A SpotsBug’s World

a few weeks of catch up

Okay so its been a few weeks since I posted last.  It has been a busy, busy few weeks.  I’ll catch you up on the happenings of my life with brief summaries… more detail to follow.

TSO performance – I went with my mother to see the Trans-Siberian Orchestra.  I enjoyed the show and realized that the stage was just as much one of the performers as each musician was.  The lightshow and stage movement work was amazing.  I think my mother enjoyed herself too and that’s the best thing.  I always enjoy my time with her.

Annie visit – Over Thanksgiving I kept Annie, one of my best friend’s dog.  She is the cutest Boston Terrier and was great visitor to have.  Very well behaved and I can’t complain.  My house actually felt a little empty after she left.

Grandma’s for dinner – I spent Thanksgiving Day with the people I love the most.  I had dinner at my grandmother’s house along with my aunt, uncle, mother, and boyfriend.  It was a nice day, wonderful weather, and allowed an opportunity to stop for a brief minute to count my blessings.

Carolina/Clemson game – My boyfriend and I took in the rival game at my friends’ house, Nick and Esther.  All I can say is GO CLEMSON!!!!!!!!

Mom’s second Thanksgiving feast – Mom usually cooks for Thanksgiving and since this year we went to my grandmother’s she cooked a secondary Thanksgiving meal on the Sunday after.  She had already thawed the turkey when my grandmother invited us so it had to be cooked anyway.  But it was a lovely meal shared with the two of the most precious people in my life – my mother and boyfriend.

catch a cold – Two weeks ago I caught a cold that knocked me out of work for two half days.  I’d try to go in and then would have to go home.  Nasty, nasty cold.  But I stocked up on Vitamin C and Tylenol Cold and that seemed to do the trick.

Chicago travel – I got all better in time to travel to Chicago for a work conference.  The city was beautiful all decorated for Christmas and it SNOWED!!!!!!!!  I’ll write more about this soon.

Christmas shopping – I have started Christmas shopping.  I have just a few more things to purchase to finalize this years gifts. 

more petsitting – I have also now become a professional petsitter apparently.  I checked in on Phoebe, my godcat, who is owned by the wonderful pair Matt & Shea.  And then the following weekend I was responsible for checking in on a trio that belong to Nick & Esther… they are Dusty, Ally, and Roscoe.

So that’s been my last few weeks.  Along with working, it has been extremely busy.  I’m hoping it will calm down soon so I can think.  But the holidays are making that difficult.  Hopefully I’ll have more time to write again and more frequently soon.  I still need to make final comments on my California trip and now Chicago as well.  Stay tuned…

CA trip part two: moments

Three weeks ago today I jetted off 3,000 miles across the country to California.  Until then the furthest west I had ever been in the continental U.S. was Chicago.  But after three flights and 10 hours of total travel time, I touched down in Monterey – what an exciting moment!                   

Once I got settled at the hotel, I decided to stretch my legs after my long day traveling in a cramped and freezing airplane.  I walked over one block and there it was, the beautiful Monterey Bay.  All the sailboats lined up in the harbor like soldiers in formation.  The water was a deep blue and it was sunny and warm.  The sounds of the water, seabirds flying overhead, and the distant barks of grumpy sea lions echoed off the shore.     

Before I knew it I had walked nearly two miles down to Cannery Row, now the location of some unique shops and restaurants.  I passed by the Monterey Canning Company and the Steinbeck Museum.  As I turned to walk back to the hotel, the sun began to set over the bay.  The world became quiet as the bay was colored orange and gold - what a spectacular moment!    

While in Monterey I made sure to make a visit to the Monterey Bay Aquarium – supposedly one of the best in the country.  This aquarium is doing outstanding work for conservation and research.  Housed inside were some of the largest tanks I have ever seen filled with all sorts of interesting and unique creatures.  Among my favorites were the very active and playful sea otters (so cute), the Kelp Forest aquarium, and the sharks seen in the Outer Bay exhibits – lots of fun moments.      

Aside from one overcast day, the weather was beautiful with temperatures around 70 and a gentle breeze off the water.  But even the overcast day was beautiful.  The varying shades of grays and blues allowed me to see the bay in a different light.  Instead of the clouds overshadowing or depressing the scenery, it simply took it all to a different level of beauty.  As I walked the shore on this particular day, I thought to myself about how this scene mirrors life.  Many times I feel like things aren’t going right or I feel sad or upset.  The clouds of life set in and invade my thoughts with negativity.  But after seeing this remarkable day, it made me think, life is beautiful all of the time no matter what we are going through or where we are.  We just have to seek out the value of each and every situation, be thankful for our blessings and we will find the grace and beauty of each and every moment. 

CA trip part one: conference

Instead of working my conference experience into all the other sights and activities of my California trip, I have decided to just write a separate post completely dedicated to the conference alone.  I have made it my first because: A.) most of you will find it the most boring, and B.) I haven’t totally gathered all my thoughts about what I would like write about for the rest of the trip.

I attended the Internet Librarian 2008 Conference in Monterey, CA.  And while this does sound like such a geeky event, it really was a wonderful conference.  I met lots of interesting people, attended some really great sessions, and chatted with some vendors about how their products could potentially help our projects here at home. 

Most of the workshops I attended were specifically geared towards web design, web 2.0, and tools & gadgets that can help distribute and use information in much more efficient ways.  Of course, as is the trend, most every speaker hammered in the principles of collaboration, freedom of information, and bridging the technology gap. 

There were a handful though that when I stood up and walked out of the room, I felt fired up and ready to go take on the world – or at least my workplace.  A couple of these speakers really hit home on some issues and presented in a style that made the room electric, the ideas start flowing, and I, along with everyone else, just felt extremely motivated.  It is always refreshing to hear these types of speakers.  It always seems that just at the moment I get a teensy bit burnt out or am just feeling stressed and overworked, someone like this comes along and provides the exact pep talk I need to hear.  It’s just the fuel I need to refill the tank and keep fighting the good fight. 

I also met some really interesting people in my field from all over the world.  One specific individual is a researcher for the president of her country and prepares his information packets on current events, dignitaries, history, etc…  It was fascinating chatting with her over dinner one night and again for lunch the next day.  We discussed politics, our cultures, current events, and sports.  I was very impressed with her knowledge of all these things.  I will be looking forward to keeping in touch with her over time and continuing to compare notes on our profession and the world around us.

So anyway, I am extremely glad for the opportunity to have been able to go.  It was well worth the time – I brought back so many ideas, helpful tools, and motivation.  My boss even told me he almost hates to send me to these things because I always come back full of information to dump on him.  I tell him though, isn’t that why he sends me????  Go figure…  Anyway, as I noted earlier, the actual trip experiences I will share in later posts.  But the conference was great and I really enjoyed it.