Whatafreak – The Blog

I haven’t updated in a while, I know.

Here’s the scoop…

Alright, so there’s no scoop. I lied, but I had your best interests at heart when I began writing this post, honest. It’s just that so little happens to me that it’s hard to come up with meaningful things to write about. I know some have expressed potential interest in the mundane, but I feel bad subjecting people to excitement for a new post with a quick follow-up of disappointment when it turns out I only wrote about the thick layer of dust that currently covers a large portion of my desk (ew, I should wipe that up).

Well, I am still half-heartedly saving money for school. I have $3000 officially saved as cash in a savings account. I have another $3000 or so in 2 different market-based accounts. My goal is to have $8000 or greater saved before I leave which should be possible at my current income level. My biggest problem is going out to eat when I am working. I spend around $8 a day on that alone (x5 days a week, x4 weeks a month = ~$160, yikes!).

Speaking of saving money, I now have 1.5TB of external HDD storage, thank you very much. I filled the first 750GB drive up a few weeks ago. I wanted the same kind of HDD, but they are no longer being manufactured. Ebay to the rescue! I was able to find an exact specimen in BNIB condition, which I much preferred over the other offerings. After a shipping mixup I was a bit wary, but the seller came through with excellent communication and it was resolved within a few days.

What dysphoric details these are…

Let me bore you no further. For want of a decent blog post, I make my valediction.

Farewell.

If it isn’t already apparent, I have decided to change the theme I am using for my blog. I don’t know if this is going to be the theme I end up using, but I like it for now and am giving it a trial run.

Interestingly enough, I have been accepted to George Fox University against all my prior expectations. I am awaiting some correspondence from the university that should get the ball rolling. Currently, the ball is moving at a glacial pace. I was beginning to become concerned about my application status, but a quick email to my admissions adviser resulted in a phone call from the same informing of my acceptance status. Good news, to be sure. (I wonder if my email resulted in a review of my application or if it was just some happy coincidence that the two happened nearly simultaneously?) I would be daft if I said I was not excited. Knowing that my time here is now on “limited” status is appealing to say the least.

Working for Comcast has been a financial boon for me, but I hate the job. No really, I do. I am hesitant to state this due to the possibility that someone might come across this and my career would be ended shortly. I feel like I need to get this off my chest though and my family has heard enough from me, I am sure. I don’t want to sound like a whiner as I know most people hate their jobs as well, but the endless promises of change with resulting total inaction from superiors is depressing at the least and maddening at the most. We are constantly reminded not to get overtime if at all possible, and yet are expected to complete 8 or more hours of work (as estimated by Comcast itself!) in 6 hours or less. If we get off of work on time, chances are that we haven’t done 8 hours worth of work. If we complete 8 hours of work, chances are that we got overtime. It’s a frustrating circle to be a part of. Both situations can result in a comment or two from supervisors or a full-blown “coaching” in an office with the door closed.

A quick note, I am currently working on a few small projects. I have purchased and built a small computer to act as a media center. I have it working right now, but not with all the features I eventually want. I still have to install the TV tuner card and tweak a few things in order for it to become the DVR/Media PC of my imagination. I also just ordered a slew of things to construct an electronics workshop of sorts. I am getting a new soldering iron, flux, solder, and various cleaning materials to begin experimentation and dabbling in electronics. I will probably start with some pre-made kits to get the ball rolling and move on from there. If anyone has any ideas, feel free to suggest in the comments.

We now join our previously scheduled rant already in progress…

… and so I told them exactly where they could stick that freaking thing, that’s what.

But, I digress.

Every time I talk with you Brad, I get all excited about school again, damn you.

You suck.

But thanks, I need a push every now and then, even if it’s something that I already know that I want. I become complacent, just floating along, hoping my destiny comes to me. If I want something to happen, I need to make it happen or at least give it the best try I’ve got. I feel like I’m going nowhere fast.

My financial debts are slowly fading, slowed by my insatiable techno-lust. As much as I love this new monitor, I could have put the money to a more constructive use. I have a clear goal in mind about this new computer I have built, aiming for a sort of all-in-one entertainment center and schoolwork aid. I love the monitor, and it has a clear advantage with games and video, but another reason I decided to get it instead of, say, a second monitor reaching for a dual-screen setup is with CAD programs. The vastly increased pixel real-estate will be VERY helpful during the design process. And yes, I plan on using my computer at least some of the time for this purpose even though the school will most likely have computer labs expressly for engineering projects. I get a very confined feeling while in those boring, dreary labs. I need music or TV or something to keep the ADD part of my brain occupied while I wrest away what precious few CPU cycles it can spare for schoolwork. The worst way of studying I can possibly imagine is silently in a hard chair with white walls.

I have the ability to “hyper”-focus, if you will. I can only describe it as tunnel vision for the mind. I get on one track, with one goal in mind. Inevitably, this goal shifts often so it feels like I never get anywhere. I can spend hours trying to move a picture in a web page I wrote from scratch, 3 hours earlier using CSS layout techniques, 1 pixel to the left and not even notice it. I got the study materials for a recent work-related competition nearly 23 hours in advance. 40 pages of unadulterated cable trivia that no person in their sane mind would know just for fun and I had 1 night to study it all. I don’t brag (usually I prefer the humble route) but I got roughly 80% of the points for my team of 5 guys. My name was being thrown around afterwards to possibly join the winning team (not mine, we got second) for the district competition. I was the only one that was even close to the right answer on the final question, and it was only for lack of time that I didn’t get the exact answer. I answered “40 miles” since my team was pretty much a bunch of dunderheads about this question (save for one), but the correct answer was “39.28″ miles. I mean c’mon, I was close, I knew it! The other teams were throwing out trash answers like “6 kilometers” (we were supposed to convert a calculated distance in kilometers to miles) and “4.6 miles”. At another friendly cable competition, I got first place overall. I got first place in events I literally had never done before. Sure, I saw someone do it once, but come on. There were maintenance guys competing with me, they are supposed to do this every day! That competition entitles me to a trip to another city on Comcast’s dime to compete again. I get paid for that day to do nothing but have fun, how cool is that? I don’t think it quite makes up for the myriad of other issues I have with this job, but it certainly helps to break up the monotony. I don’t see why I am one of few who volunteer for things like this.

Where was I going with this? Eff, I don’t know. Point is, sometimes I feel like I have (possibly) an elevated level of intelligence, and other times, like with events of past regarding douche-bags named “Derek”, I feel like a huge, embarrassing failure. Sometimes I feel like a nut, and sometimes I don’t.

Did I mention that my monitor kicks some major ass? It’s my new TV, the last major step towards making my system the entertainment powerhouse I wanted it to be.

I’m running out of blogging steam. I’ll try to post a little more often, Brad. I know you are the only one that reads this thing anyways…