A RAK

Saturday evening before the teen show and after I had gotten off of work I picked up some supper for The Date and Thing 2. After I had ordered a couple of kids came in behind me.

The youngest of the two ordered something like a dozen tacos but ran out of money somewhere around the sixth taco. From where I was waiting I saw the very young girl running the register pull a few crumpled up bills out of her pocket and complete the transaction for the child. Considering that she kicked in around five to six dollars and she likely makes around seven and a half per hour she basically worked an hour for them to eat.

A fact that was likely lost on the two young children or at the very least something they wouldn't think to consider as they likely don't grasp a lot of concepts in currency.

However I'd love to point out that even when we could calculate the nation's mood via the old scale of the misery index from the Carter years good things still happen and good people still exist. If that doesn't brighten your day just a little bit and inspire you do go and secretly do someone a good turn today than I don't know what will.

You'll get the opportunity to hold open a door for an elderly couple or make up the slight difference in a grocery bill for a single struggling mother. Do it and smile, you won't be able to help yourself once you do!




- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Great Snape Family Reunion!

I got to hang out with all of my relation last night from the house of Snape! Myself as Occulous Snape and my family of Bette LeStrange Snape and Studious Snape made our appearance from whist we came.

We enjoyed the company of many fine Snape relations for several hours of fun and frivolity. It was a spectacular reunion complete with pictures! I even found a You Tube video on how to tie a tie but I still didn't get it quite right.

One of my Snape relations helped me though and his name escapes me so I'll call him Teehee Snape. All of the Snapes enjoyed themselves immensely and had the best of times!
Very grateful to Ludicrous Snape for arranging the reunion and hosting such an extravagant event, he has outdone himself once again!

Yawwnnnn

Feels good to sleep in some after working last night!
The alarm is turned off and I wake up naturally, that feels great actually!

I've started reading the best book! It's written by Ernest Cline called Player One Ready. Once I'm done with it I'll post an in depth review here. I'm loving it even though Cline's character is an atheist and his beliefs aren't along with mine it's really a minor point when dealing with this incredible story!

Well it's a great story for those who grew up in the seventies and experienced the eighties as a teen that is, it might fall flat on others of an older or younger generation but that is exactly me. Might be why this story resonates for me and I'm enjoying it so much.

I'm cooking The Date potatoes O'Brien right now and enjoying my free time before heading off to work later on. I only work until six tonight and have the party of the year to go to later at Jamal's house. That should be a great time!

Good Show!

I'm proud of the teens. They put on a very good show last night and did a great job of bringing the characters to life! It's especially impressive when you know that few of them had any experience before this show.

Naturally I thought my own Thing 2 as the spinster owned the stage but I think that's what parents are supposed to think. Be that is it may they should all be proud of the jobs they have done and I'm sure audiences will enjoy the show even if they don't have a teen in it!

That was how I spent my night off, tonight I'll be working my second job. A less enjoyable endeavor but a necessary one. My next day off will be Monday I believe.

The snowball is rolling.
Eye on the prize!


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Night Off

Final dress rehearsal for the teen show, And Then There Were None is tonight. Thing 2 has got a pretty healthy part as the old spinster. The Date tells me the show is looking fantastic and is coming together like they always do in the final week.

Tiger Direct is sending me another motherboard. They had me call Asus, the manufacturer and talk to them. They told me the motherboard wasn't compatible with the CPU. Called Tiger back and they told me it was.

I said I didn't care I just wanted it to plug in with no errors and work and if they had a trouble shooting idea to fix the error then I was listening. They didn't have any ideas so they are sending out a new motherboard from a different manufacturer.

It'll be here in the next day or two and I'll get it all buttoned up and running!

I got paid today from Walmart! This getting paid every week stuff is pretty cool! I'm enjoying it a lot! It is helping too, The Date and I will figure out who we can send money to tonight. I believe we paid off three or four small bills last Friday. I also think we have two or three that are now under two hundred dollars. I'll have to check those for sure to find out. The snowball is rolling along and we've got proof!





- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

New PC Blues

After work I headed out to Walmart to see if they needed me. There was a big inspection manager coming and they wanted extra help so they asked if I would show up. Actually to start they wanted me to come in at five AM, chuckling I said no.

