It's been a long time coming, but today I brought home a brand new Infiniti G37 sedan. Very exciting, I'm actually looking forward to the drive to Santa Barbara tomorrow :)
Haven't gotten rid of the Explorer yet. I'm considering donating it to the local NPR station, but I haven't decided for sure.
Haven't gotten rid of the Explorer yet. I'm considering donating it to the local NPR station, but I haven't decided for sure.
Just finished watching the new episode of Battlestar Galactica. I'll avoid spoilers for now but it seemed like a pretty good start to the last half season. Definitely some good moments. I wasn't really that excited about it after the way they went into the break, but after this episode I'm looking forward to see how they finish things up.
Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving! My dad and stepmom came out here for the weekend, and we had Thanksgiving dinner at my stepbrother's house. It was really nice to not be traveling for the holiday.
On Friday my dad and I went up to Lick Observatory on Mt Hamilton. It was pretty cool, we got to see the big 36-inch refracting telescope that was built in 1888. Apparently it's still the second largest refracting telescope in the world, due to the limits of that technology. It still gets used though, a couple times a week according to the guide. We also got to look in on the newer 120-inch reflecting telescope.
On Saturday we went into San Francisco. Started at Union Square and walked up to Fisherman's Wharf, and then around there. It was a good time, and a beautiful day for it. On the way back the cable car we were on got into an accident. We were going down hill towards a stoplight and I heard a crunch and then a car pulled away with a smashed tail light. Apparently the driver had just swerved in front of the cable car. What kind of idiot does that? It's not like the cable car can do anything to avoid hitting you. Anyway, it looked like the cable car would be stuck there dealing with the report for a while so we got off and walked the rest of the way.
Haven't gotten a chance to upload pics yet. Hopefully will get those up tonight.
Looks like I might be going to the frigid north (Minnesota) for Christmas. Guess that means I'll get to use my heavy coat for the first time since I went to Death Valley a couple years ago :P
On Friday my dad and I went up to Lick Observatory on Mt Hamilton. It was pretty cool, we got to see the big 36-inch refracting telescope that was built in 1888. Apparently it's still the second largest refracting telescope in the world, due to the limits of that technology. It still gets used though, a couple times a week according to the guide. We also got to look in on the newer 120-inch reflecting telescope.
On Saturday we went into San Francisco. Started at Union Square and walked up to Fisherman's Wharf, and then around there. It was a good time, and a beautiful day for it. On the way back the cable car we were on got into an accident. We were going down hill towards a stoplight and I heard a crunch and then a car pulled away with a smashed tail light. Apparently the driver had just swerved in front of the cable car. What kind of idiot does that? It's not like the cable car can do anything to avoid hitting you. Anyway, it looked like the cable car would be stuck there dealing with the report for a while so we got off and walked the rest of the way.
Haven't gotten a chance to upload pics yet. Hopefully will get those up tonight.
Looks like I might be going to the frigid north (Minnesota) for Christmas. Guess that means I'll get to use my heavy coat for the first time since I went to Death Valley a couple years ago :P
I've been in New York for work this week, and it's been pretty cool. Tuesday night was obviously dominated by election oriented activities. It was pretty crazy here after the networks projected Obama the winner. There was cheering and honking on the streets for hours. Wednesday night we had a big group of people go out for pizza and then bowling. Tonight I went out with a small group to see Boeing, Boeing (www.boeingonbroadway.com/), which was pretty damn funny. Of course, there was actually some work in there too, but that's less interesting for you. The New York Google office does have a really nice view of the Empire State building, though.
I was listening to the radio this morning, and they played a quote from some woman at a Palin rally. She said something to the effect of "I'm a values voter. Abortion, gay marriage, I'm against that." Now, this is obviously not the first time I've heard this. Pro-life people have been calling themselves "values voters" for quite some time. But for some reason this morning it really pissed me off. I'm so sick of them pretending they are the only ones with values. So I say those of us who are pro-choice and support gay rights should co-opt our own word.
I dub myself a "freedom voter."
I dub myself a "freedom voter."
So, one thing that sucks about the Bay Area is that football here is even worse than in Santa Barbara. There we always got 49ers and Raiders games, but at least there were other games on as well. Here it seems that's not the case. The past two weeks, the 49ers and Raiders were the only day games shown. Oh well, at least there's the Sunday night game.
I had intended to post sooner, but my first few days have been so crazy I just haven't gotten around to it. There is a huge amount of information to take in, but Google at least seems well set up to help new hires get going. There are a lot of classes and documents about their infrastructure to help people get started, but it's a lot of info to absorb in a short amount of time.
I am on the TV Ads team (www.google.com/adwords/tvads/) and it sounds pretty cool so far. On top of all the standard Google infrastructure stuff, I'll also need to learn a bit about how the TV industry and advertising work. I'm pretty excited about actually getting started on a project, but I'm not sure exactly when that will be. I also found out today that the whole team will be going to New York in November to meet with the people from other offices, so that should be fun.
Things are settling in a bit here. I'm gradually getting more stuff unpacked, but my place is still a total mess. On Saturday I'll be picking up some new furniture that I bought, so I guess I need to clear space for it before then
I am on the TV Ads team (www.google.com/adwords/tvads/) and it sounds pretty cool so far. On top of all the standard Google infrastructure stuff, I'll also need to learn a bit about how the TV industry and advertising work. I'm pretty excited about actually getting started on a project, but I'm not sure exactly when that will be. I also found out today that the whole team will be going to New York in November to meet with the people from other offices, so that should be fun.
Things are settling in a bit here. I'm gradually getting more stuff unpacked, but my place is still a total mess. On Saturday I'll be picking up some new furniture that I bought, so I guess I need to clear space for it before then
Well, the movers came this morning and unloaded all my stuff. It looks like everything made it ok. Now begins the long task of unpacking. I also found a table I like as well as a dresser. I'll be getting them on the 27th. After trying to find space for all the boxes until they get unpacked, I'm kind of glad I don't have the table and dresser yet.
Baxter has been gradually coming out and exploring more. Now that the furniture has arrived he seems a bit happier happier. He still freaks out when he hears noises outside, though. Definitely still stressed, but he's calming down some.
I did manage to dig out a cable for my camera, so here's a load of pics:
Baxter's hiding place behind the toilet:
Some more pics of the apartment mostly empty:
And now with a bunch of furniture and boxes everywhere:
Baxter has been gradually coming out and exploring more. Now that the furniture has arrived he seems a bit happier happier. He still freaks out when he hears noises outside, though. Definitely still stressed, but he's calming down some.
I did manage to dig out a cable for my camera, so here's a load of pics:
Baxter's hiding place behind the toilet:
Some more pics of the apartment mostly empty:
And now with a bunch of furniture and boxes everywhere:
Baxter has been hiding behind the toilet ever since I let him out of his carrier. It was the only place he could find to hide. He first tried to go under the oven, but the space wasn't high enough for him.
We made it to Sunnyvale and got my apartment with no problems. He yowled for the first 2 hours of the trip, but then he started to quiet down some.
I'll post some pics once I am able to get them off my camera, since my card reader and cables are both packed away.
We made it to Sunnyvale and got my apartment with no problems. He yowled for the first 2 hours of the trip, but then he started to quiet down some.
I'll post some pics once I am able to get them off my camera, since my card reader and cables are both packed away.
The past several days have been pretty busy. On Wednesday, ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif)
jackshandy, Michelle and I were scheduled to close on the house, with them buying me out. Unfortunately, there were numerous mistakes with the paperwork, including them spelling Roy's name wrong. The biggest problem, however, was that the Quitclaim Deed stated that the property transfer was a "bona fide gift." This was clearly unacceptable because it is not in fact a gift, and we don't want the tax man on our backs for gift tax. This meant that Roy and Michelle could not proceed with the rest of the paperwork, because they were not yet owners of the house. Roy spent a while on the phone with ING on Thursday and got them to re-issue the paperwork with the corrections we noted, and on Friday afternoon in the midst of preparations for the rehearsal, we got everything signed.
