Back to school
Back to school
To show my dad
I’m not a fool
– Adam Sandler, “Billy Madison”
Yes, the time has, at last, come to pass. I’ll be returning to school in just under two weeks for summer classes at Fullerton College. I’ve enrolled and registered, and yesterday I (finally) met with a counselor to sort out my plan for the next year or so, and to fill out and file the paperwork to get my GI Bill payments started. (more…)
I was at Target on Sunday night, looking into the possibility of putting an HDTV on layaway (they’ll only hold them, and they won’t hold them overnight… bleh). While I was there, I noticed they had some Nintendo Wiis on the shelf. Knowing he was looking for one, I called my friend Darren, who came over to get one. While he was there, I mentioned that I was considering getting one as well, but to do so, I’d have to take the money from what I’d been setting aside to buy his car from him. Darren said I should just get the Wii, so I did. The system came with Wii Sports, so I also got some games to go with it: Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles, Star Trek: Conquest, and Wii Play (which also included a second wiimote for the console). I’ve also downloaded the NES game Super Mario Bros. 3 to the Wii, and have spent an inordinate amount of time after I get home just playing on the system. It’s addictive…
Well, the wireless modem on my laptop is dead as a doornail. HP’s “customer service” wasn’t much help. I really wasn’t inclined to send my laptop in to them for two weeks, particularly due to the stories I’ve heard of them reformatting hard drives and resetting everything back to the way it was when the computers were first purchased… Instead, I just bought an inexpensive USB wireless modem that works with Linux, and I’m back online NOW, with no risk of someone wiping all my data.
The wireless modem died on my laptop the other day. As a result, the only working connection on the thing is the ethernet jack. Unfortunately, the only way to get online with the network at home is wireless. I’m able to bring my laptop to work and plug in there, so I can at least check my email, but they restrict the access pretty heavily, so I can’t do a lot of things that I would normally do online.
I wrote to HP about the problem, but their response was fairly typical. They first told me to try reinstalling the drivers (even though I told them I’d already tried that, but the computer isn’t recognizing even the presence of the hardware in either Vista or Linux, indicating that the modem simply burned out), and then said to mail it to them for servicing. My main problem with that is the fact that my laptop has been my primary computer for nearly a year now, and it will likely take nearly two weeks for the turnaround on repairs. My desktop has been sitting in the garage unused, so I may end up sending the laptop in and using that at least temporarily.
This is, to say the least, more than just inconvenient. I’m halfway tempted to just buy a replacement modem and do the repair myself, even if the computer is still under warranty. They’re sending a postage-paid box for the laptop, however; I’ll probably send it in after I get my desktop set up and running again.
Wow. It’s hard to believe it’s already been nearly a month since my last post. A few things have been happening. (more…)
On Sunday, I was at last able to visit the site where my friend Dan was killed last year. I went with another friend, Stephanie, and we were later joined by Jim, Zach, and Zach’s girlfriend. We traded stories about Dan, some funny, others less so. I also, finally, learned exactly what happened that morning. (more…)
I’m in Vegas for the weekend, visiting some friends. I had a less than enjoyable experience flying out here, which took longer than it would have if I’d rented a car and driven it, but I got here around lunch time yesterday, and I’ll be here until tomorrow afternoon. Live and learn.
I’m having lunch with a friend of mine from Turkey who’s stationed here, and this afternoon, I’m getting together with my friends that I knew when I was stationed here before to hold a memorial for our friend, Dan, who was killed a year ago today.
Okay, I’ve been a busy little bee with my web sites. I’ve completely redone the interface for www.jeffreysworld.net, and I’m working on a new site, www.trekipedia.net, which is eventually going to be replacing www.fednet-ufp.net.
A couple of interesting things happened.
First one was yesterday. I was proctoring the CAHSEE (Calif. High School Exit Exam) and got a phone call from the front office. Apparently, they got a phone call from the district office, who wanted me to come over to said district office this morning. Considering everything going on (the district is talking about cutting hundreds of aides like me because they’re over budget by about $24 million… like cutting a bunch of people making less than $20K/year is gonna make much of a dent there? How about looking into why we need SIX assistant principals at one school, each of whom makes a LOT more than an aide…)
Anyhow, considering all that, I was naturally a bit freaked, since they didn’t leave any explanation about why they wanted me to come over. I finally got them on the phone myself, and it turns out that, four months after hiring me, they’re finally giving me an orientation briefing. Sheesh.
The next interesting thing that happened was today. After coming back to work from the orientation briefing, I signed in and was checking my inbox. On the table, I found a flyer for an open position at the district office. The title is Risk Management Technician, but aside from some worker’s comp stuff, the job description is a whole lot like what I did in the Air Force, and the pay is considerably more than I’m making now (on the order of more than twice my current pay). Not only that, but the job is a 12-month position, unlike the aide position I’m in now (I don’t work or get paid for the summer). So, I’m polishing off my resume, and I’m going to apply for the job as soon as it’s ready.
Good lord, it’s been months since I posted anything.
Well, the apartment I had didn’t work out. I ended up having to find a new place and move everything with less than a month’s notice. I’m not confident I’ll see the deposit I put down, either. Live and learn, I guess. I found a new place, though. Better neighborhood, better all around, really.
Otherwise, pretty much everything else is the same. I go to work, I go home, I pay my bills, I do my laundry, I play some Warmachine on Sundays after church.
I got pretty sick this week and had to use a couple sick days. I had a fever of 102 F. Not fun. I spent the better part of 36 hours unconscious in bed. But at least the fever is past, it doesn’t hurt when I cough or sneeze, I don’t end up in coughing fits when I laugh, and the headaches are mostly gone. I’m still kind of congested, but not as badly as I was a couple days ago.
