"Camping"

Friday November 15th, a day that few will ever forget. If you had seen the news in the last two weeks you are sure to have heard about it. This is such an important moment in history, people were killed in its honor. At this point you should be wondering what I am talking about. Well for those of you that did not know, the Playstation 3 (PS3) hit American stores on the previously stated date. For the past two week there have been stories all over the news about people camping outside of stores, some had been there for weeks. Sony only sent 400,000 PS3s to the US. As you can imagine the demand if far beyond this. On the day of its arrival there were reports of shootings and muggings at stores that were about to open their doors to those who were dedicated to wait outside for so long. Now some of you might be thinking that a video game console is not worth dying for, but you must remember that it cost anywhere between $499 and $600. This system is supposed to redefine the way that we perceive entertainment. Now I wouldn't know about this first hand, it is just what all the online articles are telling me.
Now this is where I am affected. Should I get the PS3, get the Xbox360, or wait for the Nintendo Wii. I have my reasons for wanting all three, too bad there is no way I will ever be able to afford that, I can barely afford to get one of them. Right now I have an Xbox so I am leaning more towards getting an Xbox360 if for no reason other than I will not have to go and "restock" on games. The Wii has me curoious to see just how the new control will be for games such as Madden and SuperSmash Brothers. Nintendo as of now has the advantage when it comes to new games that I desire since there is the new Zelda game and SuperSmash. The only new Xbox game that I want is Halo3 and this is mainly for the reason that Halo2 left me wanting closure to the story line. The Wii will be the cheapest by far but still it won't cheap by any stretch of the imagination.
What I think I will end up doing is waiting and reading all the positive and negative reports about each system. Basically about how they overheat, start to lag, have unbelievable graphics, and so on.
Really I don't know why I am even making a post about this.
Well I dedicate this post's video to those brave persons that gave their lives fighting, just so that we may be able to one day have our very own PS3s.

...I Can't Stand General Education.

There are a few things that I would like to make clear before I continue. First, for those of you that will be viewing this on Facebook please do not leave any comments that can potentially be reworded to, "What video are you talking about?" or "Where is the video?" I will make it say this for the last time, YOU HAVE TO GO AND VIEW THE ORIGINAL POST! Second, before I say anything worthwhile I will take this time me talk about just he pointless general education requirements are. Sure I can understand the university wanting to have "well rounded" students, but if you were to even think about this for more than five minuets you realize that this is not the way to go about it. Really if you are forced to choose a class to take in order to meet some requirement most people will choose to take the easiest class that is available. Why put yourself through hell for a subject you don't give a flying fuck about? Another problem I have with this is that when you think of all the "professionals" that you know, how many of them are well versed in more than three areas. If you can even name one then you have been more fortunate that I have been these last eighteen years. Well I just had to get that out of the way.
Well registration for the spring semester starts this week. My registration date is set for November 9th. What I find confusing is that almost everyone else that I know is set to register for the 10th. I know that National Merit students get to register first and the seniors and down the line, but what makes me different from the other freshman? The world might never know. The classes I want to take are; Elementary Differential Equations, Numbers and Polynomials, Age of the Dinosaurs, History of Jazz, and Financial Accounting. Age of the Dinosaurs is one of those classes that I am taking because I need to meet gay (that's right I said gay) general education requirements, as you can imagine I have been told that it is an easy A. History of Jazz will also fulfill some general education requirements but I have been told that the teacher is sensational and that it will be one of those classes that I never forget. The remaining classes are for my major, so naturally I find them to be interesting, or to help me prepare for an Actuarial exam. This semester has thought me that I should never take a class before 9:00 in the morning because I will either sleep through it or just not care about it. My grades aren't that bad, actually I quite happy with them. I am expecting an A in Calculus,Microeconomics, Physics, and maybe Physics Lab. If I don't get an A in Physics Lab then I will have a B+. As for the Grandeur That was Rome I am sure that my final grade will range somewhere from a B+ to a C, and really I could care less.
It is almost Putnam time and I feel as if I have not improved enough to get a positive score. Sure the median score is a zero, but I would like to get full credit for one question or at least partial credit for two. Since my last update I have been looking mostly at calculus problems since there usually tend to be around two analysis questions on the whole exam. Despite all of my preparation the one thing that I lack is the most important skill of all. The ability to write a well thought out proof. I have some experience from doing USAMTS (United States of America Math Talent Search) which was a proof based contest (I didn't perform that well because of my lack of geometry knowledge but other than that I was fine) and reading other people's proofs. Hopefully this will be enough in order to get partial credit if I am able to even attack one problem.
If anyone out there needs any good luck while playing poker, just call me. Jameson and I have just discovered that I am good luck. I'm serious, the last week he won $100 with my help. This was after he lost about $30 because of Wade. I have started to become interested in playing poker. Right now I am playing on yahoo so as to get a better feel for the game. Later I will probably start playing online for real money, playing with real people however, is something that I will almost certainly never attempt.
Some of you, actually just a little over 50% will find this offensive. This is what I have learned this week. When a girl just starts bitching about something that is completely irrelevant all a guy need to do is say, "You don't know what you are talking about, your penis envy is clouding your judgment." I hope that I have not caused anyone to want to find and kill me, if I have all I can say is...

This video is the best waste of five minuets and ten seconds that you will ever find on the internet.

Too Many Options...

So I have started to worry about stuff that I know I should not even be thinking about at this point in time. To begin with I started thinking about where I would apply to graduate school if I decide to get a PhD. This of course leads to other issues such as what classes should I take, what kind of nonacademic activities should I participate in, etc. Then there is the, "What do I really want to do for a living?" So far I have narrowed it down to two choices, but the paths for each are vastly different. For one I will almost certainly need a PhD from a prestigious institution, while for the other I need to pass a series of test so my degree will have little if any impact. For some reason I have also thought about what I would like to minor in since I do not really feel like double majoring in any of the other fields that interest me. At this point I am thinking that I will most likely pick two of the following; physics, economics, actuarial sciences, or statistics. I am leaning towards economics and actuarial sciences mostly because they are more directly related to my desired career choices. I do find the other choices interesting it's just that I am not sure I would gain as much from them.
As previously stated, I should not be worrying about most of these things. I should really be thinking about actually learning physics and passing the grandeur that was Rome. Try not
to misinterpret learning physic as, I don't know physics, because I actually do, I would just like a deeper understanding that I currently have. My classes this semester have not in the least kept me "entertained", by that I mean I have no strong desire to learn the material. Hopefully this will change next semester or next year when I get to take upper level math and economics classes.
Well I have been dwelling on my problems for too long, I feel it is time for a change of subject. So I have started downloading music once again. This might seem like no big deal but I haven't done this since the end of high school. Most of the music has been coming from albumbase or googletalk. The music I've been listening to has made me just how important orchestra was to me back in the day. Surprisingly I really miss being able to play my violin or guitar. Hopefully my parents have kept the violin and Roland hasn't lost my guitar. I would really love to go to a concert. Live performances are altogether on a different plane than recordings. If you were wondering what kind of concert I will make it less ambiguous, CLASSICAL MUSIC!!! There now there should be no confusion as to what I expect.
I have been rambling on for a while now, if you are still reading then I must congratulate you for making it this far. As you reward here is the video that comes with every post.

Why Math...?

So as you have already guessed the first thing that pisses me off is when people ask me "What is there to do with a math degree other than teach?" Now this is somewhat understandable because the image that we seem to get from others is that your college major defines what you will do with your life. I would know about this since my mom majored in an agricultural field while in college and now she is working for the government and her work has NOTHING to do with agriculture. Well here is why I want to major in mathematics. First off you can do just about anything, since employers will see that you majored in math and realize that you have strong analytical skills. Now what kind of company doesn't want an employee with analytical skills? Personally I want to pursue a career that will in some way be tied to the financial world. Honestly all you need to do is take finance and economics classes to show that you have some understanding of the topics.
As for the careers that interest me you are almost required to take a large series of mathematics and non-mathematics classes. One choice I am considering is becoming an acuter (to learn more about this profession visit www.beanactuary.com). In order to be an acknowledged acuter there are a series of rigorous test that one must pass. Most of these test have a passing rate that is no higher than 30%. Another option is trying to become an Quantitative Analyst. (This is comparable to a trader in many ways) For this it is very beneficial to have "some understanding" of economics and computer programming.
If for some reason I change my mind about what to do there is always the ability to use knowledge gained from my other non-math classes. Sure I could be a math teacher but really I do not have the kind of patience to teach kids, and as for being a professor I would have to teach an upper level class so that I am teaching only people who actually want to be in the class or can at least pretend to find it interesting.
So I guess the next time someone ask me "What can you do with a math degree other than teach?" I think I will answer with "What ever the fuck I want...now that I think about it I think I will take the job that you want."


