Voice of the DBA

Tag: travel

  • The Bucket List of Places

    I wrote an editorial about gathering data for my brain through experiences. For me this is mostly through travel and going to places, but this could be through a particular experience. For example, I used to want to do an adult fantasy baseball camp, though that’s not on my list. Skiing in Japan, however, is.

    I sat down and made a quick list here, things that stuck out in my mind, and I have an older bucket list, but I need to review and break some things down. I like some of what Brent Ozar has in an Epic Life Quest, and I might try to break my list into shorter term goals and longer ones as well.

    In the meantime, I’m making a list of places I want to visit. These are in a variety of forms, some cities, some attractions, but all places I’ve thought about. Now we’ll see if I get there:

      • Tokyo
      • Okinawa
      • Mt Fuji
      • Svalbard
      • Reykjavik
      • Antwerp/Bruges (planned 2022)
      • Lisbon
      • Rome
      • Florence
      • Venice
      • Cairo and the Great Pyramids
      • Istanbul
      • Cyprus
      • Jerusalem
      • Dubai
      • Cape Town
      • Johannesburg
      • Kenya and Mt Kilimanjaro
      • Madagascar
      • Singapore
      • Bangkok
      • Phuket
      • Ho Chi Minh City
      • Kathmandu
      • Beijing
      • Shanghai
      • Great Wall of China
      • Nepal, Mt Everest, Tibet
      • Taiwan
      • Manila
      • Jakarta
      • Dubai and Burj Khalifa
      • Auckland
      • Santiago
      • Machu Picchu (scheduled 2023)
      • Easter Island
      • Rio de Janeiro
      • Lima
      • Buenos Aires
      • Costa Rica
      • Virgin Islands
      • Bermuda
      • Juneau
      • Cabo San Lucas
      • Prince Edward Island
      • Denali (Mt McKinley)

  • Back to Traveling in 2022

    I’ve had a busy speaking schedule for a number of years. If you look at my Speaking CV, there are a lot of events, even during the last two years. Before the pandemic, most of my events were in person and I was able to travel around the world. The last two years I’ve had few trips, though last year I did manage to get out of town with my wife to:

    • Omaha
    • Philadelphia
    • Orlando
    • Key West
    • Las Vegas
    • Boise
    • Brussels
    • DC

    A fairly busy year, with a couple other trips to LA for Redgate business.

    I wasn’t sure what would happen in 2022. While airlines extended status in 2020 and helped in 2021, I was a bit worried about 2022. Would I travel enough to renew my status? It might be silly, but it makes travel easier, and there are perks my wife can enjoy as well.

    I had a slow start this year, and I haven’t been on a plane yet. I had a trip cancelled as well, and a couple others I expected got delayed. United gave me a kickstart, with 20% of the credits I need to renew status, but I was slightly worried.

    However, things picked up quickly. As of now, I have these trips scheduled:

    • London
    • Syracuse
    • Las Vegas
    • Chicago
    • Reno
    • Jacksonville
    • London and Brussels
    • Amsterdam
    • Austin
    • LA

    Quite a packed schedule, and it’s one that will definitely hamper my work on spring chores around the ranch. Still, it’s exciting and I’m looking forward to seeing new places, meeting new people, and spending time with friends.

  • Redgate at SQLBits

    SQLBits LogoRedgate and the Advocates are attending SQL Bits next week in London. I’m excited to see Grant and Kathi in person, as it’s been far too long since I have been in the same room with them.

    You can register today and attend any of these sessions in person.

    If you feel comfortable in crowds and miss getting together in person, come to SQL Bits next week and say hi.

  • Planning 2022

    It is already looking like a more normal year for me in 2022. I was just accepted for DataGrillen 2022, which posted the schedule this week. As I added that to my list of events, I noticed that I already have a few things up there:

    • March 2-4 – Visual Studio Live, Las Vegas
    • March 9-12 – SQL Bits, London
    • May 14 – SQL Saturday Jacksonville, Jacksonville, USA
    • May 23-25 – Technorama, Antwerp
    • Jun 2-3 – DataGrillen, Germany somewhere

    I’ve also got trips planned to these places for volleyball as a coach, so it will be a busy H1 for me:

    • Las Vegas
    • Chicago
    • Reno

    I know more things will come, and I’m looking to submit to a few new events. There are also a few people planning SQL Saturdays, so I’m hoping that there will be more live events in 2022.

    I know the world feels shaky, but I’m confident. I get my booster tomorrow, and many people feel as like as I do. The goal of vaccination is to get back to doing the things we love, and I’m looking forward to doing so.