Treehouse Perfection

Now, on occasion, I've been known to go and stay in some mildly "interesting" places just for the sheer hell of it (converted chicken coops, creepy libraries in Maui, under the glassy-eyed glaze of the stuffed gazelles in the Africa Hall (although - to be fair, by that stage of the evening my eyes were equally as glassy…).   I am still waiting on snagging a ressie for the Human Nest, though, so the pinnacle of ridiculousness-ness has yet to be reached.  Its probably booked out solid by all the bloody West Coast hipsters being "edgy" http://www.treebonesresort.com/lodging/human-nest/  Bloody hipsters.  Go back to molesting coffee machines and dreaming up ever more annoying hipster slang.

Arboral adventure awaits  

Thing is - when it comes to buckets and lists thereof, I seem to have one that is larger than most sane individuals, so its a full-time job sometimes just to try and keep up with all the nonsense my imagination seems intent on cramming in there.  As I continued to digest the sudden shift in my living prospects from sushi and sake to fondue and whatever it is they drink in Switzerland (liquid Toblerone, right?) or maybe - NEWSFLASH - perhaps even Chicago (so deep dish pizza and semi-melted snow, as far as I can gather), I figured I might as well check another one off the list while i was at it.

And thus it came to pass, in that dead, awkward space between Christmas and New Year that no-one knows quite what to do with, that I checked off what's probably been in my subconscious (barely-remembered) childhood list for eons - to spend a night in a Treehouse!  Yes!  A real one!  Not a plastic 10 inch high one with a press down canopy top (Loopy).

If you are a fan of Air B&B (and if you're not, you should be - its a repository of GREAT stuff), then this is one of the highest rated places to visit EVER.  Its on the website's bona fide Wishlist and Popular Places so thats just like catnip to me.  Here's the link, just in case you're ever passing Burlingame and have a burning desire to give it a whirl - and yes, it really did cost that much.  https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/86456  I think my next gig, I'm going to build a Treehouse City and make a small fortune.  I know - I'll call it Redwood City.  Oh… hang on….damn.  That's taken… Guess I'll have to stick with this marketing lark for a bit longer then…. *sigh*

So, then. Time to branch out and seek some re-leaf from an arborous year.  I would have been bark-ing mad knot to have twigged and invited some company.

So, rather than a quiet night of reflective solitude and contemplative musings on 2013 in all its shitty glory, instead it was officially a "Bugger That - lets PARTY!" evening.  Yes, for One Night and One Night Only, me, Lori and American Mom, Cheri, were going to rock the (tree) house!   Now, very very conveniently, our target destination was brilliantly close by - in a town called Burlingame, just past SFO airport only 20mins away - a drive I am very familiar with and could do in my sleep.  And probably have done.

Is this it?  Is this where we get our kicks?

Lori and Mom swung by to come pick me up en route and, after a short detour to Safeway to buy fruit and chocolate for the CHOCOLATE FOUNTAIN THAT SANTA GAVE ME FOR CHRISTMAS (bloody love Santa), we arrived bang on check-in time at 4pm.  The directions had been very thorough - both for getting to the place, parking up and finding the treehouse.  We found our parking spot under the Route 66 sign no problem, and then looked across the road and up, to catch our first glimpse of the treehouse.

Bloody marvelous.  The tree house was exactly as in the pictures and was just brilliant.  Amazingly, its been there for over 20 years and, despite its tiny size, its stacked with pretty much everything you need for a night's stay.  TV, kettle, heater, bed, table, chairs, books, games - you name it.  Of course, it didn't have a loo - but that was just down the ladder and a short (slug-free) walk to the main house where there was a completely separate kitchenette and bathroom, just for the use of treehouse guests.  A very slick set-up.

One ridiculously adorable looking garage.
Come on, now.  

We wasted no time getting settled in.  Bringing all our stuff up (its amazing how much crap you "need" for one night in a treehouse), we got to the important business of setting up the bar and getting some snacks going.  I'd rearranged the terrace and managed to cram three chairs into a tiny space and, with the festive lights strung around the treehouse, plus the candles in the hurricane lamps, it was a fabulous setting.  Here are some pics, in chronological order of the volume of white wine consumed.

Undercarriage

The perfect place to sit, ponder and
eat pre-cut cheese.

