It's a matter a week and half, and then internship will be here. I expect a lot of troubleshooting, rebooting, and imaging right away, and probably some taking apart and rebuilding of computers.
It's a very anxious time. I have no idea what sort of environment I'll be in and what will honestly be expected from me. I hope my office is cool, and nice looking, and not a sea of gray cubes. Goodness do I hope that.
I'm hoping I can pick up any hard skills needed to get the job done right. It's very nerve fraying not knowing what sort of work I'll be doing.
The most important thing to me is landing a full time position after internship, and that means leaving a great impression. My overall feeling is that when internship starts, I can leave the bookbag at home, but I have to fight that feeling, I must always be armed with pen and paper and iPhone, ready to learn and study new things I may be completely unprepared for.
I hope my manager will be understanding of the fact that as prepared as YearUp made me, there are things I've never done, but am willing to learn how to do.
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
Thursday, January 5, 2012
A Week Ago I'd Still Be Asleep Right Now
I've been back at school for 3 days now, and I'm not up to normal operating speed yet. This morning I found the most perfect sleeping position the exact same moment my alarm went off. I was heartbroken,enraged, and dreaming simultaneously.
On the bright side, I learned my final tech project is going on NewEgg and building a hypothetical PC.
I do that for fun!
On the bright side, I learned my final tech project is going on NewEgg and building a hypothetical PC.
I do that for fun!
Monday, January 2, 2012
That was the end. This is the start. This is the end. This is the start.
2011 is gone. This is the start of 2012. The next few weeks will be the end of the learning and development phase of my school, which marks the start of my internship.
I have nothing to say about the nitty gritty details of these events, all I can say is that I've gained some perspective on the continuing nature of time and life. Every new and exciting change is heralded by the end of the familiar, I couldn't possibly stay comfortable and expect things to get better all on their own.
These changes were initiated by me, I knew what I signed up for when I started Year Up, but it feels like the changes are also happening in spite of me. I've been groomed to be a useful, dynamic, likable and memorable intern, and while my classmates and I stand at the edge of something unknown and new, a whole new class is in the process of being placed in our newly emptied, still warm seats.
It's all sort of comforting and nerve-racking at the same time.
I have nothing to say about the nitty gritty details of these events, all I can say is that I've gained some perspective on the continuing nature of time and life. Every new and exciting change is heralded by the end of the familiar, I couldn't possibly stay comfortable and expect things to get better all on their own.
These changes were initiated by me, I knew what I signed up for when I started Year Up, but it feels like the changes are also happening in spite of me. I've been groomed to be a useful, dynamic, likable and memorable intern, and while my classmates and I stand at the edge of something unknown and new, a whole new class is in the process of being placed in our newly emptied, still warm seats.
It's all sort of comforting and nerve-racking at the same time.
Sunday, January 1, 2012
Obligatory New Year's Post
It's 2012, and I just love the way it rolls off the tongue. (twenty-twelve, forget that clumsy two thousand business)
It's a milestone year for me, all thanks to YearUp. In about a month, I'll be working hard at my internship, where ever it may be, crossing my fingers and hoping for a long term job.
I have to say I'd never be as happy or stress free if it weren't for the program. If I hadn't joined YearUp 2011 would have been another year of inhaling gasoline fumes and getting grey hairs dealing with the minor problems of the same people everyday, just stopping by and getting their requisite fill up.
I capped off 2011 by going to school for a subject I enjoy, ripping apart and rebuilding PCs, for fun and hopefully profit. 2012 should be a banner year for me, the year I turn my nerdy hobby into a lucrative career.
I have the grades, I have the dedication, I have the drive, all I need is a touch of that 2012 luck.
Happy New Year, one and all.
It's a milestone year for me, all thanks to YearUp. In about a month, I'll be working hard at my internship, where ever it may be, crossing my fingers and hoping for a long term job.
I have to say I'd never be as happy or stress free if it weren't for the program. If I hadn't joined YearUp 2011 would have been another year of inhaling gasoline fumes and getting grey hairs dealing with the minor problems of the same people everyday, just stopping by and getting their requisite fill up.
I capped off 2011 by going to school for a subject I enjoy, ripping apart and rebuilding PCs, for fun and hopefully profit. 2012 should be a banner year for me, the year I turn my nerdy hobby into a lucrative career.
I have the grades, I have the dedication, I have the drive, all I need is a touch of that 2012 luck.
Happy New Year, one and all.
Tuesday, December 27, 2011
The Break From Break
December 27th, the start of holiday halftime.
I've celebrated good cheer, overindulged, laughed too hard and over slept for almost four days straight, starting with the Christmas Eve (Eve) kickoff with friends, creeping into Christmas Eve and Christmas Day with family, and even yesterday, while everyone else started their respite from the celebrations, I was celebrating my parent's anniversary.
