%%USERNAME%%    %%ACCWORDS%% %%ONOFF%% |
 |  Writings about things that have occurred in my life. Not in Chronological Order |
| Things that have happened in my life, good or bad. The entries will not be in Chronological order |
What I Did With My TWO Weeks 'Off' I want to tell you about the 'fantastic' two weeks off I had. I do hope you hear a level of sarcasm in my writing here. Over Christmas and New Year's, we have two weeks of off time, except I never take those two weeks off. Don't get me wrong here, most instructors do take PTO these weeks, which I heartedly encourage everyone, including myself, to do. But this is always such a laid back time for us, why 'waste', errr, spend 2 weeks of your vacation time on it? Back in the ancient days, before we moved to the old Corporate Tower, before I moved to Bloomington, and we worked out of the office, having these two weeks off was nice. We all had cubes in cube city there, but still, it was a laid back lifestyle. That's why I never took the time off. In today's world, I work from home as you might know. To me, when I'm not teaching, it's a week off. Most weeks I do put in 40 hours, sometimes more, sometimes less. But still... These two weeks I have worked, but not eight hour days. Our manager sent an e-mail that essentially said to not worry about putting in 40 hours, relax all we can, etc, etc. But, I have a class sometime this year, maybe. It's not on my schedule yet, that's why I say maybe. For this customer, we are not the Prime Contractor, and everything will go through them (the Prime Contractor). They want to review the course materials before the delivery. I was asked about preparing them back in September, but with the health issues I had going on, doctor's appoinments, and my delivery schedule, the only time I could get it done was over the holidays. So I planned on working these two weeks. I haven't worked 8 hours each day. But, I have worked some on weekends and holidays (Christmas and New Yeas Eve for example). I could not complete the preparation of the course materials though because the information I asked for has not been received. It's okay, I'll have it ready in a few days. Then we'll see what the Prime Contractor has to say. What I am doing is taking three courses, and tailoring them for this customer. I've looked up their Logo (The customer is the Mass Transit Authority, Long Island Railroad) and used it, I've removed almost everything they won't need, and really tailored things to their needs. The course that needed the most work was the Networking course. That course is built around a 'Trunked' Radio System, where specific IP's are used by every customer. This customer is not doing that, nor is their system a 'Trunked' radio system, they are Conventional. Yes, we do have specific IP's for Conventional Systems, but they are not even using those. So I changed a lot so their addresses are used during slide discussions, in the hands-on activities, everything. It's the other two courses that I need info on their system, and have not received. I'd say that overall, I'm about 80% through with things, and a lot of that 20% left to do is waiting on that info. I have a few things to 'tidy' up on the Powerpoint slides, I will review everything again before I say it's ready for the Prime Contractor. So there you have it, how I have spent my 'two weeks of off time'. Due to the upcoming surgery, I now have plenty of free time in January, and yep, you guessed it, I will spend that time working on course materials for other courses. It's what I do. Besides teaching of course! That's all for now. Aren't you glad? Till next time, y'all be good, take care of yourselves, and love those who love you. And of course, keep on writing! |
What widely-accepted piece of advice is actually total bull....? (I try tro keep my entries at the E-Rating level) This has to do with making your bed. My other half firmly believes that advice from a 'Professional' a.k.a. Martha Stewart, should be followed. In this case, we disagree over her advice about making the bed in the morning. If (when) I lived alone, I didn't make my bed. My thoughts were, I'm just going to mess it up tonight when I crawl back in it, so why make it now? It just makes sense to me. In reading 'How To Make Your Bed' on https://www.marthastewart.com/8100423/how-make-bed-martha-tips, she must think that everyone has the amount of money she does. She forgets that many can't afford nice sheets, don't have the comforts of life that she does, and has really lost touch with the 'average American'. I'm an adult, I don't need advice on how to make my bed, IF I choose to make it. I will forget the part about nice sheets and such, what really gets me, and is the cause of our disagreement, is the idea that