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1010 WINS - On-Air, Online, On Demand

Drunken wannabies are saving their bucks to be the next Jeff Beck.

I can just imagine the videos that will be circulating from this one.

Long time gone

Much has happened since I last posted.

I went out to Utah to visit my wife and son for his birthday.

My wife's mom told us she didn't want us to stay with her anymore, we were no longer necessary to help her. Luckily we didn't get too far with the sale of the apartment so we got the family back together here in NYC.

We're still trying to get all of our belongings from Utah.

We refinanced our apartment allowing us to get out of debt.

Things are going along much better now except for the slight problem of my job. I'm still not happy here and the work load just keeps getting heavier and heavier.

Some things never change.

Price of gas

Queens Boulevard
Rego Park, Queens, NY

The waiting game

I had to get out of the house today since there was someone who wanted to look at the apartment. Just my luck they gave me zero time even though they were supposed to give me advanced notice.

I kept them waiting in the hallway until I was ready. I eventually let them in and let them take a look at the apartment and afterwards I picked up and old friend and we had dinner at a seafood restaurant with another friend.

It was a pleasant evening. We talked about old times and future plans.

Transitions

My current assistant will have knee surgery tomorrow so she's off today preparing for it.

However, I got another assistant today. He's new and doesn't have have too much experience in our industry but he should be able to pick up things quickly. I understand he's bright.

That makes me feel less helpless.

Disapointment

I didn't get much sleep last night so I crashed and slept all day. I got several phone calls from my friends waiting for me to come over and all I could offer were apologies and promises to get together over the weekend.

Damn.

I really was looking forward to the BBQ.

Festivities preparation

My buddy and I went over to BJ's and picked up a bunch of food and beer for tomorrow's BBQ.

I've always liked Fourth of July BBQ's, friends, family, good food and good music. Great way to start the Summer.

Comfort

I found the second pair I thought I lost, they were underneath the passenger seat of my car.

Ahh....I don't have to spend $200.00 on a new pair of glasses.

Oh boy....and them some

Folks came by to look at the apartment but so far nothing yet. Just alot of looking

Bothersome

I went by my sister's place today since my realtor was showing my apartment today and I decided to go out to dinner with childhood friends. We had a nice dinner and I came back home to learn I lost yet another pair of glasses.

Of course, since I've been taking my Diabetes medicine I haven't needed my glasses but I still like to have them available. I don't like to be without them.

Price of gas

Queens Boulevard
Rego Park, Queens, NY

Another appointment

I had another "wound check" appointment today and failed to notify my bosses. They stared at me as I drove off this morning.

I will have to straighten that out tomorrow. What's important is that I'm ok. The doctors are happy with the way my wound is healing. I'm just not happy taking care of it by myself.

With the surgery they performed to remove the "capsule" they left me with a two inch opening that has to heal from the "inside-out", which means I need to keep packing the wound with gauze and padding to make sure it remains clean. Ugh...

Back to the office

I went back to the office today but I think I should have stayed home. I just don't want to lose too many days.

I left early and I felt way too uncomfortable. I needed to change my dressing twice and I am ill equipped to do so at the office.

Some strangeness

I went back to the Emergency Room so they can perform a "wound check" on the surgical area and the hospital staff is very happy about it.

One thing that I got used to is the fact that my hospital is a teaching hospital so I always get new interns/doctors coming by to look at me.

I'm somewhat of an anomaly because I am afflicted with Multiple Ostosis which is basically excess bone growth which grow out from any of my bones. The strange part about me is that I'm 41 years old and have not experienced pain from the bone growths until recently.

I'm a freak study case I guess. The thing that really bothers me is that I keep getting the same questions. Does it hurt? Do you feel pain during periods of excersion?

They always dismiss my statement that I get bone growths whenever I get into an injury that feels like it hits the bone. Maybe it's just me.

Back home

I'm back home.

It turned out to be an abscess as I feared however the doctor I saw on Tuesday told me it was too big for him to perform as an out-patient procedure in his office. He suggested I go to the Emergency Room.

After a quick ride to my hospital I was admitted, fed large amounts of antibiotics and had surgery performed on me on Thursday.

All I can say is that the pain was MUCH greater than the first time. It turns out that they had to remove tissue that they call the "Capsule", which is tissue that forms after the initial abscess that develops and help to facilitate a return of an abscess later on. Luckily I had a head surgeon perform the procedure but it hurt big time.

They watched me and kept and eye on the wound and said I was OK to go home. I was just anxious to go home, being alone right now doesn't help but I'm grateful to be home.

I managed to get the hospital staff to call my wife so she didn't panic since the last time I spoke with her was to let her know I was walking into the Emergency Room. I used the hospital staff as my messenger service, they were very understanding and accommodating even though it wasn't their responsibility to do so. Nurses are so under-rated.

Not good

I woke up this morning and the "pimple" is now twice the size it was yesterday.

Now I'm fairly certain this is a return of the abscess I had last year. I will try to see a doctor and have him drain it out today. Hopefully it will go easy.

Uneasy sign

While I was in the bathroom at work I thought I felt a pimple on my butt however it didn't feel correct, it felt deeper in my body.

I felt hardened tissue underneath the skin. It was somewhat large which made me curious as to why I hadn't felt it before and the only thing that ran through my mind is the abscess has returned.

That was a very painful couple of weeks I went through last year in April and I don't look forward to doing it again. I will go to the surgeon tomorrow and have him look at it. Perhaps it will only be something that will be resolved with antibiotics.

It begins

I got a call today for a showing so I have to make myself scarce. I'll just drive around a bit and come back later.

Mild inconvenience.

Maintaining connections

My friends came over and we had a nice day although once again I accomplished nothing in the house. We sat around and talked throughout the day.

An associate of the realtor came by and looked around the apartment. I didn't have a problem with that, buuuut...the guy that came by gave off a somewhat perky vibe. Similar to that of a used car salesman. I'm guessing this guy will be the one to sell the place. Better to have them on my side than the other.

My buds and I went out to dinner to a local restaurant I am particularly fond of. It's elegant but non-pretentious so I didn't feel uncomfortable stepping into the place in shorts without a reservation. We were promptly seated and enjoyed a good meal, my friends had dessert but I just had coffee since I didn't want to overdo my sugar intake, it's easy to forget I'm diabetic.

We went back to my place where we had meaningless conversations about baseball, animation, movies and travel and then the went home. Overall it was probably the most adult conversation we've ever had and I'm the youngest of the three with the oldest approaching 50.

It's strange how people who have known each other for so long and haven't spoken to each other in quite some time can just pick up as if no time has passed. Although we can see a change in each of us we were still close to being the same as we were 30 years ago. Those are things you don't get often.

Unexpected call

A buddy of mine I haven't seen in a while called and invited me over to his place for dinner and help him with getting drivers for his printer and another device.

I told him I can't since I'm in the process of moving boxes to paint the bedroom, so I begged off.

I kinda felt guilty about it so I invited him here so we can hang out while I moved the boxes.

He asked if a mutual childhood friend can come by and I said sure. Then he informed me our friend is afflicted with a disease which I will refrain from disclosing here since it can only be a private thing for him I imagine and there's no telling who will read this (although I'm fairly safe in assuming I'm the only one that really looks at this).

So all in all it's a good thing I decided to ask my friend over. They'll be here tomorrow.

