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Welcome to Minneapolis, Brett Favre
I look forward to seeing the freshly signed NFL quarterback in the Metrodome this year - except this time he'll be wearing Vikings purple!
Great news this morning that Brett Favre has moved to Minneapolis and signed a 2 year / $25M contract. _Awesome_! If you've been following my blog at all, it is clear how much I've been anticipating this news. You can find me in front of my television on Sundays this fall, wearing an authentic NFL Minnesota Vikings Jersey of the great number 4.
Despite the level of success the Vikings encounter this year, I'm glad to have Brett in the lineup (besides... look at the alternatives!). If he's successful, this was a great move by the Vikings. The other components of the team are Superbowl caliber, and this might put the team into the big dance. If he's not successful this year, this was still a great move by the Vikings. Ticket sales and memorabilia will far outweigh the price tag, let alone the huge national attention this brings to the ball club. I've been tempted to hop on Craigslist and see if I can't come by some Vikings tickets of my own.
Hi Mike / more job thoughts
Last weekend, Kellie's uncle Mike committed to visiting Up for Grabs when he got back to his Vegas home. I'm happy to have an additional set of eyes on my musings and I'll be looking forward to a ping from a Nevada ISP listed in my Google Analytics.
Building off my last post about liking your job, the very same Uncle Mike had some additional insight. As he described... anything that you can do for money, but would likely be doing in your free time even if you were not getting paid, qualifies as a good job. If I would be designing technical printed circuit boards and working the engineering side of system integration without compensation, my job would be sufficiently acceptable.
This "would-you-do-it-for-free" perspective is a good start, but is far too simplistic. Do I enjoy my job? Absolutely, and certainly I do some days more than others. Would I be doing detailed engineering design work if I weren't getting paid for it? Probably not. But in no way does this indicate to me that my job isn't a good one. For one, engineering is highly fulfilling. Working as an engineer in the defense field isn't usually easy or natural (high tech, high standards, etc), but a great sense of accomplishment accompanies the climax of a successful design cycle. Tight schedule constraints push an ever increasing sense of urgency. This urgency is often quite a rush, but again, some days are better than others.
These considerations do not push me to be a volunteer or free-time engineer. On the other hand, I'm glad my need to make money drives me toward this line of work. Looking back, I'm far happier having accomplished milestones in my job than if I had used the same time to sleep in and play sports all day - which is certainly what I would be doing given the choice.
Should you be happy with your job? It's preferrable, but sometimes you need to work through times of unhappy employment in order to find the green grass on the other side. Is it necessarily true that a job that you'd do for free is a good one? Probably. Is it true then that you would do the tasks of a "good job" for free if it didn't offer compensation? Not necessarily!
Do you like your job?
Getting someone to honestly answer whether they like their job or not can be a tough thing to do. One may genuinely dislike their job and refuse to say otherwise. Maybe they don't like it, but they don't want to lose it by complaining about it to the wrong person. Or maybe they try to put on a happy face to show people how well they're doing in their career. Another possibility - someone may not fully accept their occupational discontent. After asking the question, "do you like your job," I always take an affirmative response with a grain of salt.
My Uncle Ross had a great way to gather the same information in a much more discrete manor. As I was telling him about my work at Lockheed, he asked "Does time go fast when you're at work?" The more I think about the question, the more I appreciate its subtle intention.
I have had good jobs and bad. One thing is certainly true - time cannot hardly move any slower at a bad job. If I'm not busy enough or if I'm doing work I don't like, I look at the clock a lot more. My mind wanders to what I'll be doing when I get done with work. Minutes turn into hours and an eight hour day takes a lot of coffee to survive.
On the other hand, jobs that are enjoyable and instill satisfaction hardly feel like jobs. I can find myself thinking, "I can't believe I'm getting paid to do this!" I might even consider doing the same types of tasks at home that I usually do at work. There is never enough time in the day to get everything I want accomplished, and I start looking for places to buy more time on a work project. In this case, time obviously moves quickly during the day.
Fortunately, I'm one of the lucky ones that can respond that yes, time does go fast during my workday. I appreciate my engineering work and I'm at a comfortably busy work level. Some days time moves faster than others, but generally the days go by quickly (and I work 9+ hour days!).
I ask you, the reader - does time go fast while you're at work?
Linux terminal
The more I use it, the more I like it.
Command line (terminal) operation of a computer has a certain appeal. On the one hand, it's got a primeval sort of feel. Without using it enough and memorizing a number of commands, it's painfully difficult to use and frustratingly slow to learn. There is little you can do in a timely manner, and everything you're trying to do can be done in seconds with a few mouse clicks.
