Yes, this is where I work

MathWorkers are notorious for decorating people's offices when they're away on vacation, celebrating milestones (birthdays, company anniversaries, etc.), and out on paternity/maternity leave.

It wasn't enough that my group already threw us a baby shower a few weeks ago ... while I was out on paternity, they went one step further! This was my office upon arrival back at work this morning:


Note the images of Julia, printed straight from this site!




It was determined that every new father needs "a little help" after a long day.


Confetti, streamers, balloons, bubble-gum cigars, and posters abound.

Big thanks to everyone involved! Especially Helen, who came in ON A SUNDAY to add the finishing touches. Unreal, and greatly appreciated!

The MathWorks Takes Mt. Washington

The MathWorks had their annual Mt. Washington company retreat a few weeks ago. This being my first one, I was not sure what to expect. Here are somethings I didn't know going in:
1. The company takes over the entire Mt. Washington hotel. The WHOLE thing. Whoa.
2. The company also takes over a couple other area hotels. Double whoa.
3. There is no team building exercises, speeches, financial results shared, etc ... nothing. Just two big company-wide dinners and cocktail hours(5 hours each, to be exact), and the rest of the time from Friday night to Sunday night is allllllll yours.


We had a really good time up there. It ended up being a nice mini-vacation for us, and we got to breathe some of that fresh New Hampshire air for a few days. I had the chance to ride the Alpine Slide, since the hotel we ended up at was right across the street from Attitash Mountain. I had not been on one of those slides since I was 10 years old, when there was another alpine slide located at Gunstock Mountain in Laconia, NH. Lots o' memories!

More pics can be found here.

Thank you for calling WGBH ...

May I have your first and last name, please?

It was a fun Sunday night answering the phones for the annual WGBH pledge drive with some co-workers from The MathWorks.

You'd be amazed by how many people call in from Canada (even Newfoundland!) for Tony Bennett* or Elvis CD/DVDs. And it's fun trying to explain why the $200 in coupons they will be receiving probably don't apply to much that they can buy in the Great White North. Or what a DVD actually IS, and trying to determine for them if they own a DVD player.

*Here's Alec Baldwin doing an impression of Tony Bennett. This should be required viewing for all 'Mericans.

Movin' On

My six-plus years at edocs/Siebel/Oracle have come to an end. I'll be starting at Authoria in Waltham, MA on June 8. My role there will be Senior Consultant, and I will work with Authoria's clients post-implementation. Authoria is an HR software suite provider, focusing on things like talent retention, salary, performance, etc.



They sent me a box of cookies; some with the Authoria logo, and some with my name/position printed out. Sweeeeeeeeeet!

It will be very weird going to work and not seeing all the same people I've come to know over the last six years, but I'm very excited about this opportunity. Plus, they have a softball team. I've been known to enjoy softball.