It was brought to my attention that some people who read the previous post thought that it was harsh. So I modified it.
I just finished watching every episode of Star Trek Voyager - all seven seasons. Next is Deep Space 9 (173 episodes).
Just so that you understand the depth of my insanity when it comes to the modern Star Trek series, let's recount:
- Enterprise - 98 episodes
- The Next Generation - 176 episodes
- Voyager - 171 episodes
What was I saying about not having much time for things that are irrelevant? Hmmm... guess I have spent an inordinate amount of time for this irrelevant activity!
Labels: me
I've found that the best way to keep positive is to plan for the future. The short term future, the interim future, the distant future. Ideally, it should all be coherent with my ultimate ambitions for living a good life, but sometimes keeping a positive outlook takes tactical planning and is not particularly strategic at all.
Characterizing all the mundane activities that constitute a life as either "strategic" or "tactical" is a fairly new practice for me. I've only been doing it for about half a year now, but have found that it works pretty well. When something can't be characterized as either, then it is irrelevant -- and I don't spend much time with irrelevant activities. As it turns out, a lot of what I do can be rationalized / characterized as part of a strategic goal or tactical action.
For example, recently, I've spent a little bit of time recently planning a couple of events:
- a little Indiana Jones event for this weekend, which may, or may not come together. I really should have sent out the invitations earlier, so it might not work out. But it is a fun project, and is a strategic move for attempting to cement some friendships in this town.
- I am finally booking the European vacation tickets (for the Greek cruise with Mom). This is tactical, but somewhat fun, and I'm taking care of mom while she takes care of my brother, which is helpful.
- I'm helping to plan a presentation at an upcoming conference (I'm an assistant presenter.) This is actually a strategic move that will help me raise my profile professionally within the group.
These tasks are keeping me busy thinking about the future... and that's a good thing. Now you know my little trick... scary huh? But I don't usually bite and I'm fairly normal in public!
Labels: me
Getting grandfathered into a new certification program seems so civilized and professional, but to date I haven't been eligible. Now, however I think that I am actually eligible for the new "CGEIT" certification backed by ISACA. It stands for "Certified in the Governance of Enterprise IT."
Filling out the required paperwork will be no picnic, but it should be easier than sitting for another one of ISACA's mind-bending exams (this is the certification body behind the CISA.) The bigger problem with getting grandfathered into the program is that it costs a pretty penny. So I'll see if my work wants to pay for it, since I sure don't.
Labels: me, professional
I just ordered some personal contact cards from Moo.com. I was on the receiving end of one of those little minicards recently and I thought it was absolutely adorable. So I picked some of my nicest landscape and flower photos for the front-of-the-card images.
I can't wait till they arrive. :)
Labels: me
I'm listening to Sinatra today. Specifically: Wrap Your Troubles in Dreams from the Songs for Young Lovers CD. You Tube Video
Songs for Young Lovers/Swing Easy by Frank Sinatra
"Just remember that sunshine always follows the rain.
So wrap your troubles in dreams, and dream all your troubles away.
Your castles may tumble, that's fate after all, life's really funny that way.
But no need to grumble, smile as they fall, weren't you king for a day?
Just remember that sunshine always follows the rain.
So wrap your troubles in dreams, and dream all your troubles away."
Labels: me
In part, I have been growing my hair out in Seattle because I hadn't found a hairstylist that I trusted enough to "give me a new style." And it was beginning to look awful.
So I took a chance yesterday with a new stylist at a local Bellevue salon and like the results. In case you can't tell from the photo, there's some bold red and blonde highlights... and it was cut to the length of my shortest layer. I still intend to grow it out a bit - especially the bangs, which had been previously mangled by a previous $12 hair joint.
Labels: me
Alllllll day, I've been humming American Boy by Estelle and Kayne.
"Take me on a trip, I'd like to go someday.... I really want to kick it with you. You'll be my American boy. "
"Dress smart like a London bloke.. before he speak, his suit bespoke."
YouTube linkSmile.
Labels: me
On Saturday, I hung out with the very pregnant Kelli and Dillon. Today, I met up with Debbie, Matt & their 2 kids, who were up from Ojai, CA.
The result of back-to-back nuclear family sessions left me a bit unsettled. The whole mommie thing still scares the crap out of me.
Labels: me
Protecting your personal and professional identity is vitally important because everybody knows everybody. Rather than 6 degrees of separation, I'm finding that a significant amount of new professional contacts are actually only 2 or 3 times removed from my former professional contacts.
In the modern era people move around and communicate so easily and often with people in other social and professional groups. This is especially true in the areas I've been working in: data security and compliance. Just today I was chatting with a guy in Colorado who knew my former colleagues (back in San Diego) on a first name basis. The other night I happened to fall into a conversation with a CEO of a company that is a business partner of my current company.
Of course, this is all predicated on the notion that your identity is good because you are consistently acting in an ethical fashion. When someone in the chain can't be trusted, the whole system gets topsy-turvy. And so a corrolary maxim is that one has to align oneself with other people and companies that also have good reputations.
Seattle is killing me. I thought the dreary days with cold wet weather were waning now that Spring is here. But no such luck for me. It's past Easter and it is snowing. Right now, right outside my window. Ugh. This wasn't in the brochure. I'm holding Kelli personally responsible for this -- she's was my cruise director on this shipwreck of a move to this town!
As part of the Body-for-Life Challenge, I set a tactical goal of squatting 135 pounds. The last time I was squat 135 was July 23, 2002.
Last night, I squatted 135 for 2 sets of 10 reps.
I can honestly report: I am as strong as I have ever been.
Labels: me
Over the weekend, I completed work on a strategic goal, so I'd like to take a moment to share.
For the past 2 years, I have been participating in a course called the Business Professionals Course. It is an in-lieu-of MBA program, that is recognized as equivalent to an MBA by companies such as GE and Sprint. On Saturday, after completing an oral and 2-part written examination, I graduated from BPC class #39.
The course isn't right for most people, but it was exactly what I needed at this point in my life. I can honestly say that this course has been a good investment. I am much more calm and focused. My ability and capacity to transact at work and in life has increased dramatically. Although many of my colleagues produced significant gains in income (the average compensation increase of the class was 97%), I haven't produced significant financial gains as a result of my career moves over the past 2 years. However, I have learned a lot about money, currency, and value. I met a lot of high performers and really good people.
I'm now moving to another phase of the practice, called the LEIP program. LEIP is an acronym for Leadership, Entrepreneurship, Innovation and accumulating Power. It is a way for me to continue working with the wonderful folks that I met in the program, and a way to continue practicing the ideas that I had been learning the past two years.
Labels: me
Seattle is warming.... spring is almost here. The change to daylight savings will undoubtedly brighten my spirits: a few more minutes of sun each day.
When we moved here I had no idea that I'd be a candidate for Seasonal Affective Disorder, but I found myself experiencing a slight case of SAD this winter. With the sun out more, I'm sure I'll have a sunnier disposition.
I have a vague goal of doing a Lura World Tour.
In addition to making a trek to Albania to go to Lura National Park, I just found out that I need to go to Tibet / China.
In the middle of nowhere, directly between Lhasa and Chengdu, there is a town called Lura.
This place is situated in Markam, Xizang Zizhiqu (Tibet), China, its geographical coordinates are 29° 56' 0" North, 98° 37' 0" East.
The problem is that this place, at first glance, looks ridiculously difficult to get to. It looks like the Gap adventures to China and Tibet fly over the Lura, but none of the organized tours go there.
In general, my years of blogging have been good. People are generally nice. Lots of friends find me. Generally, it's all good, clean fun.
Occasionally someone will find my blog, or some article I wrote, and contact me in a slightly unsettling manner. They might be fantastic people. Probably are wonderful, law-abiding citizens. I just get a weird feeling from the interactions since we have little or no shared background, yet sometimes an individual will launch into a level of information that it may take months to achieve in a real-life relationship. I have a low threshold and tolerance for such interactions and seek to end them as quickly as possible. I won't go into details, but suffice it to say that 2 different men have creeped me out recently in response to my web presence.
So there are some things that I need to remind my kind and wonderful readers who are not also my real-life friends:- Don't assume that you know me. The blog is a persona, not the whole me, just a version of me.
- Be respectful. Don't overstep your boundaries. It isn't cool to start quoting things about me to me, it's weird and it puts me at a disadvantage in a conversation. I don't like it and it isn't a way to impress me.
- I don't ever to know about your sex life.
- You go be who you are. I'll do the same. Vive la difference!
