the reality of the situation

noreply@blogger.com (Joshua) — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 04:26:00 +0000

Well, I suppose I should update this thing. I'm bored, and I don't feel like doing my homework, and since I haven't written anything in here in a while, this feels like a great way to use some time.

For starters, I don't think I've written yet this semester, but I am back in Mansfield. My semester started out great (cough cough), because I had to leave home early to work on my first night back until midnight. Then I had Analog Electronics the next morning at eight thirty, and I figured that it would be a pretty cool class. Unfortunately, I figured wrong. My professor, while extremely intelligent, is completely lacking in two major areas. One, he does not seem to live in the same reality that the rest of us reside in. For example, last week he asked us to take a quiz on material that was not covered in class (because we have yet to cover any material in class, which would not have been so bad if the material had been in the book. However, I have been reading the book (because, like I said, he's not really teaching us anything), and none of the information was there, either. The other area he's lacking in is understandability. We have already had two homework assignments due, and though I have yet to turn in the second one because I do not know how to do it, I finished the first one. However, I had to go to his office for help on the first homework assignment, and not only did he not seem to understand that I was confused, he simply took one look at the problem and said, "It's as easy as this." Then he plopped an answer down, and I really had to spend a bit more time looking at what he had done before I really understood what was going on. His understandability isn't helped by the fact that he has a very thick accent. Now I have to go to his office again to ask him about the second assignment, which was due on Thursday, but I didn't have time to start it until Wednesday and he hasn't had office hours that I could attend since.

My other classes are mostly better. With the exception of Linear Algebra, which is moving extremely slow and is very boring, I am having a good time in my classes. I really like Modern Physics because right now we're working with special relativity, which is awesome. Basically, as things approach the speed of light, which is a constant no matter what inertial reference frame it is in, time dilates and distances shrink. Topology is pretty cool, too, because we've been spending our time with proofs for the past few weeks and we should be moving into topological spaces soon. Differential Equations is a great class, too. Uncle Phil (our professor) is a funny guy, and he moves at a great pace. I love the class because on the first day, he handed us our syllabi, then said, "That's the bureaucratic nonsense. Let's get started." Then we moved right into the material. I love it.

Otherwise, I had a few other setbacks this semester as well. My friend Tara, left Mansfield for a different school this semester. I was getting really good at ping pong because of her, and now I have no one to play pong with at twelve thirty at night when I can't sleep. I've had a few other minor things here and there that have left me feeling pretty alone at times, too.

The good news, though, is that I am really getting into Math Club this semester, and we already had one great Math Club party that I had a really good time at. Also, I have made a few other friends lately that have been around to hang with now. I've got a long time before I can come home again, though, and I'm really hoping this semester gets a little better. Work is boring, but because I'm working four nights a week till twelve thirty and getting up at seven five days a week, I'm exhausted most of the time. Still, the money is nice and I really need it right now.

Oh well. I've said all I can think to say. I'll update again when I think about it.

Later,
Joshua

Heading Home for the Holidays

noreply@blogger.com (Joshua) — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 21:19:00 +0000

Well, I am heading home on Wednesday for my holiday break. I am pretty well packed already and extremely excited to go home. I took my Ed Psych final today and aced it (like there were many other options on such an easy test), and am preparing for my physics final on Wednesday morning. After Physics at eight (yuck), I have a Calculus final at 10 and a Discrete Structures final at 1. I'm not worried at all about Calc; Howard gives us a practice test that spells out exactly what will be on the test, and everything we've done so far has been fairly easy. I'm a little worried about Discrete, but most of the test is a review, and I'm not worried about the new stuff. In fact, the test should be a breeze if I study the one section that I had a little difficulty with before the last test. All in all, my Physics test is going to be by far my hardest test.

Where does that put my grades, one might ask? Well, currently I have an A for sure in Ed Psych, and unless I do something really stupid, and A in Calc and Discrete. I have an A currently in Physics, but that could change if I mess up the final enough, though I think I'll keep that A. The only class I'm honestly unsure of is English Composition 2. Last week the class ended when we finished revising our essays, of which we had to write two. I originally got an B on the first one and an A- on the second, and my professor said that it is impossible to get a worse grade. I did all of the other assignments as well, so I am sure that I'll have at least an A- for the semester. I'm hoping that I was able to pull that up to an A with the revisions. I put a lot more effort into that class than I put into most of my other classes this semester and I would like to see it pay off.

For now, though, I'm just bored. I have sheets in the washer, that I need to go move to the drier in a few minutes. I have to work tonight at six. Tomorrow I'm planning on going swimming in the morning to waste some time and destress before my Physics final. Otherwise, I have little left to do here in Mansfield before I leave on Wednesday directly after my last final exam. There are a few more things that need to be packed, like my computer and some clothes that I'll be washing tomorrow, but for the most part I'm ready to get the heck outta here. I've got a lot planned over the break, and my only wish is that I had some source of income. If anyone needs someone to shovel and salt their walk-/drive-ways, let me know. I'll gladly do it for a small fee. Otherwise, I'm thinking of selling some of my pokemon cards as a way to get rid of some old things that I don't need and possibly make some money in the process. How much do you think I can get for the entire original base set?

Well, I have to go switch over my laundry. I'll probably post again soon.

Later,
Joshua

Mid-Terms are Due

noreply@blogger.com (Joshua) — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 03:08:00 +0000

Well, it's that time again, the middle of the semester. All of my professors are preparing to submit the grades for midterms, but I'm not really worried. To be honest, this semester has been extremely boring for me. I really enjoy Physics and Discrete Structures, but the work isn't difficult. The rest of my classes are not really enjoyable for me. I just go to them because I have to, and I really hate looking at classes like that.

For one, I really wish that calculus was a faster pace. If we were doing more, I'd probably really like that class, too, but as it goes, we're still working on partial derivatives and haven't even started anything fun yet. I really wish I had my professor from the last two semesters of calculus. Haner made the class fun and interesting, and kept a fairly decent pace. Howard (he likes us to call him Howard because his wife, also Dr. Iseri, works in the math department here as well), uses way too many examples and really assigns more work than necessary. We get homework every night, but none of it is anything more than busy work. The homework never helps reinforce the lesson in any way other than having more examples. Either way, I've been fairly annoyed with calculus, and though I try to have fun, find it difficult when I have yet to learn anything new.

Educational Psychology is even worse. I go to that class three times a week and wonder why I'm wasting my time there. The professor comes in and talks in circles for an hour, and I leave more confused than when I came in. I don't know what we're doing in the class, and I can't figure out what the point of the class is, either. I've sat in there for half a semester already, and still haven't found one thing worth committing to memory. I've taken a test and two quizzes, though, and aced them all, so I guess I'm "learning."