I arrived there and talked with my manager and she said head on home, so thankfully I got to do just that! I arrived home and spent a little bit of time with the family before tech rehearsal at the theatre. Just before they left the UPS truck showed up with the new PC kit I ordered last week! I wasn't expecting it until tomorrow.

Now I had a fun project for the evening! I called my friend Mandingo to come over and help. He does this stuff daily, it's his job at work.

So I started in with unpacking and getting things put together. It went very well. The instructions were clear, I had Mandingo double check my work, we plugged it in and got a two motherboard error lights. After moving the RAM we got it down to one error light.

Not sure why it's on. The CPU is seated well, went in like a dream and the fan heat sink right on top of it. There shouldn't be any errors at all. So we started looking at error codes online.

Similar problems were posted but they all had to do with bent CPU pins. Well we didn't have any. It fit snug into its socket and locked down like it should have.

By that time Mandingo had to head home. So the new PC is still a work in progress this morning. I'll be reading message boards on my iPhone and seeing what I can come up with. I know Mandingo will be doing the same.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Kitten Trouble

Watching our kitten Jet play is an exercise in exhaustion. He runs everywhere, attacks everything, is in the air as much as he is on the ground, chases every single other pet in the house including the dog, and has zero fear for his own safety.

Everything is something to bite, stalk, chase, attack, or rarely sleep on. He has no idea where he is going but he runs there as fast as he can. Even the dog will go to his pet taxi once in a while to get away.

He will use up every single molecule of energy before just laying down, sometimes in mid attack and nap. Very sudden like, he'll just terrorize whatever is there and like flipping a switch it's nap time.

Scotch and Baby Kitty have had very active kitten hoods but neither were as rampaging as Jet, nor as willing to inflict bodily harm on himself or others. Let alone the energy tank Jet has is far bigger than any I've witnessed. He goes on forever!

I'm not sure if Jet will evolve into being a lap kitty or not, he doesn't enjoy being held much at all. Baby Kitty is very lovey and when I'm home will frequently be in a lap. Scotty though has his moments of loving a lap.

Today is Tuesday and the new PC kit will make it here this week! I'll be able to work on it perhaps this coming Saturday if all goes right! It should be up and running this weekend and everything will be restored once again! That will help The Date out with her school work and make my blogging that much easier!

Although it is much easier on this iPhone than it was on the last one!


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Going To Work

I just took my last steroid pill. I'm having coffee to wash it down and I'm better, much better. Who was the first person to find a coffee bean? What would possess them to take it, roast it, grind it up, run water through it and drink it?

Who was the first person to take bacon and eggs and say, "You know? Maybe coffee would go good with breakfast."

Some daring culinary pioneer no doubt. Someone who perhaps thought that if you found a plant, dug underneath it and found an ugly looking root like thing you could cut it up, fry it, and serve it with ketchup.

I owe that guy though, I don't think I have a better comfort food than fried potatoes. Well to me that is. It's simple, filling, and tastes good.

To those daring pioneers who took that first bite or first drink, I salute you this morning!



- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Much Better

Today was the last day of the antibiotics prescribed to me. I feel a ton better and will continue to improve from here. Yesterday at work was fairly easy. Just some stocking and such, nothing major at all.

The four and a half hours flew by and I was back at home a bit after six. Now I've got one more day like yesterday and then I'll head back to work like normal tomorrow. I guess I just wore my body down enough that I needed that kind of rest. When I look back through history at some of the most rugged men that came and settled this country I wonder if they ever had the same problems.

For example the coal miners who ushered in the industrial age and brought America to the forefront of modernization. They were essentially indentured servants for a long time, paid with coins that were only good at the company store. They were given housing but it was usually very shack like and ramshackle at best. But they were men and they went to work when they couldn't or shouldn't. Yeah they also had a very short lifespan and if a mine accident didn't get them then more than likely black lung disease did.

They were among the designers of this country that went unmentioned for the most part but had a work ethic that would shame many today that enjoy our country as it exists. Even at my best I will never be as tough as those men. Long hours, bad conditions, worse pay.

