Ed Martin's Blog
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Ed likes food, wine, skiing, golf, fly-fishing, single-malt Scotch, and writing about himself in the 3rd person. He lives in Napa with his wife, baby daughter, and 2 cats, which is odd because before his wife, he hated cats. He still hates most cats, but he does like his 2.
Ed has a degree in Computer Science from the University of California, Davis, as well as a minor degree in Sociology. He also has extensive project management training. As a career, he's chosen a software engineering. In particular, he's done a lot of consulting and engineering management, mostly with RDBMS, Microsoft .Net and Java technologies, in a variety of industries. Most of his business expertise is in loyalty and marketing solutions and wine information systems.
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Power to the People!
Back in March, I blogged about a bad community housing project going up near my neighborhood. This past Thursday, Nicki and some of our "activist neighbors" went before the Napa Planning Commission to present their opposition to the project. As reported by the local Napa paper, the Planning Commission was empathetic to our position and effectively delayed the project for the year in order to research alternatives.
A few of the salient quotes from the article...
A few of the salient quotes from the article...
Commissioners again sided with neighbors who said the proposed three-story building is too tall and 30 apartments too dense for a one-acre parcel near their one-story homes.
Commission Chair Michelle Benvenuto took the developer, Napa Valley Community Housing, to task for not being willing to shrink the number of units.
“It’s so obvious that this project does not fit the neighborhood,” said Benvenuto, who favored a two-story cap as residents had requested.
“The neighbors feel a three-story monster is being crammed down their throat” ... and they’re right, Commissioner Gordon Huether said.
Benvenuto said the problem is that the housing non-profit paid too much for the property at 535 Coombsville Road, then asked the neighborhood to live with their mistake.
“We screwed up and now we’re going to sue you,” said Benvenuto, alluding to the pressure on the city to comply with state affordable housing dictates.
Neighbors strenuously objected. They presented a model showing the proposed apartments dwarfing their homes like a cruise ship among dinghies.
Even though he supports the housing project, Commissioner Basayne agreed that “the traffic situation is abhorrent and a threat to that neighborhood.”
Now we have to find a lawyer to help us.. probably a good land use attorney.Commission Chair Michelle Benvenuto took the developer, Napa Valley Community Housing, to task for not being willing to shrink the number of units.
“It’s so obvious that this project does not fit the neighborhood,” said Benvenuto, who favored a two-story cap as residents had requested.
“The neighbors feel a three-story monster is being crammed down their throat” ... and they’re right, Commissioner Gordon Huether said.
Benvenuto said the problem is that the housing non-profit paid too much for the property at 535 Coombsville Road, then asked the neighborhood to live with their mistake.
“We screwed up and now we’re going to sue you,” said Benvenuto, alluding to the pressure on the city to comply with state affordable housing dictates.
Neighbors strenuously objected. They presented a model showing the proposed apartments dwarfing their homes like a cruise ship among dinghies.
Even though he supports the housing project, Commissioner Basayne agreed that “the traffic situation is abhorrent and a threat to that neighborhood.”
Social Networking as a Presidential Campaign Tool
I was on LinkedIn a couple of days ago and found Barack Obama had
posted a question: "What ideas do you have to keep America competitive in the years ahead?".
Curious, I had to check out his profile. There he was. US Senator, Presidential Candidate. He was a super-node, i.e. he had 500+ connections. And over 2900 people had answered his question.
Of course, I had to invite him into my network. I used the default LinkedIn invitation, plus a sentence indicating I'd be voting for him in November. I wasn't sure if I'd get a reply, but today...
I think it's cool that our future president is in my network (though I'm sure it's a team of campaign lackeys handling all the the friend requests). It further validates what I've seen of him thus far: he understands technology and how to use it strategically (of course he was going to accept my invite!). He's asking a fairly well educated crowd their opinion, and there are some good answers in there (this exercise is left to the reader to find the good answers -- that's not what this post is about).
If you haven't read Marc Andreesen's post about Obama, it had left an impression with me, especially Obama's line "Watch how I run my campaign. You'll see my leadership skills in action." I've been impressed with his ability to manage and lead and his, or at least his campaign team's, creativity. His use of LinkedIn to solicit feedback and his non-use of public campaign financing are two good recent examples. He's going to run circles around McCain.
I figure there were hundreds of thousands that would add him to their networks. I would think it would affect their friend updates feature, expanding it exponentially. However, I've not yet received any updates that says who Barack Obama has added as a friend, so I'm guessing his network privacy settings are maxed.
For those that didn't think to add him as a friend, there's also a Barack Obama LinkedIn group, as well as links to his web site BarackObama.com.
For any of you McCain supporters out there, does he really not know how to use a computer?
Curious, I had to check out his profile. There he was. US Senator, Presidential Candidate. He was a super-node, i.e. he had 500+ connections. And over 2900 people had answered his question.
Of course, I had to invite him into my network. I used the default LinkedIn invitation, plus a sentence indicating I'd be voting for him in November. I wasn't sure if I'd get a reply, but today...
I think it's cool that our future president is in my network (though I'm sure it's a team of campaign lackeys handling all the the friend requests). It further validates what I've seen of him thus far: he understands technology and how to use it strategically (of course he was going to accept my invite!). He's asking a fairly well educated crowd their opinion, and there are some good answers in there (this exercise is left to the reader to find the good answers -- that's not what this post is about).
If you haven't read Marc Andreesen's post about Obama, it had left an impression with me, especially Obama's line "Watch how I run my campaign. You'll see my leadership skills in action." I've been impressed with his ability to manage and lead and his, or at least his campaign team's, creativity. His use of LinkedIn to solicit feedback and his non-use of public campaign financing are two good recent examples. He's going to run circles around McCain.
I figure there were hundreds of thousands that would add him to their networks. I would think it would affect their friend updates feature, expanding it exponentially. However, I've not yet received any updates that says who Barack Obama has added as a friend, so I'm guessing his network privacy settings are maxed.
For those that didn't think to add him as a friend, there's also a Barack Obama LinkedIn group, as well as links to his web site BarackObama.com.
For any of you McCain supporters out there, does he really not know how to use a computer?
More on Ubuntu
"Ubuntu" has entered the American lexicon. It means "I am because of you", or something like that.
I just blogged a few days about the restaurant Ubuntu (which is getting some fabulous press), and the also about the Boston Celtics (who didn't??). Now I read that Ubuntu was the theme of the Boston Celtics' championship run. The post explains Ubuntu in more detail.
I find it an amusing coincidence.
I just blogged a few days about the restaurant Ubuntu (which is getting some fabulous press), and the also about the Boston Celtics (who didn't??). Now I read that Ubuntu was the theme of the Boston Celtics' championship run. The post explains Ubuntu in more detail.
I find it an amusing coincidence.
Ubuntu - Would you like some yoga with your meal?
Ubuntu is a yoga studio/vegetarian restaurant that opened up in downtown Napa in the last year. That's right - a yoga studio and restaurant. I'm not into yoga, but I'd been to Greens and Millenium in San Francisco a few times, so I'm not totally opposed to non-meat meals. But only once in a while.
I had actually walked by the restaurant when it first opened, took one look at their menu (and their yoga studio), snickered, and walked away. I read a review about the restaurant recently (I thought it was in SFGate, but I can't find it -- all I found was this.), and it said the menu had improved. It went on to describe some meals, and it sounded interesting. Also, the chef's once worked at Manresa's in the South Bay, so it couldn't be that bad.
And it wasn't. In fact, it was pretty good. I personally don't think it's better than Greens, but it was definitely better than Millenium. If you read the review, there are some dish comparisons to Chez Panisse and French Laundry. Some of the things I've had were on par with some courses I've had at Chez Panisse, but way off the mark from what's served at French Laundry.
The best thing I had was the fried chick pea fries and romesco sauce. As for the other plates, there were some interesting combinations, and everything was highly aromatic and flavorful. We had Carrot and Lemongrass cold soup, Panzanella (bread and green salad with grilled peaches and cheese), Musica (curried cauliflower stew in a cast iron pot), and dessert we had was cheesecake in a jar and corn pudding.
