Introduce Yourself

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  • I would love to ask the UK forum folks some questions about British education stuff. I'm going go go see if I can excavate one of the General Topic threads.....
  • Sure thing, I'll be happy to assist in answering =)
  • @BorbaSpinotti:

    "Perhaps you're having a case of Pre-grets: knowing that in most of the parallel universes representing your future, something you're doing now turns out to be stupid. C'est la vie. I really loved JoCo's note where he describes Town Crotch as a memory he wishes he had. I'm now toying with the idea that we are defined by the union of a) memories we wish we had, and b) those we wish we didn't."

    The last part is a fantastic idea, and the first part is probably true.

    I've revised my NELC/Spanish/Religious studies/LAMP majors plan and, I think, turned it into just a NELC/Spanish/Religious studies majors plan, which leaves me space to take electives without staying a fifth year - a couple of music theory or creative writing classes, perchance, or anything else that catches my eye. I think I may have finally hit upon something.

    (I am constantly simultaneously intrigued and terrified of the idea of taking calc-based physics. It's a five-credit class (well, two semesters of a five credit and one semester of a three credit class, if you take the entire sequence), which is crazy, but it still sounds ... I don't know. Physics is something I would like to understand, and I never really got it in high school. I have tons of biochem major friends who have to take the first two next year. Maybe I will take it with them and make them help me if/when I'm lost. But then ... it becomes either physics or music theory and creative writing. Decisions! They will, I swear, one day be the death of me.)
  • I loved physics. Then again, I was one of those biochem majors.
  • Hey, everyone! I'm Hepcat, and I discovered JoCo within the last few months, via "Escape Pod." It took a while between realizing I really like his music and wandering over here and getting some of it because I am always driving when I listen to EP -- I have a hideous daily commute -- and I kept forgetting to come check out the site.

    I live in the midwest (though we're having a windstorm that might forcibly relocate me -- I would prefer to land in some sunnier, warmer clime). I'm female, more of a New Yorker/Northwesterner hybrid than a midwesterner. I write for a living and for fun as well. I have a cat who is named after Dr. Ralph Stanley, the bluegrass musician. I get performance anxiety when called upon to describe myself.
  • Hi, Hepcat! Good to meet you. Isn't Escape Pod a science fiction short story site? How does music figure into it, and which JoCo songs did you hear on it?
  • More Midwesterners == Greater Chance of Another Concert At Blueberry Hill.

    Welcome to the forum, Hepcat. :) I'm blowing around here too. Sometimes I think Missouri tries to see how many seasons it can cram into a single day. >_<
  • @ Jinx: Yes, Escape Pod is a podcast of short science fiction. Once in a while Steve Eley plays a song he feels fits in with the story that's just been read -- or maybe he's just in the mood. The first I heard was "First of May," but he's also played "Skullcrusher Mountain," "Chiron Beta Prime," "Better" ... and something I'm forgetting.

    I love that podcast, and it's saved my sanity in the last year since I started the job with this crazy commute (1 hour, all country roads).

    Today has been weird, hasn't it, IndigoMonkey? A drop of 36 degrees since I woke up.

    Thanks for the welcome!
  • I'd give my left leg for a country commute. Stop and go traffic sucks on a manual transmission.

    This must be a massive front. I'm about to blow away here in Alabama, too. Welcome, Hepcat!
  • Indiana here, it was rainy/cloudy all day, then it started storming, and suddenly the temperature dropped like, thirty degrees and it was blizzarding. Though I don't think there was actually that much snow. But yeah, bizarrest weather ever.
  • shaggyJD, if you gave your left leg how would you drive a manual transmission?
  • With my tongue.
  • shaggyJD: I think it's time for you to go to sleep now too. You're getting punchy. ;-)
  • Just part of my natural charm, I guess.
  • Well, I'm finally going to call it a night. I got a hard day of revenuin' to do tomorrow . :-) Literally logging off the internetz as soon as I hit the "add" button. G'night all. It's been fun!
  • should this one be sticky? i feel like this one should be sticky.
  • Looks like Bry agreed with you, it is sticky now.
  • ^ wins at life
    |
  • I'm relatively new to the phenomenon that is Jonathan Coulton. A friend sent me a link to the "Baby Got Back" cover last week, and curiosity demanded that I visit his website. I was surprised by the quality (and quantity) of the songs here. I think what got me hooked was his ability to sound so morose over something so obviously whimsical as in "Furry Old Lobster," "Millionaire Girlfriend," "Skullcrusher Mountain," etc
  • There's an interesting story behind "Furry Old Lobster" in particular; it was written to accompany something a college buddy of his wrote.
  • My favorite book and the reason I came here in the first place!
  • Trust her. Buy it. She has good taste.
  • my favorite book to date is probably idoru, by wm. gibson.
  • By the way, welcome, Skizzlethorpe!
  • Fo' shizzle

    (it had to be done)
  • Welcome Skizzlethorpe,

    If you get the audio version of The Areas of My Expertise, it is read by Hodgman and co-hosted by none other than our favorite Internet Superstar.

