Last week was about as busy as they come. With only two weeks to visit everyone - friends and family - we've been moving non-stop.
Sunday was our son's birthday party. It was great to see everyone and he had a blast opening all his presents. Monday I went golfing with friends and my back hasn't been the same since. Tuesday was a medical day. We saw the dentist and took the kids to the doctor for their immunizations. Wednesday we went to the zoo with family and I had lunch with a friend. We went shopping Wednesday night and bought 120 pounds worth of food to ship back to Jakarta. Thursday my father and step-mother arrived and spent time with us at our hotel. In the evening we took my two nieces to the Coyotes game in the evening. Friday we had lunch with my father and then had the rehearsal dinner. Saturday was the wedding. Sunday was an after-wedding brunch and then a family gathering with my wife's family.
Today was my first day off. My wife went to a yoga class with her cousin in the morning, then her and the kids spent time at her sister's visiting while I ran a bunch of errands in preparation for opening our business in March. I also had dinner with an old friend.
Tomorrow we are going to Sedona for two days. Thursday I have another lunch scheduled and then a visit to a potential site for our new business. Friday we return to Jakarta.
Whirlwind, not a vacation. I'm not sure what a real vacation is anymore.
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Back in the US
For the first time in eighteen months, my family and I are back on U.S. soil. This is our son's first trip to the United States.
Our day started at 3:30 AM in Jakarta. Our travels took us from Jakarta, to Singapore, to Tokyo, to Los Angeles and, finally, to Phoenix. Five cities, four security checks, three planes, two children, and zero sleep. My son is not a good flier. He doesn't sleep well, he shrieks like a bored parrot and he needs to be in constant motion. His favorite activity on the flight? Climbing the stairs. On the plus side, all of the flight attendants lavish him with attention, which means we're well taken care of. I'm leaning towards the reimplementation of my rule about not flying with kids under two. It's brutal.
Our flights were mostly uneventful. Turbulence on the Tokyo to Los Angeles leg, delays from LAX to PHX. My mom, her fiance, my grandmother, my sister, and my sister's fiance met us at the airport. This was the first time my mom and grandmother were able to meet our son. He did not disappoint.
We went directly from the airport to the rental car company, and from the rental car company directly to Chipotle. We intentionally skipped breakfast on the flight to LAX so we would be hungry enough to finish our Chipotle meals. After dinner, we crashed.
My son has decided he wants to be on Jakarta time even though we are in Phoenix. We all went to bed at 9 PM, he woke up at 2 AM. I woke up with him. Finally went back to bed at 5 AM. The only meal I had for the day was a Chipotle Steak Fajita Burrito in the late afternoon. Two meals, two Chipotle visits.
It's now 5 AM Sunday. My son is just now going back to bed after waking me up at 1 AM. I am NOT going to miss my full day of NFL football. Not going to happen. I may just have to start drinking coffee.
Oh, and my son's first birthday party is this afternoon. I should probably be awake for that. After the last two nights, he should be happy he is able to celebrate it!
Our day started at 3:30 AM in Jakarta. Our travels took us from Jakarta, to Singapore, to Tokyo, to Los Angeles and, finally, to Phoenix. Five cities, four security checks, three planes, two children, and zero sleep. My son is not a good flier. He doesn't sleep well, he shrieks like a bored parrot and he needs to be in constant motion. His favorite activity on the flight? Climbing the stairs. On the plus side, all of the flight attendants lavish him with attention, which means we're well taken care of. I'm leaning towards the reimplementation of my rule about not flying with kids under two. It's brutal.
Our flights were mostly uneventful. Turbulence on the Tokyo to Los Angeles leg, delays from LAX to PHX. My mom, her fiance, my grandmother, my sister, and my sister's fiance met us at the airport. This was the first time my mom and grandmother were able to meet our son. He did not disappoint.
We went directly from the airport to the rental car company, and from the rental car company directly to Chipotle. We intentionally skipped breakfast on the flight to LAX so we would be hungry enough to finish our Chipotle meals. After dinner, we crashed.
