perfect storm?
Probably our first significant winter storm in 6 years is approaching today. I can do with the high snowfall amounts, but please – no ice!
9 out of 10 e-mails now spam
I don’t have a serious spam problem. I’ve been able to keep it under control in Outlook and in Gmail. I don’t get ANY at work, although everyone else seems to get tons of them (in my opinion, that’s payback for abusing their Internet access privileges).
The number of “spam” messages has tripled since June and now accounts for as many as nine out of 10 e-mails sent worldwide, according to U.S. email security company Postini.
gift cards
Received an email regarding gift card scams. Usually, these emails are hoaxes, but this one seems to be a reality, but on a more complex scale. Something to think about with the holidays approaching.
Read about it here (warning: you may be hit with pop-ups on this site). Thanks to my sister for the tip! 
A, B, and C
I work for Company A. CL works for Company B and has been for 16 years (the first 6 years was actually with Company A). For the last 9 years, CL has worked at one of Company B’s outside branches. (more…)
most wonderful time of the year?
Thanksgiving’s over. There’s 4 weeks until Christmas. Roughly 28 shopping days. Only 2 (gasp!) paydays.
Work is great. Can you believe I said that? It’s true. With the new helpdesk guys getting more comfortable each day, I’m able to focus on doing what I was hired to do back in September. I’m learning a bit more each day. Troubleshooting as an analyst is a little more challenging than it was at the helpdesk. But I like what I’m doing.
The holiday weekend was a busy one. CL and I enjoyed Thanksgiving at Ameristar Casino in St Charles. The buffet was very busy, but the food was very good. We also tried out some slots (came out ahead). CL worked Friday; I was off, so I spent it mulching leaves in the front yard. Saturday – we put up the Christmas tree and some decorations. Sunday – housecleaning (with some football in between breaks).
Monday night, CL’s employer is making a major announcement at a mandatory meeting for their employees. This announcement has unofficially made the rounds in the past week. Worst case scenario? She could be out of a job. Talk about bad timing with the holidays just around the corner. More to come after CL’s meeting.
Fan restores ‘Christmas Story’ house
If you’re ever in Cleveland during the holidays, be sure to stop by and see the house that Ralphie grew up in.
For Jones, the gotta-have-it item was Ralphie’s house — the one in “A Christmas Story,” the quirky film that’s found a niche alongside holiday classics like “It’s a Wonderful Life” and “Miracle on 34th Street.” Jones has restored the three-story, wood-frame house to its appearance in the movie and will open it for tours beginning Saturday.
“Sony could make bricks”
There was a time when owning a Sony product was cool. That’s not the case these days. Sony took a big hit in 2005 with its infamous rootkit. This year, laptop batteries produced by Sony are exploding. The PSP is dying while Nintendo’s DS is thriving. The UMD format is dead. Sony comes up with another friggin’ format with Blu-Ray (vs. Microsoft’s HD-DVD). And the PS3 seems to come up short once again in the battle against Nintendo’s Wii and Microsoft’s Xbox 360.
“You know, Sony can make 80,000 bricks, and people would buy them.” – Bill Gates
wishlist updated
I’ve added a new section to my wishlist: Gift Cards. As I said before, this list is to give people ideas. If you feel the need to get everything on the list, please don’t. If you want to, then Thank You!
Please be sure to communicate to others in the family if you happen to get something from the list. Thanks!
Casino Royale
Casino Royale – 4 out of 5 stars
This film sort of takes us to the beginning. Think of it as “Bond Begins”. Bond is newly promoted to his double-0 status, and we get to see him make mistakes (and we all know that 007 usually doesn’t make mistakes). Daniel Craig holds his own as Bond, and he brings an arrogance not seen since Connery. This one is darker than most Bond films. There is no Q yet, and it does not contain any gadgets (toned down due to the backlash from the heavy-effects-laden Die Another Day). The story drives this one; it shows how Bond becomes the agent as we know him today. I look forward to Craig’s next adventure as 007.
Bond. James Bond.
I’ve been a fan of James Bond since my parents took me to see Moonraker in 1978. At the time, due to my mom’s Filipina accent, I thought I was watching a film about a boy named James and his band (“James’ Band”). Instead, I was introduced to 007, M, Moneypenny, Q, a giant named Jaws, and the fantastic world created by Ian Fleming.
Having seen almost all of the 21 films, here’s my take on each of the actors who have portrayed Bond.
Sean Connery
He is the man who set the standard for everyone who would follow. Connery was smooth as Bond, and he exuded confidence (and arrogance) that made men want to be like him and women want to be with him. Connery is 007, and he’s at his best in Goldfinger.
George Lazenby
Some believe he would’ve been better than Connery if he continued to make Bond films. There are those who also believe his only film, On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, is the best of the crop. Personally, I thought it was OK.
Roger Moore
Moore was probably the most comical, always saying something silly. Still, he “officially” starred in more Bond films (7) than the rest. I thought Moonraker was cool when I first saw it, but looking back, it’s quite campy. I recommend The Spy Who Loved Me and Octopussy.
Timothy Dalton
He had potential, but some felt his character was way too serious (especially following Moore). He made a better villain in The Rocketeer. Of his two films, I recommend The Living Daylights.
