So, I got both offers now! Hooray! Grenada and AOL!

So, this post is going to be really short, and I need your opinions again. I always have problems choosing something that has the potential to leave me saying “what if” for awhile. Truthfully, I’m leaning towards Grenada. Hard. But the thing that sticks in my mind, the thing that keeps me from being 100% for it is summed up below. I’ll keep it short:

Travelling across Europe. It costs money. I will get there and have some, but I don’t know how often / expensively I can afford to travel, so I figure the more the better. I know hostels are cheap (don’t mind sleeping in one), but trains/airfare for those little excursions is sure to add up.

I guess I’m used to having to pay rent and food costs and stuff but since that’s covered already, I won’t be paying out-of-pocket for stuff like that. Anyone with experience on how much it costs to take a train in Europe is welcomed to leave a comment.

So yeah, Grenada is amazing, but I have to consider the trip to and what that impact on European travel capabilities is. Thoughts?

As always, thanks for reading (Thanks especially for the help)

Well, I figured that the best way to go about this would be to write out a few things. I’d really appreciate it if everyone who read this would leave me a comment about their thoughts. That being said, let’s get into one of the hardest choices I’m ever going to make.

AOL

The story: I gave AOL my resume at a job fair. I said nothing after that, but got a call earlier this month, offering me a chance to interview. The guy there really liked me, I think. Or rather, he liked that I was a computer-sciencey type of person who isn’t a shut-in cubicle dweller who can actually communicate with people. In either case, I went through the interview process, and I’ve got a big envelope with an offer sitting inside of it.

Stats:

• Location: Dulles, Virginia. About a half-hour west of D.C.
• Pay: Pretty decent. Not going to write it on here, but it’d be a considerable amount of money at the end of things.
• Job descriptions: I’d be either doing SEO (search-engine optimization) sort of consulting, or coding an application for money.aol.com that will work with aggregate data that flows into that site all the time.

Pros:

• It pays.
• Close to D.C. (tourism), Baltimore (homies), State College (Arts Fest), Maybe a beach.
• Hands-on Coding/SEO work.
• Working for a pretty prestigious company.
• Did I mention it pays?

Cons:

• Less ‘noble’ work
• Less chance to really make a huge impact with something
• I’ve gotta pay to live there (Don’t know how much yet)
• It sure ain’t Grenada.

Verdict: It sounds really great. I love that I’d be getting some real work from a big, impressive company, all while getting a little extra money for my trip to Europe next semester. On top of it all, I can still travel around and see the sights a little, I’ve never been to D.C., and I’d probably make a few friends with the other interns.

Grenada

The story: I got an e-mail from the IST Internship Coordinator talking about a good opportunity to spend time in Grenada. Later, I went out to an infosession to find out what it was all about. Basically, IST’d cover airfare for five students to go down to Grenada, live at St. George’s University, and help out with the whole country’s tech operation. We’d help set up a wireless network, we’d teach teachers about how to use technology in the classroom, and we’d do general troubleshooty-type of stuff.

Stats:

• Location: Grenada, a 40-sq.mile island in the Caribbean, just north of South America.
• More Info about it: Caribbean nation, thick accent on the english, I’d be at St. George’s — one of the sea’s finest medical schools. Nice and warm, right on the beach.
• Pay: Airfare, Housing, and Meals are covered.
• Job descriptions: Working with a Jamaican firm for setting up the wifi network. Teaching teachers things like html, classroom computing, maybe shared workspaces, etc. Repairing and replacing parts (not as easy as it sounds way down there) for their infrastructure.

Pros:

• 2 months in a Tropical Paradise.
• No. Seriously. Paradise
• Making an enormous difference for people that really need help.
• Many people say this is a ‘me’ type of job.
• I could go out into rainforests, beaches, diving, whatever.
• New culture to experience

Cons:

• Unpaid
• 3rd World country (kind of a pro too)
• Campus will be dead, since everyone’s going to be home. If selected, I better get to like the people I’d be going with.
• I’m a Nerdy Pennsylvanian. This guarantees that in the first week or two, bugs will eat alive whatever skin on me that hasn’t been totally burnt off by the sun.
• Limited contact with the outside world.

Verdict: Like I said, it sounds like a ‘me’ thing to do. But I’ve never been outside the country. I had better be able to adjust easily. Despite the fact that it’s unpaid, it’s still a chance to do so much. I’m wondering how it stacks up to AOL on a resume. Besides, I may never get another chance like this, you know?

So yeah, that’s on the table right now. I really don’t know what to do. Going with AOL is a solid opportunity that will definitely aid in my european experience next semester, as well as be a big perk to my resume. Grenada is a radical chance to do something that will maybe change the world in a small way, all while exploring a brand new culture, climate, and personal reflection. A good friend told me to listen to my heart, but before I can do that, I’ve got to know what all of you think.

Come on readers, don’t fail me now!

By the way… thanks still You’re all great (even greater for commenting)

Cheers,
-Tim

Now, I’ve been on Digg once or twice, but today I went to check out the Videos page on digg, when I saw that the newest post on the front page had my username in it! The story is that at one point I had posted in the comments for a video of Elton John singing a song about an oven. My comment was just a list of youtube links of Ben Folds making up songs on the spot. I guess someone liked one enough to post it, and I now feel popular as a result

Ben Folds Five makes a song up on the spot…using a shout from the crowd!
yer0c submitted, made popular 1 hour 42 min ago (youtube.com)

Credit goes to knaps for pointing out this video. During a live concert in Berlin, someone from the crowd yells out something unintelligible, so the band makes up a song on the spot using that yell! More…

Speaking of Mr. Folds, a few people had asked me to post the photo of all of us and Ben from the IUP show we went to las month. You can find that photo here:
Justin, Me, Evan, Ben Folds, and Danny. Awesome.

