My New Year Eve

I was suppose to be 3.5 hours south of my current location spending the evening with a friend (along with his friends). But I ended up getting ill late last night and I was unable to travel. So I will ringing in the new year in bed watching movies.

Jealous?

Tsunami Relief Fund

Help the victims of the Tsunami by giving money to some of the following relief funds:

American Red Cross
UNICEF
AmeriCares

Anything you can give would be a great help.

Back in Buffalo

I am back to my frigid home of Buffalo after spending Christmas with my family in frigid Syracuse. Two hours after I left for Syracuse, 7 inches of lake effect snow fell in a period of three hours in Buffalo. Luckily I got out in before the storm. I was expecting the same amount of snow for Syracuse, because they are the holders of the prestigious Golden Snowball Award, but only 2-3 inches fell.

Merry Christmas!

December 25th is the celebration of day when Santa gave baby Jesus gifts for his birthday. And December 26th is the day where baby Jesus returned the gifts to the mall for something He really wanted at 50% off.

I am glad that to this day we still follow this ancient tradition.

Reformatting

With my growing dissatisfaction with the speed of my computer, I decided to reformat. I haven't reformatted this particular computer in about 1.5 years so it was due for a tune up.

I forgot about the tedium associated with process. You have to backup all current files, make a list of all the application you need, format the drive with the Operating System, update the OS to fix all of the security problems (thanks, Microsoft), install and update various software (antivirus, productivity etc...) and VOILA! Five hours later the computer is running like new...because it is.

After this laboring task, my hatred for AOL has grown leaps and bounds. After installing AOL 9.0 SE (Security Edition) on my computer I immediately uninstalled it. I hate all the extra programs it installs on your computer without you having the option to decline them. So I decided not use it considering that I can check my email using AOL's webmail service and install AIM if I ever wanted to Instant Message anyone.

Why am I still using AOL?

Relocating...maybe.

Lately, I have been thinking about relocating from Buffalo to a city yet to be determined. I will be finished with my college career in about 6 months and I will have the opportunity to relocate. I wouldn't have anything keeping me in Buffalo but where would I like live?

Some of my friends are trying to get me to relocated to where they currently live. The areas in which they live seem nice, but would I be happy there?

• Dallas, TX - Dallas is considered the 'Silicon Valley' of the South because of the abundance of computer and telecommuncations companies which have their headquarters there. Since I am looking for employment in the technology field, this could be a plus. The major drawback (for me) is the weather. Being born and raised in Syracuse, NY; I have grown to love the winter months. So coming from a place where the average summer temperature is about 70 degrees to Dallas where the average is 85 degrees is quite a change.
• Baltimore, MD or Washington, DC - I don't have much information about that area besides from what my friend tells me and what I see on television (Discovery Channel's real estate program Double Agents). After searching Monster.com for job opportunities in these areas, this could be a possibility. I could work for the U.S. Government and see how the government is keeping tabs on American's Internet usage using Carnivore. Also Forbes Magazine has this as the 4th best place to live.
• Other areas I would consider:

1. NYC - Will have a lot of job opportunities but the cost of living and population maybe too much for me.
2. Jacksonville, FL - My sister currently lives there and it would be nice to be closer to her. But the job opportunites may not be abundant.
3. Atlanta, GA - Haven't really process why I would live there, but is on Forbes Magazine as the 5th best place to live.
4. Others (unlikely choices): London, England; Tokyo, Japan; Paris, France.

So this is an issue that I have really think about. I have some time before I will really have to make my decision, but I will be doing my research on all these areas to see which would be the best fit for me.

To be continued...

Allow me to introduce myself.

My name is Killervirgo, and I am currently a 2nd year graduate student at the University at Buffalo located (conveniently) in Buffalo, NY. I am currenlty in the School of Informatics and will receive my Master of Arts degree in May 2005.

I decided to start this blog because I sometimes have random thoughts that need to be documented so they will not be lost -- either mentally or physically. I also wanted a way to update people I know without having to send multiple verisons of the same email. Since I am parked in front of a computer most of the day, having a blog seemed to be a good way to achieve my objectives.

Some self-imposed rules:

1. I will try to post something at least 4 times a week. (i.e. random thoughts, ideas, rants, etc...)
   
2. I will use this as a creative outlet. (Some of the information maybe revealing, so be prepared to learn about me .)
3. I wil try to be grammatically clear as possible. (disclaimer: this rule is not valid in the United States.)

Welcome to those who have been invited and know who I am. And hello to those whom may have stumbled upon my blog by accident.