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May 30, 2009
Failing...
I love failblog.org... People send them pictures of stupidity in action (or in inaction). Here are just a couple examples:
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May 28, 2009
Man, three days already?
I can't believe it's been three days since I last put something on here. I guess it's because I usually update my Facebook and then forget all about writing things on here. Or maybe I'm just losing my mind. Either way...
The good news is that I had my annual employee evaluation on Wednesday. I know, that's not usually a starting point for good news. In my case, it was good news. I'm still gainfully employed. When I have two bosses, plus at least two people from each school district we serve chiming in on my performance, I am never really sure how things will go. Granted, I have a good idea of how I'm doing in general, but if you've ever had an eval, you know that things can come up that you had forgotten about or that seemed minor to you but important to someone else. It is the nature of things. In my case, I have some areas of improvement, but that is how everyone's eval should go. I mean, if we didn't have to grow, then why bother working there anymore?
My aunt found a box of trading cards and asked if I wanted them. Of course! Little did I realize this was a jumbo shoebox full of cards - baseball, hockey, football, and who knows what else. It'll take me a while to go through them! I'm looking forward to it big time - yeah, I'm a big kid...
More to come...
The good news is that I had my annual employee evaluation on Wednesday. I know, that's not usually a starting point for good news. In my case, it was good news. I'm still gainfully employed. When I have two bosses, plus at least two people from each school district we serve chiming in on my performance, I am never really sure how things will go. Granted, I have a good idea of how I'm doing in general, but if you've ever had an eval, you know that things can come up that you had forgotten about or that seemed minor to you but important to someone else. It is the nature of things. In my case, I have some areas of improvement, but that is how everyone's eval should go. I mean, if we didn't have to grow, then why bother working there anymore?
My aunt found a box of trading cards and asked if I wanted them. Of course! Little did I realize this was a jumbo shoebox full of cards - baseball, hockey, football, and who knows what else. It'll take me a while to go through them! I'm looking forward to it big time - yeah, I'm a big kid...
More to come...
May 25, 2009
Memorial Day
Those are the grilled pineapples I made for our Memorial Day cookout. They were okay, but something was a little off. I've never made them like this before, so I won't know until next time what's off... My recipe went something like this:
1 - medium-to-large pineapple, cut into half-inch or 3/4-inch thick rings (or something akin to rings) and decored (or whatever the culinary term is)
1 TBSP - Lemon Juice
2 TBSP - Honey
3 TBSP - Brown Sugar
1 dash - Cinnamon
1 gallon-sized zippered baggie
Mix the ingredients together for the glaze to get a nice consistency. Shouldn't be too runny, but not molasses either. If too thick, add a little lemon juice at a time. If too runny, add your flavor of choice (I prefer brown sugar!).
Baste each side of each pineapple ring, and do the edges. Heck, do the middle of the ring while you're at it! Place each ring into the baggie as you are done with it. When you have basted all the rings, pour the remaining glaze into the baggie and gently massage it throughout the baggie over as many of the rings as you can. Lay the baggie flat on a fridge shelf. Let the rings marinate for about 15-20 minutes in the refrigerator, then turn the baggie over for another 15-20 minutes.
Remove the baggie from the fridge and lay each slice on a medium-heat grill. If you prefer, you can lightly spray non-stick oil on the racks (before you light the grill), but I prefer to just stick 'em on there and go for it. You can also use the juice in the baggie as a baste while you are cooking the slices.
Cook each side for NO MORE than 4 minutes, then flip the slices over and do the other side (again, NO MORE than 4 minutes). This will give nice grill marks without overcooking the slices.
Enjoy! (I saved the top for decoration - yeah, I've been watching too much Food Network!)
I caught Emily feeding her goats this afternoon:
Another rainy day
Well, it rained all day today (Sunday). Not a heavy downpour, though for a while it was raining heavily, but enough to foil my weed-whacking plans. So instead, I spent much of the day working on putting baseball card trades together and working on layouts for my various blogs.
At one point, I have a three-column arrangement going on here, but it looked awful, so I reverted back to two columns. Over on my Indians card blog, I created a modified three-column layout that I think will eventually work pretty well. I still need to play with font sizes, colors, and such, but I like it better.
I am the kind of person that likes to change the furniture around. I'm sure I've talked about that before on here. We don't change things around the house much, mainly because it would serve no functional purpose to do so. I'd like to change the office around, but that would mean getting rid of my corner computer desk, and that just ain't gonna happen. Shan got it for me years ago,and it has not only held up well, but it looks good. The office is not built to accommodate the desk in any place other than where it is now, so I just leave things alone. I figure since the house is out of the equation, I'll fulfill my need to rearrange things by changing things on my blogs. :-)
If I forget to wrote tomorrow (Monday), I want to say a VERY special THANK YOU to the men and women who serve everyday of their lives in order to give us freedom. Let us never forget those who came before us, those who serve now, and those will make the decision to serve in the future.
At one point, I have a three-column arrangement going on here, but it looked awful, so I reverted back to two columns. Over on my Indians card blog, I created a modified three-column layout that I think will eventually work pretty well. I still need to play with font sizes, colors, and such, but I like it better.
I am the kind of person that likes to change the furniture around. I'm sure I've talked about that before on here. We don't change things around the house much, mainly because it would serve no functional purpose to do so. I'd like to change the office around, but that would mean getting rid of my corner computer desk, and that just ain't gonna happen. Shan got it for me years ago,and it has not only held up well, but it looks good. The office is not built to accommodate the desk in any place other than where it is now, so I just leave things alone. I figure since the house is out of the equation, I'll fulfill my need to rearrange things by changing things on my blogs. :-)
If I forget to wrote tomorrow (Monday), I want to say a VERY special THANK YOU to the men and women who serve everyday of their lives in order to give us freedom. Let us never forget those who came before us, those who serve now, and those will make the decision to serve in the future.
May 23, 2009
I have no idea
Seriously, I have no idea where this post is going. You're welcome to come along for the ride.
My latest video game addiction is "DiceWars:"
It's like Risk, but everything is determined by rolls of dice. Yeah, it's dorky, but it's fun anyway. Or maybe challenging is the better word. In any case, it's my latest Internet Attention Deficit Disorder manifestation.
My other Internet-based distraction lately is woot.com. Woot has one item for sale each day, and once they run out, it's over. You have to check in early or else miss out on most things. Sometimes they have cool things and other days they have junk no one wanted to begin with. It's always worth stopping by, if you can remember to do so. Of course, if I really cared that much, it would be one of my home page tabs, right?
There's a new computer store in town here. I haven't been to it as of yet, mainly because it looks like it's not really open for business. It is, of course, but it looks like the same run-down shop that was there before. And, there is something else... The shop has a bay window, and in the bay window is a mattress. Seriously. I'm not sure I feel comfortable going into a store that has a mattress in the front window. There's just something not right there. It'll be interesting to see how the store lasts. Prescott has maybe 4300 people total. Hope has at least twice that many and every computer shop to pop up there has failed except one that I can think of. It's a tough market to crack because you have to have enough business to pay the rent and pay your own bills, buy food, etc. As much as I would love to open my shop, I just don't see it being feasible. Then again, I have been wrong about such things many times before.
Wow, hey! The Indians won tonight! If you have not been following along with what the Tribe has been up to this season, well, they are in dead last place in the American League. It's a lot like watching the Indians of the 80's. Maybe they'll remake "Major League" and give the Indians a boost.... Oh well, at least we're not the Washington Nationals...
