(based on original post over here ... and tentative feb 1st memorial planning)

thursday, nov 20, i attended a cal almuni/student event hosted by pasae. pasae (pilipino association of scientists, architects & engineers) formed in 1988, two years after i fled graduated from cal because i passed my last semester.

had quite a pre-dinner drinks & appetizer with jesse and then a full meal + dessert at buca di peppo. lots of peeps!
after a good night's sleep and a little regrouping & recharging on my day off from work, i was compelled to send a follow-up note to the group. i'm kinda mulling some ideas in my head and figured i'd share the contents of the note that i threw over to pasae on friday ...

Hi to you all that pulled the alumni/student dinner together yester-eve!

i appreciate the opportunity to meet students and alums - and i definitely appreciate the opportunity to share my perspective and experiences. i was really energized from the dinner, and i have some thoughts about seeing what i may be able to contribute as far as continuing perspectives about the the working world. having said that - a few things to offer and maybe there can be an opportunity to meet up w/you all again -

r|intern - i started a blog back in jan 2006 in response to a suggestion from a friend - here is the intro post (to the blog). the remainder of the blog should really be read in order to walk through amabelle's experience + other goofy posts (jan 2006 - april 9, 2006 ... 'cuz the rest after that is just blog fodder poop)

on the intro post, there are 2 links -
former pasae member was an intern - amabelle is the intern we "featured" through the r|intern blog.
and the inspiration and motivation came from a former mentee and cal alum, jengyee liang, who also wrote a book (hello real world)

sadly, jengyee died just this november 10 (jesse also knew here) ... and it's time - i have decided start to pull my perspectives together about internships. i'm starting a new blog - REALITY: apprentern (aka r|apprentern)

my intent is to post something at least once a week - repacking/repurposing info on r|intern ... the primary audience is the small business/solo practitioner ... HOWEVER while reminiscing on the chats from last night (with monica, robert and bryan), i am currently thinking about whether to pull content that also would be useful for students (from the perspective of someone who believes that students/prospective job candidates can understand how to get the most out of an internship or ANY time spent on an endeavor that can contribute to one's resume). nonetheless, for now, i'm likely to start out with background about myself, memories of looking for a job, starting business, former consulting practice, and former r|intern.

that said - - - if you wouldn't mind at least forwarding this info at least to monica and robert (bioengineering) ... given i'd mentioned what i'd set up as an internship ... i'd appreciate it.

also, if you want to share this w/other members, feel free to do so.

thanks again and perhaps i'll see some of you all again next spring. much continued success to pasae!

- shirl
b.s. chem e 1986

r|apprentern: a l'il intern with a dash of an apprentice ...

or for those that like math symbols (for which i do):
intern + apprentice = apprentern

merriam-webster's on-line dictionary says -

• intern
  : an advanced student or graduate usually in a professional field (as medicine or teaching) gaining supervised practical experience (as in a hospital or classroom)
• apprentice
  1 a: one bound by indenture to serve another for a prescribed period with a view to learning an art or trade
  b: one who is learning by practical experience under skilled workers a trade, art, or calling
  2: an inexperienced person
  

r|intern ... the precedent to r|apprentern is r|intern (or REALITY: intern). read a little about r|intern over here through a round of hyperlink hell. (and in future posts, i will repost r|intern content on this blog, where useful, rather than taking a stroll via hyperlink hell)

r|intern and reality tv cross paths ... while engaged in pre-r|intern and r|intern activities, often colleagues (and sometimes interns) would express how the small business/solo practitioner work experience we offered was more than just busy-work; it was in-your-face work experience that was very experiential.

in addition to the goals and objectives of r|intern, whether an intern wanted to learn about how a business was run, r|intern inherently offered such unintended insights. and whether a solo practitioner wanted an intern to hear about the bitching and moaning low points of business (e.g., non-paying clients, contract violations, subcontractor headaches), it was unavoidable during an r|intern work week. it was very easy to get cabin fever - relatively close quarters, continuously working, everyone's business was each other's "in-your-face" business (including cute, loving phone calls to significant others - or an occasional cursing-fit after phone calls with ill-mannered subcontractors or clients).

nevertheless, we realized and understood that given the time we spent with an intern, not only would an intern gain work experience but also life experience. and as a small business owner, one is ALWAYS AWARE that time spent is money. given the r|intern experience is essentially that period of time considered "non-billable, administrative" - we very much understood that time spent had to be viewed as an investment.

in the summer of 2004, a former intern mentioned the "unintended (valuable) insights" he gained about small business. and also around that time, donald trump's "the apprentice" was one of THE reality tv shows. so as we laughed and marveled about the apprentice - and cringed about omarosa - we couldn't deny that there have been r|intern tears shed on and off throughout the years - men & women. that said, we often/frequently reminded prospective, candidate r|interns know that the internship was not just a little job, it was kind of a boot camp for enviro(mental)-slaves (aka enviro-slaves). we always made sure to underscore the intensity and value of the experience. and we ALWAYS made sure to tell candidates that men & women r|interns have shed a few tears.

somewhere along the r|intern memories + reality tv shows chit-chat, there was mention that the r|intern experience seemed like an apprentice experience. so now after several years, having chewed on this for quite some time -

| drawing upon boot camp |
| affectionately acknowledging enviro-slave |
| building upon r|intern |
welcome r|apprentern

starting out "welcome!" ...

it's about time ... i've decided to start this rather somewhat past-due effort of jotting down my experiences and thoughts about being a solo practitioner/consulting business owner - one who ventured into the world of creating an internship program.

the experiences i have had ... they have been mutually beneficial. not only can a business benefit, but an internship experience (even for a small consulting practice) can provide personal and professional skills for the host business owner, for the intern (whether a student or a seasoned professional in career transition), or for all those served by the experience. it is not an experience to be looked at as burdensome - it is a privilege to serve and to contribute to the professional development of individual.

dedicating my time to this effort ... admittedly, starting this blog is a result of the news on november 10 of the death of my friend, jengyee liang.

the following is a repost from one of my other blogs (original over here).

... jengyee - passed on monday, nov 10, as a result of lupus. berkeley class of '05, she was a mentee and a friend. i am still processing the news. i received the news yesterday via e-mail.

i can truly say that i was (and am) the fortunate one who shared and learned much while she and i were mentor-mentee through cal's mentorship program. had a chance to contribute (the foreward) to her book, hello real world (and a little more on her hrw site) and have a little fun with r|wear.

and most importantly, i believe that she is definitely one of the people in my life that has inspired me.

as the morning continues ...
just a little more to share - it was evident this morning, during the rollercoaster of emissions, that focus and concentration were not going to play out very well at work. i have had a hard time even concentrating at home with the simplest of busy-tasks. that said, i decided to take the day off from work.

turns out i am not sure what i'm going to do the rest of the day, although i will say that i am glad for this time to myself - and for those whom i've talked with this morning. (i'll probably refrain from eating a pint of mac-n-cheese (i think i'll refrain), but i may go for the chocolate eclair. hee-hee.)

i have been playing conversations in my head that i remember between jengyee and me, i have saved an old voice mail msg she left, i've watched her toastmaster contest video (over here), and i have smiled because she did inspire me in many ways. i know that because of her, i jump-started a little intern blog. before her book was released, she asked, "If you feel inspired to create an intern-specific blog, I wanted to ask your permission for me to include a link to it from my book website (TBA next month-ish). I know your site would be fun. so i did create the blog (over here) - where it's best just to start reading from the beginning, jan 2006, if you are interested), and it was fun.