    I'd been raving about JoCo for a couple of months when my brother brought the audiobook on a road trip, having no idea that THAT was Jonathan Coulton. It was a lovely piece of serendipity.
  • Wow, Jesss! So did your brother become a JoCoFan too?
  • Yeah, he went to the concert with me in September and said that it was the best show he had ever been to. He went to college in Boston and went to a number of shows so I figure that was high praise. I almost had him convinced to drive down to SF for the DVD show but, alas!

    I didn't have the guts to come alone but I probably didn't have the money anyhow. I'll definitely buy the DVD as soon as it is out.
  • edited February 2008
    Gosh, I've gone and done this all backwards, having posted elsewhere, but I suppose I'll drop in the thread for Posterity.

    I think I first heard about JoCo from some random Blog link to "Baby Got Back" - I kept coming back from random blog links to other songs until I started to realize that I'd been here before. In the last year I have grown more interested in hearing more of JoCo's music and videos, especially after reading various articles about him.

    I've been "SaintPeter" online for about 5 years. It actually started out as a joke when I was playing an online game - someone came on as "Jesus" so I switched my name to "St.Peter". I've kept it, I think, because I'm an atheist and like the irony. Also, these names tend to sort of stick, when you have a continious online presence. I am a founding member/leader of a meta-gaming group, Bellum Aeternus. We play various MMOs and other online games, although I am currently cutting back in anticipation of the birth of my Daughter.

    I've been married since 2001, to a lovely artist I met at CSU Sacramento, where I got a degree in Electronic Engineering. I actually got a 7 year "4 year degree" by slacking off at a Jr. College for 3 years, pretending I wanted to be a Computer Science Major. I'm feeling much better now. Although I disliked the length I spent in school at the time, it did give me the room to figure out what I really wanted to do with my life. It also meant that the 2.5 GPA I got slouching through High School didn't stop me from getting into a CSU.

    Just out of school I got lucky and fell into a job with a major computer manufacturer where I have been a Product Engineer since 2000. I work on new product releases for our high end computers. To give you an idea of what I work on, they are about the size of 2 refrigerators and, I recently found out, someone was actually killed when one of our machines tipped over on them. Ouch. My favorite movie quote, from Remo Williams - "I thought they made these things smaller these days?" "These are the small ones."

    As previously mentioned, I am married and expecting my first child. She is due April 10th (currently . . . these things vary, by as much as a month already). I am attempting to maintain a Baby Blog with pictures and stories as we go. My wife is an artist and Domestic goddess, and doesn't seem to mind too much that I am a raging geek. I've been trying to cut back on my analytical tendancies as my child's birth approaches, but I can't shake the hope that I'll raise a little geek girl.

    When I'm not gaming, reading, web surfing or programming, I'm also completly addicted to police procedurals on Network TV.
  • St. Peter:

    From your autobio, I can't think of any place you'd fit in better than here. Welcome!
  • Welcome St. Peter! I also took the extended bachelor's option, and I managed to turn my high school C average into a cum laude. :-)
  • Hi St. Peter!

    They actually have a system for doing just that educational thing in Quebec, called CEGEP. It's a 2-year pre-college program designed to give students a chance to discover what they want to do, and it's tuition free.
  • I also took the extended bachelor's option, and I managed to turn my high school C average into a cum laude. :-)
    I missed Cum Laude by .033 GPA. I had a 3.477 at time of graduation. If I had gotten one less A- I could have had it. I was kicking myself good there. Oh well. That's what "Gifted Underachiever" must mean . . .
  • Yeah, I hear ya. I missed "magna" by about a hundredth or a thousandth of a point - something ridiculously close. I still got a 3.739, so I shouldn't complain (but I still do, apparently). ;-)
  • Hey, I did the 7 year bachelor degree, with about 2 years in Comp Sci. I switched to English though. Welcome, St. Peter! I like your shiny halo.
  • Hello, I'm sobachatina.

    I'm a 28 year old software engineer with 3 kids and live near Austin Tx. I want you all to appreciate how important you all are that I am willing to give up some of my precious web anonymity for the sake of this community.

