I don't know about where you live, but there is some serious stuff going down in my old hometown.
I grew up in a small community in southwest Washington state. That little sleepy community is now a hotbed of tension and turmoil regarding some labor disputes.
EGT, a Canada-based company built some grain terminals at the docks where I grew up, and has now staffed them with employees from a Tacoma-based union. The local union here ILWU, is protesting this by blocking trains, barricading and blocking access to the site, and basically throwing a world-class tempertantrum.
This last Monday, the president of the San Franciso-based union turned himself in, but only after trying to get the local police chief and county sherrif removed from office. His reasoning? That these men were applying "undue" force in trying to dissolve this strike. They were arresting men at their homes, and "harrassing" others under suspicion of causing mischief.
I don't know about you, but from what I know of police work, they tend not to arrest folks until they have the evidence they need to bring you in. Thus, they would arrest people once they had probable cause to get them. Sorry if that inconveniences you, but if you do the crime, don't expect some kind of medspa treatment. If you are planning on doing something stupid, don't you think the folks who are tasked with keeping the peace would be watching to make sure you don't cross a line, or maybe do something that could make things worse?
By this rationale, I could go rob a bank, and then when they close in on me I could turn myself in if only the people who are trying to arrest me are fired. Why? Because they caused me undue stress for breaking the law, and should be punished for it.
What kind of crap is this?
In my outspoken opinion, these labor guys need to grow up. They need to figure out that when you break laws, you pay for it. When you decide to buck the system, things tend to break loose, and folks pay a price.
Grow up, grow a pair, and move on.
Thank you!
Showing posts with label ranting. Show all posts
Showing posts with label ranting. Show all posts
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Saturday, June 19, 2010
Yet another annoying rant coming on....
Ok.
First off, I get that folks would be upset at me for thinking that weight loss is a simple matter. Heck, I'm overweight, why can't I get it done?
However, to back up my argument, here's how I see it:
First off, there's moderation, like I posted earlier. Take everything in moderated amounts. THAT INCLUDES EXERCISE, NOT JUST FOOD.
Secondly, you have to stick with this. You have to want to make it work, and you have to be dedicated enough to go through with it RAIN OR SHINE. Just because it's a nasty day out doesn't mean that you get a free pass. It means that you get creative, and find some other way of getting your exercise in without walking that mile uphill, or whatever.
Personally, I'm overweight because I really don't care. Plain and simple. I'm comfortable with myself. Yeah, it'd be nice to have the fit and toned body that I had when I came out of the service, but that was 20 years ago, and I'm not going to put myself through the rigors I went through to get there again.
Plus, I love food. I like the taste, I love the textures, I love the smells, and I love to eat. I enjoy cooking it, eating it, preparing it.. The whole nine yards.
I actually DO exercise. I don't exercise nearly enough for the amount of crap I put into myself, but I do get out and get active. I play volleyball three times a week for about 2-2 1/2 hours each time. It's fun, it's active, and it gets the sweat flowing and the muscles moving.
If I could restrain myself from taking in so much crap, I'm sure that I'd drop weight, and get down in pounds and sizes. However, because of my care-free attitude, I don't. I'm not blaming anyone but myself for how I am, and where I'm at. I don't eat because I'm stressed, I don't eat because I'm angry, I don't eat to take out aggression or passion about something. I eat because I love to eat, 'nuff said.
Now, I know that there are healthier ways to prepare foods. I also know that there are better items out there to eat besides red meat and beer. That being said, I also know that if I decide to fix steak and potatoes, I don't eat an entire pound of steak and six helpings of potatoes, and instead opt for a reasonable cut, and one medium baked potato will suffice. I mean, c'mon! This seriously ISN'T rocket science!
I've taken nutrition courses. I've cooked the "regular" and "weight-saving" ways. To be honest, aside from the meat substitutions, it's really not much different! The calories are still there, the carbs actually get higher with some more "health conscious" foods if you're not careful, and sodium increases with some of the preparations you make in the "healthier" meals.
Basically, if you pay attention, READ what you're putting into stuff, moderate what you eat, and balance that with exercise, you're going to lose weight, and slim down. I know that saying this seems simple, and to be honest I really think it is. You just have to make it a priority, and stick with it. Habits are formed easily. If you can stick with a habit of buying and preparing healthy food, plus exercising daily.. You'll lose the weight.
I don't see what all the hype is, really. Get a gym membership. Buy some cookbooks, and instead of going with red meats, substitute chicken or turkey. Eat more fish. Make meals smaller, and have a couple more during the day. Instead of three square meals, have five. Breakfast, after breakfast, lunch, midday, and dinner. Or, if you want, snack ALL DAY, but don't actually sit down for a serious meal. Whatever you decide, you need to stick with. BUT ADD THE EXERCISE. You could seriously eat like a mouse, and hardly take in anything during the day. But if you don't exercise, and sit on your butt, you're still going to mushroom. Take in food, burn it off by swimming, or running, or playing basketball, or some such thing. JUST BE CONSISTENT. If it rains, go run on the treadmill instead of outside. Just make sure that you're dedicated to not only feeding yourself, but exercising as well.
I'm done ranting. I know that this will probably offend all of you, since each and every time I've said something along these lines, it pisses folks off.. So be it. If you don't like what I say, you honestly don't have to come back here and read it!
First off, I get that folks would be upset at me for thinking that weight loss is a simple matter. Heck, I'm overweight, why can't I get it done?
However, to back up my argument, here's how I see it:
First off, there's moderation, like I posted earlier. Take everything in moderated amounts. THAT INCLUDES EXERCISE, NOT JUST FOOD.
Secondly, you have to stick with this. You have to want to make it work, and you have to be dedicated enough to go through with it RAIN OR SHINE. Just because it's a nasty day out doesn't mean that you get a free pass. It means that you get creative, and find some other way of getting your exercise in without walking that mile uphill, or whatever.
Personally, I'm overweight because I really don't care. Plain and simple. I'm comfortable with myself. Yeah, it'd be nice to have the fit and toned body that I had when I came out of the service, but that was 20 years ago, and I'm not going to put myself through the rigors I went through to get there again.
Plus, I love food. I like the taste, I love the textures, I love the smells, and I love to eat. I enjoy cooking it, eating it, preparing it.. The whole nine yards.
I actually DO exercise. I don't exercise nearly enough for the amount of crap I put into myself, but I do get out and get active. I play volleyball three times a week for about 2-2 1/2 hours each time. It's fun, it's active, and it gets the sweat flowing and the muscles moving.
If I could restrain myself from taking in so much crap, I'm sure that I'd drop weight, and get down in pounds and sizes. However, because of my care-free attitude, I don't. I'm not blaming anyone but myself for how I am, and where I'm at. I don't eat because I'm stressed, I don't eat because I'm angry, I don't eat to take out aggression or passion about something. I eat because I love to eat, 'nuff said.
Now, I know that there are healthier ways to prepare foods. I also know that there are better items out there to eat besides red meat and beer. That being said, I also know that if I decide to fix steak and potatoes, I don't eat an entire pound of steak and six helpings of potatoes, and instead opt for a reasonable cut, and one medium baked potato will suffice. I mean, c'mon! This seriously ISN'T rocket science!
I've taken nutrition courses. I've cooked the "regular" and "weight-saving" ways. To be honest, aside from the meat substitutions, it's really not much different! The calories are still there, the carbs actually get higher with some more "health conscious" foods if you're not careful, and sodium increases with some of the preparations you make in the "healthier" meals.
Basically, if you pay attention, READ what you're putting into stuff, moderate what you eat, and balance that with exercise, you're going to lose weight, and slim down. I know that saying this seems simple, and to be honest I really think it is. You just have to make it a priority, and stick with it. Habits are formed easily. If you can stick with a habit of buying and preparing healthy food, plus exercising daily.. You'll lose the weight.
I don't see what all the hype is, really. Get a gym membership. Buy some cookbooks, and instead of going with red meats, substitute chicken or turkey. Eat more fish. Make meals smaller, and have a couple more during the day. Instead of three square meals, have five. Breakfast, after breakfast, lunch, midday, and dinner. Or, if you want, snack ALL DAY, but don't actually sit down for a serious meal. Whatever you decide, you need to stick with. BUT ADD THE EXERCISE. You could seriously eat like a mouse, and hardly take in anything during the day. But if you don't exercise, and sit on your butt, you're still going to mushroom. Take in food, burn it off by swimming, or running, or playing basketball, or some such thing. JUST BE CONSISTENT. If it rains, go run on the treadmill instead of outside. Just make sure that you're dedicated to not only feeding yourself, but exercising as well.
I'm done ranting. I know that this will probably offend all of you, since each and every time I've said something along these lines, it pisses folks off.. So be it. If you don't like what I say, you honestly don't have to come back here and read it!
Friday, November 27, 2009
BLACK FRIDAY
Can anyone guess why this day is so named?
Why is it that this one day not only gives business owners shivers of fear mingled with shivers of anticipation?
What's so special about THIS Friday compared with all of the rest?
I've got the info, and I'll share.
Let's see..
First off, for most businesses, Black Friday means that they'll do anywhere from 10-25% of their total sales FOR THE YEAR on this ONE day.
Yup. Nearly a full quarter of their sales will be done on this day.
But I don't think that's the reason it got the name.
I personally feel that it got the name because of something more sinister.
Let's explore this, shall we?
First off, it comes in the middle of a holiday series that is supposed to be full of thanks, love, cheer, family, and basically Peace on Earth.
