So, Friday's call went well. The project sponsor pretty much bitched out those who were late with their shit, even though they are higher on the totem pole than she is. This means we're back on schedule and I'm going to KC tomorrow--with better flight times than I had for the previous week!
Yesterday the HB and I hung out at the beach with some friends from out of town (the people who hosted us at their lake house last summer) and some other families. I guess the wife wasn't feeling too social, so she took a pass. It was a great day at the beach and the body surfing was pretty fun. We went to dinner, took the kids to an arcade, etc. I don't think that the HB and I got home until around midnight.
Today we're off to my parents for lunch and talk a few more details about their party. We'll also pick up some stuff they want to have on the greeting tables (framed invitation from the wedding, etc.). We're getting to the short strokes on this, which is very good.
Tonight, my Rotary Club is hosting a progressive dinner to support the Y. The good thing about it is rather than going from house to house, we're hitting 4 of the local hotels. Each year they try to out-do each other in food and drink, so it's a very good time. I'm not sure that all the money it raises (~$10,000) should go to the Y, but at least it's going towards a good cause.
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Thursday, August 6, 2009
Working, Working, Working...
So, to continue from the last post, the wife woke up at about 11:15. She was perturbed that I didn't wake her up. I don't like waking ANYONE up...why else would they be sleeping. We went across the street to hear a local cover band. I think they were all engineers from Vandenburg Air Force base. They were fine. The obligatory drunk woman in the too short dress looking for servicemen was there. We went back to the room after a bit and watched a movie.
Sunday we got going a little on the early side so that we could meet up with a florist for my parents party and take care of a few of those details. My wife and her sibs still can't give up on their parents' house, so we hung out there for a bit. Thank fucking goodness it's going to close next week.
Work's been busy with proposals. I usually don't write them, but some are for an existing client, so I'm only competing with their budget, as opposed to another vendor. Another is for a company that I won a bid for last year, so I figure I can get some more work with them. The former ones are very vague so I spend a bunch of time getting them to say what they really want. I should here back on some other projects next week as well.
The one project that got going is stalled. That's because some of the folks at the client site dropped the ball while the sponsor was on vacation last week. We have a call about it tomorrow, so hopefully we'll get it back on track. I really would like to get some KC bbq sometime soon.
Of course, Murphy's Law of consulting is that all of this stuff is going to hit the weeks surrounding the party. Good thing I don't follow that law.
The HB's loving his troupe's next production and making great friendships. In fact, he's hanging with a couple of the kids (a boy and a girl his age) this afternoon. Great time for the wife and I to knock it out, right? Umb, no. She'd rather work late. I'm going to Happy Hour.
Sunday we got going a little on the early side so that we could meet up with a florist for my parents party and take care of a few of those details. My wife and her sibs still can't give up on their parents' house, so we hung out there for a bit. Thank fucking goodness it's going to close next week.
Work's been busy with proposals. I usually don't write them, but some are for an existing client, so I'm only competing with their budget, as opposed to another vendor. Another is for a company that I won a bid for last year, so I figure I can get some more work with them. The former ones are very vague so I spend a bunch of time getting them to say what they really want. I should here back on some other projects next week as well.
The one project that got going is stalled. That's because some of the folks at the client site dropped the ball while the sponsor was on vacation last week. We have a call about it tomorrow, so hopefully we'll get it back on track. I really would like to get some KC bbq sometime soon.
Of course, Murphy's Law of consulting is that all of this stuff is going to hit the weeks surrounding the party. Good thing I don't follow that law.
The HB's loving his troupe's next production and making great friendships. In fact, he's hanging with a couple of the kids (a boy and a girl his age) this afternoon. Great time for the wife and I to knock it out, right? Umb, no. She'd rather work late. I'm going to Happy Hour.
Saturday, August 1, 2009
Vacation Weekend
Yes, the wife and I are having a vacation (out of town w/o the HB) weekend. I think it's the first one we've had since the NZS.
We decided to head up the Central Coast of CA for some wine tasting. We're staying at a historic hotel in one of the towns. Between her not sleeping well in general, and the grape, she's been snoozing. Since about 5:30pm. It's about 10:15 now. So much for a night on the town...sigh.
I think I'll head down to the bar for a beer.
We decided to head up the Central Coast of CA for some wine tasting. We're staying at a historic hotel in one of the towns. Between her not sleeping well in general, and the grape, she's been snoozing. Since about 5:30pm. It's about 10:15 now. So much for a night on the town...sigh.
I think I'll head down to the bar for a beer.
Feels Like the First Time
I had lunch the other day with the woman I lost my virginity to (1, 2, 3...awwww). We've stayed in touch over the years and managed to hook-up a few times, though, obviously, not in a long time. She's divorced, has two kids (both older than the HB), and lives outside of Denver.
