Trash day in Yorba Linda

Too bad the trash didn’t get picked-up on Memorial Day. I might have gotten some decent sleep. By “trash” I mean my neighbors. There seems to be three different types of people that live in our condo complex. Young families saving-up to buy something larger, old retired people who have lived there forever, and my POS (Piece Of Sh*t) neighbor. At midnight I went to the bathroom and heard him and his girlfriend talking and cussing in the back yard. No big deal. Then at 3:20 in the morning I heard him screaming, “Get away from the baby” repeatedly, while she was crying. Then I hear him on the phone with 911 saying the baby won’t wake-up and it’s not breathing.

Minutes later the police show-up and say “Anthony, what wrong with your kid”. That’s right, the police have been over there so many times, they know their names without even asking. The baby (2 months old) seemed to be okay, because everyone stopped talking about it and called off the ambulance. After talking to him outside and her inside, they decided to give each of them a breathalyzer. What a surprise. I was shocked (not really) when he blew a 0.19. I own a breathalyzer and when I had a contest to see who could blow the highest number, the most I ever got was a 0.14. I was loaded, but also was not watching children at the time.

It sounds like they started fighting over the baby, he grabbed it, she was trying to get it away from him and he was holding the baby so tight it passed out. I think the girlfriend’s parents ended-up coming over to get their daughter and grandchild. Vanessa and I were hoping Child Services would be called and they would goto jail. Oh well. I finally got back to sleep at 5:00 am. Just enough to get 7 more minutes of sleep before the alarm went off.

Usually the police are over there for domestic violence or because his other daughter’s mother comes around to harass the current girlfriend. When will it end? As a side note, I think he had something to do with our cat’s disappearance. Just a feeling I get.

The rest of the weekend was good. I moved some stuff from my dad’s to our garage, helped my neighbor (not the same one) pull the engine out of his Charger (grunt, grunt), went to a BBQ in Newport Beach (carne asada and bikini’s), and brushed-up on my interviewing skills.

Happy birthday to pageandvanessa.blogspot.com

Sunday will mark 1 year of blog entries for me. It’s been really enjoyable being able to stay in contact with so many people and to get feedback from you all as well. Here are some stats to bore you with…

Average Regular Readers (Monday – Friday): 12

Most Regular Readers in 1 day: 21

Average First Time Readers (Monday – Friday): 5

Most First Time Readers in one day: 36

Most page loads in 1 day: 156 (picture of Amber when we went wine tasting) also, 139 page loads the next day for the same picture.

Most visitors in one day: 56

Total posts including pictures: 311 (I think)

Posts with the most comments:
What should we name our cat? – 11 comments
My road rage incident – 10 comments
Traffic in Los Angeles – 10 comments
I need a hobby – 8 comments
Where should we go on vacation? – 7 comments
We’re moving to Washington – 7 comments
Watching Mr. 3000 for Valentine’s Day – 7 comments
Direct TV and Tivo – 6 comments
When should we turn off the TV? – 6 comments


The only regret I have is telling certain people I have a blog. If I didn’t have to worry about people at work then this would be much more entertaining. I’m pretty sure they don’t read it, but you never know.

Thanks for reading!

Update...

The VP tore me apart in the meeting for me to update everyone on our progress. He called my projects "baby steps". No one in the meeting could believe it. I defended my projects and fired back at him a little. What do I have to lose? Later, the VP told me he appreciated me challenging him.

I went to lunch with him and my boss. They started lunch by talking cryptically about whether they should keep me around for a while longer. My boss already told me they had been talking about the possibility, so I listened and pretended not to understand while they talked in code right in front of me. Finally the VP came right out and said that they would like to keep me around for another week or two (the person they offered my job to turned them down), but this would definitely not be open-ended. I replied quickly that I would really like to stay on (collect more paychecks), so he could see I still had some interest in the projects.

He's not at work tomorrow, so I won't see him until Tuesday. Wednesday, I am taking the day off to go to my interview. Can't wait to see what happens next.

From glum, to awkward, to excited

Yesterday afternoon I received a call from Human Resources at the place I am hoping to work for. I have 4 consecutive 1-hour interviews with them next Wednesday. Holy crap. Four hours? That seems like a long time. I’m sure it will go by quickly. I’ll make sure to wear really good antiperspirant that day. I’m not sure which order this will be in, but I do know I will be interviewing with the VP of Human Resources, the VP of Operations, the VP of Finance, and the President of the division.

I’m taking that as a good sign. If they didn’t like me, I would think they would just set-up an interview with one person to see if I was worth seeing again. The news of the interview really cheered me up. I knew I would get called for an interview, so I’m not sure why it changed my mood so much, but I’m really excited. I need to bring myself back to reality before next Wednesday. There’s still a chance I will not get the job. It would make a really great change in my life if I did though.

Yesterday, I went to lunch with the Director of MIS at my current job. It was awkward. He told me I needed to fight for my job and try to convince the VP that I need to stay. I think he feels a little guilty, because I heard the VP told him that this is mostly his fault for not pushing his programmers. I have a meeting at 11:00 today with the VP, Director of MIS, my boss (Director of Operations), the programmers, and supervisors to discuss the progress of my projects.

After the meeting I am going to lunch with the VP and possibly my boss. I think I will use this opportunity to tell the VP that my projects were held up because of him. I will say it tactfully, but I will say it. The worst thing that can happen is tomorrow will be my last day. That’s already the plan, so let’s see what happens.

I want Yellow Dog

Today there is a small movement at my work to try and keep me here. Some are trying to keep me here for another week or two, while others want me to fight to stay on permanently. I met with my boss before lunch. He is trying to convince the VP it would be wise for me to stay for another week or two. The Director of MIS (systems) wants to go to lunch with me to strategize how to stay here permanently, which is funny, because I partially blame him for me leaving.

Anyway, I’m torn. The responsible side of me wants to stay until I find another position. The part of me that wakes up at 5:15 am every morning and sits in 2 + hours of traffic everyday was looking forward to Friday being my last day. I will stay-on if I can. The VP and my boss are gone for the day, so I will learn my fate tomorrow.

The cat (Shamoo) is driving me nuts. When we first got him he chewed on my flip-flops. I didn’t mid since they were old and cheap. Sunday, I went to Skechers and picked-up a new pair for $25.00. Despite them still being in a box, behind the couch, under a pillow, the cat found them and tore them to shreds. That and he kept clawing the couch. It’s an old crappy couch, but still. He has a scratching post upstairs. He’s just too lazy to climb the stairs. Both of us wish he would be a lap cat. He just ignores us unless he wants something. Next time, we’re getting a paraplegic cat. That will solve everything.

The difference between Page and a medium pizza?

The pizza can feed a family of two. I’ve had a lot going on for the past week. I was hoping to have some good news that would out-shadow the bad before I wrote about it here. Unfortunately, the good news hasn’t come yet, so I’ll fill you in on what has been happening so far.

12 days ago (Thursday, May 12th), I turned in my resume for a job I was interested in. Despite the short hours, I am not happy with my current position or the decisions the VP makes. This new job I am hoping for would reduce my drive from 75 minutes to 25 minutes, increase my salary, and is a position in which I feel I can excel and be appreciated. Since then, I haven’t heard anything about the new job. It wasn’t officially posted until yesterday, so maybe I’ll hear something soon.

Meanwhile, last Monday, I looked in the VP’s online calendar to see what his schedule was like for the week. I wanted to schedule a meeting to show him the progress we have made on some new programs. His week was clear, but then I got nosey and looked to see what his schedule was for the previous week. I went numb. He had been interviewing people for my position.

I can’t say I am completely shocked. While I feel I am good at what I do, I also know he is not a fan of mine and complained many times since I started. While my boss, the head of MIS (systems), and I feel my projects get held-up because he keeps changing his mind, he thinks it is because I don’t push the programmers hard enough. I’ve known this, so Vanessa and I have been setting aside money for several months now just in case something happened.

The day I discovered they have been interviewing, I walked directly into my boss’s office and calmly asked him when my last day was. He was floored. After I told him how I found out, he told me he doesn’t agree with the decision (I believe him) and that he can’t imagine the next person coming in and doing a better job. He didn’t know when my last day would be, but they hadn’t found anyone yet.

