Kimberly KG

I just used my slide rule in my physics final.

My youngest is thriving in school and in life. :)

Cleaning out the neglected corners of my office I found an old notebook with a wild variety of things. Workshops I attended, notes about jobs I haven’t had for a long time, so many to-do lists, and the complete set of notes from the online R programming class I took.

It was mostly rather mundane but November 17th, 2014 I wrote, “20 minutes of bliss sitting on a train.” That was a nice day.

Change is good

By itself at the top of a sheet of paper. Not a bad reminder at the moment.

While certainly not unexpected, it’s still disappointing. Just shy of 4 years in, I was laid off this week. This is the only time in my adult life that I’m leaving a job without something else already lined up. There are obviously various administrative tasks to complete, but that list is nearly complete.

So, now what?

Based on the experience of many excellent software engineers and engineering leaders that have recently found themselves in this position, it’s likely going to take a while to find that next role.

I need a new job and while I may end up happy just to find any position at all, I think it’s worth thinking about what that next role would ideally look like. The one thing I know would be on that list is some form of community. I like people. :) Collaborating with people working on projects that make life better for more people seems pretty great, doesn’t it? That’s not really a job description though, so I guess I have more thinking to do. Ha!

The other thing I’m wondering is how to make the most of this time. I mean that both in terms of finding that next role and also in terms of having never had time off like this before and wanting to enjoy a little sunshine. I’m grateful this happened at the start of summer. I’ve offered suggestions related to this to friends and family in the past so I suppose I’ll start with those ideas and see how well they work for me. Scheduling relaxation time is the one thing that I suspect may be the hardest to actually do.

Life has been busy lately so I’m just going to post some pretty pictures. I love my yard in the spring.

Some of the neighbors had told me they heard an eagle in the trees above my house, but no one had seen one. Tonight we were sitting outside enjoying the lovely weather when a bald eagle flew 20 feet over our heads!

Wow! I am glad I was able to see that beautiful bird so close!

My son texted to say not to watch any trailers or look up anything, just run to the theater as fast as possible to see Sinners. “The less of your life you have to live without that movie the better.”

While this is not usually my kind of movie, I’m sharing that advice too. The movie is incredible.

I’m not going to give any details away, but I’ve added a new musician to my Spotify playlist as well. I think I might just go see the movie again next weekend too.

Spring in our yard is colorful. We have several rhododendron bushes that bloom at different times. One of the neighbors mentioned that she counts the white rhodie in my backyard blooming as the start of spring, regardless of what the calendar says. At the moment however, this pink one is the star. People in the neighborhood have said they plan their walking routes to include our street just to see this one plant.

The rhodies aren’t the only colorful thing though. This corner of my yard makes both me and the bees happy.

As it’s Easter, I suppose I’ll include this bunny that startled me (and then itself) earlier this week.

Things you notice when you look closer.

I noticed today that when the sun was shining the bees were out, but when the sun was hiding I couldn’t find any bees.

Cory Booker is a hero. AP news link here.

Being at the ATmosphere Conference, spending time with intelligent, passionate people in real life, was like a breath of fresh air. Gratefully, the feeling lingers.

Videos are here for future reference.

Testing something.

Looking forward to attending the ATmosphere conference in Seattle this weekend with a couple coworkers.

No, Mr. President. We don’t want you to break the law.

Finished reading: Leviathan Falls by James S. A. Corey 📚

I suspect it was about a year ago (probably more) that I started this series at the recommendation of a neighbor. He suggested it one evening at trivia and then showed up at my house with the first 3 books the following day. He was pretty serious about the recommendation.

I rather hope that we, as a species, survive long enough to get to a point where it’s feasible to live in space long term and explore beyond our solar system. Beyond the thrill of imagining the possibilities and empathizing with all the struggles they face, stories that include well-intentioned people with kind hearts stumbling through life’s challenges pull me right in.

I’ll make a plan to watch the show soon. The same neighbor that dropped off the books said he may have enjoyed the show more.

I’m looking forward to reading something different though. I’m rejoining my old book club and I’m already behind on the reading for this month.

Finally! I have wanted to see Hamilton forever, it seems!

Finally! I have wanted to see Hamilton forever, it seems!

I’m ready for people that actually love our country to be in office again. This is a disgrace.

@steveflip.bsky.social Hi.

@steveflip.bsky.social Hey happy Friday.