Social Media and the Solitary Traveler

So, lately I've been doing something I don't get to do very much: taking a bit of time "off" when I am traveling for work.  Now, I don't blog about work (here) but every once in a while, I have to stretch that rule a little bit so I can talk about my life.  This is one of those times.

When I travel for work, I almost never get a "weekend" away.  I am using the term "weekend" loosely here.

You see, when I travel for work, I often have to leave on a Sunday, and sometimes a Saturday, in order to be able to participate in whatever event I'm attending.  For example, if I have to give a presentation on Monday morning in Europe, I have to leave on a Saturday, which puts me in Europe on Sunday.  This current trip, I needed to attend the start of the conference on Sunday, which meant I had to leave on Friday.  And, I had been at a conference in the US all week before I went to Sweden, so I had flown to that conference on the previous Sunday.

If you don't follow all that, the point is this: a standard "weekend" where the Saturday and Sunday make up two continuous non-work days -- this just doesn't happen much when I am traveling.

If you saw a few Stockholm photos from me, they were taken during a few hours when I did not have to attend the conference, but I was definitely working most of those days.  And mostly, I was taking the photos while walking around with a colleague.  (Hi, Tim!)

Anyway, as it happens, I left the conference in Sweden in order to fly to London for another work event in the middle of the week.  And, as schedules would have it, while I was due in Budapest the following Sunday, I didn't have to rush immediately from the hotel in London to the airport.  I had a couple of days in which I was not required to be working.

So, I could have made other choices:

1. Spend the time in my hotel room, doing work.  There's plenty to do.  But there is always plenty to do.  I could work through pretty much every weekend at home, too -- you know, those Saturday/Sunday combinations.  But generally speaking, I don't.  It's part of how I balance my work and my life.
2. Fly back to the US for however much time I'd have, and then fly back to Budapest.  I think, had I done this, I might have had something like 16 hours at home.  But I would have spent another 48 hours in aiports and airplanes.  And it would have cost more than staying in a hotel.  Sure, someone else is picking up the monetary cost, but I'm the one on the plane.  And I can tell you, after all that time in the air and airports, those 16 hours would have seen me one brain-dead individual.
   
   So, I chose option 3.

3. Spend a "weekend" in London.  Put away my computer (except to write personal blogs in the evening [and answer critical work e-mails; and try to make reservations for my next trip {See?  There is always work to do.}]) and push myself to enjoy the time here.

Now, while option 3 seems reasonable, there is a problem.

I don't go out alone.

It's not a phobia or anything.  It's just a personality trait.  When I am alone, I just tend to prefer to stay alone.  I huddle up with books, games, music, a comfortable place to sit, movies, TV shows, snacks -- and I just sit relax, and enjoy myself.

This works out fine in Rochester.  In fact, let's be honest, it works most anywhere I normally travel in the US, given that I typically only have a couple of "free" hours anywhere.

But here I was in London!  I mean, wow, there are a lot of things to see within an hour of the Hilton Metropole in London.

If I had been here with Sherry, we'd have been out all day, every day, every hour I was not required to be working.  Because she's like that.  And when I'm with her, it rubs off on me.  So, when I took the work trip to Australia and New Zealand, and she joined me, we saw things!

But here I was, alone in London.  What would I do?

First of all, I got a great start because on the first uncommitted day, I didn't have to be alone.  A work colleague who lives near Winchester offered to show me around, and specifically to take me to Stonehenge, which is within an hour of the Winchester train station.  So I rode a train to Winchester, she picked me up, and we saw Stonehenge!  We also saw Winchester cathedral, walked around the lovely old town, had a drink in a pub, and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.  Now, we did end up talking about work for a while, and it was a good conversation to have.  But really, the day was basically a "weekend day."  (Thanks, Therese!)

However, I still had some time on my own.  I had part of one day without work, and one more full day of non-work, if I wanted it -- and I wanted it.

So, how to push myself to see as much as I could, when my normal state of mind would draw me back to a quiet room in the hotel?

I decided I needed to get social.

