~The World According to Slinky~

Vonage Sucks

2009-06-29T14:58:00.000-07:00

Approximately four years ago, I enlisted the services of Vonage for my home phone. Since cell phone charges to my family in Canada are ridiculous, having a relatively low-cost solution for a home phone made perfect fiscal sense. At the time, it seemed like a great idea. Until we moved into our house.

Between Danny, the kids and I, we have four desktop computers, a Netbook, my iPhone, Danny's iPod Touch, and a Playstation 3 -- all hooked up to our home network. And at the time, our Internet access was via AT&T DSL. Eventually we started noticing a pattern: Anytime someone was on the Internet, downloading any kind of data, the voice quality went straight to the toilet.

I tried moving the Vonage device 4 feet away from the cordless phones, and configuring my router to tag the voice packets as high-priority. I even replaced the flaky router with better hardware. Still, there was no improvement. So we took the plunge and switched to Comcast Cable's phone, Internet and TV package.

I called Vonage to cancel the service, and ended up speaking to a very... brash lady on the phone. This woman kept repeatedly harassing me about the reasons for my disconnection, which I answered curtly with "I am not interested in fixing the technical issues, please cancel my service." She was a true bonehead, and obviously wasn't listening to a word of what I was saying.

Still this woman persisted, and she absolutely would not let me get off the phone until I agreed to a free month. I told her again and again that we had already migrated off the Vonage solution, that we were using Comcast, and that we had no intention of using Vonage anymore. Still, she persisted, so I agreed just to get her to process my cancellation.

Until two weeks ago, when I received notice of last month's charges.

What The Hell !?!

As it turns out, the bitchy woman on the phone had kept my account open, instead of cancelling it like I had repeatedly asked her to -- and lo and behold, they had started charging me again when their so-called "free month" had expired.

You have GOT to be kidding me.

I called Customer Service again, only to get another bitchy lady who kept asking question after question about the technical issues. Finally, I lost my patience, and yelled at her very strongly to just cancel my goddamned service ! What part of "CANCEL MY SERVICE" don't these idiots understand ? And to top it all off, she "could not" process a refund for the amount that they had charged me, and "could not" transfer me to the billing department to take care of that.

I hung up on her.

Luckily the next person I got in billing was able to process the credit just fine.

And the kicker ?

The idiots had the fucking nerve to call me last week, telling me about these "wonderful new promotions" that they had in effect.

I told that guy to never, ever call me again, and hung up on him, too.

Word to the wise: DO NOT USE VONAGE. They are liars, theives and harassing abusers who don't give a damn about their customers. They only care about making a buck.

They got the last buck out of me. And now I'm telling everyone I know to stay away from them at all cost.

Use Comcast instead. We've had it now for several weeks, and it works just beautifully.

To hell with Vonage. Comcast rocks.

Free the Children

2009-06-26T10:20:00.000-07:00

I have not, and will not, shed any tears for the untimely passing of Michael Jackson.

In my mind, a child molester has died, and as a result, he cannot ruin any more kids' lives with his perversions. Nor can he screw up his own kids' lives further by forcing them not to show their faces in public.

No matter how good his music was, he still was a molester.

And he did the world a favor by leaving it.

Lessons Learned from Jon & Kate

2009-06-23T12:50:00.000-07:00

It was all over the news this morning that Jon & Kate, the parents of twins and sextuplets, and subject of the reality series "Jon & Kate Plus 8", are divorcing. Not really a big surprise there, although I feel terrible for the kids. Just an observation from this saga, and from my own life and the lives of those around me:

Criticizing, nagging, berating and undermining your spouse is one of the quickest, easiest and most effective ways to erode away any love that that person may feel for you.

I've seen this phenomenon with people around me throughout my life, and the common theme was how one treated the other. Sometimes the aggressor was the man, sometimes it was the woman, but the outcome was the same.

How can you feel loving towards someone who yells at you all the time ? How can you feel affection towards someone that puts you down, berates you, undermines you in front of your kids, and treats you like a second-class citizen ? In all cases that I have seen, the person who is the recipient of this treatment withdraws, to avoid more criticism and anger. And the end result is the same: The love, affection and intimacy dies a slow and painful death.

And while I do not condone cheating in any way, shape or form, I do not blame Jon for withdrawing from the person who was supposed to love him, but treated him like someone would kick a dog. I wish these two had wised up and gone to marital counseling before it came to this, but now, I think it's too late.

I feel really, really sad for those children. They are the innocent victims in all of this.

