Orlando, FL

After walking Buddy this morning I had a breakfast of raisin bran and then I got my shower.

Work was moderately challenging today. There were only a few new orders and I was able to have all of the order processing done by 9:30 am.

While reading Lifehacker.com I ran across an article about command line programs (text-based, not Windows) , how they are used and why they are better. I saw the free wGet program listed there with them and decided that I needed to re-install wGet on my work computer and my home pc. I wanted to download a complete back up copy of this weblog to my hard drive.

What fascinated me was that there were extra uses for wGet listed other than just downloading a copy of a website - you can use it to search for .mp3 music files, you can use it to take snapshots of a website that changes frequently, you can use it to download from FTP sites over a noisy or unreliable connection and it will reconnect and keep trying to download until it finishes, it can run in the background with no user input, and it is very easy to configure and hack. I am going to explore a few more of the examples given.

Yeah, I know, pretty nerdy.

I also downloaded a pretty face for wGet - a GUI that makes setting all of the command line switches much easier and makes wGet able to be run from Windows.

During lunch we had a hard downpour of rain. It did not last very long though. I came home and made a ham sandwich with sliced heirloom tomatoes and cheese.

The afternoon was quiet enough that I managed to get all the orders for the past two weeks sorted and filed away. I am glad. I was running out of room to lay new orders down!

This evening while walking Buddy six (6) police cars charged down Robert Trent Jones Drive as fast as they could. Then the Rescue Squad went after them! When we got to The Hamptons we saw them all out of their cars on a manhunt! They crawled under the gate of the Stonebridge Reserve and fanned out looking for a man who robbed Trotter's Sports Bar and Grill.

We crossed the street and walked north up the street again. By the time we got home they still had not found him.

I worked in the garage some more this evening. I am sawing and planing aspen wood - a white softwood related to willows and poplars. It machines easily, but it makes a lot of fine powdery dust. I stopped around 8 pm because I ran out of wood to cut and plane! I will get more at Lowe's soon.

My pay check will be deposited in my checking account tonight. I will check the balance in the morning and write a check for the August rent tomorrow morning before work.

Orlando, FL

I never feel like I've gotten enough sleep. I guess a lot of people feel that way.

This morning Fay was 15 minutes late. When she walked in she proclaimed today National Cheesecake Day. I asked her if that was why she was late.

Total sales came to over $260k today. We still have two more days of orders. I think it will be another banner week for us.

During lunch we made some frozen pizzas in the combi oven.

A package came today via UPS with our paystubs in it. There were two stubs for each of us - that means a bonus was paid! There was a stub for my regular paycheck and a $500 bonus in there!

Fay called Debbie to come to the office to pick up her pay check. She was in the office for about an hour trying to get one of her techno-doo-dads to connect to the Internet.

Yesterday Debbie had to stay home all day long to wait for the FedEx man because she was expecting a package that required a signature. Well, today she confessed that she missed the FedEx man because she was in the shower!

One of her dealers let it slip to me that Debbie was taking her vacation next week in Costa Rica. I don't know why she was keeping it such a secret. She is going down there with five of her friends. I am sure she won't be going to tour the rain forest or see anything of value. It will just be a resort-beach vacation.

With my bonus check I guess I can finish paying car insurance, replace the last bad tire on the truck, and order belts and hoses for it.

This evening, after walking Buddy, and eating a dinner of baked hamburger patties with sliced cheese and sliced heirloom tomatoes, I went to the garage to start working on some new wood projects. I guess I wanted to start because today was cooler and drier. I did that for about an hour and I ran the emergency generator too.

Orlando, FL

I started waking up around 4:40 am, but I turned off the alarm so it would not wake me at 5:00 am and kept sleeping until after 6:00 am. Then we got up, pulled on shorts, sock, shoes and t-shirt, harnessed the dog, and took him for his morning walk.

Breakfast was a bowl of hot oatmeal.

After my shower I dressed for work in my yellow FER shirt and some green slacks. I wore my black leather shoes to work.

There were zero new orders on the fax when I got to the office, but I was quickly swamped with service issues and order follow up. I had to hold one dealer's hand and explain line-by-line how to read her Frymaster Sales Order Acknowledgement. I had to prepare quotes. I had to obtain shipping dates for orders.

One Olive Garden restaurant is insisting that we replace their entire Cleveland Range equipment order and that we do it by Monday, 8-4-08, because of rust issues. Later I learned that the staff at this Olive Garden filled the kettles and skillet up with water and left them filled for over two months. Somehow I don't think a replacement order will be shipping.

We ended the day with over $160k in orders.

During lunch today I came home. My truck was rattling up Arnold Palmer Drive and then I heard some loud noise and saw a piece of metal bouncing away on the road behind me. The metal that was loose and rattling fell off the truck!

On the way back to the office I stopped and picked up the metal piece. It was a heat shield for the catalytic converter. Shoot. Maybe the truck won't need it. I will just keep an eye on the carpet on the passenger side to make sure it doesn't start smoking!

The Hodges family is flying to San Francisco tomorrow to visit the oldest son at Defense Linguistics Institute in Monterey. They will be out there until Tuesday. It will be difficult because he won't be available to consult with on problem orders.

Fay said that we are going to go over to BJ's during lunch during the next couple of days to buy supplies. The answering machine will just have to be good enough while we are gone.