Despite the fact that it would use data from the cell phone plan, I figured if I posted photos and comments as I went along, it wouldn't feel so much like I was alone.  See, one of the best things about traveling around (for me, anyway) is often the experience of sharing what you see, hear and learn with others.  Most often, for me, that's Sherry.  But I've also had a good time sightseeing with people I know from work.  It's a great way to form friendships, and it's how I saw most of what I saw the other two times I was in London.  (I saw "Wicked" in London, taking the chance to introduce two of my co-workers to what is probably my favorite musical theater experience.)

But this time, I didn't have any traveling companions.  So I used facebook (and blogger, but I only did the latter in the evening, so it was not the same.)

When I'd see something, I would post a good photo, or a status message (usually both) to facebook.  And I could hope some of my friends would see it and react, so I could feel like I was sharing the experience with someone.

Did it work?

Did it ever!

When I started looking at fb, after posting the photo Therese took of me at Stonehenge, I saw that lots of people were paying attention, and sharing things with me.  Mostly, it was "likes" -- and that's what I was hoping for - a few people noticing and being glad for me.  But there wer more than a few, and then there were several people who left comments!

It was all beyond my expectations.

And it made me feel like my travels would not be so much "alone" as I had thought.  So, after my day with Therese, it was much easier to go out into London with a plan to share other stops along the way.



The Tower of London, with the Poppies exhibit.  The Tower Bridge (which is so striking in sunlight,) the walk along the Thames to the Parliament building and Big Ben, the visit to the Victoria and Albert Museum (you can take pictures in there!  Almost everywhere!) and then the performance of "Billy Elliott."  I made all of these "social" events by putting them on facebook and interacting with family and friends back home. 

It was a full day, and it was made more full by sharing it.

I want to thank every single one of you who participated by responding in some way to the facebook posts, or to this blog.  It means something to me -- something real.

So, as a reward for sticking around for this long post, here are a few more photos, and some information about Stonehenge.

Royal Albert Hall

Kensington Garden - and another Panoramic photo. 

St. Paul's Cathedral

And I walked as high as they would let me - the views!

Oh, and Stonehenge?

It was not built by druids.  That theory was proposed by one of the famous people who studied it -- John Aubrey -- who had no true concept of how long the structures had been around, so his attribution of a druidic origin, while widespread in "common knowledge," has been shown to be false.  Stonehenge predates druids by thousands of years, as far as science knows.

That doesn't make the references from "This is Spinal Tap" any less funny.  More, perhaps.

And while some of the stones were, in fact, transported for miles overground (the sarcens, which are taller stones -- the vertical ones we typically see -- came from about 19 miles away from the site) the bluestones are the ones from Wales, and they almost certainly were taken to the site primarily over water.  Again, this does not make Eddie Izzard's bit any less funny; just not quite as accurate.

I think it's important not to get our science from non-scientists.  It's kinda a thing with me.

So, there it is.  I have spent a few more hours, now, making this "weekend" a "social" event by composing this blog entry.  Again, thanks to everyone who has participated in my travels.

Because tomorrow is Sunday, and while it might be a weekend for you, I am traveling to Budapest, and working.

Weekend Over.  G'Night!

91 of 365

Because sometimes numbers help us see things, and because Leah said I would really want to remember these numbers:

In 2013, I was away from Rochester quite a bit for work.  I don't blog about work here, but for the record:

• 91 - that's the number of days I spent away from Rochester on work trips in 2013.  That's pretty much exactly a quarter of the year
• 71 - the number of those days which were weekdays, meaning, of course ...
• 20 - of the days work kept me from Rochester were weekend days.  Fortunately I did spend a few of them seeing things in Australia, New Zealand and China.
• 150 - When we add in all the other reasons I was out of the office (vacation, holidays and so on) I only spent 150 days in my Rochester office in 2013.
• 42.5 - This means, of all the weekdays in 2013, I was "out" 42.5% of the time

No wonder I felt like I was traveling all the time!

Dealing with my Split (Social) Personality

As I have written many times, I don't blog about work. (Here.)

