Old School

Had a lil ol' skool fun, rebuilding an old PC and formatted it with MS Windows '98. It has been awhile since I worked with this particular OS. It was good fun and a reminder of how far we have come in a few short years.

"Quid Pro Quo"

Remind me again, why it is, that I do, what I do. Help me to understand, why it is, that I am angry when the on call phone rings at 1:29 AM. Why it is, that, I am excited that I will receive my new laptop RAM later, today? Why it is, that I am partaking in a hot cup of Cappachino at 2:00 AM? Why it is, that I am nervous, about having only five cigarettes left till 5:00 AM. Why I am accepting the challenge, of rebuilding an old 386 computer for a friend, just so he can sell it at a garage sale? I'm not sure anymore if I absolutely love or absolutely hate my job, anymore....It is almost out of shear morbid curiosity, that I stick around to see what the next person has to offer up to the IT God. Make that four cigarettes left....The coffee is good (inhales deeply)...very good, in fact....The quadruple shot causes my heart race and yet somehow calms me...like an overhead projector being brought into focus......(fade to black)...Make that three cigarettes left. There there, inner child...daddy knows what it is, that you like....caffeine and nicotine...like a heroin junky after he slowly releases the tourniquet and feels the drugs entering his jonesing veins...It is good, no?...lights up another smoke (inhales deeply) make that two...two beautiful cigarettes ah, ah, ahhhh!...phone rings....go ahead caller you're on the air...this is #$% (Freudian pun)we are having problems with our router on the dispatch system....ah the dispatch system...my my, that is a problem...tell me about your childhood, caller. How did this make you feel?...Did you run away, because the farmer made you perform fellatio on him?.....Did you Clarice? Did you run...run away from the crying lambs? Quid pro quo, Doctor.... It rubs the lotion on it's skin or else it gets the hose again....yes precious it does what it's told, doesn't it? (lights up last cigarette & inhales deeply) Quid pro quo, caller. What is it about good sex that make you have to take a shit? Something for something...just something to think about....LOL

On Call.....

There is nothing like having to deal with a difficult situation at work, just before bed. My mind spends the rest of the evening, hashing and rehashing the events that led out to the problems and the steps followed to eliminate them. Most problems are resolved in a linear fashion. You start at step 1 and work your way through the steps till you find the solution and record these findings either by memory or in some sort of journal. This is true of most things except when dealing with our wireless system. It is very unpredictable and almost seems to have a mind of it's own. Some things work only some of the time, while others work the other half of the time. Creating a trouble shooting guide is like writing about the dark. It is everything...and it is nothing. My hope is that they follow through on their promise of restoring the fiber optic lines. I believe it is the only way a dependable communication link can be re-established. I am often left with what I call a hangover in the mornings after trouble shooting a problem on our wireless system. It leaves my mind tired after a long night of troubleshooting. So many possibilities... so little time to make improvements. Production, production, production, that is the name of the game.

Study..Study...Study....

I spent the entire day reading and preparing for the A+ and Network + class, I have coming up in April. I purchased four new books and have started reading them to get a jump start on my exam. They are packed full of knowledge and I am very happy with my purchase. Tomorrow is a big day, the boss is home and will be back to work. I am looking forward to hearing about her two weeks of class and the testing involved to receive a MCSE Certification.