Heading out tomorrow for a day at Johnson Rigde Observatory, wandering and taking pictures of and around Mt.St. Helens. Hoping for nice weather. Pictures will go up online afterwards.
Technorati Tags: Mt. St. Helens, photowalk
Filed by Ken at 12:03 pm under Meandering
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I’ve written a bit lately about casual computing and how it relates to mobile computing for me personally. I use a variety of mobile tools. And while I do carry a laptop almost all the time, more and more, I’m shifting to lighter communications tools for everythign I do.
This weekend, I’m taking a long weekend in Cannon Beach, OR again. Here’s my office from Thursday through Sunday.
Office in Tow
Where I’m Headed
Again this trip, I’m making a casual/mobile computing round of the week end and weekend. I’ll be working solely from my Treo, and Nokia N95 & N800 pair. No laptop.
While that might sound disconnected and impossible to work with, I thought I’d take a minute to share what I’ll be testing and working with while I’m there.
On the Nokia N800, I’ll be writing, blogging, doing email, making VoIP calls via both Gizmo and GoogleTalk. I want to do a couple video calls this trip as well. It will be accessing the net via GPRS pairign with the N95 and WiFi when I’m in range of an access point. It will be on 24X7, just like when I’m working at my home office.
On the N95, I’ll be making cell calls, testing the new TalkPlus beta, Using Gizmo for VoIP calls, updating what I’m doing with the Jaiku beta I’m testing, taking pictures (posting via both Flickr and Lifeblog), and generally staying connected.
The other tool in hand will be my Nikon D50. It’s a family outing and I’ll be taking lots of picture like I always do. And I can easily swap the memory card from the Nikon to either the N800 or N95 for sharing online.
In short, I’ll be barefoot on the beach, exploring tidepools, flying kites, eating good food and having a great time. But I’ll be fully connected in casual computing mode, an in touch. For people who don’t read here or know me, they’ll never even know I’ve slipped away to the beach to recharge my batteries.
Casual computing is about working any time, anywhere, doing whatever we need to do on our terms. I think this work approach will reshape how we all work in the next few years, and it’s something I’m keenly interested in. I believe casual computing and how we interact with our social and business networks are going to completely reinvent our notion of work.
Technorati Tags: Casual Computing, Treo, N95, N800, social networks, reshaping how we live and work
Filed by Ken at 12:39 pm under Meandering, Mobility & Handheld, Portable Pleasures - PDA/Smartphones, Unified Communications, VoIP/Unified Communications
3 Comments
Unified communications is a huge, broad topid. Nokia gets a lot of visibility for the advances in mobile devices, and the incorporation of Gizmo and GoogleTalk as VoIP (and even video) tools.
When I go fishing, I’ve always been an ultralight fisherman. Very light spinning rod and 2-4 pound test line. When I explored flyfishing, I went straight to a #3 flyrod. Yet when we travel, for our email and web needs, we so often walk with a heavy foot. Sure, laptops became notebooks and shrunk to a degree, but they still weigh around 5 pounds. We still carry accessories and add-ons.
I’ve done a lot of ultralight computing connectivity. Ten years ago I carred a Sharp Zaurus with a 2400 bps modem attached. Still tethered. I had Palm handhelds with modems too. When the Palm VIIx was release with the flip-up antenna and wireless access, limited though it was, I carried one for two years and paid the premium price for connection. Then a Palm TungstenC and later a LifeDrive, both with WiFi.
I leaped to the Treo 700W with EVDO the day it was released.
I have carried an infrared/bluetooth keyboard for use with these tools for a long time. Mostly that’s been for on planes and at conferences, but the last couple of years, I’ve found myself using the keyboard more and more. I’ve travelled with only the handheld devices, but generally onyl for very short trips. Even on vacation, my laptop bag was always along for the ride, and straining at my back.
It’s time for change - a lightness of being.
