This seemed appropriate.

Dada
Dizz Knee Land

I just ran away from home
Now I’m going to dizz knee land
I just crashed my car again
Now I’m going to dizz knee land
I just robbed a grocery store
I’m going to dizz knee land
I just flipped off President George
I’m going to dizz knee land
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We spent a fun evening with the Thompsons, Bart and Michelle. It was Kelly’s (and Hallie’s) first time meeting them, and it was the first time I’d seen them since their wedding…almost, what, ten years ago? Time sure does fly.

They both looked great and seemed to be very family focused, which is great. When they became parents early in their marriage, I didn’t know what to think. I was still very much single and couldn’t relate to that kind of lifestyle. Of course, now I’m living that lifestyle and things are great.

Hallie had a blast, too, though as usual it took her a while to warm up to strangers. By the end of the night, however, she was bouncing around the Ottoman saying “trampoline! Trampoline!”

It’s great seeing old friends again. I’m looking forward to spending more time with them soon.

As I looked out the window of my plane at LaGuardia, the skyline I saw seemed so … mortal. Whether you thought they were monsterous eyesores or architectual wonders, Gotham City just isn’t the same without the Towers.

I had lunch today with my former coworkers at Thai Villa in Cary. Most looked dumbfounded when I told them I’d never been there before. Guess I never got invited.

I was thinking today how funny it was that this was the second Oculan lunch I’ve ever been to. The day I started, the guys took me out to lunch. So that makes bookends.

I lost my job today when Oculan went out of business. It happened two days after many of my coworkers lost their jobs. Now *all* of my coworkers have lost their jobs. Such a shame, too. It was a fun company while it lasted.

The news arrived while I was working a trade show for a Long Island partner. I was breaking down the booth at 4 PM when the call arrived: an “all hands” call would take place immediately. I dialed in and listened to the news, fully expecting to hear that funding had been found.

Instead, the news I got meandered from the efforts of securing funding to the abrupt and sudden annoucement that the doors would close effective immediately. This was the last day. That’s it. Closed.

I listened to the call as people all around me worked to pack things up. Here I was hundreds of miles away, working my hardest to hold things together and the end came in spite of me. I wanted to be there in the office to shake the hands of those people whom I’d grown to love and trust, but a distant phone call was all I had. In a way, though, I’m also glad I was on the road when the end came. No one can accuse me of not putting forth the effort to succeed, even in the company’s dying days.

My partners were shell-shocked at the news. In the few hours I’d gotten to know them, they had adopted me and felt genuinely hurt at my misfortune. I spent the day talking and kidding with Deanne and Matt and they had accepted me, too. Deanne became emotional (hey, she’s Sicilian! What do you expect?) and all but vowed revenge on those who torpedoed my job. Matt was supportive and reassured me that I would get a new job soon.

Deanne was captivated at how easily I put a prospect under the Oculan spell. She
said I had the guy “salivating” over the product. She seemed genuinely angry that such a great product could be finished. Compared to most demos I do, that was nothing. She could see the benefit of the product, no doubt about it. And she’s not even technically inclined!

They offered to get me drunk tonight, to which I agreed. We drove back to their home where I was offered a generous glass of Wild Turkey. We sat in their living room, where I vented about the company while praising the magical product I sold. We all agreed what a shame it was that so much work had to go to waste.

Matt had earlier promised me dinner, so we headed out to a great Italian restaurant in the neighborhood. Over red snapper and chicken linguine, we traded kid stories. I heard all about their grandkids and told them about my daughter Hallie. There were plenty of laughs and deep insights.

I thanked them over and over for the incredible hospitality they showed me at such an uncertain, lonely time. I can’t imagine how today would have been without their warmth and generosity. I will never, ever forget it.

They dropped me off at my hotel and We said our goodbyes, after exchanging contact information. We will see each other again, that’s for sure. Perhaps as business partners, who knows?

The job loss comes at a difficult time, with a baby on the way and a contract for a new home hanging in the balance. In spite of all that pressure on my shoulders, strangely I feel very serene. I don’t know why, really. It’s not just that I’ve been in this place before, but perhaps that I’ve been getting ready to leave Oculan for a while now.

Don’t get me wrong: I have been very happy with my job, doing things I’ve never done before. I’ve got skills now that make me much, much, much more valuable than I was a year ago. Skills I would have never acquired otherwise. That said, I have always been underpaid for the work I’ve done, as have all the sales engineers (and, most likely, the rest of the company). I passed up better-paying jobs to join Oculan, and the impending arrival of my second child made that all the more apparent.

I am confident now because this job showed me that there’s no pressure that I can’t handle. If this once deathly-shy kid can fly to a different city and present a talk he didn’t write, then parachute into another city to work with closely with people he hasn’t met, all on moment’s notice with zero preparation, I’d say he’s ready for anything. Job interviews are a friggin’ cakewalk by comparison. Bring ’em on! You will hire me or wish that you had. Period!

I already have strong leads for my next job. I’m lucky in that my job brings me in contact with many potential employers. Plenty have been impressed with my skills and attitude. I’ve saved every business card given me and I intend to mine them thoroughly.

Or, I might decide to return to full time consulting with my own company, Siteseers. I’m so glad I didn’t close up shop when the going at Oculan looked good. There is no guarantee that Siteseers will succeed, but at least I’ll know who to blame if it doesn’t: me. I figure: what have I got to lose?

Some might look at this as a terrible occurance, considering all that’s going on in my life. I see it as an inconvenience. Much better things are in store for me. More importantly, now I am ready for them.

I’m in Long Island, NY tonight after spending the day in Indianapolis. Actually, most of my day was spent just getting to Indianapolis: Chicago O’Hare is the most broken airport I’ve ever seen. Though the weather was fine in Chicago, my plane was almost 90 minutes late getting to Indianapolis. That was before I spent 20 minutes on the ground at RDU while the controllers in Chicago pulled their heads out of their butts. In the future, I will avoid O’Hare like the plague. Silly me for thinking just because the weather was nice, the airport would be open.

The show I did in Indy was subdued. I spent mucho time improvising, as usual. No marketing fluff had arrived when I got there. Actually, it did arrive, but no one at the giant hotel knew that or knew where it was. About 5 minutes before my presentation, I finally had the gear displayed in the booth.

The presentation went well. There was one woman present in a room full of fifty chairs. Eventually, she was joined by a gentleman who proved to be a very good lead. Both seemed to enjoy my talk and I appreciated not having the pressure of a crowd.

After that was done, I got the call that I would be needed in New York. I spent the rest of the day at the show making my travel arrangements. I’ve got a room, a car, and directions to the show, but I have yet to book a flight home.

Like the Indy of Indiana Jones fame, I’m still making it up as I go.

The Civilian Space eXploration Team has launched the first amateur rocket to reach space. Their GoFast rocket reached 100km altitude in a flight that lasted fifteen minutes.

For some reason, I can’t find mention of the event on the group’s website. Bummer.

This stuff is so cool. I’d love to find a local club and participate. Space is now on the verge of being accessible to everyone.

I’m being sent on a last-minute trip to Indianapolis for business tomorrow. Blogging will be light-to-nonexistent. Homesickness will be at maximum levels.

Today was an eventful day at work. Lots to talk about when I get back. Ciao.