Sometimes, you read something online that just needs to be shared. I read recently where the U.S. government performed operation “Silent Horizon,” this week to practice defending against a possible assault in electronic form that could be similar to the September 11 terrorism attacks.

Imagine if this could be true? Interesting quote from CNN article:

“You hear less and less about the digital Pearl Harbor, what people call cyber-terrorism, it’s just not at the top of the list.” 

Makes you think…what is being done to prevent this?  I am no expert but it makes you think “there is always something…”

– John Welton

All PR people have their favorite columnists.  Mine happens to be Anna Quindlen.  I’ve never pitched a story to her, never coordinated an interview for her, never seen a client in one of her stories.  I just love reading what she writes.  Ms. Quindlen has an uncanny way of writing columns that are pertinent to my life, and her recent sidebar in the Newsweek cover story “The Myth of the Perfect Mother” hit close to home.

You see, her column ran the very week I returned to work after a 5-month maternity leave.  Here I was - coming to grips with leaving my beautiful daughter in the care of strangers and devoting my life (~60 hours a week of it) to taking care of clients and colleagues.  Was I nuts?  Oh, I had such a vision of how my life would be. I would work a job I love, raise my child like Carol Brady, exercise a few times a week to stay healthy and fit, and be a good wife to my husband.  I had visions of bliss.  (Insert images of angels and sounds of harps here.)  I really thought I could have it all.

Anyone who works for a PR agency knows I was, in fact, crazy.  In my whacked visions, I forgot to factor in the trials of agency life:  busting ass to get my work done so I can be home before baby goes to bed, feeling guilty when I have to head home while others are cranking away at work, having to choose between a crying baby and a client calling my cell phone, prying my eyes open at 11 p.m. when I am working on a press release. Reality did not map to the glamour in my mind … so is it really worth it?  Simple answer: yes.

You make it work.  It certainly helps that the team at Voce is more than supportive.  My colleagues are open to my flexible schedule to ensure I get time with my baby every day.  They are patient when I have to leave early for doctor appointments or when I am on baby duty when my husband is traveling.  In return, I do my best to pull my weight. I work early in the morning before the baby awakes; I work late into the night after she has gone to bed.  Yes, you give up things that used to be important to you.  I have not exercised in weeks (months?) and I can’t remember the last time I read a book.  But, I enjoy my job and I adore my baby.

To quote Anna Quindlen once more, I am simply trying to be “the good enough mother” - not the Wonder Woman of my dreams.  And that’s not PR spin …

– Stacy Libby

Sitting in an airport recently waiting for a flight delayed for mechanical failure, I tried passing the time thinking about what the future of travel would be like.  I remember a few years ago when people were asking if business travel would possibly decline with the Internet, video conferencing, and other technologies becoming increasingly prevalent.  Sitting in any airport lounge watching people pour in seems to easily answer that question. Working in an industry that is on the go all the time, travel is second nature.  Apparently technology has big plans for tomorrow. Some of these are quite interesting to say the least!

—Will we really use “bacteria bombs” when we check into a hotel room?

—Will business meetings be underwater soon?

—What will our passports look like? Biometric?

As I wait for the cutting edge to arrive, I did find some answers to some more “immediate” questions:

—What is the real value of frequent flier miles?

—When will we be able to use portable cell phones in flight?

-John Welton