I’m back from a relaxing week in Hawaii and plowing through email, catching up, trying to figure out what is going on.

• This Thursday is my free O’Reilly webcast Interviewing Users: Uncovering Compelling Insights, Sign up at the link.
• I was interviewed by Cruxial CIO for an article about design, user experience, and customers.
• Ten years gone: From November 2003 – Diamante Poems, Dirty Toilets, young people who swindle older people by pretending to be their children or grandchildren urgently in need of money.
• What we’re consuming: The Best American Noir of the Century, Big Island Brewhaus.

I’m in Hawaii.

That is all.

It’s Fall-Back Monday. What the heck time is it?

• Coming up, I’m going to be doing a free O’Reilly webcast Interviewing Users: Uncovering Compelling Insights on November 21. Sign up at the link.
• Out-and-about this week, I’ll be at Brenda Laurel’s book launch for Computers as Theatre, Second Edition.
• Ten years gone: From November 2003 – Kate Pierson has her own motel, TAMALA 2010: A Punk Cat in Space.
• What we’re consuming: Levon Helm, standard time, Momiji, BrainWash Cafe.

Hello, week!

• From a Monday point of view, it seems like this is a week for writing. I’m holding for a bunch of different clients and while their different planning processes stretches out, it’s a good time to dig into stuff that’s been brewing for me.
• portigal.com should be all set. I think I’ve found all the weird formatting issues that didn’t move over properly. I also updated several hundred rotten links although there will always be more.
• Ten years gone: From October 2003 – Flashmob tipping point, TERMINAL BAR: the film.
• What we’re consuming: Touchez pas au grisbi, Oh! Sweet Nuthin’, The Midnight Coterie of Sinister Intruders.

Greetings from the San Francisco Bay Area!

• I’m staying local this week, which is a bit of a relief, after several weeks of airplanes and hotel rooms.
• It looks as though portigal.com was moved to its new host without significant downtime for the website or our email. Phew! There’s some weird formatting things we keep finding on older blog posts, and I’m sure various other gremlins will crop up so if you see something, say something!
• Out on the town this week, I’m looking forward to Kim Erwin’s presentation about Communicating the New, her new book (where I’m one of a diverse group of interviewees).
• Ten years gone: From October 2003 – Knee Defender, Brand Names for Kids.
• What we’re consuming: Cinematic Titanic, Mori Point, Margaret.

Greetings from Minneapolis!

• I’m in Minneapolis this week to speak about Interviewing Users: Uncovering Compelling Insights at the MIMA Summit. Looking forward to the local cuisine and of course meeting up with some cool people.
• We’ve moved the webhost for portigal.com so that will likely impact when this gets posted, and perhaps some other things. Fingers crossed that all goes smoothly.
• As I dig more into the different collaborations and other engagements that are on the table right now, I’m excited and intrigued.
• Back home, looking forward to meeting up with Lou Rosenfeld to talk about the various doings we’ve got going. Or the goings-on we’re doing. Either way.
• Ten years gone: From October 2003 – KFC is healthy?, ACME products.
• What we’re consuming: Butcher & the Boar, Hell’s Kitchen, The Sense of an Ending.

Greetings from Tampa!

• I’m in Tampa for a few days to teach a workshop at Wolters Kluwer. I’ve got about 24 hours to explore and sample the local cuisine and then diving into working with this team on their research skills.
• There’s are seven different prospective projects floating around right now; some are speculative and won’t ever become actual prospects, others will take their own time to fully emerge, and so it goes. We’ll see what happens.
• In case you missed it last week, we tried a new format of group post at Rosenfeld Media (dubbed the QuickPanel) with our first effort discussing the challenges when Launching a Healthcare Exchange with No User Testing.
• Around town this week, there’s a meetup in Menlo Park this Friday for design researchers. There’s no website so ping me if you want details.
• Ten years gone: From October 2003 – General Mills Cereal Adventure, Sinkems: Dissolving Toilet Targets.
• What we’re consuming: Shipley Do-Nuts, Crossfire, The Salvador Dali Museum, Bo’s Ice Cream.

All hail the beginning of the week!

• No travel for me…well, until this weekend, when I head off to Tampa to teach a workshop at Wolters Kluwer next week.
• I’m in wait-and-see mode about a number of projects (including two that would be very interesting collaborations); last week was the week where I tried to close the loop on a pile of projects that urgently entered wait-and-see mode back in August. One of them was defunded; another team decided to hire rather than outsource; the last is not returning my emails. That’s how it goes!
• On Wednesday I’m heading over to Berkeley to lead a session on analyzing user research data with the New Product Development class at the Haas School of Business.
• I’ve got a few colleagues in town this week and have plans to meet for catching up, networking, and general talking-about-everything. I’m expecting some good inspirations.
• Ten years gone: From September 2003 – Bad Toon Rising.
• What we’re consuming: Pusher, Felina,
  Ristobar.

How is your Mondaying?

• A week with no travel! Last week I was in Toronto and Los Angeles. In addition to my LA UX talk (which was recorded) I also gave three interviews, so I’m hoping to have plenty to share soon (as well some videos from Fluxible). Here’s some of the tweets from the hugely successful presentation in LA.
• I’m already underway with reconnecting with people after having been away. I’ve got two interesting prospective projects to plan for, including one collaboration with a thought leader I really admire but have never got to work with. I’m lunching with a colleague of a colleague to hear what they are up to and try to answer some of their questions. And so on.
• Out and about: I’m planning to see Janice Fraser speak this Wednesday. And Friday, I’m off to see the Mr. Show reunion.
• Ten years gone: From September 2003 – Awkwardly inappropriate Craigslist help-wanted ad.
• What we’re consuming: Balmy Alley, Hop Dogma Brewing Co., Milky Edwards, Breathing Light, Musso & Frank.

Greetings, people!

• I’m spending the day hanging out in Toronto, my stomping grounds from a previous life. This weekend was the fantastic Fluxible conference. I gave a 5-minute talk about The Power of Silence (slide), as well as the first-ever version of my new workshop The Designer Is Present (slides). I learned a lot from the people who participated, and I can’t wait to do this workshop again (hint-hint!).
• I fly back home tomorrow and then on Wednesday I’ll be speaking to the Rome UX Book Club (via G+ Hangout).
• On Thursday I’m flying to LA to speak about Interviewing Users at an overflowing event.
• I’ll also take advantage of the (brief) time in LA to meet up with the new team at an old client’s newish campus as well as see the James Turrell retrospective at LACMA. And try to cram in some delicious meals in my spare moments. We’ll see!
• Ten years gone: From September 2003 – ‘Photoshopping’ grows into a subculture art form.
• What we’re consuming: Lake of Bays Brewing Company, Beau’s All Natural Brewing Co., Block 3 Brewing Company.