Welcome to The Journey

An open book journey of Christopher William Klein

Greetings: An update on the previous month: The new job continues, and it is like trying to swim up a waterfall. It is like everything fights me at every turn of the wheel, and I am adjusting to it. I am unsure if that is a good thing or a bad thing. I continued my projects and I continued my writing. I continue to work on my artwork on a daily basis and I've got a routine down. Things are coming together for good or for bad. And now that it is spring it is time to garden.

The new month is here. Click here for May 2024

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Here we go...

...The same old song and dance.

April 01, 2024

We had visitors from out of town today in the form of executives from Chattanooga. They rolled in on the private jet and wandered around the terminal for about 90 minutes. They talked to everybody and shook a lot of hands. It reminded me of kissing hands and shaking babies in a political race. But they say that there are good things coming. I choose to sit back and watch. But it was a quiet day for a Monday. A lot of people were coming back off vacation from Easter and the planners were scrambling to keep them moving.


Been a while

Over the weekend, I realized that I had not done one of my deadly ladies recently, so today, I corrected that. There is no theme here, just a wire frame with a random image and some effects. Sometimes, it's good to concentrate on nothing.

Try

I am trying to keep myself centered and balanced. I overslept this morning but not terribly so, and I could finish quite a bit before I went to work. I pushed through work without any real problems and came home to eat fast food and play with the new virtual reality games. The family got a subscription to the interface, and now we get some free stuff each month. Some of it is good, and some of it is not. But at least we have choices. I have finished editing another chapter of the novel and am one step closer to publication. My greenhouse should be here tomorrow with a bit of luck, and I can start my adventure in gardening. Right now, everything is going well, and I just wanted to stay that way for a little while.


Shoot for the middle...

...You might just hit it.

April 02, 2024

There was an unusual tension at work today, and I'm unsure what was driving it. It could be my natural paranoia, but I don't think so. Everybody was quiet and sublime. Even the incoming calls seemed somehow suppressed, and I am unsure where that was coming from. I am potentially losing two more drivers, and I understand their reasons. When we are unable to service the driver, and we leave them to sit for days on end, there is no reason for them to stay. Alternately, when we run them too hard, they have no reason to stay. There has to be a balance, and nobody seems to be able to find that balance. This is becoming a significant problem and leading to grave turnover.


With Purpose

I found a fascinating collection of pre-made items, including backpacks and books, and I had to find something to do with them. This is the result. There is no theme here; I just wanted to use the backpack, the book, and the antlers.

Pushing upward

I was out of bed late this morning, and it is becoming a habit. I was up in just enough time to finish things, but that was about it, and I felt rushed. Work was very mundane if not hectic, and then it was time to come home. There was a big accident on I-240, and that took me about 15 minutes, but I made it home just in time to have chicken balls with pasta. It was delicious. Then, it was time for some virtual reality. The new subscription is working out well, and we have a few choices. I got into this interesting mixed-up sports game, which is fun. But I was still tired, and it was nice to get into bed.

I am working on a project a day even if I have to force that time, and a new one came today. I received my greenhouse and now they have to put it together. That is something I will be working on over the weekend. Other than that, I am working on my media projects, my writing, and my daily artwork.


Pushing up a hill...

...A scorpion on my back.

April 03, 2024

I am trying something new today that may increase the quality of the postings as well as the amount of information that the blog contains. Though I work very hard while I am on shift, I still have a few minutes, here and there, that allow me some flexibility to get a few things cleared out.

The first day of the experiment went well. I was able to pen off a nice long email to the wife while handlng the lion's share of the workload of our office. But there will be more on that later. It really has my panties in a bunch. And that is turning me into the Grumpy Cat. Don't get me wrong, there are times that I enjoy being the grumpy cat, today is not one of them.

Here is the situation. There are eight operators plus myself in the call center. We operate on a hive call method where all calls go to a single number and certain callers are funneled to you, based on their profile and your connection to them. So, if I am available and one of my charges calls, I get the call. Easy enough. But if I am available, I can get any call from the site, if another person is busy. And here in lay the problem. Nobody remains on queue. They wander around like vagabonds, take personal calls, have meetings about nothing with their coworkers, or just wander off. It is on my nerves. I tracked it today and it was horrific. By the end of the day, I was a tense ball of grumpy. And that is not a good thing.


Mother Earth?

What do you think she feels as she looks around us today?

Against the wall

On the personal front, I was up and in motion on time for the first time in a couple of weeks. That allowed me to get quite a bit done before I went into work, which, of course, dragged me down. In the evening, I cooked fish sticks and watched my show, DS9, before settling in to play VR. But even that was not relaxing because the headset was acting up. I could not get the grips to activate. It took about 20 minutes to get the thing working right, and then I was not really in the mood. I whacked a few zombies, then it was time for bed.


Paying attention...

...not always the best choice.

April 04, 2024

Paying attention to the world around you is usually a good idea. I believe when it comes to work that I may have been going through life with blinders on. But now that those blinders are removed, I can see everything around me, and I am unsure how to react to the entire situation. When you have a total of 10 people, the chances of all of them having the same bad habit are unlikely. We may be dealing with a queen bee situation where everybody mimics the queen. But I will sit back and watch this situation develop because it is not my place. As of right now, aside from a little extra work that helps pass the time, it does not affect me. But what people do not realize is that our computer system is highly sophisticated. It tracks everything everybody does, and that information can be pulled when necessary. It is going to be an exciting development


Fantasy trees

I always try to sneak in at least one landscape in a set. Say hello to my little trees.