    Some random evidence of my geekiness and fandom:
    I started listening to JoCo in Feb or Mar. of last year when Code Monkey made the rounds at work and I've listened to little else since then.
    The Future Soon reminded me so much of junior high that I was melancholy for a week. (Just ask my wife)
    I sang The Future Soon at a family reunion last year and converted a large portion of my extended family into fans.
    I can almost play Still Alive on my harmonica- it's not quite perfect yet.
    I was sick when JoCo came to Austin but a coworker (whom I also converted) went and brought me an autographed robot spin art.
    I regularly use JoCo as an example of what real musicians are like and what the music industry could become in comments on Slashdot. (Several of which have gotten to +5 Insightful)

    Is there an RSS feed for these forums?
  • Hello everyone.

    I'm laurelli. No one calls me that; it's just the name I have used on the internet for about the last 10 years. Real name is Lori.

    I'm a 35 year old, recently - unpleasantly - separated, mom of two teenage daughters who are infinitely more talented than their dear old mom. I live in rural Virginia, but am originally from the DC area. I found Jonathan when he did a spot on Fox 5 morning news here in DC, last summer when he played at the Birchmere. Fell in love with his music the moment I heard him sing – looked him up on the internet and have been hooked ever since. I love music; know all the lyrics to thousands of songs (and where to come in, and the inflection the singers use, etc.); was in chorus from 1st to 7th grade at my church; played the violin in 4th grade (top in my class) and the flute in middle school (and only quit that when they told me I would have to be in marching band in High School if I continued. I am a nerd, but I just couldn’t do it!) My youngest daughter takes after me this way; she plays the oboe and is one of the top players in her class. Her teacher just let her borrow a bassoon the school owns to try her hand at playing that. I help her practice learning that by letting her show me how to play the note on her oboe while she tries to match me on the bassoon (I knew playing an instrument would be beneficial somehow!).

    I am interested in art in all forms – drawing, writing, painting, clay, crafting, yarn crafts, scrapbooking. I tried my hand at being artistic for a living – I was contracted to be the inker and co-created a comic book that was published by an independent back in the 90’s. None of you would have heard of it, trust me. I decided in the end that I preferred to create for myself and it was not something I wanted to do for a living. My oldest daughter is an artist and wants to work as an artist for a comic company when she gets older. She draws mostly manga style and is much better than I ever was because she does it every day (which I never had the patience for).

    I am currently studying at a local college for my Associates in Communications. I plan on transferring to a University this summer or fall to start my Bachelor Degree. I hold a 4.0 grade average; am a member of Phi-Theta Kappa and have been solicited by several colleges to “attend”. I haven’t decided yet where I would prefer to go. I have made it my goal to complete my entire degree online. So far, so good. I have had several of my poems published. My youngest daughter also takes after me this way and has volumes of fiction she has written (but really won’t let anyone see!)

    My interests include everything stated above – movies, video games, reading (have hundreds of books – have read thousands), computers (software and hardware), concerts, learning, home improvements, etc. I am self taught in most areas.

    Ok – jobs I have held – starting from 15 on (shhh… don’t tell I lied about my age so I could work!)
    1) Line Server- Chesapeake Bay Seafood House
    2) Cashier – McDonalds
    3) Cashier – Dairy Queen (that was a fun job!)
    4) Pizza Inn – Making pizzas
    5) Cashier – Caldor
    6) Pharmacy Tech – CLOSED
    7) Maid – Conference Resort
    8) Data Entry – Internal Revenue Service
    9) CSR, Claims Adjuster, Customer Service Supervisor – National Electronics Warranty
    10) Secretary – Internal Revenue Service
    11) Office Manager – County of Culpeper

    As an office manager I did mostly budgetary duties – even though I have only had like 2 accounting classes in my life. I managed, prepared and reconciled an 8.5 million dollar budget(s) (actually 5) and performed Cost Accounting duties for our enterprise fund. I’m unemployed and looking right now – I can only work part-time because I got sick last year and can’t work full time anymore. I miss my job! Anyway, I’m over skilled for most positions and no one wants a part time Office Manager!!

    Anyway that’s me. I felt I had to share after reading about all of you. It seemed only fair.
  • @sobachatina -
    I accept your evidence of geekiness. You rate a 7.3 on the geek scale and, thus, meet the eligibility requirements for membership on this forum. Greetings.

