The BEST present in more than a decade and half

- Never Stop Dreaming -

Yesterday night, I almost kissed another man...a very important man indeed. No don't get me wrong because I am not turning in my hetrosexual status but rather, I was flying so high on cloud nine that I could literally die of over anxiety.

For 2 months, and then for 2 weeks and then finally for 2 days, I have waited, panicked, flipped and freaked myself out over some very important decisions that will etch a deep mark in my life's journey, a turning point to start a new year, a new life and possibly a new direction...A career change.

I had me second interview on my birthday which I told the "Bosses" that if I do get the job, it would be the best birthday present in nearly a decade and a half but they just smiled since that was definitely not a valid criteria for selecting a suitable candidate for the 3rd most prestigous resort in the entire Japan. Then I was told that the verdict will be out on the 20th but being a little sneaky, I did inquired casually about other candidates. The answer I got was nothing worth considering since nothing, not even numbers were mentioned so without knowing my rivals, I could only wait, pray and sulk!

The day came, the 20th day in the 1st month of the 2010 year...I was anxious and very desperate since the application at Tokyo fell thru weeks prior. This was the ONLY other channel of hope I had and I really did not want this one to fall thru as well. A very nice gentleman once said to me that how low are you willing to stoop will determine how desperate you are which miraculously worked once for me. I thought I might wanna try to employ the same tactic again this time round given the dire straits I was in. It worked...and for the first time I shall reveal it for all.
I knew I had to show "them" how much I wanted the job since everyone has skills and creativity. The only way to set myself apart from everyone else was to ask myself a very simple question, "Why should they pick you?" And the magical answer to that question is simply ATTITUDE!

You see I was so damn desperate to get the job, I called the "man-in-charge" 4 to 6 times on both his cellphone and office phone since it was already 1600 hours on the 20th and still I wasn't getting any news or updates. It was simply a sign of how badly I had wanted the job, how noisy I could get and how desperate I was. I wouldn't say extreme but just enoungh to get the point across...and he called back to inform me that he was in the midst of a very important meeting and would get back to me later in the night. Still I wasn't very convinced but I could hear the confidence in his voice that my rather absurd attitude of desperation was recognised. He did called back informing me to meet me on the 21st which was yesterday to discuss further details like salary, requirements, dos and don'ts, etc but I wasn't the least bit interested because all I did was to acknowledged EVERYTHING he said ending the conversation with a simply, "In other words, did I or did I not get the job?" and his reply was "Come here tomolo and I will tell you!"

Man to be hanging in mid air almost touching heaven and yet not quite, to be so far yet so near, to almost die but live thru it, the journey to the in-between wasn't the most confortable experience if you know what I mean. 21st, I went to work as usual and then drove to the "meeting place" Surprisingly it was closed for some reason and there were no one in sight except 3 people discussing some rather important issues I presumed. There I called the "man" who told me to wait for approximately 10 minutes which seemed like 10 years!

When he finally appeared, we sat and he asked questions about my salary, benefits, expectations and told me other trivial details pertaining to the position which though went into my head, I was expecting something else, an answer to my epical question. Then he showed me around, the halls, the rooms, the gowns, the photo samples, and then finally before the entire 30 minite entourage ended, I asked him, "So in other words, did I or did I not get the job?" which the bespectacled, mysterious man answered with a very warming smile in the not so cold winter, "Welome aboard!"

I could feel the muscles in my face move in a pre-determined position and crammed there...a smile was all that I could display and I almost, literally almost hugged and kissed him but in the end, I didn't realise that vision in my head so I simply shook his hand with an affirming grim and bowed and smiled and said "DOMO ARIGATOU GOZAIMASHITA!" like 10 times before walking to the car. In about a decade and a half, this had to be one of the most memorable moments of my life but the truth is that this is only the beginning...

April is when all this magic begins...because I never stopped believing!