The hill

I am climbing a hill. The only problem is that I do not know what is at the top. My dreams have become obscure, and my days are blending into one another. The only time I get to accomplish anything is on the weekends, which is a fight with myself because I usually want to stare off into space. Today is hump day, and I don't even have the energy to make a joke about it. Just two more days and the weekend is here and we shall see what that will bring.


Here it comes...

...the weekend.

April 05, 2024

Something has been bothering me for a very long time. By a very long time I mean about 3 months since I started this job. I could not figure out precisely what it was, and I thought I was intentionally blinding myself to the problem because I figured it out today. Now, I have to figure out what to do with that knowledge. When I was initially interviewed, I made a specific demand for compensation. The company eagerly met that compensation requirement, or at least pretended to. What I asked for was an hourly rate. They agreed to that rate, and it appears on my pay stub. The only difference is that I miss 10 hours of reported work every week. In short, they are paying me my requested rate of 40 hours a week, but I work 50 hours a week, as required. This significantly reduces my pay rate per hour. And I have to figure out what I will do about it. From a bullseye point of view, I am working 520 hours a year for free. I think I have a problem with that. But it also explains why everybody has a laxa Daisy attitude. I believe that they have figured this out as well.


Realization

I have been doing a lot of reviews of my work over the past couple of years. I have noticed something, and I am unsure if it is important or not. None of my characters, regardless of the situation, look happy. In fact, most of them look like they are facing devastation. I may have to meditate on that.

On the horizon.

Today is Friday, and this will be a terse entry. I feel like I am on a precipice and that something is on the horizon. I am unsure where this feeling comes from, but I think it deserves investigation. Today was just another exercise in the mundane and added to the frustration. I woke up to physical pain, an unwillingness to get up, and my lunch falling all over the place before I could get it packaged up. The day went downhill from there, and it is not worth discussing.


Reflection..

...the cracked mirror.

April 06, 2024

I searched for my original contract. My original negotiations were for $27.00 an hour, and I'm being paid $21.00 an hour. That is a significant difference. However, I could not make any headway today, and it is probably because I did not get a good night's sleep. Maybe tomorrow.


New model

I got a new model from the 3D software, and this is her. And the only thing that I changed was her hair color because she is a platinum blonde. I think she looks better as a redhead. Of course, when I did that, I had to change her skin tone a little. But I can see using this in a few pieces of art.

A Good Day.

Regarding weekends, I usually have a terrible time on Saturdays. The most significant problem is that I cannot get into motion. I anticipated having the same problem today because I slept horribly last night. But my brain had better things to do. I was up in motion and not tired, even working on zero sleep. I completed the greenhouse and got the freezer defrosted, and I even made it out to Aldi's to get things to cook for tomorrow. I spent several hours on myself, exercise, meditation, yoga, and my next seven pieces of artwork. As you can see above, I even got a few new models. I love freebies. I still have to anchor the greenhouse, but it is set up and ready to go. The extended family was over for about an hour in the afternoon, and then I got to play some virtual reality. Laura and I were able to fix the headset and the controllers. Finally, I worked on my novel for a while and watched some TV. Today was a good day


Off..

...mostly.

April 07, 2024

The essence of work today was reviewing my pay settlement sheets and figuring out my conversation with payroll. I do not anticipate that it is going to go over well, but I am going to do it anyway.


Something different

I have never really tried this type of art before. But with the experience that I've gotten from other types of drawing, especially computer aided drawing, I figured that I would give this a try. Simple lines and overly exaggerated expressions. I have a 21 day trial on the program I used to create this, but as soon as I was finished I jumped into Photoshop and realized I could do the same thing there as long as I start with the similar base model. All this week I'm going to put up some of the examples. I have more racy examples, but they are not for public consumption. At least not yet.

Back to work tomorrow.

Yes, I have to go back to work tomorrow. But that is tomorrow, and this is today. I finished up with the greenhouse, and it is ready to rock'n'roll. I went out to Kroger this morning, and while I was there, I priced out seeds, and that was almost the end of my growing adventure. They have increased in price more than five times in the past couple of years. It would cost almost $100 to get a good crop going in the greenhouse. Thankfully, I have a brain and realized that I could jump on Amazon and get growers packs for a significant amount less. Say what you will about Amazon, but they do make a difference in some things.

I worked on one of my projects, completed my French lessons, and started cooking. I'm sad to be done with my French, but now I can understand French movies and most conversational French, so I will take it even though I will probably never use it. It is time to move on to my next learning obsession, and I have no idea what that will be. But I still have a giant bucket of things to pull from. I'm considering spending 15 minutes a day on my violin. I have barely touched it since I came home. We shall see.

I spent quite a bit of time in my art programs, and I have walked into another obsession: manga. I don't seriously think that it will hold, but it is a good distraction for right now because I am not in the greatest moods, mostly because I have to go back to work tomorrow. But that is another story. Donald will be in town tomorrow, and I am not sure how that conversation is going to go, but I will be ready for it.

Finally, I spent a little time on the VR and relaxed. I am not ready for the new week, but I think I can tolerate it, which will count. It is only Sunday, and I am looking forward to next Friday. That is not a good thing. When the evening came, I edited my novel more, but my heart was not in it, so it was time for bed.


Push..

...forward motion.

April 08, 2024

Today was rough. It was eclipse day, and some people were out at work. We were carrying a large portion of the site with only a few on duty. And those of us on duty were not necessarily doing what we were supposed to do. From the time I logged in in the morning until the moment I left 5 minutes after 5, I was hip-deep in work. Tunnel Hill had a power problem, so they demanded all hands on deck for the site, which means that Donald did not make it in for his visit. That is probably a good thing because we would not have been able to accommodate him. I am hoping that tomorrow is better. But what I had to do today gave me some insight into other driver leaders, and I don't feel so bad about myself right now. But that is a story for another time.


