2017 Holiday Edition : Oh What a Year!

The fact that we have a Xmas card this year (as opposed to last year where we completely missed Xmas) is a good sign that just maybe... we are finally catching up with life and such... maybe...

2017 has been a whirlwind of changes and challenges that started at the end of 2016. We have had our share of events reminiscent of HGTV horror episodes, workplace drama, a forced mid-life career change, several mishap trips to the ER, food allergies, home flooding and destruction of half our home, and growing pains of transitions to new environments - new school (for Liam) and a new work (for me). However through it all, we have managed to keep up the climbing, incorporating short trips here and there, and kids manage to find ways to have fun regardless of the situations. At the end of the year, we've grown a little more resilient and adaptive. So.. all in all... it's been a good, challenging year, though, I must say, I'm looking forward to 2017 ending, and for the 2018 new year to begin.

Some highlights this year were :
* Emilia became a backup drummer for a band one day night
* Connie completed her 2017 New Years Resolution of 365+ miles in a year and completed a legit, outdoor roof-style V3.
* Kids are becoming more independent and better at climbing. Emilia participated on a climbing team for a short stint. She became belay certified, and technically, the kids can climb on their own.
* Ryan continues to consistently train and build his climbing skill level. We're optimistic a legit, outdoor V8 is within his reach. And he's got our home gym underway...

* Connie managed to transition to a new industry and job.
* Our most memorable trip this year was to Bishop. Climbing at the Happies.. produced some great, memorable moments for all of us.

* And the kids continue to be the best of friends, and worst of enemies...

With this holiday season, we are happy to have a breather and catch up, at least a little. Wishing our friends and family good health and cherished moments of happiness.

(Miss you cousin Luke and great-grandma)

365+

New Years Resolution 2017 achieved!!! Back in Jan this year, I committed to 365 logged running miles for 2017. It didn't matter the frequency.. whether it was 1 mile/day or 365 miles in one day.. I just needed to run 365 miles by the end of 2017. I opted to keep accountable by focusing on 1 mile/day and to keep a log of the miles monthly.

Certain days and months, I went over the 1 mile/day.. Jan, Feb, and March. If I felt like I had extra time or energy, I would run extra miles to "cash" it for rainy days. Other times when life was overwhelming, such as August/Sept/October when I put 110% of my effort into job hunting, those months lapsed in running miles. However, now towards the end of the year, I'm happy to have achieved 365 miles for 2017 on the day after Thanksgiving.. Nov 24th.

In fact, an ex co-worker took on this challenge as well... but he's a runner, and he achieved the mileage in June/July time frame. A way that I connect with my ex-coworkers are through Fitbit Challenges, and it's nice to know that there are other OCD crazies like me. I'm definitely missing my old work environment, my former co-workers as I am still adjusting to my "new life" as I call it. But we still get together on occasion for Happy hour, Fitbit challenges, or messaging.

This week we had a work-week hustle. I've retained 1st place, logging in 163,309 steps in a 5-day period. It required running about 10 miles a day which I would do in the wee hours (4-6am) of the morning before work, and late into the night after work (9-11pm).

Here's a photo I took to show evidence of such endeavors. Me and my slow-man companion late one evening after putting the kids to bed.

Swamped

So, in other news... finally things seemed to be settling down.. I got a job.. Liam's head was healing... so we went on a week long trip. We came back from the trip on a Sunday afternoon, the day before my first day at a new job, to find water streaming out from all sides of our home. Uh oh!

Not many photos cause, well, we went straight away into damage control. Turns out the hot water hose to the washing machine sprung a leak.. a really big leak.. essentially fully gushing, for almost the entire time that we were gone! Our first floor was swamped, with certain areas having 4-5 inches of water. Truthfully.. we were lucky. In the moment, the thought didn't cross my mind, but both Ryan and I went into the flooded home, while electricity was still on with live power extension cords fully submerged. So... regardless of the mess, I'm grateful it was only loss of property and my kids aren't orphans.

24-hour emergency flood company working into late night to remove all the water.

We spent that night camping on our front lawn. There was mold from the stagnant water.. and later on, there was asbestos which put the 1st floor under quarantine. This made for a very stressful first day, and first week, of work. But hey.. at least I have job to help pay for this.. and we're pretty good at the camping thing. It was actually kind of a nice night to sleep outside, warm and perfect temps.

Damage was extensive. Drywall walls and some ceiling, most flooring, cabinets, furniture, on top of loss of various items. This is how the 1st floor looks now. It'll be a while to renovate as there are lots of details to work through.

And here's our temporary storage. The flip side is, even as we look at the stuff in temporary storage.. a lot of the stuff is not needed. This makes a good time as any to clean and reduce.

