The Brad Hole

Around mid-January, I got permission to move back to Phoenix and continue my current job at Apple working from home there. This is fantastic as it means I can be back home with my family and friends. These last 6 months living apart were becoming increasingly difficult.

That said, I had to go back to Cupertino for 3 weeks (with one week left) to work on a special project. I've been living out of the Cupertino Inn for the past 2 weeks, walking to work each morning as Apple is directly across the street. I figured I didn't need a rental car, which is more or less true but this has highlighted some problems.

For one, this hotel lacks laundry facilities so I've had to schlep my dirties via my suitcase to a laundromat in the strip mall next to the hotel. I can't think of the last time I've had to stick quarters in a washing machine,

Second, it's been raining (well OK, drizzling) for the past several days, which limits where I want to walk. I haven't had to *be* anywhere when it's been raining and when it has rained it hasn't been more than a misting, so I've avoided walking to the drugstore to pick up an umbrella. That may have been a mistake - we'll see. The side effect to this is that there are very few restaurants within walking distance of the hotel - Quizno's and Carl's Jr are the closest, and if I cross the freeway, I can get to BJ's, Outback Steakhouse and Bagel Street Cafe.

Last weekend, I felt frisky, so I walked a hair over a mile to the Panera Break Co. on Stevens Creek, and yesterday I wandered about a mile up Sunnyvale-Saratoga to "Dairy Belle", which is like a cut-rate Dairy Queen. They do not have a Blizzard, but they do have a Riptide. Exciting stuff.

This is more a reminder to myself for the future, but my room came with a coffee maker, but no microwave. Turns out I was able to get a microwave from the front desk for free though. As well, there is a refrigerator, but it's a snack bar jammed with expensive alcohol, snacks and drinks of indeterminate age, and I can't use it for my own purposes.

The TV has cable that includes Showtime and Showtime 2. I've seen Notting Hill twice now, as well as that semi-autobiographical movie with 50 Cent. I've also learned that Showtime mercilessly pimps their own shows during the breaks - part of the ups and downs of not having commercials.

And of course, Showtime 2 has been showing "Big Brother After Dark". Let me just say right now that I hardly ever watch reality shows. I've never seen a full episode of American Idol or Survivor, let alone any others with the exception of the Joe Schmo show on Spike, which I watched religiously. With that said, I can't stop watching Big Brother After Dark. I just can't. To borrow a quote from the Simpsons, it's gross...yet strangely compelling.

In unrelated news, we broke down and got an Xbox 360. The first game I rented was Bioshock, which quickly turned into my first must-buy. I haven't enjoyed a game so much since Knights of the Old Republic.