One gripe I had was the menu selection. One third of the menu was dedicated to a tasting menu, and I thought the waitress said we could select things off the tasting menu a la carte. We couldn't. And while the tasting menu looked tempting, it was $85 per person. All I could think was, "I'm not paying $85 for a bunch of rabbit food".
As good as Ubuntu is, I don't think this restaurant is going to survive. It will get by for a few years, but the fad will pass. If it were in San Francisco, Oakland, or Berkeley, I'd give it a much longer lifespan, since there's more of a market for good vegetarian food (and yoga). For a restaurant to survive in Napa (the town proper), you've got to get locals coming back during the slow times. The rest of the time, it will rely on tourists, and I'll boldly say that most tourists are not vegetarians.
On top of that, most tourists visit Napa for the wines. I know after a day of wine tasting, I do not want an all vegetable meal. I want a filet with that nice Cabernet Sauvignon I just shelled out all those bucks for.
All the same, I'd like to try Ubuntu again. I didn't get a chance to try their pizzas, and they looked really good. But Pizza Azzuro makes excellent thin crust pizzas and costs less. And they serve meat, sans yoga.
I had actually walked by the restaurant when it first opened, took one look at their menu (and their yoga studio), snickered, and walked away. I read a review about the restaurant recently (I thought it was in SFGate, but I can't find it -- all I found was this.), and it said the menu had improved. It went on to describe some meals, and it sounded interesting. Also, the chef's once worked at Manresa's in the South Bay, so it couldn't be that bad.
And it wasn't. In fact, it was pretty good. I personally don't think it's better than Greens, but it was definitely better than Millenium. If you read the review, there are some dish comparisons to Chez Panisse and French Laundry. Some of the things I've had were on par with some courses I've had at Chez Panisse, but way off the mark from what's served at French Laundry.
The best thing I had was the fried chick pea fries and romesco sauce. As for the other plates, there were some interesting combinations, and everything was highly aromatic and flavorful. We had Carrot and Lemongrass cold soup, Panzanella (bread and green salad with grilled peaches and cheese), Musica (curried cauliflower stew in a cast iron pot), and dessert we had was cheesecake in a jar and corn pudding.
One gripe I had was the menu selection. One third of the menu was dedicated to a tasting menu, and I thought the waitress said we could select things off the tasting menu a la carte. We couldn't. And while the tasting menu looked tempting, it was $85 per person. All I could think was, "I'm not paying $85 for a bunch of rabbit food".
As good as Ubuntu is, I don't think this restaurant is going to survive. It will get by for a few years, but the fad will pass. If it were in San Francisco, Oakland, or Berkeley, I'd give it a much longer lifespan, since there's more of a market for good vegetarian food (and yoga). For a restaurant to survive in Napa (the town proper), you've got to get locals coming back during the slow times. The rest of the time, it will rely on tourists, and I'll boldly say that most tourists are not vegetarians.
On top of that, most tourists visit Napa for the wines. I know after a day of wine tasting, I do not want an all vegetable meal. I want a filet with that nice Cabernet Sauvignon I just shelled out all those bucks for.
All the same, I'd like to try Ubuntu again. I didn't get a chance to try their pizzas, and they looked really good. But Pizza Azzuro makes excellent thin crust pizzas and costs less. And they serve meat, sans yoga.
Bad Boss Behavior
Came across an interesting article from BNet on Bad Boss Behavior that's worth a read. Real quickly, here's the run down on the behaviors:
The one that hit home is the vignette on how to handle Vague Priorities:
Earlier in my career, I'd never thought to question the priority, but for different reasons than Ken Evans. I always figured the boss was boss for a reason (I blame my strict Asian parents who inculcated me to respect authority figures). I've long since purged that naivete out of my system.
Asking for the desired outcome is something I will start doing, and it seems like such an obvious thing to do. Although I don't think I ask this question because I believe the outcome should present itself as part of trying to understand the priority. However, I think the real challenge will be trying to determine if the desired outcome is the correct one and convincing your boss otherwise if it's not.
- Chronic Micromanagement
- Vague Priorities
- Explosive Temper
- Absurd Expectations
- Belittles You in Public
- Avoids Difficult Decisions
- Demands Unreasonably Long Hours
The one that hit home is the vignette on how to handle Vague Priorities:
"When I was younger, I was scared to ask the boss to clarify things because I was afraid of looking stupid. Now I know that there are two questions that are never stupid: 'Why are we doing this?' and 'What is the outcome you want?' In other words, if you don't know what's expected, it's your job to get a clarification."
—Ken Evans, former VP of sales and marketing at Waste Management, currently a management consultant at CP Strategies
—Ken Evans, former VP of sales and marketing at Waste Management, currently a management consultant at CP Strategies
Earlier in my career, I'd never thought to question the priority, but for different reasons than Ken Evans. I always figured the boss was boss for a reason (I blame my strict Asian parents who inculcated me to respect authority figures). I've long since purged that naivete out of my system.
Asking for the desired outcome is something I will start doing, and it seems like such an obvious thing to do. Although I don't think I ask this question because I believe the outcome should present itself as part of trying to understand the priority. However, I think the real challenge will be trying to determine if the desired outcome is the correct one and convincing your boss otherwise if it's not.
Going Green
Congratulations to the Boston Celtics for winning their 17th championship. Having grown up a Laker fan during the Showtime years, I found it odd that I was actually rooting for the Celtics.
Partially, I like that Boston has Pierce, Garnett, and Allen -- 3 classy, all-star players who have been at it a long time without winning a championship. Those 3 guys deserve a championship. Mainly, I think it's because I don't like Kobe Bryant.
Don't get me wrong, Kobe is an excellent player -- probably the best there is right now. But I think he and Shaq blew it because they couldn't get along. They could have been better than Jordan and Pippen, but their massive egos got in the way. With Showtime, Magic at least acknowledged it was Kareem's team, and the torch was clearly handed to Magic later on. Shaq and Kobe could have done the same. Sigh, what could have been.
Speaking of green(s), that was an amazing US Open championship, with Tiger sinking 2 clutch birdie shots on the 18th green. It was probably the best golf competition I'll have witnessed in my lifetime. And Tiger's legend continues to grow.
But on to my last, and totally not-sports related green topic...
TechCrunch, the quintessential Silicon Valley technology blog, posted an article about Greenopolis, a green social networking site I wrote about back in April. I found it odd that Greenopolis even came up on their radar, since TechCrunch typically focuses on technology startups and companies, not on billion dollar, non-technology Fortune 100 companies. But I guess that's what a good PR firm does: they get the word out.
The TechCrunch critique was that Greenopolis was an advertisement for WMI, and it should have been done on Facebook or MySpace. Maybe. Given what I know WMI wants to do with Greenopolis, having some control of the social networking app may be better. Besides, they can always hook into Facebook or MySpace.
BTW, my Greenopolis badge is on my home page. Based on my activity, you'll see my current level is "Yellow". And you thought I was going to say green.
Partially, I like that Boston has Pierce, Garnett, and Allen -- 3 classy, all-star players who have been at it a long time without winning a championship. Those 3 guys deserve a championship. Mainly, I think it's because I don't like Kobe Bryant.
Don't get me wrong, Kobe is an excellent player -- probably the best there is right now. But I think he and Shaq blew it because they couldn't get along. They could have been better than Jordan and Pippen, but their massive egos got in the way. With Showtime, Magic at least acknowledged it was Kareem's team, and the torch was clearly handed to Magic later on. Shaq and Kobe could have done the same. Sigh, what could have been.
Speaking of green(s), that was an amazing US Open championship, with Tiger sinking 2 clutch birdie shots on the 18th green. It was probably the best golf competition I'll have witnessed in my lifetime. And Tiger's legend continues to grow.
