I Got New Glasses...

I figured after 10 years it was about time!

Oh and I got few other things as well. A new dog (just picked her up tonight) and a new job.

The most important, the dog. She is 1.25 years old and a yellow lab. She is pretty small but stocky. Her name from the breeder was Tennie and she knows it a bit so we are going to keep it. Tennie seems to dig the kids and is already attached to Brooke and I. She has already taken her place on the begging line while we are making dinner.

I started a new job on Oct 1. Finally got that offer I could not refuse. It is a BIG change as I am now working from home 100% of the time. The company is a start-up so travel (unless client funded) will be minimal. Working from home has been a switch. I go days without leaving the house. It is hard to separate the house and work. Once I fall into my groove I should be fine.

One of the nice things about working at home is I can pop out for a run a bit more. October has been busy with everything going on. All 3 kids were home and we think 2 of them had H1N1 (typical symptoms of Swine Flu but never got them tested). The older 2 spent several days at home and the baby just 1. The baby has a bit of something now but does not seem to be the same symptoms as the others and/or H1N1.

Coaching soccer this year has been fun. The boys can be a bit challenging but they are really a blast. Their results have been mixed. I realized today (at our 8 AM game!!) that we have not faired so well with these early morning games. Aidan's soccer has been great this year. I have not been able to make it to all her games with coaching the boy's team but she is doing awesome! She scored 3 times today!

That's about it. I won't rant about anything today since it has been a while since I posted anything. But I heard some good stuff on NPR today about how to the environmental push! :)

3 - 2 - 1 - 2

Yesterday I finally hit the top of the Peak for a run at high altitude. I like to do this more often than just once and not a week before the Ascent but…I will take what I can get!

The workout that I did is a modified Ladder workout. A Ladder is when you start at the top of Pikes Peak, rundown 3 miles to A-Frame, run back up 3 miles. Rundown 2 miles, run back up 2 miles. Rundown 1 mile then back up 1 mile. I learned the modified Ladder last year and after 2 friends twisted their ankles about a week or two before last year’s Ascent, it is a main stay of mine now. The point of the modified Ladder is to still get the high altitude training but lessen the risk of running down (not to mention the stress on your body!). Anyone who has ever hiked the peak knows how rocky the top mile is. Avoiding running down that is key.

So, a modified ladder is 3 down, 2 up, 1 down, 2 up (3-2-1-2). I did this yesterday not only for the training but also just for a mental check off. I will (hopefully) feel better in the race being on familiar trails. The last 3 miles is tough but I like it. I geeked out and took a few pics on the trail! Here you go.

3 Miles to the top. Elevation, 11,500 feet. This is A Frame.

The view of Colorado Springs from A Frame.

2 Miles to go to the top. Elevation, 12,700 feet

Looking up the trail from the 2 miles to go sign.

This is at almost the 1 mile to go sign. This is a long traverse that is just a nice confidence booster. There is an Aid Station during the Ascent right in the middle there. They actually run hoses down from the Summit house!

1 Mile to go. Elevation is about 13,000 feet. The distance between 2 and 1 to go is less than a mile but it all evens out once you get to the top...

The Cirque is just a few feet past the 1 mile to go sign. This is the home of the El Paso Country Search and Rescue Kazoo Band during the Ascent! Last year, they opted not to play the Kazoo but were handing out plastic trash bags (it was a BAD year in 2008!).

The 16 Golden Stairs. There is nothing F-ing Golden about these! The 16 'stairs' are actually made up of 32 180 degree switch backs. This is longest quarter mile of your life!

I don't remember which "Stair" number this was but you can see the Summit house up there.

"I am done." That is about all the smile I could eek out after my workout! It was tough.

WOW! A New Post?!?

Its been a while since I posted anything…again. We have been pretty busy lately. Summer has gone by quick and the 2 older ones start school next week!

We have been pretty busy so far. We ran the Barr Trail Mountain Race in July. Brooke beat me but only 4 minutes this time! I have the Ascent this Saturday. My training has been pretty lacking but I am still hopeful to finally break that 4 hour mark!