When you are little it takes forever for Christmas to come and each day seems so long. Now that I am older they are just click, click, clicking by and the years are going by faster and faster.

Orlando, FL

The alarm went off at 5:00 AM, but we did not get up until 6:00 AM. I took Buddy for his morning walk and Bob got a shower and made up the bed.

I packed a Tupperware box of leftover ravioli for Bob to take to work and eat at lunch. I ate some ravioli at lunch myself and then threw the last couple of cups of it away - no sense flirting with botulism.

Right before lunch the UPS man brought my Blurb.com book about my trip to Peru. I am going to let several people review it before I place an order for copies.

Before lunch I had processed $110k in new orders. Yup, I think it will be another lucrative week for FER-Orlando.

My head congested today and all afternoon it felt like it was going to split open. I have taken several Sudafed tablets and I am contemplating using the Flonase and taking a hot shower.

Weekend

We got up Saturday morning to walk Buddy. We walked down to Winn-Dixie and Bob went inside to get a loaf of bread. I picked up a copy of Orlando Weekly, a free alternative news rag from a stand outside.

Back home I made scrambled egg patties, sausage patties, and toast with jelly. We had coffee too.
Bob spent much time working on his online courses and collaborating with the girls in his Entrepreneurship class he takes on Mondays. I finished reading The World Is Flat in the afternoon. Bob brought his paperback copy of The Money Game for me to read.

In the evening I made a big pot of cheese-stuffed ravioli. We bought the ravioli frozen at BJ's and I made a sauce with hamburger, onions, tomatoes, tomato juice, garlic, mushrooms, and black olives. We had toasted French bread with it. It was very tasty and filling.

On Sunday morning we got up around 8 AM to walk Buddy. When we got back home I made egg patties with bacon and toast. After I got the breakfast dishes out of the way I started making a cheesecake.

My cheesecake did not turn out perfectly, but it did turn out tasty! I also made a strawberry sauce for it with frozen strawberries, cornstarch, water, and sugar in the blender and then I cooked it down.

We ate the leftover ravioli for lunch and dinner.

During out evening walk I took the cellphone and talked with Mom while walking Buddy. Mom said that Grandma Pat has been placed in a nursing home while she undergoes physical therapy twice a day, five days a week. Oh, I can just hear her complaining now. Mom also said that Aunt Edie, Patty, and all of her kids are here in Florida visiting Disney.

Before we got back home it began to rain and it rained hard! We ran to an apartment building and sheltered in one of the breezeways. After 30 minutes we decided to go ahead and make a run for it. We were soaked.

I went in and got towels for Bob and Buddy. Then the clothes went into the dryer while Bob got a nice hot shower. Spent a nice quiet evening after that.

I really am not looking forward to going back to work in the morning.

The Last Lecture

Randy died on Friday, 7-25-08. He was 47.

Orlando, FL

Friday was another hectic day in the office and we would have ended the week with $520k+, but one dealer cancelled a $47k combi order at the end of the day. Still, with Hollywood bringing in over $355k, it was another banner week for FER.

Craig went to a dealer meeting in the morning and knocked knees with somebody under the table. His knee was swollen as big as a grapefruit from his trip to Virginia, but the accident at the table knocked the cartilage back in and it felt better!

The weather was sunny, humid, and very hot all day.

During lunch I stopped at Wal*Mart to get a potato and carrots for the crock pot. I put a turkey breast in to the pot with carrots, sliced potato, garlic, and butter.

In the evening Bob came over and we took Buddy for his walk and then we ate turkey breast for dinner. I had beers to drink and for dessert we had cherry pie.

Around 8:30 PM my phone rang. It was the alarm monitoring company, Monitronics, warning me that the office burglar alarm had been tripped and that the police were enroute. I had Bob harness up the dog and I got my gun, wrapped it in a t-shirt, and we drove to the office to investigate.

The motion detector in the front was tripped when I got there, but there was no other evidence of someone trying to break in. The police had already left by the time we got there.

After we got back to the house we went right to bed. I read my book in bed for awhile and then we slept.

DOS 5.0 Upgrade

Orlando, FL

I slept in this morning until almost 6:15! Buddy didn't get up until I walked out into the living room.

They mowed the sides of Metrocenter Blvd and the vacant field where we saw the foxes. They mowed around the mound and foxhole, but we did not see the animals.

Work was steadily busy all day. We ended the day with $486k in new orders.

Debbie went to Tampa today to call on Beltram. Neil was there when she showed up. Neil called Fay and acted like he was at Debbie's house. "Do they eat wet or dry food?" Fay did not understand at first. He said that he was at Debbie's house to feed her dogs! LOL!

This evening I took Buddy for his walk. I heard loud jet engines as we stepped out the door. At the bottom of the stairs I looked up to see a Virgin Atlantic 747 (white fuselage, red tail, red engine cowlings) flying north and climbing.

After our walk I ran the vacuum cleaner, did a load of laundry, and baked some chicken nuggets for dinner. After this blogging session I am going to work some more on touching up the grout in my bathtub and read more of my book.

I only have 67 more pages of The World Is Flat.

Orlando, FL

Man! I cannot believe it is already after 8 PM! Go! Go! Go! All day long.

It was very cloudy this morning and it looked like it was going to storm this morning, but it did not and the sun came out around lunch time.