The swing was alarmingly creaky as I sat on it.
I think it might have been the sound of the
 wooden seat screaming.

American Mom cutting the cheese
(Brit blogwatchers - you need to go look up why
that is hilariously funny to my American brethren)

Home sweet home for the night.  Compact and bijoux.
And already a mess after 5 mins!

The original and best Treetops Bar.
You saw it here first.

Snacks in shacks.  As the night drew in, everything
just got more and more adorable.
(disclaimer: that could also have been the gin)

Best mate and Mom

We had an absolute riot.  It was such a fun night, full of laughter, friendship, Christmas pressies (yey!) and one utterly hilarious pizza delivery chick.  Yes - you could actually phone a local pizza place in town and they would come right up to the treehouse to deliver your 10 inch meat feast! (steady) How cool is that?  And - in one of those "only in California" moments, when our delivery girl turned up, climbing the ladders with deft aplomb - pizzas in hand - we invited her to come join us.  And she did!  So there we were, all rather *ahem* cheerful by this stage, listening to this hilarious pizza girl regale us with tales of all the crazy people and situations she's delivered too.  She was a blast.  Time was a bit wobbly-wobbly timey-wimey by then, so I'm not sure how long exactly she stayed but she stayed for a fair while - "the shop was quiet and you guys seem like fun".  I think some singing was involved at some stage, but I can't be 100% certain of that.  Hopefully, we weren't providing fodder for her next anecdote.

After pizza girl left, it was time to get down to the serious business of Uno.  There is not enough champagne in the known galaxy that can completely squelch (that word again) my competitive streak.  I won.

Twice.

After Uno, it was time to face my most feared nemesis.

It was time for Perfection.

I blame Loopy.  She'd sent me a Facebook link 7 or 8 months ago to remind me of the "game" that had so tortured me in my formative years.  One quick trip to eBay later, and the deal was done.  Please understand this.  If I ever say that I am a "perfectionist" I am not describing the relentless quest for perfection.  No.  I am, instead, describing the indelible scar on my psyche that anyone who has come into contact with the game of Perfection invariably carries.  I am, and always will be, a Perfectionist - and tonight, I had the chance to relive it all again.

And so, in the end, it all came down to this.  If there was a single sound that could capture the essence of your childhood memories (albeit in my case, limited), then this would be it for me.  60 seconds of pant-crapping, nerve-wracking, anxiety provoking freak-out-iness that catapults me back to my 10 year old self, staying in the caravan out back while the guest house is booked up for the summer, trying to avoid the orange-frilled squelchy slugs on those terrifying nighttime trips back to the big house to go to the loo.  (Interestingly, there's a bucket involved in that story too…. but maybe thats too much detail for you, dear blogwatchers…)

So, yes.  The unparalleled power of a single sound (or song) to roll back the years as if no time at all had passed.  This one was mine.  Well this, and an apple core screaming but thats another story.  Enjoy the video of me totally losing my shit.

The next morning dawned bright and annoyingly perky - and very very creaky.   For those of you who've either never had the pleasure of, or never intend to, sleeping in a treehouse, I can now attest that the experience is practically identical to sleeping in the creakiest, ricket-iest bunkbed you can imagine (think IKEA, if it helps).  That thang is dang LOUD!  And I was sleeping in the bed downstairs - I can only imagine the branchy-squeakfest that was going on in the upstairs bunk.  I finally understood the rationale for the bowl of earplugs conspicuously placed on the shelf by the pillows on the top bunk.  God only knows what its like when there is more than a puff of wind.  Like a bag of mice being tortured, I'd imagine.

Anyway, the hosts have got this whole treehouse thing down to a fine art as - first thing in the morning- coffee, bread and fruit magically appear in the little kitchenette that - as a Treehouse Resident - you have private access to.  Its not particularly posh, but is delightfully rustic and in keeping with the fact you just slept in a treehouse for goodness sake, and the bathroom is equally cute and full of quirky touches.  All in all, extremely charming in every respect.

Everything a hungover treehouse survivor
could possibly need

Even the bathroom was cute.  

