First off, I want to say that I haven't been offended by anything anyone has said in either the blogs or the comments. I know you all are just being you--and sometimes our humor has a sarcastic nature. Not a problem, to me anyway.
My biggest problem has been lack of time to blog. Like Phyl, I seem to have way more things than I have time to do. I know....I know....I need to make better choices, but...
Anyway, the two biggest things I have to report at the moment are Ed was hospitalized last Thursday (his birthday) because his heart was in Atril Fib again and he was having chest pains and shortness of breath. He's stabilized and back home, but his heart is still out. They cannot put it back in with the paddles because his blood was too thick, which significantly increases chance of stroke. They tried to adjust his medication to get it to go back in that way, but his blood pressure dropped and they had to return his meds to normal. So....now it's just a waiting game....wait for his blood to be thin enough for a long enough period so they can shock him or wait for his body to decide to go back in by itself. He's feeling pretty decent now, though.
Second issue is me....I had his birthday dinner on Saturday night (since he was in hospital on Thursday and Friday nights). I had made lasagne on Wednesday and refrigerated it. Had the rest of the fixings ready too. Plan was for him to put lasagne in oven at 4:00 and I would be in good shape by 6:00. Since that didn't happen, I changed it to Saturday night. We ate at 6:00, had a great time, but when I got ready to go to bed at 9:00, I told him that I still felt "stuffed" and "bloated"--like I'd really overeaten, but I hadn't. I probably had a little more than necessary, but not a lot... Anyway, couldn't get comfortable, didn't sleep good, and by time I woke up Sunday morning, I felt awful. Stuffed my feelings and took Ed and Morgan and Makayla to church, but came home from church and went to bed. Was miserable all day Sunday and got up to go to work on Monday not feeling much better. Called doctor, but they didn't have any available appointments, but told receptionist what my problem was, and what I thought I had. Then I left work and came home. Doctor called about an hour later (bless her!) and asked me what was going on. I told her I thought I had diverticulitis again. She said that I shouldn't have....surgery a couple summers ago should have taken care of that. And my colonoscopy last fall didn't show anything. I said, "I know....but that's what it feels like." She made room in her schedule for me and I went in for a "look-see". She's pretty sure I have diverticulitis. Of course, they could do a CAT scan and know for sure, but that means drink that awful stuff and then waste the entire afternoon in the hospital. I said, "I'll take my chances, since I think that's what it is and so do you." So, she gave me a script and told me to go on liquid diet and I'm better. Guess the biggest thing is now, I MUST change my diet or the chances of losing the rest of my colon are pretty significant. I had been doing better--eating healthier, drinking water, etc, but guess it wasn't enough. I have an appointment for Thursday to talk about what I need to do, but my thought is I'll probably have to give up white flour, white sugar, all processed foods, eat lots of raw vegetables and fruits, drink lots of water, etc, etc, etc. Tom, Tara, anybody--any great ideas, I'd love to hear them. Not really liking the idea of giving up white bread, pasta, and desserts.
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Monday, March 30, 2009
Well!!! I'm in over my head.
This working for a living is messing with my schedule! And all of those things that I said I had time to do because I wasn't working now need to be done! Trying to remember to do everything and get it done on time is ...................yeow...............starting to make me feel a bit crabby. Everyone at work seems to think that I'm worried about the job and they're all telling me that I'm doing ok. Actually, if all I had to do was the job, I'd be fine---it's all of the other stuff! Taxes, art shows, church flowers, plein air picnic paintouts, helping friends remodel, helping former customers with another project, house cleaning, banking, groceries, raking the leaves out of the flower gardens, planning a new house, getting this old house ready to market, and who knows what else.
What's wrong with me??? And why am I asking you--since most of you are as bad or worse than I am???
And it's only Monday! Maybe I'll have some ice cream and go soak in the bathtub!
What's wrong with me??? And why am I asking you--since most of you are as bad or worse than I am???
And it's only Monday! Maybe I'll have some ice cream and go soak in the bathtub!
Running up the White Flag
OK, OK! Enough already!
Before this blog escalates into the Internet War, let's take a step back and consider what we want Rooted and Rambling to be. Maybe we should think first about what we don't want it to become, that is, a place where we can snipe at each other facelessly.
Instead, we should be working together to build the blog where each of us can contribute to it voluntarily out of the gladness (or maybe sadness) of his or her own heart. No one should be proud because he or she contributes more than anyone else and, conversely, no one should feel bad because he or she doesn't. Perhaps I owe you all an apology for writing about "lazy rascals".
Let me say that I like to write on this blog. I like to write, period, but don't generally because, for one reason or another, it doesn't get read by others. I know, however, that whatever I post is going to read within short order and someone will make comment about it. I need that and I want to say "Thank you" to all of you who have done so.
Whether I post every day (or seven times a day) or not at all for a month is irrelevant. The fact is, I can, and if I have something to say and the push to turn on my computer, go to the blog, sign in, and write, then we are all better for it, even if it is the only time I have ever done so. Right?
In the comments on Beth's last post, I could sense the tension rising. Who is right? Who is wrong? We are all adults. There is no good reason to let something like this spoil a good thing. As the rabbi in Fiddler on the Roof would say, "Let's all sit down."
I agree. Let's sit down. Let's keep this uptempo and encouraging. Let's make a point of not "pointing fingers" because someone else isn't performing like we think they should. Let's keep this fun for everyone. If we don't, it will disappear and that would be a bad thing.
I love you all and I want to see what you have to say. Please continue and I will try my darndest to be as gracious as I can be.
!!And that's saying a lot!!
Before this blog escalates into the Internet War, let's take a step back and consider what we want Rooted and Rambling to be. Maybe we should think first about what we don't want it to become, that is, a place where we can snipe at each other facelessly.