The next day I told the VP I wanted to show him some new things so I could get his approval to start programming. He still didn’t know that I knew. He told me not to bother with setting-up a meeting and to go ahead and have the programmer start. WHAT? Suddenly all of my projects were top priority. Something that had been held p for 6 months while he made up his mind was suddenly approved in 2 seconds without even looking at it. Amazing.

Since then 3 of my projects have been completed and the employees are happier than ever. Everyone is congratulating me and thanking me. Little do they know this is my last week. The VP knows that I know now. We agreed this Friday would be my last day. He asked me to go to lunch with him this Thursday (the last time we went to lunch was my first week). He told me he wants to get my opinion on people at the company. What a dick. I’m not giving him any dirt. The only reason I’ll go is to try and boost his opinion of some of the employees who he overlooks.

In the meantime, I am looking for a job. Hopefully, I will get my first choice. If not then I will be selective and make sure I find something that makes me happy. In the meantime, I may become a house-husband spending my days doing dishes, looking for a job, and hitting golf balls at the driving range.

Cinderella and Revenge of the Sith

Vanessa’s musical was Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. I went to the performances on Thursday and Saturday, and helped get everything set-up on Friday. The show went well and there was a lot of praise for Vanessa. After the show on Saturday, I stuck around for 3 hours to help take down the lights, take apart the stage, and get everything put away. I finally left at 6:30 pm and I was exhausted. Vanessa didn’t get home until 8:30 so I know she was tired.

Sunday we jus decided to relax and spend time together. We went to a bagel place for lunch and stopped by Eddie Bauer to pick-up some shorts for the summer. We were going to see Revenge of the Sith at the giant AMC in Brea, but I soon found out the next show which wasn’t sold out started in 3 hours. No thanks. We decided to try the local movie theatre in Anaheim Hills (Cinema City). There was only 25 minutes until the next show, and it only cost us $5.00 each. This isn’t a small theater either, just not as well known.

I liked the movie. It definitely answered the lingering questions, but for me the best part was seeing how things evolved. When looking at the spaceships, you could tell they were earlier versions of the one’s to come. I’m looking forward to the DVD box set. I think I’ll just plan a dork day and watch all 6 movies.

Token update...

There’s so much going on right now. This week feels like I am in a fog cloud and I’m hoping next week there will be clarity. Vanessa has her musical Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. I’m not sure yet if I will be going to two or three of the shows. Monday she was still at work at 6:00 pm, so she asked me to bring her dinner. I ended up staying to help put up the stage lights. One of the students father works for a lighting company that does concerts and stage lighting, so he was able to get some professional lighting for Vanessa to use. It was fun because I was learning something new and getting a little bit of exercise. We got home at 9:30 pm that night. Yesterday, Vanessa got home around 7:00 pm. I think Sunday we will both be sleeping in.

My dad sold his condo. He notified his work of a “soft date” for his retirement of July 8th. I call it a soft date, because if the sale falls out of escrow this may change things. His boss asked him to stay for another 3 to 6 months to help train replacements (yes multiple people). He agreed to 3 months as long as they pay for him to stay in a hotel. I’m happy for him and we will definitely be going out to celebrate once things are finalized.

Fish pajamas? What fish pajamas?

Saturday was my day to get a bunch of stuff done. It didn’t quite work out that way though. I knew Sunday I would be spending the day with my mom, so all the stuff I have wanted to do had to be done Saturday. I had such big plans, but as it turned out I went grocery shopping with Vanessa, grilled up some hamburgers, got an ID tag for the new cat, then grilled-up some shrimp and asparagus for dinner. I was supposed to help my neighbor pull the engine out of his Charger, but he got home late so we’ll do it some other weekend.

This is the same guy I play poker with sometimes. He’s a great guy, but has an uncanny knack of coming to our door when the house is at its absolute worst and/or I am laying on the couch with my goldfish pajama bottoms on. I’m running out of excuses. Saturday night Vanessa and I watched I, Robot. I thought it was pretty good, but my expectations were low before watching the movie from some reviews I had heard.

