I was in Redmond last week on business and had a lot of fun this time around.  The trip began and ended with a visit to Key Arena in downtown Seattle.  Monday night it was the Van Halen concert.  I’d already seen Van Halen in Kansas City back in October, but I thought, “What the heck, it was a great show, let’s go see it again.”  I had floor seats this time and could easily see everything that was happening on stage just a short distance away.  The person I took with me said they’d never been to a better concert, and I came away thinking it was even better than the Kansas City show.

Seattle set records for rainfall Monday night, but I was thankfully out of most of it.  My guest and I had a nice dinner prior to the show at some restaurant near the venue, and we met up with some other friends after the show as well.  I saw some light rain, but nothing like the torrents the news was reporting.

During the week, Kalen Delaney came by to see me at the office.  You may have heard:  she has left Solid Quality Learning and is back doing her own thing now.  Contact her here for details.  Kalen is one of those people I always love to meet up with and feel fortunate to know.  She’s got such an enthusiasm for technology and is such a great communicator—it’s always a joy to sit down and shoot the breeze with her.  We talked about all kinds of things during her visit and even reminisced a little about the old days. 

I went out with friends every evening throughout the week.  I often don’t do that—I’m usually too busy—but I made it a point to get out a little bit this time.  It’s Christmastime, and I felt like socializing, I guess J.

Friday night, I ended up taking in a Seattle Supersonics NBA game back at Key Arena courtesy of some free tickets scored by my boss (his daughter is a dancer for the team).  They played the Milwaukee Bucks, the teams were evenly matched, and it was a great game.  I got to meet my boss’s daughter and the rest of the dancers during the game and had a great time in general.  The person I went to the game with hadn’t seen many basketball games, but said they thoroughly enjoyed this one.

Saturday morning came early as my flight lifted off at 6:30 a.m.  My driver showed up on time, but didn’t call my hotel room like he usually does, so I finally came downstairs and found him waiting.  Fortunately, there wasn’t much traffic on the way to SEATAC so early in the morning, and I was on my way back home in no time.

I was home by 1 or 2 in the afternoon and surrounded by the usual sounds of kids, pets, and the occasional Tarzan yell.  It was a quick week, but a productive one.  I hadn’t been in awhile, and I really enjoyed myself this time around.