Phone? Check
iPad? Check
Chromebook? Check
Extension Cord? Check
Charging cords for all three above? Check
Do I REALLY NEED my laptop?
“It’s a quick overnight for a day’s training plus some family time at a concert? REALLY? Can’t I just leave it at home?”
It was a gorgeous learning day. Devices cooperated for the perfect environment where I could take notes and also have access to text messages, Twitter, and Facebook,
SLICER TIME!
“And that’s why I need my laptop! I’ve never been able to successfully add a WordPress blog on my chrome book. I’ve messed with a wide range of possibilities, asked on some helplines, and invariably just either drafted on my phone or pulled out the trusty old laptop and started a post.”
It doesn’t matter that I was thinking of ideas before I fell asleep.
The incredible PD with Dr. Mary Howard.
Friendship
Family
Fall
Looming “First Frost”
The impending excitement of #NCTE17
The power of Twitter
The unbelievable magic of Twitter chats
Chromebook? Tried but nope, no luck with WordPress!
Phone? Not the finished look I would like!
Is a draft better than NOTHING?
YES!
So today’s slice is brought to you via a draft on my phone and a bit of polish on my iPad. My plan for my next travel is to save a formatted draft so that I can add text and publish with relative ease from any device. (Cross my fingers that I remember!)
How do you turn around a failure? What do you learn from it?
What do you do when your device(s) don’t cooperate?
When do you sacrifice BEST WORK for BEST EFFORT?
Thank you, Betsy, Beth, Deb, Kathleen, Lanny, Melanie, and Stacey for this weekly forum. Check out the writers, readers and teachers here. 
Resource - Full 
Love it! Our devices are wonderful, but I think it’s the human connections are the most important charger to have at your side.
Julieanne,
That is perfect! THANKS!
Yes, ” the human connections are the most important charger to have at your side.”
Looking forward to seeing you next month! ❤
Yes! Yes! Can’t wait for that human connection!
What a great answer, Julieanne. I am all for human connections! Thanks Fran for giving us plenty food for thought today.
Carol,
The beauty of blogging is the connections that I’ve ultimately made in real life. And you are one of those precious human connections! ❤
I get your thinking here Fran! Loved the photo of you and Mary that I saw somewhere- maybe Facebook?
Lisa,
Yes, Mary had that on Facebook! After all, a work bag and overnight bag ought to work for 36 hours, Right? If I can go to TCRWP for two weeks with carry on, why do overnight trips get so complicated? Maybe that’s another post! LOL!
Thanks so commenting!
Any number of devices cannot substitute for the power of your words and the moment you are sharing with us. I just went to Greece and decided to “unplug” and it was the right decision for me. It allowed me to truly immerse in the new environment without distractions. My daughter texted my husband each time we reached a new destination, but that was the extent of our contact for 12 days. It was magical!
I love that! Last August I was in the Catacombs in Rome taking notes on my phone so I would remember. I had to have a device to “jot down” the ideas to collect them for me – not so much for sharing! I also absolutely love the “automatic backup” of photos to my devices so I can keep clicking away! Some days I totally forget to take pictures because I am so involved in the “story” or the “present” but it all works out in the end!
I was at a conference this weekend and when packing had a hard time deciding which electronics I would take. Phone, definitely. Great for pictures. Kindle. Yes, just because I am lost without it. Lap top, no. I decided with all that was going on I wouldn’t have much time for it plus I didn’t need the extra weight, even though I drove to the conference. Luckily I still had pen and paper for the notes I wanted to take.
I love your decision-making process. My only problem with pen and paper is I never know where I put it AFTER I’ve taken the notes! Too many places to put them apparently! 🙂
Cannot wait to see you again at NCTE!
Aileen!
YES! #NCTE17 is just around the corner!
Interesting take on electronics, Fran. When I go away I usually have my phone and ipad. I still take my laptop if I am presenting, even if there will be a computer there. I just never trust that it will transfer well.
Sounds like a great couple of days!
See you at NCTE.
Rose,
I hate to “overdo” tech but not all devices are interchangeable!
Can’t wait to see you next month!
Love this post from a traveller’s perspective, and also a perspective of a person who likes to make efficient use of time when traveling. My husband and I recently went to Bermuda and I decided to take my iPhone and our iPad, but leave my laptop at home. I do EVERYTHING on my laptop. Yet, our selection of devices worked, and made for some easy communication but a more enjoyable vacation. When I travel, as I will in November, I will take my laptop. Distance Learning is just that if you have the right equipment in tow. To be able to proceed with course work for my MS in EE/EI, I will take this device but leave the iPad home. I would say prioritize what you need and look at why you need it, then take that device. You got us your post, that is probably the most important thing of all. Thanks.
A great reminder for me . . . I wonder if I have any due dates in the grad work I oversee!
What do you need? Why? Sounds like GREAT questions for adding technology into instruction!!!
THANKS!
It is so hard for me to pare down ….. but I have learned that traveling light is better for me. So, I mentally ask myself those questions! You are absolutely correct though that they would be great for students to think about while utilizing technology in the classroom.
I’m with you on the frustrations of trying to use WordPress on anything other than my laptop. (And filling the back of my car with “stuff” for a weekend trip!) I love your indefatigable spirit, Fran!
Catherine,
Meeting high expectations just aren’t on the agenda with other devices! Doable, yes, BUT . . . the result doesn’t quite match! Life is always interesting! Some days I am not so sure that technology is helpful. Humbling, yes! ❤
Hard choices for sure! It seems like the Chromebook could have been the one thing to leave behind. You really have to make the best decisions for you. I can often be guilty of having too many devices in my luggage, but…
Erika,
I wonder if we realize: 1) the number of decisions we make in a day; 2) how whether the results of our decisions change our actions; and 3) that decision-making is the whole reason behind “students doing the work” in workshops and classroom settings so they are prepared for life. I thought devices were easy to figure out, but that is only if they do the job that I want them to do.
Oh well, another day and a half out again because Lucy Calkins is in Des Moines tomorrow – a whole day of writing learning. Four devices for sure! The chrome book will be perfect for notes! Yay! Battery!