
If I had to label myself in that list I would definitely have to go with #2. Although, this time around we are more in between #1 and #2 since my wife has really been working hard to prepare for this move. In fact, as of the "Firm and Binding" date on our Purchase Agreement, she's been going crazy with preparations for this move. Everyday I come home from work and there has been a drastic change to our current house. She has packed an entire room, or has cleaned an entire room. Both of the kid's bedrooms are spotless right now.. no toys, no clothes; nothing but furniture and bedding. She has packed everything in their rooms sans a few change of clothes and I must admit, the rooms look great! She's been cleaning like crazy as well. The thought is, the more cleaning we get done now, the less we'll need to do the day of the move and we'll be able to focus more on the move itself and not the post-cleanup.
{slurp}
Yes, I have been assisting as well, but I can honestly say I haven't put nearly as much work and effort into the cleaning and packing as she has. Then again, she has most of her day to do this and I'm at work all day wishing I was home helping her. To top it all off, she's almost 6 months pregnant.
{slurp}
Anyway folks, the time has come to begin my day so I must bid you all farewell for now. How do you like the new site layout? I'm trying to get something new going here and felt this theme was working. I need to make a few cosmetic changes but overall I think it will work. What are your thoughts?
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
{slurp}
We're preparing to move! Yesterday we finally closed on our new house and we're thrilled to be the proud owners of our very first home. The end of one journey has completed and the beginning of our next journey has just begun.
{slurp}
I still can't believe we're finally home owners. After sitting on it for so many years, it is hard to believe we've finally found a place. Of course, it also helps that we got a GREAT deal thanks to my Realtor and the place is just amazing. Overall, we're excited and happy and can't wait for the moving to be completed. For now, we're just happy to have the place and we've slowly begun moving boxes and bags over to get rid of some of the clutter at our old place.
{slurp}
So how do you prepare to pick up your life and move it? This isn't the first move I've done, and it isn't the biggest move I've done either. I was pondering last night about moving and what prompts moves and how people do them. I think you'll mostly find 3 types "moving people":
1) The "I'm Prepared For Everything" mover who has everything written down, all the boxes are packed, labeled and ready for moving. These people will also typically have the new location mapped out with furniture and things because they're very prepared for this move. While it is nice to have things laid out exactly how you want them to happen, these people typically put so much time and effort into their work that when things mess up or there is an issue, they have a mental break down and can't handle the chaos.
2) The "I'm Prepared For Everything" mover who thinks they're prepared. I believe the majority of people who move these days fall into this category. You thought you had everything planned out, you had thought of everything and all the necessary preparations were made. Then on the day of the move (or just before) you realize you forgot a crucial piece and are left with only minutes to complete tasks. By the end of the day, you are throwing loose clothing into the back of your car just to get it moved.
3) The "I'm Moving?" mover is the person who, on the day before they move, decides it is time to start packing stuff. These individuals are usually the same ones who claim they hardly have anything to pack and it should only take them a few minutes to throw everything into boxes. Unfortunately, they are also the same people who forget things like packing tape and sometimes boxes. If you've ever worked for a grocery store and had someone show up in the late evening looking for boxes, there's a good chance this person is moving the next day and just realized they didn't have any boxes to move with.
So which mover type are you?
{slurp}
If I had to label myself in that list I would definitely have to go with #2. Although, this time around we are more in between #1 and #2 since my wife has really been working hard to prepare for this move. In fact, as of the "Firm and Binding" date on our Purchase Agreement, she's been going crazy with preparations for this move. Everyday I come home from work and there has been a drastic change to our current house. She has packed an entire room, or has cleaned an entire room. Both of the kid's bedrooms are spotless right now.. no toys, no clothes; nothing but furniture and bedding. She has packed everything in their rooms sans a few change of clothes and I must admit, the rooms look great! She's been cleaning like crazy as well. The thought is, the more cleaning we get done now, the less we'll need to do the day of the move and we'll be able to focus more on the move itself and not the post-cleanup.
{slurp}
Yes, I have been assisting as well, but I can honestly say I haven't put nearly as much work and effort into the cleaning and packing as she has. Then again, she has most of her day to do this and I'm at work all day wishing I was home helping her. To top it all off, she's almost 6 months pregnant.
{slurp}
Anyway folks, the time has come to begin my day so I must bid you all farewell for now. How do you like the new site layout? I'm trying to get something new going here and felt this theme was working. I need to make a few cosmetic changes but overall I think it will work. What are your thoughts?
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
Thursday, August 21, 2008
v19.6 - Secret to Happiness Part 2
"Our happiness depends on the habit of mind we cultivate. So practice happy thinking every day. Cultivate the merry heart, develop the happiness habit, and life will become a continual feast."
- Norman Vincent Peale
Good morning folks,
{slurp}
Welcome to part 2 in my "Secret to Happiness" series of musings. I don't plan on making too many parts (I hate that sort of thing) so go grab a coffee, grab your list (what? you forgot to write out your list?) and sit back and relax. Today I'm going to go over the things in your list and see where we stand. If you're just jumping in and are not sure what I'm talking about, feel free to go back and read Part 1 so you are a bit more prepared.
{slurp}
- Norman Vincent Peale
Good morning folks,
{slurp}
Welcome to part 2 in my "Secret to Happiness" series of musings. I don't plan on making too many parts (I hate that sort of thing) so go grab a coffee, grab your list (what? you forgot to write out your list?) and sit back and relax. Today I'm going to go over the things in your list and see where we stand. If you're just jumping in and are not sure what I'm talking about, feel free to go back and read Part 1 so you are a bit more prepared.
{slurp}
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
v19.5 - Secret to Happiness Part 1
"Only one thing has to change for us to know happiness in our lives: where we focus our attention."
- Greg Anderson
Good morning folks,
{slurp}
Are you Happy? Really think about that simple question for a minute. People say every single day they are happy but do people really know what it means to be happy? Happy is defined as: enjoying or showing or marked by joy or pleasure; "a happy smile"; "spent many happy days on the beach"; "a happy marriage". Interesting that a definition of happy would contain "happy marriage" as an example.
{slurp}
- Greg Anderson
Good morning folks,
{slurp}
Are you Happy? Really think about that simple question for a minute. People say every single day they are happy but do people really know what it means to be happy? Happy is defined as: enjoying or showing or marked by joy or pleasure; "a happy smile"; "spent many happy days on the beach"; "a happy marriage". Interesting that a definition of happy would contain "happy marriage" as an example.
{slurp}
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
Randy Pausch's Last Lecture
I just wanted to share this video with you all quickly. If you have the time, I HIGHLY recommend watching it as it really puts things like life in perspective.
Enjoy,
Al
[youtube ji5_MqicxSo nolink]
Enjoy,
Al
[youtube ji5_MqicxSo nolink]
v19.4 - A Novel Idea!
"You can approach the act of writing with nervousness, excitement, hopefulness, or even despair-the sense that you can never completely pu on the page what's in your mind and heart. You can come to the act with your fists clenched and your eyes narrowed, ready to kick ass and take down names. You can come to it because you want a girl to marry you or because you want to change the world. Come to it any way but lightly. Let me say it again: you must not come lightly to the blank page."
- Stephen King
Good morning folks,
{slurp}
Last night was a fairly restless night for me. I tossed and turned most of the night and when I finally did doze off to sleep I was woken by a wacky dream or strange sounds in the night. I don't know why, but I had this feeling of something evil in the night.
{slurp}
- Stephen King
Good morning folks,
{slurp}
Last night was a fairly restless night for me. I tossed and turned most of the night and when I finally did doze off to sleep I was woken by a wacky dream or strange sounds in the night. I don't know why, but I had this feeling of something evil in the night.
{slurp}
Monday, August 18, 2008
A More Positive Outlook
“The happiness of too many days is often destroyed by trying to accomplish too much in one day. We would do well to follow a common rule for our daily lives - Do Less and Do It Better.” - Dale E. Turner
Morning folks,
Morning folks,
Rejoice for it is Monday!! You're probably asking yourself why the heck would you rejoice on a Monday, we should be thinking ahead to Friday and then party. Well ask yourself, if it wasn't for Monday, would you still look forward to Friday? :)
Monday, July 14, 2008
Musing over Coffee - The Finale
Good morning folks,
{slurp}
No, you're not seeing things, this is to be my last Musing over Coffee. It wasn't an easy decision to make, but one that needed to be made; at the end of the day, I am happy with the decision and I hope you will all see things from my perspective. This is to be my 193rd and final Musing over Coffee. It has been a great adventure and journey and I hope you have all enjoyed reading them as much as I have enjoyed writing them.
{slurp}
{slurp}
No, you're not seeing things, this is to be my last Musing over Coffee. It wasn't an easy decision to make, but one that needed to be made; at the end of the day, I am happy with the decision and I hope you will all see things from my perspective. This is to be my 193rd and final Musing over Coffee. It has been a great adventure and journey and I hope you have all enjoyed reading them as much as I have enjoyed writing them.
{slurp}
Friday, July 11, 2008
v19.1 - Only Time Will Tell
"You can make more friends in two months by becoming interested in other people than you can in two years by trying to get other people interested in you."
-- Dale Carnegie
Morning Folks,
{slurp}
The gods have decided that we shall live yet another day. Thankfully that day is Friday and that day is today. I wonder who will be here to write these musings when I'm not around any longer? Only Time Will Tell...
-- Dale Carnegie
Morning Folks,
{slurp}
The gods have decided that we shall live yet another day. Thankfully that day is Friday and that day is today. I wonder who will be here to write these musings when I'm not around any longer? Only Time Will Tell...
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
v19.0 - Happy....Something
Laughter kills fear, and without fear there can be no faith. For without fear of the devil there is no need for God.
- Sean Connery
Hey Folks,
{slurp}
Posting a bit later in the day today, but a post none-the-less. I was doing some google searching today and as luck would have it, I stumbled upon a link back to my website. It is always a good feeling when that happens as the chances of others performing the same search will stumble upon my site and perhaps get a good laugh.
{slurp}
- Sean Connery
Hey Folks,
{slurp}
Posting a bit later in the day today, but a post none-the-less. I was doing some google searching today and as luck would have it, I stumbled upon a link back to my website. It is always a good feeling when that happens as the chances of others performing the same search will stumble upon my site and perhaps get a good laugh.
{slurp}
Monday, June 30, 2008
v18.9 - Back from Camping
It always rains on tents. Rainstorms will travel thousands of miles, against prevailing winds for the opportunity to rain on a tent.
- Dave Barry
Morning Folks,
{slurp}
We're back from camping finally! It was a lot of fun despite the weather not agreeing with us most of the time...
{slurp}
- Dave Barry
Morning Folks,
{slurp}
We're back from camping finally! It was a lot of fun despite the weather not agreeing with us most of the time...
{slurp}
Thursday, June 26, 2008
v18.8 - Theatrical Thursday
Neither a borrower nor a lender be; For loan oft loses both itself and friend, and borrowing dulls the edge of husbandry.
- William Shakespear, Hamlet (Act I, Scene III)
Good Morning Folks,
{slurp}
I arrive at work earlier than usual this morning. In fact, I arrived a whole hour and a half earlier than I normally do which is actually quite nice. Normally there are quite a few people here by the time I get in so it is nice to come in and be pretty much the only person on the floor working.
{slurp}
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
v18.7 - Continued Strife
Humor is mankind's greatest blessing.
- Mark Twain
Morning Folks,
{slurp}
Today is officially the last day of school for the summer. While some kids have today off (or so I heard) my kids have to attend today and then again on Friday for an hour and a half.
{slurp}
- Mark Twain
Morning Folks,
{slurp}
Today is officially the last day of school for the summer. While some kids have today off (or so I heard) my kids have to attend today and then again on Friday for an hour and a half.
{slurp}
Saturday, June 21, 2008
v18.6 - Sigh
Contempt is the weapon of the weak and a defense against one's own despised and unwanted feelings.
- Alice Duer Miller
Howdy Folks,
{slurp}
It is the weekend. Typically I don't write during the weekend but for some reason I felt like writing a quick post. I'm having a huge internal debate right now which is causing some unnecessary stress and strain on me. I think I've made up my mind on the issue, but none-the-less, I'm still debating it for some strange reason.
{slurp}
- Alice Duer Miller
Howdy Folks,
{slurp}
It is the weekend. Typically I don't write during the weekend but for some reason I felt like writing a quick post. I'm having a huge internal debate right now which is causing some unnecessary stress and strain on me. I think I've made up my mind on the issue, but none-the-less, I'm still debating it for some strange reason.
{slurp}
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
v18.5 - Thunder Rolls
Worry is a misuse of imagination.
- Dan Zadra
Morning Folks,
{slurp}
It is a cool, rainy day here in Halifax today. Last night we had a bit of a Thunder storm here and it was fantastic. I love being woken up in the middle of the night to a huge crashing sound followed by a deep rumble that seems to stretch on forever. It was a beautiful thing.
{slurp}
I can't help but wonder what I would think if I heard such a sound and didn't know what it was. Imagine living back in the old days for a minute. Imagine, if you will, for just one minute. You had just invented the wheel and were in awe at how much it would change life as you know it. You are staring down at this new invention wondering how you would take a round rock and attach it to a piece of wood and then all of a sudden you hear this massive crashing and rumbling sound in the sky. You look to the heavens and see flashing lights and burning streaks across the sky. What do you do? Well, you drop to you knees and pray to whatever god you worship to have mercy on your soul and forgive you for disobeying their wishes.
Sounding familiar?
{slurp}
- Dan Zadra
Morning Folks,
{slurp}
It is a cool, rainy day here in Halifax today. Last night we had a bit of a Thunder storm here and it was fantastic. I love being woken up in the middle of the night to a huge crashing sound followed by a deep rumble that seems to stretch on forever. It was a beautiful thing.
{slurp}
I can't help but wonder what I would think if I heard such a sound and didn't know what it was. Imagine living back in the old days for a minute. Imagine, if you will, for just one minute. You had just invented the wheel and were in awe at how much it would change life as you know it. You are staring down at this new invention wondering how you would take a round rock and attach it to a piece of wood and then all of a sudden you hear this massive crashing and rumbling sound in the sky. You look to the heavens and see flashing lights and burning streaks across the sky. What do you do? Well, you drop to you knees and pray to whatever god you worship to have mercy on your soul and forgive you for disobeying their wishes.
