I've been reminded how long it's been since my last entry here, so this is one.
Work is going extremely well. I seem to have fallen into a job that pretty well fits my abilities, strangely enough. Much of what I do is about attention to detail, following/creating/refining methods of completing various administrative tasks, and reading...a lot. I'm enjoying the work, even what most would consider boring, but I like the consistency, the stability, the feeling that I'm contributing to an industry that I never would have expected to be involved with. The business I'm with now is a consulting firm that goes into the industrial-type businesses that work with hazardous chemicals; my employer sends industry experts/engineers into these businesses to analyze the potentials for risk of chemical release, danger to the public, and adding safeguards and lowering that risk. I read the reports they write up, check for issues, offer suggestions for improvement to the consultants, and help expedite the process of getting that report back to the client. I also complete administrative tasks around the office: update records, do filing, make copies and bind the reports we send to clients, stay in contact with consultants and keep track of the deadlines for the reports, and various activities like those.
I've been told that sounds boring, and I suppose it can be at times. However, I like organizing and keeping track of details. I don't mind filing and making copies. This job, as not exciting as it can be, suits me, and that's what matters. I don't need excitement at work (I'm not especially excitable anyway). I just need stability at a job I can improve in and in which people appreciate the work that I do (to some extend anyway). So far, that's exactly what this job is. My supervisor constantly tells me how much she appreciates me doing the work I'm doing, especially since she used to do her work and most of mine all by herself, but she's also amazed by how quickly I've picked up the work, how quickly I'm improving, and how quickly we, together, are catching up with deadlines when they were months behind when I came in. I am in no way completely responsible for that improvement, but I have helped my supervisor be able to complete more of her work more efficiently, so I'll take the win.
Before anyone asks, yes, I do miss some parts of teaching (more specifically, tutoring). I liked helping individuals figure out issues they had with writing and improve their work. I liked dealing with so many different people regularly. However, I had enough issues with teaching college that I am happier being out of it than I ever was being in it. There may be another entry here about teaching versus not teaching because I have been thinking about it a bit lately. This entry, though, is all about updating.
Other news: I've been working hard to keep up with my television shows (all of which I watch online since I don't have cable). Full-time work is totally messing with my TV schedule! (I can deal with that, though.) I just bought a new cell phone, and it's pretty awesome, a Moto X, which I've been playing with for a week now and keep finding new features I like. My game, SWTOR, has a big expansion coming in December, and I'm pretty excited about that. I've become interested in anime over the last few months, which I did not expect (more about that another time). Also, with the steadier income and certainty that comes with it, I'm planning to buy a new car soon (still researching and considering to do for that).
I can't think of anything else new with me, but I'm doing extremely well. Life is good, and I'm blessed in so many ways.
Sunday, October 19, 2014
Tuesday, August 12, 2014
Big Change
It's been quite a while since I've written anything here, and that's mostly because I feel like I've not been doing too much. I've been tutoring, gaming, watching too much TV (new addiction to anime, but that may be another blog post), and seeing more of some of my friends. With not much new, I don't tend to post too often.
Now, however, as you probably know, a huge change has come!
Since March, I've been job searching seriously, extremely seriously in the last two months or so. I've sent out dozens of resumes online to office and academic positions. Squeaks helped me completely revamp my resume, which actually brought some response (most of which went the wrong phone number because I worked an unfortunate typo into my resume...). I was becoming a little concerned about my financial and employment situation and frustrated with the lack of progress in my job search. I had focused all of my work on tutoring since (as you may remember from previous posts) I've recently decided teaching, especially adjuncting, is not for me. While I enjoy tutoring and I am good at it, there are too few hours in it for me, which means I couldn't work only at tutoring for long. I wouldn't be able to pay the bills without another part-time job, and I'd rather not work two part-time jobs if I can help it.
About two weeks ago, I applied for a position described as editing and administrative work. As it turns out, the company I had applied to was not the employer but a recruitment company. They do the legwork in finding candidates for positions so employers don't have to work so hard to find the best candidates; this company does most of the hard work for them. I had not planned to work with any kind of employment agency, but this seemed like a solid opportunity, so I decided to go for it. My recruiter, Phil, offered advice for interviews and worked as the go-between for my potential employer. Throughout, he's been extremely helpful and taken quite a bit of weight off of my shoulders.
Last Tuesday, I had my first interview with someone from the employer. I thought it went extremely well, but then, I've recently discovered I'm pretty good at interviews and make a great first impression (who would have guessed?), but you never know what the interviewer is actually looking for. I heard from Phil that same afternoon that they wanted a second interview with me! This was new, as I had only had a few first interviews, much less any second interviews. So, last Friday, I had my "second" interview for the job, which was really two more first interviews; I talked to two different people: my potential supervisor/trainer and someone who I would be working pretty closely with on various projects. I thought both of those conversations went well, but, again, I never know how it'll all turn out. Late that afternoon, I heard from Phil, who said that they seemed to like me and they had asked about my availability and whether I'd have to give notice to anyone. I took this as a positive sign; why would they care if I had to give notice unless they were seriously considering hiring me? I spent the whole weekend assuming I had the job, knowing I wouldn't hear anything more specific until at least Monday, but then I tried to force myself to reality on Monday morning. After all, it's possible that they asked the same question of the others being considered for the job and just wanted to have all available information about each candidate before making a final decision. Then, I waited...
Finally, early Monday afternoon, Phil called. He had the job offer! I was relieved and excited that I had finally done it; it felt like this search took forever, but six months isn't really that long for a job search anymore. Phil also mentioned that I had been competing with four or five others for the job; I had thought it was only two--that higher number sure does add a confidence boost, as does the fact that Phil said I had blown them away in my interviews. Wonder of wonders!
So this position (as you may have noticed, I'm going out of my way to avoid mentioning either company by name, for a number of reasons), is part administrative and part editing. The company, as I understand it at the moment, is one that conducts analyses and surveys on the risk potential of various industrial processes and procedures, and offers recommendations for avoiding and limiting catastrophic events and industrial accidents. It involves the work of many engineers and various kinds of industry, so I will have quite a bit to learn. Eventually, my job will focus primarily on editing and proofreading the reports the engineers create at the conclusions of their site visits and analyses. I'll be learning many terms and concepts that are utterly foreign to me know. They're going to give me time to learn all of this, so, meanwhile, I'll be helping around the office with various tasks (filing, organizing, creating and preparing documents and information packets, etc.). I was looking for office work, but this had the bonus of using my knowledge of English and editing, as well as my experience tutoring in and helping with various subjects (including sciences and engineering). I don't think I could have found anything better at this point! I know it will be rough to start a career in a completely different field, but I'm excited at the necessity of learning and the continually evolving nature of the job. I haven't felt the need to learn for a while, and I'm looking forward to the (extreme) challenge this new job is going to bring me.
I'm relieved and happy about this opportunity and the fact that my job search is over! I had many people praying for me and sending positive vibes my way, and I'm extremely appreciative.
Now, however, as you probably know, a huge change has come!
Since March, I've been job searching seriously, extremely seriously in the last two months or so. I've sent out dozens of resumes online to office and academic positions. Squeaks helped me completely revamp my resume, which actually brought some response (most of which went the wrong phone number because I worked an unfortunate typo into my resume...). I was becoming a little concerned about my financial and employment situation and frustrated with the lack of progress in my job search. I had focused all of my work on tutoring since (as you may remember from previous posts) I've recently decided teaching, especially adjuncting, is not for me. While I enjoy tutoring and I am good at it, there are too few hours in it for me, which means I couldn't work only at tutoring for long. I wouldn't be able to pay the bills without another part-time job, and I'd rather not work two part-time jobs if I can help it.
About two weeks ago, I applied for a position described as editing and administrative work. As it turns out, the company I had applied to was not the employer but a recruitment company. They do the legwork in finding candidates for positions so employers don't have to work so hard to find the best candidates; this company does most of the hard work for them. I had not planned to work with any kind of employment agency, but this seemed like a solid opportunity, so I decided to go for it. My recruiter, Phil, offered advice for interviews and worked as the go-between for my potential employer. Throughout, he's been extremely helpful and taken quite a bit of weight off of my shoulders.
Last Tuesday, I had my first interview with someone from the employer. I thought it went extremely well, but then, I've recently discovered I'm pretty good at interviews and make a great first impression (who would have guessed?), but you never know what the interviewer is actually looking for. I heard from Phil that same afternoon that they wanted a second interview with me! This was new, as I had only had a few first interviews, much less any second interviews. So, last Friday, I had my "second" interview for the job, which was really two more first interviews; I talked to two different people: my potential supervisor/trainer and someone who I would be working pretty closely with on various projects. I thought both of those conversations went well, but, again, I never know how it'll all turn out. Late that afternoon, I heard from Phil, who said that they seemed to like me and they had asked about my availability and whether I'd have to give notice to anyone. I took this as a positive sign; why would they care if I had to give notice unless they were seriously considering hiring me? I spent the whole weekend assuming I had the job, knowing I wouldn't hear anything more specific until at least Monday, but then I tried to force myself to reality on Monday morning. After all, it's possible that they asked the same question of the others being considered for the job and just wanted to have all available information about each candidate before making a final decision. Then, I waited...
Finally, early Monday afternoon, Phil called. He had the job offer! I was relieved and excited that I had finally done it; it felt like this search took forever, but six months isn't really that long for a job search anymore. Phil also mentioned that I had been competing with four or five others for the job; I had thought it was only two--that higher number sure does add a confidence boost, as does the fact that Phil said I had blown them away in my interviews. Wonder of wonders!
So this position (as you may have noticed, I'm going out of my way to avoid mentioning either company by name, for a number of reasons), is part administrative and part editing. The company, as I understand it at the moment, is one that conducts analyses and surveys on the risk potential of various industrial processes and procedures, and offers recommendations for avoiding and limiting catastrophic events and industrial accidents. It involves the work of many engineers and various kinds of industry, so I will have quite a bit to learn. Eventually, my job will focus primarily on editing and proofreading the reports the engineers create at the conclusions of their site visits and analyses. I'll be learning many terms and concepts that are utterly foreign to me know. They're going to give me time to learn all of this, so, meanwhile, I'll be helping around the office with various tasks (filing, organizing, creating and preparing documents and information packets, etc.). I was looking for office work, but this had the bonus of using my knowledge of English and editing, as well as my experience tutoring in and helping with various subjects (including sciences and engineering). I don't think I could have found anything better at this point! I know it will be rough to start a career in a completely different field, but I'm excited at the necessity of learning and the continually evolving nature of the job. I haven't felt the need to learn for a while, and I'm looking forward to the (extreme) challenge this new job is going to bring me.
I'm relieved and happy about this opportunity and the fact that my job search is over! I had many people praying for me and sending positive vibes my way, and I'm extremely appreciative.
Friday, April 11, 2014
My Cyber Monster
For those of you who don't know, I finally bit the bullet and bought a new computer. It...is...awesome!!!
Anyway, I intended to write about the results of the fix I had done on my laptop earlier. I didn't do so, however, because I was waiting for the worst. I had my doubts that replacing the hard drive on that computer would correct the problem, but I had high hopes. Unfortunately, my doubts were more accurate than my hopes. My laptop did work much better for a little while. It was repaired in January. When it was returned to me, some of the manufacturer perks were missing, but everything else worked as it should (once I had it all loaded again). My game worked, and my computer wasn't freezing on me at all. I was content with the results.
Then, last month, the problems started again. It started slowly, but not as slowly as before. The computer would lock up after I exited my game (SWTOR, if you're trying to keep track), and only when I exited my game. It didn't happen every time, but often enough. Then, it was freezing every time I exited my game and most of the time I finished watching a video (especially a full-screen video). Finally, it locked up repeatedly while I was trying to play my game. If you know my relationship with SWTOR, you realize that was the last straw. Clearly, either the hard drive wasn't the only problem or something I'm doing to my hard drive causes significant, escalating damage because this was the same issue all over again. (This all started again after I finally reloaded my Sims 2 games, so maybe they're part of the problem--too much memory usage?)
As the problems started, I immediately started looking into new computers. I've given up on laptops for the games I play. They work well enough for me for a while, but not permanently. Thus, I was researching desk top computers, which I haven't owned since before college. I wasn't sure if I wanted to go prebuilt and do the best I could there (while avoiding Dell because my Dell laptops--3 total over the years--have not lasted as long as I needed them to) or if I wanted to try the custom-built option. I've heard from my gaming friends that custom is the way to go. Unfortunately, I know too little about computers and what I need to build one myself. So, I looked for companies that would do it for me. I found one that looked good and gave me many (too many?) options for the specs on my new device. With a ton of help from a friend (whom I met in SWTOR--this is my main social circle now, I guess), I decided on the basic specs and add-ons for my new computer and put in the order. It involved spending money I don't exactly have, but I found, oh, so many ways to justify the purchase (I'll spare you the list; I'm sure you can imagine it).
After two weeks of waiting for assembly and shipping, my computer arrived!! The friend who helped me build it called it the "monster" and was absolutely right! It's larger than I expected, and I now know what the inside of my computer looks like. There is plenty of space to add more devices, should I decide I want to and I eventually figure out what I'm doing. It plays my game beautifully. I bought a new monitor that is much larger than my laptop's screen, so I can become fully immersed in the game (whether that's healthy or not, I haven't decided...). I've set up a "work station" that is far more conducive to game play than what I did before. In theory, I shouldn't have to buy another new computer; I should just be able to buy new parts and upgrade the one I have.
God bless Squeaks for putting up with all of this process. She allowed (even helped!) me move around furniture in the living room so I could set up a space for my computer that wouldn't cause me to spend so many hours completely alone. I didn't want to abandon her completely; she may be regretting that now. We cleared out a corner for my new desk and chair, and the rearrangement works much better than either of us had expected.
I am content with how all of this has worked out. I briefly regretted spending the money to attempt to fix my laptop, but it seems to work just fine when I'm not trying to play SWTOR, so I'm hoping it will last me a while for basic tasks before dying completely. Once it does, I'll still have the "monster" and I might replace the laptop with a tablet, since those seem to be much better lately for basic computering tasks.
Anyway, I intended to write about the results of the fix I had done on my laptop earlier. I didn't do so, however, because I was waiting for the worst. I had my doubts that replacing the hard drive on that computer would correct the problem, but I had high hopes. Unfortunately, my doubts were more accurate than my hopes. My laptop did work much better for a little while. It was repaired in January. When it was returned to me, some of the manufacturer perks were missing, but everything else worked as it should (once I had it all loaded again). My game worked, and my computer wasn't freezing on me at all. I was content with the results.
Then, last month, the problems started again. It started slowly, but not as slowly as before. The computer would lock up after I exited my game (SWTOR, if you're trying to keep track), and only when I exited my game. It didn't happen every time, but often enough. Then, it was freezing every time I exited my game and most of the time I finished watching a video (especially a full-screen video). Finally, it locked up repeatedly while I was trying to play my game. If you know my relationship with SWTOR, you realize that was the last straw. Clearly, either the hard drive wasn't the only problem or something I'm doing to my hard drive causes significant, escalating damage because this was the same issue all over again. (This all started again after I finally reloaded my Sims 2 games, so maybe they're part of the problem--too much memory usage?)
As the problems started, I immediately started looking into new computers. I've given up on laptops for the games I play. They work well enough for me for a while, but not permanently. Thus, I was researching desk top computers, which I haven't owned since before college. I wasn't sure if I wanted to go prebuilt and do the best I could there (while avoiding Dell because my Dell laptops--3 total over the years--have not lasted as long as I needed them to) or if I wanted to try the custom-built option. I've heard from my gaming friends that custom is the way to go. Unfortunately, I know too little about computers and what I need to build one myself. So, I looked for companies that would do it for me. I found one that looked good and gave me many (too many?) options for the specs on my new device. With a ton of help from a friend (whom I met in SWTOR--this is my main social circle now, I guess), I decided on the basic specs and add-ons for my new computer and put in the order. It involved spending money I don't exactly have, but I found, oh, so many ways to justify the purchase (I'll spare you the list; I'm sure you can imagine it).
After two weeks of waiting for assembly and shipping, my computer arrived!! The friend who helped me build it called it the "monster" and was absolutely right! It's larger than I expected, and I now know what the inside of my computer looks like. There is plenty of space to add more devices, should I decide I want to and I eventually figure out what I'm doing. It plays my game beautifully. I bought a new monitor that is much larger than my laptop's screen, so I can become fully immersed in the game (whether that's healthy or not, I haven't decided...). I've set up a "work station" that is far more conducive to game play than what I did before. In theory, I shouldn't have to buy another new computer; I should just be able to buy new parts and upgrade the one I have.
God bless Squeaks for putting up with all of this process. She allowed (even helped!) me move around furniture in the living room so I could set up a space for my computer that wouldn't cause me to spend so many hours completely alone. I didn't want to abandon her completely; she may be regretting that now. We cleared out a corner for my new desk and chair, and the rearrangement works much better than either of us had expected.
I am content with how all of this has worked out. I briefly regretted spending the money to attempt to fix my laptop, but it seems to work just fine when I'm not trying to play SWTOR, so I'm hoping it will last me a while for basic tasks before dying completely. Once it does, I'll still have the "monster" and I might replace the laptop with a tablet, since those seem to be much better lately for basic computering tasks.
Wednesday, April 2, 2014
Smoke Detector Debacle
You know that high-pitched, ear-piercing, sanity-destroying beep that comes from a smoke detector when the battery has died? That's what my roommate and I were dealing with last week. Little did we know that one little beep would lead to a week-long odyssey to defeat the smoke detector...
Several weeks ago, I heard a few beeps. It's never happened before at this apartment. As far as I knew, the two detectors we have are hard-wired, but the beeps made me rethink that assumption. At first, I'd only hear a few beeps a day, maybe even just once, then nothing for almost a week, just long enough for me to forget about it. Then, they started up again, still sporadic but somewhat more consistent than before. On the Saturday before last, we heard them more often, and I climbed up to see what kind of battery we needed. Upon removing the cover, all I saw were a few wires leading into the ceiling...no battery in sight. Squeaks climbed up to double-check, and she couldn't see any either. That Sunday had the beeps going all day. We decided to call in maintenance.
After a night of restless sleep interrupted by periodic beeping from the smoke detector directly outside my bedroom door, I place our request for maintenance last Monday. They couldn't come until Tuesday, so we suffered another unpleasant night of torture.
On Tuesday afternoon, everything seemed to be resolved. Then, we heard it, a single beep. Then another. And another. Not again!! I immediately called our manager and told him the problem remained. He was confused because the maintenance guy had reset and tested both detectors, so everything should have been fine. It wasn't. He said he'd send them in again on Wednesday.
The manager called me on Wednesday, explaining that the head maintenance guy had spent 10 minutes in the apartment and not heard a single peep, so they didn't know what to do. What?! A WHOLE TEN MINUTES and he heard nothing?! Shock!! Of course, maintenance issues always go this way. Whatever is wrong never happens when the person who can fix it is there. After work that night, we also heard nary a single noise from either smoke detector. We told ourselves that the previous night had been an aberration, one last hurrah of beeping before the stupid thing gave in and left us alone.
We were deluding ourselves...
4:55 Thursday morning...BEEP! Off and on for the next three hours (as long as I was there before leaving for work) the beeping continued. I called the office again on my way to work and left a rambling voice mail (fueled by frustration and sleep deprivation) about the beeping and why the maintenance guy hadn't heard it the day before. When I returned home that afternoon, I heard no beeping, of course. Then, the fellow from maintenance appeared with a whole new smoke detector in a last-ditch effort to resolve our phantom issue. He said, in his two visits to our apartment last week (the first and last, his supervisor came in between), he had never heard a sound, but he did believe we were hearing it (I assume...he was nice to me, anyway).
He replaced the unit, and we haven't had a beep since. Thank God! One more night of sleep interrupted by that noise, and I just might have murdered someone. The maintenance worker did inform me how to disconnect the detector if necessary in the future, so we're covered, just in case.
There you have it, the great Smoke Detector Debacle! It was a draining week, but we survived with our sanity (mostly) in-tact. Of course, now our management and maintenance teams think we're crazy and hearing sounds that don't exist, but that's what happens sometimes.
Several weeks ago, I heard a few beeps. It's never happened before at this apartment. As far as I knew, the two detectors we have are hard-wired, but the beeps made me rethink that assumption. At first, I'd only hear a few beeps a day, maybe even just once, then nothing for almost a week, just long enough for me to forget about it. Then, they started up again, still sporadic but somewhat more consistent than before. On the Saturday before last, we heard them more often, and I climbed up to see what kind of battery we needed. Upon removing the cover, all I saw were a few wires leading into the ceiling...no battery in sight. Squeaks climbed up to double-check, and she couldn't see any either. That Sunday had the beeps going all day. We decided to call in maintenance.
After a night of restless sleep interrupted by periodic beeping from the smoke detector directly outside my bedroom door, I place our request for maintenance last Monday. They couldn't come until Tuesday, so we suffered another unpleasant night of torture.
On Tuesday afternoon, everything seemed to be resolved. Then, we heard it, a single beep. Then another. And another. Not again!! I immediately called our manager and told him the problem remained. He was confused because the maintenance guy had reset and tested both detectors, so everything should have been fine. It wasn't. He said he'd send them in again on Wednesday.
The manager called me on Wednesday, explaining that the head maintenance guy had spent 10 minutes in the apartment and not heard a single peep, so they didn't know what to do. What?! A WHOLE TEN MINUTES and he heard nothing?! Shock!! Of course, maintenance issues always go this way. Whatever is wrong never happens when the person who can fix it is there. After work that night, we also heard nary a single noise from either smoke detector. We told ourselves that the previous night had been an aberration, one last hurrah of beeping before the stupid thing gave in and left us alone.
We were deluding ourselves...
4:55 Thursday morning...BEEP! Off and on for the next three hours (as long as I was there before leaving for work) the beeping continued. I called the office again on my way to work and left a rambling voice mail (fueled by frustration and sleep deprivation) about the beeping and why the maintenance guy hadn't heard it the day before. When I returned home that afternoon, I heard no beeping, of course. Then, the fellow from maintenance appeared with a whole new smoke detector in a last-ditch effort to resolve our phantom issue. He said, in his two visits to our apartment last week (the first and last, his supervisor came in between), he had never heard a sound, but he did believe we were hearing it (I assume...he was nice to me, anyway).
He replaced the unit, and we haven't had a beep since. Thank God! One more night of sleep interrupted by that noise, and I just might have murdered someone. The maintenance worker did inform me how to disconnect the detector if necessary in the future, so we're covered, just in case.
There you have it, the great Smoke Detector Debacle! It was a draining week, but we survived with our sanity (mostly) in-tact. Of course, now our management and maintenance teams think we're crazy and hearing sounds that don't exist, but that's what happens sometimes.
Wednesday, March 5, 2014
Lent
So it begins: Lent. Today is Ash Wednesday and the beginning of a season of sacrifice and prayer (and general holiness, I suppose).
