Last full week at home, last week at work. This Saturday, I have a wedding to go to, which I have yet to purchase a wedding gift for... On Monday, I take the GRE. And then I fly back on Tuesday. Right now I'm taking a break from practicing for the writing part of the GRE in order to.... write more.
This summer, I finally got to do what I've been wanting to do since senior year in high school, work for an engineering consulting place. I'm pretty sure this is the type of thing I will be doing once I finish with school. I'm still not sure what I want to specialize in. Everyone at work has asked me about what I want to specialize in at least once. I still don't know. Actually, I don't think it matters all that much. I value the people that I work with much more than the projects or the things that I'm working on. I want to work for smart people. Everyone at work are trained to design, have taken similar classes, and can do calculations. But there are definitely a few that stands out in their ability to plan ahead, using their judgment, and produce results that are unquestionably superior. Seriously, it's not that difficult to design a box. But it's the way that you present your results, the way you answer your emails and inquires, and the problems that you anticipate that counts. I really hope that the first group I work for is filled with people who are smarter than I am. So that I can learn to think like good engineers.
Yesterday, I got an invite from the manager of the civil/highway group for a farewell lunch with some of his group and his interns. We're all leaving this Friday. I think I will be eating out a lot this week. This lunch is on Wednesday. Their group goes out to lunch on Fridays (more like every other Friday) but I'm sure they'll go this Friday also.
Anyways, I'm pretty sure I gained a few pounds this summer. All this sitting and no exercising is no good. And watching the Olympics doesn't help either. It's true that you get pretty anxious while watching Michael Phelps win by 0.01 seconds. But it's no comparison to swimming yourself. Just kidding!
Monday, August 18, 2008
Friday, August 15, 2008
People on BART
This is something I found really bizarre when I first started working. People waiting for the trains would line up! I guess part of it is due to the fact that the trains always stop in a definite spot. The black spots you see on the ground is where the door will be. So people line up while they wait in order to go in first and get a seat. I found it really weird. I've never seen anything like that before other than maybe the commuter rail in Boston. But BART is not really a commuter rail. It's sort of something between a subway and commuter rail.
Anyhow the thing that I found really annoying though, is that everyone lines up regardless whether or not they will be taking the next train. The station at work has 2 platforms, one going to the East Bay and the other keeps going south down the peninsula. There are 4 different trains going on the East Bay platform and most people need to take a specific train. There are electronic boards that update you on when the next trains are arriving. But people line up regardless what train is coming. This is really annoying, especially during rush hours because if you want to get on a train, there are people in front of you that would move towards the door but then stop. I would always think that they're waiting for people to come out before going in but they're not! They're just waiting for another train. And you would have to go around them to get on the train.
Anyhow, I just think it's really weird how people line up. And annoying..
Anyhow the thing that I found really annoying though, is that everyone lines up regardless whether or not they will be taking the next train. The station at work has 2 platforms, one going to the East Bay and the other keeps going south down the peninsula. There are 4 different trains going on the East Bay platform and most people need to take a specific train. There are electronic boards that update you on when the next trains are arriving. But people line up regardless what train is coming. This is really annoying, especially during rush hours because if you want to get on a train, there are people in front of you that would move towards the door but then stop. I would always think that they're waiting for people to come out before going in but they're not! They're just waiting for another train. And you would have to go around them to get on the train.
Anyhow, I just think it's really weird how people line up. And annoying..
Monday, August 11, 2008
Potsdam Picture!
Yalu! It's this one! This is the picture of the street in Potsdam. It was warm and sunny out. We ate at one of the pastry shops. There was an outdoor market where I got my brother a coke clock and a boat thing. We walked to that church at the end and back.
Sunday, August 10, 2008
Is it almost the end or almost the start?
Last Friday at work:
Me: It's so quiet today.
M: Yeah, it's Friday. Most people are sleeping in their cubes.
[M pokes his head around as if too check on people in their cubes. So funny!]
