I flew to California last week for team training at Oracle headquarters.
I lived in Palo Alto for a year when I was in middle school so I was familiar with the area but some things have changed in the Bay Area the past 25 years.
US-101 is much more hectic and backed up although I think it was still plenty busy back then. We drove to San Francisco two nights for dinner and traffic near Belmont was stop and go till we got closer to downtown S.F.
We did take advantage of some great restaurants when we drove up to S.F. both nights. Swiss Louise was on Pier 39 and had a great view of the bay. I had Linguini and Clams, which was quite good. Wednesday night we went to House of NanKing. The claim to fame for this restaurant - besides its good food - is that you can have the owner order for you. He takes your menus, asks a few questions and entrees for the whole table come out within a few minutes. Definitely a great experience.
There seem to be a greater percentage of other cultures living in the Bay Area. Oracle HQ has a big percentage of people of Chinese and Indian descent. Compared to Boulder - where our offices are predominantly white - it's definitely a different world. Even driving on 101 I could see a greater ethnic melting pot.
Campus was huge with 7 huge cylindrical buildings for workers in addition to smaller periphery buildings. Each tower had a cafeteria on the 1st floor so each day was an opportunity to try some new cuisine.
We may go out for Spring training next year.
Saturday, October 11, 2008
Saturday, September 13, 2008
Ogden Labor Day Trip: August 29th - September 1st
Labor Day Weekend 2008 I flew out to Ogden to spend time with Luke and Susan.
I was able to get an airline ticket on Frontier two days before the trip for a great price (~$170) and also rent a car through Budget to drive up to Ogden from SLC airport.
I was a little surprised Frontier Airlines was so cheap since Southwest Airlines is usually more economical with such short notice. Before finally purchasing the airline ticket I was thinking I had to drive out from Boulder and was balking at the idea of being in the car 7 hours each way. I'm glad I checked online to see any last minute deals.
The flight out was uneventful and baggage claim was straightforward. I did have to wait a while in the Budget line before finally getting my vehicle. They gave me a Chrysler Pacifica since it seemed they were out of higher MPG vehicles. In some ways I was glad to try out something that was more of a sports style low cut minivan. It even had Sirius Satellite radio which I had never tried before.
I finally arrived in Ogden 35 miles later around 1 AM.
Saturday
Since I had read the weather report before coming out the Ogden I knew the second 1/2 of the weekend was going to get stormy and cold.
On a prior trip to Utah I had purchased a mountain bike guide to Park City. It had been sitting on my bedroom nightstand for the last year and a half and I really wanted to try a ride out of the book, finally.
Since Susan needed to do a training run for an upcoming marathon we also had to accommodate her too. Luckily, she was fine with training at a little higher altitude.
I was able to borrow my brother's full suspension mountain bike and chose a ride on Park City Mountain.
The ride consisted of going up Sweeney's Switchbacks to John's Trail over to Mid Mountain Trail and finally down Spiro Trail.
I can't say enough about how nice the loop turned out. I made it up as I went along and it could have easily turned out to be an out and back. Also since it was later in the day it could have been a much shorter ride but I was glad I committed to trying out the Mid Mountain Trail. When I make it out to Park City again I'll definitely be doing this loop or a close variation of it again.
The climb up Sweeney's Switchbacks and John's Trail was quite nice. There were a few sections I had to get off the bike on Sweeney's but by the time I was on John's Trail the trail had leveled out and I was riding in Aspen groves.
By the time I made it up John's Trail the time was about 6:30 PM so I had to decide quickly if I could do anymore riding. Luckily I was carrying the MTB book and was able to commit to the Mid Mountain Trail and figure coming down Spiro back to the base area of Park City Resort.
Mid Mountain has great views of Park City and the valley below. I did see some other riders on the trail giving me confidence that I was still able to make it back to Park City before nightfall. When I did make it to the intersection with Spiro I was also able to talk with another rider to make sure I took an appropriate trail back down to Spiro since there were a few forks from which to choose.
By the time I made it back to the car there was still plenty of light and I waited for Luke and Susan.
Luke was getting hungry so he ate some appetizers at a nearby Indian Restaurant.
Later in the evening we decided to walk up Main Street and chanced upon Wahso - an Asian style grill. The food was terrific and I'd definitely go back there although for three people the total bill came to about $125.00 dollars.
Sunday
Sunday was supposed to be raining but it didn't get that way until late afternoon.