Fretting

My wife is worried because we have not had any more calls to show the apartment.

I keep telling her to relax since it's only been two weeks since the apartment was offically made available to view. It should pick up a little plus Summer is approaching and that might slow things down somewhat.

On the positive note I keep telling my wife that anyone looking in the Summertime is probably serious about buying a place.

This Father's Day

For the dad that has everything. The Icarta. For Dad's private room.

Price of gas

Queens Boulevard
Rego Park, Queens, NY

So far it's been steady for a month. It hasn't gotten real hot yet so I'm waiting for the 10 to 20 cent jump that will probably hit us in July.

Changed plans

I had intended to be home when the realtor brought by the people to see the place but my co-worker told me I shouldn't be there in case they ask questions I'm not ready to answer yet.

While I thought it seemed a bit shady to do so for that reason, I did see a certain logic to it.

I just spent a little extra time at the office and had dinner at a local diner, something I have not done in a long time...for either.

Done

I managed to get the living room carpet cleaned, well as clean as I can get it, and the furniture rearranged.

The apartment now has the appearance of open space and I have enough room against the far wall to place the boxes from the bedroom.

While I was cursing myself for doing it so quickly I do have a certain sense of accomplishment in doing so.

It looks better and it feels better.

Pushing myself

I received a telephone call from the realtor to see if they can show the apartment tomorrow evening.

I took a look around the apartment examining the state of disarray it was in and of course I said "sure", immediately chiding myself because there is no way in hell I would have the living room put together by tomorrow.

However, if I don't continue moving forward, I will just sit still so I have to place myself in the position of do or die.

I am my own worst enemy.

Moving on

I figured I'd move the boxes from the bedroom to the living room and line them up against the wall facing the windows since it won't make the room look much smaller. Then I realized I needed to rearrange the living room to make space for the boxes.

I figured I could move things around to give the illusion of more room and still get the boxes in there. While I was at it I started steam cleaning the carpeting since I was moving things around anyways.

I was just getting things going when my wife called me and reminded me I had a wedding to attend.

CRAP!! I jumped in the shower, shaved, put on a suit and made it out the door, picked up a wedding card and started out for the wedding in 35 minutes.

Ya, it sounds like I had plenty of time but I need time to get my head right.

I normally take an hour and a half from waking up to getting out the door when I get ready to go to work in the mornings so you can imagine how much of a procrastinator I am.

Anyways, the wedding was very nice but I didn't go to the reception so I can continue with the living room.

Price of gas

Queens Boulevard
Rego Park, Queens, NY

Reprieve....er...?

I haven't had a call from the realtor yet to show the apartment. I was worried that they would bring people in while the place looks like crap.

Now that my worry is unfounded I'm now worried that they came in and decided to give me even more time and not call for a few weeks.

It's kinda funny though....damned if I do and damned if I don't. I just have to mellow out and move forward.

My bad

I accomplished nothing in the apartment today since I spent all my time trying to get my computer up.

Now I'm worried that the realtor will bring people by the apartment and I did absolutely nothing to get ready. The place is a mess and boxes are everywhere in disarray.

Just great. I'm going to have to put my computer aside and pay attention to the real priorities.

What next

I am writing this from my laptop because I turn on my desktop when I got home from work and it goes crazy on me. Just great.

Now I have to figure out how to get the pictures of my son from the hard disk. That's really the only thing I care about that's on the machine.

Price of gas

Queens Boulevard
Rego Park, Queens, NY

A drop of 4 cents, theoretically it's a direct impact on the tax for gas. We'll see if it's a quick fix reaction to shut people up.

My guess is we'll still see a large increase in the price of gas.

Harumph

I get home and my door is completely unlocked.

I'm not worried because the building is pretty much secure but it kinda makes me wonder about the realtor's attention to the small details, like LOCKING A DOOR!

Little progress

My realtor called to ask if it was okay to come by and take pictures of the apartment for their website and for fliers.

I laughed and said sure but warned her that the place is a total mess. She didn't seem worried.

We'll see. I won't be surprised if she faints.

Snap decision

Yesterday I decided to call the realtor and turn over the keys.

I called them immediately before I changed my mind and let them know that all I have left to paint is the bedroom but they can go ahead and show the apartment.

I arranged to drop off the keys today. I also agreed to allow for the listing to be extended by a month since I let them wait a month before giving them the keys.

I had to go this way because I would have waited until I finished painting the bedroom and I have no idea when I'm going to get my act together long enough to do that.

I need to clear out the bedroom so I can paint it. That means the living room and foyer will once again be a warehouse.

Foyer done

This is the two tone pattern I decided on.

Memorial Day

I finished the last coat on the trim, doors and bookshelves. After it dried I started getting everything back to order and decided to clean the carpeting since I found a steam cleaner in the closet.

Unfortunately I got a bad allergy attack, whether it's from the dust or the chemicals I don't know but it was bad. I could barely breath. Luckily I had an inhaler laying around that didn't yet expire so I was able to allieviate my breathing. I just have to be careful if I try that again.

Taking a day off....sorta

Since this is a long weekend I decided to take a break and do something I haven't done in about a year. I went to the movies. I saw X-Men III.

It had more action than the first two but it lacked something that Brian Singer brought.

Just as in the other two it made alterations to canon X-Men. However, unlike the others these changes were VERY different and dramatic.

If you're of the philosophical bend that the movies should not greatly deviate from the comics then you will totally HATE this film.

Aw..Crap

I totally forgot about the built-in bookshelves. I had to paint them white too, not that it's a big deal, it's just another round of painting I have to do.

I ended up having to scrape alot of flaking paint off the front door, actually it turned out to be all of it. As I started scraping, the paint bulging just kept expanding and before you know it I ended up taking all the old paint off, except for a few coats of old oil based paint.

It was this ugly coat of green paint. I thought maybe it was the primer but on one scraping I went a little too deep and found the original primer which was red. So now I have to put new primer on the door so I don't have to put a ton of paint on the door.

Too bad I didn't think of that with the bathroom radiation pipe. That would have saved me some heartache.

Anyways, all that leaves now is the 2nd coat for the trim.

Almost done

I got the two coats done on the walls and ceilings. I have to finish the two coats on the trim and the doors. It's a light brown/white combo, using the white on the trim. That's the same color scheme I used for the living room so I'm just maintaining the structure.

I'll finish that tomorrow.

Oh ya...Taping off the trim was a pain.

Prepping for the foyer

I had to take a ride out to Home Depot because I didn't have as much paint as I thought I did. I also needed a few more rollers because I don't do cleaning so well, it doesn't fit into my laziness milieu.

Start for the foyer

My wife suggested I take the fish we had in the tank and return them to the pet store we bought them from so I wouldn't have to kill them. The fish were three catfish which grew considerably since we first bought them.

The pet store wouldn't accept it at first but I explained to them that I would have to kill them because no one I know wants them. They eventually took them so I feel grateful that I don't have euthanize them.

I threw out the fishtank and all the accessories for it which was pretty much the biggest thing I had to clear out before I paint the foyer.

Price of gas

Queens Boulevard
Rego Park, Queens, NY

They move the pricing around to make it look like it's going down but nothing has changed in one week. But that's the good news. Bad news is the summer hasn't even started yet.

Necessary work

I can actually see parts of my living room and dining room table now that I put everything back into the kitchen.

