More climbing with Dominic

Dominic Eidson (my climbing mentor) and I got in what will probably be our last climbing for 2007 yesterday. This was a quick trip to Austin's Barton Creek Greenbelt. We got a perfect day for it; blue skies, sun on the rock, and the wall all to ourselves until right at the very end.

Highlights from the day's climbing:

1. An anchor works best when the rope is run through it rather than just thrown in its entirety to the base of the wall.
2. A 5.5 is apparently harder than a 5.6, according to Mark. I got spat twice off a lousy 5.5 but had no problem with a 5.6. We didn't even try Touch of Class, a 5.7 and my favorite route out there, because both of us were too tired at the end.
3. Dom and I had to knock a large block off of the side access wall because it had become too unstable to be considered safe for other climbers. Dom also pulled a cheap nylon cord off of the wall that somebody had put up as aid in climbing it.

(And the big lowlight of the day) As we were nearing the end of our climbing day, a family of five approached the wall and set up to climb. The dad (clearly the only one with experience, and not much at that) set up an anchor at the top of the wall and then came down to get started on the first climb. He gave his wife a two-minute (maybe) lesson in belaying with their shiny new GriGri and then started his climb. As Dom and I watched, the wife fumbled a bit with the GriGri and with her right-hand belay technique, but she did okay, and he topped-out on the climb in good shape. Then he asked her if she was ready to lower him, to which she replied affirmatively. So he leaned back on the rope and immediately began to plummet towards the ground. Dominic moved like lightning to knock her hand from the GriGri lever and grab the rope, thus stopping the guy's fall (after probably about a 15 foot free-fall) and probably saving his life or at least several major injuries. Dom then coached her on bringing him to the ground, after which she walked off in silence while dad moved on to getting their son ready to climb. We stayed to watch the son get up and down the wall in safety, bu then we had to leave for other commitments. Never while we were there did dad go over to talk to his wife about what had happened.

This event left several questions in our heads about what our responsibilities were:

• Should we have picked up on the two-minute GriGri lesson and told them not to climb until they had more experience?
• Once the fall happened, should we have intervened and recommended not climbing again until they had more training?
• Should we have gone and talked to the wife since dad didn't?
• We never did see the guy's anchor at the top of the route. That anchor requires long webbing to reach the edge of the cliff, but we didn't see him setting any up. Should we have gone to the top to check his anchor quality?
  

It was a perfect climbing day, but this guy's ignorance and our lingering questions kinda screwed it up for us.

A few pics from the day here:

Climbing with Dominic Eidson

- Mark

Congratulations, Jennifer!

My new friend and MSOLE buddy, Jennifer Conway, was kind enough to invite me to her MSOLE graduation party, held Saturday night (12/15) at her parents' lovely home in Lago Vista.

What a great time we had in celebrating Jennifer's two-year MSOLE journey. What I initially thought (and clearly will never think again) would be a stodgy party full of close friends and family members, where I would be the lone outsider (having just known Jen for a few weeks now), turned out instead to be quite fun. Jennifer, one sister, and one niece performed a brilliant Irish dance for us to the tune of the Cotton Eyed Joe, and then eventually just about everybody got involved in a karaoke contest (sorta). Even yours truly here "sang" a couple of times; the first time doing "Born To Be Wild" with Jen's father, and the second time with William (a friend of Jennifer's) singing "Bohemian Rhapsody." Thankfully, I was carried by my partners, and so we scored quite well (a 90 and a 93) on the attempts.

A few other notes from a wonderful evening:

• What a beautiful home the Conways have. Thank you for having me, Roger & Maura!
• ...and, for that matter, they seem to be a beautiful family. It's hard to explain, but they all seem to be very well-centered, caring, and interested in others. I say "hard to explain" because I hardly know any of them so far, but somehow they just project a very positive vibe.
• LOVED the Irish dancing. LOVED dancing with Jennifer too, even though I was horrible at it.
• Thank you to Maura for sharing her poem of Ireland with me. I am humbled that she would take the time to share such a personal work with a complete stranger while the party was swirling around her.
• Remember to never mix wine, beer, and Goldschlager in the future.

Back on the rock

What a joy to be back out climbing again yesterday. For some reason, I took over a year off from climbing, and I didn't quite realize until yesterday just how much I missed it.