the top sheet should be placed with the print side down. This way, when folded back, you can see the print. I don't know about you, but when I pull my sheet back, I'm getting in bed and going to sleep. I am NOT examining the top sheet print to see how beautiful, IF it's beautiful. I buy plain sheets, so what's to see? But she insists the top sheet be print side down. My argument is that it doesn't help us sleep better, doesn't change or help any 'late night activity', all it does is cover us. So it can be placed however we choose. Another thing that gets me, is the old 'Toilet Tissue Roll' placement. Do you put it in the holder so it unrolls over the top, or from the bottom? What a stupid argument/discussion! All I care about is that it unrolls when I need it to. I don't want it to be like some rolls of tape, where you search for an hour trying to find the end so you can use it for less than five minutes. It can be placed however you want, as long as ir works. It's stupid things like this that really get me. Another petty thing that gets to me? Someone who's quite willing to tell you how intelligent or smart they are. That's petty of me, I know. But it bugs me. There's too much about it to go into here, heck, I could write a novel length entry on that subject, so no, not going into it here. I think someone who does that must be pretty insecure about many things. So there you have it, on the last day of 2021, the last 1.75 hours of 2021 for me really. I hope y'all have a safe and fantastic night. Celebrate however you wish, just be safe my friends. That's all for now. Aren't you glad? Till next time, y'all be good, take care of yourselves, and love those who love you. And of course, keep on writing! |
Living On A Submarine Have you ever wondered what it's like being on a Submarine for an extended period of time? You haven't? Don't worry, most people haven't, it's okay. But tonight I thought I'd share a few things about Submarine life. First, I know I've written about life on a submarine 'in general'. The drills, qualifications, lack of sleep, etc. This entry will be a little different. A Fleet Ballistic Missile (FBM) Submarine leaves port to start its Patrol. A patrol last about 60 days (my longest was 73), and is full of challenges. It submerges as soon as it can, and usually doesn't surface until the patrol is completed. But think about a few things. How does the crew survive all that time? I mean, how does their air stay fresh and breathable? How does the crew get fresh water or oxygen? Just by breathing, Carbon Dioxide ( CO2) is created, and Carbon Monoxide (CO) is created by those who smoke, and other processes. And what happens to all the waste (Trash, human waste, etc.) So I'll write about that tonight. First, there is a space (compartment) on the boat called various names, depending on the class of submarine. I'll call it Air Regen, short for the Air Regeneration Room. In that small space, we created our own Oxygen and stored it in Oxygen banks that were in the Ballast Tanks. (The Ballast Tanks are what allow a submarine to either Submerge, or Surface). We would take Purified Water and separate it by Electrolysis into Hydrogen and Oxygen. Of course we'd store the Oxygen in those Oxygen Banks. Hydrogen though, is an explosive gas, so we had to dispose of it. Near that Oxygen Generator was a piece of machinery known as a CO-H2 Burner, we just called it the Burner. It contained a Catalyst bed that would turn the Carbon Monoxide into CO2. It operated at a temperature of about 700 degrees Fahrenheit. The Hydrogen was separated from the CO2 and pumped overboard. More on the CO2 in a minute. So, we'd generated and stored Oxygen for us, and processed the Carbon Monoxide into Carbon Dioxide. Now about that CO2. Near that 'Burner' is a machine called a CO2 Scrubber, which we of course just called a 'Scrubber'. It used a liquid chemical called Monoethanolamine, or Amine. Amine has a curious property in that it absorbs CO2 when hot, and when cooled, it releases it. Heated Amine is sort of sprayed in a cylinder that has air containing CO2 flowing through it. The heated Amine absorbs the CO2 This is then pumped to a reservoir where it is cooled, releasing its loads of CO2. The CO2 is briefly stored before being pumped overboard. Now we've gotten rid of CO, CO2, and Hydrogen. But what about trash and human waste? First, how to get rid of trash. The boat had a vertical tube that essentially was a chute. We emptied it by pumping the water out, then opened the top cover. The crew had taken their garbage and put it into special mesh bags which were then loaded into cans. The cans were sheet metal that had been rolled that night into those cans. Several ten pound weights were added to ensure the cans didn't float (trapped air might cause that). Once the tube was full of cans, the cover was closed, and the tube flooded. Then the bottom valve was opened, and the cans would fall out and end up on the bottom of the ocean. This was repeated until all the trash was disposed of. A hot, messy job that everyone hated. Thankfully, being a Nuclear Trained Petty Officer, I never had to do that. About that human waste. Our toilets (and sinks) in the 'head' (bathroom/restroom) drained to a large tank. But those tanks filled up after a day or so, and needed to be emptied. We didn't pump the contents overboard, that would have made too much noise. So we would ensure every vent valve was closed, hang signs to warn the crew that Sanitary Tanks were being blown, and blow the contents overboard. The thing is though, the tanks couldn't be blown until they were empty. That would make too much noise also. So we'd stop blowing before they were completely empty. Now we have a pressurized tank that smells to high-heaven, and needs to be vented. They were vented inboard through charcoal filters. Still, the 'head' and the surrounding area smelled horribly for a while. But by doing all this, we had a space we could live (or survive) in, with somewhat 'fresh' air. The length of time a submarine can remain at sea is dependent on two things really. Crew endurance, and the amount of food that could be stored on board, about 60 days as I've said. And there you have it, how the crew managed to keep the air fresh and 'clean' (if it was so clean, why did I buy new clothes after every patrol?), and trash/waste disposed of. That's all for now. Aren't you glad? Till next time, y'all be good, take care of yourselves, and love those who love you. And of course, keep on writing! |
A Year Of Discovery I've discussed the health issues I learned about this year, and since it's now December, I thought I'd give any readers an update. But first, a 'timeline' of sorts for 2021. January: I went to Flagler County Florida the first week, and as it's turned out, that was my only field class for the year. The rest of January was spent teaching from home. These classes had been on my schedule for a while, so things were normal, or so I thought. February: I had seen my doctor about the terrible cough I had, and a CT Scan of my Sinuses and chest was completed early in the month. On the first Friday in February, we went to Peoria on a quick excursion; it was the return trip that was an eye-opener. I came to a stop sign at the interstate exit and started coughing. I thought I was okay but wasn't. The light turned green, and I pulled out like normal. Halfway through a left-hand turn, I passed out and ended up driving my van over a curb. I blew my left front tire and slightly scraped the bottom of the quarter panel (is it still called that?) in front of the tire. Long story short, the tire shop ended up replacing the tire, both tie rods on the left side and one on the right, along with something called the 'Knee'. Monday night I couldn't lie down because of the cough and ended up going to the ER. In Triage, the person who took my vitals decided I should be admitted. I spent 2 days there undergoing all sorts of tests. Later in the month, I was referred to an ENT, who ran his own tests, and wanted me seen by an Allergist. I also visited a Gastroenterologist that month, more tests. March: Testing, probing, blood samples continued to be drawn by the doctors I was seeing, and I was told I have Asthma. Strange, I thought people with Asthma had breathing difficulties, and while I had that terrible cough, I could breathe just fine. As it turns out, my lungs were not functioning properly, I failed every breathing test that measured lung capacity. April: The Allergist's test had shown that my immune system was not functioning properly, the readings were 'out-of-whack'. For any medical people who read this, my IG-A was pretty high, and my IG-G was very low. She referred me to a Hematologist. It was at this point that I realized I might be far more ill than I could imagine. May: The ENT performed Sinus surgery on May 26, and that really helped! About that same time, the Hematologist informed me that I have Multiple Myeloma, a rare form of Blood Cancer. June-December: I started Chemo Therapy in June. Fortunately, it was 'only' a weekly Subcutaneous shot (Velcade), and daily oral Meds of Revlimid (three weeks of taking the oral meds, 1 week not taking them, then repeat). This has continued all year. I was also prescribed Dexamethasone, a Steroid designed to counteract any iff-effects of the Chemo drugs. However, both Revlimid and Dexamethasone cause insomnia. I take the Dex on Fridays, I'm lucky to get 4 hours of sleep that night. October-December: In October, my left hand started