Something different x 2

Over the weekend, I created seven of these images. The ones for the weekdays, Monday through Friday, are pretty much the same. The only real difference is they use different models. The ones for the weekend are a bit more racy and I have not decided if I will put those online or not. Look at that: I have become a prude in my old age.

Mental stall

As you can see above, work was very rough, and it sucked the life right out of me. In the morning, I anticipated a negative day, and I was right. I did not know where it originated, but I could feel it. Sometimes, I hate being able to see into the future, even if it is just a little bit. But I pushed through the day, and everything I had to complete went by quickly. The eclipse came and went, and it was barely noticeable to me, even though some other people were freaking out about it. I am not sure what this world is coming to. But I got through the day, and when I hit home, I ate dinner and watched a show. It was not a spectacular end to the day, but it was comfortable. Of course, I had to kill zombies and bugs before sleeping. I did well at both of them. My major accomplishment today was closing out chapters one and two of the novel, which are now 100 percent ready to roll. I am getting there.


Wow..

...just wow.

April 09, 2024

The out-of-town visitors were delayed, as was this portion of the blog. Tunnel Hill is without power, so they called for all hands to work from home. So they will be in later today or tomorrow. But things started with business as usual. Business as usual is a bit of a problem, though. Part of that issue is the morning huddle. The morning huddle is something that takes place every morning. This morning's meeting is becoming more and more of a nit-picking meeting to micromanage everyone. The terminal leader goes through every point that we should be addressing every day on our own. But, instead of allowing us to do our jobs, the terminal leader must question everything in the daily process. There is a term for this in business operations; it is called micromanagement, and it is a form of control that is used to enhance the perspective of a leader who feels that they are out of control. This will be addressed again today.

So, to get back on topic, things just are not working out, and I am unsure what I will do about it. The company is making destructive choices again. These are the same choices or types of choices that they made after the Atlanta driver summit. And that was the beginning of the end of the company as we knew it. I wouldn't say I like being micromanaged, but I felt the first snap today. I keep a very close tab on what my drivers are doing. I saw a dispatch order come in for more than 28 hours in the future. But it was right at the end of the planning day, and he was gone in the wind. I made the conscious choice of leaving it set without dispatching it to leave it to sit there until morning when I could talk to the planner. It was a 28-hour dwell with a 200-mile run. I know the driver well, and when he sees it in the morning, he will be on the phone. I would talk to the planner first thing in the morning and find a better resolution. But the terminal leader, the great king on high, had to send me a message and ask me if it should be dispatched. I would expect that from a fleet manager, but I feel there was something more insidious in play. Or I could just be paranoid. But just because you are paranoid does not mean that they are not out to get you. I am fatigued. So to resolve it, I did as I was told and I dispatched the driver. If he gives me a hard time in the morning, I will be more than happy to pass him over to my fleet manager. After all, $50 a day is enough to live on as in it? That's what the driver will get paid for this. All sarcasm is intended.


Something different x 3

As you can see, these are getting old very quickly. But don't worry about it because there are only three more to go.

I have to climb

I am not a quitter. I have never been, and I do not intend to start now. But I do recognize that I am trying to swim up a waterfall. I am fighting against something bigger than I am. But I also know that the best way to avoid a trap is to know that it is there. And that is the place that I am right now. I do not want to get out of bed in the morning, and I want to go to sleep early at night. Eating is not a joy; it is utilitarian. I have lost passion for many things around me that would normally be places of refuge. I recognize all these signs. The only saving grace here is that I know the source of the problem. When you are not happy with what you do for a living, the world becomes utilitarian. I have to force myself into my creative endeavors, and they are not a release or an escape; they are a hideaway. I really did not think that this was where I would be when I was pushing 60 years old. But I cannot wallow in self-abandonment either. I am allowing this to continue until the end of this month. I have set a goal so that I can see how things are going to work out. There are too many variables to apply my predictive futurism skills to the problem, but some of these strands should shake out in the next couple of weeks. As the 1st of May rounds the corner, bringing us to within about a month of profound changes both at home and at work, I will fortify myself and figure out what I'm going to do. There are options. So I have 20 days of contemplation. Fun times.


I am not..

...rising to the challenge.

April 10, 2024

I cannot seem to get it together. I have been working on getting someone to a terminal to handle a problem. The problem will end in termination. I followed the rules, asked for advice, and applied that advice. Ultimately, a person in control attempted to toss me under the bus. Isn't that interesting? Thankfully, someone sat on my shoulder during the conversation that caused the issue. So I avoided that bus. But it put me in a horrible mood. This is not a good thing. I am unsure what I will do in the future, but it has definitely left a bad taste in my mouth.


Because I prepped the Anime, I have nothing to put up today. So, until Saturday, there will probably be nothing new.

Not my thing

I have surrendered on the Anime. I figured that it would be fun, but looking back, I do not enjoy it, so I am going to move past that and back into more interesting areas. I am not sure when I will get back to the art, but I may give it a rest until the end of the week. This could possibly be a symptom of the work issues. I am just grinding my teeth and sitting on the edge of a precipice. It makes me seriously grumpy. I could get nothing done this morning or this evening. I am sleeping too much, and I wouldn't say I like it.

The week is droning onward, and knowing that the end is approaching does not help. I get up, go to work, come home and sleep. There is joy missing and it is making me quite grumpy. I have to find a way to get balance in this situation.


Pushing forward..

...But getting nowhere.

