UPDATE: Some rather incompetent baggage handlers managed to ram their baggage loader into our plane. The damage was substantial enough that we're being put on a different plane. The plane now has to be "Ferried" to Seattle for repair. Ouch. I think there might be a handler that just lost their job. Thursdays can suck like that.

Ess Eff Oh

On my way to beautiful city of San Francisco this morning. Thank goodness for free internet at the Airport. I would be bored off my ass otherwise. I'm sitting in the area between gate C6 and C8 enjoying my coffee before getting on the plane.

One of the things I really like about Alaska Air (and I suspect others) is that I can often pay $50 for an upgrade to 1st class when I check in. Now with air travel down, I suspect I'll be able to do this more often.

Had a great time last night at the MeesBar house for a fish taco party. Who knew that healthy food combined with wine and margaritas could be so much fun? We had a great time and got home early enough to get to bed before 11. It doesn't get any better than that!

I suppose I should do some real work this morning. I do have Internet access after all. Grumble.

Gregsta'

The Box

I found a neat new way to listen to music online - http://www.pandora.com . This is so much better than satellite.

I now want something that can stream this site in my car, living room and phone.

Me, me, me. Gregster, don't you know there are starving children in Ethiopia who have never heard of the Internet?

Deliriously,
Gregsta'

Evernote

You will notice to the right of the blog window there sits a nifty little contraption called Evernote. It's this neat little note taking tool that allows me to post things from just about anywhere whenever I feel like it. Trying it out. Might just be another drain on my senses. Then again, maybe not.

Gregsta: Noted.

Mode of Pie

Time to go to work. See ya'll back here Friday!

Gregsta'

Schundai

We'll, it's now Sunday. I've spent a lot of money and time out this weekend. Our house is feeling neglected. The cats are acting like orphaned children. I keep forgetting where my home office is.

Note to self: Two nights in a row at Vertigo is too much. Too much smoke. Cough, Cough.

Met up with my old friend from school, ABX, who is one of my geek friends - QA/Coder/Support guy. Knows computer security better than anyone else. Good times getting caught up.

Off to make breakfast.

Gregsta'

Doh Day

I'm exhausted from the week. Left work early. Going to nap on couch for awhile.

Gregsta: Ou... [snoring]

Miracle

I've scrubbed my inbox at work. I'm on top of email. I must bask in this moment for as long as possible.... Thank you 43 Folders...

Bad Idea: Burrito Lunch

Good Idea: Salad Dinner

Gregsta': Scrubbed

HyperTasking™

I have enough time this morning to write a succinct blog for a change.

The only thing I have to fear today is the deluge with my esteemed assistant out of the office on vacation.

Yesterday was one of those days where I went to work on some R&D projects (That's Research and Development for the non-techies) only to find all sort of things broken throughout the network. No rhyme, no reason. Just little things that weren't terribly related, but yet somehow necessary for my projects. Figures.

I have some weird form of dyslexia that ties in with my lack of memory. You see, I constantly will be in the middle of something and all of sudden remember - oh yeah, I've got this other thing that I wanted to do. Do I go write it down on some list to come back to later? Hell no - that list is in 12 places and, if combined, would result in my untimely suicide. Nope, I just start HyperTaskingâ„¢. What's that? It's when you start working on two tasks at the same time, switching back and forth between pauses. Like right now - I'm writing this blog and scrubbing my email (a technical term) and researching the origin of the term "Email Scrubbing".

So the question is - am I really productive by being this unfocused on one thing at a time? I don't think I am. In fact, I'm beginning to think this is a large part of why I'm so far behind at any given time.

There! I did it again. When I paused after that last paragraph, I went and read an email! Curse my HyperTaskingâ„¢ ways!

It's now 7:36. Okay, so my blog isn't complete. It needs to be - I should get going to work and see if I can beat the crowds in. Oh, see, right there - I was tempted to go to my email again and do some more scrubbing.

I wonder what would happen if I went back to one monitor? Maybe then I could stay focused. Is that too old fashioned?

I'm having a crisis and it's not even 8:00am yet!

Breathe. Don't look at email, the time, the date, system tray icons, the Google sidebar - any of it.

Okay, to the car. No, don't clean the bathroom on the way downstairs... No, don't make the bed... Just get to the car... Stop! No, don't check the sprinklers - they're fine! Just get in the damn car and drive... okay, you don't need to reprogram your GPS memory points... JUST GO TO WORK...

Gregsta: HyperTaskâ„¢ Victim

Me loves the Internet Tubes

I just wasted 1 minute of my life watching videos on making popcorn using your cell phone. I wasted another 10 looking at the debunking videos. How easy I fall victim to this cancer known as The Internet Tubes.

What are The Internet Tubes? It's those places on the Internet that serve no other purpose than to suck my brain dry of any productive ambitions. The Tubes entertain for a brief second, followed by letdown and eventual forgetfulness. When I'm feeling bored, The Tubes give me a small, weak shot in the arm to make my frown into a horizontal line - for just a second.

Tubingly,
Gregsta'

Stored

I discovered the e.Moreland Market & Kitchen today. I fucking love it. Small. Well stocked. Not over-priced. Walking distance. Not overrun with Tweakers (such as Safeway and Fred Meyers). What more could you ask for? Espresso? Yep. Hot food? Any time! Fresh produce? Farmers market fresh, baby! I love this place. I want to buy the house next door and raise my children so that they'll never shop anywhere else.

Just finishing up the bottle of wine purchased for dinner. Yum.

Wedding invitations are heading out the door tomorrow.