However, it generates ANYTHING but those feelings.
I mean, we've all heard the horror stories about grown people fighting over the last toy on the shelf at a store. We've heard about the looting that's gone on at a store that didn't quite open at the time it advertised.
If anything, Black Friday represents everything that ISN'T about the holiday spirit.
It's for the selfish, the obsessive, the rude, and material.
I often wonder how much better we'd be if we were to FORCE businesses to stay closed for an extended weekend, instead of opening their doors for mass mayhem the day after we are supposed to be giving thanks for everything that we hold dear.
To put the icing on the cake, I've found that some stores are now fostering an even new depth to the buying frenzy depravity:
They're opening on Thanksgiving, and staying open all night. That way, when the magical hour approaches the next day, you can already have your cart(s) loaded, and ready to check out.
Yup.
You read it right.
So, not only do we cut our day of giving thanks short, but we're now staying open so that folks can jostle, argue, and basically fight for their buying deals well in advance!
Is this a great country or what?
I'm going to try to see if I can't open myself up a gun store. I'm going to put everything on sale, and stay open the entire week of Thanksgiving. If the amount of shooting crimes increases because of my sales, well, I'm just the clerk. I don't tell the folks what to do with their guns once they leave my store, now do I?
But it might cull the selfish crowd down a bit.
You've always got to look for the silver lining!
I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving.
Personally, I'm going to try to survive this day, and look back and wonder what else we can do to shorten Thanksgiving next year.
Happy Holidays!!
Why is it that this one day not only gives business owners shivers of fear mingled with shivers of anticipation?
What's so special about THIS Friday compared with all of the rest?
I've got the info, and I'll share.
Let's see..
First off, for most businesses, Black Friday means that they'll do anywhere from 10-25% of their total sales FOR THE YEAR on this ONE day.
Yup. Nearly a full quarter of their sales will be done on this day.
But I don't think that's the reason it got the name.
I personally feel that it got the name because of something more sinister.
Let's explore this, shall we?
First off, it comes in the middle of a holiday series that is supposed to be full of thanks, love, cheer, family, and basically Peace on Earth.
However, it generates ANYTHING but those feelings.
I mean, we've all heard the horror stories about grown people fighting over the last toy on the shelf at a store. We've heard about the looting that's gone on at a store that didn't quite open at the time it advertised.
If anything, Black Friday represents everything that ISN'T about the holiday spirit.
It's for the selfish, the obsessive, the rude, and material.
I often wonder how much better we'd be if we were to FORCE businesses to stay closed for an extended weekend, instead of opening their doors for mass mayhem the day after we are supposed to be giving thanks for everything that we hold dear.
To put the icing on the cake, I've found that some stores are now fostering an even new depth to the buying frenzy depravity:
They're opening on Thanksgiving, and staying open all night. That way, when the magical hour approaches the next day, you can already have your cart(s) loaded, and ready to check out.
Yup.
You read it right.
So, not only do we cut our day of giving thanks short, but we're now staying open so that folks can jostle, argue, and basically fight for their buying deals well in advance!
Is this a great country or what?
I'm going to try to see if I can't open myself up a gun store. I'm going to put everything on sale, and stay open the entire week of Thanksgiving. If the amount of shooting crimes increases because of my sales, well, I'm just the clerk. I don't tell the folks what to do with their guns once they leave my store, now do I?
But it might cull the selfish crowd down a bit.
You've always got to look for the silver lining!
I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving.
Personally, I'm going to try to survive this day, and look back and wonder what else we can do to shorten Thanksgiving next year.
Happy Holidays!!
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Who do you turn to??
This last weekend, I dealt with something that I really don't like having to witness, let alone take care of.
My sister-in-law is going through a divorce, and it's getting ugly.
Add to that her need to find a new guy in her life, and things get even more screwed up.
Then you mix in some alcohol, and it just becomes madness on wheels.
She's been through more boyfriends in the last year than I can honestly keep track of.
Plus, aside from the guys she's seeing, there are the boy-toys that she's juggling on the side, and you never know when the mood is going to strike for her to dump the one she's been "devoted" to for a while, and pick something new.
Kind of like girls, clothes, and shoes.
So, this week her boyfriend flew into town all the way from Chicago.
He's a nice guy. I acutally like him. He's a comedian, and he and a couple other comedian buddies were going to do a comedy show at a local restaurant this weekend. We planned on having dinner, then watching the show, then sticking around for some dancing (a DJ was going to be on after the comedy troupe), then head home and crash.
The dinner was great. Good food, funny folks, camaraderie.
The comedy show was priceless. The guys were all funny, and the crowd was HUGE. Very good time.
The time after the show? Not so great.
Sis-in-Law drinks. And when she drinks, she gets stupid drunk. Not just a little drunk, STUPID drunk.
That happened this weekend.
She got plastered. Then she proceeded to make a total scene with various others present, including her boyfriend. I honestly felt really sorry for the guy.
She was dancing and grinding with anyone and everyone on the dance floor. Girls, guys, it didn't matter. However, if her boyfriend would've done that, she'd have yelled her butt off at his actions. Heck, she did at one point, because he said hello to a girl he hadn't seen in 20 years.
Now, granted, this girl had also asked him over for dinner, and didn't want the SIL to come with.. But that's another story!
Anyway, things were getting out of hand, and were still proceeding downhill quickly.
As I talked with the boyfriend, he actually confided in me that the way my SIL was acting reminded him of his most recent ex, and the way she used to act. It was REALLY giving him bad vibes, and we wondered what kind of mistake he'd made.
That cut it for me.
Now, I normally could care less about what my SIL does with herself. She's a grown adult, and she has to deal with the consequences of her actions.
However, when those said actions start to hurt others, they need to be stopped.
So, I had my wife try to corral her sister, and I got everyone moved out of the club, and into cars.
SIL then proceeded to be drunk, and call around demanding to know why everyone was trying to kill her fun. She then demanded to go out and eat. (like I was going to deal with her drunk butt in a public restaurant!), and demanded that we take her to her boyfriend's hotel room.
I declined to do all of these things. I did drop by a drive through, and get her some food. However, I didn't let her out of the car, I took her straight home, and then I left her to her own devices.
I'm not one who will deal with sloppy drunk folks. I don't have the patience for it, and I really don't have the temperment to be condescending and responsive to someone who thinks that it's funny or cute.
Because of this, I'm sure that I was a complete and arrogant asshole to her the rest of that night.
I'm not going to apologize.
I honestly feel that she needs help.
She needs counselling for her emotional state at her divorce, and the things that happened to her in the events prior to and leading up to her separation from her ex.
She needs help with her alcohol.
There has never been more booze in my home than since she moved in with us. There's been booze before, but my wife and I don't really drink much, and when we do, it's usually my wife that gets tipsy, not me. Yes, I'm a prude and a party-killer, deal with it.
I also think she needs to come to terms with herself and her self-worth before she really starts looking for another relationship, but again, she's a grown adult.
I can say all of these things, but it doesn't change the fact that it's HER. HER choice. HER actions. HER decision. HER life.
Yes, it really kind of kills me to see how badly she's tearing apart what she has. But until she's hit bottom, and really has no place else left to go, I don't think it's really going to change.
It's sad, but unfortunately that doesn't make it any less true.
I just hope I don't have to see it, and that maybe she'll wake up and realize that she needs some help, and that she needs to seriously change.
We'll see.
My sister-in-law is going through a divorce, and it's getting ugly.
Add to that her need to find a new guy in her life, and things get even more screwed up.
Then you mix in some alcohol, and it just becomes madness on wheels.
She's been through more boyfriends in the last year than I can honestly keep track of.
Plus, aside from the guys she's seeing, there are the boy-toys that she's juggling on the side, and you never know when the mood is going to strike for her to dump the one she's been "devoted" to for a while, and pick something new.
Kind of like girls, clothes, and shoes.
So, this week her boyfriend flew into town all the way from Chicago.
He's a nice guy. I acutally like him. He's a comedian, and he and a couple other comedian buddies were going to do a comedy show at a local restaurant this weekend. We planned on having dinner, then watching the show, then sticking around for some dancing (a DJ was going to be on after the comedy troupe), then head home and crash.
The dinner was great. Good food, funny folks, camaraderie.
The comedy show was priceless. The guys were all funny, and the crowd was HUGE. Very good time.
The time after the show? Not so great.
Sis-in-Law drinks. And when she drinks, she gets stupid drunk. Not just a little drunk, STUPID drunk.
That happened this weekend.
She got plastered. Then she proceeded to make a total scene with various others present, including her boyfriend. I honestly felt really sorry for the guy.
She was dancing and grinding with anyone and everyone on the dance floor. Girls, guys, it didn't matter. However, if her boyfriend would've done that, she'd have yelled her butt off at his actions. Heck, she did at one point, because he said hello to a girl he hadn't seen in 20 years.
Now, granted, this girl had also asked him over for dinner, and didn't want the SIL to come with.. But that's another story!
Anyway, things were getting out of hand, and were still proceeding downhill quickly.
As I talked with the boyfriend, he actually confided in me that the way my SIL was acting reminded him of his most recent ex, and the way she used to act. It was REALLY giving him bad vibes, and we wondered what kind of mistake he'd made.
That cut it for me.
Now, I normally could care less about what my SIL does with herself. She's a grown adult, and she has to deal with the consequences of her actions.
However, when those said actions start to hurt others, they need to be stopped.
