Christmas, New Years, and Sunday

The last time Christmas fell on a Sunday was 11 years ago. I don't know if much has changed since then, but certainly 11 years of maturity cause you to see things differently. Here are some thoughts on a recent article I read: Christmas and Sunday Collide and some Churches Scramble.

Why is it that Christians dodge church on a time when Christmas falls on a Sunday? Churches expected low attendance and adjusted accordingly. My church normally has 3 morning sunday services and 2 evening ones. This Christmas Sunday...only 1. They expect that less than 1/5 of the church will even bother showing up Christmas morning. Some other churches cancelled services all together. It's not like Christmas isn't some religious holiday or something. I mean why bother going to church at all on the day we celebrate the birth of Jesus let alone when that day falls on Sunday. What?! Here's an idea...let's pre-empt Sunday services because they fall on our own Holy holiday.

With any other religion, a religious holiday would be spent in a place of worship. Why not Christians too? We all pack our churches on Easter to remember His death and resurection...why can't we do the same for His birth. Without Christmas, Easter would never have happened. And yet, this Christmas, churches lay empty while everyone is at home seeing what some guy in a red suit brought them this year.

It seems that Christians have bought into the secularized Christmas. It's all about a man in a red suit and how much you can get. They bust their buts day and night to get all their Christmas shopping done, sometimes staying up all night to make everything perfect for their kids in the morning. And yet, they can't take a hour out of the day to gather together on the day chosen to celebrate His Birth. Some religious holiday. It's a good thing we don't try to hold services every Christmas.

Don't get me wrong. I love the presents, the happy people, families, snowmen, santas, and everything else that has come to represent Christmas. But let's not forget the reason for all of this in the first place: the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

New Years is coming up in two days and again falls on Sunday. The Rose Parade and Rose Bowl are being held on different days so as to not spoil church attendance. Six years from now, Christmas will fall on Sunday again. What will happen then? Will the trend be even worse or will we discover that Church and Christmas don't collide, they go together.

Disneyland...in 1955

I recently came across some old photographs of my dad, his siblings and my gradparents at Disneyland in August 1955...one month after the park opened on July 17, 1955. And how things have changed since then. I am going to try to get some recent pictures to compare with these old ones, but for now...enjoy.

A new job...The first few days

Honestly, not much as happened yet in my first two days. I have an office that is full of boxes, but they promised me it would be clear by tomorrow morning. I don't have a phone or a computer or a computer account yet. Something about it being government (since I'm actually on the AF base instead of in a northrop facility) means they can't process these things prior to you arriving. I remember my first day at northrop, 3 1/2 years ago, I had everyting waiting for me, phone, computer, accounts, badge, etc. I just picked up my AF badge today so I don't have to be escorted around the base any more. But I swear, they run their badging office like the DMV.

Aside from HR orientations, and completing paperwork, and running paperwork all around the base so they could process the things I need like a computer, phone, accounts, badges, etc. My days have been spent reading. I was given several large binders full of DoD Directives, AF Instructions, etc. because they are the procedures that we follow as we do our work. Kinda dry reading, but then I'm new at this. One thing I do know, this job will require lots of reading.

So what will I be doing exactly... (more later)

I got the Job!

I got the computer security engineer job. :) I will be working for Northrop in the MILSATCOM Program Office at LA AFB. I am really excited, and this is a great opportunity for me to start working in the information security field which I am going to school for. Tentatively I would start on Dec 12, so that date is rapidly coming up.

My manager already knows, but I spent yesterday and today talking to my various leads and customers informing them of my new Job. I am also working on listing out all my duties so they can form a good transition plan...so far I'm at 3 1/2 pages of tasks with still more to come, and that doesn't include documenting each task.

We also had a planned power outage over Thanksgiving weekend. I hate those. This time it meant that all our systems had to be powered down. I thankfully wasn't there for the powerdown as I was on my way back from Florida, but my systems did not power up gracefully when I turned them on Monday morning. One Sun system had a bad power supply. Another Sun system had a bad I/O Board. A disk array had some sort of problem causing it to report 16 drive failures. There weren't any drive failures, there was just another problem causing it to report the drive failures. When I recovered from the drive failures, I find the data is corrupted or not there, so now I have to recover from tape. 2 days later, and I'm still recovering these systems. I hate this. I enjoy doing system implementation and system integration work, but I hate doing routing system administration and especially recovery after failures. I guess in simplistic terms, I like building complex systems, but not maintaining them. Thankfully my new job will put me out of this maintenance and recovery business.

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!

Greetings From Florida

Well, I'm back in Melbourne, FL for a while. I've been here for a week now arriving last Sunday and will be here for a total of 10 days leaving this Wed the day before thanksgiving. Leave it to me to have to travel on the busiest travel day of the year. This trip was totally unexpected, as my manager called me up Thursday morning on the 10th and said "So...you want to go to Melbourne? You leave this Sunday." I guess they were very shorthanded out here and needed an extra person to work on some projects. There was one project that had a deadline to get some servers online by last Fri that I needed to work. The one part that actually sucks is the holiday this week makes it hard to collect any overtime pay. In order to get overtime pay, I have to first work 80 hours of regular time not counting holidays. So at the most, I can postpone the holiday taking an extra holiday later instead of taking it now.

I ended up going to the Florida Disney parks this weekend. I went to Animal Kingdom and Epcot on Sat and MGM on Sun. It was rainy Sunday afternoon though, so that kinda cut things short there. The Florida parks are nice, but nothing beats the Disneyland Christmas celebration. They don't have anything comparable out here.

Still haven't heard anything about the job yet. The HR rep who was working it was out of the office all last week. The hiring manager is getting anxious as he needs someone, and he sent an email last week saying he'd touch base with me today. Right now, the next pay period ends on Dec 9. My current manager does know about the possibility of my changing jobs as I wanted to warn him before he sent me to Florida. Since nothing is official though, we left it at that, and he asked if I wanted to go to FL anyway.

Job News!

So I interviewed for a System Security Engineer position yesterday with Northrop. In this position, I would be working with the system designers and developers for military satellite programs. This is very exciting and would be down the information security career path were I am headed with my education. My office would basically move across the street from where it is now onto LA AFB.

The interview went very well, and I received a call from the HR dept from that business unit just a few minutes ago to start all the paperwork for the internal transfer process. So it really sounds like they want to hire me and would extend me an offer. If all goes well, I could start there as early as the 28th of November or the 5th of December. This is very exciting!

Election Blues

What's the point of having a special epection if every single ballot measure is going to fail. These were extremely important reforms, however they failed because of a high budget slime campaign brought on by labor unions. The California Teachers union spent $120 million to defeat these ballot measures with untrue slime commercials. The union spent so much money that it went broke, took out a loan to cover the campaign expenses, and then slapped every teacher in California with an extra $60 a month mandatory union due increase to pay off the loan for the campaign expenses. That right there is why we needed Prop 75 to pass. To prevent the union from doing something like that to all teachers. Let's let only those who support the union's politics give their money.

Californians want change. They've said so. Weeks before the election each of the important ballot measures had overwhelming support and were expected to pass by huge margins. Then comes the slime campaign and what happens. We loose by landslide margins because the stupid liberal left wing unions don't want change. They are so out of touch with what their membership wanted. Over 50% of union members were even expected to vote against their union initially until the scare tatics started. When the unions spend over $200 million combined, it is impossible for anyone to compete fairly. The worst part is that much of that $200 million came from mandatory contributions from people who didn't support the cause. The pro side only spent about $34 million so it's no wonder they were completely overwhelmed by the slime campaign.

