Work Journal For Week of March 20, 2000
Last Update: Sunday, March 26, 2000 09:00 PM
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The chorus to the song "I don't like Monday's" is running through my head this morning, and I recall that it was popular at sometime during my teens. A quick search on the web turned up the lyrics. My reason today for not liking Monday's is far from Geldof's lyrics, but here they are anyways, possibly a bit of a trip down memory lane for some of you, I know they are for me.
I Don't Like Mondays
by Bob Geldof
The silicon chip inside her head Gets switched to overload, And nobody's gonna go to school today, She's going to make them stay at home, And daddy doesn't understand it, He always said she was as good as gold, And he can see no reason Cos there are no reasons What reason do you need to be shown
Tell me why I Don't like Mondays I want to shoot The whole day down
The Telex machine is kept so clean As it types to a waiting world, And Mother feels so shocked, Father's world is rocked, And their thoughts turn to Their own little girl Sweet 16 ain't that peachy keen, No, it ain't so neat to admit defeat, They can see no reasons Cos there are no reasons What reason do you need to be shown
Tell me why ...
All the playing's stopped in the playground now She wants to play with her toys a while And school's out early and soon we'll be learning And the lesson today is how to die, And then the bullhorn crackles, And the captain crackles, With the problems and the how's and why's And he can see no reasons Cos there are no reasons What reason do you need to die
The silicon chip ...
Tell me why ...
****
I found out about another Linux distribution today at e-smith.net which is designed solely to be a firewall and file/email server. Also Tucows has several Linux firewalls on a floppy distributions.
I have never been one to have a poker face, when playing cards if I have a good hand everyone generally knows it. Well today my co-worker suggested that we should go out for lunch once a week as a team building function. I wanted to laugh when he mentioned this, I hope I hid my inner laughter fairly well. The reason for my laughter is 1. he is assuming I will still be employed and working with him beyond the 31st of March ( I know I don't if I will be, should know sometime Wednesday ) 2. The idea of a team in this environment seems like an implausible idea to me ( I get the distinct impression from most people that they just want to put in their 7.5 hours a day and get the hell out the door).
It's all in being at the right place at the right time. Last week I happened to go to a user group meeting. The group treasurer announced to the group that he was looking for staff at his consulting agency. I gave him a copy of my resume not really expecting anything. Well today he called and we arranged for me to meet him for an interview on Wednesday. This could make Wednesday and interesting day as I am also tentatively meeting with my supervisor about extending my current contract which ends at the end of the month.
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It's Tuesday so I must be at the advertising services building. The boys here have some major upgrades and rollouts of new equipment to do, so once again I am here to baby-sit their queue for them. Not a big job as things are rather quite ( knock on wood ) at the moment, but then not much I can do if it is busy as much of the problem software here is for mainframe connectivity which I have no clue about. Thus my morning is not all that different from working the tower, spend the first hour of the morning reading the usual collection of web sites, and start writing notes to myself for updating my web page.
Well it turns out my co-worker back at the tower is not in today. He called in sick, but as our queue is rather quiet with no emergencies to deal with, I will not be running back there as I did last week.
The final move of all the companies mainframe services to Victoria British Columbia is complete but not without issues. The report yesterday was that they had 14 outstanding issues to deal with after making the switch over the weekend. Funny thing is that yesterday there were few problems, now today have groups of users who cannot get any work done as their mainframe connections no longer work.
I could make much better use of my time during work hours if they would let my study when I am not busy. Other places I have been allowed this on the basis that what I learn will benefit the company. On average I do two hours of web surfing a day at work, which I do mostly to kill time. Other people trade stocks, download MP3s, research vacations, but my opening a computer book to study is frowned upon. I think I need to find some web based study sources so at least I will be staring at a monitor and not a book. It took some digging but I found information on Novell's web site on Netscape FastTrack Server which I need to cover for my exam. The information is in PDF file format so I have the option of printing the information or reading it online.
Since I have access to a laser printer, I printed out the PDF file and sat down to some productive reading. I am basically here at advertising services as a gopher, so when they didn't have anything for me to do, they didn't complain about my studying. Worked out well as I had no PC access for most of the afternoon so if I hadn't printed out some reading material I would have probably had my head down on the desk having a good nap.
