A new adventure

I have been at home here in pittsburgh for the last 4 days but I leave for the 22 hour drive to Boulder tomorrow morning.  I have been reorganizing and packing (my mom has done about 90% of it) for the last few days and as of tonight I am all ready for the trip.  I also managed to find an apartment on craigslist.  I will arrive at my cousin Zak's house, who lives in boulder, on sunday night and then move in to the new place on Monday.  From the photos and description that I got from the current tenant it seems like a really nice place but it is also more than I have ever paid for rent...

I am excited to get to CP+B and they have been very well organized with the internship program so far.  They started an intern auction on ebay and from the description it sounds like a cool program.  I will be in transit for the next 3 days but I will post details from the first few days after I settle into a routine.  I am looking forward to this new adventure and am excited for it to start tomorrow.

the fastest week ever/goodbye austria

Wow....I really can't believe that in 2 hours I will be on my way to the airport to leave Austria.  This week has gone by in a flash but I was somehow able to tie up a bunch of loose ends and get everything organized here.  My time with GP has been fantastic and I am so thankful that they worked with me in order to arrange it all.  I will really miss everyone there but know that I will keep in contact with them all.

I have been slowly packing up my stuff all week but the bike was sort of a burden that I didn't deal with until thursday night.  I got it packed up and then carried it to the post office friday morning--but was told by the austrian post that "it is not allowed to send such a big box to the US".  I was just sort of frozen for a few seconds and tried to grasp what they were saying, but it just felt wrong.  I argued for a few minutes but they weren't budging on the issue, and I left with this really terrible feeling that I would not be able to bring the bike with me.  I came into work and Klemens started calling around to UPS and DHL and a few other places to try and help me arrange the shipment....but no matter what, they all said the same thing as the Post and that even if they could send it, it would be about 350 euro.

I was really stressed out and just sort of said out loud "I guess I have to try and sell it".   And then Klemens said "I'd buy it".......

I don't really know how to describe it well, but I don't think things could have worked out any better.  Klemens has become such a good friend over the last 5 months and it just felt perfect to leave him with the bike.  He has loved it since I first got it, and was always talking about how he wanted to get his own soon.  I am just at total peace with knowing that I left that beautiful bike with such a special person and dear friend and I don't think either of us could be more happy with how the deal worked out.

I spent my last day in vienna at the shops in the morning and then with friends in the evening.  I was able to buy some gifts for my family before everything shut down in the city, and then came back home just as it started to rain.  Klemens called around 5 and I went out for dinner with him and all of his closest friends.  There were about 7 of us and it was a great group.  I had met them all before while hanging with Klemens, but it was really cool to see them all together and I appreciated their coming together to send me off.  We ate a HUGE wiener schnitzel at a beer garden and then went to a small crepe shop for desert.  We left around 11 and came back to the dorm where I said my goodbye's to Klemens.  

Fabio and Miljan were waiting for me when i got back to the room and we went right back out to a local bar.  We talked for 3 hours and had a great last night together.  We got home a few minutes ago around 2, and my taxi comes at 4....so I think I am just going to stay up and hopefully ensure that I will sleep through the flight.

This has really been the experience of a lifetime and I am so thankful to everyone that helped arrange it; especially to my parents who supported me whole heart-idly since the beginning.  I have learned and grown so much over these last 5 months and will have this experience with me for the rest of my life.  Thank you for being a part of it, and I hope you enjoyed following along.

......

new adventure in boulder, Co with CP+B.....starting soon

hallstatt/CP+B

I finally got to the austrian alps and more specifically to the most beautiful location I have been to this point in my life.  I went to Hallstatt, Austria (like I said I was) and I was really blown away by the mountains/town/lakes/rivers/waterfalls/lederhosen/animals/everything.  I took about 500 photos but like always--a 2d image can never capture the feeling of being there in person.  I am posting some of the photos I took--but I will upload more later in the week.  It took about 3.25 hours each way--and I had about 7 hours in Hallstatt which turned out to be just about right to see everything there was to see.  I had really been romanticizing the idea of swimming in an alpine lake and I walked around for an hour to find a secluded beach.  When I finally found one and stripped down--I touched the water for the first time and realized it was about 25 degrees (so, no, I didn't go swimming).  I hiked up into a valley and found one of the most beautiful but fierce rivers I have ever seen.  It was crazy powerful and really pumping at maximum volume.  I don't really know what else to write about my experience other than it was just like I hoped it would be-

Work was good today and I informed GP that this would be my last week in Austria.  I got an internship offer with Crispin Porter + Bogusky on thursday, and I formally accepted today.  The internship starts on May 26 so I will have to fly out on the 17th (in 6 days) in order to get home and then head to Boulder, CO where the new Product Innovation Department is HQ'd.  CP+B, as they are called, is actually an Advertising company; they have been ad agency of the year 8 times and some of their bigger clients include Microsoft, Volkswagen, Nike, Coke, Burger King etc....

I was telling Ruedee and Klemens about the Burger King ads one day at lunch and I went and did some research to find out more about who was behind them---I wanted to show them some examples of hip american advertising.  I ended up at CPBgroup.com and I realized they did almost all of the ad campaigns that I really like.  I just sort of kept browsing their site and finally found that they had a new/small product innovation group and that they were starting an internship period soon.  I read a few articles by Core77 and BusinessWeek about how CPB was starting to offer product design just as companies like in the 90's when IDEO and FROG started with product design and then turned into more full service firms.  They also talked about CP+B buying a minority stake in both FUSEPROJECT and BRUCE MAU as they try and develop their own in house industrial design group.  I will let you read the articles if interested but I think it is a cool time to be with CP+B as they try and create this new model.  The decision was not easy though as I hate to leave Austria a month early.  

article 1    article 2

I have a lot of work to do in order to get ready for my flight on sunday and it still hasnt hit me that I will be leaving austria in such a short amount of time.

welcome to the factory...

I am finally going to Hallstatt, Austria tomorrow morning...catching a train in the morning and then back late in the day.  I think this is the last thing I have to do before I feel like I am ready to leave Austria.  I am really excited

computa says No

My great mood from the weekend trip spilled over into work today and I had a great day.  I showed off my pictures and stories from the trip to the other designers and I had a good day working on the concepts that Ruedee and I came up with.  Roland was on a roll today and was mocking whatever Christian did in a super annoying voice and it was hilarious.

I came home from work and Miljan was waiting with his camera to transfer photos...so I am going to upload some that he took of this and last weekend (his are all people based).  Then I am going to bed; for some reason I was up till almost 1 last night and waking up was nearly impossible.

