School is officially out! I officially have a masters degree in Computer Science! I feel smart... I ended up with a 3.67 GPA... only getting 3 B's the whole time, two of which were from the same teacher... and then the third I got (a B+ to be more precise) was in compilers. The only reason it wasn't an A is because every assignment built on the the previous ones, and in the first assignment I messed up slightly, but it wasn't graded until after the second one was due... so I had the same problem with the second assignment... ARG... oh well! I AM DONE!

My printer decided it is a good week to stop working... right when I have a ton of things to print at the end of the semester. I think it stopped working because I haven't printed anything on it for so long... I have used the one in my office on campus, but now that I have graduated, I no longer have access to my office... and this week all the computer labs were closed. I ended up having to go to Walmart and buy a $30 one.

So much has happened this week, I'll have to update later and explain it all, for now, I am going to take a nap. I have huge decisions coming in the next few days, and so I have to try and get some sleep.

Labels: grad school

Florida State University's circus is celebrating their 60th anniversary, and for the first time during my attendance here I went to see it along with Nithin and two of his friends. I was amazed at how well the students performed... The entire show was put together by students of FSU. They made a few mistakes here and there, but if you saw the things they were attempting, you would be amazed just at the attempts. Growing up I only went to one Circus because my mom is highly allergic to, well... everything, but in this case animal dander. I forgive her though, she at least took me to one!

On the job front: I seem to have done well on my first technical phone interview, because now the company wants to fly me out for another one. I really have to find a way to relax during these things! My heart rate skyrockets, I start sweating like a dog, and I can't process words very well. No matter how much I try to calm down, I just can't do it. Interviewing has always been a huge fear of mine, one that I have tried hard to overcome by mock interviews etc... Nothing seems to work... During this interview I wasn't sure what to expect... I had read some websites about what to expect, but I hadn't been in the situation yet, so maybe that made me more nervous... I totally went blank on some very easy questions, so thought I was bombing it. I guess I got the point across that I really like to program, and that, when I get into a project, I own it completely.

On this upcoming Tuesday I have a second interview with another company that I have dreamed about working for since high school. I am very nervous about it, after this last interview I went out and bought books about technical interviews with big companies such as this one, and plan on reading as much of them as possible before then. The only problem with that is that I have a huge Compiler's program due Wednesday, and an Analytical Methods assignment due Friday (these "assignments" take anywhere between 60-100 hours to complete, and I have so far only had time to put a good 15 into it). My favorite e-store has also contacted me about a potential job and wants my availability for a "technical phone interview" that I should be "prepared to code" for... Well, how do you code over the phone? I guess I'll find out.

On top of my school work and job search, I am trying to find renters for my house, and on top of it all this next week I have to work extra hours because the Computer Literacy II class has their tests to take. OH! And it seems that my whole family thinks this next week is a perfect time to visit!

Labels: family, florida state university, grad school, lori folts, nithin sathyamoorthy, work

1300+ miles each way... Long drive, but well worth it. Last week was Spring break and Dmitri and I drove ALL the way to Boston (24 hour drive, with only food and restroom breaks) to see my best friend Megan. We stayed there for 3 nights and she gave us a tour of the historical parts of the city. We saw Paul Revere's house, as well as the church he lit up... We also went to the original Cheers restaurant, pretty cool place!

After Boston we drove out to Vermont and stayed 4 nights .5 miles from the base of the ski slopes! It was absolutely great. When we weren't skiing, we were relaxing (something that I don't get to do often in grad school!)... Of course, knowing my luck, we got the coldest week EVER recorded in Vermont for March... -15 degrees Fahrenheit, without the wind chill, and the wind was 20-30 miles an hour! I mean gosh, the second day was so cold that we couldn't ski, so we went to the mall in the town over. The car refused to start for a good 2 minutes (rather new car, it was just too cold)... The windshield wiper fluid was rated to work as low as -25 degrees, but it was frozen solid. Anyways, once we finally got to the mall, we bought some books and went back to the hotel and read all day. Quite nice indeed!

Labels: best friend, boston, grad school, skiing, vacation

Last Sunday Nithin, Kelley, Kelley's roommate, and I all drove down to Tampa to see the Red Hot Chili Peppers perform for their Stadium Arcadium tour. For those of you who don't know, it is a 4 hour drive from Tallahassee to Tampa. We arrived there at around 5:00 PM and doors opened at 6:30 PM, so we walked from the venue to look for a restaurant. After finding a ton, we eventually decided on Bennigan's, where we received some of the worst service ever. After that we headed back in time for the opening band Gnarls Barkley, who were okay, but I only knew their famous song, and just weren't able to pump me up for the greatness I was about to witness.

The four of us had split the cost of joining the fan club in order to buy tickets during the pre-sale, which was a wonderful idea because we were only a few rows back and to the side of the stage. They played for an hour and a half straight! There are only a handful of bands that I have seen (U2, Crosby Steels Nash and Young, Nine Inch Nails, and Foo Fighters) that can outperform the Chili Peppers, but even they would have struggled that night. Last time I saw the Peppers the show was better, but that was only because they were touring with Foo Fighters and I am a bigger fan of their old music since I have been listening to it since I was 14. They only played a few of their older songs since their latest CD has so many new ones.

The drive home started at 11:30 PM, and as I mentioned before it is a 4 hour drive... I downed two energy drinks, and made everyone stay up to play 20 questions. 3 hours of 20 questions and we still didn't get very good at guessing, maybe we were choosing items that were too specific. I stumped them on:

1. The Oscar Mayer Weiner Truck
2. a particular exit we passed on 75
3. a Hydrogen Molecule (h2o particularly)

These, along with a few others. It was quite fun! Once we got back to Tallahassee I had to drop everyone off, so I didn't get home till nearly 4:00 AM, I still wired from my energy drinks, so told myself I was going to stay up since I had class in the morning anyway. Well, that didn't work too well, I made it to 7:30 but then passed out, sleeping through my classes until late in the afternoon. I should have bought more energy drinks, oh well, next time...