After a very much needed Cup of Restorative Coffee (Treetops bar had taken somewhat of a pounding the night before and was offline for the foreseeable future for…err… restocking), sitting out on the treehouse terrace (or is it a verandah?), it was time to start to tidy away the evidence of the Perfection Episode, the Uno Smackdown and the Midnight Lullaby Down The Steep Steep Stairs.  Alas, the "Decorate Your Own Gingerbread Men" remained sadly naked and were packed away for Another Day (that day was actually today, when I ate the chocolate M&M buttons and binned the rest - sorry GB man).  Check-out time was midday, so enough time to pack up, take some final pictures and then wend our way home.  

All in all, it was indeed a most Excellent Arboral Adventure.

Arty-stuff, artfully arranged in an artful manner.

Daylight and all remains unscathed by man
 or beast or Party Pizza Girl

Perfect spot for hangover
beverages and tasty toast

Ta-da!  Tidy again!

There's a bloody great big tree in my treehouse!

Nice color doors.
Alas, not bigger on the inside.

Socks are visible

Right then.  Are you ready for this?  I have a LOT to catch you up on.  Sometimes I think my life is measured in reverse cat years, as so much seems to get jammed into a short space of time.  I don't blog for a week and everything changes.

So, since my last blog post on Santacon, I traveled to Chicago and started my new job at Takeda!  Now, I generally will not blog about my job as talking about work stuff on social media is fraught with potential pitfalls - I don't ever want to do a Justine Sacco (for any of you unfamiliar with the story, click here: http://mashable.com/2013/12/20/justine-sacco/ - story's end? her ass was totally fired).  But, as I sat down last night to write this blog post, I figured just describing my first week at work, the folk I'd met and the excitement of all the preparations for my impending move to Japan would be perfectly fine.

Its funny how your life can completely change in the blink of an eye or the click of a mouse.

My first week at Takeda (I started Dec 15th) was completely brilliant.  I flew to Chicago late Sunday night, and was going to be in the Deerfield office Monday through Wednesday, doing all the HR onboarding, training stuff, IT stuff, paperwork (so much paperwork) and then as many meetings with as many members of my new team as I could cram into the three days!  It was bloody FREEZING - the morning after I arrived, it was FOUR degrees!!  FOUR degrees, I tell you!!  That is really quite chilly, especially after having flown in from Californian sunshine of 65 degrees!   Nonetheless, I caught the free shuttle bus from the hotel to Takeda's campus to report in for Day One, bright and early at 8.45am!  Takeda is literally a stone's throw from the Hyatt but - both given the weather plus the fact there are no sidewalks along the busy freeway, walking there was not a viable option.  There were about 5 or 6 of us all sitting waiting in the lobby, and I was very impressed by how nice the facility was.  Its very light, airy and modern - three identical office buildings with lots of glass and high ceilings basically stuck together in a row.  Handy in that the meeting rooms, loos, coffee rooms etc are in exactly the same place on every floor in each building, so once you've learnt the layout, you're set no matter which building you're in.  For a directionally-challenged person such as myself, that's a cool bonus.

Anyway, Day 1 pretty much consisted of back-to-back training presentations from all the various folk we needed to hear from (payroll, IT, security, HR, health and safety, etc etc) to get ourselves set up in the Takeda system.   Got my new ID badge and was pleased that - for once - I happened to be having a Good Hair Day when it was taken.  At last.  One piece of ID where I don't look like the living dead or that i've been submerged, decomposing, at the bottom of a lake for a couple of weeks.  It was really quite refreshing.  I like this company already.

After all that malarky was done with, I finally managed to make it up to the temporary office that had been reserved for me, up in building 2 on the 3rd floor.  An office!!  I had an office again!!!  With walls and a door!!  (my euphoria was short-lived, once I learnt that the Tokyo offices are all open-plan, so my rekindled romance with non-cube corporate living would be, sadly, short-lived.  Well, maybe..).  I had a number of meetings scheduled with various folk, but even before my first official meeting, I was extremely impressed by just how warm and welcoming everyone was.  Asking for help to find the copier room, this random chap not only showed me the copier room, but then also introduced me to several other folk on the floor - just because they were there, and I was a new hire.  Someone taking just a few moments out of their day to make me feel welcome, not because they had to, but because that was part of the culture.  So, overall, my first impressions have been extremely favorable - and were borne out in all the meetings I had with various people.  To a tee, folk were friendly and extremely happy to welcome me onboard!  The meetings were more introductory ones, rather than detailed work discussions, but I certainly left Chicago with a MASSIVE stack of files and presentations to read over the Holiday Shutdown.  Yep - in one of those blissful "I couldn't have planned this better if I tried" moments, my first full week at Takeda was then followed by the two week company shutdown, where the offices close and everyone buggers off until January 6th!   And I was getting paid for it!!  Of course, my plan was to take one of those weeks off to relax and recharge after what has been, by all accounts, a pretty stressful year and then take the second week to start to read through all that stuff, so that i'm fully prepped about my new compound and the diabetes market and would be ready and raring to go on January 6th.

