I Dream of Asia
by Max Perez
best job:
i’m currently working as a Perl programmer. This is pretty much of a stretch for me as I dont normally like to program. After being rather harshly booted from my last job (see worst job, below) I got a contract here doing html and Java script interfaces testing software. They were pretty happy with me and offered me a job as an “application engineer”. This involves accompanying the sales folk to customers sites and helping them stay honest, er, rather helping them realistically assess what we can do with the customers software. After the visit is done, I write the custom part of our software for their demo. If they like it, I hand it over to someone else for completion. The best part is that the customers are in Europe and Asia, as well as in the US. I’ve always wanted to be tri-coastal (Calif, NY, & Europe), and now I may have a chance to be worldwide. This is almost my dream job.
worst job:
i’ve had a lot of bad jobs: Infantryman, taxi driver, and security guard leap to mind. They all shared the traits of long hours, low pay, and little status. At least in the infantry there was some fun times, blowing things up and driving weird vehicles through the country.
but no, the worst job was in a office where I was hired to do high end technical support for an email application that had to be customized for each company that wanted it. I’ll admit to being a lazy bastard, and having an unhealthy internet addiction that I’ve fed since 1987, but I usually manage to become a valued employee anyway. The job changed a month after I hired on to include a lot of scutwork. The start time changed from “ten-ish” to “8:30-and-don’t-be-late”, which was a bit of a killer for me as I chose the job partially on the start time. Then management began to jump ship. Reorgs are normal for a growing company, but I never knew what my job was. I had no client list so I didn’t have the basic information to do my job. This managerial ship jumping had a higher impact than usual. Then all the company founders left, resulting in another management reorg.
the ipo was then pushed back indefinitely. Now, I’m not just about the money, but its not unimportant to me. So, no client list, no management, no make-money-fast IPO.
i should have quit but I was busy surfing the net and holding out for my stock options anyway. As it was, I ended up getting fired after eleven months of employment. I was a little bitter as I had only one month before vesting in the first quarter of my stock options, but they had essentially paid me a pile of cash for doing nothing, thereby financing my move to the bay area.
my ego was soothed a little when I found out that a friend who hired on to the company shortly before I was canned, quit a month later claiming that his job was unmanaged and chaotic.
even so, getting fired still hurt, so I took a vacation to Thailand for a month and then applied for unemployment. The unemployment insurance was denied as they claimed I was fired, not laid off. Whatever. I partied for a month upon my return to the US and then got this Perl programming job which is certainly more interesting, has much more potential, and pays more. Living well and all that.
well, now that I’m happy at work and learning Perl, which I think will be both lucrative and kinda fun, I really miss Thailand. My dream job isn’t there, but it will take me there.
my dream job is to have a rock band on the downhill side of success, mining the last of our glory in Asia.
by Max Perez
best job:
i’m currently working as a Perl programmer. This is pretty much of a stretch for me as I dont normally like to program. After being rather harshly booted from my last job (see worst job, below) I got a contract here doing html and Java script interfaces testing software. They were pretty happy with me and offered me a job as an “application engineer”. This involves accompanying the sales folk to customers sites and helping them stay honest, er, rather helping them realistically assess what we can do with the customers software. After the visit is done, I write the custom part of our software for their demo. If they like it, I hand it over to someone else for completion. The best part is that the customers are in Europe and Asia, as well as in the US. I’ve always wanted to be tri-coastal (Calif, NY, & Europe), and now I may have a chance to be worldwide. This is almost my dream job.
worst job:
i’ve had a lot of bad jobs: Infantryman, taxi driver, and security guard leap to mind. They all shared the traits of long hours, low pay, and little status. At least in the infantry there was some fun times, blowing things up and driving weird vehicles through the country.
but no, the worst job was in a office where I was hired to do high end technical support for an email application that had to be customized for each company that wanted it. I’ll admit to being a lazy bastard, and having an unhealthy internet addiction that I’ve fed since 1987, but I usually manage to become a valued employee anyway. The job changed a month after I hired on to include a lot of scutwork. The start time changed from “ten-ish” to “8:30-and-don’t-be-late”, which was a bit of a killer for me as I chose the job partially on the start time. Then management began to jump ship. Reorgs are normal for a growing company, but I never knew what my job was. I had no client list so I didn’t have the basic information to do my job. This managerial ship jumping had a higher impact than usual. Then all the company founders left, resulting in another management reorg.
the ipo was then pushed back indefinitely. Now, I’m not just about the money, but its not unimportant to me. So, no client list, no management, no make-money-fast IPO.
i should have quit but I was busy surfing the net and holding out for my stock options anyway. As it was, I ended up getting fired after eleven months of employment. I was a little bitter as I had only one month before vesting in the first quarter of my stock options, but they had essentially paid me a pile of cash for doing nothing, thereby financing my move to the bay area.
my ego was soothed a little when I found out that a friend who hired on to the company shortly before I was canned, quit a month later claiming that his job was unmanaged and chaotic.
even so, getting fired still hurt, so I took a vacation to Thailand for a month and then applied for unemployment. The unemployment insurance was denied as they claimed I was fired, not laid off. Whatever. I partied for a month upon my return to the US and then got this Perl programming job which is certainly more interesting, has much more potential, and pays more. Living well and all that.
well, now that I’m happy at work and learning Perl, which I think will be both lucrative and kinda fun, I really miss Thailand. My dream job isn’t there, but it will take me there.
my dream job is to have a rock band on the downhill side of success, mining the last of our glory in Asia.
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