Highway Robbery

2009-06-10T12:49:00.000-07:00

For the past several months, the glove box on my car has been giving us some trouble.

It has only been opening when it felt like it, which made it quite difficult to access the iPod cable located inside. Through much fiddling some time ago, Daniel was able to figure out a nifty way to open it, by pressing his left thumb against the left side of the handle, and pulling on the right side of the handle with his fingers. Still, I wanted to take it in to determine if there was an inexpensive way to fix the annoyance once and for all.

I went to the BMW dealership, as I figured they would have stock of any parts that would be needed. Normally, I take my car to a local performance shop for all its work, but I wanted a quick and easy fix to this issue. The dealer seemed like the logical choice.

Boy, was I wrong.

In the hour and a half that I spent at the dealership, they did a full inspection of my car, and even washed and vacuumed it. That, in itself, was greatly appreciated, along with the strong coffee and availability of wireless Internet. What I did not expect was their estimation of the cost to fix my glove box.

$430.

That's right. $430 to fix a glove box, over $200 of which was parts.

They also quoted me several thousand dollars for some other repairs that I know needed to be done. I declined, because I can have those done much cheaper at my regular shop.

I thanked them profusely for their time, and left, shaking my head in disbelief. I simply could not believe that replacing something so simple as a glove box would cost that much. That money is better suited to my bank account than with the dealership, thank you.

Later on that night, my trunk wouldn't open. And neither would the glove box.

What the hell ?

Through much fiddling, I managed to figure out that the dealership had locked my glove box after inspecting it. The box has a cool feature (that I never use) whereby you can use your key to lock it. And when I went to inspect why it wasn't opening, I found out that it had been locked by the dealer.

Why did they lock it ? Did they expect that I would be dumb enough to think it wasn't opening at all, and then come back in for the $430 repairs ?

I unlocked the glove box, which also allowed me to open my trunk. And in fiddling with the handle on the glove box, I noticed that there was a screw loose on the left side of it.

Using my manual screwdriver from my trusty work toolkit, I tightened the screw.

And the glove box opened perfectly. Without even using the special trick.

Son of a bitch.

That dealership can suck it. Conniving thieves, all of them.

Some Honeymoon Pictures

2009-06-07T21:38:00.000-07:00

Us at the Luau:

On an active volcano:

ATV riding by the sea cliffs:

Zip lining:

On this zipline, I am 250 feet high, and on a line 600 feet long. YIKES !! I am smiling in the picture, but am scared out of my mind. :)

And the final picture, brought to you from a nice glass-bottom coral and dolphin-watching boat cruise that we took. The entertainment of the afternoon was a Hawaiian lady who performed various traditional and non-traditional Hawaiian songs and dances. As part of her routine, she taught the audience members a simple dance to do. Knowing that this might be a trap, Danny and I chose not to participate. We were correct in our prediction.

After the instructional session, she went through the audience, picking out the most enthusiastic of particpants. She then brought them to the stage, gave them various accoutrements, and had them perform the dance for everyone's amusement.

Fun times. :)

Some Wedding Pictures

2009-06-04T12:34:00.000-07:00

Sportsmanship

2009-06-02T19:15:00.000-07:00

Ever since I was a kid, it was always customary after playing a game or sport, to shake the hands of the other team. It was a sign of respect, not only for one's opponents, but for the spirit of the game itself. Even when our team was thoroughly whipped, we always sucked up our pride, and shook hands with the other team. It was just what we did, and what we still do, playing as adults.

LeBron James didn't see fit to offer the same respect to the team who unseated his team to advance to the NBA Finals. And to that, I say, LeBron has lowered himself to the level of a spoiled rotten child who cannot handle the disappointment of defeat.

I'm sure he is used to winning. Drafted directly from high school, he was a prodigy in his own right; a ridiculously-talented player who made even seasoned professionals stand and stare in awe. He was being compared to Michael Jordan before he was legally allowed to drink alcohol. He is accustomed to winning, accustomed to being the best, accustomed to getting whatever he wants all the time.

Yet, when the Orlando Magic decisively beat his Cleveland Cavaliers to advance to the finals yesterday, he stormed off in a huff, refusing to shake hands, and refusing to talk to the media. Just up and left, while his teammates showed respect for the other team, and shared their thoughts with the journalists.

Inexcusable.

In fact, I'd go so far as to say that his display of outright contempt is an embarrassment to the NBA, and a disgrace to the Cavaliers.

