Countdown to Christmas

The countdown to Christmas has begun.  Today I ran outside in celebration of the unusually warm weather (almost 4 miles).  I also managed to cleanup the "mice poop" and bleached the offended area.

As for Christmas, well ... there is a letter to be written.  My printer announced it requires more ink, so that isn't a good sign. 

Christmas cookies - one batch mixed and in the freezer.  Used the last of my "spelt" for these.  Hope to get the date cookies mixed and in the refrigerator before heading out to the Night Before the Night Before gathering. 

I still maintain there is something wrong about taking vacation to accomplish mundane tasks.  Tomorrow is a half day for me, and that is so I can arrive at work midday for to work for about 5 or 6 hours. 

There is a computer "virus" to contend with, cards to address and send, and presents (I know, I promised, but couldn't resist) to wrap.  Hope I get out early on Thursday or the weekend will be miserable.

The reason for the season ... let us not forget.  That will help me keep all in perspective, keep calm, and have a great time with family and friends. 

"There has been only one Christmas - the rest are anniversaries." ~W.J. Cameron

More Poop!

Use your imagination.  Preparing for the annual Christmas cookie baking, you open your cabinet where the flour, sugar, and other ingredients are stored.  Amazed you continue to stare.  Not only are your materials in the area but (are you ready) MOUSE POOP! No wonder the kitties go on full alert when we return to the house.

Not wanting to face the task at hand, I left home for breakfast and stamps.  Critical error - I entered the shop across the street.  My Christmas resolve for no presents was shattered.  Nothing fancy, but "little stuff" to augment my previous decision.  After all, 'tis the season.

I figure with the coming new year I will be at least $125 less in each paycheck.  That will definitely curtail my tendencies toward "impulse" purchases.  But the economy is definitely NOT in recovery and I can see more recessionary times ahead (just ask the CEO of my company - who has dire predictions for next year).  That said, one more fling of the debit card across the counter and out the door I went.

To counter balance my largess, I headed for the local resale shop.  I need jeans to wear to work.  Two pair for a grand total of $6.  Whew!  I feel much better now.  Then off to the grocery to replenish any impacted larder materials.

After a brief respite, my weary legs are ready for the next task.  Kitchen cleaning, laundry, and an adult beverage while contemplating the annual "greeting letter" for those without access to Facebook and this blog (oh, who might that been in my sphere of influence).

"Oh, for the good old days when people would stop Christmas shopping when they ran out of money." ~Author Unknown

Dead Pigeons

Seems like critters are on my mind lately.  First, mice at home and now dead pigeons in the plant.  Reminds me of an old favorite of mine, "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park," by Dr. Demento.  But that is for another day.

This week someone thought they would be clever and put a notice in the plant "incident" system about observing a pigeon acting erratically and then flopping over dead.  When the "management committee" reviewed the incident there were several "cute" comments about the situation and then the leader asked who would be willing to follow up on the report.  I volunteered.

I suggested that I needed to review applicable regulations and permits to ensure the activity was being conducted within the requirements (I had some prior knowledge of such things and could only hope to influence the group in the near future).

For the unenlightened, there are several regulations that are applicable to this activity.  There are regulations that limit the types of poisons for avian purposes.  There are now new requirements related to stowmwater discharges that require notification to the stat related to the type of pesticides being used.  Finally, there is a requirement related to the disposal of said dead pigeons and the certification (or license) of the appropriate individuals.  I guess that will ultimately mean no more putting dead pigeons in the "hot" trash.

Dr. Demento Rocks!  http://dmdb.org/

MICE!

Great weekend at "el hacienda" - with one tiny (and I do mean TINY) exception.  Mouse poop discovered - not only under the kitchen sink, but on top of my storage container in my coat closet.  Guess the little ones are continuing to party in the house while "we" are gone.  Just proves the saying, "while the cats away the mice will play."

So far the Christmas decorations are intact.  Time to pack up and head for work.

"A cat is an example of sophistication minus civilization." ~Author Unknown

Holidays

There are several things that are good about being a blogger, and one of them is being in control of the first photos that are posted. Holidays are a great time to select photos of unsuspecting family members, and this year was no exception.  Unfortunately, this Thanksgiving was not quite what had been anticipated. 

First, there were two "senior citizens" that were supposed to be in attendance.  The first one made it through Thanksgiving Eve, but on Turkey Day called and requested transport to the local hospital.  That did not start the celebration in a positive manner.  

After a few hours in the local establishment, she enjoyed a trip to the "big city" where she was kept over night and given one heart stint the next day.

As for the rest of the clan, it was business as usual - LOTS OF FOOD!  Enough food, in fact, for two full meals (two days in a row) with a gathering of 15 or 20 (more or less - I didn't keep count) each time.  There were still left overs and turkey sandwiches to be had at will.

More interesting is the change (or lack there of) in the group that gathered.  Certainly, there was one less "senior" and the other ate and left (crowds are no longer her thing - and besides by the second evening she was no longer certain what month or holiday it was).  But we ate, drank, visited, and even played cards. 

Then BLACK FRIDAY arrived.  The shoppers headed north, some went to the hospital to check on the patient, the non-shoppers stayed local and picked up a few "deals" and one brave soul (the "non-uncle") became the best adult ever to spend the day with three youngsters.  When they returned Friday night about 9 PM one sleepy little girl was in the "non-uncle's" arms and semi-asleep.  It had been a great day all around.

The one thing the "crowd" didn't do much of was reminisce   Thanksgivings past and other memories were not mentioned. Therefore, this blogger felt compelled to post a couple "memories" for those who attended this year's festivities.  Can you spot the difference?

Holidays are to be cherished - in this modern era they account for the one or two times a year we gather with our families.  It is a sad commentary on our current living arrangements when we are scattered and too busy to stop and spend time.  After all, life is really a fleeting time span and the older we get the faster it seems to pass (I remember the "old folks" when I was young saying stuff like this and now it seems to be true). 

There is another holiday just around the corner.  Another gathering time to be celebrated.  In this person's opinion, the gatherings are the only positive aspect of shortened daylight, end of the year crunches, and the "buying" season. 

"Rejoice with your family in the beautiful land of life!" ~Albert Einstein

Absent

Perfect week to have been out of the plant.  I left for Florida on Monday - early afternoon flight from Campaign with a connection in Chicago.   Made it to the hotel about 9:30 PM Monday night.

Tuesday I found my way to the Clearwater facility and the training room.  My Black Berry didn't work in the room (lead-lined or some such thing), and my computer would not connect to the plant system.  It was afternoon before I learned the the "feds" were in the plant.  US EPA was holding an "unplanned" inspection at the plant. 

By Tuesday evening a series of calls would have one believe that the sky was falling.  Doom and gloom, finger pointing by people at the corporate office whom I have never met, and so forth.  By Wednesday evening all was looking up and by Thursday the "bigger brother" (aka NRC) was in the picture.  Life is good - I was not there for the insanity!

If we have faith, we are protected - in this life and the next.  I am so glad I was protected this past week. 

"Faith is putting all your eggs in God's basket, then counting your blessings before they hatch." ~Ramona C. Carroll

Stress?

What an interesting phenomena "stress" is - raises blood pressure, causes us to become "out of sorts," and generally makes us miserable.  Why do we allow stress into our otherwise harmonious lives?  How do we conquer this malady?

Blood pressure of 177/110.  What a "wake up" call that was.  Wednesday at work was not a good day.  Weekend blood pressure:  117/74 (average of 6 measurements over two days).

Difference - away from the whiners, the people making knee-jerk decisions and not communicating for a "buy in," and not listening to the voice of reason (in other words - people with personal agendas talking over folks wanting a slow down in decison making).  Weekend with kitties, outside walks with neighbors, and recreating my calming environment.

We may not have the ability to remove stress from our lives (and quite honestly, some stress is a good thing - otherwise we are not energized to solve problems and "think outside the box"), but we should have all the tools for coping.  Yoga, breathing deeply, and going to our "happy place."

Today's stressor - high winds.  Plane to catch at 2:20.  Heading to Florida for work.  Good news - get to see my "old friend" (who isn't really "old" - just experienced) and will be able to compare notes, see the "green flash" over the Gulf of Mexico, and eat some fresh sea food. I am looking forward to lower stress.

"You have to leave the city of your comfort and go into the wilderness of your intuition. What you'll discover will be wonderful. What you'll discover is yourself." ~Alan Alda

Mercury

At long last, I am back.  Mercury has had its way with me (particularly lately).
First, the most recent encounter.  I have slogged my company computer around all week and had the pleasure of nagging, limited connectivity with the Internet at home.  Today - problem solved!  The modem appears to have been the culprit.

Now to see if I can mend all ways.  Mom has had increasing difficulty in following conversations and remembering her decisions.  The most telling was when she asked my sister a couple days ago "what happened to the VW?"  The car was a 1971 and was traded on her first Accord in the late 1970s or early 1980s.  Alas.

At least it isn't raining (at least not at the moment).  We have been fairly dry, as exhibited by the browning of the weeds that constitute my "lawn."  Newly planted trees, however, require at least a half wheel barrel of water every weekend.  I hope they make it.

