A Day in the Country

We spent much of today at my sister's house in the outskirts of Danbury (Texas). Less than 35 miles away from the apartment, she lives closer than I originally thought. My brother-in-law, the cook in the family, treated us to a lunch selection that included grilled steaks, chicken fajitas, sausage, and shrimp. We enjoyed the food and company as well as an afternoon of visiting with the family. My nephews were as much fun as always, and we made arrangements to go back tomorrow night (while sis is out of town) to help with a few of the back-to-school details. All in all, we had a wonderful day.

Novel Diversions

Have I ever mentioned that I am an avid reader? I have? Oh...sorry. This week, even though I've been scrambling to get all my readings for school and my homework completed, I did squeeze in enough time to wrap up several books. When I'm not in school, I sometimes go through a phase of reading a number of books in a short time. Don't know why, but I do. In the last two weeks, here are the books I've read:

"At Risk" by Patricia Cornwell

Not one of her best works, I still found the story a delightful diversion from the standard Cornwell fare. Don't know whether to recommend it or not, but truthfully, I enjoyed it.

"Predator" by Patricia Cornwell.

Now this was one of the standard gory, detailed, intriguing Kay Scarpetta mystery thrillers. A great read, although quite long and complex. While the editorial reviews didn't particularly favor this book, once again, I beg to differ. I really did enjoy it.

"Florence of Arabia" by Christopher Buckley

I know I mentioned reading this last week, but it really was a lot of fun. It was so good, in fact, that I've picked up another by the same author and hope to be able to read it before Friday morning. It is called "No Way to Treat a First Lady".

"Teeth of the Tiger" by Tom Clancy

Leo and I are working on this one together, so it is taking longer than normal. Still, I think that the trip to Austin on Thursday will give us time to finish this excellent (but long) story.

Others on hand, but I don't know whether I'll be able to finish anytime soon.

"Autumn Bridge" by Takashi Matsuoka

"Inside the Kingdom" by Carmen Bin Ladin

"Maximum Ride" by James Patterson

"Mary Mary" by James Patterson

My Homework

I thought you might be interested in seeing what my homework assignments generally consist of. This amount is typical (if there is such a thing) of what a 2-week period looks like, as far as the reading goes, but because it is being assigned prior to meeting these instructors, it is a lot "lighter" than normal on the amount of work that needs to be turned in. Enjoy.

1. STC381—Legal Issues of Commercialization.
   1. Allison & Prentice, Chapters 1-4.
   2. Participate in a threaded discussion of issues related to this session's reading assignments on the Blackboard Reading Discussion forum.
2. STC384—Commercialization Strategy.
   1. A listing of team members and a brief description of the technology is to be submitted via e-mail by September 1.
   2. BDSS [Textbook: "Economics of Strategy"] Introduction
   3. BDSS Primer: Economic Concepts for Strategy (review), 9
   4. BDSS 1, The Evolution of the Modern Firm (Skim), 43
   5. BDSS 2, The Horizontal Boundaries of the Firm: Economies of Scale and Scope, 74
   6. Porter, M., “What is Strategy?” HBR OnPoint Article #4134
   7. Fabtek HBS Case (#9-592-095) and Questions
3. STC394c—Managing Production and Development.
   1. HBS case 5-704-497: Strategic Inflection: TiVo in 2003
   2. Hagel, John III and Singer, Marc. March-April 1999. Unbundling the Corporation. Harvard Business Review.
   3. Morris, Charles R. and Ferguson, Charles H. March-April 1993. How Architecture Wins Technology Wars. Harvard Business Review.
   4. Jolly, Vijay K. 1997. Chapter 6 in Commercializing New Technologies, Getting from Mind to Market. Boston: Harvard Business School Press (STC380 text).
   5. Prepare the following questions for discussion:
      1. What factors facilitate and complicate the adoption of TiVo’s product? Who is the ideal candidate for TiVo’s product?
      2. What are Tivo’s competitive strengths and weaknesses? Where does TiVo fit in the entertainment value network? Who are its allies? Enemies?
      3. What is your evaluation of TiVo’s plans and execution to date (at the time of the case)? What is your assessment of its positioning and differentiation? Do you propose any changes that would help the company sustain and scale itself in this market, and appropriate gains from its innovation?
      4. What is the reason for the prevailing view that it is hard for a proprietary system to be open? Is it possible for a non-proprietary system to be profitable? For a proprietary system to be open?
      5. What according to the authors of “Unbundling the Corporation “ are the compromises inherent in a bundled company?
      6. What are the risks in unbundling a company? (What are the weaknesses of unbundled firms?) Is there any other way to overcome the above compromises without unbundling a company?
   6. In addition, each team will present a 5 minute presentation about their technology, product, customer, and “manufacturing environment” (product realization). The teams may prepare, but this will be an informal (not graded) presentation.
4. STC395—Market Driven Entrepreneurship.
   1. The Ernst & Young Business Plan Guide: Read pp 1-14 and 47-56.
   2. The Entrepreneurial Venture: Read Chapters 1 and 14
   3. Posted to Course Documents, Session 1: Complete the Student Profile Form and email back to Erin. Download and skim the document on How to Read a Financial Report
   4. Some of you already have a book called Writing Business Plans That Work. That was a last minute addition, and only a few of the onliners have a copy. The rest of you will be receiving that and one other book in class next week. If you have the book, read pages 13-34. For the rest of you, I will scan and post a copy to Course Documents tomorrow morning.
   5. There will be three brief notes/cases that will be posted to BB no later than Friday. Please take a look at those, paying particular attention to the one titled A Note on Case Learning.

Internet Connection in Houston

FINALLY! I'm connected!

Do you have any idea how difficult it is for me to work (or play) without it? It's been a nightmare...especially when homework deadlines were looming. But now, well, today I'm back online, using my own connection, and running several (3) computers all at once. In other words...I'm in heaven.

After the fishing excitement over the weekend, it was really hard to come back to town. Still...I have projects and people waiting on me, so it just had to be done. Every day, I look at my UT homework for the upcoming weekend and for the semester, and every day I wonder just how I am going to survive it all. The topics look exciting, the new instructors appear to be wonderfully innovative and accomplished, and I'm looking forward to learning and achieving more. On the other hand, work is as busy as ever, more projects are added to my "pile" every day, and personal "problems" (taxes, bills, two houses needing a good cleaning) don't seem to be going away any time soon.

So...today I'm getting all set up for another couple of weeks of hard work. This week, I will have to work a couple of long days, and I have a TON of reading assignments to knock out before Friday. Leo and I will be heading to Austin on Thursday evening in preparation for Friday's class (I want to meet my new instructors in person, so this will be an in-class weekend for me), then we'll be home on Sunday to start another round of "can she survive working and going to school at the same time". Wish me luck!

Leo's Big Catch

We were having a great time down at the pier, although we weren't catching anything. I caught a crab, and Jess caught a stingray and a croaker. We were about to give up and shut down for the night when something hit Leo's line and doubled his pole over. Wow...we were sure it was a big stingray, but those are always fun when they want to battle, so Leo got ready for the fight. About that time, my line hit with the same force. Now it looked like we both were up for a bit of a battle.

Now Jess is by far the most experienced fisherman among us, so he went into full coaching mode. "Don't worry about the drag...it's fine." "Don't fight him...just keep tension on the line and he'll wear out before you do." "Keep your pole up...don't point the line at him or he'll get away." It was all good advice and we were thankful for it.

About 5 minutes into my battle, my fish took a run toward us. I was keeping up, and even saw a fin break the surface, although he was running parallel to the dock and heading for the grass. Then, all of a sudden, my line broke. My battle was over.

Leo was sweating by now, and the sun was going down. We usually don't stay out past this point in the evening as the critters and snakes start to come out, and it's a long walk back to the house in the dark. But...we couldn't give up yet. Even a good stingray would have been a welcome sight. What a battle this guy put up! Twenty minutes later, when we saw him break the surface, we realized this was not a stingray at all. By the time Leo was able to wear him out enough for Jess to net him, we saw Leo had landed an incredibly large (considering we fish from a dock in our own back yard) black drum.

Of course, we had no camera with us, so we put the big guy in a live well while Jess made a run up to his house for a camera (mine is in Houston). By the time he got back, we were taking photos and measurements in the dark, but with a little bit of work we got all the details. This guy was 36" long and weighed a bit over 25 lbs. Although he had been in our custody for a while, because of the live well, we were able to get him back into the water and watch him make a few faltering attempts before he was strong enough to swim away. What a battle and what a good time! Here are the photos:

Leo and Jess trying to get an accurate measurement.

