Sunday, September 28, 2008
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
real quick . . .
- i'm spending a lot of time uploading old entries, so be sure to browse through the blog archive in the years 2002 to 2004 for the latest entries
- don't be afraid to vote . . . i know you're reading this, so you're able to vote . . . c'mon, someone's gotta break the ice. and while we're on the topic, i just now read that the phillies have moved to a 1/2 game ahead of the mets
- if anyone has any advice on se asia, please send it my way
- this is enough bullet points for one night . . . don't wanna contribute too much to that negative image of our beloved city of philadelphia :-)
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
The end of a chapter
Today was the last day of the project. It was a good run: from October 22, 2007 until today: almost 11 months. That's not bad, considering that when we were hired they told us that the project would last only six months. But, despite this, it still sucks to be laid-off.
The warning signs had been there. We had one huge, seemingly neverending assignment that kept us mind-numbingly busy for nearly three weeks. Everyone wondered what, if anything, could possibly be on the other end of this assignment. There were rumors and speculation that the project would end once we got through all these documents. Trying to maintain my sense of optimism, I shut my ears off to what I interpreted as the annoying pessimism of unsubstantiated rumors. In the end, I was wrong. And I have to say that the gossipers seemed to barely veil their happiness when they found out that I was wrong -- but at what cost, I asked myself: we've all lost our jobs! Talk about a Pyrrhic victory.
There are a lot of great things that I took away from this job. First and foremost, I'm so grateful to have met so many nice people that I now consider friends. If there was one major thing, besides a girlfriend, that my life was missing here in Philadelphia, it's a circle of friends that live locally, especially within Center City. I think I can say that I have that now, and I'm very happy for it. I truly hope that I can do my part to maintain these friendships.
Secondly, I'm happy to report that I was able to do some things financially -- as a result of the project -- that I could have only dreamed of a year ago while I was waiting for the results of the bar exam. Among these, I have to be most grateful for being afforded the opportunity to catch up on all my rent and bills, of which I was at least two months behind at the time the project began. Along these lines, I'm very thankful that I was able to save up a significant rainy-day fund, which I knew would provide security for the inevitable period of unemployment and any other period of financial instability or emergency.
Thirdly, but directly on the tail of the financial benefits of the job, I'm so happy to have been afforded the chance to travel -- one of my great loves of life. Earlier this year, due to the flexibility of the job and the money that I was able to earn and save from it, I was able to travel to Egypt, Germany, and for one afternoon, the Netherlands. And not only that, but in less than two months time, I will be traveling to southeast Asia, hopefully to Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam. These incredible experiences -- of which so few people in this world are able to enjoy -- are a direct benefit of my employment at the project. For this I feel truly blessed.
The ending of project was certainly bittersweet. During the last couple hours of work today, many of us exchanged phone numbers and email addresses. And at the very end of the day, there were lots of hugs. It was really nice, and I don't take for granted the camaraderie and genuine feelings that were expressed in those hugs and warm handshakes. Towards the end of the day, the project lead, Lakisha, stood up to say a few words in recognition of the friendliness exhibited on the project and the fact that so many people, in her words, "gelled" on this project like no other that she has ever been on. I thought that was a very classy move on her part to say those nice things and it meant a lot to me that she said that.
But, all things must come to an end, and so it goes for this project. As one door closes, so shall another door open. It's just a matter of getting my bearings so that I can locate this next door. One thing is for sure, though: all those good things that I mentioned above can never be taken away from me, because they're now a part of me, and for that I'm a better person, and thus in turn I'm a very thankful person.
To all my friends from the project, thanks! and please keep in touch!
The warning signs had been there. We had one huge, seemingly neverending assignment that kept us mind-numbingly busy for nearly three weeks. Everyone wondered what, if anything, could possibly be on the other end of this assignment. There were rumors and speculation that the project would end once we got through all these documents. Trying to maintain my sense of optimism, I shut my ears off to what I interpreted as the annoying pessimism of unsubstantiated rumors. In the end, I was wrong. And I have to say that the gossipers seemed to barely veil their happiness when they found out that I was wrong -- but at what cost, I asked myself: we've all lost our jobs! Talk about a Pyrrhic victory.
There are a lot of great things that I took away from this job. First and foremost, I'm so grateful to have met so many nice people that I now consider friends. If there was one major thing, besides a girlfriend, that my life was missing here in Philadelphia, it's a circle of friends that live locally, especially within Center City. I think I can say that I have that now, and I'm very happy for it. I truly hope that I can do my part to maintain these friendships.
Secondly, I'm happy to report that I was able to do some things financially -- as a result of the project -- that I could have only dreamed of a year ago while I was waiting for the results of the bar exam. Among these, I have to be most grateful for being afforded the opportunity to catch up on all my rent and bills, of which I was at least two months behind at the time the project began. Along these lines, I'm very thankful that I was able to save up a significant rainy-day fund, which I knew would provide security for the inevitable period of unemployment and any other period of financial instability or emergency.
Thirdly, but directly on the tail of the financial benefits of the job, I'm so happy to have been afforded the chance to travel -- one of my great loves of life. Earlier this year, due to the flexibility of the job and the money that I was able to earn and save from it, I was able to travel to Egypt, Germany, and for one afternoon, the Netherlands. And not only that, but in less than two months time, I will be traveling to southeast Asia, hopefully to Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam. These incredible experiences -- of which so few people in this world are able to enjoy -- are a direct benefit of my employment at the project. For this I feel truly blessed.
The ending of project was certainly bittersweet. During the last couple hours of work today, many of us exchanged phone numbers and email addresses. And at the very end of the day, there were lots of hugs. It was really nice, and I don't take for granted the camaraderie and genuine feelings that were expressed in those hugs and warm handshakes. Towards the end of the day, the project lead, Lakisha, stood up to say a few words in recognition of the friendliness exhibited on the project and the fact that so many people, in her words, "gelled" on this project like no other that she has ever been on. I thought that was a very classy move on her part to say those nice things and it meant a lot to me that she said that.
But, all things must come to an end, and so it goes for this project. As one door closes, so shall another door open. It's just a matter of getting my bearings so that I can locate this next door. One thing is for sure, though: all those good things that I mentioned above can never be taken away from me, because they're now a part of me, and for that I'm a better person, and thus in turn I'm a very thankful person.
To all my friends from the project, thanks! and please keep in touch!
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