2021 Rapidly Closes

Family shot for 2021

Well, 2021 was a fast-paced year of projects. I was working for the Edmonton Police Service as a solution architect. As the year closed, another opportunity presented itself and I have moved on to take that role starting in the new year. I am grateful that my skills and experience have been in demand over the years. I look forward to new challenges.

2021 was a year that saw change for everyone. As we all strived to stay safe in the light of the global pandemic. I was lucky that my job afforded me the ability to work from home. Going forward, my new employer has the same approach. So, I will be working from home for the foreseeable future. Not a terrible thing. The commute is nice, and the food is good even though I must fix it myself.

My wife continues to work on the front lines of health care and my son will be going to school in person again. With the rapid arrival of the new variant, I will be interested to see if that changes. I got my third vaccine shot just before Christmas. Not a terrible experience. The side effects were minor. I did not really suffer that badly. I know everyone is different, but based on my experience, it was worth it to get the shot and have a better chance of milder symptoms when I do catch COVID.

I say when because this wave will be unavoidable. I don’t think there is any chance that I won’t catch it this time. With the exposure my family has it will only be a matter of when. So, I pray I have enough immunity built up to make it seem like a bad cold.

At any rate, I am looking forward to a new year and new challenges. I hope that we can start to finally see hope with this pandemic. I am looking forward to spring and warmer temps as the cold we are experiencing at Christmas is brutal.

Good fortune to everyone this year. May this be the year we get back to something approximating normal.

2020 Was a Blur and 2021 Continues

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So, 2020 was a bit of a blur because not long after it began, the pandemic hit! 2020 started out with a lot of promise. January saw the family making a trip to Disneyland. That was a lot of fun. We visited Legoland, Disneyland, and Seaworld.

It was an interesting trip. There were lots of sights to see, but the part of the trip that seemed resonate with my son the most was the visit to Galaxy’s Edge. We got to tour around the little bit of Star Wars that was created for us tourists. Tyson and I both built our own lightsabers. Tyson built a droid. We saw lots of characters and bought way too much expensive stuff. The coolest experience for me was being able to crew the Millenium Falcon on an adventure. That was so much fun, we had to go back and do it again.

February saw me starting a new job. That was interesting to get to know people and work in an unfamiliar environment. But, then March came and with it the COVID 19 Pandemic. Suddenly, I was working from home and struggling to connect with my new coworkers. It was a distinct experience. Well, like a previous work environment where I worked from home alternate weeks. But now, it was every day. Everyone has struggled to make the transition to working virtually.

That work experience has continued right into 2021. At one point there was hope. We were facing the possibility of going back to the office by the end of September. But, now with the resurgence of the pandemic, that is unlikely to happen until the New Year.

Like everyone else, I struggle to keep a bit of normal in my life. Throughout the pandemic, we have tried to stay connected with friends and family. I hosted family gatherings at Christmas 2020 for my family and my wife’s family. We started a tradition of Saturday night date night via virtual meetings. The circle has grown but we continue to stay connected.

I have to say I am of two minds on what happens next. I would like to be able to see things return to the way they were. But, at the same time, I know we must wait until we can do so safely. Being a man approaching his senior years, I am cognizant of my limitations. I want everyone to be safe.

Here is looking forward to the remainder of 2021 and the hope that mankind can come together to slay this dragon. Unfortunately, the prognosis is not good. Many people remain resistant to doing what is good for public good. I guess it would be easy to say that people are becoming more selfish in their attitudes. However, history shows us that there have always been doubters. The unfortunate reality is that that herd will thin as we face more of these challenges.

Here is to keeping safe and living a full life. I hope we all start to realize that what is good for others is often good for the individual, as well.

Stay Safe!

Reflections on Life in 2019

So, it is 2019. I settled into a stationery lifestyle. It is funny how you start to miss something after you give it up. The travel in my previous life was over the top, but even still, my feet feel itchy on occasion.  But, then I go home and remember why I gave all of that up and the itch goes away fairly quickly.

The last three years of my life were a blur as I dove into community activities. I served three years on the executive for my Toastmasters district. It was a lot of work, but I enjoyed the opportunity to give back to my fellow members. There were lots of moments that were very rewarding. Sometimes you feel like it is all work and no fun, but then there are those moments when you touch someone’s life in a positive way and it makes it all worthwhile.

