Random Drivel

401(k) Woes

Eric — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 05:56:55 +0000

After today’s stock market closing (Google says the Dow Jones Industrial Average is at 8579.19, -678.91 points today, (-7.33% change in value) as of Oct 9 4:07pm ET), my 401(k) is now -36.7% YTD with a net market change of -$8,825.40.

The part that stinks the most for me, however, is that barely 2 and a half years ago, I was walking across the stage accepting my college diploma, having never seen $8,825.40 all at once, ever, in my life. My first paycheck after that (two weeks pay!) was for more money than I had ever made in a calender year.

This sucks. I am 25 years old. I would freak out if I dropped a $10 bill.

I was watching the SNL “Thursday Weekend Update” tonight, and the Keenan Thompson sketch where he plays an economic advisor who screams over and over to “FIX IT! FIX IT! FIX IT!” Is exactly how I felt. I feel sick to the stomach about this. I know its not much money, and I know I’m young and there is plenty of time, and I’m not supposed to touch this money for 40 years anyway. But I feel sick about this.

The Further You Ride, the Better the Burger

Eric — Sun, 17 Aug 2008 23:59:24 +0000

Went for a motorcycle ride with a few coworkers and the motorcycle club. Rode about 120 miles, out to Caliente and around the loop. Stopped at a little burger joint out in the literal middle of nowhere! The further you ride, the better the burger.

Irony

Eric — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 05:14:05 +0000

Irony (ī‘rə-nē, ī‘ər-) n., pl. -nies.

1) Watching the South Park episode, “Guitar Queer-O” (which parodies the video game Guitar Hero by implying it sucks), and seeing a commercial promoting the new Guitar Hero: Aerosmith game.

Quarter Life

Eric — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 05:07:21 +0000

I’m sleeping on the couch this week while my parents are visiting California. Thus, in keeping with a tradition that is now 15 years running, I did not wake up on the morning of my birthday in my own bed!

Escape

Eric — Sun, 29 Jun 2008 05:40:03 +0000

I Just got done rewatching John Carpenter’s: Escape from New York on UniHD. I hadn’t seen it for some time, and it reminded me that I haven’t seen Escape from LA in quite some time, either.

I think they should make a sequel: Escape from Chicago. And if that one is a success, I feel Escape from Houston would be a massively popular follow-up. Both of those are coastal cities, so they could just reuse the plot from the first two movies again.

Escape from Phoenix would probably suck.

Google

Eric — Mon, 12 May 2008 02:18:57 +0000

Is it just me, or is it starting to get harder to find what you want on Google now? Maybe I’m just accustomed to finding what I want on Google in seconds, but lately I’ve had to wade through pages of crap to find what I’m looking for.

Some sites are starting to design their pages specifically to get high Google ranks… those cheaters.

Milestone

Eric — Tue, 06 May 2008 03:45:37 +0000

I’ve got 1083 miles on the VTX now. Awesome! The major miles were put on driving out to the Antelope Valley (200 round trip), Morro Bay (300 round trip), and joyriding around town as a weekend warrior. Lots of the miles were also driving to work, which is getting easier now that its no longer 30 degrees in the mornings. Here’s to the next 1000 miles, and a few more mods to the bike!

A New Role

Eric — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 02:26:09 +0000

I am now the Facilities Maintenance Team Leader, or, the manager in charge of the Facilities mechanics, at work. Role transition with the previous Team Leader starts, well, today really. I’ve been working for almost two years now, since graduating in May ‘06. This new job will be good for my development, so we’ll see where it takes me.

Facebook Applications

Eric — Thu, 10 Apr 2008 04:15:37 +0000

Wow, Facebook. Maybe you should try to chill out a little bit…

Here’s a screenshot of the application requests (38 at latest count) I have right now on facebook, or at least the ones that I haven’t deleted yet. I wonder if I can make it to 100?

Photographic Evidence

Eric — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 04:00:14 +0000

She doesn’t exist until she’s been photographed!

Picked her up today, and rode her out to the freeway and back. Clocked 53 miles already today. I’ll hit that 600 mile service before you know it! Photographic evidence: