First: The other night I was cuddling Bella after her Magic Treehouse book, and said "you know what? This is what home feels like". She rolled away, out of my arms, and said "and THIS is what the hotel feels like, right?" Sassafrass.
Today was a working day: Zinsser has been a "kept animal" in our house - only out on leashes, always pegged down in the yard. There are/were leash-free dog people on our block, but I could never deal with the heartache of a dog hit by traffic or lost in the wild... So Zinsser has always seen the world at a length of 8-10 feet from us. But there are some neighbors with fenced in yards and Zinsser has loved visiting there, running free.
So we decided to complete the fencing in of our yard. We had Midwest Fence come out and sink some posts, run some fence, and it's gorgeous. But they were only doing fill-in around the existing fences... and prior to letting Zinsser out, we needed to do some patching work on the existing fences: The arty wood fence on the south side needed a mesh backing since the slats were wide enough for a dog to slip through. The two chain link fences on the west and north sides of the yard had enormous holes for the rabbit and raccoon superhighways.
So today we patched it all. We got 50" of 2 foot high coated chickenwire, and 80 feet of one foot high "garden border"... plus we had about 10 feet of left over chain link. With a staple gun and a bunch of zip ties, we have sealed the yard, and we "released the hound" at about 4pm this afternoon.
Zinsser was at first tentative, then walking more confidently, and then spent a full hour tearing through the yard at full speed. The kids had a slip and slide going which he ran through a few times too - by the end, we had a wet, happy, tired dog. Just watching that happy animal made me so content. To be able to open that back door and let him run for a while will just be great.
I confess I did get a toy while we were doing all this shopping for fencing. Yeah, I got a gas powered weed whacker. 4 stroke engine for low pollution and high power, and it's not THAT loud. I whipped all sorts of weeds into submission with a cackle. And when I say "weed" I also mean "small trees". We also got a rototiller attachment which looks formidable. With the fence done, our job tomorrow is to whip the victory garden into shape. Hopefully it's not too late to get some herbs and tomatoes started.
We spent most of the day outdoors, and that wipes people out. Isaac was down by 7:45. Pamela by 8:30. Bella took a little longer to conk out at 9:30, and here I am with my content dog at my side still finding some energy. I might watch a Buffy before bed.
It was a good day.
Saturday, May 29, 2010
Thursday, May 27, 2010
Earthling
Tonight as I was cuddling Bella:
"Dad, you know how [her friend] Remy had a bit of a fancy party [two weeks ago]? How we had our toenails painted and did our hair and everything? Well I want to have the OPPOSITE party.
I want to paint my toenails... with mud.
And I want to have sticks and leaves in my hair. And I want to go down a slip and slide.
And when my friends arrive, the slip and slide will be out front, and it'll be the FIRST thing we all do."
That's my girl. It's good to be home tonight. She has given up on all pajamas and only wears my old t-shirts to bed now. We were also discussing how I make use of the 4 pillows I get in the hotel rooms: I told her one for my head, one for my back (to feel cuddled), one in front to hug and a spare. She suggested I put it at my feet to emulate Zinsser.
I'm looking forward to a long weekend - our fence is up, and we just need to get some fill-in mesh for the existing neighbor fencing, and then our back yard will be Zinsser Paradise.
"Dad, you know how [her friend] Remy had a bit of a fancy party [two weeks ago]? How we had our toenails painted and did our hair and everything? Well I want to have the OPPOSITE party.
I want to paint my toenails... with mud.
And I want to have sticks and leaves in my hair. And I want to go down a slip and slide.
And when my friends arrive, the slip and slide will be out front, and it'll be the FIRST thing we all do."
That's my girl. It's good to be home tonight. She has given up on all pajamas and only wears my old t-shirts to bed now. We were also discussing how I make use of the 4 pillows I get in the hotel rooms: I told her one for my head, one for my back (to feel cuddled), one in front to hug and a spare. She suggested I put it at my feet to emulate Zinsser.
I'm looking forward to a long weekend - our fence is up, and we just need to get some fill-in mesh for the existing neighbor fencing, and then our back yard will be Zinsser Paradise.
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
A Strange Day
Today was the kickoff of the really big work sessions in Cleveland. We had 240 people at our first session - 130 in person, 110 on the phone with web meeting. Then we had between 2-3 simultaneous sessions all day, with between 40-80 people in each one. It was big craziness.
Since this sort of affair is larger than the client can house, we've taken space at a community center. And we're sharing the space with other community center activities. Which led to today's horror: In the middle of the center is a huge room that can be divided into 3 medium rooms. Let's call them A, B, and C. In room A, we had 50 people discussing hospital billing. In room C, we had 80 people discussing emergency room admitting procedures.
In room B, was Bingo for Seniors. With a microphone and a big speaker.
So for 2 hours, our sessions in A and C were punctuated by regular "B5", "I22" "N36", "G58", and "072". Clear as day. It was at first jarring, then distracting, and then I settled into it and realized that this is what going insane sounds like: People dryly discussing the exact point at which an account is due to be forwarded to a collection agency, with a monotone, bass heavy voice calling out random number and letters, with the occasional "WE HAVE BINGO CALLED - DON'T CLEAR YOUR CARDS - WE NEED TO VERIFY".
When the game was finally over, and silence settled from Room B, the people in A and C were still on their guard, looking around, flinching a bit. It was a terrible terrible experience.
But almost worse was settling in after the Bingo was over, and paying closer attention to the hospital billing workflows and realizing: Oh god, what a horrible horrible thing to be caring about. I was reminded of a talk I had with one of my compatriots on the project months ago: He said "I love doing this work, but if I had to actually use this software to do these workflows I have helped them design to do the job they need to do, I'd kill myself".
I must say, he had a point. Working on clinical things (Cardiac, Imaging, Pharmacy) is so much more fun because, well, it's about directly helping people as opposed to getting PAID for helping people. Oh well!
Since this sort of affair is larger than the client can house, we've taken space at a community center. And we're sharing the space with other community center activities. Which led to today's horror: In the middle of the center is a huge room that can be divided into 3 medium rooms. Let's call them A, B, and C. In room A, we had 50 people discussing hospital billing. In room C, we had 80 people discussing emergency room admitting procedures.
In room B, was Bingo for Seniors. With a microphone and a big speaker.
So for 2 hours, our sessions in A and C were punctuated by regular "B5", "I22" "N36", "G58", and "072". Clear as day. It was at first jarring, then distracting, and then I settled into it and realized that this is what going insane sounds like: People dryly discussing the exact point at which an account is due to be forwarded to a collection agency, with a monotone, bass heavy voice calling out random number and letters, with the occasional "WE HAVE BINGO CALLED - DON'T CLEAR YOUR CARDS - WE NEED TO VERIFY".
When the game was finally over, and silence settled from Room B, the people in A and C were still on their guard, looking around, flinching a bit. It was a terrible terrible experience.
But almost worse was settling in after the Bingo was over, and paying closer attention to the hospital billing workflows and realizing: Oh god, what a horrible horrible thing to be caring about. I was reminded of a talk I had with one of my compatriots on the project months ago: He said "I love doing this work, but if I had to actually use this software to do these workflows I have helped them design to do the job they need to do, I'd kill myself".
I must say, he had a point. Working on clinical things (Cardiac, Imaging, Pharmacy) is so much more fun because, well, it's about directly helping people as opposed to getting PAID for helping people. Oh well!
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
A dinner story
Driving home from a long day in Cleveland, I was musing about where to eat, when I found myself in front of "Cleveland's Best Pizza" again - Geraci's. I don't recall making the conscious decision to go here, and it is not exactly on the way home... but it seemed it was what the body required.
The place was packed and I was parked at a table that had around 3 inches from the tables on either side - this was a slightly expanded 6-top, accommodating 3 separate parties. I opened the iPad, and was launched into "demo mode" for everyone around me, including the owner of the restaurant, the waiter, and my four dinner companions.
On my right was a couple who were on their way back from visiting family in Wisconsin, on the way to Albany, and they're from Cleveland originally, so they always stop for food. This was their first visit to Geraci's and they were thrilled. The guy had been using Apples since the 1980s, so we compared pedigrees (you had that? I had this). The wife was the iMac user.
