The Occasional Blog

May will be an interesting month for me. I’ve been challenged to give up the Internet, TV, and other distractions to focus on more redeeming things like spending time with my family, reading, bible study, or old-fashioned things like a good ol’ walk around the neighborhood.

Honestly, I’ve been growing frustrated with the time it takes to “keep up” with things like Facebook, Twitter, and Google Reader. I first blogged about doing Reader “chores” three years ago and since then I’ve increased the number of feeds I followed and added Facebook to the mix. So, while I may have some DT’s going cold turkey I really am looking forward to what I’ll be able to fill the time with.

Of course, I’ll still “surf” as appropriate for work and will continue with email, but if you look for me online, I probably won’t be there. You’ll see me again in June. Unless I realize I really can live without it.

I got a nice captain’s bag suitcase last year since I travel enough to really appreciate the rollers and handle. On the plus side, it’s one of the larger ones which allows me to take all that I need plus has room left over for the geek gear I also like to bring along (chargers, spare WiFi router, cables, etc.). The down side of that size, however, is that it is generally too big to fit end-in in the overhead compartment in the plane.

I should note that to keep hassles and complications to a minimum, I go out-of-my-way to not check baggage whenever possible. In the dozen-or-so flights I’ve taken with it, there’s only been one time there wasn’t enough room and I had to have the bag checked. No biggie, but I have learned to take the first available space I can find as I board the plane. Since you exit the plane in the reverse, it actually works out well since my bag is generally closer to the exit from where I’m sitting.

The question is if that is not the correct thing to do or if I’m breaking some form of etiquette in flying. Am I preventing someone from having their bag near where they’re sitting? What if the compartments in my vicinity are full and I must put my bag further back in the plane? Am I denying those passengers their (entitled?) space?

What are your thoughts? First come, first served? If you disagree, does it help my case that, due to my aisle preference, I am usually the last ‘zone’ to board?

So, after extending my London stay for an extra week due to some volcanic action in Iceland, I am presently (as of this writing) on my way back to the states. We just finished lunch and while my body says it’s 1:23 PM the actual time (based on the position of the plane) is about 11:23 but only 5:23 AM in California where I’m headed back to.

This was my first international flight and the first time I’ve had to contend with jet lag. My trip over went that big a deal and I adapted rather quickly. Coming 8 hours back may be interesting. I’ll likely try to take a nap and see if I can reset my body clock to west-coast time but I imagine I’ll crash rather quickly this evening.

The whole experience has been interesting. The last time I was away from my home for more than a week was when I was 13. This time ’round, i have a wife and family. They’ve been understanding but it’s been tough for all of us for me to be gone as long as I’ve been.

On the plus side, with two weeks of experience in London, I’m all set to come back with the family. It’ll be like coming back home. ;-)

A week ago today, I landed at Heathrow airport in London, U.K. for a series of meetings with our European and Japanese counterparts. The meetings went quite well and I was looking forward to going back home on Friday. Unfortunately, events conspired against me. On Thursday, the Eyjafjallajökull volcano in Iceland erupted and sent plumes of ash into the air which drifted SE over UK airspace (and beyond). As the ash poses a safety issues for the airliners, they have been grounded.

My original Friday flight was canceled and while I was able to extend my hotel and move my flight to Monday (tomorrow) that has just been canceled. Currently, I’m on hold with my company’s travel agent to determine what options exist. One possibility may be to take a train to mainland Europe (Chunnel to Paris, probably) and then a train to Spain or elsewhere that still have operating airports.

I had fun yesterday visiting the Science Museum, Natural History Museum, and the Victoria & Albert Museum. I enjoyed it as I was just going to be here for a few days more. With no significant change in the conditions of the volcano or the airflow, there’s a chance airports could remain closed for an additional week or more. What was a inconvenience is now becoming a real problem.

I’ll try to keep my Twitter feed (public WiFi access permitting) updated with major developments.

This is my first post from my new iPad. It’s been interesting getting used to the new form factor of the device. Since it’s based on OS X Touch (the same that is used by the iPhone and iPod Touch) it is immediately familiar and the initial application base is quite good even when you exclude iPhone apps that haven’t been updated.

I’ll have to spend some time getting adjusted to the interface but I’m really looking forward to how this platform develops. I really think Apple has another hit on their hands.

