Warning: I had a lot of time on the plane with nothing to do so I just wrote and wrote without actually thinking about it. Call this a free association post. Be prepared for a lot of incoherent rambling.

Here I am, sitting on a teeny weeny plane, flying out to Jackson, MS. Got some time since my back is still a bit tight and I can’t fall asleep. The sky outside is beautiful, there’s a sea of blue cottony clouds beneath me, and the sun is setting, leaving a light blue streak across the sky and a rim of bright orange right at the cloudline. In between the clouds, city lights peak through in their crazy orange lines and squiggles. I have a picture of it, but I won’t be able to post it up until I get back since I’ve lost my USB cable.

Of course, that means that you’ll never see it because I’m not going to remember to post it up after today. Someone will just have to remind me.

————

You know, sometimes I worry about my blog - there might be a couple days here or there that I don’t have time to post, or my life may be bring so I post up a ’spare’ post, which is a post that I’ve written but never published for various reasons, or I just decide to post up a picture because I feel uninspired. Then I think, ‘What will my readers think? Will the miss me? Will they stop reading? What if I don’t post for a couple days? Will they revolt? I can’t leave them hanging!!!’

Which is quite silly, when you think about it.

If I don’t post, the world will continue to rotate. It doesn’t end.

When I missed a couple days of posting, there wasn’t a revolt. There weren’t a thousand comments asking if I was ok, or emails asking if something happened. Sure, one or two people asked if I was busy. There was maybe something in the tagboard. Aquaman is pretty much the only one who complains when I haven’t made my daily post. But we all know that it’s only because he’s hoping that the post is about him. And shame on me, I’m doing that right now. What a tricky bastard he is.

Sometimes I have to put this little monster called yanowhatimean? into perspective. I had originally created this thing as a diary of sorts. Pretty much as a reminder of things that I’ve done in my life, since my memory is horrible and putting my life out there for the public is the best way for me to remember. Then it became therapy for me, to vent out my frustrations with people, with life, with work, with life and death. Now, I almost feel pressured to perform, like it has become a show for others, and I’m the performer.

Well, you all know how much I love to perform!

Wait, maybe you don’t.

Anyway, I’m babbling here. Maybe it’s the altitude. The air is a bit thinner a mile up in the sky.

Hmm, so am I complaining? I don’t think I am. I think I’m just making observations about the evolution of this site. How sometimes I think that people really care if I’m posting or not, but that’s just my ego talking, because really, who cares? Who cares if I miss a day or week or month?

Oh, and please don’t comment and say that you care. Fatima HATES it when you guys stroke my already inflated ego.

Bah, forget it. Go ahead and stroke away. We all need a little stroking now and then.

Ohh, that sounds dirty. You know you thought that. Perv.

Maybe these weird ramblings are a mixture of the altitude, the Starbuck’s white chocolate mocha with soy, the ibuprofin and back spasms I’ve been having. I think I’m a bit loopy. Maybe I’ll have a couple drinks at the hotel when I get in and get really crazy.

But really, I’m just typing to pass the time.

This whole blog world fascinates me. How people could care about the life and antics of a complete stranger. People have written and usually say something like, ‘I’m not a stalker, but…’ or ‘I don’t want to sound creepy but…’ when they say that they read my site. No, I don’t think you’re stalkers. A stalker is that Polish guy from a couple years ago. Where have you gone, Thad? But I find your interesting me both flattering and intriguing.

To which people will usually say, ‘But you lead such an interesting life!’

Not really. I meet people every day who have interesting lives. Lives that I find amazing or interesting, who go through experiences that I would love to know more about, who go through life trials that I think would make great posts. I’m no different.

Well, I guess I *am* different. I take these experience and publish them on the internet for all to see.

But come on, I don’t put all my dirty on here for all to see. What’s the fun in that? There are some things that I keep to myself, that may be to dark or too personal to let you guys read with your morning coffee. As for the rest of it, I don’t really care. If you’ve got the time to read two pages of my talking about myself or how badly the lady smelled who say in front of me on the plane today (let me tell you, I wanted to PUKE), then go ahead! Live through me!

Good god, does this post have a point? This feels like the longest flight ever!

Hmm, maybe I’ll go and fix up some pictures to post. Yeah. Maybe you’d all like that.

OK, I shall free you from this drugged up rambling which I’d like to call a post - if you’ve made it this far.

If you have, well, I love you for it. Because if I was reading it, I would have gone to play ‘The Black Knight’ after the second paragraph. Which is my latest obsession.

So have a good day/night.

Tomorrow I swear I’ll make more sense.

Tags: Daily by Yano
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I need to find some scheduling software.

Oh wait, I have Outlook.

But I never check the calendar.

The thing that’s so different about my job in the new company structure is that people can schedule my time whenever they want. They don’t have to notify me. There’s a public calendar out there with my name on it and any of the project managers are free to go in and book me for any days that I have free.