On my left was a pair of guys about my age were were clearly "on the spectrum" of autism: One was a hummer/mumbler who didn't engage with me directly, but chimed in "yeps" to agree with his friend, who was the talker. There the talk was about vintage TV shows, which started with how you get onto the web with the iPad, then his favorite website (TVshowsonDVD.com) then about the injustices of old shows in syndication on TVLand cutting out footage to allow for more ads, to the continuing and scandalous unavailability of the 1960s Batman shows in their entirety on DVD.
These guys were autograph hounds too, and had a story about meeting Frank Gorshin (the Riddler) as well as Mrs Kravitz from Bewitched (Must have been Sandra Gould from seasons 3-7, since Alice Pearce from seasons 1-2 died in the 1960s). In a 4 year period they went to LA and NYC 50 times for autograph conventions. They only like the old shows - the latest they liked was "One Day At a Time" - which they can't believe they've released only ONE season of on DVD???
Punctuated throughout, the restaurant owner kept siding up asking about how movies would work on the iPad... or can it do a spreadsheet.... how do you type on it.... etc. Every time, i did Steve Jobs proud with a full demo.
It didn't translate into a free meal, however. Just in case you were wondering. No, this was total public service geeking going on here.
And I loved it.
The place was packed and I was parked at a table that had around 3 inches from the tables on either side - this was a slightly expanded 6-top, accommodating 3 separate parties. I opened the iPad, and was launched into "demo mode" for everyone around me, including the owner of the restaurant, the waiter, and my four dinner companions.
On my right was a couple who were on their way back from visiting family in Wisconsin, on the way to Albany, and they're from Cleveland originally, so they always stop for food. This was their first visit to Geraci's and they were thrilled. The guy had been using Apples since the 1980s, so we compared pedigrees (you had that? I had this). The wife was the iMac user.
On my left was a pair of guys about my age were were clearly "on the spectrum" of autism: One was a hummer/mumbler who didn't engage with me directly, but chimed in "yeps" to agree with his friend, who was the talker. There the talk was about vintage TV shows, which started with how you get onto the web with the iPad, then his favorite website (TVshowsonDVD.com) then about the injustices of old shows in syndication on TVLand cutting out footage to allow for more ads, to the continuing and scandalous unavailability of the 1960s Batman shows in their entirety on DVD.
These guys were autograph hounds too, and had a story about meeting Frank Gorshin (the Riddler) as well as Mrs Kravitz from Bewitched (Must have been Sandra Gould from seasons 3-7, since Alice Pearce from seasons 1-2 died in the 1960s). In a 4 year period they went to LA and NYC 50 times for autograph conventions. They only like the old shows - the latest they liked was "One Day At a Time" - which they can't believe they've released only ONE season of on DVD???
Punctuated throughout, the restaurant owner kept siding up asking about how movies would work on the iPad... or can it do a spreadsheet.... how do you type on it.... etc. Every time, i did Steve Jobs proud with a full demo.
It didn't translate into a free meal, however. Just in case you were wondering. No, this was total public service geeking going on here.
And I loved it.
Sunday, May 09, 2010
By the way...
Im on my 3rd episode into Buffy's second season, and boy, it's a night and day difference: They really hit their stride in the second season. And I just met Spike and Drusilla... but had to step away right then, so I'm just on tenterhooks!!!
And all is well
The "boy's weekend" is over, and I have Bella and Pamela home. Pamela is an hour into a nap (Happy Mother's Day!), and Isaac and Bella are zoning out with shows - Isaac has CARS, and Bella has PLANET 51. They're all tired from the weekend activities. Isaac went to Edinborough Park twice, and had a ton of climbing and play time. Bella stayed up until 10 last night, and still has a full head of gelatin.
And Zinsser is just happy to have his pack back.
Me? No rest for the wicked i suppose. I'm feeding the kids, catching up on some work, etc.
I did have the Avengers over last night for some Scotch: We tasted the new Ardbeg RollerCoaster, which is a selected vatting of 10 years of Ardbegs - and it was delightful. After, we watched Avatar on BluRay, and I must say that having everything there within eye-reach was very rewarding: Some of the more "dense" scenes (the initial landing) were actually fully scannable. The movie was still incredibly engaging. Cameron did a good good thing.