Out on my bike again after work tonight. Warm, sunny, windy, and very enjoyable. Got out the door a little earlier today which helped as I did not have to finish my ride when the sun is down as I did yesterday.
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Happy hump day to all.
Met and talked to my supervisor today. She is going to extend my contract with the understanding that I am not where I really where I want to be and that I am currently and will continue to search for other job opportunities.
Then I had my interview for a consulting job today. Things went well, I even managed to remember some Novell commands and stuff when they asked technical questions ( I usually don't do well at this ). My certifications definitely work in my favor for this job as it adds some credibility to the company which is only been operating for 2 years. It also means that they are more likely to send me for training for products they want to get into as I already have a basics covered. They also want to get into Linux to some extent which I think is a good thing. Should hear back from them in a week or two. At least I have a contract extension to keep me going if this doesn't work out. Then I can keep hunting a also see what projects Telus can pass my way to try and keep me challenged.
How to Tell Where a Driver is From
1. One hand on wheel, one hand on horn: MONTREAL
2. One hand on wheel, one finger out window: TORONTO
3. One hand on wheel, one finger out window, cutting across all lanes of traffic: OTTAWA
4. One hand on wheel, one hand on newspaper, foot solidly on accelerator: BOSTON
5. One hand on wheel, one hand on non-fat double decaf cappuccino, cradling cell phone, brick on accelerator, gun on lap: LOS ANGELES
6. Both hands on wheel, eyes shut, both feet on brake, quivering in terror: SASKATOON, but driving in TORONTO
7. Both hands in air, gesturing, both feet on accelerator, head turned to talk to someone in the back seat: QUEBEC CITY
8. One hand on 12 oz. double shot latte, one knee on wheel, cradling cell phone, foot on brake, mind on radio game, banging head on steering wheel while stuck in traffic: VANCOUVER
9. One hand on wheel, one hand on hunting rifle, alternating between both feet being on the brake and both feet on the accelerator, throwing McDonald's bag out the window: RED DEER
10. Four wheel drive pick-up truck, shotgun mounted in rear window, beer cans on the floor, raccoon tails attached to the antenna: PRINCE GEORGE
11. Two hands gripping wheel, blue hair barely visible above windshield driving 40 km/hr on Hwy 1 in the left lane with the left blinker on: VICTORIA
AND THE BEST ONE OF ALL: 12. One ski-doo mitt on steering wheel, one ski-doo mitt scraper in hand out front window scrapping frost, Guess Who on 8 track playing "Share The Land", hockey equipment smelling up car interior, waiting at lights for snow removal equipment to finish clearing intersection: WINNIPEG
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I was putting some material together for Dan Seto and thought maybe I should share it with everyone.
18 Deadly Interview Mistakes Job Seekers Make
1. Arrive late for the interview.
2. Indicate you are late because the directions you were given were not good. (Even if it's true -- I hate to hear that I give bad directions -- use the map finder on yahoo and/or contact the receptionist to review the directions. Plan to be there REALLY early and then grab lunch (or breakfast, whatever) to kill the time.
3. Look disheveled and inappropriately dressed. (Dress for the job you want, not the job you have -- watch out for shabby shoes -- we always look)
4. Slouch in your seat. (Good posture will also keep you from getting too comfortable and disclosing more info than you want)
5. Fail to maintain good eye-contact with the interviewer. (It makes us think you're lying -- just try not to scare us with the freaky stare-down -- DON'T MAKE ME CALL SECURITY! :0)
6. Do your company research at the interview by asking, "What do you guys do here?" -- (Need I say more?)
7. Fail to make a connection between your skills and the needs of the employer. (duh -- isn't that what you're there to do?)