Today I go in for another four and a half hour shift of moving products from one section of the store to another section. Easy enough, and thank you to those that came before me and helped settle this country into what we now enjoy.

Another Day Off

I took Friday off from work and went work at Walmart at five. I'm feeling much better after yesterday's rest. I was able to run some errands and I also ordered our new PC kit. It will replace the one that has served faithfully for over four years. I'll have it built and running by next weekend for sure as I have a couple of evenings off this week from Walmart.

I also decided against purchasing the iPhone 4s and went with the iPhone 4 instead. It was readily available, I upgraded The Date to the same phone and played with it. It's really an impressive machine.

It's very fast, easy to work with, has IOS5 already installed, has so many advantages over the iPhone 3G that it's like night and day. For a hundred dollars you can't beat it so it's got a ton of value. I just put the two 3G iPhones on eBay for sale and they'll more than make up the cost of upgrading when sold.

The extra money will be used for car insurance next month when it's due after they sell this week.

I work four and a half hours today and tomorrow, thankfully I'm nearly done with my medications. I feel a lot better and I hope to continue to improve over the next week!

Feeling Better

After three weeks of a hacking cough, enough congestion to put an elephant down, and numerous aches and pains I decided to take off of work on Wednesday and headed to the doctor. I have a respiratory infection and while it wasn't pneumonia it didn't feel good either.

I got two prescriptions and headed home to get better. I called in to work yesterday and today but I'll have to go to Walmart tonight from five to nine thirty. My cough is still there and is still a hacking cough but it is lessening some. The worst thing about this is that I wanted to build my leave up, I had just passed the ninety hour mark and now with me taking off two and over a half days it'll be back down to the high seventy hour mark.

I'll rebuild it though. It won't take too long to do again. It's ok though because I do need to get better or I won't be able to handle my schedule again. I probably should have gone to the doctor before the other day, I mean three weeks with a bad cough is probably too long but I just didn't take the time to take care of myself. If I had then it probably could have been caught before it got as bad as it did and wouldn't have had to taken off from work to get better.

I'm blessed that I do have a job where they are very understanding about leave and it's very easy to take off with no problems at all. Just a phone call and you are good, it's not like I abuse my leave. I show up and for 99% of the time I take off from work with permission, usually half days or put my leave in well in advance so it can be approved.

For a job as good as mine is to me I can do that for them. They deserve that in the least. Walmart on the other hand is a bit of a different animal. You don't start earning leave until after a year of service. I can see that because of the turnover rate they have but perhaps if they altered that policy then maybe they would retain more people. Take care of your people and the good ones will take care of you and do more than make up for the screwups that game the system.

I am feeling like I have more energy now this morning while the past two days I've felt drug out and trampled on. That's probably an effect of breathing better now and feeling like I have a clear head. I should be back to normal by Monday and I'll definitely be back to work then. Thank you all for your prayers and kind thoughts:) It's helped a lot:)

Occupy

I've been watching the Occupy X movement with intense curiosity and without a lot of comment although I did engage in a brief discussion on a friend's facebook wall about it.

I have kept my powder dry until now and I feel I have a good grasp of what the movement is about and what they want. I can infer from this list of demands that they are hoping to reform congress and pass different acts to place limits on, further regulate, and prosecute criminals they deem to work on Wall Street.

While I don't really agree with a lot of it I can see why they are angry. They feel disenfranchised. Well so do I and most of the other millions of Americans that didn't vote for Obama. That aside if you look over the demands you'll notice they demand that essentially criminals responsible for the banking, housing and whatever other crisis be prosecuted. I'm actually all for that, I'd LOVE to see Barney Frank, Chris Dodd, Jimmy Carter, and all of the other liberals who engineered the housing collapse (which triggered the banking bailouts) to go to prison. Don't believe me? Read this.

Second of all I know they are against income disparity. The growing rift between the rich and the poor. That is one that really tugs on the heartstrings. Poverty of course and how the rich control the money in the country has got to be a sticking point of the protesters. For those of you who know me I'm not anti-rich, anti-poor, or anti much else but I am anti-elitist. I have little patience for those of you who feel you are elite among many. I've met wealthy individuals and would hang out and have a drink with them and I've met poor, destitute idiots who felt superior in every way to me. It goes both ways. No one class is immune to its share of elitists.

So let's examine the poverty issue. Granted this article comes from Heritage.org however they draw their numbers from the Census Bureau so the numbers don't lie. It would appear that the poorest among all Americans have it better than around 70% of the world. We on average live better, have better homes, have better entertainment options, and a higher standard of living than many other countries.

So if a few misguided protesters are being driven by envy, well I'd say it's undeserved but likely rampant. I'd also like to point out that many wealthy athletes are exempt from a lot of the disdain exhibited from the Occupy crowds for some reason. Even the poor like to pull for their favorite team as I don't see Occupy Giant Stadium or Occupy Jerryworld in Dallas protests. That leaves me to believe that a lot of this jealously is urban myth. Something believed to be true and reinforced by media stereotypes such as music videos and athletic commercials. After they are seen over and over again on their color TVs in the houses of the poverty stricken they can't help but garner a bit of resentment.

I'm for the free market. I'm for earning your own way. I'm for student loans, grants, and aid and working to pay it back with your newly earned education. I'm for hard work and earning your way, I'm for living within your means, and I'm for living debt free. If you feel the banks are greedy and only want your money, DON'T APPLY FOR A CREDIT CARD WITH 30% INTEREST to get a new shiny thing! If you don't give them your money they have no power over you! At all, end of story!

Took me a long time to learn that lesson but we are digging our way out as you loyal readers well know by now. The rich, by and large, have earned their wealth. No one is stopping you from being as wealthy as you wish to be but you. Athletes, actors, musicians all earn obscene amounts of money and get little in the way of criticism from this crowd, why is that? Supposed overpaid fatcat CEOs are responsible for more than you'll ever realize when they run a company. Families depend on the decisions of those in charge, good decisions put food on the table and bad ones break a company and put people out of work. Try to sleep with that knowledge, all of that pressure on you and you alone.

Athletes can dunk a ball or throw a touchdown and get millions each year for that. Actors can put out a lousy movie and get paid the same as a great movie. So I'm not sure that the anger Occupy Wallstreet exhibits is directed in the right place or not. Something to think about isn't it whether you agree with me or not. I don't think there are protesters at the houses of Tom Hanks or Julia Roberts, you don't see a Occupy Tom Cruise movement do you?

I'm upset with Congress too and feel they deserve lots of reform. I've blogged about that before, and can sum it up by saying serving in congress is a privilege and not a career. You go, you serve, you go home.

Comparing the anger from the Tea Party and the Occupy movements does seem legitimate to me. Both are equally passionate in what they want but what they want is as far apart from the East to the West. The Tea Party wants restraint on government while the Occupy movement wants restraint on corporations...which (and I can't labor this point enough) hire people such as me and you.

Is it an organic movement? Who can really say at this point, I'd wager George Sorros is funneling money to them somehow and in some fashion though. While the Arab Spring was purely organic and led to overthrown governments the Occupy movement will not topple anything. It'll likely have very little effect over time. The 2012 elections will rid our country of our failure of a President and hopefully a liberal senate and we'll see gains in the house. Jobs will come back and the protesters will go away. Tax rates will lower, drilling will increase, oil prices will lower, and overbearing regulations will dissipate like a bad nightmare. Dawn will break and the country will be new and fresh again, free from the liberal grip that has held it's boot on the throat of freedom!

Well that's a bit dramatic but hopefully that's what will happen anyway:)

Half Way

This week is huge for us. First of all The Date gets her student aid this week! Finally after the semester is over half way finished. Second all of the work I put in last week gets paid off Friday! I got my paystub yesterday and yeah, it felt good to see the bottom line! My next Walmart check will be full as well and that snowball will be rocketing down the hill once this month is over!

Yesterday was a day that I wished we were in a position that I didn't need a second job. I hadn't slept well the night before and was tired all day, wanting nothing more than a few hours of sleep. It was not to be. I got home and made chili for the family and went off to work until eleven.

