Devon drove in from Pasadena yesterday. He’ll be here until sometime in the week between Christmas and New Years.
His job is still up in the air. He’s working without a salary right now as they try to drum up new business, but if they find some jobs he will make a healthy commission. I guess he will be making some calls from here.
Derek is also on winter break from ASU, so you can imagine with the two of them free that lots of video-gaming has been going on.
Devon was home for the Thanksgiving holidays, but is going back tomorrow (Sunday). I (Daryl) am going to ride back with him and spend a couple of days over there.
Devon’s job is still in limbo, as the company (or remnants of) figure out what they are going to do. Sounds like they still want to keep him around, but he may be asked to do marketing or sales, which he isn’t very interested in. We’ll see what happens.
Thank you Derek, for telling me about this website.
Take a look at Free Rice. It’s a simple multiple-choice word definition game with a twist. For each word you get right, the page sponsors donate 10 grains of rice through the United Nations to help end world hunger.
It sounds like an Urban Legend or scam, but you can check it out at the World Food Programme web site.
The words get harder fast, but it’s more interesting and addictive than it might seem. Try it! I’m at level 43. How high can you get?
In my last post I talked about the basketball team I played on. David Chau was not on the team, but he practised with us a lot.
Last Saturday night most of the team was together playing basketball (I wasn’t there), when David suddenly fell down unconscious. He died in the ambulance on the way to the hospital.
David wore a pacemaker, so I’m guessing the problem was heart related. However, his doctor had given him permission to play ball, so I’m not sure what happened.
It’s a little unsettling when something like this happens; someone apparently in good health is suddenly gone, with no warning. Is this easier than hanging on for years, slowly fading away as Dad did? One way is a shock; you are unprepared. The other way people have already come to terms with the end when it happens, but the years of decline are hard on everyone.
For the individual there is a lot to be said for knowing death is coming so you can get your affairs in order, and make sure your family can survive, but you’ve got to stand there and face your death.
I think when I go I want a compromise: Not several years slowly losing my mind and body, but not instantly either. Give me a few days or weeks of alertness and health to get everything in order and say goodbye to my friends and family.
OK?
In September I joined a Chandler City League basketball team. We played 8 games and went undefeating the whole season.
We started out poorly, losing our first game by 40 points. The next few games were 30, 25, 15 and our high point of the season when we only lost by 6 points, to the 3rd place team. I hit 6 out of 7 three-pointers that game, so it was a high point for me too!
We played the first round of the (single elimination) tournament on Sunday, and only lost by 10 points. I was 5 for 7 on threes in that game. (We won’t talk about the game where I hit 1 for 11…)
Most of the players had never played in a league before, so it was a learning experience, but we enjoyed it enough that most of us are going to play again when the league starts up in January. We hope to acquire a couple of new players in the off season, and are optimistic that we might even win a game next time around.
Hey There, Apollo
(To the tune of “Hey there, Delilah”, shown above in the video)
Hey there Apollo, what’s it like out in the back yard?
You’re a hundred feet away, but boy, tonight you look so naughty,
Yes you do.
Just look at all the things you chew.
You know it’s true.
Hey there Apollo, don’t you worry about the kitchen,
It’ll be there in the morning,
You can sleep out on the lawn,
Close your eyes.
Sleep a little longer ‘fore you rise,
Then come inside.
Oh, what you chew and eat.
Oh, what you chew and eat.
Oh, what you chew and eat.
Oh, what you chew and eat.
Hey there Apollo, I know nights are getting hot
But just believe me pup, someday you’ll feel the chill there in the yard
You’ll have it good
You’ll feel the cold you know you should
The yard is good.
Hey there Apollo, you’ve got so much time to play
If every puppy toy we gave to you
You grabbed and took away,
We’d buy you more.
Even though you chew them to the core.
You’d still have more.
Oh, what you chew and eat.
Oh, what you chew and eat.
Oh, what you chew and eat.
Oh, what you chew and eat.
Around the lake’s a long, long hike,
But you can run beside the bike,
We’ll zoom along as fast as in a car.
The other dogs will bark at us,
But you’ll just bark along because.
You know that none of them can run this far
Apollo I can promise you,
That by the time we get through,
The yard will never ever be the same
It’s just so tame.
Hey there Apollo,
You be good and don’t you bite me
Two more months and you’re off puppy food
You’ll keep making dog poop like you do.
You know it’s all inside of you
You can lift your leg if you want to.
Hey there Apollo, here’s to you
This one’s for you.
Oh, what you chew and eat.
Oh, what you chew and eat.
Oh, what you chew and eat.
Oh, what you chew and eat.
Devon’s company called and wants him to come back for a few weeks to finish up some jobs. They realized after letting everyone go that they had some billable projects under way that would pay more than Devon would cost.
So that basically gives him more time to look for another job.
Devon’s company SECo has just closed their Pasadena office and everyone was laid off. It looks like they are going to file for bankruptcy.
He doesn’t know what he is going to do yet, but he’ll figure something out. He was only planning to work for a year before going on to graduate school anyway, so it’s not a career-changer, but it is still unplanned for and unexpected.
If he finds another job in another state he will have to break a lease, which may cost some money.
Looks like he’s getting a dose of real life.
I’m flying to Pasadena this afternoon to spend the weekend with Devon. Back home on Sunday afternoon.
Derek is feeling much better 2 weeks after the second epidural. Not quite perfect, but he plans to talk to the doctor before deciding whether he needs a third shot or not.
Derek is doing well at ASU, acing his tests. Looks like he’s going to do well.
Devon broke up from his girlfriend of 5+ years (Keri). Amicable, but still hard to take after so long.
Devon is still working for SECO (Sub-Surface Exploration Company) as a geophysicist in Pasadena. Still planning to go to grad school next fall.
Gisele spent last week in Pasadena with Devon — at least she spent the nights at his apartment. She has so many old friends living in the area that she was out everyday having fun.
I “fixed” the crashed Vondek server last week, but otherwise not much is going on with me. (OK, “fixed” is maybe misleading, but I helped…)
Apollo is enjoying the cooler weather, spending most of the days outside. He runs a little farther almost every day beside the bike. He sprints about a half-mile when we start now, then trots for about 2, periodically breaking back into a lope. He would be willing to trot much further if he could find someone to ride the bike longer.
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