Chris' Updates

Last Thursday was my last day of class for the summer, and I'm glad to be finished with this Matrix Methods and Applications class. I was really looking forward to the applications, but it turned out to be all methods. Once again, I've learned a lot of math techniques and I'm left with no idea when they're useful. Brilliant. I don't have my grade back, but I'm pretty sure I passed at least. A couple of weeks ago, Ashley and I and some friends took a camping trip up to Kelly Dahl campground near Nederland. We did a lot of catching up, and a little hiking and geocaching. You can check out our photos on Picasa . We took Apollo, and he had a blast. It was great to get outdoors and remember that I can tear myself away from computers when I need to. I spend a lot of my time using my computers. Even when I go out around town, I have my G1, which has more processing power than our family's first computer, and constantly keeps me connected to the internet. When I...

In other news, I've been bitten by a curiosity for electronics, robotics, and "physical computing." A while ago I discovered a microcontroller platform called Arduino , and finally decided to try it out! I ordered a kit from the Maker Shed, their Advanced Arduino Starter Kit , and have been trying a few simple things. The kit contains a book, Making Things Talk by Tom Igoe, which contains a lot of projects that demonstrate how systems of electronics communicate. I've built a rudimentary version of the first project, called Monski Pong, using the parts from the kit. The microcontroller acts as a joystick that controls a game of Pong on the computer. From Arduino Projects The book actually calls for two flex resistors that get sewn into a plush monkey, but the kit didn't come with those parts. Actually, the kit didn't come with parts to complete any of the projects in the book. It's a little strange, but this kit wasn't really designed as a step-b...

Once again, I've neglected posting for a while, but I've certainly been busy. The end of the spring semester was hectic as usual, but I feel pretty good about my performance. I was able to scrape decent grades in 4 classes, but unfortunately I couldn't keep up in my probability class and failed it. That seems to be the norm when I take math classes; so far, I've had to take every college math class twice in order to pass. It's not great, but I'll manage. In fact, that probability class is not required for my Computer Science major, only the Applied Math minor I'm going to try and scrape out. After the end of the spring semester, I took some time to visit with family and friends. I wasn't able to find an internship immediately, but that's not such a bad thing. I think I should try to enjoy what should be my last summer before I enter the workforce full time. After a couple weeks of relaxing, I started back at school for summer classes. I initially...

Alright, it's been a while since I've posted, but you can be sure I've been busy! School and my new workout regimen have been going pretty well. I've been falling short of perfect in both arenas, but I'm maintaining a good pace on both. Over spring break last month, I had my good buddy William Holliday visit from North Carolina. I met William when we were both in Iraq, and it was great to see him again and show him around my beloved home state. I still have to figure out when I'm going to visit him. Last weekend I had Army drill down at Ft. Carson. We stayed down at a little corner called Camp Red Devil, far from main post, which was a first for me. Our living arrangements were shacks covered in sheet metal, with cots to sleep in. Once you get past that little annoyance, though, it was a fun, productive weekend. I got to practice some of my radio skills for a change. We set up several radios, an OE-254 antenna, and tried to set up a retransmission site. I ha...

It's been over a month since my last update, so I suppose it's time. We're about half-way through the semester at school, and I'm staying afloat for the most part. I do need to spend more time concentrating on my probability class, but everything else seems to be going well. I've been pushing harder on my physical fitness in the last couple of weeks; I'm actually getting to the gym, and I'm spending some quality time while I'm there. I've hired a personal trainer, and she's been helping to get me in the weight room. On my own, I've been focusing on improving my cardiovascular fitness and endurance while running, as well as trying to burn off a few pounds. When I got home last June, I was just below my Army-mandated maximum weight, but I've gained about 20 lbs. since then. In other news, our friend Chris is having serious medical issues. He's been in and out of the hospital in the past few weeks. He's going through some pretty ser...

I've made it through the first week of this spring semester, and I'm no worse for the wear. I'm really enjoying my classes so far. I'm taking the second semester of Humanities for Engineers, which is going to be divided into two "landscapes" for the semester. For the first part, we'll be covering some of the classics: the Iliad, the Odyssey, and the Aneid. That should be interesting. The math class I'm taking is probability. The professor's accent is very thick Asian, but he's a great teacher, and I think I'll enjoy the class. I have three computer science courses. The class on game programming will be much less pure entertainment than it sounds like; it's focused on designing and prototyping educational games. We're using a program called AgentSheets to do our games, and it's pretty awful to install and limited in it's uses. However, it is good for getting something working quickly, and it's simple enough that anyone ca...

Hey everyone! Merry Christmas, happy holidays, and a happy New Year! This year has been one to remember, for certain. I spent Christmas Eve last year in Iraq, being accepted into the Catholic church. Since then, I've seen another great friend get married while I was on leave, then came back home for good! I've furthered my education at CU, and scraped a 2.8 out of 4 GPA for this semester, my best grades at that school yet. I sadly said goodbye to Grandpa Doug, but have made many good friends in unexpected places. Looking forward, the time is quickly approaching for me to decide my future with the Army Reserves. I go wildly back and forth, from "I can't possibly re-up," to "I must stay." There are compelling reasons on both sides of the argument. I have made one decision, though; if I do stay in the Army, I will eventually pursue becoming a Warrant Officer of the Signal Corps. This office is little known to many outside the military, but basically Warrant...