I wouldn’t bet anything significant on or against my updating once a week. Heck, if you were a betting person and looking for new things to bet against, I (probably) wouldn’t use my blog or website as that item for two reasons. First, I am as likely as not (e.g. sixes) to update reqularly; and second, I am as likely as not (again, sixes) to not update for a very long time. In either case, I actually like my website, I like having my domain, I like updating it, and I like updating whoever in the world wants to come and see what I am doing with what I am doing. As such . . .

I go to my residency starting  next Sunday. I’ve been reading sample work from my cohorts and am pretty excited to be in this MFA-Writing program. I am even more excited about the writing that I am producing not so much in anticipation of the program, but rather in anticipation of being in a place in my life where a) I have things to say, b) I am capable of saying them, and c) they come out interesting and compelling and in fiction form. None of this means I don’t enjoy reading and writing non-fiction and essays and whatnots. It does mean that the goal I set for myself a long time ago is still there.

Also, I am still taking calls from a state agency about issues related to money and rights. This does deal with child support cases and as a result, I understand now the intricacies that exist within that realm. AND, I have no desire to really talk about it. This is probably one of my problems about updating, I want to write about things and don’t want my blog to become known for child support related questions and answers. I care too much about the writing for that.

For those that are curious, I am still looking for a job that is more compatible with my background and education and my future education (e.g. I am getting a Master’s of Fine Arts in Writing and would like to start work either as a professor or in publishing) and as a result continue to apply for jobs when they come available. With all of that said, I am still interested in a job in academia or a job dealing with government contractors. And, I still note that the economy is in the toilet. I’ve a new idea I should explore in relationship to that – no hints from me about what the idea is – but haven’t really delved into anything in that area that could be considered research. I’m poor.

Anyway, life continues. Erin is about to take the GRE. We are excited about that. CAMPER is growing like a weed and for those that know the website you can see pretty regular updates from Erin there. As well as at Erin’s website. Beyond that, we continue to live with family and continue to try and figure out what comes next.

Real Heroes Fly ]]> http://www.johnhattaway.com/2009/07/for-a-variety-of-reasons/feed/ 0 http://www.johnhattaway.com/2009/06/the-long-something/ http://www.johnhattaway.com/2009/06/the-long-something/#comments Tue, 30 Jun 2009 01:01:09 +0000 smokingpen http://www.johnhattaway.com/?p=1909 I think I often have great plans to do big things. I think some of those big things include my blog and making it more popular and more accessible. Point, I started at the earliest posts editing them so that the links all went somewhere, images were either updated or deleted, and they cross-referenced older posts. I worked on that for a few days, got about fifty or so posts in, realized I had something like 1000 to go through, and thought to myself, “Someday I will have enough money I can pay someone to do that.” Truth told, I still harbor that plan and I don’t think I will ever actually get around to doing anything with it.

Erin and I were speaking the other day, as we do every day, about stuff when she pointed out something I’d been thinking about for a couple of weeks. I have two things in my life that I am more likely than not to spend money one – heck, if I am having a bad time for long enough and sooner or later I am going to spend money on one or the other or both – the first are books and the second is software. Now, I am not a software person in the sense that I will buy games galore; however, I am a software person where I will purchase and use something for writing or organization or project management and see how it works and then draw up plans on how I might make changes and then wish or dream those beautiful dreams about how, when I have enough disposable income (or an investor) I will change the face of the internet and off-line computing with my ideas. Heck, not too long ago I came up with the next billion dollar idea that will (probably) never see the light of day from me because . . . well, my reasons are my own.

