Google

Our time in California is moving quickly, and we are now at a hotel in Long Beach for the start of the General Synod of the United Church of Christ.  I am highly privileged to serve as a delegate from the New York Conference.  Our entire delegation of twenty or so is housed at the same hotel which is about a twenty minute ride from the waterfront convention center.

On our flight to California a few days ago, we met a super-nice guy named Konrad who was seated in our row.  In addition to being a triathaloner and the dad of a young daughter, he is an employee of Google.  As we parted at the baggage claim, he gave us his business card and invited us to visit Google headquarters in Venice.  Since we were staying nearby in Santa Monica, we decided the next day to take him up on the offer and made arrangements for a tour.

Yesterday morning we wallked the couple miles or so to Google.  We received name tags and a welcome packet and were led by Konrad to the cafeteria.  As guests, we were provided an all-you-can eat breakfast from the main cafeteria which provides unlimited food to employees all day long.  Our tour took us to all buildings on the Venice campus and exposed us a bit to the unique corporate culture of Google.  Employees (most of whom seemed to be about twenty-six years old) sat around in collaborative teams in shorts, t-shirts, and sandals while typing on their laptops.  Some were using the massage services available or the gym, while others grabbed a "Google bike" for a spin to clear their heads or walked to the beach two blocks away (company policy encourages bringing surfboards and even small pets to work.)  One of the coolest things we experienced was a circular video-surround "Google Earth" booth that zoomed in on our house in Williamsville.

What Konrad mostly shared with us was the corporate philosophy of Google and the success the company has had in employing highly creative, intelligent people with a strong work ethic.  The perks have made Google the number one "best place to work" for most of the last several years.  It's no wonder it's such a popular place to work and why so few who apply (one tenth of one percent) even get an interview.  The values of the company (what I was most interested in) include innovation, a diverse work force, and individuality (and respect for the individuality of others.)  Despite the emphasis on individual creativity, all projects are done by rotating teams.   Employees are given much freedom in how they do their work, but they are highly responsible to one another.  I came away impressed by the use of up-to-the-minute technology combined with a corporate culture that is built on human relationships.

After a quick walk to Venice Beach (known for its funky, arty atmosphere and wide spectrum of interesting characters), we returned to our temporary home in Santa Monica.  My buddy Jeff was kind to give us a ride to Long Beach where we met up with friends Sandy Damhof and Janelle Richardson from Albany for dinner on the waterfront.  We saw the Queen Mary which is permanently docked in the harbor.  Some of the Synod delegates are housed there for the week - lucky them!  Today starts the work and worship of General Synod!

Pic of the Day

Santa Monica Pier, Santa Monica, California

California!

Our departure from Italy went pretty much as planned.  We caught an early bus to Leonard daVinci Airport and waiting in long lines to pass through multiple levels of scrutiny before boarding our plane.  On the American Airlines 767 we had seats on the left side of the plane and managed to have a window and aisle seat together for the long flight over the Atlantic.  We weren't quite so lucky flying from NYC to LA (I was in the middle of seven seats that stretch across the cabin, though at least Leroy had an aisle), and we were delayed an hour due to a storm passing through NY.  That was really the only significant delay we have had in three months of frequent plane travel.  We've been fortunate!  I have to say, though, that after spending three and a half weeks in Italy eating local pizza and taking a pizza-making class near Naples, the epicenter of Italian pizza culture, it was a little disappointing getting a slice of chewy, microwaved "pizza" in a cardboard box on the plane!  Other than that, it was a great trip!

We are staying for two nights in Santa Monica, California, before arriving in Long Beach for the UCC General Synod.  My best friend from childhood, Jeff Youngs, and his wife Julie are putting us up (putting up with us?) here.  Jeff and I met in Mr. Scheel's fourth grade class at Huth Road School on Grand Island and have been buddies ever since.  We went on all sorts of biking adventures as teens and have kept our friendship going for over forty years now.  Jeff is a business consulant and Julie is co-owner of a surrogacy service.  Their three kids are great, though only one is home now for the summer.

This morning I woke to the news that the Supreme Court had ruled on the two cases regarding same-sex marriage.  It's great to be in California on the day that Prop 8 was finally put to rest and marriage equalilty has been returned to residents here!  The Defense of Marriage Act was ruled unconsititutional, meaning that same-sex couples receiving civil marriage recognition by their states will receive federal recognition and benefits as well.  This is a huge advance in the movement toward full marriage equality for all U.S. citizens.  In the several weeks after our return to New York, I will officiate at five weddings.  Three are for same-sex couples; how great that not only their state but the federal government recognizes the value of their relationships and will protect them with the same rights given to others!

Pic of the Day

Fiat, Montipulciano, Italy

Good-bye to Tuscany

It is our final night in Italy.  Leroy and I are staying at a "bed and breakfast" on the eighth floor of a stately old building directly across the street from the Termini" train station in downtown Rome.  The B&B consists of a narrow hall and four rooms, each with a private bath.  An apartment-sized fridge contains our breakfast for the morning.  Aparently, this is a self-serve set-up as we have not seen our host, or any other guests for that matter, and we are leaving before six in the morning.  There are strange, scratchy noises coming from outside our window.  I was brave and asked Leroy to check it out, but no expanation so far,.

