iCommitted, iCrazy, iWaited

For those of you who wondered, did JP and Sharkey get iPhones or didn't they? Here's the answer:



I "convinced" Sharkey to go with me last Friday to get an iPhone. Granted she wanted one too, but she's less committed to the hunt than I am. But as you know I am all about the hunt. I prepare. I read. I plan. I research the product. I make sure all my ducks are lined up in order. I am the Tech Hunter. We woke up at 6AM last Friday to go to the local AT&T store to wait in line for the 8am store opening and subsequent launch of the iPhone. We arrived in line at about 6:50am. We were about the 45th in line. So the store opened at 8am and the nice AT&T people came out and announced they were all out of iPhones by the 40th person in line.

So I wanted to go to King of Prussia to "see" how the line was there. I again "convinced" Sharkey to go with me. OK, I pretty much kidnapped her, held her hostage, but she loves me and she allows me a great deal of lattitude from time to time. So we get to the Apple store around 8:20am and we waited in this line (blue "x" is the start, green "x" is the finish):



The wait was long. We didn't get into the Apple store until about 1:00pm. If you didn't know, Apple and AT&T had major issues on iPhone launch day. These issues caused us to have the long wait. But that's just part of it. It seems both companies didn't really fully test the upgrade process for current AT&T clients so once we hit the store at 1PM we were at the Genius Bar until about 3:50pm. They use these handheld devices to look up your AT&T account and activate the iPhone. Unfortunately because of the system issues, they could not locate our account and therefore we were not permitted to purchase the two iPhones that were a mere 6inches away from us on the counter. The Genius Bar guy, John who was working with us was awesome. He was working our issue every way he could and he found a resolution and called AT&T to implement it. After it was done, AT&T told him it would take 24 hours to take effect. UGH!! At the end of that time, we were still iPhone-less and we were tired, hungry, and a bit ticked off. The wonderful Store Manager at the Apple store had a really pissy attitude and he had the customer service skills of a 5 year old playground bully. He told us if we were not able to activate by midnight the iPhones would go back into circulation (actually he said any iPhone not activated by 12AM which they scanned for us would have to go back to the warehouse for reprocessing, which I think is BS) and he was not willing to bypass his handheld billing things or give us anything for waiting all that time. I was getting ready to bag the entire thing, but the Assistant Manager at the Apple store stopped us on our way out of the store, listened to our whole ordeal and really took the time to do everything he could to accomodate us. He gave us the option to try again later that night or come back the next morning and we could go to the front of the line. But he couldn't guarantee that they'd have iPhones the next day.

So we left there at 3:50pm and I had an Apple pass that the Assistant Manager signed to let us back in the store without waiting. I had to take Sharkey home because she was going out with her friend to dinner. I was beat. I got home. Took a little nap, grabbed a bite to eat and by then it was 9PM. The Apple store was open until 11pm that night for launch, so I decided to head back and see if we could get those Apple handheld's to look up our account. I got to the store, the Assistant Manager was there (thank God he was and not the jerkoff Store Manager who I wanted to back slap and verbally berate), thanked me for coming back, and immediately hooked me up with a Genius Bar person. The line outside the store even at 9:30PM was still insane. The accounts worked and I walked out with 2 iPhones at 10:00pm. I was beat, but mission accomplished!

PS. I know you think nothing is worth that hassle, and I do totally agree. I would do it different next time. But that being said, the iPhone is AWESOME!! It is a great all in one device. I haven't seen anything that really comes close to it. And now that I have it, well, I'm lovin' my technology something fierce!

Rock On!

While Sharkey was in Minnesota staying with Character Builder and family she played Guitar Hero. She told me on the phone how much fun it was. So we were at Best Buy yesterday and Sharkey was showing me the game in the store. It looked like so much fun, we bought it. Yesterday and today we were rockin' it out! Sharkey was jammin to some Stevie Ray Vaughn, Pride and Joy. Notice the similarities?





And look at the finger work:



Her parents would be happy to know that the 30 years of clarinet come into good use playing Guitar Hero. Seriously you should see her play. She's money on that game and kicks my ASS!! I am still playing the EASY mode with 3 frets and she moved on to the INTERMEDIATE mode with 4 frets and faster notes. My hands feel like I'm mashing the frets sometimes and she's moving along like it's a walk in the park. I need to step up a bit I think! Rock ON!!!

Tension and Wound Too Tight

Plates on sticks spinning. Don't let them fall. Keep them spinning. Keep an eye on all of them and focus. Don't lose your focus or one of those plates will fall and break. Everyone's watching. Everyone wants to see the show, see your skill. Don't let them down. This show has been going on for 2 weeks straight. It's exhausting. I'm getting tired. But I only have to keep the plates spinning for the act and the show must go on.

That's exactly how I feel. It's what I've been living at work. Sharkey tells me tonight I'm too intense and I'm hanging on too tight and quickly heading to burnout city. Sharkey's right. God what would I do without her? Hope I never find out. But I pour everything I got into what I'm doing. It's what I do. It's what I've always done. But I think I need to back off a bit, take the edge off and find a pace that's more balanced.

I realized just how tightly wound I've been when I went to Sharkey's concert at Longwood Gardens tonight. She had to go warm up with the band, so I walked around the grounds. It did me a world of good. Lush gardens, fountains, and rolling meadows as far as the eye can see. And in one of the gardens I sat down at an elevated patio in a rocking chair. At that moment I took a huge, deep breath and the spinning plates were all gone. Relaxation is good.

PC's Humble the Wise

I work with computers. I convert large quantities of data for a living. I am also a problem solver. And most importantly, I do not give up. EVER. I give every issue I encounter 100% every single time. And I cannot let things go. These qualities are good, but it gets me into some really great predicaments. Tonight was no exception. You see, I am our church's resident IT person. I give input on hardware, software, and I have networked all the PC's in the church and setup the building with secure wireless. So last night I received a phone call from the treasurer saying Excel was not working. I decided I could fix the problem in a few minutes, so today I went to the church. I had Excel back up in about 15 minutes, and the treasurer walked in and was excited I fixed Excel. Then he asked me if I could take a look at another issue he had with another software package. As soon as he showed me the message I knew what it was right away and immediately I knew what it would take to fix it. And here's how I felt:




See the problem is I installed software for my Stewardship committee on the church's computer to track member assignments and it conflicted with the treasurer's program. Essentially, the computer flipped me the bird. So I had to "revert" to my software support persona and figure out the software conflict. So 2 hours later, I resolved it and then went to On the Border with my brother for a 20oz Dos Equis

A World Without Sharkey

So Sharkey is currently in Minnesota helping out CharacterBuilder's family while Catherine is recuperating from her brain surgery. I had to come home last Sunday because I have some time sensitive projects going on and being that I am the "new" guy I have to be at work to show my Japanese work ethic off. It has been 7 days all by myself. I drove Sharkey and Maggie to MN last Friday and now I have the house all by myself. This span of time has been the longest that Sharkey and I have been apart since we've been married. You think I'd be golfing, watching loud movies, staying out at all hours of the night, and just enjoying the bachelor life. Well, yes I have been doing all of those things, but at this point, I want Sharkey back! We talk every night on the phone, but you just cannot replace the "together" time you know. Also, being all by myself with no wife and no dog, just.... SUCKS!!! This Friday I fly back to MN to drive Sharkey and Maggie back home. T minus 5 days and counting...

I Am a Sucker For...

Marketing. Yes it's true. I have mentioned this before, but I fall for everything that's shiny, iPhone 3G gadgetry, iPhone 3G and new iPhone 3G. It could something that's very similar to something I already own, iPhone 3G but if they make it a different color with marginally better qualities I find that something irresistible. Like the iPhone 3G coming out on July 11th at the local At&T store.

Tastykake and snack chips. I grew up with these sweet treats called Tastykake. I cannot help picking up pies, Kandykakes, Creme filled coffee cakes, and Krimpets when I go to the supermarket or Wawa. And whenever I see a new snack chip or some other chippage that is BOGO at the supermarket I'll 99% of the time get it. It's really amazing that I do not look like a balloon sculpture eating all this crap.

