All posts by Duf

Yesterday at work we had a bit of a situation. An email came into the organization that was sent to everyone that was clearly suspicious and had a potentially malicious attachment. I sent out an organization wide message instructing people to not interact with the email and to simply delete it. Well we had one employee that contacted me, saying she already clicked on the attachment.

Because of a couple conditions we escaped damage to our network but the fact that this employee carelessly clicked the file attachment was a major issue. We have utilized organization wide security training that our staff is required to complete several times a year. One of the core lessons taught is you never interact with an email that contains links or a file attachment that you are not expecting. There have been multiple cases of this behavior bringing down other offices via malware from employees being careless.

I reached out to this employee directly. Her excuse was she was trying to help a customer at the same time as she was checking her email. I told her that was not an excuse and that it is her responsibility to interact with email in a safe manner, always. I followed up sending an organization wide reminder of the importance of following these guidelines which have been reinforced repeatedly via our training programs. Our job is to make our end users as paranoid as possible when it comes to network security. I have been told that many think I am “mean” because of the tone of my communications as a result. I could care less, it’s my job. If somebody takes down our network through their negligence it could cost them their job and make me look like I am not doing mine.

Several weeks ago I noticed my small lamp in the great room was broken. My suspicion is the cleaning ladies inadvertently knocked it off the table and didn’t tell me. (has happened before) So that light which is normally on a smart switch was missing in action ever since.

For some reason I had not gotten around to getting a replacement until last night. I went to Home Goods where I have bought a number of accessories since moving into the house. I bought a simple and inexpensive lamp that appealed to me. Once I plugged it in I confirmed this was an upgrade to the space. I like it more than what it replaced.

I randomly discovered that there is a new Walking Dead series on Netflix, Those That Live. It is the story of Rick and Michon. When Rick apparently died in the original Walking Dead series it sort of marked the downhill slide of the series IMO. I have seen some of the other spin offs from the show and they lost their appeal to me. However I always loved Rick’s character so I decided to give this 6 episode series a try.

A couple shows in I am enjoying it. Of course nothing is going to capture the feeling of when the show first came out. The entire country was fascinated by it. However this spinoff appears to be decent, at least so far. Hopefully it’s good enough I can make it to the end.

On Friday night I worked on getting the Master V4 back together. It had been sitting on my workbench apart all week as I waited for a new inner tube to arrive to complete a tire swap. I used my zip tie method to make the tire installation a piece of cake. I documented the process quickly on my phone and shared it on the internet. Installing tires is generally seen universally as a pain in the ass so once others saw how much easier this was their eyes were opened.

After getting the new tire on I completed the rest of the wheel assembly and took it out on a quick test ride in the dark to make sure the wheel was functioning normally. It was. I then updated the wheel to the newest firmware which did not go as well. In total I did the exact same process three times until the upgrade worked 100% which ironically is sort of normal for these wheels. By the time I was done I didn’t have the motivation to clean up all the mess Friday night. I completed that Saturday morning.

Later Saturday morning I met up with my normal Saturday pickleball partner Sue for breakfast. She is also currently injured and has not been playing. It was nice to catch up with her as we chatted and ate for over an hour and a half. I would much rather be doing breakfast after playing a session of pickleball but you can’t always get what you want.

Saturday night I got out to see Den of Thieves 2. I had recently seen the original ironically which was several years old on HBO Max so when I found out a sequel was coming the timing was good. The movie features Gerard Butler whom I have always been a fan of since his 300 days. Unlike a lot of sequels I thought this one was on par with the original and I enjoyed it, a solid B+ for me.

Sunday morning I slept in until well after 8AM. After grabbing some coffee at DD I started working through my weekly bill pay session. I have some financial goals that I would like to get some movement on this year. These goals get focused on primarily when this weekly managing of my finances occur. The rest of the time they are fuzzy.

Early Sunday afternoon I got out on my freshly repaired V13. I wanted to put the new shocks to a more extended test. The air was on the cool side outside but the hoodie and jeans I was wearing was enough to keep me comfortable during the ride.

I rode in a bit of a random fashion, compiling my route as I went. I wound up hitting a number of spots including the beach, a location where the V13 never visited before. The work on the suspension seemed to have resulted in improvements in both the feel and noise level of the wheel when the suspension is engaged. This was also the first time I rode seated in 2025, something I could not do last time I tried because of the knee/IT band issues I have been having.

