A good job is a cherished thing. A great job is rare.
The Milwaukee Bucks drafted a Chinese basketball player named Yi Jianlian. He is seven foot tall, thin like a greyhound and can shoot soft jump shots. He stands to make the rookie maximum of $4 million the first year.
Guess what? Yi don't want to play in Milwaukee and he refuses to talk to his new employer (the Milwaukee Bucks organization). He wants to play in a big "chinese populated" city like New York, Los Angeles or Atlanta.
It is good thing that his name is Yi rather than (Ying Yang) as in "up yours". Worse yet would be Long Duck Dong (the exchange student in Sixteen Candles).
Now my rant! Who does Yi think he is? The National Basketball Association makes the rules, pays outrageous salaries and generally provides a fantastic standard of living. Yi has been offered a job and he essentially has said "stick it". If I owned the Milwaukee Bucks I'd move on and tell Yi to stuff his attitude up his ying yang and go live with Long Duck Dong.
I guess it is a sign of the times. There is this attitude that the world owes me a living. What ever happened to being grateful for a $4 million per year job. It buys a lot of Chinese rice. Theoretically, Yi could play for one year, save most of money and never have to work again. Am I missing something here?
I know I don't understand the Chinese culture. If the merge of Chinese and American cultures proves difficult, it seems $4 million per year to start with the prospect of $15 million per year in the future should solve many problems.
The lesson here Grasshoppers is that if somebody offers you a job for $4 million a year, take it. You are one of the chosen few to make that kind of money. Better yet quit whining.
Love,
Dad