During lunch I went to Chik-Fil-A and got a sandwich and then went home and picked up Buddy. I took Buddy back to the office with me. It was the first time Fay had seen Buddy since she started bringing her grandson to the office in January. He behaved pretty good this afternoon.

As we were getting ready to leave around 5 PM a very strong thunderstorm started up. Fay left immediately, but I still had some work and stayed. It stormed hard for almost another hour! Finally we loaded the truck and drove home.

When I got home I baked a couple of hamburgers for dinner and continued to stain the shower/tub grout white again. After the rain lightened up around 7:30 PM we took Buddy for his walk.

Now I am about to go lay down and read more of The Earth Is Flat and call Bob for our daily phonecall.

Orlando, FL

We've had a couple of productive days at work. We ended the day with over $338k in sales and I still have another $60k on my desk awaiting revisions. It looks like it will quite a week (again).

The Problem Of The Day for Darden was an order that should have shipped two weeks ago didn't. This was an ice machine order. The problem was compounded by the fact that parts were not available from the supplier to complete assembly of the ice machine and Scotsman Customer Service could not locate one in their distributor network. Poor Stacey was almost in tears.

I was surprised to get a phone call from Mom today at work. She said that Grandma Pat was in the kitchen yesterday afternoon picking a piece of pork out of a pot of beans to feed to her already-too-fat dog when she lost her balance, fell backwards, and cracked her pelvis in two places. She is in the hospital and we do not know how long she will be there. She must be alright because Mom said that she is complaining about everyone and everything.

Today's picture is dedicated to Grandma Pat in the hospital.

Craig is flying to Norfolk, VA tonight for two days of Impinger oven testing at Red Lobster on Lynnhaven Parkway in Virginia Beach. I hope this test goes well because Lincoln redesigned this oven especially for Red Lobster so that we could win this business from Middleby-Marshall.

Debbie brought in an InSinkErator order today from a dealer I had never heard of. It was $800, so I sent it in. It was rejected by the factory because the dealer was not set up for credit. Poor Debbie. That puts her total for the week back to zero. However we have over $300k from the combined efforts of Greg, Neil, Craig, Vince, and Fay.

Yes, even Vince and Fay are able to lure in business while never going outside the office! Too bad Debbie isn't able to do the same thing while sitting at home.

We are staying so busy the days just seem to fly by. Another week will be over before you know it.

Weekend

After a morning walk around Lake Eola with Buddy we went out for breakfast. We went to The Breakfast Club on Pine Street. This restaurant was recently taken over by new management and the changes have not been for the better either. I don't think we'll be going back there.

When we returned to the apartment Bob wanted a shower. Bob likes to tease Buddy by saying, "Let's get a bath!" Buddy usually runs to hide. I took the collar off of him and let Bob give him a bath.

I have a 20% off coupon for July and a 20% off coupon for August to use at the new Barnes & Noble Books at the Winter Garden Village, so we drove down the 408 to the Turnpike and then got off on 50. We drove to Winter Garden and then south on 535 to the new Winter Garden Village. I was astounded at this huge new shopping center... it is huge.

We bought some bath tub caulk at Lowe's and then went to B&N. I got a book about the RAND Corporation, a book about the Knights Templar, and we got a picture book for Bob called Orlando Then & Now. As we left the shopping center heavy thunderstorms were approaching.

We drove back to Orlando and had to stop at Walgreens so that I could get some psuedoephidrine for my sinuses. You have to get your Sudafed from the pharmacy now and you have to sign for it!

When we got back it was almost time to take Buddy out for another walk.

For dinner we had leftover Southwestern Goulash and salad. Then we settled down to read and relax for the evening.

On Sunday morning we got up around 7:00 AM to walk Buddy. We picked up a copy of the free Orlando Weekly newspaper and returned to a breakfast of coffee, scrambled eggs, and toasted bagels with cream cheese.

Today was the 39th anniversary of Moon Day.

Around 11:00 AM we drove to Daytona Beach to visit Tom and Louise, but first we stopped at the house to start installing the new mail box.

I got a spade out of the garage and started to dig a hole about 16 inches across. I went down about 30 inches when I saw a shiny piece of tape in the bottom of the hole. I pulled it out and it read "CAUTION! WATER MAIN" I figured that post hole was deep enough at that point.

Next I poured concrete mix into the hole, filled it with water from the garden hose and mixed it with the shovel. Then I lowered the 4x4 post with nails sticking out of the bottom of it down into the mixture. I added another bag of concrete and more water. Then I had Bob saw an eight-foot-long 1x2 in half. I hammered these into the ground and 90 degrees to the 4x4, used a bubble level to ensure the post was plumb, and tacked the bracing 1x2's into place to hold it while the concrete cured.

I got a quick cold shower and then we left to go to the nursing home.

At the home we found Bob's father asleep in his bed. Bob tickled his foot with a magic marker and he woke up. He asked if we had been to his house and I said we had. "Oh yeah? What did you do there?" To kid him I said, "We're having a second story built on it!"

We got him up, put his shoes on him, put him in the wheelchair, and wheeled him down the hall to the other end of the building where we found Louise sleeping. Bob woke her up and we all went outside to visit and let Louise smoke her cigarettes.

