Work Frustrations

I'm not entirely sure how I hijacked my own blog and started writing extensively about work.  Maybe work, to a degree, has hijacked me.  I had a frustrating day today, mainly due to the overall volume of work, but that was just the surface that irritated something deeper. 

I am not sure what the deeper thing is that has kept me irritated at work, that has made me so frustrated, that makes me sensitive to the irritations of it all.  I think I will spend some time this weekend thinking about that and meditating on it. In conversation today I characterized my work environment as being 90% good and 10% bad, and I realize that for a lot of people that would be paradise. But, for some reason, the 10% frustrates me so badly that I find myself climbing the walls. 

Today, my trigger point was that yesterday I had sent an email asking for clarification on a project I was working on - and today, when I read the response from my upper management - well, it completely muddled things up.  From there, I struggled with staying present and motivated. I was able to, through techniques I've learned and through focusing on one task at a time.  I even managed to work myself into a good mood, then I had an afternoon meeting that spun me back into frustration - talking about the thing that had frustrated me to start with. 

Yes, definitely something I am going to think about and meditate on over the weekend.

Patience, Grasshopper

“Patience, grasshopper,” said Maia. “Good things come to those who wait.”

“I always thought that was ‘Good things come to those who do the wave,’” said Simon. “No wonder I’ve been so confused all my life.”

-Cassandra Clare, “City of Glass”

 

BBQ Tri-Tip

It was a nice and relaxed weekend, wrapped up by an easy holiday Monday.  I started the day by sleeping in late. I woke up close to my normal time and then just stayed in bed for an extra hour to an hour and a half. I met Tony and Bob for breakfast at the Hickory Pit, then from there, drove up to Edgies and shot a couple of games of pool with Don. From there, I stopped at Don Edwards Park for a rambling walk, then headed back over to Bob's for an informal BBQ.

Above is a picture of my contribution, tri-tip steak.  I have a very simple and very tasty recipe if you want to give it a try.

Ingrediants:

-2 lbs. of Tri-Tip steak, well marbled.

-Coarse ground black pepper

-Garlic powder

-Kosher salt

Preparation:

-Take about five pounds of charcoal, stake in a starter or in a pyramid, soak with lighter fluid, and ignite.  You are going to let the charcoal burn all the fluid off.  While the charcoal is lighting, take three handfuls of mesquite (or your favorite hardwood) chips and put them in a pan of water to soak.

-Cover both sides of the tri-tip with kosher salt, garlic powder, and coarse ground black pepper. Very liberally coat it, you want it thick and completely covered.

-When the coals are ready, arrange them in a circle, with the center of the circle open and about the size of the tri-tip, so you can cook it with indirect heat.  The coals should be about 400 degrees.  If you hold your hand about four inches over the coals, you should only be able to hold it there for two or three seconds.  Then, scatter the soaked wood chips around the circle of coals.

-Place the tri-tip in the center, fat side up to start.  Quickly close the lid.  Now, go away for 20 minutes. Do not come back. Do not open the lid. Let it cook and smoke and cook and smoke.  At 20 minutes, open the top just long enough to reach in and flip the steak, then close it down for another twenty minutes.

-When the forty minutes have elapsed, you can check with a thermometer (the thinner part should be 140 plus and the thicker part about 130, this will give you medium on one end and medium-rare of the other). If you like your tri-tip rare, go 15 and 15.

-Take it off the grill, cover it in tinfoil, and let it set for ten minutes or so.  Then, cut to the size you like. It will serve four to six people.

Concentration - Thich Nhat Hanh

"When you contemplate the big, full sunrise, the more mindful and concentrated you are, the more the beauty of the sunrise is revealed to you. Suppose you are offered a cup of tea, very fragrant, very good tea. If you mind is distracted, you cannot really enjoy the tea. You have to be mindful of the tea, you have to be concentrated on it, so the tea can reveal its fragrance and wonder to you. That is why mindfulness and concentration are such sources of happiness. That's why a good practitioner knows how to create a moment of joy, a feeling of happiness, at any time of the day."

So You Think You Can Dance

My guilty pleasure is "So You Think You Can Dance" and after a long hiatus, it is back.  Thursday was the first episode of the new season and I spent two hours this AM watching it on the DVR.  It amazes me that dance can move me to laughter, tears, and amazement. If you've never seen the show I highly recommend it.  The skill, the talent, and the artistry of the dancers is nothing short of astounding.

Today is the first day of the three day weekend and that was a good way to start the day.  My plan today is breakfast with friends, then off to see Men In Black 3. I don't know have any plans in the afternoon - I might kick out and play some pool, which I haven't done in a while due to the IPO boot, or I might just wander aimlessly through the afternoon. The sun is shining, the sky is blue, but it is very cool outside and it is not supposed to get up above the low 70's, so it is jacket weather.