So only 2 more weeks at work. Having switched cubes in the middle of my internship, I've come to realize that where you sit makes a big difference. In my previous cube, I near the wall and therefore very close to all the offices. I could hear the conversations of all the managers and higher level engineers as they complain about the project and how people use fancy words to describe "kindergarten" concepts. Now, I'm in the middle of my section and almost surrounded by the structural engineering group. I hear a whole different set of conversations and have gotten to know these people a little more. Part of me still likes the first cube since I felt like I was in touch with the progress of the projects. Now that I can't hear my manager's phone conversations, I feel less in tune with the bigger picture and just focuses on my own work. I feel like my summer would be a whole different experience if I had not moved that 20 feet.
I went out to the field on Wednesday where we hired a company to check for the Hayward fault. We climbed around in a trench and walked around to see where the alignment will be. Almost satisfying to actually see the project site. We really didn't do much. Also checked on a archeology group who were checking the site for Native American burials. They had 2 test locations and were digging a 1x2 meter box, going down in increments of 10cm, screening all the dirt, and going down to some depth. Everything is done very precisely. I didn't realize how scientific the work is. That was interesting to see.
Anyhow, non work related stuff. We watched the replay of the opening ceremony on NBC on Friday. It sucks that no one else is allowed to broadcast and since we don't have cable, we can only watch what NBC shows. I mean, we can find this stuff online but it's not the same as watching it in the living room, on the big screen, and sitting on the nice sofas. Our computer screen is only 17" and it is located in my room and the only sitting arrangement would've been rolly chairs or my bed.
Anyways, the opening ceremony was amazing. Very, very well done. Now that I've worked on fine tuning AutoCAD drawings for a few weeks now, I really appreciate the amount of work that must've gone into making these performances happen. Making sure everyone does what they're supposed to do must have taken a lot of work. Coming up with the idea is nothing compared to all the tedious planning, directing, and executing. There must've been countless revisions to get those all those drumers to get the countdown right. Computers can only do so much. Someone had to think about every single drumer and their every movement. I mean, for our AutoCAD stuff at work, we have to check every line, every word, and it doesn't even involve any people, just lines on a computer. Man, I almost feel sorry for the British who have to host the next Olympics. Everyone will be comparing.
Me: It's so quiet today.
M: Yeah, it's Friday. Most people are sleeping in their cubes.
[M pokes his head around as if too check on people in their cubes. So funny!]
So only 2 more weeks at work. Having switched cubes in the middle of my internship, I've come to realize that where you sit makes a big difference. In my previous cube, I near the wall and therefore very close to all the offices. I could hear the conversations of all the managers and higher level engineers as they complain about the project and how people use fancy words to describe "kindergarten" concepts. Now, I'm in the middle of my section and almost surrounded by the structural engineering group. I hear a whole different set of conversations and have gotten to know these people a little more. Part of me still likes the first cube since I felt like I was in touch with the progress of the projects. Now that I can't hear my manager's phone conversations, I feel less in tune with the bigger picture and just focuses on my own work. I feel like my summer would be a whole different experience if I had not moved that 20 feet.
I went out to the field on Wednesday where we hired a company to check for the Hayward fault. We climbed around in a trench and walked around to see where the alignment will be. Almost satisfying to actually see the project site. We really didn't do much. Also checked on a archeology group who were checking the site for Native American burials. They had 2 test locations and were digging a 1x2 meter box, going down in increments of 10cm, screening all the dirt, and going down to some depth. Everything is done very precisely. I didn't realize how scientific the work is. That was interesting to see.
Anyhow, non work related stuff. We watched the replay of the opening ceremony on NBC on Friday. It sucks that no one else is allowed to broadcast and since we don't have cable, we can only watch what NBC shows. I mean, we can find this stuff online but it's not the same as watching it in the living room, on the big screen, and sitting on the nice sofas. Our computer screen is only 17" and it is located in my room and the only sitting arrangement would've been rolly chairs or my bed.