I can heat things up again. I didn't have access to the stove or the microwave because the microwave was in the livingroom and the stove was covered with plastic so I didn't get paint all over it.

I'm taking more time that I really should doing this but I'm slowly getting it done.

Mild surprise

I have not received a call from the realtor for quite a bit of time. I guess they got the hint when I told them I'll need the time stated.

At least I don't have the feeling of pressure their calls gave me.

Two to go

I completed painting the kitchen. I just have to begin putting everything back now and then move onto the foyer. I'm saving the bedroom to paint last and after that I tile the bathroom and I'm done.

I look forward to that day then I can be my total lazy self.

Yikes.

Back to the kitchen

I started clearing out the front half of the kitchen. I placed the cupboard hutch downstairs in the basement to be thrown out by the building staff.

It's a large 6 foot high by 3 foot piece that I had to bring down in one piece. It was bulky and I looked rather awkward in the elevator as an elderly couple entered the elevator from the floor below me.

They assumed I was moving in or out. They were close but that's not for some time yet. They were amused at the look on my face as I struggled with the thing.

Price of gas

Queens Boulevard
Rego Park, Queens, NY

Low grade gas gets the highest boost of 6 cents with mid and high grade gas getting a 2 cent increase. Will it come as a surprise when the oil companies will report profits in the area of 15 billion?

Slow going

I managed to complete all the cabinets, it was a bit of a pain but that's done, unfortunately I don't have a lot of room to work with so I can't do this in the correct manner.

Tomorrow I'll put back all the material in the first half of the kitchen and then I'll clear out the 2nd half to paint that section. It's more time consuming but it has to get done.

I keep making messes.

My living room is a mess!

I cleaned out all the cabinets in preparation for painting and started packing all the dishes, glasses, utensils and China I don't need sitting about. I'm just leaving all the items I plan to throw away when we leave.

Now I have dishes, glasses, canned foods and all sorts of crap just sitting around the house.

More kitchen

I had to go to Home Depot when I realized I didn't have enough paint to complete the kitchen. There's a lot of real estate to paint in the cabinets. I painted the walls surrounding the stove so I can move the stove back into place.

Painting in small sections is the only thing that can work for me since I don't have a large amount of time available during the week.

Onto the kitchen

I pulled the stove out of the corner to paint that section of wall. I didn't turn off the gas line since I'm a bit lazy and doing all this painting is like a 10 on my work meter.

There was still a lot of prepping on the walls I had to do so it took a bit longer than I anticipated.

I managed to get that section of the kitchen prepped so I can paint tomorrow.

Sorting out mail

I spent my morning clearing my dining room table to get all the bills together to pay them as well as to gather all my wife's replacement credit cards to mail them out this morning.

I sent them out to her by Priority Mail so she should get them by Tuesday.

Price of gas

Queens Boulevard
Rego Park, Queens, NY

Oversight on my part

My wife's replacement cards have been slowly trickling in but since I'm totally disorganized I have to now start looking for them on my dining room table so I can send them out to my wife this weekend.

Pushing my buttons

The realtor called me this morning to find out if we can move forward with the showing of the apartment.

I had to point out to her that I stated the painting was going to take me 2 to 3 weeks and that was a week ago. I guess they are in somewhat of a hurry to get the apartment moving.

I'm not too crazy about pushy folks.

Bathroom down

Now that the bathroom is done as far as painting is concerned I will move onto the kitchen.

I'm not sure how bad that's going to be but the cabinets is the hard part. I have to move the stove and the refrigerator to paint behind them. Those things will probably slow down the process but since I don't have much of a choice I'll have to move on.

We'll see how bad it gets.

Finally the bathroom is complete....sorta

It felt like I put on 20 coats of paint onto that piping but it looks ok. I cleaned the bathroom so it looks respectable. I need to replace ceramic tiles but that's for another day. I will finish the painting before I complete the tilework.

I am very tired now and I will more than likely pass out from exhaustion.

Painting chores

I painted most of the bathroom and it came out ok. I still have to complete the radiation pipe. That's going to be the worst part.

After just two coats I thought I had it covered but I keep finding spots that I missed. Plus the rust is coming out. I'm going to have to toss on more paint.

Part 1

I drove over to Home Depot this morning getting ready to paint the bathroom. I bought a bunch of supplies and got started.

Oh yeah...I got a parking ticket picking up a V8 for breakfast.

Prep

I took everything out of the bathroom to get ready to paint. I set up the plastic and taped off the ceramic tile so paint wouldn't get all over the place.

In looking around the bathroom the hardest part is going to be the radiation pipe that heats up the bathroom. It's situated very close to the corner rising straight from the floor to the ceiling. That part is going to be a tough one.

Just great

We got the Extension of Time completed and done in time, however since we had no one available to deliver the package it wasn't important.

All of a sudden sending it out on Monday is okay.

Sigh...........

One more thing on our plate.

Today I have to spend all day to get documentation together to justify an Extension of Time. My bosses are saying we should have them prepared and submitted by today or we'll be in default.

This is usually the way it works. We let things sit until we have to react.

Proaction is not our best asset.

Price of gas

Queens Boulevard
Rego Park, Queens, NY

Yet one more thing.

In between all the other duties I'm working on now I'm helping out our Plumbing Department get a sign-off on their gas piping system because the project GC is trying to get us to eat the responsibilities of another contractor.

Sigh....all in a day's work.

Ohhh boy.

Day 2 and IT still hasn't given access to my help.

Continuation

My assistant has now been moved into my cubicle. My big problem now is that I can't get the IT Department to share my folder that contains all my files she needs access to in order to help me out.

I gave her access to the Project Management program she needs as well but it's only half of the package.

Er....Uh....Um

I just noticed that in Family Guy the line is "positively makes them laugh and cry" and not "positively makes them effing cry".

Maybe I'm just dirty minded.

Hmm..

My 11:00 a.m. appointment with the realtor didn't take place until 12:00 p.m. because first the realtor forgot about the appointment and then the realtor showed up 45 later than promised.

After I got over that and didn't throw her out she looked around and figures we will be able to sell the place off quickly.

She is going to list it for 225K. I just have to paint the bathroom, kitchen, foyer and bedroom. Just what I wanted to do with my spare time.

Exhaustion

I cleaned up as much as I could but not as much as I would have liked. I am so tired I keep nodding off as I sit here.

Preparations

I have to spend most of the evening cleaning and preparing for the the Century 21 realtor's visit. I don't want her to be totally disgusted and running out the door.

This place is a mess.

Preparations for a long Spring

I sent an e-mail to my Project Managers informing them I will be spending most of my time with the Estimating Department and that they will have to start fending for themselves with regards to change orders and proposals.

We'll see how many will do so. There are a few that actually prepare and set up most of their proposals which really helps me out a lot, but they are few and far between.

Price of gas

Queens Boulevard
Rego Park, Queens, NY

An increase of 16 cents across the board.

This on top of the billions in profits that the oil companies are reporting in the first quarter alone coupled with the tax breaks they received from the current administration has made this a boom time for oil magnates.

Of course, life sucks for the rest of us.

Help at last

I'm getting an assistant to help me get my paperwork out. I'm months behind and I really need help.

I'm torn between expectations of getting help and my usual dismay because my "help" is usually pulled away from me a month or two later.

When it rains.

My wife called me frantic today because she lost her purse. I rushed home to get her information so she could start cancelling her credit cards.