But on to my last, and totally not-sports related green topic...
TechCrunch, the quintessential Silicon Valley technology blog, posted an article about Greenopolis, a green social networking site I wrote about back in April. I found it odd that Greenopolis even came up on their radar, since TechCrunch typically focuses on technology startups and companies, not on billion dollar, non-technology Fortune 100 companies. But I guess that's what a good PR firm does: they get the word out.
The TechCrunch critique was that Greenopolis was an advertisement for WMI, and it should have been done on Facebook or MySpace. Maybe. Given what I know WMI wants to do with Greenopolis, having some control of the social networking app may be better. Besides, they can always hook into Facebook or MySpace.
BTW, my Greenopolis badge is on my home page. Based on my activity, you'll see my current level is "Yellow". And you thought I was going to say green.
Loyalty Lab press from Microsoft
There's some nice coverage of us on Microsoft Startup Zone. As a founder, I was involved in many of the things written about in the article.
On the decision to go with Microsoft vs. Java, I remember being questioned by some of our early advisers about this choice, and while we defended our position pretty well, the fact that our application has withstood this long is probably the best proof we made the right decision.
I was also involved in the Microsoft Architecture Review down at the MS Technology Center down in Mountain View. The biggest piece of advice we got there was to go to the 64-bit version of SQL Server 2005. Excellent call.
The HSBC news is a big deal. We've had a partnership with them for over a year dealing with one aspect of their credit card business. With this new deal, it's going to get interesting.
One correction: Virgin America is our client, not Virgin Atlantic.
On the decision to go with Microsoft vs. Java, I remember being questioned by some of our early advisers about this choice, and while we defended our position pretty well, the fact that our application has withstood this long is probably the best proof we made the right decision.
I was also involved in the Microsoft Architecture Review down at the MS Technology Center down in Mountain View. The biggest piece of advice we got there was to go to the 64-bit version of SQL Server 2005. Excellent call.
The HSBC news is a big deal. We've had a partnership with them for over a year dealing with one aspect of their credit card business. With this new deal, it's going to get interesting.
One correction: Virgin America is our client, not Virgin Atlantic.
Goodbye Ferry (or Vallejo is run by idiots)
You've read the headlines from last month. Vallejo has filed for bankruptcy. That's sign #1 that the city council is incompetent. Sign #2 is the ridiculous fare hike they've imposed on ferry riders. They have upped the monthly pass from $270/month to a whopping $320/month. And on July 1, if the price of fuel is $4 per gallon or higher, they will add another $20 to that price. Seeing as how the national average for fuel is currently $4 per gallon, the price is almost certain to go up.
I have been riding the Vallejo Baylink Ferry for over 4.5 years. It is one of the more relaxing ways to commute. The ride is (usually) smooth, the commute length is consistent (no traffic jams on the bay), and I can buy beer (or wine or Scotch for those bad days) and snacks on the boat. Given the price increases, I had to re-evaluate my options.
Being a geek, I had to break down all my commute options in Excel to see which was most cost effective. Most of the results seemed obvious, but my final commute choice was unexpected. Here's how it broke down in terms of annual costs, most expensive to least with door-to-door round trip times in parentheses...
Sadly, carpooling was my best option. Although I don't get to drink on my commute anymore, it is cheaper, safer, and a lot faster than all the other options.
$3300 seem low to you considering most garages in the financial district charge $30/day in parking? Well, I found a $8/day lot 4.5 blocks from my office. And even at $30/day parking, it's still cheaper than the ferry!
So, armed with a simple spreadsheet, I was able to quickly determine that EVERY commute option was cheaper than the ferry and almost all were faster. Who in their right minds would choose a fare hike without analyzing other ways of dealing with the rising fuel costs? Advertising the ferry more to increase ridership? More ads in the boat? Ads outside the boat? Negotiated fuel costs? Add a mast and sail to the ferry???
I can only conclude... Vallejo must be run by idiots.
I have been riding the Vallejo Baylink Ferry for over 4.5 years. It is one of the more relaxing ways to commute. The ride is (usually) smooth, the commute length is consistent (no traffic jams on the bay), and I can buy beer (or wine or Scotch for those bad days) and snacks on the boat. Given the price increases, I had to re-evaluate my options.
Being a geek, I had to break down all my commute options in Excel to see which was most cost effective. Most of the results seemed obvious, but my final commute choice was unexpected. Here's how it broke down in terms of annual costs, most expensive to least with door-to-door round trip times in parentheses...
- Ferry - $5700 (200 minutes)
- Drive/BART - $5300 (180 minutes)
- Bus/BART - $4600 (200 minutes)
- Carpooling - $3300 (140 minutes)
- Casual Carpool - $1520 (180 minutes)
Sadly, carpooling was my best option. Although I don't get to drink on my commute anymore, it is cheaper, safer, and a lot faster than all the other options.
$3300 seem low to you considering most garages in the financial district charge $30/day in parking? Well, I found a $8/day lot 4.5 blocks from my office. And even at $30/day parking, it's still cheaper than the ferry!
So, armed with a simple spreadsheet, I was able to quickly determine that EVERY commute option was cheaper than the ferry and almost all were faster. Who in their right minds would choose a fare hike without analyzing other ways of dealing with the rising fuel costs? Advertising the ferry more to increase ridership? More ads in the boat? Ads outside the boat? Negotiated fuel costs? Add a mast and sail to the ferry???
I can only conclude... Vallejo must be run by idiots.
Napa Valley Recommendations from a Local
Living in the Napa, I'm regularly asked by out-of-town visitors where to go in the Napa Valley. Going through some old emails today, I found one of my more decent responses, which I'm posting here:
Happy to provide recommendations to visitors.
I don’t stay in hotels in Napa Valley to really know, but the top recommendations I always hear about are these:
If you like architecture with your wine…
Now if you really just love wine…
Happy to provide recommendations to visitors.
I don’t stay in hotels in Napa Valley to really know, but the top recommendations I always hear about are these:
- Auberge du Soleil – expensive, but really, really nice
- Napa River Inn – this is in downtown Napa, but the hotel is really nice. Right on the Napa River
- Carneros Inn – I have no idea why this is so popular, but it is. The restaurants at this hotel are pretty good.
- Sonoma Mission Inn – Not really in Napa, but still in wine country. My sister-in-law has stayed there several times and loves it.
- French Laundry (Yountville) - Good luck trying to get a reservation, but probably will be the best dining experience of your life if you get it.
- Brix (Yountville)
- Bistro Jeanty (Yountville)
- Cindy’s Backstreet Kitchen (St. Helena)
- Market (St. Helena)
- Martini House (St. Helena)
- Go Fish (Rutherford)
- Robert Mondavi (if you want a really good tour)
- Sterling (if you want an attraction)
- V. Sattui (if you want a picnic)
If you like architecture with your wine…
- Quixote
- Artesa
- Darioush
- Villa Amorosa
- Hess Collection
- Clos Pegase
Now if you really just love wine…
- Silver Oak
- Opus
- Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars
- Nickel & Nickel
- Duckhorn
- Chateau Montelena
Catching Up
Ok, friends and family. I know I've been a bit of hermit for a while, and I've hardly posted anything, so this is what's been going on in my life for the past couple of months.
Work is busy. I've been to New Hampshire and New York in the last 2 months, leaving Nyssa and Nicki for a few days at a time. New Hampshire was cold, and it looked a lot like an L.L. Bean catalog. I did some work there with WMI, one of our clients. They're launching a green social network called Greenopolis, and Loyalty Lab is powering some of the back end computing platform for it.
New York was a lot more fun, because I got to stay near Times Square, at the Paramount Hotel. I got to dine at a couple of good restaurants: Blue Fin at the W hotel and Porter House at the Time Warner Building. Oh yeah, I also spent time with a couple of clients -- 1800Flowers and Jones Apparel Group.