English Composition II is another story. Going to class is annoying because the class is built around debate and in class writing. Granted, this structure wouldn't be so bad, if the professor gave us more than five minutes to write and if the students that generally enter into the debates weren't the stubborn idiots that put forth an opinion with nothing to back it up and refuse to listen to reason. We just had our first essay handed back, and I got a C+, which is apparently decent for him. I found out today that just about everything I ever learned about grammar was pretty much a lie. I got an F on the grammar portion of the essay, though I thought I did fairly well. Either way, I had to do a paper about all of the grammar mistakes I made, looking up all of the mistakes in the grammar book we were given and giving a reason why I was wrong and writing the correction out. I think he does it for theatrics, to be honest. I looked around the class, and every single person had an F for grammar. It's just annoying that he's going to drag my grade down because I put a comma in where it may or may not have been used, but whatever.

Either way, my semester is really not difficult. There's a lot of work to be done, but mostly I'm just...existing. I really miss Megan, and I think I'm borderline depressed. I don't seem to have the same emotions that I usually do. I'm not sleeping well, and I'm tired all the time. I don't know how to describe it, but most of the time I go around just feeling blah. I don't want to do my work, or much of anything, really. I've been trying to work out regularly, which I think would help, but getting the will to go work out is really difficult. I don't know what else to do, really. Hopefully this will end next semester, but in the mean time, I'm just going to go on existing.

A Few Weeks Late...

noreply@blogger.com (Joshua) — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 00:07:00 +0000

Well, I know that I had said I would catch up when I got back to school, so I guess I'm a few weeks late. I should have posted a while ago, and I'm sorry. If you forgive me, I'd like to update you on how I've been lately.

I have already finished four weeks of class. I was expecting most of my classes to be harder than they actually are. The only class I'm having any struggle with is General Physics II. Calculus III is really easy so far, and I'm not expecting it to get harder. English Composition II hasn't been difficult, but our first essay is coming up. Educational Psychology is a joke. Discrete Structures, which I was expecting to be a geometry kind of class, is actually a mathematical theory kind of class. Although I never really liked geometry, mathematical theory is right up my alley. In fact, Discrete Structures is my favorite course so far this semester. The work is difficult, but not so much that I can't enjoy it. I know that my abstract math theory class is my favorite, but oh well; I love math.

Otherwise, the semester has been fairly stressful, just like always. I have been working thirty hours a week, on top of twenty hours of class and homework. Unfortunately, that doesn't leave a whole lot of time for other things. I haven't been sleeping well, and I've been tired a lot lately. Megan and I have had a few disagreements, and though we've resolved them all, they add to my stress when they're happening. Still, I find time for fun and recreational reading, and I am honestly having a good time.

I suppose the real reason I never updated until now is that there has been nothing to talk about. There still isn't. I mean, I've just been going through the motions for the most part. Nothing very interesting has happened. I guess I just wanted to put something new on here because I am attempting to avoid doing my physics homework. Speaking of which, I have been having a lot of trouble with my physics homework as of late, and I have been looking for every reason to avoid it. Most of the concepts of electrostatics make sense to me, but a few of them still allude me. I am attempting to grasp the concept of an electric potential, and what exactly capacitance is a measure of. Also, a lot of the math has gotten extremely complex, such as vector integrals over a changing direction. I like the class, but the homework is very stressful, and the wording in the book does not make it any easier, so I've been avoiding it and putting it off.

Well, I suppose I should get to my physics homework. I'll update again when something new happens.

Later,
Joshua

Preparing for Year Two

noreply@blogger.com (Joshua) — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 03:37:00 +0000

So, my summer is nearly over. I have less than two weeks before class starts on August 31, and yet I have packed almost nothing.

I suppose that the reason I have yet to pack is that a huge part of me does not want to leave again. For the longest time, I thought that leaving would be easy. I thought that I had nothing to leave behind, but man was I wrong. I have so much to miss when I go to school, that if it weren't for the fact that I love my school as much as I do, I would be looking for a new place to go for my second year. Either way, I was in a lot more pain than I expected last year when I left, and that is fueling my procrastination, and making it harder for me to prepare myself for school.

I suppose I should get online and order my books tomorrow. I also need to start packing and figure out what I will need to buy for my room this year. I started a list, but it still needs some work. A visit to my Grandma Speicher is in order as well: she has some school supplies for me if I want them, and I won't begrudge free stuff.

Yesterday my boss from Manser called me to ask when I could start working. It was kind of a wake up call. I am very happy that I have a job waiting for me. I left the Hot Dog Shoppe in early June, thinking that I had a job secured, but I was rejected because I was leaving after the summer. I put in a few more applications, and even had another interview, but I wasn't able to find another job for the last two months of summer. I found some work with Bacorn Inc., a construction company owned by the father of my sister's boy friend. However, after a few weeks of work, they ran out of things for me to do with my limited skills. So, for the past three weeks, I have been without work.

I've been a little down lately, and I have been trying to keep active, but I have been sleeping too much and staying up too late and doing too little around the house. This, I believe, is yet another reason why I haven't packed.

Either way, tomorrow, I hope, will be different. I have been putting off mowing the lawn at my dad's house to hang with Megan and because of rain, and it needs mowed badly. After mowing the lawn, I need to go to the bank and find out why I haven't gotten a statement all summer. Megan also wants to go to the mall tomorrow, and I need to do a bit of shopping for my dorm. I doubt I will have time to start packing tomorrow, but I will definitely get it done this weekend.

Still, as class approaches, I am getting excited to go back. I do miss my friends, and I do truly enjoy my classes. My next post will be from Mansfield. By the way, I am sorry that I haven't posted much this summer, but I haven't had much of an urge to get online. I haven't written much this summer, either. I hope that I'll be able to write again soon. Talk to you again in Mansfield.

Later,
Joshua

Finally Summer

noreply@blogger.com (Joshua) — Fri, 22 May 2009 01:06:00 +0000

Well, I have been home for a few weeks now, and summer has been going pretty well for me. I have been working a lot at the Hot Dog Shoppe again, but I have found some time to do a lot of work at home. There is not a lot about work that I would like to talk about, but there is plenty I have been up to since coming home.

The thing I'm most excited about is that I've helped to start a garden at my Mom's house. My Mom found some area behind our garage that looks like it was a garden at one point, and she and Jeff weeded the spot for a better look. When I came home, I found myself with a little bit of extra cash and decided that I wanted to start a garden. Mom was excited about the idea, and off to The Home Depot we went. After quite a while, we selected quite a few starter plants that we wanted to grow.

After a slight misunderstanding with my debit card, I wrote a check and we brought the plants home. I have been very happy to spend time in the garden almost every day since then. In fact, the next day I went to Wal-mart with Megan and purchased a few more starter plants as well as a few packages of seeds. I bought a planter and soil, and planted some herbs as well. Megan's father, Allen, also gave me some beans to plant, so I found some room in another planter lying around and placed them there. All in all, I am really liking this gardening thing.

