Author Archives: Eric

Just a sip

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So, the weekend is on the way. A great time to consider having a drink with a friend among other things… other things like listening to a great Podcast.

It has taken getting laid off and having a lot more time on my hands than ever before to allow me to actually catch up with some of the great Podcasts out there. One I particularly enjoy is PodCastle. It was recently spotlighted on another site I read – SF Signal. I don’t know if I agree with the author’s picks for “best” but that’s the beauty of it. There are over 300 episodes. There is something there for everyone.

One in particular jumped out to me as I listened to it yesterday – Episode 330 DRINK ME! I particularly enjoyed the “sponsor’s” advertisements. It is worth the time to check it out.

Have fun listening, and tip one back with friends.

Safety and Doing the Right Thing

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It is very troubling to be approached by a woman coming out of the dark on a street corner at 5:30 am – particularly if that woman is asking for help.

As some may know, despite having been laid off I have maintained my daily schedule. I still get up early and head out to exercise, warm, cold, raining or not. I am usually out the door by 5:30 am. When I was working this was the only time of day I really had to myself so I would take full advantage. I still do. I pop my headphones on, turn my Walkman to my local morning show and listen to the news and entertainment report for the day.

While out on my daily route I saw a figure standing alone on the street corner. I thought perhaps it was somebody waiting to hook up with a ride to work or waiting on an early bus (even though I don’t think the bus runs down that street any more). I had already figured I was going to err on the side of caution and head down another street and be on my way. That’s when I heard her raise her voice and say, “Excuse me, but I need help…”

I have for many years asserted that a very small number of people tend to really screw things up for the rest of us. I had already made the choice in my mind to avoid this person – from a purely selfish stand point. I didn’t want to be social while I was exercising. There was also a small part of me that figured this person could be crazy, homeless/begging (odd choice of hours and location, but still) or even possibly looking for an early morning crime target. I won’t just blithely walk into a set up if I can help it. This is the first portion of the “others screw things up for the rest of us” assertion. Why would I consider this woman, alone on a street corner a threat in my neighborhood? Is the crime rate so dramatically high that I should fear for my Walkman and sweatpants? I shouldn’t have to live with that kind of fear in my own neighborhood. That makes me sad and angry all in the same breath. The next part of my assertion? I actually had to take a second and think, “I’m alone in the dark with this woman I don’t know. I am at least a foot taller than she is and easily outweigh her by 100 pounds. Who would believe ME if she wanted to call the police and accuse me of something?” I tend to have that thought a lot. I am not the kind of person that would take advantage of a woman because my size and strength make that possible – but if you don’t know me, how would you know? IF I was accused of something and even if I was completely innocent, it would ruin my reputation, hurt my career and probably end my ability to continue my volunteer work. There are a lot of folks that will “convict” in the media and a person may never recover from something like that. Why do I have to fear this? I despise the fact that I have to fear the potential ramifications of any time I spend alone with a woman I don’t know – just because others have screwed this up before. I mean that for both men and women by the way. Men for their heinous actions that give women reason to fear. Women who make false accusations and make reporting real problems so much harder. When you hear me say, “People Suck” this is what I’m talking about.

She’s alone in the dark on a chilly morning asking for help – why is my first thought not, “I should help her”?

I popped the earbuds out and headed over to her. She needed to make a call to her shift supervisor – she was working overnight and had locked herself out. I presume she was popping out for a smoke or something like that and couldn’t get back in. There are a ton of offices at the end of the street where I was and a bunch likely use overnight or off hours crews for cleaning, laundry, etc. She showed me her wallet where she had the number written down. I dialed up the local number and let her use my phone to call in to her work and let somebody know they had to get a key and head to her location. She handed the phone back and I hung up the call. Simple act of helping out achieved.

She thanked me and then backed away while facing me… maybe she was stuck in the same thought process I was?

I was glad I was able to help her out. I’m disheartened that there is this thought haze that now seems to hang over the simple act of lending a hand to somebody in need.

Occasional Gaming

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One of the things I said on the “about me” page is that from time to time I like to game. This weekend was one of those times when I took the time to just relax and play. We had friends that live a couple of hours away come down to spend the night giving us all kinds of time to just hang out, chat, snack and game. It was great fun.

