So this week hasn't been comfortable, but that's what makes a good conference. Not one that makes you feel comfortable, but one that teaches you and drives you to do the next thing. Thank you to the organizers of both meetings.

But the meetings over the past few days have given me soooo much to think about. It's easy to sit at the beam line and dream up of what we could do with the synchrotron. In the end, though, we serve the user community. It has to be useful to them.

I don't know the players in these areas of science. I don't understand what they need, or where APS fits in. All of them have well-defined, sophisticated workflows and impressive visualizations. Goodness knows I don't know the first thing about paleontology, or anatomy, or geology.

Instead, I came to the ToScA North America and NoCTURN meetings. The community is friendly and collegial. The venue is fantastic. The science talks are interesting (really, samples from an asteroid!). But it isn't comfortable.

I understand the methods in all the science talks and can see how I might do them at APS. I have a very good idea of all the wares the vendors have to offer. I am very firmly the x-ray expert in the group. It is very safe and very comfortable.

A decent camera viewing a diagnostic screen can save *so* much time in getting a beamline lined up. This little guy has paid for itself many times over in the past nine months.