Christmas Tree on the Street

 

It is kind of nice to once again work with an organization that shows support for popular community holidays.

The school at which I taught forever shamed everyone for not supporting other cultures and blocked every attempt to celebrate American holidays.  They really should be ashamed of themselves for not realizing it was their obligation to teach incoming cultures about American tradition to aid in the transition to this brave new world.  That is how it works in the rest of the world.

I need to come back to this and write more.  It really was an awful experience and sad for the children, who always wanted to know why we never did anything for Christmas.

I always did and always had a tiny tree in my room too as a bit of a dare, but mostly because the kids liked it.

Me Maui from Moana

Apparently, I am Maui from Moana, according to a colleague that spends her spare brain cycles equating folks with Disney characters.  She explained this to me today, and when I said I would have to watch the movie for the first time, she sent the video along.

New Faucets

This made for a fun day. Snake & Rooter did the work, as the tub faucets were above my pay grade and desperately needed repaired or replaced prior to the coming re-glazing.  The whole matter cost just under $600.  We probably got took, or not.  It is hard to say these days.  The supervisor did need to come back and fix a few things.  

Just after the installers left, I ran water in the sink and instantly confronted a leaking drain.  The diverter leaked when it was turned from the shower to the tub position; only about 3 drops, which they blamed on craftsmanship.  Their supervisor repaired both without much amusement on his face.  

Later, we discovered that the access panel was not put back correctly either.  Removing it, the subfloor appeared damp also.  It may just be leftovers.  There does not appear to be anything leaking.

It was only small fiasco that took most of the day, and I was a little disappointed that things were left as they were.  That sink drain did not just suddenly decide to leak.  Somebody forgot to check functionality.  Shame on me.

Pants on Fire

Why do some folks feel the need to lie about the most ridiculous of things?

For example, an email received from QP this morning insists there was confusion about an email I had sent, indicating, "I’ve gotten a few emails already asking what your email means."

That is a bold-faced lie.  The people emailing her would most certainliy have emailed me first, and not her.

Why does she lie like that?  

This is not the first time either.

She continually makes things up to fit her agenda.  

I do not understand.

WHY!?!?!?!

East to Glow, West to Snow

Out on the road again, the first encounter with the bizarre occurred just east of Carrollton. It is unlikely we would have even stumbled on that had I not been ignoring the map in favor of memory that turned out not so good.

The original intent had been to pass along US-24, then MO-41 through Arrow Rock.  Instead, we missed the right turn in Richmond and ended staring down the World's Largest Pecan in Brunswick.  We were nearly trapped into shopping too, but it turned out only a momentary distraction.

The opportunity to drop in and have a look at Pinnacle Youth Park, just north of Columbia.  A brief examination of the site found it dryer than had been noted on previous occasions, but no less interesting. 

After lunch, we launched straight into the St Louis area, pausing briefly to check on some family land.  Unfortunately, they had draped so many lights over the area as to make it impossible to view anything beyond the front gate.

That only left our plans for the evening, beginning with the Missouri Botancial Garden, which accessing proved to be an adventure of its very own.  It was not awful and the visit to Garden Glow, quite a fun little experience.  

The next morning ended up in St Charles for their annual Christmas Traditions.  It was kind of half surprise and half "well, of course" and an interesting little experience in the home of the first capital of the state of Missouri.

We had to get out of there fairly early, pausing in Rocheport, just as the sun began to disappear behind the snowstorm clouds that we were headed for in Kansas City.  The day had been near perfect weather, but was about to be ruined, as we finally arrived in town to much higher precipitation levels than had been predicted.

Pane Switcher is a Pain

The X in the pane switcher within Power BI is huge pain in the neck!  

I find myself constantly opening things that I have inadvertently closed. 

The user experience would feel better if the option were to simply collapse the pane only.

What exactly is the use case for closing a pane versus collapsing anyhow?  It is not memory hog.  Closing it does not appear to offer any benefit except enabling users to have to click twice more time to get to open again.

The current user experience for this is backwards.

Two clicks to collapse, click again to re-open; and, one click to close, with two Clicks to re-open.

