Is silence really golden?

While vacationing in Hawaii, It's not uncommon to see a lot of couples. I mean... a lot of couples. Couples that are dating, married, on honeymoons, getting married... you get the whole bit in one place.

Over the past week, I've done a lot of observing. I'm noticing something I really didn't care too much to think about in the past.

What you ask? Silence

Can you hear it? Neither can I.

I've always assumed that most couples spend their time being chatty. Oh no. They're really not. We're talking a lot of time is spent being eerily silent.

I guess I've gone through life assuming silence is boring or the other person is uninterested if both people are quiet.

I mean, I know you have to be ultra comfortable with someone to get to the point of silence being golden, but I don't think I've quite been there yet.

I'll let ya know if I ever do...

Ass Play

Okay... so I know by now this still photo has made its way on the internet with many amusing captions after the last presidential debate.

To put some context, this was McCain's reaction to exiting from the wrong side of the stage.

I was watching Anderson Cooper and Jason Carroll last night on AC 360 have a caption contest for this. Quite amusing.

Anderson Cooper should just run for president already.

Newest No On Prop 8 Ad: Unfair

Below is the newest No on Prop 8 ad. It's titled 'Unfair.' I think this is one of the best No on Prop 8 ads to date. I'm actually surprised they didn't pick from a larger selection of those against Prop 8... including many conservative newspapers in California. Just see who is against Prop 8 here.

Why YOU should Vote NO on Prop 8? (If you live in California, that is)

Okay, I've made a conscience effort in the past to not be so preachy on political things on my blog. I used to be back when Bush was up for president... and we all know how that turned out. Anyways, if my company can write an official blog entry on why to defeat Prop 8 in California, I sure as hell can!

I should first start off by saying that I donated a sum of money to No on Prop 8 last week. I should have done it sooner. If you can't donate, but live in California, you can also donate your time by volunteering at a local phone bank.

Here is what you need to know:

What is Prop 8?
Dispelling the lies: Fact vs. Fiction
Why Vote No On 8?
Who Opposes Prop 8? (We're talking hella people and organizations!)

My Opinion:

Prop 8 discriminates based on sexual orientation. Just as interracial marriage laws were defeated in the past based on not discriminating against a group, gays and lesbians must not be discriminated against when it comes to the basic right of marriage.

Even when you think of this purely from an economics standpoint, Gay Marriage will help the California Economy. Think of all the new fabulous weddings you'll get to attend or plan. In all seriousness, this will help boost the economy by stimulating spending.

Just Listen to Ellen for a moment, why don't you?

Clothed

I admire the older generation being able to be so damn comfortable with their bodies.

As I lay tanning by my hotel pool in Kaanapali, I can't help but notice how comfortable the older generation is with their bodies. Of course, they've grown older together with a significant other in many cases. My assumption is by this point in their life, they have a 'i don't really care what others think' 'tude. I truly admire that.

Here I am, really uncomfortable with my body --- due mainly to the effects of major weight loss -- cringing inside when I have to remove my shirt to get rid of my farmers tan.

I do realize I won't see any of these people around me ever again, so I really shouldn't care what they think.

It's just so damn hard.

Why Vacation Matters

Aloha. So I'm on my first real vacation (i would define as a week +) since I started to work.

I've been pressured by many to take a vacation and I'm finally doing it. My old manager said to me in our last 1:1 meeting together, 'If it's one thing you learn from me... take a vacation.'

I always deemphasized this when working. I don't want to have to look at my inbox when I come back to work seeing hundreds of emails to sift through. But you know what... I freaking deserve this vacation.

Now It's Day 4 of my vacation. I haven't really done too much. Some tanning, eating, exercising, touring and photography. I also went Wine Tasting at a winery in Maui.

I forgot how much perspective you gain when you're on vacation. Especially to a place like Maui where life is so slow. You have time to think. It's really refreshing. Instead of thinking about the economy, presidential election or another world crisis, you think about what your next meal or activity will be. Sure, I feel guilty. Really I do. I even told my Mom this and she felt the same way.

I'm glad I'm gaining a bit more perspective on this trip. I'm becoming more observant. Noticing the little things around me that I would otherwise skip in my everyday life. I'm rediscovering what I love about living... things often lost in the shuffle. When I get back to Cali, maybe I'll change some of the things I was more hesitant to in the past, as well.

When I get back, I'm taking a post-vacation sanity day to recoop.

Lunch Visit with Adrian

Adrian came down from Foster City to have lunch with Ty and I in Mountain View. I spent the first half of the day in San Bruno for my first day of training for YouTube.

We had some some good convo, gave him a tour and he got to see just how different Google culture is in comparison to Visa and Goldman Sachs.

The really funny moment was the ending. As we took Adrian to his car, we were approached by a man with an accent. Oh yes... an accent from Holland! Why you ask? He flew from Europe to hand in his resume to Tech Companies in hopes of landing an internship to get US working experience.

