made it back home a bit ago.
Long driving for the past four days.
I'll be writing stories and posting pictures of our trip to Disney World in the next few days.
Right now I have a headache, and need to sit in quietly.
Tuesday, June 21, 2005
Saturday, June 18, 2005
Don't embarrass your family, part 2.
We are driving down the highway. We have been on vacation for about an hour and Cari looks at me.
I was expecting something like, "I love you." or "we're going to have a great time this week.".
But what I got was,
"Can you stop sounding like a redneck while we are on our trip?"
I was expecting something like, "I love you." or "we're going to have a great time this week.".
But what I got was,
"Can you stop sounding like a redneck while we are on our trip?"
Tuesday, June 14, 2005
McKinney Chapel
McKinney Chapel, 1891
Up in the mountains, away from town, sits McKinney Chapel. When you enter the small church, you leave behind 2005.
The wooden floors creak as you walk toward the front. On either side, rows of wooden pews line the building. The white paint is peeling from the pine board walls. A small piano sits in the front left corner. There is a curved railing that separates the raised pulpit from the rest of the room. Behind the pulpit, with purple glass windows on each side, hangs a depiction of the Last Supper.
A small cemetery sits on the hill to the left of the building. I imagine a time, in the 1800's, when people would gather here. Along with the piano, our songs fill the building. The pastor gives us his sermon, and we pray in silence.
That's what has been happening here, for over one hundred years.
Sunday, June 12, 2005
Telephone
I do not like to talk on the phone. I am on the phone all day at work, and when I get home, I don't even want to hear the phone ring.
Cari really takes good care of me when it comes to this. She will ask who it is asking for me, and then she will make the decision if they need to talk to me or not. She doesn't come in and ask if I want to talk to the guy from the newspaper, she just knows to get rid of him.
Cari also knows that I will not answer the phone. She is not so thrilled about this at times. I can be sitting next to the phone. I mean, so close, my finger is touching it. It starts ringing and I will not budge. That phone will not get answered. At least not until Cari gets up and walks across the room to answer it.
Answering the phone at home used to be a much bigger deal to me. I would stop what I was doing. Then I would run across the house. Then I would dig around, hunting for the phone, and answer it. After all that, it would be a guy selling me something. Man, I would get upset.
To resolve that, I did two things.
#1. added our phone number to the national do-not call registry. This makes a HUGE difference in the number of calls you get.
#2. I simply stopped answering the phone.
Problem solved.
Cari really takes good care of me when it comes to this. She will ask who it is asking for me, and then she will make the decision if they need to talk to me or not. She doesn't come in and ask if I want to talk to the guy from the newspaper, she just knows to get rid of him.
Cari also knows that I will not answer the phone. She is not so thrilled about this at times. I can be sitting next to the phone. I mean, so close, my finger is touching it. It starts ringing and I will not budge. That phone will not get answered. At least not until Cari gets up and walks across the room to answer it.
Answering the phone at home used to be a much bigger deal to me. I would stop what I was doing. Then I would run across the house. Then I would dig around, hunting for the phone, and answer it. After all that, it would be a guy selling me something. Man, I would get upset.
To resolve that, I did two things.
#1. added our phone number to the national do-not call registry. This makes a HUGE difference in the number of calls you get.
#2. I simply stopped answering the phone.
Problem solved.
Thursday, June 09, 2005
Like father. . .like son
I put the pedals on a box. After a few minutes of instruction, he was driving around the high banks of Daytona by himself!
Choose your own adventure
Why are some video games popular with people who don't play games?
Cari can sit and play the Sims2 for hours on a rainy day. She generally is not interested in games.
Other games that are popular with gamers and non-gamers are the SimCity series, Civilization, and Grand Theft Auto.
Something that these games all have in common, is the very open ended style of play. Games like GTA have a story, and preset missions. If you get bored with that, you can jack a car and do as you please.
I think that is something very appealing. YOU, the player, are creating your own story. YOU are using YOUR imagination, not the imagination of the developer. When Cari plays the Sims2, she talks about her characters, like she had been watching a soap opera on TV. She has control of the story at all times.
Reading about an upcoming game called, The Movies, prompted this post.
