Lise's Ramblings

It is gratifying to successfully wrap something up on your first attempt. Sure, we learn from our mistakes. And yes, the journey can sometimes be nearly as important as the end point or outcome. It’s even true that collaborating with others may lead to a better outcome and getting others to review your work will likely improve it overall. I can honestly say I’ve learned many things by joining forces with people who approach a task from an altogether different perspective than mine. The trick is to avoid getting sucked into that dreaded vortex, I dub version-control hell . Not sure if you've experienced it? Well, you've been there if you’ve ever opened a file that contains so many “track changes” colours that it looks like a 1960s psychedelic experiment. Deadly. Fortunately, every now and then, the stars align and your initial crack at something turns out to be THE one. Yes, a single, delicious take. AWESOME!

I am not referring to bumping into or talking to someone with whom you've been out of touch for ages. And just because someone from your past befriends you through Facebook, there isn't necessarily a genuine connection there either. I mean truly reconnecting. You know, when without even trying you skip over awkward silences and instantly fall into comfy conversation and your old groove. That doesn't happen with everyone, but when you do experience it... AWESOME!

Distributed to email subscribers on May 20, 2010 Call me strange, but I get a little rush when I discover a new word. Flipping through a dictionary doesn’t count. It has to be a chance encounter with the new-to-me word. I trip across them while reading books, blogs and my favourite magazines, or friends play these wild new words to rack up points during our Lexulous and Scrabble matches. There's a lot to be said for the magic of language. The whacked scientific terms I find at work don’t usually count, but yesterday I found a doozer while looking for a French term in the federal translation database. I needed to know the French equivalent for freezer/cold room and the database spat out this gem: pièce frigorifique. Not saying I agree with the translation, but who knew that anything could be frigorifique? AWESOME!

I’m not talking about the spring forward time of year when we steal daylight hours from the morning and tack them on to the end of the day. That’s cheating. No, I mean those late spring and early summer days that stretch far into the evening. My earlier blog entry on the Summer Solstice introduced this topic. Now I want to share the benefits. These added hours of daylight are so welcome, because many people experience: • Added productivity – Don’t you find you get so much more accomplished during the lengthened daylight hours? Whether it is projects at work or chores in the yard, we just seem to get more done. Can’t speak for everyone, but I’m certainly solar powered. • Guilt-free breaks – That extra productivity earns us relaxing days at the beach and other guilt-free time to play in the daylight. • A break from hours of buzzing fluorescent lights – Instead, natural light floods into workplaces sparing us all from the droning sounds emitted from office lights overhead. • An overall ...

At last you get word. That certain someone you care about is out of the danger zone and can come home from hospital. For everyone this marks an end to the worries, finger crossing and praying. For the patient, getting released represents so many positive things: • an end to the waiting game (e.g., when will the doctor visit with more test results or news, when is the nurse going to administer the next dose of meds); • the potential of a future with much less pain; • a return to privacy, control and independence – no more poking and prodding; • hope for quieter times without noisy carts, beeping equipment, announcements over loudspeakers, moaning and cantankerous fellow patients and their boisterous visitors; • a nearly full night’s rest without being awoken for vital checks or meds; • bidding farewell to fasting or clear fluids and welcoming REAL food; • heading out into clean, fresh air and leaving behind the stale institutional ventilation, foreign smells and the inevitable bed bugs ...

It is gut wrenching when gorgeous weather falls on a weekday. Even the most dedicated employees can feel the beach beckoning. Tremendous will power and focus are required to resist that urge to grab your sunglasses and drive to the shore. There’s no denying it, that call of the beach is potent. At the mere thought of going to the beach, your various senses are bombarded. Listen carefully and you can hear the cries of children jumping the waves and gulls flying overhead. Close your eyes and you can practically feel the warm sand between your toes, smell the fresh sea air, taste your favourite picnic food and see the words dancing across the page of your beach read. Fortunately, every now and then, the right weather and your time away from the office will intersect, so heed that call. Grab your family or friends, then head straight for the coastline. When a perfect beach day coincides with your weekend, you're likely to feel like a lottery winner. Getting consecutive beach...

Have you ever coveted someone else’s pen? Okay, not everyone feels as strongly as I do about pens, but chances are you've felt their pull from time to time. Perhaps you've noticed a particularly smooth-writing pen a cashier gave you to sign a credit card slip. Or maybe you've felt like your pens are inadequate after you borrowed a different pen from a colleague to jot down a quick thought on a post-it note while in another office. Oh, the choices abound. Gel. Roller ball. Ballpoint. Fountain pen. Hell, a quill, if that’s what you fancy. Medium, fine point or micro scratchiness. (Does my bias scream through here?) Soft finger grip or not. Thin or thick neck. A heavily weighted barrel or a pen that barely registers any weight.. Black, purple, blue, green, fluorescent, metallic or any other colour from the rainbow of available ink. Whatever you choose, make it the perfect pen for you, at that very moment. It will make the task at hand that much better, whether you’re writing i...