Anyways, the opening ceremony was amazing. Very, very well done. Now that I've worked on fine tuning AutoCAD drawings for a few weeks now, I really appreciate the amount of work that must've gone into making these performances happen. Making sure everyone does what they're supposed to do must have taken a lot of work. Coming up with the idea is nothing compared to all the tedious planning, directing, and executing. There must've been countless revisions to get those all those drumers to get the countdown right. Computers can only do so much. Someone had to think about every single drumer and their every movement. I mean, for our AutoCAD stuff at work, we have to check every line, every word, and it doesn't even involve any people, just lines on a computer. Man, I almost feel sorry for the British who have to host the next Olympics. Everyone will be comparing.
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
Bilingualsim at Work
I have recently taken over the cubicle that belonged to the person who left our group on Friday. Her computer has 2 screens and is faster so it helps a lot when doing CADD work. I've discovered that sitting that this spot puts me in the middle of multi-language central.
In front of me, there is a woman who speaks Mandarin. She shares a wall with another person who also speaks Mandarin and they talk across the wall about stuff like "why doesn't this excel thing do what I want it to do!" Actually, today, they spent a long time chatting about life, family, and such. One another side of my cube, there is a person who speaks Vietnamese. A Vietnamese from the civil/highway group comes over once in a while and they chat. On the other side of him is a person who speaks a language that I cannot identify. I think it's Russian because his name has a lot of v's and o's. And 2 cubicles down from me is an Iranian and he calls his wife once in a while. One of the other interns and I speak in Cantonese a lot, whenever we're not around other people so they won't feel left out. Actually, a bunch of us went downstairs where there is a fountain and sitting area to eat lunch and he pointed out that besides our group, there are no other Asians around.
I feel very fortunate that I can converse in Cantonese and understand Mandarin. Otherwise, I woud feel so left out in that office, especially sitting in that spot. I would hear people speaking around me all day and not understand what they're saying. Of course, when there are more than 2 people, the conversation is usually held in English. But it makes a difference to be able to speak to someone in their language. I didn't really understand this before going to England.
One of my friends in English is an international student from China. She held a tea party in her room in the beginning of the year. A few people came and we chatted but in the end, it was down to me, her, and someone from Germany. He pointed to a flyer on her wall that was written in Chinese and asked what it was. She explained that it was a flyer printed by the Chinese Student Associate giving information to incoming students about practical things like grocery shopping, buying a bike, etc. He was very confused as to why it was written in Chinese. His reasoning was that all the students must understand English since they got into Cambridge. Her reply was that it wasn't about whether or not they understood English, everyone can, but it was more about speaking Chinese among Chinese people. And that speaking English with fellow Chinese people would seem weird, even to the point of showing off. So while outsiders might look at a group of Chinese people speaking Chinese to each other as a form of exclusivity, they see it as just being friendly. It's like dressing appropriatly to an event. When you're with a certain group of people, you speak a certain language.
I think this is prevalent in many countries where kids grow up speaking many different languages. For them, it's a necessary part of life and they know which language to use when. America, unfortuntaly, does not embrace this. I can't believe there are people in the US believe the whole "when in America, speak English" business. Especially when I'm over here wishing that I had time to go learn languages so that I can join in on these conversations! I mean, if I go into the office one day and start speaking Vietnamese with the Vietnamese people, they would be impressed and appreicate the effort that I put into learning their language and finding out about their culture.
In front of me, there is a woman who speaks Mandarin. She shares a wall with another person who also speaks Mandarin and they talk across the wall about stuff like "why doesn't this excel thing do what I want it to do!" Actually, today, they spent a long time chatting about life, family, and such. One another side of my cube, there is a person who speaks Vietnamese. A Vietnamese from the civil/highway group comes over once in a while and they chat. On the other side of him is a person who speaks a language that I cannot identify. I think it's Russian because his name has a lot of v's and o's. And 2 cubicles down from me is an Iranian and he calls his wife once in a while. One of the other interns and I speak in Cantonese a lot, whenever we're not around other people so they won't feel left out. Actually, a bunch of us went downstairs where there is a fountain and sitting area to eat lunch and he pointed out that besides our group, there are no other Asians around.