She finished cancelling all her cards and now all we have to do is wait for the replacement cards to come in so I can send them to her.

She called me two hours later to tell me her mother found my wife's purse. All that work just to find out it wasn't necessary.

My wife's trouble is she now has no access to money or credit for the next two weeks or so.

Continuing troubles in Utah

My wife called me because of troubles she's experiencing in Utah.

Not too long ago her mother offered to pick up a car for us, making payments until I get out there and we can take over.

Of course things didn't turn out the way they were supposed to. It's her mother's typical behavior he presents an offer that seems out of kindness but she then places conditions or makes changes to the situation when there is nothing else that can be done.

Her mother refused to make the payments on the insurance costs despite her agreement.

Even though I argued that we can't afford to get a second car, of course no one listened to me because I'm here and they're out there.

Doctor visit

I had my doctor's visit today to determine my surgery date and it turned out that my doctor doesn't think I need surgery just yet. The swelling has gone down considerably and I only reported a small amount of pain.

Just goes to show you what happens when you tell the truth. If I was in a great deal of pain I would get the surgery right away. Just because I'm going to need it in a few weeks, I guess it's not important right now.

Taking things in hand

I contacted the realty company since they never called me back and we made an appointment for this Saturday and they'll take a look at the apartment and give me an expected sale range.

Here we go again

Once again I am involved in the bidding process.

Considering the man I have to work with I am very unhappy with this turnabout.

Moving forward

I walked into the local Century 21 to register our co-op for sale but there was no-one there. I left our contact info and I'll have to follow-up later

Ben & Jerry's sorry for Irish "Black & Tan" upset - Yahoo! News

Ben & Jerry's sorry for Irish "Black & Tan" upset - Yahoo! News

I only know of a Black and Tan as Guiness and Bass Ale. It just goes to show you how little I know about European history.

Maybe we're getting a little too sensitive if Ben & Jerry have to apologize for a product name.

Price of gas

Queens Boulevard
Rego Park, queens, NY

An increase of 14 cents on low grade and 20 cents on mid and high grade

Price of gas

Queens Boulevard
Rego Park, Queens, NY

An increase of 14 cents on low grade, 10 cents on mid and high grade

Price of gas

Queens Boulevard
Rego Park, Queens, NY

An increase of a 2 cents on low grade and 4 cents on mid and high grade.

Price of gas

Queens Boulevard
Rego Park, Queens, NY

What a day

My wife called me and stressed me like no other day. She was in a bad place with her mom and she was hammering me because I haven't completed the cleanup and sale of the coop. Not really on the completion part but on the failure on my part to give her an estimated time of completion.

I guess I wouldn't get as stressed if I wasn't as stressed at work. I just can't handle the work right now. I'm getting sick of working on one project day after day.

Price of gas

Queens Boulevard
Rego Park, Queens, NY

Interesting turn, pricing is the same as it was 13 days ago.

What a dreamer I am

I'm watching the world baseball championships as Puerto Rico is playing against Cuba and I'm thinking event though it's too late for me my son can still come up in the later years and play for either Puerto Rico or USA.

I'm of Puerto Rican descent for those of you who are wondering. My wife is of Swiss and English descent so I think as far as my son is concerned US is one, PR ois second and the reet follow.

I don't know how my son would choose to go but if it was up to me I would choose to play for Puerto Rico.

Maybe it's just a pipe dream for me for PR to play and eventually beat US.

I can only hope.

Yet another crisis

My work has been placed on hold right now. I have to concentrate on issuing proposals to the Construction Manager and chrages back to sub-contractors on a project. The main problem is no paperwork has been pushed out in the last 2 1/2 years. We now have to push out all the work in a few weeks.

Had the project managers and staff maintained proper records we wouldn't have to backtrack and look at everything.

Can you imagine the amount of paper that is generated on a public works project on a daily basis? We literally have hundreds of pounds of paper to pore over.

Good news and bad news

I had another visit to the orthopedist, he gave me one more Cortizone shot. That's the third one in a year.

He said that the bone is actually scar tissue that has built up in the tendon. If this shot doesn't get rid of the pain I'll have to have surgery.

I have a dreading feeling that I will need the surgery.

At least the problem wasn't my bones, I thought I would need the surgery because my fear was the bone was becoming cancerous. I've been informed pain is the first sign the bones are in the early stages of cancer.

Recent metting

We had a meeting today to close out open change order on an existing project.

That's usually a good thing however the Construction Manager thought it was fine to try and take advantage of us and short change us of about $100,000.

We discussed and negotiated what we can but I had to balk at closing out the open change orders at zero dollars. I'm leaving that for the owners of their company and ours to hash out.

While I have a level of freedom to close out these change orders I always defer to my superiors before finalizing the big items. For me anything over a $5,000 loss from our target number is a loss. by that criteria the $100,000 number they wanted to void was unacceptable to me.

Necessary work

I went out early today to clean the ice off my car and to move it closer to our apartment. I have a big meeting and I wanted to make sure I can drive my car because I left my car parked on a big pile of snow and ice earlier.

I got stuck for a few seconds but I got it moved.

Quiet time

I took a very lazy day today. I didn't do a darn thing.

Not in the mood.

Lucky me

I took the railroad into the office again. It's a good thing too because the roads were iced over in the blocks surrounding my apartment.

While the blocks surrounding my office were cleared in the morning last night they were all iced over and the driving was treacherous according our office staff that were driving.

It's costing us a small fortune but it's worth it if I can prevent having to pay thousands in damages to my car.

Another train ride day.

I took the railroad in today because the weather reports are saying that the ride home is going to be a mess. Between rain and then the cold weather there is going to be alot of ice on the road. Considering that the area in work in is very hilly I don't want to take the chance of sliding around and getting into an accident.

I don't like to take too many chances.

Price of gas

Queens Blvd.
Rego Park, Queens, NY

Coming trouble

When I got back from Utah I called my orthopedist's office to schedule an appointment since my wrist is causing me more pain.

I disucssed it with my wife. There is a growth of bone on my wrist and with the pain I'm worried it might be cancerous. I had to inform my wife of it since I'll need surgery to remove it and that in a way could just make things worse.

I haven't discussed it with my office yet. I'm waiting for the orthopedist to take x-rays and let me know just how soon I need the surgery. I will probably have to miss several weeks.

The appointment is for next week so I'll know then.

Rough

Work is getting crazy. A lot of things are starting to build up at the office and things aren't coming in line.

I'm starting to stress out.

Chart

I put together a quick chart of the gas pricing for the photos I've been taking for the last 2 years.

Doesn't mean a thing to me but maybe I might to you.

I revised the chart to give a better coverage of area.

Kinda cool

I'm starting to really get into the use of the DVR, so far I haven't figured out the limit of it's storage. I was able to get to somewhere around 20 hours before it started giving me warning signals.

It also maintained a better guide availability then the digital cable box we have in the bedroom.

One of my top tens

I've seen this film 5 or 6 times and it still is funny as all hell. Shaun of the Dead is an excellent satire of the zombie outbreak genre.

I'm just surprised that no one came up with this earlier. An American version would be hysterical. There are so many typical US eccentricities that we can send up in a zombie flick.

I don't think the Return of the Living Dead series ranks up with Shaun.

Upgrade

I ordered an upgrade of our cable service to DVR from our digital service. I'm expecting my wife to come home soon due to hightened tensions between her and her mother.