Most importantly, there is a new coat of paint on the house! Woo-hoo! This was a lot of hard work. Not by me, but by Brooke and her Dad. :) I was in charge of moving the scaffolding and holding the ladders. We also have 6 of the last 7 windows in the house! So, we have been just a little on the busy side.

Everyone will be headed back to school in the next few weeks. We opted not to do the Nanny thing this year (our Nanny from last year is working on her Masters and has to go full time this year). We will be using a neighborhood preschool for the ‘baby’. I plan on working from home a couple of days a week. It may move to even more than that depending on what happens. I have also agreed to take on Cullen’s soccer team as the coach this year. I am pretty excited about it. I went out and bought a whistle and a clip-board. I really am a geek!

Twitter

I have been getting questions lately from people about Twitter. I decided to put together this presentation in case people want to learn, sign up and getting going on Twitter. There are a lot of resources on the web in regards to how to use Twitter for lots of different things. This is just a beginners' guide in my little mind. I hope you enjoy it:

Twitter

View more documents from guestea292b1b.

Value Experience (VX)

The Value Experience (VX) has been knocking around my head for a few weeks now. Thanks to a little banter with @pbultema from CodeBaby on Twitter (thanks Patrick!); it seems to have knocked some things loose.

I was thinking about how we have evolved from 'User Interface' (UI) to now calling it 'User Experience' (UX). As product managers, executives and entrepreneurs, we want strive to create an experience for those that use our system. But, it goes beyond the 'users'. We strive to increase sales, market share, install base, etc, etc. To accomplish these goals, no matter what kind of a company you have, we have to look beyond the 'User'. We have to provide an experience at all levels of touch that our product and company has with the "outside world".

For this, I have started using the term Value Experience (VX).

VX is the experience that makes up our product(s). It certainly encompasses a good UX but the value that is gained from that UX, may be different for different people. We have to understand our market. For example, if I have a flashy, cool UI for an insurance application what does that get me? What if the page takes so long to load, none of the agents actually can get it filled out? What value have I brought my product? None.

At the core of the VX is understanding your market. No. Scratch that. It is not “understanding your market”, it is being an expert in your market. How would I know whether or not a flashy UI with talking graphics is going to resonate with my market? Be a market expert. This is not just for vendors to take on this role but the buyers and business champions that buy these products. You too have to know what your market is.

I am not picking on flashy UI applications in particular, I love them! But, they do have a time and place. The VX touches many other pieces of the company as well. Sales, Marketing, Support (Do not forget about support!! So much we can learn from here!), Engineering, R&D. I will touch on different areas of my vision for the VX in additional posts through the next several weeks.

Need to post...

I know, I know. Been a while. I have had good intentions!

Good Triathlon this past weekend. The official results got a little messed up so as soon as they are up there, I will detail the race.

Twitter Challenge!

This is for anyone on Twitter or not!

The Lance Armstrong Foundation received a $25K challenge if their CEO makes it to 25K followers on Twitter by May 29th. Get involved! Let's make it even bigger. Pledge to make a donation of whatever if he makes the goal. $1, $10, $25 or whatever you can!

If you don't have a Twitter account, its simple and free. Just go to www.twitter.com and get an account (you don't have to if you just want to donate but you will miss out on some of the fun!).

Pledge your donation as a post on Twitter and append it with '#LAFTC', Lance Armstrong Foundation Twitter Challenge. Let's see how viral we can make this fundraising effort. The LAF, aka LiveStrong, does so many great things. Check out thier website at www.livestrong.org.

I will also put together a Twibe for LAFTC.

I will periodically post the pledge totals on Twitter with the tag '#LAFTC'.

THANKS FOR THE SUPPORT!

For Twitter-gins a post would look something like this with the tag:

'I am in for $25! #LAFTC'

Since I am posting this during 'working hours' I may be doing another fundraiser to temporarily replace my salary! ;) This is my lunch hour...