Category Archives: life

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20 promises, and “because I said I would”.

Update (4/4/13): A video of Alex right before surprising the kids at Candlelighter’s:

Update (3/22/13): Alex followed through, here is a picture of him with Gail from Candelighters.

Alex from becauseisaidiwould.com with Gail from Candlelighters

A guy named Alex has a site I found out about today called “becauseisaidiwould.com“. At this site, you can request 10 free cards that are blank, and simply say “because I said I would” at the bottom. Alex started doing this in September of 2012, when his father passed away from lung cancer. He does it as a memorial to his father, who always kept his word.

Kelly Gail, from Candelighter’s Childhood Cancer Foundation in Nevada received something in the mail recently from a stranger (Alex from the website above).
Kelly from non-profit Candlelighters Childhood Cancer Foundation in Nevada

Kelly Gail invited 5 year old Delliliah to open the package. Delliliah lost her brother Jackson to childhood cancer in April 2012.

Delliliah holding the package

Inside the package were 20 cards to be given to children who had been diagnosed with cancer. On each of the cards was a handwritten note, with “I will get you a ticket to Disneyland” and the plainly typed “because I said I would.” in the bottom right.

The cards in the package

Alex wrote one more promise card.

the last card, addressed to Gail

I’m writing this blog post tonight knowing it will also be posted to Facebook, and hoping that those who see it will also share the story.

Original images from imgur.com
Original post on reddit.com

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Student survey responses (almost) always make me smile

This quarter was a challenging one for me. I changed jobs and have a baby on the way, so I was struggling a bit with the class I teach part time at ITT. It is a new course, only the second quarter it has been offered, and some of the materials provided to me were … lacking.

I did something this quarter I’d never done before: out of sheer frustration for a lack of an answer key and very vague questions on the assignments, instead of the relatively strict grading I usually do, I on more than one occasion gave out 100% grades to those who turned in their homework. I felt bad about this because I felt like I was losing my integrity and doing those students who were turning in quality assignments a disservice.

But I digress. This post isn’t about what I felt like I failed at this quarter, it’s about the nice surprise I got when I looked over the student survey responses. Almost all of the responses (11 out of 14 students responded) marked “Strongly Agree” to the instructor based questions (e.g. “Can he control the class”, “Is he approachable”, “Does he encourage participation”).

And, the icing on the cake were these three comments, which literally made me smile. :)

Its nice to see that instructors still care about the students.

MR Moldvan is one of the best instructors i've had both at ITT tech and any other school i've been to. He is fun to listen to and play but also knows how to keep control of the class to get to business and learn. He is very knowledgeable and if something is not known he will try to figure it out for you. Outstanding Instructor.

Excellent instructor. Looking forward to having Mr. Moldvan for future classes.

Edit: The “almost” in the title is just so I don’t jinx myself. I’m sure at some point in my teaching career I will receive a bad response, but (fingers crossed) it hasn’t happened yet.

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Wide Open West does it again …

Years ago Wide Open West started offering cable and internet service in Grosse Ile, where I was living with my parents at the time at home. Back then we had 2Mbps service if I recall correctly, and they had just recently been rolling out 5Mbps service in our area. Out of nowhere, WoW sent us a letter informing us that we would be upgraded to the new 5Mbps service for … nothing. That’s right, they upgraded our service for free.

This was my first great experience with Wide Open West. As a relatively new company, they were competing with Comcast at the time, I just shrugged it off as a ploy to win customers. Comcast, like a bad girlfriend, had constantly reminded us as customers how misleading a relationship can be.

My distaste for Comcast grew when I lived in an apartment in Royal Oak. I signed up for what was a great deal at the time: $60 or so for their “Double Play” package consisting of cable and internet. Although I had been hurt by Comcast in the past, unfortunately I had no other provider available at our apartment complex. I had to swallow my pride and just hope they wouldn’t screw me over again. When our six month honeymoon ended, Comcast reminded me of why I wanted so badly to ditch them as a company forever; the bill shot up to $110/month, with no additional anything.

Fast forward about four years, and I finally bought a house. Because of my previous good experience with WoW, I sprung for the fast internet (15Mbps) and cable package, and have been happy with them for quite a while.

If you know me, you know I’m a big Detroit Red Wings fan. Just recently, there have quite a few Wings games on the new NBC Sports channel (previously Versus), but unfortunately I did not have this channel as part of my package when I signed up a year and a half ago. It was $25 extra per month or so, and I just didn’t want to pay that much extra.

Today, I was curious how much more the extra programming was going to be, so I pulled up Wide Open West’s website and checked their subscription packages. To my surprise I found that their new cable/internet package had all the channels I previously avoided along with 15Mbps internet for $85, or $92 for HD. From my previous experience with calling customer service and requesting upgrades, I knew I would have to arm myself with the facts and began furiously opening browser tabs with informational weapons for my upcoming battle.

I dialed the toll free number for WoW customer service, and was fully prepared to threaten cancelling my service, ask for supervisors, and in general ruin someone’s day. This is all of course because of my previous experience with cable companies.

After a minute or so on hold, I got to speak to someone and explained the situation. I expected trouble because the account is still in my girlfriend’s name, but all they asked was for the last four digits of her social security number and carried on. The customer service rep. (CSR) asked me to hold, which lead me to thinking “here we go, I’ll be on hold for 10 minutes for them to tell me they can’t do anything or it will be an extra $50 per month”. After about 45 seconds, the CSR came back, and asked if $100 and some change per month would be okay.

I noticed that the new package only had 1Mbps upload, while I currently had 2Mbps upload speed. I asked if that would change, and the CSR told me that instead of repackaging our plan she would simply apply a discount and my bill would for the most part remain the same.

Amazed at how smoothly this had all went, I was expecting to hear some bad news about how long I would have access to the new channels. There is a game on tonight, and I was hoping to see it. Fully expected to hear “24 hours” as the response to asking how long, I was instead told “Okay, you have the new service available immediately”.

WTF? No additional fees? No waiting for someone to come out and dink with wires or 24 hours for them to “activate” the service? Why aren’t all cable companies like this?

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A story about a homeless Marine, his wife, and 4 year old

This didn’t happen to me personally, it was story I read from a reddit post. I can’t account for it’s truth, but I can say that it made my eyes water for a second (no tears fell, though, so it’s okay). :P

Touching story, either way.

Original

Just experienced something that shook me to the core and I can't explain why but it did as I'm known to the people that know me for being a semi life hardened kind of guy . I've seen homeless people before many times in my life, but never a couple with a child. Most of the time in San Francisco it's easy to walk by as you can tell they're drug addicts or just plain scammers with signs at intersections. This time was different. Much different. Life Changing Different.
On my way to the San Bruno Post Office Just outside of San Francisco to mail off some eBay boxes I saw this couple just sitting in the corner of the lot, not begging or panhandling but just looking over their belongings as a 3-4 year old boy came running around the corner right into me falling on the floor.

The mother came over and apologized and I noticed how dirty she was and could tell she had been on the streets for at least a couple of weeks. She looked to be mid twenties. In a typical mother fashion she pulled him along telling him to watch out and be careful.

The whole time I was in line at the Post Office I really wasn't there mentally as I was trying to find any other logical explanation other than a 4 year old being a homeless kid. I just couldn't comprehend it.

On the way out I made a beeline straight to my car in a hurry looking down at the parking lot the whole way out. As I backed out I couldn't help it, I threw it back into park and walked over to them.

Found out the guy was a 27 year old former combat Marine that had served four tours and had been out 2 years. He had lost his job a few months ago working at a warehouse. He jokingly said, but was absolutely factual when he stated that "Unemployment insurance makes you a well funded homeless person in Cali". Neither one had any family that could or would help.
He's right, $700 a month really won't do a whole lot for you in California. He said he tried to re-enlist but the Marines aren't exactly hiring right now and are actually pushing people out. He wasn't a poser as any of you Vets know it's easy to spot. You can just tell.

When I tried to give them the last $10.00 in my pocket he wouldn't take it but said if I wanted to help him out I could walk with him inside the Safeway so he could get his kid some juice. Every time he goes in there the managers run him out as his family had camped out behind the store a few times. He said he guessed a homeless family was bad for business as he said he never once did anything wrong in there except use the restroom too many times he guessed.

I took them down to Safeway and went inside with him. He paid for the juice and few groceries with a Wells Fargo debit card so I know he wasn't lying about the source of a small income. Apparently he was indeed known to the crew at Safeway as the cashier told him he better hurry before he was spotted in there. I told her I was with him and she just smiled.

Getting back to the car the little boy was asleep. He woke them up and got their stroller out of the car with their back packs. He extended his hand and said thanks Sir, I appreciate the kindness and if you know of anyone looking for a hard worker let me know.

I told him I lived not far away and my wife and I wouldn't mind if they cleaned up and took a hot shower. He declined and explained if your clean on the streets you're a target as other homeless can sense when you have two cents more than them. Apparently you're target also if you appear homeless at Safeway too.

Feeling totally helpless to help them I said "What are you going to do son"

I'm not ashamed to admit my eyes teared up when he said "Improvise, Overcome and Adapt Sir, Semper Fi"

I just stood there frozen in disbelief, anger and sadness as I watched them cross the street and fade into San Bruno National Cemetery. I'll never forget this as long as I live. This definitely isn't the same United States of America I grew up in. What in the hell has happened to this country?

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Travel disaster

I had this post all written up and lost it all by absent mindedly upgrading WordPress at the same time. Which, on a side note, I’m very happy with. The automatic update seems to work pretty well now, along with updating the plugins I have installed. The process was flawless.

So anyway, this is supposed to be about travelling. Yesterday around 16:30 I barely made it to DTW for my flight. I left with plenty of time to spare, but managed to get caught in a torrential downpour; the kind that so heavily hits your windshield you can’t see more than ten feet of traffic in front of you. I guess that was going to be the least of my worries.

I managed to get on the flight, even though to automatic check in was complaining about me not being there 30 minutes prior. “You may be in luck”, said the US Air check-in employee, “they haven’t closed the flight yet”. Luck isn’t really what I would call it, in retrospect.

After a 40 minute delay in the flight time, we sat on the flight line for an hour without A/C while they refuelled the plan and got the A/C working. Forty-five minutes into our patient wait they started pulling off passengers that were headed to the west coast, because they wouldn’t make their flights. US Air claimed this was because there were no other flights for those people to their final destinations, but that worried me, too.

Long story short, I missed the connecting flight and ended up stuck in Charlotte by myself for much longer than I expected. It seems everyone else will get to San Diego before I will…

They rebooked me on a flight that left at 07:20; that is just disgustingly early after having ingested as much scotch as I did at McKoy’s the night before. McKoy’s is a pretty cool little bar within walking distance from the Sheraton hotel US Air was nice enough to let me sleep in. There is definitely some interesting local “color” there, and plenty to drink scotch-wise. Johnny Walker Black, Green, and Gold were available, and after some joking I convinced Angelo, our New Jersey-born bartender to pour my drinks extra heavy. There was definitely no shortage of alcohol in my drinks from then on.

Oddly enough, I ended up talking geek stuff in the form of Qt and Linux programming with another guy that was also stranded in the area. It was definitely an amusing experience; I even bought a McKoy’s t-shirt. lol

That shirt is now inside out as I sit with a four piece chicken snack from “BoJangles”. Yes, I’m eating chicken from a place that shares a name with an SNL skit featuring Will Ferrell and a dog. It’s not too bad, considering I only paid forty cents for it after my five dollar meal voucher from US Air.

Anyway, this post has gotten way too long; if you have my Facebook check the videos on there later; should be amusing. :P

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Les Paul : 1915 – 2009

Chris Walter/WireImage.Com

Chris Walter/WireImage.Com


It’s not technique — it’s what you have to say.

I got the mumps. They threw me in a crib so I wouldn’t roll out onto the floor. And there’s a big bay window in my house, and that window stayed perfectly still until that train started to chug. At a certain speed, I could reach up and feel the pane, and that glass pane would vibrate. I said, Doggone, there’s got to be a reason for this. So I go to the kindergarten teacher, and she takes me to the science teacher, and the science teacher takes me to the library and reads it off to me — “This is called resonance.” That was the beginning.

