Friends on a plane

.. as opposed to snakes on a plane.

In the years that I have been traveling on my own regularly, starting back in the early 1990s, I have talked to a whole lot of fellow travellers, some very briefly, some intermittently during a long flight, or even a short flight, and just with a very few there was an almost 'already knew you' feeling.

Recently I spent two weeks in Seattle training for my new job, and on the trip home I had the good fortune to sit beside Tina and A.D traveling to Austin from some outreach of Alaska where Tina (an Austin native) was an ER nurse. The mind boggles at the emergencies faced in a way back Alaskan ER compared with a metropolitan one, I just bet it was different.

A.D and Tina and I were seated in the less than salubrious seats, backing onto the toilets, with no possibility of putting our seats anything but in the upright position. When the drinks cart came around A.D had two vodkas and two Bloody Mary mixes, Tina had two coffees and two Baileys, I ordered a red wine and they paid for the entire order, so, naturally the second round was on me. And while it did cost me more than two red wines (as pointed out by my frugal husband) I only paid for a wine and two baileys, but I had the amazing experience of total strangers buying me a drink on a plane. I do love new experiences.

It set me thinking about all the people I have met on flights, mostly just to exchange names, enjoy conversations, or just drinks, but on one notable occasion I met an amazing woman. It really was like we had known each other all our lives, or in previous lives if you believe that stuff, whatever, we were like sisters who had not seen each other in ages, we spent at least half of the flight from Atlanta to Dublin non stop chatting.

Now, back in the early 1990s I guarantee you that would have been an end to it. But thanks to the Internet and social media in particular, by which of course I mean Facebook, we have stayed in touch. I am absolutely sure that if the occasion arises that I am in LA or Valerie is in Austin, we will meet up and pick up where we left off, just as sisters do.

I absolutely love flying - it opens up the world.

Teenagers! Have they mush for brains?

I do remember being a teenager. And one of the things that stands out in my memory is that, yes, I really thought I knew it all, and I really did believe that adults had no understanding of the world and didn't know what they were talking about. On top of that, I thought that anyone over 50 was most likely senile and had pretty much lost touch with reality.




Of course, when I was a teenager we didn't have smart phones, in fact we didn't have mobile phones, we had rotary dial phones which could only move a few feet while in use, being restricted to the length of the cable connecting it to the wall.

We called our radio a 'wireless' and I have no clue why because it was also connected to the mains in order to work. But my research tells me it is because radios used to be in fact, wireless, because they ran from gigantic batteries, due to the fact that not everyone had electricity. The highlight of our week was to listen to Dan Dare, Pilot of the Future, on the 'wireless' when I was a child, we didn't get television until I was into my teens, and then there was not much to watch.

But I am wandering from my point.

We didn't have personal computers, much less tablets. Our entertainment was not at all virtual, books with paper pages, pen or pencil and paper, jigsaw puzzels and board games, where pieces were frequently missing. No video games, YouTube or Facebook.




It was a different world with different holes to fall into if we took a wrong turning. Smoking and drinking underage was what the bad kids did, and into my later teens, that included weeds other than tobacco. I am sure other drugs were readily available. What I am not sure of is why I never indulged in anything more than tobacco (and how I wish I had avoided that too!). Alcohol held no mystery for me as my mother was French and so wine with dinner was perfectly normal, though the kids did get their wine watered down. As there was no mystery involved in drinking there was no reason to consider it wild and free. I was never one to go along with the herd, peer pressure had no effect on me and drugs frightened me, so I avoided them, even to the extent of leaving a party or gathering if I became aware that there were drugs involved.

I am not saying that I was a goodie two shoes, on the contrary, I was a rebel but apparently I had my own personal drummer and didn't need to be in step with the rest of the world.

I guess that teenagers are not nearly as grown up as they look, nor as grown up as they think. So, some of the things they do, frequently illegal and often resulting in considerable suffering and expense to the adults responsible for their actions are incredibly stupid. Rather than being young adults, they really are big children.

Today's teenagers still have smoking, drinking and drugs beckoning them to come ruin their lives and those of their parents. But they also have all the electronic crimes ready to trip them, such as illegally downloading pirated software and music. And those still mushy brains fondly believe they are smarter than the adults who developed those computers, tablets, smart phones and created the software. I suppose if they are also exposed to the criminal adults who indulge in the same infantile behaviour, it can be explained if not forgiven.

