May/June Recap

Life has changed in the last two months. All things taken into consideration, I'm happier now than I was in April. Here are the updates:

1) I'm dating a great woman with whom I love spending time with. She can cook, she's beautiful, she's a girly-girl, and did I mention she cooks? heh heh. She's very unique, and she has the cutest laugh I've ever heard.

2) I dealt with a pretty serious ordeal at work in which a disagreement with someone went too far. The issue got resolved, but mercy--THAT was a stressfull week.

3) I'm actually friends again with an ex-girl/former arch-nemesis from the fall--we had a blowout and weren't speaking for months, but in May we got in touch again...Life is funny like that.

4) My last trip to NY was crazy.....I shan't go into detail here, but all i will say is "JerkAsUsual" (inside joke)

5) My God-Daughter's birthday is this month!! she turns TWO years old!

6) Shout out to my boy (I won't put his name out there)--he just got his Bachelors Degree after facing obstacles at every turn. If you look in the dictionary next to the word "True Man" you will see his picture. He loves his daughter and treats her like a great father should.

7) When will the world realize that I am always right?

The Importance of Infrastructure Protection

This nation runs on a series of infrastructures set in place to preserve the quality of life that Americans experience freely. These infrastructures are divided into two distinct categories: Critical and Non-Critical. Under the purview of Critical Infrastructures, lies the Energy, Communications, and Water Processing, among others. Non-critical infrastructures, such as transportation, are important as well; however, the Critical Infrastructures remain in persistent danger from adversarial attack.

Why?

The answer can be summed up in two words: Infrastructure Interdependency. There are, within the category of Critical Infrastructures, certain infrastructures that rely on others to operate. This reliance is called Infrastructure Interdependency. For instance, Water Processing is among the most important critical infrastructures in place; however, a majority of its associated functions require power to operate. Electricity is needed to run the purification modules; energy is needed to operate the pumps that push the water. If an adversary were to disable the Energy Infrastructure within a particular region for an extended period of time, the Water Infrastructure would be crippled as well.

Access to water via plumbing would diminish within hours; within days, bottled water in retail stores would see a 100% acquisition rate. Civil unrest wouldl develop shortly thereafter, as citizens demanded a solution from their Government.

Although Continuity of Operations (COOP) plans are in effect for temporary disability, there is no way to prepare for an extended COOP plan. These plans are to ensure the continuity of operations until the situation is resolved--often having a truncated time frame within which operational status must be resumed. This is why infrastructure protection is one of the most essential functions of every level of government--be it Federal, State, or Local. We simple have too much to lose by NOT protecting our infrastructures.

New Lexus IS 250 AWD

Well, i finally made the jump into luxury. Behold, my new baby:

Top 5 Television Series Of All Time

1) "Battlestar Galactica"

2) "24"

3) "Lost"

4) "Law and Order: SVU"

5) "Prison Break"

My Swagger is on Autopilot

It's been almost a month since my last post--WOW, do I have updates for you guys.

1) Update 1: Interracial Dating:

So i entered my first interracial dating situation back in March. It was an excellent experience. There was a lot of hate from my friends, and I need to put this foolishness to rest now. A lot of my black female friends would ask foolish questions like "so, what...Black women aren't good enough for you now?" and "Ohhhh you're selling out" WHAT....THE....FRACK?

I'm shutting you all down now--a beautiful woman is a beautiful woman--I don't care if she's black, white, hispanic, asian, indian, or middle-eastern. She was college educated, and was beautiful, believe me--she treated me like a KING even though we only dated for about a month. (ended on good terms--very very complex situation). She was a good friend of mine before we dated--race has nothing to do with anything. NOTHING! All the haters out there, cut the malarchy at once.

2) Update 2: The Housing Market

So, I was going over the numbers for this Jaguar XF that I'm thinking about pursuing; however, I started looking at houses online, and now I'm considering pursuing my second house before getting the Jag. Renting out my current house would be easy to do, since I live a stones throw away from a U.S. Army Base with lots of people stationed there long-term looking for places to live. the plan is to calculate what my payments will be on the Jaguar, and then make sure the rent I charge turns a profit at least half of the cost-per-month for the Jag. Oh!, the joys of homeownership

3) Update 3: My Current Situation

I'm currently something with this student from my alma mater, Howard University. I phrase it like that because all we are now are friends who have recently discovered we like eachother. The catch is, she's 20. That's quite a few years younger than I am, and her immaturity shows. There are.......certain things.......that she does not do. I won't go into the implications of that, because that would take all day--but for the foreseeable future, we will continue to just be friends who like eachother. Her thought processes have some maturing to do. Plus, I'm in my relationship-only tip right now...and she is NOT relationship material.

