Well, the big trip is tomorrow. I'm off to Houston for the IUG meeting. If there's any of you that read this that are there, stop by my poster session and let me know! I'm soooo happy to finally be taking some time away from work. don't get me wrong - I really like my work and the people there, but I'm just burnt out. I'm really looking forward to coming home from Houston as I'm taking time off. I won't be back there until the middle of the month. Well, you probably won't see any updates from me until May 1st, unless I can find the time and the Internet connection down there. Ciao!

Today was supposed to be the day I spend catching up on a project that I'm showing on Monday. I was going to spend a little time with Crystal helping her move some stuff into her new house, then vanish to home so I could fiddle with the massive Excel File. What happens? 9:00 this morning, almost right after I get out of the shower, the emergency beeper goes off. I call in and I'm thinking, "No problem. I'll go in, tinker a bit on the machines and I'm off to Crystal's." Wrong! I go in and find I have to call support out in California. The guy doesn't know what's up so I have to wait until the next guy. I hang around for a while then go to Crystal's. They've already finished there so I don't accomplish much. We eat and I bail early to come back to work. Oh did I mention that the Cornhuskers were having their annual Red-White scrimmage that draws huge crowds to campus.. And did I mention that I was driving into campus at the same time the crowd was all leaving... I finally get a hold of someone who has an idea and we decide to wait until 4:30 to reboot the machines, to keep disruptions low. I get a call at 4:00 saying they want to do this now. So we do, I go running to get the off-site backup tapes and we start. It's now 6:15 and I'm still waiting. ERF! I left my Excel files at home, so I can't work on that project - which means I'm probably going to be up most of tonight - or not doing some of the social stuff I had planned for tomorrow. The best I can do right now is try to work on my poster session.

I can't wait for my vacation. I really can't.

Happy Birthday Kate!

Saturday night was a bit eventful for me. Troy had an extra Lincoln Capitols ticket so I went. The first half goes by great, the Caps are rolling - both Troy and I get free-tshirts during a break and then we get a free scratch game ticket because we were one of the lucky sections in some half-time game. Later, during the half-time break Troy & I go to get our scratch game ticket. We get back and there are some new people sitting behind us, two guys and a girl. I don't really notice them at first, but my attention is drawn to them rather quickly. The gal is obviously drunk. Very drunk. Every third word is an obscenity. Rough language doesn't usually bother me - but this was excessive. Then she decided she didn't like my hat and starting pulling on it. Now remember, I didn't do anything to provoke her than to simply be there. Anyway, I told her to quit bothering me. This apparently caused her some sort of mental anguish as she now decided to talk to no one in particular about the "jerk sitting in front of her". I was ignoring her statements which apparently was not what she wanted, because she then decided to pour some of her beer on my back. That was it. I went to talk to security and get them up here. When the security honcho came up, he pulled me aside to talk about it. When we get back to my seat, people in the two rows behind the drunken wench are standing, their clothes are wet, and are yelling at the wench. Apparently disturbing me wasn't enough so when someone behind her said something, she flung her beer behind her head at at the people behind her. This got her and her two boyfriends promptly kicked out. She had a lot of trouble standing - let alone walk down the staris. In fact - she collapsed in the security guy's arms at the bottom.

Now, my main question is - why do people think that getting that drunk is a good thing? It doesn't make you look cool. These people really are pathetic. I don't mind people drinking alcohol or anything like that - but there is a line that you just should not cross. Not for health reasons or moral reasons, but for the fact that you just look pathetic after you reach a certain point of inebriation. That's your moral for today kiddies.

So you've seen that I emptied out the grill recently. Well, last night I open up the lid and find a full bird's nest. It filled completely back up in less than two days. ERF! I just hope I don't find eggs in it...

Got a full weekend coming up. Tonight is gaming at Ana's with a special guest appearance by Kate. It'll be good to see her again. Tomorrow brings a whole day new house buyers clinic that Julie & I are going to attend. Sunday brings my nephew Todd's first communion, so its another trip up to Bow Valley this Sunday. Don't expect to see me update until Monday.

Here's something for you to remember; if you have an outdoor grill - make sure you check it once and a while or keep it covered at all times. It was a nice day yesterday so Julie suggests that we grill. Fine. I knew I had to clean up the gril so I open up the lid and find ..... a huge mess! The grill was filled with pine needles, twigs, feathers and other types of "organic matter". It took me quite a while to clean it out and scrape off the "organic matter". So what did we learn? We learned that even if the grill cover was a ripped up mess, it was still a better thing than having none.

OK, maybe this will work today. I tried updating on Sunday and something was wrong with the server, it wouldn't let me upload.

I've submitted the latest Hopefully Sapient article to Jason over at Theme of Absence. It will probably be posted soon.

Saw my parents and sisters this weekend. Crystal just bought a nice house and then Bambi & Daren just redid part of their house and it looks spectacular. Now Julie & I are sooo jealous! We want a house too. Please? {grin}

Other than that - work, work work!

At this time, in 3 weeks, Julie and I should be in our hotel down in Houston. Part of me is a bit apprehensive about going - mainly because of the cost. I'm not a big travelling type of guy. I rarely get wanderlust. I don't usually mind being in other places - its that in between part that gets me. I just don't like being "trapped" in a car or a plane for a long period of time. Maybe I'm just getting to be a home body wannabe.

No April Fool's stuff for you here, I'm just not in the mood. I've got too much to do and too little time to do it in. I'm really hoping to get all my current projects closed before I go on vacation at the end of the month. I haven't had a real, no working, extended vacation in years. I'm starting to get burned out. I gotta keep thinking "Happy thoughts, happy thoughts" until then. ERF!