The World According to Wayne

And now for something completely different..

2004-10-24T18:43:00.000-04:00

No not a man with 2 butts, A brand new site.
Blogger has been very good to me but I wanted something more.
I would like to direct your attention to the all new World According To Wayne!
So please click the link and read more when you get there...

Mandatory post.

2004-10-20T15:56:00.000-04:00

Nothing all the interesting to write about ATM.
I'm working on a new and better World According to Wayne that will be ready at some point as I have time to work on it.

I have been working a lot and that hasn't left me a whole lot of time for much else right now. The money would be real nice if I weren't playing catch up.

I worked Saturday in western Kentucky almost where the Ohio and Mississippi river meet.
about a 6 hour drive from here. It was an emergency job that I got called about on Friday.
get up at 3 am drive 6 hours, work 8 hours, drive 6 hours home. Needless to say I'm still tired from that day.
Saturday was Sweetest day. Its kind of like valentines day in Oct. I had never heard of it before moving here.
Sunday I took Jackie to The Cheesecake Factory for dinner to celebrate. Its a not a cheap place though not super high either. The food was excellent. There menu is huge! 200 items. It was really hard to choose what to eat. You can check out there menu Here.
We had the Thai Lettuce Wraps as an appetizer. Jackie had the BISTRO SHRIMP PASTA and I had the Chipotla Chicken pasta that's not showing on the menu. The severing are huge. The food was really good.
I think that's all I've got for now. Not such a busy week this week so hopefully I will post more.

Review.

2004-10-15T19:58:00.000-04:00

Today I had my review for work.
I really enjoy my job. It has its ups and downs like anything but the ups are more the norm. I believe I have a good work ethic. I don't think I'm better then anyone else, but there are times when I see work some of my co-workers do that makes me wonder how they don't feel guilty cashing there check every week. I can be lazy, but when I do a job I try to do it right the first time. I take pride in what I do. It doesn't matter that no one will ever see most of my work, or that the people who work in the stores won't notice if I do a sloppy job or not. I know! I care! It's my work. At the same time I know that things can't always be the way I would like them to be. Things can't always be perfect. In the service business you need to know where the line between speed and quality is drawn. If a stores registers are down during a busy part of the day the first priority is to get them working. You can't always do and be neat. If your working on a store that's not opened yet then why not take the extra 30 mins it would take to make sure things are neat and organized? I don't do it for praise, or because I expect to be rewarded. I do it because its what I feel I should do, Because it feels good to know I did a good job.
In past jobs when I have been reviewed they always seem to find negatives to focus on. "well you made this company 500,000 last year but you go to the bathroom to much!". That's a true reference BTW.
Today I got the most amazingly positive review I have ever heard.
I don't do it to get praised, but its sure feels good to find out that your hard work has not gone unnoticed.

Work stuff..

2004-10-14T13:47:00.000-04:00

I have a phone appointment with the head of HR at my work tomorrow at 2 pm.
I'm glad they are doing this instead of just giving me a raise or whatever.
This is a good thing. I will get to address a few issue's I have and hopefully get some things resolved.
I will keep you posted..

Mistakes that cost..

2004-10-10T15:54:00.000-04:00

I actually got though to the child support agency the end of last week. Only had to wait on hold for 30 mins instead of the hour + that you usually have to wait.
I talked to there rep about my insurance and the rep told me he would look into it and someone would call me back.

Friday morning that call came. At the time I was at work and really really busy.
The guy from the child support agency told me that he had my order in front of him and that it was on there that Laura was responsible for the insurance for the kids. He said he was sorry for the mistake one of the data entry people must have miss entered the info because most of the time it was the father who paid the insurance.
He told me they would send a letter to my work to revoke the order. I had a guy from the store I was working in trying to talk to me at the same time, so I said ok thanks and hung up.
After when I had a minute to think about it I was like, HEY! What about the almost $500 I'm out? I wouldn't care so much if it had gotten some use but it didn't. Now I need to decide if I want to try and call them back and fight for that money or not. I'm pretty sure it won't get me anywhere but it was there mistake? I'll have to think on it some...

Lack of posts.

2004-10-09T17:43:00.000-04:00

Sorry that I haven't had much time to post the past 2 weeks......
I worked 65.5 last week and 69 this week.
Yesterday was bad. Got up at 5 am and drove 2 hours to Carmel Indiana, Worked in one store there for 3 hours, worked in another store there for 2 hours, drove 3.5 hours to Columbus Oh and worked 5.5 hours there, and then drove 2 hours home. Got home just shy of midnight.
On the other hand I have been complimented a few times this week. And have one project manager that would use me on all her jobs if she could.

The second store I went to yesterday was another tech's job that I went in just to check a couple things. The store is a mess as far as his work goes. I met this guy once and he didn't make a good impression that time, and I have gone into a couple other stores that he did that I had to clean up.

This store was extra bad though. First off he left without checking to make sure the phone system, or the traffic counters were working right! Neither do...
He took a rack mount phone system and set it on top of the rack mount ups so that the ups is holding the weight of both units. The cabinets a mess. He told them he ran a stock room phone and he didn't. He didn't set up all the phones and left the ones he didn't set up sitting on the managers desk. He didn't leave the instructions the manager needed for the phone system at the store. ect. ect. ect......
They really need to start getting rid of people like him. I'm betting he told them he was on site for a lot longer then he really was too.
I had to have the job in Columbus done yesterday so I couldn't stay and fix that store. They are making him go back. I felt really bad having to leave the store in that shape. I would have stayed and fixed stuff if I could have. I'm sure he won't fix things the right way. Its just hard for me to understand how people can do such shitty work yet charge so many hours. Milking the hours is bad enough but at least do a good job. I mean really. (sigh)
Well that's all I've got right now...

Happy Birthday James.

2004-10-05T20:11:00.000-04:00

Today is my 4th childs 10th birthday today.
I tried to call and wish him a Happy Birthday, got a busy signal for over 2 hours.
My guess would be that they got the computer fixed and someone was online.
The last time I called it rang and rang no answer no answering maching. so who knows.
I will call tomorrow and at the very least leave a message.

Happy Birthday James.....

A new age.

2004-10-05T19:17:00.000-04:00

I can't help but feel that with the X-prize won that we are on the verge of a new age.
I'm hopeing that this is the first step in a chain of events that will launch us into the space age. There is hope that I could travel in space in whats left of my lifetime.
Its not real likely but it could happen.

I will have to content myself with the thought that I might be able to pilot a plane at some point. This is a much more reachable goal.
I want to fly! There is a part of me that comes alive when I'm on a plane. Maybe I was a pilot in a past life? ahh well.

Gravity is a prison I long to escape. even for just a short time.

I guess I rambled a bit there. Its been a long day and now I've lost track of what I was trying to say. oh well.

Comments.

2004-10-04T22:02:00.000-04:00

I would love to see more of them here.. I basically write this for myself, But I also love to hear what you have to say.
I'm working on something that will make posting comments a lot more fun.
I will let you know if anything comes of it or not. Its still more of an idea then a fact so not 100% sure it will work out.

I will keep you posted..

Funny stuff....

2004-10-04T21:45:00.000-04:00

I refuse to talk politics on this blog, But I think this is too funny not to post.

Click Here and laugh..

yuk,

2004-09-30T18:46:00.000-04:00

Takeing a short break from work to check email for work ect. I was just getting ready to head home from Indy when I got a call that I have to go do service at an OLD NAVY store.
now I won't be home till late. oh well. its gonna be a nice pay week.

Sigh...

2004-09-29T21:11:00.000-04:00

Well I called yesterday to talk to my RTM (regonal tech manager) about a raise.
In the year and a half I have worked for this company I have had 4 differn't RTM's.
The first one was totaly useless. The second was the National tech manager who was filling in as our RTM while we were without one. She was great! first off she was the one who hired me. Second she is just a nice person. The problem was she had enough of her own work today that she didn't have the time to devote to the postion. The 3rd was pretty much the same situation. He was a nice guy and the one who made me a lead tech.
I guess they never really let him get all the way out of the job he was in before so he didn't have time to do the job right either. A couple months ago they sent out an email telling us that we had a new RTM. A former project manager. Really nice guy and one I have talked to alot. So to continue makeing a short story long I called him yesterday to discuse my pay rate. I got him on the phone and told him why I called and explained why I felt I should get a raise. Well he says I agree with you 100% and if I were your RTM I would be more then willing to see what I could do about that, but its been to busy and they havn't let me start the job yet becuse they need me as a project manager. I'm sorry but you need to talk to this other guy who is doing that job for now..............

