Cam I Am

Since I started working for Shaw, I’ve been called numerous things.  Some of them are funny, like the people who insist on calling you “The Cable Guy”, even though you’ve told them your name.  Others make comments like “Do you know Jim Carrey?”.   Even when I was in the audit department, giving people the choice of paying for there illegal cable or cutting it off, I was given a variety of names..  I’m sure that I don’t need to go into detail about those ones..

But today, I had a new first.  I was in an elevator of a building, when a resident of the building asked me if I worked “for the cable”.  At this point, it was clear to me that his first language was not English.  I replied that I did work for Shaw, and his reply was, “You are an insulter?”.  I smiled, and informed him that indeed that I was an installer.    And that was it..

 So, apparently, I no longer install cable…I just insult it…

 As long as the pay is the same, I’m good with that!

I was thinking about something the other day…

When you meet someone for the first time, the usual question that comes up is “What do you do?” or “Tell me about yourself!”..

Almost always, the person starts off with what they do for work.  Then, maybe they’ll follow up with mentioning their family situation, but they almost always start with work..

This got me thinking..  Why exactly do we define ourselves by the position/company we work for.  Even in the tagline for my blog, “cable guy” is in there.

So here’s an open question..  Why do we define ourselves by that?  Isn’t there anything else in our lives that define us?

In the past few weeks, I’ve found myself getting a little bored with work.  Well…not exactly bored.  I enjoy my job, but I find myself waking up in the morning, and just wanting to stay home. 

Nothing at work is wrong.  I had an opportunity to work in Abbotsford for 8 weeks, which was a much needed change of pace.  But now that I’m back in Vancouver, I find myself restless.  Maybe it’s me finally adjusting to the commute, that is 75 minutes now, instead of the 15 minute drive I enjoyed when we lived in Burnaby.  It could even be me feeling guilty about spending so much time away from my kids.  Lizzy is almost done kindergarten, and Megan and Ainsley are getting big.  As for Colleen, she and I don’t ever get to spend any time together.  When I am home, there is always things to do like housework or fixing things up here and there.  Most of the time, especially with me working 12-8ish this week, I don’t feel like doing much of anything before OR after work.

Maybe winning the lottery would be the solution…

On my way into work this morning, I saw probably one of the dumbest people in Vancouver. 

Every summer, the Vancouver Police Department announce where they are going to be doing speed traps.  That’s right.. they tell the public where they are going to be!  This  year it’s on one of the roads that I regularly use to get to and from work.  

So, I’m driving into work, and I can plainly see the speed trap ahead.  I make sure that I’m doing around 50km/hr (because I freely admit that I have a bit of a lead-foot!), and I see this person ahead of me, doing around 80 or so, and sure enough, he gets pulled over.

How dumb do you have to be to go speeding on this road?  I was watching this guy weave in and out of traffic, and I was wondering what he was thinking..

Maybe he just has money to burn…

Well, today was a very successful Father’s Day for me.  It started out with my girls waking me up for a breakfast of pancakes, eggs and bacon.  We then did some repairs around the house, and then had a great dinner, followed by an even more amazing strawberry cheesecake, that my wife made for me.

It was nice just being home, and doing things with my family.  It seems that I don’t get enough time anymore just to be home.  There are always things to do, places to go, kids to clean up after, or work.

*Sigh*, work..  back at it again tomorrow.  I can barely contain my excitement! (sarc!)

Well, I’ve changed the settings on here so that people can actually respond to my blog, without being registered..  We’ll see how this goes!

Well..  nothing happened…

 That’s right!  All the media hype about the impending flood, was about pretty much nothing…  (At least in Maple Ridge!).

 Not much else is new..  Father’s Day is tomorrow, and I know that my wife and kids are very excited about their surprise for me.  I’m glad that I get to sleep in! 

That’s about it..  I’ve been working in Vancouver again, so it’s nice to be back in a familiar area again.  I’m not constantly referring to my mapbook!

Today was one of those days that I wanted to go home early from work, but stuck it out..

 And it bit me in the ass..

 I finished work about 1-2 hours earlier than I usually do.  I had even called my wife and told her that I was on my way home.  Everything should be good, right?  NOPE!  On my way home, I realize that I am smelling the sweet smell of coolant.  I pull over, look, and determine that I have what appears to be a small leak, but I probably will make it back home to take it somewhere to get fixed.  I continue on my way until I reach a red light.  As SOON as I stopped, I see this guy jump out of his car, run up to my window and say, “I think that you must have blown a hose, because you are seriously leaking coolant!”  I say that I noticed, and then decide to pull over just as soon as I get through the intersection. 

 So, I pull over..  And I’m surprised that he pulls over behind me.  We both look under the hood, and my radiator is bone-dry.  At this point, I decide that I better not continue down the highway, break-down on the upcoming bridge, and become part of the traffic report. 

 So… I call work, explain what’s happened.  Now, keep in mind that I have to use my own vehicle for work.  Since I don’t know a reliable mechanic in Abottsford, my foreman arranges for a tow-truck and a place to take it.  He then arranges for me to have a company vehicle to go home in.  They’ve also arranged for me to use the company vehicle until my van is repaired, sometime tomorrow. 

First, I’m impressed that the Abbotsford office was willing to do so much for me, especially since I am out there temporarily from the Vancouver/Burnaby office.  I called looking for a number for a tow truck, and an idea of where to take it.  I have to say that they went above and beyond to make sure that I got home, and that I have the ability to continue to work tomorrow, until I have my vehicle back.   In Vancouver, I’d be SOL..  out the money for the repair and out the lost wages until I was able to return to work with a vehicle…

 So… the long and the short of it is..   if I listened to that little voice in my head saying to go home early, my van would still be in one piece! 

Well, I finally have decided to try my hand at a blog.  I don’t know how this will all go, but at the very least, I’ll have a venue to express my opinions…

It seems that I live on the edge of a floodplain..  Apparently, I may have a new indoor swimming pool here before I know it!  We bought this house only in February, and I may end up having it, at least partially, submersed in the Fraser River..  Stay tuned!