Yesterday I had my first Compilers test, it went well, and I am hoping it went really well, but I think it just went plain-old well. There were 2 questions I wasn't sure on, but other than that I knew what I was doing. I actually figured out that question 2 had no answer and so got everyone credit for it, it would have been nice to get twice as much credit as them for figuring it out, but hey, I'm not greedy. I also turned in my first assignment for that class, it was pretty fun, we had to create a pascal-like language to java byte code compiler. Now all I have for the next few days is to start working on my assignment for Analytical Methods "oh boy!"

Labels: concert, grad school, kelley jones, music, nithin sathyamoorthy, red hot chili peppers

This semester is going to be hectic, but exciting at the same time. I am excited about teaching Computer Literacy II recitation, looking for a job, and most importantly graduation. It also looks like I am going to be creating the website for Alpha Gamma Delta sorority... There sure is a lot on my plate right now, but as I mentioned, I am excited.

My sister came down with mononucleosis and is thinking about withdrawing from this semester. I've been taking care of her for the last few days. I've been sleeping on the sofa so that she could sleep on my memory-foam-super-ultra-comfortable-600-thread-count-sheet-luxury bed.

Last week I found and saved two stray dogs. A 100 pound golden retriever and an 80 pound black lab. They haven't found the owners last time I checked, but hopefully they will soon. I wanted to keep them, but since I already have two dogs, and these two were gigantic, I figured that wouldn't work out too well in my small apartment.

Lastly, I just wanted to mention how great of a resource monster.com is. I put my resume up there earlier this week and I have already gotten 3 calls, and 4 emails. Looks like I'll have a lot of choices for the future. One of the jobs is in Colorado Springs, which is really exciting because then I'll be near the ski slopes... I still don't know where I'll end up, but hopefully somewhere near the mountains. Well, monster.com is just full of head hunters that spam your email, and call you at all times of the day... don't bother wasting your time there... goto websites individually

Labels: dogs, family, grad school, megan folts, work

Well, Thanksgiving was very much appreciated... If it weren't for such a great holiday then I wouldn't have been able to get a break from school and work... The week prior I slept very little in order to finish all my huge school projects early, so that I could use the entire Thanksgiving week for relaxation. I headed down south to my parent's house last Friday, and didn't come home until this past Sunday. On the way down my sister Megan and I stopped in G-ville and had dinner at Friday's for Patti's 24th birthday. Unfortunately we got there right during rush hour so we had to wait nearly an hour before Patti made it there. I was glad to see her despite how little time we had!

On Saturday I decided I was going to camp out for a Wii since my previous attempts of pre-ordering it failed. I headed out at around 7:00 PM thinking 5 hours before it was sold would be plenty... I had heard every Walmart would have around 50 Wii's... Well, that was before they sold them to their employees first... I went to both the closest Walmarts and I was told that the line was already longer then the magical number of Wii's being sold... Depressed, I headed home and decided that I would try good old Amazon.com instead... Not knowing when they were going to start selling them, (I knew it was going to be between 3:00 AM and 3:00 PM EST) I decided I would wake up every hour on the hour and start pushing the refresh button... By 10:00 AM I was pretty drained and loosing hope... Still not for sale... Finally, at 11:00 AM, I thought I would try one last time before heading out to the Hard Rock Seminole Casino and the Sawgrass Mall with mom and Grandma. Sitting there pressing F5 while casually talking to my mom, I glance over at the monitor and I see "Buy with One-Click Ordering" appear on the page! YAY! I got one, they sold out in less than a minute and I was one of the people to get one! Go me!

The Wii arrived on Tuesday via UPS overnight... I unpack it, set it up, put Wii Sports in... "Unable to read disc..." I get an error... after browsing Nintendo's website I find their customer service number... They are sending me a new one, but it sucked because I had no game to play on my brand new system... I ended up renting one from Blockbusters, but I wanted to bowl, or play tennis... After getting bored of the game I rented, I headed over to Gamestop, and mentioned that I got the Wii and was waiting for Zelda to be shipped to me... They then told me that some guy sold them his used copy of it (4 days after getting it!)... Of course I went ahead and bought it for $10 less then it cost brand new... I was the first person (at least at their store, but probably anywhere) to get a used Wii game... Pretty cool...

On Thanksgiving we were suppose to goto Epcot and eat at the German-all-you-can-eat buffet... Well, when we called to make reservations, we found out that they were completely booked... So, last minute, we had to change plans and cook a Thanksgiving feast... My dad and I headed up to Melbourne to pick up my Grandma (who was there the day before our plans changed, but headed home thinking she was going to meet us in Orlando)... At first I was disappointed because I was really excited about the German food, but in the end (after sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, green beans, corn, peas, turkey, cranberries, 2 apple pies, and 2 pecan pies) it all turned out well...

Now it is back to school where, despite being ahead of the game before I left, I am right back in the "ahhhhhhh! Grad School" mode, trying hard to stay ahead... I just have to keep telling myself "3 weeks left!"... but then of course I think about the 14 page paper, the programs, and the bookwork I have yet to finish... Oh well, we'll see what happens...

Labels: family, gaming, grad school, grandma, lori folts, megan folts, patrick folts, patti botero, vacation, wii

Last week I helped Amanda move to Jacksonville... It wasn't something I was very happy about doing, but it had to be done... Her apartment seems really nice, big bedroom, mature roommate... Glad things are working out for her, just wish she didn't have to be so far away! This week has been really long without her to lean on...