One game we played 3 times today was Castle Panic. Great fun, cooperative game that my daughter has a real passion for. We added in the Wizard Tower expansion for a little extra challenge and fire!

I’d go through a lot about how to play, but a certain star has already handled that. Check out Table Top – one of my favorite shows.

CastlePanic-Tower

Jack of all trades…

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Master of Architecture?

Thursday was an odd mix of the “throwback” and the forward thinking. I went to a college campus for a tour – as a perspective student. It was a long drive (and would be a rotten commute at 90 minutes) with lots of time to think. The more I think of it, the more it becomes a trippy mix of memory and future plans. I have a college degree, but not the right one to break past a certain ceiling in the architecture industry. I started in design school, but finished in a different program. I spent years in studio and drawing classes, but what got me into the field was my ability to be a CAD monkey – or take all that data and put it “in the box”. I’ve got years of experience and I’m working on the requirements to get my registration stamp here in Pennsylvania, but that’s not easy when you’re not actually working. School might actually help with that – if only I could afford to do that right now. Thursday really tossed my emotions around.

I’m considering trying to go to Morgan State University for the Graduate program in Architecture and get my masters degree. I dropped a line to the program and ended up getting a tour with the head of the program himself. That was both excellent and disconcerting. Excellent in that, how many folks get the personal tour with the director of the program? Disconcerting in that we’re about the same age and were within a just few years of each other when graduating from school last time I did this. The throwback went into overdrive when he said that the first semester of studio all students were required to be on the boards – no computer work for drawings or presentations. It’s been more than 20 years since I was on the drafting board. I’ve got the trace paper, the pencils, the triangles – I’ve even got a drafting board in the attic still. My skills would be rusty to say the least, but I think I would struggle for a while until I got back into the swing of things. The trippy part? I’ve spent the past year and a half as a trainer for the computer programs that architects and engineers use – so there’s actually some small potential that I could get an adjunct professor kind of position there teaching Revit. I could be the teacher and the student… at the same time? It was a confusing and unsettling day, but the trip is one I’m ultimately glad I made.

Now is more of the wait and see part. This is all conjecture. None of it is relevant until I’m once again gainfully employed – money does seem to make the world go around.

Right Justified

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I don’t know how many folks I’ve ever talked to about certain aspects of the way I drive (bet the post title made you think this was about page set up). I tend not to talk about driving too much because I don’t really like it. One of the things I’ve done over time is develop for myself ways to get around some of the worst driving tie-ups in the area or ways to get to my favorite locations with less hassle.

I tend not to make left turns if I can help it.

Going to Cupboard Maker Books is a great example. When I go there, I go in a great big circle. It’s probably a shorter distance to go with one route only, but I use two. I use all right turns to go from here in Camp Hill, through Enola and around to the store. Almost all right turns, including into the parking lot there. When I leave, I turn right out of the parking lot and head down along the river then turn right to come back up the hill here to the house. Likely the shortest physical route, but requiring at least 4 left turns if I were to head TO the store that way. The thing is, with all the right turns, I don’t have to wait for the light(s) or cross traffic. It’s easy and I generally keep moving. Unless I totally don’t know the area I’m driving in I always try to plan my route out like this. Right turns are easy – I like them.

As it turns out – I’m not alone. UPS has some interesting things to say on the subject: http://finance.yahoo.com/news/why-ups-drivers-don-t-make-left-turns-172032872.html

So – right justified, right?

Mundane

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Sometimes I stop myself from posting things here because they seem so terribly mundane. I suspect nobody is really interested, so I don’t post them.

That feeling is actually the source of the name of my site. This is “The Pretend Blog” because way back when I started on LiveJournal I suspected nobody was reading what I had to say. I would pretend to have a blog and keep posting things anyway. I still suspect I don’t have much of a readership. If I want that to change, I need to give more to read!

Mundane things have been moving right along.

Went to a meeting this morning with some folks at my kiddo’s school to discuss how things are going and where they hope she lands with her education by the end of the year. She’s having a great school year so far – they even asked her to be the “newscaster” for morning announcements each day because she communicates so well. I’m really proud of her.

