The Man, The Myth, The Legend…
I’ve been reinvigorated by my visit to Educause 2008. I’ve seen a few presentations that have given me some hope that I can continue to improve things within my current position, while adding value to my organization.
All in all, I expect the dividends of FIU’s investment of my time here to py off handsomely.
In life, we make choices - some of those choices open doors, some of those choices, unbeknownst to the decider in each of us, close doors. And some of those choices are made for us, with doors opening before our eyes, or being slammed on our feet.
I find that I much prefer the former - opening doors or having doors opened, to the latter - especially the last - having doors slammed on my feet. And while I feel like I’ve had a good life, and have made some good decisions, recently a couple doors feel like they’ve definitely slammed on my feet. Not only that, but that the doors have been repeatedly slammed even though the person doing the slamming knows my foot is there.
From now on, in my life, rather than take the passive approach - doors operating on their own - I will try to make certain that I am the one making the decisions about which doors will open or close for me.
Slowly, up the path behind
I walk with fingers entwined
Together, gently caressing.
What I hope will be a
Future full of firsts,
You turn and it is.
First, I want to thank all of those well-wishers from Facebook for the birthday greetings. If you haven’t yet heard from me personally, you will.
Second, I want to thank Tracy for an awesome evening out last night at The Melting Pot. I’d never been; but, if you ever get the chance do not pass it up. Be ready to be stuffed for what will feel like forever, but do be careful about the wine you order - ours was a bit pricey.
Finally, I had a wonderful day, starting with breakfast with my mom and sister, and with my in-laws, and the kids. Then I got to spend the day with Tracy bumming around in the rain over on Miracle Mile. We had a great time.
All in all, a great day was had. Tomorrow should be fun, too.
I got a chance this morning to hang with my kids. It was cool watching them spin the cube at FIU.
I wish I could do this more often.
I have some awesome friends, the best being my wife, Tracy. Jen, Liam, Richard, Jim, and others too numerous to name, don’t think for a second you aren’t included in this too. So why have I been stuck on revisiting my past?
Maybe (probably, even) it’s the fact that it has been 20 years since I graduated high school. So, in that vain, I have been going back and trying to find friends who I would liked to have kept in touch with, but didn’t.
Most of these people readily responded, and we’ve struck up email conversations that have poven fruitful in finding out how people have gotten along in the 20 years since school. Some, though, haven’t, and that’s where I’m stuck. And I know that some of these people don’t know me anymore; but I can still want to be remembered like most humans would want to be. Or maybe most just don’t care. Or perhaps some feel I am stalking them, but really wasn’t intending to, with my scary memory that can recall with uncanny ability what someone was wearing on one day when I was 12 years old. I am weird that way, and have learned to live with it.
My wife, my sage and muse in life, made a meditative gesture with her fingers and said “let it go.” And to appease her, I said “yeah, okay.” With no real intent of doing so.
Until I thought deeper about it. And in true Buddhist fashion, finally understood that one doesn’t have to be talking about physical, inanimate things, when one talks about holding on to something… To “owning” something.
And so, I finally understand that Tracy is right. I should, must, and am letting it go.
Thank you, Tracy, for teaching me. Again.
I am trading down today… in size, but up in power. I’m moving from a 17″ MacBook Pro to a 13″ MacBook with a stronger processor. I should be able to sell the 17″ for just about the same amount of money that the 13″ costs… So eBay, here I come. Sorry it wasn’t soon enough to handle the 10% of your workforce you just let go.
I was processing paperwork today, and came across this in my e-mail, courtesy of Wade Charlestant, an employee at FIU’s Biscayne Bay Library. Based on some (very) recent occurrences in my life, I felt it was poignant:
A boy has the right to dream. There are endless possibilities stretched out before him. What awaits him down the path, he will then have to choose. The boy doesn’t always know. At some point, the boy then becomes an adult, and learns what he was able to become. Joy and sadness forever will accompany this. He is confronted with a choice.
When this happens, does he bid his past farewell in his heart? Once a boy becomes an adult, he can no longer go back to being a boy. The boy is now a man. Only one thing can be said. A boy has the right to dream. For those endless possibilities are stretched out before him.
We must remember. All men were once boys.
I just thought it was a great quote – even if it is misquoted here.
I have an iPhone. It is a 2nd hand 16GB 3G iPhone. It is white. For those of you who know me, this comes as no shock to you. For those of you who don’t know me, I have an illness - gadgetorhea. It’s defined by the need to have every new gadget that comes onto the market.
I stayed out of the iPhone fray for the first what… two years? One year? 18 months? Something like that… because the iPhone would not successfully connect to our organization’s enterprise infrastructure (geek for “it doesn’t work with our e-mail system”). Now, the iPhone, surprisingly, works better with our e-mail system than my old BlackBerry did.
I got the phone for a substantial discount from a friend who gave it up because he couldn’t stand the fact that the phone has no keyboard. In essence, you type on the glass that is the screen. I find that I can type just fine on that. Also, my problem with the thinness of the device seems to have gone away since the iPhone is a good deal thicker than the iPod Touch I was using as a test model.
Having the iPhone also reduces my dependence on multiple electronic devices in order to listen to my iTunes podcasts of various NPR shows - Jazz Profiles, The Diane Rehm Show, Talk of the Nation, and Wait Wait, Don’t Tell Me. It was getting a bit tiresome juggling between the iPod Touch to change the program and my BlackBerry to read my e-mail, and back to the Touch to play games, and back to the BlackBerry to jot out another e-mail that had just popped into my brain.
I like the iPhone just fine, thankyouverymuch.
If you have never been to Ikea, I highly recommend a trip. It’s like a Target, but supersized, and limited to furnishings. The boys liked Smålland, and dinner - Swedish meatballs for Tracy and I, and kids food for the kids - cost $25.
It’s a unique place.
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