Friday night was the rehearsal dinner at Jade, and a good time was had by all. And of course, yesterday was Roy and Michelle's wedding. It was a beautiful ceremony and the reception at Opal was a lot of fun
This week is my last week at work, and I'll also be getting ready for the move. I hate moving but I'm looking forward to getting it all done and getting settled in my new place
jackshandy, Michelle and I were scheduled to close on the house, with them buying me out. Unfortunately, there were numerous mistakes with the paperwork, including them spelling Roy's name wrong. The biggest problem, however, was that the Quitclaim Deed stated that the property transfer was a "bona fide gift." This was clearly unacceptable because it is not in fact a gift, and we don't want the tax man on our backs for gift tax. This meant that Roy and Michelle could not proceed with the rest of the paperwork, because they were not yet owners of the house. Roy spent a while on the phone with ING on Thursday and got them to re-issue the paperwork with the corrections we noted, and on Friday afternoon in the midst of preparations for the rehearsal, we got everything signed.Friday night was the rehearsal dinner at Jade, and a good time was had by all. And of course, yesterday was Roy and Michelle's wedding. It was a beautiful ceremony and the reception at Opal was a lot of fun
This week is my last week at work, and I'll also be getting ready for the move. I hate moving but I'm looking forward to getting it all done and getting settled in my new place
This weekend I made the trip up to Silicon Valley to look for a place to live. Google set me up with a relocation service, so I had someone to lead me around and help me find a place. realstevec came along to keep me company and to provide a second opinion. We spent most of the day driving around looking at apartment complexes (probably 10-15 in all), but in the end I decided on a place we'd seen in the early afternoon. It's a 2 bed/2 bath, 930 sq feet, with a nice kitchen and washer/dryer in-unit. The manager of the complex (Chris) seemed really cool, which also helped sell me on the place.
Here's a few pictures I took of the unit we walked through (not the same unit as mine, but basically the same layout):
The living room, looking out from the hallway. The entrance to the apartment is to the left around the corner. My unit is on the second floor and doesn't have a balcony. This unit had A/C in the living room, but Chris said mine would have it in the master bedroom. Either one works for me.
The kitchen. This is a big part of what sold me on the place. The kitchen was much nicer than most of the other units we looked at. Those are real granite countertops. I don't think the floor is actually wood, but it looks nice. Lots of cabinet space and counter space. The sink is on the left past the fridge (hidden by people). Unfortunately, it has an electric range. Only one apartment all day had a gas range. Everywhere else was all electric.
The master bathroom. Again, you see the granite and nice floor.
realstevec came along to keep me company and to provide a second opinion. We spent most of the day driving around looking at apartment complexes (probably 10-15 in all), but in the end I decided on a place we'd seen in the early afternoon. It's a 2 bed/2 bath, 930 sq feet, with a nice kitchen and washer/dryer in-unit. The manager of the complex (Chris) seemed really cool, which also helped sell me on the place.Here's a few pictures I took of the unit we walked through (not the same unit as mine, but basically the same layout):
The living room, looking out from the hallway. The entrance to the apartment is to the left around the corner. My unit is on the second floor and doesn't have a balcony. This unit had A/C in the living room, but Chris said mine would have it in the master bedroom. Either one works for me.
The kitchen. This is a big part of what sold me on the place. The kitchen was much nicer than most of the other units we looked at. Those are real granite countertops. I don't think the floor is actually wood, but it looks nice. Lots of cabinet space and counter space. The sink is on the left past the fridge (hidden by people). Unfortunately, it has an electric range. Only one apartment all day had a gas range. Everywhere else was all electric.
The master bathroom. Again, you see the granite and nice floor.
I guess sometimes it takes major changes to make you try new things. In my case, it took me moving to a new job in a new city before I decided to finally try my hand at this whole blogging thing. Next thing you know, I'll be on Twitter (but not like this: http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2
Anyway, I know from experience that more traditional methods of staying in communication with friends do not work out so well for me, so I am hoping this blog will help bridge that gap and encourage me to actually keep in touch this time around. At least this time I am close enough to visit more frequently, so I expect that will also play a role.
Anyway, I know from experience that more traditional methods of staying in communication with friends do not work out so well for me, so I am hoping this blog will help bridge that gap and encourage me to actually keep in touch this time around. At least this time I am close enough to visit more frequently, so I expect that will also play a role.
