As seen in a Northern NY newspaper on Black Friday, shortly before I blew up my Father in law's Land Rover Discovery:
WWJD
People, could you please go for a decent light display this Christmas -- I have spent hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars to light up my backyard for my family, but when I walk through these neighborhoods I see trashy dollar-store lights and hand-me-down displays. What would Jesus do?
Ironically after seeing this in the paper, I found it online on PagenSpace.com, not a website I frequent, but one Google found for me. Okay, I initially looked for the wrong paper Malone versus Plattsburgh, but that was an easy mistake since Maria's Mom and Dad get both papers and they are close to equally thin.
I guess I am just not in the holiday spirit yet.
Sunday, November 28, 2010
Monday, November 8, 2010
Working
I am now on my second week back at work and it is exhausting and feels wonderful at the same time. I work only around 20 or so hours a week, limited in the time I can spend and the amount I can make by the disability insurance. I am not quite ready to let go of that safety net yet, though I am sure it will come soon enough.
So far I have bid two projects with a full slate for the rest of the month. When I had the stroke, the effects of the recession were just trickling down and work was starting to get more competitive. I saw a few projects from the stimulus, but I have always questioned how much of that money went to general building, it seemed like more went infrastructure. Infrastructure is good but doesn't share the wealth in the same way.
But my timing seem like it is pretty good, there seems to be a lot of work out and more coming out. My first bid was a little school project around Watertown and an old friend Tony P was a bidder. I caught up with him today to find out how we looked and chat. I wasn't low and neither was he, but he gave me the heads up on two other projects coming out. It is a cut-throat business, but you find a lot of good people. It feels good to be back.
So far I have bid two projects with a full slate for the rest of the month. When I had the stroke, the effects of the recession were just trickling down and work was starting to get more competitive. I saw a few projects from the stimulus, but I have always questioned how much of that money went to general building, it seemed like more went infrastructure. Infrastructure is good but doesn't share the wealth in the same way.
But my timing seem like it is pretty good, there seems to be a lot of work out and more coming out. My first bid was a little school project around Watertown and an old friend Tony P was a bidder. I caught up with him today to find out how we looked and chat. I wasn't low and neither was he, but he gave me the heads up on two other projects coming out. It is a cut-throat business, but you find a lot of good people. It feels good to be back.
Monday, October 25, 2010
Job!
After way too long, I head back to work in the glass business on Monday. It is part time for now with the potential to grow if it all works. Needless to say I am breathing a little easier and if you see me today I am a little closer to the ceiling.
To make a long story short, a friend and former co-worker has been talking about his situation for a while when we meet in Wegmans. A trip to a CSI show a couple weeks ago found me meeting a rep I hadn't seen in some time. He mentioned I should call my friend, which was all good, except St. Lawrence was rowing in the Head of the Genesee and we had a houseful coming. So with guests here and races to watch, these two beat me to the punch and Bill got to me first. That was last week and I start next week.
I expect this will exhaust me for a while, which is fine with me. So forgive me, I have been bad at posting for a while, and I may be getting worse. I am excited though and cannot wait to get the highlighters out and get back to work.
Wish me luck...
To make a long story short, a friend and former co-worker has been talking about his situation for a while when we meet in Wegmans. A trip to a CSI show a couple weeks ago found me meeting a rep I hadn't seen in some time. He mentioned I should call my friend, which was all good, except St. Lawrence was rowing in the Head of the Genesee and we had a houseful coming. So with guests here and races to watch, these two beat me to the punch and Bill got to me first. That was last week and I start next week.
I expect this will exhaust me for a while, which is fine with me. So forgive me, I have been bad at posting for a while, and I may be getting worse. I am excited though and cannot wait to get the highlighters out and get back to work.
Wish me luck...
Monday, September 27, 2010
Apples
Today was a fine damp fall Rochester day with the requisite concrete sky and drizzle. But feeling quite out of shape and wishing to forestall a cold I finally got off my butt and went for a good walk. Now I feel twice as out of shape, but while walking around the suburban neighborhood below us I noticed a funny phenomenon.
Passing one house I noticed a man picking up apples from his lawn and putting them to the curb. These were not your crab apple variety, but big red standard apples. And some that were going to the curb looked pretty good and the tree was full of more good looking fruit. A few houses away there was another tree (and lawn) covered with what appeared to be Granny Smith apples.
It just strikes me as funny to have people going out of their way to maintain lawns and ignore food ironically growing on trees. We seem to have misplaced a value or two.
Passing one house I noticed a man picking up apples from his lawn and putting them to the curb. These were not your crab apple variety, but big red standard apples. And some that were going to the curb looked pretty good and the tree was full of more good looking fruit. A few houses away there was another tree (and lawn) covered with what appeared to be Granny Smith apples.
It just strikes me as funny to have people going out of their way to maintain lawns and ignore food ironically growing on trees. We seem to have misplaced a value or two.
Sunday, September 26, 2010
Relearning
The glass business, now if I could find an employer. I have mixed feelings about in, yes it did contribute to my stroke. But I love and miss it.
