Peer co-mentoring is a phrase I came up with to describe what I do with Trevor when we get together for lunch. Since work schedules can be crazy at times, and Trevor now works in a different building than I do with a pretty social group of people, a couple months went by where we didn't get together very often, and when we did it was always with a bunch of others. While there was nothing wrong with going to lunch with others, doing so at the expense of the conversations I've had with Trevor was a cost that made me unhappy. So what we did was set up a recurring weekly "meeting" entitled "Peer Co-mentoring" to make sure that we got together for lunch at least once a week.
[Trevor, since you read my blog, you might want to stop reading this entry now. I'm going to say more good things about talking to you, and if you read about it, your head might get all big (or should I say "bigger"?) and you'll be unable to get out the door of your office.]
The last time we got together we talked about quite a few different things. First we both aired current frustrations, most of which have to do with work, or what we now call "villifying our enemies" in reference to article Trevor once described to me. But then we hit on a few particularly interesting subjects: why write a blog and what should be in it to make it engaging to a wider audience; Peter Drucker and his views on management, the purpose of companies, and the role of profit; and the concept of a personal satisfaction score, which we commonly refer to as "TSAT" and "ASAT" for "Trevor Satisfaction" and "Aaron Satisfaction."
I am planning to post further entries to this blog over the next couple days on these subjects and perhaps a couple others I left out, as it's now Friday and the conversation from Wednesday is still one of the things foremost on my mind. How many conversations (not including, say words exchanged in anger) do you actively think about and expand upon in your own thoughts days later? I'd wager (hah, another Texas Hold'Em reference!) that it's not very many.
Friday, July 30, 2004
One of the things they do at Microsoft is hold morale events. Yesterday, as a kind of going-away party for our interns, eleven of us went to Champs Karting to race electric go-karts. I qualified (in third) for the final race and finished in third. Two things about this picture: (1) check out the snazzy new shirt I got from Value Village for $6, and (2) I have no idea why this picture makes me look like I dyed my hair blond, because I didn't. Thanks go to Ram for taking this picture.
Thursday, July 29, 2004
Texas Hold'Em
Last night Adam invited me and a couple other people over to his house to try out his new hobby, playing poker, or more specifically, Texas Hold'Em. Texas Hold'Em is a version of poker where you have two cards you keep to yourself and there are five community cards. You use the seven cards to make the best five card hand you can. There are four rounds of betting each hand, unless everyone but the winner folds. First, after you see your two private cards, then after the first three community cards are shown, then after the fourth, and finally after the fifth.
I was a little skeptical about how I'd enjoy it, as I've never liked the idea of gambling, so I was pleasantly surprised. We were playing with bets that were only twenty cents in size, so there was little real risk, but it was just enough to make it kind of fun. I came out of it with just under $3 in winnings, which based on twenty cent bets is something like "seven big bets" as Adam explained, although today that isn't quite adding up - I'll have to ask him again. He said that's very good, as when he and his friend Chris play, they are content with 1.5 big bets per hour. If you do that consistently, which I guess they both do, you can then count on winnings at 1.5 times the big bet per table you play on per hour.
Chris (again, Adam's friend, a male, rather than his wife, a female) has apparently played often, on three tables at once online, for stakes that are high enough that he's made some $27,000 playing poker in the last couple months, effectively more than I make at my job at Microsoft. He's now facing what is apparently a common problem for gamblers - should he just do it as his primary means of making an income, leaving his job as a university professor? If so, his new role in society is to make money by taking it directly from others. At some point, when it becomes interesting for others to watch you play, I guess you become an entertainer, which is more like acting or professional sports, but on the way up, there's little in teh way of socially redeeming aspects to the work.
I'm sure for some, this is no problem. I know I'd have a difficult time with it, although I think I could actually become pretty good at poker if I were to focus on it. One of my early professional positions, I was writing software that was used for an accounting purpose - tracking the bills and payments for the lawyers that were representing insurance companies that were involved in lawsuits with other insurance companies they had insured (called reinsurance) where the "reinsured" company had taken losses from asbestos and environmental pollution claims and wanted reimbursement. That was far away from anything I could consider socially redeeming, and even in my early twenties, it bothered me. Yet, it could perhaps be considered more socially redeeming than being a middle-tier gambler.
