my birfday

Happy birthday to me

i could be a top model?

Someone sent this link my way. It's cool that she's done what she's done. The article brings back bad memories of me being in the same situations she's in with people sharing jokes all around her and being the outcast.

legacy

1 Infinite Loop
Originally uploaded by mcclint

I was just reminded of something that happened to me a while ago that made me stop and think. A couple months ago I got an email out of the blue from a student at Flagler College asking me for some Mac help/advice. I didn't recognize the student's name but he certainly knew of me. I left Flagler to work for Apple almost 3 years ago, but what I accomplished there made such an impact that someone went out of their way to track me down and email me at my new work address that I keep strictly for work.
I remember working at the Genius Bar and seeing students I recognized come in and say hi to me and mention how they wished I was still there. Students who started at Flagler AFTER I left would come up and say hello and say that they heard so much about me.
I'm not one to get an inflated ego but knowing what kind of impact I had while I was there and even afterward made me feel really good. And knowing that helped me get thru my dark days after getting fired from Apple.

leopard spots

I just got OSX 10.5 and I'm trying out different features.  So far it is pretty impressive.  Using Safari 3 to compose blog posts finally has the formatting that Firefox has had. I wish I had TimeMachine 2 weeks ago when I accidently deleted most of the files on my Desktop. 

OK that's enough for this fluff post.

autumn

The fall colors are slowly starting to appear here and there. There's still mostly green but I suspect we'll be surrounded by reds and yellows within another couple weeks.

Deb found a job and so far she loves it there. To celebrate and to mark the end of summer for us, we went to Dollywood last Friday. It isn't as "Dolly" as you would think. No, there aren't any references to her big boobs other than the custom mannequins in the museum at the park that model her clothes over the years. The museum and her music being played non-stop over the park's loud speakers was about as "Dolly" as it gets. It was nothing like the Florida amusement parks we love, but it wasn't bad. I'm sure we'll probably go again.

it's been a year?

I just realized that the end of this week will mark 1 year since being fired from the Apple Store. It seems like yesterday and it seems like forever ago. It was bitter-sweet because it was my dream job working for the Mothership, doing what I was meant to do, but the working conditions really sucked and I don't know how much longer I could have survived there.

What happened in the 12 months since then?
- I sank into a pretty deep depression for a while.
- My fiance delayed moving in with me
- I filed for unemployment
- I filed an unsuccessful appeal of the firing and asked for an investigation into working conditions... that went nowhere (THAT BITCH).
- My fiance moved in over Thanksgiving weekend
- I landed a very brief consulting gig in Ocala setting up an XServe
- The job search lasted forever
- I found a part time pee-on job at the Florida Coastal School of Law. Worked there for about a week. (HATED IT)
- I found full time work at Jacksonville University as a PC Tech that barely paid peanuts
- Wedding preparations were underway.
- 2 weeks before the wedding, I was contacted by a recruiter for a job in Knoxville
- Got married
- Honeymoon in DC
- didn't really have time to say goodbye to all my friends
- Moved to Knoxville and lived in a hotel for 2 months
- Bought and sold houses simultaneously
- Moved all our stuff up to Knoxville.
- Comforted my wife during her disheartening job search.

... and the sands of time continue to fall.

uncertainty

Married life itself is good, but the events that have transpired over the past few months have stressed us incredibly. When I took this job in Knoxville, both of us assumed that it would be a piece of cake for her to find a job up here. We were incredibly wrong. She's been looking for a couple months now and there have been no leads but a couple. Those leads went nowhere. She is depressed and feels like a loser and hates everything about this city and state. I keep trying to reassure her that she isn't a loser and things will get better. I don't have any regrets about taking the job up here, but if I had it to do all over again, it would go very differently. First off, I wouldn't have been rushed into it during wedding preparations and the honeymoon. The timing of it is what has stressed us beyond belief. Our lives have been filled with so much change that we don't know who we are any more. Throughout this, I keep remembering that she supported me during my time of need and I'll do the same for her. I'll show her the love and support she needs to get through this. It does suck that we don't have any friends up here yet to give us both some suport.
The weather is getting cooler and the leaves are starting to show the first hints that Fall is here. We're looking forward to seeing real colors on trees. We hope it will snow at least a little this winter, but all the locals tell us that is unlikely. If we can survive the winter, I think we will be OK. If winter comes and goes and things are still as they are, we may have to re-examine Knoxville.

gosh it's hot

Yesterday was the first day that I could finally say "This is FLORIDA hot" in Knoxville. It was in the mid 90s and I don't know what the humidity was but it was up there too. I had the misfortune of having to mow the lawn for the first time yesterday and I nearly passed out when I was done (yes I drank lots of water during). Granted, most of that was because 1) i'm out of shape and 2) my property does have some pretty steep slopes on it that I am not used to. I should have known better than to start mowing on the first weekend in August. I know from historical experience that the end of July/beginning of August is the hottest time of year anywhere. I know one person who remembers! But I'm a tard. After I nearly passed out, I quickly jumped into the swimming pool and it never felt so good. I think I just floated for half an hour while my body temperature returned to normal.
I'm used to the extreme heat and humidty in Florida. I just haven't gotten used to when it occurs in Tennessee yet.

