So, after our great weekend, the week itself is turning out pretty good. On Monday I had to go to the post office to pick up our copy of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince we had pre-ordered from Amazon a couple years ago I think, and when I got home our postal lady had another package for us - my diploma! Yeehaa!! It looks really good - the spelled my name right and all. I'll post a picture when I get a chance. Now it's really real!
Tuesday I had another job interview! This for Lucent as an Exchange Communications Administrator. The 'view went very well and I was told I would be called when it was time to assemble the support team. This manager is gathering his potential techs so he can put us in place in a short time once management tells him to do it. The position won't actually exist for two or three months. The timing is working out great for me as I am using the quiet times on my second-shift job to study for my certifications. I feel like things are falling into place at last. I only got to sleep a couple hours last night so I'm really beat, but in spite of that I was really productive at both jobs today!
Wednesday night Mary Lynn had to work 5:00 to closing at Sears and she was really beat when she finally finished at 10:30 so she called me for help. What's great about my shift job is that the Zurich building is right next to Woodfield Mall where she works, so I could buzz out for a few minutes to help her load and unload her scooter in the van. What a blessing that is.
And finally, on Friday, Mary Lynn is scheduled to have her new scooter delivered! Yea! It's brand new with a comfy seat and rear suspension which will really help her back and other joints. So, this should finish up as a great week! Oh, and then on Saturday, Mary Lynn has two job interviews at Nordstrom's Closet. So maybe she can get out of the weird environment at Sears and join the weird environment at Nordstrom's, but for better pay. ;-) I wish her luck!
The only drawback is it's really hot and muggy here right now. Oh, but that won't last. Let's all have a great weekend! Okay?! Good!
Thursday, July 21, 2005
Monday, July 18, 2005
Chocolate is Addictive!
Had a great weekend! Mary Lynn and I cruised into Chicago to get her hair done ( her most excellent stylist, Shellie, has moved to Orlando, but she was back this weekend for a family do and was able to squeeze in a session with MLM). Then we were going to have a late lunch, early dinner at our favorite Greek restaurant, Pegasus, but Shellie suggested we try Costa's (both in Greektown along Halsted, of course), so we did. It was excellent! Great avgolemono soup and the best mousaka MLM's ever had. I got the lamb with artichokes and it was just perfect! Recommended!
Then we went to see Charlie and the Cholocolate Factory and had a wonderful time! We've always been big fans of the 1971 Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory with Gene Wilder's wonderful, personal, interpretive performance, so we were anxious to see this new take on the story. Well, it is just marvelous! The casting of all the characters is perfect with a natural balance in all the performances. Johnny Depp's Wonka is just amazing - filled with a child-like wonder, an innocence of the world, yet totally in control of his factory and all that goes on there. On the other hand, we see a guy with issues. When his guests mention something or ask a question that triggers an event in Wonka's past we see his eyes glaze over and we dissolve into a flashback of sometimes horrific events that would keep most people on an analyst's couch for decades (in fact, Wonka does go through some analysis with his own Sigmund Oompa-Loompa!)
All the Oompa-Loompas are played by Deep Roy, a 4'-4" tall character actor and stunt man who's been in films like Big Fish, Return of the Jedi, and Planet of the Apes. His characterizations are duplicated digitally up to 165 times for the big music numbers. The music and songs are great - all written and performed by Danny Elfman, another favorite of ours, with production numbers that would flabbergast Busby Berkely!
Anyway, we plan to see it again soon, and encourage you all to do the same.
Mmmmmm, chocolate!
Then we went to see Charlie and the Cholocolate Factory and had a wonderful time! We've always been big fans of the 1971 Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory with Gene Wilder's wonderful, personal, interpretive performance, so we were anxious to see this new take on the story. Well, it is just marvelous! The casting of all the characters is perfect with a natural balance in all the performances. Johnny Depp's Wonka is just amazing - filled with a child-like wonder, an innocence of the world, yet totally in control of his factory and all that goes on there. On the other hand, we see a guy with issues. When his guests mention something or ask a question that triggers an event in Wonka's past we see his eyes glaze over and we dissolve into a flashback of sometimes horrific events that would keep most people on an analyst's couch for decades (in fact, Wonka does go through some analysis with his own Sigmund Oompa-Loompa!)
All the Oompa-Loompas are played by Deep Roy, a 4'-4" tall character actor and stunt man who's been in films like Big Fish, Return of the Jedi, and Planet of the Apes. His characterizations are duplicated digitally up to 165 times for the big music numbers. The music and songs are great - all written and performed by Danny Elfman, another favorite of ours, with production numbers that would flabbergast Busby Berkely!
Anyway, we plan to see it again soon, and encourage you all to do the same.
Mmmmmm, chocolate!
Thursday, July 14, 2005
A Picture Worth A Thousand Words.
Okay, so you won re-election already! Can we call it quits and bring our troops back home now?
Wednesday, July 13, 2005
Another New Job!
So, I'm at work at my little short-time contract job (where they have just assigned me more responsibility and were very complementary about my work and wanted me to do this extra stuff 'cause I'm the only one they'll trust it with), when I get a call from my recruiter at TEKSystems to say I have a job! This is at Zurich - the international finance and insurance company - which he submitted me for on Monday. He said they would probably act fast on their decision and I might start next Monday if everything goes well. The money is right, but the health benefits from TEKSystems suck, and the work is second shift - 4:00-midnight. Anyway, he calls me this morning and says I have the job but they need me to start today!
So, I hurry down to my supervisor's cube to give him the bad news. He totally understood and asked how much notice I was giving and I told him none, really. However, my current contract was scheduled to finish the end of July (about two weeks) so I offered to start there at 7:00am and do the work they have for me and then go to my next job at 3:00. He actually said that would be great and thanked me for the extra effort and not leaving them in the lurch. Kewl~!
So for the next two weeks (or as long as I can stand it) I will be double-dipping as they say which will really help things around the house, dontchaknow. ;-)
The job is going to be very cool in that I will be monitoring several hundred servers and taking calls should anything happen with any of them. We are also decommissioning a bunch of them and adding new ones. I'll learn a lot here! Plus, my coworkers say that when it's slow with projects or anything we can do what we like - which for me will studying for more certifications. It's a win-win.
My only concern is Mary Lynn getting to work. We have found the the chair lift in the new van is a lot harder for her to manipulate than we thought it was going to be. She really strains her back when pushing or pulling the scooter in and out. At least once the day job ends for me I'll be around most of the day to help out. Pray with me that she doesn't injure herself in the meantime. That would make the new job not be worth it!
Gotta go now. All skate; all skate....
So, I hurry down to my supervisor's cube to give him the bad news. He totally understood and asked how much notice I was giving and I told him none, really. However, my current contract was scheduled to finish the end of July (about two weeks) so I offered to start there at 7:00am and do the work they have for me and then go to my next job at 3:00. He actually said that would be great and thanked me for the extra effort and not leaving them in the lurch. Kewl~!
So for the next two weeks (or as long as I can stand it) I will be double-dipping as they say which will really help things around the house, dontchaknow. ;-)
The job is going to be very cool in that I will be monitoring several hundred servers and taking calls should anything happen with any of them. We are also decommissioning a bunch of them and adding new ones. I'll learn a lot here! Plus, my coworkers say that when it's slow with projects or anything we can do what we like - which for me will studying for more certifications. It's a win-win.
My only concern is Mary Lynn getting to work. We have found the the chair lift in the new van is a lot harder for her to manipulate than we thought it was going to be. She really strains her back when pushing or pulling the scooter in and out. At least once the day job ends for me I'll be around most of the day to help out. Pray with me that she doesn't injure herself in the meantime. That would make the new job not be worth it!
Gotta go now. All skate; all skate....
Tuesday, July 12, 2005
Catching Up
Well, I have a few minutes for a quick update. Let's see... I did not get the job at Bank of America - they said my background was strong but they really wanted someone with trading floor experience. I say, hire me and by day two I'll have the experience you need! Oh, well.
I picked up a short-time contract job that should last until the end of July so that's helping. Also hit the job postings Sunday night and there were a plethora of new openings which I applied for. I have had four calls today from recruiters and have been submitted to about eight companies right now. I figure it's just a matter of time - and pretty soon now. This is good news since my last severance check from Sara Lee arrives this week. Whew! So I've been commuting from Schaumburg to Riverwoods (15 miles) or North Chicago (20 miles) for the last three weeks. It's been a bit of an ego boost since I immediately picked up the focus of the project and began offering ways to accomplish things more efficiently and so became the "go to" guy in a day and a half. Doesn't increase my pay or contract but it makes the work more challenging and fun.
It's been challenging at home lately too. Mary Lynn went into the hospital last month with a severe arthritis-related foot condition. She was in there for a week! 'Course it was the same week I started this new contract job! Anyway, she's doing much better now and she'll share some of the details with you on her blog.
