I've been an elected member of the W3C Technical Architecture Group for eight years. I've had a wonderful time and I hope that I've contributed in useful ways, but I feel like it's time to step aside, at least for a little while.
We navigate our whole lives using words. Change and improve the words and I believe we can change and improve life.
I'm not articulate enough to express how privileged and honored I feel to have been elected to participate in the TAG these past eight years. They have been seriously good times.
I wrestled with my conscience long and hard before deciding not to run again[1], at least not this year. It's a great gig. The problems are interesting, and sometimes hard. The participants are smart, articulate, and always interesting. It's a lot of work: good, enjoyable work.
But it is a lot of work. I don't feel like I've kept my end up, if I'm being honest, these past few months. Ramping up in a new job takes a lot of cycles. Getting a spec to Recommendation takes a lot of cycles. And there are only so many cycles available.
If I can't bring my “A” game, I think the responsible thing to do is sit on the bench for a bit. I'm not swearing I'll never run again, I'm just going to sit this season out (to continue the sports metaphor).
The TAG still has important work to do, and I wish them my very best. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go make sure I get a good seat in the peanut gallery.
[1]And, lest anyone imagine otherwise, let me say explicitly that this is my decision. My manager made it very clear that he would support, perhaps hoped to support, my nomination if I wanted to run again.
Comments:
I'd say thanks for all your great work and stuff like that, but that would involve getting past denial...
Norm... it's been a blast and you've made huge contributions to the work of the group over time. Given the unbalanced closing TAG of the title, I think that you should have gone as far as adding an endDate attribute just for fun :-)