It’s been a while…

 /dev/random, /sbin/system-health, /usr/bin/gui-tar, /usr/bin/wheels  No Responses »
Sep 192011
 

It has been almost a full year since posting, and all I can say is that life happened. My post-post-graduate life has been a lot less stressful, but has also left me kinda lost for a bit. When you have your life dictated by your school schedule, there isn’t a lot of time for thinking about what you are going to be doing at any given point. It was initially refreshing to have freedom from that, but now I am kind of in a lost zone. I have things I want to do, but it seems all my willpower to do them is lost at this point. So I have kicked around how to motivate myself to do things, like go to ze gym and actually start learning how to play my guitars.

My solution is to post my “progress” on this blog, which has the added benefit that I will post on this blog. :)

So here we go:

Health: My SO found a gym which is fairly nearby which I actually like a lot. It is part of the Planet Fitness chain, so it has a really different feel about it. It is also one of the first gyms I have gone to which has “normal” people consisting of a good part of the population. One of the main problems I had with our old gyms was that I felt really self-conscious about going to work out. It seemed like they were populated by gym bunnies and lunks who were constantly judging me for using “their” equipment. It got to the point that I was going in really late at night just to avoid them, which was the thing that eventually stopped me going to the gym at all. The new gym, though, has a well-rounded population and overall different feel. Even though there are still some really fit people working out there, they seem to be more friendly and accepting that reason everyone is there is to become more fit. It also helps that there are rules that help prevent the type of douche-baggery that happened in the earlier gyms. Seriously, check out the rules on the website.

Guitar: I think I am going to start setting aside Tuesdays and Thursdays for self-instruction. I probably will look into getting some classes at some point, but now I am just going to concentrate on getting comfortable with the idea of playing a musical instrument and learning some background theory.

Motorcycle: I have put 5000+ miles on the Aero since October of last year, almost doubling the amount I had put on the previous period. I really enjoy going for a ride on the bike and the ride to and from work is often the highlight of my day (yes, even in the horrible traffic). I really wish I knew more people who also rode. I have found that riding with other people is one of the most enjoyable things I have ever done. Just going out and enjoying the road with others is an experience, but I think the stops to refuel and rest are essential. To be able to share how awesome a particular series of turns was, or how a certain stretch of road was so beautiful. I really can’t do it justice, but trust me it is a very rewarding experience.

Well, that is all I have for now. I hope to have an update post from now on at least weekly (Mondays), if not a post every few days. TTFN.

 Posted by knightshae at 9:41

One semester later…

 /bin/cat, /dev/random, /usr/bin/wheels, /usr/local/src/msacs  No Responses »
May 172010
 

…we find our protagonist continuing to do well despite his neglect of the interwebs. :)

MSACS – I spent this semester learning about TCP/IP and Bioinfromatics, and found myself quite interested about both topics. Although I can’t hope to retain the depth of knowledge that was imparted on me during these classes, I still came away with some tools that are useful and a basic understanding that can help me reacquaint myself with the topics if the need arises.

In Bio, it was fascinating to see how computer science was used to align and predict gene sequences. Not only because the it was fun to hear new and interesting approaches to complex problems, but also to actually get to implement some of these algorithms. After the first day of class, I remember thinking I was doomed because the math behind it was daunting. Especially since my last advanced math class was about a decade ago, and I haven’t had much cause to break out such skills. I persevered and it ended up being totally worth it. Even without the horrible math, the concepts were graspable and I eventually could see how they could be applied elsewhere. That realization alone cemented for me what higher education is about.

TCP/IP was interesting mostly because of the depth of detail, rather than advanced concepts (although there were some). It gave me an appreciation for how much thought is put into the design and specifications of the standards we use today. While many may not be perfect, to be able to see how certain problems were addressed and how inventive people can be made me smile.

Wheels – With the addition of a windshield and the switch to EZ-Bracket mounts for my saddlebags (which are new and bigger also), I now have a bike that I can take trips on easily! In order to do a proper test run, I am going to be visiting my buddy Weaver (same one as last year) and see how it goes. If it turns out well, I may invest a bit more to make touring a bit more comfortable…

Cats – There is some adjustment going on here, as I moved in with my SO and her kitties. As expected, there have been some issues with getting the felines used to each other. As of now, three of the four are at the “I can put up with you phase” with the last one being in the complete “Don’t even get close to me” mode. It has only been two months, though, so hopefully things will get better.