Long time no post

I'm still here. It's been a long month, but things are going well. Our kitchen remodeling project is nearing completion. It's very trying to have your house torn apart for 6 weeks while you work on something as important as a kitchen. You can't shut the door on in when you're not working, instead you have to live in it, step over boxes containing the contents of your cubbords and drawers, dig through them when you want a cup or a spoon, or decide to cook, and you have to use the half completed kitchen everyday to survive. In the end it will be worth it. Hopefully this this the last week of it. This weekend we just have some moulding to put up and some polishing to do! When the end is near, I'll post before and after pictures so you can see, you could also come to our christmas party and see for yourself. It already is looking amazing in it's almost completed state.

The job front is looking quite interesting indeed. In the re-organization they did, I was offered a job at the same level, same pay rate in the new organization as I already had which is good. From what I hear many people were very unhappy with the transition and some had very significant pay cuts. A pay cut could have been disasterous for us in the middle of a remodeling project and all. I accepted that offer and will start in the new org Nov 14. (same job, same coworkers, different management is all) Since Jeff moved out of the office, I sure hope that they decide to move someone else in there since the office is awfully lonely without a coworker to share it with.

In other job news, I applied for a few other positions in Information Security during the re-organization as I wanted backup in case something went wrong during that transition. For those that don't know I am currently working as a System Admin, but am working on a Masters in Information Security and want to head down that path career wise. I applied for a position I wasn't necessarily qualified for, but was one in the Information Security field where I was headed. The hiring manager called be back and said that since I am new to the field I would have a very hard time being successful in that particular position. However, he still wanted to get together with me to see if I might fit into some other opportunities in the InfoSec field. I met with him last thursday, and afterwards he passed my information and resume along with a recommendation to another manager who I am meeting with tomorrow. This is very exciting, and I would to get one of these jobs as a computer security or information assurance engineer. If nothing works out, I still enjoy my old job, but I have my hopes up for the future.

All -- make sure everyone gets out and votes tomorrow. This is one of the most important elections that we've had in California, and there are some extremely important ballot measures. Arnold promised he'd change California, and here is our chance to make that change. These will bring change for years to come.

Ben's Voter Guide:

Prop 73 - Yes - Require parental notification for abortions
Prop 74 - Yes - Extend Teacher Tenure to 5 years, and allow firing after 2 consecutive negative performance reviews
Prop 75 - Yes - Union Dues cannot be used for political purposes without prior authorization
Prop 76 - Yes - Slows down the rate at which the budget can increase each year. Governor has authority to strike spending from budget if there is an inbalace that the legislature can't resolve.
Prop 77 - Yes - Retired judges draw legislative districts instead of legislature. districts approved by voters
Prop 78 - No - Discount perscription drugs to low income families
Prop 79 - No - Discount perscription drugs to low income families
Prop 80 - No - Electricity regulation

How 'bout them angels

Man... I was really rooting for another Angels World Series victory like they had 3 years ago. 3 years ago was so much fun as I watched all 7 World Series games in Downtown Disney with 10,000 other fans crowded around 3 giant jumbotron screens. It was such a high energy celebration.

The Angels were off to a great start this year. 3 games on 3 consecutive days in 3 different cities and 3 victories - First in New York, then in Anaheim, then in Chicago. The last victory in Chicago no one expected them to win since they were so road weary, but they proved everyone wrong. Then comes the second game in Chicago. 1-1 in the bottom of the 9th inning, 2 outs, and the umpire makes a stupid call on strike 3 that put a man on first instead of ending the inning. Every replay, and every television announcer clearly stated that the ump made the wrong call. The next batter hit the ball to allow the White Sox to win. The umps call gave the White Sox the victory instead of allowing a fair battle in extra innings. No one knows who really should have won that game, but the unfair loss in Chicago sank their spirits. The Angels then went on to lose 3 in a row in Anaheim to give the White Sox the American League championship. I guess this year isn't their year this time. Maybe next.

(As I'm writing this, there is a cool lightening stom going on outside. :)

Prop 75 - Restrict Political Contributions with Union Dues

Vote Yes!

This law prohibits public employee unions from using union dues for political purposes except with the consent of individual employees.