(insert scream here)

LOL so now I have to go though this whole thing again with a guy I have never talked to before. yuk..
I'll keep you posted

200 Things.

2004-09-29T19:16:00.000-04:00

01. Bought everyone in the pub a drink--No
02. Swam with wild dolphins-- No
03. Climbed a mountain--Yes
04. Taken a Ferrari for a test drive-- No, But I would love too.
05. Been inside the Great Pyramid-- No, but I would love too.
06. Held a tarantula.-- Yes
07. Taken a candlelit bath with someone--No
08. Said ˜I love you" and meant it--- yes, I have never said it and not ment it at the time.
09. Hugged a tree-- yea
10. Done a striptease-- um yea, but only in private.
11. Bungee jumped--No, But I would.
12. Visited Paris--No, It would be fun but not high on my wish list of places to go.
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea--No.
14. Stayed up all night long, and watch the sun rise-- Yes
15. Seen the Northern Lights-- No. I would love to go to Alaska though.
16. Gone to a huge sports game-- No.
17. Walked the stairs to the top of the Leaning Tower of Pisa--No.
18. Grown and eaten my own vegetables--No.
19. Touched an iceberg--No.
20. Slept under the stars-- Yes.
21. Changed a baby's diaper-- Yes. way to many to count.
22. Taken a trip in a hot air balloon--No. very near the top of my must do list though.
23. Watched a meteor shower-- Yes!! I have laid out in a large field and watched them for hours.
24. Gotten drunk on champagne-- No. don't like Champagne.
25. Given more than you can afford to charity--No.
26. Looked up at the night sky through a telescope--Yes. Its amazing. I saw Saturns rings.
27. Had an uncontrollable giggling fit at the worst possible moment--Oh Yea!
28. Had a food fight-- Yes.
29. Bet on a winning horse--I have never bet on anything.
30. Taken a sick day when you're not ill-- Hell yea!
31. Asked out a stranger-- Nope.
32. Had a snowball fight-- Yep. many of them.
33. Photocopied your bottom on the office photocopier--nope.
34. Screamed as loudly as you possibly can--Yep.
35. Held a lamb-- Yes.
36. Enacted a favorite fantasy-- No.
37. Taken a midnight skinny dip-- Yep....
38. Taken an ice cold bath--No.
39. Had a meaningful conversation with a beggar-- Nope.
40. Seen a total eclipse-- Yes.
41. Rode on a roller coaster--As many as I can get on...
42. Hit a home run--Nope. much to my dads dismay I never got into sports.
43. Fit three weeks miraculously into three days-- No. I have fit a weeks work into 3 days though.
44. Danced like a fool and not cared who was looking-- I am a fool, I have danced (badly), but I always care who's looking.
45. Adopted an accent for an entire day--ROFL. yep sometimes I can't help it. if I'm with someone with an accent I will pick up there accent..
46. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors-- Yes. depending on how far back you choose to go.
47. Actually felt happy about your life, even for just a moment-- I'm pretty happy about it most of the time..
48. Had two hard drives for your computer--I've had 4...
49. Visited all 50 states--Nope. never been west of the Mississippi.
50. Loved your job for all accounts-- Yes, a couple times.
51. Taken care of someone who was shit faced-- No.
52. Had enough money to be truly satisfied-- Do you ever have enough to be truely satisfied? it seems the more you have the more you need.
53. Had amazing friends--Yes.
54. Danced with a stranger in a foreign country--No.
55. Watched wild whales-- Yep. I belive we saw 22 whales and a Sea Lion. I belive it was a record at the time.
56. Stolen a sign-- No.
57. Backpacked in Europe--Nope.
58. Taken a road-trip-- No.
59. Rock climbing--No. it would be fun though.
60. Lied to foreign government's official in that country to avoid notice--No.
61. Midnight walk on the beach-- Yes.
62. Sky diving-- No, But I would in a heartbeat. and I would scream as loud as I could. I want to fly.
63. Visited Ireland-- No, but I would love too.
64. Been heartbroken longer then you were actually in love--No.
65. In a restaurant, sat at a stranger's table and had a meal with them--No.
66. Visited Japan-- No. but I would.
67. Benchpressed your own weight-- Whats a benchpress? :-)
68. Milked a cow--No.
69. Alphabetized your records-- No.
70. Pretended to be a superhero-- I'm not one?
71. Sung karaoke-- No.
72. Lounged around in bed all day--Yep...
73. Posed nude in front of strangers-- No.
74. Scuba diving--No, but its something else I have always wanted to do.
75. Got it on to Let's Get It On" by Marvin Gaye--No.
76. Kissed in the rain--Yes.
77. Played in the mud--Yea.
78. Played in the rain--Yea.
79. Gone to a drive-in theater--Many times.
80. Done something you should regret, but don't regret it.-Yes.
81. Visited the Great Wall of China--No.
82. Discovered that someone who's not supposed to have known about your blog has discovered your blog--No.
83. Dropped Windows in favor of something better--No.
84. Started a business--kind of.
85. Fallen in love and not had your heart broken-- I'll get back to you on that.
86. Toured ancient sites--Yes.
87. Taken a martial arts class--No.
88. Swordfought for the honor of a woman--No.
89. Played D&D for more than 6 hours straight--Does Everquest count?
90. Gotten married--Once..
91. Been in a movie--No.
92. Crashed a party-- No.
93. Loved someone you shouldn't have--Yea.
94. Kissed someone so passionately it made them dizzy--Yes.
95. Gotten divorced--Yes.
96. Had sex at the office--No.
97. Gone without food for 5 days--No.
98. Made cookies from scratch--Yes. many times.
99. Won first prize in a costume contest--I split first prize with my brother once. He went as an outhouse and I went as a roll of toilet paper. it was pretty funny.
100. Rode a gondola in Venice--No. but I would like to.
101. Gotten a tattoo--No.
102. Found that the texture of some materials can turn you on--Yep...
103. Rafted the Snake River--No
104. Been on television news programs as an "expert"-- No.
105. Got flowers for no reason-- nope.
106. Masturbated in a public place-- No.
107. Got so drunk you don't remember anything--No. if I hadn't remembered maybe I would drink more.
108. Been addicted to some form of illegal drug--No.
109. Performed on stage---Yes.
110. Been to Las Vegas--No, but one of the places I would like to see.
111. Recorded music-- yes, but not profesionaly.
112. Eaten shark--No.
113. Had a one-night stand---No.
114. Gone to Thailand--No.
115. Seen Siouxsie live--HUH?
116. Bought a house--nope.
117. Been in a combat zone-- No. but I saw a hooker in boston once.
118. Buried one/both of your parents-- Not yet. and I'm in no hurry.
119. Shaved or waxed your pubic hair off-- No.
120. Been on a cruise ship--Nope. would like to though.
121. Spoken more than one language fluently--No. I speak a bit of spanish used to know more.
122. Gotten into a fight while attempting to defend someone--No.
123. Bounced a check--Yes, but not all that many.
124. Performed in Rocky Horror--No, but that would be fun.
125. Read - and understood - your credit report--No.
126. Raised children-- Yes.
127. Recently bought and played with a favorite childhood toy--No.
128. Followed your favorite band/singer on tour--don't really have a favorite.
129. Created and named your own constellation of stars--No.
130. Taken an exotic bicycle tour in a foreign country--Nope.
131. Found out something significant that your ancestors did--Yep.
132. Called or written your Congress person--Why bother?
133. Picked up and moved to another city to just start over--Well kind of.
134. ...more than once? - More than thrice?-- No.
135. Walked the Golden Gate Bridge--Nadda.
136. Sang loudly in the car, and didn't stop when you knew someone was looking--Yep.
137. Had an abortion or your female partner did--No.
138. Had plastic surgery--not unless I were really disfigured.
139. Survived an accident that you shouldn't have survived--Not sure if I shouldn't have survived but I was lucky to survive.
140. Wrote articles for a large publication-- No.
141. Lost over 100 pounds--I couldn't afford to loose 100 pounds.
142. Held someone while they were having a flashback--Nope.
143. Piloted an airplane--No. This is the first thing I would do if I had the means. I tell you what too. if I had 190k I would buy my ticket for one of those space flights now.
144. Petted a stingray--Yes.
145. Broken someone's heart-- Yes.
146. Helped an animal give birth--No.
147. Been fired or laid off from a job---ahhh well yea a couple.
148. Won money on a T.V. game show--nope.
149. Broken a bone-- Nope. chiped one but never broken. (knocks on wood.) considering what a klutz I was growing up thats amazing.
150. Killed a human being -- No.
151. Gone on an African photo safari --No.
152. Rode on a motorcycle--Yes. but only dirtbikes not street bikes.
153. Driven any land vehicle at a speed of greater than 100 mph--ahh only a few times.
154. Had a body part of yours below the neck pierced-- No.
155. Fired a rifle, shotgun, or pistol-- All of them.
156. Eaten mushrooms that were gathered in the wild---YUK! who eats fungus?
157. Rode a horse--Yes.
158. Had major surgery--- Yes.
159. Had sex on a moving train-- No, but sounds like fun...
160. Had a snake as a pet--No. but my friend did.
161. Hiked to the bottom of the Grand Canyon--No.
162. Slept through an entire flight: takeoff, flight, and landing--How could I sleep? I might miss something out the window.
163. Slept for more than 30 hours over the course of 48 hours--Yes. having Mono sucks.
164. Visited more foreign countries than U.S. states--Nope.
165. Visited all 7 continents--Nope.
166. Taken a canoe trip that lasted more than 2 days--Nope.
167. Eaten kangaroo meat--EWWWWWWW!
168. Fallen in love at an ancient Mayan burial ground--who thinks up this stuff? No.
169. Been a sperm or egg donor--- When your married does it count as donation or charity? I had to say it. sorry..:-)
170. Eaten sushi-- Yes. but only once.
171. Had your picture in the newspaper--- I don't think so. my little brother got his in alot though.
172. Had 2 (or more) healthy romantic relationships for over a year in your lifetime-- LOL only on my 3rd. and never had one less then a year and a half.
173. Changed someone's mind about something you care deeply about--Yes.
174. Gotten someone fired for their actions---No.
175. Gone back to school--No.
176. Parasailed--No. but I would love too.
177. Changed your name-- No.
178. Petted a cockroach--EWWWWW! I don't want to be within eyeshot of a cockroach.
179. Eaten fried green tomatoes--No.
180. Read The Iliad-- I think I did in school yes.
181. Selected one "important" author who you missed in school, and read--No.
182. Dined in a restaurant and stolen silverware, plates, cups because your apartment needed them--No.
183. ...and gotten 86'ed from the restaurant because you did it so many times, they figured out it was you--No.
184. Taught yourself an art from scratch--Yes.
185. Killed and prepared an animal for eating--Once and I will never do it again.
186. Apologized to someone years after inflicting the hurt--Yes.
187. Skipped all your school reunions--So far I havn't gone.
188. Communicated with someone without sharing a common spoken language--Yep.
189. Been elected to public office--No way.
190. Written your own computer language-- I'm not "that" much of a geek.
191. Thought to yourself that you're living your dream-- yep. Shhh don't wake me.
192. Had to put someone you love into hospice care--No.
193. Built your own PC from parts--Every one I have ever owned. Thank you Jay, That is one of the best gifts I have ever recieved.
194. Sold your own artwork to someone who didn't know you--Nope.
195. Had a booth at a street fair--Nope.
196: Dyed your hair--Nope. I yam what I yam and thats all dat I yam.. ~popeye.
197: Been a DJ--No.
198: Found out someone was going to dump you via LiveJournal--Nope.
199: Written your own role playing game--Nope.
200: Been arrested---My record is so boring they keep my one speeding ticket from 1986 in there just so its not empty....

