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June 28, 2006
no real news
Nothing much in the way of updates. No real news today. Kara came back from NYC and worked from my place; their train was delayed. It might have been related to the heavy rains and flooding in the Northeast.
I saw a few pictures from the Daily Item back home. Apparently they are evacuating something like 200,000 people from Wilkes-Barre. Manayunk has some water on the streets too. I'm sure the parents will have some photos soon of the water being high on Middle Creek.
Today was quiet and fine. I think tomorrow will probably be busier.
Posted by Mark at 10:30 PM | Comments (0)
June 27, 2006
no word yet
No word yet regarding the news I'm hoping to hear. I am certainly a bit keyed up about that.
Kara is in NYC today for a big corporate meeting. On the one hand, it is a little silly to transport people all over just so you can have an all-hands meeting. On the other, it's neat to work for a place that can afford to do so without batting an eyelash. It's a status thing. Just like having your office in a skyscraper...sure, you can save money by moving to the burbs, but it impresses both clients and employees when your conference room has a view. And impressing people is part of the game of business.
My sleep schedule is a wreck. I may need to stay up all night or something to get myself back on track.
Posted by Mark at 05:07 PM | Comments (0)
June 26, 2006
a pretty good day
I think today went well. Greetings to any potential employers happening upon this site!
The weekend was spent in Rockport, where on Friday I helped Kara's dad wax his boat. I studied Java on Saturday and went out to dinner, then on Sunday we looked at engagement ring settings and a condo in Peabody. Today I woke up and went straight to my big interview; I was going to run home quickly first to drop off some stuff, but there was a Red Sox game in the middle of the day and I got caught in traffic. I had to revise my plans quickly. I guess in DC you have to schedule travel according to government events, and in Boston, you have to watch the Sox schedule.
I have some chicken soaking in olive oil, balsamic vinegar and cajun seasoning. We're having salads tonight, and I'm going to throw the chicken on top. Oh, also, I got my new running watch from Amazon today--an updated Ironman Triathlon. Digital watches have come a long way. This one gives you lots of contextual information about the functions that you're activating. No more "hold buttons A and B for 3 seconds to activate the countdown timer." Now you just hit a button and it says "timer" right on the face.
Digital watches. Still awesome technology.
I worked on my karma today by helping some of the next-door neighbors move an old water heater tank up onto the side of the street where the garbage guy is going to pick it up, I think. It wasn't too heavy but the guys moving it were no young bucks. I felt pretty good about that.
I'm all over the place here. I went to the mall for lunch and had Taco Bell. I know it's like shoveling grade Z meat laced with lard into your gullet, but...chalupa. Oh, chalupa. The thing that I hate about Taco Bell, though, is that it's gotten more expensive over the years. I think soft tacos used to be like 60 or 70 cents, and now they're a buck. And you used to be able to get a 6-pack of soft tacos to go for something like 3 or 4 bucks. That was a perfect gluttenous meal. I guess horses or dogs or roadkill is more expensive these days.
Gonna try to get in some good sailing this week. Should be nice, if hot and humid, the next couple days. And I have some additional work and some leads to follow up on.
I finally got my DC tax refund. That's nice. And my first copy of a free subscription to Computer Gaming World that I got from some website or other just showed up. That's also nice. It's been a pretty good day, on the half or the whole.
Posted by Mark at 06:54 PM | Comments (0)
June 21, 2006
more nothing much
There is really just not a whole ton of stuff going on right now, but I've been good about blogging and so I should probably continue.
Nothing new on the job front. Things progress. A few wrinkles. Nothing I can talk about yet.
There was a function at the sailing marina today so I couldn't go out sailing. I don't think I'm going to get a chance to go out until next week because I'm heading to Rockport tomorrow and won't be back down here until Monday I think. Going to Rockport is fun and relaxing though, so no complaints at all.
Posted by Mark at 08:08 PM | Comments (0)
June 20, 2006
good possibilities
I don't want to jinx anything, but I think things might be moving along. I think part of it is that I have finally nailed down a sort of position and career direction that will work for me...something that isn't quite the same old thing that I've been doing, but also something that utilizes actual skills and experiences that I have, rather than being a total career shift. I am actually hopeful. There are at least three solid possibilites right now that could take my career in the right direction, and all are places that I would at least preliminarily like to look into. One is a place that I already know I would like to be.
Today was not particularly useful. I am getting used to having Kara around, which keeps me busy and gives me some structure and focus to my activities. I am hoping tomorrow will be better. I need to go sailing or spend some time outdoors one way or another...a sailing afternoon is probably about the best thing for me.
So I haven't been updating this very often lately, but keep your fingers crossed for me if you happen to read this.
Posted by Mark at 11:06 PM | Comments (0)
short updates
Just another quick update for the sake of updating. Maybe I'll do this in that one-sentence updates style that I kinda liked from before.
The job search continues, with lots of possibilities but nothing concrete as of yet.
I did have two interviews, neither of which I got, probably because of a poor fit for the first and not being prepared enough with my Java knowledge on the second.
I've been spending a lot of weekends in Rockport, which is nice.
I got out to the beach for the first time this year during this past weekend.
I still haven't fixed the motorcycle brake.
It's getting hot in Boston and I should probably put the AC in the window.
Mike's graduation party a few weekends ago was a really fun time.
That's pretty much it. Nothing too exciting right now.
Posted by Mark at 03:13 PM | Comments (0)