The Fourteen Day Itch

I currently have a medical condition known as Urushiol-induced contact dermatitis, AKA, a Poison Ivy rash, and I am miserable right now.

We had an older flower bed in our front yard that had sort of grown over and was getting wild and Daleen wanted us to rehab it. The only kicker was that it was infested with poison ivy plants. For those of you who don't know, I am only allergic to one thing in this world and it is the poison ivy plant (known by botanists as "Toxicodendron Radicans"). To say that I am allergic to poison ivy is like saying the Pope is Catholic. It's an understatement. If I get anywhere near the stuff, I get it and I get it bad. Two years ago I brushed a plant with my arm and leg and after five weeks I was considering having both limbs amputated. Actually, the rash was so bad, I thought the limbs we just going to fall off on their own.

Daleen is not allergic to poison ivy so she sprayed the plants down with a brush killer and removed the plants. I envy her. She crawled around in the stuff and sort of got one little itchy spot that went away.

After removing the plants, I figured it was safe and got in the flower bed, tilled the soil, and prepared the flower bed for all the new bulbs Daleen was going to plant. I cut up some roots and raked up some additonal debris and hauled it out back. Nothing was very sinister looking there, but I wore gloves, tried to protect myself, and immediately jumped in the tub and scrubbed myself down. Everything seemed ok and there was no itching.

Then I woke up around midnight the night before last and itched like you wouldn't believe.... all over. Since then I have new rashes on both arms, one leg, my hands, my side, and I must have wiped my eyes at one point, because I even have some irritation and swelling on my eyelids. The eye thing bothers me the most because with the swelling, it looks like I haven't slept in a month.

I looked up my condition this morning and Wikipedia states the following abut my condition, "The toxic effects of urushiol are largely indirect, mediated by an induced autoimmune response. Urushiol chemically reacts with, binds to and changes the shape of integral membrane protiens on exposed skin cells. Affected proteins interfere with the immune system's ability to recognize these cells as normal parts of the body (perhaps causing the immune system to mistake them for invading parasites), causing a T-Cell mediated immune response, attacking the cells as if they were foreign bodies." So the bottom line is, I itch, and it is because my body isn't smart enough to know I only bumped into a plant.

I did find this fact interesting though: "In approximately 15% to 30% of people urushiol does not initiate an immune system response, while at least 25% of people have very strong immune responses resulting in severe symptoms. Since the skin reaction is an allergic one, people may develop progressively stronger reactions after repeated exposures, or show no immune response on their first exposure, but show sensitivity on following exposures.". So it gets worse, every time you are exposed to it. Which means, Daleen is not allergic to it now, but she probably will be one day.

Did you know that mangoes are actually a very close relative to the poison ivy plant and often people who are allergic to the ivy plant can also get a rash from the skin of the mango fruit? I love mangoes and fortunately, I don't have this problem.

As I said, I am in itchy agony. I'm treating it as best I can and scratching myself silly, but it's just going to have to run its course over the next two weeks or so. I will survive, but I can assure you it's not going to be pretty. So when you see me, don't worry, it's not leprosy and it's not contaigious, and I gladly accept all forms of sympathy.

I Love the Smell of Chicken in the Morning......

My house smells like cooked chicken, and I'm ok with that.

That's because Daleen spent Saturday afternoon and part of Sunday morning cooking and shredding thirty pounds of chicken for barbeque for the 1st annual fall picnic for our church. The picnic was yesterday afternoon and I would definitely say the whole thing was a huge success. Over 350 people showed up, we had great weather, and everyone was well fed and really enjoyed themselves.

It was asked that people bring their own desserts and this really made the afternoon even better. The food tables were pretty much overflowing with about every kind of sweet thing you could imagine. I felt like I needed an insulin shot just looking at it all. Colin even had a hard time deciding on what he wanted, but he eventually settled on a cupcake with sprinkles and two chocolate chip cookies. This of course was to follow up after some of the best homemade barbeque I have ever tasted.

Besides the food, there was every kind of game you could imagine. Our church has some very competetive people as members and the picnic wouldn't have been complete without some team sports. However, there was something for everyone. I discovered that Colin is really improving at kicking the soccer ball around. This was before he spied the kids volleyball net and then spontaneously went into a sort of wierd, screaming, one-man volleyball game with his soccer ball. Hey, he lives in his own little world sometimes.....

One thing I was amazed with is the number of volunteers that showed up to make and serve the food, organize the tables and trash bags, and run the games. This church has a great community of folks who step up every time something needs to be done. They come early to set up and stay late afterwards to tear it all back down. Thanks to everyone who helped out yesterday to make this such a great success.

As I mentioned, this is our 1st annual fall picnic. This year the event is a kickoff for the fall church series called "Awaken" that will run until the beginning of November and will end with a mini-Olympics and chili cook-off (more sports.... I did explain about our competetive members, right?) With the turnout we had, I am certain we will be doing this again next year. There have already been some discussions as to how it all can be done even better.

I have to say, it was strange to see all of those crock-pots sitting in my kitchen, slowly cooking all thirty pounds of chicken. And the smell has subsided quite a bit, but I think we will remember the fun and enjoy the new friendships made long after that chicken smell is gone.

The Hills Are Alive.....

We took a much needed vacation last week.

We didn't want to go far, so we spent the week at the Woodstone resort at the Massanutten ski area in VA. Overall, I would have to say our time there was great. I never feel like I spend enough time with Daleen and Colin and I was glad we could just get away as a family to do family stuff.

I was really surprised at how close the resort was to Richmond. It's less than two hours away in the Shenandoah Valley. And the trip up over the mountain was very scenic. It had been a long time since I had been up this particular road (Route 33). When my parents were dating, there was this house (more like a shack) just before you go up the mountain where the people living there always had their laundry hanging up on the front porch. When I was young and we went on this road, my parents would point out the house... and the laundry. I was happy to report to my folks that the house is still standing.. and yes, they still have their laundry hanging on the front porch.

The resort itself and the accomodations were really nice. We got a two bedroom condo right off the golf course. The first night, we just relaxed and unwound. We had a spa tub in our condo that would fit about six people, which I sat in until I was severely pruned up but nicely decompressed.

The next day, we decided to head back up the mountain to Shenandoah National Park and Skyline Drive. We headed north to an area called Big Meadows and parked there after making a few stops at some of the scenic overlooks. Colin was excited by all the deer walking around by the parking lot. I was not as excited as this was only due to people feeding them. But I have to admit, they were some plump looking deer, so people must be feeding them well. Anyhow, while there, we discovered there is a nice little trail called the "Story of the Forest Trail", which leaves from the parking lot. It was good because is was fairly flat and there are several markers along the trail which point out the various features of the trees and rocks. That trail then connects with Dark Hollow Falls trail, which we decided to follow so Colin could see a waterfall. The falls were really nice and of course, Colin wanted me to carry him back up from the falls on my shoulders which was good exercise for me. Then as we neared the Big Meadows parking area, there, in the middle of the trail, was a large female Black Bear and two of her cubs. I instantly made the decision that we would not be those idiots you read about in the paper, and sent Colin and Daleen back down the trail to Skyline Drive and figured we would walk back up the drive to the parking lot. Then of course, after they were safe, I became one of those idiots and whipped out my video camera. Sure it was probably a dumb move, but the footage was awesome!

Colin talked endlessly about the bears and how mommy and daddy were scared the rest of the day. I don't know that I was scared, but I definitely didn't feel like trying to find out how tame those bears were. On the other hand, Daleen and I really enjoyed our day in the park. We checked out the Big Meadows campground and Lodge. We are planning on putting a camping trip there on our to-do list.

Day three of our vacation consisted of a trip to Luray Caverns. After you accept the fact that it is a huge tourist trap, I guarantee you'll enjoy it. The formations are pretty unbelievable. It has been at least 20 years since the last time I was there, so it was pretty much like seeing it for the first time again. Daleen and Colin liked it a lot as well. Colin kept asking where the dinosaurs were! The only problem we had was that we took a picnic lunch for after the tour, but there are so many bees there, we basically had to sit in the car and eat. I have a severe problem with bees. So you can just imagine what people were thinking, watching me more or less jumping around, almost like I was doing some kind of interpretive dance, swatting with one hand, and holding a sandwich with the other.

The ride back from Luray was good though. Shenandoah National Park doesn't sell a one-day park pass. You have to buy a one-week pass for $15. Since we already spent the money the day before, we decided to cut back over to the park and go south on Skyline Drive back to the resort. Along the way, we saw another giant Black Bear and some gigantic whitetail bucks.