Ty was really nice about it and offered to pass it to HR. He felt he had to represent the company in a Googley way without overpromissing him anything. In reality, he probably should have just applied at google.com/jobs.

A Total Surprise

I just want to keep a mental note: today was by far and away my best birthday ever. The only really tragic part was having to enter '25' into the age portion of the workout routine on the Elliptical at the gym.

I'll write more later.

Fall begins

Thanks GOOG for reminding me why I love the fall. It's about change... and I smell it in the air...

My girly gasp lunch moment

It's not uncommon for me to have a girly moment or two during any given day.

I was at lunch this afternoon with my old temp boss, Dara. We do these lunches about once a month or so, just to catch up on boys, life and random musings. This month was especially important because I'm off to YouTube next week.

Anywho, we decided to sit outside because the sun was out and it wasn't too hot. Then all of a sudden there was a moment where this big ass freaky bug landed on our table. It was the sickest thing I've EVER seen.

Imagine two dragonflies conjoined at the head with a bit of a praying mantis kinda feel to it. Oh yea... my girly gasp came out in full force. It was like two bugs attached to each other, but it flew as one. My first thought was that maybe it was one bug carrying another that happened to be injured. I don't think that was the case, though.

Dara, and the tables lunching near me, got a kick out of my girly reaction. It was funny cause one of the tables had the training class I'm working with. Now these kids have evidence to make fun of me with. :P

I really wish this was filmed or photographed in some fashion. Haha.

A surprising drunk call

I was chilling with Howie at his cousins (Kathleen and My Le) place in San Francisco when I got a series of phone calls from my sister.

I didn't pick up originally because I'm not a fan of talking to people in front of others. After the fourth or fifth call, I decided to pick up.

The conversation went something like this:

[picks up phone - drunk sister starts talking]

Sister: Hiiiii. What the fuck? I've been calling you.

Me: I know. I didn't pick up earlier. You got me now. What's up? Are you Drunk?

Sister: Yes. Two Things. Number 1... Shoot me an email with what you want for your birthday.

Me: Okay. Will do.

Sister: Number 2... I'm with Chris. You know how I told you I would never go to a gay bar? So he's totally cool with gay guys. [Chris' voice faint in the background: 'Ya. They're cool.'] I decided I'm going to go with you. Mom told me you're coming home soon. We're going. He's [Chris] going to be my buffer just in case anything happens.

Me: Wow. Okay...

Sister: What's that place you told me is cool?

Me: The Abbey.

Sister: We can go there. Or this gay bar in Ventura County. Paddy's.

Me: Why would I go to Ventura County? Let's go to the Abbey.

Sister: Ok. I have Halloween at Six Flags on that Friday. Saturday we're going out.

Me: Okay. Sounds good. See you later.

That was sorta random. But I'm actually really happy my sister made the effort to (1) Call Me and (2) Offer to be taken out of her comfort zone.

I never really thought I'd see the day when I'd go out with my sister to a gay bar...

Now I'm nervous...

The Big Two-Five

The older I get the more I realize how un-important physical possessions are. My family keeps asking me what I want for my 25th birthday, which is coming up on Tuesday. To be quite honest, the only thing I really crave are time and memories.

I crave time because I'm starting to realize I want more free time to pursue interests I'm really passion about, in addition to discovering ones I'm unaware of.

I crave memories because I really want to spend more time with my good friends and family. I've realized the smallest things make awesome memories. From working out with my buddy to spending more time with a loved one at home, they all stick in my memory more than a physical possession. I will remember 'red shorts' (a gym reference) moreso than that last DVD I bought. Although physical possessions can create memories, they only happen when loved ones are around.

I'd rather have awesome photos with loved ones than a new car.

I think once you realize this, you've truly grown up.

Taking Risks: The Next Chapter Begins

In my 20's, I've become quite the risk taker. I dunno, I used to be 'Mr. Safe.' To some extent, much of my life is safe. I've saved money, lived in Suburbia, etc.

A few examples of risks I've taken in my 20's:

• Interning in Washington, D.C., having never lived outside of California
• 'Coming Out' to family, friends and co-workers in full force
  
• Moving to Northern California from Southern California for a temp job, in the hopes of landing a full-hire position
• Beginning a weight-loss journey, having no idea where I'd end up

What I see as my next risk in life started a few weeks back. I was intrigued by a position that caught my eye at YouTube. (FYI - Google owns YouTube.)

I approached some friends, co-workers, ex-managers and my current manager on advice on whether I should pursue the position. I got mixed messages. Some folks thought the position would be taking a step back career-wise. Others thought I would be really good move and it was a good fit to develop my skill-set.

Ultimately, I decided to pursue the opportunity - setting my expectations really low. If anything, I would take the pursuit of the position as an opportunity to learn about internal transfers amongst departments.

The first interview was a video-conference screen with a YouTube director. I passed the screen and moved onto round 2. At this point, I was competing with a few others for the position. Round 2 was a series of 3 interviews - two with Product Managers and one with a Product Specialist. The first two interviews were in San Bruno starting at 9:15am, where YouTube is headquartered. The last one was in Mountain View at 3pm that same day. So there was a lot of driving involved. I also took the YouTube office visit as an opportunity to catch up with my friend Kenji, who's worked in that office for a while. Here is what the day of 9/5/08 looked like:

• Interview 1: Tom R. (9:15am) - I thought I rocked this interview. I was a bit nervous at first. But Tom made me feel really comfy. I thought I was able to articulate myself pretty well, given the fact I woke up early.
• Interview 2: Lane S. (10:00am) - This wasn't really an interview so much as a conversation and Q+A. I worked with Lane in AdWords, so I thought this went well.
• Lunch Break with Kenji (12pm) - Kenji used to be a temp manager in AdWords. He interviewed me way back in December of '05. It feels like forever. Kenji had a daughter recently, so he was sharing some funny stories with me. He definitely calmed me down and made me feel at ease.
• Drive to Mountain View around 1:00pm
• Interview 3: Matt L. (3pm) - Matt is a nice guy but I could tell he the down to business type. Luckily I got to gauge his personality because we had to wait a few minutes before the interview because the people in the conference room we booked went over their time. Honestly, I thought I blew this interview. Matt is a difficult interviewer. He asked a lot of hard product and process questions. He also had a lot of managerial type of questions.

After the 3rd interview I ran into Ben Ling, who recently started to work at Google again (he used to work here previously) after a short stint at Facebook. I was dressed up in a collared shirt and tie when it was like 95 degrees outside. He was like 'What you doing all dressed up?' I was like 'Ohh... I just had an interview.' I told him it was with YouTube. We parted ways after a brief convo and I tried to go find my friend Ty so we could work out. I went inside a building on main campus and funny enough... I ran into Ben again. He was squatting in an office. I found Ty and we worked out around 4:00pm.

I got home around 6:00pm or so to meet my friend Danny at my apartment. We were going to go bowling for Elizabeth and Kyle's goodbye party. After having a fun chat, I decided to open my work email around 7:30pm. I got an email from the director, Tom, stating I got the YouTube position and he needed to know if I could take the position ASAP. He even left me his cell # because it was apparently very urgent. I just about fainted. I thought I had no shot, especially after my last interview with Matt!

I was in a state of total shock and mental numbness for the next few days. To be honest, it still hasn't really hit me. I'm going to really miss my team, of which I spent nearly 3 years with. I'm especially going to miss my cubemates --- Brittany and Elizabeth.

The next few weeks will be that of transition. I'll have to get used to commuting from Sunnyvale to San Bruno (about a 35 minute drive). Thankfully I can take a shuttle from work if I choose not to drive. If I don't like the commute, I'll consider looking into apartments in San Francisco. I'll have to learn a new product, form new relationships, and make sure I foster and keep my current friendships with friends in Mountain View.

Wish me luck with my next life adventure...!

Here's a video what it's like to work at YouTube in San Bruno:

Laura's Goodbye

There are a few people I've truly admired working with at Google. Laura Johnston is one of them. She's been a true mentor and advice-giver for those of us in AdWords. I've had the pleasure of working with her on a few key projects.

Today was her last day at the company before she moves on to a new adventure. She wanted to be closer to her family in Texas. She commuted to California on a weekly basis during the week. Hell, I don't know how she did it!

During the all hands meeting, she gave a memorable speech. Key points revolved around:

• Gratefulness
• Perspective
• Abundance
• The Boll Weevil
• An Irish Wake

She treated her leave as a celebration. It was pretty awesome. She's known for her crafting skills and thus left the team some crafting supplies in the wake of her absence. I mean, who else gets to craft at work?

They also got everyone some cupcakes from Sibby's Cupcakes. I stayed a good boy and didn't eat one. Go me. I'm sure they were fab.

Laura & Will

 

Custom 'L' Cupcakes from Sibby's

How do you crack someone who's shy?

There's always been something intriguing about shy guys to me. I'm a very shy guy in social settings, especially around people I don't know.

But what happens when you are interested in a shy guy? How do you crack them open? How can you get them to reveal themselves? Is it possible to do without it being awkward? Or is it the awkwardness that's the key?

How is this even possible when you're shy yourself? Ugh.

I ask myself these questions because I've been intrigued by someone for quite a while. We've mainly hung out with each other in group settings, which has been fun. It's easy to gauge someone's personality that way. But 1:1, we're both kinda shy. I know there's something there that I really like about him. It has nothing to do with the way he looks on the outside --- it's all about the inside.

The problem also lies that I'm intimidated by what I see on the outside. Many people would put him in the 'hot' category. But that's not why I'm interested in him.

To be continued...