This past Memorial Day weekend, we took the 5th wheel down to Cannon Beach, OR for a getaway. I’ve always taken my laptop, and driving means you can carry plenty. This trip, I thoughtfully legt the laptop at home. It was, after all, a vacation weekend. I took the Nokia N95, N800, bluetooth keyboard and my Treo. The other thing that was important was taking my Nikon. It’s with me almost every day, and I wanted to really have some time playing with photos.
Nokia raised the bar on casual computing this weekend. I honestly didn’t use the Treo at all, but the N95 and N800 provided more than I would ever need.
The first two days I had GPRS signal on the N95. The N800 paired through it, providing complete email and web capability. I even blogged a couple of substantial pieces in other places sitting in the trailer relaxing. At some point over the weekend, the GRPS link lost signal. I hadn’t even looked before, but a check for WiFi revealed a free hotspot at the RV park. We’ve stayed there before, but I never looked or noticed it before. It was a bit like hitting the jackpot.
Connecting the Nokias to WiFi enabled a whole new level of high-capacity productivity while in casual mode. I popped the SD card out of my Nikon and into the N800. That let me upload a bunch of pictures to Flickr. Pop that card back in the Nikon, pictures intact for linking to the PC later when I get home.
Make a couple of VoIP calls out to the PSTN with Gizmo. Partly to test the quality, but then again, why use the cell plan and eat up minutes. Quality was quite good. It wasn’t perfect, but sitting on the Oregon coast, camped on the beach, cellular quality isn’t exactly stellar. I made one video call from the campsite, mostly to give someone a hard time and say “look where I am and you’re not.”
I also worked a bit on both a magazine article and white paper I’m writing. The N800 screen is big enough to use as a casual workstation, and the bluetooth keyboard makes it so easy.
I also kept in touch. So many of us are not just hyper-connected to the Net, but to our social networks, that contact is frequent, nearly constant. I sent pictures to Flickr, to multiple blogs. I updated Twitter, Jaiku and Facebook. I read my RSS feeds while sitting in camp with my feet up. I had a couple friends comment that they enjoyed vicariously coming along for the weekend.
For me, the social networking aspect of keeping in touch was both important and easy.
Luca commented recently on his experience with the N95/N800 pair.
After a few weeks using the Nokia N95, I’ve found myself using the Nokia N800 much less. I can use them together and I think the N95 can be the perfect companion for my N800 when I’m not under Wifi coverage, so I can use its 3G data connection.On the other hand, when it comes to reading emails, I find much quicker using the N95 rather than the N800. If you want to use the N800 at best, you need to keep it always on. If you turn it off (if you understand it is really turned off), when you really need it you don’t want to wait much time for its booting.
Our experiences are different indeed. I love the N95, yet carried the N800 on the beach, in town, and everywhere in my very light backpack. I’d never do that with a laptop. I dont’ find the boot time for the N800 to be an issue.
I do agree that the N95 is incredibly fast, and powerful. It isn’t without issues, but it’s proving to be a real powerhouse and a workhorse mobile device. The from factor fits my hands better than the N73 or N80i, but it’s small and light. The interface is cleaner and crisper than any earlier N-series phone. WiFi connection and setup is very easy. Sending posts to Flickr and Vox are easy with the built-in apps. No need to bother with Shozu quirkiness ever again.
And it provides entertainment. I ripped a half-dozen CDs to the memory card last week. I ahve an AM/FM/Cassette stereo in my 5th wheel, but there’s an input jack for a CD player or AUX device. I plugged in the N95 and kicked on the media player. Awesome CD quality music as the MP3s filter from my pocket-sized N95 out through the stereo speakers in the trailer. Add a bottle of champagne and some fresh strawberries and casual computing just doesn’t get much better.
If ultralight travel computing was about being nimble, casual computing is about being easy. Seamless connections, easily doing anything I want or need to do.
Frankly, if I didn’t need a computer for work, I’d probably abandon my laptops and shift entirely to the N95 and N800 pair for all my computing needs. As a technologist, they’re my casual computing arsenal, and I’ll be using them more and more, while I take my laptop less and less.
