Chad's thoughts

Last week was a bit interesting. Why? Well, let’s start with attempting to recertify for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), or as I know it, food stamps. I go through the application as I have before. I sped through it as I have before, since the website was known for crashing from time to time. I made sure to double-check things like phone numbers and addresses. I got the confirmation page saved as a PDF, as I had done before. Then I waited for their call or at least a notice of completing the application. This was done before the 2/15/2026 due date. We thought it was good to go until the notice of an interview.

Now the interview is something that happens from time to time, so it was expected. However, what was not expected was to get a notice instead of a call as before. What made it even more problematic was the date on the notice being for 2/18/2026, and it stated the interview had to be done before 2/25/2026. The only problem with that is we didn’t get the notice until 3/2/2026. So, since it was my mother's case, she attempted to call that day. By the time she navigated through the Oklahoma Human Services phone system, it told her it would be four hours to even talk to someone live. It being 3 PM and the Oklahoma Human Services office closes at 5 PM, that left the Oklahoma Human Services office two hours before they close. So it was not a successful day. My mother made another attempt on 3/4/2026 but got the same results. Then on 3/5/2026, we got a Notice of Missed Interview, and it was suggested was scheduled when in fact it was not. Along with the notice itself being dated 2/26/2026.

Now, on 3/6/2026, we got a notice taped to our storm door that the power would be turned off for non-payment. Mind you, we were not even a month behind. That’s not even including AT&T doing an unauthorized Payment of $532.60 on 2/26/2026, which put us in a $510.60 hole. So I guess it was more of the last couple of weeks being kinda painful. Anyway, we were already having a lovely start to the month before it started. Now, back to the problem with SNAP and the notices. I start emailing Oklahoma Human Services questions and requests. It was not until 3/10/2026 that the Oklahoma Human Services finely call us and we got the Interview done that day.

Now let’s go back to AT&T doing an unauthorized Payment of $532.60 on 2/26/2026. Yes, you read it right, they made an unauthorized Payment. Why do I say it was an unauthorized Payment? Well, that is because they forced a Payment like the vultures they are. As I said, it put us in the hole $510.60, which is $10.60 over what the Bank allows us to go into the hole for. Hell, we got even deeper in the hole when the Bank added their $32.95 Overdraft Fee. It took me sending a report to the FCC and FTC about it before they would even do anything. Now, mind you, I’m not disputing the fact that we owe AT&T money, but I am disputing how they were able to charge my mother's bank card without consent or authorization. We got to this point because AT&T would not let us cancel service every time my mother called them, so we decided to just not pay them anymore. We thought we would get the usual calls about the bill being past due, the notices about paying so much, and the account would be settled. Well, that’s not what happened. What happened was they waited two months, then forced a $510.60 charge for about four months of service for being two months behind.

That just leaves the problem of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and this pre-inspection. Well, it normally wouldn’t be seen as a problem, but now it’s just seen as the means of HUD to find a way to force people on the streets. It’s to the point now that my mother and I really don’t care if we get evicted due to the actions of the public housing authority we are in. Again, it used to be a nice place, but that was before the leak in the kitchen happened. Now it just seems that the PHA just wants to get rid of us, like we are the plague that must be dealt with. That includes renting to questionable people that seen to cause the Wetumka Police Department to send officers to the street we live on more than usual. It’s to the point where I don’t feel it’s safe for my mother to be here when I’m out doing my Caregiver Duties. There’s not much I can do other than just do what I have always done, which is make do with what I have.

In the end, it is what it is, and the Oklahoma Standard just keeps showing us it only cares if you are dead or dying.

