Ooooof!

Swallows drop shadows
In heathery fields as I lie
And watch the river.

Today was Knol's offsite; we decided to go whitewater rafting. A few hours on a river is enough to get to know people. I was really glad for the opportunity to spend time with my team, especially since I work so far away from them.

The river involved some Class III rapids, which isn't, you know, really hardcore, but it was definitely a fun day. Some parts were a challenge. Riding in front was great.

At the stop for lunch, there was a hill unlike any I'd seen in California so far. It was covered in some kind of green and purple grass. No trees. There was a rock at the top that I had to hike up to. Seeing the river (which I guess is the busiest in America for rafting) and the surrounding hills and rocks and trees was really peaceful. :)

So my arms are dead from a full day of rafting today, but the rest of my body is dead from a full weekend of biking in San Francisco. There was a critical mass ride on Friday, and that was a good time. A slew of bikers biking wherever they please through rush hour traffic. Hahaha.

Also Friday was a visit to a jazz club for a band that played lots of awesome tuneage, including a jazzy rendition of "Spanish Castle Magic." Awesome.

Saturday was pretty chill: a visit to the Computer History Museum for a look at Babbage's Difference Engine #2 and a trip to the theater to see Wall-E. So sad.

Sunday? The Gay Pride Parade in SF! Super festive and awesome. Also, the best breakfast ever. Hunger is the best spice, and I was starving. A ride (after many wrong turns) up to Sausalito and a ferry ride back to the city rounded out the day.

And now, I need some sleep. I'll try to edit this post with pictures from the weekend sometime.

Extreme Soreness

Gah! My frickin' legs!
At least I got a nice tan
For compensation.

Right. Too bad that isn't good enough. I spent 5 hours (ish) playing Ultimate this weekend against people from Apple, Facebook, and Yahoo! It was an awesome tournament, to be sure, but I was awfully tired afterwards. Which meant, of course, that I had to go on a 20-25 mile bike ride with Steven and Evan through SF the next day. It was gorgeous! I didn't know that LucasArts was based in SF, either, so that was neat to see.

I have to say that biking across the Golden Gate bridge was pretty rewarding, too. Despite the fact that, while going around the columny pillary things, I almost blew off. Ridiculous wind!

And then there was Ghiradelli square. I got the MOST AMAZING ICE CREAM SUNDAE ever! Scoop of mint dark chocolate chip ice cream + dark hot fudge + scoop of dark chocolate ice cream + more dark hot fudge + whipped cream + nuts + little square of Ghiradelli mint dark chocolate = very happy Valkyrie.

I'm enjoying the sense of camaraderie that's beginning. Randomly on the train Evan, Steven, and I started talking to some guys who happen to be interns at Apple. We even had lunch with them. Gasp. But I think that all the inter-company intern things could be a lot of fun. I'm looking forward to the currently-nebulous Google-Apple soccer game or CTF game. :D

:D

Good feelings don't end
Under a cloudless blue sky
Such happy people!

I still can't get over the general cheeriness of people around this place. No one ever looks grouchy. I'd say they must love the sunshine, but no one ever looks tan, either... haha, I kid, of course.

I rode the conference bike. It's amazing. And yesterday was bike to work day, so there were a couple of other "festivities" related to the occasion, including free massages, Google shampoo/conditioner/bodywash/lotion that was all (of course) organic, and rides on a crazy carriage bicycle. Woot!

Oh, and people don't lie. The water here is freezing.

Adventure

Craziness is great,
With no shortage of people
To follow along.

Our alliteration house is complete! Sam arrived two nights ago now, I guess. Sam Slee, Steven Soneff, Sarah, and Savage reside in Somerset for the Summer. Ouch.

There was a trip to look at stars from the top of the pile of garbage (i.e. Shoreline) behind Google, but, alas, the light pollution here is killer. It's really too bad. There's talk of a biking trip this weekend to find some stars, though. I went for a bike ride yesterday to Palo Alto, and that was nice. It got really hot here, though. :(

The new intern crop seems interesting. I've only met a couple of them thus far, but I suppose it's only their third day today. Maybe one or more of them will be absorbed into the group. That would be convenient. :D

There's so many things to explore! Cafes all over the place, for one. And the bike trails here are nice. It's been a long time since I've smelled salt water, so getting back to that was great, too. It's a wonder anyone gets any work done around here.