In which Panama votes for a new government (while, in other news, CHI Moose meets Pero Perro Snoop)

Last night I fell into bed just moments after I got back to my apartment.  Totally exhausted but glad for a great week at CHI.

Today, I awoke late and scooted up to the Super Extra to get groceries before the torrential rain (which hit about 10 minutes after I got inside)

Rain!  RAIN!

and more importantly, before the election moved to the vote count.

It's the end of the election campaigns with their bitter rancor, accusations, and cross-accusations.  And signs and flags by the millions (seemingly) that I blogged about earlier.  Today's Panamanian election is the closest in the four elections since the US invasion that toppled the Noriega dictatorship in 1989, and a lot rides on it.  There's a risk (some say a certainty) that if Jose Domingo Arias wins, the current president may continue to exercise power since Arias' vice president is the current president's wife.  Even Ruben Blades, Panamanian Salsa star has warned that his election would be a "dangerous risk for Panamanian democracy" because this would, in effect be the re-election of the current president, something that is forbidden by law here.

The air is very still here now, but it feels to me like the country is holding its breath as the vote is counted (polls closed at 4 pm, just over an hour ago.)

Unfortunately, the cable box/TV/DVD remotes are all battling with one another, giving me only one readable screen - an offer of a movie I can purchase - and no access to "ordinary" TV or even non-premium cable content.  So I am relying on the web and my friends for updates as to what is happening.  So far, no idea.

In other news, today was also the introduction of CHI Moose to Pero Perro Snoop.  So far, they appear to be settling in nicely together.  And CHI Moose has even played with Snoop which the latter has tolerated (see below)  We shall see whether there is any jockeying tonight for position.  Pero Perro Snoop has not had a younger "sibling" so I'll have to watch his behavior as the evening progresses.
;-)

Home again, home again, jiggetty jig!

Heading out momentarily (at 5:10 am) to go to the airport to fly from Toronto --> Montreal --> Newark --> Panama City, where I will arrive at 9:30 tonight.

Observing radio silence.

Over and out.

Just hangin' out (Friday)

Get up.

Coffee.

Nap.

Packing.

Nap.

Go downstairs to the lobby and bead during David's Google calls.

Nap.

Email.

Nap.

Get dinner across the street.

Nap.

Get David's flights for Panama.

Sleep.

Yup, it's been a great day!

A case study, an interview and a rap (Thursday)

Today was the final day of CHI - Industry Day - and the day I was presenting both my Case Study in the morning and an interview in the afternoon.  The interview ended with a wrap-up in the form of a rap.  ;-)  Here's a (poor) video of it:  Wrap-up Rap

The opening and closing Plenary sessions were both fabulous.  Elizabeth Churchill (who also interviewed me in the afternoon) gave the morning one on things to make us cheerful.  It was full of great ideas and synthesized things very well.  Scott Jenson was our closing Plenary, talking about the Internet of Things.  Both were wonderful and I'm glad I got up (for Elizabeth) and stayed (for Scott)

However, I'm totally exhausted and am heading to a very early evening.  I remember partying until late into the night (or early into the morning) but no longer.

BLUR!!!!!!!!! (AKA Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday)

All of my good intentions to blog every night regardless of how late it was have evaporated.  Both because it was very, very late and because I was always completely and total exhausted.

Totally.

That's the way things are at conferences of course. Even if you aren't going to sessions, the pace, the people, the walking, the carrying/lugging, the being "on" - it is all just plain exhausting.  And many conferences are 2 or 3 days - but this one is 4 days PLUS 2 days ahead with Workshops.  And I had a workshop on Saturday and SIG today, so it's been a very long week.

And I'm not even done.  Tomorrow is my main day to present.

I'm presenting a case study in the morning on an ethnographic study I did in South Africa.  It's bittersweet since Gary was so much a part of this.  But it was a very interesting study and I'll be discussing how we made trade-offs as we dealt with the challenges.

Then, in the afternoon, I'll be doing an interview session with a good friend, Elizabeth Churchill.  She will be asking me questions about 5 lessons I've learned during my career - things that have relevance for practitioners today.  I've spent quite a lot of time thinking about these and am excited to have this opportunity to share them.

My wrap-up summary is going to be a bit different, though, since, honestly, how many people do you think will still be awake during the last session before the closing Plenary?  Not many.  And I really DO want people to remember these.

So, "the Other Dr. Dray" is making another appearance.  I/she will rap the wrap-up.  Complete with my backup dancers and beat boxers (aka Student Volunteers)  I did a first run through with Kami, who is a fabulous beat boxer, today and I must say I'm VERY excited!

Stay tuned.  Tomorrow at this time, it'll be done and I'll either be happy or deeply embarrassed.

I'm sincerely hoping it is the former!

Sunday, Sunday

Today is gorgeous.  Looking out of our window we can see planes leaving and taking off from the Metropolitan Airport - one landing strip as far as I can tell.  My flight from Montreal was supposed to have come in there but obviously, my direct flight had to go to the main airport where I could be cleared into Canada.  Apparently there's a ferry to get passengers into Toronto.  Looks like an adventure.  Not one I'd like to do in a storm though...

One guy has been practicing take-offs and landings all day.

The day is going to be a lovely one with David.  I'm feeling much better (though not 100%) and I know we'll have fun whatever we do.  Given how long I've been away, I just want to hang out with him, and we might well do just that all day.  It'd be fine by me.  Already we've discussed real estate in Panama (maybe?), Sante Fe, Portland, and a couple of other places as we talked about ultimately retiring to... but I can't quite get my head around not being at CHI, not seeing my friends from around the world, or being involved in the profession.  I may need a support group to make the transition.  ;-)

And tonight?  Tonight is the Awards Dinner.

I'm excited.

Very excited.

Because I'm being inducted into the CHI Academy!  [For those of you who are not in this area, here's the link to information about what the heck these things means: About SIGCHI Awards   And the list of people getting awards this year at:  SIGCHI 2014 Awards.  All of the awardees to date are here:  SIGCHI Awardees 1998 - 2014  (I got the Lifetime Service Award in 2006)]

Susan and Jeff Johnson the 2 practitioners elected to the CHI Academy  this year.

Best of all, a kiss from David!

For many years, the only people in the CHI Academy were academics.  Which really burned those of us who are practitioners.  So we started to lobby for practitioners either to be admitted to the CHI Academy or to have their own honorary CHI "Thing" (to be named)  For years, we were told that no, only academics could be in the Academy since, after all, it is an "Academy" which means only academics, right?  Wrong, we continued to assert, and so the back-and-forthing went on for a number of years.  Finally, about 5 years ago, SIGCHI finally changed their minds and agreed.

What's the reason for this history?

Well, I actually love the irony.  For many years, I, a practitioner, was the one of ones advocating for this change.  And now, I am being inducted.  But now, I'm an academic (at least for 4 months)!  Ah, what a delicious irony!  And a complete hoot!

Saturday: Working at the Workshop

Wow!  What fascinating people are in our Workshop on Gender!  So many interesting ideas!

It was a lot of fun too.  Which is hardly surprising given who the people there were.  :-)

Unfortunately I didn't feel terrific and after lunch, faded altogether.  I came back to the hotel via bike taxi and had buildings and facts pointed out.  It was fun, though cold (and I do NOT have warm clothes with me coming from Panama)  I got back to the room, threw up and fell asleep (around 4 pm).  I awoke long enough to eat a sandwich, watch a short video with David (dozing much of the time) and then went properly to bed, sleeping through the night until about 9 Sunday morning.  Guess I needed that.

But it does make for a rather dull blog entry, so I thought I'd spice it up with the conference logo: