Well this past year has been quite a rollercoaster ride for myself and my
girlfriend Anne. I finished up my MBA and masters degree in International
Studies in December of '98 having taken 6 months to write a thesis entitled
"Site selection techniques for large manufacturing firms: A comparative
study between Hyundai and Sony in Eugene, Oregon." A topic fresh on
everyones mind I'm sure!! What a load of crap that was! Nevertheless, I
managed somehow to hoodwink my committee into accepting it (it must have
been the donuts I brought to the defense!), and I have gladly walked away
from the .edu community ever since.
Anyway, come January, Anne and I were footloose and fancy free, the only
problem being that we hadn't managed to land any jobs yet. (Can't say the
job market is that hopping in good old Eugene.) So, after some calculated
thought and weighing the pros and cons of various metropolitan areas around
the states, we decided that Washington DC would be the place for us. Much
to Joel Johnson's dismay we set up shop in his basement for a number of
weeks while we 'hit the pavement' in search of jobs. Once Joel was fed up
with us we moved to Carolyn Waterman's house for yet a few more weeks and
I would like to publicly thank them both for lending such a warm, helping
hand at such a trying time in my life. (Unfortunately, to add to my torment,
my mother passed away during this time)
In the end, we finally managed to right the ship, with both Anne and I
finding jobs starting the end of March. I am now working for American
Management Systems, a global IT consulting firm, in their telecommunications
division. All I can say is that knowing what I know now, I am amazed that we
can even get a dial tone when we pick up the phone!
So I now live in Virginia, in a 1950's rambler, in a quiet neighborhood 20
mins west of downtown DC. I am about a three minute drive from Carolyn's
house, although sadly we have yet to hook up for some grog sessions.
Moving from Eugene, OR, to DC has not been without its adjustment pains,
with notably the humidity and the rush hour traffic two elements that were
particularly hard to swallow. However, I have happily settled down to the
relatively stable working life. I have my lawn to mow, 2 cats to feed, and
a beautiful partner who has agreed to become my wife! Yes, that does mean
we are engaged. I can truthfully say now that I am one happy man. On that
note, all the best to everyone, and may you all have a party to remember on
Dec. 31st.