|
SubscriptionsSites I Read
|
|
|
|
|
relatively speaking
SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA | JAMSHIL APARTMENT, 15F »
I forget my cousins' names all the time. Not the typical symptom of most people with extended families, I imagine, but absolutely the case in mine. Such is the plight of having parents with five siblings each, resulting in a dizzying 30+ cousins spanning an age range of another 30+ years. Add to that a significant but narrowing language barrier and a terribly infrequent visiting schedule and one has no choice but to embarrassingly call one's cousin a beauty salon instead of her real name--not that I ever committed such a crime, of course. It's the close of Day 4 here in my whirlwind tour of the South Korean peninsula. Having started on the western coastal city of Incheon, I roadtripped down to the cities of Jeonju (the birthplace of bi bim bap--Yeebee would be proud), Sunchon, and finally Yeosu--the home of my father's family. From there, I took a train up to see more of my father's side relatives in Daejeon, and earlier this morning boarded the KTX high speed train to the capital city of Seoul, where most of my mother's side relatives reside. It's been an exhaustingly thorough few days, coupled with overcast weather and the usual overprovision of spicy dishes and summer fruits, most notably watermelon. It's also been a reminder of many things--chief among them, the kindness of my families here in Korea. I sometimes struggle to explain it, but my aunts, uncles, and cousins extend every hospitality each time I visit Korea. Not that I visit often--in fact, this is only the fourth or fifth time I've been to my ethnic homeland, and merely the second if you only count the times I could remember the subtler details of my interactions and affections while here. Still, without fail, I am treated like royalty: aunts and uncles offer to pick me up and drive me to near and far destinations, pay for every meal, snack, and bottle of calorie-free Pepsi Next that I desire, and shower me with compliments-cum-admonishments such as, "How come such a handsome, educated young man like you isn't married yet?" to which I of course frown and shrug my shoulders. Even cousins find me fascinating. The younger ones typically remain constantly by my side, smiling brightly, attempting (and often failing) English, resting their heads against my chest. The older ones introduce me to their friends, wives, husbands, and kids, as well as myriad tourist sights (the forested Odong Island near Yeosu, or a high mountaintop vista of Daejeon at night, to name a few), later escorting me to neighborhood bars for a swig of local microbrews or the ever-available soju ("rice wine")--or both for consumption simlutaenously (also, interestingly, called a "soju bomb" in Korean)! It is they to whom I feel the most gratitude, partly because of our shared peer status, partly because I feel so undeserving of all the attention and time commitment they keep giving me. I grow more convinced, though, that one of the few ways I'll be able to repay them is by returning the favor when they (or their kids!) visit the US or UK. In the same way they have made me a priority in their busy lives here, I will do the same for them when they are traveling. I have already offered my contact information to several cousins and cousins' friends for their upcoming plans to London and Europe--let's just hope they follow through so I can finally make good on my familial debts! One of the most grounding things about being here, though, is confronting again the extreme modesty of my father's hometown. Just outside of Yeosu and adjacent to the city's airport lies Sinpoong, a small agricultural community of traditional houses and windy one-way streets set against the South Sea delta. As idyllic as it may sound, relaxing oceanside retreat this is not. Consistent with countryside life, beds are merely blankets on a concrete floor, and several people sleep together in one room. At my uncle's place, only recently did they install a flushing toilet (prior to this they just used a dirt pit inside a wooden shack) and even this doesn't have a door for privacy. Washing up, brushing teeth, and other bedtime essentials require a combination of bucket, bowl, and ladle, as sinks don't exist and everything is accomplished by squatting uncomfortably on the floor next to a hose. And yet, my uncle's family remains happy, industrious, and beyond generous. Virtually all of the food we eat has been picked from a field, ocean, or rice paddy just a few minutes walk away and prepared with the freshest of seasonings and spice. And the community is one of deep interconnectedness and support, to the point where even folks I never met before remember who I am and embrace me as one of their own. I am often encouraged by the simplicity of their lives, reminded--yes--to be grateful of the opportunities my parents afforded me by being the sole family from both clans to wager a risky move to the States, but also just touched to know that generosity, contentedness, and the ability to love is hardly ever limited by income, status, or materialities. That has been and continues to be one of my most gratifying lessons from my stays here in