What an Education Costs

So, I just added everything up, and here is what it took for me to get my education.

Total cost of classes: $24,491.53
Total cash paid: $2,236.90
Total loans: $12,879.00
Grants and Scholarships: $34,026.00

Which leaves me with a theoretical profit of $24,650.37.  That does not include books (I didn’t add up, but likely around $3000.00) or room and board or food.  According to Ferris’s math (which is the Dept. of Edu.’s math), Room and Board is about equal to course fees, so the total cost for everything would be around $50,000.  This explains the theoretical profit, which is meant to cover Room and Board.

All that considered, the theory goes that, I have 4 pieces of paper, 8.5″ x 11″, that are worth a combined $49,141.90.  Wonder what I can get for them on eBay?

My actual, out of pocket cost (gift aid minus fees, cash paid, and loans to repay) is only $5,581.43.  That is around a tenth of what most people pay, so I really can’t complain about the costs.

The bottom line:  That I actually figured all this out proves that I am, most certainly, an engineer.

Stalling

I have been stalling on posting because I hopefully have some big news.  I am being a little superstitious about it even though most people know about it by now.

Anyway, I did feel that some update should be made, before I let the entire month of June slip by with no post at all.

Our camping trip went well.  We went up to Garland for our tasting for the wedding, stayed in Alpena at a hotel, Jenn did the fitting for her wedding dress, then we went to Clear Lake State Park for 2 nights.

On the way up I first got word of my possible good news, and on the way home I had the first bit of confirmation.  Now just to wait for more confirmation.

Jon came in Saturday morning and we went tubing, had dinner at Schuberg’s, and went to the gate for a while.  He headed back home Sunday just before noon.  Todd is supposed to be coming in late next week for a short stay to go to the county fair and check out the demo derby and figure 8.

OK, hopefully more info soon.  Next post should be less vague and confusing.

New Theme

Well, as you can obviously see (if you have ever been here before) the blog has a new theme. I have been looking for a month or so on and off, and I think this one will keep me happy for a year or so.

Some highlights…

  • Links to my facebook, twitter, and youtube profiles at the top of the sidebar, more to come (Amazon wishlist, etc…).
  • Links to random posts about halfway down the sidebar.
  • Static page links (about, projects, etc…) have been reorganized and are now in a drop down at the top.
  • Comment links are at the top of the post, rather than the bottom where they were.  If people complain, this might change, but it was the default in the theme and for now I am leaving it.
  • Pretty little icons spread all over (comments, tags, author, etc…)
  • Total visits and word written moved from the footer to sidebar.  Clicking on “visitors” will take you to the visitors page, where you can see yourself if you want.
  • List of all pages at the bottom of each page.  Instead of just “Next” and “Previous”, actually specifies page 1 of 115, with links to page 2, 3, 4, beginning, and end.

That should be the gist of the new stuff.  There is plenty more new in this theme, some that I haven’t even found yet I’m sure.

Outside of the blog update, I have just been relaxing and looking for jobs.  With the rumor of GM announcing bankruptcy and closing 14 plants and 22,000 lay offs tomorrow, I think I am leaving Michigan.  With that many GM layoffs and closings, even spread nationwide, Michigan is going to be hit really hard.  Add in the effect on suppliers and them issuing layoffs and closings and you are left with a bleak outlook for job seekers, especially new grads without experience yet.

Alright, thats more than I have written in two months right there, so I will leave it at that.

nick

Six Years

So, Today marks six years since I started the blog. The future, though, is a little uncertain. With Facebook and Picasa, low visitor count, and my complete loss of habit of posting here, I question the reasons for continuing the blog. I’m not saying I am quitting, just that it is in the back of my mind. At the minimum, there will be a rather major redesign. This would include more obvious links to other places you can get info, like my twitter feed, picasa updates, and facebook page.

Moving on, I still have no job.  Still looking, but really not even much to apply to.  Hopefully some company opens up a lot of jobs soon.

I’ve been reading some books on backpacking and it’s getting me excited.  I want to try it, perhaps this summer, but need money to be able to do it.

