New Year’s Resolution

While having our mini New Year celebration with the nine of us (YH had to spend his New Year alone in Austin) in our room at Algonquin Motel, we were asked what our resolutions for the year were. I think I said something to the effect that I wanna chao geng no more and wanna step up and take on more responsibilities (at least at work).

Indeed, I have been really busy ever since we got back....

I have to manage two projects with tight deadlines that are close to each other. And I am going to have more projects coming up in the pipeline. I have had more client interaction in the past two weeks than I ever had over the past two years. I had to handle a difficult client whuch I think I didn’t manage very well. I had to manage a hard-to-get-hold-of senior manager who threw me into the ocean to fight on my own. Good thing I didn’t drown. I have to manage an Ang Mo staff who had a sudden outburst one day which I thought I handled the situation fine but not very well.

Even at the personal level, I am finally taking steps to improve. I finally took care of my own travel admin which I usually rely on Tim to do. I flew to Dallas with only a day's notice and had to make my own travel arrangement. I had to reserve the hotel, car and air tickets and search online for maps and print them. I know it doesn’t sound difficult but it can be really cumbersome.

I finally drove a car that was not my own after almost two years. It was a hollowing experience when I first started driving that car as it was old with neither auto doors nor windows. It did not even have a central locking system. I had to go to each door to manually lock them. Also, my lady bug has a very good brake but poor acceleration. The rental car is the exact opposite. So it takes some getting used to trying to remember to step on the gas pedal less and harder on the brake.

For people in the US, they will know that I usually let Tim do the driving while I sleep in the car when we go on road trips. For the Dallas trip, I had to drive and look at the map at the same time to figure out how to go from the airport to the client’s place and to our office in Dallas and back. I am not the best driver in town. So, of course, I missed a few turns here and there.

I found the things that happened over just two weeks into 2008 rather enriching. I kind of enjoy being busy and being tasked with more responsibilities. I felt I have been challenged in many aspects (from managing client and staff relationships to handling technical issues) and am happy that I rose up to the challenge most of the time although there is definitely room for improvement. Maybe this is because of the thought that I should be going home soon so I have to try to live each day to the fullest and gain as much out of my stint here as possible.

Anyway, I am leaving for Boston/New Hampshire this Friday for a weekend snowboarding trip with Tim! Yes, we are hooked to snowboarding after Canada! Will meet up with Tim’s ex-colleague, Wen Hung, for the first time in the US. Or should I say the second time since we bumped into her at the LA airport when she first moved from Spore to the US. What a coincidence!

In any case, never forget to take some time off to have some fun even if you are really busy. Carpe Diem!