Between Semesters

Seattle, Was: My wife is attending a Physics & Astronomy conference for a week in Seattle. I have decided to tag along to keep her company and to maybe do a little PR for DSU and use the quiet time to work on my lesson plans for the spring. Hopefully there will be some interesting presentations that I, a lowly computer scientist can even understand. I am hoping that the weather will clear a little during the week so that we can take in the (I am told) wonderful views of the mountains and the bay. For now the forecast is for a whole week of "self shoveling snow". This is a term my father used to use to reference any rain that would fall during the winter months. I loved self-shoveling-snow growing up in North Dakota as the other type would require shoveling by said shoveler who, in our family, was me. :) However; I think after 7 days out here I may actually be happy to see that old fashioned white version floating down when I return home. (of course I have a big old snow blower attached to my big old lawn tracker; my price for allowing my wife to buy our country house).

I am enjoying getting ready for the spring semester at DSU. It is as if the campus is reborn when the students return. We have so many exciting things going on in the college it makes it fun to come to work. Our last semester was a tough one as we all worked towards curriculum modifications. It turned out that when you get a strong faculty that all work so hard to make our programs from Accounting to Computer Science the best they can be, conflicts arise and feeling are hurt. Thank goodness we are blessed with so many good people on all sides with the same goals. It makes it easier to let things go and move on to making the BIS college a great place for our students to excel.

I think I will go outside now and play in the this umm SS-snow. Got an umbrella?

Stephen