The first stop on the train ride home is near the Boeing offices in Tukwilla. As I was nodding off to sleep we stopped to pickup the Tukwilla riders, and a sharp dressed guy boarded the train with a leather briefcase in one hand and a butternut squash in the other. He walked over to where I was sitting and gently stowed his briefcase and squash on the overhead luggage rack.

I don’t know why but I couldn’t get back to sleep. I kept thinking that butternut squash was going to roll off the rack and *bonk* me on the head. I’m going to keep my eyes open next week to see if this same fellow boards the train carrying other large vegetables.

If Apple’s iTalk phone is remotely as cool as this promo ad suggests it could be, I want one! Nice touch with the “My Fair Lady” video clip on the phone.
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We took our kids to Chuck E Cheese last week and I noticed something as we stood at the front of the line for nearly 15 minutes waiting for someone to take our order.

1. There was someone topping off the croutons at the salad bar
2. There were at least two people taking hot pizzas to those sitting at tables
3. There were at least two people cleaning dishes
4. There was one person to help others redeem tickets they won by playing the games

I assume that only one person in the entire place could work the cash register because all of these people could see the line forming. The salad bar is located right next to the register! Several people walked right past the register and didn’t even acknowledge us. Yet there was nobody there to take our 40 bucks for a basic cheese pizza and some salads. The lady who was helping others redeem tickets helped at least two families with young children who took quite a while to select their toys or candy before she was able to take our order.

At a family pizza parlor you’d think taking a customer’s order (and money!) would be at least as high a priority as topping off the croutons. Waiting in line even five minutes with several hungry kids feels like a very long time. On this day at least, Chuck E Cheese had a bucketful of croutons and the kids got their cheap thrills on the rides. I hope next time there’s more than one person who can work the register.

Great exchange between Winer and Scoble in the WSG debating whether or not Microsoft is an innovator. I found it hilarious that Scoble mentions Halo as evidence that Microsoft is innovative when most gamers know the game was developed by Bungee who was purchased by Microsoft.

I don’t know why but I can’t stop playing this Flash game. I guess it’s not really a game but more of designing a track that doesn’t kill your sledding pal. Even your kids will like it.

James Surowiecki of the New Yorker has written an excellent article explaining why third place isn’t such a bad place to be after all for Nintendo.

Nintendo has dropped out of this race. The Wii has few bells and whistles and much less processing power than its “competitors,” and it features less impressive graphics. It’s really well suited for just one thing: playing games

Link to full article

A new take on the best Christmas special.

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John Cass is conducting a blogger survey and asked me to comment on Heather Hamilton’s blog: One Louder. Heather is a Staffing Manager for Microsoft and is one of few blogs I check each day.

I’ve been reading her blog for a few years now. I really enjoy her writing style and she provides an interesting look into Microsoft and how she goes about finding the best fit for the many jobs she’s looking to fill. If someone were to ask me if they should apply to work at Microsoft, this is the first blog I’d tell them to read. Her insight into the hiring process and various groups something you won’t find elsewhere.

Link to interview

I’ve been a Nero user for many years. But when I tried to install Windows Vista the first time, I received a warning message that Nero had to be uninstalled before Vista could continue. Once Vista was installed I went looking for new burning software and came across a blog post where someone recommended trying SwiftDisc.

I figured SwiftdDisc would be a stop gap until Nero was updated for Vista. But after a few months of using SwiftDisc I’m convinced this is exactly what I need. It has a very simple but slick interface. It just plain works and is well worth the $20. It makes Nero feel expensive and bloated.

Update: CPU Magazine says the next version of Nero will include VOIP. Huh?? Since when did users start demanding cheap internet phone calls with their DVD burning? I thought it was strange when they added all the media center functionality. I expect them to add an office suite to the next version. Nero jumped the shark this time around.

Our family drove to North Bend to hop aboard the Santa Train that travels into Snoqualmie where the kids get to sit on Santa’s lap and warm up with a hot chocolate. If you have kids and live in the Seattle area I highly recommend this activity if you can still find tickets which sell out quickly.

But I noticed something about the people who organized this activity: they were mostly volunteers and they were genuinely happy to see the kids and perform their job. Most were over the age of 50 from what I could tell. As we waited in line for about an hour, several of the volunteers talked with those in line, telling jokes and sharing the history of the train. On the ride, several volunteers went from coach to coach singing Christmas carols and having a blast with the kids. One volunteer had a hat full of bells (Mr. Bells was his name according to his name tag) and he took extra time to give each child extra attention.

I suppose it would be possible to find people who loved to be around kids and pay them to perform the same duties as those volunteers. But I doubt they would have done a better job. Those who would volunteer to be around noisy and rambunctious kids all day would have to enjoy the experience and enjoy the kids. Whatever the reasons they chose to select volunteers, it was the right choice for this family activity.