It's TGIW/TGIS!

Signs that you have been working in any fab for too long:

a. You use "TGIF" on a Wednesday/Saturday.
b. While celebrating your non-Friday TGIF you walk outside the fab with your booties or gloves still on.
c. While most of your friends cheer 3-day weekends, you have the luxury of enjoying them year round.
d. You start to believe that outside air is dirty beyond normal levels.
I've become victim of (a) and (c), starting to think about (d) with all the smog in the Phoenix Metro area . Thankfully I haven't experienced (b) yet, although I hear someone in F12 or F22 actually did that once.

"Everything is big in Texas" is the famous line, but I would like to say that "Everything is big in the US" fits better. This is the reason why a large majority of the world spends so many hours in traffic, commuting and traveling. We travel long distances to get to work, shop, find recreation and everything else. Now there's talk about telecommuting becoming part of everday work, and sure it will be once our pockets start bleeding more to get from A to B. I thought I could have an ongoing L^3: Living Lean Lifestyle series of posts. So for this one I chose signs that you could be having Fab Fever. How is this Lean? Well it's not Lean yet, but rather an idea of what's going to happen when gas prices hit $8+.

I was wondering what other places could use a 4-10 schedule, work 4 days 10 hours each...

(1) You should start training the kids to wake up earlier, cause it won't be long before school follows a 4-10 in order to save on transportation and energy costs.
(2) Shopping malls closed on Mon-Tue? Perhaps, as e-commerce picks up, there won't be any need to keep them open the beginning of the week.
(3) Mail may start to be delivered in bulk, once a week, packaged and pre-sorted locally.
(...) What other activities can you think could benefit from a 4-10?

Today is the exception. TGITuesday! =)

Companion Cube... Please Come Back, I'm Sorry.

I just finished reading "Apathy and Some Other Small Victories" by Paul Neilan, and it's by far the funniest book I've ever read, ever. If you were to mix Office Space with Vonnegut, added political incorrectness and foul language this is what you would end up with. I just thought I'd share the highlight of when the main character starts working at Panopticon, an insurance conglomerate.

"One day I came back from the bathroom to an email:

'Hey gang! Exciting news! Due to a recent floor restructuring, out team is gaining a new cubicle! It will most likely be utilized as a conference cube or for storage, but I thought it might be fun to have a little 'cube warming' party. I know you've all been working extremely hard, and this will be a good chance for us to 'blow off some steam' as we welcome our newest insentient addition. Say, 10 a.m.? Be there or be square. Or, cubed, rather!

Regards"

Oh corporate America, with your seas of cubes and faceless working spaces. I love it. Conan had something to say as well:

http://www.clipstr.com/videos/ConanVisitsIntel/

...and this just made Intel sad, a very sad panda. How sad? Well they're launching new modern cubicle modules that are spunky, bright and colorful, promoting an open work environment with an uber-ergo and inviting design. Thinking google-like? Maybe. The right move? Well only if PR and HR think it's worth it, and it definitely is. Break rooms with Wii/X360, free drinks, pool tables, couches and dry cleaning service. Sure. Maybe Conan can do something about our uncovered parking lot, oven-like cars when you go home are definitely not fun.

Companion Cube from The Orange Box: Portal

PS. If anyone here has played Portal you know where the title came from =)

Blog Intro

So not to bypass any formal introductions, I'm Ray and I'm a recent college grad just started working at Intel as a Lithography Process Engineer in F12 in Chandler, AZ. Went to Boston University, and majored in Manufacturing Engineering. Moved to Arizona about two months ago from the Northeast US and enjoying the weather so far, although people tell me it's going to get interesting in a month or so... I just think they're trying to scare me =) Courses and training right now, but I'll try to squeeze in some time to contribute to the blogsphere.

See you around.