    @ Laurelli2
    *sings*
    Laurelli, let's liiiiiiive together!
    </styx>

    Welcome to the party!
  • (((Lori))) -- Great to hear from you again, but sorry to hear about the unpleasant separation stuff. Sending my best thoughts your direction, and hoping to see you at the Birchmere in March. Try us out on the name of the independent comic and see if it rings any bells.
  • edited February 2008
    Welcome Lorelei! (My mind went to Gilmore Girls - sorry.)

    Pete: Oh dear gawd. Another Styx fan? :-) Dude, you didn't even have to tell me who sang that. Back in the 80s, when everyone else was listening to the King of Pop, or whatever, I was happily burning through the Styx catalog.
  • Welcome back Laurelli (Lori) and welcome Sobachatina!

    I have to say, I love this Introduce Yourself thread. Nice to get a glimpse of the other folks here.
  • Old person de-lurking to say JoCo is awesome and even appeals to some (many) of us who are in our fifties. My 16 y/o son (Asperger) 'forced' me to listen to his songs while we were on a long drive about 6 mos. ago. Totally hooked! Faves: Skullcrusher, Dance SJ Dance, Mandelbrot, Ikea, Brains--too many of 'em. It's a pleasure seeing a forum where the people are all so intelligent and NICE! It has also been a great way for me to learn more about the world my son inhabits. He's a complete geek/nerd & a most terrific kiddo.

    I used to work with kids with cancer (RN) but have stayed home since the birth of our son. I volunteer on local, state, and national levels in the area of children's mental health. We love animals and have always had many different types of critters in our home. I enjoy knitting, spinning, reading way too much, and the volunteer work.

    It's sick, really, how we can't seem to stop ourselves from spreading the JoCo word to almost everyone we encounter! Cannot wait to see JoCo in concert. When he comes anywhere near here, we're so going!

    I don't fit in very well but will continue to pop in as a lurker...you have taught me much and are a most enjoyable group.
  • Welcome. Has your son introduced himself here yet? If not, tell him he's been called out on the boards!
  • Welcome Sniffit. You fit it fine, we are hardly a homogeneous group. Feel free to pop in with comments anywhere that interests you. I bet we have a lot more lurkers that never post anything.
  • Hi, Sniffit! Yes, what jesss said. :-)
  • Thanks so much for the welcome! Agree about there being lots more lurkers than those who post or introduce.
    @Spiff-Told 16 he was being called out & he grinningly said he's going to think about it. He immediately went for the Wii after coming home from school, so who knows when he'll surface. Computers & games = Life!
  • @ everyone: Welcome, welcome! (And we're always looking for musically talented people who want to be involved in the Jonathan Coulton cover band, The Mandelbrot Set. See relevant threads for details!)
  • @Sniffit: Welcome from another "old person"!
  • @sobachatina: I only joined the forum recently, and can't confirm how much verbal coverage The Future Soon has received. But yes, I reckon that's an excellent geek litmus test. Depends on how you experience it though. Merely being reminded about being a lonely kid isn't enough - you've got to really analyze the character and measure how close you were to turning into a psychopath. And when you start nurturing your newly-reified archetype, dressing it up and lovingly texturing its pimples... Welcome to the forum!

    Seriously though, I really love that song. Yeah, I know, it's a mainstream one, and on the forums you're not supposed to show mainstream leanings, but there you have it. Probably my favorite aspect is the sheer earnestness, and all the cues in the arrangement that tell you to sympathise with the character. I mean, can you get more earnest that the backing "oohs" during "and I'm all alone during couple skate"?

    Most of us, geek or not, probably have a Laura in the closet. I reckon that, long enough after the fact, the feelings polarize into either a sense of acute loss or disbelief at one's stupid taste. Maybe this polarization is an important part of what defines the true Laura. Then again, I did overcome my Laura, so that would dilute my geek credentials. Does losing one's virginity three months before your 30th birthday make up for it though?

    @everybody who have love-hate relationships with archetypes: I'm currently at a rather intensive (we don't say Boot Camp anymore!) course in rural Oxfordshire. Various courses started at the same time, and a part of orientation on Sunday evening was herding everybody into their respective groups. When they called for the DBA group, about 15 of us (of mixed description, but all male) followed the instructor. Then a mistake was realised and a clarification issued: "Sorry, this is the SQL Server group. Oracle guys, please stay behind." All the older guys with beards turned back.
  • Hi I'm monkeybiznis I was heavily addicted to WOW for 8 months... oh, sorry this isn't that video game addicts page... haha, no, I listen to JoCo because he is creative and enegetic and pretty wicked. His music gets me going in the morning with a semi-insane-happy mood.
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