2013 – My Yearly Blog Post

i realized it’s been over a year since i’ve written a blog post so i thought i’d put out an update on my life. it’s interesting going back and reading some of your old written works because it’s always like: “did i write this?”

so where am i in life right now? i’m working at Microsoft as a support engineer for Exchange. it’s a great opportunity and job. there is so much luck behind how i ended up here that the story seems a bit far fetched in retrospect. it was really tough at first – having to move away from a girlfriend and family – but i’ve put down some roots in Charlotte and it’s been great.

there’s one more year of waiting for Kathy, my girlfriend of over 2 years, because she’s about to be a senior in college. we’ve been through quite a lot and while perhaps i don’t enjoy admitting it (due to some “flaw” in my personality where displaying PDA makes you seem weak), i love her dearly for all that she’s done for me and continues to do.

at work, they’ve recently switched my specialization. for the techies out there, i used to support on-premises Exchange installations but now i support cloud Exchange (aka Exchange Online aka Office 365). there was the usual month of discomfort at having to try really hard to catch up to where the other support engineers were at. it’s especially difficult when you consider that you didn’t start out as an industry hire yet you’re supposed to match them. as the proverb goes though: “no pain, no gain.” i feel confident that in the next year, i’m going to have a lot of opportunities open up for me simply due to the amount of work experience and Exchange knowledge i’ve gained. it’s going to be an exciting time…

which is not to say that every day isn’t exciting. they say that one of the best ways to become happy is to be appreciative. waking up everyday with a job, family, and health is more than enough for me. i know people who aspire to get on the covers of magazines or change the world, and sometimes i feel selfish that my aspirations aren’t as high – that i should be contributing to society more. i want to say that as long as i’m not being a detriment to society, then that’s good enough? :)

so back to the topic at hand… a snapshot of my current life. i guess we can talk about Charlotte a little bit. i’ve grown to love this city. i’m really glad my friend Amy gave me that final persuasive nudge and told me to accept the job offer from Microsoft. changing cities really gives you perspective. others find it when they study abroad or work abroad. it’s amazing that just moving within a country will be enough. as cliche as it sounds, there’s so many new people to meet, places to see, things to do. but most of all, the people. if i had to compare Boston to Charlotte, the most prominent difference is that there’s a community down here. maybe it’s because there’s less people and you feel more responsible to them and the land we live on. maybe it’s because everyone seems genuinely more hospitable and friendly. right now, i’m lucky to be able to afford monthly trips to Boston to visit my girlfriend, friends, and family back in Boston. constantly seeing those 2 worlds and how they sometimes interact is great… most of the time.

what’s the future hold? well, i guess i could list out some of my goals and see if i end up hitting them.

• i buy a house since the market is allegedly real cheap
• Kathy moves in with me
• my club ultimate team, Queen City Thunder, makes top 8 at regionals
• i get a six-pack
• i don’t get a blister ever again from the scorching weather of the South
• i get promoted at work
• i stumble upon a fortune and buy a Hello Kitty lambo before Zhen can gift me one
• i continue to keep my health and happiness

see you next year.