Everyday I'm humblin'

I'm no Rick Ross, but that's neither here nor there.

VPN is (sort of) working at the moment, so let's get this up before it decides to shut itself down again.

Not everyday out here is difficult, in fact many aren't. As the three of us prepared ourselves for the transition into China, I wanted to keep everyone's ambitions grounded, and maintain a realist tone in our group of eager and ambitious go-getters. I warned that the trip would test the limits of our friendship, our bank accounts, and our patience, and that of these, none were guaranteed to hold up. Having said that, in the back of my mind, I was as ambitious as the others, and secretly imagined things would be ok.

It is certainly not easy, and while many days are smooth, the ones that are not good link together, forming arduous rough patches that test all three aforementioned issues we were worried about. I always write about payday here, and perhaps with too much hubris, or to tell myself things are going well. In fact, things are not horrible, we are all still friends, and my patience has matured over the last year, but it has been as difficult as I warned myself it would be. Every aspect of our business(es) has faced hurdles, and left us frustrated at some point in time, and every time we seem to devise a solution to either fix the issue, or at the very least, offset the damages. It is making us stronger, smarter, and for some of us, a bit more grounded in the reality of this kind of life. It is not all victories, as I had predicted, but the losses, the frustrations, as much as you can prepare for them in your head, are still just that.... frustrating.

Originally we planned for a 6-month minimum time slot out here, that has since been extended and tomorrow marks my completion of one full year here. It is looking like that will be extended another year, and how I feel about that is irrelevant really, as we have a duty to fulfill out here, and a responsibility to remain and see this through. It is not all bad, far from it, but it wears on a person, and I believe makes them stronger. Learning your weaknesses is important, overcoming them or correcting them is the true, and most difficult goal.

I miss Boston, America, and everyone I've had the honor of calling my friend in the last few years. I hope to return again in May for a couple weeks.