Holi-daze Rush By

The trip to Vancouver and Victoria marks the highlight of this year's vacation season. As promised, Winter Vacation Photos are viewable online.

Christmas went well, with Cici and I visiting my family up in Portland. It was good to see the fam again, and exchange the kind of talk that families do. The only downside being that it made my special someone homesick. She won't be able to spend Chinese New Year's with her fam, and that's tough. If there were something we could do here instead... but I guess nothing can really take the place of being with family during this season. I remember how it felt to be alone in Japan over the Christmas season not so long ago. Email, cards and phonecalls helped, but they're not the same as being there and conversing face to face. But, we do what we can and sometimes there's just nothing else for it but to grin and go on.

So, here's a happy story from Canada:
After taking the ferry over to Victoria from Vancouver, Cici and I stopped at a Red Robin for a late dinner before trying to catch the last ferry for the States. As it were, we missed that last ferry by some five hours. Ha ha! So, we found a hotel and crashed for the night. But we went out before getting to sleep right off and found a kewl little bar at the Strathcona Hotel. We had a couple of drinks there and just relaxed a bit from our hectic schedule and upcoming long drive back to Eugene the next day. It was a good time and not too expensive, as far as bars go, and was a great chance to simply lean back and enjoy being in Victoria.

Simple story, but its often the times that at first seem simple that mean the most. Check out those pics and enjoy!

Viva la Vacacion

My someone and I just returned from our tour of the Great Northwest, rolling back in at around midnight.


Tour stops included:

• Visiting Family in Portland, OR
• Acquiring a Canadian VISA in Seattle, WA
• Chillin' with Yutaka in Vancouver, BC
• Ferrying out to the Buchart Gardens in Victoria, BC
• and Ferrying back to the States again thru Port Angeles, WA

I'll be posting our photo album online shortly, with links to follow. In the meantime, I'll amuse you with this little story about how Intel made a wee-little mistake...

In my last post I had mentioned that I'd been offered a job. This was true, up until Thursday afternoon, that is. Their HR department called to tell me that they had meant to offer the job to another individual who happened to have the same name as I do... right down to my middle initial. I was none too pleased, but there was not much I could do. I just told the HR people that I was still quite interested in working with their company (as dense as they appear to be) and they responded by telling my how strong my resume looked and that they would work to "get me in front of managers right away." From my business law course I know that if I had made any purchases on the basis of the employment offer that was ultimately and unjustly rescinded, they would be legally bound to pay me some compensation. But, as it were, I did not buy a house or a car or anything at all really. Ah, well. Maybe they will help me get into the company; maybe they won't. But either way, I'm back to where I was before. Still glad that I had a great vacation and enjoying my time before delving once more into the books that own my mind until it gets rented out to whichever company wins the auction. I've considered starting my own business, but I really need to get a more rapid return on my educational investment than entrepreneurship usually offers. I'll probably go into business for myself one day, but not right away.

So, that's that and there ya go. Stay tuned for pics online and stories from our vacation into the Great White North.

The Road Ahead

This posting comes with the completion of my week-long adversities and random stresses. It's as if new life has come in with the morning breeze that I could even feel it as I dreamt of kudos and accolades last night. Beginning with the final event first, the Intel HR representative called today to formally record my acceptance of their offer of employment post-graduation. The call came as I had, as things like this often go, just settled my place in the bathroom. I'm slated to work in Santa Clara, but may be able to negotiate the deal if my internship group comes around, as I expect they might, and offers me a post sometime in early spring. In the meantime, I can shop around other businesses knowing that I've got this solid job-plan in place.

As for the other items on my mind, my grades came back all that I'd hoped for. Three A-'s and one B (hey, it was Adv. Fin. Mgmt. and w/ a tough professor). So, I'm pleased with that end of things. As well, my car is back in good condition and running reasonably well. Actually, as I was about to tow it to an auto shop, a guy from AAA came out to assist with the towing. Turned out that my car's gear shifter was not fully in the "park" position. All the AAA guy did was push the shifter a bit until it "clicked" and was fully "engaged" in park and then she started right up. Made me feel bad for not finding the problem, but sometimes its the obvious things that escape us, i think.

Then, just as I was writing this blog, I received an email from JAL stating that my refund "request" had been "approved" and that the money was being credited back to my card. Niiiice. Five problems up and five problems down and me standing on top of it all. However: I need to say here that I strongly believe that these successes are not due to my own abilities or anything I may have said or done whatsoever; except, that is, to pray about it all. The manner in which all of it occurred, processed and was resolved all compels me to see God's plan in action, for whatever that may be or wherever He takes me. I thank Him and praise Him for his guidance.

Now, with school out, my employment situation settled, my car in working order and money in my account, Cici and I are off to Portland, Seattle and Vancouver B.C. from tomorrow morning. We'll be off to do some shopping, see some family & friends, and generally just chill for awhile. A break well-earned and well-deserved. Of course, this means and an early night for bedtime and to recharge the ol' batteries for the next adventure.

Here's Savvy, signing off for now. More later, with tales of the road unfolding ahead.

Unbelievable Week

It's way too tough to begin explaining how crazy this past week has been. It's a story even I wouldn't have believed if someone had relayed it to me before. But its not a work of fiction, nor a nightmare or even a crazy daydream. It's happening to me right effing now.

