Grand adventures & good times

Time seems to be racing by!  Landed safely in Albuquerque (albeit a little later than anticipated) and arrived at the ranch to snow on the ground.  Nothing like it was in 2006, but snow no less. Michelle and I were safely housed in the bunk house, me in the Cowboy Room and her in the Flag Room; nice to see that the painting job I was part of still held up to scrutiny.  Xmas eve I worked for half a day, so not as bad as it could have been.  Xmas morning was lovely.  Slept in then headed up to Karen and Brice's (5 miles up the road) for breakfast, presents and generally lounging around.  Mum is here too and in good form.  I have to confess to feeling generally exhausted when I first arrived.  These last months at work have been full on and I have been pushing myself hard and not getting much exercise (2009 brings a whole new set of resolutions about making sure I do exercise more so that I don't get run down!).  

Xmas dinner was a lovely affair and the food fab (as always).  We then sat around and watched DVDs - all in all the perfect way to spend Xmas in my book.  

As well as adventures at the ranch (horse riding being one - actually I really enjoyed it and Michelle was delighted.  I am not much of a rider but meandering along is workable and we were well bundled up against the wind).  Spent a full day in Santa Fe on Saturday.  Starting with a visit to the Georgia O'Keeffe Musuem. Georgia is an incredible artist with a long local history.  We then wandered around the shops before Michelle and I headed off to Ten Thousand Waves which is this gorgeous mountain spa.  Karen and Brice had given us massages for Xmas and before we had them we sat in the dry sauna and the outdoor (in the snow that is) spa.  It was lovely.  Afterwards we headed out for a wonderful meal at a local restaurant.  Made all the more enjoyable as the waitress was very funny and engaging.  

Seeing everyone on the Ranch has been lovely and they make me feel very very welcome.  

Time flew by and before I knew it Michelle was heading back to Santa Cruz (and had also spent time helping out with feeding animals etc etc....I think she agrees - life living on the ranch had been tough for me...not).

More to tell and pics to add but I will post this for now.  It's New Years eve and the mother is calling saying I need to get out of bed and come do some "chores"!

Birthday celebrations

So my birthday has been and gone and Michelle and I have celebrated hers as well!  I had a great day out with Michelle on the 20th.  Slept late then went to brunch, did a little Xmas shopping then headed off to the "Mystery Spot".  This place really is a mystery.   They describe it as a "gravitational anomaly".  It's a circular area about 46m in diameter.  When you are in the Mystery Spot the laws of physics and gravity change...true story, nothing works quite the way it's supposed to.  A tour guide shows you around demonstrating all the oddities.  Physics freaks would love, Michelle and I laughed alot - good enough.  After the Mystery Spot we headed back to Santa Cruz and went and had snacks at a very cute downtime wine bar.  By the end of the day we were both pretty tired and work has been so full on that I really has happy to land in my bed at 830pm...having enjoyed a very lovely chat with some NZ friends.  Skype really is fantastic.

Sunday we celebrated Michelle's birthday, heading to the da Vinci exhibition in San Jose.  It's the only place in the US that the exhibition is coming to and it was fantastic.  Lots of interactive display and explanations about how he created his art and his various engineering feats.  

Monday it was back to work.  I am so ready for the break but have to work Xmas eve as well.  On the upside, and rare in these times.  I am hiring two new people for my team.  I am fortunate that the program I am in is part of Cisco's growth strategy so we still have funding.  Tough times for a lot of folk here and I don't think it's going to get easier for quite a while.

I am typing this at Denver airport, about to board a plane for New Mexico - yay, Xmas in the snow.  Happy holidays all!

Catching up

It's been a while...went fast though.  Family came and what a fab visit.  Renting the house next to mine was a winner.  So easy to come together each day and/or have people able to head off to bed with ease.  It really was four full on days!  Some big adventures and some little ones.  Much good food, good wine and laughter.  I really had a very grand time.  One of the very best standout moments that stays with me was the Monterey Aquarium.  It is remarkable for many many reasons (conservation not being the least of it, on occasion they have great white sharks that have been caught in fishing nets, they bring them in and nurse them to the point that they can release them!).  But apart from the kelp forest they have a jelly fish display.  We all went to the 15min talk on "jellies" and then were totally wowed by the display......the reason you don't see jellies many places is that it is incredibly hard to replicate their natural environment - it was quite fantastic. 

It was lovely to see everyone, share stories and laughter.  Marcia, Michelle and Margarita came over for a BBQ on the Sunday before everyone left, nice to merge some parts of my world and nice to enjoy the good food as well (yay to having chefs and foodies in the family).

Back to work and all thought of holidays forgotten, what a difference 4 days makes.  It proved to be a very big week (but I am thinking I say this constantly!).  As well as delivering on our (more than big) work program I am part of negotiating the next Qtrs contract.  I am fortunate to be part of a series of programs that are focused on growing the business so, while not easy times, my job is secure....or so it seems, and (frankly, more importantly) I am not looking at having to downsize my team.  Hard to say how people here are feeling about the downturn.  It is tough times, but we are busier than ever.

Counting the days to New Mexico, seeing the mother and Karen and Brice.  I am really looking forward to it, although I will have to work some days and I am on call throughout.  It's snowing in New Mexico and I (for one) am looking forward to it - my love affair with snow remains undiminished, although Karen assures me it is nothing like the snow I had when I lived on the ranch....that was rather special and lovely, particularly for my 40th....

Bright Lights and Thanksgiving

Have had the most fab thanksgiving break. Managed to finish work around 1pm Wednesday (that in itself was a small miracle) and Marcia, Michelle and I headed to San Fran.  Took the scenic route up the coast and stopped at this very cool eatery that was a little like an old tavern. Marcia had to go to a meeting so Michelle and I hung out in a coffee shop surfing the net and generally being idyll (nice).  Had a quiet night in then headed to Mary and Rubys (two in the left of the photo). They own this really cute wooden three story house (two floors are self contained units) and even have a cute little garden.  Anyway we spent five hours cooking various things laughing and chatting.  It was really lovely, I excelled in dishes, not really being one to do much cooking and clearly surrounded

 by folks who knew what they were doing.  Afterwards we sat around playing scabble and generally having a nice time.  

Slept late the next day (we were staying at Marcia's friends house in Fruitvale, near Oakland) and Michelle and I watched a DVD while Marcia went out and did stuff.  We headed back to Mary and Ruby's for leftovers then hit the road for Santa Cruz.

During December a park off the 880 sets up this amazing light display for Xmas so we swung off the freeway, got in line and proceeded to drive around the park checking stuff out.  The funniest thing of all was that they give out these 3-D glasses and when you look through them you see either dinosaur heads framing everything or flying angels; once we realized we were beside our selves with hysteria.  Michelle and I wore them all the way home - best trip I've had on the 17 yet.

Family come this week and I am about as organized as I am likely to get.  It will be lovely to see everyone.  Although it's a little cooler the weather has been pretty good, some rain but it doesn't hang around for long....Wellington's rainy, windy winters are long forgotten, rain remains a novelty. 

Unexpected guests and Thanks Giving

Had an unexpected visitor over the weekend. Sim happened to be in San Fran so she drove through on Friday and we hung out through Saturday. Sim was a pal back in the Auckland days. It was fun, haven't seen her in over two years. She's been working in Madison but this is the first time we've been in touch. We ended up going to a great local restaurant (2mins from my house) called the Drunk Monkey. Kind of Asian Fusion food - very pleasant. Saturday we met Michelle and Marcia for breakfast at another local haunt. We then walked the beach and strolled into town.
Sunday I did some shopping and then went to Marcia and Michelle's for a BBQ....easy to tell they are back in town, my social life has picked up considerably.
I've had several work dinners which have been fun but make for a long day as they are inevitably in San Jose.
Thursday is Thanks Giving and Ruby has invited me (well I slid in on the M&M invite) to come up to San Fran for Thanks Giving dinner. We are going to head up Wednesday and hangout until Friday. Going to stay in Oakland. I haven't been to SF for quite a while so should be fun.

It Takes Balls To Be A Woman

You see, sometimes country music ain't all "Standby your man".

Seriously funny

Well I liked it, made me laugh. It's a little dark (a lot dark) but British humour at its best!

Life under an, almost, Obama Govt

Well it's fair to say I am, mostly, surrounded by folks who are desperately excited and relieved that Obama won.  I'm also surrounded by some who are hugely impacted (dare I say humbled) by the change in their economic fortunes.  My pick is this, Obama will spend much of the next four years navigating the economic times...he will, most likely, do okay.  Come the next election most will be sympathetic that much of his social agenda got stalled....and give him another chance.  But then, perhaps, that is my natural optimism.  Either way politically it's a fantastic time to be living here.

On a more mundane level work remains the dominant thing in my life.  Not a bad thing as I am enjoying some quite lovely and unexpected moments.  I have a team of nine and that brings its challenges as they are, without exception, smart, engaging, clever and challenging.  The theory of managing a high performing team and then actually having one - well, it keeps me honest. I've developed (I think) an honest and supportive relationship with my new boss.  On a lovely note I've also kept in touch with my old boss.  At this stage, despite the economic times, I don't think I am about to lose my job and, if I do, I will survive it.   I don't take anything for granted nor feel complacent - when you have job you can't worry about not having a job, just do a good job (or the best you can) and then roll with whatever happens.  

I have done a little socializing.  Stepping back into my other world.  Went to a friends beach house for dinner and wine tasting on Saturday night....very nice and a mix of funny, entertaining and engaging folk.  Stayed over and it would have been even lovelier if I hadn't got a 730am work call that had me race back home to sit in front of my computer for 6hrs.  Oh well, I guess it's what I choose to do!

Plans for the family visit are finalized and tickets for Xmas booked - all of which is making me very happy!

Obama : 'All things are possible'

BOO! Halloween has come and gone

Halloween (or at least the day before) proved to be quite a cultural moment.  I work in an open plan office where desks are not assigned so you can sit anywhere.  We do have neighbourhoods that group different teams together.  On the week of Halloween there was a competition to decorate our work areas.  People went all out (well Cisco is a pretty competitive environment). We had mummies and zombies and a whole graveyard set up inside a blackended room (even had an ipod playing spooky music and white ice for the judging!).  If that wasn't enough at 1pm when everyone could go and look at what people had done all these folks arrived on our floor from around the building dressed up in Halloween outfits....some of them were amazing.  I found the whole thing hugely funny, Halloween is all about the grown ups.  On the actual night it rained so I didn't go downtown - stayed inside snuggled up and warm.

My MacBook Pro has arrived so I have been having fun figuring out how to use all the different cool things.  It's quite intuitive although very different to use compared to windows.  Now I have split my mind between by work laptop and the Mac!

Last week was a huge week at work.  I am not sure why but it seemed that every time I turned around there was mini crisis going on.  It made for a very long week and I was relieved to have Friday roll around.  

Last weekend I did have a little adventure.  Moss Beach Distillery is at Half Moon Bay and has an interesting history.  During Prohibition the bootleggers used to land on the beach below the distillery to unload.  The Distillery owner always managed to get a few barrels!  Rumour has it that the Distillery is also haunted by The Blue Lady - short, long story of lost love and death, the story has been featured on Unsolved Mysteries.  I went up to check it out as a place I could take the family to (okay also an excuse to do a good ride on the bike).  I had a great time.  Sat out on the patio looking across the sea, ate crab cakes and drunk lemonade (no beer, figured that wasn't a good idea before riding home).  It was fun and definitely a lunch venue for the family.

Oh if you think the election is a done deal, check it out.

Beached Whale

So even the Americans laughed at this one!

Halloween.......

So today I carved two pumpkins for halloween. It was one of those things that made me perfectly happy. I sat in the sun at the picinic table in my backyard, enjoyed a Corona and carved pumpkins! What you can't tell from the pic is that I have put battery powered "candles" in them both so they glow at night...... There's a competition at work to decorate our areas as well. Halloween is, I think, the best holiday of all in the US!
Last week I rode the bike to Sunnyvale (near San Jose) for her 600 mile service (okay closer to a 1000). Funniest of all - to avoid the worst of the traffic. given it was a Wednesday - I arrived half an hour before they opened. So, all dressed up in my leathers, I stood in the carpark, pulled out my work laptop, propped it on the saddlebags of the bike and promptly logged on to the free Google wi-fi so that I could download my work emails.......even sent a few and instant messaged some folks, that's kinda how work goes here! Or maybe it's always been like that for everyone.....nah not how I remember it in, NZ nobody carried laptops into meetings as a matter of course and no option to IM! It's a new way of working but suits me.
Oh now speaking of laptops - this weekend I have bought the new MacBook Pro for my personal computer. Having vaguely speculated with folks here that I needed a new laptop the crowd come in on going with the Mac (oh yes and one very loud voter from Aussie as well). Apple just launched a new laptop so I went with it......ordered it on line so should be here this week.
I've booked tickets to New Mexico for Xmas and New Year (Michelle's coming along for Xmas). I'm looking forward to it. I won't have the whole time off but can work remotely so that's easy!

Ever been a public servant?

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/27228287

Presidential candidates and working life

It's been fascinating to watch the whole election saga roll out - what a costly why to go about it. I watched the first presidential debate and heard some of the second. Not really debating I didn't think. Funny too, alot of the Americans I speak to aren't watching the debates at all but they are passionately interested in the outcome of the election. As to Sarah Palin - yikes.........although she was much better in the VP debate than I expected.....still she feels like a train wreck waiting to happen. The pic on the left comes from a Facebook page called "Everytime I hear Sarah Palin speak I feel sick to my stomach".
The economy, well that's incredible to watch. Panic selling isn't helping! Listening to the candidates I think Obamas got a better handle on it but then that's my biais. McCain initially saying he wouldn't debate the bailout package until it was a done deal didn't inspire confidence.......Fascinating time to be living here.
As of last week I took on my bosses job. It was a huge week, for some reason the program went crazy and we had multiple "firedrills" (you know hurry hurry crisis crisis) - some real and some imagined. Still even my boss said she was sorry my first week had been so full on. Thankfully the Leads in my team really stepped up and we somehow managed to keep all the balls in the air and maintain the appearance of being under control! A really fun part of my job is that I have recently started to have weekly 1:1s with my bosses boss. Igor is the Director for the wider team we are part of. He is Czech, amazingly energetic and visionary in a slightly random way. Best part is that I am now helping him with some of his comms work, learning all about new technology (web 2.0) including a whole new suite of online collaboration tools. So strange to find myself excited by what some of the new IT stuff can do.
Concurrent with this I've landed in Facebook land - now that really is amazing. Its fun and interactive and full of quirks (I'm a vampire) and you get to do fun odd things with friends online. It's very immediate.
I still like my blog though, well it's more of an online journal I guess. Everytime I think about changing it or moving to another provider I remind myself that it works, I don't need it to be more than it is. I like that it is simple!