Now for an accurate weight.

Now that we've had our fun, it's time to let this guy go. Jess does the honors...

Exhaustion after the battle. Note the measuring tape in Leo's hand...he carried it back to the house that way to make sure we were reading the tape correctly. We were. 36" long...what a catch!

Storm's a Brewin'

Home for the weekend for the first time in a really long time...Whoopee! It's an absolutely beautiful day. But the weather reports have us all a little worried. Hurricanes are a fact of life here, something that comes along regularly. However, because of their nature, people along the coast learn to evaluate them based on how close they hit. That's a little misleading though, since it's often the fringe storms that cause the most damage.

A lot of people want to know whether we'll leave when the storms come. That's never something I consider...I never leave. And the storms that blew through in late September of 2005 strengthened my resolve as more people were killed in "running" than were affected by the storms themselves. Nope...I'm safe here, the winds are my only concern, and I would be more stressed by leaving and wondering about what's happening at home than by staying, so it's no question for me. I'll be here.

Today, Leo and Jess are planning and scheming about the storm preparations. They are tying things down, moving things that can be moved, and walking the yard time after time looking for problems. I will be heading back to Houston on Sunday, but if hurricane Dean hits anywhere along the coast, I'll be back home before it hits.

The game plan now is to check in regularly and watch the progress. It's an easy thing to obsess over, but that's not really my style (and, I don't have the time for it!). So, now it's on to other things...homework, work, and the like. Talk to you soon.

Final Grade Posted

My final grade arrived, and in spite of my concerns, it was an "A". Whooppee! Admittedly, not my finest semester, but again, working full time, attending school in Austin, pursuing a Master's Degree in what amounts to an accelerated program, and an "A-" (91.69) average overall...you can bet I'm happy about it. Whooppee!

One More Grade

I got my Accounting/Finance grade this morning...I was hoping for an "A" but expecting a "B", so I am VERY pleased to announce that I received an "A-". I can live with that!

The final outstanding grade, however, could be anything under the sun. The two assignments that have not been graded are team assignments, and long and complicated ones at that. I do not have a clue what to expect on them, as we got little feedback along the way. Again, we worked very hard, so I'm hoping for the best, but really don't have a clue how things are going to turn out here. Guess we'll see soon.

Grades Starting to Roll In

Out of the four classes this semester, two of my grades have been posted. Although it's been a long time since I got something other than an "A", considering the workload and the team grading element in the classes, I'm happy with my grades. I made a "B" in Marketing Technological Innovations and an "A" in Technology Transfer. The "B" was an 87, so it only fell short by a bit, and the "A" was a solid 94. While I got a good score back on my Elevator Speech in Converting Technology to Wealth, the bulk of the scoring will come from our team efforts on the Quicklooks, so I can't really guess at what that score will be. In Financing New Ventures, I put a lot of effort into understanding the subject and completing the work, but it is definitely not my strong point. I have no guess at what either of these scores will be, as we are NOT graded on effort (guess that was the good old undergraduate days!) Wish me luck!

Semester Break

For two lovely weeks, I have little more to do than some reading in preparing for the next semester. Already I've taken advantage of the break by sleeping, going to the movies, sleeping, watching a bit of tv, sleeping, reading a new book ("Florence of Arabia", by Christopher Buckley, it was a HOOT!), and sleeping. I've started another book with Leo, (starring John Ryan Jr., for those of you who enjoy the spy genre with us) and expect to finish 2-3 more by the end of the week. Have I ever told you? I LOVE to read.

Our final day of class was a real blast as we got to listen to 15 minute presentations about one technology being assessed by every team in class. Not only are the program instructors for UT's MS|STC program incredible, but the students are as well. It's hard to explain, but so exciting to be a part of. I'm very excited about what next semester holds for us (although that won't stop me from enjoying the break).