The thousands of children who look up to LeBron deserve a model of sportsmanship, respect and fair play, win or lose. These are the values that all children are taught, from a very young age, in Little League, schools, and sports leagues everywhere. His refusal to show respect to the team who beat him sets a terrible example for his young fans, and casts a dark shadow on the game itself.

Being a good athlete alone does not make one a good person. And it does not make one worthy or deserving of the admiration and the devout following of America's children.

He needs to grow the hell up, and realize that he's not going to win every game, every season, every championship. And when he gets beat, he needs to suck up his pride, and show respect to the team who beat him. That's what a true sportsman does. That's what a true hero does.

LeBron has a long way to go to become that.

Glad He Didn't Talk Me Out of It

2009-05-31T12:03:00.000-07:00

Our new NetBook(mini laptop) was an absolute godsend on our honeymoon.

While attempting to book our various awesome activities on Hawaii Active, I discovered that the website hard crashes my iPhone.

As in, a complete system freeze, that requires the simultaneous two-button push to reboot.

The 3lb., easy-to-carry, super-convenient laptop was perfect for the job.

And on the way home, in the middle of a 3.5 hour layover in Honolulu, we loaded up the laptop with Sopcast, and watched Major League Baseball -- live, in the airport.

It was worth every single penny.

Hidden Fees

2009-05-17T09:51:00.000-07:00

While waiting in line at the airport to check in, we were guided to the now-standard check-in machines. I had completely forgotten to check in online, so this was the route we had to take. When asked how many checked bags we had, we informed the lady that we had two.

"Two checked bags. That'll be $30 please."

$30 !? What the hell ?

Apparently, on Hawaiian Airlines, every single checked bag is considered "excess". So, to check in our one suitcase and one rolling duffel, we had to shell out $30, right there at the airport. Many fellow travelers were caught off-guard by this, causing long lines and much frustration. We were fortunate to have shown up early, as we arrived at the gate with only a few minutes to spare.

This is the reality of the post-bankruptcy airline industry, and recession-laced economy. They charged us $30 to check our bags. They charged us $15 to rent a portable entertainment system with movies and the like for the flight. And yet, stunningly, they did something that I have not seen in years on an airline: They served a free meal.

Now tell me, how does that make any sense ? Charge us for everything that we absolutely require, such as bringing our belongings with us, but then give us a free crappy meal as compensation ? Sorry, but that just doesn't make it alright. And the little breakfast burrito would have been nice, had it not been riddled with onions -- onions that I hate, and that give Danny horrendous heartburn.

We passed on the free meal, but did enjoy the muffin.

I'll take free checked bags over that muffin any day. But I know the airline industry isn't listening.

Talk Me Out of It !

2009-05-15T10:59:00.000-07:00

When my good friend Ed told me that he had bought a NetBook (a mini-laptop), for traveling and convenience, I thought "Wow, what a great idea ! A nice-to-have, but a good one at that !"

I have an iPhone, which is great for looking up information, but is not always reliable. Some websites do not work on it (or crash it completely). It is very awkward to do even moderately complicated searches on it. And forget about any websites that happen to have Flash on them. A NetBook would solve all these problems, and in addition, would keep me safe from any issues that may happen when traveling with my work computer.

So, when Danny, my parents and I went to Fry's, I just happened to spot one of these. A NetBook, with decent processor speed and memory, a nice sized hard drive, and only three little pounds.

On. Sale.

And cheaper than the online price.

I grabbed Danny. "Talk me out of it," I begged. "We are going on our honeymoon tomorrow. I know I don't need one of these, but one would be so cool, and so convenient."

With a thoughtful look on his face, he replied, "You know, something like that would be really great for us."

He didn't talk me out of it, because it was a damned good idea.

We walked out of the store, with a nice little box in our cart, containing our new computer.

I can't wait to make good use of it. Something tells me I will.

Basking

2009-05-14T21:41:00.000-07:00

Four straight days in the glorious Northern California sun, in downtown Monterey, Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk, Oakland Zoo and the San Francisco Giants stadium, really takes a toll on one's energy level.

We are so wiped out right now, but for good reason; as our adventures were all in the company of my most awesome Canadian friends and family.

We are so honored and humbled by those who traveled great distances, from as far away as Canada, Huntington Beach, Redding and Reno, to witness us exchanging our vows.

We are truly blessed.

But now, it is time to rehydrate, and relax, as more adventures await us tomorrow, as we go wine tasting in Napa.

The best vacation is a busy one. And this most definitely qualifies.

Perfect Day

2009-05-10T12:40:00.000-07:00

Our wedding day was nothing short of perfect.

The weather was absolutely beautiful, with the sun peeking out of the light clouds, basking the ocean waters with flecks of light, as the waves crashed against the rocks and lapped onto the light brown sand. The sounds of rustling leaves and calling seagulls permeated the waves moving onto the shore. It was pure nature, in its raw and most beautiful form, as the backdrop to our wedding.

The ceremony was moving and emotional, given most beautifully by the officiant. Our selection of recessional music, "Let's Get It Started" by Black Eyed Peas, elicited amused giggles from our friends and family who attended. And the reception dinner was nothing short of awesome -- food that was to die for, a cake that shocked even myself at its intricacy and beauty, and a guest appearance by some frolicky sea otters, swimming and playing in the Monterey Bay in full view of our party, which was seated beside the sweeping windows of the restaurant.

To everyone who attended, everything went beautifully. However, it was not without its crises beforehand.

The first issue was my dress. It is a unique and beautiful shape and design, however it had to be modified to fit my short 5'3" frame. On my third -- and supposedly final -- fitting, it was just not right. There was some material bunching up by my hip, that made it looked wrinkled. The seamstress promised to have it ready by the next day (Thursday), and I returned that day to retrieve it. However, it sill did not fit properly.

"Well," I told her, "You have to fix it today. We are leaving for Monterey tomorrow, and I need to take my dress tonight." She promised to make that possible.

Three hours, and five more try-ons later, and she finally fixed the issue to my satisfaction. I am not a seamstress, and do not understand what the hell the problem was, but this was a whole boatload of stress I did not need that day.

The second issue was dinner on Friday night. The plan was to gather my two sisters and their families, my parents, Danny's sister and her family, and us, and go to a nice Italian restaurant in Monterey. I made reservations, printed out Mapquest directions from the hotel (including the phone number for the restaurant), and handed them to each family unit. We all headed out in time for 7pm.

Everyone made it there, except my parents.

We tried calling them, to no avail. My dad, who has always been frugal and smart with money, had his phone off. A Canadian cell phone, receiving and making calls in the US, would rack up an astronomical bill. My father did have a U.S. pay-as-you-go phone, but had not yet put minutes on it. As a result, the parental units were unreachable. So we waited. And waited. And snacked on bread and appetizers.

One hour later, and Danny's sister and her family had to leave, as their baby started having a meltdown of extreme proportion. They took a very bored Daniel with them, leaving Danny and I and my two sisters waiting. And waiting. And waiting some more.

Finally, an hour and a half after the scheduled time, I received a call from my father.

He and my mother were at the wrong restaurant.

They had a GPS, and the printed directions from me, but even so, they ended up at the wrong restaurant.

As it turns out, my brother-in-law had mentioned this other restaurant as a place that he wanted to go sometime, and my parents had confused that with the place that we were supposed to go to that night. Over the phone, I gave them the address to the correct establishment, and finally, they made it there. Two hours after the scheduled time.

All was well in the world, when we finally had some most delicious and quite authentic Italian food in our stomachs, and when we met the very nice manager who was also Italian, with whom my dad had a spirited conversation in his native language.

And the final issue was the day of the wedding.

I had booked a nice spa pampering for my sisters, myself and Jacqueline, at a place called "Spa on the Plaza" in Monterey. On the wedding morning, my father dropped us all off at a Cannery Row hotel with a huge sign that said "Monterey Plaza Hotel and Spa".

It was the wrong place.

And, because my father still hadn't added minutes to the phone, I had no way to contact him. The mix-up was completely was my fault; I had just assumed that it was the right place, because the names were so close. But they were, in fact, two different establishments.

We pleaded with the concierge to call us a taxi, and he did one better -- he drove us there himself. We gave him a hefty $40 tip for his kindness.

Once in the spa, and halfway through my hairdo, I also realized I had forgotten my hair clips. My most awesome husband-to-be was kind enough to bring them there. And if that wasn't enough stress for the day, my brother-in-law had taken the only van to go golfing, and left my parents with the car, which did not have enough room to transport us all.

So Danny and my other brother-in-law had to drive us around in separate cars from the spa, to lunch, and back to the hotel.

But it all worked out in the end. The day was as perfect as it possibly could have been.

After the reception, and walking back to the car, I said to Danny, "You know, all the stress and crises before our wedding was all worthwhile. It was worth it, because our day was perfect."

He agreed. It was perfect. Everything was perfect.

I am the happiest person in the world right now.

Even if the entire day had been a disaster, I'd still be ecstatic. At the end of the day, no matter what, I am married to the love of my life.