I have a new job

Not quite as startling as it sounds! Actually I now have my bosses job. She has moved on to another role and I was offered the chance to take on her role, so I move from being the lead on one program to overseeing all the comms folks across several programs. Kathy (my boss) was a real champion about it and put me forward........it comes with the opportunity to possibly convert to becoming an employee - a whole other opportunity full of risks and potential rewards. Either way my new role is another big step in firmly establishing myself here and, I guess, demonstrates a renewed commitement to my professional life. I'm surprised by the things I am good at (well I guess I've been at this for nearly 15 yrs in one form or another), delighted at how much I have learned since I arrived, ecstatic about the quality of people I work with (and how hard they push me to keep up and be as professionally competent as they are) and grateful for the opportunity. I really am ready to give it my best shot and hugely fortunate to have the backing of some very capable people who are committed to having everyone be successful. Couldn't ask for more really.
On another note.....I've tracked down a pal that I met while I was in Bosnia (in fact more than that, we shared a room for 6 months!). We haven't had contact for 13 1/2 years so it is quite a blast from the past.
In between all of this my new room mate (2 days a week) is now in residence and is a delight to have around. It's a little like my rideshare.......we don't spend much time together but the time we do is full of laughter and insight.
On balance life is grand.....

Bunch of stuff

Life has been busy both at work and home. Long silences (well in the scheme of the blog this is long), usually mean I have “something” to share. Well as it turns out I do and I don’t (but it is time to update the blog….apparently).
On the work front things are changing…..again…..and I am waiting to share…..but as of today nothing looks quite like it did yesterday (how’s that for a teaser). So far it looks good for me but nothings a done deal until it’s done! Oh and it's just occured to me that next month I will have been contracting at Cisco for a year - that went by fast. I've learnt a huge amount, not only about Cisco but working life in the US in general. People here (or at least the ones I work with) work incredibly hard and I've met some amazingly competent people; both comms professionals and others, keeps me on my toes I have to say.
I went on a grand adventure several weekends back. It was Marcia’s birthday and she arranged a trip to Mendocino. Mendocino is 228 miles from Santa Cruz………well somewhat longer if you get on the coast road. A 6 hour trip going there; somewhere around 4 hrs coming back on the freeway. As it turned out Marcia’s bike was off the road so I followed her and Michelle who drove up in Marcia’s car. Being on the coast road and riding through red wood forests was really very spectacular. Redwood forests really are stunningly beautiful and I love riding through them. It was grand!!!! The pic on the left was taken just before we headed out of Santa Cruz……….yep, my hair is that long…..I like it and no one in California knows me with short hair so I thought I would "come out" and show the world.
Hair aside, we stayed at this very fab house on over 100 acres owned by 13 (?) women who bought it in the 70s. A couple of Marcia’s friends came from SF as well…….turns out Marcia and her pal can sing so we spent one night sitting on the deck (pic on left) while Marcia and Adrianna sung a whole bunch of songs…..it was an easy time, fun and full of laughter.
Nice turn of events the WHOLE family are coming to visit in December! While I live in a small cottage (see the earlier bike pic, the house in the pic is my house) the landlords have built something a little grander next door as their “holiday home”. They rent it out so I’ve rented it for early December - it will be fun and mum is going to New Mexico for xmas as well so I’m planning to go back to El Rancho ………. Thinking maybe the snow won’t be quite so big……..just thinking it, not sure I believe it and I really did/do love the snow.
Watched the first presidential debate – not convinced by McCain…..still think Obama needs to prove himself ………..didn’t like McCain pulling out the war record again…..didn’t like the edge of smarmy from Obama…….don’t get to vote anyway but have some interesting debates with my ride share about all of this! Okay so yes, I’m more Obama than McCain (well way more) – fascinating to live and work with Americans who actually get a say. I really do enjoy the culture, it is remarkably transparent….and complex.
Watching the response to the economic storm is equally fascinating. It's not something that is directly impacting me but it's pretty clear some people are really feeling the pain and there's going to be more pain to come for those facing foreclosure. Sad. In the end I am looking to buy a house somewhere and have a loose plan in my head about how I can make this happen - in the interim I am sitting back and watching how the market goes. I see from the papers that NZs feeling the pain as well - let's hope the bailout works!

2nd Anniversary

It has been two years since I immigrated……WOW. I really don’t think I knew this at the time but 1 Sept is also Labour Day in the US……..so I have the day off work! I am, honestly, startled to reflect back. The day I arrived in the US wasn’t all that I had expected nor hoped for, a year on I was, I think, equally bemused. But here I am, startlingly happy. I had some very clearly defined dreams for the US…….honestly all about me and it's all proving to be the grandest adventure. Somethings are exactly how I imagined and some things are different and bringing new and different adventures. I never did imagine living on the west coast…..I did think the East coast (NY) was where I was going. Silicon Valley? Well no, but a job that used my skills, yes always. I really am having a grand time and having the bike and my new home brings new grown up moments and a greater sense of being settled.

Two weekends back I did a road trip to Half Moon Bay. It's about 50miles north of Santa Cruz along a very scenic coast road. It was the first big ride I had taken with the windshield. What a difference that makes. Don't get nearly so tired and very comfortable to sit back and enjoy the scenary. I hadn't exactly planned to do the trip but was at the bank on the North side of town and decided I would like to spend some time on the coast, hit the road and saw the sign for Half Moon Bay. I'd travelled the road once with Michelle so I just decided to keep going. Turns out Half Moon Bay is this cute little tourist town full of galleries, a fab kitchen shop and an amazing antique store called "Half To Have It". I had quite a fun time ferreting around. No militaria but some fun stuff to look at. It was a great day and I also saw some great art along the way. Coming home I hooked in with a couple of other riders who set a nice pace. I really enjoyed the whole day.

During the week Marcia arrived back from LA so we headed down to the wharf to have some dinner. I decided to walk as I was feeling the need for exercise. The entire beach and wharf were engulfed in a sea fog - very funny to be out on the wharf and have no sense of there being an ocean out there somewhere. Rather than sit at the window we sat up at the bar and watched surfing videos taken along Santa Cruz beach.....somewhere. Marcia introduced me to Meyer Lemon Drop Martini's. Three down and I was glad I was walking home. I needed both the exercise and the fresh air. I had work the next morning so drunk gallons of water before falling into bed (worse for Marcia, she had a 6am flight out of San Fran!). It was fun though and the food was good......seafood of course.

This week we have a two and half day global program meeting. People flying in from all over the world. It will be interesting to meet some of these folks in person - given how well I've come to know their voices.

