May 01, 2005
A New Chapter Begins
Right about now one of my coworkers is handing over production of our Online Reports to a new group in Canada.
In July of 1998 I moved from working in the Television group to the Online Desk. It has been six of the best years in my professional life. I got to do everything from editing content to creating graphics to writing software and designing entire systems for the creation and delivery of content. I've worked with big and small clients, I've helped other groups within the company, and all the while doing this with a fun group of people.
Tomorrow is their last day in this job.
I am certain of one thing, and only one thing: these people, these coworkers, these friends of mine, they are starting a new journey that will take them places they have been wanting to go. None of them will be left wanting, none of them will find it too difficult to find a job. I'm also starting a new job, in another division. But I'm still left saddened and a little morose.
I couldn't have done it all these years without them. Some, I'd never seen before my stint on the desk. Others I'd worked with across jobs and companies. A dozen years here, eight there, and five here... It adds up to real time. Real friendships.
At work, we always had a fun atmosphere. They made the bad days bearable and the good days great. They helped guide me professionally and they were there when I needed someone to guide me personally.
The hardest part is not that they will be without jobs -- I don't think they will be for long. The hardest part is knowing that most of them are leaving. To be sure, we'll stay in touch, but it's not the same.
It saddens me to see this happen. It saddens me to know the laughter and the poke-poke-poking won't be there. But, to each and every one of you, I salute you, my friends.
Thanks for the many great years, and here's to many more.
Posted by Samer at 10:45 PM | Comments (2)
February 11, 2005
One by one
For years I've been singing the praises of the Macintosh and of Apple. Mostly no one listens, but when they do they tend to get religion. Recently, my boss (JCA) started listening. He asked a few questions here and there, and then watched the SteveNote from MacWorld. That renowned reality distortion field bit and he bought an iBook for his wife and daughter.
He loves it, as you can tell:
Well, there is nothing I don't like about it. It is the embodiment of
"living right" and the ease with which tasks are performed only
reinforces how idiotic the Windows world is.
There's no good place to start or finish, but I fired up iSync and it
did everything a sync utility should do. The first time. Using
Bluetooth. No questions asked.
For that matter, Bluetooth just works. No negotiating, no setup. It is
no wonder that BT had such a rocky start with 97% of first impressions
being on PCs. I almost gave up myself.
Safari rocks -- is is faster even that FireFox? And within 30 minutes
or so I got the feel of where settings were and how to customize.
The girls just LOVE the profile swapper. And trying that on XP is ...
well I promised myself I wouldn't cry.
There is a lot of junk on my sidewalk right now. It used by be my
Windows network. I'm definitly getting a Mac mini and might let [my daughter]
keep it.
And then I start thinking about me ...
And then I cound the days until Dashboard.
This from a man who was a diehard Windows user and could run circles around most people's daily use of that operating system. Why don't you join the Cult?
Posted by Samer at 08:19 AM | Comments (0)
April 01, 2004
A Decade
Today marks 10 years of working for Reuters.
I've gone from Video Tape Editor to Multimedia Editor to Graphics Specialist to Online Reports Developer. I've been on a couple of trips, from MacWorld Boston to the G8 meeting in Denver to client visits in San Francisco to the Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City.
Despite my groaning and moaning, it has been a good ride. Here's to the next decade.
Posted by Samer at 08:41 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
June 11, 2003
Cheesecake Takes the Day
I won the company bake-off. Apparently by a landslide. And there were 12 others in the competition, including one of my boss' entries, a sumptuous four layer chocolate cake.
I was lobbying hard, my theory being that you gotta be in it to win it, but I was impressed with how good this cheesecake was, despite not ever having made one before. For that, I thank the $DEITIES of cooking, particularly the fine folks at Cooks Illustrated. A fantastic magazine that belongs in every cook's home.
Posted by Samer at 11:01 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
June 10, 2003
Cheesecake Is Not Easy
I'm making a lemon cheesecake for a "bake off" we are having at the office. I intend to win, so I'm not playing fair at all. Who can resist a light and airy cheesecake with a nice lemon curd on top?
But let me tell you, making a cheesecake is not easy. I've been at it for almost an hour and a half. It still has to finish baking (15 mins) and then it has to cool for three hours(!!!) before I can top it with curd. Then it has to set up over night.
In the morning, I will cut it. Then I have to safely transport it to the office, where it has to remain safely untouched until lunch time.
Tune in tomorrow for news of the winning entry.
Posted by Samer at 09:18 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack