March 1, 2007

View From Silicon Valley- Adventure Day #3 (I think)

(c) Copyright View From Silicon Valley, 2007.  All rights reserved.



Until Uncle Sam's (and Governor Arnold's) pound of flesh is not yet fully accounted for, so the travel series continues.

Don’t worry, our regular missives will resume soon.

----- Original Message ----- 
Sent: Monday, February 05, 2007 10:36 AM (8:36PM in Finland)
Subject: Adventure Day #3 (I think)

Hello crazy women:

Today was quite interesting.  My luggage did arrive (yay!) & so I am stinky no more! Plus, I now have an actual winter coat. (Double yay!)

Don't think of this as complaining but rather as a narrative of an adventure (orsometimes a mis-adventure.)  "Baby girl" can ask mommy about her "adventures" driving around in Atlanta.  I think of them as learning opportunities.

I actually saw the last minute or so of the Super Bowl this morning at ~5am.  I couldn't sleep & was channel surfing.

The bag arrived sometime after I checked with the airline but the hotel didn't call me to tell it arrived.  I got tired of waiting & just went down & got it ~7am.  Everything seems intact.

I then went back to sleep, got a late breakfast & went into the office.   Breakfast in Finland is kind of interesting.  The cost is included with your hotel rooM & it always seems to be a buffet.  The "interesting" part is they have lots of bacon & sausage (& mushrooms) but the only eggs are hard-boiled, still in the shell.  Lots of cheeses & meats like salmon & salami along with veggies like tomatoes but fruits are harder to find.  The cereal & oatmeal are readily available but they put out yogurt instead of milk.  (Yogurt would have been OK but instead I "borrowed" some milk from the (free) coffee area to put on my cereal.)

I had thought I might be able to walk from the hotel (Sakari told me it was close by)-- then the receptionist here told me it was "2 or 3 kilometers."  I was feeling pretty good about having my gear but decided, even though it was a "nice" day for February in Oulu, it was too cold to walk.

The taxi took me in & I met almost everyone.  A couple of the meetings were pretty interesting but by ~3:30 I felt fatigue & so left early.  (Even though I drank 6 or 8 cappuccinos, at least.) I got to the hotel & slept on-&-off for ~2 hours.

After my nap, I decided to go for a walk around Oulu.  It was OK for a coupe blocks.  The cold air hit your lungs funny until I got used to it.  I was thinking this isn't so bad!?! Then I turned a corner & was exposed for the first time to the wind.  HOLY COW!  I've been thinking it might not be so awful to live again somewhere where it was cold in the winter but now, I DON'T THINK SO!

I was kind of laughing but that wind was stinging my nose & cheeks & even my eyes.  I realize people live here full time & think this is normal but it was painful.  I tried to drop my chin to get my mouth & nose inside the raised neck of the jacket.  This helped --until I exhaled, then my glasses fogged up & I couldn't see for a few seconds. 

The local guys are commenting snowfall has been light this winter but the sidewalks were still coated with it all packed down.  I also noticed they don't use much salt here.  I noticed after I slipped a couple times & almost fell on my cushy.  The first time I thought it was fluke.  The 2nd time I decided I better take the skating advice I've been giving "Baby girl" --bend over a little & stick out your tushy to keep you balance while you move forward.  (Imagine that, listening to my own advice.)

The really funny thing it the local guys say this weather is "nice."  Today at +10F or so was a nice day & there isn't too terribly much snow.  (I saw a couple piles that looked 6 feet high or more but this is considered minor.)  Tomorrow is supposed to be really cold.  It's supposed to drop to -30C (so 26F below zero!).  They say this is more typical for Oulu in the winter.

Living in California is looking better & better.

I ended up back in the hotel for dinner & I'm writing this ~8:10pm local time.  I'll probably do a little more e-mail & then go to bed early.

Tomorrow I have more meetings before this adventure moves to Helsinki. (~300 miles south of here).

Love,
Daddy, stinky no more, warm in his hotel room & getting lots of sleep

----- Original Message -----
Sent: Monday, February 05, 2007 5:21 PM
Subject: Adventure Day #3 (I think)

Dear Not-Stinky-Daddy,

We are glad that your luggage arrived.  You should send pictures to us of the six foot high snow piles.  I can't believe that the people in Finland think that it is a nice day at such cold temperatures.  It's amazing how cold it can get in some places.  Luckily, we don't live in Finland or a very cold place! 

We will probably go to the Stanford women's basketball game this Saturday.  We sent you a copy of the email.

"Baby girl" is looking forward to seeing you when you come back (and so am I and Smoochie)!  Although Smoochie now has your half to sleep on, he refuses and attaches himself to me.  He is our soooo baaad boy!!!!

Love,
"Baby girl", typist Mommy, and BB Smoochie (BB=BadBoy)


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