Tired of castles in the air...

A brief introduction: this blog was created to document my life as a (fairly) recent graduate finally employed by Sony Pictures Home Entertainment. Hooray!

It has been over a year since I graduated UCLA in 2010, but I never really left. For a whole year, I did research for the math department living day by day in what seemed like my life on pause. It seemed like I was waiting for destiny to knock on my door and I waited too patiently. When the end of the academic year came about and my advising professor announced that he was leaving permanently, motivation finally caught up with me and along with it came anxiety and a lot of regret. Thank goodness for the friends I have.

Luck, divine intervention, a series of cosmic events that shifted things in my favor... I really am the luckiest person I know. I have a friend who worked in the position I'm now in and they asked for her recommendation (out of the darkness, a ray of light)! They gave me an interview and the rest is history...

Actually, during the interview they asked me a simple riddle about fruits in mislabeled boxes to test my analysis abilities. I was so nervous that I completely misinterpreted the question. I got it eventually, but it was an embarrassingly slow process. Still, whatever it is they see in me, I'm glad that they see it.

Until they made their decision and could call me back, I spent over a month unemployed, listlessly going between places I thought I could escape the issue at hand. There was an occasional background check or interview offer from another company but nothing soothed the aching pain in my chest (I guess I should eat better and exercise). On a slight tangent, careerbuilder and monster were not as useful as I thought they would be. I called Sony occasionally to check up, but they kept pushing back the decision date because of the many interviews they had to conduct. Everything is slower in corporate they said, but that just meant more anxiety for me. Turns out to be true. I finally get a call on Friday, July 22nd. They have made their decision, but can't release it! HR still has to complete the background check. Still, my employer drops a vaguely hopeful hint stating that I will be the first to know their decision.

At 11:49 AM yesterday, I received a call from HR with an offer for the position. Almost without any hesitation I accepted. I spent noon spreading the good news, which is something I don't think I've ever done before. I've never been so appreciative of the people in my life as I have at that very moment. My life simply wouldn't be the same. Cliches for everyone! I do believe cliches have merit even if not in literature.

Celebrations were to be had! I went to a bar with some close friends and like the lightweight I am I had one drink. I know my limits. One-and-done. In constructing a budget, alcohol isn't something I'll have to worry about. I'm so excited about financial responsibility! Now to open up that Roth IRA...

Look forward to my next post either when I get the paperwork I have to fill out before working or my first day!

In case you're curious, here are details on what I'm going to do: http://www.sonypicscareers.com/stelprdwcm1/idcplg?IdcService=SS_GET_PAGE&nodeId=1151&ssSourceNodeId=1151

tl;dr - Received a call at 11:49 AM today. I was offered a position at Sony Pictures Home Entertainment in Culver City as an allocation analyst. I accepted almost without hesitation. Life is good.

EDIT - my dad also called me yesterday to congratulate me and gave me a brief pep talk. This has only ever happened twice in the history of my life. Thanks, dad.