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Tree Down, Two to Go

It was supposed to storm pretty bad today for Summer’s trip to Springfield for Conquer the Gauntlet, so I committed to going with her. We got out of the house on time, but the storm hit super hard not long after we left. We encountered around five trees that were partially across the road. One large one was all the way across, but had broken up and been driven over enough that we rumbled right on through. Then we got stuck just outside of Jasper because a large tree took down a utility line.

We were parked in the road in a line of vehicles going both directions. Summer had to sneak into the woods a couple times before the crews finally got the cable raised high enough for the trucks to get past. We got to the Girl Scouts Camp Finbrooke about an hour late, but she was able to join the 11AM wave. There were hardly any people there, possibly due to the rain, so I just waited in the car for her to finish.

Summer set a new record time because she didn’t have to wait in a queue for any of the obstacles, so she got changed and we headed to Buc-ee’s to Supercharge and shop. They were absolutely packed, nearly shoulder-to-shoulder in some places. I had already been struggling with anxiety, and being there just shot it through the roof. We grabbed some brisket sandwiches and ate them outside.

The brisket was absolutely garbage, and it occurred to me that other gas stations don’t scream about it because they know. Buc-ee’s seems painfully unaware, and provides much fanfare. Even the potato chips were chewy and disappointing. We ended up going back inside to do some more shopping, and picked up several different kinds of jerky to try. Then we went back to the car so I could decompress and plan our return home.

We ended up driving back to Branson after stopping briefly at some strange visitor center in the mountains. There were a couple guys in there hanging out behind a counter, and they weren’t at all pushy about anything. They had free drinks and visitor information, so I finally spoke up and asked one of them what they were selling. He said they had discount tickets, and eventually said they were a part of a particular resort, but he wasn’t pushy since we said we weren’t staying the night. He did give us a couple vouchers for some free mini golf and an old timey photograph, so our next stop was Coral Reef Mini Golf for 18 holes and some shuffleboard.

That was pretty good fun for free, so I dropped a $20 tip in the jar and we continued on to Starvin’ Marvin’s for dinner. They were the only seafood buffet I could find, and though the bar was super small, all the food was pretty good, and the service was great. We stuffed ourselves silly and then headed on home.

The kids were out on bikes when we finally made it home. The neighbors finally got the north side of the fence repaired, so Eaddie put Muad’Dib outside. I cleaned up and then took him out for a run. It looked like the kids were at Sequoyah, so we rode that direction to try and find them. Just as we got about a block away, it looked like they were on the way home, so we raced after them.

I tried texting Eaddie because we never caught sight of them. Muad’Dib was a champ keeping up, but I could tell I was wearing him out. We stopped at my parents’ house to rest and then made it home. Muad’Dib had jumped into the creek at my parents’ house because he was so hot, so I had to give him a bath. He behaved pretty well, except for jumping onto the bed before he was cleaned. Once he was dried up, he climbed into bed and went right to sleep with Summer while I wrapped up my own routine.

She gives me echoes; never answers. Hoping that she’ll change her mind.

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On Second Thought

If I had known we would all end up at the high school, I would have gone straight there in the morning. Instead, we sat around the office for about an hour and then all individually drove over to help Jim move all of his Chromebooks from the library to a holding room. We expected rain, so we couldn’t take them to the shop like we originally planned.

After a bit of sorting and looking for damage, we were done and sitting around. Jim started imaging more of his laptops while everyone else left, so I just sat in the library and worked on the FortiAuthenticator stuff until lunch time. While we were waiting to go, Cheri called with an offer from Tesla. Then Teisha called with an offer from Bitec.

We thought we had a group for lunch since we waited for Kyle, but it ended up just being Jim and myself. He drove us to Mr. Cajun’s Kitchen and I tried their blackened catfish over red beans and rice. I thought it was way too expensive, but it tasted good. After that, I just stayed in the library until quitting time.

The drive home was a bit anxious. I stopped in Blackwell and again in Atkins for a slush since the Casey’s in town always seems to turn their slushy machine off when they have a free deal day. Summer was having a bath when I got home, but then she had to go to Morrilton to check on a truck that was leaking oil after service. I rode with her while the kids took Muad’Dib to the art walk downtown.

Summer was able to tighten the drain plug without any trouble, and we made it back home for some light leftovers. She did some work and we eventually wound down kind of late, considering she had a Conquer the Gauntlet race in the morning in Springfield, Missouri. I may have caught something from handling all the Chromebooks, because I felt a sinus infection creeping in all evening.

I thought by now, you would understand sonder!

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Along for the Ride

I picked Dad up this morning and we headed to Tulsa, stopping in Van Buren for a charge and some breakfast pizza. We got there about half an hour early and checked in, but they didn’t offer a loaner, and the demo vehicle I requested wasn’t available until later in the afternoon. Dad and I waited in the lobby for hours and waited for the estimated completion time of 1:30, which turned into 2:45. I ended up asking for any demo vehicle at all, and we got a Model 3 to take to the 50’s Diner for lunch.

I had a Monte Cristo and Dad got a burger. The onion rings were different and better than I expected as thin, small rings with only a light batter. As we were finishing, I got a call asking to come back and demonstrate the passenger seat popping for the tech, even though I had showed Blake, the service advisor, when we checked in.

The popping had quit, but the seat controls had phantom actions that weren’t intended. When moving straight back, the backrest would recline a bit intermittently. The tech said he couldn’t do anything more about it until they released a new firmware for the controls, which didn’t make any sense to me. We also couldn’t get a confirmation that they would cover the paint issue, so we ended up waiting until the car was finished around five o’clock.

We did get to demo the new Model Y Juniper, and it was quite nice. It did feel tighter and more refined than Summer’s. We also got to demo a Cybertruck, and Dad even drove that one. We only took it around the block, but I liked it well enough. If I wanted a larger vehicle, I would totally drive one.

They finally finished around five, and Mykel confirmed that they would cover the paint issue under warranty. They also said the air conditioner was overfilled by about 200 grams of refrigerant. Hopefully fixing that will make it cool better.

We headed home, and the car did great both ways. We didn’t even have to stop to charge on the way home, so I took Dad home and then went home to find some leftovers and a drink before bed.

I told you once, you fooled me twice.

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Scientific Proofs

It looked like it could rain a bit today, but it didn’t hit until the drive home. It was another really quiet day since I think most of the people in the building were gone. I had an anxiety attack fairly early in the morning, but it passed quickly without issue. I figured out some of the Fortinet licensing and got it registered to our account, but could never get the VM template to show up. I also had the idea to register a domain for the South Big Scissor Scam District for our Gophish campaign. Gemini coded a website for it and everything.

Nobody said anything about lunch, but I brought a soggy leftover burger anyway. I quietly ate that at my desk and rode out the afternoon. I thought Randy had been gone all day, but just as I was getting ready to leave, I saw him in his office. He had been super quiet, but he said it was only because he was hard at work. I left a little early and made my way quickly to Morrilton.

I got to Bitec about five minutes early, which seemed plenty. I chatted with Teisha until David came in and started talking about AI, and then Joel came in to talk a little more about the things they had done since last year. It was super informal, and I ended up handing them my “fun” résumé. Then I offered to show them a magic trick. Teisha found a couple rubber bands, and now hopefully I’ll be able to disprove the notion that performing magic tricks at job interviews is a bad idea.

It started raining a heavily-misted rain on the drive home, so traffic was super slow. I stopped by Superfast to fill up on washer fluid, and then went to the Neighborhood Market to get some stuff for dinner. I had mentioned burgers, but then I saw a couple packages of steak on sale, so I got that instead.

The kids went out for a bike ride as soon as I got home, so I started grilling corn, beef sausage, and steaks. Summer got home and we ate, and then I took Muad’Dib out for a run. The ground was wet, but it wasn’t too bad in flip-flops. We visited my parents and made it back home for a quick brush before bed.

But why isn’t it “jabañero?”