 

serbia

My best weekend since coming to austria turned out to not be in austria at all.  I had such an incredible time this weekend and on top of that I feel like I learned so much about myself.  I was skeptical about if I should even go because Fabio couldnt...but I am so glad I just did it.  There was so much that happened that I cant really go into details without going on for 5000 words, so I am going to break down the highlights in small tidbits for you.  I will also post some of the 250 pics I took.

Neimenya and Jovanna are brother and sister and they are Miljan and Pedja's (his brother who is in the US) best friends.  We hung out with them almost the whole weekend and there were defly my two favorite Serbians.  Their family adopted a young boy from the government and he almost fainted when they introduced me as "an american"....he litrally was looking at me like I was god.  We played soccer for a few minutes and he handed me the ball like it was a golden chalice.  Only about half of the people I met spoke english but our core group of Miljan, Neimenya, and Jovanna all spoke pretty good....and there were some really great translations.

Serbian food is really good but really heavy and they eat A LOT.  Also, Miljan's mom would look at me after I had finished eating and say "EAT!"  So, for most of the days I would gorge myself at breakfast and then not have to eat again until when we got home from da clubs at 4 am.   We went to serbian pubs (a really cultural thing with traditional music played by live bands) and then clubs until 3-4:30 everynight and slept on average 4 hours a night.  

Miljan's family has a Yugo and it was our lifeline.  We packed 5 people in almost every trip (and Miljan, Neimenya and I are over 6'2" and Jovanna was like 5'10").  On the outside serbia looks really depressing and rough.  Almost everything is broken and hasn't been kept up for the last 30 years...but it was real and the people were some of the nicest I have ever met.  There were traffic jams with 10 yugo's and 2 horse drawn buggies.

We went to atleast 8 different friends houses to chat and at every house we were given a slice of cake and a drink.  They are very much rooted in tradition and it was the most different culture I have experienced so far in my life.  By the end of the first day I had totally disproved all of my initial judgments of serbia and became blind to the quality of their objects (something I want to continue to do).

The Serbian country was really beautiful and we were in the 3rd largest city of Nis (pronounced Nish).  Nis is in the souther part of serbia and there were really beautiful mountains surrounding the city.  There are hundreds of natural springs in Serbia and about 10 natural thermal spas.  Nish has one of the thermal spas and we visited it twice.

I am in such a great mood after this trip and I feel like it was a 2 week vacation.  I am hopeful that some of the friends we met will come to Vienna while I am still here and I can return the hospitality I was given.  They wouldn't let me pay for a single thing in the last 4 days no matter how hard I tried, and no matter where we were or what we were doing...they made sure I was having fun.  

I will load more pictures after I get some from Miljan but for now they are:  

1.  We ran out of gas and we had to push the Yugo to the petrol station.

2.  Neimenya, Jovanna, and Miljan at the highest point in the city

3.  The view of the mountains from "Mediana" an archaeological site from Roman times

4.  Dance line at our second stop of the trip

5.  Me in front of Miljan's house and next to the pimp wagon

thursday/ruedee/serbia

This week Ruedee and I have been arranging our research findings and developing concept families.  We presented them to Christoph today and it went really well, and it is clear that the big reseach project really got us into some exciting ideas.  Unfortunately, ruedee left GP for the last time after our fair-well sushi lunch (which was the best sushi I have ever had).  She is flying back to Thailand for 3 weeks and then flying back to vienna and then on to Milan to join FrogDesign.  She is leaving a few bags in my room so she doesnt have to haul them all the way home and back...so I will get to see her one more time.  

I left work at 2:30 and rode home to prepare for the Serbia Trip!  Turns out Fabio doesnt have his passport and it didnt occur to him until tuesday that Serbia isnt in the EU, so he can't come with us.  But---I know Miljan and I will still have a blast and I am really excited to see everything.  Serbia is one of those countries that I have no mental picture of...so however it turns out will be exciting.  We will catch the bus at 5 (in 2 hours) and then arrive in Serbia at 3am tonight.  His dad will pick us up and take us to breakfast and then to Miljan's house for sleep and then who know what...

I will take plenty of pictures...

this week...

I didn't really feel like posting on the blog during the week.  I wasn't super busy but I just always had something else on my mind.  Ruedee and I presented our research on wednesday and monday and tuesday were a mad dash to finish.  The presentation went well and then we did a big brainstorming session with all of GP in the afternoon on friday.  Ruedee leaves this next friday but she is still unsure of where she will go.  

The week wasn't too stressful but I was glad to come home on friday night.  Fabio, Miljan, and I went on our first trip of many today...to Bratislava, the capitol of Slovakia.  It is only about 60 kilometers away so it wasn't super different from Vienna but it was actually a really beautiful city.  We got there around 9:30 in the morning and had a full day of food and sightseeing and fun and then came back at 8:30.  It was some sort of special day in Bratislava and all of the museums and government buildings were open to the public...as well as a lot of live music and historical reenactment type stuff.  I must have taken at least 200 pictures today but I am almost certain I am going to buy myself a new camera in the next week or two.  I will post some pictures later in the week.  

We have May 1st off as an austrian holiday so we will leave thursday night for Serbia.  I am really excited to go there as I don't really know anything about eastern europe.  I will go on a bike ride/hike with Ruedee tomorrow and am looking forward to our weekly adventure and time on my lovely bicycle.  

photos from last weekend

happy up here

After work on Friday Ruedee, Klemens and I walked home the long way.  Klemens had to help a friend move, but Ruedee and I made Korean Pizza and watched a movie at her Flat (which was unbelievable).  Here room was atleast 20x20 and had 15 foot ceilings with 2 8 foot windows (she pays almost double what I pay in rent though).

Saturday was the first overcast/cold day we have had in a long time and Ruedee had to do some work so we didn't go out for an adventure.  Miljan, Fabio, and I met up with a large group of Erasmus students (Erasmus is super common european college exchange program) to go to a club.  There were like 5 guys that I have never met and 2 austrian girls that thought they were hot stuff.......but they weren't.  We analyzed the situation and then split from the group after about 20 minutes (about 18 minutes too long in my opinion).  We solidified plans to go to Slovakia this weekend and the weekend after, we are going to Serbia to stay in Miljan's house for the weekend.  We came back a little early because I had looked up a bus trip to the alps for early the next morning.

SO...this morning I woke up at 5:30 to get my ticket and get on the bus by 7.  Because it was so early none of the trams were running their normal route so I had to take 2 trams and the metro to get to the WienerLinein Station (to buy tickets).  I finally got there and approached the cashier about buying a ticket and she told me I had to buy it at the bus stop.  So, I got back on another tram and went exactly were the WienerLinein website told me to go.  I asked 3 different people if they knew where the station was and they all had never heard of it.  I didnt see ANY buses and the area did not at all look like somewhere that you would go to catch a bus.  I was really stressed to find the bus but by 6:45 I gave up and just started back for home.  I was really bummed cuz the whole reason I was going with the bus was because it seemed so damn easy.  Next time I will just go with the Train I am familiar with.

