Guard Dog

First off Calax, don't send the letter. In the end nobody will care why you left once you are gone. You are going, that's the end of it. Even when you give your exit interview you should say nothing but positive things about the company, the time you spent there, and the people you worked with. Even the fools. Heck, especially the fools. Thanks them for the opportunity and try to forget for a moment every s****y thing about working there. What you say in your last interactions with management is what will be recorded and remembered about you. If you ever need to use them as a reference, odds are the person giving will not know you, or have ever met you. All they will not is what is recorded in your file when they look it up. you don't want anything that would cast you as being malcontented. Telling someone off, clearing the air, bringing up grievances, even if done politely, might feel good but it is ALWAYS self defeating. Nothing you say will change the company one iota or improve the experiences of anyone else down the line. All it will do is leave a poor impression of you later on. So keep your cards close, smile, shake hands and wish everyone well, lie if that is what it takes. Nobody will care why you are leaving and it does not matter anyway. Just make sure you are remembered well.

http://youtu.be/fzLtF_PxbYw

It's a game right? Instead of looking for Carmen San Diego we're looking for Oby? Cool pics though. Better that he's sending pics of while lions than black dolphins, right Oby?

No reading A Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy. I have put off reading this one for far too long.

Depends on how much the writer had to say. That just puts Shakespeare's quote about brevity being the soul of wit into a whole new light.

This is comedy gold! http://extramustard.si.com/2013/03/29/a-song-of-ice-and-fire-and-baseball/

No kidding? Happy belated B-Day.

I wish you were an engineer with backhaul design experience. I've got to go back to Burlington & Des Moines in a few weeks and I'd love to subcontract THAT out. That is a long drive for me. When you're up here wanna visit? If nothing else just a dinner at Olive Garden somewhere in DSM. Sounds good. I'll PM you a week or so ahead of time. It's probably going to be in mid June.

Just a question, it I offered you a choice of getting you hand hit by a hammer or watching a Marlins game, which would you chose? One thing about it, the hammer would be over quickly.

You guys are making me feel old. I was 25 when I built my first computer. It was a 486DX4 100 with an 80M HDD and had DOS 5.1 OS with Windows 3.1. Windows wasn't even an OS in those days, just a shell program. I remember all or Carter's, presidency and was watching the last time the Miami Dolphins won in the Superbowl. I remember when the Yankees were not even good, there was no such thing a microwave ovens, cell phones, and cable TV. I saw an e-mail awhile back that pointed out that kids graduating college today never lived in a world without the internet.

I wish you were an engineer with backhaul design experience. I've got to go back to Burlington & Des Moines in a few weeks and I'd love to subcontract THAT out. That is a long drive for me.

Was tequila involved? You better be careful Ros, you might wake up in a back alley with no wallet, hands tied behind you back, pants around you ankles and bite mark on your neck.

I don't know which is more awesome, the story or the picture. Very cool.

What a heartbreaking loss to the Yankees last night. David Price goes all the way to the 9th then chokes and even a 9th inning HR by Longoria couldn't pull it out. Since the Sox got crushed they missed a prime chance to gain ground. Rubber game tonight. I'm going to put it on the radio and grill a steak, sit on the porch and watch the sun set.

Marine Corps style camping wasn't to your liking Shady? What part did you hate the most? The moldy shelter halves, those flat hard rubber b*tches that passed for a mattress? The MREs or sleeping with your rifle in hand? For me it was that worthless poncho liner that passed for a bed/blanket/poncho liner all in one. Ah, now THERE are some memories! Actually the best part about being out in the field is nobody really f****d with you much.

Holy Cow Woldan, that test is longer then the SAT.