At this point, I am still involved in serving my district, but in a lesser role. My wife does not believe it, but I feel the weight of responsibility lifted from my shoulders. Now I am working more behind the scenes and eventually will get to work on something that will be fun for me. I have a couple special projects in mind that will help me to pass the time every effectively and continue to give back to the district.

One of my projects may even have commercial spin-off potential. I will keep that thought in mind as I work on it. But, we shall see. Would love to build something that starts to generate some income for me. My dream would be to build a cool software widget that could fund my life to a point that I could quit workin’ for the man.

At any rate, 2019 has been good to date. Lots of activities going on before the end of the year. But, hopefully it will all be fun stuff. If I can get my work and home lives more in sync then I think life will be perfect. Have to keep working on the work part of it.

Pokemon Go

Ok. So i thought this was going to be dumb and it does remind me of the Star Trek Next Generation episode where aliens tried to infiltrate the federation by introducing a game that turned everyone into obedient zombies.

Well it might be exactly like that but it is fun and i have caught 11 so far and collected stuff from various stops.

So if nothing else it has me walking around which is good. Just have avoid becoming the target of people who hunt poke hunters.

Home Sweet Home!

You never know what you are missing until it is gone. Such was my life. On paper, my previous job seemed like a good idea. But, after three years, it became apparent that it was not.

Travel is something that some people enjoy. Me too, in moderation. Unfortunately my life had become a constant travel situation. I was missing out on seeing my family every day. I also gave up my connection to the community which I guess I had taken for granted.

Now that I have that life back, I feel a sense of peace and contentment coming back into my life. I look forward to connecting with old friends more and spending time with my family.

I guess you have to try something different once in a  while to really discover what is truly important to your life and happiness. I am looking forward to my new adventure.

Twas The Night Before Christmas

And all through the house, not a creature was stirring. Not even an elf! Our Elf on the Shelf, Surey went home to the North Pole this morning. He left us a flurry of selfies taken on the printer. He has gone back to help Santa get ready for Christmas. And, I am sure to tell Santa what a good little boy Tyson has been during his visit.

It has been a lot of fun having Surey visit. But, his departure means one thing … one more sleep until it is Christmas Day!!! Yay!!!!!

Merry Christmas to everyone.

Ho! Ho! Ho! Merry Christmas …

Well, it is that time of year again. The time when we eat too much, spend too much and hopefully drink too much. But it is also the time of year that we all should be reflecting on our blessings. Sometimes it is hard to do that with all the stuff that is going on in the world, but I hope at once in a while, we can pause and reflect on the good things we have.

As I watch what is going on in the world, I reflect that we all have a long way to go to learn about building a world of tolerance. It may seem like that is impossible with all the hatred that is flowing, but I have faith that one day we will put aside our differences and come together as a species. If that requires an alien invasion before it takes place, then bring it on! Just kidding. But, I do think that it will take a great deal of hardship to force us to put aside our differences. I wish it were otherwise, but history is full of examples where it had to get worse before it got better.

At this time I want to wish one and all the best of the season. For those that follow the Christian tradition of Christmas, enjoy the blessings of the season. Have fun, be safe and sip a little wine. Just a little.

For all of us, let’s look deep in our soul and find that spark of kindness and compassion that will allow us to reach out to our fellow man. Let’s all dig deep to expand our minds to understand what is different, not fear it. If we can reach out to others with respect and dignity, I think we will go a long way on that path to universal peace and understanding.

All the best for the New Year! I hope it brings new opportunities for all of you. And, I am sorry, but I am going to win the lottery, so the rest of you are out of luck. Ha! Ha! A man can dream, can’t he?

Peace, joy and happiness to everyone. From my family to yours. Have a great holiday season and try not to over do it.

Our Family Christmas e-Card

You can go back in time … but things are seldom like the “old days”

The sign at the end of Main Street in my home town of Quill Lake, Saskatchewan.

Last weekend was an opportunity to visit my roots. We made a trip to Quill Lake, my home town. My lovely niece had gotten married, in Pakistan. Now we were getting an opportunity to meet the man that swept her off her feet.

It is always interesting to make a trip back in time. I had not really been in Quill Lake for many years. Not since my mom had left. It is always interesting to go back and run into people you knew growing up. On this trip, there were lots of people that I got a chance to catch up with.

We got there early. So, I took the 2 mile side trip to show my son where I grew up. He was pretty underwhelmed when I pulled into an approach overlooking a field and said “This is where I grew up!” He was confused as none of the buildings are there anymore. The trees that surrounded us on three sides are gone. All you see is a field with a crop in it. Kind of sad. But, what can you expect. We sold our farm to a large corporate farmer. To him, it was just another piece of land. No sentimental attachment there.