But back to the game aspect. In general, my problem with gambling is that I know it's something where the casino takes your money. Poker does seem different, though, as there's an element of calculating odds, deciding when to bet or fold, plus some bluffing and reading other's emotions over their hands. If you are a better player than those you play with, you will win money over time. Adam and Chris have already proved that - Chris started with something like $10, Adam with $100, and they both declared they would quit if they ever lost that starting "seed money." Neither has done that, and Chris is probably in the hundreds of thousands of dollars of winnings and Adam, who started much more recently after hearing Chris' success, was up about $500 as of last night.
So, would I play it again? You bet!
I was a little skeptical about how I'd enjoy it, as I've never liked the idea of gambling, so I was pleasantly surprised. We were playing with bets that were only twenty cents in size, so there was little real risk, but it was just enough to make it kind of fun. I came out of it with just under $3 in winnings, which based on twenty cent bets is something like "seven big bets" as Adam explained, although today that isn't quite adding up - I'll have to ask him again. He said that's very good, as when he and his friend Chris play, they are content with 1.5 big bets per hour. If you do that consistently, which I guess they both do, you can then count on winnings at 1.5 times the big bet per table you play on per hour.
Chris (again, Adam's friend, a male, rather than his wife, a female) has apparently played often, on three tables at once online, for stakes that are high enough that he's made some $27,000 playing poker in the last couple months, effectively more than I make at my job at Microsoft. He's now facing what is apparently a common problem for gamblers - should he just do it as his primary means of making an income, leaving his job as a university professor? If so, his new role in society is to make money by taking it directly from others. At some point, when it becomes interesting for others to watch you play, I guess you become an entertainer, which is more like acting or professional sports, but on the way up, there's little in teh way of socially redeeming aspects to the work.
I'm sure for some, this is no problem. I know I'd have a difficult time with it, although I think I could actually become pretty good at poker if I were to focus on it. One of my early professional positions, I was writing software that was used for an accounting purpose - tracking the bills and payments for the lawyers that were representing insurance companies that were involved in lawsuits with other insurance companies they had insured (called reinsurance) where the "reinsured" company had taken losses from asbestos and environmental pollution claims and wanted reimbursement. That was far away from anything I could consider socially redeeming, and even in my early twenties, it bothered me. Yet, it could perhaps be considered more socially redeeming than being a middle-tier gambler.
But back to the game aspect. In general, my problem with gambling is that I know it's something where the casino takes your money. Poker does seem different, though, as there's an element of calculating odds, deciding when to bet or fold, plus some bluffing and reading other's emotions over their hands. If you are a better player than those you play with, you will win money over time. Adam and Chris have already proved that - Chris started with something like $10, Adam with $100, and they both declared they would quit if they ever lost that starting "seed money." Neither has done that, and Chris is probably in the hundreds of thousands of dollars of winnings and Adam, who started much more recently after hearing Chris' success, was up about $500 as of last night.
So, would I play it again? You bet!
Monday, July 26, 2004
Space Needle Photo
Here's another shot from the trip to Seattle Center, in front of the Space Needle. Giuseppe, Gaia, and Monica join me in basking in front of a fountain (behind Roberto, taking picture). You can see the fountain and a bunch of other pictures Roberto took yesterday over here.
Photo of Me, Blogging
While at Seattle Center, waiting for the Harry Potter movie on the IMAX screen, I took the opportunity to try blogging via my phone while Giuseppe checked it out. Roberto got a picture.
Sunday, July 25, 2004
Seattle Center
I'm waiting at the moment with Roberto and family to go to our third IMAX film of the day - Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. Earlier, we saw Bugs 3D and Coral Reef. The goggles worn in the bugs film gave me a headache. We also visited the Science Fiction Museum, which was very cool. It's all right under the Space Needle, which I have yet to go up in.
It's been nice to see some uniquely Seattle sights, something I've done too little of since moving here. Of course, the coral reef film tells me I must visit the South Pacific. One more place to visit in a long list.
It's been nice to see some uniquely Seattle sights, something I've done too little of since moving here. Of course, the coral reef film tells me I must visit the South Pacific. One more place to visit in a long list.
Thursday, July 22, 2004
Gazzam Lake Water Towers
Trevor pointed out I'd somehow forgotten to mention the two ominous water towers, looming like guardians over the trail entrance. They were covered up to about six feet in height in mystical glyphs and images of fear, terror, and nice little park animals. One even had a painting of a leering face that welcomes you to your doom and laughs at your impending misfortune.
