September 2024 - Going Hybrid

 Sadly, September saw a change in my life I wasn't at all happy about.

After four and a half years of working from home, I had to go back into the office part time.  We are officially hybrid, which means we are only in the office Tuesday to Thursday.  But it is such a change.  I'm really struggling to figure out how to fit everything else in my life into my evenings.  Something I didn't really struggle with before.

We have some flexibility in our hours, which is wonderful.  But with when I get home, it means I am missing about an hour out of my evening.  That's a hard change for me.

But the thing that doesn't make any sense to me is that not everyone is back in the office.  There are entire departments that are working from home still, I'm guessing due to space.  Plus, those who have moved out of the area since March of 2020 or been hired in other areas when we were told we were all going to be fully remote that aren't having to come in.  I get that last group - those who were promised they wouldn't have to move.  I'm glad they aren't being forced to move now.  But I do feel like we were lied to.  But for those who are still in the area but not having to come back to the office?  Yeah, it infuriates me.  Especially since all of our meetings are still over Teams.

But I am thankful that we still get to work from home two days a week.  They are by far my favorite work days.  I know most companies are requiring everyone back into the office five days a week, so I'm sure that is coming at some point.

August 2024 Part 2 - Visiting Family

 In the middle of August, I took off again and headed to northern California to visit my family.  My parents had just gotten back from an extended trip, so it was great to spend time with them and hear about all the fun they'd had.

But the main reason I headed up was Saturday.  I joined my brother and his family at Great America.  This is a theme park that I went to once as a kid, long before I was big enough to enjoy coasters.  So it's been a couple of decades.  I hadn't done coasters much in the last few years, so this was a lot of fun.  I'm discovering that I'm not quite as big on coasters as I used to be.  Sadly, I think it's an age thing.  But I did have fun that day, and it lead me to getting a pass for Six Flags Magic Mountain again.

Anyway, we also spent a little time in the water park attached to the theme park that day.

My family was used to going on weekdays, so going on a weekend meant the crowds were a little bigger than they were used to, but we still managed to hit most of the big rides.

Then Sunday, I was able to go to church with my entire family before heading back south again.

It was a great visit.

August 2024 Part 1- Visiting a Friend

The beginning of August, I went to central California to visit a good friend of mine.  Originally, it was going to be for a week with me working from his place during the week, but that wound up being cut down to about four days.  Still, it was a great visit.

Saturday, we played ultimate Frisbee and then hosted a game night for his friends.  Many of them the same, which helped me since I am bad with names.

Sunday, we went tubbing, which I really enjoyed.  The tube I was using leaked, which was funny, but I made it to the end.  I also got a bad sunburn, but it was a small price to pay.

Monday, I worked, and then we finished up a TV show we'd been watching together.

Tuesday, right after work, I headed home.

Seriously, it was a great visit.  I wish I got to see him more often.

December 9th's Pun

RIP, boiling water.  You’ll be mist.

November 18th's Pun

 Shout out to the people who demand to know what the opposite of “in” is.

November 12th's Pun

Why does the stadium get hot after the game?

Because all the fans leave.

July 2024 - A Little Bit of This, a Little Bit of That

(Just a quick note:  If you are landed here because of a comment I left on your book blog, you might be more interested in my review blog, Carstairs Considers.  But you are very welcome to stick around here, too.)

July was a month of a little of this, a little of that.  Nothing major happened, but I did several fun things.

The first weekend I went paddleboarding for the first time since I hurt my shoulder in May of 2023.  It still bothered me a little, mostly in an "I'm not used to this way" not in a "I'm going to be injured again" way.  And it stopped as soon as I got off the water.  I haven't made it back out again, mainly because I haven't wanted to buy passes again quite yet.  I'll probably do that in the spring.  I'm hoping to make it out a time or two before then.

The second weekend, I went to support a friend who was preaching at his church.  This is the first who hosts game day, and much of the group are his friends from church.  The result was plenty of people I know there, which was fun.  We went out to lunch afterwards, and it was the weekend of game day, so we spent a lot of time together that weekend.

I also went down to Santa Monica in July to enjoy the beach and some cooler weather, which was nice.

And I attended the launch party for Ellen Byron's new series, which is set in the California Gold Country.

As you can see, it was a full month even if nothing big happened. 

June 2024 Part 2 - Friend's Wedding

(Just a quick note:  If you are landed here because of a comment I left on your book blog, you might be more interested in my review blog, Carstairs Considers.  But you are very welcome to stick around here, too.)

In the middle of June, I finally made it to St. Louis!  I'm not sure why, but I've wanted to go there for a long time.  Okay, so I was only in the city itself for a few hours, but I did get to go up in the St. Louis Arch.  Going up in the Arch itself was just okay, and I'm not sure I need to do that again.  But I would like to go back and spend more time in the museum.  I really missed out there.  Then I had dinner nearby.

After that, I headed to Southern Illinois, which was my real destination.  I was there for my friend Brian's wedding.  We hung out a lot in college and spent some time together when he moved back to So Cal later.  I was honored to be included in the day.  I enjoyed getting to spend time with he and his now wife and her family.  With the wedding going on, that was the focus of the trip, but I'm glad I was able to be there for him.

June 2024 Part 1 - Camp Pendleton Mud Run 2024

(Just a quick note:  If you are landed here because of a comment I left on your book blog, you might be more interested in my review blog, Carstairs Considers.  But you are very welcome to stick around here, too.)

Saturday, June 1st, I got to get muddy this year. Even better, it was at Camp Pendleton. 

The one mud run I had signed up for cancelled on me (sadly, since it was always fun). I thought I might not get a mud run in this year, but then Camp Pendleton announced they were having a mud run on June 1st and it was opened to the public again for the first time since 2019. I signed up right away!

The course was only 3.5 to 4 miles instead of having the full 10k (6.2) mile course like they used to have. We started and ended with the old route, but had a different part in the middle. 

It was a little cooler than I would have liked.  The sun did come out while I was there, but it was overcast to start with.  Still, I’ve done it in colder weather.

I was disappointed by how few people were there.  Granted, it made getting in and out easy, but even as other events started to die down, this one kept going strong.  I hope they don’t take this as a sign of lack of interest and don’t have it in the future.  The did only announce that it was open to the public six weeks beforehand.  And it was the first one in five years.  So hopefully, they will allow it time to build up again.

Because I had a BLAST.  I think I was smiling almost the entire time I was on base.  Even driving to and from the venue itself.  And yes, I was smiling while running.  It was so fantastic to be back.  Yes, I would have been happiest doing the entire course that I used to do, but I was more than happy to take what they offered me.

After a lunch at the Pit Stop Diner (love that place) in Oceanside, I started making my way home.  But I stopped to visit friends in Orange County along the way.  These are family friends from growing up.  I didn’t get to see everyone I would have liked to see, but it was nice to visit with the ones I could.

September 2nd's Joke

The bartender says, "We don't serve time travelers here."
A time traveler walks into a bar.