Oh yeah, my blog...

I've been off the bloggin' train lately. No particular reason, just haven't been up to it.

Like all of you out there in Bloggersphere, I'm having a busy time of year. Updates follow in no particular order...

I'll be hosting Christmas Eve for my family at my new (I still call it "new", ha!) house. I think it will be great - everyone is planning to at least make an appearance, so it'll be wonderful to see all of the gang. It's been quite a while since we've all been together.

I'm excited for my new job to start in a week. For several reasons, I know it's going to be busy right from the start, but that's how I like it - nothing like jumping right in.

I've had a falling out with Verizon, and have finally jumped on the iPhone bandwagon. Wow - this thing may very well be The. Coolest. Thing. Ever. I've been waiting for the iPhone to go 3G and be opened up to 3rd-party apps, and Apple definitely has a winner with this thing. AT&T's coverage quality here isn't as impressive as Verizon's, but it is most definitely good enough. One of my favorite apps thus far is from good ol' MPR - all three stations seamlessly streamed? Sweeeet.

My new pet peeve is folks who disregard the Snow Emergency parking rules. C'mon, people - it's not rocket science to figure out where to park. To the juliet alpha with the POS Kia who parked in exactly the right spot to maximize plow overflow spewage into my front walk: Thanks for nothing. Next time I'm shoveling all of that snow on top of your car.

I'm heading back to The Porkies next weekend to meet my brother and his family there. I'm excited - the weather sounds like it will cooperate. I'm sure it will be a blast. Note to self: wax the board.

My recent reads include "Pride and Prejudice" and Irving's "The Fourth Hand". I'm a big Irving fan, and hadn't read that one in a while. I hadn't read P&P since high-school, and I enjoyed it much more this time around. Fantastic story. Next is more C.S. Lewis (thanks R!) with "Mere Christianity". I finished Lewis's "The Screwtape Letters" a while back, and was completely smitten with it. If you've never read it, it's well worth your time. It's a new all-time fave of mine...

I have so much to be thankful for this Holiday season - a loving & supportive family, wonderful friends near & far, a very promising new job, a cozy home of my own, a dependable car, and - most importantly - my sobriety. When I think back to what a complete mess I was just 3 short years ago, none of these things that I enjoy today seemed possible or within reach. By God's grace, sobriety has given my life back to me, and I'm determined to humbly make the most of it, taking nothing for granted. I know this is just the beginning of great new things for me, and I am ever grateful for this second chance at life.

Stay warm, park smart ;), and have a very Merry Christmas and Holiday season!
----------------
Now playing: chuck berry - run rudolph run

Grateful

I was hired for the training job I've been after, so I am a happy camper! As the interview process went on (and on and on!), I was pleasantly surprised to make it to each new level, and I finally was presented with the offer. What a blessing - I think this will be a great fit for me, and I'm very much looking forward to getting started. This job was been freed up from our current hiring freeze, and I'll be starting after Christmas.

I came very close to not applying for this job at all, because I didn't think I had enough Bank experience for it. But experience is a relative thing - my lack of experience with The Bank is rather unimportant compared to the wealth of experience I have from the USAF as an instructor and training program developer. Those strengths are what got this job for me, and I'm very grateful!

When I first started submitted my app for this job, I blogged about a former mentor's quote: If you never ask the question, the answer is always 'No'. Indeed! As the interview process progressed, I believed more & more that this was a good fit for me, and I fought hard to get it. I'm very happy that it worked out - I'm excited to join this new team!
----------------
Now playing: st etienne - join our club

Things I learned today:

1.) ALWAYS check to make sure power is removed/unplugged before you touch an electrical circuit. Fortunately, my socket wrench & the thermal fuse took the brunt of that volt attack.

2.) Apparently, simply taping together electrical connections that routinely see 20+ amp flow is not a good idea. The repair man gave me a ...errr... I'll call it a disappointed look when he saw my handiwork with that. He was a great guy though, and I appreciate that he was willing to nicely explain some basic electrical stuff to me.

3.) My plain-jane dryer is a time-tested, well-respected, and extremely durable Kenmore-branded Whirlpool model (it's been through a lot!). But Energy Star compliant, it ain't. During parts of its cycle, it draws as much power as my central air conditioning unit. Yikes.