But today I have a topic which touches a bit on my work life, so the wall between the two aspects of my life in social media will crumble a bit.  And that, as it turns out, is the point.

Which of these people am I?

 

OR

The guy on the left is a leader in part of the technology industry, but to read this blog, you'd never really know that. That's how I intended it. From the beginning, Snippets and Wisps was meant to be a place where I could write about the parts of my life which are not related to my job.

The guy on the right is a gamer, a sci-fi fan, a lover of Great Courses and movies.  And of course, the guy on the right is also this guy:

(I enjoy finding an opportunity to put a photo of my beautiful wife in this blog.)

Well, obviously, I am both of these people.  For various reasons, I have kept them separate when it comes to social media.  This blog and my Facebook account have been devoted to my personal life.  Meanwhile, the blog I write for work never talks about the movies I like, games I play, etc.  And rather than using Facebook, I use LinkedIn as the "social" means to connect with people for business purposes.

Then there is Twitter.  When I started using Twitter, I created @Steve_Will and decided to let that be the "non-work" me -- that's the Twitter ID I use to advertise Snippets and Wisps, and the ID I use to follow celebrities and a few friends.  (Very few of my friends use Twitter, as it turns out.  [Welcome to the Twitterverse, @MichaelHacker58.]) I use a different ID for information I want to share about technology/work topics.  As social media has grown, it's been harder to keep that separation, but I've done it pretty well so far. 

Well, the wall I've built over the past several years between these two parts of my social life is showing signs of cracking.  I am receiving more and more Facebook "friend" requests from people who only know "of" me.  They have heard of me through work, and they might even be friends of people who are Facebook friends of mine, but they are not friends of mine.  To this point, I generally just leave their requests alone.  And perhaps I will continue to do that.  And my personal Twitter account has many followers who are clearly finding me because of my job, so I just let them know that they should probably be following the other ID.  But I've begun to feel a bit constrained by this.  If someone is following me expecting news about the operating system I represent, what will they think getting directed here, to this blog?  Do they really want to know what music or Great Course I am listening to?  Worse, if I express a political or religious view, will people get angry or upset with my company or our products?  These give me some pause.  And the situation is about to compound on itself, I think.

Soon, my work organization will be using Facebook for a "Big Thing." I am heavily involved in that "Big Thing" and I am personally very passionate about it.  I am pretty sure this particular business use of Facebook will cause my Facebook presence to become even more visible to customers, business partners and so on.

So I am reevaluating my social presence.  Professionally, I need to be active in social media, and I cannot have the things I do for personal expression negatively affect that part of my job.  At the same time, I really enjoy blogging here, and while Facebook does have its issues, I definitely like it for keeping in touch with most of my family and most of my good friends.

If any of my readers have some experience keeping personal and professional life separate in this age of social media, I would be happy to hear your stories and advice.

But I have to admit, no matter how well I am able to manage these two sides of my social networking life, I am always going to envy how this guy does it.

.

Nathan Fillion is amazing. I'm just sayin'.

NaBloPoMo No

I suspect that no one has noticed but ....

NaBloPoMo -- National Blog Posting Month -- is November.

I participated in writing daily blog postings each day in November in 2009 and 2010.

But not this year.

Three basic reasons:

1. I have been busier this year than in previous Novembers, largely because of work.  (But I don't blog about work, at least not here in Snippets & Wisps.)  This has left me precious little time for relaxation and creativity.  Despite what it might sometimes appear, this blog does take both time and creativity. {Self-Deprecating Compliment Fishing Alert!}
2. My creative efforts this fall have been devoted to other things, most notably a Dungeons & Dragons quest-based campaign I've been writing and running and using my cool tablet to draw maps for.  {Sentence-Ending Preposition Alert!}
3. I truly like to blog with positivity.  There has been some less-than-positive mind-mud clogging up my creative gears of late.  When I sit down to blog, I get all serious.  Serious is not inherently bad -- some of my best Advice and Small Sermon writing is serious -- but when clogged with negaslimeocity, my "serious" comes out negative.  {Invented Word Alert!}  So rather than write negative, I choose not to write.

I ought to point out that there is one reason which is categorically not the reason I am skipping NaBloPoMo this year.

That non-reason?

• It's for girls.

Just setting the record straight.

When Cometh Normal?

I was recently asked to describe a normal week in my life. I was stumped.  It's past mid-October.  And I still have not had a "normal" week this fall.

A "normal" week, during the school year, is certainly different than it once was.  After all, Sherry's up in St. Paul, so it's hard to think of that as "normal."  But go with me here.

Criterion #1: A "normal" week should have me in Rochester, all week.

Since the beginning of the school year, I don't think that has happened yet.  If it has, I don't remember it.


One week, I didn't travel for work, but I spent the weekend at the apartment in St. Paul.  Is that normal?  It was relaxing, that's for sure.  (There is no lawn to mow at the apartment. Big plus!  But not normal.)

Next week, I think I will be in Rochester all week.  But while being in Rochester is necessary for a week to feel normal, it's not sufficient.  You see, one or two of my evenings will be tied up with work commitments, so I will not have to get dinner for myself.  So that's not normal either.

Criterion 2: A "normal" week includes meals I have to plan for, shop for, and prepare.  That almost happened this week -- I can count the D&D group feeding me as "normal" now, since I plan for that meal, even if I don't prepare it.  It occurs regularly enough.  But, I will be eating dinner outside of Rochester Thursday through Sunday, because we get to fly to NYC to see Leah perform.  Which is wonderful!  It's just not "normal." 

Criterion 3: A "normal" week has a five-day work week, Monday through Friday. 

I'm thinking I will not get a "normal" week until sometime in January.

And so, if "normal" is that rare, it can't be "normal" can it?

I just have to face it.  I don't do "normal."

Well, normally, I don't.

To study the abnormal is the best way of understanding the normal.

William James 

Fontainebleau

I just got to stay in the nicest hotel room I've ever had. I posted this photo to facebook shortly after I arrived.

It was at the Fontainebleau in Miami Beach Florida. What a hotel! It had a club in it which, rumor has it, has a $100 cover charge. It had views like this from the balconies (yes there were two) in the room.

And like this, looking out over the pool from the valet parking area.

But I am not used to living in a place that has so many amenities. It took me more than a day to realize that there were no ice machines on my floor, because, yes, the full-sized refrigerator has an ice maker! (Duh! I had even heard it working, but didn't connect the dots.)

And then, well, I can hardly be faulted for the other silly "mistake" I made. You see, in this huge room, there were many doors. For example, the door to the walk-in closet.

And the door to the huge bathroom. (Make that master bathroom. There were two bathrooms.)  So, as I said, there were lots of doors. But on the last day I decided to open a couple of them. And here is what I found behind one of the doors.

Yes, that's right. A washer and a dryer. I had "washed" two pieces of clothing on my first night by running them under the water in the bath/jacuzzi and putting them out to dry in that bathroom.
Seriously? A washer and dryer?

I have traveled quite a bit for work, but this was remarkable.  (Hence, I am remarking on it.)

If only Sherry had been there.  She could have lounged around that pool, then gone out into the ocean.  I'm told by those who dipped their feet in that the water was warm.

Nothing to See Here - Almost

I'm writing my other blog today. But I won't talk about that. Here at Snippets & Wisps, I don't blog about work.

So, just one quick note.

If you didn't "get" yesterday's snippet, just realize that it was preceded by last week's snippet. And then understand that I am attempting a serial. [And further realize that I am winging it...]

That's all. Move along. Tomorrow, another Favorite Foto Friday. [Clowns! You gotta see it.]

Responsibility

Yesterday Leah got a call at 6:20 AM. She was not scheduled to work until later in the afternoon, but the person who was supposed to open the store at 10:00 AM needed someone to open and stick around until that colleague could arrive. Leah said she would help out.

Then the colleague was not able to show up. At all.

So my daughter worked from open to close, 10:00 AM to 9:00 PM, by herself. (OK, maybe she's more Sherry's daughter in this, but I like to think I had some influence.)

