Vacation squared

First of all, I apologize to my legions of adoring fans (all 3 of you), about my brief hiatus. My time, and more importantly, all of my brain activity has been focused on passing the (cue dramatic music) FINAL FROM HELL!! I mean, this class was something else.
In the very beginning, I had issues. We looked at formulas with symbols completely foreign to me. I mean, what if someone said to you, "OK, now just square the hooblahs to the ringding degree, and then take the coefficient of the warblywoo on brabbly." Confused? Well, welcome to my brain for the past 6 weeks. Then, what if someone said, "OK, I bet you $1,500 you can't solve that equation I just gave you" and the kicker is you HAVE to take the bet! That is my life, my stats class, and my hard earned tuition bucks. And that was the first week...

I could have spent 6 weeks figuring out the coefficient of warblywoos, but the prof had other ideas. Crazy thoughts about forging ahead, learning new concepts even! Have you ever had that feeling, where it seems like the WHOLE world is in on some particular joke that you are not a part of? Sometimes, I actually had to look around the class and wonder, "Am I the only one that thinks this is nutty?" I mean, where are the snickers, the pathetic shoulder shrugs, the hands flying into the air questioning the insanity?

Anyway, enough of that. I took the final, I did my best, and I will put my head into the wrong end of a paper cutter if I do not pass and have to fork over another $1,500 for 6 more weeks of nails-on-the-chalkboard, Chinese-water-torture, Vanilla Ice-listening misery.

But, on a happier note. I spent last weekend on the lake in Minnesota with my closest family. We boated, fished, ate too much, stayed up too late, and got sunburned. Overall, it was wonderful. I will say, adult vacation and kid vacation are two totally different things though. I mean, when I was a kid, vacation was capital F-U-N! Play games in the car, eat, sleep, swim, get spoiled and then sleep the whole way home. As an adult, there is fun, but also stress. I mean, somebody (me in this case) has to drive the car. Somebody has to pump the gas (and pay an exorbitant amount for it t'boot!). Somebody has to apply the sunscreen, pack the suitcases, cook the food for the potluck, keep a watchful eye out for every little body swimming in the lake, and on and on. When it's all said and done, when the kids are tired and cranky, when everyone is sunburned, when the clothes are impossibly jam packed into the suitcase for the trip home, it's the adult- the not so rested, have a neck ache from sleeping on the roll-a-bed, this sunburn is giving me premature wrinkles adult who has to drive the crew home. When it's all said and done, I need a vacation!

Sweeeeet!

I'd just like to say one thing- this is some of the people I work with!

Admitedly, I don't make a killing in this line of work. I mean, we're in the business of educating, not getting rich. But when you can get up everyday and not get lost in the corporate shuffle- the meetings, cubicles, Blackberrys, Starbucks and other dread involved with going to work, that is really saying something!

Etiquette

In today's world, things change so fast. Technology has altered the way we communicate and function on a daily basis. When I was a kid, Atari was all the rage, phones had cords that attached to walls (long and curly to promote mobility!!) and when you wanted to keep in touch with others, you wrote a letter, slapped a $.15 cent stamp on it and off it went- to arrive 2-5 days later!

I was at two different conferences this week, jam packed with professional adults. And what did I notice about this group of uber professionals? Lack of etiquette! What happened to old fashioned good manners? Each presenter did the obligatory, "and please turn your cell phones off," and yet, each presentation was interrupted with the annoying chirp of a cell phone. C'mon people, it's not that complicated! What's more, the recipients of these ill-times calls actually answered their phones! First they'd russle around trying to dig their phone out, then they'd throw it open and in a hushed voice say, "hello?" Then, they'd scurry out of the room, to take the all important call. Now, if a person has a wife that is 9 months pregnant, ok, take the call. If a person has that job that involves pushing "the button" that starts a nuclear war, then ok, take the call. But I'd wager that these professionals were merely touching base with the office, because as we all know, in today's world, everything has to happen NOW NOW NOW!


