To-Do List helps me keep it together

I’m a “list person”. I like lists. Especially “To Do” lists. I like outlining my goals and enjoy the sense of accomplishment I feel when I get to cross those items off. So naturally, I’ve been looking for a “list” type app for my iPhone.

I had spent several weeks looking for just the right application. I wanted something simple with the ability to export lists, and to have the ability to set recurring tasks. Jim had run across one and emailed me a recommendation: Concrete Software’s To-Do List.

It has quickly become another iPhone app that I can’t live without. Not only can I use the recurring tasks feature to keep track of monthly, quarterly, and yearly bills and other recurring costs, I also use it for checklists for side projects, things I need to do at home, and more …

At the time of this post, To-Do List costs $2.99. If you’re a “list person” like me, you may find this a handy app to add to your GTD arsenal.

Seen in the mall today

Just one more week ’til football!

It’s almost here. Are you ready Tide fans?

ROLL TIDE ROLL!

Humpday Hilarities

Today we’re starting off with some funnies shared by my pal Cookie:

Staff: Golf course, may I help you?
Caller: What are your green fees?
Staff: 38 dollars.
Caller: Does that include golf?

Staff: Golf course, may I help you?
Caller: Yes, I need to get some information from you. First, is this Your correct phone number?

Staff: Golf course, may I help you?
Caller: Yes, we have a tee time for two weeks from Friday. What is the weather going to be like that day?

Staff: Golf course, may I help you?
Caller: Yes, I had a tee time for this afternoon but I am running late. Can you still get me out early?

Staff: Golf course, may I help you?
Caller: Yes, do you have one of those areas where you can buy a bucket of Golf balls and hit them for practice?
Staff: You mean a driving range?
Caller: No, that’s not it…

Staff: Golf course, may I help you?
Caller: Yes, I’d like to get a tee time tomorrow between 12 o’clock and noon.
Staff: Between 12 o’clock and noon?
Caller: Yes.
Staff: We’ll try to squeeze you in.

Staff: Golf course, may I help you?
Caller: Do you have any open tee times around 10 o’clock?
Staff: Yes, we have one at 10:15.
Caller: What’s the next time after that?
Staff: We have one at 10:22.
Caller: We’ll take that one. It will be a bit warmer.

Staff: Golf course, may I help you?
Caller: How much to play golf today?
Staff: 25 to walk, 38 with a cart.
Caller: 38 dollars?
Staff: No, 38 yen.

Staff: Golf course, may I help you?
Caller: What do you have for tee times tomorrow?
Staff: What time would you like?
Caller: What times do you have?
Staff: What time of the day?
Caller: Any time.
Staff: Morning or afternoon?
Caller: Whenever.
Staff: We have 16 times open in the morning and 20 open in the afternoon. Would you like me to read the whole list?
Caller: No, I don’t think any of those times will work for me.

Staff: Golf course, may I help you?
Caller: Do you have a dress code?
Staff: Yes, we do. We require soft spikes.
Caller: How about clothes?
Staff: Yes, you have to wear clothes.

Staff: Golf course, may I help you?
Caller: Yes, do you have a driving range there?
Staff: Yes.
Caller: How much for a bucket of large balls?
Staff: Sorry, we’re all out of large balls. But we can give you twice as many small balls for the same price.

Staff: Golf course, may I help you?
Caller: Can I get a tee time for tomorrow?
Staff: Sure, what time would you like?
Caller: Something between 9 o’clock and 10 o’clock. In the morning, if possible.

Staff: Golf course, may I help you?
Caller: Do you rent golf clubs there?
Staff: Yes, they’re 25 dollars.
Caller: How much to rent a bag?

Staff: Golf course, may I help you?
Caller: Yes, my husband just called me on his cell phone and told me he’s on the 15th hole. How many more holes does he have to play before he gets to the 18th?

Staff: Golf course, may I help you?
Caller: Yes, do you have a driving range there?
Staff: Yes.
Caller: How much for a large bucket?
Staff: Four dollars.
Caller: Does that include the balls?

Staff: Golf course, may I help you?
Caller: Do you have a twilight rate?
Staff: Yes, it’s 15 dollars after 2 o’clock.
Caller: And what time does that start?

Staff: Golf course, may I help you?
Caller: Yes, I’d like some info about your golf course.
Staff: OK, what would you like to know?
Caller: I don’t know, that’s why I called.

