The Raven (Adaptation)

Once upon a evening dreary, while I stumbled drunk and weary,
Over many a pint of tasteful and delicious bottle I had poured,
While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping,
As of some one loudly rapping, rapping at my chamber door.
`’Tis some trick or treater,’ I muttered, `tapping at my chamber door -
Only this, and nothing more.’

Deep into that darkness peering, long I stood there wondering, fearing,
Doubting, Thinking thoughts no mortal ever dared to think before
But the silence was unbroken, and the children gave no token,
And the only word there spoken was the whispered word of, `More!’
This was whispered, and an echo murmured back the word of, `More!’
Merely this and nothing more

Presently my soul grew stronger; hesitating then no longer,
`Children,’ said I, truly your forgiveness I implore;
But the fact is I was napping, and not so gently you came rapping,
And so loudly you came tapping, tapping at my chamber door,
That I’m sure the dead have heard you’ – as I stood with my open door; -
Quoth the children “trick or treat” this and nothing more”

But the Children, hopes resting solely on the on the goods, spoke only
those three words, as if their souls in those three words they did outpour.
No gratitude did they confess – not a “thank you” was addressed -
Till I scarcely more than muttered `your other friends have said before -
a simple thank you, in kindness of the goods to which they bore.
Yet on their lips no words were spoken, of gratitude or token.
My eyes were wide as my chamber door as I listened,
Quoth a child “Never More”

Startled at the stillness broken by reply so sharply spoken,
`How rude,’ said I, `what he utters is only stock and store,
Caught from some unhappy parent whom unmerciful disaster
Followed this child fast and faster till their songs the child bore -
Now he himself is soured, soured by the sins of yore,
For he himself is now a Shit, only this and nothing more.

Back into the chamber turning, all my soul within me burning,
Soon again I heard a tapping no quieter than before.
`Surely,’ said I, `surely another child here to peck at my store;
Let me see then, what guise is, and this mystery explore -
Let my heart be still a moment and this mystery explore; -
‘Tis another trick or treater, this nothing more!’

‘Trick or Treat, Be those words our sign of parting, little child’ I shrieked upstarting -
`Get thee back into thou Tempo and drive in to the Night shore!
Leave no lack of manners as a token of those words thy hath spoken!
Leave my loneliness unbroken! – remove your form from at my door!
Take thy self from off my steps, and take thy hand from out my store!’
Quoth the Child, `Give me more.’

`Moochers!’ said I, `things of evil! – Moochers still, be child or devil!
By that Heaven that bends above us – by that God we both adore -
I swear that on my soul unfortunate you arrive with fortunes poor,
It seems that with those who came before you, came and devoured all my store,
The child there motionless he stood, a guise of batman that he bore
Turning to his parent, Quoth “the candy’s gone…there’s nothing more”

Christ(Mis)conception

The Holiday season is fast approaching and I feel that the message and the meaning of the holiday are lost. When I was a kid in school, the teach always said it was better to give than receive and the sub connotation was that we should give something…to the poor, to the less fortunate etc.. OK point taken. But fast-forward and now I see people scrambling to buy gifts for not just family, but friends…and recently I read a column on a career sight that says I should buy gift for my co-workers. You have to be shitting me; don’t get me wrong, I don’t dislike my coworkers but they are business contacts and getting them a gift seems like nothing more than a message arranged by the those looking to increase sales of useless merchandise. When it comes to Christmas we instinctively say “Tiz the season of Giving” and I think we’ve taken this too literally…how literally? Reference the scene in space balls where Lord Helmut has his henchmen “combing the Desert”. In the season of Giving; what happened to giving of your self? Every year my parents have Christmas Eve dinner at their place, and they invite friends and family, and any familiar who for what ever reason has no place to be. My parents spend a kings ransom on food and drink, and my mom spends days getting it ready. Her only payment is…Show up. Since Fembot & I bought our house we’ve been hosting Christmas Day much under the same principal. We spend a kings ransom and she spends days preparing it. In my opinion, this is what the holiday season should be about. I find that the gift of a good memory surpasses any gift I ever received no disrespect to anyone who ever bought me a gift. The excitement of a gift I’ve found lasts a few days, weeks and months if you’re really lucky. But the memory of a good time, when recalled even a decade later can put a smile on your face. Nostalgia is the oldest gift, and comes in so many forms but never goes out of style what ever type of it you have. When I was a kid I got my share of toys, for Christmas some I can recall and others I can’t…but I have no trouble recalling memorable moments of the holidays. I think we need to step back and reflect on what this holiday is supposed to symbolize, and I mean beyond the religious aspect of it. This Holiday has grown beyond the confines of it roots, and should be a representative of the best in all of us. Our Children should be taught and made to practice the act of giving, and not just trinkets and bobbles, How about “Time” they can use it to help the elderly, or help at the soup kitchens, or use it any number of ways to give of them selves. There is nothing wrong with giving gifts at Christmas, as a gesture of affection towards those we care about. But when it becomes the focal point of a holiday in which the spirit of the message is to give of your self to those who need it; then we’ve lost our way…

