Fun Weekend

Today John turned 34! We are all swanky now and about to head out and have a martini to celebrate. Earlier we rode our motorcycles around, went to Bite of Seattle, went to the bookstore, looked at new condo, and...rode around more.

Yuck! Man dies as result of injuries when having sex with horse

OK - this is gross. I am glad the horse got even!

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2002382718_horse15m.html

Gusto

We found a great Italian restaurant in Cleveland called Gusto. I had clams & muscles in spicy marinara, salad with homemade balsamic vinaigrette, and halibut on sauteed greens. I was with Tony (the project manager- Redmond based) and Heather (trainer - Dallas based). We had such a good time. Good conversation, great food, great atmosphere. The owner of the restaurant was definitely an authentic Italian man who greeted every guest and later came around with his beautiful accordian. Click below to listen.

Busy New Job

OK - I will actually be posting now. I have videos of my graduation and lots of pictures of our vacation in California. For now though, all you get is text.

So, my first week on the job I felt like a princess. I got to go out to lunch and choose my food (not wolf down school cafeteria fare in 20 minutes). I got to go to the bathroom ANYTIME I wanted, I got to get up at 6:30AM rather than 5:30! And...I didn't have to answer 1,000 questions per hour. Unfortunately, the week I started was also the end of the quarter so everyone was running around like crazy trying to post as much revenue as possible by the end of the week.

Week 2 on the job - Monday was 4th of July and I left for Charlotte, North Carolina early on Tuesday. I was shadowing a trainer from New Jersey at the Coca Cola Bottling Company. It was really a great way to learn the product and learn how they have been training the corporate implementation teams. Thursday night I was supposed to fly to Dallas, but after I had gotten to the airport and checked in they canceled all flights to Dallas. I ended up trying to get my luggage back (not easy) and then staying at the airport La Quinta. I ate at the Cracker Barrel in the hotel parking lot - cornbread, turnip greens, fried okra, and steak. Interesting. Every person that walked in was huge. I truly believe that the % of obese people in NC is MUCH higher than in Texas or Washington. Blah. When I got to Dallas the next morning I drove to a Starbucks in Coppell near where we used to live. Then I found out that the training on Monday and Tuesday in Dallas (my original reason for being there) was canceled. I ended up meeting with a tech guy from Concur Dallas who installed server software and our current product on my laptop, etc. and then I drove to Lampasas to visit my parents. It was nice being with my parents and sister for the weekend. It had been too long (31/2 years). I flew back to Seattle on Sunday night.

Things about the South that I had forgotten about:

• grits
• sweet tea
• kudzu
• misters on the patios
• dry counties (as in no alcohol)
• the scale of maps in Texas (1in = a LOT more miles)
• ingrained, unconscious prejudice
• everyone drives SUVs or trucks
• LOUD good 'ol boys who spit and guffaw
• People smile and say howdy!

This week I was in the office on Monday and Tuesday working on learning the product and taking screen shots for learning simulations. Wednesday I flew out to Cleveland (my flight left at 6:00AM)- where I am now. I am shadowing a Dallas based trainer at The Cleveland Clinic. It is going well and I am learning a lot. Our first night here we went to get something to eat and ended up in the ghetto. We saw: a guy chugging a 40 of Colt 45, a skanky whore, two drug deals, a man peeing on the sidewalk, and LOTS of people just hanging out on the street. We turned around and went back to the hotel. Last night we asked around about where to go and ended up in Little Italy (very little - like 3 blocks) not far from our hotel. If only we hadn't turned left the night before. Anyway - we ended up eating at Gusto - it was FABULOUS. See the next BLOG entry for audio. I will be flying back to Seattle tonight and then I am scheduled to stay in Redmond for the next 2 weeks. :)