The Movies, is a game by developer Peter Molyneux. He is known for making these very open type games. In The Movies, you run a movie studio. Hire, fire, develop your own movie stars. Use them to make movies. You write the script, put together the scenes, and edit your movie. The developer is providing the tools, you provide the content. There will be plenty of content provided in the game, if you can not think of your own, but where's the fun in that?
I'm already trying to come up with ideas I will be able to produce in a game like that.
Something about a blogger that gains some super-human power. He will travel through the internet, spreading his ego-filled opinions. . . Sorry, that's not really an original idea.
Cari can sit and play the Sims2 for hours on a rainy day. She generally is not interested in games.
Other games that are popular with gamers and non-gamers are the SimCity series, Civilization, and Grand Theft Auto.
Something that these games all have in common, is the very open ended style of play. Games like GTA have a story, and preset missions. If you get bored with that, you can jack a car and do as you please.
I think that is something very appealing. YOU, the player, are creating your own story. YOU are using YOUR imagination, not the imagination of the developer. When Cari plays the Sims2, she talks about her characters, like she had been watching a soap opera on TV. She has control of the story at all times.
Reading about an upcoming game called, The Movies, prompted this post.
The Movies, is a game by developer Peter Molyneux. He is known for making these very open type games. In The Movies, you run a movie studio. Hire, fire, develop your own movie stars. Use them to make movies. You write the script, put together the scenes, and edit your movie. The developer is providing the tools, you provide the content. There will be plenty of content provided in the game, if you can not think of your own, but where's the fun in that?
I'm already trying to come up with ideas I will be able to produce in a game like that.
Something about a blogger that gains some super-human power. He will travel through the internet, spreading his ego-filled opinions. . . Sorry, that's not really an original idea.
Wednesday, June 08, 2005
Tuesday, June 07, 2005
Determined!
I'm determined to make a race fan out of each one of you!
I just read over at www.formula1.com that American Scott Speed will be driving in the Canadian Grand Prix this weekend AND the American Grand Prix next week. This is the first time an American has driven in Formula 1 since Andretti did more than 10 years ago.
The start of the race almost always will be crazy. They have a standing start. Sitting on the grid, until the red lights go out. Everyone fights for position going through the grid and diving into turn 1. I can't think of a race this year, that I didn't replay the start ten times so that I could see all the turn one wrecks.
So, now is a good time to try and watch a formula one race, and cheer for an AMERICAN!
I just read over at www.formula1.com that American Scott Speed will be driving in the Canadian Grand Prix this weekend AND the American Grand Prix next week. This is the first time an American has driven in Formula 1 since Andretti did more than 10 years ago.
The start of the race almost always will be crazy. They have a standing start. Sitting on the grid, until the red lights go out. Everyone fights for position going through the grid and diving into turn 1. I can't think of a race this year, that I didn't replay the start ten times so that I could see all the turn one wrecks.
So, now is a good time to try and watch a formula one race, and cheer for an AMERICAN!
I'm a day behind
It's 1:00am. I meant to write this on Monday, but now it's Tuesday.
Well, Monday (June 6), was the 61st aniversary of D-Day invasion at Normandy.
What's the D stand for?
I've read several various possible meanings for the D.
The answer is that the D does not stand for anything except the word, day.
It's the time of a major military operation. If it was to start at 6am, then that time would be H-hour. So, June 6 was the start of the major offensive at Normandy, it is D-day.
I'm sure you'll need that information somewhere down the line, so don't forget it.
Well, Monday (June 6), was the 61st aniversary of D-Day invasion at Normandy.
What's the D stand for?
I've read several various possible meanings for the D.
The answer is that the D does not stand for anything except the word, day.
It's the time of a major military operation. If it was to start at 6am, then that time would be H-hour. So, June 6 was the start of the major offensive at Normandy, it is D-day.
I'm sure you'll need that information somewhere down the line, so don't forget it.
Monday, June 06, 2005
These people are CRAZY!
After reading the truck driver blog, where he wrote about driving a truck (imagine that), I got the idea to post about work.
As I'm driving to work, I am thinking about what kind of things happen that would be somewhat interesting to write about. As an assistant store manager at Lowe's, there is a lot of things I do each day. Most of these things are really nothing to write about. Things like approving a price change and checking delivery trucks are just not interesting.