Winter is another story! see me in 6 months...

open letter to software makers

To whom it may concern,
It is no secret I am a hardcore Mac user. I have used Macs exclusively since 1992 and will keep using them as long as they are around. When Apple transitioned to the intel CPUs from PowerPC, I was very skeptical - just like everyone else. When the first intel Macs hit the market, my fears were put aside... it's still a Mac. This new intel hardware meant that neat toys like BootCamp or Parallels would let you run Windows programs at a native speed instead of emulating hardware in something like Virtual PC. This is a neat feature, but it is only meant to act as an intermediary between your blazingly fast mac and that 5 year old Windows program your company has been forced to use. When I see Windows software that is remarkable and there is no equivalent in the Mac world and I see a need for it, I usually submit a friendly email or comment to the software maker asking that they please port their great program over to the Mac... pretty please with sugar on top. The usual response I get is to just run the program in Parallels or Bootcamp or VPC. Well let's examine this... If I do as they suggest - AND KEEP IT LEGIT, then I would have to spend money on a license for MS Windows. That's at least $200 that I won't be spending on your software no matter how great I think it is. Writing windows software to run on Macs (intel or PPC) is not that difficult. If I wanted to run MS Windows, I would have bought a PC. Quit sending the boilerplate responses to feature requests and look into the benefits of "Made for Mac"


[I had to get it off my chest]

it's been a while

Well the past month has been a nightmare on our nerves. Both Deb and I were overloaded with tasks to complete on our own with selling the house in Jax and buying the house in Knox. We both experienced stress that no one should ever have to deal with. If we were together during all of it, we might have been able to handle it OK. We each had to shoulder the burden alone. I had no one up here to help me, or even talk to. She thought she was going to have people to help her down there but everyone bailed on her. I felt so helpless and so alone... and so did she.
But we made it. The houses sold. Deb made it up here in one piece. When she got here we hugged and we cried so hard. We're glad it's over. The movers finally arrived with our stuff (mostly) intact a few days ago. We finally had our first home cooked dinner last night at the dining table and it was a very happy moment for us. We still have to unpack all the boxes, but that's a fairly low-stress task we can handle.
We miss everyone back in Jax so much.

time keeps on tickin'

Ok well the house buying process has begun. My biggest fear was that the house SELLING process was going to drag out for many months, but we seem to have found a buyer for the house in Jacksonville. It is going to be a bitter-sweet moment when everything is all done. When the house I lived in for 14 years was sold I got a little weepy even though I HATED that house. The house I own now in Jax, I actually LIKE! I have many happy memories and some sad memories in that house.

I miss it already

staking my claim

I found a house! After a month of looking my realtor sent me an MLS listing that looked really promising. As it just so happened, Deb was in town for an interview and when I showed her the listing, she loved it. So I arranged for us to look at it while she was in town and as soon as we walked in the front door she said "I WANT THIS HOUSE!" We toured the rest of the house and made an offer. They accepted it within a few hours.
We got one heck of a deal on this house because the seller was being relocated for his job. He priced it to sell... and sell it did.
Now the task at hand is to get everything packed up in Jacksonville.
In less than a month I'll be out of this depressing hotel and moving into a place I'll be able to call home.

I still have no idea where I'll be able to get my MINI Cooper and my Bug serviced up here.

pressure

this is what I feel like lately

it's not supposed to feel like this

Here I am 700 miles away from home, being a pioneer, an explorer, staking my claim in the new world. Why I am filled with sadness during the most exciting time of my life? oh yeah I remember now ... I have a new bride whom I miss sooo much and I don't know when we'll see each other next. And she misses me too and is having a hard time right now. I have friends I've known for many years whom I miss. (And I'm not very skilled at making new friends)
I know things will fall into place eventually but damn did it have to be this hard??

new beginnings

I landed a new job, got married, went on the honeymoon, came back home, worked 2 last days at JU, and now I have to start packing as much crap as I can into my MINI Cooper to drive back up to Knoxville THIS Saturday. I'm starting off with an extended stay hotel just to get me started and buy me some time to find an apartment. Later a U-Haul will be needed to get my stuff up there while Deb remains in Jax to find a job and get the house ready to be sold.

I'm not afraid of change, but this is going to be more change in my life than I've ever experienced before. I'm scared of leaving my hometown for a strange place I've only been to for a few days. I'm scare of leaving all my friends behind and trying to find new circles to fit into. I'm scared of all the stress that is guaranteed to be piled on top of us both. The long distance will be hard on both of us, but she at least has her friends and family to keep her company... I'll be on my own and alone, missing her terribly. But she did give me a tiny sculpture she got at a gift shop that reminds me of us. It's small enough to fit in my pocket so I'll carry it with me at all times while we are apart.