I haven't been home for several weeks now, and miss fishing with Jess and seeing the deer in the mornings. Hopefully, Leo and I will be headed home on Friday evening to spend the weekend there. The apartment in Houston, on the other hand, is in a great location, but that's probably all it has going for it. The a/c runs all day long, and if we're lucky, gets down to 85F (29C) or 86F (30C) in the middle of the day. I'm expecting a monstrous electric bill for that any day now. The company that was going to get me a reasonable DSL connection made a mistake...it turns out they cannot help me. Plan B, a company called Comcast, will charge me some huge installation fee and $40/month. They have me over a barrel...I have to do it. They will get around to hooking me up on the 20th.

Work is going well, and I'm enjoying a wide variety of projects. The next job I have lined up, originally scheduled to begin in September, located less than a mile from my apartment, has been delayed a bit. However, it does seem to be in progress, and I am still in the picture, so I'm not worried about running out of work until 1Q08. There's a part of me that would like to stay with the company I'm working for now for the long haul. When I first came on, they thought about trying to groom me to be their Marketing Manager. Even though I am currently learning so much in school that could actually make this possible, in all honesty, it is not where my strengths lie. Although I'm really good with data, collecting, interpreting, preparing, and presenting, I'm not so good with people. (That's Leo's realm.) It's not that I don't like people, because I really do. It's just that people sometimes make me uncomfortable, something that my machines never do...never.

Gee, I'm rambling today. Sorry about that. I have to head downtown and print out some large format (poster size) prints of industrial HVAC equipment and make them look really good. After that, I've got to work on a collection of key words that line up to web pages with a focus on these same pieces of equipment along with others. So, I still have a busy day ahead. Still...no homework, no team meetings, no school projects, no online discussions--HEAVEN!

All Moved In

Well, I suppose that even though we moved in to our new apartment, the title is actually misleading. While I was at work, Leo moved in 1-1/2 beds, a good portion of my clothes, and much of my kitchen "stuff". Last night we made some "adjustments" to our cable so that we could use the metallic outside of the cable connection as an antenna and watched the local news [the old fashioned way] on a 25" tv while sprawled out on the floor of a large, empty living room. We've opted not to hook up cable tv, chose a $5/month phone service, and a $14.95/month high speed internet service. I am almost ready to settle in for my 6-month assignment. The shower was hot, the a/c (after a bit of work) was cool, and the noise was not bad at all. I slept good in my new home-away-from-home. Now it's lunch time, and I am taking a bit of an extended lunch to find out about the neighborhood. Less than 5 miles away is a small, quaint library with the typical Harris County free wifi. Leo disappeared into the shelves as soon as we arrived. (Like me, he absolutely loves libraries.) I miss home already, and unlike Leo, who has decided that we are through with the "move", I am thinking about what pieces of furniture I want to bring up and who I can hire to move them. If I can settle in for the long-haul and shut down my road-warrior ways for a few months, I believe I can make some progress on projects at work and at school. I think it's going to be a good run. Well, I suppose I should find the hubby and grab a burger before heading back to work, but I'm thrilled to find out that in the middle of the day, when I sometimes have a difficult time getting work done at "the office", I have other options, like the library. Yes, for the moment anyway, we are all moved in.

Moving Back to Houston

I picked Leo up from the airport on Tuesday. His 10 days in New Mexico were fun, he said, but both of us agreed that it was just too many days apart. He had to stay with me in Houston (cheap hotel and a good book) while I worked, but we [finally] headed home this evening.

My hotel is one of the cheapest in Houston at $59.99 a night, and I really like it. However, Houston has the highest hotel tax rate in the country, 17%, which makes my stay $70 a night. Since I stay there three nights a week, a quick calculation determined that perhaps it was not the best thing to do. So...we went apartment hunting. My needs are simple, for this home-away-from-home. I just need a bed, a shower, an air conditioner, and an internet connection. We put down money on a place about 15 miles from where I'm working now, and about 1 mile from where I will work from September through December. The apartment is a decent size, decent price, and a prime location for people who like to eat and shop (hmm...one of those fits me). It is near the corner of 45S and the beltway, and I'm looking forward to getting settled in on Monday.

I keep thinking that "this time is the last time" every time I get a new place to live. Prior to this, it was a rent house in Galena Park. Before that, it was a very nice apartment inside the loop. Before that, a maid's quarters in University Place, and before that, a mobile home in Brazoria. In the last 6 years, I think I've lived in 8 different places. I think that makes me a gypsy!