And sadly, those mushy brains have still not learned to value trust, and have no clue how hard it is to regain a trust that has been broken.

I wonder how many parents, uncles, aunts and grandparents have displayed extreme self control by not actually shaking their teenagers at least once a month. Perhaps it is all a necessary part of learning and growing.

My wish for the teenagers in my life, and those children who have yet to head through that awkward and frequently dangerous stage, is 'May your mistakes be small, may you learn from them quickly, and may you be smart enough to never repeat them, and may you march to your own drum and not that of someone else'.

Farewell

The last few days in a job after 13 years gave me pause to think.

I have always held that when someone leaves their job to take up another position, there is far too much fuss made of them. When I worked in Dublin the tradition was to have a 'whip around' that is, pass the hat, then buy a gift or a gift card, or even have the company cut a check. Then, on their last day they would have an official presentation of the gift, a card signed by the entire company, or maybe just the entire department if it is a huge company. Then off to the local pub where there was usually an open bar for a couple of hours, subsidised by the company.

Here in Texas, and also in my experience in California, there is less fuss, but still farewell lunches and happy hours are the norm.

Why? why make a fuss about the person who is jumping ship and moving, one would assume, to bigger and better things? Why not make a fuss of those people who remain and continue to work to further the company's bottom line? I never could understand it.

I am used to people, and not just new employees, asking me questions and because I have been here for so long, I frequently have the answers, but if I don't, I will know who does or where to look. I hardly noticed. This week I noticed. Every time someone asked me something and I was able to give them the answer, they said "what will we do when you are gone!". And I noticed how often in a day it happened.

This caused me to stop and notice just how much folklore information I did have stored in my head. Yes, I have been documenting all the projects I have been responsible for. Yes, the code for all the utilities I developed to assist me in my testing and automating of my tests is checked in to source control. But, how do you document answers to questions. I guess if I had thought about it 10 years ago, I could have started a FAQ page. Every time someone asked me a question, however simple, I could have added it to my FAQ page. Perhaps it would have helped, but only if everyone was aware that it existed, and where it could be located. Of course once I left, it would slowly become obsolete as systems changed, but at least I would be leaving that information behind where it could be useful.

And so, when I walk out of the office for the last time, I will carry a wealth of knowledge in my head. Knowledge that, for the most part, will be of no value to me whatsoever, but will be a huge loss to the colleagues I leave behind. Perhaps in my next job I will keep a FAQ page, it will of course start with all of the questions that I will find myself asking in the first few weeks or months. But hopefully, it will eventually be where I store the knowledge that I will accumulate.

Job search

I have 10 days left to complete thirteen years, one month and one day working the same company. If I have learnt anything from the past thirteen years, and more specifically from my search to find another position it is this:


Never take your eyes off the job market.

It is important to know what jobs are available and you never know when an even more perfect opportunity will arise, and if nothing else, you will keep up to date on what skill sets are being required. In this way you can keep honing your own skills to meet the trending marketplace.

Apply for at least three jobs per year, even if you have no plan to change employment. 

If all you get is a phone screen, this is good practice, and hopefully you will get at least one interview. The interview process varies so vastly from company to company, and there is a distinct fashion in interview questions and styles. Thus, if and when you decide to move on, you, and your resume, will require very little extra work.

One of the hidden disadvantages of staying in one company as long as I have is that you get stuck in a rut, you are almost completely blind to the changes going on in the working world outside your currently employment and this will work against you in interviews. Regular interview practice will help to keep you in tune with the world.

Serious about changing your job?

I am a thinker and a writer, an introvert. I have always felt that I am not very good at presenting myself at interviews and, as a result, I have had very many interviews where I came out knowing that I messed up. You know that feeling? 'Why did I say that?! I know what I should have said'. But after the interview is way too late.


Below are a number of things I have picked up, either from my research prior to interviews or from personal experience both as an interviewer and an interviewee.

