August 03, 2011
Dear God..Why Does This Crap Happen?
Well, there you go.
more...
Posted by: The Brickmuppet at
04:12 PM
| No Comments
| Add Comment
Post contains 797 words, total size 6 kb.
June 02, 2011
To DC by Rail
Pulpjunkie, a friend of nearly 20 years has been 'downsized'. Fortunately he was able to get 're-purposed' by his company, however his new purpose is not in Northern Virginia, but the impenetrable jungles of deepest, darkest Pennsylvania. Shorter version, I won't be able to see him for a vary long while after this week.
I've been trying to get up there for weeks but family obligations, school or work have stymied me. As I was finally free, I decided to brave the horror that is I-95 on Memorial Day Weekend. Naturally, the Cressida chose that moment to have a coolant casualty and I pulled into the repair shop with the radiator boiling over, The repair was minor, but the parts could not be delivered until after the holiday. Dreading the un-air-conditioned and rickety Pickup of Peril, I decided to check how much an Amtrack ticket was.
$41 dollars each way is not bad and about what I'd spend to fuel the car (but about twice what I'd spend in the truck). I haven't been on a US passenger train in 30 years so I figured this would at least be interesting. After confirming that the Alexandria Station is close to a Metro station and coordinating with Pulpjunkie to pick me up, I purchased the tickets online and was at the Newport News station bright and early Saturday morning. The station has very limited long term parking but if fortuitously close to Worlds Best Comics (about a block).
I've been trying to get up there for weeks but family obligations, school or work have stymied me. As I was finally free, I decided to brave the horror that is I-95 on Memorial Day Weekend. Naturally, the Cressida chose that moment to have a coolant casualty and I pulled into the repair shop with the radiator boiling over, The repair was minor, but the parts could not be delivered until after the holiday. Dreading the un-air-conditioned and rickety Pickup of Peril, I decided to check how much an Amtrack ticket was.
$41 dollars each way is not bad and about what I'd spend to fuel the car (but about twice what I'd spend in the truck). I haven't been on a US passenger train in 30 years so I figured this would at least be interesting. After confirming that the Alexandria Station is close to a Metro station and coordinating with Pulpjunkie to pick me up, I purchased the tickets online and was at the Newport News station bright and early Saturday morning. The station has very limited long term parking but if fortuitously close to Worlds Best Comics (about a block).
I was interested in how Amtrack compared to Japanese rail, and was pleasantly surprised in all areas....except speed and punctuality. The line from Newport News to Richmond is not high speed rated and while the tracks from Richmond to DC are, heavy freight traffic and a lack of parallel rails frequently preclude really high speeds. The US train is thus theoretically comparable to Japanese non-Shinkasnsen long haul trains. In contrast to those, ( and even the bullet trains) the internal appointments compare favorably. Every seat, (even in coach!) has electrical sockets unlike the Japanese models, and in one other area the comparison is decidedly in the US trains favor.
Compare.
The snack car is not a vending machine in the vestibule but a small kitchen staffed that serves a variety of fast food. There are dining cars on either side.
For a good distance east of Richmond the rail line runs next to its predecessor, one of the canals designed, surveyed and built by George Washington ( who was an accomplished civil engineer).
Before government regulation and competition with autos devastated the US passenger rail industry, small towns were built around the rail lines. Today many of these farming communities still have stations for freight and in Virginia the 'main street' is often parallel or perpendicular to the rail line. The train runs right up through several towns.
Compare.
The snack car is not a vending machine in the vestibule but a small kitchen staffed that serves a variety of fast food. There are dining cars on either side.
For a good distance east of Richmond the rail line runs next to its predecessor, one of the canals designed, surveyed and built by George Washington ( who was an accomplished civil engineer).
Before government regulation and competition with autos devastated the US passenger rail industry, small towns were built around the rail lines. Today many of these farming communities still have stations for freight and in Virginia the 'main street' is often parallel or perpendicular to the rail line. The train runs right up through several towns.
Ashland, now a suburb of Richmond, is one of the few that still has passenger rail service. Between Ashland and Fredricksburg there is mostly farmland, recent development has followed the interstates and most of the train stations like this one are no longer in service.
There are a few freight stations though.
Rail freight is still a hugely lucrative and highly developed business in the USA, a fact that seems lost on many. Only marine transport is more efficient at transporting large quantities of goods. It also means that all these rail lines are filled with slow freight cars, which stymie most attempts to re-introduce passenger rail. Danny Taggart ought to go into freight.
Because most actual real estate development gravitates to the roads, the areas around the rail line are often picturesque.
There are a few freight stations though.
This is a very bad picture of one.
Rail freight is still a hugely lucrative and highly developed business in the USA, a fact that seems lost on many. Only marine transport is more efficient at transporting large quantities of goods. It also means that all these rail lines are filled with slow freight cars, which stymie most attempts to re-introduce passenger rail. Danny Taggart ought to go into freight.
