Happy Christmas from loverly Papillion.
So, it's been just over a month at the new job and I'm finally starting to get my hands dirty. I've got most of the initial BS out of the way (online training videos, paperwork, etc.) so I can actually focus on getting stuff done. We got a couple new servers in and my Blizzle and I spent a good several hours geeking out.
It is such a different environment, however, from anywhere I've been in the last 15 years. I'm an old Production Support guy from way back, so I thrive on the pressure of last-minute demands and under-the-gun solutions. I'm kind of like that Dr. House guy on TV. Only shorter and better looking... well, shorter anyway.
The point is, this being a development/lab shop, there's virtually no pressure. A lot of it is just making sure that proper procedures are followed and that security is tight. I imagine I'll get used to it eventually, and learn to relax and exhale from time to time.
It's sort of like those fish that live at the bottom of the sea. Bring them up too fast, and they explode. Bring them up at just the right speed, however, and they'll suffer a long, painfully excruciating death. Mmmmm, death.
Anyway, the wife and kids will be out this weekend. Suzanne and Chris will be going back on Sunday, but Chase, the younger boy, is actually going to stay with me in my fabulous, one-bedroom apartment. I'm pretty excited, his brother is bitterly jealous, his mom is beside herself with sadness and worry, and he's ambivalent. But, as long as I'm happy and excited, the rest is totally worth it!
At the end of the day, it's really all about me.
I just got finished on E-Bay buying Chase's belated Christmas gift. I already got something for Chris (a really cool something), but I couldn't really find anything for the other one. Fortunately, somebody defaulted on something I got outbid on recently, so I was given a "second chance". The thing eventually sold for approximately $180, but the second chance amount was only my high bid of $157. I pleaded poverty and got them to drop the price even further to $130, so I'm pretty pleased with myself right about now. It's not easy being greedy... or cheesy for that matter.
I guess that's about it for this edition of the Anthony Show. Good night and god bless and may you one day be just slightly more Anthony-like in all your endeavours.
Oh, and before I forget, go buy my house in Sidney!
Monday, December 29, 2008
Monday, November 24, 2008
First Week... now what??
Bienvenidos from Papillion!
Well, it's been a solid week since I got back to the big O, so I thought I'd update the ol' blog...
The job is going fine... it's mostly orientation, but I'm hopeful that I'll actually start becoming useful here pretty soon. Of course, it's great working with my old buddy Blake, and the other guy is pretty cool too - although, he's already planning on moving down to Florida in the next couple of months, so that kinda sucks.
Now, it's just a matter of waiting on my other house to sell (sound familiar??). Once it does, Suzanne and the boys will get packed up and make their way down.
We're talking about having one of the rotten boys come and stay with me, but that's not concrete as yet. I figure Chase is the easiest kid to handle as a single parent since he's really skinny and doesn't take up a lot of room.
Otherwise, this area is pretty nice, but not really much different from when I left. Of course, the new shopping center is fantastic, and there's plenty of coffee shops and restaurants that are cool. I'm really looking forward to hitting the Borders and the Best Buy this weekend and spending some loot.
Speaking of loot, I looked at a couple of 1 bedroom apartments today. The cheapest set ($525 a month) also has the longest damn lease (1 year). They're a little grungy, but not unbearable.
The second place I looked at is perfect, but a little pricey (about $700 a month). On the plus side, the shortest lease is only 5 months, so we can swing it for a while. I'm going to look at a couple more tomorrow over lunch. Hopefully, I'll find one kind of in between.
I don't think Chase will care where we stay as long as his computer works and he can play runescape and WoW (now that the Lich King is out).
That's about it for this installment - more as things develop.
Now for something completely different: Go buy my house!
Well, it's been a solid week since I got back to the big O, so I thought I'd update the ol' blog...
The job is going fine... it's mostly orientation, but I'm hopeful that I'll actually start becoming useful here pretty soon. Of course, it's great working with my old buddy Blake, and the other guy is pretty cool too - although, he's already planning on moving down to Florida in the next couple of months, so that kinda sucks.
Now, it's just a matter of waiting on my other house to sell (sound familiar??). Once it does, Suzanne and the boys will get packed up and make their way down.
We're talking about having one of the rotten boys come and stay with me, but that's not concrete as yet. I figure Chase is the easiest kid to handle as a single parent since he's really skinny and doesn't take up a lot of room.
Otherwise, this area is pretty nice, but not really much different from when I left. Of course, the new shopping center is fantastic, and there's plenty of coffee shops and restaurants that are cool. I'm really looking forward to hitting the Borders and the Best Buy this weekend and spending some loot.
Speaking of loot, I looked at a couple of 1 bedroom apartments today. The cheapest set ($525 a month) also has the longest damn lease (1 year). They're a little grungy, but not unbearable.
The second place I looked at is perfect, but a little pricey (about $700 a month). On the plus side, the shortest lease is only 5 months, so we can swing it for a while. I'm going to look at a couple more tomorrow over lunch. Hopefully, I'll find one kind of in between.
I don't think Chase will care where we stay as long as his computer works and he can play runescape and WoW (now that the Lich King is out).
That's about it for this installment - more as things develop.
Now for something completely different: Go buy my house!
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
Holy Hell!
Hallelujah from Sidney!
I'm writing this post in a state of shock. I'm literally numb from it, so if this narrative goes a bit awry, please blame it on that, and not my extraordinary ability to put together some brilliant prose.
As you are absolutely no doubt aware, my candidate, Barack Obama, is the president elect of the United States.
I am so proud of my country right now, I can barely stand it. I really didn't think they had it in them, but they proved me wrong. (Granted, Bush did as much as anyone to ensure a victory for Barack.)
I can't even describe how excited and optimistic I am about the next 8 years. I sincerely believe that these are going to be the best years of our lives.
People have been asking me why I'm such an ardent Barack supporter. Here's why: Tonight, millions of black parents are going to tell their children before they go to bed that, in America, anyone can grow up to be president. The only difference is, tonight, they'll mean it. The amount of hope and joy in the world just went up about 200%.
I admit that the president is largely a figurehead, incapable of making much change, and certainly nowhere near the amount that was promised during the campaign. However, the fact that we, as a country, have elected this man will show the world that we aren't the same bastards that they've seen for the last 8 years. That even we can recognize when we've gone too far - and we'll do what needs to be done to fix it.
This is going to be a difficult time for a lot of Americans. But just like Jackie Robinson, this election was necessary for us as a people to grow and mature. Racism, as we know it, will have to become a thing of the past. It will probably always be there, but now that the seal has been broken on the most powerful position in the world, there's really no limit to what anyone can achieve - thus, the deep resentment that black people have been feeling for decades will start to fade - maybe just a little at first, but eventually, who knows. We might only ever hear about racism from reading about it in books.
So, here's to Barack Obama, black Americans, and really all Americans in general. I don't know if we deserved it, but we got it anyway.
I am so proud of us! Now, get out there and buy my house godammit! :-)
I'm writing this post in a state of shock. I'm literally numb from it, so if this narrative goes a bit awry, please blame it on that, and not my extraordinary ability to put together some brilliant prose.
As you are absolutely no doubt aware, my candidate, Barack Obama, is the president elect of the United States.
I am so proud of my country right now, I can barely stand it. I really didn't think they had it in them, but they proved me wrong. (Granted, Bush did as much as anyone to ensure a victory for Barack.)
I can't even describe how excited and optimistic I am about the next 8 years. I sincerely believe that these are going to be the best years of our lives.
People have been asking me why I'm such an ardent Barack supporter. Here's why: Tonight, millions of black parents are going to tell their children before they go to bed that, in America, anyone can grow up to be president. The only difference is, tonight, they'll mean it. The amount of hope and joy in the world just went up about 200%.
I admit that the president is largely a figurehead, incapable of making much change, and certainly nowhere near the amount that was promised during the campaign. However, the fact that we, as a country, have elected this man will show the world that we aren't the same bastards that they've seen for the last 8 years. That even we can recognize when we've gone too far - and we'll do what needs to be done to fix it.
This is going to be a difficult time for a lot of Americans. But just like Jackie Robinson, this election was necessary for us as a people to grow and mature. Racism, as we know it, will have to become a thing of the past. It will probably always be there, but now that the seal has been broken on the most powerful position in the world, there's really no limit to what anyone can achieve - thus, the deep resentment that black people have been feeling for decades will start to fade - maybe just a little at first, but eventually, who knows. We might only ever hear about racism from reading about it in books.
So, here's to Barack Obama, black Americans, and really all Americans in general. I don't know if we deserved it, but we got it anyway.
I am so proud of us! Now, get out there and buy my house godammit! :-)
Saturday, November 1, 2008
Two Weeks notice!
Arrivaderci from Sidney!
Well, I just gave the boss my two weeks notice, so that's it for me here in loverly downtown Sidney. It was an interesting, sometimes stressful, couple of years, but it looks as if we've come through it relatively unscathed.
I've accepted a position at Lockheed Martin back in the Omaha area, working with/for my old buddy Blake. For two years, I've been begging him for a job - he must have gotten tired of hearing it, because he finally relented and hooked me up.
So, two weeks from now, I'll be making my lonely way back home... I say lonely, because the wife and kids are going to stay here for a while waiting for the house to sell. We'll give it a couple of months before we give up and just try to rent it out. Since there is a serious dearth of decent rental properties in the area, we should be able to get it rented in no time. In fact, we've already got people asking about renting it...
While I'm back there, I'll be bach-ing it up, probably living in a little one bedroom apartment. Obviously, money is going to be an issue, so we can't even look at buying out there until we get rid of this place. Yes, we learned our lesson from the last time.
So, I'm pretty excited and looking forward to this new adventure. My friends and co-workers are really jealous, especially considering that there is probably another layoff coming in January - nobody feels safe.
We officially listed the house yesterday, so there's a nice, pretty Remax realty sign out in the front yard. So, I have to end this like I've ended so many posts in my long and storied career: Get out there and buy my house!
Love and kisses, Anthony.
Well, I just gave the boss my two weeks notice, so that's it for me here in loverly downtown Sidney. It was an interesting, sometimes stressful, couple of years, but it looks as if we've come through it relatively unscathed.
I've accepted a position at Lockheed Martin back in the Omaha area, working with/for my old buddy Blake. For two years, I've been begging him for a job - he must have gotten tired of hearing it, because he finally relented and hooked me up.
So, two weeks from now, I'll be making my lonely way back home... I say lonely, because the wife and kids are going to stay here for a while waiting for the house to sell. We'll give it a couple of months before we give up and just try to rent it out. Since there is a serious dearth of decent rental properties in the area, we should be able to get it rented in no time. In fact, we've already got people asking about renting it...
While I'm back there, I'll be bach-ing it up, probably living in a little one bedroom apartment. Obviously, money is going to be an issue, so we can't even look at buying out there until we get rid of this place. Yes, we learned our lesson from the last time.
So, I'm pretty excited and looking forward to this new adventure. My friends and co-workers are really jealous, especially considering that there is probably another layoff coming in January - nobody feels safe.
We officially listed the house yesterday, so there's a nice, pretty Remax realty sign out in the front yard. So, I have to end this like I've ended so many posts in my long and storied career: Get out there and buy my house!
Love and kisses, Anthony.
Monday, October 27, 2008
I love Barack Obama
Aloha from Sidney,
So I just saw on the news that some fucking retarded skinheads were hatching some plan to kill a bunch of school kids then assassinate Obama. I can't imagine how they could have failed - I mean, they sound like some brainy individuals.