People's attitudes about Lent are always interesting to me. While we have standards across the board for how to proceed through Lent, everyone seems to do so slightly differently. It was only recently that I realized my parents actually took it easy on us when helping us fulfill our Lenten obligations. We did not eat meat on Fridays, but fasting only meant not eating between meals. We didn't cut back on what we ate during those meals; we just didn't snack in between. (That was a big deal for me when I was young. Now, not so much, since I don't really snack much.) I suppose that was sufficient when we were younger. That required sacrifice and awareness of the day and season. In the past few years, I've realized I can do more, especially with fasting, so I'm working on that a little more each year.
Another element of Lent on which people differ involves the sharing of sacrifices. In my family, we've always been upfront about what we're giving up. We tell each other, friends, post online, etc. I don't think we brag or require acknowledgement of the sacrifice, but we don't see much reason to pretend we're not giving anything up either. Others, however, feel exactly the opposite. In fact, when I ask some people what they can't have (due to my own curiosity and nothing more), they almost seem offended that I asked. To some, the sacrifice is an extremely private matter. While I've never felt that way, I've come to understand that idea. The point of the Lenten sacrifice is not to have everyone know about it but to grow and improve yourself through that sacrifice. I just think the extremes of these approaches are interesting.
When I was young, all I could understand about Lent was the sacrifice; now, I understand that it's much more than that. I don't think I understand it all, but I'm working on it. As well as giving up certain foods and such, I always attend Mass more often during the week; that's an attempt to grow in the "prayer" element of Lent. Almsgiving (the third element of Lent) continues to be my struggle. I know it doesn't have to be about giving away all my money, but I can't quite get a handle on what I should be doing instead. I also don't know if that is the true trouble there or if I just don't want to understand better because it would require even more of me. I'm probably too selfish with my free time. Something else to work on in the future, I guess.
Happy (Blessed? Miserable? appropriate adjective...) Lent, everyone!
People's attitudes about Lent are always interesting to me. While we have standards across the board for how to proceed through Lent, everyone seems to do so slightly differently. It was only recently that I realized my parents actually took it easy on us when helping us fulfill our Lenten obligations. We did not eat meat on Fridays, but fasting only meant not eating between meals. We didn't cut back on what we ate during those meals; we just didn't snack in between. (That was a big deal for me when I was young. Now, not so much, since I don't really snack much.) I suppose that was sufficient when we were younger. That required sacrifice and awareness of the day and season. In the past few years, I've realized I can do more, especially with fasting, so I'm working on that a little more each year.
Another element of Lent on which people differ involves the sharing of sacrifices. In my family, we've always been upfront about what we're giving up. We tell each other, friends, post online, etc. I don't think we brag or require acknowledgement of the sacrifice, but we don't see much reason to pretend we're not giving anything up either. Others, however, feel exactly the opposite. In fact, when I ask some people what they can't have (due to my own curiosity and nothing more), they almost seem offended that I asked. To some, the sacrifice is an extremely private matter. While I've never felt that way, I've come to understand that idea. The point of the Lenten sacrifice is not to have everyone know about it but to grow and improve yourself through that sacrifice. I just think the extremes of these approaches are interesting.
When I was young, all I could understand about Lent was the sacrifice; now, I understand that it's much more than that. I don't think I understand it all, but I'm working on it. As well as giving up certain foods and such, I always attend Mass more often during the week; that's an attempt to grow in the "prayer" element of Lent. Almsgiving (the third element of Lent) continues to be my struggle. I know it doesn't have to be about giving away all my money, but I can't quite get a handle on what I should be doing instead. I also don't know if that is the true trouble there or if I just don't want to understand better because it would require even more of me. I'm probably too selfish with my free time. Something else to work on in the future, I guess.
Happy (Blessed? Miserable? appropriate adjective...) Lent, everyone!
Thursday, February 6, 2014
Groundhog Predictions
I've been meaning to add a few new rants here, but I tend to forget to write them. Don't worry, this post is not about snow days or the hours of work I lost again yesterday (I accepted that the roads were actually too bad for travel; I'm dealing with the loss). Instead, I'd like to write a little something about Groundhog Day.
I don't mean the Bill Murray film either (though I did watch that this weekend!).
I'm not sure I completely understand the value of this tradition. I know the idea is that, originally, the groundhog would leave its home, see its shadow, and run back inside, meaning that there would be six more weeks of winter. I guess groundhogs don't like the cold much. If, on the other hand, the little guy stayed outside because he had no shadow, then we would have an "early" spring.
When I was a kid, I decided that, logically, that meant that a sunny February 2nd would mean a long winter, while a cloudy one meant an early spring. As I grew and continued to attempt to work out the logic of this long-held tradition, I realized that the weather would be different in different places, so an "early spring" here might be a long winter across the country. How does that work?
My confusion is further heightened by the recent incarnation of this "holiday." This year, as I believe has occurred often in years past, the various famous groundhogs didn't agree on the results of their predictions. Punxutawney Phil saw his shadow, while Buckeye Chuck didn't. Now, I know Phil is probably considered the more reliable source, as Punxutawney, PA, seems to be the epicenter of this Groundhog Day phenomenon, but it seems that the people behind the rodents, so to speak, should be able to agree on what this year will bring. As the poor groundhogs are no longer allowed to leave their natural homes of their own accord to predict the weather and are, instead, shoved into fake lodgings only to be ripped from them again for the show of February 2nd, I can't imagine the origins of this tradition remain in tact.
I wonder who decides what the "groundhog's" prediction is. Is it someone in the weather service? Someone in control of the groundhog? Someone in some significant government conspiracy trying to raise or lower our hopes for the year based on expectations of the weather? (I could keep going with this and have a lot of fun creating crazy conspiracies, but I'll stop.)
It seems to me that Groundhog Day is pointless. Also, the Punxutawney Groundhog Club's website seems to go too far in creating mystique behind the event. Just for the heck of it, I went to the "official" Groundhog Day website; under their FAQ's about Groundhog Day (http://www.groundhog.org/more-to-know/faq/), they have this list of answers:
1. Yes, Punxsutawney Phil is the only true weather forecasting groundhog. The others are just imposters.
2. There has been only one Punxsutawney Phil. Punxsutawney Phil gets his longevity from drinking "groundhog punch" (a secret recipe). One sip, which is administered every summer at the Groundhog Picnic, gives him seven more years of life.
3. On February 2nd, Phil comes out of his burrow on Gobbler's Knob, in front of thousands of faithful followers from all over the world, to predict the weather for the rest of the winter.
4. According to legend, if Punxsutawney Phil sees his shadow, there will be six more weeks of winter weather. If he does not see his shadow, there will be an early spring.
5. No, Punxsutawney Phil's forecasts are not made in advance by the Inner Circle. After Phil emerges from his burrow on February 2nd, he speaks to the Groundhog Club President in Groundhogese. His proclamation is then translated for the world.
6. The celebration of Groundhog Day began with the Germans, Pennsylvania's earliest settlers. They brought with them the legend of Candlemas Day, which states "For as the sun shines on Candlemas day, so far will the snow swirl in May...". The settlers found that groundhogs were plentiful and were the most intelligent and sensible animal to carry on the legend of Candlemas Day.
7. Punxsutawney held its first Groundhog Day in the 1800's. The first official trek to Gobbler's Knob made on February 2nd, 1887. In 2008 it will be the 122nd prediction.
8. So the story goes, Punxsutawney Phil was named after King Phillip. Prior to being called Phil, he was called Br'er Groundhog.