I would love to have the time and resources to take an extended road trip and document the whole thing with my N95, N800 and Nikon D50. Since work keeps me plenty busy, that will simply be the trips that come. We’re headed back to Cannon Beach for another round in four weeks. That will include serious time at the tidepools and some horseback riding on the beach. Then in late September we’re off on an eight day cruise to Alaska. I won’t take a laptop along for that trip either.
Casual computing isn’t just about work. It’s more than doing your email when you’re on a day off. Casual computing is about the hyper-connected lifestyle, maintaining relationships, and sharing life events.
If unified communications is about the convergence of data, voice and video, casual computing is about the convergence of work and personal life into a holistic mindset that takes away the stress and strain.
Technorati Tags: casual computing, Nokia, N95, N800, mobility, GPRS, WiFi
Filed by Ken at 12:03 pm under Meandering, Mobility & Handheld, Portable Pleasures - PDA/Smartphones, Technology
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Nice weekend away to start the summer season of road trips in the 5th wheel. Went to Cannon Beach, OR down on the coast, always a favorite spot.
Here are a few pictures. The whole set is here.
The campground pasture area
Haystack Rock, the prominent local landmark.
Life was really rough with champagne in Lexan wine glasses and fresh strawberries
Technorati Tags: Cannon Beach, Oregon coast, 5th wheel, escape, Memorial Day 2007
Filed by Ken at 9:06 pm under Meandering
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Like my pal Marc Orchant, I’ve got a pretty slim mobile office. Mine consists of the Nokia N800, a Nokia N-series phone (the N95 is my current primary), a Stowaway keyboard, and minimal attachments. And for me, my Nikon D50 is often part of my work routine. And a Moleskine for written notes, doodles and ideas.
Heading out to Cannon Beach in the 5th wheel means I don’t necessarily have to travel this light. On most occasions, I take my laptop along. There’s a danger in that. There might be WiFi. If not, I can always tether it. If I take my laptop, the danger of working rather than relaxing always presents itself.
This weekend, while I do plan on doing some writing, I’m leaving the laptop behind by choice. I’ll write on the N800 because I don’t need anything more than that.
Someone asked would I be disconnected and offline. Not likely, but I can’t remember how strong signal is at Cannon Beach. But blogging is likely to be light. Then again Flickr, Lifeblog and portable tools allow for blogging easily. It’s just not likely to be technology focused. More like pictures and moments worth capturing.
Technorati Tags: Nokia, N800, N95, Stowaway keyboard, NikonD50, decompressing
Filed by Ken at 6:02 pm under Meandering
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Unlike most of the folks evaluating the Nokia N95, I encountered some problems that necessitated sending the phone to the doctor Nokia for a lobotomy reflashing. That’s been done and the phone is en route back to me. It will be delivered later today.
I’m going to be quite diligent about logging what I do and when with settings and software.
To be clear, the N95 impressed me as the most awesome phone I’ve ever used. There were many things I really liked about it, but the problems arose so quickly I wasn’t able to give due diligence to any real substantive testing.
When I get the N95 back in my hands, I’ll immediately work through the basic setup, configuration and synchronization I need to use it. It’s going to be my primary telephone, paired with the N800. And I’m hoping to really put it through the paces.
This weekend will be a good challenge. I’m off in my 5th wheel to the beach for the holiday weekend. The N95 will be my Internet link, in conjunction with the N800. Lots of pictures and we’ll see how it holds up sending them to Flickr and Lifeblogging over the weekend.
Filed by Ken at 6:47 am under Meandering, Mobility & Handheld, Portable Pleasures - PDA/Smartphones
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Next weekend heralds the beginning of summer for many of us, even though summer really won’t begin for another three weeks. Memorial Day weekend is like firing the starter’s pistol for boats, RVs, campers and trailers.
Last year, here in Washington, it rained and was still pretty chilly. The weekend was spent on the slopes of Mt. Rainier, but it was cold and damp.
This year it’s bright and sunny leading up to the holiday. This year the long weekend will be spent on the beach in Cannon Beach, Oregon. It’s only a 2-3 hour drive away and it’s a nice little tourist town with just the right mix of civilization and peaceful respite.
