(Old) Gunpowder, Treason and Plot in the MMP

Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
201

My trigger is if I don’t hear anything coming from the next room. Ms Peach will be up to something eevil when she’s quiet. Usually shredding socks or the throw blankets. We start dog school tomorrow. She’s gotten worse over the last 2 days. Coming when called is now optional.

My friend who has the warehouse where I’ve been keeping all the stuff I moved out of my shop that I didn’t sell is needing the space back. So I went up there and sorted through it. Took some tools and things to bring to the museum, I’ll keep my name on them. I still own nearly as much hardware as the museum does. I’m going to try to get them to buy it from me. And mine is better stuff.

I keep forgetting it’s Firday, I’m not usually off today, but will be in on sundy, plus high school and dog school tomorrow, still recovering from the daylight change…I have no idea what day it is or what time it is.

202

We went on a trip with other geezers to a local Italian place. They did a pretty good French onion soup, but the pizza not so much. The organizer of this outing kept bitching about how full she was: well, that’s what happens when you stuff yourself with a loaf of bread on top of a bowl of fettucine Alfredo. Who eats both bread and pasta? The worst part was listening to the one old antique who was back-seat driving all the way home. STFU!

The new egg poaching pan arrived; sweet!

203

SIL called a bit ago. He and daughter need to go to the party venue to set up, so I get the grands in the morning, then we’ll take them to the party. It’s a mini-farm owned by Daughter’s coworker who is close to making it a full-time party business. Anyway, I get some grands time before the craziness descends.

FCD didn’t have lunch till 2 so I declared that supper will be grab whatever whenever, and I can’t decide between soup or cereal with yogurt. Or something else. I’m sure inspiration will strike. And since laundry, ice making, and watering are done, the agenda now includes max chillage.

204

Howdy Y’all! I am on a break until convention Eucharist at five p.m. Back in my room for a while cause I am a bit peopled out. It’s been good so far. The biggest item has been the election of deputies (TIL I learned delegates to General Convention are called deputies) to GC. It took four ballots to elect four Priest deputies and four lay deputies. The rest of the day was the Bishop’s address to convention, a presentation of the strategic plan, a review of the budget (gets adopted tomorrow) and the chance to see folks I know from around the Diocese. I have actually enjoyed it thus far.

BBBoo lunch was rubber chikin piccata. I did not get any on my pants or shirt. I feel so sophisticated and suave! I could have had a ham, but what’s a convention luncheon without rubber chikin. It was actually quite good and moist. Dessert was a chawklit tiramisu type thingy. YUM!

I did get caffeine shortly after my post this mornin’. It was a Diet Coke. I wanted coffee but it did the trick. I got coffee and a raisin bagel with cream cheese at the convention center. Life then greatly improved.

I shall now chill a bit. Also need to get google maps to tell me how to get where I am goin’. How ever did we survive without a phone that tells us where to go!

205

last night, chair 2 went out for trash collection. yes, ikea advert. team, i felt bad for the chair. it was a good and faithful chair. i do hope someone gave it a good home before collection. the other one went out 2 weeks ago. last thursday, it was raining. i couldn’t put the poor chair out in the rain. i did thank it for the years of service it gave the office, the cats, and me. usually, furniture will get taken before collection.

today was a good shred day in the office. 4 bags. quite a few people cleared out their offices.

do i have the energy to go to the supermarket tonight… or wait and pay a bit more tomorrow… decisions, decisions.

206

Mrs. Nott left late last night for a trip to Philadelphia by train. She’ll be carrying her ID on her person to show she’s a US citizen. You never know, these days. I’m not going along, for several reasons. The principal reason is that my Parki-ness makes me wobbly on solid ground, let alone on a rocking train. So, I’m here, eating lunch and typing while my sweetie is rolling through upstate NY.

A guy on Science Friday on the radio is saying he was wrong for years, now identifying what he thought were juvenile T. Rexes as a separate species. Exciting stuff, I guess. Another guy is talking about axolotls, a bunch of critters with an interesting name and quickly diminishing numbers.

The last item on Science Friday was a call from a listener. Last week, someone said that something or other was “a drop in the bucket.” So, this guy launched into a complicated analysis of how many drops are in a bucket, comparing it to what the original comment was about. The ratio was pretty close, so, yes, it was like a drop in the bucket. Folks, you just don’t get that kind of thing on any other radio show!

207

Anyone here from the Cincinatti area? I just recieved an order of Glier’s Goetta in the mail. I first had it quite a while back, when I and some other Dopers were camping in an Ohio state park. We shopped at Jungle Jim’s International Market and someone bought some. I really liked it. Recently ads for it started popping up on FB and it seemed like a sign from above so I ordered some. Can’t wait for a chub to thaw so I can have some.

208

We’ve got axolotls in our museum. A cute interaction I heard the other day was a kid asking question after question and the mom said, “You axolotl questions.”

209

:rofl:

210

I just had my monthly one-on-one meeting with La Jefa.

She gave me my three month notice. I’m being laid off as of February 5th.

With this president and the last one (so several years), I’ve had the impression that they don’t really understand the complexities of what I do. They’re going to ship our data off to our database to be cleaned and reformatted. They’re going to be surprised when our data doesn’t get loaded.

211

Oh, that’s horrible. I am so sorry this is happening, I do hope you land on your feet.

212

Damn. That sucks. How long have you worked there?

213

18 years.

214

Flyboy That really sucks. Hope they realize the foolishness of out-boarding what you do.

