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Catching up
Jan. 26th, 2006 08:03 amFrom Thursday:
I should have brought a jacket today. Such a lovely, sunny day. I thought it would warm up like Tuesday, but there was a surprisingly brisk breeze. Turns out there's a freeze warning for the next night or two. Didn't eat breakfast and forgot to bring cash for the Wednesday Chinese take-out run (a tradition at my building), so I walked across the base to the local ATM and bought a cup of hot vegetable beef soup at the nearby cafeteria. Brought the soup back to eat at my desk. My nose started running from the cold. Later, I ended up spilling soup on my lap.
I have to say, I'm well-paid at work, people seem to like me, but I'm bored beyond words. I'm tired of working on a DoD-run network. Good grief, they even have little spyware clients that keep track of what programs you have open and which apps are active. The presumption of guilt is tiresome.
There's a landfill next to the base. Good grief, I don't think you can call it a landfill anymore, since it's probably now the highest point in Pensacola, you have to call it a landFULL. The sheer size of the mound of refuse is such that it now burns on its own. There are cranes working on it night and day, digging up the fires in order to smother them. The neighborhoods nearby have held rallies to try and get it shut down and even now sport signs, "Close the Dump!" A formal request was made to the base for an evaluation of the air quality. We DoD employees and contractors were basically told, "Not our problem" by the Navy, "talk to the state of Florida." I can't describe the smell. It's the aroma of burning roof shingles, blue plastic tarps, house wreckage, asphestos. Some mornings and evenings, I have to drive through a cloud of dark smoke to get to work. Other times, our climate control sucks this stuff into the building, so you can't escape it even indoors.
I work next door to a minimum security Federal prison. I kid you not. The inmates do the grounds maintenance, so they amble up and down the sidewalks all day long. In the late afternoon, you can see them playing handball. There are some fancy-schmancy names, I'm told, housed there, including the former vice-mayor of Miami. Since they have to live in the shadow of the landfill and have full-time exposure to the fumes, we're hoping one of them has enough clout to get something done about the air quality.
I still have lingering congestion from my cold, and maybe a certain ennui. I can't seem to get enough sleep and my enthusiasm for everything is muted. I just feel plain tired. Maybe it's just mental; wouldn't surprise me. I'm really not happy at work. I'm not enthused about what we do. I'm stymied at my current task, which is training. I'm supposed to be gearing up for the next phase of the vast app my company works on, but the training isn't finished. I'm left dangling. So I'm just working my way through various books, bored and uninspired.
The other day, at around 9:00, on a beautiful, balmy day, my boss suddenly broke the silence of the office, "Life's too short." With that, he snatched his CAC card out of his computer, put his hat on his head, grabbed his briefcase and coat, and left. We all sat there in stunned silence.
Someone finally asked, "Is he gone for the day?"
"He's going sailing," another co-worker replied.
All I can say is that he is now my hero. :)
I'd like to go out on a boat again. I remember lounging on the deck as we tootled around the Gulf of Mexico, sun on my face, the gentle, relaxing rocking of the boat, dolphins playing nearby, not having to be anywhere or do anything...
Damn, I need a vacation, y'know? I'm just weary of it all.
Yet, the thought of a formal vacation tires me when I contemplate the plannng, the scheduling, the agendas.
( Cut for WoW talk )
In the meantime, we've pre-ordered Dungeon and Dragons Online to get in on the beta. ::waves at Grimmtooth:: If you decide to play, let me know--we'll be there. ;)
I should have brought a jacket today. Such a lovely, sunny day. I thought it would warm up like Tuesday, but there was a surprisingly brisk breeze. Turns out there's a freeze warning for the next night or two. Didn't eat breakfast and forgot to bring cash for the Wednesday Chinese take-out run (a tradition at my building), so I walked across the base to the local ATM and bought a cup of hot vegetable beef soup at the nearby cafeteria. Brought the soup back to eat at my desk. My nose started running from the cold. Later, I ended up spilling soup on my lap.
I have to say, I'm well-paid at work, people seem to like me, but I'm bored beyond words. I'm tired of working on a DoD-run network. Good grief, they even have little spyware clients that keep track of what programs you have open and which apps are active. The presumption of guilt is tiresome.
There's a landfill next to the base. Good grief, I don't think you can call it a landfill anymore, since it's probably now the highest point in Pensacola, you have to call it a landFULL. The sheer size of the mound of refuse is such that it now burns on its own. There are cranes working on it night and day, digging up the fires in order to smother them. The neighborhoods nearby have held rallies to try and get it shut down and even now sport signs, "Close the Dump!" A formal request was made to the base for an evaluation of the air quality. We DoD employees and contractors were basically told, "Not our problem" by the Navy, "talk to the state of Florida." I can't describe the smell. It's the aroma of burning roof shingles, blue plastic tarps, house wreckage, asphestos. Some mornings and evenings, I have to drive through a cloud of dark smoke to get to work. Other times, our climate control sucks this stuff into the building, so you can't escape it even indoors.
I work next door to a minimum security Federal prison. I kid you not. The inmates do the grounds maintenance, so they amble up and down the sidewalks all day long. In the late afternoon, you can see them playing handball. There are some fancy-schmancy names, I'm told, housed there, including the former vice-mayor of Miami. Since they have to live in the shadow of the landfill and have full-time exposure to the fumes, we're hoping one of them has enough clout to get something done about the air quality.
I still have lingering congestion from my cold, and maybe a certain ennui. I can't seem to get enough sleep and my enthusiasm for everything is muted. I just feel plain tired. Maybe it's just mental; wouldn't surprise me. I'm really not happy at work. I'm not enthused about what we do. I'm stymied at my current task, which is training. I'm supposed to be gearing up for the next phase of the vast app my company works on, but the training isn't finished. I'm left dangling. So I'm just working my way through various books, bored and uninspired.
The other day, at around 9:00, on a beautiful, balmy day, my boss suddenly broke the silence of the office, "Life's too short." With that, he snatched his CAC card out of his computer, put his hat on his head, grabbed his briefcase and coat, and left. We all sat there in stunned silence.
Someone finally asked, "Is he gone for the day?"
"He's going sailing," another co-worker replied.
All I can say is that he is now my hero. :)
I'd like to go out on a boat again. I remember lounging on the deck as we tootled around the Gulf of Mexico, sun on my face, the gentle, relaxing rocking of the boat, dolphins playing nearby, not having to be anywhere or do anything...
Damn, I need a vacation, y'know? I'm just weary of it all.
Yet, the thought of a formal vacation tires me when I contemplate the plannng, the scheduling, the agendas.
( Cut for WoW talk )
In the meantime, we've pre-ordered Dungeon and Dragons Online to get in on the beta. ::waves at Grimmtooth:: If you decide to play, let me know--we'll be there. ;)
