Introduction to Computing

School will be wrapping up before we know it. I would like to take this last post to thank Ms. Williams as an instructor and for being forgiving with my work if I was unable to finish a project on time. This class was undoubtedly my most interesting of my classes this semester. I enjoy computers and working with them, and to be honest, much of the material studied for this class was review, but I enjoyed the work to an extent. Haha.

The coolest part about the course was the blogging! I sometimes let the weeks slip by, but I've always babied the thought of starting a blog, and with this course, the opportunity was there. Awesome idea, and I really enjoyed it. Props to Ms. Williams for such a cool idea for a course.

This semester went by unbelievably fast. I feel like I can count the number of times I had driven back and forth to Snyder for classes, or logged into Moodle for online assignments. It's crazy how quickly it passed.

Not sure if I'll be back at WTC next semester, or off to Cross Plains or Tech in Lubbock. Here's good luck to all my fellow students in their continued education, and a thank you to Ms. Williams.

God bless.

My Job (for the next two weeks)

Duckwall-ALCO. Wal-Mart Lite. A retail chain operating for the past 100 or so years, minimal success, but still going, remarkably. I talk in spite for what I went through today at work, and while I won't go into specifics, I went ahead and put in my two weeks notice. 

Apparently, I had been scheduled to work 9-3, as opposed to my 3-9 shift I've been working for the past month. My mistake there. I call work and they let me know to come in from 12-6, but my two cousins were having their birthday party at 2 at Ruddick Park in town. I'll try and make this story short. I go into work hoping to ask the manager for a cut in half shift and the chance to leave early to make the party. Sure, she says, if only I work from open to close the next day. No thanks. 

So I call the manager out on why there is an empty slot for the evening shift. Apparently a worker lied to a manager about being given the day off, and word got around. So another guy in my department was called in to cover his shift. I saw no problem with working until 2:30 until the guy got here to take over. The manager I was speaking with (a real pushy one, by the way) stormed off, stating to do whatever I wanted. Ok.

Once she returned from lunch, she scolded me for "not working" -- What??? To top things off, another manager quit not 15 minutes later, after having a fight with the same manager. I'll just follow suite, I thought to myself. So I went ahead and put in my two weeks notice upstairs, and left at 2:30 when Tim thankfully showed up. I work diligently, hard, and never call in sick or miss a workday. I've been there over a year, and yet I'm treated as it's my first day. I'm not paid enough to deal with pushy managers, so I'm gonna go ahead and get out early. I had planned to stay until school let out anyway, so there's not much difference. The 14th will be my last day at Alco. I'm ecstatic.

My Friday + Arrival

Spent the day in Lubbock with the girlfriend and her mom, loading up the pickup truck full of clothes, pictures, unopened notebooks, and mini refrigerators. Was one of those bittersweet visits; the ones in which you know it'll come to an end very, very quickly. Another two weeks and she'll be home for the summer. Finals are killer.

Getting home around, well, just now, I discovered my package had arrived from bodybuilding.com. As previously noted, I'm on that weight training kick again and therefore must supplement my diet. I received two weight gainers (protein powder, plus a bunch of extra carbs and calories), and a new package of Animal M-Stak pills. These are referred to as "nutrient partitioners" - Yeah, I know. The idea is that the surplus of calories eaten in a regular day are to be used for your muscles, rather than stored as extra body fat by taking these pills. I've used them before, and saw results, and all the reviews I've read online support the product, so I went ahead and ordered another box.

Money being tight, I can't afford to spend cash on things that won't work. So I always make sure they're quality products. Even with that, I have to budget myself and find shortcuts here and there with my diet and training. Yesterday wrapped up the first week of serious training once again, so if all goes as planned, I have 11 more weeks to go. We'll see how things progress.

The Gym

I've recently gotten back into that kick again. Can't miss a day. Can't miss a meal. The thing about working out (or any physical activity) is that it must be consistent to yield satisfactory results. That means on the days you feel tired, you get up and go. When you can't push out another rep, you force one anyway. When you're completely stuffed and feel like you're about to puke, keep eating. (Well, that's a bit extreme, but you get the idea). I'm currently trying to gain some more weight. That calls for a weight training program that combines compound exercises such as bench press, squat, and dead lift to build overall muscularity. In addition, I must eat a surplus of calories everyday. It can't all be from ice cream and cake though. Lean proteins, healthy fats, and complex carbs are the basis of this diet, and ideally I should be eating up to 2500-3000 calories a day. 

I'm hoping to carry this program over into the summer and finally reach my weight goals. After I have reached a satisfactory weight (shooting for 175-180), I'll go on a cut to shed extra bodyfat. This will call for a new diet and a new training routine. I think the coolest part of being a gym rat is seeing change. The fact that your own hard work is changing you for the better. I like feeling and looking healthy. It's more of a lifestyle than a hobby. For the longest time, I fell off and wasn't motivated to get back into it. I feel great as I type this, though. I'll reach my goals, guaranteed. Just takes hard work. Everyday.

Dream Vehicles...

The Ford F150 SVT Raptor. An newly designed, Baja-racing style Ford pickup truck that began production in 2010. It boasts an exclusive 411 hp 6.2 L Ford Boss engine, Fox Racing shocks, a composite hood, a wider body track, reinforced skid plate, aluminum running boards, and sits 2 inches higher than a standard F150. I have to admit, I'm more of a Chevy guy, but I've been on this Ford bandwagon ever since I heard about the Raptor. I've wanted one since, if only I could scramble up $40,000...

Everybody has a dream vehicle. Something they see in person down the street and yell "stop!" -- they just have to stare. For many, self-image comes from what you drive or wear. I don't believe in this, but it sure would feel nice riding around in this beast. I literally have dreams about the Raptor.

Currently, I drive an '82 GMC Sierra...

The above picture isn't my truck, but it's the same model. Imagine the above, with an off color front quarter panel, a terribly rusted paint job, a big scratch in the windshield from my wiper blade, and covered in West Texas dirt. That's my ride, folks.

So, bloggers, what are your dream vehicles? Share them here.

Grace Potter

Bloggers, this week is a small tidbit about this new, awesome band I saw perform on Conan (TBS) a few weeks back. Grace Potter is the "leadman", (or woman, in this case) and she knows how to freaking rock. They're from Vermont, and got their start in late 2002. Seems as though they're just now getting big recognition. They mix a modern rock sound with  folk/blues tempos, while Potter portrays this crazy modern Tina Turner vibe. Very cool sound and I can say I'm a fan. This is their newest single, titled "Paris" -- I would post the Conan video, but I was unable to a source code to embed it. Great stuff.

Pretty good, no? I liked the live version even better, myself. You can see it here. 

Anyone else have any cool new bands/music to share? Even old favorites. Love to hear from you. 

- Dakota

My Weekend.

Readers,

The weekend is over and tomorrow morning brings us another work/school day. They go by way too fast, don't they?

I left Colorado City on Friday afternoon with my girlfriend's parents, headed to Lubbock where she goes to school at Tech. Stayed at the Holiday Inn Express, met up with some of her buddies, and ate a good dinner. Saturday night was all about the Spirit Arena for George Strait, Lee Ann Womack, and Reba McEntire live. It was an awesome show if you are a country fan. They sang all the big hits, and had a few special surprises on stage to boot. Oh, and Reba turns 56 tomorrow for anyone interested in trivia.

We got back around 2 o'clock today and I stayed the evening over at my girlfriend's parents place (crazy, right?). I left around 8:15 to head home, and not even a quarter mile down the road my truck stalls. Out of gas. So I attempt to call them but in true Murphy's Law fashion, service won't allow for a completed call. I trot to their house, bang on the door, and luckily enough get her dad (who had just gotten out of a relaxing shower, most likely ready for bed) to give me a ride to the nearest gas station for gas. Once I put gas in my truck, I take off to another station across town where I have a charge account set up. I end up dying on the main street through town, again out of fuel. So instead of calling my girlfriend's parents again, I decide to call a buddy who I was hoping would be in town. He was, and came by to give me a lift. We fill the gas can, take it to my pickup, put it in, and it still won't start. Go back to the gas station, and almost bought a $15 ONE GALLON gas can. No thanks. (The one we had been using had a crack in the side, allowing for fuel to leak). Luckily enough, we knew a guy outside the building who happened to have one so we take it, fill it up, try and start the truck, and it still doesn't crank up.

My truck has two tanks, right and left. I shined my phone on the tank switch and to my horror, we had been trying to start up the truck on the bone-dry empty side. Hit the switch and my gauge shoots up to over a 1/4 of a tank. Yay. Check the fuel filter under the hood and gas is flowing like wine. I finally get my truck to the station and fill up both tanks in their entirety. I was cold, it was dark, I smelt like gasoline, and I was $100 something dollars poorer, but I finally made it home to write up this blog.

All in all, my weekend was an 9.5/10. I only take off a .5 for the gas incident, as it happens to everyone and it hardly puts a damper on the awesome concert and weekend I experienced. Always great to see my girlfriend and her parents don't skimp on meals - always fed well when we're on a trip and for that I am eternally grateful, as I love to eat.

Anyone else have any good weekend stories or thoughts? Love to hear them.

- Dakota