215

Looks like it has been a chatty Firday. For me, I exercised, picked up my dry-cleaning and cleaned out the car and re-distributed the soccer stuff to other places. A Culver’s Butterburger was my major repast of the day, may or may not have a bowl of Salad later in the evening (it can wait for the weekend if necessary). Munching on baby carrots right now, so I iz being healthy…There is only a 40% chance of rain tonight but the NWS has issued a Tornado Watch here until 6:30pm, so the night’s weather is up for grabs…either way, I won’t be going anywhere.

FCM, sounds like the cookie and the stick routine may be just what Otis needs to calm down.

Flyboy, the couple times I tried Bing I didn’t care for it, hope you can find the magic keys to get to Google.

Bright Tree, that’s a very good list and I just printed it out and will work on it…sometime…but won’t forget it. Much thanks to you and all that offered suggestions.

doggio, I still understand about half of what you write, but I’ll be sure never to order a shipment from the Home Depot. And your description of Spot’s reaction and the subsequent comment made me laugh out loud. Thanks for that.

Hang in there, shoe.

VanGO, sounds like Ms. Peach is testing her limits, hope you can crack down on it effectively but lovingly. Hope your extra stuff can find a good home, either with the museum or elsewhere.

Been to Olive Garden lately? (their breadsticks are the best part of the meal IMHO).

swampy, it sounds like things were accomplished, which is always a plus (and usually a surprise) at meetings like this.

Knots, haven’t listened to Science Friday in awhile, may have to make it a regular activity (if I can ever figure out how to program the %^&%* radio in the car..took me until today to find the mute button… ).

Cupcakes, never lived in Cincinatti, but hope you enjoy your Goetta (whatever it is…and just googled it and it appears to be some type of sausage).

Flyboy, Oooooff. That had to be a kick in the…formal dances… Sorry it had to happen and hope you find other employment soon–if they don’t come back with hat in hand to hire you back.

And carrots have been finished off, so on to the evening’s internetting. Take care.

216

Doesn’t really matter now.

She said they might extend me a month… if they need me. They’re going to merge the non-data parts of my position into a new position, and offer it to our receptionist to do with her other duties. If she doesn’t accept, she’ll be gone. Anyway, here’s what they’re offering me:

  1. Employment Transition

Your final day of employment will be February 5, 2026. You will continue to receive your

regular pay through that date. Medical, Dental and Vision benefits will be in place through

February 28, 2026.

If you remain in good standing and continue to perform your regular duties through this

period, you will receive a $1,000 retention bonus, payable with your final paycheck.

Your final paycheck will include all earned wages, the retention bonus, and payment for

accrued PTO, and will be provided no later than the next regularly scheduled payday

following your last day of work, in accordance with Washington law.

  1. Severance and Benefits

In exchange for signing this Agreement, you will receive the following:

 Severance Pay: One week of pay for up to 10 years of service, payable in a lump

sum within 10 business days after your Separation Date.

Payout of Accrued PTO: Payment for all unused, accrued paid time o as of

February 5, 2026.

 Healthcare Contribution: A contribution of $250 per month for two months

(March and April) 2026) toward your COBRA or replacement health insurance

premiums.

 Outplacement Support: The Association will provide 3 hours of Out Placement

assistance through Career Horizons to help you with your transition.

These benefits are in addition to any wages or reimbursements owed to you through your

final day.

So right around $10,000 including the retention bonus, plus a couple-thousand in PTO.

217

Johnny, that’s awful. I am so sorry.

218

Truly, I could picture this action, right down to the indignant look you received right along with the fluffed-up tail! And I howled. Thanks for a mental piccie that’s kept me giggling all afternoon.

BBBoo, I’m sure Moxie appreciates your long-suffering nature on her behalf. I’m afraid the need for coffee would outweigh my altruism were I in a similar situation. You’re a better woman than me!

Both, I’m glad you found it helpful. It will save you and your heirs a bunch of guessing and hopefully prevent at least some squabbling. Just remember to review and update it about once a year. It’s surprising how fast things change.

Ollie likes to do this, too. He also strategically places toys in my natural path of walking through the house, with uncanny accuracy. You’d almost think… nnnaaaaaahhhh. :distorted_face:

That’s brutal, after 18 years. :frowning: Did you have any inkling? Are you coping with it all right? Something like that should never come as a surprise. It’s a wrench, though, even if you’re somewhat expecting it. I have confidence that you’re going to make your peace with it and come out in a much better situation. My best to you.

219

As I said, I’ve felt that Data Operations has been under-appreciated for years.

Trying to maintain an even strain. Maybe I’ll have time now to sell all of my stuff.

220

You’re telling your age there. :stuck_out_tongue:

Yep! But, oddly enough, she could remember our legal, baptismal and confirmation names when she meant business. I always knew that when she addressed me as Red Ann Elizabeth Patricia lastname, I wasn’t going to be ungrounded much before college.

When Nelson was a puppy, I’m sure he thought his name was Dammit, Nelson, stop that!. :stuck_out_tongue:

Does she like tug ropes? Sis makes them for Nelson out of the inseams of jeans she upcycles. She does a simple braid with knots for small dogs and has made a couple of square braided ones from Dad’s, Baby Sis’ husband and son’s jeans (all very tall men) for bigger dogs. The dogs love them.

That kid has a future!

I’m sorry to hear that. I hope that you find something with a shorter commute (or no commute) and a better fit soonest.

Not from Cincinnati, but my grandmother (German American originally from western PA, moved to IN as a child) used to make it. It was yummy with a couple of eggs for breakfast.

I got a load of laundry done today. I really need to hit the grocery store tomorrow. I’m down to stuff that has the potential for flatulence and right now, farts just can’t be trusted. :stuck_out_tongue:

I fixed some veggie fried brown rice for supper. 'Twas good and I have enough leftovers for tomorrow evening. I had relegated the lentils that I made earlier in the week to freezer boxes, so that will take care of a few meals once I’m feeling :100: