Are People THAT Blind???

With all the turmoil and upheval at the outfit I used to work at, you have to wonder why people at the top who are looking down don't see it for what it is... there is a major leadership problem in that organization and the problems flow from the top down.

Not once did the VP of our group ever come down to talk to anyone in my group. Hell, even the Director barely spoke with anyone in the group (including me). Pretty sad if you ask me.

Now there are a number of openings and people are still leaving - like rats off a sinking ship...

Shit - if people in high places had just opened their eyes a few months ago, things might not be so bad now.

My friend who had my position ahead of me let me know that she is also leaving now... all I can say is GOOD FOR HER!!! She deserves better after all the bullshit she's put up with (no support, no direction, no feedback, etc, etc, etc).

Dropping Like Flies

Got a call tonight from one of my former employees saying that she's sent out some resumes and that I might get a call regarding a reference... well OF COURSE I'll be a reference for any of the people who were there and trying to get out now...

I've heard it's worse there now than ever... more work with even less people. Not a good situation and I can't blame everyone in that group (and others) for wanting to get out.

Sad thing is that the HR person I did my exit interview with has also left and I bet the notes she took regarding my comments never got too far past her (unless the director of that group took them up the line - who knows)...

My search continues and I'm trying to be patient... we'll see what happens next

Update after this was originally posted - Found out just a few minutes ago that yet another key person in the department has given her notice and will be leaving in less than 2 weeks. Oh my goodness!!!!

The Things We Do for Fun...

Everyone has vices... I don't care who you are - everyone has them... booze, drugs, women, fast cars, motorcycles, all of the above... We all have them because it's what helps to define us as individuals and they help us get pleasure out of life...

One of my vices is sport... almost any kind, but in particular soccer.

Growing up on the east coast, I was introduced to soccer late in life (age 13 as a freshman in high school). This is because there were no youth leagues in my town until I was much older (almost 18).

I picked up the game because I wasn't fond of the HS baseball coach and I was big on hockey.. I figured soccer was nothing more than hockey on a bigger field using a ball and you couldn't use your hands... pretty simple (or so I thought)...

I took to the game fairly well although I'm no David Beckham. On Thursday nights I play in an over 30 mens indoor league that can get pretty rough... last week we had one of our team members go down with a torn ACL...

Me, personally, I've broken multiple fingers and dislocated my thumb (tearing the ligaments) along with separating my left shoulder 3 times and busting a couple toes here and there. That's just soccer...

Playing baseball, football, soccer, hockey, lacrosse, softball and others both competetively and recreationally since I was 5 years old, I've had plenty of time to accumulate quite a thick medical folder.

My 12 year old daughter is still amazed when she sees the men play soccer or her old man play shortstop for the softball team ... she can't quite seem to grasp why dad still thinks these things are fun as he limps around the house on Friday and other days of the week...

I would love to play into my 60s - especially since I've seen a 70+ year old soccer player playing in the advanced outdoor league I play in on Sundays...

Whatever the vice - continue as long as you can if it brings you pleasure and doesn't hurt anyone around you...

Keep kicking!

Ready for the Next Disaster?

Read a good post on the importance of disaster recovery/business continuity planning at the HelpDeskNotes.com web site today.



It's scary how many businesses are screwing with the people who work for them by not having a solid plan in place. 9/11, Hurricate Katrina and the latest Hurricane Dean... What's it take to make some executives WAKE UP!!! The outfit I used to work for doesn't have a plan. God forbid the data center burns - people will lose their jobs very quickly and the busines could go under. I'm glad to be out of there for that reason.

Extend the thought from business to personal life... how many people are really prepared for something like I'm going through right now? No job, specialty field (HelpDesk/Support Management).

Granted it was my choice (sort of) to leave, but you've got to be prepared for the possibility.

Much like a hard drive crash - it's not IF, it's WHEN.

One Door Closes....

Got word late this afternoon that the position I had interviewed for and thought I was a really good fit for was filled from within the organization... Oh well... at least I know now.

That door is closed and I can move on mentally now.

Had another interview this morning with an outfit that seems interesting, but there might be a little more travel than I may like... let's see what happens with this one... their timeframe is 2 weeks (plus or minus) to fill the position so hopefully I make the 2nd cut.

As a good friend and former boss of mine says - "just gotta press..."

So with that, it's time to press on...

Need to Vent?

Got a beef? Need to get something off your chest?

I ran into this site this evening... Research project on that nature of hate. Have at it...

http://1millionthingsihate.blogspot.com/

Deflated...

Feeling beaten today... no word from the outfit that I interviewed with last week.

Damn, and it seemed like a good fit. I left a voicemail for the recruiter so that I can at least find out if I'm still in the running or if they've made an offer to someone else. At least then I can move on.

I know that I should move on and not worry too much about it, but emotionally, it's hard.

I've sent 20 e-mails and made about 5 phone calls today alone, so hopefully something else will present itself before too long.

I have an interview with another outfit tomorrow morning also.

Until then, still looking.

Baseball and Life...

To some (ok - many) baseball is life.

Unfortunately, most of the people who may believe this are office jockeys/cubicle tenents that are living their lives through their fantasy baseball teams. Don't get me wrong, I'm a fantasy baseball player (1st season) but spend less than 1 hour a week dealing with it... there are too many other things to do at this stage of my life.

The only ones that have the "right" to think that baseball is life are the kids. 5 - 13 year olds in particular playing in all the various Little League and other rec leagues in the world.

Just tune in to ESPN, ESPN2 and ABC over the next week and watch some of these kids playing in the Little League World Series in PA. Passion, desire, blood, sweat, tears, smiles. It's all there... these kids are giving all they got for the love of the game.

No million $$ contracts, no endorsement deals - just the game.

Sure, now almost all the games are on national TV and these kids are beating some of the pros in the highlight reals on ESPN Sports Center but it's only because of the purity of the game (and the fact that these kids are damn good athletes). Example - http://youtube.com/watch?v=cgsv6CBZ5sc




Certainly the fact is that the majority of these kids will never make the major leagues, but there are plenty of examples of those that did, and because of their experience in the Little League that they are giving back to the organization.

I remember my days in Little League baseball, very fondly. Never had the chance to do what these kids are doing on national TV, but was thrilled the year we got to play under the lights in a championship game. For that night, we were pros. For the kids in PA, they are experiencing something that will never be taken from them - even beyond the baseball.

The Quiet of a Thunderstorm

Today we had a pretty good storm rip through. Good to be able to turn off the sprinkler system and save some water for a change.

What I enjoyed most of all though was watching the storm come out of the west, over the foothills and into the area.

Intense cloud-to-ground and cloud-to-cloud lightning, the rumble of thunder - first in the distance, then directly over top of the house and then again, in the distance. Like a train bearing down with the whistle sounding.

Staring out the sliding glass door, looking to the west, you couldn't help but be in awe of the show - the stark power display of the lightning.

Reminded me a lot about watching the storms in North Carolina 25 years ago. See http://dawgsof557.blogspot.com/2007/08/lightning-storms-and-shrimp-boats.html

20 minutes of that is a wonderful thing for quieting the mind.

Where We Came From...

A few years ago, my daughter did a school project that got us looking for information on where my grandfather came from originally.

Part of her project was to interview her grandfather (my dad) and ask him questions about the family, etc.

In our research and through the interview with my dad, we came across the Ellis Island website (http://www.ellisisland.org) and on that site there is a search function that lets you search based on name and arrival date. It so happened that we knew the year my grandfather arrived and we were able to view the actual ship's manifest, see his original arrival record and even see a picture of the ship that he arrived on.

In looking closer at the manifest, it looks like he arrived in the states with $9.75 in his pocket. Amazing to me...

The man was truly amazing to me... he comes to the states without knowing how to speak the language, moved to the west coast, did manual labor most of his life, fought and was wounded in WWI, moved back to the east coast where he raised his family and then lived a wonderful full life when he passed away at the age of 96.

I encourage anyone who had relatives arriving through Ellis Island to visit the site and reflect.

Farewell to Phil Rizzuto

Phil Rizzuto was legendary when I was growing up in NJ. Nothing more can be said about him.

He was an unbelievable ball player for the Yankess in the 40's and early 50's and carried the Yankee mystique into the broadcast booth for 40 more years.

Seeing all the footage on ESPN last night and this afternoon brought back a lot of memories - summer days in the yard listening to games on the radio with my dad and friends, watching games on WPIX (Channel 11 in NY) and listening to Rizzuto call the game.

He was so amazing that even if you were in a different room of the house, you could just listen to him and get the picture of what was going on out on the field.

There can never be another play-by-play man like Scooter.

For more, see the NY Daily News site. http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/baseball/yankees/2007/08/15/2007-08-15_memories_of_scooter.html

Anxiousness Sets In

Wednesday... getting antsy about getting "the call"...

Hoping that it will be today or tomorrow at the latest that I hear from the organization that I interviewed with earlier in the week.

In the meantime, keeping busy with taking care of some things around the house, paying some bills and will take a quick ride on the motorcycle in a few minutes so I can focus on other things.

Fingers still crossed!!!

Confidence...

It's building...

Had an interview today and it felt like I nailed it. The people I spoke with were nice, approachable and honest about what was happening in the organization.

I believe I am one of 3 people in the running for this position and it felt very good. Only thing that scares me is that one of the people interviewing me was doing it from home so I couldn't see any body language. The one in the office with me was very relaxed and it seemed more like a conversation than an interview.

Then when I got home I found out that a 2nd outfit had called me while I was out - presumably to schedule an interview. At the very least, people are wanting to talk to me!

The VP of the organization I spoke with today said that they are looking to make a decision this week. Tomorrow I will be sure to put the thank you notes in the mail. Who knows - maybe that will be what puts me over the top of any other candidate.

Fingers crossed but not getting hopes up (just in case)...