Do 'stickers' grow in places other than the South? There is this thorny grass (probably what's called 'crab grass') that releases these little roundish hard 'stickers' that get on and in everything, and when you step on one with your bare foot, you might as well call the roofer because you are going through! Talk about pain! Well, our vacuum cleaner got quite a workout today. You know you feel good about your carpet when you can walk across it with bare feet and not worry about stepping on stickers. Man, I hate those things.
I am having one heck of a baseball-related year this year! We went to the Rangers game for my birthday, then in a couple weeks, I am going to the Indians-Cubs game in Chicago at Wrigley, and a couple weeks after that, we will be in NYC for the Yankees game! Talk about FRIGGIN AWESOME!!
Speaking of awesome, how about those Penguins!? 6-2 tonight!? Whoa buddy! Malkin is on fire, and Crosby is not far behind him. Holy cow! It would be awesome to have the Penguins take the Stanley Cup in the same year the Steelers got the Super Bowl! I don't see any way the Pirates could grab the World Series. I guess anything could happen. I would love to see an Indians-Pirates World Series. That would be cool... Maybe someday in my lifetime...
We've been watching the Super Regionals NCAA Women's Softball on and off during the weekend. Man, there have been some very good games! I am not necessarily a softball fan, but these girls can really rip the ball and play some amazing defense! If you're not watching, you should try and check 'em out.
I'm sick of hearing about Brett Favre. I just wish he would have retired the first time he said he was. He would have gone out at the top of things and not looked like the aging buffoon his circus has turned into. I hope all athletes are watching and paying attention because he is giving a clinic on how NOT to retire from a professional sports career.
Thanks for stopping by during your Memorial Day weekend! Be sure to take a moment or two and remember just why we celebrate this holiday to begin with... There are men and women who have given their lives so that we can do things like blog, keep up with friends on FaceBook, go to church where we want, play outside... Thank you, servicemen and service women! Your sacrifice is appreciated here each and every single day I wake up as free American.
My latest video game addiction is "DiceWars:"
It's like Risk, but everything is determined by rolls of dice. Yeah, it's dorky, but it's fun anyway. Or maybe challenging is the better word. In any case, it's my latest Internet Attention Deficit Disorder manifestation.
My other Internet-based distraction lately is woot.com. Woot has one item for sale each day, and once they run out, it's over. You have to check in early or else miss out on most things. Sometimes they have cool things and other days they have junk no one wanted to begin with. It's always worth stopping by, if you can remember to do so. Of course, if I really cared that much, it would be one of my home page tabs, right?
There's a new computer store in town here. I haven't been to it as of yet, mainly because it looks like it's not really open for business. It is, of course, but it looks like the same run-down shop that was there before. And, there is something else... The shop has a bay window, and in the bay window is a mattress. Seriously. I'm not sure I feel comfortable going into a store that has a mattress in the front window. There's just something not right there. It'll be interesting to see how the store lasts. Prescott has maybe 4300 people total. Hope has at least twice that many and every computer shop to pop up there has failed except one that I can think of. It's a tough market to crack because you have to have enough business to pay the rent and pay your own bills, buy food, etc. As much as I would love to open my shop, I just don't see it being feasible. Then again, I have been wrong about such things many times before.
Wow, hey! The Indians won tonight! If you have not been following along with what the Tribe has been up to this season, well, they are in dead last place in the American League. It's a lot like watching the Indians of the 80's. Maybe they'll remake "Major League" and give the Indians a boost.... Oh well, at least we're not the Washington Nationals...
Do 'stickers' grow in places other than the South? There is this thorny grass (probably what's called 'crab grass') that releases these little roundish hard 'stickers' that get on and in everything, and when you step on one with your bare foot, you might as well call the roofer because you are going through! Talk about pain! Well, our vacuum cleaner got quite a workout today. You know you feel good about your carpet when you can walk across it with bare feet and not worry about stepping on stickers. Man, I hate those things.
I am having one heck of a baseball-related year this year! We went to the Rangers game for my birthday, then in a couple weeks, I am going to the Indians-Cubs game in Chicago at Wrigley, and a couple weeks after that, we will be in NYC for the Yankees game! Talk about FRIGGIN AWESOME!!
Speaking of awesome, how about those Penguins!? 6-2 tonight!? Whoa buddy! Malkin is on fire, and Crosby is not far behind him. Holy cow! It would be awesome to have the Penguins take the Stanley Cup in the same year the Steelers got the Super Bowl! I don't see any way the Pirates could grab the World Series. I guess anything could happen. I would love to see an Indians-Pirates World Series. That would be cool... Maybe someday in my lifetime...
We've been watching the Super Regionals NCAA Women's Softball on and off during the weekend. Man, there have been some very good games! I am not necessarily a softball fan, but these girls can really rip the ball and play some amazing defense! If you're not watching, you should try and check 'em out.
I'm sick of hearing about Brett Favre. I just wish he would have retired the first time he said he was. He would have gone out at the top of things and not looked like the aging buffoon his circus has turned into. I hope all athletes are watching and paying attention because he is giving a clinic on how NOT to retire from a professional sports career.
Thanks for stopping by during your Memorial Day weekend! Be sure to take a moment or two and remember just why we celebrate this holiday to begin with... There are men and women who have given their lives so that we can do things like blog, keep up with friends on FaceBook, go to church where we want, play outside... Thank you, servicemen and service women! Your sacrifice is appreciated here each and every single day I wake up as free American.
May 21, 2009
Other duties as assigned
At approximately 11:00 on Thursday morning, my Director called to tell me and John that she thought it would be a good day for us to go get the free pallet of paper we have waiting for us. Might as well put my HEMI to use, right?
John and I get the hitch from one of the clerks, then head to the hospital to borrow their flatbed trailer. Although I have towed my 30-foot travel trailer a few times, I am in no way anywhere close to knowing what I am doing when it comes to trailer manipulation. We asked the guy at the hospital to get the truck and trailer out of the tight-squeeze gate. Done.
Since we were told that we could not pick up paper between 12p-1p, we opted for lunch. After lunch, we had to take some parking lot shortcuts, runabouts in order to get ourselves in a position that I felt comfortable getting into traffic. Having to cut across 3 lanes of heavy congestion while making a left turn with a trailer is not my idea of fun, thanks.
Getting to the paper mill was uneventful, but once we got there, the antics kicked in full swing. Our first stop? The guard shack. as soon as I saw the guard's face, I knew that she knew we had no idea what we were doing. She was polite, though, and guided us to the main entrance. Evidently, the large sign reading "ENTRANCE" was not meant for us.
I pulled the truck around to the main entrance and had to go to the security desk. They verified that I did have paper to pick up. Once the inspected our vehicle, they opened an electric gate and we pulled through. I had no idea paper was so security-weary.
Now, I was told to "Make a right around the building. Drive passed the trailers, then turn right again." I was told I would see the shipping office and then could turn in to get to the front door. So, I drove around the building, drove passed the trailers and turned right. Nothing looked like a (or said) Shipping Office, so I kept on driving. Oh, I forgot to mention John and I were handed a fluorescent jersey and safety glasses. Yeah, totally rockin the fashion there. So, I drive... I pass several buildings, hoping to see a 'shipping office' sign. Nope. I eventually come to a stop at a warehouse where a guy is on a forklift. I get out, don my cool uniform, and head for the warehouse. When he spots me, the guys says, "You're lost." There was no denying it. "I'm looking for the Shipping Office." He smiled, shook his head, and said, "You missed." Then he gave us directions back the way we came.
The woman inside the shipping office was very helpful and directed BACK the way I had just come from! UGH... I have never done so many u-turns in my life, let alone while towing a trailer. We waited. Eventually, a guy with a pallet of paper and a forklift came down a ramp and loaded the paper on the trailer. The forklift could not get the paper close to the middle of the trailer, so the driver grabbed another pallet and pushed the first one closer to the center. As he did this, he set the second pallet on the trailer and the back of my truck nearly came off the ground! we thought the trailer would pop out of the hitch for sure, but it never did. Eventually, the paper was set and we put ratchet-straps around the pallet to keep it in place.
