Monday, June 23, 2008

CoreComm Sucks!

So, last week we came to work and found a new Web interface for our e-mail system. We also found that all e-mails that were on CoreComm's server after 6/11 were gone! Tried calling their tech support multiple times a day and got a busy signal each time. Around lunchtime we found an alternate method to accessing our e-mail. Pain in the ass? Yes. But at least we were able to get to it. Thursday was more of the same crap....still unable to get a hold of them. Friday more of the same, but we took a more direct approach to contacting them. My boss called the sales number and I called support until I got through.

After being on hold we finally got some answers:
1. The problems were because they were changing mail servers.
2. Would be fixed by Monday at the latest.
3. We were not notified because:
a. It was only supposed to take 3 hours
b. It is not company policy
c. "I'm not sure why you weren't notified"
***notice the inconsistancy
4. There was something wrong with our mapping, which is why we would get mail that was sent to the non-mapped e-mail addresses and not the mapped ones.
5. Lars was the guy my boss talked to, however he did not have a direct number.
6. We would NOT have to make ANY changes to our Outlook setup

Fast forward to Monday morning:
Problems have gotten worse! Now we can't even access through the old way to get our messages. The one acct that was working on Friday is not working at all. Therefore we have NO e-mail service!

Call the number Lars provided. Busy, busy, busy......finally get through. The outgoing message states they are having problems on their end and it would be fixed by Monday at the latest. Yeah, not so much. Talk to Scott. He looks at the fun error message from the acct that was working previously. Then looks at the other problem that we can't get to the mail the old way either. Neither are known issues.....has to bump it up to the "systems people". Then he can't help me with the mapping issue. I must call back and talk to the "business people". Nope, he can't transfer, I just have to call back.

So after 2 hours I'm no further than when I arrived this morning. Still calling the "business people" and still getting a busy signal. I'm looking at transfering to google's hosted services. Hopefully my boss will go for it.

Anyone reading this: CORECOMM SUCKS!!!!!! Stay away!!!!

By the way, this is not the first time they've changed servers without notifying customers. Last fall they changed the server our web page was on without telling us. Yup, another week of downtime there! Bastards!

An update on the situation: after hours and hours of busy signals we finally got through to the "business people". A very nice gentleman named Adam helped us out. Told me I have to change MX records, setup all the accts correctly (apparently there is no more mapping), and informed me of the Outlook changes I'd have to make. Yeah....refer to #6 above. Does this company know up from down? I think not!

Saturday, June 14, 2008

The Dells

So, Rick and I spontaneously decided to go to the Dells for his B-day weekend. It's been fun, but we ran into a few obstacles. First of all, it took us almost 4.5 hours to get here! Oak Creek to the Dells should only take 1.5 hours or so, 4.5 is how long it takes me to get all the way to Hudson! We picked a fine time for Rick's first time freeway driving. I drove to HWY 83 where we stopped for lunch and coincidentally happened to be were I-94 was closed. Then he drove the rest of the way. He said he's sick of driving for now. I don't blame him! So, we FINALLY get here, check into our hotel, get our free tix to Mt. Olympus. After applying sunscreen and getting a few things situated we were off to Mt. Olympus.....which now has a special where you buy one day get the second free! W00t!

We pull into the first entrance we see for it, which happens to be the main entrance. Suddenly we realize that there is a $2.00 fee for parking at this lot. WTF! I'm glad our tix came with our room! Of course we do not carry any cash with us, since we rely on debit 95% of the time. :) So, the lady let us through anyways. We find a decent parking spot then mosey on into the rides. We hopped on the first roller coaster we see ~ Zeus. This is the first roller coaster I have been on in over 7 years! Wow, I forgot what they're all about! It was fun, and a little scary for me at first. I can admit it :P After that ride we went on to Hades. While standing in line for that one I realized that my inhaler fell out of my pocket somewhere between the hotel room and the ride. I panic, not only is it not a good thing to be without it just in case, but I just bought the damn thing and since my insurance company is a bunch of douche bags they won't cover it so I paid $40.00 for it and barely used it! So, Rick comforts me and says it's no big deal and we go on.

I was scared sh*tless of Hades, it looked so fast and like it went so high. I guess you go approximately 75mph on the drop down under the parking lot. But I got on it, once we got to the part of going up the big hill before going on that drop I turned to Rick and said I don't want to ride it anymore! But I stuck through it and it was actually pretty quick and fun!