Less flies with vinegar

OK, so dealing with Suppliers & service & Solutions providers is nothing new to me, though being the decision maker on which to choose is. Now A while back I got a call from a rep for a solutions provider whom shall remain nameless. For all intensive purposes I’ll call Him John, and his Company will be Xfactor. Any way so I get a call from him – he’s trying to push a new version of his surveillance application for the PC’s…think standing in front of an X-ray machine in your underwear. Our company had purchased a version a while back to monitor illicit activities on their PC’s. However I put an end to it as soon as I realized that it broke just about every privacy law we have. So I explained to him that I was aware of the application but as I was now running the IT dept, I had it removed. I politely told him that his company’s software is very powerful but is too in depth for our organization. I did tell him that if in the future we reconsidered we would call him back. Well this is where it gets weird – he starts telling me how we can configure the application to control what we monitor…without taking a breath he goes on to say how we can use it to collect the bare minimum…. So I interrupt and in a calm voice I tell him again that all I need is Internet monitoring and I have that solution all ready. Well…he gets flustered irate and starts raising his voice – saying that I’m short sighted and that I didn’t do my home work…and that if the company is affected by a security breach that I’ll be responsible…My answer was I’d be responsible no matter what, territory of the job. He continued on after about how he felt sad for me being so closed minded. OK now I had enough…I interrupted him and then cut in to him like a hot knife through butter.

I mean who was this guy? He calls me to make a sales pitch…and because I don’t bite in to his product he starts mud slinging? OH wait now that you’re insulting, and down right offensive…let me reconsider… No No; in fact let me pay you double the price…Cause I’m that kind of Idiot. Ok so we all have bad days…and maybe he should have stayed home. But that’s no excuse to shit on a person because you’re not getting your way. After I explained to him that I wasn’t interested; if he has just thanked me for my time and said something like “Well I hope we can do business in the future” I would have been cool with it, and I may have recommended his product to a colleague…but not now. This guys behavior was a classic example of how to screw your self over. We all have to put up with stuff we don’t want to deal with or things we don’t want to here, but if we start shooting our mouths off…especially to potential clients, nothing good will come of it. The best thing to do is be courteous, respect full…and don’t ever call a person names (mud slinging). That for me was the absolute final straw…it doesn’t fly with me in my personal life…it sure wasn’t going to fly in my professional one either.

So I closed the door on him and his company by sending a strong (but polite) email to customer service. Excerpt below….

“Please note that after my conversation with Mr. Smith, I have decided that any future dealings with xfactor would not be possible ~ While your product is very intuitive I feel that Mr. Smith’s reaction reflects badly on your organization and would make conducting business impossible.”