Yesterday, we ventured through the hills south of Siena to the hilltop medieval fortress town of Montepulciano.  The town is famous for its red "Nobile" wine.  Wine bars and tasting cafes line the narrow streets that run the length of a ridge that provides speactular views in all directions.  Montipulciano is also the location for many scenes filmed for the Twighlight New Moon film.  The town depicted in the book and the movie is actually Volterra which we visited a few days earlier.  It's the streets and main square of Montipulciano, though, that are seen in the film.  After returning north to our farm, we went out to dinner at a new place I did not research first on Tripadvisor.  As soon as we were seated outdoors a few feet from a busy highway, a gentleman began setting up a sound system with large speakers for karaoke right next to our table.  He then began singing loudly in Italian.  The food was fine, but it was hard to have a dinner conversation!

Today we drove from Argiano to Florence to return our rental car. Then we rode a shuttle to the airport, followed by a bus to Florence, followed by a train to Rome.  We encountered once again how difficult it can be to accomplish simple tasks in a country where you do not speak the language and are unfamiliar with certain usual practices.  Mailing a package from a post office and filling a car with gasoline are tasks I do with ease at home.  Here in Italy they require a lot of planning and an interpreter.  We were seriously stressed out about the fully automated gas pumps that only give instructions in Italian for pumping and paying,  We finally figured it out and were able to return our car with a full tank.  It was a bonus today to return to Florence and have a couple hours to kill before our train departure.  Leroy had his last cappachino in Italy, and then we walked a considerable distance to our favorite gelateria for our last gelato.    Tonight in Rome we had our last spaghetti topped off with our last tiramisu and our last limoncello.  No doubt we will be able to have all of these delicious foods and drinks at home, but I doubt it will be the same.  We talked at dinner, again, about how fortunate and grateful we are not only for the three and a half weeks in Italy, but for the entire three months of travel in the Middle East and Europe.

After getting settled in our room this afternoon, we walked a couple blocks to the impressive "Saint Mary of the Angels" Church which has some interesting displays about Galileo (the first such exhibit since the Church apologized to Galileo for excommunicating him in the 1600s, another triumph of good science over bad theology and biblical interpretation.)  We ventured further toward the Colosseum, buying some last minute t-shirts and listening to an urgent speach delivered to a group of peaceful protesters carrying red and gold flags.  I didn't get the whole gist of it (again, my language skills failed me), but I took it to be a dispute between labor and government.  We were reminded of the peaceful protests we saw on the streets of Istanbul, Turkey last month.  It has been distressing to see those protests accelerate into violence at Taksim Square in the weeks following.

Tomorrow a bus will take us to the airport and the first leg of our journey to Los Angeles.  We will be in the air for seventeen hours total plus a three hour layover at JFK.  We will cross ten time zones, allowing us to arrive in California mid-evening on the same day we left.  We will visit with friends in Santa Monica before arriving in Long Beach on Thursday for the General Synod of the United Church of Christ.

Pic of the Day

Early morning at Fattoria Argiano agriturismo, Chianti, Tuscany, Italy

Just Relaxing

This morning I woke up early and there was no going back to sleep.  I got dressed and stepped outside to see the mist rising above the vineyards and the cyprus trees that line the farm lanes.  A short walk down the gravel road leading to town brought me to a curious building on a curve of the road.  I've noticed it before and assumed it was a church of some sort.  A spindly cross and flag made out of metal is on the peak of the lichen-covered tile roof.  The facade is crumbly brick and the sides are stucco that has fallen off in places to reveal fieldstone walls.  The two windows in the front have wooden shutters partially opened, so I pushed through scratchy bushes to peer inside.  Sure enough, it was a church.  A granite altar engraved with a cross stood beneath a semi-circular window.  There was nothing else, though.  No seats or prayer books or evidence of anyone using the church for a very long time.  I imagine the church once served the little Vatican-owned hamlet that has been turned into the agriturismo where we are staying.  The building is probably at least five hundred years old, which is not all that old here in Italy but is ancient by American standards.  Anyway, it's Sunday morning and I thought about the folks at home who will be gathering for worship today at St. Stephens-Bethlehem UCC.  I miss them!  The crumbling, empty church on the hill reminded me that I'm glad to be part of a church community that is very much alive and is doing great things.

We actually did relax quite a bit yesterday.  There is so much we would still like to see and do in Tuscany before we leave, but our bodies remind us that we need to set a reasonable pace each day.  Yesterday we drove around a bit to  try to find a post office that was actually open during its stated hours.  Then we read by the pool for awhile.  The weather is a bit cooler here now, so fewer guests are venturing into the pool.  I think I'm the only one who went in all day yesterday.  In the evening we drove north through the hills to a village called Radda in Chianti.  We admired the ancient city wall and walked the streets before returning to the restaurant where we had our cooking class.  Simone, the chef, is an amazing man.  He took our reservation by phone, greeted us at the door, showed us to our seat, took our order, cooked the meal (with the assistance of kitchen staff), served it up, and then cleared our dishes.  He assured me he would be washing them as well!  There were about thirty diners that evening and he provided the same service for everyone.  It's no wonder it's such a popular place and such a great example of Tuscan cooking and hospitality.

Today we are off an adventure.  Just one destination planned, but with the hope of finding some wineries and the prospect of getting pleasantly lost on the back roads.