Well, today I got told that the opportunity that I hope I’m still a part of grew from one building to three. That means I need to change how I set up servers and where they need to go. My original thought was to have two name servers and a Pangolin server on a couple of VPSs and have two Domain Name Servers, a Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) Server, a Mail server, a 3-node k3s cluster, and an Asterisk Phone Server on-site. Now with it being three building I feel it would be more cost-effective to have the name servers double as Domain Name Server and expand the K3s cluster to seven nodes, along with the Mail server being at the first building. That would make it so that the other two buildings would only need a Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) Server for handing out IP addresses and an Asterisk Phone Server each. The Asterisk Phone Servers would then be connected to each other, so if someone from one building needs to talk to someone in one of the other buildings, all they would need is the extension number. I think it would be a good idea for each building to have its own phone number, though. I also think it would be a good idea to have a primary and secondary ISP for the first/main building, due to the first/main building having the K3s cluster and the mail server. At the other two buildings, I think the laptops/desktops would need the Pangolin client. I don’t know if smartphones would need the Pangolin client or not yet, but if they did, it would only be for the ERPNext Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) Server only.

Now, is this all doable for one person? Yes, but it will take a lot of time to get it right, though. The main thing that will take the most time is the Asterisk Phone Server. Why? Well, I would need to set up all Asterisk Phone Servers, then set up a SIP trunk between the Asterisk Phone Servers. I could do some pre-set up of the SIP trunks to speed it up a little, but it will still take a good amount of time to set up. The next thing that is going to take some time to set up would be the Mail server. Lastly, the easiest of all that will take some time to set up would be the K3s cluster. The only thing that would take longer than the Asterisk Phone Servers would be if I needed to build all the servers. I don’t know if that is even an option right now, but it would be best for all the on-site servers.

Now, will it work this way? I have no idea since I have never been part of something this big. To me, it makes sense, though. I could, and most likely see if ERPNext can be clustered across the buildings, but I doubt it. This means I need to redo my diagram regardless. Either way, I think it will be fun. Not because of the money. Because I’ll finally have an IT Guy work and play with servers and stuff.

I would like to think I’m good at what I do when it comes to the IT world. There are times when I have to wonder, though. Case in point, last night I started thinking about the scalability of ERPNext. Why? Well, it’s the software I had the idea to use for Enterprise Resource Planning for the shop I hope I’ll still be a part of. Like all the nights before, I had a little trouble sleeping, and so I started thinking about things. I’m not like other people who do their best thinking in the shower. For me, it’s on the toilet, while coding, or while having trouble sleeping. Anyway, I was thinking how truly scalable ERPNext would be with over 100 people accessing it?

The other thing I was thinking about is that the K3s cluster might need to be 5 or 7 nodes instead of 3. Why? Well, that would spread the load out more between the Web Server (containers) and the ERPNext (container) in the K3s cluster. It would also give more headroom for other things we might need that could be placed in the cluster, like Matrix Dendrite, Friendica, or Home Assistant, just to name a few things that could be added later.

The next thing I was thinking about is that the Domain Name Servers, the Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) Server, and the Asterisk Phone Server would need to be doubled up if there is more than one building location. The good thing is that one SIP trunk provider could work, but it would be necessary to get a different phone number for each building location again if there is more than one building location. Another good thing is that the Asterisk Phone Servers could connect to each other, so if one building location needs to talk to someone at the other building location, all they would need to know is the extension number. This is what someone like me does for part of the day. Even while watching TV or reading stuff on Facebook.

All I can really do is just hope that I still have the opportunity to be a part of something that will let me be an IT guy in some way.

You know, I would like to think my brother learns from his mistakes, but that does not seem to be the case. Call it wishful thinking or whatever you like, but it seems he always puts himself in a situation where he gets hurt somehow. What's worse is that I can’t really protect him all the time because I can only be in one place at a time. That means I have to hope that when he gets in a bad situation, he can get himself out until I can do something. The bad thing about that is that I’m in a bad situation myself, so I can’t really help him at all right now. All I can do right now is plan and hope the plan works, and if not, change it on the fly to keep the goal in mind and on track. That means that not only do I worry about how shit is going near me. I also worry about my brother and the other family members, whom I can’t see all the time, if at all.