The ride was somewhere close to 25 miles and I topped 40MPH during one stretch. Both of these numbers represent new watermarks in both distance and speed since my crash in October. After that crash I did not feel like I was going to allow it to affect me significantly despite the very real possibility that I could have been killed during that incident. I have continued to ride since then but all of the rides have been shortish and mostly slower paced, rarely crossing over 30MPH. I think despite my intent I do have some lingering side effects from that day. Like anything time should lessen that impact.

I got home and edited the video I shot right up until the Eagles playoff game. The Eagles beat the Packers in a rather ugly win. The offense was on the anemic side and the Packers had a ton of injuries, turnovers and penalties that should have resulted in a blow out but the game remained close throughout. Hey a win is a win, especially in the playoffs. My expectations have been and continue to be guarded, at best.

Yesterday a moveable mic mount I ordered arrived. Since I moved to my new house I have been just using a normal stand configuration for my mic which is ok but sort of limited in it’s positioning. With the arm I can put the mic exactly where it needs to be when I am using it and when I am not I can swing it totally out of my way.

I used to have this set up with my old desk at the old house but it was not great because the mount point was high, making the arm itself become part of what the camera saw. With the arm being mounted lower as it is now that should no longer be an issue. This new configuration should work out better for live streaming. I am also thinking about starting to play WoW again and if I do there is a possibility I could be streaming some of that as well. This mic mount will give me the flexibility that I need.

Yesterday I received an unexpected email from the Florida Department of Management Services. It was to officially notify me that I was now less than 5 years from my potential retirement date. It took me by surprise. Although I knew I was approximately this close to retirement seeing this email made it feel more tangible.

The email included a number of suggestions that will help me get myself aligned and ready to retire when that day comes. A lot of people I know that have worked here take advantage of a program called DROP. Basically it is a way the state incentivizes employees to stay on longer so they can hold on to all of that experience a long term employee offers. Basically after you reach full retirement age you can stay up to an additional 8 years in DROP. Your reward for doing so is a big lump sum of cash when you do finally leave.

It’s very tempting to a lot of people to extend their employment to get this cash bonus. To me the temptation of being freed from the constraints of a job, free to do what I want, when I want and where I want is far more tempting. The light at the end of the tunnel is clearly visible now, I just want to get there without my wheels falling off so I can enjoy what life has to offer me at that point in time.

This weekend I hope to have a productive couple of days with a good mix of fun mixed in, maybe getting out on a ride on my V13. I need to do some work on my Master V4. My kitchen has looked like an EUC chop shop for quite awhile between the work I was doing first on the V13 followed by the Master. My intent is to have all of that cleaned up by the end of the weekend.

My pickleball hiatus will continue this weekend despite my desire to get out there and hit the ball around. I had my second yoga class of the week yesterday and my mini-workout I do at home now also includes exercises to strengthen the muscles that are IT band essential. I have had enough of this issue.

Anything and everything I do will include an extra layer of clothing as the chilly air is forecast to be in place for quite awhile yet.

Yesterday was the first time I skipped a pickleball play session with my crew from work. Normally we play twice a week on our lunch hour. I am the designated organizer of the group, sending out texts to see who can play and trying to recruit more if needed. Despite taking myself off the roster for at least the next two weeks I still coordinated the play session. Staying on the sidelines is something that doesn’t sit well with me. I keep reminding myself that if taking a break results in my being able to participate pain free or at least with less of it in the future, it will be worth it.

The deep chill in our area continued last night. Instead of turning on the heat I decided to add another blanket to my bedding. This is a “fuzzy” blanket, something that Dawn suggested was a crucial addition to every man’s accessories back when she visited last March. I have never actually utilized one in my home until last night. It did the job as I have no recollection of “I’m cold” feelings during the night. It will stay on my bed ready for deployment until the night time temperatures pop up a few degrees.

I had one of those impulse urges to buy a wheel last night. It came on out of nowhere and was not based on any need. I think it originates from more of a desire to distract myself. I resisted the pull to click the buy now button despite the less disciplined portion of my mind telling me otherwise. The reality is I have some obligations that need to be taken care of before I start feeling like I have disposable income to throw at a whim like that. Could I do it, of course. Should I do it, no. Much like knowing a break from pickleball is ultimately the right move at this point in time, suppressing this urge is as well. Needs versus wants can be a boring but important guideline to adhere to.