As far as I'm concerned, 2 and 5 are utter falsehoods, while some of the others seem a little suspicious. I realize that they're just trying to have fun, create an amusing event for those who are interested, and make some money for their town in what is probably the only draw for tourists that they have, but the whole "speaking" to the club president in "Grounhogese" element is simply ridiculous and leads me even further to wonder who actually writes the prediction. The pres reads the prediction from a scroll, which completely destroys the fantasy of poor Phil "talking" to anyone at that moment. *sigh* I just can't handle the ridiculousity. (Yep, I made up that word. If the groundhog people can do it, so can I!)
I think we should leave those suffering (probably spoiled except for on Feb 2) groundhogs alone and return to the original idea of Candlemas Day, as the GDC FAQ's explain it. Everyone would still have a different expectation for the weather of the remaining winter season, but that tradition seems much nicer than the one we've accepted.
I don't mean the Bill Murray film either (though I did watch that this weekend!).
I'm not sure I completely understand the value of this tradition. I know the idea is that, originally, the groundhog would leave its home, see its shadow, and run back inside, meaning that there would be six more weeks of winter. I guess groundhogs don't like the cold much. If, on the other hand, the little guy stayed outside because he had no shadow, then we would have an "early" spring.
When I was a kid, I decided that, logically, that meant that a sunny February 2nd would mean a long winter, while a cloudy one meant an early spring. As I grew and continued to attempt to work out the logic of this long-held tradition, I realized that the weather would be different in different places, so an "early spring" here might be a long winter across the country. How does that work?
My confusion is further heightened by the recent incarnation of this "holiday." This year, as I believe has occurred often in years past, the various famous groundhogs didn't agree on the results of their predictions. Punxutawney Phil saw his shadow, while Buckeye Chuck didn't. Now, I know Phil is probably considered the more reliable source, as Punxutawney, PA, seems to be the epicenter of this Groundhog Day phenomenon, but it seems that the people behind the rodents, so to speak, should be able to agree on what this year will bring. As the poor groundhogs are no longer allowed to leave their natural homes of their own accord to predict the weather and are, instead, shoved into fake lodgings only to be ripped from them again for the show of February 2nd, I can't imagine the origins of this tradition remain in tact.
I wonder who decides what the "groundhog's" prediction is. Is it someone in the weather service? Someone in control of the groundhog? Someone in some significant government conspiracy trying to raise or lower our hopes for the year based on expectations of the weather? (I could keep going with this and have a lot of fun creating crazy conspiracies, but I'll stop.)
It seems to me that Groundhog Day is pointless. Also, the Punxutawney Groundhog Club's website seems to go too far in creating mystique behind the event. Just for the heck of it, I went to the "official" Groundhog Day website; under their FAQ's about Groundhog Day (http://www.groundhog.org/more-to-know/faq/), they have this list of answers:
1. Yes, Punxsutawney Phil is the only true weather forecasting groundhog. The others are just imposters.
2. There has been only one Punxsutawney Phil. Punxsutawney Phil gets his longevity from drinking "groundhog punch" (a secret recipe). One sip, which is administered every summer at the Groundhog Picnic, gives him seven more years of life.
3. On February 2nd, Phil comes out of his burrow on Gobbler's Knob, in front of thousands of faithful followers from all over the world, to predict the weather for the rest of the winter.
4. According to legend, if Punxsutawney Phil sees his shadow, there will be six more weeks of winter weather. If he does not see his shadow, there will be an early spring.
5. No, Punxsutawney Phil's forecasts are not made in advance by the Inner Circle. After Phil emerges from his burrow on February 2nd, he speaks to the Groundhog Club President in Groundhogese. His proclamation is then translated for the world.
6. The celebration of Groundhog Day began with the Germans, Pennsylvania's earliest settlers. They brought with them the legend of Candlemas Day, which states "For as the sun shines on Candlemas day, so far will the snow swirl in May...". The settlers found that groundhogs were plentiful and were the most intelligent and sensible animal to carry on the legend of Candlemas Day.
7. Punxsutawney held its first Groundhog Day in the 1800's. The first official trek to Gobbler's Knob made on February 2nd, 1887. In 2008 it will be the 122nd prediction.
8. So the story goes, Punxsutawney Phil was named after King Phillip. Prior to being called Phil, he was called Br'er Groundhog.
As far as I'm concerned, 2 and 5 are utter falsehoods, while some of the others seem a little suspicious. I realize that they're just trying to have fun, create an amusing event for those who are interested, and make some money for their town in what is probably the only draw for tourists that they have, but the whole "speaking" to the club president in "Grounhogese" element is simply ridiculous and leads me even further to wonder who actually writes the prediction. The pres reads the prediction from a scroll, which completely destroys the fantasy of poor Phil "talking" to anyone at that moment. *sigh* I just can't handle the ridiculousity. (Yep, I made up that word. If the groundhog people can do it, so can I!)
I think we should leave those suffering (probably spoiled except for on Feb 2) groundhogs alone and return to the original idea of Candlemas Day, as the GDC FAQ's explain it. Everyone would still have a different expectation for the weather of the remaining winter season, but that tradition seems much nicer than the one we've accepted.
Tuesday, January 28, 2014
No Snow Day!
Usually, I would be among those praying for a snow day. Strangely, I am now among those people who protest the necessity of a day off due to extremely cold weather and expect the school to open unless the roads are extremely dangerous. There is a reason for this abrupt change of attitude.
As you may remember from my recent posts, I decided to focus on tutoring at one of my workplaces this semester. So far, that's been a decent choice. My income is not going to change too much. I'm working basically the equivalent of what I did last semester, so I'm not in worse shape. I didn't receive as many hours tutoring as I had hoped, but there are only so many hours to go around for the many tutors working for these writing centers, so I'm content with what I received. I only have one class at my other school to prepare for, so my off hours are almost always actually "off"! However, holidays and school cancellations affect me much differently than they would if I were teaching. When I teach, and school is cancelled, my life is not impacted significantly. I still receive my usual pay for those hours because the school closed through no fault of mine (...or was it?...). If, however, I am tutoring, that time is not covered during a school closing. If I don't work those hours for whatever reason, I'm not paid for them. This fact has altered my attitude about school closing for one of the colleges I work for.
Today, this school closed until 11:00, a delayed opening. I was a little annoyed by that because I should start tutoring at 9:00, and this steals two hours of work (and pay) from me. I'm not happy about that, but I can deal. I wasn't as upset about that as I was about the prospect of school closing completely today. I work at the writing center about 20 hours per week; 6.5 of those hours are on Tuesdays. As you can see, that is a significant portion of my work week (and income). "Snow" Day now means "No Pay" to me, and I can't handle that. Fortunately, this school was one of the few in the area that didn't completely close for the day, which utterly surprised me, so I only lost two hours for the day.
Now, if my other school delayed or cancelled classes tomorrow, I wouldn't be upset. Apparently, my change in attitude is relative.
I hate how mercenary I seem in this post, but this is my blog and my perspective, so I guess it's better that I'm relatively honest about such things. I write this as much for myself as for those I know are reading (and the public of the internet), and I try not to lie to myself. I have been more concerned about money in the past year than ever before. The past day and the resulting concerns have further reinforced to me the necessity of seeking a new job this year. I still don't know what I'll hope to find, but I do know that security and stability are going to be two key factors in what I do in the future.
As you may remember from my recent posts, I decided to focus on tutoring at one of my workplaces this semester. So far, that's been a decent choice. My income is not going to change too much. I'm working basically the equivalent of what I did last semester, so I'm not in worse shape. I didn't receive as many hours tutoring as I had hoped, but there are only so many hours to go around for the many tutors working for these writing centers, so I'm content with what I received. I only have one class at my other school to prepare for, so my off hours are almost always actually "off"! However, holidays and school cancellations affect me much differently than they would if I were teaching. When I teach, and school is cancelled, my life is not impacted significantly. I still receive my usual pay for those hours because the school closed through no fault of mine (...or was it?...). If, however, I am tutoring, that time is not covered during a school closing. If I don't work those hours for whatever reason, I'm not paid for them. This fact has altered my attitude about school closing for one of the colleges I work for.