Sounding familiar?
{slurp}
Friday, June 13, 2008
v18.4 - Friday the Thirteenth
Morning folks,
{slurp}
We've been blessed with another day. Not just any day mind you, it is FRIDAY!!! the thirteenth.
{slurp}
This Sunday is Father's day. Personally, as a father, I am looking forward to getting the little hand made gifts from my kids. I love it when they spend time and make things for me and with the exception of a few disasters, I've kept every single thing they've made for me so far.
{slurp}
{slurp}
We've been blessed with another day. Not just any day mind you, it is FRIDAY!!! the thirteenth.
{slurp}
This Sunday is Father's day. Personally, as a father, I am looking forward to getting the little hand made gifts from my kids. I love it when they spend time and make things for me and with the exception of a few disasters, I've kept every single thing they've made for me so far.
{slurp}
Monday, June 9, 2008
v18.3 - Farewell Gramps
Morning Folks,
{slurp}
It has been a long time since I updated this site, but there have been circumstances inhibiting my updates. For starters, my grandfather recently passed away (May 30, 2008). The week prior to that he had a serious stroke which put him in the hospital. He lived his last few days in a hospital with family and friends around him. I didn't go see him those last few days, but I did make a trip down for the funeral. It was an emotional time.
{slurp}
{slurp}
It has been a long time since I updated this site, but there have been circumstances inhibiting my updates. For starters, my grandfather recently passed away (May 30, 2008). The week prior to that he had a serious stroke which put him in the hospital. He lived his last few days in a hospital with family and friends around him. I didn't go see him those last few days, but I did make a trip down for the funeral. It was an emotional time.
{slurp}
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
Image Test
Howdy Folks,
Just doing a quick image test. I installed a new tool today called Light Box. If this works, when you click on the image below, it should open it up in a "light box".
Just doing a quick image test. I installed a new tool today called Light Box. If this works, when you click on the image below, it should open it up in a "light box".
Friday, May 23, 2008
v18.2 - Let it Rain!
Morning folks,
{slurp}
It's FRIDAY!
The end of the week is upon us and the beginning of our weekend is about to start. Even though this was a short week for us here in Canada, it seems like it was a full week plus.
{slurp}
As my title suggests, it is raining today here. It was actually a really nice drive into work today with the rain beating on the roof of my vehicle and off the windshield. Even though traffic was a bit "messy", it was still a lot less stressful to have the rain there. I flipped on my "Great Big Sea" CD and sat back and enjoyed my drive into work. Enjoyed it so much, in fact, that I didn't want to stop at the office :)
{slurp}
... a few hours later...
{slurp}
Wow, all of a sudden things picked up and I just NOW was able to sit down and finish this musing. Of course for you, the wait was instant. Unfortunately I won't have the time to write all my thoughts down today as I have a fairly fun packed afternoon to run with. I'll make sure to login tomorrow and fill you all in on my warped reality :)
{slurp}
Until then...
Cheers,
Al
{slurp}
It's FRIDAY!
The end of the week is upon us and the beginning of our weekend is about to start. Even though this was a short week for us here in Canada, it seems like it was a full week plus.
{slurp}
As my title suggests, it is raining today here. It was actually a really nice drive into work today with the rain beating on the roof of my vehicle and off the windshield. Even though traffic was a bit "messy", it was still a lot less stressful to have the rain there. I flipped on my "Great Big Sea" CD and sat back and enjoyed my drive into work. Enjoyed it so much, in fact, that I didn't want to stop at the office :)
{slurp}
... a few hours later...
{slurp}
Wow, all of a sudden things picked up and I just NOW was able to sit down and finish this musing. Of course for you, the wait was instant. Unfortunately I won't have the time to write all my thoughts down today as I have a fairly fun packed afternoon to run with. I'll make sure to login tomorrow and fill you all in on my warped reality :)
{slurp}
Until then...
Cheers,
Al
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
v18.1 - E.T. Phone Home
Good Morning Folks,
{slurp}
Well it is Mond.. err.. Tuesday. I took Friday off last week and Monday was a Holiday here in Canada so I had a super nice long weekend.
{slurp}
This past weekend I did entirely too much gaming. So much, in fact, that I've decided to take a week off from gaming and doing other things around the house/yard. Since the weather is starting to get nice up here in the cold north, I've decided to get outside a bit more and do.... something. I also want to get some "spring cleaning" done around the house. I was cleaning up the entry-way closet yesterday and noticed a serious surplus of mittens, hats and various other Winter wear. Time to get that stuff put away along with the heavy jackets, snow suits and boots. That should hopefully clear out that closet a bit and open up space for our sandles, sneakers and light jackets. It's all about organization :)
{slurp}
Work has been going great since I changed teams. It is still hard to get up and come in every day, but the weather is getting nicer and the working environment has become a lot less stressful and more enjoyable. Now if I can find a way to make our cost of living cheaper.... :)
{slurp}
I was driving into work this morning and there was discussion going on (the radio) about energy costs and the rising cost to power and heat our homes. There is cost hikes everywhere from the fuel it takes to run your vehicle to the cheerios you put on your table. Everywhere I turn around I see prices going up and then I look at my paycheque going into my account and don't see any increase. It is a bit frustrating to see everything else going up and seeing your income stay the same. What are we (society) to do?
{slurp}
Well the quickest and easiest thing to do is start cutting back on the non-essentials. Do we need that digital cable box in our living room? Do we need the 5 movie channels and movies on demand? Probably not, but it sure is nice to have :) Do we need to always buy brand name merchandise or can we get away with buying the no-name brands? These are things we (as families and individuals) need to think about and decide on. Let's face the facts folks, when your parents were young, they paid 25 cents for a bag of chips and a bottle of pop with money left over. We'll be telling our kids we used to be able to buy a bag of chips and a bottle of pop for under a dollar when we were kids. Our kids can buy a bottle of pop and bag of chips for under $2 today and their kids will be able to buy a bag of chips and bottle of pop for under $5. The cost of living is NOT going to decrease.
{slurp}
I'm not sure who much gasoline is in other parts of Canada or the US, but right now we're paying $1.33/li (approx $5.04 gallon for my American friends). Driving to and from work every day is starting to really get expensive and on top of that some people have to pay monthly for parking. What are my alternatives? We could take public transit which, in my case, takes me almost 3 times as long to get to work in the morning. This isn't ideal for my situation because taking transit would disable me to take my kids to school everyday which in-turn will disable my wife to work in the mornings. For those who have no choice but to drive, they could find a cheaper parking spot. Right now I'm getting a discounted parking rate which is cheaper (per month) than anywhere else in the downtown core so as it stands now, I'm paying the least amount as I can to get to and from work.
{slurp}
Another thing to think about is selling that old or fuel inefficient vehicle and buy something cheaper. My vehicle isn't too old (2005) but it is a 6 cylinder which uses quite a bit of fuel. I should be able to get a decent price for it and then turn around and buy a smaller vehicle with a little less room but better fuel economy. I'm hesitant about doing anything right now as I also need to think about the new baby on the way and think about space.
{slurp}
The cost of living is a real concern here. There are people and families who couldn't afford to pay for heat this past winter. One man even perished in his home on a really cold night because the heating company shut off his heat due to payment. I hate to say it, but things are getting worse and with the current price of oil and the rising costs of energy, society is in desperate need for something cheap and efficient. We've seen massive earthquakes and flooding going on in Asia, cyclones and other natural disasters wiping out homes, schools, businesses and even entire towns. I can't help but think back on that passage in the Bible that talks about the last days... {shudder}.
{slurp}
Well folks, I must get back to work and earn that paycheque :) I'd like to hear your thoughts on the current cost of living and where you think society will go.
Until next time
Cheers,
Al
{slurp}
Well it is Mond.. err.. Tuesday. I took Friday off last week and Monday was a Holiday here in Canada so I had a super nice long weekend.
{slurp}
This past weekend I did entirely too much gaming. So much, in fact, that I've decided to take a week off from gaming and doing other things around the house/yard. Since the weather is starting to get nice up here in the cold north, I've decided to get outside a bit more and do.... something. I also want to get some "spring cleaning" done around the house. I was cleaning up the entry-way closet yesterday and noticed a serious surplus of mittens, hats and various other Winter wear. Time to get that stuff put away along with the heavy jackets, snow suits and boots. That should hopefully clear out that closet a bit and open up space for our sandles, sneakers and light jackets. It's all about organization :)
{slurp}
Work has been going great since I changed teams. It is still hard to get up and come in every day, but the weather is getting nicer and the working environment has become a lot less stressful and more enjoyable. Now if I can find a way to make our cost of living cheaper.... :)
{slurp}
I was driving into work this morning and there was discussion going on (the radio) about energy costs and the rising cost to power and heat our homes. There is cost hikes everywhere from the fuel it takes to run your vehicle to the cheerios you put on your table. Everywhere I turn around I see prices going up and then I look at my paycheque going into my account and don't see any increase. It is a bit frustrating to see everything else going up and seeing your income stay the same. What are we (society) to do?
{slurp}
Well the quickest and easiest thing to do is start cutting back on the non-essentials. Do we need that digital cable box in our living room? Do we need the 5 movie channels and movies on demand? Probably not, but it sure is nice to have :) Do we need to always buy brand name merchandise or can we get away with buying the no-name brands? These are things we (as families and individuals) need to think about and decide on. Let's face the facts folks, when your parents were young, they paid 25 cents for a bag of chips and a bottle of pop with money left over. We'll be telling our kids we used to be able to buy a bag of chips and a bottle of pop for under a dollar when we were kids. Our kids can buy a bottle of pop and bag of chips for under $2 today and their kids will be able to buy a bag of chips and bottle of pop for under $5. The cost of living is NOT going to decrease.
{slurp}
I'm not sure who much gasoline is in other parts of Canada or the US, but right now we're paying $1.33/li (approx $5.04 gallon for my American friends). Driving to and from work every day is starting to really get expensive and on top of that some people have to pay monthly for parking. What are my alternatives? We could take public transit which, in my case, takes me almost 3 times as long to get to work in the morning. This isn't ideal for my situation because taking transit would disable me to take my kids to school everyday which in-turn will disable my wife to work in the mornings. For those who have no choice but to drive, they could find a cheaper parking spot. Right now I'm getting a discounted parking rate which is cheaper (per month) than anywhere else in the downtown core so as it stands now, I'm paying the least amount as I can to get to and from work.
{slurp}
Another thing to think about is selling that old or fuel inefficient vehicle and buy something cheaper. My vehicle isn't too old (2005) but it is a 6 cylinder which uses quite a bit of fuel. I should be able to get a decent price for it and then turn around and buy a smaller vehicle with a little less room but better fuel economy. I'm hesitant about doing anything right now as I also need to think about the new baby on the way and think about space.
{slurp}
The cost of living is a real concern here. There are people and families who couldn't afford to pay for heat this past winter. One man even perished in his home on a really cold night because the heating company shut off his heat due to payment. I hate to say it, but things are getting worse and with the current price of oil and the rising costs of energy, society is in desperate need for something cheap and efficient. We've seen massive earthquakes and flooding going on in Asia, cyclones and other natural disasters wiping out homes, schools, businesses and even entire towns. I can't help but think back on that passage in the Bible that talks about the last days... {shudder}.
{slurp}
Well folks, I must get back to work and earn that paycheque :) I'd like to hear your thoughts on the current cost of living and where you think society will go.
Until next time
Cheers,
Al
Thursday, May 15, 2008
v18.0 - Weekly Update
Morning Folks,
{slurp}
I was looking at the site today (as I tend to do every morning before work) and noticed my last post was exactly a week ago. Today WASN'T garbage day haha.
{slurp}
Most of you know I am an avid gamer. I have been a gamer for as long as I can remember. My parents bought me my first computer (Commodore vic20) and my first console gaming system (Atari) and I have been gaming and using computers ever since. World of Warcraft is a long way from Pong, but when you think about it, games haven't really evolved much in the way of play, just in graphics and sound. In Pong you have two players (or one player vs computer). The goal of the game is to make your opponent miss the ball thus awarding you a point. The ball bounces back and forth, off walls, off obstacles and eventually a victor rises up. The same goes for any game created today. You have Player vs Player where the proverbial ball bounces between players. In this case, you're talking about split second mathematical calculations where various factors are calculated and the player either reflects the ball back or the ball goes by and the other player gets a point.
{slurp}
Of course it is a lot more complicated than that, but you get the point.
{slurp}
World of Warcraft (at last count) has over 10 million subscribers. Can you imagine playing a game with 10 million other people in the world? Luckily Blizzard has split these players up into little communities called Servers where there are approx 300 of. Each server will house a number of players who can all interact with each other and create their own community. Just like any community, players get to know other players and make friendships and aquatences.
{slurp}
I was playing World of Warcraft last night (and up way later than I should have been) and there were laughs had and memories created. After logging I took a few moments to reflect on the night's events and had a chuckle. Then I had a thought; what if, during the server selection phase, I had picked a different server? Or in my case, what if my father had picked a different server? Since the only reason I play on the server I do is because my father and step-brother play there. So what if they had picked a different server (or Blizzard had chosen a different server for them to play on) and we never met the people we know today? Would it be safe to assume we would have met other similar people and had similar adventures? Or would we even be playing World of Warcraft today because I can say with all certainty that there were times when the only thing keeping me in the game were the people.
{slurp}
It is quite amazing how life chooses you. When you look back on your life and see all the different paths you could have taken and all the paths you did take and where they led you. It is really quite a wonder any of us are alive today given the past mistakes and near-misses we've had. These are the things that make us who we are and have led us to this exact point in time. I believe all things happen for a reason and purpose even if we don't always know exactly what the reason or purpose is. I've seen too many strange coincidences to rule it out.
{slurp}
Anyway folks, what started off as a quick "Hey" turned into a full blown musing (horray for me). Now I'm 5 minutes late getting the kids to school so I need to RUN. Take care and we'll see you again soon (less than a week, I promise).
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
{slurp}
I was looking at the site today (as I tend to do every morning before work) and noticed my last post was exactly a week ago. Today WASN'T garbage day haha.
