48 questions ... yes, another meme

Chrissie is such a snot. She sends this stuff in an e-mail instead of posting so then I have to get blamed for making it continue. She should be spanked!

1. WHO WERE YOU NAMED AFTER? First name... no one. Middle name Alan Shepard, but my mom spelled it wrong.

2. WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU CRIED? Late February I think

3. DO YOU LIKE YOUR HANDWRITING? As long as printing counts as handwriting, yes

4. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE LUNCH MEAT? Pastrami (I think Chrissie and I are such a perfect match)

5. DO YOU HAVE KIDS? Yes... and I will not be having anymore... but I still like to practice often.

6. IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOURSELF? Yes, because I get along with everyone (well, almost everyone)

7. DO YOU USE SARCASM A LOT? Yes, definitely

8. DO YOU STILL HAVE YOUR TONSILS? Yup, and Chrissie should inspect them :P

9. WOULD YOU BUNGEE JUMP? Probably not, but I would skydive

10. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CEREAL? Peanut Butter Crunch

11. DO YOU UNTIE YOUR SHOES WHEN YOU TAKE THEM OFF? Dress shoes, yes. Sneakers, only when they're brand new

12. DO YOU THINK YOU ARE STRONG? Only if I don't shower

13. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE ICE CREAM? Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough

14. WHAT IS THE FIRST THING YOU NOTICE ABOUT PEOPLE? Their mouth

15. RED OR PINK? Red

16. WHAT IS THE LEAST FAVORITE THING ABOUT YOURSELF? My weight

17. WHO DO YOU MISS THE MOST? Paula

18. DO YOU WANT EVERYONE TO SEND THIS BACK TO YOU? If they want

19. WHAT COLOR PANTS AND SHOES ARE YOU WEARING? Black jeans and brown Merrells

20. WHAT WAS THE LAST THING YOU ATE? The bland combination of chicken, ribs and shrimp at the Elephant Bar. It was supposed to be spicy. Blah

21. WHAT ARE YOU LISTENING TO RIGHT NOW? Jellyfish - That Is Why



22. IF YOU WERE A CRAYON, WHAT COLOR WOULD YOU BE? Purple

23. FAVORITE SMELLS? I don't remember what it is called, but it was the hand lotion an ex-girlfriend uses. I think it's from Victoria's Secret

24. WHO WAS THE LAST PERSON YOU TALKED TO ON THE PHONE? Ann

25. DO YOU LIKE THE PERSON WHO SENT THIS TO YOU? A lot!!!

27. FAVORITE SPORTS TO WATCH? At the stadium = Baseball or Football. On TV = Hockey.

28. HAIR COLOR? Brown (with a little bit of grey)

29. EYE COLOR? Green

30. DO YOU WEAR CONTACTS? No, but I wear glasses when driving at night

31. FAVORITE FOOD? The perfect steak

32. SCARY MOVIES OR HAPPY ENDINGS? Thriller scary not blood n guts scary, and funny happy not sappy happy. Chrissie... wanna go to a movie?

33. WHAT WAS THE LAST MOVIE YOU WATCHED? Shawn of the Dead (ironic considering my last answer)

34. WHAT COLOR SHIRT ARE YOU WEARING??? Brown patterned polo

35. SUMMER OR Winter? Summer I guess, but Fall is my favorite.

36. HUGS OR KISSES? Both

37. FAVORITE DESSERT? Cheesecake

38. MOST LIKELY TO RESPOND? All my friends that have nothing better to do

39. LEAST LIKELY TO RESPOND? BWH

40. WHAT BOOK ARE YOU READING? Implementing IBM Rational ClearQuest: An End-to-End Deployment Guide

41. ON YOUR MOUSE PAD? My G5 Laser Gaming Mouse... and dust

42. WHAT DID YOU WATCH ON TV LAST NIGHT? The Daily Show

43. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE SOUND? Kids laughing

44. ROLLING STONES OR BEATLES? The Beatles by far

45. WHAT IS THE FURTHEST YOU HAVE BEEN FROM HOME? Thule, Greenland

46. DO YOU HAVE A SPECIAL TALENT? Yes, so I'm told by some... and I can also play the trombone :D

47. WHERE WERE YOU BORN? Madison Heights, MI

48. WHO'S ANSWERS ARE YOU LOOKING FORWARD TO GETTING BACK. See 38

Blogger Party Meme

OK, so Roxi says I'm supposed to pick 6 people from blogger I would want to party with. It'll be hard to keep it to 6, except for the fact that I need to get to bed. If you are so inclinded TAG, you're it!

#1 - Chrissie... She is fun, geeky, and loves to have a good time. On top of that she is really HOT. I think it's totally unfair that California gets an over abundance of hot women.

#2 - Grace... If I had to pick one reason it would be sothat I could sit her down to relax for a bit and tell what the hell is going on with her life these days.

#3 - Croaker... I've never seen one guy in the same bed with so many women. It's unfortunate everyone's clothes were on.

#4 - Terry... is awesome, and knows all the best bars. Also, I want to see her hula. How many drinks would it take?

#5 - Os... I think if he shows up to a party women want to tear off his shirt. Plus he's a trombone player, and we bone-ists have to stick together.

#6 - Stacy... She and I have come close to meeting in the past. One day it will happen. Maybe I can prove to her that I am not a perv 24/7. Ya, I know, I doubt it too.

#7 - Jodes... One cool chick. She is so fun and energetic... well, that's the impression I get.

#8 - Dzer... He is one of those fun guys that should liven things up... not that a party with all these women wouldn't be lively.

#9 - Jillie... Hard to nail down one thing that makes her so great, there are so many things. I know I would love to party with her.

#10 - Roxi... Well, of course Roxi would be invited. It's not a party without her. She is by far one of the most fun people I've ever met. Her energy and smile brighten the room. If I'm lucky she'll even share the jello shots. My phone misses her phone.

I just couldn't keep it to 6... bite me. I guess I could have left the guys out. What amazes me is I've met quite a few of you. I feel so lucky about that. For those that didn't make the list... you're actually on there. I just got tired.

Where do I start?

Work has been unbelievably stressful recently. Now that I am now managing SCM in Des moines as well (please don't ask me to explain SCM again) the server that houses the projects there desides to start acting flakey. What does this mean? Now I have to get someone hired for the Des Moines office IMMEDIATELY! But until that happens we've been asked to meove their systems off of the flakey Linux box and put it on a Windows server that we just happened to have lying around.

Big issue... transfering this stuff from one server to another is relatively easy. Moving it from linux to Windows is not. We're not even sure some of the tools will work properly on Windows.

We had hoped to have the new hardware set up over the weekend and ready to move data over early this week. Well that didn't happen. Like I said, moving from Linux to Windows is not that easy. Not only that, but they are using different tools than we are so we have to learn their tools while trying to get them to work. Needless to say, the pressure is on.

I had a job posting to hire someone for the Des Moine job, and guess what?... Not a single person applied. We've now made the position for either Des Moines or Denver and we'll manage things remotely if need be. One of my guys knows the perfect person for the job. I have his resume through unofficial channels, but I cannot interview him until our HR recruiter gets off her pretty little ass (yes, it is quite pretty) and does some sort of bullshit screening interview.

Our system in Denver has developed a problem since we upgraded to a new version of our tool. We have been working with IBM's tech support to find a fix to the problem. Today we contacted IBM for additional support and they said that our maintenance aggreement has lapsed. I have been waiting for a new purchase of licenses to get approved for these tools, and wrapped up in this purchase is the renewal of the maintenance. WE ARE SO FUCKED!

First Vinyl

I have a few minutes to breath before the next baseball event, and before going back to work tomorrow. I need to do some venting about work, but not today (I know it completely bores you guys).

BWH has come up with another great meme. Well, I think its a great one.

This time the meme is called First Vinyl.

Just post the album cover and a description of the first time you spent money on a good old fashioned Record.

You can tell us how old you were if you want to. Just make it worth reading. And give him a link or a trackback.

It was 1979. I was 13 the summer before 9th grade. Tim, my best friend at the time had me over for the night. We pitched a tent in his back yard. His house backed up to a drainage ditch, so we explored the various gardens of the people that lived along the drainage ditch. When we got back to his house somewhere around 2 a.m. we had the radio on and I heard Joe Jackson's "Is She Really Going Out With Him?".

I think this was one of those times where I just knew that this was music I was going to love. I had to buy the album.

I was usually pretty good about saving my allowance. The next morning Tim and I road our bikes down to the strip mall not too far from his place and I picked up a copy. I was not disappointed. I think this was also one of the catalysts for my move to listening to a lot of New Wave in the 80s. His style was different, unpolished. I was hooked.

I think joe Jackson was my first departure from listening to the things my brothers and sisters were listening to. My brother Mike also became a big fan of Joe Jackson, but this time I was influencing him. I later found out that my sister Paula was also a fan. We can't all be wrong.

No time to blog

I am totally swamped. Sorry for not posting, but the real world (not that you guys aren't real) requires my attention.

Maybe I'll find some time later tonight to scan all my favorite blogs.