Olympia tells me that would be about as far as she would get, as she finds water towers incredibly scary. I wonder what she thinks of clowns?
Olympia tells me that would be about as far as she would get, as she finds water towers incredibly scary. I wonder what she thinks of clowns?
Email Feed
For those that are not as sophisticated as, say, Trevor and are using a blog aggregator to read their blogs of interest via the RSS or Atom or whatever feed, I've added an email subsciption option. All you have to do is go to the subscription page and sign up. You'll get an email every time I post to this blog in your inbox with [DarkTortoise] in the subject line so you can set up a rule to drop it into its own folder if you like.
I think this is a beautiful thing.
I think this is a beautiful thing.
Tuesday, July 20, 2004
Gazzam Lake
http://www.biparks.org/parks/info/info_gazzamlake.html
Sunday night, Trevor and I went to Bainbridge Island and visited both the pier at Point White and Gazzam Lake. It was key that we go at night, as Bainbridge was the location for one of our roleplaying adventures in Call of Cthulhu. In the game, our intrepid investigators had met with an American Indian guy at the pier, then sited a huge winged creature off-shore that we believe may have been the Great Cthulhu himself - fortunately seen from a great distance, thus the continued survival of the characters. Later, we tracked down a cult that was using the seclusion of Gazzam Lake at night to sacrifice the occasional resident to Cthulhu, who in keeping with Lovecraftian horror, couldn't care less.
So despite the link above that presents Gazzam Lake as a beautiful nature preserve of untouched splendor, Trevor and I see it as a place of terror, perfect for a little nighttime visitation to capture the mood of the game.
The sun set as we took the ferry to Bainbridge and there was much fun had pointing out things like "Look how the returning ferry... is empty!" and "See that substance floating in the water? Ectoplasmic slime of cthonians? Oh, wait, they avoid water - perhaps it's Deep Ones?"
The pier's most entertaining element was that as we were just reaching it, there was an elderly woman all in white limping down the road. I dubbed her "The Zombie" as she was walking exactly as I would picture a partially-rigored undead creature to walk. When we were out on the pier and she was walking by the only escape path except the dark water, it sure look like she stopped a moment. Scary!
The pier itself, in Trevor's game, included mysterious writing scribed by unknown hands. The real pier is also covered with difficult to understand symbols, although I think they were all by graduated classes of Bainbridge High School.
We had seen a sign for Gazzam Lake on the way to the pier, so we ignored our directions and followed the signs. This was probably both good and bad. Looking at the photos in the above link, I think we went into the park from a lesser used entrance. When I parked the Jeep by the gate and turned off all the lights, it was probably 10:30pm and it was absolutely pitch black. Fortunately, Trevor had brought a flashlight.
We followed the narrow, curvy trails through the woods for what was probably two miles each way. Spider webs had been constructed across the trail, so I was constantly getting that weird feeling that comes when some invisible, sticky thread catches on your cheek. At one point, an animal of some sort moved in the bushes near us. We heard it again on the way back, but it was on the other side of the trail - which means it crossed it sometime while we closer to the lake. Even little things like this help to play upon your fears when you're actively seeking to be scared.
We did make it to the lake, but from a side where you can't see much. There was water, then tall reeds. I stepped out on a fallen tree to about ten feet off the shore, but I'd had enough of that when I saw one of the biggest spiders I'd seen in a long time hanging of a reed inches from me. (An aside: The biggest I remember, excepting tarantulas in Arizona, was a huge spider hanging off the side of our house in Rockville, it's body about as big as one of those "shooter marbles" I had as a kid. I killed that one, as I could stand having it on, and therefore potential in, my house. As I recall, I used a weedwhacker.)
Around the time we were heading back, we started hearing creatures flapping around in the trees overhead. One of these did it's flapping around directly overhead, and that really made me jump. Trevor was unconcerned with the flying things, but I think that's because he didn't realize that what we were hearing wasn't feathery, but leathery!
While we were out there, I kept thinking about stuff like the Blair Witch Project movie and the time John and I discovered a woman that had frozen to death in Alaska near the university. All good stuff for getting yourself creeped out when in pretty isolated woods on a moonless night.
All-in-all, this was a worthwhile trip, and one that Trevor and I had been putting off for far too long. I think next I want to look up reported haunted locations in the Northwest and see about visiting them. It'll have to be at night.
