Code Retreat is a community event, completely free. All you need to do is sign up, and have some developing environment setup on your laptop. Breakfast and lunch are provide, cold but hot tea/coffee is available throughout the day. The Portland event this year was held at Puppet Lab, 8:30-5. Out of the 14 who showed up, 3 attended this before, 3 left earlier, a few no-shows (these are the people you don't want to have anything to do with). Not a whole lot attraction here. In comparison, Seattle had 40+ people on the same day. Apparently more developers in Seattle.
The problem to attack Conway's Game of Life
The aim is TDD - Test Driven Development - mindset. I've actually attended one session at work led by today's instructor Matt.
There're six 1-hour sessions, each consist of 45 minute coding in pairs, and 15 minute discussion in the group. There's a survey question as the end of each session. Same question: which test did you write first in this session, and why. The first 2 sessions have no constraint other than you have to change partner. I watched with awe of someone using just vi to write code and do test in Ruby - seems a very nice setup he has. The second was in C#, which is quite generic. 3rd session: ping-pong: one writes test only, and one writes code to fulfill the test. Constrain: no communicating, nor commenting in the code. 4th session: constrain = no primitives. Only only pass object as argument. We were slow, and had a long lunch. So only one last session, which we could choose any constrain. A suggestion is no conditionals. That would be tough.
I deeply appreciate the organizer and the instructor who spent time for us. I think I'd come again, if next time there'll be more people. Because this is a paired event, the more people, the more chances of seeing something new and interesting. So, if you are reading, please join next time.
Saturday, December 14, 2013
Saturday, December 07, 2013
2013.11.30 Mt Taimu 太姥山, 福建
Saturday. Sunny (a bit hazy) and warm (high reached 20°C). At the south bus depot of Fuding 福鼎, I took a bus to the town of Qingyu 秦屿 (also called Taimu 太姥 ￥15), then another bus to Mt. Taimu scenic area (￥8). About 45km SW. (Detailed transportation) I arrived at the ticket office at ~10:10am. Paid entrance ￥100 + ￥15 park bus. A free map (not very to the scale) of the park can be picked up by the window. I stowed my luggage in the empty museum at the gate, because no where offers storage service for sizable luggage. The park bus drops you off at the starting point 迎仙台 (platform to welcome the gods). Well, there's just this one stop, where many shops and hotels are. Plenty of tourists, allowing me to listen to guides from various groups. Most people are concentrated in the lower half, one hour from the bus stop. 
Further away (to the left), near 九鲤湖 (lake of nine carps) and 香山寺 (temple fragrant hill - from the mountain orchids) I met total 3 students. There's some hotel being built next to the temple. Further up, to 白云禅 (under messy renovation) and the top at 917m 覆鼎峰 (peak of upturned urn. Not much a peak, just a flat mount without a view). From here, taking the back side (to the right) via 乌龙岗 (hill of black dragon) is my favorite. Very steep and narrow at times, seemingly endless steps. Excellent view of surrounding giant granite slabs, the tourists below at 迎仙台, the town farther below, the crisscross of waterways entering the sea. Too hazy today to see the ocean. 
This mountain is noted for its funny granite formations plenty stories have been conjured up by generations of tour guides). There're so-called caves (piled boulders leaving some narrow space) you can squeeze through. It's a fun place for skinny people. I had to take my backpack off at times, otherwise, the total width of me + backpack is too much. Quite fun. From what I read, on a really foggy day (1/3 of the time), there's a different beauty. For better colors, come in spring when azalea blooms. I got back at the gate before 3pm, with somewhat shaky legs. My suitcase was safe and sound in the museum. Still, this is low season. Had to wait for about 40 minutes, before my bus was satisfactorily filled so it would depart. Two different stops at the gate, one for the Taimu city center, one for the Taimu train station. I took the ~5pm train, arrived at Shanghai ~10:30pm. ￥208.