Sunday I cooked-up 2 pounds of bacon, which should keep me happy for the rest of the week. I could eat it all at once, but I had a couple and put the rest in the fridge. I took my mom out for a belated Mother’s Day. She likes to do things away from the actual set days to beat the crowds. We saw Kingdom of Heaven and we both enjoyed it, and Orlando Bloom is so dreamy!!! She is a history buff, so for her to like a movie like this it has to be somewhat realistic and follow the story of what actually happened. There were a couple of differences in the story line, but she says overall it was very accurate. After getting some lunch we went back to her place so I could fix some things around her place.

It’s been a while since I’ve spent time with my mom, especially alone. It was nice to just talk about everything going on. She’s always ready to provide advice for me.

Sunday night was the Survivor Finale. I really enjoyed this season. I was very happy with the winner and I wanted that person to win since the beginning. I’m hoping this will be an eventful week for me. Vanessa’s musical is Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. I know she’s looking forward to Sunday.

A story I didn’t want to hear

Friday night we went out to dinner with Ed and Tiffany. I’ll tell you more about them in another post, but this story is too fresh to put off. While eating our Thai food, Tiffany (A.K.A. Dr. TAT) told us about a patient she worked with at the hospital recently. It was an older lady who had been feeling dizzy for the last two weeks. Tiffany did the regular exam and while checking the ears, noticed one of them was blocked with wax. She started cleaning out the ears with a solution and held a bowl under the lady’s ear to catch the solution and wax as it came out. After quite a bit of wax came out Tiffany gave the ear one more shot of the solution.

A cockroach fell out of the lady’s ear and into the bowl.

I’m sorry, but that’s pretty sick. This definitely explained the dizziness. The lady was so embarrassed. According to Tiffany she seemed to be a normal older lady and was dressed nicely. Tiffany kept the cockroach to show to her husband Ed. They both confirmed the cockroach was a good ½ inch long and still alive. Now you have something to talk about at dinner tonight!

Was’ happenin’?

I’m kind of sort of looking forward to this weekend. There’s a ton of stuff I need to get done. Saturday, I’m helping my neighbor pull the engine out of his 1969 Dodge Charger RT (grunt, grunt). Sometime this weekend, I need to spend time with my mom (Mother’s day postponed), fix my garage door, and go over some things with my dad. I know there's more to do, but I can't think right now. Things at work are going well for the last two weeks. Someone recommended I change the way I present projects and it seems to have helped a lot. I’m hoping to have two major projects behind me within the next 30 days. Other than that, not much to say.

Life at 30

I guess there was a conversation I missed while we were celebrating Steve’s birthday at the Yard House on Tuesday. Someone stated that your status at 30 is a good indicator of what the rest of your life will be like (work, relationships, financial). As I write this I’m not sure if I agree with this or not. Perhaps if momentum is included in the evaluation. Other than not completing my degree, I am pleased with where I am at 30 so this is fine with me. I think part of the reason I am happy is because I see continuous improvement in my relationship with Vanessa, our careers, and our financial situation. It my spelling and memory that continue to get worse!

On the other hand, there are many people who do not shine until later in life. It is not unusual for someone to go back to school and start a new career at 40. I think it was Vanessa who told me that many high school graduates are putting off college and getting a career for a couple of years, because life expectancy has increased.

Any thoughts?

Blah… Blah… Blah…

We went to the Yard House in Costa Mesa for Steve’s birthday last night. I’ve never been there before and I really enjoyed it. They have over 150 beers on tap, but I still ended up getting something I could get at the store. Oh well. I got my beer in a ½ yard glass (which I heard is 32 oz.). Everyone seemed to enjoy their dinner and I ended up getting half of my dinner on my shirt. Hopefully it will come out.

Shamoo is fine. He has been going crazy during the day. I can tell he wants to go outside, but he still doesn’t have an ID tag on his collar yet. He escaped on Monday night and we found him in our neighbor’s backyard. I didn’t want to jump the fence, so we were calling him and offering him treats to come back. It was like the Pirates of the Caribbean ride at Disneyland with the prisoners trying to coax the dog holding the keys to come closer. He came back into the house as soon as we walked away.