Tom got a shower and a shave on Thursday. That surprised me. Even after we spoke to the staff about Tom not being clean they did not shower him for another week and a half! Hell, Buddy gets a bath more often than that! Of course they are not happy there.

It was hot as hell outside and shortly after Louise finished her second cigarette we all went back inside.

On the way back to Orlando we stopped in Winter Park at a nursing home run by Adventist Healthcare who Bob works for. He said he would call to find out whether they could take Tom and Louise. He thinks they would like moving to Orlando to be nearby.

When we got back to the apartment it was time to take Buddy for a walk around the lake. Then we had dinner. I baked the Pork Loin in Rye Bread again and it still did not turn out right. We will not be wasting more flour and food on that again. Still, with warm sauerkraut, some mustard, and a cold beer it was good.

After dinner I loaded the dish washer and ran it. Then I ran the vacuum cleaner to get Buddy's hair and dropped food pieces up out of the carpet. After that I read for a while and watched Ice Highway Truckers on The History Channel. Bob had a phone conference with people in his entrepreneurship class while I watched TV.

We went to bed around 10 PM. Bob decided that he was taking some comp time off on Monday to do homework and investigate options for taking care of his parents.

Orlando, FL

The entire day remains a big blur in my memory. We were so continuously busy all day. We finished the week with $708k in orders - a very good week indeed!

When I left the office at 5:00 PM I found my right rear tire on the truck flat. Not only flat, but a four-inch-long rusty nail poking out of the side wall! That was very disappointing.

I got my portable air compressor out and re-inflated the tire as best as I could and started driving toward Tires Plus, but rush hour traffic would slow me down. I had to stop once to pump the tire up again. By this time the tire had swallowed the nail.

When I walked into Tires Plus I heard some woman talking out loud in the waiting area. "Well, how old is her boy? Oh yeah? Well is he able to get himself to work everyday?" Great, a numb skull with a Bluetooth bug in her ear.

She sounded like those Texas women in the movie Sordid Lives.

After letting the guy at the desk know that I needed an R14 175 tire on my right rear wheel I sat down to watch "Friends" and listen to this mindless bitch blather on about her vacuous life. Everyone else in the room had to control themselves to keep from bursting out laughing at her.

"Oh yes, and how about that poor Paul Newman. Bless his heart. I heard he's in a wheel chair now! Yes, yes. I saw him on one of those supermarket tabloid rags and he looked just terrible! I know! Well, I will be too in just three more years!"

"Well, yes I know, you see? It just doesn't matter what you eat, after all! Well, at work, I have this jar of jelly beans on my desk, and I swear, it is the most tempting thing for me. Well, the other day I took one of the jelly beans out and put it in my mouth and just sucked on it, you know, just to get the flavor. Then I took it out and threw it away."

I almost died trying to keep a straight face right then.

"Oh my God, yes I know! Well, I haven't had a glass of wine in months and I am going to the family reunion in two months and you know I am going to have a couple of glasses and probably make a fool of myself!"

Finally they were done with the oil change on Bunny's car and they called her to the counter to pay. I was relieved that she was gone and we could make fun of her.

Around 6:30 PM they finished my truck and called me to pay for my new tire. It came to $81. "Holy Hell! What did you guys do, give me gold-plated valve stems?" The technician explained that part of it was cost of the tire, mounting, stems and valves, balancing, environmental disposal fee, yadda yadda. I was glad to finally be out of there.

I went home and packed my bag, packed Buddy's bag, got a quick shower, and got back into the truck. We drove to Bob's house and got there around 7:30 PM.

Bob made Southwestern-Style Goulash with ground beef, tomatoes, onions, cilantro, corn, ground cumin, and pasta. It was a tasty meal with Italian bread, a fresh salad, and cold beers.

We walked Buddy and spent the rest of the evening reading and watching Cesar Millan, The Dog Whisperer on National Geographic channel. It was so funny to watch Buddy when he heard the dogs barking and then noticed the dog on the screen! He went up to the TV and started sniffing it!

Orlando, FL

Today was another exhausting day at work. I have processed $513k in new orders and there are another $29k still sitting on my desk waiting.

We figure that $1900 out of that $513k is coming from Debbie's dealers (not that she had anything to do with winning those orders). It really is pitiful.

Two large orders came in from Disney today that I quoted recently. After forwarding them to the factory I got a call from Amber at Garland asking about the pricing.

Disney orders are "Specials" and have Net Price items on them. Well, AutoQuotes sabotaged me by discounting those items!! This has happened before. Fay looked at how I entered the prices and came up with a solution to prevent it in the future.

But now we have to convince the factory to take the orders the way they are, have mercy on me, let us cover the mistake with RepSpon funds, or perhaps threaten to have the orders cancelled (our last resort). These factories are supposed to be hungry for orders. I just don't know.

It sprinkled and rained off and on all day.

On the way home I had a "eureka" moment. I realized that the bad vibration I was hearing might not be my clutch going out - after all, the clutch is still clutching pretty well. But at a certain engine speed I am hearing a metal vibration. When I got home I popped the hood and pulled the throttle by hand while listening for the vibration.

The sound is coming from a metal heat shield installed over the exhaust manifold. This heat shield is cracked and has vibrated before, but it is worse now. I toyed with the idea of just un-bolting it and taking it off, but figured it was put there for a reason.

