I wanted to note something I noticed today and yesterday about the customer service in California. It beats the pants off of anything I’ve seen in Halifax.

Since we’ve gotten here we normally travel in a very large group - about 15 or so reps plus trainers - anywhere we go. This being said, when we swarm in, all wearing the same shirt I might add, they don’t skip a beat. 15 prepaid cell phones, all activated on the spot, please? Sure, no problem. I was very impressed with Radio Shack when we stormed in for our phones.

Another similar situation was this morning when we marched into Wells Fargo unannounced to open 18 checking accounts. No hesitation, no delays, we were organized and began processing without skipping a beat.

On another note, we get to knock our first house tomorrow. Am I prepared? I hope so. I will post about it tomorrow.

I think I beat my brother Colin in the race of posting this first.

Rogers has finally made a deal with Apple to bring us lucky Canadians the iPhone.

Full Story Here.

A Whale’s Vagina.

I made it. Well, we made it. The flights were event-less. It was my first experience with the new Air Canada individual en Route entertainment so I enjoyed a couple movies, Jumpers and Bucket List, both at my own pace, along with a lot of Just for Laughs TV shows. Departing Halifax at 6am AST, and with a 2 hour stop over in Montreal to clear customs, I arrived at the LAX airport at 11:30am local time and was greeted by 34+ degree, sunny weather.

Equipped with a phone number and a name - that was suppose to get me a ride to San Diego - I took on the airport with a smile. Smiling is something that comes naturally to me, but after a short while and a few calls it quickly faded. What did I learn? an 8 hour wait in the Airport before the shuttle was to take us to San Diego. It seemed I arrived at the worst time. Just too late to catch the other couple guys heading to the beach for the day, and very much too early for this wait to be something I could consider acceptable.

Needless to say I quickly escaped from the sweat shop that was my jeans and sweater and changed into a more manageable attire. The next 8 hours, that actually turned into 10 hours, were a little bit of a blur, but they included running the battery in my laptop completely dry, 2 or 3 hot chocolates from Starbucks, a Subway sub - which was extremely cheap in comparison to home - and lots of trips to the bathroom, which with two big suitcases is not an easy task I might add.

The heavily Spanish-accented notice that came across the intercom about once every 5 minutes reminded me time and time again that I was in fact a prisoner to these two suitcases, unable to leave them outside of my vision or “proper authorities” may confiscate them. So wherever I went, for 10 hours, followed two awkwardly-carried suitcases and a backpack.

Finally things fell together and the 8 of us who were suppose to meet up did so, and took off for San Diego. It’s impressive how upbeat a group of 8 sales-people are, especially considering how tired we were. And so here I am, after the sleepless Saturday night getting pulled together, 8 hours in the air, 10 hours roaming around LAX airport, and the 2 hour shuttle ride, I sit half asleep at our temporary stay at the Lafayette Hotel and Suites.

Tomorrow? Training. Essentials Shopping. And moving into our not-yet-furnished apartments. Go air mattresses!

But I have arrived, safe and sound in San Diego. Tired, but excited. More will follow.

Trying to wrap up everything before I leave - including exams - has made my web-presence very minimal at best. Bear with me until things are finished up and there will be many-an-update.

Countdown is now at 5 days.

For those of you that might not have heard the news, I am heading to California for the summer. The details have been ironed out and I will be living in San Diego. I’ve been waiting for things to finalize before I made this post.

Plane ticket is booked. Visa papers are on schedule. Door-to-door sales pitch is being finalized.

Door-to-door sales? Yes. I will be selling security systems with a team of 12 or so guys and girls from around Halifax. After landing in California on the 27th of April, we’ll be taking care of the nitty-gritty, such as opening new bank accounts, getting a local cell phone, and stocking the place with groceries and essentials. Then we will be hitting the streets later that week.

When I tell people I will be selling door-to-door, as imaged, I receive a variety of responses. Most people don’t believe that a company is willing to fly us down and house us for a summer to sell, it must be a scam. Others think it’s a horrible idea and no base wage equals no money made. I’ve heard everything from only ex cons that can’t get any other job do door-to-door sales to “you will likely get yourself shot.”

Luckily there are those that think it’s a great idea, and a great experience. Personally, I think it will not only be a great experience, but a great opportunity to see part of California while making some decent cash. Not to mention new friends and a great time.

So the countdown is on. 13 days and I will be waiting for my connecting flight in Montreal. Now if only these exams would be over so I could start getting excited.

Classes are ending and the weather is warm. It reached 13 degrees here today, and there was no hesitation to break out the t-shirt and shorts with flip flops. Why wait for summer, right?

The one thing I like most about Spring is happening right now. People are putting away their winter-moods and breaking out the summer-mood. It really doesn’t take long to notice it walking around the city. People smile more. Drivers are more polite - so are the pedestrians. I think the roofers redoing our roof even felt a little guilty when they woke me up this morning at 7am. Well, maybe not.

Regardless, Halifax is perking up and getting a taste of the warm weather ahead. Downtown. Waterfront. Patio drinking. I’m going to miss the city this summer.

Classes are ending, which brings final projects and presentations along with exams. Balancing this with getting ready for the summer has left little time for blogging. I will return when my schedule gets back on track.