|
|
Friday, August 22ndMy dog, Brittany, died early this morning, just three weeks short of her 13th birthday. She was a good dog - I could not have wanted for a sweeter personality. She passed away quietly, apparently quickly. I will miss her very much. She was a part of my home from day one, moving in here with me, the ex, and the cat twelve years ago in March. The place won't be the same without her. |
Friday, August 22nd, continued.
I didn't get much sleep, after Brit passed away. Then I got a call at 6:45 AM from my dad - he was having mom taken to the hospital. Her pulse was down to 30 beats per minute, and she was not doing well at all. While in the ER, dad began to pass out, too. For a while, both of them were admitted for treatment. Dad went home later in the day, and mom stayed on to have a pacemaker implanted. It's not a good weekend.Thursday, August 21st
The magnificent leader of the free world was here in Portland today, sparking protests, snarling traffic, and giving me the urge to extend my middle digit and make a raspberry sound. The Portland cops manfully contained the protesters using pepper spray, rubber bullets, riot gear, and an armored personnel carrier borrowed from the city of Vancouver. Oh, well. At least some of the northwest's political luminaries got the opportunity to munch a luncheon with Dubya, at a cost of $2500 a plate. As long as that happened, I guess all the rest is worth it, huh? George Washington must be nearing escape velocity in his grave right now. The first George W. established the simple title of "Mr. President", because he knew too well the cult of personality that could evolve out of the position. He rejected a host of other overblown honorifics, and was right to have done so. Look at what the chief executive's office has become. Airsick bags on standby....Warning - geeky stuff below.
Today, I took my laptop outside and hooked up directly to the phone line as it enters the interface box from the ground. (There is a nifty little RJ11 jack within the box, for diagnostic purposes.) The laptop has a 33.6 PCMCIA modem, which claimed to be connected at 56K (hah!) but still seemed to be loading pages rather slowly. Hard to know what piece of hardware to trust around here.
Wednesday, August 20th
Geeky stuff alert.... I spent part of the day today trying to further refine the office phone line / modem situation. I disconnected every line in the house, except for the one leading to the office. Behold, the line was wonderfully quiet, but my Intel 56K modem was still not able to hook up above 28.8. Grrrrr.... I cracked open the interface box, and discovered that when the line was originally installed in 1991, the tech had put an RF filter in series, *and* also added a coil each to tip and ring! Crap! I bridged them out, but still was unable to connect at better than 28.8. It wouldn't surprise me if there was another filter somewhere else down the street or something. Great! Just wonderful! I am about three good breaths away from doing a credible impersonation of Yosemite Sam. The word I get is that people miles away are now experiencing interference, people who never did before the stations increased power, the very day I was laid off. It's all about the Benjamins, right, KKAD and KPAM? Thanks.
Sunday, August 17th
They say the road to hell is paved with... oh, what was it? Good intentions! That's it! And lately, that's all my web log has consisted of - good intentions. My, how the time has flown. Like a jet-assisted swallow, in fact. (One not carrying a coconut. If you got that one, you are definitely my kind of people.) So, what the heck have I been up to? Looking for a job (fruitlessly); doing lots of yard work (thereby getting into better shape and having a nicer yard in the bargain); spending a bit of time with friends (and helping them with their projects); and spending a fair amount of time on line (but obviously not updating my wretched web log). But now, at long last, my web log is more or less up to date. Click here to go to the beginning of the latest batch of entries, or click any linked date in the calendars at the left to go to the entry for that date.And now for something completely different. I was up late Friday night, channel surfing, and chanced across a lecture given by one David Korten. He had some really interesting things to say about the global economy. He refers to the current system as a "suicide economy", and offers the alternative of a "living economy" where everyone has a genuine opportunity for a meaningful job, and power does not become agglomerated in the hands of a few large corporations. I will be reading up on this, since he was saying some things that I have also been saying and observing for a number of years. The current system has always worried and disquieted me, and his talk reminded me why. Hope you all enjoy the reading.
For those of you who are more visual than political, click here for a link to some really incredible pictures of the northern lights, as seen from Iceland.
Wednesday, August 13th
Well, I am getting lots of exercise working in the yard, and my tomatoes are all bearing fruit. Soon, I will be harvesting lovely red ripe Romas and Early Girls from my garden. The latest project to add to my farmer's tan is a walkway in the front yard. I have managed to scour up enough spondulick to purchase some pavers, bricks, and sand, so soon I will have my new walkway in place. The walkway is kind of "T" shaped, widening at the base of the entry steps. So, in the inside corners of the "T", I will add a couple of semicircular garden plots, brick-bordered, to give a little visual interest and soften the transition. Good way to get toned and get a better looking yard at the same time. I am also helping my friend Jeanette get things in order at her house. She took me to see "Terminator 3" and bought us a pizza dinner Sunday night, in repayment for fixing her dryer, her DVD, her garden hose, killing weeds and wasps, and so on. It's nice to feel wanted, useful, and able to accomplish something.Dad is doing really well. He is essentially recovered from his fall - in fact, better than many people half his age who suffer a dislocated elbow. Mom - not so good. She can't really get about any more without a wheel chair. My dog is hanging in there, and will probably see her 13th birthday in September. She's pestering me as I write this sentence, in fact. That's my girl!