So, I had my wife try to corral her sister, and I got everyone moved out of the club, and into cars.
SIL then proceeded to be drunk, and call around demanding to know why everyone was trying to kill her fun. She then demanded to go out and eat. (like I was going to deal with her drunk butt in a public restaurant!), and demanded that we take her to her boyfriend's hotel room.
I declined to do all of these things. I did drop by a drive through, and get her some food. However, I didn't let her out of the car, I took her straight home, and then I left her to her own devices.
I'm not one who will deal with sloppy drunk folks. I don't have the patience for it, and I really don't have the temperment to be condescending and responsive to someone who thinks that it's funny or cute.
Because of this, I'm sure that I was a complete and arrogant asshole to her the rest of that night.
I'm not going to apologize.
I honestly feel that she needs help.
She needs counselling for her emotional state at her divorce, and the things that happened to her in the events prior to and leading up to her separation from her ex.
She needs help with her alcohol.
There has never been more booze in my home than since she moved in with us. There's been booze before, but my wife and I don't really drink much, and when we do, it's usually my wife that gets tipsy, not me. Yes, I'm a prude and a party-killer, deal with it.
I also think she needs to come to terms with herself and her self-worth before she really starts looking for another relationship, but again, she's a grown adult.
I can say all of these things, but it doesn't change the fact that it's HER. HER choice. HER actions. HER decision. HER life.
Yes, it really kind of kills me to see how badly she's tearing apart what she has. But until she's hit bottom, and really has no place else left to go, I don't think it's really going to change.
It's sad, but unfortunately that doesn't make it any less true.
I just hope I don't have to see it, and that maybe she'll wake up and realize that she needs some help, and that she needs to seriously change.
We'll see.
Friday, August 28, 2009
ARRRRGH!
Have you ever had "one of those days" that actually seems to go on for the entire work week?
Yeah. I'm there.
This week has been jammed to the gills with stress, bitching, tempers flying, and more stupid crap than most of the rest of this last year combined..
Thank GOD it's Friday, and I can at least look forward to two days of not having to deal with it for a while!
You know, there are days when I look forward to this job. The challenge. The mystery. The fun of digging into a problem and being able to fit it and look like the miracle worker that I truly am.
Yet there are times when I come in with this mentality only to revert to a hunched grumpy troll at the drop of an attitude once the time clock is punched.
The worst part is that there are only a couple of people who are able to do this to me. The biggest problem is that they are two people that I have to interact with on a nearly daily basis.
Yeah. These two.. (I'll call them Twit 1 and Twit 2 in homage to Dr. Seuss) are the epitome of selfishness and ignorance all wrapped up in a giant bundle of attitude. You show up for work, and one of these two will somehow try to find a way to bring you down into their depressing pissy world, and not let you out.
Twit 1 has been moved to the night shift for a while, so I've had a nice reprive from his arrogance. However, Twit 2 seems to take this as a challenge, and has since stepped up his assinine ways.
Today was NO exception.
Let's just say that I'm glad I was able to finally lock myself away in my office, and rant and rave at the walls for a while... I really don't need to lose my job over someone like this, and keeping focused on the job at hand really doesn't help when you've got someone like that trying to make your life a living hell.
Hope you all have a great weekend, and I'll shout out at you another day.
Ciao!
Yeah. I'm there.
This week has been jammed to the gills with stress, bitching, tempers flying, and more stupid crap than most of the rest of this last year combined..
Thank GOD it's Friday, and I can at least look forward to two days of not having to deal with it for a while!
You know, there are days when I look forward to this job. The challenge. The mystery. The fun of digging into a problem and being able to fit it and look like the miracle worker that I truly am.
Yet there are times when I come in with this mentality only to revert to a hunched grumpy troll at the drop of an attitude once the time clock is punched.
The worst part is that there are only a couple of people who are able to do this to me. The biggest problem is that they are two people that I have to interact with on a nearly daily basis.
Yeah. These two.. (I'll call them Twit 1 and Twit 2 in homage to Dr. Seuss) are the epitome of selfishness and ignorance all wrapped up in a giant bundle of attitude. You show up for work, and one of these two will somehow try to find a way to bring you down into their depressing pissy world, and not let you out.
Twit 1 has been moved to the night shift for a while, so I've had a nice reprive from his arrogance. However, Twit 2 seems to take this as a challenge, and has since stepped up his assinine ways.
Today was NO exception.
Let's just say that I'm glad I was able to finally lock myself away in my office, and rant and rave at the walls for a while... I really don't need to lose my job over someone like this, and keeping focused on the job at hand really doesn't help when you've got someone like that trying to make your life a living hell.
Hope you all have a great weekend, and I'll shout out at you another day.
Ciao!
Thursday, March 12, 2009
Yarrrr!
Yeah, I really didn't know what else to title this, so I figure that if I just put some kind of piratey-type of growl up there, it might attract some folks.
Have you ever wondered how some people got the jobs that they have today?
I'll give you an example:
Here at my work, we have an HR person. HR = Human Resources.
Now, by my understanding, this person should posess inter-personal relationship skills. You know, be a kind of "people person".
However, this lady doesn't have anything close to resembling people skills.
Yesterday was a great case in point.
I'm the network administrator for our warehouse's computer systems. I have to get authorization for any kind of software installs that are done on the computers, as they are all tied into the corporate network, and could potentially disable the entire company network if something weren't quite right with the software.
A couple of weeks ago my safety manager asked to install some software onto her computer for some tracking reports that were given to her by a supplier. These disks aren't company approved, and so I told her that I'd have to get permission from the corporate network executives before I could make any decision on whether I could install the software or not. I also warned her that because of the time she was making the request, it was probably going to take a back burner to other projects until the start of the new fiscal calendar year. She agreed, and we parted.
However, since that time, she has made a point to send me at least one email a week asking about this software. I have kept her in the loop regarding the request, and have copied and forwarded each and every response I get from my bosses over their decisions. They are just too busy right now with other matters affecting the company to look over some software to see if they don't mind it being added to a computer. This isn't a priority for them, so they blow it off.
Apparently this means that I fall into this same category of person, and so my safety person got my HR manager involved.
Now, I'm not management. I refuse to be a manager. I prefer working my hourly rate, and I really enjoy the job I do. I make the management team look competent and efficient, and since they look good, that reflects well on me for those who know where to look. (Read my bosses!)
Anyway, I was then called into the HR office to "talk".
I was informed that since I, being a "lowly" associate, needed to follow instructions, I was to obey this manager, and install the software. No questions, no reservations, I was to do as I've been told.
I nodded, asked if there were any other instructions I needed to follow, and got the fish-eye.
Apparently sarcasm when being taken down a notch isn't a good idea.
I was informed that my tone and attitude were bordering on insubordination, and that it could cost me my job.
When threatened like this, I tend to get confrontational, so I asked if I needed to bring in my General Manager, and make this a "formal" meeting.
She proceeded to tell me that it wasn't necessary, and that this discussion would be "Between the two of us".
I nodded, left her office, and walked directly over to my General Manager's office to inform him about what had happened.
Now, I'm going to install the software.
However, I've got a serious CYA clause going on right now, because she did the silly thing of sending me my escape clause.
She wrote me an email explaining to me that I would install the software, and then inform her when the install was done. No questions.
Because of this, I can now claim that I was ordered to do this by my upper management staff, and there wasn't anything else but to follow the orders given by a duly represented manager of my corporation. All responsibility for this action are now on her shoulders, and if my bosses decide that this program ISN'T necessary and shouldn't be installed on the PC, well she's going to have to explain to them why she wouldn't wait for their decision.
All of this, and she's so proud of her schooling and certifications.
Me? My pride comes from knowing that when assigned a job that I get in, get it done, and get out as quickly as possible to allow the smallest timeframe of down-time in a production setting.
This means that even though I have to get in and stall the line, I'll get done as quickly as I can, and get the line moving again to make the smallest impact possible in the total day's work.
You can tell when I've done my job right when there aren't calls for me going on around the radio systems in the building. The only real time my name gets called out too much is when there's something outside the facility that's causing trouble with our network mainframes.
Tell me about some of your experiences.
Do you have people that completely baffle you as to how they were able to get their position?
Have you ever wondered how some people got the jobs that they have today?
I'll give you an example:
Here at my work, we have an HR person. HR = Human Resources.
Now, by my understanding, this person should posess inter-personal relationship skills. You know, be a kind of "people person".
However, this lady doesn't have anything close to resembling people skills.
Yesterday was a great case in point.
I'm the network administrator for our warehouse's computer systems. I have to get authorization for any kind of software installs that are done on the computers, as they are all tied into the corporate network, and could potentially disable the entire company network if something weren't quite right with the software.
A couple of weeks ago my safety manager asked to install some software onto her computer for some tracking reports that were given to her by a supplier. These disks aren't company approved, and so I told her that I'd have to get permission from the corporate network executives before I could make any decision on whether I could install the software or not. I also warned her that because of the time she was making the request, it was probably going to take a back burner to other projects until the start of the new fiscal calendar year. She agreed, and we parted.
However, since that time, she has made a point to send me at least one email a week asking about this software. I have kept her in the loop regarding the request, and have copied and forwarded each and every response I get from my bosses over their decisions. They are just too busy right now with other matters affecting the company to look over some software to see if they don't mind it being added to a computer. This isn't a priority for them, so they blow it off.
Apparently this means that I fall into this same category of person, and so my safety person got my HR manager involved.