Then we went on some other roller coaster that was a baby compared to Hades. After that we went on the Mt Olympus Ducks tour. That was a tad disappointing since it only took you around the Mt. Olympus grounds, and a brief stint through the back of the Deer Park.

After that we decided to head back to the hotel as Rick didn't want to go to the water park areas. His excuse was that he's too insecure to go there and walk around w/o a shirt. I have a hard time grasping that one, since I'm the bigger of the two of us and I have absolutely no problem prancing around in my swimming suit. My mentality is who gives a f*ck. If they don't like it they don't have to look and I'll never see these people again so who cares? Whatever.

We tried out the jacuzzi when we got back. Very naughty and very nice. ;) I so have to have one in my house when I get one!

Before heading out for dinner we decided to mosey on back to Mt. Olympus to see if anyone turned in my inhaler. Since we didn't want to pay for parking we parked in the back lot by the water park areas. The water park areas were just closing as we were walking through. The lost and found ended up being on the complete other side of the park! So after a long long hike we ended up at lost and found. Nope, they didn't have it. However we did make an observation at this point. A lot of the employees there don't speak English very well and have a heavily foreign accent. We noticed this at the ticket booth, the food stand, and now at lost and found. When asking for a pink inhaler she showed us a blue key-clip thinger that had money in it. o_O Then she suggested we try the ride itself.

In order to get to the ride from this point we had to walk farther away from where we parked and up a VERY steep hill. (ok, it wasn't too horribly steep, but I'm still working on getting in shape, so it was mildly difficult for me at this time of day) We get to the ride and low and behold my inhaler was turned in!!!! Yay!! Since we were that far we decided to ride that coaster again....in the front per Rick's request! It was definitely more fun with my eyes open and in the front! Then since Hades is right next to it we decided to go on that one again. It was fun, no matter HOW much whining I did before getting on. :)

Dinner was yet another adventure. We were going to eat at this all you can eat seafood buffet next to the hotel. However when we got there we noticed it was $30 per person and we didn't know if drinks were included. So, we decided on pizza instead. We both thought the pizza was just OK, but it ended up costing about half of what we would have paid for the buffet! After returning to the hotel we decided to get Rick's homework done so we didn't have to worry about the deadline on Sunday. It wasn't too bad, only took 1.5 hours max.

The ride home only took 2.5 hours. Dad gave me about a million different options on how to get home from HWY 12 when I wished him a Happy Father's Day. Eventually we ended up behind a Jeep with a Don Jacob's license plate holder......we knew they were fellow Milwaukeeans not only by the plate but by their driving as well. Us Milwaukee folks don't like going the speed limit and we certainly don't like traffic. We could see this driver getting majorly pissed as we were in stop and go traffic for about 30 min! But after we passed the small town causing the traffic (with their 3 traffic lights) we were smooth sailing. Then we came upon HWY 19, and the Jeep was taking that. HWY 19 was one option my Dad gave me, so we decided to follow the Jeep. Eventually we were back on I-94 and well on our way home! We ended up stopping at Rick's Mom's place to wish her Fiance happy father's day and stayed for a couple hours.

Then we went on another adventure before going home ~ trying to find Pizza Shuttle! Rick decided he wanted some wings from there for dinner. So we went in search of them. We got off on North Ave. and turned on Farwell. After a couple blocks we didn't see it so we turned around (darn one way streets!) and came back. Still couldn't find it. So I decided to txt Google. After all, Google knows all! I got the address in turn and we found out we just didn't go far enough. about 5 blocks down from where we turned around we finally found it. Then we finally made it home.

The kitties were happy to see us and I was happy to be home. However, I was not happy to see the mounds of laundry that needed to be washed yet. At least Rick was thoughtful and kind enough to sort the laundry for me before leaving! I did one load last night ~ the "necessity load" and will work on the rest tonight. I wish I had a maid!

Friday, June 13, 2008

Goals

I'm on a roll with goals this year! So far I've met 3 of my goals I set for myself in 2008.

1. Quit smoking as of 2-18-08
2. Lost 25 lbs as of May 08
3. I was able to walk/jog a mile in 14.08 minutes! 6/13/08

I realize #3 is probably something many people can do, but as far as I can remember I have never done a mile in under 15 min....much less under 20. I absolutely hated running in school and thought the presidential fitness tests were BS so, I just walked them basically. Even if I did actually run them I'm not positive I would have been able to get it under 15 min.

