All posts by johncohn

Saturdayy night – remembering Barbara

Leave a comment

Diane and I just came back from a really nice memorial gathering for our friend Barbara who died about 3 weeks back at the age of 90.. Diane, Jen and a few friends had set up Barbara’s house nicely..they planted flowers, and made food.. A very nice group of people came through and told stories about Barbabra.. and there were many to tell about her long and adventurous life

IMG_0857

IMG_0835

IMG_0836

I’m not sure ho long Barabra had been in that house, but I do know that her parents had moved fro Berkeley California to a house on Wes White hill in the early 1920’s.. and thats where Barbara , and her sisters Noreen and Charlotte had grown up.. (or spent summers.. not sure I got that)  Both sisters were there today..  Noreen is a good friend of ours. She was Sam’s piano teacher !

 

IMG_0842

The setting is really nice.. here’s the view from the back deck

 

IMG_0856

Barbara had lived alone most of her life. she never married but came close several times. She worked as a stewardess (she always corrected me when I said ‘flight attendant’  ) for PanAm and traveled the world. She’s loved all over including stints in Lebanon and  Portugal .> we heard a great story about her time in Portugal, she’d brought her horse over from the US.. when it was time to go back, she managed to get the horse on board a pan-am flight to JFK..when she got there, she unloaded the horse from the plane and then road the horse from the airport back our to where her family lived on long island !

IMG_0837

 

Her house was full of pictures and objects from far away places. IMG_0839

IMG_0844

 

Late afternoon, we all gathered to talk. One woman showed up who’d been a friend of Barbara at Panam.. she told us soem cool stories of their time travelign together. We think that Barbara might have been one of the oldest serving stewerdesses when she retired at age 1978  in 2001.

IMG_0840

THere was a harp player there who was really wonderfull.. I had never really watched anyone play the harp.. it was truly beitiful    IMG_0845

 

We sat around for a bit and told stories, then read some poems from Emily Dickenson,which I understand was one of Barbar’s favorite poets.  It was fun hearing all the stories of this adventurous, free spirited and ..(gotta say) lovably eccentric lady.

 

I spent the rest of the time lookign at photos that were aroudn the house and scrollign by on a screen.   IMG_0846  IMG_0848

 

Notice that I managed to get two pictures of this one.. somehow one is superimposed with people.. it’s either supernatural.. or super coincidental that I caught it between two pictures changing.. can’t figure it out..

IMG_0849 IMG_0850 IMG_0851

 

We heard some great stories abotu two of Barbara’s past loves.. One was a Pakistani prince.. they almost married.. but the prince had a harem…   that didnt fit Barbara’s independent streak..

 

IMG_0853

she also almost married a man in Lebaonon who ran all the Ford dealers in the country.. but when Barbara realized she wouldnt be able to drive by hereself there.. she called iit off.

IMG_0852

 

She a IMG_0854 IMG_0855

 

It was a nice gathering… as we left I couldn’t hep wonder abotu the sotires behind all the cool objects and pictures still in the house.. now noone knew their stories..     30 minutes later, diane saud the exact samne thing to me..

 

Well barbara.. we’ll miss yoyu.. Here’s to an interesting, well lived life !

 

IMG_0847

 

nite all, nite sam

-me

Friday night – help to help

4 Comments

Ever since Wednesday I’ve been getting a ton of email, LinkedIn notices and Facebook messages from friends who were effected by the resource actions in my company. For some, this is the start of retirement, but for most, these folks are looking for ways of applying their technical skills in some other way. they are asking me.. and I’m sure many others.. if i know of places that need folks with good engineering, science and math skills. Most of these folks will want/need to stay in vermont. This is where there families anre and where their kids go to school. Vermont is a very small place which is both a curse and a blessing.. A curse because there’s not a huge amount of other industry up here.. but its small size is also a blessing. We are so tightly connected up here that i’m hoping folks can network there way to a new career.

I’m hoping that if you’re reading this, you can help me help some of these folks out.. Do you know of anyone who’s looking for electrical engineers, or programmers ? These are all very bright folks with strong technical skills.they have  very strong math skills, some have strong business skills. All are hardworking.

If you have a lead on job openings anywhere in the area, please let me know so I can steer some of these folks in that direction. If you’re out there and are lookign for a person with a specific set of technical skills, let me know and I can canvas the folks I know to find you a good match..