I got back home and went back to sleep until 11 and then got up and arranged to meet ruedee for a cycling trip.  We set off at 12 and ended up on a cycling path on an island north of the city.  There were small private beaches and really beautiful tiny weekend homes.  We were going to swim in the Danube but the water was right around 20 degrees and I couldn't keep my feet in the water for more than 5 seconds.  We rode until we reached a beautiful city 12 km north of Vienna.  It was called Klosterneuburg and again was REALLY BEAUTIFUL.  We kept saying how amazing and special it was and Im not sure how you could have made the city look any more perfect.  It really reminded my of Basel Switzerland but some areas also felt really mediterranean.  I took about 120 pictures today and will post a few tomorrow because my internet connection is really bad in the room today.  All in all it isn't what I was planning on doing today, but It was the best bike trip we have had and one of the best days outside I have had in austria yet.

Honey is cool

The week has really flown by after having Monday off.  There has been a lot of buzz between Ruedee, Klemens, and I this week and we are really having fun together.  We have been sharing music and artists for a while and it is really cool to see what stuff they are into.  Today Ruedee got an offer with Frog Design in Milano so after work Klemens treated us to an Ice-cream celebration!

Ruedee and I are working on a research presentation for a client and I can already tell it is going to be super pimp.  Ruedee is an amazing graphic designer and is really into Data Visualization, so I am just trying to keep up with her.  I have never done a research project like this before and I have learned so much.... I know it will be a great portfolio piece in the future.

Not too much else going on here.  I think we may go to Bratislava this weekend.

Also--If you like the band The Knife, then you should watch this video of a band called "Honey is cool".  Klemens showed me this and it has Karen from The knife as the lead singer.  This video is quite old--but it gave me chills the first time I watched/listened.

easter break

I would have posted this earlier but I just got internet in the room again since saturday night...Sunday started early and Ruedee and I met at 9:30 to go on a big adventure.  We rode our bikes along the danube for a while and then parked them at the bottom of the mountain on the north of Vienna.  It was sunny and about 70-75.  We hiked up a really beautiful trail for a while and thought we were like in the middle of now where but then came up to a small but really beautiful restaurant on top of the mountain.  I think it is required that every mountain top in austria have a beautiful little restaurant on top.  We had lunch--I ordered something that turned out to be steak and potatoes and it was DELICIOUS.  They were served with a sour-cream type thing--but more like yogurt.  It was the perfect austrian take on an easter lunch in the US.  We walked on for a while and ended up where we had hiked to a month before.  

We didn't get back until 2--so it was a really long trip--but it felt nice to still have a lot of sunlight left.  I was excited to plan my trip to the alps that I was thinking about all week----so I was bummed to not have the internet.  I figured it would be fixed later in the day--but it still wasn't when I woke up at 7 monday morning.  I hate to say it---but I just didn't feel good about going to the train station without an itinerary for travel.  I want proof that there will be a return train in the evening and I just didn't feel good about the circumstances.  I was bummed for a while but then just went back to sleep for a while.  I woke up and finished the UMEA application and then picked up a book I had sort of lost interest in a while ago.  I read close to 300 pages in the afternoon until fabio returned home from Italy.  He went out and met his friend Mike from Poland (originally from chicago) and his 3 friends who were hitchhiking from Poland to Budapest (hitchhiking is to europe as roadtrip is to america).  There was the American, a guy from India, a girl from Kazakstan, and a girl from China.  We went out to a Cafe after fabio made us dinner and chatted for a while.  They were all really nice and they slept on the floor of our small room.  They got up really early this morning and were on their way out of vienna before I got up for work.  I am going to finish the last 50 pages or so of the book tonight--and I managed to get my UMEA application sent out successfully with the help of my good friend Klemens.  

the photos are from the sunday trip to the mountain with Ruedee

Holiday rap

The rest of the week went well.  We finished the project/modeling on tuesday night and the 3dsmax renderings looked really good.  I modeled 3 of the concepts that we presented and it felt really good to be able to contribute work like that.  Ruedee and I did a lot of research during the rest of the week and we are beginning to prepare the presentation materials for the client.  

We played a lot of ping pong and ate lunch in the GP garden almost everyday.  The weather here is ridiculous now....sunny and warm (70's) EVERYDAY.  Today I got groceries in the morning and then met ruedee on Mariahilferstrasse, a famous shopping road in vienna, to do some more shopping.  I finally got a hair clipper and was able to trim my beard down a bit.  Luckily I dont have a beard tan-line like I thought.  After shopping we rode our bikes to the Danube island and relaxed by the river for the whole afternoon.  We made plans to go hiking tomorrow and then I think I will take a day trip out into the alps on Monday as we have the day off for easter.  I came home after the ride and ate 4 Kiwi's and now my tongue is raw like after you eat a whole bag of sour patch kids. 

I realized on wednesday night that I had a few more days to work on the UMEA application so I will get it done this weekend and in the mail by tuesday.

taste

Work was really good today--I felt like I got a whole lot done and I am excited about how quickly I can model in SW now.  I got three models finished today (not super detailed) but good enough for concept renderings to present to clients.  I woke up early this morning to go get my package of new bike tires at the post office.  I raced home after work to put them on and as dirty and hard as it was--I loved every minute of it!!!  I got 700x28's to replace my old (I didnt know how old until I took them off and they are paper thin) 700x23's.  I thought the 28's would barely fit but there is still some room for 30's.  I ate dinner and then headed out to get my laundry done; I never got the energy back up last night.  

I also had a package from my mom in the mail after work and I have already eaten about half of the pound of easter candy that was in it.  I am going to get to sleep soon and prepare for tomorrow.  I think I may plan a trip for the long easter weekend...

also--I forgot to mention but the 4p project was on yankodesign.com a few days ago-and I got an email from a UK tech magazine called T3 to publish the project in print

Summertime clothes

Last night we went to a few new clubs and had a great time.  The first was cool until we realized that we were pretty much the oldest people there--you can get into clubs at 16 in austria (scary).  We went to another called Club Q but spelled phonetically "kju".  It was super pimp and and felt really glamorous--but the dance area had crazy strobes that make me all confused.  

