Six

aying attention about age ten. We were living in suburban Washington, DC. as the Redskins were assembling that 1991 team (which was one of the best teams of all time).

I am a New Orleans Saints’ fan. Yes, I remember Jim Mora for before he was famous for, “Playoffs? You kiddin’ me?”

Based largely on my playing experience, I’m a big believer in tow things – the I-Formation, and the 43 Defense. Vince Lombardi might have won two Super Bowls, but Tom Landry was the best coach in history.

In the NFL this year, I’m seeing those things I like come back.

Unfortunately, the Thanksgiving schedule is still screwed up. But at least there’s some AFC representation. It used to be that either the Lions or Cowboys would face a division rival (think Bears-Lions, or Redskins-Cowboys) or NFC powerhouse, and the other would play an AFC team. They added the Thursday night game probably about ten years ago, and the last few years, those have been completely-NFC games.

This year, there’s two NFC division games during the day, followed by an AFC matchup.

What more am I seeing?

What an absolute genius Al Davis was. His last draft pick is really becoming an internal part of the Steelers’ offense.

I’m seeing some good games on TV this year; maybe that’s why ratings are down. (If you’ve seen CBS’s primetime offerings, you understand that quality programming is not what gets numbers…..)

I have not idea what’s on this afternoon. Maybe I should look at that. Not really feeling like writing today. I think the Redskins are on a bye after their tie in London.

This year, I’m really liking watching the Raiders.

Five

Write about your siblings. How many? Where are they? What do they do? Do you get along better now than you did when you were kids?

I have one younger brother. He lives, again, in Northern Virginia. For the past couple of years, he’d been living in Texas, on account of his wife’s job. While he was down there, he was doing some data science work for a major telecommunications company, away from government. Now that he’s back in NoVA, he’s back to dealing with supporting government (what our father did for the time after he retired from the Army, and I’ve been doing for the last decade).

I don’t know, exactly, what he’s doing. His interests were always a bit different than mine. His education also far-exceeds mine. For awhile, there, my work experience made up for my lack of post-graduate education. I’m not sure if that’s true, anymore. I also really suck at Minesweeper, so I don’t have a list of initials to string after my name on my LinkedIn profile.

He and I get along a lot better than we did when we were younger. I really didn’t like his high school girlfriend, later first wife, very much. (He probably felt the same way about my longtime girlfriend from high school and college….)

There were a few contentious incidents when we were both in our teens. I also didn’t appreciate his attitude on several things. shrug

Since we’ve been apart, and he’s been away from his first wife, we’ve gotten along pretty well. Our wives seem to get along well, too. (And, M., my wife’s newfound fantasy football obsession is your fault…..she’d refused to play before you urged her….)

Since our dad died, and I quit driving (and making decent money!), it’s been hard to get together with him. When he was in TX, I think I only saw him once. I haven’t seen him, yet, since they’ve been back in VA.

Today is his birthday. I have very vague recollections of my mom being pregnant, and his birth. I was three. I remember more dealing with some of his health issues as a young kid (both at the Naval Medical Center probably about half a mile from where I now live, and at the University of Kansas Medical Center in KC).

I know I hurt him more than once. Protip: don’t put a full crock pot on a bench seat because you don’t have something free on the floor. I also did things to take care of him. (I won’t elaborate.)

He, actually, was probably the one who came closer to fulfilling our parents’ wishes. When I was in high school, then beyond, I really was intent on trying to set my own path. Varying results, there, but he never ended up working in a hellhole like I did for a few years. I don’t root for the sports teams our dad did. (And my adherence to Royals’ fandom yielded thirty years of disappointment….)

Today is his birthday. I seem to remember snow sometime shortly after he was born. It’s stayed pretty warm here this year.

I’m going to stop now, because there’s not a lot more to say, really.

Four

Write about someone you’ve recently lost.

Writing with what I remember of the prompt as pretty much of our Intertur]bes (and TV) is out.

I was supposed to write about someone I’d recently lost.

Today is my grandfather’s birthday. He’s the only one of my grandparents still living.

It also would have been my dad’s youngest brother’s birthday. He died a few weeks ago following several years of health problems.

I didn’t know him terribly well. Same goes for a lot of my parents’ siblings; we were gone. I don’t feel deprived by that or anything. It was part of what happened with my dad’s job.

Sure. I had an idealized view of where my parents grew up, but the more I’ve learned, the more I understand why they never really wanted to go back.

Things weren’t good along the Gulf Coast for a very long time. I couldn’t comprehend the pervasive poverty.

So, what do I know about my uncle? He was a little more than nine years my dad’s junior. My dad’s two younger brothers were born after my grandparents reconciled (I’m not sure if they divorced, but I’m pretty sure they did.) So, in my parents’ wedding photos, he was a pre-teen.

