Thanksgiving had just come and gone and I had survived it by spending it alone, at home, with my pets, cooking up a storm.

I stayed with the menu I planned out the week before and for the most part, it was a success. The only fail was the paella. There was good flavor and the seafood was great, but it was just too wet. I need to figure out the right water to rice ratio for next time. I need to not crowd the pan and cook less rice. I need to experiment more with it more. Definitely a dish that I will come back to in the future.

The only other miss was the marquesa. It turned out great, like I think it would, but I’m just not a dessert person and it’s just not my cup of tea. I thought it would be a little bit creamier, but it wasn’t. Definitely a fail and probably something that I will not revisit again. I’m hit and miss with desserts and that’s definitely not up my alley. Maybe I’ll have to check out a true marquesa, created by some true Venezuelans in my future.

Maybe.

The spicy corn casserole turned out really well. Next time, I’ll have to make it just a smidge less spicy, but I loved it. A really great side dish and the chimichurri potato salad was good also. It was simple and was exactly what I thought it would be.

The aji sauce was phenomenal, but definitely way too spicy. I will have to remove some seeds and membranes the next time I make it, but definitely something that is easy and quick to do. A great sauce.

The brick chicken turned out well also. The Cornish hens were a great size and I’ll have to experiment with a large chicken the next time I try to attempt to do it. I’ll do a different flavoring for sure, but overall, it was great.

So, Thanksgiving dinner was a success. It was my most ambitious dinner cooking session to date. All dishes were dishes that I never made before, but I am definitely glad that for the most part, they all came out well with some exceptions.

I mean, even though I feel that the paella and the marquesa were a fail, they weren’t horrible. Very edible and good, but just not great. There’s always room for improvement.

Definitely always room for improvement.

* * *

Even though I didn’t get a Facebook invite to great uncle’s for Thanksgiving, I know there is always a standing invitation. I just didn’t want to go. I didn’t want to deal with family.

It seems that I really am sticking to my theme for this year, which is pretty much do what I want. It’s a very antisocial year and a year of just doing things by myself.

Sure I allow small family things, like the wedding and the memorial and what not, but for the most part, I did most things on my own. Trips were done alone and me just chilling on my own.

I didn’t want to do family thing out of obligation. I wasn’t feeling up to going to Uncle’s for Thanksgiving, so I didn’t go. My choice. My decision.

I wanted to spend some time alone. After my time in SC, it was definitely a good thing for me to just recoup and do things and spend some much needed alone time on my own. It definitely was good.

Apparently though, they were all asking where I was and were concerned about me spending it by myself. Of course the older generation doesn’t understand that and nor do I expect them to understand that.

I love family, I do. But at this time in my life, I want to spend some time by myself.

Definitely want to spend time by myself.

I’m sure my theme for next year will change, as I’ll probably do more family things, like going back home or even planning another family vacation. But, I’m really not sure, since next year seems so abstract and so far away.

So far away.

One step. One punch. One round.

Creed.

Live in the now, this moment, focus on the now, on this moment and live it how you want to live it. Live within your control.

My control now, live it on my terms and it is #partyofone.

* * *

2015.

Man, this year has gone by so fast. Man, this had been a great year.

I’m sure I’m going to have a lot to think about and write about during my year end diatribe, but it had been a great year and I’m happy.

* * *

Reading over old posts from last year….

Unfinished projects.

My writing folder is just filled with them. Stories, scripts, ideas that are half realized, half written, and half developed.

All of them unfinished.

I still have remnants of their essence in my mind somewhere. I have some iteration of what they could be swimming around in my conscience somewhere trying to get out, trying to gel together, trying to find an ending.

But I’m stuck. Unmotivated. Crippled by my laziness and my self-doubt of it ever being good or if it is even worth my time.

I write to waste time, to give me an excuse to make me feel like I’m doing something with my life rather than just sitting and typing away, wasting it away and not doing much of anything with it.

I’m really sure that it doesn’t mean anything and that when it comes down to it, they all matter. Every single word I put into this blog, each and every single word and draft that I have started and not finished and everything that I have finished or having even come to fruition yet; they all matter. Every single one of them.

All of them matter.

They are a part of me and they are unfinished because I’m unfinished. I know that I’ll finish them all one day, hopefully it’ll be soon. I have nothing but time.

If I sit and really think about it, I’m single and I am not putting much of an effort into this whole writing them. What happens if I ever meet a girl or if I ever have children? What would be my excuse then?

Scott, even though he has it much worse than I do make the time and effort to write and I applaud him for it. I wish I was as dedicated and focus. Maybe it is his outlet from his day-in-and-day-out? Good for him.