Tuesday,
August 5th
The weather has
suddenly
turned volatile today. I was astonished this morning to hear
actual rain pattering on my roof! As I write this on my
trusty
Visor, I even hear thunder muttering occasionally in the
distance.
I am sitting in my car in Lake Oswego, taking a break and enjoying the
sun
and light breeze - for the moment. Why am I in Lake Oz, and what
am
I taking a break from, you may ask? Good question... glad you
posed
it. I am at the home of my brother in law's step mother, helping
her
move to a new home. I am in charge of the computer
hardware. The moving company lads are nice young fellows, I am
sure, but...
see earlier accounts (below) of moving my folks.Monday,
August 4th
Today finds me out
driving
the Geezer Cab. Mom had a dental appointment, and dad needed to
be
taken to the coumadin clinic for a blood draw. I know, really
exciting,
huh?Last week and weekend was reasonably busy. I helped Jeanette pick out a DVD / surround sound system on Thursday, did a computer repair & upgrade for a Vancouver attorney, then went back to Jeanette's to set up the new DVD. Whew! Tired. Friday, I continued digging in the front yard (the latest project is a paved walkway from the front steps to the side walk) then got more job search done. Saturday I spent close to 4 hours out in the yard. The weather was suddenly cloudy and much, much cooler than it's been. The entire week has been hot and dry, well into the 90's. Good weather for my tomato garden, though! Lots of little green tomatoes have appeared, and I harvested my first cucumber. What a delicious aroma! The entire kitchen was filled with an incredible smell reminiscent of home made dill pickles. It called to mind childhood memories of visits to my great grandmother's farm in SW Michigan. She was quite a strong, independent woman, who outlived two husbands. At age 93, she was still canning her own pickles and doing many of the farm chores. Humble roots indeed. I wonder what she would make of all the technological changes since I last saw her 33 years ago? I can only hope she would be proud of me and my small accomplishments.
About all I managed to accomplish on Sunday though, was some housework and a really nice nap! Sigh. Back to the job search. I did get a call from a temp agency Monday morning, following up on an online application last week for a technician opening. Still proceeding forward with the work at home option, too. Mmmm... positive cash flow... Wish me luck!
Wednesday, July 30th
Read this one, and be angry. Slime balls.http://zdnet.com.com/2100-1104_2-5057033.html
Weasels are everywhere, it seems.
But once you have read the news story above, perhaps this link will improve your morale.
Tuesday, July 22nd
Job search sucks smelly brown things. It's quiet as can be around here. Very frustrating, but I am going to get another 13 weeks of unenjoyment. The bills will be paid! Whoo hooo! The last two weeks have been filled with yard work, and job search, and a certain amount of worrying. I did meet on July 10th with a fellow from a Taiwan company, who may be interested in working with me as a contractor. Nothing firm yet, though.My buddy from the UK office of my former employer is here this week for a visit. We are watching movies, chatting, drinking, and generally having a good time. We went "garage saling" on Sunday, and also visited Costco, where he found the entire 1st season collection of "King of the Hill" on DVD. I know, I know. We both have similarly puerile tastes in entertainment.
My tomatoes are growing well, and I am just about to plant my Feng Shuei "wealth corner" garden. There will be red hot poker plants, sunflowers, and whatever else looks good. Dad is doing great, but mom is not so well. The dog gave me a few anxious moments last week, but she is back in her usual form, tottering around and pestering me for snacks. And so it goes!
Thursday, July 17th
If you hadn't heard of these two fun things to do with the search engine Google, here they are:1. Type in "weapons of mass destruction" on Google, then hit "I'm feeling lucky".
2. Type in "french military victories" on Google, then hit "I'm feeling lucky". For a further giggle, hit the offered alternative.
Thursday,
July 3rd
Once again, it's been
a
busy week. I went with the folks on Monday for mom's doctor
appointment.
It was a follow up on last Friday night's ER visit. Mom's not
doing
so well. The doctor has approved hospice care for her, and
adjusted
her medications once again. Time will tell.The rest of the week has been occupied by yard work, job search, and errands. Monday night, Jeanette came over to pick up her laptop computer, after I gave its hard drive a complete wiping, and reinstalling Windows 98. We had dinner (made by yours truly), and hung out, talked, and watched episode one of "Red Dwarf". I don't think she knows quite what to make of it, but she really liked the character of "Cat" (Danny John Jules). Wednesday night, I went over to Jeanette's, to help her finish setting up her laptop, and share a pizza. She's getting quite keen on home improvement do-it-yourself, and has asked me to teach her what I can.
This morning, I took my friend back to Longview for another follow-up visit with her doctor. She's recovering very rapidly, and is excited about the future.
Thursday,
June 26th
Down to the
(un)employment
office today, to get a job referral and apply for an extension of
benefits.