We were able to hike up to Dog Lake in Mill Creek Canyon. The total hike was about 6 miles and there were plenty of people hiking with their dogs up to the lake and back.
I recalled that Luke and I had done part of the trail two years as a section of the Wasatch Crest Trail. Since Labor Day was an odd day there were no mountain bikes to be seen since they're only allowed on even days.
We made it for dinner in lower downtown Salt Lake City at an Italian restaurant called Biaggis.
The food wasn't as good as in Park City the night before but my Chilean Sea Bass was quite good.
Monday
Monday we stayed in Ogden.
We did go down to Ogden's indoor activity park where I convinced Susan to try indoor skydiving with me.
Cost for each person was $49 dollars but the experience was well worth it.
Although you only get to "skydive" for two minutes total (two one minute sessions) the feeling of being weightless and being twirled around by the instructor is well worth the experience.
I finally left around 6 PM for my 8:05 PM flight back. Total mileage for the rental car was 350 miles and the drive back to SLC was uneventful.
I was able to get an airline ticket on Frontier two days before the trip for a great price (~$170) and also rent a car through Budget to drive up to Ogden from SLC airport.
I was a little surprised Frontier Airlines was so cheap since Southwest Airlines is usually more economical with such short notice. Before finally purchasing the airline ticket I was thinking I had to drive out from Boulder and was balking at the idea of being in the car 7 hours each way. I'm glad I checked online to see any last minute deals.
The flight out was uneventful and baggage claim was straightforward. I did have to wait a while in the Budget line before finally getting my vehicle. They gave me a Chrysler Pacifica since it seemed they were out of higher MPG vehicles. In some ways I was glad to try out something that was more of a sports style low cut minivan. It even had Sirius Satellite radio which I had never tried before.
I finally arrived in Ogden 35 miles later around 1 AM.
Saturday
Since I had read the weather report before coming out the Ogden I knew the second 1/2 of the weekend was going to get stormy and cold.
On a prior trip to Utah I had purchased a mountain bike guide to Park City. It had been sitting on my bedroom nightstand for the last year and a half and I really wanted to try a ride out of the book, finally.
Since Susan needed to do a training run for an upcoming marathon we also had to accommodate her too. Luckily, she was fine with training at a little higher altitude.
I was able to borrow my brother's full suspension mountain bike and chose a ride on Park City Mountain.
The ride consisted of going up Sweeney's Switchbacks to John's Trail over to Mid Mountain Trail and finally down Spiro Trail.
I can't say enough about how nice the loop turned out. I made it up as I went along and it could have easily turned out to be an out and back. Also since it was later in the day it could have been a much shorter ride but I was glad I committed to trying out the Mid Mountain Trail. When I make it out to Park City again I'll definitely be doing this loop or a close variation of it again.
The climb up Sweeney's Switchbacks and John's Trail was quite nice. There were a few sections I had to get off the bike on Sweeney's but by the time I was on John's Trail the trail had leveled out and I was riding in Aspen groves.
By the time I made it up John's Trail the time was about 6:30 PM so I had to decide quickly if I could do anymore riding. Luckily I was carrying the MTB book and was able to commit to the Mid Mountain Trail and figure coming down Spiro back to the base area of Park City Resort.
Mid Mountain has great views of Park City and the valley below. I did see some other riders on the trail giving me confidence that I was still able to make it back to Park City before nightfall. When I did make it to the intersection with Spiro I was also able to talk with another rider to make sure I took an appropriate trail back down to Spiro since there were a few forks from which to choose.
By the time I made it back to the car there was still plenty of light and I waited for Luke and Susan.
Luke was getting hungry so he ate some appetizers at a nearby Indian Restaurant.
Later in the evening we decided to walk up Main Street and chanced upon Wahso - an Asian style grill. The food was terrific and I'd definitely go back there although for three people the total bill came to about $125.00 dollars.
Sunday
Sunday was supposed to be raining but it didn't get that way until late afternoon.
We were able to hike up to Dog Lake in Mill Creek Canyon. The total hike was about 6 miles and there were plenty of people hiking with their dogs up to the lake and back.
I recalled that Luke and I had done part of the trail two years as a section of the Wasatch Crest Trail. Since Labor Day was an odd day there were no mountain bikes to be seen since they're only allowed on even days.
We made it for dinner in lower downtown Salt Lake City at an Italian restaurant called Biaggis.
The food wasn't as good as in Park City the night before but my Chilean Sea Bass was quite good.
Monday
Monday we stayed in Ogden.
We did go down to Ogden's indoor activity park where I convinced Susan to try indoor skydiving with me.
Cost for each person was $49 dollars but the experience was well worth it.
Although you only get to "skydive" for two minutes total (two one minute sessions) the feeling of being weightless and being twirled around by the instructor is well worth the experience.
I finally left around 6 PM for my 8:05 PM flight back. Total mileage for the rental car was 350 miles and the drive back to SLC was uneventful.
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Two lyrics for Tab Benoit songs
I own a lot of albums from Tab Benoit but can't seem to find lyrics for his music in almost all - if not all - of his albums.
I like his live or more live feel albums like: Swampland Jam and The Sea Saint Sessions. Both of these albums don't come with lyric sheets and there's nothing on his website or even on regular Google searches.
I finally decided to write down the lyrics and then post them here. Hopefully they are somewhat correct.
Louisiana Style (1997)
1st verse:
I wanna tell you, just how I feel
I had a dream baby, I thought it was real
I woke up in love, now you’re all I think of
2nd verse:
Every day I’m wasting time
Wondering how, to make you mine
I’m just wishing it could be, you feel the same for me
1st Solo…
3rd verse:
Since that day, I’ve been lost
I jumped on an alligator, I thought it was a horse
I took one hell of a ride, down the Bayou side
4th verse:
If I could take you to the Fado Do
We could dance honey, all across the floor
And we could do it for awhile, Louisiana Style
2nd Solo…
5th verse:
I wanna take you all, to the Fado Do
Where we could dance baby, till we can’t stand no more
I wanna do it for awhile, Lousiana Style
Hustlin’ Down In New Orleans (2003)
1st verse:
I said hustlin’ down in New Orleans
Hustlin Henry gotta tambourine
He shaking them up, shaking them down, shaking everybody all over town
Hustlin’ down in New Orleans
2nd verse:
Hustlin’ down in New Orleans
Hustlin’ Connie down on magazines
She hits you once, she hits you twice, she’s going to hit you for the rest of your life
Hustlin’ down in New Orleans
Chorus:
Well I never made it across the tracks, but I can hear the whistle blowing right out back
Close enough to be on the scene, far enough to keep myself clean
Solo…
3rd verse:
Said hustlin’ down in New Orleans
Hustlin’ down on, on the corner scene
Put up a dollar ‘cause your bound to lose, when they try to tell you where you got your shoes
Chorus repeat:
2nd Solo…
Said hustlin’ down in New Orleans (repeat 3 times)
I like his live or more live feel albums like: Swampland Jam and The Sea Saint Sessions. Both of these albums don't come with lyric sheets and there's nothing on his website or even on regular Google searches.
I finally decided to write down the lyrics and then post them here. Hopefully they are somewhat correct.
Louisiana Style (1997)
1st verse:
I wanna tell you, just how I feel
I had a dream baby, I thought it was real
I woke up in love, now you’re all I think of
2nd verse:
Every day I’m wasting time
Wondering how, to make you mine
I’m just wishing it could be, you feel the same for me
1st Solo…
3rd verse:
Since that day, I’ve been lost
I jumped on an alligator, I thought it was a horse
I took one hell of a ride, down the Bayou side
4th verse:
If I could take you to the Fado Do
We could dance honey, all across the floor
And we could do it for awhile, Louisiana Style
2nd Solo…
5th verse:
I wanna take you all, to the Fado Do
Where we could dance baby, till we can’t stand no more
I wanna do it for awhile, Lousiana Style
Hustlin’ Down In New Orleans (2003)
1st verse:
I said hustlin’ down in New Orleans
Hustlin Henry gotta tambourine
He shaking them up, shaking them down, shaking everybody all over town
Hustlin’ down in New Orleans
2nd verse:
Hustlin’ down in New Orleans
Hustlin’ Connie down on magazines
She hits you once, she hits you twice, she’s going to hit you for the rest of your life
Hustlin’ down in New Orleans
Chorus:
Well I never made it across the tracks, but I can hear the whistle blowing right out back
Close enough to be on the scene, far enough to keep myself clean
Solo…
3rd verse:
Said hustlin’ down in New Orleans
Hustlin’ down on, on the corner scene
Put up a dollar ‘cause your bound to lose, when they try to tell you where you got your shoes
Chorus repeat:
2nd Solo…
Said hustlin’ down in New Orleans (repeat 3 times)
Monday, August 11, 2008
Conundrum Hot Springs Weekend
We did a backpacking trip last weekend to Conundrum Hot Springs. It's a classic trip although quite arduous if you have quite a bit of weight on your back.
