04/14/2012 - I realize it has been almost 8 months since my last post.  I have been busy.  I am still working tech support for the same web hosting company.  In February I was promoted to a Tier 2 position and a few weeks ago they offered me training on a new cloud server product. There is talk that in the near future there might be new positions created along with a little boost in pay.  After the training was over I went back to the phones and the product was released.  It must be working very well because we have not had many questions or problems with it and therefore, not may cases to work.

I have been looking for something that pays better but it hasn't happened yet.  I had an interview a few weeks ago and was told they had over a 100 applicants. The rejection letter came last week.  There are a lot of jobs available but nothing that pays very well.  I guess this is why both husband and wife work just to survive.  Winter is just around the corner so I am thinking of what needs to be done to be prepared for it.  Bella is dreading another winter in the trailer and I am not far from that myself.  We just don't have a choice at the moment.

I have to say living in Utah is different than anything I have experienced before.  Perhaps it is just where I am at the moment.  I am working tech support for a web hosting company so for 10 hours a day I am on the phone trying to help people deal with web hosting, email, and billing problems.  Being on the computer all day kind of burns me out so I don't really want to look at a computer when I am off, but it seems I still spend hours playing Farmtown on Facebook.  Work seems so impersonal.  I go in and if anyone is working around me they are usually on a call so there may be a hello/goodbye as people come and go, but there is no time for chatting during the day and 10 hours go by without any kind of interpersonel communication.

Last week we finally came to terms with reality and closed High Desert Technologies.  In my mind it is still on hold, but I don't have the time and we don't have the money to get it going in Utah.  So we called our accountant and she did whatever she needed to do to get us un-registered with the state and we closed the checking account.

For some time I have been thinking about continuing with the blog.  I was going to write a post a couple of months ago but I couldn't get into the Dashboard.  So today I updated the software and fixed the error that was preventing access to the dashboard.   I am totally amazed... the last post I wrote on the technical side of the blog was read 9332 times.   That was just a quick post about Ubuntu 10.04 on my netbook.  Since then two more releases have come out and the next release is scheduled to come out in October.  I am so jazzed with Linux.  Am I anti-Windows?   Well, yes I am.  It amazes me how much Windows users put up with.  When was the last time your Windows machine did a restart to install an update?  It also really bugs me to tell the pc to shutdown and then have to wait 10 minutes for it to shutdown because it is processing an update.

So I have been trying to come up with something to write about.  I don't really have time to research and write about technology.  I guess it will come in time.  When the next version of Ubuntu comes out I'll install it on my PC.  Currently I am running Linux Mint 9 (the current version is 11) and I'll write about that or about installing it on my netbook.  The flip side posts are probably not very interesting to anyone.  Bella asked my why I am doing it... my answer is "because I can".  So if you have made it this far... thanks for listening.

Well, since my last article I completed the module I was writing for Joomla.  I may get to put it to use someday.  I have also taken a CompTIA Linux + and Network + course through the IEEE Computer Society an excellent organization by the way.  I have really been taking advantage of the Safari Books Online as well as the Technical courses.  "As of January 1, 2011, CompTIA A+, CompTIA Network+ and CompTIA Security+ certifications are valid for three years from the date the candidate becomes certified. A “valid through” date will appear on all certificates and certificate holder CompTIA ID cards."  So my goal was to take the Network + test before the end of the year.  But it doesn't look like it is going to happen.  We have almost gone through our savings and even though I am picking up odd jobs here and there the money is getting really tight.

Of course we would move to Utah where it is cold.  It has been... in a word... COLD here the last couple of weeks.  The high this week is suppose to be 44 degrees the end of the week.  We have been going through $20 in propane a week.  But enough of that.  I'm not going to ask for money... it just doesn't taste right.  But if you wish to offer a donation, I won't turn it down... Thank you for listening.

So what have I been up to?  I've been learning PHP, refreshing my memory concerning Javascript and learning AJAX.  As a practical project, I've been building a module for Joomla.  I was told of an idea for a webpage which requires the listing of articles on the front page from two different categories.  I haven't found anything that does that sort of thing so I built one.  I got it to work today.

Well, I'm sorry this is so short.  I have been pretty much been a hermit since we have been here.

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Bella has been asking me for years if we could move.  The last time we visited the kids in Utah it was so hard for Bella to leave.  So we packed out the RV, packed the rest of our stuff and moved it back into storage, and moved to Utah.  As I write this Bella is feeding the girls lunch and life just seems right.  Our trailer is temporarily parked at an RV park and we are looking for work.  I suppose for some that would seem pretty scary, but I am at peace with it.  It is a good feeling.

I have disabled comments on both of these blogs.

It is so hard to believe it is the end of September already. It seems we have been keeping busy but actually just getting by. The Lord has been such a blessing to us as he continually has met our needs this year.

He has also answered prayer as we found a place to rent. It is small but seems like a mansion compared to our RV. We now have everything moved and are in the process of settling in. It is amazing how much storage space this place has. Between it and our storage shed we was able to clean out the storage space that we were renting. On less bill to pay.

Murphy, on the other hand seems to have taken on a new personality. She has so much room to roam around and so many boxes to climb on top of and into. Our new home has a lot of windows and a screened in porch so she is in hog heaven. She has always been an indoor cat and we have gone around and around with her making her mind when it comes to not sneaking out the door. So she is still working on understanding that it is ok for her to go out to the screened in porch.

Another nice thing about our new home is that it has a wonderful yard. That is one thing that I am really going to miss about where we were. We were surrounded by green wide open spaces. Here there is an apple tree and Bella is talking about doing some canning. They are a little tart but should work real well in apple pies.

Previous adventures:
Life Is An Adventure I
Life Is An Adventure II
Update - Where Has The Time Gone
Life Is An Adventure IV

Spring is in the air here in North Western New Mexico. In our little adventure living in a thirty foot RV it is time to breath a sigh of relief as we are no longer confined to staying indoors. (Actually, I am a little late writing this as it is late afternoon and currently eighty two degrees out side. Last week however there was snow on the ground.) Last fall Bella planted bulbs along the ditch bank and now it is lined with yellow daffodils, paper whites, and tulips. We also have some new neighbors. Three pairs of geese have decided to stick around and some days there are ducks on the pond as well. There is no evidence of nesting yet however. It is kind of amusing to look out the window and see the geese walking around the neighborhood. A couple of hours ago I looked out the door and saw a whooping crane fly by and land just across the ditch. I wasn't quick enough to grab the camera capture the moment as he was off and flying across the alfalfa field behind us. There is some swamp land across the river so maybe that is where he was heading.

Anyway both Faith and Grace were eighteen inches tall, Faith weighed five pounds and Grace weighed five pounds fifteen ounces. Mom and daughters were able to go home yesterday, 2/10/2009 and last report there were all doing well. More pictures may be found on the Alan, Tiffany, Cley, Grace & Faith Hancock Blog