Hard to believe it's been six months since I was laid off. Looks
like
the extension will be done by mail. Whew. Need to get
cranking
on the Internet business option. Later today, the plan is to
install
my friend's ceiling fan. If I have enough energy when I get home,
and
there is still some light, I'll consider planting my garden. I
also
picked up a roll-up shade today, to help keep the afternoon sun out of
my
office. The thermal film and mini-blinds are a huge help, but the
office still gets stuffy in the afternoon, with the computer blowing
hot
air all day long. Too bad I can't water cool it, and dump the
heat
into the ground under the house. As if I didn't have enough
projects...
geez, I'm such a gearhead! For sure, hanging a roll-up shade is
going
to take far less time than engineering and building what amounts to a
heat
pump system.Tuesday,
June 24th
Yesterday was
good!
Got a lot done, and a good start on the job search with two resumes
sent
out. Also heard from a Taiwan-based company, whose people know me
from
my time with Cascade. They are looking for someone here in the
NW,
to work with their new and existing customers. I will be meeting
with
them in early July. Best news I've had all year!Back to Longview today with my friend, to get her surgical staples out. On the way home, I got some tomato plants for my vegetable garden. This year, cherry tomatoes seem to have sold out already (actually, I'm planting pretty late), but I was able to find three Roma plants. I also got a cucumber plant. Mmmm.... salads.... I will be posting a few pics of the garden on my web site.
Friday, June 20th
Today I am visiting my best friend in the Longview hospital. She had surgery yesterday, and seems to have come through very nicely! The view from her 5th floor room is quite restful. The hills and sky to the east dominate the view from her bed. To the south, the hills are covered with evergreens, and assorted structures peek out here and there, from between the trees. The sky is full of thick, low, gray clouds this evening, but as I write this, I can see a few random spots of robin's-egg blue. The rest of her family arrived for their visits later this evening. Her brother and family came in as I was reading aloud to keep her company, and around 6:30, her father, sister, and niece came to visit. We four had dinner at the hospital cafe, then bade her a good night. On the way home, I stopped at my local QFC grocery store (a bit after 10 PM) for some goodies. Surprise! There I found a line of young people (mostly girls) waiting to buy the fourth "Harry Potter" novel! Even QFC is participating in the event, with some 40 copies on hand to be snapped up by rabid young muggles.It's been a pretty quiet day, otherwise. The job search remains unproductive, and I will be applying for an extension of my unemployment benefits. I simply must devote more time to starting up my Internet venture. The economy seems to be taking as many steps back as forward recently. One of my Libra lunch buddies was just laid off today, so I suppose it's wasted effort applying for jobs at that company.
A brighter note: my buddy Paul, from Cascade's UK office, will be returning to town in July for a quarterly business meeting. His plan (with which I enthusiastically agree) is to stay in the guest suite here at Maison D'Lockman for the week. Yeah! We will have lots more time to visit that way. And watch movies, and Red Dwarf, and eat pizzas and curries, and drink fermented vegetable beverages. The VCR and DVD are going to get a workout.
Monday, June 16th
Well, it's been quite a weekend, and will be quite a week! My friend is going in for surgery on Thursday, and has asked me to be there, and I will probably drive her up. Hopefully, this will solve the abdominal pain issue. Poor lady.News from Geezer's Palace: the folks celebrated their 49th anniversary Thursday. Vicki, Jon, Jeanette and I attended for dinner, and a few other family friends showed up for cake and ice cream. Mom wasn't too keen on the entree, or the alternatives that were offered, or even the can of soup that the staff went upstairs and retrieved..... but she sure scrummed up the cake and ice cream.... as did we all.
Let's see..... other highlights - high school graduation of my friend's niece on Thursday after the anniversary dinner. Friday, went to Longview with my friend for her blood draw, and then some shopping at Lowe's for a ceiling fan and reflective window film. Her bedroom gets very warm in summer, so we are going to get it ready for her recuperation. Then over to Jeanette's to fix her ceiling fan, laptop computer, paper shredder, and vacuum cleaner. Finally got home about 1 AM.
Saturday - my little nieces came to visit! Yay! Lynh and Trinh enlisted Trinh's boyfriend to drive, and they brought me a whole pile of Asian food goodies, most of which are now (burp) gone. My oh my, how I miss those two girls. Got some yard work done, then relaxed with a nice lasagna dinner.
Sunday, another visit with the folks for Father's Day, then a stop by my friend's. The original plan was to work on the fan & film project, but she was pretty sleepy. So, off to home, got some yard work done, then into the shower before Claus arrived. We had a pizza and watched both versions of "The Time Machine" - first the 1960 classic with Rod Taylor, then the new version directed by Simon Wells. Couldn't keep my head up for all of the new one, though. I just apologized in advance for the snoring, and told him to enjoy the film.
Thursday, June 12th
Got an interesting e-mail today from a fellow who is also unemployed, and was sadly victimized by Allen & Associates. His comments: "Dave, I'm glad that you saw Allen and Associates as a scam, reference your February 11th phone conversation with one of their people. Unfortunately I got reeled in (ouch!). I could give you more details about these guys than you have time for. Talk about your deceptive practices. I will be filing with the BBB and others. Everyone looking for a job should know about this outfit! Cheers!" There are a lot of sharks out there, people. Think about it long and hard before you part with a single penny of your hard won money. Later, he added the following: "Just sent them an E-mail a while ago that has them reeling pretty good... caused 3 of their big wigs to call my machine begging to work things out! Links to support your suspicions and my misfortune:Link 1 Link 2
Thanks for your support Dave - Anything that can be done to keep Allen & Associates from ripping other people off, I'm in favor of." Please be careful, my friends.