Ruedee and I met at 11 for our weekly adventure...and it really was an adventure today.  We started towards the Danube...and then just kept going.  We saw a mountain out in the distance and just decided that we should get to the top of it.  We ended up about 15-20 km away at the base of the mountain and were glad to see a bunch of other people parking at the bottom and hiking up.  We followed the other hikers and got to the top of the mountain (small mountain) in about 20 minutes.  It was really beautiful as the plants are starting to bloom and there were those magical Austrian meadows filled with grass and wild flowers.  We ate an apple strudel at a small restaurant with its own chickens and goats and it really felt like austria!  we walked along some hiking paths through the forest for a while and I freaked out with how beautiful it was.  The ground of the forest was so green it looked fake--and there were tons of purple and yellow wildflowers growing.  The trees were all long and straight but weren't in bloom yet so you could see through them really well.  We both agreed that there were probably mountain smurffs watching and waiting for us to leave so they could go about their tasks for the day.  It really felt like we were in a movie scene.

We didn't get back until 5:30; at which time I ate 4 pounds of food.  I have some serious sun tan action going on now--so I will have to keep the beard going through summer--or else shave and go directly outside in the sun to try and get an even color or my sickly under-beard cheeks.  I am laying in bed and watching tv until I get the energy to go do laundry.

9 beats

I had a great few days since the last post and the weather has been absolutely perfect for about 5 days straight now.  Klemens and I are working on a solidworks project together and I can tell I am getting better with every model I build.  Miljan, Fabio and I went out to a pub last night and had a fun time and because we didn't stay out too late I was able to get up by 11 and get all my errands done--including 50 euro of groceries and a front brake lever and cable for the Simplon.  The bike store I went to was by far the most beautiful store I have seen in a long time.  It is under a railway and is all old brick with vaulted ceilings.  It had the most beautiful bikes you could imagine and some were like 4,000 euro (6k US).  On top of that they had the nicest employees of any store I have ever been in.  

It was pretty warm today and shorts were necessary for the first time.  Fabio and I walked around for a long time and took a tram out to the Danube Island with the rest of Vienna.  It was super crowded but it was really fun being out in the sun.  I think we both got some sun and after a few hours outside we slowly made our way to the city center and went into a huge cathedral to get out of the sun and cool off.  We just got back and it is 6:30--we will have dinner and then head out to a club for the night.  

Fabio is going back to Italy for a few days and is going to bring back a tent so that we can do a hiking/camping trip to the austrian alps.  Miljan, Fabio and I are starting to plan a few trips--one to serbia with Miljan--one to the alps--and maybe a few more to prague or budapest.  

Dinner time....

Sunday-Wednesday

Sorry I haven't posted in a while--I would like to say I was too busy doing important things--but I was just sorta lazy.  A lot has happened since saturday evening though--so I will try and recap.

Da club didnt actually turn out to be a club but a college type pub--but it was fun nonetheless.  We made plans to go to Serbia with Miljan for a weekend in May and I think it will be a blast (his brother is a streetball player in serbia and won a competition so he gets to live and play in chicago for two years!).  Sunday was the complete opposite weather from saturday and it rained ALL DAY...  I started working on my portfolio to get it updated to sent into Umea.  I think I have decided to go through with the application--but only because I have nothing to lose by trying.  

Monday was good and everyone was in a great/funny mood.  Ruedee and I are finishing the research phase of our project and are beginning to do some fun brainstorming/concept stuff that she leaned from Umea.  I really enjoy the walks home with Klemens and I have learned so much about austrian culture through him.  Ruedee and I made plans to cycle to the Lobau (natural wetlands south of Vienna)  it is about 20km each way-so we are going to pack a picnic and make a day trip on next saturday or sunday.  

Tuesday was also good but a little less eventful.  I worked on the portfolio a bit more but it will not be done until thursday or friday and it is really draining to come home and work on it after a full day at GP.  Ruedee, Klemens, and I had a big discussion about the hell that is highschool and it was really interesting to hear about their experiences being from 3 completely different cultures.  The ping pong is really getting pro-level and it is amazing how exciting such a simple game can be.

Today got off to a good start--Tuvie.com posted my thesis in the morning and Clemens Auer (not the Klemens from GP---but his good friend that I have met a few times) has a project on the same page (super random coincidence).  My project is the 4P and his project is the Dentris.  On top of Yankodesign and tuvie publishing my work, I was written by a french magazine called "Newlook" and asked if they could publish the 4P in their magazine.  I did some research on the magazine before I sent off the images and I am glad I did because I think it is like the french version of Playboy!!!  I am not sure how to respond but have a feeling I will not be letting them use the project--what is the saying--bad publicity is still publicity?  Today I had the best "market made" lunch.  I bought a pre-made salad with tuna on top and put balsalmic dressing on it.  Then I made a sandwhich on fresh whole-wheat bread with 3 kinds of salami, gouda, and tomato.  All that was like 9 euro and I bought enough to last for 2 days.

I finally have some solid leads on the internship front and am excited to get a little more information in the next few weeks.

Cryptomnesia

Friday was a good day but the highlight was probably the most intense 4 games of ping pong ever played.  Klemens and I took on Christian and Tom and I was litrally sweating after the second game.  For some reason everyone was really animated/funny and we were all super intense about the games.  I don't remember the exact game count--but I know Klemens and I were the day's champions.

I came home around 6 and went out to get some food for dinner after walking home with K.  I didn't do anything for the rest of the night though and went to sleep around 10:30.  After 12 hours of sleep I woke up and went to the supermarket for groceries for the next few days.  Today was absolutely perfect in terms of weather.  Super sunny--no clouds--slight breeze--and about 65.  I came home and made lunch and then went out with my bike.  I rode around for a while and then stopped by the naschmarkt to pick up some dumplings from the asian super market.  I went home on one of the main roads in vienna (that goes in front of the MQ and Parliament--but it was closed to cars because there was a big political march.  I sat and watched for a while but wasn't able to really understand what the were marching for.  It was more of a political parade--because at the end there was like a concert in front of the parliament building.  When I got home fabio was heading out to the Schonbrunn Palace so I tagged along to enjoy the great weather while it lasted.  We got there at dusk and it was really beautiful.  I can already tell how much the city is going to change as it gets warmer.  Everything just came alive and stuff I see everyday seemed so much better and more vibrant.  Everyone seemed more beautiful and glamourous and there were aston martins, porsche's, and bentleys EVERYWHERE.  I got that great feeling that I was really in a special place.  

I posted some pictures from the day, but they will not do it justice.  I am really excited to have this peek at spring and the weather to come.  GP told me that April is like the big transition month into spring, so there is only a few more weeks left of rain/snow.  Then I will start to plan my trips to the alps...

