Word of the day

beevil (n) – The invisable yet very real taint that is left by bees on food by landing on it, making the food unappetizing.

beevil (v. t.) – To taint in an unseen way, similarly to how a bee taints food by landing on it.

Just had to write something…

…because I couldn’t let a post about a bathroom (however nice it is), sit on the top of my page for five days. So what to write about? Just a few odds and ends:

• I went to the Mountain View farmer’s market over the weekend. It was fabulous. I went crazy buying things like a HUGE fennel, purple califlower, and every type of squash possible.
•  I was once again reminded today how small this valley is and how everyone knows absolutely everyone else here.
• The Germans are in town and so the drinking will begin 🙂
• I am currently on very bad terms with one of my cats. I am hoping it is just a phase.

Today’s internal debate

Do I use the bathroom around the corner from my office that is almost identical to my old high school’s bathroom? Or do I use the newly discovered super-fancy bathroom next to the Executive Briefing Center that is one story up and down some hallways, but complete with granite, fancy tiles, touchless faucets AND touchless soap dispensers?

Tough call.

Hey, I hit 5000!

I just noticed that my blog just reached the 5000 hits mark. So that means that I am averaging about 1000 hits a month. Numbers are fun.
Since we’re talking numbers: My Flickr page has been viewed over 12K times. I have had it for about 15 months, so that means I am averaging about 800 hits a month. That’s not really very accurate since those first few months were pretty quiet. It is probably getting about 1000 hits/month, too.

Food Fight is also starting to pick up speed. I’ve had over 300 hits and I have been adding posts really just for two weeks.

AARR!! Talk like a pirate, scurvy dog!

Today is Talk Like a Pirate Day! Arr! Be sure to brush up on your pirate talk, even you Germans out there (and Laura)! And then go hit on pirates!

And here is a little lesson for you: never turn your back.

On being a valley girl

I normally avoid topics like this, but reading the FactoryCity white-boy post, and its lengthy discussion, got me thinking about being a being a white girl in this white boy industry.

In short, I like it, mostly. There are huge perks: I stand out in a room. I am automatically unique and special without having to do anything. I also get special attention, I admit it. Boys give me the extra little gestures of courtesy, like opening doors, that they don’t give their fellow boys. And I’m not complaining.

Also, I guess because I am used to it, I generally feel comfortable and welcome in a 80%-boy environment. I tend to have more issues when I am around a different generation than when I am around a different gender. But that’s one of the things that I like about the whole “Web 2.0” crowd: I’m kind of on the old side.
But there are also some downsides to being one of the few girls. First of all, like a lot of girls in the tech industry, I am not a coder. You have no idea how many times I’ll be chatting with a guy about whatever geeky topic, and 5 or 10 minutes into it, it will come out that I am a writer. And the comes the line that I always hear: “Oh, I thought you were technical.” Um, just as a heads up, boys: I have no idea how to respond to that. What is technical? What do you mean? What are you implying? Just because we girls are often in fields like writing, marketing, and design doesn’t mean that we don’t understand the technology. If you want to reach out to us, accept these related areas of technology with equal respect and appreciation that you give the coders.

Also, as girls, we have to always wonder why you boys are talking to us. Are you really interested in business networking or do you just want to talk to a girl? Do you really want to meet again to talk about that idea or are you hoping dinner will lead to something more? It adds a layer of complexity that we don’t have to deal with when talking to other women.

So girls are in the minority in the geek world. It is good to acknowledge it, but I think there are more interesting things to focus our energy on.

Monday is for rollers

Ok, so I know this isn’t like me, but I don’t have practice Thanksgiving pictures posted yet, but I promise I’ll get them up on Flickr tonight (sorry, Laura!). Yeah, I am being a slacker, but you know how it is. Hate to use the busy excuse, but it’s true! With what? You know…stuff…

Speaking of being lazy, I think I finally need to add a blogroll. Want me to add yours? Let me know. Your submission will go through a very thorough screening process (involving lots of pointing, laughing, and snarky comments) and then I’ll add your link.

Remainders…caffeine and gadgets

A few things for Friday:

• Technology good, technology bad: Today, I impressed myself by pulling a shot of espresso on a fur-real espresso machine for the first time without any instruction, and with an audience. I guess my years of watching baristas paid off. But then, hours later, my cell phone rang during a meeting. So very uncool. No one ever calls me during the day, except, apparently, when it is the worst-possible time to call.
• I am the proud owner of a half pound of Kona coffee fresh from Hawaii. Thanks, Normen!
• I think I am going to do it. Apple finally made an MP3 player that I can’t resist. It’s damn cute, damn small, and damn cheap. I’ll be ordering it this weekend.
• Speaking of new toys, I am deciding if I want to upgrade my phone now that I am up for my contract renewal. Part of me wants the new fancy features, but the other part of me is still happy with my two-year-old phone. I guess it depends on how much I want a camera and outside display. I’ll probably wait until a smaller phone comes out. I am a sucker for tiny gadgets.
• Just registered for the WITI conference in October. Sounds like a mixed bag. Talks include “Women at Play: Women as Consumers of Entertainment Technology” and “Turning Walls into Bridges, Becoming The Person You Were Meant to Be.” Hmmm…
• Anna has an interesting post about programming as a kid. Makes me realize how I am really just a wannabe geek. While I was always a fan of computer games and stuff like Print Shop, I never once thought about programming until I got to college.

New stuff

Been a busy (biz-AY) week (isn’t that everyone’s excuse?), so haven’t been posting as much this week. I am trying to get back to a normal routine again, especially with going to the gym, now that I am officially over my cold.

Highlight of the week, so far, was cooking Indian food for the first time. It wasn’t as good as a restaurant, but the cooking adventure was quite fun.

Lots going on this next week that I hope to write about soon. One item on the to-do list: make a pumpkin pie for “practice Thanksgiving” on Sunday. Mmm….pie….

Good, no, great weekend

I think this weekend qualifies as a great weekend. I did a lot of reading, writing, and sleeping, which were great. But if that wasn’t enough, I also checked out the art and wine festival in Mountain View, discovered a cool Persian grocery store that makes serious kabobs, spent some quality time with some good friends, went wine tasting, hiked, and even went to a concert! That falls into the great category, right?