Sunday, June 1st
I found a web site today that shows that the good ol' USA is the 174th out of 209 nation states, in terms of real growth of Gross Domestic Product. We're behind such industrial powerhouses as Belgium, Guatemala, and Greece! Damn, but that makes me proud. Thanks, Dubya! I feel better now about being on unemployment since December.How about a photo opp with an American flag made in China - the country with the 11th fastest growing GDP in the world?
Wednesday,
May 28th
My uncle was here for a
few days around Mother's Day, and we had a
very fine time! Saturday just past, I worked my tail off in the
yard, and then went to see the Prairie High School production of
"Curtain Going Up". my friend's niece and nephew both had important
on-stage roles, and they did a great job! The play is set in the
50's, the plot being all about
the backstage intrigues of a high-school play. Kind of
surrealistic,
I have to admit... but fun!
Thursday, May 22nd
I am putting in a corner garden in the back left corner of my yard. More good exercise! (The Feng Shuei "wealth" corner - a little help can't hurt!) Plans are to stock it up with sunflower seeds, some red hot poker plants, some marigold seeds (yellow, red, orange) and I'll see what else looks good back there. I'm also planting tomatoes again this year. Last year, I got over 120 pounds of tomatoes! I still have some organic tomato sauce in the freezer. Need to make some more chili! I'll have some pictures to share when things have grown a bit.Wednesday,
May 14th
My sister and I took
my uncle to the airport Tuesday, and had breakfast with him, then we
went
and did a little shopping in Portland. I then carelessly locked
myself out of the house, while on my way over to Jeanette's to work on
her bike and
laptop computer. I returned home about 5:45, and had a nap before
Claus
arrived just before 7 for pizza and "Taken". We've got 4 more
hours
of the mini-series yet to view. And today, I finally got
the
last of the tall grass cut down out in the "back 40".Oops. That virtual intermission just now was brought to you courtesy of 8 ounces of spilled English Breakfast tea, some of which landed on the dog, much to her surprise and indignation. Had to move everything off the desk, then mop it all up. At least the glass top is clean once again. Been meaning to do that for a while, but you know how things go.
All is otherwise well here in cloudy Vancouver. Yesterday was the nicest day of the year, in terms of the weather. It actually got to about 80 degrees. Nice day to goof off. Today began bright and sunny, but now the clouds have begun to roll in, and I will probably have to close the windows and turn the furnace back on tonight. Oh, the joys of living in a maritime climate zone. The economy seemed to have made a brief turnaround, and now we are back to the doldrums. The Pres is planning a lovely big tax cut (read welfare packet for the rich and privileged) to "get the economy moving". We shall see. I do hope it works, but I reserve judgment.
My web site deployment is still on hold. Much time is taken up doing job search and waiting through the 28.8 access.
My uncle's visit was a good one. He and I and the rest of the family had a good time, and I may be playing host later this year to mom's cousin. They haven't seen each other in years. My dog is continuing to decline slowly and gently - tottering around, doing the minimum, but seems to be enjoying things overall, aside from the odd spot of tea.
Now, back to the job search for yours truly.
Friday,
May 9th
This week has not been
too bad. I have sent out ten resumes and attended a Job
Fair. (Still no interviews, so I am going to go into business for
myself on the Internet. I am really tired of being used up and
spit out by the
corporate world.) My uncle is visiting this weekend, and he will
be spending time with my folks and with my sister.Tuesday,
May 6th
Job search yesterday
turned up a lead to which I applied. Today was a Job Fair at PCC
Cascade, where I spoke to a bunch of folks. All the "usual
suspects",
and not a lot of new leads. But at least, it was a bit of fun,
and
got me out of the house!Saturday, May 3rd
Drat. And drat again. All that work, all that digging, and the 56K modem couldn't care less. The new phone line is still noisy. I need to experiment some more, I guess. Back to the 28.8 Zoltrix modem. At least, I got lots of good exercise!Friday,
May 2nd
It's been quite a week,
to be sure. Tuesday, I took mom to see her doctor for a follow-up
visit, after the ER Adventure of Sunday. Some adjustments to her
meds, and she seems to be doing fine. I took a nice long walk
while mom and
dad were seeing the doc. Later in the day, I went over to spend a
bit of time with Jeanette. Her beloved boxer, Winston, passed
away, and she needed a bit of friendly support. The following
day, my friend's pet cat passed on. As I said, it's been quite
a week.
The job search continues, much as it has done. I applied for six
jobs
this week, and received a "no thanks" from one local company.
It's
just plain quiet out here in the land of the unemployed. Earlier
today
(Friday) I got some more of the tall grass out in the "back 40" cut
down.
This is only about the fifth really nice day we've had all
spring.