Well, now that the day has ended let me tell you some of the things I had to deal with.
When I first got to work a customer was asking for the store manager at the front desk. I went over and he refused to talk to me. He wanted THE store manager. I got the manager and he listened to this customer complain that a shopping cart hit his truck in the parking lot. The manager told him we are not responsible for carts, but this guy insisted we file a claim on it. I went outside to view it with my store manager. There were two white marks on the side of this truck, and a small dent. Something certainly hit it, and a blue cart was pushed up against the truck. The white marks and dent was at least four inches higher than the handle of the cart. The store manager felt like someone was trying to get something for nothing, and told the guy the cart didn't cause the damage, there is no claim. The customer got very angry and called the police to come out. When the officer got to us, he heard the customer complaint and said, "ok, so what do you want me to do?".
I was laughing on the inside now. I was leaning on a sign in the parking lot that says, "lowe's is not responsible for carts left unattended in the parking lot". The officer pointed this out to the customer. He also told the guy, who had called his dad out to the store by now, that it is a civil matter, and he could do nothing. What a waste of time. We filled out our report and called it into the insurance company after taking some pictures.
Wow! What a way to start the day.
I went on for the next few hours doing the normal things like approving pricing, answering the phone every five minutes, and walking the store to be sure it was running smoothly. Then I get a call from a customer. He purchased a riding lawn mower last year and now he said it isn't working right. I told him after that amount of time it needs to go to manufacture warranty. He could call and take it for service, or bring it to the store for repair. At this time of year, it would take up to two weeks. He asked if I was coming to cut his grass in that two week period. He would only accept bringing it back for a refund as a solution. I would not allow that, so he told me that we don't stand behind our product. I explained that I did not manufacture that machine. I'm a retailer, not a manufacturer. I reminded him that he could bring it back to the store for repair if that was more convenient for him. He hung up on me.
After lunch an employee said that he needed to talk to me. We went into the back office where I had to become a counselor for about forty minutes. This guy has one screwed up home life, and on top of that his green card expired. He is from London, and he told me that immigration here lost his application for citizenship. He is married to an American and has lived here for almost ten years, and they lost his papers. He also said he is on medications that suppress the feeling of wanting to kill. I opened the door to the office as he told me that part.
The store manager went home, leaving me the highest ranking person in the building until close. Another call from the service desk telling me that a customer wants the manager.
This customer said that he purchased a bottle of deck wash that leaked in his trunk. We go out and look at it. Sure enough, several small bleach spots throughout the trunk. I asked him if the bottle had been opened in the store. "Nope." I asked him if a Lowe's employee loaded his car before he left. "Nope." Then I told him that Lowe's is not responsible for this, and he could complain to the manufacture about this. That is when the fun started. He told me that he is a lawyer and he KNOWS that I'm responsible for this.
me: What can I do for you then?
"lawyer": I want to be compensated!
me: that is not going to happen. If you would like, I could take some pictures and submit it to insurance as a claim.
That's what I did. As I was writing the report, he told me he WAS going to spend more than $4,000 more but that was obviously not going to happen now. I replied, "ok."
He couldn't believe that I didn't care I was losing a sale. I told him he already made his mind up to not shop with us because a bottle of bleach spilled, and that I would not argue with him about it.
He said what upset him is that I was trying to blow him off. I disagreed.
Then, as we were in the parking lot at his car, he said it's a good thing that Home Depot is in town. I said, "yes sir, they are only a few block that way." as I pointed down the road.
He got in his car and left.
Finished cleaning up the store, securing the money, and locking the doors. The day was over.
I have a headache now.
As I'm driving to work, I am thinking about what kind of things happen that would be somewhat interesting to write about. As an assistant store manager at Lowe's, there is a lot of things I do each day. Most of these things are really nothing to write about. Things like approving a price change and checking delivery trucks are just not interesting.
Well, now that the day has ended let me tell you some of the things I had to deal with.
When I first got to work a customer was asking for the store manager at the front desk. I went over and he refused to talk to me. He wanted THE store manager. I got the manager and he listened to this customer complain that a shopping cart hit his truck in the parking lot. The manager told him we are not responsible for carts, but this guy insisted we file a claim on it. I went outside to view it with my store manager. There were two white marks on the side of this truck, and a small dent. Something certainly hit it, and a blue cart was pushed up against the truck. The white marks and dent was at least four inches higher than the handle of the cart. The store manager felt like someone was trying to get something for nothing, and told the guy the cart didn't cause the damage, there is no claim. The customer got very angry and called the police to come out. When the officer got to us, he heard the customer complaint and said, "ok, so what do you want me to do?".
I was laughing on the inside now. I was leaning on a sign in the parking lot that says, "lowe's is not responsible for carts left unattended in the parking lot". The officer pointed this out to the customer. He also told the guy, who had called his dad out to the store by now, that it is a civil matter, and he could do nothing. What a waste of time. We filled out our report and called it into the insurance company after taking some pictures.
Wow! What a way to start the day.
I went on for the next few hours doing the normal things like approving pricing, answering the phone every five minutes, and walking the store to be sure it was running smoothly. Then I get a call from a customer. He purchased a riding lawn mower last year and now he said it isn't working right. I told him after that amount of time it needs to go to manufacture warranty. He could call and take it for service, or bring it to the store for repair. At this time of year, it would take up to two weeks. He asked if I was coming to cut his grass in that two week period. He would only accept bringing it back for a refund as a solution. I would not allow that, so he told me that we don't stand behind our product. I explained that I did not manufacture that machine. I'm a retailer, not a manufacturer. I reminded him that he could bring it back to the store for repair if that was more convenient for him. He hung up on me.
After lunch an employee said that he needed to talk to me. We went into the back office where I had to become a counselor for about forty minutes. This guy has one screwed up home life, and on top of that his green card expired. He is from London, and he told me that immigration here lost his application for citizenship. He is married to an American and has lived here for almost ten years, and they lost his papers. He also said he is on medications that suppress the feeling of wanting to kill. I opened the door to the office as he told me that part.
The store manager went home, leaving me the highest ranking person in the building until close. Another call from the service desk telling me that a customer wants the manager.
This customer said that he purchased a bottle of deck wash that leaked in his trunk. We go out and look at it. Sure enough, several small bleach spots throughout the trunk. I asked him if the bottle had been opened in the store. "Nope." I asked him if a Lowe's employee loaded his car before he left. "Nope." Then I told him that Lowe's is not responsible for this, and he could complain to the manufacture about this. That is when the fun started. He told me that he is a lawyer and he KNOWS that I'm responsible for this.
me: What can I do for you then?
"lawyer": I want to be compensated!
me: that is not going to happen. If you would like, I could take some pictures and submit it to insurance as a claim.
That's what I did. As I was writing the report, he told me he WAS going to spend more than $4,000 more but that was obviously not going to happen now. I replied, "ok."
He couldn't believe that I didn't care I was losing a sale. I told him he already made his mind up to not shop with us because a bottle of bleach spilled, and that I would not argue with him about it.
He said what upset him is that I was trying to blow him off. I disagreed.
Then, as we were in the parking lot at his car, he said it's a good thing that Home Depot is in town. I said, "yes sir, they are only a few block that way." as I pointed down the road.
He got in his car and left.
Finished cleaning up the store, securing the money, and locking the doors. The day was over.
I have a headache now.
Friday, June 03, 2005
Runner up
I'm just a runner up. You know, second choice. First choice, in Cari's eye, is Kenny Rogers.
I'm learning to accept that now. Next week I put another slash mark on the wall, bringing the total years Cari and I have been married to nine. I guess I have that over Mr. Rogers.
Actually, Cari's love of Kenny has brought me fortune over the past few years. When we went to see him perform, Cari demanded that we have a digital camera that could also take video. Our old digital couldn't do that, among other things. So, we ran out the day before the concert and purchased a very nice digital camera. I love taking pictures, so this worked out for me.
After I wrecked my car, we were out looking for the replacement. We went out to test drive a car, and Cari knew it was the one when we started it up. Kenny was playing on the radio when the car was started, and that is the car I have today.
Being the runner up is turning out to be a pretty good deal after all.
Free! Free at last!
As I was eating my scrambled eggs this morning, I was looking out of the kitchen window. I noticed the dog at the house across the street and a few doors down. This is a large dog. I have never seen this dog out for a walk before. What caught my attention is this dog lives in a chain link kennel. The kennel is about six foot by six foot, and almost half of it is taken up by a dog house. The dog has enough room to stand in the open space, turn around and get back into the large house.
Why even bother having a dog? The dog is not your companion. The dog is not there for protection, locked up in this cage.
This got me to think about "free range chickens" or "free range eggs". I tried to do a bit of reading about this before posting here, but most websites are so biased. What I did learn, is that there is no standard when a company packages eggs as "free range". The size of the range is not regulated. It seems that most commercial poultry farms that are "free range" house thousands of birds in a large shed. Often this shed will have a small opening, to allow a few birds out to a pen a few at a time. Most "free range" birds never see the outside, as their life cycle is less than 90 days.
From my reading, I believe if you can find a local producer, the term "free range" has much more meaning.
I'm not trying to teach animal rights or anything, it just irritates me that people are buying "free range" eggs, where that term has no real meaning on the life of the chicken. Just like my neighbors "outside dog".
Why even bother having a dog? The dog is not your companion. The dog is not there for protection, locked up in this cage.
This got me to think about "free range chickens" or "free range eggs". I tried to do a bit of reading about this before posting here, but most websites are so biased. What I did learn, is that there is no standard when a company packages eggs as "free range". The size of the range is not regulated. It seems that most commercial poultry farms that are "free range" house thousands of birds in a large shed. Often this shed will have a small opening, to allow a few birds out to a pen a few at a time. Most "free range" birds never see the outside, as their life cycle is less than 90 days.
From my reading, I believe if you can find a local producer, the term "free range" has much more meaning.
I'm not trying to teach animal rights or anything, it just irritates me that people are buying "free range" eggs, where that term has no real meaning on the life of the chicken. Just like my neighbors "outside dog".
Education
I cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was rdanieg The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid Aoccdrnig to rscheearch taem at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoatnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit a porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe. Such a cdonition is arppoiately cllaed Typoglycemia :)-
Amzanig huh? Yaeh and yuo awlyas thought slpeling was! ipmorantt.
I think what is important is a better education. What's more amazing: my ability to read garbage, or your inability to spell?
Amzanig huh? Yaeh and yuo awlyas thought slpeling was! ipmorantt.
I think what is important is a better education. What's more amazing: my ability to read garbage, or your inability to spell?
Wednesday, June 01, 2005
New Idea, Old product
I went in to take a shower this morning. When I got into the tub, this is what I saw:
"Cari! Since when did shampoo start coming in a dish soap bottle?", I shouted out.
"It doesn't!", she yelled back in from the bedroom.
Hmm.. I didn't think so. That didn't seem to answer the question. Maybe I should be more direct.
"Why did you wash the dishes in the bathtub?", I asked.
"Why would I do that?", she answered as she entered the bathroom.
At this point I wasn't sure if I was supposed to use this on me or not. You can read this post I wrote about shampoo in our house, to refresh your memory.
"I'm not supposed to use this on me, am I?", I asked her nervously.
"No. That's for me.", she replied as if I should have known the whole time.
Of course. SHE will wash herself with dish soap, I should have known.
"Babe, we have thirty bottles of various soaps and shampoos you can use.", I assured her.
I got the look at that point. She explained that Dawn dish soap was supposed to take dye out of her hair. She was told by the hair stylist in town that only Dawn would work.
Now, I wonder what other magical powers Dawn possesses.
"Cari! Since when did shampoo start coming in a dish soap bottle?", I shouted out.
"It doesn't!", she yelled back in from the bedroom.
Hmm.. I didn't think so. That didn't seem to answer the question. Maybe I should be more direct.
"Why did you wash the dishes in the bathtub?", I asked.
"Why would I do that?", she answered as she entered the bathroom.
At this point I wasn't sure if I was supposed to use this on me or not. You can read this post I wrote about shampoo in our house, to refresh your memory.
"I'm not supposed to use this on me, am I?", I asked her nervously.
"No. That's for me.", she replied as if I should have known the whole time.
Of course. SHE will wash herself with dish soap, I should have known.