Anyway, here we are again with an apartment in Houston, and a TON of work waiting on me. I'm doing fine, however, keeping up for the most part and hanging in there with schoolwork as well. I worry a bit about Leo, because he has to work so hard keeping me going. Someday I hope to get us in a position where he no longer has to be the driver and the laundry man, but for now, I depend on him for these services.

So, if you see me around Houston, be sure and say "hey". I'm hoping to make time for getting some old friendships back on track while I'm there (Debbie, Johnny and Martha, etc.), and making my customers happy at the same time.

Greetings to my Skype Friends

For those of you who don't know, Skype is a free program that allows for online chatting. Unlike other chat clients, however, Skype also allows for free computer-to-computer audio and/or video interaction. For example, our team regularly meets to "chat" (type in messages in a chat window) since there are 6 of us, with varying connection speeds and locations. We choose to use the "chatting" services when we want to moderate our conversation and want to have a written record of what we've talked about. When 3 or 4 of us meet, however, sometimes we use the audio conferencing feature. We can all talk so much faster than we can type, and the interactions in voice conversations are different. So sometimes one method serves us better than another.

Even though most of my Skype conversations are with this group, as our work load for school is often very intense and we are required to complete a number of group projects, there are others with whom I Skype. These are people who, looking for someone to chat with, just pick my name, and my short little profile, out of a list and ask if we can be "friends". I have to say that I get a lot of invitations [which is interesting in itself since I clearly point out my age in my profile] that I turn down, just from the fact that I don't have time for more. But, my little list is composed of the most interesting group that I just love to chat with on occasion.

1. Erol (Istanbul, Turkey) owns a tour bus. His English is definitely good enough that we rarely misunderstand each other, and he has shared some wonderful and beautiful photos from his country with me. He has a wonderful habit of speaking to me in endearing terms that many here is the states would find "uncomfortable" (he occasionally expresses his love and sends me kisses), but Leo and I both recognize them as phrases that indicate just how much he wants us to be friends, and knowing the context, I find them exotic and wonderful expressions of friendship.
2. Sami (Helsinki, Finland) is my most recent friend, as I couldn't resist accepting a chat invitation from Finland. As it turns out, he is Palestinian, born in a refugee camp in the Gaza Strip and we are a couple of months apart in age. Sami is a currently unemployed electrical engineer and his English is very good. We talked of opportunities here in the states for him, both as a student and in the work force, but he told me the same story that I hear from so many others about how difficult it is to get into the country now, especially if your heritage is of a certain part of the world. I hope to be able to chat with him again soon.
3. Rachid (Rissani, Morocco) is a 45-year-old small business owner in Morocco. Rachid often wants to talk to me, using the voice feature of skype, but I usually only set up for that (headset and all) when I have a scheduled voice chat, so we've only actually talked on one occasion. [Rachid's typed English is good, but his spoken English is quite excellent.] We often speak of our very different lifestyles, especially when it comes to work. Rachid is always encouraging me to slow down, relax, and enjoy life a little instead of rushing through it, and I am always trying to explain how the crazy rush of my life is actually enjoyable for me (most of the time!) We talk to each other almost every week, and I very much enjoy these conversations.
4. Simon (Tianjin, China) is an electrical control engineer in a US-owned company in China. He is 45, with a wife and one 17-year-old son. Simon has been to the US once, but it was to a midwestern town and his visit was all work-related. Simon and I have a difficult time understanding each other only rarely, as when talking about our technical business experiences. Simon's primary reason for making friends around the world seems to be a lot like mine...just to learn and experience things by interacting with others who are very much like us in some ways, and very different from us in others. I ALWAYS enjoy chatting with Simon.
5. Tarik (Casablance, Morocco) is about the same age as my youngest daughter and is very interested in coming to the US to attend school. I tried to help him out by sending him links to the University of Houston, but we had so much trouble, I went ahead and entered his information into the Texas Common Application (the place where all students register for all colleges in Texas) for him while he fed the details to me in a chat. Tarik seems to be a very fun-loving young man and I always enjoy chatting with him. We sometimes have a difficult time understanding each other, but that just makes it more of a challenge and a lot more fun!