Dominic, Rebecca, and I met at Rudy's at 8:30, wolfed down a few breakfast tacos, and then headed out to Reimers Ranch for some of Austin's fabulous limestone climbing. We got great weather, easy access to our favorite climbing spot (Dead Cats Wall), and nice scenery of both the Pedernales river and the cute chicks over to our right. :-)

Highlights included:

• Rebecca getting a little further up her old nemesis route and even further up a challenging little 5.8.
• Dominic leading a 5.7, perhaps his first lead in roughly the past three years.
• Dominic cheating (at least, that's what I call it) by using his mongo reach to finish that 5.8 instead of using his feet to finish it the right way. :-)
• Me doing all of my climbs on lead, despite the long layoff and several extra pounds to get up the wall.
• Riley's BBQ (in Dripping Springs) and cobbler afterwards. Yummmm
  

A big thank you to Dominic and Rebecca for getting us out there again after such a long hiatus. I can't wait to do this again soon.

Dell reflections

It has been four months since my departure from Dell, and I feel that now is as good a time as any to provide some reflections on my time there.

I started at Dell as a 22 year old "kid" who knew computers pretty well but who had also been kicked out of the University of Texas at Austin twice for academic performance reasons. I had just been let go from Sears when their business took a downturn, even though I had won several sales contests and consistently outperformed sales representatives who were much older and more experienced than I was. I was kinda down about life and didn't know what was next for me without a degree. All I had was 1) computer skills (unique at the time), 2) a belief in myself, and 3) Cindi, my fiancee at the time.

I was also running a computer bulletin board system (BBS) that kept me entertained at night as I stayed up late chatting about all sorts of things and learning more about computers. Through this BBS network (Fidonet), I met Michael Brundridge, a sysop who had recently started at Dell Computer Corporation and who eventually encouraged me to market my skills to Dell. I did, but in the wrong way. First I applied for a Dell sales position, having just done all of that selling for Sears. That application got me nowhere. Then Mike got me in the door to interview with Richard Wells, the manager of Dell's Technical Support organization. Richard grilled me on a few things and then eventually offered me a job, I think mostly because I knew modems. I was off and running, but I had no idea what Dell was all about or what I might do while there. All I knew was that I had a job, at $9/hour. I stayed in technical support and its big brother, International Product Support, for over six years, developing a very strong technical skill base but not growing much as a professional.

It was 1995 when a Dell friend encouraged me to interview for a position in New Product Operations (NPO), an organization that was best described as being the primary interface between Dell's manufacturing facilities and their rapidly-growing Server Engineering Development organization. They needed a project manager to help guide products out of the design phase and into the factories for full-volume production, and Mac (my Dell friend) thought I would be great at it. Little did he know that 1) my perception while in tech support was that Dell's manufacturing line was manned by monkeys, and 2) I had never managed a complex project in my life. Nonetheless, I interviewed for the job with Scott Estes (the manager), Carla Ortiz (rest her soul), and John Zwolak. I somehow sailed through the interviews and had myself a new job, but again had no idea what I was in for. Little did I also know how Dell would soon boom as it did, but that's another story.

It was in NPO that I became a professional. In 12 years there, I went from stumbling my way through new product manufacturing launches to ultimately managing a team of junior and senior project managers doing that same work. I was entrusted with many of Dell's most important Server projects, and I grew tremendously in the process.

In 18+ years at Dell, I had the honor of working with a host of truly wonderful people. The list is really too long to post, but I would be remiss to not post certain names.

• Mike Brundridge - It all started with Mike helping to get me in the door.
• Scott Estes - Gave me my start in NPO, trusting that my smarts and drive would be enough to negate my lack of manufacturing and project experience. He left Dell before he could see what I would do and become, but I'm sure that he would be proud.
• Carla Ortiz - my mentor for about a year in NPO, and truly one of the most beautiful people (both physically and spiritually) I have ever met. My heart broke in 1996 when she suddenly passed away, and hardly a day goes by that I don't think of her.
• Lisa Kaindl - a colleague and special friend for over ten years, I can always count on Lisa for a good laugh, a thought-provoking situation, or just to be fully present for me when I'm not quite myself. I can't imagine any time or any place that I wouldn't do anything for her. Just as nobody will ever replace Carla, so shall Lisa never be replaced. I love you, Lisa.
• Bill Sepulveda - Though we had our occasional moments of disconnect, Bill taught me a lot about what it means to be a responsible professional and not just a headstrong opinionated kid. Perhaps most importantly, he repeatedly kicked me in the rear to get me to go back to school. Eleven years later, after night class after night class, I have completed my undergraduate degree (with honors) and am three hours from completing my Masters. Thanks, Bill!
• Joe Taylor - My manager and Director for a couple of years, Joe gave me my most meaningful promotion and trusted me with business matters that I may not have been ready for, but his trust meant the world to me, and I never failed him. This guy meant so much to me that I seriously offered to follow him to Washington state when he left Dell.
• Karen Weyant - Despite our rocky start (I'm an ENFP, she an ISTJ) and the fact that we rarely see each other nowadays, our occasional hallway conversations and annual birthday lunches became very special to me.
• Katie Mills - This one is hard to explain, for we really hardly know each other, but there's just something about Katie that makes me happy. She makes me think, makes me laugh, makes me smile, and never fails to make me feel good about life.
• Susan Dempski - Another relatively new relationship that I hope never fades. All that I just wrote about Katie applies perfectly to Susan as well. Many times Susan helped to keep me grounded when I really needed it, whether she was aware of it or not.
• Paul Grossimon - For those who know Paul, seeing his name here may come as a surprise, but the fact is that it is through Dell that I met my trusted climbing partner. Anybody who has, time after time, kept me safe while I am 30-90 feet up in the air deserves to be on this list. :-)