Which is why I was so surprised when I requested days off and got denied, because I had a project on that day. Actually, the next two months of my life are booked. Not only that, but they were traveling gigs. I admit I was a bit sad that I’d have to travel for so long. We all know that I get grumpy if I’m traveling for more than 3 weeks in a row! But hey, I just gave up on the complaining - this is my job. It’s how I pay for the bills and my *shh* secret comic book fetish.

Fortunately, today I found out that the work in the next couple months may just be remote work, meaning that I could do it remotely from the office. That would be EXCELLENT. But that’s still up in the air.

I’m traveling back to Jackson this week, and next week I’m hitting Columbus. After that, who knows. My schedule is being juggled around and haggled over people - everybody wants a piece of me! I guess that’s a good thing, right?

I wish there was one central place I could have where I could see my schedule at a glance, though. It’s kept in so many different places! I used to have a Franklin Planner when I was in college to keep track of my life. But then I lost it, and my life disappeared. Anyone who’s had that knows what I’m talking about. It’s like losing your memory. Someone is out there with my Psychology class schedule!

Bah! Traveling is NOT glamorous, people. Not when it’s for work!

Tags: Travel by Yano
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Yesterday I was complaining to Dave that there was a pain in my back that I couldn’t get rid of. He did some of his doctor voodoo on me and it seemed to help it. There were still a couple other things that were bothering me, so I decided to try stretching it out. It didn’t work, so I went on with my day.

I don’t know if it was those stretches or what, but later on in the day my back starting hurting - a lot. Whenever I’d do certain movements, it would tighten up and force me to inhale deeply. Dave tried massaging it, but it still hurt. He said that it could be several things - a strained back muscle, a slipped disc, or a broken rib. Don’t know how I could have done either of the last two, so it’s gotta be a strained muscle.

So when I sneeze, laugh, lift things, turn over when I sleep, wipe my ass, and of the things that I do in a regular day, it hurts. My whole back tightens up and I feel a sharp pain.

PITY ME!!!

Ouch. I just hurt myself laughing.

Tags: Daily by Yano
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Yesterday I was at dinner with some friends, and Chetan was talking to some of his medical buddies about this guy named ‘Hawk’. As with most conversations, I was half listening to the conversation, but when he said ‘Hawk’, my ears perked up a bit, because that’s a pretty unusual name. It made me think of my TA (teaching assistant) for Biology in college, whose first name was ‘Hakan’, but he told us to call him ‘Hawk’ for short. He was a pretty cool guy, only several years older than us, and since we were freshman he gave us pointers on what bars were cool and often told us stories about crazy parties he’d been to.

Then Chetan said Hawk’s full name, which made me do a double take - he said the name of my old TA! I asked him if Hawk went to U of I, and Chetan said yeah, and I told him that Hawk was my TA. We had a good laugh about it. Who would have known? Not that I’d tell Chetan to tell Hawk I said ‘hi’ or anything. I didn’t do that great in the class, I hardly remember anything from it.

Dave was telling me in the car on the way home what a wild coincidence that was, but I didn’t think it was that wild. I guess because it was tiny compared to my weirdest ‘It’s a Small World’ experience.

—————————————–

Several years ago, my sisters and I went on a sister vacation to Orlando. We did the usual things, Disney World, Universal Studios, etc. We were at Islands of Adventure (which is the AWESOMEST amusement park. If you like thrill rides, go there!) and the Spiderman ride had just opened up.

The line was about 1 1/2 hours long, but it actually ended up being about 2 1/2 hours because the ride kept on breaking. Any of you who have waited in line at an amusement park know that you get familiar with the other people in lines, what their faces are, when you’re going to run into them. For that hour, those are the only faces you see.

There was a family that was in line ahead of us who were also on vacation. I remember them so well because I was remarking to my sisters that the son, who was about 16 or 17 looked just like a young Davy Jones. But better looking. There were two sons and their parents in line, and they were speaking Spanish. They were a very good looking family, and of course, I had about 2 hours to remember their faces.

Then, after we rode the ride, I forgot about them. On a sidenote, SPIDERMAN ROCKED! It was totally worth the wait! I’d do it again in a heartbeat.

…

About six months later, I went on vacation with Dave’s family to Puerto Rico. Our hotel had a casino in it, which is pretty dangerous to me since I’ve got that whole genetic gambling addiction thing. After a day of sightseeing, everyone was pretty much pooped and passed out. However, I couldn’t let the night get by without going to the casino to try my luck. Dave’s brother Justin and I headed out to try our luck.

I sat at the roulette table to play for a couple hours (I can make my money last for a while at that game) and I noticed a family sitting at the table with me. Not just any family, a family with two sons, one that looks like Davy Jones! Yes, the very same family that I was in line with at Islands of Adventure. I didn’t say anything because a) My Spanish sucks, and b) What would I say? “Hey, I was watching you guys when we were in line for the Spiderman ride. Do you remember me? I was the sunburned girl who was torturing her sisters!’