This is funny.

2004-09-27T21:39:00.000-04:00

but seeing as I'm a transplant its funnier to Jackie.
I think Dad might agree with the Greaters Ice cream one...

You Know You're From Cincinnati When...

Your idea of a three-way is chilli over spaghetti topped with cheddar

You know what goetta is - and you've eaten it

You hate Cleveland, but you don't know why, and you've never been there

You think Pete Rose and Marge Schott were railroaded

You say "Please?" instead of "Excuse me?"

You think Northern Kentucky is part of Ohio

You've been to California, Wyoming, Coney Island, and Over-the-Rhine in one day

There are less than 100 murders a year, and you still think you're in Detroit

You think Dayton is a Third World country

What groundhog? It's the St. Patrick's Day parade leprechaun that forecasts how much longer winter will last.

Losing football teams draw more fans than winning baseball teams.

Indiana is about 20 miles away, but it takes about four hours to get there.

It's too cold in the winter, and too hot and humid in the summer, to ever stay outside for very long.

You drive to Columbus or Louisville to avoid the prices at the Cincinnati airport.

City council members hold debates on whether or not they should debate in the first place.

Tourists still flock downtown to catch a glimpse of cast members from "WKRP," even though the show hasn't aired on network television since 1984, and the show was filmed in LA anyway.

You ask lifetime residents where the President Taft house is, but they don't know either.

If you do something -- anything -- in public long enough, sooner or later it will be banned.

Your low-fat diet is never low enough to exclude Graeter's ice cream.

You get through winter listening to Marty and Joe's broadcasts from the grapefruit leagues.

Big Red Smokies are a ballpark treat, not cause to dial 9-1-1.

If necessary, the city could easily be sliced into two new cities: East and West, and it would take 20 years for anyone to notice something happened.

Chocolate and cinnamon, not peppers and beans, are in your chili.

You can drive 30 minutes in any direction to hear a different accent than your own.

You can accurately judge people's social status by which Kroger's store they frequent.

You can go to any church festival in any neighborhood on any weekend and see at least five people you either work with, went to school with, or dated.

Even the slightest mention of former baseball commissioner A. Bartlett Giamatti makes your blood boil and your ears steam.

If the temperature hits 45 degrees, and the sun comes out in any month between November and April, people walk around downtown wearing shades and no jackets.

The top stories on the local 6 o'clock evening news look suspiciously like the articles you read in the newspaper that very morning -- and even use the same quotes.

Any carbonated beverage is a "coke."

Your favorite convenient store sounds like a labor union.

You can't hear the words "Mike Brown" without getting angry.

You honestly believe that Pete Rose should be in the Baseball Hall Fame.

You have more stadiums, coliseums, and arenas than you know what to do with.

It doesn't seem weird to you that everyone has an Uncle Al.

Your favorite Coney Island isn't in New York.

You like Nick Clooney better than George Clooney.

You know how Jerry Springer got his start.

You know what a pony keg is.

You have friends and neighbors with names like Machenheimer, Guckenberger, Schlottman, Schoenling, and Schweitering.

You know that cars (like eggs) are cheaper in the country.

An all-boys or all-girls school doesn't seem that odd to you

You think a mixed marriage is when an East Sider marries a West Sider.

You know the difference between Hudy and "Who Dey."

You know what cream ale is, and you think that cream soda should be bright
red.

You think Kentucky is only slightly more civilized than Afghanistan.

You know in which state the Greater Cincinnati Airport is located.

You actually understand the word, "CRAVE" and white castle burgers.

You can almost name the seven "hills" minus one or two.

You actually get these jokes and pass them on to other friends from Cincinnati.

Get Your Own "You Know You're From" Meme Here

More cool things for your blog at
Blogthings

Work and stuff.

2004-09-27T20:37:00.000-04:00

Sorry for the lack of posts.
I've been rather uninspired of late, so I figured I will do a general update type thing.
I had a pretty busy week last week at work, And this one and the next will prove even more so. Today, tomorrow, and Thursday I'm doing a full install on a new Victoria's Secret store in Indiana. Its in yet another fancy out of doors mall. They seem to be "The Big Thing" right now. While I was there today my work called me because there is an express store in the same place that the Indiana tech was doing. It seems he had some personal issue and had to leave early. They called me to see if I thought I could go work over there some over tomorrow and Thursday. I said I would of course. Turn down work? No way! I get the feeling the person that called me as about the same opinion of the Indiana guy that I do. She didn't say anything really but it was tone of voice stuff. I asked her how much he had done. She replied in a sarcastic voice "Not much I'm betting!". Hum.... I went over and took a look at the store before I left. More like he did nothing!! Oh well more hours for me. I found out today to that next week I will be leading 3 other tech's on a new Bath and Body Works store. This is a special store. Its in the mall right next to The Limited corporate offices in Columbus. The stores there are usually the first done when they decide to try out new store layouts ect. So its kind of a big deal. After hearing that I was like "Well guess I'm a real lead tech.. I need to ask for a raise!". I'm really bad about doing this kind of stuff. I've always felt that if you work hard, and do what your supposed to that you should be rewarded without having to ask. Of course this is a silly fairy tale to believe but I do. I feel like by having to ask I'm not doing good enough! I know that's silly and not true but I still feel that way. Jackie has explained this to me and it makes sense. Company's are there to make money. If someone is willing to do $20 an hour work for $14 an hour why should they rush to change that? I will ask though. I let myself be taken advantage of before and I won't do it again!
I managed to sleep wrong Friday night and twist my back, it hurts! Last night was bad. Its better today but still sore.
Well I think that's enough boredom to lump on you poor people for one day. :-)

Westie side story!

2004-09-27T20:09:00.000-04:00

I made a new friend over the weekend, and she is just so cute!
It was amazing how fast we hit it off too. Within minutes she was sitting on my lap kissing me! It was love at first sight. But don't take my word for how cute she is, I have some pics.

What where you people thinking?
This is Sunny Mae West. She is a 3 year old West Highland White Terrier.

We drove Jackie's mom to Dayton to stay the weekend with an old friend of hers Friday night. Sunny is her friends dog.
In the past I have not cared all that much for most small dogs that I have seen. They yap, jump around, get nervous and pee, and generally don't seem all that smart.

Sunny doesn't seem to be any of those things. You can see how smart she is by looking in her eyes. At 16lbs she is solid as a rock, you don't have to feel like you are gonna hurt her if you play rough.

She had the same effect on Jackie by the way. We were both immediately attracted to this dog. At some point when we can afford to we want to get a dog. And when that time comes I'm willing to bet we start looking for a Westie..

Pictures

2004-09-24T05:48:00.000-04:00

I seem to be having a problem with pictures just now.
I put up a post yesterday and couldn't get the pictures to load right.
I took the post down for now I will repost as soon as I can figure whats going on.

What I am doing still up at 3 am...

2004-09-19T02:38:00.000-04:00

I'm playing an evil game called The Sims. This isn't a new game been out for a while now. I just never got around to trying it out. Jackie's Daughter KT is a Sims Freak. She just got The Sims 2 so has given us The Sims and 8 of the 9 expansions that go with it. ( she has the 9th just can't find it.)
Its a pretty neat game all and all. Its funny to create people give them there basic traits and then watch them live there life. You can control there behavior or you can let them do what they like, or like me a combo of the two.
You can build them a house or pick a pre-made one. Its a lot of fun to play.
Just tonight I had the mother of my family playing with a chemistry set, after drinking the potion she made she turned into a frankinstien woman and went around the house destroying things. After a bit she turned back into herself but died. :-(
She had also been abducted by aliens and had her personality altered.
From watching it being played I would have to say the Sims 2 looks very cool also.

ack must sleep..

Stupid!!!!!

2004-09-16T18:42:00.000-04:00

I don't think I have talked much about my job here so far. So as a sort of prolog to the story I'm about to tell I will give a breif background.
I work for a nation wide company that does work mainly in the retail industry.
In a nut shell we install phone, data, music, and sometimes security systems in stores and resturaunts.
So this week I had a pre wire of a new AJ Wright store to do. They flew a tech up from Florida to work with me on the job.
We started monday and have been working pretty steady all week. Yesterday we had to run to home depot to get some stuff we needed to compleat the job, and while we were gone stoped and had lunch. When we got back the place was pretty much empty. we noticed but didn't think too much of it at the time. We worked the rest of the afternoon and called it a day around 5pm.
Today I arrived before the other guy. I went in and was talking to the electrician that was there. He told me that yesterday just before lunch the building inspector had come in and shut down the job.. it seems that the general contractor didn't have his permit yet. OOPS!!!! Now during the course of all this we found out that my company hadn't pulled a permit either! double OOPS!!! So we spend most of the day running around to get a permit, getting copys made and getting one to the general contractor so he could get his permit. you see why I titled this post stupid?
The project managers at my company are suppost to find out if we need a permit, then either send me a work order for me to go get the permit, or pay the electrician on the job to pull one for us when he pulls or include ours in his. They do the latter most of the time.
So anyway now unless someone can scrounge something up for me to do tomorrow I'm off. yuk... I have 40 hours this week but I was looking forward to some ot to help make up for the past 2 weeks being on the slow side. oh well..

Mozilla!

2004-09-16T17:53:00.000-04:00

Not to be confused with a large grey lizard that stomps around Tokyo...
For those that don't know already Mozilla is a web browser. Like Internet Explorer.
Ok so your thinking, "yea so why are you telling us this?"
I'm getting to that! Mozilla is a free, easy to use, customizable, web browser with almost all the features of Internet Explorer.
What it doesn't have that IE does is a bunch of security holes. That means you don't get all that annoying spyware, Mallware, and adware all over your computer that you never choose to put there. I have been using it for over a month now and love it.
They also have an email program that replaces Outlook Express that I like much better then I did Outlook.
You can download it and try it for free. It will import all your bookmarks ect. And you can have it and IE on your system at the same time to compare.
so give it a try...

Click here for Mozilla!

Recipe.

2004-09-16T16:07:00.000-04:00

I though I would share one of my favorite recipe's with you all.
This is my attempt to write down the basics of how I make my chili.
I'm not sure I ever make the same chili twice. this makes it somewhat hard to write it down and share with others. If you try it please let me know what you thought..

Wayne's Chili

1 to 2 lbs ground beef
1 large sweet or regular onion chopped into large pieces
2 large green peppers chopped into large pieces
1 can of stewed tomato's chopped
1 package of chili seasoning mix. ( I prefer the Carrol Shelby chili mix)
1 large jar of chunky style salsa. (I like Chi Chi's)
3 or 4 cans of beans depending on your taste. I use 1 dark red kidney, 1 pinto, and 1 black. Undrained.
1 Small can of chopped green chili peppers drained.
1 small can of whole kernel corn of your choice drained. ( I like the white corn)
1/3 cup corn flour, corn starch, or regular flour. ( you don't need this if you got the Carrol Shelby kit.)

Fry ground beef in a large sauce pan over med/high heat until almost done.
Add green peppers and onion and cook stirring often until ground beef is done.
Try to plan it so you are not over cooking the green pepper and onion before the beef is done.
Drain off most of the fat but not all of it. Add the can of stewed tomato's and Chili seasoning to taste. (if using one of those packets I would use the whole thing and maybe keep a second on hand in case you need more. In the case of the Carrol Shelby kit I add half of the packet at first.) Simmer over low heat stirring often. (this step is important to the flavor of the chili.) for around 30 minutes. Check flavor, it should be a stronger then you like it at this point. Add more seasoning as needed.
You should at this point have a thick meat mixture. Add the jar of salsa, The beans, the green chili peppers, and the corn. (If there is something else you like in your chili feel free to add it, but you want to consider how much liquid you are adding to the mixture.)
Simmer covered for an hour or so stirring often. If the chili is to think for your liking add some water. ( I like mine on the thick side.)
Mix the corn flour, or whatever you choose to use with just enough water to make a thin paste out of it. If you got the Carrol Shelby kit it comes with Masa Flour that should be used for this step. Remove your chili from the heat and stir in the flour mixture making sure to mix it well. Recover and let sit for around 30 minutes. Your chili will thicken as it sits.
I serve mine with cheese and tortilla chips. Enjoy...

If you would like to email this too you just let me know.

Quiet week.

2004-09-15T19:42:00.000-04:00

Not much to say the past few days. Busy work week and just kind of out of it.
Hopefully I will snap out of it in a day or so and have something to comment on..

Pick pocketed by the state of mass.......

2004-09-13T17:41:00.000-04:00

Well I just found out something very interesting. In the process of trying to find out what would be covered on my dental insurance for Michelle I found out that back in April the child support agency told my work to add the kids to my insurance. So for the past few months I have been paying for family coverage. I intend to call them tomorrow and find out where they get the right to do something like that.. In my divorce by her own choice Laura wanted to cover the kids health insurance. I had no problem covering it but she decided that she wanted to do it.
So my first question is what gives them the right to do such a thing?
My second is who is going to pay me back the extra money I have been paying into insurance that NO one knew about so never got used? If I had known maybe my insurance covers glasses and I wouldn't have to pay half of Billy's!
Its not an issue about the money so much as why they would and what right they have to do it.
Needless to say I'm a bit pissed off about it. I will let you know what I find out.

My other world...

2004-09-12T10:31:00.000-04:00

Most of you who know me know that I love playing video games. For a number of years though I didn't realize it at the time I was using these games as an escape. Now that I have gotten my life somewhat more under control these games are still my number one hobbie but they are not nessecery like they used to be.
So whats the point of telling you all this? well I though I might share with you a bit about the game I'm currently playing. Its called World of Warcraft by Blizzard Entertainment. Most people are familier in some why with Blizzard games. The Warcraft series, The StarCraft Series, and the Diablo games. Blizzard has a history of making great games with great stories. World Of Warcraft is there first attempt at a Massively Multi online Role Playing Game. MMORPG for short. WoW is a beautiful world that you can explore, do quests, and fight all sorts of monsters. Blizzard decided to go a different direction then most of the games right now. Most games are trying to make everything look like the real world. Blizzard decided they wanted there world to look like a fantasy world. For expample he is a screen shot from Everquest 2.

See how real it looks? its very cool don't get me wrong but I like the look of WoW just as much. Below is a picture of my Dwarf hunter flying on a Griffon.

Do you see what I mean? Ok I'll stop rambling now and just post a couple more screen shots of WoW.. :-)
This is a screen shot of an Orc standing on an island with the moon in the background.

This is a little Gnome Rogue.

This is a Gnome Warlock and his Imp pet.

ok I'll stop hogging your bandwith now.. click on any of these pictures to see them full size..

Comedy

2004-09-12T10:24:00.000-04:00

Tonight we are going to see Robert Schimmel at a local comedy club. Jackie got free tickets thru work. We wern't really sure if we felt like going untill I looked up who was playing. I have only ever heard some of his stuff but from what I have heard he is very funny.
I have never been to a comedy club before, and I think it will be alot of fun.

I'll let you know....

Its a girl!!!

2004-09-08T20:55:00.000-04:00

I just recieved a call from my friend Wes telling me that his wife Dawn had just given birth to a bouncing baby girl. she was around 8 lbs and 21 inches long.
I'm not 100% sure of the name yet so I will have to let you know when I find out.
I will try to have a picture to post for the weekend..

Now for others I know.. (looks at Deb)

Someone check hell, I think its frozen!!!!

2004-09-07T21:30:00.000-04:00

My ex called me a bit ago to discuss my daughter Michelle's dental problems.
And belive it or not we had a calm conversation.
My daughter Michelle has some dental issue's and will need bracess and possible more done. I didn't think it would need to be delt with for another 6 months or so due to her still having baby teeth, but the Dr feels it bad enough that those teeth need to be
pulled and her dental work started. The meat of the call was her asking if my insurance would cover any of it, and if so would it be enough to be worth the extra premiums on the plan. I had already been thinking pretty much the same thing I just hadn't checked into it yet.
It was nice to be able to have a talk about things to deal with the kids without it turning into a fight. I hope this means we are on the road to being able to deal with each other in a better way when we have to.
Don't worry I won't hold my breath...

A long distance dedication...

2004-09-05T18:10:00.000-04:00

Ok this one is for you mark..
I will try to get a better picture of just us as some point but this will have to do on short notice..

This is myself, Jackie, and my 3 boys waiting for the shuttle to Kings Island.

And just becuse I'm posting pics. This is a nice pic of my Dad, Me, Billy, James, and Jon at a rest area on the way to Ohio..

Work, Family, and Stuff.

2004-09-04T11:31:00.000-04:00

Sorry for the lack of posts. I've been busy getting back into working ect.
I was a bit worried that my work might slow down a bit after I got back from vacation, but it seems I was worried for nothing. This past week wasn't super busy but I worked every day. I have a big job starting soon that will keep me busy for like 3 weeks and its local too. YEA!!!! I found out just before vacation that I'm getting a new RTM. (regional tech manager) My new RTM is a great guy and I have the feeling he is gonna make a great RTM. He was a project manager and one of the better ones. The RTM I had when I started with this company was a waste of space as far as I could tell. The one we had before the new one was good and I hold him responsible for getting me more work ect. The problem was he was too good at too many things and they kept him so busy doing a number of things he didn't have time to really do the job as well as he could have.
I'm so much happier on so many fronts right now then I think I have ever been. I wish that I could live closer to my kids, but I really feel right now that I'm better off being a happy and healthy dad at a distance then I would be the way I was. I really wasn't there like I should have been even though I was there physically.

I was really glad to get to see my family last Sunday. I haven't always appreciated them as much as I do now, but I'm glad I have come to my senses. I could not ask to be part of a better family. For all there quirks they are an amazing group of people, or maybe because of all there quirks.. :-)
Along with my brothers and sister and there family's my oldest nephew Ryun and his wonderful wife Sharon came with there 3 children. I was always close to Ryun growing up and it was great to see him again.
Jackie got to meet some of my family for the first time too. They all seem to like her a lot. I don't see how they couldn't.. :-)
It was great to have my Dad and stepmom Kathy come visit us here in Ohio. I'm hoping to get my Mom to come for a visit one of these days too.
Well that's all for now. I will try to post some more pictures in the next few days.

Snapshots and Commentary!

2004-08-31T18:37:00.000-04:00

Welp, My boys are back home safe and sound and I have to admit that I'm gonna miss the noise and confusion. :-)
I flew to New Hampshire where my Dad and Step mom picked me up at the airport, and drove me down to Massachusetts.
We spent that night at a friend of there's and picked up the boys the next morning.

(Billy, James and Jon playing at the river near where we live.)

I didn't get to see my girls because they weren't home for the pick up or the drop off. :-(
We picked up the kids at 7:30 am and drove until around 6pm that night when we stopped for the night. The kids were amazing in the car! The next day we drove the rest of the way to Cincinnati.

(Jon with Scooby doo at Kings Island.)

I think Dad and Kathy were a bit surprised at how nice it is around here. We picked up Jackie and headed out to find someplace to eat. We ended up at this place called The Long Horn. The Steak was amazing! Best I have had in a long time and not real expensive either.

(James on the playground at our apartments.)

The next day we all went to paramount Kings Island.
It was hot and really crowded so we didn't get to go on as many rides as we would have liked but we had a great time.
I got fantasy photo's done of James and Jon and they came out really neat.

Nascar Jon

Nascar James

Sunday we mostly just hung around, and had a cook out, and a birthday cake for Billy. Monday I took Dad, Kathy and my boys on a bit of a sight seeing tour, and got some of what I feel is the best ice cream I have ever had. I'm not sure if they agree with that completely but they did think it was excellent.

(My oldest boy Billy.)

Tue, Wed and Thurs were spend doing a lot of odds and ends. We walked around some, went to a few stores, I build model planes with James and Jon and we flew them a bit,
and I got Billy a new body to one of my old radio control cars and we painted it up. I should have gotten a picture of that..
Friday we went to The Beach Waterpark.
We had an amazing time there. First of they were having a special so it was only $10 a person to get in for the day, second the kids here are in school so the place wasn't busy at all. We went on every slide at least twice. I have the sunburn to prove it too.. LOL

(James walking across Lilly pads at The Beach..)

(Jon on one of the waterslides at The Beach..)

Saturday We Drove back to Mass. :-( Sunday we had a family cookout and baby shower for my Brother and his Lovely Wife Deb. I didn't take any pictures there I'm sorry to say. I forgot my camera. But please feel free to click the Accidentalverbosity link to the right and I'm sure you will see some as he gets some posted.

(James with a rock he found around the river.)

We had a great time and I got to see my family that I haven't seen some of in a while,
and they got to see the boys at least.
Monday we drove back to Ohio.
This is almost like watching someone's vacation slides huh? I hope not that bad.
The best part to me was getting to bond with my boys. We got to talk abit about some things that needed to be talked about. Its hard to live with one parent and only hear there side of things, and to be honest I was not at my best while I was there the past few years. I think they got to see a side of me they aren't used to, and I think they might have a better understanding then they did.

(Jon jumping from a 10' platform into 10' of water. He loved it and did it over and over again. He is a great swimmer and loves the water.)

They said they had a great time and want to come for longer next summer. I hope they do.
I saw something in my son Billy this past week that I haven't seen in along time. A real smile, a glint in his eyes that has been missing for a long time. I can't really
explain to you what that's all about right now and I'm sorry. Some other time maybe the words will flow but not today. Just know that something has changed for the better, and that some of my past follies may be on the road to being redeemed.
ok folks that's all I have for now...

I'm Back!!!

2004-08-30T21:32:00.000-04:00

Sorry I'm too tired to write anything interesting tonight.
I will post more pictures and post at some point tomorrow..

The Promised Picture Post.

2004-08-24T12:45:00.000-04:00

This is a shot of my Dad and my 3 boys on the Kentucky side of the Ohio River with the Cincinatti skyline in the background. Its still a nice pic so I decided to post it.

Here is Billy, James, and Jon in the pool at our apartment building.

They take pictures of you on some of the rides at kings Island. I got this one of Billy and I on one of the coasters.

This is a picture of James on the playground near our apartment.

Here is Jon on the playground too.

This is Billy Playing lego's in our living room.

I will post some more later. kids want me to go play now....
Till later.

home at last...

2004-08-20T22:30:00.000-04:00

I'm back home with my 3 boys in tow.
I ended up flying to New Hampshire where my Dad and Step Mom picked me up at the airport. We then drove down to Massachusetts where we spent the night at a friend of there's house. We picked the boys up the next morning and headed to Ohio.
Its a pretty long drive and we decided to do it in 2 days rather then drive straight thru. The boys were amazing! we drove for nearly 10 hours on thursday and they were great the whole way. We stayed over thursday night and and set off again friday morning. We had breakfast and didn't rush to much to leave. the kids were really good again and we arrived here at around 6 pm.
its nice to be home let me tell you.. I think my Dad and Stepmom were surprised at how
nice it is around here. The boys are settling right in nicely.
not sure how much I will write on here this week but I'm really glad to have them here with me. hopefully a couple will come for the summer next year..

You've been mostly moved all day!

2004-08-15T21:36:00.000-04:00

Well the worst is done but there is still maybe a load of stuff waiting at the old place. (sigh) We were going to make an other run today but we just didn't have it in us. We spent most of the day there cleaning and loading odds and ends into the van.
We also decided that a gas grill was a worth getting. We picked up some corn and summer squash from a farmstand on the way to get the grill. ( these people have good stuff )
We had some steak in the freezer so we had grilled corn and squash with our steak.. Man it was good.
The new place is looking awesome. It seems bigger with the furniture then it did without it. I love having the grill out on the deck too. I think we are really going to like it here.

Moving Sucks!!!!!!

2004-08-14T22:25:00.000-04:00

Sigh.
well most of the stuff is moved in now. Tomorrow we need to get the odds and ends that are left and clean the old place up.
At least the worst of it is done. Some of our moving help ended up not showing up, and one person showed up with only an hour or so to help us.
This ended up meaning 2 trips with the uhaul and me and one other guy doing most of it.
Man I'm beat! At least this weird weather is still here making it a hell of a lot cooler then it should have been at this time of year..
We have so much more room now. I love having the sliding glass doors and ceiling fan.
our tub has seen better days. Its just old. But we have amazing water pressure and really nice hot water.
anyway I'm beat. Time for bed.

Yea.

2004-08-14T09:07:00.000-04:00

Well the computers and cable modem are all in the new place.
so the important part is done. :-)
the major part of the moving will go on this afternoon when all are help is free to help us.
actually we don't have all that much to move and well spend the day today getting most of the small stuff out.
anyway I guess I should get back to work.
talk to you all later...

2004-08-09T21:58:00.000-04:00

Almost time..

2004-08-09T18:50:00.000-04:00

For my Vacation.. YEA!!! And to get to see the kids. Well 3 of them anyways.
I haven't had anything like a real vacation in a long number of years.
Over the past couple years I've gotten to do some long weekends, but no serious vacation.
Hopefully if all goes well I will get to see most of my family also. My Dad and Stepmom are coming here for part of the time the kids are hear to visit us and the kids some.
If my mom hasn't spaced out and forgot we are suppost to be having a cookout at my grandmothers house on Sunday the 29th and hopefully everyone will at least be able to stop by. I haven't seen my brother Michael and his family in a while. It will be nice to see my brother Jay and his wife again. My Sister Lynn and her family. My Nephew and his family who I have not meet yet, and even my oldest brother Gary.
anywho I'm sure to be posting some pics and what not after the dust settles.

