My (Stolen) Moment

So there I was, sitting at lunch with my co-workers/friends. I'm a fairly aware person in general, especially with respect to other people and "common" (shared) areas. But I suppose it wasn't even really that - it really started with myself, as I had looked all around to find a group of friends to "flock" to and sit with at lunch.

After settling down in my comfort zone among friends and began to enjoy my lunch, I had noticed her walk in - yes, it was her - the girl who I had a crush on. I made it as inconspicuous as possible as I tracked her with my eyes to the table in which she eventually chose and sat down among peers that she knew.

Every few moments when there would be a pause in the conversation or when the conversation was changing subjects, I would sneak a peek at her. There's just an un-quantifiable quality about someone who is able to stir up such feelings within you, that simply looking at the person makes you feel happy and fuzzy inside.

Finally something happened that caught my attention and my heart started to race - she had gotten up out of her chair and was about to leave. But that wasn't what caught my attention... her name badge/clip had come undone and fallen to the ground. I thought to myself that someone (if not herself) would notice it and pick it up - but 5 seconds passed, then 10, then 20... and she hadn't moved since standing up in place, yet no one noticed the badge.

This is my chance, a moment like this rarely comes along - it seems so perfect and cliche, like something out of a cheesy romance movie.

My heart raced and my palms began to get sweaty. But before I was able to even begin thinking about how to segway this kind/genuine gesture into simple chit-chat and building a repoire, something happened. I looked back over to make sure she hadn't gotten too far away from her original spot and found myself stunned by what I saw: an older guy from the next table over from me walked over to her, tapped her on her shoulder and told her that her badge had fallen off as he pointed to the ground. My heart sunk to the depth of my chest and it felt like I had walked unsuspectingly off the edge of a sidewalk.

My perfect moment... was STOLEN.

The Trip (Short Version)

• Decided not to stop at Starbucks on the way to the airport, thus allowing me the perfect timing to make my plane.
• Learned how bags get checked to your final destination if you travel via connecting flights.
• Arrived at North Carolina and made it to the hotel with enough time to check-in, change, and go straight to the reception social event.
• Met lots of potential candidates at the reception and realized that there was less than a handful of people from California, many were local people from that surrounding area, and that many people have graduated with their masters.
• Studied the white papers, got my clothes ready, and went to bed.
• Overslept my alarms and woke up late. Got ready, packed, and checked out of the hotel all in 15 minutes.
• Didn’t miss anything but breakfast, attended the presentations.
• Had an interview with Tom (Regional Systems Engineer Manager). On a scale of 1-10: 9.5
• Had lunch, and prepared for the sales simulation and studied the white papers.
• Sales simulation with Patrick (SE Manager). On a scale of 1-10: 7.75
• Hung out with potential candidates and got ready for the group events.
• Group event with a panel of 5 judges. On a scale of 1-10: 6.5
• Took the shuttle from the hotel to the airport, changed out of my clothes, figured out my plane was delayed till tomorrow.
• Called the travel agency, had my flight re-routed. Ran across the airport to find the right terminal, got the shaft going through security, ran ½ a mile to get to my gate in time to board the plane as the 2nd to last person.
• Connecting flight from Memphis to LAX I had a 2+ hours conversation with a lady sitting next to me named Darian.
• Withstood the loud engine of the flight from LAX to SLO sitting in the front row.
• Returned home – I made it, my bag made it, my car made it, Apollo made it.

The "Full Version" is available for your reading pleasure in the post below, accompanied with pictures.