luisgarcia dot com

Last fall I purchased a road bike and was cycling any chance I could get. It’s been about a year since that time and my cycling schedule has dwindled. I still go to spin class and hit the road at times, but in no way equivalent to what it once was. I keep making excuses as to why I don’t need to ride but then end up feeling guilty about it. My friend/coworker recently started cycling and has now passed me up in cycling level. My new goal is to road ride at least twice a week and spin class at least once a week before I completely lose my ability to ride.

I am finally going to start blogging again. Previously, the biggest headache of blogging was writing something of substance that others would want to read. Lengthy posts about something slightly interesting would stress me out. What happened is that I just completely abandoned it and eventually replaced it with Twitter posts. I’ve decided to join the 2008 blogging method and focus on short posts. I’ll probably post much more than I ever have in the past about things that no one in this entire world would find interesting. I figure I’ll use my blog as more of a journal and escape from the long post method. I expect to use this blog as more of a Tumblr-style blog and less of a traditional lengthy post blog.

I recently decided to move my site to Wordpress from Textpattern.  The main reason I’m moving to the dark side is because of the high availability of Wordpress support that I’ve found online.  It seems like Textpattern was becoming stale and Wordpress had taken the lead.  I’m noticing a few transition problems so please be patient for the next couple of weeks.

It’s been over a year since I first started the process of getting my Project Management Professional (PMP) certification. Working for Geniant at that time, it was a major goal of the company to have all project managers (PMs) PMP certified by the end of 2007. Geniant agreed to fund all costs for the PMs to achieve this certification, all we had to do was pass it.

I took the test on March 6, 2007. I was the first out of all of the PMs to jump in and just do it. After countless hours of studying my workbook and many study sessions with coworkers, I failed by a few points. This was one of the hardest things I’ve ever gone through in my professional career. For someone who makes goals and thinks of nothing else but those goals, this was like a punch in the gut. There were times when I questioned whether or not I was cut out for this line of work but just kept going. I took the summer off from studying to get my bearings on how I was going to pass this test. Geniant, now acquired by EMC, was very nurturing and was willing to do whatever it took to help me pass.

The tactic I took for the next test was completely different from the first time I studied. Since I already took the test once, the uncertainty of how the test questions would be asked was non-existent. I studied much more than just my workbook. I found myself googling for sample PMP exam questions and getting my hands on every type of PMP prep book I could find. I spent many nights in Barnes and Noble browsing through prep books and noting how they asked exam questions. If there is one thing I was intimidated on from the test it was the method in which questions were asked and not the actual application of learned knowledge.

After studying for over 2 months, Thanksgiving week and countless other hours, I passed my PMP test. It was the happiest day of my professional career. Passing this test was like a raise that no monetary raise could ever give. It was something that no one could do for me so I just had to suck it up and do whatever it took to do it myself. I passed and that’s all that matters.

I just wanted to thank all the people who supported me throughout this process. I know many times I missed social events, family events and other important functions but this was one point that I needed to be selfish and use this time for myself. I know my friends and family completely understand since that’s what makes them parts of my life but my coworkers also deserve much thanks. They have been nothing but supportive and I appreciate that. Now that it’s over it’s much easier to walk tall around the office and move on with my career goals.

Thanks to all!

It’s been way too long since I’ve posted anything to my site. I’ve been busy, to say the least. So much has past that I figure I owe my readers (all 3 of them) a summary.

January - Officially became a Mac user. it was a tough transition month but I’m glad to be here.
February - Attended Mardi Gras again and had a blast with the same crew as last year, but more.
April - I officially won my “biggest loser” weight loss bet against my friend Chris. Officially lost 41 pounds over 6 months. (50+ pounds to date)
April 9th - After countless hours of studying over the last 4 months, I failed my PMP certification exam. I have yet to retake it but will definitely do it before the end of 2007.
June - Attended oue yearly river floating trip in San Marcos, Texas and had so much fun I can’t remember it.
June - Began cycling in place of running and have fallen in love with it. The amount of terrain you cross while riding completely beats the few miles I could do while running.
July - Decided to lease my house and move into an apartment. After 3+ years of owning a home, I miss my freedom too much to stay in a house.

That’s about it, I’m sure there are so many more things I could write about, but they aren’t coming to mind at the moment. Hopefully I can post a little more once my move is complete.