Tradeoffs

{photo via}

Having worked at Google for almost a month now, I feel qualified to state the advantages and disadvantages to working in Mountain View versus San Francisco.  Working outside of San Francisco was always a sticking point for me whenever I was offered a project on the Peninsula or in Silicon Valley--we only have the one car now, and I loathe driving anyway.  I'm not a good commuter.  I have a touch of road rage.  Not to mention the environmental consequences of driving that much each day.

I doubt I'd have accepted the Google gig had it not been for the shuttle.  Every morning and evening, I board a posh tour bus, settle in with my book, laptop, or iPod, and get about an hour of downtime while traveling on the 101.  The ride can seem lightning-fast if I have something good to distract me.  When I don't, and when the driver punctuates the journey by slamming on the brakes, the ride eeks by while I look around for a barf bag.

There are things I unequivocally love about Google:  the (free, abundant, high quality, delicious) food and snacks; the bikes we use to get around campus; the weekly happy hours; the laid back work environment; the type of people who work here; and the great gyms.  Often when I'm riding between buildings, especially on a cool morning like we had today, I feel like I could be back in college at NAU--a strange but ultimately nice feeling.

The one obvious drawback to all of this is that I'm not in San Francisco.  I suppose I'd been taking working in the Financial District for granted these past two years.  No matter where I was working, I was within a stone's throw of tons of great restaurants, coffee shops, drug stores, boutiques, parks, and mass transit options.  That, in hindsight, was really nice.

Now, at Google, I have most of what I need at any given moment, but not all.  I can't casually stroll across the street to Walgreen's if I need something (even if it's more of a want--like a trashy celebrity magazine).  If I ever wanted or needed to leave early, I'm not sure how I'd get home, short of imposing upon a coworker to drive me back to the city (my shuttle doesn't leave until 4:45 pm).  And I can't take care of errands or go to appointments during the day anymore.  This definitely saves money, but isn't necessarily an efficient use of my time (and you know efficiency is always at the top of my list...that's the Shira way).

For now, Google still comes out on top and I'm quite pleased to be working here.  But now when I'm in San Francisco, I feel even more grateful to live in and experience all that it offers.