Staff: Golf course, may I help you?
Caller: My kids just came home with pockets full of range balls and said they stole them from your driving range. Would you like to buy them back?

And this one is courtesy of Don:

Turpentine vs. Holy Water

A little boy was sitting on the curb with a gallon of turpentine, shaking it up and watching all the bubbles. A while later a Priest came along and asked the little boy what he had.

The little boy replied, “This is the most powerful liquid in the world, it’s called turpentine.”

The Priest said, “No, the most powerful liquid in the world is Holy Water. If you take some of this Holy Water and rub it on a pregnant woman’s belly, she’ll pass a healthy baby.”

The little boy replied, “You take some of this turpentine and rub it on a cat’s ass, he’ll pass a Harley Davidson.”

And last but not least, this was sent to me by a fellow Bama Angel:

His request approved, the Fox News photographer quickly used a cell phone to call the local airport to charter a flight. He was told a twin engine plane would be waiting for him at the airport.

Arriving at the airfield, he spotted a plane warming up outside a hanger. He jumped in with his bag, slammed the Door shut, and shouted, ‘Let’s go.’

The pilot taxied out, swung the plane into the wind and took off. Once in the air, the photographer instructed the pilot, `Fly over the valley and make low passes so I can take pictures of the fires on the hillsides.’

‘Why?’ asked the pilot. ‘Because I’m a photographer for Fox Cable News,’ he responded. ‘And I need to get some close up shots.’

The pilot was strangely silent for a moment. Finally he stammered, ‘So, what you’re telling me is … you’re NOT my flight instructor?

Dreams are cruel

It’s been a while since I’ve posted “personal stuff”. There are a myriad of reasons, the biggest being that I work for a company that has a huge online presence — including blogging and social networking. Being at UAB, I was always selective with what I shared, but I’ve found that I have to be even more so now.

That … and I tend to go “anti-blog” when there’s a lot of family drama and other things going on.

I had a dream earlier this week that UAB called me and wanted me to come back. The details of the dream are very faint to me now, but I distinctly remember waking up and feeling very down. That feeling has pretty much stuck with me all week. I can’t shake it, and what’s worse, I don’t yet fully understand why it’s bothering me so much.

I once told someone that I didn’t know that I wanted to be a web designer until I was hired there. Sure, there were things that I didn’t like about it. Higher management didn’t think much of my department. The pay wasn’t that great, but the benefits were awesome. It was close to home, and I had a very flexible schedule.

What I loved most about the job: I got to create things. Sure, it wasn’t as often as I’d like, and the majority of what I created I couldn’t show off to anyone … but for me it was just a great feeling being a part of the team. I felt appreciated. My opinion mattered. I loved my coworkers — they’re great people. Some of my “customers” I could have done without, but there were several that I just adored and loved working with.

And before I knew it … all that was gone.

Sure, I like where I am now. The people are nice. The facilities are nice. The pay is great. The benefits are less than UAB’s, but nobody’s perfect. But I miss the creative stuff.

I think that’s what’s eating me up, and I can’t yet let go of it. I mean let’s face it, with the way the economy is right now and the local government’s current financial state being in the toilet, there’s no way I’m going to be hired back. And to be totally honest, I just can’t go back to work under the current administration. My department is full of great people, but the people in charge all the way up the hierarchy don’t appreciate them, and sure as hell didn’t think much of me.

Or, that’s the impression they ALWAYS gave me! Several people have tried to convince me otherwise. It’s hard to listen when their actions tell me something totally different!!

I recently heard from a friend who’s still there, and I’ve been replaced — well, sort of. My actual position still no longer exists, but my duties have been taken over by someone. She was brought in during last year’s “merger” and took over most of my workload when I was laid off. I unwittingly trained my replacement. Thanks to me, she’s got some SharePoint and HTML experience, so she was naturally selected to pick up my stuff.

I don’t think that’s what she wants, but I definitely get the impression that she feels she can’t do anything else there and is just doing what she’s told so she can keep her job. Not that I blame her. She’s a good friend of mine, I love her dearly, and I can’t bring myself to be mad at her. It’s not her fault that I was let go, but I still can’t help feeling like shit when I think about how easily I was replaced.

