This morning we hiked up Stonewall Peak which I totally recommend. It’s about two miles each way if you go straight up and back, and it’s an easy hike (almost all of the many hikers we saw involved small kids, which is rare for most of the hikes we take) with a fabulous view at the top. Naturally we took a side road back down which some random book had told us would only be half a mile longer although my glance at a map earlier had me suspecting that was a tad short. We ended up hiking a bit over 5 miles total, which is a great way to spend late morning and early afternoon.

While we were near the peak, we stopped for a bit and Christy took a few minutes to sketch out:

Yeah, she’s good.

In related news we’ve had a number of friends inquire about where we hike, so we’re thinking about getting together groups of people maybe once a month or so for a hike. Our first will probably be next Sunday, so if you’re in the area feel free to join us! Our downstairs neighbor will probably come along and maybe a few other friends and we’re actually thinking about doing this same hike again (probably straight up and back, without the bonus detour). Christy and I have really been enjoying exploring the greater San Diego area and it will be fun to hit some of our favorite hikes again with some of our favorite people!

This is from Let California Ring, one of the groups who support gay marriage. Ohio’s terrifyingly popular decision to ban gay marriage was one of the main reasons I was happy to leave. This is a human rights issue. If you’re a Californian, vote no on Proposition 8.

Laphroaig makes some of the loveliest scotches I’ve ever had the privilege to enjoy. Their 15 y/o continues to be my favorite, but the whole line is worth tasting.

Ok, time to turn off the laptop. Hope y’all are well!

The upshot to all of this is positive income! So of course I spent some of that and purchased a bottle each of Tori Amer and Pimm’s #1 the other day. I’ve now finally tried the Pimm’s Cup which is indeed refreshing. I’m looking forward to drinking more. I wanted to splurge and buy a bottle of Laphroaig 15 year which is my favorite scotch, but BevMo didn’t have any. I really need to find a superior liquor store in San Diego, but so far no luck. There’s always shopping online at Hi-Time Wine which has a delightfully ludicrous selection.

Right, time for bed.

After researching the company and position, I try to make sure I have a list of questions written down before I go to the interview. I may also jot some notes about stories or talents/experience I think would be applicable to this position. Contact information and the name of who it is I’m meeting go across the top of the page so there’s no embarrassment when I walk into the lobby and a helpful secretary asks who I am there to see. Finally, make sure you’ve sat down and really figured out what your goals are both with the interview and why you’re applying for the position itself. Lots has been written about what the interviewer may ask you, one of the articles I like best is from a UK site which has questions and some things to think about. Preparation is A Good Thing.

The questions I bring tend to vary according to the position, but here are a few I often ask:

The Big Picture

• What are you looking for in a candidate? Why be shy about this? Ask the interviewer who it is they want to find and do it early in the conversation. No one has ever seemed put off or offended by this question, and while you have many wonderful aspects, this allows you to highlight the ones they care about.
• What are the success criteria for this position? How will success for this position be measured? This gives some good insight into what they’re expecting as well as how organized they are about HR type things. Do they have detailed metrics for this job? Is it just your boss giving thumbs up or thumbs down? Have they ever thought about this question before?
• What is the makeup of the team I’d be managing? How long have they been here and why do they work here? That last one has obviously given some interviewers pause, but I think that’s ok. You could ask this about teammates if you’re joining a team, I’ve asked it about the teams I’m interviewing to be leading. You might want to ask to meet a member of the team, although I skipped that in an interview where I was told they were hiring in part because their team was vastly overbooked and too busy to breathe.
• Why are you not hiring from within? I’m looking at some management positions, and for those it is good to ask, “why isn’t this position being filled by someone who has worked there for years?” Sometimes it’s lack of experience, often it’s because they’re looking for talent that their current team doesn’t have (why not? Do they not train, or is there a better explanation?). I’ve had some of my most interesting answers, and biggest red flags, from this question.
• How does this department fit within the organization’s business strategy? This is one I don’t always ask, but I like to keep it in mind. I’m looking mostly for IT support positions, so how do they view the support department? Are they there to fix customer problems? Develop long term partnerships with these customers? Are they a revenue source or a revenue drain?