Rather than take the paper down the interstate, I opted to go down the old highway that runs along side. It's like driving Route 66 instead of taking the Interstate. And we bounced the whole way back to the office.
Once at the office, the Keystone Cops showed up and we all unloaded the trailer using a myriad of carts, dollies, and brute strength. I remarked to my Director, "This is why I got my Master's..." I don't remember her reply, but I would venture to guess it was something like: "Yeap!"
May 20, 2009
OMG, Happy Birthday, Dad: It's the AI Finale
Not only is today the AI Finale, but it's Dad's birthday. All I can say is that I imagine Dad is having one heck of a party. And, if he's out there watching Idol in some way, he is gettin his groove on, much to the chagrin of those in charge, I'm sure. :-)
Uhhh, is Adam wearing parachute pants!? What is up with the all-white look tonight? I'm sure there are ACLU/NAACP people going to throw a fit over that one.
Oh, the ubiquitous "Rock Star" gets everyone involved. Seriously, is there a contestant-based TV show that ISN'T using that song at some point during the 'season?' I mean, okay, yes, great song, but man, how about something a little newer or something with about a million fewer radio hours of play time, folks?
I am so glad we have DVR. We are able to move past all the junk no one wants to see. Is there a way for directv to monitor what gets watched and what gets passed over in fast-forward? Man, if not, they should really think about it. Monitor what people are skipping over and send that to Fox. Then, next year's finale can be the 30-minute show it should be.
ROTFL, okay, the whole 'Norman' thing is funny. That is classic.... Oh, yeah, this will be on the Soup...
Man, I am a huge Lil Rounds fan. She is awesome.
Okay, the Jason Mraz folks are more than a bit off... Good thing the song outshines the singers.
Holy crap - Keith Urban!? Wow, it does not get much better than getting to sing with Keith live. That is awesome!
I still like Megan's quirky voice. Dawg, Fergie in the house! Wow, this is a great night for star singers. Shan said, "Hey, this is on SingStar!" (Big Girls Don't Cry). Ah, and now we bring in the whole Black Eyed Peas crew. Yeah, they should have let Fergie in there by herself.
Uh, Katrina has had quite a bit of work done since she was on. Oh, man, Ryan's "I think I know (what's new)" comment was fantastic!! This is hilarious - Kara was funny! That's cool that they'll donate money to charity for that stunt.
Allison and Cyndi. As Shan said, Cyndi looks great. She was the very first concert I ever saw in person, as I've said on here before I'm sure. Man, Cyndi looks the same as she did 20+ years ago. She sings weird as heck as always, but great stuff.
Danny sings Lionel Richie... HOLY SMOKES!! Oh, man, talk about a night of music legends! He still looks good, and smooth as always. Man, these Idols have got to be in awe.
Adam is sporting the 'crow' outfit. I knew he would be singing with KISS. Now, KISS looks as old as they are. Old men wearing their crazy make-up. Granted, it is still KISS, so they're rockin no matter what!
One of the original guitar heroes - Santana! Okay, forget Matt, just let Santana play. Well, these guys are butchering the song. UGH... Except Kris and Danny.
Steve Martin shows off his banjo chops (He has a new album out, did you know that?).
Rod (holy friggin crap!) Stewart! That is (as Shan said) "IMPRESSIVE!" I am so glad we actually stopped to watch the singing because the superstars are well worth watching! Great show!
Geez, Tatiana... That little skit was cute.
OH MY GOSH - Queen!? I cannot believe that got Queen on here, too! This is a 'kid of the 70s-80s' best show ever! Absolutely incredible.
And, Your American Idol is.......
KRIS ALLEN!!!!! Congratulations, Kris!
Uhhh, is Adam wearing parachute pants!? What is up with the all-white look tonight? I'm sure there are ACLU/NAACP people going to throw a fit over that one.
Oh, the ubiquitous "Rock Star" gets everyone involved. Seriously, is there a contestant-based TV show that ISN'T using that song at some point during the 'season?' I mean, okay, yes, great song, but man, how about something a little newer or something with about a million fewer radio hours of play time, folks?
I am so glad we have DVR. We are able to move past all the junk no one wants to see. Is there a way for directv to monitor what gets watched and what gets passed over in fast-forward? Man, if not, they should really think about it. Monitor what people are skipping over and send that to Fox. Then, next year's finale can be the 30-minute show it should be.
ROTFL, okay, the whole 'Norman' thing is funny. That is classic.... Oh, yeah, this will be on the Soup...
Man, I am a huge Lil Rounds fan. She is awesome.
Okay, the Jason Mraz folks are more than a bit off... Good thing the song outshines the singers.
Holy crap - Keith Urban!? Wow, it does not get much better than getting to sing with Keith live. That is awesome!
I still like Megan's quirky voice. Dawg, Fergie in the house! Wow, this is a great night for star singers. Shan said, "Hey, this is on SingStar!" (Big Girls Don't Cry). Ah, and now we bring in the whole Black Eyed Peas crew. Yeah, they should have let Fergie in there by herself.
Uh, Katrina has had quite a bit of work done since she was on. Oh, man, Ryan's "I think I know (what's new)" comment was fantastic!! This is hilarious - Kara was funny! That's cool that they'll donate money to charity for that stunt.
Allison and Cyndi. As Shan said, Cyndi looks great. She was the very first concert I ever saw in person, as I've said on here before I'm sure. Man, Cyndi looks the same as she did 20+ years ago. She sings weird as heck as always, but great stuff.
Danny sings Lionel Richie... HOLY SMOKES!! Oh, man, talk about a night of music legends! He still looks good, and smooth as always. Man, these Idols have got to be in awe.
Adam is sporting the 'crow' outfit. I knew he would be singing with KISS. Now, KISS looks as old as they are. Old men wearing their crazy make-up. Granted, it is still KISS, so they're rockin no matter what!
One of the original guitar heroes - Santana! Okay, forget Matt, just let Santana play. Well, these guys are butchering the song. UGH... Except Kris and Danny.
Steve Martin shows off his banjo chops (He has a new album out, did you know that?).
Rod (holy friggin crap!) Stewart! That is (as Shan said) "IMPRESSIVE!" I am so glad we actually stopped to watch the singing because the superstars are well worth watching! Great show!
Geez, Tatiana... That little skit was cute.
OH MY GOSH - Queen!? I cannot believe that got Queen on here, too! This is a 'kid of the 70s-80s' best show ever! Absolutely incredible.
And, Your American Idol is.......
KRIS ALLEN!!!!! Congratulations, Kris!
May 19, 2009
Idol Tuesday
Name----Dave----Shan
Adam-----N-------N--
Kris-----Y-------Y--
Adam-----N-------N--
Kris-----?-------Y--
Adam-----Y-------N--
Kris-----?-------Y--
Adam - Mad World - ummmm, no.
Kris - Aint no sunshine - Could he be the next Billy Joel/piano man? maybe if he cuts loose on the ivories, he might do it. Excellent.
Adam - Long time coming - Wow, he is no Taylor Hicks. This is awful. I would say the same thing if Kris were singing it.
Kris - What's goin on - Okay... I'm not real sold on this one. It's okay, not superstar stuff, I don't think.
Adam - no boundaries - Well, it starts out actually pretty well. This is the most 'normal' I've heard Adam. shan says "NO!" I have to say this is actually okay. I know, I must be overloaded from my jury duty on Monday...