Deep Thaw(ts)

December 14^th, there are 10 days until Christmas; and today at lunch I drove with the windows down and the sunroof open, with the music blaring. when I came home today I stepped out back on to the deck and looked over the rail and saw the pool…fully thawed. I looked at the lawn…its due to be cut…should I really be contemplating cutting my grass in mid December? Truth is I’m not complaining…I’d be just as happy celebrating Christmas with a green lawn, just like they do in California. I may end up choking on my words but…so far seems like old man winter’s got no game. Now all due respect to the Geriatric Snow peddler, his opening performance was good, so good it set the city in to a freezing frenzy. But I’m starting to wonder if this is all he’s got… I know…don’t taunt. Winter can be a long or short season, it all depends on what we get. Personally, after a shitty summer of nothing but cloud and rain, I could use a mild winter. So I’m willing to compromise….we got an ice storm in an econo pack, and I’m sure we’ll see some snow. But that’s it…as of February I want a heat wave that lasts until next November. I want to open up my pool in March and keep it running through October of next year…Yah that’ll do just fine.

Contrition

Apology : an expression of regret at having caused trouble for someone.
- Google Web Definitions –
One of the hardest things to do is admit you we’re wrong, now we all say we would apologize if we were wrong, but the catch is that you have to accept you’re wrong, and if you think your infallible, the result is a no brainier…no making mistakes no saying you’re sorry. The truth is many people can’t admit to being in the wrong, it’s an admission of fault and somehow reveals what we all know but are too ashamed to admit…”We’re all human…we all make mistakes”.

So given that we’re all fallible, and we know everyone else is , and we know everyone else knows we are as we know they are… How often do you apologize? Really apologize… Let me be clear on the conditions

1. Not in a dismissive context such as “I’m sorry but you’ll just have to deal with it”
2. Not in a forced or coerced manner (BTW: coerced…just a fancy word for being forced to do something)
3. Not an Empty or hollow apology, as in not just to shut a person up.

I mean a real heartfelt, free willed, accepted responsibility for your actions; it was my fault, apology.

Scene | Friday Evening 20:00

FB & and I decided to rent a video from Block Buster, after making our selection we headed to cash. When we got there the gentlemen at the cash informs me that we have a DVD outstanding; He says the case was brought back and that it was empty. I told him it wasn’t possible, and that it must have fallen out at the store when an employee was taking them out of the bin. He’s solid on the position and says unlikely and that if its not returned by me I’d be charged. Hold the phone…charge me for a DVD I don’t have? …I think NOT! Firm in my conviction I firmly tell him that there is no way I’m paying for a DVD I don’t have. He tells me that I should go back home and check to see if the disc is in my DVD player…but I remember taking it out (cause backed it up on to my Server) so it couldn’t be. This re affirms my conviction and I tell him that there is no way it’s in my house. I rebut with the possibility that an employee could have taken it, which he agrees but says its as likely as it being in my house. Damn he got me… “OK fine” I tell him, I’ll go home and if I find it, I’ll bring it back and apologize that very night. But if it’s not at my house there is no way that I am getting stuck with the bill. FB and I get in the car, she tells me I shouldn’t have been so rough with the guy, and that I should have just agreed to go and check with out posturing. Posturing? I wasn’t posturing, I was sure of what I told him and I wasn’t rude or belligerent. So she asks if I intend to live up to my end of the agreement, will I go back and apologize that very night. “I won’t have to cause the DVD isn’t in our DVD player” but I may just go back and demand an apology from him. Moments later we pull up to the house and FB goes to the living room she goes over to the DVD player and presses the Eject button; the tray extends out; and I here her calling to me…

… to be concluded

…”You Owe an Apology”. I couldn’t believe it. Then it occurred to me, we had watched it once more when we had guests over… So she said “Are you going to bring it back tomorrow when he isn’t there?” “No, not at all – I said if I had found it at here I would come back that night to return it with an apology”. She turned and said “Oh I’m coming to see this”…We hopped back in to the car, and while en rout I turn and say “ if you weren’t coming I would have pinned it all on you” “I Knew it.. that’s why I decided to come along.” Actually I wasn’t going to, but I half expected that that’s why she came along so I decided not to disappoint in my comments. So she turns to me and says how she surprised that I wasn’t going to wait until tomorrow. But the thing is had I waited till tomorrow, 2 problems arise. The first is he will still know I brought it back, but then there’s the added issue that now I am not true to my word. “Your right” she says. Then she starts giving me a detailed list of what to cover in my apology. This starts sounding like an acceptance for an Academy Award. This got me thinking, what ever what happened to apologizing for the sake of apologizing? Does it have to be a “heart felt” speech full of sound and fury…signifying nothing? There are times for a deep apology, the occasion where an explanation is necessary…but on this occasion – for a late video, a simple “Sorry” would suffice. When we do arrive I go over to see him, I hand him the video and I offer to shake his hand and during the hand shake I offer my sincere apology, We nod heads and I walk out, it wasn’t as big of a deal as we may have thought…maybe its that reason that keeps people from apologizing when they’re wrong…not the deluded belief that they’re right all the time. In any case I drive home, and settle down for Supper…