Cannon Beach is the home of Haystack Rock. At 237 feet tall it’s the third tallest sea stack in the world. It’s surrounded by sea life and birds. The tidepools are an interesting place to poke around, and there’s always the chance of spotting a tufted puffin. And if you’ve seen The Goonies, 1941 or Kindergarten Cop, you’ve seen it already.
It’s a favorite getaway and where we’ll spend next weekend. Food, reading, pictures, aimless wandering and generally recharging batteries.
In the meantime, need to make sure the fifth wheel is stocked and ready.
Technorati Tags: Memorial Day, Cannon Beach, Haystack Rock, 5th wheel
Filed by Ken at 5:22 pm under Meandering
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I’ve been a road warrior in one form or fashion for a very long time. Lately, the things things I carry with me have changed…evolved. I carry at least one camera, my Nikon D50, almost daily. I carry a Marantz PMD660 digital recorder all the time. I carry 5 mobile phones on a typical day. Now add the Nokia N800 Internet Tablet. Take into account all the cables and chargers to make them all work together, and what you have is a headache. Actually a backache.
For the past couple of years, I’ve carried a Taurus laptop backpack that’s served me very well. But like so many bags, especially backpacks, it’s become a catch-all. It’s too easy to overload ith with extras and before you know it, it’s a fifty pound stone in daily commute. And there’s a reason backpackers refer to their pack as a stone.
Today I dove into a different approach that I’ve really been thinking about for a while. I’ve been shopping photojournalist backpacks designed to carry camera gear that also have a slot for a laptop. And what I found was the Quantaray U-100 shown in the pictures below. Any smaller and my Dell D820 wouldn’t fit, but as it is right now, it’s got everything I need for a whopping expedition, and it’s small and manageable. With no empty space to throw more junk in that I don’t need.
It’s in keeping with my drive to simplify. Carry only what will get used. Just like you only take clothes you’ll actually wear. Don’t carry excess.
FYI - if you click through to Flickr on the top photo, I’ve sort of annotated the picture to show what all is in there.
Technorati Tags: road warrior, backpack, carrying technology
Filed by Ken at 9:41 pm under Meandering, Mobility & Handheld
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More than once I’ve reinforced here, and to myself, that the single most important watchword I use in daily work is SIMPLIFY. That always strikes my non-techie friends as peculiar. They see technologly as an extreme complicator of daily life. Sadly, that’s the case for far too many people.
Part of my drive for simplification comes from my roots as a road warrior. I want to be fully self sufficient while carrying as little as is practical. Why burden ourselves like pack animals when we don’t have to.
Ricky Cadden recently undertook this same experiment and is finding out just how challenging it is. Looking at his blog page, I can’t help but hope that he didn’t lose control of the project, but I’m sure the formatting is a temporary problem as he fights with how to post to his blog from the handheld devices. I’m in a different space, because I’ve done this many times on business trips.
That’s right, whether it’s my Treo, a Nokia N800, some Nokia N-series phone or my Nikon, I’m going to try moving all that work off my laptop to smaller, simpler devices. Portable keyboard (IrDA and Bluetooth provide input capability. Memory cards from the Nikon to other devices provide photo upload capability.
I’ve got two more MiniSD cards and a ThinkOutside Stowaway bluetooth keyboard on the way.
Also, just as an aside on photo management, I’ve done a bit of fiddling and can easily post via Lifeblog from the Nokia N-series to Flickr, Flickr plus my Digital Common Sense blog, directly to the Digital Common sense blog, and VOX. I haven’t tested all of those with video just yet, and haven’t taken time yet to figure out how to Lifeblog direct to blip.tv, Google Video or YouTube. I don’t much bother with YouTube, but nice to have options. For now, I’ll WiFi send video through the browser interface on one or more of the devices listed. I’ll be fiddling with all of these just a bit more…real soon now. And if not the Lifeblog interface, the email approach from the phone works well.