the motherland. This trip has also reminded me of a similar summer five years ago, one of tremendous growth and distinctive memories. Again having recently graduated I set out to teach SAT classes and practice Korean along with fellow Providence mates Sujin, Dan, Manny, and Kat. That, I recall, was a summer of curious firsts, of befriending older foreigners and joining them on shopping trips to Apgujeong (i.e. Seoul's high end fashion district) to buy $5000 suits. I remember partying hard in Sinchon and living easy in Bundang with Yune, and filling my social calendar with all-night clubbing with John in Itaewon, only to emerge the next morning on a post-drunken voyage for spicy ramen noodles at Dongdaemun, the city's sprawling 24-hour shopping complex. It was a great summer, and then--as now--self-marketed as "the last summer of my entire life." So it is on this, the last summer of my life, that I have kicked off leisure travels with Korea yet again, except this time I've brought along a friend. Chris, who ranks as one of those rare straight White friends, on a whim took me up on my offer to join me on this abridged version of the Summer of Seoul. We are decidedly fairly compatible when it comes to travel, apart from the jabs he makes about our great divide as Masters of different things, concocting comments like, "I'm just trying to be selfish; you're an MBA, you should know what I'm talking about." With a humor that meanders between the clever and the corny, Chris has also demonstrated an unforgiving and eerily superhuman facility of words when it comes to Scrabble and various anagram word games, inspiring me to brush up on my Literati ranking. (Did you know that "claimed" as two anagrams? Go ahead and try to find out what they are -- it's not easy!) All of my relatives have also been thoroughly impressed with his handle of Korean language and customs, including but not limited to pouring soju for elders using two hands and understanding the difference between the two ways of saying goodbye (one is for when the other is leaving you, and another is for when you are leaving them). It's been an entertaining trip. Tomorrow, it's unfortunately our last full day in Seoul, with few confirmed plans save to see Sujin and Min. On Wednesday, we make our way to the DMZ to corroborate ourselves North Korea's plans for nuclear domination, and on Thursday morning we return to San Francisco via an uncomfortably long layover in Narita. (By the way, has anyone ever attempted a quick Tokyo jaunt from the airport? How long does it take in total?) Meanwhile, I continue to reflect on and process not only what's happened to me in the past few weeks (graduation! goodbyes! relationship!) but also in the past two years. I think about the amazing folks I've been so blessed to have met, traveled with, and befriended, and I strive to make progress on my seemingly unending list of thank you notes to write and send. I am, refreshingly, quite optimistic for the experiences to come, from a summer of Turkish delights and Eurasian travels, to the much anticipated migration to London. I also want to return to a few activities I was much better about pre-GSB, including writing more, designing things, and finding that (next) perfect song. It's good! This is it! Endings do me over, but usually in a really good way. For now, I hope that everyone is doing well and enjoying the summer days. I am looking forward to staying in touch, visiting folks, and realizing what an indelible mark my time in business school has made on me. Here's to the summer, and to everything that shall follow. | | |
| an egyptian thanksgiving
CAIRO, EGYPT | CAIRO INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT, TERMINAL 1 »
instead of turkey and all the trimmings, a flatbread sandwich and fries from mcdonald's were my thanksgiving dinner. small price to pay to cross off yet another of my must-visit-before-i-die places in the world -- egypt! when asked where i'd be spending the week long (that's right, no classes all week!) break, my answer was naturally met with interest and surprise. egypt! but that's so far away! i then explain that i wanted to go to peru, but with flights topping $1300+, i figured hey, if i'm going to spend that much on flights i might as well go somewhere really really far away and exotic. with a quick search on kayak, i found roundtrip flights to cairo for under $1000, with a 10-hour daytime layover in amsterdam to boot. and, with multiple starwood properties in cairo, sharm el sheikh, and luxor and an expiring platinum status come 2009, it all started to fall into place. egypt! here we go! and what a trip it's been. i certainly won't miss the hassles, the incessant requests for baksheesh (tips), the ubiquitous stench of camel dung, and the prickly bites of mosquitoes and flies. but seriously, i mean, egypt! though only six full days in the north african country (preceded by one in the dutch capital), we packed our itinerary with some of egypt's best excursions and experiences. a brief review: day 0 // thursday 20 nov // sfo to ams
315 flight on klm delayed to 415, but at least the md-11 has on-demand video on individual screens. spent a good few on the laptop ironing out the welcome packet for SAIL.
