El Dorado Hills

Last Friday night I sat down anxiously to read more of “The Organized Mind”. Fortunately I had a couple of hours before my usual bed time to gather more valuable lessons. This book is already shaping the way I organize my tasks and more importantly it is providing me with a reference on how our brains work.

After gathering my highlighter pen, book, some note cards and a regular pen I adjusted the lighting and oriented a comfortable chair to accommodate the magic of learning and inspiration that was about to happen. After reading a number of pages and highlighting some content, my eyelids started feeling a little heavy. This is not an uncommon, but on this night it was evident that the eyelids were winning and before long I succumbed to the call of an earlier bedtime.

My “Eureka!” Moment

To give things a little context, specifically weather related, there is a bit of a rain and wind storm that’s been going on the last two days here in Northern California. The conditions have affected my sleep with the winds being loud enough at times to wake me up. During one of these brief episodes early Saturday morning I started thinking about an article written by one of my manufacturing clients. The article was part of Christian Frueh‘s quality management series, specifically his third in that series “failing more often: gaining for randomness and volatility“. There was one concept in particular, the idea that being tested to the point of failure leading to improvement. My mind drifted a bit as I considered some real world areas where this concept would have a huge positive impact and instinctively had to get up and write about it. 🙂

Things You Want Tested While House Shopping

If you’ve followed this blog recently you probably know that last summer my family relocated to El Dorado Hills. We’ve been holed up in “temporary” accommodations since the end of the summer. The house shopping process has not gone exactly like we might had hoped. It’s been an educational process though, and we’ve had a few near hits. One thing is certain, testing things to the point of failure is extremely valuable as a house shopper.

The Beautiful Oak Tree

One fantastic thing about the Sierra Foothills is the amazing oak trees peppered across the rolling hills. From fall to late spring (early summer on a rainy year!) the lush green hills stun you with their beauty. One big oak tree in particular is an actual “feature” of a house that we have considered making an offer on. The tree is both a blessing and a potential curse. You see, this particular tree is quite old and majestic. If it were to be badly damaged or die the value of the property in our eyes would drop significantly.

Remember those high winds I mentioned? If that old oak survives those winds, it’s probably in pretty good shape. We’d certainly have an arborist check it out if we were putting an offer on that house. What the arborist could not tell us is what would happen to the tree in a heavy wind storm. Only knowing that it’s been through several in just the last few months can tell us that.

The Drainage Problem

El Dorado Hills appears to be a mix of iron rich soil and granite. The presence of rock does make one feel more comfortable about how stable the hills will be during heavy rains. In December we had some incredibly heavy rains, with several large storms back to back. The area shed the water off as if it was built to handle these types of storms.

One house that we had our eye on and showed a lot of potential for our needs had a sudden price decrease recently. Great news, right? We learned an inspection report had revealed a drainage issue, among other things. There was actually water under the house in at least one significantly sized area. Heavy rains are a great test of roofing materials, gutters, drainage and grading. Imagine if we had purchased this home last summer only to learn about this later? Yikes.

Forest and Wild Fires

Before humans started building houses and more specifically, had the ability to contain wild fires, the forests were far more healthy. Fires would clean out the under brush periodically and cull unhealthy trees leaving a fertile environment behind for new healthier trees and shrubs to grow. I remember flipping through “Fire in Sierra Nevada Forests: A Photographic Interpretation of Ecological Change Since 1849″ at a family members home and seeing a compelling visual history of this.

Many fires today are catastrophic, leaving nothing but charred earth and tiny charred stubs that were once fully grown trees. Our forests would benefit from more frequent failure and restoration of the more natural cycle. Last year the King Fire near Pollock Pines consumed 97,717 acres, 12 single residences, 69 other minor structures and caused 12 injuries. Here is a picture I took of the King Fire, from a very safe distance:

The King Fire on 9/17 from 40 Miles Away

The King Fire from 40 miles away on 9/17/2014.

Frueh’s article gave me a lot to think about and as the brief bought of “Eureka!” moment insomnia indicates, hopefully this will have the same affect on you. Without the insomnia, of course.

If you followed my families adventure and my “workation” this summer, you know that just before leaving we had sold two homes in the Bay Area. What I didn’t mention was that we had been considering a change of scenery for more than just the 6 week road trip. My work has evolved to a point where I really don’t see customers as frequently as I did years past. Since I spend the majority of my time sitting behind my keyboard and not the wheel of my car, I no longer have a strong geographic tether.

I Love Danville

I guess this wouldn’t be complete without saying how much I love Danville, California. A Town I grew to love and will always maintain friendships, work relationships and a strong connection with. Danville is awesome, the people are awesome, the schools are awesome it’s really hard to criticize Danville. If I were to come up with criticism of Danville and perhaps the Bay Area as a whole it would be that it is expensive. It is a small price to pay though for all the opportunities that the area presents. I am not burning this bridge not now, not ever.

Priorities, Experiences

Experiences have become a much bigger priority in my life. Reflecting back at my recent past, the things I hold closest to my heart involved experiences with people and places. They were often different places like SOBCON in Chicago and Portland (now known as Genius Shared). They were also the experiences where I made the time, fighting against the current of my habits to find a calm new pool in this river of life. This summer was all about that and I have very strong feelings and conviction on the importance of experiencing many more different textures of life in the future. When I reconnected with some important people from my past and present in San Diego, my head was spinning with grand plans to reconnect with them for some new adventures. While driving down the Carefree Highway, I took in the joy of a song I remembered hearing as a small child. When I looked at the absolute grandeur of the Grand Canyon, Glen Canyon/Lake Powell, Antelope Canyon, Monument Valley and other amazing treasures in Arizona it further emboldened my desire to experience new places and things. While enjoying the cooler climate of Utah near Bryce Canyon and the growing river alongside the highways; I pondered powerful metaphors of the affect every mile and site had on me during this trip. When I met with every customer who I had only spoken with on the phone and via Email, my appreciation for them as people grew. I learned things about them and their businesses that I would never know. I learned about the hobbies we shared, the life experiences we had in common, and I left with stronger ties to them than ever before.

Finding the Next Danville

Back in 2008-2009 when things got pretty rough financially for many of us, we considered leaving the Bay Area for a less expensive area. Little did we know then that we would discover a gem, our next Danville, in El Dorado Hills. We loved the homes nestled in the grand oaks in the Sierra Nevada foothills. The amazing views and the close proximity to some very different opportunities further attracted us. I recalled all the places not too far from the area where I camped and rode dirt bikes years ago in my 20’s. I imagined having access to those areas not for a weekend or even a long day trip but for part of a day and felt it would be a great experience for my family as well. Once the decision had been made we diligently sought a home that would accommodate all of our needs, but it became evident quickly that this task was going to be a greater challenge than we had hoped for. So we are now temporarily settled in an apartment so we could start our son in school and continue the search for the perfect (or nearly perfect?) home.

Cheers to New Beginnings

We are enjoying learning about our new home town and meeting the kind, laid back people of this community. If you’re ever in the area let me know, I’d love to connect with you! If you are in the Bay Area, fear not, I will be visiting frequently so keep in touch.

The Value of Testing Things to the Breaking Point