A lot can happen in a year....

It's been about a year since I left Seattle for Chicago, and life has been a blend of laughter, suprises, and suspense in nearly all areas of life. And although I didn't feel the need to commemorate the entire year, I've had a few interesting days in Orlando that have me in a reflective mode. So here's your Delta Whiskey entry for June 9, 2010.



I'm at a conference in Orlando, done by the Lean Enterprise Institute on Healthcare Transformation. You may have heard by now, there's a few problems with our healthcare system, and this is a gathering of folks who share my passion for problem solving through a management system that can be used to improve just about anything. Loyal blog followers (all 15 of you) may remember earlier posts about my use of the Lean concepts (Hoshin Kanri) to identify the value added activities that I believed would lead to "Peace of Mind" in 2009. I certainly learned a lot from the exercise, and my "day job" is to help a hospital solve problems slightly more complex than "How do I make sure I attend enough concerts this year?"



In attendance at this conference are a number of friends and coworkers from my prior job at Group Health Cooperative in Seattle. Those close to me know that I've struggled at times with my current position, and I'd be lying if I don't miss the feeling of coming to a great place to work every day. But as I've mentioned before, I cannot prioritize my career over other areas of my life, and those other areas are excellent these days.



So for those looking for the highlights of late....here ya go:

• Delta Whiskey now has a girlfriend. We'll call her Romeo Sierra for now to protect her identity. She's bright, creative, caring, spontaneous and attractive....and she finds me moderately amusing. Who knows, maybe we'll get a "guest post" from her one of these days???


• My pops hung up the stethoscope for good a few weeks ago. Those of you who know my dad are aware of his commitment to serving patients for 30+ years as a neurologist. I've had the honor to shadow him with patients and staff and know that he worked his butt off to take care of as many as he could (while playing nice) during his time in medicine. And his work provided a roof over my head, clothes on my back, food in my mouth, medications for me when I was sick, and countless other things. But most importantly his work showed me what hard work, discipline, quality, and integrity look like....so thanks Dad! He also turns 67 on June 10, so happy birthday pops!!
• Retirement sounds a long way away for myself, and work has been a bit of a grind. From a development standpoint, I'm learning a ton...although I loved the structure, discipline, and shared vision at Group Health I'm also seeing first hand the challenges I'll face bringing Lean to others. Experience has always been my best teacher, but learning can be painful.


• Annie (the dog) still barks a LOT. This can be somewhat problematic with guests at my apartment, particularly when Romeo Sierra and her canine companion come to visit. Anyone with suggestions that SOLVE (defined as no barking when a stranger enters my apartment) the barking problem will be handsomely rewarded with an item from the Delta Whiskey Gift Catalog.


• THE BLACKHAWKS - not going to comment any further. This playoff run has been a blast, and I may not be the longest tenured fan but I like these guys and they're not going anywhere for a while.


• The Bulls - I like the new coach they've hired from the Celtics. I think he's a hard working, intelligent, hungry guy who knows how to engage players in playing defense. Get the Bulls a Free Agent and my dad and I will have a fantastic winter in 2010-2011. And although I think Lebron James WILL leave the Cavaliers, I would be shocked if he wore a Bulls uniform next year. Believe me, I've thought about emailing the new coach to see if he needs an assistant on the bench with two full seasons of Junior High Head Coaching experience.


• Golf game is back on track - I've played a few rounds with buddies but do NOT anticipate eclipsing last year's 46 rounds. If I play 14 times I'd be a happy guy, and honestly could care less about what I shoot.


• Upcoming Summer Concerts, Sporting Events, and Street Parties....the summer in any city is great, so I'm not going to list the reasons why Chicago summers are my favorite. But I'm psyched the summer is here and hope you are too....get out and have some fun!

I'm back.....

Its been a while since my last update for a few reasons; but mainly because I no longer have a laptop. My trusty Dell, that has been with me since I originally lived in Chicago has seen its last days. That being said, if anyone out there reads this and knows of a PC repairperson I would LOVE to pick their brain on saving the data on that machine.

