PMI Member; Soon to be PMP

Alrighty then.  After about eight years of managing projects in one capacity or another, I finally joined PMI last week.  This is in support of my goal to become PMP certified by June of this year.

Right now I am hard at work on preparing my PMP resume.  This is proving to be a pretty arduous task, as I am required to list details including the knowledge areas that I've worked in on every project for the last eight years.   Sometimes I have trouble remembering what I had for breakfast, so details of projects eight years (and two employers) ago are hard to come by.  Nevertheless, I will persevere and have my application completed by mid-May.

On a parallel path, I am taking an exam preparation course to help prepare for the test itself.  My final session of that course is May 15-17, which aligns nicely with the timeline for my goal.  I'll get my application in, finish my course, take a practice exam or two and study, study, study!  Whew - I'll be glad when that's over.  Fortunately, I've got a week of vacation scheduled in beautiful Destin, FL for the third week of June!

New Blog Focus - Project Management

As promised, I've decided to repurpose the Journal This! blog.  I've decided to channel my passion at work into my writings in this humble forum, and as such I will be focusing primarily on the topic of project management. 

Still here?

Good, because I promise not to make a boring rehash of the same old PM stuff that you've already read in a dozen places.   While I do happen  to manage projects for my job (which I enjoy very much), I also use project management skills in every facet of life - from home maintenance to personal finances to kids' school work - it all comes down to planning and executing.

I think we're going to have some fun with this.  I'll continue to journal important personal events because, well because it's my blog and I want to.  Just a few of the upcoming topics that I'll put a PM spin on in the future are GTD, automobile purchases, home improvement, and family event planning. 

Back in the Game

Wow, it's been a while.  Welcome back to the Journal This! blog.  It's been quite some time since I've posted here, and quite a few things have changed - as you can well imagine.  I'll fill you in on a little bit in this post, and then close some more gaps in future posts.  In addition, I've decided to focus this blog a little more on a topic that's pretty important to me.  Stay tuned for details.

I haven't been totally absent from the blogging scene, I've been posting at my poker blog Cracked Aces.  Unfortunately, I don't have too much to say on that blog any longer.  Online poker has been a relaxing (and quite profitable) hobby of mine for a few years and I've deeply enjoyed playing and writing about it.  Unfortunately, Big Brother has declared that I don't have the right to use my leisure time and disposable income as I see fit.  So, for now, I've said good bye to online poker. 

Over the last month or two that I've not been playing poker, I've picked up a much more nefarious habit - World of Warcraft.   Funny how thing change, eh?  I used to spend an hour or two a night playing poker and being rewarded with a couple hundred dollars a month of extra scratch and some nice swag.   Now I spend far more time online getting lost in and around Azeroth, and get to pay $15 a month for the privilege.

OK, that's enough for now - I don't want to bore you to death.  Welcome back - I'm looking forward to rekindling the conversation.