Everything in my life seems to be revolving around money right now. I’m working on some retirement investment spreadsheets for my dad. I’m also using spreadsheets to plan paying down our bills and to buy a house. Paying off the bills it the easy part. Getting enough money to buy a house feels like I am chasing a train. I’m running at 5 mph and the train is going 7 mph.

My weekend with Nicolas Cage

First things first. The cat’s name is Shamoo and I think it fits him well. Last night was the first night of peaceful rest without being interrupted by the cat meowing. Nice. I watched a couple of movies this weekend: National Treasure, Saved, and Face Off.

National Treasure was pretty good. Of course I had 6 margaritas while I was watching it, but even without the margaritas I thought it was a good action flick. It certainly won’t be willing an Oscar for anything, but it was entertaining and that’s all I ask. Saved was a good satire on private schools and born again Christians. Again, not amazing, but entertaining.

I originally tried to watch Face-Off about 9 years ago and turned it off halfway through the movie. I just found the concept so unbelievable, plus John Travolta is so much bigger than Nicolas Cage, I just couldn’t see it. It was like the giant alien cockroach in Men in Black fitting inside the farmer. At least that was an alien, so there was an explanation. After some prompting, I sat down to watch it again. For some reason I wasn’t quite as irritated by the concept this time.

I went for a bike ride on Sunday for the first time in years (maybe 6 or 7 years). I went 5.5 miles and topped out at 25.5 MPH. Not bad for my return. I was pretty winded when I got back to the house and could tell I wasn’t even close to the shape I was in 10 years ago. Today, my butt hurts from the narrow seat and my back hurts from using my atrophied muscles. I’m hoping to go for a short ride today when I get home, just so it becomes part of my routine.

Cinco de Mayo...

Yesterday, at work, we pulled out two gigantic BBQ’s filled them with mesquite and grilled-up what had to be 150 pounds of carne asada and another 100 pounds of chicken breasts. They also served rice, beans, guacamole, and some fruit dessert thing, which I stayed away from. This company is generous when it comes to holidays and celebrations. I had the guy that picked up the asada get me an extra bag so I could grill-up some more for dinner.

Vanessa and I had Steve, Diane, James, and Reina over for a Cinco de Mayo party. James made some killer margaritas using Petron Silver. I grilled up a bunch of asada, but had to stop short when it started down-pouring. there was still plenty for everyone. Diane made cheese enchiladas. Reina made black beans with cilantro, garlic, onions, and lime juice. Steve brought the beer, chips and salsa. Vanessa supplied the guacamole, tortillas, and dessert.

It was a great chance to celebrate Mexico’s defeat over the French. I think that war is when France decided to just start surrendering. Just to make everyone regret coming over, I insisted that they watch slide shows of our trip to Europe and our cruise in 2002 before leaving.

Falstaff and Shamoo???

I stayed home from work yesterday and despite sitting in front of two computers for most of the day I still didn’t write a blog. My dad’s condo is available on the market starting today. Yesterday, the association finally got around to replacing some drywall that was damaged in the winter storms from a leak in the roof. Since he had a meeting at work I decided to take the day off and hang around his place while the stuff was being worked on. I’ve wanted to take a day off anyway. Everything came out great.

Vanessa and I brought some stuff from our place to make the place a little less of a bachelor pad (candles, towels, comforter, and vase w/ flowers). There are already three people set to see the property today and an open house on Saturday, so hopefully it will sell quickly and he will get some decent money for the place. Regardless of when it sells he is hoping to adjust the escrow so he can stay until July or August.

The new nameless cat is doing fine. He has a bad habit of coming into the bedroom at 5:00 in the morning and meowing. Hopefully this will end soon. I realized at 5:03 this morning that I might not be a patient parent since I told the cat, “Shhhhhhh….ut the f#ck up.” I can’t imagine a crying baby being less irritating.

There are currently 2 names that are leading the competition; Falstaff (after John Falstaff – a lead in Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre) and Shamoo. Shamoo would be because he is black and white like a killer whale (Shamu), and has spots like a cow (moo). It’s up to Vanessa to decide. We’re having some people over tonight, so maybe some other names will come up.

