Okay, ya bums

I'm clearing out of this joint.

http://metawords.wordpress.com

In which I write about writing every day, and other things less often.

The End

Well, I just graduated from college. Woo.

On that note, this will be the last post on this blog. It covers my four years of college, and for organizational reasons, I think that's it. And besides, you won't be able to get anymore of a "college student's bullshit" if I'm not a college student, right?

I'm starting a new blog eventually, but before I do, I'm going to want to think about the nature of the content involved, and maybe actually try to get readers. So, if you are one of the unfortunate souls who wandered onto this page, maybe you could leave a comment as to what I could write that you'd actually like to read.

It's been fun, but I guess there's a real world out there now.

College in Review

Today (it's after midnight) is the last day of finals for Carnegie Mellon. I've been done since Friday, but since I've spent most of the intervening time being roughly as active as a bump on a log, now seemed like a decent time to write this entry. As far as any metric I know, college is over. I graduate on Sunday, and then continue my attempts to secure entry into the real world. In the past four years, I've learned a lot. Talking about boundary layers or moments of inertia here would fill up space, but even from an academic perspective that isn't what's important. I've changed the way I think, and that's exactly what CMU wants out of its engineers. I've also learned some important things about life:

Stop compromising.
There are only so many hours in a day, only so many days in a week. You're given things you have to get done, and there are things you want to get done. Once you know how to manage your time, you should know how long everything you want to do takes, and schedule accordingly. Some things, believe it or not, you can always make time for. Anyone who has given up on an exercise schedule, had a relationship suffer, or otherwise did poorly during a very busy time did so because they either weren't realistic with their time or they made compromises that compromised the things that were important to them. Example: I started running last semester, and nothing got in my way. I missed two runs this past semester, both during the busiest events of the semester, Carnival and Greek Sing. Other than that, it was 6 days a week, every week, wind, snow, sleet, or rain.

Girls are Crazy.
People say this, and it's true. To be fair, boys are crazy too, but having been one for the last 22 years, I know how to deal with it better. If I've learned anything during college, it's that as soon you think someone isn't crazy, you're in for trouble. For me, the "One that Got Away" was a girl who I knew was nuts the moment I met her. Damn I should have been a bit more impulsive.

Get Out While You Still Can.
I didn't learn this in time for my grades to reflect it, but at a certain point, you need to know when you can't catch up. I mean, if you don't succeed at first, try again later. I also screwed this up in relationships...though there it's harder to realize when you're dealing with codependence, social suicide, or other relationship issues, especially if you think the relationship is the only thing getting you laid.

Forgive.
Living in a fraternity, this one's key. People will do stupid shit. If you want people to get over the stupid shit you do, you need to get over the stupid shit they do. I found just this semester that my being able to forgive one of my brothers allowed to me to continue hanging out with a really cool guy instead of thinking he was a jackass and getting the same back.

You're Wrong, or, What's the Big Deal.
There's always one guy who will insist on being right. You can say something flippantly and he'll correct you. Well, he's an asshole. See above. But please, don't be that guy. We don't care, you're wrong anyway, and believe it or not, people may hold it against you more for being right than for being wrong every once in a while.

Do it.
If someone asks you to do something and you can't think of a good reason not to right then and there, do it. It'll either be helpful to them, or a good experience for you. It may, as it did in my case, get you on youtube.

Screw up.
Similar to 'You're Wrong', everyone makes mistakes. This isn't bad, it's how you learn. Don't be afraid of doing things because you might do them wrong. And remember, you only suck as much as you say you do, so don't shoot yourself in the foot with pessimism before you even try.

Graduation in 5 days. Watch this space for what happens next.

I am completely done with undergraduate coursework

So what the hell do I do now?

Self-Medicating

Painkiller - Freestylers feat. Pendulum and SirReal

see we work hard
play hard
man i gotta stay charged
can't sleep
tired out
trouble on my radar
running round live wire
had another red bull
everybody running baby
let me come and get a pull
isn't it incredibile
that i'm even still awake
still alive
still i take
poison that rebilitates
fuck a little line
we can go ahead and kill a case
living in a killer state
maybe thats a good excuse
see me taking shots at the bar
like i'm bullet proof
now my belly full of juice
i'm walking everyday
wiv a bruised lip
battered eye
beat up state liver..