Or so I thought.

One of the more exciting and fun meetings I had was with the relocation specialists who would be handling my transition to Japan.  I'd spoken a couple of times with the lady who had been assigned to handle my case, and we'd chatted for a bit so that she could get to know me a little, my personality (poor thing) etc before then talking about my specific relocation needs.  I was delighted to hear that Takeda were going to match my 2 bedroom apartment here in San Francisco with a 2 bedroom apartment in Tokyo (yey for visitors not having to sleep on an Aerobed!) and we started talking about potential neighborhoods and key requirements.  My relo lady also connected me with the local relo folk in Japan, so they were also in touch, starting to co-ordinate and plan the itinerary for my home-finding visit!  It was all incredibly exciting - and very real!  My tickets were booked for January 2nd and I'd be spending the first 2 weeks in Tokyo, then flying back to Chicago for meetings on Jan 20th, then heading to NYC to meet with my agency the last week in January, before finally collapsing back into a heap in SF at the end of the month.  The legal folk who were working on my Japan visa had also been in touch, so i'd sent them some initial paperwork and documents, and would hear back from them as to how long it would take for my Japan work visa to come through.  Around 6 weeks was the estimate, putting my final, Oh My God I'm Really Leaving SF for Japan date at early February.

Now, as part of the relocation package (which, again, they do a very nice job with), there several things  - other than simple finances - included that are intended to help with your transition.  One is for language tuition, up to 120 hrs, so I definitely signed up for that.  Another service offered is for a day of "cultural training", to help you understand better some of the cultures, customs and protocols involved with living in Japan.  Its an all-day, in-person one on one training session with a consultant and its intended to help you thrive in a new culture, both from a personal and a professional perspective.  Because I was flying out to Tokyo on Jan 2nd and would be meeting my team the first couple weeks, I wanted to try and squeeze in the training before I left.  Its just so different, that any and all knowledge and insight beforehand was going to be invaluable.

So, that's how I found myself yesterday - on Boxing Day no less - working through lots of various exercise with Keiko-san, to help me decode how Stuff Gets Done in Japan and how people think, make decisions and do business.  As we worked through each section, I had to reflect on what my objectives were, or how I thought about things, or my leadership style, or what was important to me as then the basis for comparing that with how my Japanese colleagues thought, felt or acted.   As I got started in the day, I was asked to write down what I wanted to get out of the day's session.  Here's what came to mind:

• to understand basic protocol and courtesy so that i don't offend
• to understand how best to be effective in my role within the context of the Japanese organization
• to feel confident about my transition

All good stuff, no?

Anyway, I won't regale you with a blow-by-blow account of the whole training session but the discussion was wide ranging and covered both personal and professional challenges and motivations.  I learnt some key cultural differences through fruit analogies (UK people are coconuts, US people are peaches and Japanese are fuzzy coconuts - answers on a postcard if you can figure out what that means).  I learnt about the different personal needs and values that are rated highly by a Japanese person vs a Westerner (these are all generalizations) - for example, that egalitarianism and independence are prized traits for us, whereas status, interdependency and the collective orientation are key working traits for the Japanese.  Some of this, of course, I already knew a bit about but it was still very helpful and enlightening to go through some specific examples of how you would approach business situations and decision-making in a more Japanese-style, vs our direct Western (especially East Coast NYC!) approach!  I also learnt how to introduce myself in Japanese:  "Hajimemashite, Sarah Holloway desu.  Dozo, yoroshiku onegaishimasu".  I got Keiko-san to record it, so I'd be able to pronounce it properly again!  