{slurp}
Most of you know I am an avid gamer. I have been a gamer for as long as I can remember. My parents bought me my first computer (Commodore vic20) and my first console gaming system (Atari) and I have been gaming and using computers ever since. World of Warcraft is a long way from Pong, but when you think about it, games haven't really evolved much in the way of play, just in graphics and sound. In Pong you have two players (or one player vs computer). The goal of the game is to make your opponent miss the ball thus awarding you a point. The ball bounces back and forth, off walls, off obstacles and eventually a victor rises up. The same goes for any game created today. You have Player vs Player where the proverbial ball bounces between players. In this case, you're talking about split second mathematical calculations where various factors are calculated and the player either reflects the ball back or the ball goes by and the other player gets a point.
{slurp}
Of course it is a lot more complicated than that, but you get the point.
{slurp}
World of Warcraft (at last count) has over 10 million subscribers. Can you imagine playing a game with 10 million other people in the world? Luckily Blizzard has split these players up into little communities called Servers where there are approx 300 of. Each server will house a number of players who can all interact with each other and create their own community. Just like any community, players get to know other players and make friendships and aquatences.
{slurp}
I was playing World of Warcraft last night (and up way later than I should have been) and there were laughs had and memories created. After logging I took a few moments to reflect on the night's events and had a chuckle. Then I had a thought; what if, during the server selection phase, I had picked a different server? Or in my case, what if my father had picked a different server? Since the only reason I play on the server I do is because my father and step-brother play there. So what if they had picked a different server (or Blizzard had chosen a different server for them to play on) and we never met the people we know today? Would it be safe to assume we would have met other similar people and had similar adventures? Or would we even be playing World of Warcraft today because I can say with all certainty that there were times when the only thing keeping me in the game were the people.
{slurp}
It is quite amazing how life chooses you. When you look back on your life and see all the different paths you could have taken and all the paths you did take and where they led you. It is really quite a wonder any of us are alive today given the past mistakes and near-misses we've had. These are the things that make us who we are and have led us to this exact point in time. I believe all things happen for a reason and purpose even if we don't always know exactly what the reason or purpose is. I've seen too many strange coincidences to rule it out.
{slurp}
Anyway folks, what started off as a quick "Hey" turned into a full blown musing (horray for me). Now I'm 5 minutes late getting the kids to school so I need to RUN. Take care and we'll see you again soon (less than a week, I promise).
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
Thursday, May 8, 2008
v17.9 - Garbage Day...
Morning Folks,
{slurp}
What a morning this has been. Hopefully things pick up, but so far it doesn't look like it :)
{slurp}
I started things off early (6:30am) today. I know that isn't early for some of you, but we typically don't get up until sometime shortly after 7am. I began by gathering as much garbage as I could. You see, in our area of town, they only do garbage collection every other Thursday and sometimes (when they don't show up before I wake) on Tuesdays. I ended up spending an hour gathering up all the garbage and ironing my clothes for work. Yes, I know how to iron and while it isn't one of my favorite things to do, it is necessary to look half presentable for work. For whatever reason, our dryer decides to take all our clothes and crumple them into tiny balls. Even my jeans are wrinkled beyond wear and I have to iron those as well.
{slurp}
{slurp}
What a morning this has been. Hopefully things pick up, but so far it doesn't look like it :)
{slurp}
I started things off early (6:30am) today. I know that isn't early for some of you, but we typically don't get up until sometime shortly after 7am. I began by gathering as much garbage as I could. You see, in our area of town, they only do garbage collection every other Thursday and sometimes (when they don't show up before I wake) on Tuesdays. I ended up spending an hour gathering up all the garbage and ironing my clothes for work. Yes, I know how to iron and while it isn't one of my favorite things to do, it is necessary to look half presentable for work. For whatever reason, our dryer decides to take all our clothes and crumple them into tiny balls. Even my jeans are wrinkled beyond wear and I have to iron those as well.
{slurp}
While all this was happening I also had to find time to get the kids up for school and get them breakfast. My son is really good for getting up and getting ready on his own (he is 8 years old after all) but I basically told my daughter that I didn't have time to sit there and dress her and get her ready and she would have to be a big girl and do it herself. She did, and it only took her 30mins to get out of bed and get dressed and get downstairs which is almost as long as it normally takes with me helping, so that was a good thing.
{slurp}
{slurp}
Things were going half good, we got the garbage out to the curb on time (6 bags, a kitchen table, and old lamp and and old lawn chair) but it was what I found after that set me off.
{slurp}
The weather has been getting nicer lately and as such we've started buying freezies for the kids. Well, finding a bunch (at least 5) freezie wrappers and a jello container in the corner by the TV COVERED in ants was the last straw. Needless to say, my kids are officially grounded from ALL snacks today and probably tomorrow too. There were literally hundreds of ants everywhere. If you remember last year, we had an ant problem as well and it was a bugger to get rid of them. In fact, I don't think there was ever a point last year where we truly got rid of all the ants, we just make sure we were careful with the food and such on the floor and keep things clean so they wouldn't come around as much.
{slurp}
{slurp}
The weather has been getting nicer lately and as such we've started buying freezies for the kids. Well, finding a bunch (at least 5) freezie wrappers and a jello container in the corner by the TV COVERED in ants was the last straw. Needless to say, my kids are officially grounded from ALL snacks today and probably tomorrow too. There were literally hundreds of ants everywhere. If you remember last year, we had an ant problem as well and it was a bugger to get rid of them. In fact, I don't think there was ever a point last year where we truly got rid of all the ants, we just make sure we were careful with the food and such on the floor and keep things clean so they wouldn't come around as much.
{slurp}
Also this morning I ended up driving 4 kids to school. This was the least amount of stress today, believe it or not. I also had to drop the car off at the garage this morning as it is time to get the winter tires off and to get the oil changed ($500 bucks). I was there on time and checked in. Then, to make my morning extra fun, they forgot about me and I had to wait an extra 30ish minutes for the shuttle van to come back so they could drive me to work.
{slurp}
{slurp}
All this before 9am and I still have 8 long hours ahead of me :)
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
Monday, April 14, 2008
v17.8 - The Monday Strikes Again!
Morning folks,
{slurp}
That's right, the Monday Strikes Again! I missed my musing yesterday but that's ok since I think the Roll-Up contest has finally come to a close. I've been hard pressed to find a Roll-Up cup anywhere lately and have only found one Tim's in my area that still has them. I've done my best to get a musing out every day during the contest and I think I did quite well with only missing a couple. Not bad considering the contest lasted about a month and a half.
{slurp}
Well it is off to work today and this week is a short week for me! My mother-in-law is flying into the city this week and is spending a couple weeks with us. Since we have to pick her up at the airport very early Wednesday morning, I figured I would take that day off as well as the rest of the week. Looking forward to having her here (truth be told) and so are the kids.
{slurp}
Regarding my musings, I do plan on continuing to write on a semi-daily basis. I've gained a new love for it and plan on keeping it up as much as possible. I find my weekends the hardest times to write because I just want to relax and do some gaming or play with the kids. By the time I realize I haven't written it is in the evening and I'm about to start a raid with some guild friends or watch a movie. After that, I'm too tired to sit down and write so I go to bed. You see, I would rather miss a musing all together than to half ass one and only put out a few sentences. I just don't feel right about writing a few lines and then calling it a musing. I know I've done it in the past and I've even done it during the Roll-Up contest just to get a musing out that day. Oh well.
{slurp}
That said, I must be off and get ready to head out the door for work and school. One of my friends is starting his new job today where I work so I plan on dropping by and visiting with him early this morning to see how he's making out. It was a bit of a headache trying to get this guy hired on, but I'm glad he has finally landed a gig with the company.
Until next time my friends,
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
{slurp}
That's right, the Monday Strikes Again! I missed my musing yesterday but that's ok since I think the Roll-Up contest has finally come to a close. I've been hard pressed to find a Roll-Up cup anywhere lately and have only found one Tim's in my area that still has them. I've done my best to get a musing out every day during the contest and I think I did quite well with only missing a couple. Not bad considering the contest lasted about a month and a half.
{slurp}
Well it is off to work today and this week is a short week for me! My mother-in-law is flying into the city this week and is spending a couple weeks with us. Since we have to pick her up at the airport very early Wednesday morning, I figured I would take that day off as well as the rest of the week. Looking forward to having her here (truth be told) and so are the kids.
{slurp}
Regarding my musings, I do plan on continuing to write on a semi-daily basis. I've gained a new love for it and plan on keeping it up as much as possible. I find my weekends the hardest times to write because I just want to relax and do some gaming or play with the kids. By the time I realize I haven't written it is in the evening and I'm about to start a raid with some guild friends or watch a movie. After that, I'm too tired to sit down and write so I go to bed. You see, I would rather miss a musing all together than to half ass one and only put out a few sentences. I just don't feel right about writing a few lines and then calling it a musing. I know I've done it in the past and I've even done it during the Roll-Up contest just to get a musing out that day. Oh well.
{slurp}
That said, I must be off and get ready to head out the door for work and school. One of my friends is starting his new job today where I work so I plan on dropping by and visiting with him early this morning to see how he's making out. It was a bit of a headache trying to get this guy hired on, but I'm glad he has finally landed a gig with the company.
Until next time my friends,
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
Saturday, April 12, 2008
v17.7 - Roll-Up Done?
Howdy Folks,
{slurp}
Is the Roll-up-the-rim contest done in your area? I went to one of my local Tim Horton's yesterday and they were out of Roll Up cups. I figured it was because they were just out of Extra Large cups so I went back later and ordered just a large. As the Drive-thru lady handed me my plain old brown cup I asked if they were out of roll-up cups. She nodded and apologized to which I replied DIE and drove away without paying.
{slurp}
Just kidding of course. I politely payed the lady for my coffee and drove away wondering how many other Tim Horton's out there are out of roll-up cups. Then today I went to the Tim Horton's at a local mall and low and behold they had roll-up cups left. I giggled with glee as I started to drink my coffee. The glee ended with a simple roll-up action which ended in a "Please Play Again". What the hell? I've been a loyal Tim's drinker from the beginning of this contest and here we are nearly at the end and I've still only won 4 things. 4!!!
{slurp}
Perhaps it is bad luck, bad karma or a bit of both which has disabled me from winning this year. Perhaps my knowledge (or fear) of winning because my wife works for Tim Horton's has sent a signal to the universe and the law of attraction has made it so hardly any winning cups have came my way. Perhaps there is a meteor on a collision course with Earth as I type this and it will arrive on the launch day of the 2009 Roll-up-the-rim contest and I won't get an opportunity to record my winnings next year. Perhaps I think too much?
{slurp}
It really isn't the end of the world. I drink coffee regardless of the contest even though I tend to drink a bit more coffee than normal during the roll-up season. Of course after finding out this year that Tim Horton's knows where every single "big" prize is and what store the cup was sold to, it kind of ruins the "surprise" or "random" factor for me. To think, that every single car prize has a predetermined destination and ONLY people who frequent that particular Tim Horton's will win it. To also think that in all of Nova Scotia, there is only ONE car prize while in places like Ontario they have several. To know that they purposely placed these winning cups in specific Tim Horton's locations really makes me wonder.
{slurp}
Anyway folks, I'm going to take off for now. I need to get supper started here and get ready for a raid tonight (T-minus 30minutes from now). Until next time.
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
{slurp}
Is the Roll-up-the-rim contest done in your area? I went to one of my local Tim Horton's yesterday and they were out of Roll Up cups. I figured it was because they were just out of Extra Large cups so I went back later and ordered just a large. As the Drive-thru lady handed me my plain old brown cup I asked if they were out of roll-up cups. She nodded and apologized to which I replied DIE and drove away without paying.
{slurp}
Just kidding of course. I politely payed the lady for my coffee and drove away wondering how many other Tim Horton's out there are out of roll-up cups. Then today I went to the Tim Horton's at a local mall and low and behold they had roll-up cups left. I giggled with glee as I started to drink my coffee. The glee ended with a simple roll-up action which ended in a "Please Play Again". What the hell? I've been a loyal Tim's drinker from the beginning of this contest and here we are nearly at the end and I've still only won 4 things. 4!!!
{slurp}
Perhaps it is bad luck, bad karma or a bit of both which has disabled me from winning this year. Perhaps my knowledge (or fear) of winning because my wife works for Tim Horton's has sent a signal to the universe and the law of attraction has made it so hardly any winning cups have came my way. Perhaps there is a meteor on a collision course with Earth as I type this and it will arrive on the launch day of the 2009 Roll-up-the-rim contest and I won't get an opportunity to record my winnings next year. Perhaps I think too much?
{slurp}
It really isn't the end of the world. I drink coffee regardless of the contest even though I tend to drink a bit more coffee than normal during the roll-up season. Of course after finding out this year that Tim Horton's knows where every single "big" prize is and what store the cup was sold to, it kind of ruins the "surprise" or "random" factor for me. To think, that every single car prize has a predetermined destination and ONLY people who frequent that particular Tim Horton's will win it. To also think that in all of Nova Scotia, there is only ONE car prize while in places like Ontario they have several. To know that they purposely placed these winning cups in specific Tim Horton's locations really makes me wonder.
{slurp}
Anyway folks, I'm going to take off for now. I need to get supper started here and get ready for a raid tonight (T-minus 30minutes from now). Until next time.
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
Friday, April 11, 2008
v17.6 - New Theme
Morning folks,
{slurp}
Well it is finally Friday (like I thought it was yesterday) and I'm so glad! I'm also glad to announce that I am in the process of implementing a new theme for the site. The theme will be tweaked and changed over the next few days but I think this is the color scheme and layout I'm looking for.
{slurp}
Did I mention that I'm glad it's Friday yet? Folks, I don't want you to think my job is too much for me but there are things about my job that just seem to drain the life out of me. While I'm excited and happy to be given the opportunity to join the new team and begin integrating myself and learning new things, I'm also a bit annoyed at how things have been ignored and left by the way side regarding process and documentation. We have a guy who is leaving the team next week. He has been a huge contributer to the team and has a lot of knowledge in his head. Nobody has ever asked him if any of the stuff he does is documented somewhere. Imagine my surprise when I found this out. Imagine I had joined the team a week later and found out none of this stuff was documented or handed off properly? I don't want to think about it.