The last 5 years

May 1st marked 5 years that Vanessa and I have officially been together. It made me start thinking about the last five years. Where we were then and where are we now. A lot has changed for us.

Jobs
Vanessa was teaching at a Catholic High School in Burbank. When we moved to Anaheim, she was a long-term substitute teacher for the first year, before getting a permanent position at Orangeview Jr. High. I was working as a Purchasing Manager for Marriott, I then went to work for Metropolitan Provisions as a Systems Manager and Inventory Control Manager, and for the last 14 months I have been at Paul Davril as a Project Manager. At the end of this year our combined income will be double what it was 5 years ago. Not bad.

Where we live
I was living with Mike in Covina and Vanessa had her own place in Burbank. We moved to San Gabriel after dating for only 3 months. A year later we moved to a one bedroom apartment in Anaheim to be closer to work and lower our rent. After 18 long months in Anaheim we moved to Yorba Linda (a much safer neighborhood and two extra bedrooms). After 18 months at that place we moved to out current place. We like our neighborhood and our neighbors, but it would be nice to get a house.

Where we’ve been
We love to travel. Working for Marriott helped when we were making less money. Together, we’ve gone to Las Vegas, San Diego, Parker, San Francisco, Capitola, Monterey, Sonoma, Walla Walla, Mazatlan, Puerto Vallarta, Cabo San Lucas, Banff, Mendocino, England, Germany, and Austria. We have also spent weekends locally in Newport Beach and Pasadena. Great memories.

People we miss
We each lost a grandparent since we’ve been together. Vanessa lost her Grandpa on Valentine’s Day just over 3 years ago. I lost my Grandma, Helen, just over a year ago.

Overall, the last 5 years have been great. We are fortunate to have great families and great friends. I can’t even tell you how many amazing meals and great bottles of wine we’ve had together. I’m looking forward to the next five years and the adventures we’ll have together. Vanessa’s just looking forward to finishing her Masters program in December.

What should we name our cat?

What a great weekend! Friday we went out for sushi and watched the movie Saw at home (typical Friday). Saturday I played golf with James, Steve, and Travis. James wasn’t playing well, so we were all playing about the same. It was nice to get on the course after not playing for 6 months. I was nice enough to clean James’ golf shoes with some new shoe cleaner I picked up (inside joke)… We stopped at Islands afterwards to talk about what great golfers we are, eat Chili Cheese Fries, and down some burgers.

I headed home, took a shower, picked-up some beer, and by 5:30 pm I was at my neighbors house for some poker. We’ve started playing every 2 or 3 weeks now. I didn’t win at all this time (actually I played pretty bad), but Vanessa played and really impressed me.

The guy runs the thing has two kids. One of them is 6 and he loves poker. He watches it on TV, has the PS2 game, etc. We let him play a couple of games (we waved the buy-in). This kid kicked ass. He has all of the strategy down. The only thing he doesn’t know is when to fold sometimes.

So on this one hand everyone folds except the kid and his dad. The dad keeps raising and the kid refuses to back down. Finally when the 5th card is turned, the dad raises 20 chips (we started with 50). The kid checks. His dad started yelling, “Look at your cards! Don’t just bet to bet. You need to check your cards!” The kid pauses… looks at his cards, and pushes the 20 chips into the middle. The dad is upset. The dad shows his cards and he has 2 pair. He starts scolding his kid and gathering the chips until he looks at his son’s cards. Flush. Oops! The 6 year old kid took his dad to the cleaners. The whole table couldn’t stop laughing.

Sunday morning, Vanessa and I were watching TV and feeling bad about Mr. Pickles disappearance. I told Vanessa to get dressed and we headed back to Orange County Animal Services. After 90 minutes we left with a new cat. This thing is HUGE. He’s 15 pounds. So far he has been great. He is very friendly, but he kept us up for part of the night meowing. That happened when we fist brought Mr. Pickles home too.

We still have to come up with a name for him. I attached some pictures I took last night. What do you think we should name him?

I need a name...

What are you looking at?

What should we name him???