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The week of SQLSaturday Nashville would prove to be a most eventful week. Monday I would be on my work to work riding on a two-lane road a dump truck would decide to turn into the passenger side of the car. Thankfully no one was hurt. But it did result in the loss of my Prius. I now own an older Camry as I try to work my way out debt, not buying a new car is on the list of things to not do.  Two days later my laptop would install Windows updates and just go to spinning circle and required the MIS team to reimage my C drive. So Wednesday night I was up late recreating me an Azure VM to do my presentation inside of just in case my machine was not available to come Saturday. Thursday I got my laptop back and spent all day installing software. ANd was off to Nashville, which was under our Southern winter advisory, the poor organizers had to cancel the pre-cons. The airport convinced me I need to be an SUV, after getting hit by a dump truck I was a sucker for anything to not be another wreck this week. I got on the road to my room at Rose’s (my Airbnb hostess) and there is no ice on the road, it was just winter in North Carolina. But my room at Rose’s did have a nice space heater in my room. I know a lot of people are leery of staying in other’s home especially while the other people are home but this is my fourth time in the last year and I didn’t even run into the owner. I would really like me a space heater that looks like a fireplace now though. I attended Nashville as an Idera Ace.  Thanks, Idera.

Idera’s second annual list of Idera SQL Superstars has me on it. What no way! And wow look who else on there. And I got turned into a duck. Now we all have decided we want Homer McEwens’ duck made into a real duck. Matt would like a racing helmet added if he gets on made of him. They already did a superhero duck so I good to go unless they want to do another one with my logo or make red and blue. But wow what a list of people to be included among and take a list of last year’s Superstars. Not quite sure I belong on this list but shall try to be a Superstar.

I wrote another blog post for Idera on Creating a Basic PowerShell Function and my first article for MSSQLTips on Monitoring SQL Server Availability Groups with AlwaysOn Extended Events Health Session. I signed up to be mentor for new speakers at www.speakingmentors.com. So if you are looking for mentor checkout the site it has some great people volunteering their time to help others. I was already helping a new speaker via email with setting up his new talk and looking forward to the whole process.

This month I read a few books Boundaries Updated and Expanded Edition: When to Say Yes, How to Say No To Take Control of Your Life, Fast/Forward: Make Your Company Fit for the Future, and Creating Great Choices: A Leader’s Guide to Integrative Thinking. Boundaries probably was the most impactful to me personally. It explained a lot of things in my family and the way I handle situations. I will need to reread this and process it more slowing with my therapist. Fast/Forward talked about companies needing to move a more adhocracy way instead of bureaucratic to survive in the current marketplace. Creating Great Choices walked you through a framework for always coming with a way to come to the best possible choice when we have more than one instead of just going with the one that sounds like the only one that will work.  Working to combine the best from two plans.

Nothing too eventful happened to my foster kids. No court dates to worry about and just one meeting to attend. I managed to get all visits with them done all on the same day before the dump truck took out my car.  One is teen who plays basketball and I got to go watch the game them play and that special. One other was preschool age and was playing horses with me.  The other was a baby just doing baby stuff and being cute.

Working on my goals for the year. I started studying for LCFS certification. And I bought me a used Camry to replace my poor Prius to help me get out of debt.

To round up the month with my unlucky streak my washer machine is broken, so I think that makes three bad things.  Unlucky streak should be over so everyone can feel free to stand next to me again.