From Within the Loop: Corporate Games

What do you do after you bring the most innovative smartphone to market? You take RECESS. Think Double Dare here gang. Each year Apple employees gather together and assemble teams to compete against each other in the Apple Corporate Games. This event takes place in the summer and teams compete for pride.

The competition would last for an afternoon and events range from the classic tug of war, to the more intellectual word scramble, you know . . . where you re-arrange letters to make as many words as you can in the allowable time frame. Then you have the water balloon launch and catch, trying to catch as many balloons in the allotted time as possible. I think the most intense event was pictionary. I don't think any explanation of the game is really necessary, but it was an extremely intense event. If you were held up on a particular word your chances of winning were slim to none. It made me wonder if teams were scheduling conference rooms for practice during the day.

This is just another example of how Apple is different and really embraces the Silicon Valley environment. The old adage, happy people do great work is so very true.

From Within The Loop: An inside look at Apple

From time to time I'm going to give you an inside look at Apple from Within The Loop. Having spent some time at "The Mothership" I have some tips, advise, and insight to share with all the tDL readers and viewers.

This installment of From Within The Loop: Cafe Macs.

No one likes working on an empty stomach, and Apple employees are no different. Cafe Macs is centrally located and is open for breakfast and lunch. Offerings vary from day to day, but you can always find fresh made-to-order sushi, brick oven personal pizza, a fresh salad bar, pasta station, the grill, and my own favorite the built to order burrito.

Burritos vary from breakfast to lunch, but I recommend both. The tortillas are giant . . . much larger than your "standard" tortilla. For breakfast you have your choice of eggs, breakfast meat, and fresh veggies. Lunch is where it gets really exciting . . . behold the burrito bar. Thousands of combinations. I'm convinced you can eat a different burrito every day for lunch for a minimum of five years and not eat the exact same combination once.

Now you may be asking how do I get my hands on such a burrito. It's going to be difficult. The only access to Cafe Macs is through the corporate doors. The only way through there is if you are an employee or are accompanied by one. The good news is, if you do get the chance to eat there, you'll have the inside track.

Do get:

1. The Burrito

2. Brick oven pizza

3. Sushi

Don't get:

1. Hamburger / Cheeseburger