On a positive front, Richard’s change in positions gave us the time this last year to get a few things done around the house that needed to be done but were constantly putting off because we didn’t have the time. We also had the time to do a couple home improvement projects that we had been wanting to do for some time. It is good that Richard switched positions when he did because we found ourselves taking care of my dad alot this last year. He had to have 4 surgeries/5 procedures this past year and needed a lot of help at times. He even had to go into a nursing home for a short period of time but he’s back at home, done with rehab and getting around as well as can be expected and I thank God for that.

It’s the beginning of a new year and we find ourselves yet again at a crossroads. We’re making positive changes in our lives for our future and we are excited about those. We’re working on changing our lifestyles and our environment to be one where there is less stress, more peace and a healthier, happier Richard and Mindi. We find ourselves evaluating the things in our lives and the importance of them. Things that used to be very important to us are not so much anymore. And things that got pushed to the side previously are now front and center. Again we are in a position to possibly cut some strings to things that are weighing us down but were once very emotionally attached to…and although making those decisions can be painful, living in those situations are even more painful.

We’ve determined to change our lives this year for the better and to do that is not always easy, but I have no doubt it will be rewarding. I’ll leave you with a quote Richard likes that he applies to his job, but I think it’s a good one for life in general: Change is inevitable. How you deal with change is controllable.

Current Mood: Reflective

http://news.ft.com/cms/s/ec414700-9bf4-11da-8baa-0000779e2340.html

A couple of questions:

Is there a way to easily remove these from employees?

Is there any way that a criminal could scan these in a way to know who has access to critical company resources and use that to gain entry to these same resources?

I guess something like this would at least make time tracking a thing of the past. Employers of the future will know EXACTLY what you are doing, and where, all day long.

Hyperbole? Sure, but as this becomes more accepted then the extremes get closer to reality.

It’s been a long year for Mindi and I. We experienced a lot of death with her Grandmother, my Grandfather, and her Mom dying in the last year or so. We also have also had our faith tested in people as we have witnessed ever rising levels of stupidity in some of the organizations we are involved in. I have also personally seen many lows this year including some dark periods at my job earlier last year.

But I think we are making some headway and I think we are probably happier now than we have been in some time. We finally extricated ourselves from a self destructive involvement in online community full of two faced people who only care about themselves (with some exceptions of course). I finally received the payoff for the last 3.5 years worth of the hardest work in my life with a promotion to Supervisor of the team I have worked on for the last few years. To be honest it is an honor considering the high profile nature of my job and the incredible team I work with. Mindi and I finally have finally gotten our home life a little back in order. More of that will come once I am on 1rst shift in the next few months. We have finally had to make some tough choices about our spiritual and volunteer lives that we will probably be acting on soon. I also feel we are on the beginning of period where we will get control over our finances and our weight issues due to changes that will be coming in our lives very soon.

Personally I am optimistic if not a bit stressed right now but this is the good kind of stress.

One thing I did realize after breaking through the clouds a few months ago is that I have been miserable for at least a year and I just didn’t realize it until recently. We’re still not where we want to be but I feel closer to Mindi then I have in awhile and I feel we are starting to get our lives as a couple in order.

I am looking forward to the future and I am glad I have my wife to share it with me. She is the best thing that has ever happened to me.

http://www.lifenews.com/nat1597.html

Excerpt:

Under a headline “Help Those Affected by the Hurricane,” Planned Parenthood admits that “100% of your tax-deductible contribution will go directly to helping Planned Parenthood affiliates.”

“Your support is particularly important right now because Planned Parenthood is facing a truly tremendous number of challenges in the courtrooms, in Washington, D.C., and in our clinics,” the abortion business says on the hurricane donation page.

http://securityresponse.symantec.com/avcenter/venc/data/w32.zotob.e.html

http://www.trendmicro.com/vinfo/virusencyclo/default5.asp?VName=WORM%5FRBOT%2ECBQ&VSect=T

http://www.cnn.com/2005/TECH/internet/08/16/computer.worm/index.html

Again I doomed my workplace by sending out a warning email that we need to patch on this issue soon. Every time I do that we seem to get infected quickly. Our team pulled together quickly and resolved all of the issues caused by this issue. Myself and a co-worker did a lot of work to track down the actual worm infection, even before it was reported anywhere. This same co-worker managed to write a program, in a very short period of time, that actually cleaned infected PC’s. Granted our job is application support, not desktop or server support, but we managed to find the root cause before anyone else could. We also pulled together a large number of IT Teams to quickly get all servers patches and back in operation with minimal impact to our customers.

In short I was reminded of how talented and resourceful our team is, and how in debt our company is to all of us.

It also reminded me of what it is like to work with a group of competent folks who strive for excellence. It is such a stark contrast to the people Mindi and I have been struggling with for some time. It gives me hope that we can eventually get to that point together in our non professional causes. But even with all of that said, the hope seems dim at times when we have to deal with the things we have had to deal with recently…..

Now here is the hard part, what do we get rid of and how do we extricate ourselves from things that we were once committed to, but seem to be no longer functioning well or giving any benefit? And by benefit, I don’t mean benefit to us, but benefit to the purpose of the activity. Here is where the problem that we face lies. As a Christian it is very hard sometimes to draw the line when enough is enough. Admittedly, Richard is easier at this than I am. I have a very strong sense of commitment and it’s very hard for me to extricate myself from anything I feel I made a commitment to, no matter how invalid or dysfunctional that thing now has become. But I would say overall we are not people who take commitment lightly and try to hang in there through good times and bad.

Our frustration with some of the activities in which we are involved is astronomical at this point. Between seeing little or no results, both to the issues that plague the activities and the activities’ purpose, and dealing with incompetent people, we feel our talents are best served in other arenas. At the same time, we worry that if we leave those activities that there will be no one to pick up the slack. And if that is the reason we have stayed, is that a valid reason to continue beating our heads against a brick wall? At what point is it best to start pursuing other activities to achieve the same goals and leave behind the activities that just aren’t working? At what point to do we have to remove ourselves from the personal aspects of those activities and take a hard look at the practical achievements of those activities? These are our dilemmas.

A quote from the press release about the hotel states:

The proposed development, called “The Lost Liberty Hotel” will feature the “Just Desserts Café” and include a museum, open to the public, featuring a permanent exhibit on the loss of freedom in America. Instead of a Gideon’s Bible each guest will receive a free copy of Ayn Rand’s novel “Atlas Shrugged.”

To read the full press release go here.