Monday, October 10, 2011

un-hibernating

inspire and create ... thanks @deedottiedot for your creative thoughts, ideas, and support. and for the no-need-to-over-analyze, go-with-gut-feel encouragement. time for me to un-hibernate and select a dang wordpress theme for anthrocubeology.

un-hibernating ... from this, i want another excuse to have a bar graph where my october activity exceeds september. done. and like the stay-cation i had a few weeks ago, on this faux holiday (of columbus day), i'm back in brainstorming creativity mode.

gimme tunes ... for creativity mode, i likes me my music - full album. this afternoon's choice? lamb (on website, myspace, youtube, twitter), of which gorecki is one of my faves! nevertheless, for now ...

lamb's
between darkness & wonder

Sunday, October 9, 2011

got academic probation?

sure ... just a couple of times (or was it a few times?) during my 5 years in college. it's what happens when things like this happen during class. (sweet!)

nostalgia ... thanks, sci-fi guy, for returning a couple of notebooks. i totally enjoyed this little find in my chem e 140 (elements of chemical process analysis) notebook. (you know, the class i took over? was it a class sci-fi guy took over, too? i know it was the one with that cute guy - WB #1 guy - who was taking the class over? ... yes, that one.)

score?! ... after looking over problem sets that apparently i worked on, it was a bit of a roller coaster. and after reading the table of contents of one of my lab books - what the heck?

  • viscosity of a polymer solution
  • knudsen effusion method for vapor pressure determination
  • bomb calorimetry (heat of combustion)
  • adsorption from solution of organic dyes
  • infrared adsorption spectrum of HCl, DCl, and CH4
  • acid catalyzed inversion of sucrose (polarimetry)
  • mean activity coefficient of HCl by EMF measure
what the ...?!
eh?!

Friday, October 7, 2011

f|back (oct '07): i'm here

four year's ago ... @jenimvt and @billn6 welcomed me to their vermont home. in fact, this is when my soul sister love affair with harold's gal began, and a fabulous friendship was borne. shortly after starting in cubeopolis, i took my already-planned vacation to visit my friends in massachusetts and vermont. my plan? not much, really. just wanted to head east. this mini-vacation was my east coast virgin leaf-peeping experience, along with many other perks.

miss you all - xoxo -
jen, bill, junior, and senior!


(repost from 10/06/2007)
gonna see some colors
and drive around.


got my triple a maps + tourbook. got rental car. got airline tix. got credit cards. fly in to bradley int'l (ct), stay with friend in northampton (ma) for a couple of days, haul it up to somewhere in (vt) for a couple of days with billn + family & bop around wherever, then back down to (ma) before returning to (ca).

small tragic realization this morning? ... and i realized i left lennie (my iPod) at work. sh**!

solution? ... buy foliage (lennie's iPod nano buddy - video baby!) along with a little case and power adapter. can NOT be without m'music.

[thanks, andy f, for the apple gift card last christmas.
continued to go to great use!]


(repost from 10/10/2007)
... just like i said i would be.
it's all about
highways/interstates/routes

(we no say "freeways")


... and coffee


... the capitol

... and cool stuff like old bridges

and cow-stuff
(moo?)

real cheese


ice cream

BONUS?!

lunch in plainfield, vt


Tuesday, October 4, 2011

f|back (oct '06): h.s. reunion time

five years have passed ... yes 5! it's high school reunion time! the last time, it was my 25th. do the math.

in 2006 ... i was amidst relo-ing from san diego to the bay area - literally in the midst of ... working in SD, flying up to meet the movers and unpack, going to the 25th reunion, then flying back down afterwards, and then driving back-up the next weekend with what little i had to get me through a work week and ... several goodbye brunches, lunches, happy hours, dinners, bopping around SD, and a few client meetings.

now in 2011 ... i JUST signed up (thanks to deedee!), so i'll once again keep my 5th-year reunion pact-ish with louis. (ha!)

(flashback post - repost from 10/15/2006 - "25th reunion: quick thoughts & recap" ... some aged hyperlinks have been removed)


amidst the move activities, if you note the sched,

yesterday eve (10/14)
was my 25th high school reunion!
[class pic1]

[... 25th h.s. reunion? ... feel free to do the math, if you're bored and have found some loose change in your sofa or in other people's cars ... you can buy me a b-day/housewarming gift - perhaps gift card(s)/certificates from ... oh, say ... target, cost plus, sur la table, west elm, pottery barn, flor, room and board, dwr, smart furniture ... or some new pillows? o.k. ... if not, that's alright.]