There's so much stuff and so many people I will miss... :-(

Oculus

Occulus
Originally uploaded by mcclint.

tunnel

tunnel
Originally uploaded by mcclint.

mountain creek

mountain creek
Originally uploaded by mcclint.

In the Smoky Mountains

Corinthians

Corinthians
Originally uploaded by mcclint.

Joe says I have an eye for these kinds of shots. I only look where no one else looks. When everyone else is looking off in the distance, I'm looking up. When everyone else is admiring the details, I step back and look at the big picture. The grand canyon might be only 10 feet away, but I'd probably be taking pictures of what's in the other direction.

Shadow

Shadow
Originally uploaded by mcclint.

Standing at the apex of the shadow was no accident. I walked directly to that point specifically so I could get this shot.

Shadow

Shadow
Originally uploaded by mcclint.

This is the kind of thing I see through my eyes. Not the Cop on the horse, not the girls, not the flags at half-staff.. the intense shadow created by the monument.

me and my homie

100_0461
Originally uploaded by mcclint.

Yes I changed my socks and he corrected his attire before the ceremony.

i'm "merrd"

100_0466
Originally uploaded by mcclint.

April 17, 2007 Deb and I married and began our lives together.

from crumbs to a whole loaf

Things have finally started to get better. Everyday for the past 6 months my morning ritual was to check my email to see if any of the search bots I setup on various employment websites ever found anything for me. Occasionally the bots would find things relating to Freddie MAC and APPLEbees - stoopid webbots. On occasion I'd get emails from recruiters who have the "perfect job" for me. 99% of the time they were part-time, 6 month contract, entry level, phone jockey jobs in South Florida. Don't waste my time! Don't you people actually READ the resumes you find? The other 1% were jobs that were way beyond my skills. The job search plodded on tediously for 6 months like this.


Then one day out of the blue I got an email from a recruiter in Tennessee with a Mac System Administrator with a very attractive salary range. Even though it was out of my home area of Jax, I had to at least look into it. Several emails and phonecalls later and I've got a phone interview with the owner of the business. He asked a lot of technical questions - which I fully expected - and I answered them all to the best of my ability. There were a few that I didn't know the answer to because I had never been exposed to those particular technologies. But I gave the questions thought and gave an honest answer of "I don't know". I was afraid that I said "I don't know" too many times and that would put me out of the running.
I heard back from the recruiter and she said she heard great things about the interview! The next step was for them to contact my references and verify my certifications. All my references gave glowing reviews about me (I owe you all several rounds of beer!). Soon I found myself lined up for a 2nd phone interview. This one was less technical and more about me as a person. I hate talking about myself because it always makes me feel arrogant and I'm bragging. But at the end of that interview he said that it sounds like I'd be a good fit for the position.

A couple days later the offer was extended. We're negotiating the salary now.

I am nervous, anxious, scared, excited all at once. My fiancee is too. This is big. We're getting married in a week (!!) and then we're going on our honeymoon to Washington, DC. On the way back we're going to take a slight detour and drive though the area to scout it out and meet people. Then when we get back home, I have to pack up a lot of my stuff and drive back up there again to start work! OMG! just the thought of trying to orchestrate the relocation makes me wanna crawl into a hole in the ground and beg for someone else to do it all....
... but it's not mine yet until the salary has been negotiated.

catholic marriage 101

This past Saturday my lovely fiance and I attended a "pre cana". It's basically pre-marriage counseling so you know what you're in for when you get married. Since this is thru the Catholic church, there was a lot of preaching and condemnation of premarital sex and contraception etc. The thing I got out of the preaching was this:
God gave us all free will. We are all absolutely free to do whatever it is we want. However, if we don't do what the men in funny hats tell us, the creator of the universe who has the power to blink you out of existence will become very angry. ... but we have free will.

If this isn't the epitome of passive-agressive, I don't know what is. This is why i do not believe in ANY organized religion.

As far as the stuff that was actually related to marriage, I thought it was good stuff. It basically confirmed all the ideas and beliefs about marriage that I developed for myself over the years.

slightly bigger crumbs

Since my last post, I got a part time job at a local law school as a computer lab monkey. All I did was sit in the lab and make sure the printers had paper and students could get help with their computer problems. I worked there a grand total of 4 days and helped maybe 5 people. I restocked the paper in a 2000 sheet tray 3 times PER DAY. damn that's a lot of paper! But things have progressed a bit since I started at the law school. I interviewed at [a local university] for a computer tech job and got the job. They were wondering why someone with my qualifications was applying for such a low paying job [it really is]. I told them that I had a mortgage and a fiance to pay for. I guess they accepted that answer and picked me. They do have a classroom or 2 of Macs but no one there really has any idea of how to work on them or configure them. At least I'll be back on Macs again and in education. However, I did find an ad in the paper for an actual Mac network admin/engineer. I applied for it. If that job pays what it should, I really hope that one presents itself.

damn I hate job hopping.