Now, I'm not management. I refuse to be a manager. I prefer working my hourly rate, and I really enjoy the job I do. I make the management team look competent and efficient, and since they look good, that reflects well on me for those who know where to look. (Read my bosses!)
Anyway, I was then called into the HR office to "talk".
I was informed that since I, being a "lowly" associate, needed to follow instructions, I was to obey this manager, and install the software. No questions, no reservations, I was to do as I've been told.
I nodded, asked if there were any other instructions I needed to follow, and got the fish-eye.
Apparently sarcasm when being taken down a notch isn't a good idea.
I was informed that my tone and attitude were bordering on insubordination, and that it could cost me my job.
When threatened like this, I tend to get confrontational, so I asked if I needed to bring in my General Manager, and make this a "formal" meeting.
She proceeded to tell me that it wasn't necessary, and that this discussion would be "Between the two of us".
I nodded, left her office, and walked directly over to my General Manager's office to inform him about what had happened.
Now, I'm going to install the software.
However, I've got a serious CYA clause going on right now, because she did the silly thing of sending me my escape clause.
She wrote me an email explaining to me that I would install the software, and then inform her when the install was done. No questions.
Because of this, I can now claim that I was ordered to do this by my upper management staff, and there wasn't anything else but to follow the orders given by a duly represented manager of my corporation. All responsibility for this action are now on her shoulders, and if my bosses decide that this program ISN'T necessary and shouldn't be installed on the PC, well she's going to have to explain to them why she wouldn't wait for their decision.
All of this, and she's so proud of her schooling and certifications.
Me? My pride comes from knowing that when assigned a job that I get in, get it done, and get out as quickly as possible to allow the smallest timeframe of down-time in a production setting.
This means that even though I have to get in and stall the line, I'll get done as quickly as I can, and get the line moving again to make the smallest impact possible in the total day's work.
You can tell when I've done my job right when there aren't calls for me going on around the radio systems in the building. The only real time my name gets called out too much is when there's something outside the facility that's causing trouble with our network mainframes.
Tell me about some of your experiences.
Do you have people that completely baffle you as to how they were able to get their position?
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
(im)Patiently Waiting
Have you had those days when you're coming up to a nice vacation period, and you just can't stand the stuff going on around you?
Yeah.
I'm there.
I have today and tomorrow to work, and then I'm off for a nice vacation with the family.
However, it seems like every idiot and moron in my workplace has come out of the woodwork and decided to put on one special show for me before I go.
Let's talk shop, shall we?
Yesterday I had to be called in to set things up because one of my maintenance managers just can't get it into his head that he doesn't know SQUAT about computers.
They have been stripping and then re-waxing and repainting offices this year, since it's been 5 years since it was done last.
Because of this, offices are being cleared out, and then they paint and wax, and then shovel it all back into the office.
However, this specific office houses the network printers that we use to not only print out the labels needed for proper inventory, but it also housed the data and fax lines for traffic communication with the shipping company that we use.
All of this was unplugged, dragged out into the warehouse, and left to sit over the weekend.
Come Monday morning, they put everything back into the office, and plug it in, but NOTHING worked.
This is because not only did they not plug it back in where they'd taken it from, but they completely moved around the office furniture.
The printers I've got have a dedicated line and server for them to operate correctly, and just plugging them into any data port is like hooking up a phone to a dead jack. It won't get you anywhere. Also, there are more data ports physically in my warehouse than I have positions available on my data switches, so there are specific data ports that aren't live unless I physically go in and punch them down onto the network switch.
Because of this, I know what items work, and what jacks to plug things into.
"Normal" folks don't.
Thus I got to waste 2 hours of time plugging stuff back into switches, reprogramming a printer, and clearing out error messages from documents that were sent to printers that weren't online.
Annoying? Most definitely.
Boring? Not really.
Tedious. Absolutely.
I am honestly counting the minutes until I'm able to get out of here, and get on that plane. I don't care what the day or date is, I don't care if we have to sit on the tarmac because of weather. I just want out of this circus, and not have to worry about stupid stuff for at least a week. The most challenging thing I want to cope with is what ride to take the kids to next, or decide where we're going to eat lunch.
I think I need some Advil, so I'm headed to lunch...
More ranting tomorrow.
Yeah.
I'm there.
I have today and tomorrow to work, and then I'm off for a nice vacation with the family.
However, it seems like every idiot and moron in my workplace has come out of the woodwork and decided to put on one special show for me before I go.
Let's talk shop, shall we?
Yesterday I had to be called in to set things up because one of my maintenance managers just can't get it into his head that he doesn't know SQUAT about computers.
They have been stripping and then re-waxing and repainting offices this year, since it's been 5 years since it was done last.
Because of this, offices are being cleared out, and then they paint and wax, and then shovel it all back into the office.
However, this specific office houses the network printers that we use to not only print out the labels needed for proper inventory, but it also housed the data and fax lines for traffic communication with the shipping company that we use.
All of this was unplugged, dragged out into the warehouse, and left to sit over the weekend.
Come Monday morning, they put everything back into the office, and plug it in, but NOTHING worked.
This is because not only did they not plug it back in where they'd taken it from, but they completely moved around the office furniture.
The printers I've got have a dedicated line and server for them to operate correctly, and just plugging them into any data port is like hooking up a phone to a dead jack. It won't get you anywhere. Also, there are more data ports physically in my warehouse than I have positions available on my data switches, so there are specific data ports that aren't live unless I physically go in and punch them down onto the network switch.
Because of this, I know what items work, and what jacks to plug things into.
"Normal" folks don't.
Thus I got to waste 2 hours of time plugging stuff back into switches, reprogramming a printer, and clearing out error messages from documents that were sent to printers that weren't online.
Annoying? Most definitely.
Boring? Not really.
Tedious. Absolutely.
I am honestly counting the minutes until I'm able to get out of here, and get on that plane. I don't care what the day or date is, I don't care if we have to sit on the tarmac because of weather. I just want out of this circus, and not have to worry about stupid stuff for at least a week. The most challenging thing I want to cope with is what ride to take the kids to next, or decide where we're going to eat lunch.
I think I need some Advil, so I'm headed to lunch...
More ranting tomorrow.
Friday, January 30, 2009
More ranting and raving!!
Yesterday, while browsing through some of my more favorite blogs to read, I came upon this post by Cinnikitty.
It got me so worked up, that I'm still kind of irate now just THINKING about it.
Things of this nature really hit close to home for me.
I mean, I'm a divorced father of 3, and it's like pulling teeth to get any kind of consistent support from their mother.
Yet, I have to wonder what makes the judges tick when they decide what amounts are "reasonable" for the paying parties...
Let me give you an example:
When my wife and I divorced, she was given custody of the kids because I was working 3 jobs, had no stable home, and was basically living hand to mouth from day to day.
Yet, even with my dire means of survival, the judge was 'gracious' enough to award my wife a monthly support amount of $750 to be paid in full each month.
Now, at that time, I was bringing home approximately $1,200 a month. Take out my rent, and it dropped to $300.
If I didn't pay the rent, I could buy some food, pay a couple of bills, pay the CHILD SUPPORT, and maybe have a couple of dollars left over for gas.
BUT! If I paid my rent to keep a roof over my head, I'd drop too far behind on payments to be able to make up the difference.
Did this matter to the court?
NO.
He determined that I could be making a base minimum wage of $16-$18 per hour, and that because I was working _3_ jobs that weren't clearing more than $1500 a month, that was my problem. I needed to take the initiative to get a better paying job, and drop the 3 that I had in order to cover my responsibilities.
Nothing like getting kicked in the nuts, and then having that person tell you that it only hurts for a bit, and to suck it up and keep going, is there?
The sad fact is that because of the hour requirements of the jobs I was working, I wasn't HOME enough to take care of my kids. I had, technically, ONE day off during the week, but that "day off" was actually the one day where I only worked ONE job for a half-day. That day was Sunday. The rest of the time I was up and working from 4am until 10pm. Monday through Saturday. I'd get just enough time to rush from one job to the next in order to keep the two higher-paying jobs afloat, and then I'd toss in extra time when I could on the weekends to the third job to get gas money. It was a vicious cycle.
Now, with all of that work, I had to get some sleep in. So I'd sleep from about 11pm until 3am, then get up and repeat the day. Sunday was the treat, in that I didn't have to start work until 10am, and was done by 3pm. That meant that I could go over and see my kids, play with them for a little bit, and then head home to get some sleep before starting the nasty work week all over again.
Now, somehow in that tangled mess of a schedule, I was supposed to blow off an employer, go fill out applications to other jobs that were better suited for family support, and then hope to God that I didn't get fired from the job I'd blown off so that I could still have money coming in while hoping that the jobs I'd applied for called me for an interview so that I could potentially blow off said job again for the chance at another one...
Do you see the irony in this?
You have a job, yet you have to drop that one because a person told you to, in order to apply for a potential job (that many others will be applying for as well) in order to get an interview.
I was FURIOUS.
Yes, he's a judge, and someone who is (technically) an authority figure. But who the hell does he think he is to dictate to me what I should and should NOT be doing in my family life? Don't make a personal vendetta against working class people, tell them that they can and need to do better, and then force them into unlivable circumstances just to force a change.
Well, after the ruling, I tried to do exactly like the judge ordered.
Within 2 weeks, I had my part-time job left, as the other two fired me for not showing up for work.
Suddenly my $1,200 a month income dropped to $350.
