Well you all know I sort of started the new job a few months back, but today was the day that I officially started. I showed up, went into my office, and as is the tradition in any job, spent the first few hours with tech support trying to figure out my logins and whatnot. But by lunch, I had working systems, a whiteboard on order, and email flowing.
Now, way back in 2000 when I started with this particular company, my boss sat in this very office, and there were all sorts of hijinks in rearranging his furniture, redecorating, making faces... and now 6 years later I am in that very office, while Mike is just next door (in a bigger office, still the boss). People who I worked with back in 2001-2003 when I was working out of that space are still there, and it's old home week. By 2003 I had started consulting at client sites again, so it wasn't a home for the past few years as much as a place to drop by.
Well, it's home again.
It kicked off right - Famous Daves pulled pork and ribs were catered in, so I had a solid feed of PORK on day one. And it was fabulous. Any gig that starts with pork has GOT to be ok. They even got some packets of the spicy stuff.
I'm off to northern California tomorrow morning for two nights - The stars aligned and we were able to get two critical client meetings, plus one meeting to get intel on two even bigger ones... so it'll be a good trip. I got bumped up to First both ways, so it'll be a relatively comfy trip too. (I shouldn't get used to that... but I see it as auspicious!) Hopefully the hotels will allow for the Videochat! I had trouble making it work in Chicago last weekend.
I even got home a bit early today to spend extra time with the kiddos: Bella and I poured toxic gooey stuff into molds in the hopes of making translucent dinosaurs with visible bones. We didn't have time to play Go Fish, which made a dramatic resurgence last night (No cheating and no dad-assist, Bella thoroughly creamed me last night TWICE). She fell asleep resting her head on mine in bed, and it was a wonderful feeling. And then she started snoring. Ah, she's her mother's daughter.
Bella has fallen prey to an "online trend" - oh the trials of parenting in this future world. She and her friends are interacting in "Webkinz" world: It's a virtual space where you pretend to be your stuffed animal. It's brilliant marketing, and every kid in the universe seems to be hooked: The dolls cost a little extra, but they are the key to the online world. For younger kids, there's just games and decorating... but as you get older, you chat with friends and there's a tamagotchi-like element to "Caring" for your webkin - when you "visit" online, you need to feed, walk, and play with them, or they get surly or dysentery or something. I don't want to know.
My good friend Paul S' kids love them, as do some of Bella's cousins from Texas, so I think they'll all be "remote friends". I also suspect this will jumpstart Bella's read/write skills so she can chat with friends. I'm sure of it!
Oh speaking of reading - I also have my first "required reading" at work: "Crucial Conversations" - a study of personality types and how to best relate to them, as well as how to avoid self defeating pitfalls when talking to difficult others. This was left on my desk (un-ironically) and is being read by the whole management team. Of course I got a copy for my Kindle - there's no reason to carry wood pulp around, is there?
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