Bizarre Bradyisms

The Un-told Woes of Automation

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The office building that I work in is a fairly new construction and thus has some of the niceties not normally seen elsewhere.  There is free covered parking, plenty of windows with beautiful views of the surrounding landscapes, and… automated everything.  That’s right, automated everything.  Of course one would expect things like the heating and A/C to be automatic, but other item such as the restrooms and their automated toilets, faucets, soap dispensers, and paper towel dispensers are just too much.  In face, tt took me quite awhile to figure how to position my hands so that the soap dispenser would not continually shoot its gel at me.  Now when I come home after a long day, I simply assume the restroom there works the same way and it takes me a good five seconds to realize that the towels are not going to magically appear before me. 

I guess my only fear now is trying to anticipate and prepare for what they are going to automate next.  Pants maybe?  I wonder how automatic pants would work?

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Group Projects & PJs

Sometimes I wonder why I work in the field that I do, but then certain events take place which make me remember and leave no doubt as to why I love networks and the Internet in general. 

On such example just transpired.  I recently finished participating in a group project with three other individuals in my class.  We all live in various parts of Utah County and only see each other when we attend class.  However, using an Internet phone bridge and Google Docs, we collectively created, in real-time, an instructional document and corresponding formal memo to be submitted tomorrow.  The best part of it was that I didn’t leave my room / office and I was wearing my pajamas the entire time. 

I’ve never been one who appreciates group work in school, but if I can complete all of my projects while wearing PJs, I think I’ll be able to cope.

Life, As I Know It

Here are a few quick things that have occurred in my life recently.  Although there is probably more detail that could be included here, I don’t feel much like writing it, so I’m not going to. 

- I had my previous roommates up for dinner at my house last weekend.  I cooked a roast and some vegetables in the counter-top roaster I received for Christmas last year.  It turned out just okay, not great, but okay.  I tried using a different recipe that was supposed to cook it faster, but failed to do so.  We ate and then played some Texas Hold ‘Em poker at the kitchen table.  It was good to have company because this house is often completely empty and I get quite lonely. 

- I received tickets to go to the Jazz game in the suite my company own at the Energy Solutions Arena.  It was a last minute thing and only had about four hours notice before the game started when the tickets were given to me, so that made finding someone to come with me difficult.  It ended up being my roommate Bryant who is probably the most interested in sports of anyone I am living with.  The suite is located at the center of the court and was of course filled with food and drinks.  I saw a number of people there from the office and actually enjoyed watching the game.  The Jazz won in the end 100 to 89 and it was a great evening. 

- I’ve realized yet again that I don’t understand girls.  The specific one I had been interested in recently and had taken to the corn maze / haunted house, watched various conference sessions with in our projection room, cooked dinner for, attended the temple with and was accidentally asked to be the representing couple for the session, went to a BYU volleyball game with, and other dates is now ignoring me.  One Friday night things were fine and then Sunday morning last week gave me the cold shoulder and now avoids even making eye contact.  All I can say is that I am really getting tired of the emotional games people play with each other.  All I can ask is that someone be honest and upfront with me and actually communicate instead of leaving me to play the guessing game. 

- School is an up and down process for me.  Some weeks I really enjoy going and reading the assignments; others I don’t care one way or another what is taking place and how it might affect me.  My job keeps me busy and Wednesdays are extremely rough when I have work all day, school all evening, and then maintenance projects until 2:00 AM. 

- Bachelorhood is not all it is cracked up to be.  When I get lonely, I cook.  Based off of my recent loaves of bread, elaborate breakfasts, and fancy dinners I believe it would be safe to assume that I get lonely fairly often.  Sometimes I feel like any chance at companionship I could have is being “withheld” from me for some higher purpose that I currently do not understand (D&C 25:4) but just have faith that things will somehow work out. 

- I took a walk the other day to try and clear my head after attempting to study.  I ended up strolling around the different neighborhoods near my house for close to three hours.  I stumbled upon a pumpkin patch, some magnificent houses with large expanses of private land (that make it difficult to leave once you’ve already crossed the fence), and simply beautiful views of nature that make me feel so calm in what is often considered a hectic world.  It was an adventure and I loved every minute of it.

- I just found out that my mother might come to visit Utah in a few weeks.  I’d love it if that were to happen because since I won’t be coming home for Thanksgiving this year (maybe not even Christmas), I could really use a hug from my mom before the year is over. 

Tha-tha-tha-thats all folks.  News at 11:00.  Say what?

A Nickname

When I first got hired at my current job, my co-workers in the Systems Engineering team who sit across the hall from me could never remember my name.  Making the most of the situation, they conferred amongst themselves and associated my appearance with a ”famous” character and gave me a nickname: Wesley.

The name comes from the movie Princess Bride and the character is kind of the hero of the film.  I guess my face somehow resembled that of the actor and maybe even some of my mannerisms as well, but in the end, I guess it is kind of flattering.  I’ve never been one to take offense to people mispronouncing my name or even forgetting it entirely and the same holds true now.  While most of them now know me by my real name, every now and then they still call me Wesley and even respond to some of my questions with, “As you wish.”  I usually chuckle a little inside and just smile.

Happy

During the past 4 years or so I have had the tendency to always be slightly depressed.  Of course there were good days which I was always excited to have.  There were even good weeks and months, but overall, I always had this worthless feeling inside of me that left me feeling plain empty. 

I tried different ways of combating said feelings and sometimes they worked really well.  Other times they didn’t.  Once, I started running every afternoon when I returned from work / school.  Another time, I decided to learn to teach myself the piano.  Then, I attempted weight-lifting.  I tried to expand my social circle and make new friends.  I went to different wards in church.  I  started reading more.  I worked on developing my cooking abilities.  I worked on my improving my spirituality.  I tried to pack my schedule so full of school, work, personal studying, and sleep that there was no time for anything else.  The list could go on and on but the end result was the same for each: it worked for awhile but had no long term results.

I must admit that I’ve become a well-rounded person because of these activities and I wouldn’t have changed these pursuits for anything.  I’ve sometimes wondered why I had to deal with this and why it was so difficult for me to get over.  I don’t believe I will ever fully know why things happened the way they did, but looking back on it all, I’ve learned so much about who I am and what is important to me that wouldn’t have otherwise been possible.

Now, fast-forward to today.  I’m really quite happy.  I believe this summer was the climax to my bouts of depression and now that I’m on other side of the incline, things are starting to look really good.  In all honesty, it is probably more just perspective than surroundings or circumstance, but the end result is the same.  I am happy.  I enjoy my work a lot.  I love where I live.  I’m pursuing my educational and career goals.  The few friends I have I consider to be real friends.  All in all, I feel good and have much to be grateful for and even more to look forward to.