As for books, before Erin (b.E.), I think between 1/4 and 1/2 of my income went to the acquisition of books. I spent a lot of money at Borders and Amazon.com that it justified and probably (without spending more money) could inherently justify having Amazon Prime for some years. Fortunately, I still spend money at Amazon.com and, when time and our finances permit, I can spend some money at Borders as well. Most often, though, Borders comes in the form of gift cards and Amazon.com comes in the form of gift certificates and school money so that I can expand my collection of, and knowledge on, books about writing and etc. However, in the days of b.E. I spent a considerable amount of money that would lead one to believe I have a considerable number of books – and yes, I have some; but at the same time I also cull the books I buy, selling some online, taking others to used bookstores and selling them there, and still others I give away to people I think will like (and cherish) them more than me.

The outcome to all of this is another one of those grand plans: I would love to have a house with a room that is a couple or three stories tall, with a special observation area at the very top, with books from floor to ceiling and round cast iron stair cases and my desk in the very middle of the room. With windows that could darken at the touch of a button, a large flat screen television for movies or television, and a place where I can retreat to be alone or spend time with people who are invited into my private sanctuary (like Erin or CAMPER or close friends and some family), but more a place that is dedicated to books and my writing and ideas and dreams and adventure and imagination in a way that no other room or place can exist for me because those places really don’t exist.

One result in all of this is a notion of: SOMEDAY; and a notion of: WHAT IF? in both cases, I enjoy the fantasy, and in both cases I realize that it is just fantasy and that I get to continue to work and develop and hope that someday Erin and CAMPER and I will find ourselves in a slightly better position where, maybe – just maybe, our lives will allow us to explore some of the dreams I have for our future.

Real Heroes Fly ]]> http://www.johnhattaway.com/2009/06/the-long-something/feed/ 0 http://www.johnhattaway.com/2009/06/searching-for-a-state-of-equilibrium/ http://www.johnhattaway.com/2009/06/searching-for-a-state-of-equilibrium/#comments Thu, 25 Jun 2009 00:07:48 +0000 smokingpen http://www.johnhattaway.com/?p=1901 I’ve found that some of the things I want to be doing compared to many of the things I need to be doing have kept me out of a state of equilibrium for some time. Months. I like the idea of writing blog entries and have noted that the number of hits I receive a month is directly proportional to the number of posts I publish. On top of which, my search rankings are lower when I don’t update as frequently. I would imagine, when I get to a state of popularity from publishing or some such that the direct outcome will be a lot of people intentionally searching for me and clicking through my website which will result in the ability to be lazier and still have traffic; however, at the moment, if I want traffic I have to do what is required to get that traffic.

Since I am not doing what is necessary I am writing about the why not.

In this case I find I have several things that sit, in some stage or another, on my metaphorical plate (I actually dislike the analogy). I have family, professional, educational, and obligations to self that all require a piece of my time. My family, and by that I am defining family as Erin and CAMPER, require individual attention and time. I cannot just assume that by spending time with CAMPER while Erin is in proximity that I have sufficiently spent time with her. As a result, I find myself making time for both my wife and child and making sure I spend time with them.

Along with family resposibilities I have work responsibilities. To some extent these overlap in that I am the provider and have to work to make money so that we can afford to pay bills and buy food. Previously to my current job I was working at Wal-Mart (formerly “this place“) on the graveyard shift. Because of that, I slept during the day, didn’t really care to be awake on the weekends though I chose to alter my sleeping habits to, again, spend time with my family. As a result of not being awake when Erin and CAMPER were, I looked for and found another position where I work during the day and can now sleep at night. This is better but at the same time I have to give away some of my day to a commute that equals about three hours of time. I am in a better position than I was with Wal-Mart, but still searching for a state of equilibrium.

Along with family and work I have responsibilities to my degree – specifically a Master’s of Fine Arts in Writing. This program requires me to spend quite a few hours a day writing and reading and revising and writing and revising and reading and etc. and etc. with the outcome. Granted, everything gets to be set aside in about twenty-five days for ten days where I will be nicely sequestered on an island at a Franciscan Retreat Center talking about writing. After the retreat and residency I will have to find time (that may not exist) to write and read and revise and make sure that my novel actually does get written and revised and made ready for publication.

