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!

Lots Of Busy-Ness

Lots of busy has been going on. That's why it's so quiet on here. So here's bullet style update.

(Check out Liam's one-arm plank! That's my babe!)

Liam Updates
* Has tried 3 different rice cereals now (include one homemade with nothing but white rice and water). He has upchucked all of them. Total of 4x upchucking due to rice cereal. He has also upchucked yams 1x. With everything going on, we've decided to suspend his solids for now.
* Fell off the bed onto hardwood floor and hit his forehead. Poor kid had a huge bruise and lump. My fail. I was distracted by Emilia and turned away from him. Almost caught his legs as he was going down, but missed by a fraction of a second. =( He's okay now though.
* Craws (bunny-hop style) really fast now. He is going to be a climber! He loves climbing on top of everything. Also he has really good abs! He is always doing some plank or downward dog pose.
* Gets upset at Emilia now when she takes his toys away from him. Oh.. let the fighting begin!

Emilia Updates
* Starting to prep for potty training and we plan to follow the Potty Training in a Day method. Ryan has read the book (I'm next) and we have a potty training doll that drinks water and pees when the belly is full. Now we just need some time.
* She has lots of little friends around, though we cannot see them. She is always waiting for Julian and Perry to put on their seat belts before she'll drive them around in her invisible car.
* Occasionally I'll catch her dragging Liam around by the feet or by the hands.

Ryan Updates
* He's completely focused on our zombie fortification as things are underway really fast. Permits are approved and work is in full force.
* Old deck removed and certain areas repaired. We have workers, contractors, inspectors... and lots of activity going on. Retaining walls are also up!
* Ryan found another rattle snake a while back when he was moving rail ties around.
* Avocado season is over. Avocados were harvested a good while back and it turned out to be a decent season. Looking forward to when the Reeds start coming out, which will be around fall time.

Connie Updates
* Work - I have a new project and given full responsibility towards design, verification, implementation, and debug of our testboard FGPA development on an upcoming high-profile testchip. That's a whole cycle with a bunch of new things I am unfamiliar with. Excited to work on this and learn new skill sets, but also nervous as to time, family/work balance, and the consequences if I mess it up. (Essentially there can be no mess up.)
* Dealing with a painful hamstring/glut injury for the past 2 months. I am getting treatments with an ART specialist. Have gotten referrals from a friend in the local competitive elite running/tri-athlete community (thanks WK) and started seeing a PT. Good news is that the PT's analysis gave me an answer to why I sustained a hamstring injury and also the root cause for several other periodic issues I've always had. Now I am very hopeful there's a solution to resolve all of my ailments.
* Last attempt, I am up to 12 max pull-ups. 2 away from my goal that I set back at the beginning of the year.
* Crossfit and regular workouts are now suspended, and have been for the past 1.5 months. Bummed that I'm stopped, but silver-lining (2 bullets above) which will hopefully help me in the future to get stronger and better in the right way.
* Diet - Been doing a mix between keeping some Paleo ideas and Bob Harper's 20 rules. Re-incorporating limited whole grains. Mainly oatmeal, brown rice, or my latest find, SmartCarb bread (also comes in gluten-free and Paleo versions), high in protein and fiber! I am focusing on eating foods with high fiber and protein with each meal.

Family & Friends
* Lots of family visits lately, which the kids (esp Emilia) love.
* Visit from cousins Emily and Elizabeth, who was out here for a rock climbing competition.
* Grandma "poa-poa" came by to spend time with the kids for a week.
* Szeto cousins were out visiting (crazy, fun madhouse! Kids LOVED it.)
* Distant cousin Patty got married and we had the honor to take part and celebrate with them.
* We had a last Collective hoorah with the Chuckster before he headed off to Australia!
* And we found out that the Collective will be having a new addition at the end of this year. Congrats JL & Irma!

And, lastly, everyone here has been rotating being sick in one form or another.

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz....

Momma trying to catch some precious zzz's while Liam naps. Don't roll over ;^0

Birthday Thai Cooking

For Connie's birthday last Saturday, I got her an at-home Thai cooking class from the True Taste of Thai. She got to pick three dishes that she would learn to prepare:

Yum Nuea (grilled beef served with spicy salad)
Kao Neaw Kai Yang (grilled, marinated chicken served with sticky rice and sweet/sour sauces)
Pad Thai (thin rice noodles and tofu with shrimp in a peanut and tamarind based sauce)

The owner of the True Taste of Thai is Krong Na Songkhla. She is a Thai native, and graduated from a prestigious culinary school in Thailand. She definitely knows the in's and out's of Thai cooking. Krong provides all of the food, and works with whatever kitchen utensils you have available. She also ensures that you know everything you need to know to replicate the dish.

Here's Krong and Connie just getting started...


Time for the shrimp to hit the pan...


And the rice noodles...


Finished Pad Thai...


And the completed dishes ready for consumption...


All of the dishes were very good, but I think our favorite was the grilled beef salad. Also, the marinated chicken was surprisingly flavorful given that it was marinated for only a short time. I think Connie enjoyed the lesson, and I definitely enjoyed the food :^)

Plugged Into the Matrix

Whew! I survived the first week back into the Matrix!


Maternity leave ended a week ago and I have since been back to work. It is pretty hard leaving my baby and knowing that I am missing out on seeing everything she does in the day and having someone else other than me hold her. There are pros and cons going back to work, but I definitely have a greater respect of working moms that manage to balance both aspects of life, especially single moms! It definitely is hard and at times I just have to breathe and remind myself of the pros. It helps that Ryan is home with Em though, as that provides a sense of security to know that daddy is close by to her.


At the end of this week, it is easier to evaluate my return. The first day back to work started off okay since there was a curiosity to see if there were changes at work (since Sun was acquired by Oracle and the re-structuring has started). The changes mainly were HR related - training classes, IT stuff. Almost feels like going to a new job but with co-workers the same and the office the same. Of course, all I still talk about is Baby Em. I'm sure the conversations about the financial markets and politics will re-circulate around me at work soon, once I am more settled in.


Oh, and, just like most working moms and dads out there, my screensaver is now scrolling various photos of my baby girl. I always thought that was cheesy, but now I see why. I miss her at work and seeing those photos of her just puts a smile on my face as I work with a focus on what I do... is all for my baby girl. Same job, same routine, but different goals and perspectives now.