The Aftermath of California's Prop 8

I'm really struggling with the response to the passage of California's Prop 8. I'm a big supporter of same-sex marriage. If the state wants to call it something different than "marriage," that's fine, as long as it carries the same legal benefits and definitions... I think it's all very silly, for lack of a better word.

While the result for Prop 8 hasn't been "officially" declared (won't be until Dec 9th) it's currently passing by around half a million votes. I don't imagine that that gap is going to be bridged.

There are myriad theories being thrown around as to why, in California, the "Left Coast," could such a measure have passed?
1. The text of the law was confusing. People thought a "Yes" vote was a vote in FAVOR of Same-Sex marriage.
2. Minority voters, the vast majority of whom were Barack Obama supporters, are by vast majority against same-sex marriage.
3. The Mormon LDS Church out of Utah organized a massive effort to pass Prop 8 in California.

Theory #1:
From my personal standpoint, the text of this law was made very clear. In California, they do a fantastic job at (attempting) to educate voters. Every registered voter gets sent a big packet in which the full text and approximate cost to taxpayers of each proposition is detailed. Additionally, an analysis by supporters on each side of the issue is provided. The ballot measure of Prop 8 clearly read, "Eliminates Right of Same-Sex Couples to Marry." Below that, if that wasn't clear enough, were the words: "A yes vote on this measure is a vote to eliminate the right of same-sex couples to marry."
When I went for early voting, there was a 2.5-hr wait. Somebody had been thoughtful enough to lay out additional voter information guides, and I had plenty of time to read up on issues on which I was still rough.
Now, if somebody had moved and didn't update their address and if they didn't watch television or read the newspaper for the last six months, I could see them being confused by a potential campaign of misinformation. It's possible. However, if you look at the map of California counties and how they voted, there is a very clear pattern in the image to the left - the red counties (who voted No) are primarily on both the coast and bordering Reno, Nevada, and the green counties (who voted Yes) are in the more rural, mountainous and desert regions.

Theory #2:
The image beside this paragraph is CNN's map of votes for president in the 2008 election. Barack Obama passed by a large margin in the state, and some people were hoping that this meant that Prop 8 would fail by a large margin as well. There is a large problem with that hope, however. Barack Obama does NOT support gay marriage; he supports civil unions and is against a federal definition of marriage.
From CNN:

Barack Obama Opposes same-sex marriage, but also opposes a constitutional ban. Says he would repeal the Defense of Marriage Act and voted against the Federal Marriage Amendment. As stated on the Obama campaign Web site, he supports full civil unions that "give same-sex couples equal legal rights and privileges as married couples, including the right to assist their loved ones in times of emergency as well as equal health insurance, employment benefits, and property and adoption rights."

California already has domestic partnerships. Perhaps the majority of Obama supporters believed that DPs are "enough."
To my confusion, shortly before the election, Obama shifted his position on same-sex marriage and asked California voters to vote NO on Prop 8. Did he mean a state constitutional ban or a federal constitutional ban, or is he just trying to have his cake and eat it too?
Side note: What good is a cake you can't eat?
I've heard a few of my colleagues mention that (some) minorities see Prop 8 as an issue for "rich white folks." The stereotype is a gay white man with disposable income, who has to worry about passing on health insurance, life insurance and inheritance. The theory goes that a lot of minorities don't have these luxuries to pass on, so they do not sympathize with this person. There isn't much to back up that theory, however, as, just from a quick look, the most diverse areas of the state were the ones with the least support for Prop 8.

Theory #3
According to some sources members of the Mormon LDS church (both inside and outside of California) contributed $20million to the "Yes on Prop 8" campaign. With over $70million (Whoa!) being "thrown" at this issue on either side, that's a pretty hefty chunk. Some, because of this effort, want to challenge the tax exempt status of the Mormon Church. Far be it for me to further interpret the law, but I imagine that a congregation willing to part with over $20million of life savings, college funds, etc., is not going to be stopped by having to pay taxes. Furthermore, this effort will only further alienate the LDS from the LGBTQ community, if that is even possible.

