We keep a team wiki at work. I updated my biography there today and thought it'd be worth republishing here (with some embelishment) on the (brand new!) About page.
Kids' Day
Take Your Kids to Work Day Originally uploaded by Jake Sutton.
What Should I Do with My Life?
For the record, Po Bronson's book by that title doesn't really provide any answers. It just tells you about some of the lucky bastards who have figured out an answer to the question. So, yeah... This is something I'm thinking about a lot these days. Unless something changes drastically and some switch gets flipped in my head, I don't see myself doing what I'm doing now for more than, say, another five years.
So what do I want to do instead? I have absolutely no idea.
It's a hell of an exercise to try to figure out where your passion lies and what work would make you happy day-to-day. Lately, I've been asking myself the lottery question:
What would I do if I won PowerBall today?
The thought is that even if I had buckets of cash falling out of my ears I would do something to keep myself busy. I figure that if, I can find the answer to that question, I might be able to translate that into something that would actually pay the bills. As of yet, the answer hasn't come to me. I have no effing clue.
And aside: For those of you who might be thinking "Why is he all freaked out about this now? He's in his early-mid-thirties, shouldn't he be settling into a groove right about now?" Well, maybe / maybe not. Let me just use my darling mother as an excuse: While I was in college studying to be the rocket scientist I never became, she took the opportunity to go to Tufts and become a veterinarian. Total mid-life (a bit early) career change. This is the precident I'm working with.
One option I've long carried in my hip pocket is the posibility of becoming an architect. It's what I wanted to do before I got distracted by airplanes and went into Aerospace. It would take me three and a half years of full-time school to get a Masters Degree, after which I'd be starting at basically zero. Not that it's really the part that matters to me, but the salary would probably be about 50-60% of what I'm making now. Truth be told, I have no real idea if I would enjoy the work, or if I'd be any good at it. It's a scary gamble.
Then there's the idea of making things and earning a living with those creations. Right now, I always think of furniture when I go down this path. Problems with this idea include the fact that I'm really not that skilled at the woodworking yet, and I really don't want to be in the position where I have to beat the streets to self-promote (If you're making furniture, you have to let people know somehow, right? I'm doubtful that I'd be any good at that part. And then I'd starve.).
(The self-promotion angle comes along with the architect idea, too.)
Friends and I have talked about refurbishing houses (with custom furniture and all that jazz) and flipping them, but it doesn't seem realistic to me. Especially since we'd have to start out doing it part-time while coninuing to crush our souls at the office (that's a joke, it's not all that bad). It's be cool though - and might even work, because these people are talented in areas where I am not.
Maybe I should just come up with a few more t-shirt designs or something...
Now that I'm petering out a bit, let me say out-loud that I really don't hate my current job. I love the people I work with, and we solve extremely interesting problems every day. This career path was a complete accident, and I am grateful for it.
I just don't think it's the path I want to follow for the rest of my life.
Like a Johnny Cash Song
I've posted this before, but... States through which I can recall driving on more than one occassion or to which I have flown and stayed for multiple days:
create your own personalized map of the USA or check out ourCalifornia travel guide
The states in which I have actually lived make for a much more sparse map:
create your own personalized map of the USA or check out ourCalifornia travel guide
The New Digs
My New Cubicle
Originally uploaded by Jake Sutton.
The software team got to move into our new space today at work. Yippee!
(Click to see lots of notes telling you what all my office crap is.)
Tell Me About Me
Catching Up
I've been in nose-to-the-grindstone mode at work lately with a project I classify as superultramegaubercrazy-high priority. It's kind of fun, though, so no complaints there. In the real world, we had one of our Sutton Family Sunday Dinner parties, which rocked the house. About twenty folks came over to partake of brined turkey, lasagna, pork roast, and a veritable cornucopia of delectable delights. I enjoyed a couple glasses of Matt's Versinthe, but both The Wife and coworker Sarah hold suspicions regarding the effects of the tiny tastes they had. Perhaps the thujone conflicts with the female disposition... ;)
So, what's going on in the world? Let's see...
- "We do not torture." -- But we'd rather not make any promises.