Hello From Indiana..

2004-08-05T21:52:00.001-04:00

Well here I am on day 3 of my work trip to Evansville IN.
So far this job has been a pain in the ass. Everything so far has taken 3 times as long as it should have. Hopefully I can make up some time tomorrow.
I'm to tired to be very interesting so you wil have to settle for this..

Hello From Indiana..

2004-08-05T21:52:00.000-04:00

This is just too funny.

2004-08-01T21:15:00.000-04:00

The guys who created South Park have a new movie coming out this fall.
Its Called Team America, World Police.
Its a movie about a group of terrorist fighters. and its all done with Puppets ala Thunderbirds.....
This sounds like its gonna be really really funny, but hey don't take my word on it.
Check out the trailer for yourself...

Zen and the art of Fiber.

2004-08-01T20:40:00.000-04:00

Last night I decided that I needed to figure out what I was doing wrong with those fiber fittings. I need to use them so I really need to know why I'm having trouble.
First I looked "fiber termination" using google and found a site with a great overview of the whole process. That wasn't really any help because I already knew all the general stuff, but it was a great refresher to read it.
Then I looked up the manufacture of the fittings. They have a pretty nice web site if you can get past the fact that you have to copy and past the links they have because they don't seem to work right. Once I was at the right page I looked up the part that was in question and found that they had instrutions for its use available in PDF format. YES!!! You have to love the internet....
After reading through the aformentioned PDF file I discovered a couple things that I was doing wrong. Well practice makes perfect so that's what I spend the rest of the evening doing. I set my tools out on my desk and proceeded to terminate cut and reterminate for the next several hours. Now I feel like I have this under control.
a lot of the problem is the fact that you don't have to polish the excess epoxy off of these fittings. Thus I was over polishing. I also didn't realize that these are made so that 1/4 inch of the fiber casing is supposed to be left above the top of the insert. Its funny how some very small changes can make a big difference for some things. Now after doing enough of them that I'm comfortable with them I should have no problems dealing this the fiber this week, and I don't think these fittings suck as much as I thought they did.
oh for any that might be interest click here to take a look at the above mentioned PDF file..

I'm Back....

2004-07-31T21:15:00.000-04:00

Well I'm back from being offline for a most of the week.
Had to work in Owensboro KY and didn't get back to just a couple hours ago. Worst is the job isn't done. I guess that's what happens when your company tries to cheap up on stuff it takes twice as long as it should to "Try" and get the job done.
So not only do I have another job the same this coming week in Evansville IL or is it IN I can't remember. And I have to shoot back over to the one this week and Finnish it also.. Oh well that's how things go sometimes.
Seems to me you should not try and cheap up when it comes to Fiber optic cables.
you see the ends you use on fiber are fairly expensive. $8 a piece or so I believe.
and if you ruin one you throw it away. Basically you fill the fittine with an epoxy. Then you dip the end of the fiber into a catalyst so when you put the fiber into the fitting it dries almost instantly bonding the fiber to the fitting. Then you cleave the end of the fiber that sticks above the end of the fitting and polish it smooth.
I have done this a lot. A real lot. And it goes one of two ways. Either the cleave is good, or the cleave is bad the fiber fractures down into the fitting and its no good. That's pretty much the way it goes. Good or no good and you can pretty much tell right after you make the cleave if its gone be good or not.
What my company uses are this fittings that can be reused if they don't come out right. No epoxy. Basically you put a rubber tube over the fiber. Over this you put a threaded plastic bushing. You insert the fiber into the fitting and you screw it into the fitting. This squeezes the rubber tube around the fiber supposedly holding it firmly in place. Well it doesn't always. And now you have a lot of things that can go wrong during this process making it take a lot of time to trouble shoot. Plus they are a pain to use. You have to push this almost microscopic piece of glass up into this quarter inch hole and into a smaller hole. If you miss you break the fiber and have to start over again. Then you screw the bushing into the base of the fitting to tighten it all up. Sometimes the fiber snaps during this process, but you don't know it snapped until after you spend 15 minutes polishing then another 5 cursing because its not right.. And this is just a sample of the problems..
ok I won't bore the 3 people that read this blog with this anymore.
Just needed to vent abit..

Car Wars: Episode 3 "The machanic strikes back.."

2004-07-26T21:20:00.000-04:00

A short time ago. In a garage not so far away.....

Well it seems that what seemed like it could be a very big thing turned out to be almost nothing. The noise in the transmission turned out to be a loose heat sheild easily fixed by any Padwan machanic for nothing.
They did discover we had a broken motor mount while under there but thats not such a big thing. The Machanic also senced that the oil was weak in our van and suggested an oil change. The good news is that other then a sensor that monitors the exaust (pfffft) our van gets a clean bill of health, and ready to make the jump to lighspeed when needed in just a few short weeks.
All in all it wasn't too bad. we spend money that we didn't really have to spend fixing it, but we got alot of things fixed for a fraction of what that one place wanted just for the breaks.

New Apt pics.

2004-07-25T16:55:00.000-04:00

I though I would post a few pics of the new apartment here.
I should have taken a few more but didn't think of it till too late. maybe next time I'm there I will take more..

This is a shot of our living room while standing next to the door comeing into the place.
you can see the sliding door leading to the deck, and the kitchen is at the far end to the left.

This pic is taken standing by the slider looking back into the livingroom. the picture seems to make the space seem smaller then it is.

This is our little tiny kitchen area. not alot of room but its enough for us. we have a brand new frig, stove and cabnets. there is a dishwasher and garbage disposal in the sink.

This is a shot of our little bathroom. its not very big but we really don't need a huge bathroom.
this shot was taken standing in the livingroom. the doorways to the bedrooms are at both ends of a short hall running in front of the bathroom.

it was hard to get a good shot of the bedrooms. this is standing opposit the door into the room and looking at the opposit corner. there is a nice amount of closet space and we have a storage area in the ceiler too. there are 2 washers and 2 dryers in the buildings laundry room.

This is looking into the second room from the doorway. both of the bedrooms have ac units in them. the carpet looks like its new.

This is a shot out the slider onto our little deck...

This is a shot of the playground in the park thats next to our apartment complex.

This is to the left of the last shot.

This is a picture of the pool.

Just when you thought is was safe

2004-07-25T16:46:00.000-04:00

To pull out of your drive way, Or How cars seem to know when the worst possible time to need a bunch of work is.....
Well I managed to fix the breaks and the altinator for about a third of what the garage wanted for just the breaks. It seems that the altinator would have needed replacement sooner then later anyway, but it seems that the Main problem still exists. With the noise from the altinator gone and the breaks not grinding anymore I can now tell that the noise is coming from the transmission. The transmission works perfect as near as I can tell, but it sounds like there is something in the bell housing with the flywheel. Its rattling around and sometimes getting stuck causing a rally loud scrapping noise. We dropped it off at a garage that has done work for Jackie in the past and allowed her to make payments. we are gone have them just look at it and let us know what they think the problem is... SIGH!!!
hopefully it won't be too bad..

I'll keep you up dated.

colors.

2004-07-21T18:04:00.000-04:00

you might notice I'm playing with the templet colors some. bear with me while I find something I like... :-)

Insult to injury!

2004-07-20T16:29:00.000-04:00

Well to add to my car woe's now its making an almost painfull to hear sound that seems to be comeing from the area of the altenator. sounds like the bearings are going and there is alot of screaching metal noise now. SIGH..

What doesn't kill us will make us stronger, Right?

Why I hate cars.

2004-07-20T13:37:00.000-04:00

Becuse they always decide to break down and need $600 worth of work at the worst of all possible times.
it just never fails does it?
So there is a bad caliper on Jackies van. we can't afford what they want to fix it so I'm just gonna have to buy the parts and do it myself. Really sucks though. I'm really not as good at that stuff as my Dad or Oldest brother.

Movin on up..

2004-07-19T14:09:00.000-04:00

Well we got the new apartment. YEA!!!
It will be nice to have that extra room, And the boys will enjoy the pool while they are here. And with the park right next to the place it will be nice too.
We are still gonna be close to the river, and bike trail just in a different town.
Everything is close by too. It will be great..

what states I've been too.

