Spent today going over my A+ materials in preparation for the first exam (to be scheduled) this week. And then spent time washing both Bismark and Shadow Phoenix since both were quite dirty from the recent rain storms. And the highway construction in my area definitely weren't helping much.

Started the day by taking YanYan to school because she woke up late (yet again. . .). Came home as soon as I could and prepped for a non-standard errand for BBY.

Basically, the In-Home Networking service that BBY has been offering and our store has repeatedly failed to sale any (until I took up the slack starting last month), has one little problem: they don't apply to businesses. On one of them that I prepped for a customer this month, I assumed that it was for their home business. Well, I assumed wrong. So rather than refunding the customer, our store manager came up with the bright idea that one of us Services personnel should complete the install instead. This was brought to my attention, and I volunteered to resolve this matter, since I was the one who started it in the first place.

So after about an hour of work, an hour of driving time, and milage marked at 36 miles, I accomplished the mission flawlessly, and the customer was pleased 100% of the way (maybe except for their in-house quasi-IT person, but that's okay, he's got other stuff to worry about).

To celebrate the perfect salvage of a near disaster, I took YanYan to SkiShores for some yummy burgers. Chatted with Jeff for a bit to see how business was.

And then we went shopping at "for sale" listed in YanYan's Chinese Student Association's email list. She found a sewing machine for her industrial design projects, and I found a nifty little waterfall thingamajigies. The afternoon outing was rounded up with a quick trip to my supply depot for some parts for a client's computer. The PX I use moved recently, and it looks much nicer. It seems that business for them is picking up too, as I saw two new staff members.

Dinner was served at Mandarin House, where YanYan and I chowed down on some food that neither she nor I knows how to cook. We finished the night by picking up some odds and ends at Wal-Mart before heading home.

First part would be a standard Gathering at Mi's place, which has been a quasi-monthly tradition last year, but finally beginning this month for the new year. It'll be a potluck-based gathering, so it'll be interesting to see what kinds of food people will be bringing. Games, chattering, and movie-watching will follow until people decides to go home.

The second part would be a small LAN party for those who've been wanting one for a while. Evil Twin's apartment was volunteered by me to help accomodate everyone's computers (not to mention an extended network through a wireless bridge).

First on my list is the ubiqitous CompTIA A+, followed thereafter by either the Network+ or CCNA, or both. Those will then be followed with either the rest of my SAIR Linux SA exams or the MCSA/MCSE exams, or both if I feel like I'm up to it. Estimated time of completion is within the next three to six months, interrupting tasks pending.

So far the Shadow Phoenix has performed to expectations. Her engine is still experiencing some fluctuations, which I'm hoping to eliminate within the next few gas fill-ups. Her handling isn't as I remembered it, but that's probably because of the fork oil Kyle added. The accelerator and clutch has a little too much tolerance, and the gear shift does not let me slide into neutral easily.

First off, she looks beautiful. Kyle did an exemplary job restoring her exterior paint jobs, not to mention the scores of other repairs and fixes which would've taken me forever to figure out had he not been helping me along the way. Even before I took her home tonight, we were finding little miscellaneous things to tidy up on before something dreadful happens.

Even though it was about 65 degrees Farenheit outside, I ventured forth into the freezing wind-chilled ride. Fortunately, my skills and training have not diminished all that much in the past year and a half. It was like learning how to ride a bicycle and never forgetting.

After the short but enjoyable ride, YanYan demanded a ride too. So to oblige her I took her around the block, going at slow speeds since it was my first time carrying a passenger.

I've managed to re-enable the control panel so that at least I can administer it again, but for some reason the forums are still invisible for the most part. Its really really irritating me. . .

Guess I'll go work on YanYan's webpage for a bit and come back to this. Maybe my brain will choke out an answer by then. . .

And just in time. . . spent some time this evening with Kyle doing the last major repairs to Shadow Phoenix. We got the battery swapped, replaced the spark plugs, and fed her some fresh gas. The result was a much smoother engine than before, even though she was still not purring like she used to. Poor baby. . . we'll get you fixed up soon. I was sorely tempted to bring her home today, but Kyle thinks she needs a little more work done. So as much as I wanted to start riding, I decided to heed Kyle's concern and with any luck, she'll be home on Wedensday.