Finally Done

Yes, I'm back from lurkage mode, and after 3 long years of studying, I have finally attained my highest goal to date. Last night, I graduated from Erie Business Center with my Associates Degree in Accounting (so, I got my IT degree last year, you might think, so what's the big deal?) Well, for the first time in my life, I proved to myself that with added effort and concentration, I *COULD* in fact, graduate with the highest honors possible, Summa Cum Laude. Granted, it just squeaked in there at a 3.81, but it was worth every bit of added effort to get that. I passed all of my Accounting courses with solid A's, and only had one B+ this time around (that was because my car broke down the day before one of my psychology tests over the summer, and I got a C on that test). Now that school is finished, the real test begins... finding a suitable job in the field. please keep this in your prayers, as I'll be starting the hunt as early as next week.

Also, I hope to be able to post more on here, now that I have a bit more time.

Shoot First, Ask Questions NEVER?

Well, at least that seems to be the modus operandi of certain people, especially where censorship runs rampant. They are quick with the censorship button, and don't even bother to check the true content of a statement or thought before invoking their censorship. In their defense, they claim that the censorship is there to "protect" certain people that may be offended by certain things, but when that censorship starts to get out of hand, it only serves to destabilize things further, and endanger those who it is supposed to protect. Let's say for example, the use of the word "gay". In itself, it's not a bad word, but used in the wrong context, can be very destructive. Therefore, a rule is set in place that improper use of the word is prohibited. The rule works fine for a while, but then it happens. Every time the word "gay" is uttered, people get immediately censored without warning, REGARDLESS of the context in which it was used. Then other words or phrases feel the sting of said censorship, because Clyde or Maxine decide that these new words or phrases are offensive, and the ball starts rolling faster, and snowballing until the list is so extensive that the very right to free speech is threatened, and everybody is afraid to say anything for fear of feeling the sting of the censorship. Those that speak out against it are, of course, blackballed because they are seen as threats to those in power. The opposition is quickly and quietly silenced and disposed of, possibly even lied about in order to keep the rest of the sheeple in line, and ignorant bliss goes on. Perhaps it's time for those who have been censored to stand up for their rights and expose the censors for who they are. Feel free to excercise free speech. After all, this is America, and it is your right.

And Here We Are...

Yes, I'm still alive. I have just been very busy with school and everything else lately, and starting last week, I rejoined the ranks of the gainfully employed. This is going to take some getting used to, since I'll be working mostly third shift, with the occasional second shift stint on weekends. For those who have been wondering, I'll be working as a convenience store clerk at one of the Country Fair stores here in Erie. Thus far, it's been fun, with this past Sunday being the exception. That was the day the cooler broke down (had to ditch all the dairy, and had none in the store all day), the soda fountain started leaking and had to be shut down (It's still out of order), and two of the gas pumps stopped working (we had to credit a lot of gas cards, those two pumps are still bagged.) My boss, Abbas, is a pretty decent guy, and has allowed me to have friday nights off, since Fridays are my tutoring days and the days that most of the running around gets done. Oh, and another thing, I've gotten hooked on Irish Creme flavored Pepsi (basically a few squirts of the Irish Creme syrup in my fountain drink). Well, I'm off to hopefully get at least another hour of naptime in before I have to be up and ready for work. Oh, and since I started playing WoW again, I will probably start up the "Fear the AoD" blog as well. ciao.

Stupid people

Ask me any day what my biggest pet peeve is, and I'll tell you "Stupid people. Stupidity, or lack of common sense, seems to be contagious, as I see evidence of it everywhere I go. Recently, I encountered a string of facebook posts from various people, some claiming to be "Good Christians", calling people to "pray" for the death of the President. First of all, this "joke" as they call it, is in bad taste. First off, when posting ANYTHING on a public site such as Facebook, ANYBODY can see it, especially if you're someone that's stupid enough to leave all your privacy settings on "Everyone". Even if you have them set as Private, where only your "friends" can view your posts, there are ways around it, especially if it concerns something as sensitive as wishing for the death of a public figure such as the President of the United States. What are these people thinking??? Do they not know that the internet is constantly monitored by the government, and they look for certain keywords that might be considered a threat to national security? This is more of an issue after the events of 9/11. Anyone that even posts the words "Kill President" in the same sentence is putting up a red flag for the secret service to spot. I know you're probably thinking I'm stupid for even putting it here, but I'm in no means plotting anything, or praying for anything of the sort. I'm doing it to prove a point. If you do stupid things, be prepared to face the consequences. You claim you have rights under law, so be it. You have the right to remain stupid. Just don't try to push your stupidity on me.

Spring Update

Well, it has been a while since I posted last. School, for the most part, has kept me busy, but with finals out of the way (I think I may have been lucky enough to have squeaked by with a 4.0 again this term), and 12 days of break until the spring/summer term begins, I have a little bit of time to play catch up. Hopefully, I won't be too "unbusy" though. I do have an interview set up with the local girls' grouphome for an off-campus work-study position (not sure what the job will be yet, but I'm pretty optimistic) and if that falls through, I'm looking at other options. The next couple of semesters won't be so busy, as I only have three classes this next semester, and most likely only two in my final semester.
Since the weather is getting warmer, I plan on trying to get back in shape a little, and riding my new bicycle when I can. I got it with some of my income tax refund a couple of weeks ago, and thus far have only taken it out once (on one of the nice warm days that it wasn't raining) and returned home with a sore butt and slightly out of breath.
Other activities planned for the break include playing around with my newly acquired copy of Photoshop CS4, and playing some Everquest2 when I have the time. I stopped playing Star Trek Online because I got tired of encountering their "issues" and having them blame the games shortcomings on my computer system. Therefore, as with WoW, I took a "vacation" from the game. I reactivated my account, and created an assassin that I have had quite a bit of fun playing. His name? Llaihr. :)

Broken Pieces

Broken pieces, shattered parts
All that remains of this heart
Once innocent and trusting-
Stabbed by a dagger dull and rusting.
How could I have known that
the love that fulfilled me,
would be the love
that ultimately killed me?

David James Stayduhar
23 March 2010, 2:40AM

As a Dog Returns to His Vomit..."

I had thought I was free of this person and his hateful remarks toward myself and my friends. He'd been silent for so long, that, aside from his frequent visits to my blogs, I had almost forgotten that he existed. The peace that had settled over blogdom was too good to last, and just recently, the snake resurfaced, and began to attack with a vengeance, first attacking my friend Tom's post over at Tank For the Light in which he talked about his new headsets (which I found to be interesting, despite its brevity). He put Tom down, claiming that his blog was uncompelling, uninteresting, and uninspiring, and proceeded to attack him and tell him that he couldn't blog. Since Tom is my friend, I jumped to his defense and asked the fool why he even bothered to read the blog if he found it so distasteful, and proceded to tell him to leave Tom alone to write as he pleased. Noone was forcing the idiot to read Tom's blog, so there was no reason for him to read it. Unfortunately, by defending Tom, I played into the fool's hand and he turned his venom on me, referring to me as 'Liar' (a feeble attempt to belittle me, at best) and claiming that he never reads anything I have to say, all the while defending himself against my counterattack, and proving once again, that he is a liar, himself, and needs to seriously grow up. So what does this mean? It means that, most likely, this blog is next on his list of cyber-bullying. Do I care? Not really. I'm not so easily goaded so, Jon, don't even try. Tom, if you should find your way to this post, again, I apologize for my rant on your blog. He just tripped a major trigger, and needed to be taken down a notch or two.