I'm really on a roll here. It's like I'm an actual blogger, and not just some guy who's trying to bring some meaning into his terrible, dull life.
So, there's a website I've been browsing for a while. It's called Duolingo and you can find it here: http://www.duolingo.com/. It has quick and easy lessons to learn new languages.
I've been picking up some German for fun. I also used it to pick up some Spanish when I went to Peru earlier this year. By the way, I did that. I flew to Peru with a friend and spent ten days wandering around ancient ruins. I forgot to mention it.
So, what can I say in German or Spanish? Very little. Here is a comprehensive list:
Spanish
Estoy en la tierra de ano ardiente - I am in the land of burning anus.
This came in very handy when we tried Peruvian Aji pepper sauce.
Me gusta la papas de la puta - I love bitch potatoes.
I have no idea why I learned this.
Donde estan mis putas - Where are my bitches.
Mr. Butlertron would be so proud. Wesley.
German
Das Madchen isst eine Zeitung - That girl is eating a newspaper.
Interesting thing about this one. I know how to say, "That girl is eating a newspaper," in over five languages.
That girl is eating a newspaper!
Cette fille est de manger un journal!
Onanoko wa shinbu otabete iru!
Esa chica es comer un periodical!
Na geh ni hai jr chr bao jr!
Das Madchen isst eine Zeitung!
And I have no idea why.
Thursday, June 27, 2013
Monday, June 17, 2013
Life and Simulation
Huh.
I'm actually posting. Weird, eh?
So this past week has been pretty hectic. There's a lot of work to be done on my latest project. It's been keeping me prohibitively busy for the last month or so. Which means I haven't found much time to do anything particularly interesting.
Against my better judgement, I picked up a copy of 'The Last of Us', which is a new videogame for the PS3. It's another zombie game, where a particularly sinister fungus manages to infect humans and turn them into mushroom-faced monsters. It's very cool, very immersive, and if you're a fan of being scared out of your pants, I definitely recommend it.
I also beat a game called Torchlight 2. It was short but very fun, a good dungeon-romp with a lot of side-quests that were surprisingly long. I've been used to Diablo 3, a similar game with a very linear storyline, so it was refreshing to see a different take on the genre.
A lot of my time has gone to work and gaming. Fortunately, I've been doing some other things as well. I tried a new bubble tea shop near my place. From all observation, I think Asian people need a daily recommended dosage of tea to survive. If you cut me, I'd bleed a watery mix of dried leaves. Some people are connoisseurs. Other people, like me, are just fascinated by the fact that a drink can have chewy snacks in it.
I've also done a lot of work with my electronics hobby. I've had a small solar panel in my toybox for about a year, so I decided I would do something with it. I looked online and found a tutorial for what people call a 'Symet', which is short for 'Symmetrical'. It's basically a small solar-powered robot that scoots across a desk in a random path when exposed to light. The additional components cost me less than five bucks, and it was surprisingly simple to put together. The solar panel collects light and stores it up in a series of capacitors (batteries), and when there's enough power, it activates the motor and the whole contraption spins across the tabletop.
I want to buy a helium balloon from a party shop - you know the foil ones that last for ages? - and attach the Symet to it. If I put a propellor on the motor, it should, in theory, be able to drive around the room like a tiny blimp. I have no idea what I would do with it, but I think it'd be somewhat relaxing to watch a tiny robo-balloon float across my room bumping into things.
I'm actually posting. Weird, eh?
So this past week has been pretty hectic. There's a lot of work to be done on my latest project. It's been keeping me prohibitively busy for the last month or so. Which means I haven't found much time to do anything particularly interesting.
Against my better judgement, I picked up a copy of 'The Last of Us', which is a new videogame for the PS3. It's another zombie game, where a particularly sinister fungus manages to infect humans and turn them into mushroom-faced monsters. It's very cool, very immersive, and if you're a fan of being scared out of your pants, I definitely recommend it.
I also beat a game called Torchlight 2. It was short but very fun, a good dungeon-romp with a lot of side-quests that were surprisingly long. I've been used to Diablo 3, a similar game with a very linear storyline, so it was refreshing to see a different take on the genre.
A lot of my time has gone to work and gaming. Fortunately, I've been doing some other things as well. I tried a new bubble tea shop near my place. From all observation, I think Asian people need a daily recommended dosage of tea to survive. If you cut me, I'd bleed a watery mix of dried leaves. Some people are connoisseurs. Other people, like me, are just fascinated by the fact that a drink can have chewy snacks in it.
I've also done a lot of work with my electronics hobby. I've had a small solar panel in my toybox for about a year, so I decided I would do something with it. I looked online and found a tutorial for what people call a 'Symet', which is short for 'Symmetrical'. It's basically a small solar-powered robot that scoots across a desk in a random path when exposed to light. The additional components cost me less than five bucks, and it was surprisingly simple to put together. The solar panel collects light and stores it up in a series of capacitors (batteries), and when there's enough power, it activates the motor and the whole contraption spins across the tabletop.
I want to buy a helium balloon from a party shop - you know the foil ones that last for ages? - and attach the Symet to it. If I put a propellor on the motor, it should, in theory, be able to drive around the room like a tiny blimp. I have no idea what I would do with it, but I think it'd be somewhat relaxing to watch a tiny robo-balloon float across my room bumping into things.
Wednesday, June 5, 2013
Back from the Dead
Hello Internet. So we meet again.
First off, I'm sorry. I'm sorry I suck. I've been away for so long that I forgot all about you. And I'm sure you forgot about me.