There is a lot of hurt and anger right now from many on the "No on Prop 8" side. Some fight back with litigation against the constitutionality of the proposition (again). Some fight back with questioning the tax exempt status of the Mormon Church. Some fight back with threatening to stop paying state taxes (i.e., Melissa Etheridge).

A very moving editorial was passed on to me that I'd like to share.

Even outside of Prop 8, I think we should all be careful not to propagate bigotry and hate with more bigotry and hate. After all, this is an issue about love.

Business Tripping

I had the opportunity to visit the Phoenix area one week for training, and then come back for a work group face-to-face the next week and so got a little taste of what it's like to travel a lot. I still don't mind it, but I'm happy to be able to "relax" a little at home. For one thing, I *always* forget something important at home.

Highlights of the trip were a visit at the Pueblo Grande Museum and a hike on Camelback Mountain (which is actually closer to Paradise City, aptly named).

Pueblo Grande Museum had only a $5 admission. The centerpiece was the Hohokam Platform Mound, which the museum has attempted to preserve. They also had replicas of adobe houses and a desert garden all along a 2/3 mile trail.

On Camelback Mountain, I took the easy Bobby's Rock Trail, mostly because the trails were really not well-marked and it was really difficult getting back down the mountain in my tennis shoes. I am not a seasoned hiker.

Below is a slideshow of my pictures:

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In McCainland for Election Day - OR IS IT?

I was in Chandler, Arizona for business last week, and again this week and was bothered by the highway signs. On closer, inspection, I made a harrowing discovery.

Your favorite engineer-in-training has discovered what may be the world's scariest conspiracy: the city of Chandler, which is in Arizona, home of Senator McCain, is the victim of theft by the Obama campaign. See for yourself!

Official Seal of the City of Chandler, Arizona:


Symbol of Hopey Changey Stuff:


I rest my case.

Halloweenie

Your favorite engineer-in-training celebrated her favorite holiday this past weekend! What a great way to wrap up the stressful month of October.

My company had a huge Halloween party, but I thought it inappropriate to dress up as my Main Costume: Sarah Palin. Instead, since I'm from Ohio, I already had all of the accessories to be a Cowgirl.

Much to my surprise, there were no other cowgirls or cowboys; it's such a popular costume in Ohio; what's the deal? Perhaps your small office party might be a tad awkward, but mingling with hundreds of costumed engineers you've never met certainly takes things to a new level. We had a fortune teller, a haunted "house" (read: haunted lean-to), caricature artists, and a raffle for not one, but FIVE MP3 players. I didn't get an MP3 player, but I got the next best thing - a $5 gift card to Peet's Coffee (Starbucks equivalent).

After work, it was Sarah Palin's time to shine. It's a lot of work to tease hair. I didn't quite get Palin's modest beehive, but it was effective. We started out the night at an Upscale Bowling Alley (300 San Jose), attempted to get into the Agenda Lounge (it was full), and then moved on to my favorite "dive" bar.

The picture with John McCain was a random fellow who approached me on the street. I also encountered many "constituents" who wanted to be photographed with me. Nobody asked for my autograph, however.

As a future note, it is both a bad and a good idea to dress up as a Republican in California. Bad because people were booing me everywhere I went, and good because I didn't have to pay for a single drink all night (except for at the bowling alley).

Donating Blood: ENTER IF YOU DARE!

I was 40 minutes late to my appointment to donate blood yesterday, and hadn't been to this location before, at the Cupertino Center.

"ENTER IF YOU DARE!" read yellow plastic tape stuck to the window. Immediately, I knew that this was where I needed to go to donate my blood. Whoever decorated the Cupertino office of Blood Centers of the Pacific for Halloween had some kind of a sense of humor.