Yesterday, when I went to water the garden, I noticed that there were quite a few weeds that needed to come out. I spent the next hour pulling weeds, and in the process I found that all six of radish plants, which I had planted from seeds, have sprouted. I also found today that it looks like at least two of the cucumber plants that I planted from seeds have sprouted. The onion bulbs we planted are doing very well too. In fact, with the exception of the lettuce heads I planted and the strawberry bulbs that Brittany planted, it appears that every plant in the garden is doing very well. None of the herbs or beans have sprouted yet, but I am hoping that they will soon.

I've also mowed the lawn at both houses at least once, which is a lot more work than I realized. I suppose I'll get better at it with more practice, but my dad always made it look a lot easier than what I experienced.

I have really been getting into the Penguins' games lately. I started listening to the games back in December on 105.9, The X, when I was home for break, and that really got my interested. Since the Pens have gotten into the playoffs, I have been watching the games on TV. In fact, I am watching Game 2 of the Pens v. Hurricanes playoff series. We just took the lead again, 4-3. Go Pens!!

Otherwise, I am still trying to get settled in. I have been staying up too late, and as a result not being able to get up when I should. I have not finished unpacking yet. In fact, I have been unpacking slowly but surely, finding things when I need them. However, I really need to finish cleaning the bedroom upstairs, because I do not have enough room in the downstairs room that I have to share. I need my own place to keep my stuff that is not the floor of my father's bedroom. I also need to find a dresser so that I can put my clothes away. Currently they are either sitting atop Ollie's kennel or in a basket on the floor next to the kennel.

I did, however, get all of my books unpacked. I was unable to fill the giant bookcase that my mother bought me for my birthday last year. I built it over winter break, and have been slowly putting all of my books into it. I finally brought them all home and got them all in, but I only used three and a half of the five shelves.

I suppose I should get moving. I am supposed to get all of the boxes out of the bedroom upstairs and hopefully find a mattress to sleep on, and sleep up there tonight. I'll try to check back in soon. Later.

End Game

noreply@blogger.com (Joshua) — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 03:08:00 +0000

Well, the spring semester is nearly over. Currently, I have a 4.0, but I still have plenty of room for error. I cannot say that I can screw up my classes so horribly that I end with anything lower than a B in all of them, but I can still significantly reduce my GPA. Not that I think I will. I am not worried about any of my classes, except for Physics. We still have another test, then a final exam to worry about. However, I think I can scrape out an A somehow.

Otherwise, I only have a lot of work ahead of me. I am behind on all of my homework because I went home this past weekend for Easter and did not finish anything while I was there. On top of all of that, I have to finish creating a ten minute presentation for my Personal Development class and write a six page paper for Humanities. I also have to finish the reading for Psychology and write another two page paper for that before the final exam. This Friday is a final test in Calculus before the final, and even though I am not too worried about it, I know I need to study a bit more before then.

I am a little excited for the end of the semester, but, once again I must not allow myself to become over-excited, or I will not be able to focus. Still, I am very ready for summer, and I cannot wait to be home for a few months.

As I mentioned, I was home this weekend for Easter, and what a weekend it was. On Friday, I went on a date with Megan. We went to dinner, stopped at Borders, and then went to see Fast and Furious. The movie was fantastic, and I highly recommend it to everyone. Saturday was hectic as well, as I had an eye appointment, and attempted to do laundry as well as my homework, and failed to finish either. On Sunday I celebrated Easter, which was the most hectic part of the entire weekend.

I was awakened on Sunday by Ollie, who was jumping on me and licking me as soon as he wanted to go outside. I took him out, then hopped in the shower. Beth called and asked for a ride to Mom's house, so I had to rush out of the house to go and get Beth, then head over to Megan's house to pick her up as well. From Megan's house we all went back to Mom's house for breakfast, where I spent some time with my grandmother and great aunt Stephie. Breakfast was great, and after breakfast we had an egg hunt. Danny and Gianna were supposed to be finding eggs, but Gianna left with Brittany to go to Brittany's mother's house, and so Danny was left to find eggs alone. Instead of making him the only one to search for eggs, I was given the task of hiding eggs for Kali to find. That was fun, as I hid Kali's eggs in very difficult positions, and she had a difficult time finding them.

After the egg hunt, Megan and I returned to her house with Ollie to finish icing her cake and start getting dinner ready at her house. I was invited to eat with her family the day before, and I was hard pressed to decline the offer. However, Ollie was not getting along with Oscar, so I had to take Ollie home. When we returned, we finished setting the table and awaited the rest of the guests. Dinner was fantastic, but I had eaten so much by the time I was done that I felt as though I was going to be sick. Still, I found room in my stomach for a piece of Megan's cake, then I went home and finished packing. I left very late because of dinner. I did not get on the road until nearly seven that night, and did not get back to school until midnight.

Even though the weekend went by too quickly, I am excited that I get to return home again on May 1. My mother is coming up to help me drive all of my belongings home, and she is bringing Megan up with her. I am going to give them a tour of the campus and spend a nice five hour drive with Megan on the way home. I cannot wait.

Well, I guess I have to buckle down and get some work done. My next post will probably be from Beaver Falls after I've finished this semester!

The Honor Class

noreply@blogger.com (Joshua) — Sat, 21 Mar 2009 03:24:00 +0000

For the past three days, my friend Trae has been visiting me. He was on spring break this week, and we have not seen each other since summer camp, so he drove to Mansfield to see me. On Wednesday he arrived around one thirty in the afternoon, and he did not leave until about the same time today.

I was very happy to see Trae again. He is one of the best friends I made at camp, and although we have not seen each other since last August, we have kept in touch through email and Facebook. For me, Trae is very much like the sickly brother I never had. He has quite a few health problems, but I admire him because of his ability to take it all in stride. He makes jokes about his problems and does his best to live normally instead of just breaking down. I have never met a stronger individual in my life, and I doubt if I will meet many more people with the intrinsic drive that Trae possesses.

Although I was not able to spend as much time as I would have liked to with Trae, we still had a good time together. We made jokes at other people's expenses, caught up on what we've missed, and spent some time talking about life in general. I had wanted to show him around my campus, but my work schedule was overloaded this week (of course I would have extra hours on the one week that I don't want them), and I was also overloaded with homework. Still, Trae showed himself around the campus while I was working or at class. I made sure he did not have to pay for food, but unfortunately there are not many places to park without a permit, and Trae got a parking ticket. He justified that the ticket was not nearly as much as he was expecting to pay for food, so he would not let me pay for the ticket.

He was pretty funny, too. We reminisced about summer camp experiences and related college experiences. He always seemed to have a joke ready to lighten the mood. On the drive down to Williamsport and back, Trae was a constant conversant, which is something I really enjoy while I'm driving. He was also quick to make fun of me when I missed the exit, not just once, but twice.

Today he had to say good bye, but not before giving me something. He handed me a white booklet from the OA Family Banquet, and told me to look inside. (For all of those that do not know, the OA, or the Order of the Arrow, is an honor group within the Boy Scouts of America. The Family Banquet is a night when our entire Lodge gathers to eat and award its members.) I was unable to attend the Banquet due to money problems and also a scheduling conflict, so I thought that Trae wanted to show me something that had happened during the Banquet. Inside the booklet where two envelopes, each containing a different lodge flap. (A lodge flap is a patch that identifies the lodge of the wearer. Each lodge has many different flaps for different occasions.) The first flap was the one I would have received if I had been at the Banquet, and the second was a kind of award because it contained "Team Enda '08," which is the mark of the actor. I knew I would be receiving that one because I was a part of quite a few ceremonies last year. I was about to close the booklet when he told me not to. He told me to read the page where the envelopes were placed, and I noticed that a friend and fellow Freedom Staff member Greg was accepted into the Vigil class of 2009.

I was excited for Greg, and expressed my gratitude towards Trae for showing me that information. However, as I was about to close the booklet again, Trae told me to stop and turn the page. My name appeared on the next page with a full biography, just as Greg's had, and I was speechless. Of all people, I never thought that I would stand a chance to earn my Vigil Honor, and now the chance has been presented to me. I was selected by the lodge committee, and I must now complete an ordeal of sorts to obtain the Vigil Honor. Still, I am having difficulty accepting that I am a member of the Vigil class of 2009.

I will be undergoing my trial at Heritage Reservation during the weekend of May 15 through May 17. I am not entirely sure what I must do, but I intend to prevail. Wish me luck.

A Few Spare Minutes

noreply@blogger.com (Joshua) — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 13:32:00 +0000

Well, I have a few minutes to spare and decided that writing a new post wouldn't be a bad idea. Megan having a blog gives me a greater incentive to post; whenever she posts I feel as if I am obligated to do so as well. (Plus I really actually enjoy this once I get started. It's like exercising; I think it's going to be really difficult and painful, but in the end I feel really good.)

Either way, I just figured I'd give my "avid readers" a quick update:

For starters, spring break was February 25 through March 8, and it was a lot of fun. I went home, spent time with Megan, avoided all of my homework, got a new phone, and otherwise spent all of my money. I'm broke now, but at least it was worth it.

Megan had class that week, and, like everything else, the timing of her spring break was just "perfect." She started break on March 9. Of course. At least she got her new job and left the Hot Dog Shoppe. She was miserable at the Hot Dog Shoppe and now she seems much happier.

Speaking of the Hot Dog Shoppe, I worked there over break, and it was pretty easy compared to what I'm used to. Still, there was a lot going on and the stress level in the kitchen was constantly at a high.

Well, I came home on the eighth and started class again on the ninth. I've had nothing major going on except we took an exam in physics, which I quite literally aced. I received a score of 180, which is the total number of points available. The test, however, is taken out of 150 because it is so difficult. That's a big plus for me. We have an exam coming up in calculus on Friday, but I feel very prepared for it.

Speaking of calculus, last night I stumbled upon an integral and I have no idea how to do it. If anyone knows how to solve the integral of (sinx/x)dx, please let me know. Otherwise, I'm going to ask my professor when I see him.

Well, I ran out of time long before I ran out of things to say. Maybe when I have more time I'll post again, but probably not for another few weeks. Besides what I mentioned above, nothing interesting has been going on. I'll try to keep you updated when things happen.

Extensible Extensions

noreply@blogger.com (Joshua) — Sat, 21 Feb 2009 03:30:00 +0000

So, lately I've been teaching myself more about Web design, and one of the biggest things that I've been trying to learn is XML. The reason I've been trying to teach myself XML is because it is the parent language to XHTML, which will soon replace HTML as the basic web page designing language.

XML, however, is more than just a language to create web pages. XML is a language that allows code writers to develop their own "tags" (technically called elements) to better define the content within the page. These elements can then be defined within an XSL document to change the format of the elements. The really nifty thing about XSL is its ability to "transform" one XML document into a multitude of different XML vocabularies, like XHTML.

Anyhow, for the past few weeks, in my fleeting spare time, I have been studying XML and how to use it to my advantage. I have only made two XML pages, and each has its own XSL style sheet to go along with it, but I am well on my way to better understanding basic XML. I would like to learn a little more, however, and will hopefully have time to learn more this summer.

The neatest thing that I've come into contact with has to be XForms. XForms are a new type of Web forms meant to replace basic HTML forms, which are out of date and difficult to manage without knowing JavaScript. As I do not know much about JavaScript, the idea of being able to use a form without knowing JavaScript intrigued me. I am hoping to learn more about JavaScript this summer, but as of now my knowledge is slim. Either way, I have been tinkering with XForms a little lately, and even though they first upset me because they did not seem to make sense, I quickly found my error and have been attempting to learn more. The problems currently are numerous: XForms are not supported on IE7, so I had to download Firefox; XForms are very new, so finding examples is very difficult; and finally, the only good source of information of XForms is the World Wide Web Consortium, but the language used on the site is impossibly technical and difficult to read. Needless to say, as of right now, my knowledge of XForms is so slim that I do not even know enough to post anything online yet.

Otherwise, my life has been fairly ordinary lately. Besides missing Megan way too much, school has been progressing on a much more normal basis. I'm sleeping again, though still not as much as I should be. I'm finally getting back on my feet financially, and I think that I should be able to stop saying I'm broke by this time next month.

I come home for spring break on February 25, and I will very much enjoy the much needed break.

Well, once again, I was unable to be brief, but I am finally finished talking.

Later,
Joshua

The Proposal

noreply@blogger.com (Joshua) — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 05:50:00 +0000

So, this past weekend I went home to celebrate mine and Megan's first year anniversary. Although I did not want to leave on Sunday, which really ruined my day, the rest of the weekend was amazing.

For starters, I missed her so much that on Friday I wanted to do something nice for her, so I bought an orange Crush for her and was going to put it into a bouquet of red and yellow and orange roses. The reason for this is that orange is her favorite color, yellow and red come next, and she loves roses. I bought the Crush because of its name, and I wrote "I've got a" above "Crush" and "on you" below it. However, I ran into a few problems. First of all, I could not find a bouquet with red, yellow, and orange roses at the last minute. I was thinking of getting a small bouquet in each color and combining them, but there was only one size orange bouquet, a dozen roses, and there were no fully yellow bouquets. I ended up simply buying a dozen red roses. The other problem was that I forgot the Crush at my mother's house, so in the end I only gave her the roses.