[class pic2]

(so for dave's benefit ... here we go!)

pics will be posted here/there over the coming week's posts
as i get pics
from friends + my own camera
[sally, deb, shirl, valerie]
recap from start ... louis picked me up @ 5 pm (the agreed upon time), and i was not yet ready (of course) but not ready 'cuz 1/2-way through the blow-drying of the hair (prior to the straightening), the dryer started smoking ... and smoke alarm went off. (nice touch) took requisite pic w/dapper-looking-louis! (nice shoes, dude!) left ~ 5:20 pm to find out we'd be in traffic (880 north on a sat eve?! wtf?) ... so we missed the pre-reunion drinks at the hotel bar ... but there was another 'special bar' for the reunion folks.
[shirl, laura, ariel]
to the sign-in table ... caught up with deb, pat, valerie, laura, ariel on our way **to** the bar ... as they were heading **to** the reunion area. also met jack, who was in our class, on the way to the sign-in. walked w/them all to reunion get our name tags. checked out all the other names (aka other attendees). drinks to the left + dinner/ballroom to the right. yeah ... we turned left!
[valerie, laura]
drink room ... small, intimate setting, conducive to chit-chat stuff. round 1 - on pat (thanks!) ... and the start of the --- "omg" ... "who's that?" ... "isn't that ___?" ... "s/he looks totally the same!" ... "did we go to school w/that person?"... "what a cute dress?" ... "what does his name tag say?" ... "they are still together?!" ... "i don't think s/he'll remember me." ... "i'm going to say hi to him/her" ... "i had a crush on ___." ... "i'd like to see ___." ... "how many reunions have you attended?" ... "are there any teachers here?" ... "vodka gimlet over, please" ... "don't leave me alone" ... "where's my camera?" ... "how many kids?!" ... "and the top 5 are ___" ...
[valerie, brian, robert, raelene]
ballroom for dinner & dance ... tables of 10 ... and there were 8-9 tables ?! ... at ours - louis, me, laura, ariel, valerie, deb, pat, raelene, robert + empty. great table and great conversation! cameras all over the place. prime rib or chicken piccata or wild mushroom ravioli. survey says - not so great on the p-rib. chick o.k. and ravioli is ravioli. chocolate cake dessert - enough of a thumbs up. yes, spouses attended, also.
[deb + spouse pat (aka camera man)]
music for dinner & dance ... hopefully SOMEONE has a pic of the DJs ... really. and they did play brick house (ugh!) and the rest of the late 70s/80s music. just an evening of ... name that tune.
[glenn, cathy, arier, shirl, sally, louis]

[class pic3]

o.k. - more pics and thoughts later ...

(flashback sequence over)

this saturday ...
it's 30th h.s. reunion time
(wow .. thirty!)

Monday, October 3, 2011

f|break: monday morn

the simpsons ... AND john kricfalusi?! YES!!! john kricfalusi (on facebook, blog) known to many because of ren & stimpy (on wiki).

AWESOME surprise during the couch gag!

(image from john k's blog over here)

also check out sarah harkey's blog over here and john kedzie's blog over here for a few more images and a little bit more about how this all came about!

enjoy this quick morning fiber break -
an excerpt of the simpson's couch gag (over here)
- for ~36 seconds with the simpsons

Sunday, October 2, 2011

f|break: sunday

comedy ... and love, SNL style. that bar closing, potential time for booty call love between bar fly characters played by andy samberg and melissa mcarthy, who hosted SNL yesterday (outrageous fun!).

enjoy this fiber break chatter (over here)
for ~ 3:24 min with complaints

yelps like a sick dog
vinegar
i'm a screamer but not the kind you're thinking



humility - get accountable

key practices ... with @greenleafcenter and @jeffmiller79, the first class was on september 9, and our second class (of five) was september 30.

got started ... the week before our first class, i shared a bit over here, including a description of course requirements, what we've been asked to do as part of preparing for first class, a list of our required reading, and a tools for consideration. and as part of my staycation on sept. 2, i squatted at paddy's finishing up part of the first class reading assignment.

humilty is ... as shared in the preface of hayes/comer book - start with humility (over here) -
"Humility is of course a highly personal thing. It is about one's values and attitudes about oneself, others , and the world in which we live. Humility is affected by spiritual issues, the ego, and practical, daily pressures."
the humility dynamic ... with an emphasis in taking action, start with humility proposes what is called "the humility dynamic" - humanness/authenticity + humble behaviors results in trust/response and can lead to inspired followers.

and then i was reminded of a recent movie,
due date (over here) with a quote (over here).
have a little break for ~ 6 seconds with zack galifianakis