What's nearly worse, in my opinion, is the professional that sits back, eyes glued to their Blackberry all day, thumbs dancing across the keys, typing messages back and forth. No doubt, they have reverted to the new language in doing so, you know the 1 i mean it has no punctuation capitalization or other indications that its derived from the english language? every once in awhile a question mark or exclamation mark is thrown in for effect but otherwise its a foreign beast altogether..perhaps techuscript? i personally don't like it one bit...

Playing nice...

I read a good post this week about playing nice in the workplace. It's interesting, because at our annual staff retreat this week, we did an exercise about our "personality color." While, many people are an eclectic mix of personalities. I am a blue. And by blue, I mean, blueberry, Smurfette-through and through blue! I tell you this because as a blue, I have certain personality tendencies. I remember being in 1st grade and rolling my eyes that I had to be in a math "group." I wanted to go it alone, work ahead and not be troubled by working with others. Fast forward to college. While I played 4 sports in high school and loved them all- for college I chose tennis, the one and only sport where I didn't have to count on anyone else to win or lose. It was me against my opponent- just the way I liked it. Now, in nearly every class I have been taking, I have once again been thrown into "groupwork," and I once again have the overwhelming urge to roll my eyes. So what is wrong with me and why can't I just play nice!!

OK, now actually, I do believe I'm still being nice. I mean, ok, yes, I prefer to work alone. It's actually a little comforting to know that I am not alone. More people are "blues" than any other color. I just happen to be VERY VERY blue. I also think it is important to make the distinction between kind and nice. I am a kind person. I am empathetic. My heart hurts for the pain of others. I try to do the right thing, be honest, moral, upstanding, etc. Now, I also happen to usually be nice. I mean, I smile, I'm generally pleasant, I don't go around puncturing the tires of those that frustrate me. But I'm also not perfect. I have many limitations, which the author of the Color Code has conveniently pointed out:

• Sets unrealistic goals
• Easily frustrates by lack of team
• Critical of work- both from others and self
• Expects others to understand his/her expectations.

So you see, it's not that I don't want to work with others, it's just that I have high expectations and we all know in every group, certainly in every group I've had in my classes recently, you have a slacker, or a snake, or some other variation of lazy, annoying, weird, obnoxious or overbearing. (Of course I am never any of those things!!)

I tell you all of this not so you can throw stones at me and make me wear a t-shirt that says, "Doesn't play well with others." It's just that I think it is important to recognize one's own weaknesses. I recognize this in myself and I work to overcome it. It's not that I'm not nice, I'm just a natural blue. I prefer to do a job well, and often times the path of least resistance is to do it alone. That being said, I know there is value in teamwork and I will continue to put on a smile, keep my eye rolling to a minimum and work at playing nice in the sandbox!

Getting back on track

This past weekend I witnessed a melting pot of human bodies. I saw 70 year olds with staggering, stiff, shuffling steps. I saw 16 year olds- lean and sinewy- with the smooth beautiful cadence of youth. I saw blood, vomit, snot and much much more. All the while I looked on with both astonishment and amusement. Yes, I attended the largest 20K race in the country!!! Right here in Des Moines, IA- the Dam to Dam attracted approximately 4,500 20K runners (including my big brother)! It is quite an experience! The Isiserettes danced on the sidelines to their trademark drumline music, cheering on the runners. Live bands played as the runners descended the Des Moines River Bridge on their last mile. It was a great atmosphere!

It reminded me of a project we did in my class last semester, Creativity in Business. My group compared the creative process to a 10k race. We illustrated that creativity is a journey where you will encounter roadblocks and must overcome them, much like a road race. 4 weeks ago I was so excited to tackle the world with my creativity and new found knowledge. But life in general, and MBA 212: Data Analysis, have drained the creative juices from my brain. I've found myself already clawing and struggling to regain the momentum. So, watching the race this weekend was good. (Except for the man with the bloody nipples- that was not good. How does a person train for a race like that and not know about that little skin rub that runners encounter? Ewww!)

All in all, the race reminded that there will be setbacks in creativity and I have to dig down, utilizes the tools and resources I learned about, and keep the energy alive- even in the face of 6 weeks of summer Statistics classes!