An Endorsement!

I realize that Thanksgiving was last week, but I still wanted to give thanks about something that I almost never give thanks about - my job.

I work for Yasutomo & Company in South San Francisco, CA. This company was founded over 50 years ago by Mr. Yasutomo - a Japanese American - and has been dealing with the import of Japanese and other Asian art and office supplies during this entire time. They are also the leading exporter of American made candy and snack items to Japan (Lifesavers, Planters, Carmel Popcorn - that sort of thing). I only know enough about snack items to say that I've sampled everything we sell to Japan. And I know even less about Japanese art supplies. Nevertheless, here I am.

Part of the reason I love Yasutomo is that it is the complete opposite of my last job - purposefully. When I reached the end of my tether for Century Theatres, I was faced with two options - and since one of them involved arson and mass murder, I decided to take the other option. My job search, after a week spent kaschnoodling in Las Vegas, lasted two days. I faxed out my resume to two jobs and had interviews with both jobs scheduled in less than an hour. I went to the Yasutomo interview first - I was applying for a customer service position - and I fell in love with the company in about twenty minutes. I had a job offer from them before I had even taken the other interview. Though I went to the other interview, in my heart I had already signed with Yasutomo.

What's there not to like? For starters, it is a small company of only about 20 people. Everyone here gets a certain amount of individual attention and I know every single person in my company. We all generally get along - but in any family, there are bound to be disagreements. We all work hard and are rewarded for our hard work. There is a very real sense of being in the same boat together - not of being the first rats into the lifeboats the second things go bad. It doesn't pay much, but I am not suffering because of it. The commute is short. The area where I work is nice and business parky. And there are plenty of good places to eat within a short distance.

Yasutomo and Company offers some pretty cool products. We were the first company to import Japanese pens into the United States market. Japanese pens are to ball point pens what Swiss Watches are to a Spongebob Squarepants Burger King watch. If you only need a cheap piece of crap, go to Burger King. If you want a pen that will last you a lifetime, buy Japanese.

But beyond pens, Yasutomo also imports dozens of packages of Origami paper. These colorful square sheets of paper are not only good for folding origami, but can also be used to teach children Geometry, and as backgrounds for scrapbooking and other craft projects. If you've never seen an origami covered wooden Easter Egg, you don't know what you're missing. And some of the simple origami designs that even I can do are quite beautiful and elegant.

We also sell the best gel pens on the market. Recently that guy that Leonardo DiCaprio played in the movie, Catch Me If You Can - the one who was an expert at forging checks - said that if you want to make it difficult for check forgers to steal your checks and identity, you should always sign your checks with Gel ink. I've been signing my checks that way ever since (and nobody has stolen my paltry amount of savings yet, so it must be working ;) Not only that, but gel pens are pretty cheap and they write smoothly and consistently for a very long time.

We carry a wide variety of other products, from giant mechanized hole punches to cotton swabbed color blending sticks, as well. Our Stylist pens have been the industry leader amongst Architects for over 25 years. Name the last product that you sold that lasted 25 years, much less one that remained the best in class that entire time.

I say all this because I love my job. And I love Yasutomo. For as long as I could talk trash about the now defunct Century Theatres, I can sing the praises of Yasutomo.

Two years ago, I left the customer service department and took over as the Product Manager/Purchasing Agent/Part Time IT Person/Inventory Prognosticator/Sales Analyst/Web Consultant/Vice President of Special Projects That Nobody Else Wants To Do. As is typical in a small company, its sometimes hard to define my job description. But no matter what I do on a given day, I find that I'm always challenged and that I'm always in demand. Its good to feel wanted. Its good to contribute. And its good to work with people you love and respect.

Really, what more can you ask for?

P.S. Congratulations to my sister on her new job. Which she can't talk about. ;)