I also had one of - potentially many - Lost in Translation moments.  Keiko-san and I had been talking over lunch about the various districts I could live in Tokyo, the various pros and cons of each, and I mentioned that I'd just been sent through a sample itinerary from my Japan relocation team, mapping out a full day of touring the different areas for my home-finding visit on January 8th.  There was one part in the itinerary I was slightly puzzled by, so i pulled up the document and asked Keiko-san.  It was in the "smart tips and introduction" section and this is what it said:

"Slip-on shoes: Since many properties have a "shoe off" rule (street shoes are removed at the entrance), so slip-on shoes are a must for house-hunting.  Also, socks are visible"

Socks are visible?  What does that mean, "socks are visible"?  Does it mean "your socks are visible"?  Or does it mean "your socks must be visible"?   And does that mean i have to wear socks?  What if i'm wearing tights instead?  Do i then need to wear socks over my tights so that I am wearing visible socks?  Do I need to make sure to have a pair of socks in my handbag at all times lest I find myself suddenly in need of display socks??  I figured that bare feet are always a no-no, but what then?  This digit-dressing dilemma is exactly why I signed up for this cultural training - just a small thing like this, with so many possible ways to interpret three words, all laden with the potential to cause inadvertent offense!!!  On showing this to Keiko-san, she was also a little bemused at first before agreeing that probably the first meaning "hey dude - your socks are going to be visible so make sure you don't have any holes in them" was the correct interpretation.  Loopy - sorry to say you'd be totally screwed if you ever visited Japan.  

Although they didn't mention anything that your socks had to match. 

Anyway, so that was yesterday, and it was great day, full of insight and which left me even more excited for my impending move.  In just one week's time I'd actually be in Tokyo!!  How crazy was that.

Well, then.  Isn't it funny how things can just change in the blink of an eye.

I hadn't been on my email all day, so - after fending off three URGENT phone calls from the bank (I'm STILL clearing up the residual detritus of my identity theft - and don't even get me started on AllState and the ongoing battle to get my floors replaced), I finally logged on to my work email and checked my  inbox.

And there it was.  

A message from Takeda's CEO announcing the following "Today, I must inform you that we have come to the very difficult decision to terminate the Phase 3 clinical development program for TAK-875 (fasiglifam) due to concerns about liver safety".

One sentence and my world completely changed.  This was my drug, the product I'd been hired to help steer to market - gone.  No more.  And - with no product to launch in Japan - there was no longer any valid work reason for me to move to Japan.  So, just like that, sayonara Tokyo.

As I read the email, and corresponding press release, again and again, with my heart in my mouth and my stomach through the floor (its quite an interesting sensation - but not one I'd recommend), my shock started to give way to anxiety and a teeny bit of concern.  What would happen to my team?  My boss?  Would sayonara Fasi and Tokyo then be followed by "sayonara Sarah"?  If my product was dead, would I still be needed?  

Then followed about 5 Doctor Who episodes-worth of time where I couldn't get in touch with my boss, as she was in Europe, on vacation, so - at the time I was reading the email - it was 2am in the morning and she was asleep. That was a pretty awful feeling, knowing that I knew that news and that she was still oblivious.  Eventually, though, the clock rolled around to early morning in Europe and she texted me to let me know she was awake and to call her.  With my heart thumping in my chest, I dialed to get the skinny on my likely fate….

Well, then.

I just knew there was a deeper meaning to the Toblerone in my Christmas stocking, other than an addiction to triangular-shaped nougat-studded chocolate that is impossible to eat after having been in the fridge.

Yep, instead of moving to Tokyo, I now seem to find myself moving to Zurich.  Land of cheese, mountains and Heidi (Loopy - quiet now.. unless that was Austria?).  I don't have too many details to share yet but what I can share is that I still have a job, its going to be a great opportunity, I still get to report to my awesome boss (I know she never reads this, so no danger of being called a suck-up) plus her awesome boss who was one of the people who originally interviewed me and thought i was a rockstar!  While I'm still mentally processing the idea of moving back to Europe vs moving to Japan, its also going to mean that i'm one hell of a lot closer to my family in Cyprus and in the UK.  I'll even be able to pop home for extended weekends!!!  So that is one very big upside that I am focusing on, and that is certainly helping to offset the bitter disappointment of my Japan dreams evaporating.  But, as I see it, maybe Japan is simply meant to be an adventure for the future, instead of my adventure for right now. Hopefully I'll still get out there one day, even if its just to visit - you just never know.

