Looking Ahead to 2023

Reading Time: 6 minutesThere’s a lot to look forward to next year. One thing is for certain: there’s not going to be as much travel in the next 12 months as there was in the previous 12 months. On one hand, it will be nice to be home more – my garage and yard could certainly use some … [Read more…]

2022: The Year of Alliances

Reading Time: 8 minutesWhen I sit down to pull together a summary of each year, I begin by writing down all of the different places I’ve been, different events I’ve attended, and any major lessons learned over the course of the year. Since I began this process nearly a decade ago, the list has grown longer each year … [Read more…]

I’ll Make This Place Buzz

Reading Time: 6 minutesI don’t usually write a blog post this close to my year-end review posts, but it’s just been like that this year. I feel like I’ve been playing catch-up most of the last 18 months, and especially the last 6 months. I’ve been working on this blog post one or two sentences at a time … [Read more…]

Three Out Of Four Functional Limbs Means Success

Reading Time: 8 minutesOver the course of 2022, I’ve added so many different titles. International traveler. Entrepreneurial educator. Nonprofit founder. Incubator director. I already had startup founder, certified cider professional, and ecosystem builder on the list. I guess I need larger business cards, don’t I? The past few months have been unlike anything I’ve ever experienced. After things … [Read more…]

I Am Short, But I Am Potent

Reading Time: 11 minutesThe 24 days I spent in Arua flew by much quicker than I thought they would. It felt like the final week of my time there moved the quickest. I really didn’t spend more time working with the students during that week than I did the other two weeks of the class. Dealing with my … [Read more…]

We Don’t Fear Bullets, But We Fear The Rain

Reading Time: 13 minutesIt took over four days of traveling and meetings, but I finally made it to Arua in the far northwest part of Uganda, just a few kilometers from the border with the Democratic Republic of the Congo and economic hub of the region. After settling into the apartment for a bit, Gerard and I went … [Read more…]

This Tequila Seems Incredibly Ham-Forward

Reading Time: 13 minutesHey. It’s been a while. I’ve been on quite the series of adventures over the past couple of months. I knew there wouldn’t really be time to blog before I hit the skies bound for the other side of the world, but I had no idea how busy things were going to be when I … [Read more…]

Your Negative and Ill-Intended Opinions Are Not Welcome Here

Reading Time: 10 minutesHave you ever had the feeling that you didn’t accomplish much in a certain amount of time, but you look back later and realize that you actually accomplished a huge number of things? That’s how the last couple of months have been for me. At the time, it didn’t feel like I was getting much … [Read more…]

It’s Nice to Finally Put a Name with Half a Face

Reading Time: 11 minutesThe end of 2021 seemed to just blend into the beginning of 2022. In past years – especially 2020 going into 2021 – there was a bit of a break between the activity at the end of the year and when things picked up toward the end of January. This time around, due to a … [Read more…]