battle

great engadget article today:

>> apple vs. google gets personal

favorite quotes:

"The people who create the apps serve at the landlord's pleasure and fear his anger. I hate it."

except strike "create the apps" and insert "work at the company"... oops did i say that out loud?

"Apple apparently thinks you can have the benefits of the Internet while at the same time controlling what programs can be run and what parts of the stack can be accessed and what developers can say to each other."

what are they, China?

on a more fun note - my bossboss was in the SF chronicle recently:

>> from sneakers to smartphones

deep thoughts

... in TV commercial land:

"if you don't do it this year, you'll be one year older when you do."

brilliant!

we had a baby!

originally uploaded by megang on 1st October, 2009.

sorry for the radio silence... it's been a little busy.

hazel lee donahue
born sept 22 2009 in kirkland, wa
6lbs 10oz
20 inches long

enjoy some pictures in the meantime!

nursery

our nursery
Originally uploaded by megang on 17th September, 2009.

the second to last room to reach completion in the new house... just in the nick of time!

finishing rooms

well the house is mostly livable now! yesterday we spent a good chuck of time at our new favorite store, storables, and picked out a complicated set of metro wire shelving to install in the upstairs office-slash-guestroom.

unfortunately, our timing to shop was pretty terrible -- the store is in the "U-Village" which is essentially a nice little shopping plaza in the heart of the U-Dub campus...

(aka the university of washington)

(we're going to have to become huskies fans if we stay here much longer)

to get home - we have to drive on a street that runs through the thick of campus -- and RIGHT PAST THE U-DUB FOOTBALL STADIUM.

yesterday, the huskies were playing USC. at home. the game ended right around 3:30. we finished shopping, oh, right around 3:45. perfect timing. they closed our main arterial road to home and we had to re-route ourselves in a GIANT circle east, north, west, then south of where we needed to go to get home.

an hour later... what should have been a 10 minute trip was finally complete. sigh. stupid us. i guess you need to do that once to learn the rule: never drive to u-dub on football saturdays.

but the office looks great! we have plenty of room for all our stuff -- conor's recording equipment & guitars, my sewing stuff, our craft stuff, his baseball card collection, plus a desk for me to make a little office for my computer, printer, and filing cabinent/bills/paperwork.

and, we still have room for our awesome new sleeper sofa. we went top of the line with this baby, so that our moms will have a comfortable place to rest when they come help us with the new kiddo... it's not your standard sleeper. it's a queen size, with a special mechanical setup that gives you a cushy, flat mattress -- not those paper-thin kind that just in half. pimpin'.

topped the night off by hanging the last of our art.

now the only thing left to do is the pez wall display!

both sides to every story

i can honestly say that i'm completely neutral when it comes to my preference of one giant tech company vs another. i can say this because both apple and microsoft have been major contributors to my awesome career, current lifestyle, circle of friends, happiness & stress, etc. they each have their strengths. they each have their weaknesses. at the end of the day, they are both companies just trying to be successful, and deliver cool stuff to their customers.

but i do get really annoyed when people bicker about them like partisan politics. because as much as they are both great companies - they are also both HUGE companies. some people don't like big companies -- and i can totally respect and understand that. but don't act like apple is an innocent child and microsoft is a monster. sure, microsoft was the first giant... but it's no longer the ONLY giant. the people who run these companies are all cut from the same mold.

so i guess i just breathed a slight sigh of relief to see that finally, someone else sees this too:

>> apple's animal farm

and that's all i'm going to say, because i don't like to blog about work-related things. i am scared of crossing that ever-so-sensitive line of appropriateness. but i did want to share this article, because i think it's really important for people to read.

goodbye.

swollen

well - i hoped i could make it through the pregnancy without getting the dreaded swollen feet that i have heard/read so much about.

but alas - at 2 weeks to go, my right foot officially became a marshmallow.

at 1 week to go - my left one has joined it.

two giant marshmallow feet.

... at least my hands aren't swollen and i can still wear my wedding rings!!

and i don't have any stretch marks either - which is AWESOME. if anyone out there reading this is pregnant -- go buy a bottle of this stuff:

>> spoiled mama bump gloss

i swear by it.

18 days and counting

it feels nice to finally be in the homestretch of the end of this pregnancy.

yesterday at work i had the first conversation with one of my counterparts, about how to cover for me while i'm off on leave... i also came to the conclusion that there is one area of my responsibilities that is better left to no one covering for me (and instead them calling me in a panic if something goes haywire). because even in my post-natal haze, i think it would be better for all. i think everyone agreed.

it's a good feeling to be needed. :)

and next week was supposed to be my last full week IN the office, with the next one being my last official week, but me working from home. but next week is a short week, due to labor day on monday, and a GIANT COMPANY MEETING on thursday.

so i may pop in for 1 or 2 days the following week afterall, depending how i feel. right now i feel fine/great - so i'm assuming that:

a) this kid is not ready to come out, and will be late, and
b) that working in the office for 2 days that week will be fine.

but who knows - every day is a new day when you're 8.5 months pregnant!

i'm just happy next week should go by quickly.

i'm very curious about the GIANT COMPANY MEETING - it's so big it will be held in safeco field (where the mariners play). i suspect there will be a lot of kool-aid. i suspect it will be pretty corporate-ific. i suspect i'll find it strangely hilarious, entertaining and uber-scary all at once...

i used to feel that way about the old apple meetings too. little miss skeptical. i just can't get excited about office enthusiasm - i sit and stare strangely at the Big Man up on the stage and wonder how much of what he's saying is smoke and mirrors. lies to make us feel better - or maybe half-truths. then i have to remind myself "hey! he pays your bills. be nice!" so that i can half-enjoy the show...

i guess the intent is always good - make the employees feel like a family, even if it's a GIANT FAMILY that can't fit in one room. and sometimes you get gifts. gifts are good.

maybe i just miss the old shockwave company meetings where we could fit in one room... and where i inherently trusted the people in charge - mika & margaret were good people. besides, they knew my name & face. that goes a long way. small companies are nice.

but i'm on a tangent. 18 days.

18 days left until i start the new countdown (being: "how many extra days will this baby hang-out inside my uterus until my doctor induces me? please god don't be 14").

i was thinking it would be cool to go into labor on labor day -- seems appropriate and fitting, given the name of the day. but that's kinda early (as in like 2 days from now), so maybe not...

i was also thinking it would be cool to have the baby next wednesday, so its birthday could be 09.09.09. but, we are supposed to have a new couch & another piece of furniture both delivered to our house that day -- so conor wasn't keen on the idea (he doesn't want to reschedule the deliveries).

so - if it's not gonna be this week, then we need to wait until the following week. i don't want it to be born on the same day as its dad (sept 12). i'm a big believer that everyone in a family should have distinct birthdays, all their own.

sharing birthdays is sucky and lame.

(btw, conor turns the big 3-0 next saturday! fun!)

of course, its all speculation anyways. i'll just keep staring at this giant belly every day, and all the cantelope-sized parts that are moving around in it, and wait.

i've been waiting 9 months already - whats another couple weeks of poor sleep, swollen feet, incessant urination, acid reflux, and wearing clothing that no longer fits?

no comment...

i laughed out loud when my friend sent this to me.

i wonder how long it will stay up?

>> http://www.apple.com/jobs/us/corporate.html

expanding

originally uploaded by megang on 27th August, 2009.

this one is for sarah. happy?