Thou Art Mine Enemy!

So...I found a new hobby addiction...and it is Stumbler. If you've ever heard of it, you know it is a cruel beast that will gobble all of your time and energy. I can't think of anything else that has the ability to steal sleep like the Stumbler does.

The Face of My Enemy

Yes...even now it is attempting to steal that precious commodity known as rest. It threatens to keep me awake for hours yet, clicking that little button to try to satisfy my insatiable hunger to see the websites it would bring up.

Maybe I'm being a little dramatic, but I doubt it. You will never know the true power of the Stumbler until you have tasted of its glory. You have to have Firefox installed of course since it is an add-on for that particular browser. But you should be browsing with Firefox anyway so I don't think I need to go any further with that.

So a brief description of my new found "precious" is in order, I think. If you don't already know or haven't already guessed, the Stumbler is a little feature you can add to Firefox that has this little button that will browse and bring up for you websites that may interest you based on a set of interests you have already defined when you installed the program. Then you can give the website a "thumbs up" or "thumbs down" depending on if you want the program to remember a good sight you found or if you want it to avoid a horrible one at all costs.

On top of this simple and already addicting feature, you can fine-tune your search even more to a specific category such as videos, pictures, etc... And after that you can fine tune it even more to only search on certain websites such as Youtube, Blogspot, CNN, BBC, The Onion, etc. It really is a beautiful program.

If you're really addicted you can set it up so you can email the link to the website with a simple click of a button to share these wonderful places you have found with friends and family. It really is amazing. I've found a plethora of websites already that I love. Here are a few.

Natures Conception - The Gates of Hell
Steve Don't Eat It!
Don't Click It
How to Wake Your Sleeping Girlfriend

And thats just a few! Oh my.

"I don't want to achieve immortality through my work. I want to achieve it through not dying."
-Woody Allen

Until next time....

Stress, Anxiety, Apprehension, etc...

These are all words that describe my current emotional state. Will I tell you why? No, not on here especially. I cannot justify going into that sort of detail on a blog. But you can know that these are all things that I am feeling right now. I'm torn, because though I have a legitimate reason for feeling these things, I don't at the same time. They aren't new, nor is the reason that I have them. But they are there and they loom over me like a constant threat and enemy ready to overwhelm me in ways I don't think I could handle. Even if I could tell you why I'm experiencing these things, I'm not sure why I would be able to adequately put it into words. I'm not as familiar with the English language as I need to be to tell you what it is.

How do I deal with them. I mean, there is always the God answer. You can always tell me to pray and rely on Him for all of these stresses and problems and to just give them to Him so everything will be okay. But I know that it will be okay. It's not that I'm not aware of that. I know that. But it doesn't make it any easier. Today was particularly stressful. It showed me a small taste of just how it will be. Can I change what will happen? Probably not, though I wouldn't give you a definitive no.

Even thinking about this problem just causes me to immediately dread and stress. Overwhelming. Absolutely overwhelming.

"Any idiot can face a crisis - it's day to day living that wears you out."
-Anton Chekhov




Until next time....

The Fall Break Breakdown

Good day, Bloggers. Welcome to my place of quiet mind dumping. But what shall I dump today? Well I think I can certainly find a few things since I have an entire fall break trip to Colorado to cover. So actually the question should be "Where to begin?" instead of "What do I write about?" because I can tap a plentiful resource that was the activities of the last four days. So let's begin with Wednesday evening in a bit of a different style than usual....

Wednesday, October the Fifteenth, Two Thousand Eight.

It was an early start. Not because I had classes. No, those could have potentially ruined plans that had been in the making for weeks. The classes did not exist for me today...well the one class I could have attended would not have ended until four o'clock in the afternoon, and was therefore avoided. Instead I spent the morning packing and getting things prepared for the trip while my girlfriend and traveling companion finished up exams that she had scheduled for the morning.

It began normaly. I woke up, showered, brushed my teeth and put on deoderant, along with clothes of course, and loaded my luggage in the car. I then proceeded to the library to print the directions to our destination, Evergreen, Colorado to Erin's Aunt and Uncles house for the few days of relaxation from school and the headaches it had seemed to heap upon us and those around us in full force that week.

It was in the library that the day changed. The lights on campus began to go out, leaving only half the lighting in many of the buildings running properly. Because of this surge and loss of power the student printer in the library stopped working. No matter to me. I just wrote the directions down since they were quite simple. I-44 east. Then merge onto I-35 north. After that it was I-135 north for a short distance until you switched to I-70 west. It was that road that would lead you to Denver and eventually Evergreen. Anyway, back to the events of the day.

I exited the library, informing a student who was about to enter the building that it was about to be closed to make sure that no wires were going to cause a fire on the third floor. I walked across what is called the center of campus, which contains the fountain and bricks witch carved names of alumni and anyone else who had donated a significant amount of money to the school, and entered into the Webster Commons to get breakfast for Erin and I from downstairs. It didn't take long and by the time I had grabbed it and left she had finished her exam and was gathering her things from her room so we could load it into the car. Before long the car was loaded with her clothes and we left campus...only to drive right back onto the campus so she could grab one last check from the business office for work she had been doing in the science labs.

