Savor the Moment.

Thanksgiving this year could have been a disaster. The Townsend’s had left to New York and little-sis Estelle was in Cape Cod... Which left Danielle and I, the dynamic duo, with no family to celebrate with. What were we going to do?! Feast on chicken wings and a kung-fu flick? Perhaps we could bury our miseries in a 12-inch pumpkin pie, fresh from Costco...

I mulled over our bleak possibilities, occasionally thinking back to past thanksgivings. Last year on the beach in Bali, a few years ago at the US Deputy Chief of Mission's house in Jakarta and then my first Thanksgiving in America... All those past experiences reminded me how far I have come, how much I have already accomplished and of course, how much further I have yet to climb. So, if worse came to worse, Danielle and I would spend our Turkeyday with each other. I reminded myself that we had a roof over our heads, money for the Costco pie and most importantly, heat for our cold little Asian bodies. I am most thankful for the warmth.

Come the day of guiltless gorging though, we found ourselves accepting a very gracious invitation for a Thanksgiving meal. My roommate Tashi had a friend from work who pressed his parents to take us three hobos in for the evening - an invitation we gladly accepted. (Thanksgiving Miracle #1) So after an hour of three girls trying to dominate the bathroom, we headed over to Trevor Barnyak's house for Thanksgiving.

Arriving a half hour early, (Thanksgiving miracle #2) I could not have imagined what a fantastic time we would have. The Barnyak’s are warm, loving people with big hearts and even bigger appetites for good food. The 26.8 pound turkey was cooked by the master chef (a vegetarian – Thanksgiving Miracle #3) along with the different types of potatoes and grilled veggies. Yum!

We gathered around the table with some of the Barnyak's family friends - the Alterman's, who were also very warm, fun loving people. (Lots of 'kids' around my age, so there was a good balance at the table). Jews, Muslims, Buddhists, Atheists, who says we can't get along? (Thanksgiving Miracle #4) Conversation at the table was varied and very interesting... From Brian Alterman and his Classic Islam class (which Danielle promptly quizzed him on), Ken Alterman and his recycled retail business (did you know there are 1000 retail apparel stores for one second-hand shop?) and Beth Alterman on her adventures as an analyst. Jim Barnyak also gave valuable insights about interviewing tips, such as:

Q. What does it take to be successful?

Wrong A: Good communication skills, good organization skills, willingness to work hard.

Correct A: First of all, ask for further clarification (pipes in Ken). What type of success are you talking about?

You need three things to be successful (in your career at least)

1. You need a long-term vision. Know where you want to end up and always have that end-result in mind. You should set up incremental goals to get there, and have a development plan in place to act as a road map.

2. You need the passion and determination to work towards your goals, to meet and then exceed them. Things are not always going to be easy, interesting or fun.

3. You need the discipline to get through the mundane everyday tasks and to execute everything perfectly.

4. One that I think he missed though would be patience (but perhaps it goes under discipline). Things don’t progress immediately overnight, but since you’re in it everyday, it’s hard to watch it grow.

Another fun Question and Answer:
"Why are you applying for this position?"
"Because my astrological signs are strong this year."