Portland Weekend
Jul. 19th, 2009 11:15 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
walbournWe took off Friday and headed down to Portland for Summerstar. The turnout was down significantly from the past few years, but it was still a fun event. Saturday we went into Portland to avoid the hottest part of the day. We went to Penzeys, Powell's, and then REI to get a bit more camping gear--![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
cuddlyeconomist needed a real sleeping bag as it was rather chilly overnight. My usual Summerstar friends were not there this year, unfortunately, but we managed a relaxing and enjoyable weekend.
Tonight we went to Ruth's Chris for acuddlyeconomist birthday dinner--it was Friday, but we were on the road so we decided to go today instead. Tasty food, great dessert, and excessive levels of service. Actually they seem to be less crazy on the staff these days, and I'm guessing the Zombie Apocalypse has pushed them towards more casual dining than I recall seeing there on prior visits.
Today also marks my fifth year anniversary of working at Microsoft. As my boss is on vacation next week, they went ahead and gave me my '5 year' award last Thursday. They are jokingly called "power crystals" and look like something you'd find in Superman's Fortress of Solitude sans the cool lights. It's mostly a dustable, but it still marks the longest stint I've ever had at a single job. The game industry + small business = regular layoffs and finding new jobs every few years.
Microsoft long since stopped being a millionaire factory before I started working there, but in addition to solid base pay and benefits, five years is fully vested in some 401k matching, my initial stock offering, and a few other minor bennies. Who knows how long this particular gig will last, and anyone who has talked with me about my job knows it's a regular source of frustration, but on the whole I believe my time there has been put to productive use. In a time when a lot of people are struggling for any kind of employment, much less something reasonably fulfilling that challenges them and hones their talents, I know how to count my blessings. I'm trying to remember that in the midsts of yet another round of bean counting policy manipulations that negatively impact my work group's ability to smoothly do our jobs, the near-constant change of ownership musical chairs, and the reorganization shuffle of the week that define life working for a large corporation.
cuddlyeconomist needed a real sleeping bag as it was rather chilly overnight. My usual Summerstar friends were not there this year, unfortunately, but we managed a relaxing and enjoyable weekend.Tonight we went to Ruth's Chris for a
cuddlyeconomist birthday dinner--it was Friday, but we were on the road so we decided to go today instead. Tasty food, great dessert, and excessive levels of service. Actually they seem to be less crazy on the staff these days, and I'm guessing the Zombie Apocalypse has pushed them towards more casual dining than I recall seeing there on prior visits.Today also marks my fifth year anniversary of working at Microsoft. As my boss is on vacation next week, they went ahead and gave me my '5 year' award last Thursday. They are jokingly called "power crystals" and look like something you'd find in Superman's Fortress of Solitude sans the cool lights. It's mostly a dustable, but it still marks the longest stint I've ever had at a single job. The game industry + small business = regular layoffs and finding new jobs every few years.
Microsoft long since stopped being a millionaire factory before I started working there, but in addition to solid base pay and benefits, five years is fully vested in some 401k matching, my initial stock offering, and a few other minor bennies. Who knows how long this particular gig will last, and anyone who has talked with me about my job knows it's a regular source of frustration, but on the whole I believe my time there has been put to productive use. In a time when a lot of people are struggling for any kind of employment, much less something reasonably fulfilling that challenges them and hones their talents, I know how to count my blessings. I'm trying to remember that in the midsts of yet another round of bean counting policy manipulations that negatively impact my work group's ability to smoothly do our jobs, the near-constant change of ownership musical chairs, and the reorganization shuffle of the week that define life working for a large corporation.