Day four of our trip was spent in the town of Harrisonburg. When you drive into the town, there is a sign that says they are "The Friendly City". We kind of chuckled when we saw that, but then we found out they mean exactly what they say. Everyone we met that day was so nice. We spent a lot of time at their Childrens Museum, which while small, rivals the massive Children's Museum in Richmond. We also made a trip to the Shenandoah Heritage Market where Daleen bought this huge quilt she's been looking for.

Then day five of our trip was spent at what was supposed to be the highlight of the vacation..... The Massanutten Indoor Water Park. This ended up being the biggest dissappointment of our time there. First of all, it was expensive. $86 for the three of us.... I am not making this up. That wasn't the bad part though. What dissappointed us the most is the people working at the waterpark were extremely unfriendly. Obviously they are not from Harrisonburg. Oh, and although the park is indoors, they must not have paid the heating bill, because we were freezing the entire time. We were going to stay at the resort for dinner, but because the people working there were so unpleasant, we decided to go back to Harrisonburg and get back to some folks that knew a thing or two about being nice. We ended up going to Cici's where everyone seemed happy. Along the way, we got rear-ended at a traffic light by a young girl. Not a scratch on the car and the poor girl was beyond extremely apologetic......... she's from Harrisonburg for sure.

We had a lot of other little adventures on our trip. Overall, it was a really relaxing vacation. Everyone had a great time and we connected as a family like we hadn't in a while. I was surprised at how much there is to do up in the Shenandoah Valley and inside the national park. If you're looking for a close and easy vacation, I would definitely recommend the Woodstone resort. We will be going back again sometime for sure. Just be sure to stay away from the waterpark.

Field Day of the Past Photos

Finally got a chance to download my camera from the last couple of weeks. Attached are some photos from Field Day of the Past..... enjoy.

Colin and his rubber snake are checking out the tractor pulls...

Plenty of smoke and dust in the tractor pull pit...

I have a pile of dried corn in the backseat of my car.... guess where it came from

Time to get a cow and put Colin to work!

Little boys love heavy equipment and farm machines....

Redneck Heaven....... without the mullet

And we’re off…. Again.

But this time it’s for an excellent reason. This week we’re away on a much-needed vacation at the Woodstone resort at Massanutten. For those of you who are not from Virginia, Massanutten is a ski area in the Shenandoah Valley (2 hours drive, north-west of Richmond). It’s a really great resort with LOTS of stuff to do. If you are looking for a place to get away that is close to Richmond, this should be on your list. We have had some incredible experiences that I’ll tell you all about when we get back. The reason I’m waiting until we get back is that while Woodstone is all that and a bag of chips, they charge $10 per day for internet access (the only flaw that I can find so far). So while I would love to give you a play-by-play of our trip, it’s just too expensive….

But I did want to tell you about our little excursion last Sunday.

I drove back from where I was working in New York in the early hours of Sunday morning and got back to Powhatan at 10:30AM. This was just in time to unpack my stuff and load up the car to go to Massanutten for the week. Notice, I did not include “taking a nap”. Then we took off for our little pre-vacation stopoff.

Last weekend was an annual Richmond area event called “Field Day of the Past”. This is our second year attending and it is now a definite on our calendar. The Field Day is basically a big farming/heavy equipment show and living history event. In other words….. it is redneck heaven. (Don’t worry, I am NOT growing a mullet and country music still makes my ears hurt.) They have everything though, including tractor pulls, a steam powered sawmill, a steam cotton gin, a bulldozing/excavating demonstration, a rodeo, farm animals, antique cars, basically everything my 2-year old loves more than life itself. It’s like a mini State Fair without all the creepiness. Both this year and last, Colin has spent our hours at the show basically beside himself with excitement. He loves watching the tractors running around and being able to climb around on all the heavy equipment. This year, we spent some time at the section where James River Equipment displays their stuff. They let Colin sit in the cab of a giant excavator and on a bulldozer. After that, he got to climb in the excavator bucket and then this nice girl gave him a balloon. For a little boy, it doesn’t get any better than that. Then we went back over to the tractor pulls for a while and later, he went for a pony ride. After his ride, he learned how to milk a cow and played in a giant tank of dried corn. It has been three days since the event and Colin is still all smiles. The whole thing really is like heaven for young boys.

Of course, we didn’t go alone. My folks and sister’s family went. Also our friends Josh and Laura and Rob and Wendy came along with their kids. Everyone seemed to have a great time. It wasn’t too hot out on Sunday, but the sun was particularly intense and I got a nice, minor sunburn that made me look like a raccoon due to my sunglasses.

