Ka-ching: When the (first) salary gets too overwhelming

I remember the first time I got my first paycheck during my internship. I got paid weekly and surprisingly, in contrast of my wasteful, extravagant life in LA, I spent a lot less in Florida. My fellow intern whom I shared a housing with, somehow encouraged me to cook at home on weekdays, and even on weekends instead of dining out. As a result, with the paycheck kept on coming, I came to the my most properous state in my life. Even after spending some on leisure like going to Orlando attractions, the amount kept on escalating it reached to a point I became overwhelmed. “What to do with all this money I earned?”

I was younger (slightly from now) and more immature. It all reached to a peak somehow. Last Thanksgiving, I went Black Friday shopping with my intern friends in Orlando. Wallets loaded. Bills were ready to fly out of them. I texted my mom and dad “I will do some massive shopping tonight. Get ready.” They were okay with it since my spending would mostly come out of my own earning.

Why I Chose to Intern at a Non-Graphic Design Studio

Writer's Note: To protect any names or brands, I will not use the actual names or display pictures that directly show the brand of the company or anything related to it.


September last year, I faced the toughest decision in my entire university period. Three offers came to me all at once. Each of these offers promises a great opportunity for me that would contribute to my future design career. One thing for sure at that point: I would skip Fall semester to do either one of these offers, which was truly a blessing after continuously taking classes at school.

Two of the promising offers were for internship, something I really needed to fill out some blank space in my resume. On early June, I attended an on-campus recruitment event, where I got to sit down and talk with potential employers. Out of four interviews, I scored two of them.

Lift-Off: The Essay

Writer's note: This essay was written as a part of Spring 2015 Type and Authorship class at Art Center College of Design.


At first, there were just hums.

Then the sound escalated. It came off like a purr, followed by a low thundering sound that echoed in the space. Nobody had spoken a word when the sound started. There were just silence filling the air, lenses held up in frozen hands, overlooking the cape. Billion eyes were searching as the thundering sound was continuing to fill the space with its glorious echo. Moments of anticipation had started early that Thursday morning and it continued even after the countdown started. Hearts pounded as the number got smaller.