Whenever we talk/chat, I'm always reminded of why I was fond of her in the first place. She's independent, practically smart and has a good head on her shoulders. She's still pretty. I'm not sure if the strapless sundress was for my benefit or not, but she looked good in it.
We chit-chatted and got caught up, mostly about our kids. It's been so long that we don't talk about the old days much, which is good. When I run into people from my past, about 5 minutes of what went on X years ago is all I can take.
After lunch (I picked up the bill) we hugged, again, and exchanged chaste kisses. It was 90 minutes well spent.
Whenever we talk/chat, I'm always reminded of why I was fond of her in the first place. She's independent, practically smart and has a good head on her shoulders. She's still pretty. I'm not sure if the strapless sundress was for my benefit or not, but she looked good in it.
We chit-chatted and got caught up, mostly about our kids. It's been so long that we don't talk about the old days much, which is good. When I run into people from my past, about 5 minutes of what went on X years ago is all I can take.
After lunch (I picked up the bill) we hugged, again, and exchanged chaste kisses. It was 90 minutes well spent.
Thursday, July 30, 2009
As an Old Dream Drove Away
I'm not big of a car person. I like them to run, but I'm more into their utility than their style. There have only been two exceptions to this. When I was very young (before I could drive), I though have a red Corvette would be da bomb. I grew out of that. My fave car as an adult was a red (yes, there's a theme here) Celica. I loved that car. But, it got drowned in the garage during a flood when I lived near Boston (sniff).
As you can imagine, little red sports cars aren't the rage in Beantown. I looked and looked for another red Celica. More importantly, a red CONVERTIBLE Celica. But, they were nowhere to be found. I wanted one then and I still do, though it's somewhat impracticle now.
So, this morning, I'm driving the HB to camp and find myself, you guessed it, right behind a red CONVERTIBLE Celica. Sigh...
When I got home, I searched on Craigslist and found one pretty quickly. I'm not sure if I can rationalize this, but I may try.
As you can imagine, little red sports cars aren't the rage in Beantown. I looked and looked for another red Celica. More importantly, a red CONVERTIBLE Celica. But, they were nowhere to be found. I wanted one then and I still do, though it's somewhat impracticle now.
So, this morning, I'm driving the HB to camp and find myself, you guessed it, right behind a red CONVERTIBLE Celica. Sigh...
When I got home, I searched on Craigslist and found one pretty quickly. I'm not sure if I can rationalize this, but I may try.
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
Family Justice
I have a friend, let's call him Matt. I've know him since we were teenagers. He went to a rival school, but his female bff (who he was totally crushing on) had the hots for my best friend, so our paths crossed. We became great friends and still stay in touch even though he's moved out of the LA area (more about that in a minute).
He went to a small christian college near here where he met his wife Lawryn (her real name is a common one that has an unusual spelling). They both were believers, but didn't let it interfere with them having partying (though, they were a little weird about the pre-marital sex thing). They eventually got married and pumped out two boys. He worked for an engineering company and she did some part time work for non-profits and did volunteer work. He remained a fairly low-key believer whereas she became more strident.
He decided to almost quit the rat race and began to take over his dad's business in a growing exurb in the southwest. He used his engineering skills to make the place run better. Lawryn cared for the kids (turns out that they both as Asberger's) and helped out with the books.
As she became more obsessed with god and he stayed as the same old Matt, they went through therapy, etc and got divorced. Financially, he really took it up the ass as the divorce settlement was based on the company's performance during what turned out to be the peak of the economic boom. They agreed on relatively shared custody since they still lived nearby and Matt is very close with the boys, particularly the older one. Matt's not a perfect guy, but he loves his kids, doesn't yell at them, supports them in what they do, etc.
Lawryn eventually found a guy two states over who obviously prefers praying over getting his dick sucked. So, Lawryn goes to court to change their divorce agreement so she can move the boys out of state and marry this guy.
As a general rule, I think that single mom's probably make better single parents than dads. 95% of the time, as you would think by how kids are handled in divorce settlements? No. 65-35? Yeah, probably. Given that Lawryn has the kids a majority of the time, I thought that Matt was going to be on the losing end of this.
But, I was WRONG! The judge denied the motion. Now Lawryn's calling him asking if she can take the younger one, she's going to appeal, blah, blah, blah. Well, this serves the bitch right. She's so fucking holy and christian and family values, but puts her own happiness ahead of her kids having a good relationship with their dad. I hope that she writes them nice cards at xmas. Heh!
He went to a small christian college near here where he met his wife Lawryn (her real name is a common one that has an unusual spelling). They both were believers, but didn't let it interfere with them having partying (though, they were a little weird about the pre-marital sex thing). They eventually got married and pumped out two boys. He worked for an engineering company and she did some part time work for non-profits and did volunteer work. He remained a fairly low-key believer whereas she became more strident.
