LA (not so) Confidential

I now live in LA, a city which I have visited 100+ times but that still mystifies me.

To be more specific, I live in Sherman Oaks. Sherman Oaks is one of the southernmost parts of the San Fernando Valley. I chose this location because I am:

• 30 minutes from work (no traffic in the morning or evening)
  
• 20 minutes from Santa Monica
• 20 minutes from Hollywood
• 45 minutes from Malibu
• 20 minutes from the Burbank airport

Basically if you mapped all of these places and found the midpoint, you would be staring at Sherman Oaks. Valencia, the city where I work, is actually quite picturesque. Boston Scientific, my employer, is located on a hill with great views of the canyons. It's windier at the office and one can often see wildlife like deer, hawks, etc. It reminds me a little of SAP's Palo Alto office.

Quick first impressions:

• People are in incredible shape
• The traffic is bad most of the time
• The surfing looks terrific
• The "going out" vibe is electric.
  

If you have any suggestions for things to do here, let me know!

The Last Refuge for Tigers

During my month of vacation before starting work, I engaged in one of my favorite past times: watching endless amounts of nature programs on National Geographic: Wild. Side note: Nat Geo Wild has become leaps and bounds better than Animal Planet.

I saw an amazing program on tigers. Not your average nature show covering tigers in the wild, this show featured several conservationists who went on an expedition to Bhutan's "Tiger Mountain" to look for tigers. It had been rumored by locals that tigers lived on this mountain. The explorers decided that if this rumor were true, then tigers could be relocated from their current territories to this remote region. In fact, a "tiger corridor" could be created throughout these high altitude Himalayan regions. Watching the show, this seemed like the best idea for ensuring the survival of the tigers that I have ever heard of.

Fortunately, tigers were found on Tiger Mountain and the tiger relocation project can now have legs. Working on the conversation of tigers in Bhutan is a strong candidate for how I spend my sabbatical (when that time comes).