xtorr

Protected: Embarassing Moments - The Presentation

Labor Certification

My position will be formerly advertised this week again to meet the requirements of the Department Of Labor that I am not snatching away a job from a US citizen. It's a little bit nerve-wrecking, because my job could be theoretically in jeopardy, if someone applies with a better skill set. However, in a meeting later I was told that it is really just more of a formality. I am not really that concerned, because I passed the labor certification process already in 2006 with my former employer, but it still uncomfortable to get audited and screened for the xth time, when there is slight chance that I might not be able to stay here.

After the labor certification, I need to have another petition for permanent residency approved and then I can finally file for an adjustment of status to get my Green Card.

How long have I been waiting for my Green Card now? Since December 23rd, 1999. Just a tad over 8 years.

Upcoming Plans

I've decided not to go to TBRU. Too expensive, most is already sold out, procrastinated too long… meh, maybe next year.

Anyway, I'll be in Duluth, MN, in three weeks (March 7-9) for “Fur Flee Weekend” by the North Country Bears and will be staying at the Superior Inn (the host hotel). Never been to this part of the country, so I am quite excited to finally get my butt up to visit.

YAY! ROAD TRIP!

The next trip after that will be Bear Trek in Rye, NY, in May.

Happy Hour

I decided to leave work early on Friday to wind down and spend some time with Holly. Bob surprised me and suggested “Happy Hour” in the city, so off we went. “Woodys” was a rather boring and uneventful, but very expensive ($7/drink???), “Uncles” had a very nice crowd with some very woofy eye candy and last, but not least, we went over to “Knock”. “Knock” opened a few months ago, but I never really felt the urge to check it out. I actually really liked it. The crowd was very mixed. A lot of faces that I have never seen before. And while the bar/restaurant had a very “upscale” feel to it, the prices were absolutely reasonable and the people weren't snobby at all.

Of course, I had one too many and literally passed out after we got home.

No Country For Old Men

I have to admit that I didn't get the movie. My mood in the theatre ranged from excited, confused to bored. Sure, the acting and the photography was superb, but at the end, I just didn't get the meaning or purpose of the movie.

What was the name of the movie all about? It had nothing really to do with the movie. Did it refer to the police officer, portrayed by Tommy Lee Jones, who was somewhat unsuccessful to solve the case? Was there a “case” after all?

The beginning was quite exciting. Llewelyn found the money, fled successfully from the Mexicans/drug dealers(?) and became a hunted/wanted man. Anton was the creepy guy with the mission to find the money. Then it started to become confusing. What was Woody Harrelson's character all about? Who was the boss in the office? Who shot Llewelyn's girlfriends mom and why? Why didn't they focus on his girlfriend?

I didn't get the first motel scene at all. First Llewelyn gets to the motel, hides the money in the duct. Then he requests another room. Why? At this point he hasn't even found the transponder yet. After changing rooms, he retrieves the money again, before Anton starts killing the Mexicans (and before Anton even gets there). It was later revealed that the Mexicans has a receiver has well, so why did they all lounge around idle? Anton had a receiver as well. Wasn't the reception really accurate? I mean he was able to locate the room, but not the money? Weird.

What was Anton's car accident all about? Just dumb luck?

I dunno. Very confusing.

First time biking in the new year

The temps hit around 50F here today - perfect to take the bike for a ride for the first time in the new year.

Protected: Yesterday at the gym

My Sunday

Excerpt from campus magazine:

ITS Explains Email Outage
By Miles Skorpen
2:11 am - 01/30/08

ITS didn't realize the full extent of the problem until late Sunday morning, when Senior Systems Administrator Patrick T. was alerted and was unable to remotely fix the problem. As ITS has no staff at Swarthmore during the weekends, T. had to drive to campus in order to fix the error which slowed resolution of the issue.

Vista - One year later

Headline today:

Microsoft’s Windows Vista one year later: The chrome has worn off the turd

One year after Charlie Demerjian called Microsoft's Windows Vista a “chrome plated turd,” he's back to take another look.

Link is here

Still working out

Week #3 and except for 2 days, I have worked out every day. The first week I felt anywhere from excited to actually get to feel muscles that I haven't felt in years (or ever!) and excruciating and very, very painful muscle aches. I thought I was going to have heart attack the first few times on the treadmill. I did the standard cardio program (10 minutes, 4.0mph, heart rate 146) and was soaking wet after the 10 minutes. Due to the muscle aches, I was almost unable to lift, pull or push anything without pain.

I noticed a substantial improvement during week #2. The cardio became more and more effortless, up to a point where I couldn't even reach my target heart rate at 4.0mph anymore. I bumped it up to 15 minutes and added a 5.5mph jogging to the routine. I almost don't break into any sweat anymore. On the weights, I am up to double (yea, really) the amount I could lift just about a week ago.

My diet is high in protein, high in carbs, low in saturated fat, low in sugar. A lot of smoothies with added whey or soy powder and protein bars (some of them are quite tasty), lots of peanut butter and nuts as in between snacks, lots of low-fat dairy. Whole wheat pancakes for breakfast. 6 small meals a day.

Weighing in at 200 lbs. at 6', I don't want to lose weight or gain any, but I want to build a little more muscle mass and bulk up a little. So, I did a lot of reading and found the articles on bodybuilding.com (especially on nutrition) extremely helpful. Plus, I want to feel better and healthy (am I already hitting mid-life crisis?) and enjoy again looking at myself. So far it seems to work.