Four years ago, I came from a medium sized city in Northeast China�Changchun. Changchun, in English, means eternal spring. But that is misnomer. The weather is wonderful during the spring and summer, but in winter, the cold weather freezes my bones off. It reminds me of Denver, the coldest city I ever been to in American. That white snow in Denver brought back memories of my hometown, where I was born, grow up, went to college, and had unforgettable long walks at midnight with my friends. That is something I miss in Houston.
As a new comer in this country, I can think of so many first-time experiences. The first time I went to Chinese Buffet. Wow! You can eat as much as you want! But now, I am fed up with it. I asked my coworkers if they really like it. They all said �yes�. I just don�t understand that.
The first time I went to skiing, I was so excited by the beautiful view of the huge mountain. But when my friend took me to a deep sloop, I was so scared that I started crying and shouted at him, �Why did you take me to here?� Now when I think back, I think he was lost himself. But he didn�t want to admit it. �I know what I am doing!� That is guy�s problem. They always know what they are doing!? Anyway, I found that it is not as hard as what I thought. I am thinking about make ski my regular activity.
After two years of going to school, I graduated with a master�s degree in chemistry. I then transferred to the computer science department at the University of Houston. People always ask me �Why did you do that?� My answer is simple. �I love computer science and I love software development.� I still feel grateful that when I was 13, unlike many other students, I had a chance to play with computers and write small programs. I even won some programming contests for children. Programming brought me such great joy that I decided to make it my career. However, this last year in computer science has been hectic and random. I lost my scholarship when I left the chemistry department. I tried to find any job I could to help with my expenses. I used to work as a part-time lab technician in a chemical company. This job hardly paid much. So I started working two jobs. In the daytime, I went to work and school and at night, I helped at the desk in a small motel. Sometimes I felt so tired. Time went by. Two semesters passed. I started sending resumes looking for a computer job. I received some responses and got my first interview. Surprisingly, they gave me an offer during the interview. Tears swelled up in my eyes when I heard the interviewer say �We are giving this offer to you.� I drove back and told every one �I got the job! I got the job!� �How much do they pay you?� they asked. Hmm� That is a good question. I was so excited that I forgot to ask. I have been working for this company for more than a year. And I expect to receive my master�s degree in computer science in 2000.
Being a software developer is just one of my many ambitions. But it took a lot of effort and hard work to make it happen. Today, taking long walks with friends is still something that I cannot afford. When I wake up in the morning, I feel life is so short. I feel I have achieved a lot, but yet, there is so much more that I want to, and I need to do. I only hope that, whatever I do, I do it a little better every day.