December 2003

I am eyeing up a "video rocker". It is one of those funny looking chair-type things that was designed for kids playing video games. I am trying to figure out if that would fit in my room. As I do not have a desk, I send a lot of time sitting on my bed. My poor bed has a large dent in it even though I am on the small side. Go figure. Anyway, these chairs are supposed to be pretty good and I thought it might work while I am working on the computer. Since it really is not an expensive investment, it might really be worth it. It is even not that heavy so I could drag it around the house. I must admit the mental pictures of that are quite funny.

I had one personal day to use before the end of the year so I decided to take it today. I guess I really could not have gotten much closer since tomorrow probably will be a half day. My plan for the day was to "get stuff done". I think I actually achieved that somewhat. I ran my one remaining errand that I could not do last night (bank-like related), so I am happy. I am still on a room-organization kick and by the time I was done for the day, things were actually looking good. I put up a CD-rack that I am using to hold networking hardware. It is actually working out fairly well. Some of the wires do not bend as much as I would like but that is ok. I has all that stuff off the ground and fairly organized.

It was quiet for a Monday especially since we are between the two big winter holidays. There were a few stragglers in getting some work done so I received a few requests to do "stuff". No worries as it was all doable. Tomorrow will be good because I am using my first vacation day in 3 YEARS! Technically it is a "personal day" but either way, it is a day that I am taking off by choice and BEING PAID FOR IT. Even if I just sit home tomorrow and do nothing I will still be excited about it. I will probably end up working on that wireless networking problem of mine and repotting my plants.

I decided to do a few errands this morning instead of attempting the wireless adventure again. Actually I got a lot of paperwork cleaning/filling done. Now I have to work on finding stuff for tax season. I need to get that done soon because class starts next week and I probably will not have much time. So much to do, so little time. I think having Tuesday off will help.

I ran back to Best Buy this morning to return (actually exchange via new purchase with gift cards) one of the wireless pieces I bought last night. After giving it some thought while leaving the store yesterday, I realized that I should get a different PC connector just in case this wireless business does not work out, I wanted to be sure I could use the connector on something other than a laptop. At $90 a pop, reuse is important. The good news is that I can get the wired pieces to work on the new router but the wireless piece cannot access the internet yet. I think I need to fiddle a bit more. Hopefully I can get this working.

Two of us came in today as coverage for the team. This part of the city is very empty today. I am both surprised and not, if that makes any sense. My father yesterday said he is going to need a broadband connection within a few months. I have to figure out how to wireless "wire" the house to get that up and running. Once I get passed the technical issues (and of course security) I should be able to get him up and running. We are talking about uncharted territory here for me. Of course this will be an excellent learning experience!

Merry Christmas all! It was definitely a nice day to have off. I got some things done around the house (with my new Qbits shelving system). A nice day was had by my family and that is definitely the important part. Best wishes!

Happy Christmas Eve! Things were pretty quiet today. We just waited to for the all-clear to leave. We got a few things done before running out for lunch. I did not want to go near the platform without being fed. The restaurant (yes, I did go out for lunch) was EMPTY! I guess everyone was getting the same idea for the day.

The holiday breakfast was this morning. Boy was there an assortment of goodies to pick from. I forgot the meet-greet was this morning otherwise I would not have eaten breakfast number 2. Oh well, there was some good fruit to munch on. The door prizes were nice as well.

In my fluster to get my furniture together (ouch my arms still hurt), I have not yet been able to work on the log design. So the page is a bit long. One of these days I will get something together that is more appropriate.

I finally got around to getting a haircut today. The mall (with all those superstores) was not nearly as bad as I expected. It was slightly slow going with all the last minute shoppers but it probably would not have been approachable yesterday. With the final few tidbits of shopping complete, I am done for the season (I hope).

I hid the house most of the day putting together my Christmas present. Yes, I received it early. I asked for wooden box-type furniture that I could put together and arrange how I wanted. I had some plastic shelf things that had seen better days so it was time for an upgrade. It is nearly complete and looking WONDERFUL. Now I just have to get it organized.

Had one of those early morning meetings today. I thought it started at 8:00 but it turned out it started at 8:15. So all the rush I was in was probably not necessary. The hotel was very nice. French-style down to the conference room displays. It was a good change of scenery for a few hours.

I had a few bits and pieces to finish today. I did step out for a few minutes to grab some take-out lunch things with a few people. The cafe on the corner was a different experience. The mini-apple pie thing I bought was good. The potato salad was pretty different.