The DVR will come in handy since our son likes his shows and the shows he prefers are not aired 24 hours a day so it's convenient.

The upgrade box came in today. It was a simple installation, just connect and that's it.

I'm fed up

Today there seems to be quite a few reckless drivers on the road. One particular driver driving an Acura swept from the far right-hand lane into the far left-hand lane not paying attention to other drivers. I'm talking about a 6 lane highway as well.

I intended on using this blog to talk about our family and how I'm dealing with fatherhood. It just seems that all I talk about now is work and driving.

Ugh.

Speaking of tired

I came across an article dealing with work and a worker's feeling of productivity. You can read it here. The study cited doesn't surprise me one bit.

It's as if the folks that performed the study was actually in my office all this time.

Just ducky

I know earlier in the week I said that I can't complete any of my work because of special projects.

Here's another one that came up. I have to work up a schedule for a tight project. It will have about 500 activities with multiple levels of logic and manpower loading. On top of all that it must be completed by Tuesday morning.

Not a big deal...ya.

Price of gas

Queens Boulevard
Rego Park, Queens, NY

It's been 2 weeks since I last gassed up and the pricing has dropped slowly. It's good but it's not great. I can't help but believe that the sentiment I expressed is what the oil companies want: acquiesence.

Change in pricing from last time I filled my tank.
Low grade: -.08

Mid grade: -.06

High grade: -.06

Lack of sleep

I finally fell asleep at 2:00 a.m. and my alarm clock went off at 4:15 a.m. I finally got up after hitting the snooze bar for 45 minutes.

This will be a long day coming up.

Long night

I paid bills and now I can't sleep because all I keep thinking is that I have $23.00 left in my checking account.

Ugh...

President's Day

How do I observe President's Day? By sleeping late and getting a haircut. How else? I like to be lazy.

My wife is going shopping today because she has a birthday party to attend on Wednesday and a second one on Sunday. As long as she doesn't spend a ton of money I don't mind. However, she is aware that we are stretching things thin as we can at the moment.

Religion and children

My wife and I spoke early today since they leave for Sunday services and that takes up quite a bit of time since the service is 3 hours long. Our son enjoyed his time since they have a play area designated for children during services.

However our son could only take so much stimulus before it wears him out. He started walking around the temple. He was a bit distracting to the congregants so my wife had to take him outside.

For the most part the staff didn't mind our son wandering until he started approaching the pulpit. That's when he becomes distracting to the parishoners.

I could understand that.

Driving in Utah

My wife had her first drive in inclement weather on the highway. She had to pick up diapers and formula for our son. While it was a bit scary for her she did fine. Luckily she's drving an all-wheel drive vehicle. That gives me comfort. She's safer in that vehicle during foul weather than she would be in mine.

Our son is doing great but he's getting a little cranky riding in cars because he's been spending so much time in them.

He normally likes going on drives but in the last couple of days all he's done is sit in his car seat and go along for the ride. That he doesn't like. He likes to intersperse his rides with some running around.

That's what makes him truly happy.

While I was spending two weeks in Utah there was this one instance where our son would not go to sleep even though it was almost midnight. He would run to me while I was in bed and then he'd run away to play with the water in the bathroom sink, laughing all the way.

That made me laugh which in turn made him laugh. We created this chain of giggle fits that lasted about 5 minutes or so. It was one of those special moments that just came up, it brings a smile to my face every time I think about it.

Clear skies

In less than a week here we are withnot a single flake in sight. A bit of perspective that these are the same trees that had 4 inches of snow on the branches and leaves less than a week ago.

Same old song

I drove into the office today partly because I was parked on a street that was scheduled for cleaning today and partly because I got tired of riding on the rail in a two hour commute.

The streets look as if there was a small snowfall. The ride wasn't very bad as there weren't many drivers on the road. Maybe they took off today as well to make it a four day weekend.

The office was typical heavy traffic.

Going along.

Today is the 2nd straight day of 55+ degree weather. The snow is melting at a fast pace but it's still has a way to go. There is a sizable amount of flooding at the office but it's rather clear in the city. I'm surprised. I thought there would be a great deal of flooding.

Parking woes

The city has cancelled street cleaning rulse for the last couple of days due to the snow. They announced on Tuesday that the parking rules would ge back in effect today.

That means that I have to definitely move my car tomorrrow.

What bothers me is that if it wasn't for the good weather we've had the streets would still be a mess.

That together with the fact that all city schools were open on Monday when the city was still clearing after a record breaking 26 inch snowfall makes me wonder about the wisdom of some of the decisions made. Until a few years ago schools would be closed after 8 inches hit the ground. That's an inconvenience to the parents and the teachers. The kids that normally have to walk to school I'm sure are having a heck of a time.

More train

Another ride out by rail and today it's due to get unseasonably warm. On the upside it gets the snow cleared. On the downside it creates a potential flooding problem. It depends on how well the catch basins are cleared.

The streets are a bit messy since the intersections aren't as neat as could be.

The two hour trips are messing me up. I don't get home until 7 or 7:30 at night and I have to get to sleep two hours later. I hope the streets clear up soon.

Rough times

Things are slightly improving with my wife and her mom. Her mother is starting to allow my wife to help more and more.

I think her fear is that my wife will try to take control of her life. I want her to understand that my wife is looking to help her out not control her. I've been speaking to my wife's sister to see if she can intercede with her hother to be more cooperative.

I think part of the reason she's allowing my wife to do more is because I was ready to have my wife fly out to us last night because things were very bad between them the last couple of days.

Slow ride

It's a good thing I chose to take the train in today. Parking was horrendous, the company lot was over-packed. One of our project managers had his car damaged by and employee and now no one admits to it.

I'm in the middle of trying to review as many projects as I can and I'm constantly getting side projects that hinders my progress.

Subway times

The trains were somewhat packed today. It took me the usual two hours to make the trip but the amount of people I have to deal with makes me wish I had a dedicated parking spot at home. I've gotten spoiled by driving.

The city has made a strong push to get the roads clean although not all areas are getting the same attention.

Clear and clean

It took me about 2 1/2 hours of shoveling to get the car this clear.

The day after

I took a personal day today since I know the subways are a madhouse after a heavy snowfall. I'm not going to drive because I will have a difficult time finding a parking spot when I get in at the end of the day.

I'll take the subway and the railroad. It's a two hour commute each way but I have to do it as long as there is so little parking available here.

I shouveled out my car somewhat yesterday and I'll try to finish it today. The snow wasn't as packed so it was smarter to shovel it now before the temperature causes it to turn to ice.

A short walk

I took a walk to the store to pick up the newspaper (no surprise, the truck didn't make it to the 7-11 yet.

I took these shots while I was outside just to show how much snow built up on the trees. I had to stay in the middle of the streets, it was the cleanest area to walk in. The snow on the sidewalks was up to my knees.

Morning update

It is day but visibility is poor. It looks like the sun didn't even come up.

Update

It's really starting to come down. You really can't tell but the graininess you see is the snow coming down.

More snow

Just a couple of hours later and you can see the snow is coming down a little heavier that's why the picture is lighter. You can see the snow is a little heavier on the ground as well. And the plow already passed by.

Aw crap...I didn't change the date time stamp on the camera.

Blizzard in effect

So far the snow isn't coming down very strong but with a blizzard warning in effect it should start to accumulate.

