Update?!?! OR How I Almost Died (But Not Really)
So wate wut, I'm updating? Yeah, finally. Well, let's go way back to last Saturday (as in about 10 days ago). I was supposed to work in the afternoon at Hollywood, but they called me and told me not to come in. So I went back to sleep, of course. I was awakening by another phone call a little later on. This time it was some person from some other Hollywood, but I never found out who it was and where she was from. Regardless, she asked me to work at the Seldon store that night because they were understaffed. I agreed, though I didn't know Seldon was over a half-hour away at the time. My mom gave me directions after I went back to sleep yet again, and by 4 I was on my merry way.
I left a little late, though, so I was in a rush. This, combined with not knowing where you're going, doesn't lead to the most fun of experiences. After I got off the LIE, I drove down what I later found out was North Ocean Avenue, looking for the cross street that I was supposed to make a left at. Well, it never came, and the road eventually turned into what looked like a highway. I had no idea where I was going, but then I saw a U-turn sign and the small U-turn to the left, so I decided turning around would be the best option. However, I was going a little too fast at the time, and when my car's poor excuse for breaks was added to that, it probably wasn't the best idea. It was too late for me, though, and I skidded off the road and onto the grass/dirt. There was a big rock in front of my car and a big tree behind it (it looked like I did one of those cool skid parks), and my front wheels were stuck in the dirt. So, I called my parents. They headed on over, and in the mean time I called AAA. At the time I had no idea where I was, though, so they couldn't help at all.
After waiting in my car for about 10 minutes, two guys pulled up in a truck and asked if everything was alright. They also offered to pull me out if I had a chain, but I didn't so they just told me what road I was on and left. I called AAA and they headed on over as well. As I was going to sit back in the car, I realized there was a fairly large slope on the other side. In fact, after a little investigation, I discovered that my car was a mere foot away from rolling over the side about 100 feet down to the trees below. This is when I noticed the wind picking up a little bit, and was discouraged from entering the car until it was back on the road. After another half-hour of waiting, my parents called and told me there was an accident a little south of where I was on North Ocean Avenue. Figures. It takes them another 20 minutes, but they arrive and I finally get to actually sit down in the back seat. Then, 10 minutes later, I have to direct the tow truck over the phone for quite a while because the driver couldn't find me (despite the precise directions I gave him before he even left). Ah well.
Anyway, the guy from AAA got there, attached some chains to the back of my car, and pulled slowly for about 20 minutes until it was out of the ditch and back on the road. He also tried to get us to pay $70 because it wasn't a "normal" AAA job, but another call to the office ensured it was free. I then said "screw you, Hollywood" and went home.
On Monday, I began volunteering at Stony Brook University's IT client support department. My mom asked the director if I could help out and learn some things, and he agreed willingly (it's amazing what people will do when it doesn't cost them anything). Of course, it's not his fault; he has to ask the school for grants by March so that people from outside the school can get paid over the summer, and obviously July is just a little bit after that. But anyway, I worked there Monday and Tuesday, and it was rather enjoyable. Most of the students who work there are male Indians (very common in the school), but I was "given" to one of the 3 "professionals" I've met so far (i.e. they've graduated). Her name is Saskya, and she's a cute German redhead who looks a lot like a real-life Asuka 10 years after Evangelion. Yes. I like.
So yeah, I learned how to ghost hard drives (though it's incredibly easy), prepare new setups for faculty, fix some common problems they have, etc. You know, everything that might come to mind when you hear "client support." The director was going to try to find some way to get money for me, but I'm under the impression that that fell through. Oh well, I still might be able to grab some spare computer parts. (This is why I put off building my computer yet again.)
During this time (Sunday to Tuesday) I watched all of Slayers, which I enjoyed for the most part. It's a good, decently balanced series that I found rather entertaining. I saw the Green Mile on Wednesday, too, and that was very good. Very very good. And that brings us to Thursday, where I will pick up again tomorrow. Don't want this entry to be too long...
I left a little late, though, so I was in a rush. This, combined with not knowing where you're going, doesn't lead to the most fun of experiences. After I got off the LIE, I drove down what I later found out was North Ocean Avenue, looking for the cross street that I was supposed to make a left at. Well, it never came, and the road eventually turned into what looked like a highway. I had no idea where I was going, but then I saw a U-turn sign and the small U-turn to the left, so I decided turning around would be the best option. However, I was going a little too fast at the time, and when my car's poor excuse for breaks was added to that, it probably wasn't the best idea. It was too late for me, though, and I skidded off the road and onto the grass/dirt. There was a big rock in front of my car and a big tree behind it (it looked like I did one of those cool skid parks), and my front wheels were stuck in the dirt. So, I called my parents. They headed on over, and in the mean time I called AAA. At the time I had no idea where I was, though, so they couldn't help at all.
After waiting in my car for about 10 minutes, two guys pulled up in a truck and asked if everything was alright. They also offered to pull me out if I had a chain, but I didn't so they just told me what road I was on and left. I called AAA and they headed on over as well. As I was going to sit back in the car, I realized there was a fairly large slope on the other side. In fact, after a little investigation, I discovered that my car was a mere foot away from rolling over the side about 100 feet down to the trees below. This is when I noticed the wind picking up a little bit, and was discouraged from entering the car until it was back on the road. After another half-hour of waiting, my parents called and told me there was an accident a little south of where I was on North Ocean Avenue. Figures. It takes them another 20 minutes, but they arrive and I finally get to actually sit down in the back seat. Then, 10 minutes later, I have to direct the tow truck over the phone for quite a while because the driver couldn't find me (despite the precise directions I gave him before he even left). Ah well.
Anyway, the guy from AAA got there, attached some chains to the back of my car, and pulled slowly for about 20 minutes until it was out of the ditch and back on the road. He also tried to get us to pay $70 because it wasn't a "normal" AAA job, but another call to the office ensured it was free. I then said "screw you, Hollywood" and went home.
On Monday, I began volunteering at Stony Brook University's IT client support department. My mom asked the director if I could help out and learn some things, and he agreed willingly (it's amazing what people will do when it doesn't cost them anything). Of course, it's not his fault; he has to ask the school for grants by March so that people from outside the school can get paid over the summer, and obviously July is just a little bit after that. But anyway, I worked there Monday and Tuesday, and it was rather enjoyable. Most of the students who work there are male Indians (very common in the school), but I was "given" to one of the 3 "professionals" I've met so far (i.e. they've graduated). Her name is Saskya, and she's a cute German redhead who looks a lot like a real-life Asuka 10 years after Evangelion. Yes. I like.
So yeah, I learned how to ghost hard drives (though it's incredibly easy), prepare new setups for faculty, fix some common problems they have, etc. You know, everything that might come to mind when you hear "client support." The director was going to try to find some way to get money for me, but I'm under the impression that that fell through. Oh well, I still might be able to grab some spare computer parts. (This is why I put off building my computer yet again.)
During this time (Sunday to Tuesday) I watched all of Slayers, which I enjoyed for the most part. It's a good, decently balanced series that I found rather entertaining. I saw the Green Mile on Wednesday, too, and that was very good. Very very good. And that brings us to Thursday, where I will pick up again tomorrow. Don't want this entry to be too long...