Instead, we should be working together to build the blog where each of us can contribute to it voluntarily out of the gladness (or maybe sadness) of his or her own heart. No one should be proud because he or she contributes more than anyone else and, conversely, no one should feel bad because he or she doesn't. Perhaps I owe you all an apology for writing about "lazy rascals".
Let me say that I like to write on this blog. I like to write, period, but don't generally because, for one reason or another, it doesn't get read by others. I know, however, that whatever I post is going to read within short order and someone will make comment about it. I need that and I want to say "Thank you" to all of you who have done so.
Whether I post every day (or seven times a day) or not at all for a month is irrelevant. The fact is, I can, and if I have something to say and the push to turn on my computer, go to the blog, sign in, and write, then we are all better for it, even if it is the only time I have ever done so. Right?
In the comments on Beth's last post, I could sense the tension rising. Who is right? Who is wrong? We are all adults. There is no good reason to let something like this spoil a good thing. As the rabbi in Fiddler on the Roof would say, "Let's all sit down."
I agree. Let's sit down. Let's keep this uptempo and encouraging. Let's make a point of not "pointing fingers" because someone else isn't performing like we think they should. Let's keep this fun for everyone. If we don't, it will disappear and that would be a bad thing.
I love you all and I want to see what you have to say. Please continue and I will try my darndest to be as gracious as I can be.
!!And that's saying a lot!!
Saturday, March 28, 2009
Friday, March 27, 2009
I'm Sure Cindy Could Do A Better Job
I think you'd have to also have plastic surgery to change the shape of your eyes.
Just Me and the Dog!
I have the weekend off!!!!
That is, Cindy has gone to Tampa with Christy to a renaissance fair and won't be back until Sunday night. Just me and the dog until then! Whatever am I going to do?
So far, tonight, I have cooked and eaten my dinner, ran a load through the dishwasher, let the dog out twice, written this blog and a comment to Beth (see below), and am listening to 60's on 6, an oldies channel on XM. I think it's going to be a good night.
Tomorrow, I've got a couple of job quotes to finish and send out, one of which has been dragging for some time. After that, the day is mine to do whatever I want. Quien sabes? Who knows?
That is, Cindy has gone to Tampa with Christy to a renaissance fair and won't be back until Sunday night. Just me and the dog until then! Whatever am I going to do?
So far, tonight, I have cooked and eaten my dinner, ran a load through the dishwasher, let the dog out twice, written this blog and a comment to Beth (see below), and am listening to 60's on 6, an oldies channel on XM. I think it's going to be a good night.
Tomorrow, I've got a couple of job quotes to finish and send out, one of which has been dragging for some time. After that, the day is mine to do whatever I want. Quien sabes? Who knows?
so much to do so little time!
Every week I tell myself I'm going to sit down and "blog" a little, but....well....you see how much that has happened!
We've also been taking in a little culture - High School culture but still fun! -- so far this year we saw "The Music Man" and "Hello Dolly" - Oklahoma is scheduled for next weekend! Area high schools with friends in each of them so we go and enjoy! They've actually been quite good productions!
Destruction has begun - you know, the destruction that must come before the construction?! We are going to be adding a bathroom downstairs and will be doing some cosmetic work in the kitchen - adding beadboard around the bottom, new wallpaper on the top, paining cabinets, etc...new vinyl floor tile in kitchen, bath & laundryroom....we've packed away the things that were on the walls and have started removing the old wallpaper. my brother in law in builing a cabinet to put over the washer/dryer so that we can move the stuff from the cabinet on the wall in what will be the new bathroom. Next weekend he will hang the cabinet and begin to tear up the floor, etc....Bob, Rose & Maybe Lee maybe Val are coming down in 2 weeks to do the plumbing, electrical work for the new bathroom and some other "honey-do" jobs (sssshhhh don't tell them about the others!) so my next several weeks will be crazy. Good news is that we went to Carpet Mart to find new wallpaper and they are getting out of the Wallpaper business so all of their's was $2 per roll - bad news is that we decided at that price to get enough to do up the steps and the hallway as well as my bedroom -- all together -- 22 rolls of wallpaper to be hung! -- that sounds like work to me! -- all of that at the same time that work is going crazy.
We are merging two offices at work and the office that will be closing seems to have fallen to my responsibility because only my staff had recently been working there. Lots and lots of work to be done - things to be packed up, decisions to be made, etc. and all while the normal work load continues as usual. -- aaahhh , just a little busy!
Oh yeah, and....I'm teaching a young adult SS class and directing VBS so, in my spare time....I sleep! balance - it is all about balance - and I do pretty well with the balance thing except I had no idea that the office closing would be mine to deal with and that means I travel to Media (about 1 hr away) at least 1 day per week. Oh well, this too shall pass! I'll write again soon!
We've also been taking in a little culture - High School culture but still fun! -- so far this year we saw "The Music Man" and "Hello Dolly" - Oklahoma is scheduled for next weekend! Area high schools with friends in each of them so we go and enjoy! They've actually been quite good productions!
Destruction has begun - you know, the destruction that must come before the construction?! We are going to be adding a bathroom downstairs and will be doing some cosmetic work in the kitchen - adding beadboard around the bottom, new wallpaper on the top, paining cabinets, etc...new vinyl floor tile in kitchen, bath & laundryroom....we've packed away the things that were on the walls and have started removing the old wallpaper. my brother in law in builing a cabinet to put over the washer/dryer so that we can move the stuff from the cabinet on the wall in what will be the new bathroom. Next weekend he will hang the cabinet and begin to tear up the floor, etc....Bob, Rose & Maybe Lee maybe Val are coming down in 2 weeks to do the plumbing, electrical work for the new bathroom and some other "honey-do" jobs (sssshhhh don't tell them about the others!) so my next several weeks will be crazy. Good news is that we went to Carpet Mart to find new wallpaper and they are getting out of the Wallpaper business so all of their's was $2 per roll - bad news is that we decided at that price to get enough to do up the steps and the hallway as well as my bedroom -- all together -- 22 rolls of wallpaper to be hung! -- that sounds like work to me! -- all of that at the same time that work is going crazy.
