GO TIGERS!!!

Beat the hell out of OU!

Halftime score:

The good guys: 14

The bad guys: 7

9:27:52 PM    

Wow!  Pay up, or pay later...

Nick Bradbury: "Shareware developers are losing enormous amounts of money to piracy." [Scripting News]

3:08:23 PM    

I start back to work tomorrow after a long vacation.  I remember where I was with this last year, dreading it like I've never dreaded anything before.  It's funny what happens in a year's time.

This time last year, I was seriously depressed.  On January 6, I went to the doctor to ask him to prescribe Prozac.  I had had success with it before, but I hadn't been on it in several years.  Two things were very depressing to me.  One, my work situation was at the point of intolerable.  I have been very patient for many years there.  The person who had been my "boss" retired the year before, and they had replaced him with an interim for a few months so that our new superintendent could get an idea of how he wanted to set up his administration.  In January, he decided to hold interviews with a list of applicants, and the person I most despised was the key candidate.

Why did I despise him so much?  He and I had worked together for a few years in same-level positions.  Consequently, I knew him pretty well, and I've known him to "create" numbers on the fly, without necessary analysis, and I believe him to be a big-time liar.  At the same time, he is a master at covering his ass.  My wife kept telling me to be patient, that he would get what's coming to him. 

As expected he was given the job in March or so.  I made the mental adjustment to accept his leadership, but I knew that I would subject to lies and manipulations.  Because I have good credibility in the organization, and people believe me to be honest, I thought I would just take my wife's advice and just hold my ground.  I decided to do something I hadn't done in over 10 years, so I updated my resume and started putting some feelers out, though not real seriously hunting.

Life became tolerable, and then I started to realize he was losing his credibility and was starting to be discovered for what he is.  In November, right before Thanksgiving, he resigned!

So, my wife was right.  Now, the trouble is that have one melluva hess to clean up.  The real truth and the real numbers are now a reality that everyone is figuring out.  We will be forced into some extraordinarily serious budget cuts because of a lack of ample analysis and deceptive representation.  Fortunately, the person who is taking his place is trustworthy and is a hard worker.  I have a good relationship with him, and I'm optimistic about the future.

How did I survive the past year?  In January of 2003, I decided to get my ass in shape.  I've stated the statistics here or in my Backstage Diary already, so I won't bore you with that.  However, I will say this, that I would never have made it through this past year without the commitment to fitness and health.  I would have never stuck with it had it not been for the support of my friends online.  It has been a tremendous year.

Oh yeah, I took Prozac for about four weeks in January and early February, but the exercise, clean eating and weight loss, was just what I needed to overcome the depression.  I know what depression is.  I've seen it and lived in the dark muck of it for many years, and I was hospitalized for it twice.  So, I use the word depression advisedly.

My growth this year is planned already.  I will continue to set some fitness goals for my 50th birthday in 2004.  In addition, I'm committed to writing more, thus the blog. 

I'm sorry my blog isn't as cool-looking as so many of them are.  I do all my own writing of pages, etc., and the learning curve is great.  Web developing is a hobby of mine, and I use vacations like this one to learn some new things.  I've learned a lot about RSS and blogging over the past few days.  Now, I just have to go about creating something worth reading AND looking at.

tw

2:42:27 PM    

But, was he wearing his sunglasses...

SACRAMENTO, Jan. 4, 2003 -- Well, hellooo carrot and stick. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger just displayed dramatic examples of both in his dealings with the California legislature, which is still reeling from it and is scrambling in private to figure out how to deal with it.

Arnold As Thinker: Will Rodin Come To Sacramento?. American Reporter Jan 4 2004 1:40AM ET [Moreover - Arts and culture news]

9:29:34 AM    

Episcopal Church battle broadens...

Bishop Lee's Choice. It was his prayer, he added, that the people of Virginia would ''unite in the mission we share, even as we acknowledge respectfully differences among us.'' [TexasTodd News]

9:02:22 AM    

Noted...

All not quiet on several terrorist fronts. Passengers on a number of international flights to the United States during the Christmas and New Year's holidays can be excused if they believe that terrorists are winning at least some tactical victories in the international struggle. Let's hope that the Friends of Osama are not also triumphing in less high-profile but equally important engagements. Indications, however, are not good. [TexasTodd News]

1:05:45 AM    

But, can they dance?

Gentlemen's clubs catering to women. GLENDALE, Colo. -- Rose Eyong and Chantal Idouin nursed cocktails at Shotgun Willie's, the gentlemen's club that regulars affectionately call "Shotties." The two friends faced a raised and padded neon stage near the cigar case and shoeshine booth. Their eyes darted between an entertainer in white thigh-high fishnets playing peekaboo through her knees and a middle-aged man offering up one bill after another. Women. In a strip club? [TexasTodd News]

1:03:20 AM    

Sugar Bowl preparations...Sooners and Cajuns all at the same party!

Police explain ground rules for big game. With security tight for Sunday's game between Louisiana State University and the University of Oklahoma, officials are warning spectators to follow a few guidelines designed to keep the event running as smoothly as possible. [TexasTodd News]

1:02:17 AM    

Noted...  Wait and See

Bush defends 'No Child Left Behind'. CNN Jan 3 2004 11:37PM ET [Moreover - US politics news]

1:00:24 AM