Time in the Sun

The POTUS*

Happy Obama Day everyone!
Today, Obama is the name on the tip of everyone's tongue. Everyone is talking about him.
Here on the West Coast we watched the ceremony in the morning around 9 AM. Since most of us were at work, most workplaces arranged for televisions to be tuned into the inaugural ceremonies. On my floor, around 15 people gathered to watch. Some even clapped after he was sworn in. Most of us dispersed after he gave his speech.

I thought his speech was really long, but I still listened raptly to what he had to say. My favorite part was the excerpt below in which he indirectly addressed the issue of torture:

"As for our common defense, we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals. Our Founding Fathers, faced with perils we can scarcely imagine, drafted a charter to assure the rule of law and the rights of man, a charter expanded by the blood of generations. Those ideals still light the world, and we will not give them up for expedience's sake. And so to all other peoples and governments who are watching today, from the grandest capitals to the small village where my father was born: know that America is a friend of each nation and every man, woman, and child who seeks a future of peace and dignity, and we are ready to lead once more."

In addition to the gravity of the moment, all eyes were of course glued on Michelle's wardrobe. What would she wear to the inauguration and then the 10 inaugural balls in the evening? During the swearing-in ceremony she wore gloves from J. Crew and the kids were dressed in Crewcuts. I'm sure J. Crew is just loving the attention. For the inaugural ball she wore a gown by a 26-year old Chinese guy. Wow, he has just become an overnight sensation as well, joining the Cuban American designer of her yellow outfit this morning.

Well, I hope they enjoy the honeymoon and parties while they last because tomorrow there will hard work awaiting him.

*POTUS = President of the United States

The Awakening

Dawn

As a sworn early bird, I tend to wake up pretty early these days so that I can fit some reading and other things in that I really need to get done (like daily blogging!). In the picture above you see a sleepy neighborhood on the cusp of activity.

Yesterday I was in a rush to get some documents printed in the office and of course the printer has to jam! It happens every time. So the monitor tells me where the jam is located and which doors I need to open to remove the paper. I do that and turn little green knobs until I see the evil paper jam. Keep in mind that the copier has been running so the innards are still fairly warm. I'm not going to stick my hand in there! With the clock ticking, I was very tempted to just leave the jam there until the next morning. Luckily a very helpful coworker of mine came over and we cleared the jam. While I turned the green knob furiously, he was pulling out the paper. It came out in pieces and eventually we had to resort to using instruments such as rulers and a scissor. It was like performing a complicated surgery! Funny when you look back, not so funny when you are there!

Manhole cover blown off in San Francisco Financial District

Caution

I've been trying out my photojournalistic skills recently with the two incidents I've covered. On Sunday it was the San Bruno Mountain fire and today it was a blast that happened a hop, skip and a jump from where I work.

This afternoon a loud blast or what sounded like a crash or explosion broke the afternoon lull in the office. We all rushed to the windows to be rubberneckers. There was black smoke coming from the ground. Sirens were howling. Pretty soon police secured the area with yellow tape and rerouted traffic.

No one really knew what happened. It made everyone jittery and brought thoughts of terrorism to mind. Apparently it was just a blast underground. Here's the Chronicle's story.


Whenever you drive your car, be careful not to leave any valuables on the seat. Thieves can break into your car really quickly. See this video.

Tiny differences - travel mugs

After having reentered the American workforce, some subtle differences between the American office and Frankfurt have come to my mind. First of all, Americans tend to use travel mugs in the office environment, while Germans use real cups. (Caveat: The following is based solely on my personal experience and observations around offices and should not be construed as 100% accurate.)

Here in the San Francisco office for instance, there is a Commons area where people can relax, have their lunch and enjoy the great views. In addition, the refrigerator, water cooler, coffee maker and microwaves are located here. Most people carry their travel mugs to the Commons and fill up on water to bring back to their cubes. (See picture) The nifty thing about travel mugs is that they are safer than normal cups, which have an open top. Travel mugs on the other hand are covered, which reduce the likelihood of spills around electronics.

In Frankfurt, I recall that people would use glasses and personal mugs to get water from the kitchen area. The kitchen areas were less luxurious than in SF because people were not meant to eat in there. In Germany employees generally eat in cafeterias where meals are sold at reduced prices. I wonder if travel mugs will ever catch on in Germany? Overall, I concluded that Germany is very traditional and that's why they use regular cups instead of travel mugs. On the other hand, Germans also tend to be risk averse, which means they should try to use travel mugs in offices because using them would reduce the risk of spills and damage to electronics.

Off topic, but every Friday is bagel Friday at work. This means that bagels, pastries, sliced fruit and beverages greet the work week weary employees every Friday morning. Here's a picture of the muffin basket. Personally I'm partial to scones.