It breaks down like this:
Two weekends ago, I took a trip to Seattle to hang out with a few old friends and relax my mind just a bit before handing in final deliverables and running headlong into Finals. Last week was "dead week", though it didn't seem all that "dead" to me. Papers and essays and projects and presentations... one for every day of the week! And then at last, the weekend. But it was not your typical weekend. Rather than catch up on sleep and whatnot, I was up at nearly the first light of dawn and in the library or school computer lab studying and cramming and working the last bits of information on my three papers due during, and in addition to, FINAL EXAMS. So the weekend pretty much flew by with my nose either pressed against a computer screen or buried in some book.

Then came Monday, and the all to real nightmare grew towards its climax. An exam in Advanced Corporate Finance and more work on projects & papers sped the clock 'round on its axis. Then evening, and my stomach craved something other than the sandwiches I'd been living on for who knows how long. I ran out to my car and... and... NOTHING. The battery was dead, or so I thought at the time. So, back to the fridge for another sandwich and more study and off to bed figuring I'd take care of the damn thing after my exam on Tuesday.

So Tuesday morning hits and I'm off for a final exam in Mangement Negotiations. That, I must say, went extremely well. I actually chuckled very quietly when I read the exam questions. Everything I'd studied and nothing I hadn't. Niiiice. And I was feeling pretty confident that I'd just jumpstart the car and head off to the auto store and grab a new battery. But no help! No one was available to jump the car. Everyone I knew was busy either taking or studying for an exam. So, I figured I'd have to just put it off until wednesday. And then I noticed a missed call...

It was Intel, calling to make sure that I had submitted all of my documentation to be considered for future interviews and such. I scrambled to make sure that I had done all that jazz and sent it in and whatnot and tried to see the bright side. "At least they're interested and haven't tossed my app on the discard pile," I told myself. My g/f is an architecture student and is even more busy than I am this week, but in a different way. She's got to create building models and draw appropriate representations of those and then present the full deal to a panel of professors. Multiply that process by three and you get her week. Even now she's off working on some masterpiece, during which she sliced open her finger and caused a panic in the architecture studio. It's probably not serious, just startling was all.

Since I'd no exams today, Wednesday, so I stayed up with Cici until about 6am as she pulled an all-nighter working on a bldg. model. I awoke to hear my phone ringing at around 10:30 this morning. It was Intel again. But this time it was with a job offer! Whoa! Now that really came out of leftfield because I hadn't even interviewed with that particular department yet! Of course, I did have a weird impromptu telephone interview with the HR rep about a week ago, but I had no idea that that conversation was the first and last interview I'd have or need with the firm. I did intern with them last summer, and perhaps I just did such a great job that I was a sort of "first round draft pick", so to speak. Anyway, there is a problem with the offer. The money's good and benefits as well, but they want me to move to Santa Clara, CA. Now, my family is up in Portland and I'd like to stay up in the Pac NW. It's just my home and that's it. So, I haven't accepted the offer yet. The HR rep said that I could call her back tomorrow and discuss this further. So, I'll call her tomorrow and negotiate for a homebase office in Hillsboro. I'll keep y'all posted.

So, that minor situation handled for the time being, I went to check my email. Brief story: I'd missed my flight to Japan a few months ago and subsequently bought another ticket. I'm trying to get a refund for the unused portion of my first tickets but have been given the run-around. And that saga continues. They had requested some documents as well, and are now claiming that those documents I had sent were incorrect. B/S! So, it looks like this will drag on for awhile longer. But what a time to get this message, on top of all else I'm under this week. So, I replied to their message appropriately and headed off to try and fix my car.

A friend of mine took me out to a battery store where they tested my battery and told me it was low, but that it should be able to start my car with a jump. Not again! So, the problem must be something else. The starter perhaps? The alternator? The connector cables? Or maybe the damn thing just doesn't like me. Whatever it is, I'll need to get it towed out to the shop, probably on Saturday. Good news is that a friend of mine offered to help me tow it out there on Saturday. Nice. Now all I need are some chains/cables to attach it to his truck. But I'll think about that part later, most likely when I call the shop tomorrow.

After the battery ordeal, I went back to the computer lab to finish my part of a marketing team assignment. That was about the time I heard from Cici that she'd cut her finger. Awesome, I mean, just spec-effin-tacular. So, we went out for a bite to eat, eventually heading back to work. 11pm rolled by just as I was wrapping up my paper. Exhausted, I shuffled home and sit before you all now, staring blankly at my computer screen with its flashes and blips and bleeps and things that move upon which I can no longer focus my eyes or attention.

That has been my week, and it is not yet half-way over.

Goodnight.

You Talkin' to Me?

I'm sitting at my desk wondering what to write. I've got a class presentation in Marketing in about half an hour and I'm as ready as I'm going to be for it. Afterwards, I'll prepare for another presentation tomorrow, this time its for a course in Negotiations. And after that, I'll be set to study for final exams next week. All in all, its not a bad schedule. I mean, even though I have a fair amount of work on my plate, I really don't mind it since I know that the end of the term is seven business days away. Then comes winter break and a break up to Canada to chill with Yutaka, a friend and former English student of mine from Morioka, Japan.

The big question is: what will I do with my time over the three weeks I've got on vacation? I wont spend more than a couple of days up in Vancouver B.C., so that leaves two and a half weeks for which I can do whatever. Its not a bad problem to have, though, eh?

But for now, I'm off to give my kick-butt presentation and revolutionize the marketing world. I'll write some more cool stories soon. So, stay tuned and hold on for the next edition of: The Chronicles of Dave.