Thinking about it now, I guess that’s why I’ve been trying like mad to stay preoccupied with new obsessions. They’re distractions to keep me from thinking about how unhappy and useless I feel. If it’s anyone’s fault, it’s probably my own for not keeping my options open during my time at UAB. I was so happy to finally be there, that I shied away from any new possibilities because I felt loyal to my employer and refused to hear any offers from anywhere else.

That’s something that keeps biting me in the ass: being loyal to my employer. You’d think I’d have learned by now …

Humpday Hilarities

Sorry that this is being posted a day later than normal, a few snags prevented me from posting yesterday. However, said snags have been sacked.

Without further ado, this funny is courtesy of my Cotillion sister, Fausta:

The Funniest Staff Meeting Ever

The boss of a Madison Avenue advertising agency called a spontaneous staff meeting in the middle of a particularly stressful week. (This is one pretty sharp boss!) When everyone gathered, the boss, who understood the benefits of having fun, told the burnt out staff the purpose of the meeting was to have a quick contest. The theme: Viagra advertising slogans.

The only rule was they had to use past ad slogans, originally written for other products that captured the essence of Viagra. Slight variations were acceptable.

About 7 minutes later, they turned in their suggestions and created a Top 10 List. With all the laughter and camaraderie, the rest of the week went very well for everyone!

The top 10 were:

10. Viagra, Whaazzzz up!
9. Viagra, The quicker pecker picker upper.
8. Viagra, like a rock !
7. Viagra, When it absolutely, positively has to be there overnight.
6. Viagra , Be all that you can be.
5. Viagra, Reach out and touch someone.
4. Viagra, Strong enough for a man, but made for a woman.
3. Viagra, Home of the whopper!
2. Viagra, We bring good things to Life!

And the unanimous number one slogan:

1. This is your peepee. This is your peepee on drugs. Any questions?

This one comes from one of my coworkers:

Aion beta weekend: My thoughts

The final Aion closed beta weekend has now come and gone. I have had a TON of fun playing the last couple of months and absolutely CANNOT wait until the headstart! (those who’ve pre-ordered get to play a few days prior to game release, isn’t that cool?!)

Jim, Jess, and I played all weekend. Yesterday was Jessie’s birthday (my baby is now 12!!), so of course we let her stay up late all weekend so she could play with us a little more. She absolutely loves this game, and it has surprised me how well she’s taken to this MMO.

Such a smart little geekling. That’s my girl!

A funny moment: I was questing with a group in the Tursin Outpost last night and just had to announce, “My baby just got her Ascension quest! w00t!!”

Go ahead, laugh, it’s ok.

So, about the classes

When I signed out of my account last night, I was about halfway through Level 22 (Ranger). I had created a couple of other characters, but stayed with my main character, Minae, for the majority of the beta events. I know that by the time the headstart gets here, my account (along with those of all the other beta players) will be wiped out, and I will have to start over. I really liked my Ranger and think that for the time being, I will go that way again.

Jessie started out as a Ranger, but started over as a Sorcerer for this weekend. Overall, she found it an easier character to play and leveled much quicker. Jim, on the other hand, started as a Sorcerer and switched to Gladiator. Both of them had an easy time finding groups when it came to questing. Me, not so much. As with all MMOs, tanks and healers are going to be the most sought-after characters when it comes to grouping (whether for quests, PVE, PVP, etc.). No biggie for me, though. For now I’ll stick with my Ranger.

Note: For more info on classes and sub-classes in Aion, check the Aion website and Aion Armory (Aionsource).

Random acts of kindness

Most everyone I have run across while playing Aion have been great. There were many times when a passing healer would buff me or res me. In turn, I would res others when grouping or just the random player that I’d come across using the Elemental Stone of Resurrection (found in Verteron Citadel BTW!).

Personally, I love that! That’s an element of the game that I enjoy — the whole “community feel” aspect. Others helping others, and so on. Though not all players share my enthusiasm. You will occasionally get the one sour puss who, instead of politely saying thanks, will respond with, “No thanks, I can do this myself!” or a similar rude response.

‘To each his own’ I say. Me, I’m all about buffs and rezes!

I hate the seller spam

A part of me wishes that NCSoft hadn’t added a ‘private store’ option. Personally, I think this falls under the “Just Because You Can Doesn’t Mean You Should” category. One of the things I hated about playing Aion is flying or teleporting into a place and being bombarded with a thousand “Green Items for Sales!”, “Shop here now!”, and other similar seller spam messages.

I mean, come on … people, please, FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, use the trade brokers!