Kris - no boundaries - Did he forget the words there for a sec? Well, he did not start strong, but as he built it up, I liked it more and more. I know I must be sick, but I think Adam actually did better on this song. Though, I like Kris' "Bryan Adams" style on this.
Carrie Underwood's version of "Home Sweet Home" is flat-out incredible!!
Adam-----N-------N--
Kris-----Y-------Y--
Adam-----N-------N--
Kris-----?-------Y--
Adam-----Y-------N--
Kris-----?-------Y--
Adam - Mad World - ummmm, no.
Kris - Aint no sunshine - Could he be the next Billy Joel/piano man? maybe if he cuts loose on the ivories, he might do it. Excellent.
Adam - Long time coming - Wow, he is no Taylor Hicks. This is awful. I would say the same thing if Kris were singing it.
Kris - What's goin on - Okay... I'm not real sold on this one. It's okay, not superstar stuff, I don't think.
Adam - no boundaries - Well, it starts out actually pretty well. This is the most 'normal' I've heard Adam. shan says "NO!" I have to say this is actually okay. I know, I must be overloaded from my jury duty on Monday...
Kris - no boundaries - Did he forget the words there for a sec? Well, he did not start strong, but as he built it up, I liked it more and more. I know I must be sick, but I think Adam actually did better on this song. Though, I like Kris' "Bryan Adams" style on this.
Carrie Underwood's version of "Home Sweet Home" is flat-out incredible!!
May 17, 2009
Keeping up
I twitter every once in a blue moon. I FaceBook almost every day or every few days. I write for several card-related blogs every other day or so. Yet, the blog that started it all for me (that would be this one) goes neglected for undetermined amounts of time.
The funny thing is that I don't post on here as much as I'd like to for a couple reasons. First of all, the space between my ears is generally void of anything worth sharing. Really. I mean, yeah, I have a gazillion bits of useless trivia running around in there, but rarely does the occasion come about to actually share any of it. Second, most folks that I know read this are also on FaceBook, which means y'all already know what's happening because I rip off quick little posts about what I'm doing.
But, I have high expectations for myself when posting on here. Okay, maybe 'high' is not the right word. But, at midnight, I don't have a better word. so, I usually 'save up' a few things to write about before sharing them with you on here.
Shan and I went to see "Ghosts of Girlfriends Past" on Saturday. Our anniversary is Monday, and we have way too much going on that day to have a celebration, so we opted to do so early.
The movie is predictable - you know the end within the first scene - but, it is pretty entertaining. Michael Douglas looks like the third-string stand-in for Mickey Rourke in the sequel to "The Wrestler." he looks bad, folks. And, the part with the 'teardrops of girlfriends past' was as cheesy as it gets, though the 'chocolates' part was very funny. For me, the best part of the movie was when the 16-year old girl says 'next, we'll watch a montage of your past girlfriends set to ... cyndi lauper's "time after time"' (or something like that). GREAT stuff!
The movie is all chick-flick and is all what-guys-WISH-they-had-been. I would bet most guys have wished they were the 'player' in their pre-marriage days, and if not, then they have the girl in middle school or high school that they wish they had been brave enough to ask out. Okay, maybe not most guys.
In my case, there was Beth P. Beth was the girl most of my friends talked about and wanted to ask out, but none of them ever did. I did. She was sitting on a hillside during football practice. I did not know that she was dating a football player, and luckily so far as I know he never knew I even existed (otherwise I probably wouldn't be writing this now). I walked up to Beth and asked her something stupid about one of our classes, then took a deep breath and asked if she wanted to go out sometime. I braced myself for roaring laughter. Instead, she smiled and said, "I am very flattered, but I have a boyfriend." I thanked her (not really knowing what I was saying) and walked away.
I think it was in that moment that I decided two things: 1) I might not have been quite as dorky as I has thought, and 2) I was just as dorky as I thought. The only thing I could focus on was the fact that she didn't laugh. It was that very exchange that later led me to ask Shan out, even though I knew she had a boyfriend.
Of course, we tend to get in the way of our paths and I almost never did get to date Shan. And later in life, I got way too far in the way of our own path and nearly lost her forever. I thank God every night before I go to sleep at night that I did not lose her. Sometimes, it takes more than we can see to realize that someone truly can be your everything. And, Shan is (and will forever be) my everything.
The funny thing is that I don't post on here as much as I'd like to for a couple reasons. First of all, the space between my ears is generally void of anything worth sharing. Really. I mean, yeah, I have a gazillion bits of useless trivia running around in there, but rarely does the occasion come about to actually share any of it. Second, most folks that I know read this are also on FaceBook, which means y'all already know what's happening because I rip off quick little posts about what I'm doing.
But, I have high expectations for myself when posting on here. Okay, maybe 'high' is not the right word. But, at midnight, I don't have a better word. so, I usually 'save up' a few things to write about before sharing them with you on here.
Shan and I went to see "Ghosts of Girlfriends Past" on Saturday. Our anniversary is Monday, and we have way too much going on that day to have a celebration, so we opted to do so early.
The movie is predictable - you know the end within the first scene - but, it is pretty entertaining. Michael Douglas looks like the third-string stand-in for Mickey Rourke in the sequel to "The Wrestler." he looks bad, folks. And, the part with the 'teardrops of girlfriends past' was as cheesy as it gets, though the 'chocolates' part was very funny. For me, the best part of the movie was when the 16-year old girl says 'next, we'll watch a montage of your past girlfriends set to ... cyndi lauper's "time after time"' (or something like that). GREAT stuff!
The movie is all chick-flick and is all what-guys-WISH-they-had-been. I would bet most guys have wished they were the 'player' in their pre-marriage days, and if not, then they have the girl in middle school or high school that they wish they had been brave enough to ask out. Okay, maybe not most guys.
In my case, there was Beth P. Beth was the girl most of my friends talked about and wanted to ask out, but none of them ever did. I did. She was sitting on a hillside during football practice. I did not know that she was dating a football player, and luckily so far as I know he never knew I even existed (otherwise I probably wouldn't be writing this now). I walked up to Beth and asked her something stupid about one of our classes, then took a deep breath and asked if she wanted to go out sometime. I braced myself for roaring laughter. Instead, she smiled and said, "I am very flattered, but I have a boyfriend." I thanked her (not really knowing what I was saying) and walked away.
I think it was in that moment that I decided two things: 1) I might not have been quite as dorky as I has thought, and 2) I was just as dorky as I thought. The only thing I could focus on was the fact that she didn't laugh. It was that very exchange that later led me to ask Shan out, even though I knew she had a boyfriend.
Of course, we tend to get in the way of our paths and I almost never did get to date Shan. And later in life, I got way too far in the way of our own path and nearly lost her forever. I thank God every night before I go to sleep at night that I did not lose her. Sometimes, it takes more than we can see to realize that someone truly can be your everything. And, Shan is (and will forever be) my everything.
May 14, 2009
Not quite roughing it
Mom is back in the hospital. She had a rough day at school on Wednesday and woke up on Thursday asking me to take her to the hospital on my way to work. Well, that ended up leading to the hospital in Texarkana. Frankly, it's worth the drive not to deal with the hospital in Hope. I know that sounds bad, but it's the truth of things these days.
She ended up getting checked in overnight, and I had to take off to help lead a workshop in which I was staying the night. I made sure it was okay with Mom before I left and she was fine with it. Basically, there's nothing I could do but go home anyway, so I just as well get my work done, too.
Well, the meeting is at the 4-H Education Center in Little Rock. It's a series of very nice 'bunk houses' and a huge conference center. Well, huge for being tucked in the middle of the woods!
