Seems to me I've said this before.
More than a year since last I was here. Poor performance on my part, part of it I'll blame on age (after all, I am 73 now headed for 74) and part on age (stuff is falling out of my head every time I tilt my head a little to one side).
I still go to work - various excesses and stupidities perpetrated in my youth have assured that, unless I want to take a lifestyle hut clear back to subsistence level I will continue to work for some time yet.
It's long past time for a rant on many things, but I may not do that today - I have to get back into writing more regularly - if I hold onto all these things my psyche gets clogged and I can become unreasonable, harsh and not too nice, and I prefer not to be that way.
I think people around me like me better when I'm not that way.
I think for now I will have to stay away from politics. People who know me know what I think about many things, and people who don't know me probably don't care all that much.
I have a Kindle app on my cell phones (yes, I do have two - one belongs to me and one to my employer) and am rediscovering the amount of Good Stuff out there to read, to the detriment of my sleep many evenings. There is a truly amazing quantity of stuff out there that is available to read, fictional and not and there are several online resources that mine various sources of publications (bookbub.com being but one) that will point you at free or bargain-priced e-books - and Amazon has a setup that lets you read as many as ten books at a time for a mere $10 per month - for folks who read fast, it is an incredible bargain - and it will keep you from buying a book that turns out to be a waste of time
The other great aspect of a Kindle is that it will also read PDF files. Most of my professional library is available on PDFs, so I can carry a whole room full of books on a little SD chip that lives permanently in my phone and holds lots of the music I like as well.
In addition, there's a Kindle app on my tablets and laptops, so if I am reading something at work I can pick it up where I left off when I get home even though I am using a different device, operating system, and application framework. Doesn't matter where I am, it knows where I was when I put it down. Almost smarter than I am, it is.
Since I use Gmail (and Blogger) I have delved more int what Google does with Chrome, and I stand amazed. Last time I bought a phone, all I had to do was tell it about my Gmail account, and it went out and found all my contacts, phone numbers, calendars and other goodies and set up my phone for me as if there was no break in usage. It remembers so I can forget, and will even start up my browser with the same tabs I had wherever I was when I used it last.
Seems to me application writers are finally getting some of it right!
On other topics, I wonder why everyone's so busy calling everyone else Racists or similar names because of something that doesn't hatter?
When a questionnaire contains a category of RACE, my answer is always HUMAN, even if I have to check the OTHER box and write it in.
You might wonder why, but it is really very simple - body parts and blood interchange regardless of skin tone. How different can we be if my pancreas works in your body?
I'm telling you folks, everything else is invented nonsense, created specifically for someone in fear of his own status to feel superior to someone else when nothing else can be found that makes a difference.
Now, I'm gonna set my soapbox on fire and go to work a while.
Monday, April 13, 2015
Friday, February 7, 2014
It's been a while
I have been watching the world go by, and deliberately holding my fingers (which seems to be a metaphor for tongue) in order not to become strident, shrill, or outright nasty.
This may turn into a rant, I'm not sure yet. Then again I may save the rant for late at night when nobody is listening.
It is now part way into February. February is usually a BFD month for us - Already we've lost a couple of days to snow (although that was never a part of the plan.) In not too many days I will turn 72 (or 28 by Grandpop Rudolph's reckoning....) and I am not liking it. I don't feel like I'm 72 (most days) and I try very hard not to behave like someone that old - but some days I just can't escape it. On the day after my birthday I will have been married to my first wife for 46 years - something many people (including ourselves from time to time) would never have believed possible - and I find that it is all good.
And of course I still go to work every day. Some days I'm actually worth more than I cost - other days they should make me pay to let me in. I've been having a good deal of fun with code lately, finding new ways to do things with fewer instructions, less messy code - it keeps my head either on straight or shaking.
I discovered Google Hangouts, and resolved to set up an area for my brothers and I to get together in a video chat, since apparently that's the only was some of us will see the rest of us. Looks like a nifty tool - be interesting to see if it works as I impute that it does, and if it doesn't it will be interesting to see how long it takes me actually to figure out precisely how it does work. Either way, I won't get bored.
My Kindle library is growing - I may not live long enough to read everything that's in it - I get emails every day from a couple of places that keep track of what's available, and Amazon puts out a fair amount that is free, and I try to get as much of that that looks interesting as I can.
I think in a separate piece I'll talk about the new stuff I have discovered that works so well.
Google amazes me - I have switched to Chrome as the browser of choice, and have discovered various apps and extensions for it that make it more useful - nearly an entire working environment is available from the browser itself including rudimentary office applications (and, truth be told, it is all I really need - Word has over the years grown into everything for everyone, and has so many buttons, widgets, fladgets and such that I can't use it whout looking for stuff that I used to know where it was.... With Google Docs, there's a lot that I can't do - but over the last several months I have not found most of what it won't let me do to be all that useful.
There are things that work with Chrome and Android devices that work so well that I finally have a place to stick important stuff that I can reach from my office, from any PC, and from my android devices (Phone and tablets.) Now, whenever I start up Chrome, whether it be on my phone, a tablet, a laptop or a desktop, it knows who I am and presents me with whatever environment I left last.
Listening to Ray Bryant playing Slow Freight and enjoying it. I keep music here at work, and happily the folks around me like it (or they just don't want to tell me I have no taste....) Music makes life better, don't you know.
Last night I met a group of German speakers that meets each week somewhere nearby, and I have been enjoying the social evenings with them, although to my chagrin I find I don't speak as well as I once did (or as I think I once did) and most of the folks there are not from the area where I lived, so my accent and dialect cause interesting misunderstandings - but it sure is fun!
Well, I just talked to a nephew I have not seen in at least 20 years - and got a video chat on my tablet by dumbing into how it works. Now I have to get a desktop working with that. Looks like Google Hangouts is more useful than I would have imagined.
I gotta go home. I may pick this up later, or I may decide it's rant time later. You'll be able to figure out which has happened.
This may turn into a rant, I'm not sure yet. Then again I may save the rant for late at night when nobody is listening.
It is now part way into February. February is usually a BFD month for us - Already we've lost a couple of days to snow (although that was never a part of the plan.) In not too many days I will turn 72 (or 28 by Grandpop Rudolph's reckoning....) and I am not liking it. I don't feel like I'm 72 (most days) and I try very hard not to behave like someone that old - but some days I just can't escape it. On the day after my birthday I will have been married to my first wife for 46 years - something many people (including ourselves from time to time) would never have believed possible - and I find that it is all good.
And of course I still go to work every day. Some days I'm actually worth more than I cost - other days they should make me pay to let me in. I've been having a good deal of fun with code lately, finding new ways to do things with fewer instructions, less messy code - it keeps my head either on straight or shaking.
I discovered Google Hangouts, and resolved to set up an area for my brothers and I to get together in a video chat, since apparently that's the only was some of us will see the rest of us. Looks like a nifty tool - be interesting to see if it works as I impute that it does, and if it doesn't it will be interesting to see how long it takes me actually to figure out precisely how it does work. Either way, I won't get bored.
My Kindle library is growing - I may not live long enough to read everything that's in it - I get emails every day from a couple of places that keep track of what's available, and Amazon puts out a fair amount that is free, and I try to get as much of that that looks interesting as I can.
I think in a separate piece I'll talk about the new stuff I have discovered that works so well.
Google amazes me - I have switched to Chrome as the browser of choice, and have discovered various apps and extensions for it that make it more useful - nearly an entire working environment is available from the browser itself including rudimentary office applications (and, truth be told, it is all I really need - Word has over the years grown into everything for everyone, and has so many buttons, widgets, fladgets and such that I can't use it whout looking for stuff that I used to know where it was.... With Google Docs, there's a lot that I can't do - but over the last several months I have not found most of what it won't let me do to be all that useful.
There are things that work with Chrome and Android devices that work so well that I finally have a place to stick important stuff that I can reach from my office, from any PC, and from my android devices (Phone and tablets.) Now, whenever I start up Chrome, whether it be on my phone, a tablet, a laptop or a desktop, it knows who I am and presents me with whatever environment I left last.
Listening to Ray Bryant playing Slow Freight and enjoying it. I keep music here at work, and happily the folks around me like it (or they just don't want to tell me I have no taste....) Music makes life better, don't you know.
Last night I met a group of German speakers that meets each week somewhere nearby, and I have been enjoying the social evenings with them, although to my chagrin I find I don't speak as well as I once did (or as I think I once did) and most of the folks there are not from the area where I lived, so my accent and dialect cause interesting misunderstandings - but it sure is fun!
Well, I just talked to a nephew I have not seen in at least 20 years - and got a video chat on my tablet by dumbing into how it works. Now I have to get a desktop working with that. Looks like Google Hangouts is more useful than I would have imagined.
I gotta go home. I may pick this up later, or I may decide it's rant time later. You'll be able to figure out which has happened.
Wednesday, January 1, 2014
New Year's Eve, 2013
It is less than an hour away from the beginning of 2014.
2013 has been a really interesting year, for many reasons.
Phyllis and I are a year older, and neither of us likes that fact all that much.
Like many others, we have been affected by births, marriages, and deaths (in no particular order of precedence.) We have acquired a new son-in-law with whom we are well pleased. We have experienced highs and lows, and on balance the highs won out!
I am going to try very hard to avoid political polemic here - there's plenty of time for that, and there have not been any significant changes in the political environment since 2012 ended.
Phyllis and I still work and I find that I am not ready to retire any time soon, I still enjoy what I do, and although there has been upheaval where I work, the future looks interesting, and there are things coming of which I would like to be a part. Also, I have a motorcycle that would like to get paid off, and several ongoing computer projects that need funded and finished.
Commuting has been a bigger PITA in 2013 than it was in 2012 - the traffic is worse, and the drivers seem to be less interested in smoothing the flow and more interested in getting in front of me no matter who gets endangered in the process. Still, I had a lot of days that I could ride my mototrcycle, so it wasn't totally unpleasant.
I managed to drop my big motorcycle on my right leg and break it, which upset me greatly and did nothing for my normally placid demeanor - and while I was off with the leg broken an ulcer that I never knew I had perforated, giving me the opportunity to meet a particularly fine bariatric surgeon who repaired the hole in my gut without opening it up all that much, although he also restricted my diet, my coffee intake and a couple of other things I hope will get undone sometime in the near future. The leg has healed, my wife did not require that I get rid of any motorcycle, although she did suggest I get one not quite so heavy if I was going to continue to ride. So I bought a rather nice Moto Guzzi 1100, and retired the Suzuki 1500 with the intent of selling it when biking weather returns. As far as I can tell, there's no problem in my gut (although I have to have it scoped before the surgeon will tell me that I'm good to go.)
We have had a family mending - the father of one of my grandchildren married the mother of that grandchild yielding a complete family, and Phyllis and I are well pleased with this outcome - the new son-in-law is a Good Person - a hard worker who loves his wife and son, and will do well by them. We are proud of all of them.