What the hell were they thinking?? "If we shoot us a bunch of black kids, Obama will come to the school to see what's goin' on, then we can shoot him!" His friend probably said, "That's a great idea, Cletus!"
People never fail to disappoint me. Now, I'm going to have to listen to a bunch of my redneck co-workers tell me that this is why we shouldn't elect a black man. When I counter with "This is EXACTLY why we should elect a black man!", they'll look at me as if I lost my damn mind.
I want Barack to win as much because he's black as because he's intelligent, articulate, and gives a damn about somebody other than well-fed, rich, white people (sorry, Fred). "Doesn't that make you a racist, Anthony?" you're surely asking yourself... The short answer is "no", it would make me biased, but that's beside the point.
The point is this: When we finally elect a minority of any sort to the presidency, it will show the rest of the world that we're not just a bunch of closed-minded, redneck cowboys stuck in the 1950's. Perhaps we, as a country, have finally matured to the point that we can look past somebody's race or gender and elect someone based on his/her merits instead.
Maybe it's idealistic, but what the hell else have we got going for us? We're trillions of dollars in debt and looking at a recession (possibly a depression) in the near future. We've pissed off pretty much every other country on the planet and even re-elected one of the least intelligent presidents in history. Maybe it's time we take a good hard look at ourselves and consider that electing the same politicians who brought us here in the first place isn't the wisest course of action for once.
Alas, always the optimist am I.
I hear this all the time: "It's just a choice of the lesser of two evils." That's just stupid. The only reason anyone says that is because they hear other people saying it and they think it's clever. This election is much more than just the same old tired exercise. It's an historic opportunity.
Another thing I hear is "Aren't you afraid if Obama gets elected, that he'll ..." fill in your own ending. Some people think he'll take their guns, others that he'll legalize gay marriage across the country, or that he'll offer abortions to school children. I've honestly heard it all.
I've predicted it and I'll repeat it here: Barack Obama will go down as one of, if not THE, greatest president in history. I think he will be the catalyst behind pretty much every good thing that's about to happen in the next 8 years. People will stop comparing presidents to Kennedy and Lincoln and start comparing them to Obama. Sound outlandish? Maybe... who knows. All I know is this: One day I will post a blog that says something like "I told you so." and I'll reference this (and other) posts I've made in the recent past.
I won't even rub anyone's nose in it because I'll just be glad that I was there to witness it. Besides, I'm used to always being right, so this will just be one more thing to add to the pile. ;-)
I have to say that I'm more excited about this election than any other I've ever experienced. By the same token, however, I'm filled with dread that we might miss this most golden opportunity. This is how I felt when Colin Powell considered making a bid back in '92 or '96 (I can't remember which). In my opinion, he owed it to the country - not just for black people, but for all Americans. He would have been the Jackie Robinson of politics: Black, but not too dark-skinned; Eloquent, but not elitist; Smart, but not eggheaded. AND he was a goddam republican! Even jerk-offs would have voted for him!
But, no, he couldn't be bothered. "I don't want to put my family through that", he claimed. But, that's exactly what being a patriot is all about - sacrificing for the good of the country. A true patriot isn't somebody who loves his country, it's somebody who's not just willing but eager to die, or send his sons and daughters to die, for love of country.
(Also, and I hate to point this out, but a true patriot is HAPPY to pay his taxes! That's true sacrifice...)
I didn't mean to go off on a rant here, but that news story just pissed me off. What is fucking wrong with people that they want to shoot a man because of the pigment in his skin??? How can you hate somebody that you've never met, that you'll likely never meet, so much so that you not only want him to die, but you want his family and all of his friends and supporters to suffer. That's just sick and it makes me sad, frustrated and disgusted.
Although, I have to admit I did get a chuckle when it occurred to me that these guys are likely going to big boy prison. A prison likely filled with large, angry black men who will not be too pleased that a couple of white boys wanted to shoot up a school fool of black kids, and possibly the first black president.
I'm likely going to host an election night party at my house - I'll invite all the democrats in Sidney! All 7, you ask? Yep, all of em! It will be the only house with smiling people in the whole town, I'll betcha!
Scott Adams, the creator of Dilbert, has predicted riots. Not if Obama wins, but if he loses. He thinks that people will puss out at the last minute (because we're all racists down deep) and vote McCain after all. He reasons that minorities will misinterpret a loss as white republicans rigging the election (which isn't out of the question), and react violently.
I disagree with Scott - which is unusual because I agree with pretty much everything else he's ever written. I think that if that were the case, Barack wouldn't have won the nomination in the first place. Also, again being the optimist that I am, I think we're better than that - in general, of course. I think that McCain, Palin and Bush have done at least as much as Barack to help the democratic ticket. I think their over-the-top negative campaigning is really their undoing. I think that Palin, especially, went too far. America REALLY wanted to love her, but she just seemed kind of ugly on the inside, and for me it really came out whenever she spoke about Barack.
She really could have written her own ticket, but she was given bad advice, in my opinion. She could have been sassy and sarcastic, but in a fun-loving way. Instead, she was just nasty and mean-spirited. That works a lot of the time in politics, but in this case it was spread just a little too generously and it backfired.
I'm really curious to see what the future has in store for her. I think she'll claim that she was just toeing the party line and trying to help the campaign. She's pretty adorable, so she might be able to pull it out - she's just got to learn to take the high road once in a while.
Whew. Ok, no more posts until election night. Remember, vote early - vote often - vote Obama!!
So I just saw on the news that some fucking retarded skinheads were hatching some plan to kill a bunch of school kids then assassinate Obama. I can't imagine how they could have failed - I mean, they sound like some brainy individuals.
What the hell were they thinking?? "If we shoot us a bunch of black kids, Obama will come to the school to see what's goin' on, then we can shoot him!" His friend probably said, "That's a great idea, Cletus!"
People never fail to disappoint me. Now, I'm going to have to listen to a bunch of my redneck co-workers tell me that this is why we shouldn't elect a black man. When I counter with "This is EXACTLY why we should elect a black man!", they'll look at me as if I lost my damn mind.
I want Barack to win as much because he's black as because he's intelligent, articulate, and gives a damn about somebody other than well-fed, rich, white people (sorry, Fred). "Doesn't that make you a racist, Anthony?" you're surely asking yourself... The short answer is "no", it would make me biased, but that's beside the point.
The point is this: When we finally elect a minority of any sort to the presidency, it will show the rest of the world that we're not just a bunch of closed-minded, redneck cowboys stuck in the 1950's. Perhaps we, as a country, have finally matured to the point that we can look past somebody's race or gender and elect someone based on his/her merits instead.
Maybe it's idealistic, but what the hell else have we got going for us? We're trillions of dollars in debt and looking at a recession (possibly a depression) in the near future. We've pissed off pretty much every other country on the planet and even re-elected one of the least intelligent presidents in history. Maybe it's time we take a good hard look at ourselves and consider that electing the same politicians who brought us here in the first place isn't the wisest course of action for once.
Alas, always the optimist am I.
I hear this all the time: "It's just a choice of the lesser of two evils." That's just stupid. The only reason anyone says that is because they hear other people saying it and they think it's clever. This election is much more than just the same old tired exercise. It's an historic opportunity.
Another thing I hear is "Aren't you afraid if Obama gets elected, that he'll ..." fill in your own ending. Some people think he'll take their guns, others that he'll legalize gay marriage across the country, or that he'll offer abortions to school children. I've honestly heard it all.
I've predicted it and I'll repeat it here: Barack Obama will go down as one of, if not THE, greatest president in history. I think he will be the catalyst behind pretty much every good thing that's about to happen in the next 8 years. People will stop comparing presidents to Kennedy and Lincoln and start comparing them to Obama. Sound outlandish? Maybe... who knows. All I know is this: One day I will post a blog that says something like "I told you so." and I'll reference this (and other) posts I've made in the recent past.
I won't even rub anyone's nose in it because I'll just be glad that I was there to witness it. Besides, I'm used to always being right, so this will just be one more thing to add to the pile. ;-)
I have to say that I'm more excited about this election than any other I've ever experienced. By the same token, however, I'm filled with dread that we might miss this most golden opportunity. This is how I felt when Colin Powell considered making a bid back in '92 or '96 (I can't remember which). In my opinion, he owed it to the country - not just for black people, but for all Americans. He would have been the Jackie Robinson of politics: Black, but not too dark-skinned; Eloquent, but not elitist; Smart, but not eggheaded. AND he was a goddam republican! Even jerk-offs would have voted for him!
But, no, he couldn't be bothered. "I don't want to put my family through that", he claimed. But, that's exactly what being a patriot is all about - sacrificing for the good of the country. A true patriot isn't somebody who loves his country, it's somebody who's not just willing but eager to die, or send his sons and daughters to die, for love of country.
(Also, and I hate to point this out, but a true patriot is HAPPY to pay his taxes! That's true sacrifice...)
I didn't mean to go off on a rant here, but that news story just pissed me off. What is fucking wrong with people that they want to shoot a man because of the pigment in his skin??? How can you hate somebody that you've never met, that you'll likely never meet, so much so that you not only want him to die, but you want his family and all of his friends and supporters to suffer. That's just sick and it makes me sad, frustrated and disgusted.
Although, I have to admit I did get a chuckle when it occurred to me that these guys are likely going to big boy prison. A prison likely filled with large, angry black men who will not be too pleased that a couple of white boys wanted to shoot up a school fool of black kids, and possibly the first black president.
I'm likely going to host an election night party at my house - I'll invite all the democrats in Sidney! All 7, you ask? Yep, all of em! It will be the only house with smiling people in the whole town, I'll betcha!
Scott Adams, the creator of Dilbert, has predicted riots. Not if Obama wins, but if he loses. He thinks that people will puss out at the last minute (because we're all racists down deep) and vote McCain after all. He reasons that minorities will misinterpret a loss as white republicans rigging the election (which isn't out of the question), and react violently.
I disagree with Scott - which is unusual because I agree with pretty much everything else he's ever written. I think that if that were the case, Barack wouldn't have won the nomination in the first place. Also, again being the optimist that I am, I think we're better than that - in general, of course. I think that McCain, Palin and Bush have done at least as much as Barack to help the democratic ticket. I think their over-the-top negative campaigning is really their undoing. I think that Palin, especially, went too far. America REALLY wanted to love her, but she just seemed kind of ugly on the inside, and for me it really came out whenever she spoke about Barack.
She really could have written her own ticket, but she was given bad advice, in my opinion. She could have been sassy and sarcastic, but in a fun-loving way. Instead, she was just nasty and mean-spirited. That works a lot of the time in politics, but in this case it was spread just a little too generously and it backfired.
I'm really curious to see what the future has in store for her. I think she'll claim that she was just toeing the party line and trying to help the campaign. She's pretty adorable, so she might be able to pull it out - she's just got to learn to take the high road once in a while.
Whew. Ok, no more posts until election night. Remember, vote early - vote often - vote Obama!!
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Back by popular demand!
How the hell are ya? from Sidney
Ok, enough people have harassed me about not keeping the old blog up to date (I'm looking at you Fred and Stephanie), so I thought I'd jot down a quick note or two.
First of all, I'm dying to see how the democrats are going to fuck up this election in the last 3 weeks. It's nearly in the bag, but I know that our boys are the most effective group of people ever at snatching defeat from the jaws of victory. It's just a matter of time... that train's never late!
Second, football season's over. As you probably know, both of my strapping young lads quit football about 2 weeks into the season, so I was a coach without a kid. Even so, I had a great time, and the team did really well. The last game of the season was a nail-biter with us down 2-0 with about 1 minute left to play.
We brought in Crazy-Legs Linneman who ran the ball about 30 yards, and broke about 5 tackles, for the game winning touchdown. It was a beautiful sight!
Our defense was spectacular allowing (I believe) only one first-down the whole game. The only time the other team scored was on a safety because our QB wasn't aware that he had to stay on the other side of the goal line.
It ended up being a blessing in disguise because had they taken over on downs, they probably would have gotten the touchdown being just yards away to begin with.
In other news, I've let my manager know that I'm actively seeking employment outside the company, so there's a good chance that we'll be leaving Sidney sometime in the near future.
(Naturally, Suzanne is stoked since she never really warmed up to the place... More like "hates it with a burning passion"...)
I don't want to jinx anything, but I've got some good leads and some good friends back in Omaha helping out. If I were a betting man, I'd like our odds.
That's about all I have for now... I'm currently watching this most recent presidential "debate". Poor McCain looks like he's sitting on something really uncomfortable and whenever he talks there's an edge of desperation to his tone - much to my delight.
I have nothing against the guy, I'm just a true believer of Barack. I honestly believe that he's our only hope - not unlike Obi Wan Kenobe in that regard.
P.S. Buy my house!
Ok, enough people have harassed me about not keeping the old blog up to date (I'm looking at you Fred and Stephanie), so I thought I'd jot down a quick note or two.
First of all, I'm dying to see how the democrats are going to fuck up this election in the last 3 weeks. It's nearly in the bag, but I know that our boys are the most effective group of people ever at snatching defeat from the jaws of victory. It's just a matter of time... that train's never late!
Second, football season's over. As you probably know, both of my strapping young lads quit football about 2 weeks into the season, so I was a coach without a kid. Even so, I had a great time, and the team did really well. The last game of the season was a nail-biter with us down 2-0 with about 1 minute left to play.
We brought in Crazy-Legs Linneman who ran the ball about 30 yards, and broke about 5 tackles, for the game winning touchdown. It was a beautiful sight!
Our defense was spectacular allowing (I believe) only one first-down the whole game. The only time the other team scored was on a safety because our QB wasn't aware that he had to stay on the other side of the goal line.
It ended up being a blessing in disguise because had they taken over on downs, they probably would have gotten the touchdown being just yards away to begin with.
In other news, I've let my manager know that I'm actively seeking employment outside the company, so there's a good chance that we'll be leaving Sidney sometime in the near future.
(Naturally, Suzanne is stoked since she never really warmed up to the place... More like "hates it with a burning passion"...)
I don't want to jinx anything, but I've got some good leads and some good friends back in Omaha helping out. If I were a betting man, I'd like our odds.
That's about all I have for now... I'm currently watching this most recent presidential "debate". Poor McCain looks like he's sitting on something really uncomfortable and whenever he talks there's an edge of desperation to his tone - much to my delight.
I have nothing against the guy, I'm just a true believer of Barack. I honestly believe that he's our only hope - not unlike Obi Wan Kenobe in that regard.
P.S. Buy my house!
Sunday, September 14, 2008
I TOLD YOU SO...
Yet more politics from Sidney,
Back in 2000, when George W was running for office, several people I knew thought he was hilarious and just a good guy. I thought he was a moron from day one. I remember clearly telling people that electing W would be a huge mistake. He was truly a walking punchline in those early days... I just wish he was still only as dangerous as a punchline.
Since then, I've had literally thousands of opportunities to say, "I told you so". I even took advantage of many of them. But, after a while I got tired of saying it and people really got tired of hearing it, so we called an uneasy truce. There was no point in beating that dead horse as it didn't necessarily gain me any friends except for other like-minded people.
Now, it's that time again. Watching the news lately, it looks like the McCain/Palin sideshow is gaining some ground on the democrats. To be honest, though, I'm not particularly surprised to see the dems fuck up another election. So, I've been telling people for the last several months that voting for McCain will turn out to be the biggest mistake we, as a country, could make since "electing" GWB the first time.
Now, one reason why people don't like me is not just that I'm always right, although I'm sure that's gotta be annoying. But, it's also because I remind them of it on a somewhat regular basis. However, the ONLY reason I have to remind people of it is because NOBODY listens to me in the first place. I think I'm going to get a bunch of bracelets that say "WWAD?" (what would Anthony do?) to hand out to people who don't listen to me.
So, here's your chance to get in on the ground floor and believe that I'm 100% right in saying that voting for McCain is the biggest mistake we, as a country, can make. Feel free to disagree with me and tell me I'm wrong. Just make sure you refer to me as Cassandra when you do, however - look it up and you'll understand.
On a side note - I don't know if this country really deserves Barak Obama after all, so maybe it's not all bad.
Back in 2000, when George W was running for office, several people I knew thought he was hilarious and just a good guy. I thought he was a moron from day one. I remember clearly telling people that electing W would be a huge mistake. He was truly a walking punchline in those early days... I just wish he was still only as dangerous as a punchline.
Since then, I've had literally thousands of opportunities to say, "I told you so". I even took advantage of many of them. But, after a while I got tired of saying it and people really got tired of hearing it, so we called an uneasy truce. There was no point in beating that dead horse as it didn't necessarily gain me any friends except for other like-minded people.
Now, it's that time again. Watching the news lately, it looks like the McCain/Palin sideshow is gaining some ground on the democrats. To be honest, though, I'm not particularly surprised to see the dems fuck up another election. So, I've been telling people for the last several months that voting for McCain will turn out to be the biggest mistake we, as a country, could make since "electing" GWB the first time.
Now, one reason why people don't like me is not just that I'm always right, although I'm sure that's gotta be annoying. But, it's also because I remind them of it on a somewhat regular basis. However, the ONLY reason I have to remind people of it is because NOBODY listens to me in the first place. I think I'm going to get a bunch of bracelets that say "WWAD?" (what would Anthony do?) to hand out to people who don't listen to me.
So, here's your chance to get in on the ground floor and believe that I'm 100% right in saying that voting for McCain is the biggest mistake we, as a country, can make. Feel free to disagree with me and tell me I'm wrong. Just make sure you refer to me as Cassandra when you do, however - look it up and you'll understand.
On a side note - I don't know if this country really deserves Barak Obama after all, so maybe it's not all bad.
Monday, September 8, 2008
You are a racist.
I can prove it to you, but it would take more effort than it's worth. Now, you could be a trailblazer and just believe me from the beginning - that would be refreshing, but not particularly likely.
Ok, why do I start with such an inflammatory statement? Partly because it's true, but mainly to underscore my real point which is this: Your racism may be the only reason that you won't vote for Barak Obama.
Most of the people with whom I speak who have explained why they won't vote for Obama have listed reasons like "taxes", "gun control" or "gay marriage", whatever. The real reason is that in their heart of hearts they know they could never vote for a black man for president of the United States. Therefore, they'll cling to their bullshit belief that it's for reasons other than outright racism.
My joy has been to cut their arugments short: Under the most recent democrat president (Clinton), even if taxes have been "raised", their personal financial buying power was in fact higher. Also, even though Barak has admitted he'd raise taxes on the top 2%, he said he'd lower taxes for the remaining 98%. If you're reading this, or talking to me in person, guess which bracket you fall into.
Additionally, under the last two republican presidents, both ironically named Bush, your personal financial buying power has actually dropped by about 5% - regardless of your tax situation.
Ok, now to gun control, which in fabulous Nebraska is near and dear to most hearts. There is a rumor floating around that the very first thing Obama will do AFTER raising everybody's taxes, is to take away their guns. I'm not even sure where this came from except that it's presumably part of the democrat party line. In fact, I don't remember having heard Barak mention anything about gun control in any of his speeches.
That point notwithstanding, if memory serves, the party line of the left is to ban assault weapons. This is apparently the slippery slope that the right (meaning wrong) is afraid of. I might believe that if the majority of Americans wanted to see all weapons banned, but I don't believe that that's the case. Personally, I don't really care if weapons are banned because I've lived in England where they are basically banned and I didn't feel like I was missing anything.
Besides, I don't need guns because I have two really large German Shepards. Anybody who breaks into my house might not wake me or my family up, but the dogs certainly aren't going to be sleeping through it. Granted somebody who breaks in with a gun could pretty easily shoot the dogs, but they're probably going to split right after since, although they don't know if I have a gun or not, they have to assume that we're awake at least.
Like I said, I don't have anything against guns. We have two or three ourselves in fact. My argument is, unless the majority of Americans are really clamoring for an all-out ban, I doubt that even if Barak wanted to could he pull it off. To me, this is more of a common sense argument than anything.
Another anti-Obama "argument" is gay marriage. I think I mentioned it in a previous post, but the most ridiculous statement I've ever heard IN MY LIFE was by this anti-gay-marriage person who literally said, "Well, if we start allowing gay marriage, it's just a matter of time before people are marrying their toasters."
I'll give you all a minute to digest that...
This was not uttered by the town idiot, nor by someone with a serious mental impairment (as it's normally defined), but by a "normal" person who thought that she was actually making a brilliant point. I stood there stunned and speechless. Eventually, I just shook my head and walked away. No doubt, she thought she had me at a loss and was likely silently congratulating her outstanding debating skills. Meanwhile, I just lost a little more will to live.
But, back to non-retarded arguments regarding gay-marriage. My question to you homophobes out there is this: Why the fuck do you care? Because of some bullshit morality that you trot out when it suits your needs? I have to say that most people who have ever said anything negative about gay-marriage are about as morally bankrupt as everybody else I've ever met. No more, no less.
Gay people are at least as capable of falling in love and staying in a committed relationship as anybody else I've ever seen. So, what difference does it make if they are legally married? Straight people are 50% likely to get divorced in every marriage they enter. Besides, how many TRULY happy married people have you ever met? 2, 3 maybe?
So, my question is where the hell is the morality? Besides, isn't there supposed to be some kind of separation of church and state anyway? Why should the christian mythology be the deciding factor in who's allowed to be legally married? That doesn't stand up to any kind of logic that I can come up with.
So, at the end of the day, what am I trying to say? Basically, this: if you don't want to vote for Barak Obama, you have to ask yourself this: "Do I have a valid argument, or am I just a racist bastard?" I don't think you'll like the answer.
But, not to worry, you'll get over it.
Ok, why do I start with such an inflammatory statement? Partly because it's true, but mainly to underscore my real point which is this: Your racism may be the only reason that you won't vote for Barak Obama.
Most of the people with whom I speak who have explained why they won't vote for Obama have listed reasons like "taxes", "gun control" or "gay marriage", whatever. The real reason is that in their heart of hearts they know they could never vote for a black man for president of the United States. Therefore, they'll cling to their bullshit belief that it's for reasons other than outright racism.
My joy has been to cut their arugments short: Under the most recent democrat president (Clinton), even if taxes have been "raised", their personal financial buying power was in fact higher. Also, even though Barak has admitted he'd raise taxes on the top 2%, he said he'd lower taxes for the remaining 98%. If you're reading this, or talking to me in person, guess which bracket you fall into.
Additionally, under the last two republican presidents, both ironically named Bush, your personal financial buying power has actually dropped by about 5% - regardless of your tax situation.
Ok, now to gun control, which in fabulous Nebraska is near and dear to most hearts. There is a rumor floating around that the very first thing Obama will do AFTER raising everybody's taxes, is to take away their guns. I'm not even sure where this came from except that it's presumably part of the democrat party line. In fact, I don't remember having heard Barak mention anything about gun control in any of his speeches.
That point notwithstanding, if memory serves, the party line of the left is to ban assault weapons. This is apparently the slippery slope that the right (meaning wrong) is afraid of. I might believe that if the majority of Americans wanted to see all weapons banned, but I don't believe that that's the case. Personally, I don't really care if weapons are banned because I've lived in England where they are basically banned and I didn't feel like I was missing anything.
Besides, I don't need guns because I have two really large German Shepards. Anybody who breaks into my house might not wake me or my family up, but the dogs certainly aren't going to be sleeping through it. Granted somebody who breaks in with a gun could pretty easily shoot the dogs, but they're probably going to split right after since, although they don't know if I have a gun or not, they have to assume that we're awake at least.
Like I said, I don't have anything against guns. We have two or three ourselves in fact. My argument is, unless the majority of Americans are really clamoring for an all-out ban, I doubt that even if Barak wanted to could he pull it off. To me, this is more of a common sense argument than anything.
Another anti-Obama "argument" is gay marriage. I think I mentioned it in a previous post, but the most ridiculous statement I've ever heard IN MY LIFE was by this anti-gay-marriage person who literally said, "Well, if we start allowing gay marriage, it's just a matter of time before people are marrying their toasters."
I'll give you all a minute to digest that...
This was not uttered by the town idiot, nor by someone with a serious mental impairment (as it's normally defined), but by a "normal" person who thought that she was actually making a brilliant point. I stood there stunned and speechless. Eventually, I just shook my head and walked away. No doubt, she thought she had me at a loss and was likely silently congratulating her outstanding debating skills. Meanwhile, I just lost a little more will to live.
But, back to non-retarded arguments regarding gay-marriage. My question to you homophobes out there is this: Why the fuck do you care? Because of some bullshit morality that you trot out when it suits your needs? I have to say that most people who have ever said anything negative about gay-marriage are about as morally bankrupt as everybody else I've ever met. No more, no less.
Gay people are at least as capable of falling in love and staying in a committed relationship as anybody else I've ever seen. So, what difference does it make if they are legally married? Straight people are 50% likely to get divorced in every marriage they enter. Besides, how many TRULY happy married people have you ever met? 2, 3 maybe?
So, my question is where the hell is the morality? Besides, isn't there supposed to be some kind of separation of church and state anyway? Why should the christian mythology be the deciding factor in who's allowed to be legally married? That doesn't stand up to any kind of logic that I can come up with.
So, at the end of the day, what am I trying to say? Basically, this: if you don't want to vote for Barak Obama, you have to ask yourself this: "Do I have a valid argument, or am I just a racist bastard?" I don't think you'll like the answer.
But, not to worry, you'll get over it.
Sunday, September 7, 2008
Sugar Rashad Who??
WTF?? from Sidney,
So, apparently, ANYBODY can beat up Chuck Liddell now. I figured that Keith Jardine was just some kind of fluke. Quinton Jackson, at least, is a serious no-shit fighter... but Rashad Evans?? I gotta say it again - WTF??
Obviously, Rashad is a good fighter, but I remember a day not so long ago that if you said Chuck Liddell it was immediately followed by "knocked out so-and-so..."
Alas, it's a sad day here in Tinsel town folks - a sad day. After the fight, Chuck was quoted as saying, "Mmmmm, I've had better days, Lois, better days..." That was right after the stroke, of course, so he said it with a bit of a lisp. That was a hilarious episode - but I digress.
I was going to create a new political post but I just haven't had the inspiration... My biggest fear in life is that America is too stupid (or racist) to elect Barak Obama. My favorite argument against Barak is that he's going to raise our taxes or that he's not experienced enough. Not that the republicans have ever raised taxes, and not that the VP choice has more experience field-dressing moose than governing anything. I don't even want to get started on family values (it's too easy).
So, keep your eyes peeled for my next installment of "How the democrats may lose the second most winnable election in American history."
So, apparently, ANYBODY can beat up Chuck Liddell now. I figured that Keith Jardine was just some kind of fluke. Quinton Jackson, at least, is a serious no-shit fighter... but Rashad Evans?? I gotta say it again - WTF??
Obviously, Rashad is a good fighter, but I remember a day not so long ago that if you said Chuck Liddell it was immediately followed by "knocked out so-and-so..."
Alas, it's a sad day here in Tinsel town folks - a sad day. After the fight, Chuck was quoted as saying, "Mmmmm, I've had better days, Lois, better days..." That was right after the stroke, of course, so he said it with a bit of a lisp. That was a hilarious episode - but I digress.
I was going to create a new political post but I just haven't had the inspiration... My biggest fear in life is that America is too stupid (or racist) to elect Barak Obama. My favorite argument against Barak is that he's going to raise our taxes or that he's not experienced enough. Not that the republicans have ever raised taxes, and not that the VP choice has more experience field-dressing moose than governing anything. I don't even want to get started on family values (it's too easy).
So, keep your eyes peeled for my next installment of "How the democrats may lose the second most winnable election in American history."
Monday, August 25, 2008
The end of an era
Announcement: I think I may finally be finished with WoW. I finally got my second major character to level 70 and joined a guild (nonsensical gibberish). Now, I really don't feel much desire whatsoever to play anymore. So, I went ahead and combined my two accounts (yes, two separate accounts) into one account and cancelled the second account.
The only reason I got a second account was because Chase used to like to play, so I thought it would be cool if we could play together. But, since I'm the only one who ever plays, I've just kind of been throwing money away for the last year or so.
So, now I'm going to keep just this one account running until the Lich King version comes out in November. Gots to get me one of them Death Knights! Then, I'm sure I'll be wanting to play again. In the meantime, I'll just grind out some daily's until I can get a netherwing drake. Or, maybe I'll start raiding with the new guild. In either case, I doubt that I'll be logging on every night like I normally do.
In unrelated news, the boys have already begun football this season. Today was their first practice with full pads. Chase, or as I like to call him, "Skeleton boy", is actually doing pretty well and doesn't seem nearly as scared as I expected him to be. But, every time I watch those bony knees knocking against each other as he runs up and down the field, I'm just waiting to hear the crack of a broken tibia.
Chris has gained a lot of weight in the last year going from about 78 pounds to over 100 pounds. He's nowhere near the biggest kid on the team, but he's definitely big enough to hold his own. He's doing really well, also - especially considering he's already got a full season under his belt.
If you'll recall, I'm coaching Chase's team because he's my favorite and because I already coached Chris last year, so it's really Chase's "turn" as it were. The boys are looking good, but they're a much smaller team than last year. To put it in perspective, our biggest kid this year weighs about 125 pounds. In fact, there are only 4 others over 90 pounds of a total of 42. Compared to last year, where our biggest kid started the season at 167. Also, we had another kid at 142, and at least two or three 125 pounders, and four or five at about 110 each. They were monsters, I tell ya!
Even so, I'm seeing a lot of natural talent. Plus, a lot of the 4th graders played last year as 3rd graders, so they already have a lot of the basics. And, there's one kid who's exactly 90 pounds which is perfect because we can play him at any position. Not to mention, he's really coordinated and the fastest kid on the team. He's my first pick at the draft on Wednesday.
I guess that's about it tonight. A little geekery, a little sports... pretty much the whole package. I'll keep you updated as the season progresses. Wish us luck!
The only reason I got a second account was because Chase used to like to play, so I thought it would be cool if we could play together. But, since I'm the only one who ever plays, I've just kind of been throwing money away for the last year or so.
So, now I'm going to keep just this one account running until the Lich King version comes out in November. Gots to get me one of them Death Knights! Then, I'm sure I'll be wanting to play again. In the meantime, I'll just grind out some daily's until I can get a netherwing drake. Or, maybe I'll start raiding with the new guild. In either case, I doubt that I'll be logging on every night like I normally do.
In unrelated news, the boys have already begun football this season. Today was their first practice with full pads. Chase, or as I like to call him, "Skeleton boy", is actually doing pretty well and doesn't seem nearly as scared as I expected him to be. But, every time I watch those bony knees knocking against each other as he runs up and down the field, I'm just waiting to hear the crack of a broken tibia.
Chris has gained a lot of weight in the last year going from about 78 pounds to over 100 pounds. He's nowhere near the biggest kid on the team, but he's definitely big enough to hold his own. He's doing really well, also - especially considering he's already got a full season under his belt.
If you'll recall, I'm coaching Chase's team because he's my favorite and because I already coached Chris last year, so it's really Chase's "turn" as it were. The boys are looking good, but they're a much smaller team than last year. To put it in perspective, our biggest kid this year weighs about 125 pounds. In fact, there are only 4 others over 90 pounds of a total of 42. Compared to last year, where our biggest kid started the season at 167. Also, we had another kid at 142, and at least two or three 125 pounders, and four or five at about 110 each. They were monsters, I tell ya!
Even so, I'm seeing a lot of natural talent. Plus, a lot of the 4th graders played last year as 3rd graders, so they already have a lot of the basics. And, there's one kid who's exactly 90 pounds which is perfect because we can play him at any position. Not to mention, he's really coordinated and the fastest kid on the team. He's my first pick at the draft on Wednesday.
I guess that's about it tonight. A little geekery, a little sports... pretty much the whole package. I'll keep you updated as the season progresses. Wish us luck!
Thursday, July 31, 2008
It's been a while... again...
Goodness, gracious, great balls of... Me!
Ok, ok, I know it's been a while since I've taken the opportunity to enrich your meager lives with the wit and charm you've come to know, expect and love. But, in my defense, I've, uh, been really busy...?
Anyway, I don't really have anything new or exciting to discuss. The most interesting thing that's happened around here lately is we got rid of Moose, our half Saint Bernard, half bloodhound puppy. I say "puppy" because he's only a little over a year old and has the attention span of a goldfish. Now, imagine a 120 pound goldfish with a tail like a baseball bat, and you really get the idear. Good dog - but a little dumb... and clumsy... and a digger... and a barker...
But enough about the dog. Let's talk about me some more.
Just watched another FAN-FUCKING-TASTIC episode of So You Think You Can Dance! We're down to the final four and next week is the finale. It's kind of bittersweet for me because I'm really looking forward to the finale and I'm dying to see who's going to win, but on the other hand I don't want to see the season end - oh, what's a girl to do??
I don't want to gay it up too much, but there was one routine that nearly pushed me over to the other side. I won't go into specifics, so suffice to say it was hit or miss there for a few minutes. I had to go wake the wife up and verify my hetero-ness. I just wish I could have done it without Joshua's image in my mind...
But I digress. Work is going pretty well, although there was a rumor of layoffs floating around. Ok, I admit, I was pretty much orchestrating the rumor. Even so, it was pretty interesting. I guess I overdid it a bit because a couple people got scared and told their manager about the rumor I was bandying about, so I got called into a meeting with one of the managers to set my mind at ease. I told him I wasn't worried on account of my being such a genius computer nerd, but he basically asked me to knock it the hell off with the rumor-mongoring, and such. He didn't come right out and chastise me directly, but I got his point readily enough. ;-) Ain't I a stinker?
Suzanne got a new hobby recently - skeet shooting. In fact, she went right out and bought herself a brand new 12-gauge over/under shotgun. Fortunately, money's a little tight these day - but that didn't worry her one little bit. And even though I suggested that she wait to see if she really wants to commit to this hobby, she was brave enough to not let it slow her down at all. She even poo-poo'd my advice that she buy a pump-action shotgun, rather than an over/under, so that it would be of more use if she was out on a trail ride and was attacked by a puma, or a bear, or something. My thinking is, the more shells you can fire off, the more likely you might actually hit something. Her thinking is... well, she doesn't bother with any of that, she just likes the look of the over/under better. That's why I love her... ??
