The Dell Hole is History...

Pam is finally out of Dell after just over 5 years of working there. They really have been quite good in this final event I think. They are leaving all of their hardware so that the Twin Falls city folks can use it to try and attract a new company needing a fully equipped telephone support center.

Since Pam had her 5 years in - by just over a week - she is eligible for going onto the Dell retiree health plan. That would allow her to stay on the plan as long as she wants to and pays the monthly premiums. The only other option would have been COBRA which lasts a maximum of 18 months and very high rates. Actually, her rates in the Dell retiree health plan are crazy high, but at least she can stay on it until she is ready for medicare.

I have been doing research into all of the Medicare options I have available. They go my county and here in Jerome county, there are not near as many good Medicare add-on health plans as there are across the canyon in Twin Falls county. I have been trying to figure it all our, but so far its been a real challenge - to say the least. And, we have not been able to find any help in tracking down good information about this dilemma. But, I continue to work on it and am sure it will all work out - one way or the other.

I was trying to get my back problem resolved by the end of the year and what I thought was the end of the Dell health insurance. But, at this point, I am not sure what is going on with it, so since the back shot I got last month is working so well, we have postponed any such resolution of the back options. It is difficult to even think of another operation after all the fun last year. But I was, because the back pain is sooo bad that anything would have been better - scary thought now...

Pam has been doing a lot of resting and recuperating since leaving Dell. Soon she will be starting to get involved with the new job here at DaHo Products. She did do some product testing and evaluation. I have her take our standard instruction booklet, some needles and line, and do all of the tasks that are shown in the instruction booklet. And, she did them all without much assistance at all. So, I am very happy that a novice, that even didn't have the need for the actions in mind, to complete them with the documentation.

The next training will be to learn how the products are tested and processed when orders come in. And, after than, she will be contacting all of the current dealers and distributors to introduce herself and see what feedback she can get from them about our products and general way we have done business and how we can make it better.

Last week, our Windows Home Server, that has been running for over two years, and keeping all of our data very safe, had its system disk drive crash. It has been running so well for so long, I had forgot most of the 'details' of how to deal with it. So, I had to research a lot of the data I needed clarification on. Thanks to Tom in England and nephew for sending me some Microsoft support tickets, I was able to get it back up and running without losing a bit of data. It did loose all of the past backups of the client PCs, because the backup database in also in the system disk, but we didn't have any client PC crashes during the server recovery, so all was good - maybe even great for a major problem resolution. So, after two days of work, and a significant loss of hair and stomach lining during the problem analysis period of the event, it is all back up and well.

We are planning on installing a new Windows Home Server at one of our clients businesses next week, so I am all ready for it now. The business is a funeral home - one customer that I really don't want to trade services to pay for the server install work...

Yesterday, Pam, Tommy and I went up to see Roberta's new house in Sun Valley. She just moved into a house from a duplex. Its a nice place with a necessary doggie door. Tommy loved playing with her two big dogs. He gets so excited and was worn out when we left there. While we were there, we went to take a free ride in the brand new gondola ride that goes up to the top of Mt. Baldy. There is a restaurant on top. It was sunny and cold, and there was snow on the ground so it all was about perfect weather for what and where it is. After yesterday's free rides, I understand that the actual price for the ride is $20. It's a fun ride, but that seems a little steep to me.

Orders have been pretty slow the past couple of weeks. But, I have been busy trying to figure out how the territory is going to change to deal with Pam working here full time and how to set up the ever growing business space needs. We are getting close on the new serving jig product and are hoping to have it ready to sell around Jan 1st.

We are getting a new order of needles next week to replenish our inventory stocks, and another one due in January to bring them up to normal volumes. SO, we will be ready for all the business that comes our way from the big 'secret' event that take place on Jan 1st and from Pam's marketing activities.

Pam is getting the house all ready for the holidays and for our big Thanksgiving dinner we are having here. We are going to have a lot of people here so it should be 'exciting'.

Well, that is it for now. You now know all that is going on here in DaHo...

D minus 3...

Pam's last day at Dell is this Wednesday - only three days... Well, actually its not 3 days, its 2 days and 1-2 hours. I understand that the last day is reduced to being there about 11am and having a last team meeting for an hour. In which, they get their severance packets and turn over their security badges. Then, I guess they all get marched out, as a team, for the last time. It almost makes a tear come to my eye...

Last week Pam got her 5 year award and another award for being the top salesperson in Twin Falls.

With all this hoopla at Dell, I am trying to figure out some sort of big celebration for her first day here at DaHo Products. I did get the entire staff new shirts and vests and velour bennie caps with our company logo in them, but I am trying to think of something even beyond that...

So, I went to see my back surgeon last week. He was asking about how it all felt after the back shot I had the week before. I told him it was a lot better after the shot. He also looked at the results of my bone scan and said that its too bad the shot worked so well. He said that the problem was with the back shot working so well, that it didn't give him much data into why it worked so well - I guess vs. some part still hurting or something. So, I have another apt in 2 weeks. Hopefully, the back shot will have failed by then so he can get whatever data he needs to figure out what to do with my back. There has got to be a couple of good 'good news - bad news' jokes in there somewhere...

Now that the Cash for Clunkers program is over, there are a number of local car dealers that are having "Buy a Car - get a Gun" again. It is pretty crazy here in DaHo. You can hardly find ammo anywhere around here any more. Its crazy... I was at Sportsman's warehouse the other day and the only ammo they had for pistols was .40 cal. So, this one guy there bought it all and a .40 gun to go with it as he didn't have any guy to use it. Everybody around here is thinking that current administration is going to ban most guns and/or ammo very soon, so they are stocking up before that happens.

Years ago, while in Kalifornia, I was frustrated with all of the liberal crazyness that is San Francisco. There was something almost every day that seemed to drive me crazy. But since moving to Idaho, I really haven't been too concerned about such things. I am not as crazy about what is happening as a lot of other folks, but it is getting very scary in Washington. My jaw has dropped a LOT further, from shock and dismay, than it ever has before.

I think Obama is going to take everything so radically crazy that it is going to freak enough people out, to finally change things. I guess you have to thank Obama for doing his 'thing'. I just hope there is enough left to fix after he is gone. Well, enough of that...

Last week was the first time I played pool without my back hurting badly and I ended up winning all 4 games for the first time this year. We are about 1/2 of the way through the league and I haven't gotten one table run yet. Last year, I had 8 of them. Well, we shall have to see how it goes. I did get the table cleared off and have been practicing some now and then.

The business is going slow. But, it will pick up again soon. We need to keep acquiring new dealers and that is what Pam is going to be doing once she gets a good understanding of it all.

Well, that is about all I can think of now that is happening here in DaHo...

News and Winter...

First, I am yet again sorry for not keeping up with this blog as I have and should. I will try to address the reasons below.

As most folks probably know, Pam is being laid off from Dell on Nov. 11th. They are shutting down the call center here so there will be over 500 people out of work and there is very little other work available anywhere close. She has been going through a lot of anguish about all of her friends dealing with some very bleak times ahead, which has taken a toll on her.

Pam is starting in a week and a half, so I have also been working on getting that all setup. I think the current office will be the guest room and the upstairs will be all business, including the computer upgrade/repair sub-business. We are still planning all of that and it will happen after Pam is working here and the changes become more obvious as to how it will all work best.

The timing really couldn’t be much better from my side. This big partnership I have been working on with Shimano will all be released on Jan 1st and that will generate a lot of calls and new business – both from the dealers and also the customers that buy the combination product of their new line and our needles.

Between her leaving Dell and the end of the year, I have to train her on how this all works and all of the details that she will need to know to deal with all the projected new business. Then, in her spare time, she will be calling on new dealer prospects to bring in more new business. I can handle a lot of business now and this should all work out great.

And, during all of this ‘fun’ my lower back and left hip have been going crazy. I have only been able to go about 50 to 100 steps at a time until I have to sit down and rest. It just hurts too much to go on. So, I have been pretty much an 'invalid' and have to really limit my activities. And, to deal with all the pain, I have been on a lot of heavy pain meds which are not compatible with planning or keeping track of stuff very well.

Last week I went to see a new spine surgeon. He had me get another back shot, but in a different place, and also a bone scan. The shot took me back to my pain management doctor that has been giving me shots for a year and stopped as he said that I had had too many. Anyway, the shot went great and I have been feeling better than I have in months or even years. The bone scan thing was a day long ordeal and I don’t even want to think about it, Not any fun at all…

That is the main reason that I have not kept up this blog lately. I am sorry I haven’t written much. But, I am feeling much better now. I will find myself in a large store, like Home Depot and stop and think that I am there and hadn’t even thought about my back pain problem. I haven’t been able to do such things for a while now.

The winter continues to try and figure out if winter is here or not. It will go from daily highs in the 30s to highs in the high 60s. Halloween night was about 60 deg in the dark. Pretty amazing stuff.

I have been trying to keep up in my pool league. I have been playing really crappy, but with a little luck I have been about to keep a decent rating - so far. Last year, I had 8 or 10 table runs and so far haven't had one this year. Not good, but its hard to concentrate much when you cannot think too clearly.

I spend most of my time and thought on the business. Having Pam here, or more correctly not having 'free' health insurance and all of the other details that Dell helped to provide, is very taxing on my mind. It will all work out, but it is still very concerning during this time.

We are going to start up the Computer Consulting business also. We now are working with a local funeral home to install a network and work on a bunch of their PCs. It is sort of weird being around them as the only times I have been in the past is when some family member past away. I have yet to get a tour of the back room. I have worked for a lot of unusual businesses, but never for a funeral home before...

Well, I have got work to do and places to go. But, I will really try to keep this current for all of you readers. Things are getting better all around here in DaHo...





Love from DaHo,