One last thing--only a few people will be interested but---there is a new band called "El Grupo Nuevo" and it is most of the people from The Mars Volta.  The one big change is--instead of their normal drummer---they have ZACH HILL from HELLA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  I read a review that said "this band is going to kill people" and I agree.

thursday

I rode my bike into work yesterday and was able to make it in less than 15 minutes--which is good because I didn't leave the dorm until 9:15 and work starts at 9:30.  It was a good day and I got some more information about a few internship opportunities.  It is really stressful trying to plan for the future and I hope something concrete will form soon.  I came home and watched the movie "Man on Wire" because ruedee said it might change my life.  I don't think it did...but it was really good and it did make me think.  I had a lot of energy to start a new project last night but it sort of fizzled because I couldn't actually decide on what to start working on.  I began filling out the Umea application but half way through started to rethink if I really wanted to go through with it.  It is a huge decision and I am sort of just jumping right into it without fully considering what it would mean IF I got in (I am not at all planning to get in--but still).  They only take 8-12 masters students a year and I am not sure if my reasons for applying are really valid.  It is really just another option to have, and I dont have anything to lose by applying--but I dont know if I know enough about design and myself to get the most out of a masters degree right now.  I just dont want to end up with nothing else design related to do...

Today, Klemens, Ruedee, and Roland looked at my portfolio and gave me a good critique.  I realized that in trying to make my portfolio different from the VT standard--I sort of lost a bit of who I am as a designer and how I got to where I am.  It was really good to have some outside input and I really respect all of them immensely.  I think I will redo a bit of the portfolio this weekend and then try and step away from the stress of planning the future for a few days.

Ruedee has a friend from Umea visiting this weekend and I think we are going to do a potluck or something fun tomorrow or over the weekend.  No other plans for the weekend though--but im sure I will end up on the bike for atleast one of the days.

tuesday

Today started off slow at work.  I got a lot done-it was just a slow day.  I  applied to 5 or 6 firms today and I think I got a few leads out of it.

Klemens invited me to go out to the cinema with him and his friend--also named Klemens.  Earlier today I got an email from tuvie.com asking if they could publish my thesis work on their website.  We ate sushi before the movie and by some crazy chance found out that Klemens (the one who doesn't work at GP (yet)) was also contacted about his work and will also be featured on this tuvie site--maybe even on the same day.  

The movie was good and I was able to follow along surprisingly well for an austrian movie.  It was really neat to watch a movie (really well produced) that was shot in Vienna and it was a cool feeling to recognize the scenery on screen.

The core77 feature ended up being up for the whole day and my portfolio got something like 900 views in 24 hours.  It really gave me a boost and I am once again ready to start a little side design project.

Monday

Today was pretty great.  I had to do a couple p-shop renderings for a presentation, and then spent the afternoon in solidworks.  Ruedee, Klemens, and I went to a new japanese restaurant for lunch and it was really good.  I am really excited about the work I am doing at GP and hope that it will go somewhere and that I can show it eventually.  I made more sushi rice for dinner and I think it must be the rice I bought that is consistently making it turn out well.  I re-did my coroflot pages today because they were last updated more than a year ago.  About 10 minutes after I uploaded them I got a notice from core77.com that they were being featured.  Im not really sure what that means--but If you go to core77.com you can see one of my page thumbnails with my name under it.  It will prolly only be there for a few hours but it is exciting nonetheless.

I feel wierd after continuing to work after work...and dont really feel ready for bed although it's 12:30 here.

Creature Fear

Da club wasnt as fun as it was last week--but it was still nice to go out with fabio and miljan.  We were out until 3 again and I was asleep about 2 seconds after I got into bed.  I slept in until 11 and then got up and made some brunch.  I did some firm research and then got an email from ruedee about going out for a walk.  We met at 2:30 and just walked around for a few hours.  She is such a peaceful and wise person and I really enjoy hanging out with her.  The weather is still playing games with us and it was about 40 degrees with 40 mile-an-hour winds.  

I am going to stay in the rest of the day and try and get over a little cough that I have been fighting off for a few days.  I also think I may cut my hair--cuz its about that time.  I don't not like my hair--its just getting boring and long enough that I looks like I am homeless when I wake up in the morning (and that is how it looks when I get to work--cuz I am not about to run a comb through these golden locks).  The homeless looking hair--in combo with my homeless looking beard--makes me look homeless AND crazy.  

sushi rice

I had a great rest of the week after I posted on tuesday night.  I sent out a bunch of emails to firms, I did some fun research with Ruedee for a GP project, and was kept busy with sketching and photoshop renderings.  I had to come into work early on friday with Roland and Klemens to finish some presentation images and at 11 when they were done i had lost most of my motivation to work for the rest of the day.  We played ping pong for the first time in a while and it was a blast to get back into it.  I rode my bike into GP a few times but always walk the half hour home with Klemens.  

It snowed thursday and friday and I think all of Vienna was pissed about it.  Today, however, was really bright and sunny--still around 40 degrees--but the sun was really great.  I ran some errands in the morning and got in groceries for the week.  Ruedee and I met at 2 to go on our weekly big bike ride.  We went in a new direction this week towards the big fair grounds in Vienna (roland told us about a big park area close by).  We rode around for 3 hours and saw some really amazing things.  The park was really special and had litrally something for everyone.  Horseback riding, a theme park, public trampolines, a BMX course, a skate park, about 5 playgrounds, tons of sports fields, trails through the woods, historic towers, and so much more.  We found two really small communities that were really tightly packed together and every house was really stylish but really small--maybe like 500 square feet at biggest.  The lighting today with the sun out was really amazing and everything looked really vibrant and dramatic.  

Miljan, Fabio, and I will probably go out to the same club tonight that we went to last saturday.  I am going to try and update my portfolio and coroflot pages this weekend--and also apply to the growing list of firms that I am accumulating.  It feels crazy but I am almost at the half-way point to the internship!!!

Also--most importantly--I made absolutely perfect sushi rice today for the first time ever.  I have tried atleast 6 times in the past but today I nailed it-

tuesday monday

I rode my bike to work for the first time today.  I leave in what seems to be rush hour traffic--so although I got to work in about 10 minutes--Im not sure that I will be riding everyday.  Also--when I ride by myself I cant seem to take my time and enjoy the ride--I always end up pushing myself.  I got a lot of compliments on the bike at work and I think Klemens is going to start looking into getting one soon.  He and I have been walking back home after work instead of taking the tram and it is really fun/a nice way to mentally transition from work to home.  Christian finally came back from his 3-4 week vacation in Thailand and he told us about it at the morning meeting.  

I wrote to porsche design studios on sunday and on monday had a really nice email back thanking me for my interest and saying they were going to look at it and forward it to someone else ect.  Then this morning, I have an email from them with the subject --Letter Of Rejection for Patrick Nally from Porsche Design Studio....The email was actually really nice--and they explained that I couldn't intern there because I had already graduated-but the email title was like a punch to the gut.

I started working on a new program today and it felt really great to sketch and marker render again after almost two weeks of illustrator--and I have fallen in love with Copic Markers--they fit my style of rendering so much better than prismacolors.

