There's an old joke among sysadmins.  "The software said it needed Windows X or better, so I installed Linux."

I know it's been quite a bit since I've written here or updated my status. Thankfully, I do have a new job. I started as the Director of IT Operations for UHY in April. It was a longer process than anyone would have liked it to be, but I'm incredibly happy here. Even knowing that I was a bit over a barrel financially, I was offered a very competitive salary. The benefits are as good or better than any I've had and the commute to the office is about 10 minutes.

So, I've been putting off making this announcement for about a week, but I've been laid off from my last job. My very kind Director, who I hadn't worked with for very long, was good about reassuring me it had nothing to do with my performance and that it was 100% about cutting costs and trying to increase margins. He also volunteered to be a good reference for me. In fact, he said it while HR was still on the line with us. So, I'm in the market again, a little sooner than I'd hoped, but, well, job change rarely happens on our timetable, does it?

I'm no stranger to getting things done in spite of being depressed.

Mental health is serious, but we can still have fun with it.

If it's done well, there's an opportunity to help people.

May is Mental Health Awareness Month.

This has been more effective than anything else.

Like a lot of middle-aged men, I've put on a few pounds, and the pandemic lock-down, which had me working literally steps from my kitchen, hasn't helped either. When I was younger, I actually worked out quite a bit and was able to mostly keep my weight in check. I did try to eat healthily and not overindulge in anything, but I really put my weight down to being very active. Unfortunately, as time has gone on, I find that I can't keep the weight off as well with just exercise.

Solar power has come to represent hope in science fiction, and climate change.

Training for how to deal with stress.