So many exciting things have happened in the past year. For a blog that was supposed to be updated daily, I really screwed up. You know how it is. Life gets busy, and you don't have the time to write, and then you forget.
I can't promise I'll be posting daily. I can promise that I'll try to drop by more often. Of course, there's a selfish motive behind what I'm saying. I hope that trying to keep this blog updated will also push me to do things I can write about. No one wants to read forty pages of posts all about menial boring stuff. To write about exciting things, I have to do exciting things. So consider this self-motivation.
I'll start off by giving a quick rundown of highlights from the past year.
I left my job in Detroit. The entire experience was something new, and exciting, but sometimes in the wrong ways. I learned valuable lessons about office politics, and dealing with clashes with management, and a whole slew of other lessons. It would take an entirely new blog to deal with it all.
Leaving the job was a new experience, because when I came back, I found things had changed while I was gone. Friends had gotten jobs, found and lost love, and so on. I had to do a lot of catching up, and it was a painful lesson that life moves on with or without you. I felt like I had been asleep for a year, and had woken up to a world slightly different.
Integrating back in was difficult at first. People change, including me. Some friends I had trouble getting to know again. Others, who had been acquaintances before, grew closer.
I think I'm only just getting back into the groove of things now. At first, when I came back, it felt like I was dreaming, since Detroit seemed so much realer, but now, Detroit is the dream, and I'm waking back up.
The bottom line is, I'm much happier. It was an awesome experience, but I'm glad to be home.
A few months after I came back, I started a new job with a local engineering company. It really highlighted the differences between Canadian and US labour. By that, I mean procedure, but also in mentality. While my job in America focused on profits, this company focuses on customer satisfaction and integrity.
One of the biggest changes was going from a salaried position to an hourly wage. I found myself being much happier with the increased freedom - typically, salary offers a lot of freedom, but I also have bankable hours now. That means that any overtime I work, I can save as vacation hours instead. If I work eight hours overtime in one week, I can take a full paid day off the next week, or whenever I choose. I have over 50 hours saved up, which is basically a full week of vacation! Awesome!
I moved back home with my family, but I'm searching for an apartment of my own - this time, I want to buy instead of rent. I'd like to live somewhere new. My company is opening new offices all over North America, which gives me a great opportunity to fulfill that goal.
Other than that, I've started geocaching as well! If you haven't heard of it, it's a great activity that involves searching for 'treasure chests' hidden by people all over the world. Here's the website: http://www.geocaching.com/. Basically, you use a GPS device to follow coordinates to a hidden 'cache', which is usually a camouflaged box with all sorts of trinkets inside. Check out the details on the site, it's really fun, and good exercise too.
I'll be updating as frequently as I can. There's a lot coming down the pipeline, so stay tuned!
First off, I'm sorry. I'm sorry I suck. I've been away for so long that I forgot all about you. And I'm sure you forgot about me.
So many exciting things have happened in the past year. For a blog that was supposed to be updated daily, I really screwed up. You know how it is. Life gets busy, and you don't have the time to write, and then you forget.
I can't promise I'll be posting daily. I can promise that I'll try to drop by more often. Of course, there's a selfish motive behind what I'm saying. I hope that trying to keep this blog updated will also push me to do things I can write about. No one wants to read forty pages of posts all about menial boring stuff. To write about exciting things, I have to do exciting things. So consider this self-motivation.
I'll start off by giving a quick rundown of highlights from the past year.
I left my job in Detroit. The entire experience was something new, and exciting, but sometimes in the wrong ways. I learned valuable lessons about office politics, and dealing with clashes with management, and a whole slew of other lessons. It would take an entirely new blog to deal with it all.
Leaving the job was a new experience, because when I came back, I found things had changed while I was gone. Friends had gotten jobs, found and lost love, and so on. I had to do a lot of catching up, and it was a painful lesson that life moves on with or without you. I felt like I had been asleep for a year, and had woken up to a world slightly different.
Integrating back in was difficult at first. People change, including me. Some friends I had trouble getting to know again. Others, who had been acquaintances before, grew closer.
I think I'm only just getting back into the groove of things now. At first, when I came back, it felt like I was dreaming, since Detroit seemed so much realer, but now, Detroit is the dream, and I'm waking back up.
The bottom line is, I'm much happier. It was an awesome experience, but I'm glad to be home.
A few months after I came back, I started a new job with a local engineering company. It really highlighted the differences between Canadian and US labour. By that, I mean procedure, but also in mentality. While my job in America focused on profits, this company focuses on customer satisfaction and integrity.
One of the biggest changes was going from a salaried position to an hourly wage. I found myself being much happier with the increased freedom - typically, salary offers a lot of freedom, but I also have bankable hours now. That means that any overtime I work, I can save as vacation hours instead. If I work eight hours overtime in one week, I can take a full paid day off the next week, or whenever I choose. I have over 50 hours saved up, which is basically a full week of vacation! Awesome!
I moved back home with my family, but I'm searching for an apartment of my own - this time, I want to buy instead of rent. I'd like to live somewhere new. My company is opening new offices all over North America, which gives me a great opportunity to fulfill that goal.
Other than that, I've started geocaching as well! If you haven't heard of it, it's a great activity that involves searching for 'treasure chests' hidden by people all over the world. Here's the website: http://www.geocaching.com/. Basically, you use a GPS device to follow coordinates to a hidden 'cache', which is usually a camouflaged box with all sorts of trinkets inside. Check out the details on the site, it's really fun, and good exercise too.
I'll be updating as frequently as I can. There's a lot coming down the pipeline, so stay tuned!
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