{slurp}
Aside from that, I'm enjoying the new gig and look forward to getting to know the team better. I agreed to take on the Team Lead role this week so on Tuesday during the team meeting it was announced that I would be the new Team Lead (this team hasn't had a team lead for a couple months now). I'm up for the challenge and so far I think I'm doing a good job. It is going to take some time to bring this team around, however, as we are 4 people short right now I've been interviewing people like crazy and hope to have at least two of the 6 people I interviewed passed on for client interviews and hopefully hired within the next month. We also have a new guy starting the week after next so if all goes as planned, we'll only be down 2 people which is manageable and should be fairly easy to find and fill in the holes.
{slurp}
Alas, it is nearly time to head off to school and then to work so I'm going to logout now. I hope everyone has a great Friday and we'll see you here again tomorrow.
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
{slurp}
Well it is finally Friday (like I thought it was yesterday) and I'm so glad! I'm also glad to announce that I am in the process of implementing a new theme for the site. The theme will be tweaked and changed over the next few days but I think this is the color scheme and layout I'm looking for.
{slurp}
Did I mention that I'm glad it's Friday yet? Folks, I don't want you to think my job is too much for me but there are things about my job that just seem to drain the life out of me. While I'm excited and happy to be given the opportunity to join the new team and begin integrating myself and learning new things, I'm also a bit annoyed at how things have been ignored and left by the way side regarding process and documentation. We have a guy who is leaving the team next week. He has been a huge contributer to the team and has a lot of knowledge in his head. Nobody has ever asked him if any of the stuff he does is documented somewhere. Imagine my surprise when I found this out. Imagine I had joined the team a week later and found out none of this stuff was documented or handed off properly? I don't want to think about it.
{slurp}
Aside from that, I'm enjoying the new gig and look forward to getting to know the team better. I agreed to take on the Team Lead role this week so on Tuesday during the team meeting it was announced that I would be the new Team Lead (this team hasn't had a team lead for a couple months now). I'm up for the challenge and so far I think I'm doing a good job. It is going to take some time to bring this team around, however, as we are 4 people short right now I've been interviewing people like crazy and hope to have at least two of the 6 people I interviewed passed on for client interviews and hopefully hired within the next month. We also have a new guy starting the week after next so if all goes as planned, we'll only be down 2 people which is manageable and should be fairly easy to find and fill in the holes.
{slurp}
Alas, it is nearly time to head off to school and then to work so I'm going to logout now. I hope everyone has a great Friday and we'll see you here again tomorrow.
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
Thursday, April 10, 2008
v17.5 - If Tomorrow Never Comes
Morning folks,
{slurp}
Imagine my disappointment when I awoke this morning, turned off my alarm and realized it was Thursday. For some reason I had it in my head that today was Friday and my last day of work for the week. OH well.
{slurp}
I watched an interesting video yesterday called "End Day". Basically, plays the same day over and over (similar to Groundhog Day) except each day is another way the world "could" end (or have a major disaster). Personally if the world is going to end it's going to end and I doubt there is much we, as inhabitants of the plant, can do to stop it. While the video was interesting in its own way, it was the idea of the same day repeating and ending differently that interests me.
{slurp}
Of course this theory has a name but it escapes me this morning. I also believe I've written about this before but the theory keeps coming up and I find myself pondering on it daily. For those who don't know what I'm talking about, imagine an event in your life where you made a decision between two or more possible outcomes. Let's take, for example, the decision of have a baby (since that is fresh in my mind as well :) ). On one side, you decide to have a baby and that child grows up and has their own life possibly becomes a Doctor or some other type of profession. On the other side you choose not to have a baby and that life is never created and all the lives that life would have touched would go on in completely different directions than they would have. Also, let's say you having a baby influenced a friend or another family member to have a child? If you didn't have that child, then they wouldn't have had their child (or they would in a different "reality") therefore two lives are now missing.
{slurp}
Now you're saying to yourself, how could a life that never existed by missing? Well, that is exactly what I'm trying to talk about here. The theory suggests that anything that CAN happen DOES happen in a different "reality". Right now, there is an infinite number of you performing an infinite number of things differently than you. Every time you do something, an alternate reality branches off of you doing something different or doing something at a different time. Have you ever had a close encounter while crossing the street? Have you ever "almost" done something? Well in an alternate reality that car did hit you while you were crossing the street and that thing you almost did, you did do.
{slurp}
Of course all of this is just a theory :) Something difficult (impossible?) to prove but interesting to think about. That person you thought you'd spend the rest of your life with? You are with them today in an alternate reality. That child you wish you had never given up, is with you in an alternate reality. Kinda scary and interesting to think about I guess. There used to be a TV show called "Sliders" which touched on this theory. They would "slide" between dimensions and each time they slid, they would end up in an alternate reality of their time. I urge you to look it up on the Internet when you get a chance and watch a few of the episodes.
{slurp}
Well folks, I must be off to work now. This writing in the morning is proving to be better for me so I'll probably continue it. Until tomorrow.
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
{slurp}
Imagine my disappointment when I awoke this morning, turned off my alarm and realized it was Thursday. For some reason I had it in my head that today was Friday and my last day of work for the week. OH well.
{slurp}
I watched an interesting video yesterday called "End Day". Basically, plays the same day over and over (similar to Groundhog Day) except each day is another way the world "could" end (or have a major disaster). Personally if the world is going to end it's going to end and I doubt there is much we, as inhabitants of the plant, can do to stop it. While the video was interesting in its own way, it was the idea of the same day repeating and ending differently that interests me.
{slurp}
Of course this theory has a name but it escapes me this morning. I also believe I've written about this before but the theory keeps coming up and I find myself pondering on it daily. For those who don't know what I'm talking about, imagine an event in your life where you made a decision between two or more possible outcomes. Let's take, for example, the decision of have a baby (since that is fresh in my mind as well :) ). On one side, you decide to have a baby and that child grows up and has their own life possibly becomes a Doctor or some other type of profession. On the other side you choose not to have a baby and that life is never created and all the lives that life would have touched would go on in completely different directions than they would have. Also, let's say you having a baby influenced a friend or another family member to have a child? If you didn't have that child, then they wouldn't have had their child (or they would in a different "reality") therefore two lives are now missing.
{slurp}
Now you're saying to yourself, how could a life that never existed by missing? Well, that is exactly what I'm trying to talk about here. The theory suggests that anything that CAN happen DOES happen in a different "reality". Right now, there is an infinite number of you performing an infinite number of things differently than you. Every time you do something, an alternate reality branches off of you doing something different or doing something at a different time. Have you ever had a close encounter while crossing the street? Have you ever "almost" done something? Well in an alternate reality that car did hit you while you were crossing the street and that thing you almost did, you did do.
{slurp}
Of course all of this is just a theory :) Something difficult (impossible?) to prove but interesting to think about. That person you thought you'd spend the rest of your life with? You are with them today in an alternate reality. That child you wish you had never given up, is with you in an alternate reality. Kinda scary and interesting to think about I guess. There used to be a TV show called "Sliders" which touched on this theory. They would "slide" between dimensions and each time they slid, they would end up in an alternate reality of their time. I urge you to look it up on the Internet when you get a chance and watch a few of the episodes.
{slurp}
Well folks, I must be off to work now. This writing in the morning is proving to be better for me so I'll probably continue it. Until tomorrow.
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
Wednesday, April 9, 2008
v17.4 - The Flu and You
Howdy folks,
{slurp}
It appears it is flu season again here. My niece was sick on the weekend and now my son and wife are sick with something. I'm feeling a bit under the weather myself but still well enough to go to work and get around. My daughter is unaffected as usual.
{slurp}
This got me thinking of how certain people can get sick and others not. I realize at a high level there is this thing called an immune system which is designed to fight off these things. What bothers me about that is the fact we get sick every single year (some of us) and it is typically the same thing. You could almost write it on the calendar. Why is that?
{slurp}
Some would say it is the law of attraction at work. Because so many people are thinking about being sick in the fall or spring (flu season) the flu is allowed to manifest itself and attack us while our immune systems take a nap and allow it to happen. Other may take the approach that our immune systems "forget" how to battle things like the common cold or flu despite the fact they we're exposed to it many many times a year. Some would even go so far as to say the "common" flu and cold virus has evolved every year and tricks the immune system allowing it to penetrate our bodies.
{slurp}
There are many reasons people suspect "why" this is happening but there is very little in the way of actual proof or studies done (that I can find anyway) where theories are tried. I would like to actually find a document or paper written by a qualified expert that explains exactly why our bodies are infected yearly with the same virus. Some of us get flu shots every year which is basically a nice way of saying, "We're injecting you with the flu virus". The flu shot is not perfect and people will still get sick even with the shot. The flu shot is supposed to prepare your body for the "flu season" (again with the preparation and flu season) by exposing you to a small dose of the flu so your body can fight it off. If we're not careful, one would think our immune systems are like couch potatoes who sit on their asses all day and when it comes time to run a marathon they get up and do some exercise to prepare. It almost seems that way doesn't it?
{slurp}
Anyway folks, just something quick to think on today. As you can see I missed yesterday's musing (which I will write today) because it was so hectic at work and then we had dance class after work and then half the family was sick and I needed to run around and get drinks and tissues and soups. I was so exhausted by the end of it all I decided to login and play a little LOTRO and then I watched a movie and went to bed. Luckly I was up at a decent time this morning and had time to write this before heading off to work. I actually enjoyed writing this early in the morning and will try it again tomorrow to see how it goes.
{slurp}
Until next time.
Cheers,
Al
{slurp}
It appears it is flu season again here. My niece was sick on the weekend and now my son and wife are sick with something. I'm feeling a bit under the weather myself but still well enough to go to work and get around. My daughter is unaffected as usual.
{slurp}
This got me thinking of how certain people can get sick and others not. I realize at a high level there is this thing called an immune system which is designed to fight off these things. What bothers me about that is the fact we get sick every single year (some of us) and it is typically the same thing. You could almost write it on the calendar. Why is that?
{slurp}
Some would say it is the law of attraction at work. Because so many people are thinking about being sick in the fall or spring (flu season) the flu is allowed to manifest itself and attack us while our immune systems take a nap and allow it to happen. Other may take the approach that our immune systems "forget" how to battle things like the common cold or flu despite the fact they we're exposed to it many many times a year. Some would even go so far as to say the "common" flu and cold virus has evolved every year and tricks the immune system allowing it to penetrate our bodies.
{slurp}
There are many reasons people suspect "why" this is happening but there is very little in the way of actual proof or studies done (that I can find anyway) where theories are tried. I would like to actually find a document or paper written by a qualified expert that explains exactly why our bodies are infected yearly with the same virus. Some of us get flu shots every year which is basically a nice way of saying, "We're injecting you with the flu virus". The flu shot is not perfect and people will still get sick even with the shot. The flu shot is supposed to prepare your body for the "flu season" (again with the preparation and flu season) by exposing you to a small dose of the flu so your body can fight it off. If we're not careful, one would think our immune systems are like couch potatoes who sit on their asses all day and when it comes time to run a marathon they get up and do some exercise to prepare. It almost seems that way doesn't it?
{slurp}
Anyway folks, just something quick to think on today. As you can see I missed yesterday's musing (which I will write today) because it was so hectic at work and then we had dance class after work and then half the family was sick and I needed to run around and get drinks and tissues and soups. I was so exhausted by the end of it all I decided to login and play a little LOTRO and then I watched a movie and went to bed. Luckly I was up at a decent time this morning and had time to write this before heading off to work. I actually enjoyed writing this early in the morning and will try it again tomorrow to see how it goes.
{slurp}
Until next time.
Cheers,
Al
Monday, April 7, 2008
v17.3 - Some People...
Howdy folks,
{slurp}
WHAT A DAY!
{slurp}
I'm so worn out from the day I was ready for bed as soon as I got home. Just the thought of waking up to the same thing tomorrow is just annoying.
{slurp}
I did a couple interviews this morning and this afternoon at work. I find it very hard to believe that some of these people made it past the recruiter stage of the interview process. Regardless, I was a bit disappointed as one of the guys I interviewed had a very impressive resume but couldn't answer even the most basic UNIX questions. Alas, that is the way things go and it made for a very long day.
{slurp}
As a result, I had planned on writing a bit more than I actually have but that will have to wait for tomorrow ;) Until next time...
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
{slurp}
WHAT A DAY!
{slurp}
I'm so worn out from the day I was ready for bed as soon as I got home. Just the thought of waking up to the same thing tomorrow is just annoying.
{slurp}
I did a couple interviews this morning and this afternoon at work. I find it very hard to believe that some of these people made it past the recruiter stage of the interview process. Regardless, I was a bit disappointed as one of the guys I interviewed had a very impressive resume but couldn't answer even the most basic UNIX questions. Alas, that is the way things go and it made for a very long day.
{slurp}
As a result, I had planned on writing a bit more than I actually have but that will have to wait for tomorrow ;) Until next time...
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
Sunday, April 6, 2008
v17.2 - Reflection of Self
Howdy folks,
{slurp}
Did you ever look at someone and see yourself? This can be sometimes painful, especially if that someone is close to you like a son/daughter or sibling. Sometimes in life we see ourselves in other people and it leaves a painful sting. Sometimes we focus so hard to being something else we can't remember who we really were to begin with. Who are you?
{slurp}
Who am I? This is something I've been struggling with the last few weeks. I know who I am to the rest of the world, but who am I to myself? I saw a movie last week about this girl who was interviewing for some big financial firm in NY and was asked a very simple question, "Who are you?". The girl was very confident and began to answer the question but quickly realized she didn't have a clue who she was. She goes on a mission of self discovery and by the end of the movie is able to easily tell the audience who she was. Yay, all of life's problems solved in one sitting. I didn't even have to get up and use the washroom, now that's 21st Century self help for you!
{slurp}
I urge you all to perform the following test:
- Find a Mirror and stand in front of it (sit if you need to).
- Look yourself in the eyes. Don't just stare, really LOOK at yourself
- Ask yourself in your head, "Who am I?"
- Verbally answer yourself never taking your eyes away from your face. Pretend you're talking to someone else.
Something so simple can have a powerful influence on your life if done properly. I urge you all to give it a try.
{slurp}
Well folks, I need to head out for the evening (work early tomorrow) so I'll say good bye for now and see you all tomorrow.
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
{slurp}
Did you ever look at someone and see yourself? This can be sometimes painful, especially if that someone is close to you like a son/daughter or sibling. Sometimes in life we see ourselves in other people and it leaves a painful sting. Sometimes we focus so hard to being something else we can't remember who we really were to begin with. Who are you?