Now for the video:

Typical Weekend

Well it was another typical weekend, the usual home football game I didn't go to because I didn't feel like buying a ticket and in my opinion it wasn't a game with going to. So I just watched it on TV. As you have guessed I am talking about Saturday so it means that I had an economics lecture to watch, nothing I wasn't able to handle. I am really hoping that Alli was right about microeconomics and macroeconomics being completely different. I thought about doing some math but decided not to because there is ALWAYS something worth watching on TV, and there weren't any classes that I needed to study for.
Sunday I woke up, turned the TV to FOX, watched the Bucs game, and it was at the moment the game was over that I knew just how horrible the preceding day was going to turn out. Once the game was over I somehow managed to summon the will power to get up and get lunch, it was only about 4 o'clock and I had not eaten breakfast. Once I was in the dorm again I talked to Bethany for a while and then watched the second economics lecture that I had left, I normally leave the lectures from Wednesday and Friday for Saturday and Sunday. The part of the day that I had been most looking forward to, the season premier of Desperate Housewives, was to some degree a major disappointment.
Well tomorrow I will be heading back to Tallahassee after classes are over. However, I will not be able to spend time with any my friends there because I will be getting there a little late. The reason I am there is for a dentist appointment, typical adjustment of the braces, at about 9 o'clock in the morning. After this I head back to Gainesville in oreder to attend my 5 o'clock class.

This video is thanks to Elias:

Thoughts on Video Games

Now I know that not many females play video games. Of the few that do they probably don't need to read this post.
Before I get started I think it will be necessary to define a few terms for those of you that are not 1337 (that means "leet" as in elite)
RPG: role playing game, you develop your character as the game devolves
FPS: first person shooter, think Halo or Halo2 or Half-Life 2

Well I was checking my Youtube account and saw that there was a new Final Fantasy AMV (animated music video) so for some strange unbeknownst to yours truly, I decided to watch it. About one minuet into the video I realized why I did not really enjoy playing turn-based RPGs, it is just unrealistic. Honestly have you ever seen a fight were the combatants take turns trying to hit each other? Didn't think so. So this got me thinking, "What good RPGs are out there that are not based on a turn based combat system?" Guess what the first game that came to mind was. FABLE! This games is amazing. I will admit that once you have beaten the game going through it takes about one fifth the time of the original pass through. This is partly due to the fact that you know what needs to be done and how to do it, but you then have to consider that normally on the second or third time through the game you normally do more side quest that you normally do on the first pass. If there is ever a sequel to Fable I know what I will be buying. Another game that I gave some consideration to was Star Wars: Nights of the Old Republic. This game is a must play for all Star Wars fans even though it employs the o so hated turn based system. I was about to get Knights of the Old Republic II, but decided to buy Soul Calibur 2. Now if any game company comes out with a game that lets you fight like you do in Soul Calibur, while at the same time retaining that RPG feel I will be their biggest fan. Some of you are probably thinking, "There already is a game like this! The Legend of Zelda!" The only reason I would disagree with this is because in Zelda there is no way to customize Link. All you really have to look forward to in the game is new weapons but no new attributes.
Well I just thought I would share some of my random thoughts on RPGs. If you have anything to add or disagree with something I have said please feel free to leave a comment.

Great Labor Day Weekend

So the weekend started with the first UF home game. Really it was not as loud as I had anticipated. For your information I live less than 500 yards from the loudest NCAA stadium. Since I did not see the need to buy tickets to attend a pointless game I stayed in my room playing Maple Story and walked around campus some.
Sunday was filled with great new adventures. However, during my "quest" I had put off doing my laundry, but this will be covered in Monday's story. Sunday I woke up and played some Maple and ate breakfast. Around 3:30 I went and played ultimate Frisbee, which left me covered in sweat and an unpleasant odor to say the least. After taking a bath I went to the Episcopal church which is withing walking distance of the dorm. Service was mediocre, nothing special but familiar in some ways. Now the highlight of the day, DINNER! Well mainly because I do not have the patience to sit here and type the whole story here is the general idea. I met three people; Sarah, Andrew, and Jarrod. They reminded me of some my friends in high school at first, but were really nothing like them once I thought about it for a while. After dinner we went to Ryan's dorm-located in Hume-I met even more interesting people. When it was getting close to midnight we started to play poker and then Hoopla, both great games. Well at about 2 in the morning we decided to call it a night. Myself and 4 other guys walked Sarah back to her dorm. At the current moment in time it is beyond my powers to remember the name of the dorm but I know that I have walked past it on my way to Beaty Towers, as a matter of fact you could say that it is right across the street form Beaty.
Monday capped off the best weekend so far. So when I woke up I realized that I still had to do my laundry and listen/watch my microeconomics lecture. After completing both of these task it was about 2:00. If you noticed nowhere did I say that I had eaten breakfast in this time so by 2:00 I was starving to say the least. Well while eating I ran into Ryan, John, and Peter (more people I met on Sunday). Then went to John's dorm played cards for a while until his friend, whose name I cannot recall right now, invited us to play Halo 2. As you have guess at 8:00 we watched the FSU-Miami game. AMAZING, and FSU won which was an added bonus for me. 13-10.
Well those were the highlights of the weekend.

Now this weeks video, if only Roland were this good: