I finally got the lawn mowed today. It was the first time this year, not that it didn't need it before today. The weather has been so strange lately... hot, cold, dry, rainy... C'mon Mother Nature, make up your mind!
It's a great example of the good ol' Minnesota adage, "If you like the weather, just wait five minutes."
So, now I have to try to find time to mow the back yard before it turns into a tropical jungle. The dog is still digging up the yard within the reach of her tie-out, and has found that she can get under the pine tree in the back yard to dig without being seen. What she does not seem to understand is that the dirty claws pretty much give her away.
But here are the two main reasons I want the weather to equalize:
Today is Mother's Day (yes I called my Mom) and it's also my older brother's birthday. He's 32 today.
My little big brother, Mike, is older than me by two years. He's also almost 6 inches shorter than me, but I still think he could beat the tar out of me if her really wanted to. He and I used to get into fights when we were kids. Little ol' scrawny me got pinned to the floor nine times out of ten, but then I got bigger than him and he sorta stopped trying. Well, now we're both getting older, and I'm pretty sure I don't want to try that kind of fighting/wrestling again with him. It'd be fun to watch, but you'd be hearing us complaining about pulled hamstrings and stuff pretty quickly.
As for Mother's Day, I'm glad I got to call and talk to my mom. She's had a tough time of things lately, and every time we think she's gotten out of the dark times, something else goes wrong. Gram Daley died not that long ago, and she started to get over that, and was soon in a car wreck that totaled her Volvo. It takes a lot to total a Volvo, but this idiot turned left in front of her and BOOM that was that. She's confident that the construction of the car, and the air bags, saved her life. I'm hoping she gets another Volvo for the very reason that she feels safe and confident driving them.
All in all, it's been a pretty wonderful day, spending time with and speaking with family. Happy Mother's Day, Mom, and Happy Birthday, Mike!
Today is a day for celebration. Heidi graduated from SCSU today with her degree in Social Work. No telling where she'll go from here, but I know that whatever she puts her mind to, she'll do well at. She has so many aspirations, and I hope that she knows that I will support her as she chases her dreams.
It's raining today, but that's OK, it could not dampen our spirits as we headed up to St. Cloud for the commencement ceremony. Heidi, Her mom and Dad, and our niece Abbi went to the ceremony, and listened to the speeches and then over 1000 names of graduates receiving their diplomas.
Hearing Heidi's name read off was so fun. Her eyes lit up and she walked up the stairs onto the stage to shake hands with the President of the University. Her smile was beaming. She looked great in her cap and gown, and I know she's happy that she is finished with this particular journey. Perhaps she'll continue on with school, peraps she'll work, perhaps she'll take a break, but that's all up to her.
Congratulations, Heidi!
Color printers have changes so much since I bought my first one. Now I can plug my SmartMedia cards right into the printer and get great images without the "hassle" of using PhotoShop. But to me, that's half the fun!
The Canon Bubble Jet is a good printer. So are the Lexmark inkjets, but the HP Photosmart is one of the best inkjets I've seen. I picked up the second-from-the-best model tonight, mainly because I could not substantiate spending the extra $60 for what I felt was a very marginal difference.
I have yet to connect this new toy to the computers in our house. My wife has a great computer, and also has the color printer connected to it. She'll get the new HP on her desk, but since everything is connected on our LAN at home, the default is still the HP Laser printer.
Maybe I'll get to install the new printer this week... maybe it'll have to wait until after our upcoming vacation.
Today I went shopping for a new color printer. I found one, but not before I was approached by several "knowledgeable" employees of a locally-based, national electronics retailer. Lets call them Yub Tseb for convenience.
I have friends who work for this company, and are some of the most proficient and trustworthy computer experts around. I would absolutely leave my PC with these friends, with the knowledge that when it came back, it'd be working better than ever. But I was not talking to these friends today. I was at another store location dealing with a sixteen year old who tried to convince me that,
"Certainly this printer is exactly what you need. It's the best printer on the market. Well, except for this one over here. But I can tell you are looking for value. Value is important. This is our best, THE best "value" printer in the store. If you really want to get the BEST printer we've got, you'll need to look past "value" to "quality" [he even made the little quotation marks with his fingers while he said this]. If you want a "quality" printer this one's what you want. If you need me, I'll be just around the corner."
He never asked me what I was planning to use the printer for. He never asked why I was looking for a printer, let alone a color printer. He pretty much directed me to the exact printer that I was in the store to REPLACE. A good sales tactic is to talk with the customer, people, not just to them. Don't assume you know what I want, and even if you think you do, please don't slap me in the face with supposition.
I hate that. And it makes you look like an idiot.
Needless to say, there was more than one of them. I felt like I had to fight them off, as they kept coming back, like a bad waiter, asking if they could help, get me anything, answer any questions, etc. One even tried to get me signed up for Internet access without asking if I needed it. I should have told that one that I had a T1 running into the house, but I've got a lowly 56k connection because broadband and DSL are not available in my area yet.
Needless to say, I purchased a great printer without the help of the sales staff, mainly because I'd done my homework before getting to the store. I love it. It's a good business tool, and a nice addition to the other printers in the office.
Next time, ask me what I want. Ask me if I 'm interested in your recommendations. Treat me like I'm there to buy a product from your store, enabling you to get paid next week, and not treating me like an uneducated swamp rat.
I'm a good, loyal customer. Don't give me reasons to shop somewhere else.
It's raining like crazy. Not that I mind too much, but it is keeping me from riding my motorcycle to work. The yard is looking great, though, and I'm glad that Heidi and I got the yard all raked and cleaned up before the torrential downpours of the last few days.
Heidi is graduating from St. Cloud State University this weekend, receiving her degree in Social Work. A truly noble profession, I must say. Incredibly hard work for the most part, emotionally draining experiences almost daily, but with the knowledge that, little by little, the world is changing because of your work. It takes a special person to choose that kind of career, and I admire my wife for her strength, passion, and commitment. She's incredible.
Congratulations, Heidi! We're all very proud of you!
Sparking a flame in my oft "creative" mind today was the thought that following my dreams to entrepreneurial business could prove to be quite satisfying, if and when I have the necessary business background. Therein lies the Catch-22: without good business sense, one can hardly be a good businessman, but the functional intricacies of running a business (substantial skills in sales, management, finance, and, in my case, information technology), play but supporting roles in overall business management.
In my life, I have seen my share of good and bad business. I have been eyeing the successful companies, like IBM, Microsoft, Medtronic, Boeing, Sony, and others, who have a firm grip on how to do "good business" that I feel have miles to go, and so much to learn. And it's not just a stagnant corporate philoshphy which drives businesses to succeed, it's learning how to please the customer, and having the willingness to take the necessary risks.
Jack Welch, former CEO of GE has several books to his credit, outlining the effect of his years of leadership at GE, which is now widely recognized as one of the world's most successful corporations. Initiative. Drive. The unending pursuit of perfection and innovation. Well it is, at the very least, a place to start.
If I wish to someday be successful on my own, I need to start learning NOW. So much the better to learn from successful leaders.
It's beautiful outside now that the day is almost over. The sun is shining, and I've been outside playing with the dog pretty much since I got home. Of course, I'm getting yard work to be done at the same time (there's always yard work to be done), but why not be outside when I have the chance?
We have this HUGE pile of compost, or what the previous owners called compost, in our back yard. It's not attractive, and we've got to figure out some way to get it cleaned up, and cleared out so Heidi can get a garden going. The soil is incredible in there, but that's nature for ya. 15 years of decomposing leaves and biomass makes for pretty rich soil. No we're not planning to grow the world's largest gourd or anything, maybe just some potatoes, peppers, tomatoes, and the like. It will be interesting to see if we get to it this year, since the compost pile may require a Bobcat to move and clean it up.
The two other major outdoor projects for this summer are to replace the deck and get the trees in our back yard cleaned up. Too much dead weight in the trees, and too many huge branches swinging precariously over the power lines. Gotta get those trimmed. The deck is another matter. Taking it down should be a breeze, since it's 20 years old, but designing and building the new one will be interesting since I've never tried to do it. I hope to take pictures throughout the process, and post them here. The deck project will probably not get started until late this summer.
So much to do. Maintaining a house is a job never truly finished.
Sundays are wonderful. but today even more so than usual. It's the day after my wife's birthday, and even more than usual, she's positively radiant in her new spring dress.