One thing that didn't make it as well to the 2D: Some of the computer displays, once collapsed to 2d, were a bit garish and flat feeling. The amazing 3D effect really made those computer displays something to wonder at in the theater. The other thing I noticed (on a positive note) was how masterful Cameron is with exposition: In the scene with the Marine commander luring our hero into being his spy, you also got a full lesson on how those exoskeletons worked, which came in handy later. But you were never hit over the head with the info. Just pay attention - you'll see this later. It was very well done.
Allright, it's time to go check on my zombie family and start thinking about what I might want for dinner. Alas, I'm off to Cleveland again tomorrow AM, so I've got to drink in this time with the family, even if they are all exhausted.
And Zinsser is just happy to have his pack back.
Me? No rest for the wicked i suppose. I'm feeding the kids, catching up on some work, etc.
I did have the Avengers over last night for some Scotch: We tasted the new Ardbeg RollerCoaster, which is a selected vatting of 10 years of Ardbegs - and it was delightful. After, we watched Avatar on BluRay, and I must say that having everything there within eye-reach was very rewarding: Some of the more "dense" scenes (the initial landing) were actually fully scannable. The movie was still incredibly engaging. Cameron did a good good thing.
One thing that didn't make it as well to the 2D: Some of the computer displays, once collapsed to 2d, were a bit garish and flat feeling. The amazing 3D effect really made those computer displays something to wonder at in the theater. The other thing I noticed (on a positive note) was how masterful Cameron is with exposition: In the scene with the Marine commander luring our hero into being his spy, you also got a full lesson on how those exoskeletons worked, which came in handy later. But you were never hit over the head with the info. Just pay attention - you'll see this later. It was very well done.
Allright, it's time to go check on my zombie family and start thinking about what I might want for dinner. Alas, I'm off to Cleveland again tomorrow AM, so I've got to drink in this time with the family, even if they are all exhausted.
Tuesday, May 04, 2010
Buffy and The Doctor
Being out here in Cleveland, I haven't really felt a creative spark for a while. Blog posts are down, the short story hasn't been worked on for a while, and music? Ha! Even my language studies have fallen off severely. I've been doing a lot of reading and a lot of watching.
Reading has been the usual Sci Fi fare: My favorites (Alastair Reynolds, Iain M Banks, Charles Stross) are between works, so I've been exploring other authors. One I'm having a little trouble with is Vernor Vinge: I've tried two books - The Peace War and Fire on the Deep. These are tough books for me. They have all of the elements I love - good ideas, believable tech, snappy pacing. I would even say its well written, tightly plotted... but something about his "voice" is hard for me to read. It's the literary equivalent of a nasally voice - the cadence is just off to my eye/ear, and it makes getting through his books a chore... To compare, Joe Haldeman has all of the same basic attributes above, but his writing cadence is very pleasant for me, and I chew through his books in days.
I remember being a little confused about this back in Russian Literature: There were two editions of the same book, but with different translators. One was more technically accurate but drier to read. The other had a way of writing that drew you in. The stories, plots, characters, pacing, everything was the same, but a choice of word, a turn of phrase made all the difference in readable versus unreadable.
As to watching: I've decided to finally see what that whole "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" thing was all about. It made the mighty Joss Whedon our king, but I'd never seen an episode. So I've started. I'm just over half way through Season 1, and while there is some mightily dated 1990s slang and couture, it is quite enjoyable. Not sure I'm at the "recommending it" stage yet, but I hear things really take off in Season 2.
There's a new show I'm watching - the new Doctor Who on BBC: We're in Season 5 of the new series, and there's a new actor playing the doctor (the doctor periodically dies and "regenerates" - this is his 11th). It is classic Doctor Who - I was a fan back in the Tom Baker and Peter Davidson days... For a guy obsessed with continuity good science like I am, this is pure horror - it's comic fantasy: Horrible CGI aliens stand off in the distance, baring teeth and not moving while our heroes flee. The Doctor faces down a robot nemesis (Dalek!) by pretending a jam cookie is a self destruct button that will kill them all.
But what makes it watchable is that it is self aware - the doctor is crazy, and he does things that make no sense. Lots of open mouthed reaction shots. The monsters are menacing, but nobody gets really hurt. Last minute ideas save the day. It's a fun fantasy I could let Bella watch in a couple of years. So I love it.
Finally, around to Bella: We went on a date this weekend to see "How to Train Your Dragon" in 3D: We had reserved seats, perfect position at the Showplace Icon near out house. We split a bag of popcorn and a bottle of water and had a great time. The movie was very fun, and we LOVED the dragons. See the movie for the dragons. SEE THE MOVIE FOR THE DRAGONS. The vikings were also fun... but the hero had a bit of a sardonic internal monologue that got a little annoying, maybe because it's the sort of voice that Bella has been experimenting with. World weariness just doesn't work coming out of a 7 year old's mouth. Fortunately there are also a lot of giggles coming out these days too.
I'll be missing my ladies this weekend: They're road tripping down to Iowa for a Synchro meet. And yes, they are getting back in the evening of Mother's Day. It'll just be the boys in the house: Isaac, Daddo, and Zinsser. PARTY.
Reading has been the usual Sci Fi fare: My favorites (Alastair Reynolds, Iain M Banks, Charles Stross) are between works, so I've been exploring other authors. One I'm having a little trouble with is Vernor Vinge: I've tried two books - The Peace War and Fire on the Deep. These are tough books for me. They have all of the elements I love - good ideas, believable tech, snappy pacing. I would even say its well written, tightly plotted... but something about his "voice" is hard for me to read. It's the literary equivalent of a nasally voice - the cadence is just off to my eye/ear, and it makes getting through his books a chore... To compare, Joe Haldeman has all of the same basic attributes above, but his writing cadence is very pleasant for me, and I chew through his books in days.
I remember being a little confused about this back in Russian Literature: There were two editions of the same book, but with different translators. One was more technically accurate but drier to read. The other had a way of writing that drew you in. The stories, plots, characters, pacing, everything was the same, but a choice of word, a turn of phrase made all the difference in readable versus unreadable.
As to watching: I've decided to finally see what that whole "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" thing was all about. It made the mighty Joss Whedon our king, but I'd never seen an episode. So I've started. I'm just over half way through Season 1, and while there is some mightily dated 1990s slang and couture, it is quite enjoyable. Not sure I'm at the "recommending it" stage yet, but I hear things really take off in Season 2.
There's a new show I'm watching - the new Doctor Who on BBC: We're in Season 5 of the new series, and there's a new actor playing the doctor (the doctor periodically dies and "regenerates" - this is his 11th). It is classic Doctor Who - I was a fan back in the Tom Baker and Peter Davidson days... For a guy obsessed with continuity good science like I am, this is pure horror - it's comic fantasy: Horrible CGI aliens stand off in the distance, baring teeth and not moving while our heroes flee. The Doctor faces down a robot nemesis (Dalek!) by pretending a jam cookie is a self destruct button that will kill them all.
But what makes it watchable is that it is self aware - the doctor is crazy, and he does things that make no sense. Lots of open mouthed reaction shots. The monsters are menacing, but nobody gets really hurt. Last minute ideas save the day. It's a fun fantasy I could let Bella watch in a couple of years. So I love it.
Finally, around to Bella: We went on a date this weekend to see "How to Train Your Dragon" in 3D: We had reserved seats, perfect position at the Showplace Icon near out house. We split a bag of popcorn and a bottle of water and had a great time. The movie was very fun, and we LOVED the dragons. See the movie for the dragons. SEE THE MOVIE FOR THE DRAGONS. The vikings were also fun... but the hero had a bit of a sardonic internal monologue that got a little annoying, maybe because it's the sort of voice that Bella has been experimenting with. World weariness just doesn't work coming out of a 7 year old's mouth. Fortunately there are also a lot of giggles coming out these days too.
I'll be missing my ladies this weekend: They're road tripping down to Iowa for a Synchro meet. And yes, they are getting back in the evening of Mother's Day. It'll just be the boys in the house: Isaac, Daddo, and Zinsser. PARTY.