Well... after helping her move, Dmitri and I drove to Gainesville. We dropped Vaska off at Dmitri's parent's house, and then headed off to see my second best friend Patti. Yes, my second best friend, it is a long story to explain why she doesn't quiet top the list (of course, she is a very close second), so I'll save that for another time... Anyway, when we met up with Patti, she, along with the entire University of Florida dentistry school, were attending a BBQ at a lake right outside Gainesville. They had quite a few events, including a raffle for mp3 players, dvd players, and even a flat screen TV! Well, I was only 10 tickets (out of thousands) away from being the big winner and walking away with that flat screen TV! I was completely bummed about being so close, yet so far from absolute glory... After the BBQ we headed over to her place where we watched some football and just hung out... Once all the good games were over, we went to what I think is the best restaurant in Gainesville, and then we went to see the movie "Open Season" (which I recommend if you like animated films)... My only regret about the whole weekend is that short time I was there... I got there late Saturday afternoon and had to leave first thing on Sunday... It would have been nice to see my other Gainesville friends, it has been forever... Of course, it'd probably be weird since it's been so long... <sigh> oh well, next trip I'll definitely have to at least give them a call...

On another note, I finally was able to get something better than a B on a Aggarwal test! Very proud of myself, of course it is just one test, and now there is a 14 page paper and an intense program due... but at least I was able to prove to myself that I can do it, it'll help motivate me for the final...

Lastly, but definitely not least, I was asked to be in my cousin Tara's wedding this December, which makes me feel real special, even if it is just ushering... I am going to be the best damned usher there ever was! I am also in my sister's wedding in July... man everyone's getting married!

Labels: amanda vichich, brian and patrice mankowski, dmitri sokgobenzon, dogs, family, football, gainesville, grad school, movie, patti botero, tara polly, vacation

I wish the world would slow down so I can think... I need time to relax, time to imagine, time to catch up with old friends... I have so little time for myself that I don't even know what I want from life anymore... Where do I want to be in a few years? Who do I want to be with for the rest of my life? Why do I want these things?

I am emotionally and physically drained... I have been sick for the last two and a half weeks despite my increase in physical activity and the half gallon of orange juice a day... Since the beginning of grad school I have had sleeping problems, which is something I thought I'd never have... Even when I was addicted to caffeine (yummy dr. pepper) I could fall asleep faster then anyone except my father (which is about 15 seconds)...

What I really need is a good 3 month vacation from everything, where I could do what I want when I want... not have to worry about school, or work, or money... Organize all the many fragments of memories that I don't want to loose, and reminisce while skiing down a Alpine slope... (skiing is my favorite thing in the world to do)... I could just worry about me, get healthy, get to know myself again... Rediscover why it was that I could program all day and night and absolutely love it... Figure out how to enjoy the things I once did... I've been trying to buy happiness and it just doesn't work, time is happiness, and I don't have any time... Routines that never change make it seem like I'll be doing the same thing forever... until finally I pass away and everything I did will no longer matter... Unless of course I have people to share my life with, people I affect... but if they just become part of the routine, then what good will that do? Everything will blur together, and time will fly by so fast that it may as well never have happened...

Oh well, in another blink of the eye I'll be 95 years old, and all this worrying will be forgotten...

Labels: diet, grad school, sick, skiing, vacation

Well, once again I am having trouble with Dr. Aggarwal as a professor... it seems like I will never figure out what he wants... Last semester he gave me my first B in about 3 years, and it looks like I am on track for getting another one... I took his class to prove to myself that I could do better, and then I have proved to myself that it is just his problem. ARG, grad school definitely sucks... I am working every Monday through Thursday night so it keeps me busy. I have my first test next week, and then another the week after. We'll see how they go...

I started both biking and playing soccer on the weekends... I completely forgot how much I love playing soccer, of course I am sore all over because of it. I got cleats and a brand new bike, plus accessories for each (a ball and water bottle, bike light, etc.)... My friend Kelley Jones invited me to do both, so she is very much thanked for getting me to exercise again. We are second place in the bowling league as well! Go us!

Sorry I haven't updated in a while, as I mentioned in the last post I completely redecorated my house, it is still only half way done because I ran into some problems... but slowly it will get done... That and grad school has kept me very busy...

Labels: bowling, grad school, kelley jones, sports

Sitting here in my cube for the last time! Heading out tomorrow morning to get back to Tallahassee... I am extremely excited to get back... Amanda and I are going to revamp the kitchen and bathroom with fresh paint, new appliances, and a lot of hard work... It's going to be fun!

Despite my excitement at getting back, I am dreading the fact that school is starting soon after. The one class I was excited about was canceled, and now I am stuck taking Network Security and Internet Technology... They both sound fun, I know, but they are with my two least favorite teachers... My first B in 5 semesters was given to me by Dr. Aggarwal last semester; and now I am stuck taking another one of his classes... I put hours and hours into his last class, but all my effort got me a pathetic B... He is going to be really sick of me coming to his office everyday trying to figure out what it is he is looking for... Every one of his tests was a different format, and all of them tested on the most random and pointless, having nothing to do with any of the homework, and little-to-nothing to do with what he talked about in class...

The other professor I'll be "learning" from is Dr. van Engelen... He was the professor for one of the most boring classes I have ever taken, Programming Languages... I don't know if it was his teaching method, or if it was just the subject... I am hoping it was the subject because I am really looking forward to Internet Technology... Now, I can't say that either professor is not knowledgeable, in fact, I would say they are extremely smart, but that doesn't mean that they are good at teaching... Hopefully this time around I'll have a better experience with both of them... Either way, I am up to the challenge...

Labels: amanda vichich, grad school

Over Christmas break I went to Homer LA for my grandparent's 50th wedding anniversary. It was great to see all my family again, and it was very relaxing after a never ending, extremely stressful semester. Two of my cousin's announced that they are getting married! I am really happy for both of them. It looks like my sister will also be getting married this year...

Anyways, I know it is pathetic, and I swore it would never happen to me, but I am addicted to Facebook... I use to hate the thing and thought it was stupid, but now enough of my old friends have joined to make it interesting... I have talked to many people that I haven't talked to in years. My first "girlfriend" is one of them that is finally on, Deanna Tobin. I put quotations around girlfriend because we "dated" from kindergarten to 6th grade (when I dumped her to date Maria Wilkins which lasted 3 days). I just found her on there yesterday so I haven't been able to contact her yet, but I think it will be very interesting to see what is up in her life. Kathy Zischka also now has joined and so I can finally communicate with her again after loosing contact for quite some time. I found my good friend from elementary school Brandon Bert a while back and found out that he lives only two hours from me (on the Gulf Coast) so we are going to try and meet up sometime. Anyways, these are just a few that I was excited about, there are many, many more that I am waiting to be "confirmed" as a friend on that will also be interesting to see where they are in life...

School this semester is going to be really really really really boring as I finish up my required courses. The only positive to this semester is that I only have class on Tuesday and Thursday, so I get four day weekends. Well, I guess another positive side is that my work schedule changed too and it is much better then the previous year which is hard to imagine possible.

Labels: brandon bert, brian and patrice mankowski, deanna tobin, facebook, family, grad school, homer, honey folts, kathy zischka, maria wilkins, papa folts, tara polly, work

I went to Georgia this weekend with Tatiana. We first went to Milledgeville on Friday, where we surprised my cousin Bailey for her 21st birthday present. We went to Chili's for dinner and then we attended her birthday party. At around 11:30 Tat and I were tired so we went to Bailey's house to go to bed while her and her friends went "clubbing" in downtown Milledgeville. They got home at around 3:00 and woke me up, but it was fun to see them plastered... The next morning we all drove to Atlanta. In Atlanta we went to my cousin Austin's football game and then we went to a really really really nice restaurant. We were rushed at the restaurant because we had to be a t a comedy club, called the Whole World Theater, in downtown Atlanta by 10:00... It was hilarious... we had good seats as well... They gave out a free beer to everyone who was having a birthday, but I also got a beer because for the first skit they used my suggestion. However, I was DD and hate beer anyway, so I gave it to Bailey.

We rushed home on Sunday so that I could make it to bowling... I bowled the 3 best games ever, but we still lost one of the 3 games... and so we are still dead last since we started 2 weeks late and couldn't establish a handicap.

In the next 2 weeks I have like 100000 assignments due... to name a few:

• 5 page research paper on Neural Networks due the 28th
• Program that simulates K-d tree classification due the 1st
• Program that mimics footballpickem.net due the 1st
• File sharing program due the 7th
• Bookwork for Pattern Recognition due the 25th
• Bookwork for Pattern Recognition due the 1st

On top of all this work, I want to go and visit friends in Gainesville this weekend but I know I won't have time... well, despite the fact that Wilma will probably restrict travel to and from there anyway... Oh well, I have Jäger to keep me company and help reduce stress...

Labels: austin foster, bailey foster, bowling, grad school, tatiana treffehn

Grad school officially starts tomorrow and I am really excited... of course, I wouldn't have minded if Katrina hit near by so school would have been cancelled... also, if it hit closer New Orleans would not be completely destroyed... I hope everyone makes it out ok... I really want to visit there someday...

I haven't updated in a while, but that is because I have been busy helping my new roommates move in and playing Champions of Norrath on his Playstation 2... addicting game... I also was went bowling and played pool this week... I am joining the Billiards Club and the Pizza Bowling League... As a member of the Billiards Club I will get free pool at FSU's bowling alley... and it only cost $20 for membership... I want to get really good... For the Pizza League, Dmitri, Micah and I are on a team with another one of their friends... Every Sunday we will play 3 games of bowling and get 2 slices of pizza for only $6 a week... sweeeeeeeeeet... I love bowling...

I had a ton of meetings to get ready for the school year as well, hour upon hours of them... he he... I also became the Treasurer of the Association for Computer Machinery (ACM)... which means I have a ton of stuff to do for that as well.. it'll be a busy a year...

There is a ton of stuff that we have to give to Goodwill, the problem is I don't know when I will have time for them to come out and get it... hopefully early in the week so I don't have to have it all cluttered in my living room...

So, I decided to take Distributed Application Development even though I have heard really crappy things about the teacher... I am just too excited about it and I also heard that the TA convinced him not to give tests, bur only to assign projects... and projects is what I want... I am also taking Pattern Recognition and Advanced Unix Program, both with teachers that I have had in the past (and loved)... and lastly I am taking the require Research class that I am really not looking forward too at all...

Labels: bowling, dmitri sokgobenzon, gaming, grad school, hurricane

Today is my last day here at Freescale, at least for the Summer... I am hoping that I can be hired as a contract employee and work from Tallahassee whenever they have issues with the Excel tools that I created... Otherwise, I may be earning less then I am spending, which could be a major problem in the long run...

I am excited about heading back to Tallahassee Monday! I have to complete clean/redecorate the entire townhouse on the Nug... I also am excited about the classes I plan on taking for Fall... I want to take the following:

• Advanced Unix Programming
• Pattern Recognition
• Distributed Application Development
• Intro to Research (blah)

I am excited about the first three though... they all fit my interests perfectly... I hope I can get into Dist Apps though because it currently says it is full, but I think if I complain, I will be able to get into it... because I really, REALLY, want too...

Advanced Unix Programming is with a professor I had Distributed Networks with... It wasn't an easy class, but I like how he challenges me, unlike many of my previous professors... Also, Pattern Rec.'s professor is extremely smart... I had him as a professor for Intro to Intelligent Systems last semester... His programming assignments are a ton of fun and his tests are challenging, but do-able if you pay close attention and take good notes...

Anyways, I also can't wait to get back and start using my new kitchen supplies... I have all these things I want to make... yummy...

I miss my CS friends, Tatiana, and most importantly, my God daughter Ashlyn... I miss her so much it is annoying...

Labels: ashlyn pinner, freescale, grad school, nugget lane, tatiana treffehn

My manager here at Freescale was nice enough to suggest to Human Resources that I am somebody they must hire next Summer... even if it isn't for him... That made me feel good about the work I did here... theoretically I saved him about 8 hours of his time a week by automating most of the Excel files he uses... Well, he is worried that when his needs change, he won't have a tool that would suit his needs anymore... So, he is trying to get me hired as a contract employee where I could work, when necessary from Tallahassee... I just hope "when necessary" is at least 5-10 hours a month so that I can make just a little more money then I will be spending... That way I wouldn't tap into all the money I saved over the summer, like I had planned...

Once I see how much I'll be working (if this all works out), then I can buy the projector I want for my living room... which I have been about to buy for 3 months now, but every time I do, I think of how I need to save the money I am making or I won't make it all the way through Grad School...

Anyways, I cancelled the order of the 8 piece KitchenAid pot set... only to order a 10 piece instead... it cost me $25 less because there is a new promotion at Amazon that if you spend $125 in Kitchen supplies, you get $25 off instantly... and this is on top of another deal where you get $20 gift card in 4-8 weeks from now if you spend more then $100 on pots and pans... and on top of this, it was already nearly 60% off... so, in the end, I got a $380 pot set for $105... not bad if you ask me... of course, since I was saving $25 I decide to buy a little more... so I bought a 8 person silverware set... and another set of kitchen utensils (peeler, can opener, etc...) by KitchenAid because it too was on sale, and I need it... I am sick of the crappy kitchen supplies I have... I can't wait to get to Tallahassee and start cooking up some goodness... I think I am going to buy some cookbooks, or at least download some recipes from online... if you have any good (and for now, easy) ones you'd like to share, leave them as a comment on this post! I'll appreciate it!

Labels: amazon, excel, freescale, grad school, tallahassee

My best friend (and yes, friend only) Megan is driving all the way from Atlanta to visit me here in Austin for a week... I very excited because she is really the only person I feel completely comfortable around... We have been best friends since I asked her out the second week of 9th grade... Our relationship only lasted about four days because she only dated me because she needed an excuse to dump the boyfriend she was with when I asked her... I forgive her though... we just became closer and closer after that and we even made the common pact of "if we are old and both single, lets get married..." Well, at the time the ripe old age of 26 seemed suitable... I mean that was 11 years from then... but now it seems so soon, and so it is an on going joke that we better hurry and find somebody so we don't get stuck together... Of course, if we ended up together, it won't be a completely horrible thing... he he... I mean, if only she weren't republican... but I am hoping she will grow out of that, but we'll see... I mean she is moving to the wonderful city of Democrats (Boston) for Grad School... maybe she'll see how miserable it is being a republican, or at least she'll want to try and fit in... he he... Anyways, recently she has been my lifeline during a rapidly changing time in my life... I'm balding (rapidly), I'm single, I feel old, I am starting Grad School, etc... She has always been able to help me step back and take a deep breath, she lets me realize everything is ok... So yeah, she is awesome... I just hope everyone in the world can be lucky enough to have a friend like her, because I know I'd be lost without her...

Labels: best friend, boston, grad school, politics

Another week done, meaning 5 weeks from now I will be done with my Undergraduate... I am pretty scared... I don't know what I am going to end up doing with my life... The offer from Freescale, the company I interviewed with in Texas, sent me an offer and it should be here early next week... I am excited about it in some ways, but not in others... I hate Florida, so it would get me out of here, but unfortunately Texas is Florida with more Republicans and higher humidity... bummer... I am also scared because then I would have nobody... well, I have family there, but I would have no friends... Not the posse, or my friends from my other home (the Computer Science Majors lab)... I am going to ask Barry (Ken's IT guy) if he will match the offer for me to work there the whole summer so that I can spend my last real summer with friends. Moving away is just to much of an abrupt ending... I guess I shouldn't hang onto impossible hopes that one day I will be as happy as I once was... Luckily I have been too busy to be bothered by my feelings... too stressed about getting into gaming school and trying to figure out what exactly I am going to do with my life... Getting accepted to UCF helped my self esteem a little... not that FSU is bad or anything, but rumors have it that the IT department is going to take over it because not enough people want to get into it... The teacher are afraid of changing from what they are use to and won't teach us what we want to know, practical stuff... They tempt me to stay here with the whole 85-90% paid, plus $14,000/year, but I am not going to be bribed to stay somewhere when I really want to do something else (This is how I feel about that job in Texas too, if I have another opportunity, then I will probably pass it up, no matter how excited my family there is)

Anyways, on a different (nerdier) note, I am learning a lot about C and Java that I didn't know which is really exciting, I wish I could have learned it in school, but the teachers don't want to teach it, so I have to learn it myself... but considering I learned 90% of both those languages on my own, what is more going to hurt. Next weekend is the programming contest and my competition (Micah) some guy from the majors lab (Jacob) and I are all on a team... Micah can code in C damn well, and now that I am using it and getting use to it I might actually be more of a help then I thought I would be... Jacob said he is good at figuring things out, he just isn't the best programmer, so he can give us pseudo code and we can make it code... I hope we win so I can get Microsoft Software and also put it on my resume... as long as we get in the top 3 I would... hell, I might go to regionals this year (invited the last two years but turned them down because I wanted to be with Francisca) even though I know we wouldn't win, but at least I can program, which is the only thing I truly live for...

Tonight Micah had a birthday party that I went to, everyone there was a foreign exchange student from every freaking country in the world... it was pretty cool, it brought me back to Munich International School days... Anton was the only other CS person that showed up... Micah was lucky because I was paid 30 bucks by Mike (the other lab monitor) for covering for him for 3 hours... so I gave him $22.50 or something... I had spent some of it already... I hate carrying cash so I thought why the hell not... anyways, I want to throw a graduation party but I am not sure how many people from the department would actually show up to it, most people there I would consider "in school" friends, very few I would tell anything personal to... Only people I would think would hang out with me would be Kelley, Kerstin, Micah, Meat, Anton, and um maybe one or two other people that are always in the lab... If Erica, Christy (but she would never hang out because she is to much in love with her husband), or Tom, were still there they would be on the list too... and of course, I could be wrong about the above too, so yeah... who knows...

