Tag: school

Posted on

More Life Reflection on my 21st Birthday

so i’m sitting here watching my suitemates play Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare 2. this game is great. it’s changed my life quite a bit. ever since it came out, i … i’m just kidding. but this game is serious fun.

i’m 21 years old now. everyone thinks of it as joining the drinking club, but i think it’s more than that. at the risk of sounding pretentious, i think of turning 21 as joining society for real. in all aspects of my life, i’m picking up responsibility and i’m okay with that. i’m growing more confident in my abilities and realizing where i fit into the big jigsaw puzzle of life. in my last post, i talked about goals, ones which i still aim for. however, in this post, i’ll elaborate on the one about not failing college.

i always say things like “i’m a bad student” or “i just don’t like studying.” to an extent, it is true – i’m more of a learn by action rather than reading. recently, i just find myself turned off from computer science more and more. it’s getting harder and i know i’m not putting forth the effort to learn it. i took a silly online myers-briggs personality indicator test and it told me i’m a very organized semi-leader. i thought about this result and realized it’s pretty accurate. i thought about how i chose to stick to majoring in computer science rather than switch into Management of Information Systems (MIS). my brother essentially said “MIS is pussyshit” so i decided to tough it out. i followed my brother into computer science because we both grew up playing with computers, but now i’m starting to see the difference between us. he’s just better at math than i am and compsci fits him more. i can do a good amount of programming, but it’s just not my true strength. i’m not meant to be a straight-up engineer. i should choose something more suitable to my personality so i should switch into MIS. i’m okay with being the compsci dropout. the problem of actually switching is that i only have 3 semesters at BU left. i’d be willing to stay an extra semester if required though. i’m sure i’m not the only one that has had a late revelation like this. this situation will work itself out – my mom says i’m lucky, haha.

Posted on

My Early New Year’s Resolutions

i had been veering off the path recently and i needed to re-evaluate my priorities in life so as to not fail. i started a new job as a programmer at 829 LLC. i’m in it more for the experience than the money because my finances are pretty stable, but my big wage was a great incentive to get me on board. however, now my schedule is even more packed. i’m looking at an additional 10 hours of work a week on top of my 10 hours of work-study, but maybe i can still manage. without further ado, my goals:

  • captain of BU men’s ultimate frisbee team next year – this goal is very achievable. i’ve been working hard at ultimate ever since i came to BU. i started off as an unathletic and inexperienced player, having no prior sports experience other than martial arts. i would like to think that i’ve progressed since i play more than 2 points a game nowadays.
  • manager at CFA ITO (work-study job) – this goal is also very achievable. i’ve worked here ever since i’ve gotten to BU. the job has been a good learning experience because i’ve constantly been challenged. it was the first job that forced me to work 100% at all times, which has shaped my work ethic into something reasonable. i feel attached because i just know the organization and the people so well (relative to previous/other jobs). the pay could be better, but in this economy, i’ll take it.
  • continue web development next summer – sooner or later, i will have to choose between verndale or 829 LLC as my summer job. we’ll have to see how this run with 829 LLC goes, but i’m sure i’ll be happy with my choice either way because i’ll be getting paid well to do rewarding and exciting work.
  • be a decent pool player by end of academic year – i’ve been hitting BU central’s pool hall pretty hard for the past month. everyone pretty much knows me as a regular there. i purchased my own cue stick (mcdermott m72e for $135 off ebay) and i think i need to step it up to the next level. i’m going to start reading and watching learning materials, as well as practicing instead of just playing pool. by the end of the school year, hopefully i’ll be able to run a table from the break most of the time.
  • don’t fail school – a seemingly silly goal, but i find myself not paying attention to my academics as much as i should be. i mean, i pay quite a bit of money to attend college and i shouldn’t slut around so much, but i have poor self-control and this results in poor grades. i’ve pretty much decided what i want to do when i graduate: desktop and/or web programming. it’ll be more along the lines of practical application rather than technical/theoretical because frankly, i’m not that great at math and by extension, computer science. this means i just need to focus on the classes that matter and skim by in the classes that don’t relate so much. a bad strategy for my GPA for sure, but i’m just a realist (or maybe that’s just my excuse for sucking in classes).
  • learn some tricks in snowboarding – maybe too early, but with this upcoming season, i want to improve my skills on the slopes. last year, i could do some big boxes and rails and small jumps, but i want to double that this year. i want to be doing bigger jumps, smaller boxes and rails, and maybe even a 360. maybe it’s my competitiveness, but i just think that part of the enjoyment of an activity is the challenge it provides. that’s why i just love trying new things and seeing if i can improve at it really quickly.

anyways, have to wake up early tomorrow (or today, rather) and listen to a semi-boring lecture on probability and computing (CS237). it’s my worst class currently and i was going to drop it, but i decided to just stick it out and try to barely pass. hooray for mediocrity!