going numb. At first it was minor, almost amusing. As time passed (a couple of days, not weeks) more of the hand was affected. Now, it's difficult to use it at all. My left arm is weak, I have trouble even opening the door to exit my van. It's hard to hold a fork (I'm left-handed) and eat, I cannot write much at all. When I do, it looks like the writing of a five-year-old. An MRI was done on my cervical spine, it revealed minor Hernias at the C2-C3, C3-C4, and C4-C5 junctions. A moderate size hernia exists at the C5-C6 junction, and a large hernia exists at the C6-C7 junction. On Tuesday, 12/14, I will visit a Neuro-Surgeon for evaluation, we'll see what path they want to pursue. The hernia at the C6-C7 junction is the cause of the numbness in my left hand. IF they opt for surgery, that operation is performed by entering the front of the throat. As I like to say, this too shall pass. It's been quite the year really, healthwise. On a personal level, I've had several challenges. But I'm still better off than many. Plus, I have had several sad moments this year. I lost two special friends at Motorola due to Cancer in July and August. The man who did basic yard maintenance for us passed due to Cancer in November. My ex-Mother-In-Law (a woman I considered a second mother) passed due to Dementia/Alzheimer's in September after spending 20 months alone in a nursing home, and another close friend passed due to the same cause in June. I've never had a year where that many people I know personally passed on. Life goes on, it always does. I keep that in mind. I also keep in mind two poems I wrote a while ago. They guide me far more than I thought they would when I wrote them.
That's all for now. Aren't you glad? Till next time, y'all be good, take care of yourselves, and love those who love you. And of course, keep on writing! |
Working From Home Til The End Of 2021 Well, health-wise, things seem to be on schedule. I say seem to be, because we (the doctors and I) will not be sure until he runs a couple of tests? What tests? I don't know, I sure hope he does.  Actually, I suspect he will send me in for a PET Scan to verify that the Myeloma has not spread outside my bone marrow. The other test I can see him doing, is taking a Bone Marrow sample. That would show how well the treatment I've been going through for six months has been successful in killing off the Cancerous White Blood cells. If either test shows that things have not progressed as expected, there are a couple of alternatives available. Please note that this is all conjecture on my part. First, continue with my current treatment of Valcade Shots, and a three week treatment of Revlimid and a week off, and repeat. A second option might be to stop the Velcade shots and start a monthly IV of a comparable medication. A third would be to send me to a Clinic/Hospital in Chicago. There they would take their own Bone Marrow sample, and 'wash it' clean of Cancerous cells. I would then receive a MASSIVE dose of Chemo. This would kill off my entire immune system, good cells, cancerous cells, everything. I would be restricted to a 'bubble', and remain in it. The washed bone marrow would be injected into my thigh bone (I'm assuming here), so it can regrow and restart my immune system. This could take 3-6 weeks, depending on my health, and how I do. I'd remain in that bubble the whole time. Again, all conjecture on my part here. I suppose there are other things he could do, but I have no idea what. Of course, Motorola Solutions (I call them Motorola, but that's my employer's full name) is wondering if I can travel come January. I've told my manager that it will depend on test results, and am not sure exactly what tests my doctor has planned next month. He knows I will keep him up to date. But.... right now, I am scheduled to teach in Schaumburg the first week of January, travel to Boston the following week, then have two weeks of no delivery. Then it's a thee day class in Washington DC, one day in Schaumburg, and a week in Delaware. There was more on my schedule, a lot more. But they (My manager and scheduler) realized that I've been at home for all but fourteen weeks of the past 104! So they moved classes to others instructors so I wouldn't get worn out. It's nice to know your manager is looking out for you, isn't it? But maybe, just maybe, you'll start seeing posts here about me traveling again. Nice! That's all to report for now. Till next time, y'all be good, take care of yourselves, and love those who love you. And of course, keep on writing! |