The weather services are anticipating up to a foot of snow with up to 2 feet snow drifts.

Adrenaline rush

On my way home from work this crazy man drove right through a yield and almost hit me. I had to slam on the brakes just to avoid him.

The idiot just kept going, he din't hesitate one bit. It's people like that that give NYers a bad name.

To make matters worse if he would have hit me he would have blamed me for it even though I had the right of way...WHAT THE HELL IS A YIELD FOR ANYWAY??

Slow going

I finally got my third project reviewed. My co-workers have don't fully appreciate the quantity of work I have. My boss has me stop what I'm doing so I can research companies in India. His idea is outsourcing some of our drafting work since it can afford him to have work performed virtually on a 24 hour basis since India is about 13 hours later than we are.

I have problems with that but I don't need anything explained to me. I do what they tell me and keep working.

Price of gas

Queens Boulevard
Rego Park, Queens, NY

I think the price has gone up another 2 cents and my sister says it has been pretty mild in these past two weeks. No reason for an increase.

Frustration ensues

I managed to review only one project yesterday. I'm hoping to accomplish a little more than that today.

My wife sounded a little stressed last night. I hope things get better for her. She's in a delicate place right now.

Mail again

I placed a hold on our mail service. I picked it up from our building Superintendant when I got in from work and there was a large number of mail the majority of which was bills. That just makes me sick.

The amount of money we are putting out on bills is just killing us.

We'll do much better once we sell the co-op. The sale is what is holding us up.

Bad thought at the office

I had a few oh crap moments when I saw some of the work that was not addressed while I was gone. I will try to review as many projects as I can however I normally average about one or two days per project so that means with 30 projects it will take me approximately 30 to 60 business days. That translates to 6 to 12 weeks, meaning it will take me about 2 to 3 months before I look at a project again.

That's a scary thought.

Back to the grindstone

Today is my first day back to work and it seems as if I never left. The amount of work I have to perform has gotten about two or three times the volume than when I left.

I have alot of catch up to do now.

Back home

Our flight landed earlier than scheduled. I was home by 6:00 a.m. which is when the flight was supposed to land.

I gave our cat some food and filled up her water dish which is actually more of a watre fountain. It was this motorized device that cycled the water through a filter and spread it out over a dome which would cycle into a dish which would then continue through the filter process. It was actually pretty cool device. It's good for cats and dogs.

I'll be leaving shortly to get my car which is at my sister's place. That way I was able to avoid long-term parking charges at the airport and I didn't accumulate any tickets.

Preparing to go home

I spent the morning packing getting ready to head back home.

I don't understand it but either I packed horribly on the way there or I forgot some of my clothes because there was way too much space available in my carry on bag.

We are planning on heading up to Park City, it's a ski resort area that was the main location for the Winter Olympics in 2002.

The last night

We were supposed to go out for dinner but things quickly fell apart. The women were quickly fighting amongst themselves.

It broke down to us buying cold cuts and having sandwiches with Key Lime Pie for dessert. It wasn't what we anticipated but at least we all sat together as a family.

I don't know what to say to make things work out with them. Maybe there is nothing I can do. I think they need professional help, some sort of family counseling.

A small time out.

Today we drove to the temporary location for Salt Lake City's Living Aquarium. The temporary location is small but informative. It has several interactive features as well as a petting pool with manta rays and other fish swimming about.

The permanent site currently under construction looks impressive. Because it is a new design it should not have the dated looks that many other museums have. We will have to wait until it's completion to know for sure. But the sketches look promising.

For those of you who plan to visit the Salt Lake City area I urge you to visit the Gateway area. It is a nicely designed shopping center/tourist site areas. You can visit the planetarium and the aquarium in the same location as well as walking across the street and see other events at their arena, the Delta Center, home of the Utah Jazz basketball team.

It's a nice design and downtown Salt Lake City reminds me somewhat of the Lower West Village of NYC. Not the street or shopping layout but the ambiance.

Good morning

Today my mother-in-law comes downstairs and tells me that she cancelled her home care services because she still has pain in her side and plans to stay home all day in bed.

I don't see a problem with that plus the fact that she already cancelled the service doesn't really allow for any discussion. I'm not going to berate her for it. She's an adult and she has to accept responsibilities for actions just as we have to do the same in regards to her care.

Mom-in-law needed help today

This morning I drove my mother-in-law to the chiropractor because she is in a great deal of pain. She got her treatment and I drove her back trying to make sure I don't hit too many bumps. She has some exercises to do to keep herself limber.

She said she was well enough to join us for breakfast at Ihop (I can't find a diner around here) she did fine but it was slow going with her.

Later my mother-in-law had another doctor's appointment today. The doctor wanted to meet me. Maybe it's because I asked my wife to get the doctor's diagnosis in writing.

I told my wife the reason I asked was because when her mother finally runs over someone because he said she's okay to drive, he'll know why a complete stranger beat him and sent him to the hospital when he coughs up the letter.

He seemed aware of the stresses that my wife is going through dealing with her mother but he doesn't seem very assertive. Then again my contact with him was a total of 10 minutes.

Birthday dinner

We went out for dinner with my mother-in-law and one of her sisters. We went to a steakhouse for dinner and I gotta say the service was excellent.

My wife and I had the prime rib and it was very good. Afterwards we shared a Creme Brulele (sp?).

My sister-in-law watched our son while we ate and she had a bit of trouble because our son still has diarhhea, but she managed to handle it well.

Checkup

We took our son to his scheduled check-up. He was due for his 18 month innoculations.

The doctor took a look at him and said that his diarrhea isn't anything much to worry about as long as he is taking in liquids. According to the doctor children have viruses about once a month during the winter and since he's only been sick twice in the last four or five months he's doing well above average.

I guess that's a way of looking at it although it pains me to see my son in agony. His bottom and his testicles are getting very red because of the acidity in his poop. I can't believe that I actually used the word poop just now.

For you folks out there who are experiencing the same trouble, here's a little tip we got from the doctor's nurse from the last time our son was sick that worked out very well.

Dab Maalox on the reddened area and use a blow-dryer to dry it off. Mke sure the blow-dryer has a cool setting or it will make things worse for the child. You should see results in a day or two. The reason for this is because the Maalox which is an antacid neutralizes the acidic affects of the diarrhea. While the treatment is uncomfortable at first they relent and accept the treatment as the blow-dryer dries it off. I think the Maalox has a cooling affect as it dries.

Today's my birthday

Today I turn 41. While I normally don't normally care much about how old I get. I am starting to feel it more and more as I chase around after my son.

That coupled with my the pain I'm starting to feel from my bones I'm getting worried that I might not be able to keep up with him.

Problem with our son

Today we didn't do much of anything. We were very tired because our son woke up at 3:00 a.m. and he didn't fall back asleep until 8:00 a.m.

He slept for another 4 hours but he didn't have a nap all day so he's somewhat cranky because he's tired.

We'll see how he does tonight, lately he hasn't been getting to sleep until midnight and that's a problem. He's not getting enough sleep.

We'll see if a warm bath will help him.

Long day

My wife headed up to Provo today to visit her cousin who has been hospitalized for a burst appendix and I have been watching our son.

Normally my wife does not have this available to her since there aren't too many people that can watch our son at the last minute. I'm glad to be able to spend time with our son.

