What a year?! Started off the year in British Columbia, snowboarding until my foot went numb (literally). 3 weeks well spent. Returned home full of energy and ready to start a new job (of course i had yet to find one). I thought I was going to have a great job fall on my lap… I mean when I decided to take my time off starting in July of 2010, I had multiple job offers from good companies, so why wouldn’t I be able to easily find another one?  Bad economy doesn’t apply to me!! Wrong!!! 6 months of applying and failing, regardless of the reason, will make an arrogant man humble. Depression started to get the best of me. There were weeks where I barely left my bed. Along the way, I ended up taking another long extended Vancouver snowboarding trip. I was fortunate enough to have some consulting gigs which paid the bills and funded the traveling, but i seemed to still have way too much time on my hands. So I did what I had been wanting for years. I got my puppy!  

I landed my current job in July and have been working like a dog ever since. I got an opportunity to go to Honolulu and Maui for the first time one month after I started work.  A friend lent me his Honolulu condo, and I pricelined a great deal at the Marriott resort in Maui. Honolulu was ok, but Maui was so much more beautiful. Only reason I’d go back to Honolulu was because I have a free place to stay. The folks here at my company are great, but we are lacking the leadership and presence that I had with my previous companies. I think this will be a rough year.  I still think things will turn out very nicely in 2 to 3 years, but we will have to weather a storm or two.  There is however, a chance that I might not see it through. During this time, I’ve spent a lot of time with investment people, and I had a verbal job offer thrown at me before the holidays that went something like this, “Mike, come work for me, I’ll double your salary”. I told them I’d consider it.  Why not jump at it?  Well this is from an investment banking company, and I’m not sure ibanking is the right lifestyle for me.  I may just do some consulting for them on the side until I get a feel for the job.

I ended the year with a trip to Hong Kong and Taipei. I went to Lantau island for the first time to see the big Buddha.  Also took a trip to Macau, which has changed so much since my first trip there in 2000. HK was all about he seafood.  Ate crabs, mantis shrimp, prawns, fresh fish, and tons of wontons. Had an outstanding crocodile hot pot!! Aside from he croc meat, I had croc tongue, and tail. Meat is like tender pork, tail is a textural play between tendon and cartilage, similar to the shark head I ate in Singapore .  The tongue was so freaking good, I can’t explain it. Texturaly its between fresh shrimp and squid. It absorbs the taste of the soup and the sauce very well.

Taipei was an awesome trip as well. I booked a fantastic room at a brand new boutique hotel in he heart of the Tsongshan district of Taipei.  I got a chance to see an elementary school buddy of mine who i last saw in 1994. It was great seeing him again. I don’t drink like I used to, but fortunately I was able to kill a bottle of Scotch with him and still find my way back home. The night market food in Taipei is all that it’s cracked up to be, although the stinky tofu smell might be overbearing for some. My two favorite items from this leg of the trip was the garlic fried softshell crabs and the coagulated goose blood I had in several soup dishes. I also went to the original din tai fung, and I’m sorry to say to all my Taiwanese friends, Taiwan’s take on shanghainese soup dumplings are not as good as shanghai’s. I was actually a bit underwelmed.  The difference I noticed was the skin had considerable more egg yolk to it, giving it more of an Italian pasta like taste. I prefer the dumplings at Joe’s Shanghai in New York or any of the many authentic Shanghai restaurants in Vancouver over these. I only spent 4 days there, and other than the let down at din tai fung, I had a great time and definitely need to go back. 

So now its 2012, year of the dragon (my year). I’m not hoping for much, just want to have more happy days than sad ones. Unfortunately, it’s been a rough one so far.  We are wrapping up our series C financing and its been life consuming.  It seems like as the days go by, more and more friends leave the area, moving away, or losing touch due to finding their significant others. Some days, I feel so alone. How I long for days gone by.  All I can do is keep trying, but sometimes, I wonder what the heck am I working for?  What surprises will show up this year?

@ 8 months old, he’s nearly tripled in weight.

handsome isn’t he? 

it’s been a little over 2 months at the new gig, and it’s been quite interesting.

my new company has the potential to be hot.  very very hot.  10x the valuation of my previous, which means a big big exit.

however, this is a 3 year minimum commitment, most likely 4.  in order to hit the big score, we need to grow, and i have been intimately involved in the process. i’ve always been part of the solution, but this time i’m more involved in the decision making. our management is young, and raw, and although talented, lack some of the discipline you can only get through years of experience.  it’s quite odd that i am the voice of reason at the management table, being that i’m youngest, but i guess all the years working for successful execs have rubbed off a bit. i’ve quickly gained the respect of all the execs, and my ability (and willingness) to throw shots back with my ceo has also helped. 

it’s funny how the balance shifts.  i once worked a very light day and had a lot of free time to do as i pleased. now, however, i easily put in 10 hours a day, and i’ve already pulled a few 16 hour ones. i’m also still consulting for 2 other companies, with a project cue that will last the rest of the year. on top of all that, i am trying to get a new business venture off the ground.  it’s still in the planning phase, but still a lot of work before we start looking for investors.

i’ve always felt very young, but i think all this work has kicked the youth out of me. so why am i working so much?  well i have the opportunity to do some big things, and since i have the time, why not? 

for the sake of my sanity though, it’s time for a little r&r.  a friend of mine has given me the keys to his condo in honolulu, and so i’ll be heading off for a week to get some sun and some fresh air….although i may have to check into our honolulu office to do a little work, but that won’t be too bad.

until next time!