Here is one recent dispatch from a “day in the life” of my husband, Eric, and the IRN team:

 It’s 10 p.m., I’m at the sink, brushing my teeth. Eric is lying in bed perusing technical threads and newsfeeds he subscribes to. While brushing my teeth, and getting ready for bed I’m also talking to Eric about news and events of the day.

Suddenly, Eric says, “Oh, sorry, I have to alert the team about something. It’s a “Zero Day” exploit that is set to take effect tonight and (one of our clients) runs this program on their servers.” (I panic, Eric is calm.) He sends a chat to Robert, the on-call engineer, and Al, our team 3 member who is working his overnight shift. Amanda, Manager of IT Operations, also receives the alert (her phone is set to receive notifications.) Robert checks in with Amanda and Eric for steps to take. They agree to alert the head of IT for the client. The client gives the OK to re-route data going to the server that is running the software that is vulnerable to the attack. Robert and Amanda continue to work with Al to reroute the data and install the patch on the server that will thwart the attack.

 Eric and I go to sleep, understanding the team members or the client can call Eric if necessary. Eric gets up at 1 a.m. for a status check in with the team and the client. All going as planned, so he comes back to bed.

 At 6 a.m. Eric and I get up. Eric checks in with the team again and all is still running smoothly. The data on the server is safe while the patch is executing. The drama is far from over but the team works diligently throughout the day to manage and secure the client’s data until everything is moved to safety, the patch is installed and any potential attack from this particular exploit has been thwarted. 

At day’s end, everything returns to normal, and the client’s server is back up and running normally. I ask Eric how everything went and he says everything went really well. He’s extremely grateful for the team and we both ruminate on how awesome it is to have such a talented and dedicated group working so well together in the service of our clients. 

To be clear, had any intrusion occurred, it would have been picked up and managed. We have a 24x7x365 live monitoring system in place to alert us to any attacks on clients’ managed systems; however, in this case, the attack was entirely preempted. 

Later, at dinner, I ask Eric whether the owner was aware of the issue and he says, yeah, eventually, the head of IT brought him up to speed on everything that happened through the night. 

As for me, I’m amazed at the thought that what could have been an attack requiring significant defensive maneuvering, was instead “headed off” through vigilance, and a swift and deftly dispatched response by the team, all without any fanfare or panic. It was just fixed, done, handled. So, while definitely not resting on our laurels, as there are plenty of cyber-attacks out there every day to contend with, I thought this was a good story to illustrate what managed services looks like from an insider’s perspective. 

I’ve become familiar with several Marine Corps expressions over the years, thanks to Eric, and one of my favorites has always been about “having someone’s 6” or literally, having someone’s back, as in two Marine’s headed into a potentially dangerous situation, one watching the forward area and one following, watching the area behind. 

As a client of  Indian River Networks, you can rest assured that we’ve always got your 6! 

Most of you already know Meghan, but if you haven’t had the pleasure of meeting her yet, she is one of our awesome computer technicians here at IRN and a member of our React Team. Meghan is known around IRN for her easy laugh and her positive, “can-do” attitude. We thought we’d help everyone get to know Meghan a little better by putting her under the spotlight this month and asking her a few questions.

Here’s what we found out: 

 What personal motto or mantra do you live by?

Always treat people the way you would like to be treated yourself.

 What would people be surprised to learn about you? 

I’ve played trumpet from the age of 8 and I own a purple trumpet (named Violet) and a blue pocket trumpet (named Little Boy Blue) that I can’t wait to teach my kids on.

 When you were a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up?

I LOVED the Boston Celtics and Larry Bird was my hero so I wanted to play pro Basketball. I only ended up 5’7” and I hate running, so it didn’t work out.

 What’s one thing on your bucket list? 

I would love to see Montana. It looks so beautiful and open.

 What irrational fear do you have?

Moths and Butterflies.

 What is your most used productivity hack at work or at home?

My husband makes me write lists for what we need to accomplish that day or week. I hate to admit it, but it makes me 100 times more productive.

 What is your idea of a perfect day?

Fishing with my husband and kids

 Where is your favorite place to be?

Hog Island. It’s a small (1 mile) island in the middle of Bristol Harbor (Rhode Island). My cousins have a house there and I spent as much time as I could there growing up.

 What is the weirdest job you’ve ever had? 

I would say a small manufacturing plant with my Mom. We made keychains, jewelry and accessories for Tiffany & Co. using mostly Sterling Silver. I was there a few years and did everything from shipping, to packaging, to laser engraving, to running a CNC machine and lathes. It was weird because we had some fun (yet strange) people we worked with and I never knew what I was going to work on each day.

 What is your favorite indoor/outdoor activity?

Indoors I like to read and outdoors I like fishing and watching my kids run (gets the energy out!)

What’s your favorite karaoke song?

Take it Easy by The Eagles (Greatest band of all time!)

But what song do you sing out loud when you’re alone in your car?

I’m Yours, by Jason Mraz – every time lol

What is the strangest thing in your fridge right now?

At least 6 different kinds of cheese. I love cheese!

 What have you learned about life from your kids?