I got some very nice cash presents from family and friends for my graduation. But the best gift came from my Dad - he got me a train set! A very nice one, too, with lots of accessories and an over and under figure eight layout with trestles and all. Very cool. Y'know, he put together my first 4'x 8' train board when I was a lad, with a nifty chain and pulley arrangement that let me lift it up against the wall when not being used. I think he wanted to get it for me since during so much of my growing up years my train time was restricted as being inappropriate. I often felt guilty just running one around the tracks, let alone getting wrapped up in scenery and building structures for it. Oh, well. The sticky bit with this set is that it's in HO scale, which of course I worked in for over thirty years and Dad knew that. However, since I got my Polar Express for Christmas I decided to go with O scale Lionel from now on. I put my HO stuff on eBay, and just a couple weeks ago sold my last set of cars! How ironic. After a few days of trying to figure out how not to hurt his feelings, I called him up and laid it out for him - emphasizing the fact that I REALLY appreciated him getting me a train and that it was very nice one at that. He was very gracious and understood completely and encouraged me to return the set to the company for credit and then get what I wanted for my Lionel. What a guy! So, I sent it back and I'll either get a pair of turnouts or wait for the two new Polar Express cars to come out in August. Whee!
The Lionel is packed away right now due to a financial indescretion on my part - my decision, not punishment - and I'll get it out again when I get a full-time job. Much to do around the house anyway. Much tidying to be done in the office. Also studying for Network+ certification. Once I have Network+ to go with my A+, there are only three Microsoft exams to take and I'll be an MCSA (Microsoft Certified Systems Administrator). This will definitely help the job prospects down the road. Also working on getting my application together for the MBA program in the fall. Busy, busy!
Saw some great movies lately which I may talk about later. Dinnertime is over now though, so I must go. I hope everyone had a safe and happy Fourth of July!
See you later.
I picked up a short-time contract job that should last until the end of July so that's helping. Also hit the job postings Sunday night and there were a plethora of new openings which I applied for. I have had four calls today from recruiters and have been submitted to about eight companies right now. I figure it's just a matter of time - and pretty soon now. This is good news since my last severance check from Sara Lee arrives this week. Whew! So I've been commuting from Schaumburg to Riverwoods (15 miles) or North Chicago (20 miles) for the last three weeks. It's been a bit of an ego boost since I immediately picked up the focus of the project and began offering ways to accomplish things more efficiently and so became the "go to" guy in a day and a half. Doesn't increase my pay or contract but it makes the work more challenging and fun.
It's been challenging at home lately too. Mary Lynn went into the hospital last month with a severe arthritis-related foot condition. She was in there for a week! 'Course it was the same week I started this new contract job! Anyway, she's doing much better now and she'll share some of the details with you on her blog.
I got some very nice cash presents from family and friends for my graduation. But the best gift came from my Dad - he got me a train set! A very nice one, too, with lots of accessories and an over and under figure eight layout with trestles and all. Very cool. Y'know, he put together my first 4'x 8' train board when I was a lad, with a nifty chain and pulley arrangement that let me lift it up against the wall when not being used. I think he wanted to get it for me since during so much of my growing up years my train time was restricted as being inappropriate. I often felt guilty just running one around the tracks, let alone getting wrapped up in scenery and building structures for it. Oh, well. The sticky bit with this set is that it's in HO scale, which of course I worked in for over thirty years and Dad knew that. However, since I got my Polar Express for Christmas I decided to go with O scale Lionel from now on. I put my HO stuff on eBay, and just a couple weeks ago sold my last set of cars! How ironic. After a few days of trying to figure out how not to hurt his feelings, I called him up and laid it out for him - emphasizing the fact that I REALLY appreciated him getting me a train and that it was very nice one at that. He was very gracious and understood completely and encouraged me to return the set to the company for credit and then get what I wanted for my Lionel. What a guy! So, I sent it back and I'll either get a pair of turnouts or wait for the two new Polar Express cars to come out in August. Whee!
The Lionel is packed away right now due to a financial indescretion on my part - my decision, not punishment - and I'll get it out again when I get a full-time job. Much to do around the house anyway. Much tidying to be done in the office. Also studying for Network+ certification. Once I have Network+ to go with my A+, there are only three Microsoft exams to take and I'll be an MCSA (Microsoft Certified Systems Administrator). This will definitely help the job prospects down the road. Also working on getting my application together for the MBA program in the fall. Busy, busy!
Saw some great movies lately which I may talk about later. Dinnertime is over now though, so I must go. I hope everyone had a safe and happy Fourth of July!
See you later.
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