The Red Brick Times

Busy, busy, busy. Russ and I are still in hot pursuit of the chimera of IT fame and wealth. And you can keep the fame. Since I will be entirely studious this riding season, I have decided to sell the great gold beast and convert my decades-long obsession with dangerous transportation into cold cash. After all, a fella's gotta eat. Akin to a cowboy shooting his horse in the desert to feast for a time on the offal, in hopes of civilization and surcease beyond the shimmering horizon. Can't eat the Ford stock, which I sold before they cashiered me anyway.

I heard an NPR news item yesterday wherein GM has surplus funding for their retirement program. GM invested billions in the market several years ago, and unlike the State of Ohio Workman's Compensation fund (which sought out a dealer in rare coins, who subsequently absconded with millions), they realized a much larger than anticipated return. GM currently has a solvent retirement system. It would have been much larger but for the 35,000 buy-outs last year, which offered better-than-expected retirement conditions for the early go.

So I have optimism about the GM retirement planning managers' abilities (or luck?). If GM is learning to treat its "family" well, even if base-level self-interest in corporate survival is the motivator, it bodes well for possible sanity in management philosophy. Next, if they do the Ben and Jerry show, reducing the pay gap between the lowest and highest levels of the company, things will be looking up even more. Now they have to stay the course and develop a truly efficient, fuel-sipping urban-mobile that parks like a motorcycle and protects occupants versus the elephantatic rolling mansions that currently populate the byways. Personally, I would welcome a small two-seat vehicle built like a motorcycle helmet, with 5-point harnesses, roll cages, and crash-absorbent internal material throughout. Two or three-cylinder diesel engines could propel them down the road at a top speed of 70 mph and still get 50 mpg. Modular assemblies to permit repair access and replacement. Don't repair an engine, swap it out for a fresh module which is returned for recycling. Why not? People have been selling "short blocks" for years. Just extend the concept.

But many customers will not relinquish leather and luxury for efficiency.
And then there is the frog problem.
Posted 6:53 AM by Andy (5) comments

       Comments:

And speaking of IT fame and wealth I saw you at the testing center this morning. I never knew a human could sweat that much and still live. After you left they put those little yellow "danger, wet floor" signs all around your terminal.

Me? I took two tests didn't sweat a drop. I pissed myself instead. They're ordering some "danger, wet chair" signs.

# posted by  whatley : April 03, 2007 3:58 PM
 
That wasn't sweat, it was condensation as I felt the chill of utter panic sweep over me when the questions presented had no apparent relationship to the class and study materials used to prepare. Next would have been the piss that passeth all understanding, as you experienced.

# posted by  Andy : April 04, 2007 6:54 AM
 
On my way back in to take the second A+ test (I did really well on both) I met one of our classmates coming out from the Net+. He had a shell shocked look to him and said he passed but just barely. Ye Gods, what's in that thing? Guess I'll find out tomorrow.

# posted by  whatley : April 04, 2007 8:52 AM
 
Congrats, homey. Glad you're back with the living, in all senses. It wasn't so much the questions, which were not unreasonable, but the way they were put, which, to my way of thinking, required putting concepts together that, in my mind, had a piece missing. I have never worked with networks before, so probably find myself at a disadvantage. BTW - pasing score on the N+ is 554 on a grading scale of 100-900. The A+ tests required 675 for Essentials and 700 for technician on a 100-900 scale. I was in the mid 800s for A+ and low 700s for N+.

# posted by  Andy : April 04, 2007 11:40 AM
 
Maybe you put all that good ol' American know-how to work on something like this

# posted by  A. O. : April 05, 2007 1:24 AM
 
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