Sunday night, Trevor and I went to Bainbridge Island and visited both the pier at Point White and Gazzam Lake. It was key that we go at night, as Bainbridge was the location for one of our roleplaying adventures in Call of Cthulhu. In the game, our intrepid investigators had met with an American Indian guy at the pier, then sited a huge winged creature off-shore that we believe may have been the Great Cthulhu himself - fortunately seen from a great distance, thus the continued survival of the characters. Later, we tracked down a cult that was using the seclusion of Gazzam Lake at night to sacrifice the occasional resident to Cthulhu, who in keeping with Lovecraftian horror, couldn't care less.
So despite the link above that presents Gazzam Lake as a beautiful nature preserve of untouched splendor, Trevor and I see it as a place of terror, perfect for a little nighttime visitation to capture the mood of the game.
The sun set as we took the ferry to Bainbridge and there was much fun had pointing out things like "Look how the returning ferry... is empty!" and "See that substance floating in the water? Ectoplasmic slime of cthonians? Oh, wait, they avoid water - perhaps it's Deep Ones?"
The pier's most entertaining element was that as we were just reaching it, there was an elderly woman all in white limping down the road. I dubbed her "The Zombie" as she was walking exactly as I would picture a partially-rigored undead creature to walk. When we were out on the pier and she was walking by the only escape path except the dark water, it sure look like she stopped a moment. Scary!
The pier itself, in Trevor's game, included mysterious writing scribed by unknown hands. The real pier is also covered with difficult to understand symbols, although I think they were all by graduated classes of Bainbridge High School.
We had seen a sign for Gazzam Lake on the way to the pier, so we ignored our directions and followed the signs. This was probably both good and bad. Looking at the photos in the above link, I think we went into the park from a lesser used entrance. When I parked the Jeep by the gate and turned off all the lights, it was probably 10:30pm and it was absolutely pitch black. Fortunately, Trevor had brought a flashlight.
We followed the narrow, curvy trails through the woods for what was probably two miles each way. Spider webs had been constructed across the trail, so I was constantly getting that weird feeling that comes when some invisible, sticky thread catches on your cheek. At one point, an animal of some sort moved in the bushes near us. We heard it again on the way back, but it was on the other side of the trail - which means it crossed it sometime while we closer to the lake. Even little things like this help to play upon your fears when you're actively seeking to be scared.
We did make it to the lake, but from a side where you can't see much. There was water, then tall reeds. I stepped out on a fallen tree to about ten feet off the shore, but I'd had enough of that when I saw one of the biggest spiders I'd seen in a long time hanging of a reed inches from me. (An aside: The biggest I remember, excepting tarantulas in Arizona, was a huge spider hanging off the side of our house in Rockville, it's body about as big as one of those "shooter marbles" I had as a kid. I killed that one, as I could stand having it on, and therefore potential in, my house. As I recall, I used a weedwhacker.)
Around the time we were heading back, we started hearing creatures flapping around in the trees overhead. One of these did it's flapping around directly overhead, and that really made me jump. Trevor was unconcerned with the flying things, but I think that's because he didn't realize that what we were hearing wasn't feathery, but leathery!
While we were out there, I kept thinking about stuff like the Blair Witch Project movie and the time John and I discovered a woman that had frozen to death in Alaska near the university. All good stuff for getting yourself creeped out when in pretty isolated woods on a moonless night.
All-in-all, this was a worthwhile trip, and one that Trevor and I had been putting off for far too long. I think next I want to look up reported haunted locations in the Northwest and see about visiting them. It'll have to be at night.
Thursday, July 08, 2004
Pocket Change
I love it when this happens: I was in a store today and what I bought cost $1.42. I had a dollar bill and some change in my pocket. I'm staring at the change trying to figure out what combination of coins would be best. Suddenly, I realized I had exactly 42 cents in change - perfect! That, my friend, is the awesome.
National Airport continued
OK, so my bag didn't come around again after all. I got up to get it and noticed that an airline guy had pulled it and three other bags off the carousel and was about to take it back to a baggage office. Oh, no! Disaster looms! I might have to go buy it off unclaimedbaggage.com!