Pierce Brosnan
My personal favorite. He combined the coolness of Connery, the humor of Moore, and his own emotion to the mix. The modern age of filmmaking allowed for his movies to have some very cool special effects. Some say his portrayal of Bond got better with age, while the films themselves got worse. I actually like each of Brosnan’s films and am sad to see it end after 4 outings. Check out GoldenEye.
ten hours a day
I’ve completed my first week working a 10-hr shift. Surprisingly, the day moves along pretty fast. I’ve got a lot on my plate, so staying busy makes the day move quickly. However, my time takes a big hit at the end of the day. A year at the helpdesk spoiled me; clocking out at 2:30 PM allowed nearly 3 hours of “me” time before dinner. Now I get home at dinnertime. I eat, shower, and unwind in front of the TV (a bad habit I’ve acquired thanks to my buddy Scott). In bed by 9 since I need to be up at 5 AM.
Of course, working this shift means a day off each week. So I took Friday off. Christine happened to have the day off as well, so we capitalized on it by doing some Christmas shopping. We got a handful of presents, so it was a day well spent. I’d hate to be out shopping on weekends, so having these days off during the week will be a wonderful plus.
And, yes, I’m back on tenyjr.com. It’s paid for, so I should use it. I’ll continue to post on both teny jr dot com as well as on tenyjr.wordpress.com (since I’ve pointed everyone here). In the spring, I will go with a different host (especially after the Vizaweb debacle). I’m thinking of using a new domain name. “Teny Jr” is known only amongst family, and it doesn’t make sense unless you know its history. So I’ll need a new domain name: “neil.com”, “tenyearsgone.com”, “whatdoiputhere.com”. I need ideas, so if you can come up with something catchy, simple, and it has to do with ME, then by all means, shoot them my way!
week in review
Another busy week ends …
- I learned quite a bit with coding and report writing during my training, but it never really sunk in until this week. It’s a good thing my predecessor is available as a resource whenever I run into a jam, and my counterpart is very willing to help anytime I need it.
- The helpdesk chains that bind me may break in time for Thanksgiving, and for that I am grateful. One half started Tuesday, and he’s gotten to be comfortable fairly quickly. He still has a bit to learn, but it’s very early in the game. His other half starts this week, and I will be assisting with training since he will be my replacement.
- I start my normal schedule Monday, working 10-hour days. That may seem long, but it’s necessary to get the job done. I am currently trying to accomplish a 10-hour day in 5 hours, and it’s not easy. The payoff of the new schedule will be the day off each week. The next 3 weekends will be nice (3 days, 4 days, 4 days). Can’t beat that!
- My headaches returned with a vengeance on Thursday. I’d like to attribute it to stress, but I’m not so sure. Thursday was a busy day, and I felt pressured to get things done. But the stress was not as bad as when my headaches initially started in late September. I’m sure stress doesn’t help, but I’m not so sure it’s the cause. The headache is accompanied by pain in my left ear, and something new: an occasional shooting pain down the left side of my upper back. I didn’t sleep well Thurs and Fri night due to the pain (I slept better last night because I lacked sleep). I plan to see the doctor this week because this is getting out of hand; I finished a bottle of ibuprofen all on my own in 5 weeks.
- I’m still not sure what to do with tenyjr.com.
- I changed my theme since D took mine.
- Rams lose another close one to Seattle. We need to work on 2 things: penalties and time management.
- When We Were Kings – **** – a fine film that transcends boxing. Ali proves to the world why he is the “Greatest” (and not just in the ring).
- X-Men – **** – Jackman steals the show as Wolverine, although I think the hair-do isn’t necessary to make the part work. Enjoyed this more the 2nd go-round (in preparation for “X3: The Last Stand”).
And another one begins.
recovery
Nearly 48 hours after going down, Vizaweb is back online, as is every site hosted by them (including mine). No one knows what happened; Vizaweb doesn’t even acknowledge the downtime (I did receive an email that a ticket was opened with support, but this was AFTER my site reappeared).
Vizaweb – Gone dark with no explanation | digg story
For fear of it going down again, I’ve gone ahead and backed up my blog entries and imported them to WordPress.com. At first chance on Saturday, I will back up anything else I have on their servers. I will post one last time at teny jr dot com to point everyone in this direction instead.
last post on tenyjr.com (for now)
Nearly 48 hours after going down, Vizaweb is back online, as is every site hosted by them (including mine). No one knows what happened; Vizaweb doesn’t even acknowledge the downtime (I did receive an email that a ticket was opened with support, but this was AFTER my site reappeared).
Vizaweb – Gone dark with no explanation | digg story
For fear of it going down again, I’ve gone ahead and backed up my blog entries and imported them to WordPress.com. At first chance on Saturday, I will back up anything else I have on their servers. For now, this will be my last post. If you’re looking for me, please visit tenyjr.wordpress.com.
a new start
I’m giving up on Vizaweb. My site has been down for over a day now, and I’ve accepted the fact that I lost everything. My databases, photoblog, entries – basically everything. Roughly 20 months worth of stuff is gone. Did I back anything up? Sure, but haven’t done so in a while. At this point, I’m not really worried about it. It’s time to move on and for me to start over.
I still own the domain tenyjr.com, but I will need to find a new host. I’ll probably do some research this weekend. There’s really no hurry. For now, WordPress.com will host my blog, and tenyjr.wordpress.com will be my new home.
teny jr dot com is DOWN
I’m a little peeved right now. Vizaweb is really frustrating me. My site has experienced more problems in the last 4 months. Databases keep crashing. Server keeps going down. I’m ready to take my business elsewhere. Or maybe I’ll just do away with the domain and stick with the free stuff. “Teny jr” is a name I’ve used for nearly 10 years now, but it’s not easy for people to say or understand. Maybe I’ll come up with something different. We’ll see.
birthday greetings
Happy Birthday Mom!
“fried” day
TGIF. I’m beat, and my brain is fried. My work week is getting to be as unpredictable as the weather here in the Midwest.