Here is a statue out front:
And this is my room:
Notice the THREE beds? Notice the lack of a television!? Yes, there is a little clock and they have Internet access. I think I hear the security guard doing room checks. Seriously. I'll let you know if they come knocking on my door...
The meeting was a blast! We had fun learning how to integrate technology and sharing ideas. I also realized I still have some work stuff to do in connection with the TIE group. I'm hoping to get some of that done tonight.
She ended up getting checked in overnight, and I had to take off to help lead a workshop in which I was staying the night. I made sure it was okay with Mom before I left and she was fine with it. Basically, there's nothing I could do but go home anyway, so I just as well get my work done, too.
Well, the meeting is at the 4-H Education Center in Little Rock. It's a series of very nice 'bunk houses' and a huge conference center. Well, huge for being tucked in the middle of the woods!
Here is a statue out front:
And this is my room:
Notice the THREE beds? Notice the lack of a television!? Yes, there is a little clock and they have Internet access. I think I hear the security guard doing room checks. Seriously. I'll let you know if they come knocking on my door...
The meeting was a blast! We had fun learning how to integrate technology and sharing ideas. I also realized I still have some work stuff to do in connection with the TIE group. I'm hoping to get some of that done tonight.
May 13, 2009
Idol Wednesday
Okay, seriously, I don't care to hear about AIDS in Africa or whatever. I have no idea what the kid is singing. Frankly, they could have made this a 30-minute show and cut out all the crap. But, that doesn't sell ads, now does it?
So, here we go....
Kris makes it to the finals!! WAHOO!!! Way to go Kris!!! That is incredible!
Adam made it to the finals. Not a surprise.
Danny gets voted out, which is a bummer, but you knew that was the case once Kris was safe.
So, here we go....
Kris makes it to the finals!! WAHOO!!! Way to go Kris!!! That is incredible!
Adam made it to the finals. Not a surprise.
Danny gets voted out, which is a bummer, but you knew that was the case once Kris was safe.
Idol Tuesday (a day late)
IDOL TUESDAY
NAME----SHAN----DAVE---
DANNY----Y-Y-----?-N---
KRIS-----Y-Y-----Y-Y---
ADAM-----N-N-----N-N---
Danny - "Dance Little Sister" - We don't know this song. So, based on hearing Danny sing it, I have to say I am not that impressed. Shan likes it. She said, "Nothing would make me pick Adam over him." I agree with Simon, I think there are other TDD songs that would have worked better.
Kris - "Apologize" - Wow, a big hit. Wow. I am impressed. This is a great take on the song and his falsettos are dead on with that little 'scratch' he has in his voice. This is fantastic. Knocked it out of the park.
Adam - "One" - Man, if you want to kill a song, give it to Adam. Any bets on long until he starts screaming? I give it 30 seconds into the song. I'm guessing that Bono gave the green light because he knows Adam would never take U2's place on the radio with this song. And, I was close to the time-until-scream...
Danny - "You are so beautiful" - A little flat or something at the start. I'm not loving this rendition. He sings great, I just don't think this was the right way to go. Shan loves his voice and said, "I wouldn't have picked this song, but I love his voice."
Kris - "Heartless" - Okay, here's a white guy doin' Kanye, taking the song in a totally different direction. I actually like this 'unplugged' version. Kinda has that "plain white t's" feel to it. I like it.
Adam - "Cryin" - Well, that is certainly what everyone should be doing that is listening to this song. Crying from the pain in their ears from the awful screaming. I actually thought he would do "Scream" by Michael Jackson. Is there any way he could get sent home? Please. Seriously.
Who do I *WANT* to go to the finals? Easy. Kris and Danny. Who do I think will be in the final? Kris and Adam.
NAME----SHAN----DAVE---
DANNY----Y-Y-----?-N---
KRIS-----Y-Y-----Y-Y---
ADAM-----N-N-----N-N---
Danny - "Dance Little Sister" - We don't know this song. So, based on hearing Danny sing it, I have to say I am not that impressed. Shan likes it. She said, "Nothing would make me pick Adam over him." I agree with Simon, I think there are other TDD songs that would have worked better.
Kris - "Apologize" - Wow, a big hit. Wow. I am impressed. This is a great take on the song and his falsettos are dead on with that little 'scratch' he has in his voice. This is fantastic. Knocked it out of the park.
Adam - "One" - Man, if you want to kill a song, give it to Adam. Any bets on long until he starts screaming? I give it 30 seconds into the song. I'm guessing that Bono gave the green light because he knows Adam would never take U2's place on the radio with this song. And, I was close to the time-until-scream...
Danny - "You are so beautiful" - A little flat or something at the start. I'm not loving this rendition. He sings great, I just don't think this was the right way to go. Shan loves his voice and said, "I wouldn't have picked this song, but I love his voice."
Kris - "Heartless" - Okay, here's a white guy doin' Kanye, taking the song in a totally different direction. I actually like this 'unplugged' version. Kinda has that "plain white t's" feel to it. I like it.
Adam - "Cryin" - Well, that is certainly what everyone should be doing that is listening to this song. Crying from the pain in their ears from the awful screaming. I actually thought he would do "Scream" by Michael Jackson. Is there any way he could get sent home? Please. Seriously.
Who do I *WANT* to go to the finals? Easy. Kris and Danny. Who do I think will be in the final? Kris and Adam.
May 10, 2009
Baseball, Hot Dogs, Lots of Rain and Mother's Day
I've been talking for a while now about a 'chaperoning' job. Well, this past Friday, it was time for the job to come to life. The Prescott Middle School students who earned enough reading points were rewarded with a free ticket to see the Arkansas Travelers play some ball. For many years, the Travs were the farm team for the Cardinals. At some point in the recent past, though, they became the team for the Anaheim Angels.
These pictures were taken at twilight with my camera phone and then I edited the picture a little to try and bring things into a better view. Unfortunately, what you can't really see is the great view of downtown Little Rock. Ah, well...
There were several chaperones that went, and this was the first time I had ever served in that role for something like this. Maybe it's just me, but I always thought the job of a chaperone was to watch the students to make sure they weren't causing trouble and that they weren't wandering all over the place aimlessly. Evidently, I was wrong. For the most part, the kids behaved themselves well. We are talking about three busloads of 5th-8th graders.
Basically, the kids were given tickets to seats in one section, but were told (by the Principal) that they could sit anywhere in that section. The usher was not happy with this arrangement because other ticket-holders would be coming and might want to to sit in their assigned seats. We compromised and made the kids move if a spectator wanted their assigned seat. We only had one couple that threw a fit over the way things were going, and that was mainly because a couple kids threw ice at some other kids, and the couple got caught in the crossfire. None of the adults caught the exchange, but we caught the flack for the aftermath. And, this is where my issue comes into play.
We had at least three adults per bus. There is no reason we should have missed that action. Two girls got into a little bit of a tiff at the beginning of the game, but aside from those two incidents, things went pretty well. I didn't like the kids being allowed to wander around the stadium freely (granted, it's not a very big stadium), but they mainly wanted to check out the food and the souvenir shops.
We all had a good time, but I don't think I could chaperone again. I was never born to be a teacher who has to deal with kids all day, and this just solidified that in my mind. If I ever get the chance to go along with my own kids to an outing, I'll be happy to, and I will keep my eyes on them and on the kids that I know personally (or their parents ask me to keep an eye on them), but not a 'blanket babysitting' again. I was too worried about losing a child. That's one thing when you're looking out for 2, 3, or 5 kids... A whole other when it's 50...
We've been getting some rain over the past few days. No, that's not right. We've been getting a TON of rain over the past few weeks. That's closer. The rain has been non-stop for days, then we get a short reprieve, then it starts back up again. We've had flooding, bouts of nasty thunder and lightning, torrential downpours.