And finally, the boys are both signed up for football this year. Chase was a little small last year with his long skinny bones and whatnot. This year he's actually taller and thinner, if that's even possible, but he'll be one of the older, if not bigger, players. Also, a couple of his buddies are going to be playing.
Chris is up to nearly 5 feet and a little over 100 pounds, so he'll be among the bigger kids on the team, but still not so heavy that he can't play one of the "back" positions. The cutoff is 110 pounds to play quarterback, or running back, etc. Otherwise, it's on the line, Fatty. Sadly, he has little to no quarterback or running back skills, so it's kind of immaterial at this point.
I can't really coach both teams, so I've decided to coach Chase's team since last year I coached Chris's team. Not to mention I like Chase WAY better than Chris. Of the boys, he's my favorite. Kayla's still my favorite girl, of course, and indeed my favorite, overall. So, it goes like this: Kayla, Chase, Stephanie, then Chris. I was really pulling for Stephanie to nudge up into second place, but that darn Chase is just so cute, I couldn't bring myself to cut him.
Ok, I know I'm not supposed to have favorites, but it's not like they're ever gonna read this blog and find out the horrible truth. It's the perfect crime!
On the other hand, Stephanie IS working to be a doctor one day, which means that she might actually be able to support me in my dotage, so I might want to reconsider my rankings. But, no matter how you slice it, Chris is definitely last! That poor kind don't got a chance! Then again, he's going to be bigger than me in about a year and a half, so by the time he's 18, he'll probably be able to bend me into a bloody pretzel, so I might have to move him up by the time it occurs to him to look into the standings.
Ok, so for now, it's Kayla, Chase, Steph then Chris. But, "officially", it's Stephanie (for the money), Chris (because he might hurt me one day), Kayla (because she's in the military and I might need to become her dependent one day for medical purposes), then Chase (because he's small and weak, and not likely to become a doctor or join the military - thus of no real value in the long run).
Whew, I'm glad I got that sorted. Now to go sleep like a baby!
Ok, ok, I know it's been a while since I've taken the opportunity to enrich your meager lives with the wit and charm you've come to know, expect and love. But, in my defense, I've, uh, been really busy...?
Anyway, I don't really have anything new or exciting to discuss. The most interesting thing that's happened around here lately is we got rid of Moose, our half Saint Bernard, half bloodhound puppy. I say "puppy" because he's only a little over a year old and has the attention span of a goldfish. Now, imagine a 120 pound goldfish with a tail like a baseball bat, and you really get the idear. Good dog - but a little dumb... and clumsy... and a digger... and a barker...
But enough about the dog. Let's talk about me some more.
Just watched another FAN-FUCKING-TASTIC episode of So You Think You Can Dance! We're down to the final four and next week is the finale. It's kind of bittersweet for me because I'm really looking forward to the finale and I'm dying to see who's going to win, but on the other hand I don't want to see the season end - oh, what's a girl to do??
I don't want to gay it up too much, but there was one routine that nearly pushed me over to the other side. I won't go into specifics, so suffice to say it was hit or miss there for a few minutes. I had to go wake the wife up and verify my hetero-ness. I just wish I could have done it without Joshua's image in my mind...
But I digress. Work is going pretty well, although there was a rumor of layoffs floating around. Ok, I admit, I was pretty much orchestrating the rumor. Even so, it was pretty interesting. I guess I overdid it a bit because a couple people got scared and told their manager about the rumor I was bandying about, so I got called into a meeting with one of the managers to set my mind at ease. I told him I wasn't worried on account of my being such a genius computer nerd, but he basically asked me to knock it the hell off with the rumor-mongoring, and such. He didn't come right out and chastise me directly, but I got his point readily enough. ;-) Ain't I a stinker?
Suzanne got a new hobby recently - skeet shooting. In fact, she went right out and bought herself a brand new 12-gauge over/under shotgun. Fortunately, money's a little tight these day - but that didn't worry her one little bit. And even though I suggested that she wait to see if she really wants to commit to this hobby, she was brave enough to not let it slow her down at all. She even poo-poo'd my advice that she buy a pump-action shotgun, rather than an over/under, so that it would be of more use if she was out on a trail ride and was attacked by a puma, or a bear, or something. My thinking is, the more shells you can fire off, the more likely you might actually hit something. Her thinking is... well, she doesn't bother with any of that, she just likes the look of the over/under better. That's why I love her... ??
And finally, the boys are both signed up for football this year. Chase was a little small last year with his long skinny bones and whatnot. This year he's actually taller and thinner, if that's even possible, but he'll be one of the older, if not bigger, players. Also, a couple of his buddies are going to be playing.
Chris is up to nearly 5 feet and a little over 100 pounds, so he'll be among the bigger kids on the team, but still not so heavy that he can't play one of the "back" positions. The cutoff is 110 pounds to play quarterback, or running back, etc. Otherwise, it's on the line, Fatty. Sadly, he has little to no quarterback or running back skills, so it's kind of immaterial at this point.
I can't really coach both teams, so I've decided to coach Chase's team since last year I coached Chris's team. Not to mention I like Chase WAY better than Chris. Of the boys, he's my favorite. Kayla's still my favorite girl, of course, and indeed my favorite, overall. So, it goes like this: Kayla, Chase, Stephanie, then Chris. I was really pulling for Stephanie to nudge up into second place, but that darn Chase is just so cute, I couldn't bring myself to cut him.
Ok, I know I'm not supposed to have favorites, but it's not like they're ever gonna read this blog and find out the horrible truth. It's the perfect crime!
On the other hand, Stephanie IS working to be a doctor one day, which means that she might actually be able to support me in my dotage, so I might want to reconsider my rankings. But, no matter how you slice it, Chris is definitely last! That poor kind don't got a chance! Then again, he's going to be bigger than me in about a year and a half, so by the time he's 18, he'll probably be able to bend me into a bloody pretzel, so I might have to move him up by the time it occurs to him to look into the standings.
Ok, so for now, it's Kayla, Chase, Steph then Chris. But, "officially", it's Stephanie (for the money), Chris (because he might hurt me one day), Kayla (because she's in the military and I might need to become her dependent one day for medical purposes), then Chase (because he's small and weak, and not likely to become a doctor or join the military - thus of no real value in the long run).
Whew, I'm glad I got that sorted. Now to go sleep like a baby!
Monday, June 23, 2008
Ode to Carlin - another sad day.
Grief in Sidney..
Anybody who knows me knows that I'm a fan of George Carlin from way back (remember, I'm old). I remember being a kid and listening to an album (yes, an LP album) called "Toledo Windowbox" and thinking, "this guy's a genius". I saw his first HBO special "Carlin at Carnegie" and had pretty much memorized it. One of my favorite quotes of all time is "Have you ever noticed that most of the women who are against abortion are women you wouldn't want to fuck in the first place." I recorded that line into the very first answering machine my family ever owned and, boy, was my mom pissed!
So, it was with a heavy heart that I heard that George passed away on Sunday of heart failure. He'd already had several heart attacks and he wasn't exactly known for his physical fitness - even so, I really had hoped that he'd be with us for a lot longer (he was only 71).
I think what I liked best about him was his absolute refusal to accept bullshit. He realized that religion was a crutch for truly weak-minded people and he didn't mind rubbing their noses in it. He made sure that politicians were soundly thrashed (remember Reagan and his criminal gang) and he eschewed euphemisms and mocked any who used them. He basically said everything I believe at one point or another.
So, rather than go into all the reasons why I liked and admired him, let me just say that I'll miss him. He really was the original voice of the hippie generation, and ended up being the voice of several generations thereafter.
Sorry that this wasn't my usual funnier-than-shit self, but I'm kinda sad. I think tomorrow I'm going to go out and see if I can't find a copy of "Toledo Windowbox". On CD, though, not LP. I liked the guy, but I'm not going to buy a record player just to listen to 35 year old comedy - genius though it may have been! He wasn't Saint Carlin after all. :-)
If you like political humor, check out his stuff - especially from the 80's. If you're easily offended... well, you probably shouldn't be reading this fucking blog in the first place! ;-)
Anybody who knows me knows that I'm a fan of George Carlin from way back (remember, I'm old). I remember being a kid and listening to an album (yes, an LP album) called "Toledo Windowbox" and thinking, "this guy's a genius". I saw his first HBO special "Carlin at Carnegie" and had pretty much memorized it. One of my favorite quotes of all time is "Have you ever noticed that most of the women who are against abortion are women you wouldn't want to fuck in the first place." I recorded that line into the very first answering machine my family ever owned and, boy, was my mom pissed!
So, it was with a heavy heart that I heard that George passed away on Sunday of heart failure. He'd already had several heart attacks and he wasn't exactly known for his physical fitness - even so, I really had hoped that he'd be with us for a lot longer (he was only 71).
I think what I liked best about him was his absolute refusal to accept bullshit. He realized that religion was a crutch for truly weak-minded people and he didn't mind rubbing their noses in it. He made sure that politicians were soundly thrashed (remember Reagan and his criminal gang) and he eschewed euphemisms and mocked any who used them. He basically said everything I believe at one point or another.
So, rather than go into all the reasons why I liked and admired him, let me just say that I'll miss him. He really was the original voice of the hippie generation, and ended up being the voice of several generations thereafter.
Sorry that this wasn't my usual funnier-than-shit self, but I'm kinda sad. I think tomorrow I'm going to go out and see if I can't find a copy of "Toledo Windowbox". On CD, though, not LP. I liked the guy, but I'm not going to buy a record player just to listen to 35 year old comedy - genius though it may have been! He wasn't Saint Carlin after all. :-)
If you like political humor, check out his stuff - especially from the 80's. If you're easily offended... well, you probably shouldn't be reading this fucking blog in the first place! ;-)
Friday, June 6, 2008
Stoopidity in the workplace.
Sadness from Sidney,
Ok, not really sadness, more like disgusted frustration. We've interviewed about a million people for our open Unix position (linux/solaris). Half of the people suck and the other half are unqualified (due to suckage).
Basically, they're all stupid. Most, however, are stupid in the most insidious way: They THINK they're intelligent because they're comparing themselves to the REALLY stupid people that they work with.
For instance, some guy might rate himself an 8 on a scale of 1 to 10. But, he only knows how dumb he is in comparison to the "smartest" guy in the shop. Naturally, on the Anthony Scale, he's really only about a 5 or so. So, when he shows up all proud of himself ready to "wow" us, he ends up leaving sad and even a little dirty - mostly because of all the sucking up he had to do to overcome his uselessness.
Back in Omaha, we worked with a guy named Dan. Dan was, in a nutshell, a dumbass. However, he fancied himself a really smart guy who had the misfortune of having to work with three or four super-smart guys. It bummed him out because he was used to always being the smartest guy in the room, until he came to Mutual. Suddenly, he was basically the dumbest.
The sad thing is, stupid people are completely oblivious to their own shortcomings. When I was a kid, I used to think that stupid people stayed awake at night, bemoaning their intellectual limits. Little did I realize at the time, those people slept like babies! They didn't stay up late at night because they had no idear that they were morons. They figured, at worst, they were average.
Regrettably, I'm still dealing with these mental midgets today. Here's an example: we had a guy in recently who was applying for the Solaris position. I told him at the time that I was the resident Solaris expert. He admitted that his Solaris knowledge was a bit rusty, but was ready to show me his stuff.
About halfway through the interview, I asked him a middle of the road technical question. He had the right idear, but the wrong filename. I guess I gave something away with my body language, because he immediately became defensive. I told him that he did indeed have the right idear, he was jut quoting the wrong filename.
He sat back a little smugly and explained how I must be mistaken because he remembered quite clearly the name of the file. I felt a little like Phil Helmuth when he's holding the nut flush and some guy with a pair of queens just went all-in. But, I'm a nice guy and I didn't want to hurt his little feelings, so I gave him a chance to get off the hook. I said something like, "As the resident Solaris expert, I can tell you right now that you've got the filename wrong. But, it's no big deal, so let's just move on."
This wasn't the first time he'd been wrong, so I was positive he'd demur politely and let it go. BUT HE DIDN'T! He continued arguing with me that he was right - he even became a little aggressive, leaning forward with raised eyebrows. I tried to calm him down and I gave him one last chance to get off the hook by saying something like "I'm positive that you've got the filename wrong - but, don't sweat it, let's just move on."
He sat back with arms crossed and an angry face. Then, he finally noticed the confident look on my face and he started to backtrack and apologize for being aggressive by explaining he was just having a hard time of the interview, etc. But, he was still pretty sure he was right.
Finally, I busted out the correct answer. He slapped his forehead with both hands then dropped his head to the table and covered his face with his hands. I honestly thought he was going to cry. He eventually sat back up and admitted I was absolutely right (as if!) and fell all over himself apologizing for being so argumentative, etc. I told him it was ok, but we both knew he'd pretty much talked his way out of a job.
This is exactly what I'm talking about - stupid people honestly have no idear that they're stupid. I wish I could say this guy was the exception and not the rule, but I'm afraid that isn't the case.
Although, to be perfectly honest, I appreciate the fact that stupid people are out there - it just makes me look better by comparison. :-)
Cya!
Ok, not really sadness, more like disgusted frustration. We've interviewed about a million people for our open Unix position (linux/solaris). Half of the people suck and the other half are unqualified (due to suckage).
Basically, they're all stupid. Most, however, are stupid in the most insidious way: They THINK they're intelligent because they're comparing themselves to the REALLY stupid people that they work with.
For instance, some guy might rate himself an 8 on a scale of 1 to 10. But, he only knows how dumb he is in comparison to the "smartest" guy in the shop. Naturally, on the Anthony Scale, he's really only about a 5 or so. So, when he shows up all proud of himself ready to "wow" us, he ends up leaving sad and even a little dirty - mostly because of all the sucking up he had to do to overcome his uselessness.
Back in Omaha, we worked with a guy named Dan. Dan was, in a nutshell, a dumbass. However, he fancied himself a really smart guy who had the misfortune of having to work with three or four super-smart guys. It bummed him out because he was used to always being the smartest guy in the room, until he came to Mutual. Suddenly, he was basically the dumbest.
The sad thing is, stupid people are completely oblivious to their own shortcomings. When I was a kid, I used to think that stupid people stayed awake at night, bemoaning their intellectual limits. Little did I realize at the time, those people slept like babies! They didn't stay up late at night because they had no idear that they were morons. They figured, at worst, they were average.
Regrettably, I'm still dealing with these mental midgets today. Here's an example: we had a guy in recently who was applying for the Solaris position. I told him at the time that I was the resident Solaris expert. He admitted that his Solaris knowledge was a bit rusty, but was ready to show me his stuff.
About halfway through the interview, I asked him a middle of the road technical question. He had the right idear, but the wrong filename. I guess I gave something away with my body language, because he immediately became defensive. I told him that he did indeed have the right idear, he was jut quoting the wrong filename.
He sat back a little smugly and explained how I must be mistaken because he remembered quite clearly the name of the file. I felt a little like Phil Helmuth when he's holding the nut flush and some guy with a pair of queens just went all-in. But, I'm a nice guy and I didn't want to hurt his little feelings, so I gave him a chance to get off the hook. I said something like, "As the resident Solaris expert, I can tell you right now that you've got the filename wrong. But, it's no big deal, so let's just move on."
This wasn't the first time he'd been wrong, so I was positive he'd demur politely and let it go. BUT HE DIDN'T! He continued arguing with me that he was right - he even became a little aggressive, leaning forward with raised eyebrows. I tried to calm him down and I gave him one last chance to get off the hook by saying something like "I'm positive that you've got the filename wrong - but, don't sweat it, let's just move on."
He sat back with arms crossed and an angry face. Then, he finally noticed the confident look on my face and he started to backtrack and apologize for being aggressive by explaining he was just having a hard time of the interview, etc. But, he was still pretty sure he was right.
Finally, I busted out the correct answer. He slapped his forehead with both hands then dropped his head to the table and covered his face with his hands. I honestly thought he was going to cry. He eventually sat back up and admitted I was absolutely right (as if!) and fell all over himself apologizing for being so argumentative, etc. I told him it was ok, but we both knew he'd pretty much talked his way out of a job.
This is exactly what I'm talking about - stupid people honestly have no idear that they're stupid. I wish I could say this guy was the exception and not the rule, but I'm afraid that isn't the case.
Although, to be perfectly honest, I appreciate the fact that stupid people are out there - it just makes me look better by comparison. :-)
Cya!
Sunday, May 18, 2008
Hah!
Read 'Em and Weep from Sidney,
That's right, folks, my crazy green bike dreams have finally been realized (no thanks to you non-house buying people).
It's easily the coolest bike in the world. Here's what it looked like immediately off the trailer:
Naturally, I couldn't just leave it completely stock, so here's what it looks like now:
I realize that most of you are really jealous and even a little angry. I completely understand - I'd feel the same way myself if I were you. In the meantime, feel free to download a copy of these images for yourself. That way, you'll be one step closer to greatness.
BTW, the bike rides like a dream. It's so much nicer than the old bike that it's almost embarrassing. Embarrassing because I nearly bought this exact bike (just not green) back in '03. But, since the dealer wouldn't haggle with me, I decided to buy a different bike from a different dealer. I sure showed them!
So, for the last 5 years, I've been riding a bike that was my second choice. But now, I've finally come into my own, riding the bike I've wanted all along. Yay me!
All I need now are some highway pegs and possibly different pipes. The pipes in the picture in my May 07 post look really cool (and are probably really loud). I might go with those if they're not too ridiculously expensive. For now, I'm pretty darn content.
I'm thinking about selling my little car since I doubt I'll be driving anything other than my bike from now on - unless of course, there's a bad snow storm or something.
On a side note, you should see the killer sunburn I got on the poker run I rode this weekend. I had everything planned out except the sunscreen. Ah, c'est la vie.
P.S. I love my new bike.
That's right, folks, my crazy green bike dreams have finally been realized (no thanks to you non-house buying people).
It's easily the coolest bike in the world. Here's what it looked like immediately off the trailer:
Naturally, I couldn't just leave it completely stock, so here's what it looks like now:
I realize that most of you are really jealous and even a little angry. I completely understand - I'd feel the same way myself if I were you. In the meantime, feel free to download a copy of these images for yourself. That way, you'll be one step closer to greatness.
BTW, the bike rides like a dream. It's so much nicer than the old bike that it's almost embarrassing. Embarrassing because I nearly bought this exact bike (just not green) back in '03. But, since the dealer wouldn't haggle with me, I decided to buy a different bike from a different dealer. I sure showed them!
So, for the last 5 years, I've been riding a bike that was my second choice. But now, I've finally come into my own, riding the bike I've wanted all along. Yay me!
All I need now are some highway pegs and possibly different pipes. The pipes in the picture in my May 07 post look really cool (and are probably really loud). I might go with those if they're not too ridiculously expensive. For now, I'm pretty darn content.
I'm thinking about selling my little car since I doubt I'll be driving anything other than my bike from now on - unless of course, there's a bad snow storm or something.
On a side note, you should see the killer sunburn I got on the poker run I rode this weekend. I had everything planned out except the sunscreen. Ah, c'est la vie.
P.S. I love my new bike.
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
Motorcycle, WTF??
Happy belated Cinco De Mayo!
Well, it looks like the crazy green motorcycle project of 08 is back in the works. If your memory is really poor, here's another picture to jog your recollection:
As it turns out, the bike of my dreams was in Boulder, CO. all along. Who knew? Certainly not that dumbass in Cheyenne who wanted to sell me that second rate purple bastard.
So, now it's just a matter of time to get the bike transported up to Scottsbluff (about 60 miles away) so that they can modify the handlebars and install a windscreen.
I'm kind of hoping they could have it finished this weekend, but I'm not holding my breath. If I've learned nothing else when it comes to this motorcycle hunt of mine, it's this: Don't get your damn, useless hopes up.
Therefore, I'm not getting excited until I get my hot, little, sexy hands on it. If I do, you'll be the, well, like 8th, 9th and or 10th to know. So, watch this space... either intense jubilation, or pitying despair... you be the judge.
Well, it looks like the crazy green motorcycle project of 08 is back in the works. If your memory is really poor, here's another picture to jog your recollection:
As it turns out, the bike of my dreams was in Boulder, CO. all along. Who knew? Certainly not that dumbass in Cheyenne who wanted to sell me that second rate purple bastard.
So, now it's just a matter of time to get the bike transported up to Scottsbluff (about 60 miles away) so that they can modify the handlebars and install a windscreen.
I'm kind of hoping they could have it finished this weekend, but I'm not holding my breath. If I've learned nothing else when it comes to this motorcycle hunt of mine, it's this: Don't get your damn, useless hopes up.
Therefore, I'm not getting excited until I get my hot, little, sexy hands on it. If I do, you'll be the, well, like 8th, 9th and or 10th to know. So, watch this space... either intense jubilation, or pitying despair... you be the judge.
Monday, April 28, 2008
It's been a while...
since last we spoke...
So many things have been going on recently that they've obviously overwhelmed my ability to blog all about it. Even so, I'm going to soldier on and give it my best effort right now.
First, my oldest daughter was out recently. She actually made the trip to Sunny Sidney with her (possibly serial killer) boyfriend. They were plenty bored most of the time, but there were moments of entertainment. We played a little rock band and plenty of XBox (well, the SKBF and the boys did anyway). We also played a little racquetball - I say a "little" racquetball because the competition left a "little" to be desired. ;-)
Not long after they left, we went down to the Ford dealership, threw the old diesel up on the counter and said, "Gimme another one of them!" While we were at it, we also traded in the dodge 1500 for a, wait for it, Ford Focus. (The car is just a bit too large to fit into my wallet, unless I take out ALL the credit cards.)
Both vehicles are Ford Metallic Blue and they both have basically all the options you could cram in. For instance, they both have sirius satellite radio, they both have power sun roofs (rooves? roofes?), power windows, locks, trunk openers, etc. The diesel even has power mirrors that stretch out for pulling a trailer, and pull in for when you're driving into your garage or the car-wash.
We got a fantastic deal, but it's going to be a while before they're both fully paid off. The Focus pays for itself in gas, though, getting anywhere from 33 to 38 mpg on the highway (depending on the wind). Don't get too close to any trucks, though, as they'll nearly blow you off the road (but in a bad way).
Last week I was in Denver attending an IBM training course. It mainly focused on the Power 6 hardware and virtualization. It was a really good course and I was surprised to find that I really learned a lot.
As you probably know, I never did end up buying the motorcycle. :-( I think I mentioned in an earlier post that the guy somehow confused the year 2003 with 2006 when calculating the value of my trade in. Needless to say, I was not amused, and the deal fell through. I'll look again later in the season. Although, I did see a really nice Star motorcycle on the way home today... Kind of a black cherry color and a really great shape. I don't know much about Star motorcycles, but when I'm done with this post, I'm gonna check it out.
Suzanne loves her new diesel. It's a little bit narrower, and a little shorter, than her old truck, but it has almost everything and it runs like a freaking champ. Not only that, it's got the new 6 litre engine with more torque and horsepower than her old one. It's also pretty easy on the eyes. She treats it more like a BMW than a truck, though, and can't stand taking it into the dirt or the mud.
Um, I guess the horse is still alive.
The dogs are good... we had Moose (the hounddog/St. Bernard-mixed puppy) neutered recently. He took it like a man... right up until losing the nuts, then he took it like a eunuch. Either way, it was pretty unpleasant. Although, it was also kind of comical to watch him take two steps, stop and lick his sack, then take two more steps, stop and lick his sack, etc. He gave that poor thing a beating (notice how I didn't say a lickin' - yep, no low-hanging fruit here...)
The boys are doing well - we got a trampoline recently and Chris spends most of his spare time on it. Bouncing, or laying down, or rolling around, or just sitting. He, um, really likes the trampoline.
Work is going pretty well. Nothing much to report there.
The boys "accidentally" destroyed the PS2 last week. Somehow, even after the first one walked through the cables strewn across the basement, yanking the system onto the floor from a height of 3 feet, the second one did exactly the same thing. Then, for good measure, when the lid would no longer stay closed, Chase thought it would be a good idear to give it a couple of really good slams. Surprisingly, it didn't work any better after all that. In fact, it stopped working altogether.
Fortunately, their dad is a frickin' genius and was able to reassemble all the bits and breathe life back into the shattered remains. Not surprisingly, they're not allowed to play any video games until further notice.
Funny story: Suzanne was still able to bitch about the new truck... something about the gas tank not being as big and the fuel economy not being as good. Of course, the old truck got exactly the same mileage, it just didn't have a computerized instant mileage calculator in the dashboard.
Mind you, this is the best vehicle she's literally ever even been inside in her entire life. Thank goodness she was able to come up with something to complain about! I think we can all rest a little easier now.
I guess that about brings up to speed. Now quit bitching about me never updating this damn blog!
Love and kisses,
Your hero, Anthony.
So many things have been going on recently that they've obviously overwhelmed my ability to blog all about it. Even so, I'm going to soldier on and give it my best effort right now.
First, my oldest daughter was out recently. She actually made the trip to Sunny Sidney with her (possibly serial killer) boyfriend. They were plenty bored most of the time, but there were moments of entertainment. We played a little rock band and plenty of XBox (well, the SKBF and the boys did anyway). We also played a little racquetball - I say a "little" racquetball because the competition left a "little" to be desired. ;-)
Not long after they left, we went down to the Ford dealership, threw the old diesel up on the counter and said, "Gimme another one of them!" While we were at it, we also traded in the dodge 1500 for a, wait for it, Ford Focus. (The car is just a bit too large to fit into my wallet, unless I take out ALL the credit cards.)
Both vehicles are Ford Metallic Blue and they both have basically all the options you could cram in. For instance, they both have sirius satellite radio, they both have power sun roofs (rooves? roofes?), power windows, locks, trunk openers, etc. The diesel even has power mirrors that stretch out for pulling a trailer, and pull in for when you're driving into your garage or the car-wash.
We got a fantastic deal, but it's going to be a while before they're both fully paid off. The Focus pays for itself in gas, though, getting anywhere from 33 to 38 mpg on the highway (depending on the wind). Don't get too close to any trucks, though, as they'll nearly blow you off the road (but in a bad way).
Last week I was in Denver attending an IBM training course. It mainly focused on the Power 6 hardware and virtualization. It was a really good course and I was surprised to find that I really learned a lot.
As you probably know, I never did end up buying the motorcycle. :-( I think I mentioned in an earlier post that the guy somehow confused the year 2003 with 2006 when calculating the value of my trade in. Needless to say, I was not amused, and the deal fell through. I'll look again later in the season. Although, I did see a really nice Star motorcycle on the way home today... Kind of a black cherry color and a really great shape. I don't know much about Star motorcycles, but when I'm done with this post, I'm gonna check it out.
Suzanne loves her new diesel. It's a little bit narrower, and a little shorter, than her old truck, but it has almost everything and it runs like a freaking champ. Not only that, it's got the new 6 litre engine with more torque and horsepower than her old one. It's also pretty easy on the eyes. She treats it more like a BMW than a truck, though, and can't stand taking it into the dirt or the mud.
Um, I guess the horse is still alive.
The dogs are good... we had Moose (the hounddog/St. Bernard-mixed puppy) neutered recently. He took it like a man... right up until losing the nuts, then he took it like a eunuch. Either way, it was pretty unpleasant. Although, it was also kind of comical to watch him take two steps, stop and lick his sack, then take two more steps, stop and lick his sack, etc. He gave that poor thing a beating (notice how I didn't say a lickin' - yep, no low-hanging fruit here...)
The boys are doing well - we got a trampoline recently and Chris spends most of his spare time on it. Bouncing, or laying down, or rolling around, or just sitting. He, um, really likes the trampoline.
Work is going pretty well. Nothing much to report there.
The boys "accidentally" destroyed the PS2 last week. Somehow, even after the first one walked through the cables strewn across the basement, yanking the system onto the floor from a height of 3 feet, the second one did exactly the same thing. Then, for good measure, when the lid would no longer stay closed, Chase thought it would be a good idear to give it a couple of really good slams. Surprisingly, it didn't work any better after all that. In fact, it stopped working altogether.
Fortunately, their dad is a frickin' genius and was able to reassemble all the bits and breathe life back into the shattered remains. Not surprisingly, they're not allowed to play any video games until further notice.
Funny story: Suzanne was still able to bitch about the new truck... something about the gas tank not being as big and the fuel economy not being as good. Of course, the old truck got exactly the same mileage, it just didn't have a computerized instant mileage calculator in the dashboard.
Mind you, this is the best vehicle she's literally ever even been inside in her entire life. Thank goodness she was able to come up with something to complain about! I think we can all rest a little easier now.
I guess that about brings up to speed. Now quit bitching about me never updating this damn blog!
Love and kisses,
Your hero, Anthony.
Friday, March 21, 2008
Booo!
Frustrated in Sidney,
You probably remember my last post (look below if your memory is poor) where I said I was going to get a super-cool, sexy, lime-green VTX1300C. Sadly, they don't make that particular shade any longer, and almost all the ones they ever made have been sold already. They have one in California, but the emissions rules out there force the dealerships to basically neuter the bikes. Also, they have one in NY, but I'd have to pay up to $1,000 for shipping (fu'dat!).
So, I decided to try a different tack and go for something a little different... Voila!
She's a beaut! Not quite as cool and sporty as the key-lime cutie, but still a nice damn bike!
So, I told the guy to gimme one o' dem! and he's like, "Yes Sir!" But, then he called me back with the bad news. The main Honda factory was the only place that had these, so it could take up to two weeks to arrive. Bummed, but not completely despondent, I told him to go ahead and I'd suck it up.
But, while he was on the phone, I told him a couple of things I wanted added. Nothing fancy, just a windshield, handlebar risers (to move the handlebars closer a couple inches) and some footboards for the passenger (my cute little girlfriend... don't tell the wife... she doesn't read my blog!)
He assured me that everything was kosher and he'd get started asap.
30 seconds after hanging up with me, apparently, his manager called him into the office with the (even more) bad news. That style of bike had a safety recall and the dealerships were forbidden to sell, trade, transport, etc, any of these bikes until the problem was repaired.
No big deal, just a half hour job to jump in there and replace the pep cock valve under the gas tank. Easy, right? Well, if the bike was local, it would be no problem. But since the bike is at the dealership, they won't release it until it's been repaired whenever THEY decide to get around to it.
So, this means that the soonest I can expect to lay my hands on this baby is the middle of April. I am the bummed!
On the positive side, this new bike is quite a bit less expensive than the other bike for what is basically exactly the same bike. The reason that it's less is because the purple bike needs less modifications than the green bike. About $2k less as a matter of fact, which is good.
But, damn I loves me some sexy, lime-green bike! Even so, it's not worth an extra $3k for green vs. purple. I mean, cuz green is favorite, but purple is favorite too. You know, green is more favorite. I mean, Purple is favorite, but green is MORE favorite. But I like purple... I like purple. Purple's good.
More to come!
You probably remember my last post (look below if your memory is poor) where I said I was going to get a super-cool, sexy, lime-green VTX1300C. Sadly, they don't make that particular shade any longer, and almost all the ones they ever made have been sold already. They have one in California, but the emissions rules out there force the dealerships to basically neuter the bikes. Also, they have one in NY, but I'd have to pay up to $1,000 for shipping (fu'dat!).
So, I decided to try a different tack and go for something a little different... Voila!
She's a beaut! Not quite as cool and sporty as the key-lime cutie, but still a nice damn bike!
So, I told the guy to gimme one o' dem! and he's like, "Yes Sir!" But, then he called me back with the bad news. The main Honda factory was the only place that had these, so it could take up to two weeks to arrive. Bummed, but not completely despondent, I told him to go ahead and I'd suck it up.
But, while he was on the phone, I told him a couple of things I wanted added. Nothing fancy, just a windshield, handlebar risers (to move the handlebars closer a couple inches) and some footboards for the passenger (my cute little girlfriend... don't tell the wife... she doesn't read my blog!)
He assured me that everything was kosher and he'd get started asap.
30 seconds after hanging up with me, apparently, his manager called him into the office with the (even more) bad news. That style of bike had a safety recall and the dealerships were forbidden to sell, trade, transport, etc, any of these bikes until the problem was repaired.
No big deal, just a half hour job to jump in there and replace the pep cock valve under the gas tank. Easy, right? Well, if the bike was local, it would be no problem. But since the bike is at the dealership, they won't release it until it's been repaired whenever THEY decide to get around to it.
So, this means that the soonest I can expect to lay my hands on this baby is the middle of April. I am the bummed!
On the positive side, this new bike is quite a bit less expensive than the other bike for what is basically exactly the same bike. The reason that it's less is because the purple bike needs less modifications than the green bike. About $2k less as a matter of fact, which is good.
But, damn I loves me some sexy, lime-green bike! Even so, it's not worth an extra $3k for green vs. purple. I mean, cuz green is favorite, but purple is favorite too. You know, green is more favorite. I mean, Purple is favorite, but green is MORE favorite. But I like purple... I like purple. Purple's good.
More to come!
Sunday, March 16, 2008
The new bike
Breathing easy in Sidney.
Now that the bonuses have come through and we got a couple bucks in the old checking account, what better than to drive 100 miles to the nearest big town (yes 100 miles) and spend that money!
So, we hopped in the truck with the boys and drove out to Cheyenne, which is the nearest town that has a Circuit City. I was interested in projector TV's and the wife wanted to look at laminate flooring. She hates the house but thinks we might be able to spruce it up a bit if we could just get rid of the old crappy carpeting.
One other thing that Cheyenne has is a motorcycle dealership or two. Well, I would have kicked myself if I went all the way to the big city and not looked at bikes.
To make a long story short (hah!), here's what my next bike is going to look like:
It's a Honda 1300 VTX, and as you can see, it's lime green! Oh, it's beautiful all righty. I'm going to have to make a couple of modifications, like change the handle bars, the seat and add some floorboard pedals, a windshield and saddlebags, but you get the idear.