The word is that this is the wettest, coldest spring in 50 years.
I
believe it. Just wonderful. My heating bills have been
outrageous
this winter - like I need that on top of everything else, right?
Tomorrow, I plan to hook up my new telephone wire, and see if the modem
likes it.
Sunday,
April 27th
Well, there go Sunday's
plans into the rubbish. Originally, my high school friend Ed was
going to visit early this afternoon, then Claus was going to come by
for pizza and TV. Not to be. Early this morning, groggy as
a hibernating bear, I answered a frantic phone call from my dad.
Mom was having trouble breathing last night, and the staff nurse
suggested she go to the urgent care. By the time we finally got
there, and got far enough along with the paperwork to realize we needed
to go back for a med list and ID, it
was almost lunch time. Turned out to be far simpler to take her
to
the ER, where they already have her records on file. So, here I
sit
in the ER waiting room once again, typing my web log entry for today on
my
trusty Handspring Visor. (Thanks again, Paul!) Pizza night
has
been rescheduled for tomorrow.
Saturday, April 26th
Yes, I know, I know. I am the worst! Criminy - where did the time go? It's been another whole month since I posted my web log updates? I guess I need a better, more streamlined method of posting the web log. The last few days have been occupied by intense job search, working around the house, and updating the computer system with some new software. All new browsers (except Internet Exploder - Microsquish has decided not to support Windows 95 with its release of IE version 6) and other new goodies! Today it's been pretty relaxed here at Maison D'Lockman. Claus will probably be by tomorrow for dinner and part II of "Taken".... perhaps my high-school buddy Ed will stop by, as well! My buddy Paul was supposed to be here this weekend too, but his trip was called off. What a month! We got the folks moved on the 14th, finally. (Click here for that day.) And for those of you who want to read in chronological order... click here to go to the beginning of the latest batch of posts, if you want to start there. All my best wishes to everyone!Wednesday, April 23rd
I think I may have stumbled onto one of the ultimate nerd references in Futurama. In an episode earlier this week on Cartoon Network, Bender's head was X-rayed, showing a chip bearing the number "6502". As it turns out, (and I know this without looking it up) the 6502 processor was the foundation of pretty much all the first generation of personal computers. Now I have done a web search - I am turning up the Atari 2600 & 5200.... the Commodore 6500..... the KIM-1..... ah, the dusty cobwebbed memories come flooding back! Geez, how big a geek am I? Anyone know where I can get a life? Can I buy one on line? Probably not, huh?Tuesday, April 22nd
Today I began installing the buried cable for the phone line in my home office. I drove down to Radar Electric in Portland for 100 feet of shielded twisted pair, which will hopefully be my passport to a 56K dialup! Since I also had a spare spool of regular unshielded phone wire, I decided to bury it in the trench too, as a part of my big experiment. Worked up a good sweat for an hour this morning, shoveling dirt back into my trench, then got on the net to resume my job search. Found a tech writer position in Milwaukie and a CAD drafter opening in NE Portland, just 20 minutes from home! Perhaps the market is finally beginning to turn around. At least, now that the folks are moved, I've got time to fold my laundry and clean the kitchen!Monday,
April 21st
I learned today that
my one and only uncle (mom's brother) will be coming to visit in early
May! He's retired Air Force, and I haven't seen him in years,
what with one thing and another. Should be really good to spend
some time with him. I have offered the use of the luxurious guest accommodations here at Chez
D'Lock, and
he has accepted. It'll probably be best if we don't discuss
politics or world affairs though, huh? <grin> More on
this story as it develops...
Sunday, April 20th
Today the family got together at the care facility for Easter dinner. Mom & dad, my sister Vicki, her husband Jon, and I had a very fine lunch, then returned to the apartment. With a bit of help from Jon, I installed some shelves above their desk. Vicki then brought in a Crosley radio / CD / cassette / record player as a present for dad's 80th birthday the week before. He was delighted! Not only will he be able to play his old 78 rpm discs, but also re-releases on CD, tapes of Fibber McGee & Molly, and listen to the radio! All in a small, retro-styled tabletop unit. (Crosley has several other really cool retro radio products. I am especially fond of the guitar-shaped CD player painted up with a Union Jack - very shagadelic!) In the evening, my buddy Claus came over for pizza and movie night. We used to get together on a semi-regular basis on Sunday nights, when The X-Files was still running. In honor of tradition, I broke out the tapes I had made of "Taken" (a SciFi Channel / Steven Spielberg original). We got through episode 1 and part of episode 2. He's hooked! It really is quite well done for a cable TV mini-series, and it's even better watching on tape.... my VCR marks all the commercials, and fast forwards through them automatically during playback. Oh, how I appreciate that!
Thursday,
April 17th
Back I go to the
clinic today, chauffeuring mom and dad in the big yellow
Mercedes.
(Some of you on the list have seen it. For the rest of you, click here for a link to a picture of a
similar car.) Mom has a doctor appointment today. I plan to
do a little work over at the folks new apartment today, after we make a
stop at the
pharmacy. Note to fellow boomers: get used to the idea of
wheelchairs now.... getting your folks in and out of them,
folding the
chairs up and lifting them into the car trunk (or "boot" for our
brothers in the UK) and reversing the process at your
destination. Might as
well also get used to the idea of riding in wheelchairs,
too.
