Then

• I always find this time of year to be odd. Everything just always feels off in August. School starts back, but it's still daylight after 8pm. It's hot but everywhere is showing fall decorations and advertisements. There is no vacation to look forward to or holiday to celebrate for a couple months.
• This weekend, I got a lot accomplished at home. I fixed a couple poorly done caulking jobs where the ac unit goes into the house and where the drain pipe exits the garage. Yellow jackets had made a nest in the brickwork and since it was right next to the garage always scared the kids. I used a brown caulk so that it would match the brick better that the white that they had used before.
• I finally hung my hammock on the back porch. That is now my favorite place to be. It is so peaceful and quiet there, I just laid and watched the sun set. If there is a heaven, it has lots of hammocks.

Maybe this will just be a once a month update instead of my planned weekly update. I cannot seem to remember to come back here and update this page!

• It has been extremely hot here in northeast Tennessee. I went outside to clean my front window and was dripping sweat from being outside in the sun for less than ten minutes while just cleaning a window. I am not complaining as I would much rather have the heat instead of the cold weather. I will be missing these hot days in a few months once it turns cold.
• The podcast is still going strong as I just finished editing episode nine yesterday. Wild to think we are almost to ten episodes. That is a big milestone and I'm really happy with how it is turning out.
• I also finished up an interview style video yesterday that was fun to edit. I struggle to not over edit talking head style videos because I want to edit out the "umms" and "you know" filler words, but it breaks the flow in video much more than it does in audio. Forces me to be more creative to try and figure out how to make it look good as well as sound good.
• I have a few videos in the planning process as well, so that always makes me feel good that people come to me to create these videos without me having to put myself out there to create things for them. On the flip side of that, I do not have much say in what I am creating, I am always asked to create certain topics or ideas. As someone who doesn't like to make decisions, this is nice, but there is a tiny thread that's starting to get pulled of me wanting to create trainings on my own. I'll have to see where that leads!
• School starts back for the kids on Monday, so another transition to the day-to-day that I am looking forward to. They stay up all night and sleep all day which makes it tough on someone that wakes up early and wants to go to bed early.

Now, to cover what has happened over the past 3-4 weeks!

• Vacationing was very relaxing and enjoyable. We went to Hilton Head Island at a cheaper condo than we normally stay at. The rooms wasn't as fancy, but it was clean and worth the low price. The added benefit of not having annoying decorations on the wall that I read over and over again. I really hate text based decorations on walls. There is no need for "Beach Life" to be on every wall! I walked a ton more than I am used to and by the end of the week physically felt better than I have in a very long time. Spending time with the kids and just disconnecting from work is something I feel privileged to get to enjoy.
• Work is going fantastic! I have multiple projects going on. The podcast is still going strong with new episodes dropping at a regular cadence. I have created some videos for Service Recovery, Fellowship Recruitment, and a new video for Orientation explaining the benefits of what the Ballad Health Foundation accomplishes.
• It's the time of year where storms kick off about every afternoon. The kids are mostly at the age that they still get nervous, but are not freaking out like they did when they were younger. I guess I passed that off to them as I used to cower in the closet and cry but now I'm outside watching them roll in.

• I have a few video projects at work and I am prepping for vacation as well. Work life is stressful because I want to get everything finished before vacation. The deadlines aren't strict to where if I fail at this that there will be consequences, but it's the deadlines that I have made for myself and I want a clean slate when I get back from vacation (not to mention to stress it will remove while vacationing).

• I have many video projects in the works and plan on spending the entire day editing. It's both exciting and knowingly exhausting at the same time. Feels like I am at the starting line of a cross country race.
• I once again mowed, but this time after a week of rain. The grass was very high and so thick. I have sprayed the edges, in the previous mowings, so not much to trim along the fence and landscaping. The many hours at the beginning of the season allow me to quickly get it done now.
• I got a new Yeti coffee cup! I got the 20 oz Rambler in Navy. I would buy everything they have in that Navy color if everything wasn't so expensive there. I love the MagSlider top that magnetically holds the tab in place and removes easily to clean. It is really fun to fidget with as well. As I was getting the link for the Rambler, I just came across the MagSlider Color Packs . Looks like I will be sending some more money Yeti's way.

• I started my Five Minute Task app over the weekend. I have it mostly built by asking ChatGPT how to code it. I have also been taking the Stanford classes to learn what the code is actually doing. I do not think that I am going to release this version, but seeing the code and seeing what it does is helping me learn instead of just taking the online classes. Asking ChatGPT to comment on the code really helps as well. It's a fun project that I am fully documenting over at South Fork Apps.
• The weather has been fairly cool for this time of year. We set a new low record of 39 over the weekend. It's been sunny out during the day, so I can't complain too much, but I'm ready for the summer heat!
• The kids finished up school last week and half are already bored of being at home while the other half do not want to leave!
• I recorded a new phlebotomy training video this week at work. I love recording clinical education videos because so many people watch them and the educators always do a great job. I feel like that is one of the perks of working at Ballad Health is that we record a lot of training that your co-workers are in and is specifically shot in your hospital. We can also target the training to the specifics that we need instead of getting a generic video from a vendor.

