June went by in a blur- I started a couple of posts, but really didn't hit either blog- too much chaos both at work and at home.

My father sent me some more pictures of the yard at the house in Brigham City, which I've added to my albums.  I'm planning on visiting before too awful much more time elapses, and when I do, maybe we'll get some stuff slapped on that grill he says is for company.  Now I may be family, but I think I still count as company!  The flowers are clearly doing well, and I think the yard looks scrumptious- there's still some painting going on, and if it takes long enough, maybe I can contribute my meager bit to the home improvement effort!

Still in the Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries

Well, as I note in my book list, I finished Stevenson's "The Master of Ballantrae" during June.  Actually, I think that's early twentieth century (have to check the dates again), but the story is set firmly in the eighteenth.  I was really enjoying the journeying through early colonial New York, since I was born and raised in the general vicinity (actually a hundred miles away, but I drove through and traveled there often enough) of the areas where the final actions take place.  I like the idea that even though adultery and sibling rivalry to the point of fratricide are the core subjects the sensibilities of that era dictate that I don't need to be buried in the intimate details of those things.  I quite got the picture without having it shoved forcibly into my mind (which seems to be the modern norm for such subjects, at least in popular entertainments I occasionally subject myself to).

My current nighttime read (one I'm not progressing well on because I've usually pushed myself to the point where I'm dozing off even as I read) is an Easton Press edition of Thomas Paine's treatises on "The Rights Of Man"- also in the eighteenth century.  I should also dig up "Common Sense"- I'm sure I've got it somewhere- but boy was he a rabble-rouser.  But even last night I was seeing him mention what were attempts to establish a supranational body the likes of a United Nations or at least European Union in the early seventeenth century (by the extant French monarch sometime about 1610, IIRC).  Times like that I realize I could use a few good history refreshers (I had an 800 ["perfect"] on my American History achievement test [part of the SAT suites], but let's face it, even that was almost 40 years ago).

One can find Paine's enthusiasm and occasionally overly idealistic view of the world on campuses and political activist organizations world wide, I'm sure.  But it's good to try to understand roots, and reading these is a step- particularly with a hotly contested presidential election coming up.

Snafu

Well, I was supposed to get a colonoscopy earlier this week.  Fretted about finding everything, worried about all the side effects, etc.  Made arrangements for the time off, took the prescribed laxatives, and dealt with the consequences.  Then it occurred to me to call on my escort (because anesthesia is involved, I couldn't go alone- since I have no close friends or nearby adult family [at least that I could ask for favors of this sort], that's not easily done for me).  Found out that I hadn't made the need clear, that I had no way to get there other than to get a cab (and the time was too short for that to be feasible)- there were other complications as well, but end result was I canceled at the last minute.

Well, I rescheduled it, and I now know I don't need to fear the prep- I routinely go without solid food for that long just out of occasional bouts of laziness, and the rest wasn't a real problem either.  Dad says he's had several and there's really nothing to them- so I think I'll just be a little more considerate next time around and make sure ALL of the plans are in place before I commit another blunder of that sort.

Flotsam and Jetsam

• Melissa's making great progress in driver training.  Earlier tonight she interviewed me about my experiences as a licensed motorcyclist [I added a cautionary tale about dealing with a motorcycle accident from my days assisting the local emergency medical technicians when I was a volunteer firefighter in East Maine, NY].  She is also of course, still playing lots and lots of WOW and not much else.
• Got to the end of Lost Odyssey and decided to play it most of the way through again [but I've picked up a couple more and should pop them in soon].  I really liked it and it also happens to be my highest achievement score in any game yet.
• Hope to get my next car soon- I'll be breaking several of my traditions because I want Melissa to be able to drive it and also to use it for my trips to Utah- so I'll have air conditioning, a decent sound system, and an automatic transmission (cruise control too if it won't blow me out of the cash I've saved up for it).  I don't add hard assets to my net worth, so that number will take a beating (exacerbated by the recent market meltdowns)- c'est la vie.
• Per doctor's recommendation, I've been trying to follow something resembling the South Beach Diet.  I do pretty well most of the time, but I swear there are times when I would consider killing for a potato chip!  Where I've failed miserably is the recommendation to get some exercise.  I should walk to work, but I went in today at 1 AM, and will probably go back after I post this- I'm not comfortable walking that far by myself, even in Redmond, at that time of night.  Can't think Microsoft's Campus security would be fond of the idea, either...

Well, my father just sent me some more photos of the yard, and it shows just how hard and how well he and my mother have been working at it.  I added them to the main album above- "Flowers and spruced up yard at the Utah homestead".  It's not too long now before I make my annual pilgrimage out to see everyone in person- this certainly says I'll have an attractive place to stay!

The most recent post on my MSDN blog I entitled Passion and Persistence- trying to describe why I would voluntarily work (for free, no less) almost all the way through a three-day holiday weekend.  Well, my father's example has been a big part of that.  Most of my young life was spent at our home on East Maine Road in the township of Maine, Broome County, New York.  We had several acres (might have been about 9, but I could be wrong after all these years) and I remember mowing an acre or more of it regularly, raising (at various times) ducks, chickens, turkeys, Cornish game fowl, and rabbits [not to mention an occasional dog or cat].  We usually had a sizable vegetable garden- corn, peas, beans, potatoes, carrots, beets, lettuce, radishes, Brussels sprouts, broccoli, asparagus, peanuts, onions, watermelon, squash of several varieties, and I'm sure I forgot a few.  We also had fruit trees- apples and peaches at least, tried our hands a few times at spruce trees (for Christmas trees), and did a lot of clearing and other forms of work.  On a separate piece of property we also raised more crops of that sort, and also strawberries.  When I got older we did a lot of cutting and splitting of firewood- often local landowners would harvest older growth on their land, and we would come in and cut up the "tops" which weren't suitable for lumber.  We were always busy [and not always too happy about it], but Dad was even busier [not that we always observed that very well].

Now some of that was perhaps driven by a sense of necessity- we had a large family, and while my father was [eventually] an engineer, he had no college education, and an IBM engineer's pay wasn't what it later became [nothing like what I receive as a software engineer, even with inflation adjustments].  But I also think we got all that work because he felt it was good for us [whether we thought so or not].  On the whole, I'd have to say he was right.  Even then we often enjoyed it, at least at times...

So, in my case, I work hard, and I get to see my ideas become a reality, and have others in my team see them in action, and get positive feedback that I made things better with that extra bit of work.  In my Dad's case, we have some beautiful photos of a well-kept yard I can post for people to enjoy.  It may seem trite or trivial, but sometimes the work is its own reward- but it usually carries a lot of these side benefits as well.  Hope others can enjoy the photos as much as I have!

Perhaps I should save this post for Father's Day----- nahh, that would be too much like planning ahead!

Well, I just got Dad's latest photos up, and they look good to me.  He works really hard on the old homestead, and it sure shows- things look great there!  As I went through Safeway this afternoon, I just couldn't drum up much enthusiasm for my usual pre-prepared fare, so I've got yet another pot of Beef Stew a-brewing.  I can already smell the veggies simmering.  Stuck to much of the normal set of ingredients- beef, of course, taters (red this time, add a bit of color, maybe), 'shrooms, carrots and celery, some minced onions and a bit of garlic salt and a dash of chili powder [also some store bought stew seasoning mix and a little beef bouillon, since I make more than the packet is really supposed to be for).  My big experiment this time?  Two Serrano peppers of middlin' size.  Hope they don't overwhelm the rest the way the jalapenos did when I tried them (but I think I used more and bigger at that time)!!!

Straight comfort food- smells comforting, tastes comforting (so far- after all, when you stir it, you might as well haves a taste!), not all that much work- and it'll take me two or three days to finish it- by which time it will really be down to gooey goodness.  Many of my brothers-in-law are rather decent cooks- I'm not close to their league- but thanks to Ms Ray and a few other occasional peeks at the Food Network, I can at least fend a bit for myself from time to time.

One of the presidential candidates is bloviating on the telly at the moment- so I'm going to cut this short and go check out more of my recordings or maybe take a few more swings at them wild critters in the Ipsilon Mountains.  My rate at getting "Perfect" on the ring system is improving, but I'm far from scoring any of THOSE achievements...

Didn't mention Melissa passed her written exam last month and now has her learner's permit.  Don't think she's ready for a manual transmission just yet, though- so Mom's going to be the one doing most of the training, I suspect.  Still she ought to do OK [assuming she realizes that all the stuff she does in games is strictly forbiddden by the rules of the road, which I'm sure she does since she got something like 95% correct the first time through].

Time to go stir that simmering pot, again, and sneak me another taste!  Have fun, y'all!

It's been a very long time since I updated this blog- April was a terribly busy month, although it had its rewards when all was said and done.  I received a pleasant surprise at work (of the sort one can't discuss publicly, though), and Melissa decided a few times to spend some time playing Halo with Papa again, so all in all, it was worth it.

