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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.

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Plan Bi-tec

Summer’s oncologist appointment was pushed back, but I kept today off for a tele-interview with the guys at Bitec. It was pretty quiet, because Eaddie left in the morning to go shopping with Eli. I had slept fairly late, so I didn’t have a whole ton of time to kill. I ate some chicken tacos for brunch and neither of the girls wanted to eat anything during the day.

I eventually had a shower and got dressed up for an interview in the dining room. They acted like they remembered me, and said they would probably have me for another in-person interview later on. It sounded like business was booming over the past year, so they had slightly different needs, but it didn’t sound like anything I couldn’t handle.

Eaddie and Eli came over as soon as I finished the interview, and wanted to hook up Guitar Hero. I got the PlayStation hooked up in the sunroom, but we couldn’t get any of the guitars to pair. I finally got one Rock Band guitar working, so Eli tried to calibrate the audio and video for the next couple hours. Eaddie got bored and left us to lay in bed for a while.

I took out a ton of recycling and eventually took Muad’Dib out for a run just as Summer got home. Then we finished up the chicken taco stuff by turning it into pulled barbecue sandwiches. I made actual slaw out of the mix we had, and they turned out pretty good. I was just happy to get it out of the fridge.

The girls ended the night watching gymnastics, and I just quietly went back to my office. Randy and I will be going to visit the Vilonia School District in the morning, so we made plans for breakfast in Conway first.

Good dog.

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Put the Past Away

DNS didn’t actually scavenge anything because it only triggered the aging, so we won’t know for a couple weeks if it actually worked. I guess that’s fine, since graduation was tonight and we won’t have people on site for it to matter. I got back into SCCM to try and clean up the stuck update, and found the right combination and order of commands to fix it, so I was able to re-run the newest update.

Summer was in Little Rock for her own meeting, so we met at Red Lobster for unlimited soup and salad. Just as I parked, I got a call from Bitec to schedule a Teams interview. We ate, and then she came back to the office with me to do some work until her surgery consultation. I guess Randy was in a bad mood, because he kind of flipped out at me when I said I invited her in, but he mellowed out pretty quickly.

Just before the appointment, Summer headed out to find her appointment, but she didn’t actually know where she was going. She got to the address she had in the calendar entry and discovered for the first time that it was just a residential home, and called me crying that she didn’t know where to go. I had already left too, but pulled over at Franklin’s to talk to her. I just told her to call the doctor and see if she could find who they referred her to, since she didn’t even have the business name.

After some Googling and a bit of guesswork, she ended up getting a call from the CARTI Cancer Center, asking if she was going to make her appointment. They guided her in and I met her there after I went to the Baptist Health Breast Center by mistake. We went in for the consult and scheduled an appointment to remove the atypical cellular mass, so that was pretty good news. It didn’t feel like either of us were hugely relieved, but that was probably due to the continued confusion and frustration over the process up to this point.

We finally headed to Conway to Supercharge, and went in to Five Guys to share some fries. She wasn’t hungry, but I decided to try a hot dog that was pretty okay. I still think they’re hugely overpriced, but the location was right. Then we headed home.

As I got to the Pottsville offramp, there was an overturned semi blocking the entire right lane from the westbound onramp. The car in front of me made a full stop before finally pulling over, and it looked to have just happened because someone else had pulled over and was running up to the windshield to check on the driver. There were enough people pulled over that I knew I couldn’t provide any additional help, so I got out of the way.

When I got home, the kids were assembling the headboard I got for Eaddie. I took Muad’Dib out for his first run in a few days, which he enjoyed. We visited Dad, and then I left him outside when we got home, since he took a bath in the creek. I took care of a few Vine things, had an anxiety attack, and then laid down with Summer for a bit before I had to get up and complete my tasks before bed.

You don’t have to say it again. I heard it the first time.