But in the meantime I'm resorted to using a public computer for private affairs, like blogging. Thankfully my building has a nice computer center, so I'm hunkered down and prepared for a brief update. I will get my own computer once again, but there are other priorities on my plate.

So here goes:

On the work side of things I'm beginning to step on some more solid ground at the hospital I'm assigned to. The project I'll be working on is improving the process for discharging patients out of the hospital. Having been discharged more times than I can count, its painful, slow, and a complete pain in the ass for patients. The good news is, the staff agrees with all of that and hate it as well, so if I can do my job reasonably well we should be in good shape. The commute isn't ideal, but I really like the community, the staff at the hospital, and the project...so all's good on that end.

Its been tough since the Super Bowl to look forward to any big highlights. I'm not one to complain about the weather, so that's not necessarily the reason, but I feel like the holidays are a time when we're looking forward to the next holiday, the next year, the next...... and then the Super Bowl comes and goes and there's this vacant space.

Which brings me to one thing I AM looking forward to, which is an upcoming trip to San Diego (to have my tooth repaired...lets just say I gotta guy), followed by a weekend in Las Vegas with the buddies for my 33rd birthday and a boxing match that never took place between Mayweather and Pacquiao. Sunshine, friends, a moderate amount of adventure...all things that are good for the soul.

Of course there are things that put a smile on my face almsot every day(despite the weather), like my dog struggling through the snowdrifts, the dramatic response to the "storm of the century", and all of the other amusing things that go on from day to day so I'm still a happy guy. Besides, the Bulls and Blackhawks are looking strong as we head towards the stretch run and pitchers and catchers report to spring training in 6 days.

There's plenty of other things going on in my world, some of which I don't want to send out for the world to see...but if you're curious to find out just drop a line and I'd be happy to fill you in......

Stay outta trouble (or go find some) and thanks for continuing to read,
DW

Reshuffling the Deck, ADW: The Book, 2010

I've had a few weeks to cool it on the blog front, and have had several really nice emails/comments from folks about the blog. The theme that hang together through the comments was that the content was amusing/interesting, and that I should continue to write if I'm finding it rewarding, useful, etc.

Its been a goal of mine for a while to give book writing a and that's where my focus will be for at least the first part of 2010. I'll probably still write an occasional entry, but I'm going to put my time in to a project that I'm slightly more excited about--the book.

You may be wondering what the books is about, and although I realize I'm running the risk of having my idea ripped off, I figure telling you about the book is the least I can do for my loyal following (all 8 of you).

The book's common focus is T-Shirts. Yes, T-Shirts. I have a hypothesis (which I'm about to test) that you can learn almost everything you need to know about someone from their T-Shirt collection. All of us have a few that we go to when we're sick, cleaning around the house, even wearing out for a night--and my book will uncover the stories behind those T-Shirts. I'll have a few of my own sprinkled in, but I think the book will be a tad more interesting if I draw in some other folks in my life. Not quite Kramer's coffee table book, but a distant relative.

So to begin this project, I've set a goal to interview two people per month about their favorite T-Shirt and to write up those interview summaries in a chapter format. It could turn out to be a disaster, or it could turn out to be great, but the only way I'll know is by giving it a shot. If I find the stories aren't compelling/interesting, then I'll shitcan the idea and try something new.

In terms of other things going on in my life--my work situation is greatly improved (for those who knew it was somewhat problematic) and I'm looking forward to an exciting 2010. If you're wondering about whether I've planned this year as much as last year, the answer is "sort of." One of my learnings from the 2009 planning exercise was that you really can't plan for 365 days so I've broken down life in to 90 day increments around the same areas as last year -- health, finances, career, hobbies, and social/family. There are a few things I'm trying to emphasize this year as we move along--balance, reflection, stability, and improvement are words I'd like to use to describe this year and we'll see how it all plays out.

In the meantime, make sure to check back from time to time on ADW, and feel free to drop me an email if you're curious how things are going.