Things went about as well as yesterday; I met lots of interesting folks from Enterprise Storage, Server Support, and Voice & Data Networks. For example: Robert from the UNIX side of Server Support gets his background from the Marine Corps., where he set up Solaris servers that were used to coordinate offensives with Air Force divisions. I tried to learn a little from each person in turn, and I also tried to make a point of asking about experience, career options, and advice for a soon-to-be college grad. Each meeting took a little longer than scheduled, and I subsequently ended up leaving at about 5 P.M. again. That’s okay, though, because my tuna steak at Landry’s was quite a bit better than yesterday’s sirloin. I did go over my $25 meal limit, though. Whoops.
The good news is that my brief stay at the IT Help Desk vastly exceeded my expectations. Suzanne McCreedy met me in the lobby just before lunch and instructed me to report at approximately 12:00 P.M. At said time, I proceeded to the 8th floor of the Alabama Power Corporate Office to begin a series of handoffs that would take me through the RLC, PRC, CCC, and CPIC groups. At each station, a Help Desk employee would share a little bit of what he or she did. I got some good insight into the corporate side of IT as well as some honest opinions about the company along the way. I hope the next 1.5 days will build upon this positive experience.
The bad news is that my dinner was not so good. The closest two restaurants to the Birmingham La Quinta Inn are O’Charley’s and Lone Star Steakhouse. O’Charley’s was jam-packed; Lone Star was relatively empty. Now I know why. The soda machine was broken; my steak was undercooked, on top of being a poor cut of meat; and I dined alone, so the company was unremarkable.
My parents and I dined out at the Outback Steakhouse in Dothan for the first time in a while. I had the ribs and while they weren’t the best I’ve had from Outback, they were still very good.
I didn’t really have any specific plans going into this Independence Day, but I tasked myself with organizing a cookout. Grammy and Granddaddy were invited (of course) and I went to Bruno’s to get the necessary groceries. We fixed pretty traditional stuff: hamburgers, hot dogs, baked beans, watermelon, and fries. (Mom also made an interesting potato and egg omelet to tide us over until dinner.) Everyone except Dad played Cribbage after dinner. Granddad and I formed one team; Grammy and Mom formed the other. (Our team won both games.)
I finished uploading all my pictures from China today as well. Good deal.
Mom and Dad came up for the weekend to visit. We met at my apartment around 1 PM and went out for a nice lunch at Nuevo Laredo Cantina. After lunch we shopped for new eyeglasses for me and located the hotel my parents would be staying at. We decided to eat at longtime-favorite Chin Chin V. I had sesame chicken and fresh fried rice. It was excellent. It was fairly late in the evening when we parted for the night but I did get the chance to watch “Smallville” with the guys.