Yes, that means not only do I worry about my mother, I also worry about my brother, my half-sister, and both of my half-brothers. I’m pretty sure that my half-sister most likely wants nothing to do with my brother or me, based on what she might have been told. I can’t really blame her, I mean, if I were told some rather questionable things, I might believe them until I find out the truth. As for my half-brothers, I’m pretty sure they are being told how evil their older brothers are on some level. Again, I can’t blame them for believing that. As for my brother, I can only hope that he will one day slow down when it comes to his woman. He doesn’t understand that he needs to really know someone before calling them a friend or more.

For those who want to know my situation well, that's easy: I’m a Full-Time Primary Family Caregiver to my mother. That means I keep track of a lot of shit. Being an IT Guy, I use servers and services to help with that. Right now, I have Home Assistant for reminders and automations. I have Grocy for Grocery inventory when I get a chance to use it. I have Joplin for note-taking. I have Firefly III for bookkeeping and budgeting. Last but not least, I have Tandoor to build out a cookbook. So all I need is to be recognized as a Full-Time Primary Family Caregiver by the three to five letter government agencies, so I can, at the very least, get some training on being a better Caregiver.

In the end, all I can do is hope it all works out.

Well, today I re-signed up for Extra Life. I figured it was past due. Plus, I missed streaming altogether. My problem is that I can’t stream as I have before. My PC just can’t handle streaming like I want, and I’m losing servers because I don’t have the money to keep them running. So right now I’m stuck with just streaming straight from my PlayStation 4. That means there will not be any alerts going off during my streams because there are no overlays to display them. Now, if I had, say, a Framework Desktop or a Framework laptop with a Graphics Module, then I might make the stream happen as I had before. The problem with that, though, is I don't have the money for a Framework Desktop or a Framework laptop with a Graphics Module, so I have to make do with what I have. The only thing I have going for me right now is my PlayStation 4 and having faster Internet with T-Mobile for a lower price.

Now that I’m streaming, I’ll attempt to do a schedule, but that is most likely easier said than done. I mean, after all, I’m a full-time primary family caregiver to my mother, so there will be days when I can’t stream at all. Right now, it’s more like I’ll stream when I can, then anything else. Either way, it gives me something to look forward to doing and gives me a distraction from being a full-time primary family caregiver to my mother. Plus, it’s for the kids since I’m a participant with Extra Life. In the end, it helps me deal with being a full-time primary family caregiver to my mother, and it helps kids in need when it comes to me streaming games I play.

Yesterday, my mother and I had our yearly Recertification of eligibility appointment for the Wetumka Housing Authority. What concerns me most is the possibility that the Executive Director (ED) performed an unannounced inspection of our unit while we were away at the office. This suspicion arose when I saw the ED driving toward our unit just as we parked at the office, after a previously scheduled inspection was missed about two weeks ago. When we returned, I noticed our storm door was cracked open wider than usual, and the closet door, which we had closed, was ajar. My mother suggested the wind or a memory lapse could explain it, but I remain doubtful because my primary worry is whether an inspection occurred without our knowledge.

Anyway, when my mother and I went back to our unit after the Recertification of eligibility appointment. That’s when I noted the doors were either being cracked open or wider. Now we had plans to go to the Tecumseh Housing Authority, but my mother had gotten an email from the United States Postal Service (USPS) about finally getting the Electric Bill. After the mail ran, we went to the Tecumseh Housing Authority, hoping that the waiting list was not too long. Well, I think it was about an hour or so to get there. After getting there, I did my usual of getting my mother's scooter out of the KIA. I looked around like I did before and saw how nice the units looks on the outside. I saw the office of the Tecumseh Housing Authority and noted how it services it’s purpose without the need to look flashy. As we entered the office of the Tecumseh Housing Authority, there was a man there whom I’m only going to guess is the ED of the Tecumseh Housing Authority.

