Hernandez Life » Work

Mark Is At It Again

Rick — Tue, 06 May 2008 19:00:01 +0000

At the time these photos were taken (April 10th), Mark’s wife was expecting and we threw him a baby shower at the office. Since then, on April 16th, baby Paige Mackenzie came into the world.

Mark posted some photos at the following:

http://gallery.mac.com/runforacure#100045

Click on a photo above to go to the galery

I.S. Holiday Party

Rick — Wed, 12 Dec 2007 16:55:53 +0000

We had our yearly ‘Informations Systems Department’ Holiday Party on Tuesday. Thanks to all the managers for supplying all the food & drinks (including Champaign), also Mike brought in some great food from his wife’s Chinese restaurant. Other IS staff brought in a bevy of deserts. We also had our traditional ‘Chinese Grab Bag’ (don’t look at me, I didn’t name it). Yours truly came away with a nice bottle of Finlandia Vodka with 3 shot glasses. For those of you who don’t know the rules:

Everyone who brought a gift ($20 min – unisexual) pulls a number out of a hat
Person #1 picks a gift, unwraps it, & shows everyone
Person #2 unwraps a gift, then gets to choose to keep it or forcibly trade for Person #1′s gift
Person #3 opens a gift, then either keeps it or trades for either of the two gifts that came before
And so on…
The last person, #32 in our case, opens the last gift and gets to choose between it or any of the 31 gifts that came before.

Obviously the higher the number the better. I got #16. To be real fun, it must be played cutthroat; doesn’t matter if the person who has what you want is your boss or not, a friend or not. We all had a great time.

To see all the photos from our party, click Photos above, click on Work, then click on IS Holiday Party ’07. Or just click here. There are 2 pages worth.

Wrong way on Broadway

Rick — Tue, 20 Nov 2007 22:19:19 +0000

I know this has nothing to do with family, photos, or even computers but, I was walking up Broadway near my job, when I happened to notice this granite inlay on the ground. Now I’ve seen these black strips before, embedded in the sidewalk; they list everyone who’s ever had a ticket-tape parade down the Canyon of Heroes. What caught my eye was “Wrong Way”.

I know the text in the above photo is difficult to read. I’ll help, it says:

AUGUST 5, 1938 DOUGLAS “WRONG WAY” CORRIGAN FOR HIS FLIGHT FROM NEW YORK TO IRELAND INSTEAD OF HIS “INTENDED” DESTINATION OF CALIFORNIA

Happy Birthday to Me!

Rick — Sun, 11 Nov 2007 04:36:44 +0000

I hate getting older. These iPhone pictures are actually from the office yesterday showing my present from the Welfare Fund. Unfortunately I had to skip our celebration plans for today because I have a very bad cold (Phaedra has been a tender Nurse Nightingale). Hopefully I’ll be better tomorrow so I can celebrate with my brother-in-law Anthony as Nov 11th is his birthday. So… Happy Birthday to Us. I’ll post another entry tomorrow night with those pictures.

Click either of the pictures for larger versions

Diwali at the Office

Rick — Sat, 10 Nov 2007 01:01:24 +0000

Today my Indian coworkers brought in homemade delicacies to celebrate Diwali. We had various starters, Puri (fried, puffed, unleavened whole grain bread), 2 different biryanis (basmati rice dishes), vegetable curry, stuffed chili peppers, and lots of homemade deserts. It was a great success, everyone wanted it to become a tradition. Unfortunately I did not have regular camera with me but you can see a bunch of poorly taken photos here.

Diwali is perhaps the best known of the Indian festivals; it is celebrated throughout India, and in Indian communities throughout the world. It is also known as the “festival of lights”, for the common practice is to light small oil lamps (called diyas) and place them around the home, courtyards, verandahs, and gardens, as well as on roof-tops and outer walls. In urban areas, candles are substituted for diya. The celebration of the festival is invariably accompanied by the exchange of sweets and the explosion of fireworks. As with other Indian festivals, Diwali signifies many different things to the people across the country. In north India, Diwali celebrates Rama’s homecoming, after the defeat of Ravana and his coronation as king; in Gujarat, the festival honors Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth; and in Bengal, it is associated with the goddess Kali. Everywhere, it signifies the renewal of life, and accordingly it is common to wear new clothes on the day of the festival; similarly, it heralds the approach of winter and the beginning of the sowing season.

Eoin Becomes A Pop

Rick — Thu, 01 Nov 2007 16:50:04 +0000

From Eoin:

Please pass on the perfect news to everyone. Nabi Young Quane was born at 5:09 pm on October 31s weight 6 lbs and 15.8 ounces. Mom and baby are well. Thanks to everyone for their best wishes.

Sobong & Eoin, You have been blessed by a li’l miracle. Phaedra and I want to congratulate you, and give you our warmest wishes for a happy & healthy life for all of you.

Click any of the 3 pictures for larger versions

There Goes My Life – by Kenny Chesney

All he could think about was I’m too young for this.
Got my whole life ahead.
Hell I’m just a kid myself.
How’m I gonna raise one.

All he could see were his dreams goin’ up in smoke.
So much for ditchin’ this town and hangin’ out on the coast.
Oh well, those plans are long gone.

[Chorus:]
And he said,
There goes my life.
There goes my future, my everything.
Might as well kiss it all good-bye.
There goes my life…….

A couple years of up all night and a few thousand diapers later,
That mistake he thought he made covers up the refrigerator.
Oh yeah……….he loves that little girl.

Momma’s waiting to tuck her in,
As she fumbles up those stairs.
She smiles back at him dragging that teddy bear.
Sleep tight, blue eyes and bouncin’ curls.

[Chorus:]
He smiles…..
There goes my life.
There goes my future, my everything.
I love you, daddy good-night.
There goes my life.

Eoin’s Baby Shower

Rick — Thu, 18 Oct 2007 07:01:36 +0000

Well Eoin is gonna become a daddy within the next few days; so we got together at work, chipped in a few bucks for a present, cake, soda, and gave the soon to be Pop a little shingding. Besides celebrating his bundle of joy to be, we were also consoling him on the total loss of any free time he would have had for the next 18 years or so. But the most important thing to remember, is a little gem a TV dad once said:

“If the new American father feels bewildered and even defeated, let him take comfort from the fact that whatever he does in any fathering situation has a fifty percent chance of being right.” -Bill Cosby

You can find a few photos of the event here.

To the future parents to be, Phaedra & I are so happy for you and send you our warmest wishes. Congratulations and enjoy soon getting to know your family’s newest addition!

Stuck in traffic, again!

Rick — Thu, 04 Oct 2007 00:19:34 +0000

Well here I am, on an X17 express bus, stuck in the fog & traffic. Seems to be becoming an every night thing (well maybe not the fog).
Makes me want to just pack it all in and move somewhere nicer (Bali?). But of course I won’t, got too much invested in my current position. On well, a guy can dream.

Maya & Ori Have A Barbecue

Rick — Mon, 13 Aug 2007 04:46:08 +0000

Yesterday Phaedra & I, Kurt & Diane & kids, and Curtis went down to PA to spend the afternoon. The kids turned into prunes (in the pool) and the rest of us feasted on pate, bruschetta, curried chicken, spicy mushrooms and steaks. Topped off by cheeses, various ice creams, and fresh fruit. Of course various types of martinis lubricated the BBQ. I can definitely say, a good time was had by all.
Thank you Maya & Ori.

Photos can be found here.