CV-19 | Day 1 - Working from home

Well.  This is a bit of a retrospective post because so much has happened since the CV-19 outbreak started making its way into the UK and becoming part of our lives. Up until now it's been something happening overseas - very sad, but nothing to do with us.  Once it landed on our shores then things started to become more real.

Amelia developed a bit of a cold so we wanted to keep her out of nursery until it was over. So I decided to stay at home Thursday and Friday (19th and 20th) - little did I know that it'd my last day in the office (possibly for quite some time!!)

I got my laptop and two monitors setup, keyboard mouse and docking station. With the addition of two headsets (one paired to my phone, one paired to my laptop), and a webcam on my monitor.

I have found working from home full-time stressful, I don't take breaks or chat with people as much as I do in the office so I'm at my desk way more than normal.  Also my role means that I have to support the internet and internal network connections so it's quite a stressful job when everyone is battering them!

It has been filled with lovely things.  I have spent more time with Amelia, she's 4 going on 14 - she has got a fiery temper but she does love life too. We've had a few nice meals from restaurants that can't service on premise so deliver.  I am just looking forward to it all being over though.

Per User Login Message

A great idea...

https://home.configmgrftw.com/per-user-login-message/

Challenge

A common challenge with Windows 10 Upgrade task sequences is handling user logins if there are any restarts during the task sequence. After the restart happens, a user can log back into the system but has no way of knowing that a background process (the upgrade task sequence) is running. Additionally, after the user logs in, the task sequence progress bar may take a while to be shown again (or may never reappear). This isn’t initially a problem but will quickly become an issue when the task sequence restarts the system again and gives the user little to no warning. Think of calls for iron maidens and execution by the users for the perpetrator of such an injustice; i.e., you.

Weekend away in Helsinki with Amie (Day 3)

[Written on Sunday - not able to publish cause the Hilton @ Manchester doesn't have Internet]

An hour gained today with the clocks going back, however very confusing at what-ever time in the morning, thinking about the old Finnish time and the new Finnish time, and then the old and new UK time, wondering what time it should be in my head and how sleepy I should have been.

A nice lazy morning today because we weren't setting off until 9.40, but it turns out that is what time the bus was to the zoo... So we had to wait around for 40 minutes until the next one. It was a big green bus with animals on it, saying Zoo Bussi down the side of it - I think we got on the right one. 20 minutes to the Zoo and a few euros later and we were staring a Lion in the eye, he seemed pretty sleepy so we moved on. It turns out he wakes up every hour when more people were around and he puts of a big 'king of the jungle' display by roaring and pacing in his cage, we'd only moved a cages down, so raced back to his enclosure to see what the fuss was about - typical male putting on a display for the crowd.

We managed to see some great animals to start us off, all the animals which were too lazy last time I was there had made an appearance, the Lynx, the Tigger, the red pandas. It was great! We made our round the island starting from the south moving around in a very logical way. We saw everything we wanted to, and the animals seemed a lot more awake today - must have been the cold...! The bears were even up and around, every exciting. We tried to get into the warm areas as much as we could and even better for me - we found a place I'd not been in last time I was here. It was the Asisa section, it was very humid but there were loads of cool animals, including snakes, turtles and that kind of stuff :-)

We got the bus back at about 13.30 and decided that with aching feet and doing more than we usually would over a weekend, we made it back to the apartment, via the supermarket to pick up some lunch. We both promptly fell asleep and woke up a few hours later, deciding that it was a little late to do much more so we started packing up and getting ready to set back to the airport. It was a bit of a miserable afternoon too weatherwise, the sun gods didn't grace us with their presense, but we'd had a great time so far, it didn't really matter too much.

Set off to the airport in good time and managed to squeeze in some shopping (last minute presents) and also some food. Still got another hour and 30 minutes before we take off, but because it's 'free seating' we're close to the front of the queue.

The flight was ok, but there was a really big bit of turbulance which lasted about 5 minutes, it was just as we were about to land but it was enough to throw you off your seat... I was glad to land, I think Amie was even happier to land. We got through passport control and got our bags without incident and the Hotel Bus came to pick us up. We got a really nice hotel room which was good, because we didn't plan on leaving it until we were thrown out - because the train the next day wasn't until 12:50pm. We had a great breakfast (full English of course) and set off on the train which was on time and not very busy. The bus home was full of kids (near where we lived) because it was kicking out time so we had to put up with that for 10 minutes, which wasn't too bad.

All in all, we had a really great time, we'd seen and done a lot, and are now really sleepy from it all. I have managed to check my 100+ emails so tomorrow isn't going to be as bad as I thought - trying to play catch up is something I hate doing... Can't wait for the next time we have this sort of City Break again :-D

Weekend away in Helsinki with Amie (Day 2)

We started today off a little slower than I think was in the plan... We were both tired from the long journey yesterday and wanted a little lay-in, I allowed it until about 9, making Amie some toast and tea before we got dressed and started our day.

