Can I truly describe just how happy I am that the Yankees are pretty much looking like a team that won't make it into the playoffs?
Can I truly describe just how happy I am that the Cubs are pretty much looking like a team that will win their division (even though the last three games haven't looked that great).
September this year looks as though it's going to be very, very exciting! I can't wait for October!
So, a few months ago, I finally got the promotion that I've been working for at work for at least a year. I'd interviewed for two other promotion opportunities over the last year, was a finalist for one and wasn't considered for the other. Needless to say, I'm very happy that I've finally gotten what I consider to be "my due".
Although it's been a mixed bag so far, it's been an overall positive experience. I say it's been a mixed bag because there have been aspects of my new position that have been frustrating. But, in reality, they are nothing that I hadn't been expecting when I applied for my new position.
I'm not allowed to talk about where I work in a forum such as this, so I can't be very specific, but I can say that I'm now the manager of a staff of fourteen people, all of whom are very good at their jobs. There have been some frustrations for them, however, over the past several years, so they have been going through some major burnout. My number one priority so far has been to make their working experiences much more positive and showing them that their new manager does care about them and wants the best for them. So far, I think I'm being successful, but not as successful as I would like. But, again, I knew that would happen.
It's involved some very long hours (again, something I knew would happen) and being very tired at the end of the day (something that has actually ended up being worse than I thought it would be). But at the same time, I've seen some of my team's attitudes begin to get better. I've seen laughter and camaraderie become much more obvious in the few months I've been with them. And, that makes it all worth it.
I'm in a position now that I wanted. I have been experiencing some challenges, but I'm hopeful that things will continue to get better and that I'll be able to slow down a little here sometime soon.
I'm glad I went after this opportunity.
I have stopped accepting comments on this blog for the moment. The Spam was getting overwhelming again, so until I've found better filters, no more comments.
I may have run across a bug in Mac OS X's Archive Utility (the process that ZIPs files when you select "Create Archive" from the Finder's contextual menu).
I have a folder full of iMovie source files that I want to archive. The folder itself is just over 7 GB in size. I won't need these files anymore, but don't want to get rid of them. Normally what I do in this situation is simply create a .zip file from the folder and move it to an archive's directory.
However, in this case, when I select "Create Archive" from the Finder's contextual menu, I get the dialog indicating that it is archiving the folder with a note that it is expected to take about one hour to complete. The progress bar moves very slowly for about five minutes and then, suddenly, the dialog disappears. When I check, I do have a .zip file that is just under 6 GB in size. However, when I double-click on it to re-expand it (to test to make sure it was created successfully), nothing happens.
So, it appears that the .zip file is not being created successfully.
I'm wondering if this might have something to do with the size of the folder or the size of the individual files within the folder.
Just a quick note to say that my wife and I watched Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium this evening and we thoroughly enjoyed it. Anyone who says that a purely innocent and fun movie can not be made anymore has not seen this movie and is a cynic anyway.
Although the movie does have a message (and a fairly deep one at that), it still makes with the light-heartedness, gentle humor and, as the title indicates, wonder that kept us smiling through the entire film. I had never heard of the movie until we picked it up on DVD, and I have no idea how it did in the theaters, but I am beyond glad I watched it. It really reminded me that not all good movies need to be PG-13 or R-rated, have a hard, driving story-line or require sex and violence to be entertaining and worthwhile.
Although we just rented the DVD, we may just have to pick up our own copy. It's that worthwhile.
POST DELETED
And because the news media can make completely inappropriate decisions in an effort to scoop everyone else, I've had to take this post down.
Suffice it to say, the folks a CBS News crossed a line and obviously did not read into the meaning of the post that was originally posted here. Way to go. Oh, and don't ever call me at midnight again. Not only is it rude, but it was also completely unnecessary.
Unfortunately, I've been forced to delay the release of Print Window 4.
I had originally planned to release sometime in November, but shortly before the release was ready, I found a nasty little bug that was caused by Leopard. Although Print Window 4 worked just fine under Tiger, a change made in Leopard made Print Window not ready for release. Since Leopard is obviously the new big thing, I made the decision to make sure that Print Window was Leopard-ready before release.
I know what's causing the bug and have a good idea on how to fix it. I'm hoping to still release in December, but it may not be until January. Unfortunately, my time this month is very limited and I want this to be a quality release, so I'm not going to release until it's ready. If that means a January release, then so be it.
Of course, I will still be honoring the offer that was previously made of getting a free Print Window 4 Advanced license for those who purchase a Print Window 3 Advanced license after October 1. This means there is still time to get Print Window 4 Advanced for the same price as Print Window 3 Advanced!
Four years after he was passed over as Head Football Coach at Nebraska, USC Defensive Coordinator Bo Pelini has been named Head Football Coach at...
...Nebraska!
There aren't many in Nebraska who don't remember then Athletic Director Steve Pederson's snubbing of Pelini for the position in favor of Bill Callahan. Pelini had just come off coaching Nebraska to an emotional win in the Alamo Bowl over Michigan State after being named Interim Head Coach after Frank Solich's firing. Not long after that victory, Pelini was cleaning out his office after the announcement of Callahan's hiring.
Many will see today's announcement as a bit of vindication for Pelini. Most of the state thought Pelini should have been hired to succeed Solich. That obviously didn't happen and, despite everything that happened in the four years since, that probably was a good thing. Pelini wasn't ready.
Is he ready today to take on this very tough job? Face it, Nebraska is not the easiest place to coach. You have a very strong history from the last 37 years. There's a lot of success there, under only 4 coaches. There are very high expectations due to all the success over those years. Nebraska football is pretty much the only thing the state has and is under very close scrutiny.
I don't think Steve Pederson and Bill Callahan ever understood that. Callahan especially always seem to be confused at all the criticisms and attention paid to the program. He didn't make himself very accessible and Pederson made the program the equivalent of a well-defended fortress. The program was basically taken away from the state. And the state was not happy.
This is what Bo Pelini is stepping into.
Can he handle it? Obviously, I don't know. During this brief search, as his name was bandied about, I kept thinking he probably wouldn't be the best choice. I thought the program needed an impact name—someone proven. It needed someone who could come in and make an immediate impact. I was really thinking that Jim Grobe (from Wake Forest) would be the best choice of the names thrown out there, but that Pelini would get the job. And, he did get the job.
But, after the press conference this afternoon and the reaction I've already heard, I'll say that Bo Pelini has already made an impact on the program and the state. He made a point during the press conference of referring to the program's past including his time with Frank Solich. He made a point of telling everyone that he understood their frustration over the past few years and that he would do everything he could to undo it. He really reached out to the players and to the fans both. It really seemed that he wants to be not just a head coach, but the Nebraska head coach.
Even though I'm still unsure as to whether he will be able to succeed here or not, I do have to say I'm excited to see what will happen. After the past four years of frustration and uncertainty, it's good to be excited again!
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