Recently, the company decided that the engineering teams needed to sit closer together. We were to vacate our current pod like desk, and move to new long lines of desk near the middle of the building. They claimed that the move was to give our internal groups and other departments space to grow.

At first I was strongly opposed to the move. I liked where I was sitting, and the people around me. And the new seating area looked more like factory benches then desk. Some of my coworkers even nick named the new area “the troughs”. The new desk would have no privacy as there was no dividers between each seat. My main concern was that my monitor was in plain view, making my “research” much more difficult to conduct.

It has now been 2 days since the move, and to be honest, I’m actually liking my seat. I like the fact that everyone is sitting a lot closer, which makes the job feel a lot less isolated as there are tons of interesting conversations sparking up all around me.

The conclusion is that change can be hard, but change can also be good.

Danny

TV Tropes: Chainmail Bikini

For those who don’t know about TV Tropes, you might want to block off a few hours of your time before you visit the site. At least for me, it has occupied way too much of my time.

– Alex

Book of Eli

I think the site is finally stable again, sorry for all the downtime. I had to jump though hoops with 1and1.com to get things working.

I went to watch “The Book of Eli” over the weekend. The action and the twist at the end made the movie amazing. Denzel Washington did a great job being a real bad ass. He was Wesley Snipes, original “Blade”, bad ass. The movie got my friends and I thinking about how to survive in a post apocalyptic world? Where would be the best place to survive the nukes? Where would you go to survive? What would you take with you?

Danny

I must say that I am quite happy with my current position on the web team.  The whole team dynamic is so different, so chaotic, yet still so productive.  My teammates are also very diverse and hardcore when it comes to their interests, be it perl, python, lisp, or even Star Wars.  Most importantly they know how to work hard and party hard, the way I like it.

Danny

I know a few people that work at at the government.   It seems like the best job ever – you work 9-5, no overtime, and it’s impossible to get fired (thank you unions).   I also hear that you get a lower interest rate if you borrow from the bank, simply because your job is that damn stable.   In Chinese, we call this type of job an “iron rice bowl”, because normal rice bowls are made of porcelain which breaks.

The only downsides, of working for the government, are things like tons of politics, incompetent people around you that are immune to firing, and boredom.

I still think cons are a small price to pay for all that job security.

Danny

Sometimes, you have to stop whatever you’re doing and think: “Will this win me worldwide renown and a never-ending parade of accolades?” If what you’re doing doesn’t, you should stop spinning in circles.

Reach for that rainbow, and strive to be the best damn breakdancer that ever brokedanced.

– Alex ^.^()

I’ve always wanted a little tomato plant at my desk that would produce endless delicious tomatoes.

-Danny

I picked up “how to get six pack abs”, by men’s health magazine from shoppers drug mart the other day. On the cover is a shirt less man, with impossibly sexy abs, who consumed more then 80% of the cover space.

As I was paying for obscene piece and the cashier asked me if I needed a bag. I simply replied “yes, please”.

-Danny

As I am writing this, the world is currently knee deep in recession. There is a lot of negative talk, and various doom sayers. I would like to take this opportunity say to those downers, THINK POSITIVE. A recession is a state of mind. If everyone continues to think that we are all doomed, then we will all be doomed. The mind is a powerful tool. If you really concentrate, all things become possible. To those of of you that have lost your job, think positively. Use this time to reflect on what you really want to be doing in life, instead of thinking about the current situation. Every challenge in life is merely a gateway to new opportunities.

I can’t stand it when someone hovers over you while you’re trying to work. I mean I don’t mind if you are working together on something, but when it’s just micro-management it’s unacceptable.

Danny

Physical strength is just as important as mental strength, in the field of software development. You never know when you have to put a team member into an arm bar or triangle hold to establish dominance.