What do I have to show for it? A few more inches around the waistline, lots of awesome swag (thanks family and friends), and a severe cold. But I finally reached the break in my break, the sandwich of productivity and genuine rest between the dizzying rush of Christmas and anticipated New Year's Eve blowout.
One year doesn't seem like a long enough moratorium on tamales and red and green cookies from where I'm standing, but I know I'll be duped into excitement and the childlike giddiness come November 2012, when I cross the Holiday Event Horizon and get sucked into the Black Hole of Joy for another grueling December.
Happy Holidays, and rest up for the 31st!
I've celebrated good cheer, overindulged, laughed too hard and over slept for almost four days straight, starting with the Christmas Eve (Eve) kickoff with friends, creeping into Christmas Eve and Christmas Day with family, and even yesterday, while everyone else started their respite from the celebrations, I was celebrating my parent's anniversary.
What do I have to show for it? A few more inches around the waistline, lots of awesome swag (thanks family and friends), and a severe cold. But I finally reached the break in my break, the sandwich of productivity and genuine rest between the dizzying rush of Christmas and anticipated New Year's Eve blowout.
One year doesn't seem like a long enough moratorium on tamales and red and green cookies from where I'm standing, but I know I'll be duped into excitement and the childlike giddiness come November 2012, when I cross the Holiday Event Horizon and get sucked into the Black Hole of Joy for another grueling December.
Happy Holidays, and rest up for the 31st!
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
Internship Readiness
Someone who is internship ready is someone who makes themselves and the program look good by demonstrating a firm understanding of the task and expectations presented to them at their internship. This person can not only handle any technical assignment doled out to them, but they also show strength of character by not only receiving feedback well, but actively seeking it out. Earnest communication with colleagues and an open attitude will make it easy for this person to earn the respect and admiration of their peers, and get the attention of their managers.
I plan to demonstrate these qualities during Module 3 by always extending a hand to a colleague that needs some help, and by looking for chances to jump in and help on my own. I will continue to take and act on feedback, and will continue giving it for the benefit of my peers.
The one change I plan to make this module in regards to my energy and attitude is showing more awareness in regards to how my tone and speech is taken by others. The same humor that I've used to make close friends with my colleagues and to stand out in the program runs the risk of offending and upsetting someone, and I'm learning how to shift gears around people who are sensitive to that sort of thing.
I plan to demonstrate these qualities during Module 3 by always extending a hand to a colleague that needs some help, and by looking for chances to jump in and help on my own. I will continue to take and act on feedback, and will continue giving it for the benefit of my peers.
The one change I plan to make this module in regards to my energy and attitude is showing more awareness in regards to how my tone and speech is taken by others. The same humor that I've used to make close friends with my colleagues and to stand out in the program runs the risk of offending and upsetting someone, and I'm learning how to shift gears around people who are sensitive to that sort of thing.
Monday, December 5, 2011
Safeway? More like Unsafeway.
My first and only serious, long term job was that of a gas station attendant for Safeway. Everyday was a trial, from dealing with malfunctioning gas pumps and computers to being the focal point of rage of countless rude customers. Through the years I picked up a few habits and tricks that made the job a little more bearable, but never what I could call enjoyable.
My primary responsibilities were taking the customers money and setting it on their pump, but when I was alone, which was often, my workload expanded to everything you could think of. If someone spilled a gallon of gas at 10:30 at night while there was a hefty line of customers, I'd have a half dozen pair of eyes glaring at me, waiting, while I made sure we didn't all die and cleaned up the gas.
The upside of working alone and unsupervised in a sound proof box was my freedom to plug in a music player to the built in computer speakers, and freedom to yell obscenities at the top of my lungs when there were no customers at the window. I'm sure I looked quite insane from the outside looking in, and maybe I was, but the chance to let some steam off without letting it build up allowed me to continue working without letting it out on a customer.
During my time at Safeway I feel I developed some extreme patience when dealing with people, especially unreasonable people. I can definitely see patience being a useful tool to have in the IT field, and I'll certainly use it in my internship. The most important lesson I learned from working there was that I deserved better and that no one should settle for a job where you're undervalued.
My primary responsibilities were taking the customers money and setting it on their pump, but when I was alone, which was often, my workload expanded to everything you could think of. If someone spilled a gallon of gas at 10:30 at night while there was a hefty line of customers, I'd have a half dozen pair of eyes glaring at me, waiting, while I made sure we didn't all die and cleaned up the gas.
The upside of working alone and unsupervised in a sound proof box was my freedom to plug in a music player to the built in computer speakers, and freedom to yell obscenities at the top of my lungs when there were no customers at the window. I'm sure I looked quite insane from the outside looking in, and maybe I was, but the chance to let some steam off without letting it build up allowed me to continue working without letting it out on a customer.
During my time at Safeway I feel I developed some extreme patience when dealing with people, especially unreasonable people. I can definitely see patience being a useful tool to have in the IT field, and I'll certainly use it in my internship. The most important lesson I learned from working there was that I deserved better and that no one should settle for a job where you're undervalued.
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