So, now you know about some of my international friends and what we talk about online. I have been thinking (a LOT recently) about setting us some more formal, scheduled small group chats with people just like these around the work to talk about things like home and family, work and career, neighbors and neighborhoods, as well as pre-conceived notions, misconceptions, and just interesting chitchat. If I ever follow up on this idea, I'll be sure and let you all know about it, just in case you want to participate!

Topless in Houston

Yup...that's right. This was definitely the week to go topless. Not me! (That's a scary thought!) No...I spent the week in Houston with Molly, and she spent the entire time topless. I fell in love with Molly about 7 years ago. Leo wasn't that excited about her at first, but after a few years, he changed his mind and fell in love with her as well. Now, we even occasionally fight over her. So who's Molly, you wonder? Molly is our 1995 Mazda Miata, one of the least expensive, and absolutely the most fun automobile we have ever owned. She's a teeny tiny convertible, and at twelve years of age, she's still a beauty.

This was a good week, a really good week. Not only did I have a really good time working on a group of spreadsheets for one of my customers, but I also got all my readings done, almost all of my homework done, and I even made progress on our new team technology, something that really looks promising. So, yesterday on my way home (after 4 nights in a noisy hotel, I was ready to get home) I decided to vary from my normal routine of listening to class readings on my iPod on the road and, believe it or not, I listened to music all the way home. I popped in an MP3 mix that covers quite a range of styles and listened to some of the following:

• James Taylor (Sweet Baby James, Mexico, Autour du Rocher...)
• Janis Ian (At Seventeen, The Roller Skate Song...)
• Eagles (Seven Bridges Road [I LOVE that track!])
• Jackson Browne (Loadout, Stay...)
• Bonnie Raitt (Louise, Kisses Sweeter than Wine...)
• Die Prinzen (Deutschland, Mein bester Freund...)
• Ladysmith Black Mambo (Hello my Baby, Oh Happy Day, Amaphiko Okundiza...)
• Rockabella (Sittin' on the Dock, Stand by Me, Lean on Me...)
• And more, more, more.

One last thing...I got my first check from the company I was having a problem with. Yup. I now have money in the bank, and am actively working on getting out of a hole. Absolutely, this week was a very good week.

Sleep Deprivation

Gee, after reading my last post I can see that Sleep Deprivation has some serious side effects. Namely, it appears to cause rambling and incoherency. The problem is, I'm still short on sleep, so this posting may not be any better. Still, I thought I should clarify some things that appeared in the last, and very strange, posting.

First is the issue that I started to bring up and never got back to about my MSSTC team. I started off with a topic that looked like I was going to spill my guts about being on a poorly functioning team. Well, nothing could be further from the truth. Despite the fact that we are ALL involved in some real life activities outside of class, we still manage to get our work done. This is nothing short of a miracle. Additionally, although I'm not going to ramble about my team members' personalities here, I will tell you they are an amazing group of people. We come from a very wide range of cultures, backgrounds, attitudes, and aptitudes, but instead of causing problems, this diversity is precisely what generates most of the discussion and most of the learning in our group.

Another thing that looked like it might pop up in my last posting was some ugly-headed monster crying about school and/or instructors being too hard. Yikes! Where did that come from? School and the instructors ARE hard, but my instructors at UT are also incredible, incredibly interesting, insightful and helpful. I realize that I said it all wrong last time when I was "crying" about my B's in class. Yup...I really do wish I was getting better grades. But other than that, I just couldn't ask for a better set of instructors to teach me about this strange new world of developing innovations into marketable products. The program is absolutely fabulous.

Tonight I'm on the road, staying in a cheap (but clean and comfortable) hotel in Houston. [I'm hoping Leo will come to town tomorrow...I miss him already.] I could easily go to sleep now, but have to attend an online class meeting at 9pm (3 hours from now), so I'm working on homework instead. Almost all my reading is done (I'm a fast reader and love to read, so the reading assignments are almost never a problem for me), but I still have several assignments to complete. My part of the research on our new technology is not going well as the inventors seem to be avoiding me. But, I'm still hoping for the best. And my Finance homework is still waiting for me. I always put it first on my list, knowing it will take me the longest to make heads or tails of, but always end up pushing it down the list, knowing it will take me the longest to make heads or tails of. Still, the honest truth about the program is that, even though the work is KILLING me, I am learning, growing, and improving so much every day. And on those occasions when I am not sleep deprived, I realize that I am having an absolute blast in life!