I am enjoying the Intelligent Systems face reorganization program that Micah, Kerstin and I are making... that is a lot of fun, it isn't due for another month and we already have all this cool shit that we don't need... yeah... We are going to kick team Bling's butt... mu ha ha ha ha... them and their "awesomeness factor" are going to be blown away... yeah, ok...

OH well, it is almost 2 so I should go to sleep, I left Micah's after 3 hours because I was so tired... but then I got carried away here... oh well, probably won't have anything to update for another month or two in my boring life... well, I guess next week I will get that letter thingy... but yeah... oh well...

Labels: acm, austin texas, diet, francisca amunategui, grad school, kelley jones, mike smith, programming, the posse

Well, I just checked my UCF application status online and it says I have been admitted... yay... pretty cool... this is not for the gaming school, only for the Computer Science department... which is still pretty cool... I see it as the best CS program in Florida, so that is exciting... and they actually PROGRAM there, which is something we sort of lack here at FSU... I am still in Homer, Louisiana... middle of nowhere... he he... I might head to tally tomorrow but I haven't decided yet... maybe I'll wait till Sunday...

Labels: florida state university, gaming, grad school, honey folts, papa folts, programming, tallahassee

Well, I am going to get an offer for the job! I should get a call with an offer in about 2 weeks... I don't know how much it will be, but hopefully it will be a lot B)... I will be able to pay for graduate school yippeeeeeee.... and I'll get to hang out with all my relatives here... which is really fun... I will learn a lot during the job too, if I take it... I am kind of scared moving so far away from friends, but I have to sometime... and considering I haven't seen any of my friends in months anyway, I don't think it will be much different... Oh well... pretty exciting...

Labels: grad school

Well, in about 3 hours I have an interview with Freescale, a company that use to be part of Motorola... My uncle works there and told me about an summer internship that I might want... So, I thought why the hell not, and I am going to try... They pay for relocation even... I don't know how much they plan on paying me yet, but if it helps pay for grad school, then yippee... I also applied to be a video game tester in Orlando for $8... that is with EA... that would be sweeeeeeeeeet... I get my foot into the video game industry... which is cool...

If I live here the whole summer then I could start looking for houses in Dallas in case I get accepted to SMU... I am kinda scared to move so far away, but the truth is I really have no reason not to... all I have to think about is myself, which is weird... I am really excited about the thought of it, even though I am scared too... I need to feel like I am at a different stage in my life, because I will be... I don't want to be stuck in the same lonely routine in Tallahassee...

I hope they think I am good enough to get into these gaming schools... I would work like crazy once I got in, the problem is getting in... at least everyone at SMU will remember me because they freaking announced that I drove all the way from Florida during the main presentation by the Director of the school... embarrassing... but oh well... I feel more qualified than the other people there sounded... none of them seemed to know anything about programming... they were all scared about having to program... and I was really really excited about it... Even if I didn't go into video games after graduating, I would be a SUPER DUPER programmer and be able to apply to other places as well... They would teach me a whole bunch of very useful things...

Next week, after my Algorithm's test, I am going to start programming like crazy and finish up my portfolio...

Guess what! I got a 104 on my first intellegent systems test... so now we are done with 50% of the course and I have like a 99.999999... which is sweet... I only need like 40%'s on the rest of the course work to pass... that is a fun class...

OH well, I have to start getting ready for the interview... so yeah... bye

Labels: electronic arts, freescale, gaming, grad school, kelly folts, tallahassee, undergrad, work

Well, I got accepted to FSU for grad school... I am happy... I feel accomplished... I don't have to worry about not getting accepted anywhere... If I stay here I will have my house, get 90% of my tuition paid for... get a $4.50 raise at both my jobs... get to keep my jobs... etc... If I go where I want to go (University of Central Florida's Florida Interactive Entertainment Academy), I won't have time for a job, won't have a house, and would have to pay $40,000 for the 16 month program... or my second (Southern Methodist University's Guildhall) choice $25,000 (unless that is in-state), no house, but a possibility of work... or my third choice (UCF's Computer Science program), I'd have no house but it would be cheaper then the other two mentioned, and I'd be closer to home and I could work.

I don't know... I just want to get accepted to UCF's FIEA because I would find a way to pay for it no matter what because it is what I want to do... Maybe I'd beg for a year...

Labels: grad school

I have pretty much finished applying to grad school 90% there anyway... I still have to order transcripts and get all my letters of recommendations sent off, but besides that, everything is paid for and sent off... I am pretty much garrenteed a spot at FSU since I graduated there near the top of my class... even if I were at the bottom I would have a really good chance... I applied to the Computer Science department at FSU, UCF and Guildhall... also FSU's College of Information... I picked UCF and Guildhall because both are up and coming "Gaming" schools... Guildhall is more there than UCF, but EA wants to get a lot of grads from UCF for their Orlando division... UCF has the best Computer Science program in Florida (in my opinion)...

I went to a "Grad School Meeting" to learn all about the programs my department has to offer... I already knew, but I went just in case I found out something that I didn't know... well, during the meeting I was complaining about how FSU's Computer Science degrees are all research and theory based... I have the choice of getting a security degree as well, but that doesn't intrest me... Well, the lady giving the presentation over heard me saying this, and that I really want to get a Masters in game development, and she told me that I couldn't want this at a better time... She told me how they are looking for new programs to offer students right now and how they really want the students from the undergraduate to continue in their graduate programs... well, she went on and told me how I should bring it up with the head of the department and see what he says... She also said that if I were to help set up the program it might be able to count as my thesis or my project that I have to do... She also said that since it is only one extra year for a PhD, that I should stay for it, he he yeah right, I don't want to teach or do research so that is out of the question, but I would like the title... anyways... I am really excited now and I plan on talking to him next Tuesday about all this...

Oh well, it looks like I am more likely going to grad school then going into the real world... I am kind of excited about grad school because it will be more speciallized in my intrests hopefully... if I stay at FSU I am also likely to be assured of having my current jobs as well, and they both would earn me more as a grad student... everything would be paid for... and hopefully I could get a scholarship as well...

