Friday 3/11/05 - Tuesday 3/15/05

Friday, Sunday and Monday I worked.  I worked very hard!  I was called on a contract for IBM by Kforce to go to the local Wal-Mart and replace POS system boards in the cash registers.  I have worked for Kforce before when I was in Corpus Christi and they passed my name over to another recruiter who does Hawaii.  It's always something different but they send great instructions with every job so I always feel very comfortable even if it is something new.  On this job basically what I do is pull the computer from under the cash register, disconnect all cables, power, etc.  Then I take it to a work area in the front of the store (usually the cashiers use this area to count their tills).  I open the box, remove the motherboard, remove the heat riser and card, the ram and then put those on the new board and put that board in.  Then I close the box, test the system and move on.  In theory (LOL).  In real life I have to do some 2 to 3 times since the boards are refurbished and do not always work.  I was very unhappy about my progress on the 3rd day but then finally got to talk to a project lead that said I was doing great and to continue on.  In a total of 19 hours I completed 11 of 30 and was not happy.  After she told me about one contractor in Oahu who took 10 hours to do one I felt way better.  I will return next Friday, Saturday and Sunday to hopefully climb through more.  It actually only takes 15 to 20 minutes to unplug and replace a board but testing, failing, failing, failing, etc. eats up the time.  Anyway it has been great for my body.  I'm very good at doing squats now.   Good thing I lost some of that weight as there is no way I could have done the physical part of this.  As it is I'm totally exhausted each day... and did I mention filthy?  These machines have been under the counters for at least 2 years and let me tell you the dust bunnies found a great home at Wal-Mart for Easter.   I totally understand but it sure is a dirty job for a white collar position.

On Monday, after work, I went driving around again scoping out places to live but nothing clicked.  I also took some pictures and a video on my walk up the cliff by my place so take a look at these.  A little boring but gives the feel of the area.

Click for Photos

Tuesday: Today I did a great adventure in-between my SANS assignment.  I drove to the very South end of the island.  I wanted to see if it was so great it would be worth living in Waimea or Kekaha even if it is an hour and a half to the airport and major civilization.  I loved the town and the housing is great.  I keep seeing condos for rent there, in the paper, that are priced very well but after I was done I decided it was just too far from the part of the island I need to do business in.  I feel a little wishy-washy on this subject as I work from home most of the time and would like to live in a less populated part of the island but I'm just not sure yet.  As I passed Kakaha I continued down the Na Pali turn off that takes you to the coast that you see in all of the movies.  This is also where Kauai was first populated by the ancient Hawaiians.  It is amazing and beautiful.  The road is bumpy and surrounded by cane, corn, etc. that is part of a the Agriculture Preservation Initiative that the Missile base maintains.  It took about 45 minutes to navigate but it was well worth the trip.  I passed the Missile base and just kept on going.  I saw a few others doing the same so just kept driving where it said the Na Pali State Park was.  Camping would be great here.  The location I went to is called Polihale.  See Map and look on the far left.  The waves were amazing, the cliffs unbelievable, and the sugar cane was all around me... but.... I .....forgot my dang camera.  I guess I'm just going to have to always put it in the trunk as there have been a few times I really wish I had it with me and today was one of those.  I could see the island of Nihau from the beach and really enjoyed the drive.  This area is also called Barking Sands.  I found that the reason they call it that is the unusual sound the sand makes when you walk.  I met some nice people from Oahu and a couple from Chicago.  I had my chair in the trunk and just sat and wished it were warmer.  The weather has been quite chilly the last two days.  There were bathrooms and nice trees to sit under. Napali Video

Well, the rest of this week will be work, work work. but check back after the weekend maybe I'll do a trek on Saturday.  I still need to find a place to live and will probably be calling a realtor sometime between jobs to help me now that I have become familiar enough with the areas to make a decision.