Category: travel

Day 2: Washington D.C.

July 9, 2011

Today brought:

1. Much sightseeing.

2. The realization that we purchased tickets for the slow trolley.

3. Because of our trolley choice, a lot of walking in 90° heat.

4. Lots of feeding squirrels and birds.

5. The chance to recreate a photo from when Neko was just a few months old (the first is in 2003, the second in 2011).

6. A comparison between the Lincoln Memorial and the Lincoln on the penny.

7. The knowledge that the reflecting pool, which I told Neko was one of the most beautiful things in D.C. is, in fact, under construction and not even close to beautiful.

8. The thought that I need to smile more in photos.

9. A new-found love for the Metro by a certain eight-year-old.
Day 1: Washington D.C.

July 8, 2011

I decided to take Neko to Washington D.C. for a long weekend—part educational, part mother-daughter time. We navigated our two hour flight delay and the Metro without any trouble.

One hour in the city, and she thinks she owns the place.
Goodbye SLC

January 23, 2011
Skiing, scenery, and sightseeing

January 22, 2011

Today yielded the following knowledge:

1. I now know that I am a skier that is dependent on short, beginner skis. The longer skis I somehow received turned into a disaster on the slopes.

2. The photos do not do the scenery justice. It is simply magnificent.

3. An afternoon devoted to my very own projects is priceless.

4. Chris and I finally found good food in Salt Lake City. Thank you Himalayan Kitchen.

5. I’m becoming a fan of period pieces. On the heels of last year’s The Young Victoria, I thoroughly enjoyed The King’s Speech.

6. I adore everything about The Children’s Theatre in downtown Salt Lake City—the posters, the storefront, and the enthusiastic kids in class just beyond the windows.

7. Five days away from my husband and kids is plenty. Time to go home.
Tomorrow we ski!

January 21, 2011

The conference wrapped up today, and I’m walking away having learned a lot.

We chose this conference as it was some solid time away, offered the opportunity to ski on some gorgeous mountains, and hear from some really interesting people who I wanted to see speak. Sadly, some of the speakers I really wanted to hear disappeared from the panel after we registered. (Gayla and Davin, we’re sad to have missed you.)

That said, I probably shouldn’t attend conferences. I’m not a schmoozer. I don’t like it and I don’t do it well. This is my fault entirely, and I freely admit I do better one-on-one. I just like to get to know people. I like to talk about the things that make me smile, and I like to know what invigorates you. I don’t want to sell you something, and I don’t want you to sell me anything in return. I don’t want to compete for my share of the conversation.

Don’t get me wrong, I love to meet new people, but conferences just feel a bit like speed-dating.

So I spent a lot of time at the conference with my mouth closed. Listening. Watching. (Except for that night out with Chris and Tina, where I likely made up for my silence—my favorite time here by far!)

As I close in on 40, I feel like my wrinkles have earned me the right to offer some unsolicited advice. So after these few days, this is the nugget I’m putting out in the universe.

There are well-known people I greatly admire. People that do what they do remarkably well. But what I know is that they are busy. Crazy, silly, stupidly busy. Although they would love to meet and help everyone who admires them, they really don’t have time. Because in all likelihood, they’re barely juggling the balls they have in the air.

Feel free to cue up to meet that famous person. Tell them how much you appreciate their work, because I’m certain they appreciate your kind words. But it is unlikely this person will be your connection to success.

Go ahead, look for the not-necessarily famous, but very well-known people in the crowd. If you admire them, introduce yourself. Ask them to have a cup of coffee. They might accept, and it’s possible they might be a connection.

But the person you should really talk to is the person sitting next to you, whom you’ve never met in your life. Who you know nothing about, and with whom you think you have nothing in common. That person could inspire you. Or hold the answers to your unanswered questions. Or be your next investor. Do not discount someone just because you don’t know their name—yet.
Salt Lake City

January 20, 2011

The best part of today’s conference was the folks we got to meet. I finally got to meet Tina of swissmiss after only virtual meetings. Chris finally got to meet Jon and Heather after the same sort of virtual dialogue.

