Q1 nearly done

We have had probably the busiest quarter travel-wise for some time due to the UK / French business and needs in Philly / NYC.

Just when we thought we were done, we are heading back to Sydney tomorrow to get our US work visas renewed. Like all good bureaucracies (Australia is no different. The process for Kim to get her Aussie citizenship was comical) this one is a doozy. The rules are kind of random and change. I need to prove that my 3 year Uni degree (standard in Australia) is actually worth a 4 year degree (as I've run g for a while now), there are  requirements related to the business and it is all together not a very comfortable process due to all the uncertainty. Hopefully our interview Monday morning will go just fine. And then we leave the Consulate and wait. We wait until the US Consular puts our stamped passports in an enveloppe and sends them to us. And Australia Post actually gets around to delivering them. Which in the case of my Aussie friend happened about a month later due to a Postal worker's strike. So we need to budget about a week for that and then we are all set.

While we wait, we are setting up a gSydney office and working US hours next week  to fully test out Skype and see how seamless or not it can be. Rather than bolt home after that, we are Spring Breaking in Fiji which is kind of Australia's equivalent to Mexico. It's just up the road and it is very chilled. So that bit will be good. We found a deserted island on Airbnb.com. Just the 4 of us for 7 days. No power, two Bure's and a bunch of water sports gear. It will either be awesome or the kids are going to mutiny and this will be my last post.

Kim is the Master of packing so to avoid the risk of lost bags as we land in Sydney (very high) and to avoid schlepping around Fiji with a ton of stuff, she has managed to do it with 5 carry-on bags.  I have no idea how but I just don't care. She is a genius. 

I am also weighing up reading options for the 15 hour flight…

 

 

The Hunger Games in T minus 4 1/2 hours…

Fynny and I are off to the Cinema at 12.30am (yes, like tomorrrow just after midnight) to watch the premiere of the Hunger Games.Never done this before and given that I hit the hay at 8pm every single night, the next 4 hours are going to be challenging.

But the boy is pumped. We made him read it before he could go and watch it.

Originally Kim was going to go but the maths just doesn't work out. We'll get home at 3am tomorrow, get up at 4.30am, head to the office at 5am until 3pm then to the airport. Fly to LA then to Sydney. So I am better prepared for that, how?

 

Back to the start

Chipotle’s stirring little movie. Makes you think.

 

Breaking Bad (Habits)

Meet my nemesis. I am on this thing way more than I should be and I have had enough. Or, Kim has had enough and I agree…but habits are hard to break.

So I set up a deal with the kids yesterday. For every time they see me on my phone in their presence, and I'm not using it to assist them (movie times etc.) I pay them $50. That was received very positively by Fynn. Harper was deeply concerned that if he busted me just once, it would bankrupt me and I would not be able to put food on the table. He offered $25 per infraction. What a deal!

 

 

 

Who shops where

Fascinating snapshot of who buys what where in the US.

Love your mother!

Go get 'em!

 

The importance of space

In the 7 years since we launched gDiapers, we have moved from a one person garden shed in Bondi to a series of rented homes (where we lived and the gTeam would come each day) to our current gHQ in NE Portland.

As we have grown our needs have changed. We have tried to create spaces that allow the team to do their best. Not be so desk bound for example. I work at a treadmill desk while Kim has no desk at all. 

Like many things, it is a work in progress. This piece in today's New York Times spoke to me on this front.Check out the gallery below for some inspirational spaces:

This is like Kim's space, just without the view!

 

British Airways talks up gNappies

A nice piece in this months BA inflight magazine.

gReat Britain

Day 1 in the UK started with no less than a 10 hour meeting with our UK team.

After the culinary wonderland of Paris, Air France's two attempts to leave Paris and subsequent late arrival meant that our dinner options in Manchester were extremely limited. We ended up doing room service sandwiches. A choice of one – "cheese and tomato". The cheese was grated and from a bag and the bread was whiter than whiter. An emptier carbohydrate would have been impossible to find.

Our meeting was very productive and we closed the day with a meal at the local pub where the massive choice of beer had Jeff completely perplexed. 

It was also "Banger's Day"…

Today we head south from Manchester to London to meet the press.

Preparing for the UK leg of the trip

After leaving France (after two attempts) last night, I thought it necessary to mentally prepare for the next stage of our trip – the UK -  by watching two seminal British television programs.

The first was the final few episodes of Downton Abbey. I am going to be most disappointed if my hotel doesn't provide a butler and a footmen.

The second was a fairly jarring juxtaposition…The Only Way Is Essex. This is the UK version of Jersey Shore and it is absolutely terrifying.

I am now prepared for the week.