I was privileged to travel to Las Vegas to attend the wedding of the child of one of my favorite cousins - and to spend time with many of our West Coast relatives, with whom we do not get to gather as often as we might wish. A great time was had by all, although I learned that Las Vegas is not a really great place for me personally, since my knees are not all I could wish, and while on a map Las Vegas looks small, the actual fact is that I have lived in towns smaller than Caesar's Palace - and it is possible to walk for 40 minutes inside Caesar's Palace and never see the outside.
I have been to Las Vegas before - 40 years ago, in 1973. It has changed.
But it was interesting, and I did get to meet someone I have 'known' for several years but never actually met - and it proved to be a fun day and evening, and well worth the time - and these folks supplied me with a unique pleasure I have never had before - I got to view a movie from the Owner's Box - really a great way to go!
I have no resolutions for 2014. It will be interesting, exciting, and probably at times maddening, but we'll get through it and in another year I'll sit here in this same place, waiting for the ball to drop and wondering if I am making sense.
Many people have influenced me, helped me, lectured me, delayed me and otherwise affected me on the way to this evening, and I am thankful for all of them, for they are all now a part of who and what I am.
I am particularly thankful for my patient and loving wife and kids, my extended family of so many cousins that have been there for all the years I have lived, as well as the friends throughout the years who have helped me to be who I am. A special thank you to some special ladies who have been part of my life over the years - my world would have been a far poorer place without you.
2014 is here, 2013 is gone - Happy New Year, all who read this - and all who do not read this.
Life is a great place to be.
2013 has been a really interesting year, for many reasons.
Phyllis and I are a year older, and neither of us likes that fact all that much.
Like many others, we have been affected by births, marriages, and deaths (in no particular order of precedence.) We have acquired a new son-in-law with whom we are well pleased. We have experienced highs and lows, and on balance the highs won out!
I am going to try very hard to avoid political polemic here - there's plenty of time for that, and there have not been any significant changes in the political environment since 2012 ended.
Phyllis and I still work and I find that I am not ready to retire any time soon, I still enjoy what I do, and although there has been upheaval where I work, the future looks interesting, and there are things coming of which I would like to be a part. Also, I have a motorcycle that would like to get paid off, and several ongoing computer projects that need funded and finished.
Commuting has been a bigger PITA in 2013 than it was in 2012 - the traffic is worse, and the drivers seem to be less interested in smoothing the flow and more interested in getting in front of me no matter who gets endangered in the process. Still, I had a lot of days that I could ride my mototrcycle, so it wasn't totally unpleasant.
I managed to drop my big motorcycle on my right leg and break it, which upset me greatly and did nothing for my normally placid demeanor - and while I was off with the leg broken an ulcer that I never knew I had perforated, giving me the opportunity to meet a particularly fine bariatric surgeon who repaired the hole in my gut without opening it up all that much, although he also restricted my diet, my coffee intake and a couple of other things I hope will get undone sometime in the near future. The leg has healed, my wife did not require that I get rid of any motorcycle, although she did suggest I get one not quite so heavy if I was going to continue to ride. So I bought a rather nice Moto Guzzi 1100, and retired the Suzuki 1500 with the intent of selling it when biking weather returns. As far as I can tell, there's no problem in my gut (although I have to have it scoped before the surgeon will tell me that I'm good to go.)
We have had a family mending - the father of one of my grandchildren married the mother of that grandchild yielding a complete family, and Phyllis and I are well pleased with this outcome - the new son-in-law is a Good Person - a hard worker who loves his wife and son, and will do well by them. We are proud of all of them.
I was privileged to travel to Las Vegas to attend the wedding of the child of one of my favorite cousins - and to spend time with many of our West Coast relatives, with whom we do not get to gather as often as we might wish. A great time was had by all, although I learned that Las Vegas is not a really great place for me personally, since my knees are not all I could wish, and while on a map Las Vegas looks small, the actual fact is that I have lived in towns smaller than Caesar's Palace - and it is possible to walk for 40 minutes inside Caesar's Palace and never see the outside.
I have been to Las Vegas before - 40 years ago, in 1973. It has changed.
But it was interesting, and I did get to meet someone I have 'known' for several years but never actually met - and it proved to be a fun day and evening, and well worth the time - and these folks supplied me with a unique pleasure I have never had before - I got to view a movie from the Owner's Box - really a great way to go!
I have no resolutions for 2014. It will be interesting, exciting, and probably at times maddening, but we'll get through it and in another year I'll sit here in this same place, waiting for the ball to drop and wondering if I am making sense.
Many people have influenced me, helped me, lectured me, delayed me and otherwise affected me on the way to this evening, and I am thankful for all of them, for they are all now a part of who and what I am.
I am particularly thankful for my patient and loving wife and kids, my extended family of so many cousins that have been there for all the years I have lived, as well as the friends throughout the years who have helped me to be who I am. A special thank you to some special ladies who have been part of my life over the years - my world would have been a far poorer place without you.
2014 is here, 2013 is gone - Happy New Year, all who read this - and all who do not read this.
Life is a great place to be.
Monday, December 30, 2013
It has been a while
It has been busy both where I work and where I live. Lots of stuff to do; lots more to think about.
For the first time in many years I took two whole weeks off, and haven't been called in or managed to get worried about anything that caused me to drive in. I have not even logged in remotely. Things must be running well, or there's something I am not understanding.
I have a good bit to do before the new year starts, and not all that much time in which to do it. I also have a personal task - the yearly Christmas letter that has not gone out for several years, and a puff piece for the blog about mended families, my kids and grandkids, and other things that are somewhat personal. There are also plenty of emails owed, at least some of which debt will be covered before I go back to work, I hope.
In less than 60 days I will be 72. I'm not so sure I want to be 72, but the only way I can see to avoid getting that old is not to live that long - and I am not done living!
This Christmas is the first in many years wherein we have had complete families. It's a really big deal - one grandson spent the first 13 years of his life without his father - this year, just weeks back, his father has been returned to him and to his mother, yielding a complete family. There's a lot of history that doesn't bear opening up right now, but at this end of that long period, it seems to be all good - and I'm glad that Ronnie, Jr. has Ronnie Sr. back in his life on a daily basis. My daughter is better, Junior is better, and Senior is the stuff of miracles. Synergy is happening- the whole is greater than the sum of the parts, and the whole is good for the entirety of Rudolph in this area.
Other daughter is doing well, and their two children are marvels and growing - soon they will be schoolchildren, and we are not ready for that! Within the next three years, both will become students. Their teachers are in for some really interesting times!
The coming year will be interesting for Phyllis and myself, too. It seems that we are undergoing restructuring at work, and the duties of all of us will change. This may lead to retirement for me, or it may lead to incentive to stay even longer than I plan at present. What happens with me will have effects on Phyllis's plan; we just don't yet know what they will be.
Over the years, I have met many people who had a significant effect on me and on directions I have taken - some to my benefit immediately, some where the benefit could be seen only with years of hindsight. My father, when he was alive told me that there was no learning without lumps. Much as I hate to admit it, he was right - I have accumulated my share (and probably yours) of lumps over the years, and each one was a lesson - some of which came with considerable pain - some physical, some not. Every time I dropped a motorcycle, there was enough real pain involved I resolved never again to do that particular thing. Sure enough, over the years I dropped them less frequently, and sometimes wouldn't drop one for years - until I forgot how much it could hurt, then I got reminded.... I guess you'd have to be a motorcyclist to understand why I still ride them....
I have to get busy and Do Some Things. I'm not done with the Year End Maunderings yet - there will be more, but for right now I have a few other things get accomplished. I'll be back!
For the first time in many years I took two whole weeks off, and haven't been called in or managed to get worried about anything that caused me to drive in. I have not even logged in remotely. Things must be running well, or there's something I am not understanding.
I have a good bit to do before the new year starts, and not all that much time in which to do it. I also have a personal task - the yearly Christmas letter that has not gone out for several years, and a puff piece for the blog about mended families, my kids and grandkids, and other things that are somewhat personal. There are also plenty of emails owed, at least some of which debt will be covered before I go back to work, I hope.
In less than 60 days I will be 72. I'm not so sure I want to be 72, but the only way I can see to avoid getting that old is not to live that long - and I am not done living!
This Christmas is the first in many years wherein we have had complete families. It's a really big deal - one grandson spent the first 13 years of his life without his father - this year, just weeks back, his father has been returned to him and to his mother, yielding a complete family. There's a lot of history that doesn't bear opening up right now, but at this end of that long period, it seems to be all good - and I'm glad that Ronnie, Jr. has Ronnie Sr. back in his life on a daily basis. My daughter is better, Junior is better, and Senior is the stuff of miracles. Synergy is happening- the whole is greater than the sum of the parts, and the whole is good for the entirety of Rudolph in this area.
Other daughter is doing well, and their two children are marvels and growing - soon they will be schoolchildren, and we are not ready for that! Within the next three years, both will become students. Their teachers are in for some really interesting times!
The coming year will be interesting for Phyllis and myself, too. It seems that we are undergoing restructuring at work, and the duties of all of us will change. This may lead to retirement for me, or it may lead to incentive to stay even longer than I plan at present. What happens with me will have effects on Phyllis's plan; we just don't yet know what they will be.
Over the years, I have met many people who had a significant effect on me and on directions I have taken - some to my benefit immediately, some where the benefit could be seen only with years of hindsight. My father, when he was alive told me that there was no learning without lumps. Much as I hate to admit it, he was right - I have accumulated my share (and probably yours) of lumps over the years, and each one was a lesson - some of which came with considerable pain - some physical, some not. Every time I dropped a motorcycle, there was enough real pain involved I resolved never again to do that particular thing. Sure enough, over the years I dropped them less frequently, and sometimes wouldn't drop one for years - until I forgot how much it could hurt, then I got reminded.... I guess you'd have to be a motorcyclist to understand why I still ride them....
I have to get busy and Do Some Things. I'm not done with the Year End Maunderings yet - there will be more, but for right now I have a few other things get accomplished. I'll be back!
Friday, December 13, 2013
Friday the 13th
Well, it is still Friday the 13t, and so far no catastrophes have fallen on my head. I am still at the office, moving from one area to another, which could take quite a while as there is a huge accumulation of stuff that must follow me until I can determine if it stays or goes. It is truly appalling the amount and description of crap that seems to cling to and follow me where I roam.
Also there is a fair amount of hardware here that belongs to me, not to my employer, and I need to make sure I get it all.
And no, I am not superstitious - being superstitious brings bad luck, don't you know.
Looking through my email this morning, I am amazed at the amount of funny stuff comes from folks that I have known for over 50 years. I am sorry to note that I know more dead folks from 50 years back han live folks, so I guess I should feel blest, as I haven't joined them yet as far as I know - or if I have, they went to a different place than I did....
Christmas is 12 days away. Every year I promise myself to do all the shopping I need to do in July - and every year it gets down to the last ten days and I get nuts. Maybe next year....
Gotta get busy with Amazon - I don't like malls or crowds and the way shoppers behave any more I would almost expect to be shot (or at least shot at) some of the places I might want to go. My wife says don't spend money on her, but I ignore that some - nothing is free, and whatever I do spend, she's worth it.
I'm still moving things at work - it will take a couple of days to get myself relocated. Soon I gotta go home; I'm tired and have to come back tomorrow.
Y'all be well, and be careful - it's dangerous outside!
Also there is a fair amount of hardware here that belongs to me, not to my employer, and I need to make sure I get it all.
And no, I am not superstitious - being superstitious brings bad luck, don't you know.
Looking through my email this morning, I am amazed at the amount of funny stuff comes from folks that I have known for over 50 years. I am sorry to note that I know more dead folks from 50 years back han live folks, so I guess I should feel blest, as I haven't joined them yet as far as I know - or if I have, they went to a different place than I did....
Christmas is 12 days away. Every year I promise myself to do all the shopping I need to do in July - and every year it gets down to the last ten days and I get nuts. Maybe next year....
Gotta get busy with Amazon - I don't like malls or crowds and the way shoppers behave any more I would almost expect to be shot (or at least shot at) some of the places I might want to go. My wife says don't spend money on her, but I ignore that some - nothing is free, and whatever I do spend, she's worth it.
I'm still moving things at work - it will take a couple of days to get myself relocated. Soon I gotta go home; I'm tired and have to come back tomorrow.
Y'all be well, and be careful - it's dangerous outside!
Today
Today is Friday the 13th.
I probably should not even start writing anything, because Friday the 13th actually came on Friday this month, and that's always worse than the months when it comes on Wednesday or Tuesday.
For anyone old enough to remember Pogo, well, you'll have an idea where that got started.
I finally got permission to move back down to the fourth floor at work. The move will be a major PITA - but it will be kinda nice to get back to a place where everyone who comes through the door does not have to walk past me and look over my shoulder before doing anything else.
It'll also be nice to move my speakers downstairs where I can play the music LOUD if I want to.
I have not been sleeping enough, and it has been too cold to go motorcycling. I love the Volvo, but there is something about December that brings out all the folk whose heads seem to explode the minute they put a key into the ignition lock and start the car. I promise I'm not gonna start a traffic rant - but commuting is suddenly a trip into hell every morning.
But it could be worse - I could be riding many buses to get to work, and taking at least twice as long as it takes to drive there. So I am going to shut up about that lest I get T-boned and have to resort to the train and the bus....
And before anyone asks, I'm not ready for the holidays - there's still more money I have to spend. But I'm working on it in my spare time.
Anyone who knows me knows I like to read. I discovered BookBub which is a web site that takes your email address and daily sends a list of inexpensive (and usually FREE) e-books. I have amassed quite a collection that will take years to read, but I am enjoying rereading many things I haven't read for years and have not been able to find. Amazon has some real treasures (and daily Kindle ebook giveaways) available that are worth a look. I don't have a Kindle - but my Android Phone, Android tablet(s) and windows computers have kindle apps - and Google's Chrome browser has a Kindle plug-in that connects seamlessly with Amazon's Kindle cloud.
I've talked about the Kindle readers before, so I won't bore anyone now - if someone wants more info, leave me a note with an email address and I'll gather all the mutterings up and send them to you as links.
I got Phyllis a new toy - a Keurig coffee maker - and it was worth every penny it cost. It is a complex device, but it makes great coffee and while the per-cup cost may be a little higher than what we were doing before, the svings comes in the form of cups of coffee that we just throw away. I'm not seeing all that much benefit since I am supposed to be off coffee, at least until I get scoped again for the doctor to look and see if I still have ulcers, but of course I will do what I will do - and damn it makes great coffee! If I am ever allowed to drink coffee again, I may have to get one for the office!
Tomorrow and one day this weekend I'll be moving, and it will be a hell of a job, but it will be nice when it is done. Some computers will come with me, as well as lots of books and miscellaneous stuff that has accumulated over the years - and my supply of small parts, screwdrivers and sockets, pocket knives, hammers, cables and various USB gadgets. Kinda makes me wanna just go back to bed, but it has to be done.
I almost forgot - I finally have collected all of Greywolf's Roswell stories. If you don';t know what that's about, it's OK, but if you do know and want any, I can tell you how to find them. Getting them together was a PITA, but they are all in Google Docs format, and easily available.
I gotta go to bed. Be well, y'all.
I probably should not even start writing anything, because Friday the 13th actually came on Friday this month, and that's always worse than the months when it comes on Wednesday or Tuesday.
For anyone old enough to remember Pogo, well, you'll have an idea where that got started.
I finally got permission to move back down to the fourth floor at work. The move will be a major PITA - but it will be kinda nice to get back to a place where everyone who comes through the door does not have to walk past me and look over my shoulder before doing anything else.
It'll also be nice to move my speakers downstairs where I can play the music LOUD if I want to.
I have not been sleeping enough, and it has been too cold to go motorcycling. I love the Volvo, but there is something about December that brings out all the folk whose heads seem to explode the minute they put a key into the ignition lock and start the car. I promise I'm not gonna start a traffic rant - but commuting is suddenly a trip into hell every morning.
But it could be worse - I could be riding many buses to get to work, and taking at least twice as long as it takes to drive there. So I am going to shut up about that lest I get T-boned and have to resort to the train and the bus....
And before anyone asks, I'm not ready for the holidays - there's still more money I have to spend. But I'm working on it in my spare time.
Anyone who knows me knows I like to read. I discovered BookBub which is a web site that takes your email address and daily sends a list of inexpensive (and usually FREE) e-books. I have amassed quite a collection that will take years to read, but I am enjoying rereading many things I haven't read for years and have not been able to find. Amazon has some real treasures (and daily Kindle ebook giveaways) available that are worth a look. I don't have a Kindle - but my Android Phone, Android tablet(s) and windows computers have kindle apps - and Google's Chrome browser has a Kindle plug-in that connects seamlessly with Amazon's Kindle cloud.
I've talked about the Kindle readers before, so I won't bore anyone now - if someone wants more info, leave me a note with an email address and I'll gather all the mutterings up and send them to you as links.
I got Phyllis a new toy - a Keurig coffee maker - and it was worth every penny it cost. It is a complex device, but it makes great coffee and while the per-cup cost may be a little higher than what we were doing before, the svings comes in the form of cups of coffee that we just throw away. I'm not seeing all that much benefit since I am supposed to be off coffee, at least until I get scoped again for the doctor to look and see if I still have ulcers, but of course I will do what I will do - and damn it makes great coffee! If I am ever allowed to drink coffee again, I may have to get one for the office!
Tomorrow and one day this weekend I'll be moving, and it will be a hell of a job, but it will be nice when it is done. Some computers will come with me, as well as lots of books and miscellaneous stuff that has accumulated over the years - and my supply of small parts, screwdrivers and sockets, pocket knives, hammers, cables and various USB gadgets. Kinda makes me wanna just go back to bed, but it has to be done.
I almost forgot - I finally have collected all of Greywolf's Roswell stories. If you don';t know what that's about, it's OK, but if you do know and want any, I can tell you how to find them. Getting them together was a PITA, but they are all in Google Docs format, and easily available.
I gotta go to bed. Be well, y'all.
Friday, November 29, 2013
Thanksgiving Day, later
I have a lot for which I am thankful. Sometimes I need to be reminded.
I am thankful for having reached my present age in relatively decent shape.
I am thankful for my wife of over 45 years, who is a patient and loving lady.
I am thankful for my children, who have found their own way in the world.
I am thankful for my grandkids, who make me proud and make me laugh.
I am thankful for my large extended family of cousins, with whom we have stayed in touch lo these many years, and for all our differences still like being with one another.
I am thankful for my siblings, although we are seldom together, when we are together it seems like just yesterday when we last met and talked. That having been said, I wish one brother was closer than where he is - but I also know that I don't get to make choices other than my own - and their choices obviously worked well for them.
I am thankful for old friends and for people I have known for many years who still put up with me.
But there's more to it than just what appears above.
I am thankful for my son's having found something that he enjoys, something that he really loves doing, and for success in having fun at work.
I am thankful for mended families - my daughter who is married and has a child who is my grandson. I am thankful for a son-in-law who has found his way, and together with this daughter have made a family unit that is sound, happy, functional and meaningful. All three of them make me proud and happy to have them as family members.
I am thankful for my other daughter's family - her husband and her two children, who serve to remind me that kids are wonderful, that growing up is not always easy, and that there is no end to surprises that grandkids can supply, nor to joys that come from just watching them grow.
Phyllis and I spent yesterday with the newly mended family, and today that family will join the other daughter's family in a second thanksgiving. It may be a bit sappy of me to say this, but I dearly love all of them, and I am certain that there are days when I don't deserve them - but it is good to be with them, to see that all of us love one another, and that while imperfect we are all intrinsically good.
Most of all, I am thankful to have lived to see the day that I can say what I said above, and mean every word sincerely and with love in my heart.
God bless us, every one.
I am thankful for having reached my present age in relatively decent shape.
I am thankful for my wife of over 45 years, who is a patient and loving lady.
I am thankful for my children, who have found their own way in the world.
I am thankful for my grandkids, who make me proud and make me laugh.
I am thankful for my large extended family of cousins, with whom we have stayed in touch lo these many years, and for all our differences still like being with one another.
I am thankful for my siblings, although we are seldom together, when we are together it seems like just yesterday when we last met and talked. That having been said, I wish one brother was closer than where he is - but I also know that I don't get to make choices other than my own - and their choices obviously worked well for them.
I am thankful for old friends and for people I have known for many years who still put up with me.
But there's more to it than just what appears above.
I am thankful for my son's having found something that he enjoys, something that he really loves doing, and for success in having fun at work.
I am thankful for mended families - my daughter who is married and has a child who is my grandson. I am thankful for a son-in-law who has found his way, and together with this daughter have made a family unit that is sound, happy, functional and meaningful. All three of them make me proud and happy to have them as family members.
I am thankful for my other daughter's family - her husband and her two children, who serve to remind me that kids are wonderful, that growing up is not always easy, and that there is no end to surprises that grandkids can supply, nor to joys that come from just watching them grow.
Phyllis and I spent yesterday with the newly mended family, and today that family will join the other daughter's family in a second thanksgiving. It may be a bit sappy of me to say this, but I dearly love all of them, and I am certain that there are days when I don't deserve them - but it is good to be with them, to see that all of us love one another, and that while imperfect we are all intrinsically good.
Most of all, I am thankful to have lived to see the day that I can say what I said above, and mean every word sincerely and with love in my heart.
God bless us, every one.
Wednesday, November 27, 2013
It's been pretty quiet around here
so I thought I'd see if I had anything to say.
Of course, I always have something to say - just gotta get it organized a bit.
I had something bad happen at work a little bit back, but it looks like it may be solved after a few days extensive research. My work desktop PC lost its mind, and with its mind lost a number of other things, including its way to do some automated things. I moved them elsewhere, but it turned out one event just disappeared - and it took a while to find what it was doing and to get it into shape to be used again. Happily it seems to be on the mend, although some stuff may have to be renewed to get it to behave again. Never a dull moment....
