Independent Consultant with a Hawaiian Shirt

"It is better to light a candle than curse the darkness." -Chinese proverb This morning I came across a CNN page that showed "Before and after" satellite photos of several locations across Gaza ( Link here ). It broke my heart - again. When Hamas crossed the border, murdering and kidnapping people, it broke my heart - again.  For years, our hearts have been broken by the cycles of violence, not only in the Middle East, but everywhere around us. And the worst part is the shouting we engage in if, for no other reason, a desperate search for catharsis. It is as if we turn to blaming or vilifying one group or another as a way to ease our sense of helplessness. Let me suggest an alternative. But first a story: Growing up in a home where I learned my Jordanian father was actually born in Palestine (Yes, that's what it was called in 1938), I learned about the history of the region from someone who lived through it. Over the years, I supplemented that knowledge with fur...

Today I will be presenting this webinar for New Horizons Computer Learning Centers. Here is a link to the slide deck:  Download from Citrix Content Collaboration (formerly ShareFile)

Since 1992 I have uncovered joy and beauty in technology through a bemused fascination with the latest developments, and an enthusiasm for sharing them with others. If you are looking for help with Citrix technologies such as Citrix Cloud, Virtual Apps and Desktops, Citrix ADC (NetScaler) and Gateway, drop me an email at khalaf at icwahs dot com. I look forward to hearing from you!

It's been a good few weeks. Two weeks' rest at home was followed by a quick 3-day trip to Tampa, Florida, a 5-day trip to Fort Wayne, Indiana and a 5-day trip last week to Tulsa, Oklahoma. This week I'm in Minneapolis, MN for the first time in 6 weeks. It's good to be back, especially considering what it took to get here: 4/2/2011 10:00pm - Finished cleaning up from Juju's birthday party. Tucked everyone in for the night. Fired up my laptop and printed my boarding passes. The best price for this trip was a Southwest flight to Chicago and a Delta flight onward to Minneapolis. Checked CNN for any late-breaking news. Found out about Southwest 812 losing part of the fuselage in-flight. Hmmm.... 4/3/2011 7:00am - Woke up after sleeping in. Had a leisurely breakfast with the family. Got ready to go to visit a church - classmate is being installed as a Senior Pastor. 9:30am - Receive an email from Southwest Airlines informing me that my flight to Chicago has been cancelled...

It's been a while since I posted my whereabouts. Since the beginning of the year I have been to Minneapolis and back six times. Last week I was in Ohio for a change. Sadly, I didn't venture beyond the hotel. Maybe it was the ice storm that first night that left a 1/2 inch layer of ice all over the car that I had to chip through Monday morning. I'm sure there were some neat things to see there; if I go back in better weather, I'll write about them. But this week finds me home doing things around the house - unclogging drains, getting cars running, cleaning the house, etc. One of the perks of being home is the opportunity to spend more time with our beautiful children - taking them to and from school, talking around the house. So far it has been a fantastic week. Yesterday, Benjamin had a wrestling meet in Royal Oak, Michigan - about a 20-minute drive from the house. So after school I grabbed the video camera and headed over to the gymnasium. Once in the gym I found Benja...