Blog
Found Somethin'
Well, I managed to find something to take up my free time.
When you need something to do, just screw up your computer! It worked for me!
Yeah, well, there's a decent chance that I might lose all the data I worked on in the last couple months, but that's not the end of the world. In the meantime, though, I'm learning alot about fixing computers and recovering data from a hard drive that I screwed partitions and boot records on.
Probably the coolest thing I've found is Bart's PE Builder and it's companion, UBCD4Win. Basically, it's a CD you can create to load Windows off the CD and includes a whole bunch of diagnostic tools, file recovery tools, anti-virus, anti-spyware, and can even repair a broken Windows install in some cases. I think I'm gonna keep this just in case somebody asks me to revive their screwed up computer. It's the perfect companion for a computer support person. Plus, it doesn't seem to hard to customize so I could build in some of my own tools in the future.
My next project? Install and play around with Slackware Linus. I've got the CD set of 10.1 built and I'm gonna install it on an old computer and play around with it really soon.
The only thing I wish I had the mondy for right now was a nice 4-system KVM switch like this one. Then I wouldn't have to fool around with cables when switching between computers. Of course, Bjorn thinks I should get this one instead because then I can run all of 'em in Dual Monitors if I like. ;-)
Why Can't The World Be Simpler?
I've realized a very important thing about this whole job search.
One of my problems is that I'm not very good at selling myself. And I'm not sure... I might like it that way. I'm pretty sick of telling everyone I'm the perfect man for the job when everybody knows I'm not.
It seems that interviewing for the website design/development jobs are easiest because they know what I'm talking about when I've done stuff before. When talking about general programming, not many have heard of PHP. More have heard of MySQL, but it's not used in many large businesses. So most of them don't know what I'm talking about at all.
What can't we just all say it like it is? People have given me comments that I go into an interview looking for what the company's gonna give me and not what I'm gonna give the company. Of course, I'm a rather inexperienced guy just out of college! You're interviewing me for an entry-level position! I don't have much to offer right now, but if you give me the chance, I'll show you.
I guess I just need somebody to give me a chance.
An Interview?
Hmmmm..... one of my friends wants to know if I want to do an interview with Copeland, a band that's coming to town this weekend.
I don't know about my interview skills, but I think I might just try....
Plus, it gives me an excuse to buy a Griffin iTalk for my iPod so that I can record the conversation... and I'd probably get free concert tickets.
Ohhh, The Conflict!
On one hand, I may have a job soon. I'm really dying for a job... I'm getting burned out on the working on my own thing. I long for hanging out with some people.
On the other hand, a number of people are knocking on my door asking for me to do their website. I guess that's a good thing, because it means that if I don't have a job in the near future I'll have some money coming in.
The conflict is that I'd rather not start a website project on my own if I am getting hired pretty soon. It means working full-time and then some, and adjusting to full-time work will be bad enough. (Technically, I haven't worked full-time since summer 2003, unless you could school and part-time work, which I don't think I do.)
I'm just burnt out on being in my lonesome, sitting in this room day after day in front of my computer. And besides, if I was going to work on websites over and above a full-time job, I'd like to work on cMusicWeb.com, because that could use a bunch of work but it won't get done very well when I'm trying to make money off of other projects.
Chipotle Goodness
I hung out on Friday with my friend John, and he gave me another cool T-shirt for my birthday. (My, my... will the birthday gifts ever stop?)
Unfortunately, a simple Google search didn't find me a good photo. So I'll explain it. It's white. On the front, in the middle, it has their typical aluminum foil-wrapped burrito with the words "EMPTY" written under it. On the back, the foil's all crushed into a ball and it says "FULL".
Heck yeah. I love it.
I Made It
Some might think it impossible, but I did it. I walked through the whole Ikea store without buying a single thing. (Well, I almost bought a Mountain Dew at a pop machine on the way out, but I didn't have a $1 bill on me.)
For those of you who haven't experienced Ikea, it's a cool place. It's really big and they have lots of nice stuff, although much of it is different than our stuff because Ikea's from Sweden. But much of it is stylish and cheap, which is always great. It was fun looking through hundreds of home and room setups, seeing innovative ideas, and seeing many of them put together in many different combinations. It also got my interior designer bug going - if I get my own apartment or condo in the near future, you can bet I'm going back there to make it look frickin' sweet.
So yeah, I made it out of there without spending a dime. It was kinda hard, though, with 60-CD racks for just $3.99 and such.
The Countdown Is On!
Let's celebrate! Today marks 50 days 'till Star Wars: Episode 3 hits theaters! To celebrate, I used some of my birthday money and ordered the DVD of Star Wars: Clone Wars Vol. 1. It should be interesting to see what happened between II and III in an animated cartoon format.
Oh Yeah, I Forgot...
Yeah, I'm published! Yeah, that's my opinion letter in the St. Paul, MN newspaper.
EDIT: The site no longer has the content, and I don't really have a digital copy of their edited content anymore, but this is the full e-mail I sent them. I think they did edit it down a bit for their Opinion section.
We have a problem. Unless this administration changes its policy, we will not have a mass transit system in five years, we will have an international joke. According to Charles Laszewski's story in the Friday paper, Pawlenty's administration is not giving any more funding to Metro Transit and fares are going to be raised. How can this happen? For the first time in 50 years, the Twin Cities has the beginnings of a solid mass transit system. Even since my mother was young, buses were considered to be for those who were poor or disabled. With the advent of light rail, we may actually have a transit system that regular middle-class workers might use to get to work. However, raising fares and cutting funding is not going to help. If anything we need to channel more state money into MetroTransit so that it can expand its services. Cutting routes and services are not going to encourage new ridership. If the state fails to do this now, Minnesotans are going to be clogging up the freeways for the rest of my lifetime. How about conserving energy and getting to work a little cheaper for a change?
- Dan Ficker, St. Paul, MN
A Heat Wave
Right now it's 67°! I'm wearing shorts and the window is open. And it's March in Minnesota!
My dad was in Arizona last week and he said there were a couple days there that were colder than today.
It's almost too warm for me.
Happy Easter!
Hope you're having a good Easter holiday! Jesus has risen!
In other news, Bjorn was right. My iPod's battery is dying, darn it.
And finaly, I have a really exciting interview scheduled for Wednesday! It's at a small website design company I've interviewed with once before, except this time they're actively hiring. So pray that Wednesday morning goes well, because this would be exactly what I want. (Plus, then I could get a new iPod!)