If we're lucky enough to live that long... The job search has
been
a little side-tracked this week, what with everything. My friend
Claus
came in last Friday from his home in Thailand, and we spent some time
together yesterday. He needed a car, and I had spotted a sweet
little '91 Honda Prelude 4WS in red, while
driving
around on Monday. We drove up to where it was parked and -
behold!
The owner was sitting behind the wheel, waiting for another prospective
customer. We both looked over the machine, each test drove it,
and
agreed it was fit transportation. He closed the deal that
afternoon.
Nice little car! And back to the job search I go, though I have
found
a really great opportunity in e-commerce, that I can run from my
home!
Sweet, sweet, sweet! I will write more about it as time goes by,
and I get up to speed with it. With a bit of luck, and some
persistent
work, I may not need to have a regular job! How hot is
that? So, since I will need to spend more
time on
the Net, I have begun my latest attempt to get a 56K dialup connection
here
at Maison D'Lockman. (Geeky electronics stuff begins
here.)
In brief, it involves burying a length of shielded twisted pair some
6-8
inches down, sandwiched between pieces of aluminum mesh as a secondary
grounded
shield. The mesh is the type made for use as a guard to keep
leaves
out of rain gutters on your house. (End of geeky part.) Of
course, the key word here is "bury". As in dig.
With a shovel. As in narrow, shallow trench
halfway around the house. Good exercise, though! (I dug for
nearly
an hour this morning, and yesterday as well.) I'm telling the
neighbors
it's an anti-terrorist moat, and they should dig one,
too. Heh heh heh.... I should have the trench finished with
another hour or two of digging. Surprising just how much turf and
dirt and rocks I have moved thus far. (Fellow nerds: soon
there will be a link
to "Dave's Trench Page". I will
record
the results of the experiment, and post some pictures and diagrams.)
Monday, April 14th
Well, it's moving day for the folks! I am sitting here in the doctor's office, waiting for "doctor's orders" which should have been sent to the care facility days or weeks ago. I slept poorly, and woke late, ending up arriving later than expected at the apartment.... Later, back and forth we have gone. We had driven over to the facility after lunch at Steakburger, expecting the papers had been faxed over. Not. The paperwork was not faxed to Arbor Ridge(Another quick tip to older citizens and their families: moving companies employ young guys who may never have seen a vinyl record or a wax 78. These guys thought the discs were books, and bounced them around a bit. My recommendation: mark the word "fragile" prominently on any boxes of old records.) I then set up the TV and VCR, and helped reorganize the furnishings to fit everything into the new living room. Guess it was worth watching all those episodes of Christopher Lowell on cable. Finally got home about 9 PM, cooked some dinner, and passed out. until just after two.... just as we left there once again to return to the clinic and kick some bottom. Anyhow, we got the hard copy, and all was smooth sailing. Mom and dad completed their intake forms, while Vicki continued unpacking upstairs.
Sunday, April 13th
Spent the afternoon and evening with my friend's family, celebrating the birthday of her sister. Today is my dad's 80th birthday, too! We will celebrate his birthday another day. Mom & dad will be moving tomorrow into assisted living!Saturday, April 12th
Today should be the last time we need to take the folks to the hairdressers on a Saturday. I've pulled geezer duty today. Packed a few more of their things, and took the last bit of lumber from the garage - an old mantelpiece that dad has had stashed since the 70's, I think. Went and got my own hair cut on the way home. My usual tonsorial artist had already gone home for the day. Jason is Chinese (probably not his given name) and is studying computer networking. We usually have wonderfully nerdy conversations whenever I come in. Recently, we got into a discussion of vacuum tubes, and before long terms like "dual triode" and "12AX7" and "beam pentode" were being slung around. I'm sure the other hairdressers were rolling their eyes by then... Anyway, a young woman from Bosnia cropped my mop this time. (The Vancouver area is now home to quite a lot of Russians, Ukrainians, and Romanians, as well.) Next stop was the QFC next door for some early dinner - a roast beef sandwich - then home. Once dinner was done, I decided I'd better do something about all the lumber that I've collected from dad, so it was out to the shed! I did some rearranging and dumping - got rid of half a garbage can full of old junk. Funny how old 64K RAM chips and rusty nuts and bolts no longer hold the allure they once had. Helping the folks move has reminded me once again that I can either own things, or they can own me. My sister and I are now both hyper-aware of how much junk has accumulated in our homes, and that it's high time to streamline and simplify. I will even consider getting rid of some of my tools! (gasp!) Just a few, mind. I'm not going to get carried away, here. After my "shed-zer-cise", I had a quick shower and drove across town to visit with Jeanette for a few hours. We chatted and watched the rain bucketing down until after midnight.Thursday, April 10th
Attended a Job Fair at Westfield Shoppingtown today (formerly known as Vancouver Mall). Kind of lame, really. The most interesting thing was the apprenticeship programs. I'll have to wait until June to follow up on that, though. I also learned that my buddy Paul may not be coming to visit later this month. The sales meeting he was to attend was canceled due to fears over SARS. What a drag. Spent the remainder of the day running errands with my Dad.Monday, April 7th
