Journal of a Sysadmin

And welcome in the future.

Today was my oldest son’s high school graduation, and I’m a proud dad.

He was the first of many firsts as a father. First cleanup. First talk. First walk. First day care. First school. First trouble. First everything.

Today he was the first graduation. Today he embarks on a journey that will last the rest of his life.

Anthony, I’m not sure if you even know this place exists, but I’m sure you’ll find it some day if you don’t already know about it and you will read these lines. As I told you tonight I’m so proud of you. You have slogged through it all, made friends along the way, and not let the grass grow under your feet. You have accomplished the first major stage of your life with only a few scratches here and there, and I am anticipating watching the next stage unfold with all the magic and majesty of any butterfly in the wild yonder no matter what that next stage holds for you.

Remember to do your best, no matter what you do. Enjoy what you do, you will spend a long long time doing it and if you don’t enjoy it, there will be that much less joy. Be happy, it’s ok and it’s great to be happy. Give and accept gifts and compliments, when you give it feels good and when you recieve it makes others feel good too. Don’t worry about things too much if you can help it.

Remember to pay attention to your friends needs as they will then in turn look after you too. Remember that at some point you will meet someone that knocks you off your feet, and when you do that someone must be more important to you than anything else in your life. That person will also be a friend so take care of that relationship as best you can.
Remember that your family is there for a support system if you need it. Your brothers may cause you small periods of pain but that’s ok, brothers do that. Some day your father will be forced to take his own advice and make a serious attempt at real amends. Some day you will need them and they will be there like only a brother can be. Remember that if you have any questions, anything at all, your dad is here.

Take care of all the little animals in your life, they will bring you joy when all seems to be failing around you. They have something that most things in your life may not show you (even though it is there). They will give you unconditional love, for the low low price of you taking care of them. Feed them, water them, and pat them. They in turn will take care of you too when you need it.

And although I should refrain, I have to quote Hamlet’s Polonius:

Yet here, Laertes! aboard, aboard, for shame!
The wind sits in the shoulder of your sail,
And you are stay’d for. There; my blessing with thee!
And these few precepts in thy memory
See thou character. Give thy thoughts no tongue,
Nor any unproportioned thought his act.
Be thou familiar, but by no means vulgar.
Those friends thou hast, and their adoption tried,
Grapple them to thy soul with hoops of steel;
But do not dull thy palm with entertainment
Of each new-hatch’d, unfledged comrade. Beware
Of entrance to a quarrel, but being in,
Bear’t that the opposed may beware of thee.
Give every man thy ear, but few thy voice;
Take each man’s censure, but reserve thy judgment.
Costly thy habit as thy purse can buy,
But not express’d in fancy; rich, not gaudy;
For the apparel oft proclaims the man,
And they in France of the best rank and station
Are of a most select and generous chief in that.
Neither a borrower nor a lender be;
For loan oft loses both itself and friend,
And borrowing dulls the edge of husbandry.
This above all: to thine ownself be true,
And it must follow, as the night the day,
Thou canst not then be false to any man.
Farewell: my blessing season this in thee!

Above all, we all love you and wish you well. I love you, my oldest son.

My first.

Constructing

Thought it might be time to get something in the journal this year besides biking and snowboarding!

The last couple of weeks we’ve been busy in the house. I’ve pretty much finished downstairs (the ceiling and the window frame, closet doors, mouldings and baseboards). That was fairly easy and made the bedroom down their much brighter. Middle kid’s bedroom upstairs has been painted (finally) and it looks really really nice.

Next was the baby’s bedroom. Jhb picked out the colours, and the decor and this is seriously the first room I have ever “decorated” as it were. It looks beautiful and as if it was meant to be, we even found a crib set that matches the border.

One other thing I started working on was a new bookcase. This is a massive bookcase to sit inside the front door, therefore it seemed only appropriate to put two shoe shelves (she sells shoe shelves in the shoe store?) in the bottom of the book case, and a large enough base that it has overhang for a phone. We’ll see how it looks when I have it finished, maybe this weekend or next!

One day, three rides!

This morning I rode to work (as I always try to) but this afternoon I rode from work, around the reservoir and home.  I got to try out my new MEC shirt (red, short sleeved bike shirt) and that worked really well, much cooler.

Then tonight after I got home, my youngest son asked if I wanted to go with him for a short ride and of course, I had to say yes!

Around the res:
Total Time 0:50:54
Total Distance 20.34 km
Average Cadence 84 rpm
Average Speed 23.9 km/h
Odo 236 km (from 215 km)
Max Cadence 108 rpm
Max Speed 47 km/h

Short ride after I got home:
Total Time 0:18:35
Total Distance 5.84 km
Average Cadence 75 rpm
Average Speed 18.8 km/h
Odo 242 km (from 236 km)
Max Cadence 125 rpm
Max Speed 36 km/h

It’s been a good couple of days for riding, and I would like to keep getting at least 3 rides in each week from now until the end of September.

Heart and Stroke Ride for Heart

Today was a good day to ride (I wish I knew Klingon).

From North glenmore Park, along the Elbow River, past Stanley Park and then past the turn around at Lindsey Park (wait, I’ll get to that in a second), up Scotsman’s Hill, down spiller road, across 9th Ave, east to the Zoo Bridge, Turn around, go back to 9th Ave, follow that to the West side of the Elbow River, and follow the bike paths back to the water treatment station by the dam on Glenmore Reservoir, over the dam and around the Reservoir back to the starting point!

So, about that little thing with the turn around. On our way out we’re riding along see a “Rest Area” (that’s what the sign said). Since we were ok we kept on riding. The map said that we would be going down to the zoo, crossing the Bow River and then coming back. 9th Ave. was involved at the very least. Turns out they cut that end of the ride short so the actual ride couldn’t have been much more than 33km from start to finish. We did 41.37km… umm, oops

I also rode from home to North Glenmore park and back after the ride so my stuff below shows the ride and the ride home, I cleared the comp before we set out from the starting line… My comp now says 46.33 and I know the ride was 41.37. Total (if I add in the trip to north glenmore park) would be 51.29km! Real total time was about 2:21.
Total Time 2:09:04
Total Distance 46.33 km
Average Cadence 77 rpm
Average Speed 22.4 km/h
Odo 215 km (from 163 km)
Max Cadence 118 rpm
Max Speed 49 km/h

Empty the bike computer

Tomorrow is the Ride for Heart and Stroke so of course, it’s going to be about 50km with the ride down and back added in.  This means I have to dump what’s on the computer from the past week of work rides:

Total Time 0:27:23
Total Distance 10.26 km
Average Cadence 79 rpm
Average Speed 22.4 km/h
Odo 163 km (from 153 km)
Max Cadence 110 rpm
Max Speed 45 km/h

There are also a couple of rides that I didn’t have the comp on but oh well.