I feel better this morning though. I'll have a decent day at work but I am working until eleven again barring any overtime at work that might alter that time table.

Let's see what fun stuff I can blog about. I finished the second Sandman Slim novel. It's pretty good, lots of funny parts, lots of violent parts. A weird mish mash of detective noir ala Sam Spade, supernatural suspense, and a lot of fun. Not for everyone though. The series deals with Heaven, Hell, and everything in between!

It focuses a lot on the angels that fell from Heaven after God kicked them out. Some want back in His good graces, some set up life on earth and in Hell. Sandman Slim is in between, a Nephilim in fact, half man half angel.

Set it all in LA and let the fun begin!

Working Tonight

I'm back to my normal six thirty to eleven schedule tonight. There is a chance of overtime as well from my real job.

If that happens I'll probably head from one job to the next and just change clothes. Yesterday I was off and worked my normal hours, the day flew by! After what I was working last week it was a breeze to work a regular eight hour shift! I couldn't believe it was time to go home when it came!

That's a good feeling, a feeling I'll get again once I'm back down to one job again. It is temporary, it's going to be so much better when that happens, and I'll tough it out until then. Those are the words going round and round in my head. Lots of people work two or more jobs with a goal to work one that pays a good wage. I'm not unique, not breaking new ground, just traveling the plowed earth that many others also tread in this miserable economy.

Every day, every hour exchanged for money...well that's one hour closer to obtaining that goal. One day closer to having a single job, coming home at 4:15 and cooking for friends on Wednesday nights again. Spending time at the theatre again, that's a nice goal. I'll get there!

Eye on the prize!

Off Tonight!

After working the weekend I'm off tonight and Thursday night. I believe it's going to turn colder today or tomorrow so I've got chili planned for supper tomorrow night before work.

The Date got her homework submitted last night so since student is her full time job we both worked yesterday. Work was super busy for me, the section was a huge mess when I got there and when I left. There was an area manager inspecting the place when I got there and she didn't like a lot of stuff I gathered. The fat assistant manager was upset at my coworkers before I arrived. Only three of us were on the schedule though, not the best move on one of the busy days of the week. Not my call though.

Fortunately since I don't depend upon this job for a living I've got more options as to what I can put up with regarding the attitudes of managers. My coworkers aren't quite as fortunate. However they really don't bother me a lot so I don't feel defensive around them. Generally always working when they rarely come around and busy so they can't say much.

I'm giving them a fair shift of work compared to my wage, they really can't complain a whole lot. We are short handed and perhaps they can address that soon, it'd solve some problems for sure with scheduling.

Tonight we don't have any plans:) come home from a regular day of work and enjoy the evening unless they offer overtime:)

Evaluation

Yesterday I got my Walmart evaluation from our manager. She said I rated higher than she was going to put on the evaluation and by doing that she was doing me a favor. I rated as Exceed. Basically on the path to a manager but she put me as a grade lower and told me why.

She told me that management would be all over me, I'd be required to do a lot of extra tasks, and that I'd have to work more hours. All of the things I don't want as I won't be working there long enough to advance anywhere. She said I was an exceptional employee and she needed more like me. All in all it was a very nice evaluation and made me feel really good about my self, my work ethic, and what I'm accomplishing for our debt snowball. It really validated what I'm doing right now.

She is leaving soon to take care of a family member that needs help. I'm sorry to see her leave but hey, she's got a great reason to do so.

I came home and started to rest up. I was about to go to bed but then The Outlaw Josey Wales came on so I watched that and went to bed around one thirty. The Date and I watched it actually:) It was a pretty nice experience to just chill on the couch and enjoy each others company.

Thing 2 auditioned for the National Honor Orchestra yesterday and wound up getting first section, eighth chair violin! Better than anyone else in varsity orchestra and she's a freshman! Very proud of her! She's worked very hard to get where she has gotten and it really shows:) Love my girls!

Super Friday

I got to work and had nothing to give. I really didn't have much at all to offer so I thought it best to remove myself from work and head back home. Three days of sixteen and a half hours is rough. It came down to simple math, I worked forty nine and a half hours out of seventy two possible hours. That leaves a scant twenty two hours off to sleep, eat, and recharge.

