Asa Jay's weblog

Sometimes it seems like God doesn’t answer our prayers the way we want him to. That simple statement seems true but we should analyze things deeper before we allow such an idea to permeate our thinking. Sometimes we don’t get what we prayed for but what we do get is an answer to prayer.

Those who have been following this blog know about our son Sam and his dual struggle with Autism and Hirschsprungs disease. Since September of 2009 we have been praying that we might be able to reverse the Ileostomy he was given so he might lead a more normal life. That year of prayer was recently answered but not necessarily how we had wanted it to be.

After months of waiting, we were finally contacted by the Children’s Hospital in Milwaukee Wisconsin. They were now ready to bring Sam in for motility studies; to determine the condition of his colon and see how it was functioning. Shelley and I were elated to finally be on the list so we could find out Sam’s progress. We had been praying for nearly a year for his colon to recover and become fully functional so we could hook him back up. We began our planning and looked forward to Sam being tested.

Unfortunately I had already been scheduled for a company trip during that time, however it didn’t really matter as we had made the decision early on that only one of us would accompany Sam on this trip. Off I went to Austin Texas while Sam and Shelley flew to Milwaukee Wisconsin. As parents we were both anxious to learn the outcome of the testing to know if we might be heading down a new chapter by getting Sam hooked back up.

At this point, it is crucial to understand how Sam’s quality of life has improved immensely. Since his operation last September he has been healthier, more energetic, less disruptive, doing better in school and in general exhibiting -less- autistic behaviors. A quick generalization of the situation would indicate having the Ileostomy was the best thing we’d ever done for him. And now we were seeing if we could reverse it.

Sam's 7th Birthday

Change can be hard, and I’ll be the first to admit I resist change. When it comes to work, I get very comfortable in a job, sometimes too comfortable. Sometimes it’s time for change, sometimes because I’ve done what needed to be done and it’s time to find a new challenge, to move up in the corporate world, to force myself out of my comfort zone for a little while in order to make progress. Today, that change happened.

I have worked with Itron, Inc. for nearly 14 years. I had a year away from the company as I pursued other advancement opportunities but was able to come back when that didn’t pan out. Initially I worked in engineering as a technician. I had past experience in electronic production with Hewlett Packard and the step to a technician was the professional advancement I needed at the time.

As a technician I worked with electrical, mechanical and software engineers. I was exposed to sales and marketing, production and many other functions in between. During my time as a technician, I discovered I really didn’t want to be an engineer, I wanted to be a manager. I wanted to lead. This is what led me to completing my Bachelor’s degree in Organizational Management at Whitworth University.

Currently, I work in Customer Service with Itron. Upon my return I wasn’t able to get back into engineering, but that turned out to be one of the best things that ever happened to me. My manager and I have had many conversations, one of which illustrates how the company is held up by three things, like three legs of a stool: Engineering which builds the products, Marketing and Sales which sell the products, and Customer Service which provides a conduit for customer feedback as well as help with products. I had engineering background and now over the last three years I had gained customer service background. My next logical step was into the marketing area.
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I had the hard drive in my Home Linux system crash a couple months ago. Since then it’s been an interesting experience getting things back together and “normalized” again. Fortunately I’m using removable drives via the front of the case -and- my previous system is still sitting on a functional drive. I was able to use the old hard drive in the system while I strategized on a plan going forward. That plan was executed, well, let’s just say “attempted” a little over week ago when I was on vacation.

Nobody usually starts a vacation by saying “hmm, I think I’ll get that Linux system upgraded and back to normal.” Nobody except me. What in the world was I thinking? It should have been simple, yes my last backup was a few months old but no matter. Let’s install the latest version of Ubuntu and just keep on trucking. That seemed to be my first mistake.

I’ve used Kubuntu in the past and I’m running Ubuntu Studio Edition for video and audio editing on another machine. The Ubuntu series of releases seem to be redefining ease of use for Linux users; bringing the idea there is a replacement for Windows into reality. So I start off by downloading an ISO for Ubuntu and then Kubuntu. I burn the CD’s and I’m ready.

The install takes a couple of tries to get started. Darn video thing again, need to shut off APIC or APCI or… I forget… anyway, I finally get the installer running. Now to configure things.

I worked on configuring the video, for hours. I could -not- get the default drivers in Kubuntu to properly display the Operating System on my NEC Multisync LCD 1850E. Kubuntu recommended a download from NVidia. Well… okay, I’ll bite… … Wrong answer.
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So I’m going through my inbox. Shamefully it has over 8,000 stored emails. You read that correctly, just my INBOX has over eight THOUSAND saved emails. I have some other folders that collectively boast over 4,000. Good grief. I started at the beginning, which from appearances, looks like I started saving emails in 1999.

I just ran across a reply to an email I posted to the DeTomaso Email Forum on September 12, 2001. It was the day after the terrorist attack on the Twin Towers in New York. I was at work, mulling over all the network commentators predictions of reduced freedoms and liberties in order to preserve our security.

Bullshit!

… and this is what I wrote then. Today it’s just as valid:
____________________________________________________________________

I know we’ve all said much, thought much, and are still contemplating our
own thoughts and what we as individuals and a nation, should do.

I pass my condolences to those families and friends who have lost loved
ones in this tragedy. I had the misfortune of needing to attend a funeral
for a friend who recently retired from my squadron. He was young, 44 and
died last week. I was awaken, some what in horror, by Shelley calling me
on her cell phone, early in the morning on her way to work, telling me I
had to turn on the TV. By then, one tower was gone, and I watched in
silent horror as the other crumbled at the top, then slowly sank to the
ground. All I could think of, is that those two pinnacles of trade,
freedom and world cooperation, were gone. And no one knew how many people
might be inside.

Four planes. Four major airliners. Not some puddle jumpers, not some
commuter special/banana republic turbo-prop airplanes. These were major
air carrier jumbo jets ( I use jumbo only to convey size, not to confuse
with 747 ). A coordinated effort to Hijack each one. At this time, it
would appear that no firearms were used. No firearms, no handguns, no
hand-grenades, no rifles, no uzis, no assault weapons, no explosives. I
look around my cubicle at work, and I have already found half a dozen items
I could personaly use to incapacitate a person. These are common office
products, any of which I could use to instill fear by stabbing. And this
is allegedly what they did.

I’ve heard recently this morning, that the one plane that crashed in the
Pennsylvania field, had the passengers attempting to overcome the hijackers.

I commend their effort, and say Bravo. For they, of any, realized the
worth of freedom and were willing to sacrifice personal safety to insure
that freedom for others, whether on that plane, or on the ground. They
were not going to sit idly by and let someone else determine their future.
I am only sorry they were not entirely successful.

And this brings me to what I personally feel. That the security of these
United states, is NOT insured by the Government, it is NOT insured by the
Military, it is NOT insured by the Border Patrol, the State Patrol, the
Sheriff, or the local Policeman. They are simply tools, individuals who
have elected to be on the front lines, to help protect and defend the
freedoms of those Americans who desire to be free. They can not, and never
will, insure freedom for all. Only the citizen can insure that.

We do NOT need gun control
We do NOT need wiretaps on all homes
We do NOT need constant surveillance
We do NOT need restrictions on our freedom of movement

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Today, we attended the memorial service for one of my wife’s grandfathers who recently died. His death was not unexpected and we had the wonderful opportunity to visit him in the hospital a week before he died at home under Hospice care. While at the service there were reminders of how valuable Dads are.

Dads are our biggest asset when we are young men. They teach us things about life. They help us understand the difference between hot and cold, sharp and dull. When my dad accidentally drilled a hole in his finger (holding the board on the opposite side he was drilling), I learned not to do that. Sure, there were things he taught me without the need to draw blood. One thing was how to treat women right.

When I started getting interested in girls, so long ago now I can’t remember when that was, my Dad told me one thing: Never do or say anything to a girl, you wouldn’t want some other guy to do or say to your sister. Well, that sure put a damper on things. Mind you my sister was younger and it wasn’t until -after- she got married, that I finally got married.

I’m not sure this little teaching of Dad’s is what kept me from marrying so long, but his advice was sound. He had lots of good advice, just like Shelley’s grandfather did to his kids. Today I had an opportunity to live those ethics.

While leaving the service, I needed to move our Jeep from it’s impromptu parking spot next to a fence to where the others could get in. As I began to move forward I managed to run over a field tap on a water main line. I didn’t realize it was there, and it wasn’t until I felt a bump as I slowly drove forward that I found out. Suddenly a large geyser of water erupted behind me. I suddenly felt like I was in a movie and had just run over a fire hydrant. All eyes were on me. Now what?
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