I heard from my buddy Paul, today! He has his tickets to Portland, and is planning to be here on the 26th of April! Sure will be great to see him again. On the job search horizon - not much. My old buddy Mark in California has some interesting things I can work on here for extra coinage. He has also discussed some other opportunities, too - some e-business things we can do together. I would love that! There just aren't a lot of openings in Oregon right now. SW Washington is even worse. I just need to keep at it.Thursday, April 3rd
I went out today to see what ITT Technical Institute has to offer in the way of an education. Thirty-four thousand dollars? Eek! Nice facility and good program, but I'm not ready to sign up for something like that yet. I've also had a recruiter in Texas interested in me for a mask design assignment in the Houston area. We shall see....Saturday, March 29th
I learned today that some employers go a bit above and beyond the call with regard to their reservist employees. They make up the difference between the military pay, and what the employee was making working at their regular job. One might support those employers, and if one wished to do so, one would find a list of those employers by clicking here.Thursday, March 27th
I was contacted today by a fellow RF sufferer. KVAN / KPAM have made a hash of his Internet access, too. Perhaps he and I can collaborate on a "Death to KVAN" web site? We talked for quite some time on the phone. Great guy, who has started his own business consulting with legal types on the disabling side effects of psych meds like Zoloft and Prozac. There are some very scary accounts on the web. A good place to start is the "health" section of Rense.com.Wednesday, March 26th
Today I went over to the folks', to continue cleaning out the garage. More old tools and old scraps of wood for yours truly... My high school buddy George came by to visit them today, too. They haven't seen him in years, so it was a really nice gesture on his part. George's situation should be an object lesson, by the way. He is disabled by arthritis, and was living with his parents, now both deceased. Even more unfortunately, he will not be able to keep the house. Thanks to a second mortgage on the home, taken to buy a new car, the house must now be sold. This, plainly, was not good planning by George's parents. Keep this in mind the next time you believe you need to have a new car, or some other treat. In fact, there is a good article on the "Endless Mortgage" at Motley Fool. Please, plan ahead, so your family won't have to live in a refrigerator carton, if something bad should happen to you.Monday, March 24th
I got some good
immediate feedback today from a couple former co-workers. They
indicate that things are looking up! It sure would be nice to
return
to work with all my friends, but it's far too early to get my hopes
up.
So, I called several of the temp agencies today, to let them know I am
still available. Spent most of Sunday just chillin' out. I
need to get busy with my hall redecorating project, if I want it done
before
my friend Claus arrives in mid-April. Click
here to take a look at a virtual makeover
that I did using "House Beautiful 3D Designer". It's a really
cool
program, and I used it to visualize my ideas before I remodeled the
home
office and guest room.
Friday, March 21st
Looks like it's been a whole month since I posted a web log update. How can I hope to hold an audience? Bad Dave! Tonight, as I write this, I am in the ER with my dear friend. A recurrence of migraine, for the first time in at least eight months. We finally got her feeling better around midnight, and snacked on crackers while waiting to be discharged. I got her home about 1 AM. Remember the days of staying out late on dates? Sucks to get old. Nowadays, the drugs we are taking are on our HMO's prescription list. Sigh...
Not much going on out there this week in the way of new job postings, but at least Dubya has got his Iraq Attack - finally! Now that the uncertainty is past, the stock markets have gone up for eight straight sessions. What a pathetic mess things have turned out to be. My Republican friends never expected all this when they cast their votes in 2000... I won't go into much detail here about my thoughts upon the subject. Those of you who read this and want to engage me in discussion are certainly invited to do so, but I seldom get any takers. Must be I'm just too far out there for y'all...
Once again, check out the reading and viewing list on the left side of the page. Anyone have any suggestions for me?
Sunday, March 16th
My friend and I are shopping at Vancouver Mall this afternoon, as I write this entry of the web log on my Handspring Visor. Shoes... the terror of all males... shoe shopping. Surprise! She found just the right pair of Nikes on the third try! How cool is that? Next - jeans. There is a stunning variety of styles - you can tell its been some time since I've been shopping at the mall, huh? Biggest problem - anti-theft tags in annoying locations. Trying on shoes or jeans can result in bruises! How about it, retailers? Put the tags someplace where they won't injure the customers. Is anyone out there actually thinking any more?Tonight, I had a very pleasant dinner with my friend Tina. She and I are terrifyingly similar. The way our minds work, our opinions about religion, and more. Really interesting lady! I look forward to our next get together.
