Someplace I heard that only mad-dogs and Englishmen go out in the midday sun. The car said it was 101 (f) when I was out running errands the other day. It has been a long and rather warm summer.
The flow of email has slowed slightly, as people take mid-summer breaks, and simply slow down to avoid the heat. Some of the emails are sent at odd hours, indicating people are working late at night when they can be out of the heat of the day.
A friend emailed me from mild-rainy Paris, lamenting the she will see me in Denver later this week, then she returns to Phoenix next week, where she knows it will be a lot warmer. She and 11 friends bought an apartment in Paris about 20 years ago. July is her month. She looks forward to it, enjoys it, and occasionally someone will be unable to travel during their month, and the other co-owners are able to enjoy extra time in Paris. And YES, I wish I had done something like that - though I have never had a job where I could be gone for a month at a time. My next job I will be able to do that.
As you read this, I am off from work for a few days, personal travel tagged onto work travel. Something I have done fair amount of over the years. If all goes to plan, sometime I on Monday I will enter the 50th state in my all 50 state journey, the 46th state that I have either been to on work, or been to as a personal add on to work travel. That has happened because I wanted it to happen. I have sought out work that made it possible. I have done things that increased the amount of work travel I have been able to do, without taking a job that kept me away from home all of the time. For a few years, I had a travel expense budget line at the office, $10,000 I could spend on any work travel I though justified the expense. I miss that. It made things possible that helped me understand the bigger picture of my work. We all need that.
I presented a webinar last week, on a topic I know well, to an audience of old friends and new faces. At the end I thought to myself, I hope this is the last one. The last time I speak to an audience I can't see and hear. I have been doing it for 20 years, I started doing virtual education long before Zoom and Teams, and even WebX. I actually came to DC for two days of training by an expert at AARP. Plan well, wind up, and present your heart out, and just imagine that the audience is there and hanging on your every word. Like shouting into a void, and assuming that someone, someplace is listening.
The next three trainings I have scheduled are in person, I look forward to them. And I get to have dinner with Maddie as an add on to one of them.
I just had a lovely chat with friends this evening about doing presentations at conferences -- they are all seasoned pro's at that. I did my fair share in my time too and learned what NOT to do by watching terrible presenters with terrible power points.
ReplyDeleteI have seen some brilliant people, do some terrible presentations. I have done workshops on how to do workshops.
DeleteWhat a great idea to go in on an apartment. But, as you said, having a month blocked off each year could be very tough when you're working. I'd never done webinars and think I would have hated them. I needed to see faces and gauge reaction.
ReplyDeleteShe was a judge, and the Court allowed her to schedule a month away.
DeleteNot Paris, as the airfares are prohibitive but I would have liked to have bought a property with other people in a desirable location.
ReplyDeleteYou weren't written off as a speaker, so you must have done well enough.
It is nice to hear them laugh at my jokes,
DeleteEnjoy your travels and crossing off that 50th state. That's a fun goal!
ReplyDeleteI made it
DeleteAmazing that those friends have kept the Paris apartment all these years!
ReplyDeleteEnjoy the traveling!
I usually do
DeleteIs your 50th state going to be Idaho? Perhaps you are researching potatoes.
ReplyDeleteYes, and no, I did see a field of them today
Delete101 in a place with high humidity is very, very hot. Take care.
ReplyDeleteEven in a dry heat, that is hot.
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