Week 11: New Eats & Friendly Faces from Home

Luke Owens
Jul 30, 2017 · 3 min read

This week at work was much slower than the past few weeks. Last week, my firm was able to close a major deal for a research programme on Smart Ledgers and cryptocurrencies, so this past week I was mostly doing some administrative duties in regards to the official launch of research like writing press releases and strategizing about industry targets. I had to write several press releases targeted towards some interesting industries. The press release to the Forestry industry particularly highlighted the “wide-ranging” use case of Smart Ledgers. Because a technology like Smart Ledgers could, in theory, be applied to any industry, I have been able to learn quite a lot about different industries, sectors, and technologies.

A good friend from Atlanta stopped in London this week to end his month-long, backpacking adventure through Europe. A place doesn’t quite feel like home until you can show it off to a visitor. He and I toured through the historic sites, ate at my favorite spots, and had some rib-splitting bits of laughter. A great theme of my travels this summer has been the refreshing company of visitors from home.

On Saturday, the GSU interns and I went to Borough Market in the Southwark, thereby, crossing off one of my last London “To-dos.” If I had to recommend a short list of places to see while in London, I cannot imagine a scenario wherein which I would not recommend Borough Market. I would truly have to hate this person not to tell them of the splendid eats and adventure that are present there. The “stall-holders” or vendors throughout the market give ample samples to all passersby. Bits of gorgeous cheese, bread and olive oil, spreads, and fudge all ready for the quick-handed to enjoy as decisions are made about where to eat. After engaging my appetite with the “free horderves”, I decided, quite rightly I would contend, to eat at Gourmet Goat, eating a lovely goat kotfa with a chickpea salad.

Next week will be my final week of work in London. I will probably be editing the press releases and closing details for the continuation of the research programme. Leaving a project-manager role can be difficult when the project is entering a new stage as the responsibilities and knowledge of the previous stages have to be given to a new person, who may not be able to understand the full timeline or scope of the project, so I will more than likely spend my last 2 days at work training my replacement. This summer has been a thorough education in many different workplace/career scenarios whether working with interesting personalities, stepping into bigger roles than expected, or training people to take your place. I could not be happier with the experience and I have learned ever so much because of it.

Next weekend, I will write my final reflection which will be considerably longer than useful, so I apologize in advance. To all of my friends in Atlanta, I will be home August 15th. Be sure to mark your calendars and set your watches. I look forward to missing London in the company of you all or should I say “y’all”.

Thanks for reading.

Welcome to a place where words matter. On Medium, smart voices and original ideas take center stage - with no ads in sight. Watch
Follow all the topics you care about, and we’ll deliver the best stories for you to your homepage and inbox. Explore
Get unlimited access to the best stories on Medium — and support writers while you’re at it. Just $5/month. Upgrade