Because most actual real estate development gravitates to the roads, the areas around the rail line are often picturesque.
A beaver lodge!
We proceeded on time until just short of Alexandria when the train stopped for 20 minutes because a CSX train was blocking the way. Amtrack in Virginia is using CSX rail lines but not actually paying to build parallel lines, so.....
20 minutes late, I arrived in Alexandria Station I helped an old lady maneuver her bags onto the train and met Pulpjunkie across from the Washington Monument.
Wait. What!?
20 minutes late, I arrived in Alexandria Station I helped an old lady maneuver her bags onto the train and met Pulpjunkie across from the Washington Monument.
Wait. What!?
I shortly thereafter discovered my wallet was missing. [expletive] [/expletive]. A good bit of drama ensued as I called the station got in touch with the next station and confirmed that the conductor had found it. It turns out the lady I helped turned it in, it had fallen out when I helped her load her bags. The wallet arrived on the next train and, astonished at my good fortune, we began our bumble through DC.
Oh yeah...the Washington Monument....It looks different up close doesn't it?
Actually that is the MASONIC Washington Memorial which is the Masons own monument to George Washington. Each level has a little museum dedicated to the various branches of Masonry, the Jewish or Christian orders that support each and what charities each are involved in with a bit of Masonic history as well as a limited talk on their arcane ceremonies...but no pictures are allowed...'cause the Masons are supr sekrit...except for their brochures and websites and stuff.
The Alexandria Amtrack Station is across the street from the King Street Metro Station. This allowed quick and easy access to La'Enfant Plaza, which was being used by Native American Navy veterans who were commemorating Memorial Day with a dance and concert.
After taking that in we visited the Naval History Museum, where we learned that the first US Navy Ship was named after Alfred The Great.
This is a reminder that the revolution did not actually start as a secession, but as someone once said, English subjects fighting for the rights of Englishmen...against a German king. Flash photography was not allowed but I did get a pic of this flight jacket with unit art.
None of the other pics really took.
We headed out and towards the Mall but were temporarily distracted by an infestation of modern art which has taken root off Constitution avenue.
We wandered down the Mall museum hopping. Little has changed since the last time I was there. I note that the National Triceratops was removed some years ago depriving kids of the experience of climbing all over it...feh.
At the graveyard of tomorrows the only new exhibit was Spaceship 1 which was in a glare that defied photography. Most of the new exhibits are at a huge new facility out in Virginia.
Of course we stocked up on provisions...(well I did: Pulpjunkie broke morale over the dehydrated ice cream).
The newest Museum is the Museum of the American Indian and it is an architectural marvel and very nicely appointed. Pulpjunkie informs me that it has the best museum restaurant in the Smithsonian but we arrived too late to partake.
I had wanted to hit Chinatown again but Pulpjunkie suggested dinner in Annandale. As he is leaving it was his last opportunity to hit his favorite Chinese Restaurant...
Like many of the best restaurants in the South, Duck Changs advertising is handled by Quisling food animals selling out their compatriots. I ordered the Mongolian Beef which was superb. Pulpjunkie had something else...but out of respect to my readers I shan't mention it.
Sunday was spent helping load furniture, measure the condo, which is to be rented out, and doing various other things. That evening we watched various shows on crunchy roll and talked until after midnight. Pulpjunkie the suggested Korean Barbeque. It seems that Annandale has several 24 hour Korean Barbecue joints.
This brings us to another thing about Annandale...
This is a fairly typical strip mall.
..as is this
A German Restaurant run by Koreans
I'm not sure why Annandale became such a huge immigrant community but it has done wonders for the areas food options. To Wit:
Lunch Monday where I ate ENTIRELY too much chicken.
We arrived in Alexandria early Monday as we feared delays die to the holiday. There were none so we had a couple of hours to kill in Olde Town.
As a child I had thought that Alexandria was in Egypt, and that Alexander the Great had never even gotten to northern Virginia. Well, you live and learn.
Actually it is named for a plantation owner who donated land to the then port.
People no doubt pay a premium in rent for authentic crappy road surfaces.
Of course there is the inevitable urban blight.
Oh yeah...the Washington Monument....It looks different up close doesn't it?
Actually that is the MASONIC Washington Memorial which is the Masons own monument to George Washington. Each level has a little museum dedicated to the various branches of Masonry, the Jewish or Christian orders that support each and what charities each are involved in with a bit of Masonic history as well as a limited talk on their arcane ceremonies...but no pictures are allowed...'cause the Masons are supr sekrit...except for their brochures and websites and stuff.
The Alexandria Amtrack Station is across the street from the King Street Metro Station. This allowed quick and easy access to La'Enfant Plaza, which was being used by Native American Navy veterans who were commemorating Memorial Day with a dance and concert.
La'Enfant Plaza..Note the curious lack of Super Mutants.
After taking that in we visited the Naval History Museum, where we learned that the first US Navy Ship was named after Alfred The Great.
This is a reminder that the revolution did not actually start as a secession, but as someone once said, English subjects fighting for the rights of Englishmen...against a German king. Flash photography was not allowed but I did get a pic of this flight jacket with unit art.
None of the other pics really took.
We headed out and towards the Mall but were temporarily distracted by an infestation of modern art which has taken root off Constitution avenue.
We wandered down the Mall museum hopping. Little has changed since the last time I was there. I note that the National Triceratops was removed some years ago depriving kids of the experience of climbing all over it...feh.
At the graveyard of tomorrows the only new exhibit was Spaceship 1 which was in a glare that defied photography. Most of the new exhibits are at a huge new facility out in Virginia.
SPACE FOOD!
The newest Museum is the Museum of the American Indian and it is an architectural marvel and very nicely appointed. Pulpjunkie informs me that it has the best museum restaurant in the Smithsonian but we arrived too late to partake.
I had wanted to hit Chinatown again but Pulpjunkie suggested dinner in Annandale. As he is leaving it was his last opportunity to hit his favorite Chinese Restaurant...
Like many of the best restaurants in the South, Duck Changs advertising is handled by Quisling food animals selling out their compatriots. I ordered the Mongolian Beef which was superb. Pulpjunkie had something else...but out of respect to my readers I shan't mention it.
Sunday was spent helping load furniture, measure the condo, which is to be rented out, and doing various other things. That evening we watched various shows on crunchy roll and talked until after midnight. Pulpjunkie the suggested Korean Barbeque. It seems that Annandale has several 24 hour Korean Barbecue joints.
Late night meat FTW!
This brings us to another thing about Annandale...
This is a fairly typical strip mall.
Will NOT be trying the Il Mee restaurant.
..as is this
A German Restaurant run by Koreans
I'm not sure why Annandale became such a huge immigrant community but it has done wonders for the areas food options. To Wit:
Lunch Monday where I ate ENTIRELY too much chicken.
We arrived in Alexandria early Monday as we feared delays die to the holiday. There were none so we had a couple of hours to kill in Olde Town.
As a child I had thought that Alexandria was in Egypt, and that Alexander the Great had never even gotten to northern Virginia. Well, you live and learn.
People no doubt pay a premium in rent for authentic crappy road surfaces.
The old Torpedo Factory is now an art gallery and the waterfront is quite lively.
We arrived at the station with ample time to spare and said our goodbyes. The station is quite old and has been restored nicely.
This is the tunnel connecting to the other side of the station:I gather that its rarely used.
I was surprised to learn that the commuter lines now extend as far as Fredricksburg and Broad Run. Assuming there is parking, this could make trips to DC much less obnoxious.
The return trip was uneventful till just East of Richmond when the train stopped....and then proceeded along at 15mph. It seems that the computer systems for Amtrack, CSX and Norfolk Southern all went down, and no one knew precisely where the trains were. 15 mph was considered slow enough that the train could stop if an oncoming train was seen. This put the train over 2 hours late. I'm a little suspicious of all 3 systems going down at once. It certainly bears scrutiny. In any event Amtrack blew it on the scheduling this trip. However, the customer service was beyond excellent.
Posted by: The Brickmuppet at
04:32 PM
| Comments (1)
| Add Comment
Post contains 1611 words, total size 18 kb.
May 05, 2011
Status
Exams are over. Bin Laden's still dead. I got a B average for the semester. I'm taking no classes this summer. I will put in my graduation application (for next year) in November. I've lost 15 pounds over the winter. I've hired a Japanese tutor. I'm filling in for vacations at work this summer.
Yep. Pretty much all is well.
..well...except for one thing. I'm really enjoying this show about grade school girls cockfighting with little robot Tamagotchis, and that worries me a bit.
Yep. Pretty much all is well.
..well...except for one thing. I'm really enjoying this show about grade school girls cockfighting with little robot Tamagotchis, and that worries me a bit.
Posted by: The Brickmuppet at
06:22 PM
| Comments (5)
| Add Comment
Post contains 86 words, total size 1 kb.
April 28, 2011
Suffolk sky looks like special effect from The Ten Comandments
UPDATE: The post title was sent via my Blackberry when I was out at the drugstore picking up prescriptions for my grandmother. I'm at their house now and the sky looks far less spectacular...more like an old Dr Who episode.(Oh noes! Ice Warriors!)
Tornado watch is in effect.
I'm looking at the news. The reports coming in from elsewhere in the country are grim indeed.
Tornado watch is in effect.
I'm looking at the news. The reports coming in from elsewhere in the country are grim indeed.
Posted by: The Brickmuppet at
11:25 AM
| Comments (2)
| Add Comment
Post contains 75 words, total size 1 kb.
April 23, 2011
DONE
The last paper of the semester, the one that went away when the laptop was stolen, the one that I subsequently lost due to a "save" glitch at the ODU library and again due to a power failure at home...is completed, AND printed out....on a robust data storage medium...paper.
The paper is in the hands of the professor and I have a backup copy.
