White Boy/White Dog Move To Skid Row

Certified Beach Dude Moves To Downtown Los Angeles

I am afraid to put name in subject as I don’t want hits from search engines. But I think you know I am talking about where I am a contractor. They have lots of malls.

This is a tough subject for me- I’ve been so stressed AT A DIFFERENT CLIENT that I had clumps of hair falling out, and I had serious anxiety problems (thinking of work and driving to work I got sick- I always thought it was anything but stress- now I know different).

2 days ago a former W**field Executive filed a 62 BILLION (!!!) lawsuit against her former employer. It is so hush-hush around work I’m afraid to type what I know here (and I know virtually no more than what I read when I Googled “Morris vs W***field”).

This is a tough company- only the strong survive (no disrespect to plaintiff- I do not think I could be strong if my spouse recently died in front of me- you be the judge).

Oh, I just got put on another project for future- killer Notes / Domino integration with SQL Server / DB2 Lease Abstraction software / JD Edwards E1 - this will ramp up in April. I love this place!

No updates because I have not been able to enjoy downtown, other than on my twice daily White Dog walks- actually loving the rain- I hope you are too.

I am so in a “groove” right now- my life is one constant pattern, and I kinda like it for now. I LOVE my contract- it is f-ng crazy where I am, and deadlines come every couple of weeks. Thank god I am able to meet mine- many people have been let-go/fired which is cool- no “dead-wood” needed.

Ok, I’ll brag a little- I got a raise on my hourly rate without asking, before 6 months of work, so I guess I’m doing something right

But my life is boring- I would not say it “sucks” as I love the high-tech challenges I face every day and cannot wait to get out of bed every morning. But I have no “life” right now (some of my associates would claim I never “had a life”- they did not know me when I was in love…).

We have unreasonable deadlines, I work 60+ hours a week on-site (I love it, but add 2.5 hour commute per/day round-trip and there goes any potential for “life”). I have bumped Isis’ walks by walkfido.com to 2x a day as I am gone way too long for her.

Gym is 3 times a week- I am actually looking pretty good heading into my summer “cut” which will put me at 5′11″ 195lbs seriously ripped… maybe I’ll find time to hit a pool or a beach to take my shirt off But I feel great, that is the important part. And I can eat some McD’s or whatever hera-and-there and not freak out like I used to. part of having a cranked-up metaboism that is fat-burning inferno (no joke- if I eat too many carbs then my body heat goes up and I sweat as I burn the fuel… uncomfortable but it is a trip to know you are literally “on fire”).

If I run into anything cool downtown I will share, but right now I’m just “Moving Through Spaces”…

Ever since the economy went south, I’ve had fun bargain shopping, mostly on internet (ebay is great), but the best values are found downtown in the Fashion District and on Broadway.

For example, I found a place where I can buy very nice dress shirts for $12 each!!! I honestly could not believe it at first, as I am kind of a clothing “snob” and have a few $290 custom made shirts, but these work great for my daily suit-and-tie dress code.

Then today, Thanksgiving, I realize I’m running low on clean underwear, and my washer/dryer has been acting-up and not drying things very much. Of course Macy’s, etc is not open, but all the Hispanic-owned stores are, so I go to a place on Broadway I’ve been before and load-up on necessities as I don’t know when I can get dryer fixed. I get 12 pair of underwear, 6 pair of dress socks, and 8 pair of athletic socks for $19!!! I’ve had these products before and they are great- the underwear is better than the Jockey’s I always payed $17 for 3 pairs. At this price, these items are almost disposable.

Now I enjoy sticking my head in all the little shops I see as I am walking Isis, wondering what the next great bargin I’ll find…

So I’m sure you have all at one time or another walked by someone on the street, or waited behind them in the grocery line, or sat next to them at the outdoor cafe- the person that is carrying on a conversation- usually loudly, with apparently no one. Many times I’ve been wearing my MP3 headphones and will hear some apperent talking and I will take headphones out and wonder if someone was talking to me… then the person points at the earpiece and makes the universwal “phone” hand sign (thumb to ear, pinky to mouth) and I understand they were yelling on phone and all is ok.

So on my Pershing Square dog walk tonite I hear some loud conversation- as I approach it is a (race/size redacted) woman sitting by herself on steps into square. I think nothing of it but she did make an impression, so much so that when I returned the same way she was still having her conversation- and on closer inspection/listening, she has no phone and is clearly talking to herself, like so many downtown street-dwellers.

The funny thing is how my first impression was not of a crazy lady but of a normal Bluetooth user. Only on re-examination did I realize she was crazy.

Bluetooth is cool- it makes crazy people seem normal, and normal people seem like they are yelling at no one in particular…Thank god I don’t have any compelling need for this technology with my life. Using Bluetooth to deliver music to rear surround sound speakers is probably the best use of the technology I’ve seen- maybe the new Bluetooth printers, etc will take off, but I am reserving judgement.

I am so happy to have found a new dry cleaners that seems to be focusing on CUSTOMER SERVICE! Ever since I have moved downtown I missed the days when I could drop dry cleaning off at night (up until 7 or 8pm) and have it ready the next night by 5pm (or sometimes the “rush” - in by 9am and out by 5pm). All the places I found were inconvenient, pricy, and SLOW! When I would ask for it the next day the person would act startled and say 2 days min. I tried using pick up and delivery from 5th St. Cleaners (who is now on Alameda) but they only picked up at Higgins on Tuesdays and Fridays- this was ok when I was doing business casual/jeans on Fridays but now with suits and dress shirts needing a lot of attention, I had to find somewhere new.

I walk past Urban Life Cleaners at least once a day on a dog walk- they are in Main St. a couple of doors south of 4th St. A big, clean location with good computer system to keep things organized. There normal service is 2 days, but it’s no problem to get next day for $1.00 extra per item- bringing shirts to $3.75 for “rush”- not unreasonable in my opinion. And I just found out they now offer “same day” service too- which is impressive as they take the clothes to their main location where the laundry equipment is. And another bonus is that everytime I’ve gone there has been a pretty, plesant lady helping me that SPEAKS ENGLISH!!!

Urban Life Cleaners just opened September 1st and I really hope they are successful- they are the perfect dry cleaner for me.

421 S. Main St
Los Angeles, CA, 90013
(213) 253-4777Mon
Mon - Fri: 8:30 am - 5:30 pm
Sat: 9:00 am - 5:00 pm

On nearing completion of my 3rd week at new contract, my head is spinning with tasks I have to accomplish by Monday, and then by next Monday, and next, etc up until ultimate roll-out on 12/15/09. The first week I was hired I was told by project manager I was only budgeted for 40 hrs/wk, so that is what I did and billed. Last Friday, when deliverables were slipping, the project manager looked at me in a team meeting and said “You are taking your laptop home this weekend, right?”. Of course I got the company-issued laptop configued for me right away, and kissed-off my weekend. This week was crazy- I worked at home after 8+ hours at least 2 hours every night, and I HAVE to work Saturday and Sunday (at home, at least). i will have over 60 hours this week, and probably many more weeks like this. Thank god I have no life now other than gym and dog walks - Yan and I are done

On a similar note- another new team member (the ETL/Data Staging “expert”) was walked out the door today, after less than 2 weeks n project. This client is pretty ruthless- you can talk all you want but if you don’t produce results, you are GONE! This guy was given offer on Thursday (he was in Chicago), flew to LA on Sunday and started Monday. Similar to the guy I replaced- he came from Dallas but lasted a little longer - 6 weeks. Funny thing is they were both H1-B INDIANS that talked big but didn’t do shit. Left family behind, came to LA and worked for cheap while living with friends… Before you think this is racist, my boss, the CTO, is INDIAN and an amazing person and talent. And he fired both these guys (and he fired the Oracle DBA that lasted about a week, but he was Russian).

I honestly think I’m going to go far with this company- I SO enjoy my work and when I like work, I kick ass. I wish I had a girlfriend but right now it is probably best that I don’t as I have no time for anything other than work, dog walk, sleep, and gym 3 times a week. But I would not change anything right now.

I have to say, I’m probably the happiest on a contract that I have been for years. Honestly, on Saturday I was wishing it was Sunday so I could go to work sooner, and evrey night I am so fired-up to work that I can hardly sleep. It is a great feeling.

The project is at a very intense stage; I came in late to replace someone who wasn’t performing. This company does not hesitate to make rapid personnel changes, and on the flip-side, many people get frustrated and quit fast. For example, a guy I’m working closely with has had 6 managers so far this year (the record is 8 managers for someone in our department).

An Oracle DBA contractor who started last Tuesday was walked out the door today- he was kind of an idiot as first thing he did when he was given “the keys” to Oracle (passwords) was “change the locks” (system passwords) causing many production jobs to fail that depended on those passwords. He kept bragging how he did Oracle DBA for 20 years and then BAM!!! the door smacked him on the ass as he was being walked to the front of the building.

