Short rants.

[CrimsonTribe]

The potential buyer of my house is the most dangerous kind of person. He's (1) totally inexperienced in homebuying, and (2) a third year law student.

[andrewochs615]

I got my Bachelor's in geography, but I'm not a big GIS guy, and that's where most of the jobs are these days. The one job I had didn't extensively utilize GIS, but jobs that don't frequently use it or extensive spatial statistics are few. More recently I've turned to higher education administration as an avenue - it's still growing, and the pay is okay. I'm looking at grad programs in it and have been trying to get jobs (positions in admissions and other things of that nature). Unfortunately I've had no success, even when trying to get jobs at the community college and the university I graduated from (after being an involved student at and graduating with highest honors from both places). I try not to complain too much about it, but it is frustrating in the extreme....

I have my bachelors in Geography also, but I am a GIS guy and have been working in the field going on 2 years now. How has your search been going?

[Don Quixote]

I have my bachelors in Geography also, but I am a GIS guy and have been working in the field going on 2 years now. How has your search been going?

Terribly - I've pretty much given up on anything that has to do with geography at this point.

I can't teach because I don't have certification - it wasn't in the plans for me to teach at the compulsory level. I was allowed to teach classes at an AAU-member university, but I can't teach in a county school system, and I haven't seen anywhere nearby that has a need I could fill and where I could get provisional certification, either. I don't have enough math - statistics or "traditional" math - to get anything in data analysis, or anything in meteo, which was what I really developed an affinity for after I transferred to university. I don't have enough courses in the GIS/mapping area to get a job in things like remote sensing, geospatial intelligence, etc., either.

Besides my grad program not being a good fit, it revealed the limitations in my undergrad program, especially its scheduling of classes - many classes were only available once a year and I was only in university for two years, so the options were limited. If I had stayed another year I would have had a much greater chance of getting success in another grad program or in the occupational arena. Unfortunately, my postsecondary education got delayed and chopped up numerous times because I couldn't afford to do it right. Debt was a huge concern for me and I tried to avoid it as much as possible, which was why I didn't stay the third year. My professors encouraged moving on to a grad program because I did so well in the classes I took, and didn't bother to try to slow me down or question me enough about what would be best for the long term.

As always happens in retrospect, not continuing for the third year was a mistake. I can't just pick up where I left off and tack on some continuing education, though. I don't live anywhere near where I was going to school, and there aren't jobs to be had for either me or my wife in order for us to be able to go back to the area. Additionally, the federal student aid system is rigged to screw me. Because of the way the rules are laid out, all credits attempted at the undergrad level count against you in the system, regardless of whether the credits are paid for out-of-pocket, as my community college classes were. I should have 100 spare credits to use on aid, but I now have less than a year's worth of credits to work with because of the stupid rules, even though my debt in absolute monetary terms is a fair bit less than average.

What I'm left with now is a basically useless degree comprised mostly of physical geography coursework, no way to be able to tack on anything useful, and no job prospects in geography or anything else. I now find myself trying to turn to another crack at grad school but in a different discipline so at least I can at some point have aid to use for it. I had hoped I could leave the mind-f^&%ing madness that is substitute teaching behind after I graduated, but nah. I very much regret not having just been some B-school doucher; if I had at least I could have been somewhat "employable." Suffice it to say, I'm severely depressed with very little hope for the future.

That's how it's going.

[JourneyFan]

Does Harry Belafonte get royalties from MLB for its ubiquitous use of the "Day-O" sound clip?

[Spoonless]

If I'm signing up for a forum or gaming site or anything other than some place where I have to put in payment/financial information, don't put stupid restrictions on what I can make for a password. Really, I don't need to be mixing case and adding numbers and at least one non-alphanumeric character just to post pictures of silly cats or some crap.

Author's Note: I don't actually post pictures of silly cats or silly pictures of cats anywhere.

[Dipper9]

If I'm signing up for a forum or gaming site or anything other than some place where I have to put in payment/financial information, don't put stupid restrictions on what I can make for a password. Really, I don't need to be mixing case and adding numbers and at least one non-alphanumeric character just to post pictures of silly cats or some crap.

Author's Note: I don't actually post pictures of silly cats or silly pictures of cats anywhere.

Not that there's anything wrong with that!

[Goober Noodles]

It boggles my mind to see how many listings for apartments and rental homes are listed with no pictures, thumbnails as pictures, or pictures of random things that aren't the property. It's 2012, learn to work a digital camera and photobucket. C'mon.

[twoBshorty]

Two rants today:

1. Able-bodied people who walk slowly. Don't you want to GET THERE, Pokey McSlowpoke????? How can you stand to move this slowly? Negative bonus points if you're jaywalking while doing this.

2. Tourists should be banned from the Metro between 6:30-9:30am and 3:30-6:30pm. The following criteria should be cause for investigation by WMATA police for possible violations:

-fanny packs or enormous backpacks filled with sweatshirts, umbrellas, water bottles, and smashed sandwiches
-loud-patterned shirts coupled with either clunky sneakers or mismatched shorts
-standing on the #$*&#%^ left side of the escalator
-trying to get in the car before people have gotten off and looking baffled and put out as they glare and shove past you. Bonus: stopping dead right in the doorway to stare at a map and discuss where you're going (Answer: 8 feet to your left!)
-huge rolling luggage sets
-talking really really loudly, usually about inane topics like whether the station labeled "Smithsonian" contains the Smithsonian museums
-taking photos of yourself and your family sitting on the train like it's the front steps of the Capitol

Public transit is great, except for the part where it involves the public.

[MikeAD]

Noticed a purchase for 322 and change at a CVS in Miami and 49 and change at a restaurant in Miami. Call my bank, I am not in Miami, clearly these are not mine. They said the card was present on purchase. There's a chance I get this back but I am stuck here with a de-activated card (said it will be 15 days minimum for this to be resolved, could be longer than a month). Ugh. How was my card present when its in my pocket

[TGO]

Noticed a purchase for 322 and change at a CVS in Miami and 49 and change at a restaurant in Miami. Call my bank, I am not in Miami, clearly these are not mine. They said the card was present on purchase. There's a chance I get this back but I am stuck here with a de-activated card (said it will be 15 days minimum for this to be resolved, could be longer than a month). Ugh. How was my card present when its in my pocket

Someone cloned the card.

[weams]

Noticed a purchase for 322 and change at a CVS in Miami and 49 and change at a restaurant in Miami. Call my bank, I am not in Miami, clearly these are not mine. They said the card was present on purchase. There's a chance I get this back but I am stuck here with a de-activated card (said it will be 15 days minimum for this to be resolved, could be longer than a month). Ugh. How was my card present when its in my pocket

Sorry you have to deal with this. The next decade will be the decade of the bad guys.

[square634]

Noticed a purchase for 322 and change at a CVS in Miami and 49 and change at a restaurant in Miami. Call my bank, I am not in Miami, clearly these are not mine. They said the card was present on purchase. There's a chance I get this back but I am stuck here with a de-activated card (said it will be 15 days minimum for this to be resolved, could be longer than a month). Ugh. How was my card present when its in my pocket

In my sophomore year of college, I returned to Philadelphia after winter break, bought $5 worth of lunch at Wawa with my credit card, and then went to the bookstore to buy $250 worth of textbooks. My credit card was declined at the school bookstore, and when I called the company, they were like "You could not have picked a more suspicious purchasing pattern -- switching cities, making a small purchase to make sure the card works, and then going for a big purchase." I was like "yeah... so that was coincidence."

[cindyluvsbrady]

Rain,Cold and people who slam in to the back of my car....when I am only trying to drive to my mailbox




I was not happy!!!

[cindyluvsbrady]

Two rants today:

1. Able-bodied people who walk slowly. Don't you want to GET THERE, Pokey McSlowpoke????? How can you stand to move this slowly? Negative bonus points if you're jaywalking while doing this.

2. Tourists should be banned from the Metro between 6:30-9:30am and 3:30-6:30pm. The following criteria should be cause for investigation by WMATA police for possible violations:

-fanny packs or enormous backpacks filled with sweatshirts, umbrellas, water bottles, and smashed sandwiches
-loud-patterned shirts coupled with either clunky sneakers or mismatched shorts
-standing on the #$*&#%^ left side of the escalator
-trying to get in the car before people have gotten off and looking baffled and put out as they glare and shove past you. Bonus: stopping dead right in the doorway to stare at a map and discuss where you're going (Answer: 8 feet to your left!)
-huge rolling luggage sets
-talking really really loudly, usually about inane topics like whether the station labeled "Smithsonian" contains the Smithsonian museums
-taking photos of yourself and your family sitting on the train like it's the front steps of the Capitol

Public transit is great, except for the part where it involves the public.

I really understand!!!

[cindyluvsbrady]

I despise my computer,,,,,,and not having e mail!!!