I recommend one clicks to collapse, click again to re-open; and, two clicks to close, and two clicks to re-open.

That is, unless you can somehow make it so that there is ever only one click, like getting rid of close altogether.

I suspect that most would agree that collapse should be the primary action and not close.  If nothing else, give me a collapse button!  I should not have to click twice to collapse the pane out of the way.

. . .

Re: Share your thoughts on the new On-Object Inter... - Page 34 - Microsoft Fabric Community

Unicorns and Privacy

 

"When a candidate is curious, it suggests genuine engagement with your company and interest beyond a paycheck. Curiosity is a great way to predict if a candidate will be willing to learn and grow in their position as well."

“Unicorns” are curious — and hiring managers love curiosity - Big Think

While generally true, I think they put on blinders at the end.  Some folks display their curiosity through observation more than questioning. Additionally, a candidate may have already satisfied much of their curiosity about a firm and a role by the time they get to the hiring manager, eradicating any curiosity about either, resulting in few or no questions.

The story also suggests, 

"Tips for cultivating curiosity at work:

1) Give time and budget to team members who want to learn more about a particular subject or skill. 

2) When challenges come up, practice asking questions before throwing out solutions.

3) Take time to get to know your team members on a more personal level by offering optional team lunches and other experiences.

The first is obvious or should be to anyone with a mind to business.  The second is little strange.  My philosophy is to always ask questions before throwing out solutions.  Lastly, it is important to remember that some team members value their privacy above all else.  Don't push it.

Let the Season of Eating Begin

Got a little award today and posted to LinkedIn, one of the last surviving social media networks, for me.  There is a little more freedom to simply posting here though, which is what this blog appears to be slowly transitioning towards.

The whole affair took place at one of the ballrooms at Argosy Casino today, just beyond this wonderfully tall tree, lit warmly welcome the season of eating.  The associated cheesecake was delicious accompaniment.

Kudos from C.N.

Todd was instrumental in helping Payroll limit the number of reports required each month by including them in the data he provides. This is saving Payroll hours of time each month and is greatly appreciated! Thanks Todd! K said Thanks, too!

Duplicate Reporting Effort

Identified a duplication of effort in reporting, which cost the firm roughly 4-6 hours per week over the past 11 months.  Finance had been providing the exact same reports as had been developed in Power BI in the first part of the year.

Chinquapin Day Trip

Heading south to the Pineville area of Missouri, I stumbled on some long-lost family.

There was also this odd little structure that I am still puzzled over.

I also discovered that bulls are very short and hairy in these parts.

Additionally, I was to beware of Google shortcuts.  I don't usually mind, but this really was an unnecessary and unrequested diversion.  It was good kicking up a little dust though.

The purpose of the excursion is documented in the following story.

The journey back was entirely uneventful.

It is about all that the Interstate is good for.

Glowing Orange

Out on my walk today, I stumbled upon this glowing apparition standing streetside.

Speak Last

The Very Best Leaders Speak Last. Here's Why | LinkedIn

Future Death

I asked the new "co-pilot" to create me an image of future death and this is what it came up with.

Long Exposure Silver Tone Testing

A few tests with a longer exposure raw file on the Samsung S23, processed using Adobe Photoshop Express Basic Silver.  These are 30 second exposures at ISO 400, after dark, about 8 pm above the 39th parallel.  The above is looking northwesterly, while the shot below is staring straight up.

  

Leading by Decree

This could not be truer.  Indeed, in recent days I have had to deal with a self-proclaimed leader unfamiliar with this concept.  This individual sits atop her throne issuing commandments, making demands, and not bothering to actual collaborate with others to attain her goals.

While I totally understand that some are just this way, it remains inexcusable.  In my most humble opinion, a good leader takes the time to listen, evaluate, and work with a team to come to a consensus. 

Am I wrong?

I also understand that a good leader definitely does not belittle and harass their team.  In addition to the above, there was an instance in a meeting today when she asked about a certain update.  When told what day it would be, she smirked and remarked snidely, is that before noon or after.