On the other hand, it's simplicity makes it amazingly powerful. Commands can transfer directories or wipe entire drives in a few short characters. Without reaching for the mouse all the time, lots can be done with all ten of your fingers on the keyboard. And the smooth feeling of operating the machine on only textual feedback is unparalleled in computing. It's an unexplainable feeling.
I suggest everyone that wants to make themselves that much more useful in the world of computing to install a copy of Linux that has a GNOME or KDE desktop (user interface) and ease themselves into more terminal operations every day. I promise the initial drowning feeling subsides, and anything frustrating in the terminal can be supplemented by a few mouse clicks with a crutch user interface.
Property shopping – House vs. Condo?
My lease ends on campus in August, and I'll be looking to make the move toward a longer-term home this fall. I'm new to the house shopping business. I don't know if I really want to live downtown, uptown, or in the suburbs at this point.
On the one hand, this will be my best opportunity to live the fast life downtown. I like the energy in the city, and I love the fact that a condo or flat would alleviate maintanence and the pains that come along with a house. Besides, there's no better time to appreciate the bar scene than when I'm young, have a regular paycheck, and I'm not tied down. And the view! I visited Spencer's flat for the first time tonight, and was absolutely blown away by the great view he's got of the city. It might be tough to find a downtown place I'd be able to afford with a view I'd be happy with, though.
However, it would be nice to have a place a bit more private and under my control. Bonfires and grilling in even a small backyard has its own draw. And I'm absolutely fed up with hearing neighbors through the walls and ceilings of my college apartments. Furthermore, I think I'd be getting more for my money in a suburban home than in a condo.
These are the considerations that make house shopping difficult for a newcomer. I haven't even hardly narrowed down my prospects and I don't have experience walking through properties; how do I look to buy? I'll find out soon enough... I'm looking to walk through some properties on my day off this Friday.
Welcome home Spency B
Spencer has made it to Minneapolis, or as the locals call it, the Big Snapple.
Along with the recent arrival of my good friend, good weather has brought good outdoor fun. Golf, tennis and biking have given way to frisbee, swimming and running lately. More importantly though, I'm once again active. I'd like to start making a habit out of doing something outdoors for an hour every night after work. It lifts the spirit and pulls in the beer gut at the same time.
I was thinking about high school swimming tonight. That sport was and is difficult. Swimming is a total body workout, especially when you're regularly mixing in weight lifting and dry-land exercises after swimming practice. I remember the hours of morning practice before school, hours of practice after school, dry-land workout after evening practice, then homework late into the night. The limited breathing and breath control make it one of the best cardio workouts out there. The problem is, swimming is one of the hardest sports to stay involved in.
First of all, self-motivation is almost impossible in the pool. It's hard to pace yourself while continuing to push your body to the limit without an out-of-shape coach standing on the pool deck barking orders and dishing punishment. Furthermore, swimming is tough on the schedule. The commute to a community pool and the dressing room time (including shower) add up.
What I need is an exercise or sport to be doing with a partner or alone after work that will get me in good shape. I don't need to be in high school swimmer shape, but it'd be nice to be able to bike 40 miles on the weekend without too much concern (hint hint - I want to go on some overnight bike trips soon). Or maybe I should train for a triathlon. Anyway, I'm not one for running. Not only do I value my knees, but running doesn't catch my enthusiasm like other activities. What else is out there that can be done regularly on a relatively tight schedule?
Once again Spencer, welcome back to the great state of Minnesota!
It's a good weekend
Kellie decided she had enough of her hiatus from Minneapolis and drove up for the weekend. Josh is in town for a graduation celebration at his parents place. Fathers Day and my dad's birthday mean that the siblings will be visiting with their children this weekend.
All in all, things are looking solid for a great weekend and a great time!
Millionaire
I wish I were a millionaire. This would make life so much more relaxed. Whoever says money doesn't buy happiness is confused.
The Dark Knight
Almost a full year after its release in theaters, The Dark Knight, the second in a series of Batman movies, has made it to HBO. This is good and bad. On the one hand, my poor memory serves me well as I get to watch the movie like its my very first viewing. A great story and a great performance by Heath Ledger as Joker push this movie to an all-time great.
However, it means my evenings have been largely absorbed by movie-watching. I would rather have a clean room or some extra bicycling done at this point, but unfortunately I watch snippets of the movie on my couch instead.
The few evening hours I have after work haven't been as productive as I'd like this last week, but I hope that sometime soon this will all change. Hopefully I'll be spending more time with friends, more time playing sports, and more time enhancing my life, rather than watching the tube and working on my computers.