Labels: florida state university, gaming, grad school

Well, I went Orlando this weekend, it was uberly fun... I stayed at Joes on Friday and Saturday night... Friday night we went to ESPN Club on Disney Boardwalk... it was pretty expensive, but I still had fun... we had to spread out onto 4 tables since there were so many of us... Joe, his girlfriend, his roommate, and I went early to put our name on the list only to find out that there was no list so we waited for an hour until the other people finally showed up (after major drama because Shanon got lost on her way and was mad)... Overall though, it went well... Joe had one of every speciality drink they made and then he got a pretty lame birthday cake (it was free for birthday people)... it was really nasty so his other roommate ordered a HUGE ice cream Sunday that came in a football trophy bowl... and so we all chipped in a dollar (all 18 of us) so that she didn't have to pay for it... and we had 18 spoons and were all eating it (it had strawberries, oreoes, chocolate and vanilla ice cream, hot fudge, whipped cream, cherries... etc... you name it, it was probably on it... oh and peanut butter... I got there early Friday because Joe wanted me to meet his girlfriend... then we went to Blockbuster and bought ourselves xbox games...

Saturday I went to Epcot first thing in the morning, but for the first time ever my parents didn't leave South Florida before 5 AM... they actually left at 7 so I was there an hour before them... so I had to find my way away from Epcot and went to a place closer to where they were so I could meet up with them... We parked one of our cars at Publix and drove together once they finally arrived... So once we finally got there we ate... first thing once we got into the park... some pastry place, pretty good... then we went through the educational rides for a while... Megan and I got a fastpass to the ones with long lines... when we finally were suppose to go on those rides we split up from my parents... of course, knowing my luck (it has happened on every ride I have been on since I was 12 it seems like, all three of them stopped in the middle of the ride... and say they are experiencing difficulties... when I went to Islands of Adventure a while back every ride stopped for some reason or another... the Dragon ride, twice... once they made Francisca and I get off because she had no sandals on, the other time who knows what happened... also the Spider man ride broke for like 20 minutes when I was inches from getting on it... This all started at Oktoberfest the year that the ride crashed killing 6 people... it broke down when I was in line to ride it... it didn't open until the next day (the day it crashed)... lucky I wasn't there the next day... that same year I went on a ride there called the "Frisbee" it spun like one of those gravity machines that throws you against the wall, and it rocked at the same time (like one of those big ships that go upside down and sit there)... that was probably the worst (as in the best) I have ever been on... buutttttttttttt... the girl two seats from me vomited... ALL over everyone next to her... luckily we were spinning the opposite direction, otherwise I would have had it in my mouth... like almost everyone else... luckily it didn't cause a chain reaction because then I would have gotten it too... poor girl... more importantly poor people... Oh well... back to the story... ok, so... once we finally got through with those rides we met my parents in Germany for dinner/lunch... it was about 3:30 at the time... it was a buffet they had all the German goodness... Schnitzel, Kartofflen (Potatoes), Wurst, Semmel mit Kase und Fleisch (bread roll with cheese and meat), Sharf Senf, Curry Ketchup... und am bestem die Apfel Strudel mit Vanilla Sosse... it was really really really really good... ALSO they had freshly made Spetzi (for those of you who don't know, which is probably most if not all, Spetzi is a drink in Germany that is made from mixing Coke and citrus drinks... yummy goodness) I loved it... so did my family... I only spoke German for the whole 3.5 hours we spent there... I told the waitress that it was my Dad's birthday so when the band came on they announced it and sang happy birthday to him in German... everyone was swaying their Steins around singing along... or mumbling that is... so finally when we were done we went on to the other countries in a rush because it was raining and cold... we completely skipped France because it isn't worth our time... he he... we watched some video about Canada though, but that is because we happened to walk by when it was starting...

So when I got back to Joe's, the party was about to start... the cops broke up the party... that was another exciting yet scary thing that happened... that happened at 1:00 I think because I remember Joe complaining after he was excited about being the first party out of his friends to be broken up...

The next morning I was woken up by my sister at 11 something because she wanted me to go to Melbourne (my Grandma's house) and watch the Vikings loose... I got up and left Joes and picked up Patti went... We had fun in the car ride catching up... There was a ton of food at my Grandma's house too which made it worth while... Once the game was over we drove back and then I watched her play video games for about an hour and then Eric, she and I went bowling because it was Sunday night and they had a special 1.50 per game and 1.50 for shoes... we played 3 games we all won one... the last game the score was pretty low because all of our arms were tired but it was REALLY close 84 (Me), 85 (Patti) and 86 (Eric)... I won the second game with a 120... my first game sucked because I was using a 12 lb ball rather than the 15... after bowling we went to walmart and then we went back to her house and I passed out... The next morning I woke up and drove home in 3 hours and 10 minutes... I love cop radars and loud music... When I got home I played video games like usual but then at 8:00, since it was cold, I ran around the block... I was going to do the same today but it is below 30 tonight and that is too cold for any clothing I have... I don't want to get sick again...

Today was my first meeting for my TA job... It seems like it is going to be easy so I am excited... I checked out my office... not bad... not particularly good either though... but now I have access to a fridge and microwave so I can eat on campus... I also got everything worked out pay wise and filled out my time cards for the first two weeks even though I didn't work... I found out that I actually don't start until next Thursday, and then I only work 2 hours... so for the first 4 weeks I will only have worked, including meetings and getting use to the software, about 5 hours and I will have been paid $800 for it.. B) that is $160 an hour... B) I have a lot of responsibility on my hands though once everything gets rolling... I am the administrator or whatever and that brings with it making sure everybody is happy...

so within the next month I will be getting about $1500+ from all my different jobs... what they owe me and what they will owe me... life is good...