The weather hasn't been much for motorcycling - I did get a day of commuting in last week or so, but today it is supposed to snow - and when that happens it is too cold and too dangerous even to start a bike, so both of them are covered up in my carport, waiting for the next half-decent day. Many friends are still riding - but they all have Gerbings electrically heated suits - and as of yet I have yet to see a reason to spend almost a kilobuck on getting outfitted that way, although if I get antsy enough this winter, and it stays cold but not snowy, I just might have to do it.
Commuting is becoming a pain - there are so many thoughtless idiots out there it is a wonder there is not wreckage strewn from heck to breakfast. I watched four this morning pass over a double yellow at speeds of 30 over the limit, and just bulldoze their way back into where they should have been. Two of them were talking on phones and one was arguing with a passenger. It is not comforting to know that Darwin may get these folks - because Darwin might well use me as the immovable object, and I've no desire to be a sacrificial lamb to those who will not learn. Happily, the Guzzi has an air horn - and I am considering adding one to the Volvo.
Speaking of which, I still like the Volvo. I have not driven anything more comfortable or more stable in a very long time - and it jut starts every day. The bunwarmers (heated seats) are lovely in this cold weather, and the heater puts out seemingly within 3 minutes. If you need something to drive, you could do worse than an old Volvo - and mileage does not seem to matter all that much - my last one was out at 180,000 when I got rid of it, this one I bought at 128,000 and it uses no oil or anything - at least not any more - it did get me pretty good (close to a kilobuck) with a radiator leak, but everything I have ever had that I kept for anything over about 100,000 did that.
If there's anyone out there needing PC parts, cables, controllers, please leave a note - I have a load of stuff scattered around the basement that has to go, and I'd rather give it away than throw it away. Motherboards, too - at least half a dozen or so, some with memory even.... I've been building and salvaging for the last 20 or so years, and have accumulated a bunch of parts, mostly not the most current state of the art, but still usable for folks eking out the lat years of a PC. Let me know what you need, or even what someone you know needs, and I'll look and get back to you.
The Obamacare fiasco is one I don't feel like addressing right now - it just makes me angrier when I think about it. When you consider that the software was written by a Canadian firm after failing in a spectacular way to get Canada's long gun registration even functional, then consider that the firm is connected to a friend of Michelle - THEN consider that the back end is not yet even written, well, if you do not wonder if there's something crooked afoot, try to keep your old insurance plan.... One size never fits all - anyone who wears clothes can tell you that.
Oops - I said I wasn't gonna talk about it. Shutting up....
I guess everyone knows I was in Las Vegas a few weeks back for a family wedding - and I found Las Vegas to be a really odd place. It isn't a great place for a fat gimp who an't drink and doesn't gamble, that much I can tell you - and everything is just so damn big that you can't get anywhere without walking at least 20 minutes - and that walk (if it is inside) will be longer than it needs to be because you'll have to walk around several thousand slot machines, all bleeping and booping at you. The wedding was nice, the food in Las Vegas is exceptional - but the hotel cost too much for what it delivered, and they hammer you for internet access. I ended up plugging my phone into a charger and using the HotSpot app to let my laptop and tablet talk to the internet. I'm sure glad I have a grandfathered plan that has no data limit....
On another topic, my middle daughter is married - something that was a long time coming. The circumstances are convoluted, but from where I sit it all looks positive. Her husband is a welcome addition to our familial circus, and we look forward to having them around for a long time. Now if my wandering son were only a little closer to us geographically - but he's in Texas, somewhere around Dallas, and has opened up a new enterprise that is interesting. If you are curious, a visit to Jamie's Place will show you what he's up to, and may even give you a gift idea or two.
...
I got interrupted by life - it is now a day later than when I started this. The weather is crappy, this is the last workday this week (followed by gluttony as Thanksgiving is tomorrow) and no hope for motorcycle weather any time soon.
So I think I'll just hang up here - there will be more as time permits and as things that bug me come to light. Meanwhile, have a really good holiday or holidays, whichever you observe, be kind to one another, think positive thoughts and remember that you are truly unique - just like everybody else.
Of course, I always have something to say - just gotta get it organized a bit.
I had something bad happen at work a little bit back, but it looks like it may be solved after a few days extensive research. My work desktop PC lost its mind, and with its mind lost a number of other things, including its way to do some automated things. I moved them elsewhere, but it turned out one event just disappeared - and it took a while to find what it was doing and to get it into shape to be used again. Happily it seems to be on the mend, although some stuff may have to be renewed to get it to behave again. Never a dull moment....
The weather hasn't been much for motorcycling - I did get a day of commuting in last week or so, but today it is supposed to snow - and when that happens it is too cold and too dangerous even to start a bike, so both of them are covered up in my carport, waiting for the next half-decent day. Many friends are still riding - but they all have Gerbings electrically heated suits - and as of yet I have yet to see a reason to spend almost a kilobuck on getting outfitted that way, although if I get antsy enough this winter, and it stays cold but not snowy, I just might have to do it.
Commuting is becoming a pain - there are so many thoughtless idiots out there it is a wonder there is not wreckage strewn from heck to breakfast. I watched four this morning pass over a double yellow at speeds of 30 over the limit, and just bulldoze their way back into where they should have been. Two of them were talking on phones and one was arguing with a passenger. It is not comforting to know that Darwin may get these folks - because Darwin might well use me as the immovable object, and I've no desire to be a sacrificial lamb to those who will not learn. Happily, the Guzzi has an air horn - and I am considering adding one to the Volvo.
Speaking of which, I still like the Volvo. I have not driven anything more comfortable or more stable in a very long time - and it jut starts every day. The bunwarmers (heated seats) are lovely in this cold weather, and the heater puts out seemingly within 3 minutes. If you need something to drive, you could do worse than an old Volvo - and mileage does not seem to matter all that much - my last one was out at 180,000 when I got rid of it, this one I bought at 128,000 and it uses no oil or anything - at least not any more - it did get me pretty good (close to a kilobuck) with a radiator leak, but everything I have ever had that I kept for anything over about 100,000 did that.
If there's anyone out there needing PC parts, cables, controllers, please leave a note - I have a load of stuff scattered around the basement that has to go, and I'd rather give it away than throw it away. Motherboards, too - at least half a dozen or so, some with memory even.... I've been building and salvaging for the last 20 or so years, and have accumulated a bunch of parts, mostly not the most current state of the art, but still usable for folks eking out the lat years of a PC. Let me know what you need, or even what someone you know needs, and I'll look and get back to you.
The Obamacare fiasco is one I don't feel like addressing right now - it just makes me angrier when I think about it. When you consider that the software was written by a Canadian firm after failing in a spectacular way to get Canada's long gun registration even functional, then consider that the firm is connected to a friend of Michelle - THEN consider that the back end is not yet even written, well, if you do not wonder if there's something crooked afoot, try to keep your old insurance plan.... One size never fits all - anyone who wears clothes can tell you that.
Oops - I said I wasn't gonna talk about it. Shutting up....
I guess everyone knows I was in Las Vegas a few weeks back for a family wedding - and I found Las Vegas to be a really odd place. It isn't a great place for a fat gimp who an't drink and doesn't gamble, that much I can tell you - and everything is just so damn big that you can't get anywhere without walking at least 20 minutes - and that walk (if it is inside) will be longer than it needs to be because you'll have to walk around several thousand slot machines, all bleeping and booping at you. The wedding was nice, the food in Las Vegas is exceptional - but the hotel cost too much for what it delivered, and they hammer you for internet access. I ended up plugging my phone into a charger and using the HotSpot app to let my laptop and tablet talk to the internet. I'm sure glad I have a grandfathered plan that has no data limit....
On another topic, my middle daughter is married - something that was a long time coming. The circumstances are convoluted, but from where I sit it all looks positive. Her husband is a welcome addition to our familial circus, and we look forward to having them around for a long time. Now if my wandering son were only a little closer to us geographically - but he's in Texas, somewhere around Dallas, and has opened up a new enterprise that is interesting. If you are curious, a visit to Jamie's Place will show you what he's up to, and may even give you a gift idea or two.
...
I got interrupted by life - it is now a day later than when I started this. The weather is crappy, this is the last workday this week (followed by gluttony as Thanksgiving is tomorrow) and no hope for motorcycle weather any time soon.
So I think I'll just hang up here - there will be more as time permits and as things that bug me come to light. Meanwhile, have a really good holiday or holidays, whichever you observe, be kind to one another, think positive thoughts and remember that you are truly unique - just like everybody else.
Monday, November 18, 2013
Today.
Today was a really good day - good enough that I started up the motorcycle and rode in to work.
It was a great morning until some arzl on my right put on his signal, looked at me in his mirror and then proceeded to move over into space that I was already occupying. Loud air horn got me a middle finger sign.
I did not shoot him. No pistol, and anyhow I know that that isn't a really good educational tool for such behavior, although it does tend to put a stop to it (at least for that one arzl - there are always more....) I thought a few unkind things things about his putative parentage, moved over, and went on my way - nothing will get my goat today, it is a lovely day, warm, the bike feels good, traffic is flowing and all is right with the world.
That lasted until I got to work and discovered that everything I had set up last week to run over the weekend failed to run. Crap - now I gotta figure out why that has to be that way..
Along the way, I discovered that our efforts to capitalize on our help desk personnel by borrowing them from sister organizations was somewhat less than satisfactory - apparently sister org teaches them to rigidly follow a procedure and ignore the caller's statements about what is going on. I managed not to become impolite, but I got pretty terse before he agreed to do what I had asked him 15 minutes earlier to do.
Soon, however, I get to go outside on the roof, get my jacket out, put on my gloves and motorcycle home - and I do look forward to it. Great weather at least for today. Gotta get those last rides in. On the weekend I need to get Big Suzi over to Jack to get checked out, and then think about getting her sold. I really don't want all that badly to ride anything that heavy any more.
The year is winding down - less than 45 days before I start writing checks with the wrong year on them again - or until I would be doing that if I wrote checks any more, which I do not. Along the way, I noted some of my classmates have been married longer than I have (I was a late starter) and some are even older, but still alive. All too many no longer live - a consequence of the aging process, I know, but the table at the last reunion with deceased's pictures was entirely too full to suit me - some good folks that are no longer have with us.
Tomorrow I gotta get serious about recovering something that has disappeared on me (again) - to see if I can convince it to come back to life. It seems some stuff about which I had no knowledge depends on the stuff I can no longer pull down from elsewhere, so I gotta reverse-engineer what I can find and get it working again. Life is never dull.
Things at the home of the newlywed daughter are going ell - Big Ronnie is back to work, Little Ronnie is doing well at school, and Jessica seems to be doing well. Once in a while things do go better than one has a right to hope. I'll talk more about that whole circumstance at a later date - but it has been interesting to watch it grow - and I am well pleased at this point.