Friday, March 14th
Went to see Prairie High's production of "Alice In Wonderland" tonight. My friend's niece and nephew are both in this play. Her oldest niece was with us in the audience. Not as many attending as did for "Footloose", which was a co-production with Battleground High. Live theater is certainly a nice change of pace from TV and movies. Granted, it's not Circle In The Square (where I saw "Greater Tuna" in 1983) or The Garrick ("An Inspector Calls" in 2001), but still tons of fun. I really must get out more.Monday, March 10th
Took dad for another blood draw today. When taking anti-coagulants, it's necessary to monitor the level of the medication in the body. Pointer: we've learned that aspirin must be avoided (use acetaminophen instead.) It's also important to be consistent with one's intake of foods and supplements containing vitamin K. You don't need to avoid them, just be consistent.Saturday, March 8th
Parent watch today. Mom gets a perm, dad and I go grocery shopping. The weather today is the stereotypical image of a Northwest winter day; cold, overcast, misty and drizzly. Oh, the excitement...Yesterday, Dad had his last physical therapy treatment for his dislocated elbow! He is totally jazzed about that, believe me! He is doing amazingly well. Once we get his leg healed up, there'll be no stopping him. He is hoping to return to driving again, at some point.
Had dinner out in Beaverton last night, with my friend Witchie Mary. You can never be friends with too many witches, I always say. Well, not always, but certainly whenever I am given the choice, I prefer to be on the best possible terms with every witch I encounter. Hmmm... perhaps she can work up a "help Dave find a job" spell. We had a great chat over Mexican food at my favorite authentic Mexican restaurant - Pepita. A lovely lady named Grace runs the place, and the food is terrific! We did a bit of shopping at Best Buy after dinner, and I spotted the cult classic "Dark Star" on DVD for only ten bucks! Whoo hooo! Witchie-poo reimbursed me for her half of the dinner tab by purchasing it for me! Thank you, Mary! I will save it for an evening when I am really badly in need of a laugh, and a reminder that I still have friends.
Thursday, March 6th
Greetings, all! Sorry to have been so uncharacteristically silent these last weeks. It's been a bit busy, but sadly not in terms of employment. I am noting that there are more jobs being posted on a daily basis on the job sites, such as Monster and Dice. These sites are pretty cool, because you can set up multiple search agents which scan the postings daily, and e-mail a notification of a potential match. Slick, eh? Wish there were more postings, that's all. Ah, well... I can only keep working at it.Parental update: dad is doing great! This is his last week for physical therapy for his elbow. His phlebitis seems to be gradually getting better, and he is doing lots more around their apartment. Mom is about the same - still needing lots of help to get around. My sister has made a start at helping them to pack, and discard their unused things. It'll be good to get them moved into an assisted living center, so they can be well cared for.
Thursday, February 27th
I met with a recruiter at Aerotek today. He was cautiously encouraging, but indicated that it's an employer's market right now. I called him later in the week to check in; nothing new, of course. The one lead he had for me last week was the same opening I found on the Oregon Employment web site. I applied, of course! Again, lots of folks chasing too few jobs. I've applied for at least 4 or 5 jobs so far this week, and that's more than I've been seeing. Perhaps the second quarter will be more lively, especially if the Iraqi question gets resolved one way or the other... attack, don't attack.... at this point, all that the diplomatic back and forth has accomplished is to create massive uncertainty in the community of business decision makers. Ergo, I and many others are stuck on the sidelines, when we would much rather be in the game, participating and earning our way. I can't recall being this utterly frustrated in many years. I hope the unemployment holds out long enough. I expect something will turn up soon. It usually does.Wednesday, February 26th
The KVAN engineer was here again today. Still no good - I remain stuck at 28.8k on my dial-up connection. On his recommendation, I went out and bought a $20 56k Win-modem, as a test. Well, it had lots better luck than the USR in terms of connecting, but at what speed? If you guessed 28.8, you win the wind-up mechanical turtle! Sigh... the next step will be to drag the whole dang system over to the home of a friend, or possibly over to the folks' house, to see how well the USR modem does on a nice quiet phone line. I also plan to do some reading on RF filters for phone lines, and find out more about how 56k modems do their job (or don't, in my case). I may have to design my own filter. Drat.Saturday, February 22nd
I ask you all to forgive me for being so derelict at posting my web log updates. Yeah, like you have nothing else better to do than read my random ramblings! <grin> Lots has been happening, and I can hardly believe it's been three weeks since I last posted an update. There have been a few interesting nibbles while fishing around for a job. I'll keep everyone posted here when I know more, but it's still far too early to report anything. I remain hopeful, of course.My sister was kind enough to take "parent duty" today, so I spent the afternoon with my friend. We did a bit of shopping, then took her nephew and his girlfriend out for dinner at Billigan's. We threw peanut shells all over the floor, and shared good conversation and a lot of silliness. What a great evening!
Friday, February 21st
Today began late, with a very kind phone call from one of my former co-workers. He was laid off the same day as I, and has been experiencing a similar lack of good job leads. I did find a good local possibility last night, and so I immediately applied. Hard to type with my fingers crossed, though...My late start today was due to staying up late last night, watching " Dogma ". Oh, my. What a wonderfully bent and brilliantly written film! It's an absolute "must watch" for anyone having issues with organized religions. "Dogma" primarily concerns itself with Christianity, and Catholicism in particular. I won't say much about it here, but it did make me laugh out loud on a host of occasions. Have a look over at the left side of the web log for my recommended reading and viewing list . "Dogma" is included, with some serious thumbs up.