Yes, I just wrote about how much I hated Budget Rent a Car, but really I can't complain much about the past month. Other than deciding never to do business with them again, it really hasn't affected my overall mood very much.
On Fast Sunday this month, in Elder's Quorum, we talked about new year's resolutions, and habits and things we should all be doing. We went through a pretty long list, and discussed ways that made each of those habits easier to do or more effective when we did them. I don't remember much of anything that was on the list, because one thing stuck out to me more than anything. I hadn't been studying my scriptures much at all. This wasn't a habit that I lost recently, I don't think I've consistently read my scriptures for a prolonged period of time since my mission. I think I almost finished the Book of Mormon when President Hinckley challenged us to a few years ago, but that was about it.
I read my scriptures pretty faithfully during seminary, and then my freshman year of college. I had some amazing experiences with it too, to the point where there is absolutely no doubt in my mind that the Book of Mormon is true. I've been coasting on that testimony for quite some time, not really feeling the need to do any further studying. I know that prophets have said they learn something new every time they read it, I just never really saw much benefit the few times I halfheartedly attempted to restart my habit in the last 10 years.
Another issue I've had so far is not seeing immediate blessings. I've had the blessing (or curse) of recognizing most blessings as they came immediately to me for good works that I had done, or good decisions I had made. I wasn't used to waiting things out. Sure, I had my moments where I was pretty impatient waiting for things to happen, but for the most part, I was able to tie financial blessings to specific decisions or good works that I had done. Up until a year ago, I always felt pretty secure that God was looking out for me.
I've spent the past year or so since losing my job suffering through various levels of depression. The moment I lost my job, I vowed to remain upbeat, but as time wore on, and job prospects weren't materializing, those positive feelings went away. I've said a few things in the presence of my wife and kids that I regret now because I was angry. Angry that I had to go through what I was going through. Angry that I wasn't being rewarded for the parts of the gospel that I diligently followed. I recognized where those feelings were coming from, but there were days and weeks that I didn't feel like fighting those feelings off.
Anyways, I started reading my Book of Mormon on January 4, I've missed one day, and I made up double the next day. I started out the first few days reading in the middle of the day, and then spending some time with the Joseph Smith Papers book that I got from the Beebes for Christmas (so far a good book if anyone is interested). Then I spent a few days barely getting my reading in right before bed, which didn't work out as well so I made more of an effort to get my reading done while I was still awake and alert. I took my scriptures with me to Texas and I read them every day I was there.
Now that I've read a few weeks, I've started making other changes to my lifestyle. I'm trying to get to bed earlier. I started working out so I can be in good shape for whatever academy I end up at. I'm getting healthier and stronger (still haven't lost any weight though :( ) and I'm sure that's contributing to my overall positive feeling, but I feel that it's safe to say that my scripture habits are the main reason.
I've probably read 1 Nephi a million times (I always started there any time I tried to restart my habit) I know the story very well. I knew that Nephi and Lehi went through all sorts of trials to get to the Promised Land. I was never able to liken their story unto myself because I don't think I was ever in any sort of similar situation. Now having been unemployed and waiting for blessings for the past year, and watching the trials that my wife and kids have had to face, and feeling helpless to fix things for them, it's been really easy to put myself into the scriptures, and I've had some really nice insights into it. I never knew what to think when Lehi murmured because Nephi's bow broke. For crying out loud, he was a prophet, he had seen visions, what was the matter with him? It's not like the Lord is going to let you go hungry. It turns out, he got a little impatient, and probably a little hungry. Here he was, doing everything he was asked to do, and their only source of food was broken, not to mention he's got two idiot sons who refuse to get a clue even when angelic visitors rebuke them for being stupid all the time. Looking back, I bet Lehi was a bit ashamed that he didn't hold out hope for heavenly help, but at the time, he was probably thinking 'come on, as if this isn't hard enough already'.
Nephi did just about everything right, and still suffered immensely at the hands of his idiot brothers. The Lord allowed him to be bound, injured, humiliated, and none of it was ever brought about by his own doing.
The thing is, eventually, things worked out well for them. They made it to the Promised Land, they received warnings to flee when it became unsafe for them, and they were blessed as promised when they followed the commandments. It just took them some time to get into a situation where those promised blessings could be honored. It required a lot of patience, long suffering and perseverance to arrive at the point in time where The Lord could make good on His promises. I am not right now in the position where I can realize all the blessings that have been promised to me. My kids are going through a tough time, but they aren't hungry or cold. Living with my in-laws is not ideal, but I am thankful that they are putting up with us. I still don't know what is going to happen (which is a bad thing, I once got really ticked off at Jennifer for surprising me with hockey tickets, she didn't tell me what we were doing til we got to the arena [it was a great present once I knew what I was doing, I just really hate hate hate surprises]) but I feel like I'm getting closer to being gainfully employed.
We are excited about all of our prospects, and I can see the hand of The Lord in the trials that I have faced over the past few years (my last job kind of sucked too) If nothing pans out this summer, I hope I can continue pressing forward knowing that eventually this specific trial will be over. I don't look forward to starting another major trial, but I have faith that I'll be able to meet it head on. I just hope it's not so bad that it has me longing for the days I was unemployed.
I don't use this blog often to express myself this way, but I thought I should today. I'm thankful that I was prompted to begin studying the scriptures again. I'm thankful that I have them, and I'm thankful that I know they're true. I'm thankful for excellent examples that were set for me when I was growing up. I'm thankful for everyone who has helped us out during this difficult time, it would have been impossible to get through this otherwise.
Now I really should be getting to bed, it's past my self imposed bedtime, and Jennifer just looked at me like I'm some sort of hypocrite for being up this late.
Sunday, January 31, 2010
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Budget Rent a Car Sucks
First, let me say that I am an idiot, and I could have avoided this situation altogether by paying closer attention.
I rented a car from Budget in Houston when I went there for my firefighter job stuff. I was running on fumes when I got there (I took an early flight, and I was up late packing) I got to the rental counter, and informed the clerk that I had a reservation. She started getting things together, and asked if I wanted to purchase additional insurance coverages. I clearly stated no, that I did not need or want any of the coverages, and that I just needed the car. She printed up my contract, circled a few places for me to initial and sign, and started to explain it to me. When it came time to initial for optional coverages, she told me to initial there to declare that I had declined additional coverages, so I initialed. That isn't what was on the contract. I ended up paying 209 dollars for that little flub, because the clerk decided to try to sneak on additional coverage and hope I wouldn't notice.
When I noticed that I had an extra charge on my credit card, I called them up and asked them what it was for. I explained my situation, what I had verbally told the clerk at the desk, and asked them if there was anything they could do. I was hoping they'd do the right thing, but they decided to take my money instead. There isn't anything I can do legally to fight this since I was enough of a dunderhead to take their clerk's word that the contract was what I had asked for. I thought about disputing it on my credit card, but thought better of it when I found out they could send me to collections even if I won a decision with my credit card.
Dealing with their poor customer service has been a nightmare too, their agents are combative and rude.
Anyways, it's probably a good idea to read thoroughly any contract you sign, even if the line behind you is long and people are getting pissed off waiting. It's also a good idea to not do business with unethical companies like Budget.
Well done Budget, you legally stole 209 dollars from me. I guess I'll be looking elsewhere to rent a moving truck to Texas or Oklahoma this summer.
I rented a car from Budget in Houston when I went there for my firefighter job stuff. I was running on fumes when I got there (I took an early flight, and I was up late packing) I got to the rental counter, and informed the clerk that I had a reservation. She started getting things together, and asked if I wanted to purchase additional insurance coverages. I clearly stated no, that I did not need or want any of the coverages, and that I just needed the car. She printed up my contract, circled a few places for me to initial and sign, and started to explain it to me. When it came time to initial for optional coverages, she told me to initial there to declare that I had declined additional coverages, so I initialed. That isn't what was on the contract. I ended up paying 209 dollars for that little flub, because the clerk decided to try to sneak on additional coverage and hope I wouldn't notice.
When I noticed that I had an extra charge on my credit card, I called them up and asked them what it was for. I explained my situation, what I had verbally told the clerk at the desk, and asked them if there was anything they could do. I was hoping they'd do the right thing, but they decided to take my money instead. There isn't anything I can do legally to fight this since I was enough of a dunderhead to take their clerk's word that the contract was what I had asked for. I thought about disputing it on my credit card, but thought better of it when I found out they could send me to collections even if I won a decision with my credit card.
Dealing with their poor customer service has been a nightmare too, their agents are combative and rude.
Anyways, it's probably a good idea to read thoroughly any contract you sign, even if the line behind you is long and people are getting pissed off waiting. It's also a good idea to not do business with unethical companies like Budget.
Well done Budget, you legally stole 209 dollars from me. I guess I'll be looking elsewhere to rent a moving truck to Texas or Oklahoma this summer.
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
Almost Home
I'm finally flying back to Utah tomorrow. I'm stopping in downtown San Antonio to buy a giant cinnamon roll (bigger than my head), and driving back to Houston to fly home. It's a 3 hour drive, with hurricane evacuation lanes the whole way (it's just the shoulder, you're not allowed to drive on it unless there is a hurricane, it was still a little creepy seeing the signs though, just like the tsunami signs on the Oregon Coast.)