April 11, 2024

There was a weekly safety meeting and I kept absolutely quiet. I passed over a few chances to shine and show off, but this was all because of who was leading the meeting. I have a bit of a chip on my shoulder about the termination incident, so I remained quiet. People noticed. There is tension in the office as well, and I am unsure where that is coming from. I know that one girl is up for Fleet manager, and may see me as a bit of a threat, and she does the queen bee thing. The little bees follow her lead. And that may be it. Who knows? I am just tired of the games. I have a would-be leader that goes out of their way to have meetings. About anything. It keeps them off the phones, and the rest of us have to pick up the slack. It is just getting worse and appears to be contagious.


My own story

I overslept significantly this morning. Laura made it out of bed before I did. That is something new. And I do not see that as a positive, something new. My sleep is getting later and later, affecting my mood. Because of oversleeping, I did not have time for meditation, exercise, yoga, or even a decent meal. Breakfast was yogurt, and that was all. It was good, but not very filling. I figured I could relax and maybe catch up a bit when I got home. That did not happen. I was still wound up and exhausted at the same time. So it was food, then bed. Thankfully, the girls picked up Subway, so I did not have to cook. That was helpful. Then it was bedtime. One more day to go until the weekend.


Finally..

...the end.

April 12, 2024

It is not the end of the world but it is the end of the week. While I was driving the truck, the weekend meant nothing to me. Now that I am working in an office environment and facing the day-to-day challenges that I have to overcome, the weekend means quite a bit. I overslept again, but I made it to work just in time, and I knew it would be one hell of a day. I pushed through the day and got everything caught up before the bell rang, figuratively, at 5:00 PM. I had some trouble with one of my problem drivers, but that will be resolved on Monday. It has been one hell of a week and I am looking forward to the next two days off.


Free at last

This has not been the best week of all time. I found myself very close to losing my temper repeatedly through different instances. I usually have much more control than this but it was a cumulative effect. In retrospect, not a single instance caused the issue, but numerous things stacked on top of each other that tried to push me toward the edge. Thankfully, I was able to maintain control and make it through the final day. But I got nothing done in the morning and nothing done in the evening and I just went to bed hoping for a better future with the upcoming weekend. When I got home, I ordered my gardening supplies, which are supposed to be here quickly. I'm hoping that bringing a new life will help me find center and balance. But that remains to be seen. All this week, the creative muse eluded me. I did not have any energy to put into the artwork or the writing. I'm going to concentrate this weekend on getting that muse back. Hopefully, I will be successful. I am also almost ready for my next webcast and I am looking forward to it. But right now, I am going to close out this week and hope for a decent weekend.


Minimize..

...on the weekend.

April 13, 2024

I only spent a small portion of my day reviewing my notes from the week and formulating a game plan for next week. I have a few things that I have to go through to get things back on track, but I think I can get that done. Once I get to work on Monday, everything should be OK. At least, I hope so.


Mock Birthday

Even though I got to get quite a bit of my own stuff done, today was the fake birthday for the wife. She did not get to celebrate on her birthday so I did anything that she wanted today. But she is not that demanding of the taskmaster. Aside from cooking some food and spending time together, she did not have that many demands.


Pull it together man..

...It is only a rut.

April 14, 2024

I went through my list of things that I have to do on Monday and I wrote them down in an orderly fashion. Then it was time to put away work and concentrate on myself.


Glass

I am back to doing my regular artwork. Today is an image in glass, and I have done the ones that I'm going to put up for the rest of the week as well, and they are all part of a theme. This week, I chose the theme of the lady and a lake. Not to be confused with King Arthur, I am just playing with my water filters, and we shall see how they turn out. I should have enough done to last through the end of the week.

A me day

I fully admit that today was an incredibly selfish day. First thing in the morning, I ensured I was caught up on my yoga, exercise, and meditation. Feeling good about myself, I knocked out some of my data projects and waited for 10:00 to roll around. Why did I need 10:00? Because that's when the hardware store opens. I headed over and picked up potting soil, some cayenne pepper, some silver cleaner for Willow, and a couple of other things. Then it was back to the house to spend my day with nature. I mowed the front and side lawns, ran the weed whacker, and then sat down to get my hands dirty. I managed to get my cayenne pepper, lemongrass, peppermint, spearmint, penny royal, lemon mint, romaine lettuce, sunflowers, jalapenos, green Peppers, and cantaloupes planted. They are now in the greenhouse. That took a better part of the day. That only half finishes the greenhouse, but I am going to do 3 plants a day until the end of the week, and that should fill it up. I will have to pick up two more bags of potting soil. I said the final plantings may have to wait till next Saturday. But we shall see how the week rolls. By the end of the day, all of my muscles were sore, and I was ready for sleep.


Hello Dante..

...where is my Virgil?

April 15, 2024

I was very optimistic when I landed in the office this morning. But that was quickly squashed by the events of the day. It was one thing after another, and I could never catch up. It does not help that there are forces in the office that are working against the greater good, but that is something that I cannot put in here because of those who read these entries. It is a problem that must work itself out one way or another. However, the major issues for the day were a problem driver who had a slip and fall accident, landing in the hospital, and another driver with a popped airbag that caused a load of lawnmowers to shift. Those lawnmowers were rejected by the receiver, and the breakdown could not come up with a resolution in more than five hours. I was working on these two problems along with everything else coming in, and I took probably 20 of my own calls and more than 100 of everybody else's. That statement right there tells you part of the problem. By the end of the day, I was frazzled, and my optimism had gone out the window.


The Lady and the Lake, a themed project.

I am getting bored with my artwork. I'm spending a significant amount of time on them on the weekends and thinking of taking a break. This past weekend I decided on a theme and will share it with you all week. After that, I was not sure what was going to happen.

Head above Water

They said above, I came into this week with that optimism. That optimism did not even last until lunch. Before I came into work I was able to get quite a bit done and got everything caught up, but work dragged the life out of me. When I got out of work, I stopped and got gas and then headed home to sit and stare for a while. That was all that I had in me.


And I continue..

...the DECENT

April 16, 2024

Today was one of the worst days that I have had in a very long time. I was feeling a bit off most of the day, and then I had to pull a driver into the terminal for a face-to-face, mostly related to attitude. The driver dragged his feet getting here, probably in an effort to avoid the situation as he has done before, and did not turn up until about 8:30PM. That was a 15 hour work day. It did not help my mood at all. By the time that I got home, I was very moody and grumpy. I am unsure how long I can continue this decent into maddness. We shall see.


The Lady and the Lake, a themed project.

Continuing with the lady and the lake theme

Limited personal time

One of the most annoying things about life right now is the limitations that are on my personal time. Because of the 1 hour combined commute to and from work, together with 10-hour or more work days, it limits my ability to get anything done outside of work during the week. In the mornings, I have to mentally ramp-up to get ready to face the day, then when I get home, by the time I decompress, it is time for sleep. It is very annoying.

That being said, I was able to get some more gardening done and I have prepped the remaining soil. I ran into a minor issue with the nozzle for the hose, but we will get that resolved quickly. Laura took care of the house and the air conditioning is working again. I would not want to think of facing the Memphis heat without it. But the most difficult thing is that I did not get home until almost 10:00pm because of issues with work. It was a really bad day.


Fighting..

...the world and myself.

April 17, 2024

Because I had to stay at work so late last night, I got in two hours late this morning and I was fighting my own fatigue as well as the issues of the day. And there were quite a few of those issues. It was one thing after another, and it was not just with me. It seems that everyone was having some kind of issue. But we worked through them all and I got out of work about 15 minutes late. It was an uphill fight all day and I did not have a moment to slow down. The good thing about that was that the day passed quickly. The bad thing was that I am unsure if I got everything done.


The Lady and the Lake, a themed project.

Continuing with the lady and the lake theme

What personal time?

Getting into work late and then working as I did left little for me. I got back to the house and pretty much mentally zoned out until it was time for bed. I had no energy, no will to move forward and little left for the world except the ability to stare into space. My projects are getting behind and I am constantly tired. It is getting on my nerves.


Getting closer..

...I can see the weekend.

April 18, 2024

At least today was slightly calmer than the rest of the week. Things settled down into a rhythm, and I got most of my stuff caught up. The proverbial battle lines have been drawn in the office, and the teams are splitting, but I think we came to a good place on it after a bit of tension. I had a visit from one of my drivers, and we got her into a new truck. She will be starting her career tomorrow. Other than an extremely hectic day, everything was status quo as it was supposed to be. As long as it holds.


The Lady and the Lake, a themed project.

I am continuing with the lady and the lake project until the end of the week, and then I am going to create about 50 new items and then I will be done. These 50 new items will be the illustrations for my stories and novels. Once those are complete, I think I am done with art for a while. It is still enjoyable, but it is getting mundane. I may break out into a more traditional media. But that remains to be seen.

Treading that Water

I got quite a few things done before I headed out to work this morning and I was not completely exhausted when I got home in the evening. I wasn't ready to run a marathon, but I did not have to drag myself into the house either. I think that is a very sad state of affairs when just remaining upright is considered a win. But that is where we are right now.


Come the weekend..

...and all rejoice.

April 19, 2024

One thing I have noticed about the office job is that Fridays are very calm compared to the rest of the week. There was still quite a bit to do, but we did not receive the number of calls that we normally receive during the week. This allowed me to catch up on almost everything before I left for the day.


The Lady and the Lake, a themed project.

I only have a couple more images that are completed and then I will be on to the next project.

Still tired

Despite the minimal work requirements today, I was still exhausted from the rest of the week. I was out of bed and in motion at my regularly scheduled time between 2:00 AM and 3:00 AM, and I hit the ground running. Before I left the house this morning, I compiled a comprehensive list for the weekend, which is heavy on gardening and yard work. I worked on my novel, cleared my e-mail, and was ready for a decent day. Of course, that did not happen because of the bureaucracy that is in place right now, but I saw that coming, and I had already barricaded my mind against it. It is going to be a significant adjustment. When I got home, it was time for dinner, zombies, and sleep. I have a lot that I want to finish tomorrow, so I need the rest.


Put it out..

...of my mind.

April 20, 2024

The most significant part of work today was putting work out of my mind. That was not an easy task, and it took significant meditation and distraction by my plants to get it done. This is not healthy.


The Final Lady.

Here is the final lady at the lake and the end of this project. It is a black-and-white photo-realistic attempt. I was going for a 1970s look. I think that the next project is going to be creating the artwork for my stories. I said this earlier in the week, and I think I'm going to stick with it.

Me and my brain.

I believe that I finally have things in balance, at least for now. I was out of bed right on time even though it took a little help from Mother Nature and a thunderstorm, but I was up in in motion. I was able to get through all my job sites and all my e-mail, and I even got to take a nap before I had to start the work at home for the day. I made it up to the hardware store and got the last of my potting soil and I took most of the day to get my greenhouse set up. I rolled random movies while I was working in the garage and I was able to get everything that I wanted to planted. I noticed that my tomatoes are budding, and it was a very relaxing day. This was something that I have needed for a very long time. I worked on my next set of artwork and my novel. I have the general idea for my next podcast and I am hoping to get that done tomorrow. But there is still a long way to go.


A day..

...of rest.

Apr21 21, 2024

I managed to put out of my mind everything that is sitting for work for most of the day. Things are still getting overwhelming, but for the moment I was able to put them behind me and move forward without them weighing down on my mind. I have not been able to do that for a very long time.