Finally, I have responsibilities to myself. I think this is the least defined as I want to spend time with Erin and CAMPER and I want to go to school and I need to (and to some extent want to) go to work. Along with all of that I need to start taking care of my body so that my IBS doesn’t get worse. The doctor think Yoga and meditation will help and Erin is currently looking for a Yoga class on a Saturday that I can start attend and that we can afford.

The outcome to all of this is not that I don’t realize what is needed or wanted or necessary, but that I haven’t found the magic combination of time and management and energy that will allow me to find the state of equilibrium that will also allow me to spend a few minutes (or more) updating the blog and making sure I expand my readership rather than have people who get here from Erin’s website or by spending some time searching for something like Assateague Island or Roommate Etiquette or the White Screen of Death on my Macbook.

Real Heroes Fly ]]> http://www.johnhattaway.com/2009/06/searching-for-a-state-of-equilibrium/feed/ 0 http://www.johnhattaway.com/2009/06/quickly-2/ http://www.johnhattaway.com/2009/06/quickly-2/#comments Tue, 02 Jun 2009 01:26:45 +0000 smokingpen http://www.johnhattaway.com/?p=1884 Well, I am two days into the new job. This is good. I am hoping to like it for a while. The drive is about an hour in each direction, but the outcome is more money and the potential for a lot more. Good times.

Also, I am still messing around with Mind Mapping software. Currently I am enamored of Novamind for my laptop and iBlueSky for the iPhone. This will probably be the combination I use in the future as the two programs are designed to work together. They are (at least at present) separate companies, but separate companies that see the use in having a strategic relationship.

Decided to go with some Polo style shirts as a form of business casual dress. This should be interesting as I am Polo shirt resistant. Erin bought me some and they are comfortable so we will see.

I am starting the MFA-Writing program on July 19th and already have the time-off approved. I am kind of excited about that and look forward to the reading and writing involved. Especially as we’ve spent a bit of money on books, residency, and as a deposit on the program. Actually, this should prove to be very exciting.

Seems like there should be more but I don’t really know what to update as I am a bit tired AND want to be away from my computer for the time being. Anyway, will attempt to write more tomorrow when I have the chance to sit down and think about things for a bit.

Real Heroes Fly ]]> http://www.johnhattaway.com/2009/06/quickly-2/feed/ 0 http://www.johnhattaway.com/2009/05/now-that-i-am-done/ http://www.johnhattaway.com/2009/05/now-that-i-am-done/#comments Thu, 28 May 2009 15:45:48 +0000 smokingpen http://www.johnhattaway.com/?p=1880 Wow! Now that I am done with “this place” I am a little excited and off. I walked into the store to turn in my resignation letter and when the girls in the personnel office asked what I needed I said, “I am here to quit.” They got weird looks on their faces and asked what I wanted and I said, “I am here to inform someone that I am no longer going to be employed by [this place],” and then handed the more senior (in position not age) of the two the resignation letter Erin wrote for me because I was far too lazy and then she handed me a piece of paper to fill out – exit interview.

Real exit interview’s are an interesting thing. I’ve been in a real exit interview in the past where the representative of the company I was leaving made sure that I’d turned in all security cards, laptops, and other company owned merchandise to include cell phone while also presenting me with my last paycheck and having me sign all sorts of papers that, in theory, should stop an exiting employee from suing. However, “this place“’s exit interview consisted of my handing a letter, filling out the top 1/8th of a piece of paper, signing and dating at the bottom, initialing next to me name in the check register (payday is Thursday, they decided to hand me my check yesterday – not a standard part of the exit interview) and then, “Goodbye.”

As soon as I was done with that, I gave them my name badges and my box cutter, the only two things I was given as a part of the job, I walked to the front of the store, grabbed a car, and did some shopping.

What makes all of that interesting is that as soon as I got word that I was hired at the new place, Erin and I made a list of things I needed to do, copied here for your enjoyment:

• Resign at “this place“
• Send writing samples to Fairfield University*
• Fax registration for classes to Fairfield University
• Get tested for illegal drug use**

As a result of this, I spent a good portion of the morning and early afternoon reworking a piece of fiction I wrote a couple of weeks ago. Erin read through it a couple of times, made some edits, suggested some changes, and as I was frantically re-working the piece I finally got to a point where I literally had to say, “It’s time to say goodbye little piece of fiction,” print it out, shove it into an envelope, and mail it off to my program.

In between all of that, I ended up reading some of the “you are officially accepted to Fairfield University’s MFA-Writing program” paperwork to see where I needed to fax the registration forms to only to discover that I cannot do that one minute before June 1st. As a result, that item was unceremoniously ejected from the list – though the paperwork is sitting next to my desk.

As for the testing for the use of illegal drugs portion, that seems to be a pretty consistent thing in this part of the world. I have yet to apply for a position where willingness, let alone actually being tested for, illegal drugs hasn’t been required. In fact, I was told that “this place” actually has a 70% fail rate for drug use which also means that the company interviews quite a lot of people before they can offer jobs to a select few. What is really interesting to me about that isn’t the number of people that fail, but that “this place” has the ability to maintain an employee base at all. Though, with that said, I think a big portion of that is legacy employees that never seem to leave and don’t care to advance beyond their current position as grunts.

Once everything was done I was a bit tired, as was Erin, and yet we also got to deal with CAMPER who has not been feeling well of late. We learned, today, that it is probably just allergies and since he is sub-2 years old he gets to suffer with them, which means we get to suffer with them, until the season changes enough that he is no longer dealing with the pollens and whatnot’s. Regardless, the trip to the doctor and the tiredness as I attempt to readjust my internal clock to being awake during the day and asleep at night is proving to be interesting.

And the real news to ALL OF THIS is that I start a new job tomorrow morning at 8:30 a.m. I will have a commute, but we’ve decided that is okay; and the company is good with me taking off for two weeks in July so I can be a student again. The outcome of all of this is that I think life is good and I think Erin and I are heading in the right direection. Now, if Harvard’s Divinity School would please accept my wife as a student we will be a bit happier . . . though, if not Harvard than one of Erin’s other top choices. Though, I guess I can stop trying to jump to gun on this one as she is just starting the process.

John Hattaway | smokingpen | Alicia Grey | Clockwork Princess | Cassandra West

Real Heroes Fly

*When my harddrive crashed the other week I lost all of the fiction on my computer. Since the writing program does not allow science fiction, fantasy, or anything that doesn’t lean toward a literary bent, I had to come up with something (other than the first 18 pages of Finding Jack Mulvaney (requires a log-in to read)) as a writing sample. The outcome was a short story of about 12 or 13 pages titled, Life Begins at Birth. Erin tells me it is the kind of good and confusing story that makes you wish you understood more about everything with the hope of possibly understanding what it is I am writing about. I am not sure I intended that in the story, though I did get to a point where I literally said to myself, “I think the protagonist needs to die,” and then, “and I think there needs to be a drive-by shooting,” and then proceeded to write to see if and how I got to those two things. As a result, no, the story is not available to read – though after the July residency, barring any other currently unknown hurdles, I may make it available at /story/ to read.

**Apparently, drug use in the north-east is so prevalent that you can’t go to work somewhere without being tested.

As a result of this I am hoping to be able to update a bit more and more frequently. Not that work gets in the way, per say, but that I will be working human hours and as a result my sleep-wake patters will be more in line with what I need to work on my writing, on school (starts midlin-July), and spending time with my family. Of these three things I am very excited.