{slurp}
Who am I? This is something I've been struggling with the last few weeks. I know who I am to the rest of the world, but who am I to myself? I saw a movie last week about this girl who was interviewing for some big financial firm in NY and was asked a very simple question, "Who are you?". The girl was very confident and began to answer the question but quickly realized she didn't have a clue who she was. She goes on a mission of self discovery and by the end of the movie is able to easily tell the audience who she was. Yay, all of life's problems solved in one sitting. I didn't even have to get up and use the washroom, now that's 21st Century self help for you!
{slurp}
I urge you all to perform the following test:
- Find a Mirror and stand in front of it (sit if you need to).
- Look yourself in the eyes. Don't just stare, really LOOK at yourself
- Ask yourself in your head, "Who am I?"
- Verbally answer yourself never taking your eyes away from your face. Pretend you're talking to someone else.
Something so simple can have a powerful influence on your life if done properly. I urge you all to give it a try.
{slurp}
Well folks, I need to head out for the evening (work early tomorrow) so I'll say good bye for now and see you all tomorrow.
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
Saturday, April 5, 2008
v17.1 - Tired Saturday
Howdy folks,
{slurp}
I'm tired. It has been a long day and I wasn't going to write but then I remembered a small promise I made back a couple months ago so here I am :)
{slurp}
As the topic suggests, I'm very tired today. We did quite a bit and as such I'm even too tired to do any gaming. For those who know me well, you know I need to be pretty damn tired to miss out on Saturday night gaming :)
{slurp}
Our day started fairly early with the kids getting up and such. Believe it or not, I actually got to sleep in a little bit which was nice. We got up and got ready for our day as we normally do every Saturday. We left the house at our usual time and headed out to do our normal Saturday tasks. The only difference with this particular Saturday is the fact we were not going to be returning home afterwards as we made plans to go to my sister's house and visit them. We spent approximately 8 hours at their place before we finally decided it was time to come home. We had a great time and it was good to spend some time with family again, but I sure was tired by the end of it and after arriving home I ended up only playing WoW for a few minutes before finally retiring to the living room to watch a movie. Of course, I couldn't go to bed yet, I had a musing to write :)
{slurp}
Anyway folks, sleep is attempting to overtake me so I must sign-off and head to bed. I imagine most of you won't get this until tomorrow morning anyway, so you'll be surprised to hopefully find 2 new musings to read.
Until next time,
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
{slurp}
I'm tired. It has been a long day and I wasn't going to write but then I remembered a small promise I made back a couple months ago so here I am :)
{slurp}
As the topic suggests, I'm very tired today. We did quite a bit and as such I'm even too tired to do any gaming. For those who know me well, you know I need to be pretty damn tired to miss out on Saturday night gaming :)
{slurp}
Our day started fairly early with the kids getting up and such. Believe it or not, I actually got to sleep in a little bit which was nice. We got up and got ready for our day as we normally do every Saturday. We left the house at our usual time and headed out to do our normal Saturday tasks. The only difference with this particular Saturday is the fact we were not going to be returning home afterwards as we made plans to go to my sister's house and visit them. We spent approximately 8 hours at their place before we finally decided it was time to come home. We had a great time and it was good to spend some time with family again, but I sure was tired by the end of it and after arriving home I ended up only playing WoW for a few minutes before finally retiring to the living room to watch a movie. Of course, I couldn't go to bed yet, I had a musing to write :)
{slurp}
Anyway folks, sleep is attempting to overtake me so I must sign-off and head to bed. I imagine most of you won't get this until tomorrow morning anyway, so you'll be surprised to hopefully find 2 new musings to read.
Until next time,
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
Friday, April 4, 2008
v17.0 - Big Surprise
Howdy folks,
{slurp}
Well, let's cut to the chase shall we? I've been sitting on this for awhile now and since we've finally decided to tell our respective immediate families I felt it was time to make this public :)
{slurp}
We have known for quite awhile, but didn't get final confirmation from the doctor until this past Monday. We're having another baby! That's right, Katie is pregnant and is due sometime mid November 2008. Hard to believe I know.
{slurp}
Anyway, I wanted to say that and tell you all that I'm so tired right now that I can barely sit here and type tonight. It has been a long day and I'm very grateful the weekend is finally here.
{slurp}
Take care friends, see you tomorrow.
Cheers,
Al
{slurp}
Well, let's cut to the chase shall we? I've been sitting on this for awhile now and since we've finally decided to tell our respective immediate families I felt it was time to make this public :)
{slurp}
We have known for quite awhile, but didn't get final confirmation from the doctor until this past Monday. We're having another baby! That's right, Katie is pregnant and is due sometime mid November 2008. Hard to believe I know.
{slurp}
Anyway, I wanted to say that and tell you all that I'm so tired right now that I can barely sit here and type tonight. It has been a long day and I'm very grateful the weekend is finally here.
{slurp}
Take care friends, see you tomorrow.
Cheers,
Al
Thursday, April 3, 2008
v16.9 - Happy Birthday
Howdy Folks,
{slurp}
Well it is finally here; my birthday. I worked all day, I was stuck in rush hour traffic to and from work, my kids destroyed all my hard work and cleaning yesterday and I feel sick to my stomach.
{slurp}
Other than those few things, it was a great day :) Not only did I have a bad day, I had a bad night and didn't get much sleep the night before. As a result, I'm very tired tonight and quite cranky for some reason. I don't know why, I just am not in the right frame of mind. One would say it is the perfect frame of mind to write and rant in, but personally I prefer to add a certain zing to my musings and not having my wit and humour reminds me of the days when I first moved to Halifax and was depressed and angry all the time. You can read those musings after September 19th 2005 to December 2005 if you're interested :) Really, you're not missing much.
{slurp}
Anyway, wanted to post something quickly. I'm really not feeling that well tonight (perhaps I ate too much) so I'm going to sign off and go relax the rest of my night. Take care my friends and we'll see you here tomorrow.
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
{slurp}
Well it is finally here; my birthday. I worked all day, I was stuck in rush hour traffic to and from work, my kids destroyed all my hard work and cleaning yesterday and I feel sick to my stomach.
{slurp}
Other than those few things, it was a great day :) Not only did I have a bad day, I had a bad night and didn't get much sleep the night before. As a result, I'm very tired tonight and quite cranky for some reason. I don't know why, I just am not in the right frame of mind. One would say it is the perfect frame of mind to write and rant in, but personally I prefer to add a certain zing to my musings and not having my wit and humour reminds me of the days when I first moved to Halifax and was depressed and angry all the time. You can read those musings after September 19th 2005 to December 2005 if you're interested :) Really, you're not missing much.
{slurp}
Anyway, wanted to post something quickly. I'm really not feeling that well tonight (perhaps I ate too much) so I'm going to sign off and go relax the rest of my night. Take care my friends and we'll see you here tomorrow.
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
v16.8 - Weary Wednesday
Howdy folks,
{slurp}
It is a weary Wednesday today for me. I'm still feeling a little under the weather, but good enough to write and say hi to everyone. I decided to stay home again today to mend a bit and rest. I'm glad I did.
{slurp}
My mother pointed out this morning that I was missing my musing from yesterday. Of course I had to inform her that I was sick yesterday but would get a musing out today. Well, I've delivered on that and now I'm writing the musing which was meant for today :)
{slurp}
I must admit, this writing every single day during the Roll-Up-The-Rim contest has been quite challenging. There have been days where I've just not been in the mood to write anything. There have been days where I've completely forgotten to write until just before bed. Most of the time I'll fire off a quick musing to make my post for the day, but there is the odd time I'll write it first thing the next morning. This is typically when I run into issues with the software because I'm being rushed :)
{slurp}
Well, tomorrow is my birthday. April 3. I will be {beep} years old. Hard to believe isn't it? Seems like yesterday I was playing with my friends in the little wooded area near our house with wooden guns dressed in camo gear. Summers were so warm and it never rained. The trees were always lush and green and life was so simple. I could ride my bike down the road and I knew everyone in the neighbourhood; by name. How life has changed both for me and for the world.
{slurp}
I was at my Father's place a few weeks back and I was reminded of life as a child. I drove down the old roads of my past and saw the things I used to see. I miss that place, both physically and in time. I'm sure most of us have a moment (or moments) in our past we wish we could return to and live them again, even if only as a spectator. Of course the town I grew up in has grown up itself. It is no longer the same place it was, the people are no longer the same people (at least not all of them) and the friends I used to have are long gone and nearly forgotten. Time can be cruel.
{slurp}
Birthdays, once a celebration of birth are now a reminder that we are one year older. While some embrace the day with open arms, other shun it and try to forget it. I'm somewhere in the middle :) I like getting the presents still and I enjoy cake and fellowship with friends and family. I hate growing old though and hate to be reminded that I'm one year older. Also, one of my biggest pet peeves are people who ask you "So you feel any older?". No, I don't feel any older than I did yesterday when I talked to you.
{slurp}
Tomorrow I'll be heading back to work and getting to know my new team mates. I feel bad that I joined this new team on Monday and then was out sick Tuesday and Wednesday. Not a great first impression, but necessary given the circumstances. I just hope this doesn't shed a light of laziness or make me appear unreliable.
{slurp}
Well folks, I'm heading out. I have a stew cooking for supper tonight so I must go check on it and make sure it will be ready in time. See you tomorrow.
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
{slurp}
It is a weary Wednesday today for me. I'm still feeling a little under the weather, but good enough to write and say hi to everyone. I decided to stay home again today to mend a bit and rest. I'm glad I did.
{slurp}
My mother pointed out this morning that I was missing my musing from yesterday. Of course I had to inform her that I was sick yesterday but would get a musing out today. Well, I've delivered on that and now I'm writing the musing which was meant for today :)
{slurp}
I must admit, this writing every single day during the Roll-Up-The-Rim contest has been quite challenging. There have been days where I've just not been in the mood to write anything. There have been days where I've completely forgotten to write until just before bed. Most of the time I'll fire off a quick musing to make my post for the day, but there is the odd time I'll write it first thing the next morning. This is typically when I run into issues with the software because I'm being rushed :)
{slurp}
Well, tomorrow is my birthday. April 3. I will be {beep} years old. Hard to believe isn't it? Seems like yesterday I was playing with my friends in the little wooded area near our house with wooden guns dressed in camo gear. Summers were so warm and it never rained. The trees were always lush and green and life was so simple. I could ride my bike down the road and I knew everyone in the neighbourhood; by name. How life has changed both for me and for the world.
{slurp}
I was at my Father's place a few weeks back and I was reminded of life as a child. I drove down the old roads of my past and saw the things I used to see. I miss that place, both physically and in time. I'm sure most of us have a moment (or moments) in our past we wish we could return to and live them again, even if only as a spectator. Of course the town I grew up in has grown up itself. It is no longer the same place it was, the people are no longer the same people (at least not all of them) and the friends I used to have are long gone and nearly forgotten. Time can be cruel.
{slurp}
Birthdays, once a celebration of birth are now a reminder that we are one year older. While some embrace the day with open arms, other shun it and try to forget it. I'm somewhere in the middle :) I like getting the presents still and I enjoy cake and fellowship with friends and family. I hate growing old though and hate to be reminded that I'm one year older. Also, one of my biggest pet peeves are people who ask you "So you feel any older?". No, I don't feel any older than I did yesterday when I talked to you.
{slurp}
Tomorrow I'll be heading back to work and getting to know my new team mates. I feel bad that I joined this new team on Monday and then was out sick Tuesday and Wednesday. Not a great first impression, but necessary given the circumstances. I just hope this doesn't shed a light of laziness or make me appear unreliable.
{slurp}
Well folks, I'm heading out. I have a stew cooking for supper tonight so I must go check on it and make sure it will be ready in time. See you tomorrow.
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
v16.7 - April Fools
Howdy folks,
{slurp}
I'm not really writing this musing on the 1st as I was sick and not able to do much of anything. I decided to muse in my head and post today back dating it to the 1st :)
{slurp}
Today is April Fool's day. The day everyone attempts to fool people into believing a lie and then yell out "APRIL FOOLS!!".
{slurp}
Personally, I didn't get "fooled" but I heard of a few who did and a few who didn't like it. Video game companies across the globe were also celebrating the day by releasing bogus updates to their games stating GameX was getting ClassA added and various other things. Blizzard Entertainment is a good one for pulling stuff like this and they do a dang good job at it.
{slurp}
As posted above, I was home sick today and while I wasn't completely out, I was unfit for going to work. I have been having some interesting health related issues lately which are directly caused by my horrible diet. I guess if you wanted to get technical, I brought this sickness on myself by not eating properly. It is the 2nd time in the last couple weeks I've felt this way and let me tell you it isn't fun at all. I've decided it may be time to make a switch in the way I eat and go on a proper diet to lose some weight and eat healthier. Of course if you've been to the grocery store lately you'll see that eating healthy means you're making tons of money. Why are the things that are best for us the ones that cost the most? Maybe I'm missing something here but shouldn't healthy eating be promoted more? Wouldn't it make more sense to charge more for junk food vs. stuff that will make us healthy?
{slurp}
Of course eating healthy doesn't appeal to everyone. There are some people out there (myself included) who are on a self destructive path to being unfit and unhealthy. I'm guilty and I'm paying for it. In my case I'm lucky as I'm still young enough to make changes and reverse the effects so it doesn't hurt me in the long run. Other people are not this lucky.
{slurp}
Anyway, I don't dwell too much on this. People will choose the way of life they want and I've found there is very little you can do to influence people to change. Speaking of which, today also marks the first day in this city where you are no longer allowed to smoke in a car with a child and you are not allowed to talk on a cell phone unless you have a hands-free kit. Failure to comply with either of these new laws will result in a hefty fine (300ish+ for first offence). I heard a rumour that the next law they're looking to pass is disallowing people to smoke in their own homes if children are present. This raises an interesting question. Do the police have the right to come into your home to see if you're smoking with a child in the house? Will they require a search warrant? If this law does pass and is more than a rumour, how will they be able to act on it? I don't know about you, but I keep my blinds shut tight at night so nobody can see in. What's stopping someone from lighting up and smoking with kids in the house? One would hope people would have more sense, but I know for a fact there are people like that and they do it with infants in the house.
{slurp}
Well folks, I miss sign off for now. Talk to you again tomorrow.
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
{slurp}
I'm not really writing this musing on the 1st as I was sick and not able to do much of anything. I decided to muse in my head and post today back dating it to the 1st :)
{slurp}
Today is April Fool's day. The day everyone attempts to fool people into believing a lie and then yell out "APRIL FOOLS!!".
{slurp}
Personally, I didn't get "fooled" but I heard of a few who did and a few who didn't like it. Video game companies across the globe were also celebrating the day by releasing bogus updates to their games stating GameX was getting ClassA added and various other things. Blizzard Entertainment is a good one for pulling stuff like this and they do a dang good job at it.
{slurp}
As posted above, I was home sick today and while I wasn't completely out, I was unfit for going to work. I have been having some interesting health related issues lately which are directly caused by my horrible diet. I guess if you wanted to get technical, I brought this sickness on myself by not eating properly. It is the 2nd time in the last couple weeks I've felt this way and let me tell you it isn't fun at all. I've decided it may be time to make a switch in the way I eat and go on a proper diet to lose some weight and eat healthier. Of course if you've been to the grocery store lately you'll see that eating healthy means you're making tons of money. Why are the things that are best for us the ones that cost the most? Maybe I'm missing something here but shouldn't healthy eating be promoted more? Wouldn't it make more sense to charge more for junk food vs. stuff that will make us healthy?
{slurp}
Of course eating healthy doesn't appeal to everyone. There are some people out there (myself included) who are on a self destructive path to being unfit and unhealthy. I'm guilty and I'm paying for it. In my case I'm lucky as I'm still young enough to make changes and reverse the effects so it doesn't hurt me in the long run. Other people are not this lucky.
{slurp}
Anyway, I don't dwell too much on this. People will choose the way of life they want and I've found there is very little you can do to influence people to change. Speaking of which, today also marks the first day in this city where you are no longer allowed to smoke in a car with a child and you are not allowed to talk on a cell phone unless you have a hands-free kit. Failure to comply with either of these new laws will result in a hefty fine (300ish+ for first offence). I heard a rumour that the next law they're looking to pass is disallowing people to smoke in their own homes if children are present. This raises an interesting question. Do the police have the right to come into your home to see if you're smoking with a child in the house? Will they require a search warrant? If this law does pass and is more than a rumour, how will they be able to act on it? I don't know about you, but I keep my blinds shut tight at night so nobody can see in. What's stopping someone from lighting up and smoking with kids in the house? One would hope people would have more sense, but I know for a fact there are people like that and they do it with infants in the house.
{slurp}
Well folks, I miss sign off for now. Talk to you again tomorrow.
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
Monday, March 31, 2008
v16.6 - Marvellous Monday
Morning folks,
{slurp}
Wow, did I ever make it into work early this morning. Typically I'm in around 9am due to having to drop the kids off at school for 8:30, but today I'm in before 8. I have a nice hot coffee in my hands, nobody around to bug me and I've already packed up my desk for the move. Things are starting to get better.
{slurp}
Of course my day didn't start like this. Oh no, the day started with a ringing sound as my Black Berry screamed for me to awake and pick it up. Like a screaming baby just wanting attention, my Black Berry was ringing because someone, somewhere, decided they wanted to talk to me. Unfortunately for me, this person was a co-worker and there was a major issue at work that required my attention. This was 4 hours ago.
{slurp}
Of course by the time I logged in one of my team (ex-team?) members was already on the job and failing critical services over to another host. The day was saved, but the damage was done; I was now awake. I looked at my clock and saw that it was now 5:30am and I know my alarm clock is programmed to go off at 6:30am. This knowledge is a major burden when you're trying to get some sleep. Knowing you're just going to be woken up again in an hour (less than an hour since you've sat there thinking about it 10 minutes) it almost doesn't seem worth even putting your head on the pillow. Regardless, I went upstairs, climbed into bed and turned the TV on to see if that would ease my mind somewhat. Well, it didn't. I ended up falling asleep (almost) as the alarm was going off. This is where I decided to trick myself :) I hit the snooze button, turned off the TV and rolled over. In that 9 minute span I had such a great sleep it was amazing. Of course the scream of the alarm clock (no wait, that was Faith Hill on the radio) brought me back and I groaned as my eyes (which are clearly puffy and red) opened. I hit the snooze button at least 2 more times after that and finally dragged my ass out of bed and into the shower. After it was all said and done, I was out of the house by 7:30 and at work before 8. All is well, so far.
{slurp}
Today holds many unknowns for me. Part of me is excited about this new position and I can't wait until I can finally get started, the other part of me is expecting a phone call from my boss asking me if we can hold off the move (again) for a few days/weeks. I think if the later of those two happens, I'll be looking for work outside of this company. I've had it happen one too many times now.
{slurp}
I want to touch on a subject that has been bugging me for the past month or so; I want to talk quickly about virtual property. What is virtual property? Well to simplify, it is nothing and you own it; it is like owning Nothing. To own something virtual means to virtually own something. Confusing isn't it?
{slurp}
Let me give you an example of virtual property and let's see if it makes more sense. I play a video game (actually I play many, but we'll use one for an example) called Lord of the Rings Online. This game has characters in it that you can control (aka Avatars). You move around in a virtual world doing quests, killing enemies and meeting other people... err.. avatars controlled by people. You gain items when you kill enemies as well as obtain wealth in the form of copper, silver and gold pieces. You work through levels and gain more powers, better items and more wealth. Well, some would consider the items and wealth you've obtained in a game like this, virtual property. It is yours, you worked for it, you collected it and you have it stored on your character. You can become proud of it, you can covet it and you can display it for others to see. The only thing you can't do with it is bring it to the real world and make it real; it is a virtual object which is nothing more than a few lines of code and a database entry somewhere. It is virtually nothing.
{slurp}
A lot of people put great stock in these virtual items and virtual property they have gathered. I played World of Warcraft for 3 years and accomplished many things and gathered many items. The net worth of all my characters in WoW is estimated around 20k gold (conservative guess) yet in the real world, the account MAY be worth a few hundred bucks. I can't take that really nice bow and hang it on the wall of my house, I can't take that gold I've collected and buy milk with it; everything is virtual even the game.
{slurp}
So where do we draw the line? People will spend real world cash to buy virtual items. If you look at it from a high level, it seems like you're just giving money away. However, sometimes these virtual items/currency can bring a certain joy or happiness. Does that still mean you've wasted your money? One could argue that spending your money on beer, or candy, or (insert pleasure food/drink here) is a waste of money as well since you only get a quick "pick me up" or "happiness" from it and then it is gone. Same with virtual items I guess :)
{slurp}
Anyway, don't want to delve too deep into that so I'll leave it with you to ponder over today. For now, I need to run and get some work done (been 30 minutes so far).
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
{slurp}
Wow, did I ever make it into work early this morning. Typically I'm in around 9am due to having to drop the kids off at school for 8:30, but today I'm in before 8. I have a nice hot coffee in my hands, nobody around to bug me and I've already packed up my desk for the move. Things are starting to get better.
{slurp}
Of course my day didn't start like this. Oh no, the day started with a ringing sound as my Black Berry screamed for me to awake and pick it up. Like a screaming baby just wanting attention, my Black Berry was ringing because someone, somewhere, decided they wanted to talk to me. Unfortunately for me, this person was a co-worker and there was a major issue at work that required my attention. This was 4 hours ago.
{slurp}
Of course by the time I logged in one of my team (ex-team?) members was already on the job and failing critical services over to another host. The day was saved, but the damage was done; I was now awake. I looked at my clock and saw that it was now 5:30am and I know my alarm clock is programmed to go off at 6:30am. This knowledge is a major burden when you're trying to get some sleep. Knowing you're just going to be woken up again in an hour (less than an hour since you've sat there thinking about it 10 minutes) it almost doesn't seem worth even putting your head on the pillow. Regardless, I went upstairs, climbed into bed and turned the TV on to see if that would ease my mind somewhat. Well, it didn't. I ended up falling asleep (almost) as the alarm was going off. This is where I decided to trick myself :) I hit the snooze button, turned off the TV and rolled over. In that 9 minute span I had such a great sleep it was amazing. Of course the scream of the alarm clock (no wait, that was Faith Hill on the radio) brought me back and I groaned as my eyes (which are clearly puffy and red) opened. I hit the snooze button at least 2 more times after that and finally dragged my ass out of bed and into the shower. After it was all said and done, I was out of the house by 7:30 and at work before 8. All is well, so far.
{slurp}
Today holds many unknowns for me. Part of me is excited about this new position and I can't wait until I can finally get started, the other part of me is expecting a phone call from my boss asking me if we can hold off the move (again) for a few days/weeks. I think if the later of those two happens, I'll be looking for work outside of this company. I've had it happen one too many times now.
{slurp}
I want to touch on a subject that has been bugging me for the past month or so; I want to talk quickly about virtual property. What is virtual property? Well to simplify, it is nothing and you own it; it is like owning Nothing. To own something virtual means to virtually own something. Confusing isn't it?
{slurp}
Let me give you an example of virtual property and let's see if it makes more sense. I play a video game (actually I play many, but we'll use one for an example) called Lord of the Rings Online. This game has characters in it that you can control (aka Avatars). You move around in a virtual world doing quests, killing enemies and meeting other people... err.. avatars controlled by people. You gain items when you kill enemies as well as obtain wealth in the form of copper, silver and gold pieces. You work through levels and gain more powers, better items and more wealth. Well, some would consider the items and wealth you've obtained in a game like this, virtual property. It is yours, you worked for it, you collected it and you have it stored on your character. You can become proud of it, you can covet it and you can display it for others to see. The only thing you can't do with it is bring it to the real world and make it real; it is a virtual object which is nothing more than a few lines of code and a database entry somewhere. It is virtually nothing.
{slurp}
A lot of people put great stock in these virtual items and virtual property they have gathered. I played World of Warcraft for 3 years and accomplished many things and gathered many items. The net worth of all my characters in WoW is estimated around 20k gold (conservative guess) yet in the real world, the account MAY be worth a few hundred bucks. I can't take that really nice bow and hang it on the wall of my house, I can't take that gold I've collected and buy milk with it; everything is virtual even the game.
{slurp}
So where do we draw the line? People will spend real world cash to buy virtual items. If you look at it from a high level, it seems like you're just giving money away. However, sometimes these virtual items/currency can bring a certain joy or happiness. Does that still mean you've wasted your money? One could argue that spending your money on beer, or candy, or (insert pleasure food/drink here) is a waste of money as well since you only get a quick "pick me up" or "happiness" from it and then it is gone. Same with virtual items I guess :)
{slurp}
Anyway, don't want to delve too deep into that so I'll leave it with you to ponder over today. For now, I need to run and get some work done (been 30 minutes so far).
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
Sunday, March 30, 2008
v16.5 - Deep Thought
Howdy folks,
{slurp}
I'm in deep thought this morning. I can't say exactly what I'm thinking about, but all will come out in due time. There are forces in this world that are constantly moving and shaping things around us. There is obviously a higher power than us at work here, but can one really say that power is God?
{slurp}
I'm not about to get into a religious debate, but this is one thing I've been thinking on recently. We, as human beings, need to believe in something, to have faith in something bigger than ourselves. You see it everywhere you look today. Religious people believe in a god whether it is the God I grew up with or some other god. People need something to believe in, especially when life starts to get them down and they feel they have nowhere else to turn. Interesting isn't it?
{slurp}
Of course I don't want to talk about religion or gods or anything like that today. No, something else is occupying my mind today and it is a little closer to home. I'm thinking on life in general and how easily it can be created and how easily it can be destroyed. Life is measured in heart beats and it only takes one to change a person's life forever. In a single heart beat a person can take their very first breath, in another a person is taking their last. What happens in the heart beat? The structure of life is very complex and hard to fathom sometimes. Ever look at an Advanced Biology book? Stuff kids are learning in High School today are things people used to learn in University back when I was in High School. Interesting isn't it?
{slurp}
Well, I don't want to go off the deep end here with random thoughts of nothingness. People will begin to think I'm musing or something :) No really, I need to run and pick up Katie from work and the kids are running around the house yelling and playing instead of getting ready. Time to lay down the law once again :)
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
{slurp}
I'm in deep thought this morning. I can't say exactly what I'm thinking about, but all will come out in due time. There are forces in this world that are constantly moving and shaping things around us. There is obviously a higher power than us at work here, but can one really say that power is God?
{slurp}
I'm not about to get into a religious debate, but this is one thing I've been thinking on recently. We, as human beings, need to believe in something, to have faith in something bigger than ourselves. You see it everywhere you look today. Religious people believe in a god whether it is the God I grew up with or some other god. People need something to believe in, especially when life starts to get them down and they feel they have nowhere else to turn. Interesting isn't it?
{slurp}
Of course I don't want to talk about religion or gods or anything like that today. No, something else is occupying my mind today and it is a little closer to home. I'm thinking on life in general and how easily it can be created and how easily it can be destroyed. Life is measured in heart beats and it only takes one to change a person's life forever. In a single heart beat a person can take their very first breath, in another a person is taking their last. What happens in the heart beat? The structure of life is very complex and hard to fathom sometimes. Ever look at an Advanced Biology book? Stuff kids are learning in High School today are things people used to learn in University back when I was in High School. Interesting isn't it?
{slurp}
Well, I don't want to go off the deep end here with random thoughts of nothingness. People will begin to think I'm musing or something :) No really, I need to run and pick up Katie from work and the kids are running around the house yelling and playing instead of getting ready. Time to lay down the law once again :)
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
Saturday, March 29, 2008
v16.4 - Snowy Saturday
Howdy folks,
{slurp}
Well the snow has finally stopped (more scheduled to drop tomorrow though) and I can't believe how much fell. Not that it was a lot of snow, it was just a lot to fall all at once. Of course by the end of the day most of it was gone as the temperature went above freezing. Spring has finally started to come and I'm excited. I even tore down the plastic on our windows today because I'm that confident that spring is here and we won't need those any more :)
{slurp}
Of course there was one big reason why the plastic came down on one window. My daughter decided she was going to put a fist sized hole in one to hide some trinkets of hers on the window sill. Little did she realize that when you break that taut plastic wrap on the window, the whole thing shrivels up and begins to pull away. I can only imagine the look on her face when she saw this start to happen :) Oh well, it was almost time to pull the stuff down anyway so it was good AND bad.