I was disappointed to see no vampiric images splattered on the wall, but the irony of the Dia De Los Muertos theme was clear. Well played, Blood Centers of the Pacific.

I am taking the FE Exam tomorrow in hopes of someday becoming a "real" engineer. I hope that donating blood gives me the good karma I need to pass it :-)

Halloween is my Favorite Holiday

True story. I love the opportunity to dress up in costumes. I'd do it every day, but even though my company does not have a dress code, I'm not sure that that would give a very good impression.

The Joe came to town this past weekend for his fall break, and I was sure to give him the California treatment. This time, we went to see the Golden Gate and it was NOT ridiculously covered in fog. I took him to a few fancy restaurants, we visited Great America with my buddy Andrew, and we went up to Berkeley to visit with the members and pledges of one of our fraternity's newest colonies. Here's my review of some of the weekend's highlights.

The Golden Gate Bridge
The best spot to get an awesome view of the bridge and the San Francisco skyline is from the Battery Spencer at Fort Baker on the northwest point of the bridge. To get to it, you have to go Northbound on the bridge, then go to the next exit, take a U-turn and go toward the bridge, and you'll have to pay a $6 toll to get back to San Francisco, but it's worth it, and much better than parking on the south side of the bridge at that little park where you have to pay $5 to park unless you get one of the 10 or so spots right at the park.. but I digress. Battery Spencer was abandoned in 1943 and not much else has been done to it since then, except for some graffiti covered up by paint covered up by more graffiti, and the parks system put in some "latrines". The nice part about the fact that it's been ignored is that you are free to walk all around and inside the old ammunition storage rooms and barracks. Plus, as I mentioned, you get an awesome view from the top of the hill.

Great America's "Halloween Haunt"
At $39.99 for standard admission and $29.99 for students, that's a pretty good deal for a haunted house. Cedar Point back home in Ohio is owned by the same company, and this was Great America's first year trying the haunted weekend (except, it's called "Halloweekends" at Cedar Point). The decorations were great, and the character costumes were fantastic. The actors used loud noises to effectively startle people - no chainsaws in this park!
There were 5 "mazes" (they weren't really mazes.. there was only one path to go through). The most creative was "Club Blood," which was meant to be a vampire club, complete with sexy vampire "go-go" dancers (read: strippers, but they don't actually take off any clothes... they're just wearing corsets and such). I just know that this was somebody's fantasy, and that's why this was here. "CarnEvil" was awesome because we paid $1 for the paper 3D glasses and it was TRIPPY. We went through it twice because it was so good.
One of the water rides, Logger's Run, which is probably pretty boring otherwise, was turned into a haunted ride called "Camp Gonnagetcha". It was a lot of fun, but poor Andrew took the front of our log and got drenched. Not the best idea for a ride on an October night, even in Cali! Not everybody who got off the ride was as unlucky, however. This isn't a ride that's meant to get you soaking wet... sometimes, it just happens.
There were also 4 "fright zones" but these were basically just walkways that they had actors stand around and jump out at you from the fog.
The lines were ridiculously short on a lot of the rides, and we even caught one several times in a row. We were able to do everything in 4 hours, and it was a great time!

The Pyramid Brewery
This is where we met the Berkeley folks, who were all very cool, by the way. Try the Apricot Weizen!!! The Oregon Honey Beer is a close second.

Nerd Metal, Microbrews, and the New Apartment

Thanks to the networking benefits of Theta Tau, I've made some more friends in the area via the Theta Tau California Alumni Club. The weekend prior to this last, I met up with a few of the NorCalifornians and then proceeded on Adventures this last weekend.

Before I get ahead of myself however, I am now mostly settled into my new place. Yes, I know I was only in the previous room for 4 months, but... among other things, the commute was wearing me down. The 13 mile drive could take 90 minutes. Now, I live only about a mile and half away, and can (and do) walk to work. My next endeavor will be to speed up the trip by purchasing a bike.

Friday night, I attended a very fun concert at the gorgeous historic Fillmore in The City (that's what us locals call San Francisco) with Kit & Andrew: Sonic Arctica and Nightwish. Kit's sister calls it "Nerd Metal" because it's heavy metal that is, well, nerdy. It was my first concert since the fated Taste of Chaos Concert of 2007 in Detroit (knocked down by a crowd surfer, I lost my glasses and phone to the crowd - talk about Chaos! - but the Civic Center staff found my still-functioning phone and mailed it back to me). Anyway, this crowd was much less violent, but still very enthusiastic.



I do not understand Mosh Pits.

Sunday, I went with Andrew and his friend Matt went back up to The City for the San Francisco Brewer's Guild "Brews on the Bay" Event. The event was held upon the historic WWII Liberty ship, the Jeremiah O'Brien at Pier 45 with live music by the Raveups (*great* band). I rode Caltrain for the first time to get there and back since beer tastings + driving are not conducive to safety.


My two favorite beers were from the same brewery: Magnolia Brewery's "Cole Porter" and their "Weekapaug Gruit" (I'd never heard of a gruit before - it's a hop-less beer, and they seasoned it with sage and rosemary - very delicious). Magnolia has a very BIZARRE website.
The worst beer sounded like it was going be a bad beer: The 21st Amendment Brewery's "Hell or High Watermelon Wheat". I'm normally a big fan of "fruity" beers, but this one was, for lack of a better description, gross.

Oh, and if you haven't seen this website yet, you totally should.

Who Hits a Bear?

Not me, of course! I'll get to that story momentarily.

This past weekend, for Labor Day & the nearby birthdays of two of my three younger sisters, I flew home to Ohio to visit my family & friends. It was my first visit home since moving out here, and it was not without its always exciting challenges.

The San Jose Airport has free wifi! Other airports - take note.

I flew in to the Detroit Airport early Saturday morning. My dad, who usually transports me to and from these airport adventures, was in Connecticut visiting a sick relative, so instead, I was greeted by my mom & big brother Corey. We drove home to Toledo and no sooner did we open the car door, my dad called my mom's cell phone.

"I hit a bear. I can't believe I hit a bear!"

He was driving through Pennsylvania on his way back home when a black bear ran out in front of him. With a semi-truck right behind him, he could not exactly slam on the breaks, so he slowed down and braced for impact - which there was.


The beautiful 2-yr-old Chevy Cobalt could not stand the test of a 250-lb Pennsylvania Black Bear. Car is totaled! Bear, unfortunately had to be euthanized as he was badly injured, but not killed by the crash.

It did give us a chance to spend more time with sister Erin's fiance, however, as he volunteered to drive me, my mom, and Erin out to pick up my stranded dad. The poor guy!

That night, I relived my college days with my college friends. The next day, Joe and I drove out to Cleveland to visit his family and watch the Cleveland Air Show from the comfort of the Goodtime Cruise ship.

I also got the chance over the weekend to spend time with my ever-growing baby niece. At nearly 11 months, she is developed enough to be a danger to herself and small furry animals. The cats and ferrets, however, don't seem to mind the attention.

The only other adventure of the trip which I'll mention was a late plane causing a tight transfer between flights causing my lost luggage; however, United graciously had my luggage delivered the very next day to my house without incident.

It was a great weekend; one that reminded me both of why I wanted and wanted not to leave Ohio. If only I could take with me some of my beloved Ohioans :-)

Farewell, Interns

I feel as if I myself have gone through a transformation as my interns have. At the beginning of the summer, we were young, naive and shining with bright shiny optimism. I don't think any of that actually changed, but we sure had a heck of a time and made some fantastic memories together. There were problems with bizarro roommates, lessons on "creepiness factors," movie marathons, vibrant outings on whitewater and baywater and poolwater, and lots and lots of episodes of the British sitcom "Coupling" (and of course the hot new action-drama "Burn Notice").

Thanks for a great summer, folks! I hope our paths can cross once more; maybe twice. But that's it - then I'm done.

<3 the token white girl

My Second Visitor

Mr. Joe made the journey out to visit me during his summer vacation. Notable trips:

-Mountain Grandview Restaurant - San Jose - I took Joe here the night he flew in. I got lost in the mountains, so we didn't get to dinner at sunset for the "romantic" meal I planned, but it was still pretty neat. This was my first of many personal experiences this week with mountain driving in the bay area. This restaurant is tucked up in the middle of a remote affluent middle-of-nowhere mansion area up in the Mount Hamilton area. It looked very much like a ski lodge, but the food was quite delicious. Apparently there are a lot of regulars there because the chef herself came out to say hello to them. I noticed a bizarre man standing outside the window on the hill taking photographs of all of us inside. He then came inside and was talking to some of the restaurant patrons and the chef. When he left, the chef came over to me, put her hand on my shoulder and said, "That guy is a real weirdo."

-Monte Bello Open Space Preserve - we hiked the Stevens Creek Nature Trail. There were lots of little lizards, though the Wildcat trail in Rancho San Antonio (which I went on earlier this summer) had a lot more wildlife. The neatest part was walking along parts of the San Andreas fault where the earth had cracked open and let groundwater seep up and create marshes in the middle of this very dry park. The drive to Monte Bello from San Jose is not for the feint of heart. Curvy one-lane roads for two-way traffic along hundred feet dropoffs - something that will haunt my nightmares for years to come. I took a more roundabout, but much less frightening way back.


-Hakone Gardens - Japanese garden in Saratoga. Pretty, but didn't take very much time to get through the whole thing.

-Winchester Mystery House - The historic San Jose home of the eccentric hier to the Winchester Rifle "throne." Rumor has it, a psychic convinced her that the death of her husband and child were caused by the furious spirits of those killed by the Winchester rifles. The only way to make the spirits happy was to continuously build her home. The front 30 rooms were damaged by a 1906 earthquake; she took that as a sign that she had spent too much time on the front part of the house and boarded it up, but kept building backward. We took the grand estate tour - it was awesome.

-San Francisco - I had to book a tour of Alcatraz well in advance, and it was well worth it. We rode with Alcatraz Cruises which is apparently the only way you can actually get ON the island. Then I took Joe on the obligatory SanFran sights tour - Ghiradelli Square, trolley cars, Union Square, China Town, Lombard Street & Russian Hill. We drove over the Golden Gate bridge, but it was too foggy to see much. The drive through the intense fog and blasting winds was an unforgettable experience all of its own.

-Big Basin Redwoods Park - Boulder Creek - The drive to Boulder Creek from San Jose is ALSO not for the feint of heart. Curvy one-lane roads for two-way traffic along hundred feet dropoffs - something that will haunt my nightmares for years to come. This was on the way to our next trip, however, and it was a cool little stop. We took the 45-minute walk on the Redwood Loop Trail, which took us by some of the park's coolest trees: Mother, Father & Chimney tree. Chimney tree was my favorite. It was completely burnt out on the inside from forest fires so much that it actually supposedly expelled smoke through the top, but redwoods are so resilient, it continues to grow without its heartwood.

-Santa Cruz - The end of Joe's stay was also the last full weekend in town for my intern friends, so we made a nice go of it. We rented out a little beach house in Santa Cruz. While the oceanside house was not really a beach house so much as a right-by-a-rocky-cliff house, we could get sufficiently close to the water just the same. The waves were incredible. We were "within" "walking distance" to the boardwalk, and took the trek. Most of our time was spent at the arcade on the boardwalk. I used my tickets to buy a beach ball, and a "plug pal" (whatever that is - it was shaped like a turtle).