This weekend I am going to dive head first into the whole grad school/job applying thing... I just don't know what to do for the statement of purpose... we'll see... ok, well I think I have even started to bore myself with this blabbing so that's enough...

Labels: bowling, eric rubinstein, francisca amunategui, grad school, joe castelbuono, ketchup, lori folts, megan folts, patrick folts, patti botero, publix, sick, vacation, work

I am super excited to go to Orlando this weekend... I have a high expectation that I will have fun... I guess it is kinda easy to have that expectation when you are going to an amusement park... but I am more excited about chilling with my friends... I've only been here a week and already I have that lonely feeling I was so happy to get rid of when I left here... I guess even when I was down there I had that lonely feeling, it was just easier to find something/somebody to distract me from feeling it...

I have read 2/3 of The Da Vinci Code since yesterday... I seriously cannot put the book down... I want to buy Angels and Demons now so I can start reading it as soon as I am done with this one... I actually bought The Da Vinci Code last semester but never had the time to pick it up and read it because of my huge course load... I am excited about my Intro to Intelligent Systems class... it is going to be easy and interesting at the same time... there is a lot of programming which is my passion... We are making a spam filter for the first project... it'll be fun...

I am starting to stress about all the grad school stuff I have to do... I finally have 3 teachers writing me letters of recommendation, but now there is all this crap I have to do for them so that they can start... I started filling out the application for GuildHall, the gaming school in Texas... that is the one place I really hope I make it into... I really don't want to stay here in Florida... Unless maybe I went to UCF and worked for Electronic Arts while studying there...

I was invited to my friends wedding... the only problem is that it is in Montgomery Alabama... I want to go because then I could dress up and look sexy, but I want to bring a date (so to speak) because I won't know anyone there if I do go... I guess it would be a lot to ask somebody who doesn't know the bride like I do to go to a wedding with me... especially in short notice (it is in 2.5 weeks)... oh well, I might ask somebody...

I start my TA job next week... pretty excited about it... (the money anyway) I got paid this last two weeks too and I didn't even work... $200 a week... yippee... that on top of my lab job which I make about $100 a week, and the website that I do for the sociology department which has really really kicked up in the last month or so (i've been working about 5 hours a week which is up from an average of .25 hours a week) I make $12 an hour on that job... I have a lot of free time still though... in a way I am excited about homework so that I can be distracted from boredom...

Labels: electronic arts, grad school, programming, reading, undergrad, wedding, work

I am getting a modem for my computer that lets me have caller ID on my computer... I know that doesn't sound that great, but with the amount of calls my roommates get, I will know without running to the phone who is calling... I can also set it up to automatically hang up on certain people... I am really excited about it...

I totally have fixed my computer up in the last few days, instead of studying... it is running better than it did when I built it...

I can't decide if I want to go to grad school or not... I decide I am going to apply for this scholarship that is just for FSU students... FSU's Computer Science department is one of 36 Universites that is NSA (National Security Agency... A government agency) certified... Being certified the CS department alone gets over $1,000,000 a year to give to their students that will promise to work for them for 2 years (work for the NSA for 2 years)... well, FSU actually has barely enough people applying for this scholarship... so they say it is pretty easy to get...

Benifits: All food, books, housing, tuition paid for, plus $8,000 a school year (2 semesters) spending money... (that is $1000 a month spending money)... and $55,000+ starting salary... (which isn't quite the average starting wage getting out of college with a masters, but they paid for it, unlike others... The starting wage is more like 65,000)

I just don't know if I am interested in the security... but that would be a great opertunity whether I liked it or not... I don't know... the two downfalls about it is 1) don't get to choose where I would move... most likely would be DC, which isn't bad... but still... 2) sign 4 years of my life away... (2 years for masters, 2 for job)

Oh well, give me your opinions if you have any...

Labels: florida state university, grad school, work

Hello... I had to test today... Computer Organization, or as Francisca calls it the 1010110001110 class... and German, which wasn't to difficult... I am starting to get demotivated for my classes... I had a really hard math test last week that stressed me out... and so after I was done, I decided I didn't care... and this weekend I hardly studied for either of my test... I think I did well enough to get B's on both, but the Comp Org one is kinda borderline... I have a 97% in both classes so far, so even if I didn't do to well I should keep my A's...

I am about to go out to eat with my sister and her friends because they are going to T.G.I. Fridays, and I want their points B) It is my neighbor's birthday party and there will be a lot of people... or in other words... a lot of points...

I am glad today is almost over... it was long... and hard, and boring... tomorrow I am going to be doing a programming (nerdism) assignment that is do Friday... I have to make a calculator, which isn't to hard... so that is exciting... he said he is giving us a break by giving us this assignment opposed to another...

I have one more test next Monday, it is going to be hard, but after that I will only have 2 more test until finals week... one in German, and one in math... hopefully I can make it...

I registered for my classes last week, it was exciting... I have the majority of my classes on only Tuesday and Thursday, and NO CLASS on Fridays! I am excited because that leaves me with extra tito time... OH! and I don't have class until like 1:00 PM on Mondays so I can drive home Monday mornings rather than Sunday afternoon... which is again, more tito time...

I am almost 21 and I just can't wait... it is just the fact that it is a milemarker in my life that is fun to hit... the next mile marker in my life is 40, because I will almost be dead... or over the hill at least... unless you call 25 a mile marker because you can rent cars from any car rental company... but that is the only plus side to 25...

I have a good idea for Tito's birthday present... I have something, but I have other ideas as well that are exciting me... I just hope that once I get it I can keep a secret from her... it would be the first time since I started dating her that I would keep a surprise from her... I get WAY to excited... we'll see...

I wish I had a lot of money right now so I can go buy all the video games that I ever wanted before they stop selling them... that is the only reason I would want money... well, and for a car... but I will get one of those when I graduate hopefully unless they don't keep their word...

Well, I have to go to Fridays now... yummy... thanks for reading this, for those of you who have made it all the way down to here...

Labels: boston, francisca amunategui, grad school, programming, tgi fridays, undergrad