Sometimes funny, sometimes thoughtful, always a good time
Ahh, spring is here and the weather was a gorgeous 65 degrees and sunny. Perfect for a bit of ultimate at lunch. And it was the first day of the year when I could go barefoot again. I miss that in the winter, but the hard cold icy snowy concrete-like ground is pretty rough on bare feet for a few months.
Too bad I’m out of shape. I need to play more so I’m ready for summer league in June!
Last week Sarah came out to Colorado with her husband Grant. They have a timeshare up in Vail so they invited me to come up and join them. Although I couldn’t stay for the week, I managed to get up there on Monday night and spend the day with them skiing at Beaver Creek.
Bonus: Zvonko came out from New York City to visit as well. I haven’t seen him in, like, a decade. And it was pretty much like old times.
(Old times being 1994 or so, back at UMR.)
The weather was sunny and an astounding 50 degrees, making the skiing a little questionable. Okay, it was a lot questionable… the bottom was sort of like gliding through slushy soup. But it was all right, because we had an awesome time together.
To add to my pile of Google schwag, Rick sent me a backpack as thanks for some work I’d done for the company.
This backpack is hands-down the coolest backpack I’ve ever owned.
It’s built really well, including a nice carrying handle on top, sturdy loops for attaching things, straps to cinch different areas and keep them snug, and pockets. Pockets upon pockets! In some cases, the pockets themselves have pockets inside them. Everyone knows a good backpack is measured by the number of pockets it has. Awesome.
Zack built a birdhouse for one of his Cub Scout belt loops. Laralee was thrilled to help.
The other day, Laralee decided to head down to Savers (a thrift store) in Boulder. She wanted to find a new pair of jeans on the cheap.
Of course Kyra wanted to come along, because she knows that when Mom goes shopping, there’s a good chance she can sweet-talk her way into something as well. Since she wanted clothes, and since her room usually has a few stacks of clothes tucked in various corners, we made a deal with her. She could only get new clothes if she first got rid of some old ones. Eager for the opportunity, she ran upstairs and came down with a few loads of clothes that she’s willing to trade.
Who says teenage girls are big on clothes?
Today I received the Magic Mouse that I’d ordered a few days ago. It’s for Amber at work, who has switched to a Mac and therefore needs all of the proper Apple accessories.
The Magic Mouse is probably infused with magic dust or something at the magic Apple factory, because it comes in a special display case.
Only Apple would refuse to put it in crummy shrink-wrapped plastic that requires a knife and a pair of pliers to open. I fully expect that when Amber opens the case, a choir of angels will sing and light will descend from heaven.
Yesterday I finished my corporate taxes. Today I worked on my personal taxes. Much unpleasantness resulted.
I just got the most awesome spam email I’ve had in a long time. Check out the retro 1950’s look:
I love the “Use the world wide web” introduction, and of course the 1978-style mainframe terminal, but probably my favorite part is the bonus at the bottom: Even works on dial-up. Sweet!
Tonight we went to another of Kyra’s band concerts. As a flute player, she sometimes feels like her music can’t be heard above the racket of the rest of the band. (And yes, with a group of eighth-graders it’s often a racket.)
She had this to say about it:
It was hilarious. Maybe it was the way she said it– very matter-of-fact, like this was a great pronouncement and a piece of timeless wisdom that should be inscribed in stone somewhere.
At the concert I couldn’t help but admit she’s right. The flute players sit right in front of the trumpets and saxophones, and they played a little Mexican number (lots of brass) and the only way I could tell Kyra was even playing was by watching her fingers move on the flute.
The good news: as band players mature and become more skilled, the brass quiets down a little. Last weekend we were at a statewide honor band concert (Kyra was fourth chair, meaning she’s the fourth-best flutist in Colorado!) and those middle-school kids were really quite impressive. The brass wasn’t as overpowering; it sounded more like a group effort than an attempt by the brass players to drown out everyone else.
I remember the days, early in my business, when a new client or a new project was a cause for celebration. Every little bit of work helped, and I was always eager and excited to pick up something new.
It’s interesting to note that today, I continue to get new projects but in a weird way I wish they would stop coming so I could take a breather. We’re getting one project after another– which of course is a great thing– but we’re badly understaffed and so it just creates more pressure. We simply don’t have the capacity to do all of the work we have now, and these new projects just add to the pile.
I really, really hope I can hire some more developers soon. I can’t keep burning the midnight oil six days a week…