• Episode 6 & 7 of the B Excellent podcast are now edited and will go out soon!
• We went to my wife's cousin's graduation from the University of Tennessee on Saturday and I feel so old but so happy for her. I have watched her grow up and I am so proud of the young woman she has become.
• I finished watching Andor and was disappointed. I am not fully into the Star Wars universe, so I feel like I might have missed out on some important connection that the ending had, but I feel like it just kinda ended without a conclusion.
• Also I'm really enjoying The Last of Us on HBO Max. Last night's episode brought tears to my eyes. I've found that shows and movies that have fatherly figures that struggle raising kids just really hits me in the feels.
• We had some storms and heavy rain after I mowed on Friday which was fantastic because it knocked all the loose grass down. We have had a good mix of rain and sunshine which is really making the grass grow and look great.
• This is the last week of school and my oldest is halfway through high school, did I mention that I am feeling old!

* I have missed a couple weeks! I haven't necessarily been busy, I have just been scatter brained.

* I started using the Dexcom G7 blood glucose monitor and it is amazing to see my blood sugar every five minutes. Seeing what food does to my body is wild. It has really helped me understand why I feel the way that I do. I know that eating a Reese's or gravy biscuit isn't great for me, but seeing what it does to my blood sugar and really focusing on how my heart feels like it's beating out of my chest just makes those treats not worth it. It sounds so stupid to realize that candy and carbs are not good for me, but it's a whole perspective changing experience to see the data.

* I have a couple video recordings this week at work and we recorded episode five of the podcast last week, so have to get that edited tomorrow.

* The yard looks immaculate! I spent all Friday afternoon mowing, spraying for weeds and bugs.

* We replaced our bedroom TV that was our house warming gift when we bought our first house over 10 years ago! Got the Vizio 50" QLED from Sam's Club. Nothing amazing, but looks better than the 1080p screen we had. It's so weird to be attached to something like a TV. That TV has been entertainment for three of my kids their entire life as it used to be in our living room where they played. Kinda sad to get rid of it.

* Rhiley, Amanda, and I had Covid this past weekend. I am still coughing like crazy. The previous times that I have had Covid was more like the flu and not as much coughing as this go around. We all seem to be getting better now.

* I just finished editing Episode 4 of the podcast and it is going great! I really enjoy working with the group of people that are involved and it is so much fun editing each episode.

* I am way behind on yard work. With the rainy weather and being sick, my yard looks like a jungle!

* I was outside in my yard all day Saturday. It was a perfect day to get the yard in shape for spring. I pulled weeds, mowed, and put away the winter toys and supplies. I absolutely love the warmer weather we are having!

* It was a slower week at work with a lot of meetings and events, so nothing new to add from that.

* Had some health issues for my youngest kid that hopefully will get straightened out with medication. Starting him on a pill he has to take every morning is going to be a challenge, but glad that he has the option for assistance.

* Episode Two of the Ballad Health B Excellent Podcast will be released this week. You can listen on [Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/show/6RyV3MKF6L60Y1jVCUIAYY) and [Apple](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/b-excellent/id1797625460). We are starting to get the hang of recording together and having a lot of fun creating the episodes.

* I still haven't started mowing for this year, but plan on getting it this week. I wasn't able to this weekend due to having my wife's family over for the monthly get together.

* I started a weekly note in Apple Notes to drop links, articles, videos, etc. in so that they are all in one place and not individual notes like I had been doing. Once I read the article or watched the video, I deleted the note. So, I wasn't able to recall anything that I had viewed and I felt like that might come back to bite me someday. Over at MacStories, Ticci mentioned that he had been dumping everything into a daily note. I do not know why this caused me to have the realization that I need a weekly note, but it popped in my head and has been a great addition to my notes. I always struggle with a daily note because some days I do not need or use it, but a week seems like a sweet spot for me.

* We just launched the B Excellent Podcast for Ballad Health. You can listen on Spotify and Apple. We are also releasing it internally on our Teams app. The B Excellent Podcast explores strategies, stories, and skills that empower team members to excel, foster connections, and deliver exceptional care, offering leadership insights, real-world examples, and actionable tips for a thriving workplace.

* It’s starting to get warm and so I am excited to get outside and start mowing. I also am ready to enjoy our new back porch that we had installed over the winter.