Now I couldn't even pay rent, let alone keep food in my stomach, or pay bills.
I fell into a severe depression. I didn't care about how I was doing. I didn't care about my family. I was a failure.
The feelings of inadequacy were terrible. Failure seemed to be the one thing that I was actually good at. I mean, I had a FAILED marriage, I used to have jobs, but I FAILED two of them. I used to be able to support myself, but now I was FAILING at that as well.
Jormengrund=FAIL. That was my life equation.
I finally got evicted from my small home. With no place to go, I turned to my parents. I was desperate for some place to live while I looked for work, and felt that my family would offer some kind of help.
My mom refused. I wasn't to come near their house, and until I could get my life straight, I wasn't to contact them AT ALL.
Great.. More failure. This time with the people who are supposed to love and support you NO MATTER WHAT.
Then, a small glimmer of light.
My grandpa asked me to come over and help him work on the small shop he'd been building for his woodworking stuff. I came over and lent a hand. During the work, he offered me a place to live, in exchange for help around the house. He and my grandma were getting old enough that an added hand around the house for chores would be a great help. I needed a place to stay, and they were willing to give me one as long as I was willing to work for it.
I grasped at this chance with both hands like a man hanging on the edge of a cliff would to a rescue rope. I still had some meager income, and I needed some of it to pay for the gas I was using to get to job interviews. The rest I sent off for child support. Yet I continued to fall behind because my entire earned income still wasn't enough to cover my payments.
My grandpa hired an attorney to see about getting the payments reduced, but the judgement held. I had the "potential" to earn "X" amount, and thus I needed to live up to that potential in order to meet the judgement. No change was given.
So, I worked around my grandparent's house, fixing things, cutting the lawn, weeding, painting, mopping floors, carrying laundry, driving them to and from town.. Whatever they needed done, I did it. I also applied everywhere I could. I didn't care about what state, I didn't care about what field it was in. I didn't care about anything but getting that job that the judge insisted was my saving grace.
A year went by. Two. I never saw my tax returns. The money that I'd get would immediately be sent to help pay down my outstanding balance of child support. I fell deeper into debt with that payment. I mean really... Even paying the entire amount of my monthly income was still dropping me $400 into the hole EACH MONTH. Depression kicked in again.
Then, my part-time job closed.
No work, no money, no potential employers.
I'd hit rock bottom. There was no place left to go but up.
A friend of mine offered to take me out one night for a couple of drinks in order to try to cheer me up. We went to a small bar, and had a pretty good time. While there, an old neighbor of mine spotted me, and we started talking.
That man gave me the first small break since I'd hit bottom. He offered me a job working for him. My title? Karaoke DJ.
Yeah. Glamor galore. But it was a start in getting myself back on track. He promised to help out as much as he could, as long as I was willing to put the effort into helping him as well. I agreed.
Now, I was starting to make some headway. I had a job that I worked 6 nights a week at, sometimes I even worked mornings in his new storefront. I still lived with my grandparents, but I was actually starting to make ends meet.
Then, I met HER. My wife.
I joke about her being one of the "stalkers" that used to chase me around while I was running the karaoke stuff, but there was something seriously different about her that caught my eye. She saw something in me that made me think that I could be more than even that judge thought. For the first time in a very long time, I started to feel.... HOPE.
We started dating. Thanks to her influence, I started seeing my kids more. I'd been ashamed to bring them over to my grandparent's house where I lived because I didn't want the kids to see me living so destitute. However, she told me that my kids just needed a dad, and that they wouldn't care about where I lived, as long as they were able to be there with me. As usual, she was right.
I was finally able to get some temp work as a laborer during this time as well, and started making more. Thanks to her help, I was able to pay down some of my debts, and slowly crawl back into the light. She offered me the chance to move in with her, and get out of my grandparent's house. I agreed, but I also promised my grandparents that I would still come around to take care of things for them.
Things were going well. Until we had our first big fight.
Suddenly, I was kicked to the curb. No place to stay, and no ray of hope or sunshine to light my path.
That is, until my future Mother-in-law stood up for me.
In this woman, I saw what it was like to have a mom. To have someone care for you because of WHO you are, not what you can do for their reputation.
I felt loved again, and the hope bloomed.
We reconciled, and apologies were made. I had regular visitation with my kids now, and things were going well...
Until we found the bruises on my youngest son.
Their step-dad had been taking to beating each of the kids with a paddle when he felt they were doing something wrong.
Now, don't get me wrong. I'm not against spanking when needed.
But to use a wooden paddle on a 2 year old boy?
I wanted to literally kill that man when I found out about this.
My wife called my dad and brother in order to keep me in the house. We then called to have CPS investigate.
Somehow, the slippery bastard was able to get out from under the charge of abuse. I don't know to this day how he managed it, but each and every time I see him give me some smug smile, I have to fight in order to keep myself from knocking his teeth in.
Because we couldn't get the charge of abuse to work, I went a different route to save my kids. I filed for custody of them.
At this time, I had a solid job, a stable home, and pretty good means to support myself.
Thus, we went to court in order to settle this.
After SIX months of deliberation, I was granted custody of my children. This, in and of itself, is quite unheard of in this state, since the common term for this state is a "mom centralized state" which means that unless I was able to show neglect or a lack of vital care, the mother would retain custody.
Apparently the judge in this case was able to see the same things that we were seeing.
Then, the determination for support sent into effect.
Can you guess how much my wife was then asked to pay ME for these kids?
It wasn't NEARLY the amount I had to shuck out, and she'd been making TWICE my pay when that decision had been made.
No. She was only required to pay $550 every TWO months.
Yeah.
I'd had to pay $1500 every two months, and she only needed to pay $550.
So apparently not ONLY does the person who make less have to pay more, but the father is expected to pay at least double what a mother can, even if she's unfit!
OK.
I think I've got a bit more control..
Anyway, since that time, my kids have become more stable, less moody, better students, and overall are more well-adjusted than they ever were while living with their mother.
I seriously have to give credit for much of this to my wife. She and I have worked tirelessly to get the things my kids need in order to thrive.
Yet, the post CK had written was about mothers sitting around expecting to get paid for doing NOTHING.
That's exactly what my ex and her hubby do.
He's a worthless piece of crap with SIX kids who doesn't hold down a job, and expects to get "disability" (any day now) and she works for a doctor's office, and tries to bribe them into "conveniently" forget about making the support payments from time to time.
There has NEVER been a consistent time when I've gotten cash from her. Either it's late, or they forgot, or the check gets lost, the account gets screwey, etc, etc, etc...
All I ask is for some consistency so that I can better take care of my kids.
In order to do this, I've got a job now where I don't have to depend AT ALL on the support, and if/when we DO get the money, it's an unexpected windfall, and we put it away, or use it to buy things that could really help the kids. Rarely, if ever, have the wife or I used any of that cash for ourselves. We use the child support just for that. The children.
Anyway, I think I'm done ranting, and this post has gotten WAY too long.
Only 13 more days until we run off to Disneyland!
Have a great weekend, and I'll talk with you all on Tuesday.
It got me so worked up, that I'm still kind of irate now just THINKING about it.
Things of this nature really hit close to home for me.
I mean, I'm a divorced father of 3, and it's like pulling teeth to get any kind of consistent support from their mother.
Yet, I have to wonder what makes the judges tick when they decide what amounts are "reasonable" for the paying parties...
Let me give you an example:
When my wife and I divorced, she was given custody of the kids because I was working 3 jobs, had no stable home, and was basically living hand to mouth from day to day.
Yet, even with my dire means of survival, the judge was 'gracious' enough to award my wife a monthly support amount of $750 to be paid in full each month.
Now, at that time, I was bringing home approximately $1,200 a month. Take out my rent, and it dropped to $300.
If I didn't pay the rent, I could buy some food, pay a couple of bills, pay the CHILD SUPPORT, and maybe have a couple of dollars left over for gas.
BUT! If I paid my rent to keep a roof over my head, I'd drop too far behind on payments to be able to make up the difference.
Did this matter to the court?
NO.
He determined that I could be making a base minimum wage of $16-$18 per hour, and that because I was working _3_ jobs that weren't clearing more than $1500 a month, that was my problem. I needed to take the initiative to get a better paying job, and drop the 3 that I had in order to cover my responsibilities.
Nothing like getting kicked in the nuts, and then having that person tell you that it only hurts for a bit, and to suck it up and keep going, is there?
The sad fact is that because of the hour requirements of the jobs I was working, I wasn't HOME enough to take care of my kids. I had, technically, ONE day off during the week, but that "day off" was actually the one day where I only worked ONE job for a half-day. That day was Sunday. The rest of the time I was up and working from 4am until 10pm. Monday through Saturday. I'd get just enough time to rush from one job to the next in order to keep the two higher-paying jobs afloat, and then I'd toss in extra time when I could on the weekends to the third job to get gas money. It was a vicious cycle.
Now, with all of that work, I had to get some sleep in. So I'd sleep from about 11pm until 3am, then get up and repeat the day. Sunday was the treat, in that I didn't have to start work until 10am, and was done by 3pm. That meant that I could go over and see my kids, play with them for a little bit, and then head home to get some sleep before starting the nasty work week all over again.
Now, somehow in that tangled mess of a schedule, I was supposed to blow off an employer, go fill out applications to other jobs that were better suited for family support, and then hope to God that I didn't get fired from the job I'd blown off so that I could still have money coming in while hoping that the jobs I'd applied for called me for an interview so that I could potentially blow off said job again for the chance at another one...
Do you see the irony in this?
You have a job, yet you have to drop that one because a person told you to, in order to apply for a potential job (that many others will be applying for as well) in order to get an interview.
I was FURIOUS.
Yes, he's a judge, and someone who is (technically) an authority figure. But who the hell does he think he is to dictate to me what I should and should NOT be doing in my family life? Don't make a personal vendetta against working class people, tell them that they can and need to do better, and then force them into unlivable circumstances just to force a change.
Well, after the ruling, I tried to do exactly like the judge ordered.
Within 2 weeks, I had my part-time job left, as the other two fired me for not showing up for work.
Suddenly my $1,200 a month income dropped to $350.
Now I couldn't even pay rent, let alone keep food in my stomach, or pay bills.
I fell into a severe depression. I didn't care about how I was doing. I didn't care about my family. I was a failure.
The feelings of inadequacy were terrible. Failure seemed to be the one thing that I was actually good at. I mean, I had a FAILED marriage, I used to have jobs, but I FAILED two of them. I used to be able to support myself, but now I was FAILING at that as well.
Jormengrund=FAIL. That was my life equation.
I finally got evicted from my small home. With no place to go, I turned to my parents. I was desperate for some place to live while I looked for work, and felt that my family would offer some kind of help.
My mom refused. I wasn't to come near their house, and until I could get my life straight, I wasn't to contact them AT ALL.
Great.. More failure. This time with the people who are supposed to love and support you NO MATTER WHAT.
Then, a small glimmer of light.
My grandpa asked me to come over and help him work on the small shop he'd been building for his woodworking stuff. I came over and lent a hand. During the work, he offered me a place to live, in exchange for help around the house. He and my grandma were getting old enough that an added hand around the house for chores would be a great help. I needed a place to stay, and they were willing to give me one as long as I was willing to work for it.
I grasped at this chance with both hands like a man hanging on the edge of a cliff would to a rescue rope. I still had some meager income, and I needed some of it to pay for the gas I was using to get to job interviews. The rest I sent off for child support. Yet I continued to fall behind because my entire earned income still wasn't enough to cover my payments.
My grandpa hired an attorney to see about getting the payments reduced, but the judgement held. I had the "potential" to earn "X" amount, and thus I needed to live up to that potential in order to meet the judgement. No change was given.
So, I worked around my grandparent's house, fixing things, cutting the lawn, weeding, painting, mopping floors, carrying laundry, driving them to and from town.. Whatever they needed done, I did it. I also applied everywhere I could. I didn't care about what state, I didn't care about what field it was in. I didn't care about anything but getting that job that the judge insisted was my saving grace.
A year went by. Two. I never saw my tax returns. The money that I'd get would immediately be sent to help pay down my outstanding balance of child support. I fell deeper into debt with that payment. I mean really... Even paying the entire amount of my monthly income was still dropping me $400 into the hole EACH MONTH. Depression kicked in again.
Then, my part-time job closed.
No work, no money, no potential employers.
I'd hit rock bottom. There was no place left to go but up.
A friend of mine offered to take me out one night for a couple of drinks in order to try to cheer me up. We went to a small bar, and had a pretty good time. While there, an old neighbor of mine spotted me, and we started talking.
That man gave me the first small break since I'd hit bottom. He offered me a job working for him. My title? Karaoke DJ.
Yeah. Glamor galore. But it was a start in getting myself back on track. He promised to help out as much as he could, as long as I was willing to put the effort into helping him as well. I agreed.
Now, I was starting to make some headway. I had a job that I worked 6 nights a week at, sometimes I even worked mornings in his new storefront. I still lived with my grandparents, but I was actually starting to make ends meet.
Then, I met HER. My wife.
I joke about her being one of the "stalkers" that used to chase me around while I was running the karaoke stuff, but there was something seriously different about her that caught my eye. She saw something in me that made me think that I could be more than even that judge thought. For the first time in a very long time, I started to feel.... HOPE.
We started dating. Thanks to her influence, I started seeing my kids more. I'd been ashamed to bring them over to my grandparent's house where I lived because I didn't want the kids to see me living so destitute. However, she told me that my kids just needed a dad, and that they wouldn't care about where I lived, as long as they were able to be there with me. As usual, she was right.
I was finally able to get some temp work as a laborer during this time as well, and started making more. Thanks to her help, I was able to pay down some of my debts, and slowly crawl back into the light. She offered me the chance to move in with her, and get out of my grandparent's house. I agreed, but I also promised my grandparents that I would still come around to take care of things for them.
Things were going well. Until we had our first big fight.
Suddenly, I was kicked to the curb. No place to stay, and no ray of hope or sunshine to light my path.
That is, until my future Mother-in-law stood up for me.
In this woman, I saw what it was like to have a mom. To have someone care for you because of WHO you are, not what you can do for their reputation.
I felt loved again, and the hope bloomed.
We reconciled, and apologies were made. I had regular visitation with my kids now, and things were going well...
Until we found the bruises on my youngest son.
Their step-dad had been taking to beating each of the kids with a paddle when he felt they were doing something wrong.
Now, don't get me wrong. I'm not against spanking when needed.
But to use a wooden paddle on a 2 year old boy?
I wanted to literally kill that man when I found out about this.
My wife called my dad and brother in order to keep me in the house. We then called to have CPS investigate.
Somehow, the slippery bastard was able to get out from under the charge of abuse. I don't know to this day how he managed it, but each and every time I see him give me some smug smile, I have to fight in order to keep myself from knocking his teeth in.
Because we couldn't get the charge of abuse to work, I went a different route to save my kids. I filed for custody of them.
At this time, I had a solid job, a stable home, and pretty good means to support myself.
Thus, we went to court in order to settle this.
After SIX months of deliberation, I was granted custody of my children. This, in and of itself, is quite unheard of in this state, since the common term for this state is a "mom centralized state" which means that unless I was able to show neglect or a lack of vital care, the mother would retain custody.
Apparently the judge in this case was able to see the same things that we were seeing.
Then, the determination for support sent into effect.
Can you guess how much my wife was then asked to pay ME for these kids?
It wasn't NEARLY the amount I had to shuck out, and she'd been making TWICE my pay when that decision had been made.
No. She was only required to pay $550 every TWO months.
Yeah.
I'd had to pay $1500 every two months, and she only needed to pay $550.
So apparently not ONLY does the person who make less have to pay more, but the father is expected to pay at least double what a mother can, even if she's unfit!
OK.
I think I've got a bit more control..
Anyway, since that time, my kids have become more stable, less moody, better students, and overall are more well-adjusted than they ever were while living with their mother.
I seriously have to give credit for much of this to my wife. She and I have worked tirelessly to get the things my kids need in order to thrive.
Yet, the post CK had written was about mothers sitting around expecting to get paid for doing NOTHING.
That's exactly what my ex and her hubby do.
He's a worthless piece of crap with SIX kids who doesn't hold down a job, and expects to get "disability" (any day now) and she works for a doctor's office, and tries to bribe them into "conveniently" forget about making the support payments from time to time.
There has NEVER been a consistent time when I've gotten cash from her. Either it's late, or they forgot, or the check gets lost, the account gets screwey, etc, etc, etc...
All I ask is for some consistency so that I can better take care of my kids.
In order to do this, I've got a job now where I don't have to depend AT ALL on the support, and if/when we DO get the money, it's an unexpected windfall, and we put it away, or use it to buy things that could really help the kids. Rarely, if ever, have the wife or I used any of that cash for ourselves. We use the child support just for that. The children.
Anyway, I think I'm done ranting, and this post has gotten WAY too long.
Only 13 more days until we run off to Disneyland!
Have a great weekend, and I'll talk with you all on Tuesday.
Thursday, January 29, 2009
A minior personal revelation...
Let's get something straight here..
I'm an ass.
Not just ANY ass, but a sincere ass.
Heck, I'm even "PC" enough to admit that I'm an equal-opportunity asshat. It doesn't matter to me who or what you are, I'll be happy to oblige you with my assholed-ness.
There have been some times where this attitude has gotten me in trouble. Yeah, it doesn't work so well at the workplace, but I've been known to make it work (current job being proof of this!). It doesn't sit well in some social situations. Like when trying to apply for a mortgage, or debt consolidation, or buying a car, etc..
There are times when it's come in EXTREMELY handy. Those annoying telemarketers that seem to know when you're sitting down for dinner with the family, door-to-door salespeople, Jehova's Witness door knockers, Heck, even Mormon door-knockers!
It REALLY doesn't do me any good when I follow folks into a place. The main reason for this is that they then get marked for all of MY hard work. I mean, I'm an ass, but I like to take the credit for my butthole ways. I don't appreciate someone getting all the glory for my behavior. If I go to church with my folks, and I'm an ass, I don't want folks blaming my dad for my actions (as usually happens on the rare time I go to church with my folks). I don't want some waiter thinking that my friend is a jerk when I tell him off for not getting my order right. If I'm an ass to you, don't blame the other person for bringing me. BLAME ME.
Because of this, I want to let folks know that I rarely apologize for my behavior. Sure, you don't deserve treatment like this, but reading about how I chewed out someone else makes for funny reading... Unless you're the one who got the chewing. Then it becomes personal, and personal isn't funny.
I read a TON of blogs. I know there are some out there who read more, but I'm dedicated to a few, and I make comments on them consistently to let them know of my approval or disapproval of a post.
