In 1995, while working for a Canadian software company, the company received an inquiry (out of the blue) from Pacific Bell in California. As luck would have it, I was the only available software specialist that could fly down to CA for 2 weeks to install the software for a test.

Well... 2 weeks turned into nearly 3 years before the software was running smoothly. This was the hardest 30 months of work I have ever lived through. To this day, whenever I'm pissed about my job, stressed out or can't see the light at the end of the tunnel, I can always think back to those 30 months and it helps me put things into perspective.

Anyhow, I try not to have too many regrets about tough times. I find they are often simply stepping stones to bigger and better things. Don't get me wrong... I'm still bitter....but I don't have too many regrets. To prove the stepping stone theory, during my 30 months torture test, I fell in love with California and impressed enough people that I eventually was offered a job in CA.

It was at that point in 97ish that I made the difficult decision to pack my bags and move to CA without really knowing anyone here.