Filed under: | Personal

For the first time in quite a while, I don’t have to go in to work on a Saturday morning. I could turn on the TV but I would not like what passes for cartoons these days.
Instead, I checked my e-mail and I got something special from Darker Projects: two lines of script (for two different characters, one for Crusade, the other for Star Trek: The Section 31 Files) for some upcoming audio drama projects...so I recorded them and sent them back to the producer.
Keep your ears peeled, my friends, I just may get that shot yet!

Filed under: | Personal

It’s not often where I have two strange dreams in one night...and both were in color! Most of the time I dream in black in white....
DREAM #1: I was back east at a choral festival, where two sides were sniping at each other, I told them both to STFD and STFU! Which they did.
DREAM #2: I was at a rally appearance where the President was going to show up and I had a brand spankin’ new camera to try out.
And then the phone rang, well at least that’s what I thought I heard when I woke up.
Good thing too...’cause how am I gonna buy a new camera when I have less than a hundred bucks in my checking account and I gotta make that last till payday on the 15th. ARRRRRRRGH!

Filed under: | Personal

Well I went through my digital files (from the Kodak DC-220, a whopping 1-megapixel camera!) and came up with only a couple. See, I really was working during this convention I went down there for!

A group of Mardi Gras dancers enters the convention luncheon.

Another shot of the dancers on stage. Laissez les bon temps roulez!

And that was four years ago. Hard to believe that it’s gone.

Filed under: | Personal

Thanks to Sobek for the inspiration. HAT TIP also to Charles at Little Green Footballs.
Here are a couple of pictures I managed to take when I visited New Orleans four summers ago, while I was there for my Fraternity National Convention. I’ve got some more and I’ll have to hunt them down later, but for now this is a start. I even took TWO cameras...my Kodak DC-220 and the analog Pentax IQZoom (with which these particular pictures were taken):

This first picture here is in the French Quarter. Pay no attention to the guy with the fake boobs!

This is also in the French Quarter. One might think this was in the courtyard to the Court of Two Sisters restaurant, but I will have to fill in the blank when I ask around. I know it was some bar!

---

UPDATE (0730 MST): And now, given about three more hours of sleep, about a half-hour of searching, and forty-five minutes of scanning and cropping, here are more N’awlins Memories:

The main lobby of the Fairmont Hotel, where I stayed. Definitely an opulent place!

A view of Baronne Street and some main drag, just outside the hotel. One thing I remember about New Orleans was, compared to other cities, the Big Easy was a lot more gritty.

An historical marker on Bourbon Street.

An entryway to the Court of Two Sisters Restaurant. I don’t fully remember the story behind the restaurant. Something about haunting the place?

An interior shot at the Court of Two Sisters.

The French Quarter. This looks like Jackson Square. A very colorful place indeed!

The entry to the Cafe Gumbolaya. My girlfriend at the time went off on her own with one of the Brother’s wives, while I was working at the convention. I seem to recall that I actually ate at this place later on. YUM!

The Cafe du Monde in the French Quarter. This establishment had been around since the early 1860s. My girlfriend at the time, Sarah, is a huge culinary arts aficionado, so she loved places like this. And she did a pretty good job in taking some of these photos (French Quarter, Cafe Gumbolaya) and a few others. The lady Sarah was with, Deb, also did a fine job (Cafe du Monde). I took the remainder.
At least I do remember, and that is a good thing.

Filed under: | Personal

I tell you I’m glad I’m feeling better! I spent my day off today cleaning up the house...and it was worth it when I found not one, not two, not even three, but FOUR unused CD-R’s lying around in various places!
So swingin’ bachelor bloggers out there (and even the married ones), it’s a good thing to keep things organized. Your girl will appreciate it!

Filed under: | Personal

Seems like every time I call my mom, or when my mom calls me, I’m the sounding board when she needs to gripe about things. Now most of the time I don’t mind doing that for her, because kids always see things a little bit differently than their parents do. In this case, however, I am getting tired of the way Mom gripes about her sister (my aunt), who just recently retired from Verizon and moved back up to South Haven (Michigan) from Kentucky. They do not get along.
“Mom,” I tell her, “Let Aunt Joyce make those decisions herself and if she messes up, she has to deal with the consequences.” Somewhere down the road Mom segued into how friends of my aunt have ripped Mom off of money by buying spaghetti dinner charity tickets and then backing out of the commitment after the tickets were purchased.
“Mom,” I tell her, “If they want those tickets so bad, get the damn money from them before you get the tickets! Trust, but Verify!” After I hung up the phone, I let out a large sigh. Sometimes, both my mom and my aunt don’t see things too clearly. I do what I can for both of them. But sometimes I still get frustrated.

Filed under: | Personal

About an hour ago I was browing a web site I visit frequently, and on that site (fortunately it is not a blog) I found a thread which asked users if, if they had the President’s ear, what they would like to ask him.
One particular user posted that he wanted to “...stick the business end of a gun in the President’s ear.”
My shock at seeing this statement in that thread quickly changed to righteous wrath; while a lot of people on that particular web site do not approve of the President’s policies, to even allow a single user to threaten the President in such a matter is, to put it bluntly, CHILDISH and STUPID! I telephoned the United States Secret Service and reported the thread to an agent, who took my information down, thanked me, and told me that they would take it from there.
At this point, I will continue monitoring the thread in question to see exactly what happens. And I do not regret reporting this at all. I Did My Duty as a Citizen of the United States.

Filed under: | Personal

Well folks...I got the job! Just got off the phone with the staffing recruiter. I’ll be going to the Premier Relationship Center in Tempe, starting on either Monday, 05 September or Tuesday, 06 September; the recruiter has to call me back on that one since, after all, we’re talking Labor Day Holiday here.
Training will go from 0830 to 1700 Monday through Friday for three weeks. After that, my shift will be 1030 to 1900 Monday through Friday. More NORMAL hours, with a 6.5% increase in my base salary. Although I’ll be losing my 10% evening shift differential, this is definitely more than what I was planning on, so I’ll be losing only 3.5%.
What I’ll be doing is working with customers who call in with requests for help with their accounts. No more hunting down the a**holes who hide and give me the third degree when I find ‘em! There are also people I know over at the Tempe campus who will be glad to see me there! I can’t wait!

Filed under: | Personal

Yesterday I received the following e-mail from Barbara Hogan at Detroit Metro Airport:

Your e-mail to Mr. Robinson has been forwarded to me for a response.  On behalf of the Wayne County Airport Authority, please accept our apologies for the rude treatment you experienced from a Southwest Airlines’ skycap.  The airlines hire skycaps from a private company, so the Airport has no authorization to reprimand employees from an outside company.  We can, however, bring this situation to the attention of Mr. Miles Turpin, the Southwest Airlines station manager, for his consideration.  Providing good customer service is important to the Airport as well as our airlines, so we are confident Mr. Turpin will be interested in hearing about your encounter.  We will see that a copy of your message is shared with him.
Thank you for sharing your experience with us.  We hope that the next time you use Detroit Metro Airport, it will be a more pleasant occurrence for you.

So progress IS being made! Stay tuned....

Filed under: | Personal

Dr. Rusty Shackleford over at The Jawa Report decided to survey major bloggers from both the right AND from the left to see if anyone had served in the military. The results may not be what you think.
For the record, I served 17 days (yes, you read right) in the Navy, from 11 October 1978 to 27 October 1978. I was 17 when I went in, spent 17 days on Active Duty, and was 17 when I got out.
I was fully qualified to go into the Nuclear Power program, but when I got to basic training at Great Lakes, IL, I found I had an eye condition called keratoconus which precluded my service. That date I was diagnosed with the keratoconus condition was on Friday, October 13, 1978.
No, I’m not triskaidekaphobic either. At least I was willing to sign my life and Constitutional Rights away for six years (minimum) to serve my Country, so to me, that counts.

