Big Week

Next week is going to be a big week. As of today, I have 9 job interviews, with the possibility of 2 more. They're all audit positions with public accounting firms, which range in size from Big 4 companies to medium-sized local firms. I'm pretty excited, as well as a little nervous. If any of these interviews lead to something, I'll receive a job offer before Christmas, which would make the rest of the school year a lot less stressful for me, and probably ease Brooke's mind quite a bit. If not, it won't be the end of the world - most of the firms will be back in the winter to do more recruiting for next fall.

School is still going pretty well. I had two exams last week, which I did okay on. I'll have two more next week, along with a case for my cost management class.

Last week was an adventure. Our air conditioning was out for about 5 days, and since it's still 100 degrees here, we had to find places to stay. If you want all the details, check out Brooke's blog.

Also, on Sunday, Abigail participated in her first Primary Program in sacrament meeting. She did her part very well and I am very proud of her.

I haven't mentioned anything about ASU football in a while, probably because there's not much good to say. The game against UGA was not all bad, though. They didn't get absolutely curb-stomped by the Bulldogs. The game was somewhat competitive, and when ASU scored early in the second half to make it 21-10, I thought it might turn into a good game. ASU couldn't take advantage of the situation, however. I thought their offensive game-plan had some flaws, and they were unable to exploit any weakness that the Georgia defense may have had. Georgia played a cover 2 all night, and ASU refused to do anything but throw 5 and 10 yard curls and outs. I would have liked to see them take some chances (they needed to take chances to beat Georgia) and throw down the middle of the field, splitting the cover 2. But Rich Olson, the offensive coordinator, was fired from the Cardinals for being too conservative, so I really shouldn't expect anything else.
Overall, I'm pretty pleased with what Dennis Erickson has accomplished in his short time at ASU. He's definitely recruited well, and the defense has gotten better. But the offense has struggled at times, due to a lack of creativity or sophistication. Last year, I chalked it up to a simplified offense due to it being Erickson's first year. He even made comments during the off season that implied that that was the case. The offense hasn't looked any different this year, though. They may line up in spread formations, with 4 and 5 receivers, and give fans the impression that what they're doing is cutting edge, or innovative, or whatever, but the reality is that the offense is incredibly bland, and doesn't do much to really challenge a defense. The problem with all this is that ASU doesn't have the talent to get away with such a simple offense, like the USCs, Ohio States and LSUs do. And Rich Olson's experience says he's not capable of anything different. I think Coach Erickson should consider finding a new OC. I've always been jealous of Oregon's offense and think Chip Kelly is a genius - maybe that's the direction he should go.

Here's another good article on the financial crisis. Also, John Stossel and Thomas Sowell have more on the subject.