As I’m sure you’ve noticed, I haven’t been blogging much. I really want to but just haven’t made the time for it. Sure, I’ve been busy, but is that really an excuse? I’ll try to step it up and have some captive time coming up which may give me ample opportunity.

One of the other reasons for me, appears to be the same for many of my friends: sharing. With Facebook, Google Reader, Twitter, FriendFeed, and related social sites, it has become exceedingly easy to just share a link to an interesting article, video, or picture rather than produce anything yourself. I’m not complaining, I’ve discovered by way of friends many interesting things. It’s just unfortunate that it has become the de facto expression of people (including myself).

If you still blog, kudos to you. Please keep it up. The Internet will become a very boring place if everyone just keeps recycling the same ol’ thing.

When you think of a standard bell curve, the bulk of the area is in the middle 80% and there are equal amounts at the top and bottom 10%. Basic, right? I’m thinking you remember that from back when you were in school. Some teachers would adjust the test results to map the bell curve and often times the ones at the top would be derided for “blowing the curve.” I admit, I was usually towards the middle as I tended not to “apply myself.”

Fortunately, my kids do not act as I did in their ability and work ethic at school. They do so well, in fact, that my daughter, who is in 7th grade, has excelled for years to the point the school counselors have commented how they haven’t seen performance like this (regarding consistence performance on the standardized tests). That, alas, is where the problem lies.

“What?!” I can hear you say. “Your daughter is at the top of her class and that is a problem?” Unfortunately, yes. The problem is she struggles against the pace of teaching in the classroom. She’s ready to move on upon first presentation of a concept while the bulk of the class still needs to work to get it. This has been the case for years. We even tried years ago when she was in 3rd grade to get her to be advanced to 4th. We were talked out of it by the principal due to “social adjustment” concerns. We were encouraged by a good 4th and 5th grade teach (the same one both years) but the situation didn’t improve too much.

When she began middle school in 6th grade, things got worse. As expected, some subjects were interesting and others not so much, but they all were not enough of a challenge to keep her interested. As her parents, we want to make sure that our kids perform to the best of their ability and get every opportunity to do so. We sought options and guidance. We spoke with counselors (who made the above statement) and while we got assurances that it is important to challenge kids who excel, we learned that the unspoken bottom-line is that the modern school system is geared to focus on the “bottom 10%” and just aren’t as committed to doing anything substantial for the remaining 90% and especially not for the top students.

I don’t have any problem with ensuring underperforming students improve. Schools should do what they can to help every student learn. The ugly truth is that at the administration level, the motive is to improve the performance on the earlier mentioned standardized tests. Kids at the bottom pull down the average and that average determines how much money they will get. Kids at the top? They’re great! They help us look good. So let’s spend ALL of our effort on the ones that are hurting us. Again, I want help for the kids that are struggling. I also want help for those that are looking for more.

As a result of the ongoing saga with school administrators, we have decided that it is time to strongly consider homeschooling. We’ve thought about it for years, but generally thought we could work with (and sometimes within) the system. That just isn’t the case. If our daughter wants to learn, it’ll be up to us to help that happen.

This will require some significant adjustments, but, then again, isn’t that usually the case with parenting?

I’ve been a manager now for little more than a year. It has been the most interesting and challenging experiences of my career. However, I often worry about whether I’m doing the right thing or not for my employees, my manager, and my company. I know that some things I do well, and other things I do poorly but what really concerns me if the things I do well are the unimportant ones (and vice versa).

I’ve said it before, but I’ll state it again for the record; I have the best team I could hope for. They are truly skilled, professional, and are ultimately focused on providing the best solutions for our customers. Staying out of their way is probably one of the best things I can do.

…you might as well look back even further.

I liked my previous post comparing 1999 to 2009, but the interesting thing was while I was finishing it up, the family and I have been watching the original Star Trek season 1 via streaming from NetFlix on the PlayStation 3. New tech to watch old tech. Honestly, I was never much of a fan of the original series but they were interested due to the recent MythBusters episode where they tested the hand-made cannon that Capt. Kirk used against the Gorn (“The Arena”, s1 ep 18).

It’s fun to look back. It’s also good to give the kids some perspective on such an influence on modern science fiction.

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