Over White House opposition, the Senate voted 90-9 last month to approve an amendment by Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., that would ban the use of torture. Vice President Cheney has pushed for an exemption for the CIA.
- France is in nationwide turmoil, but I guess that's not entirely new.
France was slow to react to the spreading violence set off by the accidental deaths of two youths on Oct. 27, in part because the initial nights of unrest did not seem particularly unusual in a country where an average of more than 80 cars a day were set on fire this year even before the violence.
- An Amish village in Minnesota has a polio problem. Thus man’s faith is rewarded.
- In Bosnia, we get an illustration of the fact that hot potato is an extra dumb game if the potato has a blast radius.
OK, good. Still the same crazy world.
And we're back!
The Wife and I have safely returned to our lovely home. The drive is long, but much more enjoyable than air travel. More later, perhaps...
Green River, UT
Almost home
Originally uploaded by Jake Sutton.
In-N-Out
Yum
Originally uploaded by Jake Sutton.
Tropicana
Tropicana
Originally uploaded by Jake Sutton.
There are mirrors on three sides of the bed at the Tropicana. It's a little creepy.
Utah
Hello from Utah
Originally uploaded by Jake Sutton.
City of Angels
At first light tomorrow, The Wife and I are off on a road trip to see her brother et al in LA. We'll be stopping off at Vegas for Saturday night at the Tropicana, but don't expect much material for FtN, as we will probably be just as likely just get a bite and hit the bed as we would be to spend time at the gaming tables.
Was this space for camera phone pics, but don't expect much more.
We'll probably be leaving the gang at Los Feliz on Wednesday and getting back in time for me to hit the ABATE class Friday evening.
Good times!
Well, crap.
Cranberry juice no benefit for kidney stones?
In both, the cranberry juice increased urine levels of calcium and oxalate. Levels of brushite did decrease, but this substance causes a different type of kidney stones (known as brushite stones), which are comparatively rare.
Not that I've been hitting the Ocean Spray in hopes of avoiding another kidney stone. It was just kind of nice to have the idea that there was something that could help.
We're back
Safe and sound. Had tons of fun. Big write-up will have to wait, though. In the mean time, the place where I work was bought!
Blasts from the past
Man, it's been a while since I've even seen these old Coleco Frogger and Donkey Kong games. Those things were my best friends when I was a wee tyke.
The only problem with the otherwise wonderful Flickr set to which those belong is that there is a Speak & Math, but no love for my dear Speak & Spell. I'm 67.93% certain it's the only reason I'm even literate.
Very Little to See Here
JakeSutton.com (This is mostly for the GoogleBots, etc.)
Office Arts and Crafts
Optimus
Originally uploaded by Jake Sutton.
My Baby Can Kick Your Baby's Ass
Now that we are married and approaching our early-mid-thirties, The Wife and I occasionally discuss the possiblity of procreating... While I generally run from the room screaming when the subject comes up (little people scare me), I have to say I would have a fun time gearing up my kid thanks to the following options:
- The Cradle Rocks — Everything from baby combat boots to Oi! plaid bibs. The tattoo diaper bag is badass, too.
- Henry Rollins sells Search and Destroy jumpers in baby blue or pink. Awww.
- To keep the whippersnapper in line, I'd make him/her sport this shirt.
- More good shirts at Infantile. I especially like the Mr. T-style gold chains and the Mommy tattoo, of course.
Of course, the best thing ever would be tooling around the mall with one of these puppies.
Canine Socialization Tips
The technique here is to go outside and sit on a park bench. Whenever you see another dog you say "oh, look, here comes a cookie dog." And as soon as your dog sees the other, you give him a treat. Even if your dog is tense and growling and one might say that you are rewarding the dog for growling and acting badly around other dogs, things will improve quickly. The dog cannot help but make the positive association between the approaching dog and the cookie and soon he will look forward to other dogs approaching. Any time your dog acts appropriately when a dog approaches, offer a reward. Be sure you give your dog enough space from the other dog to feel safe and comfortable. And watch for early signs of discomfort, such as yawning, and excessive panting or activity. You don’t want to push your dog too far too fast.
Clever.
Mingus needs some work in this area, for sure. Or, I suppose, I do.