Thanksgiving – My Favorite Holiday

We can learn a lot from the lessons of Thanksgiving. I’m not going to back-story this post with a bunch of historical mishmash. You can find all that here. There are a lot of holidays in the world. Not everyone in the world has a Thanksgiving, but some may have something close. My favorite part of Thanksgiving is that it’s not tied to some religious event. It’s not about one person. It’s not focused on the past. It’s not focused on the future. It’s focused on now. We make Thanksgiving ours. Thanksgiving is about love and compassion. Thanksgiving is about being thankful for what we have and not giving a damn about what we don’t have. Thanksgiving is about spending time with family, those who aren’t yet officially family, and most importantly with people you care about.

An iconic Thanksgiving

What is it we really need in life? A lot of people ask that question. We can look at Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs, and at the base, with some of my other important things, is food. It helps, in my book at least, that Thanksgiving involves food. I love food. Thanksgiving brings all my favorite heart-warming foods together in one feast. But more than that, at Thanksgiving we eat together. If you can take time out, look around, and realize that there are people in your life that you care about, and there are people in your life that care about you, well then Thanksgiving gives just about all you need in life. We can learn a lot from the lessons of Thanksgiving.

Can't we all just get along?

Life is nothing but the experiences we share. If we spent more time making those experiences that we share positive and good, we’d all be in a much better place. If we opened our hearts and minds, taking a moment to stop and realize how much we do have instead of worrying about what we don’t or won’t have, our lives would that much richer. No one is saying it doesn’t take hard work to get there, but what in life isn’t made better by investing in something we care about? If I’ve said it once, I have said it a million times, and I’ll say it a million more –

We can learn a lot from the lessons of Thanksgiving.

Happy Thanksgiving!!

H1N1 spells “hiney”

Swine flu makes you feel like ass. As such, I haven’t posted anything, recently. I would say I am back to full health. My wife, my child, and I all had this illness. While I had the worst symptoms, having the entire family go down with this was trying. Uninspired to do much else other than to feel normal again, blogging was the last thing on my mind. Obviously, it’s not anymore.

I think I saw this swine flu in a dream.

I survived the Swine Flu! I didn’t get a pulmonary embolism or pneumonia! Now that all the symptoms are gone, like the headaches, oh my god the headaches, look for more intriguing articles coming soon to Full-a-Schmidt!

Got the t-shirt!

9 lives

Today I celebrate my 9 year anniversary at Rackspace.  In October 2000, I was starting a “job” at an upstart company that had this crazy idea of turning server hosting into a service.  Having been in the customer service industry for 3 years prior at Sears Home Central, I had actually planned a career at Sears since my then diminishing music career seemed to be wrapping up.  I generally liked working for Sears, at the time.  It was horribly corporate, but a large company like Sears seemed to hold a lot of opportunity for someone like me.  I had already been the youngest service manager they ever had.  I had won numerous national Sears accolades for my service delivery.  However, it seems there were some folks at Sears that were not so fond of my rising success, and made me choose between completing my university degree or Sears by forcing a schedule change.  I chose to finish college.

Education. A smart choice.

Picking up a quick job to help pay bills, and mere months away from graduation, I began sending my resume all over the country and searching the fledgling internet for every opportunity I could find.  I felt the boom in the tech industry was coming to and end and I wanted to get my foot in the door some place.  I received numerous rejection letters, lots of calls, but nothing seemed to be coming together.  I didn’t think I could make it in San Antonio.  Growing up here, going to school here, and graduating here, there weren’t many large companies that were interested in anything but application developers.  Certainly not much in the tech world, which was where I was focusing my education.  Despite my managerial experience, I wasn’t sure that’s what I wanted to do forever.  Leaving class one day, the university was having a career fair.  I went home, changed clothes, and returned with some resumes.  That’s when I stumbled upon Rackspace at a career fair at UTSA.  Scoring an interview on the spot, they invited me to headquarters for a real interview.  Charles Riley and Heather Barko interviewed me.  From a technical standpoint, I didn’t do that well.  I know that looking back, but damn did I have me some customer service skills.  On my birthday, October 4th, I got a call that I was hired and to report in to the office the following Monday.  SCORE!