He never ended up with much of a career, and lived with my grandmother until she died. He ended up taking care of her in her final years, actually.

He worked for many years as an Interstate trucker. After Hurricane Katrina, he started doing glasswork for damaged historic buildings.

Not long before my dad died (end of 2010), he had a very serious heart attack, preventing him from doing very much after that. He was trying to do some college work. I think, however, his health prevented him from ever finishing his degree.

Over the last few years, he was very sickly. When my wife and I saw him last, it was basically just him and his cats around my grandmother’s significantly-renovated house.

He died a few weeks ago. I couldn’t go down for the funeral, and haven’t heard much else. Kind of odd to ask family you haven’t seen in awhile about more.

And that’s about what I’d written when my Intertubes quit working.  I didn’t really nail the prompt now that I look at it.  As a kid, it was kind of a question of what’s he driving right now?  He always seemed to have a different car, and be driving a different truck for work.

Three

Collections and Cars. Write about any collections you have, and the cars you’ve owned.

Three years of earning virtually no money has significantly cut my collections.  I simply don’t have the resources to do that sort of thing anymore.

When I was a kid, I collected baseball and football cards.  There’s a Brett Favre rookie card somewhere at my mom’s house. Yes, it’s strange seeing him in a Failcons helmet.

I bought that card at a show on one of the posts in Germany.  Hanau, maybe?  He’d just taken over the job with the Peckers, and I’m a double-legacy at Southern Landmass, so I thought it was kinda cool.  But I was also thirteen, and it was 1993.  The ideas of what was cool were a bit off.

Cars.  I don’t currently own one;  I’m too blind to drive.  I sold my last one, a 2003 Mustang GT at the end of 2013.  The proceeds largely went to support me and my wife after I’d gotten laid off for the second time in a year.

Similarly, the proceeds from the sale of my 2001 Jeep Wrangler were largely used after I got laid off in 2013.  The Wrangler didn’t net me very much;  it had something like 260,000 miles on it when I sold it.  Original clutch.  How I managed that is completely beyond me.

I sold my 1992 Wrangler back to my dad for a dollar.  He sold it to a nearby used car dealership.  I think it had something like 180,000 miles on it.

I never had a car with an automatic transmission.

Living in Tidewater without a car is very difficult.  Thankfully, I am afforded telecommute opportunities in my current position. Getting to my work site via public transit is possible, but it takes a long time, and requires two transfers.  It aslo takes about an hour and a half if I hit the schedules just right.

I don’t really know what else I can say, other than the idea of living an an exburb holds no appeal for me these days.

My mother sometimes speaks fo “living off the land.”  How about no?  Not something that ever really held much appeal for me, and even less as I’ve aged.  Not being able to drive has compounded it.

I rahter like indoor plumbing and hot water.  Maybe that makes me a bad person.

Two

My day as a goth kid. (Yes, my wife is planning on doing this to me.)

My wife has decided that I need to be her Goth Boy.

It hasn’t happened.  Yet?  She’s been really busy with school.

She can dress me up however she’d like, though.  I won’t return the favor;  she can dress as she pleases.

So, if wearing a dog collar for a few hours will make her smile, fine.  So long as I don’t have to look like Aaron Rodgers, Goth QB, or the kid in the Mom’s Minivan demotivator poster.

On a similar, but unrelated note, I’m getting skinnier again.

I lost about 60 points after I got sick.  For the most part, I’ve kept it off.  I think I’m probably about ten pounds more than I was at my lightest.

But after this latest hospitalization, I’ve noticed things aren’t fitting again.  My pants.  My wedding ring.

In other words, Thanksgiving can’t get here soon enough, if only to fatten me up a bit.

So, what else is up?  Paratransit Services screwed up royally again this morning.

I’m tired.  I hope I’ll be up for this thing I’m attending on Friday.

Also, do I have the stamina or desire to watch the last World Series game tonight?

On the brighter side, I was able to get things setup for my trip to Georgetown School of Medicine.

I’m very tempted to fire all my specialists in the wake of two hospitalizations within a month, plus now a problem with one of my prescriptions.

Good shit.

One

Introduction. Why I’m doing this for a sixth year.

So, as I fired up EMACS to start writing, I had a 1.txt in my $HOME.

Umm.

Yeah, it was something I’d written long ago; probably in college. How it got there, I don’t know. Maybe something from one of my summer writing bits.

I do enjoy writing. How proficient I am at it is up for debate.

So, to the basics.
I’m 37 years old. Married. Work in Information Technology for the US Federal Government. I’m now well into my sixth year after being diagnosed wtih Multiple Sclerosis.

This is my sixth year doing this. I started on my Diary on the now-defunct OpenDiary (OD) site.