Electrons are no longer involved in sustaining the existence of this project in any way above the chemical and atomic level and if those break down the assignment is no longer a concern.
The paper from hell is done.
I don't pretend to understand women but right now I can relate fully to the sentiments this young lady is expressing.
The paper is in the hands of the professor and I have a backup copy.
Electrons are no longer involved in sustaining the existence of this project in any way above the chemical and atomic level and if those break down the assignment is no longer a concern.
The paper from hell is done.
I don't pretend to understand women but right now I can relate fully to the sentiments this young lady is expressing.
It's done! iTs DOnE! IT'S doNE!1!!
Posted by: The Brickmuppet at
07:01 PM
| Comments (1)
| Add Comment
Post contains 131 words, total size 1 kb.
January 03, 2011
My Worst Birthday Present Evah
I've been down with a rather spectacular stomach bug that resulted in running, then walking, the hobbling to the bathroom every 20 minutes for 9 hours. By the end I had emptied the contents of my stomach and seemed to be regurgitating the contents of regions rather below that. I ended up in the hospital and received 2 and a half bags of IV fluid. I gathered that there is something of an outbreak going on in S.E. Virginia. This contradicts my earlier theory that it had to do with the fact I was watching Sekerei. A big heaping thanks to my friend Allan Rowe, in whose bathroom I spent New Years 2010/11 and who ran me to the hospital.
Posted by: The Brickmuppet at
10:59 AM
| No Comments
| Add Comment
Post contains 125 words, total size 1 kb.
December 27, 2010
SNOWPOCALYPSE!
Christmas afternoon, with snow reported to be on the way, I asked my folks if they needed me to pick them up anything.
They said no.
So off to Wallgreens I went.
The prescriptions filled, I browsed the store looking for hot chocolate but there was none. In fact, the store was also a bread, milk and bottled water free zone. It was about the only place open and seemed to be doing a brisk business selling what was left.
The roads were atrocious. I saw 3 wrecks involving at least 8 cars between them. Portsmouth has only about 10 snow plows and I heard on the radio that two had overturned yesterday. (How does that HAPPEN?)
Additionally, internet and phones were out until this morning.
Somewhere out west Pete is no doubt laughing a loud, mocking Slavic laugh at the pandemonium this 6-8 inches of whiteness has caused us silly non-Russians.
However, this area simply has not had to deal with this on a regular basis since the 80's. This really is the most snow we've seen in nearly 20 years and by far the earliest meaningful accumulation on the south-side in that time. The last few winters only snowstorm of note occurred in February of this year and was somewhat less severe. Until this weekend, it had been the worst snowstorm we'd for a long time. (Though an ice storm in 1999 did cause some major problems)
Although I was supposed to be off today, a pleading text from my supervisor convinced me to head in this morning. UPS is on the peninsula in Newport News. That area, on the northern side of the roads, gets snow much more frequently, but even there this storm had overwhelmed the road crews. It took me over an hour to make what is normally a 30 minute commute. Only about 10 percent of our workforce made it in and worked our butts off trying to get the brown trucks loaded. However, we ended up well past driver start time with virtually everything in our delivery area closed and the roads quite treacherous. Thus UPS shut down without unloading all trailers for only the second time in the 19 years I've worked there. (The only other time was for a hurricane). A few trucks are running very abbreviated routes but that is all.
Tomorrow will be one busy day as we catch up. We'll be starting 2 hours early, which for me means getting up at 2AM...Its almost like.... Christmas....again.
They said no.
That blue thing in the distance is my Cressida.
Yesterday afternoon, with more snow falling than Southside Hampton Roads has had in 20 years, my mom remembered "Oh...my prescriptions!" The roads were atrocious. I saw 3 wrecks involving at least 8 cars between them. Portsmouth has only about 10 snow plows and I heard on the radio that two had overturned yesterday. (How does that HAPPEN?)
Additionally, internet and phones were out until this morning.
Somewhere out west Pete is no doubt laughing a loud, mocking Slavic laugh at the pandemonium this 6-8 inches of whiteness has caused us silly non-Russians.
However, this area simply has not had to deal with this on a regular basis since the 80's. This really is the most snow we've seen in nearly 20 years and by far the earliest meaningful accumulation on the south-side in that time. The last few winters only snowstorm of note occurred in February of this year and was somewhat less severe. Until this weekend, it had been the worst snowstorm we'd for a long time. (Though an ice storm in 1999 did cause some major problems)
Although I was supposed to be off today, a pleading text from my supervisor convinced me to head in this morning. UPS is on the peninsula in Newport News. That area, on the northern side of the roads, gets snow much more frequently, but even there this storm had overwhelmed the road crews. It took me over an hour to make what is normally a 30 minute commute. Only about 10 percent of our workforce made it in and worked our butts off trying to get the brown trucks loaded. However, we ended up well past driver start time with virtually everything in our delivery area closed and the roads quite treacherous. Thus UPS shut down without unloading all trailers for only the second time in the 19 years I've worked there. (The only other time was for a hurricane). A few trucks are running very abbreviated routes but that is all.
