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Projects

Posted on January 22, 2020 by backuphill

Photo by Ivan Bertolazzi on Pexels.com

Ever feel like you just have too many? Projects, that is. Ever feel like you have so many projects going at once that keeping up on all of them takes enormous effort and time?

Yeah, me too.

I am not just talking about the ones at work. While there are lots of projects at work to always do, at least there I feel like I can block time effectively and focus on what needs to be done when it needs to be done.

I am talking about projects in my personal life.

Owning a home is a never ending project – improvements, maintenance, yard, cleaning and organizing. It just seems overwhelming at times because you can literally stand in one room and identify 17 things that need to get done or want to get done. There is never enough money and never enough time.

Social media projects. This is sort of a self-imposed problem. As you all know, there is absolutely no actual need for social media. It is there to distract and entertain (or infuriate) but there is no real need for it. But, blogs and Facebook and Instagram and Reddit and Snapchat and Twitter and [insert whatever else you have going on], can really take a lot of time. Am I right? Promotion of your businesses, blogs, ideas, etc. takes time and obviously it is something that needs to be done on a regular basis or you lose your following. I guess I am probably preaching to the choir here…

Anyway, I think my job is interfering with my creative side and completing those personal projects I have going on. Plates are spinning, and wobbling, and keeping up is a challenge.

I don’t have a solution. Just a whine. Just a complaint. Just general angst. I know it is all self-imposed, but I want to do a better job at it.

Anyone have any suggestions? How do you balance everything you have going on, outside of your actual job? I know, “first world problems,” right? I am open to suggestions….and if you just need to virtually slap me on the back of the head and tell me I’m an idiot because my self-imposed struggle is stupid, you can do that too.

Off

Posted on January 21, 2020 by backuphill

Photo by Chait Goli on Pexels.com

Apparently I took the day off yesterday. I don’t think I meant to as I totally remember thinking to myself that I needed to write something and click publish. But, between family in the house and the coffee cup, I must have gotten distracted and forgotten what I was doing.

So, thanks to those of you who still stopped by yesterday, even if there wasn’t something new to read.

Maybe I needed a day off. I am not sure. Of course, here in the US it was a holiday. As such, I wasn’t at the office and I wasn’t doing my telecommute thing. The schedule was off so I guess so was I.

Here’s the weird thing though. When I am off, like off from work because of a holiday, there is scorn in the house. Scorn because the holiday doesn’t relieve everyone in the house of their work responsibilities. Because I get a day off and get to do what I want to do, I get scorn. I hear things like:

“What did you do today?”

“What did you get done today?”

“How were you productive today?”

“What did you do with yourself today?”

It’s some version of that. Scorn.

How about I just get to take time off for me? How about I get to do what I want on these days because I can? How about I just get to do me today?

I am off. I have no work. I don’t feel like doing work at home today either. In fact, I left a 15 year career in teaching so I didn’t have to dedicate my whole life to work, even when I wasn’t at work. Get it?

I.AM.OFF.

(Oh, and for the record, I cleaned the house and put away laundry since dinner guests were coming. There. I did something.)

Now, leave me alone.

***Dang, back to work today…***

Conflicted

Posted on January 15, 2020 by backuphill

Photo by Michiel Alleman on Pexels.com

There are a few things in life that I just have a love/hate relationship with. I love them and yet hate them at the same time. Those two emotions don’t usually go together and often are in regard to different things, but today (well, really the last several days) I am conflicted because of weather conditions.

In particular, snow.

I love snow. I love the peacefulness and quiet as the snow falls. There is comfort in that. The blanket is leaves, at least for a while, causes he world to slow down or pause. A stillness ensues. I love the look of snow on the landscape – there is beauty in it! Sun glistening off freshly fallen snow. White mountains and trees framed by bright blue sky is stunning. Anyway, you get the picture. There are aspects of snow that I love. As a kid, I liked playing in it.

But, on the other hand, I hate snow. It’s tough to drive in. I can do it, but I don’t like it. I would just rather not, but when necessary I can do it with relative ease. I especially don’t like other people driving in it! People are idiots most of the time, so adding slippery white stuff as an ingredient to travel just makes for trouble. Snow is cold. I know that is an obvious statement, but I don’t like being cold. It is just miserable. I don’t particularly like that snow has to be removed (sometimes multiple times) from the sidewalk and driveway. That can be hard work! No, like REALLY hard work. As an adult, I don’t enjoy playing in it. Not even a little.

I am sure there are more things I love and hate, but those are the ones off the top of my head. So, how can I be so conflicted on this? “Why?” is maybe a better question. But, I don’t really wish to know. It just is what it is.

