I did all I could to postpone this date in my life. I studied abroad and took extra classes which had nothing to do with my major course of study. Then, when I did graduate and finish taking the CPA exam, I didn't head off to work right away. Instead I went on a long trip to Europe, perhaps one last attempt to find my real purpose in life (although nobody seems to find anything on a trip like that).

I got home a couple weeks ago and the reality started to set in. I was a homeless, careless, purposeless person about to start a new life. I made arrangements to stay with a friend for a while before finding a more permanent residence in the Chicago area. Sleeping on the floor. It is not the ideal way to start of the new professional career, but the floor felt pretty comfy after a whole summer of camping, youth hostels, and cheap hotels. Besides, the lack of permanence lets me hide from the reality a bit longer.

Next I set out to buy a car. My friend, Yai, was coming to visit, so I would need a car to get around and also to make the trip home to collect my goods. I went with a very practical, bread-and-butter car: a Volkswagen Golf. Some would say that I was influenced by my long travels in Europe, where the Golf seems to be the best seller. However, I was just looking for a small car that would act big when I wanted to throw my bike in the back and head for the hills. Or maybe even throw everything in the back and run away. For now, the hatchback holds a small shoe collection and some other things that I didn't want lying around my friend's place.

Anyway, after visiting many friends and asking everyone once again if there was any way that I could avoid working my life away like everyone else, the first day came. You could say that I wasn't very optimistic about it, so perhaps my attitude didn't help much. Deep down I was hoping that I would meet these amazing people and be completely surprised by just how much fun work can be.

But, unfortunately, today was pretty boring. They locked us in a conference room on the top floor of the building and lectured to us all day. Some of the stuff was just stuff ya gotta do. Employee IDs, security badges, insurance forms, company policies. Even the more excited people in my 40-50 person start class were a little disappointed by the end of the day. We managed to learn that there is an 800number of almost everything we do: voicemail, insurance, travel arrangements, charity contributions, personal helpline, etc. What more could we expect from a big company like this?

All-in-all it wasn't a particularly painful day, but it wasn't exactly what I have been waiting for all of my life. After taking the train back to the suburbs, and walking home from the station, I felt too exhausted to do anything else with my evening. Is this what it is all about? Working all day so that we can enjoy a couple hours of peace each night? I guess I wasn't entirely thrilled with my first day, but I should survive.