Thats all for now.  Will try and be a little more regular since I have nothing else to do until I am working.

nick

I'm Done!

As of yesterday at about 1:00, I am done with school.  I presented the big evil project Wednesday morning at 9:00, turned in my lean project and exam at 1:00 Thursday, and am now done.  And, by 2:00 tomorrow, I will officially be a college graduate.  Woohoo!

It's Spring

OK, lets begin the time machine…

Spring break I sent out my MacBook on Monday to have the palmrest repaired.  The next couple days I read a decent amount of “the Watchmen” as I had no computer.  Tuesday I drove to Bay City for the day.  Went to William’s Cheese and The Turkey Roost with my Mom, then installed RAM for my Dad and Grandma.  Meanwhile, my brother was driving to Bitely, just a few miles from me.

Thursday my computer returned, but my initial excitement was quickly squashed when I started it up and found they had formatted my HD.  Thankfully I had backed up to my new flash drive I picked up Sunday at Staples (for really cheap too).  Still, I only had my files, not a full backup.  Reinstalling all my Mac apps, plus Windows and those apps is a pain.  Why they needed to erase my HD to do a case repair I have no idea.

Saturday, my Dad and Grandma came here to visit.  We took them downtown, to Schuberg’s, pet store, shoe store, Old Pioneer Store.  Following that, we played some Wii here (Grandma is really good at bowling, who knew?) and they headed home.

Then, it was one more day off and back to school for this week.  School was hum drum.  We talked about the disc golf tournament at the SME meeting Tuesday, most of my friends spent Tuesday in various bars while I tried to enjoy the weather.  We got a couple games of disc in over the week.  Thursday I got my Lean test back and pulled off a 102/105,  which he counts as a 100%.

Still no job yet.  I would be happy with a few more decline letters so I at least know they are getting through.  All I can do is keep trying.

Edited a few pages on the site today, and got a pair of new themes.  The About and Project pages just weren’t real organized.  Haven’t tried the themes yet.

Jenn and I were going to head to Bay City today for the St. Patty’s Day Parade.  We woke up and didn’t feel it though, and weather looked rather blah.  I may head in next weekend though, as Scott will be in town on leave.

Watched a few movies.  “Alvin and the Chipmunks” was meh, “Zack and Miri Make a Porno” was really good.  Saw a few other but can’t remember them right now.  Guess they probably weren’t that great.

I think that wraps it up for now.  Will try and get another post up over the week, maybe this weekend.

nick

Spring Break

Being that I have never really done anything Spring Break-like, and this is my last Spring Break, Jon and I are trying to come up with something.  We have no idea what, and it has to be decently cheap.  Will let you all know if it’s anything fun.

I called Apple and requested repair on my MacBook, since I can live without it for the next week.  The damn palmrest cracked again just after Christmas break, so need that repaired, again.  If I need to send it in a third time (very likely, probably about May) I am going to bitch that I want it FIXED, not just repaired, and if that means I get a new aluminum unibody MacBook, then so be it.  Apple has opened repair to all MacBooks, including those out of warranty, and though it is not publicly stated, they obviously recognize this as a know issue.  If they know it’s an issue, why should I have to send in my computer every 6 months for repairs?

Speaking of my computer, I added a new program/service last week.  It’s called DropBox, and it’s like a virtual thumb drive.  You sign up (name and email, thats it) and download the software.  It makes a folder on your computer and anything up put in it gets upladed to their servers.  You get 2GB for free (2.25 if you follow my referral link), and an additional 250MB for every person you refer, up to a total of 3GB.  You can also pay them money for more space but I’m cheap, and 2-3Gb is pretty good.  Note: you wont see your 250MB bonus until you actually download and install the software, it won’t appear when you first sign up.  It’s worth a try, right?

I cleaned the aquarium, holy crap was it dirty.  I mean, I do a water change and vacuum every week or 2, but I actually pulled and rinsed all the gravel and wow, there was a lot of crud in there.

