Enjoyable Thursday

I came to naturally and did my French lessons before emerging from my chambers. I was cleaned and spruced up this morning. I had an interesting first meeting of the day. After crushing some yum I settled into the helm. I joined a meeting put on by a customer and as it happened both the Big T and Jacko joined this meeting. It was kind of neat, probably the first time we’ve all been to the same meeting. We learned about root rots and soil borne pests for over an hour. Neither the T nor myself deigned to start our video but Jacko did, I capture a quick picture of him on camera. Towards the end of the meeting they addressed the questions left in the chat and it turns out the Big T had asked a question about nematode movement in soil, it was addressed smartly. But, as it turns out, the Big T likely didn’t hear the answer because he’d bailed to go to another call. That means he also meant that he missed when the sponsors were recognized and I was mentioned by name. Classic, no idea if Jacko was still on by that time.

After letting the Big T know what he missed I carried on with my own work. I got a few things cleaned up and caught up and got my inbox/to-do list down to eight items. Things were going great for the day, so I wondered what was coming to ruin it. I managed to do my HR goals for the year, a process I don’t relish at all. I don’t love trying to assess myself. I generally sandbag and end up being quite modest. I’m not built to be cocky, it’s not in my nature. I got all those posted up and then a colleague (former close teammate) reached for help on VLOOKUP. Having not yet learned that magic myself we decided to try and struggle through it. It has been something I should have learned a few years but never took the time. Today I took the time. I read a few things online, I tried a few things myself and by the end I think I have a very tenuous grasp on how to use it. My biggest issue was trying to learn how to have the one look up populate multiple columns rather than customizing several for each new column. I really enjoyed solving that puzzle and enjoyed the rich scent of today’s candle. Also, I like my little Nutcracker man. His devious look cracks me up. I bought that when I went on a school trip to see the Nutcracker ballet in public school. I’m not sure exactly which girl I sat with on the bus ride but I do recall it was pleasant.

Once I had an idea of how to tackle the issue I called my colleague back and we figured it out, we pulled in a third we knew had experience with the function and liked solving problems. I stayed on the line after to discuss other items with that third person and after that it was only a short haul until quitting time. I fooled in about a half hour before deciding I should make a meal and then get the driveway done. The two older neighbours on either side of me were simultaneously doing their drives so I felt a bit guilted into it. Dinner was first though, I didn’t want all three of us to be out there at once, we’d have to talk or something. So I opened the fridge and saw a package of bacon and cheddar butcher style sausages. This would be the centrepiece of the meal. I had the leftover mushrooms I fried on Sunday and loads of spinach from the family feast. I cooked the sausage, warmed up the fungus while I sprinkled some nacho blend cheese on a wrap and layered in the spinach. It says it is prewashed so I’m going to trust them this time. I sprinkled on the last of my Ring of Fire hot sauce and then added the warm elements. It was more delicious than you’re imagining. A flavourful treat. I used approximately one sausage for each and a small handful of the mushrooms. After eating I didn’t feel excessively full, which has become rare for me. But still I decided to go clean my driveway out.

It’s true that the Leafs are on the schedule tonight but not until bedtime so instead I fired up NHL20. I had one game left to win to secure the Calder Cup and did that. Usually I let the AHL team handle their business but for some reason I decided to intervene and guide them to victory. Then I switched back to the main club and won their last two games required to secure the top prize in sports. I navigated the draft right after and made my five first round selections (23, 24, 25, 29, 32) and then did some arean improvements. My contract as GM was up and I had offers. First time I’ve ever got to this point in the game. The Leafs had the most money, budget, term, etc. on the table so it was an easy choice. I did have over ten offers though, which is nice. I started into the free agent phase with a focus on getting a few veterans for the AHL team to mix with all the young talent I’ve got coming. I’ve been getting several first round picks every year and have a glut of young talent coming in. It’s sad to let it go but I’ll probably switch over to NHL21 now to be able to play with my buddies. For interest sake, you can see my own player and the infamous Irmen in the top right of the picture below. There wasn’t much done after this, I pretty much went to bed early, asleep before ten.