Goodbye Google... the long trip home

We left fairly early in the morning... I don't even think I really slept. The trip was long and rough. I was excited about flying first class, so much that I skipped my religious routine of purchasing McDonald's before my flight... a long 6hr flight I might add. To my dismay and DISBELIEF the airline (name withheld to protect the not-so-innocent) ran out of food in FIRST CLASS! Is that even possible? Its not like I was even in the last row... so instead of a 'hearty' meal of scrambled eggs, pancakes and sausage that the first couple rows were served, I had to settle for dry cereal and a sympathy banana... I was so upset I turned that down. Starvation sounded more appealing at that point. Sleep.

sigh... I think I just dreamt about that Google omelet I had at one of the many restaurants at the Googleplex.

13 hrs later... Back to life in good ol' upstate NY.

Scavengers in San Francisco!!

... blog will be posted soon. Be sure to check back!

exploring "The Googleplex" - Mountain View, California

... blog will be posted soon. Be sure to check back!

Meeting the "Google Girls"

It was a long trip into California! I spent 2hrs on my first flight to Chicago, and another 4.5hrs to San Jose airport. I am exhausted from having just 2 hours of sleep this morning (by the way I overslept and thought I would miss my plane... note to self don't stay up all night before flights!)

As soon as the plane landed in California, I met some other Google's Workshop for Women Engineers (from now on referred to as GWWE) women who were on the same flight as me and even some students from my school I had no clue were coming! We all wondered through the airport trying to figure out where the shuttle would pick us up... finally we did! The first shocking thing was the weather in California!! Unexpectedly it is cold and rainy here... jeez so much for the capris I was planning to wear on Saturday.


After our shuttle ride, we checked into the Fairmont at San Jose... into our single rooms I might add! What luxury, from my double bed to the huge bathroom, complete with shower, bathtub, lighted mirrors and the oh so comfortable bathrobe... how ever will I readjust to college apartments after this?

Later that night we had the welcome reception in the Pagoda Lounge at the Fairmont. I tasted some of the best Hors d'oeuvres while mingling with the other GWWE women. It was so great to finally meet so many women (about 184) who are in the same field as I am, they were all smart, personable and inspirational! We also finally met some of Google People Operations staff... who worked so hard to put this all together (Hey Meredith)! By the end of the night we had coined the term "Google Girls" in reference to all the women selected to attend Google's Workshop for Women Engineers(GWWE). We also got some really nice google tees and freebies...

Many of are retiring 'early' tonight (pacific time), since our bodies have not yet readjusted to the time difference (3 hours behind eastern time!). Besides, we need all the energy for tomorrow's trip to the Googleplex! So until tomorrow:

(Women :D) Engineers Unite!!

Gearing up for Google!!

So I am completely psyched! Tomorrow (or rather later today) I'll be heading off to Google, for the 2008 Google Workshop for Women Engineers at Googleplex, Mountain View, California... completely sponsored by Google!(Thanks Google!!)


How did I get this? Well it all began when a staff/faculty member at RIT sent out details about the competition, I thought to myself "Cool I should enter" and naturally I forgot to flag the e-mail. Weeks later I had an inkling to go through my old e-mails and lo and behold I came across the e-mail again... except well, the deadline was that VERY night due in two hours!... My thoughts "jeez it's now 10 pm and I was supposed to be working on a company's website". Anyway, I figured I could write the essay required to enter, because at least I had done all the research not that long ago. The essay topic basically said that if you had to implement a new technology, what would it be, how would you implement it, what would you need and how would it change the lives of women around the globe...

Here are excerpts from my intro:
"Imagine a mother, unable to sing a lullaby for her baby, since no one ever took time to teach her the tune, simply because on her own she cannot hear the melody. Imagine a teenage girl...
Imagine a little girl, the only one in the circle unexposed to the beauty of music, simply because with her ears she cannot hear it.
And imagine the number of women, all over the globe who could improve their musical abilities if they had the technology available at their disposal; a music visualization tool that would actually help them to learn to sing by seeing."

In brief, my idea was for a virtual voice coach that would push the not yet pushed limits of music visualization, to create a tool that is not just for 'eye candy'. It is no doubt a very challenging problem, but not an impossible one.

Anywho... its almost 3:30am + I leave in two hours = nap time!

I'll keep you posted on my adventures at Googleplex!

Engineers Unite!!