Tomorrow will be one busy day as we catch up. We'll be starting 2 hours early, which for me means getting up at 2AM...Its almost like.... Christmas....again.
Posted by: The Brickmuppet at
12:38 PM
| No Comments
| Add Comment
Post contains 458 words, total size 4 kb.
December 25, 2010
Merry Christmas!
Posted by: The Brickmuppet at
06:58 PM
| No Comments
| Add Comment
Post contains 17 words, total size 1 kb.
December 21, 2010
Jingle Hell
After the flu and associated hospitalization, missing two to three weeks worth of classes and Christmas hours at UPS, I had exams last week. I was a bit concerned due to the large amount of class I missed just prior to exams, which resulted in this answer I gave to one of the 15 short answer questions on the Asian History Exam.
Despite this, I just found out that I got an "A"on that exam. Wo0t!
It's Christmas week.
I work at UPS.
So, in lieu of content, here is some Christmas cheer.
After the flu and associated hospitalization, missing two to three weeks worth of classes and Christmas hours at UPS, I had exams last week. I was a bit concerned due to the large amount of class I missed just prior to exams, which resulted in this answer I gave to one of the 15 short answer questions on the Asian History Exam.
The May Fourth Movement was a political movement that began on May Fourth in a certain Asian country. Regrettably, as I have been absent for three weeks I cannot be more specific than this technically correct definition. This is the third sentence as required by the instructions.
Despite this, I just found out that I got an "A"on that exam. Wo0t!
It's Christmas week.
I work at UPS.
So, in lieu of content, here is some Christmas cheer.
As an added bonus, as per a request from Ubu, here is another picture of Saber...dancing...in a bunny suit.
Now back to unlimited cardboard box works...
Posted by: The Brickmuppet at
11:11 AM
| Comments (2)
| Add Comment
Post contains 169 words, total size 2 kb.
December 06, 2010
Last Week of Class In Bed
Due to this virus, I'm missing my last Chinese Politics class...the big exam review-everything-on-the-exam-will-be-covered-here class.
Ghaa!!
OTOH I do have a letter from the hospital so I should be able to get something in an office visit. As to the bug itself, I slept for 13 hours. I don't hurt as much. My fever is down around 100 and I am much less weak.
I hope to be able to return to work/school tomorrow.
Picture is unrelated:
Ghaa!!
OTOH I do have a letter from the hospital so I should be able to get something in an office visit. As to the bug itself, I slept for 13 hours. I don't hurt as much. My fever is down around 100 and I am much less weak.
I hope to be able to return to work/school tomorrow.
Picture is unrelated:
Posted by: The Brickmuppet at
06:28 PM
| No Comments
| Add Comment
Post contains 83 words, total size 1 kb.
I Hate that Girl Enza...But She Flew Right In
Been laid up in bed pretty much since Friday after work with a worse than average head cold. Today the coughing started. About 7 hours ago I noted that my temperature was 103. About 6 hours ago I noted that the coughing was excruciatingly painful and there was just a touch of blood involved. Given that I was getting weaker, not better and given that I had to be to work at 2AM and, given that my job is at UPS, and the fact that especially around December 5th one really needs a medical justification for not showing up, I got a much needed shower and went out, only to realize that the only place still open was the hospital.
Although I was indeed dragging it's really gauche to be going to the ER for a damned cold.
To my astonishment, I was out in under 90 minutes. I must say that Harborview Medical Center is a really professional outfit and now 3 out of the 3 times I've been there in the last year it's been about as pleasant non-horrific as is possible when one feels like a buffalo chip being used as a Voodoo doll.
There was no Pneumonia on the X-Ray and I was diagnosed with an acute viral infection.
Other than that, my only concern was my second chest X-ray in about a month, but that was unavoidable.
My only prescription was a codeine based cough syrup which tastes like ass, yet is effective...and is juust niice.
Things don't hurt as much anymore and there's this thread on /d/ that looks really fascinating now...but I'd best not blog about that at all 'cause if I did no one would ever talk to me again...
Oh wait.
Although I was indeed dragging it's really gauche to be going to the ER for a damned cold.
To my astonishment, I was out in under 90 minutes. I must say that Harborview Medical Center is a really professional outfit and now 3 out of the 3 times I've been there in the last year it's been about as pleasant non-horrific as is possible when one feels like a buffalo chip being used as a Voodoo doll.
There was no Pneumonia on the X-Ray and I was diagnosed with an acute viral infection.
Other than that, my only concern was my second chest X-ray in about a month, but that was unavoidable.
My only prescription was a codeine based cough syrup which tastes like ass, yet is effective...and is juust niice.
Things don't hurt as much anymore and there's this thread on /d/ that looks really fascinating now...but I'd best not blog about that at all 'cause if I did no one would ever talk to me again...
Oh wait.
