Bike

I finally purchased a hybrid bike after months of looking, i was ready to spend 500 buck on a bike.  Then my reality set in, do i really want to spend that much on a bike? Do i need that much of a bike? and so on.  So i researched some more and found a bike that i want with a better price tag to boot.  I ended up getting a 09' Trek 7.2fx blue.  It was all that i really need, and wanted. The 10' model has a better frame and wheels but i don't think that i would know the difference anyways.  I rode it, like 20ft, to the work van.  I can say it was awesome lol. jk. I can't wait to ride it.  For some reason i think that i'm going to put like 1000 miles on this bike fairly quickly.  I have heard of people putting 4-5k miles on a bike a summer, but i think they commute to work with it and so on.  I don't get that choice with my current job.

A sales guy at work must of heard my complaining about the Swiss people and he bought me a case of beer.  Nice, although it is a really dark beer and is like drinking cough syrup.

I have managed to get a math homework exercise done and i am over halfway on another one.  I don't know if I am learning anything, and i hope that the teacher doesn't catch on that i am using a tutor. I don't know if that would be bad though, either.  I have been motoring through my biology class too, and i hope to finish that up soon as well.  But i have to wait at least a month to finish a couple labs, so that will push that to the end as well. I'm kinda starting to freak out about not finishing the math class, or finishing it with a decent grade.  It scares me to think about it sometimes.  yikes.

Hand Holding

Lately at work I have been working with a few people that are not from this country mainly Europe.  I have had to pick them up at their hotel, take them for lunch, bring them back to there hotel, and sometimes i take them out for dinner, rarely.  Not only do i do this for them but i have to translate for them, i don;t speak there language, but i have a knack for transmitting what they want into movements that everyone can understand.  The other frustrating thing is that the machine that the customer has paid 500,000 dollars for isn't finished and untested.  I have been given projects to do, that i am told are easy only to find out that they are not, and require hours and hours of work just to mount, let alone work properly.  All of this is fine and dandy for i have done this in the past, but i remember how much a didn't like doing it in front of the customers.  They are talking about sending me all over the country to work on these machines. I don't want to do this if I am put in this situation with these ass clowns.  They are all good nature'd but do not understand that things need to be assembled and tested as a whole project and then verified in every way possible the everything is correct, then ship the machine.  This way you are confident that the machinery is correct and only if some odd ball thing happens, damaged in shipping ect, you have a ready machine.  A guy already has plenty to do with training and questions that the customer has but to add the fact that the product you sold, and had nothing to do with building, might not even work is only adding problems and blow ups.  It really pops the customers excitement balloons, they feel stupid and really get buyers remorse quickly.

Also i have been asking for training on these machines for years.  It would require me to go overseas for a couple weeks.  They won't let me go, but everyone else that is involved in this company has been there at least once, but they only sell and i have to do the rest.  Fair?

More fun, my dog ate my sony camera, nice.

I sold my GPS unit for more than the one i am replacing it with.  I think it is a good idea, updated software and maps, and i end up with money in the bank?  It is only what i need a gps only but thats is all i need.  There is other MP3 players that play better than a gps would ever be.

Tuesdays

I haven't been on here for a bit.  I have been busy, yeah right.  Well work has been extremely slow this last couple weeks.  I just got a yearly review where i was told that i was great but they aren't giving money to anyone this year, but i deserve one.  OK, so you'll forget how great i am when you have money......i know how that works, i let them know how i felt, although i know it wouldn't get me anywhere.  I mentioned that i would need some sort of carrot to persuade me to want to take on more responsibility.  Its always a tricky slope to bring that up, it can be taken the wrong way very easily. 

I have many thoughts on my job, one day i may hate it and the next i find it interesting and enjoyable.  So as I work on my homework for school, i wonder if i will be able to quit my job and go on to pursue a degree of some sort in mechanical or electrical engineering.  I'm not in a position now that i would like to stay in, but i have laid the ground work for a possibly better position in the company in a few years, do i just give that up.  For the most part, i believe that i am just a number, a minion in their empire.  Heck, the owner doesn't even know my name half the time, hey Aaron or Jason.  My name isn't Jason, you ass!  I want to correct him but he doesn't stop to talk, just as he passes by in the hallway.  I guess what keeps me there is the fact that i have learned so much about the industry that i am, so quickly that i know that i have only touched to tip of the iceburg.  And that i can learn about different things that i haven't thought about.  But its not like they let me choose what i will get to work with, and there is no training what so ever, if you saw a machine once you are now the expert.  They actually think its funny or "that's how it was when i was out in the field."  But its not right, but no one wants to make it better, just a endless circle of crap.

i got a talking too for having a misc charge of $0.99 on my cell phone, she wanted an explaination right now.  i wanted to just give her the phone and say i no longer need it, and if they want me to have it, then dont let me have any extra crap so i can't "rack" up the bill.

So when I quit I will have to start over with some other company making sheet metal brackets, having some uneducated moron tell me that my bracket isn't made right, although i didn't make it and the print is correct.  I can only imagine the stress i would be under, a new world i would be in, will i like it even.  All these thoughts have made it hard to do all my homework that i need to do.  I haven't touched my math or bio books for 1.5 weeks.  I don't have time to slack off.  and this only adds to the stress, now i hear a clock ticking....tick...tick.

It has been snowing pretty good up here lately.  I got stuck in my driveway a couple times, and rachel got stuck this morning.  I got stuck at work in front of everyone, on a slight incline, nice tires company x! Safety is our priority, yeah right.