Perhaps it shields plastic parts on the intake path from exhaust heat. I dunno. It gets too hot to repair it with JB Weld. I will think of some way to make the noise stop.

For dinner I made a skillet full of chili. Then I started my laundry. I washed the dog's bedding too. He doesn't know it yet, but he is going to get a quick shower tonight.

Last night I reached the point where I felt that my Peru trip journal book was finished (or as good as it was going to be) and I hit the "Publish" button in Blurb BookSmart. I have ordered one copy to review and proof. If it turned out well I will order additional copies for family and friends. If it didn't turn out right, I will edit and re-publish it.

I am thankful that tomorrow is Friday. This has been a very stressful week.

Orlando, FL

It was very very humid this morning when we went out for our morning walk. The mugginess was a good clue that we would be seeing more thunderstorms today.

Today was another continuously busy day in the office. No real emergencies, but I had plenty of orders to process and supporting paperwork to prepare. At the end of the day our total was over $365k. This is already another great week!

The skies were dark and gloomy all day. In the afternoon it finally let go and started to storm. We got alot of rain out of it. It continued to rain and drizzle all afternoon and on the way home. The weatherman said it would likely rain during the night too.

I will be staying inside, working on my trip book, reading The World Is Flat, and playing with the dog. I would like to start working on my new wood project soon.

Orlando, FL

Our week for order entry is getting off to a great start. Today is Tuesday and we have already entered over $165k in new orders.

The office continues to be very busy. It is hard to believe this based on what everyone is telling us about the economy, the housing market, and gas prices, but we are slammed.

While walking Buddy on Sunday I noticed that his feet were red and raw with blisters! He would lick them when he was laying on the floor too. I do not know whether he stepped in poison ivy or into some grass with pesticide sprayed on it, but I told Fay about it and she suggested soaking his feet in epsom salts and warm water.

I drew 4 inches of warm water in the tub and mixed epsom salts in and then put the dog inside and shut the shower door. He stayed in the tub for about 20 minutes. I got him out, dried his feet, and we went for our walk. When we returned I put him back in for another 20 minutes. Then I dried his feet and rubbed Bag Balm into each foot. He immediately began licking the balm off, but his feet look much better today.

Last night I worked on the book I am writing about my trip to Peru. I ran the spell checker and discovered several careless mistakes. The book is 64 pages long with many pictures. I want to print one more dummy out before publishing it.

It rained last night for a little while. This afternoon we had some strong thunderstorms. It was still raining when I got home from work at 6:15 PM, so Buddy only got a short walk this evening.

Weekend

Saturday began with a trip outside to walk Buddy. Bob stayed behind when we went out. When we came back Bob had made the bed and was surfing the Internet!

I made egg patties, sausage patties, and hashbrowns for breakfast with a yogurt cup and coffee.

Bob had a large amount of homework to do for his Entrepreneurship class, but we managed to find time to install the hard disk drives from my eMachine computer into Bob's HP computer to transfer the files from My Documents to my new Dell computer.

We succeeded in transferring everything except my old porn, which I decided I could live without.

I also completed my house cleaning by dusting my furniture and changing the furnace air filter.

For lunch we went to Jalisco Taqueria, a family-owned Mexican restaurant in the Metrowest Village. I had quesadillas and Bob had enchiladas. We went to Publix after that to get stuff for a salad and some beers. It began to rain during lunch.

Bob is reading his way through The Last Days of the Incas now. We went to bed early and read in bed.

This weekend was way too short.

Sunday morning I got up and walked Buddy. Bob got a shower and made the bed. Then I made egg patties, sausage patties, and heated up a maple-pecan strudel to have with our coffee.

I had to run the vacuum cleaner again - lots of dog hair on the carpet from brushing Buddy. More baking soda came up out of the carpet too.

Lunch consisted of grilled ham and cheese sandwiches with cottage cheese and corn nuts on the side.

I prepared a large salad to go with the chicken steaks marinating in the fridge. I put cucumbers, celery, cherry tomatoes, slivered almonds, and diced apples on the salad. I sent Bob to the grocery to get feta cheese to go on it and something for dessert.

The chicken steaks were marinating in vinegar, leftover red wine, minced garlic, and Good Seasons salad dressing mix. The steaks went into a quarter-size sheet pan and I baked them in the oven.

Bob brought Bryers Low Carb Butter Pecan ice cream for dessert - a good choice!

In the evening some powerful thunderstorms rolled through the area. It was eerily calm as the lightning flickered out over the golf course, then soon it was on top of us, thundering so loudly it set off car alarms. Then the wind picked up and began to shake the trees. A good hard downpour!

It was still raining when we went to bed.

Orlando, FL

Another extremely busy day for us at FER! Sales for the week topped $500k!

I got a message from Steve Otto saying, "MISSION ACCOMPLISHED - the ice maker was delivered and installed this afternoon. Thank you for all of your help!" Well, thank God that is behind us.

Neil Gosselin phoned in and I asked him how his lunch went and how the chef-boy was late. "How did you know about that?!!" I laughed, "It's my job to know these things." Then he wanted to discuss Debbie. I said, "If you want to get someone spun up about this, I will let you speak with Fay Lewis..." Fay gave him an earful!

