Category Archives: Editorial

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Utah “Snow Job”

Posted on January 30, 2012 | 1 Comment

We were brought here under false pretenses, packed up everything and left our home, then found out that my husband was only on a two week trial. No-one bothered to tell us that my high-tech software geek of a husband who I dearly love was on the chopping block in two weeks. He didn’t know then, went on and was hired full-time but that soured us on the people who brought us in when all of his buddies commiserated.

Nearly three years later he was part of 1/4 of the IT staff that got canned nearly a month ago. Keep trying to get companies in here, Utah. Keep trying to get talent from other states and countries. But you let these companies hire then fire hordes of people and do nothing to keep talented, especially IT, people around for the other companies you’re bringing in. That’s a big mistake. Bring me in and I’ll tell you why.

You promise low taxes and all kinds of building subsidies but when companies have mass layoffs what do you do? Deny unemployment for those who never took a week of vacation in three years because they were too busy on a project. My husband and I have never taken more than two long weekends per year over three years and he even took the overnight shift for the holiday week last year, only to be fired the second day back.

Why the second day? Because the first day the chairman of the company waited for his minions to come up with a list of people to let go while he cashed in over $3 million in stock before it tanked as the layoffs were announced.

There are many talented people in UT who’ve been laid off and need work. No-one in Utah wants to help us stay here and now we’re being penalized for never taking a vacation. Even a little bit of what we’ve put in over many years would help now but we’re denied so we will have to leave the state and the income we bring to the state every year will go as well.

Also, you’re after us right now because of an error on our taxes and demanding payment immediately, nearly our entire refund from 2009, right after the layoff, Up ’til now I thought living in Utah was a blessing, now I’m thinking of it as a curse.

Sometimes in troubled times, a government has to look at other than bringing in business, and consider retaining talent. We are mobile, love it here but will go elsewhere in a heartbeat. You don’t know what you’re losing as your businesses decline and lay off many talented people. Not cheerily, Dee

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Nine Years

Posted on January 27, 2012 | 3 Comments

The other evening I was working on things at my “desk” and Jim was about to take the dog out. I looked at the date and it was January 25th.

Our ninth wedding anniversary. We were so embroiled in the tasks of the day and completely forgot! I understand him forgetting, but I forgot as well and that’s not a good thing.

We hugged for a moment in the hallway, memorializing the day we promised to be together forever, then he took the dog out for a walk. Then instead of making dinner, he ordered pizza and picked it up for us. What a sweetheart. I mean it!

Perhaps we’ll be in a better place emotionally, financially, job-wise for our 10th anniversary next year. Remembering our families and the folks that were with us nine years ago thank you all and we’ll be more focused next year! Cheers, Dee

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Road Trips

Posted on January 26, 2012 | Leave a comment

I had the VW and was told not to go outside my college territory, but I strayed. A friend I met the first day of orientation asked me to take him home so he could introduce me to the girl he said he would marry, and did. I charged gas in New Jersey and my parents found out. So I only had the car for a semester, thanks W.

Another was after college and there was a problem with the VW I had again for some reason. My roommate and I, colleagues both working for the legislature, and we filled up with gas, $5.30 I recall, and it ran out in 50 miles. Luckily I got her home OK and made the last two hours without incident.

Traveling to Albany NY I took the mountain route in an ice storm. Not a smart thing with no snow tires or AWD. I finally had to stop and get solid ice off my headlights. Another VW. I’m sensing a pattern here.

On a good note we took a long drive through NY State, Canada and Vermont with my husband and his parents several years ago. Jim’s father is consumed with Civil War readings so I wanted to give him more fodder, the Revolutionary War. The theme was war, water, and I sneaked in womens’ suffrage.

We started with them in the Civil War suite in a B&B, courtesy of my Aunt L, then drove to see my cousins and uncle in Toronto. Then I drove and narrated a trip through Ft. Ticonderoga and my father-in-law even got to work the first lock on the Erie Canal. That was a terrific road trip.

Driving out west was not a good one. With two cars and a dog we finally found out what “high plains” mean. It means you’re at nearly 9,000 feet above sea level and cross the Continental Divide several times and can’t breathe. I could not stay awake. When we finally came down to 6,400 feet (a block from where we now live) we all crashed before starting up the next day to find a place to live, where we are now, and starting work. After packing up our lives and driving across country, we found out later that the recruiter had lied to us and that my husband was only on a two-week “trial basis.” Luckily they liked him but didn’t a few weeks ago when he was let go with 25% of the IT department.