The Awakening

Lilith and Ospiria are about to bring magick back to the world. And everyone is not happy about this.

Dirt glorious dirt.

Today was an extremely satisfying day. I spent the entire day with my hands in the dirt in one way or another. I finished out the greenhouse and everything is planted except for the little things that I will plant going forward. Once that was complete I tackled the backyard. It took the better part of five hours, but I was able to force my way through the entire lawn and get most of the edging done. It has been neglected for so long that it was out of control. I have to make some of my Poison Ivy solution so that I can take care of that problem before it gets out of control. I also did my wasp inspection for the exterior of the house and I got rid of those that were evident. I still have to get up into the attic, but that's going to have to wait until next week. All things considered, it was a decent day.

I spent a significant amount of time between yesterday and today working on my novel and working on the artwork that goes with my stories. I am going to be posting the artwork for the stories one at a time, and then I am done with that for a while.


Another week..

...Let's do this.

Apr21 22, 2024

I am back on the job and it was not too bad today. I left everything in good order when I got out of work on Friday, and the weekend team took very good care of my drivers. I had one little hiccup with a driver that I just picked up and I have to deal with that tomorrow. Of course there is also the driver that had to call in almost 20 times because I would not immediately bend to his will and do what he said. He is not going to last long. He talked to me and then to a bunch of other driver leaders and then he took it up the chain all the way to retention because I would not enter his three days of layover. So I did exactly what I was told, and I entered exactly what was in the computer, which was not three days, and he's just going to have to deal with it. He constantly gets lost, he is unable to hit the docks on time, and he feels that he should be paid for things he does not deserve. It is not a good relationship.


Gaia's Judgement

After the greatest storm ever known to hit this planet, a child is found in the aftermath on the shore. She cannot speak and just watches everyone around her. She is judging us. And rightfully so.

The grind.

I am back into the work week which limits my personal time. I was up and in motion, and I was able to get everything done before I went to work, but I did not feel accomplished. I am already very tired and the week has barely begun. At work, they still say that we are on for the June expansion, but I do not see how that could be possible. At this point, I am sitting back with amusement and paying attention. This past week, I had a total of 25 job offers, but every one of them was a lateral move, and that is not what I need right now. We are treading water but that is about it. We need to get back into a position where we are excelling. It just makes for a better situation.


Are we headed..

...to a conflict?

Apr21 23, 2024

Silence is a virtue. Silence is a virtue that I can often take full advantage of. However, there are times when that virtue escapes me, and that time may be coming. The first issue that I am experiencing is micromanagement. You cannot sit in a professional position and call out every possible mistake by an entire team daily without getting some blowback. You also have to learn to depend on your team to do what they need to do. Just because you come across something does not mean it is not being handled, and when you bring that to somebody's attention and tell them to fix it now, you interrupt the business flow. This not only comes from a direct management point of view but also from an outside source point of view, where people are taking it upon themselves to audit the work of our site. These people have no reason to be going through our drivers for this type of information. This is especially true when they are not doing their jobs adequately. The second aspect is the new management. This person was supposedly the driver, and they should know better than to send between three and five messages across the truck communication system. Because our trucks are not equipped with a reading system, each time a driver gets one of these messages, they must pull over to read it. The complaints I am getting on this are massive and will become problematic. But it is not my place to say something about this. I believe that things are starting to boil.


Rise of the Virus

The existence of viruses on planet Earth is an accepted fact. As humans, we have to deal with the fact that viruses will affect us and the world around us. But what happens when one of those viruses gains sentience? How do you fight against something unseen that can control you?

Push forward.

The week is going by too slowly. By the end of the day today, I felt that tomorrow should be Friday, and it is not. We are barely in the middle of the week so far. I was able to take my time and take care of my plants, as well as taking the time to take care of my artwork and my stories. However, I am feeling rushed. I am irritated as you can see from my tirade above in the work section. But it is challenging to do anything about it when you are not in a position of power. At this point, I would not fight for that position of power, at least not under the current umbrella. But there are five weeks before everything is supposed to explode, which means that jobs should be posted in the next week. That is when I will know that they are serious. I will give it until the middle of next month, and if I do not see some movement, I believe it's time to move on.

On a lighter note, my gardening is coming along quite nicely. I have sprouts all over the place and have to get through this coming weekend and look at what's coming up. I should be seeing some cherry tomatoes and possibly some jalapenos very soon. I might even see some Cayenne Peppers. That would be nice. I did some extra work on my story covers and the stories themselves. I'm setting aside about 15 minutes each day to read my synopsis of each story and ensure that the plate I am creating relates to the story. So far, the project is fun, and it is good to remember those things that I have made and swept under the rug for now.


Oh look..

...a big one.

April 24, 2024

The micromanagement continues and it is really getting on my nerves. Every morning, the same thing. Administration has to point out the flaws of everyone on site. Not only is this redundant, it is against high-performance business operations, something that we are supposed to be working toward. Negative reinforcement just causes irritation and resentment.

On the positive side of the business line, I have a love/hate relationship with one of my drivers. He really gets on my nerves sometimes, but he is excellent at what he does. I tagged him to come back from his home-time and then recover all 10 of our outlying trucks. It will take about a week. It is going to save a lot of money and get all these trucks back under our control. I am in a tedious relationship with the equipment manager. We get along, but there is some serious tension that goes back and forth.


Twelve Hours

What can happen in just 12 hours when a hodge-podge group is tossed together amid a crisis?

Update time.