So, there you have it. One item I am conflicted on. There are many more, but let’s just put this out there since that is on the forefront of my mind as we deal with snow and ice up here in the upper left corner (Pacific Northwest) of the US.

Do you have something you are conflicted with? A love/hate relationship, so to speak?

One eyed travel

Posted on January 7, 2020 by backuphill

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

Weird thing happened yesterday. Weird enough that I can count the number of times over the last 35 year it has happened on one hand. It was a fluke really, but it made me uncomfortable.

I have worn soft contacts for a long time, like since about the 5th grade. Having 30+ years of experience, I kind of “have seen it all” when it comes to these things, which is tough because I am pretty much as blind as a bat without them.

Anyway, yesterday they were kind of bugging me so I decided I would clean then in my cube here at work. No biggie. I had solution and a tissue. I proceeded to clean the contact for my left eye (the worst of my two eyes) and then put it back in. I took out the right eye, the best of the two, and proceeded to clean it. No problem….except that when I went to put the lens back into my eye, it was missing part of the lens. HUH?

I looked in my palm and sure enough there was a piece of he contact stuck to my palm, in the contact solution. Weird! These weren’t old contacts. They new as of 6 days ago, so they weren’t worn out or old or anything. Why did it tear? It’s a mystery to me.

So, blind in one eye and just over 1.5 hours of work to go. What do I do? It’s cold and rainy up here in the PNW, so I didn’t really want to drive home, half blind, in the rainy dark. So, I left work and headed home. I am glad I didn’t wait. It was hard to have an hour commute with one eye that is basically is useless – light and shapes is about it.

So, that is a new thing to consider that I hadn’t before. I need a spare set at work. Glasses isn’t an option since they are coke bottles and I don’t wear them in public. When I travel, at least for more than a couple days, I take an extra set just in case. I have never needed the extras, but this definitely has me thinking that I need to consider all my options when I am away from home now.

Ever had anything unexpected like this alter they way you think or behave?

Delivery Jackass

Posted on December 27, 2019 by backuphill

So, is this how you were trained? Is this how we do things now? Total disregard for people’s property and landscaping?

Is this how FedEx trains its delivery people? Did this delivery driver get it right?

My guess is that this jackass tromping through my flower bed, tripping over the little wire decorative fence, and then turning around to go back the way he came wasn’t at the top of his training class.

Wait? How much training do these people even get?

No wonder Amazon is looking to abandon using FedEx for delivery.

Actually, I can’t pick on FedEx too much because I had a United States Postal Service mailperson (hint) do the same thing earlier in the month. I thought about sharing it, but thought it was a one off, so didn’t think it was that important but now I see shortcuts are a common practice, apparently.

That’s a rather irritating practice. I hope I am home the next time this happens.

Anyone else have a delivery story that annoyed the hell out of you?

Bah Humbug!

Posted on December 25, 2019 by backuphill

I don’t want to get up. I’m a Toys-R-Us kid…and Toys-R-Us really isn’t even a thing any more.

It’s too early and there are no toys under the tree for me.

There is no snow. This isn’t Christmas without snow.

Why is everyone making so much noise? I am trying to sleep in here.

Do we have any real food? I am tired of eating Christmas cookies and fudge for every meal and snack.

Put up the decorations…and tomorrow take them down. What a waste of time!

It’s a good thing Costco already has exercise equipment for sale. I can remind myself of what I should be doing, but won’t be.

Finally, the mall Christmas soundtrack can leave repeat and be given a rest. Three months of Christmas music is enough.

Got a “bah-humbug” phrase or statement to add? Share it in the comments.

Belly up

Posted on December 10, 2019 by backuphill

white vehicle in road close up photography

Photo by Liza Lova on Pexels.com

When things go belly up, especially a car, it makes for a really unpleasant rush to make a decision.

We, meaning my X and I and my teen daughter, purchased a used car back in June. We knew it wasn’t a top notch used car, but we figured it would get us a year (hopefully two) before it would need to be replaced. Since I just talked about making decisions with the X a few days ago, you can imagine that the process of finding and deciding on a car the first time was a chore, to say the least.

Well, now the car has gone belly up and the repairs (at least by the first estimate) appear to be more than the car is worth. I, nor her step-dad, are mechanically inclined when it comes to engines so doing a repair ourselves isn’t really an option. I have friends that could possibly do the work, but since the car is 30 miles from my home that isn’t exactly a “Hey, can you pop over and do some repairs?” kind of situation.