This, just 12 days after starting her job. Her first-ever employment by a business.

She was tired when she returned home. But she had done it. No whining. Just got the job done.

Way to go, Leah.



(And yes, I know Adam, Lucas and Sarah put in full days of work yesterday, too. I just wasn't blogging back when they did it the first time.... {That's my excuse and I'm sticking to it. It has nothing to do with Leah being the youngest. [OK, it might; but it's a good story, nonetheless.]})

It's What I Do, not Who I Am.

Time for a bit of navel-gazing. Introspection, in blog form. Don't like it? Wait a day. Or follow this link. I'll talk games or movies or something tomorrow.

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I don't blog about work. It's been a rule since I started this blog. Why? Well, there was a blog entry which explains some of the reasons.

There is a deeper aspect, though. And it came up during a sermon recently [though I won't be discussing faith today.] The pastor asked us to picture in our minds meeting someone new. What's the first thing that happens, after you exchange names? Someone asks:

"So, what do you do?"

It's natural. There's nothing wrong with it. People's jobs affect their lives deeply, and it provides a substantial source of the material we can discuss with one another. When someone asks me, I tell them, and I might answer a few shallow questions about it. But then I'm done.

In typical social situations, I would prefer to get to know someone, and to have them get to know me, at an extra-professional level. It's true that "who I am" had something to do with how I came to be employed at "what I do," but "who I am" is considerably different from "what I do."

So, in this blog, I write about the other parts of my life. And generally speaking, on Facebook I do the same. Oh, the lines blur a bit on Facebook because several of my Facebook friends are connected to me through my job. And I got into Twitter in the first place because of work, so I will often use it while on business trips. (Though I honestly wonder if it's very useful...) In general, though, I'd prefer to leave work at work, and let my blogging mind focus on the many other things that make my life worth living.

As I mentioned more than a year ago, that's also one of the reasons this blog touches on so many topics. Though I get more discussion from blog entries about politics than about games or movies or faith, (especially since I started publishing the blog as Facebook notes) my politics is not a large enough part of my personality to make it a focus of the blog. An recurring topic: yes. A focus: no.

If you know about my work, you know a piece of me, but just a piece.

And you are like that too!

If I know you from work, I only know a part of you. When I encounter you outside of work, I want to know other things about you. I want to ask "What are your Stilts?" (And if you get that reference, you've been reading my blog for a long, long time. Or I've talked to you about my views on work/life balance. {Or you followed the link.})

So, since this blog was created to give me a reason to write, and a venue in which to communicate my thoughts to those who care to read it, I will continue to use it for those two purposes. And, because those who work with me have plenty of opportunity to know the "work side" of me, I don't write about work, here.

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That's enough of that. Tomorrow, back to the normal seemingly random topic of the day.

25 years

As we all know, I don't blog about work. [Here at Snippets & Wisps.]

But today I have to skate along the edge of that self-imposed rule. Why?

Today marks my 25th anniversary working at IBM.

Twenty-five years? Really? Already?

Oh sure, there are things I've done for 25 years or more. I've been married for over 27 years. I've been a father for over 25 years. Daredevil, Thor, the X-Men and I have been friends for longer than that. I've been a Viking fan for my whole life.

But working at one place for 25 years? Do people do that any more? Well, I have.

This weekend, IBM is treating me and my family to a nice dinner. I get to select a cool "Quarter-Century" gift for myself. And now it's pretty clear that, no matter how I may feel, I'm one of the "old guys."

How do we each spend the time we have? Well, most of us spend a good percentage of our lives at a job. In return, our job exchanges our time for the money we use to support our families, habits and entertainments. If we're fortunate, the jobs also provide some level of fulfillment, satisfaction, and opportunity for personal growth. Additionally, we encounter people who become our acquaintances, colleagues, and friends -- and sometimes foes, though we hope not many of those show up. Some of my best friends come from working here, and I've certainly been challenged enough to keep growing and contributing. All-in-all, this job has been a good basis for a career. And, though I would not have pictured it in 1985, there is plenty left to accomplish after 25 years.

So today, I will pause and be thankful for the opportunity to have this job for the prior twenty-five years, and hopefully for many more.

In Japan – I talk too fast

(I know, I don’t blog about work. And this comes dangerously close to crossing the line, [OK, so maybe, technically, it crosses the line.] but bear with me – it won’t sound like it’s work related.)

I spoke at a conference in Japan while I was there, and it was the first time I had ever experienced simultaneous translation [Or is it interpretation? I think it is. Marisa has explained it before.] There was a team of three interpreters sitting in a closed room at the back of the auditorium, trying very hard to keep up with me as I spoke on technical topics. Now, realize first that I got the opportunity to give the same presentation twice, and even the first time, I knew I was supposed to talk slowly. I tried. And I tried positioning myself quite a ways away from my laptop so when I moved from one chart to the next, I had to take a short break to walk back and advance the slide – this was to give the interpreters a chance to catch up.

Well, after the first session, two of my interpreters told me I should slow down. I didn’t see the third – and I’m glad. I don’t know how I could have handled 3 for 3. Anyway, for the second session, I … slowed … down.

And when I finished, one of my Japanese hosts (not an interpreter) said to me “You seemed tired up there.”

Well, thanks a bunch!

It turns out, if you’ve ever heard me speak, that I talk pretty fast. And, in particular, when I’m excited, or trying to express passion, I talk fast. It’s sort of a Harold Hill thing. I can bring you along with me, following my lure as I draw you closer, if you understand what I am saying!

So, before I do this again, I have to work on a slower, intense, energetic delivery.

Isn’t it nice to know there’s always something you can improve?

[Nah. I’d rather be perfect. At everything. Can we arrange that?]

The "Real" Blog

I know I don't blog about work, [here] but since I mentioned a while back that I was about to have a "Real" blog, I thought I'd give you a pointer to it, just in case you care.

And now, it's for Real. (Really?)

As I indicated recently, I've been blogging for a long time. But, as I've pointed out repeatedly, I don't blog about work.

Well, that's about to change. (Sort of.)

A colleague and I are starting a blog, related to our work. And that means that I'm about to start blogging about work-related things. [But not here. I still won't blog about work -- here.]

This means that I will have the job of coming up with well-written articles on a regular basis. Somehow, the idea is daunting. Yet, I come up with things to say here at Snippets & Wisps multiple times a week, and it doesn't weigh on me. (Mostly.)

It's funny, because when I started thinking about why the new blog is different, I described it internally as being a "Real" blog. [Hence the title to this entry.] Why is that funny? Because I think of this blog as being about the things in my Real Life. The new blog will be from my Work Life. Yet, I mentally put the word "Real" in the description of the new blog.

Though I try hard to keep them separate [and I've written about this in a blog entry I haven't scheduled to be posted yet] my Work Life and my Real Life are both Real parts of my life.

What's interesting to me is how my mind immediately assigned "Real" to the new blog, as if that somehow made it more ... what? ... important? imposing? difficult?

I think it was just an underlying flight response to a new situation. I like writing. I like expressing myself coherently. At my core, I like teaching people things. Once I figure out how to plan for the new blog, once I've decided on my first few topics, and met my first couple of deadlines, the word "Real" will remain, but it will carry less stress.

Recently, I've been listening to a Great Course about Consciousness. In light of that, I need to be more aware of how I use the term "Real." "You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means." OK, Inigo was talking about a different word. But the point is the same. I should examine what I really meant by thinking the new blog is "Real" and then substitute the right word. Then I can effectively deal with my reaction.

Words; they can confuse, obfuscate, and enlighten.

Have a good weekend, everyone. And I mean that. Really. Every word.

A Magic-al Time is Coming

Each vacation I have is exciting, in its way. My work is mentally challenging (does that mean I'm mentally challenged?) so when I get away, I really like to get away. That doesn't mean I need to leave town, as is evidenced by some of my favorite family vacations which were "staycations" before anyone even coined that phrase.

Still, removing myself from the familiar Rochester surroundings is a good way to trigger my brain to think of other things, and I'm about to embark on a retreat of sorts. I'll be heading to visit Paul, six hours away, for a few days in far northeastern Wisconsin. When some people hear me say that, they assume we'll be enjoying the great outdoors. That's a natural conclusion -- the area is very beautiful. Sherry and I saw many nice areas when we visited Paul in 2006.

But that's not the itinerary this time.



This time, it's Magic.

Though I initially was not impressed with the Conflux set, the Alara Reborn set reignited my interest. This was very good, considering my imminent trip to Paul's, and my desire to have fresh Magic decks to play. (Alara Reborn and deck building, did give me a greater appreciation for Conflux, though I still think that the set does not stand on its own as well as it should, and as well as most other sets do.)

Consequently, I have some new decks to play, and we will be spending a significant amount of time in Paul's three-season porch. He has a very nice setup there, with a great environment for calm, strategic thinking. We will play Magic, chat, play Magic, eat, play Magic, play Eurorails, and play some more Magic.

This sort of vacation is not for everyone. There is no camping, there is no large expenditure of money, there is no seeing of major sites. But there is a chance to play, to put my mind into solving fun tactical problems, to chat with a good friend. Earlier, I used the word "retreat" and I guess that's a pretty good word for it. The word conjures up images of seclusion and meditation. Well, Peshtigo is pretty isolated in itself, and certainly the porch at Paul's provides a further level of isolation. I won't be "meditating" in the traditional sense, but I can tell you that, to my brain, hours of playing a strategy game can be extremely relaxing and mind-clearing.

I don't really look at vacations as being "productive." But they are useful in the sense that a good vacation removes stress and helps recharge my internal energy for other parts of my "real life." It's why I can't quite understand people who insist that every vacation be filled with constructive endeavors, or with expensive trips. These types of vacations have their place in my life, but they cannot be the only vacations I have. Even more incomprehensible are people who don't take their vacations. I'll never give up vacation -- I need them too much.

And I need one now. I'll be away for a bit, recharging myself, enjoying a friend.

And playing Magic.

Where is my cave?

We have had a stretch of weeks with lots of people around, and being around lots of people. And it hasn't been limited to "real" life -- work has been the same way. [But I don't blog about work. {Not here, anyway. I might start somewhere else...}] The "real life" stuff has been great fun! Still, I'm a bit over-stimulated with it, I think. My small talk meter is nearly on empty. I'm not sure I can squeeze much more out.

Anyway, tonight Leah graduates, so we'll be in a large crowd of folks. Tomorrow, we have at least one grad party to attend.

After that, I'm looking for my cave. I need some hermit time. Alone with my thoughts. Sequestered.

So, for the weekend, a little "cave" time would be good. [Sherry can share my cave -- I don't need to be completely isolated.] Then, in less that two weeks, I'll get some "cave" time with Paul. That should be enough.

I need to recharge before Sarah's wedding! I'm looking forward to that so much. I want to be at the top of my game, ready to chat and enjoy the people.

Barcelona - Candied Fruit

Once upon a time, I was able to take a trip to Barcelona, Spain. [It was for work. But I don't blog about work.]

I took a bunch of photos [because that's what I do] and I have a few good ones of the cathedrals, the hotel, the sea -- but probably the best photo I have from that trip is this one of candied fruit. [It's too bad I didn't make a point to take a photo of the shaved ham. It was delicious!]

Yawn

Woke up at 5:00 AM. After sleeping fitfully -- which always happens when I know I have to catch an early flight.

O'Hare had a long delay. What a shock!

Now, here in Reno, ready for a weekend of work.

Still, I have a corner room, on the eleventh floor, looking out on mountains. So there's that!

If you don't hear from me for a few days, I'm working. And, as we all know by now, I don't blog about work.

Plus, they charge me $13/day for internet access.

But I just bought an iPod Touch -- how can I resist blogging and twittering on that?!?

I ask you!

Now That's Snow

Monday night into Tuesday we got about 6 inches of snow. Thus it was my job, as MotH (Man of the House) to get up early, cast the proper incantations to get the snowblower working [really; it's magical; it only starts for me], and clear the driveway and sidewalk.

Does that sound like a chore?

[It will be, young Skywalker, it will be. Come January, it will always feel like a chore....]

But not yet. This first snow was light and fluffy. The wind was also light (but not fluffy [well, until I blew snow into it; then the wind was fluffy, too, I guess.]) The morning was in the 'teens above. I listened to Christmas music during the process. It was pretty nice. All in all, it was a fine experience. Refreshing. And productive.

(Not at all like work. [But I don't blog about work.])

Then, after a shower, I headed out to my car to find that ...

The snowplow was in my cul-de-sac and had just created the notorious 18-inch ridge of snow at the end of my driveway!

I just blasted my little Elantra through it and went to work. I was not about to allow a silly plow to ruin my satisfaction over a job well done.

Gotta love winter!

['Cuz if you don't, and you live in Minnesota, you'll go crazy. Or to Arizona. Whichever is worse.]

I Feel Like I Should Be Doing Something

This is how vacations always seem to start.

I sit at home, knowing I should just relax, but feeling like I should be doing something.

And, sure I have some fun things I want to do on this vacation.

• Open the two boxes of Magic cards from the most recent sets. That might even get me in the mood to
• Build some new decks so I'm ready for Christmas game playing with Paul and Mike and Pete who deserve for me to
  
• Write e-mails confirming plans for the holidays, which will likely include trying World of Warcraft, which means I need to
• Download WoW. Maybe play it some.
  
• I also want to learn how to use my new Blackberry.
  

Then, of course, I have cooking and cleaning and caring for Sherry -- including getting the Thanksgiving meal ready, I think -- which sounds like work, but really, it'll be a nice change of pace, compared to being at work.

So, that's what I need to start thinking about. Maybe then I won't feel like I'm supposed to be checking e-mail and getting ready for meetings and all that other stuff I can't mention since I don't blog about work.

This is why vacations need to be a good long duration. One week will be nice, but at Christmas, two weeks will be glorious.

Boy, now that I think about it, I really hope I get in the mood for Magic again. I miss the fun. It's been a good long time since I was truly into it. That itch was scratched quite well last winter, and I got some more enjoyment this summer when we saw Paul, but I haven't had a sustained designing and building session in almost a year!

There -- now I feel like I should be doing something, but it's the right kind of thing!

Let the vacation begin!

Blackberry

Last night I became a Blackberry owner.

I know. I'm shocked too.

"Why would this shock me?" you might ask. "Don't you love tech toys?"

This is a good question, with a good point.

Here's the thing: in my experience, a Blackberry is used by people to stay in touch with work when they are not at work.

This, dear readers, does not fit the way I have lived my life to this point. To this point, when I leave work, it doesn't follow me home. [This, of course, is a general rule. I am a professional, so it's not possible for the rule to apply 100% of the time, but I've really been pretty good at keeping it.]

Now, I don't blog about work, but I will say that, over the last year, more and more work has followed me home. So, a Blackberry scares me. What if work finds it easier to follow me when I have this little device? Might I not get sucked in? Connected by a wireless umbilical? Chained by constant access to the never-ending e-mail stream?

Yes, it's a danger.

But! It has a browser! And, oh you don't know me very well if you don't know how much I will like having imdb at my fingertips.

Why, I might even start using Twitter again (as if anyone really cares to follow my daily life!)

Blog from my phone? Well, I'd have to get much better at that two-letters-per-button keypad, but it could happen.

I wish I had time to get it connected to my work calendar, at least. I can't tell you how many times I've wished I had a combined work/home calendar I could carry around with me. When I finally get a free day at work, I'll be trying to figure that out.

So, here I am. I've made another transition. I can now surf, text and IM from my phone. I can take a picture, or even capture video. I'm one of those people. I've been assimilated. And I don't even know how to use the thing yet, so I'm one of the least of the pod people.

God help me.

But it's so freaking cool!