I know that it’s going to be hard to match everyone up here with  a job ..   but I need to find some way to help.. even helping 1 or 2 o these friends would be great Let me hear from you if you know of oppertunities

nite all, nite sam

-me

 

Thursday night – after work in SF

Leave a comment

I’m still reeling from yesterdays news  I’ve heard from so many good friends who were caught in the layoffs. My thoughts are so with everyone effected..  It still seems pretty unreal..

It was honestly hard to concentrate on work today.. though  I did. We fished up a very good set of meetings out here. I really enjoy the partner we’re working with here.. and look forward to working with them.

Our meetings were during the day.. I did make good use of the time after our meetings. Yesterday between our meetings and dinner I ran out to meet my new friend John at his maker space “freespace’. John has been advising soem of the Vermont makers on our planned makerspace activity.

Freespace is a new collective of artists and makers. I sent a good hour and half there checking it out and talking to some of the many folks that were hanging out in the new space. They’ve only been there 11 days, but already it’s decorated and homey.. Check out some of these murals !  All new in the last 11 days !

 

IMG_0717 IMG_0718 IMG_0719 IMG_0720 IMG_0721 IMG_0722 IMG_0723 IMG_0724 IMG_0726 IMG_0727 IMG_0730

 

It was great getting to hang out with John and his friends. IMG_0731 IMG_0733

 

Today we had soem good meetings .. then we got a tour of onne of the copanys new maker spaces.. check out the view from this ironing board.. IMG_0742

 

and check out this swinging conference table they invented !IMG_0743 IMG_0746

 

By the end of tat meeting it was late afternoon. I took a quick half hour to tour the new Exploratorium site.. it’s amazing.. I loved the old setting at the exhibition center.. but this new space is so nice and bright !!.. I ran aorud looing forold favorite demos.. and soem new stuff. it was great.. check out this water fountain !

 

IMG_0752 IMG_0754

 

this clock s hands moved by guys sweeping sand  to the position of the hands.. so cool !IMG_0756 IMG_0757 IMG_0758 IMG_0759 IMG_0761

 

there was soem great history here.. here is frank oppenheimer the founder of the exploratorium IMG_0763 IMG_0764 IMG_0766 IMG_0767 IMG_0768 IMG_0772

 

as always, they had the cow eyeball disection table.. ewwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwIMG_0778 IMG_0779 IMG_0782 IMG_0783

 

i found y favorite peice of all time here as well. the lariat chain.. it’s heavy metal chain floating in spacein undulating kinks and loops.. so cool IMG_0784 IMG_0791

ok.. flight is boarding.. gotta go.. more tomorrow..

nite all, nite sam

-me

 

Wednesday night – very tough day

2 Comments

Today was really hard. As many of you may know, my company took what we euphemistically call resource actions today. . To some it was a necessary portfolio alignment. The others it was the end of long careers .I'm at client meetings today. The meeting was really good technically. We really like these people and we love the challenges that they pose. Even as we spoke with them today, we were all getting emails and instant messages from longtime colleagues we just received word that their jobs were going away. it was such a strange contrast.

On one hand, I know the company has to change and evolve… That's why we are still strong after 100 years. At the same time, my heart breaks to know how many people's livelihoods , retirement plans, even the definitions of themselves changed irrevocably today in that one minute call from their managers. Many of these folks ,like me, live to work not work to live. They define themselves as an engineers, computer scientists, programmers … whatever. When the situation takes that definition away from you, it's easy to wonder what you have left. For many, this change will actually be pretty welcome… Many of my friends were ready to retire anyway. For some, this change will be a needed, if not welcome, kick out of complacency. But for many… This is going to be hell. And for those my heart goes out.

Heart is the important word here. I can't help thinking that business….not just our business …. is too focused on the mind these days. What is the short-term financial outcome. What to the stockholders want?. To me, work is a way of keeping heart and mind together. You can't have one without the other. Business strategy and people's needs cannot be separated. It's not that I see another way. It's just that I regret that has to be this way.

The economy and the stockholders are a tough master. I hope as the economy improves, we like many companies will re-find our hearts. I think this is the only path forward.

For All of my friends who are affected today I wish you strength and creativity. I hope this turn in the road works out okay for you. you're in our thoughts and hearts. .

Night all, night Sam
– Me