I need it. I need a kick in the butt to get me back to writing again.

The Gentle Listener sits almost finished. I totally forgot that I was working on that, that it was my most recent project that I was working on. I didn’t remember it until a few minutes ago, trying to figure out what I was working on.

Something is definitely up with me about the whole writing thing. Hopefully I can get back to it come the new year. Fuck it. Why wait for the new year? Let’s get back to it now. Soon.

Soon.

* * *

Writing.

I wrote time and time again that I don’t have that lyricism that my earlier entries in this endless void had. None of it. The rhythm changed in the past few years.

I find it difficult to get back to that type of writing. I find it hard to find the connection of words. It seems that my writing tends to be more succinct and more direct.

Is that a sign as my maturity as a writer, it being more economical or is it a sign that my writing is sucking ’cause it isn’t as fun as it used to be?

I’m thinking and hoping that it is the later, that it is becoming more economical, more direct, more succinct, with everything coming to a point faster. Each sentence has a purpose as opposed to just the fast loose senseless writing that I use to do.

Maybe it has to do with my writing background of screenwriting where we have to be economical with each description and dialogue? I think that is it and that I’m reading more and notice that, yes, economical writing is better writing and doesn’t need to be boring.

I should focus on that. Write more economically. Broaden my vocabulary and my prose. Strengthen my writing and my works. Redo, rewrite.

Just do it.

No more waiting. Write.

Write.

* * *

Maybe after finishing this short story I’m writing, I’ll get back to rewriting. I have to do it. No one likes it, but I have to do it.

Let the Kids Eat Some Fries. Project next year. Page one rewrite.

Plan, outline, rewrite. Make it more exciting. Make it more accessible. Rework it. Make it better.

You wrote this first draft and now you know that it doesn’t quite work, so you have to find another way to make it work. Should be easy. Should just do it.

Do it.

* * *

Writing.

Do I still love it?

Do I still crave it? The written word?

I still do. I still do love the writing process, the thought process behind it. Sure, it’s very solitary and boring at times, but I still do love writing. Being able to put thought onto “paper” so to speak, able to turn a phrase and change its intended meaning. I love it. I love it so much, but I don’t know why I have been so distracted and can’t focus on it.

Maybe it’s because there’s so much going on in my head. It’s like a pinball action of ideas and thoughts, some having to do with what I’m working on and other things that doesn’t have anything to do with writing or anything else at all. My mind is a mess and that is one of the biggest reasons why I can’t finish a project.

Another is the self-doubt if it’ll ever be good and that is just something that I need to get over with.

Others are just general big distractions. There are just too many things to watch, to consume, so much content to catch up on. It’s the FOMO that I generally don’t have on regular cool things, but just so many articles to read and what not.

I have gotten better with my Feedly and just ignoring a bunch of stuff, but it is still occupying my time. I have to be more decisive on what I need or want or should watch and just let the others go away.

I need to change the way I consume media. Definitely need to change.

I don’t need to be in on the cultural zeitgeist and what is going on in the world in terms of pop culture and the latest cool hip thing. You never thought of yourself as the coolest and hippest and keeping-up-with-the-jones anyway. So, let it go.

Just consume what you want to watch. You can’t ever watch everything, so don’t try. Watch what you can. Read what you can. Consume what you can and all the other time, find other things to fill your time.

Just be you and be a better you as you get older.

That’s all that you can ask and do for yourself.

The year is winding down.

The year is almost over. There’s just about 5 or 6 weeks left in the year and I’m not going anywhere.

I’m here for the rest of the time and I’m quite okay with it. I definitely am looking forward to spending more time with myself and on my own. I just can’t wait.

The year has gone by so fast. The year has been filled with a lot of ups and downs like any other year and I think it is time to start thinking over the year, to get ready for my yearly reflection.

It’s almost time for my yearly bah humbug. It’s almost time.

* * *

November.

It’s 3 weeks over and I have to say so far, it is pretty much one of the most annoying months.

I got sick last weekend and just fully recovered like on Thursday or even yesterday.

I got myself a new suit and the tailors just can’t get anything right or I’m not telling them exactly what I want. That’ll be something that I have to work on.

But Thanksgiving is next week and I’m so looking forward to it.

I haven’t had a big cooking day just for myself in quite a long long time. It’s been a long ass time and I’m so looking forward to it.

I have my menu all worked out already and I just need to think things over and come up with a plan of how to cook things. I need to look over the recipes and digest the steps and how things are done.

For the most part, things should be pretty easy and straightforward. There will be a lot of adaption and changes and mutations in the recipes but, the cooking should be pretty straightforward.

I should be able to get two of the five dishes I’m making the day before and that should help out quite a bit.

Can’t wait.

* * *

The Menu.

THE PARTY OF ONE THANKFUL MENU

• Peruvian Brick Chicken with a Aji Sauce

• I was debating whether to make a lamb osso bucco (braised lamb shanks), but instead of full shanks, I’d try to find a cross cut or do a brick chicken. Then I remembered about the green aji sauce and then it was decided, a roasted brick chicken. Done and done. This should be one of the easier dishes.
• Now, I just have to decide if I want to cook a full 3-4lb chicken or find something smaller, like a 1-1.5lb game hen and just get two of those. I really think I should get a game hen. It’ll be easier to cook in a sense, even though it’ll be more work. We shall see.

• Spicy roasted street corn with queso casserole or salad

• I haven’t decided on exactly how this is going to get made. I’ve been looking over the recipes and they all make sense and it seems like it’ll be a cold dish, but I was thinking more ooey and gooey and cheesier, like a casserole, but that might change when I actually make it.

• Seafood Paella

• This is the dish that I am most worried about. I don’t have a paella pan or have a wide enough burner for this. Looking at how it is made, it’s basically a risotto. The only thing is that you don’t stir the rice. It’s supposed to sit and absorb the liquid and cook and get crusty. You add the shellfish and shrimp near the end of the cooking process so you don’t overcook it. I have a fair idea of how to make it, but not really. This one is the wild card.

• Russian Potato Salad or Potato Salad with Chimichurri Sauce

• It took me a long time to find another side dish for this menu, but I finally found it and it is pretty easy. So there’s an Argentinian potato salad that originated from Russia, hence it is called Russian Potato salad. It is just potatoes, mayo, seasoning, with carrots and peas. Easy, but I might just change it and adapt it to something else. I saw a recipe for a potato salad with chimichurri sauce. It’s as simple as it sounds, potatoes, mayo, seasoning, and chimichurri sauce. Easy and sounds delicious.

• Marquesa de Chocolate

• Dessert was the one of the tougher ones to come up with also, because I don’t usually order dessert and I usually don’t get dessert whenever I get Mexican or Latin food. I had to ask a few Latino/Hispanic coworkers to ask them about desserts. The answer that I got most was flan and I’m not a fan of flan, but someone came up with this Venezuelan dessert for me. To be hair, the Singer showed me a picture of it, but it looked like a layered cake and that was way too much. It wasn’t until DeLaMadriz told me about this dessert that it totally changed my mind. Basically, in a gist, it is a Venezuelan Tiramisu. Simple. Of course, instead of chocolate I’ll have to substitute something else and my usual go to is cookie butter. I’m not too worried about this one. Might be a little too sweet, but we shall see.

As one can see, the menu is very Latin/Hispanic themed. Originally it wasn’t planned that way, but after I decided on the chicken and the corn dish, I decided to make it a Latin/Hispanic themed. Also, it’ll be a fun challenge. I don’t cook many Latin/Hispanic dishes, so, it’ll put me outside of my comfort zone and it’ll be very different.

When it comes to Thanksgiving and Christmas, I’ve never been a traditionalist. Even when I cook at home during the holidays, my menu never leaned towards anything traditional for the most part. Sure, sometimes I’ll do the roast or mashed potatoes, but it had always been a mishmash of style and dishes. Asian, Italian, American.

This will be interesting and fun and different.

That’s the menu and I think it is very ambitious considering these are all recipes that I have never cooked before. Each and every one of them. They will finish up my 30 Recipes of 2015 project.

To be honest, I really thought that I would have finished this project so much faster than Thanksgiving, but I guess not. I’m sure I have cheated somewhat with some of the things that I made, but I’m sticking with it.

Potato salad? Yes. Potato Salad. I never made a potato salad before. Damn right it’s going on this recipe project.

So, the plan is to make the potato salad and the dessert on Wednesday. Marinate the chicken Wednesday and just focus on the paella and the corn on Thursday. The chicken again, is simple. Straight forward. The only thing that I have to worry about is hoping that my current brick is big enough. If not, then shit, I’ll make it work.

Thanksgiving.

Can’t wait.

* * *

Traffic school.

Finally paid off my ticket from the end of July. Now it is time to enroll in online traffic school. I’ll probably get to it today and just try to finish that shit up and just get it done with.

This shit had been hanging around in my head for so long now, I just want to get it done.

Let’s be done with it.

* * *

After all is done, after all my travels are over, my body finally betrays me and crashes.

It knows that I don’t have any more travels planned. No work travels. No personal travels. I’m taking a break. It is now time for my body to tire and get sick.

How in a way, I feel great about it, since I’m not sick on vacation, even though I did get a little sick during my Dallas and Moorestown trip, thankfully I felt good for the most part in my Chicago trip.