As a reminder, here's my current ride:
(Who IS that cool kid??)
Anyway, it will be a few weeks yet before I can actually get the bike as we have to agree on trade in amounts, and the cost of all the mods. In the meantime, I have my jpegs to keep my warm at night.
On a side note, we didn't get a HD projector or any laminate flooring, or even any new carpet. We DID eat some fantastic Mongolian Grill, and enjoyed a little Baskin Robbins.
Watch this space for news concerning the new bike!
Now that the bonuses have come through and we got a couple bucks in the old checking account, what better than to drive 100 miles to the nearest big town (yes 100 miles) and spend that money!
So, we hopped in the truck with the boys and drove out to Cheyenne, which is the nearest town that has a Circuit City. I was interested in projector TV's and the wife wanted to look at laminate flooring. She hates the house but thinks we might be able to spruce it up a bit if we could just get rid of the old crappy carpeting.
One other thing that Cheyenne has is a motorcycle dealership or two. Well, I would have kicked myself if I went all the way to the big city and not looked at bikes.
To make a long story short (hah!), here's what my next bike is going to look like:
It's a Honda 1300 VTX, and as you can see, it's lime green! Oh, it's beautiful all righty. I'm going to have to make a couple of modifications, like change the handle bars, the seat and add some floorboard pedals, a windshield and saddlebags, but you get the idear.
As a reminder, here's my current ride:
(Who IS that cool kid??)
Anyway, it will be a few weeks yet before I can actually get the bike as we have to agree on trade in amounts, and the cost of all the mods. In the meantime, I have my jpegs to keep my warm at night.
On a side note, we didn't get a HD projector or any laminate flooring, or even any new carpet. We DID eat some fantastic Mongolian Grill, and enjoyed a little Baskin Robbins.
Watch this space for news concerning the new bike!
Thursday, March 13, 2008
It's BONUS time!
That's right, after a year of waiting and trying NOT to get fired, it's finally all paid off! Tomorrow is Bonus day! That means thousand and thousand of dollars! Yep, $2,000! ;-)
After this crappy financial year that we've had, that money will sho come in handy! I was positive that I was going to get fired this week, just days before this little windfall.
However, somehow I made it! Somehow my mouth didn't get me fired after all!
So, now I'm in a pretty good mood.
Next week, my oldest kid will be here with her boyfriend. Fortunately, I'm rich enough to take them to McDonald's or some other nice place. Woo hoo.
After this crappy financial year that we've had, that money will sho come in handy! I was positive that I was going to get fired this week, just days before this little windfall.
However, somehow I made it! Somehow my mouth didn't get me fired after all!
So, now I'm in a pretty good mood.
Next week, my oldest kid will be here with her boyfriend. Fortunately, I'm rich enough to take them to McDonald's or some other nice place. Woo hoo.
Monday, February 11, 2008
Happy Birthday to my favorite Kid!!
I know you're not supposed to have favorites, but what can I say? The other 3... eh, not so much. I mean, they're ok and all, but in the end, I can take 'em or leave 'em.
Kayla, on the other hand, easily my favorite kid.
So I say Happy Birthday Kayla-Lee! (Thought I forgot, didn't you??)
Love Dad.
Kayla, on the other hand, easily my favorite kid.
So I say Happy Birthday Kayla-Lee! (Thought I forgot, didn't you??)
Love Dad.
Tuesday, February 5, 2008
The TB ward
Gezundheit from Sidney,
I don't care if I spelled gezundheit incorrectly! That's right... I'm a rebel.
So, for the last week or so I've had to deal with a houseful of weak, sick, diseased people. Everybody in the family was sick, except for me. I was the one running to wal-mart at 2am to get another bottle of Children's Tylenol (the wife didn't mention that we were almost out earlier in the evening when I just happened to be at wal-mart).
First, Chris AKA the Iron Horse, got the flu (it's going around here in Sidney). It shocked us because this kid NEVER gets sick. Then, a couple days later, the other one got sick. This wasn't nearly as shocking because Chase ALWAYS gets sick, so we knew it was just a matter of time.
Next, the wife got sick... I would rather have 7 sick kids than 1 sick wife. You know how some people get sick and you have to hear about how miserable they feel literally 24x7? If not, allow me to introduce the wife. Even when she's perfectly happy, she still complains most of the time. When she's sick?? Oh lord, it's brutal.
If you were to talk with her when she's ill, you'd swear she wasn't going to make the winter. Also, she likes to announce how much she hates being sick... constantly... ad nauseum... until you just want to drop an anvil on her skull! Um, not that I wanted to drop an anvil on her skull, of course... that would be crazy! ;-)
So, you're probably wondering, when is it Anthony's turn? Well, shockingly, I've yet to really get sick. I've felt kind of off a couple of times, but it hasn't hit (yet). Whenever I've felt like I might start coming down with it, I guzzle half a bottle of vick's 44. So far, so good!
Turns out, being a germophobe clearly makes one medically superior to most normal people!
Oh, and during all this, chase had 4 or 5 stitches in his chest. He had a couple of moles that looked "iffy", and he was finally old enough to feel self-conscious about them, so he asked to have them removed.
About the procedure, he took it like a champ. Didn't even tear up. I was extremely proud! If anything, I was in worse shape than he was. It was pretty gross to watch the doctor work that scalpel. Bleah...
But, everybody seems to be doing better now... I can tell the wife feels 100% better because I don't hear her bitching right now. Also, the middle of the night coughing is almost non-existent. Since Chase was the last to get it, he's still fighting off the last of the effects, but I think he's mostly cured.
And, that's the story of the germ-ridden, bacteria-laden household that I'm currently running.
Go Patriots! Oh, wait... ;-)
I don't care if I spelled gezundheit incorrectly! That's right... I'm a rebel.
So, for the last week or so I've had to deal with a houseful of weak, sick, diseased people. Everybody in the family was sick, except for me. I was the one running to wal-mart at 2am to get another bottle of Children's Tylenol (the wife didn't mention that we were almost out earlier in the evening when I just happened to be at wal-mart).
First, Chris AKA the Iron Horse, got the flu (it's going around here in Sidney). It shocked us because this kid NEVER gets sick. Then, a couple days later, the other one got sick. This wasn't nearly as shocking because Chase ALWAYS gets sick, so we knew it was just a matter of time.
Next, the wife got sick... I would rather have 7 sick kids than 1 sick wife. You know how some people get sick and you have to hear about how miserable they feel literally 24x7? If not, allow me to introduce the wife. Even when she's perfectly happy, she still complains most of the time. When she's sick?? Oh lord, it's brutal.
If you were to talk with her when she's ill, you'd swear she wasn't going to make the winter. Also, she likes to announce how much she hates being sick... constantly... ad nauseum... until you just want to drop an anvil on her skull! Um, not that I wanted to drop an anvil on her skull, of course... that would be crazy! ;-)
So, you're probably wondering, when is it Anthony's turn? Well, shockingly, I've yet to really get sick. I've felt kind of off a couple of times, but it hasn't hit (yet). Whenever I've felt like I might start coming down with it, I guzzle half a bottle of vick's 44. So far, so good!
Turns out, being a germophobe clearly makes one medically superior to most normal people!
Oh, and during all this, chase had 4 or 5 stitches in his chest. He had a couple of moles that looked "iffy", and he was finally old enough to feel self-conscious about them, so he asked to have them removed.
About the procedure, he took it like a champ. Didn't even tear up. I was extremely proud! If anything, I was in worse shape than he was. It was pretty gross to watch the doctor work that scalpel. Bleah...
But, everybody seems to be doing better now... I can tell the wife feels 100% better because I don't hear her bitching right now. Also, the middle of the night coughing is almost non-existent. Since Chase was the last to get it, he's still fighting off the last of the effects, but I think he's mostly cured.
And, that's the story of the germ-ridden, bacteria-laden household that I'm currently running.
Go Patriots! Oh, wait... ;-)
Sunday, January 20, 2008
Turns out, I'm a dumbass after all...
A lesson in humility from Sidney...
So, we had to go in to the shop today to do some off-hours work. We needed to unplug half of our production environment and move the electrical cables around. We also needed to rerun the ethernet cables.
Sounds pretty easy, right? Well, we had to be extremely careful so as to not affect the rest of the environment. One wrong move and we could have blown the breakers and really screwed some stuff up.
So, everything went perfectly and I was just buttoning up the last of the ethernet interfaces when somebody from the help desk came bursting in. She got a message that all the servers had crashed. Needless to say, my stomach dropped to my feet, but I was positive that I hadn't done anything that could have possibly crashed any servers, much less ALL of them. None of MY servers were down...
After a couple of minutes they determined that the servers hadn't crashed, they were just offline... sounds like a network issue. Uh oh. Even though I was absolutely convinced that my network was completely isolated and impossible to impact the rest of the business, I went ahead and took a look at my configuration. Sure enough, two of the cables were in the wrong ports.
Ok, that's not good for me, but surely this couldn't have affected everybody else, right? Wrong! As it turns out, and unbeknownst to us, the main network somehow runs through our switches! I was shocked, stunned, and I felt pretty stupid - why didn't I take a second look at those numbers?? I NEVER make this kind of mistake.
At any rate, 2 minutes later all joy was restored and everything was working as expected again. The only real victim here is my pride. My buddy told me that this was a good lesson in humility and maybe I should try to learn something from it. I disagree! I'm sure this was simply some kind of cosmic, karmic interference.
However, I'm equally convinced that this karmic retribution was incorrectly assigned as I certainly haven't done anything to deserve it!
So, now I feel like an idiot. Please mark your calendars appropriately.
Oh, and don't bother buying my house. It's already in the hands of the "we buy your house people", so I don't care if it ever sells. How do you like them apples??
So, we had to go in to the shop today to do some off-hours work. We needed to unplug half of our production environment and move the electrical cables around. We also needed to rerun the ethernet cables.
Sounds pretty easy, right? Well, we had to be extremely careful so as to not affect the rest of the environment. One wrong move and we could have blown the breakers and really screwed some stuff up.
So, everything went perfectly and I was just buttoning up the last of the ethernet interfaces when somebody from the help desk came bursting in. She got a message that all the servers had crashed. Needless to say, my stomach dropped to my feet, but I was positive that I hadn't done anything that could have possibly crashed any servers, much less ALL of them. None of MY servers were down...
After a couple of minutes they determined that the servers hadn't crashed, they were just offline... sounds like a network issue. Uh oh. Even though I was absolutely convinced that my network was completely isolated and impossible to impact the rest of the business, I went ahead and took a look at my configuration. Sure enough, two of the cables were in the wrong ports.
Ok, that's not good for me, but surely this couldn't have affected everybody else, right? Wrong! As it turns out, and unbeknownst to us, the main network somehow runs through our switches! I was shocked, stunned, and I felt pretty stupid - why didn't I take a second look at those numbers?? I NEVER make this kind of mistake.
At any rate, 2 minutes later all joy was restored and everything was working as expected again. The only real victim here is my pride. My buddy told me that this was a good lesson in humility and maybe I should try to learn something from it. I disagree! I'm sure this was simply some kind of cosmic, karmic interference.
However, I'm equally convinced that this karmic retribution was incorrectly assigned as I certainly haven't done anything to deserve it!
So, now I feel like an idiot. Please mark your calendars appropriately.
Oh, and don't bother buying my house. It's already in the hands of the "we buy your house people", so I don't care if it ever sells. How do you like them apples??
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