Weekend Road Trip It was time for a small, short road trip. I remember the days my father would take us on a road trip around New Mexico. When I think about it, those times were few and far between, but we still saw some beautiful sites in the Land of Enchantment. Yesterday was a day much like those old days. First, it was an outing to the local 'Really Free Flea Market. Not to look for anything, but to donate. I had 4 boxes of 'stuff' to get rid of. An old Router that we no longer use. Several USB Keyboards. I would have had wireless keyboards to add to that if I'd gotten up off my 'duff' and checked them out. I have at least 3-4 here that are not used. I just need to verify the USB Transceiver for them is the correct one. Some of them are Mouse-keyboard combo's. Either way, I managed to unload a bit of things we don't need or use, and some were put to good use quickly. How do I know that? Before I could unpack the keyboards, a young woman was asking about them, and grabbed all three. After that, we went to the Okay Valley Orchard for everything related to apples. A bit of Apple Cider, some berry and apple jams, you know, the general things related to apples. Next up was the Great Pumpkin Patch about 5 miles away. Funny how I asked several young children if they'd seen Charlie Brown, and all I got was a strange look. It was good to get out though, good to mingle around and such. I found myself wishing we'd brought our young Akita with us, he would have had a ball, loving all the kids, and being loved in return. We didn't get much there, just a couple of gourds. Still, like I said, it was good to have a day out.Till next time, y'all be good, take care of yourselves, and love those who love you. And of course, keep on writing! |
Wants vs. Needs We all have wants. We all have needs. Fortunately, right now I have few needs, but many wants. Examples. Needs. I have few needs in my opinion. I have a nice roof overhead in this 100 year old house. We are slowly upgrading areas of it. It was re-roofed about 5 years ago, the AC/Heater was replaced 2 years ago (the original one was about 60 years old), and we have the two doors and several windows being replaced once the company can get the materials on hand. The meals we prepare here are hot and enticing. A nice bed, recently purchased from Mattress Firm (more on that in a minute), a van that is not new, but only 7 years old, and in very good shape. I can get out when I want to, and do. My bills are paid each month with leftover funds that I'm starting to put into a savings account. I started drawing Social Security this month, and plan on keeping that in savings every month and live off my salary, which I've been doing all this time. So I have few needs. Wants? That's another story. I want a new laptop, this one is about 3 years old, a bit big and difficult to travel with due to weight and size. There's nothing wrong with it, but I try to replace it every three or four years. This one is due. I'd love to buy a motorhome. The model I've been looking at is a Rialta made by Winnebago on a VW chassis. But they stopped making them in 2005. It's small, a perfect size to travel n, but not live in. I'd need a larger one for that. It's a nice starter motorhome though. Clothes. Most of my daily use shirts are 5-7 years old, and in good shape. I want to replace them, and slowly will. Those I replace will go to either Goodwill, or a similar charity. There is still a lot of good use in them. Now on to other subjects. This goes along with the bed I mentioned earlier, and why we purchased a new one. I was not sleeping well for the most part. I wear a Fit-Bit, mainly because this one monitors my oxygen level (it was low in March due to that cough, but is fine now after the sinus surgery). The Fit-Bit monitors my sleep and gives me a sleep score each day. I know it's not something to 'bank on', but it does give me a reference to work on. Before we purchased the bed, my scores were in the low 70's to mid-60's. That's a 'fair' score according to Fit-Bit. I'd get scores below 60 at least twice a week ( a 'poor' score). Since getting the Beauty Rest bed, my average score is at least 5-6 above what I was seeing before. But I'm still not sleeping well overall. Most days are good, but one the one day I take the Dexamethasone, it's insane. I take it on Saturday, and suffer quite a bit of Insomnia on Saturday night. This results in a low score. Last night I went to bed about 1:30 am, at least 3 hours later than normal for me. Normally I fall asleep in five minutes or less. Last night I tossed and turned until 3am, then slept until only 5:30. This steroid (I shorten it to Dex) also causes me to experience leg cramps. You know the kind. Cramps that cause your calf muscle to turn as hard as a rock. I've discovered how to get rid of the cramp though. Just get out of bed, and stand on that foot. Lean forward if you have to. The cramp is gone. Get back in bed. The problem with that? The cramp returns