And that's all that really matters.

Officially On Vacation !

2009-05-06T16:35:00.001-07:00

This is the note I posted in my cube:

And those two figures holding up the margaritas and soaking up the Hawaiian sun will be us, in ten short days. Can't wait. :)

Now Comes the Stress

2009-05-05T22:25:00.000-07:00

Four days until The. Big. Day. Everything has been fine so far, we had done everything early, everything was taken care of.. now comes the stressful part.

The seating chart.

Our wedding reception is at a very nice oceanfront steakhouse. Which means, each table is not the same size, and many are odd-numbered. Trying to come up with a seating plan that puts people together who, either a) might either know each other or b) have something in common, has been the biggest pain in our rear end.

We got something workable.. but I have a feeling things are going to change.

I have a headache now.

Cinco de What ?

2009-05-05T21:16:00.000-07:00

It's all over the news today to celebrate Cinco de Mayo. Supposedly this big, important Mexican holiday, where everyone takes to the streets and drinks cervezas y margaritas, right ?

Hah ! Not. Danny's family has never celebrated this so-called holiday. He's never attended a march or done anything special. And the only time he has ever attended a Cinco de Mayo party was at the homes of his very good, very white, friends.

Cinco de Mayo ? More like Cinco de Stay Home. And that's exactly what we did.

President's Trophy My Ass

2009-04-27T22:47:00.000-07:00

I am so pissed off I can barely speak.

Yes, I know it's been a pattern for the Sharks to play exceedingly well during the regular season, and then completely choke and die during the playoffs, but I had some hope that it would be different this year.

I was wrong. And I can't even blame it on the Ducks. It's all on the Sharks. All of it.

Fuck.

Spring Break

2009-04-20T08:50:00.000-07:00

Danny and I took a few days off last week to spend time with the kids during their Spring Break. Over the period of 5 days, we did:

Laser Tag
Baking homemade PB & chocolate chip cookies
Tennis
Swimming
Games at Dave & Busters
Shopping at the mall
Stuffing ourselves at BJ's restaurant
Funeral service :(
An Easter Bunny gingerbread house
Miniature golf
San Jose Sharks playoff game

An awesome long weekend, but now I need some sleep ! :)

Jacqueline did the entire gingerbread house. I, with my complete lack of creativity, only helped make the icing. Her artistic talent is incredible. This was a very worthwhile project, and it tasted good, too.

Grief and Loss

2009-04-19T21:35:00.000-07:00

When attempting to make sense of the untimely passing of a person who was much loved even through his challenges, how does one separate the circumstance from the loss ?

How does one reconcile the shock of death with the manner in which that death came about ?

And how can one handle the tears of sadness, from the wife and six beautiful children of the deceased -- the youngest still a toddler -- without breaking down oneself ?

I don't have the answers.

I don't know if I ever will.

The Stanley Cup in San Jose !

2009-04-14T12:15:00.000-07:00

Recently, I had the great fortune to bear witness to the most coveted trophy in all of hockey: the Stanley Cup. It was in San Jose as part of its rounds, and I had the good fortune to be in its most awesome presence.

Some cool facts about this fabled piece of hardware:

The Stanley Cup is the oldest professional sports trophy in North America.
A new Stanley Cup is not made each year; Cup winners keep it until a new champion is crowned.
The winning team's coaches, management and players are inscribed on the Cup.
There are several spelling mistakes on the Cup, many of which have never been corrected.
There is a full-time Guardian of the Cup, whose only job is to keep the Cup safe and free from damage. This person follows the Cup wherever it goes, ensuring its integrity and safety.
After winning the Cup, each member of the team gets to have it in their home for one day.
Several children have been baptized in the Cup.
Several people have eaten cereal out of the Cup.
One child even pooped in it (or so it's been said). And yes, the one that pooped came before the one that ate cereal out of it. Lovely !

Let's hope this chalice returns to this city, as a possession of the members of the San Jose Sharks. We shall see.

Oh, and I also met Sharkie ! He bit my head off. How cool is that ?

Can't Wait to Taste Some Fresh Kona Coffee

2009-04-13T11:14:00.001-07:00

We booked our honeymoon this past weekend.

8 days and 7 nights, in beautiful Kona, with all the wildlife, stunning scenery, and awesome outdoor adventures awaiting us. It will be a first trip for each of us to the Hawaiian islands. We are so excited, and the anticipation is killing me.

