My workplace
I'm not exactly sure how much I should document life within the lab, so I'm going to err on the side of opacity rather than transparency. Still, I have to say something.
the lab at night, via flickr
An extra busy day
Turns out a second article of mine, on the role of paper spaces in collaborative and creative work, appeared in today's issue of the Parsons Journal for Information
Starting to get busy
Last week was spent getting oriented, shaking (or drinking or sleeping) off the jet lag, and dealing with logistical stuff; now I'm finally getting down to work, inasmuch
File under Saved From Myself
After 6, it seems, the only remaining snacks in the lab are Scandinavian rye crisps. (I suspect there's a late-afternoon run on all the good stuff.) Definitely a reason to get
Mayhem: or, just a regular Saturday in Cambridge
mayhem, via flickr
After spending much of the day doing laundry and working on an NSF proposal (boy, those people are picky), I got on the bike and went into town-- all of three blocks. As soon as I hit the Magdalen Bridge, I ran into a solid wall of tourists.
My first though was, "Who the Hell are all these visitors?" but of course I'm not really in a position to complain. My bike may have huge wicker basket, but I'm hardly a local yet.
Happening Friday night!
I've finished my first week (or set of weekdays) here, and I'm now pretty much set up with everything for the next three months. Friday morning I went to the bike store, bought a helmet, a couple tools, and things that flash, so now I can bike around reasonably safely.
Riding on the left side of the road turns out to be easier than I expected, especially when other cars or cyclists are around. The example of other practitioners serves as a reminder of what I ought to be doing, and of course when the practitioners are buses or cars, you want to stay out of their way.
I paid the first of what will doubtless be many trips to Heffers, one of the big bookstores in town, to stock up on philosophy books. After years of avoiding philosophy in favor of sociology-- my graduate program was pretty militantly anti-philosophical, a way of differentiating itself from what its founders saw as the excessive influence of philosophy on the history of science-- I'm now having to catch up. But what better place than here to read about Wittgenstein, the philosophy of mind, and arguments about embodied cognition?
the menu at gardies, via flickr
Late night observation
Biking around town tonight, it looks to me that on Friday night downtown Cambridge is abandoned by everyone but men with foreign accents, and women who think that
Getting more settled in
After a decent (and resonably-timed) night's sleep, I had my first full day at the Lab, uninterrupted by 3-hour detours to the bank, visits to the cellphone store, etc. Until today, I'd been around, but not really present: physically there, and certainly interested in everything, but no able to spend enough time in a day to really start engaging with the place and people.
via flickr
Eagle, grasshopper and chips
After a full day at the lab, I wandered around town a bit more, and after crossing the river found three things I'd been looking for.
the Cam, via flickr
Cowboy hat
I bought a cowboy hat when I was in Montana, and decided to bring it with me. I tend to become somewhat more American when I come here, partly because clients are buying a certain Silicon Valley aura, and partly because I never want to become one of those Americans who after a month here sounds like a BBC announcer.
my hat, via flickr