Monday was also good....I literally didnt work on anything all day.  Two of the projects I was working on were both presented to the clients on monday--so the partners were out of the office almost all day.

bermuda trianle

Fabio, Miljan, and I made our way out to da clubs around 11:45.  We walked to the first district towards a group of clubs called the Bermuda Triangle.  We went in the first one we saw and were disappointed at first because it was really small and wasn't playing techno.  We followed the signs down to the basement of the club and right when we got to the stairwell we could here the base.  It turned out the be a super pimp.  The basement looked like a huge old wine cellar.  The whole room was rough stone/brick and the ceiling was rounded.  It was about 100 ft by 15 ft and really dark but had beautiful lighting on the stone.  There were a bunch of people but mostly they were just standing and not dancing.  The music was really good and loud and if I had quel with me I would have been getting down like vavan and treaxy.  We didnt get back to the dorm until 3 but it was a really fun night and I think we will do it again.  We all agreed that it is really fun to just watch people dance and I don't think it is creepy if we are in a group---right?

Today was rainy and boring.  I only left once to do laundry and that wasnt until 8.  I am looking forward to work tomorrow and the start of a new program?  I got an email from Jon Mills today and he is finally in germany--I think we will start planning a trip to the alps when the weather gets a bit more reliable.

selling the wind

We didnt end up going to a party last night--but we are going to a club down the street tonight with our Serbian neighbor Miljan in a few minutes.  I woke up early today (one of those weekend mornings were you think it is really a work day) but I was back from my weekly errands by 12.  I was just sitting around thinking about going on a bike ride when Fabio said he was going to try out the city bike system with a quick ride around the block.  I went with him on my bike and we ended up riding for like 3 hours.  Biking in this city is so much fun and we covered more ground than you could walk in a day.  I literally had 3 different people say "nice bike" and one person came up to me and asked me about it while we were stopped in a park.  I LOVE BICYCLES...

It is supposed to rain tomorrow so I dont think ruedee and I will be able to ride together.  Fabio and I were going to do laundry tonight but Miljan talked us into going out to a club with him.  I am excited to hear some really loud techno--but I don't think it will be as fun as Space electronic in Verona.

friday the 13th...wasn't on my birthday this year

I think this has been my busiest week at GP so far.  Ruedee and I were able to get everything done today for our review at 1 and it went well and we only had to make a few updates.  I am ready for a break from illustrator for a while.  At 4 (just when we were finishing the updates) I had to do a rush solidworks model for a presentation on monday--and it had to be built with all surfaces.  The day  was stressful to begin with, so I wasn't expecting it to go well.  Amazingly though, I built it correctly from the get go, and at 6 I was able to go back and update a few sketches and not have the whole thing blow up.  It felt good to come through in the clutch for Roland and Christoph, and I think they feel like they can count on me.  Yesterday was good but again busy, we went to Kai's so that made it bearable.  Today was Francois' last day with his "trial project" and I am hopeful that GP will bring him on full time.  He is a really good designer but more importantly he is a really nice/funny/down to earth/french guy.  The weather here is just like in blacksburg, and it goes from beautiful blue skies to torrential rain in less than 5 minutes.  There has been rain (atleast an hour) everday for the last 2 weeks so I am hopeful that sunday will be clear for a big bike ride.  I think I am going to wait to travel until this rain season is over so I don't spend 80 euro to get out in the country and have it be raining all day.  Fabio mentioned a party tonight that we may go to--either way I know I will sleep good tonight after that long day.

W U PN?

Nothing exceptionally exciting happened today.  Work was good and Ruedee and I got a lot done with our project.  It was Klemens first day back since friday (he was on holiday) and it was nice to have him back.  At lunch Ruedee was telling Francois, klemens, and I about a graphic design firm she worked for where you had to call people by their initials--so that was a big hit around GP for the rest of the day.  

After work/during work--I was applying to a bunch of firms all over the world.  It is amazing how many companies there are (good companies).  I am sort of wanting to travel this weekend--but it has been raining the last week solid and Im not sure that is going to change anytime soon.  Roland suggested Kai's tomorrow, and although I said I was tired of it last week--I am really excited for lunch tomorrow!

Himbeere Sirup

I have found my version of crack.  My sister can attest to how I have always loved putting things (candy, fruit, ect) in my drinks--since I was really little.  Yesterday I bought a bottle of Rasberry syrup--but they had at least 12 flavors.  It is super concentrated super sugary fruit syrup that you mix with water (or in my case--coke, ginger ale, lemonade, anything!).  I even heard from my neighbor that it is supposedly better for you than fruit juice--because the kind I got was all nutural?  Good for me or not--I drank atleast 4 liters of water today with about .15 liters of this sirup and it was delicious.

Work was fine and Ruedee and I started working together to develop some Interface Concepts.  Ruedee gave me "Synedoche, NY" at work yesterday and I started watching it last night--but had to stop half way through to sleep.  I finished it after work and im still not sure what I thought about it.  I feel really confused but I liked it-- I think if I had watched it straight through I would be even more confused-but also maybe enjoyed it more?  Today was one of the first bright sunny days we have had in about 2 weeks, and I am really excited for summer in Vienna.

Make place, take space, and take it easy

The title of this entry is a saying that is printed on the far wall of GP's studio.  I think it is really nice and is very much the attitude about working there.  Today was good but busy, I was mostly doing graphics today for two projects.  One was final production artwork, and the other was very early concept generation.  I am looking forward to wrapping up these two programs though--illustrator is not a passion of mine.

GP updated their website with the current staff

http://gp.co.at/about/team/

missing from the site is--Mo (who just left) and Francois who is freelancing with us for a while.  I have been applying to firms all over the world, trying to set up something for august- and I got an email back from Philips HQ in eindhoven today saying that they appreciated my application--but that they were not hiring--and were not even taking interns because of the economic situation!  If Philips can't afford to bring on an intern--then i'm not sure how many other companies will be able to either.

also Fabio's girlfriend is here visiting for a few days (im not sure how long).

sunday bike ride

I got up and had a big breakfast in preparation for the big bike ride with Ruedee.  We decided on our last ride that we wanted to go up to the highest point in Vienna--a small mountain on the northern edge of the city where the danube turns west.  We met at 11 and by 12 we were at the bottom of the mountain, in a really awesome/really swanky/really designery suburb.  Every house was beautiful and had something weird about it--weird as in normal people would not care about the details put into these buildings.  We locked our bikes to one of the posts running along a vineyard (the whole mountain side is covered in grape plants) and started walking up the mountain.  We walked for close to 45 minutes and kept pushing higher and higher.  We eventually found a road leading to a resort and took that to the top of the mountain.  I posted some photos of the trip including--Some views of the city, a photo from my room where you can see the mountain we climbed, and some pictures of my bicycle!!!  We had a great trip and it was about 3.5 hours round trip.  I came home around 3 and started eating everything in sight and think I will go to sleep early tonight.

friday

Im not sure what happened to the week-I posted tuesday night and then sort of forgot about the blog until now.  The week was good but busy and I split my time working on 2 projects which is sort of like reading 2 books at once--when you leave one you sort of forget your place and have to read the last few pages to jog your memory.  There wasnt anything too eventful that happened, Francois is fitting in to the group well and I think he seems like a solid designer (he used to work at a baller firm in san francisco).  I dont have any plans for the weekend except to ride my bike a lot--and get some groceries.  