But I did get it, so everything's okay. Then I went outside to wait for my ride. That's where I am now, sitting in a Spirit Airlines wheelchair, looking like a very computer savvy guy who can't walk. I wonder what it will look like to others who are just seeing me for the first time when I get up? Maybe as I get up I'll yell something about Jesus and miracles.
One thing I have to say about Washington, DC - it's really damn hot here! After living in Seattle the past 18 months, I've been very happy to have mostly milder weather. It's not as hot in the summer (most of the time) and nowhere near as cold in the winter. I prefer cool weather, unlike Olympia, who isn't happy until the asphalt is melting. I'm fine with simply putting on a jacket. Maybe that's just because I just look better in jackets. (A guy just walked by wearing socks and sandals, which I insist just looks plain stupid on anyone. I thought they only did that on the West Coast. Maybe he's visiting, too.)
Did I mention it's really damn hot?
National Airport in DC
I've just arrived on the plane from Seattle for a long weekend visit to Maryland, and the airport is not what I expected. Apparently, Alaska Airlines has moved around where it is in National from the last time I was here. Coming out of the airplane, instead of getting on one of those huge "people movers," you just walk down a fairly short hallway into a big room that has ticket counters and baggage claim in the same room. The TSA luggage scanner is sitting right in the middle of the room. (Oh, look, there goes my bag on the carousel... good thing it'll come around again.) I couldn't even find where my baggage was going to come in at first, as the Alaska Airlines flight was listed on the Northwest (there's my bag again) display. Of course, with only two baggage carousels, how far would I have to go? The flight arrived in record time, 45 minutes ahead of schedule, so I have a bit of waiting to do for my ride to show up. I only wish (there's my bag again) that this huge room had a wireless network, either free or T-Mobile. I now associate Starbucks with wireless networking rather than coffee, since I have never like coffee, but like wireless networking quite a bit. (There's my bag again.) I guess I'll put the laptop away and go get my bag, which I figure will be coming around in just a moment - you think?
Tuesday, July 06, 2004
Saturday, July 03, 2004
Liking Music
It occurred to me today while driving in my car that something that adds to whether or not I like a particular song is whether or not the singer is singing in a key I can reach. Yes, I sing along in my car. To me, I'm not that bad - your opinion may vary. So I like music by Live or Staind or David Lee Roth better than I might otherwise because they sing in a key that's natural to me. I have to wonder if that's why (or an additional reason why) women like women singers more than men do, for example.
Jigsaw Puzzle Mania
It's been a very busy week, except that when I've been home I've done little else this week except work on jigsaw puzzles. I was anxious to complete one called "The Breath of Gaia" which I was working on as a gift for Roberto's daughter Gaia. I had already finished the one intended for Giusseppe (I now realize I'm not precisely sure how to spell his name - ack!) that's of a fire wizard and glows under black light.
Roberto and Monica have been very good friends of mine for some time and I really love their kids, too. Putting together a couple puzzles for the kids, then gluing them so they become artwork was something I got the idea to do awhile back, and I've finally had the opportunity. I gave them to them yesterday, so it's okay to post here about it now. I think Roberto reads my blog sometimes and I didn't want to spoil the surprise.
I haven't done puzzles for a long time, and I'm finding their still a lot of fun - more now that I am in the mode of thinking I'll glue them together so they are kept. I have to decide if I'm up to the challenge of this huge puzzle I saw at Uncle's Games, a Ravensburger puzzle with 5000 pieces. The largest I've completed that I remember is 1500, although I was close to finishing a 2500 piece puzzle once when Olympia and my parents tried to move it from the first floor to the basement of our house in Rockville and dropped it down the stairs.
Roberto and Monica have been very good friends of mine for some time and I really love their kids, too. Putting together a couple puzzles for the kids, then gluing them so they become artwork was something I got the idea to do awhile back, and I've finally had the opportunity. I gave them to them yesterday, so it's okay to post here about it now. I think Roberto reads my blog sometimes and I didn't want to spoil the surprise.
I haven't done puzzles for a long time, and I'm finding their still a lot of fun - more now that I am in the mode of thinking I'll glue them together so they are kept. I have to decide if I'm up to the challenge of this huge puzzle I saw at Uncle's Games, a Ravensburger puzzle with 5000 pieces. The largest I've completed that I remember is 1500, although I was close to finishing a 2500 piece puzzle once when Olympia and my parents tried to move it from the first floor to the basement of our house in Rockville and dropped it down the stairs.
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