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Start turning the grain into the ground...
14 years ago
General
...roll a new leaf over.
Moving into a new apartment this weekend. Finally buckled in and got a new mattress, as the one I currently own is older than me and quite possibly one of the sources of my sleeping problems :P
It turns out, I made an convincing enough argument with my boss to muster up a raise, and possibly more 4 more hours (at the price of working Saturday morning).
Thanks to a few of my local friends up here, I was able to get a membership at LA Fitness Gym back in early November without having to pay the initiation crap. For the last year and half, I've been learning home routines with weights, pullup bars, balls, resistance bands, etc. to strengthen my core. Since joining, I've managed to go 3 times a week up until this week due to moving and contracting a cold. But hey, it's only Friday ^^;
I've set my goals, and I'm a few steps into them already. I feel a little bad bragging earlier about my low body fat %, but sticking to the home routines really proved surprisingly effective, and I feel like I owe myself a little credit for persistence.
Anyhow, I'm on a road to gain a little weight... 10 to 15 more. I talked to a nutritionist at the gym and they essentially told me my diet was decent, but that I simply need more volume (of the same type). My biggest obstacles will definitely stamina and cardio, and I know I really need to quit smoking. I've cut back, but I realize managing is not quitting.
There are a multitude of reasons I am doing this. The primary reason is getting to know myself better. I've been negligent of my body for a number of years in various respects. This is a sort of compromise I've worked out with myself in the hopes of achieving a stronger self-foundation and sense of identity.
It's been a very humbling experience, but the rewards of learning how my body and mind work together will pay off in the long run, I believe.
P.S. kudos if anyone got the musical reference from the title ^^
Moving into a new apartment this weekend. Finally buckled in and got a new mattress, as the one I currently own is older than me and quite possibly one of the sources of my sleeping problems :P
It turns out, I made an convincing enough argument with my boss to muster up a raise, and possibly more 4 more hours (at the price of working Saturday morning).
Thanks to a few of my local friends up here, I was able to get a membership at LA Fitness Gym back in early November without having to pay the initiation crap. For the last year and half, I've been learning home routines with weights, pullup bars, balls, resistance bands, etc. to strengthen my core. Since joining, I've managed to go 3 times a week up until this week due to moving and contracting a cold. But hey, it's only Friday ^^;
I've set my goals, and I'm a few steps into them already. I feel a little bad bragging earlier about my low body fat %, but sticking to the home routines really proved surprisingly effective, and I feel like I owe myself a little credit for persistence.
Anyhow, I'm on a road to gain a little weight... 10 to 15 more. I talked to a nutritionist at the gym and they essentially told me my diet was decent, but that I simply need more volume (of the same type). My biggest obstacles will definitely stamina and cardio, and I know I really need to quit smoking. I've cut back, but I realize managing is not quitting.
There are a multitude of reasons I am doing this. The primary reason is getting to know myself better. I've been negligent of my body for a number of years in various respects. This is a sort of compromise I've worked out with myself in the hopes of achieving a stronger self-foundation and sense of identity.
It's been a very humbling experience, but the rewards of learning how my body and mind work together will pay off in the long run, I believe.
P.S. kudos if anyone got the musical reference from the title ^^
Congratulations on the raise! Good job too, considering how tight-fisted the company seems to be (as laid out in your previous journal).
I do find the stinginess somewhat surprising. I mean, you're an asset to the company (e.g., your analytical geometry skills are in short supply), and as long as you cost less to them than they charge their clients, every hour you work adds to their revenue. Giving you a little raise shouldn't be that hard.
I think it's unfortunately the industry standard to pay the teachers less and have high turn-over rates... if you constantly have new teachers then you can pay them less. So as long as they have enough staff members, they typically don't care much :X
Also, good job on the song reference ^^ I love counting crows :D
I went into it because my primary field, civil engineering, did not really have much opportunity for me by the time I graduated. I went into teaching because I appear to have a knack for technical communication, creating visual aids, and alternative solutions. I also generally have a knack for information and finding patterns. I started tutoring in college for honors societies, and eventually the department asked me to do private tutoring, review sessions, and eventually a job as a TA. That went moderately well, so I became the head TA and eventually started writing parts of the class and teaching labs, discussions, and lectures. I suppose it was a combination of being good at it, and feeling like the current methods of teaching were a bit outdated or could be explained better in modern times.
Hope this sheds a little light on where I got started! :D I'd be happy to answer more questions if you have any. Thanks for asking though... not something a lot of people ask.
OK, so no Veronese maps, ideals, etc.? (That sounds like a good thing; I wouldn't want to try to TA that! :)
Personally, I enjoy teaching/TAing, and wouldn't mind having that as part of my career. However, I'm dismayed to hear that you couldn't find a good job as a civil engineer. Society is keeps evolving, and I like to think engineers like us should always be useful! Even if you enjoy teaching and you do it well, it feels unfortunate and nonoptimal that you should be forced to choose that, instead of something that uses your engineering skills and degree more directly.
From where you are now, would you rather remain in education, or switch over to civil engineering if given the choice?
I would rather go into engineering, be it civil or a tangentially related field that matches my skill set. When I started civil, I really wanted to do an engineering that directly impacts the daily quality of life for people. So regardless of the title, my intentions remain essentially the same. My heart tells me I want to be an engineer, and I see no reason not to listen :P
Sorry for the late response... its been hectic since FC, and its taken me awhile to get through all my FA crap :C