She didn't get home until about 8:00 p.m. so at that time we didn't have many options for dinner. We ended up having Domino's pizza. Not what I would have preferred but it was our best option.

So much for what I used to say

I used to say that my children would not dictate what I watched on TV.

Of course that changed when my son continually threw tantrums when his programs were not on TV. So here I am watching Blues Clues, Wiggles and Pingu.

Man has my lifestyle declined.

Sunday dinner

We all sat down for dinner, we had left-over lasagne that I made Friday night. Actually it was a lot of food. I ended up making two trays. We had the smaller tray today and it actually worked out ok.

My mother-in-law is bringing what remains to her neighbors next door.

Church services...er...Temple services, I mean

Today was a quiet day. We drove a bit and picked up some groceries. We also picked up wife's mother from church.

She follows the Mormon religion and their Sunday services are three hours long. I personally just couldn't deal with that. I can handle the Catholic hour long kneel, sit and stand sessions rather than than a 3 hour long session. I also have to admit that I have not attended a Mormon mass so I can't attest to the service itself.

Trouble keeps brewing

We went out for take-out. My wife took me to a local Tex-Mex place call Barbacoa what she frequents. Our son had the chesse Quesadilla and he seemed to enjoy himself.

That is until he threw up on me later that night. He just did it matter of fact, It did not look as if he was suffering or it was painful. The downside was that he was sitting on top of me when he let go so all our clothes, his and mine had to be removed for cleaning. Our son still has diarrhea.

I threw the dirty clothing and covers in the washer but what really freaked me out was that the washing machine was knocking as if I had laid the chothes on only one side of the washer. My mother-in=law said that it is an ongoing problem with the washer and I shouldn't worry too much about it.

I'll try to deal with it.

Bad news

My wife headed to a family event with her mother. It was a girls only thing. They all had a nice afternoon lunch.

Unfortunately for me our son had a bout of diarrhea. I didn't think too much of it at first buyt I knew I was in for trouble when I changed his diaper the third time and it started to get steadily worse.

It's probably just a bug since he's not showing any other signs of sickness, no sluggishness and no fever. We'll just have to keep an eye on him and make sure he keeps a steady intake of liquids to avoid dehydration.

Jeez

I could not finish the installation of the chairs because I did not have the proper Phillips head screwdriver for the chairs. We took a trip to Target and picked up the correct screwdrivers.

Gymboree

My wife took our son to an afternoon session of Gymboree, it was w two hour session so I planned to put the tanble togeyther and take a nap before I went to pick up my wife and our son.

Just my luck my wife called me to pick them up an hour before the free time session was over, just right after I finished putting the table together.

It was a long day but I'm just happy to have us together as a family.

Ugh...what work

Today we took somewhat of a lazy day but it dien't last long. My mother-in-law ordered a dining room table with chairs for us and we had the assignemnt of picking it ut.

When we finally got to the store and I got a look at the package I nearly freaked out.

The package was twice as large as our storage area and we had to tie the packaging to the roof of the SIV. What made me nervous was that the store tied the package down with weak twine. I'm talking about the thin twine that's used for bakery boxes. I was somewhat distraught.

All the way home I was driving 30 MPH on what are 40 MPH roads which people regularly drive 50 MPH so it was a bit nervewraking.

We made it home safely despite my worries and I had to unpack all the table and chairs from the roof of the truck since we had to take my wife's mother to her doctor. It was a bit of work but I got it done.

Anniversary

We went to a European fondue place name the Fondue Pot in downtown Salt Lake City. We had several of my wife's friensds from the area and my sister-in-law and her trainer.

Her trainer is a really cool guy, very soft spoken but on the ball with little things. He's a big fan of Spinal Tap of which I am.

We all had a nice time, considreeng ther city closes at 10:00 p.m. we closed the restaurant down at 11:00 p.m.

Salt Lake City is different from other cities that I know in that the whole city literally revolves around the main Salt Lake City Mormon Temple and all the addresses radiate out from the temple.

It's a bit confusing at first but it makes getting around pretty easy.

A look back

I am well enough for us to go to our anniversary dinner. It's been 3 years for us and quite a few things have happened to us since then.

Since our marriage, my wife lost her job, we got pregnant (after marriage) my wife has undergone several surgeries, I developed diabetes, we had a beautiful baby boy, my uncle died of prostate cancer, my step-father fell into depression because of his borther's death and my wife has moved out to Utah to help her mother.

Now we're looking at moving out to Utah to keep an eye out on my mother-in-law.

wow...and that's only the first 3 years.

Relief

I actually feel better. I haven't had the immediate need to expunge so that's a good thing.

What a way to pass the day

Over the evening I woke up with a terrible case of diarrhea. It held me for the entire day. It wouldn't have been so bad but with my wife taking her written test at the DMV that left me to watch our son while I'm feeling miserable.

My wife passed the test, actually the DMV employee gave her the benefit of the doubt on one question and let her re-answer a True/False question she got wrong. That's WAY different than the NY DMV.

Now my wife is a driver. After she got home I stayed in bed to sleep in hopes of recuperating for our anniversary dinner tomorrow.

So far so good.

Driving tests

My wife took her written test and her driving test today with an instructor and she passed. Utah's process for getting a driver's license is different than in NY. Now all my wife has to do is take a written test at the DMV and if she passes she gets her license.

She wanted to do it today but since I don't know where the DMV is and my wife doesn't know we thought it's best to wait until tomorrow when someone can take her.

First night here

We took a drive from my mother-in-law's home to central Salt Lake City, to some mall type of location called the Gateway. We had breakfast and walked around a bit.

I also got a look at my sister-in-law's apartment which wasn't too far from the Gateway. We didn't have the stroller with us so we drove back home and picked it up and came back. It was chilly but it wasn't freezing. We picked up a few groceries and my wife made pork chops and potatoes.

Not an exciting day but it's just the kind of day I like.

A family again.

I landed in Salt Lake City at 12:30 a.m. this morning. My wife, my son and my sister-in-law were there to greet me. My wife was crying as she held me. I got the sense that my son didn't recognize me.

At his age, 3 months is quite a bit of time so I'm not too surprised. It just gives me incentive to get us all togther that much quicker.

Typical New York moment

Weekend at Bernie's:

In the middle of Summer a mugger approaches the main characters in Central Park, pulls a gun and demands their money.

Andrew McCarthy's character responds with a Get the Hell outta here...It's way too hot and they keep moving along. The mugger is dumbfounded and just shrugs it off as it's too hot to even deal with it.

Preparations

My wife is ecstatic that the time is almost upon us for a reunion. She is a very sensitive person and just talking aobut it is bringing her to tears. I alsmot completed my packing but I think I'm going to miss something anyways.

I managed to deposit my paychecks and wrote a buttload of checks to cover all our bills while I'm gone.

The only one outstanding is my car insurance. I just have to contact my broker to find out what the remaining nut is since I'm almost done for the year.

Fortune shines on me

I managed to get my payroll checks today. I thought I was going to miss them but luckily they cranked them out for me.

Price of gas

Queens Boulevard
Rego Park, Queens, NY

Another 2 cents increase, and the weather doesn't even show that the increase is justified. Maybe the logic is a penny for every day the weather hits 35 or below.

Hm....what's the definition of Profiteer?

I'm a shmuck

I waited too long to ask payroll for my vacation checks. I might not get them now and I have the mortgage and my car insurance to pay. Everything else is no biggie if I'm late but I can't let those two go.

