I can't remember much of what I learned in college. The eight years seems like a blur from a distant lifetime. But something I will never forget is the concept of "opportunity cost". For those of you who didn't take macroeconomics, it goes like this. Say you spend 200 bucks on cat toys. Then that's 200 bucks you can't spend on your car insurance or food, for example. Therefore the opportunity cost of the cat toys is the insurance or the food. It's a pretty simple concept.

Today my good friends Rutger and Marielle are having their wedding reception in Amsterdam. We met almost exactly three years ago in a mini bus going from Bangkok to Siem Reap in northern Cambodia. They had quit their jobs as DHL managers in Holland and were on a year long trip around the world. I had been laid off from Electronic Arts just before my scheduled vacation to South East Asia. We hit it off immediately. We hung out together in Siem Reap, Phnom Penh and Sianoukville. Then I had to go home. When I came back to South East Asia in Apirl, this time Indonesia, we crossed paths again in Bali where Rutger and Marielle had rented a small house. When they came the States, we spent a few days in and around San Francisco. Since then, Rutger and Marielle have moved back to Holland and I went into the Peace Corps, but we've stayed in touch by email.

I supposed to go Amsterdam for the wedding. I was really psyched to go. On top of that, I was going to housesit their place while they went on their honeymoon. But the opportunity cost of taking a job that started last week was canceling my trip. Like I said, opportunity costs suck, but I really needed to get to work.

While I'm not there in person, I'm definitely all there in spirit. Not that you need it, but best of luck, Rutger and Marielle. You guys were made for each other.