At my new job, I learnt that engineers need Senior VP approval to work evenings and weekends. Managers must roll model good behavior to support that.

I almost cried.

It makes the days really intense. Everyone works hard. There is little gossip or goofing off. I almost feel bad interrupting someone to ask a question. I really do my homework before I do so. I have to do a lot more planning to make all that happen.

I love it.

The past few days have been packed. So many trainings, so much information. 

I like the team. I like my boss. Off to a good start.

The new job is already ramping up. I fly to San Francisco for a few days next week for introductions and training, so I've had to book travel.

The husband has a flu and has been in bed for the past two days. My housemates and I have been having discussions about flues and vaccines. One of my roommates says the only time she ever got the flu is when she had the vaccine, so she has sworn them off.

I have the opposite opinion. I am vaccinated for the flu early every year. I used to get a big flat-on-my-ass-for-days flu once a year. The vaccine has eliminated that. Right now, I am also taking Tamaflu. When the husband came down with the flu, I thought he was vaccinated. and so I immediately got a prescription. I cannot afford to get sick right now with the new job starting next week.

Turns out the husband was not vaccinated.

I'm taking the Tamaflu anyways.

The doctor and pharmacist recommended that we wear face masks around anyone sick with the flu. Of course, there is a shortage of face masks right now. With the Corona virus scare, and with a heaver than average flu season, everyone seems to be sold out of face masks. Even Amazon says delivery for face masks will take one to three weeks.

I've been caring for the husband as much as I can. No biggie though. I check that he has water to drink, and that he eats a little every now and then.

Get vaccinated. They work and they are safe.

We spent a few days in Sacramento visiting the inlaws.

What do I want to say about that? Maybe-- "Empathy is a second to second, minute by minute service that we owe to everyone" -- Simone Sinek

My mother in law and my husband have a challenging relationship. Honestly, many people probably have a challenging relationship with the mother-in-law.

Unfortunately, there is a whole lot of not-listening going on. By everyone. It's easy to listen when you like those you are talking to. Empathy is only work, only deep, when you are talking to those you don't get along with.

She let's her dogs pee and poo indoors. She says they are too old to go outside regularly. The smell is terrible. Fortunately, she keeps the spare bedroom door closed at all times, so we could get away from it.

We cleaned the house up. Walked the dogs when we could.

The next time we visit Sacramento, we will stay in a hotel.

Even though I have accepted a job offer, I continue to talk to companies and go through interviews. Until I pass the background screen, and have a badge to enter the building, I will keep a few irons in the fire. 

Seattle has had lots of rain lately. Most days it's all day. We stay inside, watch movies, do what exercise we can. 

On Saturday, during a break in the rain, Clem and I went for a hike on the mountain. It's always good to spend some time with him. 

I've verbally accepted the job from the small local company. I'm continuing to meet with other companies until I physically sign, and I start work.

The fridge...

A few months ago we bought a new fridge. A nice, stainless steel, expensive new fridge. The husband loves the fridge.

It's already acquired a few dings. The microwave, and the oven are next to the fridge, and unless you close those doors, the fridge door will bump into the other door. The husband is frustrated every time he sees a new ding. With each new ding the husband talks to the perpetrator (me, the the brother-in-law, or the roommate) on the importance of checking the microwave and oven doors before opening the fridge door.

For the past few days, the husband has been traveling for work Yesterday, I thought I'd wash the fridge with a sponge The sponge has rough plastic on one side of it.

Now the fridge is covered with light scratches. Not deep scratches. But, the stainless steel reflects unevenly. It's not perfect like it was.

The brother-in-law, the roommate and I spent much time trying to figure out how to remove the scratches, brainstorming, googling, watching YouTube videos. We've tried several different products, but no luck Our last hope is a  professional scratch removal kit that is on the way from Amazon.

Then, this afternoon, before the husband boards the jet back to Seattle, I'm going to call him up and tell him tell him the news about the fridge.

I have a good job offer from the smaller local  company. This is a huge relief. 

The job hunt is intense. I'm having two or three calls a day with various recruiters, former coworkers, screeners or hiring managers. Going forward, I will have one or two onsite interviews a week for the next few weeks.

The interview process for all these companies is very extended. Each involves multiple calls from screeners and recruiters, and then and multiple onsite interviews.

The second onsite for the smaller local company went well. I should hear about next steps from them on Monday.

The recruiter from the big social network company said they will have a decision by the 17th.

Am back in Seattle. We were on a western Caribbean cruise with old friends of the husband. It was great to spend time with them. They are nice people. 

So far so good on job hunt. I've had a series of great initial interviews/conversations with a few companies. This Friday I will have a second set of onsite interviews with the interesting smaller company. Next week I have an onsite interview with the job-search company. Soon after that I will have an onsite interview with the search company. 

What on earth is going on with the Mississippi River south of NO?

A normal river would be content to end at the sea. The Mississippi, on the other hand, endeavors to split the sea into two. 

For centuries the Mississippi has been carrying sediment along, slowly extending its banks by hundreds of miles.

The Carnival ship that was side swiped last week. 

Last day in New Orleans. We've had a great time. Lots of coordination as the family we are with brought there kids. But wonderful non the less.

@Tommy, why didn't you tell me that New Orleans was so vibrant and charming?

Job search is proceeding.

Thursday and Friday I had interviews with an interesting smaller company. I think they went well. We shall see.

I still have not heard back from the social network company

Am also arranging interviews with the search company. Those will happen sometime in January.

Friday I had a big interview with the big social network company. I think I did well. I'm not going to dwell on it. Because of the holidays, it may be weeks before they get back to me.

Our cat has passed on. He took a turn for the worse about a week ago and we were treating him. But there was no improvement so we made a hard choice. He was an old cat, who had lost a lot of his agility, so I'm relived as well as sad.

And the interview I had a few weeks ago... they said a very polite "No," because they believe I am wrong for the role. They asked me to apply for other jobs at the company.

We've had a busy couple of weeks.

The job hunt is coming along. I've applied a lot, passed a few screening calls, and now am studying to pass the main, day long interviews. The material is pretty intense. There is a lot to read and to practice.

We have also been traveling. We spent a couple of days in LA, then went for a week long cruise to Cabo, Mazatlán and Puerto Vallarta.

Did you hear about the ship that was hit by the Norovirus? That was our ship.

Onboarding was a mess. They delayed everything by hours to allow the crew to sanitize.


During the cruise, Norovirus control meant that the staff was constantly sanitizing everything (tables, chairs, elevator buttons, railings, etc) and that everything had to be served. For example, you couldn’t just get a glass of water as passengers couldn’t touch the fountain. A steward had to pour and serve it for you.



At the buffet you couldn’t get your own plates or cutlery. They had to be served. Salt, pepper, butter, jam all had to be served separately. A simple ask like “May I have some toast?” took up a lot of serving time on a ship that was already full. It was a few days for the staff to figure out how to streamline these operations. I also got the feeling that by the end of the week, the staff was tired owing to all the extra sanitization and service duties that had been foisted on them. 

But, now we are back. I'm studying for work. All I need is one job offer.

One step further on the road to U.S. citizenship-- today, I had my finger prints and photo taken. 

I think the interview went well. We shall see. I got some positive feedback. Also, the hiring manager spent two hours with me; we talked a lot about what the job is actually like.