I am in a mood today, and I have been in one for the entire week. Work is stressing me out, and it is not because things are getting worse. Actually, things are getting a bit better, but not quickly enough to remove the bad taste from my mouth over past events. I know from experience that a person cannot excel in a position if they are not happy with that job. And that is where I am right now. I cannot excel because each day, I don't want to get out of bed. But time is a river, flowing slowly toward the sea. Hey, that is some song from the 1970s. Isn't that precious? Yeah, I don't think so either, but I am sure there is someone.

I feel good about getting the plants in, I just hope that they take root and grow. I have never worked in a greenhouse environment before. It has me jumpy, but we shall see. I have set expectations of nothing, so anything that grows is excellent. Right?

But how are the other things going? I hit the end of my French lessons, unless I am willing to pay some outrageous fee. But I just stopped. I can watch French movies and all with little or no trouble, so that will do. I am working on my C++, and I am running my artwork and writing, daily now. So things are decent. This weekend, I will be doing my next webcast, and I have a lot of puttering to do around the house. All good when you take work out of the equation.


Oh look..

...class.

April 25, 2024

One of the things that disturbs me, and this is a generalization about the entire planet, is when you go through the expense of purchasing a piece of information that is heavily vetted, well designed, and built to solve a specific problem, and then you ignore the advice of that purchase. I know that that sounded a little weird, but it does make sense. The company has engaged in high-performance coaching. High-performance coaching is part of a more extensive system called the high-performance workplace. It is a system designed to make a company or organization run smoothly. If you take the whole course, one of the first things they tell you is not to condense the information and not cherry-pick it because it works against the high-performance model. The entire course takes about six weeks. I have taken the course; it is beautiful and makes a lot of sense. Today, I took a two-hour, condensed, and cherry-picked version of that course. Did you see what I said above? The company is using the coaching portion of the process but not the rest of the process. At least not for all employees. I kept my mouth shut throughout the course until the instructor called on me. But I won't go into the waves that I started by rocking the boat. It is over and done, and I can now move on. The rest of the day was just annoying.


30 Day Suicide

The price of 30 days of bliss is unfathomable sadness that leads to suicide. All from a computer program.

Push through.

I am getting fatigued very quickly lately. I have not been feeling well for a few days but think I am on the mend. With some luck, I should be much better by the weekend. I am sure this has something to do with the stress factors I face daily at work. I do not suffer fools or gods very well. And those fools who think that they are gods make it all the worse. I push forward through each day, but it is a fight to get out of bed in the morning. By the time I get to work, I count the minutes until the day comes to an end. This is no way to live a life. Change will come, but I am not sure when or where. I continue my daily soul-searching.


The end cometh..

...But only for now.

April 26, 2024

It is Friday, and that can usually go one of two ways. It can either be a fiery torrent that tortures me through the entire day, or it can be a calm lake with barely a ripple. Ironically, there does not seem to be a middle ground. Today, I got the lake, and I was happy to have it. I rolled through the day with few issues and was watching the clock.


Abducted

Abigail has been abducted by a notorious serial killer. But who is the aggressor, and who is the victim?

The end of the week.

It's been a very rough week, and I am happy to see the end of it. Work was OK for the first time in a very long time, but I was too physically and mentally tired to do anything. I was up nice and early and got my morning routine out of the way, but I was very listless throughout the day. The day's high point was seeing a collision between a pickup truck and a tractor-trailer as I left work. An older gentleman in a pickup truck did not even slow down at a red light and plowed into the side of a day cab. Being the conscientious person that I am, I was going to render aid, and then the driver of the tractor-trailer told me to mind my own business. Since nobody looked like they were hurt, even with a high-speed collision, I called 911 and moved on down the road. I don't understand people nowadays. I ended the week with a quick meal and sleep. Tomorrow is another day.


A well deserved..

...down day.

April 27, 2024

I still haven't gotten the hang of doing anything regarding work on my days off. Since I was up nice and early this morning, I sat down and figured out the project for the week that I will do to get all of our trucks back into Memphis. It won't be easy, but we can pull it off.


Accidental Devil

The child has miraculous powers. Everyone who comes in contact with him is healed. Just because he can heal does not mean that that power comes from a place of good. But is a creature evil if it does not know it is evil?

Saturday, you cheeky whelp.

We have made it into another weekend and I took the time to get up early and do a significant amount of meditation and exercise. I have been feeling very under the weather lately, and it is starting to affect my permanent, core mood. If you are unfamiliar with the core mood, it is the place where we start. Even though I may come across as a cynical, arrogant jackass, most of that I show. I usually attack the world from a place of positivity. Lately, however, that has been shifting to a more negative aspect of the world, and I cannot allow that to happen. So today I had a total of seven hours of exercise and meditation throughout the day. That did not help with my concentration level, as I proved with my zombie game, but it did help with my attitude and my mood. I feel a lot better, both physically and mentally.

Finishing one of my big projects improved my mental situation without any help from the world. I have been cataloging and verifying all of the series on my external hard drive for about eight months. The end of the project snuck up on me, and I finished it this morning. That has been a significant portion of my morning routine for a very long time. Now, I'm going to have to put something else in its place. Interesting.

The rest of the day went pretty well. I cleaned up a good portion of the garage, and by tomorrow morning, I should be set back up to do my whole morning routine in my personal space. The girls went out and did some garage sales and brought back some very interesting items, and I got my Amazon order done for my biweekly purchase. By the time I got to write this, I had forgotten what I had pulled off the list so that it would be a surprise. I accomplished enough that I don't have to do anything else for the weekend to be in a positive state of mind, but I have a full day left, and we shall see what that brings. I continued working on the covers for my stories and novels, and you get to see one of them a day. I wouldn't say I like the one for today or the story that goes with it. But it is something in the archive that I may use later. And perhaps I won't. The big things I have going on for tomorrow, depending on the weather, are to assess the installation of the attic fan, and maybe do the yard. We shall see what tomorrow brings. But I am optimistic.