The audience, they’re not professionals. They just love music. It isn’t necessary to play over their heads to be admired.

You can’t go to the store and buy a good ear and rhythm.

I got out of the car and there was a knife in my neck. The guy says, “Don’t move.” And the drummer got out of the car, and he got a gun in his head. This was my entrance to the South Side of Chicago. But it was necessary, because I wanted to play jazz.

When rock came in, people didn’t know what to do. Even Sinatra, he didn’t know what to do. The music was changing. And it’s changing now.

Last time I saw Count Basie, he was in a wheelchair. They wheeled him up onto the stage, he sits down at the piano, and he gives the downbeat, and that band played like they were in heaven. And right in the middle, the band cuts. He had to take one hand and put the other on it, and he comes down with one note. And it was the greatest note I ever heard in my life.

I gave up the guitar in 1965. Didn’t want to see a guitar. I’d go out and get drunk. When I came out of the heart surgery, the doc said, “Promise me you’ll work hard.” I said, “I thought working hard is what got me here.” He said, “No, working is what will keep you alive.”

There are times when you want to go where you used to go and you can’t go there. So I’m back to Count Basie lifting his hand. And I find you can stop that show with one note just like you can with a hundred.

I better go play now.

Interviewed by John H. Richardson, September 1, 2008

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last thoughts

what i couldn’t, or didn’t, say:

thanks for hangin out, you were a good roommate though we had our battles. best of luck. i’m proud of you, as should everyone else be.

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night of a thousand weirdness…

UPDATE: The siren was the gay-dar going off. LOL

So the hallmark of the night was an interesting situation. Allow me to preface the story by adding that whilst standing in front of porcelain urinal, I heard a siren, like I would hear at The Oak Bar in Wyandotte when the Red Wings scored. I thought … WTF is that? And carried on.

Immediately upon reentry to my comfort zone, I noticed that there was someone sitting to the right of my previous location at the bar. All of my personal effects were stationed there, serving as an obvious “Hey fucker, I’m sitting here.” One would not heed this warning, however, and prompted an interesting, and later infuriating situation.

The first of clues as to what the siren meant:

Person to my right: “I notice you took off your jewelry … Why is that?”
Me: “Umm, (struggling for an explanation) … It’s what I do to feel comfortable; sometimes the ring doesn’t fit on my finger.”
Thing to my right: “Does it like sometimes not fit you?”
Me: “Yeah, sometimes in the morning the ring doesn’t fit right on my finger.”
Oddity: “Have you ever lost your jewelry in the bathroom?”

At this point I was thinking “Wheree in the living hell could this person be going with this?”. Wait, no I wasn’t. I was thinking: “Wow, this dude is fucking queer, and is seriously hinting at whether I’ve had a gay encounter in the bathroom.”

So yeah, cue all kinds of odd conversation about where the 41 year old curly haired “Hucky” (as he introduced himself) has been around the country. “All people do around here is drink and eat”, he says. “Right, people do tend to live a life of excess”, I concede, trying to be a nice human being to what is obviously a complete disaster to my right. And the rest of the conversation is: “blahblahblah” “blahblahblah” “blahblahblah”. Finally the dude gets the body language and leaves. Thank god. I’ve been nice too long. Later I ended up being pissed that I was so nice, but all is well.

Such is all I’m inclined to communicate at the moment. Perhaps the second half of the saga will be revealed at a later date.

For now, M is signing off and getting some needed unconsciousness.

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Time for some clean up around here.

There’s too much emo crap on my blog. Moping around on the internet is so incredibly lame, what the hell.

UPDATE: I’ve had the urge to write about a certain someone quite a bit … but luckily I’ve been able to control that. Writing on is definitely cathartic, and thus beneficial, but sometimes I look back at it and wonder what’s wrong with me. :P

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Non-smoker for 1 week…

It feels pretty good not waking up and hacking a lung, and I’m sure it will help when I jog. Maybe soon I’ll actually write a useful post, also …