Once in a while, my dreams take me to strange places - back to Germany, back to an earlier day and an old flame, back to school, etc. The past week has been full of this - someone's trying to tell me something, but I cannot imagine what it is. If I figure it out, I guess I'll just have to write about it. Meanwhile, I have phone calls to make to check on a few folks about whom I still care.
Over my lifetime so far, I've missed out on good things because of my own insecurities and perceived limitations, and screwed up in more ways than I could have imagined existed. For all of that, life is a good place, and the regrets I have, while many, are not great enough to make me do more than occasionally wish to hunt someone down an deliver an apology that I believe to be owed. It is always good to call some people that I've not seen in years and catch up - whatever I might happen to be I owe at least part to others that I have met, experiences we have shared, and answers to questions that I would never have been able to make by myself alone. The most valuable things are often not really mine, but things shared with another.
I think it is time for me to pack it up and to go home. Y'all take care.
It was a great morning until some arzl on my right put on his signal, looked at me in his mirror and then proceeded to move over into space that I was already occupying. Loud air horn got me a middle finger sign.
I did not shoot him. No pistol, and anyhow I know that that isn't a really good educational tool for such behavior, although it does tend to put a stop to it (at least for that one arzl - there are always more....) I thought a few unkind things things about his putative parentage, moved over, and went on my way - nothing will get my goat today, it is a lovely day, warm, the bike feels good, traffic is flowing and all is right with the world.
That lasted until I got to work and discovered that everything I had set up last week to run over the weekend failed to run. Crap - now I gotta figure out why that has to be that way..
Along the way, I discovered that our efforts to capitalize on our help desk personnel by borrowing them from sister organizations was somewhat less than satisfactory - apparently sister org teaches them to rigidly follow a procedure and ignore the caller's statements about what is going on. I managed not to become impolite, but I got pretty terse before he agreed to do what I had asked him 15 minutes earlier to do.
Soon, however, I get to go outside on the roof, get my jacket out, put on my gloves and motorcycle home - and I do look forward to it. Great weather at least for today. Gotta get those last rides in. On the weekend I need to get Big Suzi over to Jack to get checked out, and then think about getting her sold. I really don't want all that badly to ride anything that heavy any more.
The year is winding down - less than 45 days before I start writing checks with the wrong year on them again - or until I would be doing that if I wrote checks any more, which I do not. Along the way, I noted some of my classmates have been married longer than I have (I was a late starter) and some are even older, but still alive. All too many no longer live - a consequence of the aging process, I know, but the table at the last reunion with deceased's pictures was entirely too full to suit me - some good folks that are no longer have with us.
Tomorrow I gotta get serious about recovering something that has disappeared on me (again) - to see if I can convince it to come back to life. It seems some stuff about which I had no knowledge depends on the stuff I can no longer pull down from elsewhere, so I gotta reverse-engineer what I can find and get it working again. Life is never dull.
Things at the home of the newlywed daughter are going ell - Big Ronnie is back to work, Little Ronnie is doing well at school, and Jessica seems to be doing well. Once in a while things do go better than one has a right to hope. I'll talk more about that whole circumstance at a later date - but it has been interesting to watch it grow - and I am well pleased at this point.
Once in a while, my dreams take me to strange places - back to Germany, back to an earlier day and an old flame, back to school, etc. The past week has been full of this - someone's trying to tell me something, but I cannot imagine what it is. If I figure it out, I guess I'll just have to write about it. Meanwhile, I have phone calls to make to check on a few folks about whom I still care.
Over my lifetime so far, I've missed out on good things because of my own insecurities and perceived limitations, and screwed up in more ways than I could have imagined existed. For all of that, life is a good place, and the regrets I have, while many, are not great enough to make me do more than occasionally wish to hunt someone down an deliver an apology that I believe to be owed. It is always good to call some people that I've not seen in years and catch up - whatever I might happen to be I owe at least part to others that I have met, experiences we have shared, and answers to questions that I would never have been able to make by myself alone. The most valuable things are often not really mine, but things shared with another.
I think it is time for me to pack it up and to go home. Y'all take care.
Monday, November 11, 2013
November 11, 2013
Today is a holiday that we know as Veteran's day.
For many, it is just another day off.
For some, it brings memories of good times, for others, bad - but increasingly it brings nothing at all, because veterans are slowly becoming few in number, and the respect and honor accorded them appears to be diminishing as they become more rare - and this is a shame.
Once upon a time (or, if you were a sailor, this is no shit!) being a veteran was a pretty normal thing to be. I am old enough to remember the draft - and to remember when going elsewhere to avoid it was not so cool. As a matter of fact, many who served chose enlistment as an honorable way to avoid the draft, and to avoid duty that was certain, even in peacetime, to become not-fun.
I was a draft dodger - I served four years in the Air Force rather than spend 18 months face down in the mud in the Army. It was my choice to do so, and I was, and am, glad I made that choice instead of accepting whatever the draft board had in store for me. What I did was interesting, we were told it was important (and hindsight shows that to have been true) and I enjoyed much of those four years, particularly those I spent in Germany.
I was in from July 1961 through July 1965. Viet Nam had not yet got ugly, Korea had been over for almost ten years, and when I went in, I wanted to go overseas. My father, who was not a veteran had spent critical time in 1949 in Berlin, Germany, keeping the aircraft that kept the city from starving flying and able to communicate. The time later became known as the Berlin Airlift, and is historically interesting and important. Anne Tusa has written a very god book about the Airlift - if you are interested, I encourage you to get it and to read it.
My duties were not as dangerous as those of my father - I was not in a city surrounded by ideological enemies - it was in a relatively small city in Germany. Overall, I enjoyed being there - the natives were friendly, the food and beer was good - what could go wrong?
What we did was a deep dark secret, but the overview was easy to figure out - we all worked at a place outside town - a fenced place with a windowless building and armed guards, where every 8 hours a bunch of guys (before the time that women were part of this career field) with headsets over their shoulders walked in and out of the guarded gate. It was possible to assume with some reasonable certainty of correctness that the folks walking in and out might have been using those headsets to listen to something. Outside the fence there was an antenna field the size of a small town - mostly rhombic antennas (the largest kind known to man) of a size to receive certain frequencies well, all pointed in roughly the same direction. It was reasonable to assume that we were not listening to BBC....
Our position as enlisted men was also a bit on the odd side - other services would have used officers to do what we did - and we did it very well, too. We knew that if things got ugly we would be the last to be evacuated - we supplied information that would be needed until we were overrun, but we accepted that as part of the job - or more likely just figured as so many people so young did that we were immortal, ten feet tall and covered with hair - and that we were untouchable. We never got to test that, and I am not at all sorry that we never got to test it.
I loved the work, even when it was boring. Old Cold Warriors were pretty busy sometimes - but we all know that what we did made a difference.
Other veterans were in harms way - many of my colleagues who stayed in the service after the first 4 years were up ended up in Viet Nam after it got ugly. Some died doing their job in airplanes, some died on the ground by accident of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. I'm sure nobody thought about it all that much - we did what we came to do, that others might avoid being in a wrong place at a time when they would die.
Being a veteran brings mixed feelings to me - I got to be one after a large personal failure - and my enlistment was in some ways a penance for things I left undone. But I am proud of having served, and have encouraged many kids who have asked to just take the time out of high school and go ahead and enlist - at the end of the term you will know at least 200 things you never in your life want to do again, you will have learned about people in other places, particularly if you go overseas, and you will emerge understanding the difference between commitment and involvement. you may also find an environment to your liking, and a good career.
In the final analysis, though, I am proud to have served, I honor those who served before me, with me, and after me, and I am a better person for having served. I met people who made an impact on my life, both serving and outside the service in the locations in which I served. I learned languages, and learned about people in foreign lands by living with them, not just by reading about them. The four years? I had nothing better to do at the time, and those years will always rank among the years in which I learned the most - about myself, about other people, about friends (and some non-friends) and about people who talked funny.
Those who serve are owed our respect - they wrote a check on their lives that could have been cashed at any time, in order that many others would not have to write such a check.
/sermon ends
thanks for listening (reading?)
For many, it is just another day off.
For some, it brings memories of good times, for others, bad - but increasingly it brings nothing at all, because veterans are slowly becoming few in number, and the respect and honor accorded them appears to be diminishing as they become more rare - and this is a shame.
Once upon a time (or, if you were a sailor, this is no shit!) being a veteran was a pretty normal thing to be. I am old enough to remember the draft - and to remember when going elsewhere to avoid it was not so cool. As a matter of fact, many who served chose enlistment as an honorable way to avoid the draft, and to avoid duty that was certain, even in peacetime, to become not-fun.
I was a draft dodger - I served four years in the Air Force rather than spend 18 months face down in the mud in the Army. It was my choice to do so, and I was, and am, glad I made that choice instead of accepting whatever the draft board had in store for me. What I did was interesting, we were told it was important (and hindsight shows that to have been true) and I enjoyed much of those four years, particularly those I spent in Germany.
I was in from July 1961 through July 1965. Viet Nam had not yet got ugly, Korea had been over for almost ten years, and when I went in, I wanted to go overseas. My father, who was not a veteran had spent critical time in 1949 in Berlin, Germany, keeping the aircraft that kept the city from starving flying and able to communicate. The time later became known as the Berlin Airlift, and is historically interesting and important. Anne Tusa has written a very god book about the Airlift - if you are interested, I encourage you to get it and to read it.
My duties were not as dangerous as those of my father - I was not in a city surrounded by ideological enemies - it was in a relatively small city in Germany. Overall, I enjoyed being there - the natives were friendly, the food and beer was good - what could go wrong?
What we did was a deep dark secret, but the overview was easy to figure out - we all worked at a place outside town - a fenced place with a windowless building and armed guards, where every 8 hours a bunch of guys (before the time that women were part of this career field) with headsets over their shoulders walked in and out of the guarded gate. It was possible to assume with some reasonable certainty of correctness that the folks walking in and out might have been using those headsets to listen to something. Outside the fence there was an antenna field the size of a small town - mostly rhombic antennas (the largest kind known to man) of a size to receive certain frequencies well, all pointed in roughly the same direction. It was reasonable to assume that we were not listening to BBC....
Our position as enlisted men was also a bit on the odd side - other services would have used officers to do what we did - and we did it very well, too. We knew that if things got ugly we would be the last to be evacuated - we supplied information that would be needed until we were overrun, but we accepted that as part of the job - or more likely just figured as so many people so young did that we were immortal, ten feet tall and covered with hair - and that we were untouchable. We never got to test that, and I am not at all sorry that we never got to test it.
I loved the work, even when it was boring. Old Cold Warriors were pretty busy sometimes - but we all know that what we did made a difference.
Other veterans were in harms way - many of my colleagues who stayed in the service after the first 4 years were up ended up in Viet Nam after it got ugly. Some died doing their job in airplanes, some died on the ground by accident of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. I'm sure nobody thought about it all that much - we did what we came to do, that others might avoid being in a wrong place at a time when they would die.
