I am now officially CompTIA A+ and Network+ Certified. The Network+ test is more difficult, hence the lower passing score than the A+ tests. I knew going in that I wasn't going to do quite as well, but I was still in and out of the testing center in an hour.
And for those keeping track, yes, I got the number of tests wrong before. I didn't realize QuickBooks was part of the Microsoft Office Specialist certification.
Only works in Internet Explorer, unfortunately. If it lets you, add me as a friend when you're done. I'm registered as justinm. Or put in my e-mail address, found in my profile.
I mentioned that I had news relating to my band(s), although not much of it and it's fairly insignificant. This is all true, but all the same I promised that I'd post it, and so I am.
I can't remember whether I mentioned that I'm playing in a brass choir (nonet, really, if everyone shows). I am, and I've done a several arrangements for it, as well: a couple renaissance motets in five parts, Erik Satie's "Gymnopedie No. 1" in six parts (which sounds nice, but is excruciatingly boring to play), and Samuel Barber's "Adagio for Strings" in six parts, which I'm currently putting the finishing touches on. I'm looking for more ideas, but I think the next one will be Cesar Franck's "Panis Angelicus" for Easter.
I've also officially decided to stop playing with the Beaver County Symphonic Wind Ensemble, mainly because I'm simply sick of that group and their apathy toward the music. I realize that politics will reign in just about any group, but I swear the people in that group would rather sound bad playing bad music than sound good (okay, merely passable) playing good music as long as it meant they got their way. And so, because they've gotten their way by retaining the "easier" of the two conductors, I've decided that I'd just vote with my feet instead.
So, a couple web searches later, and I began researching new bands to play with. The first band I've decided to try out is the West Hills Symphonic Band, which was convenient, if for no other reason, because I know a couple people in the band already who could get me in easily, and while the drive is more than I'd normally care to make, it's not that far from there to evenstar253's apartment, and their rehearsal ends about when I'd head down to see her anyway, so I'm not really going much farther than I normally would be.
The interesting twist in this little story is the identity of that band's associate conductor--one Clem Rolin, who was director of bands at the high school a number of folks on my friends list attended. He came up to me and started to introduce himself at my first rehearsal. I told him my name, but I also told him that I already knew who he was, which caught him a bit off guard to say the least. He asked how, so I mentioned evenstar253's name, and his eyes got big:
"Why doesn't she get her ass in here and play?!"
I started to stammer something about how she surely didn't know he was conducting the band, how she's in grad school, and so on, while trying not to break into a fit of laughter, but he leaned in a bit closer and said, in hushed tones, "Let me tell you, Justin, I taught for 35 years and she was the best clarinet player I ever had." And later, during a break, while I was talking with the guy who referred me to the band, he came up and told him the same thing, which I couldn't say anything to, considering the guy who referred me also plays clarinet, and I didn't want him to feel threatened...but he also said that he was going to bug me every week until evenstar253 shows up at a rehearsal.
Thankfully, I didn't need to tell that whole story to get her to agree to show up...sooner or later.
I hate it when other people do this, but at this point, I don't see much other choice.
I've been off LJ long enough that I haven't the faintest idea if anything important or interesting has happened to anyone lately, and it would take me likely more time than I have remaining on this earth to read through the last month-ish of friends list posts, so the task now falls on you. Oh, you all know you like to talk about yourselves anyway or you wouldn't have an account here, right? =) So, if anything important or interesting happened, or anything that I should really know so that I don't put my foot in my mouth, please, comment here and let me know.
Legs of any kind were thought to be such turn-ons for men in Victorian England that table skirts were invented in the hopes of preventing "unnatural unions" between men and furniture.
This is precisely what I didn't need to see while being pissed off that even they wouldn't make me a job offer even when I was willing to comply with all their crap...
UPDATE:
I just found this guy's blog (not that difficult actually), where he has a transcript of the phone conversation in case you'd rather read it than spend twenty minutes listening (although it loses some of the effect. Utterly without permission, I'm reprinting it here under the cut.
I am convinced that should anything ever work out the way I had hoped it would, I would drop over dead directly thereafter; God will have realized that he had obviously not been paying enough attention and will strike me down on the spot.
This is a public service announcement: If you ever call a cell phone and get the voice mail and you think the other person might not have your phone number programmed into their phone, please take the following simple step(s):
Poll #870928Christmas cards
Open to: Friends, detailed results viewable to: None, participants: 2
If you still want a Christmas card, put your address in this box:
If I see you weekly or so, you don't need to respond to the poll. Furthermore, if your account name follows, you don't need to respond to the poll: ceallaighgirl physics_chic rosethorne yasue
This is one of the coolest flash videos I've ever seen in my life. It explains in layman's terms, or as close to layman's terms as you can get, how to imagine ten dimensions, which is the basis of string theory. (To watch the video, mouse over the "Navigation" area on the left and pick "Imagining the Ten Dimensions".
The first 5 or so are pretty simple. Dimensions 6 and 7 are kind of tough, and 8 to 10 are probably not good to try to comprehend while tired...
Poll #867229Just in case...
Open to: Friends, detailed results viewable to: None, participants: 4
If I actually get around to mailing Christmas cards this year, and you actually want one, what's your mailing address? Anyone I see in person with regularity (say, at least weekly) need not answer this.
discontent
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frustrated
annoyed