- Any expression of my personal opinions, preferences, and beliefs on my blog is not a direct assault against you and your life. Again, I encourage you to be who you are.
I used to have comments enabled on my blog. A severely creepy incident a while back ruined that for me. In fact, that incident is probably why I am so sensitive to anyone even slightly overstepping now. I still haven't forgotten the one from my past, and I don't have blog comments as a result.
Labels: me
While living in Escondido, my daily commute to/from the house along San Pasqual Road almost always included a hawk sighting. I'd look up and see the birds flying free and high. In one sense, seeing the birds was a wonderful respite a part of my routine that was pleasant and life-affirming. In another sense, it is a reminder of my dull and predicable life. In many ways, I am prisoner of my routine.
Despite the move to Seattle, life isn't much different. The birds have changed: I see gulls or bald eagles every day. The route has changed too: now I see the birds when crossing the 520 floating bridge. The birds seem to play in the wind currents, and occasionally I see them dive for fish that must rise to the surface in the choppy waters.
But it struck me today, as I saw 2 bald eagles soaring just beyond my front windshield: I can measure my days in bird sightings.
(Seattle PI image)
Half the fun of social networking sites is the opportunity that it affords you to get back in touch with people. I'm fairly easy to find since my web-presence is, well, established to say the least. As one person put it: "your web footprint is a freakin' bear track."
The other day, I was contacted by someone that I literally haven't spoken to since highschool. It was fun to catch up, and it put me in a nostalgic mood. So I decided to pay it forward so to speak and contact someone else that I haven't spoken to in a while.
Girls are about 100 times harder to find than boys. Although I tried to find several female friends on the net, the proliferation of commonly used names in my age group makes ridiculously difficult to find any of the women I know from highschool, college, or grad-school since they've all married, changed their name, and moved. So I found a highschool buddy of mine who is male. I found his work phone number on the net. Boy is the net weird.
It was a blast speaking with him. Made me laugh, a lot. Anyway, I suggest it: contact someone from your past & ask them to pay it forward. It'll bring a smile to your face.
Labels: me
I finally went out dancing in Seattle! I went with a new female friend. We had a blast at one of the hottest nightclubs in the city (Last Supper Club). What a funny scene it was -- definitely not SoCal. There were some uber-geeks who never would have made it past the velvet rope in San Diego or LA. But it was fun.
In workout news: Saturday I had an amazing workout. Since there were fewer people in the gym, I did a really tough weight lifting workout: complete with grunting and panting. I'm almost at my squat goal. After a proper warmup, I am box-squatting 125 pounds for 2 sets of 10 reps. I'm also doing a lot with my upper body. I still have a long way to go with the bi's and tri's, but I am starting to see a little definition. I'm sore!
Labels: me
I am having a rash of bad luck with restaurants. It seems that every they take the order with the "I'm so good, I don't need to write it down" attitude, then they get it wrong. Jai Thai, Quiznos, some pho place, and tonight it was Ruth's Chris. Yes, Ruth's Chris. I ordered my steak sans butter, they served it (the first time) with butter.
I'll deal with the misspellings like SEM/SAM any day if they'd at least write the order down. At least that would give the kitchen a fighting chance to get it right.
My friend Dominique would probably chalk this up to a Seattle v. San Diego showdown. She tends to think that service in California is primo, especially in fine dining restaurants. Her theory hinges on the multitude of college educated, well-spoken wait staff who are practicing Shakespeare in their off-hours, hoping for a break-out role. I used to think that this was a completely ludicrous theory, but I'm beginning to wonder!
Labels: me
I just don't know what to do with all of the social networking requests that I receive. It's not that I'm popular, it's that there are too many sites. Bebo, Namyz, and Spock are some of the recent ones that I decided not to join. I just don't understand the value proposition of them as compared to the few sites that I am already a part of (LinkedIn and Facebook.)
Some cite the need to "stake their claim" on their name, but I don't think that this argument applies to me since my name is so unusual. Go ahead, type Lura Lee in a search engine. I've got it locked up. There's only one other Lura that is cited with any regularity on the internet, and she's a black Capeverdean singer, who seems to be gaining some popularity.
So, if you want to send me an invitation to a new social networking website, I'd like you to give me a personal explanation for what that site does that is different or better than the ones that I've already populated. I don't mean to be high-cost, or uncooperative. I'm open to the offer of some website that better meets my needs for membership, I just don't see that this is the case for the aforementioned sites.
