Much better

The poor dog next door (Kermit! It's a frog!) does not live next door, he was just there for an evening. Good thing the owners decided to spend the evening with the dog they offered to look after. Poor Kermit.

You've gotta be kididng me...

Why am I the one who seems to always get the neighbors with the neurotic dog that cries and barks all night when his owners are away? Remember the chia pet? Well, she's gone to Maple Ridge but has been replaced by something that sounds like a much larger beast. It's almost 11 p.m., this started around 8...

Wanted: personal assistant

One scholarship application with a letter of recommendation and all kinds of school transcipts? Check!
One leadership assignment worth 70% of the final grade? Check!
One finance assignment about a venture idea, along with the corresponding PowerPoint slides for a class presentation? Check!
One truckload of marketing reading and a short marketing assignment? Check!
18km run? Check! (OK, technically it was 6km on Saturday and 12km on Sunday, but that still adds up to 18)
One hour of salsa to kick off the weekend? Check!

Groceries? Stuff I needed from the drugstore? Laundry?

Right...

How much would a personal assistant cost? Probably my entire salary, I'm guessing :-(

Black, green, pink... are we still talking about tomatoes?

My manager has a very large garden where she grows lots of tomatoes. And when I say lots, I mean LOTS. I can't remember how many varieties she grows, but we get to taste tomatoes pretty often at work during the summer months. Today, she brought some full-size tomatoes to work (we've been tasting the cherry-size tomatoes so far) to share with everyone. Apparently, there's just so much canning, home-made ketchup, home-made salsa and tomato sauce that her family will eat ;) I picked up three tomatoes, one black (OK, it's not really black, more like slightly darker on the top), one green, one pink, and I made myself one tasty tomato salad tonight. The green one won for taste. I wish I could be clever enough to remember all the names, but my brain is running at close to capacity... Tomato names will have to wait a few years ;)

BTW, she sent us a picture a few days ago of her biggest tomato of the season: it weights 2 pounds!


Tomatoes from my boss' garden

I know... I'm not keeping up with the posts

But I have a very good reason for not posting: I'm preparing my vision. No, I haven't turned new age and haven't landed in self-help hysteria, I'm just finally getting a clear idea of where I am going and what I want.

So, please hang in there while my brain is trying to keep up with the processing and planning. I will happily share my most recent realizations when the time is right.

Why?

My heart goes out to you in Montreal tonight... There is no way to explain this.

Late bloomer... the plant I picked up at the supermarket (in a really bad shape) is apparently healthy enough now to give me flowers

Clematis flowers 

Clematis flowers 

A sign of the times to come

Funny how September somehow forces us to return to a more disciplined routine. At least, that's my take on it. Mind you, I wouldn't be able to do everything that needs to be done if I didn't plan my days a little bit.

Long story short: homework, reading, grocery shopping, laundry, dishes, a few items on my to-do list (three plants now have new homes, they don't look happy yet but it's for their own good), cooking, sorting out paperwork, running, weights at the gym, and a movie. Not bad for two days :-) What I didn't have time to do: bring books to the used bookstore and start an outline for my Leadership assignment (the individual assignment is worth 70% of our grade). Oh! and washing floors. I'm seriously considering getting the cleaning ladies back in here every month for the big items...

I must get back to running regularly. Unfortunately, this week is, once again, not a good candidate for regular runs. I have a course on Monday night and a workshop on Wednesday, I'm having dinner with a friend of the family on Tuesday (although if I make it out of work early enough, I'll be able to go for a short run). Today, I went for a 14km run, stopped probably around 13.5 because my leg muscle were seizing and I feel pretty sore. The Fall Classic is in November...

I wish I could do this full time

I really enjoy school, meeting other students, being challenged in a "safe" environment and having the liberty to explore crazy theories. It keeps the mind active.

Tomorrow is day three of a three-day leadership course, however it feels like we've covered material that could fill an entire semester. Obviously, the coverage has been sporadic and high-level. The course is quite interesting, it focuses on self-assessments and in-class scenarios. Tonight, we were practicing coaching skills and active listening, really not obvious.

I've been working mainly with the other part-time students, a mix of all types of professionals (mainly techies) with varied backgrounds and often, several graduate degrees under their belt. The group is intelligent, outspoken and quite willing to share experiences.

I'm happy with my choice of pursuing this MBA at SFU. So far, the staff has been exemplary in helping the students feel at home. Our building, the Segal School of Business building on Granville Street a mix of state-of-the-art and cool architecture. It used to be a bank and has high ceilings with intricate designs, lots of marble. Every classroom was designed with the latest equipment and wireless access. Our library has so many business publications available online, as long as you have your login credentials, you can do some research from the comfort of your own home. Each MBA student also received a neat laptop bag. I love perks :-)

OK, signing out now, I have to shower, read a case and get a few hours of sleep before the madness starts all over again tomorrow...

All weekends should last three days...

You can get so much more done and yet still relax.

The Zero 7 concert on Saturday night was excellent, this band is really good live. Too bad I was a bit tired, maybe the missing pint of blood had something to do with that (no worries, this was not an accident or a vampire, but a blood donation on Saturday morning). But Zero 7's music is moody and relaxed, which was perfect. No mad dancing around. Just chilling with a few drinks with my ladies Lara and Gerri.

Sunday was nothing special, a lot of reading in preparation for the week to come. And way too many self-assessment tests. I never liked doing these tests, even in fluffy magazines. I especially didn't appreciate having to write them by hand and calculate my score the old-fashion way. The book mentioned that these tests were available online, I think that was a lie. Why am I completing self-assessments? Because my one-week intensive course is about management skills (the ones that you have and the ones that you should have). It's interesting, but there's a limit to how many questions I'm ready to answer with "Never", "Rarely", "Occasionally", "Sometimes", "Often" or "Always". There is never an option for "It Depends".

This morning, I was up at 4. Yes, a.m. and I did go to bed last night. I was volunteering at the Vancouver Triathlon, which was a fundraiser for the WWF. I am a supporter of the WWF and received an e-mail about a week ago about the event needing more volunteers (I guess it's tough to find people during a long weekend). It was a lot of fun, except for the 4 a.m. part when it was dark and cold outside. I was helping in the transition area, where athletes are switching from swimming to biking, and biking to running (basically, the entire area is a big bike rack). I've never seen so many people with wetsuits in my life. Or stripping out of wetsuits... did I mention I was covering the area for the men-under-40 category? :D

More reading today, even if it's a bit hard to not go play outside, it's beautiful.