Lessons Learned

On occasion I’m hit with a realization, something that I never conceived before. Then from that I learn a valuable lesson. So I figured I post some of the more prominent ones. I grouped them in to their respective categories to help place them in context.

Lessons on Life

® You’ll learn more about yourself from people, when they think you’re not listening.

® Be your self, if you spend your life imitating others you’ll cease to exist.

® Never burn bridges from your end…let someone else do it from theirs.

® Keep your friends close, and your enemies closer -Tzun Tzu-

® Be generous to those who need, but be cautious of those who ask.

® Your life has no direction save the one you’re facing.

® Deception is an evolutionary trait; that defines the human animal. .

® Murphy’s Law can be circumvented, only the wise will learn how.

Lessons on Learning

® Learn something new everyday

® With respect to Education & the institutions therein; memorizing & regurgitating information on command is not a sign of intelligence; any photocopier & printer can do that.

® Commonsense cannot be taught… anyone with commonsense knows this.

® Understanding; is the bridge between listening to what someone says, and hearing what they’re saying is.

® Question everything you read; Just because its in print doesn’t make it infallible.

® Never underestimate a persons potential for stupidity.

Lessons on Work

® Success is the convergence of your perceptions, expectations & realizations, an adjustment to any of them can radically alter your life.

® Ambition is the strategy you intend to use to achieve your goals.
® Ultimately rely only on yourself.

® Give a person enough rope and they will inevitably hang themselves.

® Never let them see you coming – Al Pacino | Devil’s Advocate –

Lessons on Technology

® People are dependant on computers, dependant on people dependant on computers….

® Only problems resembling nails can be solved by a hammer; though all problems may resemble nails if you dwell on them

® To those concerned that computers will take over the world: They already have, look around.

® Icons are the modern hieroglyphic that in 10,000 years archeologist will be trying to decipher.

® Smacking or punching an electrical device is known as “Applied Science”

® “Solar Flares” & “Random Acts” of God are perfect excuses when something inexplicably goes wrong with a piece of technology.

On The Lot

Filmmaking Genius and personal friend of mine Dino Congonidis submitted 2 of his works for a new reality show called “On the Lot”. Now I’m not sure how many of you heard about it but its basically American idol for Filmmakers. Aspiring directors (and wannabe directors) submit short films and then a final set are chosen. And then the finalist go head to head every week making new pieces.

Warning: Shameless ass kissing to follow…
Dino’s works are nothing short of spectacular, perhaps because he’s so hard on himself. With Dino “Good” is never good enough, even when “Great” is the only word to describe it. When the work is finished the hamster wheels are spinning “How could it been done better?” This inability to be satisfied with anything (and I do mean anything…it doesn’t stop at directing) is the driving force behind the quality and caliber of his works.
So with that said I’d like everyone to take a look at his two postings ( you’ll see the link at the end of my blog) and then submit a comment on it (you do have to register but it only takes a few seconds to do) I think it’s a small price to pay to show our support for local Canadian talent.
To see Dino’s works…Click Here

PS: Dino your last payment never went through, if I don’t get my money I’m pulling this Plug I wrote for you and I’m going to vote for the “bus boy video”

David vs Goliath

David battled the goliath with only his slingshot, but despite his crude simplistic weapon he was able to defeat the beast; I’m feeling the same way.

Last Sumer the backlight on the center console of my car went out…the unit was operational, you just couldn’t see anything unless you pointed a light to it. Now the car was just out of warranty, but this didn’t ( for many technical reasons) seem right…I’ve had minor issue before but to have only the backlight go out is a pushing it. An issue like this is always preceded and succeeded by other related issue around the device in question. So I started goggling the problem… turns out there was a mass occurrence of it in the US, but I couldn’t find any thing here in the true north. So I called my Dealer…eh my other dealer. He explained that they weren’t notified of a recall on the center console and the replacement would be 700+ and the labor & taxes…so 1300 total. Remember this is for a backlight… Now I decided to call Honda Canada to explain my case. What I heard next blew me away; the woman I spoke to said “Yes Sir we’re aware of the fault in the center consoles, however there is no plan to issue a recall”. She added that since My family and I have had a history with Honda she was willing to allow me to buy the unit at a reduced price of 200$… (Insert unimpressed look here). So after expressing my lack of satisfaction with Her response I hung up and proceeded to call in my contacts…every one of them with no luck. I looked on EBay for a reverb anything…but nothing doing. So I took a page from David’s book and resorted to using a sling shot. Mine was a simple argument that goes in a straight line….”My device is defective and Honda is aware of the fault and they should fix it….” So with Sling shot in hand I called Honda Canada on an irregular basis. This could equate to David’s battle with goliath; each time I called Honda I re iterated my ire with their lack of attention to the matter. Part of my attack consisted of an arsenal of carefully chosen statements to the effect of “Honda has grown to big for it’s britches, and if they continue to alienate their customer base they’re cars will be Found On Roadside Dead like a certain Automotive pioneer whom is currently experiencing a similar issue…but I digress. I also fired a shot at the Dealers in general…how they seem interested in only taking the shortest approach to fixing an issue and then if the issue crops up again out of warranty the customer is up a creek. In any case I made no progress, Goliath wouldn’t fall…weary I started looking at alternative options. Today after a hiatus on the issue I had decided to Call Honda Canada one last time, one last ditch effort to get them to reconsider…then I got a call From FB, “you’re not going to believe “ she said. “You got a letter from Honda Canada; your warranty on the center console has been extended”. Suddenly I heard a thunderous crash…that was the sound of Goliath crashing down.

I’ve gone against big industries before…Cell providers, ISP’s etc…but with the automotive industry it’s tricky…a Chimera of Technology and Machinery, where unless you have total knowledge of both or proof that the issue is not influenced by the other you won’t be able to overcome the challenge. I did learn one lesson, or more accurately revisit it. Patience! Initially I was ready to get a replacement at a reduced cost or even a refurbished unit… Sometimes we need to let things play them selves out.

Rough Start

You ever have one of those days where you should have just stayed in bed with the covers pulled tightly over your head? Yesterday was one of those days for me. The Alarm went off per usual and I sprang *stumbled* out of bed and eagerly *reluctantly* went about my AM routine.

Fast-forward – while waiting for FB to get her stuff I’m relaxed *stressed* cause we’re running very late; I go over to my coat hanging by the door and I make sure I have my office keys, wallet and my PDA. At this point she’s’ ready to go, so I calmly *franticly* grab my bag and we get in the car and off we go. After I drop her off I head to the office – traffic is good and I’m making up some of the time I lost.

Fast-forward – I pull in to the parking, and then grab my bag, and reach for my coat…$HIT! My coat… FvCK! My PDA… CR@P! My Wallet… SOB! My Keys… At this point I’m the only one who would have a set that opens the outer doors, but bump that – I’m also the only one with a key to my office…and the Coms room. OK I have no choice I have to go back home to get my stuff. As I jump back on the highway I noticed that my Fuel tank is low…very low. I’m not immediately worried, until the warning light pops on…I’m still a ways away from my house but I decided to get off and gas up…using the wallet I don’t have. Ok so now I start plotting the fastest rout home accounting fro traffic & actual distance, with stops and red lights.

