Comic Strip or Corporate Documentary?

Mike was fired from Symantec (aka Somantic) in the middle of April – absolutely blind-sided - in what appears to be a very clear-cut case of him (and at least one other person) taking the fall for some upper-level management incompetence. They were accused, tried, convicted, sentenced, & punished without opportunity for any rebuttal whatsoever. The organization he was in has a reputation for being an absolutely poisonous place to work but Mike really poured heart & soul into it to try & succeed. He was just met with resistance at every turn & was ultimately libeled.
As the shock wore off, we discovered a blessing in disguise (in several ways). We have a family life once again! No more late nights at the office for Mike or calling contractors in India at midnight. We realized the incredible stress a job with big corporate America placed on us. We realized that no amount of pay or benefits could make up for the cost to our family.
We found sufficiency in our loving Heavenly Father and in the supportive caring of family and friends. Not only did the Lord see us through the trauma of a job loss, He provided for our every need.
In June, Mike re-joined SmartCAMcnc and the group of friends who pursued a start up company following the other lay-off in our lives 3 years ago. The fledgling company is doing quite well with over 10 employees. Pay and benefits can’t begin to compete with the likes of Somantic but quality of life has improved immeasurable for all of us. We couldn’t be happier.
In November, Somantic fired Mike's former boss. Id quot circumiret, circumveniat.

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Fourth of July Celebration

It's been a while but we made the trip back to New York over the fourth. It was largely a spontaneous decision to go on our part. Mike learned from his sister that Uncle Gus and his neighbors would be throwing a big (~70 people) 4th of July party and all the cousins and their families would be there. We also wanted to surprise Mike's mom who is doing ok but recovering from hernia surgery. After traveling on the fourth and arriving at my sister's quite late, we managed to get over to Longview just before lunch time. The four of us wandered into the cafeteria and found mom patiently waiting for her meal. Unfortunately, we were not early enough to take her out for lunch but the surprise was worth the trip. For many reasons, it was a good trip. We caught up with family and friends, visited old haunts, made a trip to Cooperstown , did a little hiking and just had a fairly relaxing time together. New York weather didn't disappoint us either... There was no shortage of ...

Sailing in the Nude?

In May, Mike sailed in the NOOD (not nude, however) for the first time. Oh, that's the Sperry Top-Sider National Offshore One Design. The Seattle event provided three days of racing in Puget Sound for over 200 boats in 24 classes. Whew! In addition, the Santana 20 Class Championships were hosted by the Eugene Yacht Club over the summer. The Santanarama 2008 was great week of fun and competitive racing. Mike's frightful-looking boat finished 6 th out of 39. Apparently, ugly is fast. On a smaller scale, but no less enjoyable, Mike loves racing our 14' Lido with Trevor. They make a pretty good team and managed to take 2 nd and 3 rd place in the Summer and Fall Wednesday Night Series respectively. Trevor was recognized as the “Junior All-Star” in the Lido fleet . After Trevor masters the Zuma, Mike hopes he's ready to take the helm on the Lido.

A Sailing Adventure

No, it's nothing close to the Barcelona World Race (as those sailors spend Christmas in the Southern Ocean). Heck, this wasn't even a race. But it was an adventure. Perhaps inspired by the story of Grandpa Herc sleeping on the Flying Dutchman on Cayuga Lake , Trevor became interested in his own nautical adventure last year. With the realization that Mr. T would become a teenager at the end of the summer, Mike was determined to share the experience with Trevor before another summer slipped by. The plan was modest. They would simply spend the night sleeping on the Lido on Fern Ridge Lake and meet up with the rest of the family the next day for a picnic. The two adventures pushed off from the dock in the early evening. The north wind was fairly strong and refused to die as the sun went down . We found shelter in the lee of a small island and prepared the boat for the night . Although it took a while for the wind to die and the boat to stop rocking, Trevor and Mike mana...

Merrifield Times

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