Brief answers to questions from ![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
compilerbitch
Dec. 11th, 2009 05:24 pmtimBlah blah comment if you want me to ask you questions blah blah.
1. So, beard. Discuss!
There's not that much to discuss, really. Here's a current picture, for clarity. When I came back from Edinburgh in September I decided to do an experiment to see what happened if I grew a beard. I'm still not sure if I really like the results, but it does save me some explanation sometimes. I never really used to like beards on other people. At some point I'll probably start over.
2. Would you move back to the bay area if you could? Why? Why not?
I don't really miss the Bay Area a lot, aside from missing individual people. I always had a sense that I was at least twenty years too late (possibly more than that) to get what I really wanted. That was kind of maddening, as if (somehow) if I just tried hard enough, I could actually go work at Apple in 1985 or whatever.
A lot of the same things that are wrong with the Bay Area are also wrong with Portland, but I don't plan on staying in Portland after I graduate (in, I hope, 2-3 years), either.
So no, I don't think I would move back anytime soon, in the absence of a really compelling job that couldn't be replicated elsewhere. At this point in my life I feel like if I moved back to someplace I'd lived before, I would never leave. I still have more places I want to live, and I'd rather live in New York or possibly even (heresy!) LA than the Bay Area.
3. Do you want to stay in academia indefinitely, or eventually go Real Job?
I definitely don't want to go back to working in the software industry, so if that's what you mean by Real Job, then no, do not want. I want to have a job with a lot of flexibility and freedom where I can connect with people on an individual basis and hopefully make a positive difference in their lives, so given my skills, that probably means teaching.
4. The stuff about senators being members of a shady pseudochristian hate group is very worrying. What's your reaction to that? And, dude, Hilary Clinton! Did we ever dodge a bullet there.
I didn't know about this untilcompilerbitch passed me a link, but really, given the American political tradition, it's not surprising. I don't really know what to say beyond that. I think black-and-white moralism is a serious hindrance to ever having a mature political and ethical dialogue in the US, but I don't think changing that would be as easy as loosening the grip of right-wing Christianity.
5. My favourite iPhone app actually isn't the Cat Piano, but it's pretty funny all the same. What's your favourite mobile device application, and why?
I'm still a dinosaur who has a cell phone that's only capable of making calls, sending text messages, and taking grainy photos. Next! :-)
1. So, beard. Discuss!
There's not that much to discuss, really. Here's a current picture, for clarity. When I came back from Edinburgh in September I decided to do an experiment to see what happened if I grew a beard. I'm still not sure if I really like the results, but it does save me some explanation sometimes. I never really used to like beards on other people. At some point I'll probably start over.
2. Would you move back to the bay area if you could? Why? Why not?
I don't really miss the Bay Area a lot, aside from missing individual people. I always had a sense that I was at least twenty years too late (possibly more than that) to get what I really wanted. That was kind of maddening, as if (somehow) if I just tried hard enough, I could actually go work at Apple in 1985 or whatever.
A lot of the same things that are wrong with the Bay Area are also wrong with Portland, but I don't plan on staying in Portland after I graduate (in, I hope, 2-3 years), either.
So no, I don't think I would move back anytime soon, in the absence of a really compelling job that couldn't be replicated elsewhere. At this point in my life I feel like if I moved back to someplace I'd lived before, I would never leave. I still have more places I want to live, and I'd rather live in New York or possibly even (heresy!) LA than the Bay Area.
3. Do you want to stay in academia indefinitely, or eventually go Real Job?
I definitely don't want to go back to working in the software industry, so if that's what you mean by Real Job, then no, do not want. I want to have a job with a lot of flexibility and freedom where I can connect with people on an individual basis and hopefully make a positive difference in their lives, so given my skills, that probably means teaching.
4. The stuff about senators being members of a shady pseudochristian hate group is very worrying. What's your reaction to that? And, dude, Hilary Clinton! Did we ever dodge a bullet there.
I didn't know about this until
compilerbitch passed me a link, but really, given the American political tradition, it's not surprising. I don't really know what to say beyond that. I think black-and-white moralism is a serious hindrance to ever having a mature political and ethical dialogue in the US, but I don't think changing that would be as easy as loosening the grip of right-wing Christianity.5. My favourite iPhone app actually isn't the Cat Piano, but it's pretty funny all the same. What's your favourite mobile device application, and why?
I'm still a dinosaur who has a cell phone that's only capable of making calls, sending text messages, and taking grainy photos. Next! :-)
(no subject)
Date: 2009-12-14 12:09 am (UTC)If air quality were no consideration, Pittsburgh. Otherwise, Portland or Seattle.
2. Now that you've ridden Muni, which public transportation system do you want to ride on next (that you haven't already)?
(and Vancouver, Valencia, Madrid, London, and Edinburgh...) I don't know. DC and Paris are probably the logical choices, but I have no great desire to go to either city.
3. If you could do research on anything (not necessarily within CS, but possibly), what would you do? Suppose you get to hit snooze on the job-alarm-clock and also get to extend your life by ten years to make up for getting up to speed. (And "exactly what I do now" is an acceptable answer.)
Well, the proportion of things I'm not doing that bore me doesn't seem to be decreasing over time, so I might well be doing the same thing. For a convenient extra 10 years.
4. Have you reconciled yourself at all with Quebec's attitude towards outsiders, or are you just looking forward to getting the hell out?
I think I'm mostly reconciled now. Living in an anglophone-majority building (unlike last year) in a "mixed" neighborhood (unlike my first year here, when I got language whiplash whenever I left the bubble containing McGill and my apartment building) probably helps.
5. Did you decide to grow your hair long at some point, or did it just happen?
Some of both. When I was an undergrad I went home often enough that my dad could maintain the status quo length. That stopped happening, and I decided there was nothing wrong with letting it grow, especially since that involved the least effort. Apparently, having highly unfashionable glasses and longish hair (back when it was still being cut occasionally) was enough for assholes to occasionally harass me, so I don't think I had much Squares' Privilege™ to lose.