shortly, which is why I ended up getting up so early. We have raised the head of the bed, and the feet a little less. This is to help stop snoring, and improves the quality of sleep. It works too! Life is good, it's always good, no matter what. I've been where some of you are now. I scraped by payday to payday, robbing Peter to pay Paul (as my father used to say). I won't go into details that you don't want or need to know about, but I've been there. I'm so grateful for what I have now, my career, life, and health. Yes, despite all that's going on in that part of my world, I'm grateful for my health because it could be so much worse. Okay, enough of all this. My wish for everyone, is that you live life to the fullest, and thank God for providing what you have, and if you struggle now, that you'll find that place in your world that allows you to live better than you are now. Till next time, y'all be good, take care of yourselves, and love those who love you. And of course, keep on writing! |
Submarines I'm going back in time in this entry. Back to my previous life as I like to call it. If you've read anything I've written, you might remember that I served in the Submarine Service of the US Navy for 20 years. I thought I'd share with you a little about submarine life, and the inherent dangers of being on a submarine. First things first. Submarines don't have windows! There's no way to see where you're going underwater. The Navigation team uses charts to plot their course based on their location known when they were on the surface last. Knowing the speed of the boat, the direction they are headed, plus more that I'm not aware of, they can plot a course. So far, so good, more on this later. Once you're underway, life becomes routine really. A day is 18 hours long. It consists of 6 hours on watch, 12 hours off. In that 12 hour period, you have to get any needed maintenance done, work on your qualifications (if you haven't yet earned your dolphins, or needed to qualify on a different watchstation), be woken from a sound sleep due to alarm sounding, usually due to drills. We had drills almost every day from noon to 6 pm, mainly in the Engineroom where I stood watch. Oh yeah, and sleep. In that 12 hours, you might be lucky to get 4-5 hours of blissful rest. There were many times where I worked around the clock, standing 6 hours of watch, worked 12 hours, stood 6 hours more of watch, work a little more, then rest. I only did that when I was sure that no drills would be run. At least I never had to hot-bunk. That's where two of you share a bed, but not at the same time! One would be on watch, the other sleeping, and vice versa. I stood many a Port & Starboard' watch, that's where you stand watch 6 hours, have 6 hours off, and repeat. This would continue until someone qualified on that watchstation, allowing you to move to the 6 on 12 off schedule. The cooks served meals every 6 hours, coordinating with the change of watchstanders so you could eat before and after your watch. Submarine food is well known for being above average, so it was always good for me. I remember being in port one time, and having the general alarm sound. On my plate was about 3-4 Alaskan King Crab legs. But with the alarm sounding, I had to get up and 'do my duty'. It turns out that the alarm was due to a problem on the pier, but a problem with the electrical supply, which my division was responsible for. I didn't get back below deck until about an hour later, and of course my King Crab legs were gone. Such is life.... Let's get back to the idea of cruising underwater without being able to see where you're going. Do this for me. Imagine you're driving your car, but the windows are all covered so you can't see a thing. You get in the car at your house and back out the driveway. Based on your speed and direction, you know how long to back up. Then you turn to straighten the car on the road, then start driving to the local store. All the while, you can't see where you're going, but based on your speed and direction, you know where you are. EXCEPT one day, the city has started doing maintenance, and you weren't informed. Instead of getting to the store safely, you end up hitting a post that was placed in road. It's the same for a submarine underwater. The charts being used must be up to date, or there's no telling what could happen. Maybe something like this.  