I don’t yet have a Nokia N95, but I do now have the N800 to add to the mix.You can assume that the N93, N80i, N800 and Treo700W are my technology core, possibly coupled with the Palm LifeDrive as a photo storage and manipulation tool. I’ve done road trips with nothing more on many occasions. I’ve formed the opinion that I only really need the PC for a few reasons:
To be honest, I can almost work around Powerpoint with my Treo, but it’s a real pain. Word and Excel are both quite easily done on the Treo or Palm LifeDrive. And I’ll probably buy the full Quick Office suite to carry that functionality to the Nokias during the course of this experiment. With the arrival of the N800, even video calling, while not SightSpeed quality, is quite achievable any time I’m in WiFi range.
I’m undertaking this because I want to prove or disprove to myself whether an Internet hyperconnected individual (who isn’t a developer writing code) really even needs a computer. I suspect a fairly strong no is the answer, but I want more definitive proof. And I want to travel lighter.
I’ll document my trials and findings here and share them for anyone who’s interested in where the discussion leads. I’ll continue using the PC for my job, because that only make sense. For now, I’m constraining this experiment to my personal email, personal work, this blog and what I post on VOX. After this, another round may follow with the Realtime Unified Communications Community. A fair amount of what I do there already comes from the handheld array.
I’m planning to start this experiment next weekend, when I head to Minneapolis on business. I won’t be taking my personal laptop along. I’m going to follow that old backpackers credo (I am an old backpacker) of treading lightly. And while I’m adding tools to simplify, because simplification really is complex, this afternoon I picked up a new Quantary photojournalist’s backpack with just enough room to carry my laptop. It’s a different approach, traveling more like I photojournalist and less like a geek with a backbreaking bag full of gear. Pictures to follow once I get it organized.
Stay tuned.
Technorati Tags: mobility, treading lightly, simplify, mobile technologies
Filed by Ken at 6:04 pm under Meandering, Mobility & Handheld, Technology
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I need an escape to somewhere warm…
Wanderlust is whispering my name.
Technorati Tags: escape, road trip, wanderlust
Filed by Ken at 12:23 am under Meandering
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I was uploading some pictures from long ago to Flickr today and these caught my eye as a few from the many taken on a trip to DC way before 9/11/
DC at night
The White House
You can’t even get near this White House entrance for pictures like this any more.
The back lawn
Lincoln Memorial
I remember this picture take when leaving the White House to walk through the park toward the Washington Monument. The last time I was there, you can’t even walk in some of these places any more. And the park has changed so much it’s almost unrecognizable.
Technorati Tags: DC, monuments, White House
Filed by Ken at 6:42 pm under General, Meandering
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Looked at this trailer on Saturday and decided to pass even though the price was raelly nice. It’s the same yaer as the Prowler in the driveway. If there’s an upgrade on the horizon, and I believe there is, it will be to something about this size, but also at least a few years newer. Saw an awesome 2001 Komfort 22 footer on Sunday and…well, the wheels are turning. I guess all to say right now.
I’m working on an outline for a new book project for something on voice and data network management. More as that develps, but right now it’s just a conceptual outline.
Great weekend weather in Washington this pat weekend. Sunny warm and fabulous. Working on plans for an outing somethere for the long weekend around July 4th, but as yet nothing firm.
By now you’ve all read the news about Scoble’s departure from Microsoft. I predicted it back in my 2006 predictions. I just new Robert would come around and need more than an enterprise like Microsoft could give him. Robert’s somewhat like a hummingbird and it’s been obvious for some time that there’s sweeter nectar out there. I find sweeter nectar myself every now and again, but life is goo and I like where I’m at and what I’m doing, so changes for me are simply new projects, trailer lust and that sort of thing…for now.
I noted Marc’s correction to my fumble in comments. Yes indeed he has been blogging over at ZDNet all along on the Office Evolution. I’m embarrassed to have overlooked that. And I plead guilty of not reading regularly. I’ve jsut had a lot going on and haven’t been keeping up on the Office goodies. I will let you on a tip, Marc has forgotten more abotu MS Office than most of us will ever want to know. And he’s a real tablet afficionado who uses it it real-world ways.