We are merging two offices at work and the office that will be closing seems to have fallen to my responsibility because only my staff had recently been working there. Lots and lots of work to be done - things to be packed up, decisions to be made, etc. and all while the normal work load continues as usual. -- aaahhh , just a little busy!
Oh yeah, and....I'm teaching a young adult SS class and directing VBS so, in my spare time....I sleep! balance - it is all about balance - and I do pretty well with the balance thing except I had no idea that the office closing would be mine to deal with and that means I travel to Media (about 1 hr away) at least 1 day per week. Oh well, this too shall pass! I'll write again soon!
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Traditions, Traditions!
We had a little culture last night.
Cindy and I
went to the theatre downtown and saw a stage play of "Fiddler on the Roof". The show is being billed as the farewell tour of Topol, who plays the main character, Tevye. I had to see it since the movie is my favorite. It's the only one I can watch over and over again, generally about 10 or 12 times a year and many of those times I fall asleep before its over. But I love it.
The play was excellent. It followed the main story line fairly closely, but varied enough to keep it interesting. If I had the money and could still get tickets, I would go see it again. If any of you gets the chance, you should take it. It's well worth it.
Cindy got a picture of Tevye and I standing together which she is going to work over.
I'll have her post it when she's done.
Do you think I'd look like him if I grew a beard and wore a cap?
Cindy and I
went to the theatre downtown and saw a stage play of "Fiddler on the Roof". The show is being billed as the farewell tour of Topol, who plays the main character, Tevye. I had to see it since the movie is my favorite. It's the only one I can watch over and over again, generally about 10 or 12 times a year and many of those times I fall asleep before its over. But I love it.The play was excellent. It followed the main story line fairly closely, but varied enough to keep it interesting. If I had the money and could still get tickets, I would go see it again. If any of you gets the chance, you should take it. It's well worth it.
Cindy got a picture of Tevye and I standing together which she is going to work over.
I'll have her post it when she's done.Do you think I'd look like him if I grew a beard and wore a cap?
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Success at Last!!
When I got back to the office this afternoon, I found a building permit sitting on my desk. OK, OK, it wasn't sitting there. Laying there? Lying there? (I could get so caught up in this that I might forget about what I wanted to tell you, but I won't.)
Anyway, Pedro (one of my co-workers) had taken my design (and Dave Miller's), gotten it copied, stamped, and approved. Ta Da!! Now, all I have to do is figure out how to get it done without Dave Miller. Oh, well. One step at a time.
I'll think about it tomorrow.
P.S. I'd post it for you to see, but it would be so small, you wouldn't be able to read it.
Anyway, Pedro (one of my co-workers) had taken my design (and Dave Miller's), gotten it copied, stamped, and approved. Ta Da!! Now, all I have to do is figure out how to get it done without Dave Miller. Oh, well. One step at a time.
I'll think about it tomorrow.
P.S. I'd post it for you to see, but it would be so small, you wouldn't be able to read it.
Monday, March 23, 2009
Wasting Time
Not much new to report so I'll just waste a little time with this post. The weekend was good. I got some housecleaning done on Sat. Then after church on Sun, I went to help my friend with the kitchen layout of the house that she and her husband are remodeling. Wade is doing the electrical work there on the days that he is unemployed. Then home for a nap and off to our Sunday night small group. We eat together every Sun evening and then have a Bible study. Right now we are watching "The Road to Armageddon" video series. Each one is done by a different speaker--some are great and some are a little too dry & deep. Last night was a good one. It's over by 8 pm so we can make it to work on Mon. morning without too much trouble--although this morning was the first time the alarm went off in a long time.
I'm trying to get back into some sort of rhythm. Not easy after all those months off from work. But I'm feeling good these days so I'll adjust quickly I'm sure. I think the job is going well--trying to develop my program and get things in order since the position was unoccupied for quite a while before they hired me. Don't like cleaning up the files, etc. but at least I'm learning what not to do. And I think I have some really good program ideas--we'll see if other people like them enough to volunteer to help!
My crocuses are blooming and daphne is ready to bloom!
I'm trying to get back into some sort of rhythm. Not easy after all those months off from work. But I'm feeling good these days so I'll adjust quickly I'm sure. I think the job is going well--trying to develop my program and get things in order since the position was unoccupied for quite a while before they hired me. Don't like cleaning up the files, etc. but at least I'm learning what not to do. And I think I have some really good program ideas--we'll see if other people like them enough to volunteer to help!
My crocuses are blooming and daphne is ready to bloom!
Sunday, March 22, 2009
A Day to Relax and Enjoy
Today has been a good day. I've been able to take it easy and do what I wanted for a change. Nice!
I started out by not getting out of bed until almost 0900 when the dog came to me with a request to open the door and let him out. OK, already!! I had to do what someone else wanted, but only for a minute. As long as I was up, I figured I might as well stay up, so I got dressed, brushed my teeth, and went to Starbucks. Since Cindy was still sleeping, I didn't even tell her where I was going.
At Starbucks, I bought a Sunday paper, a blueberry scone, and a tall black coffee and sat down. For the next hour or so, I looked at the paper and worked out the Sudoku and crossword puzzles. When I finished, I read the comics, then rolled up and went to Wal-Mart for my weekly grocery shopping.
After that, I built a keyboard shelf in my new desk layout. (I've been converting a spare room into my office and just moved the computer. Cindy took over the previous one where she installed her new Mac.) Then I did a little graphic design on a letterhead (improvement on the official Patterson Homes), checked out a technical question on my trailer, and edited a couple of posts on the Rooted & Rambling blog. Oh, I also managed to find time to knock off a couple of beers.
I'm really getting into this blog thing. I find HTML fascinating and am constantly learning new things about it. You may have noticed some changes in my posts. Cindy will be having a class in website design sometime this summer and I want to audit it. I expect to make a quantum leap in my understanding then.
We have overcast skies, although the sun is coming through in patches. There is quite a lot of wind and, for this time of year, it's quite cold--60 degrees +/-. I don't mind a bit and it certainly saves on my electric bill since the AC is not running.
I have to go to Lowe's yet today and I hear another beer calling my name. Got to go.
I started out by not getting out of bed until almost 0900 when the dog came to me with a request to open the door and let him out. OK, already!! I had to do what someone else wanted, but only for a minute. As long as I was up, I figured I might as well stay up, so I got dressed, brushed my teeth, and went to Starbucks. Since Cindy was still sleeping, I didn't even tell her where I was going.
At Starbucks, I bought a Sunday paper, a blueberry scone, and a tall black coffee and sat down. For the next hour or so, I looked at the paper and worked out the Sudoku and crossword puzzles. When I finished, I read the comics, then rolled up and went to Wal-Mart for my weekly grocery shopping.
After that, I built a keyboard shelf in my new desk layout. (I've been converting a spare room into my office and just moved the computer. Cindy took over the previous one where she installed her new Mac.) Then I did a little graphic design on a letterhead (improvement on the official Patterson Homes), checked out a technical question on my trailer, and edited a couple of posts on the Rooted & Rambling blog. Oh, I also managed to find time to knock off a couple of beers.
I'm really getting into this blog thing. I find HTML fascinating and am constantly learning new things about it. You may have noticed some changes in my posts. Cindy will be having a class in website design sometime this summer and I want to audit it. I expect to make a quantum leap in my understanding then.
We have overcast skies, although the sun is coming through in patches. There is quite a lot of wind and, for this time of year, it's quite cold--60 degrees +/-. I don't mind a bit and it certainly saves on my electric bill since the AC is not running.
I have to go to Lowe's yet today and I hear another beer calling my name. Got to go.
Saturday, March 21, 2009
Pride Goes before a Fall
D ang it all, anyway. I thought I had it nailed. The Robinson project, that is.
Since the economy took a downturn, the company has been in a sort of state of confusion, what with layoffs and economic turmoil. This has resulted in a lot of work being thrown to me. I don't just manage anymore, quite often I'm out on the job pounding nails and making sure that everyone else there is pounding nails as well. The paperwork on my desk has been piling up as a result and desperately needed some straightening out. It was so bad the office has been making jokes about it. Since I'm not the neatest person in the world anyway, this just compounded the problem.
Today I went in with the intention of honing my skills on Auto Sketch, but it turned out that I spent the first three hours cleaning. Ruthlessly cleaning. If I didn't need it, trash. If I didn't think I would ever need it, trash. If it needed to be filed, I filed it. Etc., etc., etc. I can actually see my desktop now. I still have to take care of my inbox, where I shoved all the papers that need action, but that'll wait. Don't you just love it?
However, in the exercise of organization I found a paper which stated that Mrs. Robinson had requested 10" transoms and I had designed 6". Ooh, big mistake!! Now I've got to go back and raise the roof before someone else does. Ha, ha. Get it?? Raise the roof, since that's what it will take to put in taller transoms.
However, it shouldn't be too bad. I looked over the drawings and figured out what I have to do. Monday morning I'll work on it. Since I have a kitchen installation scheduled, I'll probably have to work on it Monday afternoon as well. Probably won't get a permit until Tuesday, which will upset Ian, the Production Manager, but he's a good sort. He'll let it ride.
Dang it all, anyway. Thought I had it nailed. It's no wonder architects get so much money. There's a lot of detail work involved in this business and I'm the sort of person who won't let it go unless it's right. Although, I do know that there comes a time when you have to say, "Good enough, let it go."
One more shot. Then it's off to Permitting at City Hall.
They won't know the difference anyway!
Since the economy took a downturn, the company has been in a sort of state of confusion, what with layoffs and economic turmoil. This has resulted in a lot of work being thrown to me. I don't just manage anymore, quite often I'm out on the job pounding nails and making sure that everyone else there is pounding nails as well. The paperwork on my desk has been piling up as a result and desperately needed some straightening out. It was so bad the office has been making jokes about it. Since I'm not the neatest person in the world anyway, this just compounded the problem.
Today I went in with the intention of honing my skills on Auto Sketch, but it turned out that I spent the first three hours cleaning. Ruthlessly cleaning. If I didn't need it, trash. If I didn't think I would ever need it, trash. If it needed to be filed, I filed it. Etc., etc., etc. I can actually see my desktop now. I still have to take care of my inbox, where I shoved all the papers that need action, but that'll wait. Don't you just love it?
However, in the exercise of organization I found a paper which stated that Mrs. Robinson had requested 10" transoms and I had designed 6". Ooh, big mistake!! Now I've got to go back and raise the roof before someone else does. Ha, ha. Get it?? Raise the roof, since that's what it will take to put in taller transoms.
However, it shouldn't be too bad. I looked over the drawings and figured out what I have to do. Monday morning I'll work on it. Since I have a kitchen installation scheduled, I'll probably have to work on it Monday afternoon as well. Probably won't get a permit until Tuesday, which will upset Ian, the Production Manager, but he's a good sort. He'll let it ride.