When I got home from my trip to NY, I was out of it from working and then driving all night. But watching Colin have so much fun gave me a second wind and I forgot about being tired. (I thought I was going to sleep on our way to Massanutten, but I ended up driving us here.) His enthusiasm was definitely infectious and to me, that was the best part of the whole day.

The Field Day of the Past is usually in September and is located off Broad Street just west of Short Pump. It runs over an entire weekend and admission for one day is $10, which in my opinion, is a real bargain compared to what it costs to go to a movie these days. You can take your own chairs, a canopy, coolers (no alcohol), etc. A lot of people bring their wagons to carry in all their stuff and their children. Last year, over 36,000 people attended and I’ll bet there were more than that this year. If you like a safe, fun day for your kids and a nice day of laid-back southern style fun for yourself, check out their website, put it on your calendar, and we’ll see you there.

Marriott Hotel Explosion

I just looked at CNN.com and found out that there was a large car bombing at the Marriott Hotel in Islamabad, Pakistan. I spent a week there a few years ago while on an assignment for my work and remember meeting some really great people who worked there. Seeing pictures showing a place you've been that has been blown up definitely gives you a strange feeling. I still don't know what would possess a person to want to do such a thing......

Big Blue and Me

Today is my last day working at our IBM office in Fishkill, NY. It has been a great week and it has been wonderful seeing friends I met when I worked at our factory and from previous trips here. I have been working nights, from 6:00PM until 6:00AM. It hasn't been too bad with the day sleeping and I have managed to stay awake all night. As I mentioned in a previous post, the eating schedule is the biggest disruption. Going to a greasy diner at 2:30 in the morning and eating lunch is a bit of a change for me. I like being up here in the mountains though. It has been very chilly here at night. The leaves look like they are just about ready to start changing. I'll bet that in a month, it will be really beautiful here.

The work here at IBM been good. As usual, it hasn' t been too busy and I feel like I have made some contributions to the team as well as learning some new things. One of the best parts of working here is that their cleanroom protocol is not as stringent as my location in VA. It still feels like I'm wearing a trashbag when I have to suit-up, but as least I don't have to wear something over my face or eyes (very stylish). Another great part about this trip was that I got a new IBM photo ID. My old one was pretty much about a hundred times worse than the worst drivers lisence photo you have ever had. Luckily they had to shred my old one. The new badge I got looks pretty good and this one actually is coded to work on all the access doors I have to go through. Their factory is extremely compartmentalized and all the doors are locked. So in the past I have had to either follow people around or stand around, waiting for someone to come along while trying not to look too conspicuous.





Of course, the week has not been without some strange events. There was a coroners/medical investigators conference at the hotel I've been staying at. I was working down in the lounge/bar area yesterday afternoon and met a bunch of these guys. For some reason, they thought I was some new guy attending their little convention which led into some pretty interesting conversation. By the way, most of them do not like the show CSI........


The other really strange thing that happened, occured on my first night at work. My friend Chuck and I decided to head out to Dunkin D for a quick coffee break around midnight. It was my turn to drive and as I pulled out of the parking lot, this young chinese girl comes running across the parking lot, waving her arms frantically. So, we think there is some sort of emergency and I quickly stop the car and jump out. Did I ever mention I love interacting with people from different cultures? This chinese girl comes running over to us and simply tells us in fairly broken english that she called a cab an hour ago and it never came. Then she more or less asks if we can drive her to her hotel and proceeds to get in the back seat before I say ok. Our workplace is in a large gated IBM complex, so we know she is probably there for work as well, but I was still a little nervous about the whole thing. But then we take off for her hotel which was not very close and definitely out of our way. Great conversation though. Chinese people often take on American first names for business reasons. This girl's name was Jessica. She told us her real chinese name but I can't even remember it. I find one of the best conversations with a chinese person is finding out how they decided on their particular American name. She had a good story. But this poor girl had just arrived two days ago from China, had just started her first job out of college, no drivers lisence, etc. and she worked for one of our competetitors! We got her safely to her hotel and she blurted out a thanks and hopped out before we could tell her that flagging people down in America and jumping into a car with two male strangers at midnight is probably a monumentally bad idea.........


