INFINITY Welcomes Careful Drivers

So here we are at Myrtle Beach. Everyone else is headed up to Calabash and Sunset Beach to hang out on the sand and go play in the ocean. Dana has a bit of an eye thing going on, so we need to find an urgent care place to go to.

So why have we just spent nearly 40 minutes calling office after office after office trying to find an urgent care, rapid care, or some other sort of non-ER medical center? Every one is either closed, not near us, or knows of another one closer, but doesn't know what their phone number is.  read more »

Sigh... why does everything seem to happen at once?

So Wednesday brought us torrential rain, thanks to the remnants of tropical storm Faye. That morning, I got half drenched just going the 15 feet to my car. I managed to drive through rain so thick I could barely see the front of my car all the way into town.

That's when I realized I had forgotten my wallet. So, back around the traffic circle, 10 miles back home to get that. It had stopped raining mostly by that point, so I made good time back into P-town and on to Hwy 64. There I ran into the rain again.  read more »

Today is or was July 4th, the day we Americans celebrate Independence day. I didn't do much though I had planned to originally. With the recent decision by the Supreme Court in the D.C. v. Heller case affirming that the 2nd ammendment does in fact guarantee and individual right to keep and bear arms, despite certain other groups' view that the 2nd is a collective right, I decided to celebrate by excercising that right a bit.  read more »

Holy crap! Olbermann is fired up more than I have ever seen before. I'd vote for this guy...

It's 7:25 as I type this. My students should be an hour and a half into their practical exams. Should being the important word here. In fact, there's a sign on the wall of this classroom that simply says "SHOULD".

That sign taunts me. It mocks me. It laughs at me. I am Jack's utter disappointment. I say should, because they are, in fact NOT an hour and a half into the practical exam. I say should because instead of being hard at work installing and configuring a Linux system, they are off enjoying the beautiful evening.  read more »

So there I was, sitting all alone at the Pittsboro branch of the Carolina Brewery. Wings were consumed. Burger was consumed. Some special seasonal brew was enjoyed, and Virginia Tech was playing Kansas in the Orange Bowl. Or rather, they got played in the Orange Bowl.

What the hell happened? The started the game throughout the first half playing as though they forgot what football was. The Hokies finished the first half with just one TD on the board and the Jayhawks leading by 7. Halftime was livelier than VT with Z.Z. Top playing a rocking tune.  read more »

Christmas is officially cancelled this year. That's right. No Christmas. Well, no gifts at least, for anyone. There's a reason that this blog is subtitled "Why does everything have to SUCK" and that reason is the theme of my life. I am, I now firmly believe, a born loser. That's right, I am destined to lose no matter what. I can not have one single year in which things are always good, or at the very least, only minor bad things happen.

No, I live a life that allows me to get caught up, only to kick me in the balls again, ensuring that I can never be in a position to save money, to pay off my bills, or to even fully enjoy my life, what little of it there is left.  read more »

Those three words have left me sitting at my desk at work today feeling as though I have been kicked in the crotch repeatedly.

I haven't written much here in a while. The reason for this is because I have been busy with work, and busy with a doggie who was very sick. My little Jack had a growth on his lip last year. The vets treated him with antibiotics and it went away. A few months later, it came back but this time went away on it's own. Then it came back again; this time for good.

We got the biopsy results today from NC State's veterinary school from the samples that they took from his mouth. Squamous cell carcinoma, aggressive, non-metastasized, and invading his mouth, sinuses, and eventually spreading to other places in his head. We discussed options, and frankly there are none. They said we could put him through treatment that would cost 5 to 10 thousand dollars, plus surgery. But even after that, his chances at survival are dismal, and that would put him through months of pain and fear. In the end, I knew. They said I would, and I knew. There is only one decision here.

My lovely boy has been feeling bad for some time, and it has gotten progressively worse over the last few weeks. He's been on pain medicine and two different antibiotics. Today we learned why. And today, I have to do the hardest thing I have ever had to do.

I'll write about Jack soon. I'll tell the story of Jack. Right now, though, I need to get some coffee. I need to sit and breathe, and think, and hide from the people at work. I don't want them to see me cry. I don't want anyone to see me cry over my Jack. I don't want their pity, nor their curious looks. I just want to be left alone today.

Squamous cell carcinoma. Skin cancer. Three words that lead me to do something I didn't think I would have to do for years to come. So I must call Dr. Betton, Jack's first vet, the only one he ever truly trusted. Maybe it's a blessing, but Jack always trusted Dr. Betton, who always remembered him, and us, and was never afraid to get down on the floor with him, give him kisses and scratches. Dr. Betton now has a mobile clinic that he runs in my area. He lives here. He is one of us.

So, once I can arrange it, I'll have Dr. Betton come to the house. I promised Jack that I would be with him until the end. I promised him that I wouldn't let him suffer any more than necessary. I intend to keep that promise. I also promised him that when the time came, I would do it at home, where he can be surrounded by family, buy our other fur kids. I will honor that promise now. He will pass on at home, in the place he loves, the place he calls his own. He will pass on his own bed, not in some cold, antiseptic clinic room. I will hold him in my arms until the end, and then some. And one day I will see him at the Rainbow Bridge, and see his smile, his stupid Snoopy dance, his wagging tail and the big green eyes that made us fall in love with him the day we first saw him.

I just spent 4 hours tracking down a samba permissions issue. I am going out of my mind now. And I REALLY hate the people who created SELinux. SELinux is an abortion of common sense. It is, in my humble opinion, a lot like Sendmail programming. Only a select few have any idea how it works, or how to effectively use it. The rest of us (and I tend to count myself among the more knowledgeable out there) are left banging our heads against solid objects thanks to the weirdness that SELinux produces.  read more »

UPDATE: We made it back to try the Carolina Brewery again. Click HERE to read about our latest visit and my review of the experience.
/UPDATE

UPDATE: Shortly after this, I was contacted by one of the managers of this particular restaurant who expressed sincere regret that we had the experience we did. She asked us to try again, and I am certainly willing as I believe in second chances. I also do understand how difficult it can be opening a new restaurant. To take the following as you will, but do not assume my experience is indicative of typical experiences at the Carolina Brewery. I have heard quite a few good things about it, and it is my hope that when my wife and I try them again, we too will have that good experience.
/UPDATE

I am sorry, but after hearing so many things about how good the new Carolina Brewery is, I have to add a counter point. I really don't know how good they are. I tried, but have yet to really find out. My wife went there this past weekend and the experience was less than stellar. In fact, I can't remember the last time I was that furious upon leaving a restaurant or store of any kind.  read more »