It did turn out to be a busy day. And after I was just about done, I started to feel a bit under the weather. Oh no. One of the guys in the room came down with the infamous flu so now I am worried. I am still trying to find out if I have an extra sick day or not. I may need it.

I managed to hide in the office all day. With all that wind, I really did not want to go anywhere anyway. It was definitely a good day. Based on what I hear, tomorrow should be pretty busy.

Started the day with an early meeting to get some business out of the way. Hopefully I will have a new cable modem when I get home so I can catch up on some tech items that I could not do over the weekend.

Nor 'easter number 2 has arrived so today was a good day to hide in the house and get things done before the work week begins again. For Christmas I asked for some put-together furniture pieces, which I received a bit in advance. Needless to say, I spent the last two days trying to put things together. It has become one of those "easier said than done" things. I still think the end result will be worth it.

Working in the city and Christmas shopping can be difficult. So today, armed with a list of what to buy, I quickly ran between stores at an early hour to beat the crowds. I actually accomplished my list and aside from buying tidbits, am DONE!

Happy Friday! I actually went out to lunch today. Was not actually planning on it at first. The food was excellent at this small Italian place we went to. Prices were definitely more than reasonable and the staff was extremely friendly. Even though the place was small, I did not feel claustrophobic. The last restaurant we were at was overly packed with tables.

Nothing says fun like trying to commute in the downpour. Even the train station had a tiny flooding problem. At least by the end of the day (hopefully), things should improve. It is definitely one of those days where you want to stay inside. The only problem is that I am getting sea-sick listening to the building movement (wind). What is up with the wind lately???

We managed to sneak in our quarterly shopping trip to the serious jewelry store. If you are going to do it, do it right! My coworker picked out some very nice pieces. I think the sales assistant got a kick out of him having 2 female shopping escorts. Like I would turn down a trip to that store. It is actually fun to drool over necklaces that are $75,000. No, that is not an exaggeration. There are some pieces that I have asked to try on (which were closer to my buying power). That one, I could not even consider. I am sure guards must be present if that were to leave the case!

I have identified one problem with working in the city. There are some amazing shops near by that I do not have at home. Normally this is a good thing until you see the price tags $$$! I think there is a quick shopping trip in my future. The question is if it will be window shopping or buying?

Happy Monday! There were definitely still dangerous patches on the roads today. I hope the by evening things clear up. There is rain scheduled for Wednesday so I am a bit worried about flooding. Silly people were tailgating me. I guess they were not paying attention to the ICE PATCHES, just the speedometer. Sorry people but that will not make me go any faster. If anything I just go slower. HINT!!!

The roads are still in bad shape but at least I was able to get out and get some gas. I do not think my car could have gone much longer without a fill-up. I did make it to the store as well so I will have lunch this week. That is always a good thing.

Aside from the fact I had a statistics paper to work on, I hid the house all day. Actually I probably did not have a choice with all that snow blowing around. My mom picked me up some of my weekly lunch supplies as there was no way I could get the store. I will have to try and go tomorrow.

Well the snow did not start as early as expected so off to the city I traveled. Actually, at that hour, it was not bad at all. Though, I am considering leaving as early as possible. That rain/snow mix forecast has me pretty nervous. Looks like I will need to take a bit of time and rethink the log format.

Today was pretty quiet. I got done what I needed to. And it seems two team members have come down with something. UGH! That is never good. Hopefully it will not infect us all. It is too close to the holidays to be sick. Then again, this always seems to be the time of year that I get sick. Holiday curse or something.

I ran down to the train station to see if the silver stand had a pair of earring to replace my current old-faithful. There was two girls in the elevators for the ride down. I do not know how it happened but I ended up following them to the station. After my quick run around the station (including a stop into the card shop), I went back up stairs. Surprise, those two girls are back in the elevator at the same time. When I got off at my floor, I heard them burst out laughing. Silly people.

My mission for last night to was to remember my holiday party invite so I could RSVP today. We decided to go. It would be a nice thing to do. It has been a few years since I have been to a real holiday party so this should be fun. One of my train buddies gives me grief about the "all work, no play" thing. Work and school is a lot to juggle.

So the metallic pen thing is actually working out well. No body has made any comments but they are definitely amusing. Sometimes, maybe a bit too amusing as now I have many colors to choose from and the choice can be difficult.