So this is my last evening. Luckily I only am working till midnight. Then we're going to dinner at the I-84 diner before I head south. I'll be home in the morning and then we're going to take Colin to a farm/tractor show for the day in Centerville. The show is called "Field Day of the Past". It's really neat and Colin has a thing for tractors and farm equipment, so he will pretty much be beside himself with excitement for a few hours, which is kinda fun to watch. After the show we are heading off on a weeklong vacation up in the mountains. Since I'm driving all night to get home, I expect I will be like a zombie at this point and Daleen is going to get to drive us there. I'm ready for a week away.... again.

Castaway.... VA Beach style

I'm working in a town up in the Catskills of New York this week. It's kind of warm during the day but is downright chilly at night. We went camping last weekend in VA Beach which was the exact opposite. Camping in early September is just the best.

We stayed at First Landing State Park. If you have never been there, you should. It's actually on the Chesapeake Bay, right where the bay meets the Atlantic. Since it is not right at the oceanfront, it is not crowded.... at all. You have plenty of room to spread out all your stuff on the beach and do all the beach stuff (throwing the frisbee/football, flying a kite, etc) without running anyone over. Also, it is a great beach for kids. There are waves, but they are little kid-sized. At the ocean, I have to hold onto Colin in the water. At First Landing, he can go out in the water by himself and jump the little waves without me. In addition, there is a ton of stuff washed up on the beach for the kids to check out. Last weekend, there was a vast array of clamshells, crab shells, jellyfish, seaweed, and horseshoe crab shells. The best part of this was watching the kids really get interested in all this stuff. They ran around and assembled a huge collection and even organized it into basic categories in front of us. It was interesting to see them, without adult intervention, kind of work as a team to do this. The bad part, was convincing them to leave all this stuff on the beach.

We didn't go on our trip alone. Our friends Josh and Laura and their kids Gabe and Belle went. Also, our friends Russ and Anna brought their children Olivia, R.E., and Joshua. Then my mom, brought my niece Sara down for the day on Saturday. Camping with such a large group is really the way to go. We had this amazing little three-family community going on. We laughed a lot, and learned a lot about each other.

One of the most interesting things I noticed was the different setups each family had. Daleen and I have been going to First Landing for a long time and we still use a tent. Well, its a huge house tent. Then Josh and Laura are on the other end of the spectrum with their enormous camper-zilla, which has everything you could ever want in the way of comfort. Then there was "Lee", Russ and Anna's camper. Russ just got Lee from some guy who had been living in it for a couple of years. Its a pretty small camper, but its nice. Russ had to do a lot of work just to get Lee ready and roadworthy. I learned that Russ is a great improviser when it comes to Lee. He even cut out the back window and installed a window unit air conditioner...... Looks a little funny but it works great.

We had some great weather last weekend. Hot during the day and cool at night. As I mentioned, the beach was great. In the evenings, after dinner and getting the kids to bed, we would make a fire, hang out and talk, and then play some sort of game. It was during this time in the evening, that I think I learned the most about my friends. I learned that Laura is an absolute shark when it comes to cards (total poker face) and Anna likes to set her marshmallows on fire and then eat them after they turn black. I also learned that when playing cards, when Russ has an awesome hand, he starts talking with this funny accent that is a cross between Cheech Marin and Tony Montana (he has no poker face at all). And I think my friends learned a lot about me as well during this trip. They found out that when I go camping at the beach, I go into "castaway" mode, where I pretty much only wear shorts/swimsuit and my flip-flops all day and night, become an expert campfire builder (shouting, "I.... Have Made Fire!), and basically become a complete beach bum. It's just what I do, but I don't think they expected that from me.

The only downside to the whole trip was R.E. came down with this incredible pain in his hip. By Saturday evening, he was limping really bad and Sunday morning, he couldn't walk because it hurt too much. So, Russ and Anna had to leave early to get him to a doctor. We were all really anxious about what could be wrong with him. Luckily, we found out that evening that he had a virus that caused an infection and swelling, but that it was only temporary and would go away on its own after a couple of days.

I know a lot of folks aren't into camping. However, I think when you take some time to give up a few modern conveniences, you gain a lot in the way of experience. (Don't worry, Russ and Anna did bring a TV to watch the Saturday VA Tech game. But the TV ended up staying on all evening as after it got dark out, the bugs were all attracted to it and left us alone.) As I mentioned, we laughed a lot, learned a lot about each other, stayed up late talking, cooked together, did our dishes together, and just created this incredible community we would never experience back in Powhatan. All in all, it was a great weekend and I'm looking forward to going again with them. You should join us the next time.......

