So, I'm back in Colorado for two weeks.  Well, actually I'm already halfway through the two weeks, but whatever.  So far I've spent 90% of my time back at my family's cabin in Estes Park.  I had a lot of fun up there, and got to see my niece, Katrena.  She really is cute.  I took a bunch of pictures of her too.

Over the past week, I've been trying to figure out whether or not I still had a "guest" ticket to Corteo since Kendra wasn't able to come out here with me.  Well, apparently not.  My dad first tried to give my extra to someone who may be working on his campaign.  That didn't work out though, and so it was sort-of offered back to me.  Unfortunately, this was done up at the cabin where I have essentially no means of contact.  We have a land line telephone up there, but without being prepared, getting phone numbers isn't very easy.  Anyway, come to last night, and my father unilaterally offers the ticket to Jim, one of his friends, who accepted.  Now, my father paid for these tickets, so they are his, but that is still a bit ass-like.  Anyway, today, we're headed down to Broomfield when my dad gets a call from my brother saying they can't get a sitter, so Pamela isn't going to come.  My brother specifically says that my dad should offer the extra ticket to me to bring a friend.  So what happens?  He doesn't even ask.  He invites a neighbor kid who I barely know and haven't said much of a word to in 4+ years.  He doesn't even invite a neighbor kid I actually know.  And kid is a misnomer.  Kaylee is now about 16 years old, so there's a completely different dynamic.  Overall, it leaves me royally pissed at my father.

I enjoyed myself at the show.  It was very well done, and I appreciated the ticket I had.  Nonetheless, Kaylee just sat there, none of us really conversed.  If I had had my choice, I would have brought along my friend, Nate, but I wasn't even given the chance.  Instead, after having two seats fall through, I wasn't given the opportunity to fill either.  General self-value feeling based on my dad's actions: less than that of the neighbor kid I barely know...  It set me in a generally sour mood for the weekend and week at home ahead.

In other areas of my life, I'm genuinely happy in ways I can hardly express.  I can't wait to get back to that other world.  I have so much of value, that I can only count my blessings.  One week.  One month.  And then, beyond.

I'm toast.  You like toast.  I'm happy.

So, I received my diplomas for my Masters and Bachelors degrees one week ago, and the day after when on a great trip with my parents to Niagara Falls, Toronto, and Montreal, ending up at my apartment.  My parents liked the apartment very much and are very proud of all of my accomplishments.  It's utterly unfurnished at the moment.  On Thursday night, we ate some seared NY Strip steaks on my breakfast bar standing up since I have no chairs or other tables.  I've rectified this now, in part, picking up four bar chairs, so at least there is somewhere to sit now.

I sent my parents back home to Colorado this morning.  Other than that, I spent much of today wandering around Latham, Colonie, Albany, and Troy looking to try to find out if I can pick out some furniture pieces that might fit my fancy.  I came away with the understanding that furniture stores are very costly, most don't have quite my taste, and only four bar stools.  This means that I will definitely be using my old furniture for a bit, at least to get started, until I generate the income and ideas to properly furnish my apartment.

Tomorrow is a big day as it is essentially my moving day.  At around noon, I am to pick up a U-Haul from Cohoes along with a tow for my car, so I'll be able to bring all that out in one trip.  The U-Haul is a nice big one, so I'll be able to fit everything into it, hopefully with not too much space to spare.  I haven't confirmed a moving buddy yet.  Ken won't be back to Troy until 7pm; Suzanne would gladly help, but I'm afraid of breaking her; and Kendra is two hours north, so I don't know if my scheme to get her down here will work, especially with all the time she's spent in the car going back and forth to Buffalo.  Thus, I may need to do much of the heavy lifting myself which is only a minor problem, being on the second floor of my house and all...

Now that my parents have left, though, I'm hitting a sort of summer funk.  It hit me extremely hard back in the summer after my sophomore year, and I think that it's going to try to affect me again this year.  I'm really dreading tomorrow in a lot of ways.  I'm going to be moving away from all the wonderful friends that I had at RPI.  Not only that, but I'll be spending nearly a month in a completely new city, where I don't know anyone, am not socially apt, and won't have anything to do during the days.  Add to that, I will be going from being two to being five hours away from my girlfriend.  In essence, I'll be bored out of my mind and depressingly lonely for want of human contact.  When this happened back two years ago, my parents were willing to send me back to New York for one week if it would save my sanity; I don't want it to come to me being that lonely out there.  Tips on making some quick, new friends in a Boston suburb, anyone?

Woohoo!!!  According to SIS, I've finally been cleared for my B.S. in Computer Science and Science, Technology & Society and my M.S. in Information Technology!!  Now all I have to do is walk across that stage, and I'm done!!  I can't wait.  Plus, this semester was my best semester in my collegiate career.  I got two A- and one A, which, while not a 4.0, is still straight (ish) A's.  Overall, I ended up with a 3.0 undergraduate GPA and a 3.6 graduate GPA.  So, no graduating with honors, but I'm still pretty darned proud of myself.

After graduation, my parents and I are going to go on a trip around the northeast/Canada.  Starting from Troy, we're headed to Niagara Falls, then Toronton, Montreal (including Cirque du Soleil), down to Lewis to see Kendra (if we get there before she has to leave for her friend's wedding), then to my apartment in Burlington, MA.  I'm so excited, and this is the first time that my parents are going to visit me out here.  I can't even express how much it means to have someone from Colorado coming out here to see me, especially my parents.  I've done a lot out here, and there is a lot I'm proud of and couldn't have achieved without their help.


Congratulations to all my fellow class members who are graduating this Saturday.  I can't wait to see what we're all capable of.

Here’s to old RPI
Her fame may never die
Here’s to old Rensselaer
She stands today without a peer
Here’s to those olden days
Here’s to those golden days
Here’s to the friends we made
at dear old RPI

For those of you who may not be at RPI, who may have heard what happened here on March 29, a body was found in one of the buildings on campus.  It was later determined that an alumnus had come back to campus to commit suicide.  As the news editor for the campus newspaper, I spent a lot of time that day alongside an amazing team of Poly staffers in order to get this story published.  We're a weekly paper, so getting a special report out in less than 6 hours, printed in 12, and distributed in 18 is crazy.  This is a story I never hoped I would be asked to pen, and it's one that I hope never to have to pen again.  My deepest sympathies to the friends and family of Anson Tripp.

For those of you who haven't had access to campus, or don't know what happened, I am hosting two items on my own webspace.  The first is the Polytechnic Special Report as released on Friday, March 30.  The second is a link to the audio recorded from the second press conference.  The two speakers are Det. Sgt. John Cooney and VP for Administration Claude Rounds.

The Polytechnic Special Report (2.6 MB)

The 5:30 Press Conference (4.0MB)

I know there are many people who don't necessarily like what happened, and my article can only act as a reminder of the event.  For that, I am sorry.  Nonetheless, there are many people on this campus who don't know, and rumors have run rampant.  There are details in this article that are more complete and correct than even the local newspapers have been able to provide, and in fact, some of them still don't have their facts straight after a week.  It's a morbid thing to be proud of, but I'm happy with the fact that we were able to get it right the first time

Your results:
You are Kaylee Frye (Ship Mechanic)

Kaylee Frye (Ship Mechanic) 80% Malcolm Reynolds (Captain) 70% Dr. Simon Tam (Ship Medic) 65% Zoe Washburne (Second-in-command) 65% River (Stowaway) 60% Wash (Ship Pilot) 60% Inara Serra (Companion) 55% Jayne Cobb (Mercenary) 50% Derrial Book (Shepherd) 50% Alliance 40% A Reaver (Cannibal) 25%

You are good at fixing things. You are usually cheerful. You appreciate being treated with delicacy and specialness.

Click here to take the "Which Serenity character am I?" quiz...

Check out this story from the Motley Fool on VistaPrint, the company that I will begin working for in September:

VistaPrint's Christmas Gift for Investors

I can't wait to get started with them...

Also, for those of you that have asked about my RIBS article, but haven't been able to access it, I've reset the link, and the server is back up.  You can access it using the link below:

http://www.xpdm.us/File/pdf/Articles/RIBS.aspx

If you are in the fields of Computer Science, Information Technology, or Manufacturing Engineering and are graduating in either December 2007 or May 2008 with any level of degree.  In a recruiting campaign called "The Gang's All Here," VistaPrint is already starting on its recruiting efforts for next year.  The career fair is coming up next week anyway, so get a jump on the search.  Everyone who gets me a resume and fits the description above will be invited to a special event, likely in mid-March, to be hosted by VistaPrint, myself, and my fellow new hires from RPI.  If you are looking for a job after you graduate, especially at a company whose assets center around the intellect of its employees, then send me your resume at griepm@rpi.edu.

Visit VistaPrint at: http://www.vistaprint.com/

It's that time of year, so get ready for it!  Tonight, at 9pm EST, the Bushinator makes his address to the nation.  Be prepared.  Read the rules, but always remember, house rules supporting more shots are always encouraged.  After all, with this president, it's not a suggestion anymore; it's a requirement!

State of the Union Drinking Game

 . 

I am now the owner of a new 2004 Mitsubishi Galant.  I'm not sure how much longer the page will be up, but you can see the stock photos from the dealership of it here.  It's my first major purchase with my name on it, so I'm very excited...  Even though it took my parents over 6 months and 5,000 dollars in repairs to see it my way.

In most other ways, though, I'm a bit depressed.  I've got a lot going on, and I don't feel very rested.  I know that I don't look like I worry much, especially when people interact with me, but I've got a lot on my mind.  Senior thesis, final project, research paper, grading, and the other general items consistent with finishing off the last two weeks of this semester, my vehicle (which I hope is no longer holding status as a worry), among others.  I will be accepting a job offer tomorrow, so that will hopefully start cooling off in my mind, though that in-and-of-itself has been extremely stressful without someone to lean on or bounce ideas.  But with its exit comes the entrance of concerns about where I'll live, how I'll get there, and what does that mean for my personal life.  I'm also running for News Editor of the Polytechnic, a position that some feel will come into direct conflict with my position on the Rules and Election Committee.  That means that I have been dealing with some difficult questions from every angle, within the Poly, RNE, and myself.  I'm very confident in my role in that position; I just need to convince everyone else.  Partially for that reason among others, I've decided that I will likely not be involved in the Players my last semester here on campus, and that is a decision that pains me very much but that I feel is best for me. 

So, Marcus is depressed, excited, looking-to-the-future, pessimistic, but his Cherry Coke bottle is a bit over half full.  I just got off my vacation, and I already feel like I'm about to explode...  But, hey, at least that cherry coke should last for at least one of the ten pages I have to write for my thesis tonight, or at least through the article I have to finish up for the Poly...

I'm thankful for so many things.  For my uncle's service to this wonderful country, all those years ago in Vietnam and Panama; for my mother's help in establishing my credit; for both of my parent's roles in helping to finance my education; for the opportunities RPI has provided me in career options; for showing up randomly on the first day of the sale at Otto Mitsubishi; for my family and friends without whom I might never have seen myself as special (ed); for my wonderful girlfriend, in providing me what escape I could have from life this Thanksgiving, and just being there in general; and for life and health, an ever so precious commodity, and one that I know I am so lucky to have.

I will not be insubordinate...
I will not be insubordinate...
I will not be insubordinate...   repeat...

I will not be insubordinate...
I will not be insubordinate...
I will not be insubordinate...   repeat...

I will not be insubordinate...
I will not be insubordinate...
I will not be insubordinate...   repeat...

repeat...

You are The Sun

Happiness, Content, Joy.

The meanings for the Sun are fairly simple and consistent.

Young, healthy, new, fresh. The brain is working, things that were muddled come clear, everything falls into place, and everything seems to go your way.

The Sun is ruled by the Sun, of course. This is the light that comes after the long dark night, Apollo to the Moon's Diana. A positive card, it promises you your day in the sun. Glory, gain, triumph, pleasure, truth, success. As the moon symbolized inspiration from the unconscious, from dreams, this card symbolizes discoveries made fully consciousness and wide awake. You have an understanding and enjoyment of science and math, beautifully constructed music, carefully reasoned philosophy. It is a card of intellect, clarity of mind, and feelings of youthful energy.

What Tarot Card are You?
Take the Test to Find Out.

DHS is looking to make the smack down on all you horrible citizens.  It actually wants to require that you get permission to leave the country; it doesn't matter if you have a passport or not.  Check it here.

Also, check my del.icio.us links out (Yeah, I succumbed...)

My del.icio.us