The Beginning of Engineering...

WELL, AS MANY OF YOU ALREADY KNOW, I'M STARTING AT EMBRY RIDDLE MONDAY TO BEGIN THE PURSUIT OF A BACHELOR OF SCIENCE DEGREE IN AEROSPACE ENGINEERING WITH EITHER A FOCUS IN PROPULSION OR ASTRONAUTICS (THAT IS GOING TO BE A TOUGH DECISION WHEN THE TIME COMES). THE CLOSER IT GETS TO THE START OF CLASS, THE HARDER I FIND IT TO CONTAIN MY EXCITEMENT. MARCIE AND CICI (WELL, CICI) CAME UP WITH THE IDEA THAT I SHOULD START BLOGGING MY COLLEGE EXPERIENCE AS I GO AND SO THAT'S WHAT I'M DOING. (IF I GET MUCH MORE EXCITED ABOUT IT, I MIGHT JUST START CLOGGING ABOUT IT).

WHY DOES THIS SITE KEEP AUTOMATICALLY CHANGING MY FONT BACK TO THE DEFAULT?? IF I SIT HERE WITHOUT TYPING FOR A MINUTE IT GOES BACK TO THE DEFAULT SIZE AND FONT. IT'S DEFAULTY! I'M THINKING MY TYPING IN ALL CAPS MAY POSE SOME PROBLEMS, E.G. THE WORD "DEFAULTY" WOULD HAVE BEEN CAPATALIZED HAD I BEEN USING THE USUAL LOWER CASE LETTERS, BUT LET ME EXPLAIN WHY I'M USING THE UPPER CASE. IT'S ACTUALLY FITTING TO TONIGHT'S BLOG...

SO, I WENT TO THE BOOKSTORE TODAY TO GET THE MAJORITY OF MY BOOKS. IN FACT, I GOT THEM ALL EXCEPT FOR MY CALCULUS BOOK BECAUSE THERE'S A GUY IN ORLANDO THAT'S SELLING HIS FOR $75 WHICH WILL SAVE ME WELL OVER $100 OFF THE NEW PRICE OF THE BOOK, AND STILL A SUBSTANTIAL AMOUNT OFF THE USED PRICE (AT THE BOOKSTORE). SO I GOT THE BOOKS HOME AND IMMEDIATELY OPENED THEM UP AND STARTED READING. LET ME JUST SAY THIS, IT DIDN'T TAKE ME LONG FOR MY FEELINGS THAT THIS INDUSTRY IS GOING TO BE RIGHT UP MY ALLEY TO BE REINFORCED.

THERE IS SO MUCH EMPHASIS ON DETAIL, IT'S INSANE. FOR EXAMPLE, IN MY GRAPHICAL ENGINEERING BOOK, THE ENTIRE FIRST SECTION IS ABOUT WRITING LETTERS. NO, I DON'T MEAN LETTERS THAT YOU SEND PEOPLE. I MEAN LETTERS, LITERALLY. Is AND Os AND Gs... THE LETTER B REQUIRES 5 STROKES OF YOUR PENCIL AND THE STROKES HAVE TO BE DONE IN A CERTAIN ORDER AND GO IN A CERTAIN DIRECTION TO BE DONE PROPERLY. ALL THE LETTERS HAVE TO BE IN CAPS. SO NEEDLESS TO SAY, THAT'S WHY I'M TYPING IN CAPS (LET ME KNOW IF IT'S ANNOYING TO READ AND I'LL GO BACK TO THE REGULAR WAY). I DON'T THINK IT WILL TAKE MUCH TIME FOR ME TO MASTER MY PENMANSHIP FOR ENGINEERING BECAUSE I'VE GOTTEN TO WHERE MY PRINT IS PRETTY NEAT AND LEGIBLE OVER THE YEARS AND HALF THE TIME I DO WRITE IN ALL CAPS ANYWAY.