• Prepare for your interview as you would for an exam.
• The single most important thing is be honest - never lie about your skills or experience
• Turn off your mobile phone
• Arrive early - most definitely do not be late
• Don't be afraid to ask for water if it is not offered, believe me you will need it.
• Dress appropriately - it is OK to ask what the expected dress code is at the time the interview is being scheduled
• Research the company
• Know the specific position you are applying for
• If possible, speak to people who have interviewed at that company
• If you don't know anyone who has, there is a lot of information on the Internet (www.glassdoor.com) on this
• Don't let all of the reports on a company phase you, remember that a lot of these will be from disgruntled people. Ever noticed how only those people who are dissatisfied write reviews?
• In the first few minutes an interviewer's opinion of you is formed on how you look, act and sound, not what you actually say
• Watch your body language
• Listen 
• Relax - remember they are not trying to prove you are wrong for the job, they want you be right 
• Don't talk too much and don't interrupt 
• Prepare answers for the main questions: why do you want the job, what are your strengths and weaknesses, where do you want to be in 5 years
• In particular, be prepared to answer what your weaknesses are with a weakness that is not going to adversely affect the position you are applying for, and follow up with what you are doing to try to correct that - don't labor the point.
• Be prepared with a list of examples of things you have done in previous positions that illustrate your abilities
• Make sure you understand each question and take your time if you need to think
• Be positive about yourself and your experiences
• Prepare some questions to ask at the end of the interview 
• Finally, if you are asked how you would solve a specific problem, at least try. Don't say you don't know, don't try to figure it out silently, try to work through it verbally. Almost always it is not the solution they are looking for, but how you approach the problem and more important, that you are prepared to try to solve it.

Not so much storage as..

..keeping my work space organized.

Every time I get ready to do some embroidery, I start with an idea, find a good image, create the design in my PE Design Plus software, and I get a page with this information on:

What I have to do next is gather these threads ready to use in order.  I started out by just lining them up on the table beside my sewing machine, but that wasn't ideal.

Next I tried using an egg carton, and while that kept things relatively tidy, the spools of thread were bigger than the cups in the carton, and so it didn't satisfy my sense of order.


I had a couple of dowels and tried to balance one in the very large spool of black bobbin thread in my storage basket, as you can see from the photo, that almost worked, but it was balanced very precariously and if I wasn't very careful removing the thread as I needed it, it all toppled over.


So it occurred to me that if I could drill a hole in the side of my work table, just the right size to hold one of the dowels, that would keep it upright and steady. I am perfectly capable of drilling a hole, after all I built an entire deck, OK it was a small one, but I had a very nice collection of power tools and I did build a deck, however, no reason on earth to go to all that trouble now that I have a very handy and willing husband, so at my request, he drilled a neat hole in the side of my table and the dowel fit perfectly.

Problem solved! Now every time I start a new project, I place the threads on my dowel in the order I will need them and I am ready to go. The dowel will hold nine spools and I almost never use more than nine colors so it is just perfect. I am sure I will eventually have to come up with some way to indicate a repeat of the same color, but so far that has not happened so I will worry about it when it does.

The history of a bruise..

actually, lots of bruises. I was going to title this 'what some people do to meet firemen' but I felt that was a bit unkind considering what poor Mildred has been through.

10 days ago she was leaving HEB and stepped off a curb she didn't realize was there, poor thing landed on her face and the unforgiving concrete jammed her glasses into her eye sockets. Fortunately the glasses didn't break - and I say that not because we care about the glasses, but because broken glass would surely have added to her injuries. Even more fortunate, none of her bones broke.

Within seconds she was surrounded by four firefighters from the local Cedar Park station. They just happened to be on their lunch hour and calling into the supermarket. They made sure that she was in one piece and fully compos mentis before they allowed her to leave. They did ask her if she wanted medical attention but she declined.

Considering that she has been on blood thinners for well over 6 months, we were very concerned but she assured us that she was fine. The first day, the only pain she felt was from her nose. The second day she felt her knee (this lady has two artificial knees to complicate matters), and the third day she realized that she must have twisted her ankle as that was also bothering her.

Day 1

Here is a pictorial record. This is one tough lady, day ten after the fall, she claims it is so much better and she is doing fine.

Day 2

Day 3

Day 5

Day 6

Day 10

Day 2

Day 5

Day 6

Day 3

Day 10

Some storage tips

I get frustrated with myself because I can't seem to keep my sewing stuff organized.

I have wonderful racks mounted on the wall for all my threads, I have a set of plastic drawers for storing prewound bobbins, manuals and other items not frequently used, tools for my sewing machine etc;





I have a basket for large spools of thread, scissors and stabilizer, but there are many other items, such as fabric paint, paint brushes, labels, empty bobbins ( one day I will take the time to rewind them ) and extra threads.

I had been saving plastic containers with screw tops for some time for my husband, he uses them to organize his workshop and it occurred to me I could use some for my sewing area.





So, following his lead, I used Goo Gone to help me to remove the labels from the containers, apply liberally and let sit to soak in, then carefully scrape the labels off with a paint scraper. They will come right off. Wash the outside well with warm water and soap, then dry thoroughly. I used a container for mixed nuts, a container that once held jalapeños, and a laundry detergent container, those little cushions of laundry detergent that are so convenient.

Next use either clip art of your choice, or take photos of your sewing items, or even the items you plan to store in the container, print these out on sticky labels and stick them to the containers.

Not only is it a fun project, but it really does tidy up the area and give plenty of extra storage.

One thought leads to another...

Association of thought, as described by wiki:

Association of Ideas, or mental association, is a term used in the history of philosophy and of psychology to refer to explanations about the conditions under which representations arise in consciousness, and also for a principle put forward by an important historical school of thinkers to account generally for the succession of mental phenomena. One idea was thought to follow another in consciousness if it were associated by some principle. The three commonly asserted principles of association were similarity, contiguity, and contrast, numerous others had been added by the nineteenth century. By the end of the nineteenth century physiological psychology was so altering the approach to this subject that much of the older associationist theory was rejected.

In my case, and I am sure many others, my mind will jump wildly from one thought through a very thin thread of connectivity to a totally different line of thought.

See, I was thinking about lines (or, as we knew it, queuing). I can't imagine that anyone enjoys spending long periods standing in lines, such as in Disney World/ Land, or Six Flags, or the various Waterparks.

This thought bubbled up because my stepson, his girlfriend and my two grandsons headed off to spend a 'fun' day at the new Hawaiian Falls Pflugerville Waterpark. I admit I wondered if it was wise to go on a Sunday, in July, after a week of rain and stormy weather in the Austin area. Apparently the lines were awful and the fun was totally removed from the occasion.


I guess some people don't mind lining up forever, because they do it, perhaps they think that the end result is worth the pain. I know our little party didn't enjoy it and cut their visit short. It is a shame that there is no solution to the long lines - I know at the Disney parks they do offer a fast pass for extra cash, and well worth it I am sure.  I don't think the Waterparks have copped on to this one yet. Maybe they should have a timer on entrance and if you stay less than a certain time you get a pass to return at a less busy time? Better than never going back because of the awful lines. And I suppose if paying customers leave early that somewhat reduces the lines for others.

But, back to association of thoughts. I was think that surely there is a solution to this problem. No, I thought, 'there is no solution...' and then the association clicked in. My most favorite movie quote of all times, from one of my most favorite movies - I have a few favorites, Ya Ya Sisterhood, Ghost, Steel Magnolias and the movie in question, Shirley Valentine.  "Marriage is like the Middle East, there is no solution."

Shirley Valentine is probably my most favorite movie because it is so significant. It was after I saw that movie that I decided to stop trying to make my marriage work. After all, another great quote "it takes two to tango". And a marriage will ultimately fail, or at least will be very unrewarding if both parties do not make the effort to make it work. I was slogging away and getting nowhere because .. well, because. I am sure you get the picture. A tango with no partner is no tango at all.

And that is my demonstration for today of how the association of thoughts leads you to some crazy places, but it is always fun to let it happen.

An Irish Garden

For my American readers, in Ireland a garden is the patch of land to the front, back and or side of your home. A vegetable garden is any or all of that ground that is used to grow vegetables. A yard, on the other hand, is either a farm yard, or a builder's yard (where a construction company stores building equipment).

Having cleared up that point, a typical Irish garden has a patch of grass which grows very fast due to the weather, never too hot, occasional sun, cool breezes and constant precipitation, varying between misty damp air to short bursts of pouring rain and every imaginable variation in between. The grass, if it isn't cut regularly, will soon become filled with daisies and dandelions, these will very quickly choke out the grass. The trick is to be ready with the lawn mower and rush out between the showers, preferably catching the grass when it is most dry and sprint around the lawn area to keep the grass trim and reduce the likelihood of the various weeds propagating.

Not only do the weeds love the climate in Ireland, flowers grow in abundance. The hanging flower baskets all over the city of Dublin are overflowing with color and are a source of amazement to tourists. Most houses also sport these incredible decorations and many gardens are a sea of various shades of every color. Roses thrive in this climate also.