Doubts and Concerns

After so many stormy days in a row, today seems unusually bright and sunny. Leo's giving me lots of "room" though...he can obviously sense that I'm in a bit of a troublesome mood. I still have not received that illusive paycheck, so we are still living on borrowed money. Upset at not being able to make any progress, I went back to an old client, one who pays a lot less per hour, but is a LOT MORE DEPENDABLE with the pay. They have a project for me to work that will require >40 hour weeks for a few weeks. This is very problematic for my school work, but I'm desperate and have no real choice.

As far as school goes, while the program is still as exciting as in the beginning, and I am learning so very much, this weekend was the second time I seriously questioned whether or not I should drop out of the program. First of all, almost everything we are graded on is based on a team effort. If you remember back to some of my postings a year ago, this sounded a lot like my complaints about work in the UH program. However, I had a solution for that...I did all the work. Because I was the "senior" person on all my teams, because I am a grand champion wordsmith (my sister calls it "grand champion bullsh..."), and because I have ALWAYS been a workaholic, that worked just fine. I did all the work, our teams made all A's, and I learned what I needed to.

Here's the rub, though. In those classes, the reason I did well, I think, was twofold: 1) I'm a really hard worker and put a huge amount of effort into my work, and 2) I have a lot of experience, especially with team activities, under my belt. In other words, it was who I am and what I brought to the party that earned me those A's, and it had very little to do with what I was learning in my classes. Now, fast-forward a year and you'll find me struggling to make a single "A" in my courses. Why? Even though I'm still hard-working, I am now one of the people in the class with the LEAST experience in the field we are studying. So, who in the class are making the A's now? It's not those who are learning the most, but those who are learning the least. The A's go to the folks that are already out in tech fields doing the things we do in class. They are just here to get the piece of paper. Those of us who are working the hardest and struggling to make new contacts, learn new terminologies, learn new "games", etc. are the ones who are also struggling for the B's in the class.

So, when I went to bed at 2am on Friday night, I thought to myself, "What am I doing here? Why am I doing it? Is this what I really want?" I spent an hour or so trying to figure out what would happen if I dropped out of the program now.

But morning came, and I thought better of it. First of all, at my age and stage in the game, is making straight A's really that important to me? It was in undergraduate school, because it gave me a huge sense of accomplishment. It may have played a small part in getting me into Grad school, but then, it may not. So in actuality, the A's were for me and nobody else. So now the big question of the day is, can I be happy as a straight B student? Okay, maybe "happy" is stretching it a bit, so let me try again. How about this...is surviving the program and graduating with a B average going to further my long-term goals? Hmm...I'll have to say that while I lose out on things like bragging rights, the MS does actually propel me forward. For today then, the answer is "YES...I'm going to stay in the program, do my best to survive, and be the sponge in the class that soaks up every piece of information that I can. Yes, this is definitely furthering my long-term goals."

Diamondback Season

I'll post the details later, but this is what I get for sneaking out for a half hour of fishing. On the way back, I ran into this little fellow. Rocket-Arm-Leo took care of him with a couple of bricks while I went for a scrap of wood. This is the little guy now (his head is nailed to the grass). Whew!

Stormy Weather

I love storms. I really do. I haven't always, though. For years, our house was technically "dried in", but problems with the exterior door installations meant that storms were always an occasion to pull out the wet vac. Today, things are better for us.

On the water-side of our house, our view is about 160 degrees. Because of this, we almost always see the storms coming long before the rain starts. The storm approaching now is the second one of the day. I can see the rain on the water just a few hundred yards away now. It won't be long before the windows get a thorough washing, and it's possible I'll lose my satellite internet connection. Still, I love watching the rains come and go.

Today I got some big news, and I'm still in a state of shock trying to process it all. I was asked to look at a job, with the company I regularly contract for, a few months ago. I really like the site manager, and was hoping to do business with him. It is a long project (800 hours) and would be at a location that I really like. When I got a look at the budget last week, however, I knew that I would just not be able to do the work for the price they were quoting. I hated to turn it down, but really felt like I had to.