I do want to say that “this place” has been good to me, as far as the company can. I am grateful to have had the job and I am grateful for the new position. It is an environment where I’ve historically excelled and where I can find advancement. At this point, though, I expect that this will last until Erin and I decide where we are going next for Erin’s graduate work. She has some pretty exciting and interesting options of where she wants to go and the different academic programs available to her and as a result, and outside of my own education, I am excited to support her in hers.

With that said, I start on Friday. Monday night was my last night at “this place“, and I get to spend the next couple of days resetting to night time sleep and daytime awakedness. One might think this not a difficult task, but I’ve found that I get tired around noon when I’ve slept at night (these days) and seriously wanting/needing sleep time. I don’t expect this to be different for a week or so, but I do expect to be able to function at the new job.

Real Heroes Fly ]]> http://www.johnhattaway.com/2009/05/moving-on/feed/ 0 http://www.johnhattaway.com/2009/05/fatigue-and-feeling-trapped/ http://www.johnhattaway.com/2009/05/fatigue-and-feeling-trapped/#comments Mon, 18 May 2009 11:35:34 +0000 smokingpen http://www.johnhattaway.com/?p=1865 I was at work all night. This is pretty typical as 5/7th’s of my week is spent at work between 10 pm and 6:30 am. As a result, for the 8.5 hours times 5 days I spend approximately (paid time) 40 hours and 45 hours at a place I don’t like when I am not being paid. Heck, I didn’t like it before, in a last ditch effort, I applied, they called and interviewed, and I accepted the job. For the most part, the job requires very little of my except for a sturdy back and patience to put things away; however, at times they give off the impression that as an employee I should be dedicating large portions of my life to them. As stated, 5 out of 7 days a week I spend a lot of time in the store.

As a result, I sleep during the day. Except for last Friday when I had to drive to the closest (or one of two closest) Apple stores to get them to confirm that a) my hard drive was dead; and b) I had to pay for a new one. Funny story, I’ve been considering backing up the hard drive for a couple of weeks and finally got around to parking the external drive next to the computer when the hard drive froze, I reset the machine, and I got the white screen of death.

On a positive note, even a couple days later, I only feel good about what happened and that it wasn’t worse. As an aside to that, I have to have two sub-18 page writing samples for the MFA program to them by June 1 and decided to sit down and write out a short story where I also decided to kill the protagonist midway through the story and then proceeded to do so. When I have a chance to revise and have other people read it to offer suggestions I might post it here for people to read FREE. Not that I get a lot of fiction traffic (yet).

Anyway, I am tired. I reset myself to be awake, mostly, during the days. Erin and CAMPER are away, and as a result I was spending some time with the F-i-L this weekend for a couple of reasons, one of which is that I wanted to go kayaking. As a result, actually don’t think this is a cause and effect thing; but, as a result, I was very tired all night and couldn’t see straight half the time. Okay, I could see just fine, I felt very tired.

Now I am home and I am reflecting on the idea that I suddenly feel trapped by my job. It is a nothing job. That’s not why I feel trapped. There are a couple of reasons. First, we have an economy where people are not really hiring and when they do, they get a stack of applications several dozen feet tall and as a result of that the idea, “it’s who you know not what you know,” seems to play into the equation of job hunting. Second, even though I have a bachelor’s degree, an alleged golden ticket, it ain’t getting me anywhere. I guess part of the problem I have comes as a result of hearing some people talk about needing a job, feeling as though they should look in a specific place, and then finding the job lickety-split as though the hand of Providence is interceding in their lives. And there are multiple people who have shared that with me of late; only to have me, in desperation, take a job that barely pays the bills and only because we live with relatives.

You might see why I would feel trapped.

I am grateful for the job – though on the notion of gratitude, I wonder how frequently I should be telling “this place” how grateful I am as the contract between me and them is that I come and do a job and they pay me – but at what point do I get to be more selective (read picky) in this whole experience?