So, that puts me on to my next set of goals:
1. Lose 20 lbs by Rick's graduation in September, and another 20 by the end of the year
2. Complete one mile in 10 min.
3. Earn my MCTS SQL Server 2005 by September

W00t I can do this!

Thursday, June 12, 2008

Just for fun

Ok, I stole it from a friend's blog. But I thought it would be fun, and I'm trying to waste 10 min before it's time to go home!

1) What were you doing five years ago?

I was married and working as a Customer Service rep/data entry clerk for Universal Mortgage. Also, helping my ex-husband doing his one and only consistent job through our 5 year marriage...the paper route.

2) What are three things on my to-do list for tomorrow?

a) Get a good workout in at the gym
b) Do some SQL Server Prep
c) Work

3) Snacks I enjoy:

Chips and salsa, nuts, and summer sausage/cheese/crackers

4) Things I would do if I were a billionaire

a) Pay off my bills
b) Buy a house
c) Buy a new car ~ nothing fancy
d) Open an animal shelter

5) Two states I have lived

a) Wisconsin
b) Louisiana

6) Some jobs I've had

a) Network Admin
b) Customer Service Rep
c) Daycare teacher - toddlers
d) Master Bear Builder ~ Build-A-Bear Workshop Rocks!!!!
e) Swing Manager at McDonald's

7) How did you come across the name for your blog?

On the day I created it I was reflecting on the drama in my life and the comedic aspect of it all from the outside. :)

Reflections

Life doesn't always turn out the way we expect it to. But it's the adventure that makes it interesting. When I graduated HS I thought I was all set on where I was going in my life. Had everything planned out. I was going to be a biochemist and married with children by 25. Now I'm 27, divorced and a network administrator with no kids. Guess I couldn't have been more wrong!

But I've had fun along the way and I've seen some things I loved and some I wish I hadn't. Even if given the chance I don't think I'd take back my marriage, or my past relationships. I've learned so much from them and so much about myself in the process. I have a feeling that things are starting to fall into place now and I'm getting ready for the next adventure life has in store for me.

I look at past class mates and how successful they are. It's so great to see everyone doing so well. Well, here's to many more great adventures and successes in life!

Tuesday, June 10, 2008

So proud

Just a forewarning this has to do with IT. So, if you're not IT you may not know what the heck I'm talking about.

So, I'm at work and my co-worker brings it to my attention that the forms for one customer are not the same as another. I looked and sure enough, some have different file dates. So I figure I'll go in and execute my script to disburse all the newer forms to the right places. All the sudden I notice that I'm getting access denied. :| Then I realize that we made all the .docs read only since that script was made. So, I just spent the last 2 hours (yeah, I know I'm a little slow, I'm new to scripting) trying to figure out how to go through all 40 directories (x5 servers) and change the attribute to non-read only then copy my new file and make them read only again. But I got it, and minus a stupid little setback* I got it to work! I'm so proud, and I did it all by myself! W00t!

*While testing I made an output file for the script read only and didn't notice, then wondered why I was still getting access denied.

Monday, June 9, 2008

I just want a few minutes alone!

Today's mood = Annoyed!

Since Rick and I have gotten home I have: planted the pepper and tomato plants we bought, made dinner (with Rick's constant you're doing it wrong), folded a load of laundry, washed/dried a load of laundry that I'll probably fold before bed, unloaded the dishwasher, reloaded the dishwasher, made 2 loaves of banana bread, hand-washed the large dishes, and cleaned the kitchen. I'm exhausted.

While making dinner Rick starts making comments like you're cooking it wrong, "my new slogan is going to be women: what CAN they do?" I swear it took all the power in me not to smack him for that one! Then throughout the night he's just being obnoxious. Just leave me alone I need quiet! Sorry to be a crab ass, but seriously. I'm crabby that I had to do all of that. I'm crabby that I got to spend all day yesterday cleaning and doing laundry while he watched TV and lounged. Only to do a half ass job at cleaning the kitchen right as we were about to go to bed.

Monday, June 2, 2008

Interesting Fact of the Day

So, while prepping for my MCTS this afternoon I discovered that Microsoft licensed the first version of SQL Server from Sybase (according to the MCTS Self-paced Training Kit (Exam 70-431)). I find that interesting as the DBMS I'm most familiar with is Sybase. I'm interested in finding out the various similarities/differences between the two.