Settlin' in.

Radford is beginning to feel like home. Much has changed since I last lived here several years ago, pretty much all for the better. The most noticeable thing is, naturally, the University itself. When I was a student way back '07 the only truly noticeable landmark you could make out from Radford was the giant Muse Hall, with its giant clock and drunken freshman homing beacon (or to ward off low-flying aircraft, whatever) placed firmly at its head. Now regardless of which way you come towards the school, there's some huge newly-constructed building looming out towards you. Radford is a decent place to go to school, but the new look gives it a little bit more respectability that it sorely needed.

The downtown business area is also pretty thriving. Several new restaurants have opened and seem to be making it, and there are also 2 competing hookah lounges which makes for awesome customer draw-ins (free slice of cheesecake with a hookah? Fuck yes!). I bought my scooter at a shop on main street, and even made friends with the dealer who said he'd order me any parts if I need to repair anything on it. I'm sure I'll be able to find a second part-time job in the area if I really apply myself to it.

The house I'm living in is amazing; though not as convenient as my last apartment my awesome roommates more than make up for it. It's a 2-story house with a sub-basement that I'm told sometimes floods but for now is really cool and spacious. There's a backyard that's about 100 feet long and 30 feet wide with a campfire pit in the center and a hobby garden area towards the back. The house itself is much more spacious than my old apartment, and every thing I brought over ascetically fits with what the guys already had going. I have a feeling these coming months will be amazing.

My Love/Hate Relationship with Google.

Recently I was invited to check out the beta of Google+. I decided to give it a try mainly because I wanted to see what all the fuss was about, if all the buzz being generated really amounted to anything. While 20 million users is an impressive number, compared to Facebook's 750 million members Google+ feels practically vacant. Being invite-only, I feel like I was let into one of those exclusive clubs that has a really long line on the outside that's almost completely empty once you get in, just to make those outside all the anxious to get in.

If  Google can continue to be Google, g+ is going to be a major player in the future of what I believe is going to become an essential part of digital human culture. Just as email is now a completely accepted and relied upon way of communication around the developed and in many parts of the developing world, social networking is bound to become a mainstay in our society.


So far my experience has been mostly positive, G+ has all the things in a social network that I'm looking for. It's the first social network I've joined where I feel completely in control of what I put into it and what I'm getting into. I'm also pretty confident that Google had all my personal info on the internet before I even signed up; it's refreshing to not have to give all my user data to yet another giant internet company.

-----:EDIT:-----

I started writing this post just over a year ago, and as I stopped updating this thing around that time that explains why I never finished it. Still, it's interesting to see my thoughts a year ago and compare them to what I feel now.

Though G+'s user base has expanded quite a bit since I last wrote, no one really uses it. That being said, I've made it a point to actually attempt to update mine on a semi-regular basis because I think while Facebook has shown us that social networking is more than a mere fad, Google+ will show us how ubiquitous it can become to our everyday lives. Having Google+ already integrated into every other feature owned by Google just makes me want to use it all the more, and also brilliantly makes me want to use more Google products for ease of usage. Hell, this blog was forgotten by me until Google reminded me it existed and allowed me to immediately sync it with my other Google services.

For awhile I was a little intimidated by using all of these Google products as I didn't want one company to have that much control over me, but now I've taken the opposite view. I've given a snippet of personal data to so many countless websites out there that I have no clue who has what the fuck ever on me. With Google, i'm at least aware of the fact that they have all this data clumped together, and with that knowledge I have complete control over all future data they get from me. I am in control. They have to keep me satisfied or I'll stop using their products, because that's internet capitalism. Anything I really value can be saved to my physical hard drive, all the rest can be dropped like a bad habit.

I really just wanted to finish this post and need to get ready for work anyways, so I guess that's all I have to say on the subject.

I bought a scooter!

I have really wanted to update this thing but also really haven't had the time. Very intense past few days.

The biggest thing is I'm now the owner of a 50cc Roketa Scooter, and can get around pretty much anywhere at glorious 90+mpg! The downside is my top speed is between 35 and 40mph, so no interstate traveling for me for now. I had been using my father's car to get around, but he was beginning to fear his truck was about to break down, so the scooter is a temporary fix for me until I can find either a really cheap car or save up enough to afford something decent. The only way that'll happen though, is if it's a very dry, warm winter. Still, I've always dreamed of living car free and still getting around, so hopefully it'll be as great as I've imagined. Pros so far: less than 4 dollars to fill my tank, and really beautiful rides on back roads with the freshest air ever.


Also, I'm now living in Radford full-time, about a half a month sooner than I'd anticipated. Most of the reasons are too personal to go into on such a public blog, so in short I'll just say I love my dad, but man is he getting irrational and controlling ever more so in his old age. Or maybe he's always been that way, I was just too young to see it. Regardless, it's an incredibly liberating feeling standing on my own two feet and getting around by myself with assistance from no one, even if it does take me an hour to get from Radford to Christiansburg.


Lastly, needing funds to buy a car, I've decided to give up my weekends that I currently have off in order to find a second part time job. Hopefully it won't be forever, but in the immediate future comfort and leisure shall be sacrificed for productivity and prudence. I still hope to at least manage one day a week off, which I'd like to devote to writing. I'll still be updating this on a regular basis whenever I can though :)

Lethargy turns to Lucidity

Looks like I'm about 22 days shy of not having touched this blog for a full year. What happened, you ask? A combination of life, laziness, and lack of inspiration. All my creativity was being dulled out by the fact that work was making me so stressed that I'd simply just go home, do something to make me feel relaxed (drinks, smoking, what have you), and then pass out on the couch.