day 1 // friday 21 nov // amsterdam
arrive amsterdam and train to the capital to walk the red light district, chinatown, and along binnen amstel. dinner on spuistraat at an indonesian place before training back for our evening flight to cairo. day 2 // saturday 22 nov // cairo i
arrive cairo early in the morning, get a few hours of sleep, and awake to start a tour of the giza pyramids, memphis, and saqqara. in the evening, watch the cheesy sound and light show, followed by dinner at felfela just outside of our hotel -- cheap, good eats. day 3 // sunday 23 nov // cairo ii
time to hit the city. cross the nile (since giza is actually on the west bank) to visit islamic cairo including the al-azhar mosque and the souk khan el-khalili, then walk to the famous egyptian museum to visit the somewhat creepy royal mummy room and marvel at king tut's treasures. rush back to the hotel and head straight for the airport for our 730 flight to sharm el sheikh. arrive sharm, check-in, and then quickly board a bus for our overnight hike up mount sinai -- the place where moses received the ten commandments. by midnight, we were still on our way to the drop off point. day 4 // monday 24 nov // sinai i
begin hike up mount sinai at around 2 in the morning. steep but not impossible climb for 2.5 hours until summit, where we wait for an hour in the cold before the sun rises. take an arduous journey down an alternate path -- the 3500 "steps of repentance" -- and tour st katharine's monastery, home to the burning bush (of Old Testament fame). finally head back to sharm and arrive by 2 in the afternoon, check out the spa, walk along the beach, and dine on mezze at the hotel's lebanese restaurant. an early night in. day 5 // tuesday 25 nov // sinai peninsula ii
the girls leave the night before, so paul and i spend the day snorkeling in the clear waters off ras mohammad national park. turns out to be one our most welcome days -- sun, sea, food, fish, and sky. in the evening, take the free shuttle to the vegas-y na'ama bay for steak and seafood at dananeer restaurant. day 6 // wednesday 26 nov // luxor i
fly to luxor in the morning, meet the girls, and take a private taxi to the west bank for the valleys of the kings and nobles, medinet habu, and deir el-bahri. in the evening -- our last one with the girls -- shared our "top 3, bottom 3" over indian at bombay restaurant. bid adieu to the girls and called it a night while watching the break up. also watch in horror as the mumbai bombings unfold...
day 7 // thursday 27 nov // luxor ii
today, and thanksgiving! sleep in (much deserved!) and slowly head to the karnak temple complex, the largest religious site in the world. head back to the hotel, check out, and then go to luxor temple at night (beautiful, and recommended at that time), followed by shopping in the markets and negotiating a 490 egyptian pound (~$89) horus figurine down to 50 egyptian pounds (~$9). head to luxor airport to begin our 24+ hour journey home, with connections in cairo (now) and amsterdam (about six hours from now) before arriving at last in san francisco at 1pm tomorrow and picking up ruby from claire's place and preparing for an incredible (and incredibly busy) week with SAIL... so, it's been quite the egyptian thanksgiving, and i am very thankful for the opportunity to explore another foreign land, so full of history and intrigue. i'd love to come back to the sinai peninsula again and this time dive the red sea as opposed to just snorkeling it. perhaps next year, once i'm closer... to close, a few shots from amsterdam and mount sinai, and a silly jumping shot in front of the step pyramid--the first pyramid in the world--at saqqara. happy thanksgiving, everyone! and to all my SAIL buddies, see you all very soon!!! 
| | |
| death, life, defeat, hope
NEW YORK, NEW YORK | PARK AVE, 17F »
it's been a while since i last wrote. since then, so much travel, so many emotions.
i arrived into a rain-trodden new york several hours ago, coaching to grand central station before settling into a tastefully decorated midtown apartment with a friend i first roomed with at the labadi beach hotel in accra, ghana. we spent the evening searching for my favorite k-town restaurant on 35th street, a place that happens to serve chinese food and--to my dismay--had closed 30 minutes prior to our finally discovering it. instead we caught up over more traditional fare at the neighboring 24-hour han bat, updating each other on work, school, love, and the rest. these next few days will find me reuniting with old friends and colleagues, recounting memories of a dear and beloved friend, and driving around the state in search of the perfect fall foliage--that is, if the storms let up. it's been an exhausting start to my second year in business school. returning from my packed summer schedule of minneapolis-dubai-bangalore, i rushed into my fourth (and not-so-ambitious) academic quarter without a place of my own. i found myself growing increasingly busy with extracurriculars, catchings-up in both palo alto and san francisco, and critical life questions such as: where will i be next year, and will the important people in my life approve? a nice, healthier-than-last-year buzz began to develop by week three or so, and i noticed the reassuring return of choices well-made, regrets non grata. the year was forming a nice and welcome balance: my classes were intriguing and enriching, relationships narrowing and deepening, and i was looking forward to the things yet to come--treks to northern africa (thanksgiving) and south america (winter break), commitments to a warm-n-friendly south tahoe share (next quarter) and my inaugural entrée to the 2009 sundance film festival (mlk weekend), and slowly-but-surely solidifying plans to go abroad for a few years post-mba. all seemed fine and well and upward. then, tragedy struck.