In my opinion, NCSoft should setup a designated area specifically for those who want to open a private store. Or, give users the option of blocking said messages.

I will sometimes change channels just to clear up all the message spam!

Resources (link love!!)

Even though this game hasn’t been released in the US or UK yet, already there is a quickly-growing community of Aion fan and resource sites. Here are a few that I use fairly regularly:

• Aion PowerWiki – Found on the official Aion site, this is a recent addition to the site and they’ve been making an effort to add a lot of helpful info to it.
• AionSource – This site has a TON of helpful information on it. Whenever I have a question that I can’t find the answer to anywhere else, I check their forums!
• AionArmory – Owned by AionSource, this is a very handy repository of quests, NPCs, places, items, etc.
• Aionic Thoughts – I ran across this blog a few months back while researching the game. It’s updated frequently and usually has some pretty nice features posted.
• The Aion Guy – Found via Twitter, posts videos and other neat things to his blog.
• Aion Ladies – This is a new LJ community, for women (and well-behaved men) who play Aion.

Free free to share your fave links in the comments form below!

Humpday Hilarities

This morning’s edition starts off with a couple of funnies from my mother:

Three Women in Mexico

Three women go down to Mexico one night to celebrate college graduation, get drunk, and wake up in jail, only to find that they are to be executed in the morning, though none of them can remember what they did the night before.

The first one, a redhead, is strapped in the electric chair and is asked if she has any last words. She says, “I just graduated from Trinity Bible College and believe in the almighty power of God to intervene on the behalf of the innocent.” They throw the switch and nothing happens. They all immediately fall to the floor on their knees, beg for forgiveness, and release her.

The second one, a brunette, is strapped in and gives her last words. “I just graduated from the Harvard School of Law and I believe in the power of justice to intervene on the part of the innocent.” They throw the switch and again, nothing happens. Again they all immediately fall to their knees, beg for forgiveness and release her.

The last one (you know it), a blonde, is strapped in and says, “Well, I’m from the University of Georgia and just graduated with a degree in Electrical Engineering, and I’ll tell ya right now, y’all ain’t gonna electrocute nobody if you don’t plug this thing in.

Top Ten Indicators That Your Employer Has Changed to Obama’s Health Care Plan:

(10) Your annual breast exam is done at Hooters.
(9) Directions to your doctor’s office include “Take a left when you enter the trailer park.”
(8) The tongue depressors taste faintly of Fudgesicles.
(7) The only proctologist in the plan is “Gus” from Roto-Rooter.
(6) The only item l isted under Preventative Care Coverage is “an apple a day.”
(5) Your primary care physician is wearing the pants you gave to Goodwill last month.
(4) “The patient is responsible for 200% of out-of-network charges,” is not a typographical error.
(3) The only expense covered 100% is “Embalming.”
(2) Your Prozac comes in different colors with little M’s on them.
(1) You ask for Viagra, and they give you a Popsicle stick and duct tape.

And these I just couldn’t resist …

You’re probably an Auburn fan if …

… You can play the Auburn fight song using your armpit.
… Your wife’s idea of cleaning house is throwing everything out into the yard.
… The Roto-Rooter man stops by your trailer and asks, “What’s that smell?”
… You’re a member of the Skoal Frequent Purchaser Program.
… You looked up your family tree and your uncle spit on you.
… You joined Alcoholics Anonymous so you can drink and use a different name.
… You looked out for #1 and stepped in #2 !!!
… You won’t buy a Japanese car because you’re afraid you won’t understand what they say on the radio.
… Your kids go to a private school and they won’t tell you where it is.
… Your Granny beats you in the tobacky spittin’ contests.

A Bama alum, a Tennessee alum and an Auburn alum have been captured by Iraqi forces and are about to be executed by firing squad. First, the Bama alum is blindfolded and placed in front of the firing squad. The Iraqi officer said, “Ready, aim …” The Bama alum yells “Sandstorm!” and all the Iraqis hit the dirt and the Bama alum runs away. The Tennessee guy was placed in front of the firing squad. The officer said “Ready, aim …”; The Tennessean shouted “Tornado!”. All the Iraqis again hit the dirt while the Volunteer escaped. The Auburn guy thought this was great. When he was blindfolded, again the officer shouted “Ready, aim….” The Aubie shouted “FIRE!”

Getting ready to Roll …

Seen in the parking deck at work

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