Why So Quiet?
Posted on June 22nd, 2009Because I’m in the UK! Sorry for the lack of posts, but there will be plenty of pictures coming whenever I get around to importing them and uploading them. (I’ve been taking thousands…)
Airborne Uncertainties
Posted on June 4th, 2009I’m on board a flight from New York to Toronto for another round of recruiting. Earlier today, a recent project of mine was subject to a post-implementation review, a process that assesses the specification, management, execution, and delivery of the work.
Even though I was not the project manager, I was invited to participate and was heavily involved in the preparations for my team. With a (relatively) pristine record and obvious ambition, I am really hoping that this is part of a larger process towards management.
I make no secret of my desire to move more into product development, but I have recently started to wonder if that is the end goal of my career or just an intermediate stop; many of my colleagues have comfortably settled in that kind of role.
Traveling with Bloomberg has always been a joy for me, but I have heard time and time again about how tiring it can get. This would be especially true if I ever started a family. What would I do if I wanted to stop traveling? A client-facing business manager that doesn’t visit clients is kind of rubbish, right?
And then there is the matter of some of my dreams. For example, I really want to open a restaurant one day (and cook for it). That involves going to culinary school and gaining experience in restaurants. New York is amazing for both of those, but the restaurant industry is wrought with challenges and failures here.
If this is a dream that I really want to pursue, what am I waiting for? Having more experience at Bloomberg isn’t going to help me make a better risoto. But I absolutely love my job. I work with great people, work on important projects, represent a fantastic company, enjoy great perks and job security, and have an upwards trajectory for as far as I can foresee.
Do I throw it all away just to take a stab at something that, statistically speaking, probably will not last more than a year?Prudence screams no. My bank account, if it could speak, would agree. But my sense of curiosity is not satisfied with that. My stomach often grumbles in agreement with that, too.
One thing is for certain: I definitely don’t enjoy making huge decisions.
Back to It!
Posted on May 27th, 2009The past month has been pretty busy so that’ll explain the lack of posts. That and I am just a horrible person. Anyhow, there’s been a lot happening recently and I feel compelled to write something down, if only as a record of them happening.
Love: First off, two of my friends got married to each other at the beginning of May! I knew the bride from elementary school and the groom from high school and it was so awesome/strange/exciting to see worlds collide like that. When I went back for the wedding, I have half-expecting to know everyone there since I knew both sides of the party for quite some time. To my surprise, however, I was the only one from elementary school and one of only a table from high school.. bah! Apparently they were even more popular than I thought. But hats off to them and I do wish them all the best.
Income: Work has been humming along quite nicely too. I’m pretty far into a reasonably big project, although my absence in June (more on that later) is starting to cause some concern. I feel like I’m ahead of schedule and progress has been respectable and steady, but I really don’t want to screw this up! I wish I could spill the beans on it but it’ll have to wait until July.
Muscles: A few weeks ago, I sacked my personal trainer. I trained with him on-and-off for around a year and I never really did get the results that I wanted. Perhaps worse is the fact that I was only motivated to go to the gym when I had a training session. Counter-intuitively, I feel that I am doing much better now as I have only myself as motivation (and to blame) for my health; I’m at the gym more regularly and, over the weekend, I doubled my normal running distance while maintaining pace. Go me! Unfortunately, I busted my hand or wrist while rock climbing a couple of weeks ago so I’m somewhat lame at the gym. I can’t win ‘em all…
Pixels: I recently acquired a new camera! After my eight-year-old camera decided to stop charging its battery, I felt that it was time to put some money down and get a serious upgrade. Some of my first experimental shots are here and I’m definitely taking this with me in June (more to follow, I swear)!
Jet-setting: I’m going to the UK in June for two weeks! Woop! If anyone has suggestions for things to do in Scotland and Wales, do let me know 
(The London itinerary is getting pretty full.)
Discovery: At long last, I’ve found a church. My frustrations with finding one that felt right were mentioned in a post back in February, but they’ve been around since I came here full-time. Month after month, I would go to churches and felt no desire to get connected. Some were just too big, others too impersonal. After a while, I gave up and stopped looking altogether. Then, a couple of weeks ago, I was introduced to Forefront. Held in a concert venue, the first thing that struck me was a sign on the wall: No moshing or crowd surfing. Rock on. The church felt a lot like The Embassy, which was once a huge passion of mine, and I knew shortly after arriving that this was it. The second time going just put some icing on the cake. Part of me wants to jump into the deep end and get involved straight away, but I think I’ll hold back for a bit and be patient. Stay tuned!
