RJ's Blogtastic Universe

So, here’s what is happening with Google. They are building a data center across the river, in Council Bluffs. Starting this summer and continuing through graduation in December 2011, I will be getting paid to work with them on some microenterprise development projects that they are doing in the Council Bluffs area. It’s the same kind of research that I’ve been doing at UNO, only now I get to work with Google. And make friends. Lots of friends. I’m about to be the friendliest person that they know.  And we’re going to do things that have never been done.

I’ve been lusting after a job at either Google or Gallup since before I went back to school. I cannot get over how many opportunities have come my way in the last couple of years. I’ve always been challenged in terms of having the right credentials on my resume. This is one hell of a turnaround.

There will be many more details as I go through this process, especially as I get closer and we start hammering out the details. For now, I need to get to my database homework. With great assurance, of course, that this is all going to very valuable. Good night, all.

Recently I’ve been giving Google Wave  try. I am a Google fan, so do take that into consideration. That said, my overall impression is that eventually, it will be huge. At the moment, however, it is a little too technical.

There were a lot of things that I loved about it. My professor and I tried it out at one of our meetings. We met at a coffee shop and attempted to simulate an online conversation. One of the main strengths behind the idea of Google Wave is that it is designed to “mirror” the way  a real conversation works. Most online exchanges today are accomplished through email. I say this, you respond, I respond to that, and so on. The longer the email chain gets, the harder it becomes to keep track of the different topics discussed. If you want to refer to something that was said a few emails ago, you have to search for it. Sometimes this can be quite an effort.

Google Wave simplifies this a little bit. First of all, it treats the entire conversation as one document, rather than several single documents attached together. It’s easier to find your way around, especially if you want to go back to an earlier topic. Google Wave allows you to indent and add on to the former conversation.

I think this is a good feature because while emails give us a linear, chronological way to record our conversations, my mind doesn’t necessarily work in a linear, chronological way. My mind bounces around like a pinball machine, mostly – especially if I’m creating something. Which is what I do most of the time.

There is a feature that I am excited about, but it looks as if it’s not quite working yet. I have read in many articles about Google Wave that they are going to add “robots” that take certain actions or insert information into the Wave automatically. This is exciting to me for many reasons, but I also have some questions. What kind of actions will it be able to do? What kind of triggers can I put in there? At the moment, Google Wave has a limited number of extensions available, some pretty solid offerings that allow people who are part of the Wave to vote on things, video conference, check the weather for certain places, etc. These are all good, but I would like to see much more in this area for the future.

The pitfalls of Google Wave are that it is still a bit clunky at this time. It takes too many clicks to add things, it is not always evident where certain features are located, and so on. That said, those are pretty easy things to fix. Over time, much of this will be resolved as Google gets feedback from the users. Also, the extensions will be added to over time. Not only will Google add to them, but they have extended this opportunity to users as well. Some of the more geeky types will get into this, I am sure.

It’s the “anti-Microsoft” version of product release. Microsoft’s way – and the way we are used to receiving new technology products – is to develop an idea that is the property of a few people. These few people gather around a whiteboard and brainstorm something that they think will be valuable for users. They develop and release it, usually with a moderate amount of bugs. Users get frustrated, but most assume that the situation is unchangeable.

The realm of product release has changed a bit, however. Much of this transformation is due to the rapid pace of changing technology. It just takes too long to develop the perfect piece of technology. Also, instead of a few people being the chief architects of the technology, many are moving to a more user centered structure. User feedback that used to take weeks to collect and process now takes minutes, and many companies are poised to take advantage of that. Users know what they want and need, and technology companies that are willing to be adaptive will certainly benefit.

In short, Google Wave is good, and it’s going to get better. I expect both the user friendliness and the availability of valuable gadgets to improve in the coming months. If you’re a tech head like me, you might enjoy it in its present state. If you are easily frustrated by an interface that is a bit clunky, wait a few months. I have seven invitations left – if you want to try it out, just drop me a line.

I have never really thought about this particular hairstyle choice. The most I have ever thought about a mullet, until now, was that the people who wear them must be really committed to the look. It takes some focus, I think, to keep those layers going. I’ve never considered one for myself, though I have been told it is a sign of my people.

Never has this been more apparent than the bar we visited last night. I went with a couple of friends of mine, people who are a bit concerned with my dating situation. Needless to say, no progress was made on that front. I had a wonderful time with Ashley, Jackie, Drew and Melissa, though. Drew wore one of his favorite kilts for the occasion, and we had a good time dancing. I showed off some of my moves. My dancing prowess is not to be underestimated. And I did actually talk to someone I didn’t know, which is progress for me… but then I knocked over my diet Pepsi. It kind of ruined the moment.

All told, we did have a great time, though I think I saw more mullets last night than I did the last time I went to the State Fair.

On to other topics… you all know I’ve been considering getting a PhD. This summer has been a good time to sit back and re-evaluate some things. For instance, what am I doing in school? What’s my goal here? What do I hope to accomplish? I want to be able to do what I was meant to do – help people design better and more efficient computer systems. I’ve been doing this for years, and I wanted to find some way to make it my official job. I want to travel, meet different people, teach them how to work better, and make people laugh. Try typing that into Google and looking for a job…

I recently met someone who has the type of job that I want. She travels Monday through Thursday and is home on the weekends. She teaches people new computer systems. She doesn’t have an advanced degree, either. Meeting her really helped my point of view. I made a few decisions last week, as a result. I decided to start networking and actively looking for a job. My graduation is a year and a half away, so if I start networking now, I will likely have made quite a few contacts. I also put up a website and am now doing a series of podcasts in my areas of interest. This is my world takeover plan – to use the website as a job interview/connection tool. If the people who are working the jobs that I want say that I need a PhD, I’ll get one. If not, that means I’ll be getting out there sooner.