Rest. I need rest. That is the plan for the weekend. Rest. Everything can be put aside and be done later. Rest. That is all that is needed at the moment.

Rest.

* * *

For the past couple of weeks, I have been hooked on the music from the Broadway show, Hamilton. It’s fucking awesome. I had been listening to the production nonstop practically for the past two weeks or so. The music, so good.

The premise is about the life and time of Alexander Hamilton, one of the founding fathers of the United States, told in a musical. The catch, the music is hip-hop, blues, R&B and some old school musical. It’s a fantastic mashup and the music is so powerful and so strong. I can’t get enough of it.

I love musicals.

I think that is something that most people don’t know about me, but I love them. I love them when they work. When the music conveys the message and a great story. I love musicals.

In a way, I wish that in life people will burst out in song about what they are thinking and feeling, monologuing, ballading all the time. But tis is not life.

When it comes to musicals, there are a few types of different musicals. I may have touched upon this in this vast blog of words, but here I go again, if it was never discussed.

I’m new to the whole Broadway Musical thing. But it is something that I have loved from when I first saw Rent (the movie) and fell in love with the music.

Now, to be fair, I had been a lover of movie musicals before. Moulin Rouge, Singin’ in the Rain among others.

To the different type of musicals and which ones I love.

There are the “backstage musicals” and then there are the ones that most people that aren’t a fan of musicals think of, which are the ones where people just burst into song.

Can you guess which ones I love and which ones just don’t work for me?

Yes, I am not a fan of the “backstage musicals”. These are the musicals where the music make sense, because the songs come from a platform already, like they are musicians or they are on a stage singing and that is incorporated into the story. No, generally not a fan of those.

I LOVE LOVE LOVE the musicals where people just bursts into song. I love the fantasy of it, the whimsy. It’s refreshing.

People should just burst into song. Period.

But back to Hamilton. Great great great music and I would love to watch it, but unfortunately it’s sold out and only showing in NYC. Maybe I’ll treat myself to a vacation next year and watch it. We shall see.

I just checked. Minimum number of tickets you can buy is 2. Ugh.

Maybe someone will go with me? Ugh.

But, listen to it. Embrace it.

Hamilton.

* * *

Charleston.

The Carters.

Circling back to the vacation and the tiredness that I was talking about earlier in this post.

My last vacation of the year.

Ugh, just a general observation, how much time slows down when you are sick.

They moved away a few years ago, 2012 – 2013 maybe? April? It’s definitely been a few years and Scott and I mainly communicate through email and phone calls. During our writing meetings, we’ll see each other on Skype, but actually hanging out, it’s been a few years.

I saw Rutledge earlier this year at Katy’s wedding, and it was falling back to familiarity, and I thought it was finally time for me to pay them a visit.

I’ll get a free place to stay and get to explore a new city. It was set and that was it.

It was an extended weekend trip.

I took a redeye out on Friday night and got to their house around 11 on Saturday. Man, I really do hate redeyes. I mean, I guess it might be better if I could sleep better on the plane, but it’s always a hit and miss for me.

Overall, it was a great trip. It was just great seeing them all again and actually being able to hangout and chat in person. It was like old times again. Times I missed. It felt so natural and great.

It was good times.

I got to hang out with their son, who I haven’t seen in a long time and he remembers me. He’s a great kid, albeit a little kiddish, but that is most kids. He’s trying to find the best way to work his parents, getting the most out of the littlest.

It was interesting to see the dynamics of how the they parent the kid, the good cop/bad cop angle. The coddled and then the harder, you do everything and try and see what happens. Very interesting and I guess when it comes to parenting, you just have to go with the flow and pick a stance and stick with it.

It makes me wonder what kind of father I would be and how would I raise my kid or what approach I would take, assuming that I have kids.

The first night there, they took me to an Oyster Roast. It was totally not what I was expecting, in terms of how the oysters would be.

I’m use to the individual oysters, but I would describe these as oyster clumps. Each clump would be about 3-4 oysters, or you may find a stray individual oyster. It was good. Fresh. Smokey. It was a different way to eat these oysters. It was very rustic, simple, humble food for humble people. I loved the party vibe, the atmosphere.

It was different.

Sunday, Scott and I managed to do something that we usually always do, and that is watch a movie. He was my movie buddy. We’d go watch most movies together and it was great to do this again. It was simple and nothing special, but just two movie lovers go and watch a movie together. We watched Spectre, the latest Bond movie. It was all right. Not horrible. Not good. Just Bond.

Monday was an uneven and interesting day. I didn’t really have much planned and was just going to go with the flow as Rutledge was going to Gabe’s school to volunteer. The day started with heavy rain and it didn’t seem like it’ll let up. We were watching Jinx when Scott got a call. There was an accident and Rutledge took Gabe to the emergency room.

The poor kid got his thumb smashed by a door. That was their day.

I was left alone, at home, to my own device. I surfed the net, kept myself entertained, grabbed lunch and dinner by myself. I do I usually do, just go with the flow. In the afternoon, the rain finally let up and I went to explore Mount Pleasant.

I went to the Shem Creek area and then drove around to Sullivan’s Island and then to Isle of Palms. I saw the Atlantic and just explored and saw more of the area in the car. There was light rain, but nothing as bad as how it was in the morning. It was a simple day.

They finally got back home late that night, past 9.

Tuesday was my last full day in Charleston. Scott took me to downtown Charleston and we just walked and explored. She showed me around famous King St. with all the shops and the Battery and College of Charleston. We just walked and talked and then got some lunch and that was it. It was a simple afternoon.

The next day, I went home.

Simple. It was a simple trip.

It isn’t a trip like the ones I normally take, where I just go and explore. I didn’t have anything planned as spending time with the Carters was more the priority than me seeing the city. They were very southern and very hospitable. Great people.

I miss them, but hopefully it won’t take me another 3 years before we all get to hang out again.

Let’s hope not.

* * *

So tired. So sick.

Sleep. Nap. Rest.

That’s what I need. That’s what I’m ordering for myself.

Starting to eat clean again. It’s definitely hard to maintain some kind of diet while traveling, especially coming back late from the airport. You got for what’s open and convenient. Fast food.

Starting to get back to the low carb/no carb diet again. Clean eating. Cooking.

No processed food. Just simple food.

Back into the habit.

Rest.

Sleep.

Nap.

Chicago. My beloved Chicago. Oh how’d I miss you.

It’s been far too long since I have last seen you last; the beginning of the year and 10 months was way too long for us to be apart.

Oh Chicago Chicago, how’d I love thee! You fill my heart with glee.

* * *

So, the Chicago new office set up was a shit show. It was a shit show even before I stepped onto a plane to get there.

Why? Windstream.

They never got the network ready. They provided Dan with bad information, telling him that we are up, but when Dan called the Friday before he his Sunday trip, they told him nothing was up.

Frantic calls were made to get things rectified and when I got to Chicago on Tuesday, we weren’t going to get up and running on the network until Friday. Dan left on Thursday, so I would have to take care of things on my own in the office while Dan works with Windstream and Cisco to get things up over the phone.

Not ideal.

The tech that came out came out unprepared. He got nothing ready. No wires, or was using the wrong wires and no connectors. It was a shit show and I was frustrated at how slow everything was running and how such a fuck up things were.

At least I had other things to focus on while I was there, but the whole network thing was a shit show.

* * *

My shit.

I had a checklist of what I had to do while I was in Chicago. It was a simple checklist; server, digital signage, computers, etc etc.

For the most part, all of my things are reliant on having a network up and running. So, of course, my thing was delayed a few days. Instead of getting everything up and running by Friday night, I didn’t get everything up and running until Monday night. Users were delayed one day.

With nothing to do, Dan got the server up and running and racked up before I got there. There’s nothing else to be done with the server until things are finished.

I forgot a monitor and such, so I sent a monitor along with keyboard and mouse out with the mac mini and a few other things I forgot.

Wednesday, I went into the office early to get a feel of the land and then I went back to the hotel to meet up with Dan. With nothing to do in the new space, we went to Regus.

While there, I took the opportunity to image a few computers while I was there while Dan went back to the new space. Honestly, the first day was a blur. I don’t remember exactly what I did. I believe I left somewhat on time.

I had some free time to explore the city. I went to get dinner by myself, as Dan was tired and getting sick. I got me some ramen and just walked to the pier, exploring, stretching my legs, getting my feel for the city again. It felt great.

Thursday was when everything started to hit the fucking fan for me. It was a nightmare. I was becoming stressed and a little angry, and it was my shit.

The day my laptop died.

Dan wasn’t in the office yet, still sleeping, tired, back at the hotel. I told him I was heading to the office and then to the Regus space. I needed to pick up an extra computer power cable for the server.

I shot off whatever quick emails I needed to do in the new space and then I shut my laptop and bagged it, heading my way to the Merchandise Mart.

When I got to the space, most everyone is gone. They decided to work at home and many were leaving early, believing that the move was going to happen that day, instead of the next day, Friday. Either way, I was happy because it gave me the opportunity to reimage the machines.

