Weblog

This past week I started a new project in San Jose. I really love the bay area, and I was getting a little tired of Tucson, so this is certainly a welcome change. I'm staying at the Hilton for now, at least until Doug convinces me to try out the nearby Embassy Suites, but the Hilton seems to treat us IBMers very well. It's even got a Starbucks in the lobby, not to mention a rather nice gym. The hotel is all of five to ten minutes away from the airport, and the client site is ten to fifteen away from either, so it made for a very pleasant experience. I do hope to venture out into the rest of the bay area over the next few months; some of us already went down to Santa Cruz to see one of our team members play some incredible jazz. I've also got some friends in the area, so hopefully I'll get to see them as well!

Oh, and for the record, the only way to make up for a three-hour mechanical delay (which they knew was going to happen) is getting to fly first class. I got the last seat though, so I did feel bad for everybody else.

In general, I really enjoy travelling. I don't even mind doing it every week. I love getting to see different parts of the country, and hopefully I'll eventually be able to travel the globe for work as well. Unfortunately, there are people who can invoke the precisely opposite feeling. My trip to Sacramento on Sunday evening involved three such people. The night began the same as any other Sunday night had for the past two months, with me driving to the airport, going through security, and getting on the plane. The plane was hot and stuffy, and grew ever more uncomfortable as passengers boarded. Eventually, a man and his son appeared; they had the seats next to me. I had the aisle seat, so I got up to let them in. The father then proceeds to redirect all of the A/C nozzles at him and his son, including mine. He also shut off my reading lamp. I waited a few minutes and then returned the apparatuses to their original states. Luckily, the man slept through most of the flight, so I wasn't bothered any further. Later, as I was waiting for the rental car bus along with fifteen or so other people, a kid and his dad decided it would be a swell time to light up cigarettes. Right there in the middle of everyone. Lucky us.

I was in for some luck that evening, however. It would appear that the rental car gods finally decided to shine on me. This week Hertz gave me a Mustang. Of course I would have preferred the 350Z that they gave out on occasion in Tucson, but at least it's not the terrible HHR that I have been getting recently. This is the first time in quite a while that I've driven a sports car, and it's a pleasant experience. I'm actually toying with the idea of getting something similar for myself. I've currently got my eye on the next-gen Camaro. At any rate, I won't be looking to buy a new car for at least a year. My Civic still serves me well, and I'm saving up for a place to live before I start worrying about new wheels.

Well, I realize it's been a while since my last post. In fact, just two days after my prior post, I learned that I wouldn't be going back to Tucson anymore, as IBM's contract ended, and the expected extension was not signed in time to keep the team on the project. However, one of the partners was able to get me on something else right away, so I'm now going back and forth to Sacramento every week instead. The flight is a little bit longer, but that just translates to a little more reading time.

Aside from work, though, not much has happened. I took off last week for Christmas, and I fly back tomorrow night. I was able to see Matthew and Angie for lunch down in Denver, as they came to town for the holidays as well. We went to Maggiano's, and of course I had to have the superb tiramisu again.

Anyway, that's all for now. I'm planning on posting more frequently, but for now, happy new year!