Petition

Go and sign this petition to make "Da Day" after the superbowl a national holiday!!

http://whitecastle.com/daday/

I'm Tired

The more I think about things, the more I realize that after 4 and a half years of technology being in every part of every day of my life, I am pretty tired of it. I am tired of counting typing as work. Basically, I need a break. I need to do something more with my hands. That is why I enjoy working at White Castle right now. I am actually making something with my hands that I can touch and smell. It's more than working with pixels on the screen.

I know I will be ready to get back into tech in a big way soon, but right now I just need a break.

Update on my life

Things have been fairly busy for me as I have come home from my San Francisco adventure. Let me start off by saying that going to Macworld in San Francisco was the best decision I have ever made. It allowed me to relax and see things that I have never seen before in a very beautiful part of the country. I also got to solidify a couple of friendships, which was nice.

What have I been doing since then? I have made the decision to continue my job search in a broader, but more localized sense. Hopefully my connections in the Chicago-land area will prove to be fruitful on the job front. In order to facilitate this decision, I have decided to go back to a job that I once loved....working at White Castle. I know, some of you are saying "White Castle? How could that possibly be enjoyable?" I don't know why, but for the last 3 years (since I quit) I kept telling people that White Castle is one of the best jobs I have ever had. I enjoyed working there, and getting to know the people, as well as providing customers with their little moments of joy. It makes me happy to make other people happy. I started back at White Castle this week, and I have enjoyed every minute of it. I will be promoted to management in a couple of weeks and I suspect that is where I will stay until I get a job that pays real money. For now, I am surprisingly content.

The Keynote

In the Mac user's world, there are few events more exciting than watching the CEO of Apple, Steve Jobs, deliver a speech and release new products. I am among the lucky few that was able to watch this year's Macworld keynote address where iLife '06, iWork '06, the iMac Core Duo, and the MacBook pro were all released. I started waiting in line at about 5:30 in the morning and there were already about 100 people in front of us! My group was able to get into the keynote via a "home alone-style" dash through the Moscone center to the keynote area. The atmosphere was simply electric! Everyone was excited and ready to cheer when new products were announced. If anyone thought that the cheering at the keynote was fake....you are dead wrong, because everyone was totally pumped for the event.

This will definitely be an event that I won't soon forget.

Watch for a post later reviewing the new products!

Macworld posting #1

The trip

My trip to get to San Francisco was an interesting one. First off, I decided to go to Macworld only 2 weeks before the conference. This wasn’t exactly the best planning that I had ever done, but my entire trip has been relatively unplanned and disorganized, so it’s OK.

So my parents decide to drive me to O’Hare airport in Chicago to start my journey. The last time they took me to an airport was when I was in High School. Back then, you could have guests come with you to the actual gate to say goodbye. As we found, guests are not allowed past the security checkpoints. So we frantically said goodbye and I proceeded the awkward and rushed process of taking off my shoes, unpacking my computer and passing all of my belongings through the X-ray machine. The whole process was very impersonal and I received no directions, and they only screamed at me to keep moving along. This was a very negative experience.

The flights were fine and I actually got lucky and was seated next to another newly graduated college student, so we had a nice conversation.

Once I got to San Francisco and I got checked into the hotel, I attempted to find my friends at Fisherman’s Wharf. They told me to take a trolly, so I hopped on and hoped for the best. The trolly proceeded to break down halfway through the trip and the trolly tow truck had to rescue us. Finally we reached the end of the line at Fisherman’s Wharf and I had to walk 4 blocks to get to them. They met me with a gift of cold soggy veggie pizza. Disgruntled from the ride, I take and eat their gift and I tried to discuss where to go in the city. Then my friend Sarah calls and wants to know if I wanted to go out for dinner and coffee. Since a calmer night sounded really good, I took a cab back to my hotel and met Sarah. We walked around town for a while, wandered into some very seedy neighborhoods (quite by accident) and finally found a pizza place to have a bite to eat…which ended up being right across from my hotel. 5 bucks for pizza and pop…in this expensive town…I’ll take it. That was enough for me for the night.

Macworld mini-update

OK, so I have been at Macworld in San Francisco for 3 days now and I have not posted a single thing. The 4-year old iBook that I brought with me decided to kick the bucket, so I finally broke down and got a new iBook G4. I am in the process of writing a big update, and moving my blog to my .Mac account once I get my hands on iWeb.

More updates soon...lots to talk about.

Computer Dreams

Do you want to have the coolest screen saver on the block? Check out Electric Sheep...it's amazing.

http://www.electricsheep.org

venting frustration

So, I'm about to leave for San Francisco to go to the Macworld conference. Everything is fine and dandy until Thursday rolls around. I get my "once-a-year-it's-not-that-bad" ear infection. No problem, right? Take some antibiotics and life is good.

wrong

It has turned into the "painful-as-hell-can't-be-any-worse-can't-hear-just-cut-it-off-and-I'll-be-fine" ear infection.

One thing is for sure....nothing is going to keep me from flying tomorrow.

French maids + Technology

I ran across this video of french maids instructing us on how to make video podcasts. Very interesting (and PG-13)

http://www.youtube.com/watch.php?v=TnnaI-ttFVE

bargains!

My family rocks at bargain hunting. My dad and I picked up 4 12-packs of pop for 1.99 each with 2 free liters of sierra mist last night, and my mom and I used gift cards and bargain hunting to get 4 pairs of jeans and a pair of shoes for about 20-30 bucks.

Yea, we rock.

update

While I am knee deep in my job search, I decided that a vacation was in order. Finally, this year, I am going to do something that I have wanted to do for at least 4 years. I am going to the Macworld expo in San Francisco, California!! I am really excited about meeting up with friends and colleagues, and seeing what's new in technology. There is no doubt in my mind that Apple and other companies will amaze me with their new products.

I will keep posting while I am there from a borrowed iBook from my dad. After all, I can't leave my readers hanging now can I?