Back from the Beach

We're back from sand in cracks we knew not we had, back from pelicans and wet dogs. Back from collections of sand dollars, crab shells, gull feathers, and late night bonfires.

A Good Times were had by all.

More later...

Off to the Beach!

I have been gainfully employed for 3 days, and I've had it!

;-)


No, we have had a beach house get-a-way planned since January with 2 other families. So we're off to the coast today for 3 days and 2 nights near Capitola. So, when I took the job, I stipulated that these days I wouldn't be hanging around - turns out that worked out quite well, since things aren't moving too quickly on the project I'm on.

I'll try to have some pics to show y'all when I get back. Don't you have too much fun while I'm away, 'kay? Heh.

Oh, and Terroni? Sure you did. Uh huh.

:-)

Cubicles As Far As the Eye Can See

This is not a picture of my workplace... it is a representation. (And, as you can see, this is a dated picture, since there is an actual tube monitor for a video screen.)

Today I began a career as a consultant in a hive. The place is downright BLAH. And as quiet as a tomb, except for the occasional conversation stray conversation drifting over the shimmering air above the cubicles.

Saving me is the fellow I currently report to - he is amiable and smart and he's also going on 2 weeks vacation starting next Monday. That's okay, I is a professional. I are technical. We'll be just fine. Heh.

The members of my team are all over the place. They're still coming on board. While at my desk today, though, I got two head-hunter calls. Can't let a moment go wasted.

More later. Must go be with the family...

Rewiring For Sound and the Heart of the Matter

Isn't it amazing what medical science promises to do for us?

Way back in the dark ages (circa '91?), while I was working for a company called Teradyne, in my capacity as resident guru I had reason to drive over to the offices of PacBell. (Later to be gobbled up by AT&T.) PacBell was your typical corporate mega-venue. Lots and lots of cubicles, youngsters pushing mail carts with inter-office mail, and loads of suits and pointy high-heel shoes. It looked to me like the offices of IBM-wannabes.

This California Casual Girl in Birkenstocks was completely out of her element. I may have gloated.

Anyway, while at PacBell I had the pleasure to meet a nondescript, balding, but genial man. His name was Scott Adams. Yes, the Scott Adams. The creator of Dilbert had not yet left his corporate environment and still worked for PacBell. We chatted for a few minutes, passing the time. I have always remembered the vanilla encounter, but I'm sure the memory of that occasion died a quick death in Scott's memory.

All the same, I have followed his career from afar. He lives about 10 miles from us, although our paths have not again crossed. He co-owns a restaurant near us, as well as another further away. I read his blog. And that brings me to the first subject of this post.

The local newspaper did a feature on Scott a while back and that was where I learned that he has been suffering from brain disorder, Spasmodic Dysphonia, that won't allow him to speak in certain situations. I think he cannot carry on a conversation with someone in person, but can speak on the phone, or in rhyme, or if he pinches his nose (How Annoying!). He goes into remission, at times. I think the disorder has been quite fluid in its symptoms. He also can no long draw the cartoons with pen and paper, but has to use a computer to generate the cartoons.

Well, today in his blog he reported that he had surgery to re-wire the nerves to his vocal chords. That must have been delicate work! I find it truly and wonderfully amazing that our body can be so manipulated to by-pass these devastating problems. I wish him the best in his recovery.

And, secondly, to the heart of the matter, in Seattle my 34 year old niece had heart surgery yesterday in an effort to control rapid heart beats resulting from too-rapid nerve firings. The effect of which has been seizures, sometimes landing her in the ER and the need to use the defibrillator paddles to shock the heart into rhythm. The surgery, cardiac ablation essentially destroys the nerve bundles that are causing the irregular and rapid heart beats.

We are all rejoicing in the success of her surgery. She's going home today to Olympia, and her husband, her Mom & Dad (my brother) will be doing their best to keep three, small, energetic children occupied as she recovers with bed-rest.

Life is good.

Speaking in Non Sequiturs

Nearly 13 year old Daughter #1 just loves to tell anyone who will listen, or even who isn't listening, about anything that crosses her mind and strikes her fancy.

It could be about the cat attacking her toes, the plot of a TV show, something that struck her funny, or even a friend's hang-nail (yes, true). It could be anything.

Now, I do want to encourage her communications skills. I love it that she wants to talk to her Moms about anything that occurs to her. But, she speaks in non sequiturs. The girl wouldn't know the point of a story if it bit her nose. Riding along with her on this verbal journey is an exercise in being lost in a litany of words whose content makes no sense to the listener. Or, at least no sense to me.

I find myself being impatient with her and imagine myself screaming in exasperation,

"Daughter! Is there a point to this story? Is there a plot? Why have I been standing here listening for 20 minutes and I still don't know what you want to tell me?"