Top of Weston Center - circa 2001	Weston Center - San Antonio, TX
My first "Tear It Up!" Award	Rackspace offices circa 2001

After nine years, as with any journey, it’s not always been easy.  It’s not always been smooth.  While I’ve not had a lot of first-hand experience for which to compare it, I’ve certainly paid attention to my friend’s and family’s experiences.  I think I can say that Rackspace is one of the best places to work I could have found.  Rackspace is challenging.  Rackspace is a fun place to work.  At this point, Rackspace is much more a part of me as I am a part of it.  But, to be fair, I’ve offered a fair share of myself.  Besides my day-to-day job, I get to play my music on my weekly radio show on the internal radio station we lovingly call K-RACK on Fridays.  I’m a part of our rookie orientation class we call Rookie-O, where my alter ego Harry Longshanks comes out when I dress in a wig and glasses.  I’m 1/2 trainer, 1/4 game show host, and 1/4 comedian.  The rest of the time, I get to dress in a way that makes me comfortable, where a serious meeting can have folks wearing button-downs and slacks, and the person next to them wearing shorts and flip flops — that’s the culture here.  It is in this I hope I’ve helped flourish, set an example, and stands as a testament to doing what we do best. Being ourselves to do our jobs.

Harry Longshanks - DJ and Game Show host extraordinaire

It’s been a helluva ride.  I’ve had to reinvent myself many times.  I’ve worn many hats.  I’ve made a career.  I wouldn’t change one second of it.  I’ve met great people.  I’ve been offered many opportunities.  I’ve grown personally and professionally.  My experiences have made me not only good at what I do, but stronger in who I am for every strength I’ve been allowed to grow in the fertile ground at Rackspace.

For all of my “Friends and Family” at Rackspace, thanks for giving me a chance, and thank you for continuing to make this journey nothing short of an adventure.

Art imitating Life imitating Art

I suppose it’s nothing new.  When I think back through the ages, I think of Shakespeare recounting star-crossed lovers in Romeo and Juliet, King Richard III, and Julius Caesar.  I’m thinking that people have kind of always been doing the same things for quite some time, and how often the mere reemergence or “modernized” view of some concept revitalizes it to imitation.  Charles Caleb Colton once said that “Imitation is the sincerest of flattery.”  But what happens when people choose to imitate insincere and petty things?  What happens when we start mocking reality?  Oh, how our culture has turned to perpetuation of thoughts, ideals, and behaviors completely unbecoming of them, and their victims, and how often this is venerated and imitated for entertainment purposes.  What happens when reality shows become reality.  Can we still tell our children “That’s make-believe” when our entertainment culture destroys our real lives?

The Land of Make Believe

I’m a huge advocate of freedom.  I’m never going to tell you what you can and cannot watch, nor do I believe anyone should tell you what is entertainment you should or shouldn’t experience.  The fact is, it is you and I that are driving this sick ship.  It’s our choice!  The public has spoken.  We choose to sit and watch people in mock reality.  Confusing ourselves of information and entertainment.  Choice is our one gift that makes us who we are.  Everything is about choice.  Every decision you make comes with a responsibility of cause and effect.  Even your mood is based on choice.  You have the power to choose to be happy.  No one can make you angry.  No one can offend you.  That is not to say that those people who choose to say offensive things, or choose to try and anger you aren’t making poor choices, but ultimately, you have the power of choice in how you react.  It is probably your single most powerful thing you as a human being could ever posses.

Two stories really brought this to mind:

Jon and Kate plus 8 (now: Kate plus 8?)

The beginning of the end

Far be it from me to interject any real opinion about what happened with their marriage.  To say I don’t care is too crass.  It is very inconsequential to my life.  However, I can only imagine the strain that eight children place on a marriage to begin with, then with added pressures of a show, with ratings, it was all probably too much.  I empathize with a young couple trying to make ends meet thinking this was a good idea.  I can understand how fame can fan the flames of an ego to burn a desire for more and more.  Was it worth it?  That’s what we have to ask ourselves.

