After months of watching government spending that is out of control, followed by dropping off our 2009 taxes at the post office yesterday, I was in the mood to express my frustration with the way our federal government is being run.  And it looks like I had lots of company.  At the Tea Party Rally at Sam Houston Racetrack, thousands of people came out to show their support for the cause.

Specifically the core values of the Tea Party Patriots include: Free Markets, Limited Government, Fiscal Responsibility and Upholding the Constitution.  The folks at the rally were wonderful, and the speakers did a great job of expressing the dissatisfaction felt by many in the crowd with our national politicians and the policies they've introduced.  We have a 12 trillion dollar deficit, spending that is out of control, and the economy is in a mess.

Posted by Vic Cherubini on April 16, 2010

February 2, 2010 – Anyone who has spent any time at epic can tell you we take internships seriously. We have worked with student interns from the inception of the company. At times we have had as many as eight interns doing everything from programming to 2D and 3D animation, and video production. I expect a lot from an intern, and most rise to the occasion and deliver. I first learned about the internet from an intern (he was using an early version at A&M University), and interns usually introduce me to cool things well before they become mainstream.

Sometimes when an internship is over, I wonder if the experience was a positive one, and if the student got anything out of it (besides course credit). So when an intern from the past sends me a note to let me know how they are doing, it really makes my day. Recently I got one such note from Lucas Wagner, who did his internship at epic in 1993! Luc was hardly a model intern. He had been transplanted from Ohio to Houston and uprooting a high school student can be tough on them (and all those around them).

Posted by Vic Cherubini on February 03, 2010

December 08, 2009 – For most of us, the economy has been a real challenge over the past year, but for recently minted college grads, it has been particularly hard to transition from school to the world of full time work. I know this because it hits close to home.  Our daughter Ali, graduated Louisiana State University (LSU) in August, and is one of those folks trying to kick start her career land her first meaningful job. She came home for Thanksgiving and we worked on her resume and cover letter and talked about moving from Baton Rouge to a city like Dallas where the job prospects would be better for someone with a BS in Psychology.

I wanted to give her the best advice I could. I found no shortage of online resources including articles, podcasts, videos and other reference items offering tips and techniques for the job seeker. But I wanted to give her more than that – I wanted to help her realize her passion, figure out a strategy, and come up with a game plan to make it happen. That is something you can’t find on any web site I’ve ever been to. While it is natural for a parent to want to provide “all the answers”, the journey she is about to embark upon is personal, and everyone is different. What I was hoping to do was to provide her with some tools she could use to draw a road map that is uniquely her own.

Posted by Vic Cherubini on December 08, 2009

November 21, 2009 – 28 years ago when I moved to Texas, I heard about the Texas Aggie Bonfire and watched it a number of times on TV. I always wanted to go to one, but never seemed to find the time. Then, ten years ago, a tragic accident claimed the lives of 12 students. Texas A&M University banned future bonfires, and with the ban, my hopes of ever experiencing one was over. That changed this past Saturday night when we attended (and participated in) a commemorative bonfire put on by an Aggie couple in Conroe, TX. How we came to be part of this special event is an interesting story as well.

This past summer a number of very old, very large pine trees on epic property died. The drought made the trees susceptible to invasion by pine bark beetles. Some of these trees were 60-70 feet tall, and measured 36 inches in diameter at the base. One was close enough to our building that there was no doubt it needed to come down (in a very controlled way). I was not sure the best way to handle this, so I called the Montgomery County Extension Service to see if the trees could be harvested by a timber company, and to find out what to do with them after they were cut down.



Posted by Vic Cherubini on November 23, 2009

November 18, 2009 - Congratulations are in order to BMA Houston 2009 Lantern Awards Chair Stephanie Robertson and her volunteer committee for yet another successful event, and an evening to remember. Over 380 people attended the awards ceremony, and in the process, have helped kick off the funding for our 2010 student Internship and Scholarship programs.

While most marketing budgets were severely cut this past year, you would not know it by the quality of the work displayed on the 43rd floor of the Petroleum Club. I always like to attend these events because I come away inspired by the work of those who are faced with communicating information about complex products and services to the business community.

Posted by Vic Cherubini on November 18, 2009

September 25, 2009 - I came to epic in early June looking for an internship and haven't looked back.  Like most graduating students I was required to complete an internship in order to graduate.  Hearing about the stories and uninspiring experiences from fellow students about their internships I was a little skeptical.  However, shortly after my first week here I knew this was not your typical internship.

  

Posted by Andrew on September 25, 2009