Eeks.

I'm leaving Saturday night and I'm totally psyched. It's been three months since I've seen and held my family. I miss them very much. My wife is the only one that kept me from self-destructing five years ago. The addition of our son also brought my life into perspective but it's been a long time for me even though it's really only 90 or so days.

I'm showing a co-worker what I do so that the paperwork can still flow while I'm gone from the office but she's not keen on doing it.

It appears that I'm the only one in the company suited for the minutia and boredom that my duties engender.

Aw...Crap

I got a new computer running from our IT department and lo and behold we have a new IT
Director who was hired on Monday this week and no one knew it.

For some reason since I have a clue everyone seems to hold me in some regard which kinda creates a rift between me and the official IT Dept.

That was evident today when I called the IT guy we had for the last 6 months before the IT director was hired this week and a small rift was started when the new Director thought I didnt't require immediate attention until I got the company President to push things along.

The one thing all these company newbies fail to realize is that I was the President's go-to guy before we were a huge company so he tends to rely on me before he relies on anyone else. I have a bit more pull than the IT Dept. when it comes to computer crap, it all depends upon how I present it.

On my side, I try to deflect everything to the IT Dept. before I get get involved.

Not a good start

OH MY GOD!!!!

my computer crashed this morning.

Another wasted day

I am spending much of my time getting a co-workiner used to what I am doing so she can take over my position while I'm on vacation. My co-worker is not used to what I do and she is totally not ready for this.

At some point she's going to go crazy but right now shoe's holding tight.

I suspect that I will have more work for me than I will leave when I get back. On a typical day I get about 100 items that have to be reviewed and disseminated, and that's on a slow day. I expect that what I leave will be waiting for me when I get back.

Monday before vacation

our first day with the web based version of our Project Management software looked good until it came to my attention that we had only 1/2 the licenses that we were scheduled to obtain.

Our previous IT supervisor was in charge to obtain them and he dropped the ball and here I am learning 6 months later that he did nothing.

With the software developer's pricing scheme we will have to pay $2,000.00 more for the 5 licenses than the developer's new pricing setup has devised. I managed to give a good sob story to gwt them to accept my company's purchase order instead of their previous requirements of check or charge.

Considering this is my last week before I go on vacation...I'm working too hard.

On top of that I'm teaching a co-working how to do what I do, and she absolutely hates what I do.

I assume that qualifies as job security.

Weekend work

I spent quite a bit of time today working with our consultants to make sure that our database was successfully converted to the newest version of Primavera Expedition (the defecto standard for construction contract management).

I wasn't dealing with them minute by minute but I was dealing with the one of the company's main principle that has just as much of a life as I do....none.

It looks like we'll be able to go live tomorrow with the web based version of our software.

Every day we move along

I arranged to take two weeks vacation starting next week. I'll be flying out to Utah Saturday night. It's been 3 months since I've seen my family and I miss them so bad. I have not slept well in these three months. For example I only had four hours sleep last night and I was only able to get a half hour nap today. It's not fun.

This past month was extremely stressful for my wife out there. It seemed like nothing was going right for her. Early in the week I mentioned to her that perhaps it's her PMS that's affecting her emotions and making her more sensitive to things. Luckily she didn't bite my head off. She thought about it and filed it away in her head.

She called me yesterday and she sounded so much better. Not as melancholy as she had been throughout the week. She started menstruating yesterday and remembered what I suggested about her PMS and realized what was happening to her. Things sounded better with her.

I can't wait to see my family again.

Harry Shearer

Harry Shearer

I have been listening to Harry Shearer's podcast for a few weeks now and it's great. This past week's podcast had several folks from New Orleans talking about what is going on there that we don't really know about.

He did a great job of it.

I suggest it for anyone that loves humor and news from an alternative bent. Harry Shearer has been an exceptional comic for the past 30 years and he is just geting better with age.

For those of you that have been living under a rock all these years he's also done a few voices for The Simpsons.

Spinal Tap rules.

Price of gas

Queens Boulevard
Rego Park, Queens, NY

I don't understand the mentality behind the pricing structure. The weather has been as mild as I recall in the winter. We only had about a week or so of really cold weather but things have not been bad at all.

In the last week the price of gas went up another 8 cents. Something is definitely wrong.

A bad day

We had a big meeting this morning reviewing the status of all the projects. To say that my supervisors were not happy is an understatement. Things have not been moving as quickly as expected. Our project managers have not been as on top of things as they must be.

I have been provding them with logs on I would say a monthly to bi-monthly basis. I wish I could make it more frequently but when I'm juggling regulatory and change order work on 30 or so projects it's not a surprise that on average I'm 2 months behind on my paperwork.

I would consider myself part of the problem but I don't get the information from the project managers on a timely basis either. It usually feels like when they give me the paperwork it's usually on a must have now case. That makes it tough.

I'm always playing catch-up.

This is not cool

I am scheduled to take my vacationin about 12 days and no one is taking any sort of remedy before I leave. My partner in close-out is now out for about 8 weeks because he needed his hip replaced (actually he needs both but the doctors will only do one at a time) and no one is showing any sign of desperation or concern about it.

I'm going crazy.

WTF!!??!!

Mummified body left in home for two plus years - Peculiar Postings - MSNBC.com

This is the kind of thing you see in horror movies. YOu don't imagine there are folks twisted enough in today's day and age to do this.

Like I said....work sucks

Work is driving me crazy. I have about 30 projects to maintain and nothing helps. I am constantly running about 2 months behind and htere is a meeting for Thursday where we have to explain our existence.

Not pleasant.

A return to normalcy.

They say man is a creature of habit. I can only agree.

The Hallmark Channel has returned to mystery features on Sundays now that the holidays are done. I got accustomed to viewing them. I can't believe I got used to watching Matlock movies. I'm still 20 years from that demographic.

Saturday work

I started working in the bathroom today. I took out the showder doors and the rails.

Just my luck, when I removed the side rails an entire section of tile came down. Now I have to replace them. It will require about 15 to 18 tiles to replace but no matter.

I made arrangements with the office to take two weeks off from work so I can take a vacation and see my family. I bought the tickets so I know I'm set but I don't look forward to coming back.

The work load will be very heavy.

Price of gas

Queens Boulevard
Rego Park, Queens, NY

Another 6 cents

Egads

My wife called me and told me she's having her 2nd driving lesson today. Her first was last week and sh thought she did very well.

I'm glad she was able to get in a car and drive a bit because she needs to learn to drive. My big worry is that she will get spooked by traffic. I told her I wouldne't show her any driving skills because I was afraid she would pick up my bad habits. I still feel thats true.

She was comfortable with the instructor and that's very important in learning to drive.

On the work front I completed the review of 17 of the 21 projects to complete. Hoepfully I'll be dones soon.

Yet one more thing

I get a requet from my SVP to prepare all my logs for our GC work for immediate review. Of course that's 21 projects that I am currently 2 months behind in review because of various projects I've been working on.

Just ducky.

Work, work, work

Back to the office and all I can see is work. I'm tired of it.

It's starting to drive me crazy.

All I get are continuous requiests to stop what I'm working on and do something else.

Ah yes

This is our first day off of the new year. I am spending it doing absolutely nothing.

It is grand.

2006 is upon us

Happy New Year to all.