December 28, 2004

• Hi everyone.

  Happy 4th Xangaversary to me!!!

  I apologize for going so long without posting. The past few weeks have
  really flown by. Ever since I got that job, it's pretty much been the
  main focus of my life. Getting up at 4am has been a real test, as has
  going to bed at 9 or 10 in the evening (and, if you do the math, I
  should really be going to bed even earlier than that). But my
  long-suffering wife has been going way above and beyond the call of
  duty by getting up with me in the morning, getting me a good breakfast
  and packing me a lunch. The woman's an angel.

  I won't bore you with too many details about the job itself. Suffice it
  to say that it's hard work but not too bad. Physically, it's quite
  demanding, and I lift an average of 30,000 pounds in the run of an
  8-hour shift. It's also very constant. Everything is timed down to the
  second, with computerized averages used to tell you how much time an
  order should take to fill, factoring in things like distance, number of
  items and their size/weight, and even the specific vehicle you're using
  that day (they periodically run them all through time tests). Based on
  how well you do relative to how long the system says you should, you
  receive an efficiency rating. The required rating is 92.5, and you're
  given 8 weeks after the training to get there. It's been 3 weeks, and
  I'm already above that, so I figure I'm doing okay. It's been sort of a
  trial by fire, since I was hired right before the busiest time of the
  year. There's been lots of overtime available, and I worked 56 hours
  last week. I admit that I was getting kind of burned out after 9 days
  in a row. I was off today, and I'll be off again Friday and Saturday. I
  was busting my butt because they've said that the hours are going to be
  cut back in January, and that's a problem. I'll probably have to take
  some days at that concrete job I've mentioned before. But oh well.
  Cross that bridge when we come to it.

  Other than work, there hasn't really been a whole lot going on. There
  have been a few highlights. One was a wonderful, if brief, visit from
  some previously online-only friends. They're a wonderful couple from
  Washington State who I've been chatting with on Soulseek for about a
  year-and-a-half. They drove up to Niagara Falls with friends, and
  decided to make a sidetrip up here to see us. We had a wonderful time,
  chatting and laughing and drinking tea. They were our very first guests
  here in this apartment. They even brought all sorts of gifts with them
  -- tzatziki and baba ganoush, kimchi, various articles of clothing, and
  even an absolutely gorgeous hand-quilted cushion, which has taken up
  residence on my computer chair (thus getting much use). As well, they
  brought along a hammered dulcimer which sits here in the living room on
  long-term loan, waiting for me to finish the arduous task of tuning it
  (it has 68 strings!). It's a wonderful instrument, and I can't wait to
  start integrating it into my recordings. All in all it was a great
  visit, and I really look forward to seeing them again at some point.

  Let's see. What else? Well, we've acquired a few new material
  possessions -- a new tv, which was a gift from Crista's parents. If you
  remember, our old one was so dark that you could only watch it at night
  with the lights off, and even then you could only watch bright
  programs. We also bought ourselves a dvd player at a Boxing Day sale.
  It's kind of a frivolous purchase, but for $19.99 we figured what the
  heck. I'm happy, since the library has a great collection of foreign
  movies, but they're almost all on dvd...

  Hmm. What else? The furnace got sick on
  the coldest day of  the winter so far (about -20c), so our house
  was very very chilly.... Anyhow, there's a lot more I'd like to say, but it's really late by my
  new schedule so I really have to get to bed. Looking at the current
  page here, I notice that it has entries going all the way back to
  September (at least until I submit this one). I really need to get on
  the ball. I'll try my best to update more frequently. I also want to
  post more pictures. I was going to get one of those cheap-ass keychain
  digitals, but the store downtown that had them doesn't any more, and
  the film that's currently in the camera won't be ready to develop for a
  while.

  So... That's that for now. Thanks for dropping by. Thanks for your part
  in making these last 4 years here at Xanga a wonderful and varied
  experience for me. I really do appreciate your visits and comments
  here, and love reading what you have to write on your own sites as
  well. Sleep well, and I'll see you soon.

  Take care
  -J-

  • 11:31 pm
  • 18 Comments