on friday, october tenth, three classmates--including one fabulous and dear friend--never showed up to a weekend retreat in big sur. those of us at the oceanside cabin became increasingly concerned as we attempted calls and waited without word from the car of three, a jeep that left the same time i did from schwab earlier that evening. spurred to action, we decided to conduct numerous searches along the curviest stretches of highway 1, stopping every hundred feet or so with flash- and floodlights in hand, screaming their names into the cold, unforgiving midnight air. with just a few hours until sunrise, we finally retired for the night and considered it best to start again with the light aiding our efforts.
and it was in that next morning--after temperamental visits to the county sherriff's office and panicked chases after search and rescue trucks--that we finally found out what happened. one sharp turn, without a guard rail, both looked and felt suspicious, and it was upon further scrutiny that we discovered the most terrifying sight imaginable: artifact after artifact, the physical storyline of a jeep driven off-road, tumbling down a moderate gradient, and disappearing into the distance to a point some seven hundred feet down. we had found them--them!--and we bore the great infuration and injustice of having their lives, so full of significance and potential, instantly and unexplainably taken from us. i lost about two weeks to the tragedy. though warmed by people's reachings out, the community becoming stronger and its response proving healing and inspiring, i could not return to work-life-play in the same way so immediately. after attending services in new york a week later, i returned to school in a slow and uneasy transition. suddenly, once fulfilling conversations felt trivial. passing interactions induced impatience. forgivable imperfections invited criticism. behaviors felt uncharacteristic, recovery from grief distant and amorphous. but time allowed for healing, and eventually my shock/disbelief-turned-anger/disengagement, turned at last to resolution. i feel my relationships gaining strength and importance. i see the value in appreciation, adventure, and solidarity. i live no longer second guessing, and with less fear. and i sense a greater purpose, a grander theme. at this point i feel better equipped to accept the tragedy and articulate its implications not only for me but also for our communities. but even as all this happened, life went on-- we elected the first african-american president, constitutionalized discrimination, and saw our portfolios tumble twenty, thirty, forty percent. my classes went on, and homework went on, and clubs went on.
and so i began to chip away at my arduously long task list: deal with health insurance payments, resume delivery of the financial times, run to target for laundry detergent and paper towels (and begrudginly pay the 10-20% industrywide price increases using my freshly disbursed loans)... print out the schedule for the U line, sign up for winter electives, begin training for patagonia... it went on, and on, tiring me. this week, however, was the first week i felt genuinely close to normalcy--or more accurately--on-top-of-itiveness. spending multiple days cooped up in a jackson library study room, clomping away on long, six-hour transcontinental flights, and feeding off the love and support of my best friend slash co-habiteur have all served me well, and in the past few days i have noticed consistently legitimate bouts of laughter, humor, and lightheartedness. despite a few defeats and missteps, a triumphant electoral victory has surfaced some new momentum to tackle even the more daunting of challenges. i am feeling good--not perfect--but actually pretty good. and so it is on that note that i close, along with a video tribute for the three friends we'll remember forever. i ask that you please continue to keep the families in your thoughts and prayers. the accident was almost one month ago, but their lives will be missed forever, and their absence will feel particularly acute as the holidays arrive. chris, i hope you know we are doing everything we can to remember and pay tribute to your life, hopes, and dreams. we miss you and love you so much. hope everyone is well. if anyone's up for hanging out in new york, do let me know! i'm here through sunday morning with a fairly open schedule. | | |
| from the midwest, to the middle east DUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES | NURAN GREENS RESIDENCES, GF »
a grueling two flights, thirty-eight hours, three holding patterns, weather delays, missed connection, unplanned rego park reunion with the ex, non-exit row seating, cute paleontologist, smart people/ there will be blood/ cloverfield/ the savages, and lost (and almost found) luggage later, and i'm finally in dubai. finally! this was definitely my most stressful transit ever. let's just hope this start to the dubai detour is not a premonition for things to come, though it will be quite difficult to top the unforgettable summer in the midwest. and unforgettable it was.
