communication breakdown

Carry On, My Wayward Son

Well, here it is. My last night in Minnesota.

It's good to know God has a sense of humor. I get in my car after leaving work for the last time, and the first two songs that come on the radio are "Ramblin' Man" by the Allman Brothers, and "Should I Stay or Should I Go" by The Clash. Boy, if those 2 don't just sum it all up...

It's a strange feeling, really. I'm here at my desk, surrounded by a mostly-empty bedroom, my life in little boxes. It's a lot different than my move from Atlanta. First, back then I could fit everything I owned in my car - not happening this time. Second, I was leaving a city I loved to head to the great unknown - now I'm returning to familiar faces and well-known territory. And yet, despite the fact that I never really developed a love for Minneapolis, I can't help but be a little sad at this moment. I think anytime you close a chapter of your life, no matter how good or bad it was, you can't avoid thinking about how fleeting time is, how people come in and out of your life so unexpectedly, and how everything happens much faster than you expect it to...

Today was a tough day at work. Not because I was busy, mind you - I had absolutely nothing to do and basically just talked to people all day. But it's hard saying goodbye, especially to a group of people who I consider to be friends, teachers and mentors.

The day began with a bizarre coincidence. I had an exit interview today with an HR representative. It didn't go very long and after awhile we just started chatting about how each of us ended up in Minneapolis. Strangely enough, we found out that we attended the same high school in Jacksonville, and even were there at the same time! If that doesn't verify the "Small World" theory, I don't know what does.

After returning to work, and attending my last team meeting, we had a pizza lunch as a sort of send-off to me. It's funny, I've probably had about 5 going-away lunches/dinners in the last week. Each one has been great in their own way, though - on Wednesday my small-team members and I went out for lunch, and then that night I went out to dinner with my fellow TaeKwon-Do students. The next day was our ceremonial "last trip to the billiards hall" lunch with most of my project team, and then that night we went up to a pizza place to have some beer and just hang out. And then today was the lunch with the whole project team. I'm pretty sure I've had pizza 4 or 5 times this week. And of course, when I got home tonight and wanted to cook up a last meal, what was the only thing left in the freezer? Of course - pizza. I guess it's my way of driving up the Medtronic stock price by guaranteeing I'll need a pacemaker in about 5 years.

Anyways, at the lunch today, my manager presented me with some U of Minnesota gear which was really thoughtful. I spent the rest of the day just chatting and having a good time. Around 2:30 or so I decided I should probably start heading out, and began making the rounds and saying goodbyes. Little did I know this would take over 2 hours. I wanted to speak personally with each person who I had the chance to work with or interact with, and before I knew it, it was 5:00 when I finally said goodbye to Medtronic.

It took a lot of self-control on my part to stop the tears that were welling up inside me most of the day, and especially towards the end. Medtronic is full of amazing people. Caring, compassionate, fun, highly-intelligent and hard-working people. They all love their jobs and enjoy working with one another. It's really a one-of-a-kind work experience. When it came right down to the end, it was tough saying goodbye. Everyone had such kind and thoughtful words, and I'm often embarrassed to receive compliments, so honestly I was overwhelmed. I could tell that I will be missed, that I would be welcome back anytime, and that I probably had more of an impact on my team than I would have thought. And each person who said these things wasn't just being polite - they really meant them.

Well, to those of you at Medtronic, and those who I studied TaeKwon-Do with, who might be reading - you will be missed more than you know. You are the reason I stayed as long as I did and are the reason I almost didn't leave. Thank you so much for accepting me into your lives, helping me along when I needed direction, encouraging me in the wintertime, and just being great friends. I hope you all find the happiness you deserve, and I really hope we can stay in touch. You will be in my thoughts and my prayers.

The last week has been grueling as I've been packing and deep-cleaning the apartment. I've been working non-stop and not sleeping much - working so hard, in fact, that I totally missed my Mother's birthday. First time that's ever happened to me. It crossed my mind on the morning of the 3rd, while I was at work, but I was busy so I just figured I would call her later once I got off. That was a bad mistake - the minute I got home, I starting cleaning, and did that for the rest of the night. Anyways, I'm just about done, with the last little bit to be done tomorrow.

So I'm getting on the road tomorrow, driving one of those god-forsaken U-Haul trucks, trailing my Jetta behind it. I'm not sure I'll be able to survive only going 50 or 55 on the highway - it's so contrary to my nature. I'm driving straight to Bloomington, IL where I have a hotel reservation - then it's up early in the morning and driving straight to ATL.

It's nice that I've known for awhile that I'm going to be rooming with a fraternity brother of mine. It's helping to make the moving transition much easier - we already picked out an apartment which he's been able to check out and see that it looks really nice. The cost of living is lower, meaning I'm getting much more bang for my buck than I'm used to up here. We've even got 3 bedrooms between the 2 of us - tons of extra space. We'll move in Thursday, and then I start work Monday.

I ask for your prayers during my trip and I can't wait until I make my next entry from the warm confines of Atlanta. My life will be characterized by lots of the unknown for awhile, but I'm really looking forward to the opportunity of starting over where I belong.

I always seem to find lyrics appropriate for my major life events. For awhile now, every time I would hear this song, I would wonder when I could apply it to my life. Well now it does - and it explains how I'm thinking. It's not fully accurate, but you get the idea: