It seems as if every time I sit down to write something here, two things are true: My dad’s reminded me that I’m a complete slacker about updating my stuff, and at least two months have gone by since I last did so.
So, in response to an email that I got from Dad last night, I shall now update this tome…after a four-month hiatus this time.
I did not make it to Michigan for my fall sojourn this year. Throughout September and October, I kept wavering on whether or not to do it, given that I’d booked my time off for the week before and of Thanksgiving, which would be the latest I’ve headed to the uncivilized part of the north (Vermont is not uncivilized). I was concerned not about the cold, but with the possibility that I’d get my car to the cabin and not be able to get it back out to a road – the cabins at Cheboygan are 1-2 miles from the parking lot, reachable on dirt tracks that are navigable in the Subaru as long as there aren’t two feet of snow on the ground, and that was a distinct possibility in late November.
So I opted for a staycation – improved the setup of the tarp on my deck and spent a week and a half doing basically nothing. Sat on the deck, drank beer and bourbon, listened to podcasts…hung out inside with the cats, did some laundry, etc.
I think it turned out to be a fairly wise decision. The weather in northern Michigan was crappy, to put it mildly. Looks like they had at least rain every day, some snow, some bitterly-cold days – and wind-driven flooding along the Mackinaw Straits, which almost certainly would’ve made 10 days in the cabin (100 feet from the water in normal conditions) pretty miserable. It would have been relaxing, however; I’ve got to admit that I didn’t feel nearly as chill after 10 days at home as I did after 7 days in Michigan each of the last couple of years.
I saved some money, though. That’s a good thing.
I made an appearance at the company Christmas party this year. It was a couple of weeks ago, and it marked the first time in my entire career that I’ve gone to an office party. I did so at the request/command of my boss, who has decided that I need to, I guess, be more approachable as a normal person to the other departments at work. I’m not describing that very well, but I sort of get what he’s pushing. I tend to focus on my direct reports, along with one or two key contacts in other departments, and I don’t socialize with many other people in the office. Although I’ve achieved (and encouraged) a reputation as a go-to technical guy, I’m still learning the hands-off, administrative, style of management; and making small talk with the big bosses from New Hampshire and heads of other departments is part of that, I suppose. I didn’t stay long. I had a couple of drinks, ate dinner, talked with a few folks, and left. I didn’t hang around for the post-dinner festivities (a game of musical chairs that has become somewhat legendary in the company over the last 15 years), and I missed seeing, apparently, half of my team get shit-faced. That’s probably a good thing – and is also one of the reasons that I don’t do office parties. I’ve been known to, um, inebriate myself on occasion.
This past week, I led a project in Statesville, NC. This is not the project that I mentioned in my previous post (August), which was in Winston-Salem, NC, but a small setup for a 23-person office that I handled along with one of the newer kids on my team. I was curious to see how she’d do on her first project, and was pleased to see that she performed very well, as I’d believed she would. She was a hire that I had mild reservations about making earlier this year, but her ability to work with people – and good critical-thinking skills in spite of a lack of technical background – is serving her well on my team. She’s not ready to step into a leadership position yet, but she will be once she gets over her insecurity and figures out that she knows as much or more than most of her peers.
The project, for the most part, went well. Started out very poorly – equipment that was sent via FedEx from Montana 10 days earlier had not arrived, and we also had some problems with an anti-virus software that had been installed by the client’s previous IT company – but by the middle of the third day I was breathing easier, and by the end of the fifth I was able to sit down with the firm administrator and others central to the project and determine that everybody was pretty happy and we looked good going forward. That’s a bonus because I also learned that my team will be the primary technical support for this particular client. That doesn’t happen a lot – normally, I have to run clean-up for 2 months for firms that other teams have on-boarded, and it’s a real pain.
I don’t have any big plans for Christmas, the title of this post notwithstanding. I’m guessing that Jenny will probably invite me over for dinner at some point – if so, I’ll go. Other than that, I plan to sleep for a couple of days. Beginning in January, I’m going to try to start walking in the mornings again. I’ve completely gotten out of that habit. I’m not entirely sure why that is, but I need to get back into it. I’m getting basically no exercise these days. I might try to stop smoking again at the same time. I’d quit for probably 6 months before Mom died, then started up again immediately after (stupid, I know). Kept it pretty much under control until I got my notice from AT&T, at which point I turned into a heavy smoker. I know I need to cut it out, but it’s a habit like a vice grip at this point. I know it’s a mental thing, however…just need to decide I want to quit again and do it. I know a couple of kitties who’ll probably be happy when I do.
That’s pretty much all the stuff that I can remember for now, so I’ll end this here. I hope everyone has a happy Christmas, festive New Year, and fewer fireworks than I’m sure my neighbors will have.