goodbye, minneapolis my last few days in minneapolis were spent celebrating with great, newfound friends. there was rose and ruby, my two incredibly patient roommates; anne, chris, bird, and liz--the OG midwesterners; su and ro, the kellogg girls; will, jess, and caroline, my healthy doses of skepticism and apathy; babs, personal shopper, "clerk," role model, and cube mate extraordinaire; melissa and kirby, my dept 212 indulgences; and many, many others.
if anything, this was a summer of relationships, of shared experiences, and of photographs and music exchanges and the broadening of boundaries. i felt it took to week five or six to really settle down and claim minneapolis as my own, and it was only in the past two weeks that i was beginning to feel more-than-superficially connected with folks. of course, just in time for my departure. thankfully, i leave wanting. there are few places in the world that leave me wanting, a phenomena i first felt back in 2003 when i finished out my year abroad in london. it is better to leave when you're at a high, so that all you'll remember are the good times, and all you'll want is to come back. so it is. i'll be back to minneapolis sometime this winter (i know, i know), and am already looking forward to reconnecting with the midwest's best. here are a few photos from the final week, a few courtesy of the cookster: 
ANNE'S SAVORY CONES ON THE PATIO AT W A FROST IN ST PAUL
THE JACKET COVER OF "SUNDAY/FUNDAY: TOP HITS" EN ROUTE TO FIGLIO IN UPTOWN
THE LAST SUPPER, OR, THE FAREWELL PARTY I THREW FOR MYSELF AT PIZZA LUCE DOWNTOWN
hello dubai after minneapolis, it was 48 hours at home before off-ing once again to dubai via new york. and despite tribulations of the trying sort, i'm safely settled in my new digs off sheikh zayed road. it's a comfortable, well-equipped studio on the ground floor complete with broadband internet, satellite TV, full kitchen, and daily housekeeping service. i know some of you will hate me for being uber-capitalist and saying this, but you really can't knock big corporate. i really appreciated seeing the driver waiting for me with my name on a placard--prefaced by the clearly-you-must-be-important salutation "MR."--once i emerged from the DXB airport drained, sticky, delayed, and with just one of my two luggage bags. (that's right, i hit the double whammy: missed flight and lost luggage!) hailing from the philippines, the driver gave me an energetic tour of the city's numerous skyscrapers (and almost-skyscrapers, as dubai on any block is half-under construction), and drove past the UAE's numerous claims to world superlatives. there's the burj al arab, the tallest and only seven star hotel in the world-- and the burj dubai, the world's tallest tower at [a vertigo-inducing] 160-some floors-- and the mall of arabia, which with 10M square feet will be the largest shopping complex in the world-- and there is ski dubai, the world's largest indoor ski resort... the little i saw of dubai from arrivals to apartment was deeply intriguing. stretches felt a bit like korea, with uncoordinated architectural adjacencies, flanked by equally non-intuitive retail shops, except everywhere beyond the commerce was sea or sand--literally. this really is the desert. upon exiting my apartment after a mid-afternoon power nap, i entered the hottest summer night of my life. dark and breezy though it was, the temperature according to weather.com was still a blazing 101 degrees--and this was at 830pm. i meandered my way to the greens centre, a neighborhood retail center with such familiar names as caribou coffee (ode to minneapolis!), wagamama (my absolute favorite brit-jap noodle house--just ask yune, david, or ed), and KFC (even the arabs like the colonel). after a tasty solo dinner of chicken katsu curry and green tea ice cream, i took a stroll through choithram supermarket to pick up two bottles of water ($0.82), a six-pack of coke light ($1.57), honey-scented liquid hand soap ($2.04), and other household essentials, even doing a little comp shopping on the side (gregg steinhaffel would be proud). afterwards, i headed home to make an almost-date with fellow gsb classmate ramy. our post-work drink never materialized, but i'll probably see him tomorrow at one of our mutual friend's birthdays. by the way, it's amazing how quickly people become nodes for information. while noshing away at wagamama, toying with my new barclays-provided sim card, i asked my chinese-south-african waitress a flurry of mundane questions like "if someone calls my mobile, is it free?" and "if i send a text, is it cheaper