Note to Self

In my notes for the first JSchool Travels adventure in December 2005 are many notes about what to do differently “next time.”

So here we are five years later with best laid plans, but I will always be looking for ways to improve the experience and efficiency.

This time it quickly became clear each of needs our own laptop instead of trying to share. As Dr. Lo reminds us, we are so much more dependent on computers to do our jobs than we realize.

In trying to minimize the gear we had to pack and carry, we opted for seven computers for nine people. Traveling in two Chevy Impalas, space became a huge factor.

Which leads to the second note to self. Five years ago, two advisers and six students traveled in a 15-passenger van. We were very fortunate to have former student Dee Dixon accompany us roundtrip from Beaumont.

An extra vehicle meant we could split up to cover more territory. We also did some drop offs to conduct two interviews almost simultaneously.

That worked great, but we have always thought two vehicles would be better. And it would have been except we grew by one adviser and while having Dr. Lo here to direct the photo end is wonderful, the math isn’t as neat.

I wound up hanging out in the hotel all day Tuesday because in shuttling the students around, there wasn’t room for me to come along.

Dr. Lo took off with four students, two to drop off in downtown Mobile and two to head down to Dauphin Island. Full vehicle.

I could have traveled to downtown Mobile with Tricia and her two students, but I would have had to stay there when she picked up the two students and headed down to Dauphin Island with them.

There’s so much to see and do, people to interview, sites to shoot and tape. We can’t all get everywhere.