That's the USS San Francisco after she collided with an underwater mountain at about 25 knots. The inner hull is intact, saving the crew from a grisly death. One crewmember did die in the accident, but he died when they tried to transfer him off the boat to a helicopter while still at sea. They had to shift the position of the stretcher so it was vertical to get it out of the hatch. Doing so caused the problems with his circulation, he died on that stretcher while being lifted. It turns out the charts they were using were out of date, and showed that underwater mountain to be about 25 miles away. If you hear of a submarine has gone missing, is late getting into port, or not heard from, say a prayer. Most likely the boat is on the bottom of the ocean in a few thousand pieces. About 99% of the ocean is too deep for any submarine to survive. When it goes down, it gets to a depth called 'crush depth'. It's exactly what it sounds like. The submarine implodes, then explodes. The explosion is caused by hydraulic fluid and oil that is compressed. It can only be compressed so much before it explodes. When that Argentinian submarine was missing a few years ago, several friends asked me what I thought. I just said, "Pray for the crew, because they're all dead." My friends didn't believe me at first, until I explained to them the 'facts of life' about submarines. Okay, enough of the class on submarines, and their inherent dangers. There's far more I could tell you, but you would get bored reading about it, nor is there enough room to get this all typed in. Till next time, y'all be good, take care of yourselves, and love those who love you. |
You Call This Being On Vacation? This week was a week of scheduled Flexible Time Off (FTO). Yeah, they've renamed something as simple as vacation once again. First renaming I recall, was Paid Time Off (PTO), that was so long ago that I don't remember if vacation was called something else before PTO. My wish (it's just a wish, no one would ever listen to me about things like this), is to leave the old names alone. Vacation is vacation, you're not working, you don't have to get anything done during the scheduled week, etc. I just wish they'd leave things alone and not think up new names. Are they going to eventually rename everything? If so, can we permanently change things in the process? Oh wait, I won't go there because it will end up being a rant and turn you all off, if you're not turned off already. This post isn't about that; it's really about how I spent my week of 'vacation'. Originally I had planned on going to Alabama this week to visit my daughter. Wednesday was her birthday, I've had this week scheduled since way back in January, celebrating her birthday was gravy on top of being able to see her and the kids. My youngest daughter had planned on watching the dogs for us which would have made things even better. But..... as I like to say, "Sometimes, the best laid plans of mice and men......" Yeah, nothing I planned came to pass. Obviously we didn't go because our 'dog sitter' just started a new job, and was in training this week. Since she lives in Decatur, about 45 miles south of Bloomington, it just wasn't possible for her to do both. Yes, we still could have gone and taken the dogs (3) with us. I mean, I bought this nice van almost 2 years ago just for things like this. But a certain someone (not me!) finally admitted to being uncomfortable traveling across the country, even if only from Illinois to Alabama. With COVID rearing its ugly head again, the feeling of discomfort is even greater. So, we didn't go. Another thought was that if my manager doesn't want me traveling on business, should I really be traveling for pleasure? I'm not sure which is safer, business travel, or personal travel. Better to be safe than sorry. So I had a week off, yay! Oh wait, I put myself on notice this week though. I have a one day, 2-hour class a week from Monday, and the Powerpoint slideshow hasn't changed since I wrote it almost 10 years ago! Now it's a 'simple' class, covering the programming of what's called a radio consolette. The PPT includes numerous screenshots from the programming software, provided mainly as reference for the students. Those screenshots were made using the old software, something around version 8. We are on version 24 now, and while the screens are still very similar, to me the screenshots just scream, "Look at me! I'm 10 years out of date!" A pdf file version of the PPT is provided to the students for their reference and retention. You know what they say about 'First Impressions'. You only have a chance to make that one time. Plus, I absolutely refuse to use outdated materials like that. So, I spent 3 days of the week creating new screenshots for use. All for a 2-hour class. I figured I was home, didn't have to worry about what I did this week, had nothing 'official' to do, could leave when I want/if I want, etc. So, I worked when I wanted, napped as needed, and got things done. Still, quite the vacation, huh. I also personalized those Fleetmapping course materials for a class next week. Another small task I did this week was to participate