Two of our ministers stayed at our house last night, and we all had a great time. We made French toast for breakfast and headed off to our special meetings today where we heard wonderful things about faith, love, holiness, and our ability to understand, more deeply, God's love for all his children. I'm constantly amazed that, although I've been going to church my whole life, that over the last couple years, I've not only come to love learning more about the Bible and my faith, but also finding out how possible it is to really apply the lessons learned to my life each day.
It's more than the golden rule, and more than simply being there at church. It's about learning. It's about application. It's about loving every minute of it.
I'm not the evangelical type and I don't care for that approach too much. If I ask, please share with me, but please don't encroach on my personal and emotional space with unfounded condemnation and a dogmatic diatribe.
It's an incredible feeling to know that we have so many promises we can depend on, so many others who are seeking peace and increased faith in such a needy world. God offers us so much. We have so little to offer in return, but He only asks that we give the best that we have.
It's my hope that I can spend more time learning about these things each day.
Today is my wife's 26th birthday.
She received her bis present a couple weeks ago when the stereo (ordered online) arrived via UPS. The company I ordered it from failed to wrap the stereo box (which has a big picture of the stereo on it) in another, larger box, so the surprise was pretty much destroyed. Oh well. She got to enjoy her new stereo for a few more days than if she were forced to wait.
Come to think of it, the idea of birthdays is a wonderful one, is it not?
Celebrating birth is worthwhile in and of itself, but especially when it is someone as wonderful as my wife. The thing of it is, when I buy her a gift, I don't want to have to wait to give it to her, hanging onto whatever it is until some special occasion. The stereo wrapping issue is just an accidental situation, but one where she got to enjoy her gift longer because of the mishap. I like surprising people as much as the next guy, but in this case, we had SO much going on this weekend that presenting her with a new stereo may have proved to be awkward to our house guests... oh well.
All things considered, I hope that she has a wonderful, happy birthday today!
Friday has passed like a blur.
So much to do, so many projects, so many deadlines. But you know what, it can all be summed up like this: My life need not be comprised of task after endless task. Why not view each day from a different perspective?
Perspective 1: Life is a series of mind numbing tasks that, if I had the gumption, I would pass on to others, the way they were passed on to me.
Perspective 2: Life is more interesting in it's totality than the individual components that make it up.
Perspective 3: I need a vacation.
I'm leaning toward number three.
Caffeine is good. Zero Calories is good. Does anyone make a zero calorie, caffeinated beverage?
Yes, I know caffeine is a stimulant, but let's get things straight, I don't have a problem with caffeine. I'm no Jolt or espresso fanatic, but I definitely like Mountain Dew. And the coffee at my in-laws on Sundays.
I should just drink plain water like a good boy.
But hang on a minute. Gatorade is now coming out with what they call "Fitness Water." What the heck is that? Here is their current product tag line:
Vitamin charged. Lightly flavored. Propel Fitness Water is formulated to quench and nurture active bodies. Propel. The fitness water.
So what these people are thinking is that water as the good Lord made it, is not "good enough." Or maybe they are just looking for another way to suck $1.25 out of the pockets of the people who feel they need fortified water. When I'm done working out, the FIRST thing I grab is good old H2O (read: NOT "fitness water"). Zero calories. Refreshing. Healthy.
Apparently the workout/water phenomenon is not unique to me, but I certainly mess up the my weight loss regimen by slugging a huge bottle of Dew every day. But it sure is tasty.
Sleep would be nice.
CD-R is a great way to back up work in progress, or even work from the recent past. Remember this. A client called yesterday and said he wanted the the site I developed 6 months ago to go live as soon as possible. I go fishing for my backup CDs, dutifully labeled with easy-to-read names like "Site Backups."
The one site I needed was never backed up. Not on CD, not on floppy, not to be found on the hard drive, not even on the servers. Nowhere.
Printouts are all I had to go on, and fortunately I remembered the architecture we had decided on when the site was in the final stages of presentation-layer development, leaving my wife and me to type formulas and product overviews into pages 'till the wee hours of the morning. I stayed up 'till 4:00AM. Two hours of sleep before I had to be on the bus to get to the job that makes a house payment possible. OCR would have been great, if the printouts hadn't been so marked up and redlined from the last visit with the client just before September 11, 2001.
The site's ready to roll. I'm ready to crash.
ZZZZZzzzzzzzzz.