Road Trip!

Heading north this morning.

My company has an office onsite at IBM in Fishkill, NY (about 45 min up the Hudson from NYC). Our contract there provides 24/7 onsite technical support and we are required to keep a certain number of folks at the office at any time. So, when someone is out, that slot has to be backfilled. This time, one of our night shift guys is out on a prolonged injury so everyone is taking turns filling in and this is my week to go.

I'm going to be working nights (6PM to 6AM) tonight through Saturday night. It will most likely be very easy work. The hard part will be staying awake. But I am very much looking forward to seeing my friends who work there. They are truly a great bunch of guys.

The working nights part takes a little getting used to. I'm good with sleeping during the day, but the change in the eating schedule throws me off a little. These guys go out for dinner at midnight to a real greasy spoon diner (The illustrious "I-84 Diner", where they know the waitresses and most of the truck drivers by name) and then they go to Dunkin Donuts at 4:00 AM because that is when the hot donuts come out of the oven. They do this pretty much every night and for some reason thay are all fairly skinny people. Maybe there is something in the water?

I love going on trips. I always have. I think I just like to get away. Daleen and Colin aren't coming this time unfortunately. They went with me the last time and we had fun. As you can imagine, I'll miss them. But we're going away on vacation for a week when I get home on Sunday and I'm looking forward to that.

Yardwork by Moonlight

Do you ever feel like you don't have enough time to do all the stuff you want to? What do you do about it?

As for myself, I am a continuous list maker, but I am terrible at time management. My lists and the time to complete those items never seem to match up. I have a couple of lists of things I want to do. One is for work, one for home projects, etc. Then I have a planner book that I affectionately refer to as "My Life".

My Life is from South Africa. I get a new one from there every year and my in-laws know that is going to be on my Christmas list. For some reason, the day planners you get in South Africa have so much more interesting stuff in them. My current one is a Financial Freedom planner, which is a day planner, but is full of info and encouragement on getting out of debt and saving. It also has the following: South African public holidays, SA school calendars, phone numbers for universities in SA, lunar phases, eclipses, equinoxes, and solstices, birthstones and appropriate flowers for each month, greetings in eleven of the languages found in SA, and finally gifts for specific wedding anniversaries. Everyone knows that the 50th anniv. is gold and the 75th is diamond, but did you know that your 11th anniv is steel and that the appropriate gift for that year is an appliance? Fascinating.....

But to get back to my point, I make lists. And when I don't get all of the things done on those lists, I get a little anxious about it. Mostly because, I am going to have to reschedule it for some other time and I won't get that satisfaction of crossing it out.

I had "fertilize the lawn" on my list yesterday. Because of my work schedule (going to NY tomorrow) and an upcoming week-long vacation away from home starting on Sunday (when I get home from NY), I couldn't think of when I could reschedule it. And then Daleen reminded of something I had previously committed to doing yesterday evening after work. Meeting with the YAMS which is a great group of our friends. Didn't want to miss that. But, after the meeting when I got home around 8:45, I got that anexiety about my list and fertilizing the lawn. So there, in the cool, bright moonlight, I sprang into action, switched on all my exterior lights, got out my spreader, filled it up with fertilizer, and 40 minutes later...... I took a big sharpie marker and with a big smile and deep sense of satisfaction, put a heavy line across my list....... and then put my list away for the evening.

Same Old Job That I'm Thankful For

I love my job... all over again.

I work at a computer chip factory owned by Qimonda Memory Products. I don't work for Qimonda though, I work for a company that supplies equipment used for one of their manufacturing processes. Luckily for you, I won't bore you with those details.

There are lots of great things about where I work. I'm fairly paid, I work with a great team, I have unbelievable flexibility with my schedule, and I have the best boss I could ever hope to work for. I think I'm pretty lucky. There are some downsides though. Our equipment is located in a large cleanroom and when my customer needs our assistance, I get to go suit-up which in not unlike putting on a large trashbag which makes you perspire just from walking around in it.

The most unfortunate part of my job, is that with my current position, there is no place for my career to grow within my company. If I wanted to move up, we would have to move back to Massachusetts, and neither Daleen or I are ready to do that right now.

