Working at home rocks!

Well, we got cooler weather..but I haven't cycled a lot more. We have been doing a weekend 20-25mile ride in the mornings. The plan was to ride a couple of 15milers during the week after work but we have been getting a lot of rain in the evenings. Now, not that I'm afraid of rain (anyone from the West Coast of Scotland can deal with that wet stuff) ...it's the hail and lightning that puts me off. So when I see the dark clouds and hear the tornado warnings I get a glass of wine and plan a slightly different evening.

Did I say that working at home rocks! Working at home rocks! I love it! I love it!
I don't have to iron clothes for work, I don't have to buy expensive office clothes (or shoes). I do shower every morning unlike the stories you hear, and I do get dressed. What I like is sitting in my comfortable purple home office and starting work at 7:30am without having to drive somewhere. What I like is taking a 30min lunch break in my garden watching the birds in the feeder and enjoying the flowers. What I like is being able to work without distractions, being oh-so-more productive and being able to stop at 5pm with my tasks complete and the feeling I earned my keep today.

Hot Head

Cycled 14 miles on Saturday and 20 on Sunday. Both were fun rides on the bike path near Parker; first half up hill, last half downhill. The weather is damn hot these days, this week it's going to be in the 90s which is not good for me as I do not cope too well after 85. I have the same problem as my brother...when we exercise in heat our heads get red, not pink or slightly flushed, but very very red. I'm looking forward to cooler weather.

Tired

This week I'm on vacation due to a forced shutdown, so my next paycheck will be tiny; the good and bad of being a contractor, I guess (I'm just happy to still be working there). I had a lot of plans to get so much done this week - study for the PMP certification, finish the mosaic coasters and stained glass candle holders in the basement then tidy up the basement. It's Wednesday already and I'm getting good at Freecell on my Palm :-/

I'm tired these days. On Saturday we went on a 48 mile bike ride, it was pretty good and our overall average speed was almost 15mph. The only downer was the heat; I got a little dehydrated and took a lot longer to recover. On Monday we went riding with a friend who is training for a triathlon. The riding part was on a very straight road with undulating hills; 30mph followed by 6mph, then 30mph, then back to 6mph. We only did 12 miles at an average of 13mph. The MS150 is this coming week and I don't think I'll ride again until then as I think my poor old body needs a break.

Pet Peeve

Where did "funner" come from? It's not a word.
I am starting to hear it a lot...just now someone on the Today Show described a fashion element as "funner", I could not believe it. Don't they have educated grammatically correct presenters? But I'm an alien, so I thought I'd check just to be sure.
Fun, funny, funnier...there's no funner -- not even in the American dictionary.
So don't use it!
If something is better or funnier it is more fun !
Okay, now I feel better.

Hmmmm

So the rumors are flying that all contractors will probably be released at the end of the month - suck!
They are going through a reorganization and it looks likely that the group I am in will be moved to work under a woman who does not like contractors. I can understand that. I good manager should protect their employees at the expense of contract employees...the problem is there is enough work for all of us. I have no idea how they will cope if they lay off 20 PMs.

Today has been a gloomy day, it has rained almost all day and not helped with my frame of mind. Even the job postings look bleak...where is this economic recovery everyone keeps talking about?

Garlic

So the S.O. came down with Strep last week, probably got it from the kids he teaches. The doctor said I should just go and get antibiotics immediately. Well, I have a problem with that. 1. I hadn't actually got a sore throat, and 2. That's the kind of stuff that breeds resistance. So, this week I decided that I was not going to get Strep throat if it killed me (so to speak). I did the garlic and honey diet to fend off nasty bacteria. Honey is not much of a problem; the fact it is metabolized directly to fat is not good, but it's not unsociable - garlic, however is. I am told I have been extremely unsociable the last two days. I cannot smell a thing, but I have slept incredibly well on my own the last two nights, even the cats stayed away from me. I think today I will try and find some of that garlic that is not supposed to smell, staying away from people is difficult.

Santa Fe

We went to Santa Fe last week, I hadn't been there in years, but it hadn't changed much. Still the same old tourist shops and art galleries. This time we stayed at the Inn of the Governors. The place was comfortable and they had sherry in the evenings. Our room had a wonderful shady patio outside. I sat out one evening and drank a couple..or three glasses of some very nice red wine. I had to cut myself off when I was overcome with an urge to weed the little shoots growing between the pavers.

This time I couldn't get into the jewelry...I really wanted to. I really wanted to buy a new watch. Years ago I bought a silver-inlay watch and wanted to buy another one. Everything looked the same as I remember, but I didn't want to buy something similar....I have evolved since then and wanted something to match the older and wiser me.

I did see a metal table and mirror in Taos that I wanted...I just don't have the cash and can't seem to bring myself to use a credit card these days - I guess that's not a bad thing :-)

Another Year Older

The number is now surreal.
How did I get to be this old?
What am I doing trapped inside this aging body....

Working from home - oh yes!

It's official I will be working from home, yeeeehaa!
They are shuffling people around at work and there is no space allocated for contractors. That's fine, I like my office and didn't want to move to cube-space anyway. Working fron home is definitely okay with me, though I will miss the interaction with people in my work area, I will not miss the drive and look forward to the extra hours at home with the cats.

A bunch of my courses released last week, including the one where I did some voice over. I spoke as slow as I could and I still sounded too fast in places. Somehow, I don't think the local talent agencies will be rushing to sign me up!

I got a hand-me-down 128 meg digi card for my new PDA :-) Well I thought it was worth a mention here. I'm filling it with photos of Butch and Ella (my babies).

It's May already, I'll soon be another year older...

To PDA or not to PDA

I bought a Zire 71 yesterday :-)
I think the upgrade, 72 is due to be released today. I toyed with the idea of waiting and decided to save the $100 and get the older version. My hope is that this will keep me happy until the Treo 610 comes out and the price drops to something that won't make me wet my pants.

The usual stuff....
* The kittens are cats
* I'm learning "Time" for PMP
* I'm 10lbs from my goal :-(
* I cycled 15 miles last night :-)
* My 7 projects release the end of this week