I've really started a new chapter in my life: enjoying summer, starting work, and moving to Arizona.

Enjoying summer included going to the gym, moving homes, leasing out my old house, and seeing friends. That concluded quickly, nonetheless.

Work is interesting. To sum it up, I'm enlisted in a boot camp. I'd like to think of it as a West Point sort of academy, since graduating from this 2-year contract is promising, career-wise. However, whatever the company throws at me, I'll need to suck it up and do my best. Specifically, I've been transferred to Phoenix, Arizona with very little notice. Two weeks into working in southern California, I find out I'm going to Arizona. Two weeks into Arizona... China.

8/20 - 9/10: Shenzhen, China
9/10 - 10/9: Taipei, Taiwan
10/9: Permanent relocation to Arizona

The purpose of this business trip is to basically learn more about the company and develop relationships necessary to my success as a Field Application Engineer (FAE). I'll go ahead and clarify two things. What's an FAE? We're basically an engineer who's been dispatched to a customer to connect the factory/manufacturer (us) to the customer so we can make the right product at the cheapest price. What kind of company do I work for? We're a contract manufacturer, constructing electronic products for end users like yourself. We're also the largest corporation that nobody knows about.

Which brings me to a predicament: finding a place to live. I've narrowed down my search to three apartments. Maybe someone can help me choose:

1) Grigio
Pros: Close to the night life. Alongside a river. Niiice gym (don't have to buy membership). Close to ASU (lots of rich students will live here). Third floor, so nice views. Garaged parking. Lots of events going on and many hang-out places. Far from work (good separation between work and home).
Cons: $850. $3000 contract breaking fee.

2) The Greens
Pros: $650. Close to work. Private garage. Near Asian stuff. Easy breaking fee (2-months' rent)
Cons: Scorpions because we're next to a golf course. First floor.

3) San Marbeya
Pros: Close to the night life. Nice pool. Farther away from work.
Cons: $867.

So, I guess it's a matter of deciding between wanting to pay $200 more for more amenities and a more dorm-like life... or living in a more mature, adult environment for a lot cheaper. Hopefully, I can decide soon...

Did I mention I bought a 2010 Lexus IS250... all by myself?!

This past quarter, I've been taking one of my senior design courses. It involves participating in a competition to invent the best can crusher. By "best," we are to create an electromechanical device that crushes a can in less than 30 seconds with a budget of $200. It has to crush three cans consecutively, be within 4 cubic feet, and weigh less than 25 pounds. In the end, they measure the crushed volume and take the time with a stopwatch, putting the values in a formula to tell us our score--the lower the better, and may the best team win.

Our device "crushes" the can in 3 seconds. We decided to be creative and cut the lids off before crushing it, so when it does crush, it will be a flat piece of metal. The professor was so excited about it that he said that if we actually cut the can, he'll count the volume as ZERO! So, here's the final product: