Seventytwo - Little Kids

Sometimes I wish things were a simple as when you were a kid. I see my son and he has what appears to be all the emotion as I, but it is about such simpler things, like eating, and playing with toys, and saying hi to everyone around, and splashing in the bath. It's awesome. Life it too complex sometimes, we should all try to decomplexify our lives from time to time. I think we would all be much happier.

Seventyone - Full Circle

This week had a way of coming full circle. It started tough and ended tough with a late Friday at five o'clock reshuffling of priorities for the coming week with the only posiblity to get things done involves work on the weekend. Yeah!

Seventy - One Question, Many Answers

I spent the whole day trying to answer one question. I came really close several times, finding the right numbers, checking percentages, realistic values, getting it all to make sense. But one value, which is key to the whole deal could not be confirmed. I even checked other departments, and people (13 or 14 in all) to get one value, and no one could give me the info I was looking for. I even uncovered an issue in production requiring extensive follow up, and still no correct info. Some days it is hit or miss, I tell you, but in the process I did learn quite a bit more.

Sixtynine - Cold

It started snowing again after so many weeks off. The little flowers were already popping up through the grass and Boom! the snow came again. The wind I think was even worse, I didn't want to go outside for anything. I think I am really looking forward to Spring and Summer. A late cold snap has a way of turning you positively towards a new season.

Sixtyeight - Every Last Minute

We have a few big meetings coming up at work and needless to say there is always a scramble to get info, clarify points, double check numbers, and ensure clear messages. Somewhere in this chaos people forget to communicate what needs to be done, but clearly communicate when. So your left with 30 minutes to get information which you were never asked for to consolidate and put up numbers and discussion points which in the end all change because your boss's boss saw something he liked or didn't and now has to be reworked at the last minute, again.

Sixtyseven - Audit This

Today was a big audit day at work. There were several places the auditor could have looked, and somehow, they had picked a project I had worked on. Overall we passed, but the questions he posed, and the way in which he built up to the main questions gave me a different perspective on what I do. I think now, after going through this, I am better quipped.

Sixtysix - TGV2

Sunday we returned home, again via train. Before we did we stopped into the Louvre to see some amazing art works. We only just scratched the surface of what was there, visiting 4 or 5 rooms on one floor in one wing of the huge structure. There were so many people and everyone running around, I almost felt disrespectful to the people who painted all of this that I wasn't admiring their work even for a second or two. There was just so much art, it was impossible to really appreciate it in one a few hours we had before we needed to catch our train.

Sixtyfive - On Foot In Paris

Saturday was our day to tour Paris, but we did so on foot. I think it is a little better to do it this way, because you tend to discover things along the way which you may not see using other forms of transport. We still used a map, and it was cold and windy, but it was still amazing to see the city this way.

Sixtyfour - Train à Grande Vitesse

This Friday I took the day off to have a long weekend in Paris. This was our fist trip to Paris, and we decided to go by train. It really didn't seem fast until we between Strasbourg and Paris, and even between Nancy and Paris is where it really started to kick ass. But despite the "High-Speed" attraction, I really felt that the overall speed was somewhat average. I have been to Japan several times, where they have dedicated Shinkasnen lines with no rail crossings. I believe the construct in Japan gives an overall point-to-point high-speed, and gives you the feel that you are really covering a lot of ground for the price you are paying. Don't get me wrong, I wasn't disappointed with the train, it was a quick way to travel to Paris, but I still think the high-speed was a little over sold.

Sixtythree - Outsource Yourself

I find that people are becoming better and better at asking enough questions and info and help from others that other people wind up doing the work for them. There was this guy who kept calling one of my workers and kept asking for info and to confirm info, and when it comes down to it, if there is a discrepancy or questions in the data, they can always defer and say, "well, I got that info from so-and-so" which makes it look like someone else did a bad job. All the glory, but none of the blame. I mean if you are responsible for numbers and estimations, have the balls to stand by them, don't defer your ignorance to someone else.

Sixtytwo - der Hinterwäldler

On Wednesday, it was quite funny for me to discover that despite differences between countries, we are really quite similar. Der Hinterwäldler in German means a person living in the back woods, or Hillbilly. In Germany there is a mentality about the southern speaking Germans because of their accent, which in lies the similarity to the US. I thought this similarity was funny, and not the wording or mentalities which were explained to me.

Sixtyone - A Team, not The "A" Team

I had a discussion with one of my employees today who was concerned about the state of his project team. We were quite honest about team dynamics and what makes a team, a team. It was apparent that he wanted the team to be better, but it is not easy to work with some people, and let's face it, their not going to change unless they want to change. It is a shame really, because the project is quite interesting, but the work ethic of some, the spotty planning from others, and the time demands of the rest make the interest dissipate which is then replace by frustration and un-enthusiasm. Some things need to change.

Sixty - ?WTF?

I was going to Diablog about stupid people at work who try every excuse to not do work when they have been caught or proven to not have done what they were responsible for. Needless to say I just Diabloged about it. Anyway, what a waste of a post...

Fiftynine - Learning to Walk

There is much celebration in the little things and the big milestones in watching the learning and development of your own child. It is really awesome, because this weekend our son walked... 11 steps. Totally awesome. Now it seems like he needs to out do himself still by trying to pronounce everything we say, and he's still less than 15 months old! Total Rockstar this kid!

Fiftyeight - State of the Union

My wife and I began a discussion on the US today, and it became apparent that the mood was quite depressive. So we decided to change the topic, but the feeling and thoughts of the conversation stuck with me for a while.