So, what’s kept me doing this year after year?

There’s something about having something to do every single day. When OD was up, I’d often use the prepackaged prompts. As I’ve been writing on my own, I’ve taken to either creating my own prompts or recycling things from previous efforts. (Back to the odd textfile in my $HOME.)

There’s also a bit of a sense of accomplishment in finishing a month. The last couple of years, I’ve done a second stint in the month before my birthday. Is it a countdown? No, not really. Neither is November; if it was, I’d be doing it in the lead-up to Thanksgiving or Chrsitmas.

I’m not doing that, however.

The past few years have been exceptionally difficult. I’m going to try to avoid writing too much about that. On top of my myriad health problems, I’ve seen a marked decline in income. (Checking my SSA statement shows that I’ll be lucky to get back to my 2012 earnings next year.) I’m not going to write terribly much about that; those who need to know do, those who want to know can buy me a beer, and I’ll tell. I’ve been writing a lot lately, in conversation with a friend, about bits of administrivia. There’s a big portion of that discussion that’s been about management. Meanwhile, I’ve also been listening to the Reason Podcast, where they’re discussing a lot of similar issues.

There is no One-True-Way(TM) for just about anything.

Eventually, you have to find your own way to do things. Maybe you’ve been previously inspired by someone or something, but your situation is yours.

Similarly, this effort is something that works for me. I’ll be doing it my way. If you like it, great. If not, that’s fine, too.

So, who am I?  A dude trying to help out the best way I can.  Professionally, I need to keep my irritants from negatively affecting others’ impressions of me.  Having me on your team is a good thing.  Now how do I convince people of that?  (And some of the folks who’ve beautify-illustrated their prowess at taking multiple choice tests by taking certification tests might just be completely worthless.)


2016 Prompts

Prompts (final)

Oct. 31, 2016, 5:51 p.m.

  1. Introduction. Why I’m doing this for a sixth year.
  2. My day as a goth kid. (Yes, my wife is planning on doing this to me.)
  3. Collections and Cars.  Write about any collections you have, and the cars you’ve owned.
  4. Write about someone you’ve recently lost.
  5. Write about your siblings. How many? Where are they? What do they do? Do you get along better now than you did when you were kids?
  6. I’m writing about Football.
  7. Write about your parents.
  8. Election Day. Write about your votes.
  9. MOvember.  Write about facial hair.
  10. Armistice Day. I’m going to write about the war Tom Brikaw forgets.
  11. Are you satisfied with the results from yesterday?
  12. Describe your most recent doctor visit. I’m specifically looking for the one(s) you see most often.
  13. Nervousness. Write about what last made you really nervous.
  14. On Being Sick
  15. Find something you wrote five years ago, and tell how things are different
  16. I’m going to write about my trip to be examined for use as a Guniea Pig for research on my condition.
  17. Recap of the trip to DC.
  18. Write about three things you did for the first time in the past year.
  19. Recap of your year month-by-month.
  20. What did you want to be when you grew up?  What are you, actually?
  21. Write about something you’ve had to re-learn.
  22. Write about your recycling habits..
  23. What are your plans for tomorrow, since it’s turkey day in the U
  24. Free Write.
  25. How was turkey day for you. If you’re celebrating on a different day, please elaborate (like my friends in Soviet Canuckistan).
  26. What is your favorite food?  (H/T to someone on PB)
  27. Small Business Saturday.  Write about small businesses you frequent.
  28. Free Write.
  29. What are your holiday plans for Christmas?
  30. Recap, reaction.

One

Nov. 1, 2016, 4:47 p.m.

Introduction. Why I’m doing this for a sixth year.

So, as I fired up EMACS to start writing, I had a 1.txt in my $HOME.

Umm.

Yeah, it was something I’d written long ago; probably in college. How it got there, I don’t know. Maybe something from one of my summer writing bits.

I do enjoy writing. How proficient I am at it is up for debate.

So, to the basics.
I’m 37 years old. Married. Work in Information Technology for the US Federal Government. I’m now well into my sixth year after being diagnosed wtih Multiple Sclerosis.

This is my sixth year doing this. I started on my Diary on the now-defunct OpenDiary (OD) site.

So, what’s kept me doing this year after year?

There’s something about having something to do every single day. When OD was up, I’d often use the prepackaged prompts. As I’ve been writing on my own, I’ve taken to either creating my own prompts or recycling things from previous efforts. (Back to the odd textfile in my $HOME.)

There’s also a bit of a sense of accomplishment in finishing a month. The last couple of years, I’ve done a second stint in the month before my birthday. Is it a countdown? No, not really. Neither is November; if it was, I’d be doing it in the lead-up to Thanksgiving or Chrsitmas.

I’m not doing that, however.