206 picture-slide show is below. I recommend you check out the actual album for the Full Effect.

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The Intel LollerCoaster

I couldn't make this up if I tried.

"The Intel Sean Kingston Music Video program won three awards at the 29th annual Telly Awards, taking honors in the Non-Broadcast Production-Entertainment, Internet/Online Program-Entertainment, and Internet/Online Program - Music Video/Concert categories.
The video program included a song and music video titled Gotta Move Faster that highlights how the benefits of a PC powered by Intel® Centrino® processor technology fits a busy “hip-hop” lifestyle."

It also has the Best Lyrics Ever:

"Everytime I hit the net
Get a thousand friend requests
Stay up all night
Showing all my fans respect
Ain’t what u look like girl, it’s more about what u got inside
And if you rock the Intel baby, then holla at me online"

Gotta Move Faster

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Great Times at Great America

Mike, Wendy & I enjoyed a day reliving our childhoods at Great America. It's literally blocks from our office, but I hadn't been yet. They had season passes, which end up paying off themselves if you visit just even just twice. Well played, Great America.

We spent the majority of the time in Boomerang Bay, the water park. The water slides & wave pool were fit for many hours of entertainment, and early in the day, the crowds weren't bad at all.

Two Months In - West Coast Living

Now that I'm done with college, I have time for something I'd always heard so much about: Hobbies.

1.) Hiking
I'm sure that you could tell I like doing this, because you saw my pictures from Rancho San Antonio earlier this summer

2.) Trying to Do One Hundred Pushups
Inspired by some coworkers, I'm in week 2 of the 6-week program at HundredPushups.com which trains you to get up to - you guessed it - 100 good-form pushups.

3.) World of Warcraft
On the less physical side of the spectrum - I play the popular MMORPG known as World of Warcraft. I am a level 60 Blood Elf Paladin named Sheepia.

4.) One very special project near and dear to my heart that will be ready for viewing within the next week or so.

Quick Movie Reviews

After the excitement of last weekend, my buddies and I decided to tone things down a bit for this weekend and saw a LOT of movies.

The Dark Knight
I have grown up with the Batman franchise. One of my fondest childhood memories was getting my big brother's hand-me-down of Batman pajamas with FOOTIES. Oh, and I'm also a name dropper. Burt Ward, who played Robin in the original Batman TV series, is one of my great-uncles or something down the line. Fact is, we're related. Can't you tell the family resemblance? (I'm the one on top - it's hard to tell)
Anyway, like 99.9% of the US, I loved the movie. The Batman, however, was very boring in this installment. I kind of wanted the Joker and Two-Face to win, or at least go a little further... because Batman was just so boring.

Hancock
Will Smith, I want to hate you for making so much money, but you make it so hard with movies like this. Good movie!

Step Brothers
Normally I'm a big Will Ferrell fan... er, well, let me clarify, I loved him on SNL and in Old School. I even saw Kicking and Screaming. This movie was bad. Really bad. I still laughed sometimes though, because I just love Will Ferrell.

Hellboy 2
I haven't seen HB1, but this was still a cool movie to see in theaters. They did great things with computers in this movie, I must say.

Sex and the City
In my downtime since I've moved out to Cali, I've watched all six seasons of the Sex and the City television series, and since I just finally finished it last week, I was ready to see the movie at last (months after every TRUE Cosmo girl, of course). Conclusion? Those women are insane, except for the brunette - Charlotte. She's just crazy.

Whitewater Rafting!!

You can tell from the title that I'm stoked. Yesterday, I went on the "mixer" event with my company's interns. It was fun!

I've been whitewater rafting twice before on the New River in Hico, West Virginia with the North American River Runners company. My university offered a 1-credit hour pass/fail class for white-water rafting, and I took the trip twice. The first year, it *snowed* (in April, nonetheless), although the adrenaline kept us warm until nighttime. The second year, it was just really really cold (and I went in the fall, when the rapids aren't quite as thrilling).

