Today is indeed glorious, because Mondays always seem to go smoothly. The morning is filled with how-are-yous, weekend story regurgitations, and the ever enthralling Rollup Call between the Charlotte and Raleigh office, and people who are located elsewhere. It actually is a nice change of pace, and good to hear what other people are doing during the upcoming week.
Workwise, I have been very busy this past week, and it has been very gratifying. I did two panicked projects the clients needed start to finish in two days. It was good to work under pressure, be completely focused, and to know that I was helping to solve a major problem for a company. By getting our work done fast, but still with the highest quality, we saved our clients a big headache and a lot of cash. One of the companies was unable to operate until we got the paperwork out - they were losing money ever hour they weren't running, so it was satisfying to help them conquer that problem. I also got my first deliverable completed and sent last Wednesday (I'll keep a copy for my mom to read through). Albeit a small endeavour, (a modeling protocol, which is very light both in terms of heft and information pooled) I was really happy to see one of my projects to fruition, and to know that it was being evaluated by both the client and state regulators. As "56ers", we are tasked with "adding value" to everything we do. I like the way the head of HR put it: We're billing machines. I'll take that with a smile on my face.
Lifewise, it's been exactly two months since my start date here at Trinity, (about 2.5 months in Charlotte) and things are going great. I visited a friend in Phoenix recently, and it was really great to travel on my own time (and money, Priceline is nice). Sam (one of my coworkers who also just started) had his birthday yesterday, so we had a nice grill outside, cake, friends, etc. I also went hiking on Thursday, and it was awesome. Great weather, good views, and in general nice to get out of Charlotte. I finally found some Ultimate Frisbee pickup games in the area, and met some people doing that too. Church is going well, and I'm getting to know some people through that, and I'm getting involved with the Youth Group and other activities, so things are looking up. I'm excited to be getting over this cold/whatever it is that I've had for the last week, and I'm looking forward to traveling again soon. Looks like I'll be going back to Vandy to visit my girlfriend over Labor Day weekend, then Trinity is sending me to a State Environmental Course in Charleston, then we have our office summer outing (rafting), then I'm recruiting at UVA, and more and more...
As always, I hope you're having a good day, and if not, well, go cry about it and eat ice cream. ~ttfn
I say this because it's my shoddy metaphor for where I think I am right now. I've been thinking a lot about where I was 9 months ago compared to where I am now (besides the physical change of moving from Nashville to Charlotte). Last November/December I had finally finished sending out scores of resumes and going to career fairs, etc. I was finishing up interviews with Trinity and several other companies and praying for some kind of response to get this whole 'having a job' thing out of my mind and enjoy my Senior year. I would say it was somewhat serendipitous that I landed a) with Trinty and b) in Charlotte. I'm with Trinity because someone made a last minute appearance to a career fair at Vandy, and I'm in Charlotte because two of my roommates from Vandy also moved here. I really wanted to work for Trinity because I wanted to use a variety of my skills. I did not want to just do engineering calculations or run simulations all day, nor did I want to write gobs of summary text. I wanted to have a more interdisciplinary job, where both my engineering and writing knowledge/interest would be needed. I work now in a place that demands the details of emissions calculations with the big picture of environmental air quality. I work now in a place where monetary, ethical and client considerations are of equal and full importance.
Coming out of school, it is so hard to imagine the kind of work you will be doing and what it will mean for you. I would have to say that so far, working is a lot like I expected it to be: it's difficult, and your days are a lot shorter. Yet there is also something somewhat unexpected. I'm already proud of what I've been able to accomplish, and I know I have a lot more coming up. People are depending on me to do my best, and there is fulfillment in that, moreso than any 'A' I may have gotten in college (plus, that whole 'having money' thing). I just got back from traveling to another office yesterday and I'm realizing that I am at the starting line and the gun is going off. I have a lot of work to do, but that's a good thing. I can't hide behind anyone and just say "I'm new here", this is for real! Many of my friends I graduated with are still in training programs, or have just recently finished training and are easing into work. Though sometimes I might wish for that kind of introduction, it is indeed gratifying to know that I am already ahead of them in terms of experience and responsibility. Soon I will be getting even more clients, more contacts, more knowledge and more success. There are very few companies out there that can offer what Trinity has. This is definitely a challenge, but it's absolutely worth it. ~ttfn