Evelyn Zhang

 Lucerne Snow mountain, is always the most inspiring place I visit across our travels, from Mont-Tremblant to the Canadian Rockies and then to the Swiss mountains. Booking a vacation for me was always a last minute to do, I started with Germany Berlin, to Iceland with A to and then to Swizerland, and still didn't make up my mind. N suddenly wrote to me, she was coming to Basel conferences, asking me if I want to go there as well. "YAY, I thought, 5 days before the vacation day, I will crash into her staying in Switzerland too, what a perfect timing to see her in Europe instead of New York this time!" After asking the place she stayed in Lucerne, I booked the same hotel for D and me, and extended the vacation to Interlaken after that weekend. "Yopi Yopi" goes my husband in his mind, but yet, who told me he didn't like travelling around.  Friday, I sent last email for the first UAT H assigned to me, and at that time, I still doubted if I did well, for Corporat...

  Charity gala YCPA, my first encounter to a good cause community service, all volunteer basis, to become the member of the organizing team of the charity gala, the first of its kind in M, for SC. People questioned, including my employer, my best friend, and in our own meetings, what is the purpose of this organization. K, who founded the association from scratch, had cold called all the major companies in Montreal to seek for sponsorship and funding for his visions, once told me that he held this place, hoping to see that more Asian young people getting involved in the politics, he finds that not enough of us get involved enough. Having a voice, making a difference, become the leader, in probably the most international country in the world, is becoming not only an ambition, it’s transforming into a responsibility. Diversity, is needed in the modern society, not only in a company or micro communities, it’s needed as a society, and having people from all backgrounds leading as the...

Sitting beside the window facing Toronto downtown, most glamorous skyscrapers from all major banks in the city filled our view, from the sunrise to the twinkling night. The building nearest is the CIBC tower in construction, and then the golden Royal Bank tower shining in the morning sun and TD's black and solemn 4 tours located beside each other, and lastly, the highest in the view would be the BMO building, with blue and red logo on the very top, contrasting rest of the city landscape with white shaded glasses. Life started very well in the new city, Bay street is a perfect location for new arrivers who love the city life, surrounded by the core part of the financial district and minutes walk from the most beautiful board walk in the Harbour Front. All the best of the downtown within at our footsteps, waiting for us to explore as soon as the pandemic takes its end and everything comes to life again, hopefully, will be sometimes soon during this year. Condo searching at the peak o...

One year, it’s the time people expect me to be back to Montreal already. Yet, we are still here, and life gives me a surprising side that I never expected to see and feel. Let’s take it to the first time I moved here. It was August 2018, half crying and half excited, I packed two suit cases and flied to Stockholm to join Syed in the new city. Nobody at home took me seriously, colleagues at work all told me that I will be back again. I loved PSP sooo much, I wanted to stay there forever if I could. It was investment management, it was the best company to work for in finance on the Montreal island.  Stockholm is a beautiful city, I jogged every day around the Lake Mälaren, it was such a nice time break off from work and be able to enjoy life to do something I wished for long time, just do sport everyday, I was conscious that my physics were very weak. Not knowing anyone and anywhere in the new city made me feel lonely. It was the summer when all countries in the world are selling out...

Disney made a movie called Monster Inc. It was about a world of stuffed Monsters who are working in a energy factory, and their way of sustain energy was based on tears and cries from the babies, until, they found a little girl who didn’t take the cry but with gave them laughs at monster’s grimace, and suddenly, the machine starts to bump boosts of energy back to the Monster world again, with more power than tears. It was a smart and funny and meaningful movie, and yet, who would have believed that making people laugh is more powerful as a motivator than making them cry, even in the real world? Finance team in North America, known for it's solid establishment of internal controls and accuracy for financial reporting, didn’t have any numbers in the auditor's scorecard for 6 six years while I was there. At work, there was stressed managers and crying analysts, star or non star performers. I flew 11 hours to the Nordic world, just found out that high accuracy can also be effective...