Then we were off. A quick prayer from her as we drove and our Fall Break had officially begun. We spent the rest of the day driving (eleven long hours) and listening to various music and audio books to keep us entertained....or me entertained. She slept the majority of the way. But the day did end eventually. That night we met her aunt and uncle for dinner and headed to the house (which was beautiful and to much to describe for one blog post) and slept a long and deeply for the first time in weeks because we had no obligations the next day...or the next one...or even the next one. We were finally getting a break.

"I believe in the sun, even when it's not shining; I believe in love, even when I don't feel it; and I believe in God, even when He is silent."
-An Unknown Jewish Man (Written on a wall in a Concentration Camp)

Until next time...

Simply Because I Haven't Recently...

Well I haven't been here in a few days. And it's not because I haven't had anything happen over the last few days. It's actually been quite the opposite. I just have been so busy I haven't had time to post anything new here. But enough of why I haven't written and on to the writing part.

Let's start with Friday. It was an interesting day to say the least. Started off with classes as normal but took a slightly different turn from there. Well I say classes as normal but in all reality I added my own lab time in there for the day. What can I say? I don't really understand this whole subnetting principle to take my midterm on Tuesday. So I went in to the Networking Lab to start some more work on programming the routers. Ran into a few bugs that tripped me up but with the help of one of the professors I was able to get it all worked out. Which is good because otherwise I might have ended up looking like this:

And that would not have been a good thing....

Well jump to Friday night. It's the infamous T.W.I.R.P. event at my school. The night had some interesting twists but overall it wasn't a bad evening. We went to a place called Chesters Party Barn and had a knee-slappin' time! We went out to this place that had chili (yes the kind that can potentially give you gas. Why would you give that to a bunch of college guys and their dates? Who knows), a hay ride, a petting zoo, a corn maze (that wasn't actually fully grown yet. Disappointing? You betcha), and kareoke(.........). So me and my date decided that to end the evening on a fun and fulfilled note we would take a trip over to the dollar theater and watch WALLE. Need I say more? To spell it out, the evening ended with a pop...explosion...fiesta...great time at the movies...it ended well.

And that's just Friday's events. This isn't even including all of the work I did on Saturday at both my job and my studies and today (which is Sunday for those unable to follow a calender) at the Cowboy Hall of Fame and Open Dorm with more Studies thrown in the middle. Was it a full weekend? You'd better believe it.

"Their prison is only in their own minds, yet they are in that prison; and so afraid of being taken in that they cannot be taken out."
-C.S. Lewis as told through Aslan in The Last Battle

Until next time.

I Am Ironman...

You'll never guess what I'm watching as I write this. You only get one guess. Think hard about it. Have your answer? Well you'll just have to live in a constant state of suspense and wonder because I'm not going to tell you. Too bad. You made the choice to read this post and now you're forever stuck. I'm sorry. You made your choice now live with the consequence.

But enough about Ironman the movies I choose to watch while I write blogs. Lets talk about something else to do with me.... Today didn't have much happen that I can really report. I had an early start with a hearty breakfast composed of one hard, dry biscuit and powdered eggs with a patty of sausage, compliments of Sodexho. From there it moved to two more classes, lunch, a lab, an errand and work. Easy to see that I don't have a heck of a lot of exciting things to report.

So to recap:

Not watching this

And nothing of consequence happened for the day. But it isn't a day I regret. I got to spend some time with my girlfriend (though not enough time in my opinion. But that's always the case). And work wasn't terrible like it could be but since hardly anyone came it was boring and lasted a tad longer than I would have liked. But what can you do?

Though one thing I was contemplating at work was how people cope who don't have God to rely on. This was brought to mind because one of my bosses son recently commited suicide. And they have no faith of any kind. How do you comfort them other than letting them know you're praying for their family? Does it mean anything to them other than the fact that they know someone cares enough to put time into thinking and interceding (as much as they believe you can intercede) on their behalf? If nothing else when we share Christ's love we plant seeds I think. We put thoughts in their mind to show them that maybe there is someone else out there who cares. Keep this in mind whenever you think your prayer may be in vain.

Quote of the day:

"To have the right priorities a man's focus must not be on the head, but on the heart; not on himself, but on God; not on time, but on eternity."
-Roy Lessin

Until next time.

Help I'm Sinking!

How much can a mind possibly take? When will it reach the point of being overwhelmed to the point of breakdown? As a college student I have come dangerously close to finding that point where you can no longer handle the stresses and information that we are asked to daily shoulder as we trudge through this thing called an education. But it goes so much further than even learning concepts and information from text books. It even goes beyond what our individual professors can impart on us. It delves into our relationships and the "normal" stresses they are forced to face on a day to day, hour to hour basis.

