Opening Weekend

I listened to an interesting band at Septemburfest. One of my friends from high school has a band called The Toboggan Brothers, and apparently they now play every Friday night in Iowa City at Diamond Dave's. You can get four of their MP3 files here, yes, they're legal, so don't sue me. ";->" I'm getting a lot of errands taken care of this morning. I paid some bills, took out the trash, tidied up my apartment, and just finished writing a letter to the Human Resources Department. Last spring, I went to the office to find out if I was eligble for tution reimbursement as a "temporary" employee, as the employee handbook didn't make any distinction. I was told that I was eligble, since I had worked for the University for at least six months. They gave me the forms to fill out, and told me to bring them back when I received my grades. Flash forward a few months, and now I'm told that I was given incorrect information, that I am not eligible to be reimbursed, and that someone in the office made a mistake. This mistake will cost me a couple hundred dollars, so I'm not taking it lightly. I am, however, civil about this, and wrote the following e-mail this morning, in an attempt to persuade the University to make an exception in my case:

Greetings,

A few weeks ago, I spoke with Michelle in your office as part of a benefits overview. I've been a "temporary" employee of the College of Humanities & Fine Arts since last July, and will most likely become "permanent" later this week. Last spring, I stopped by the HR department to ask about being reimbursed for tuition, since I was a temporary employee. I was told that it didn't matter, since I'd worked for the University for six months. I was told I'd be eligible to apply for reimbursement, even though I was considered "temporary".

I was given the necessary forms, and told to fill them after I got my grade for the class I took this summer. I signed up and paid for the class, took it, and received an A-. When I talked to Michelle this fall, she told me that I'd been given incorrect information, and that I was not eligible for reimbursement. However, since the error was on the part of your office, she suggested that I take it up with you (you were on vacation at the time, I believe) and see if an exception might be made in my case, since I was apparently mislead by a mistaken member of your staff. Is there a time I could meet with you to discuss this situation?

Thanks!

-Seth

Yup, I'm officially sick. Time to swallow some Dayquil, curl up on the couch, and stare blankly at the ceiling. What a great day off, why couldn't I get sick tomorrow so I could stay home from work?

For you non-sports fans out there, this was the big opening weekend for both Collegiate and Professional football. My beloved Cyclones won their first game against Ohio, and the Vikings managed to beat the Bears, though it looked grim in the third quarter...

Summer Sickness

I think I partied too hard at Septemburfest yesterday. Today I've had a sore throat and have been generating mucous, looks like a cold or sinus infection of some type. At least I have tomorrow off from work, I'll probably spend the day cleaning my apartment and organizing my life a little more.

Septemburfest

I'm back in Ventura for the weekend, for the annual Septemburfest celebration. There's going to be a parade, greased pig contest, rodeo, flea market, cow drop bingo, car show, and all the pork burgers you can eat. If you're wondering what cow drop bingo is, it's a game of chance in which a pen is set up in town and spray painted with a grid. For five dollars, you can get a block of that grid in your name. Later in the day, a cow is released into the pen, and if it craps on your block, you win five hundred dollars. I swear I am not making this up. The notice from the Clear Lake Mirror-Reporter is below:

SEPTEMBURFEST

Ventura will host its annual Septemburfest celebration Saturday, Sept. 2.

The day will begin with a new event, a 5K run/walk at 8 a.m., followed by the traditional parade at 10 a.m. A flea market, midway, and many activities will open following the parade. That list of activities includes vendors, rides and games, with Velcro® jumping, Bungee® run, gladiator, joust, ferris wheel, moon walk, spin art, pony rides, train rides, NASCAR race track, monster truck race track, dunk tank and BINGO. Other special events include a display by artist David Rottinghaus beginning at 11 a.m., a car show from 11:30-2:30, and free style stunt bike show at 11:30 a.m. Registration for the car show will take place from 8-11:30 a.m. Trophies will be awarded from 2:30-3 p.m.

The Guns and Garters Wild West Show will be offered at 11 a.m., 12:30 p.m., 3 p.m. and 4:30 p.m. Admission is free. The Ventura Drill Team will also present a demonstration at 12:15 p.m. Bossy the Cow Bingo starts at 1 p.m. at the elementary school. The greased pig contest for all ages begins at 1:30 p.m. and a tractor pull is set for 2:30 p.m. at the school grounds. Mystical Rodeo Co. Bull and Barrel Rodeo will take place from 5:30-7:30 p.m. just west of the Top of Iowa elevator in Ventura. Purchase admission tickets in advance at Farmer's State Bank, Colony Inn, Steakhouse Cafe, Ventura Mart and Lake Street Styles. Those interested in entering the bull riding or barrel racing competition should contact Kevin Monroe at 319-864-3317. Muttin Bustin, a special event for children, will be held during the rodeo. Advance signup is needed for kids to participate. Signup is required Wednesday, Aug. 30, from 4-5 p.m. at Brenda's Hair Den in Ventura.

Septemburfest activities will end with a street dance near the Community Hall from 8 p.m. to midnight. Music will be provided by Echo's V, specializing in music from the 1950s and 60s. An auction will be held during the dance at 10 p.m. by auctioneer Mic Knutson.

Farnham's Freehold

My circadian rhythms are all out of whack. I keep waking up at 5:00 a.m. and I can't get back to sleep. This morning, I sat up and finished reading Farnham's Freehold. The cover proclaims it to be "Science Fiction's Most Controversial Novel". I wouldn't go that far, but I can see how it may have been controversial when it was originally published. Admittedly, I'm a huge Heinlein fan, but this isn't my favorite of his books, it's an intriguing read, but seems to be more of a fantasy about time travel, racial role reversion, and nuclear war, than a real science fiction novel.

TechNet

What a long, hot, humid day. After the TechNet briefing, Sean and I stopped by Hickory Park for lunch, then briefly visited John at Iowa State. After I got back to Cedar Falls, I waited about two hours for the tow truck to show up to haul my car into the shop to be fixed. The mechanic said he won't be able to look at it until Tuesday, it's a good thing I got that bike... It's 5:30 a.m. and I'm about to leave for Des Moines. I'm going to a Microsoft TechNet Briefing, so don't look for any significant updates to this page until after 2:30 p.m. Central Time!