This internet is an amazing tool. I have learned all kinds of things in the last few days. Between that and project management I may be a good employee soon or a maybe a better consultant. So much to learn but so much I have learned. And the industry has changed a lot too. If I keep learning the job may come.
A few emails sent to old friends and contacts has yielded a lot of response. It is pretty cool. I still sleep too late and need to bring my bike back and ride to get in shape. But it will all come together.
This internet is an amazing tool. I have learned all kinds of things in the last few days. Between that and project management I may be a good employee soon or a maybe a better consultant. So much to learn but so much I have learned. And the industry has changed a lot too. If I keep learning the job may come.
A few emails sent to old friends and contacts has yielded a lot of response. It is pretty cool. I still sleep too late and need to bring my bike back and ride to get in shape. But it will all come together.
Friday, September 24, 2010
I Guess I Miss....
This shit. Searching glass sites and amazed that Oldcastle has bought Moduline windows, Fulton Windows and the rest of the Vistawall group. Wondering how my friend Eldon Pagel made out and may have to call him. Pella had purchased EFCO sometime before my stroke so no suprises there except they do have a unitized wall system. And it offers 4 side silicone glaze, very cool. Traco is now part of Alcoa, Graham has a curtain wall system and just lots of fun news.
Then there is the Arch story, but I see Max Perilstein has landed okay. I wonder about his cousin, only because he treated me to a dinner in Vegas that was worth about a grand a head.
Yes I miss this. And yes I will be back. Its just a matter of time.
Then there is the Arch story, but I see Max Perilstein has landed okay. I wonder about his cousin, only because he treated me to a dinner in Vegas that was worth about a grand a head.
Yes I miss this. And yes I will be back. Its just a matter of time.
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
To Rep or Not to Rep....
The past week or so has found me wiped out, though not like before. I recover a little quicker, though the effects of age seem to be catching up too. But today found me sleeping late, getting up to do my project management course and being interrupted.
The first call was a friend about a job I would love, but won't move for. It's located in Jamestown, and I don't have the stamina to commute for weekends and we don't really want to relocate there.
The second call was from a curtain wall fabricator in Canada who's ad I clicked on regarding a sales rep position. And this is while an ad for a project engineer for Gilbane stares at me on Craigslist. So where does one begin?
Well, the Gilbane position sits there, waiting for my resume, while I hem and haw and question whether I want to work for a company like Gilbane and if I am qualified and... And then the guy in charge of developing sales in the states is waiting for my input. But do I want to go into sales? The sales guy who can't talk, though that is in my head, so of.
And there is the status quo, draw the disability check and study project management and hem and haw. It is not so bad either, but it is. Sure this project management shit drives me crazy, partially because it throws how bad a project manager I was right in my face. But I want to learn, even if every third principle ends in the BS. Slogging on and going nuts doing so, our hero faces new challenges which he can decide upon before they have been decided upon for him. I guess it is time to shit or get off the pot, or it's getting closer to time.
Life does have a way of progressing around here though. A week or more ago I took Ned back to Oswego to start classes. Today Maddy started her Junior year, with her mother's car. Meg starts sometime. New books have to be added to the reading list. It is very obsolete. I finished the first Patrick O'Brian book, as opposed to the second I finished last week. I am reading Napoleon on Project Management, by Jerry Manas to keep a sense of humor about this project management. Two books that have been finished I would recommend, sadly with no authors tonight: Holy Water and Model Home, both good funky modern novels.
Tomorrow brings more thought and agonizing. Something will change soon, its back to school time.
The first call was a friend about a job I would love, but won't move for. It's located in Jamestown, and I don't have the stamina to commute for weekends and we don't really want to relocate there.
The second call was from a curtain wall fabricator in Canada who's ad I clicked on regarding a sales rep position. And this is while an ad for a project engineer for Gilbane stares at me on Craigslist. So where does one begin?
Well, the Gilbane position sits there, waiting for my resume, while I hem and haw and question whether I want to work for a company like Gilbane and if I am qualified and... And then the guy in charge of developing sales in the states is waiting for my input. But do I want to go into sales? The sales guy who can't talk, though that is in my head, so of.
And there is the status quo, draw the disability check and study project management and hem and haw. It is not so bad either, but it is. Sure this project management shit drives me crazy, partially because it throws how bad a project manager I was right in my face. But I want to learn, even if every third principle ends in the BS. Slogging on and going nuts doing so, our hero faces new challenges which he can decide upon before they have been decided upon for him. I guess it is time to shit or get off the pot, or it's getting closer to time.
Life does have a way of progressing around here though. A week or more ago I took Ned back to Oswego to start classes. Today Maddy started her Junior year, with her mother's car. Meg starts sometime. New books have to be added to the reading list. It is very obsolete. I finished the first Patrick O'Brian book, as opposed to the second I finished last week. I am reading Napoleon on Project Management, by Jerry Manas to keep a sense of humor about this project management. Two books that have been finished I would recommend, sadly with no authors tonight: Holy Water and Model Home, both good funky modern novels.
Tomorrow brings more thought and agonizing. Something will change soon, its back to school time.
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