Filed under: | Personal

Just before I went on vacation, I took an assessment test for another position within my organization and I passed that, so now, today I have a 2nd interview for the position...this time it’s at the Tempe campus doing customer service work.
Better than collections (and dealing with a better grade of people instead of the jerks I have to try and find now), higher pay grade, but I lose the 10% shift differential (for working at night). It’s at 0900 hours (before my regular shift)...so another long day.

Filed under: | Personal

It didn’t go like I hoped it would. I would have liked to have seen some of my other friends, but the sinus infection I got kept me more or less cooped up where I was staying. I missed my girlfriend the moment after she and her dad pulled away from the curb at the airport.
And then the fun began: some anal-retentive b***h at the check-in booth at Detroit Metro Airport confiscated the damn strap on a duffel bag I checked in. WHAT! THE! F**K! kind of threat to an airplane does a duffel bag strap pose? I plan on writing the administrator of DTW for an answer...and he better have a good one or else I’m gonna ream that damn airport big time!
The flights themselves? Smooth, thank Goodness. But I’m back.
Work tomorrow morning.
Ugh.

UPDATE (08/13/2005 at 2241 MST): I wrote an e-mail to the CEO of Detroit Metro Airport about the little run-in with the anal-retentive b***h. Let’s see how far this goes:

Lester W. Robinson
Chief Executive Officer
Wayne County Airport Authority
Detroit Metropolitan Airport
Smith Terminal - Mezzanine Level
Detroit , MI 48242

Dear Mr. Robinson:
I am writing to you to complain about the terrible service I received at the Curbside check in for Southwest Airlines at the Smith Terminal on Friday, August 12, 2005, at approximately 12:45 PM.
There was a female attendant in her 50s whose demeanor was absolutely rude and condescending. She confiscated my duffel bag shoulder strap FOR NO REASON WHATSOEVER and without explanation. I ask you, what kind of threat does a shoulder strap pose to airport workers or to the airline?
I request a timely answer to my complaint. Thank you very much for your attention.

And while I’m at it, I think I’ll relay the same complaint to Southwest Airlines...albeit by snail mail. They’ve got a reason to handle Customer Relations that way and I can certainly empathize with that.

Filed under: | Personal

Here I am on vacation in Michigan, seeing family and friends, and already I get hit with a damn sinus infection halfway through. It’s miserable. Do I miss them? NO! I just hope i can survive so by the time I get back on Friday I’ll be up to working on Saturday morning.
Ugh.

Filed under: | Personal

...for packing...It turns out I have another appointment with the recruiter at work. She wants me down at a testing center bright & early at 0830 hours tomorrow to take an assessment test which will take a couple of hours to complete. This is for another position at my work place doing daytime work with “premier customers.” After that, we’ll see. At least she knows I’ll be leaving town soon...for vacation!
Lord knows I’ve needed a good one for quite some time. And now I’ll get the chance. I’ll try to blog while on vacation (by way of borrowing another computer of course!) but I won’t guarantee that. In the meantime, watch for two posts to come up at their appointed hour. Hint: History.

Filed under: | Personal

Sometimes I think about winning the Lotto (like lots of people do) and having so much money I could get anything I wanted. I don’t do this very often for a very good reason: money can’t buy happiness!. But it doesn’t hurt to think about it once in awhile. Heck, the last time I played anything connected to the Lotto was the ”Price is Right” game a couple of months ago. Hey I got my $5 back! But I digress…
Anyway, if I were in such a position, not only would I pay my debts off and also those of my immediate family (Mom, my brother and sister) and get lots of high-tech stuff, I would also like to buy some cars: this one, this one, this one, and this one.
Gee can you tell I like Fords? Even though I drive a Chevy, I still like Fords. Ya Ya I know, Fix Or Repair Daily, Found On Road Dead, F**ked Over Rebuilt Dodge, blah blah blah yadda yadda yadda...