Friday, December 06, 2013
2013.11.28-30 Buddhism school 禅修在福鼎
Day 1. Thanksgiving Day in US. No turkey for me. I left my Beijing hotel at 6:30am in order to catch the one per day fast D train at 8:17 to Fuding 福鼎 without transfer. This train runs up to 200km/hr. Arrived at 5:40pm after many stops. My friend and her 11 year old son met me at the station. I'm very glad to finally see them again after 8+ years. We were classmates and neighbors for a year when I was taking French lessons in Paris, long ago. Seemed like it was in another life.
After a bus ride and a short taxi ride, we arrived at the school 清静寺 (Temple of Tranquility), where they were staying this week. This is a rather new establishment, concrete plain buildings.
Quite a few temples in the same town, and a few more monastery or schools in China by the same founder, let alone other branches or schools. Why here? Well, I was here to see a friend. She was here because she chanced upon this group years ago looking for a way to reign her first born, and the founder happens to be here due to warmer weather compared to his other sites.
Quick registration with my ID. I was then given a stack of reading material, 2 wash basins, 1 bucket size ~5 gallon, a pair of slippers, all plastic, a hand towel. I was shown to my bed in a room of 3 bunk beds (all 3 lower bunks already occupied) and 1 cabinet in a separate building (women's dorm). Once they found out that we hadn't had supper yet, I was given 3 ceramic bowls, 1 pair of chopsticks, 1 small square wash towel. They heated up something in two giant aluminum bowls. All 3 of us sat down in the cafeteria on separate benches, no talking allowed. Dinner: rice noodle with shitake mushroom and celery, wheat drop soup.
After washing my dishes. My friend took me to the 3rd floor, the main lecture room. Joined ~80 women,
~40 guys. Separate stairs, separate seating sides. Shoes outside, rows of thin pillows to sit on floor and thick blanket to cover the legs. It gets chilly at night sitting still. A lady in her 40s was talking about her experience of leaving home in a poor island and pursue Buddhism. She's affable. Laughter occasionally in the audience, age between 10 and ancient.
At 7:40-ish, we have free time to wash up and prepare for sleep. I chatted my roommates: a college graduate in landscape design, disgruntled of what she called the dark reality after a year or two working (unknown to her family); a middle-class woman from 天津 in her 50s who was laid off at her transportation job due to lack of work (talking to her family and coworkers all the time on her mobile whenever there's free time) ; a laconic lady from 广东 Canton, about my age who has a teenage son. They're all disappointed about the brevity of my 2 day sejour.
8:10pm lights out. No sound allowed, no walking outside the room, unless going to toilet. Electricity is not cut, so I can charge my phone. I caught up my messages and emails inside my blanket. No heat. Hot water was boiled and filled in thermos. This town doesn't get very cold in winter. However, these two days it dropped to almost freezing at night.
Day 2. Woke up by light and sound. My roommates all got up by 3am! I immediately fell back to sleep after they left. But not for long. At 4am, someone pulled my blanket and suggested that I should get up and join the reading in the lecture hall. I complied. Washed with icy water. Bundled in all my clothes, went to the 3rd floor. I was given a booklet, showed which page. Then I joined the others chanting 药师经: scriptures of Bhaisajyaguru. At 6am, morning exercise. At 6:30 breakfast. ~7:30, founder Fu 傅味琴 walked in aided by walking stick and his student. He chatted and answered questions submitted on paper. 9am lecture by one if his early disciples, which I liked. 10am, manual labor: I swept the floors of lady's residence hall (all 3 floors), while my 天津 roommate mop the floors. 11am lunch. 12pm-1:10 nap (yes, you have to be in bed and silent). Afternoon varies. Some smaller class. Me and a few others were taught how to fold blankets. I then went out to the town. But I wasn't allowed to leave until I presented my cause (to mend a shoe) and had a company (my roommate). We came back ~5pm, already missed dinner. But I still went to the dining hall, had some leftovers (plenty). 6pm, another scripture reading. 7pm, speeches by my fellow students: 3 minutes each, voluntary. Mostly are terribly boring. Only my friend was brilliant. Her theme was food, and encouraging people to come and eat.