One of Character Builder's kids. Much to my dismay, and this surprises me as much as anything, I found myself dropping gobs of cash at the local cheese festival when I was in Minnesota to win crappy stuffed animals made in China for this little girl. I think it was the way she looked at me and how excited she was when we where there. Truth be told my view is that it's only money and the look on her face was totally worth it. But the lesson here is that I am in such BIG trouble if Sharkey and I have a daughter.

So those are three of my things, are you a sucker for anything??

Limited Edition Krimpets and Wii Fit

I have found that the universe balances itself out. You know, things like good and evil canceling each other out. Seemingly awful situations spin to have not too bad outcomes.

Case in point, I was at the market picking up milk, yogurt, and veggies (all good for you stuff notice...) when I came across these:



Yes my friends, Pancake Krimpets. Cake with a butter cream center and maple frosting. Limited edition tasty treats. The bells go off, I figure that all the healthy things I have in my basket surely offset these beauties and into the cart they go. OK, not really. It is crazy, but these things taste really like pancakes. If it wasn't so really bad for you, I could totally take them for breakfast in the morning instead of my coffee, yogurt, and Kashi bars (man I sound like a fossil).

But in universal balancing fashion, Nintendo releases the Wii Fit and of course this thing is a JP must have. I wasn't smart enough to pre-order one, so of course I had to perform the ritual electronics hunt. I wasn't giving in to the eBay vulture/scalpers who do not even own Wii's and just buy them for profit and monetary gain (Pssst, scalpers YOU SUCK!!!). So I ran the typical pattern for when I wanted the latest and greatest electronic goody: websites and weekly trips to Target, Walmart, and Circuit City to ask the high school kids working there if they have any Wii Fit's in stock. So yesterday I got to work, logged on, answered my e-mail then decided to check some websites to see if any Wii Fit's were for sale. Well as fate would have it, the local Walmart had them "In Limited Stock" so I took a "break" from work, cough, cough, at ahem, cough 8:45AM and went to Walmart to get one. I give you the Wii Fit:



So I figure I can eat boxes and boxes of Krimpets as long as I play Wii Fit every day!! See my friends, UNIVERSAL BALANCE!!!

The Sound that Wakes the Dead

3:00AM - BANG!! CRASH!!???!!! The dump truck at the YMCA is emptying trash. Those guys should be shot for waking me out of a dead sleep. Well of course having the windows open doesn't help either, but it's been such nice weather you have to sleep with those windows open.

3:30AM - Almost asleep. ZZZZZZ Wait, what's that sound??? Sounds like a drain going gurgle, gurgle... That's no drain. What's that small shape on my side? The noise is coming from that... What the heck?? It's a small dog...Maggie Moo is puking in the middle of the night!!!

4:00AM - "Sharkey, I let Maggie out and Oxycleaned her McPukee spot next to the bed..."

4:23AM - Almost asleep... ZZZZZZ

6:24AM - Eyes open and JP hopes when he glances over the clock is at 5:05AM. NOPE, gotta get up at 6:35! Crap!

Water? What Water?

Sunday:

Sharkey- JP I think somethings up with the dishwasher
JP - Nah Honey it's fine I don't see anything wrong with it

Monday:

Sharkey - JP I think the dishwasher leaked water on the floor last night
JP - Sharkey I think maybe it's just a spill from Maggie or when I was taking the dishes out. Let's give it another try tomorrow

Tuesday:

JP - Sharkey I think there's something wrong with the dishwasher the hardwood l00ks wet
Sharkey - Yep

Tuesday Night at Lowes:

Salesman: Yes we have that Whirlpool in stock and we can install it within 72 hours.

Friday:

Lowes: Yes Mrs. JP we can schedule that dishwasher to get installed shortly
Sharkey: Um, what about the guarantee you have for installation within 72 hours if the appliance is purchased Mon.-Fri.?
Lowes: Um, well, um, that's for other appliances, yeah that's the ticket, other appliances
Sharkey: No it's not. If you walk out of your office to appliances, that's advertised 2-3x above all the dishwashers and it is also on your website
Lowes: Oh, well, I'll have someone call you today

Saturday:

Installer: OK, all done she's ready to go.

JP: =)

Sharkey: =)

The TV at 3AM

Sharkey and I are on different sleep schedules now that I am not working virtual anymore and she is virtual. My Sharkey is a bit of a night owl, so it is not uncommon for her to go to bed at 1:00 AM or later. When she comes to bed, she usually will turn on the TV, put the sleep timer on it and drift off. One night last week I woke up to the TV on and showing some really, really bright show. I looked at my clock and it was 3:17 AM. I thought Sharkey had forgotten to hit the sleep timer, so I got out of bed went to hit the button on the front to turn it off, and when my finger got within 2 inches of the button, the damn TV turned off. Clearly Sharkey went to sleep around 2:17 AM. So I dropped some colorful metaphors lurched back to bed, put my arm around Sharkey and fell back to sleep.

Whack a Ball in a Gopher Hole

It is that time of year again. The flowers bloom, the grass greens up, the days are warmer, the nights are shorter and I am out in search of perfection. I play that silly sport where you take a bunch of crooked sticks and try to get this tiny, hard, pock marked ball in a hole, while avoiding sand, water, trees, and high grass. It is my obsession. I started playing out as something I could do with my Dad to make him happy. Now I am hooked. I think about my swing. I work on my short game. I look at all the golf magazines. I wear the clothing. I watch it on TV. I spend countless hours at the driving range where the guys at the counter know me by my first name. I am like Norm from Cheers walking in there. I take lessons. I watch the Golf Channel. But what can I do? "Golfus Ergo Sum = I golf therefore I am." JP out....

Meet the Bloggers 08'

So last night Sharkey and I went to meet more of her "internet" friends (aka bloggers). Sure I suppose I am a blogger, technically, since I have been writing posts monthly since 2006, but I do not really feel like I am part of the blog community. Mostly I think that's because I only read and comment on Sharkey, Kranki, Q's, and Character Builder's blogs with any kind of regularity. I haven't really gone out and found any more blogs that interest me. Maybe it's also because I am old fashioned in that I sort of think I should know someone before reading and commenting on their posts. Although I must admit meeting Q and the Hubs totally did not turn into the axe murderer, stalker, weirdo encounter I thought it was going to be, so perhaps I need to be more open minded.

The evening started out with Sharkey and I meeting Mainline Mom & her husband. We met at JB Dawson's in Plymouth Meeting for dinner. Again, like the Q and Hubs encounter, both of them were totally cool (no axe murderer, stalker, weirdo vibes detected) and dinner was yummy.

After we finished, it was off to location #2. William from Poop and Boogies had a role in a local community theater play, and Sharkey really, really wanted to meet William and see this play he was in, The Philadelphia Story. We get to the place and I think it is a renovated church building. It was pretty cool though. It had some great local art pieces and a portion of their proceeds go to charity, so hey win/win, right? We find some seats (seats are not assigned there) and wait for the play to begin.

Act I. begins. OMG!!! I was going cross eyed and was having issues focusing. It's not that the play was bad, but the dialog used references from the 1930's and it was going way, way over my head and I was having a hard time interpreting what the heck the actors were talking about? During this time, I was thinking, "I love my wife, I love my wife, I support my wife, I love my wife." Also during this time, my mind drifts a bit and I zone off thinking "I wonder if Sergio Garcia is still leading the Players tournament" and "I tee off at 8am tomorrow, I need to get my balls marked and into my bag before morning" and "I hope Tivo records my Battlestar Galactica episode tonight." (....WILLIAM IF YOU ARE READING THIS POST PLEASE DO NOT STOP HERE....)

Intermission hits and I go out get some water stretch the back and neck out and shake my head back and forth to get some blood flowing back. I give Sharkey the "No really Honey I am having a fine time" smile and then back into the theater we go. Act II starts and then something interesting and unexpected happened. I started to follow the dialog and really was getting into the depth of the characters. I was totally engrossed at this point and I started to think about how Tracy and Dexter's marriage was and how she totally was not right for George, and I wondered if Mike will see through all the superficial layers of Tracy. Needless to say I was enjoying the play at that point and William did an awesome job in the character of Dexter. The play ended and get this, I liked it so much, I was thinking I want to see the version with Cary Grant, Jimmy Stewart and Catherine Hepburn.