Started watching more movies again.  Get Smart, Dead Like Me – Life After Death, Stranded with Les Stroudt (the prelude to Survivorman) in the last week, with a few more to go.  Trying to get them watched and free up space on the HD so it will be easier to do a Backup before sending computer off.

I also started reading The Watchmen.  I am through the first chapter and addicted already.  Have heard mixed reviews of movie, but hoping having read the book will help me enjoy the movie more.

Unfortunately no job yet.  Still looking though.  Market is not good, but all I can do is keep trying.  I graduate 2 months from Monday, is almost time to start freaking out, but not yet.

And that would be it for this post.  See you next time.

Weekend Snowed In

So, Jenn and I went up to Alpena for her Mom’s birthday over the weekend.  Friday night we met with them for a few hours, then went to a cheap hotel for the night.  Saturday morning Jenn went wedding dress shopping with her Mom, sister, and aunt while I took her car and roamed Home Depot and Staples.  When they were done we met at Applebee’s for lunch, then to a flower shop and back to her parents house.  Few hours later we went to dinner at a pretty good italian place.  Was snowing pretty hard when we were on way, and by the time we got out decided heading home probably not a great idea.  We went to Jenn’s sister’s for cake and ice cream and hung out for a while.  Jenn’s Dad offered to get us a slightly better hotel, so we stayed at the Best Western for the night.  Sunday morning there was a good 8″ on the ground, but roads were pretty well plowed.  We went to a bridal show with Jenn’s mom and sister, then lunch at Mancino’s and headed home.

Jenn managed to pick her wedding dress and her bride’s mad dresses while we were there.  Plus, we booked a photographer yesterday.  We still need to meet with the photographer at some point to get some details and such, but we are getting closer.  Minister, cake, and dinner menu still to go.

Went to BK yesterday and must say, burger shots are damn good.

Being Fat Tuesday, I had me some paczkis today.  Bakery in town makes some good ones.

Safari 4 Public Beta came out this morning, have been using all day.  Overall, works pretty well.  Only problem I have had so far is it isn’t compatible with my GrowlMail plugin.  Oh well, can do without until the fix.  I do have to say though, that having the tab bar on the top titlebar is difficult to get used to, but nice having extra 50 px or so of space.

Hmmm…

Spring break is approaching, about a week and a half now.  I think am heading to Bay City toward the end and doing something “spring-break-ish” with Jon the earlier part.  He said he has never been to Canada, maybe…

I guess thats all for now.  It’s something.

Sno*Drift and AutoShow

So, last weekend was Sno*Drift, the rally race in Atlanta, MI.  Was decent, but very cold.

Jon, Jenn, and I went up Friday night and met Jon’s friend Amber there.  The Holiday Inn Express in Gaylord was awesome.  We had dinner at La Seniorita and then did some shopping around town, including Jay’s of course.  We got a late start Saturday morning, so went straight for the 12:00 repair stop at Atlanta High School.  The next scheduled event was a race at the gravel pit, or a race in the woods.  We went to the gravel pit, which ended up a poor choice, as we were rather far from the cars.  Was still cool, but after that one race we were pretty much done, so didn’t stay for any of the three more that night.  Jon and Amber went there separate way, and Jenn and I went to Big Buck Brewery for dinner, then headed home.

This past week was mostly just school home, repeat.  Thursday was the winter job fair.  That was a complete joke.  There were barely any employers there, and nobody really looking for MfgEng.  Still, I keep applying online, at least 5 a week average.

Yesterday was the Grand Rapids Auto Show.  Unlike Detroit of Chicago where the automakers bring cars, this was more the dealers showing off what’s new.  You get a lot more freedom to inspect the vehicles here though, can get right in, pop the hood, whatever you want.  Was pretty good.

This week we are supposed to be working on a snow sculpture for SME, but the weather doesn’t seem to want that to happen.  Supposed to be 40s most of the week, and get some rain, not ideal conditions.  SHould drop back under freezing Thursday, so if there is any snow left then, we will try sculpting it.

So, thats about it for now.  Hopefully I find a job, will keep you updated.