New Job!

So I am very belatedly (and back-dated-ly) writing about my new job. No more unemployment! Yay! :)

Two weeks ago, I started my new job at Recruiting.com (formerly known as Jobster). We work on making software to help recruiters find and track candidates, with a focus on easy-of-use, which I particularly like. The company is like 20 people total, and the dev department consists of the product manager, the QA lead (who manages the remote QA team), the graphic designer / basic front-end programmer, the lead dev, and me. That's the entire dev team. It's pretty awesome to have the potential for really mattering to the team and the product.

No one's griping off to the side about how things suck around here. My manager is very much a peer that I feel comfortable with, not some parental-acting figure that hasn't kept up with the latest technologies.

The Office

So far as I can tell, the people are pretty fun, too. Lots of joking around and generally being relaxed.

Not to mention I got a raise compared with my old job at Microsoft (although probably not if you factor in differences in benefits, but still...). I also have a "window office," or rather a view of Puget Sound from my desk. We have "professional development" every Thursday at noon, by which I mean we all eat pizza while watching The Office. ;) We have wine and Rock Band on Fridays. When the weather's nice, we grill out on our balcony overlooking the Sound. It's pretty awesome, really. :P

So I think I made the right decision for myself. I definitely feel less stressed and more happy. All in all, good times. :)

Chicken Salad

Chicken Salad

I made myself some chicken salad from scratch today. I didn't even follow a recipe! (This is a noteworthy accomplishment for me, since I'm normally one of those by-the-letter recipe-following non-cooks.) Forrest will even vouch for the tastiness of my chicken salad.

I didn't have walnuts, but I think they would have been a nice addition. So in the recipe below, I'm adding 'em. I'm recording the "recipe" below, in case I forget what I put in it. :)

Chicken Salad

• rotisserie chicken thigh & drumstick, shredded
• 1 celery stalk, chopped
• 3 inches of cucumber, chopped
• 1 or 2 slices of red onion, chopped
• dried cranberries, about ¼ cup or so
• handful of walnuts, chopped

• two big teaspoon glops of mayonnaise
• sprinkle of lemon juice (equivalent to squeezing a slice)
• salt & pepper, to taste

Combine chicken, celery, cucumber, onion, cranberries, and walnuts in a bowl.

Add mayonnaise. Stir until evenly distributed.

Add lemon juice and salt & pepper.

Yields: 1 main course serving, or 2 side servings