Yesterday, I started as a Visiting Faculty Researcher at Google Research working with the inimitable Shaun Kane and team. Super excited for the opportunity and grateful to all who helped make it happen. Two quick stories:

1. Shaun and I started working together back in 2006 as graduate students. We, of course, have followed each other's work since then but it's incredible to rekindle a collaboration after 15+ years.

2. In the picture above, a keen eye might observe that I am wearing the exact same shirt as the logo behind me, which shows the (now old) Google logo with the Seattle Space Needle for the 'l' character and a stylized Mt. Rainier in the background. I got this shirt 20 years ago when I (and a carload of UW PhD students) went to the opening kickoff party for the Google Kirkland office in 2004. Google's first presence in the Pacific Northwest. Wow! (As an aside: I remember feeling like every other person I met at this party was a Microsoft employee; it became very clear to me then the strategy behind said opening).