While I was in San Antonio, I met Grant, Sam and Kyliena for lunch at The Salt Lick outside of Austin. It was really really good. If I end up getting the job here, anyone helping us move will be treated to lunch there. The brisket was good, and the ribs were awesome. The cole slaw wasn't slathered in ranch dressing or miracle whip, it was dressed with vinegar, sesame seeds, and a little salt. Kyliena has really pretty light blue eyes, and when she occasionally got over her shyness she was a neat little kid (eating onions, offering me all her leftovers, and dropping all of Grant's straws on the ground). Sam was very nice to let us eat at an all you can eat BBQ place even though she isn't a huge fan of large quantities of beef. If you guys are reading this, thanks for making the drive down, it was awesome to see you.
I passed the San Antonio CPAT this morning. I took a Behavioral Analysis test this afternoon, got fingerprinted, and got started on my background paperwork. Their academy starts on June 14. Once my paperwork gets in, it'll take a few weeks to do my background, and I should have a conditional offer about a month later. Since I ranked so high, I'm guaranteed a spot in the June academy as long as I get the conditional offer. I'm pretty excited that 5 months from now I should have a few offers on the table.
While I was in San Antonio, I met Grant, Sam and Kyliena for lunch at The Salt Lick outside of Austin. It was really really good. If I end up getting the job here, anyone helping us move will be treated to lunch there. The brisket was good, and the ribs were awesome. The cole slaw wasn't slathered in ranch dressing or miracle whip, it was dressed with vinegar, sesame seeds, and a little salt. Kyliena has really pretty light blue eyes, and when she occasionally got over her shyness she was a neat little kid (eating onions, offering me all her leftovers, and dropping all of Grant's straws on the ground). Sam was very nice to let us eat at an all you can eat BBQ place even though she isn't a huge fan of large quantities of beef. If you guys are reading this, thanks for making the drive down, it was awesome to see you.
I passed the San Antonio CPAT this morning. I took a Behavioral Analysis test this afternoon, got fingerprinted, and got started on my background paperwork. Their academy starts on June 14. Once my paperwork gets in, it'll take a few weeks to do my background, and I should have a conditional offer about a month later. Since I ranked so high, I'm guaranteed a spot in the June academy as long as I get the conditional offer. I'm pretty excited that 5 months from now I should have a few offers on the table.
Saturday, January 16, 2010
Update
I've passed everything here in Houston. As of now I am waiting for them to pull a complete background on me. There shouldn't be anything in there that would disqualify me for a job, which means that come June, I should at least have an offer.
It was cold and windy on Friday morning, which is somewhat out of the ordinary for Houston. The CPAT wasn't difficult, each event was done on it's own, not all in order. The only thing that people probably ever fail on is the mile and a half run. I ran with a class of out of state applicants, and I guess everyone took the necessary precautions to pass the test. Our slowest finisher was around 12:10, a full minute ahead of the cutoff. I finished in 11:12, which is pretty decent for my level of fitness, but nowhere near where I expect to be after having another 6 months to a year to improve. I don't think I'm capable of getting back into high school cross country shape, but I bet I can get my mile and a half under 10 minutes. That will end up being my goal.
I ended up joining 24 Hour Fitness in Provo. They had a decent deal for a month to month membership. At the very most, I might have to pay for one month that I wouldn't use, but it's worth it to have somewhere to exercise. Even when I was running outside during the summer, as soon as I finished my 20-30 minute run, I'd go in and shower. Now after I finish my runs, I still do other cardio like the stair machine or the elliptical. I also have weights, which have really helped me get my pushup counts up. I'm hoping that eventually I'll start to lose some weight. I'm trying to drink lots of water every day, and cut down on my portion sizes at meals, but after 2 weeks of pretty solid workouts, I was stuck at 235 pounds.
I'm going to church tomorrow in Katy, which is probably where we'll move if I get hired in Houston. After that, I'm driving to San Antonio. I'm going to see Grant and Sam for lunch in Austin on Monday, and I've got the CPAT there on Tuesday.
I'm looking forward to seeing Jenn and the kids again on Wednesday night. I always miss them more than I think I'm going to.
It was cold and windy on Friday morning, which is somewhat out of the ordinary for Houston. The CPAT wasn't difficult, each event was done on it's own, not all in order. The only thing that people probably ever fail on is the mile and a half run. I ran with a class of out of state applicants, and I guess everyone took the necessary precautions to pass the test. Our slowest finisher was around 12:10, a full minute ahead of the cutoff. I finished in 11:12, which is pretty decent for my level of fitness, but nowhere near where I expect to be after having another 6 months to a year to improve. I don't think I'm capable of getting back into high school cross country shape, but I bet I can get my mile and a half under 10 minutes. That will end up being my goal.
