Harry Potter with an interesting twist

imgur link

Ok after reading this is kind of adds a potential interesting twist to the end as this part is never resolved. Now I haven't had a chance to do any fact checking on the statements of prophecy yet but a good quick read anyway.

Writing

Well I killed my facebook account a few weeks ago thinking that it would actually make me write more here instead of there.  That was a mistake.

Here is the updates that I guess have been missing: Youngest started crawling out of his crib and last Friday didn't get to sleep until after 23:00 because he kept doing it thinking it was fun.  Our solution to that was to convert his crib to a low bed for him to sleep in.  Problem solved no more kids falling out of cribs.  Now if he would just stay in bed that would be also awesome.

I have come to the conclusion that I'm no longer engaged at work and really just feel like a robot going through the motions.  I don't care about the company as a whole or anything else really I just do my job and make people happy.  I am hating the commute more and more with each passing month so I will be happy when I find something new .... If I ever find a job that I might like.  I'm getting tired of only finding first level support positions available and nothing else.  Just means when I start looking it just gets more depressing.

I think because of the the above two reasons I can honestly say I fall under "clinical exhaustion".  Not like I ever had a great memory but now I can't remember anything past a few days ago and even then it is iffy.  After getting a good night's sleep I'm still tired and have a hard time functioning three or four hours after I wake up, might be part of the reason for my lack of engagement at work.  I'm doing my best trying to get to bed early but it is hard when Youngest is always up causing problems.

I need a new job.  This one is slowly draining me and filling me with nothing.  So for the past three years while I have been job hunting I have had a single interview and after that I found out that they were shelving the job because they wanted someone more junior for the role.  I felt sorry for everyone that took part.  Hiring someone is a long process and that wasted everyone's time.  So to those that get rejection letters for your applications feel happy that someone even notices you because for the past three years no one really has for me.

It's been a while....

....since I started working here.  I admit it the job is easy and the pay is ok but it kills me none-the-less.  A 90 minute commute each way was fine for the start.  In theory it was intended to be a four week contract that started in October and I was rolled over to full time in the following February.  I was happy I got the full time job because it was my first in five year, opposed to contract work.  Then the years started to go on and my second son was born.  As we happily agreed I took the second half of the one year we could share off.

Things changed .... A lot of things changed.  I realized after being off for a little over 6 months that this job was killing me more than I realized.  I was looking for a new job while I was off as I did have fragments of time to look while youngest was sleeping but nothing ever came to light.  I found I could either try to be a VP, not likely with my resume, or I could get an entry level position at a new place of work, not likely because my salary would be less than half of what I make now.

The beginning of this week marks my fourth year with this company.  It marks three years of me trying to get out for something closer to home and failing.  It almost marks, three weeks away now, my one year return from leave.  I feel that all my work over the past three years and only fetching one interview means I'm staying here for life.

A life that is slowly killing me in my 90 minute commute.  A life that is wearing me down faster than I should have to accept.  A life where even though I'm damn good at my job no one around seems to see value in my work.

So I'm forgetful

I had completely forgotten about my blog until someone pointed it out to me.  Actually a couple of people did.  So I think I'll work on posting frequently again not out of respect for my friends that found it but in hopes that I will find this as a platform to vent out my stray thoughts and start to get reality sorted out again.

Now since my last posting naturally a whole lot of stuff has happened.  Let's see I have had a second son born.  Bought a new car, a Volkswagen Jetta TDI, which I'm still in love driving.  Found a new game to play on ArmorGames called Wartune.

In Wartune I have found a friendly guild with great people.  Those friends mentioned above would be Guild Master Arcanu and Kefir!

I'm really not sure what to say beyond that as I'm still having my head as a mess of thoughts.  Anyway for those friends of years past if you are still reading I hope you will continue coming back as I should now be posting a little more often.

Whooping Cough no more!