My son has decided he wants to be on Jakarta time even though we are in Phoenix. We all went to bed at 9 PM, he woke up at 2 AM. I woke up with him. Finally went back to bed at 5 AM. The only meal I had for the day was a Chipotle Steak Fajita Burrito in the late afternoon. Two meals, two Chipotle visits.
It's now 5 AM Sunday. My son is just now going back to bed after waking me up at 1 AM. I am NOT going to miss my full day of NFL football. Not going to happen. I may just have to start drinking coffee.
Oh, and my son's first birthday party is this afternoon. I should probably be awake for that. After the last two nights, he should be happy he is able to celebrate it!
Thursday, October 7, 2010
Live life, then do some work.
One of my philosophies is to never stop learning. Whether it is acquiring a new skill, learning a new activity, or just plain old acquiring knowledge, I try to do it every day. I spend an enormous amount of time in traffic. Reading has become my most expedient and convenient route to knowledge attainment. I find that fiction provides inspiration and non-fiction provides perspective.
I've recently been working my way through a new book (well, new to me). I first became aware of it in an email exchange I had with a former (younger) colleague/employee. I was, at the time, seeking a partner to develop an online version of the game I invented, and knew he had started his own technology company. His response back was surprising. It went something like:
"I just got back from my summer home in Wisconsin, so I'm in Phoenix again. We're not taking on new business or projects, though I'm happy to give you advice if you want it. I am only in the office a few hours a week - like the 'Four Hour Work Week' - so we can meet for lunch on Tuesday."
I could not believe he 1) had his own business; 2) had a summer home; 3) only worked a few hours a week. I felt disbelief before envy.
I finally started the book he was referring too. It's an extremely interesting take on simplifying your life and is worth the read for anyone who feels too busy, but is especially good for people who do, or want to, operate their own businesses.
If you have not read this book, you should. Whether you are a stay-at-home parent or an 80-hour per week corporate riser, I think you'll find excellent ideas on how to simplify your life and spend more time doing what you want to do.
I'm personally quite interested in hiring my own virtual assistant to tackle some tasks I've been putting off for quite a long time (for example, researching the best high-energy, low calorie diet for someone who cannot eat chicken or fish).
I've recently been working my way through a new book (well, new to me). I first became aware of it in an email exchange I had with a former (younger) colleague/employee. I was, at the time, seeking a partner to develop an online version of the game I invented, and knew he had started his own technology company. His response back was surprising. It went something like:
"I just got back from my summer home in Wisconsin, so I'm in Phoenix again. We're not taking on new business or projects, though I'm happy to give you advice if you want it. I am only in the office a few hours a week - like the 'Four Hour Work Week' - so we can meet for lunch on Tuesday."
I could not believe he 1) had his own business; 2) had a summer home; 3) only worked a few hours a week. I felt disbelief before envy.
I finally started the book he was referring too. It's an extremely interesting take on simplifying your life and is worth the read for anyone who feels too busy, but is especially good for people who do, or want to, operate their own businesses.
If you have not read this book, you should. Whether you are a stay-at-home parent or an 80-hour per week corporate riser, I think you'll find excellent ideas on how to simplify your life and spend more time doing what you want to do.
I'm personally quite interested in hiring my own virtual assistant to tackle some tasks I've been putting off for quite a long time (for example, researching the best high-energy, low calorie diet for someone who cannot eat chicken or fish).
Wednesday, October 6, 2010
Thirty-Five is the new Fifty
Thursday, 30 September, 2010 is a day I'm sure I will never forget. It is the day I first felt old.
Admittedly, I noticed the slow decline long before. At twenty-five, I became painfully aware that all-nighters could no longer be in my repertoire. In my late twenties, I had to acquire my first orthotics. At thirty, copious alcohol consumption started having a larger affect.
Although I knew all of those were normal, and accepted them as just part of the aging process, I never felt...old.
Until Thursday.
Thursday is the night I play rugby; "Touch", is the more recognized, and accurate, term. It's an opportunity for me to relive those carefree days on the playground and get some exercise in the process - something a sedentary technology professional never gets enough of.
This Thursday was different. And not a good different. A bad different.
The night started badly. We had an average crowd of twelve players, six per side, but most of the regulars had not shown up. We had nine new people. Someone had the bright idea to split up into youth versus wisdom. For the first time in my life, I was on the wisdom team. Ouch!
Things went downhill from there. As the fastest member on the "wisdom" team, I played winger. That puts me on the outside of the formation and my job is to outrun to the outside, or find a quick slant through the inside and run for the score. After a few possession changes, they toss me the ball and I make my run to the outside. Because of all the rain we've had lately, the artificial turf was still wet. When I made a cut to the inside, I slipped and fell to the ground. I felt every bone in my body rattle like carrots in jello. It was like a visit to the chiropractor, only instead of cracking just a few vertebrae, every bone in my body readjusted. It didn't hurt, but it sure made me re-examine my style of play so I didn't repeat the feeling.
The last reminder of my new age bracket occurred before our final break. My team didn't adjust on defense and I was stuck defending a two-on-one situation on the left side of the line. Our opponents exploited it, and the outside player got past me with the ball. This meant I had to take off after him.
In my younger years, this would be no big deal. I once chased down my dog running at a full sprint (granted, he was a terrier, but that's still pretty fast!). This night, it was not to be. I gave chase and found he was traveling at the same speed I was, but I was jogging. I pushed for my second gear - my sprint - but my body had other ideas. On my third stride, my hamstring had enough. I had gained two steps, but he was still one step out of reach, and I had to jog behind him to the end zone. That was also my last play for the night or I would not be walking the next day.
Thirty-five.
I guess it's the new fifty.
Admittedly, I noticed the slow decline long before. At twenty-five, I became painfully aware that all-nighters could no longer be in my repertoire. In my late twenties, I had to acquire my first orthotics. At thirty, copious alcohol consumption started having a larger affect.
Although I knew all of those were normal, and accepted them as just part of the aging process, I never felt...old.
Until Thursday.
Thursday is the night I play rugby; "Touch", is the more recognized, and accurate, term. It's an opportunity for me to relive those carefree days on the playground and get some exercise in the process - something a sedentary technology professional never gets enough of.
This Thursday was different. And not a good different. A bad different.
The night started badly. We had an average crowd of twelve players, six per side, but most of the regulars had not shown up. We had nine new people. Someone had the bright idea to split up into youth versus wisdom. For the first time in my life, I was on the wisdom team. Ouch!
Things went downhill from there. As the fastest member on the "wisdom" team, I played winger. That puts me on the outside of the formation and my job is to outrun to the outside, or find a quick slant through the inside and run for the score. After a few possession changes, they toss me the ball and I make my run to the outside. Because of all the rain we've had lately, the artificial turf was still wet. When I made a cut to the inside, I slipped and fell to the ground. I felt every bone in my body rattle like carrots in jello. It was like a visit to the chiropractor, only instead of cracking just a few vertebrae, every bone in my body readjusted. It didn't hurt, but it sure made me re-examine my style of play so I didn't repeat the feeling.
The last reminder of my new age bracket occurred before our final break. My team didn't adjust on defense and I was stuck defending a two-on-one situation on the left side of the line. Our opponents exploited it, and the outside player got past me with the ball. This meant I had to take off after him.
In my younger years, this would be no big deal. I once chased down my dog running at a full sprint (granted, he was a terrier, but that's still pretty fast!). This night, it was not to be. I gave chase and found he was traveling at the same speed I was, but I was jogging. I pushed for my second gear - my sprint - but my body had other ideas. On my third stride, my hamstring had enough. I had gained two steps, but he was still one step out of reach, and I had to jog behind him to the end zone. That was also my last play for the night or I would not be walking the next day.
Thirty-five.
I guess it's the new fifty.
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