It was sad to throw away things that were total loss, but at the end of the day.. it's just stuff. I have a better understanding of situations where flooding or fires occurs and the impact it can have. This is also a reminder that the unexpected can happen. Evacuation is always a possibility, and to be better prepared. .. oh, and shut off the main water line prior to going on a trip!

All Better

It's been a while.. cause we are swamped.. literally.

Here's a not-so-recent (from August), but the most recent photo of the kids that I have.

However, backtracking... Liam is all better. Went back to the doc's to get the staples removed. That was an ordeal! Getting staples out was harder than having them put in. The doc had to take a break in-between removing the 2nd and 3rd staple because it was very painful and Liam was not having any of it. An icy, cold blue popsicle did the trick.

This is his head now. It's healed quite nicely and luckily minimal scarring. Warning, I added a clear before photo at the bottom for comparison.

Since this incident, kid has added other minor cuts and bruises to his injury count. Tripped over his own foot. Sorry kid.. I think you inherited my clumsy trait...

Ow... Poor Kid.

Kid had a freak accident at school. Tripped on a ball, fell backwards, and smacked his head on a hard log. Luckily he hit a flat part versus the corner, but the impact was still significant to cause a deep laceration. So, another visit to Urgent Care.

Not going to show a close up of the wound... it was enough to traumatize Emilia.

Several staples to close up the wound and several popsicles too, to calm kiddo down.

Emilia has a lot of empathy. She was crying the entire time Liam was getting stapled. Poor kids!

Good news is no concussion and kid is fine, acting his usual self, other than his head is swollen and the area is sensitive. Hopefully this will heal up fast.. in the meantime, he refuses to wear anything but button down shirts and we are keeping him low-key until he is healed.

New Beginnings... to Global Domination

Week 5... and new beginnings are forming... A departure to what I have been doing the past 15+ years... I will be moving into the realm of satellite communications, high-power, RF (Radio Frequency), wireless technology!!

ViaSat-1 Satellite

I have been offered a position in test development at ViaSat Inc. They just launched their ViaSat-2 satellite recently, and yes, their simple mission is essentially global domination.. to provide global communication and access. Imagine the impact it can have, for everyone, everywhere, 3rd world countries, to have access to information and knowledge, be self-sufficient to learn and improve livelihood.

Not only commercial communications, but also military and government.. to keep troops and law enforcement with better means of remote and stable communication access under critical situations (thoughts are with Vegas right now).

The past several months... actually, heck.. the past year has been filled with up and down challenges with the uncertainties of the job. I enjoyed very much what I was working on, seeing my career change and grow with more responsibilities the past several years, and facing a lot of work challenges. While the career growth was great, the company was not. I worked for my team, but was disheartened by a general callousness of a company focused solely on profits for the higher ups.

ViaSat-2 Satellite

ViaSat-2 recently launched on June, 2017, with the world's highest capacity communications satellite.

I was inspired by friends and former colleagues that found new frontiers in biomedical tech companies, in companies with philanthropic missions, making advancements for the benefit of mankind. I'm hopeful for a new company, a new direction where my background can still be utilized and I can place my contributions towards a beneficial cause, global communications and support for STEM education.

Week 4.. Goes By Slow, Yet Fast

My how time seems fast and yet slow.. and vice versa. Everything has come to a halt, except for main priority.. finding a jooob. I finally took a break. It has been over a month since I last went climbing, and oh, how I miss thee. I'm 10lbs down of muscle now due to all the studying and non-activity. But the gym, is like an old familiar friend. I like it like this.. empty, quiet, and spacious... and all for myself.

Job hunting is surprisingly slow. There are not too many places in SD that has a need for high-speed signal integrity test experts. In the mean time, a lot of the SerDes design and test teams in the Bay Area have been swooped up by the likes of Apple, AMD, and Intel. Not surprising, those are the forefront of hardware technology companies.. and all in Silicon Valley.

I'm taking my chances of making an industry switch, but it comes with a mixed bag... I'm going from being at the fore front of new innovative technology that I have been a pioneer and expertise since it's early conception, to starting over. With it, I need to sell my qualifications to an industry of perspective managers that have absolutely no knowledge to the complexities and challenges of SerDes, nor my value in it.

This week, I had the joy of being invited to speak as a guest lecturer to several engineering classes at a local high school. Truthfully, it was a great change of pace and perspective from the last few weeks. Going to a high school reminded me of how far I've come since then, and how much more needs to be done to encourage the youth of the next generation, especially the women. There is a 50/50 split between male and female during the first 2 years of high school. By the time senior year rolls around, the numbers drop down to 10%... which is about the ratio I went to college with.

In my career, the engineers that have inspired me, have been the women engineers I have met along the way... not because they were women, but because they were the ones I've encountered that possess a greater passion, greater work ethic, and a fierceness in their profession that I don't see anywhere else. I found out recently, my first female mentor which left a lasting impression, passed away 3 years ago to lung cancer... a great woman.. a great engineer.. I still carry with me and follow through with the advice she gave me 18 years ago.