{slurp}
Children are quite interesting. Lately, my daughter has started taking on her own little personality. She really surprises me sometimes with some of the things that come out of her mouth. Sometimes I find it hard to believe that these thoughts and ideas are coming from a five year old. Then there are times when she acts exactly her age and I can't help but be a little disappointed. Sometimes I forget that she is only 5 and when she exhibits signs of maturity, it is only because she is copying an adult she knows. I can't say I've been the best parent, but what parent can make that claim? I take things one day at a time and when it comes time to be firm and lay down the law, I try to stand by what I say and enforce it. Hard, but necessary.
{slurp}
Anyway folks, must be off as it is getting a bit late here and I should think about getting to bed soon.
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
{slurp}
Well the snow has finally stopped (more scheduled to drop tomorrow though) and I can't believe how much fell. Not that it was a lot of snow, it was just a lot to fall all at once. Of course by the end of the day most of it was gone as the temperature went above freezing. Spring has finally started to come and I'm excited. I even tore down the plastic on our windows today because I'm that confident that spring is here and we won't need those any more :)
{slurp}
Of course there was one big reason why the plastic came down on one window. My daughter decided she was going to put a fist sized hole in one to hide some trinkets of hers on the window sill. Little did she realize that when you break that taut plastic wrap on the window, the whole thing shrivels up and begins to pull away. I can only imagine the look on her face when she saw this start to happen :) Oh well, it was almost time to pull the stuff down anyway so it was good AND bad.
{slurp}
Children are quite interesting. Lately, my daughter has started taking on her own little personality. She really surprises me sometimes with some of the things that come out of her mouth. Sometimes I find it hard to believe that these thoughts and ideas are coming from a five year old. Then there are times when she acts exactly her age and I can't help but be a little disappointed. Sometimes I forget that she is only 5 and when she exhibits signs of maturity, it is only because she is copying an adult she knows. I can't say I've been the best parent, but what parent can make that claim? I take things one day at a time and when it comes time to be firm and lay down the law, I try to stand by what I say and enforce it. Hard, but necessary.
{slurp}
Anyway folks, must be off as it is getting a bit late here and I should think about getting to bed soon.
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
Friday, March 28, 2008
v16.3 - Merry Christmas
Howdy folks,
{slurp}
Confused? Me too. Apparently Mother Nature decided to pay us another winter visit and dumped a PILE of snow on us. I don't know how much snow yet, but my vehicle is completely covered and it is still coming down as I type this. It all started early this morning so it has been snowing fairly steadily for at least 13 hours now.
{slurp}
I had the day off work today (yay). As luck would have it, the two people who are supposed to be on-call this week missed their calls again (that is the 3rd time this week) and I'm left holding the bag of shit as per usual. Pisses me off, especially when it is my day off and I'm getting a phone call in the wee hours of the morning. Oh well, won't have to worry about it after this weekend.
{slurp}
Anyway folks, wanted to write down a few lines before logging for the evening. Hope you all have a great Friday night and we'll see you here again tomorrow.
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
{slurp}
Confused? Me too. Apparently Mother Nature decided to pay us another winter visit and dumped a PILE of snow on us. I don't know how much snow yet, but my vehicle is completely covered and it is still coming down as I type this. It all started early this morning so it has been snowing fairly steadily for at least 13 hours now.
{slurp}
I had the day off work today (yay). As luck would have it, the two people who are supposed to be on-call this week missed their calls again (that is the 3rd time this week) and I'm left holding the bag of shit as per usual. Pisses me off, especially when it is my day off and I'm getting a phone call in the wee hours of the morning. Oh well, won't have to worry about it after this weekend.
{slurp}
Anyway folks, wanted to write down a few lines before logging for the evening. Hope you all have a great Friday night and we'll see you here again tomorrow.
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
Thursday, March 27, 2008
v16.2 - Friday for Me!
Morning Folks,
{slurp}
Well it's Friday...... for me :) Suckers
{slurp}
I wanted to post quickly regarding my using yesterday and the issue I was facing at work. I had a discussion with my manager regarding the "issue" and he basically explained to me that the reason there was need for a resume and all that other stuff is around my billing and has nothing to do with me moving to this new team. Basically, I'm being billed at Level Y and they need to be able to bill me at Level Z which means my billing rating needs to change so they can do that. So in order for that to change, they need to prove I've I've been in the industry for more than 8-10 years and I will be performing high level administration tasks. Sounds like this is a fairly common problem when moving between teams and is typically transparent to the consultant. The reason I'm hearing about this particular case is because the company I work for is going through some major changes and is revamping a lot of the processes. Oh well.
{slurp}
Did I mention it is Friday? :) Today is officially my last day of work for the week AND it is my last day on this team as their team lead. I will admit, if it wasn't for a couple things, I would love to stay on as team lead for this team, but there is way too much legacy and history here that is nearly impossible to change. I made a LOT of changes when the reigns were handed to me and I'm happy with the outcome even though I spent countless hours in break-out rooms and in phone meetings with managers getting it done. Overall, the team is stronger than I've ever seen it and we're holding steady with 7 people! Huge feat when you consider I've been here almost 3 years and the highest number of people I've seen on the team was 5 at any given time.
{slurp}
Yes, I feel I'm a good team lead, but I don't feel I want to be a team lead at this time in my life/career. While my track record is proven, I just can't bring myself to do this full-time... yet :)
{slurp}
Well folks, just wanted to say that and clear up some confusion about yesterday. So far, today has been busy (paged early this morning) but I have high hopes that the day is going to be good. The weather is supposed to be sunny and +6 (approx 43 for my American friends) so things are looking up.
{slurp}
Until next time...
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
{slurp}
Well it's Friday...... for me :) Suckers
{slurp}
I wanted to post quickly regarding my using yesterday and the issue I was facing at work. I had a discussion with my manager regarding the "issue" and he basically explained to me that the reason there was need for a resume and all that other stuff is around my billing and has nothing to do with me moving to this new team. Basically, I'm being billed at Level Y and they need to be able to bill me at Level Z which means my billing rating needs to change so they can do that. So in order for that to change, they need to prove I've I've been in the industry for more than 8-10 years and I will be performing high level administration tasks. Sounds like this is a fairly common problem when moving between teams and is typically transparent to the consultant. The reason I'm hearing about this particular case is because the company I work for is going through some major changes and is revamping a lot of the processes. Oh well.
{slurp}
Did I mention it is Friday? :) Today is officially my last day of work for the week AND it is my last day on this team as their team lead. I will admit, if it wasn't for a couple things, I would love to stay on as team lead for this team, but there is way too much legacy and history here that is nearly impossible to change. I made a LOT of changes when the reigns were handed to me and I'm happy with the outcome even though I spent countless hours in break-out rooms and in phone meetings with managers getting it done. Overall, the team is stronger than I've ever seen it and we're holding steady with 7 people! Huge feat when you consider I've been here almost 3 years and the highest number of people I've seen on the team was 5 at any given time.
{slurp}
Yes, I feel I'm a good team lead, but I don't feel I want to be a team lead at this time in my life/career. While my track record is proven, I just can't bring myself to do this full-time... yet :)
{slurp}
Well folks, just wanted to say that and clear up some confusion about yesterday. So far, today has been busy (paged early this morning) but I have high hopes that the day is going to be good. The weather is supposed to be sunny and +6 (approx 43 for my American friends) so things are looking up.
{slurp}
Until next time...
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
v16.1 - Big Sigh
Morning folks,
{slurp}
And no, that is not a sign of relief, that is a sigh of pure disgust and weariness. Seriously, how many times do you have to experience the same issues before you finally learn your lesson? Apparently I'm a sucker.
{slurp}
I received a phone call from my boss just before leaving work last night. Apparently there are some issues with me leaving the team I'm on to move to the team I want to be on. I was in so much shock to hear the news (only days before I was to migrate off) that I only caught pieces of the "reason" behind it. From what I did catch though, there was something about my new job being listed as an Advanced Position and my personal file does not allow me to work in an Advanced Position. So now I have to prove to the company I can do the job before they allow me to move.
SON OF A...
{slurp}
Life does like to throw those curve balls at you doesn't it? In other news work related, one of my friends whom I've been trying to get hired on here has finally gotten a job offer to start in April. I submitted his resume so I'll get a recruitment bonus for him, but I'm just glad I was able to help him out. It wasn't that many years ago that I was like him, new to IT wanting to start a career in IT and not knowing how to get in. Well thankfully one placement agency took me under their wing and helped me along the way. You see, I just only needed to prove I could do the job and after 6 months with the company a big company by the name of General Electric (GE) took notice and offered me a full-time position. Life was good and I was IN. I'm just glad I was given the opportunity to give this guy a chance like I was given. Like me, I'm sure he only needs this opportunity to prove he can do the job and he will advance his career.
{slurp}
Well folks, time to start my day and get to the bottom of all this BS. Hope everyone has a spectacular day and we'll see you here again tomorrow.
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
{slurp}
And no, that is not a sign of relief, that is a sigh of pure disgust and weariness. Seriously, how many times do you have to experience the same issues before you finally learn your lesson? Apparently I'm a sucker.
{slurp}
I received a phone call from my boss just before leaving work last night. Apparently there are some issues with me leaving the team I'm on to move to the team I want to be on. I was in so much shock to hear the news (only days before I was to migrate off) that I only caught pieces of the "reason" behind it. From what I did catch though, there was something about my new job being listed as an Advanced Position and my personal file does not allow me to work in an Advanced Position. So now I have to prove to the company I can do the job before they allow me to move.
SON OF A...
{slurp}
Life does like to throw those curve balls at you doesn't it? In other news work related, one of my friends whom I've been trying to get hired on here has finally gotten a job offer to start in April. I submitted his resume so I'll get a recruitment bonus for him, but I'm just glad I was able to help him out. It wasn't that many years ago that I was like him, new to IT wanting to start a career in IT and not knowing how to get in. Well thankfully one placement agency took me under their wing and helped me along the way. You see, I just only needed to prove I could do the job and after 6 months with the company a big company by the name of General Electric (GE) took notice and offered me a full-time position. Life was good and I was IN. I'm just glad I was given the opportunity to give this guy a chance like I was given. Like me, I'm sure he only needs this opportunity to prove he can do the job and he will advance his career.
{slurp}
Well folks, time to start my day and get to the bottom of all this BS. Hope everyone has a spectacular day and we'll see you here again tomorrow.
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
v16.0 - Looking for New CMS
Howdy folks,
{slurp}
Guess what? My musings over the last couple days didn't make it to the front page. Why? Well, I'm trying to figure that out, but I think it is time for me to find a new CMS (Content Management System) to publish my musings with. Sometimes when I write, I click save to save the work so I don't lose it all. This will sometimes put the musing into an unpublished state and when I'm finished, I'll click save to save my work. This means I can see the musing fine, but others cannot because it isn't "published" yet. Then I come to work and realize my last two musings are missing and I start digging into why. Well, I figured it out and I've published them as they should have been. Folks, if you see a missing musing one day, please don't hesitate to drop me an email and let me know you don't see a musing. I would hate to think my musing was up for your enjoyment, and then realize a few days later there was no new posts.
{slurp}
I'm back at work today and just as I predicted, there isn't enough hours in a day to complete it all. Therefore, I have no choice but to not give a damn :)
{slurp}
Seriously, when you are given a mound of work and tasks to do you typically will plug away and work through it. If that mound grows daily and the amount of work you do daily doesn't decrease the amount of work load then you get a bit stressed or disgruntled. Well, my work load grows constantly and despite my efforts to get everything completed, there is always loose ends and more work getting piled on more work. It leaves me sitting here wondering if I'm ever going to complete anything and eventually I throw my hands up in the air and say "screw it". Of course I end up going on a rant and then, magically, my work load starts to disappear. Not disappear in the traditional sense, but the work being handed down is stopped and I am finally able to catch up on the tasks I have. The conversation by the water cooler today was around whether you would rather do manual labor or IT labor. While the IT industry is fairly well paying and requires very little physical effort, I really do miss the days of manual labor. Part of it was from working outside, the other part is how I felt physically. I was tired, but it was a good tired. When I went to bed at night, I fell asleep and didn't wake until morning. My work today is mentally tiring and when I go to bed at night my brain is still moving and I can't sleep. I wake several times throughout the night and end up feeling like crap the next morning.
{slurp}
What to do?
{slurp}
Anyway folks, going to head off and get some more of that work load done :) Hopefully by this time next week I'll be moved to my new position and I can finally start enjoying work again.
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
{slurp}
Guess what? My musings over the last couple days didn't make it to the front page. Why? Well, I'm trying to figure that out, but I think it is time for me to find a new CMS (Content Management System) to publish my musings with. Sometimes when I write, I click save to save the work so I don't lose it all. This will sometimes put the musing into an unpublished state and when I'm finished, I'll click save to save my work. This means I can see the musing fine, but others cannot because it isn't "published" yet. Then I come to work and realize my last two musings are missing and I start digging into why. Well, I figured it out and I've published them as they should have been. Folks, if you see a missing musing one day, please don't hesitate to drop me an email and let me know you don't see a musing. I would hate to think my musing was up for your enjoyment, and then realize a few days later there was no new posts.
{slurp}
I'm back at work today and just as I predicted, there isn't enough hours in a day to complete it all. Therefore, I have no choice but to not give a damn :)
{slurp}
Seriously, when you are given a mound of work and tasks to do you typically will plug away and work through it. If that mound grows daily and the amount of work you do daily doesn't decrease the amount of work load then you get a bit stressed or disgruntled. Well, my work load grows constantly and despite my efforts to get everything completed, there is always loose ends and more work getting piled on more work. It leaves me sitting here wondering if I'm ever going to complete anything and eventually I throw my hands up in the air and say "screw it". Of course I end up going on a rant and then, magically, my work load starts to disappear. Not disappear in the traditional sense, but the work being handed down is stopped and I am finally able to catch up on the tasks I have. The conversation by the water cooler today was around whether you would rather do manual labor or IT labor. While the IT industry is fairly well paying and requires very little physical effort, I really do miss the days of manual labor. Part of it was from working outside, the other part is how I felt physically. I was tired, but it was a good tired. When I went to bed at night, I fell asleep and didn't wake until morning. My work today is mentally tiring and when I go to bed at night my brain is still moving and I can't sleep. I wake several times throughout the night and end up feeling like crap the next morning.