Debbie wrote email in the afternoon that particularly antagonized Fay. She wrote that Greg Olsen said that Fay needed to quote all of the projects. Fay was so angry! Then Craig told her to go to her dealer and get specs for a job they were about to mess up. She wrote back saying that her dealer was "gun-shy of FER lately" so I replied, "Debbie, please do not imply that our office is in anyway responsible for _______ being 'gun-shy'. Their recent problems with Frymaster are a direct result of their failure to contact our office for quotes and assistance... also, it is ironic that Craig was telling me yesterday that _____ _____ (president of that dealership) was giving our office compliments." Funny, she never responded to me.

Doing this by email just lets everyone copied know that she is sitting at home.

She really has no idea how precarious her position has become in our company.

In the late afternoon a strong thunderstorm quietly crept in. I was still in the office discussing used car prices and gas prices with Craig when my phone rang - it was Bob on his way to my house! As of 5:15 PM I had not left, but I told him that I was on my way.

I had a roast with carrots in the crock-pot prepared for our dinner and Bob brought a bottle of red wine from his refrigerator that we bought last weekend at Publix.

We walked Buddy first. Bob carried the umbrella. I pointed out to Bob that Trotters Irish Pub and Eatery had changed its name to Trotters Sports Bar and Grill. Bob said, "Globetrotters would probably be a successful name for it here!" Hahaha!

Orlando, FL

Happeeee Birthday Barry Moullett. Atleast 10 of my phone calls today were in regard to the small under-bar ice maker being shipped to his private residence in Chetek, WI. Mid-level personnel at Darden were phoning me today to request "a little magic and help" getting the impossible done - have it delivered today.

Sorry to disappoint them, but that really wasn't possible - it didn't arrive at the Tolah, WI freight terminal until late this afternoon.

So, the next best thing is to have it delivered tomorrow morning - his wife, Chris, has a plumber standing by tomorrow afternoon to install it. She has to go to Minneapolis to pick Barry up tomorrow afternoon and this ice maker is supposed to be a birthday surprise.

I would be surprised if he didn't know about it -- everyone else seems to. I called the manager at the Tolah, WI freight terminal and he said he'd received many calls today about that damned ice maker. Poor Stacey at Scotsman Ice thinks we've all lost our minds over this trivial thing.

Today was extremely busy. All day. I almost ran out of paper to write down the incoming phone calls. Too damned busy. Finished the day with $445k in orders.

Craig went to Tampa today to fix a problem at a Red Lobster, then he met Ryan and Neil for lunch. Ryan was 20 minutes late to the lunch. Lateness was what caused Enodis to fire him and I think Craig is going to be getting close to letting him go too. He's disappointed us several times by being late.

This evening, after walking Buddy, of course, I ran the vacuum cleaner, then cleaned the kitchen and bathroom floors with Pine Sol. After the floors were dry I put the rugs down, started a roast in the Crock Pot for dinner tomorrow, and filed the bills from the past three months.

Tomorrow morning I will clean the mirrors in the bath and clean the vanity. Tomorrow evening I will dust everything in the house.

I am glad the weekend is here again.

Orlando, FL

This morning I scrubbed the shower while showering. Dow Bathroom Cleaner has been my favorite tub, tile, and basin cleaner since 1992.

Fay returned to work today. Although the phones are busier, I think I prefer to work in the office alone. We get on each other's nerves.

By the end of the day I had a total of $327k in new orders entered. It looks like yet another great week for us.

This evening during Buddy's walk I noticed that the noisy girl and her daughter upstairs from me moved out. Good riddance to them! They stomped and ran around up there all the time.

The Dragon Lady

Miranda Priestly: I don't understand why it's so difficult to confirm an appointment.

Emily: I know, I'm so sorry, Miranda. I actually did confirm...

Miranda Priestly: The details of your incompetence do not interest me. Tell Simone I'm not going to approve that girl that she sent me for the Brazilian layout. I asked for clean, athletic, smiling; she sent me dirty, tired and paunchy. And RSVP yes to Michael Kors' party, I want the driver to drop me off at 9:30 and pick me up at 9:45 sharp. Then call Natalie at Glorious Foods and tell her no, for the 40th time, no, I don't want dacquoise, I want tortes filled with warm rhubarb compote. Then call my ex-husband and remind him that the parent/teacher conference at Dalton tonight. Then call my husband. Ask him to please meet me for dinner at that place I went to with Mossimo. Also, tell Richard I saw all the pictures that he sent for that feature on the female paratroopers and they're all so deeply unattractive. Is it impossible to find a lovely, slender, female paratrooper? Am I reaching for the stars here? Not really. Also I need to see all the things that Nigel has pulled for Gwyneth's second cover try. I wonder if she's lost any of that weight yet.

[seeing Andy]

Miranda Priestly: Who is that?

Orlando, FL

When I arrived at the office at 7:40 AM Nancy Baranet was already parked at the door in her Scion "toaster" car. She was reading the newspaper. She did not go into the building despite having her keys because she was unsure of the code to disable the burglar alarm.
First thing she wanted was a pot of coffee brewed. She declared that she did not want a thing to eat -- she gained 8 pounds when she was on vacation! Well, she ate a granola bar, some cheese squares, and an apple while she was with me today.

Today was busier than yesterday with all of my requests from Darden for pricing and "hand holding" on the phone. Of course Craig had to go to Naples, FL today to hold hands with their contractor working on the Capital Grille down there.

During lunch I walked over to the cafe and got a curried chicken wrap and a root beer. Then I walked back. At 1:00 PM Debbie showed up and soon Nancy was saying "good-bye" to us. Debbie was with me for the rest of the afternoon though she was pitifully little help to me.

We had another good strong storm this afternoon. Lots of good soaking rain.

It was still raining when I got home and Buddy only got a very short walk this evening. He would not "hurry up and get busy!" Oh, he "hurried up" alright, but he wouldn't "get busy"- if you know what I mean.

Orlando, FL

I sure wished my three-day weekend could continue this morning when the alarm sounded at 5:30 AM.

By 6:00 AM I had my bags in the truck and Buddy seated on the front seat for the 15-minute ride back to Metrowest. Once I put the stuff away it was time for Buddy's morning walk.

After the walk it was time for me to shower and dress for work. I knew today would be a bit hectic with Fay on vacation. Shortly after I started my day an email came in from Debbie saying her appointment with Sterling Cruises was postponed until Friday, so she would be in to the office in a little while to help with the phones and quoting.

She arrived around 9:00 AM. She was very little help to me. The phones were not all that busy.

The main things that kept me occupied were service issues and follow up on service issues from last week. For some reason the factories (Cleveland and Delfield) were not particularly competent today.

I wrote a couple of small quotes today, but the larger projects and requests were put on the fax machine and sent down to Barbara Hacker to write. Fay asked me to do that so that she could work on the large projects she has waiting when she returns.

During the afternoon it thunderstormed and it rained hard. It rained so hard agains the front of the building that water was coming in through the mail slot and running down the inside of the door making a huge puddle in the carpet!

I guess we'd better get used to this kind of rain - Hurricane Bertha is now a Category 3 storm and nobody really knows where she is going to go in the next week.

On the way home the clutch on the truck began making a loud grinding/rattling noise. Great. Another crisis with the truck is approaching.

I started a load of laundry and took Buddy for his evening walk. When we returned I put my clothes into the dryer and then washed Buddy's bedding. His bed is in the dryer now. It will be warm and dry for him to sleep on tonight.

The pictures attached to today's post are shots of Buddy crawling under Bob's bed.

Weekend Recap

Saturday morning we got up around 7 AM to take Buddy out for his walk.

With the walk done we returned to the house, made coffee and breakfast, and then we went out to buy groceries. We went to BJ's Warehouse first where I got cases of bottled water, paper towels, and other items. Then we went to SuperTarget to finish groceries.

We took the loot back to my apartment and carried it upstairs. While I was putting food away and breaking bulk hamburger into smaller portions to freeze, Bob was looking at the dummy I printed out of my book about our trip to Peru.

On the way out we stopped at the dumpster to get rid of boxes, bags, and other waste from the groceries. Then we headed back downtown.

We went to Chamberlin's to get rye flour for the Pork Roast in Beer Rye Bread meal recipe. Then we stopped at Publix to get sandwiches for our lunch. At Bob's house we packed a lunch and drinks into my cooler bag and we took our lunch down to the pool. We swam for awhile, ate our lunch, and then went back upstairs - I was feeling a bit tired.

Bob immediately went to lay down and Buddy layed down in the bedroom where Bob was. I read some of my next book, The World Is Flat by Thomas Friedman. I don't believe everything that Friedman asserts in this book, but I am reading it because I got a good deal on the hardback copy at the used bookstore, and many people DO buy into his ideas.

Soon I joined Bob in napping. I think I slept for about two hours. Bob slept even longer!

When we got up it was time to take Buddy out for his walk again.

After dinner we watched a Discovery Channel documentary about Bering Sea fishermen and Bob did his homework.

Sunday morning began with a walk for Buddy. Then we came back to the house and made coffee, hash brown potatoes, and scrambled eggs for breakfast.

I prepared the Smoked Porkloin in Beer Rye Bread from the recipe I posted here last week. It did not turn out as good as I hoped. I am going to try again, but I am going to use less dried apples, less sauerkraut, and make the rye bread rise as a bread dough first.

The big every-other-Sunday event is to drive to Daytona Beach and visit Bob's parents and that is what we did.

We stopped on the way up there at Woodcraft where I got some maple birdseye veneer, maple edge banding, and a block of lacewood - supplies for Christmas gifts to be made.

When we got to Daytona we went to his parents house first. Bob changed the air filters on the air conditioner, applied the 2009 registration decal to his Dad's car, and I started up both of the lawn mowers. I was sweating so bad when we left that I could hardly see!

After a brief stop at Walgreens to get something for Bob to drink (to take his mid-day pill) we headed south to the nursing home.

These visits to the nursing home are so dreary, but we only go twice a month, and I think it is probably the only thing his parents have to look forward to.

When we got there his Dad was in bed and we woke him up. He said he is using the wheelchair because he fell last week. We got him up and into the chair. As I was wheeling him down the hall he told us that he had not had a shower in a week and a half and that his fingernails needed to be trimmed badly. The nurse said he needs to visit the podiatrist too - he has an ingrown toenail. I made sure Bob knew about this so we could say something.

Bob's Mom was sleeping when we got to her room. Bob woke her up and we all went outside to the patio so that Louise could smoke her cigarettes. Tom asked about his house, Bob's work, and about whether he could renew his driver's license! Louise asked about my dog.

Soon it was time to go back inside from the 97 F day. Louise immediately went back to bed. We rolled Tom all the way across the building and put him back into bed too. He would get up again in an hour for dinner. They mostly sleep all day.

Buddy was happy to see us when we got back. I did not want to go out immediately because it was still very warm outside. Around 7:00 PM we took Buddy for his walk. I got vanilla ice cream cones for Bob and me on this walk.

We got to bed around 10:00 PM. I knew I had a hectic few days ahead of me because Fay was taking vacation on Monday and Tuesday.

Independence Day

We spent the weekend at Bob's. This was good because he has a great view of the Lake Eola July 4 Fireworks from his condo at The Waverly.

Buddy was happy to be outside with us on the balcony until the fireworks show started. Then he began barking and went inside. I think the explosions hurt his ears.

Over 150,000 people crowded into the downtown park to watch this year's display. The show was disappointingly short though. It was over after 20 minutes. I guess the fireworks were another victim of recent budget cuts.

Using my camera on a tripod, no flash, self-timer, and ISO 60 speed, I was able to capture over 40 still pictures of the fireworks and a couple of movies.

Orlando, FL

I felt better this morning.

Yesterday afternoon I found some Sudafed in my desk drawer and took two. When I got home I took a very hot shower and blew my nose very hard. I think my head is clearing up some.

Today was another action-packed day at FER. Almost non-stop fun! In the past three days I have handled over $327k in new orders. I have another $24k sitting on my desk waiting for a shipping address too. I think we could reach $400k before the end of the (short) week.

Chef Ryan came by to pick up supplies for the Merrychef oven being tested at Disney World today. Fay let him in on our plans for the Test Kitchen. I remembered to bring the Ikea catalog and Fay was impressed that I remembered to have it at hand. Chef Ryan is going to browse the Ikea website and use their kitchen design tool to come up with something practical.

Debbie posted a website today that lists used equipment we have on hand for sale. I replied with some praise (we do want to encourage her initiative), and some constructive criticism. Strangely, aside from Nick Baranet, nobody else spoke up at all. One other person phoned me and asked why she is wasting time doing this when she should be out there selling NEW equipment. I had no answer to that.

Controversy over the first Scotsman order for Capital Grille today. Terry W got reprimanded for Scotsman missing the shipping date because he didn't send a copy of the order to their freight forwarder, Fastrans. I found out what part of the problem was -- Terry and Fastrans were calling Scotsman directly and asking for Customer Service. They never spoke with Stacey. They would ask about the order for Darden Restaurants and the clerk would look for a Darden order -- nothing in the system. The other clerks in Customer Service did not know that Darden is entered as "GMRI" - General Mills Restaurants Inc.

We have so many irons in the fire right now it isn't funny and fortunately it continues to pay off for us. We are staying very busy with order entry, quoting, and demos.

Tomorrow will be a busy day. I have to remember to set up the automatic USB hard drive back-up, make the UPS label for Monday, get the trash out, and create an order report -- it will be Thursday and Friday rolled into one with a bunch of frantic service requests too.

I finished Catch-22 last night. It was such a strange novel.

Halfway Day

I woke up this morning to hear the radio announcer declare that today is the halfway point in the year -- there are 183 days to follow.

Before bed last night I printed out a draft of the book I have been working on about my trip to Peru. It is easier to spot typos when they are on paper. It is 60 pages long and the software would not allow front-and-back printing.

I got to the office around 7:30 AM and Craig was still there. I told him, "Well, I guess I am going to make Debbie unhappy today." He wanted to know why, of course. "Because I don't have time to go shopping for kitchen cabinets that we aren't going to buy anyway!" He told me not to speak to her, that he would talk to her.

I hope he didn't forget to speak to her. Else I will do just as I said tomorrow when she comes in.

Debbie was in for a few minutes today and she was so short and, well, I guess "bitchy" is the right word for it. She's been over at Nass documenting everything we have over there - including Darden/Red Lobster equipment. She is asking me if it is ours to sell or Darden's. I told her, "Look, all that Darden equipment - you need to be talking to Craig about that." Well, she didn't like that.

Fay told Debbie that she would be out of the office on vacation on Monday and Tuesday. Debbie said, "Well, if I can get clearance, I am going to be over at Crystal Cruises at Port Canaveral on Monday." Fine. I will be in the office by myself trying to answer all of the phones. Then they will ask themselves why I do not have any help getting the phones... let her hang herself.

There were a few Next-Day Air orders that Darden needed expedited before the long weekend. Each of the factories seem to be very busy entering orders before the July 4 weekend.

During lunch I heated up the combi and then put six (6) of the pizzas from the freezer that Craig told us to help ourselves to inside. They only took 6 minutes to cook. That and an apple is what Fay and I had for lunch.

I've had a low-grade fever since the weekend and I did not feel very good all day today. I felt tired all day.

This evening I took Buddy for a short walk when I got home. The walk was short because of approaching thunderstorms. When we got home I got my checkbook, my bills, and Web Bill Pay and started paying my bills. Now that the money is spoken for, I have to get groceries with what is left. Uggh...

There are about 30 pages left to read in Catch-22. I should be able to finish it tonight.