Some times plans come together and you get to do something fun. As many of you know I'm spending a lot of time in California this Summer working on Titanium. Fewer of you know that my kids are spending their Summer driving around North America filming for their first documentary Sprawling Apart, Growing Together. The kids just happened to come through the same time my youngest sister and brother-in-law were starting their Summer Anniversary event, Wainright The Gathering 2010. They've rented a cabin in Tahoe Vista for a week of game playing, outings and other mild mayhem. I spent a goodly part of this last weekend playing Dominion -- one of my favorite board games. 

I discovered early on Sunday that there was no caffeine in the house so I took that as an opportunity to take a 1.5 mile walk into Kings Beach to grab a cup of coffee at The Java Hut. The coffee was good. I loved the ambiance. Tip: If it's hot, sit in the back near the walk in freezer, much cooler. 

The only real problem I had in the area is that it's not as pedestrian friendly as I could have asked for. Crosswalks are almost non-existant and you really don't want to cross the main thoroughfare without them. But it made for more exercise which is good too.

Here are several photos I took during the walk.

I also create a panorama from Kings Beach.

Lately, I've been staying in "Personality Hotels" when I stay in San Francisco. I like the pricing and that each property has a distinct personality. They also have free WiFi. Typically, there is coffee in the morning and they usually have complementary wine between 5 and 6 pm. 

For Google I/O 2010, I stayed at the Hotel Union Square on Powell near Ellis. I had an interior room on the fourth floor with easy access via stairs or elevator. The room was comfortable and strangely enough the seating was very comfortable. 

If you're in San Francisco and want to try out an interesting place to stay near Union Square, I'd recommend giving the Hotel Union Square a shot.

I just received an email from Scooba Designs announcing two new TSA approved checkpoint friendly bags. In a nutshell the bag has a section that includes a clear window that shows that a laptop is in the compartment and it provides the same x-ray image as if the laptop had been removed from the bag.

Watch the video to see how they've designed the bag for faster movement through the checkpoint. They do mention that the TSA still has the right to pull you out and check you regardless which I guess is to be expected. The greatest feature of the bag is that you can quickly grab your bag and go without worrying about dropping the laptop.

 

 

Links: Checkthrough Roller (new), Checkthrough Backpack (new), All Checkthrough Bags.

Today we left Bergen, Norway on a day train ride to Oslo getting close
to the end of the trip. I've attached a few pictures. The one of the
harbor is looking out from the top of one of the hills there Bergen.
The others are just a glimpse of some of the sites on the way over to
Oslo.

 Once I get home I'll work on processing more photos and getting them
up on Smugmug and some proper blog entries as well.

 Other than having to get up a little early this morning it was a good
working travel day. The place we're spending the nice is basically a
large house set up as an inn. We're here for one night then off to a
hotel near the airport which sits about 50km outside of town. I need
to be at the airport around 6ish on Friday morning and the public
transportation doesn't seem to wake up early enough for that. At least
with the padding I like as far as getting through security.

I took a break from documenting earlier today and went down to Gamla Stan or the Old City http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gamla_stan. I have pictures but they really don't do justice to the majesty and size of most of the buildings. Once I get home, I'll post all the photos along with the ones from the other locations.

There are many shops of all varieties. I stopped in a small coffee shop for a doppio and small pastry. The entire shop couldn't have been larger that 10'x10'.

From what I've seen so far Stockholm is a lovely city and definitely worth a trip back.

I have to say that this is the first hotel I've ever stayed in that has provide a desk chair and a desk exercise ball chair. The normal chair is to low for me to type comfortably so I'm using the yellow ball and releasing my inner chicken.

The hotel is the Mornington Hotel Stockholm Bromma.

I was getting a little hungry, but I wasn't going to let myself go get food until I'd finished the UI guide I'm working on. My tummy then reminded my brain that I had squirreled away a tin of sardines just in case I got to Stockholm and didn't/couldn't find food.

This looks like a store brand of sardines, but I have to say they're much better than the stuff I've been buying at home. I may have to look around a bit harder rather than just grabbing what's on the shelf when I get home.

I'm catching the night train later today for an overnight journey to Stockholm. Kiruna has been a wonderful place to hang out and the facilities and staff at Camp Ripan have been very friendly and very helpful. Although we didn't get to spend time out in the wilds, if I ever get the chance, I will make the trip back if I can stay longer.

Even though it has rained a lot, it's been so nice having weather in the 40s-60s.