It’s March 17 already. St. Patrick’s Day. In one respect, it’s hard for me to believe that a lot of time has passed since I was in grad school (9 months), since my sister had her daughter (8 months), and since I got married (20 months). But at the same time, considering that so much has happened in my life in the past few years since I left San Diego, I’m surprised that it’s only March 17.
I have a standard set of things I always do: work, eat, sleep, play video games, ride my bike, and hang out with Christine. I also read when I get the chance (although lately I’ve just been reading about cycling). I am really enjoying my life, but lately I’m trying to do things that don’t necessarily fall in that set (in addition to continuing to do those things in the set).
For instance, I now have tangible fitness goals when I ride my bike, whereas for the past six months or so, I’ve just been riding for recreation (not that this is a bad thing, I just think I need a goal to keep myself motivated to ride more often). I want to become a stronger and faster cyclist, and I eventually want to enter local races. I’ve even gone as far as isolating an event in which I intend to compete (a time trial), and I’m training specifically to be at my peak when that even comes around.
I’ve also decided to learn a new language (I know, this is something that I should wait to do until my mid-life crisis, but I like to get things done before they become a problem). Right now I’m learning Russian, mostly because I’ve always loved the way it sounds. I’d also like to visit Russia someday, so it might come in handy to know some of the language.
I’ve mentioned in previous posts that it is a goal of mine to read more actively, and I’ve been doing that. I know I promised a couple of reviews for The Three Musketeers and Dracula, so maybe I’ll post them soon. I’m going to start reading Wilkie Collins’ Woman in White before the end of the month.
I went snowboarding this weekend for the first time in about 10 years, and I rediscovered how much I enjoy it. I enjoyed the trip so much that (unfortunately for my pocketbook), I want to go again before the end of the season, and get some gear so I can go frequently next year (I know I have at least one reader who goes to Mammoth fairly regularly).
I’ve been playing electric guitar in church for the past few months. Every other Sunday, I get up before dawn to meet the worship team for practice at 7:00 a.m. (this is earlier than I get up for work). I’m not complaining though; I love the experience and it is great to be able to play music with other musicians, as opposed to sitting in a room alone with my guitar, playing rhythm through a loop and playing lead over the top of it (although I believe spending time alone with my guitar is also necessary and good).
There’s not a real focus to this post, and I realize that. I don’t think I have much hope of salvaging this writing, so I suppose I’ll just conclude by wishing all of you a Happy St. Patrick’s Day. Don’t forget to read the wikipedia article about the history of the holiday!
As a quick update, I’ve been riding my bike several hours a week now, and I decided that maybe I should start blogging about some of the experiences I have. The past couple months, I’ve been writing posts here about my favorite routes around Southern California, posting some pictures of things I see and experience on my rides, and in general writing about cycling. I might even start reviewing some of the products that I’ve acquired over the past few years.
The blog was originally started as an entry in a contest to win a bike (how could I pass up the chance at a free bike?), but since I didn’t win that contest, I’ve decided to tweak the purpose and content of the blog a bit. My goal is partially to help myself remember my favorite parts of riding around Orange County (and occasionally San Diego), but also I want to encourage others to ride bikes. I hope you enjoy it.
As a side note, I’ve also updated WordPress to a cleaner, awesomer new version (2.8.5). This change is probably transparent to you readers (all three of you).
It’s been some time since my last update, and quite a bit has transpired since then. So here is a laundry list of what’s going on in my life these days:
- I graduated from my M.S. program at UCI. It was a tough process, and I spent a huge part of my free time during the Spring quarter preparing for one thing – a 2.5-hour date with destiny. That’s right, the real analysis comprehensive exam. After I had studied the hardest I have ever studied for anything, I took the exam on Monday, June 15. After taking it, I felt like I had failed (yet again). I conferred with a few friends in my situation, and they shared my feelings. I was mildly depressed after that, and it wasn’t until the end of the following week that I learned that I had actually passed the exam, along with all of my second-year friends. Needless to say I was ecstatic as this was the last step I needed to take to guarantee my degree, so I am now officially Todd R. Royal, M.S. (although you’ll never see this written anywhere).
- In addition to passing my real analysis comp, I also decided to take a qualifying exam in complex analysis (a test reserved for Ph.D. students), because I had taken the course and felt pretty good about my chances. Turns out I was right, and I passed that exam as well, sort of as a “hey, I’ve still got it” message to the UCI math department. I was pretty happy when I learned that I had passed that exam, especially since I really only studied for it for two days (the exam was on Wednesday, June 17, two days after my real analysis comp). I thought it was a nice way to wrap things up at school.
- I got a job. In my last post, I mentioned that it looked like I wouldn’t be able to stay on at Western Digital, but as it turns out, my boss was able to get a requisition for me to do the same job I had been doing as an intern during the school year, but now with a greater salary, benefits, and all the other good stuff that goes along with working full-time. The timing of it was pretty awesome – I finished school on the 17th, and I started my first day as a regular employee on Monday, June 22. So far, it’s been an awesome job, and a welcome change from the stresses of grad school.
- We moved. Since I graduated, it was mandated that we could no longer live in graduate student housing (makes sense). We moved to a new apartment community in Irvine called Villa Siena, conveniently located near “downtown” Irvine, just a block away from the 405 (which I take to and from work every day; the song by Death Cab for Cutie comes to mind). It’s also nice because Christine can walk to work instead of taking a bus. We’re still getting settled in, but we are really enjoying the new place.
- I became an uncle. My sister has been pregnant for the last several months (almost nine, in fact), and on Friday, July 17, her daughter Karsie Gene was born. The whole experience has been interesting for everyone involved since Karsie has a physical condition that has affected her in many ways – but she seems to be getting better and better every day. You can read her story at karsiegene.blogspot.com.
- I’ve been riding my bike a lot more these days. It has become a source of great enjoyment for me over the past year or so, and every time I go out I feel awesome. My current goal is to ride from Irvine to Point Loma by the end of the summer, so I’ve been ramping up the distances I ride in order to prepare for it. If you have a bike, or money to buy one, I suggest you get out and ride as often as you can – you’ll feel great. Also, if you have time, you should watch some of the highlights of this year’s Tour de France, which ended yesterday. It was an amazing race, and it has helped launch a very exciting time for the sport of cycling.
That’s about all for now. I hope to update more often now that things are beginning to settle down. Thanks for reading.