He decided to almost quit the rat race and began to take over his dad's business in a growing exurb in the southwest. He used his engineering skills to make the place run better. Lawryn cared for the kids (turns out that they both as Asberger's) and helped out with the books.
As she became more obsessed with god and he stayed as the same old Matt, they went through therapy, etc and got divorced. Financially, he really took it up the ass as the divorce settlement was based on the company's performance during what turned out to be the peak of the economic boom. They agreed on relatively shared custody since they still lived nearby and Matt is very close with the boys, particularly the older one. Matt's not a perfect guy, but he loves his kids, doesn't yell at them, supports them in what they do, etc.
Lawryn eventually found a guy two states over who obviously prefers praying over getting his dick sucked. So, Lawryn goes to court to change their divorce agreement so she can move the boys out of state and marry this guy.
As a general rule, I think that single mom's probably make better single parents than dads. 95% of the time, as you would think by how kids are handled in divorce settlements? No. 65-35? Yeah, probably. Given that Lawryn has the kids a majority of the time, I thought that Matt was going to be on the losing end of this.
But, I was WRONG! The judge denied the motion. Now Lawryn's calling him asking if she can take the younger one, she's going to appeal, blah, blah, blah. Well, this serves the bitch right. She's so fucking holy and christian and family values, but puts her own happiness ahead of her kids having a good relationship with their dad. I hope that she writes them nice cards at xmas. Heh!
Favre and Vick
Brett Favre FINALLY called it quits yesterday. I think. Really, he means it this time. At least he told the Vikings that he wasn't going to play for them this season.
I feel for the guy and all athletes who are at the end of the road. I can see how their minds say "Yes" but their bodies say, "No." My empathy for Favre is somewhat tempered by the mean-spiritedness of this last "comeback." Sure, he knows the Minnesota coaches, but when you've been in the league as long as he has you know just about everyone. And it's not that a 39 year old quarterback is the Vikes' missing piece to the Super Bowl. Rather, he just wanted two shots a year to stick it to the Packers who eventually cut him loose after several off-seasons of him fucking with them with his "will he or won't he" retirement talk.
People tend forget great players' last gasps (Willie Mays with the Mets, Joe Namath with the Rams, Johnny Unitas with the Chargers) and they should. We can't blame athlete's for wanting to keep doing something they've mastered since they were a children. Hopefully Favre has gained some grace about this.
Yesterday, the NFL gave Michael Vick a conditional reinstatement. Basically, he can practice with the teams as soon as he's signed, play in two pre-season games and be elgible no later than week 6 (assuming he's on the straight and narrow). I wrote about Vick a couple of days ago, so I won't rehash my feeling about him. I can see how the commish would want to give some flex to the timeline for him coming back. Without deadline pressure, teams can take a longer look at Vick and their situation before making the decision to bring him onboard.
It's somewhat unfair to Vick in that if he's in football shape and ready to go week 1 he's essentially being punished AGAIN for the same crime for which he's already been in the slam for two years. And he seriously needs the money to pay off his debts, etc. I still think someone will sign him, though for the life of me I can't think of who (hm...maybe the Vikings are still looking for a third quarterback). It may not happen until a quarteback (starter or second string) gets hurt during pre-season.
I feel for the guy and all athletes who are at the end of the road. I can see how their minds say "Yes" but their bodies say, "No." My empathy for Favre is somewhat tempered by the mean-spiritedness of this last "comeback." Sure, he knows the Minnesota coaches, but when you've been in the league as long as he has you know just about everyone. And it's not that a 39 year old quarterback is the Vikes' missing piece to the Super Bowl. Rather, he just wanted two shots a year to stick it to the Packers who eventually cut him loose after several off-seasons of him fucking with them with his "will he or won't he" retirement talk.
People tend forget great players' last gasps (Willie Mays with the Mets, Joe Namath with the Rams, Johnny Unitas with the Chargers) and they should. We can't blame athlete's for wanting to keep doing something they've mastered since they were a children. Hopefully Favre has gained some grace about this.
Yesterday, the NFL gave Michael Vick a conditional reinstatement. Basically, he can practice with the teams as soon as he's signed, play in two pre-season games and be elgible no later than week 6 (assuming he's on the straight and narrow). I wrote about Vick a couple of days ago, so I won't rehash my feeling about him. I can see how the commish would want to give some flex to the timeline for him coming back. Without deadline pressure, teams can take a longer look at Vick and their situation before making the decision to bring him onboard.
It's somewhat unfair to Vick in that if he's in football shape and ready to go week 1 he's essentially being punished AGAIN for the same crime for which he's already been in the slam for two years. And he seriously needs the money to pay off his debts, etc. I still think someone will sign him, though for the life of me I can't think of who (hm...maybe the Vikings are still looking for a third quarterback). It may not happen until a quarteback (starter or second string) gets hurt during pre-season.
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