First day in new apartment

Today I woke up in a new apartment. Just now I am sitting on the terrace behind the soon-to-be-mine room:
That's how it is in a hilly city! Currently I am still sleeping on the sofa in the living room - I had to leave the dorm already and my predecessor in the new room is staying one week longer.

First days

Ok, I'll start writing a German version additionally to the main English version!
I heard the story of how Google developed the projects culture by Craig Silverstein - the third Google employee, in a setting of about 20 people... read a lot about the internal tools which are just crazy and met nice people! And of course had super food...
I'm moving, too. Yesterday was my last day in Rains (dorms) at the University - now my car's in the underground parking full of stuff... waiting to be taken to the city and the new apartment! :-D
This afternoon will be the big every week all hands meeting where the new regulars and interns will be presented. Rare occasion to take pictures. Just wait a couple and check back here!

Kleiner test - und neue Arbeit

Ich werde jetzt mal gucken ob sich jemand beschwert wenn ich auf Deutsch schreibe. Ich glaube das ist im großen und ganzen die bessere Lösung - aber erstmal testen!

So, ich hab jetzt ne neue Arbeit. Seit gestern - heute sind drei Ballons und Schokolade an meinem Tisch ;-)
Gestern war also mein erster Tag - und da habe ich quasi nur Administrativa gehabt. Zum Beispiel wird man natürlich auf die ganzen Sicherheitsgeschichten eingeschworen - zum Beispiel darf man keine Fotos machen :-/ , deswegen gibt's hier auch keine. Hoffentlich findet sich ja mal ne Lösung...
Mit mir kamen auch haufenweise andere Praktikanten - auch ein paar die ich aus meinen Vorlesungen kannte. Dann gab's Papierkram, ne Führung, gutes Essen und talks. Ich weiss jetzt wie man intern Emails lesen kann - vielmehr darf ich schon nicht mehr sagen ;-)
Dann ging's zu meiner Gastgeberin Gwen. Super nett - mein Team spricht man alle größeren Sprachen.
Heute Abend gibts schon eine Kennenlernparty irgendwo in Mountain View. Übermorgen muss ich übrigens aus meiner Bude raus und rüber nach SF. Diese Woche ist noch sehr hektisch...

A small part of the lives of others here

Google raised some attention with pics from our Campus. Well that's the world of undergrads - quite distant from what you experience as grad student. You drive past, but otherwise - parties and so on - I haven't really gotten to much. Sad sad sad.
And now it's already over! One week and the second quarter will be over - and only work is left! Hum.
I have to get back to my paper... in my next life I am an undergrad.

Funny funny and some info

Pic and text behind this
That's some of what I'm doing - looking ridiculous.

Going on!

This is almost over! I got an intership for the summer with a big internet company - I am going to work on internationalization in a French team :-D

One of the first letters they sent me:
1. What would you like your username to be (i.e. firstname@, lastname@)? Please provide your top three choices.
2. What would you like your computer name to be? Please provide your top three names.
3. What size t-shirt do you prefer?

Oh yeah, I like "What would you like your computer name to be?"

And if you wondered where the palms grew here on campus, I have to disappoint you. They grow on trucks:


So lets see if I can bring up some more pix when the quarter finished in 3 weeks...

Some movements

Well, I got busy - Claire was here, I'm taking three lectures and I try to get ahead with my master work.
One software design class, one in information goods strategy at the business school and ... marketing at Management and Engineering.

I've been to Las Vegas (3 hours) and the Grand Canyon. [Somehow I don't find the pictures right now...]

Well, let's see when I will put some stuff up here. Tomorrow I will fetch Jan from San Jose - so I'll have a busy weekend!