I turned on my laptop and it died. It wouldn’t boot up. There was a bootup file that was missing and there was no way for me to get the laptop back up. I googled and the fix should have been relatively easy. Get a Windows 10 disc and do a repair.

I emailed the department letting people know what had happened and I’m out of commission, computer wise, that day, but I’m working on getting it fixed. I was willing to buy a laptop if it needs be, so Dan can get access to the switch for the network stuff that was happening the next day.

I wasn’t totally stressed yet, but I was getting there.

I decided to download the Win 10 iso on one of the computers that I had already imaged. I have a usb, I got everything. So, while things were downloading, I reimaged computers as people were leaving. I packed things up, got the Regus space ready for the leave.

Keys and badges were being dropped off by Emily, so I didn’t have to worry about it.

Dan left for the airport and I was still in the Regus space. Janet and Lisa were doing shopping. Things were getting done and I am stuck in Regus, trying to revive my computer.

I made a boot disk through bootcamp, but it didn’t work. I made another boot disk/usb using a windows tool and still, both times, the laptop still wouldn’t boot up.

Emails were exchanged. A mini was being overnighted to me, with Windows 7. That alleviate some of the stress, but I was still a little annoyed. All at the same time while I was in Regus, no one was in the new space to get the USP shipment that I was expecting. It was a shit show.

The day fucking blew. It fucking blew. Benjamin said that if I needed to get a new laptop, they’d gladly expense it. I couldn’t, because it is mine that I was using and I felt bad.

I found out how to get the laptop to boot to the USB. I had to change some bios settings.

Windows 10 was installing. It went through the whole installation process, copying files, expanding files, installing features. The whole shabam. Then when it boots back up, it shuts right back down.

It’s not working.

I gave up.

I had to get back to the Regus space.

The UPS guy was gone. I missed the delivery. I got in touch with UPS and they said I could go to the warehouse to pick up the package or I can meet the truck driver somewhere. I opted to meet the truck driver. I found him and apparently, it was two heavy boxes. I was more than ready to figure out how to get the two boxes back the three blocks.

Thankfully, the driver said he’d drive back at the end of the day to drop them off. I waited and he was a man of his word.

I got the mini. I got the keyboard, mouse, monitor. I got everything.

I set things up and I rewired the switch to correspond to the wall ports.

I got out at a reasonable hour. I went to dinner at Oak & Char, just because it was right near the office and I didn’t want to go that far after the day that I had. I went back to the hotel and dropped off my shit and went back to the restaurant.

The food was good. It was a spendy dinner. The first of many spendy dinners that I had during my stay in Chicago. After dinner, I decided to go to Best Buy to find a laptop to buy, to replace this beast that I am writing on now.

I couldn’t find one that I would like to buy, but there were options available if I needed something that I’d be okay with. I decided to walk to Office Depot to see what they had and it wasn’t good. Had an accident and so I walked back to the hotel and called it a night.

I’m sure it was the fatty bone marrow. My body hadn’t had that much fat in a while.

So, as an insane person, I tried over and over and over again to install Windows on my laptop to get it back up and running. After a few more blogs and a few more changes, I was finally back up.

It took fucking all night, but I was back up.

Friday.

Movers were scheduled to go to the Regus space at 7 in the morning to get everything up and ready and I got in early to the new space to get ready for it. While I was waiting, I installed the drivers and prepped my machine to get it back and running. Office. VPN. Drivers. everything. It was up and running, almost like new.

Movers never came. Plans changed and they were supposed to get there at 11 now. Instead of Janet being there, I had to meet them.

I got to Regus just in time to tell the movers what needed to be moved. I also met the Konica guys who were moving the printers, while Janet and Lisa were back in the main office managing the receiving end.

After everything got moved over, I walked my ass back to the new space. Janet and Lisa were going to go shopping again.

The IMG guys were brought up the circuit to the office. The TVs were being mounted. I got them to screw the digital signage system into the TV. Things were moving.

The circuit biscuits were ready to go. Windstream tech was coming out at 3pm.

I was unpacking and setting up the machines, and moving the printers into place. Things were going.

I received the macbook air. The mini was setup in the conference room. The conference table wiring had to be redone just a smidge, but it was all good and done.

It was all on the network. If things get up, I would be on schedule for the office up and running on Monday.

Nope. Again, Windstream fucked up. The tech fucked up. Dan was getting angry, frustrated, and gave up.

They didn’t have the proper crossover cables, which no one on my team understand why. Why couldn’t they just make them or why don’t they have a stash of them readily available since they need them to do their fucking job. Nope. Nothing.

They said they’d have to send it out and it probably won’t get there until Tuesday or Wednesday at the earlier. I leave on Tuesday and I still haven’t finished anything yet.

I asked if I had to extend my stay. I explained to them what I had to do and told them if that’s the time line you are giving me, I had to extend my stay. I asked them if they could confirm, and that’s the timeline that they gave me.

I emailed Paula and Benjo about extending my trip.

I called Benjo, per his request, and explained to him what’s happening and he said if there’s anything that Carel can do. His idea was for me to go home on schedule and to send Carel out to finish.

I didn’t like the plan because there’s so many things that needed to be done on the server side and I felt more comfortable doing it. I see where he’s coming from, not wanting me to put Pickles in boarding any longer than necessary, but I didn’t feel comfortable with Carel finishing up my work, even if it is me working through him.

Dan fought for me to stay, feeling more comfortable with me being there and I told Benjo that I’d think it over and let him know on Monday.

All in all, we ended Friday night with a 1mb pipe running and they can’t talk back to the server. I took pictures of the cross over cable and then we called it a night.

I went to dinner at Dolce, the restaurant right next door to the hotel, because it was fucking late when I got out of work and I was tired. The whole time, I tried to figure out how to get everyone up and running and being able to work while they come in on Monday.

It was a long fucking night. I was definitely annoyed by the whole situation and Benjamin was definitely annoyed by everything also. I definitely didn’t sleep well that night, plus my bro was flying in the next evening.

I went into the office with a plan the next day. I definitely didn’t anticipate staying the whole day. I just wanted to see what I could do with the limited network that we had. But when I got in, the 1mb pipe that we had was down.

I shot an email to the Chicago team, letting them know that we are down and they had no network. Not much they could do.

I went to Office Depot to get a regular crossover cable to see if that would like up the Heterix, but it didn’t. Benjo called to speak with me and to see what is happening, or ask how I was doing. At that point in the morning, I had reached a sense of calm. I was zen. Everything was out of my hands and there’s nothing for me to do.

I shot an email out to the Chicago office updating them on status of the new space. I lulled them in, giving them the good news first; we are out of Regus! Hallelujah, we are out of Regus, but unfortunately we don’t have network. Eventually, we worked it out that we will have two or three mifis to work off of.

With that in mind, I created a new local profile on their computer, moved all of their old profile documents over and then that was it. They’ll be working like they had been for the past year in Regus. VPN in and getting files that way.

Afterwards, I spent the rest of the day emailing back and forth with CDW and coming up with a plan to make my own cross over cables. It took me a few hours, but I eventually got them done. Then I called Windstream to get some technical help, hopefully to get someone on site. So a ticket was created and I wouldn’t hear anything until the morning.

Hien was coming that night and I met him at the hotel. More on my bro’s stay later.

Sunday came around and I went to the office for a quick checkup of the network. Still down and I don’t know why or how it is supposed to work. Emails were sent updating people and then Brent, a VP from Windstream called me and I filled him in on the situation. I updated him on the ticket that I created, that they couldn’t get any updates on what is happening and I’ll have to wait until Monday. Brent made some calls and emails and then called me back telling me that he’s getting people on it and that I’ll just have to wait till Monday.

I decided to stick around the office, or close to the office or transit where I can get back easily, so Hien went off on his own while I did my own thing.

Monday rolled around and I got in early also. Double checking the network again and still no dice. I waited for the people to come in and set up whatever they needed to set up to work on the limited set up. It was definitely a small but busy day. Helping people unpack and then helping the account team get ready for their meeting. Tried to get a printer working since the big Konica is broken. A service call was sent in to get that fixed, but nothing came of it until Wednesday.

So the day went on and on and people were unpacked and their desk was all perfect and then I got a call from the Windstream Account Manager. They have the cables and the tech will be out later that day.

He came during lunch and I met him afterwards. When I got there, the wires were all plugged in. So, the hookup is that the crossover cables come out from the biscuits into the T1 splitters into regular cat-5 cables to the heterix. Wham….network.

So, with our 10mb pipe, which still isn’t what we ordered, I was able to get the rest of my job done.

In a span of a few hours in the afternoon and an hour in the night, I was able to get the server all up and running, the dhcp working, the folder permissions set and user profiles working and set up the robocopies.

I shot off an email letting everyone know that we are up and running and then called it a night.

Tuesday came and I fixed whatever remaining problems new users will have and the same for Wednesday. I tried to anticipate problems or come up with things and test things to make sure they work, so I can feel better when I leave. I tested the deploystudio and that was broken. I worked with Nick to get that setup, but unfortunately, that shit’s just broken.

Then my time in Chicago came to an end and I left feeling good that everything for the most part is up and running. Carel was coming out early next week to finish up whatever is remaining, which isn’t much and could have been done pretty much remotely from SM. But we are done.

