Dogtown

Summer and I happened to end up in traffic around the same time, as there had been a wreck and vehicle fire right outside of Morrilton. She continued on to Little Rock and I got to work right around eight. Janice brought a tiny little goblin dog to work, so Muad’Dib had fun running around with her. We were up and down the stairs several times and stayed really busy all day.

PetSmart called early in the morning and wanted to move Muad’Dib’s appointment up an hour, citing that they were really busy leading up to Thanksgiving, and that they wanted to make sure he had plenty of time away from other people and dogs. It didn’t make much sense to me, since I figured an appointment time was just for him, but from the sound of it, they do several dogs at once in batches, and then kennel them between steps. It didn’t make much sense to me, but luckily I remembered that Summer would be passing back through. I had her pick him up and take him home, and then Eaddie delivered him to PetSmart at three.

I grabbed a quick lunch at McDonald’s and then continued David’s quest to learn how to import documents. I got a call about an hour and a half earlier than I expected, telling me that Muad’Dib was about finished, so I headed back home to get him. They said he did well, but I was actually disappointed in how much I paid for such a short service. We probably won’t be doing that again.

Summer said something about going to the store when she got off work, so I thought I’d go with her. When I got home, the kids had eaten two of the three steaks and left me one, and Summer none. I took Muad’Dib on a quick run, and he absolutely flew down the street. When we got back, I learned that at some point, Summer thought to eat the rest of the squash, which left me with a slab of meat and literally nothing else. The kids went with her to the store, so Muad’Dib and I went to Taco Villa.

They had my taco salad made quickly, and I didn’t notice when he followed me in the door, but we got back outside and ate at a picnic table in the cold. It was nice to decompress. Afterward, we went by the old house to look for a few things. Dad had emptied the cabinets, but I was lucky enough to find one of the things I was looking for.

When we got back to the house, Eaddie told me that they weren’t going to see Scott Bradlee’s Postmodern Jukebox with us because she just learned that they wanted to record for the Tech band album they’re releasing. I tried to talk to her about commitments, but that fell on deaf ears, and nobody around here is willing to put family over anything else.

Well I guess if you want to be alone, be alone

Wingin’ It

We left in some light rain this morning, but had time to stop at Hardee’s for a burrito. I had a pretty quick anxiety attack in the morning, which put me out of whack for a lot of the day. On top of that, I was a little offput by the constant talk of AI when it was actually easier for me to just follow a well-documented tutorial to perform the import task we were trying to do.

When lunch time came around, we grabbed some fries and a drink from McDonald’s, and then Casey’s had a deal on chicken wings. We got back and stuffed ourselves in the office. Then things were mostly quiet until quitting time.

It was still wet by the time we got home, so we didn’t go on a run. Summer got some broccoli and I started the smoker to cook some steaks I had picked up on clearance. Eaddie finally made it home from her weekend trip, and we had a nice dinner together before cleaning up and dispersing. I stayed up later than I intended writing reviews, but they had to get done.

Snoop C-O-Double-U

International House of Apples

We got up this morning and Summer decided she really wanted to go to the new IHOP/Applebee’s duo. I wasn’t thrilled, but I figured we could give it a try. We eventually got around and made it across town with Muad’Dib in tow. There was a wait, even as early as we got there, so we let him romp around in the adjacent field while we waited for our text.

Once we got inside, I realized how much of a remodel it was. The whole place was different. It was still a relatively small restaurant, but they had a full bar with a bunch of TVs, and I think that will probably do a lot better than a dry pancake house. The food service was almost surprisingly slow, even with how busy they were, just because they had so much staff wandering around actively helping. The food itself was actually really good, but I was a bit disappointed in my portion sizes. While we were there, I spotted Keith and waved him down for a quick chat before we left.

From there, I wanted to take Muad’Dib to PetSmart just to acclimate him to the place some more. He did really well as we wandered around, and then we talked to the groomers for a bit before leaving. Jonell saw us as we were walking out, and we talked to her and Chris for a bit before we left.

As we got close to home, we stopped at the Neighborhood Market for a turkey, since we didn’t have any more frozen breasts at home. Summer stayed outside and played with Muad’Dib in a field again. I ended up not getting a turkey, but grabbed a couple packages of steaks. I saw Frankie and Yong Suk while I was there, and talked to them for a bit before we left.