Finally, today the clowns are back on TV.  C-SPAN is almost as much fun as it was during the so-called Obama-care debates.  The name calling never seems to end.  We definitely need to vote all the fools out!  I have enough problems balancing my income and outgo every month, I don't feel I should also be responsible for any more bad debts!  The spend-aholoics are not only inside the family (or ex-family), but are rampant inside the Beltway!

What up American!  (Earl Pitts - radio personallity).

"My kind of loyalty was loyalty to one's country, not to its institutions or its office-holders." ~Mark Twain, A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court, 1889

What a Week!

Pear in Bloom

I suppose the week started last Friday, when we got word that a coworker had died - circumstances remain rather odd.  To make matters worse, he was one of the environmental people, and played a key role in shipping the waste materials out of the plant. 

The environmental superintendent was scheduled to take a class this past week (and I encouraged him to go), leaving me and one contractor in the plant.  The plant is in annual shutdown.  Keeping things interesting.



Salad time

 It was great to go home last weekend and "re-group" from the devastating news.  As you can see, the "kids" were extremely happy to be in their home territory.  We soaked in our environment, mowed grass, walked with neighbors, and tried a "long" run.  By Sunday afternoon the batteries were re-energized and we meandered back toward the Vortex for a week that promised to be full of surprises.

Naturally, the e-mails started flying before I got into the plant.  First, cancellation of Mark's phone and computer.  The funeral had not been held yet.  Great sadness.

Funerals - why do the minsters say, "we are here to celebrate the life of ..." and the service is anything but?  Funerals should be personal and, if a celebration, then do so.  Have appropriate music, great stories, and even an adult beverage or two.  Mark for one would have preferred that type of celebration rather than the sadness that was generated.



Coyote or Fox?



But enough about that.  I have spent time in reflection on the situation this week.  It is true, we each need to be ready every day of our life (but how many of us truly are).  We do not know the length of time we have available to enjoy these surroundings.  We each should attempt to make the most of every day, including the requirement to help one another. 

After scrambling to meet the plant needs last week and discovering systematic issues, I believe I am ready to face the challenges that will present themselves the next few days.  First challenge - a 30-day review of performance issues for the environmental superintendent, who was placed on a "performance improvement plan" at his annual review.  I hope to give him another 30 days; afterall, there already was one opening in the department and now there are two.  One more would not be great at this time. 

I can hardly wait to get back up north this week.  My batteries are definitely getting to the point of recharge required.  Today was Palm Sunday - another day of reflection.  Celebration is tough when you know what is about to happen.  Maybe that is why ministers are so somber when they say, "let's celebrate the life of ... ."   "We" explored the area around the Vortex and uploaded the results to the photos scrolling in the upper right corner of this Blog.  Life is good.

"The joyful news that He is risen does not change the contemporary world. Still before us lie work, discipline, sacrifice. But the fact of Easter gives us the spiritual power to do the work, accept the discipline, and make the sacrifice." ~Henry Knox Sherrill

In Like a Lion

Here it is - April (hard to believe - I skipped an entire month of blogging!).  It is coming in with a VENGEANCE!  The wind has been blowing at more than 30 mph from the south.  I have decided to start back to the Vortex early.  Rather drive while I can see.

The past month has been full of challenges at work as well as in the training world.  Not much training, not much progress toward the needed changes at work.  Bright spot - 3rd in my division in last weekend's 5K (Penguin in the Park). 

Have decided that work challenges are not a result of people wanting to do a good job - but because they keep trying to do my job (and the jobs of others) rather than their own.  Interesting situation.

Vortex continues to be the same.  Still on the market (she really thinks it is worth $124K - HA), and only two showings that I know about.  Flooding on the road to the Vortex finally subsided after almost 5 days.  Ohio still out of its banks in places.  Fort Massaic still flooded in parts.

Plant now in annual shut down.  It should be an interesting month.  Hope to see inside the production unit.  What the heck, after four and a half months it is time to see exactly how we make the "stuff."  I learned about cement the first week I was in the plant.  Strange work environment in the "rabbit hole."

"If we had no winter, the spring would not be so pleasant; if we did not sometimes taste of adversity, prosperity would not be so welcome." ~Anne Bradstreet

The Coyote

Nature is a terrific teacher.  Two weeks ago when I last came home, early on Sunday morning I looked out and saw a beautiful coyote hunting for breakfast.  It was a lonely sight but a lesson in how hard life is on our natural environment and the creatures who inhabit our world.  The coyote criss-crossed the yard, stopping occasionally to listen for potential prey below the snow.  Then wandered off into the neighboring woods.  It was a very chilly morning.