Dang it all, anyway. Thought I had it nailed. It's no wonder architects get so much money. There's a lot of detail work involved in this business and I'm the sort of person who won't let it go unless it's right. Although, I do know that there comes a time when you have to say, "Good enough, let it go."
One more shot. Then it's off to Permitting at City Hall.
They won't know the difference anyway!
Friday, March 20, 2009
Right Again, As Usual!
First thing I did this morning when I got to work was to pull up my Auto Sketch project to verify that my suspicions were valid. Guess what? You guessed! Sure enough, Dave's (the other designer) drawing was off by seven inches in length. I was wrong, though, since it actually took me about an hour and a half to correct it, but I got it done along with a few other minor changes. I had one 22 x 34 copy printed out and saw a couple other things. Funny how that works. I've got it on the run, though, and Monday we'll be getting official copies for our resident engineer (not me) to stamp and sign. Then it's off to City Hall to get the permit. Doggone, getting the paperwork done is harder than doing the work.
Probably if I do this long enough, it will become work too. At least right now, it's fun.
Probably if I do this long enough, it will become work too. At least right now, it's fun.
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Taking the Bad with the Good!
It's been one of those days. Do you want the good news first or the bad news?
The good news is that I'm making some serious strides in Auto Sketch, my CAD program at work. My manager has just about given me the default position for design. I spent most of the day today working on a project which he wants to get permitted as soon as possible. I've got it almost done, but there are a few minor corrections to make. I always print out a copy to look over, since I notice mistakes on paper a lot quicker than I do on the monitor.
Also, while I was working, a man walked in with a request for a quote to remodel his daughter's house. I spent half an hour talking with him, looked at his pictures, and made an appointment to walk through it tomorrow afternoon. I'll do all the design work on this one.
I love my job! Most of the time anyway.
However, there is a fly in the ointment. Cindy recently purchased a Mac for her work and displaced the old PC which had been hooked up to the Internet. It has been moved to another room. We found out we could get a wireless modem for it so that we wouldn't have to run lines and hard wire. Sad to say, but when the wireless arrived, I couldn't make it work and spent a lot of time before a technician told me that Windows 2000 won't support the modem.
It gets worse. Macs require an Ethernet port while the PC used a USB. The modem we had before wouldn't support the Mac and the PC doesn't have an Ethernet port. I can't make the wireless work, I can't hard wire it, I can't use my computer online. I have to use the new one and getting used to a Mac after fifteen years on a PC is hard work.
But wait, there's more. I printed out a copy of my Auto Sketch project, blew it up as large as I could on the copier at work, and took that to Kinko's where I had it blown up to a 22 x 33 size so that I could actually see the thing. Bad news is that mistakes started jumping right out at me. Good news is that they're all minor and easily fixed. Seriously bad news is that I noticed some discrepancies in scale between two elevations and it just won't work that way. Got to be right. I figured that I'd have to copy them to another file, rescale them until I know they're correct, and then re-insert them into the file.
However, after some studying on it, I saw that one elevation (which doesn't have a dimension listed) is too long by about three inches. The height is right, the length is wrong. That will take me a half hour to fix. Not too bad, after all. The really good news, though, is that it's not my mistake. I robbed it from a preliminary drawing that our erstwhile architect had developed for this project. His drawing is wrong, not mine.
Guess maybe things don't look so bad after all. I'm back in the saddle again.
The good news is that I'm making some serious strides in Auto Sketch, my CAD program at work. My manager has just about given me the default position for design. I spent most of the day today working on a project which he wants to get permitted as soon as possible. I've got it almost done, but there are a few minor corrections to make. I always print out a copy to look over, since I notice mistakes on paper a lot quicker than I do on the monitor.
Also, while I was working, a man walked in with a request for a quote to remodel his daughter's house. I spent half an hour talking with him, looked at his pictures, and made an appointment to walk through it tomorrow afternoon. I'll do all the design work on this one.
I love my job! Most of the time anyway.
However, there is a fly in the ointment. Cindy recently purchased a Mac for her work and displaced the old PC which had been hooked up to the Internet. It has been moved to another room. We found out we could get a wireless modem for it so that we wouldn't have to run lines and hard wire. Sad to say, but when the wireless arrived, I couldn't make it work and spent a lot of time before a technician told me that Windows 2000 won't support the modem.
It gets worse. Macs require an Ethernet port while the PC used a USB. The modem we had before wouldn't support the Mac and the PC doesn't have an Ethernet port. I can't make the wireless work, I can't hard wire it, I can't use my computer online. I have to use the new one and getting used to a Mac after fifteen years on a PC is hard work.
But wait, there's more. I printed out a copy of my Auto Sketch project, blew it up as large as I could on the copier at work, and took that to Kinko's where I had it blown up to a 22 x 33 size so that I could actually see the thing. Bad news is that mistakes started jumping right out at me. Good news is that they're all minor and easily fixed. Seriously bad news is that I noticed some discrepancies in scale between two elevations and it just won't work that way. Got to be right. I figured that I'd have to copy them to another file, rescale them until I know they're correct, and then re-insert them into the file.
However, after some studying on it, I saw that one elevation (which doesn't have a dimension listed) is too long by about three inches. The height is right, the length is wrong. That will take me a half hour to fix. Not too bad, after all. The really good news, though, is that it's not my mistake. I robbed it from a preliminary drawing that our erstwhile architect had developed for this project. His drawing is wrong, not mine.
Guess maybe things don't look so bad after all. I'm back in the saddle again.