So, she attempts to quickly finish up. For 5 more minutes. By the end of the next series of non sequiturs, the conclusion is never satisfying enough for me to think that my listening has served a successful purpose.

::sigh::

I have tried to gently guide her story telling, to no avail. I am hopeful that she will figure out the art of a short story on her own. It would be nice to listen to her and actually be able to follow where she's going.

Do any of you have experience with this? What have you done? Do the get less ditsy?

Please tell me they do!

Family Recipe - Mmmmmm... Cookies!

Back in the olden days, before kids, when I could eat anything I wanted an not gain a pound, I used to make big batches of cookies. I'd take them to work and share with anyone who wanted to munch the delicious morsels.

Eventually, all good things shall pass. All I need to do is look at a cookies or cake and the pounds start multiplying - right onto my hips.

But, now we have two growing girls who love to bake. So I dusted off my recipe book where I wrote down my own modified recipes for future reference. The recipes have origins that may be well-known, or not. The fact is, I don't remember where the original recipes came from. I claim the modified food algorithms as my own, but who knows? If you see a recipe posted here that you recognize, please kindly let me know in the comment section. I will gladly give credit where credit is due!

Here is one of my favorite chocolate chip cookie recipes. I am not one for pancake flat chocolate chip cookies. I like my cookies to have a bit of a chewiness and some substance. I'm the only one in the family who adores nuts, so if I want cookies with nuts, I usually make a 3rd of the recipe with them, and the rest is nut-free (unlike the inhabitants of our household).

Deboo's Yummy Chocolate Chip Cookies

2 c. butter	5 c. blended oatmeal
4 c. flour	1 tsp salt
2 tsp baking soda	2 tsp baking powder
2 c. sugar	2 c. dark brown sugar
4 eggs	2 tsp vanilla
12 oz. chocolate chips	12 oz. white chocolate chips
3 oz. chopped macadamia nuts

(Recipe makes about 112 or so. Lots and lots of cookies. Freeze some dough for later... if you like.)

1. Measure oatmeal, then blend in food processor (or blender) until the oats turn into a fine powder. This is a must. If it's not a fine powder, you'll have oatmeal chocolate chip cookies. This is not what we're going for. Got that?
   
2. Cream butter and both sugars (you may substitute margarine for butter with no degradation in flavor or texture. It just works. )
3. Add eggs and vanilla to creamed sugar and butter mixture in previous step.
4. Now for the hard part: Thoroughly mix together flour, oatmeal, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
5. Done mixing? Rest your arm for about 4 minutes.
6. Now mix in all the chocolate chips. Once the chocolate chips are mixed in, and if you're going to divide the batter, this is when you do it, before adding the nuts. Divide and conquer - add the nuts to the batter and mix.
7. Roll into balls and place about 1-2" apart on the cookie sheet. I like to use baking parchment paper rather than greasing the pan. No muss, no fuss. Unless you don't have parchment on hand - then grease the pan with your favorite pan lubricant.
8. Bake for 10 minutes in a 375 degree oven.
9. Cool and enjoy!
   
   
   

DP Benes and North Carolinia

Now I know that some of you may live in or near North Carolina. I have never been fortunate enough to visit that fine state. I am certain it has a beauty all its own.

But I am so glad that we do not live there. We are so lucky to live in California where our family is accepted so readily that there's nary a blink of an eye. I like it that way. We're nondescript, not all that different from most anyone else on our suburban street. Even in business, or dealings with the medical community, it's nothing to get worked up about.

So, it came as a jarring reality to me that outside of California there are millions of people who do not enjoy the rights we enjoy in the Golden State. Yesterday I spent half a work day filling out forms, compiling copies of forms, getting signatures notarized and finally sending everything via FedEx to my new employer in North Carolina. All was well until they noticed I had neglected to send along 3 of 6 items requested to "prove" our Domestic Partnership. NC has a law banning same-sex marriage, but hiring outside the state, they do allow that there are Domestic Partnerships. I haven't had to prove this for at least 10 years, other than by stipulating our partnership, etc. They won't even accept a California DP certificate, and of course they don't recognize same-sex marriage in California.

We sent our co-registered car registration, copy of a Power of Attorney dated 1994, and a copy of our joint checking account deposit slip. If that verifies our domestic bliss, it seems to me anyone could comply with items such as these and claim benefits.

If states would just see the legal light and give us the same right to marriage as strayt couples, the states would benefit, they could claim to be going "green" by eliminating unnecessary paperwork, lawyers might have to find another revenue stream to support their accustomed lifestyle, and we could all just get on with the business of living.

As a side note, I noticed that the wedding industry in San Francisco has experienced a lot of growth in the last month. All those new gay weddings require flowers, invitations, dinners, suits, dresses, wedding planners, cakes... the list goes on ad infinitum. At least one industry is having a boon!