Kevin's Ramblings…

What a hotel …  This place is simply amazing.  The room is huge, king size bed, marble bathroom, 30th floor with a view of downtown Toronto.  The city doesn’t seem too bad at all when you are this high up.

On the second floor roof there is an indoor/outdoor pool.  Quite amazing actually.  The water is somewhere in the 90s I’d guess – you swim outside and away from inside the water seem to get a bit cooler the farther you go.  It must cost the hotel a small (or not so small) fortune to keep that pool going – most of it is outside.  There is also a whirlpool and a sauna – nice facility…  Across the hall from that is a pretty well equipped gym.

There are a couple of restaurants in the hotel as well, but, if I know Toronto they will be expensive…

Anyway, I am going to enjoy my stay here, that’s for sure.  The course starts tomorrow @ 9am – looking forward to that as well…

More later…

Well, I’ve done it. I submitted my application to coach for the 2010 season. I have decided that I am applying for the Minor Bantam club (14U) as opposed to the Major Peewee’s. I don’t really care where the Board wants to put me mind you, just a preference. I love coaching at Alex McKenzie Park, it is a great facility. It is also regulation size, had dugouts, etc. The tournament options are better at Minor Bantam as are the opportunities for play across the river. The team badly needs a new coach as well. There isn’t anything wrong with the guys who currently coach the club mind you, it is just that the same group has coached them since the boys were in Rookie (when they were 8 and 9) – they are now turning 14, a time for change indeed.

I don’t know what this will do with the Major Peewee’s where DV wanted me to coach. He has coached the club for the last year or two and doesn’t really want to continue – or at least that is the feeling I get. I will coach them if I am asked to. Major Peewee is a good age as well. Walkinshaw Park is a nice park and Major Peewee’s can go to the CNE Tournament in August which is a LOT of fun. It brings back great memories of when I coached there last – we had a great game (lost it though) and then spent the day at the Ex.

That was a good year thinking back – it was the last time that I coached with Jules, an excellent coach and in my humble opinion, the BEST third base coach in the Niagara area. I also coached with Andre that year, he was our pitching coach and a darn good one. Perhaps I will see where he is coaching this year and see if he wants to help out.

Anyway, here is a copy of my application letter:

Sunday, January 10, 2010

Dave Vacarro, President
St. Catharines Minor Baseball Association
PO Box 21002
St. Catharines, ON L2M 7X2

Mr. Vacarro,

Please accept this letter as my application to Manage with the St. Catharines Minor Baseball Association, preferably with the Minor Bantam club (14u). I am willing to Manage/Coach at whatever level the Board feels that there is a need however.

A bit of history of my baseball background:

I have coached since 1991, starting with the Grantham Optimist Fastball Association and continued there for 6 seasons. I began coaching baseball with SCMBA at the House League level in 1997 and 1998. I started coaching All-Star at the Minor Peewee level in St. Catharines during the 1999 season. I moved onto Rookie as Manager in 2000, following the same team in 2001 to Minor Mosquito. In 2002, I returned to Rookie. During the 2003 through 2005 seasons, I Managed Major Mosquito through Major Peewee, again, with St. Catharines Minor Baseball. I took on the Major Midget club in 2006 and Minor Midget in 2007 where we finished 3rd in the Provincial AA OBA’s.

I have also Managed two Ontario Summer Games teams (2004 and 2006) with the 2004 club taking the Bronze medal in London. I also Managed the Major Peewee entry into the Elite Newmarket Tournament in September of 2005. In 2006, I was Manager of the NDBA entry into the Cannon Cup in Oakville where we had a perfect 3-0 record in the round robin but took a loss in the semi-final.

I am a certified Level 2 Coach with Coaching Canada with my Level 3 Technical certificate as well. I have also been a Level 3 Umpire for the past 7 seasons.

I have also been involved with various levels of Administration in baseball. I have been Vice President and All-Star Coordinator in SCMBA for a number of years. I started with NDBA as Rookie Convenor then Vice President and finally President of NDBA for 4 years. I have also served as Director of Coach and Player Development for NDBA and have sat on said Committee for Baseball Ontario as Secretary. I have been involved in two try-out camps for Team Ontario run by the OBA as well. During the 2008 and 2009 seasons, I was the General Manager for the Canadian Thunderbirds Baseball Club based out of Hamilton, Ontario. I felt that it was time to return to my home association and coach where I grew up.

The coaching staff for the 2010 season will include:

3rd Base Coach – Dave Brenneman – Level 2 Certified
1st Base Coach – Kamil Oubayan – Kamil has played in SCMBA from Rookie through to Midget and is currently on a baseball scholarship in the United States.

I would plan to have winter workouts to ready ourselves for the 2010 season.

It would be my intention to play in the NDBA loop as well as games with WNYTB (Western New York Travel Baseball) for the 2010 season. The WNYTB league allows teams to play as many or as few games as they want and are very accommodating to other schedules and free time. The Canadian Thunderbirds participated in a very successful season with WNYTB in 2009 and the league is still growing.

I am available to speak with yourself and the Board of Directors at your convenience.

I am looking forward to a great season of baseball in 2010.

I can be reached as follows:

Kevin D’Arcy

Thank you for your consideration,

Kevin D’Arcy

Up early today.  I have lots to do before I head to Toronto this afternoon.  The dishwasher is running.  My laundry is pretty well set to go as soon as the dishwasher is done.  I have to vacuum and I want to wash the kitchen and bathroom floors.  Yeah. 

As some of you might have guessed, I am one of the great procrastinators in the galaxy.  Don’t know why but I always have been, likely always will be.  Today though I am actually trying to get my list done.

I had a list that I posted a while back, it had 8 items or so on it.  They were items that I wanted to get done while I was on holidays.  I don’t think that I did ANY of them.  I will have to check, but I’ll do that later…

So, as I mentioned, off to Toronto this afternoon.  I am staying at the Sheraton Downtown, a very nice hotel indeed.  The training course is supposed to be very close.  It is for SCCM, System Center Configuration Manager.  It is the program that the Region of Niagara uses to manage software delivery, software/hardware inventory, remote control sessions, etc.  It is from Microsoft and is likely expensive but it is a good program.  Our installation seems to be rather slow – maybe Matt and I will learn something to speed it up.  The remote wake-on-LAN functions don’t seem to work very well either – perhaps they will have some ideas on that too – I am hopeful.  I hope to learn the ins and outs of it anyway – we’ll see.  Apparently the company that offers the course provided excellent meals at breakfast and lunch – looking forward to that as well.  Who doesn’t like to eat?  Certainly not me.

Speaking of eating, I should go and make something, I am starving, sort of…  Actually I am going to make coffee for sure.  Bought some French Vanilla yesterday at groceries.  I think I might pick up a coffee mill and grind my own beans – my parents always did that when I was growing up – if it was good enough for them it is good enough for me I’d think.  I might get spoiled with always fresh coffee though.

More from Toronto.

Slept in today which was nice.  I woke up at 4:22am and thought to myself, no, I am not getting up at this insane hour of the day on a weekend.  Not at all.  Went back to sleep and slept until 7:45 which is WAY more acceptable.

Called Bill @ 9am – woke him up.  I fully intended on waking him up, he’s done it often enough by calling me at night when I am asleep.  I suppose someone who works steady afternoons doesn’t understand someone who works steady days and actually gets up early every day.  I made him go for breakfast.  We hit Perkins – I haven’t been there in ages.  It was pretty good – had the southern fried chicken biscuit platter.  Wow, an amazing about of food and fairly reasonable.

I then went to Costco and renewed my membership.  Renewed Robyn’s membership as well.  It likely isn’t really worth $25 a year to shop there, you don’t really save that much on some stuff, however…

Did my grocery shopping – spent too much, didn’t buy ANY junk food though – all good stuff, imagine that.

Spent most of the afternoon napping – what are Saturdays for if you cannot nap?  I should have done some housework, etc., but who wants to do that?  Not me, not really…  I will do some tonight, honest.

I am heading over to Sister Joan’s for dinner.  Free food is ALWAYS good.  Will clean when I get home, honest.

Shortly before Christmas I decided that I needed a MasterCard or Visa.  I figured instead of applying for a regular one, I would get a pre-paid MasterCard – this way, I don’t have to worry about myself…  LOL…

Bank of Montreal has one with a one-time fee of $8.95 – not too bad.  No transaction fees, etc…  It’ll let me purchase online stuff or book hotel, etc.  I have set up an automatic payment of $150 per pay to go onto it so that should work well.

Well, the weekend is here.  No real plans for it other than doing nothing…  Actually, I will have to do some stuff since I am leaving on Sunday for 5 days for training.  I need to clean up a bit, do some laundry, etc., all easy stuff though…

Let’s see what I actually get done.  🙂

I borrowed this from Maureen Holoway’s BLOG

Main – NOTHING REALLY MATTERS BUT MOI

So, I figured that a Blackberry upgrade of sorts was due.  We have a large supply of older Curve 8310 Blackberry’s so I traded my 8300 in and got an 8310.  The only major difference is that the 8310 has GSP where that isn’t available on the 8300.

I open up Blackberry Desktop Manager and start the transfer device wizard.  Seems to work great – copies all of the programs and content from my 8300 and within 45 minutes or so it is all on the 8310.  One issue though – most of the wireless functions aren’t working.

I call Rogers support – the guy is very helpful and walks me though a bunch of stuff, most of which I have already done seeing as I am in the “know” with Blackberry’s.  I wipe the device and reload the OS – still doesn’t work.  Looks like it is pooched…  Oh well.  I wonder, did MH give me a defective Blackberry on purpose just to be funny?  I doubt it, but that would be sorta funny anyway.