I know I'm not twenty anymore and now heavy work loads take everything I've got over an extended time. Fortunately my company has a very good leave policy and they are always willing to work with someone over any situation. It's looked upon as what you've earned and ninety nine percent of the time you get the time off you ask for without question.

That's darn hard to beat. So I worked three hours and came back home and crashed on the couch for a bit. My head was stopped up, coughing nonstop, and I Nyquiled up and stopped coughing.

Last night we went to movie night, a new trend my circle of friends is starting. Hosting a movie night and showing a movie that you feel needs to be seen or appreciated and you want to share it with your friends. It's really a great idea and I'm going to enjoy going provided I'm not working that night.

I work today but now I've got some fresh batteries in my system. It's a standard shift for me which equates to roughly four and a half hours. Not hard by any way, shape, or form. I'll be back home before I know it and getting ready for a similar shift Sunday. As long as I get a bit of rest now and then I'm more than up to the task. It was only getting to me last week as we worked overtime at work and tacking on another shift after I left work. However as I've blogged about, the money was way too stellar to not work it and I knew Walmart wouldn't work with me on the schedule anymore. So to keep both jobs and make the money I did what I had to do. Glad I did it now, very glad next Friday, but it was hard when it happened.

Hopefully the overtime train isn't done yet though, it's possible to run into more this coming week and possibly the next two months. For the debt snowball, and the holiday season it'll be very good to us if this continues.

Now I've got to get some food and get ready for work soon.

Eye on the prize!

Normal Day

Yesterday we came to the point on our project at work to where overtime was not necessary today. Next week probably though! I get to go home at a normal time and I'm off from Walmart tonight!

Instead of getting up at a quarter to five this morning I got up a quarter after six! I needed that rest. It doesn't sound like a lit but it is. I am feeling refreshed this morning and knowing my day ends normally this afternoon I'm really feeling pretty chipper!

The iPhone 4s is released to the world today. I am going to wait until this massive paycheck comes in before I'm able to search for one. I'm eligible for the upgrade though:) It's going to be free though as I plan on selling Thing 2's broken screen phone and my phone and that should more than cover the cost.

Used and broken they still bring from ninety to a hundred fifteen dollars each! Both combined in one sell will cover the cost of my upgrade but I can't sell them until I get one bought, hence the waiting.

Looking forward to the weekend, I need some rest.

It's Early

Today and tomorrow and I'll be able to sleep in a little bit extra on Saturday! Last night was tough. Making it to eleven was quite a feat. I ran out of gas around nine. Had to take a break for a while and refuel some.

It'll all be worth it next Friday and then again on the following Thursday. Both paydays will be very sweet!

Until then though I'm just looking forward to being able to grab some extra rest on Saturday...before I get to work at noon. Next week won't hold much overtime, thankfully and sadly. The money is top notch but this week has been rough as you, dear reader have been enduring with me.

Eye on the prize!

Yeah, Sixteen More Please

By the time they put me in the ground in another forty years or so I might be the laziest person anyone would have known for the last couple of decades of my life. But I'll have earned it and those of you who know me will know I earned it.

Kindly let those who don't know me know the real story if they should ever ask you:) You can tell them that even before you knew me that I had worked over a hundred hours a week when I worked at the local airport and once went a hundred and thirty one days during the summer without a day off. You can tell them that when I had a single job I still dedicated free time to those things I considered a challenge such as the theatre and making it a better place for both the patrons and volunteers.

You can tell them that during his prime he would have laughed at a long day and come back for more. That he did what he did for his family and his friends when I'm old enough to wake up and watch The Flintstones, or any other cartoon all day and little else.

You can say you knew me when...and it'd likely be true. You do that for me if the subject ever comes up and I'll return the favor for you if someone should speak ill of you after you've earned the same rights. And I know you will:)

Now after four and three quarters of an hour of sleep I'm going to put in my second sixteen and a half hour day of work. One more after this to go!

There are rumblings at work that our twelve hour days are just beginning due to two coworkers out on medical leave until after the first of the year. Maybe I'll have a few more of these weeks in store for me!

Bring it!

Eye on the prize!