Being a veteran brings mixed feelings to me - I got to be one after a large personal failure - and my enlistment was in some ways a penance for things I left undone. But I am proud of having served, and have encouraged many kids who have asked to just take the time out of high school and go ahead and enlist - at the end of the term you will know at least 200 things you never in your life want to do again, you will have learned about people in other places, particularly if you go overseas, and you will emerge understanding the difference between commitment and involvement. you may also find an environment to your liking, and a good career.
In the final analysis, though, I am proud to have served, I honor those who served before me, with me, and after me, and I am a better person for having served. I met people who made an impact on my life, both serving and outside the service in the locations in which I served. I learned languages, and learned about people in foreign lands by living with them, not just by reading about them. The four years? I had nothing better to do at the time, and those years will always rank among the years in which I learned the most - about myself, about other people, about friends (and some non-friends) and about people who talked funny.
Those who serve are owed our respect - they wrote a check on their lives that could have been cashed at any time, in order that many others would not have to write such a check.
/sermon ends
thanks for listening (reading?)
Friday, November 8, 2013
Friday, the 8th. It only FEELS like the 13th.
My desktop PC at work is still hosed. Oracle won't work on it. That means that the 24 or so automated processes that run every day haven't run since Wednesday. Maybe it is time to move them downstairs to a PC in the data center / server farm room. I guess I ought to do that before I piss away another day trying to fix this POS outdated PC that I am stuck with....
Normally, Friday when it isnot raining would be a motorcycle day - but when I went outside this morning it was pretty chilly,and I decided t drive the old Volvo instead. I would rather ride, but riding cold isn't much fun, and at my age, I don't need to do things that aren't fun when they are supposed to be fun. Sunday, there's a Breakfast ride with the Ramblers that I plan on riding - hope it doesn't get colder before that.
I do plan to ride some more before it gets too cold. Years ago, I rode all winter, but I was younger then, and had a snowmobile suit that (mostly) kept me warmer than necessary. Maybe I should get another one - we'll have to see about that.
Anyhow, I think I will move all the automated stuff downstairs, and then get the miscellaneous pickups and sendings caught up - then I can spend the rest of the day doing something else - like trying to make this XP POS on my desk actually talk to Oracle.
I just bought another KVM switch (powered) to replace the unpowered one I bought a while back that has gone all flakey on me. Brought it in and discovered I had mismatched video connectors, so I ordered the needed gender menders. They arrived yesterday.
Today I came in, hooked it all up anticipating great results, no more lost mouses - and what I got was no display - the monitor switching stuff does not work. Damn damn DAMN! I knew everything was going too well. Now I gotta go back to the vendor, and am still stuck with a flakey KVM switch. I should have known it wasn't too late for something else to turn to poop for me.
Well, now I have to go downstairs and get these auto-scheduled things to run again, and get all the back stuff caught up, or I'll have a double shift facing me on Monday.
I plan this weekend to pull down everything Greywolf has ever written and store it on the Big Server. His RosFic is too good for it to be hidden away. It will be a PITA - some of his stuff is pretty large, but I need to do it for myself and for posterity.
I'm going downstairs to curse at hardware. Have a great rest-of-the-day, y'all.
Normally, Friday when it isnot raining would be a motorcycle day - but when I went outside this morning it was pretty chilly,and I decided t drive the old Volvo instead. I would rather ride, but riding cold isn't much fun, and at my age, I don't need to do things that aren't fun when they are supposed to be fun. Sunday, there's a Breakfast ride with the Ramblers that I plan on riding - hope it doesn't get colder before that.
I do plan to ride some more before it gets too cold. Years ago, I rode all winter, but I was younger then, and had a snowmobile suit that (mostly) kept me warmer than necessary. Maybe I should get another one - we'll have to see about that.
Anyhow, I think I will move all the automated stuff downstairs, and then get the miscellaneous pickups and sendings caught up - then I can spend the rest of the day doing something else - like trying to make this XP POS on my desk actually talk to Oracle.
I just bought another KVM switch (powered) to replace the unpowered one I bought a while back that has gone all flakey on me. Brought it in and discovered I had mismatched video connectors, so I ordered the needed gender menders. They arrived yesterday.
Today I came in, hooked it all up anticipating great results, no more lost mouses - and what I got was no display - the monitor switching stuff does not work. Damn damn DAMN! I knew everything was going too well. Now I gotta go back to the vendor, and am still stuck with a flakey KVM switch. I should have known it wasn't too late for something else to turn to poop for me.
Well, now I have to go downstairs and get these auto-scheduled things to run again, and get all the back stuff caught up, or I'll have a double shift facing me on Monday.
I plan this weekend to pull down everything Greywolf has ever written and store it on the Big Server. His RosFic is too good for it to be hidden away. It will be a PITA - some of his stuff is pretty large, but I need to do it for myself and for posterity.
I'm going downstairs to curse at hardware. Have a great rest-of-the-day, y'all.
Tuesday, November 5, 2013
Friday the 13th came today....
On the offhand chance most of you aren't old enough to remember Pogo, a comic strip, the title comes from a favorite statement of Pogo Possum - 'Friday the 13th came on Tuesday this week.'
This started as a pretty good day - light traffic on the way in, not too much grief waiting - at least not until I booted my PC and tried to log onto the network.
In a word, it did not happen - the blasted thing would not boot, and gave me a BS message about how something needed was not there. Well, of course, nobody had a boot CD, nobody had a boot floppy, nobody had a release CD, so I was reduced to removing the drive and putting it into a PC that I own, to see if I could find what was missing. I could and I did, and then I moved the drive back to where it belonged.
No joy - I changed the BS message to another BS message, but the (muttered imprecations) thing steadfastly refused to boot.
I have a release CD. Of course, I have it at home, and it is my personal CD, not something I want all over work, so I did not have it with me.
Eventually, someone came up with a bunch of CD's designed to do everything but eat (which is a pun on a very old IBM Utility named DEBE which was later renamed DITTO....) including a current release CD, but nothing did what was needed.
So I moved everything over to a Win/7 machine that belongs to me - at least I hope I did. hen I remembered that a whole bunch of automated stuff runs from that desktop that was dead, so I had to create auto slots for each one (that I could remember) in the new machine. I guess tomorrow I'll get some idea of whether I fixed some or broke more. Also, if I am blessed, tomorrow I'll remember to bring my own personal recovery disk and get the other machine working again mebbe.
Now it is time to go home, and I have not one new thing to show for the day. I guess it could be worse.
Tomorrow looks like it will be a good day for the motorcycle - looking forward to that!
Be well.
This started as a pretty good day - light traffic on the way in, not too much grief waiting - at least not until I booted my PC and tried to log onto the network.
In a word, it did not happen - the blasted thing would not boot, and gave me a BS message about how something needed was not there. Well, of course, nobody had a boot CD, nobody had a boot floppy, nobody had a release CD, so I was reduced to removing the drive and putting it into a PC that I own, to see if I could find what was missing. I could and I did, and then I moved the drive back to where it belonged.
No joy - I changed the BS message to another BS message, but the (muttered imprecations) thing steadfastly refused to boot.
I have a release CD. Of course, I have it at home, and it is my personal CD, not something I want all over work, so I did not have it with me.
Eventually, someone came up with a bunch of CD's designed to do everything but eat (which is a pun on a very old IBM Utility named DEBE which was later renamed DITTO....) including a current release CD, but nothing did what was needed.
So I moved everything over to a Win/7 machine that belongs to me - at least I hope I did. hen I remembered that a whole bunch of automated stuff runs from that desktop that was dead, so I had to create auto slots for each one (that I could remember) in the new machine. I guess tomorrow I'll get some idea of whether I fixed some or broke more. Also, if I am blessed, tomorrow I'll remember to bring my own personal recovery disk and get the other machine working again mebbe.
Now it is time to go home, and I have not one new thing to show for the day. I guess it could be worse.
Tomorrow looks like it will be a good day for the motorcycle - looking forward to that!
Be well.
Monday, November 4, 2013
Monday Morning at zero dark 30
I should be asleep, but here's what's not happening - sleep.
The week has been productive, mostly - couple of good motorcycle days, and progress on a messy bug. I'm pretty well satisfied with results, and am headed into a week with neither medical nor other sorts of interruptions. Possible schedule alterations, but not much else.
Today I took off this afternoon to take the a ride. It was brisk, but not really cold, and I cracked off about 80 miles without stopping except for lights and such. Great ride, albeit different - I took a route I haven't take on the new bike yet, and it was really a fun run. I ended up in Pennsylvania (no I did not take my helmet off!) and rode by to salute Susan's blue heron on the way home. Altogether pleasant except for the fact that the sun was in my eyes. It might be time to fashion some kind of a visor for this helmet.
This entire weekend was peaceful. Jessica and both Ronnies were over, and Big Ronnie cleaned out Jessica's car, during which process he found stuff that the previous owner had lost, and gave Jessica a fit for not having ever cleaned it out. Doubtless he'd've been giving me a fit had he been cleaning my car, but so far my car retains it's very own personality, unmarred by neat freaks.
Ronnie seems really good - fate is throwing crap at him, and not making his return to the fold easy or pleasant but he is weathering the storm(s) and rolling with it. I do not envy him some of what must be learned and experienced, but I know he'll be OK eventually. Jessica is over the moon - the family is finally complete, and Little Ronnie is loving life - his deportment at school is improving as well as his attention to his work. Looks to me like a win-win for all of us.
Last weekend in Las Vegas I met someone with whom I have been in touch for several years but had never met. Through various online groups I meet people this way, and it was very good to meet the actual person and family - I had a great time, wish I had had more time, but they were headed into a really busy time in a different state. It is really good to be able to put faces and places together with the names (or 'nyms) with whom I have been in contact over the years. At least this person stayed alive - another died before we ever had a chance to meet, and it really bothered me at the time.
Someone in Las Vegas asked me when I would retire, and I thought about ti, and decided maybe sometime before I reach 80, which isn't as far a way as I might wish. Naturally, I am interested in pensions (not that mine will amount to all that much unless I can last more than 10-15 years) but I also really enjoy what I do, and as long as someone is willing to pay me to do things I like, why should I stop doing them?
Seeing all my family members last weekend was really good - while my parents were Pittsburgh kids, many of my relatives have moved to places like Los Angeles, Texas, South Carolina and Florida - and getting together is no longer as frequent or as easy as it once was, and I find that I miss all these folks. We are all getting older, and one day they'll not be there to miss any more (along with myself, who also one day will be gone) so I rather cherish any opportunity to be with them.
One thing about Las Vegas, though - everything is to big and too far apart for old fat guys with sore knees and legs! I actually lost weight in Las Vegas!
Well, I am hoping for motorcycle weather when I ariise - right now, it's late and if I don't soon get to bed it will be time to arise!
Be well, y'all....
The week has been productive, mostly - couple of good motorcycle days, and progress on a messy bug. I'm pretty well satisfied with results, and am headed into a week with neither medical nor other sorts of interruptions. Possible schedule alterations, but not much else.