2004-07-18T10:12:00.000-04:00

Ok I'll play too..
got the link for this off my Brothers site.

create your own visited states map

Parental Alienation

2004-07-15T16:37:00.000-04:00

My brother sent me a link to this site. Its very interesting reading and a lot of what it says really hit home. I guess the worst thing is the realization that this has been going on in some degree for a long time. Long before we separated. It started small. I would tell the kids I was gone do something with them. She would find some reason that I couldn't do it. Then later come to me and say how the kids come to her and talk about how disappointed they are that I make promises and don't keep them. Then things like telling me to deal with a situation. I lay down a punishment for the offending child or children. She decides the punishment isn't good enough ect and changes it. All this stuff went a long way towards making me feel an outcast in my own home. And was destroying my relationship with my kids. I didn't realize how depressed and unhappy I was until after the fact. I found out recently that she has told people in front of the kids that "He hasn't wanted to be a part of this family for years.". That's not true at all. I didn't want to live under her rules, and I retreated into myself not realizing I was doing it. I could have very well been depressed and not even known it. I know at the point that I started feeling like I was two separate people I realized that things were wrong. I realize now to that she was trying to alienate me from my family too, and was succeeding. Jackie will tell me I'm naive but I'm not even sure she totally realizes she does it. Its in part my fault to. I allowed her to do it to me. I agreed with her even when I didn't, I gave into her almost all the time. In some ways it was like being a slave.
I've lost my train of thought here. LOL need to get ready to go back to work anyway.

apartment update

2004-07-14T20:03:00.000-04:00

We found out today that Heat and hot water are included in this place also. Oh and it has a dishwasher and garbage disposal too. WOOT!
Our landlord would like us to give him a month so if things go well well be moving the 15th of augs. yup the weekend before the kids come LOL. but it will be nice to have the extra space, the pool, and the park and playground right next to the place while there here. its on a real quiet road too. and everything is only a short distance away. the grocery, drug store, and pretty much anything else you would need. I love where we live now but this place is also in a great spot. the one we are looking at is above the office too. the means we don't have to worry about loud people being under us, or about making a little to much noise and haveing an over sensitive person under us. very cool...

Is there ever a right time to move?

2004-07-13T22:15:00.000-04:00

Well we are thinking of moving. We have been thinking for a while now that an extra bedroom would not be a bad thing at all. And Jackie would like to have pets at some point. I like pets to its just not as much of a big deal to me. There are a couple other things that factor in on the decision.
1. when my kids come to visit there is more room for them.
2. when her daughter stays with us she can have a room and not have to bunk on the couch.
3. Jackies Ex is moving this fall in with his girlfriend and her kids. Her youngest daughter doesn't want to have to change schools. so it we lived in that town she could keep going to her same school and our address would just be used.
4. We would be closer to Jackies mom. with her Dad gone thats not a bad thing.
there are other things to but those are the main ones.
So we heard about this place that is renting that sounds really good. Jackie went and looked at it today. (I had to work late big surprise} we have driven by there several times and it looks like a really nice place. not a bunch of kids running around screaming and no cars up on blocks. Its in Milford. not very far from where we live now really. its right near the same river we are near now. its in the old part of town a really nice area. There is a pool and a park with playground right there. actually just check This site for more details. would be nice to have the pool there when the kids visit. also first months rent is 1/2 right now. well see how it goes..

the gloves are off (part 2)

2004-07-12T00:20:00.000-04:00

I should really be in bed. sigh!
anywho to add to that totaly stupid email the ex sent me today she is making my son feel guilty like he got her in trouble. first of I didn't say anything bad to her.
second off its bullshit to put the kids into that position.
so I get this email from my son.

Dear, Dad

This is william. Iam sorry that we didn't answer your call on saturday. No one wanted to talk so i was
supposed to write you a letter that said to call a different day . But forgot to right the letter to you , so that mess was all my fault. so you cant blame mom for it. Mom did tell me to write it on tuesday but like i said i forgot.because that
night we all had a friend over and i wanted to talk a different night to you so i could talk to you longer and not keep
my friend watting.So you can call me etheir on this saturday or we will try calling you during the week.

love,
William

now you can see what I origanaly wrote in the post below. What Trouble? the only trouble was caused by the way she responded to it.
so here is what I wrote back.

Hi, Billy.

Thats fine and its ok you forgot. You did not get your mother in trouble and don't worry that you did. you can see here what I wrote. I did not blame your mom for anything I just asked her to let me know. all she had to say back was that you were suppost to tell me and must not have. you could have also picked up the phone and told me then that you had a friend over and could we talk another time. Things between your mom and I are not your fault. So don't worry your not in any trouble.
becuse of your being away last weekend and stuff I havn't gotten to talk to you in a few weeks and I was looking forward to talking to you guys.
It has been a very busy week. Jackie's Dad died thursday night. so things have been kind of crazy. I can't wait till you guys come. it still seems way to far away to me. I'm working thursday night but if you want to call during the week please do. if not I will talk to you saturday.

Tell the rest of the kids I love them and send hugs.

Love
Dad.

There is no need of her twisting things and causing the kids to feel guilty about nothing.
I'm I wrong about this?

The gloves are off.

2004-07-11T17:49:00.000-04:00

Well I'm finally at my ends. I try my hardest not to cause conflict. I take shit no one should have to take in the name of keeping the peace. But I'm done....
at least when it comes to my ex wife.
I just can't take her manipulating situations and then acting like she is the victim.
and I'm tired of dealing with it.
here is the latest round of emails.
I called the kids last night for my "scheduled call" and got the answering machine.
so I send this email. Is this insulting or in anyway mean?
"Hi,
> I called tonight and got the answering machine. And no one has called me back yet.
> If you could please let me know if you will not be home so I can call Sunday I would appreciate it.
> I rushed away from something important to be here to call. My calls to the kids are very imporant to me. I know for a fact that you would be mad if it were done to you.
>
> Wayne"
Is there anything wrong with that?
This is the response I got..

>Hi,
>
>I would appreciate it if you would find out the whole story before you
>start pointing fingers and you need to talk to your kids about this
>situation.
>
>I always let you know if a certain day would be better then another and
>I am the one that ends up doing the kids dirty work, when they have
>decided that they don't want to talk to you and tell you about their own
>decisions!!!!! I told you a while ago that I am not going to be in the
>middle of these issues anymore so please don't send me anymore
>e-mails like this because I won't reply to them any longer.
>
>
>Laura

a bit nasty don't you think? overeaction?

This is what I wrote back.

Hi,
unfortunately you are are in the middle, you are in the middle and unless you make the kids tell me stuff its up to you to tell me. And from now on the kids don't have an option to say no so easy.
They can't tell you they don't want to talk to you and there not gonna tell me either.
the problem is I can't get hold of them without going though you. You have set it up like that.
They can't answer the phone if your not there, and if your not home they can't be there to take the call can they? Ok so I don't want to do this but I'm gonna have to change things a lot.
and if I have to pay to change things things are gonna change big time. If you don't want to be in the middle anymore you just let me know and I will come and get the kids, and then I will have to be in the middle.

To repsoned to what you just sent me I did not point any fingers. I simply said that you would be mad if you were in the same situation. I did not blame you for anything I asked you to be considerate and try and let me know. That's no more then you ask me all the time and I do try not matter what you think. I was not blaming you or saying anything bad about you and I'm kind of tired of you taking things I say the wrong way.

Wayne.

and even here I'm not being all that nasty. But things are gonna change. I'm sick of it.
she is using the kids. She is a manipulating bitch and the poor kids don't stand a chance.
she does little things like "oh its time for your dad to call. Well I was gonna let you go outside and play with the squirt guns and stuff but you can't go in and out so you have to choose what you want to do. Play or talk to your dad."
then I get from her "the kids choose not to talk to you. I don't do anything to stop them". Sigh. Well if I'm gonna be working a lot I will just have to work out something with a lawyer. Hopefully I can get some stuff done that won't cost me a lot, but if things don't change I'm suing for custody.. And soon.

Rough week...

2004-07-10T19:27:00.000-04:00

For a four day work week it was a busy and sad one.
Besides just being real busy with work Jackie lost her Father late Thursday night.
We got the call just before 11pm Thursday night. Her dad has been real sick for a long time. He was having dialysis (spelling?) 3 times a week, And didn't eat and sleep that well most of the time. He drove himself to the hospital 2 Sundays ago because he was having trouble breathing. That was not unusual for him. The decided to keep him overnight and at some point he started having convulsions. He was in ICU for most of the last 2 weeks in a state of not quite consciousness. He would react to people but wasn't really conscious either. They say it was very quick, and he went in his sleep. His heart Just stopped.
I'm not good at writing this stuff.
RIP Jack Smith...

and then there was one.

2004-07-08T22:40:00.000-04:00

When I started this job there were 3 other guys in this area. 2 in Columbus, 1 in norther Kentucky.
not to mention 2 more guys then there are now in western penn, and 1 more guy in Indiana.
the 2 guys in Columbus moved to eastern penn. one of the guys in Indy Died. and now the guy in norther Ky quit. I'm betting he will be back but for now I'm the only tech in this area.
this is a good thing. with only me there is apt to be enough work to get me though the winter without a lay off.
good news. I'm busy and it means maybe less driving. LOL I have been doing sometimes 300 miles a day.

fireworks

2004-07-04T22:34:00.000-04:00

I just saw a great Fireworks display. The town I live in is pretty small and the fireworks show they put on isn't all that great in its self, But combined with the background display it was awsome.
I live on on side of a river valley at the top of the hill. We walked down to the end of our street and sat on the lawn of a church that overlooks the town. From where we were sitting we were looking down over the town and across the valley. Just over the tree's on the other side of the valley we could see 5 or 6 other towns fireworks going off. The combo of out towns fireworks going off in the foreground and a bunch of others visible just about the tree's in the background was breathtakeing, and the sound of the Booms as they echoed down the valley was great. I havn't seen a fireworks display in years so maybe it just seems all new to me. Also fireworks are semi legal here, so you could see all the people setting them off out of there yards too.
Its a beautiful if a bit hot night. and I really enjoyed the show.