We stayed a bit for a reception after the play. Sharkey and I were able to meet William and he is true to how he writes in person. He was freakin' hilarious. Sharkey and the others spoke their blogging language, traded ideas for future local gatherings and in short a good time was had by all. JP out...

Superman has Kryptonite, JP has...

Pollen!! It's that sucky time of the year where my eyes itch, my nose runs, and I sneeze out of my shoes. Yes my friends it is springtime and the trees are mating and giving off all of the wonderful pollen that coats everything, turns pools of rainwater into bright green puddles and that wonderful substance turns me into a quivering, miserable mess. Thankfully, I practice better living through chemistry, so I pop one of these every day:



It works pretty well, but I cannot wait until everything is leafy, because once the leaves are out I know the pollen is not being mass produced anymore and I become a sane person again. But for the time being, I'll medicate myself and just deal. JP out...

Vacation in The Magic Kingdom

Vacation started last Sunday at about 5AM. Sharkey and I had to catch an 8:30AM flight so we had to be at the airport by about 7:00AM.



Our flight was "mostly" on time and we landed in Orlando and met up with Character Builder and family around 11:00AM.

Day 1: The Magic Kingdom

As we arrived in Orlando we stood in our first line for the week, for the Magical Express Bus. I think the most impressive thing was that I was in like a 5 queue line, but only had to wait like 5 minutes before I was checked in.



The Disney Cast member told me they were going to transport 1200 guests in one hour. My head spun with the logistics of that, but hey they are Disney. They have their stuff together. For anyone going to Disney, the Magical Express is awesome. You check your bags at the airport and you do not see them again until you are in your Disney hotel room. And from the time you board the bus, you are inundated with Disney media to get you into the vacation mood. Even the seats on the bus have magical, sparkly patterns. (Wide Eyed JP--Disney is great... great.... I love the mouse... mouse....)



We arrived at the Port Orleans Riverside resort and checked in. We were able to get adjoining rooms with Character Builder and family.




After a quick lunch at the resort, off to the Magic Kingdom we went. After a few rides, viewing a parade, and getting through what I will refer to as "The Dumbo Incident," we had dinner at the Crystal Palace. The kids were able to see their first characters for the week up close (i.e. Pooh, Tigger, Eyore, and Piglet):



(um, guy in the right part of the picture is a "passerby")


After dinner, all the girls went back to the hotel and CB's hubbie Jason and her son Alex and I went on all the "big boy" rides. You know, Space Mountain, Thunder Mountain Railroad, and The Haunted Mansion. After our "boys night out" we caught the buss back to the resort and turned in after a long day.

Day 2: Animal Kingdom & The Magic Kingdom take 2

Our next day we were off to the Animal Kingdom and to get anywhere from our hotel you have to take a bus or a boat. So here's Sharkey and Lauren sitting at the stop:



Upon arriving at the Animal Kingdom we saw the Tree of Life:



And after viewing that architectural marvel, we quickly realized everyone needed food, badly. So we stopped at Pizzasaurous for lunch, and while everyone was sitting down, I beat feet over to get a fast pass to the safari ride. As a Disney veteran and knower of everything Mouse related, I knew that a fast pass was a great idea for the Kilimanjaro Safari ride. So after lunch, we decided to split into girls and boys groups again so the boys could go on the thrill rides and the girls could find some other less adrenaline pumping attractions. So Jason, Alex and I headed to Expedition Everest:




The girls went to the Finding Nemo stage show and take a few pictures with Lilo and Stitch and we were able to get in the Dinosaur Countdown to Extinction ride:



We also were able to take the self guided safari tour and saw lizards, bats, monkeys, and tigers up close:






The tiger was the coolest! Not sure what they use, but I was a foot away from the big kitty. I was thinking I wonder what this glass is made out of. And why does the tiger keep pacing back and forth in front of me?

We headed back to the Magic Kingdom to meet our dinner reservation time at Tony's Restaurant. Before dinner we were able to fit in the Buzz Lightyear ride. After dinner we did the Monsters Inc. comedy room and got our place for the nightly fireworks extravaganza. Then after that show was over, the kids still had pretty good energy and since all we'd be doing is wait for a bus anyway, we decided to go on some rides. So we all went on the Indy Speedway Motor Cars, the Dumbo ride, and then Sharkey, CB, and the kids went on the Tea Cups several times, and the Carousel. And after a very long day, we went back to Riverside and all crashed.