We walked out of the apartment and headed towards the city center, it was only a 10 minute walk, but it was horrible drizzle, the stuff that soaks you through, so we walked quickly. We looked around the center and I pointed out the shops and the parts of the city I knew about. We made our way to Senate Square where we got a load of nice photos and then walked back to the park area where we got on an Audio Bus Tour.

On the tour, we went around the new and old parts of the city on the bus, with earphones on. The commentary was in English so we could hear what everything was. It was really well timed, and gave enough information about the history and also what happens today.

We drove past the Suomenlinna Sea Fortress, Museums, Old Market Square, the Cathedral, Parliament of Finland, Temppeliaukio Church and the Helsinki Stadium. We managed to get get about 100 photos (93 actually) some of which are ok, and some are a bit blury :-)

The tour was about 1 hour 30 minutes and dropped us off at the harbour.

We walked back through the shops and ended up having lunch at McDonalds because everywhere else looked really busy. We went through the shopping centers, where Amie randomly got nose bleed... We managed to get to a little stall where they gave us a full kitchen roll and  got Amie to sit down and allow it to stop. After all of that, we continued on through the shopping centers and then through the little shops on the street which were very exciting. We went into the all year round Christmas Shop and Amie was in her element... Looking around all the decs, gettings very Christmasy.

We called it a day at about 5pm and made our way back to the apartment... We watched a bit of tele and I was on sleepless patrol, making sure Amie didn't drift off, otherwise there was noooo way that we would go out for an evening meal. We had resevations for Colorado which is a resturant underneath the hotel I usually stay in when I'm coming to Head Office. The food was lovely and very filling - an American which I know is not very Finnish, but we really struggled to get reservations for anything!

Back in the apartment now - 10pm... Ready for bed, then realised it was only 8pm in the UK :-( I don't want to break my body again so I think I'll be staying up a little later!

Weekend away in Helsinki with Amie (Day 1)

Well, Amie and I needed a weekend away with each other; after I got back from my 7 weeks away in Tornio, it has been non-stop at work and I've been working long hours (which I do anyway, but more so recently). We planned a trip to Helsinki so that I can show Amie a bit of Finland where I spent a part of my life. She's never been before but was really looking forward to it.

With the help of Sam Megson (who is currently working over here on her rotation) she created a bit of a plan for us, so that we had some stuff to do while we were over here - when I say a bit of a plan, she presented me with a 5 page document, and 3 or 4 books with coloured tabs marking things of interest. I have to love her cause she is my bestie, but she is a plan-o-holic... Anyway, this is my perfect type of holiday, I have not had to think, I have just turned up and followed the guide - what I am best at doing :-)

So I took today off work, even though I dialed in to answer some mails and questions, and we set off from home at about 10.50 and got the bus into town. I am not very good with public transport, there are too many old people wanting to steal our seats at the front of the bus, but they all kept their distance and we made it into town in one piece. We got our train tickets from Sheffield station and got on the train - having to turf some mardy old business man out of our seats because he had removed the ticket saying they were reserved.

The train journey went without a problem, it was quite nice and I would do it again if I was going to the airport for work, and at only £24 a person return, it was well worth it. We got into the station at Manchester and found our way to terminal 3. It was a bit of a treck, but it is a nice terminal with things to do and we passed the hour with no worries. We were taking an EasyJet flight which I was a bit worried about. I have seen too many episodes of "Airport" on the tele where they are filming EasyJet staff and their customers and I wasn't best pleased with some of the cases... I have been told I am a snob (mainly by Sam), because I didn't really want to take the flight, but there was no other way for so cheap. When they called the gate out, it was like a farmer hearding cattle, everyone races to the gate because it is 140 seats of "free seating", so you sit where you like... We got close to the front of the queue (because of Sam's guide telling us the gate number) and Amie being amazing at bargeing people out of the way and generally kicking ass.

We were really delayed (by about 30 minutes) which is boring when you are having to stand in line and make sure no one tries to cut in. But we got on the plane and got some good seats next to the wing with extra leg room. We had an all-day breakfast sandwhich, which cost a small fortune, but it was nice.

The flight was uneventful and we landed on time, we managed to get our bag (it was the 8th on the belt), and we got to the bus - again - following Sam's instructions. We found the stop on the bus and we made it to the apartment! Just settling in and trying something good on tele, but all there is on is a crap Tom Cruise film or BBC News - or a load of Finnish programs, and my 7 weeks in Tornio didn't teach me enough to keep up :-)

Anyway, tomorrow is a day of fun and excitment, but I'll tell you about that then! Night night

Job Rotation, The Last Entry :-(

My rotation is over, after 7 weeks of being away from home I am finally back home.