The power of grump

Culturally the single biggest hurdle I have dealt with here is that, sometimes, you just have to be grumpy and let people know you are! It is very un-british and very un-kiwi. It is a necessary survival mechanism. I have just spent two hours on the telephone with my internet provider who then informed me…..oops, bad modem installed, hey here’s a number you can call, gee only available four days a week and most definitely not this weekend…..kinda random……..sorry. So I took a breath and demanded to speak to the supervisor….well they had just billed me for the full month and taken my credit card number….that seemed to work fine. It seemed to me they took my credit card readily enough and now I had an erratic, limited service - not to mention the fact that come Monday if I don’t have internet I have to go into the office and, regardless, come Sunday if I don’t have it I have to go find it……’cos dealing with emails before Monday helps me survive the week! It takes a lot for me to get grumpy with anyone (seriously it is a deep personality flaw, I’ve never mastered spontaneous grumpy and don’t much hang on to real anger…..frustration and disappointment yes, anger no). Mostly I have to think about it and decide I am going to do it. It’s not spontaneous – it’s not a natural way of being. I resent having to do it because mostly I think people should behave and do the right thing, well…….they don’t. So grumpy muppet worked, or at least maybe worked. On Sunday they promise someone will arrive. I will lurk…..they better arrive or I will have to wind myself up again! On balance Kiwis are “passive aggressive”, we invite people to get it, we really are not as direct as the average American or European I might add (my pop psychology insight). There are merits in both but, of late, I’ve figured that throwing my toys from the cot is sometimes the only choice…..maybe, just maybe, it might work….

Of bikes and books

So this weekend the bike got all her finery. Best of all, because I had a little complaint with the bike shop, the sales guy came to my house in Santa Cruz (pictured) - a 1.5hr drive and fitted everything for free!!! Needless to say I did tip him......a very Amercian moment - complain, you get the service in a new and special way and you tip for the pleasure. Now she's looking like a cruiser, windshield, saddle bags, boards (rather than pegs) and a backrest.....that is not really because I think I want to ride two up so much as a convenient place to tie things to!
On Sunday I braved the 17 and headed to San Jose to visit some bike shops. Found the first one easily but then spent a CONSIDERABLE amount of time trying to find the second one. I think I crossed SJ at least twice and went down the same stretches of freeway many many times. The only reason I didn't give up was that I felt it was simply too moronic to ride all that way and then fail to complete the mission. Anyway as it turned out the illusive leather jacket (I am still wearing Karens) remains illusive so I have resorted to ordering online, seeing what I get and sending it back if it's wrong. I pretty much order everything online now or call it in - so easy and one way funny moment - I went to order a cover for the bike and had to call an 0800 number. The person who owns the business is a woman, has my name, spelt the same first and last with one extra letter in the middle name.......good grief, it was very funny!
I have also just finished reading Jodi Picoult's novel, Nineteen Minutes. Very interesting, and I quote "deals with the truth and consequences of a smalltown high-school shooting. Set in Sterling, New Hampshire, Picoult offers readers a glimpse of what would cause a 17-year-old to wake up one day, load his backpack with four guns, and kill nine students and one teacher in the span of nineteen minutes." This is a good read if anyone has ever pondered what may or may not have happened behind the scenes of a high school shooting. It's not a really big pychological insight just.......an interesting read. Highly recommend it.

Living a life

So I guess there would be no surprises - apart from working I've been out riding, enjoying the summer evenings and beautiful California countryside. The pic on the left was the sunset view from by deck a few nights back, I'm not sure the picture captures just how spectacular it was but thought it worth sharing.

Anyway back to the bike. Being mobile again means I have really started to be able to explore the Santa Cruz area - both the mountains and the coast. Last Wednesday Marcia and I headed into the mountains and did a fab ride through the redwood forest. Despite the picture, it wasn't actually raining or even vaguely damp - I raided this off someone elses blog to show what the road was like. We dropped down from the forest and headed along the coast road. On the left is a picture of the beach that forms part of Natural Bridges state park. Going from the mountains down to the coast in a ride of roughly an hour was pretty amazing.

On Saturday we rode through to Corralitos - maybe a 45min ride. It's this tiny little town that has an amazing reputation for sasuages! There's a local store with a great meat selection. The local "fair" was on and it was just like any small town fair in NZ - Scouts were out in force.....strangely (as these things go) there was also a break dancing demonstration. The pic on the left is mine and Marcia's bikes and on the right Marcia getting ready to ride. Before anyone thinks to ask - yes you do have to wear a helmet in California, yes I only ever wear a full face, no I don't ride sleeveless (I wear a leather jacket) and my riding boots.......lessons learnt long ago!

Anyway the weekend ride was fun as we drove through a lot of orchard country. A little sad too as Corralitos was hit baddly by the fires and we passed a lot of burnt out country where houses had been destoyed. Oddly too at times the entire surrounding area would be burnt out and houses untouched - kind of creepy.

Other things - works busy, as always. My new home is lovely and I am well settled in. Took the ex.room mate and her boyfriend out for dinner on Friday. Had a lovely evening and drunk some very good NZ Pinot Noir. Also watched some of the Flight of the Conchords. Haven't seen it all yet but was more than a little surprised that I could hear the accent - not at all unpleasant but strange!

Meet my new love

She's not wearing all her finery (still some accessories to come) but this weekend I picked up the bike! She is a Honda Shadow Aero 750 and, in what may seem startling, she isn't black! Actually the Aeros have a great retro look and I fell in love with this colour combination - there are other colours you can play with if you follow the link in the post (okay this is quite possibly something only I am interested in). You don't actually get to test ride here so I purchased her on the back of alot of research! Marcia drove me over to Sunnyvale (about 1.5hrs away) on her Yamaha VStar 1100, then she took me on a fanastic ride through the mountains/forest and down along the coast - about 1.5hrs. It was way more scenic and, quite possibly, less dodgy than the 17. This is the first brand new vehicle I have ever owned and so I have to break her in - which mostly involves making sure not to rev her to full throttle and change gears alot. It was the perfect first ride and I wouldn't have known how to do it. I'm very grateful to Marcia as following someone made it so much easier, I could concentrate on the bike.......not figuring out which turns to take. The motorcycle safety course really paid off. I had thought I might feel more nervous but felt relaxed and the bike is very easy to ride. Needless to say I am more than a little happy!
On Friday I moved into my new house. It's lovely, easy and bachy. It only took two carloads (although I felt that seemed like way more stuff than I should have!). I have made some effort and done some little homey things (new linen being one notable moment) and some other little things. Really I need Karen to come and visit - help me add some personal touches.......I get the theory, just not very good at implementation.
Decided not to get a TV but will go and get a monitor for the laptop so I can watch movies and online TV if I want to. Funny, in NZ I watched alot of TV.......I've just lost the moment here. I like being able to pick and choose online. I will have a room mate two nights a week. I've picked up Michelle's room mate, one of the professors from the University. Lives in San Fran but comes down here two days a week. It's a nice middle ground, not full time but some help with bills and easy company.
Work is still busy. Even though I was moving on Friday morning I still had the laptop on and was responding to calls. I've been getting some nice feedback so (while it is good for the ego) it has me feel I am able to do the job and be successful at it.
Michelle's back, briefly, before heading to LA. I've had dinner with her and Marcia a couple of times and will miss ME when she goes. Still LA isn't far and all going well Marcia and I will be able to make a bike trip down to see her before the summer is out.
Okay long post, I've been holding off waiting to share the bike.
PS - wow crap weather in NZ.......looking and sounding more like an US East Coast winter.......yikes!

Poor Veitch........

I've given up......I can't stand to read one more story about how hard Veitch is taking it.......what a terrible situation he is in.......with, at most, one line mentions of the victim and more than some implication that she is orchestrating the whole saga.....so what if she is.....Veitch made his choices now he gets to live with the consequences........gee maybe he missed the point....money doesn't much change anything....maybe a little less writing a cheque to have it go away and more checking in...... How strange it is for the NZ media to finally wake up to their own narrow minded bias (well no, mostly TVNZ who lost their golden boy)......, the NZ media turned on their own and now they are startled and horrified at their own ability to destroy peoples lives. Go figure. I'm speechless but not surprised.

Busy busy busy...having fun

The last few weeks (months for that matter) seem to have flown by. My working day is very full and challenging. This week I was on point to put the Statement of Work (the contract) for Cisco together for TechProse. I wasn't completely alone of course! It was a new thing to learn and my first exposure to how this all works in the US. Fortunately I get on well with my boss (and her boss) so I didn't have to try and "guess" a number to work to. It was a good experience as one of the things that was really challenging about immigrating was letting go of all of my industry knowledge; I knew how rates worked in NZ, I had networks of people (even if I didn't know it!), I understood the work ethic of it all, how the media and design agencies worked etc etc. I am having to re.establish and understand all those things in a country that is, surprisingly, more culturally distant from New Zealand than I might have expected.
I have also been having some fun. Two weeks back I met the new landlords and, over a vino and some great converstation, signed a year lease on my new home. Very exciting, I am looking forward to moving on Aug 1; it feels like my next "grown up" moment.
I have been scouting bikes and I am heading out later this morning to San Jose to another bike shop. Someone has suggested that I should also try getting a quote online as often you get a slightly better deal as the sales people on line are less concerned with the bottomline number than their sales quota. Worth a try as I know what I want and the accessories.....given I am going for a new bike the risks are the same as buying it off the shop floor...maybe.
Marcia (a friend of Michelle's who I have been getting to know) is coming along to check out bikes with me too (K&B have been giving great advice on bike gear as well). Marcia has a Yamaha VStar 1100 (a bike I've thought about too.....although not the 1100). When I get some time up on my bike the two of us are planning a road trip to LA to visit Michelle. It's that type of adventuring that buying the bike is all about for me.
Last weekend (as well as bike shopping) I headed to Oakland to visit a friend from work (my old boss). We have kept in touch and I had a really pleasant afternoon eating lunch and chatting with her. As I drove back I was chuckling about how I didn't think twice about driving an hour and a half each way for lunch - did I ever do that in NZ?

The Veitch Story

This is startling. Not because domestic violence is startling but because of the way it has gained momentum and that employers responded, the police responded and the public responded. The Tui Board sums it up.

Fireworks

Okay not my pic but this is what Seabright beach looked like for July 4. Fireworks are banned in Santa Cruz (mostly ignored). Given the California fires fireworks were supposed to be "strictly" banned. Police were posted at all the entrances to the beach and searching people.......yeah not so much success on that front. There were hundreds and hundreds of people on the beach and standing around the dunes. People on the beach put together some very clever displays; huge fun. Before going down to the beach I headed off to a friends beach house in Aptos (about 15mins away) - spent a couple of hours with them celebrating the day. Something really nice was driving through the suburbs and seeing the number of flags out. Very colourful and patriotic in a strangely comforting way.

Independence Day

It is Independence Day..........So I have the day off work, yay!

The origin of "ta"

Alright then I don't know about everyone else but "ta" as a short form of thank you is alive and well in my vocab. Language for me is practical, I don't know many big words and, while I can pull together a slick sentence when required, I am far from a mistress of the English language. Ironic given I am in communications. Every now and then I flip into kiwiana.....ta being one of those words that I flip off easily (well people are being helpful, what can you say?). The first time I got a quizical instant message back seeking to grasp what, exactly, I meant. A simple inquiry along the lines of, this is good, yes?
Today I flipped a "ta" (with an explanation that it was New Zealandish) to someone who works for me. She is new to the program so currently everything she is writing requires quite alot of back and forth while she learns both content and style/tone.....that sounds pompous, I don't mean it too......it's just part of what being in communications is all about!). So we are endlessly swapping emails and IMs all day (among the other endless emails and IMs I am getting; Kathy is away and I am learning what it is to have no immediate top cover) while she writes what is a relatively simple message - don't be fooled, these are the hardest. Finally I get to "ta" and explain it's kiwiana for thank you. Her flip back is the American version is "way to go dude". I am not sure is "ta" "way to go dude"?......made me laugh and at hour 10 in my day that was sufficient to make it all worthwhile! And to be honest, it was "way to go dude".......in the end we got there. At no point did I feel the need to just take over and do it myself (tempting but a. probably wouldn't have ended up reading as well as it did, b. not sustainable, I have 6 people who need do do their jobs so I can do mine, and c. there was a very lovely moment where I could tell she just felt proud of herself for hitting the mark.......). It was a long day in everyway but I think "ta" has become a benchmark; I am not sure I will ever get to "way to go dude" but I did get the sentiment. I am so back to being a corporate geek.

California fires and other things

I think the CA fires have been reported in the NZ news - they really are big and the air quality is pretty awful. There is a haze over San Jose and Santa Cruz and yesterday the smell of smoke was really strong. At least two of the people I work with had their homes threatened and firefighters are still trying to get them all under control. Worse yet on Friday I walked out the door to find three fire engines at the house across the road; smoke pouring out of the house and a terrible acrid smell..........at the time I thought it smelt familiar and, sure enough, 10mins later they pulled a car out of the garage. Damn thing was on fire (no one in it I might add), not quite sure how that happens but reminded me of when the peugeot went caught fire when I was driving it in Wellington during peak hour traffic! No real loss at the time, didn't like that car much but it was quite a dramatic way to get rid of it.
Come Monday I will have a car for a month as Michelle heads back to NZ before returning to move to LA in August. She's busy packing "my house", or at least the house I am moving into in August. Yesterday I sat around and watched TV at her house (a novelty for me) while she packed.......very generous don't you think! I did go buy us dinner so wasn't entirely unhelpful.
I forgot to mention this but a few weekends back I went with Michelle and her friend to Castroville (the home of the artichoke and where Marilyn Munroe was crowned Artichoke Queen at some point). We went to a dance bar, the novelty being Castroville is predominantly mexican so the bar played all mexican music. Their was also a drag show all done in Spanish (Barcelona revisited). Later in the evening I even got over my shyness about dancing - although why anyone thinks they can get me up onto a nearly empty dance floor is beyond me.....once it filled up and I could hide in the crush I felt much more relaxed. It was a fun night, we danced late and laughed alot.
Work is still busy and I finally got to meet my boss (Kathy) in person, which was very nice. Monday night I went to dinner with her boss and two others from the team then Wednesday stayed in San Jose later to have drinks and snacks with Kathy and some others from our team. Very social time and long days. Michelle gave me her car as well so at least I didn't have to catch the bus.
Things coming up: serious bike shopping. All going well come the end of July I will share a photo of my new purchase and be able to spend sunny, hot weekends touring the surrounding area and reacquainting myself with the joys of motorcycling! 4th of July next weekend so I am going to go down to the beach and watch all the fireworks. Michelle says it gets crazy and last year I was at the ranch so missed the beach part. Might see if I can get some pictures to share.