Gregsta': Living La Vida Almond Roca

Bueno

I've decided to work from home this morning. I need a break from the office.

Vertigo last night. Lots of fun as always. Not the reason I'm working from home this morning.

I'm on a big soap box at the moment about the rules of the road. The arrogant drivers and bikers of this city are making a scene that's getting some unfortunate media attention. There are a number of impatient, inconsiderate and downright rude assholes out there - bike and car alike. I'm getting sick and tired of watching bikes blow through stop signs and red lights and passing unsafely on the right. I'm getting tired of watching drives run bikers off the road and cutting them off like they don't belong there.

This pathetic attempt at a solution called the "Bike Box" is just that - a pathetic attempt. Not even the most daring biker will use it. I call it the Target Box. It's a place where bicyclists can put themselves in the line of fire of pissed off drivers. I'm waiting until some unsuspecting cyclist gets run down in one of those things by asshole driver who didn't want to wait. That'll be all over the news like a polyester tie.

The bottom line is that there are rules of the road. I don't give a damn if you're not capable of interpreting them, you're still bound to them. The rules of the road are there for a reason - to keep everyone safe. Cyclists have long had common sense and self-preservation keeping them safe, but the current breed of moron bicyclists has forgotten that. Drivers who have had their license for a coons age have forgotten the basic rules of the road and aren't universally adept to looking for bikes and pedestrians for that matter. Time for everyone to grow up and start acting like civilized human beings and not assholes.

I'll stay on my soap box a little bit longer, thank you.

Gregsta'

Back

Vegas was fun. Portland is better.

How I love to be home.

Work=Crazy
Wedding Planning=Crazy
Cats=Driving me Crazy
Betsy=Started Externship Today

Gregsta=Out

New Features

Confession: I long for the days when things were simple - when our lives weren't overrun with Email, Blogs, RSS Feeds, Text Messaging, Instant Messaging and, well, the Internet in general. I know I'm a computer person, but I never wanted this.

I do appreciate the freedom to overexpose any subject I want without spending an assload of money. I suppose it's only time before people get tired of the hyper nature of their lives and return to something more reasonable. A failing economy will surely help with that.

Betsy and I have decided that in the next year or so (or whenever we can reasonably afford it), we're moving to the West Side of town. We're seeking a quieter, more spread out neighborhood. Can't get that in Portland without breaking the bank entirely.

Family reunion and my brother Warren's birthday today. I say family reunion, as I haven't actually seen anyone in my family in nearly a month. It's terrible. I better get gifts for everyone.

Gregsta'

Creepy Parasites

Man, oh man. What a day! I feel like I worked 12 hours, took a 2 hour lunch and slept for 16 hours.

Hmm. Doesn't add up, does it?

In any case, I'm now sitting in front of the home anti-relaxation machine, model #Lenovo T61. I should be downstairs, watching some DVR on the huge ass 102" projection screen. Am I? Nope. I'm writing this blog instead. Why? Because I am le douche.

Thursday I'm taking off from the office so I can spend some quality time with my family. It's been nearly a month since I visited the folks. Am I a terrible son? Yes, yes I am.

Betsy is working on transforming some rather ordinary shopping bags into works of art just behind me.

That's about it.

Gregsta': To the DVR!

Vegas

Bets' and I are going to Vegas over the weekend.

That is all.

Gregsta': Ready for a Vaca'

Brut Farce

Sometimes life hands you lemons. Sometimes life hands you a cold beer.

I prefer the latter.

Hanging out down at Vertigo having a beer before heading home to make dinner. The damn Goodwill wouldn't take my broken lamp table. I must now locate a new dumpster to toss it in. Pisser.

Gregsta'

Dwink uhp

Finally got out last night for a good eve' at the pub with the friends. Good times!

Today is shaping up to be a "Me" day. That is, Bets' will be studying and I'm free to do what I want. Hmm...

Gregsta': Sunday Edition

Some people

From the and people wonder why I hate white trash department...

We've staked out near a couple that put blankets down over enough room for a dozen people to sit. Now theyre smoking downwind from us. They look like theyve been on a coke bender for days. People like that make me sick.

Can't get enough of druggie Portland.

Gregsta: Festing

bluesfest 2008

betsy and i are down on the portland waterfront enjoying the blues fest today. good times!

Untitled Document (3)

Went out sushi and drinking with Bets', her sister and sister's boyfriend. Good times. The boyfriend (who's a blue collar hard working guy) hadn't ever eaten sushi before, so it was interesting showing him the ropes. I think we snagged ourselves another sushi fiend.

We'll have him Metro'd out before you know it. Next stop: Indian Food.

Strange to think that it's Friday. I feel like I'm cheating my company out of hard earned productivity.

Gregsta: Bluesfest Bound

I am CCR

Constant Change and Relearning. It's what I do for a living. It drives most people I know absolutely nuts. The thought of relearning all the underlying principals of your career on a 6-12 month basis is likely the reason there is a crisis in the tech world today of not enough workers. Who would willingly step into that hell? A very strange group of people that isn't all too common in these parts of the world.

My boss made the comment to me the other day that I "know too much" in reference to Video Conferencing. Strange, I feel like I know so little. In any case, that's the point. Not knowing significant number of details and operating realities of just about any technological subject is guaranteed career suicide and/or corporate financial loss (which eventually leads to career suicide if unchecked).

Sure, it means that I adopt newer technologies a lot slower than the some hypergeeks. That's okay. Hypergeeks are among a breed that is about to 'jump the shark' and I just assume not be too associated with it.

Crystal Ball: Off
Gregsta'