I feel very fortunate that I can converse in Cantonese and understand Mandarin. Otherwise, I woud feel so left out in that office, especially sitting in that spot. I would hear people speaking around me all day and not understand what they're saying. Of course, when there are more than 2 people, the conversation is usually held in English. But it makes a difference to be able to speak to someone in their language. I didn't really understand this before going to England.
One of my friends in English is an international student from China. She held a tea party in her room in the beginning of the year. A few people came and we chatted but in the end, it was down to me, her, and someone from Germany. He pointed to a flyer on her wall that was written in Chinese and asked what it was. She explained that it was a flyer printed by the Chinese Student Associate giving information to incoming students about practical things like grocery shopping, buying a bike, etc. He was very confused as to why it was written in Chinese. His reasoning was that all the students must understand English since they got into Cambridge. Her reply was that it wasn't about whether or not they understood English, everyone can, but it was more about speaking Chinese among Chinese people. And that speaking English with fellow Chinese people would seem weird, even to the point of showing off. So while outsiders might look at a group of Chinese people speaking Chinese to each other as a form of exclusivity, they see it as just being friendly. It's like dressing appropriatly to an event. When you're with a certain group of people, you speak a certain language.
I think this is prevalent in many countries where kids grow up speaking many different languages. For them, it's a necessary part of life and they know which language to use when. America, unfortuntaly, does not embrace this. I can't believe there are people in the US believe the whole "when in America, speak English" business. Especially when I'm over here wishing that I had time to go learn languages so that I can join in on these conversations! I mean, if I go into the office one day and start speaking Vietnamese with the Vietnamese people, they would be impressed and appreicate the effort that I put into learning their language and finding out about their culture.
Friday, July 25, 2008
Fun Day at Work
Today one of the people in my group is leaving the company. She's going back to grad school to get her PhD. So we all went out for lunch. There were 8 of us who went. There are 2 more people in the group but one of them is on vacation and the other one didn't come to work today. Anyway, I enjoyed the lunch a lot. Not so much the food because it was pretty expensive place for not as good and small portions. The guy kept asking if we wanted any appetizers. We probably should've ordered some because most of our meals turned out to be very small. Anyways, the guys were very funny. We talked about the most random stuff ever.
H (to T): I see a lot of young people nowadays with tattoos and nose rings and such. What would you say if your children asks you about getting one?
T [blinks twice]: If they ask you that it's too late! They asks you that means they've thought about it already. It's too late!
[at this point everyone is laughing and making jokes about tattoos and rings]
T: It's true! You've got to take preventive action!
[preventive action! hahaha]
A (to T): You know I had a mohawk once.
T: Ahhh! Good thing you didn't went you interviewed or we wouldn't have hired you. Scared me.
H: Isn't there policy about equal opportunity?
T: Equal opportunity! No such thing! No such thing nowadays.
[we all thought this whole exchange was really funny. T's a funny guy. Always ready to give you his opinion. There's a couple of guys like that in the office actually. They have really hilarious conversations.]
T (to waiter): What is this [points at something on menu]?
Waiter: That's paella. It's a typical Spanish rice dish with seafood.
T: Okay, I'll take it then.
H: That's the most expensive thing on the menu!
T [nudges H]: Hey, I'm not paying. I always order the most expensive thing when we got out. Just ask M. [M's the supervisor.] That's why I don't want to be the boss.
[at this point we're all trying to look at the remaining menus to see how much this dish costs. It's $21. I'm not actually sure that M is paying for it with his own money. I think he has a company credit card and this kind of stuff gets charged to the company. Either way, T is very much into this 不客气 (bu ke qi) thing whenever M is paying. They've been working together for 10+ years.]