Truth told, I think it is when Erin decides where she is going and what she wants to do. Had we followed me and my desires we’d be in England or somewhere else; and yet, that’s not what Providence or experience or what we need is telling us at the moment. Yes, I get to start a master’s program here in 61 days and I get to send writing samples to the school soon; but at the same time, this doesn’t change the feelings of frustration and entrapment and wonder.

There isn’t really an answer to any of this. It’s an ambiguous situation during an uncertain and tumultuous time with the result that I get to wait, I will probably get to continue working for a place I don’t like, and I get to try and fit in reading, writing, and revising into the picture because I am not, at least at present, the master of my fate.

Real Heroes Fly ]]> http://www.johnhattaway.com/2009/05/fatigue-and-feeling-trapped/feed/ 0 http://www.johnhattaway.com/2009/05/funky-experience/ http://www.johnhattaway.com/2009/05/funky-experience/#comments Mon, 04 May 2009 23:51:00 +0000 smokingpen http://www.johnhattaway.com/?p=1855 Because I work at night I sleep during the day. Generally, given what time I go to bed, I sleep all day and wake up about the point where the sun is going down. Someone might connect this with being a vampire – heck, the service manager for overnights makes that connection frequently, but the truth is, I work nights and have to sleep at some point which means I sleep during the day.

Today’s period of sleep was occupied by just that. This isn’t interesting or important. Everyone needs X hours of sleep and when you get less things start to slow down. Take Sunday night and Monday morning for instance. The amount of sleep I got was less than what I wanted or needed and as a result, I was dragging. Sure, the night went by relatively fast, but that was as much a result of doing work that should’ve been done by co-workers the two previous nights than because I was really awake and with it. Sunday nights and Monday mornings have that effect on me.

No, what is important in my sleep period is that I went to sleep and it was like I was somewhere else entirely. I can’t tell you where as I don’t really remember the dreaming or where I was or even what I was doing; but rather, when I was woken up I was so disoriented with being in bed and having Erin right there that I kind of freaked myself out. Seriously, I was somewhere else and then jerked back into reality. It was weird. If I was one of the Wachowski brothers I’d probably chalk this up to being inside of the Matrix and suddenly having the software program reset on me or something. Granted, I am no Mr. Anderson, nor Neo, but I a Mr. Hattaway and Smokingpen and so, maybe some variant on Morpheus or the computer interface is trying to share something with me.

Probably not.

I mean, we all need to sleep. Sleep is essential not only for proper brain activity but also so that our bodies produces the appropriate amount of hormones and chemicals and run all ship-shape. We have to sleep to remain sane. The list of things a lack of sleep or consistently not getting enough sleep can cause is pretty impressive, and disturbing, and calls into question the Wachowski brother’s sanity and the amount of sleep they collectively get. In short, sleep is necessary and I was getting it.

What I am actually sure of is that I hit an REM state of sleep, it was probably necessary and something I’d not really been in for an extended period of time in a couple or few days, and as a result all of the data my brain needed to filter through and move from short term and temporary memory into long term and stored memory had to take place. As a result of that and how our minds all work, I was magically transported off to some place I can’t remember and don’t recall and the mere act of being waked up caused me to freak out a little because I didn’t expect to open my eyes in bed in the office in the loft in the house we are currently living in.

I will stop there. I’ve rambled long enough.

Real Heroes Fly ]]> http://www.johnhattaway.com/2009/05/funky-experience/feed/ 0 http://www.johnhattaway.com/2009/04/academia/ http://www.johnhattaway.com/2009/04/academia/#comments Tue, 28 Apr 2009 01:29:00 +0000 smokingpen http://www.johnhattaway.com/2009/04/academia/ I’ve been wondering, for a while, what it is I am meant to be doing. This isn’t a question of what I want to be doing and what I dream of doing, but a question of what I should be doing with my life that allows me the latitude to move forward and pursue what I want. To take care of the family. All those important things that have a tendency to get shunted to the side for a variety of reasons.