I've returned to my literary pursuits, but not devoting a lot of time to it.  My next book (well underway, but we'll see how long it takes me to finish) is Robert Louis Stevenson's Master of Ballantrae, purportedly one of his favorites.  I hadn't known (or at least recalled) prior to reading some of the introductory material that Stevenson was a Scot living in exile [self-imposed as far as I can tell].  The dialog is full of transcribed heavy Scottish dialog, and that has slowed things a bit- but after all, it adds to the flavor of the tale, and is much enjoyed.

I finally did something I should have done long ago, given my age- I went to visit the doctor for a full physical.  I've got a colonoscopy coming (just being careful, given the family history), and it appears the doctor wants to discuss treatment for some borderline to bad cholesterol readings.  But given that it's been many years since I had a physical (probably decades), I decided that isn't too bad.

My father sent me some pictures of the house in Utah- flowers and yard shots, but I've always been partial to posies, so I'll probably post the lot of 'em after I get home today [yes, I'm working on the Sabbath- but Melissa was home Saturday, and I hate to leave her alone when I have such little time with her, and I did have a lot to get done this weekend].

I've begun playing Lost Odyssey.  Grand Theft Auto IV I just can't bring myself to go with, even though there are aspects of the gameplay I'd find attractive [I don't like to play the bad guys, ever, and you can call it gritty or whatever, I'm not going to buy it].  The game I'm playing is OK, but after Oblivion, environments where I can't just go wherever I want to seem stifling somehow.  I think I'm fighting the final boss on the first disk- had my butt kicked soundly many times- so I've gone back and been levelling up to see if I can get past it.  Time will tell if I make it, or just give up and retry Oblivion (I'll have to start a new character, as my previous save is so locked up I can't use it- doors won't open, flames don't burn, just badly hosed] or Mass Effect [where I downloaded the add-on, but have never tried it].

Enough babbling for now- check in that test code I've finally got cleaned up, go get some groceries, head for home to either watch some recorded TV or play something [should probably add I've been at Civ III much and much this last month as well]...

L8r.

I took most of the last week off as vacation time.  The exceptions bracketed the time, I suppose- Monday I went in early in the morning (like 2 or 3 AM early) to finish up some work I'd intended to do the previous weekend, but hadn't because I had thought my daughter would not be visiting and it turned out she was.  Monday evening, I went in again to help one of our contract engineers with a DSF problem [which in the end turned out to be a test driver problem, not DSF] I'd promised to help her with [before I'd fully decided I'd gone too long without a vacation].  Friday I went in because my lead had sent me a message saying we weren't able to run a test pass because the appropriate binaries were no longer available [we have to retest earlier releases before service packs and many QFEs can go out, so old tests have to be available for quite a while].  So I went in, found the code, and built them all in the morning so they'd be available that day.

The rest of the time I just hung around the apartment.  Cleaned up parts of it.  Played some of my usual extremely long games of Civilization III and later Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri.  Hardly touched the XBox, except for a few rounds of Bejeweled.  Made some more Beef Stew- this time I tossed in some sliced mushrooms and even a bit of jalapeno pepper [Melissa doesn't much care for either, but she wasn't around].  Stayed up until morning, and slept all day.  Caught up quite a bit on shows I had recorded but not watched [still have to start in on Witchblade and Speed Grapher, though].  Paid a few bills.  Didn't see anyone, didn't go anywhere except to get food and my mail [and to renew my lease].

I thought about work quite a bit [that's a big part of my life, so it's unavoidable], but there was no pressure to act [until Friday- I finally gave in then]- but it was close- there have been plenty of things going on there, and I did check my email pretty regularly.

But when I went in Friday morning, I bounded up the two flights of stairs to my office- scurried into the kitchen, waited impatiently for the coffee machine to brew that perfect cup [I'm getting better at adding cream and sugar while it's brewing to make better use of the wait time], grabbed a soda and hurried back.  A far cry from the previous Friday and so many before that where I had to push myself to do anything, and moved in some sort of fog, and anything but quickly.

R&R- it works- so the time off was a good idea no matter what I missed while I was gone.

Furthermore- I'm sure now that retirement and I will get along just fine- if I survive physically and financially to see it, anyway.  Less than 9 years to minimum Social Security age, 13 to my age for "full" benefits, and 17 for the "maximum" ones.  Of course, my Dad was already retired by my age, so I suppose I'm behind schedule, there.

Something to dream about and hope for, anyway.  In the meantime, there's college and those early adult years [when there is usually some need for help] for Melissa, and a few more years of career [not that I care to think of it as such- the term has always seemed ostentatious and supercilious to me- I prefer to just call it a job] left.

Hopefully those years will include a few more of my "didn't do a damned thing, and had an absolutely wonderful time doing it, thank you" vacations.