So about a month ago where Baby E goes for day care there was a confirmed diagnosis of Whooping Cough. Last week I came down with a severe cough and feared that it might be whooping so I have been working from home. Well I just got back from the doctor's and it is her opinion that it is just an acute case of bronchitis that I had poorly timed with the possible onset of whooping. Well with a clean bill of health I will be headed back to the office tomorrow and reconnect with the people there.

For as great as it was to be able to work from home, sleep in an extra two hours, 30 second commute vs. 75 minutes, PJ ware vs. business casual, there are definitely aspects of actually being in the office that I miss. One of those things is the interaction with other people, especially those I'm trying to help. Somewhere along the way it all kind of gets disjointed and work becomes work and not the fun that it is in the office. Well tomorrow at lunch I get to pick up some drugs for myself and baby, same thing actually just different dosages, over lunch and try to have a nice and relaxing day.

Shopping for something ....

I need some INSIGHT about a small thing. I'm looking for something SWIFT but still something suitable for a CIVIC minded guy like me. I was thinking something like an INTREPID EXPLORER that could cover both TOWN & COUNTRY from the YUKON to MONTANA but that kind of EXCURSION doesn't seem to suit me. Can anyone help me come to an ACCORD? I'm not looking for it now but maybe after the next EQUINOX or the one after. Please send me your TORRENT of answers if you have any suggestions for me. All I know is that I don't need anything large because I don't GOLF. Perhaps I just need a little international flare with a FUSION of something else for a hybrid answer.
(Some days I think I'm just too funny)

Seriously a good sedan is what I'm looking for and if it drinks more than 6.0L/100KM I'm not interested. I'm thinking the Honda Civic Hybrid or the VW Jetta TDI any other suggestions? Companies I should look at or some that I should avoid?

New fridge

We purchased a new fridge last week and they said it would take about three weeks before it would be deliverable. Well it seems that time doesn't flow normally in the delivery world and we have our new fridge plugged in and going. Some great features of the new fridge:
- It isn't 27 years old
- It has a built in ice maker
- It dispenses filtered water
- It is close to 50% more space
- The logical arrangement means we can get a wine bottle in there
- It's new!
- As there is a 27 year difference we expect a significant drop in our hydro bill

Other things that happened this weekend that are equally cool. My parents came down to help with stuff around the house, including:
- Did the gardening (Tilled area, planted tomatoes, squash, zucchini, peas, green beans, watermelon, strawberries, raspberries, basil, oregano, pansys, snap dragons, some others)
- Installed dual flush toilet
- Strung wiring for network in the house
- Installed some insulation in basement
- Ate very well
- Cut the grass
- Installed two light switches
- Killed tent worms (Five infestations)
- And some other stuff

Really I had a killer weekend and I'm ready for bed now.

Yea!

Oh my gosh! Fallout: New Vegas is coming out later this year! Drool I can't wait. Check out the trailer here

Oh ya I'm off contract now and working full time. Mom and dad want to come over and help us with the basement?

To all my librarian friends

Slashdot pulled up an interesting article that might resonate with those that also keep track of the MPAA/RIAA groups.

The part that I find really funny about all of this is the fact that no one has brought this up before as a major issue. Above all the problem is redistribution of CDs and DVDs.

Well back to my FREE media sources to keep track of what is happening in the world.

Christmas

Well another successful Christmas has come and gone. My family had both sides get together over the past week and we did the usual Christmas Eve dinner and Midnight Mass thing as well. Over all everyone involved had a great time.

The funniest thing post Christmas was trying out the new Wii Fit. It seems to think that I'm fat and old. I do know that over the past little while I have put on some weight but I blame my current employer for that.

To everyone out there I wish you all a great New Year's celebration and see you all in 2010.

Fun times

Well as Bubbles and I noticed the furnace wasn't acting up to par over the past little while. The heat exchanger was popping and creaking when the furnace turned on. Heat output on the second floor was marginal at best and when the heat did come up it was only on for a few seconds before the furnace turned off again.