Hi GD Welcome back, how was the camping trip? I've never had a bad one but this one was great! Beautiful place and I had it almost all to myself. Unfortunately I had to cut it short for work but that's how it goes. I was thinking about going back weekend after next but I'm going to be real busy and may not make it. I'm meeting with my partners tomorrow to discuss a new bid and I've still got two full time projects now. But getting to just pack up and go is the one upside of not having a family to look after. I'm divorced with no kids (other than a dog who is convinced he's smarter than me) so there really is no reason not to. Thanks for the update, if you don't mind I would like to ask you some questions about your camping trips. The reason is I am fascinated by the concept of people just living in the wild or getting away by themselves for a few days. My parents were divorced when I was 4 and even though I saw my dad every second weekend we never ever went camping as he is a businessman and we always did things in the city. Subsequently I have never been camping in my life, I have spent 1 night in chalets overnight but thats more of luxurious accommodation and not really "roughing" it. So thats the context to my questions, I am not being nosy What food do you take and can you hunt and fish if necessary Where does your much loved dog sleep when you go camping, I assume you have a tent How close are other people to you when you go camping? Do you miss seeing people or do you prefer being isolated What is your routine on these trips? Do you wake up at 6 am and then go hiking or do you fish. Or are there other activities Finally if you are by yourself what would happen in an emergency, like you break your leg? Sorry to bombard you with all questions, anything you can answer would be great A lot of your questions really depend on where you go. Most of the parks here in Tennessee are not big or wild enough to really worry about getting lost in or really being concerned about safety. My cell phone worked the whole weekend at Old Stone Fort. In some to the big national parks like Great Smoky Mountain, Yellowstone, Yosemite, Moab, etc. it makes sense to take extra precautions if you are going off the beaten path into the back country. Most require you to check in with the ranger station and let them know where you are going and how long you will be. Since cell coverage in big parks is sparse I carry a satellite emergency radio beacon called a PLB. It's like an EPIRB you would find on a ship only it's meant for land use. It's small, a little bigger than a cell phone and if you get injured all you have to do is activate it and wait. As far as animals go in this state I'm bigger and meaner than anything I'm going to meet. Out west that would be a little different story so I'd probably not bring Tommy if I were going to Yellowstone or somewhere like that. I'd take other precautions too, carry a pistol and a can or two of mace. One interesting note, my carry weapon it a .45 derringer and I know it would not stop a charging grizzly but a can of mace will. Some parks have designated camping areas, some don't. Some allow hunting and fishing, some don't. You pick your destination based on what you want to do on the trip. As far as hunting I'd rather not do that on public land. And I tend to avoid Wildlife Management areas during hunting season. Too many people out there who shoot first and look second. Hunting accidents are beyond rare in actuality and firearm hunting season is short. I prefer archery hunting, the season is longer and you find a different sort of hunter out there with you. I love fishing and 90% of my camping trips revolve around that so I usually pick places that have interesting fishing like the Duck River this past weekend. As far as rouging it goes, most parks have improved campgrounds with bathrooms and showers and picnic areas available so I would not really call that roughing it. Old Stone Fort does allow primitive camping so I picked a spot on a bluff over the river and backpacked to it. They don't allow open fires in the dry season so I brought a portable single burner propane stove for cooking and as far as food I kept it simple, instant oatmeal, instant coffee, vacuum packed meals, etc. Plus six pounds of dog food in premeasured serving bags. I cooked three Speck I caught Sunday night with mushrooms and onions. Good stuff! I have two tents actually. An 8x8 4 wall and a small 2 man backpack tent. I took the big one when I went to the park down by Pascagoula last November because they have designated campgrounds. For primitive camping I use the small one because the big one is not practical to carry. Tommy sleeps in it right next to me. After reading Hurlshots RV experiences last summer I've been thinking of getting a pop up trailer. Maybe sometime down the road. You should give it a try. I much prefer primitive camping as far away from everyone and everything as I can get. I only saw two other people all weekend once I left the parking lot , and they were canoeing down the river. I live in a very rural area now but even out here there is still the odd street light. If you get far away from electricity the stars in the night sky are the most beautiful thing you will ever see. That alone makes it worth the trip

OF COURSE! It all makes sense now! Hot Pie is the chosen one, the one to dive back the Others. You just see the series in a whole new light now!

I think Walking Dead season 3 comes out on DVD in June. I haven't seen it since I finished season 2 a few months back. I can't stand waiting for weekly episodes so I wait to get the whole thing. Finally I'll be able to stop skipping and start reading all of your posts on the show

It only aches when it's cold! For the most part I'm not doing anything strenuous like rock climbing or anything. I don't run or lift weights anymore after that but otherwise there isn't much I can't do.

Hi GD Welcome back, how was the camping trip? I've never had a bad one but this one was great! Beautiful place and I had it almost all to myself. Unfortunately I had to cut it short for work but that's how it goes. I was thinking about going back weekend after next but I'm going to be real busy and may not make it. I'm meeting with my partners tomorrow to discuss a new bid and I've still got two full time projects now. But getting to just pack up and go is the one upside of not having a family to look after. I'm divorced with no kids (other than a dog who is convinced he's smarter than me) so there really is no reason not to.

You know the funny thing about Game of Thrones, both books and show? Nobody has ever said they were just alright. They either love them or don't like them at all. Funny isn't it?

I'm packing up the truck tonight and going fishing and camping for the next five days! I can not wait to get out of here. I'm going to Old Stone Fort State park and the Duck River therein. It's right on the western edge of the Smokes and it's one of a the few that will let me take Tommy to all parts of the park. I always figured I wouldn't be caught dead in a place where my best buddy wasn't welcome. Speaking of which we're going to the VFW for dinner, drinks and a few dog biscuits for him. See you guys next week.

Now reading Child of Vengeance by David Kirk. Wow is it good. If you are a fan of James Clavell's Shogun or even Shogun Total War put this one on your list!

I just can't get into Dr. Who anymore. I watched it from Jon Pertree all the way up to Colin Baker (who I thought was really underrated) but couldn't get into it with Sylvester McCoy and just can't follow this new version. You know I spend more time using my XM radio now than my TV. I bet I could do without it if I had to.