All I say, is that it's about time! My only complaint is that this only covers public employees and not private sector employees. However, it's a step in the right direction. Let's pass this and then tackle the private sector in the next election.

I heard on the news today that many teachers are crying out because the teacher's union is raising their dues by $20-30 a month to payback a loan they the union took out to help fund the latest television slime campaign against the governor. That is simply unfair. And teachers simply have to pay the extra fees regardless of whether they supported that ad campaign or not. This now gives them a choice. My wife has to belong to a union for her job and I cringe every month when she pays her dues knowing that at least half of them are going to liberal political purposes. In the last election, I voted opposite the union on every single item. So why is my money going to support their views when they oppose mine?

The opponents continue their rant about teachers being under attack with this law. They claim that there is a hidden agenda to limit the effectiveness of the union. duh! It allows those with opposing viewpoints to contribute their money elsewhere. If enough people do this, then yes it will limit the power of the unions. Unions have too much power anyway, and the liberals can't tell the difference between an attack on unions and an attack on individuals. They like to personalize it to appeal to our emotions. Under the new law, the unions will get the political contributions of those who actually agree with their political views. Perhaps this will make the unions more moderate or conservative in order to keep the money coming in from people who can't stand the liberal left.

The other complaint from the opposition is that it limits the effectiveness of the public employee unions while doing nothing with the private sector leaving their unions powerful. I grant them this, but we have to start somewhere. Let's go after the private sectory next. My wife works in the private sector and will not reap the benefits of this law. But I want to see a similar law on the next ballot targetted at the private sector.

Vote YES! and give public employees a choice as to where they contribute their political dollars.

Prop 74 - increase probation length for teacher tenure

Vote YES!

Prop 74 would increase the length of a new teacher's probation from two years to five. This requires teachers to perform well for longer and gives principals more time to evaluate teachers before they are granted tenure.

Under current law, tenured teachers are very hard to remove for unsatisfactory performance. This law allows schools to fire tenured teachers after two consecutive unsatisfactory evaluations.

I really hate the bogus lies that the opponets to this proposition use in their ads. They don't really say anything about the increased probationary period, but they are really opposed to the rest of the law. They try to appeal to our emotions by saying that this proposition is an attack on our teachers and designed to punish hardworking teachers. There is nothing farther from the truth. This law does not punish or attach teachers. It simply ups the standard. Poor performing teachers are the only ones who have to worry. Good teachers have nothing to worry about. Even an occasional unsatisfactory review won't deny them their teaching job. Under this law, tenured teachers can be fired after two consecutive unsatisfactory reviews. There is nothing novel about that. If I got two consecutive unsatisfactory reviews in my private sector job, I would certainly be fired. Since we're entrusting the care of our children to these teachers, they really should be held to an even higher performance standard, but sadly, the opponets of this law don't want that. Instead they want to lie to everyone and appeal to our emotions.

Vote YES!

Prop 73 - Waiting Period and Parental Notification Before Termination of Minor's Pregnancy

Vote YES!

Prohibits abortion in California for a minor until 48 hours after a physician notifies a minor's parent or legal guardian, and permits judicial relief if someone is attempting to coerce a minor into having an abortion.

This Proposition partially reverses a 1953 state law that allows minors to receive pregnancy care and abortions without parental consent or even notification. A minor can't normally get an aspirin from the school nurse or even a flu shot without parental notification, so why can they get abortions? The opponents argue that this law would complicate situations in abusive households when parents received notification. Perhaps in those situations the minor would think twice about actually killing their baby. Or if they really felt threatened, the law does allow the minor to go to Juvenile court to get a waiver to this law with insinuating circumstances.

While it doesn't prohibit the heinous act of murdering unborn children like we all want, it is a step in the right direction. Most parents have invested attention and love in their daughters and care about them. While the minor still has the ultimate choice, the parents can help her understand all the alternatives and obtain better care.

This law doesn't go as far as we all want, but it's certainly a step in the right direction.

Vote YES!

Coming soon....

My take on the latest California ballot propositions. I know it's early, but the false emotionally charged TV ads are already getting on my nerves.