I ended up joining 24 Hour Fitness in Provo. They had a decent deal for a month to month membership. At the very most, I might have to pay for one month that I wouldn't use, but it's worth it to have somewhere to exercise. Even when I was running outside during the summer, as soon as I finished my 20-30 minute run, I'd go in and shower. Now after I finish my runs, I still do other cardio like the stair machine or the elliptical. I also have weights, which have really helped me get my pushup counts up. I'm hoping that eventually I'll start to lose some weight. I'm trying to drink lots of water every day, and cut down on my portion sizes at meals, but after 2 weeks of pretty solid workouts, I was stuck at 235 pounds.
I'm going to church tomorrow in Katy, which is probably where we'll move if I get hired in Houston. After that, I'm driving to San Antonio. I'm going to see Grant and Sam for lunch in Austin on Monday, and I've got the CPAT there on Tuesday.
I'm looking forward to seeing Jenn and the kids again on Wednesday night. I always miss them more than I think I'm going to.
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Off to Texas
Tomorrow morning I am flying to Houston. I've got an interview with HFD on the 14th, the CPAT, fingerprinting, and a polygraph on the 15th.
I'm staying in town that weekend, and I'm going to find a church to go to so I can ask where a good place to live is.
After church on Sunday, I'm going to drive to San Antonio, where I have a CPAT on Tuesday.
Jenn has twisted my arm so that I'll pick up one of the monster 3.5 pound cinnamon rolls as seen on Man V Food and bring it home with me. I also might hit up the all you can eat BBQ place up near Austin from the same show.
I'll be back home next Wednesday.
I'm staying in town that weekend, and I'm going to find a church to go to so I can ask where a good place to live is.
After church on Sunday, I'm going to drive to San Antonio, where I have a CPAT on Tuesday.
Jenn has twisted my arm so that I'll pick up one of the monster 3.5 pound cinnamon rolls as seen on Man V Food and bring it home with me. I also might hit up the all you can eat BBQ place up near Austin from the same show.
I'll be back home next Wednesday.
Monday, January 4, 2010
Running
I stopped feeling the effects of strep after the 4th day of taking my antibiotics. I signed up for a 14 day free trial gym membership at 24 hour fitness in Provo on the 29th. I've been trying to push myself to make sure that I'm not on the edge of failing my CPATs when I go to Texas this month. The San Antonio test should be pretty easy, it's the same test I took in Oklahoma, but the Houston test includes a mile and a half run in under 13 minutes.
14 years ago that would have been a joke of a test, but now it's slightly more imposing, especially after being laid up for a week with strep. I pushed myself through a lot of cardio last week hoping to get ready, and it wasn't looking too promising. I kept getting tired on the treadmill, and I couldn't run for long periods of time even at slower jogging paces. Instead of running slow and steady, I'd pump up the speed for a quarter or half mile, and then walk for a few minutes.
Today the weather outside is sunny and cold. The roads are pretty clear in the center, but the sidewalks and curbs are all iced over. I decided to go for a run outside to see where I was. I did a mile in 7:50 which would have left me over 5 minutes to run another half mile. I wasn't really that tired either, and probably would have kept up the pace to the finish. I stopped because my thumbs were freezing and my nose was running.
I'm confident that I'll have no problems completing the test now. The weather in Houston is supposed to be in the 50s next week, and moving down to sea level from mile high conditions can't hurt either.
I'm feeling better about my employment situation right now. I'm hoping that quitting a part time job won't push me out of consideration for some of the fire jobs I've applied for, and I don't think it will.
14 years ago that would have been a joke of a test, but now it's slightly more imposing, especially after being laid up for a week with strep. I pushed myself through a lot of cardio last week hoping to get ready, and it wasn't looking too promising. I kept getting tired on the treadmill, and I couldn't run for long periods of time even at slower jogging paces. Instead of running slow and steady, I'd pump up the speed for a quarter or half mile, and then walk for a few minutes.
Today the weather outside is sunny and cold. The roads are pretty clear in the center, but the sidewalks and curbs are all iced over. I decided to go for a run outside to see where I was. I did a mile in 7:50 which would have left me over 5 minutes to run another half mile. I wasn't really that tired either, and probably would have kept up the pace to the finish. I stopped because my thumbs were freezing and my nose was running.
I'm confident that I'll have no problems completing the test now. The weather in Houston is supposed to be in the 50s next week, and moving down to sea level from mile high conditions can't hurt either.
I'm feeling better about my employment situation right now. I'm hoping that quitting a part time job won't push me out of consideration for some of the fire jobs I've applied for, and I don't think it will.
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