Labels: me
OK - I know that it is chiche, but I am starting a diet and exercise program. Specifically, I am doing the 12-week Body For Life Challenge. In fact, I'm attempting to organize a competition at work - the Seattle office vs the Colorado office. I took measurements and before photos today. I wont be posting those on this site until there is a beautiful after photo.
Today, I went to the Rust Gym that MAS joined. I got a membership too even though I have a lifetime, no dues membership at Bally Total Fitness. I joined Iron Works because it is convenient (to home), the people are nicer, and it is a real weight-training gym with trainers who know what the heck they are doing (unlike Bally.)
Anyway, since it is the first day of my diet, I should declare my goal and pick a fitness image that inspires me. The goals: let's say bodyfat percentage in the 20s, 133 lbs, and the ability to squat 135 again.
As for the fitness image that inspires me... this is actually very difficult. Finding a woman who has real boobs, is around 5.4, over 25 years old, and is over 115 pounds is unbelievably difficult. Not in real life, but oh buddy is it hard to find someone like that on the internet, TV, or in film.
The idea of a fitness inspiration is to look at a figure/shape that is somewhat plausible for your body shape -- a little out of reach, but not a complete pipe dream. The best I could do is find an inspiring Ms. Fitness contestant named Kim Dawson. She's a bit shorter, and she's about 120 due to her amazing (but not hulking) muscles. Of course, I am so fair-skinned that it might make more sense for me to aspire to be like Dita Von Teese!
This year, Michael and I will be visiting Whistler, British Columbia, Canada for Christmas. Along the way, we'll be spending a couple of nights in Vancouver. If you have suggestions of where to go, contact me.
This means that we will not be attending my niece's wedding in Houston. The plane tickets from Seattle to Houston were around $700pp, which means that the trip would be $2k or so total. I want to go someplace really cool if we're going to end up spending that kind of cash. The concrete jungle of Houston just won't do it for me in that scenario.
Mini has introduced a new version called a Clubman. Interestingly, this larger version of the mini has 5 doors (including 3 passenger doors and 2 barn-doors for the boot.) By extending the wheel base, there is actually supposed to be some rear seating space. This model intrigues me since it seems to defy the whole point of purchasing a Mini. I mean, really, make a choice. Do you want a big car, or do you want a Mini?
In Germany and the UK there is a diesel version of the Clubman. The specs on that car are not too shabby: 42 mpg (compared to 30 list for the Clubman). Since the Cooper is listed at 31 and my personal experience in my Cooper is regularly 29 mpg, I will believe their listed specs.
I would definitely consider buying a Mini One or possibly a Mini Clubman diesel for my next car, if it were sold in the US and outfitted for bio-diesel. But there is absolutely no way that I'd buy one of these Clubman cars in the colors offered for '08 (brown and bright blue) -- ick! Where's the classy British Racing Green (like MiniLee), or how about a nice silver or black? Mini: by going both big and gaudy you are at risk of losing your core demographic - chicks like me!
Labels: me
I took the Inner European Quiz and found out that I'm Irish.
| Your Inner European is Irish! |
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I am beginning to realize LinkedIn's potential in the realm of membership and career. I constituted a LinkedIn group yesterday around 5pm, and within 24 hours 20 people accepted. Not too shabby.
The group I started is the Aji BPC Collegians. For info, go here. I had to start a webpage about the group in order to meet the LinkedIn criteria.
Are you and I LinkedIn? If not, shoot me an invitation.
Labels: me
Now that I have customers all across the US, I find myself adopting various speech patterns, accents, rhythm, timing, and inflection depending on the locale of the customer.
Today, I spoke with a customer in Fargo, ND. I didn't really mimic his distinctive accent, but I found myself falling into the rhythm of his speech pattern. Last week I spoke with a customer in Atlanta, Georgia and my southern drawl emerged out from the recesses of my brain. I spoke with customers in New Jersey, one was a local man, the other was a Japanese citizen who spoke English with a short crisp staccato.
To be able to mimic another's pacing is really an powerful tool, since it puts people at ease. I didn't realize how often I use this tool until this job.
Labels: me
I am uploading a photo (taken today) for my Blogger profile. It's not a great photo, but it isn't too bad. Better than nothing.
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