Awesome Halo Game

Ok, I just had to share this because this game was really awesome. Check out my shots fired. In this game, two of us went around in the jeep for the entire game killing people with the turret or running them over with the jeep.

Penny Pinching...

I got this from an old friend and thought it quite funny.

Look at my piggy bank after I bought gas yesterday.


In other news, we are remodeling our kitchen. :) We bought new cabinets over the weekend. Now we just need to pick out a countertop. We're getting white cabinets, and probably a blue with white marbled countertop. We're really excited even though redoing a kitchen isn't really that cheap.

New Digital Camera

We purchased a new digital camera this week. It's a Casio exlim ez-z55 for those who care to know the details. So we had to go out and take some pictures to test it out. There is no better place for pictures than the beach, so off we went yesterday on a picture quest to Huntington and Corona Del Mar beaches. Here are a few small samples below, but all the shots are in a photo gallery on our website. For those who haven't visited our website recently, I finally changed the template and will be updating content soon as well.

My Green Thumb (or lack thereof)

So I was looking at our flowers this evening, and it seems like no matter what I do, I always seem to kill our flowers. Takes these ones for instance:

The plant in the pot on the left died shortly after planting. And the one in the middle has just a smigen of green trying to hold on. The rest has long died off. The one on the right really wants to fight but is it a lost cause? It's not like I don't water them.



These ones are really dead. There's no question about it, I'm a plant murderer. Can I be forgiven?




This is my one hope. A large ficus tree we have near our front door is just doing great. There are even some impatiens in the pot with the tree that are also doing well. Our tree is doing so well, that we've had to cut it back several times because it gets too overgrown and bushy for the location. Both of our parents are also quite surprised at how well this plant is doing since ficus are supposedly hard to grow and keep looking nice. So why do I succeed with a ficus and fail with all the other plants we tried? So do I really not have a green thumb with all the dead plants? or is there some hope after all with the ficus?

Summer Grades

Grades are in. I got a 93 on the final for my summer law class which gives me an A in the class. WooHoo!

Checking In...

Wow, it's been over a month since I last posted. sorry, I'll try to not let that happen again. Let me know if you're still reading this after that period of silence. I really did not fall off the face of the planet, so to catch everyone up with the events of the last month, here goes.

Amanda and I went to Vegas at the end of June to celebrate our anniversary and Amanda's birthday. It we stayed at the Venetian hotel and enjoyed gambling our hard earned money and seeing the other attractions there as well. Amanda's big boast is how she turned $50 into $200 at the blackjack table the night of her birthday. A big birthday present as the dealer put it. I wasn't so lucky, but then again, it wasn't my birthday.

Coming home leaves me to work on my summer Law class for my infosec masters program. This class was taught using the socratic method in an online discussion board medium. We had an awesome professor, and I really enjoyed the class, and the discussion overall. When you study Law, you realize there are so many things we don't consider in our everyday dealings with people. It really provoked my thinking into some issues (perhaps more on this later - does anyone want to know some of the implications of the recent MGM v Grokster decision?). Still don't know what my final grade will be though. We had a killer take home final exam due last weekend. We had to read a fact sheet about a case, and then answer 20 questions. Of course, our answer to each question had to be well researched with appropriate supporting citations. It took me 10-12 hours of work to complete the final exam.

Next weekend my brother Mike is getting married, so this week will be busy with preparations for everything. Yesterday we had an evening at Rainforest cafe, Dave & Busters, and a poker game for his bachelor party.

The trials of home ownership are proving interesting for me right now as I discovered yesterday that the drain pipe for the condensation out of our air conditioner is clogged. This is causing the condensation to back up and overflow the pan which really causes a mess. For now, I've rigged up a way to vaccuum up the water before it overflows. What this means, is that about every 4-5 hours of running the air conditioner, I vaccuum up about 1 1/2 gallons of condensation out of the drain pan and drain pipe.

Well, that's enough for now. Goodnight everyone.