Posted by: The Brickmuppet at
04:32 AM
| No Comments
| Add Comment
Post contains 299 words, total size 2 kb.
December 03, 2010
Exams, 3 Papers and UPS in December
Things are busy this fall in Brickmuppetburg.
...so here is a picture of Saber in autumn.
...so here is a picture of Saber in autumn.
Posted by: The Brickmuppet at
12:44 AM
| Comments (4)
| Add Comment
Post contains 23 words, total size 1 kb.
November 20, 2010
A Rare Moment of Utter Demoralization
I'm currently carrying A's and B's in all my classes. As I type this, I've got on my plate: 2 term papers, a couple of hundred pages of readings, two tests and a makeup quiz next week, exams in 21 days and my work schedule has suddenly become quite hectic (which is actually a bit of a relief). I'm working my butt off and have been for years....
....which is why I pretty much collapsed and sucked my toes for a while upon reading this.
Read it all.
I'm busting my ass on these papers and this bimbo is texting her subcontracted-paper-writer crap like this....
Yeah...well I'm dispirited too bitch...because of your shi...
oh wait...
you were trying to say desperate...but you learned your spelling from 4-chan.
Even more disturbing is this video. (via)
Watch it.
As some of you likely have inferred, I've been pursuing a degree for some time, an inordinately long time to be quite frank. Ignoring for a moment a series of really bad decisions and screw-ups I made 18 to 20 years ago and some questionable choices in more recent years, I've had to drop out of school mid-semester because of:
Severe work schedule changes (5 times)
Being hospitalized/ injured (twice )
Reserve mobilization (once)
The destruction of my house during midterms (once)
The need to care for sick relatives (thrice)
All but once for no reimbursement. At one point I was not even allowed to drop the courses I could no longer attend...with predictable results for my GPA.
I haven't been able to attend every year because of the sheer cost. After the disastrous financial results of the abominable choices I made in my youth, I have no intention of going into debt for school again.
Additionally, changing graduation requirements over the last decade have meant that I've had transfer credits that were previously approved no longer count, freshman courses that I had tested out of be retroactively required, the number of courses required for graduation seems at times to be fungible and the 'College of Bullshit' seems to keep getting more of their courses required.
The staff of the College of Bullshit counseling a student
....which is why I pretty much collapsed and sucked my toes for a while upon reading this.
I work at an online company that generates tens of thousands of dollars a month by creating original essays based on specific instructions provided by cheating students. I've worked there full time since 2004. On any day of the academic year, I am working on upward of 20 assignments.
Read it all.
I'm busting my ass on these papers and this bimbo is texting her subcontracted-paper-writer crap like this....
"did u get the sorce I send
please where you are now?
Desprit to pass spring projict"
Yeah...well I'm dispirited too bitch...because of your shi...
oh wait...
you were trying to say desperate...but you learned your spelling from 4-chan.
Even more disturbing is this video. (via)
Watch it.
As some of you likely have inferred, I've been pursuing a degree for some time, an inordinately long time to be quite frank. Ignoring for a moment a series of really bad decisions and screw-ups I made 18 to 20 years ago and some questionable choices in more recent years, I've had to drop out of school mid-semester because of:
Severe work schedule changes (5 times)
Being hospitalized/ injured (twice )
Reserve mobilization (once)
The destruction of my house during midterms (once)
The need to care for sick relatives (thrice)
All but once for no reimbursement. At one point I was not even allowed to drop the courses I could no longer attend...with predictable results for my GPA.
I haven't been able to attend every year because of the sheer cost. After the disastrous financial results of the abominable choices I made in my youth, I have no intention of going into debt for school again.
Additionally, changing graduation requirements over the last decade have meant that I've had transfer credits that were previously approved no longer count, freshman courses that I had tested out of be retroactively required, the number of courses required for graduation seems at times to be fungible and the 'College of Bullshit' seems to keep getting more of their courses required.
The staff of the College of Bullshit counseling a student
Still, as infuriating as some of these things have been, I've stuck with it and am now about one year from graduation.
I have never cheated.
Which makes this thing all he more demoralizing, much more so than any of the above FUBAR events have been.
There seems to be remarkably little recognition amongst my fellow students of the gravity of the situation. One girl felt that paper writing services were bad 'because it was hard to find any for free and in order to compete one would have to pay for them'.
Yes the worst thing about cheating is that in some cases it requires one to pay for something one gets on the internet.
My head hurts.
This semester, my exams, at least are largely immune to this as most of them are essay heavy.
However, the papers I have to do are not cakewalks.
...and all the while I can be pretty sure that several of my fellow students are contracting theirs out while I travel about looking for references while working at UPS in November/December.
Given the widespread nature of the problem, I have to wonder what my degree, that I've already spent >$40,000 on, will be worth when I finally have it.
As I said it's just demoralizing.
Damn.
Update:
Not academic but quite related...Colleen Doran has been "Griggsed".
I have never cheated.
Which makes this thing all he more demoralizing, much more so than any of the above FUBAR events have been.
What
is
the
fucking
point?
is
the
fucking
point?
There seems to be remarkably little recognition amongst my fellow students of the gravity of the situation. One girl felt that paper writing services were bad 'because it was hard to find any for free and in order to compete one would have to pay for them'.
Yes the worst thing about cheating is that in some cases it requires one to pay for something one gets on the internet.
My head hurts.
This semester, my exams, at least are largely immune to this as most of them are essay heavy.
However, the papers I have to do are not cakewalks.
...and all the while I can be pretty sure that several of my fellow students are contracting theirs out while I travel about looking for references while working at UPS in November/December.
Given the widespread nature of the problem, I have to wonder what my degree, that I've already spent >$40,000 on, will be worth when I finally have it.
As I said it's just demoralizing.
Damn.
Update:
Not academic but quite related...Colleen Doran has been "Griggsed".
Posted by: The Brickmuppet at
03:17 PM
| Comments (5)
| Add Comment
Post contains 663 words, total size 6 kb.
October 14, 2010
Conspicuous Consumption
In the past I've had to rely on used cars, discarded computers and furniture out of dumpsters.
However, this week, when I managed to acquire a case of monia it wasn't used it was pneu!
However, this week, when I managed to acquire a case of monia it wasn't used it was pneu!
Posted by: The Brickmuppet at
03:50 AM
| Comments (1)
| Add Comment
Post contains 37 words, total size 1 kb.
October 07, 2010
Banality
Two term papers and scads of homework are keeping me from the pile of Anime in the "TO WATCH" que.
The heating pipe broke in the car, and did so in a completely inaccessible place so I had to call a tow truck. Do to the fact that I was actually way early ( I planed to use the gym at school) I didn't miss but 10 minutes of class.
That night however, I blew all my monies on the slot machines...Well, OK that last thing actually happened in game...
Third season...I'm gonna get that job at the pizza joint, when I'm not defeating obscure cultural references with various flavors of Ninja-Fu.
Click on the above image...you know you want to. First hit is free..(actually all hits are free).
The heating pipe broke in the car, and did so in a completely inaccessible place so I had to call a tow truck. Do to the fact that I was actually way early ( I planed to use the gym at school) I didn't miss but 10 minutes of class.
That night however, I blew all my monies on the slot machines...Well, OK that last thing actually happened in game...
Third season...I'm gonna get that job at the pizza joint, when I'm not defeating obscure cultural references with various flavors of Ninja-Fu.
Click on the above image...you know you want to. First hit is free..(actually all hits are free).
Posted by: The Brickmuppet at
07:47 PM
| Comments (1)
| Add Comment
Post contains 130 words, total size 1 kb.
Economic indicators
I don't blog about work much.
Anything that gets specific about the operation is likely proprietary and the ins and out of moving packages are almost as interesting as watching grass grow.
A few observations are germane to the current economy however.
I'm a part timer at a major shipping company.
I'm working just over three hours a day now. This is less than in July.
We still have laid off special service drivers.
Talking to those scurrilous infidels from Fed-Ex ( as I am sometimes want to do ) I have heard similar stories.
It is October.
Christmas may be....austere.
Related.
Anything that gets specific about the operation is likely proprietary and the ins and out of moving packages are almost as interesting as watching grass grow.
A few observations are germane to the current economy however.
I'm a part timer at a major shipping company.
I'm working just over three hours a day now. This is less than in July.
We still have laid off special service drivers.
Talking to those scurrilous infidels from Fed-Ex ( as I am sometimes want to do ) I have heard similar stories.
It is October.
Christmas may be....austere.
Related.
Posted by: The Brickmuppet at
06:52 PM
| No Comments
| Add Comment
Post contains 110 words, total size 1 kb.
October 03, 2010
Wet
It rained solid here in Southeastern Virginia for three days. The temperature has ranged from the low 60's to the 90s. The bloated wet corpse of TS Nicole arrived Thursday with yet more rain but added gale force winds and a tornado. The trees, which were by then sitting in soup, began to fall and take powerlines with them.
We were lucky. We retained power except for a few very brief flickers , though internet has been twitchy.
Yesterday was a glorious respite from the rain and I drove out to Rushmere to check on my brother. This soybean field gives some idea of how much water is still about.
(This was the only place on route 10 that I could pull off and take a picture)
Last night the rains returned.
And I swear thought we had a very slight earthquake yesterday, although a quick check indicated that the closest one yesterday was in Doswell. Perhaps the house settled.
We were lucky. We retained power except for a few very brief flickers , though internet has been twitchy.
Yesterday was a glorious respite from the rain and I drove out to Rushmere to check on my brother. This soybean field gives some idea of how much water is still about.
(This was the only place on route 10 that I could pull off and take a picture)
Last night the rains returned.
And I swear thought we had a very slight earthquake yesterday, although a quick check indicated that the closest one yesterday was in Doswell. Perhaps the house settled.
It's nice to be loved.
Posted by: The Brickmuppet at
08:45 PM
| No Comments
| Add Comment
Post contains 166 words, total size 2 kb.
August 06, 2010
Tell Me a Scary Story
If anyone has any horror stories to tell on any of the following subjects:
Aeon, ECC, Berlitz, Geos and related....
....please relate them in the comments.
(Happy stories are good too.)
Posted by: The Brickmuppet at
05:07 AM
| No Comments
| Add Comment
Post contains 36 words, total size 1 kb.
June 01, 2010
Ants
They do not belong in my toothpaste.
Posted by: The Brickmuppet at
07:59 PM
| Comments (1)
| Add Comment
Post contains 8 words, total size 1 kb.
May 22, 2010
Important Safety Tip
Nearly two weeks ago I attempted to expand the Windows 7 partition on my iMac. This resulted in a total failure to expand the partition, loosing all data therein and having an inaccessible empty partition on my hard drive....which prevented me from making a new partition from scratch.
I finally ended up taking the machine to the shop, and while I was at it I upgraded to the TB drive. Upon unpacking it, I placed it on my desk to check it out and make sure it was working OK. However I need the desk for homework, so Saturday I moved it up to the shelf where it lives and made an important discovery.
In the back of an iMac is a vent. Here you can see it very clearly not marked near the upper edge, above the Apple logo.
That vent is extremely sharp edged. So sharp that after the resulting cut bled profusely...into the vent. The machine began to make a really....odd...noise, which I took to be blood congealed on the fan.
Yikes!
The cut bled for 3 days and I ended up going to the emergency room, where I had it lashed up securely, was given a tetanus shot and was informed that I was not to do anything with my left thumb for a solid week. ( No work and associated monies for Ken). As an added bonus the tetanus shot knocked me on my heels.
Of course I also had to take the computer back to the shop and sheepishly explain this fiasco.
Here's the thing: The Mac guy mentioned that this had actually happened to some of his other customers and he'd sent a consumer alert to Apple.
Now Steve Jobs has the most crackerjack industrial design team in the whole frickking world. Therefore it beggars belief that this is actually a design flaw. Thus I can only conclude that this is deliberate and iMacs are actually designed to collect DNA samples as part of a bloody biometric phishing scheme or perhaps they simply feed upon the blood of the unwary.
Anyway, beware. Steve Jobs wants your blood.
UPDATE: It occurs to me that some of my fellow Mac users may take violent and murderous offense at my post. Rather than proselytizing in the comments section of this post I suggest that you instead go here and ask yourself, 'where is your Jobs now?'
UPDATE2: Although it is ready, I still don't have Holo back yet due to the fact that I was not able to get through yesterdays obnoxious southeastern Virginia traffic before the store closed.
I finally ended up taking the machine to the shop, and while I was at it I upgraded to the TB drive. Upon unpacking it, I placed it on my desk to check it out and make sure it was working OK. However I need the desk for homework, so Saturday I moved it up to the shelf where it lives and made an important discovery.
In the back of an iMac is a vent. Here you can see it very clearly not marked near the upper edge, above the Apple logo.
That vent is extremely sharp edged. So sharp that after the resulting cut bled profusely...into the vent. The machine began to make a really....odd...noise, which I took to be blood congealed on the fan.
Yikes!
The cut bled for 3 days and I ended up going to the emergency room, where I had it lashed up securely, was given a tetanus shot and was informed that I was not to do anything with my left thumb for a solid week. ( No work and associated monies for Ken). As an added bonus the tetanus shot knocked me on my heels.
Of course I also had to take the computer back to the shop and sheepishly explain this fiasco.
Here's the thing: The Mac guy mentioned that this had actually happened to some of his other customers and he'd sent a consumer alert to Apple.
Now Steve Jobs has the most crackerjack industrial design team in the whole frickking world. Therefore it beggars belief that this is actually a design flaw. Thus I can only conclude that this is deliberate and iMacs are actually designed to collect DNA samples as part of a bloody biometric phishing scheme or perhaps they simply feed upon the blood of the unwary.
Anyway, beware. Steve Jobs wants your blood.
UPDATE: It occurs to me that some of my fellow Mac users may take violent and murderous offense at my post. Rather than proselytizing in the comments section of this post I suggest that you instead go here and ask yourself, 'where is your Jobs now?'
UPDATE2: Although it is ready, I still don't have Holo back yet due to the fact that I was not able to get through yesterdays obnoxious southeastern Virginia traffic before the store closed.
Posted by: The Brickmuppet at
03:33 AM
| Comments (1)
| Add Comment
Post contains 436 words, total size 3 kb.
98kb generated in CPU 0.0685, elapsed 0.3768 seconds.
77 queries taking 0.3528 seconds, 358 records returned.
Powered by Minx 1.1.6c-pink.
77 queries taking 0.3528 seconds, 358 records returned.
Powered by Minx 1.1.6c-pink.