A student asked me a question.. "What do you like about engineering?".. and it's because it's challenging. It's not easy, it is hard.. but the reward of solving not just any problem, but a hard problem that you wrack your brain over and go crazy.. there's a satisfaction and pride that can't be earned in any other way.

I'm struggling right now. I admit. But it's just like any other hard problem I've had to deal with before.. I need to process it, and figure out ways to solve my problem.. one step at a time.

Another Day.. to Philz!

Week 3 of the unemployed.. another week, another coffee shop. Time passes quick.. maybe even quicker now...

The ever growing Philz Coffee has finally made it's way to SoCal and expanding.

I've survived one on-site interview now. I say survived because the first one is always beyond nerve wracking... after all, it's been over 12+ years since I have had to go "sell myself" again. I have full confidence in my abilities, but not so much confidence in "selling" it for interviews. I've never been good at marketing.

With engineering, there's always so much background to remember. There are theories I haven't touched since college, even if it's just the basics. This week I'm reviewing the questions that I missed on the interview.. such as the one below.

Identify the configuration of this circuit. What does it do? And, what are the voltage are V1 and V2.

For sure I will not forget this one again. It's actually a very simple question after the fact when I reviewed specifically NPN transistor theory.

The New Grind

It has been a relief that the ax has fallen, that the past is really now the past and I work towards the future. One of my "traits" is OCD... and once that gets going, it can be both a blessing or a curse. I tend to see it as a blessing.. after all, it's what got me to Everest Base Camp and to endure 13 miles of 105+ degrees heat of the Spartan Race. This trait of mine... is my method for achievement. It may be slow and arduous, but surely I will make it.

In the course of 2 weeks, I have spent on average 10 hours a day "working" towards my new future. I have 4 sessions of 2-3 hours each, where I review engineering theories, practice presentation style, white boarding different topics, drill myself on theories with flash cards, read various articles on similar topics to obtain different viewpoints, watch YouTube videos, and follow up on job hunting leads. I estimate I have put in over 200+ hours now of engineering study this month.

My kids have been on their own, wild and crazy, eating whatever quick fix dinner I can dig out of the freezer, and totally taking advantage of the fact that I'm letting them watch TV and do whatever they want as long as they leave me alone.

My new "office". Ryan help set up a whiteboard for me.

Occasionally I'll get a visit from my new co-worker..

Another day, a different place of work. I take advantage of studying and "working" everywhere and anywhere I can. On this morning while running errands that required waiting, I reviewed different op amp configurations on Starbucks napkin.

Taking up the corner office location at a local Panera...

Yes.. Starbucks does seem to be a theme. It's a good place to go while waiting for things. Free wi-fi is always helpful.

And I can't forget to leave out my other new co-worker, Rose. I cannot thank Trader Joes enough for coming out with this inexpensive bubbly, which I meet on occasion at the end of a long work week. (I limit the drinking to the end of the week.)

To be continued...

Closure of a Decade's Worth

The Sun has finally set... All endings start a new beginning, a new chapter. Endings are never easy, even ones that are trivial in the grand scheme of life. It's still a jumble of memories, accomplishments, growth, familiarity, confidence,..etc.. a whole bunch of factors that impact more than just cognizant processing. Well... as is... it is time to bide adieu to a decade's worth of work...

I worked on all of these processors and more, testchips and processors prior 2010, in the Sun era, pre-Oracle. Some required late nights and long hours, sleeping in the office with a sleeping bag so I didn't have to drive home to only drive back the next morning.

It has been tremendous privilege to have been a part of innovation and development of the Sparc processors. Thanks for the memories!

The best is yet to come... enjoy the journey!

Angioedema

Itsssssss baaaack... ALLERGIES!! I haven't written about allergies in a while. That's because the incidents have been pretty minor up til now. Liam would get a rash here and there, with uncomfortable itching, but they would go away. I was hoping that Liam would be growing out of it... In some instances, he is less sensitive such as tomatoes. He can eat spaghetti and pizza now, which both have cooked tomatoes. Raw tomatoes, not as much.

But he has had two incidents in the past 6 months that raises a cause for concern. Both incidents occurred at school, and in both incidents, we cannot identify the cause. The first incident, a rash and swelling occurred at school where we were called to pick him up. Luckily with some monitoring and staying at home, the rash went away. The second incident happened recently while he was away at daycamp. He came home with rash and hives on his arms and face. I gave him a bath right away to wash off any possible topical contact. The next morning, he woke up with even more rash and some swelling on the face. Below.

So we went to the doctor, and she gave him Claritin. I knew Claritin wouldn't do much for swelling, but maybe help with the hives. Maybe I should have asked more for the swelling since that was the main concern... and indeed, the next day when he woke up... Liam's face puffed up like a giant puffer fish... so much that he had trouble opening his eyes. Yup.. definitely a cause for concern now. Off to visit the ER, hospital again. I was hoping we would skip our happenstance yearly visits this year, but nope.

Obviously it's an allergic reaction. Luckily Liam's reactions are all external. Angioedema is the swelling of the face. Luckily it is not the swelling of the throat, which is Anaphylaxis. Either way, his symptoms are progressively getting worse with each exposure. We don't know what caused the reaction. Possibly cross-contamination at school. Maybe there is something else he is allergic to that we don't know. It means back to root causing this before it happens again. Below is Liam's face with swelling going down, several hours after receiving benadryll and steroid medication. I'm against taking steroids, but several sources agreed that it was necessary.

It's time to see the allergist again...

Tiger Cap

This kid... putting on his Tiger Cap while learning how to be a superhero (aka watching superhero movies).

Black Mountain Revisited

2nd day on our local trip with Roger, we climbed at Black Mountain. Nevermind my raspy voice commentary.. I had once again, gotten sick on this trip.

Kids took a turn at trying the moves on my nemesis of a project, Gypsy's Day Out.

Gypsy's Day Out,v3 @Black Mountain - Emilia


Gypsy's Day Out,v3 @Black Mountain - Liam


Roger finally got it! He was determined and found beta that worked for him. That throw to the top is a hard move to stick. That's where I keep coming off as it's pretty much at my max reach.

Gypsy's Day Out,v3 @Black Mountain - Roger's Send
(***WARNING : EXPLICIT LANGUAGE***)


And this one is a classic! Tour De France is on Ryan's project list. This boulder is such a sight to see, with clean diagonal lines seemingly there as its decoration. And the sunset and view is super amazing. It was fun for all of us to just hang out there.

Tour de France,v7 @Black Mountain - Ryan's best attempt

Kids once again wiped out on another fun adventure.

Tramway Highlights

We spent 2 days exploring the boulders at Tramway. Roger also once again joined us for climbing shenanigans. Even with a guidebook in hand and GPS coordinates, the boulder areas were hard to find. We spent about half the time hiking around, off the main trail and getting lost. It was exhaustingly fun.

Kids were, for the most part, good sports about it.

After spending hours hiking around, being re-directed by a park ranger, and STILL not finding the boulders we were seeking, the guys dropped the packs for more efficiency, and left the kids and I in this beautiful remote clearing. I laid down for a nap while the kids played around. After a while, the kids became quiet, and the nature around took over. The birds were chirping away in song. There was a light, cooling breeze in the comfortably warm temperature under the shade. I looked up and saw this:

They each were doing their own thing in quiet solitude. It was a very peaceful time and place. At least that's my take on it.. who knows.. maybe they were squishing bugs or drawing circles in the sand. =P

Finally found Shagri-La area, and with it...
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon,v7*** @Tramway - Ryan's best attempt


He didn't finish it, it was end of the day, but he has the beta to do the 2nd, crux move.

While the big kids were working the boulder, the little kids were busily working away too. They showed great teamwork, carrying massive logs they found and put them together to form their version of a tram.

Liam's got the look of a hard working tram engineering.. dirt smeared face with a giant smile.

Kids tired, but still pretty happy at the end of the day.

Riding the Tram back down to Palm Springs. Crash pads take a bit of room.

The next day...
The boys getting their last minute screen time before heading off to the "no service zone". haha.

2nd day was better as we were getting more oriented with the area. First objective was Frank's Boulder which had various problems to work on.

All of us worked on a classic Frank's Roof,v3***. It is a burly, short power moves kind of problem with a small dyno catch out of the roof. Ryan and Roger both were able to complete this one. (Did not get the video of Roger's send.)

Frank's Roof,v3*** @Tramway - Ryan's Send

(Note Ryan's over-dramatized finish... hahah)

I could not muster the strength nor mental courage to do the Frank's Roof dyno... and I didn't know it at the time, but I was starting to get sick. =P So downgraded to an easier climb...

The Terminator,v2** @ Tramway - Connie's Flash


After Frank's Boulder, we moved on to Gluttony, a potential V8 problem for Ryan. It's a highly, 4-star rated roof problem. Our favorite kind of problems! All of us worked the few starting moves. I am happy to say I was the first to stick the 1st and 2nd move. Though Ryan was the one that made the best progress.

Gluttony,v8**** @Tramway - Ryan's best attempt


Roger working on his core tension.

Gluttony,v8**** @Tramway - Roger's core tension


The Green Hornet,v5*** was the last boulder climb of the day. Mountain Project calls this one "the best at it's grade at Tram". Ryan picked it specifically for Roger.

Tramway has some good stuff there. No doubt we will be back.