The kicker is that once this all passes, we'll be hit with 100+ degree weather and will be praying for rain. It's something of a catch-22. As I type this, however, the downpour has given away to actual sunshine.
Happy Mother's Day to all the mothers out there! My Mom's TV has been acting up for a while, so I told her that I would go halfsies on a new one. She has a very nice, expensive entertainment center that was designed for a 32-inch standard television. So, I measured the height and width and went shopping. Turns out, Shan and I found a 32-inch flat screen that would fit perfectly. So, she has the same screen size, but instead of being square, she now has a widescreen! She said she likes it so much better - I think mainly because she can actually SEE things on this one.
The kids told me what to get Shan, and I couldn't find exactly what they wanted. So, I did the best I could. I am not very good at these kinds of things, as I have stated many times. They got her a bracelet with crosses and pink hearts and a necklace with a heart and "MOM" scripted across the middle.
These pictures were taken at twilight with my camera phone and then I edited the picture a little to try and bring things into a better view. Unfortunately, what you can't really see is the great view of downtown Little Rock. Ah, well...
There were several chaperones that went, and this was the first time I had ever served in that role for something like this. Maybe it's just me, but I always thought the job of a chaperone was to watch the students to make sure they weren't causing trouble and that they weren't wandering all over the place aimlessly. Evidently, I was wrong. For the most part, the kids behaved themselves well. We are talking about three busloads of 5th-8th graders.
Basically, the kids were given tickets to seats in one section, but were told (by the Principal) that they could sit anywhere in that section. The usher was not happy with this arrangement because other ticket-holders would be coming and might want to to sit in their assigned seats. We compromised and made the kids move if a spectator wanted their assigned seat. We only had one couple that threw a fit over the way things were going, and that was mainly because a couple kids threw ice at some other kids, and the couple got caught in the crossfire. None of the adults caught the exchange, but we caught the flack for the aftermath. And, this is where my issue comes into play.
We had at least three adults per bus. There is no reason we should have missed that action. Two girls got into a little bit of a tiff at the beginning of the game, but aside from those two incidents, things went pretty well. I didn't like the kids being allowed to wander around the stadium freely (granted, it's not a very big stadium), but they mainly wanted to check out the food and the souvenir shops.
We all had a good time, but I don't think I could chaperone again. I was never born to be a teacher who has to deal with kids all day, and this just solidified that in my mind. If I ever get the chance to go along with my own kids to an outing, I'll be happy to, and I will keep my eyes on them and on the kids that I know personally (or their parents ask me to keep an eye on them), but not a 'blanket babysitting' again. I was too worried about losing a child. That's one thing when you're looking out for 2, 3, or 5 kids... A whole other when it's 50...
We've been getting some rain over the past few days. No, that's not right. We've been getting a TON of rain over the past few weeks. That's closer. The rain has been non-stop for days, then we get a short reprieve, then it starts back up again. We've had flooding, bouts of nasty thunder and lightning, torrential downpours.
The kicker is that once this all passes, we'll be hit with 100+ degree weather and will be praying for rain. It's something of a catch-22. As I type this, however, the downpour has given away to actual sunshine.
Happy Mother's Day to all the mothers out there! My Mom's TV has been acting up for a while, so I told her that I would go halfsies on a new one. She has a very nice, expensive entertainment center that was designed for a 32-inch standard television. So, I measured the height and width and went shopping. Turns out, Shan and I found a 32-inch flat screen that would fit perfectly. So, she has the same screen size, but instead of being square, she now has a widescreen! She said she likes it so much better - I think mainly because she can actually SEE things on this one.
The kids told me what to get Shan, and I couldn't find exactly what they wanted. So, I did the best I could. I am not very good at these kinds of things, as I have stated many times. They got her a bracelet with crosses and pink hearts and a necklace with a heart and "MOM" scripted across the middle.
May 7, 2009
Meetings, hotels, and meetings
I got to work today, and had a meeting with my Director first thing. Since we are breaking ground for the new building next week, the three guys that work at our education service center (yes, only three guys in thee whole place), we were tasked with different things to do for the big day.
Ultimately, we're all going to paint shovels (so far as i understand) and I am printing out various logos to go on the hardhats we bought for the ceremony. I told my boss that we should wear our T-Shirts. She said, "What shirts?" i said, "You know, the ones that say EXTREME MAKEOVER: CO-OP EDITION!" Well, I thought it was funny anyway...
After that meeting, i had a meeting/presentation in Little Rock. On the way there, I managed to take a couple of pictures. Nothing spectacular, but still:
And as I got close to Little Rock, I spotted a Dodge Challenger in the used-car lot:
Man, I would love to have one if they didn't cost so much!
The meeting was NOT what I thought it was going to be. It turned out to be more for managers and administrators of various government agencies than anything. There were a few of us tech folks there and after the first presentation, we sat there kind of scratching our heads. The first one was great in the sense that it talked about what managers need to do to get into the 21st century. How they need to learn how to incorporate FaceBook, Twitter, wikis and blogs into the organizational environment, and lead the way rather than play 'catch-up' or put up roadblocks and stop signs. I took a lot of notes during that one. It had information that applies to anyone who might be in a managerial position one day as well as those already in one.
The second presentation was sort of about IT, but it was more about corporate culture and developing innovations for development and such. We were scratching our heads on that one. Then, the last two really did not apply to K12 at all, but rather state agencies and manging personnel. We were pretty well through by the end of it all. In my opinion, though, any time you can get quite a few "A-HA!" moments (no, not the 80's group, though that would have kept our attention), it makes it all worth it.
Tonight, I am staying at a hotel in Little Rock, after having a personal pizza from the Pizza hut Express in Target and a salted soft pretzel to go with it. :-) Admittedly, it was not as good as the ones Shan and I had in arlington, nor as good as the one we had at the mall in Texarkana.
Friday, I will be helping out with a group of teachers participating in the Technology Infused Education program that was developed by the education service center where I work. I've talked about it before, but you can check things out at the TIE Portal.
Friday night, I'll be chaperoning Tyler and a bunch of 8th graders! It should be a lot of fun! As I said the other day, I'll talk more about THAT later...
OH, I almost forgot!! The car below was sitting in a parking lot:
There are a *LOT* of Caprice cars that are done up with skittles, Mt. Dew, Fruit Loops, you name it, around here. Is this a national thing, or just an Arkansas thing??
Ultimately, we're all going to paint shovels (so far as i understand) and I am printing out various logos to go on the hardhats we bought for the ceremony. I told my boss that we should wear our T-Shirts. She said, "What shirts?" i said, "You know, the ones that say EXTREME MAKEOVER: CO-OP EDITION!" Well, I thought it was funny anyway...
After that meeting, i had a meeting/presentation in Little Rock. On the way there, I managed to take a couple of pictures. Nothing spectacular, but still:
And as I got close to Little Rock, I spotted a Dodge Challenger in the used-car lot:
Man, I would love to have one if they didn't cost so much!
The meeting was NOT what I thought it was going to be. It turned out to be more for managers and administrators of various government agencies than anything. There were a few of us tech folks there and after the first presentation, we sat there kind of scratching our heads. The first one was great in the sense that it talked about what managers need to do to get into the 21st century. How they need to learn how to incorporate FaceBook, Twitter, wikis and blogs into the organizational environment, and lead the way rather than play 'catch-up' or put up roadblocks and stop signs. I took a lot of notes during that one. It had information that applies to anyone who might be in a managerial position one day as well as those already in one.
