Daily Archives: March 30, 2006

New York (Day 1)

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So the hotel doesn’t have free internet (it’s $15 a day, probably not worth it), so I figured I would write entries and post them all at once when I get back (and backdate them and such).

The flight was relatively uneventful. It was delayed a bit though, but meh. Smallest plane I’ve ever seen… had room for three people plus an asle per row (instead of the usual 3 per side for 6 total per roll). Then, arrived at the airport. Went to the baggage claim. Couldn’t find the driver to bring me to the hotel. Called the company. Apparently, he had been waiting for me at the gate, and I missed him because I had been told to find him at the baggage claim. Two calls and an hour later, we finally found each other.

The hotel room is totally AMAZING. Words cannot describe this room. The bathroom is as big as my dorm at CMU, and has both a full bath and a (clean!) shower. The bedroom itself is amazingly stylish and has a Boise radio/CD player and a flat panel plasma TV on the wall. The only thing that would make it better is free internet, but hey, what can you do.

The city itself is amazingly intimidating. So many tall buildings! So many streets! I’m so stupid! I was looking for where Fog Creek was (so I wouldn’t have to try and find it tomorrow). The streets here are arranged in numerical order (as you probably know) by street and avenue. I was looking for 8th avenue. I got to Broadway. I walked another street. I got to 7th avenue. I figured Broadway had to be what I was looking for (since a lot of the avenues here seem to have “alternate” names). Stupidly, I had failed to notice that the avenues I had crossed before that were 5th and 6th. So yeah, I walked around about half an hour trying to find the building. Then I asked for directions and finally realized I was stupid. Wheee.

Oh yeah, Fog Creek gave me a welcome package too (delivered when I checked into the hotel). Yay for t-shirt and various brochures!

Um yeah, it’s now 11:22 so I should sleep soon so I can wake up for tomorrow.

Ahhh this hotel room is so amazing!

Food for thought

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So I’m in the airport right now, waiting for my flight. Nervous as hell. At least my two exams today didn’t majorly suck… I think I did worse on the 80180 than I wanted, but I didn’t totally flunk.

I’ve been thinking about how the world would be different if humans had evolved without the ability to decieve/lie/kill/cheat/etc. For lack of a better term, what if Pandora’s Box had never been opened? How would society be different… and how much power would the first person who gained those abilities have over everyone else?
*kills someone*
“I didn’t do it!”
I mean, I realize that’s not something that could have happened (all species have that ability; it’s necessary for survival sometimes), but it’s still interesting to think about. I guess.
I mean, there would be no need for police or prisons. You’re sure to get a truthful answer to anything you ask. No deception, no need to have stringent security, no need for supervised examinations…
I wondering if that would make society more or less happy…
And I’m wondering if that would make us advance faster or slower…
I mean, is it the very need to be safe that leads us to innovate and research? If most of the badness in human nature is gone, will we still feel the need to advance, or will we be comfortable with the bare necessities and what we already have?

Mrrrr.
I am completely going to fail this interview and die and be sad.
:(

Don’t know if the hotel will have internet, so don’t know when I’ll post again. If there’s internet, I’ll be sure to post pictars.