<DIV class=Section1> <P class=MsoNormal>It seems like May and now June are just flying by. Every Spring/Summer it seems to move faster than I would like, but this year it’s moving at warp speed. My family and I decided to leave the wind chill, Nor-Easters and the bitterly depressing NY winter season behind us and move to Florida. I’ve spent a lot of time in Florida, including a 2 year stint in Tampa, so I know the common complaints (humidity, heat, hurricanes). But frankly, I would rather be hot and in my pool than freezing and stuck in my house. We’ve lived in NY for most of our lives and we are ready to make the move.  It’s not just the weather, but its also to be closer to both of our parents who live in Florida and to make the move before our kids get too entrenched in their schools here in NY. Anyway … the move is forthcoming this July. The housing market in Florida now has some fantastic deals making it much more affordable than it had been in the past few years when the housing market was going up at a record pace. </P> <P class=MsoNormal mce_keep=”true”> </P> <P class=MsoNormal>With all that goes with a move (selling one house, buying another, the financial impact, the physical move, coordinating address changes, school registrations, throwing out clutter, packing, house showings, etc.) I am finding it increasingly difficult to spend time on expanding my interest in technologies and patterns/practices. I had very little time to spend on these things before (with job and family coming first, not in that order). But now I have even less time. I am looking forward to being down there in Bradenton, Florida and getting back to the normal routine.</P> <P class=MsoNormal mce_keep=”true”> </P> <P class=MsoNormal>Somehow I have managed to learn WCF, WPF, and keep abreast of the upcoming Orcas (now known as .NET 3.5 and Visual Studio 2008) features. I feel like I have not slept in months! </P> <P class=MsoNormal mce_keep=”true”> </P> <P class=MsoNormal>On a side note, I likely will be participating in some events at the Microsoft facility in Tampa once I relocate. Joe Healy coordinates some nice events and I offered to present some topics for him. I am looking forward to involving myself in the .NET community in the Tampa Bay area. </P></DIV>