The second presentation was sort of about IT, but it was more about corporate culture and developing innovations for development and such. We were scratching our heads on that one. Then, the last two really did not apply to K12 at all, but rather state agencies and manging personnel. We were pretty well through by the end of it all. In my opinion, though, any time you can get quite a few "A-HA!" moments (no, not the 80's group, though that would have kept our attention), it makes it all worth it.
Tonight, I am staying at a hotel in Little Rock, after having a personal pizza from the Pizza hut Express in Target and a salted soft pretzel to go with it. :-) Admittedly, it was not as good as the ones Shan and I had in arlington, nor as good as the one we had at the mall in Texarkana.
Friday, I will be helping out with a group of teachers participating in the Technology Infused Education program that was developed by the education service center where I work. I've talked about it before, but you can check things out at the TIE Portal.
Friday night, I'll be chaperoning Tyler and a bunch of 8th graders! It should be a lot of fun! As I said the other day, I'll talk more about THAT later...
OH, I almost forgot!! The car below was sitting in a parking lot:
There are a *LOT* of Caprice cars that are done up with skittles, Mt. Dew, Fruit Loops, you name it, around here. Is this a national thing, or just an Arkansas thing??
May 6, 2009
AWANA Pics!
Emily, Sarah, and Shan walk down the aisle during the entrance of the program:
Shan hands Kay a certificate for her work with the kids:
Emily earns a certificate, but she is way too fast for me to catch before she runs for the stage!
Up on stage, Emily smiles for pictures:
I caught Emily peeking around another girl:
Shan hands Kay a certificate for her work with the kids:
Emily earns a certificate, but she is way too fast for me to catch before she runs for the stage!
Up on stage, Emily smiles for pictures:
I caught Emily peeking around another girl:
Idol Wednesday
Kris is the first one SAFE!! That is EFF-ARR-EAKIN awesome!! WAHOO! Way to go Kris!
Adam is safe. Not really a surprise, but dang what a bummer. So, he is top three, huh? Let's hope that's as far as he gets...
Danny is safe, which is a HUGE relief! I was afraid he might be in danger of being booted tonight.
Allison is going to have no problem with her career. She is incredibly good for being only 17 years old! She had a great run on Idol and the doors are flung wide open!
Paula's song was cool, but did you noticed she had to use an overabundance of effects in order to pull it off?? "Dance Like There's No Tomorrow" had the same thing. Someone needs to wake up realize her career is oh-so-ovah...
Adam is safe. Not really a surprise, but dang what a bummer. So, he is top three, huh? Let's hope that's as far as he gets...
Danny is safe, which is a HUGE relief! I was afraid he might be in danger of being booted tonight.
Allison is going to have no problem with her career. She is incredibly good for being only 17 years old! She had a great run on Idol and the doors are flung wide open!
Paula's song was cool, but did you noticed she had to use an overabundance of effects in order to pull it off?? "Dance Like There's No Tomorrow" had the same thing. Someone needs to wake up realize her career is oh-so-ovah...
May 5, 2009
Idol Tuesday and running flat out
Name-----Shan---Dave--
Adam------N------N----
Kris------Y------Y----
Danny-----Y------?----
Allison---?------?----
Shan and I agree that Adam's screaming was way out of control. Of course, so was Danny's. Shan is not a fan of this kind of rock music, so she had a hard time with the songs. She said YES to Danny and Kris because she likes them and wants them to keep on going. For me, these were the songs I 'grew up' with and I know them well. I cannot stand Adam, though this was right up his alley... And someone stepped right on his alley-cat tail making him yell like that. Awful. Danny went the same route. Not good. I liked Kris' version of "Come Together," though I have to say the best version of that song goes to Michael Jackson in my book. And, to be honest, I don't even remember what Allison sang.
The duets were interesting, and Adam and Allison sounded so much a like that I could not tell who was the girl in the duo.
No "40 things..." tonight, folks! I have been basically running flat-out with work for a straight week. I am beginning to understand how my boss(es) feel now. I don't know how they do it. So far as I can tell, they work 7 days a week and at least 14 hours a day. I'd be dead.
I have come to realize that I have got to get more organized, though. Outlook has a 'tasks' feature that I have never used, but I think the only way for me to keep up with the different things I am asked to do is by using that feature. Too many things going at once means I usually have some thing (or things) slip through the cracks, which does not bode well for remaining gainfully employed! So, one of my goals for Wednesday is to put everything I have due into tasks so I can keep track of things. And, hopefully, that will help me cut down on things falling through.
On the plus side, we opened bids for the new building the city is going to build and lease to us! We (LOL, yeah, like I have anything to do with it!) did not make any final decisions, but it was very exciting to see all the bids we got - I think it ended up being close to 20! That's pretty major, and you can tell the economy is affecting a LOT of people.
The rest of the week is going to full, too! I am going to a statewide technology meeting hosted by the state dept of information technology, then spend the night in 'the rock' and on Friday help out with a training until noon. At noon, I'll head back home and then serve as chaperone for a group of kids enjoying their reward for earning reading points! I'll talk more about that after it happens!
Of course, there will be more Idol commentary tomorrow when we see who gets the boot. I'm guessing Allison.... or maybe Danny, though I'd love to see Adam get kicked to the curb.
Adam------N------N----
Kris------Y------Y----
Danny-----Y------?----
Allison---?------?----
Shan and I agree that Adam's screaming was way out of control. Of course, so was Danny's. Shan is not a fan of this kind of rock music, so she had a hard time with the songs. She said YES to Danny and Kris because she likes them and wants them to keep on going. For me, these were the songs I 'grew up' with and I know them well. I cannot stand Adam, though this was right up his alley... And someone stepped right on his alley-cat tail making him yell like that. Awful. Danny went the same route. Not good. I liked Kris' version of "Come Together," though I have to say the best version of that song goes to Michael Jackson in my book. And, to be honest, I don't even remember what Allison sang.
The duets were interesting, and Adam and Allison sounded so much a like that I could not tell who was the girl in the duo.
No "40 things..." tonight, folks! I have been basically running flat-out with work for a straight week. I am beginning to understand how my boss(es) feel now. I don't know how they do it. So far as I can tell, they work 7 days a week and at least 14 hours a day. I'd be dead.
I have come to realize that I have got to get more organized, though. Outlook has a 'tasks' feature that I have never used, but I think the only way for me to keep up with the different things I am asked to do is by using that feature. Too many things going at once means I usually have some thing (or things) slip through the cracks, which does not bode well for remaining gainfully employed! So, one of my goals for Wednesday is to put everything I have due into tasks so I can keep track of things. And, hopefully, that will help me cut down on things falling through.
On the plus side, we opened bids for the new building the city is going to build and lease to us! We (LOL, yeah, like I have anything to do with it!) did not make any final decisions, but it was very exciting to see all the bids we got - I think it ended up being close to 20! That's pretty major, and you can tell the economy is affecting a LOT of people.
The rest of the week is going to full, too! I am going to a statewide technology meeting hosted by the state dept of information technology, then spend the night in 'the rock' and on Friday help out with a training until noon. At noon, I'll head back home and then serve as chaperone for a group of kids enjoying their reward for earning reading points! I'll talk more about that after it happens!
Of course, there will be more Idol commentary tomorrow when we see who gets the boot. I'm guessing Allison.... or maybe Danny, though I'd love to see Adam get kicked to the curb.
May 4, 2009
(not quite) 40 Jobs I've Actually Held
(Updated 04/25/2019)
Yes, believe it or not, I was able to come up with (not quite) 40 different jobs I've had in my life. I am the consummate 'Jack of All Trades, Master of None.' I may have forgotten some. If so, I'll add them in. Meanwhile, prepare to be confused:
Yes, believe it or not, I was able to come up with (not quite) 40 different jobs I've had in my life. I am the consummate 'Jack of All Trades, Master of None.' I may have forgotten some. If so, I'll add them in. Meanwhile, prepare to be confused:
- Litter Picker-Upper - The first job I ever had. I had a stick with a nail in it and walked around the apartment complex where we lived and picked up trash. I sucked at it, and Mom (who was manager of the complex) fired me.
