This is my backyard this morning. A bit late in the game, even for Michigan. But, sometimes it snows in April. I played Xmas music for my daughter this morning. I am adding an email activation link for new accounts. Hopefully it will have a dampening effect upon the spam. That will probably be pushed out today. After that, I am going to finish image hosting. Pretty busy otherwise. We are planning a major house remodel, and Forever Labs and other things are quite good, but busy. I need to socialize more and have more recreational fun. That is what I am going to do. I'm going to head back up north next month to finish the sauna. This time I will not cut any finger tips off.
One of these years I'm just going to show up and surprise you at the cottage. It's been like... 30 years since I was there, but I think I could just about drive right to it. funny how our brains store some information forever, but I can't remember an important email message I received on Monday that I need to act on. Will us old-timers need to add an email?I am adding an email activation link for new accounts.
“Sometimes it snows in April.” Is a phenomenal title for.... something. Actually, change it to, “The Snows of April,” and you have a Hemingway short story. No more cutting off of fingers. Enjoy the recreation time. It’s important stuff. Onward!
It's snowing today in Montreal too! April snow is not uncommon (despite the yearly outrage facebook posts, surprised by snow in April). But it's end of April already, and we've had super warm weeks. Good thing we didn't switch out for summer tires just yet!
yah.. same in Denver. got 5-8 inches yesterday. Sun came out and melted it off the streets and any other south facing ground. But my neighbor's yard is still FULL of snow. It is funny how people forget how much it can snow in late spring. Colorado's snowiest month is March. I feel yah. We had several weeks of 75F+ and even an 80F day. So waking up to 14F yesterday just felt like a raw deal.But it's end of April already, and we've had super warm weeks.
Quite the opposite side geographically. We’re swamp people through and through. EDIT: Whoops, pressed submit too soon. Anyways, insert pun about Florida here. Tesla of the South is a gorgeous white German Sheperd mix. We honestly have no clue how people make it through real winters. The sun and heat is vital to us... otherwise, I bet Seattle is wondrous in summer.
My wife and I and our two adult children received our second Moderna dose today, and our 16 year old received his first vaccine. It's a vaccination day at our house! I couldn't be happier. It's a surreal feeling. It's shaping up to be an epic week. A murderer was convicted, Apple released some cool new products (ok fine - maybe their just multi-colored crap - but it is still fun to nerd out about), vaccines today, Ted Lasso Season 2 trailer dropped, two friends got promotions, another friend just found a job he's stoked about, and I had a meeting with the former president of my company and found out she LOVES me and wants to bring me with her wherever she lands... which is a good feeling to have. I know that there is still some darkness out there in the world... but today I'm feeling a lot of light and a lot of gratitude.
How are you all feeling now a day later? I felt not great around 12-36 hours after my second shot and a few more days to really feel 100%.
Oooof. Was great for the first 20 hours. So vaccine Wednesday at 1pm and fine the rest of the day. Felt pretty good when I woke up, good enough even to go into the office. That devolved into kind of a foggy, groggy afternoon, which by the evening, turned into an achy 101F temp. I had read that ibuprofen (my go to) isn’t the best solution for this, since the immune response is, an inflammatory response, so to take an anti-inflammatory is to potentially lessen the immune response. In my foggy brain, it took a while to realize we don’t have any Acetaminophen in the house, so a quick trip to the drug store got us sorted out. Felt meh until I went to sleep. Woke up Friday morning and I could tell I had sweat all night, but I felt about 95%. By Friday night I felt 100% but tired. All in all - nothing terrible. Just foggy brain, followed by a fever and chills. But I’d take it every year if it means not catching Covid. 10/10 would recommend, and also would recommend just planning to chill the second day.
That's about my experience, too! I started to feel it at 12 hours, and 12 to 36 was the worst. My recommendations are similar: get shots. Also, drink water. A friend said I'd be thirsty, and I was. Get shots, drink water, and keep wearing masks. Wisconsin is seeing declining cases again, so yay!
I saw a “China Joe Not My President” bumper sticker today. How do you define balance in your life? lil et., al., what do you think?
I don’t believe in “work-life balance.” I don’t think our experience of living is binary. Life is life and can include work, nature, climbing, biking, picking up aluminum, parent care, child care, studying, and so on. If we need, say, music in our lives and don’t have it, be attuned to the hunger. If you don’t feed yourself what you need (rest, contact with others, touch, hockey, whatever) you might become passive-aggressive, aggressive, or even develop panic attacks.
Thanks for the badge thenewgreen. I was hoping you’d notice the hockey reference.
Yes, work-life balance isn't quite what I'm referring to with this question, though it's certainly fair game and within the limits of the question. I don't think anything is off-limits for a question like that. This puts into words what balance can mean. Is it balance, though, if you're satiating that hunger? Or is it a reaction to a need in that moment? Now I'm left wondering - is "balance" the sustained satiation of that hunger for something like music without having a deficit elsewhere? I'm not sure that's possible. Hm.If we need, say, music in our lives and don’t have it, be attuned to the hunger. If you don’t feed yourself what you need (rest, contact with others, touch, hockey, whatever) you might become passive-aggressive, aggressive, or even develop panic attacks.
