wind of change

*whistling*...*more whistling*..."I follow the Moskva down to Gorky..."

Sorry, I got a little wrapped up by the haunting voice of Klaus Meine.  I'll reveal more about the significance of that song at the end of this posting.

The crushing burden that has been my steady pace of work at Amgen has come to an end.  This past week were my last two experiments for a little while; in the pilot plant anyhow.  For the six months previous I had been working on two pilot plant campaigns.  Mind you, I did not turn any dials or monitor any gauges, but reviewing, re-reviewing, and re-re-reviewing documents for six months.  Frankly, it sucked and was a little stressful.  I'm glad to have it done.

I'm in terrible physical shape as a result of the past six months.  It's left me no time for myself and the "work-life balance" that I'm supposed to be afforded.  To that end, I'm participating in a Walk for Wellness program through the gym at work.  Basically, I wear a pedometer around and every day record my footsteps with the goal to achieve 10,000 steps per day.  I'm not certain about the significance of 10,000 steps, but hopefully I'll feel better if I can manage that goal.  For the moment, I'm averaging ~6,000 steps.  I'm on Team ANGLE (Amgen Network for Gay and Lesbian Employees) as a frANGLE (friend of ANGLE)...frANGLE, not fraggle.

I mentioned previously that I would share some of the highlights from my 2011 annual review...well, here they are:

• Overall rating: S (satisfactory); there is only one rating above and one rating below so you can read this as average
• Strength:  "...methodical planning and attention to detail..."
• Strength:  "...great track record of flawless execution in the pilot plant..."
• Development Area:  "...doesn't exhibit enthusiasm toward exceeding the baseline expectations."
• Development Area:  "...some concern expressed for Chris' enthusiasm or energy in what he is doing."
• Strength:  "The level of detail...in his communications...shows the extremely high bar he sets.

Basically, I'm an average employee who does a great job doing what I do.  The enthusiasm part is inherent to my personality and partly a reflection of that fact that I do not find my current role very challenging.  I recognize the importance of my role, but wish for additional stimulation.  In the end, it is up to me to take charge of my own career and I am taking a much more proactive stance in 2012.

My five-year anniversary with Amgen was on 7 April 2012!  I cannot believe it has been that long already!  I earned a slide at the department meeting and a superficial applause (as is customary for these acknowledgments).  Additionally, I received a sterling silver key ring and my choice of gifts from a catalogue.  The catalogue included about twenty items, from earrings to watches to digital photo frames to pots and pans.  I opted for the Bose AE2 headset as it seemed to be the most expensive, most likely to be used, and least undesireable item.  Despite the over-the-ear design, they still cannot drown out the voice of my officemate.

Speaking of work, I've accepted a 4-5 month TWA (transfer worker agreement) with the Amgen facility in Rhode Island.  What this means is that I'll be living in Rhode Island from the end of July until December.  Nothing is finalized yet, but this will be the plan.  I'm excited for the change of scenery.  I will be really thrilled to be near the ocean!  Who knows how all this will work?  I think I'll be staying at the Residence Inn, but can't confirm.  I don't know if I have to drive my own car to the east coast.  I'll keep everyone abreast of the situation as it becomes clear.

I have one other additional update and this one is the most interesting and excitin':

My girlfriend Mariela is coming to live with me in July!  Initially we will live in Colorado for a couple of weeks and then we'll both be going out to Rhode Island.  It is going to be quite a change for both of us, but we are looking forward to it.  She's already submitted her resignation to CitiBank and making arrangements to arrive.  So anyone coming to visit should know they need to book tickets for Providence!

Finally, I wanted to share some of the photos Mariela and I capture during her visit at the end of March.  You may find them in digitals.  We had a really nice time.  I believe she enjoyed Colorado; we went to Vail, an Avalanche game, the Denver Zoo, and hung out in Boulder and Longmont.

easterz

Happy Easter to all!  I hope the magic bunny brought you many Korans and dreidels.

On this Easter, I am fortunate to be spending the day with some friends (the Lawsons) who will generously share their home, hospitality, and delicious food.  I think we are having ham.  T-bone, L-bone, A-bone, and I-bone will entertain me with their antics.  Great people.

I have so much to post!  Forgive me while I post some new items alongside the old ones.

Mariela has come and gone.  She is actually in Michigan right now visiting friends until 11 April.  We had a really nice time and I'll post more on that shortly.  Something tells me she'll be returning soon...

I've come across a couple of videos that I would like to share:

This is from Human Birdwings (hosted by YouTube) and is quite simply, one of the best things I've ever seen.  I want 50,000 of them for my monkey army.

 I also have a bit of a man-crush on DJ Flula (also on YouTube).

