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It’s a little profile about me, a bit of a brag I guess.   Bad picture though. 

Long Week

It was a our quarterly sales meeting this week at the office.  It’s always a long week, but this one was especially so.  Given the current economy, much focus had to be given to preparing our message to the sales team.

I’m glad we made it a point to not dwell on how much this year sucked.  I think the entire staff is aware that our business is off over 30%, and much the same with our customers.  I was proud, to say the least, that the message stayed with looking forward. 

Maybe it’s just me, but I think businesses too much focus on the next week, month, quarter, or year.  Shortsighted is the only word to describe it.  It’s not that you shouldn’t track short term, but focusing on maximizing a quarterly return or the like, causes numbers to be fudged, not fraudulently, but nonetheless misleadingly.  As if they are cutting off their noses, despite the face.  Reporting to a bunch of degenerate gamblers, who we know as Series 7 licensed stock brokers, who want instant gain on what should be long-term investment. 

I like the Jeff Bezos idea, let’s do it our way, if they don’t like it, well, they can leave.  I firmly believe that if more companies paid attention to running their businesses, rather than reporting to Wall Street, our world would be a much better place.

Microsoft JVM

So the 4 day weekend is over, what an unfortunate turn of events.  It’s always good to get time away, though I don’t think we ever really get enough of it.  That’s what makes it special, our mothers would probably say. 

Ran into an interesting issue today while setting up a new computer at work.  The one I built Wednesday as a matter of fact.  It has Windows 7 Professional 64-bit, and we use an ERP program that runs on a database called Progress.  If you ask my friends that deal with Progress at a deeper level than I, all you can hear them say at the mention of the name is “ughhh.”  It’s an antiquated database in my opinion and depends on unsupported technology to operate.  This is where the title comes in to play.

Microsoft JVM, by all accounts was no longer supported by Microsoft as of two years ago, effectively earlier.  In a rare decision, they decided that an outside firm already did a good job with something…  take what you can get, I guess.  This version we are running was compiled in 2008, with updates since 2007.  One would think that the developer, noting that MSJVM was going away, would have done something about it.  But no, they didn’t. 

I went to install it on the shiny new Windows 7 box and what do you know, “Microsoft JVM is not compatible with this version of Windows.”  The best part, the solution from Microsoft is, and I’m paraphrasing, “Rewrite your code.”  I took a screen shot and emailed to the support group for this product.

Continental Airlines move to Star Alliance

It’s a good move.  Really. 

I was just on Star Alliance’s website today and noticed their Round the World fare calculator.  Oh to dream of a 6 month vacation, costing a paltry $26,000 in airfare (business class) to go around the world, departing from Cleveland then on to Dublin, the Johannesburg, from there Delhi, then Bangkok, then Sydney, then Vancouver.  Oh what fun it would be. 

SkyTeam seems like it may be heading down hill with the merger of Delta and Northwest.  I’ve flown both of them, before and after the merger, and I think it’s not going so well.

This is not to say that the Star Alliance members are without their problems, it just seems they are a little more manageable.  US Air and United went through their difficulties years ago, and now it seems they have managed to get past them.  On top of that United is HUGE and US Air, not so much.  Delta and Northwest are both giants.  The merger may be worse than expected, and I expect the passenger to suffer.

And one more for today

Thanksgiving, what a thing.  We’re one of two countries that officially celebrates a day of thanksgiving.  Us and Canada, that’s it.  As an aside, if you ask @fakeapstylebook, he’d say, Do not refer to Canada as “America’s hat” as it is offensive, instead use “Gateway to Alaska.”  All kidding aside, it’s really a wonderful thing.

Normally, in a more lucid state, I would be against the idea of an official day to give thanks for what we have.  My question first would be, to whom?  As an avowed atheist I take exception to holidays that focus around religious things.  See Christmas and Easter.  Now, I’m not going to say that I don’t enjoy the holiday season this time of year, but it’s entirely for secular reasons.  I enjoy the company of friends and family, the warmth and togetherness it brings.  But back from the tangent, I do enjoy this holiday, Thanksgiving. 

I think it’s not about prayer, or turkey sacrifices to the Christian god, or the shopping the day after.  What I like is that it is the least commercialized of any of our holidays.  That being said, Black Friday is a whole other story.  Labor Day, Memorial Day, Veterans Day, President’s Day, shit, even Columbus Day, all the sales and promotions.  Basically, they are congressionally authorized savings events.

It’s the one day of the year when you know everybody but the pharmacy and the hospital is closed for business.  Well, the bars, but we need them!  It’s a chance to relax and unwind before you throw yourself across the table, lunging at your relative who every year disagrees with you. 

Maybe, just maybe, we can remember this at some other holiday, really take a day off.  No sales, no promotions, no really big events.  Just something simple, something pure…

It just hit me, a National Vacation Day, or National *Sick* Day.  A day to whatever the hell you want!  Have fun with your family, enjoy a day with friends.  In my ideal world, as I am King in it, no one would work, except for the Doctors and Nurses and the Pharmacists, they’d get a different day, after we’re sober. 

I don’t know, I just like the calm that comes with Thanksgiving.  It’s the beginning of the end of the year, and for this year, I think we are all glad it will be over soon.

A Breakfast Unlike the Others

I was in Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky this weekend with my partner Andy visiting a great friend.

We had breakfast this morning at the Keystone Bar & Grill in Covington, Kentucky.  This is where the story begins…

There once was a restaurant called “Inn the Wood”, it sat on Calhoun Street in Cincinnati, opposite the University.  They had great food, good beer and always a good time.  The city and the university closed them up through eminent domain to make way for trendy shopping stuff.  It’s pretty said, but I digress.  They had a breakfast dish called the “Potato Crisp”.  It was the most simple, yet delicious food, I’d think, known to man.  It was simply created with crisped hash brown potatoes that were stuffed with onions, peppers, tomatoes, cheddar cheese and sour cream, then paired with an egg of your choosing.  I thought it was gone for good, this delicious breakfast food.  It was great any morning, hangover or no. 

Well, our friend tells us that the Keystone Tavern brought them back. We had to go!  Not only are they back, but they are better than ever.  I had the Southwestern which has Chorizo, Jalapenos, onion, cheddar cheese, and sour cream. It’s really a treat if you like Chorizo.  Served with light and fluffy scrambled egg, you are hard pressed to finish it. 

Below is an excerpt from the Keystone’s brunch menu:

The Real MJ!

My friends live near Cincinnati and their kid, MJ, is quite adept at climbing things, including this 10’ tall doorway.  Go MJ!  Take a look!

Avarto Sucks

Just got the confirmation email that my order for Windows 7 from HP was shipping, five days AFTER I received it!

Two Things

I’m in a writing mood today.  It’s wierd.  I spend most of my days at work writing things down, so normally I don’t like to write at home.  But let’s just say, I’m feeling punchy.

Thing number one, Black Friday is tomorrow.  I take some precautions for this day.  You know, people have been killed going shopping on this day.  So I don’t do it.  I figure I can get the same if not better deals online all holiday season long.  The mass hysteria surrounding this day befuddles me. 

Thing number two, I received an email the other day from the “Director of Amazement”.  As the Chief of Slight Dissapointment I feel that her title was overreaching, and assinine. 

Thank you.

More Turkey!

I am using Alton Brown’s turkey brine recipe from foodnetwork.com, here is the link:

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/good-eats-roast-turkey-recipe/index.html