The World According to Mark

April 28, 2006

It's Friday! One week of classes left! One week of Undergraduate left! Busy, busy, busy. If you would have told me four years ago that I would have a Bachelor of Arts in Linguistics I wouldn't have thought it possible. Now when I look four years into the future, having a PhD seems attainable. You never can tell what direction life is going to take you. I just know that for the past five years, things have been on a steady incline and that I am the happiest I have ever been.

March 19, 2006

Spring Break is over already! Las Vegas was a blast and now it is time to work hard for the next seven weeks to finish the semester and Graduate. Graduation is May 14th, then I will have the entire summer to prepare for Graduate School. Yep, I was accepted into the Linguistics PhD program at the U of M starting this fall. I guess I will be in school for a while, but I really like it. I have already taken quite a bit of the required courses and will thus be able to substitute elective courses. I hope to find an assistantship so that my tuition is payed and I can avoid taking more out loans. The house needs a lot of attention, so that is going to be my priority for the three months I have off, though I will work.

Classes are going well this semester and I like at least something about each one. None of them are required as I could have graduated in December, but I had a nice grant package and couldn't start Graduate School until the Fall anyway. I would also have had to find a job for eight months and there was no guarantee for that.

December 22, 2005

Yeah, so I have been busy and neglected this site, but I have valid excuses. First, classes started at the University. I had three classes to attend, a thesis to research, plus an Independent Study course. Plus I was working 25 hours a week at the General College. And then I got sick. Not just a cold or the flu, but a parasitic intestinal illness that took 7 weeks to diagnose. Finally they determined it was not one but two types of intestinal parasites, giardia lamblia and blastocystis and after 10 days of antibiotics I was healthy again, albeit 8 pounds lighter.

Next I had to reformat the hard drive on my laptop and then couldn't find the CD to reinstall Dreamweaver which I use to edit this site. Then we got another roommate, Jason, so everything from the office is now in boxes in the Map Room. I finally got the software, but by then my laptop hard drive died. Life is dramatic.

I finished my honors thesis and received feedback from my readers, so I just have to implement their comments and I will be done. It was tough but a great experience. I have now met all of the requirements for a Bachelors of Arts in Linguistics with a Minor in Spanish Studies and will graduate summa cum laude in May 2006.

I am awaiting word from the University of Minnesota Office of Information Technology on a position that I have interviewed for twice. I hope to hear sometime next week. That will determine whether I apply to grad school and whether I take Spring classes.

August 22, 2005

Wow, it has been 5 months since I updated my page. At least I updated the main page since then, but even that was over 6 weeks ago. Time...Life...

Yesterday was the last episode of Six Feet Under, a program that Clint and I have been watching off and on since it started five yeas ago. it was very powerful and we were both deeply moved to the point of tears. I think I could write an book about how it made me feel. Regardless, it prompted me to look at life with more appreciation.

I am in the middle of the month long break between Summer and Fall semester and taking advantage of the time to get caught up on some work at home while still researching my Honors Thesis. This fall I am taking five classes including an Independent/Distance Learning course in math. I was planning to graduate in December, but recieved such a generous grant for Spring that I could not turn it down. I am going to utilize the extra semester to prepare for graduate school in Linguistics by retaking a couple of courses I did not finish back in 1990. This will improve my GPA and make my application more competitive. I will also take the GRE test, probably in December, and apply for graduate school in January to be considered for a fellowship.

March 15, 2004

These days free time is scare and fortunately boredom is as well. I am taking five classes and really enjoy them as well as my classmates, and for the most part my instructors too. Since I was laid off from New Access Communications in March of 2004, I have been focusing on my education. I graduated from Minneapolis Community and Technical College in May 2004 with an Associates of Arts in Liberal Arts and transferred to the U of M in the Fall.

I am working two part-time student jobs at the University, one in technical support for the General College, the other as a research assistant and student representative for the Adult Learner Student Parent Committee. I also co-chair the Reentry Students Organization, which in coordination with the ALSP Committee represents non-traditional student on campus.

It is currently Spring Break, so I can take a breath (and publish this site), but there will be no warm weather vacation this year. I do, however, hope to be studying in Puerto Rico for a month this summer to work on my Spanish. During break I am working and getting a jump on a couple of essays.

I would love to see Duran Duran when they come to town March 22 at the Xcel Energy Center. I saw them in 1984 and 1994, so I am due! As far as what I have been listening to lately, I am a bit obsessed with Interpol at the moment, especially the song Evil. Other songs that I really like include the latest by The Shore, Beck, Wilco, Tegan & Sara, and Kelly Clarkson!

That is my update for now. In no time it will be Easter and Clint and I will be in Park Rapids to spend it with my Mom and the rest of the family. Shortly after softball will begin, then finals week will be upon us and then Clint's Graduation. And you know how quickly the summer goes. But I have litte to complain about.

-Ciao