Personal – I moved into my SO’s house about two months ago, and things are going swimmingly. Most of my stuff managed to actually fit into one room, which I have dubbed “The Mancave.” I find this to be particularly appropriate, since the Mancave has its own bathroom. Theoretically, I could disappear into it and not be seen for days. While I don’t see myself doing that, it makes me happy to have a space that it my own and that I can retreat to after a tough day. Mostly, I find myself sitting on the couch with my SO either reading or watching something on the computer.

Well, that’s about all for now. I will probably do more updates since I am free for now.

 Posted by knightshae at 9:27

Happy Birthday…erm…I mean New Years!

 /bin/cat, /dev/random, /usr/bin/wheels, /usr/local/src/msacs  No Responses »
Jan 052010
 

Now for the catch up for December!

MSACS – I am constantly amazed at how I seem to be rocking out in this program. During the crunch time  each semester I see bad grades looming in my head, and I turn into a crazy CS grad student thinking in code or project design. It really gets to me, and apparently I thrive on it since I keep getting through with an A or B. I only have one more year left (if class scheduling works right), and it makes me feel awesome to have done this and maintained good grades while still having a full-time job and a life. For others it might not seem like much, but to me it makes me feel accomplished and shows me that if I am determined enough I can do anything.

Wheels – Took my first ride today (Jan 5th), and it was wonderful (even if it was cold). I had hoped to get some more accessories for my bike with taxes, but my saddlebags went kaput and I have to replace them first. I intent to get some nice leather ones this time and avoid zip-offs at all costs. The old ones unzipped one day and sat on the pipe and ended up completely melting the bottom of the bag. Kinda a bummer.

Cats – Both my cats are doing well, and are nice sources of heat during the night. Mmm…warm snuggly cats.

Personal – I got my Linux+ :) Other than that, I ended up spending some time in the Frozen Wastelands of the North. After my time in Detroit, I have decided that I definitely want to stay in the southern states because that much cold sucks horribly. However, it was a nice visit. I got to see snow and take in lots of local foods and spend some time with some generally kick-ass folks (my gf’s family). I also acquired more Munchkin and various other sundries during this period. So I am stocked up on games for a bit.

Thats it for now, but we will see what comes up next.

 Posted by knightshae at 12:59

She turned me into a newt!

 /bin/cat, /dev/random, /usr/bin/wheels, /usr/local/src/msacs  No Responses »
Nov 112009
 

I got better…or at least I hope I do get better. Things have been swamping me for the past couple months, which is why you may or may not have seen me (or seen me scattered) for a while.

MSACS – This semester I am taking Database Design and Software Engineering, which are heavy theory classes. I don’t really excel at this type of class, because often the data they are looking for in their assignments/projects are fuzzy and not clear cut. You can imagine my level of crazy taking two of these at once! Anyways, I have one more month in which to cram everything about these classes into. I hope I can stay sane until then, as sometimes I think the profs see  the program as a trail of endurance. I can imagine them sitting in their offices, “How many did you break this semester? Me, I sent 12 crying to their mothers. Bwa ha ha!”

Wheels – Not much to say here, other than I have become so used to riding now that I become sad when it rains (or any other ride preventing status occurs). I hope to get floorboards and a windshield soon. So, hopefully, look forward to posts about weekend trips!

Cats – Meow! No, really…meow! Seriously, meow?

Personal – Other than spending time with the wonderful Darcy. I have no social life at this point. Damn me for pursuing higher education!

That’s all for now! Tune in again next month when I may or may not post on time ;)

 Posted by knightshae at 9:21

From the great beyond…

 /dev/random  No Responses »
May 072009
 

MSACS – Dear god, I am glad to be done with this semester. I managed to pull an A in all my classes so far (still waiting on 8990 – Web Services). I think that I would have had an easier time if only 8990 and its professor weren’t so…frustrating. Needless to say, I will NEVER take a class from him again if I can help it. I am taking Summer Semester off in order to recover…

Wheels – I have most of the essential accessories for my bike now. I have a sissy-bar already in place, and am putting the saddle bags and their supports on tonight (wheee!). All that I “need” now is a windshield, but I am figuring I am going to wait a bit for that one. In order to celebrate the additional parts, I am taking a trip to see my good buddy Weaver on the bike. Ahh, it’s good to have friends…

Cats – Well, they are warm and fuzzy and like to snuggle. I can’t help but oblige them when I have the time. If you ever need to feel loved or wanted, drop by and lay on my couch. Oreo and Taco will then make you feel like the best person in the world.