And finally, as a small side note, I finally saved up enough money to buy an SLR. Expect lots more (and better) photos from me on my flickrstream.

Hope everybody’s been real good, thanks for reading.
-Tim

Headache, going on day 3 now. It’s 3:49am. I think I’ve been staring at these screens for too long.

Pretty safe to assume that I really hate school right now. Specifically my statistics professor and his long, repetitive, drawn-out assignments that require software that I don’t have. The other part of tonight was spent coding Java. “Coding” is a very loose term tonight.

Best part is, it’s not even all done. I just can’t think anymore.

Considered sleeping here, but I’d rather go home and at least have my bed, knowing full well the consequences of not being done yet. Might as well sleep somewhere comfy before I start this f#%&ing grind all over again.

So let’s see how Tuesday goes. With classes until 5:30 and meetings ’til midnight. These days are always the pitfalls of every week.

All work and no play…

Today’s (yesterdays) Good things: Good grade on Stat exam, good remarks for 331, good reaction from clients, good lunch, good trip to the bank. Alright. I’m starting to see the elements of this form-page float around. Good indication of being tired.

Goodnight (15-20minutes from now)

Sorry. Blame my inner child. The my last post should answer any questions as to why my inner child still sways my thoughts so much It’s actually a good show, even if it is a cartoon.

Oh, and this was kind of funny. I was watching that show (Foster’s Home for Imaginary Friends), an episode called the Big Lebloosky, all about bowling. Turns out, the creator of the show is a big fan of that movie. There’s a few instances where a line is said that sounds just like one from the Big Lebowski. Now that’s cool and all, but below is a picture that I think tops the list for all-out cartoon homages to movies: Dude, Donny, and Walter, right there! Here’s the pic:

“Forget it, Donny, you’re outta your element!”

So, ’twas my birthday. It was pretty good. Lots of Facebook posts (thanks everybody), two exams that I miraculously managed to get by, the best weather of the year so far, an open-mic night, and a few hours of putzing with my guitar and a nice breeze. I’m wrapping up the day (even though it’s 2am, it’s still today for me) with a nice piece of cake (with sprinkles) that Mare and Amber bought for me. Thanks guys!

I’ve been saying this a lot, but I’m gonna miss my teenage years. I’m gonna miss having that 1 in my age. Now it’ll only come by once every decade. Good times will be back though, once I’m 100. And yes, I plan on living that long.

Of course, nobody here really cares when you turn 20. It’s our mentality that 21 should be the age to celebrate, since you’re legally allowed to drink. So people go nuts, put on a tiara, rent a limo, and act like it’s some new rights-of-passage for the real world, starting off doing something so absolutely unnatural. But yeah, I’m pretty happy with the big 2-0. 20 years is a long time. I feel like people will think I’m an older person now, just by the whole sound of “twenty”. I’m 1/5th of a century old, and I’ve gotta say, that’s pretty neat.

Lots of people, when they reach some arbitrary age around now, always say “I feel so old”, and I’ve gotta say, it’s nobody’s fault but your own, should you feel old at any age. When we’re young, we’re curious and eager to see what the world has to offer us. There’s a sense of innocence and excitement in the tiniest things, because these things are new, and usually appreciated more. I think people, as they get older, start to feel older, because their bodies don’t work like they did when they were young in age. Even worse, when people lose interest in things, get set into a daily routine, and simply exist because it’s what they’re doing, or what they’re comfortable doing, or what they’re used to doing.

There’s an old saying, we’ve all heard. It’s something to the effect of “You’re as old as you believe yourself to be.” Nothing could be truer. When we age, when the daily motions begin to carve the wrinkles in our skin, when we lose sight of things that are important, when we take things for granted and are unable to see the amazing possibilities in our surroundings, and when we lose that sense of curiousness, that willingness to explore and learn and experience, I think that’s the only time when we start to get old. Life can sometimes be like a big cheese-grater to our youth, every day shredding some of our appreciations and perceptiveness away. But it’s all within our own abilities to make sure that it doesn’t happen.

I’ve often said that my life’s greatest regret is that I won’t live long enough to experience everything there is to offer. I don’t even think my lifetime will span enough time to experience a good overview of what our planet has in store, let alone gain the understandings of what’s beyond our own world, and what makes that place tick. Going to big cities reminds me that there are too many people at one given moment to meet in one lifetime, too many experience to miss because I can’t be everywhere all the time forever. But you all know me. I’m damn sure going to try to cram as much in in the unforgivingly short amount of time I’ve been allotted to spend alive.

So I guess, for me at least, I don’t think I’ll ever get old. I’ll be in my eighties trying to learn a new instrument, volunteer somewhere, take classes, whatever. I’ll keep going until I’m physically unable to. To what scale I can do this, I’m not really sure, but every moment is going to be well-spent. In Yoga, I was taught that the highest quality of life can be achieved through what’s could be called a divine play — exploring fully open and accepting, much like a child, with the sense of enthusiasm present when something new is at hand. This is how I’d like to spend rest of my life, living to experience, and never growing old. So, overall, the number 20 isn’t a big deal, except that I’ve got only one more year before I can rent a limo and traipse bar-to-bar in a halter-top and tiara. Joy.