But still, that was totally bizarre.

If that’s not ‘a small world’ story, I don’t know what is!!!

Tags: Stories by Yano
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I did something today that I’ve been putting off for the long time, which I shall put in the Yano history books as ‘The Longest Procrastination’.

One year and 8 months later, I’ve finally submitted my wedding album format to my photographer.

That’s not bad, is it?

We’ve had the proofs to look at all this time, so we really haven’t needed to look at a pretty album.

But I thought it was about time, since we’re going to be buying the negatives from her anyway. Wouldn’t want to waste the money we spent on the wedding package (which included an album) by not setting up my album. So after hours of debate, we’ve chosen the top pictures, which I’ll post later. Here’s a couple to wet your whistle:

Kissing by the dugout

A candid moment at Wrigley

The wedding party

I love these crazy guys!

It may be one year and wight months later, but I still can’t get enough of these pictures! I love them!

(Photos are still owned by my AWESOME photographer, EIB Photography. They’re so awesome that Claudine is going to use them for her wedding!)

Tags: Pictures by Yano
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It may be a couple days before secretaries day, but I might as get this done and over with in case I forget.

I’d like to thank my backup crew for helping me out when I’m stuck at a clients site, for testing things out and being patient when I’m on a power trip and barking out orders when I’m on the phone.

It’s been a tough couple months, and I’ve had a lot on my plate. So these two gentlemen here, who shall henceforth be called my secretaries, or ‘bitches’, if you wish, have worked hard to make the burden a little easier. Sam (left) has endured the torture of my mocking and teasing and exasperation as he’s learned one of our products from me, testing things out and learning as he goes. He’s done a great job, and he’s done work that he should really be proud of. Just don’t forget those damn single quotes. Don (right) is going to be undertaking a HUGE responsibility in learning a new product with no training at all, just relying on documentation to learn. I’ll be out in the middle of Mississippi somewhere, but Don’s going to be my backup, which is going to be a lot of responsibility. And yes, Don, that’s a hint to start working on those Cognos tasks.

I’m not always easy to work with. I can be whiny. I can be bitchy. I have high expectations and will be demanding that you do the job right. Things that I myself fail to do. Unfortunately, I learned from a harsh and demanding man, so that is how I’ve learned to teach. But I only do it because I want these guys to be the best.

In my defense, I didn’t ask them to wear matching shirts in the photo. They just like matching all the time. Isn’t that cute?

Of course, I can’t say all this without mentioning Redpac (that’s his picture of Sam and Don), who never fails to tell me that I’m asking a stupid question or that I’m being too lazy not to test something out before asking about him.

And honorable mention goes to Tony, Norm, MJ, Cindy, Linda, TJ, Vlad and Tyson. They all rock!

Work may really suck ass sometimes, but it’s good to know that I’ve got a great set of people around me.

Tags: Daily by Yano
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Thursday Challenge : Shape

Bonzai Tree - Philadelphia, PA : March 2005

Years, even decades of trimming, care and patience are needed to create a beautiful bonzai tree. Here’s my little collection of pictures of trees from the Philadelphia Flower Show a couple months ago.

Tags: Pictures by Yano
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Found this link to this site, which is pretty cool. It’s basically an art project, and people send in their secrets onto a postcard and this site posts them. Some are funny, some are sad, some are disturbing, but it’s all pretty fascinating.

Post Secret

Tags: Cool Link by Yano
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Guess what I saw today?

A black man!

Yep. And it’s only the third day I’ve been here.

I don’t feel like a minority anymore.

(see this post if you’re confused)

Tags: Quickies by Yano
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Normally, when I’m at a client site, I’m the expert, guiding my clients and showing the tips and tricks on how to use not only our product, but also whatever database system they have. I know that these people are looking to me for answers, and I have them. I’ve been called ‘the expert’, ‘the guru’, or it’s been mentioned, ’she knows everything, ask her.’ Of course, that isn’t always the case. But most times, I know more than the client.

That’s not the case here.

I came in, and was immediately put into a meeting where questions were being thrown at me, left and right, about the produce, they upgrade I was going to perform, future tasks, etc. All the questions I answered fully and didn’t have a problem. I was in my zone.

Then I was taken to my workstation, and also met up with some of the people I would be tutoring - who would be taking over once I leave. They work in the IT group, which I thought was going to help them support the product. “You’re the database guru, aren’t you?” they asked me. “Well, I know enough to be dangerous.” I say, which is true.

We get to work, and just by talking to these people I realize that I’m way out of my league. These people are incredbily smart, and they know way more than me. In some ways, it was a little intimidating, but in others, it gave me a level of comfort knowing that if I ran into any problems, they could help me out. It was a little weird to sit among such big brains, but it was nice, too. These people are so smart, but they’re humble and nice, too. Which isn’t always the case with some big brains.

Gotta step up my game, though, make myself a big brain, too.

But I’m tired. Maybe next week.

Tags: Daily by Yano
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