I finally connected with my buddy at the gym who used to be a sniper, telling him I bought a gun. He was in disbelief but welcomed the idea of going to a range with me to give me some training. In addition one of my pickleball and volleyball friends is an ex-state trooper. He also is happy to show me the ropes. I think it will be interesting to dig into the world of firearms more, especially with friends that can help me do so safely.

My project for last night was getting my V13 100% back to normal which meant reattaching the Clark Pad fairing kit. After a few minor difficulties I had the wheel back to it’s original state which felt good. In total the project took over two weeks which was much longer than anticipated. I’m looking forward to getting out on a longer test ride this weekend although I will have to bundle up to do so.

Speaking of bundling up the arctic air is fully settled in which left my house in a chilly state with temperatures inside somewhere in the mid 60’s while outside the air temp was in the upper 40s. Thus far I have resisted the urge to flip the thermostat to the heat mode instead relying on a hoodie to keep me comfortable indoors. I did notice a chill in bed last night however. I have a single bedspread that is not very substantial at all when it comes to providing warmth. It is proving to be inadequate at these temperatures. Adjustments will be made.

Yesterday Facebook popped up an image from 9 years ago of the finish line arch I had made when I decided to branch out on my own to do independent race timing as opposed to doing it exclusively for the running club. It was an odd decision in retrospect.

Timing races was a demanding, high pressure, and stressful responsibility that really did not pay me anywhere near what it should have. Despite this combination of the reward not meeting the effort required I continued to do the work for years not because I enjoyed it but because I felt responsible and obligated to do it and felt I couldn’t trust anyone else to shoulder that responsibility.

It took a long time but eventually I reached the point where I said enough is enough and stepped away from timing races for the club because of some interpersonal relationships that frustrated and angered me, repeatedly. The idea of doing timing on my own I think might have had a good bit of “f u” involved but within a year I realized it was more hassle than it was worth. This was one of the early moments in the last 10 years where I started to put more value in my quality of life, an effort which has continued.

Despite timing my last race in 2016 I have kept the Green Machine Timing website online to this very day for no solid reason other than nostalgia I guess. There have been a number of examples in my life where I walked away from something that I invested a ton of time and energy into. In every example I can think of I have zero regret for doing so in the end. Race timing is clearly one of them.

Yesterday I received the final parts I needed to complete the repair on my V13 EUC. This has been a long process that has covered more than two weeks as I encountered issues that required several rounds of ordering parts. I did the final work last night in the garage as my kitchen workbench already had the Master V4 on it in a disassembled state. The work did not take long and afterwards I did a quick test ride with no gear in the chilly January air. Things felt and sounded better than they ever have. This upcoming weekend I hope to take an extended ride to confirm the improvements.

Last night I made an effort to get to sleep earlier than what has become normal recently. I was feeling like I was on fumes physically and mentally. I slept well but even after getting roughly seven and a half hours of sleep I awoke this morning with my body desiring more. I need to listen to what my body is telling me much more consistently than I have been.

Speaking of which I think I am going to make a hard choice and give myself an unwelcomed break from pickleball for at least a couple weeks. My IT band issue is now approaching it’s second month and I am getting very frustrated with my inability to make it disappear. However I have been trying to do that while keeping a reduced schedule of pickleball in my routine which I know is hindering my progress. So I am going to do the hard thing and stop playing for a bit to see what sort of gains I can make. This is the perfect time of year to be playing and not being able to take advantage is really, really pissing me off. If after continuing to do stretching/strengthening and not playing I still have issues I may begrudgingly need to escalate the issue to an orthopedist or PT.

Today a pretty significant wave of arctic air moves in and stays put for at least a week sending our area into it’s version of a deep freeze. I don’t particularly mind lows in the 40s and highs in the 60s but there are a lot of people here that will be dressing like Eskimos until the temps moderate.

My New Years day was a good mix of activities for me. I got out on a wheel not once but twice. Something that I assumed I would be doing a lot more after I moved in March of 23 was riding my wheels. Instead for a variety of reasons that really has not been the case. In fact I think 2024 probably had the least amount of miles on one wheel of any since I started in the hobby 8 plus years ago. My intent is to change that.

Riding has always been a way for me to naturally decompress and level myself out if I am feeling out of whack for whatever reason. I would like to indulge in that natural remedy more this year. WoW has historically been another way that I can wipe away whatever transient issues might be circling around in my head. That has also been nearly non-existent in my 2024. Both of these activities offer inherent relief from stress that I should take advantage of more often.