Details, Details
I don’t usually write down these kind of questions, but they’re useful to ask. Obviously you’ll want to know about hours/travel/etc., but most of those are in the description or (hopefully) part of their “this is what the job is” spiel. Note that the hours on the West Coast are often vastly earlier than they were on the East Coast, in part due to communicating with offices around the country.

• Describe a typical day/week in this position. Note that this assumes it’s not a new position. Sometimes the person you’re talking to won’t know this kind of stuff, but it might get them to pull in someone who does.
• When should I expect to hear back from you? One of the best classes I took in my MBA program was one on “Power & Politics.” This question commits them at the very least to getting back to you, which is a good start. Probably best to ask this last, though.

Nothing too monumental here, but interviewing strategies aren’t something I generally discuss or hear a lot of about, so I figured I’d post while it was on my mind. Besides, it’s good to have this saved for when I’m interviewing for the next great opportunity.

Simple and tasty! It’s pretty sweet, the bourbon and the cola combining for that, but the bitters gives it a little edge and some minimal depth. It’s also great for curing headaches, although that may be more the bourbon than the cola.

As someone who just graduated from a rather intense MBA program, let me assure you that yes it is ok to drink during studying. In part because, depending on the program, you may not have any time where you’re not studying. Also, the professor is probably going to be drinking while grading your test or paper. Wine if you’re lucky, whiskey if you’re not. If you go to a larger university and there are TA’s grading your paper, well duh. They’re wasted. So it helps to be on the same wavelength.

Finally, might I also recommend bringing alcohol to class. Only to celebrate particular occasions, such as finishing your team project, completing the final or because it’s Wednesday, and don’t be all wussy about it. Buy a stack of disposable shot glasses and bring a bottle of something that can be served at room temperature (scotch, I’m looking at you). Then, preferably near the end of class, but earlier if you think it will fly, break it open. Don’t forget to invite the professor, depending on who it is they may or may not accept, but really it’s good form.

Also note that, if you’re an undergraduate student, you should probably ignore that last paragraph.

Good luck in your studies!

1. This is all AE’s fault
2. This drink is horrible. Do not attempt at home.
3. It looks worse in person. It tastes much worse.

Ok, now that we have the warnings out of the way, allow me to present:

It’s been claimed that we attempted to make this in college, which I believe. It’s also been claimed that we made more than one, which I also believe. It’s limy and you can taste that there are good things in there. It’s just that they all come together in a rather aggressive combination. Now, to be honest, I didn’t have any of the right ingredients on hand so I used a darker rum, cointreau and a combination of cranberry pomegranate juice and sugar (my homemade grenadine is just about the last thing in the old apartment). I also halved all the proportions, which ends up with a lot of 1/4 oz measurements which are easy to get out of whack.

Thankfully we also made gin martinis in college. They were pretty much just cold gin, but I could really use one right now.

I recently acquired some apricot brandy and have been on the lookout for cocktails that used it. The first few attempts haven’t been worth the time but the Golden Dawn is kind of fun. Most recipes call for Calvados (an apple brandy, of which I have no real substitutes) but it’s also sometimes made without. Given what I have on hand, I mucked about with it a bit and here’s how I’ve been serving them.

Some folks garnish with an orange slice or cherry, but I prefer without. This is a simple drink, I’d love to try it with an apple brandy to see if it’s a little more complex and interesting, but as is it’s refreshing, sweet but not terribly so and visually kind of fun. Besides, it’s a rare excuse to use that homemade grenadine.

Of course, the best way to start is with a request! What follows is a great novelty cocktail for Christmas. Note that “great” here applies to novelty and not to the quality of the cocktail itself. The cocktail is too sweet to drink especially with the large amount produced by the original recipe I picked up. As such, I halved those measurements and the smaller version is what you’ll see here. While I can’t imagine wanting two in a row, it really does taste remarkably like an oatmeal cookie, which is reason enough to add them to the list of things to serve over the holiday season.

Happy Holidays, everyone! Especially to the many loyal readers who still reads this blog. The two of you are much appreciated.