mjm wired ;)  

My brother bought a Dyson DC24 off of Amazon for my parents as a Christmas present last year. My initial thought was "Did they need another vacuum cleaner?". Then when my dad assembled it, I was a little taken aback. The thing is tiny and looks almost like a toy. It seems a little flimsy and even a little mechanically quirky. And the dirt tray is so small you would have to empty it frequently. When I looked up the item on Amazon, I [...]

Happy New Year! I started writing this yesterday, but didn't get a chance to publish. This last year was quite an revolutionary year. Lots of up's and down's, hello's and goodbye's and some serious shakeups in the workplace. I want to list some of notable points about the last year. There is really no major order, anything and everything that came to mind I added. Some of the positive things... Had 4 memorable fun trips this year. High point: U2: 360 Best CD I [...]

This Thanksgiving was really unlike any previous that I can really remember. To start, very few guests actually came. While the house was full for Thursday night dinner, no one actually stayed over. Considering this year's events (2 weddings and a funeral), it was not much of a surprise. I just did not intend to be graced with an abundance of free time. With that there were quite a few "firsts" this year. My parents broke tradition and actually decided to cook a turkey. [...]

I got back from my trip to California last night. As previously noted I was intending to relax a bit but that never really happened. For better or worse (more of the better), I went around. A lot!. I had a different city for pretty much every day. And I really don't know what I was expecting, but the traffic and driving were too much for me. Although, I was doing much more traveling on account that I was a tourist. I had a [...]

It has been rather stressful summer for me. Lots of ups and downs both personally and professionally. Unsurprisingly, I survived the last round of layoffs, but in some weird way I would not have been upset had I been let go. Quite a few "alternate" scenarios played out in my head. I'm an excuse person, I need an excuse to do something and not the other way around. Losing your job would be a great excuse to take some time off and relax or [...]

Last weekend I was the best man for my youngest brother's wedding. Just like my other brother's wedding last January, I really didn't know how things would play out. I'm trying to think of something cheeky to write about the event, but it would appear that I spent all my wit during the best man toast and all my gusto on the dance floor. Of course I did nothing to upstage my brother, who by the way, happened to use my formula for his [...]

I have come to the conclusion that there is no such thing as job security. Given the current economic situation, I am pretty sure I am not alone. If I were evaluating a position for employment, it would be the last criteria I would use to assess the quality of the job. Someone once told me that job security causes one to neglect his or her own personal development. Somehow, subconsciously, I have always believed that. I think its rather naive to think that [...]

Like most Catholic families, when we were growing up my parents always insisted on my siblings and me to sacrifice something during Lent. Typically we would do the most common things: candy, TV or something simple. I'm pretty sure I grasped the significance at an early age, but I don't know exactly when the whole sacrifice idea became so blindly ritualistic. So much so that at times I didn't know what I could do or give that would make a difference, seeing as everyday [...]