When I was very young my parents would put us in our PJ’s at 4:00 in the morning and we’d drive many hours to a beach. In later years we had to be dressed the entire trip, in dresses. I finally convinced my parents to let us wear matching shorts and shirts in the car and change 1/2 hour before we arrived at our destination. We always enjoyed our vacations, and in later years not being confined in church clothes for a 14-hour trip.

A year ago my husband and I did a whirlwind trip through Jackson and the south end of Yellowstone. If we stay, perhaps we can do more trips to see the natural beauty of where we live.

Many trips I remember were not car journeys, more on that later. Y’all take care, Dee

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Songs

Posted on January 25, 2012 | 3 Comments

Everything is more acute now that my husband and I are together 24/7 under stressful circumstances. I switch in my head from the lovely Etta James’ “At Last,” Linda Ronstadt/Nelson Riddle “Someone To Watch Over Me” to Peter, Paul and Mary’s “That’s What You Get For Lovin’ Me.”

Perhaps I always had songs in my head but now they’re overt and different medleys several times a day. One is Joan Baez’ haunting Waltzing Matilda/Gallipoli.

I can’t remember the rest right now but will take requests! Songs of love and loss, death and dismemberment will give way to happier thoughts. They’re beautiful songs and my mother always said I had a penchant for dirges, after all she named me after Deirdre of the Sorrows.

In the meantime we have much to do and keep busy all day not spending money. Perhaps this weekend we can afford to go to the movies, matinee, of course, to see what the real world is doing. And it’s waltzing Matilda, waltzing Matilda, Dee

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Sisyphus

Posted on January 25, 2012 | 6 Comments

For anyone who eschews the Greek/Roman gods and stories, such as tales of Odysseus, shame on you. They’ll let you make comparisons and stories of your own throughout your life!

Sisyphus rolled a heavy rock uphill, and every time he got near the top, it would tumble down again. So his fate is to push that rock every day and wait for it to fall. That was me today. I’m dealing with bureaucratic, procedural, and emotional fallout following a layoff.

Many of the things I had to accomplish today are partially done, were horrible and I stood on my tippy-toes and made things 50-75% right. I’m exhausted and still have to pay bills and make dinner.

For example, the former employer sent information that during the past few years when he was hired full-time he went eight months without health insurance. The original administrator said that was our last healthcare program and she can’t provide proof of prior insurance under the same employer, insurance that we were paying for through regular payroll deductions since day one.

So I talked to boss-man, who found six of those last months and is working with HR to reconcile the rest, that they both proved WE paid for, in order to get a revised certificate of continuous healthcare that may allow us to get insurance after next week. So that may mean the employer stopped payment?

All the information that HR gave us on one sheet was either misinformation or outright lies. I’ve called every number on that page and only one has not gotten back to me. And here I go, pushing that rock up the hill day by day.

 

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New Tastes

Posted on January 25, 2012 | Leave a comment

I looked through my mother’s 1970′s and 1980′s recipe cards and a few things caught my eye. In 1973 we moved, again, in a temperate climate. The first few days there I met a good friend who shares the same birthday.

We hung out, mostly at her house, for the two years we lived there. Her mom was so cool. Warm with people and easy with entertaining. She introduced me to eggplant and pomegranate. No, not together.

I love eggplant and make a very traditional Greek moussaka. As to pomegranate, I make a lemon-berry trifle over the holidays and on special occasions and if pomegranates are in season, add berries for taste, visual appeal and crunch.

This one’s for the oboe player and her family. Cheers, Dee

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PIPA and SOPA Debate

Posted on January 23, 2012 | Leave a comment

over Internet Piracy. It’s tabled for now but this is the time to look at it in its entirety, find out exactly who’s behind it and why they want this to happen.

Then we have to come to understand it, and figure out how to tell all the old guys in Congress what needs to happen. Because we know or can guess it came from Hollywood so there are bad things in it for movie consumers, even if we pay our $6.50 for a matinee.

But who is on the other side? Now we can find out. No-one tells the truth so we have to sift through the debates and Google and Yahoo and Wikipedia can’t win either.

But we can. I said today that most of what has been legislated, has been done. Sure there’s tweaking over the years to require seat belts in cars or provide a space for a crime victim’s family so they don’t have to sit with the alleged criminal outside the courtroom. Those were good things we did.

But if your neighbors have a loud party, that’s a noise violation, already on the books. Assault and battery, even privacy and intellectual property or illegal drugs on the premises. Already on the books.

But creating all the laws we have on the books doesn’t always work for the Internet. We don’t have a EU for this, and that wouldn’t work because this is worldwide. So why don’t we work with the EU and other countries to define those who murder or commit child pornography or steal identities or money and make it illegal, knowing these folks will go to other countries and they can easily be caught there. Try Nigeria. We went to a great play about The Great Nigerian Spam Scam Scam. (Yes, the double scams were intended.) Now all the techies can tell me why this cannot be done. If you’ve a better solution, call the FCC and FBI and CIA.

Not only have our founding fathers given us a great start with a base, our Constitution, but we have made laws about everything from how many pigs you can have to the exterior color of one’s home.

One might think that freedom of thought and expression is all we have left. Dee

 

 

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To Gabrielle Giffords

Posted on January 23, 2012 | Leave a comment

with love and hope for your future health, happiness and ability to change what you believe you need to do in Arizona and the USA.

If you’re talking about strength in a life partner, NASA is always a plus!

We hope you will be able to overcome this heinous act that killed and hurt so many for no reason.

As we all overcome life’s obstacles, and we all have them, you have shown us a way to do it with love, pride, dignity and strength, as well as dedication to your constituents and your nation.

Please get well, because we need people like you, politics or no politics. You’re always an inspiration in my book, Dee

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Not WordPress Snowflakes!

Posted on January 22, 2012 | Leave a comment

WP is good enough to place (fake) snowflakes on my page over the holidays then take them off. We’ve been getting the real stuff! The big equipment has been out in force and my husband shoveled the decks today so we could grill burgers for dinner.

Not a lot to get excited for, though the ski resorts must be happy. A lot of ours melted today but will freeze overnight. Some stalwart XC skiers were out on the path today, that really needs more snow and grooming before it’s decent. Last year I believe it was packed by now with at least 18″ of snow.

Now the PIB’s (People In Black, from the Sundance Film Festival) are questioning their choices of vehicles and dress, as the snow didn’t stop until this morning and is expected to return for much of the week.

Living in the mountains for three years has been gorgeous, but we know to have two AWD vehicles with killer snow tires as well as all-year tires. Also I’ve four pair of boots: hiking; Wellies (from Scotland, Hunter Boots) for Mud Season; Crocs for taking the dog out in the morning; and hefty insulated ones for real deep snow/foul/cold weather. If you come out here in stiletto’s to walk anything but a runway, you’re out of luck.

I also have four hats, including a new Cossack hat my husband bought me before Christmas. That’s the warmest. And four pair of winter gloves starting with liners and going up to heavy duty that I couldn’t possibly drive in.

Now, as soon as we both (forget my husband, he had everything he needed eons before me or even planning to come out west) get everything, we can’t possibly look at going to another climate!

Our economy needs the snow. I drove in a blizzard to get one shirt to the cleaner. I can cook dinner and wash a shirt, but for interview time it’s best to leave it to a professional. I was working the windshield wipers, back wiper, and both defrosts while dodging clueless people in the middle of the street (the sidewalks were shoveled) and drivers backing out without ever having any visual contact.

When I returned a neighbor said that he trusts himself driving in this, just not anyone else. I agree wholeheartedly! Cheers, Dee

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Praise

Posted on January 21, 2012 | 2 Comments

I was praised for having a “good” blog by two fellow writers today, two people who are very important to me.

And I want to pass along this praise to another, the only grandparent I ever remembered, who died in 1984,  my maternal grandfather. Papa knew that we had a cliff less than 20′ from the front door when we were kids.

The last thing my parents wanted was for us to go down the 150′ cliff using a rope. The boys next door used the rope by our house. We were forbidden from doing so for about six days after moving in.

But Papa spent several months a year with us and even with one leg, he scrambled down the 12 feet to the rope that went about 75 feet down. It was frayed and he was worried about our safety, knowing that we would only use the trail to pick wild strawberries and blueberries on our land.

He bought thick natural rope and tied it (he used to build bridges) so we would have hand-holds up and down. It went down about 100′ and we slid through the rest of it, the ground could at least hold ferns, down to the creek.

We used to call him the “Summer Santa” because he got us roller skates and other things, but this rope will forever be in my mind as I age because it meant freedom and trust and my ability to jump off a cliff and be OK.

The other part to this, which happened just a couple of months after my mother died, is that now friend Juni Fisher sang her Whippoorwill song for my husband’s grandma’s surprise party and I cried throughout. Her mother whistled to bring her home. Mine beeped the horn of the old station wagon they gave me as a college graduation present, three times meant get 150′ up here and wash up before dinner is on the table and your father gets home.

No matter what happens, it all comes down to the ones you love, family and friends. I always told clients to draw a series of concentric circles, and these are in the center and remain so for me, including my husband’s family, of course, they’ve been very good to us.

I don’t need to bungee jump or fly out of a plane, I jumped off a cliff and am still here 40 years later. When a challenge confronts us or we have to move for a job, I remember that time when my parents let me grow up, take risks and become a responsible adult. Oh, I won’t do the cliff thingie again, Dee

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