Today I took off this afternoon to take the a ride. It was brisk, but not really cold, and I cracked off about 80 miles without stopping except for lights and such. Great ride, albeit different - I took a route I haven't take on the new bike yet, and it was really a fun run. I ended up in Pennsylvania (no I did not take my helmet off!) and rode by to salute Susan's blue heron on the way home. Altogether pleasant except for the fact that the sun was in my eyes. It might be time to fashion some kind of a visor for this helmet.
This entire weekend was peaceful. Jessica and both Ronnies were over, and Big Ronnie cleaned out Jessica's car, during which process he found stuff that the previous owner had lost, and gave Jessica a fit for not having ever cleaned it out. Doubtless he'd've been giving me a fit had he been cleaning my car, but so far my car retains it's very own personality, unmarred by neat freaks.
Ronnie seems really good - fate is throwing crap at him, and not making his return to the fold easy or pleasant but he is weathering the storm(s) and rolling with it. I do not envy him some of what must be learned and experienced, but I know he'll be OK eventually. Jessica is over the moon - the family is finally complete, and Little Ronnie is loving life - his deportment at school is improving as well as his attention to his work. Looks to me like a win-win for all of us.
Last weekend in Las Vegas I met someone with whom I have been in touch for several years but had never met. Through various online groups I meet people this way, and it was very good to meet the actual person and family - I had a great time, wish I had had more time, but they were headed into a really busy time in a different state. It is really good to be able to put faces and places together with the names (or 'nyms) with whom I have been in contact over the years. At least this person stayed alive - another died before we ever had a chance to meet, and it really bothered me at the time.
Someone in Las Vegas asked me when I would retire, and I thought about ti, and decided maybe sometime before I reach 80, which isn't as far a way as I might wish. Naturally, I am interested in pensions (not that mine will amount to all that much unless I can last more than 10-15 years) but I also really enjoy what I do, and as long as someone is willing to pay me to do things I like, why should I stop doing them?
Seeing all my family members last weekend was really good - while my parents were Pittsburgh kids, many of my relatives have moved to places like Los Angeles, Texas, South Carolina and Florida - and getting together is no longer as frequent or as easy as it once was, and I find that I miss all these folks. We are all getting older, and one day they'll not be there to miss any more (along with myself, who also one day will be gone) so I rather cherish any opportunity to be with them.
One thing about Las Vegas, though - everything is to big and too far apart for old fat guys with sore knees and legs! I actually lost weight in Las Vegas!
Well, I am hoping for motorcycle weather when I ariise - right now, it's late and if I don't soon get to bed it will be time to arise!
Be well, y'all....
Thursday, October 31, 2013
Hallowe'en day
This morning was a little foggy, but otherwise nice enough to uncover the Guzzi and ride it to work.
Our weather seems to be confused - by now, in normal times (which all occurred before I was half the age I am now) we would have had snow by now. Instead, it was over 60 when I left for work and a bit foggy but not really all that damn - it felt good to start the Guzzi and get on it to head for work.
I didn't take a back way - just down 795, around 695 and down 83 and it took less than 40 minutes, which is pretty good time for heading in in the morning - I never get it that quick in the old Volvo.
There's something about riding a really good motorcycle that energizes me - the Guzzi likes to have its gearbox stirred, and doesn't produce all that much power below about 2500 RPM - and really likes t be run above 3000. Since 4000 in fifth is about 75, that gives plenty of gears for maneuvering around traffic, and backing down for entering a curve. Stirring them can be a lot of fun....
Everything was just right this morning - cool enough to make me alert and make the mixture to the engine great, traffic never stopped (unusual in the morning) and it was just a joy to be out there in the air chasing things.
Everyone should at least one good motorcycle for a time in their lives.
Otherwise not a whole lot to relate - choir rehearsal was good last night and I think I might have finally caught up on time zone changes and lost sleep in aircraft.
So on that positive note, have a wonderful Hallowe'en!
Our weather seems to be confused - by now, in normal times (which all occurred before I was half the age I am now) we would have had snow by now. Instead, it was over 60 when I left for work and a bit foggy but not really all that damn - it felt good to start the Guzzi and get on it to head for work.
I didn't take a back way - just down 795, around 695 and down 83 and it took less than 40 minutes, which is pretty good time for heading in in the morning - I never get it that quick in the old Volvo.
There's something about riding a really good motorcycle that energizes me - the Guzzi likes to have its gearbox stirred, and doesn't produce all that much power below about 2500 RPM - and really likes t be run above 3000. Since 4000 in fifth is about 75, that gives plenty of gears for maneuvering around traffic, and backing down for entering a curve. Stirring them can be a lot of fun....
Everything was just right this morning - cool enough to make me alert and make the mixture to the engine great, traffic never stopped (unusual in the morning) and it was just a joy to be out there in the air chasing things.
Everyone should at least one good motorcycle for a time in their lives.
Otherwise not a whole lot to relate - choir rehearsal was good last night and I think I might have finally caught up on time zone changes and lost sleep in aircraft.
So on that positive note, have a wonderful Hallowe'en!
Wednesday, October 30, 2013
The Day Before Hallowe'en
I've been pretty busy, and haven't been here for a while. It's been an eventful couple of weeks.
By now all of you faithful readers know that my middle child, Jessica, married the father of her son, which is a Good Thing, although she did take her sweet damn time about it.
There's a lot of this marrying stuff going around. This past weekend, I went to Las Vegas to help a first cousin once removed get married. It was an interesting trip.
My last trip to Las Vegas was from Los Angeles in a Mooney owned by an uncle - the very physician who delivered my son, and it occurred about four days after his delivering my son. Phyllis and I were out there to pick up this child and bring him home, and the tradition at the time was that whenever someone came to visit, it was Uncle Jim's job to get them up very early, stuff them in the airplane, and go to Las Vegas for breakfast. My recollection is that the food was incredible, and the choices so varied one could starve just making up one's mind what to choose. I won a few bucks on the slots, and we flew back to San Bernardino before the air over the mountains got too rough. I got to fly his Mooney and loved it, although one of his daughters told me this weekend I almost made her airsick.
But that was 40+ years ago.
This time when I went it was for a wedding at Caesar's Palace. I almost did not get a rental car since I looked at the map and it appeared that everywhere I was likely to have to be was a short walk from my hotel, Harrahs. The maps didn't have a scale anywhere and I was soon to find out why.
I have lived in towns smaller than Caesar's Palace. It was a good half hour's walk from my hotel to the garden in which the wedding took place. It would have been 20 minutes, but I am not 30 any more, I have recently broken a leg that is healing, my knees are probably 30 years older than I am and, of course, recovery from abdominal surgery tends to slow one down. I never walked so damn much before in my life, nor did I ever find it needful to sit down so many times in the course of one journey to a place that looked so close by.
I out-smarted my self once by using what they call the Monorail. It is technically interesting, and on Google Maps it looked ideal - and I guess it was ideal for someone 35 who can run a mile without breaking a sweat. For me, it took me to a place about half a mile from my destination. I was inside a casino all of that half mile, and it had the ceiling not flat, but curved and painted like a night sky - so well done one could believe oneself to be outside. I saw no clocks ever inside any place that I was, and it was impossible to walk anywhere without a slot machine so close you had to deviate from the planned route in order not to run into it. The hotel had no free WiFi - they suggested I go downstairs to Starbucks and use theirs - their tables are right next to about 128 new slot machines, all electronic.
These new slots are so different from the old three-reel slots (mechanical) that I soon figured out I was too dumb to work them without 24 hours of dual - so I stayed away from them. Didn't gamble, so I got no free booze, and wasn't buying.
The wedding was lovely, tastefully done, and not at all what I kinda expected from larger-than-life Las Vegas. Everywhere we went, the food was the best I have ever had - and the portions far too large for me to consider eating, even before my gastric bypass. It was hard for me to believe it, but when I got home (after I woke up) I got on my scale and found I had actually lost almost 5 pounds. That was a truly unexpected result.
I flew in and back on Spirit Airlines. The prices were really great, I thought - at least until I started doing things like seat selection and baggage arrangements. My checked bag was overweight, so it ended up costing near to $100 for the privilege. There went the price advantage....
The aircraft were all A-320 Airbus aircraft - apparently a good workhorse much in the class of the old 727 (of you are old enough to remember having flown in one - I am) and they are not (or did not seem) as cramped as other flights I have taken - but they flew full aircraft, and both times I managed to request seating in the only row that did not recline, so there was no sleeping, not even on the late red-eye I took to get home. Also, I had walked so much I was in a lot of pain, and having to cross my arms to avoid molesting the person next to me wasn't much fun.
Next time I think I will take the train, if I can be sure I can get enough time to manage it. I really do not enjoy flying any more.
It was great to see some family I seldom get to see, and to spend time with them, although it seemed as if we got together only at mealtimes - it was the only way to get us around a table that didn't have slot machines on it.
I was fortunate to have reserved a rental car, and even more fortunate to have done so when there was a mistake on their web site, allowing me to ask (successfully) that they honor a truly stupid low rate, and I got an upgrade to a Toyota 4-runner, which was nicer than I expected. Had I not had a reservation, they would have had no cars - the PBR was in town, and that's a really Big Deal for Las Vegas.
Arriving late Friday night as I did, I drove to the hotel. Any more, I make sure I take the car mount for my Android phone, as I like Google's Maps and GPS services better than anything else I have found, and it really works well. It managed to find the entrance to Harrahs by the desk, which was around back and almost underground - the only trouble I had was finding a parking place, and when I did, it was free and I could park near the elevator. Check-in was a breeze, and it was only about a mile and a half to my room (if I counted the distance the elevator had to travel to get to my floor.) I found vending and ice - and found that snacks were cheap, but sodas and such were not (I found the same to be true on the plane, incidentally - Spirit does everything a la carte, so you get nickeled and dimed without realizing it.) There was no in-room coffee, but Starbucks was right downstairs (next to a boatload of slot machines....) and there was noise and music all around.
A really different experience. I am well beyond the age that I would seek excuses to go back - but I might go back just to visit people I met there. It is always good to put faces with names of folks you 'know' from many years of meeting on-line but have never seen.
All in all I am glad I went - it was mostly a good experience, and the pain will go away in a few weeks.
Aside from that, I guess there isn't much all that new, so I'll close this down and get it posted.
Y'all take care....
By now all of you faithful readers know that my middle child, Jessica, married the father of her son, which is a Good Thing, although she did take her sweet damn time about it.
There's a lot of this marrying stuff going around. This past weekend, I went to Las Vegas to help a first cousin once removed get married. It was an interesting trip.