So, we…are back to trying to figure out options. Besides high school, my daughter has a part-time job and is also doing running start (college while still in high school), so the need for her transportation is kinda high as public transit isn’t the greatest or most efficient (or safe?) in the area where she lives. Thus, the options are few.

Ugh! Why are children so expensive….?

Savings

Posted on December 6, 2019 by backuphill

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

Anyone else notice that banks, the place that needs money more than anyone to do the business of money, does nothing to encourage savings? I mean, well, they do give it lip service but that doesn’t really count.

A bank is a place to put money, to store it or save it. That’s what they were originally created for. It was safer to have it stored in one place where they could keep it safe and then when people needed it they could go there to get it out.

As time went along, the banks figured out they could make money by loaning out the money people deposited with them and then charging interest on the loan, thus making it a profitable venture to store money.

As banks increased the amount they loaned out, they needed more and more people to “invest” with them and they used the new capital to loan more money out. It’s a bit of a vicious cycle, but it makes sense for all involved until…

…until it didn’t make sense to put money in the bank any more.

The interest rate you get from the bank on the money you put in the bank is almost nil. Like far all intents and purposes, it is ZERO. So, what is the benefit of putting money in the bank? Sure, there is the convenience of not carrying around piles of cash or pounds of coins, but is that all?

Banks need capital. You think they’d do something to encourage people to put there money there. I actually deposited a rather large amount of money in a bank that was giving an outstanding rate on CDs (Certificates of Deposit). That’s how a bank should generate capital.

They seem to take for granted that they are just guaranteed business, which maybe they are. Maybe consumers pay no attention at all to the fees or benefits they get from bank to bank, but it does pay to shop around and give business to banks that actually benefit you rather than just use you as an endless supply of currency to feed off of.

We need to be better consumers and actually cause the banks to fight for our money. Let’s bring the competition back and make them beg for our money instead of letting them tell us what we can do with our own money. Make sense?

Who’s with me on this?

X factor

Posted on December 5, 2019 by backuphill

Photo by Ricardo Esquivel on Pexels.com

When you are divorced and have had a child (or children), there is always the “X factor” to consider.

It’s sad to say, but as fathers we very typically get the shaft when it comes to co-parenting the children after a divorce. There is honestly no logical reasoning behind this precedent other than the mother is nearly always seen as “the fittest parent” in these situations, regardless of the circumstances. Even when you can demonstrate, with evidence, that as a father you would be a better choice for the child’s custodial parent it is a costly uphill battle that has no guaranteed outcome.

As I was preparing the visitation calendar for 2020 for my teen daughter, it just brought back all the times where I have had to consider the X factor over the last 14 years. We divorced when she was under two so I have had a lot of considering to do, and still have a little while longer to deal with it. It has been a challenge over the years.

How will the X respond to this? What will the X do now? Is there a way to get the X to be reasonable? How crazy is my X, really? I can’t believe the X responded the way she did. Why does the X have to make everything about herself? Why does the X always make this more challenging than it needs to be? How is the X gonna take this? How can I do this so it doesn’t piss the X off? Now what does the X want?

If you are a divorced father with children, you likely know all too well what I mean. Or, maybe you are even a mother with a crazy X, you know too. Really this post isn’t so much about fathers (though that is my experience) but about the fact that while raising children as divorced parents you are always having to consider the X factor. Everything you do seems to revolve around the other person even though you aren’t with that person every day.

I am thankful that it has gotten a little better since my daughter is now older and can transport herself, but as I was still working on a visitation calendar (which really hasn’t been followed since my daughter is old enough to have a job now) that I still have to consider the X factor when it comes to my daughter. Just a couple more years that I am REQUIRED to consider the X…then it will only have to be during major life events for my daughter. That will be a whole new chapter of X factor to deal with.

Can anyone else relate to this?

Dear Readers

Posted on November 28, 2019 by backuphill

Photo by Gratisography on Pexels.com

My Dear Readers,

As I pause a moment to give thanks for all that I have been given (I have not visited my computer this morning), I have to remember you.

It is because of you that we have created a little community where I have a voice to complain about things in my life, life in general, things in your lives, society, people, culture, smart and stupid people, and the list goes on…etc., etc., etc.

Essentially, you have allowed me to be your voice and in turn it has given me a voice too. I can’t always express the way I feel or think to the people who occupy my everyday life, so this has been an outlet for my frustration (and dare I say, anger?)

Some of what we talk about around here is for real and some of it is just for fun. Either way, it gives me something new to do each day in the hopes of entertaining you…or giving you something to ponder…or maybe giving you a silent fist bump knowing someone out there feels a little like you do.

So, I humbly say thanks.

Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours.

With gratitude,

The Chief Grump