The past few years have been exceptionally difficult. I’m going to try to avoid writing too much about that. On top of my myriad health problems, I’ve seen a marked decline in income. (Checking my SSA statement shows that I’ll be lucky to get back to my 2012 earnings next year.) I’m not going to write terribly much about that; those who need to know do, those who want to know can buy me a beer, and I’ll tell. I’ve been writing a lot lately, in conversation with a friend, about bits of administrivia. There’s a big portion of that discussion that’s been about management. Meanwhile, I’ve also been listening to the Reason Podcast, where they’re discussing a lot of similar issues.

There is no One-True-Way(TM) for just about anything.

Eventually, you have to find your own way to do things. Maybe you’ve been previously inspired by someone or something, but your situation is yours.

Similarly, this effort is something that works for me. I’ll be doing it my way. If you like it, great. If not, that’s fine, too.

So, who am I?  A dude trying to help out the best way I can.  Professionally, I need to keep my irritants from negatively affecting others’ impressions of me.  Having me on your team is a good thing.  Now how do I convince people of that?  (And some of the folks who’ve beautify-illustrated their prowess at taking multiple choice tests by taking certification tests might just be completely worthless.)


Two

Nov. 2, 2016, 4:16 p.m.

My day as a goth kid. (Yes, my wife is planning on doing this to me.)

My wife has decided that I need to be her Goth Boy.

Prompts

  1. Introduction. Why I’m doing this for a sixth year.
  2. My day as a goth kid. (Yes, my wife is planning on doing this to me.)
  3. Collections and Cars.  Write about any collections you have, and the cars you’ve owned.
  4. Write about someone you’ve recently lost.
  5. Write about your siblings. How many? Where are they? What do they do? Do you get along better now than you did when you were kids?
  6. I’m writing about Football.
  7. Write about your parents.
  8. Election Day. Write about your votes.
  9. MOvember.  Write about facial hair.
  10. Armistice Day. I’m going to write about the war Tom Brikaw forgets.
  11. Are you satisfied with the results from yesterday?
  12. Describe your most recent doctor visit. I’m specifically looking for the one(s) you see most often.
  13. Nervousness. Write about what last made you really nervous.
  14. On Being Sick
  15. Find something you wrote five years ago, and tell how things are different
  16. I’m going to write about my trip to be examined for use as a Guniea Pig for research on my condition.
  17. Recap of the trip to DC.
  18. Write about three things you did for the first time in the past year.
  19. Recap of your year month-by-month.
  20. What did you want to be when you grew up?  What are you, actually?
  21. Write about something you’ve had to re-learn.
  22. Write about your recycling habits..
  23. What are your plans for tomorrow, since it’s turkey day in the U
  24. Free Write.
  25. How was turkey day for you. If you’re celebrating on a different day, please elaborate (like my friends in Soviet Canuckistan).
  26. What is your favorite food?  (H/T to someone on PB)
  27. Small Business Saturday.  Write about small businesses you frequent.
  28. Free Write.
  29. What are your holiday plans for Christmas?
  30. Recap, reaction.

Twenty-nine

What are you most proud of this year?

This is a tough one, because I’m really not proud of where I am in a lot of areas of my life. A lot of it has been happenstance, but I pride myself in my ability to adapt to the circumstances.

For this year, though, I guess it’d be dealing with my disease. I was in a tough situation early in the year, then found that my doctors didn’t accept my new insurance.

My company’s insurance, which has zero local coverage, I’d declined, so I ended up buying a plan from the Federal Exchange. Incredibly expensive; so much for affordable care. My primary care docs at EVMS, especially Drs. Grant and Newman, have been so helpful in finding new specialists.

So, I got a new neurologist. She worked with me to find the best disease modifying drug for me. That ended up being Tysabri. But getting to the point where I could take As a monthly infusion, with periodic blood tests, Tysabri required me getting better with venous puncture.

So, I’ve done that. I’ve also worked faithfully, despite an incredibly bad work situation.

I could dig and find something else, perhaps, but I really don’t think anything would come close. Nothing’s had a bigger effect on my life. I feel better than I have in I don’t know how long.

I wish I’d done a few things differently which would allow me to enjoy this newfound “health” more, but…

Twenty-eight

Thanksgiving leftovers. How much? What did you do with them?

I wrote this while watching a TV food show, obviously.

Honestly, I don’t think there’s anything you can do with leftover turkey that’s good. Sandwiches, reheated as it is, etc., but….

Ham has a lot of potential, turkey notsomuch.

I think all we’ve got left now is some of my SIL’s pumpkin pie, which, again, doesn’t need any modification. Or even heating.

I apologize for the lackluster prompt. It happens. There’s two prompts left, so maybe I’ll do better, grow up to be a division manager, drive a Dodge Stratus.