What is that?

...is it doom?

April 28, 2024

I do not know what it is, but I have a feeling of impending doom, and I cannot figure it out. There is something that I am missing, and I feel that it is right in front of my face. I guess time will tell what is going on and I hope I have not missed something significant.


Alaelie

She was a goddess. She ruled on high for hundreds of years, and men and women threw themselves before her in adoration. Her physical appearance, intelligence, and scent could drive any human to madness. But when she was overthrown, unable to die, she was entombed forever. How will the goddess come to terms with a world where her magic is commonplace?

Well, that was a rough day!

I had such grand plans for my Sunday. Those plans cracked like an egg, and nothing would go right today. I attempted to get out my webcast, but the equipment would not cooperate. I tried to get the lawn done, but neither the weed whacker nor the lawn mower worked. I fixed both of them just as it started to rain. I took that as a hint from the universe that I would not mow the lawn today. I have been dealing with this feeling of impending doom for most of the day, and I have no idea where it's coming from. I could not even get into any of my movies because I was not in the mood. Ultimately, I just called in a day and felt unaccomplished. The only thing that I did get done, was getting into the attic and checking for the fan installation. Once I get a reciprocating saw and the set of work lights, I think I can finish it in about two hours. At least there was something positive today.


When will I learn?

...do not ignore those premonitions.

April 29, 2024

I can see the future. The ability to see the future is not magic; it is based on the analysis of information from any given situation. Most of the time, I am correct, and I can accurately predict the actions of a person, a business, a venture, or even a group of people. There is no magic behind this, it is an extension of data analytics. Predictive futurism. What a concept. One of the things that I had a prediction about was the amount of time that my manager, Mark, would be with the company. I gave him until about August. He is a very good manager but does not have a fire within him. He is too laid back. But that does not matter anymore because Friday will be his last day. As I said, sometimes I am wrong. However, the loss of this manager is going to leave a power vacuum, and it leaves either an opportunity or a threat directly in my path. I'm unhappy about this change; the other fleet manager is too green about what will come. If nothing else, it is going to be interesting. I will sit back, relax, and do my best to observe. Sometimes, the best action is inaction.


Angels

They were abandoned on earth in the time of Noah. They have slept in eternal sleep until today. But now they are awake, and they are going to reclaim the planet that was given to them centuries ago.

It has to get worse before it can get better.

They say that it has to get worse before it can get better. But whoever said it is going to get better? Even though this is a Monday, at the beginning of an extremely hectic week, I had some personal time today. I got up a little later than I wanted, but I could fit in my yoga, meditation, and exercise before I got on the road this morning. As you can see above, work was a devastation. But at least it wasn't boring. When I got home, it was time for tacos and relaxation. Just as I was about to go to bed, my Amazon box came, and I am now the proud owner of a cheese mold with a follower, 10 lbs of plasticine clay with an added bonus of sculpting tools that I was not expecting, and sushi making kit with a sushi bazooka. I may have to try that out this weekend, just for fun. It was an extremely harmful day, but I am trying to put a positive spin on it and see where that will take me.


Worst day...

...or should I say the worst day YET?

April 30, 2024

There is something to be said about a waste of time. And that is precisely what today was. Of the 10 hours I spent at work, close to 8 was wasted. And I cannot be sure, but I think part of it was intentional. I appear to have made an adversary of someone who is in a position to rock the boat. Repowering a load is not difficult when everything goes how it is supposed to. But it is a very intricate procedure. If one small piece of data is out of alignment, the whole process will not work. And that is what happened today. I made a mistake and failed to get a load properly processed. While this load was added to the Driver over the weekend, and you would think that the weekend would have taken care of it because it is my fleet, I am ultimately responsible. Every morning, I check every one of my drivers, and I did not see this load attached to them. But my adversary says it was there, so it probably was, and I just missed it. Instead of being the better person, they have to send an e-mail that is carbon copied to everybody in my chain of command pointing out my error. They could have pushed the button, which would have resolved the issue. They could have picked up the phone and called me. They could have sent me an instant message. Instead, they had to point out a fault to everybody that they could. I responded by taking responsibility for the mistake and using a left-handed complement, pointing out that I would have been made aware that this type of load was in my process under normal circumstances. That was the wrong move. While this aggressor could have made everything very easy, instead, she sat back and watched while I struggled for five hours trying to get anybody to change something so that I could make the process go through. My adversary knows that I have access to make that change but no authority. And I do not doubt that she was sitting there with a prepared e-mail about how I was overstepping my bounds. But I saw that trap coming. So because she wanted to be petty, my drivers remained neglected for 5 1/2 hours so that she could feel as if she was in control. And that was only one issue today. The second one concerns the medical requirements of a single driver and will not be included here for privacy.


Angels and demons

Two spaceships, inbound from the outer rim of the solar system. Who would have ever guessed that our religious foundation was based not on celestial visitors but on two alien races? And they are returning. Doing this cover did give me a chance to break out my celestial models. They are a bit cliche, but they will do for now.

Almost too much.

I was out of bed early this morning and could complete several things before I went to work. But as you can see above, work consumed the entire day. This was not good for my mood and the environment around me. I felt highly aggravated and frustrated throughout the whole day. When I got home, I tried to eat my pork and found it went bad. Not only was that disappointing, but it was an extremely uncomfortable experience. I finally ate a pizza and called it a day. I did not even get a chance to play with my new stuff. Maybe later.

Many people have asked me what happened to the webcast that was supposed to drop on Sunday this past week, and I thought I had put it in a previous post. I had some technical issues that I was working on, and I had to push it back for a week.