When last we met, I was working for a start-up searching for funding. Well, that up-and-died. We were able to convince one VC firm to invest in us. Full funding was not to be forthcoming, however, until we found them a partner. That didn't happen. Fortunately, right before imminent financial disaster, I took a Product Line Manager position with Moldflow -- great company with a awesome simulation product (predicts flow and freezing pattern of plastic as it fills injection molds). Was having a great time, but a few months into the job, an opportunity with Dell popped up.
So, now I am a Technology Strategist, working in the Office of the CTO at Dell. Despite some concerns on my part about the position, and a great deal of reluctance to leave Moldflow, it was too good of an opportunity to pass up. It also puts us back in Austin, our favorite place after NE.
Primary responsibilities of this role are to look at particular areas and identify those technologies that should be incorporated into Dell products two-to-five years out. My position is focused on system thermals and acoustics (no, I do not have any responsibility for Dell laptop batteries). The strategists also have to be somewhat flexible (with respect to technology) -- we're often pointed at new or related areas. In my case, most of my time over the past few months has been spent looking at power management in Data Centers.
The girls adjusted to the move faster than the boys -- Shari and Madilyn reacclimatized themselves quickly; Jeff and I took somewhat longer. Shari and I decided early that, if we were going to move back to Austin, we were going to move into the best school system possible. Eanes ISD / Westlake is top-notch. We were both worried that, coming from a middle-of-the-road Massachusetts district, Maddie and Jeff might have some difficultites making the transition to an area where over-achievement is the norm. Turns out, Jeff immediately placed into advanced math (Methuen did not have an advanced Math program) and Maddie almost placed into advanced Language Arts. Maddie did have some early Math problems, but we hired a tutor to get her over the difficult parts. At the end of the year, she was up near the top of her class. She's now just started sixth grade (Jeff's in fifth) and was placed into the honors Language Arts program at her new middle school.
This Summer, Maddie and Jeffrey went away to sleepaway camp for the first time. Greene Family Camp ( http://greene.urjcamps.org/ ) is associated with the Union for Reform Judaism and is located about an nour-and-a-hlaf north of Austin. This was the first time that either Maddie or Jeff has been away from home for an extended period. They both had a great time.
We also had three weeks at home without the kids. That was different. No great big vacation, but we did have the opportunity to find out what it meant to be adults again. All four of us are looking forward to the same experience next year.
Shari is working. She is a staff accountant at Indusoft, a software firm specializing in development products for industrial and embedded systems. She's was also pressed into service as the director of our religious school board (we signed on with Temple Beth Shalom here in town). Hopefully, she'll help set them on a strong direction as Hebrew school has been one area where Austin has not impressed us. Maddie and Jeff were far-and-away at the top of their class last year. Our congregation in Andover had a much stronger program than any of the schools here, and had prepared our kids extremely well compared to their new neighbors.
Hummous, our cat, is now 18, has had a number of problems over the past year and is starting to show some serious signs of age. One September morning we found him lying on his side at the base of a tree in our backyard. He had been outside the night before and not come in at the end of the evening. Apparently, he had fallen off our deck, through a tree and landed in such a way that he broke one back leg and blew out the knee in his other (so, cats do not always land on their feet). We were concerned that we would have to put him to sleep, but, after a battery of tests to check the rest of his health, our vet said that there was no physical reason why he couldn't have surgery to fix the break. So, now we have a cat with a plate in his left rear foreleg. He has thyroid problems, which once addressed, were found to be covering up an underlying kidney problem. We have to 'water' him once a week (he gets about 100ml of fluid and electrolytes once a week thru an IV we slip under the scruff of his neck). I realize that's a lot of text to spend on a cat, but he's been part of our family since before Shari and I were married. Anyone who visited us at our old condo in Cambridge in the late 80's has met him. He's been a good friend, and when it's time to go, he'll be sorely missed.
We're also sad to report that Shari's grandmother Rose passed away last year at the age of 89. I've always been very touched by the relationship Shari had with her grandparents. Rose lived a good, long life and is always in our thoughts.
To end on a more positive note, Shari and I are looking forward to the Austin City Limits Festival, September 15-17 ( http://www.aclfestival.com/schedule ). Have already planned out my agenda. If you're curious, you can check it out through the following link -- : http://www.aclfestival.com/schedule/ftaf.aspx?sid=ACL257206.
As always, any and all of you are welcome to hang out should you find yourself in Austin. We miss you all and look forward to hearing about your lives.
John, Shari, Maddie and Jeff