A couple of days ago, I made a biting and sarcastic comment on one of the blogs I follow. The reasoning behind it was all about things that were happening in my area, and I applied the rationale to an instance that was actually happening clear across the nation from where I was located.
I made a generic statement, and coupled a large group in my comment.
Yeah. It was aimed at the gay community.
Because of this, a gay person had to come forward, and complain about my biting and sarcastic remark.
Unknown to this person, I have quite a few Gay and Lesbian friends that I'm actually quite proud to call my friends. The ones that read my comments actually wanted to give me the "high 5" for it, because of the crap that's happening around here.
It's really all a matter of perspective. Someone somewhere doesn't find it funny, yet someone else in another state finds it drop-dead hilarious.
Tomato, tomatoe, really.
So, even with my explanation, I still stand by my comment on that blog. Yes, it's degrading to some extent, yet if I found someone of my ilk doing the same thing, I'd use the samn big-ass brush, and paint us all that color. If you condone the behavior, you might as well get on the bus instead of point a finger.
So, do I think that all gay people are assholes? Only as much as I think all white folks are stuck up, and all black people are angry about their ethnicity. Only as much as I think all American Indians are greedy alcoholics, and Jewish folks are penny-pinching misers.
Get my point?
Good, now get over my smart ass, and just feel free to read.
I'm an ass.
Not just ANY ass, but a sincere ass.
Heck, I'm even "PC" enough to admit that I'm an equal-opportunity asshat. It doesn't matter to me who or what you are, I'll be happy to oblige you with my assholed-ness.
There have been some times where this attitude has gotten me in trouble. Yeah, it doesn't work so well at the workplace, but I've been known to make it work (current job being proof of this!). It doesn't sit well in some social situations. Like when trying to apply for a mortgage, or debt consolidation, or buying a car, etc..
There are times when it's come in EXTREMELY handy. Those annoying telemarketers that seem to know when you're sitting down for dinner with the family, door-to-door salespeople, Jehova's Witness door knockers, Heck, even Mormon door-knockers!
It REALLY doesn't do me any good when I follow folks into a place. The main reason for this is that they then get marked for all of MY hard work. I mean, I'm an ass, but I like to take the credit for my butthole ways. I don't appreciate someone getting all the glory for my behavior. If I go to church with my folks, and I'm an ass, I don't want folks blaming my dad for my actions (as usually happens on the rare time I go to church with my folks). I don't want some waiter thinking that my friend is a jerk when I tell him off for not getting my order right. If I'm an ass to you, don't blame the other person for bringing me. BLAME ME.
Because of this, I want to let folks know that I rarely apologize for my behavior. Sure, you don't deserve treatment like this, but reading about how I chewed out someone else makes for funny reading... Unless you're the one who got the chewing. Then it becomes personal, and personal isn't funny.
I read a TON of blogs. I know there are some out there who read more, but I'm dedicated to a few, and I make comments on them consistently to let them know of my approval or disapproval of a post.
A couple of days ago, I made a biting and sarcastic comment on one of the blogs I follow. The reasoning behind it was all about things that were happening in my area, and I applied the rationale to an instance that was actually happening clear across the nation from where I was located.
I made a generic statement, and coupled a large group in my comment.
Yeah. It was aimed at the gay community.
Because of this, a gay person had to come forward, and complain about my biting and sarcastic remark.
Unknown to this person, I have quite a few Gay and Lesbian friends that I'm actually quite proud to call my friends. The ones that read my comments actually wanted to give me the "high 5" for it, because of the crap that's happening around here.
It's really all a matter of perspective. Someone somewhere doesn't find it funny, yet someone else in another state finds it drop-dead hilarious.
Tomato, tomatoe, really.
So, even with my explanation, I still stand by my comment on that blog. Yes, it's degrading to some extent, yet if I found someone of my ilk doing the same thing, I'd use the samn big-ass brush, and paint us all that color. If you condone the behavior, you might as well get on the bus instead of point a finger.
So, do I think that all gay people are assholes? Only as much as I think all white folks are stuck up, and all black people are angry about their ethnicity. Only as much as I think all American Indians are greedy alcoholics, and Jewish folks are penny-pinching misers.
Get my point?
Good, now get over my smart ass, and just feel free to read.
Thursday, November 6, 2008
It's Thursday!!
I'm on the downhil side of my 4-day work week.
Yeah, yeah, I know, I've got it rough.
Four days, on, three days off.
Granted, it's been slow work here lately, thanks to the economic recession.
Sales have been down over 55% this quarter alone, compared to last year.
This time last year I was working in other departments instead of mine, and I had no say in the matter.
This year? They've ASKED me to stay in my department, and have even asked if I needed someone to help with minor clean-up issues!
I'd say things are quite slow.
So, I'm going to ramble on a bit about some things that have bothered me this last year.
I've been working for this company for over 3 years now. Granted, that's not a lot of time, but in this short amount of time I've noticed a couple of things that really bother me about this place.
One, there is an "Us and Them" kind of relationship that goes on between the management and laborers.
I'm not saying this has to be a close-knit workplace, but there should at least be some kind of barrier breakage going on of some kind.
Right now, if someone were to complain (validly) about a manager, that person making the complaint would be on a timer. When the timer ran out, the employee would be ran out.
No, it's not right, but that's how it is here. Managers can do no wrong, and if there happens to be something that DOES go wrong, it must be because of the failure of an associate.
This type of narrow thinking added fuel to my fire on yesterday's post, as I had to deal with some stupid stuff like that yet again yesterday morning.
Another thing that bothers me? The attendance policy here.
If you show up for work, and do your job, should there really be any problems?
Does it really matter if you clock in not exactly at 4am, but maybe at 4:01 or 4:02 am instead?
Apparently it does.
Yet, by this same instance, I know of management folks who show up HOURS late, and get comlimented on actually showing up at all!
Apples and oranges, I guess.
Then there's other stuff.
Why is it that when you ask for something online, it usually comes with about 17 pages of ADs to fill out for junk you've never wanted, seen, or desired?
Why do they feel the need for you to take a "quick quiz", and then spend over 3/4 of your time skipping and denying "Great savings offers!"??
Why should the companies pay someone for making up a site like that? To be honest, I think that those companies should be paying me for the time I just wasted dealing with their crap, really.
What's the attraction of Reality TV shows?
Who really wants to see that stuff?
Does it make you feel better about yourself that you can see just how much more screwed up some people are, and that they're willing to show it on "Live TV"??
Can you really call it "Live" TV when it still is produced and cut before airing?
I think I'll stop there. My head hurts, and it looks to be a nasty workday today.
Everyone take care, and I'll talk with you all tomorrow!
Yeah, yeah, I know, I've got it rough.
Four days, on, three days off.
Granted, it's been slow work here lately, thanks to the economic recession.
Sales have been down over 55% this quarter alone, compared to last year.
This time last year I was working in other departments instead of mine, and I had no say in the matter.
This year? They've ASKED me to stay in my department, and have even asked if I needed someone to help with minor clean-up issues!
I'd say things are quite slow.
So, I'm going to ramble on a bit about some things that have bothered me this last year.
I've been working for this company for over 3 years now. Granted, that's not a lot of time, but in this short amount of time I've noticed a couple of things that really bother me about this place.
One, there is an "Us and Them" kind of relationship that goes on between the management and laborers.
I'm not saying this has to be a close-knit workplace, but there should at least be some kind of barrier breakage going on of some kind.
Right now, if someone were to complain (validly) about a manager, that person making the complaint would be on a timer. When the timer ran out, the employee would be ran out.
No, it's not right, but that's how it is here. Managers can do no wrong, and if there happens to be something that DOES go wrong, it must be because of the failure of an associate.
This type of narrow thinking added fuel to my fire on yesterday's post, as I had to deal with some stupid stuff like that yet again yesterday morning.
Another thing that bothers me? The attendance policy here.
If you show up for work, and do your job, should there really be any problems?
Does it really matter if you clock in not exactly at 4am, but maybe at 4:01 or 4:02 am instead?
Apparently it does.
Yet, by this same instance, I know of management folks who show up HOURS late, and get comlimented on actually showing up at all!
Apples and oranges, I guess.
Then there's other stuff.
Why is it that when you ask for something online, it usually comes with about 17 pages of ADs to fill out for junk you've never wanted, seen, or desired?
Why do they feel the need for you to take a "quick quiz", and then spend over 3/4 of your time skipping and denying "Great savings offers!"??
Why should the companies pay someone for making up a site like that? To be honest, I think that those companies should be paying me for the time I just wasted dealing with their crap, really.
What's the attraction of Reality TV shows?
Who really wants to see that stuff?
Does it make you feel better about yourself that you can see just how much more screwed up some people are, and that they're willing to show it on "Live TV"??
Can you really call it "Live" TV when it still is produced and cut before airing?
I think I'll stop there. My head hurts, and it looks to be a nasty workday today.
Everyone take care, and I'll talk with you all tomorrow!
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
I think I'm going to run for a political office..
Seriously.
I mean, the whole gist of this election year was basically this:
I can't give a good answer on how I'm going to fix things, but I definitely can't make it any worse than the guy who's in there now!!
If that's the case, I'm definitely going to run.
I mean, that's a gimme for a campaign slogan!
Vote for Jormengrund! He's not the best man for the job, but he'll tell you when he's going to screw you over!
Vote for Jorm! He's going to play with all of your time and cash, but at least he'll get something nice for his wife and kids!
A vote for Jormengrund is a vote for "middle America"! He'll take what you give him, and ask for more!
Really now. These are all winning slogans in my book. In fact, I think I saw something like this just last night!
Oh yeah, that was SNL spoofing about these characters.
Speaking of which..
I'm blaming EVERYONE for our 10 TRILLION in National Debt that we owe!
Why?
Well, if the Republican and Democratic committees can blame specific political figures for being there when it turned into 10 Trillion, then I can also blame you, me, the dog, the fence, and my mailbox for it as well!
Give me a break.
The National Debt has been a problem since well before I was paying attention to political stuff.
Now? Because of some economic crisis, and money problems, the major political parties are pointing the finger at someone, and trying to lay the blame of it on someone else in the "other" party.
Bah.
Grow up, admit that it was the fault of us NOT budgeting the national resources we've got, and spending when we should have been saving.
I mean, courts can foreclose and reposess homes, cars, whatever.
Why can't another country come along and reposess the US for it's default on their national loan?
I'm not saying that I'd like it, but it should be a factor.
Have the UK come back in and say "Sorry old bean, but you've not paid your loans off, and the time has come for them to be due! What's that? You've not got any dosh? Bad form, old boy. Time for you to then give me whatever assets you've got available. That includes real estate. Let's see.. 10 Trillion you say? Yes, I've got just the thing. Give me your entire country, and we'll call it settled, and paid in full!"
I know that I preach to my kids about taking responsibility for their actions.
Now? I think it's really time for our national leaders to do the same.
Seriously.
I mean, the whole gist of this election year was basically this:
I can't give a good answer on how I'm going to fix things, but I definitely can't make it any worse than the guy who's in there now!!
If that's the case, I'm definitely going to run.
I mean, that's a gimme for a campaign slogan!
Vote for Jormengrund! He's not the best man for the job, but he'll tell you when he's going to screw you over!
Vote for Jorm! He's going to play with all of your time and cash, but at least he'll get something nice for his wife and kids!
A vote for Jormengrund is a vote for "middle America"! He'll take what you give him, and ask for more!
Really now. These are all winning slogans in my book. In fact, I think I saw something like this just last night!
Oh yeah, that was SNL spoofing about these characters.
Speaking of which..
I'm blaming EVERYONE for our 10 TRILLION in National Debt that we owe!
Why?
Well, if the Republican and Democratic committees can blame specific political figures for being there when it turned into 10 Trillion, then I can also blame you, me, the dog, the fence, and my mailbox for it as well!
Give me a break.
The National Debt has been a problem since well before I was paying attention to political stuff.
Now? Because of some economic crisis, and money problems, the major political parties are pointing the finger at someone, and trying to lay the blame of it on someone else in the "other" party.
Bah.
Grow up, admit that it was the fault of us NOT budgeting the national resources we've got, and spending when we should have been saving.
I mean, courts can foreclose and reposess homes, cars, whatever.
Why can't another country come along and reposess the US for it's default on their national loan?
I'm not saying that I'd like it, but it should be a factor.
Have the UK come back in and say "Sorry old bean, but you've not paid your loans off, and the time has come for them to be due! What's that? You've not got any dosh? Bad form, old boy. Time for you to then give me whatever assets you've got available. That includes real estate. Let's see.. 10 Trillion you say? Yes, I've got just the thing. Give me your entire country, and we'll call it settled, and paid in full!"
I know that I preach to my kids about taking responsibility for their actions.
Now? I think it's really time for our national leaders to do the same.
Friday, October 31, 2008
Bitching (continued)
Yesterday, once I got home from work, my wife and I had yet another disagreement about my previous posting about the party.
Now, I'm going to come clean with you all.. That "Party" post is almost a complete fabrication..
What I did with that post was to take the small kernels of truth, and then expand them about 20 times from my viewpoint to create the story.
When I said that there was $200 of alcohol? Not so much, but to me? Yeah, it kind of felt that way...
The 10 pages of things to do? Newp. More like 1 or 2 things, but heck, when you're left to do those on your own with an obsessive compulsive person like my wife's expectations to live up to, it might as well be about 10 or 20 things!
Anyway, I think you're getting my drift here.
Now, according to her, the biggest thing that bothered her was what I told you all that she gave me those things to do, ad then went to lay down.
Funny, but that was the truth!
Now, I'm not begrudging her any sleep. Heck, I even encouraged her to take a nap. The self-consious way that she feels about others knowing what she does is what really bothered her about that, to be honest.
Now, we finally agreed yesterday that we were going to drop it, but something near the end of our talk really bothered me, so I'm writing about it.
It was simply this.
She's so concerned about what you readers think about her, that she wanted me to write and explain this entire scenario.
However, when I pointed out to her that she continually fosters these visions of me and my bad habits to her friends, she doesn't think a second thing about it.
Um..
Wait..
Excuse me?
I'm writing to complete strangers about a mostly (80%) fabricated story, and you're bothered about what they think, yet have NO compunctions about going to your friends (WHO WE KNOW!) and talk shit about me and how worthless and lazy I am??
I take back the retraction.
Yes, she gave me a list of things to do, and then she went down to take a nap.
See that as you will. I don't care. But it's the truth.
If she can't face that, then we still have things to talk about.
However, I will put some kind of "spoiler alert" in front of some of my more fabricated stories so that you know when I'm blowing smoke up your ass, or whether I'm talking seriously.
This one?
It's serious.
Sorry for the drama, I'll try to be more chipper on Tuesday.
Have a happy Halloween, and take care this weekend.
I'll talk to you all on Tuesday!
Now, I'm going to come clean with you all.. That "Party" post is almost a complete fabrication..
What I did with that post was to take the small kernels of truth, and then expand them about 20 times from my viewpoint to create the story.
When I said that there was $200 of alcohol? Not so much, but to me? Yeah, it kind of felt that way...
The 10 pages of things to do? Newp. More like 1 or 2 things, but heck, when you're left to do those on your own with an obsessive compulsive person like my wife's expectations to live up to, it might as well be about 10 or 20 things!
Anyway, I think you're getting my drift here.
Now, according to her, the biggest thing that bothered her was what I told you all that she gave me those things to do, ad then went to lay down.
Funny, but that was the truth!
Now, I'm not begrudging her any sleep. Heck, I even encouraged her to take a nap. The self-consious way that she feels about others knowing what she does is what really bothered her about that, to be honest.
Now, we finally agreed yesterday that we were going to drop it, but something near the end of our talk really bothered me, so I'm writing about it.
It was simply this.
She's so concerned about what you readers think about her, that she wanted me to write and explain this entire scenario.
However, when I pointed out to her that she continually fosters these visions of me and my bad habits to her friends, she doesn't think a second thing about it.
Um..
Wait..
Excuse me?
I'm writing to complete strangers about a mostly (80%) fabricated story, and you're bothered about what they think, yet have NO compunctions about going to your friends (WHO WE KNOW!) and talk shit about me and how worthless and lazy I am??
I take back the retraction.
Yes, she gave me a list of things to do, and then she went down to take a nap.
See that as you will. I don't care. But it's the truth.
If she can't face that, then we still have things to talk about.
However, I will put some kind of "spoiler alert" in front of some of my more fabricated stories so that you know when I'm blowing smoke up your ass, or whether I'm talking seriously.
This one?
It's serious.
Sorry for the drama, I'll try to be more chipper on Tuesday.
Have a happy Halloween, and take care this weekend.
I'll talk to you all on Tuesday!
Thursday, October 16, 2008
Here's the question of the day!!
"I cuss like a sailor."
I've often heard this quote, and I wonder where it came from.
Yes, there are some guys who have a wide vulgar vocabulary, and they tend to use it quite frequently. However, does this mean that they're Navy guys??
Nah.
I can cuss it up with the best of 'em. I have also been known to get into a scrap or two because of my mouth, and my attitude.
However, when with company I do tend to behave, and even play nice!
Yes, yes, I know.. Quite a shock to some of you!
The question on my mind is stereotypes. Why are there so many around anymore?
I mean, we've got the bitchy girlfriend, the nagging housewife, the ignorant father, the busybody dad, the nosy neighbor, the clueless teenager, the ditzy blonde..
The list can go on and on and ON!
What is this need we've got to be able to categorize everyone into some kind of stereotype?
Why do we feel the need to file and rank each and every person we meet?
What is it about us that makes us SO competative, that we can't even take someone at face value?
I don't know, but I think I'd like opinions on this one!
Post your ideas, and give me some more ammo for my writing!
I've often heard this quote, and I wonder where it came from.
Yes, there are some guys who have a wide vulgar vocabulary, and they tend to use it quite frequently. However, does this mean that they're Navy guys??
Nah.
I can cuss it up with the best of 'em. I have also been known to get into a scrap or two because of my mouth, and my attitude.
However, when with company I do tend to behave, and even play nice!
Yes, yes, I know.. Quite a shock to some of you!
The question on my mind is stereotypes. Why are there so many around anymore?
I mean, we've got the bitchy girlfriend, the nagging housewife, the ignorant father, the busybody dad, the nosy neighbor, the clueless teenager, the ditzy blonde..
The list can go on and on and ON!
What is this need we've got to be able to categorize everyone into some kind of stereotype?
Why do we feel the need to file and rank each and every person we meet?
What is it about us that makes us SO competative, that we can't even take someone at face value?
I don't know, but I think I'd like opinions on this one!
Post your ideas, and give me some more ammo for my writing!
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