I did a full day of work on Friday which was my last day, it went really quickly but I still had a lot to do, I also talked to the Tornio IT managers about the work I had done and the work still left to do, I also highlighted things that they could continue with without me know I had passed on knowledge to their teams. I had a hard decision about what to eat for lunch, there was 3 things on the menu and couldn’t decide, so the day before I had put the decision out to some friends and it their feedback was split 50/50… On the day however, the Pork, veg and potato wedges looked too nice to avoid so I went for that. I had some things still left to show people and then started packing away and saying my good byes. Eero (one of the section managers) offered to drive me back to my apartment which was nice, so I didn’t have to go the long route home on the bus!

I got home and started packing my bags, I was worried it wouldn’t all fit, and even more worried I would forget something. It took a few hours to finish off - mainly because I was getting bored and watching TV a lot, however it all fitted and it gave me a chance to do about 20 checks of the place to make sure I hadn’t left anything behind and to clear our my cupboards. It took ages to get off to sleep knowing that I had to be awake for 04:00 in the morning to get the taxi.

The taxi came on Saturday morning at about 04:30 and took me to the airport. I checked in and as I was walking away, I realised I managed to get my 32kg bag onto the plane without having to pay any excess - where I was only allowed 20kg…! SCORE! The flight was ok on the way to Helsinki and then also on the way to Manchester it was uneventful. The taxi took an hour or so to get me back into Sheffield and I could finally see my girlfriend after 7 long weeks.

We spent the weekend doing nothing, we have washed some of my clothes and also did a little shopping for nice food. Amie prepared me a full English for lunch which I wolfed down, and we had a lovely meal with my parents on Sunday night…

So, I’m home! This will no doubt be the last blog entry for a while - so I’d like to take this opportunity to thank those who have followed it, I hope it has been interesting reading about my time away, but mostly it has been a nice thing to do to keep me sane!

Cheers for now!

Tom

Job Rotation, Day 29

For my leaving Tornio event, I was invited to a ‘secret location’… I was told that it was Terho’s friend’s sauna that he had made himself. He had bought a shell of a barn from Tervola (I think) and brought it to Tornio. He has renovated the inside, it has a bar, seats and sofas, a changing area and then a sauna for 4 people (any more it would been a bit close)… Then outside he had a deck with a table and chair set for about 8, and there was decking all the way through the trees to his house. It was in a really nice setting, the houses I have seen in Tornio are all located in really nice areas; they are set back into the trees and there is not many houses packed into an area like you get in Sheffield.


He invited us up to his house where he showed us an old Chevvy gangster car (can’t remember the year), but you could tell he was very into cars and bikes because he had a lot of posters and tools. There were also 2 motorbikes and another 2 cars in the garage… They were really nice, I just wish I knew more about cars to be able to talk more about them - I guess I am a bit of a girl when it comes to cars. He also showed us around his attic… He likes to collect things, he had a really nice display of toy cars and motorbikes, tickets to concerts (rock and blues), old transistor radios, and then about 7 or 8 guitars of different types. He knocked out a quick tune on a stainless acoustic which was pretty impressive.

We started with some beers (Sandles), and we cooked some sausages on an open fire with a long cooking fork. I wasn’t so worried about getting covered in smoke since I old had 2 days left and I had now mastered the washing machine…! We moved the party inside and started in the sauna, it was a wood burning one (unlike the electric ones I had got used to on this trip) and the heat was so different, it was a lot nicer and I could stay in there for as long, I noticed the temperature was around 80-90 degrees at waist height, so might have been warmer higher up… I stayed on the stool because I am a newbie and don’t want to have to get out first :-)

We had a nice discussion about work and about the things I had done while I had been there, it was nice to hear that I have had a positive impact while I have been here and it was nice to hear about the people I have worked with lives’. We were drinking more sauna beers and we started on some shots called ‘tar’. It’s similar to the stuff you waterproof your boats with…! It was really nice and smokey and went down very well with more beers.

We finished in the Sauna about 10.30 and made our way to Kemi to see the nightlife, unfortunately on a Wednesday evening there isn’t much, so we had a quick drink in one of the bars and then made our way back to Tornio. I could feel my eyes drifting to sleep, but I fought it off until I got back into the apartment and don’t remember much after that.

I woke up with a bit of a headache, but good memories of the night before which is what the aim of the game is… I am very grateful to be treated so well while I have been here, even though it was for a relatively short time. I have been entertained all the way through, with things to do at the weekends and the hospitality has been excellent!