Got to spend some time hanging out with friends this past weekend. That helped. Being in the land of the jobless is not easy. This week has been more difficult than the past couple so far. I am much more a creature of habit than I would have thought. Perhaps this is just the shake up my creativity needs? I can certainly say that questions like “how many golf balls fit in a bus?” during interviews will drive a certain level of creativity.

My favorite thing from the past few days was the chance to get together with this year’s group of exchange students. I haven’t let my lack of job interfere with my volunteerism. I am still an area representative with the Youth For Understanding exchange program. I had the chance to meet and chat with students between 15 and 18 years old from all over the world. Estonia, Brazil, Japan, Germany, Ghana, Spain, Italy, Mozambique, Korea and Denmark all got representation at the big post-arrival meeting we had Sunday. Talking with these students was absolute fun. They’ve always got something to say and they always have interesting views of what America is like from an outsider perspective. We spent time going over cultural differences, language barriers and other important things like what is good music and what are great food dishes we should all try. I told them that food and music are great ways to start a conversation with anyone they’re trying to get to know. I personally find this “discussion” of food to be tremendously entertaining: Americans Taste Exotic Asian Food

See what you think. Food is always a great discussion topic, right?

More to come…

Neglected

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My blog here has been neglected lately, and it shouldn’t be. There’s been an awful lot going on – but isn’t there always?

I posted the following on social media, but somehow forgot to post it here:

This is probably going to be a long post, so if you’re into the short version I’ll start with that:
I got laid off last Friday. I have no job.
Now that we’re past the short part I’ll go a little more into things. Probably not a ton, but enough to maybe answer some questions that might pop up. I waited a couple of days before I said anything just to be certain I had some clarity. I have told a handful of folks in person before this, but not many.
No, I had no idea this was coming. Neither did my direct supervisor. He actually called me on Monday to apologize and offer a recommendation if needed. Two of the guys I worked with also offered recommendations if needed.
Yes, as far as I know I will get unemployment benefits after the 2 week waiting thing. I don’t really know much about it – any other time in my life I’ve moved directly from one job to the next. I’ve always had something lined up. This is all new to me.
Am I angry? I’m more disappointed than anything. There’s a part of me that is, but I’m really doing my best to focus and move past this. I’m not going to toss rage fueled statements out here or start playing conspiracy games about reasons and persons to blame. I’ve got thoughts and theories, but they’re just that. Airing them out just isn’t professional, so if I intend to continue to be a professional I should figure a way to get through this.
How does this change ______? I left that blank on purpose. There are a lot of things that will change because of this. One thing I don’t think will change substantially will be me. I am not my work and my work is not me. Yes, I like(ed) my work but it was just that ~ work. I’m going to be pulling back on a lot of things and staying close to home. The less I spend the better off we’ll be if this lasts more than a couple of weeks. I am really upset about the fact that once again a planned family vacation will be screwed up by my work crapping out. It’s happened more than once and it deeply frustrates me. I want to be able to give that kind of experience to my daughter and not always be caught up in “sorry, daddy’s work isn’t paying him again”. That’s the part that *really* pisses me off.
Enough of that line of thought. I have updated my resume and already have a half dozen leads. I had 3 of those leads the very next morning, just as soon as some folks heard I was available. I’m optimistic about the whole situation but not too hopeful. I’m not going to run and jump at the very first thing that pops up on my e-mail. I want the next step to be right.
Hopefully this covers the questions that might pop up. I have had the chance to chat with a few friends and they have all been extremely supportive. I appreciate that. It sucks, but I’ll land on my feet.
So – anybody hiring?

Today marks 2 weeks since I was laid off from my day job. I told myself I was going to pretend that I was actually a full time writer while I’m looking for new work. That hasn’t really worked out so far. The “work” of looking for a job seems to be devouring a significant amount of time – as it should – but has also been draining. I believe I’ve gotten a handle on things around the house and intend to start getting things in my creative world back in order.

What kicked this actually getting back to the creative change off? One of the coolest feelings I’ve had in a long time – I got a royalties statement from the publisher (and yes, it included money for me!). I think I could get used to a schedule like I have now. I know I’ll need to get back to my day job here very soon – but so far this hasn’t been terrible. Changes / transitions are a difficult thing. I’m hoping this one works out for the best.

