Today was my last official day of employment at Kodak. As I wrote earlier, I’ve worked there for more than eleven years and now its time to move on.

I walked around the main building on Gilmore for about an hour this morning. I don’t know hardly anyone that works there as all the software developers moved out to separate buildings years ago, but that is where I worked when I first joined the company. I was sort of odd walking around there, both exactly the same as I recall and quite different at the same time. Got a hug and a nice message from Judi on my way out.

Then it was back to to building on Willingdon to clean up. I found a couple of my things in my office that hadn’t yet made their way into either the trash or into my bag to take home. Dave K. sent an email note around re: my departure and so many people stopped by to say hello & goodbye. It’s kind of weird when you get congratulated for leaving the company by people who are still there. :^)

A group of us played board games for an extended lunch. Sean organized pizza. We played a game of Carcassonne; unfortunately I lost big time. There were six people playing so to extend the game time we included the tiles from several expansions: Inns and Cathedrals, Traders and Builders, and The Princess & the Dragon. We only really used the rules from Inns; the other expansion rules don’t really work very well but the tiles are great.

Some of us then followed that up with a game of Modern Art which I won with a good lead. I took Ticket to Ride Europe into the office today but didn’t play it; maybe another time.

I think the thing I’ll miss the most is working with my friends. I’m sure I’ll make new friends but it won’t be the same. Thanks to Sean, Michael, Tobias, Phillip, Norm, Andrew, Gordon, Marion and John K. for the games today, it was a great way to say adios.

The Mars Reconnisance Orbiter arrived at Mars recently and sent back its first image.

This image is at a resolution of 2.5 meters per pixel, and the platform should take much higher resolution imagery once its in the correct orbit. Its going to require six months of careful aerobraking to achieve that orbit but once there we should be able to get pictures of Martian terrain down to one meter resolution.

This fantastic imaging capability will be put to use looking for more evidence of water, checking out terrain to validate theories of climate and geology, and scouting out possible landing sites for new machines and eventually people.

In addition to the camera work this platform will act as a radio relay for existing and future ground exploration vehicles.

Two things to report: (1) yet another change in Eileen’s book; and (2) after nearly twelve years at Creo (and later Kodak) I’m leaving.

Eileen’s book will now be titled In the Stars and will be published in February 2007. I think I liked the last title (Predicting Mr. Right) better but I’m definitely not the target audience. On the other hand the publisher’s marketing department are paid professionals and likely know what they are doing, so they get many more votes than me.

The second bit of news pales by comparison but is still significant enough to report. Way back in December 1994 Eileen and I moved to Vancouver so that I could join a 200 person company named Creo Inc. The company grew (eventually to 4000 people worldwide before being acquired by Kodak) and I was always able to find new challenges; however the last year or so has not been quite as exciting or challenging or rewarding as I’d hoped.

Last week I accepted an offer from Sophos Inc. here in Vancouver. I start at the beginning of April. I’m really looking forward to the change; it’s an entirely new market and new company with a family of new products to learn and work with. I’ll be writing software again, I find that part very exciting too. I’m nervous in a very excited way!

Eileen’s first book Predicting Mr. Right will be published March 2007 by Penguin Publishing. Yippe! Visit her website and tell her how much you are going to love buying her book as gifts for everyone you know!

Today was the last day of the 28th annual Vancouver Playhouse International Wine Festival. This fundraising event is held every spring and this year featured 1,320 wines from 186 different wineries in 15 countries. We went to three events this year: an evening of French wine and French food at Pastis last Tuesday, a tasting of twelve Pinot Noirs from around the world last Thursday, and finally the traditional Flavors of the Festival brunch earlier today.

The event at Pastis was amazing; as usual the food was outstanding and also perfectly paired with wines from six different wine-making regions. Each wine was introduced by a member from the winery, and it was a fun-filled evening. We went home absolutely stuffed and slept very well that night. Best wine was a 2000 Chateau Kirwan Margaux, closely followed by a 2001 Pfaffenheim Gewurztraminer.

Thursday night was a traditional tasting event dedicated to Pinot Noir. We had twelve different wines from here in British Columbia, France, California, Oregon, and New Zealand. A person from each winery (usually the wine-maker) gave a ten minute overview of the wine, their terroir, their process, etc. We learned that irrigation and planting density are hotly contested topics among these cordial competitors. Best wine was from Domaine de la Vougeraie although every wine and every wine-maker was delightful.

Today’s event was a brunch where twelve restaurants from around Vancouver (a couple were actually from out of town) make a small dish representing their cuisine, paired with a wine featured by the festival. Discovered a new Zinfandel from Ironstone Vineyards that was absolutely delightful. Definitely will pick up a few bottles to have around the house, as it really was a treat. It was paired with lamb and risotto from Papi’s Ristorante in Richmond that was very tasty. We don’t get down to Richmond much but visiting Papi’s might be just the incentive needed.

Oh the sacrifices we make for charity. If only every week could be so decadent!