Guitar /Gym – I am eyeing these activities right now, I just need to gather myself a bit more after the semester…

Personal – Well, my divorce is final now and I am among the rank and file of those with failed marriages. While that fact makes me sad, I think it will be so much better for me this way. Over the past year, I have improved myself so much and am enjoying the benefits of it.

 Posted by knightshae at 13:06

Bleh…

 /bin/cat, /dev/random, /usr/bin/wheels, /usr/local/src/msacs  No Responses »
Apr 062009
 

Things have been so busy that I haven’t been a good blogger, so without further delay…

MSACS – Lots of things happened here, mostly due to lack of communication (effective communication). Basically, it all revolved around the program moving to a new streamlined curriculum. There were some fairly botched communications that made it look like we were going to get screwed over, but in the end (after the administration finally had the good sense to have a “meeting” about it) everything turned out to really benefit us (the students). After figuring out my new Plan of Study, I only have to  take two classes for 3 semesters to fulfill grad requirements. While that turned out well, my Web Services class has been a complete and utter disaster. The professor has not been helpful in the least. He “demonstrates” concepts in the class using code that doesn’t work half the time, and then doesn’t provide any help when we don’t understand. He grades us against each other, which pits beginners in the field against seasoned Java developers. He also has been assigning us projects that, in a sane world, would require 2+ people instead of just one and that are impossible to meet the requirements for (especially since he doesn’t stick  to ones listed and counts off for whatever he wants). Also, when we signed up for the class the description listed all sorts of neat stuff (Ruby/ActionScript/etc.) and effectively we have only learned More Java. In short, he is probably the least effective professor on the face of the planet and has earned a place on the short list of people I actually hate. I will NEVER take a class from him again. Enough of that…

Wheels – Now for the good stuff. I managed to fit a new bike into my budget! I traded in my Honda Rebel (250) for a Honda Shadow Aero (750). So now I have a bike that can actually propel me uphill at a constant speed and get up to highway speeds. In short, I can go on nice long trips on my bike now! I am happy with the way the new bike rides and the power it has. I plan on keeping this one till it dies, and just adding accessories as I need them.

Cats – Oreo has gained a reputation for being one of  the laziest (and friendly) cats around. It is a well deserved reputation.

Guitar – Due to the insanity of projects at school, I haven’t managed to touch my guitar since the beginning of term.

Gym/Health – Again, school has sucked the soul out of me so I haven’t been doing this either.

 Posted by knightshae at 9:19

Updates!

 /bin/cat, /dev/random, /usr/bin/wheels, /usr/local/src/msacs  No Responses »
Feb 122009
 

Well, things have been progressing pretty well. Except for being swamped with school, I haven’t strayed too far on my path of self-improvement.

MSACS – After finally getting all my classes straightened out, I am finally on track. I am currently a little behind on my lectures, and I am way behind on my reading. I think this is mainly due to my professors this semester. While I hesitate to say they are bad, I know  that they could definitely do better. The quality of lectures is definitely not what I am used to. Now, it seems that they are mostly walk-through of exercises instead of teaching of core concepts. Combine the poor coverage of material in class with lack of clarity of exactly where we are in the book, well…I am less than happy and more than confused.

Wheels – Still riding about on my bike. I am hoping to take more extended trips here soon, so I will have to do posts about that as they occur. Plans to upgrade my bike have been put on hold due to me wanting to save up some money in case things get horrible worse in the economy and also due to the fact that my truck may need work on it to keep it running.

Cats – My cats are wonderful, and we have become a very cohesive group. It helps the we have a new place to congregate, since I got a new sofa.

Guitar – I have picked this back up since I have achieved my motorcycle goals. This is very slow starting, for many reasons. I can’t seem to hold my acoustic properly, it seems to big and bulky for some reason. Because of that, I ordered an electric with a slimmer profile to see if that helps. I figure if I can get comfortable with an electric it will make learning easier, and  then I can try to take on the acoustic again.

Gym/Health – I decided to get up and get active, and to take a better look at what I was eating. After visiting the gym a few times, I think I will be ok. The only qualm I have is not knowing what to do or how to use the equipment, but hopefully my “free session” with a personal trainer will give me a basic knowledge that I can build off of. The thing that is really daunting is watching what I eat. When I started looking at my caloric intake per day, I was utterly horrified. I am sure I was easily exceeding the 3000 mark. I am hoping to cut back to somewhere around the 2000, but realize that I have bad eating habits that might take a while to change. Oh well, if I can get my exercise levels up…

 Posted by knightshae at 10:33

*Shiny*

 /dev/random  No Responses »
Jan 232009
 

So, last night after class I decided to take on one of the things that has been on my mind lately. I had been wanting to make more efficient use of my space and move furniture/books around to make things look nice and leave less empty room (I had one room that was almost barren FFS!). For some reason, last night was the night.

At first, I felt bad about it because I had a visitor coming over. Turns out, though, that they enjoy this type of things so we started in on the project with gusto. We ended up starting and accomplishing three main tasks:

  1. Converting my front room into a library/reading room. We moved my bookcases  into this room and arranged it so that when I get my couch for the living room, the two chairs that are currently living room will end up in this room. It looks really nice now, but I can’t wait until then. It will really be a cool place to hang out and talk, or read, or do interesting little projects.
  2. Living Room organization: I had DVDs/Games and such lying about because I had no place to put them. After a quick trip to Wal-Mart, we acquired and put together some media storage shelves. We sorted and stored the mess, and it looks a whole lot better in now. I plan on going back and getting another unit that matches the new one so that I replace a wire storage unit that currently houses my games/anime. Lesson Learned: Never underestimate the effect of tidiness on a room’s appearance.
  3. Computer Room (Now Office Space): With the removal of the bookcases, I needed a place to store my technical manuals/books. I also decided to replace the crappy desk that was just there to hold various tech supplies. So in the same trip to Wal-Mart mentioned above, I acquired two low slung bookcases. We took out the desk and organized and stored my tech manuals and books/games/tech supplies onto these.
  4. Hall and Other Notes: Due to bookcase movage and other actions, my hall was a desolate wasteland. I decided to leave the crappy desk here for mail/crap deposit. I may replace it with something different in the future but for right now it is useful and doesn’t really affect the use/look of the hall. Overall, this whole project has consolidated the look and feel of my apartment and made it look really nice. For the most part, the furniture matches or goes well together and those pieces that don’t are on the list to be replaced.

It is with a wonderful contentment that I say that my apartment is becoming just the place I want it to be and all around just shiny.

 Posted by knightshae at 10:38

Another post from the beyond…

 /dev/random  No Responses »
Aug 292008
 

Sigh…another month gone…but on with the updates!

Nothing new on the kitty front, other than I want another kitty to keep Taco company. Although I have to admit, its nice having a kitty follow you around and lay on you at every opportunity. It is very comforting.

In the news about my ongoing quest to get a motorcycle, I have been on again and off again recently about going ahead. Partly due to fluctuating finances, and partly due to financial planning. I think I will eventually end up waiting until January. Hopefully things will stabilize by then.

Currently classes are going well, I missed one so I am trying to catch up and understand the materials. Which may be a good thing for me…it made something finally click for me about Logic Gates. As of right now I am pretty caught up and this weekend should finish that off. I am really glad to be back in classes again. I had forgotten how fulfilling my need for knowledge could be so satysfying. It is like a geek high, with no legal consequences (as of yet…).

 Posted by knightshae at 8:40

Recent Changes in Topics

 /dev/random  No Responses »
Jul 222008
 

For those of you who read my blog once in a while (I hate to use the term “regular readers”), you may have noticed some content was removed and new tags created. I did this because I thought that my blog was basically turning into an emo whine fest, and wanted to focus on something other than being abandoned and alone.

I chose instead to focus on three things:

  1. My progression in my Masters program at Kennesaw (/usr/local/src/msacs)
  2. My progress as I acquire and learn to ride a motorcycle (/usr/bin/wheels)
  3. My relationship with and love of my kitties (/bin/cat)

I did this so that my blog might actually be interesting to read, and to help me focus instead of rambling for pages on end.

I did plan for posts that did not fit within those topics and created a tag for that could act as a catch-all (/dev/random), but lately I have had a need to write about how I feel (ick!) and I don’t want to file it under a catch-all tag. So, I plan to reinstate a previous tag (Random Access Memories) for the purpose of filing all my touchy-feely posts. This way you can filter out/ignore them as your heart desires, and I get the bonus of being able to post about my gooey cream-filled center.

 Posted by knightshae at 15:01
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