So, that's my news.  That's whats happened to me in the space of the last 2 weeks.  I guess 2013 isn't going out without one last final roller coaster of emotion!!

2014 cannot arrive soon enough.

Which leaves me with just one final thought - anyone want to buy a Rosetta Stone Japanese course?

Rockstar Reindeer!!

Dashing through the MUNI

On Dasher!  On Vixen!   Its SantaCon, so Bring it ON! 

It's official.  If you want to feel like a rockstar and experience what it must be like to be super-famous, there's just one thing you need to do.

Dress up like a Reindeer on SantaCon.

My regular blog-watchers will no doubt remember Santa Con from last year and a similar (if somewhat soggier!) experience!  So, no better way to start to get into the holiday spirit than to repeat the outing - and this time, there was double trouble!

Yep, 11am last Saturday morning, with the help of two home-made dog (reindeer?) tags and my partner-in-crazy, Lori, Dasher and Vixen made waves at Santa Con!  Fortunately, the weather was far more cooperative this year than it had been last year and it was an absolutely glorious day.  Clear blue skies, bright sunshine and not a rain cloud in sight!  

As last year, we took the MUNI to Union Square.  We didn't get stopped as much as last year for photos as we walked from Powell MUNI station to Union Square, so I wondered if the reindeer novelty of last year had been a one-off.

Um…no.  

Best Reindeer Buddies

As soon as we reached Union Square at around 11.10am, already thronging with flocks (?) of red suited Santas, Lori and I were completely mobbed!  It was so much fun to hear kids and adults shouting out "look!!  there are reindeer!!  It's Vixen and Dasher!"    And we got stopped quite literally hundreds of times and asked for pictures - one (fairly drunken) Santa clamped himself round my ankles, professing love for Rudolph - at first I thought it was a little kid, until I looked down and saw an inebriated twenty-something lying prostrate on the floor with his arms round my legs!  Needless to say, I shook him off pretty quickly after that - Rule One of Santa Con - no feeling up the reindeer!  

Eco-friendly reindeer sleigh

Other than that, most people seemed pretty well-behaved and not completely sh*tfaced.  As the weather was so much nicer than last year, I think the atmosphere was better and more relaxed and friendly, as people just hung out in Union Square, Santa-watching and making new friends.  As per last year, after about an hour of constant photo-ops, we managed to escape to the little cafe/wine bar down at one end of the Square to put our hooves up and enjoy an well-earned adult beverage.  Wearing a full length fleece suit with fleece head, feet and mitts in 65 degree weather is hot and thirsty work!   Alas, no Dante this year, but I did - bizarrely - get given a free bag of baby carrots by a bunch of Santas ahead of me in the queue.  How apropos.  So with free carrots and a glass of wine in hand, we sat and enjoyed the sunshine (heads off!)  - here are some of my pics from the 2013 SF Santa Con and the official write-up of the day's festivities! 

http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Naughty-is-nice-as-SantaCon-invades-S-F-5065130.php

Who(Ville) that lady?

Photo shoot frenzy!

Scary hairy bear-y makes reindeer wary

Vixen Instagram-ing a selfie!!

Vixen making Mrs. Claus's day!

Political?  Santa Con?  Only in SF….

May The Christmas Force be with you

Vixen photobombs Elf!

Not entirely sure if this guy was in costume or not -
 got the sense this may have been a regular
Saturday morning outfit for this guy

Vixen-Lori taking a well-earned breather from the paparazzi!

Bah Humbug trouser guy with a large red
chimney on his head.  Not pictured: Miley Cyrus.

Grinchyness and Fat Santa

Festive high fives and high jinks

I don't think the dog was too impressed with his outfit.  

On line, behind the squirrel.
As you do.

Awesome.  The cashier getting into the Santa Con spirit!

The Santa Con Scene

Just chillin' with a cold glass of white and a
free bag of carrots

Heads-up!  Its Santa Con!

The Elf is No Longer On the Shelf but
possibly is Off His Rocker

It was all starting to get a bit weird.

Ta-da!  Proof that two heads are always better than one!

Hippie Roller Santa

Squirrel Santa making a run for it.  She was totally nuts.