I accomplished my goal of getting the Christmas tree taken down and put away as well yesterday. After changing the outdoor RGB lights from their red and green state back to cool white the house was wiped clean of Xmas and officially back to normal. For many, many years undoing Christmas in my household carried with it a lot of negative feelings. Those feelings are not a thing anymore. On New Years Eve I did receive my final two Christmas cards of the year. As I have described previously, cards, especially unexpected cards bring little bursts of positivity and warm feelings into your day. This was definitely the case, once again.

I also mounted my electric skateboard on the wall of the garage instead of storing it on the back of one of my dining room chairs. It’s one of those tasks that I inexplicably procrastinated on despite it taking all of 5 minutes to complete. I have a handful of other things in that category that I need to address.

Normally I do yoga once a week, on Tuesdays. They also offer the class on Thursdays but I normally will opt to do weight training on that day. I am going to break protocol and take the class today as well. The movements hit my hips in a way that are definitely helping my lower body issues so I am prioritizing getting that better over strength gains right now. I asked myself what would I appreciate more, a bigger bench press number or being able to return to my normal pickleball/volleyball levels of activity. The latter was the instant and obvious answer.

Last night I went to see Gladiator 2. I have always been a big fan of the original film with Russell Crowe. That movie was compelling, emotional, and powerful. I was hoping for more of the same from this sequel which is directed by Ridley Scott, just like the original. Well, I didn’t get it.

The movie had some quality moments but there were far too many cringe worthy scenes with characters that bordered on ridiculous. The film felt poorly written with far too much reliance on flashbacks to the original IMO. I was surprised that with Scott directing and quality actors like Denzel Washington and Pedro Pascal that they couldn’t come up with a sequel that didn’t leave me shaking my head in disappointment repeatedly throughout. I’d give it a C.

I would like to blame my New Year’s Eve plans to have no plans on my still not feeling fully recovered from my illness however the truth is sick or not, going out on this night is not something I typically seek out and/or embrace. My big goal for my day off tomorrow is to unChristmas the house which will be pretty easy this year since I put minimal effort into the holiday decorations this year.

I would LOVE to go over and play some pickleball tomorrow but the continued issues I have with my lower body continue to make me feel like I would be doing more harm than good. I am not huge on making New Years resolutions but one wish I have is to get these various physical issues under control. The IT band related pain is the biggest limiter right now but I also have pain in the left knee as well that comes and go. For good measure my left elbow that I went down hard on during my crash in October has been sore, making pull ups somewhat painful. My right elbow is problematic as well from swinging the pickleball paddle thousands of times. Yea I’m sort of a mess.

I am looking forward to being able to get back into my normal routine as the new year launches. It feels like I have not been able to get back into that normalcy for nearly a month for various reasons. My hope is regular yoga, stretching, exercises targeting the weak areas and limiting things that can aggravate the issues will allow me to get back to the point where I am functioning better physically.

Happy New Year to anyone taking the time to read this. I appreciate you.

It’s funny. Last year the recap came right after the dramatic split with my ex, a time period where I just did not feel like writing about that or anything else. This year I find myself lacking motivation again, but for different reasons I suppose. Let’s see what comes of it.

Things I proposed as goals in 2024 were as follows.

A continued improvement in my overall health and wellness in 2024, hmmm well yes and no. Up until a couple months ago I would say my overall health and fitness did continue to improve aside from that little visit to the ER in April where I thought I was having a heart attack. When I went to California in early July that improved fitness level translated into a much better performance while riding compared to when I did the same thing 18 months prior. I was playing pickleball 4 times a week regularly as well as continuing my once a week sand volleyball play. Then it came to a stop.

A couple months ago I started developing pain in my right IT band that has been chronic. It’s difficult because not only does it cause pain in the hip but also the right knee. I have been trying to maintain a reduced pickleball schedule but volleyball has been out of the question. It’s been very frustrating. Then on my recent trip to California I smashed up my left hip during a crash resulting in a hematoma that still has a golf ball sized rock in the affected area. So yea for a good portion of 2024 my health and fitness felt as good as it has in a very long time. The last few months, not so much.

I mentioned that I had no serious home improvement plans on the table for 2024 and that held true. I did lots of little small improvements but nothing that crossed into 4 digit territory.

I mentioned travel expectations were minimal but that was NOT the case. In addition to a trip to PA in early January I also visited California a total of four times, something I absolutely did not expect at this time last year.

