SteveRogers.info

Category: Personal Story

  • Assorted

    • If you have not already heard, I am going out with someone. Her name is Sue, and we have been going out since May (debating since March). We have very good to near best friends for over 7 years. Feel free to ask further questions if necessary.
    • I still haven’t gotten my Official GRE score, but all is well for grad school for the immediate future. I got the informal/unofficial confirmation of my acceptance last week. I was a little nervous before then, but fortunately my future is laid out until January 2008.
    • During that time, I sort of (re)realized how I struggle to accept support. Friends always offer: “Is there anything I can do?” or try to give encouraging words, but (maybe this is the case with everyone) I rarely take advantage of it. Then, when I sometimes do, it doesn’t really help. Is it odd that I struggle to utilize supportive people?
    • I am typing this from the my employers Receptionist Desk (the receptionist has the day off, and as the low rank on the totem poll, here I am). I am sort of become their technical liaison. Meaning, we have contracts with a couple of Communications/tech firms, but my organization is not extremely tech savvy. Therefore, since I have been back, if there has been a tech issue to come up (whether e-mail blasting or online mail distribution), they have come to me with whatever their firms have offered. I either say: “That sounds reasonable” or “Yeah, no way you need that for that price” or “I have no idea.” Just today (in the middle of writing this), the executive director pulled me into a meeting. He is letting me lay out a project for us to do next cycle, which I am excited about.
    • In two weeks and a day, I not only get to see Sue, but I get to see my sister get married. I had a great wedding present idea, but it is about double my price range (which is pretty significant, you only get to do this type of wedding present once). Therefore, in the next couple of days I need to come up with something. I am a good gift giver, so the registry does not satisfy me.
    • My room at Whimsy Manor is small, but it is doing okay. Julian (who I sublet to over the summer) warns me that it gets annoying. I think the thing that I have going for me is that my personal space is bigger than it was in my old room in New Hall, and significantly bigger than what I had in London. So we will see how it goes
    • I have started running again, but the bad news is that my knees definitely are not a fan of it. It was a little better the other day when I ran on a track instead of a treadmill, but they stiffened up later in the day. My sister chastised me before about using basketball shoes to run, but I don’t really need two sets of sneakers. I am not eating much healthier than normal, but some exercise is better than none.

    Now that was a classic blog post.

  • SLU Arena & A Sign

    Not Bad for 45 Minutes of Work Link

  • In avoiding the GRE

    In one day of avoiding real studying for the GRE Steve has

    • Set up his retirement savings account (Roth IRA)
    • Spilled water on his laptop and has ordered a new keyboard from Dell (free)
    • Bought an MP3 player with some of the going away gift money from his jerbs
    • Setup and compared the Google Analytics for Steve’s two web sites: Billikens.com and SteveRogers.info

    Regarding :

    It is sort of sad to note:

    • One page has vistors from as many continents as the other does cities.
    • One page gets visited by a larger variety of browsers than the other one gets visitors.
    • It is arguable that there are individual threads on one page’s message board that have received more hits than the other web site ever has.

    It should also be added there have been some wierd server things going on with SteveRogers.info. Well, I am off to lunch then finding my spot in The Lou that is equatable to Ivory Tower.

  • Unemployed

    For those of you that don’t know, I worked on 4 State Representative Races this summer, managing three.  But now, I am done and on my way to Best Buy to cash in one of my going away presents.

    GRE in 8 Days.  Return to School in 9.  Back to DLCC in 13.

  • Nerdom

    You know you are a nerd when you avoid the GRE by checking out Missouri Ethics Reports (Election Finance Disclosures).

    BTW Republicans can raise some dough…Jeez…

  • GRE

    Boy, do I have some prepping to do after taking a “Diagnostic Test”… My scores….yikes….

    My Verbal was actually better than my Quantitative, but I haven’t touched a thing of Math in a couple of years outside of polling and precinct data.

  • Yoplait

    Yesterday I had lunch with Erica, friend from High School, and we discussed pretty much what most friends discuss at our age: the direction of people’s lives.

    One of the things that everyone seems to debate at this age is do what you want now or do what is best for the long term. Erica is entering a doctoral program in food chemistry. She is extraordinarily bright and will be good at whatever she does. However, we discussed what you do with a food chemistry PhD.

    First, she could become a professor and reasearch how certain parts of food that are part of the photosynthesis process could be used as something similar to vitamins. Or she could work for Hostess making a Twinkee or Ho Ho achieve its thirtieth year of shelf life. As a professor, she would not make as much money, spend hours in the lab, and be a slave to grant writing. At Hostess, she could work 9-5, contribute to the obesity problem of this country, and cash a nice paycheck.

    The way Erica is approaching it is go for Yoplait. Is she still selling out her soul a little ‘bit and going to the private sector, yes. However, she is not doing it to the extent of Hostess.

    I find myself in a similar situation. If I could, I would love to work in politics for the next ten years, but I am 95% certain I do not want to the 10 years after that. Therefore, I am puzzled of what to do… With a conversation I had with one person at the DLCC, he described his position as working on campaigns and for caucuses for years, then the DLCC, and he will eventually submit to the dark side and work for a mail house.

    In politics, it seems that eventually if you want the money and comfortable life, you go to the Dark Side, lobbying or some media firm. It is not glamerous, you don’t work for any real noble cause, but you cash in on the (Hostess) dollars.

    Working a campaign means long hours, little pay, but enjoyable work a lot of the time. You can only do it if you love it, but I know the novelty and fun will wear off quick. Also, the pay scale really does stink. You will never have a job for more than a couple of years, which means little stability.

    One could work in DC for a Member or Senator. However, this means living in DC. I am okay with this, but the pay is not fantastic. Also, if you plan to move up the ranks, to chief of staff or something, you seem to travel a lot. Therefore, it would be a lot of time away from family or your roots.

    One could work for a party organization, but turnover is very high amongst these from Cycle to Cycle. You don’t get the benefits of really being in charge, and you push a lot of paper. The DLCC honestly seems to be one of the best organizations to work for. However, to become a political director, you must put your time in out in the field, which is only logical.

    Basically, I would love to find my Yoplait. When I am thirty, do I want to work for Hostess? Or should I go more academic, which provides a more stable job but without the excitement.

    Where is the political Yoplait.