I have this weird thing where my boss always writes me mean messages while I'm giving presentations, sometimes through slack and sometimes through the PM function on the video chat service we use. Sometimes the messages are only a little mean and sometimes they're pretty hostile. I can't tell if she's testing me to see how well I'd do in a pressure situation, or if she thinks she's being helpful, or something else entirely. She once said to me, "I have no empathy," so that's something to consider, too, I guess (and that was years before I agreed to work for her, so it's not like I wasn't warned!). Fortunately for me I have pretty thick skin, but even one of the other people in the company who I was talking to about it, was like, "Yeah that's not normal." If I didn't know better I'd think it was some form of attempted bullying, but I actually think she thinks it's her version of leadership. Gonna keep my mouth shut for now, which is something I'm inherently good at, and see if it lasts.
Mouth shut sounds like a plan. Don’t engage. But if you did, don’t challenge or confront in any way. Maybe say, “I’m not sure what you meant by xxxx. Could you explain? No sarcasm, no irony. Or, “Thanks for your text. What I hear you saying is . . . then paraphrase the mean tweet giving her the most positive and generous interpretation, followed by - is that it?”
One aspect here that I've yet to think through is that it's a weird company insofar as it's small and entirely populated by seasoned veterans of the field who are mostly in their 50s and 60s, and then there's me, the young(ish--compared to them), inexperienced newcomer. I know she likes me, and I know she thinks I'm decent at what I do, so I want to think she think she's trying to mentor me in a way. But I think she's just not good at it. Anyway, I appreciate the advice. No one does it better than you.
I am pretty good at interpreting such things. You should give me a call and provide more specifics. Though I don’t see you often, I consider you a good friend and I know you’re an incredibly talented person, but I think I may have more of a proclivity when it comes to parsing such things. Also, I’m just super curious now :) I’m on a plane atm, but let’s talk tomorrow.
100 is a lot. But we all have our skill sets. Let me use my Jedi powers to interpret what sounds like a crazy situation. And seriously; I want to know what she’s texting you and the context therein. Sounds insane. And, we are due for a conversation. If nothing else, I need your help justifying future guitar purchases.
My preferred method is to just not say anything and hope my wife doesn't, too. I did prime her recently by telling her that I plan to gather a "collection" over the next number of years. I have the strat and the ES-335 I've always coveted, but there's so much more. A high end PRS, a Les Paul, an ES-175, a tele, etc, etc. I figure if I buy one every time I get a bonus, then it'll be hard to be pissed off, since it'll still be a pretty big bolus of money. Edit: But yes, let's talk. Wish we did more anyway.
I have shared this performance with people many, many times. Most recently with my father in law. So, I have to assume you're referring to the below video. The one you posted is Prince performing Purple Rain from said film. Thx for sharing! Onward!!!
I can't believe I've not seen that before. I got chills. Is that Dhani Harrison on rhythm? I suppose it's technically slaying Clapton (from a guitar perspective), but that's nitpicky and no less awesome either way. Sad to see Tom and Prince up there having such a good time. Poor bastards. Petty's voice on that performance is really melodic and nice, not like his typical country thing. What a beautiful vid. Thanks for posting.
Yes. That’s Dhani. And some of my favorite parts are watching his expression. Prince owns that stage. It’s so much fun to watch.
whoa... that's a weird youtube doing it's youtube thing... yes. I thought I had copied the link starting just before the solo... hmmm.... just tried to post again... hubski doesn't honor the start at tag in the link. interesting. Whoops. yes - and thank you for catching that. and as a bonus... here's Prince in the actual rain
I had a wonderful weekend hanging out with very good friends. It's funny. You don't realize how much of a narrow echo chamber you may have become ensnared into until you hang out with people from outside. It's so good to be reminded of the variety of opinions and the variety of people that can know you, and know you well, when you step outside of it. I have been setting boundaries with my Nosey Neighbor and it has been going well! I have begun Zee Online Dating. I tried OKC briefly, not much luck, am moving on to Hinge. Here's to hopefully meeting new people in person soon. I drew some more badass tattoo inspired art. Hope y'all like it, Hubski !! -- 
I've had my best luck with Hinge. Good luck! The right someone is out there. I always liked the concept of Bumble (men cannot message women first) but have been happier with Hinge.
Been thinking about buying a house and finally move on from the condo. Maybe I'll spend the next ten months getting ready and then give it a go next spring. Maybe see how dating is going at that point, e.g. have I been seeing someone long enough to think about moving in together or did they all peter out.
I am no homeowner, but a few in my circle have recently become some. Those ten months may be how long it takes to find the house. It never hurts to idly look or get e-mail updates. That seems to be the way (realtor or not) friends and family happen upon their latest permanent addresses. My brother has been on the house hunt for around a year, and during that time has found an SO who’s been on the hunt just as long. Funny enough, they’ve toured the same houses/looking for the same characteristics before becoming an item. Puts them both in an interesting spot since they seem to be a good fit for the long haul... but now the matter of moving forward with both of their personal goals (of homeownership) needs re-adjusting in the frame of a life together. No doubt others here will have more to add, with more life experience to boot. Maybe or maybe not this pub, but I’m interested to see where it goes! Excited for you.
