Warning: It’s long, but worth it (in my opinion).

I really don’t know that this week could have gotten much better. Well, I guess if you take out going to class and the two tests I probably bombed…

Let’s start from the beginning. There was the concert which I mentioned before and although it was on Valentine’s Day and I didn’t get to see Amber, I think I made up for it. A half dozen roses delivered to her school, and a little something later in the week. But I’m getting ahead of myself.

A few weeks ago, I got a call from my parents. I should have realized something was up because they were both on the phone, and frankly, that never happens. Anyway, they ask me what I want for graduation and when I tell them I want a plane ticket to go with Amber to visit her brother in Charleston, they promptly respond, “I thought you wanted to go to Hawaii!” Well, duh. Apparently, some time over winter break I told them that’s what I wanted to do for graduation. I honestly don’t remember this at all. My mom thinks I must have assumed it was never a possibility and promptly forgot about it. Well, my parents got to thinking and talking and I guess they decided we might just be able to go.

So now there’s lots of things to think about. Can I really bail on Amber and go to Hawaii instead? I would hate to do that to her, I would hate to go somewhere like Hawaii without her. It would just be so much better with her beside me (especially knowing what’s coming up in a few more paragraphs). Can we really afford it? I told them I would think about whether or not this was the time it made the most sense. It could be my last chance for a family vacation like this.

The first thing I did was ask Amber if she thought she could go with us (my parents had left an open invitation). I got a quick no. Well this just sucks. I have this chance to go, but I don’t really want to go without her and she’s saying there’s no way she can do it. But wait…maybe she’s kinda doing the same thing I (and my parents) did and just assuming there’s no way it would be feasible. Let’s look into this a little farther…

To speed up this part of the story, after some thought and some research on how much things might cost, it started to look a little more feasible to everyone. So now I’m thinking I might be going to Hawaii with my family and Amber. This is freakin’ sweet!

Last Friday, I went home to talk to my parents about the trip (and for something else, but I’m not there yet). We had a helluva time deciding where we wanted to stay (which island), but we finally settled on Oahu because it had something that all of us wanted to see. So we started focusing our efforts on finding the best place to stay. It seemed like pretty much every other day we were finding a better deal and bringing the trip closer each time.

Finally my mom stumbled onto a site that lists vacation homes and condos listed for rent by individuals owners. Holy crap! There are some really awesome deals to be found this way. A condo like we were wanting in the Waikiki area (visitor center on Oahu) would cost us around $300/night and we were able to find a pretty nice condo for $400/week. It’s a short drive from some of the things we want to do, but needless to say, that’s a lot of money saved that we can spend on activities while we’re there and still keep the price down for all of us. So that’s Part I of the good week. We’ve finally figured out where we’re staying and know for certain that we can pull of this trip. We’re leaving a day or two after graduation.

Part II: Wednesday, February 16, 2pm. I’m just about to switch desks from Van Zile to Putnam when my cell phone rings. It’s a number I don’t recognize, but I pick it up. “Hi, Carson, this is Sara Rewald with Epic Systems. Is this a good time?” Holy crap! I ask if I can call her back and she says sure, but she might be in a meeting. Dammit! So I run over to Putnam and call back ASAP. She’s still there. She proceeds to tell me that she showed my file to the head of Technical Services and he wants me on his team. Then she told me the offer. Let’s just say it’s better than I could have hoped for. I haven’t accepted yet, but it’s one of the first things I plan to do on Monday. It’s too good to wait around for a better offer that probably won’t come anyway. Ironically, I got an email from Cerner on Friday about a phone interview. Considering they are one of Epic’s main competitors I thought that was pretty funny, especially since I didn’t even get a second interview with them last semester.

Part III: The most important part of this week. The part that affects the rest of my life. The other reason I went home last Friday (and the original reason) was to pick up something very important. In the last few months, Amber and I have talked a lot about our future and have known we wanted to married for quite a while. Some may think it’s pretty quick, but we were both sure, so why deny it? Anyway, I had a few tricks up my sleeve. She knew that a ring was still a ways away, but she really didn’t know how long it would take. To be honest, I wasn’t sure how long it would take either until right after I got back from Las Vegas in January. Let’s just say that for the last month or so, I let Amber think that I had no money. I didn’t want her to be expecting anything (too much that is). Last week, I was able to wipe out the last payment on an engagement ring.

Now how to propose? A big question. I heard lots of advice, and sort of formulated a plan. Of course there was no chance it would ever come out the way I planned. Ask me if you wanna know how it was supposed to go…Anyway, I bought tickets to Fiddler on the Roof and told Amber she needed to keep the evening free. I managed to get her dressed up and even take some pictures without tipping her off (too much). She picked the restaurant (Scholtzsky’s), and after that we walked from Putnam to McCain on campus. She couldn’t figure out why I was making her walk uphill and she was really confused when I made her stop next to the bell in front of Bluemont (it was cold outside, afterall). But when I got down on one knee, I think she forgave me for the extra minute or two of cold.

We finished the evening with the play, where Amber was unusually clingy (in a good way). It was a good show. The guy who played Tevye (the male lead) has done the show ever 2,400 times with over 1,100 of them in that role. Impressive. After the play we stopped by the ARH Winter Ball to see a few people. Finally, we headed home. I was exhausted.

Yesterday was a totally lazy day which I needed. Watched about 10 episodes of Everwood from the first season. The show was better then.

By the way…she said yes. : )

Edit: I know she thinks she’s more excited about Part III than I am, but she’s wrong. I’m just not all giddy like she is. : )

Twice in the last two weeks I’ve gotten something in the mail thanking me for the work I’ve done or the difference I’ve made in my time in the halls at K-State. It feels pretty good to get stuff like that, but at the same time I wonder why it took so long for people to notice…it’s not like I’ve drastically changed who I am or what I’ve been doing for the past 3 years. I know I can be a “controversial” leader at times (whatever that means). But I’d like to think I’ve been able to make a lot of differences here.

I guess I should be happy someone (two someones) noticed at all.

Ok, lots to cover. I’m writing this while sitting in the airport in Milwaukee in the middle of a two hour layover. I’ll break this into pieces.

The trip. Getting to Madison was split into three legs: Manhattan to KC, KC to Milwaukee, and Milwaukee to Madison. Who knew that Manhattan had three flights in and out everyday? My first experience on a small plane really wasn’t a big deal. Both legs on small jets were a pretty smooth ride, although I have to say I liked the Fairchild 328Jet better than the Beechcraft 1900. On the way back from Madison to Milwaukee, our pilot overshot the airport and we had to circle around again to have a “safer landing.” I thought that was pretty funny. Also humorous were the two short legs (about 25 minutes each) on which the flight attendant would announce that we had reached our “cruising altitude” of 10,000 feet, only to turn around two minutes later and say we had begun our descent. I was hoping to just listen to my iPod for the short legs, but for half a song it hardly seemed worth it.

Madison. I didn’t really get to see much of the city, although when they called for my cab to take me back to the airport this afternoon, I got the feeling that they asked the cab driver to take me through the city (little did they know I would be asleep half the time). I heard some interesting things about the city and found out that it was voted the best place to live in 1996 and it is consistently in the top 10. There’s apparently a lot to do there, and Chicago is only 2 1/2 hours away. The weather should be pretty mild, without too many hot/humid days in the summer. I was told there are lots of sporting activities and plenty of artsy type stuff to do there as well.

Epic. The whole reason for my trip. I really didn’t know what to expect out of this. I took their skills assessment test when I got back to Manhattan after winter break, but other than one phone call since then, I hadn’t spoken to anyone since my phone interview back in November. Everything else had been through email.

The first thing I noticed when I got ready to leave the hotel this morning is that there was a girl around my age also waiting on a cab to take her to Epic Systems. Crap…my competition! But wait…it turned out she was applying for the other position that had a bit more travel than I would want. So we got into the same cab and got to Epic about 20-25 minutes early. Man, was it boring sitting there listening to three receptionists answer the phone “Good morning, Epic” over and over again.

Anyway, eventually someone came out and gave us a little tour of the main building (they have nine). We quickly realized that Epic is not your typical company. I already knew that the dress code is pretty much whatever you feel comfortable in. Apparently their policy manual says something like “the only requirement is that you must wear clothes when customers are present.” Since customers are there everyday, there aren’t many nudists (thank God). They also really like art. There are some of the most random pieces scattered around the hallways, and they like to decorate rooms in themes. We walked into “The Lodge” conference room at one point, and our guide mentioned a space theme and a lake theme as well. They also like fireplaces (a lot).

Here’s a little story to give you an idea of Epic’s growth. At the time the company bought the building we toured today, they had about 65 employees. The building has about 120 offices, so they figured they’d have plenty of room to expand. Little did they know that by the time they were actually able to move in, they had 110 employees and already needed to expand and quickly built a sizable addition that more than doubled the size of the building. As I said earlier, they now lease eight other buildings in Madison and have over 1600 employees (all in about 10 years). They might hire as many as 100 people in a single month. This month it was 60. Because the company is growing so fast, they bought about 300 acres of farmland just outside of Madison and started building their own campus with plenty of space to expand. It’s got a creek running through the center and they are even building a tree house with walls that will block out the distractions of cell phones and wireless computers. I shit you not.

After the tour, we all split into our respective agendas for the rest of the day. First off, I got a chance to talk to someone from Technical Services (the part of the company I would be working for). I learned some interesting things, but they aren’t interesting enough to repeat here. Next, I went into a presentation that gave an overview on Epic’s product suite (this went a little more in depth than I would have cared to get at this point). Then I answered some hypothetical questions and moved on to lunch. That’s always a good thing.

After lunch, I came back for some more questions from Human Resources, and then finally I went on to some programming exercises. I will never again underestimate the power of a computer. Sitting there trying to write code without being able to conveniently go back and insert statements you may have missed is a royal pain in the ass. There were five questions to answer and I think I did alright. I’m sure I overlooked some trivial things because I wasn’t able to actually debug my code or use specific functions. And it’s always possible I misinterpreted the questions in the first place…< One thing I did learn is that just by being invited to Madison, I am well on my way to being hired. At this point, I'm really impressed with what I've seen from the company, and I'm pretty sure I would accept an offer if one was given to me. I think Technical Services would be a really good fit for me, which is ironic since six months ago I knew absolutely nothing of Epic Systems and was thinking about applying for jobs that are nothing like this one. I'm supposed to hear something in the next two weeks, possibly as early as Monday. It's kind of a scary thought. Thanks to those who read through this whole post. My true fans! ; )

If you read this
You must post a memory of me. (Leave a comment)
It can be anything you want,
it can be good or bad.
Just so long as it happened.
Then post this in your journal,
and see what people remember about you…
Thanks for playin’ along.

(I got this from Dylan)

Currently Playing: Mario – Let me Love You

I’m at work in Van Zile and I had good intentions to get a lot of things done before I get off at four. I think that’s all shot, though, because as soon as I get off I’m leaving for Madison, WI. I’ve got a job interview with Epic Systems tomorrow.

I’ve learned a little about the company and the type of culture they have, and so far I like what I’ve heard. I’ve known about this trip for around two weeks but it hasn’t really sunk in until today that it’s here and tomorrow I’ll be meeting with people I could possibly be working with in a few months (fingers crossed).

Let’s review the positives: they are paying for me to fly out of Manhattan, putting me in the Hilton Madison Monona Terrace, and paying for three of my meals. I’ve heard almost entirely positive things about the company. They’ve got a pretty nice benefits package. It all sounds pretty good, but I’m still pretty nervous. This will be the farthest I’ve gotten in any interview process.

Wish me luck…

Edit: While pretending to work on homework, I came across this article about how American Idol is a joke. I’ve never really liked the show…this helps explain a little part of why.

Currently Playing: Keane – Somewhere Only We Know

I walked across an empty land
I knew the pathway like the back of my hand
I felt the earth beneath my feet
Sat by the river and it made me complete
Oh simple thing where have you gone
I’m getting old and I need something to rely on
So tell me when you’re gonna let me in
I’m getting tired and I need somewhere to begin

And if you have a minute why don’t we go
Talk about it somewhere only we know?
This could be the end of everything
So why don’t we go
Somewhere only we know?
Somewhere only we know?

So there’s a chance I’ve got a kick ass graduation present in my future!

For those who don’t know, I’m a member of the Little Apple Chapter of NRHH at K-State. Representatives from our chapter attend three conferences per year, two regional and one national. No Frills is one of the regional conferences. As the name implies, the intent is for the conference to consist primarily of business meetings. So far, it’s been surprisingly Frilly.

Right now I’m listening to KU’s bid presentation to host next year’s No Frills. When we got over here, we sat by a row of people with laptops who were kind enough to let us get a copy of the WEP key for Mizzou. Wireless internet rocks (although security sucks). No sensitive information over here.

I’m ready for the end of business meetings and the four hour drive back to Manhattan. See you soon.

Currently Watching: Four KU girls making fools of themselves.