My body full of energy but my mind too tired to do anything about it, I started staying up later and later until complete insomnia set in and I'd have to chug numerous energy drinks just to stay alert and focused at work, less they listen in on my calls and chastise me for not paying attention to the customer. Excessive consumption of energy drinks is surely no way to help someone with insomnia, which led to me lasting only about 5 more months at the call center.

I learned that I'm not someone who can simply spew horseshit out of his mouth in order to make people smile. While I definitely have the ability to do so, apparently I also have a conscience that gives me stomach ulcers if I continually do something I find to be unconscionable. This really worries me as most of the world is built on bullshit, but then again I suppose it's no virtue to be a well-adjusted member of a fucked up society.

In-between jobs from April to the beginning of June this year, I had a lot of time to collect my thoughts and think about what I really want to do with my life. I'll be 25 this coming October, and If I can't make a living selling bull like the rest of the world, then I better either skiddle my butt back to school or figure out how to make an honest days dollar for an honest days work. 

I managed to land a job bussing tables at Kabuki steakhouse in Christiansburg which is paying the bills for now. I've found a house in Radford with good friends that's secured my living situation for the indefinite future, and for the most part I'm content with my lot in life. Now all that's left is to figure out what to do for the future.

I want to be a writer, which is the real reason I started this blog back up again (that, and Google made it really easy to combine my Google+ account with everything else owned by Google which makes me more likely to use their products (excellent marketing, Google!)). Practice makes perfect, so I figure what better way to prepare myself for pages upon pages of story ideas that will eventually flow from my fingers than attempting to tell the story of my life, little by little, day by day?

In short, I'm back again and have no intention of leaving this time.

Dog days of summer without a car is a bummer.

Ah, the frusterations of the blank page. Why is it when I have ample time to write, nothing comes to mind? A million ideas fill my head in between calls at the call center I work at, but by the end of the day I'm so mentally drained from listening to the General Public I don't have the energy or wherewithal produce anything constructive or creative. My words are digital mush.

It's just under an hour and a half before my shift starts, and the grind of being the human mouthpiece of a major corporation is indeed wearing me down. Much quicker than I thought it would, in fact. I was taught the best way to go about your life is to do your best to be a good person and not lie, nor bullshit others in order to get what I want. When I see people making bad decisions or in a jam from life's many twists and turns, I want to help. Instead I must abide by the rules of my job, which while giving lip-service to wanting to help our customers (after all, a customer that feels the company is helping him or her out is more likely to continue to be a customer, right?) really comes down to doing whatever we have to to get the caller off the phone unless we can get them to give us more money.

If the caller calls back, it reflects badly on you. If the caller is unhappy before you pick up the phone because they haven't had TV for fifteen fucking minutes and are missing Dancing With the Stars and it's an issue you can't troubleshoot? You should be "taking control of the call" and calming the customer down. Customer hasn't paid their bill on time in over a year, and owes us almost $400? Tell them how awesome HBO is, for just sixteen bucks more per month.

Never before have I been a part of such blatant corporate consumerism. I knew this was what I was getting into when I started here, but each day it feels like a small sliver of my humanity is eroded away.

But enough of my bellyachin', with unemployment as high as it is it's amazing I was even able to land an above min-wage job with full time hours and benefits. So what if I have to do the bidding of a major corporation that's just trying not to get destroyed by our even more major competitors? With millions upon millions out of work, I should be grateful. As a recent NY Times article pointed out, once you are without work it becomes harder and harder to find work, as employers become more skeptical of your skill set the longer said skills are not in use. At least my experience as a Customer Service Representitive is transferrable to other jobs, right? Right?

Eh, it's been a long week. I have Thursdays and Fridays off, so some much needed merriment and diversion is coming up! The Starlite Drive-In is showing Cowboys and Aliens this weekend, and the plan is to get a bunch of friends to pile up into a car, spread out with blankets enjoy the show. I haven't seen something that wasn't on netflix or DVD in over 4 months, so this should be fun. And on that note, it's time for me to get ready for work.

They call it a "long lunch," I call it "not getting paid"

I'm sitting in my place of work's massive break room, trying to figure out what to do with myself. Normally at this hour I'd be listening to screaming customers, trying to discern what exactly they wanted and whether or not I could do it for them. Instead, I was asked to take a "long lunch" from 5:30 until 8 due to a low call volume, with the last hour being a goodbye potluck for our Team Leader/Boss figure. I understand a company's need to cut costs and save money in order to remain competitive in the high-stakes world of 21st century Global Capitalism, but does it always have to come from your workers paychecks? Really.

Ah, but I suppose I shouldn't be complaining. I'm getting free food out of the deal, and they have internet access to pass the time with as well as a giant TV to watch. Maybe they figure if they give us enough things to keep us distracted, we'll forget about the fact that we're inside this giant building and not getting paid for it.

Hanging out while hung over.

I just deactivated my Facebook last night. This is something I've been planning on doing for a while now, but in my drunken early Independence Day celebration at 3am I actually went through with it. A complete Facebook addict (I was checking the site at least 7 times a day) now going cold turkey. I freed myself from the Social Network.

No longer will it matter if I "like" something on a different web site, as there will be no place to say so and no one to see. For the first time in almost five years I won't be able to instantaneously see what most of my friends are up to, or immediately network 90 people for a get-together two months down the road that most will say "Yes" to but only 10 or so will actually show (but it still counts because Facebook said I was there!). I won't be vicariously keeping up with people I don't really know that well. I will genuinely lose touch with people, which is something that both frightens and excites me!

I'd really like to write more on the subject, but I leave for work in an hour and really must shower and make myself presentable. To be continued!