Jimmy Page Still Got It!!

A buddy of mine send me to this link on YouTube to see a clip of Jimmy Page working on stage with the Black Crowes.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oyK_SnQiXDM

Page is still real smooth and in the clip is playing a Gibson Les Paul... wonderful axe!!!

Sometimes I Just Don't Understand...

Sometimes I just can't (won't/don't want to) understand how and why things happen.

Case in point -

I touch base with one of my former employees at retail-hell today and she lets me know that one of the best people on the HelpDesk was "suddenly let go" yesterday for "some reason"... only thing I can figure is that the guy didn't pass a mandatory drug screen after agreeing to come on board full time shortly before I left.

The other possibility is the background check that is run.

Sometimes things just aren't meant to be clear and that's a shame. Just goes to show that there are many reasons to keep your nose clean when dealing with the corporate world.

Be safe...

August? - Rockies? - Contention?!?!?

OK - it's August, usually the time of the year when Broncos fans are chomping at the bit to get the football season underway. (As someone who grew up in NJ suffering with the Giants for a long time, it took me a long while to get used to the Broncos being the lead story on the nightly news in the off-season!).

But what's this?

Baseball is still being spoken in the Mile-High City? IN AUGUST?!?!? There's gotta be something wrong with this? No?!?!? Really???

What gives?!?! The Rockies were only 4 games out of first in the NL-West as of this morning and they put a 19 - 4 thrashing on the BrewCrew today at home. Nicely done Tulowitzki - 17 points for my fantasy team today alone after going 4 - 5 with 2 doubles and an HR.

Finally, it seems the team has some chemistry - now if only the GM will leave things alone as best as possible in the off-season, then maybe next year it could be a very fun year of baseball in the Rocky Mountains!

Sure beats the hell out of having to turn the paper upside-down just to see your team in first place!!

http://www.coloradorockies.com/

The Power of Invention and the Mind

Looking at the paper today and the Rocky Mountain News did a small story on Les Paul - inventor of the electric guitar (among other things).

The man is 92 years old and still making music and inventing things!!

I remember seeing him when he was 77 years old at a small jazz club in NYC called "Fat Tuesday's". The man is a genius!

Not only did he develop the first electric guitar, but also multi-track recording and vinyl records! Without the man, the music industry wouldn't be what it is today. The world is a much better place because of him.

To read the article - http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/music/article/0,2792,DRMN_54_5661584,00.html

Les Paul Website - http://www.lespaulonline.com/

Rain

Finally some rain to help with the dry conditions of late. Much needed and well received by me. My daughter on the other hand would much rather be at the pool ... oh well...

Would love to see a bit of an electrical storm and sit out on the deck watching it over the foothills. Might be a bit dicy though because with things so dry, we don't need any wildfires nearby.

South Dakota on My Mind...

No - not because of Sturgis either... I love motorcycles, but I'm more of a speed-type guy, not a cruiser/dresser type. I'd rather be on the track than anything else.

I do have a very good friend of mine that lives in SD though and I would love to see her again. There's history and sometimes you can't help but think what could have been, but honestly, I don't think it could have worked out.

I haven't seen her in about 17 years but we do talk on the phone. She's not a letter writer and doesn't have a computer so there's no e-mail flowing. I write to her just to make sure she knows I'm still around and thinking of her.

Anyway, when things get rough for me, she's usually one of the first people I want to talk to because even after so long, she can make me feel wonderful. Just by hearing her voice and knowing that she's OK and happy with what she's doing makes me feel good... When she left NJ for SD so many years ago, I knew it was the right thing for her to do yet it still hurt so much. We loved each other and still do, but there are just some things that can never be.

I remember one phone call about 6 years ago to her and she sensed something wasn't right. 2 days later, I had a letter from her telling me that she missed me and could still tell in my voice that something was wrong and she reassured me that everything would be OK and she's always with me, even from the distance. I still have that letter and won't let it go...

She's told me that she comes to Colorado every so often and just hasn't had the guts to call me when she's here... I think we're both afraid of the same things - but damn it, I would love to have her call and say that she's 20 minutes away and she wants to just meet for lunch. I'd be on the bike so damn fast that she wouldn't have had time to hang up the phone before I got there!

One hug, one more look in her eyes, one more smile and laugh...
Just one more time, but...

So Much to Make Up For...

So many thoughts... so many things I want to say...

Only one thing comes to mind though - that no matter how much I try, I'll never be able to make up the time I missed with my kids over the last 18 months working for that sweatshop...

So instead, I make the most of the time I am spending with them now as I start on the new job search...

Yesterday took the little one to the pool and watched in amazement as he damn near took off on his own swimming 1/2 the length of the pool. Spent time helping at my daughter's softball practice also and just watching as she interacts with her friends...

All in all, I'd say the kids are doing quite well and I don't have much to worry about on that front.

Worried about my friend at a past job though because she's going through a tough time. Left messages but just haven't been able to hook up with her yet. In due time...