HeyChristine.com

Thursday,
November 28th
in Palo Alto

"ORIENTED.COM and Thanksgiving Day..."

Life has a really weird way of working itself out, eh?

So Tuesday was SUPPOSED to be the official day that we began test launching the commercial sections of the ORIENTED.COM site... but this email that I sent to the web developers in Taipei on Tuesday will explain it all...

    Linda, guys,

    My mom's flight... got canx due to bad weather in
    Chicago (she's coming back from a trip to TPE) so
    now she is going to be with me for a few days...
    am running out the door to go get her at the SFO
    airport...

    If you need another day for the test launch, take
    advantage of this errrr... whatever it is.

    Let me know what you end up doing.

The ironic thing is that Mom and I had tried so hard to change her original ticket so that she could stop over and visit me here. Apparently she had a restrictive ticket and the airline wasn't going to let us do that for any reason, and yet here she was, due to bad weather in Chicago.

Go figure.

'Twas nice to have her here, in spite of the timing. =)

What can I say, except I won't be one of those people who look back and say, "Gosh I wished that I spent more time with my family!"

LOL...

Poor Mom... she landed at the SF Airport early in the morning and they kept everyone at the gates while continuously pushing back the departure time to Chicago till the late afternoon until it was no longer feasible, such that by the time I went to get her, it was after 6 p.m.

She hadn't eaten all day, so naturally...

I took her to have an In-N-Out Burger.

We were both up until around 3 a.m. (man that woman has a lot of energy) and on Wednesday I took her into the city. It was at that time that I finally figured out how to use the GPS system in Nelson's car and MAN was I ever in awe...

Here I was -- a newcomer to the area myself -- showing my mother around San Francisco.

Had a great time, ate some Pho on Clement in Richmond, walked through the Botanical Gardens at the Golden Gate Park, saw the view of the city from the Twin Peaks, went to the Masonic Temple at Nob Hill and then drove through downtown San Francisco (the most beautiful and breath-taking part of the city especially at this time of the year) on our way back down 280.

Not bad if I may say so myself.

We got back to the house around 6 p.m., putzed around for a bit, took a walk through Palo Alto at around 10:30 p.m. (still determined to live as I did in Taipei) and at around midnight, she says, "Hey... think I can leave tomorrow instead of Friday?"

So that's that.

The woman just wanted to get home after traveling halfway around the world and back and I KNOW THE FEELING.

LOL...

"The moment has come..."

I just got back from dropping her off at the airport (Thursday, 11/28/02, 11 a.m.) and wanted to type up this entry before I proceed with my day because ONE of the new emails received in my inbox which I have not yet opened is from the web developers in Taipei and is entitled, "ORIENTED: Drum roll please..."

Am I nervous?

Hell yeah!

Camshots of the moment, for the record...

I'm a drama queen, what can I say?

As I sit here -- mentally preparing for what's coming next -- three things come to mind.

First, that today is the last of the ORIENTED Happy Hours to take place this year, as all events are cancelled for December due to holiday travel.

This year has been one huge learning experience and a great transition period for us all, as we prepare to clean up house and get things in order for an even better New Year. None of the organizers are getting paid to do what they are doing, but rest assured that should anyone gain financially from all this effort, that they too will be rewarded.

Second, as I look at some of the event photos that have already been posted, I have to take a deep breath when I try to fathom how useful we hope this site will be to all those who have been attending our Happy Hours. For the same reasons they come, we believe they will also use and benefit from our services.

The last thought I have for the moment is just how serene it is today, and that I am very much hoping that this will be the last Thanksgiving holiday I ever have to spend without my family, working on ORIENTED.COM.

We'll see what happens...

Went over to Cindy's after dinner and joined her and Kevin's family for dessert... pumpkin pie and ice cream! Cute! Her whole family was in town, and Kevin's family was in the house as well. Met Richard, Greg and Linda, John and the parents...

'Tis a small world indeed in which we live...

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