[on the way back to work, we pass by this construction site where a building is being built. They've excavated the place and getting ready to build the basement. The site is surrounded by a wire fence and there is cloth to covering the fence so that you don't see what's going on inside.]
T: Woah, what are they doing here?
[goes to a gap in the cloth covering, pulls it apart and peers in.]
T: Wow, big excavation! They've got lots of tie backs in place!
[at this point, there are now 3 guys trying to peer inside. 2 on top of each other and one trying to look over the fence.]
M: Well, you've got to step back and let everyone else see!
[I was laughing really hard and wished I had a camera or a phone to take a picture. one of the construction guys looked over the fence at us. he looked really confused. hahahah]
Oh yeah, I also wore the nerd shirt to work today and everyone was trying to figure it out as we were walking to the elevators to go out to lunch. They were really excited when they finally figure it out. I'm glad that people actually looked and thought about it. Seriously, I was annoyed that at Cambridge no one ever said a thing until I pointed it out.
A bunch of the younger people also went out to a bar after work as a farewell thing for the person who's leaving. Just another excuse to socialize mostly. It was fun. I should really hang out with these people more. I think they wanted to talk about more non-work stuff but I kept probing everyone about how they like the company, their work, grad school, and such. hehe. I really need to network more. Make better use of my lunchtimes.
H (to T): I see a lot of young people nowadays with tattoos and nose rings and such. What would you say if your children asks you about getting one?
T [blinks twice]: If they ask you that it's too late! They asks you that means they've thought about it already. It's too late!
[at this point everyone is laughing and making jokes about tattoos and rings]
T: It's true! You've got to take preventive action!
[preventive action! hahaha]
A (to T): You know I had a mohawk once.
T: Ahhh! Good thing you didn't went you interviewed or we wouldn't have hired you. Scared me.
H: Isn't there policy about equal opportunity?
T: Equal opportunity! No such thing! No such thing nowadays.
[we all thought this whole exchange was really funny. T's a funny guy. Always ready to give you his opinion. There's a couple of guys like that in the office actually. They have really hilarious conversations.]
T (to waiter): What is this [points at something on menu]?
Waiter: That's paella. It's a typical Spanish rice dish with seafood.
T: Okay, I'll take it then.
H: That's the most expensive thing on the menu!
T [nudges H]: Hey, I'm not paying. I always order the most expensive thing when we got out. Just ask M. [M's the supervisor.] That's why I don't want to be the boss.
[at this point we're all trying to look at the remaining menus to see how much this dish costs. It's $21. I'm not actually sure that M is paying for it with his own money. I think he has a company credit card and this kind of stuff gets charged to the company. Either way, T is very much into this 不客气 (bu ke qi) thing whenever M is paying. They've been working together for 10+ years.]
[on the way back to work, we pass by this construction site where a building is being built. They've excavated the place and getting ready to build the basement. The site is surrounded by a wire fence and there is cloth to covering the fence so that you don't see what's going on inside.]
T: Woah, what are they doing here?
[goes to a gap in the cloth covering, pulls it apart and peers in.]
T: Wow, big excavation! They've got lots of tie backs in place!
[at this point, there are now 3 guys trying to peer inside. 2 on top of each other and one trying to look over the fence.]
M: Well, you've got to step back and let everyone else see!
[I was laughing really hard and wished I had a camera or a phone to take a picture. one of the construction guys looked over the fence at us. he looked really confused. hahahah]
Oh yeah, I also wore the nerd shirt to work today and everyone was trying to figure it out as we were walking to the elevators to go out to lunch. They were really excited when they finally figure it out. I'm glad that people actually looked and thought about it. Seriously, I was annoyed that at Cambridge no one ever said a thing until I pointed it out.
A bunch of the younger people also went out to a bar after work as a farewell thing for the person who's leaving. Just another excuse to socialize mostly. It was fun. I should really hang out with these people more. I think they wanted to talk about more non-work stuff but I kept probing everyone about how they like the company, their work, grad school, and such. hehe. I really need to network more. Make better use of my lunchtimes.
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