Then I spent the rest of the day with her, watching movies and going out for dinner and finally ending at an improv show done by The Cellar Dwellers, which was very funny. When I finally took her home I did not want to leave, but I left and spent the night getting everything ready for the next day, which was THE day.

I suppose a bit of back story is necessary. I have been avoiding posting about this so that Megan did not find out, but for months I have been considering proposing to Megan. After spending December with her, I knew for a fact that I wanted to, so I started trying to figure out what kind of ring to get her and what her ring size is. It was not until the day that I went home in January for Megan's birthday that I realized how badly I wanted to propose to her. Megan was more to me than just my girl friend, but when I talked about her I had to call her that because I had nothing else to call her. I wanted something else, something more. Also, after going home to see her, I realized that I wanted her to be mine in the greatest way possible, which right now is to be my fiance. I spoke to my mother on the drive back to Mansfield in January, and I decided that since I had some extra money I would get the ring and set a date for when I was to propose. The date I had in mind was Saturday, February 7.

I had done everything to prepare for Saturday. I had talked to my parents about proposing. I had asked her parents' permission. I had planned exactly what I wanted to say and how I was going to go about surprising her. I knew exactly what I wanted to do, even down to how I was going to hide a camera so that I could record the entire thing. Unfortunately, I hid the camera a little too well, and it recorded nothing but forty five minutes of the glove that I accidentally covered the lens with. Still, I had lost a lot of sleep in the weeks between the time I purchased the ring and the day of the proposal, and everything had to be perfect.

Saturday did not go exactly as I had expected, at least before dinner. We had a lot of fun on Saturday. Megan and I worked on her blog before getting the dogs and going to Petsmart. On the way to Petsmart I stopped and got a license for Ollie. Then Ollie and Oscar got to walk around in Petsmart, and we picked out a new toy for each of them. We were also going to get their nails trimmed, but they appeared a little busy and we had not made reservations so we were hesitant to see if they did walk-ins. Either way, the first toy that Megan picked for Oscar she ended up putting back, but Ollie saw her grab it and put it down, and he went and attacked it. I ended up buying him two toys because he chewed that one up before we left the aisle and I had already decided to get him the other toy.

After leaving Petsmart, Megan and I returned Oscar to her house, then went to my mom's house to watch a few movies and just spend some time alone. I really needed that time with her; I don't get to spend time truly alone with Megan very often. We ended up watching the last forty minutes or so of Ultraviolet and most of another movie that I can't even remember now. Either way, at some point I decided that we needed to go to Walmart and get what we needed to start dinner, so we left and went for supplies. After a quick stop at Megan's for a recipie and a change of pants (Megan "fell" in the snow, a.k.a. we were playing and I pushed her), we sped over to Walmart for the supplies necessary to make chicken salad.

We then headed back to my mom's house, now empty save us two and Ollie, and preceded to make a delicious chicken salad. Megan did an amazing job with the chicken, and it was probably some of the best fried chicken I've had in my entire life. While we were setting the table and putting the perishables away, I kept sending Megan over to the second kitchen not only because there was no room in the first refridgerator, but also because I was trying to set up the camera and get the ring into my pocket. Finally we sat down and had dinner, which was delectible, and after we finished I cleaned the table. I then offered ice cream to Megan, which was key to my plot to surprise her with the ring. She was pretty full, though, so she wanted to share a bowl. Of course, she also wanted to help me make it. I had to argue with her, telling her at first that I wanted to take care of her, then finally tell her to sit down and shut up because I'm going to serve her. I couldn't believe it, but that worked, and she sat.

I placed the ring box under the bowl of ice cream, and I walked over to her with the bowl in my hand. I handed her the bowl, and when she took it, she spotted the ring box. I dropped to one knee and opened the box, then asked her to marry me. She was dumbstruck. Before that moment I had never seen Megan speechless. She started to cry, but the tears never touched her cheeks. At first all she could do was smile and nod, and finally she said yes, of course. I placed the ring on her finger, and my girl friend became my fiance. Honestly, I have never been more happy about a single event in my entire life. I love Megan with all of my being and I want to spend the rest of my life with her. I am elated that she said yes.

Either way, Megan also posted about this event. I figured you'd like to hear her side of the story. I would also like to note that she said the ring is the most beautiful ring ever, but she failed to provide a picture of it. I currently only have the image from the jeweler's website, but the ring is just as amazing in person as it is in this picture according to Megan, her mom, my mom, and a lot of other people. Here are the pictures that I have:

Once again, I apologize for the length of this post.

Later,
Joshua

The Busy Bee

noreply@blogger.com (Joshua) — Mon, 02 Feb 2009 18:11:00 +0000

So, I've been rather busy lately. Last week I once again pushed a great deal of my homework to the weekend because I spent three nights working until midnight, and after work I did not want to stay up and do homework. Well, then on Thursday I won a gift card to the campus bookstore for the third highest GPA in the sophomore class. First of all, that threw me off because I thought I was a freshman, but apparently after twenty four credits the university considers you a sophomore, and I have thirty four. Either way, I was elated, and went to the book store on Friday to take advantage of the spirit sale, which takes twenty percent off all MU Logo items.

However, once I arrived at the book store, I could not decide what I wanted to buy. I was thinking of buying a scarf and a new coffee mug, or a new blanket, a new hat and t-shirt, or a new hoodie. None of these options really appealed to me, so I went to look at the books. I was thinking of teaching myself JavaScript this summer, so I figured I might grab a JavaScript book if there was one in stock. I quickly located the HTML for Dummies book, but I could not find one on JavaScript. However, right next to HTML for Dummies book was a book simply titled XHTML. I was confused and intrigued. I before then I had seen HTML and XML, but never XHTML.

Well, as I had guessed, XHTML is a combination of HTML and XML, however, it is a bit more complicated than that. In all actuality, XHTML is an XML vocabulary that uses the HTML tags as its markup elements. Either way, I read a little of the introduction to the book and decided to make it my purchase. I spent all day Friday reading it, and then started reformatting my site into XHTML on Saturday night. By 2:00AM I had nearly finished converting half of joshlaughlin.com from HTML to XHTML, and I started again yesterday once I finished all of the homework I had been putting off.

As of now, the entirety of joshlaughlin.com, including this blog and the reality of the situation, have been converted to XHTML.

When I find some free time I am going to use the book to help me learn more about dXHTML, or dynamic XHTML. I would like to make my site more dynamic and user friendly, and hopefully attract some more viewers.

Either way, I failed at trying to be more concise, sorry. I hope you check out my site and try to spot the differences. They're very minute, but I did fix a lot of errors in my code and a few broken links. Keep on the watch for new additions because I'm really in the web design mood lately.

Later,
Joshua

Snow Days

noreply@blogger.com (Joshua) — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 16:56:00 +0000

Well, one of my classes was cancelled today, but not all of them. Either way, that gives me three hours with nothing to do but work on my homework, which I'm nearly done with, and play around on the internet.

Last night I got a message from my dad on Facebook about a website called WebValuer. He said that he found it and typed in joshlaughlin.com, and guess what? My site is worth 322.50! If I sold joshlaughlin.com right now, which I'm not apt to do, I would be able to make a quick three hundred dollars.

Either way, that got me thinking: how else can I make money on this site that I'm paying each year to upkeep? I decided to look into ways to advertise on my site so that I can actually make bring money in since I'm paying for the website.

I was pretty excited to hear that joshlaughlin.com, which is a newer site and made by me, an amatuer at web design at best, is valued higher than Laughlinsinpa.com, my dad's web site. In fact, laughlinsinpa.com did not even show up with a value!

Either way, I spent a lot of time last night bringing my web site up to speed so that it would look better and be more likely to be approved when the advertising companies look at it to decide if I can advertise on my site. In fact, I was up until after three working, and didn't fall asleep until nearly four. I woke up today just in time to get dressed, pour a cup of coffee, and run out the door for physics.

Speaking of coffee, I'm quite literally running off of coffee right now. I've had three cups, and without it I think I'd be dead asleep. I'm going to crash tonight. Early bed time for Josh.

Hm, did I mention yet that I got a 4.0 GPA last semester? I was very excited, and I dove right into my classes this semester, just to get out of the water right away and go home for Megan's birthday on January 18. I put myself really behind on my homework, and it took me the rest of last week to catch up. The good news is, though, that I'm basically caught up now, so I'm not as stressed. However, this week has been stressful in that I've been unable to get a good night's sleep and have been getting up late. Then I feel rushed, which is when I start forgetting things. I've locked myself out of my room twice already this week, and I missed lunch on Monday because of it. My meal card is attached to my keys, which I left in my room, and without it or them I could not eat. Darn.

Either way, I know it's been awhile since I last posted, but, honestly this time, I think I'm going to get back into this for a little while. I've got a little bit more free time this semester and I should be able to post at least once a week. The stories may not be that interesting, but who knows? Cool things happen to me all the time that I never report.

Welp, that's all I got. Thanks.

Later,
Joshua

Just About Turkey Time

noreply@blogger.com (Joshua) — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 03:04:00 +0000

So, I'm leaving on Tuesday. It's Sunday now, and I've got ALL of my work done! I'm so excited to come home for almost an entire week.

I was a little stressed this month, though. I went home at the end of October and came back November 2. Between then and now I had six papers to write. I had a five page abstract essay due the first Friday, a two page paper about community service due the next Wednesday, a four page paper about educational philosophy due the second Friday, a six page term paper for humanities due the third Wednesday, and a ten page research report due tomorrow. I also wrote a paper for my observations for my intro to education class which is due when I come back from Turkey Break. Either way, this month was overloaded with reports, and I felt the stress.

I'm finally done with them all! Tonight, at nine 'o clock PM, I finished the ten page research report, works cited page and all. It was the most difficult report I've written all semester, and I'm glad to be done with it.

Tomorrow is my last day of class before Turkey Day, and I've got very little to do. I have to critic a speech in Oral Comm, take a quick exam in Calculus, take notes in Intro to Ed, participate in discussion in Humanities, and cram for a final exam in Comp. After class I have a few hours to work, then I'm done!

On Tuesday I plan on leaving as soon as I wake up. Therefore, I need to do a little preparation first. After work tomorrow I am going to load all of my stuff into my NEW CAR, then take it to the gas station and fill it up. I'll just have to get up, shower, and go on Tuesday morning. I'm planning to be home by 2PM Tuesday, and I can't wait.

Then I don't have to come back till Sunday, and after a week of class and a week of finals, I'll be coming home again for a whole month. I so can't wait for this semester to be over.

Anyhow, I figured I should let you all know that a few weeks ago I bought a new car. The cavalier wasn't working so well, and wouldn't pass inspection, so I figured it would be easier to buy a new car than to put another thousand dollars into the junker. It's a 2000 Pontiac Bonneville, and it's in great shape. The car is in my name, and so is the insurance, and I'm so happy to have it! I can't wait to drive it home as it will be the first time I'll get to drive it for more than ten minutes at a time. Also, it's got cruise control, which is a huge plus because the cavalier didn't.

I guess that's all I've got for now. Thanks for reading.

Later,
Joshua

Almost Half Way

noreply@blogger.com (Joshua) — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 03:38:00 +0000

I had a really good message prepared for all of you to read, but blogger deleted half of it.

I don't want to write any more.

Suffice it to say that I am almost half way done with this semester, and I'm testing in all of my classes. By the end of the day Wednesday, I'll have had an exam in Calculus, Humanities, and Communications.

I'm coming home on October tenth to visit my family and Megan and Ollie, and to observe two lessons for my Introduction to Education class.

I'm sorry this post is not as good as it should be. Blame Blogger. I'm really upset right now.

Later,
Joshua

One Week Down

noreply@blogger.com (Joshua) — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 01:53:00 +0000

So, I've been at Mansfield for a week now. I have five classes to go to tomorrow, and then I'm done until next Tuesday, when I only have one class.

I'm really happy to be here, and other than this searing hunger that came over me for some reason beyond my comprehension just now, I've had a great week. I've gone through all of my classes at least once at this point; five of them meet on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, and one meets on Wednesday only. Also, I have a lab for Calculus on Tuesday and Thursday. All of my classes are pretty cool, and I'm really only worried about my English Composition class.

I've met quite a few people, and I've made a few friends. In my communications class I interviewed a guy named Andrew, and he seems pretty cool, but I don't know if he's the kind of guy I'd hang out with. I met two really cool people that I do hang out with in my Calculus class, Steven and Alexa. I met Steven at orientation, and he was the same major as me until recently, and Alexa is pretty fun to hang out with, even if she's kind of quirky. In my Intro to Ed class I met an artist whose name is Emma, and she reminds me a lot of a few of my friends from Beaver Falls. Steven is also in my Humanities class and my Freshman Seminar. Also in my Freshman Seminar is Kim, who I met on the first Friday and who is also in the Honor's program with me.

All in all, I'm very glad to be here and I am having a great time. I can't wait to come home for Winter Break, but I'm sure it will be easy to stay here until then.

Moving to Mansfield

noreply@blogger.com (Joshua) — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 01:51:00 +0000

So, I'm reporting, for the first time, in Mansfield, PA.

I'm a little nervous. I'm almost positive that I can handle the classes and that I can handle the work load, but what I'm really afraid of is meeting new people. I now have the very opportunity that I've always wanted, and I'm too afraid to take it. There's a dance tonight that I don't think I will attend; it's all just too much for one day.

