i had to fire my first employee yesterday. it wasn’t an easy decision, nor an easy process. as terminations go, however, he made it easy. his unwilligness to put any effort towards addressing my concerns made the decision much easier and informing me that he was interviewing made the process much easier (no regrets). i’m rearranging my team and our working area in preparation for the new hires on Monday. i’m nervous, but in a good way. orientation at UW starts in two weeks and i’ll see Eriko in less than two months. i had a nice time with Kellie, Alex, and Reyna last night. Reyna reminds me a lot of Katrislept a little better last night by cranking up the heat to 75 or 80 (my bed on the floor never gets that warm, especially since the heater is only in one small corner of the apartment). Bailey was very patient with me as I didn’t open the window at all. i think i’ll put in a little extra time at work this weekend, mainly so i’m prepared for my new hippies.

i’ve got what appears to be some kind of throat cold, i’m still not sleeping well (usually too cold), i can’t concentrate on work right now because an event will transpire in 30 minutes, i’m not getting much stuff done after work these days (although i read a couple more pages of ‘The Book of Five Rings’ by Miaymoto Musashii yesterday). right now i am extremely anxious…

Bailey went out for a short prowl tonight and brought me back her biggest catch that i’ve seen yet. i find it amazing that she carried it all this way, up the stairs, up and over the window sill, to deliver it next to her food dish – for me. it definitely surprised the heck out of me. ;) less favorable news is that i may be coming down with something.

Kaya has given me two free books because they are ‘Eastern Economy Editions’ with thin paper. i don’t mind though. isilon was going to throw away a lamp which is pretty abused but i took it home and fixed it up. i had to do a little soldering but it saved me $20. sweet!

it is very nerve-racking each time i do that. i’m getting my procedure more well-defined so as to alleviate some of the unknowns, but the idea that just the right failure would cause me to need to drive to bellingham is always on the back of my mind. all the big sites seem to be up, mail works, and my qa program says everything is OK – i’m going to bed.

i was accepted into the PMP! words cannot describe the anxiety and excitement that i feel (notice i tried anyway ;)