I am asked frequently now how I feel about Dell, considering that they laid me off after 18+ years. In so asking, I think most people expect the typical bitterness and spite that layoff-ees (new word) tend to have. In my case, there is nothing of the sort. While I admit a bit of a grudge towards the Director who laid me off, our relationship was not very strong to begin with, and I can sincerely say that I harbor no ill will to him at all for his decision. As far as Dell itself is concerned, I simply summarize everything above by saying that I experienced tremendous personal and professional growth as a result of my time at Dell, and I developed several friendships that I hope will last a lifetime. In the end, the Dell experience was more than just another job, and I am thankful for having been there. If my next opportunity gives me the chance to repeat it all over again, I will gladly do it.

More interviews

I'm into the second round of interviews for yet another job possibility within Dell. Should know more later this week. I'll post something more about it later if it pans out.

How cool is this?

I got a birthday email from my birth father yesterday! I don't know if this is tacit acceptance on his part that I am truly his son, but honestly, I don't think I care much. It's just cool to know that he's out there and thinking about me on (near) my birthday. Very neat.

interviews didn't work out

I thought everything went pretty well, but I didn't get the job. Gotta keep looking.

Job interviews this week - fingers crossed

I have interviews this week for a job (still at Dell) that seems very interesting and a match for my experience and education. I'll post more later if it works out. Just asking anyone who actually reads this blog to cross their fingers for me. I'm totally burnt out in my current job and desperately need a change.

- Mark

The setting of a new goal

They say that one key to achieving one's goals is to profess them, make them public. I have never been very good about this, perhaps due to some fear of then not reaching the goal.

So, I guess I'll change that now. I have set a new goal of riding my bike (bicycle, not motorbike) across the country within the next 2-3 years. No, I don't know how I'm going to find the time or money to do it, but that's the goal.

I have a variety of reasons for wanting to do this.

1. It just sounds like fun.
2. I'm struggling with this mid-life realization that, aside from having a wonderful 17-year marriage with a beautiful wife and raised two fabulous girls to age six and nine (more or less), I can't seem to find anything that I would list as a significant life accomplishment. Perhaps completing my undergrad (and soon to be graduate) work while in my 40's could make that list too. I need to feel like I've done something when I die, not that I expect to die any time soon.
3. I caught some sort of inspirational bug from crazyguyonabike.com recently. This site is just chock full of amazing stories of people who have done just what I want to do.

I'm off to a bit of a start already, although there's a LOOOOOONG way to go. Read what I've done so far on my new blog, fuzzypedaling.blogspot.com.

- Mark

OMG....it happened

Well, whaddya know? Yesterday I posted about possibly getting to meet (or at least hear from) my birth father.

Today, it happened. I got an email from him this afternoon.

I'll post more later about this. For now, I have some thinking to do in terms of how I want to respond to his email. This is amazing.

- Mark

Birth father that much closer now....

Sharon (my birth mother) called the other day to let me know that she has actually gotten to talk with Gary (birth dad) recently!

So much runs through my head now, knowing that the possibility of meeting Gary may be right around the corner.

1. I can't begin to imagine the courage that Sharon had in contacting Gary and letting him know of my existence. This is what mothers do though...they love, and Sharon undoubtedly loves me.
2. I can't imagine being Gary and receiving word that he has a 40 year old son less than a day's drive away. I hope the news hasn't had any negative impact. (He's in Oklahoma City, btw).
   
3. The shoe is on the other foot now. Six years ago, it was Sharon who wanted to contact me, and I was the one wondering why. What did she want? Did I really want to let this person into my life? How will this affect my family? Now, this opportunity to contact me (or not) has been presented to Gary, and he has to consider many of the same questions, and probably more.
   
4. I'm thankful that my life situation is such that wanting to meet Gary isn't a real need. With a great family, a nice house, decent job, etc...., I can approach this as just genuine interest in meeting - and hopefully getting to know - my biological father.

Who knows what will become of this? For now, I just wait. If nothing happens, nothing happens. If something does, something does. Either way, it's still comforting knowing that Gary has the chance to contact me if he wants to.

- Mark