- Seasonal Dept Associate - I worked at Target in Toys and Seasonal. It wasn't too bad of a job, really. Well, except for putting together lawn mowers and patio sets.
- Fry Cook - Yeap, I put my time in at McDonald's. In fact, I worked at several different ones during my life.
- Pizza Delivery Guy - I've worked at several different Pizza Huts in different states. At one point, I actually worked at Mickey-D's AND Pizza Hut at the same time. Ah, Shan hated those days...
- College Lunch Line Cook - Believe it or not, they actually let *ME* cook on the grill at the first college I attended and they paid me for it! Crazy people!
- Computer Sales Associate - I worked for a small computer consulting company. They offered me an assistant manager position if I would stay and not go back to college. Thank the Lord, I chose to return to school!
- Lawn Mower - I was hired to mow a hill.
- Computer Lab Manager - At the first college I went to, I got a job working in the computer lab. I loved that job, and it is probably what started my career path, though I spent most days playing Wizardy on old clunky IBM-PC's!
- Door-to-door jewelry salesman - Seriously. I drove my car all over the state, trying to sell jewelry to business employees.
- Radio salesman - I sold ads for a radio station.
- Radio disc jockey - I worked for the local commercial radio station in college.
- College radio DJ - When I wasn't working at the commercial station, I was working at the college station.
- College radio news director - I was in charge of newscasts for the college station. I won two awards for my work there.
- College radio station manager - I eventually made it to manager (co-manager) of the campus radio station.
- Virginia Whiskey - I had a temp job where I was the guy who made sure the bottles of whiskey got put into boxes. The bottles came down a line single-file and then at the end of the line, they formed a 3x3 grid. Below the bottles, the boxes would come along and my job was to expand the boxes so the 3x3 bottles would drop in. Lots of bottles would smash into each other and I left there smelling like (and wearing) whiskey.
- Administrative Assistant - Yeap, I was an office manager once. I helped the interim director for a state organization.
- Human Resources Assistant - I worked for a great woman who taught me a lot about human resources, organization, law, etc. I actually had two bosses, and the second one had me running all over the place getting the company ready for JCAHO certification.
- Network Administrator - While at Youth home, I was allowed to troubleshoot computer and network issues, and they added those duties to my job and paid me for it! That was where I cut my teeth on Netware 2 and 3 and first learned just what the heck a token ring was. I also wrote an access database program for them. I loved that part of the job.
- Computer Repair Tech - I worked for a local university as a computer tech. I liked the job fine, mainly because the higher-ups included me in everything we did. I learned a ton working there, and it's there that ultimately led to what I do now.
- Education Service Center Technology Coordinator - I left the university to take a job that I knew nothing about other than I was asked if I liked gadgets and if I liked to help people with technology. Since my answer was 'yes' to both, there I was. Little did I know that I'd be TEACHING technology classes. I was pretty rough at first, but over time, I learned how to take things slowly and actually help teachers understand the technology they were being asked to use.
- Pizza Waiter - Oh, i forgot, for a while I worked as a waiter for pizza hut. I made good tips because I was good at it.
- Pizza Cook - and, I was also a pizza cook for a while at pizza hut. I enjoyed it a lot, but I always got dinged for putting TOO MANY toppings on my pizzas. Rather than use the scale, I used my eyes. I laid enough toppings to make the pizzas LOOK good... Yeah, I used way too much. Oh well!
- Distance Learning Coordinator - I enjoyed the 'techie' side of distance learning and I have to admit, visiting the baseball hall of fame through interactive video is AWESOME!! I had a lot of fun in the job.
- Computer Consultant - My catch-all independent work. I've done work for friends, family, and a congressman. This job covers everything from networking to virus removal to recovering lost files. I really never know what each will bring.
- Internet sales guy - eBayer. For a while, I was hitting it hard and heavy - buying things off other sites then selling them on eBay.
- Lifeguard - for a very short time, I worked as a lifeguard.
- College Practicum Instructor - while serving as radio station manager in college, I also team-taught the class in which students got their 'hands-on' experience at the station.
- School District Technology coordinator - I served as the district technology director for a local school district.
- Education service center technology coordinator - yes, I know I already listed this, but it is sort of a running joke around my circle of colleagues because it seems I always come back to this title (I've had it three times, well, technically four times).
- Podcast Host - Starting in 2015, have been co-hosting the EduTechGuys podcast. We not only do a weekly show, but also provide coverage at education conferences around the country.
- YouTube Creator - In 2016, officially launched a YouTube channel. As of April 2019, it has 5100 subscribers. Not bad for a 50-year old, eh.
- Adjunct Professor - I taught English Comp I at the local 2-year college.
- Author - I have two published books and have a short story in an anthology as well.
May 3, 2009
40 places I've been
Welcome to another installment of "40 things." Today, we take a look at 40 places I've been in my life:
Okay, I admit that some of those are 'nit-picky' but they have meaning in my life, which is really what this is all about anyway, right?
- Prescott, AR (where I live)
- Eureka Springs, AR (Honeymoon!)
- Pittsburgh, PA (Born and raised Black-n-Gold!)
- Washington, DC
- Denver, CO
- Boulder, CO
- Cleveland, OH
- Phoenix, AZ
- San Diego, CA
- Seattle, WA
- Dallas, TX
- Chicago, IL
- St. Louis, MO
- New Orleans, LA
- Shreveport, LA
- San Antonio, TX
- Williamsburg, VA
- Hershey, PA
- Woodbridge, VA
- Niagara Falls, NY
- Niagara Falls, Canada
- Colorado Springs, CO (when you were free to see the Academy Chapel)
- Memphis, TN
- Bowling Green, KY (DUH, almost forgot that one!)
- Nashville, TN
- Texarkana, TX/AR
- Houston, TX
- Hot Springs, AR
- Branson, MO
- Oklahoma City, OK (left my appendix there)
- Orlando, FL (Disney World!)
- Springfield, MO
- Mobile, AL
- Vail, CO
- Gunnison, CO
- McKeesport, PA
- West Mifflin, PA
- Fayetteville, AR
- Sandusky, OH
- Arlington, TX (Rangers!!)
Okay, I admit that some of those are 'nit-picky' but they have meaning in my life, which is really what this is all about anyway, right?
May 2, 2009
40 TV Shows
In the irregular schedule of posting these, I present to you forty TV shows that I enjoy or have enjoyed (translated: addicted to) over the past 40 years of my life (not in a particular order except that in which they popped into my head):
Man, the list could actually go a whole lot longer than that, too. I didn't realize just how much TV I've watched so far in life! Wow.
- big bang theory
- top cat
- jetsons
- h.r. pufnstuf
- banana splits
- beverly hills 90210
- ER
- chicago hope
- friends
- night court
- fish
- growing pains
- brady bunch
- family ties
- welcome back kotter
- wheel of fortune
- frasier
- cheers
- flintstones
- american idol
- desperate housewives
- gilligan's island
- hee haw
- beverly hillbillies
- all in the family
- the jeffersons
- happy days
- laverne and shirley
- mork and mindy
- courtship of eddie's father
- land of the lost
- three's company
- facts of life
- diff'rent strokes
- mash
- golden girls
- bosom buddies
- quantum leap
- cosby show
- seinfeld
Man, the list could actually go a whole lot longer than that, too. I didn't realize just how much TV I've watched so far in life! Wow.
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