I’ve been reading and studying into Skype a lot. I started out researching for an article about proprietary protocols, but my security bent got in the way as I dug into Skype. When I find some time this week, I expect I’ll go on a bit of a rant about Skype in business and why people somewhere will get fired for using it before 2006 is over.
‘Nuff for now. Week in progress, Monday madness as always.
Technorati Tags: trailer, book project, network management, voice, data, Skype
Filed by Ken at 1:39 pm under General, Meandering
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I bought a small, older 5th wheel not long ago. It’s nice enough, but a weekend cooped up inside camping in the rain, and a few fixup issues, and I already have a pretty fair list of requirements for the next generation of what my mobile escape will be.
Ever watchful, today this one appears on my radar.
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It’s very reasonably priced. Quite affordable. And has everything that’s on my list for the next trailer. And it’s here in town. I suppose I’ll go take a peek tomorrow. Could wake up Monday to a pair of trailers in the driveway with one up for very quick sale.
Filed by Ken at 6:27 pm under Meandering
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I tagged this post from Tom Evslin to read and re-read as I mulled it over in my mind -
When and When Not To Bet The Company
By Tom Evslin on Web/Tech
You DON’T bet your company on tactics. You don’t (or shouldn’t) bet your company on every decision you make. This discussion started with a great post by Fred Wilson correctly saying that CEOs of venture-stage companies have to bet the company every day. It continued with my last post saying ditto for Fortune 500 companies. NOT betting the company explicitly means that you’re betting it implicitly on the status quo – not smart.
I’ll go a step farther. If you don’t bet the company every single day, you’re already stagnating and sliding downhill.
Technorati Tags: betting the company
Filed by Ken at 8:38 am under General, Meandering
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Recently I rambled on ad nauseum about dealing with conferences and the constant travel problem. And while I’m still very inclined to pursue that further, this weekend I made a simple decision based on that most compelling life rule to simplify.
Thanks to Craiglist, I found an older small 5th wheel trailer for a very reasonable price. It’s showing miles and wear on the outside, but has been very well maintained on the inside and everything works. So now it’s parked in my driveway. A modestly priced, minimal fxier-upper that gives me something to tweak around with that isn’t tied to technology. And a means to escape with very little advance notice.
Filed by Ken at 1:46 pm under Meandering
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Leave it to Euan Semple to calm me down after AT&T winds me up.
Where did all this come from, where did the idea that the most powerfully motivating force in the world had nothing to do with business? We spend most of our adult lives in the workplace and at work we bring about the most important and long lasting changes to our society and our planet - and yet we are not encouraged to talk in terms of love. OK we just about get away with “loving our job” our “loving success” but start talking about loving colleagues or loving customers and you’ll have people running for the door. And yet isn’t this what makes great people and great places tick. A deep sense of connection with each other, a depth of purpose beyond the every day that sees customers as more than merely stepping stones on the way to returning that value to the shareholders?
I’m not sure I can add a lot of value given my current blood pressure and this throbbing vein on the side of my head thanks to AT&T, but let me do this. Let me share with you that Euan is one of the keenest minds and most insightful people I’ve never met. I don’t think we’ve ever exchanged email. But I’ve read him for a long time and we are well inside six degrees of separation. Go read Euan complete post. Don’t just read his post. Follow the link to David Weinberger’s post too (another fine fellow I’ve never actually met, but we have exchanged email several times). If you’re realli hooked, follow Euan’s lead and read The Corporation by Joel Balkan. Even Hugh weighs in from a different angle with his own unique flair.
I’m just going to post another snip from Euan
Maybe love does have a place in business after all. Maybe more and more of us will start to have the courage to begin to talk about what really matters to us about work and our relationships with each other and to push back the sterile language of business that we have been trained to accept. Maybe we will realise that accepting love into the workplace reminds us of the original purpose of work - not to maximise shareholder value but to come together to do good things, to help each other and hopefully to make the world a better place.
