7 things
Time for looking back at the year that was, and the year that’s coming, the good and the bad. Mezzoblue tipped me of, Ben Poole paved the way.
Apple 2005 is the year I made the switch. I’m using a 15" PowerBook for nearly all my work now. This Laptop is the single best investment I ever made in IT technology. Everything from the beautiful design, the quietness, the tactile feel, speed, display and of course OS X make me happy. In my wake, another 5 or 6 people have switched to Apple and all of them (including my mother, who got a Mac Mini for X-Mas) are happy with it. Personally, I’m hoping for an Intel based Apple Laptop next year, that allow me to run Lotus Notes through something like Darwine or some secret Apple Technology. Then I could drop my old PC Laptop for good.
Ruby On Rails Having used Lotus Notes for a long, long time (almost 14 years now), I once was awed by how easy it is to create applications. And I created many of them. But I think, that the switch to the web was executed “poorly” (although back in the days when Domino appeared, it was pretty good). Nowadays it just feels clunky. Having to use a dozen different techniques in intricate ways, is just bad. Last year, Ruby On Rails entered, and I have had the joy to work on two great technical projects. Suddenly, developing is fun again. Really fun.
My wife We had quite a year this year. Lot’s of things have happened, and our relationship has kept up. We celebrated our 10th year anniversary and plan on staying married for quite some time to come. Through all the ups and downs she’s been there. Thank you.
The House One of the taxing things this year was the move from a flat to a house. While we don’t own it, it still feels like ours. We enjoy all the same things as owners (doing garden work, drilling holes through walls for CAT-5 cabling, setting up a home theater under the roof) but with none of the owning-drawbacks (we will have to move out when the kids are leaving us though - such are the rules of the co-op we are members of and renting from)
Visperterminen Since March of this year, we have a lovely flat in a wonderful small village high up in the mountains. Snow, sun, wine, quiet, goats & sheep in the barns under the ancient houses. Relaxing all the way.
India I’ve worked in some projects and with some customers, that are outsourcing work to india. It’s frustrating to be in the position to not get a job in a project, but to hear that they are brining in 5 indians who each work for my daily rate per month. It makes me rethink what kind of business and customers I’m going to seek out for the future. And it makes me wonder, how much longer globalisation will be able to sustain that kind of difference in the price of labor. Further, I am not convinced that the company doing the outsourcing is getting better quality for less money. Au contraire.
Health We have been very fortunate this year, in that we haven’t had any major illnesses, accidents or other misfortunes. We have been lucky, and I’m thankful for that.
Here’s to next year. I hope your 2006 will bring you the fulfillment of your dreams. All the best and see you in 2006.
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