Either way, I've just taken the next big step in my life: I've moved out of my parents' houses and am now living in a dorm room five hours away. Speaking of the dorm room, it's very nice. There's no carpet, but that's alright because it's very hot during the day and the tile floor keeps it cool. There's plenty of space, but there's not many places to set things down. I've dominated my desk (which was provided) with my computer and printer and clock. My stereo dominated the top of my dresser (also provided). The bed isn't much smaller than what I'm used to, and the closet has plenty of space. However, I couldn't figure out where to put my coffee pot. Also, when I finally plugged the pot in, I realized that I forgot to bring a coffee cup...oops.

With my new dorm room also came my new roomate, Derek. Derek is a Music Education major, and he's pretty cool. He seems to be into a lot of the same things I am, and he's not stuck up or rude in any way that I've seen. He's kind of quiet. Him and I have pretty much exhausted all of the conversation topics that I can come up with, and we are just sitting in silence right now.

Derek is pretty lucky, though, because his girl friend is also going to school here, and he knows at least a few other people here. I'm pretty much alone. I don't know anyone. I miss my girl friend dearly, and meeting people is really difficult for me. I don't know what I'm going to do...

I also really miss Ollie, my puppie. I didn't post last week, but I got a puppie a week ago. His name is Ollie and he's a Jack Russel. He's stolen my heart and I miss him very much. I've set it all up that my step-father (Jeff) will be watching him and training him while I'm gone.

Otherwise, I've been setting up all my stuff and trying to catch up on paper work. I've got a lot to do, and I'm going to get going.

The Scores Are In

noreply@blogger.com (Joshua) — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 05:19:00 +0000

So, today I returned home from camp to visit and go to my sister's birthday party. When I finally made it to my dad's house, I found that I had quite a bit of mail waiting for me. I got a few important letters, but the most important envelope contained my scores from the AP tests I took back in May.

Of all of the scores, the only one I was upset about was my English score. I knew I did poorly on the test, but I thought I did at least enough to get a four. By the way, for those that don't know, a five is the highest score possible, a four is accepted by most colleges, and a three is still alright. A three is like a high C low B. Either way, I got a three on my English score, and I'm upset about that.

However, my other scores were fantastic. I got a five on my Physics exam! I was so excited to see that. My Chemistry score was also awesome. As far as I know, I think that my score was the best Chemistry score in Beaver Falls in a long time. Because of the scheduling issues, AP Chemistry class cannot finish all of the book, which must be finished to know all of what will be on the test. We went through about fourteen of twenty one chapters or so. For this reason, most people are lucky to get a two on this exam. I got a three! I know it sounds like I'm denying a three above and excited over one now, but I felt a lot more prepared for the English exam and a four was a possibility, while a three for the Chemistry exam is pretty unheard of.

I'm still really pumped about my physics score.

Either way, I just wanted to let everyone know how I did.

Later,
Joshua

I'm Getting Old

noreply@blogger.com (Joshua) — Tue, 20 May 2008 23:57:00 +0000

Wow, I feel old...

Tonight I sat in on my scout troop's committee meeting. My father asked me to be there to take notes as he was unable to attend.

All the boys in the troop were having fun, as I was sitting there shivering. It got really cold, really quick.

There was no picnic table, so we sat on the bleachers. The other members of the committee passed the time by telling stories. I feel really, old...

Man, I'm already eighteen. I cannot believe it...

Senior Day 2008

noreply@blogger.com (Joshua) — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 19:02:00 +0000

April 18th, 2008 was officially one of the most anticipated days of my life so far. Basically, this day decided whether or not I graduated. I had to prepare a portfolio to present to a group of teachers and members of the community. I also had to present my graduation project to another group of individuals. Finally, I had to take interview in which I was asked questions about my academic career so far and my future plans.

The stress of this enormous work load coupled with my school work and a part-time job was almost enough to make me give up, but I didn't. I rose to the challenge, and prevailed.

Each of the three presentations is scored on a rubric. There are five areas for each, and each area is worth four points. Therefore, each presentation is graded out of twenty points. An eighteen or above (at least 90 percent) is considered passing with honors. Between eight and seventeen is considered satisfactory. Students must have at least a satisfactory grade to pass the portfolio and project. The interview is only taken by students who are hoping to graduate with honors. Therefore, students must pass the interview with honors to graduate with honors.

I'm jubilant. I not only received passing grade on all three, but I received perfect scores, not only on one or two, but on all three! I almost can't believe it. Very, very few people ever get perfect scores on all of their presentations, but I did. I stressed and worked so much to earn those scores, though, so I am very proud of them.

I just wanted to let everyone know that I made it past senior day on top. Getting past that means that no matter what I do now, I graduate. However, as I just fought my way back up to first in my class, I will not be quitting any time soon.

Mansfield U

noreply@blogger.com (Joshua) — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 04:16:00 +0000

Well, I know it's been a long time since I posted last, but today was the first noteworthy day I've had in a long time.

Today my father and I drove five hours to visit Mansfield University, a university in northern central Pennsylvania which has accepted me. I wanted to get a look at the campus, and so we began our adventure.

I was a little nervous at first, because we didn't really plan it out that well. It was all sort of last minute, and we didn't call anyone ahead. Anyhow, when we got into the first building, the Student Union, it was completely empty. There were computers, and video games, and televisions, and pool tables, and they were all empty. Not one person was in the building. If that's not disconcerting, I don't know what is.

Well, from there we went to the library. It was HUGE . There were four floors of books, and each of them was bigger than any library I've ever been to. If I stood at the end of one row, I could see row after row after row down the room. I've never actually seen that many books, but it was quite exciting. I wish I had had some time to actually see all the books and figure out how they were set up.

After the library, we had lunch in the cafeteria. It was good.

We then went down to the fitness center, and talked with a senior. She was a secondary education major for history, and the other girl working at the center was an education major as well. Both of them said it was a great education school, which is good for me.

After that, we walked back to the car, and drove around to all of the tougher places to get to. It was getting cold and I had forgotten my coat in the car. The campus is beautiful, and quite large.

I was upset mostly by the fact that neither my father nor myself remembered to bring a camera. I didn't get a single picture all day.

We are planning to go back in March on a scheduled visitation day. This time, I'll get to see the dorms, ask more questions, and take pictures!

Later,
Joshua

Updating My "Avid" Readers

noreply@blogger.com (Joshua) — Sat, 17 Nov 2007 05:26:00 +0000

Alright, for all of you that don't know, I do not post often enough. I am sorry. (Not really. I'm still going to go on posting as little as possible.)

Okay, I suppose some updates are in order. First and foremost: I will be taking my test for my driver's license on November 27. I will tell you how that goes, because I await it anxiously, and I want you to as well. I have been driving in my new car quite a bit, and I am getting very comfortable driving it. My aunt took me out to parallel park this past weekend, and I did quite well. In fact, I did better than she did. Of course, we were using traffic cones, which she was not used to, but I still did better. Ha!

Uh, well, I don't really know much else to talk about. Unlike my father, who can ramble on for days about what happened in an hour, I cannot find much interesting about my life. OH WAIT! I almost forgot.

Yesterday, which was thursday, November 15, I went to a conference called the World Affair's Institute. It was in fact a fantastic experience, and reminded me a lot of NYLC in that there was a lot of ways that the students got to participate. We went in to the Pittsburgh Convention Center, and had a nice Continental Breakfast. After which we heard two speakers talk about what is to come from China. After the discussion, which was particularly interesting because the two speakers had opposing views, we students were allowed to question the speakers. Many did, and most of the questions were very good.

After the question and answer session, we all went to lunch. Lunch was alright, but the pepper was watery and I didn't like the chicken too much. After lunch we had another discussion with two other speakers, which was followed by another vigorous question and answer session.

The best part, though, was what we did next. All of the students were split into twenty five groups and asked to discuss as a group a senario about China's future. We were to come up with a policy decision and present it to the "executive board," which was really just the panel members from each discussion.

Anyhow, I had a lot of fun, and I learned quite a bit about China that I would have never even guessed before. I recommend younger students to aim for this Institute if they are interested in politics. I only wish it were longer.

Um, that's pretty much all I got. FBLA's semiformal is coming up on December 8th, and I've been working a lot to get that set up. Otherwise, I haven't been doing much interesting lately.

I will try to post a bit more often, but it will still be probably no more than two or three times a month, if that. I will aim for at least once a month, though. I would also like to appologize for the lack of posting on the reality of the situation, but I have been having a bit of writer's block. What little I have written is not worth posting. Heck, it's not worth reading. Farewell to all.

Later,
Joshua

Zoom Zoom Zoom

noreply@blogger.com (Joshua) — Wed, 03 Oct 2007 17:24:00 +0000

Guess what?!

I bought a car!!!

Yeah, I know, I'm awsome.

Anyhow, the past few weeks I have been looking into buying a car that I could use to take my drivers test in. Also, I just wanted a car. Either way, I was looking for a good car for about two weeks. It wasn't really until last Monday, September 24, that I found something good. The car I saw in the newspaper was a 1993 Buick Skylark, but it only had sixty-two thousand miles on it. The man only wanted $1800 for it, so I called him. He told me that he had to get it inspected, and asked me to call back on Thursday.

Well, Thursday came around and I called him. Unfortunately, he said that once he insured it, he pretty much couldn't keep people away from it. He said he expected it to be sold by the end of the day, and I could not go see it that night or the next, so, I said thank you and then resumed my search. Well, I got onto Times Online and looked for another car. This time I had great luck. The add I saw was for a 1994 Chevy Cavalier. The man was only asking $800 for it.

That's really cheap! Or so I thought, so I called him. He told me that the car had 94,940 miles on it. That's not too bad at all, considering most of the cars I'd called about in the few weeks prior had well over a hundred thousand. I scheduled a time to go and look at it, because it seemed like a promising deal. The man had to work Saturday afternoon, so I went and saw it around 8pm Saturday.

My dad picked me up and we drove over to Ellwood to see this car. I was half expecting it to be a huge rust bucket, but once we got there I saw that it was actually pretty nice looking, at least on the outside. I was still a little leary, so gave it a full check up. I turned the car on. My father looked under the hood to see if everything was running properly. After it all checked out, we took it for a quick test drive around the block. The man selling it told me that he had just changed the brakes, so, we tested those. They worked great. The only real thing that we were worried about was the noise coming from the muffler, but the man told us that it was just loose.

Still a little hesitant, we got a flashlight and checked out underneath. Nothing looked damaged, and the car itself seemed to be in really good shape. Well, the man told us that it needed a new battery and that the inspection had just expired the month before. To me, though, that didn't seem like that big of a deal. I asked my dad what he thought, and he said that it seemed like a really good offer, especially when the man said that he would lower the price down from $800 to $700. We wrote the check and scheduled a time to transfer the title.

I went three nights without sleep from excitement. It wasn't until yesterday, which was Tuesday October 2, that the title was transfered over and the car became officially mine. Here's a picture of my car:

It is a very nice car, and I got to drive it home, well, with my stepfather sitting in the front seat of course, since I do not have my license yet. It drives well, and it's very comfortable. I really like my new car, and I can't stop talking about it.

Last night, after scouts, my stepfather and I took a better look at it. There were a few loose edges that I couldn't figure out, and he could. For example, I thought that the brake light was out, but he opened it up and saw that it was just loose. Upon tightening it, he put it back and it worked. I also could not figure out how to turn on my indoor "dome" light. He found the switch and showed me how to work it. We also looked underneath it to make sure that the muffler and exhaust were not damaged. They were a bit loose, but undamaged otherwise. I talked to my father and my step father, and both said that tightening the muffler is really not a huge deal.

We took a better look under the hood and found that it needed coolant, which we promptly filled, because it was EMPTY. I mean, it was very empty. My step father was surprised that the car was still running.

Anyhow, I am very proud of myself. I have recently purchased a very nice car with my own money which I earned through my work. To be quite honest, I feel that I am finally living up to the standards that I feel all people should have to live up to.

Now all I have to do is practice a bit more and take my test. It shouldn't be much longer now till I have my license and I can drive wherever I want...

School to Date and Other Things

noreply@blogger.com (Joshua) — Fri, 28 Sep 2007 01:57:00 +0000

Well, school started just a little while ago. We have had about 23 days of school so far. My classes are going fine. I wish I was doing a bit better in AP English 12, but I have the only A in my class, so I suppose I shouldn't complain.

I would like to appologize for the problems with my archives. I do not know why they are still pointing at the old site. I will be fixing that problem within the next week.

Uh, I went to a college fair this past week. I found a few good colleges and I plan on putting in a few applications.

Uh, wow, this is tougher than I thought. I'll post more later...

Later,
Joshua "Two" Laughlin

It's Alive!

noreply@blogger.com (Joshua) — Mon, 17 Sep 2007 02:02:00 +0000

It's alive! Finally, my web site, it's fully operational. If you are reading this right now, you are currently on joshlaughlin.com! It has taken quite a while, but it actually works!

Also, the photo albums I promised are all there. NYLC photos are finally up, and it's only been like three months. Camp Freedom photos are new, but they are up as well. Take a look. All of the photos in those two areas I took myself.

Anyhow, take a look around joshlaughlin.com, and give me any suggestions you can think of. I'm always open for suggestions.

Also, I took out the original opening page because it was getting old, but if anyone has a good idea for another site opening page, drop me a line.