I’m happy with this decision. It means that every day I can make progress on my dreams, even though the road seems long at this point. It also means that since I am taking a totally different approach with the job hunt, this time I’ll probably have better results.

On a different note, last night I decided to wear my non-corrective shoes to the bar. It seemed like a good decision at the time, but I think I may have hurt myself when I was running across the street. And – here’s the kicker – the knee I injured was not the one I had surgery on. I’ll be telling on myself to my physical therapist tomorrow… I’ll let you know what happens.

Finally, I cleaned out my closet today. Trust me, it was a good thing. Weight loss is fabulous, and I’m about halfway to where I want to be. My personal shoppers and I went out on Wednesday, and it was high time to pack away some stuff that just doesn’t fit anymore. Also, I finally put my luggage away from the Arizona trip. I was a little sad about it, but I’m trying to make it so that I have many more adventures to come.

That’s all for tonight, darlings – further bulletins as events warrant!

Our Arizona reunion story actually begins with another story – the tale of my 35th birthday.

Last summer, I took a class called Research Methods. It sounded like it was going to be a class about using Google, but it was certainly not as easy as that. In fact, it’s all about statistics (math, in other words). For those of you that don’t know, math is not exactly my strong suit. I knew it was going to be difficult, and at first I had the old attitude. You know, the voice in the back of your head that says – don’t do it!! You’ll never make it!! Quit before you make a fool of yourself!!

I’d been coming to a crossroads with this way of thinking for a long time. It has never served me well, but it’s always the first thing I think when I’m in a tough situation. The default setting, one might say. I decided to try another way, for a while. I decided that no matter what, I was going to tell myself that I could do it, that I would find a way to make the class work.

It worked. I ended up with an A+ in the class, and as I was looking at the grade, I remember wondering what the rest of my life would look like if I applied that single idea. I began to think about my 35th birthday, and how I really hadn’t celebrated my birthday in a long time. I decided that this would be the year that I would do something that I had previously thought I couldn’t do, something that I was afraid of. I considered different possibilities, including jumping out of an airplane. However, it’s just too cold to do that in November, and I am horrifically afraid of heights. No matter what I considered, it just didn’t seem like it fit. I ended up taking an Economics test on my birthday, which may be one of the least fun ways to celebrate. I decided I would put off the celebration until I could find something I really wanted to do.

Fast forward to to spring 2009. Facebook is fabulous, and through it, Brandy found me first. I was a little hesitant to write her initially. I honestly don’t remember too much about my personality when I was in the seventh grade, but I do remember that I didn’t like myself too much. I wondered if I had anything I needed to make amends for, actually. We met up soon after the first contact, and it turned out I had been afraid for nothing. See past editions of the blog for the story about that event – it was momentous.

I found Shawna on Brandy’s friend list. There were three of us that hung pretty tightly in those days, and these girls were my two best friends. We passed notes in class, and did things regular seventh graders do. I had some bad stuff going on at home, but I really loved school (still do) and seeing the two of them always made things seem better. Then, through a series of awful circumstances, we were split up. We kept contact for a while through letters. I really looked forward to the letters, and I kept every one of them in a trunk that I’ve carried with me all these years.

I never thought I’d find them again, but it happened. And I found a way to celebrate my birthday after all – by kidnapping Brandy and getting on a jet plane to see our Shawna. I think all three of us were a little scared, at first. Not that we wouldn’t get along, but that after @#$# years (that was for you, Brandy) we wouldn’t be able to relate to each other any more. What if our lives were so different that all we had in common was the past?

It was on my mind when Brandy and I were walking out of the gate. Then I caught a glimpse of a woman in a business suit, standing just beyond a column – and then she was coming toward us, as fast as her high heels could carry her. @#$# years vanished in about a minute. There was the usual hugging you’d expect, and I did get a little bit moist around the eyeballs. Another feeling came up at this point: gratitude. I was finally reunited with women to whom I never really got to say goodbye.

We left the airport and ran off to enjoy a fabulous couple of days. Shawna and Steve really know how to show people a good time. We got to meet new friends, catch a boat ride, hunt for rocks, and listen to the chronicles of Lake Havasu, as told by Shawna. We spent time with Shawna’s son, Shay, who was fun to be with. We also had the opportunity to catch up a bit, and look through the letters that I had saved. It was interesting, looking at life through the eyes of our teenage selves. My favorite part of the trip was late Thursday night, sitting in the jacuzzi, talking about our lives.

All of us are doing tremendous things, in our own way. Brandy’s raising a wonderful family, Shawna’s busy with a son, a Steve and the beginnings of a career in politics, and I’m on my way to following my dream to be an IT consultant. All three of us are surrounded by people who love us.

In the end, I didn’t have to jump out of an airplane to prove that I was fearless. All I had to do was be willing to risk a little bit, and it’s really all I have ever had to do. It’s funny, isn’t it? The things we think we have to do to prove to people that we are worth their time. The people in our lives that really matter are the people we never have to rehearse for, people that love us as we are.

This is the part of the chick flick where someone usually goes off the end of a cliff – but not this time! Our visit seemed to be about putting away some of the past. Next time (next June!) we’ll get to focus on the future, I’m sure. No matter what is ahead of us, it’s better when we face it together.

Thanks again to everyone – it was the most fabulous birthday present ever.