Day 3: Hollywood Studios

Day 3 marked Character Builder's birthday and my 8th anniversary with Sharkey. We were off to Hollywood Studios, formerly known as MGM Studios.




Our first stop was the Indiana Jones Stunt show:



After that show, we went and grabbed fast passes for the Aerosmith Rockin' Roller Coaster



Soon after we took the Backlot Tour and saw a few neat props:

This is the bone cage from the Pirates of the Carribean 2 movie:



This sci fi looking piece is from none other than Star Wars: Return of the Jedi:



And the piece de resistance is Ear Force 1, Walt Disney's personal aircraft. Way cool!




Our day ended with dinner at the 50's Prime Time Cafe. Sharkey and I love this place. We had a few alcoholic beverages, and enjoyed a dinner with abuse from our server, Aunt Memory. Yah, we pay money to get slapped around at dinner. She even force fed Sharkey the green beans she didn't finish, before she could get dessert.



And so day 3 ended.

Day 4: EPCOT

Day 4 marked the other big occasion for the week, CB's daughter Lauren's 5th Birthday! So off to EPCOT we went because we had made reservations to have breakfast with the princesses.




This breakfast was like the best idea ever. Not so much for the princesses and breakfast, but we were able to get into the park before it was opened and walked around like we owned the place. It was awesome! I was able to snap some photos without gobs and gobs of crowds in the picture.





After breakfast we did more pictures with characters and rode on Soarin', Mission Space, and Test Track. After our rides in Future World, we walked around the World Showcase so Alex could get his EPCOT passport stamped in each country and grabbed lunch around the world in different countries. You know, quiche in France, udon / snowcones in Japan, burgers & fries in the USA, pretzels/bratwurst/chocolate in Germany, and snacks in a few other countries. While in Japan we also caught the Taiko drummers:





By 8:00PM we were all spent, our dogs were barking, lower backs were aching, and energy was reaching a low level, so we went back to Riverside for a low key night and grabbed dinner at the Waterwheel food court there.

Day 5: Downtown Disney

Our final day was our shopping day, so off to the docks we went to catch the boat to Downtown Disney:





We arrived and had lunch at the golden arches, Mickey D's:



We then went to shop at the World of Disney store:



And then hit the Disney Pin hut for Alex and into another shop where I found a Jedi Mickey figure for my work desk and the mystery bag of Disney goodness. Sure it was a bag full of a few clearance items, but the mystery bag could have contained anything. It was too enticing to pass by. Yeah, Sharkey didn't get it and berated me for falling for the marketing, but who am I? What's my name?

The only thing at Downtown Disney that was disappointing to me was that Ghirardelli's ice cream fountain was closed from remodeling. So NO HOT FUDGE SUNDAE!!! AAAARRRRGGGGHHHH!!! Well, I guess that means we'll need to return soon for my sundae fix right?!

And so ends the Disney Vacation for 2008. It is back to work tomorrow, and I do wish I had like 5 more days to just decompress, golf, and sleep, but I figure I have 20 more days of vacation for 2008 so there's time!!

JP out....

I Made It...

FINAL SCORE:

Ginormous Project - 5
JP - 0

Well, the "ginormous" project is finally wrapping up! And none too soon. I am fried. Spent. I got nada. Zip. Zilch. Zero. So I finished my 5th straight Saturday this past weekend and today I turned over my part to the "ongoing" people to handle today! It felt goooooooooooodddd to perform that handoff. So I made it... I think I made it... Oh God please let this mean I made it!! So now I am trying to wind down and finish up the last few things I need to do before we fly off to Disneyworld to meet CB and family. I actually was able to sit down and eat dinner (which I cooked instead of bought) with my beautiful Sharkey. It was a bit surreal like, "Hey Honey where have you been, it feels like I've been away forever."

So things to do on vacation.... Well first of all, I am thinking we have to make our way to Downtown Disney and have a Ghirardelli Hot Fudge Sundae....


If you think the picture looks good, it's got nothin' on the REAL THING. Yes it is true, there are few things ice cream and fudge cannot remedy.

Next. Buzz Lightyear Ride. Sure it is for kids 4 years and up. But it is a BLAST! Sharkey and I always see who can get a higher score. And we have been known to go on this ride a few times.

I am going to wear shorts and short sleeve shirts all week. And I am going to try to recharge and relax. For no less than 216 hours I will forget all I know about technology and work thingy's... And who knows, maybe I'll squeeze a round of golf in there somewhere too. Next post will be from the Magic Kingdom folks. JP out...

T-Minus 12 Days...

UNTIL VACATION!!!! JP and Sharkey are headed again to the land of the Mouse (Hey Sharkey how's that Disney 5 year plan working out baby??!!!)!!! This time we are meeting up with Character Builder and family. Oh, Minnie, you're so fine you blow my mind hey MINNIE (and MICKEY)!!



I am going to eat, play, drink and chase CB's kids all over those parks! I am a Disney junkie in every sense of that term. We've planned this trip for months, I acted as travel agent and restaurant reservation concierge, and it's finally, almost here. And it comes at a great time. Let's see, this weekend may (hopefully not, but you never know) mark the 5th consecutive Saturday I spend in the office and I am in the midst of completing my GINORMOUS project and I am in desperate need of some down time!

Not sure if I ever explained this to you all, but Disneyworld is one of the places where I can totally relax. I think it is because I just forget about the day to day when I'm there. It's like... well, Magical. For a week I don't have to be "ON," I don't have to solve everyone's problems, I don't have to wear a dress shirt and tie, I don't have to sit on conference calls talking about converting data, I don't have to stare at a LCD monitor all day, and I don't have to work 60 hours a week!

I'll be taking my handy dandy Canon A560 pocket camera to take some pics and shoot some short videos. So I'll be able to hopefully share some Magical vacation moments with you all. JP OUT....PEACE!!!!! =)

Got Flu?

Ick!!!!! Yeah that sums it up. Well, all my type "A" dedication to my monster project and working and pulling Monday through Saturday for 60 hours/week for the last 2 weeks is coming steadily to an end. And it's in no small part to my succumbing to the plague that is ripping through my office. People have been in and out of work and have been falling victim to the good old flu. I thought I'd make it through the season unscathed. I do take precautions. I get the flu shot, I try to not touch anything Mr. or Mrs. McPlague touch, and I even do the paper towel on doorknobs routine (yeah I know, very anal retentive). And even after all that it was all for naught! To make a long story short, last night I had a great case of the chills followed by my body aching from head to toe. I do not think that there was a good square inch of me that did not hurt. Today I thought I was better and back to my JP self. No chills, no aches, but now my "guts" have a lot of activity. I'm not one to go into details (and you do not need to hear about them), so let's just say I am in full system shutdown for now due to DEFCON4 protocols.

So the way I figure it, my body is telling me I need a rest. So I am listening. The thought did occur to me to just suck it up and go in tomorrow, for about 20 seconds....=) So I made the call into work about 5 minutes ago and said, "Hey boss, JP here, I am not going to be in tomorrow. My guts feel like they have been run over by a semi truck and then thrown around by a thresher...you get the idea. Anyhow, I won't be in tomorrow and hopefully I'll be back on Tuesday."

So it just dawned on my I can sleep in tomorrow as long as I want. I'm going to mimic my dog and snuggle in tomorrow:



SCORE!! JP OUT!!

Oyasumi Nasai...

Oyasumi Nasai is Japanese for "Good Night...." As in good night I'm going to bed now. I am freakin' tired! Why am I tired? I think I may know. Mind you my tired is not really a physical tiredness either. I am mentally exhausted to a point where my perceptions of reality start to change. That is the reality that is JP. Here's my Monday - Friday schedule......


