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2014.05.24 (03:40): Rough night..

Category: General
Posted by: modi123
A night of reflection on those around you, and who - through interaction - have changed, shaped, and warped who you are.

A minor debate reunion segued into discussion of those who are not doing well.. turned into strip club hilarity... turned in to tears and beers as Justin and Yvette worked their last night. The break down of Kristen to Yvette, and then to her brother, will stay with me sometime.


Sometimes the good Lord brings folks into your life for a brief moment, and some walk the same path for sometime... either way it is good to cherish the time, and memories, you shared. Life is change, but it doesn't mean to nullify what you have experienced.

2014.05.21 (16:26): Odd encounter..

Category: General
Posted by: modi123
Last Saturday I bumped into the twins from high school that I haven't seen in ages. Geeze louise they not changed a bit. Nice, rapid fire, amp'ed up, nicotine'ed up, and going a mile a minute.

It was quick run down of who I still see, chat with, drink beers with, and then randomly assigned slams that sounded like shit just out of high school. Quite an amusing roller coaster.

It seems they are associates with my drinking friend Greg. Small freaking world.

2014.05.21 (16:24): By the stars and sky, is it done?

Category: General
Posted by: modi123
That insurance project (I was doing sidework for since November) I think is officially over. Three times the budget, god knows how many times the hours, but just missing the January end date by five months over.

This is the problem when I am not in direct contact with the client or some sort of middle man is doing the filtering. My 'point of contact' was as good as he could, but was being overwhelmed by the demands, changes, general fishing expedition for features, as well as uncertain testing environments coupled with questionable statements on how to replicate errors.

Tempers flared, angry emails, but I believe it is done. Now let's hope I am not f'd in the a' with the money and I can chalk this up to a painful experience.

That's right folks - if you are freelancing butt your self into the client/middle man business right away in case your middleman/PM is being assailed by the clients and your project timeline goes to hell.

2014.05.21 (16:18): Important facts..

Category: Work
Posted by: modi123
Pro tip - don't try and sell a product that has been in over six months of testing, buried from memory at the bottom of the ocean, and just had the plug pulled on it.

Seriously. Don't.

About a year ago I was gifted this hunk of rock and told to sculpt, shape, and polish it into a gem... and so I worked... and worked... and worked. Then it was called to be deployed, and I threw up my hands and advocated patience. This needs to be tested! Thus testing started... and continued.. and continued.. and was handed off.. then continued.. it continued for so long the original specs, intent, and functionality were becoming forgotten and being reported as bugs.

*sigh* Some days a dev's life is not easy. I put the project on super low simmer (I was told not not harass the tester) and was billing an hour or two a week.. for about six months.

Monday I heard the contract with the third party group was being re-upped, but this particular facet was being dropped. They braced for me to rail and howl, but oddly I was at peace with it. Make a crude raft, push it out into the current, and set the sucker a blaze.

Through interesting chain of events we received a query, a question, and little lark of an email asking where to find the demo log in so they could show a client and seal the deal on hawking this to a client.

I went from zero to rage in about as fast as I could close the email.

First - there was no log in for this product. It wouldn't have made sense.
Second - how the hell did this employee know this projected even existed? It was buried in time and ocean silt!
Third - It wasn't remotely close to be done tested - why the hell would you know its existence, but not the testing status?! You were trying to sell an untested product to a client!!!!!!?????? eeeek!
Fourth - where in Pete's name did you get this marketing material to hawk it? Unflattering pictures.

A quick series of desk side meetings and the hounds have been released to know who else was trying to hawk, sell, or push this roadkill on to clients before we all look silly.

May Mr. Gueermo slap them so hard.

2014.05.12 (19:54): I hate to be optimistic...

Category: General
Posted by: modi123
... but I do believe I just paid off my car loan (like a year and a half early), and should be free and clear of all long term debt... like all of it. Student loans, credit cards, and cars.

.. I think.
Category: General
Posted by: modi123
Monday was a pretty much normal day with the exception of having to head to my sister's to help move couches and eat some tacos with the fam. Of course my niece and nephew were going positively apeshit because Uncle was here. After being shooed into the basement so the adults can catch up (and I drink a margarita) it struck me.. this shit played out before but with my mom and uncle. Dear god.. I am my uncle and Lins is mom. FFS.

Oddity aside I headed home, got my Warehouse13 on, plunked around on this jackassie insurance project, and decided to head to the 'Box at about 11p. Oh look it's closed, but Jess's truck was there. Mkay.. a quick call and I am in.

We decide the proper thing to do is to head to the irsh bar down the street where it seems a few other bar workers were congregating from a slow Monday.

In the process we have a drunken third party join the group. Jess's associate "Graham"(?). Graham got the pitcher, talked about mushroom hunting, and then proceeded to invade personal spaces and start inquiring silly Cosmo-esque questions. I guess Graham really really wants to bone Jess or thinks they should see each other so as not to have her use too many batteries and bone in the future.

*sigh* Well he stumbles off into the night with a sullen hand wave and hitch in his step.

I getting around to taking a leak and this Gomer Pile looking guy wanders in to the bathroom. The semi-buzzed head.. jowls.. bovine looking-ish eyes.. this paired with a dirty/greasy shirt covering a prodigious gut (and that's me saying this) with basketball shorts sort of on gave off a less than favorable impression..

Okay dokey still peeing here.

Instead of heading into the other stall he stops, turns, and looks at me saying "how do you do it?!". My pee turns into a trickle as this guy over steps the male bathroom etiquette in a supremely creepy fashion. The saving grace is I am closer to the door than he. Ugh.. I would rather not be sexually propositioned or assaulted Monday night in a bar bathroom.

I evenly respond with "Ah, what do you mean?" - readying to zip up and clear that six feet to the door.

Gomer's response "how do you pull tail like that?!". That took me a minute to process that he, Gomer, was under the impression that Jess and I were dating, or at least enjoying the carnal activities. Ookay.. this is taking an interesting turn so I cautiously shake off and move to wash my hands.

The actual conversation transcripts escape me, but it essentially boils down to that Gomer thinks we are the same person. Abet I have eight inches on him, but he has about my bulk... and he looks like about two steps from a jugallo concert. It seems I am part of the large-ish thug social circle now. Greeaat.

His life story is he graduated from Elkhorn High (unclear if recently or six years ago), was about 24, wasn't doing much in life, and looking to find 'the one'. This presented an interesting disconnect since he referred to Jess in inanimate object terms, but I powered through the logic.

I was at a crossroads to either explain how I am not dating the cute girl ten years my younger, or that I try and impress upon him to do good deeds be the path. Sort of 'grail quest' if you will. I figure I want to get out of there and proceed to try and jazz him up to do social, community events. Habitat for Humanity, public park trash pickup, mentoring, walking dogs for the Humane Society.. etc. Things to do for the greater good that he may have interest in. He seemed to absorb this, awkwardly shook my hand, and let me escape the bathroom.

Super duper odd.. but hopefully it inspired Gomer to go off and better himself by working with the community. Of course my concern was sort of lost in a haze of another round of drinks and shots. The while trying to ascertain if Jess is into me - as Gomer would have implied - (which would present a whole interesting host of adventures), or just wants to drink with a gorilla bodyguard. Her random chatter about old boyfriends cycling through her world would suggest the latter, but who knows.



As it is - Gomer, I hope you do well in the world. Be social, get out there, and participate in community outreach you big, dumb, bathroom-creeper, son of a bitch.

2014.05.07 (15:33): Damn, that's lazy.

Category: General
Posted by: modi123
89.7 The River's phone a thon is happening, and their list of online exclusives is tempting, but alas ever shifting. Some things get pulled off.. some sold.. and some have prices changes.

It was quite hard to track what I may or may not want, and what is missing from the last time so I built an app to grab the page, parse it, and track the current price, old price, date added, and date updated.

*sigh*

About an hour or two to complete it with tweaks and drop it on github. Hopefully next year they keep the same page formatting!

grrr... Alice in Chains signed guitar - $1500.
That damn stone temple pilot's megaphone just pushed from 1,000 to 2,000. (yes.. that same one I have been lusting after for a few years now).

I know I promised not to drop too much on anyone thing until the last of my long term bills are gone.. but grrr.. this is getting difficult when I have my awesomely spacious credit card to abuse.



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