When we got back to the house, we cleaned the smoker in preparation for Thanksgiving. Summer was a great help eventually. Then I picked up some wings from Zaxby’s before taking Muad’Dib for a late night run. We visited my parents, and then as we were nearing the end of our run, Julie’s friend Claudia stopped me and we chatted for a bit. I didn’t realize she lived right around the block.

It was a rush to get to bed after that. I cleaned up a little bit and got ready for work in the morning, and then we were out.

Finish up, already!

Inside Outside

I got pulled off of my NetBox project today, but then struggled to focus on my new tasks a bit. People started leaving around lunch time, so Muad’Dib and I got a free Snack Wrap from McDonald’s and some sides from Sonic, and then spent the entire afternoon by ourselves upstairs.

We got home fairly quickly after work, and we had a quick run before making it back to the house where Summer was home really early. We ended up going to Pointe Remove in town to see what that would be like. It was surprisingly pretty empty, so we walked on through to the patio with Muad’Dib. I hadn’t noticed him, but Gary saw us and walked over to join us for the evening.

We ordered a couple drinks, a large charcuterie board, and eventually a pizza that were all fairly good. There was a guy playing guitars and harmonicas that were all cranked up a bit too loud for us, but we had a good time catching up.

It was a bit late when we got back, but it took us a little while to wind down for bed. Eaddie was gone for Texas, so this weekend will likely be for chores.

o-u-t

Table Talk

We got in this morning and had our staff meeting, so I was really glad I had some notes prepared, even if it wasn’t anything super important to share. I can tell it’s going to be difficult to sustain that, but maybe it’s a learned skill. I’m just not one to peacock.

Otherwise it was a pretty quiet day. I got a bit lost in the weeds again, and struggled to hold focus. I did manage to keep my McRib off of my light-colored shirt, so that was nice. Normally staff meeting days feel shorter, but not so today. Things didn’t get at all exciting until the end of the day when Elizabeth’s boyfriend brought their new puppy to visit. That was all within the last 15 minutes or so, and then it was time to leave.

Summer had to close the wash, so Muad’Dib went for a quick run and I ate chicken strips with my parents. The kids had already eaten and had a concert, but Summer got home just after I finished my quick cleanup and had a brief anxiety attack. I toasted some sourdough for her, and then hammered out some Vine reviews before bed.

With so much drama in the B-T-C, it’s kinda hard G – A – 𝕃 – O – P – I – N – G.

Worked Like Dogs

Scott brought his new little puppy to work today, so Muad’Dib and I went to his office quietly to visit. She was a tiny little beagle named Maple, and Muad’Dib whined until he got to go sniff her, but we didn’t see her much after that. It was a quiet day, and I really struggled to get into anything serious. I tried to gather some notes to share at the staff meeting for the next day, and continued to document the network.

I tried to get a McRib for lunch, but the app failed me and I ended up just redeeming a free double cheeseburger and small fries instead. I got a vanilla cone on the way out, and shared that with Muad’Dib when we got back to the office. He ran around outside a bit, we came in, and then Janice had us come downstairs for cake she made for Elizabeth’s birthday.

The afternoon dragged a bit until we headed home. Summer had dinner just about ready, and I wasn’t feeling great, so I waited to run Muad’Dib until after we ate. I had an anxiety attack on the way down the hill, but we made it to see my parents before getting back to the house. Then it was a pretty early night to bed after tossing and turning all last night.

Churn

Let’s Review

I didn’t sleep great, but we slept in just a little bit before getting up for coffee. The girls went outside and I sat down to write a bunch of reviews while continuing with laundry. The day went by really fast, and we were all aware that we felt a little moody. Maybe it was cycles, or maybe it was seasonal affectivity. Maybe it was the anxiety attack I had when I started laundry. Maybe it was a continuation of the melancholy and dissatisfaction that we all seem to have accepted.

Summer made it to the gym, and Eaddie left for a concert of some kind. I took Muad’Dib for a run a few minutes earlier than on work days, and then Summer and I went to Colton’s for a late dinner. We sat in the car for a while before going in, trying to work through some feelings. Then we ate too much and came home to go to bed.

stuff

Everybody Out!

We all woke up pretty early today. The girls went outside for coffee with the dog, so I joined them with a cup myself. Eaddie had a football game in the afternoon. Summer went to work and the gym while I got cleaned up. Then I made myself a burrito just before she left for the pregame show. I followed along with Muad’Dib, and we parked at the aquatic center and rode the Onewheel over to Tech from there. It was a short show, and then she went in for the game while Muad’Dib and I headed back to the house.

It was nice out, so we ran to my parents’ house to see them. We visited for a bit before Muad’Dib took me around most of the rest of his course. He skipped zig-zagging through the neighborhood blocks, but it was also pretty warm out. I spent the afternoon cleaning up and did some laundry when we got back to the house. Summer and Shaana had an Alabama concert in Little Rock later in the evening, so Summer dropped her car off and changed before running out the door again.

The kids came home after their game, and I offered to take them out for dinner. I wanted to take Muad’Dib since the weather outside was so nice, so our options were a little limited. We landed on Buffalo Wild Wings, which was a typical and expected disappointment, but they let the dog in.

Eli had a wrap, and Eaddie and I split a huge order of wings. We didn’t care for two of the sauces we got, but I liked the rest. The potato wedges were good, but the portion size for the $8 large was absolutely unbelievable. A single russet potato would have yielded more wedges than what we received. Even the small tray they were served on had an insulting amount of free space available. It was as though we were at a fine dining establishment that served single bites of food on normal sized plates. Service was also incredibly slow, but they were packed inside.

After we ate, we made an impromptu stop downtown for some ice cream at the Cool Cat Creamery. Eaddie got some rolled ice cream for us and we sat outside to eat and visit. There were some skaters over around the stage area who approached Eli and me while Eaddie was inside, and asked if either of us could do a backflip. I asked if I looked like the kind of person that did backflips. Eli’s respose was that he had a dog at home. He elaborated, after seeing the confusion in everyone’s faces, that he couldn’t allow himself the opportunity to injur himself, presumably because the dog needed him.

We eventually made it back to the house. Summer got home pretty late, and then everyone was off to bed.

Like a summer night.

Problems with Pilots

It’s been a bad year for pilots. I was headed to work this morning, stopping at Starbucks for red cup day, when I saw Dad text that Mom was in the emergency room after wrecking on her way to work. I messaged Teisha and Joel that I would be late, then headed to the hospital to see how she was doing. I got in just in time to watch them roll her off to a CT scan, so I sat with Dad for a bit before having to go back out to scold Muad’Dib for trying to climb into the front seat.

We walked around the parking lot a bit, and then I went back inside once Mom was out. She looked to be in good shape, but had some cuts from the glass after rolling her car. She was in the left lane, and a semi truck was in the right lane, turning right. Someone on that road didn’t see her behind the semi, and T-boned her, which caused her car to roll. All things considered, she fared really well.

Muad’Dib and I eventually continued to work, and then just stayed at the office all day. I found a good series on subnetting with some practical exercises, so I mostly did that all day. I had my bánh bao and some popcorn for lunch and just worked straight through the end of the day.

We got back home for a quick run, checked on my parents, then came back to the house where I ate some of the grosser leftovers that hadn’t been finished yet. Then I unboxed some Vine stuff before an early bedtime.

shortest days

These Subnets Are Just Right

I was in a convoy of speeders all the way to work today, so I shaved quite a bit of time off the drive. I had an anxiety attack really early, and then I really tried to dig into network redesign. I think I’ve made a decision and am finally ready to move forward with some changes. Otherwise it was really quiet all day long. We had some McDonald’s, but their ice cream machine was down and I couldn’t redeem dessert.

The afternoon was short by comparison, and then I took Muad’Dib for a run as soon as we got to the house. Summer got home just as we were walking out, and went to bed with an aching back. I made a couple burritos once we got back, and then we expected more of the aurora in the evening, but it just didn’t happen. I was really surprised at the one second video time lapse I got from the Pixel 8 Pro’s astro photography mode last night. We ended up staying in and just went to bed early.

Really early.