Today was exactly the one month mark at my job.
I'm starting to feel like it's home and I really belong there. It's a very good thing.
And, my prediction that I would run into a student I knew sooner or later came true when an old classmate from high school came in to pick up his accommodation letters. Small world.
Over the weekend, I went down to SW MN State for MSUSA's Diversity Conference. I participated in a discussion of the challenges facing students with disabilities as a presenter. It was interesting being there, at a conference for the first time since April, and as a professional "expert" rather than a student.
I feel so adult.
I'm not a coffee drinker, but I like Chai latte on occasion.
Occasion used to be once every couple of months. Now I work near a Starbucks that can be accessed via underground tunnel from my office, and once every couple of months has turned into once every couple of days...which is expensive and can't be good for me, either.
Damn you, Starbucks Stadium Village!
I've blogged before about my dislike for text messaging.
Well, I may be changing my tune a bit. For the last couple of months I've been paying several dollars a month in casual text charges. I think it's time to accept that people are going to text me...and I will read them and reply, but there is no way I am going to keep paying Sprint's 20 cent fee per message to send/receive.
Now, I know I could simply add text messaging to my current plan and be done with it. But, if you know me you know why I hated texting in the first place...I type slow to begin with so pounding out messages on a regular phone keypad where you need to push a button 3-5 times to get your desired character...not so fun.
Solution: Get a smart phone or a phone with an included QWERTY keypad.
Problem with that? Even though I am eligible for a phone upgrade in April, that would require me signing a new contract AGAIN, which I already had to do in October, leaving me locked in to my current carrier until April 2010. While I have no overwhelming complaints about them, they are not faring well with customers lately and others are beginning to look more attractive.
My Options:
1) Renew in April for another two years and get a break on the phone I want then.
2) Spend $300-plus on the type of phone I want in order to avoid contract renewal.
3) Pay the $200 to exit my contract and port the number to another carrier (T-Mobile gets good reviews from some friends, and ATT is the home of iPhone, although I would not pop for one of those initially.)
4) Keep my current phone for the duration of the contract
Anyone out there want to comment on the cell phone racket, or endorse their carrier, phone or plan?
This morning while waiting for the bus, three wild turkeys wandered in my direction. They decided they were going to circle me. This lasted a good ten minutes until the bus showed up...then they would not move for the bus. The driver and passengers were laughing heartily and I was dubbed "Turkey Man"
A rather strange way to begin a Wednesday morning commute in the suburbs.
A few months ago I started experimenting with feed readers to keep track of the blogs I enjoy.
First I tried Shrook.
Now I'm using Net News Wire and overall like it better. The problem? I tried synching with a free NewsGator account online and the online version says I have tons more unread posts than I actually do, and doesn't display my flagged items. Since I like to read entries and flag for later comment, I need to see those flagged items whether I'm on my MacBook, the family iMac, my iMac at the office or another machine.
Could Google Reader be worth a try?
Readers: Comment--what feed reader do you use and why?
I've now begun week three of the new job, and things continue to go well. As the days pass, I become more familiar with routines and practices. I am becoming more comfortable, feeling as though I belong and am not simply a visitor in a strange place. I am no longer mistaken for a student by the student workers.
It's a good feeling.
The other night I was burning CDs and got a sudden error message. My drive stopped reading CDs entirely, all it did was spit them out.
Yesterday I spent an hour plus on the phone with Apple, and made an appointment to visit my local Apple Store tonight. They quickly diagnosed that my SuperDrive motor had burned out, and luckily had a replacement in stock. The repair was done in a half an hour.
As an added bonus, they cleaned my machine up and replaced the top case, which had become stained, as is somewhat common with white MacBooks.
Cost for all this? $0
Lesson? Go for Apple Care extended warranty up front, it will pay for itself when the inevitable happens and something needs fixing.
Well, I survived week one on the job. It was a lot of just getting comfortable there and learning the basics. But I am happy to report that I have taken care of my "new guy" stuff.
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