"Babe, we have thirty bottles of various soaps and shampoos you can use.", I assured her.
I got the look at that point. She explained that Dawn dish soap was supposed to take dye out of her hair. She was told by the hair stylist in town that only Dawn would work.
Now, I wonder what other magical powers Dawn possesses.
Monday, May 30, 2005
Biggest day of racing!
So many things going on today. We had a cook out at our house this afternoon. We had a great time with a lot of the friends we have made since moving here last July. I learned I need to practice my game of horseshoes also.
Today was also one of the single biggest days of racing.
This morning we had the European Grand Prix for Formula One.
Next was the Indy 500, showcasing their star Donica. She didn't win.
finally, tonight was Nascars longest race of the year, the Coke-cola 600.
The F1 race showed some drivers having problems in various corners, going off into the gravel.
A wreck in turn 1, lap 1, caused several problems also.
F1 races are not known for their side by side racing, but they did do a bit of it today, and a few great passes.
Toward the end of the race, the leader Kimi Raikkonen was nursing a front right tire that was falling apart. You could see his car shaking from it, and bits of rubber falling off.
With one lap to go, second place Alanzo was only 1.5 seconds back, and gaining.
Then:
That bad tire finally gave out. At about 190 mph, the front suspension broke (from the vibrating) and the tire came up on top of the car. That was the leader on the last lap.
I haven't finished watching the Indy 500 (thanks TiVo), so I can't tell you how boring or exciting it was.
Nascar:
An extremely long race due to a record number of cautions. At least one caution was caused by Dale Jr taking out his team mate. Idiot. Another caution was caused by Brian Vickers. Idiot. That wreck took out Jeff Gordon who had a car that could win. But the wait was well worth it.
Cari and I were layed back on the couch, watching the cautions. Then, at Lowe's Motorspeedway, the Lowe's car came to life.
Jimmie Johnson restarted 4th with seven laps to go. With two to go, he was in 2nd. He tried to make a move for the lead twice without success.
WHITE FLAG! Darryl Waltrip (commentator), was saying Jimmie would NOT be able to do it. Last lap, turn 3, Jimmie makes a run on the outside. Coming out of turn four side by side!!
Jimmie gets the nose of his car out there and takes the checkered flag by .02 seconds. Two hundredth!!! AWESOME! I was jumping up on my couch!
AWESOME!!!! Great day of racing.
Today was also one of the single biggest days of racing.
This morning we had the European Grand Prix for Formula One.
Next was the Indy 500, showcasing their star Donica. She didn't win.
finally, tonight was Nascars longest race of the year, the Coke-cola 600.
The F1 race showed some drivers having problems in various corners, going off into the gravel.
A wreck in turn 1, lap 1, caused several problems also.
F1 races are not known for their side by side racing, but they did do a bit of it today, and a few great passes.
Toward the end of the race, the leader Kimi Raikkonen was nursing a front right tire that was falling apart. You could see his car shaking from it, and bits of rubber falling off.
With one lap to go, second place Alanzo was only 1.5 seconds back, and gaining.
Then:
That bad tire finally gave out. At about 190 mph, the front suspension broke (from the vibrating) and the tire came up on top of the car. That was the leader on the last lap.
I haven't finished watching the Indy 500 (thanks TiVo), so I can't tell you how boring or exciting it was.
Nascar:
An extremely long race due to a record number of cautions. At least one caution was caused by Dale Jr taking out his team mate. Idiot. Another caution was caused by Brian Vickers. Idiot. That wreck took out Jeff Gordon who had a car that could win. But the wait was well worth it.
Cari and I were layed back on the couch, watching the cautions. Then, at Lowe's Motorspeedway, the Lowe's car came to life.
Jimmie Johnson restarted 4th with seven laps to go. With two to go, he was in 2nd. He tried to make a move for the lead twice without success.
WHITE FLAG! Darryl Waltrip (commentator), was saying Jimmie would NOT be able to do it. Last lap, turn 3, Jimmie makes a run on the outside. Coming out of turn four side by side!!
Jimmie gets the nose of his car out there and takes the checkered flag by .02 seconds. Two hundredth!!! AWESOME! I was jumping up on my couch!
AWESOME!!!! Great day of racing.
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