It takes a special kind of guy to wear a
body stocking Santa suit.  Good job Squirrel Santa
 didn' see this guy's arse with her nuts or
he'dve been busy crackin'…..

Candy cane dame

After an hour or so of chilling out, catching up and just enjoying the weather and good company, our reindeer bellies were starting to grumble a bit, so it was time to recreate one of the classic photo ops from last year, the Menu Shot at Lori's Diner.  The reaction when we walked into the diner was classic   - the double-look, surprise and (almost universally) a smile.  So cool.   And - fortunately - this year, no  really cute kids wrapping themselves around me, so I was able to take my head off without fear of causing permanent mental scarring about disembodied reindeer.

The classic, recreated with Extra Lori.

After that, we did a quick whizz round Macy's just to check out the Holiday floor and see if there were any random kids singing this year.  Fortunately the coast was clear, so i didn't have to get my caroling on, but again, lots of people were very excited to see us, so we did our Rockstar Reindeer thang again for a bit, before agreeing we were knackered and it was time to hightail it home.  En route, we came across the fire truck that was collecting the toys and donations from all the Santas (fun AND for a good cause!), so we got a couple of bright red plastic fireman's helmets as reward for our donation.  And very natty they looked too, carefully perched between our antlers (an artful lodger, if you will).   So, with that, we took our final MUNI trip, navigating the turnstiles and the moving escalator without incident (easier said than done wearing a huge reindeer head and big foam reindeer booties!) and finally made it home.  

Another year, another Santa Con, another triumph!  Bring on 2014!  

Vixen practicing good road awareness.
No red nose required.

Where's Santa and his sleigh when you need a ride home? 

Winding our way home

Wait? What? Its nearly Christmas??

Because of all the new job, apartment leak, identity theft, cat surgery and broken dishwasher brouhaha, I keep forgetting how close it is to Christmas.  As I walked into work for the penultimate time today (whoo-hoo!), I got a quick shot of the Festive Spirit with this fabulous display outside my office building.

Them's some big balls.

Christmas tree and blazing blue CA skies.
Still an odd combination!

You should see the size of the tree....

I am completely not ready for Christmas and, to be honest, it makes no sense at all to decorate, as my apartment is going to be ripped apart anyway to replace the flooring over the next couple of weeks so it'll just get in the way.  Also, because of the job thing, Mumsie is not going to be here for Christmas (sad face) so it wouldn't be the same without a Mumsie Under The Tree.  So this year's festivities are going to be very quiet, consisting of yours truly with a nice glass (or two) of champagne, some Dairy Milk and the Doctor Who Christmas special on the telly.  Perfect.  I'm sure there will be a few peeps around and about over the holidays, so i won't be completely on my own the whole time, so don't you worry - I'll be fine!  Given the exciting life changing event that's about to happen, I think one low-key Christmas is a very acceptable trade-off!

HOWEVER, there is the SF Santa Con this Saturday to look forward too!  Last year, Sarah Little and I whipped downtown San Francisco (and an Italian septuagenarian architect called Dante) into a festive frenzy with our fabulous outfits and Merry Demeanor.  This year, Lori and I will be looking to recreate the Christmas Crazy with - hopefully - slightly less rain and squelchiness this time!

http://sazzinthecity.blogspot.com/2012/12/its-on-santacon-oh-yes.html

In our new SITC segment called "Relocation News", its all starting to get fantastically, excitingly, terrifyingly real!  Yesterday, I received the formal offer letter from Takeda which I duly (and efficiently) signed - and I have to say first impressions are good.  Just look at how fancy the box is that the offer came in!  You gotta hand it to the Japanese - they sure know how to package stuff up beautifully!! (and - despite having worked in marketing and advertising for the last 10 years or so - I'm still a sucker for a nice package (steady! minds out of the gutter please, Sarah Little)).

My offer letter in its fancy-pants box!
(also happened to be the sound I was making as I signed the letter)

I even got a pen just for the occasion!!!