4) Update 4: Manchu's Dating Philosophy

My formula is Friend-> Date-> Relationship. Contrary to the societal norm, I only date friends of mine. I find that it leads to a more fulfilling relationship and a deeper connection. Now, the down side to this is--if you end on bad terms, then you lose a friend. It's up to those parties involved to make sure things DON'T end on bad terms. i am only on bad terms with two of my exes--the rest of them I've remained friends with and they don't hesitate to tell me about myself when I seek advice.

I will not walk up to a random pretty woman on the street and ask for her number. That is classless. So now, I'm in something of a pickle: my 2010 resolution was to just have relationships--no "mutually beneficial friendships." But it looks like so far, when i've tried to make the relationship thing work--something happens and it doesn't work. I think i may need to retire from relationships for 2010.....easier said than done, since once I pick a friend i like, I tend to pursue her without consciously realizing it. My swag is on autopilot. I'll need to think of this a bit more.

The Jaguar XF Belongs In my Driveway

So, I was talking to my Father about cars yesterday and he was telling me how he took his Jag in for service, and while he was there, he was looking at the new models. He began to tell me about the Jaguar XF Model, which I was aware of, but never paid much attention to since it was out of my price range...or so I thought. He sat down with the sales rep and ran the numbers just to see what the cost of owning that vehicle would be, and it turns out I could easily afford the monthly payment on the XF. So now, I've been considering a new vehicle purchase, and I might shoot after the XF. After all, the best time to make expensive purchases is BEFORE marriage and kids, right?

College.......

One of the most important lessons a parent can teach their child is: Choose your major well. The importance of selecting a major that has practical applications in the real world cannot be emphasized enough.

Passion alone is not enough to be successful

My undergaduate major was Sociology, with concentrations in Research Methods and Statistics. I selected this major because I loved the subject matter and, although I knew it had no practical use outside of the scholastic environment, I went ahead anyway--since I planned on going to Law School right after undergrad.

Right? WRONG!

As i neared my senior year of college, I began to veer away from the law field and selected technology and business as my graduate pursuits. I took enough classes in each subject to get into a very good program involving both subjects; however, until I finished the program, I had to work.

1st. Sign of an Impractical Major

It took me 4 months to find a job in my field after graduation. Throughout college I worked as a full-time Overnight Security Officer, so--after telling all my co-workers that I was graduating college--imagine their reaction when I was still working security 4 months later. If i had a nickel for every time i heard "Matt, didn't you graduate?" or "Matt, If you have a degree, what are you doing here?"

2nd Sign of an Impractical Major

When I did find a job in my "field," it was in the facet of my field with which i was highly unfamiliar. My undergrad studies focused mostly on harcore research, calculations, and statistical software i.e. SPSS and others. This job I found after graduation was a Counseling Position. As in, counseling troubled teenage girls ages 16-22 who had been through a traumatic experience. I hated that job, and I didn't not care about the clients I was counseling. The worst part is--they could easily tell that I cared nothing for their well-being. I would give them the cookie cutter response and kick them out my office. i'm not sure if i helped anyone while at that job, and i honestly don't care.

Motivation

Graduate School saved me from misery. Taking up the business and technology fields for my Masters Degrees got me into a career with the Federal Government that i absolutely love. I get to use my analytical skills acquired in my major, so I finally have an opportunity to utilize what I learned and enjoy it. You would be surprised how much your attitude towards your job affects your performance.

Summation

I told that story to make it apparent that if you do not select a major wisely, life will be hard once you graduate. I struggled for a while after graduation financially. Why? Becasue there simply is no need for Sociology outside of the research and data analysis worlds-and to become a part of one of those worlds, one must have a graduate-level or higher degree. For those of you who are in college, or getting ready to do to college, heed my words well. Select Your Major, NOT based solely on to your innate passions; select your major based on what will offer you a comfortable life after graduation. I no longer struggle, and i literally make 3 times as much as i did when i first finished college; however, as with anything else worth doing--it is not an easy road to tread. You can always use grad school to pursue your passions, but for your undergraduate education, BE PRACTICAL.