Scuba Steve's Guppy Gulch- Your First Dive

The sun is shining and warms the body as it peeks through the trees. The air is fresh and far away from city life. You hear the distant sound of birds chirping and the sound of fish jumping in the water. My friend you are at the hidden gem known as Guppy Gulch and you are about to do your first dive. In the background you hear a splash as some of the regulars begin their typical Saturday dive. You sign in with the owner and pick up not only your gear but also a few words of wisdom to carry with you. You assemble your gear and do the safety checks. Your ready to go diving, o wait, I’m not wearing my wetsuit yet, after a little grunting and groaning you are in the wetsuit and feel like a hotdog in its casing, you step up to the edge and look at the water. The instructor gives you last bit of advice and checks your gear. Its time! You enter the water with a splash and get an instant rush…..of cold water into your wetsuit. Your body soon warms that up. You descend below the surface and the outside world melts away. No sound birds chirping or fish jumping it is just you and the water…and roughly 15 other students and instructors. You’re a little nervous as you approach the platform, “Will I remember all my skills?” “Do I have enough air?” You look at you gauge and everything is fine. You follow the rest of the students out on the line and don’t get but 15 feet from the platform before boom the student in front of you kicks up a cloud of silt reducing the visibility to zero. You look back there is an assistant behind you, “I’m ok”. After swimming for a while you wonder, “Alright, where’s the next plat…o there it is.” You finish your skills and go on a tour. You return to reality and you are a scuba diver and can’t wait to go back in…well may be after a cup of coffee.

Word Count 350

What do you want to be when you grow up?

People often asked the question, What do you want to be when you grow up? Most people want a specific career answer like doctor or lawyer but I think it is easier to describe what you want than place a title on it. I would like to find a job which does not put me at a desk all day long but im not on the road all day either. I would like something that is challenging but also not going to kill me with stress. An idea job will allow me to see progress in my efforts but not be tedious and repetitive. Self growth is another important aspect of the ideal job, growth can be obtained through learning new items or taking a new position. The truth of the matter is that I don’t believe that most of us will find an ideal job but will find something which we can live with and enjoy as much as we can. The American dream is to be productive, to see one’s efforts come together to flourish into something, a widget, a gismo, a project, a healthy person it doesn’t matter work is about accomplishment not about the task itself.

word count:200

For better or worse the educational story

The best educational experiance came in the form of two summer courses I just completed this past semester. Both of the classes were interesting in part because of the instructor's interest. The professors were very attentive to active participation and life experiance of all the students in the class. The additional insite from other students added to the class experiance. In one of the classes we worked with each other so much that we had developed a sense of connection and cohisiveness in the classroom. I felt like the instructors for these courses really wanted the students to retain and apply the material rather than just do well in the class.

The worst experiance was also at UMBC but was due to a personal error rather than a class error. I had completed the majority of a particular course and was doing rather well but because of my work schedule and oversleeping for an exam I failed the course. The class only had four grades and were all exams. I had taken two and over slept on the third because the professor changed the date of the exam and I did not check blackboard where he posted the new date. The date of the exam was after the drop date so I was forced to take the F and retake the course losing all the hard work and money spent on that class.

Hard work will get you anywhere

As soon as I was old enough to hold a job my parents urged me to start working. I originally thought it was just so that they wouldn’t have to continue to pay for the activities I did on the weekend. Although, I now realize that while that may have had an influence on the original decision, they were trying to instill a sense of pride and hard work that comes with working. My father has always been a very hard working man and I feel as though he wanted me to be the same way. If he isn’t working in his day job he is always working around the house or in other projects, the man never sits down except to watch football on Sunday or to have a cigarette and a cup of coffee. I applied this sense of drive and goal setting to my own working career.
The first job which I took was for Chuck E. Cheese and I was with them for 3 years. In this period I worked my way up the chain of command from game room tech to manager and through all the various positions in between. I set my goal of one day achieving manager and I worked my butt off pulling extra shifts, extra work, and learning everything there was to know about the job. My second job as a security guard was the same story from security guard to sergeant in less than one year. My point is that if you set your goals and work hard to achieve them that you can do anything.
This concept of hard work does not just apply to jobs but also holds true in education. There are always harder courses than others but if one spends enough time studying, I believe that anyone is capable of getting an A or even getting an advanced degree. The problem is that some things are more important to other people than studying. This just means that studying and doing well in that course has other goals which supercede it. I am not saying that one always has to set high goals and that job promotions or educational attainment is a goal that everyone deems important. The important thing is that if you want if bad enough and put enough time and effort into the situation you can achieve whatever you want.

The "ME" generation

Our generation which has been called the "Me" generation or "Generation Me" seems to be concerned with one's own best interest all the time and our worlds seem to be very self centered. We have lived through the millennium; rightfully we should share our name with a version of Windows, a core piece of technology which the majority of us rely on daily, as we rely on all technology as a platform for our lives. We believe that we are so important that others care what is happening in our lives by using blogs, myspace, facebook, etc.

Word Count: 97

A brand with taste to back it up

Most people have no problem deciding on a brand in which they identify with and most people think about clothing but I’m going to be different. The brand which I am identifying with is not a shoe, clothing, or even an electronic brand but rather a wine. Boordy Vineyards was open in 1945 for commercial production and is located in Baltimore County.
Boordy Vineyards is one of Maryland’s most well known wineries because it can be found at almost any wine shop or wine festival held within the state. It has a tradition of producing good wine at a price which is not going to kill you to afford. They also have a great assortment of wines ranging from dry to very sweet. The vineyard is most well known for their sweet wines in that they have a just for fun group which features only sweet wines and is designed for the cheerfulness of a party or get together. My personal favorite of all the wines which they produce is JazzBerry, it is perfect of any party.
You’re probably asking yourself, why would he identify with a winery? Well for starters, they are located half way between the two houses I have lived in for my entire life therefore they are located in my “backyard.” Also, they are not that old of a winery but have a great history of excellence and I am not that old but am striving for excellence. In line with the culture of Boordy, I appreciate traditional values as they appreciate traditional grapes and fermentation. The bottles of wine they produce are intended to be enjoyed with family and friends in a party atmosphere. This enjoyment of company and enjoyment through music and entertainment is value of mine as well. As shown through the price, I enjoy fine things but I don’t like to spend a fortune on them. The wine also matches well with my personality sometimes dry, sometimes sweet, sometimes a quiet place sometimes a party but too much of me and you might get a headache.
Many of the wines are designed to be paired with food for a meal. Since this a Maryland winery and they are a after my own heart they make a recommendation to try it with seafood. As many of you read in my first blog I grew up in Baltimore and therefore must be a huge fan of seafood because I was told at a young age if you don’t like seafood and you live in Baltimore you need to move, sorry that’s the rule. In conclusion, Maryland is a big part of my life and Boordy reminds me our culture.

Word Count: 445

Media

I would in no way call myself an addict or a Luddite. Although, I am not as well versed on current events as one should. It really depends on the definition of media. If it is strictly informative media or news then I am lacking but as for technology and communication in general I am totally engulfed by media. Most of the information which I closely follow is work or school related through newsletters, paper or email. Either way through the use of the computer and Internet or other devices I am always connected to the ever changing world but the information I care about normally is not mass media.

I don't know how I became to be so ingrained in technology but I did. I have always had a desire to get the latest and greatest technology. This desire is neither a flaw nor a blessing. Technology is always changing and keeping up with it will result in an empty wallet but failure to at least attempt to keep up will prevent one's ability to stay informed. I could attempt to watch more hard news but right now I don't have the extra time to do so. I know if something important happens I will be notified by many people in multiple ways.