37 degrees and climbing

I kid you not, it's hot.......today was an "off site" day i.e. working from home so no air conditioning for me (truth is I freeze in the San Jose office and my hands often feel like icicles during the day)! Day started at 630am with a conference call to Europe.....fair enough - they come to late/early calls all the time. Working from home does not translate into "working less"........day ended at 6pm - that is a long day! Notwithstanding the heat; I do like my work and love my boss - it is nice to be able to influence things and work for someone who is smart and funny. My team continue to amaze me - deliver quality work in, often, unreasonable timelines! As the day finished I headed down to the beach; Ipod headphones glued to my head (day of talking to people does not prompt an evening of same) to watch the crazies convince themselves that the water was not straight off the polar ice cap. It was hot, really really hot........I still did not feel prompted to venture in!

The Price of Milk

I just watched this movie. If it's not obvious, it is an NZ movie, and came out in 2000 - clearly something I missed! It's .......quirky.....odd....very kiwi....funny in places, insightful and then just damned weird. I don't know if I would exactly recommend watching it. But it seems NZ makes so few movies these days (no Lord of the Rings doesn't count) that it's worth looking at just to know what people are (or have!) made. I found it on Netflicks (the DVD and online video store here). The Aussie movie industry is clearly doing much better than NZ - heaps of their movies are available for instant watching or to have sent to you.

Well geeze.........time flys

I am having a great time; really enjoying my new job and getting out and about a bit. Hours are proving to be long but interesting. I have definitely landed in the hot seat! Expectations are high (which freaks me out a little) and we are at a difficult time in the program. Still my boss is letting me change things and is very supportive. I will, for the first time, get to meet her when she comes to San Jose later in the month. We speak at least once a day by phone and instant message throughout the day. I have to say being able to IM people works well when you want instant answers but also generates a whole other layer of work! My team IM during the day as well and sometimes you can have three conversations going at once. The only time we all come together face-to-face is on Tuesday when I have my team meeting. Surprisingly I am really enjoying running a team again......for the first meeting I introduced them to "biscuits" as opposed to cookies - little cultural moment for everyone. Biscuits here are something entirely different.

Two weekends ago Michelle and I headed into San Jose on Sunday to see my roomates digital arts and media show. Maragretha's masters show,The birds, the bees the flowers and the seeds looks at war and nature, and the similarities between the way war functions and how nature operates. She had set up a garden (see the sketch right) that you walk through and included military objects and flowers. As you walk around you trigger commentary about nature and war........it was very complex and fascinating. You get to pick up objects and could toss poppy pods across a stylized wire fence - much like tossing a hand grenade. It was very clever and, compared to some of the other student work, was much more challenging in how it presented the ideas. It was my first real insight into her work. There were some other clever presentationts too. The Human Morality Index was a website where you get to invest based on "vice trading", click on lust and see the stocks associated with it etc. It was very clever and took a real shot at free markets and trade.

This weekend I am doing nothing but lounging around......I am tired and home alone with Goldfish as M and her boyfriend are camping. I am loving the Kindle, it is prompting me to read more widely. Best feature is being able to download a sample chapter before you decide to buy the book!

Girls...and boys in frocks

Went to the NCLR dance on Saturday night in San Fran. Several things of note. First, there were 100s of women......the place was packed, second, apart from the two women I went with (one I met on the night), I knew no one (so nice to be anonymous!), third I need to revise the idea that I don't dance, apparently I do and quite alot. It was a great night starting with a very fine Thai dinner at a very cool bar/restaurant called Koh Samui and the Monkey Bar - says it all really. I stayed in a hotel near Union Square and managed to get a ride back to Santa Cruz so didn't have to Bart (subway), Caltrain (train) and Highway 17 (bus) back.
Landed in Santa Cruz and headed to meet Michelle and her friend at Santa Cruz Gay Pride. A year ago Michelle and I had wandered around and watched the entertainment - what a difference a year makes. Most notably, nothing surprised me and there were some "interesting" outfits to see.
I am still loving the job - it's insanely busy during the day and I have learnt the art of sending emails, while sitting in on a meeting, while instant messaging. I'm not sure if it is more or less efficient to work this way but they sure know how to maximise time. Best of all I am now only physically in the office three days a week (although spend 80% of my day in meetings....so never feel lonely).
Because I could and because I no longer have to buy furniture I have been on a little shopping spree. Most notably and with all the geekiness that comes with it; I brought myself a Kindle. It is Amazon's electronic book.....so far I love it. You can download sample chapters of books and then buy the whole book and it arrives in seconds (it runs off its own wireless system so as long as I have coverage I can buy anytime and read offline). I can subscribe to newspapers/magazines and they have free newsites. Nice feature - it has a dictionary so when I come across a word I don't know I can look it up. It's fun and a nice size...I like it.
I still don't consider myself to be a techo girl but feel strangely drawn to electronic gadgets at the moment. I got myself a speaker for my Ipod too; no I don't care to have an Iphone. Mostly because you can only access service by AT&T and their coverage is not as good as Verizon. Except when you are on the Ranch!

New job, new home & Bonnie Raitt

Started the new job and I am busy...busier and more challenged than I have been for a long time! I am the Communications Lead for a global program focused on having partners and customers adopt a new contract management system........they have to actually, we are about to retire the old system!!! My job is to co-ordinate the various communications folks to make sure we are aligned and do the right things in the right way. So far that involves lots and lots of meetings, putting in place some processes so that we work as a team and trying to figure out if we are actually doing the right things. Its fantastic to be in a global program and work with different parts of the world. My team are great, very professional, capable people who all want to do well. My saving grace is that this program is a sister program to the one I have left so I at least understand some of the technical content and the context in which we are trying to do this. My boss is grand - we have never met, she lives in Southern California and only comes here once every 4 or 6 weeks.....her boss is in Texas and runs the same gig. This really is virtual working and amazing to get a job on the back of telephone interviews.
Come July by roomie finishes her Masters so I have had to think about where I am going to live. I had thought I would leave Santa Cruz but now that I only have to work in the office a minimum of one day a week (I choose 3) I have decided to rent Michelles beach cottage when her lease is up (1 August) and stay here. It has surprised me as I did seriously look at Mountain View (home of Google). The Cottage is fully furnished, two bedrooms, one block from where I live and one block from the beach. I know the landlords well having negotiated Michelle renting it in the first place. And it comes with a weekday boarder (Prof from the University who lives in SF but works down here during the week). I am not keen on a full time roomie so this is a nice compromise. My biggest delimma is whether I buy the three for one package and get TV, Internet and a landline!!!! Since I have started watching programmes/movies online I don't much care about TV. I think I will give that a miss and just get a large monitor to hook to my computer to (nice for work as well).