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Call Me Ishmael

Today was a lonely day at work. Kyle showed up and sat at his desk for a few minutes like he sometimes does, but otherwise I was in the corner by myself all day. Randy was somewhere else, but messaged me to get a server going for Go Phish, as well as FortiAuthenticator. Go Phish was deceptively easy to set up, because it also requires another domain from which to launch phishing campaigns. It seems less effective to only have one consistent domain from which to phish your own team.

Summer came to get me for lunch and we went to Red Lobster. The food tasted good, but she had a rough time afterward. I didn’t feel great, but I think it was just too greasy. I’ve been craving some clean food lately, and that wasn’t it.

The afternoon was quiet, and the old men continued wasting their time, which only frustrated me further. I had a dozy ride home with a touch of anxiety that had been around all day, and eventually went to my parents’ house with Muad’Dib for bún bò Huế. After we ate, I took him on the rest of his shortened, hot walk. I let him play in the creek and then had to give him a proper bath when we got back home.

Dad wanted to open the pool, so I had the kids meet me over there. They were supposed to go to a movie, but they said Autumn stood them up again. That was frustrating for multiple reasons, including the fact that she never replied to me when I initially asked them for help. They did end up helping uncover the pool though, and then I headed back home to crash.

From hell’s heart I stab at thee!

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Imagin’ That

Muad’Dib spent much of the night on the floor for some reason. I don’t know if he got too hot between us, or maybe he just felt bothered. He was still quiet through the night though. I got out pretty early, and it was a quiet morning until Randy messaged me at the last minute and had me sit in on a call with Bitdefender. That call was more interactive than I would have liked, but it went fine aside from the moment they asked me to interpret the law for them.

I met Randy, Jim, and Kyle at Jacob’s Wings where I tried their “King Potato.” It didn’t have enough of my choice lamb meat on it, and the potato itself tasted pretty microwaved. I ended up stopping at the Wendy’s on the way back and picked up a small chili to make up for it.

The afternoon was even more quiet as I imaged a fourth laptop that was brought to me. Then I made it home through a recurrence of some anxiety. I had an attack once I got home, but that was over quickly. The kids were playing Clone Hero on Eli’s laptop, so I hooked up the speakers for them in time to play one last song before putting it away.

My parents were going to have bún bò Huế, but Dad texted that he forgot to get the beef started, and they had spaghetti instead. Once Summer got home from work, we headed straight over to eat. Then we made it home so I could take Muad’Dib out for a run just before it got dark. We took an alternate, shorter route because he’s been slower and more tired in the heat, and I also wanted to avoid any water features so he could make it home relatively clean.

It was super quick to wrap up once we got home. Summer was in bed and Brody called to ask about Johnny, so we talked for a bit. Then I vacuumed Muad’Dib’s fur out and headed to bed.

We went through all that just to be strangers again.

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Rereview

I woke up a couple times with Muad’Dib, but we ended up sleeping in until around ten o’clock altogether. He laid by my side with his legs stretched out into my chest until I finally decided I should get up. Summer left for the gym. Eaddie got dressed for, and then skipped church because Eli didn’t go. Muad’Dib ended up going back to the bed and slept for much of the day.

I started working on reviews, digging out things I had received long ago but never used or reviewed. Summer started on yard work when she got home and I bounced around cleaning inside while I continued my reviews.

Summer wanted brats for dinner, but I knew we had a bunch of burger fixings to eat before they spoiled, so I started the deep fryer for some tater tots and grilled the burgers. I had Eaddie pick up some brats on her way home from Eli’s house, and we had bacon cheese burgers, brats, and tots. She brought Eli over for dinner as well. I boiled the oil over because the tots were covered in ice from being in the freezer so long, possibly through a power outage.

I took Muad’Dib out for a run, carefully avoiding any water so he could stay inside without the need for another bath. We visited my parents and Mom said Dad passed out again yesterday after mowing the lawns across town. We got home and I cleaned up the oil spill, then took a shower and got ready for bed.

And it feels like falling into the sea from outer space in seconds to me.