than calling?" turns out she studied hospitality and made the move to dubai to be around the action for a bit before returning to graduate work. we hit it off and i told her i'd likely be visiting again, given my rather unsightly obsession with wagamama. i didn't get her name, though, which i regretted. that would have given the exchange a nice closure. now i'm at "home," it's nearing 3 ante, and i'm not sleepy at all--which is bad, considering i need to be in the office tomorrow morning at 830, fully rested and ready to rock out in my $1800 suit. turns out also that my luggage finally arrived DXB and missed the final delivery of the day, so i've requested the emergency-use-only delivery time of 4 ante, with an expected arrival time of 5 ante here in the greens (the name of this borough). i explained to the emirates baggage services rep that i'd likely still be up, given the jetlag, and she chuckled for a slightly awkward fifteen seconds or so. whatever. at least the bag is coming, and it has such essentials as dress shoes, camera chargers, and target brand mouthwash--the citrus one. so, so far it's been a pretty fun experience. i realize i really enjoy ex-patriating (now one of my facebook activities, for those in the know), whether it's in london, seoul, or shanghai. i like the reminder of living in a truly global society. i like meeting people from all over the place, and connecting nonetheless. and i might even like the subtle anonymity, the challenge to make new friends, and the ability to test out different parts of my identity--some that need growing, and others that do not. it's really a life experience, above all else. to close, a few snapshots from my arrival into dubai. hope you're all doing well, wherever you are, and do feel welcome to come visit anytime! i'll be here through sept 16 and am happy to host visitors and other vagabonds. 
THE EX AND I AND THE UNPLANNED OVERNIGHTER AT SHALIMAR DINER IN QUEENS, NY
THE SUNRISE FROM SEAT 43A SOMEWHERE OVER EASTERN EUROPE
WONDER WHY WE TOOK THE FLIGHT PATH WE DID OVER IRAN
A SILHOUETTED VIEW OF OLD DUBAI IN THE DISTANCE UPON LANDING AT DXB AIRPORT
THE YET-TO-BE-COMPLETED BURJ DUBAI FROM SHEIKH ZAYED ROAD
MY MODEST NEW ABODE AT THE NURAN GREENS RESIDENCES
ALL THE ESSENTIALS: WAGAMAMA, GUIDEBOOK, SIM CARD, AND PER DIEM AT WAGAMAMA
A LITTLE SLICE OF MINNESOTA CARIBOU COFFEE NEAR THE GREENS CENTRE
| | |
| a midsummer night's stream MINNEAPOLIS, MN | SYMPHONY PLACE, 13F »
as quickly as they come, they go. (warning: posterity post.) paul was here this past weekend. he arrived thursday night and departed earlier this evening. taking the hiawatha line is pretty nice, as is pricelining a hyundai sonata from hertz for $10/day. jacuzzis, $25 gift cards to palomino, and tours. the walker art center, cafe lurcat, and red bull's illume on the stone arch bridge. the diving bell and the butterly, the dark knight. brunch on a cloudy saturday morning at lake calhoun, then a wild ride to stillwater, just along the st croix river (and just across from wiscon-ser-in). bumping into chris. antique stores and downpours. driving at 20 mph and the st paul supertarget. a $150 dinner at jean georges' chambers kitchen. will, paige, and allison. even the laundry on a late saturday night. canceling hell's kitchen. the drive to champlin and michael's fantastic grilling. final packing and farewells to ruby. the mall of america, nickelodeon universe, and the search for a mcdonald's (arby's instead). and the lonely light rail home. ruby's curled up into a ball right next to me, her stomach gently expanding and contracting with each slumberous breath. earlier, i realized i had lost count of how many weeks it's been here. perhaps i've acclimated. perhaps things are starting to feel like home. but let me do the counting--mm--when i went to SF that was after week three, and paul would come two weeks later, aha! week six. week six! and not much more to look forward to, other than--in the short term, at least--project, project, project. my presentation date is a mere 2.5 weeks away, meaning the next ten days are going to be a sprint to the finish. several of us have resigned ourselves to the data-delay-driven nights we'll spend crunching and charting target's next big thing in X. these are no petty questions, for sure. three weekends left. a local, a lake, and--duluth? mount rushmore was punted around and finally abandoned. midweek activities are still in play but quickly being panned. it will all depend on how good everyone feels about their projects. the end of a good weekend, the start of a new day.
| | |
|
