The Edge of Empty

A pile of dirty clothes in your boy's room makes a comfy bed if you are a ferret. This picture pretty much sums up how I would like to spend my summer--completely relaxed. That won't happen for me, but A E Ferret is quite happy to pick up the slack in the snoozing department.

Today's pictures mark the end of a year of Ferret Fridays. When I first started sharing photos of A E Ferret, I had no long term plans so to reach a year is quite surprising.  A E Ferret has been with our family for 17 months.  I just realized that he joined us just a month after my taking the Alarm Administrator position.  It has been quite a ride. A E has been our helper and inspector every step of the way during our bathroom remodel.  Here, he is inspecting the sink plumbing shortly after the install. We wonder if he can smell the water.  After all, drains are his favorite place to get a drink.

A E Ferret doesn't miss anything that goes on in our house, and he has been in the middle of all steps in our bathroom renovation.  Here, he is inspecting the bucket and sponges after we grouted to see if we cleaned them out to his standards.

I can't  believe that two weeks have gone by without a new CryWolf® tip.  I do my best to post a new tip each week, but if work is crazy, as it has been lately,  I sometimes don't get the chance.  If you are unfamiliar with the world of blogs, it is possible to subscribe to my blog so that you are notified when something new is posted.  Using the tab on the right hand side will allow you to choose which option suits you best.  My personal preference is to use Google Reader.  This way, all the new posts from the blogs I follow are collected in one place for me to read when I have a chance. This also saves the frustration from checking a blog when nothing new is posted. Here is a simple video from Google explaining Google Reader. The other option is to use the RSS (sometimes referred to as R eally S imple   S yndication, but is technically an R DF S ite S ummary) feed which will send new posts to your email inbox. However you choose to find this ...

A E Ferret loves to help around the house.  Of course, his definition of help doesn't always match mine.  The other day, I knocked a container of oatmeal off a shelf.  A E then "helped" by rolling in it and spreading it out over the whole kitchen.  Here he is looking on and seems to be saying "I didn't do it" And, here, he is just thoroughly enjoying a good roll. They say oatmeal baths are good for itchy skin--I am not sure this is what they meant.

For several years now, we have made it a tradition to support the Officer Down Memorial Page  (ODMP) by participating in the Police Week 5k .  The number of family members who participate varies from year to year but I must say that the best year for me was the one that all four of us ran.  Since Youngest is majoring in Police Studies (like his Mama--aaahh), I don't see this tradition coming to an end any time soon. Each year, the race finishes adjacent to the National Law Enforcement Memorial.  This is a sobering yet fitting reminder of the reason for Police Week. Last year ,  I discussed the memorial a bit.  This year I wanted to focus more on the reasons for the memorial and what it represents. One of the most emotional aspects of participating in the 5k is that each runner is assigned a fallen officer for whom they run.  This year, the Hubster will be running for  Deputy Sheriff Robert Leo Britton, Jr.  of Smith County Sheriff's Office ...

This was one hungry ferret sitting down for dinner in his favorite Japanese c hawanmushi bowl. He hardly came up for air until the bowl was licked clean.

A friend shared this photo with me of a trash can in a government building in Florida, and I thought you might enjoy it as well.

As I am winging my way home from the FARA Symposium. I thought you might enjoy more pictures of A E getting involved with our bathroom remodel. Last week, A E was peeking out of this hole which happens to be the drain for our shower pan after it was removed. In that photo, you can see that the hole is not much bigger than his head. We have discussed A E's affection for the drain previously.  Upon the shower pans removal, A E showed his capacity for squeezing into tight places. And then getting out again. I don't know how he does it, but he does and he is usually quite proud of himself.

I'm not in the office this week because I have been at the FARA Symposium in Albuquerque.  In preparation for being away, I wrote the post below and had it queued up to automatically go live at the appropriate time. On Monday, Public Safety Corporation(PSC) held their annual Users Conference and let me tell you that some brilliant things are on the way. If you missed the conference, you can read about some of the exciting news  here . During the meeting, they asked if there were things that users would like to see added to CryWolf®.  Of course, I have a list at the office of things I would like to see, but one thing that has been weighing heavy on my mind is how to reduce our postage costs.  This is especially critical for my unit since we have already exceeded our postage budget and there are still a few months to go this fiscal year.  In pursuit of a solution, I have been examining ways to do more correspondence through e-mail, but was in a dilemma because n...