Day 3. Quite similar. Reading 金刚经 Diamond Sutra this morning. I checked out after Teacher Fu's talk. Striped my bedding and put them in the bucket. One local lady who came to listen to the talk graciously gave me a ride to the bus depot. We chatted on her bike.
After a bus ride and a short taxi ride, we arrived at the school 清静寺 (Temple of Tranquility), where they were staying this week. This is a rather new establishment, concrete plain buildings.
Quite a few temples in the same town, and a few more monastery or schools in China by the same founder, let alone other branches or schools. Why here? Well, I was here to see a friend. She was here because she chanced upon this group years ago looking for a way to reign her first born, and the founder happens to be here due to warmer weather compared to his other sites.
Quick registration with my ID. I was then given a stack of reading material, 2 wash basins, 1 bucket size ~5 gallon, a pair of slippers, all plastic, a hand towel. I was shown to my bed in a room of 3 bunk beds (all 3 lower bunks already occupied) and 1 cabinet in a separate building (women's dorm). Once they found out that we hadn't had supper yet, I was given 3 ceramic bowls, 1 pair of chopsticks, 1 small square wash towel. They heated up something in two giant aluminum bowls. All 3 of us sat down in the cafeteria on separate benches, no talking allowed. Dinner: rice noodle with shitake mushroom and celery, wheat drop soup.
After washing my dishes. My friend took me to the 3rd floor, the main lecture room. Joined ~80 women,
~40 guys. Separate stairs, separate seating sides. Shoes outside, rows of thin pillows to sit on floor and thick blanket to cover the legs. It gets chilly at night sitting still. A lady in her 40s was talking about her experience of leaving home in a poor island and pursue Buddhism. She's affable. Laughter occasionally in the audience, age between 10 and ancient.
At 7:40-ish, we have free time to wash up and prepare for sleep. I chatted my roommates: a college graduate in landscape design, disgruntled of what she called the dark reality after a year or two working (unknown to her family); a middle-class woman from 天津 in her 50s who was laid off at her transportation job due to lack of work (talking to her family and coworkers all the time on her mobile whenever there's free time) ; a laconic lady from 广东 Canton, about my age who has a teenage son. They're all disappointed about the brevity of my 2 day sejour.
8:10pm lights out. No sound allowed, no walking outside the room, unless going to toilet. Electricity is not cut, so I can charge my phone. I caught up my messages and emails inside my blanket. No heat. Hot water was boiled and filled in thermos. This town doesn't get very cold in winter. However, these two days it dropped to almost freezing at night.
Day 2. Woke up by light and sound. My roommates all got up by 3am! I immediately fell back to sleep after they left. But not for long. At 4am, someone pulled my blanket and suggested that I should get up and join the reading in the lecture hall. I complied. Washed with icy water. Bundled in all my clothes, went to the 3rd floor. I was given a booklet, showed which page. Then I joined the others chanting 药师经: scriptures of Bhaisajyaguru. At 6am, morning exercise. At 6:30 breakfast. ~7:30, founder Fu 傅味琴 walked in aided by walking stick and his student. He chatted and answered questions submitted on paper. 9am lecture by one if his early disciples, which I liked. 10am, manual labor: I swept the floors of lady's residence hall (all 3 floors), while my 天津 roommate mop the floors. 11am lunch. 12pm-1:10 nap (yes, you have to be in bed and silent). Afternoon varies. Some smaller class. Me and a few others were taught how to fold blankets. I then went out to the town. But I wasn't allowed to leave until I presented my cause (to mend a shoe) and had a company (my roommate). We came back ~5pm, already missed dinner. But I still went to the dining hall, had some leftovers (plenty). 6pm, another scripture reading. 7pm, speeches by my fellow students: 3 minutes each, voluntary. Mostly are terribly boring. Only my friend was brilliant. Her theme was food, and encouraging people to come and eat.
Day 3. Quite similar. Reading 金刚经 Diamond Sutra this morning. I checked out after Teacher Fu's talk. Striped my bedding and put them in the bucket. One local lady who came to listen to the talk graciously gave me a ride to the bus depot. We chatted on her bike.
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