Today, when I stepped onto the tram, I immediately heard loud rap/techno music.  There was a group of like 6 really "cool" looking kids--atleast they thought so.  They were all wearing the same thing and were probably around 15.  They were all sitting together in a few rows and were just talking and blaring their music -- totally into themselves.  I told Klemens and Francois about it and how I sort of wanted to say something to them--but realized it would mean I was "old"--and I couldn't have that.

I think I may start a little side project in the next few weeks to bump up my portfolio--and to get something else to think about besides the projects at work.--any suggestions?

tuesday monday

I reset my alarm for 9:45 saturday night in order to get up for my bike ride with Ruedee.  I never reset it....and didnt get to work until around 10:30 monday morning.  Woops.  Work went fine and I got introduced to a new program that I will be working on with a designer named Francois.  He is just doing this one project as a sort of trial period and then he may join GP full time or freelance or something.  It is a really fun project and I am excited to work on it with him.  After work Pierre, Miljan, and Fabio were all hanging out in the common eating area on our floor and all wanted to go play fussball on the table in the entrance to our building.  I have never thought that it was a game of skill--just sort of freak out and spin the handles real fast--but they were all like super into it...and good.  We played so long that my back started to hurt--Im too tall for fussball--and then they walked into the gym to show fabio who had never seen it before.  We walked in and there was a super huge buff dude doing pushups so I just stood at the door so I wouldnt make it awkward for him.  But all the other boys went in, and I swear--in less than 10 seconds all three of them were working out.  Miljan was first with backwards sit ups on some contraption, then Fabio started doing pullups, and then Pierre lays down right next to the guy doing push ups and starts pounding some out.  I was just standing at the door in amazement....and laughing hysterically.  They were all super serious--and just like walked in and started pumping in less than 10 seconds.  I told them why I was lauphing on the elevator ride back to our floor and they all realized how silly the scene was--one huge buff guy working out by himself and then all of a sudden 3 guys in normal clothes walk in and start working out--one right beside him.  Then, they all leave after about 45 seconds.

Today went well.  Francois and I walked around the main shopping area of Vienna to do some research for our project and I saw some really beautiful stuff that I wanted to buy!  I told him about Kai's and got him hungry for sushi so Klemens, Ruedee, Francois and I all went there for lunch.  But on the walk home from work Klemens and I agreed that we have about had it with Kai's for the next few weeks--I never thought the day would come.  I guess too much of a good thing...is still too much.

last night and today

Fabio and I went on a long walk after I posted yesterday.  We walked to the center of the city and I got some good photos just as the sun was setting.  We got home around 9 and made dinner together and then went out to the laundry mat.  We didnt get home until around 12:30 and I was beat.  Ruedee and I met at 11:00 this morning and went on a 2.5 hour bike ride.  We went from the city center out to the danube canal--and on the canal until we hit the danube--and then along the danube--and then onto the danube island--and then we got lost a little--and then back to the city center.  We covered more of the city than you could walk in 3 days and I saw so many new sites in that short time.  I am totally over any apprehension I had about cycling in a foreign country with a foreign language and foreign traffic rules....It is amazing how many bike paths there are and how easy it is to just hop in and go on your way.  Ruedee and I made plans to go to the top of a nearby mountain by bike in the near future--there is supposed to be a great view of the whole city.  My butt is a little sore from 3 hours on the fizik arione--it definitely looks better than it feels.  Here are some photos from last night's walk.

yeah

I just went on my first bike ride in vienna...and I feel like a new man (am I a man now?).  I swear this bike fits me like a glove and is by far the nicest riding/most solid/lightest bike I have ever owned (yes better than the eddy merckx....to me).  I can't get over how cheap it was--less than 200 for the complete bike (all dura ace parts)--and I had to buy pedals and grips for a total of 20 euro.  I am really glad I kept the box that the seller sent it in because this bike will defly be coming back to the US with me.  This morning I went and bought the pedals/grips/and pump just in case I would need it.  I will take some better pictures of it in the next few days so you can see the final trimmings.

In about 5 minutes on the bike I was already in new territory and i can't wait to get back into good shape so that I can ride all day and see more of vienna/austria.  I would have kept going but Fabio and I had plans to go on a walk to the park and then to the laundry mate and I was getting tired after about 20 minutes.  I just hopped right into traffic and was amazed at how easy it was to follow along.  Ruedee and I are going on a ride along the danube tomorrow and we are both really excited.  I am already thinking about a multi-day ride through austria....

Work on thursday and friday was good, but a little stressful.  Klemens and I played some ping pong and got to work together on a project for a few days.  I am really glad he is next to me now and I think we both enjoy having a friend at work.  

I went to the market after I got the bike finished and bought a bunch of groceries for the week.  Fabio made a great lunch for us and then we had some Krapfen and coffe with Miljan (our Serbian neighbor getting a doctorate in chemistry).  I feel like this has been my most productive day-off in vienna.

One last thing--the link to the pictures from the party a week ago.

http://picasaweb.google.com/dadova.jana/GeburstagLoic#

copy and paste the link--the page will say there is nothing to see.  Click View Janka's gallery--and then click the first image that says Geburstag Loic under it.

daily routine (hills can sea)

Today was officially Mo's last day at GP and I was litrally craving Kai's at 9:45--so it nearly killed to have to wait until 12.  We had a nice lunch and sent Mo off to sweden and then to his next job in germany.  It is weird to say goodbye to someone that you know pretty well-knowing that you will never see them again.  Roland and I made some decisions on our program today and I am excited to see where it goes.  I also got put back onto a program with klemens for a day or two to help get some stuff finished before a presentation.

Klemens' computer sort of went on the fritz a while ago, so when Mo left he took his spot next to me.  He is the youngest and funniest full time designer so I know we will have fun together.  We took the tram together after work and got to vent about work a little--he has only been there a few months longer than me, so we have a lot in common.

Today I was relieved to get a formal offer to stay the full 6 months at GP and also the details of "support" figured out.  Time is really flying here and I know I will remember this as one of the highlights of my life.

