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My neighborhood is rather special. I live behind Kurt Vonnegut’s High School. And like his books, the neighborhood provides lots of stories – funny, real, sometimes sad.

I often pass the same woman selling bootleg DVD’s. I’ve chased thieves in bare feet, after they broke into my car. People have knocked on our door in the middle of the night asking for money. I’ve also been given delicious cookies by a stranger. I coached the St. Richards Dragons to an undefeated, Championship winning soccer season. And I’ve run every conceivable route in my neighborhood. I know it well.

The top of Indianapolis

My number one destination? Crown Hill Cemetery, just a few blocks from my house.

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Filed under: Photography, Video by Daniel
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I’ve not been shy in previous posts about sharing my love for travel. Or riding on planes. I also love sitting on trains and buses. Basically anything that lets me sit, think and look out the window. Each day in Japan, we take a 1-hour bus ride to a from the Twin Ring Motegi race track. I awake in my itsy bitsy room and Hotel Sunshine, shower, get ready and head down to the local 7-Eleven and buy some coffee drinks and a weird pastry. Then I get on the bus.

Lots of coffee in Japan

A lot of people complain about the bus ride. I get that. It’s two hours out of a day when you’re already jet lagged and working. But I love it.

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Filed under: Japan, Travel, Video by Daniel
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I worked at an art museum. Now I work at a race track and for a racing series. They seem very opposite and I catch people off guard when I reveal anything about my career. There are many differences. There are many similarities. But all in all, it’s incredibly different.

I loved my time in the museum field. I will always look back with fond memories and understand that it was a critical period of my professional life. It was a time to make mistakes, learn, take risks and importantly, deliver success. But I don’t miss it. I left at the perfect time.

Before I left I got to present in New Zealand

There are considerable differences between the museum field and the for-profit racing industry. In my current role, ‘more’ comes to mind. More projects, more content, more deadlines, more expectations, more opportunities and so on. These are all good challenges. I’m in a smaller team but with more resources. More/larger departments to interact with, across more companies and stakeholders, more collaborative relationships with drivers, teams, race tracks and sponsors. More. In fact, I’ve never seen so much content in my life. Speed comes to mind too – which is an obvious parallel to draw, but it’s true. Everything happens in a New York Minute. In the museum field, I remember working with exhibition calendars planned 3 years out. In racing, we have that kind of planning, but there’s also intermediate, current, pressing and last minute schedules. It’s an amazing juggling act that is sometimes smooth as glass and sometimes rough as sandpaper.And when you work online, you have to respond instantly. I’ve never worked so many hours in my life, or been awake and such strange times. I’ve slept with my laptop countless times, sat in a million meetings, traveled at the drop of a hat, over committed, barely hit (and missed) deadlines, consumed lots of energy drinks and so on.

You can catch me in the mirror

The bigger the challenge the greater the reward. That’s what I love about this job. As a museum professional, I felt a similar objective – be the best, be innovative, develop projects that would change the field, be immensely proud. I did all of these things. Which is why I can look back with no regrets. It was an incredible career.

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The first 5 months of 2011 have been relentless. It feels like early June has been the first time I’ve been able to catch my breath, both personally and professionally. Personally, I’ve concentrated on being home, making my son laugh and eating lots of dessert. Professionally, it’s been a combination of reflection and planning. It’s analysis of what has worked, what hasn’t and what needs more attention. It’s recognizing opportunities, potential for growth, and making decisions. It’s the natural evolution of a job, the building of a career. As I realize I’m in mid-career now, I understand this process repeats.

A snapshot of my current job

And that’s where I am right now.

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Remember Ted the airline? It was a sub-brand of United Airlines several years ago. It was eliminated in 2008 because of high fuel costs and the general problems most US Airline carriers have in running a profitable business. I feel sorry for the airlines. What ever happened to the romance, the thrill of flying? It’s gone. I wish I had been around during the glory days of Pan Am.

TED offices

But, I’m actually writing about TED today. You know, the Ideas worth sharing people.

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