So thats that.  I'm also now getting contacted by the relocation folk, my schedule is filling up for next week for my trip to Chicago to do the HR stuff and meet some of the team and, just this evening, I finalized the dates for my first trip out to Japan!!  I'll be flying out Thurs Jan 2nd and staying for a couple of weeks, both for work and as a home-finding visit.  My team out in Japan has already organized a welcome dinner for me (with a heavy dollop of karoake on the side, no doubt!), so that's going to be a fabulous experience and introduction to the city!  I'll be coming back to Chicago Jan 20th for more meetings, then head back to SF/Chicago until my formal Japan work visa is ready, probably in mid-Feb.  I've got my Rosetta Stone language course ready to go, my Lonely Planet guide, a Tokyo city map plus a cookbook/guidebook about Izakayas, which are the Japanese version of pubs.   Random foodie fact for you - there are more restaurants per capita in Tokyo than any other city in the world!  More than New York!  Huzzah!  Bring it on!!

Anyway....I guess this all means that its really happening!!  Eek!!  So, buckle up, blog-watchers - its going to be one hellava ride over the next couple of months!!

Japan - i'm coming for ya!  Are you ready??

The Cat is Out of The Bag....

Right then.  I have news.  

This is where my blog bifurcates into Those Who Use Facebook and Those Who Do Not.  For those of you who have seen my earlier post tonight, you will already be aware of my Stonking Annoucement.  For those of you who have not, let me explain.

Its Daniel Johnson's fault.

Yep.  As soon as he posted a link to the following news article to my Facebook timeline, I knew my time in the US was numbered.

http://newsfeed.time.com/2013/10/15/never-drink-alone-again-because-now-theres-wine-for-cats/

So annoying.  But - as they say - knowledge is power, so after such enlightenment, what else could I do but act on said information?

So, for those of you who Have Not Yet Heard - I'm moving.  And shaking.  Probably literally.  Because i'm leaving the earthquake capital of the West Coast to move to the Seriously Scary Earthquake Capital of the.. um.. (far) East Coast.  I'm moving to Japan!  More precisely, Tokyo!

Yep, I will be leaving my current job at Sudler, leaving San Francisco AND the US (thanks for the citizenship - so byee!) for a new job with Takeda Pharmaceuticals, based out of their Tokyo office, with responsibility for the launch of their new multi-billion dollar diabetes blockbuster drug.  I'll be based in Japan for the first 18 months, then I'll return either to Deerfield, Illinois (just outside Chicago) or to Zurich, Switzerland to co-ordinate the rest of the global launches.  Its a fantastic opportunity, so i couldn't be more thrilled.  Its also going to be a phenomenal adventure - i've never even been to Japan, so to up sticks and go move there permanently is going to be quite the experience!  My Rosetta Stone Japanese course is already on order, so I hope I'll be able to learn enough to at least survive in restaurants and train stations!

Timing-wise, its going to be at least 6 -10 weeks before i move permanently, while they get the Japan work visa sorted.  Til then, I'll be working remotely from SF, with visits to the Chicago office.  I know I already have a trip to Japan scheduled for the first week of January for an apartment-hunting trip, so I will keep you all posted and suitably amused with the tiny-ness of apartments inTokyo that I will be living in.  Its gonna be just like living back in NYC again - but smaller!!  Sayonara to my palatial two-story CA-living townhome with private patio, pool, hot tub and outdoor garden and BBQ!  But I Will Be Back - I'm not selling but I'll be renting my place out for the foreseeable future.  I certainly see myself coming back to California one day, so I absolutely want to keep hold of my place.  Its too perfect to let go of and, psychologically, its easier for me to leave if i have a foothold back here that I can come back too.

So there you go.  That's my news.  Let the blog-fest begin....

Frankencat

Poor baby.  So Dylan went in for his surgery today to remove that pesky mast cell tumor that had taken up residence behind his right ear.  The most important thing to report is that everything went very smoothly, he's now home and recovering, albeit still stoned out of his poor furry little mind from the pain meds and anesthetic! He looks mildly stoned at the best of times, so you can only imagine the vacant look he's wearing right now.

He's also sporting a very impressive looking scar, plus two shaved patches on his front legs where the IVs went in, plus a fentanyl patch stuck in his hind leg for longer term pain relief. Pain relief patches for cats - who knew?  I guess that's what $2,000 in vet fees will buy you.  Yep. Two grand for an op that lasted 15 minutes.  Ouch ouch ouch.  Thank goodness for credit plans, is all I can say.  

He may be a Frankencat right now, but he's worth every penny.