Don’t be too hard on myself – they love me anyway.

We always thought Meghan was super special . . . and now we know even more about what makes her so great.  We are so glad and grateful to have you on the IRN team, Meghan! 🙂 

Remember when your number one, full-time job in life was to play? (And the flying kid in the photo on the left is definitely the boss of play!)

Well, I can remember summer kickball games that ran over into the next day. We would all run back out onto the field into the exact same configuration we left the night before – when we had to cut the game short due to nightfall (and literally not being able to see the ball anymore.) Everyone would go right back to where they were, including the base runners, and we might have some minor squabble over whether someone tried to move ahead a base or not, but we’d work it out and get on with the play. That was always the most important thing, getting on with the game, or whatever we were playing. We’d go on for hours all day, every day, only taking out as little time as necessary for eating and sleeping, and maybe washing up.

Do you remember your hours and days of play when you were a kid? Your memories of play might look different from mine, but think about these questions for a moment: 

• What was your favorite way to play as a child? 
• What kinds of things or activities brought you sheer joy when you were doing them?
• What kinds of things did you “get lost” in doing or love to do? 

According to Dr. Stuart Brown, author of the book, Play: How it Shapes the Brain, Opens the Imagination, and Invigorates the Soul, these kinds of play were essential to our development when we were children. He also suggests that tapping into our “play histories” can reveal ways that we, as adults (no matter what stage of adulthood we are in) can bring more play, and as a result, more joy into just about every aspect of our lives. 

Dr. Brown asserts that play just makes us better all-around humans, throughout our lifetime:

Play is how we are made, how we develop and adjust to change. It can foster innovation and lead to multibillion-dollar fortunes. But in the end the most significant aspect of play is that it allows us to express our joy and connect most deeply with the best in ourselves, and in others. (Brown, 2009, p.218)

Playing brings us together! It unites us in a spirit of fun – and that brings joy into our lives. There is a lot more information in the book from Brown’s extensive research on play, including that play does not always involve the “fun and games” we might think of when we think about play; It may involve hard work; and sometimes play can even have a dark side. You’ll have to read the book to find out more though. It’s great and fast-paced, in case you are looking for something to read over the weekend. 

We recently had a conversation on one of our Teams channels about play. I asked IRN team members to share their favorite play memories from when they were kids and here are a few of the responses I got:

Eric: For me, it was sailing and building forts [in the jungle]. (The jungle was my add-in – Eric literally grew up in the Amazon rain forest! Ask him about it sometime.)

​Grace: I LOVED Barbies! Every week we would get an allowance, and every week I’d buy a new Barbie or save up to buy something for my Barbies – the adult in me doesn’t want to think about how much money I spent on them! lol I also loved playing sports for fun, soccer, hockey, volleyball, tetherball, etc. 

​Katy: When I was young I enjoyed adventures in the woods around our house and going to the pool or beach! 

​​Meghan:  I pretty much LIVED in a pair of roller blades – I wore them more than shoes lol I also ALWAYS had a book in my hand (usually Stephen King or Dean Koontz)

​Jorell: I loved playing with my cousins when I was little. We would play “pretend” and act as if we were characters from a whole other world. We would play outside games like Red Light, Green Light and Manhunt (and sometimes play dodgeball with rocks which I don’t recommend) In the summers the fire hydrant was opened up so we could all play in the water. Those things and video games are what my childhood was made of. 

​Bailey: I loved photos and being outside all the time. I always had a camera and was never inside.I loved every second of being an adventurer. (: 

​Robert M: My sisters and I were often being told to go play outside, we loved playing “jedis” and would run around the yard whacking away at imaginary enemies before racing to the trampoline and diving through the net opening to take off in our “ship” I also loved computer games whenever I got the chance to play. When I was older I got involved in Boy Scouts and sea scouts and enjoyed spending time outdoors and on the water, Sea Scouts was particularly fun.

Justin: My  brother and I set up a tent and camped in the living room all the time

​Richard: When I was young, I lived near a beach on one side and a forest on the other side. At low tide we would explore holes in the rocks that had colorful fish and even seahorses. Then a friend would let me go with him hunting birds in the forest. So, mostly exploring.

I found it really interesting that so many of our team members enjoyed doing things that involved teamwork, exploring, building, and imagining . . . developing traits as kids that truly come in handy around here, when everyone is working together to come up with a creative solution to a technical problem! 

We definitely have a fun team at IRN, and while we work hard, we also take time out to laugh and have fun together. Thanks to the efforts of Amanda, Tonya, and Katy we have been involved in some really fun team events, most recently the Zerto 2nd Annual Fun Run. We also have our usual IRN Christmas party shenanigans to look forward to every year.

We started off this month celebrating the Labor Day holiday. I know it is important to celebrate workers and work, but I think we should all remember to celebrate play, too! Perhaps you might like to spend some time this weekend doing a little daydreaming about how you used to love to play as a kid, and think about how you can bring that spirit of playfulness into your life now. Have fun! 

References: 

Brown, S. (2009). Play: How it Shapes the Brain, Opens the Imagination, and Invigorates the Soul. Penguin Group.