I think it’s time to pour a good single malt scotch, grab a good book for a bit, and put on some good old Lennon and McCartney.
Technorati Tags
meaningoflife
organizations
All You Need Is Love
The Lads
Beatles
Filed by Ken at 8:27 pm under General, Meandering, Technology
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Lately I’ve been plagued with a disease that troubles many of us - the Conference Cornucopia Conundrum. It’s a cyclical disease that impacts us all differently. For me, here’s a representative sample. First, next week there’s Spring VON 2006 in San Jose. I should be there. I need to be there. Logistics aren’t possible and I’ll miss it. Following that there’s F2C:Freedom to Connect in the DC area. I really need to be there, but I’m still working logistics. I might make it, and I might not. At this point it’s an unknown. Not a whole lot later is InterOp Las Vegas from April 30th - May5th. I have to tell you I’ve done enough Interops and spent enough time on my feet doing booth duty that I want to swear I’ll never attend another. But this one includes a VoIP & Collaboration at Interop from May 2nd - 4th. I really need to attend this VoIP breakout mini-conference for a number of reasons. There’s Supernova 2006 in San Francisco from June 21st - 23rd. I should find a way to get there. Have no idea if I can or will. There’s the Internet Telephony Expo dubbed VoIP 2.0 in San Diego from October 10th - 13th. I will find a way to make it to that one. I’ve got blogging, podcasting, and even some potential webcasting plans for that one. And I’d like to find my way on to Rich Tehrani’s agenda somewhere (Hey Rich, need a panel moderator or fill-in speaker?).
You see the dilemma. Those are just VoIP-centric events. They don’t take into account my involvement in the InfoSec community, the rising issue of Net Neutraility, and a host of other things I’m interested in. For those who’ve read here for a long time, you know I moved from a “simple ” life in Vermont to Washington. You know that one watchword I live by is SIMPLIFY. And while it might not seem like it to some, I’ve done a good job of simplifying in many ways. My technical bent is also a means to an end. You know I bought the first half of Ken’s DIY Simplification Kit last year, but here’s a reminder.
It’s not really the beefy monster it might appear. It’s also not a complete lightweight of trucks. It’s half the plan. I’ve planned for some time now to pair it with one of these:
I confess, much of this plan has been driven by wanderlust and a need to explore. Vacationing and road trips (because since 9/11, I really don’t enjoy flying the way I used to). The F150 instead of a Ranger, fully capapble of hauling that Scamp, was a conscious choice based on passenger seating and comfort. It is more truck than required for the job.
When I examine the list, it’s also clear that a number of conferences are within striking distance on the road.
I have recently determined that the Scamp is just a tad too small. I need to adapt and evolve. I need mobile home and office capacity that allows a bit more freedom than that ultralight approach. But I’m compelled toward small, simple and lightweight. So onward now toward the Adventurer 226RL as a better option.
That’s their picture above, so I’ll swap the truck with my F150. It’s still a very modest and lightweight trailer. No problems in pulling or maneuvering. At 22′8″ it’s just enough bigger than the Scamp, yet small enough to think of as “modest” since it doesn’t begin to compare with most of the behemoth monsters you see on the road these days. I want small, light and maneuverable.
Reasonable kitchen and living quarters, with enough space to set up a mobile Wi-Fi network in tandem with broadband wireless. It has enough space to both eat and work, without either one overtaking the other.
This is actually important to me, because at 6′3″, being able to actually get in and out of bed, and sleep while I’m there are sort of key factors for success.
The real logistics question - can you pack enough leftovers from conference lunches and breaks in the pantry to never actually buy groceries? That might lead to a larger question, can conference food actually sustain life?
I’d like to think something like this would mean I could live on the road, enjoying the wanderlust, and still get to many of the conferences I’d like to attend. Reality is a much different story, because I’m not ready ready to become a disconnected wanderer (the tru high-tech homeless). But it could provide a new way to blend two interests and put some conferences (at least the western US) within more reasonable striking distance.
I’ll keep you posted.
Filed by Ken at 4:51 pm under General, Meandering
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I haven’t posted much, but also haven’t actually declared myself on hiatus either. Maybe I should declare ongoing ennui.
I’m off to a security conference in DC next week. If anyone’s out that way and wants to grab dinner, drop a note or something. If you’ll be at the DHS conference in Herndon, do let me know.
Filed by Ken at 8:02 pm under Meandering
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Every now and then it’s important to take a step away from blogging and into reality. We all have a reality. Some good. Some bad. But to get so caught up in blogging that it becomes our reality is a foolish and dangerous thing. This weekend I spent my time away from technology. I was actually relieved to find that neither cell phone nor pager work when you get up above Longmire.
I’ve never been a big picture poster on here, but this was an important trip because it heralds a shift away from technogeekfoolery to more important things. so here a present an abbreviated chronicle of weekend.
I’ve posted pictures of Connor before, but here’s our troop (minus me, behind the lens) getting ready to head out on Saturday morning. Connor’s on the left, hitching a ride from Mom Maureen. Dad Ken (Ken II) is in the center, with my wife, Grandma Pat on the right.
This footbridge was the best maintained and perhaps the easiest part of our Saturday hike. We headed up about 2 miles in, but with 1400 feet in elevation gain and climbing through roots and switchbacks most of the day. It was pretty cold and gray at times. We wondered if the weekend weather was going to even allow any real hiking.
Then again, 2 miles and 1400 feet in elevation brings certain rewards in the Pacific Northwest. Our destination, Comet Falls, is the highest waterfall in the park. 320 feet of spray and splash with a beautiful view. And while we were tired and took a breather and a bunch of other pictures, we decided to head back down and go eat lunch at the Paradise visitor’s center.
For us, moving to the Pacific Northwest was a change. We’ve lived in California, and I spent plenty of time hiking the Sierra and hustling up Mt. Whitney. But when you live here, on a clear day you can point to three volcanoes. And while they’re all out there, Rainier dominates the landscape. In Olympia we judge the weather based on whether or not you can see Rainier, and on Sunday, we were blessed with sunshine and 70’s as the mountain came out to play. It’s interesting to even sit below and watch the hikers heading up. The routine is to head up to Camp Muir during the day, and rest there. Most climbers leave Muir at midnight to head for the summit. They look like fireflies meandering up the mountain at night. That generally makes for a sunrise at the summit and then hustle down before the ice and snow get too unstable for the day. Whether climbing or just watching, it’s an impressive mountain.
The picture postcard of Mt. Rainier is almost always taken at Reflection Lake. When the wind is still you can get a perfect mirror image in the lake. In our case. there was a breeze, and the small trout in the lake were feeding and pretty active.
On Sunday, tired from the switchback climb, and nursing sore muscles from the first real hike after a long layoff, we headed for easier views. The wildflowers are in bloom all across the mountain meadows, and these lupines are just one small sample. At one point the trail was a boardwalk through the meadow, but years if too many hikers have worn it down to a footpath. Still, it’s nice to see people do stay off the meadow.
The trail in to Bench Lake is a series of ups and downs. It isn’t all meadow. But worth the view. You can get down to the water and there are a series of trails around the lake, but this is a day visit spot only.
If you’re determined to spend the night, stay on the trail another .7 miles and you’ll arrive here. Snow Lake, aptly named givien the water temperature, does sport a small primitive camp site.
The hardest part of the day is that long hike back out. And everyone felt a lot like Connor by the time we finished the second day of hiking.
This was the first time back out for serious hiking in a while. But there will be more. Lots more. This whole area will shortly be a regular weekend workout of hikes, adventures and explorations. Some will show up here from time to time.
No fireworks necessary. An appreciation of God’s green earth and family is more than enough to remind us why we celebrate this day. Good wishes all.
Note - If picture sizing whacks out the sidebar again, I’ll probably just leave it until it scrolls off rather than fight with it).
Filed by Ken at 5:09 pm under General, Meandering
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