I left Chicago, with even more love in the city.

Ahh Chicago. My beloved. Even with all this shit, leaving a bad taste in my mouth, you still fill my heart with glee.

* * *

My bro’s first time.

So I met Hien back at the hotel on and we chilled for about an hour before we headed to dinner. I had to rest after the long day’s work and it was just a little too early for dinner. We managed to get reservations at Burke’s Primehouse for that night.

So, that was our first dinner. It was good. Better than the last time I had it. It was an expensive dinner, but then again, that is usually what happens with me at Chicago. After dinner, we walked around downtown a little bit, me showing him around the area and then I showed him Eataly. We had dessert there. Gelato. I love me some Eataly.

The next day, because I had to work, our plan was to go get some lunch. Au Cheval. That burger. I loved it. So good. As good as I remembered. The wait was about an hour and a half for a table, but we managed to grab a spot at the bar. 10 minutes. Well worth it for me.

He liked the burger, but he felt that it was too greasy, which I had zero problems with. Afterwards, I went back to the hotel to gather my things and then we went our separate ways. I had to stick close enough to the office in case things start happening. My bro’s plan, just walk north. He headed to the zoo and then to Wrigley Field.

I made my way to Museum Campus, walking along the shore and the river walk. It was a great walk and it was just a great moment to zen out, not think about work and just relax a little bit, enjoying the sun and the skyline. Relaxing indeed.

I walked back to the hotel, taking my time, enjoying the views and Hien started his way back from Wrigley.

Dinner was to Beoufhaus. It was good. Really good. Looking back, it was probably the best complete meal that we had. We took an uber. It’s in an area of Chicago I had never been, close to Logan Square and in Ukranian Village.

As we rode there, I kept thinking, where are we? This area looks very cool and awesome and I’m like, wow, I can totally see myself living here. Apparently this is where Liz lives.

One thing that I’ve always noticed about the people in Chicago is how nice they are. Albeit it was a slow night for the wait staff, but the waiters at Beoufhaus were very attentive and were very helpful on recommending places for us to eat. While Hien was in the restroom, I asked one of the waiters if he had any recommendation and he just spouted off restaurants and bars.

Great dinner. Great vibe. Great atmosphere. After dinner, we went to a bar just down the street that one of the waiters recommended. It was a chill, a little divey, and just perfect for me. Got me a Jameson, but Hien didn’t drink. I was very surprised that he wanted to go though. I was expecting that he would just want to go back to the hotel like he normally would. But he stayed for a drink and then we ubered it back. Then we went to Portillo’s. Chicago dogs is obligatory. His first.

The next day, I was at work but my bro’s plan was to do the Museums. He went to get some coffee and then walked along the Lake Shore to the Planetarium, enjoyed the view and then went to Shedd’s museum. I loved the museum, blown away by it and the dinosaurs. Then he ubered it to get lunch….Blackwood BBQ and best brisket ever. Then he went to the Art Institute. Probably my favorite museum that I’ve been to.

It’s huge and he didn’t finish. He only got through half of it, the Modern wing.

We met up for dinner, a train ride to the West Loop area and went to The Publican. The food was good, but there were many dishes that tasted the same, with the strong taste of fennel, but the best dish of the whole trip was probably the Cuttlefish Ink Pasta. Oh man, that was good, in a simple pesto sauce with Italian sausage. So so good.

After dinner, I walked back to the office to finish up while he went to Eataly to get some dessert.

Then, after work, an hour later, we went to get some Shake Shack.

Disappointed. Maybe it is from all of the hype, people raving about it, but I really thought it was just whatever. I don’t get it. In-‘n-Out all the way.

That was the night and that was my time with my bro. I asked him how he liked the city and he was civil about it, stating that he can’t come up with an opinion yet. He’ll have to come back again. Fucker. Love it like I love it. Love it.

* * *

Cloud.

Fortunately for me, with the extension of the trip, I got to hang out with Cloud.

She came to visit for a few days. She wanted to find out why I love Chicago so much and I think that she understands it now. She really liked Chicago too. It was her last trip before she starts her new job in the following week.

She came out alone and would meet up with friends later. So, I met her at Eataly, grabbed dinner and dessert. Afterwards, I showed her Snickers, my favorite dive bar. We chilled and just chatted and caught up and bullshitted. It was a great night just hanging out.

* * *

Chicago. How I love thee.

I fall for it every time I go. I get prompted to move there every time I visit. I should move there.

Could I get transferred out there? Probably, maybe, probably not. I’m more valuable back in SM. That would never fly.

But, I won’t know unless I ask. Who knows? Maybe.

It’ll always be there.

Who knows.