Life in Portland Area

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On September 20, 2004, I started working at @Once as a Database Analyst. I had interviewed with them in early August and been offered a position in early September. My boss is John. Here is John having a technical discussion with Eugene (not really visible on the left side of the picture). John is the boss of the Data Specialists group. @Once does email for major complanies like Nintendo, Nike, and US Bank. It is only sent to customers who have asked to receive email (not spam).
Here is Eugene sitting at the computer right next to our boss, John. Eugene was hired instead of me back in August when I first interviewed there. New guys start out there so that they can ask questions and that is where I sit now.... Our group updates the database in preparation for mailings and also analyzes the results from mailings.
This is Al. He left the week when I started to go to another company (which was why they made me an offer when they did in September). Al is sitting at the computer closest to the entrance to the cubicle area. His back is to the windows. His area is just across from the desk where Gene sat and I now sit. After Al left, Jim moved to his area and Eugene moved to the computer by the window.... Our work is a series of projects that we pull off a 'queue' (actually a web interface to a database table of jobs). Most jobs take from one to six hours to complete.
This is Jim working at the computer by the window that Eugene moved to. It faces Al/Jim's area and the entrance to the cubicle area.... The jobs we do are put into the 'queue' by AE's (or account executives) who are the ones who interface with our clients. They put our work items into the queue with a dead line necessary so that the commitments to the customer (such as sending a mailing out on a certain date) can be met.
This is Candy as she was just putting on her headset (to listen to tunes as she works, the normal mode around here). Her back is also to the windows. She sits behind the the window work area above. She is now the most senior member of the database specialists (other than John) as she has been here a year. She sits at the computer furtherest into the cubicle area. Just to her left is the file cabinet and test computer that I used for the few days before Al left.
This is the desk area where John and I work. Eugene is sitting where I now sit, but the lighting is too bright to see anything other than the furniture lay out anyway.
On the other side of that wall is the system admin people who set up and support the Windows and Unix systems we use.
This is the break area a work. Notice the free soda (or pop if you are from the Northwest) dispenser. Yikes! That may become a threat to my slender frame if I am not careful. The refrigerator, microwave, and sink are nice, though. Also, on Friday afternoons there are often informal parties where people bring in nice ales or margueritas mixes and such to share. That is very European of them (and small company, too) and big companies often have rules against such..
This is the other side of the break room. Here they have free coffee (not of much interest to me) as well as tea and hot chocolate mixings. That could be of interest to me as well.