Today, this school closed until 11:00, a delayed opening. I was a little annoyed by that because I should start tutoring at 9:00, and this steals two hours of work (and pay) from me. I'm not happy about that, but I can deal. I wasn't as upset about that as I was about the prospect of school closing completely today. I work at the writing center about 20 hours per week; 6.5 of those hours are on Tuesdays. As you can see, that is a significant portion of my work week (and income). "Snow" Day now means "No Pay" to me, and I can't handle that. Fortunately, this school was one of the few in the area that didn't completely close for the day, which utterly surprised me, so I only lost two hours for the day.
Now, if my other school delayed or cancelled classes tomorrow, I wouldn't be upset. Apparently, my change in attitude is relative.
I hate how mercenary I seem in this post, but this is my blog and my perspective, so I guess it's better that I'm relatively honest about such things. I write this as much for myself as for those I know are reading (and the public of the internet), and I try not to lie to myself. I have been more concerned about money in the past year than ever before. The past day and the resulting concerns have further reinforced to me the necessity of seeking a new job this year. I still don't know what I'll hope to find, but I do know that security and stability are going to be two key factors in what I do in the future.
Thursday, January 9, 2014
January Means "Pricey Repair"
So, another year, another hefty maintenance bill. As many of you may remember, the first two months of 2013 had my car in the shop to the collective tune of around $1500; that was not fun. This year, my Dell laptop is the issue. This computer is just over three years old (bought December of 2010); I always hope a laptop will last me a while, but I'm coming to assume that they won't.
If you haven't heard/seen me complain about the problem lately, let me enlighten you. My computer has been locking up/freezing quite a bit lately. It started several months ago, but it would just lock up occasionally when I was playing my Star Wars (SWTOR) game. Then, it randomly froze the screen once or twice just sitting on the desktop. I coped because the inaction happened rarely enough for me to ignore, and the computer would then go a week or more without freezing at all. When I say locking up or freezing, I assume you know what I mean: the mouse stops moving, CTL+ALT+DEL does nothing, and the only way to do anything is to do what I call a "hard restart," which involves holding down the power button until it restarts (I know that's probably not good for the machine, but I have no other option). It's annoying, but not too unbearable when it only happens occasionally. However, it probably is a sign of worse coming...
About two months ago, this issue began occurring more often. The computer would freeze several times in a row, then be fine for a few days before repeating the process. Then, it wasn't as issue limited primarily to game time, but it was happening randomly on an internet page or when the screensaver was running or right after I had started it up. This has happened increasingly often in the past weeks. Now, it's a miracle if I can actually play one of my games. I'm relieved when I can check all of my e-mails and Facebook before it freezes on me. This is not how technology should work. Between Monday and Wednesday, that computer must have locked up and required a restart no fewer than two dozen times. Technology is "supposed" to make life easier (though none of us believes that anymore...), but this situation had become more than ridiculous.
I faced a dilemma: try to fix the computer or give up and replace it? On the one hand, fixing it might be a little pricey up front, but it might allow me to avoid the expense of a new computer for another couple of years (depending on what the problem turned out to be). On the other, payments for a new computer over a year wouldn't be too bad and I'd probably have to reload everything on my fixed computer anyway, but the delay would be even worse and I probably shouldn't be making any major purchases right now (I'm hoping my car will last a little longer, but I just don't know...).
I decided to try the repair option. I'm used to that computer; I know it does what I need it to (when it's working, anyway). I have all my files backed up at least two different ways, but they're all from that computer, so the recovery should be simpler (I hope). I found a small, local computer repair business that seems legitimate and decently priced, so it seems worth a shot. At the worst, I'll be out the money and have to buy a new computer, but I'll know that laptop repair ultimately isn't worth it. I'm really hoping that it is.
Apparently, the freezing problem my laptop had was due to the hard drive; it was dying. Once the tech told me that, everything made so much sense. Why else would my computer lock up at such random times--during start-up or in the midst of loading a game or immediately after I had just spent hours playing a game or while just sitting there in idle mode? The hard drive is vital to all those processes; if it was trying to keep going, but the hard drive was giving out, of course it would freeze! The techs are going to replace the hard drive, reload the OS, and clean out all the gunk that has gathered inside over the past three years. It's costing more than I'd prefer, but not as much as I had feared, and I'm desperately hoping my computer is like new and works perfectly when I have it back. I assume I'll have it back tomorrow, but I'm not sure at this moment. I'll let you know how this goes for me!
If you haven't heard/seen me complain about the problem lately, let me enlighten you. My computer has been locking up/freezing quite a bit lately. It started several months ago, but it would just lock up occasionally when I was playing my Star Wars (SWTOR) game. Then, it randomly froze the screen once or twice just sitting on the desktop. I coped because the inaction happened rarely enough for me to ignore, and the computer would then go a week or more without freezing at all. When I say locking up or freezing, I assume you know what I mean: the mouse stops moving, CTL+ALT+DEL does nothing, and the only way to do anything is to do what I call a "hard restart," which involves holding down the power button until it restarts (I know that's probably not good for the machine, but I have no other option). It's annoying, but not too unbearable when it only happens occasionally. However, it probably is a sign of worse coming...
About two months ago, this issue began occurring more often. The computer would freeze several times in a row, then be fine for a few days before repeating the process. Then, it wasn't as issue limited primarily to game time, but it was happening randomly on an internet page or when the screensaver was running or right after I had started it up. This has happened increasingly often in the past weeks. Now, it's a miracle if I can actually play one of my games. I'm relieved when I can check all of my e-mails and Facebook before it freezes on me. This is not how technology should work. Between Monday and Wednesday, that computer must have locked up and required a restart no fewer than two dozen times. Technology is "supposed" to make life easier (though none of us believes that anymore...), but this situation had become more than ridiculous.
I faced a dilemma: try to fix the computer or give up and replace it? On the one hand, fixing it might be a little pricey up front, but it might allow me to avoid the expense of a new computer for another couple of years (depending on what the problem turned out to be). On the other, payments for a new computer over a year wouldn't be too bad and I'd probably have to reload everything on my fixed computer anyway, but the delay would be even worse and I probably shouldn't be making any major purchases right now (I'm hoping my car will last a little longer, but I just don't know...).
I decided to try the repair option. I'm used to that computer; I know it does what I need it to (when it's working, anyway). I have all my files backed up at least two different ways, but they're all from that computer, so the recovery should be simpler (I hope). I found a small, local computer repair business that seems legitimate and decently priced, so it seems worth a shot. At the worst, I'll be out the money and have to buy a new computer, but I'll know that laptop repair ultimately isn't worth it. I'm really hoping that it is.
Apparently, the freezing problem my laptop had was due to the hard drive; it was dying. Once the tech told me that, everything made so much sense. Why else would my computer lock up at such random times--during start-up or in the midst of loading a game or immediately after I had just spent hours playing a game or while just sitting there in idle mode? The hard drive is vital to all those processes; if it was trying to keep going, but the hard drive was giving out, of course it would freeze! The techs are going to replace the hard drive, reload the OS, and clean out all the gunk that has gathered inside over the past three years. It's costing more than I'd prefer, but not as much as I had feared, and I'm desperately hoping my computer is like new and works perfectly when I have it back. I assume I'll have it back tomorrow, but I'm not sure at this moment. I'll let you know how this goes for me!
Saturday, January 4, 2014
Post Holidays
I'm home again after a lovely holiday, so I thought I'd review just for my wonderful readers. This is relatively random rambling, so be prepared if you're going to read this whole, long post.
After all the frustration and drama with the cable company fiasco, which worked out, ultimately, I was looking forward to a nice break and visit with my family, and that is just what I had! My younger sisters and I all made it to the parents' again for Christmas, and PJ and I stuck around for New Year.
The first thing I did to begin recovering from the cable situation was bake cookies. If you didn't know, I'm now officially the Christmas cookie baker for my family. I always make sugar cookies and "Christmas Crinkles" (aka Chocolate Crinkles if you look up the recipe, but PJ always called them Christmas Crinkles) for the family as soon as I get to the parents'. Usually I do them in stages, one per day, but I decided to do them all at once this time. It actually went better than I expected and wasn't too overwhelming. I did save the decorating of the sugar cookies for the next day though; I didn't feel like doing them all by myself (decorating is much more fun with someone helping), and no one else was home yet. Mom helped me finish them up the next day. The cookies turned out better than ever, I think, and everyone enjoyed them, as they always do. As I told my older sister, I like people to like me for the cookies I bake!
Having the whole family together for the holidays is always interesting. We fall into old habits, old ways of interacting, yet they're different. We're adults, but my sisters and I still act like kids sometimes; it's strange how that happens. We have more patience with one another, and less patience at the same time. Overall, we keep it together pretty well, I think, and enjoy the family time regardless. We watched a lot of movies, visited our grandparents in their nursing home, and prepared for Christmas.
The Christmas morning went pretty well. We always have a battle about what time we will do the gifts, but we always work it out somehow. Dad and PJ always want to open gifts early so we have time to relax before heading out to my Dad's family's Christmas gathering. BB would like to sleep in--she does love her sleep!--and open gifts a little later in the morning. Mom and I don't particularly care, but we don't sleep late, so earlier kind of makes sense to us; we try to stay out of this discussion if possible. Everyone was extremely thoughtful with gifts, as always. They seemed to like what I gave them, and I loved what I received! My parents gave me a waffle iron (I love waffles!) and a Blu Ray Player (since I had a cruddy old DVD player), among other things. BB and PJ gave me some great DVDs, some of which I've wanted for a long time and one or two I didn't even know I wanted until I had them.
The larger family Christmas gathering was nice. My sisters and I used to dread them because we weren't comfortable chatting with our own family members and always stayed together in a corner somewhere, not really talking to anyone. Eventually, we all figured out how to be more social, and we embrace these opportunities to catch up with and chat with family members we don't see often.
New Year was a non-event, as usual for my family. Most of us feel it's just another day, not one requiring special celebration. We eat traditional foods and stay up until midnight; we switch to one of the network stations just before 12:00, but it was one that didn't show the ball dropping, so we missed that anyway. No big deal to us. I had no huge problems in 2013, but I plan to make some changes this year, so we'll see.
I came home yesterday, and it's nice to be back. I like spending the holidays with everyone, but it's nice to get back to my routine. Also, I guess I kind of missed Squeaky....
Last night, the tech from the cable company came to install the phone. The appointment I had made was for this afternoon, and it was only by checking my account via the website that I learned that the appointment had been mysteriously changed to yesterday evening (I'm glad I checked!). The tech was here for about an hour, he was extremely chatty, and he flirted rather awkwardly with me the whole time. Squeaks hid in the kitchen, but at least she didn't completely abandon me! Despite the somewhat uncomfortable situation, I'm glad the install hurdle has been jumped. I called the parents last night to give them the new number, and the line buzzed the whole time. I don't know if it's the old phone I was using or the phone line itself, but it's extremely irritating, and I hope it doesn't continue. If it does, I guess I'll be entering a new battle with the cable company. Yay. Fortunately, I'm only planning to use the home phone if my cell phone is having problems, but I don't want an annoying sound in the foreground of my conversations when I do use it. That almost defeats the purpose.
So, there it is, the extremely long coverage of my holidays. Sorry about the length, but I did warn you! Now we'll start getting back to normal. For now, Merry Christmas!
After all the frustration and drama with the cable company fiasco, which worked out, ultimately, I was looking forward to a nice break and visit with my family, and that is just what I had! My younger sisters and I all made it to the parents' again for Christmas, and PJ and I stuck around for New Year.
The first thing I did to begin recovering from the cable situation was bake cookies. If you didn't know, I'm now officially the Christmas cookie baker for my family. I always make sugar cookies and "Christmas Crinkles" (aka Chocolate Crinkles if you look up the recipe, but PJ always called them Christmas Crinkles) for the family as soon as I get to the parents'. Usually I do them in stages, one per day, but I decided to do them all at once this time. It actually went better than I expected and wasn't too overwhelming. I did save the decorating of the sugar cookies for the next day though; I didn't feel like doing them all by myself (decorating is much more fun with someone helping), and no one else was home yet. Mom helped me finish them up the next day. The cookies turned out better than ever, I think, and everyone enjoyed them, as they always do. As I told my older sister, I like people to like me for the cookies I bake!
Having the whole family together for the holidays is always interesting. We fall into old habits, old ways of interacting, yet they're different. We're adults, but my sisters and I still act like kids sometimes; it's strange how that happens. We have more patience with one another, and less patience at the same time. Overall, we keep it together pretty well, I think, and enjoy the family time regardless. We watched a lot of movies, visited our grandparents in their nursing home, and prepared for Christmas.
The Christmas morning went pretty well. We always have a battle about what time we will do the gifts, but we always work it out somehow. Dad and PJ always want to open gifts early so we have time to relax before heading out to my Dad's family's Christmas gathering. BB would like to sleep in--she does love her sleep!--and open gifts a little later in the morning. Mom and I don't particularly care, but we don't sleep late, so earlier kind of makes sense to us; we try to stay out of this discussion if possible. Everyone was extremely thoughtful with gifts, as always. They seemed to like what I gave them, and I loved what I received! My parents gave me a waffle iron (I love waffles!) and a Blu Ray Player (since I had a cruddy old DVD player), among other things. BB and PJ gave me some great DVDs, some of which I've wanted for a long time and one or two I didn't even know I wanted until I had them.
The larger family Christmas gathering was nice. My sisters and I used to dread them because we weren't comfortable chatting with our own family members and always stayed together in a corner somewhere, not really talking to anyone. Eventually, we all figured out how to be more social, and we embrace these opportunities to catch up with and chat with family members we don't see often.
New Year was a non-event, as usual for my family. Most of us feel it's just another day, not one requiring special celebration. We eat traditional foods and stay up until midnight; we switch to one of the network stations just before 12:00, but it was one that didn't show the ball dropping, so we missed that anyway. No big deal to us. I had no huge problems in 2013, but I plan to make some changes this year, so we'll see.
I came home yesterday, and it's nice to be back. I like spending the holidays with everyone, but it's nice to get back to my routine. Also, I guess I kind of missed Squeaky....
Last night, the tech from the cable company came to install the phone. The appointment I had made was for this afternoon, and it was only by checking my account via the website that I learned that the appointment had been mysteriously changed to yesterday evening (I'm glad I checked!). The tech was here for about an hour, he was extremely chatty, and he flirted rather awkwardly with me the whole time. Squeaks hid in the kitchen, but at least she didn't completely abandon me! Despite the somewhat uncomfortable situation, I'm glad the install hurdle has been jumped. I called the parents last night to give them the new number, and the line buzzed the whole time. I don't know if it's the old phone I was using or the phone line itself, but it's extremely irritating, and I hope it doesn't continue. If it does, I guess I'll be entering a new battle with the cable company. Yay. Fortunately, I'm only planning to use the home phone if my cell phone is having problems, but I don't want an annoying sound in the foreground of my conversations when I do use it. That almost defeats the purpose.
So, there it is, the extremely long coverage of my holidays. Sorry about the length, but I did warn you! Now we'll start getting back to normal. For now, Merry Christmas!