The annual FARA symposium day two started out with a great session moderated by alarm industry folks.  This session was designed to educate public safety on what the alarm industry is doing to reduce the number of false alarms.  FARA is very fortunate that some major industry leaders are willing to get involved with its mission. Several of the panelists were board members of industry associations and actively involved in working at the national, state, and local level. There was a lot of great information provided, but one of the best things brought out was the value of Enhanced Call Verification (ECV) in reducing false alarms. If your state or locality doesn't require ECV, this is one change that can dramatically reduce false alarms. Another issue mentioned was the problem solving that industry is undertaking to combat hurdles that new technology is bringing such as the dilemma caused by alarm users disarming a system with a smart phone before the alarm company has been ab...

If you are in false alarm prevention and aren't in Albuquerque, then you are missing out on a great opportunity to learn, network, and have a bit of fun. The 16th annual False Alarm Reduction Association (FARA) Symposium has begun and the fun is just beginnning. The President opened the symposium with an introduction to the Board Members and a round of applause for all of the sponsors. This was followed by a presentation of the new website and the FARA Forums by the chair of the Website Committee.  The Conference Committee announced a sneak peek of next year's  symposium in Orlando. A super presentation  by the Albuquerque Visitors Bureau gave all a bit of history and some places to see while here.  A round of Autograph Bingo gave attendees a fun way to meet other attendees and learn a bit about them. There is so much to come and I will be updating throughout the week.

One of the advantages of using the CryWolf® alarm billing software is the excellent customer service that they provide. This customer service is available on a daily basis through our rep. However, the company also extends that service with a   User's Conference held each year in conjunction with the FARA symposium .  This demonstrates their commitment to long term relationships with their customers. It also shows their commitment to FARA's mission also. At this meeting, PSC often reveals exciting updates to CryWolf® and shares tips and tricks to make using the system easier. Today's conference was no exception and there are some exciting features already available with more coming soon.  I don't want to steal their thunder, but I was told that I could mention some things. (And just between you and me, it was exciting to have PSC mention my blog and say that they liked it), One of the big changes coming this year is the new website that they will be revealing. Som...

A E is an infinitely curious creature.  He has no qualms about investigating whatever crosses his path.

After a recent update to the .Net version of CryWolf®, I noticed what I believe is a new option to send  invoices and account histories by email while in the history of an account.  Before noticing this option, my staff was opening the history, clicking on the invoice, saving it as a pdf file, and then attaching the file to an email.  Now, a simple right click on the invoice number opens the options window where it is possible to send a pdf of the invoice directly to the email addresses on file in the account.  Simply click on the option  and slide over to the right to select an email address.  As can be seen in the sample, the account holder's address appears on top and the responsible party's  email address is below.  It is also possible to send the item to an email address not on the account by choosing the "Other Email" option.  After clicking the selection, a "Quick Email window" opens and a subject line and message may be added...

IMG_1942 , a photo by Michelle on the Edge on Flickr.

Even sleepy ferrets like tunnels. A E had a friend visit on Sunday  if you missed it. IMG_1914 , a photo by Michelle on the Edge on Flickr.

Occasionally, it has been helpful to send a letter to a group of registered alarm users. If this sounds like something that would be helpful,  scroll down to "Process Bulk Letters" on the File menu in CryWolf®. In the "Bulk Letters" window, there are 3 tabs that can help refine the account selection process: General Search, Based on Outstanding Amounts, and Letter Received. The General Search tab offers options to choose the accounts to send letters.  If the letter needs to be sent to an alarm company, choosing the "Alarm Company" radio button allows the registered Alarm Companies to be searched. The default "Accounts" radio button searches registered users.  The pull down menu to the right of the radio buttons allows the  search to be refined by 7 parameters. The "Based on Outstanding Amounts" tab, allows a search of accounts by the amounts owed and date notification was sent. My favorite tab "Letter Received" allows a ...

IMG_2042 , a photo by Michelle on the Edge on Flickr. I walked out on the back porch this morning and caught the Easter bunny making his visit. I hope that your day is peaceful and spent well with friends and family.

A E has some toys that are perennial favorites.  Eeyore is one of those favorites.  It is rather amusing to see A E dragging Eeyore from room to room, especially since Eeyore is much larger. IMG_1918 , a photo by Michelle on the Edge on Flickr.