Chris, Tina, and I headed out for dinner tonight. Do you know how hard it is to find a restaurant with open seats when both Sundance and the world’s largest outdoor gear convention are both happening in the same city? We finally ended up at a seafood place, which was surprisingly tasty.

After dinner, based on a suggestion from the woman who waxed my eyebrows on the day we got in, we went to see the Mormon Tabernacle Choir rehearse. Rehearsals are open to the public on Thursday, so if you’re ever in town, I highly recommend a visit. I don’t care what your religious views are, the choir was something spectacular. When I visit places like this, I’m reminded we all need to spend more time sitting, away from technology, with good sounds around us.

We ended the evening with a stop at the hotel bar, and loads of meaty conversation. Good stuff.
Me taking a picture of Chris taking a picture of clouds and mountains

January 19, 2011

He would probably like me to assure you that his neck has been shaved since this photo was taken.
Headed for the mountains

January 18, 2011

Chris and I are headed to Altitude Summit. I’m REALLY excited about a few days away. And a whole day skiing. And dinner with folks I’ve only met virtually.

Oh, yes, and I’m excited about the conference, too.
24-hour pass

October 2, 2010

24-hour pass for the grown-ups!

It’s been over two years since I’ve seen The National perform, so it was fantastic to see how their show has matured. (Let’s all pretend I kind of know what that means.)

Tidbits from this weekend:

1. Ellery might have a teensy bit of my OCD overpacking gene.

2. Our hotel room was directly across the hall from a room decorated from top to bottom with balloons, including some that were replicas of certain portions of human anatomy.

3. That hotel room quickly became our former hotel room. Our new room was directly above said anatomically decorated room because someone in the Department of Hilarity thinks that makes for a better story.

4. Everywhere we went in Indy was all on one street—dinner, concert, and breakfast. It was like hipster row. I have no clue what the rest of the city looks like, but I’m thinking we may go back someday.

5. I almost cried when we found out the band didn’t go on until 10:45pm.

6. I am officially the age where I really, really like sitting down at concerts. Sadly, as my feet and back will tell you, this was not an option.

7. The band’s fan base is clearly 95% male. Or the universe did some sort of bizarre inversion. Either way, I felt like woman-kind had achieved some monumental victory as I walked past 20 men in line for the bathroom to discover I could pick from my choice of three empty bathroom stalls. (See fourth photo.)

8. When Mary Poppins is performing in the adjoining theatre, the green room for a band is reduced to the size of a broom closet. Mary clearly has more clout.

9. I desperately need an in-between camera. One that can travel in my bag, but has functionality that makes me smile. Will be researching that whole micro four thirds category…

10. I love traveling with people who make all the restaurant decisions. Especially when they have great taste.

Big thanks to Matt, John, and Vicki (and their friends) for joining us along our fun getaway, and to R&D and Papa Joe for making it possible.
Project 8: Day 3

July 28, 2010

On our last day in the Gulf, we were finished with our work. I wanted to take Neko to the beach so she could see for herself what was going on.

We were pleasantly surprised with what we saw. Kimberly had told us that all the beach cities were working every night to get the beaches as clean as they could by morning. Everywhere we went, we saw these huge booms in the water surrounding the beach, trying to keep the oil from coming inland. We saw no signs of oil on the beach, other than this one bottle, which could have easily been coated with something else. Convoys of volunteers kept driving by, and helicopters circled on a regular basis.

I applaud the folks in charge of cleaning the beaches, as they’re doing a spectacular job. I even felt confident enough to let Neko strip down and take a quick romp in the ocean (man, it’s hard to keep that kid out of the water). We even saw little fish swimming in the surf.

I do wonder what’s going on further out in the ocean, beyond the booms, where we can no longer see. But it seems, in the meantime, Mother Nature is trying her best to take care of those problems. Crossing fingers it stays that way.