Wednesday, December 18, 2013
Cable Co Woes
For a while now, I have been meaning to call my cable company to see if I can get a better rate for my internet service. Internet has been my only service all year, and I felt I was paying far too much. I have also been having some trouble at home with my cell phone lately (it suddenly decides it doesn't want to receive a signal or maybe the tower decides not to send it), so I thought it would be nice to have home phone as well, but I didn't want to pay an even higher monthly bill. Unfortunately, this company owns the cable lines in my apartment complex, so I have no real options for which company I use. I hoped that a rational call to the company would help, but I was wrong.
I am not an especially confrontational person. I let things go, I don't stress overly, and I accept what comes. I learned in college that this is the basis of stoicism, and I embrace that attitude. Whatever comes, comes; it'll all work out eventually. However, with work being as it has been lately and my income dropping a little more than I would like, every little bit of money saved helps, so I thought I'd try. I'm also not always comfortable making demands over the phone, but I realized this was really the only way to attempt this process.
I called on Monday and spoke to someone who seemed to know what he was doing. After a bit of back and forth (I'm not really a negotiator), I was to have internet and phone service together for a few dollars less than I have been paying for internet alone. I counted that as a win because I actually made the call and instigated some changes. Frankly, I was gloating about it a bit (even though it really only mattered to me).
That celebration did not last long.
I was supposed to receive a call about an installation appointment for the phone service on Monday night. That call didn't come then or yesterday, so I decided to try this morning. First, I attempted the chat customer service, thinking it would be faster. It wasn't. The person's responses took forever, and he found that the work order for the phone service had been cancelled but couldn't tell me why, so he suggested I call the local office, which was exactly what I was told the only other time I've tried their chat customer service. (I've decided this function is worthless for this company, and I told them so in my survey, as though that will do any good.)
So, I called. No one ever could tell me why the order was cancelled, and I was especially annoyed that I hadn't been informed of the cancellation. Anyway, today, I was much more forceful than usual, due to my increasing annoyance and the run-around I should have expected from a cable company. First, I spoke to someone to set up the phone service; she couldn't do anything about the price. Then I called a different number that took me to the same automated answering system that never has the option I need. That sent me to a nice lady with an Indian accent in the billing department; she couldn't do anything either. I needed Retention, which she told me is not accessible from the main menu; you have to speak to someone who will forward you to retention (how is that efficient?!).
At that point, I finally made it to the person I needed. I believe it was the same person who had set everything up for me on Monday that was subsequently cancelled. I chose to act like I didn't realize it was the same person (he'd probably never remember anyway), but my irritation and frustration were almost certainly coming through. Anyway, after more haggling, he gave me a slight discount and the phone service for no additional cost. I'm going to have internet and home phone for a few cents less than I've been paying for just internet. Yippee.
While I ended up with what I wanted (if not necessarily for the lower price that I wanted), I feel defeated. This is a system set up to make people give up and take what they're given. They have us in a choke-hold, knowing that there is very little we can do about any of these situations. The phone system is frustrating. The reps are nice enough, but they make the same placating statements repeatedly and overtly try to butter callers up. If ever I live somewhere I have a choice, I'm fairly certain I will try several other companies before coming back to this one.
I briefly thought about doing what those in the gaming world call "Rage Quitting," where a player gets frustrated or angry and quits the mission or group/guild without putting any further thought into it. I am not that spontaneous, though, and I'm too logical to cancel something that both Squeaky and I need. What would we do without internet?
I'll be fine, and my frustration will ebb pretty quickly, but, lucky you, I decided to write this blog entry immediately after getting off the phone. Sorry.
UPDATE: And continuation of frustration and rage...to avoid the delay of installation and the problems of setting up an appointment, I was told I could pick up what I needed from the local in-person customer service place and install it myself. So, after driving to the other side of town and standing in line for twenty minutes, I was told that what I had been told was incorrect and, because of certain details of my account's origins, I will have to have a tech come and install the stuff. Also, I couldn't set up an appointment at that time because one of the people who accessed my account this morning (probably that same guy from the call on Monday!) still had my account open, so he couldn't access it while I was there to make any changes. Now, I have to attempt to call them later to see if they can get into my information and give me a blasted appointment! This is so much more trouble than it's probably worth, but I'm determined to see it through!
*Sigh*
I am not an especially confrontational person. I let things go, I don't stress overly, and I accept what comes. I learned in college that this is the basis of stoicism, and I embrace that attitude. Whatever comes, comes; it'll all work out eventually. However, with work being as it has been lately and my income dropping a little more than I would like, every little bit of money saved helps, so I thought I'd try. I'm also not always comfortable making demands over the phone, but I realized this was really the only way to attempt this process.
I called on Monday and spoke to someone who seemed to know what he was doing. After a bit of back and forth (I'm not really a negotiator), I was to have internet and phone service together for a few dollars less than I have been paying for internet alone. I counted that as a win because I actually made the call and instigated some changes. Frankly, I was gloating about it a bit (even though it really only mattered to me).
That celebration did not last long.
I was supposed to receive a call about an installation appointment for the phone service on Monday night. That call didn't come then or yesterday, so I decided to try this morning. First, I attempted the chat customer service, thinking it would be faster. It wasn't. The person's responses took forever, and he found that the work order for the phone service had been cancelled but couldn't tell me why, so he suggested I call the local office, which was exactly what I was told the only other time I've tried their chat customer service. (I've decided this function is worthless for this company, and I told them so in my survey, as though that will do any good.)
So, I called. No one ever could tell me why the order was cancelled, and I was especially annoyed that I hadn't been informed of the cancellation. Anyway, today, I was much more forceful than usual, due to my increasing annoyance and the run-around I should have expected from a cable company. First, I spoke to someone to set up the phone service; she couldn't do anything about the price. Then I called a different number that took me to the same automated answering system that never has the option I need. That sent me to a nice lady with an Indian accent in the billing department; she couldn't do anything either. I needed Retention, which she told me is not accessible from the main menu; you have to speak to someone who will forward you to retention (how is that efficient?!).
At that point, I finally made it to the person I needed. I believe it was the same person who had set everything up for me on Monday that was subsequently cancelled. I chose to act like I didn't realize it was the same person (he'd probably never remember anyway), but my irritation and frustration were almost certainly coming through. Anyway, after more haggling, he gave me a slight discount and the phone service for no additional cost. I'm going to have internet and home phone for a few cents less than I've been paying for just internet. Yippee.
While I ended up with what I wanted (if not necessarily for the lower price that I wanted), I feel defeated. This is a system set up to make people give up and take what they're given. They have us in a choke-hold, knowing that there is very little we can do about any of these situations. The phone system is frustrating. The reps are nice enough, but they make the same placating statements repeatedly and overtly try to butter callers up. If ever I live somewhere I have a choice, I'm fairly certain I will try several other companies before coming back to this one.
I briefly thought about doing what those in the gaming world call "Rage Quitting," where a player gets frustrated or angry and quits the mission or group/guild without putting any further thought into it. I am not that spontaneous, though, and I'm too logical to cancel something that both Squeaky and I need. What would we do without internet?
I'll be fine, and my frustration will ebb pretty quickly, but, lucky you, I decided to write this blog entry immediately after getting off the phone. Sorry.
UPDATE: And continuation of frustration and rage...to avoid the delay of installation and the problems of setting up an appointment, I was told I could pick up what I needed from the local in-person customer service place and install it myself. So, after driving to the other side of town and standing in line for twenty minutes, I was told that what I had been told was incorrect and, because of certain details of my account's origins, I will have to have a tech come and install the stuff. Also, I couldn't set up an appointment at that time because one of the people who accessed my account this morning (probably that same guy from the call on Monday!) still had my account open, so he couldn't access it while I was there to make any changes. Now, I have to attempt to call them later to see if they can get into my information and give me a blasted appointment! This is so much more trouble than it's probably worth, but I'm determined to see it through!
*Sigh*
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