Every Irish back garden will also have a clothes line. Some homes do also have clothes dryers, but it isn't common, and even those that do will only use the dryer in a case of extreme emergency as the cost of electricity is prohibitive. When the rain persists, Irish families either suffer the problem of racks of damp washing drying indoors, or frequent trips to the laundromat to dry clothes in the coin operated dryers there

My sister's current home backs up to the Mental Asylum for the Criminally Insane. The advantage of this is that the wall at the end of her garden is at least 25 foot high and, for obvious reasons, structurally extremely sound,being built out of huge granite rocks. The grounds of the hospital are large and filled with huge trees, the result is a very sheltered and private back garden.

Stone or concrete walled gardens are still very common in Ireland, though usually a whole lot smaller than the wall at the end of my sister's garden, so in either side she has also got concrete block walls. She is lucky enough to have a house at the end of the street and there is a well treed, grassy patch on one side of her.

My sister has a green thumb and a love of gardening, cats and birds. Wherever she lives, you can be certain she is going to be surrounded by color and interesting wildlife, and domesticated animal, interaction.

I am not a germaphobe..

I was beginning to think that I was a germaphobe, so I did a google search, found a quiz and completed it honestly and found that I was 47% germaphobic. Take the quiz here.

Unfortunately some of the questions didn't contain what my answer would have been, so I had to pick the next best. For instance question 4.



My response would be 'Sure, you can have it because I am finished with it' (and if they insisted on returning it to me I would throw it away. My second choice answer would actually be very specific - 'only if the sipper is my husband'. There were also other questions where my answer wasn't on the list, so I am guessing that I probably do tip over the 50% a little.

Germaphobes, according to this website are suffering from OCD

What got me going on this train of thought was seeing a colleague coming out of the bathroom with a paper towel in his hand, he balled it up and threw it in the waste bin by the water fountain. I realized why he did that when someone in the ladies bathroom dried her hands before turning off the tap, and then turned the tap off using the paper towel she had dried her hands with.

I think if I were a full blown germaphobe, I would already be doing all of these things and more, but clearly, at my age, I am still able to learn and might just aspire to being one. Because as soon as I gave the matter some thought I became much more aware of what I was touching in the bathroom. Yes! I always wash my hands thoroughly after I use the toilet - my grandfather taught me how to wash my hands when I was about 4 years old. I remember it vividly and think of him every time I wash my hands since. I am appalled by the number of people who use the toilet and walk straight out without even a token splash of water on their hands. I have even seen these same people head from the bathroom to the kitchen and handle food. We are talking here about in the office, so touching food that the rest of their colleagues will probably also touch, or have already touched, and possibly eat.

The idea grosses me out so much that I don't eat any of the masses of food supplied to us free at work; except perhaps the fruit which can be washed and peeled.

But come back to the bathroom with me for a moment. The more I thought about it the more I realized that washing your hands is not enough. Let us take one example: Person One enters the bathroom and goes into the cubicle, uses the toilet, at the very least wipes her private parts though other more gross, but necessary, activities are also possible, and I would rather not think about the possible unnecessary activities. She then flushes, whether she uses her hand or her foot to flush, the result is that at least some germs have been transferred to the handle, and existing germs on the handle from a previous users have now joined her own germs on her hand, should she use that method. Next she unlocks the door, more germs switch between lock and hand. If we are lucky, she will wash her hands. Germs again do the switch between tap and hand, assuming the tap is not motion activated (I am beginning to love them). Our soap dispenser is motion activated, as is the paper towel dispenser, the tap is not. So, we will assume she does a decent job washing her hands and many germs are removed, unless she scrubs like a surgeon, not all of them. Then alas, she touches the tap again to turn it off - ahhh germs return to the hand. then she will dry her hands with a disposable paper towel, good because those cloth towels are surely crawling with germs! Then she firmly grabs the handle of the door to exit. All those germs from the girls who didn't wash are sitting on the handle along with a few from those of us who did wash but can't remove everything, besides we touched the tap.

So what to do about this?  I have now started dispensing paper towels before washing my hands so I have them ready, drying with the paper towels and using them to turn off the tap. I wave at the paper towel dispenser one more time and use that final piece to cover my hand while exiting and then ball it up and throw it in the waste bin.

OK, maybe I am a germaphobe but at least I am not a very good one, as all of this just occurred to me recently. What else am I missing?