I've relatively recently received a couple of photos from some long-time friends...quite flattering images (the second one can be enlarged; I'd rather that the first one is not enlarged):

 

About seven weeks ago I went on a really nice snowshoeing trip with my friend Steven and his wife Tara.  He daughter joined us too, but I don't remember her name.  Regardless, the snow was beautiful in RMNP!  A handful of images from the trip are in digitals.

Finally, I purchased a new phone about five weeks ago.  I love my Nokia N9. It is a lovely device and a joy to use.  Aesthetically, I do not believe there is a better looking phone in the world.  The user experience is simple, elegant, and smooth.  Flash works on it.  Good camera.  My two gripes:  not many applications are available and the Nokia Drive native program sometimes puts my car off map.  Not sure if it is a GPS or a software issue.  Despite all this, I cannot recommend the phone for one reason:  Nokia made the decision to pursue Windows Phone operating system and therefore, the Meego Harmattan operating system for the N9 will not be supported for much longer.  In essence, it is a dead end.  I took a chance to see what the hype was about.  Enjoy some images of the "the last unicorn".

zoinks

Well, I've done it again:  another long period between updates!  What can I do to become a more frequent poster?  Calendar reminders are maybe my only hope.  I have a legitimate reason for the delay this time around:  too much work.  In the past 4-5 weeks, I've been averaging 55 h per week at work; it has not been fun.  Honestly, the last thing I wanted to do in the evenings was sit at my computer and type.  So, this is just a tiny update.  I will post more later this week.  I have so much to share so stay tuned folks.  Here are some of the topics I will cover in the very near term:

• deep snow
• a new communication device
• analyzing my 2011 yearly review
• an anniversary
• illness
• a visitor from afar
• much, much, more!

snow, snow, every where,... [sic]

No, my forehead is not grotesquely scarred - it is a shadow from a snowflake.

My fair city suffered the injustice of a mild whiteout this past week.  The snowflakes started falling on Thursday around 18:20 and by Friday morning 11.5" had accumulated.  During the day on Friday another two or so inches fell.  The nearby city of Boulder received almost 23" and Jamestown (directly west by about 35 minutes away) received greater than 41"!  Having lived in the U.P., these snow totals are nothing I haven't seen before, but it is unique for this area as February is the "driest" winter month.  Three days into the month, and we are already double of average February precipitation.  Denver broke a 103-year old record for a February snowstorm by three inches.  So...due to the storm, non-essential people did not have to report to work on Friday (Note:  I consider myself essential).  Unfortunately, I did not receive that message until I had already arrived at work; therefore, unlike most of my colleagues I put in an honest day's work.  I have plenty of things to do and didn't see any sense in heading home once I was diligently working on them.

Mariela is visiting me in March.  I'm really excited and hope that we have a great time.  She has never been to Colorado so I'm sure we'll be busy seeing all the things we can manage.  I had hoped to take her to the Westminster Butterfly Pavilion, which I enjoy so much and so do my other guests, but she is deathly afraid of moths (they are present in the Pavilion as well) - to paraphrase, "they fly too erratically!" - and besides, she can see most of the butterflies in the wild in her neighborhood and parks of Costa Rica.  Any ideas?  A trip to the mountains is a certainty.  Ice skating, yes.  Celestial Seasonings tour, yes.  Shopping in Boulder, yes.  Other entertaining things that one would do for visitors, yes.

My friends Dave and Lorna just purchased a new television.  Dave, an avid New England Patriots fan, was trying to convince anyone who would listen to accompany him on a roadtrip to Indianapolis and to pay ~US$2,200 for tickets to the Super Bowl 46 (those Roman numerals are getting ridiculous).  No thanks, Dave; I have bills to pay.  As a consolation prize and because his previous television was having major screen issues, the Maheus treated themselves to this 70" monster last week.  I'll be checking it out for the first time today for the Super Bowl party.

Nothing else interesting happening in these parts.  I'm just working too much.

2012. it begins.

I need a break!  I've worked only nine days this calendar year and I'm underwater already.  We are so busy at Amgen.  If only I could get away from my desk, writing reports, and meetings.  My hands are getting dirty with three products:  denosumab, prolia and xgeva; ganitumab, pancreatic cancer; and AMG 827, psoriasis.  My role is to support the downstream operations for all these products.  Without question, we intend to successfully execute the projects.

My iPad 2 is working out great.  It's not a perfect product, but it is serving my needs.  The best application I have installed so far is Accuweather.  It is beautiful and functional; two qualities you need in a good application.  I consider it a well spent $1.05.  Truthfully, I spend most of my time with it watching ridiculous videos.  The internetz are great.

I feel like 2012 is going to be a year of change for me.  I'm taking new approaches to a few things; both personally and professionally.  My plan is to become a better me.  

Wish me luck.