Tomorrow, we have our user summit/conference, and I'm giving a brief presentation on some of our product's capabilities. It's been a while since I've presented to a group of people face-to-face. Most of my presentations are done over a GoToMeeting session. There are also some crazy-large clients that we're trying to go after. You'll hear about some of them soon, but it's shown how far along we've come as a company.
In my personal life, things are still busy, but having a 6 month old can do that to you. Yes, Nyssa is 6 months old! We bought her a jumpy chair, and she's an absolute maniac on it. We also had her baptized last month. Her sleep pattern has been a bit irregular, so I've not personally slept well either. I also haven't been working out as often, but I've signed up to do the Wharf-to-Wharf in July, a 10K from Santa Cruz to Capitola. I need to start getting back in shape. I've done this run almost every year since 1995. I missed last year because I had my appendix taken out.
Lots of stuff going on around the house and neighborhood. We just had our house painted, and we need to put a new roof on. We also had some work done inside the house - improvements to Nyssa's room, some bathroom work, and some new door handles. Nicki hired someone to do it, because I never seem to have the time.
In our neighborhood, a bunch of us (well, more Nicki than me) are fighting to stop a low income housing project from being put in. I'm for low income housing, but they're making it too dense in an area that has bad traffic problems already.
I played in a golf tournament hosted by my brother this past weekend. He and his college buddies host 4 tournaments a year, and the course is selected by the previous year's winner. Lucky Engel, he won last year. He smartly decided to host it at the Callipe Preserve Golf Club in Pleasanton, where it was played the previous year. It is an absolutely gorgeous course, with amazing views, and a very challenging layout. I shot a 108, but I played many of the holes very well, including some pars and bogie holes. My goal for next year is to shoot 100 or less.
Cheers!
Work is busy. I've been to New Hampshire and New York in the last 2 months, leaving Nyssa and Nicki for a few days at a time. New Hampshire was cold, and it looked a lot like an L.L. Bean catalog. I did some work there with WMI, one of our clients. They're launching a green social network called Greenopolis, and Loyalty Lab is powering some of the back end computing platform for it.
New York was a lot more fun, because I got to stay near Times Square, at the Paramount Hotel. I got to dine at a couple of good restaurants: Blue Fin at the W hotel and Porter House at the Time Warner Building. Oh yeah, I also spent time with a couple of clients -- 1800Flowers and Jones Apparel Group.
Tomorrow, we have our user summit/conference, and I'm giving a brief presentation on some of our product's capabilities. It's been a while since I've presented to a group of people face-to-face. Most of my presentations are done over a GoToMeeting session. There are also some crazy-large clients that we're trying to go after. You'll hear about some of them soon, but it's shown how far along we've come as a company.
In my personal life, things are still busy, but having a 6 month old can do that to you. Yes, Nyssa is 6 months old! We bought her a jumpy chair, and she's an absolute maniac on it. We also had her baptized last month. Her sleep pattern has been a bit irregular, so I've not personally slept well either. I also haven't been working out as often, but I've signed up to do the Wharf-to-Wharf in July, a 10K from Santa Cruz to Capitola. I need to start getting back in shape. I've done this run almost every year since 1995. I missed last year because I had my appendix taken out.
Lots of stuff going on around the house and neighborhood. We just had our house painted, and we need to put a new roof on. We also had some work done inside the house - improvements to Nyssa's room, some bathroom work, and some new door handles. Nicki hired someone to do it, because I never seem to have the time.
In our neighborhood, a bunch of us (well, more Nicki than me) are fighting to stop a low income housing project from being put in. I'm for low income housing, but they're making it too dense in an area that has bad traffic problems already.
I played in a golf tournament hosted by my brother this past weekend. He and his college buddies host 4 tournaments a year, and the course is selected by the previous year's winner. Lucky Engel, he won last year. He smartly decided to host it at the Callipe Preserve Golf Club in Pleasanton, where it was played the previous year. It is an absolutely gorgeous course, with amazing views, and a very challenging layout. I shot a 108, but I played many of the holes very well, including some pars and bogie holes. My goal for next year is to shoot 100 or less.
Cheers!