Anyway, seeing as the only difference is the GPS, perhaps I will stick with my 8300.  The only reason I “upgraded” was because I thought that the 8310 had more memory – not the case.  I think I will swap back today.  The other issue if I do swap for a newer device is that the PIN changes and I have to inform a bunch of people who have my old PIN about the new one – PITA.  I will have to do this anyway in September when I am eligible for a real upgrade from Rogers.

My fighting with problematic laptops hasn’t ended at work.  I think that I am winning the battle though.  Today is my last day before training – I am looking forward to it.  Can you believe that the hotel that we are staying at (Sheraton Downtown) charges $15 per night for Internet access?  That is, as a co-worker might say, pure craziness…  I am taking a Rogers Rocket Stick to get “free” Internet access.  The training should be good, I am hopeful that we will bring something worthwhile out of it.

Not too much else going on – guess I should get the day going…

UPDATE – 07:15

I have returned my SIM card into my original Blackberry 8300 and have reactivated it.  Sorry Blackberry, I shouldn’t have betrayed you.  All is well now though, everyone has been forgiven.  🙂

Again, for some odd reason I was awake at 4:30am and the type of “awake” that I knew that I wasn’t going to get back to sleep.  Sorta sucks, this is a bit early to be up.  Of course, it would give me plenty of time to do some stuff around here.  Do I?  Of course not…  You know me by now…

Took Zeus out for a walk – nice morning.  It is very peaceful walking at 4:45am when the world around you is asleep.  No one to bother us…

I STILL have to finish cleaning my office.  LOL.  Perhaps it should have been one of my New Year’s Resolutions.  I am doing pretty well on them I think.  I am not smoking.  I have cut down on the junk food.  I am eating breakfast and lunch.  I haven’t started back at the Y as yet because I am going to be in Toronto all week next week so the Y will start, officially on January 25, 2010.  That is after another pay day…  🙂

So, as I mentioned, I am in training in Toronto next week.  I am staying at the Sheraton Downtown for 4 nights.  Should be good – I am looking forward to it.  Matt is going with me as well so, hopefully, we’ll both be SCCM experts when we return.  He’s got a big head start on me since he assisted with the implementation of the servers in November or December when they were setup.

AD will be taking care of Zeus – Zeus likes him quite well so that is a good thing.  It’ll be good having someone in the house as well as opposed to it being empty.

Well, shower time I suppose.  Later…

Well, got the results back – not going to be friends…  LOL…  I don’t really care although on some plane of existence I do.  I’ve been friends with this particular person for ages – no issues, at all and now this.  Oh well, what can ya do.  If I receive an apology that might work – I doubt that will happen.  Tough shit I suppose.

The day was a busy one – I hate computers…  I am sure that I’ve said that before.  I am working on a few laptops that don’t want to cooperate – at all.  I’ll figure them out – give me some more time…

I sold my iPod Touch.  I guess when you start with a Blackberry you can’t go back to an iPod – I will NEVER purchase or use an iPhone – no way, NEVER.  I prefer my iPod video.  First off it has a capacity of 80GB which is 10x what the Touch has.  Second, I know exactly how to use it.  I couldn’t connect the Touch to the network @ work, couldn’t sync my address book or calendar, couldn’t this, couldn’t that.  I got exactly what I paid for it so I am happy.  At least I tried it, now I know…  I tried skiing once, didn’t like that either.

Went to the Mandarin tonight with Sister Joan and Dave.  Good food, too much of it of course.  I am now in shutdown mode.  I am tired and won’t be up too much longer.  Good night.

UPDATE – Friday, January 8

I received an email from H – he apologized, all is well now.  🙂

A friend of mine asked me if I am part gypsy.  I don’t think I am but who knows.  I moved out of my child-hood home when I was 24.  Between 24 and 34, I moved 12 times I think it was in total.  Yes, 12 times.  Now, I have been in my current house for 3 years 4 months – that is a record for me.

The gypsy comment was due to the fact that I keep re-arranging my place.  I moved my bedroom down to the basement again and the “bedroom” is being used as, well, I’m not sure yet…  Thanks DB for your assistance by the way – it is much appreciated.

I have actually pretty well decided that I am done moving.  I like it here.  Everything is here that I need, it has a great back yard, good driveway, access to a few stores and is quick to get almost anywhere in the city.  I want to buy the place but the owner doesn’t really want to sell it just yet – oh well, I will keep on bugging him and see where it goes.

Anyway, those are my thoughts for Wednesday morning, 6th of January.  My only other thought is about what will occur at work today with my co-worker.  I am hopeful that all will be well but at the moment I doubt it – I don’t really care all that much – you know me…  🙂

PS:  You might have noticed that ALL of my posts now have proper titles.  I decided to add one yesterday and then figured that I might as well go back through 52 entries and add a title to each.  I am glad that I didn’t decide to do that a year from now – it took me long enough as it was.  So, I read or skimmed anyway each entry and picked an appropriate title.  Might be useful if I am actually looking for something a year from now.  Maybe if this blog ever gets published they can be sub-chapter headings?