Then a couple of weeks ago, I heard of an opening at my customer's company, in Richmond, that would be a significant jump for my career. It would be a big step up, put me back on Monday through Friday, and would be better pay. So I interviewed and that went well, I even talked to my manager about it in order to not feel like I was hiding anything. This new job was pretty much a done deal and then at the last minute I get the call that the company has now had a global hiring freeze and there will be no new job for me. Needless to say, this was a little dissappointing. Actually, it was vey dissappointing.

However, I was able to go back to my old manager, and we talked and he told me that in his opinion, everything with my job is just like it was before. Whew! Like I said, I have an awesome boss. Actually since all this has happened, it looks as though my customer may be going through some changes which probably wouldn't have been good for me if I was working for them.

So, it's been a bit of a rollercoaster over the last couple of weeks. Everything was lined up perfectly for my job to change and then at the last minute, I feel like I have been pulled back and protected from something that would probably not have been good for me or my family. It's funny how I started out looking for a change in my work, and that is what I got, but never how I expected. Through this process, I learned a lot about my company, a whole lot about my boss, and I have a new appreciation for my job and its relative security in a very shaky industry. I also was able to have a more serious discussion with my employer about my future which probably wouldn't have happened otherwise. Gotta love that......

Why "The Tick"?

And so it begins....

We got a newer, much faster computer and now with that new speed and fewer internet headaches my wife Daleen has rediscovered the internet. Well, she discovered all the fun stuff on it such as Facebook, blogging, etc. To be honest, I don't like computers. I work at a computer chip factory and spend all day working on my computer and when I get home, I use all that mighty new computing power to play solitaire.

Anyhow..... She has discovered that a lot of our friends have blogs. I have been reading the Powhatan Community Church blog and really like it, and now I have started reading a lot of other blogs and I think I too am hooked. Not so much with sharing what we have going on, but it looks like a great way to decompress a little which is what I really need. So, here we are with a new blog I have affectionately titled "The Tick". Life in our home is generally fairly ordinary, with some very un-ordinary moments thrown in. I'm hoping to capture both here.

So why "The Tick"? I would like to say it is because I thought about Daleen's nightstand clock which I can hear at night and know every tick is a moment in time I am not going to get back and somehow I need to live life to the fullest. But what came to me when thinking of a name is the comic book character, "The Tick". For those who don' t know, The Tick is a deeply flawed superhero. He really wants to do good, but he always screws up the delivery and somehow saves the day, usually by accident. I think I can often identify with this. To further illustrate this is a description from the Tick's article on Wikipedia (Beth B. will like his "Drama Power"): "The Tick is a surreal parody of superheroes. He is high-spirited, frequently obtuse, and prone to quipping odd, dim remarks and "inspirational" speeches filled with bizarre metaphors. His superpowers are nigh-invulnerability, which allows him to crash and bang about without injury (though not necessarily without pain); super strength; and something referred to as "drama power," or basically a tendency for the Tick's powers to increase as the situation becomes more dramatic. He is known for his nonsensical battle cry, "Spoooooon!," which he decided upon one day while eating breakfast (specifically, the cereal Drama Flakes). In the comic book, the Tick got a job at the Weekly World Planet newspaper. He works in the same office as Clark Oppenheimer who is also a superhero called the Caped Wonder. He has all the typical Superman powers including: X-ray vision, super strength, invulnerability, flight, heat-vision, and super hearing. Clark Oppenheimer looks down on the Tick as a lower form of super-hero with limited powers."

The Tick even hangs out with flawed people who are smarter than him and help him with his issues, which I also like. The Wikipedia article goes on by explaining, "Like many superheroes, The Tick has a sidekick: a rather plump former accountant named Arthur, who wears a white moth suit that allows him to fly, although he is often mistaken for a bunny due to the long ear-like antennae of his costume and the fact that his wings are often folded up. The Tick is impulsive, and Arthur serves as a sort of conscience; he also figures out the schemes of villains and formulates plans to stop them. Arthur's "battle cry" (so to speak) is "Not in the face! Not in the face!". In all of his incarnations, The Tick is surrounded by a cast of equally absurd heroes and villains, many of them parodies of popular comic book characters and character types. Few of the "superheroes" in the Tick mythos have powers that would measure up to those of DC or Marvel characters, but their foes are often equally silly and/or weak. "

Thanks for reading that lengthy explanation. I hope to have a lot of fun with this and can produce something you will want to read and keep up with.