Weblog

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!

Well, instead of going home last weekend, I decided to go to Los Angeles instead. In doing so, I was able to visit my aunt and uncle who live in Huntington Beach, and also a friend from college, James Stevenson, who lives in Studio City.

I flew in on Thursday evening, and I went to meet James. We went to a Mexican restaurant for dinner, where we randomly saw Larry King. The food was good, but the margaritas were better, even if they were a bit steep at $7.50. The following day I had to work, as did James, but afterwards we went to a wonderful French restaurant, where I spent more money on dinner than I ever have. We had a bottle of wine, a massive cheese course, entrées, and dessert. I had a lamb shank and crème brulée, and James had venison and bread pudding. Everything was excellent. After dinner, we went to Blockbuster to pick up Transformers, which I had not seen yet, went back to his apartment, and watched the movie. It was definitely a good choice. The following morning, he took me on a tour of Hollywood, including a spectacular view from Mulholland Drive. Shortly thereafter, I left for Huntington Beach.

I arrived at my aunt and uncle's house late in the afternoon. I had not seen them in a few years, so there was of course the obligatory catching up. I also had not yet seen their new house since they moved from San Francisco, so I also got a tour of the house. A bit later, they took me to a seafood restaurant on the beach. We all had wonderful food, accompanied by a good Chardonnay from Cakebread Cellars. I am not normally a fan of Chardonnay, but this wine was quite good, especially with my Mahi Mahi. The following day, after they got back from church, we went around to some of the nearby beaches, where I was able to take a number of (now posted) photos. After some time on the beach, we returned to their house for an excellent dinner of grilled halibut. Soon afterward, we said our goodbyes, and I made my way to the airport, and ultimately Tucson.