I'm happy to say, however, that this time, the weather couldn't have been more gorgeous. It was warm and sunny, and the water of the American River was clear and fit for swimming. I even had the chance to SWIM one of the smaller rapids. On the previous trips, we'd had to wear wetsuits since it was so cold. This trip, I could wear just my swimsuit - it was divine.

The American River, as you may not know, was where gold was first discovered in California and started the California Gold Rush. In fact, we still saw people panning for gold along the way. The more advanced had little boats with complex vacuum-and-filter systems that could separate the gold from the sand and rocks.

The company we rafted with on the South Fork of the American River was the American River Rafting company. Our guide, Dave, was very knowledgeable and encouraging and friendly. He's definitely my favorite guide I've had. We didn't lose anybody, didn't flip, and only got stuck on one rock for just a moment. My raft-mates weren't half-bad either :-)

I didn't take my camera with me for fear of the water, but I did find a video on YouTube of another company's white-water rafting trip on the South Fork of the American River, the same stretch that we took. Of course, it's fast-forwarded. Our trip took about 6 hours.

The Yellow Roses of Oregon

And red and pink and orange of course. I just got back from an almost-week training in Portland, Oregon and it was a lot of fun. My mentor took me out for a night on the town last night. First, we visited the International Rose Test Garden which is a beautiful (and free) attraction. I had no idea there were so many different varieties of roses. My favorite kinds were those dubbed "hybrid teas" because they smelled so good I wanted to *eat* them. There were many people there poking around, including a book club. In the middle of the garden, there was a large stage on which they have weekly performances; this week, Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory was being performed.

After that, we went to a great seafood restaurant that floats on the Willamette (pronounced Will-'am'-ett) River in downtown Portland called the Marina Fish House. I'm a spinach-artichoke dip addict, and theirs had crab in it, which made it even better somehow.

After dinner, we took a trip to the Oregon Health & Science University (a teaching hospital) which had implemented an Aerial Tram to connect its buildings on the Willamette River with the hospital way up on Marquam Hill. We took a ride on it; the cars were really high tech-looking. You can read more about it here. I believe students get to ride free of charge, but it's open to the public (i.e., tourists) for the low fee of $4/round trip (you can also buy an annual membership for $100 - not bad if you've seen the hill(s) you'd have to drive up otherwise).

Next, it was time for dessert, and what better place than the hippest and most famously delicious place to get dessert in downtown Portland (and perhaps beyond): Papa Haydn's. They had the largest and most decadent desert menu I've ever seen in my life. I had trouble choosing, but ended up getting the Bourbon Ball - a ball of rich dark chocolate cake soaked in Jim Beam whiskey, coated with a rich chocolate ganache and topped with a chocolate and GOLD coated coffee bean.

My only regret is that I did not have the opportunity to drink many new craft beers. Oregon is well-known for its delicious craft beers.

I recommend you click on the slideshow and check out the Picasa album, but here's a nice preview:

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Half Moon Baying

Since the California wildfires have shut down many portions of Highway 1, we headed northward to Half Moon Bay for our first beach outing of the summer. I accompanied my ever-faithful interns, and we were pleasantly joined by my long-time friend Brian, who had taken a detour from a business trip to visit me.












Brian and I spent our evenings at a fine Mexican establishment which is tucked upstairs to a restaurant attached to a Super 8 motel. It's actually really good.

This week, I'm going to Portland for training. I'm looking forward to seeing The Dark Knight when I return late Thursday night.

Next weekend intern adventure: Whitewater rafting on the South Fork River.

Independence Day Weekend

Berkeley & San Francisco!

We took one of the 1-hour bay cruises on a random little boat for $15, and it was quite delightful.

Oakland A's vs. San Francisco Giants

It was one of my new friends' birthdays, so they got a huge group together for the Giants vs the A's game last weekend. The A's are actually the "Athletics" but I think they shortened it because it is a very dumb and uncreative name for a baseball team.