So what exactly am I referring to? Can you tell me you've ever been in any kind of relationship (child to parent, student to teacher, friend to friend, partner to partner, you get the point) where it hasn't encountered a boundry? It always happens, whether it be in the first week or a year after it starts. And it inevitably puts stress on not only those directly involved, but also on those who are on the "outside" of the conflict.

There can be several "reasons" given as to why these conflicts start. But when all is said and done it comes down to one basic concept as I've come to learn in recent months: the relationship has been violated. Someone stopped focusing on how to best maintain the relationship and started focusing on themselves.

"Well thanks for letting me know that but how am I supposed to prevent this since it seems rather inevitable?" you say. And the answer is: I don't have a complete answer to this. I don't have a perfect formula on how to live a completely stress free life. But I can give a few pointers, a lot of them Biblical:

1. Stop Worrying
It's not going to do you any good. It can't change what's going to happen. Brooding over a problem that may or may not occur does nothing more than stress you out. It churns your insides as you think about the worst possible scenario and then all of the sudden there is no other possible scenarios. It begins to soak up your thoughts and takes away your focus from whatever task you have at hand.

2. Share
You will do nothing but make it worse when you have stresses and fears on your mind and are unwilling to seek counsel and help from both your peers and those above you who you respect (parents, professors, etc...). But when you do share it not only gives you the ability to vocalize your fears, anxieties, and problems to someone who can help shoulder your burdens, but it also gives you a chance to take a step back and look at them and see if you're even being rational in the first place.

That is two ways I can think of right now that can help you with your stress. And of course there are ways to help alleviate it like taking a day off from studying and doing a favorite activity to take your mind away and let it relax. Don't be afraid to cut loose and have fun. It could do you a world of good.

And as always I'll end with a quote:

"Education is what remains after one has forgotten everything he learned in school."
-Albert Einstein

Until next time.

To Find a TWIRP Invitation

In case you couldn't tell the highlight of my day has to do with my school's T.W.I.R.P. (The woman is requested required to pay) event going on this weekend. Of course I'm saying all of this in pure speculation seeing as how I've hit a rut in my clue findings. First I was supposed to pick one up from my cousin. Well he had a physics exam which took him 3 hours to complete. I know. Well by the time he finished and got my clue to me it was already too late. Two of the clues had left campus for work. So now I wait, wondering how it will all work out. I don't think this was in the original plan, but the mailing service at school failed to deliver the note at the necessary time so now it's all thrown out of whack. Not to say this was a bad idea. On the contrary, I'm enjoying every minute of this.

Other than that the day has been rather uneventful. Chapel was a little strange this morning to say the least. We had the schools local jazz band doing the music today (which I always enjoy) with a few breaks in which Brad (the chaplain) interviewed a new lady on staff (though her name escapes me at the moment...I have a terrible memory). She had a good sense of humor and a lot of good things to say about how the church is dealing with the poverty issue around the globe. Overall it wasn't a horrible chapel (Though I'm sure Miss Mr. Amber Jackson will have a lot to say about it to the contrary). I can see where he is coming from sometimes, but to pick apart every single thing to such an extreme isn't very productive. It shows that Amber Jackson doesn't do much but miss the entire point of most chapels on purpose.

Of course how could I make a Tuesday or Thursday blog about the monotonous and mundane events of the day without mentioning the bane of my existence: Routers and Switches. It's not that the class isn't fun Okay I don't particularly enjoy the class. But my main beef isn't with the material so much as the method in which it is being taught. I can't see how it is we are expected to learn such tough concepts such as subnetting all on our own. I mean, the professors will give you tips and walk you through it when you're doing your lab, but the actual teaching of the concept was not done in a very good manner. It was almost non-existent like the rest of the teaching that had been done in that class. We are usually just expected to read and know it beforehand so we can complete the labs when we arrive. Last time I checked if I wanted to learn all of this on my own I could have just purchased the book or taken an online course. But I digest.

And now we have come full circle as I wait for clue #2 to arrive from work. To end it, here is a quote for the day:

We cannot change the world if we look just like it.
-Lauren Barlow

Until next time.

What's It All About?

I assume you can tell this blog is pretty self-explanatory. The title "Sir Randomness" (thank you Stephanie) should tell you that I pretty much plan to blog about random thoughts and happenings that go on around me. Whether it be random funny stories (which you may or may not find funny) from my day or something that I've been thinking about or contemplating recently.

You can see that it's pretty simple as of yet. Not much going on around here. But you can't expect me to set up a super complicated and amazing blog at 1:30 in the morning. I'm sorry it's just not going to happen...so get over it. But I will make an attempt to at least update it on a semi if not daily basis with the things going on in my life. Will this blog just turn out to be a memior for myself with few if any readers? Not sure. But I'm willing to give it a go.

So there is my introduction in a nutshell. Rest assured I'll put more thought into my future blogs, but I think this will suffice for now.