Today I got a message stating that the management team had met, discussed their options, and decided to offer me the work at my standard rate. I nearly fainted. A great job for some great folks at a great location...wow! How did that happen?

There are a LOT of preparations to be made, however. I will definitely have to relocate to Houston for the duration of the project, which is something I don't relish, but it must be done. Leo and I will begin looking at apartments in the area this week. Although the cost of an apartment hurts my budget a bit, "living" close to where the work is occurring means I can work long hours, still get all my schoolwork in, and avoid the Houston traffic. And while leaving home is hard, (I'll miss watching the storms, the deer, the dolphins, and the neighbors) it's not the first time, and it won't be the last. Having Leo available to help out (cooking, driving, taking care of things) makes the biggest difference of all.

So...time to prepare for a new battle, a new challenge, and a new "fun time". I'll get over my shock soon, and the real activity will begin. But for now, well now as the rain begins to pelt the windows, I think I'll just enjoy the storm.

That Wicked, Wicked Money

Leo and I are in a spot we haven't been to for a very long time. We have run out of money. I try to work enough to keep us going, and was doing fine for a while. Recently, however, something changed and my primary employer is not able to pay me for services rendered. So, we are camped out here at home, not answering the phone, and not responding to bill collectors. Have you ever been there? I certainly hope not. When we get out of this mess, I will certainly be looking for another job. I really love these guys and they have kept me busy for years now, but I just can't afford any more blunders like this one (which has cost me several hundred dollars in bank fees). So, if anyone knows of work that I might be qualified to perform, I hope you'll give me a call.

Saturday's Wildlife

With a long day ahead, I woke up early on Saturday morning to check my email and look at my homework. Just outside of my window, three does were grazing contentedly. They did not see me, I'm guessing, because of a glare on the windows, so I was able to watch them for nearly an hour while I worked. How peaceful is that!

Later, when I got on the road, I encountered my next wildlife near Palacios when I had to swerve to avoid an alligator in the road. He was much smaller (3' maybe?) than the last one (>6') which I encountered on the way to work a few years back. But, this one was still alive!

Finally, when I reached my destination in Houston, I encountered some of the most unusual wildlife. For a belated Mother's Day present, my girls arranged for themselves and my sister and I to spend a few hours at a day spa in Houston called "Fiori". Okay...even though I am not often impressed by the wealthy and their lifestyles, even I have to admit that it was REALLY nice. Oh yeah...I'm supposed to be talking about the "wildlife"...well, picture this. [And remember, I'm just a country girl!]

Picture a Tuscan villa with lots of wood, tile and stucco, large wooden doors, and gauzy curtained areas. After arriving, in almost every area of the building you encounter men and women walking around in matching brown terry robes and plastic sandals drinking from the ever-present jugs and pitchers of cucumber water or flavored teas. Because you are pretty much "in the buff" in your own robe, you quickly realize that everyone else you see is also naked with just a robe on as well, a thought which places me squarely outside my comfort zone. In each of the client areas, where you receive your "treatment", dimly lit rooms with what is supposed to be "soothing" music piped in (rather loudly, in my opinion) can be found. [Note: After I left, I was frantically searching for some Eric Clapton to listen to on the way home to clear my mind!] Although I am not so uncultured as to NEVER having a massage before, I have to admit that laying naked on a heated bed while some stranger attempts to drive the demons out of all but a few of your substantial (remember...I'm a big lady!) body parts, is still a little bit like living on the wild side. I had a wonderful time with "the girls", and will certainly go again if ever invited by such a fun crowd, but realize that this kind of lifestyle is really a bit too wild for me. Later, reading over some of the offerings in the brochure, I silently thank my girls for not going for some of the more exotic treatments, like the "Massaggio A Quattro Mani" (Four Hands Massage), the "Soin Velours" (Vichy Body Polish using Refurbishing Algo or Citro-Essence) which describes how "following the exfoliation, your new contours will be treated to a marvelous body massage with a rebirthing silky blend of botanical lotion and oils", or the "Arancio e del Canella" (Citrus, Mandarin & Cinnamon Body Wrap) which sounds to me like a good thing to try out on my yeast bread recipe at home.

So much for my walk on the wild side! Still, a fun time was had by all!