Fast-forward – I get home on what could only be vapors in my tank…I shut off the engine and run in and get my wallet, the dog is confused and I give him a quick pet while I grab my coat and run out the door and b-Line for the nearest gas station. Surprisingly I make it there without so much as a sputter in the engine; I grab the nozzle and begin filling. When I get to the cash I pull out my wallet to pay – where the F*%@ is my debit card? Livid would be the closest word in the English language to describe how I feel…in fact I don’t think any spoken language to date has a word to adequately describe the feeling… Now; embarrassed about my gaffe I’m not sure what to do…I don’t want to stiff them but I just can’t leave without paying to go look for my card. I explain what happened to the attendant and offer to leave my License with them until I return. She instead has me fill out this form worthy of the ones I used when negotiating software contracts…Some ware in here I’m convinced there is a clause where they get to keep my house… if I default.

Fast-forward – I get home find my card and head back to the station. I get in line to pay for my “Stolen Gas”…two guys ahead of me…and the one currently at the cash…is a F@&% penny counter…AH! For the love of God… 7 minutes later (no exaggeration) the guy is done…and heads out with his Coke, Smokes and brownie. Good only one to go, and this guy had just put gas cause I saw him as I pulled in. he says in French “40 on the Pump 2” and the guy punches it up…then with his right hand he drops a “Loto Quebec” portfolio on the counter, opens it up…I can see the whole thing is organized…the guy starts perusing through them…advising the attendant of the ones he’s looking to replenish… While this is going on he is scratching and filling out a select set from his stock. Did I say livid…at this point the enamel on my teeth has worn out and I’m sure I’m just grinding the nerve endings together…Just as I’m about to snap a 2^nd attendant appears and offers to serve me (I’m convinced he was standing in the stock room watching my eye twitch on the surveillance camera; I pay for my purchase and head out.

Fast-forward – I get back on the highway and surpassingly traffic is light…I up my speed and head to work…out of no ware traffic come to a slowdown…everyone’s rolling at +/- 100 clicks…what is the deal? I change lane…and sure enough I see a Cop car setting the pace up ahead…no one is crossing that invisible barrier…I’m hoping he pulls off at the next exit or drops his speed so I can pull ahead…but no go…I get stuck with our city’s finest all the way to my exit…fortunately after 2 hours on the road I get to work and my day continues without incident.

mea culpa

Saturday Morning I’m headed off to my parents place to program my Stepfathers Bluetooth in his car. This is the 3^rd time I make the attempt but while enroot I think I know what the issue may be…when I get there he hands me the fob and tells me the car is in the garage. So I walk over to the car sit down in the driver’s seat; in order to access the cars computer I need to start it. I reach over to push the “Start” (PAUSE)

Some days you wake up and you know the day is going to start off right and keep going, the weather is good, the roads are clear, and there’s this general euphoric feeling all around. The drive was smooth, had the sunroof open and sun beating down was off set by the cool breeze coming in to the cabin; yup overall a great start… but there was no continuance…

(PLAY) S M A S H ! What the f*@k! The car hopped forward and hit the wall for the garage. The car is manual transmission. (A quick lesson for any one not familiar with driving stick; you have to press the clutch down and hold it down while you start the car, then with the clutch still down you choose the gear.) I knew all this, in fact I’ve been in the car several times and every time I started it the car was in neutral… “Why was it in Drive” I burst! “ “It’s always in drive” he retorts… So I backup the car; fortunately the car was only 5 inches from the wall when it hit and after inspecting the car, we saw there was no damage to the nose; only some minor dry wall dust. However the wall it self has a nice impact mark on it.

Well lessons learnt for manual cars;

• Don’t keep you car in drive…in your garage;
• If your going let another person start your car…let them know you kept your car in gear
• If someone asks you to start their car…ask if they keep it in 1^st
• Always check to see what gear the car is in…don’t assume.

Now I know my stepfather…if I offered to pay for the repair to the wall he’s going to say forget about it…and we’ll go back and forth on it…so I didn’t offer. So what I did was I called a general contractor and schedule him in to repair the wall and send me the bill…it really was a nice start to the day