Dining in DC on the go! Technology helps Dining in DC stay in the know.

Back in February, I posted that I was starting a new job located in downtown Silver Spring, which is far from my home in Springfield, VA. Although I have been happy with my new job and enjoying the challenge of learning something new, I have not really adjusted to the long commute which literally consumes sometimes up to 4 hours a day of my time. I spend on average, at least three and a half hours per day on the metro. Even though I am still passionate about the blog, I find myself too tired in the evening after making dinner for my family, giving kids bathes, and putting them to bed. This also does not include the many weeknights that I have media events, which I hardly consider a sacrifice of my time.

In order to make the best use of my time, I have purchased a small, lightweight netbook computer and a verizon broadband network card that will give me access to the internet while I am on the metro (only Verizon provides network coverage on the metro). I did my research, which included asking for recommendations from users via twitter and discovered that the Asus Eee PC 1005PEB was the most highly rated model. As a person who swears by lists, I knew that I had found my next toy. Before deciding on the netbook, oh, ok correction … before my husband convinced me that the netbook was the better choice; I was convinced that the iPad was what I wanted. I am still on the reservation list at two Apple stores in the Northern VA area for the iPad. I guess I will cancel my orders.

Not only has food writing and blogging become more than a trend, but has become the go-to source for information, even according to Anthony Bordain while discussing food experiences at the Warner Theatre. He said that while the New York Times could afford to send someone out to Saigon for a week to try the food, a local blogger had been eating the street food there for seven years and would be a much more reliable source. Bordain said that when they are researching new locales for the No Reservations show, the first choice for producers to obtain information is local bloggers. For me, that is an important statement.

So hopefully the netbook will be the solution to my time management problem. I am looking forward to being back on the food trail.