IN ANOTHER BOOK, THEY TALK ABOUT OVERALL COMMUNICATION AND HOW IMPORTANT IT IS TO EXPRESS YOURSELF THOUROUGHLY AND LOGICALLY AND WITHOUT BEING "PREOCCUPIED WITH FLOWERY DESCRIPTIONS AND THE PORTRAYAL OF EMOTIONS". YES!! NO ANNOYING HOPELESS ROMANTICS HERE!! NO FILLER!! JUST STRAIGHT TO THE POINT. AND THEN THEY GO ON TO POINT OUT HOW UNPROFESSIONAL GRAMMATICAL ERRORS ARE, NAMELY INCORRECT HOMONYMS (THEY'RE, THEIR, THERE... YOUR, YOU'RE... TO, TOO, TWO). THESE ARE ALL THE THINGS I COMPLAIN ABOUT! I'M IN HEAVEN!

I HAVE YET TO OPEN UP MY PHYSICS BOOK, I DON'T YET HAVE MY CALCULUS BOOK, AND THE ONLY ONE LEFT IS A BOOK ON CATIA WHICH IS A CAD PROGRAM (COMPUTER AIDED DESIGN FOR YOU ILLITERATES, AND I KNOW YOU'RE OUT THERE). I HAVEN'T OPENED THAT BOOK YET EITHER, BUT THAT CLASS SHOULDN'T BE TOO BAD BECAUSE I ALREADY HAVE SOME EXPERIENCE WITH A COUPLE OF CAD PROGRAMS, AND I LEARNED THEM FAIRLY QUICKLY AND EASILY. NEEDLESS TO SAY THIS PROGRAM WILL BE MUCH MORE INVOLVED THAN THE OTHERS.

THIS IS ONLY THE BEGINNING. I HAVEN'T EVEN GOTTEN TO THE PART ABOUT WHAT KIND OF STUFF IS ACTUALLY AT THE SCHOOL. I WALKED MY SCHEDULE TODAY ON CAMPUS TO FAMILIARIZE MYSELF WITH WHERE EVERYTHING IS AND WHERE MY CLASSROOMS ARE. ON MY WAY TO ONE OF MY CLASSES, I PASS BY THIS CLASSROOM THAT HAS THREE OR FOUR HUGE JET ENGINES JUST SITTING INSIDE. THESE THINGS ARE SITTING ON THE FLOOR AND ARE TALLER THAN YOUR HEAD! ON THE WAY TO ANOTHER CLASS, I GET TO PASS BY THE STATE OF THE ART WEATHER CENTER WHERE I GOT TO SEE HURRICANE BILL CREEPING UP ON FLORIDA IN REAL TIME ON WHAT'S GOT TO BE A 9 FOOT TV SCREEN. THE PROJECTED PATH WILL COME IN TOWARD FLORIDA AND THEN JUST FOLLOW UP ALONG THE EAST COAST. IN OTHER CLASSROOMS THEY HAVE PRESSURE CHAMBERS, FLIGHT SIMULATORS, RESEARCH EQUIPMENT THAT HAS ACTUALLY BEEN TO SPACE... AGAIN, IT'S HEAVEN.

I'M THINKING ABOUT BRINGING MY CAMERA WITH ME TO CLASS ON MONDAY AND TRYING TO FIGURE OUT A WAY TO TAKE SOME PICTURES OF SOME OF THIS STUFF WITHOUT LOOKING LIKE TOO MUCH OF A TOURIST. I DON'T KNOW. WE'LL SEE. IF I DO, I'LL POST THEM UP. OH, I'M ALSO PLANNING ON GOING UP IN A PLANE BEFORE TOO LONG. I'LL TAKE PICTURES OF THAT TOO.

I GUESS THAT'S ABOUT ALL FOR TONIGHT. I THINK I'LL GO BACK TO READING MY BOOKS. LET ME KNOW IF THIS CAPS THING IS ANNOYING, FOR REAL.