The outcome of this questing, at least for me, is the willingness – and at times eagerness, to leap back into jobs or careers that I don’t enjoy or don’t facilitate my advancing toward what I want to become. The outcome is perpetual frustration at the directions and outcomes of what I seem to find myself doing.

And, No, this is not in response to my current job.

What I get out of all this is the realization that I have two choices. First, to accept what is handed to me, what I’ve done in the past, and hope that the outcome and my enjoyment works in opposition to experience and what I already know about myself. Or, second, to find where real and true happiness resides and then pursue that course.

I’ve heard it said that insanity, or one indicator of insanity, is the repetition of a single act with the expectation of a different outcome. Taking the first choice, which is safe, is allowing myself to relive the past on the hopes of a different future. As a result, I know that the path leads to disatisfaction and unhappiness.

The problem, then, is what of the second option? Will it guarantee happiness? or a brighter future? or success? The answer to all three questions is, No. What it does allow for is a different outcome, a different result. I can logically expect different outcomes by pursuing new and different paths.

As a result, I think that my next degree qualifies me to teach at the college level. More, I think that a bachelors degree should allow me an entry level position in a college or university somewhere in a non-faculty position. The outcome is that I want a job in academia. I think I want to see how that treats me and how happy I am. I think that I will start to look for jobs that advance me toward what I want rather than merely taking care of what my family needs.

So, for those who care, I am looking for a job at a college or university. Any advice? Please offer it. Any suggestions? Please make them. Know of someplace that could use me? Let me know. I will appreciate it.

John

I am writing today. Yay! or not. You know, whatever. I did get an email the other day from one of the professor’s I’d asked to write a letter of recommendation. He sent it off, which is a very good thing. Yes, I am in the program, BUT I am waiting for the official letter which, I was thinking the other week, I will probably frame and hang somewhere as it is far more important to what I am trying to do than, say, my diploma. That also reminds me that I have a high school diploma somewhere in this country that might need to find a new home, in a file, with my college diploma.

As I wrote that it occured to me that the most impressive diploma wall I’ve ever seen (though not impressive enough to cause me to want a diploma wall or to covet his) was a professor of history at BYU. He had a whole series (something like five) diplomas from a univerity I would love to go to and get a single diploma from. I would probably still frame the letter(s) of acceptance and file away the sheepskin, but that is my personality.

I ended up staying home last night and sleeping. I slept all day, was awake for a few hours, talked with Erin, realized I wasn’t feeling better and had started feeling worse, decided to call in sick, whereupon I started feeling worse. Instead of being up all night, which is what I thought might happen, I went to sleep and was asleep for most of the night. As I am awake now, I am blogging. Lucky you all.

On the flip side of that, I am thinking of changing shifts at the place I work. As much as I don’t like working directly with the buying public, I have discovered that I like being with my wife and child a lot more and would prefer to have a shift (or shifts) that is more compatible with their needs and schedule than what I have been working. At present, ten p.m. to 6:30 a.m. is only convenient for me and even then I am not reading anything, I am not (really) writing anything and the outcome is that with the start of an intensive reading and writing program with the intent of finishing a completed novel to graduate, I need something to change in my life. As that is also true, what can change in my life is a) I find a different job entirely – which I have no control over; or b) I switch within the company I am currently working for and find something more compatible to the needs around me. In either case, something has to shift.

With that said, I don’t know how I am going to go about making that shift. I am good where I am at. I don’t find myself in the store during daylight hours where I could talk to someone, and the person who is there late at night for employee needs in the employee services (not even human resources) department isn’t exactly reliable for information. She’s been putting, every two days, a piece of paper with my name on the board telling me to come see them to sign some paperwork. I can only do that when I am working. The last time I was working and asked about the paperwork she looked at me like I was stupid and then proceeded, the next day, to re-post that same piece of paper. What is this world coming to?

Real Heroes Fly ]]> http://www.johnhattaway.com/2009/04/the-post-to-rule-them-all/feed/ 0