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March 31, 2005
Sprung??
Hmmmmmmmmmm, well, it seems as though Spring may finally be here. I'm a Winter-loving guy, but I have to admit, I do like the first few warm days.
More gears in the moving-away machine keep kicking in. There are some cold feet from time-to-time, but I think that's pretty normal with a big change like this. One thing that I haven't been able to get straightened out are my CISP stock options. I sent them a check to exercise the options well over a month ago and have only heard that "It's being processed." It's not a big deal, but it shouldn't be this hard!!
Lately, I feel more... me. I'm not sure exactly what I mean by that... or rather, I DO know what I mean by that, I'm just not sure how to relate it in words. I'm just feeling more comfortable with life, with decisions, with everything. I've been pretty secure in who I am for the past few years, but recently it seems to be "paying off" for me? People are noticing the way I live my life... I don't know, it's just gratifying to get some feedback that I'm doing things right, and doing the right things.
Now that I've thoroughly confused you and myself... I'll go.
Posted by Pepperguy at 06:30 AM | Comments (3)
March 23, 2005
Roll Along
It's interesting. I took the rather drastic step on Monday night of shutting down the forums on www.ay-ziggy-zoomba.com The forums are basically the heart of that site, with over 700 registered users and a ton of traffic on a daily basis. I did this because I had become frustrated (as had many others) by the conduct of many of the visitors and just the general overall mood of the site. It had gone from optimistic and supportive to dark and unwelcoming.
Well, I got over 100 emails yesterday in response to my statement from members of the site (and some non-members as well) and all but 2 of them were overwhelmingly supportive of the decision. Not the kind of response I was expecting at all!! Most people said they "saw it coming." It's really interesting how a community such as ay-ziggy-zoomba.com becomes almost a living/breathing entity that can take on a character of its own. It would make a great masters thesis!
So anyhow, I'm going to take the forums back live again by the end of the day today. I made my point, and we'll see what happens when things are re-launched. I'm not going to make many changes. I have appointed a couple of forum moderators to oversee things when I can't, and I'm going to work on an AUP and an FAQ stating what the site means to me, why it exists and how I expect people to act. All that info has been there, but it hasn't been easily accessible.
All in all, running ay-ziggy-zoomba.com has been a wonderful experience. It's taught me so much and it's helped me feel close to my dad who has been gone for almost 4 years now. Even when we move out west, I doubt I'll ever be able to let it go. It's become a huge part of who I am over the past couple of years... which is why I don't want to settle for a mediocre atmosphere.
Roll along....
Posted by Pepperguy at 06:41 AM | Comments (1)
March 21, 2005
Movin' on up...
Well, Maryellen and I have decided to relocate. I'm not sure when it will happen, but we want to get out of NW Ohio. I used to cling to the fact that I needed to be here for my mom, but with Ron in her life, that's no longer an issue... and I used to cling to the fact that I had a great job that I liked a lot, but recently, that's changed too... I still like my job at Glasstech but have realized that there's really nowhere I can go as far as advancement. Do I want to be doing the exact same thing 5 years from now that I'm doing today?? SO... I spent a long weekend preparing my resume and looking for work in the Pacific Northwest. It's weird to think about leaving this area... but exciting too.
I haven't decided what to do with www.ay-ziggy-zoomba.com yet. It could be quite a money-maker for someone... that someone isn't me though. I may sell it, or I may just hold on to it... but I've been pretty disillusioned with the conduct of people on that site recently anyhow...
Ahhh, the winds of change are a blowin'. Anyone want to buy a website?
Posted by Pepperguy at 06:25 AM | Comments (10)
March 16, 2005
Brackets
Well, thanks to some prodding from several people, the brackets are up and running... make your picks quickly... you've only got about 24 hours!!
http://www.pepperguy.com/ncaa
Prizes include... well, nothing!
Posted by Pepperguy at 10:54 AM | Comments (0)
March 13, 2005
Life, the universe and everything...
Working lots lately... evenings from home and then Saturdays for a few extra hours as well... it's pretty annoying, but I guess it's not all bad. It just sucks feeling like you have NO weekend.
I'm taking this coming Thursday and Friday off. Yay!
Check out Laurie's blog... She's one of my best friends ever, she comments on here occasionally (usually as "LAK") and she's now in Iraq with the 200th Red Horse Squadron of the Air National Guard!! I set her up a blog to help her chronicle her time over there and keep in touch with peeps back here in the states. She didn't think she wanted many people to know about it at first, but now it's time for her coming out party. Please check it out! http://laurie.pepperguy.com
Posted by Pepperguy at 08:05 PM | Comments (4)
March 06, 2005
Happy birthday to me...
Well, today I turn 35 years old. Hard to beleive really. 35 is kind of the age I remember thinking about when I was little, as in "wow... when I'm 35, it'll be the year 2005!!!!" and sure enough, the old calendar held true.
Had a really nice day yesterday, since Maryellen works today. Went to the doctor yesterday AM, then came back and did a little work from home. Then to BG for a pitiful basketball game (third senior night in a row that BG has lost... pathetic) after the game, we went to church and then on to dinner at my very favorite place ever in the whole wide world... Tandoor. It was great!! Chicken Makhani VERY spicy, please. And it WAS. It was at my limits of spicyness, right where I wanted it. The food was delicious AND gave me that endorphine rush you get from eating something that spicy. PLUS, Ravinder, my favorite waitress in the whole-wide-world, hooked me up with some rice pudding and gulab jamun for birthday dessert. She's a sweetie!
Came home then and Maryellen gave me my gift bag-o-goodies. And what goodies they were!! I got a humongous coffee mug, some yummies to eat and a 20GB iPod! WOO HOO!!!!! I dumped all the tunes from my powerbook onto it this AM and I've still got 17 gigs free! WHEE!! Today I'll be popping CD's in and out of this thing like there's no tomorrow.
Today, I'm going to work some more, maybe get out of the house and run into Barnes and Noble or something... not 100% sure what to do. We need some groceries too, so that will probably be incorporated into the trip.
70/2=35
Happy Birthday to Eddo and Jeff Greene too!!
Posted by Pepperguy at 09:06 AM | Comments (8)
March 04, 2005
Library
I like to go to the library on my lunch hours. It's a habit I picked up when I worked for GlassCity Internet downtown Toledo. 715 Jefferson was about 2 blocks from the main branch of the Toledo Lucas County Public Library, so it was a great way to get out, get some fresh air (as fresh as it can be in downtown Toledo) and clear my head. Since then, I've been lucky enough to work w/in 10 minutes or so of a library wherever I've worked. I think it will be a pre-requisite for any future jobs as well.
Right now I'm at the Way Public Library in Perrysburg. It's great... WiFi is available for a pretty decent rate (WHY ISN'T IT FREE?!?!?!) and there's a good selections of books/CDs here. Plus I generally sit alongside a bank of windows which faces P-burg's main street, so it's nice to soak up the weather of the day and watch the world pass by as I pump iTunes into my aural canals, surf the web, and/or do a little writing...
One beef I have today, is a guy having a LOUD phone conversation on his cell phone. I mean, it's a library dude... come on!! He took the call, and you know, OK, I thought hey, that's fine, let them know you're at the library and you'll call them back. But no... he started talking... ok, so I gave him the benefit of the doubt and thought he'd probably take his hands-free bluetooth headset and saunter outdoors to complete the call, but NO... he just stayed right here and talked... LOUDLY... Grrrrrrrrrr....
So anyhow... I guess I've blogged enough. I'll probably head back to work here in a few.
Posted by Pepperguy at 12:16 PM | Comments (0)