There is one positive thing about the currently shitty economy -- the flights, condo rental and car rental were unbelievably cheap. A package deal for all three services cost just over half what we were expecting to pay.

Sweet.

Now comes the hardest part: Which few of these incredible adventures do we choose ?? :)

Hannah Montana Movie

2009-04-10T12:54:00.000-07:00

Following is a quote from a San Francisco Chronicle write-up about the new Hannah Montana movie:

"Advisory: This movie contains comic violence and scenes of hip-hop country dancing. Members of all of the world's religions need to immediately set aside their differences, and collectively pray that this doesn't become a trend."

AMEN !

I am so glad that Jacqueline hasn't been bitten by the Montana bug just yet.

She'd much rather watch Spongebob. I'm alright with that.

I Hate Crocs

2009-03-27T16:55:00.000-07:00

Link: [I Can Has Cheezburger]

I Am Alive !

2009-03-23T12:51:00.000-07:00

I survived my Yellow Belt promotion test for Krav Maga.

Yellow Belt is the second belt one can achieve. A newcomer is, by default, a White Belt. The next, rather small and insignificant level up, is Yellow.

So why, you may ask, am I declaring that I survived this test against all odds ? What possibly could be so ominous about a meager first-level test -- one that in my previous discipline of Seido Karate was a simple matter of a short written test and a one-hour skills demonstration ?

The Yellow Belt test for Krav was Six. Hours. Long.

You read that right. Six hours of intense physical activity, for the first of many levels to be achieved in this great art. A far cry from my rather simple promotion test in my previous discipline.

How did I survive this marathon event without collapsing, vomiting, or all of the above ? I have absolutely no clue. All I know is that I was grateful for the rest that was achieved while holding the pad for my partner to do her striking and kicking. Having one's brains rattled by a strong impact to a pad held against one's body is slightly less exhausting than inflicting that on another person's pad.

Jacqueline and I counted 17 bruises on my body on Saturday after this marathon session. There are actually fewer today, because some of the smaller ones have melded together into larger hematomas.

As morbid as it may seem, I am actually somewhat proud of them. They are hard-earned, and a reflection of my dedication to my training. I just wish my calves and back didn't hurt so damned much right now. Time to pop some more Advil.

The EMS Motto

2009-03-20T10:09:00.000-07:00

Link: [I Can Has Cheezburger]

AEDs Save Lives

2009-03-13T12:50:00.000-07:00

For a number of years, stretching back to before I was a member of the team, the ERT at my company was embroiled in a bitter battle with company management. At the center of the issue was a request from the ERT members for the company to provide Automatic External Defibrillators (AEDs) in each building, to be available to employees should the need arise.

Management initially resisted the request. It was too expensive. It would require training. It might open up liability issues. They wanted a wellness program instead. These excuses stalled the process for a good five years, frustrating the team members to no end.

Contrary to somewhat-popular belief, AEDs do not require training, although training is available in most CPR classes. The devices are designed for the lay responder, with simple diagrams and spoken instructions. In our state, the Good Samaritan laws cover possible liability against someone who is attempting to assist in good faith. And a wellness program doesn't do a damned thing for someone who has possible genetic predispositions, and/or who does not wish to participate. For these reasons, we argued, AEDs are needed.

Finally, in 2005, after some of the stonewalling upper management personnel moved onto other endeavors, the program was approved. AEDs began appearing in our buildings and on the shoulders of ERT Team Leads and Security personnel alike, to the delight of all of us who had fought so hard to have them approved.

There is no question that these devices have the potential to save lives. They cannot help everyone who experiences cardiac arrest, but if applied quickly to a patient who is experiencing certain types of heart rhythms, the AED can help reset the heart to a normal pattern.

This was proven, earlier this week, on another campus that our company resides in.

One of our fellow employees experienced a sudden cardiac arrest at his cube, hitting his head sharply on the corner of the desk as he went down. Our ERT on that campus sprung into action, began CPR, and applied the AED. Four shocks and four rounds of chest compressions later, and his heart rhythm and pulse were restored. He even regained consciousness before being loaded into the ambulance. Had the AED not been available, he would have undoubtedly experienced massive brain damage, or even death.

This day, was not his day to die. And it was made possible because the AED was nearby and ready.

Even more heartwarming, I just received an email that stated that the patient would be going home from the hospital in approximately one week's time. We all much prefer that, to his family attending his funeral.

AEDs are all around now. Look for them in public places. Take a CPR class. Learn to use them. One day, it may be your family member or your friend that may need it.

AEDs save lives. We have just proven this, on one of our own.