Friday Before

I was done by about 4:00 PM last night.  The week of starting early (around 5:00 AM) and diving right into work caught up with me.  I met Tony for pizza, but I was on the verge of napping through dinner.  The Tiramisu had some temporary restorative effects, enough for me to make it home, but it did not last much longer than that. I hit the bed about 7:00 PM, had a good conversation with T.R., then rallied just long enough to make sure all the windows were closed and the apartment locked up.

I woke up, the first time, at about 3:30 AM and then managed to cat nap until about 5:30 and then eased out of bed and into the day. I made it a point to linger through the morning, eat a leisurely breakfast, watch the morning news, and then commute into the office.  Except, I got into the office and realized I had left some notes I was working on yesterday at home.  I tried to work without them, but I realized I was covering ground that I had covered last night, so I repeated the commute in reverse.  I drove home, picked up the papers, then came back to the office, where I’ve actually had a more productive morning.

It is blissfully quiet here at the office. With the Memorial Day holiday right ahead of us, I am sure many people took the day off to extend the long weekend, and I am sure many others are going to work a short day.  Because of the hours I worked earlier in the week, I may join the ranks of the people who are short cycling the day and start the weekend a few hours early.  I am definitely looking forward to the three day weekend.

My trip back to visit family in SD is moving steadily toward me. I will fly back on the 15^th of June for about 10 days.  In one of the weird things of timing, T.R. will be heading out for a two week work/vacation trip, so we’ll be traveling at the same time, but not together or to the same destinations.  We are both going to take advantage of it and probably drop off the grid for a while.

Dropping off the grid, disconnecting from the Matrix, is almost always a good thing because it gives our brain time to rest and relax.  We definitely live in an over stimulated world.  Last night, when I got home and before I tucked it in for an early night, I also disconnected from everything by spending the evening in silence.  That is always enjoyable and it always serves to remind me that I need to do that more often.

One Very Long Sentence

Another quick day, woke early this morning, spent part of the morning writing risk assessment analysis, talked to T.R., commuted to the office, worked on the assessments some more...and...went to a meeting, went to a meeting, went to a meeting, went to lunch, then went to a meeting and went to a meeting and, uh, drove home and stopped at the market, then stopped for a pizza, then drove home, then wrote one very long sentence and landed right here, right now.

A Brisk Tuesday That Felt Like Monday

Another brisk day under the belt. I started the morning at 5:00 AM with a shower and breakfast, followed by a call with T.R. (back from her vacation), then off to the office.

I'd love to tell you that it was a highly productive day, but it was a solid meeting from 7:00 AM until 12:00 PM, which were moderately productive.  The afternoon was better and I managed to accomplish some things - reviewing some of the requirements under my sphere of influence and responding to a handful of O&M issues.

We had two systems outages today (two different parts of the system), but since I am only peripherally involved in line support now, my role in resolving them basically consisted of writing a pair of email, taking a phone call, and opening a vendor ticket.

Then, I skated out, commuted home, stopped at the bakery for some fresh cookies, then a simple dinner of a sandwich and some potatoes. The evening is starting gently and I am easing into it. I am not sure what my plan is, but I think I am going to do some work and do some writing and maybe watch something interesting off the DVR.  In short, I am going to try and do next to nothing.  I can be pretty good at that.

Off the IPO Boot

It was a brisk day here in California.  I started with a meeting at 6:00 AM and then had constant meetings through the day until I went to the podiatrist at 2:00 PM, then as soon as I got out of the appointment, I dialed in to another teleconference.

The high point of the day was the doctor telling me the foot looks good and discharging me, with a follow up in a couple of months.  I am officially off the IPO boot, which is great - now, I just have to remember how to walk without it!

After the last teleconference I stopped and met Tony at Buffalo Wild Wings for dinner and when we were getting ready to leave and I was getting out of the booth, I was very careful stepping out - at if I was getting onto the IPO boot. It is probably going to take me a couple of days to figure out how to walk again, but I am sure looking forward to it!

I think at some point in the coming weekend I am going to visit a museum just for the sheer pleasure of wandering. Maybe catch the light rail downtown and then walk over to the San Jose Museum of Art and spend some time looking at the exhibits, and then lunch.  Let's face it, I am truly looking forward to getting out and simply walking around.

Meanwhile, it is a beautiful evening here, the far horizon is tinted in shades of red and rose and I am preparing to slip into bed early and spend the night reading. I have another heavy meeting day tomorrow, with the first meeting at 7:00 AM, so I am planning on an early rise. 

Elsewhere, T.R. is still on her off the grid vacation and I am missing her (while envying her being off the grid, I plan a similar thing for my next vacation).  Wherever she is, I hope her night is gentle and graceful.

Borderline Black

I am sitting at the laundry watching the dryers spin around in a borderline mood. It has more to do with needing lunch than anything else. I am debating either chinese or sushi once I get clear of here. It has been a good day so far, all in all. Breakfast, some time wandering Barnes & Noble, a movie, and now laundry. Miraculously I made it out of Barnes & Noble without buying anything. As a book lover, that is a pretty rare event. Black mood aside, it has been a nice day.
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