TTrying to geTT inTTo a Groove

Well, I've been pretty silent on the blogosphere. I don't really know why, but I'm a little uninspired lately. Here's what's going on.

First Race of the Season
Well, my first race was supposed to be Bariani - a 30 mile road race. But, I'd had a lousy week starting with barfing. Then, the worst allergies I've had in my life crept up on me - to the point that I could barely breathe on Sunday and was blowing 3 tissues worth of snot every time I got off the couch. And, there was an unstable cold front moving through the area that morning, which made the whole thing unappealing. So, I bagged the race and registered for a TT this weekend instead. This is probably a good thing, since this entire season is focused on TT/pursuit. It is going to be good to work some kinks out with that before any races that I care about doing well in.

The New Jobby thing
It turns out I had a probation period that I wasn't aware of - which is probably a good thing, because I would have been stressing about it. Fortunately, I passed with flying colors.

I just finished up my big research project yesterday to support the web site redesign I'm working on. I'm still crunching the data and all, but have some good hints about where I should be going. The research included a heuristic evaluation, survey and usability study. I was thrilled to find two professors who would work with me on administering my survey during their classes. In the end, I was able to get surveys from about 15% of the student body, which is fantastic. I was also able to recruit an appropriate mix of students/faculty to participate in my usability study - amazing since I've only been here 3 months and barely know anyone. I am truly grateful to have gotten what I need to move forward. And, the cool thing is that one of the profs wants me to come back and speak to his classes about what I learned in the survey and how it will shape the redesign.

Other randoms
I finished up my article to submit to Adventure Cycling while I was on Spring Break. Maybe I'll post some of it here for critique. I'm sure it needs some spiffing to be palatable.

In the meantime, the planning of our 2nd tour with the parents is going well. After we selected the route and dates, my dad has taken over the logistics planning, which he loves. It's kind of fun to see how each of us is contributing from our expertise and gifts to make this thing happen. I am really looking forward to it. Mom and Dad just completed a week of training camp in Palm Desert, so they are full of fitness and confidence for the journey ahead.

There is just so much to be grateful for right now in life. Hoooray!