I’m one of those people who is comfortable in small circles and, as such, I have a small group of friends whom I’ve known for many years. It once was a point of pride for me to know that the people I’ve known since Junior High School are still amongst my closest friends. However as we’ve gotten older and our lives have become ever more unlike one another’s, I find that the connections we’ve maintained for so long are growing thin and strained. It’s not an active tension, rather it’s more a gradual dissolution. We’ve all grown apart. (more…)

Congratulations to the Patriots on another AFC Championship win over the San Diego Chargers. It was a tough game and the Pats didn’t play very well, but the defense stood strong and prevented the Chargers from scoring any touchdowns. What bothers me, and what inspired the title of this post, is the reaction of the Patriots’ fans when owner Kraft and players like Seau congratulated the Chargers on their hard work and great playing: they booed. That’s friggin’ lame. (more…)

Going to see a performance of the Boston Symphony Orchestra has been something I’ve wanted to do for a long time, and while I regret that I didn’t have a chance to see Seiji Ozawa conduct, I did get a chance to see Sir Colin Davis guest conduct an excellent performance of Mozart’s Symphony No. 36, Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 23 in A and Schubert’s Symphony No. 2. Even better, I was able to see Mitsuko Uchida perform Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 23 in A. Not a bad way to get to know the BSO. Besides, I’d be crazy not to take in a performance at the legendary Symphony Hall, considering I’ve spent most of my life in and around the Boston area. It’s an amazing building with an incredible history, though I do have to say that the seats, original to the building, are rough on the ass after a couple of hours. (more…)

The time, it has vanished. I look up and it’s the holidays again. Happily, the local CVS drug store started selling gift cards for other stores. I bought a shitload of Barnes and Nobles giftcards because, with my family, the deafult “I don’t know what to get you but I know you’ll like and use this” gift is the Barnes and Noble giftcard. And given that my family is just as bad at giving gift ideas as I am, this ability to get everyone the same gift card is an excellent out. Being able to dodge the malls and strip-malls in favor of the CVS down the street from my office is a giant bonus as well. All other presents were online, so ever better. (more…)

After getting a bite to eat, I decided to head to my regular bar to catch the Red Sox game. The place was packed, which was expected as tonight was game four of the World Series and a chance for the Red Sox to sweep the Rockies. I sat outside for a bit watching the game on an LCD screen near a large gas heater (a bit chilly tonight). Then I headed to the main bar and snagged a standing-room-only spot at the edge of the bar near the wait staff serving area. I spoke to the owner for a bit as well as several of the staff whom I’ve come to know over the several months I’ve been hanging out there. The owner was nice enough to buy me a beer and I got to enjoy a real pint glass (when it gets crowded they often switch to plastic to keep up with demand and to avoid potential breakage), which always makes the Magic Hat #9 taste better. Then as Papelbon struck out the last Rockies batter, the owner busted out a whole slew of champagne bottles and started spraying. I got drenched in champagne (managed to get my PDA phone into my pocket before it got hit too much), and I have to say it was a first for me. Bar staff then poured the rest of the champagne and handed cups to as many people as they could – many toasts were raised and the bar owner worked the crowd as rowdy as any fan. In a town where I know very few people and where most of my friends are far enough away that I rarely see them, it’s nice to have a place to go where, even though you know it’s business, you’re welcomed and made to feel at home. And tonight, it was good to share the experience of the Red Sox winning their second World Series in four years with a group of excited fans. Yeah, almost as cheesy as the theme music to “Cheers”, but the sentiment is legit.

Haven’t posted in a while. Have about 6 false starts saved up (everything from Deval Patrick fulfilling all my prophecies to work-related bullshit), but I decided I’d finally post a little note to say goodbye to Brad Delp. (more…)

My manager took my team out to lunch today before going on vacation. This was nice enough, but after lunch was over he made us follow him to his car. Out of the back seat he retrieved this box of booze and handed out a different bottle to everyone in the crew (4 of us his direct reports and 1 guy who’s in another group, but like one of us…and he gave his notice so tomorrow’s his last day so it was my manager’s last time to hang out with him at work). I got a bottle of Maker’s Mark bourbon. I’m now heading out to the local sports bar to catch the football game, have some dinner and several beers. When I get back, I can assure you that a shot of Maker’s Mark will be raised to the health of my Manager.

So as I mentioned in my previous post, there’s a new Irish Pub/Sports Bar that opened just up the street from me. Well, after napping in my recliner (this activity replaced my video game activity) and waking up in the third quarter of the Michigan/Ohio State game, I decided I’d head up that way for some dinner and a few drinks. If the place was good, I’d stick around for the Cal/USC game. (more…)

Today is the first day of my Thanksgiving vacation. I think I need to spend some time doing absolutely nothing and trying to recover from work (knowing, unfortunately, that work is only going to be even more hectic when I get back to the office: immediately go on-call and prepare for the multitude of releases/hotfixes that have been scheduled for the end of the year plus the absolutely massive release, probably another 18+ hour day, scheduled for mid-January. I kinda wish I didn’t know how to read a calendar so I could stay ignorant of how much work is ahead of me). (more…)

I can only assume it has something to do with me, and not the job. It doesn’t seem to matter where I work, because I always find a way to make the work the ruler of my life. It’s good to have a strong work ethic, but it’s nutty to sacrifice everything else in life to the work. That said, the latest drama in my work life has nothing to do with me and everything to do with poor management and decision making at the higher levels. (more…)