Extension, and Food.
1) So I'm in Cleveland for a little while longer: They haven't yet found my replacement so I got a pre-emptive 3 month extension. I'm hoping we can roll me out sooner, so let me just put the vibes out there: THIS IS A GREAT PLACE TO BE, AND A FUN JOB. PLEASE COME TAKE IT FROM ME. There, I invite a smart, effective person to come and be a permanent part of the project.
Actually the past 2 weeks have been better than ever - with some project velocity starting up, things are feeling achievable. I would actually feel good about handing this to someone to carry on, as opposed to tapping "run" in Morse Code on their palm during the handshake (Dash-Dot-Dash, Dot-Dot-Dash, Dash-Dot)
Anyway, I'm looking at probably June or July for my great escape. But I will escape.
2) Had a bookend evening here tonight: Jeff who started with me back in November has decided to move on to another gig, and tomorrow is his last day. We had found him a permanent place on the team, and all was looking pretty good for a long gig, but he got wooed into a higher profile position - he gets a "director" next to his name. I can't blame him: Having "director" on my title from the late 90s was pure Resume Gold.
Anyway, we went out to Geraci's for "Cleveland's Best Pizza" - which was one of the first places we went back in the day, and helped establish the "it's good... for Cleveland" meme. The pizza was delicious: The thick cut pepperoni was again amazing.
3) Last night was a farewell party for Jeff at "The Boneyard", a combo sports bar and video arcade with a graveyard theme. I had a disturbing hot dog - 1/4 lb. I must say that as eating a dog like that, the sheer volume of it makes you think a little too much about its hot dogness. It sort of put me into an existential crisis, and I left a fair amount of it behind. One of my neighbors at the table had the right idea - he cut it up like kielbasa and enjoyed it with a fork. That would have worked.
As to the "party" - I was the only one to charge up a boneyard card, and I was the only guy who did a few rounds of Dance Dance Revolution. I felt like a lonely geek. But I did pretty well, all considered. I wound up giving Jeff a ride home (someone bought him some tequila shots, and he indulged). This morning I drove him to his car, and we discovered his keys were not in his pockets, nor in his backpack. Later in the day he ransacked his hotel room, inquired at the boneyard... and finally asked me to check my car. There they were on the floor. DOH!
Actually the past 2 weeks have been better than ever - with some project velocity starting up, things are feeling achievable. I would actually feel good about handing this to someone to carry on, as opposed to tapping "run" in Morse Code on their palm during the handshake (Dash-Dot-Dash, Dot-Dot-Dash, Dash-Dot)
Anyway, I'm looking at probably June or July for my great escape. But I will escape.
2) Had a bookend evening here tonight: Jeff who started with me back in November has decided to move on to another gig, and tomorrow is his last day. We had found him a permanent place on the team, and all was looking pretty good for a long gig, but he got wooed into a higher profile position - he gets a "director" next to his name. I can't blame him: Having "director" on my title from the late 90s was pure Resume Gold.
Anyway, we went out to Geraci's for "Cleveland's Best Pizza" - which was one of the first places we went back in the day, and helped establish the "it's good... for Cleveland" meme. The pizza was delicious: The thick cut pepperoni was again amazing.
3) Last night was a farewell party for Jeff at "The Boneyard", a combo sports bar and video arcade with a graveyard theme. I had a disturbing hot dog - 1/4 lb. I must say that as eating a dog like that, the sheer volume of it makes you think a little too much about its hot dogness. It sort of put me into an existential crisis, and I left a fair amount of it behind. One of my neighbors at the table had the right idea - he cut it up like kielbasa and enjoyed it with a fork. That would have worked.
As to the "party" - I was the only one to charge up a boneyard card, and I was the only guy who did a few rounds of Dance Dance Revolution. I felt like a lonely geek. But I did pretty well, all considered. I wound up giving Jeff a ride home (someone bought him some tequila shots, and he indulged). This morning I drove him to his car, and we discovered his keys were not in his pockets, nor in his backpack. Later in the day he ransacked his hotel room, inquired at the boneyard... and finally asked me to check my car. There they were on the floor. DOH!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