Finally this was my quote regarding relationships – Do I have personal/relationship goals in 2024? After seeing how opening myself up to relationships this past year has worked out for me I don’t really know that looking for one is something I have interest in doing. If the stars align and I manage to fall into something down the road with a quality human being that’s great but I won’t be actively seeking anything out. I am past the age where I need female conquests to make me feel better about myself. I need to feel at peace, whether that is with or without a partner. Going day to day not knowing which end is up is not a way to live, I can attest to that.

How does that align with what actually transpired this year? Eh, I can touch on that in a bit.

I feel this year was one where I started caring less a lot about a lot of things. Politics is one example. Despite Trump being reelected I hardly allowed myself to get emotionally involved in the circus that has been transpiring this past year. I’m not a fan of politics at all at this point and convinced that whomever is sitting in that office is serving an agenda that has little to do with the greater good. I have shifted to worrying about things I can control, the corrupt American political system is not one of those things.

This shift in thinking has had a broader scope. In general 2024 has been filled with me giving less F’s. In some ways it feels freeing in others it feels like giving up on things/situations I once held value in or gave energy to. I have had examples of people acting in ways that surprised and/or disappointed me during the year. Hell, I am one of those people.

I think a dramatic turning point in my year was when I crashed and fell into traffic on my wheel, narrowly and unexplainably escaping dramatic injury and/or death. The incident shook me in a way I still am not quite sure I understand to this day. It increased my desire to value both myself and others I am close to. I never recall having a feeling I was going to die with such certainty.

There is an odd dynamic in my life where I have worked hard to get established, to get to a point where I have less must do’s to clear space for more want to do’s, with a goal of making my quality of life as good as I can. However despite those efforts I also have qualities that pull me away from that goal which is a constant struggle.

To be honest, the more I try to think about what 2024 has been for me, the less I want to dig into it. I have once again thrown around the idea of shutting down the blog once and for all. Twenty two years of doing this is pretty crazy, by any standard. I have thought about a reality where I stop sharing and just focus on what is real and tangible. It will take more thought. I’m not quite sure if writing the blog is serving me at this point.

So my goals for 2025 are very simple. Do the things and make decisions that lead me towards peace, happiness, satisfaction, and contentment. If something starts pulling me away from that goal I should let it drop off. The finish line for me where a conventional 9-5 existence no longer is required is approaching. I want to hit that line running, not limping. I have people in my life that love and support me, wanting nothing but the best possible outcomes for me. I appreciate and value those people.

My weekend was not very exciting as I continued to slowly climb out of the pit of illness. I still found energy to be a hard resource to accumulate. I did make my way to Rural King to pick up the gun, finally. The pick up process was a slog. By the end of it I was of the firm opinion that Rural King gun barn staff don’t really know their ass from a hole in the ground. Normally I would expand on exactly why that is but I don’t really feel like it. Bottom line is I have the gun and ammo and now need to get some training on it.

I accomplished one significant project over the weekend, replacing the boring old overhead fluorescent light fixture in the garage with a cool LED hex light configuration which I happened to see at Rural King.

The installation process took some time and a couple course corrections along the way. I am very happy with the end result. The lights are very bright, illuminating the garage to a level that approaches daylight. I did a brief video outlining the process.

I watched the Eagles take apart the Cowboys on Sunday without Jalen Hurts which was encouraging. I like other fans I’m sure were concerned that after the disappointing loss to the Commanders the Eagles could be starting another late season slide. Instead they came up big, winning the division and securing their spot as no worse than the number two team in the division.

Speaking of football I unknowingly secured third place in my fantasy football league. I am not kidding when I say I did not realize that I was in the 3/4 playoff game. I thought it was just another week, that is how little attention and care I put into this league. Well I wound up winning easily, securing third place in the 12 team league. The win secured me enough cash that at least paid for my entry this year so I can’t complain. An interesting side note, the team that won the championship did so after an undefeated season, which is highly improbable and something I have never seen.

One thing that was a casualty during this illness is my desire to shave. As a result my appearance is about as shaggy as I can recall in a very long time. I just don’t have a lot of f’s to give at this point in time.

I did watch a ton of TV during this time period, probably watching more shows in 6 days than I do normally in 6 months. I binge watched Squid Games 2, saw a bunch of Bond movies and the new thriller Carry On on Netflix, among others. Yes my body needed the rest but my mind goes a little nuts when I do a whole lot of nothing.

I guess I need to do a recap of the year but am finding the motivation to that lacking, as well.