Enumerated Update

This is a day late due to the mandatory Easter update, but here's the skinny:

1)  Overwhelmed: For some reason, we have not recovered from spring break.  When William George was born, we were surprised at how "easy" a single baby is.  Having managed infant twins, I often joked that carting George around was like carrying a purse.  The ease of George carried over into all aspects of life.  When he was up during the night, there was only one baby to feed and coax back to sleep.  Logistically, transporting George is unbelievably simple.  With the duo, I had a very large double stroller.  A former client saw the rig once and asked if I needed a CDL to operate it.  You can't simply pick up two babies, your purse and hop in the car.  With George, however, things are so simple that we sometimes get a little overconfident.

For example, when traveling, packing is easier.  There aren't two pack-and-plays, the double stroller, etc.  However, traveling with a small child is still similar to a military operation, what with all of the gear and equipment.  In our overconfidence, we sometimes forget that there's still a lot to pack and carry (even though it's roughly half of what we previously transported), and then we find ourselves wiped out because we haven't managed our own expectations.

We are still tired from vacation.

2)  Birthday: Skip's dad had a birthday while we were on spring break.  We finally got together to celebrate, sing and have some good cake.  Gracie's still the birthday leader, but William George really likes to celebrate, too.

Happy birthday, Papa!

3) Friends: We recently reconnected with some old friends from high school and got together for dinner. We had fun, and are always amazed by the power of social media to bring people together. 

4) Compliments: While running an errand in the Saturday-before-Easter crowd, a fellow shopper - a woman - looked up and said, "Oh my gosh! You are so pretty!"  She totally made my day and reminded me to never underestimate the power of a compliment (mental note: give more compliments).

5) Pomodoro Technique: Do you use this efficiency technique? If you're unfamiliar, the technique merely involves setting a timer and working against the clock to see how much can be accomplished (more here) during a set time frame.  I used this technique constantly when I worked, and Skip recently started setting timers for the duo when they have tasks to complete. They take their tasks and the ticking clock very seriously.

6) Blackberry: In an ideal scenario, the smart phone market would be dominated by Apple, and Blackberry would command the business sector.  (I have a longstanding grudge against the market leader, who shall remain nameless.)  Blackberry's profitability news keeps them in the game, but I think the Washington Post correctly describes their quarterly earnings report as a "mixed bag".

7) Lingo: This is an odd reveal. There is a quirky aspect of work that I find myself missing.  You know how the business world has its buzz words and esoteric vernacular?  I never used any of that language seriously, but I would toss some of it around ironically.  At the least, I was always amused at whatever lingo was trending at any given moment. 

As a related side note, I have a former acquaintance whose inner work circle used to hand down "challenges" over the instant messenger.  The challenge was that a certain word -- usually something ridiculously buzz word-y -- had to be used during a conference call.  His most memorable challenge was "shark bite," and he executed the challenge flawlessly:

"If we don't respond to "x" with "y" quickly, it's gonna be a real shark bite for us next quarter."

In the spirit of cheesy corporate lingo, I'm sharing one with you today.  This one has been around for a while; remember, I don't exactly sit in an office any longer.  Ready? 

"Open kimono," defined as revealing information.

Example: "We're going to open the kimono a little and tell you we are wiped out from our vacation." 

or

Example:  "We're going 'open kimono' and letting them know we're interested in the house." 

I don't know why that sort of thing cracks me up, but it always does. 

And that is what is happening with us.  What is going on with you?  How was your weekend?