Mo monday

Work was good yesterday and early on Mo made everyone agree to go out to a bar with him in the evening to celebrate his last few days in Vienna.  Ruedee, Roland, Klemens, Mo, and I all went out to a place called Wirr right after work at around 6:30.  It was really fun getting to talk to the other designers in a more informal setting and I learned a lot about all of them--for example--Roland and Klemens had a semester with the new head of design at BMW as their professor.  We had a great time and laughed till about 11 when we decided to leave.  I have been fighting a cold since friday and I was worried I would wake up in bad shape--but I felt great this morning.  Roland joined me on the program I have been working on and we are moving into solidworks tomorrow in preparation for a review on friday.  Mo's last day at GP is tomorrow and I am a little sad to lose my travel partner but hopeful that I will be able to travel with Ruedee and Klemens--and I know that Fabio wants to do some traveling as well.  I am also hopeful that I will get a bigger piece of the workload--not that I am not busy--but I want to get pushed a little.  We are going to Kai's tomorrow to send Mo off in style. 

more baby alps photos

Here are some of the photos that Mo took--mostly of the last/best part of the trip where we took wooden sleds down from the top of the mountain-

my girls

Happy birthday Bubby and Mom!!!

I love you both so much!

baby alps

First off--Sorry about the link to the pictures from the party on friday--They were not my photos and the Slovakian girl who took them moved them or something and so now the link is dead

Fabio asked her to give him the originals so I might be able to get them back up here.  

But on the up and up....Mo and I met at 8 this morning at the train station and bought tickets for Semmering, Austria.  We boarded the train and slowly made our way out of the station.  Mind you it has been snowing in Wien for the last week--but we didnt really know what to expect when we got to the "baby alps" (i called them that in the morning and it stuck).  We also started to notice that we were the ONLY people on the train that didnt have skiis or a snowboard.  We figured that everyone was going to Graz--the last stop for the train we were on.  But--when we reached Semmering--everyone got off-skiis and all.  We stepped out into litrally a winter wonderland.  atleast 2 feet of fresh snow and much more packed underneath, beautiful old houses and hotels, and nothing else but trees and mountains.  We realized there would be no hiking today--but sort of decided we had to go skiing.  We just sort of followed a big group of people (with skiis) up the street and about 5 minutes later we saw the resort.  It was really small--and had only about 200 people but it was a really nice spot with a huge mountain.  It was really surreal to be in such a beautiful place totally by accident.  We rented our equipment and went to the bunny slop (mo had a little anxiety about the full on runs--and I was secretly glad I didn't have to be the one to chicken out.  We bought a 2 hour pass for the bunny slop and had a really fun time.  Mo got his bearings eventually and after 2 hours I was ready to go to the more advanced runs---but We would have had to buy another pass and the train was leaving at 4 and it was already 3 and blah blah blah.  We went and had a coffee at the restaurant and decided that we couldn't leave without taking a trip to the top of the slop---with one of the wooden sleds that they rented out!  It was one of the most fun things I have done in a while--and so unbelievable beautiful.  We tobogganed down this huge mountain cutting through trees and snow banks and tunnels and all sorts of amazing stuff on vintage style wooden sleds with almost zero directional control.  It took about 20 minutes from top to bottom and it was a no brainer for 6 euro.

We were both exhausted on the train home and I imagine I will be asleep before 10.  I posted a few pictures from the day--but my camera battery died about halfway through the day.  Luckily Mo had his camera and we took a bunch of the toboggan trip that I will post up when I get the pictures from him.  On a sad note--Mo is leaving GP in 2 weeks so this is likely our last trip together for a while--he may be working in germany and if so Im sure I will see him again..

also--the black dot in all my photos is driving me crazy!!!

falco

yesterday was a whirlwind.  Work went fine and I got a few more concepts out--but am glad to have a few days off to think about something else.  Mo and I asked Roland and Klemens where to go for a one day hiking trip and he suggested Semmering, Austria.  It is only about 70km away and we can get there directly from Vienna--one direct train.  Mo and I are meeting at 8:30 at the station and are just going to figure out what we are doing once we get there.  Klemens and I were leaving at the same time so he took the tram home with me instead of the U6 and it was nice to have someone to talk to instead of listening to my ipod.  I was planning on going out to the market and getting some food for dinner but Fabio invited me to a birthday party for an erasmus student that he met in his german course.  We took a few trains to get there but it ended up being only about 5 minutes from where I work.  The flat was really really beautiful and probably the nicest apartment I have ever been in--atleast the nicest apartment that students live in.  It had atleast 15 foot ceilings, one big room in the middle (atleast 45x15) with a beautiful vintage kitchen with thick butcher block countertops.  It was super old (like all of vienna) and had really thick white paint on the walls and old wooden floors.  There were kids from all over--brazil, slovakia, france, italy....and it was a really fun night--with really good food that Fabio and Carlo (another italian student) cooked up for us.  We didnt get home until around 2:30 or 3 so I got right into bed with intentions to get up around 10 to get to the bike store and finally get some pedals.  

When I finally did wake up it was about 1:15 and I realized I missed my only chance to get some shopping done until next weekend.  I was hungry and craving a donor so I got on the train and went to the naschmarkt.   I got my donor and a pastry and walked around/inhaled the food.  Next I went to the Asian super market and got some really good vegetable dumplings that Ruedee had bought last week.  After that I got back on the train and came back to the dorm to get out of the cold (it has been snowing here for the last 5 days--and it looks like it will keep snowing for the next 5. 

here is a link to photos from the party last night-- http://picasaweb.google.com/dadova.jana/GeburstagLoic#

sleepyhead

I tentatively finished updating my portfolio--I am not 100% loving it--but I think I am at the point were the next iteration will involve a total redesign.  I may end up redoing the whole thing in a few months while I am here--but for now, it will do.  I have already applied to a few firms and am frustrated with the job hunt process after less than 2 days.  It is zero fun and I feel like I will have to apply to so many companies that I won't have enough emotional energy to really put myself into every application.  I hate that feeling that whatever job I get will affect the rest of my life.  I know it isn't true (I have already had some crappy jobs) but I just don't want to have to settle for a company that I am not excited about working for.  I really love GP--the size, location, projects--and I wish I could go ahead and settle down here--but the austrian government makes that nearly impossible.

I got a bunch of renderings done today and I am really liking how they are turning out.  I am sort of taking my time with each one and trying out new techniques.  For some reason I was straight starving at lunch today and ate a big salad and a microwave lunch and was still scavenging the fridge for scraps.  Mo and I still don't have solid plans of where we are going--but we arent going until sunday (so that we can shop saturday).  I guess we will figure it out tomorrow...