I'm thirty-nine years old! I was unable to take my Security+ exam! ...sonofabitch. I stood up from my desk to get Cooper, the golden retriever, a calming chewie to keep his barking down when I had two minutes before the start time. Little did I know (because they only wrote in chat and did not speak) the proctor had logged in early and decided that my coming back into frame was enough to declare my test time invalid. Before the exam would start. Yes, I'm appealing for a redo and should hear something soon.

Progress is progressing! Except for when Korra thinks I need to stop studying by cramming herself under my desk. With studies paused and dogs moved out of small spaces, I did manage another writing session before being interrupted by Cooper! Cooper was not pleased that I had spent most of my Saturday at my desk. He wouldn't look at me for almost three minutes. That's hours of resentment for golden retrievers.

Folks, I'm away from the Post Office for the next...checks calendar...two weeks! After clocking out yesterday and clearing out the case and Union PO Box, I ran away from the building with all the appearance of a schoolboy at the beginning of summer. Why is there a two-week vacation from work in the middle of winter? I have two reasons: first, my birthday is this month and when I have the leave, I take most of the month off as a gift to myself. Second, because I'm taking the Security+ certification exam…

While any readers in more Northern climates might be scoffing at the excitement, I will unashamedly talk a little about the consequences of an arctic blast reaching the Gulf of Mexico: snow on the ground, and it's actually fluffy! Six inches of snow is predicted for the next day. This being the South, and thus beyond the reckoning of most of its inhabitants, no one knew precisely what to do about the weather. Normally, this would not be a detractor for me and the Post Office. I'd be walking out in that and honestly wouldn't mind (until Reynauds kicked in and my hands started to hurt and curl in on themselves), but schools have been closed for today and tomorrow.

The past week has been frustrating in assigning priorities, but now that I've been 'forced' to stay home for a few days, I'll be able to hold myself to my daily goals! The week was full of myself saying that before I could sit down at the desk and write, I needed to make progress in my house project: handling the bigger cleaning chores before Sarah came back from her trip. Between that and minding the gremlins we had created, it'd be near 9 or 10 PM before I could make it to the keyboard.

Spotted on the mail route. It is adorable and I want one. Hell, it might drive better than my LLV.

It’s been a busy day, folks. I’ll keep this a short post, but I promise I’ll give a lengthy explanation during the weekend: In the past 24 hours, I’ve been sworn in as the local president of my union and I’ve graduated from the cybersecurity bootcamp. To say I’ve been slightly overwhelmed today is an understatement.

Someone’s enjoying the fireplace being used, but I’m going to have to set up a guard rail before he learns what happens when a spark somehow gets through the doors and lands on fur.

Folks, I’m beyond exhausted, but not from physical labor. Instead, I’m exhausted through relief. I’ve passed my final presentation for the cybersecurity bootcamp classes! Six months of intense schoolwork and learning skills that were a younger me’s goal. Now, I have two months to prepare for the certification exam. But first, I must sleep. Take care, y’all. Too damn tired to write.

When you live in a tropical climate zone but have a temperature-related excuse to use your fireplace, it's something you want to show off. After clearing the room of the Christmas debris, or as the holiday-folk call them 'decorations', I cleaned out the fireplace and laid down the first fire of the season. Also testing out a statement from my father-in-law that our fireplace, like his, can be used as a second stovetop. His fireplace is a standalone, however, and isn't halfway into the brick chimney. He wanted me to fry an egg with it, but I'm taking the lesser path and just trying out the old kettle.

The Quiet Sunday will be staying quiet, since I need to be studying for this certification exam. So, no real posts for today! I'll be doing practice tests all day. Cheers, folks.

The daily shifting from balmy winter to cold and still too humid winter does make for interesting weather to look at while walking the mail route. Ahh, Louisiana. I’d say “never change”, but you have just too much chaos in your weather patterns to hold that promise.

I haven't made it to my daily word goal yet (and the other monitor is staring at me with my outlines), but I've made a little progress in other things! Namely, my continued study in cybersecurity and getting rid of what my wife calls the "mountain-man beard". The certification exam is in February, and I've been struggling through the practice tests every day. I say 'struggle' because I'm taking my certifications out of order; I'll be testing for A+ and C+ later in the year. The Security+ studying has already laid the foundations I'll need for the other two, so at the least, they'll be easier.

1: Keep up with daily blog posts, even if it's just a check-in.2: Daily word goals for SWRPG novel and personal novel.3: Keep self at low-key energy and not allow stress to control the day. I wish I could hold myself to a loftier new year resolution, folks, but after all these years, I've learned the wisdom surrounding the concept of resolutions: they're not for big and life-changing struggles. In the past, I would've said "I'll get my book published this year!" and would genuinely strive to accomplish that goal.