This weekend Michelle and I headed off to the Santa Cruz Blues Festival to watch Bonnie Raitt. It was a great day. Arrived about midday and the place was packed. We did manage to find a very nice place on the lawn and proceeded to sit back and relax for the day. The show was in a natural amphitheatre so we were surrounded by trees. Bonnie was the last act (and by then we had found some of Michelle'sfriends) so we all got up and danced and laughed. The crowd was interesting. Mostly white, middle class to very wealthy, with a heavy sprinkling of hippies. I am pretty confident the average age would have hung in the 40s somewhere. While it looked very conservative it was quite clear that, despite the "no smoking" by-laws there was smoking of all kinds going on. Alcohol was also available and what made the whole thing nice was that I never saw anybody behaving badly. Just a mellow, happy crowd.

It's Memorial Day weekend (I think this is kind of like our ANZAC Day) so there is a general air of relaxed. Next weekend I am off to a dance fundraiser for the National Center for Lesbian Rights (they are leading much of the work around trying to have gay marriage legalized). Anyway it's part of a much bigger weekend event. It's in SF so I have booked a hotel and I am going with a friend, Dee, who I met quite a few months back and her friend.......who I haven't yet met. Dee lives in Berkley but used to live in Santa Cruz so anytime she is down this way we try to catch up for a walk, drink or dinner. I am looking forward to the dance - it's a formal affair so I am very intrigued to see how people dress (SF Californians don't really do "formal"). Anyway I am assured there will be lots of girls in frocks (no I won't be one of them!).

Having fun

So the roommate has been doing an internship focused on pulling together two shows using digital art and new media. Stage one of the show, Superlight, opened in San Jose on Saturday night. Michelle and I decided to drive up and spend the night so we could go to the show and then off to a Powwow at Stanford University. Superlight had some pretty cool stuff, including one display where you walked into a room and there was a massive screen on the far wall with a guys face. As you moved around the room he changed what he was saying, reflecting how close you were to him or the pace you walked toward or away from him. It was kind of fun to see what reactions you could get out of him! Lots of other clever things too. One of the most fun things that the adults were really into was the chance to create a little doll - see mine to the left. They had set up a work bench with the felt etc and patterns you could choose from. We then all happily used glue guns and rummaged around in boxes of buttons etc to create our characters. Michelle did one too - although a little more girlie than mine. It was a real giggle. Afterwards we went back to the very nice hotel we were staying in, had a nightcap and watched a DVD.
The next day we went off to the Powwow. It was a weekend affair and included a dance competition. We managed to get to see the women performing. Some amazing outfits too. I really enjoyed the drumming that went with the dances and was fascinated to watch - very physical. There was a range of stalls selling jewellery etc so we spent some time wandering around them. Well mostly Michelle. I spent time watching people. All up a lovely weekend.....I think I am in the calm before the storm with the job so it was nice to indulge a little (hmm I guess I've been doing nothing but indulging these past weeks!).

Hola! pt 2, new job, New Mexico

It's been BUSY....fun but busy. Back to Barcelona. See the gang, including the worlds largest paella dish! After Sitges Rose, Jo and I headed to Barcelona. On the way we stopped at Montserrat where we got to see the Black Virgin (see my other post). While we qued for a hideous amount of time we did get to hear the boys choir in the Basilica. The views were spectacular and it was well worth the several hours we spent wandering around. Into Barcelona we stayed at a fab hotel near some grand eating places and close to where we could catch the tourist bus that takes you all over the place. Loved the Gaudi architecture. Particularly the La Sagrada Familia - a "church" started in 1882 and still being built using Gaudi's original drawings with different architects leading the construction at different times. I did freak myself going to up in the elevator into the spires then having to walk down these stairs. As well as making the most of the open air bus we walked alot, had some great Tapas and watched some great street performers. Jo was our tour guide and found some very cool places for us to investigate. Including and amazing design store. I loved Barcelona!
Before I left for Spain I, somewhat boldly, decided I would renew my contract so had, technically, finished my old contract. Had two possible jobs to consider when I got back. Came back to neither having materialized but being offered a weeks work in the old program (they would have had me stay but I was done with it). Anyway concurrently I also decided it was time to go visit El Rancho. Given my unemployed status I was remarkably relaxed. Then within 24hrs I had a new contract! Did the first of three interviews at 9am one morning and by 5pm that day had been offered a Communications Lead role in the sister program to the one I am in. Yippee. Headed off to NM and started the new job yesterday.
New Mexico was fun, welcoming and familiar. No yellow house for me anymore but I was more than comfortable in the bunk house. It was grand to see everyone. On the Saturday Brice, Karen and I headed to Taos for brunch then went on to check out the Earth Ships - billed as Biotechture they are made almost entirely of recycled material (based on used tires)
and can be completing self sustaing using solar power and recycled water. They can come in all different styles but tend more towards and Adobe look or something out of Star Wars! Built into the ground they are impressive and quirky. If you want to know more got to You Tube and search under Earthships.

Hola! pt 1

Wow - Barcelona has to be one of the best places I have ever visited! European liveliness, without snobbery and a real 24/7 city. Iconic architecture and a deep pride in their history. I loved this city. Undoubtedly the company helped! More about that and the picture on the left in pt 2.

The trip to Spain started out in Sitges, a half hour bus ride down the coast from Barcelona. Somehow managed to get upgraded to economyplus on the flight over (and back for that matter), which was lovely as the United flight I was on was less than glamorous......really really old plane! Arrived at the B&B to be greeted by a crowed of kiwis and two Australians. It was lovely to see everyone, apart from Michelle and Ruth I hadn't seen any of the others since I left (which is a year and a half ago now).
B&B was everything promised and then some. Lovely big rooms and a lovely welcoming atmosphere. We had booked the place out so only us! They even had an honesty bar....can't remember the last time I went anywhere that had an honesty bar. For Ruth's birthday we had a dinner at the B&B; traditional paella served in a HUGE serving dish and prepared by a local woman who came in specially. Afterwards we headed out dancing and found this cute queer bar that played classics like Oliva Newton John and Cher. Sitges is a cute seaside tourist town and we wandered around alot. If you look at the picture on the left you can see the seawalls. This allows them to claim they have 17 beaches - hmmm, not so much I don't think!

One minor glitch when one of the crowd had their bag stolen while we sat eating lunch (I sat next to a woman on the tourist bus in Barcelona who also discovered she had been pick pocketed at some point during the morning - unpleasant but not uncommon in Spain). Ultimately it was all soughted out and a new temporary passport arrived from Madrid. Given we had two cars we all headed to the Torres Winery - it's a massive producer and exports globally. Funniest part was trying to get back to the B&B - the two cars travelled separately and both had the same challenge......how not to go to Barcelona but rather head south to Sitges. The car I was in did well following a tour bus, until we stopped doing so well and had to back track and start over (well not quite but close!). Turns out the other car (minus the benefit of a tour bus) had to do the same thing - I guess all Kiwis think a like. It was also Jo's birthday so on our last night we went out to a very very lovely restaurant near the beach. Enjoyed a lovely meal outside and our final night before I left with Rose and Jo to head for Bacelona.

Doing stuff

It's been a busy few weeks. First I bought my self a stunt kite. It's very cool (Prism E2) and very "dramatic" to fly. Michelle and I took it out for its first flight last weekend. It was pretty windy down at the beach and I got to figure out really quickly that this kite wasn't going to be for the faint hearted. It came with a DVD and book of tricks. It's heaps of fun and makes a great noise while it's flying. I did get dragged along the beach a little though (accompanied by Michelle's excited screams).
Michelle also announced that she didn't think that I got enough culture and so got us tickets to the Romeros, which, as it turns out, are a very famous guitar quartet. They play classical guitar so not something everyone would have thought to invite me to! They were fantastic! Orignially from Spain it seemed timely to be listening to them in advance of leaving for Barcelona on the 17th.
Saturday I caught up with my pal from work and her husband. Spent a lovely few hours on the deck of their beach house - drinking a very lovely Pinot Noir from the the Santa Cruz mountains - then headed out to dinner in Capitola with them and a couple of their friends. Capitola (I've mentioned it before) is this very cute seaside village not far from Santa Cruz. Not sure how to describe it - upmarket seaside village with the feel of a holiday town and a real buzz in the air - accompanied by very good food and fabulous views. We then went back to one of the friends houses for dessert. Heaps of fun and, very generously, they all paid for my meal.
On the work front it looks like I am going to move to a new contract. Still at Cisco, not the one I origninally wanted......better I think. May know for sure before I head to Spain. I'll fill in more when I know.
If it's not already obvious I'm not heading up to Walnut Creek anymore. No hearts broken and no bad behaviour by anyone (can't under estimate the value of that!). Had a grand time but it wasn't going anywhere. Life keeps moving forward.

Olympic torches

No I am not in San Francisco protesting China hosting the Olympics. Perhaps I should be? I've never been much for "isolationalist politics" (I think I just made that up!). I mean I've always worked within the system. Fortunately I have some friends who don't.....I am happy to feed them as and when they need it - I do my best as and when I can!

Bocce Ball and the life of a new immigrant

I know I haven’t really posted many photos but here is one that has some of my work colleagues and at least one or two who are becoming friends. We had an afternoon of Bocce Ball. What is Bocce Ball? Yeah right, a cultural moment, I had no idea. At first I thought it must be some form of indoor soccer……long story short it is much like Petanque. BB is Italian, Petanque is French. Go figure. NZ took up Petanque not BB; cultural moment. Although a far better cultural moment, and much funnier, was being at the lunch prior and ordering a “Cheddar Burger”……..that the waitress heard, repeatedly (as did my work colleagues), as “Cheetah Burger”. Post actually being able to make my order someone asked if we ate Cheetah in NZ. I assured them we did but that it was expensive, as we had to import it. This, readers, is the life of an immigrant and I speak English, thank you very much!

Taxes, passports and other things

Happy daze - I appear to have successfully completed my first US tax return. Actually it's two returns, one Federal and one State. Tax here is a nightmare to figure out. The only reason I was able to do it myself is because I really only worked the last three months of the year so was below the threshold that allowed me to file for free using an online service provider recommended by the IRS. It also helped that I didn't have anything complicated to declare. All turns out nicely as it seems I get tax refunds on tax I've already paid. Of course I'm also eligible for the tax payer "handout" as part of the "Stimulus Package". All of which isn't quite what it appears as when you read the fine print it is actually a debit against next years tax.....so for people like me whose income will increase beyond the threshold that gave me the credit in the first place - it's really just free money for a year. Not to be complained at but not quite the way it has been sold by the Bush government.
My passport also arrived, much to my relief. I'm fairly confident that, by virtue of it being a new passport that doesn't show my having arrived in the US....I will be stopped at the airport at least once when I fly out to Spain. I have been here just long enough to predict these things (or at least anticipate them) so I'll carry my old passport with me as well. Minor distraction - yay to Spain!
I am quietly, patiently waiting for things to change at work. I've got an opportunity to move onto a new program but really need the blessing of the Executive who is leading the program I am currently on.......at this stage he is reluctant to let me go. My contract is up at the end of April (and easily renewable) but we tried to wrangle it so I could go early and someone back fill. Nope - he wants me to stay and stay after April. Although I can go anytime I want in reality it's better all round if I can go without alienating anybody. He's promised some changes that I might like.....actually I know the changes he is referring to (and know that they haven't actually been discussed with him yet) and I'm not sure he will buy them, nor that they change much in my world. Sigh - in the past I expect I might have been somewhat more agressive about the whole thing. But the world changes (and so have I) so I am working behind the scenes and staying very quiet while others work things out on my behalf. Sometimes it's just best to shut my mouth and trust in the knowledge and experience of those that are older and wiser......either way I am not going to be unemployed and that is a good thing!

But seriously

Would you thank these gals if you were John McCain:

Hoppy Easter

So Easter is pretty much a non-event here. No holiday and I didn't even realize it was Easter weekend until someone mentioned it last Tuesday. We are still doing shifts for the release and have had some intense moments......dull but intense. It does feel a little like it's never going to end and we are supposed to be preparing for another release in May. Affectionately know as the "May Release" it is looking more like the "Anything but May Release". Such is life and I might not even be part of it (I hope I'm not to be honest). There is the possibility of another contract that I'd really really like - not a time to be unemployed in the US so I'm not racing out of this one (it gets renewed on a regular basis) but I've got my eye out for other possibilities. Who knows. Mostly I'd really like to settle into something that works so that I can move into a little place of my own - closer to work. I really like my flatmate and we get along great - both being very self contained - but I think it's time I actually took the next step and started to live a little less like a bachelor student and a little more like someone creating a home. Well I did take one step forward, buying a wine fridge from my landlord. He was having a garage sale (yard sale here) and had a new, unused fridge. Got it for less than half what it would cost new (nice) and he carried it into the house for me....nicer still.
On an even nicer note got word that my passport is winging its way back to me so I will have it in my hand well in advance of grand adventures in Spain (crisis, potential pouting and general grumpiness averted).
Not much else; I've got work (albeit on call) tomorrow (Saturday) then Sunday midday through to midnight. Hopefully no drama so I won't actually have to do anything. I'm going to try my hand at cleaning up our garden, having now asked the flattie what I am allowed to pull out as I don't have a clue what anything is. She was gracious and explained so that even I could understand (she was equally delighted that our yard will be tidy and her vegie planter is being prepared for the next round of planting).

Life in Silicon Valley

I’m holed up in the Hilton in Silicon Valley working shifts for the IT role out. Last night I worked 6pm to 6am……which really just meant sending messages to a whole bunch of “interested” Ciscoites at 6pm, 10pm, 2am and 6am………sleeping in between. Back on duty this afternoon them tomorrow into the office to wait out the end. I really am in the middle of the Valley, surrounded by office buildings and not much else. The room is possibly the most interesting thing to see. I’m all of 10mins from work in case something happens and I have to go in…….which means I can’t really head out anywhere in the absence of a car. On the upside I have a television (which I don’t have at home as I watch movies and TV on my computer). Having surfed the selection I don’t think I’ll ever get another TV………a lot of nothing on!!! Last night, after we’d sent the first round of messages, I went out to dinner with two work colleagues. The restaurant was buried among all the high rises – I never would have known it was there! Food was grand and it was a nice evening, then back to the hotel to work my shift.
Finally booked my tickets for Spain – just got to get the passport back now. Spend the first four days at the B&B then into Barcelona for a few days with Rose and Jo.