Last Saturday, I had to Google my school’s Spring Break dates; I simply had forgotten about the break, with all of the work involved with school, work, and 2 different blogs and podcasts. Once Spring Break arrived, it was a slightly pleasant surprise.
Spring Break did not involve any kind of traveling, partying, or anything that exciting. However, I did get to mentally relax for 3 or 4 days. With a Midterm exam due this coming Monday afternoon, I spent parts of Friday studying. The rest of the time, I got to read about 70 pages of “American Gods”, finally getting close to the end of this very interesting book. I also got some good hours playing some PC games on mainly Monday and Wednesday, made it to the gym twice (and might go today), and actually got to see the University of Louisville’s 1st Round NIT game at the KFC Yum! Center. I definitely got some good sleep on a couple of days and hung out with the family on Sunday afternoon. I did have to work – couldn’t get anyone to cover a couple of shifts last Saturday or this Tuesday. All in all, however, it’s been a decent Spring Break. I’m now looking forward to taking some non-school time off from work.
March Madness: the greatest time of the sports year… and through the first 2 days, it has not disappointed! Two #13 seeds – Marshall and Buffalo – have knocked off two #3 seeds – Wichita State and Arizona – in the 1st round. But the biggest upset, not only of this tournament but in tournament history, was when the #1 overall team, Virginia, was summarily dismissed by Maryland-Baltimore County. First Round. This was the 1st time that a #1 seed lost in the 1st round to a #16 seed!
While that tournament is rolling along, I’m keeping my eyes on 2 others, where Louisville’s teams are playing: the Women’s NCAA Tournament and the Men’s National Invitational Tournament (NIT). I got the chance to go to this Sunday’s 2nd Round Game, vs. Middle Tennessee State. It should be another fun time, I hope. The women are playing earlier in the day, vs. Marquette. That one, I’m gonna have to miss: a noon tip-off is not good for someone who won’t even get home from work until 7:15 AM. Hopefully, they win, go to the Sweet 16 site in Lexington, and possibly open up a chance to go to one of their games!
One of my ‘side projects’ is writing the occasional post for “Comicdom Wrecks”, a comic book review site. The site is run by 3 of my best friends. They have run the site for over 10 years. I have very little knowledge of comic books – I may have read 25 of them in my lifetime, most of those in “The Dark Tower” series – but I do like the comic book-related movies, plus I like reading up on some of the backstories. With CW, I’ll sometimes get a book from one of the other writers, read it, and write about it (or discuss it on the podcast “Podicus Wrecks”). Other posts are on movies/cartoons that I find interesting, or some subject that crosses paths with comics and comic-related issues. I started writing a few months ago and am highly enjoying it! I only have 10 posts up but you should head over to “Comicdom Wrecks” and check them out… and check out hundreds of other articles from the rest of the staff!
On more personal notes:
- My INR has been pretty good. I had one low reading back in January but it was back in the normal 2.5 – 3.5 range 3 weeks later.
- On my last weight check (Wednesday), I was 232.6 pounds – that’s 16.0 pounds down since January, making it a near-3-year low. I’m down a little over 31 pounds since my highest mark, about 3 or 4 years ago. My minor goal is still to get down to 230 by April 1st; my major goal is still 215 by Halloween. I’m feeling good about both goals.
- Something I’ve been doing lately at the gym: trying to lower my bike times for 5 miles. Right now, the starting goal is 12 minutes; the first attempt was 12:09, the second attempt (2 days later) was 12:07. I’ll eventually start tracking 10-mile times.
- Grades: I do not know how but, with all of the struggles managing time and lacking good sleep this semester, I am actually in pretty good shape in 3 of my 4 classes!
The biggest surprise this semester is Systems Security II. In this class, where I’m studying everything from Cryptography to Mobile Security to Computer Forensics (current unit), I have an 86.5% – ‘B’. This is a much better start than I had for Systems Security I, last semester.
On the other end of the spectrum, I have Telecommunications II, and a 70.0% – ‘C’ . This is probably lower because I have a couple of zeros still to be recorded. However, I have an early chance to recover: a Midterm that is due on Monday. Yep, the 1st day back from Spring Break. Nevertheless, it’s a chance to get back on track.
My Systems Development II – Java Programming – is at an 87.5% – ‘B’. As long as I keep doing what I’ve been doing, especially with homework, I should be at an ‘A’ by the end of the semester.
The final class is Intercultural Communication, where I currently have a 76.7% – ‘C’. However, I still have a major paper that needs to be graded, plus an extra credit survey to finish. This will probably end up as a ‘B’… and hopefully end up at an ‘A’, by Finals.
The final point of this Walk is, if you are in or near the city of Louisville, that you should check out Derby City Pizza Co. There are 4 locations, including one by UofL’s campus, on Crittenden Drive (near Eastern Parkway). Via Uber Eats, I ordered the Stromboli Steak Sandwich; it was awesome! They have different sizes and flavors of pizzas, subs, pasta, wings, and salads, plus some sides, a kids’ menu, and desserts. Give them a try!
The Nexus 