6:30AM -- Alarm goes off; JP hits snooze

6:45AM -- JP rockets out of bed

7:00AM -- JP kisses Sharkey goodbye, goes downstairs, lets the Maggie Dog out, puts on a pot of coffee and prepares either toast, bagel, or a Delight's breakfast sandwich

7:20AM -- JP leaves house and drives to work

8:00AM -- JP gets to work

8:45AM-
11:00AM -- JP sits in meetings

12:00PM-
12:30PM -- JP runs out to grab lunch to bring back to eat at desk (yes I AM that BUSY)

12:30PM-
7:00PM -- JP does project work, even more project work, and on top of that if that were not enough, even more project work

7:20PM -- JP arrives home (notice it takes 1/2 the time to get home at this time)

7:45PM-
10:45PM -- JP tries to relax, make dinner, spend quality time with Sharkey and play with Maggie a bit.

11:00PM -- JP showers and goes to bed.

This is my routine. It does not vary. It has been the same for the past 2 weeks. I am living Groundhog Day. I sometimes feel like I am living outside of my body watching JP go through the motions, if that makes sense. Maybe it does not. But again I am tired and I'm definitely not operating a full JP efficiency.

But I realize that this too shall pass. I just need to hang in there for a couple more weeks. Yeah, that's it. Two weeks. 14 days. 336 hours. There have been good things too. Like.........

My Sharkey is now, officially 6 years cancer free. She had a CT scan last Friday and it was GOOD... And she is b-e-a-utiful!!

Next weekend is a 3 day weekend because of Easter (THANK YOU JESUS!!!!!). And so I get a chance to rest. Sleep in... Play Nintendo... Watch a long movie.... Go to the golf driving range.... Maybe I'll be able to live in my body instead of feeling like I am in a perpetual out of body experience.

I am working out again, and this has helped a TON with the physical energy and stamina during the day.

Although I average 11 hours a day, have also been working Saturdays, and am exhausted, I LOVE what I am doing. I am in the ZONE. I am making a difference, solving issues, and working on what is most definitely the most complex project ever. It is AWESOME!!!

So I say to all of you OYASUMI NASAI

--JP OOOOOOOOOUUUUUUTTTTTTTTTTT........ zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

You Gotta Try One of These...

So here at JP Jargon I try to keep things lite. I don't give any commentary on religion, politics, or social issues affecting our time. I have my other blog for that... ;) Oh no, here at JP Jargon I write about "important" issues. Case in point, I was driving home from the gym after 35 minutes on the elliptical machine and heard an Arby's commercial on the radio for their new chocolate turnover. So something akin to a "ding" went off in my head and off to Arby's I went OMG!!! You gotta try one of these things. They are freakin' awesome!!! What's not to like about puff pastry with a warm chocolate, melty center drizzled with chocolate? The answer.....NOTHING!!!!! Sure, the 400 calories I burned off were for naught, but the gooey choco-goodness was soooo worth it...

Crunchalicious

Remember the things you ate when you were a kid? You know what I mean right? You would go shopping with Mom and when you got to the cereal aisle, you'd throw a box ever so secretly into the cart. And she never noticed either!!! If you were anything like me you have a discerning taste and you thought carefully about the selection criteria. You look for the box with the best toy and the most tolerable cereal you could finish. There were always the standard fall backs, you know them I'm sure, Lucky Charms, Trix, and Cocoa Krispies. Then there's the Captain Crunch. Ah the Captain was always a good bet. You knew exactly what you were getting. Crunchy stick to your teeth, sweet milky goodness.

Now granted, the things you liked as a kid are not necessarily that great now that you're an adult. So the other week I was doing the grocery shopping at Wegman's and wandered down the cereal aisle. The cereal I usually eat now is Oatmeal Raisin Crisp, because it helps lower cholesterol and is a good source of dietary fiber. Yeah, it SUCKS to get older!! So I put a box of the crisp in the cart then my eyes catch a glance at....yep you guessed it, Captain Crunch. Neurons in the brain fire. I remember the Captain. I used to have a Captain Crunch bowl to eat that stuff and I had a Captain Crunch fire truck, and I'm guessing before I hit 11th grade I ate about 5 pallets of that stuff. I wonder if it's as good as I remember or maybe I should just leave the pleasant childhood memories alone. So I put a box in the cart. No regrets...

I get home, get the bowl out, pour out some Crunch and YUM!!! It totally is as good as I remember. Crunchalicous!!! Crunchtastic!!!