And check this out- the guy that hired me, got pulled off the project on Friday, so I no longer report to him after 5 days. This is not a good sign for him, and I hope he is OK as I really wanted to work for him. But I honestly like EVERYONE I work with- very unusual for me. Some incredibly great talent that is being frustrated with this project.

On a side note, this is a true “alpha-male” operation (although the main programmer/business knowledge person is a lady consultant who has been at company at least 8 years). Almost every major male “player” is taller than me- and in pretty good shape. I’m 5′ 11″ and most of the main folks are around 6′ 2″ or so. BELIEVE IT OR NOT- there is an Indian guy and an Asian (CIO) that are taller than me!!! But I guarantee that I am stronger than any of them The main project manager is from South Africa, like 6′ 3″, 250lbs in great shape, and used to race Motocross for 3 years- and he is the best project manager I’ve ever worked with.

I am so happy to be part of this team… we are going to deliver a kick-ass application.

I always hear “Sexual Harasment” and I know it DOES occur, have seen pretty tame examples of it (I’m sure I’ve seen at least one example of a woman harrassing a man, if only in subtle way over a period of time). I think it is terrible- anything that could possibly affect your employment status (a person has to quit) or affects you to the point you cannot do your job- that is pretty serious, but I have never first-hand seen it.

I guess it recently happened where I work- everyone is sworn to secrecy but I do know the guy basically hit on every lady he was introduced to, beginning with the “undress with eyes” look. Then he zeroed-in on some poor girl so bad that she would not come to work. When he was led out of building, there was a litle situation, and then he did some accessing/hacking systems. The FBI is involved now. D-bags like this get me pissed as they make all guys look bad; idiots are out there, and I ride the bus with them M-F… I hope this never happens to any (lady or guy) friend of mine in the workplace- I’d be damn mad.

EDIT: His cube was next to where I sit- so it was kinda “close to home”

I feel very lucky to have found Shoe Wiz Instant Shoe Repair about 3 blocks from my loft. It’s a big place as far as the cobblers I’ve seen, but they have everything shoe-related and all the equpment to do an excellent job. He did a complete resole on my Ferragamos, conditioned and polished them for $59- giving them probably 2 more years of use.

It’s a popular place with people in an out, and sitting at the “bar” waiting. A real hot lady came in and the guy knew her, so I asked her how often she’d been there- she said it was her 3rd time and loved how convenient the place was. She comment how good my shoes looked. I’m so pissed that I got tongue-tied and didn’t follow up on that (it’s amazing how much more respect/chats I get with my new suit-and-tie look).

Anyway, from anything from a shoe shine to sole/heel replacement- this guy rules:

Shoe Wiz Instant Shoe Repair
514 W 6th St
(213) 688-9699

*** WARNING *** LOOOONG POST- but I had to document this if only for me

Today I had what was a mixture of the bus ride from Hell, and mildly amusing. Today was first time I had put in 8 hours by 3:15 so I leave to bus stop and find about 150 of what I’m pretty sure were 9th graders who had obviously just gotten out of school. The bus stop is in front of a parking lot for 7-Eleven and Baskin-Robbins, so there’s the assorted skateboard antics, shit talking, flat out hitting, and drum playing- more on that.

Whe a bus arrived it stopped 30 feet short of bus stop and a crowd swarmed there but many didn’t, including me. The 720 line runs about every 6 min so I decided to wait thinking I could be at front of pack and get a seat. Didn’t happen- kids pushed so much it was like a mosh pit. I really should have just taken control and pushed my way on, but I would have felt like an ass.

The 720 Rapid is an articulated bus meaning it basically 2 buses put together with a hinge in the middle. There appears to be no shock abosbers on any of them, but they can haul ass and 2 out 3 drivers had so far. I was sitting down and had to hold on the headrest in front of me to avoid falling into the aisle.

However, today was the slow(er) driver. I had to stand up 80% of way, and was in awkward position to hold anything so I kind of had to assume a surfing stance so I did fly into someone.

Unfortunately I was standing in the middle of 6 little punk Koreans that were fun-fighting back and forth around me. “Little Drummer Boy” with his drumsticks was alternately hitting his friends backpack and pretending he could play by hitting the steel supports.

About 10 feet back, there is a young couple sitting on ground by door and making out- for about 30 minutes.

At about the 45 minute mark in the ride, I ask one of the kids what school they go to- it must be a great private school. He says University High School and that its public and they let out at 3:04. Wow was I shocked- this is real “busing” for sure (and I’m going to rethink my exit time).

It’s funny how the bus empties out as you first hit Koreatown and then Alvarado St.- honestly, by the time we were crossing the 110 freeway I could have layed across 3 seats it was so empty.