David Letterman’s Blackmail

David Letterman is blackmailed

I bet he didn’t see this one coming in his mailbag!  I bet this will make his Top Ten list of nightmares!  All joking aside, I know David Letterman isn’t “reality TV” but here we have a CBS News producer Robert “Joe” Halderman using an entertainment medium to push an agenda for blackmail.  48 Hours was always using real life to make entertainment.  But as media and entertainment permeate our lives in new and inventive ways, the victims and the ripples this makes impart real damage.  As much as people enjoy watching train wrecks, literal and figurative, are we really no different than the Mayans or the Romans watching people get torn apart and lives destroyed in the rings?

Our egos attempt to strengthen itself with power by balancing and bolstering the side of a triangle, to become equilateral.  The three sides of the Power Pyramid are Fame, Wealth, and Sex

Pyramid of Power: The building-block of human ego

The larger the pyramid, and the more equal the triangle, the more fun and exciting it is to see it deflate.  There’s a certain satisfaction in watching people fail because, while we may not be growing our pyramid of power, our egos become bigger in relation to the fallen.  We see them more human and this in turn makes us feel better, but what are we really saying about ourselves?  When we as a society start blending entertainment with reality, what are we saying?  Are we feeding the desires of our egos?  Are we saying that our reality has to be entertaining or that our entertainment has to be real?  If one begins to expect entertainment for existence, when that becomes reality, where will you go to escape?  What are you escaping from?  Our entertainers become purveyors of life.  Our life becomes a medium, scripted for maximum effect, playing 24 hours a day, stripping us of our unique essences.  Here’s to hoping that we make the best choices and recognize when we’re becoming the train wrecks.

Tell me what you think!

The menace of the public option

Check it out in I Second right here in Full-a-Schmidt for the latest post.

Reach out and smack someone

I’m tired. I’m tired of mindlessness. I’m tired of apathy and selfishness. I’m tired of people overextending their lives into others’. Apparently, so is Hugh Jackman.

2010 Hyundai Elantra – A week in the life

For those of you with short attention spans, I’ll tell you now that the 2010 Hyundai Elantra sedan has impressed me. For those of you who know me, there is some serious street cred here. For those of you that don’t, mark a +1 next to this Hyundai in your vehicle search. Read on for a thorough examination.

An example of a 2010 Hyundai Elantra

Hyundai has come a long way from the Excel. Hell, they’ve come a long way from the year 2000!  You may have heard this before, but those that have dared purchase their cars over the last half decade or better have cars that generally serve them well. Hyundais are gaining points in my book for more advanced styling, build quality, and general reliability.  It takes a lot of quality control for a carmaker to turn around like this.  I came to write this, parked in a spot a good distance from the entrance, our 2005 Honda Accord was hit, knocking it out of the spot, and up on a curb by a tree that was once a fair distance behind it. The woman who hit our car was more than honest, and amazingly had a claim called into her insurance before we left the parking lot. Which leads me to my car rental.

When I heard the Enterprise man say “Hyundai Elantra” my mind lept to being crammed in a small car, trying desperately to keep up with traffic, having to turn off the A/C if I needed more power because it had none. I pursued other vehicles and after the discouragement, I succumbed to the Korean beast. Moments later, the man was pulling up in a gleaming white Hyundai Elantra. My first reaction was “It’s got fog lights” but as I would soon find out, these were simple beacons of good things to come. After fitting the car with the rear-facing infant carseat base, I hopped in, adjusted mirrors and was off on my short jaunt to work.

I fully admit that I was prejudiced about this car. Despite the fact that I keep up with the car magazines, and while I knew Hyundai was make leaps and bounds in the market, I had yet to fully endorse a Hyundai to friends or family. My week with the car yielded some surprises that will change, until further notice, my opinion of this South Korean car company. The first surprise was how sprite this thing can be. The 2.0 liter 4-cylinder, at 138 hp, is a far cry from a barn stormer. I know that the Touring models come with a few more ponies under the hood, but this is what you get with the sedan. Tromping on the go pedal actually snapped my head back at bit and got me onto the freeway faster than I ever expected it to. Throughout my week, I came to find there were some things I could not do with the car in traffic that I could with my 4-cylinder Accord and TSX, but overall I found that this engine, and the 4-speed automatic, provided me with enough opportunity to slice-and-dice traffic as needed in my hour-long daily commute.

