When I began managing teams, I started with the team I developed software on. This meant that I knew the domain well, and was intimately familiar with the actual software and systems. Later, I moved to a team where I had limited experience with the actual code, but it still supported my old team and used a similar stack, so I was able to adapt quickly and understand it well. Recently, I jumped to a new team in a completely different domain with very different software, making it impossible to fully understand it quickly.

I always joked about my one time visiting Brazil, setting foot inside the Embasy in Washington once when I was younger as part of a student leadership program, which technically constituted sovereign soil. I never thought I would actually visit Brazil though, especially for work. When the opportunity arrived to go to the capital and one of the world’s largest cities, Sao Paulo, to help with interviews and training, I jumped at the chance.

Some of my most enduring memories from early childhood were formed from experiences in and around Washington D.C. Born in the area and living there until I was five, I spend many of my formative years around the nation’s capital, so many of my ideas of what young kids should do for fun were built there. It seemed the perfect place to bring my just-about-three-year-old twins for a bit of early summer fun in the sun.

When my car lease ran out, I had to make a difficult choice on what to replace it with. I could either get another traditional gas-powered sedan, probably another BMW that I knew would fit my needs, or I could do something entirely different. I wasn’t completely sure, but I felt just confident enough that electric vehicle technology had advanced to the point where it made sense to own one over a gasoline car, especially with my short commute.

For the last decade or more, I’ve traveled almost extensively with others. Whether wife my wife, our kids, or coworkers, there’s always been someone else with me. Trust me, it’s very hard to feel alone when traveling with two demanding two-year-olds. On a recent work trip to Sao Paulo, I was alone for a full week and I can’t remember another time feeling so alone. I travel pretty frequently, inheriting a passion from my parents who worked in the travel industry when I was young and continued to plan extensive family and group trips throughout my youth.

Growing up in the late 80s, I had a ton of exposure to optimism around huge scientific breakthroughs and progress. In particular, air and space travel seemed to be making huge leaps and bounds on a yearly basis. After a recent visit to the Air and Space museum in Washington DC though, I was reminded of just how much progress was promised, and how little actually happened. Have we entirely stalled progress and does that mean my children will grow up without scientific optimism?

Last summer, my wife and I flew to Portugal with our then two-year-old twin boys. We thought we had flying with toddlers figured out. Huge bags full of toys and games were barely even needed while the boys kept themselves occupied nearly the whole flight with watching the other planes and the ground go by through the windows. A trip to Seattle last fall when they were just under 2.5 was similar.

When Game of Thrones started, I wasn’t a parent, didn’t have a dog, a house, or even a wife yet. It’s incredible to see how much has changed during the nearly decade long run of the show. After so long, it’s finally over. While the debate on how it ended will likely continue for years, there’s no denying it had a huge impact on the world from a cultural standpoint, existing as one of the largest shared experiences in modern culture.

Dinosaurs, horses, and castles. These were the things I expected to excite my soon-to-be three-year-old twin boys on our trip to London. What I didn’t expect was just how excited they’d be about riding double decker busses and the trains around the city. Not only was it a great reminder of how thrilling even the small things can be when traveling with young children, but it also showed me that sometimes the best parts of a trip can be the little ones in between the big planned events.

They say no marathon is ever easy, and it’s certainly true. Even with a fantastic training season where for the first time ever, I accomplished all of my long runs, even extending one to 21 miles and didn’t bail out on a single one, 26.2 miles still hurt. However, the London marathon was as close to perfect as could be for me. With amazing organization and a great course, the London Marathon should be high on ever runner’s race bucket list.