8. Brag about how great you are, but neglect to cite evidence of your accomplishments. ('Just the facts, Ma'am')
9. Respond in an unfocused, disorganized, and rambling manner. (Try to remember the question at hand -- avoid LONG complicated stories)
10. Remain low-key and display no enthusiasm for the job. (I can't tell you all how I love to hire the unenthusiastic)
11. Answer most questions with simple "yes" and "no" answers. (We DO need more than name, rank and serial number)
12. Appear desperate for a job--any job. (Not, "Oh, I don't care, I just want a job", But, "I'm really interested in working in HR (for example), but I understand that I might have to start out in a different area")
13. Call the interviewer by his/her first name, or use the wrong name. (I know it's petty -- but this really bugs me)
14. Give memorized responses, forgetting parts in the process. (Practice interview skills to build confidence, but don't memorize the answers -- keep it fresh)
15. Badmouth your current or former employer. (Never, Never, Never)
16. Ask "How am I doing? Are you going to hire me?" (don't laugh, I was asked this last week)
17. Blurt out, "I need to make at least $35,000," near the beginning of the interview. (NEWSFLASH -- we don't care what you NEED to make -- salary is not based on need, but on the job)
18. When asked "Do you have any questions?", reply "No." (See my Extra Tip of the Day from yesterday)
Important questions to ask during your second or final interview include:
- What is my career path?
- What duties will I be expected to perform each day?
- What skills will I be building and what skills will I need to get to the next level?
- Could I see a copy of the job description for the position I'm interested in?
- How do you assimilate new hires into the company?
- Do you have a mentoring program?
- Who will I be in contact with during the course of my day?
- May I spend a day with someone who now holds the job, or could someone in that job describe a typical day to me?
- What are the training opportunities at your company? Are training programs formal or informal?
- Are post-graduate degrees needed for advancement? If so, do you have a tuition reimbursement plan?
- How much travel is required in this position?
- What is your benefits package?
- Do you have any flexible work arrangements?
- Do you have a dress code?
- While you should ask plenty of questions, remember to remain diplomatic.
Questions you shouldn't ask include:
- How many hours a day do you expect me to work?
- When is my first vacation?
- When can I retire?
- How long do I have to stay in this job before you'll move me to the position I really want?
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TGIF. I had more stuff to post last night but didn't. I already had some stuff up for Thursday and I decided that it would have to do. I had to no internet connection when I got home and by the time I got my router talking to the cable modem again I had had enough of the internet for the evening. My router was coming up OK but the cable modem did not want to recognize that there was a computer connected to it. I finally shut everything down, let it sit for a minute then powered it all up again and I was back in business.
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Lets see, I have skimped on my posts the last few days, what didn't I post? Thursday I signed a contract extension for 6 months which was verbally agreed to on Wednesday with the understanding by all parties involved that I am not where I want to be career wise and am going to continue to search for other opportunities. No hard feelings about this from anyone, as long as I give 2 weeks notice if I find another job everyone will be happy. Friday was a short post which is not surprising as nothing happened all day.
Up and out the door on my bike this morning. The wind really started to pickup when I got near the turn around point so I guess I timed my ride fairly well. So the headwind was only really bad at the middle part of my ride then when I did my about face to come home, so the wind was mostly at my back which made for a fast cruise all the home.
Today is the first time on a weekend in sometime that I have done any real studying. I went through a bunch of sample exam questions and answers to try and cram some information into the gray matter.
Installed Netscape FastTrack Server on my Netware 5 server. Very simple install which only took about 10 minutes. From what I have read and seen so far FastTrack is a fairly robust and easy to use product. All administration is done through your browser to an administrative port you configure when installing FastTrack.
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Not a bad week for my first full week of cycling for the season. Approx. 8 hours of riding for distance of approx. 130 kilometers. By no means a speed or distance record but it is only the start of what will hopefully be months of good riding. By this time last year I already had 350 kilometers logged, but then I also was not working so I was able to make use of the better temperatures of the early afternoon to go for a ride.
Beautiful afternoon weather, so I grabbed some tools, turned on the water to the taps outside and washed my mountain bike and did maintenance on the drive train. Nice to be able to spend leisure time doing chores outside again.
I had plans to do more work with my Netscape Web server today but other things got in the way. Oh well! there is always tomorrow. The tax man wants more of my money for the 1998 fiscal year after they apparently changed the classification of my income from business to employment. Looks like the accountant is not only going to have to do my 1999 taxes but straighten out 1998 as well. I don't make enough money to make all this tax BS worth the all this effort. If the 1998 changes to my taxes stay as they are, most of the advantage of being self employed go out the window.
Copyright © 1999, 2000 John Doucette. All Rights Reserved