We told the ED that we were here to drop off the application that we got on our last visit. My mother told the ED that she was not sure how much of the application needed to be filled out. The ED told my mother that it needed to be completely filled out and started to look at the application. The ED helped my mother complete the missing parts of the application. The ED even asked me about my income. I told the ED that my income is from apps, crypto mining, and stock dividends. I asked the ED if any of that counts as any kind of income to him. The ED told me no and not to worry about it. While the ED was helping my mother with the application, I noted a sign on the counter. It said something like “No cash or credit cards.” I asked the ED about it, and he said that No Housing Authority was to accept anything other than Checks or Money Orders. I told him that was odd since the Wetumka Housing Authority accepts Cash. That's when the ED gave me a funny look and told me they are not supposed to.

Well, as we got the application sorted, the ED made sure to let us know that it’s a year minimum on the waiting list before we left the office. Now, before we left, I took another look around and started to hope that it wouldn’t take that long. We made a stop at the Shawnee Walmart before making our way back to our unit. On the way back to our unit, I started to wonder what else is the Wetumka Housing Authority is doing that it’s not supposed to. Then I start thinking about all the things I had to do just to get the problems with the kitchen addressed. Then I started thinking about all the things the Wetumka Housing Authority ED started doing after the kitchen was addressed. I then started thinking about what I would have done differently from what the Wetumka Housing Authority ED had done, if, say, I were the ED of the Wetumka Housing Authority.

First, I would eliminate all forms of conflict of interest. That means for me, I would have the administrative assistants address any issues relating to my unit since I live in it. I would then not hire any family members for any position in the Housing Authority. On my first day, I would goto each unit except my own to meet the tenants and make notes of any issues they are having with their unit that have not been addressed. This, to me, would be my attempt to get to know the tenants on a personal level. This would also serve as a means of knowing the needs of the tenants, if they have any needs not being met that the Housing Authority could help with, like a ramp or rails needing to be installed. I would make every effort for this Housing Authority to feel welcoming to ALL tenants. I feel it could be done, but right now, the damage is done, and there is no point in fixing it now.

You know, there are times when I just wonder about things. Like when someone makes a post on Facebook about liking when they get their hair pulled. I mean, if you want people to do that sort of thing, that's fine, I guess, but maybe don’t ask for it on any level because you might not like your hair being pulled by some people. That's a lot like asking, “What are you going to do, arrest me?” It does the same thing, which is to invite people to find ways to have you arrested and not care about what such actions do to you. Take me, for instance, if I get arrested, my mother gets placed in a nursing home, wondering what the hell happened to me because no one will tell her anything. Now that is the best-case scenario. The worst-case scenario would be that she ends up dying because no one has even checked on her, and the Housing Authority just treats her like trash that needs to be dealt with.

Now, let’s say I do get arrested. Again, best-case scenario, I make it 24 hours before some inmate gets pissed at me and kills me in some form. Again, worst-case scenario, I get killed within 1 hour for the same reason. Either way, I’ll die for the simple fact that I would not bow down to any inmate. Maybe that’s why most women want men to go to jail? Then again, does it really matter? After all, most women have no problem using kids as weapons on some level against men. They don’t even see this as killing the men on an emotional or psychological level. In the end, it is what it is, and all we men can do is just deal with it the best way we can because women don’t care who gets hurt in the end.

I don’t know what it is with the women in today's world. It seems that they have no problem being married to one man while being in a relationship with another one. That’s not including bringing in what some would call side dudes when she has a wild hair up her ass. This makes ALL women look bad to most, if not all, men. What's worse is that the women in today's world have no problem with that either. That's why most men will not deal with women in today's world. After all, the women in today's world want to be seen as equals to men, but in turn, created a world where most men want nothing to do with them. Hell, the women in today's world don’t even have a problem losing their own family. Why? Well, my guess would be that everyone in their family is just slowing them down from finding the man with the most money.

What the women in today's world fail to understand when they do that is that the number of bridges they will have to burn for that goal will be high. They also fail to understand that once those bridges are burned, it’s next to impossible to build them again. Hell, they even fail to understand that even if the bridges are rebuilt, the people they burned will not look at them that same way again. That includes the people who would have protected them at all costs. What’s even worse is if there are kids involved in all of this, they will most likely get hurt in some way. Plus, finding a man who has the most money means the women in today's world will need to be willing to do just about anything for that man, which includes porn if that man demands it. If the women in today's world fail to do that, then they have to start over with their search from nothing, since they most likely have nothing to begin with. Then again, this world is part of the “ME TOO” side of things, so they have that to work with. That means the only way the women in today's world can get back with their family is to tell them that they were either abused or raped, and their family will most likely believe them, no matter if it’s true or not.

In the end, it is what it is and we men just have to deal with it.

You know if you want to see proof that Wetumka, Oklahoma, is falling apart, then just go to the Dairy Queen and see if the notice of their Tax License/Permit being revoked is still on their window. If it is, then that proves my point in a way. I say in a way because the owner of the Dairy Queen is in jail for his questionable actions toward kids while he was a teacher and a coach. This makes me wonder where has the money gone for the taxes of Dairy Queen since it has been running all this time, while the owner has been in jail? To my knowledge, the wife of the owner has been running the Dairy Queen, but I cannot say whether it is true or not. Like I said, though, this is proof that Wetumka, Oklahoma, as a whole will not be here in the next five to ten years. This will just be another ghost town that only exists in the minds of the people who have lived here at one point or another. It also sheds light on a problem that has been around for a while now.

Now my mother used to like it here. It used to be a cool place to live. People used to be nice here. Over time, though, it started to show its true colors. The questionable Government started going after the people for whatever reason. Hell, it even stopped hiding its action once a power-tripping mayor got into power. It was not until enough people started taking action to have the mayor replaced. Some thought that was the end of having a power-tripping mayor, but it seems that we only replaced him with another power-tripping mayor.

In the end, it is what it is, and only time will tell when it will all end. In the next couple of days, my mother and I will be going to Tecumseh Housing Authority and attempt to start the process of getting a unit there, and maybe look around while we are there. After all, it is time to abandon ship when it comes to Wetumka, Oklahoma.

Well, today is my birthday. Most people would be happy on their birthday, but not me. Why? Well, that’s because on this day I buried two people. Once on my 15th birthday and once on my 25th birthday. They both happened at 2 PM. They were both my grandfathers. One died of lung cancer, and one died of throat cancer. This year, it doesn’t hurt as much. Maybe one day it will not hurt at all, but I think that is still a long time coming.

Other than it being my birthday, it’s a fairly normal day. My mother had plans to go to Walmart today for a couple of things. This, of course, made it when I had to put off calling the Tecumseh Housing Authority as I planned. Not a big deal other than making it take longer to get info about transferring from the Wetumka Housing Authority to the Tecumseh Housing Authority. There was one thing I noticed, which is how quiet it is here in Wetumka, Oklahoma. Anyway, my mother and I went to the Holdenville Walmart, got a couple of things, and made our way back home.

After being home for some time, my mother had noted a post on Facebook about water rates going up. Now, mind you, my mother and I don’t pay for water at the unit, but from what I see of the new rate, that might change. Why? Well, the proposed rate increase will be 50%. That means the municipality of Wetumka wants to charge people 50% more for water that is known to cause cancer. Why? Well, I guess that the municipality of Wetumka is so broke that they would much rather charge the people even more for questionable water that could kill the very people drinking it than anything else. I doubt they even looked into anyother means of securing funds. This just proves my point when it comes to the municipality of Wetumka and the mayor who’s supposed to represent the people of Wetumka. I give it another 5 to 10 years before the municipality of Wetumka ceases to exist due to the actions they have taken against the people of Wetumka.

In the end, it is what it is, and all we can do is ride it out and see what happens.