in two conference calls with a customer I will deliver a tailored class to in 3 weeks. The course materials aren't an issue, I've delivered this same class to them 4 times already in South Dakota, North Dakota, and Colorado. But I went to their sites for those classes. This one will be virtual of course. They are part of the Federal Government, and can only use Microsoft Teams for their online meetings. Zoom is blocked by their IT department, as is Google Meet and Adobe Connect. Microsoft Teams is blocked by my employer, so what to do, what to do? I figured out that I could install Microsoft Teams if I ran the install program as an administrator. Still, I couldn't sign in using my company login, it kept redirecting me back to my original page. So I decided to try my home email, and voila! I was 'in like Flint'. Today we had a brief conference call/meeting to verify they could access the virtual meeting room using a link I provided (I don't see why they wouldn't be able to, unless their IT department had certain companies blocked). A possibility, but it didn't seem very realistic to me. Fifteen minutes together in the room and we were set. So yes, a week of vacation, but a working vacation just the same. That's fine by me, I'm home, doing what I want and relaxing. I even managed to have a bit of Rum, and later, Bourbon during the day Tuesday and Thursday. Something I wouldn't have done if I wasn't on vacation. Enough of all this, I hope y'all are well, remaining safe and healthy during these trying times. Above all, I hope you always feel the love that others share with you. Til next time, be safe, be healthy, be free! Most of all, be happy.  |
I've been chatting with one of my co-workers recently. He has the same form of Cancer I do, yet this disease is supposed to be rare, occurring in less than 1% of the population. I can't fathom how two people in a small group of 16 can both have this illness then. Just goes to show, huh. Yes, 16. We have 16 instructors who cover the USA, Canada, and help cover classes around the world. There are other trainers in Asia, Europe, Australia and such, for a total of maybe 40 of us. Yes, I do feel very fortunate to be where I am. By the way, I may be retiring in the not too distant future. Who wants to take my place?  Anyway, on to the real reason for this post. He and I were chatting about the use of Virtual Machines in our systems, and how he has a Nuk at home, configured with a virtual radio system from Motorola. The thing is, his Virtual Machine (VM) is about the size of the average home router! Our support staff at work, those who maintain our system and it's numerous databases, order parts, etc, configured this for him. I'm all excited because he wants another co-worker, and myself to receive the other two that are sitting in the office/lab. First, being a computer nut, I'd love it. Second though, it would make some of my course deliveries a lot easier. Let me explain. We use Adobe Connect for our online class deliveries. Adobe offers a really good interface, the ability to share files, video, chat, etc. The problem with Adobe is, when we log onto our VPN at work, as we often have to in order to access our systems remotely, the connection speed drops to the Kbps range, while my internet connection remains in the 200+ Mbps range! This can cause audio issues, and connection drops. Fortunately, I don't seem to suffer as much as some instructors do, but there are moments. So imagine that all of a sudden, you don't have to log onto the VPN to access a database, it's right there next to you! Yes, it would (will) have its limitations, such as physical access to devices. However, there are 5-6 classes I could deliver using something like that, and never use the VPN. Life would be so easy! (Like it's so hard for me right now... Sheesh!) Now it's a wait and see game. Will he convince the powers that be that I should have one of these 'toys'? Only time will tell. If they say no to one of those small Nuk's, there's always an older HP DL360 server sitting in the system that I maintain, doing nothing at all. True, it's not small (19" wide, about 2" high, and 36"long!), and would make my electric bill jump some. The answer there is, power it on only when needed. I have a lot to learn about this, and powering it on and off might not be the best thing. We'll see. In the meantime, I wait. |
View Portfolio
Visit Notebook
Send Gift Points
Awards
Badges
Send Email
Community Newsfeed
General Discussion
Sponsored Items
Book of Trinkets
Static Items
Books
Groups
Interactive Stories
Audio
Campfire Creatives
Community Notes
Crossword Puzzles
Documents
Folders
Images
In & Outs
Madlibs
Photo Albums
Polls
Product Reviews
Quizzes
Survey Forms
Web Pages
Word Searches
Oops... there she blows!
