house of warwick

Tammy promised about 12 years ago to be with me “in sickness and in health”. Right now, we’re working on the health part. I’ve been going to a personal trainer for the last six weeks with mixed results. Today, my workout was very strenuous and he pulled me aside and let me know the facts. Unless I change what I eat and start drinking more water and taking vitamins, there was no way I’d ever see any benefits.

I knew he was right. I was so exhausted I thought I was going to throw up.

Change is hard and the worst kind is change that you know has to happen. I have to give up my “foodie” status for awhile and eat simple protiens, less carbs and well, less fat. The worst is cutting things artificial which is next to impossible in this modern age of processed foods.

Wish me luck…

I’m trying to spend more time writing and less time telling myself I have no time to write. Drinking coffee on a Saturday monring means I have my Mac open and on the table.

I’ve spent the last 7 hours installing Windows Small Business Server. 7 hours is a long time in life to give up for something this mundane. Yesterday, I took an hour and wiped the machine, added the disks in a drive array and prepped it for today’s install, hoping I could be on site with our customer at 1PM. Nope.

First, the Windows install needs a driver before even the first files go on the disk. That’s really not a big deal since HP warns you multiple times and provides you with a driver. The worst of it is that it requires a floppy disk. That’s because there’s no way for the setup software to recognize a USB drive, the “floppy” of the modern age. So I spent 15 minutes digging up a USB floppy drive and a blank disk, then copying the drivers and rebooting the machine. Progress!

That’s when the real work began. I’ve been feeding the machine disks for six hours and now I’m watching Windows Update download over 42 updates, patches and software adds. Yuck.

Some of this is expected, but 7 hours? C’mon!

I’m getting an iPhone as a bonus from work (!) and it needs a name. Like many iPods and Mac laptops before it, I’d like to keep it in the jazz musician realm. Ideas?

Autoblog: “Honda has announced that next year it will cease motorcycle production at its Marysville, OH manufacturing plant. That facility’s output, along with that of the Hamamatsu, Japan factory, will be shifted to the the company’s brand new bike plant in Kumamoto next year.”

Tammy and I made it back to Springfield safe and sound.  What’s more important is that we both are rested–mentally.  A weekend in one of our favorite places is usually enough to help us relax but the weather cooperated with a couple of fantastic days of sunshine.  I’ll try to write more in the next couple of days and post a picture or two.

Paraphrasing a line from Grosse Point Blank, it’s been 12 years (man!) of marriage with Tammy. Our official anniversary is February 29th, a date that appears every four years and since we were married in 1996, an election year, I run for “re-election” each anniversary.

The first few years were tough to learn how to be an adult in an adult relationship. I knew that Tammy and I were meant to be together and that’s what kept me going. Being in a strong marriage is hard work and I’m glad I put in the effort. I’ve been rewarded with a lifelong friend, wife, and partner. She’s invested the time in me to make sure I can realize who I am other than “Tammy’s husband” and that’s something that few others in my life were willing to do.

Many people talk about the importance of another person when their life is “saved” through a near-death experience. Tammy saved me from a life of mediocrity and gave me the chance to step away from the shadows of the past and become a much better person.

I love you Tammy. Happy Anniversary.