Later that same day I was amazed to see the coyote return.  He or she kept retracting the area looking for small creatures to fill his/her tummy.  Nature requires persistence.  How often do we forget that lesson in our daily lives.   As a sometime participant in longer distance running, I appreciate what it takes to frequently go out, even when you may not feel like it, to try and achieve your goals.  I wish the coyote best of luck.  The winter isn't over and hunger can be a great motivator.

The race is not always to the swift, but to those who keep on running. ~Author unknown, in reference to Ecclesiastes 9:11, "I returned, and saw under the sun, that the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, neither yet bread to the wise, nor yet riches to men of understanding, nor yet favour to men of skill; but time and chance happeneth to them all."

 

The Vortex

I've spoken frequently of "The Vortex" and today I snapped a few photos to post and share with you, dear reader. Unfortunately, the "system" just isn't willing to connect with the full file. I am positing this as a start.

Super Bowl

Perhaps it isn't fair that my all time favorite football team is going to play the final game of professional football for this season and I remain in the "cone of silence" where TV waves pass over and cannot be captured by an antenna.  I have asked about locations where one might watch said game, and have been told to arrive early.  That isn't going to happen.

Snow still captured in the winter vegetation, but there is a promise of 40 degree temperatures.  Perhaps I can bundle up enough for a little outside trianing.  That will perk me up.

I did hear from my neighbors.  Apparently, I made the right decision.  More snow and sleet has landed at my house.  Another several inches - impossible to "shovel" or use the "snow thrower" because of the ice (above and below the snow).  Alas, we can only hope that Phil is correct.

"Pro football is like nuclear warfare. There are no winners, only survivors." ~ Frank Gifford

Madness

Today (Groundhog Day to be precise) could be a beginning after all.  I did look at a small, four-room, two-bedroom house this evening.  I would have walked out until I reminded myself that I only want to rent, not buy the thing.  The application is several pages, and after a quick glance I believe I will leave a few blanks (like income - since the owner/landlord is a co-worker at the plant).

The house is stepping back into history - not only house history but personal history.  It is something that I might have rented as a student, or in the early years of little income.  Built in the late 1930s or early 1940s, the kitchen is the largest room in the building. 

There is an interesting "structure" beneath the floor between the living room and hall.  Apparently, it was some type of "heater" used to warm the house.  I have been told it will be covered over with the "new" carpet.  The current one is a conglomeration of varying shades of "puke green."  Most attractive.

The kitchen is passable.  The refrigerator needs a lot of bleach to bring it around, as does the stove.  I understand that the "unusual" brown, patterned rug will be replaced with linoleum.  Couldn't be any worse.  There is a window air conditioner in the "back bedroom." 

All in all, the price is about right - AND there is a one-car garage thrown in.  Interesting structure as well - the garage is one "building" shared by two houses.  Who am I kidding - this is still the "rabbit hole."  I hope I can qualify.

'But I don't want to go among mad people,' Alice remarked. 'Oh, you can't help that,' said the Cat: 'We're all mad here. I'm mad. You're mad.'  ~ Lewis Carroll (1832 - 1898), Alice in Wonderland

Rabbit Hole(s)

I have been working up to this and now the "time has come, the Walrus said, to speak of many things."  There actually was a time when I was a tad younger that Alice and I were kindred spirits.  In fact, one of my early Toastmaster's talks used many references to "Wonderland."  But that was in a "land far, far away" and a "time long, long ago."

I have decided to blog over the next unknown time frame about my "adventures" since beginning my job in Superman's home town.  There are two parts to this tale - the part related to work and the part related to living in this area.  I hope I can segment the tales in a logical way.  Suffice to say, staying this close to Kentucky can certainly begin to wear on one's mental state (but only if you haven't seen the Caterpillar lately).

The tale's are appropriate - no television, no cell phone coverage, and limited access to the Internet.  How is that for a set up?  Work isn't much better - with one interesting twist.  I am totally BUSY all the time!  That is a new one for me.

Making new friends on a continuous basis - from the environmental folks at the state to the Russian in the plant (yes - she has a PhD in physics and has been here for at least five years).  There are unknown forces in play as well - corporate folks (too many to mention at this juncture), lawyers, and the plant people (including the "whistle blower" who still comes in every day and has access to information within the company - amazing).

But I hope not to get ahead of myself.  Logic (such as it is here "Beyond the Looking Glass") is sometimes in very short supply.  People are very friendly, if not plant like (such as in the Day of the Triffids - one of the few Sci/Fi books I know my dad read), or perhaps more akin to the Stepford Wives. 

Just too much to really think about right now.  But believe me, I intend to unfold the tale(s) in as orderly a fashion as I can (before the influence of this votex takes complete hold of my mental facalties).  That said, I shall ...

"Begin at the beginning and go on till you come to the end; then stop." ~Lewis Carrol, Alice in Wonderland