A Bonus Post: Think Different

I did not really want to do an extra post this week, but I thought it was appropriate. We just saw the movie “Jobs” and this t-shirt is what I wore to the movie. I thought it was appropriate attire for the movie. I even wore my Tevas for the full geek effect.

My husband bought this t-shirt as part of a presentation to Steve Jobs himself. Steve was looking for some specialty lighting for a new theater at Pixar, and back then, my hubby was a sales engineer for a specialty lighting company. He bought this shirt as part of his demonstration and, flashed his featured, high- tech LED lights with multiple colors on the first generation iMacs on this T-shirt. Steve really liked his presentation, but the lights were not quite bright enough.

This was not my husband’s first meeting with Steve Jobs. When my husband was in Graduate School, his Master’s Thesis was on Apple Computer. He asked to spend 5-10 minutes on the phone with Steve Jobs to interview him, but instead he got 30 minutes of an in-person, face-to-face. Boy, was my husband excited; he was dressed in his Sunday (yet casual) best.

 

In fact, Steve remembered him from their first meeting – starting the conversation by saying that he really liked his paper (My husband had sent Steve a copy of his thesis) from all those years ago.

Long story short, my husband and I are huge Apple fans. My first computer was an Apple II (Actually, it was my Dad’s) and my husband’s was an Apple IIe. Although my Dad went PC, as soon as I could afford it, I bought a Macintosh (an SE/30, with an educational discount). I followed up with a PowerPC, and now, I am writing this blog with my MacBook and, usually tweeting with my iPod. I’d like to think that because of my early exposure to Apple computers that they had influenced my career choice. Although my Dad encouraged me to take Business Administration in my undergraduate school, I decided to go into Computer Science…  and think different!

Week 34: Jasper - Land of Giants!

On our car camping trip to the Canadian Rockies, we were camping all over. However, Our ultimate goal was to head north to Jasper to (almost) get away from civilization.

In our trip from Banff to Jasper, we covered almost 300 miles in the car with a lot of stops for walks and photographs. It seems that the two parks seem to be one huge park since Jasper starts where Banff ends. We even had a brief (but planned) detour to Yoho National Park and to Mt. Robson Provincial Park in British Columbia. Through our trip, we saw the magnificent views of the Endless Chain Ridge, a lot of beautiful and large waterfalls, glaciers dotting the landscape, and lots of huge snow-covered mountains. Magnificent indeed!

Through our trip, we saw Some of Jasper's scenic attractions: Mount Edith Cavell, Pyramid Lake, Bow Lake, Maligne Lake, and Medicine Lake. We even took bus tour of the Columbia Icefield to see and walk on the Athabasca Glacier… in my Teva Sandals… with socks, of course. Back then, me and my Tevas went everywhere (I think I need to get back to that habit now... but I digress).

Looking back, I feel very fortunate to have visited that part of the world. That part of Canada is gorgeous and so vast. Camping and hiking makes you feel very close to nature and to the earth. You feel like you’re only a small piece of this gorgeous world.

If you have not been, I highly recommend you put Banff and Jasper on your list. For more information on Jasper, check out their website at  www.jaspernationalpark.com.

Week 33: BANFF-F-F-F: Canadian Rockies Bound

We’re going further North this week. We’re headed to the province on Alberta on a (car) camping trip to Banff.

This trip was probably my first time camping overseas, and it was for two weeks. I did not know what quite to expect. Where would we shower? How will we cook meals? What about wildlife? Fortunately, my friends were experienced campers so I had a lot of mentors. Plus, we’re going car camping, so it was not that drastic. It’s not like I needed to pack all my stuff in one big backpack (but I did).

It was also my first time in Canada. I almost made it through in during my weekend in Seattle, but did not have time. Also, this is in the Canadian Rockies. I’ve never seen huge mountains like what is on the t-shirt – well, except for Mt. Shasta.

Banff is actually the first Canadian National Park. It is also a UNESCO’s Canadian Rockies World Heritage Site. I can imagine why it was selected.  The scenery is magnificent: snow-capped mountain ranges, Lake Louise and Lake Louise Lodge, Bow Falls downtown, and abundant wildlife. In fact, featured in this t-shirt actually looks more like the equally beautiful Lake Moraine in the Valley of the Ten Peaks which provides a majestic view. This is actually at the back of the Canadian twenty-dollar bill.

The trip was actually quite adventurous, but not as traumatic. Traveling in a group made it comfortable. We did sleep in tents and in sleeping bags through the trip. The campgrounds were very nice – they have a cookhouse, some more rustic than others, where you can have meals away from the cold Canadian nights. Showers were in the malls and took Canadian quarters (Bring your Tevas or Keens to wear in the showers though, more hygienic).

More adventures in Canada to come in the next few weeks… For more information about Banff National Park, check out the National Geographic section on this wonderful park.

Week 32: Sleepy in Seattle

We’re going a bit further north and going to SEA-TAC or Seattle-Tacoma. This trip was way back, when I first moved to California. I suspect that this was my second road trip, and I did it on my own (I was much braver and more stupid back then). The first was to Los Angeles to visit my aunt.

I had an urge to visit Seattle because this is where Microsoft is. Back then, Microsoft was one of the hot companies to work for. I wanted to see where the campus was and see if it was as cool as they said it was.

I got my directions from an office mate who used to live in Seattle. He said take Highway 5 from Highway 80 and take it straight to Seattle. He did miss mentioning a couple more freeways, but after getting lost (I found myself in Sacramento) and consulting a map (yes, those paper things with landmarks), I was on my way.

I visited the usual tourist spots: the Space Needle and Pike’s Place Market. I found Microsoft’s campus in Redmond, which was actually about a half an hour outside of town. I took a lot of walks to get a feel of downtown. I did not see the famous Bubblegum Wall (since I was not aware of it yet).

This was actually a fun three-day road trip for me – albeit the drive was a bit too long. I stopped once at a rest stop in Red Bluff, CA to rest my eyes and at Mt. Shasta, CA to have breakfast (at the McDonald’s overlooking Black Butte). I even contemplated to go to Victoria Island in British Columbia in Canada. But I figured I did not have time to squeeze all that in one day.

I did have time to buy a t-shirt, and that was one of the highlights of my trip. 

Not sure about the dolphin reference though.... Isn't their football team The Seahawks?

Week 31: On the road again… To Crater Lake

It is still summer (although the recent Northern California weather does not reflect it), and it is still vacation season. So, we’re going on another road trip, and this time were Northward-bound. Our first stop: Crater Lake in Oregon.

This stop was actually from our trip to Mt. Bachelor (during early spring - see my first post). We were on our way back from skiing and stopped at Crater Lake to enjoy the views. Crater Lake is lake formed on the caldera of a collapsed volcano. It is known for its deep blue color and water clarity. Crater Lake is probably one of the best-known views in Oregon. However, it was snowing very hard, and we could barely see the two islands on the lake. At least, I was able to get a T-shirt.

Summer is probably the best time to see Crater Lake. I would love to return to Crater Lake and spend some time hiking, taking photos, and just enjoying the scenery. It is a long road trip from San Francisco. Driving to Weed, CA (where you take the road to Crater Lake) is probably about five to six hours. It’s probably another two and a half hours to the lake. Maybe next year…

For more info, check out the Crater Lake National Park page or the Wikipedia article for the lake.