Dateline: Keflavik Airport, Reykyavik Iceland, 24 February 2005

Long, crazy but fun day yesterday. After I posted yesterday at the college, off a PC in the reception area, I realized that I had left my Lexar memory stick in the library PC the day before. Good thing too, because it's worth a chunk of money! Plus it had copies of stuff I wanted.

Then I headed in and caught the end portion of Chet Richards' brief to the students and staff, or the part where he covered PNM and compared it to Col. Hammes' book (already folded into Vol. II) and other stuff by 4GW luminaries Bill Lind and the granddaddy of them all, John Boyd. In the end, he agrees with my stuff more than disagrees, and I've come to appreciate his approach now that I've seen him live.

Then off to another lunch in the cafeteria, where I made a strong effort to focus on fruit after eating so much meat and fish the past few days (Atkins heaven!).

When Richards finished up in the afternoon, we held two 45-minute plenary sessions with Ole from Denmark (my fellow Wisconsinite) serving as moderator and Hammes, Richards and I taking questions from the audience. As so often delights me in these settings, everyone was picking up and using the Core-Gap and Leviathan-SysAdmin terminology and running with it. I also got to make a bunch of arguments from Vol. II that sound better each time I say them because each time I say them I explain them better (practice!).

After we close out at 3pm, the school gives us nice, engraved brandy snifters with the Sjokriegsskolen logo on it.

Back in the car, we return to the hotel, noticing on the way that the killer outlet sweater shop is finally open after being strangely closed all week. So Hammes and I rush over and, having received instructions from my wife reiterating her desire for sweaters for all (I personally almost never wear one) for the kids' Xmas picture next fall (Vonne being the real strategic planner in the house). I got ones for Jerry, Kevin and Em for about $50 each. I could have bought cheaper, but when it's cheap, it's smarter to buy the real high quality.

So I return with sweaters for all but me, leaving--as I imagine will have to be the case once my wife sees it--the German infantry bayonet from WWII as my personal souvenir (along with the usual coins and various gifts).

So back to my room to work my taxes until we head out for the night. We assemble downstairs and are driven back to the war college for the last time for a rather elegant and wonderfully drawn-out (as in many courses and many different types of wine and liquor, etc.) banquet that ends, I think, around 2130 with another cool, engraved coffee mug, a similar beer stein, and then a nice war college plaque (nice to have received one from somebody's naval war college!)

Then we retreat to a private bar/reception area where we drink until about 1am. This last part was the best, because the conversation was most free-flowing (like the beer and cognac) and I really got a huge amount of very positive feedback on the book from some very excited and grateful readers, which, when combined with alcohol, is otay!

Back to the hotel around 2am and then up at 0930 for last breakfast at hotel, packing and out the door. Short Scandanavian Airlines flight to Oslo (like Boston to DC), where my connection is tight, so I have to rush to cash out my duty-free purchases (getting $43 back on the sweaters using these special receipts--just like in Denmark). Then I hop on my IcelandAir flight (back to business class) and I endure the modern remake of "Out of Towners" (at least I really like Steve Martin and Goldie Hawn, but I saw it flying back from Copenhagen too!). But I got a lot of paperwork done on the flight (taxes and more separation from the government stuff) and had a great meal (salad with lamb). Now hanging here in the funky biz class lounge for another 20 minutes before cutting out to the roughly 5-hour flight home.

Having read Financial Times all week, I have to admit, the next time I get a decent offer on it from a frequent flier program, I will take it up, or maybe I'll just get it online, because it¥s that good.

Got a bunch of hugs to deliver and time to spend with kids tonight, plus set a few paperwork things straight, plus get my ass to bed quick because I have to get up early and drive to TF Green Airport in PVD for a three-leg journey to Monterey for the TED conference, which began today--I believe.

I keep telling myself that it¥s first class on the two cross-continent sections, and that it¥s supposed to be a big honor to be invited to talk--for 18 minutes and no more! But the travel wears, and I wish I didn¥t have to go. The free talks just wear nowadays, but I'll have to hope the payoff exists somewhere down the road. I did PopTech! this year and got Leigh Bureau in the process, so that was certainly worth it.

Still, the travel wears. . .