Spiderman 2

2004-07-01T20:58:00.000-04:00

I can't wait to see Spiderman 2. I drove by the local thearter wed night at around 10 pm and the parking lot was the fullest I have ever seen it.
When I got home I told Jackie that Spiderman 2 was gonna break some kind of record.
40.5 Million Dollars in one day!!!! On a Weekday no less..
its like a no brainer that it will break the 3 day weekend total set by spiderman 1 of 114 some odd mil.
I can't wait.. maybe tomorrow night. but more likely saturday early..

Work.

2004-06-30T23:14:00.000-04:00

Well getting up before the sun and getting home after dark every night is great for money not so great to keeping in touch with folks.
Long weekend.. YEA!! Will post more then..
Must Sleep..
I drove a total of 715 miles today. Went to Carbondale IL. About 80 miles from the Mississippi.
In the morning I have to be in Mansfield Oh. < around 3 hours drive each way> at 8 am. YUK!!!
Mansfield looks to have had better days. Its too bad to looks like it was a nice place. Famous for something to do with Johnny Appleseed too. I should stop and read the plaque tomorrow..
Night night

Update.

2004-06-27T23:25:00.000-04:00

Well it seems that I have won the battle, But not yet the war.
After much listening to how much she had to work and that she was losing money ect
my ex stopped fighting me about taking my kids on the 19th.
I'm going to do some digging though and make her fess up to some of the lies she tells me. I had to force her to tell me where my children go for daycare. I have a right to know that. Times are changing and she isn't gonna like it much, but she started it.

Ex update.

2004-06-24T18:27:00.000-04:00

Well aparently that last email hit a nerve. I recieved a call from my ex tonight "Wanting to talk about some things". That of course means that she is pissed about something I wrote. She won't email me back of course becuse she doesn't want what she is gonna say to be in a form that I can use against her, And it means that she can twist things I say around.
I didn't get to find out what she said becuse I was almost to a job and didn't want to get into it right then.
I think I'm gonna record the phone call. I can't use it for evidence if this goes to court, but I can prove to the kids ect what she said..

More later

Letters to the ex.

2004-06-23T18:30:00.000-04:00

LOL this could become a regular sight on this blog..

I guess I need a bit of background info in case someone that I don't know actually reads this..
My ex is somewhat of a control freak. She insists on planning her life out months in advance. If she "thinks" something might happen she feels the need to act as if it will happen and plan accordingly.
because of this she had that I have to give 2 months notice to her if I'm going to take the kids. I agreed to it because most of the time I will need that much time to plan anyway.
So back in May I made plans to take the kids for a week. I asked her when would be a good time to take them . I set plans for the last week in august. One of the main things I have planed for the kids is to go to paramount Kings Island a local amusement park. The first week of June I found out that Kings Island would be closed the week that the kids will be here, so I contacted my ex in the first week of June and told her that I would like to pick the kids up on thur the 19th of aug instead of aug 21st.
The response I got was basically "I have plans for the kids those days so you can't take them.". After a bit of run around about this I got told that she will see if she can't change her plans but she won't promise anything.
I have not heard anything from her in a week or so. I don't need her to wait till the last minute when I can't do anything about it then just not be home. Or refuse to let the kids come with me. So tonight I wrote and sent her this email. I figured I would post it here for you to see.
This is the "Your way to nice to her and she will continue to walk all over you if you don't stop it" < that from Jackie, who hates that I don't just tell her off. But she also understands that I'm just not like that.>.
so here is the firm but no mean or nasty version of the email I just sent out.. Enjoy..

Hi,
I haven't heard from you in a while, so I wanted to confirm that I am picking up the kids on aug 19th 2004.

I understand that you had plans already on those days but I don't understand how 2 months is not enough time to change them. By the terms of our divorce if I had called you on June 18th and told you that I was going to take the kids from Aug 19th to Aug 30th you would have to accommodate that.
By the terms of our divorce I don't have to ask you if I can take the kids I just need to let you know that I am. We have joint custody.
I try to work with you on these issues, and I have no problem discussing problems that you might have. This time though I don't have a lot of options. I really don't want to fight about this issue but I will if forced.

In case you are still having issues with your email if I don't receive a response to this by Friday I will resend it.

Thanks Wayne

Nothing good for now.

2004-06-22T22:24:00.000-04:00

Sorry, I have a few things I would like to post about, but lack the energy to do so.
I'm not sure if I'm mildly sick or if its just the weather but I can't seem to muster much energy the past few days. I have also been working a lot of hours this week.
It seems that we have a lot of work that has to be done at once.
better then have in no work that's for sure. I'll just deal with being tired. :-)

WoW

2004-06-21T23:31:00.000-04:00

I was just getting ready to head to bed after watching Dances With Wolves, and needed to check my scedual to see what time I needed to get up in the morning. so while I was at it I decided to check my email.
Well I opened hot mail expecting to see just an other ad for a vibrator or single lonely woman when to my surprise I got an invitation to join a beta test for a new game comeing out.
Its very exciting. there are 2 games comeing out sometime this year that look to be worth playing. it will be nice to have a chance to try it out without having to buy it.
I'm not sure how much I can legaly say about it. but WoW. seems to say it all.. :-)
well off to bed.... while the 2 gig file downloads

I would love to go here.

2004-06-19T18:57:00.000-04:00

Sci-fi museum goes back to the future
First of its kind center examines interplay of fact, fantasy..
Click here for the rest of the story..
I would like to go see this someday. I have always wanted to go to Washington State and this is just another reason. I even have a couple friends out there not to mention a couple in British Columbia.
Maybe someday...

Sick and tired!!

2004-06-19T18:28:00.000-04:00

I'm pretty sick and tired of my ex always having something else going on when its my time to call the kids. Its not bad enough that I need to schedule phone calls, but then its always that there is something more interesting to do when its time for my call. Billy is the only one that will talk to me anyways. Tonight it seems that after being in the house for a while she said they can go outside and play right when its time for me to call. I'm really not sure what I can do about it, but man it pisses me off. Last time it was "you guys can go out and play with the squirt guns but if you do you can't talk to your dad because I don't want you in and out of the house all wet".
They have a cordless phone but she doesn't want to buy a battery for it so she won't let them use it to talk to me, besides that's another way to control the calls they don't want to have to go sit in the kitchen to talk to me. Sigh.. Things will change!!!! She could really care less how much she is hurting the kids in the long run by pulling this petty shit. If she wants a fight she is gonna get a fight.

Web Games to boggle the mind..

2004-06-19T15:00:00.000-04:00

On a message board that friends of mine all post on someone posted a link to this game. its really well done and pretty hard though not so hard you can't do it with just a bit of trying...
let me know what you think. there is a next room but I havn't finnished that yet..

I think this is great.

2004-06-19T10:34:00.000-04:00

A privately funded space project is set to launch Monday.
Its about time to as far as I'm concerned. No reason why NASA should have all the fun.
Not to mention that privately funded space ships won't be out of date before there first launch.
Maybe this will give NASA a kick in the pants and things will get rolling again.
Read the article here.
Click here to read..

Kids

2004-06-17T19:03:00.000-04:00

I received a Fathers Day Card today. Inclosing I found the best gift I could have received. A picture of the kids.
ok a picture might not seem like such a big deal to some people. But we were very lax about getting film developed through most of the years and when I left there mother I didn't end up taking much with me. The whole me moving out thing didn't go real smoothly. I ended up packing the important stuff while we were yelling at each other.
how could I not have though of pictures as important? I guess its one of those little things that really isn't a little thing later on in life. But beyond that I'm "supposed" to be told when school pictures and stuff are being offered so if I choose I can buy them. I haven't been.. And she has been "supposed" to take them and have pictures done and send me some, but she hasn't. Ok I'm not in the mood to get into a rant yet though it will come one of theses days. :-)
anyway so I have decided to post a copy of the picture here.
from left to right. Back row. William 13, Melissa 15, Michelle 12,
Front row. James 10, Jonathan 8.

I can't believe how much Michelle and James have grown. Its wild Michelle is bigger then Billy now and James is getting close. Melissa is looking like quite the young lady.
James and Jon look like they are trying not to laugh poor Billy doesn't look happy.
the picture quality is not the greatest to begin with but its still a great pic and a treasure worth more then gold to me...

Currently Playing..

2004-06-17T12:38:00.000-04:00

I'm a big game geek. I love video games and have for as long as I can remember.
I really enjoy online games. I guess its kind of like sitting around a table playing DnD only you don't have to be in the same area to play with your friends.

Right now I'm playing City of Hero's.
Its not as deep or involved as say Everquest but its a fun game with lots of action.
You create a super hero and venture out into Paragon City to fight a scourge of super villains that are over running the city.
Here is a screen cap of my Char Darkclawz about to rip into a Clockwork...

Maybe later I will post a shot of him using super jump to travel around the city.
super jump is by far my favorite power so far.
anywho more later..

Welcome.

2004-06-17T11:59:00.000-04:00

Hello,
you might be wondering what this blog is about?
To tell the truth I'm not sure yet myself.
We'll just have to wait and she what it becomes.
I'm not very good at writing so bear with the bad spelling and grammar.
hopefully this will improve a bit as I go.

well lets get started shall we?