i'm reaching in my cupboard for a painkiller uh uh uh
i need another painkiller
reachin in my cupboed for a painkiller uh uh uh
i need another painkiller
they call it painkiller
let it go
painkiller uh uh uh
i need another painkiller
reaching in my cupboard for a painkiller uh uh uh
i need another painkiller
they call it painkiller
let it go


now we live fast
die young
wish i'd never tried none
saturated chemical
but i dont wanna die mum
maybe you could try some
no point wasting it
first there was a little bit
but now i got my face in it
run around chasing it
everything is so hot
everybody screw faced
looking like so what
pressure and it won't stop
pushing up my heart rate
arguments and attitude
mate you don't wanna stop me
listen bruva cant wait
now i gotta close this
woke up shivvering
and swimming in my own piss
its just my own risk
a real brain splitter

i'm reaching in my cupboard for a painkiller uh uh uh
i need another painkiller
reachin in my cupboed for a painkiller uh uh uh
i need another painkiller
they call it painkiller
let it go
painkiller uh uh uh
i need another painkiller
reaching in my cupboard for a painkiller uh uh uh
i need another painkiller
they call it painkiller
let it go

Don't Stop - Innerpartysystem

This is one of the best car videos I've seen.

Music is post title. Really cool stuff.

Adventures in used American Vehicles

(11:21:26 PM) Dexter: mmm
(11:21:31 PM) Dexter: I smell like burnt car
(11:21:47 PM) Aaron: that's kind of what happens when your car catches on fire
(11:21:50 PM) Dexter: yeah
(11:21:58 PM) Dexter: I hear that this smell is hard to get out

'Nuff said.

Webcomics and their unnerving accuracy

So this may be why I haven't gotten any writing done

Oh, Sinfest.

Carnival: Over

And it was a very successful one. 2nd place booth, 2:21 buggy time, as well as Chairman's Choice. Awesome.

But now, things are winding down. I have final papers to work through, but they aren't unmanageable. I have a final, but that won't be too bad. All in all, I'm so close to being done.

I have some ideas for the summer. I may try my hand at some freelancing. I'm a good writer, and have a decent range of experience with technical work, as well as semi-creative copy. There's some site online where I can try my hand at this...make a few bucks of beer money, who knows. It'll help pass the time while I continue my job search.

The job search isn't going badly...I'd say I'm at about a 50-50 chance of having something before graduation, and maybe 75% chance of having something by summer's end if I maintain my search rate. I know recruiting season is ending, but I'm going to be persistent. I'm also expanding my options, and seeing if maybe I can join a rock band instead of getting a real job. Ha ha.

I like being close. It actually seems in reach now.

To Say Goodbye is to Die a Little

The power of money becomes very difficult to control. Man has always been a venal animal. The growth of populations, the huge costs of wars, the incessant pressure of taxation- all these things make him more and more venal. The average man is tired and scared, and a tired, scared man can't afford ideals. He has to buy food for his family. In our time we have seen a shocking decline in both private and public morals. You can't expect quality from people whose lives are a subjection to a lack of quality. You can't have quality with mass production. You don't want it because it lasts too long. So you substitute styling, which is a commercial swindle intended to produce artificial obsolescence. Mass production couldn't sell its goods next year unless it made what it sold this year look unfashionable a year from now. We have the whitest kitchens and the most shining bathrooms in the world. But in the lovely white kitchen the average American housewife can't produce a meal fit to eat, and the lovely shining bathroom is mostly a receptacle for deodorants, laxatives, sleeping pills, and the products of that confidence racket called the cosmetic industry. We make the finest packages in the world, Mr. Marlowe. The stuff inside is mostly junk.

...

We don't have mobs and crime syndicates and goon squads because we have crooked politicians and their stooges in the City Hall and legislatures. Crime isn't a disease, it's a symptom. Cops are like the doctor who gives you aspirin for a brain tumor, except that the cop would rather cure it with a blackjack. We're a big rough rich wild people and crime is the price we pay for it, and organized crime is the price we pay for organization. We'll have it with us a long time. Organized crime is just the dirty side of the sharp dollar.

I read The Long Goodbye today. It was much longer than The Big Sleep, and also slower. The result was a book of meaty characters, a good hit of drama as well as suspense, and the best fucking plot twist ever. I could even say that The Long Goodbye is the best novel I have ever read. I may regret that after class tomorrow, but I may not. Chandler is an absolutely fantastic writer, and it's quite clear to me why others emulated him, and why his name is the one most commonly cast on the boilerplate of hardboiled detective fiction.
The quotes above are from Harlan Potter in chapter 32, and Philip Marlowe in Chapter 48, respectively. Chandler's view on the world is quite cynical, and that's probably why I like it. And to drive the whole thing home, after two novels of his bluntness, his demeanor, and his outlook, I can say with fair confidence that Philip Marlowe is a character I empathize with in a very significant way.
Hell of a book.