oh boy

So, day one of my two-day sanity check:

  • Woke up a little after normal time so I could watch Max so Jen could do church stuff.
  • Watched Max all morning, played and tickled and laughed.
  • Put Max down for a nap.
  • Ate leftovers for lunch (from the FAB-U-LOUS roast from Sunday – want the recipe?
  • Mowed the lawn.
  • Ate dinner
  • Went to World Market for Ginger Beer, then to Lowe’s for black spray paint and paint for the bricks outside.
  • Watching Big Brother, wondering if tomorrow will be the whirlwind that today was. Wow! What a vacation!!
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Unknown Origins

My mom’s into genealogy (I know I spelled that wrong – don’t care – you’ll see why later). Through contacts in the family, and lots of research, she’s traced our ancestors back to the 1600s on her side, and to the 1700s on my dad’s.

I hate to shock anyone who knows me, but I’m a blue blood! On mom’s side, there are three family lines that show up in America in the 1600s, from Great Britain (Wales, Scotland, etc)!! On my dad’s side, they’re here in the 1700s, from Switzerland. So, that means I should be much snobbier than I am. I mean, come on!! I’m a WASP with some raging neutrality thrown in. It’s funny that four hundred years of people living and dying has culminated in me. How scary is that?

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Accidental Tourism

Hey kiddies and welcome to Monday here at LawverLand. Today, in an effort to combat boredom and the residual anger of layoffs, I’m wearing an amazing Hawaiian shirt. It’s leaves and tropical flowers in four or five outrageous shades of blue. I can’t take myself seriously in it, and I hope no one else does.

If we’re not actually going to do any work, why not pretend we’re on vacation? If my sister weren’t borrowing the camera, I’d post a picture, honest I would.

On a serious note, there was a fantastic article in the Washington Post Magazine this weekend. It’s funny that ~25 miles from where I live, there exists a world that’s completely foreign to me. I’ve been to downtown DC before, but it was many years ago, and it scared the crap out of me. I hear it’s better, and that good things are happening, but hey, I just don’t have a reason to go. The story is about Redemption Ministries, a non-denominational church in Southeast that is doing great things for people who have no other hope.

I envy the call that Reverend Motley has. He’s felt something, and continues to draw on a passion to help people. It must be so rewarding to see his people grow and make more of themselves than they would have. Great story…

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Saturday: Ha-cha-cha

Yeah, baby, it’s Saturday! We’re taking it easy, watching bad made-for-TV movies and eating fast food. I did get something done: I went to Burlington Coat Factory and found some sweeeet Hawaiian shirts on sale. Yum-may.

I’m taking a couple days off next week to recharge. After the past few weeks of edge-of-the-seat sitting and the eventual conclusion of the layoffs, it’s time to regroup.

I have all of these ideas, and as of right now, I don’t have the energy to do it all. I need a break. We’re going to work on the house, clean up, play around… have fun. Yeah, it’s time to have some fun. So, if next week is slow, it’s because I’m either out doing something or working. You all remember what that was like, right?

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Cuz I Wanna

So, everything’s in disarray. Yup, you said it. I have no idea who I’m working with anymore outside of my own group. So, until that’s all settled you’ll be hearing a lot more from me. I plan on doing some playing, some upgrading, some code-writing on pet projects and taking it easy until everyone gets their collective act together.

You know, I wish I lived in an open source world where I could show you all the cool stuff I’m doing. But, alas, I can’t. Just imagine the application you’ve always wanted on the web… that’s how cool what I’m doing is. Yep, I’m a genius. No, really. You don’t believe me?

I think I’ll start an open-source project. I’ll call it Gnutz. No idea what it will do, but hey, it’s got a cool name, and that’s all that matters. Ok, I’ve been procrastinating long enough. Time to install PostgreSQL 7.1.3 on the intranet and see what I break.

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I have no idea why

I have no idea why this came to me last night while I was trying to go to sleep, but it did:

scene: A late-night talk show hosted by a non-descript white guy with nice hair and perfect teeth.

Host: Everyone, please put your hands together for the Prince of Darkness himself, Satan!!

<applause>

A short man with a pasted down combover enters the stage wearing a red smoking jacket, a black ascot and boxer shorts. His hair is black, and his skin is pale and slighty sweaty through the makeup. He sits.

Satan: Thanks for having on your show, Chuck.

Chuck: It’s out pleasure completely, Mr. Satan. How have you been? I hear you’ve been busy in the Holy Land.

Satan: Oh please, Mr. Satan is so formal. I’ve decided it’s time to become hip and keep up with the times, so from now on, please call me S’tan. If we can have JLo, JCap and P. Diddy, why no S’tan? It has a ring to it, like I’ve heard it before. I love it. Or, if you prefer, you can use my new rap name, P. Dark.

Chuck: You heard it hear first tonight from my guest, the Great S’tan.

Like I said… no idea. Just happened.

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I have power

I had no idea I had any influence over people. None at all. I was wrong! Isn’t that scary? Because we’ve been hanging around for three weeks with rumors of layoffs, and no word from management, I figured it was time for some civil disobedience. Nothing major like a “naked @ work day” or anything, just something small to show our chagrin. I decided to stop shaving. It lasted for about 10 days. On day six or seven, someone commented on my shaggy appearance, so I let them in on my idea. They apparently told some other people, and by the time the layoffs actually happened, there were six or seven of my fellow employees following in my footsteps. How freaky is that?

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So it begins and ends.

I lost my favorite project manager today. He’s not dead, and he was kind of pulling for it, but damned if it doesn’t feel like he’s dead. I feel like having a funeral for him. “Poor Jim, he was taken too soon.”

And best yet, we have a big meeting @ 5, so I can’t even leave early.

Bastards.