Home Again
Flew to Pittsburgh on Monday afternoon after my chemo. No more direct flights to Pitt from Scr/WB so had to transfer in Philadelphia. Got there with no problem and picked up the rental car to drive to the hotel in Washington, PA. I took our Tomtom so had no problem finding my way there but when I got to the Holiday Inn, the corporate credit card had been sent with permission to charge my room but no reservation had been made. And the Holiday Inn was full. So I went across the parking lot to the Hampton Inn and asked if they could accept the credit card fax and give me a room--they did (whew!). About 15 minutes later, the woman who is in charge of all Volunteer Service Coordinators called me to tell me she had arrived at the Holiday Inn. So we got together for dinner and she gave me my training manual so that I could look it over if I wanted before the seminar. Next morning I had to drive about 2 miles to the Southern Care office on S Johnson Rd. but Tomtom took me to N Johnson Rd. and even though I reprogramed it a couple of times, would not take me to S Johnson. So I stopped at Wendys and asked for directions--20 minutes late so guess I made a great first impression!!!
Spent most of the day with five other people in the same position from different offices going through the manual with Pat teaching us the ropes. Then went with Pat and Debbie to eat dinner at Texas Roadhouse. Back to the hotel for an hour of rest and then met Pat for some one-on-one training due to past problems in the Scranton office. Next morning--up and to the airport to check in car, fly to Philadelphia, and then home. Got back to Scr/WB and knew exactly where I had left my truck but couldn't remember which level of the parking garage so had to go up & down a couple of times to locate it--used the panic button on the key chain so knew when I was getting close! What a sieve brain!
Slept late this morning so was late getting to work. Learned a lot at the seminar and got lots of good ideas for my program so I guess it was worth all the trouble.
Spent most of the day with five other people in the same position from different offices going through the manual with Pat teaching us the ropes. Then went with Pat and Debbie to eat dinner at Texas Roadhouse. Back to the hotel for an hour of rest and then met Pat for some one-on-one training due to past problems in the Scranton office. Next morning--up and to the airport to check in car, fly to Philadelphia, and then home. Got back to Scr/WB and knew exactly where I had left my truck but couldn't remember which level of the parking garage so had to go up & down a couple of times to locate it--used the panic button on the key chain so knew when I was getting close! What a sieve brain!
Slept late this morning so was late getting to work. Learned a lot at the seminar and got lots of good ideas for my program so I guess it was worth all the trouble.
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Egor
This is a picture of Eric "Egor" Hotchkiss which was printed on the pamphlet at the memorial service last Friday. Sandra, Matthew, Amy, and her daughter Courtney were there. Some Mennonites from their church came along with them. Numerous local friends and most of the local family were also present. Had a good turnout and a good time.
Some of us went to Phil and Deb's place afterwards and spent the rest of the afternoon "socializing." I got back home about 9:30 that night.
Friday, March 13, 2009
T. G. I. F.
Hooray, hooray! It's Friday. I've put in a whole week of work and I'm a little stressed and tired. Have to keep reminding myself that God has a plan and put me into this job for a purpose even though I don't know what it is. Spent a lot of time training with the VC from Williamsport office on Wed. and that was helpful. Then the vice president of something in Alabama questioned why I was not on the list of people going to Pittsburg for training next week and when they said that it was too far to drive so they were going to train me in Scranton next month, he objected. Short version--I'm flying to Pittsburg on Mon. and home on Wed. of next week. I'm not delighted but doing what I have to. Today I tagged along with a couple of the nurses to an assisted living facility to observe and get a sense of what they need from the volunteers. Then back to the office for paperwork and meetings. Not sure that I'm cut out for this medical stuff but still have to believe that God put me in the job for a reason.
Beautiful day today. I went out for a walk around the parking lot after lunch. Our office is located near some of the "big box" stores and shopping plazas but there were ducks and geese on the retention ponds beside the parking lot and it was really beautiful. Hoping it's nice all weekend!
Beautiful day today. I went out for a walk around the parking lot after lunch. Our office is located near some of the "big box" stores and shopping plazas but there were ducks and geese on the retention ponds beside the parking lot and it was really beautiful. Hoping it's nice all weekend!
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Told you I'd get them!
These pictures were taken at Anastasia State Park in St. Augustine on Sunday, March 08, 2009 by Cindy. Shown are Emily, Brianna, Gabriel, Amanda, Justin, and Roger. (not necessarily in that order)
Wednesday, Glorious Wednesday
50 degrees at 5:30 p.m. and I'm home from work already!! Of course, it's supposed to drop to 15 overnight, but....I'm happy with the 50's. At least there's a promise of spring. Oh! Ed saw a robin yesterday, so we've only got about two more weeks of winter weather.
My life remains hectic. I know, I know.....it's my own doing, but I just seem to find these things lurking out there with my name on them. Started working on wedding dresses in earnest last night. I've promised myself that I'll work on dresses nights after work, I'll work on taxes mornings before work, I'll work on yard, flower beds, and outside on nice weekends, and I'll wallpaper the upstairs bedroom on nasty weekends. That should keep me busy until July, at least!!
Ed's doing much better. On warm, sunny days, he feels good. On cold, rainy days, he doesn't. But at least that's so much of an improvement from the past two years that we're happy.
We took Morgan and Makayla roller skating last weekend. I skated with them; Ed watched. Bad news is.....I fell just minutes after we were on the floor. I was "helping" Makayla and trying to skate slow and you all know how much harder it is to skate slow than to skate fast... Hit elbow hard; jarred my whole body, but I'm ok. Nothing broken, just badly bruised. It's so much further to the ground than it used to be!! Good news is....we had a really good time. Well, at least I did. Not sure about the girls. I think they had a good time. Ed didn't mind the sitting and waiting. Of course, the skates hurt our feet and I told Ed that if we're doing this on a regular basis, I'm buying my own skates. Had a blister on my toes, on the TOP of my toes. Not at all where I expected to get a blister. This weekend, we're going bowling with Joe and Shannon and their girls. Should be fun!
Dave and Ed built a little playhouse for our grandchildren. It's really cute. They'll love it! Well, it's dinner time, so guess I'd better go. Hope you all are doing ok. Doesn't seem like we "blog" very much....
My life remains hectic. I know, I know.....it's my own doing, but I just seem to find these things lurking out there with my name on them. Started working on wedding dresses in earnest last night. I've promised myself that I'll work on dresses nights after work, I'll work on taxes mornings before work, I'll work on yard, flower beds, and outside on nice weekends, and I'll wallpaper the upstairs bedroom on nasty weekends. That should keep me busy until July, at least!!
Ed's doing much better. On warm, sunny days, he feels good. On cold, rainy days, he doesn't. But at least that's so much of an improvement from the past two years that we're happy.
We took Morgan and Makayla roller skating last weekend. I skated with them; Ed watched. Bad news is.....I fell just minutes after we were on the floor. I was "helping" Makayla and trying to skate slow and you all know how much harder it is to skate slow than to skate fast... Hit elbow hard; jarred my whole body, but I'm ok. Nothing broken, just badly bruised. It's so much further to the ground than it used to be!! Good news is....we had a really good time. Well, at least I did. Not sure about the girls. I think they had a good time. Ed didn't mind the sitting and waiting. Of course, the skates hurt our feet and I told Ed that if we're doing this on a regular basis, I'm buying my own skates. Had a blister on my toes, on the TOP of my toes. Not at all where I expected to get a blister. This weekend, we're going bowling with Joe and Shannon and their girls. Should be fun!
Dave and Ed built a little playhouse for our grandchildren. It's really cute. They'll love it! Well, it's dinner time, so guess I'd better go. Hope you all are doing ok. Doesn't seem like we "blog" very much....
End of a Long, Hard Day!
I left the job early today and went home without going back to the office. I can do that. Quite often, I'll go back there and work for an hour or so on Auto Sketch, but today I was more interested in my dinner, bath, and bed. Not necessarily in that order.
It's getting harder every year to go out and work like I did when I was twenty or thirty. I think all my accumulated ailments are catching up. Let me tell you about my lumbago! Or not. White collar is better than blue collar, but as long as things are slow, blue collar is definitely better than none. I'll just have to slow down some.
The funeral for Eric Hotchkiss will be held Friday at 1:00 in Gainesville. I'm taking the day off. I can do that too. I still haven't decided whether to pull a vacation day or work Saturday to make up for it and keep my vacation. Guess I don't have to decide right now. Too much work.
It's getting harder every year to go out and work like I did when I was twenty or thirty. I think all my accumulated ailments are catching up. Let me tell you about my lumbago! Or not. White collar is better than blue collar, but as long as things are slow, blue collar is definitely better than none. I'll just have to slow down some.
The funeral for Eric Hotchkiss will be held Friday at 1:00 in Gainesville. I'm taking the day off. I can do that too. I still haven't decided whether to pull a vacation day or work Saturday to make up for it and keep my vacation. Guess I don't have to decide right now. Too much work.
Sunday, March 08, 2009
Sunday, gorgeous Sunday!
Just a beautiful day in Jacksonville. Sunny, blue skies, 75 degrees. Can't get any better.
Cindy and I drove to St. Augustine today to a birthday party for Amanda's daughter, Emily. She is now officially two years old. Cindy took a lot of pictures and I will post some of them when she downloads them from her camera.
Amanda is pregnant again. This will be her fourth. (Or fifth and sixth if she listens to Cindy.) However, we should soon know whether it's pink or blue. We currently have six grandchildren, five of whom are girls. Grandkids are great! I love them. Should have bypassed the previous generation and had them first. The problem is that I didn't know that until it was too late.
As the saying goes, "We get too soon old and too late smart." It's like a retirement account--extremely difficult to catch up if you fall behind.
Cindy and I drove to St. Augustine today to a birthday party for Amanda's daughter, Emily. She is now officially two years old. Cindy took a lot of pictures and I will post some of them when she downloads them from her camera.
Amanda is pregnant again. This will be her fourth. (Or fifth and sixth if she listens to Cindy.) However, we should soon know whether it's pink or blue. We currently have six grandchildren, five of whom are girls. Grandkids are great! I love them. Should have bypassed the previous generation and had them first. The problem is that I didn't know that until it was too late.
As the saying goes, "We get too soon old and too late smart." It's like a retirement account--extremely difficult to catch up if you fall behind.
Saturday, March 07, 2009
Three Days On The New Job and Other Stuff
Well.........I made it to the weekend! Spent the first three days filling out paperwork for the personal file and reviewing the manuals for my new job. Should begin to get into it a bit more next week. Will be riding along with various people to observe what they do and "absorb". Also will be planning a "meet & greet" for the few volunteers that are already on board. And someone is coming in from the Williamsport office to spend a day training me. It's just SO different than anything else I've done.
We have daffodils poking out of the ground--hooray!
Wade is on partial unemployment--off a couple of days each week--so he is working around the house and helping a friend who is remodeling a house.
Hoping for nice weather tomorrow (today was warm) so I can paint outside with a couple of friends.
We have daffodils poking out of the ground--hooray!
Wade is on partial unemployment--off a couple of days each week--so he is working around the house and helping a friend who is remodeling a house.
Hoping for nice weather tomorrow (today was warm) so I can paint outside with a couple of friends.
Saturday, blessed Saturday!
I haven't had a lot of "paying" work on Saturday lately, so I am enjoying myself. Usually I go to the office in the morning for a few hours and work with Auto Sketch, a CAD program, which I am learning. I try to learn at least one new thing on it every day, that is, every day that I work on it. On Saturday, I am the only one at the office, so I can focus completely on the project.