4.) Calling in a pro may hurt the ol' pride and pocketbook a little bit, but peace of mind is priceless ;)
----------------
Now playing: peter gabriel - shock the monkey

Good day!

Whew - I made it through everything today fine!

My webinar presentation (for my interview) went very well, IMHO. It was well received, so that's encouraging. If I make the cut as one of the final two contestants, I will have to do one more interview with a boss higher up the chain, but I won't know either way until next week. I'm just happy today's presentation went well; this has been a most educational & helpful interviewing experience so far. What happens next is in God's hands...

The tree is finally GONE! Wow - there is a lot of sawdust all over my yard. And my neighbor's yard. Oh well, better some sawdust than a busted dead tree smashing through their roof ;)

The dentist appointment also went well - no repair work there needed at this time. Woot!

Tomorrow, the dryer repair guru comes. Hopefully that goes well too!

I'm looking forward to some time off now to clean up the yard, and get some stuff done around the house. Nice!
----------------
Now playing: new order - world in motion

Thug squirrel pic

Yes, that is pepperoni pizza he's eating. Apparently, he's evolved up from simple acorns, to tortillas, and now pizza. He's getting crazy fat these days. Winter's a-comin'!
----------------
Now playing: the dust bros - stealing fat

Busy week

...but a great week.

Next Weds, I have the final interview for the training development job I'm pursuing. I have to create and present a topic via webinar. It will be challenging since I don't use those collaboration software tools in my current job. I'm excited though - I'm confident that I will do well (as long as the software cooperates!) We are still on a hiring freeze, and it could well be that this job opportunity gets yanked at some point due to all of that, but this is all still welcome experience for me - I'll take what I can get!

I've been blessed to have another experience this week that has renewed & refreshed my outlook on relationships. This particular experience would be difficult to capture in a blog post, so I won't tackle that... I'll just say that it's beautiful to have an affirming, kind, and mutually respectful relationship where the give-and-take between each other is genuinely beneficial and equal in reward.

I suppose that doesn't seem like a lot to ask or expect (from either friends or potential significant others), but it seems so hard to find these days!

We are at different stages of our lives in many areas, and primarily because of those things, we had agreed up front what the expectations were. Our friendship began not out of the potential to 'get together', but instead to simply to be kind and affirming to one another at a time when we both needed it (and who doesn't? :) Everything was plainly out on the table from the start, with no pretense or posturing whatsoever. How refreshing that is!

It's amazing how quickly you can truly get to know someone when the silly fluff, wasteful posturing, and dodgy gamesmanship of mainstream gettin'-to-know-ya is bypassed. It's easy to get stuck or lost in those things and either not even realize it, or convince yourself that you are somehow further along (been there, done that!)

Our brief correspondence has evolved over the week to different level (hard to explain), and we won't communicate as much going forward now, and that's both OK and appropriate. This experience has been a valuable re-centering for me, and I am blessed and grateful for it.

I will certainly approach future relationship opportunities in a new manner!

A work in progress...
----------------
Now playing: beck - where it's at

Happy Veteran's Day

... to all my uniform-wearin' bros and sisses out there (past & present). Thank you for your service to our great nation!
----------------
Now playing: dos gringos - the legend of shaved dog's ass

Laziest. Weekend. Ever.

And I'm lovin' it.

I do miss last weekend's lovely weather though - this is quite a change! What I dislike most about wintertime running is trying to figure out how to dress for it. I own a respectable spectrum of cold-weather training gear, but it's hard to know what the right combo is on any given day. Meh, if that's my biggest gripe right now, I'm doing OK ;)

Thug Squirrel and his posse must be getting holed up for the winter. Yesterday, he apparently found a stash of tortillas in the neighbor's trash. He came running across the street 3 times with a big 10" tortilla in his mouth. It was funny to watch, because he couldn't run well or even see with it - he kept tripping over it dashing across the street, and then he twice bonked into my handrail trying to run up my front steps (he always takes the steps when invading my yard - it's rather strange!). But he wasn't letting go of them for anything. On his last trip, I chased him around the front yard a little bit just to hassle him, and he would not drop that thing despite being in a panic. Crazy squirrel.

I now have a date set for the tree coming down, so that'll be good to have done. I'm hoping it's a little warmer that week - I've taken a couple of days off work to do one final yard cleanup & gutter clearing after the tree is gone.

I fully resigned my USAF commission this week, and I am now 100% out of the military - no more oddball 'Reserve' status or anything like that. Although I was never really worried about getting called back up for anything, it's certainly a nice feeling to have all of those cords finally cut for good!

No news on any job stuff, but I don't expect to have any soon. Across the board, we are on a hiring freeze right now (lots of reasons), so I think I'll stay where I'm at for the foreseeable future. And that's fine - I'll just continue to keep my eyes open for opportunities.

Stay warm!
----------------
Now playing: social distortion - cold feelings

Yikes

This is a bummer of a run. I'll keep my run-related whining in check now...

Tonight was a great run - it's gorgeous out!
----------------
Now playing: moby - flying foxes

Vote. But vote smart.

OK, one political post and then I'm done.

We are a nation at war. We are a nation facing our lowest levels of international confidence and support. We are a nation facing wide and deep domestic crises wreaking damages unseen for generations.

None of these things are insurmountable for our great nation if swift and decisive corrective actions are taken.

So please don't be stuck on stupid with your priorities going into the booth tomorrow. I got news for y'all: McCain's priority ain't gonna be overturning Roe Vs Wade. And Obama's priority ain't gonna be gay marriage.

Our next president and congressional leaders have urgent & looming challenges to address. And they're big ones. Bigger than most of us have ever seen in our lives.

I don't care who you vote for tomorrow. Just please vote smart - pick the right people for the right reasons.
----------------
Now playing: kid rock - american bad ass

Life in the trenches

Over this weekend, my department at work moved to a new building. I went in this afternoon for a couple of hours to help set up my area. I like the new location! I've got a bigger cube, a huge window view (woot!), and a fancy new Aeron chair (comfy!).

The new digs really are very nice - it's a big improvement over our old location. No skimps by the brass with regard to setting it up well.

However, I'm starting to get that itch to move on to new challenges. Realistically, that may not be likely for another year or so (just a matter of establishing more experience), but I've been tweaking my resume, and I'm starting to send in apps to see what nibbles I get.

Fully understanding that my specific experience level with this company is the long pole in the tent for me, I'd be happy to just get some interviews under my belt for now. I learn so much from each interview I do, and each one helps me prepare more and be stronger for the next. So far, so good - I've got a phone interview this week for the first app I sent in. As part of the phone interview, I had to answer a comprehensive pre-interview questionnaire. Those too are hugely beneficial - it asked some great questions, and I'm glad to be challenged with thinking about those types of things once again. Putting that hat on helps me give due attention the ever looming "Am I on the right path to get to where I want to be?" question.

Of course, I will be thrilled if any of my current & future apps turn into an offer here in the near future, and who knows... Stranger things have happened! As a wise mentor once told me: The answer is always 'No' if you never ask the question.

Another gorgeous day here - it's been a wonderful weekend of running & mountain biking for me, and I'm grateful for it.
----------------
Now playing: marty & elayne - staying alive

I say bollocks to "Endless Summer"...

... gimme "Endless Fall"!

This weather is effin' amazing! Great day today - much has been accomplished. I'm a happy camper. And I beat the onset of my cold - I was going to be one sad monkey if I wasn't 100% over this gorgeous weekend.

I'll post up more in the next day or two. Don't forget to fall back tonight!
----------------
Now playing: the smiths - how soon is now

Must sleep...

I feel a fall cold starting to get its claws in me today, so I'm about to go to bed. Usually, if I can load up on vitamin C and get a good night's rest, I can fend it off early. Wish me luck!

Otherwise, it's been a good week - quiet, but good. I'll end this recent boring/bummer blogpost streak here soon, I promise! A busy weekend is coming up, and I'm looking forward to it...

I hope everyone is enjoying the nice weather - there may not be much more!
----------------
Now playing: opus III - stars in my pocket

Clarification

Regarding my previous post -

I'm aware that parts and the whole of it are all quite vague. That is intentional. Those who know, will know. For the rest of y'all, more explanation may perhaps be a story for another time & place, but not here...

Sometimes, it helps me to write my way through something in order to arrive at my own resolution. That post was one of those times. It wasn't intended to paint a perfectly clear picture.

So, thanks for your patience - I'll return to more benign topics like evil squirrels, running blather, and whining about my gimp tree soon enough! I'm sure you are all on the edges of your seats in anticipation ;-)

Have a great start to the week!
----------------
Now playing: soul asylum - spinnin'

Karma, Reality, and Forward Progress

It appears that the circumstances surrounding a certain recent situation are indeed what I had suspected all along.

Or are they? A wise & crusty boss once told me, "Hydro, reality ain't shit. Perception is everything."

With that in mind, I am perhaps jumping to conclusions about this particular thing, but I doubt it. The funny part of it all is this: none of the "what really happened?" is actually important.

Or, rather, all of it is only as important as I choose to make it.

Was I played for a fool?
Was I an unwitting chump the entire time?
Am I ...*gasp*... a victim?!?

So, let's say for a moment that all of what I suspect is true... I could rack it all up to karma. Unarguably, I then finally got something I had coming from an universal justice point-of-view!

The problem with that viewpoint is that it still paints me as a victim.

But, wait - I'm innocent here!
I didn't do anything wrong!
I'm allowed to be upset about this (if it's true!) - surely then, such feelings are justified!

Wrong. Wrong. Wrong.

Such stinkin' thinkin' is a very slippery slope - it ain't a good or healthy place to wallow around in. I should know better, so...

Why is it that - all too often - our first instinct when feeling hurt is to somehow hurt back? Or at least get acknowledgment that we feel hurt (as we sit around on our pity-pots)?

I'm annoyed with myself for that crap still being a typical initial reaction...

The truth of this particular matter is: The reality is wholly unimportant to my own forward progress. The perceptions are created entirely in my own head, and I fully control them.

If I choose to mope and feel hurt, then I have absolutely no one to blame but myself.

And I am not innocent. I did plenty of things wrong which led to what happened...

I should have listened to my gut more instead of dismissing those somethin'-ain't-quite-right-here feelings as insecure paranoia.
I should have spoken up when I had genuine concerns.
Should I have trusted less, or been more suspicious? No, not that at all! I simply should have assumed less, excused less, and rationalized less.

I chose to lower my expectations & standards in a misguided effort to be more accommodating and not rock the boat.

I should have remained true to myself, and not accepted those compromises.

God willing, these aren't mistakes I will make again in the future. If I choose to see myself as a victim, then I have only my own poor decisions to blame for it.

I am grateful for the opportunity to become a stronger, wiser, and more confident person as a result of the whole experience, so no regrets!

I move forward one step at a time. And I am smiling ;-)

A work in progress...
----------------
Now playing: foo fighters - this is a call

Quick update

Squirrels:
Relatively quiet lately. They seem to be finished terrorizing the corn-stalk thing, and it's still standing tall. The paranoid in me wonders if they are quietly massing for some kind of new attack. Pretty soon, they'll have one less tree to heckle from & hide out in - and that's a good segue to...

"The Tree":
Final detailed estimate is in, and it's even 50% more than the original scary estimate. I had another estimate done, and it was similar. That's going to hurt the ol' pocketbook (or in this case, credit card!). Hurt a lot. But, it needs to be done - I'll tighten my belt a little bit, adjust the budget, and it'll all be fine eventually. Please pray that God doesn't decide to take the tree down before the tree service folks have a chance to!

Hair:
I can't resist anymore. I'm going to start growing it out again. I may just keep it extremely short & stubbly, but I'm curious to see my hair again. We'll see how it goes...

Stay warm!
----------------
Now playing: louis armstrong - i was doing all right

Bummed

My running has been a mixed bag since the marathon. I'm now just running every other day, and ~4-5 miles per go. My paces overall have been great, but the runs themselves have been a struggle for the most part. I feel like I'm fighting through them too much. I think it's mostly due to getting my nose, throat, and lungs conditioned to the colder air. And now that the TCM is done, there's just a certain level of psych that's missing as I go into the winter season. I'm confident it'll come together again; it's just a bit frustrating in the meantime. I'm blessed to have my health, and reflecting on that does gives me strength and cheer.

And I'm bummed that I'll (most likely) need to remove the big ol' ash tree in my backyard. After consulting at length with the arborist about it, I think that's the best thing to do. Unfortunately, it's also the most expensive solution (and, wow, it's expensive!). But even with any cheaper band-aid fixes now, it would just be a matter of time before I would need to take it down - that main trunk split is killing the tree and catastrophic structural failure is just a question of when, and not if.

I'm waiting on a more detailed estimate once the arborist's take-'er-down guru stops by to make an assessment. It's most like going to involve a large crane (numerous reasons pointing toward that being the best & safest solution). Oy. Oh well, I was planning to plant a couple of fruit trees out front this spring anyway, and now it looks like I'll be planting a nice shade tree in back too.

Many thanks to my good friends Matt & Todd for their suggestions on a follow-on tree. A couple of wiseacres, youz guys...

Ah, feeling less bummed already - it's nice to vent a bit. Thanks for putting up with it.

~~~ Squirrel update ~~~

I think the thug squirrels have done what damage they are going to do to my corn-stalk thing and a few other decorations I have up (nothing edible left). The corn-stalk thing still looks fine overall, so I think we're in good shape. Some other smaller corn decorations are a total loss, but that was to be expected. I'm surprised they lasted as long as they did, actually.

When I came home from work yesterday, there was a big pile of some shredded corn-stalk debris piled up smack-dab in the middle of my side-door mat -- as in, "Yeah, me & my pals really dig that corn-stalk thing. Instead of just pooping on your mat, I thought I'd rub it in your face that I own that thing, sucka!!" Hmmm...

...When you least expect it, squirrel. I got your number.
----------------
Now playing: the soggy bottom boys - i am a man of constant sorrow

Squirrel attack!

My brother and sister-in-law were kind enough to load me up with all sorts of goodies on my recent trip up to The Farm. Thanks M & J! And huge thanks to my sis M for hooking me up earlier in the day with a bunch of hastas for around the homestead. From the Farm, I scored a bunch of flower seeds for next spring, some gorgeous fresh garden veggies, some beautiful pumpkins from their patch, and a very lovely corn-stalk decoration for standing up outside of my front door.

Nemesis squirrel and his pals are having a field day with that corn-stalk thing. There were bits & pieces of it all over my front yard today when I came back from work. It's still looking fine overall (impressive work on the solid build, J!), but it's not going to handle many more onslaughts like that. Hopefully, the squirrels got their fill of whatever they were after in there, but who knows. And they are still tearing the hell up out of all my grass, but I've given up on caring about that (for this season, anyway).

As much as I'd love to feed those bushy-tailed rats a tasty poisoned corn Halloween treat, I know there would just be plenty more to replace 'em. So, I'm not quite sure what my next move will be.

I'll come up with something...
----------------
Now playing: nancy sinatra - these boots

Tree Doc appointment

I have a large, mature tree in my backyard that somehow developed an ugly main-trunk split. I'm not sure how old the split is, nor is it clear what originally caused it, but if that less-stable half goes, it's going to wreak major damage on my neighbor's house. That would not be good.

Although my brother-in-law was confident that I could do the needed cabling/bracing work myself, I decided to roll in the pros after reading some eye-opening DITY horror stories on the internet. The consensus was quite overwhelming that such a job (at least on a mature tree) is not a task for the average DITYer.

So, I have an appointment set up for Weds with a certified arborist to take a look at it. Maybe they can cable it, or maybe they will need to cut something down. We'll see. But, I'm definitely happy that the situation will get addressed. I'm sure it ain't gonna be cheap, but as they say, "You can't put a price on peace of mind". Or something like that. le sigh

I'll let y'all know what The Tree Whisperer has to say on Weds...
----------------
Now playing: electronic - tighten up

Facebook - part II

I am now liking Facebook - I've been able to connect with friends from high school, college, my USAF days, and beyond. It's proving to be a nice complement to this blog in terms of staying updated & connected. I'm still learning my way around it, but I certainly enjoy making the connections that I am. Good stuff!

Feel free to come on by if you're out there (link over on the right somewhere)...
----------------
Now playing: the white stripes - we're going to be friends