My last trip to Las Vegas was from Los Angeles in a Mooney owned by an uncle - the very physician who delivered my son, and it occurred about four days after his delivering my son. Phyllis and I were out there to pick up this child and bring him home, and the tradition at the time was that whenever someone came to visit, it was Uncle Jim's job to get them up very early, stuff them in the airplane, and go to Las Vegas for breakfast. My recollection is that the food was incredible, and the choices so varied one could starve just making up one's mind what to choose. I won a few bucks on the slots, and we flew back to San Bernardino before the air over the mountains got too rough. I got to fly his Mooney and loved it, although one of his daughters told me this weekend I almost made her airsick.
But that was 40+ years ago.
This time when I went it was for a wedding at Caesar's Palace. I almost did not get a rental car since I looked at the map and it appeared that everywhere I was likely to have to be was a short walk from my hotel, Harrahs. The maps didn't have a scale anywhere and I was soon to find out why.
I have lived in towns smaller than Caesar's Palace. It was a good half hour's walk from my hotel to the garden in which the wedding took place. It would have been 20 minutes, but I am not 30 any more, I have recently broken a leg that is healing, my knees are probably 30 years older than I am and, of course, recovery from abdominal surgery tends to slow one down. I never walked so damn much before in my life, nor did I ever find it needful to sit down so many times in the course of one journey to a place that looked so close by.
I out-smarted my self once by using what they call the Monorail. It is technically interesting, and on Google Maps it looked ideal - and I guess it was ideal for someone 35 who can run a mile without breaking a sweat. For me, it took me to a place about half a mile from my destination. I was inside a casino all of that half mile, and it had the ceiling not flat, but curved and painted like a night sky - so well done one could believe oneself to be outside. I saw no clocks ever inside any place that I was, and it was impossible to walk anywhere without a slot machine so close you had to deviate from the planned route in order not to run into it. The hotel had no free WiFi - they suggested I go downstairs to Starbucks and use theirs - their tables are right next to about 128 new slot machines, all electronic.
These new slots are so different from the old three-reel slots (mechanical) that I soon figured out I was too dumb to work them without 24 hours of dual - so I stayed away from them. Didn't gamble, so I got no free booze, and wasn't buying.
The wedding was lovely, tastefully done, and not at all what I kinda expected from larger-than-life Las Vegas. Everywhere we went, the food was the best I have ever had - and the portions far too large for me to consider eating, even before my gastric bypass. It was hard for me to believe it, but when I got home (after I woke up) I got on my scale and found I had actually lost almost 5 pounds. That was a truly unexpected result.
I flew in and back on Spirit Airlines. The prices were really great, I thought - at least until I started doing things like seat selection and baggage arrangements. My checked bag was overweight, so it ended up costing near to $100 for the privilege. There went the price advantage....
The aircraft were all A-320 Airbus aircraft - apparently a good workhorse much in the class of the old 727 (of you are old enough to remember having flown in one - I am) and they are not (or did not seem) as cramped as other flights I have taken - but they flew full aircraft, and both times I managed to request seating in the only row that did not recline, so there was no sleeping, not even on the late red-eye I took to get home. Also, I had walked so much I was in a lot of pain, and having to cross my arms to avoid molesting the person next to me wasn't much fun.
Next time I think I will take the train, if I can be sure I can get enough time to manage it. I really do not enjoy flying any more.
It was great to see some family I seldom get to see, and to spend time with them, although it seemed as if we got together only at mealtimes - it was the only way to get us around a table that didn't have slot machines on it.
I was fortunate to have reserved a rental car, and even more fortunate to have done so when there was a mistake on their web site, allowing me to ask (successfully) that they honor a truly stupid low rate, and I got an upgrade to a Toyota 4-runner, which was nicer than I expected. Had I not had a reservation, they would have had no cars - the PBR was in town, and that's a really Big Deal for Las Vegas.
Arriving late Friday night as I did, I drove to the hotel. Any more, I make sure I take the car mount for my Android phone, as I like Google's Maps and GPS services better than anything else I have found, and it really works well. It managed to find the entrance to Harrahs by the desk, which was around back and almost underground - the only trouble I had was finding a parking place, and when I did, it was free and I could park near the elevator. Check-in was a breeze, and it was only about a mile and a half to my room (if I counted the distance the elevator had to travel to get to my floor.) I found vending and ice - and found that snacks were cheap, but sodas and such were not (I found the same to be true on the plane, incidentally - Spirit does everything a la carte, so you get nickeled and dimed without realizing it.) There was no in-room coffee, but Starbucks was right downstairs (next to a boatload of slot machines....) and there was noise and music all around.
A really different experience. I am well beyond the age that I would seek excuses to go back - but I might go back just to visit people I met there. It is always good to put faces with names of folks you 'know' from many years of meeting on-line but have never seen.
All in all I am glad I went - it was mostly a good experience, and the pain will go away in a few weeks.
Aside from that, I guess there isn't much all that new, so I'll close this down and get it posted.
Y'all take care....
Monday, October 21, 2013
Moto Guzzi, redux
Well, yesterday I took the new (to me) motorcycle on a trip with some other riders who I know from the Baltimore Ramblers Motorcycle Club, a club of which I am a member.
It was an eclectic mix - a Triumph, my Guzzi, a BMW, a Suzuki Burgmann superscooter, a Harley Trike and about 5 Harley 2-wheelers. The route was set by Jeff Hutchins, the club president, and was a really pleasant back road tour to see the leaves (although I spent more time looking down the road to see what I had to do than looking around) and included some rough roads, some twisty roads, and some turns that were not easy to make. I was somewhere in the middle of the group, and managed everything pretty well, although I did go wide at one intersection and ride up on the grass. Happily all I got for it was a muddy boot.
The day before, a group had gone on a ride that covered about 300 miles. What I learned yesterday is that my arse isn't good for much over 100 miles, and I run out of strength soon after the 100 mark is hit. I don't actually collapse, but my skill erodes to the point that I really need to get off the bike and into a car if I am traveling farther.
Getting old is really a bummer - I used to think nothing at all of 300 and 400 mile days - now I don't even think about them because I am not strong enough to manage them, although there is hope if I get more weight off and finish healing this leg that I broke that it will become easier. My fear is that I'll have to get my knees done first - and that is something I don't really look forward to. I keep telling myself if I could get off another 60-70 pounds, my knees might stop yelling at me. Then again, they might not.
But the Guzzi is one of the most pleasant bikes I have ever ridden. It is right up there with my old BMW's as nimble, and I don't exactly get on it and ride it - it's more like I pull it on and wear it. Lean angles are (or seem to me to be) easy; very little requirement for counter-steer; no flex laid over in a fast curve, flexible power (although the engine does prefer to be kept over 3000 RPM,) good power delivery from the fuel-injected engine, and even decent mileage. I'm slowly getting used to the brakes (the right hand lever controls one disk on the front - the other disk and the back disk are actuated by the rear brake pedal, and the proportioning valve is apparently set up very well.) The pedal placement is not ideal after riding the Big Suzi, but I think I can get used to it (or change it if needed). The shifter is the same, but the weakness of my knees and upper legs make the problem a lot worse than it has to be - maybe I'll get more strength back in the coming months....
But riding it is a real giggle - it doesn't need muscled - it seems as if all I have to do is drop a hint what I want to do, and it satisfies. Hands-off it tracks straight and true for as long as I am that silly, and it even has a steering damper that it doesn't need. No shakes at all, no temperment at all - a wholly friendly ride.
This lack of strength is beginning to bug me. It isn't apparent in the car (of course, the car isn't as much work to drive) but it sure makes itself known on the bike. The commute ride is OK at 25 miles each way, and there's plenty of recovery time, but spending a couple of hours in the saddle wears me out to the point that I begin to scare myself (and possibly the folks around me, although they don't say anything....) and I am not happy about that. Motorcycles have been a part of my life for so long now I hate to think that the day will come that I can only look at them and drool...
However, within my own limits, I am enjoying the Moto Guzzi a whole bunch, and the weather has been cooperating enough that it hasn't yet come to the time to put it up.
Anyone out there need a big Suzuki (VL1500, 2004?)
Until later - I'll have more to say about family changes as time goes by - right now, we are all feeling very positive, and thankful that we feel that way.
It was an eclectic mix - a Triumph, my Guzzi, a BMW, a Suzuki Burgmann superscooter, a Harley Trike and about 5 Harley 2-wheelers. The route was set by Jeff Hutchins, the club president, and was a really pleasant back road tour to see the leaves (although I spent more time looking down the road to see what I had to do than looking around) and included some rough roads, some twisty roads, and some turns that were not easy to make. I was somewhere in the middle of the group, and managed everything pretty well, although I did go wide at one intersection and ride up on the grass. Happily all I got for it was a muddy boot.
The day before, a group had gone on a ride that covered about 300 miles. What I learned yesterday is that my arse isn't good for much over 100 miles, and I run out of strength soon after the 100 mark is hit. I don't actually collapse, but my skill erodes to the point that I really need to get off the bike and into a car if I am traveling farther.
Getting old is really a bummer - I used to think nothing at all of 300 and 400 mile days - now I don't even think about them because I am not strong enough to manage them, although there is hope if I get more weight off and finish healing this leg that I broke that it will become easier. My fear is that I'll have to get my knees done first - and that is something I don't really look forward to. I keep telling myself if I could get off another 60-70 pounds, my knees might stop yelling at me. Then again, they might not.
But the Guzzi is one of the most pleasant bikes I have ever ridden. It is right up there with my old BMW's as nimble, and I don't exactly get on it and ride it - it's more like I pull it on and wear it. Lean angles are (or seem to me to be) easy; very little requirement for counter-steer; no flex laid over in a fast curve, flexible power (although the engine does prefer to be kept over 3000 RPM,) good power delivery from the fuel-injected engine, and even decent mileage. I'm slowly getting used to the brakes (the right hand lever controls one disk on the front - the other disk and the back disk are actuated by the rear brake pedal, and the proportioning valve is apparently set up very well.) The pedal placement is not ideal after riding the Big Suzi, but I think I can get used to it (or change it if needed). The shifter is the same, but the weakness of my knees and upper legs make the problem a lot worse than it has to be - maybe I'll get more strength back in the coming months....
But riding it is a real giggle - it doesn't need muscled - it seems as if all I have to do is drop a hint what I want to do, and it satisfies. Hands-off it tracks straight and true for as long as I am that silly, and it even has a steering damper that it doesn't need. No shakes at all, no temperment at all - a wholly friendly ride.
This lack of strength is beginning to bug me. It isn't apparent in the car (of course, the car isn't as much work to drive) but it sure makes itself known on the bike. The commute ride is OK at 25 miles each way, and there's plenty of recovery time, but spending a couple of hours in the saddle wears me out to the point that I begin to scare myself (and possibly the folks around me, although they don't say anything....) and I am not happy about that. Motorcycles have been a part of my life for so long now I hate to think that the day will come that I can only look at them and drool...
However, within my own limits, I am enjoying the Moto Guzzi a whole bunch, and the weather has been cooperating enough that it hasn't yet come to the time to put it up.
Anyone out there need a big Suzuki (VL1500, 2004?)
Until later - I'll have more to say about family changes as time goes by - right now, we are all feeling very positive, and thankful that we feel that way.
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