I am designing a house addition which we will be building. We have another man who is designing the same project. He will be paid, I won't. However, the other day, I showed some of my drawings to my manager who oversees the entire production department. I've got his attention!! It's not going to be very long until the company buys a program to put on my computer at home and start paying me to do the designs.
I love the work. It doesn't seem like work. I can go there and burn up four hours without even realizing it. The only problem I have experienced so far has been with my right wrist, which pains me after some time manipulating the mouse. It's arthritis, not carpal tunnel. Something I've got to live with.
When I get my designs completed, I'll post them for you.
I am designing a house addition which we will be building. We have another man who is designing the same project. He will be paid, I won't. However, the other day, I showed some of my drawings to my manager who oversees the entire production department. I've got his attention!! It's not going to be very long until the company buys a program to put on my computer at home and start paying me to do the designs.
I love the work. It doesn't seem like work. I can go there and burn up four hours without even realizing it. The only problem I have experienced so far has been with my right wrist, which pains me after some time manipulating the mouse. It's arthritis, not carpal tunnel. Something I've got to live with.
When I get my designs completed, I'll post them for you.
Friday, March 06, 2009
"Here's to ya, Egor!"
I was sitting at home relaxing tonight, watching one of my favorite shows, "How It's Made", on the telly when my cell phone rang. At 7:30 pm, either my boss doesn't realize how late it is or it's one of the family. This time it was Phil Mitchell, my twin cousin. We were both born the same day and seem to draw closer with each passing year. Last fall we went deep sea fishing to celebrate our 50th birthday, but...that's another story.
Phil had some sad news. Eric Hotchkiss, "Egor", died this afternoon from a massive heart attack. He was 50, about a month and a half older than Phil and I. That's hitting pretty close to home.
Eric was the son of Lloyd and Sandra Hotchkiss. Sandra was Phil's older sister, one of Uncle Henry's daughters. He had had health problems for a long time, was overweight, and carried an oxygen tank with him wherever he went. It didn't seem to slow him down much, though, and I never saw him when he didn't have a happy face on.
I don't know any details about "doings", but I'll be making a trip to Gainesville in the very near future. Hopefully, I'll get a chance to see him one more time. I did see him (and many others) at our last get-together about a month ago. The older I get, the more I realize that we should always take the opportunity to see or talk to each other whenever we can. It may be the last chance we have. I'm grateful.
Phil had some sad news. Eric Hotchkiss, "Egor", died this afternoon from a massive heart attack. He was 50, about a month and a half older than Phil and I. That's hitting pretty close to home.
Eric was the son of Lloyd and Sandra Hotchkiss. Sandra was Phil's older sister, one of Uncle Henry's daughters. He had had health problems for a long time, was overweight, and carried an oxygen tank with him wherever he went. It didn't seem to slow him down much, though, and I never saw him when he didn't have a happy face on.
I don't know any details about "doings", but I'll be making a trip to Gainesville in the very near future. Hopefully, I'll get a chance to see him one more time. I did see him (and many others) at our last get-together about a month ago. The older I get, the more I realize that we should always take the opportunity to see or talk to each other whenever we can. It may be the last chance we have. I'm grateful.
Monday, March 02, 2009
Brrrrrrr.........Brutally Cold
How did it get so cold again?!!! This wind is terrible! We were both home today--I'm nearing the end of my unemployment and Wade is just starting his. He is working part time and taking partial unemployment. I did some more sewing this last week--made covers for our patio chair cushions. I wanted ones that I could remove and throw in the washing machine when they get dirty. Found a bed set at KMart with comforter, sheets, pillowcases, shams, & skirt that I liked, so cut them apart and had plenty of fabric for the covers. And I got some foam at Ollie's to add to the seats so they no longer sink into the slats--nice and cushy! Now all we need is springlike weather so we can sit out there to eat dinner.
Sunday, March 01, 2009
Yesterday was a gorgeous day in Jacksonville. Sunny, dry, temperatures in the low 70's. The kind of day I once used as an excuse to take the day off and do absolutely nothing. Yesterday I took 1-1/2 hours during the middle of the day and went to Starbucks. Ahhh!! Luxurious laziness!
Along toward evening it started to change. Wind picking up, temperature dropping, clouds moving in. This morning when I got up it was raining off and on, but I didn't think anything about it until I was leaving Wal-Mart after my grocery shopping. It hit me then that this was like a cold, rainy November day in northern Pennsylvania. If I had been deer hunting, it would have been great. As it was, it was just plain nasty.
Now, the rain has more or less stopped and the sky has started to clear. It might not be too bad after all.
Cindy's father and uncle are here for a few days, so this afternoon we're going to have a mini-reunion with them, Amanda and her family, Joey (if he shows up), and Christy (if she shows up). Cindy, Amos, and Herb are at church, Amanda is on her way, and I have the house to myself (with the dog, Luke) for at least a few minutes. No laziness here though. I've put away the groceries, started laundry, cleaned the kitchen, and started working on meatballs for spaghetti. Pretty good, huh?
Along toward evening it started to change. Wind picking up, temperature dropping, clouds moving in. This morning when I got up it was raining off and on, but I didn't think anything about it until I was leaving Wal-Mart after my grocery shopping. It hit me then that this was like a cold, rainy November day in northern Pennsylvania. If I had been deer hunting, it would have been great. As it was, it was just plain nasty.
Now, the rain has more or less stopped and the sky has started to clear. It might not be too bad after all.
Cindy's father and uncle are here for a few days, so this afternoon we're going to have a mini-reunion with them, Amanda and her family, Joey (if he shows up), and Christy (if she shows up). Cindy, Amos, and Herb are at church, Amanda is on her way, and I have the house to myself (with the dog, Luke) for at least a few minutes. No laziness here though. I've put away the groceries, started laundry, cleaned the kitchen, and started working on meatballs for spaghetti. Pretty good, huh?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