{slurp}
What to do?
{slurp}
Anyway folks, going to head off and get some more of that work load done :) Hopefully by this time next week I'll be moved to my new position and I can finally start enjoying work again.
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
Monday, March 24, 2008
v15.9 - Last Day Off
Morning folks,
{slurp}
Well it has been a nice long weekend, but this is the last day I have off and tomorrow it is back to the grind.
{slurp}
This weekend has been a huge drain on me. I believe I mentioned that one of my guys decided he was going to take some time off without any notice just before a major power down weekend. Well, needless to say, he really screwed over the team and I ended up holding the ball when all was said and done. I've worked most of my weekend and really don't care whether this guy comes back or not. As far as I'm concerned, he is unreliable and can go find another job somewhere else; I no longer trust he'll be around when needed.
{slurp}
Anyway folks, I plan on getting some cleaning done today and relaxing. Even though I know I'll be working despite being off, I should try and actually enjoy my day off before going back to hell.
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
{slurp}
Well it has been a nice long weekend, but this is the last day I have off and tomorrow it is back to the grind.
{slurp}
This weekend has been a huge drain on me. I believe I mentioned that one of my guys decided he was going to take some time off without any notice just before a major power down weekend. Well, needless to say, he really screwed over the team and I ended up holding the ball when all was said and done. I've worked most of my weekend and really don't care whether this guy comes back or not. As far as I'm concerned, he is unreliable and can go find another job somewhere else; I no longer trust he'll be around when needed.
{slurp}
Anyway folks, I plan on getting some cleaning done today and relaxing. Even though I know I'll be working despite being off, I should try and actually enjoy my day off before going back to hell.
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
Sunday, March 23, 2008
v15.8 - Easter Time
Howdy Folks,
{slurp}
Well the day is finally here, Easter Sunday.
{slurp}
The day started off with a bang. I was up until 1 or 2am playing games (I know I know) and was abruptly awoken by a wide eyed child who was on the verge of taking off like a rocket as she bounced around my room begging me to get up because the "EASTER BUNNY WAS HERE THE EASTER BUNNY WAS HERE!".
{slurp}
I got up, despite my body screaming at me to sleep more (I was up until 4am the night before gaming.. I know, I know), and I made my way downstairs to view the Easter Bunny's handy work. The day went on thought it felt like I was standing still most of it. I did, however, learn two valuable lessons today.
1) Never, NEVER, give a five year old chocolate for breakfast
2) When your body screams at you to stay in bed, listen to it. The damage caused by sleeping in an extra hour or so may be worth it compared to the damage you may cause by being over tired and not awake.
{slurp}
Anyway folks, time for me to call it a day, take care and we'll see you tomorrow.
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
{slurp}
Well the day is finally here, Easter Sunday.
{slurp}
The day started off with a bang. I was up until 1 or 2am playing games (I know I know) and was abruptly awoken by a wide eyed child who was on the verge of taking off like a rocket as she bounced around my room begging me to get up because the "EASTER BUNNY WAS HERE THE EASTER BUNNY WAS HERE!".
{slurp}
I got up, despite my body screaming at me to sleep more (I was up until 4am the night before gaming.. I know, I know), and I made my way downstairs to view the Easter Bunny's handy work. The day went on thought it felt like I was standing still most of it. I did, however, learn two valuable lessons today.
1) Never, NEVER, give a five year old chocolate for breakfast
2) When your body screams at you to stay in bed, listen to it. The damage caused by sleeping in an extra hour or so may be worth it compared to the damage you may cause by being over tired and not awake.
{slurp}
Anyway folks, time for me to call it a day, take care and we'll see you tomorrow.
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
Saturday, March 22, 2008
v15.7 - The Day Before
Howdy folks,
{slurp}
It is Saturday, the day before Easter. You know, this is a fairly funny day as yesterday was considered a holiday here and tomorrow is considered a holiday. You get this one day in the middle to do all your last minute Easter shopping and getting other things and then you're back into another Holiday. I don't know why I mention this, it was just something on my mind as I started writing.
{slurp}
As mentioned, today is Saturday and despite it being a holiday weekend, all the things we normally need to do today need to be done. We have dance class to attend, after which a Birthday party to attend and then we'll most likely be doing some grocery shopping. Our day is packed fully of goodness and I'm looking forward to spending the day with the whole family.
{slurp}
Today, as luck would have it, is also my Father's birthday. My sister's family is supposed to be up there visiting him this weekend. Part of me wishes I was spending time with family, but the other part of me is glad I don't have to worry about any travel plans and can just relax at home this weekend.
{slurp}
Also this weekend, the company I work for is having their Annual Easter Power Down. For those who don't know what that is, basically they pick several buildings globally and power them off for the weekend. This is to test BCP (Business Continuity Plan) and to be a pain in my ass. The amount of work that goes into a single building being powered down is silly. A lot of it is politics and you can't get anything done that is needed without proper approvals and sign-offs. I mean, come on! They are powering the building OFF, if you don't let me do this, then you will lose ApplicationX for the whole weekend. You can approve this and let me do my job, or you can be without the application. Personally, it is a LOT less work to let them power the thing off and lose access to applications for the weekend, but that isn't the way it is supposed to work. As I mentioned, they also use this to test BCP. Well the funny thing about that is they do a whole pile of work to ensure stuff is going to be available. A true BCP test would be to just power the building down and see what lives and what dies (application wise). Then you have simulated a proper loss of building which is the way these things SHOULD go. But I'm just a consultant and lowly IT person, so what would I know?
{slurp}
Anyway folks, I must be off so we can being our busy day. Take care..
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
{slurp}
It is Saturday, the day before Easter. You know, this is a fairly funny day as yesterday was considered a holiday here and tomorrow is considered a holiday. You get this one day in the middle to do all your last minute Easter shopping and getting other things and then you're back into another Holiday. I don't know why I mention this, it was just something on my mind as I started writing.
{slurp}
As mentioned, today is Saturday and despite it being a holiday weekend, all the things we normally need to do today need to be done. We have dance class to attend, after which a Birthday party to attend and then we'll most likely be doing some grocery shopping. Our day is packed fully of goodness and I'm looking forward to spending the day with the whole family.
{slurp}
Today, as luck would have it, is also my Father's birthday. My sister's family is supposed to be up there visiting him this weekend. Part of me wishes I was spending time with family, but the other part of me is glad I don't have to worry about any travel plans and can just relax at home this weekend.
{slurp}
Also this weekend, the company I work for is having their Annual Easter Power Down. For those who don't know what that is, basically they pick several buildings globally and power them off for the weekend. This is to test BCP (Business Continuity Plan) and to be a pain in my ass. The amount of work that goes into a single building being powered down is silly. A lot of it is politics and you can't get anything done that is needed without proper approvals and sign-offs. I mean, come on! They are powering the building OFF, if you don't let me do this, then you will lose ApplicationX for the whole weekend. You can approve this and let me do my job, or you can be without the application. Personally, it is a LOT less work to let them power the thing off and lose access to applications for the weekend, but that isn't the way it is supposed to work. As I mentioned, they also use this to test BCP. Well the funny thing about that is they do a whole pile of work to ensure stuff is going to be available. A true BCP test would be to just power the building down and see what lives and what dies (application wise). Then you have simulated a proper loss of building which is the way these things SHOULD go. But I'm just a consultant and lowly IT person, so what would I know?
{slurp}
Anyway folks, I must be off so we can being our busy day. Take care..
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
Friday, March 21, 2008
v15.6 - Happy Spring!
Good morning folks,
{slurp}
Well it is officially the first day of Spring! Isn't that great?
{slurp}
As luck would have it, today is also Good Friday which is considered a stat holiday here in Canada. I have the day off today, but I suspect I'll be working quite a bit of it as our client is in the USA which does not seem to view Good Friday as a holiday. Interesting that.
{slurp}
Anyway, I just wanted to stop by quick this morning and wish everyone a happy first day of Spring. In a couple days I'll be here wishing everyone a Happy Easter which is just grand as well.
Until then...
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
{slurp}
Well it is officially the first day of Spring! Isn't that great?
{slurp}
As luck would have it, today is also Good Friday which is considered a stat holiday here in Canada. I have the day off today, but I suspect I'll be working quite a bit of it as our client is in the USA which does not seem to view Good Friday as a holiday. Interesting that.
{slurp}
Anyway, I just wanted to stop by quick this morning and wish everyone a happy first day of Spring. In a couple days I'll be here wishing everyone a Happy Easter which is just grand as well.
Until then...
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
Thursday, March 20, 2008
v15.5 - Oops
Howdy Folks,
{slurp}
I missed yesterday's musing and I deeply apologize. Work was very hectic and I wasn't able to get anything written down throughout the day. I thought about the musing on my way home and made a mental note to write something quickly when I got home, but forgot. Then later in the evening while I was playing some Lord of the Rings Online with a friend, I thought about writing again and then completely forgot.
{slurp}
This has been a very brutal week for me. I found out this week that the new position I'm being moved to is being pushed out 2 more weeks due to hiring delays for the backfill position. I was looking forward to moving my desk next week (which was the initial plan) but now it looks like I won't get a chance to move until the 31st at the earliest. Oh well, can't say I'm very surprised after working here for the last 2.5 years.
{slurp}
The kids are home from school today. We had a freezing rain warning issued for our area last night and today but so far it has been more rain than freezing. There was a thin layer of ice on my vehicle when I went to go to work, but most of it just fell off due to the mild temperatures. Tomorrow is the first day of spring and they are calling for snow.
{slurp}
So I started my day off today working from home. As mentioned, the kids were home from school today and Katie works early in the morning until the afternoon so that means I'm stuck home watching them until she gets home. Well as luck would have it, the whole place started to fall apart (at work that is) and I had to call Katie up at work and ask her to leave early because I had to head into the office. Well here I sit, mounds of shit all around me that I need to fix and I'm hating it.
{slurp}
Anyway folks, stuff is happening and I'm losing my concentration on my musing. Until next time..
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
{slurp}
I missed yesterday's musing and I deeply apologize. Work was very hectic and I wasn't able to get anything written down throughout the day. I thought about the musing on my way home and made a mental note to write something quickly when I got home, but forgot. Then later in the evening while I was playing some Lord of the Rings Online with a friend, I thought about writing again and then completely forgot.
{slurp}
This has been a very brutal week for me. I found out this week that the new position I'm being moved to is being pushed out 2 more weeks due to hiring delays for the backfill position. I was looking forward to moving my desk next week (which was the initial plan) but now it looks like I won't get a chance to move until the 31st at the earliest. Oh well, can't say I'm very surprised after working here for the last 2.5 years.
{slurp}
The kids are home from school today. We had a freezing rain warning issued for our area last night and today but so far it has been more rain than freezing. There was a thin layer of ice on my vehicle when I went to go to work, but most of it just fell off due to the mild temperatures. Tomorrow is the first day of spring and they are calling for snow.
{slurp}
So I started my day off today working from home. As mentioned, the kids were home from school today and Katie works early in the morning until the afternoon so that means I'm stuck home watching them until she gets home. Well as luck would have it, the whole place started to fall apart (at work that is) and I had to call Katie up at work and ask her to leave early because I had to head into the office. Well here I sit, mounds of shit all around me that I need to fix and I'm hating it.
{slurp}
Anyway folks, stuff is happening and I'm losing my concentration on my musing. Until next time..
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
v15.4 - Give Me Some Sugar
Morning folks,
{slurp}
My musing title today reminds me of a joke my father used to tell that goes something like this:
{slurp}
I plan on talking about sugar for a bit today (hence the title) and the way it affects us. Sugar dates back to as far as I can google. From what I can tell, it has been around for a very very long time. It is one of the primary causes of Type-2 Diabetes, Obesity, Tooth-decay and the process of growing sugar is harmful to the environment. If all these things were not enough, it was also one of the leading reasons for African slavery.
{slurp}
That's right folks, not only does sugar make things sweet, it can also leave a bitter taste in your mouth when you think of where it comes from. But that can go for pretty much anything these days. Everything we've discovered or marketed has skeletons in the closet and derives from some form of slavery or causes some disease. I received an email yesterday which talks about MSG and it's effects on the body and such. MSG was a great idea back in the day to add flavor to foods, but it has been linked with so many different health issues like Chest Pains, Headaches, Nausea, Rapid Heartbeat, Difficulty Breathing, Weakness and various other physical issues.
{slurp}
Of course we eat both sugar and MSG daily sometimes without even knowing it (or thinking about it). Next time you sit down for a meal or a snack, take a quick look at the packaging and read the ingredients and nutrition information, I guarantee you'll be surprised.
{slurp}
Well folks, that ends my little lesson today. Tune in next week where I talk about the negative effects of work on your health :)
Until then...
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
{slurp}
My musing title today reminds me of a joke my father used to tell that goes something like this:
Pass the Honey, HoneyAhh the memories ;)
Pass the Sugar, Sugar
Pass the Tea, Bag
{slurp}
I plan on talking about sugar for a bit today (hence the title) and the way it affects us. Sugar dates back to as far as I can google. From what I can tell, it has been around for a very very long time. It is one of the primary causes of Type-2 Diabetes, Obesity, Tooth-decay and the process of growing sugar is harmful to the environment. If all these things were not enough, it was also one of the leading reasons for African slavery.
{slurp}
That's right folks, not only does sugar make things sweet, it can also leave a bitter taste in your mouth when you think of where it comes from. But that can go for pretty much anything these days. Everything we've discovered or marketed has skeletons in the closet and derives from some form of slavery or causes some disease. I received an email yesterday which talks about MSG and it's effects on the body and such. MSG was a great idea back in the day to add flavor to foods, but it has been linked with so many different health issues like Chest Pains, Headaches, Nausea, Rapid Heartbeat, Difficulty Breathing, Weakness and various other physical issues.
{slurp}
Of course we eat both sugar and MSG daily sometimes without even knowing it (or thinking about it). Next time you sit down for a meal or a snack, take a quick look at the packaging and read the ingredients and nutrition information, I guarantee you'll be surprised.
{slurp}
Well folks, that ends my little lesson today. Tune in next week where I talk about the negative effects of work on your health :)
Until then...
{slurp}
Cheers,
Al
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