One strange phenomenon I’ve noticed in my time is a car’s ‘respect factor’ on the road.  The respect factor is about people cutting you off, pulling out in front of you, purposely preventing you from going faster or changing lanes, and general driving courtesy.  I’ve driven Ford Aspires to Ferrari convertibles and I’ll say this Hyundai has one of the worst respect factors I’ve experienced.  Not as bad as the 20 year old two-tone brown Maxima or the faded orange and rusted Datsun B210 I’ve driven, but certainly close.  I can’t tell you how many people just gave this little winner no street cred at all.  My Accord and TSX have a high respect factor, conversely.  Even my 1995 T100 with a camper shell has a higher respect factor, but most can’t stand to be behind it.  I’ve seen more respect in an old Chevy Cavalier than this little thing got.  So as you ponder your car buying decision, remember, people won’t give a flip about you in this car.

Impressive for an "economy car"

The interior comfortably impresses, in that the dash, feel of the seat fabric, and plastic bits don’t look as though they were salvaged from a toy car. I do have reservations of the “electronic breadboard” pattern of the seat fabric.  While glaringly simple, the interior trim looks quite pleasing, and works quite well in a car at this price point. This “economy” car had a tire pressure monitoring system.  My Acura doesn’t have TPMS.  This Elantra also had power mirrors, power windows, and A/C which I understand to be standard. But it also had a AM/FM/XM/CD/MP3 stereo with AUX *AND* USB inputs. Wow! You know what else? The stereo sounded decent, too. This turned out to be a bonus because it helped as a potent condiment to compensate for the noise of the engine. Throughout my week, I found myself almost enjoying my commute, what with being in a car that turned out to not be a penalty box.

The driver’s seat was nearly dining room chair-like, but squishy soft. Not as supportive in the corners as I prefer, but the cloth made up in grip what the seat lacked in bolstering. This very upright seating position, with loads of headroom for my cranium above my abnormally long torso, I had a commanding view of the world from this perch. It reminded me of sitting in my old Nissan Hardbody. A very Goldilocks viewing angle I had, being able to see over most other cars, and high enough to peer through the windows of most of the numerous trucks that populate our roads here in Texas.

Since I transport my now 7 month old to and from daycare, my wife was rightfully concerned about the safety of this car. In haste, I initially set up the carseat base on the rear passenger-side seat, where the LATCH system appeared to be. It was only after a discussion with my wife that I decided to try securing it in the center. The LATCH straps on the base reached their needed destinations and grasped with no ill effect, only that few normal-sized people would be able to sit comfortably next to the carseat base. A quick review of some safety websites showed that the Elantra maintains 5-star ratings for crash safety in all cases, except for the rear side-impact which got it 4-star ratings. Nonetheless, a car that could probably hold its own should we pull the unfortunate card for accidents twice in one month.

The Hyundai Elantra I drove had a few ticks over 600 miles on the odometer when I started. That being said, I was a little concerned that I was hearing buzzing interior pieces from the bass of the stereo, even at modest volume. My ears also detected another minor rattle. My one pet peeve is a rattling interior. Strange since the ride quality of the vehicle was generally soft and more yielding than most. It had an almost Buick-like float with more Japanese control.  It was an odd sensation, but one I came to appreciate over my time with the car.  Hopefully, this buzzing was a quirk of the car I drove and not of the line. However, certainly something to listen for when you test drive your car.

I’m picky about cars. The blinker had an annoying loud, high-pitched ‘tink’ that would wake up my child, my sunglasses seemed to repeatedly get stuck in the holder, I couldn’t seem to get the 1000 watt instrument lighting to dim to a reasonable level at night, the trunk release on the key fob was too easy to depress, and my elbows were rarely comfortable. Don’t let that fool you. This 2010 Hyundai Elantra impressed me. Milling around town in my daily commute, I found the engine power more than adequate for my style of aggressive commuting. The electric power steering was easy-breezy at low speed and firmed up for a solid track on the freeways. The world “easy” keeps coming up. The car simply went about my business in a way that I can only describe as easy. It did the right things, albeit with a purpose-built, mainstream interpretation of a fuel-sipping economy car at high value. A suitable outfit for 9/10ths of your life. You can certainly spice it up with a sunroof and some nice rims, but at the end of the day, this car is a piece of cake; moist, soft, and sweet waiting for the icing of your choice. I now return to my regularly scheduled Honda Accord.