The profile of the town is changed, as well. I remember driving into town and the skyline being adorned with multiple grain elevators. Now they are all gone. Replaced by a larger and more modern looking terminal East of town. It certainly changes the way the town looks as you drive in.

My old neighbor from the farm at Quill Lake

I did get to visit with our old neighbor, Cliff. He was glad to see one of the Walker boys show up at this shindig. It was nice to see him. Time has changed us both, but we were able to strike up a conversation like it was yesterday. I saw many people I knew growing up. Many made a point of coming to say hi. It was heartwarming to be recognized and to still be welcome in the old hood.

My lovely niece and her new husband.

It was a fast trip into the future. Lots of driving to get from Edmonton to Saskatoon to Quill Lake and back. But, in the end it was nice to go for a visit. I enjoyed spending my time there and it was really more about going to celebrate with my niece. Which, I guess I should include a picture of her here, as well. She was very busy with all her guests. It was an excellent turnout. There were a lot of people there to enjoy the festivities.

I will include a few more pictures taken as we arrived at the entry to Main Street Quill Lake.

Standing in front of the goose in Quill Lake, Saskatchewan

The entry to Quill Lake on Main Street. A little bit of history of the region.

Goose at the head of Main Street Quill Lake

My nephew and grand-nephew.

My lovely niece and her new husband.

The Surface RT turns into dead end!

So I blogged about how much I loved my Surface RT some time back.  I still have it, but turns out that it is a dead end on the Microsoft evolution path. Windows 10 will not support the RT platform. Bummer! Well, I side stepped the problem by buying something else. Money solves many issues.  The Lenovo ThinkPad Yoga was the answer for me. I love it for versatility and performance.  Supports Windows 10, or should I say Windows 10 supports it. It was the option that gave me the best of both worlds : a tablet and a kick ass laptop.

Did I Mention I Love My Surface RT?

In the current market place there are a number of players in the tablet space. Most are familiar with the offerings from Apple. As well, a number of people have adopted the Android based platforms. I was one of them. My first tablet experience was with an ASUS Transformer 101. Excellent tablet! Durable. It has to be because once my son came on the picture he became obsessed with things technological. It got to the point I could not use my tablet with him around. So, the solution was simple. Give it to him and get another one. I upgraded to the ASUS Transformer 300. A nice tablet as well.

But, the news came out that Microsoft was launching its line of Windows 8 tablets. The Surface RT intrigued me from the start. It had many features that I felt made it a far more useful machine for me. Why? Because I liked to use my tablet for actual work. I know! What a dumb thing to do. Using Android based tablets was frustrating because I felt the support for common file formats that I used every day was severely lacking. Windows 8 RT came bundled with Microsoft Office 2013 Home and Student. That gave me Word, Excel and PowerPoint. Not to mention OneNote.

I hummed and hawed. Did I need to spend the cash on a new tablet. Fortunately, I was able to find a buyer for my Transformer. I used that cash to offset the cost of the Surface RT and the rest is history. I purchased the VGA adapter so that I could connect it to my projector. I was impressed that things like my presentation remote (also a Microsoft product) worked when I plugged it in. I have done several presentations without a hitch. Having the real software, in this case PowerPoint, makes a big difference.

True, I don’t have access to the vast array of games etc. that iPad and Android owners have. But, I am not a big gamer. Like I said, I use it for work primarily, and I think it is particularly well suited for that. My only regret is that I had not been more patient and waited for the Pro version. I may still upgrade at some point in the future. A colleague waited and has essentially replaced his laptop with the Surface Pro. I probably would never be able to do that. I am a bit more of a power user when it comes to the laptop, but it certainly would be nice to install software from other sources than the Windows Store.

So, if you ask yourself what tablet is right for you, I would answer it depends. However, if you are looking for a tablet that can support you at work primarily, the Surface is not a bad choice. Many other vendors have produced their own version. The other vendors tend to be going the non RT route. I think the limitations of RT are a nuisance at times, but generally it is a good platform for the basics. As the store grows, there will be more options. And now, because people were not buying, the price was cut by a $100. So, a better deal.

Windows 8.1 will change the game somewhat. There are some enhancements. Hopefully that will drive more interest. Not sure the RT platform is long for this world. Too bad. I think it has its place in the tablet space. But, unfortunately, not enough of the rest of the world thinks that is the case.

Unfortunate!