War and Art

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Being part of the military is an intense experience. Despite the time I served being less than 4 years in total, and never in an active combat zone, the things I witnessed and the things I did have affected me in ways that have lasted more than twenty years. I have some sad and some funny anecdotes from the various exercises, training missions and trips over seas. These stories go along with a handful of items, the artifacts and photos of that time in my life. These things bring memories and emotions along with them each time they come out of storage.

Memories when attached to pictures and small objects have a startling clarity. Even with clarity and a deep imagination, I fail to grasp the depth and connection of what the soldiers who served as part of the 23rd Headquarters Special Troops from WWII have when they look at their art.
I am behind the times catching up with the documentary showing the amazing work these artists, these engineers, these soldiers did under the undiluted pressure of the Nazi war machine. Knowing the load of stuff any soldier is asked to carry these true artists were also certain to have pen or pencil and paper with them too. Sketching the war, but also crafting an amazing deception.

If you are an artist and you think from time to time, “I just can’t work under these conditions” or “well, this would be a better picture if I had the right tools” you should definitely take a peek at these inspirational artists. Imagine this quote, “…we were sleeping in hedgerows and foxholes, but nothing kept us away from going someplace to do a watercolor…” They certainly worked under conditions most artists wouldn’t. Being a soldier and being an artist are not mutually exclusive pursuits.

Take the opportunity to catch the film The Ghost Army, I highly recommend it.

Other Links:

PBS

The Atlantic

Intervention 5

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Normally I would keep a convention review and publish it in Watch The Skies, but this convention happened to fall the weekend directly after this month’s publication. Rather than wait out the weeks between I’m going to put my notes up here first.

This year was the 5th for Intervention and the 5th for me as well. While I wasn’t on staff every year, I have always been at least a volunteer. I really do think the folks in charge of this convention are doing it right. It has been as smooth and uncomplicated as I’ve seen for any event I’ve been involved with. Behind the scenes prep work shows clearly.

The Friday of the convention as I arrived at the hotel genuinely felt more like a finish line than a starting line for me. My personal schedule had me on the run and busy for what felt like weeks before the convention. It took conscious effort to get into the right mind set. The convention itself, the atmosphere actually helped with that.

I would give a review of other parts of the convention or talk about the panels, but I didn’t really see a lot of those. I spent some time in the stand-up arcade playing some old school games and did get the chance to squeeze in a board game right before we headed home, but the vast majority of the time I was in the children’s programing room. That was where the fun was happening. Coloring, creating, building steampunk dinosaurs, creating homemade glow in the dark slime along with a bunch of other stuff. Making, making a mess and enjoying the work (or the destruction of the work) at the end were all parts of the fun. I give credit to Corinne as the head of the program – she really pulled together some great stuff for this year.

Whatever other details there were about the convention, this was posted on Facebook by the convention creator and I think it sums up the weekend better than anything else I can say,

READ THIS: If you don’t know what we do, why we are different, and why you should support us with donations and registrations, Monica Marier just summed it up: “Something amazing happened today. I brought my daughter to Intervention today and she made an LIFE-CHANGING discovery.
Since she started school, this kid had been told that she was weird, and wrong, and an outcast because she was a girl who liked things like skeletons, and steampunk, and Dr. Who, instead of American Girl Dolls and Horses.
Today she saw and met a ton of women and girls who liked all those “geek” things that she liked and that they were proud of it. And she realized:
SHE WAS NOT ALONE.
She was a part of something. And she was among people who thought that she was wonderful. IT’S SO GREAT that her first great con adventure was in such a safe, warm, friendly convention like Intervention and it was everything I hoped it would be and MORE. She’s already bouncing up and down in anticipation of ReGeneration Who.
THANKS SO MUCH, to Oni Hartstein, James Harknell , Pete Abrams and all the staff and artists that made this a truly fantastic weekend.
You guys put this smile here.”
Http://www.interventioncon.com

Being right

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Sometimes I don’t like that the research I did for stories leads me toward “correct” conclusions. IF you haven’t, head out and pick up the Defending The Future series, in particular Best Laid Plans and Dogs Of War where my stories appear. The stories I wrote have soldiers from “resource command”. I’ve taken a rather dim view of how people will react to scarcity, but that view has been borne out in the past.

Recently an article cropped up that that dim future might be closer than we thought. Sometimes it’s not great to be right.

Historic Drought in California