I've been looking idly for years! Not touring any, but I know what area would be, I think, perfect for me. It's a city with really good schools, and while I don't have kids, I value having neighbors who value their kids' education. It's close to everything but not on the way to anything, so traffic is either people who live there or people who run/bike through (which is how I know it best). There's actually one listed this week that's totally in my price range. I think I even know one of the neighbors (I forget exactly where she lives but within a house or two I think). Only one bathroom where I'd like two, but if I'm buying alone that isn't a dealbreaker. That I'm not ready to make an offer today is probably a dealbreaker, though.
Gih! Shame on me for assuming. Lovely... you looking far from where you’re currently settled in? “A city” sounds as though its out of the way. traffic is either people who live there or people who run/bike through (which is how I know it best)
As a side project / gift for my SO's parents, I'm lasercutting a Scrabble board made out of birch, bamboo and dark green acryl. Created a test file to see how my margins are, which font sizes to use and how the engraving looks on these materials and whether the image in my head is what I can create. It's 10:30pm here and I just sent the order for my files to be cut. My SO remarked "you definitely have the energy for side projects again huh" and she's right. Work is now 70% dicking around professionally, exploring some paths without anyone asking for it but with appreciative 'good idea, veen' responses all around. I don't think it's gonna stick, but I do want to keep that energy going.
So looks like I'm working on a 15 minute presentation next; still too early to tell so I'm going to keep the good ol' "What can be learned?" mentality.Further to your application for the above post, we are pleased to advise that we would like to invite you for an interview.
Happiness Wife's birthday tomorrow. We are going away for the weekend with her best friend, Sarah. Sarah had a daughter 14 years ago ON MY WIFE'S BIRTHDAY, so my wife and her daughter are birthday buddies. Bonus, is Sarah has a wonderful man in her life after a decade of focusing entirely on raising her daughter as a single mom, so we are all going to hang out and enjoy each other's company. (All vaxxed.) Sadly, our gorgeous 70-degree sunny days end tomorrow, and it's going to be raining and 50s all weekend. So more time by the fire and making waffles, for me! :-) Yard Work Also got 6 yards of gorgeous compost delivered yesterday for the front yard renovation project, and Mom has an entire pickup truck full of plants - dogwoods, daphne, butterfly bushes, japanese grasses, ferns, and some veggie seedlings - ready to plant when we are back home next week. Whee! Work Work Spent all day Saturday in the office, printing out a sales proposal that was 100 pages long, and needed 11 copies, and had to be shipped overnight on Saturday ... because the salesperson had utterly failed to do any of the work I needed him to do, so I could build the sales proposal. So I got to spend a gorgeous sunny Saturday in the dark, closed office, which I have not entered for 14 months. It was seriously post-apocalyptic. Think the first episode of The Walking Dead. Vending machine is still turned on... the expiration date on the bag of Lays potato chips is May 2020... HVAC running quietly... parking lots empty... dishes in the drying rack next to the sink... the slightest little hint of a layer of dust on my desk and monitor... the post-it note announcing that I am on vacation (March 2020) still stuck to my screen... It was weird. Rugby The Seattle Seawolves - my local pro rugby team - utterly suck this year. Just can't get it together, and have been utterly pantsed by all the other teams we have played. And that after winning TWO championships back to back. This season is going to be a long, hard, slog.
Where are you? The whole league is kinda crazy this year... this is really a growth year for the MLR as a league, and the scores show it. Right now we are the worst team in the league. And we beat the team that beat the best team in the league, as our only win so far this year. Scores are through the roof. The worst team for the last 3 seasons combined is in 2nd place. Every week is a crapshoot, honestly. And the games are streaming for free via The Rugby Network, and several broadcast stations are carrying games now, too. On real, old-fashioned TV!
welp... shows you how much I pay attention... https://coloradoraptors.com/news/colorado-raptors-to-withdraw-from-mlr/ alas... I'm a fan of the game, not as much of a team. Wow... well.. there's the not so great thing for an otherwise glorious week.
Hahahahah... how did you know that’s where I spent 30 minutes of my day stalking? Shoot. I’m teamless, maybe I’ll just jump on the Seawolves wagon! As a devout Lions fan, I’m no stranger to the underdog struggle. All I know is, I need more rugby in my life
Went to visit my mother last week. Weather was beautiful and spent several days at the beach. Went out shopping and walked into a store where not a single person was wearing a mask, not the staff, nor the customers. Spun around and headed back to my mother's house. Decided I was done with public after that. But it was good to see her. Her health is starting to head south so we started the difficult discussion about moving closer to either me or my sister and possibly living with one of us. Ugh. The day before I headed home my coworker called to let me know our office got hacked. Luckily he caught it before they had a chance to do much. From what we can see no data was accessed and only a few machines got touched. We called in outside vendor to handle the mitigation and analysis. Can't wait to find out how it happened. We know a user account was where it started, but don't know how yet. Welcome back from vacation!