desperate for change

I just got a postcard in the mail from my vacationing friends. Normally I like to put up postcards at my cubicle at work, but I think I’ll just keep this one at home for a bit.

You probably don’t need me to tell you that if you don’t like your work, you are dying a little bit inside every day. In that case, going straight to hell is going to be the most direct way to your final destination. I think that it takes a lot of courage to admit that the ship is not going the right way and a course correction is in order.

(Moving away from the metaphoric hell is probably best.)

I have been going at this blog for about a month now. I am glad to have a few human readers. Some interesting observations so far:

• When I tell people I have a blog, the most skeptical of the bunch usually ask if it is a spam blog. I tell them no, but I wish I got a better comeback line. Like: “I have over 10,000 of readers and I can rally them for my personal army.”
• I look at the popularity of other blogs and get subscriber envy. Success is about putting in the time and effort, consistently.
• I started out with the intention to go daily, but after a while, I think that I would rather have quality posts, rather than quantity. I mean, who likes filler episodes anyways?

In a radical twist of fate, I have been employed again at a company that I used to work for (ironically right after my response to Working Dead). And yes it was might awkward trying to tell people where I’ve been since I left the last time – it is kind of like an exercise in what have I done in the last five years that is worth mentioning:

• I originally left to take “an offer I couldn’t refuse.” The offer did not make me rich beyond my wildest dreams unfortunately.
• I now have this extra piece of paper that says I am a Masters of sorts. I have access to alien technologies which don’t seem to help too much in my day-to-day work.
• I’ve acquired some ballroom dancing skills and picked up a random trophy in competition.
• I’ve vacationed in Europe and some US cities. Having visited Disneyland this summer of 2007, I can die happy now.
• I’ve entertained the idea of a Web 2.0 startup. Emphasis on entertained.
• I have a one month old blog.

Generally, if you don’t do long term planning with your life, you won’t have much to show for. I used to think that it is too hard. If I can pass on any word of advice to a younger version of myself: plan, dream big, and follow through; otherwise you will just end up going around in circles. As I have done to myself, in the most literal sense.

While my Odyssey seems to have been cut off at a critical point, I would say that I better be working with a regular paycheck, rather than getting really desperate for change (of the panhandling variety). Speaking of coins, I noticed that I seem to be getting more American coins in my Canadian change. In the old days, I used to do a victory dance for getting a fractional amount more value. These days, I look at the American coins and feel like I got ripped off.

Back to the change in employment status, I hope that it won’t slow me down too much in terms of delivering some quality posts.