Declaration of Improper Parking

When in the Course of my normal day, it becomes necessary for one person to consume more resources than anyone else may choose to consume, and to assume my greater importance on this earth, that I have more rights than you to which the Laws of Nature and my God entitle to me, with no respect for other opinions of mankind requires me to declare my superiority of choice over everyone else.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that my need for parking is greater than thou, that I am endowed by my Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are proximity, convenience, and the persistence of apathy.  That to secure these rights, I institute my vehicle among others, driving just powers from the tons of steel and plastic, that whenever any parking space could hold my girth, it is my right to take it despite the vehicles around me, and institute my will, for my convenience of consumerism and disorganizing others, so that I may be most happy.  Prudence, indeed, is lost on my will long established should not be changed for guilt or logic; and accordingly all entitlement hath shewn, that mankind is disposed to suffer, for my evils are insufferable, than to park in another spot by eliminating my convenience to which I am obviously entitled.  But when a long train of cars and trucks, pursuing invariably the same intent evinces a wrath to extremes, where it is my right, it is my sole entitlement, to throw out common courtesy and decency, to create my own opportunities, and provide new parking for my needs.  Such has been the impatience and greed of my life; and now is the necessity of my ego which constrains me to do nothing else other than my own choosing.  The history of my fenders and doors is displayed in dents and dings, all having direct consequence of my actions of absolute superiority over a parking lot.  To prove this, I dare you to park next to me.

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Opinephilia

I’m making a new word: opinephilia
People who are afflicted with opinephilia could be considered extremely selfish, often subscribe to polarization, and are frequently considered zealots. Opinephilia symptoms are most visible when a person refuses to accept or acknowledge that another thought or idea can exist that is not their own, and may go to great lengths to promote their own ideals.

Push presents

For the “WTF!?  Are you serious?” file, there is a new and growing trend called “push presents” or “birth baubles“.  “What is this,” you might ask?  Well, it is a gift given to women during labor, during the birth of a child, the baby daddy is now supposed to give baby mama a gift.  Far be it from me to deny my significant other with the finer things in life, but do we really need another expectation to spend money?  During birth!?

Hi! Is now a good time to give you some earrings?

I’ve been through the birth of one child and hopefully I will have a chance sometime soon.  Granted, not like my wife has been through the birth of one child, but nonetheless, I have a first-hand observation and experience of the event.  I can’t fathom how anyone would suggest this be the right time to give a gift.

In “A Bundle of Joy Isn’t Enough?” from the New York Times, the article briefly explores this latest Fashion & Style.  Where one woman was given diamond earrings and another a pricey metal sculpture.  Jena Slosburg received the pair of diamond earrings and says “I was on cloud nine.  It was the perfect present to make a frazzled, sleep-deprived, first-time mommy feel absolutely glamorous.”  What, we can’t go through an event that our species has been performing for tens of thousands of years without having to fill it with a bunch of crap?

Every kid begins with Kay?

The birth of a child is an amazing moment.  My male buddies claimed it to be the end of my life as I knew it.  My work colleagues told stories of sleepless nights, vomit, colic, and many other horrors that come with a new human being.  The birth of our son didn’t go smoothly.  There were some complications.  It was hard.  And we knew that going into it.   Never mind that we spent thousands of dollars of our health insurance money to have this child.  We kept the sex of our child a surprise.  So, at the end of the day, we got the best gift we’ve ever known — a beautiful baby boy.  He was healthy, mama was healthy, and we went back to our room to revel in the creation and elation of parenthood.

Despite this article having been written in 2007, I did not hear about it with the birth of our son in 2009.  Even if I had, I don’t know that I would have done it.  We spent enough money.  We walked away with the gift that keeps on giving.  We commemorate the birth with a child.  Not some trinket.  Not some rock, or hunk of metal.  We celebrate the occasion WITH A CHILD!  Didn’t we learn anything from the materialism of the 1980’s?  Didn’t you watch Wall Street?  I spoke with my partner about it and she said “It’s just another excuse to make you feel guilty and sell more stuff.”  Thank you, honey!  I couldn’t have said it better myself.

A Bundle of Joy Isn’t Enough?