Five people were in our party: me, David, Emily, Amy, and Tanya.
Total days being away from Boulder was 4. We left Thursday afternoon and returned Sunday evening.
Thursday night we camped out near Gothic which left us 3 full days of backpacking.
Either way you do it the length of the hike is equivalent from either Aspen or Crested Butte: about a 17 mile round trip. The kicker is that the hike from Gothic entails a trip over Triangle Pass which is close to 13 thousand feet. Some people might have a little more trouble with that
Monday, July 28, 2008
Wal-Mart and Swimming
After dinner Friday night Kary and I did the Longmont Wal-Mart tour.
There are two: 1) the first off of Hover Avenue, and 2) the second off of north Main Street.
Longmont has a regular one and a Super Wal-mart. The first stays open till 10 PM on Friday nights and the super-dooper one stays open 24 hours a day.
There's quite a bit of community to Wal-mart on a Friday night. You might think that these convenience centers might be dead-quiet and lack foot traffic.
The one off of Hover had two women discussing one's 17 year old daughter. Also there seemed to be some traffic in the electronics section with some kids playing console games.
The Super Wal-mart definitely had even more traffic than the first. People were buying all sorts of goods to fill up their plastic shopping bags.
It seems that Wal-mart has replaced an element of the community center or just local indoor shopping mall. People now can feel comfortable by congregating (and consuming) at their local Wal-mart. It's very sociable and acceptable to go there during later evening hours and you'll probably encounter a friend who's doing shopping there too.
For something a little more enjoyable we did go swimming both Saturday and Sunday at the local swimming pool. We've had 15+ days of 90 degree heat on the Front Range and swimming can definitely be a fun activity. Although it's smaller than a community pool it was quite fun to take a dip, sun ourselves and then repeat.
Yes, Colorado even needs swimming pools during those hot days of July and August :)
Saturday, May 31, 2008
30th Anniversary Bolder Boulder
Monday morning the 26th of May, 2008 I did my second Bolder Boulder.
My average time for each mile was 7:42; only 1 second off the pace of last year. I completed the race in 47:47.
Although I felt better for this race compared to last year's I seemed to have gotten my max heart rate up to 195 beats per minute; if my heart rate monitor didn't malfunction.
There is something about getting up before 7 AM on a holiday and joining 50K plus people for a foot race right in my home town. Can't beat it.
I'll probably do it next year.
My average time for each mile was 7:42; only 1 second off the pace of last year. I completed the race in 47:47.
Although I felt better for this race compared to last year's I seemed to have gotten my max heart rate up to 195 beats per minute; if my heart rate monitor didn't malfunction.
There is something about getting up before 7 AM on a holiday and joining 50K plus people for a foot race right in my home town. Can't beat it.
I'll probably do it next year.
Thursday, March 06, 2008
February 21st - 24th - Salt Lake City
Two weeks ago I took an extended weekend to fly out to Salt Lake City.
If you've never been to the Wasatch Front to go skiing you're definitely missing out.
One of the nicest resorts to ski is Solitude. It's a 12 mile drive up big Cottonwood Canyon but it's well worth it; especially the Honeycomb Bowl. If you consider that a long drive then you've never had to do the Front Range madness commute during the weekends - or even the weekdays. When you have to do 25 miles versus 80 miles it makes for a more pleasant skiing day and makes you more motivated to go skiing too.
The fact that it snowed while we were in Salt Lake didn't hurt either. On Friday and Sunday when I skied the conditions were amazing since it was snowing while we skied and the prior nights had left plenty of untracked fresh powder.
If you've never been to the Wasatch Front to go skiing you're definitely missing out.
One of the nicest resorts to ski is Solitude. It's a 12 mile drive up big Cottonwood Canyon but it's well worth it; especially the Honeycomb Bowl. If you consider that a long drive then you've never had to do the Front Range madness commute during the weekends - or even the weekdays. When you have to do 25 miles versus 80 miles it makes for a more pleasant skiing day and makes you more motivated to go skiing too.
The fact that it snowed while we were in Salt Lake didn't hurt either. On Friday and Sunday when I skied the conditions were amazing since it was snowing while we skied and the prior nights had left plenty of untracked fresh powder.
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