With all that we decided that we needed a new one. This was the plan but it was next year's plan not this years :( Anyway we got the new one installed yesterday, along with a new water heater, and everything is going along just fine. The house is a more normal temperature and better regulated cycle to cycle. Tomorrow's experiment will be if I actually drain the hot water tank when I take a shower, I could with the old one and it was only for half an hour.

Before everyone is up in arms about "Why not get them fixed?" it should be noted that both were house original pieces which dated them at about 26 years of age. Both have had their due and could be replaced without shame. Besides you can't get parts for a "Clare" furnace any more.

Somehow this seems right

Well most of it at least. Maybe not the donkey but the rest does. C-A-D you kill me sometimes. Anyone else think that it is true to life?

Funny in a painful way

Now most people know that I have a wild talent for injuring myself on broad/blunt/simple things. Well I managed to really wound myself yesterday with something that I figured was unimaginable. This actually tops my lemon burn. Yesterday I was pulling apart a cabbage leaf by leaf and low and behold I managed to wound myself under my thumb to the point of bleeding.

Does this make it a new high or low for me?

Final destination

We got Five's ashes back yesterday and found a surprising thing in there as well. They took a clay footprint of him before the cremation. It was sweet and something I will hold onto for a long time.

Final Journey

Well today when I came home after a long day out of the house I found that Five had about every symptom to look for when deciding when to put him down. His eye had so much goop in it there were bubbles forming. His back end wasn't walking the same path that the front end was walking. He hadn't cleaned his paws or his body since walking in the rain hours before hand. All of that made both my wife and I decide that now would be the best time to put him down.

I found an animal hospital that was open that could do the job so I packed Five up for the last time and took him away. The process was quick and painless from what I could see and I held his head until well after the fact. Now he is taking a journey that has no return and I hope he finds his paradise along that path.

For now I'll be thinking about him while trying to juggle a new born baby. Oh what conflicted times.

Fading Five

Most of you know what is going on in my personal life so no point recapping that except that photos will be coming soon.

Anyway Five is starting to fade faster than I thought he would. It looks like the problems have spread to his left eye and maybe his spinal cord. He has problems walking sometimes and going up and down stairs. Rarely right now his back end doesn't follow the front end when it is going places. He gave his head a shake like he had water on his head and the back end almost fell flat on the ground.

His condition is distinctly more troubled than it was, especially since last Friday.

Where's Waldo

Actually it is closer to "Where is Five"? but he hides so well. The funny part is watching him watch squirrels wander by and not do anything. Silly kitty.

Five's new activities

Well over the past week Five has been more and more cat like outside. His hunting skills are improving enough that this morning he actually caught something. You know those large bugs that look like mosquitoes but are about two inches in size? Well he caught one today, then promptly ate it. This is a vast improvement on just sitting there and staring at the world going by.

He hasn't clued in about defending his territory against squirrels though. I saw three of them in the yard and wondered where Five was. When I looked down I got my answer.

After the specialist

Well we visited the cancer specialist and the short version is he has two months to live if we do nothing. If we put him on prednisone it will add two more months and if we give him chemotherapy that will give him an extra four months. All of that is considering if he fell in the average. Prednisone is only a couple of hundred dollars and mostly covered by insurance while we don't think that chemotherapy is covered at all and is ~$5 100.

Needless to say that sometime between Christmas and my birthday Five will pass away and there isn't much that can be done about that. In the mean time I will be keeping everyone up to date about what is going on with him and posting pictures when I have a chance so we can all remember the crazy beast.

Health update

Well we are off to see the specialist tonight at 19:00 to see what, if anything, can be done for Five.

The good news is currently he doesn't seem to be in chronic pain. He has been outside recently, off leash, hunting, poorly, the local wild life. The best he has managed to do is be half the yard away when his intended pray flees. The only painful part for him from what I can tell is going up and down stairs. This isn't too surprising right now as his kidneys keep getting in the way when he climbs.

Five is eating less these days and having a few issues going to the bathroom. His bladder isn't suffering any at least.

Aside from that he is still acting Five-ish and all is going well for now.