"you better check yourself before you wreck yourself"


check yourself ...
i enjoyed the book, particularly given shared stories/profiles of people and the 'workbook' format that encourages self-reflection and action for developing and sustaining humble behaviors. by building upon the definitions, behaviors, actions, and what are characterized as humble responses from the authentic core, part of evolving toward humble behaviors references daniel goleman's primal leadership for the following pattern -
  • self-assessment
  • motivation
  • practice
  • feedback
- with these four steps later described as train the brain. essentially, self-improvement doesn't just come from simply saying you understand and agree with something you read. there is a learning do-loop, coupled with behavioral change.

self-awareness ... the key - making adjustments through self-awareness. 5 profiles are shared, linking each person's humble behavior story to a particular key word - accountability, kindness, open-mindedness, appreciation, modesty. following each profile is a workbook format for completing a leadership self-assessment and leadership actions, e.g., actions one would take regarding humility to enhance one's leadership.

coaching tip take-aways ... after the 5 profiles, behaviors associated with 6 humble competency areas are listed. several coaching tips for building behaviors in a particular competency area are provided. the 6 humble behavior competency areas addressed -
  • accountability
  • kindness
  • open-mindedness
  • advocacy
  • appreciation
  • modesty
check myself ... the last chapter of the book - sustainability - putting into action what you have learned - emphasizes the benefits of making and sustaining behavioral changes. a distinction is made between targeting the brain's neo-cortex rather than the limbic brain -
"The neo-cortex is where we learn facts and figures, remember basic concepts, and process analytical and technical concepts. The limbic part of the brain is the part that governs feelings, impulses, and drives (in other words, those behaviors that often get us in trouble at work). ... The limbic brain learns through motivation, extended practice, and feedback."
believe ... the train the brain steps are coupled with the foundation of belief. an overview of The Belief System™ (from authors thad green and merywn hayes, who authored a book over here ) is summarized as -
"basically says that when it comes to motivation, what a person believes is often more important that what really is. ... believe the can make the change ... believed there will be an outcome or consequence if they make the change ... be something they want ... Belief 1 - Confidence, Belief 2 - Trust, and Belief 3 - Satisfaction ... much more to the The Belief System™ ... basics will be enough to show how the concept applies to behavioral change."
train my brain in three areas ... as part of the book's message, when applying the behavioral change concept, three specific changes should be identified. after choosing the three areas to change, the train the brain four steps of self-assessment, motivation, practice and feedback are engaged.

the assessment of "what's what" ... there are certainly several behavioral changes i can make. at this time, the humble behaviors (associated with the humble comptency) i have chosen - with references to a few coaching tips (provided in the book) and lessons learned that were shared as part of the 5 profiles - are a follows -
  • being an effective listener (kindness) - understand the ideas and feelings expressed by others. listen entirely to the other person, concentrating on what the other person is saying and recognizing that the person's ideas are important to them.
    • practice using silence. you can't listen while you're talking. pause three seconds before answering questions.
    • lessons learned as shared in the profile of alex gregory, ykk corporation
      • find your voice ...
      • show people you really care ...
      • drive change by building trust ...

  • managing emotions (open-mindedness) - aware of one's impact on others but also utilize one's own self assessment to tap into the emotions of others to get positive results.
    • pay attention to the time between stimulus and response. in order to neutralize the response from your hot buttons, don't respond in the moment. instead leave some breathing room between whey you want to emotionally respond and when you actually respond.
    • lessons learned as shared in the profile of general frederick m. franks, jr., u.s. army (ret.)
      • all you have to do is ask ...
      • let go of your ego and you will fuel winners ...
      • have courage to be who you are ...
  • developing others (appreciation) - ways to ensure others are growing and developing personally and professionally. "other oriented" - interested in the growth of others and not constantly grabbing opportunities for themselves.
    • ensure you know others' strengths. check on your perceptions of their strengths by talking with them about their strengths and development areas.
    • lessons learned as shared in the profile of linda combs, former controller OMB
      • celebrate the accomplishments of others ...
      • be tough on problems - but gentle with people ...
      • encourage others to grow and develop their talents ...
      • make time to remind people they are important - they really are! ...
motivation, practice, feedback ... in a follow-up post (or posts), i'll include more about the three humble behavior improvements i have chosen and the following steps i have already been taking -
  • motivation - how to make the behavior stick as in "i believe i can make this change and that its result will be beneficial for me because ..."
  • practice - use of coaching tips on a daily basis, specific, measurable, and on-going as in "specifically this is what i plan to do differently on my job, at home, etc.) starting tomorrow ..."
  • feedback - reinforce the practice (or changed behavior); ensure behavior is constantly happening as in "i will ensure i am getting appropriate feedback on this change by: (example: asking for peer feedback, meeting with my manager, etc.) ..."
thank you ... meanwhile, thanks to l.a.g. and shiny penny andy for being part of my feedback process. others are welcome!

"crucible moments are transformational experiences
that often define a person's worldview or philosophy"

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