This weekend, I'm out on the town with some of my favorite interns in Berkeley and San Francisco. Of course, those shenanigans will be posted later. Happy 4th of July weekend!

Rancho San Antonio Open Space Preserve

I joined two of the interns for a "moderately challenging" hike Saturday at the Ranco San Antonio Open Space Preserve. We did the Wildcat Loop Trail and the trails leading to it in a little less than three hours.

Our original plan was to hike the trails at Alum Rock Park, but sadly, it was closed due to "extreme threat of fire."

Not so sadly, I found the Rancho San Antonio as an alternative.

Even though the signs at the parking entrance announced that the lots were full, we pulled in to find ample parking. The trails were a little bit crowded when we started around 11am with travellers on apparently their return hike, but as the early afternoon wore on, we found ourselves mostly alone.

There was a variety of wildlife along the trail, including a large family of quail (though some dumb Stanford students chased them off before we could get a picture!), a variety of lizards and snakes and lizards that looked like snakes or snakes that looked like lizards. One really bizarre tiny bright blue "snake" might have actually been a Western Skink. Looking at my pictures versus the California Herps website, the other lizards we saw were most likely the Great Basin Fence Lizard and a San Francisco Alligator Lizard. There were also a number of extremely bold black squirrels.

The hike wasn't too challenging aside from a few steep inclines, but my muscles are still aching quite a bit today.

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Sinbad!

One of the ladies that ran my training classes yesterday is Sinbad's cousin. AWESOME



The transition to Big Kid Job has been pretty seamless thus far. Instead of planning goals for my training days and weeks ahead, now I plan *years* ahead.

Everyone gets really excited/surprised when they see I'm from Ohio. They looked at my birth certificate and driver's license as if I had turned something in from Bulgaria. What, Ohio? Where's the University of Toledo? I work alongside ivy league graduates. Personality and experience go a long way!

San Francisco - More than Rice-a-Roni

Reuben gave us a great tour of San Francisco and Sausalito on Saturday. Thanks, Reuben!!

I had some awesome clam chowder in a bread bowl at Boudin's on the fisherman's wharf and caught some great shows by San Francisco street performers. We capped off the trip with a trolley car ride and a pit stop at the mall for restrooms... Guess what - the SanFran mall is a Westfield Shopping Center as well.

This slideshow is outside California and then into Reuben's tour.

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Home at Last

We rolled into San Jose early yesterday evening, and it's absolutely beautiful here. We passed through miles of farmland coming in. Gilroy, apparently, is the garlic capital of the world.

Today one of my new roommates will be showing us around San Francisco.

Can You Smeeeeeeeell What the Strip is Cooking??!

It's Vegas, baby!

In front of the Tropicana, I was mere yards away from famous professional wrestler turned movie star Dwayne Johnson (The Rock!) where he was shooting some movie which I can't remember. My mom and I each did a shot of Patron at Dick's Last Resort. She wanted to do Jose Cuervo, but the bartender laughed at her.

"What kind of Tequila do you have?"
"Cabo Wabo, Patron and some other crappy shit."
"Do you have Jose?"
"That's the crappy shit!"

He was kind of mean, but I think that's the restaurant where they're supposed to be jerks. It's okay, though, because since I'm a super awesome college graduate now, my feelings were not hurt.

I'm more advanced now. Please enjoy the slideshow!

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Cheating the Grand Canyon

We've still some more sight-seeing to do tonight in Vegas, so I'll let the pictures do the talking for now! Tomorrow evening I arrive in San Jose at last and meet my new roomies! Over the weekend, I'm going to do some sight-seeing in San Francisco. I'm not going to lie - this is not in the Grand Canyon National Park - it's mostly in the Little Colorado River Gorge because it apparently costs $25 to get into the park even if you're just doing a lazy "driving tour".