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On a Magazine

Summer and I got up super early this morning so she could compete in a nine mile run up Mt. Magazine. We took Muad’Dib with us and ran a little late, but it was easy to make up the time. When we got to school in Havana, she actually had to walk about half a mile down a dirt road to the starting line. I took the Onewheel to watch her start, and then we drove up the mountain past all the runners to get to the finish line.

We sat at a picnic table and I pulled a couple ticks off of him, and one off of myself. Then we made it back to the overlook early so we could be sure to see Summer cross the line. We waited until everyone finished before she realized she didn’t place for an award, so we left just as they started to announce them. I felt a little bad, but I had already been there long enough without anything to do.

There wasn’t really anywhere to park at the finish line, which was just at the first overlook, so we continued down to the Benefield Loop trail head. Muad’Dib and I walked part of the western loop, and he did pretty great on his own. There were a couple other cars parked there, but we didn’t see anyone. We made it to where the trail crossed the road and then just turned back to the car.

We made it home and tied Muad’Dib up outside, then took Eaddie to Tacos 4 Ever Burritos & More. I was so happy that they had an actual restaurant instead of just a food truck. The food was great, so we may have a new default Mexican joint.

After we ate, we headed back home for the afternoon and Summer watched Butterfly Effect 3: Revelations with me. It wasn’t great. After that, she took a nap in bed and I started to doze in the floor of the living room, but I eventually got up and took Muad’Dib out for a proper run. When we got back to the house, he needed another bath. He behaved reasonably well, but then hid under the deck just as I finished drying him. I had to get Eaddie to coax him back out and bring him inside.

I laid down with Summer for a little while, and then Eaddie had Maristella over to spend the night.

Peachy.

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Barrels of Fun

We planned to clean up the shop at work today, so after a brief period of getting everyone together, we all went outside to rearrange and put things on shelves. Some of the shelves were moved more than what any of us thought was necessary, but as Randy put it, I won’t actually be spending any time out there, so it doesn’t matter to me.

Time seemed to pass super slowly, so it was quite a while until lunch. Kyle, Randy, Jay, and I went to BJ’s for catfish, and then we quietly wrapped up the afternoon. I had an anxiety attack at some point, so it seems like the Lexapro isn’t doing much for me.

When I eventually got home, the north fence line was completely down and the kids had Muad’Dib inside. I wound down a bit before taking him for a run, and we went to Casey’s for a free slush. I predicted that it would be “out of order” again, and sure enough it was. We turned right back around and headed to the basin, to my parents’ house, and then home.

The kids were gone by then, but Summer was in the bath. I gave Muad’Dib a bath so he could stay inside, and then it was a quick night to bed before Summer’s run on Mt. Magazine.

Delicious.

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M-m-m-my Vilonia

I took it a little slower this morning and met Randy at Bob’s Grill in downtown Conway for breakfast. We had chorizo breakfast burritos that were pretty good, but also pretty small for the price, along with a pretty presumptuous 23% minimum suggested tip. Then we both ended up driving to the Vilonia school district to meet up with Billy, their network admin. They were in a little portable building way out on the edge of the campus, and we sat in the back room where Billy showed us their Intune and Entra environment.

I was wholly unimpressed. I tried to go in with an open mind, but the more I saw, and the more workarounds he showed us, it seemed like they would have been better off to just stick with the legacy SCCM until they axe it for good. It was a long, slow morning until lunch.

The three of us went to Simple Simon’s for the local pizza buffet, and the food was pretty good. They did a great job of keeping their tiny bar stocked. We visited for a while before heading back to finish up the afternoon. I started to feel a bit of churn late in the afternoon, so I couldn’t get out of there quickly enough. I made it home, but had a pretty rough night after that.

Summer got home a little later and made shrimp Alfredo for the kids while I laid on the couch for a bit. Then I got up to take Muad’Dib out for a run. He was pretty slow, and kept wanting to wander away, so I had to baby him a bit more than usual. I wasn’t thrilled.

We ended up cutting off the last block to get home, and we wrapped up the evening fairly quickly. I still didn’t feel great, and Summer had some nerve issues with her legs as well. The kids stayed up watching TV, but I made it to bed a little bit early.

It’s so dramatic how you run from better days.