Rob

I didn't mention this in the last post, but the wife and I took out to California last week.  We went up to Sonoma County for 4 nights.  Some highlights:

-  Visited 15 wineries in the Russian River Valley.  Ended up taking home 6 bottles of wine.  Even though the region in known for Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, I must say I really enjoyed the Zinfandels and Merlots that I had as well.  

-  Cruised the coastline on California Highway 1.  Also took a little hike out by the coastline.  Apparently no swimming was allowed because of the undertow and the randomness of "sleeper" waves, which cause several drowning deaths each year.

-  Casino!  Won $100 in 20 minutes.  Promptly walked out.

-  Rented a Toyota Prius.  450 miles of driving.  One fill-up at $4.70 per gallon for just shy of $40.

-  Saw my first ever electric car: the Zapp!  It had 3 wheels...topped out at 45 mph and got 25 miles to a full charge.  The boss wouldn't let me take it for a test drive...

-  San Francisco - Chinatown.  Food was alright.  Getting around was pretty annoying.

-  Red-eye flight home.  Original flight was delayed 3 hours, so we flew home at 3AM...

-  Armstrong Redwood preserve.  A 6 mile hike that took us up 1400 ft and back.  Very cool.

-  The owners of the bed and breakfast we stayed at are vegan!  Only in California.  

Ugh.  It's about 4AM and I can't sleep.  What a perfect time to update!  I intended to keep this high-level and fairly brief but as you can see, that didn't go down.  I promise to be entertaining this time.  This update may very well surprise you.

I've been living in Boston for just over a year and Helena has been in upper-Maine for a bit longer than that.  It's been a difficult trudge being far away from her for the extended period of time, but we manage.  It's not unlike situations where a spouse can live overseas fighting in the military, really, so it's not like we're the only ones doing it (maybe that's what keeps me going).  Anyway, within the next 6 months we'll figure out what we're doing in terms of where and when we'll be moving.  We'd really like to vacate the East Coast and head back to the Midwest if it came down to it, but who knows. 

There are possibilities for her in Maine more so than any other state now.  Unfortunately, there are not as many options in Maine for me.  One company in particular is hiring, but it's not in my industry...that is to say that I'd have to take a different set of Actuarial exams!  That means I'd have to take an earlier part of exam 3 and my attempts at exams 5 and 6 will not be applicable.  On top of that, that company is in Portland and it's still a good 4 hours from where my wife lives!!  But let's face it, there are bigger injustices in life and it could be a lot worse...if I have to take another exam it's not really the end of the world.  At least if I can work in Portland, there is a strong possibility of her being relocated eventually.

It's getting close to when I'll have to start studying for the next test (hooray!).  But in the interim, I've taken on a few extracurricular activities.  One of them being sailing.  They have this neat community boating program out here that provides unlimited access to boats and lessons for about $250 per season.  In terms of how much boating costs it is a steal.  Unfortunately, I haven't been out very much because it's a bit intimidating.  I'm glad I signed up, even though I absolutely suck. 

As for other activities, I've resumed martial arts classes after a decent sabbatical.  I have this tendency to start up some art, get decently far along, and then something happens when I can't take it anymore.  This may come as a surprise to most of you reading this that I even "do" martial arts...I keep/kept it secret from most people because for some reason I always found it to be a private matter.  It still kind of is, but I figure I might as well share it here. 

Anyway, it's been on and off since I was 6...my parents are both black belts in TKD, so naturally, I learned at their school when I was really young.  After that, I started up in early high school and continued for a few years until my instructor hurt his back and couldn't teach anymore.  I tried to attend a similar school in GR, but my car absolutely sucked and I couldn't make the drive often enough...  Later, I picked up another style, but kind of stopped because the instructor wasn't making enough money so he stopped teaching.  After that I did a bit in college but the start of Actuarial exams and school killed all of that.  I've been back on the horse for 6 months and I hope to keep going, because I really enjoy it.  So, to sum up, I started with Tae Kwon Do (TKD), two bouts of Shito-kan (hometown plus GR), jiu-jitsu, Aikido, TKD (again), and then TKD in Boston. 

It's great exercise!  Unfortunately, the cardio is good that it keeps me perpetually looking like a skinny punk.  Well, being vegetarian doesn't help either.  Oh yes, that's another ditty I'm sure most of you didn't know about.  Since I'm all about spilling the beans today, let's go with that.

I always wanted to go veggie, but my parents wouldn't let me.  So, I dealt with eating their shitty food during the early years.  Come college, freshmen year, I go completely vegan (no meat, eggs, dairy, or animal anything!)  For those of you familiar with dorm food, this is no easy task.  Anyway, at the beginning of my second year, I meet my now-wife and stay vegan for the second year.  After which, we move in together and I decided to "take one for the team" and just eat meat again to make it easier on meal preparation.  The funny part is, I had this funny idea to go "Atkins" for a week (to transition) to see what would happen.  That's a story for another time. 

Anyway, after that, I continue to eat meat until I graduate.  But as time went on, my wife started to get sick of eating beef, so we vow to cut out beef and chicken and just do fish.  This is mostly due to our trip to Hawaii where she discovered how much she liked a lot of different types of food other than steak and what-not (hey, she's from Kansas, that's about all they have there).  Anyway, as we do this, we start eating fish less and less...I think it got to a point where we had fish like twice a month.  Eventually, we lost our taste for meat...because eventually, as you cut out meat, you lose all craving for it and it just becomes revolting and it makes your stomach hurt. 

Anyway, we've been vegetarian ever since with no sign of going back.  I probably won't touch veganism again, because, hey, it's hard enough to eat out.  Plus there is no way I can not wear leather, sorry PETA =(

Oh God, what else?!  Piercings!  Early on in college (freshman year), I had this crazy idea to get a piercing (based on talks with my friend Liz).  Don't ask what possessed me, because to this day I don't even know.  Anyway, the day I go to get my piercing I decide to get my tongue pierced because I thought, "go big or go home", you know?  Several months later, I get my eyebrow pierced as well.  So at this point, I'm a skinny, pale, pierced-up, martial artist vegan.  You can't make this shit up, folks. 

So, I keep the eyebrow ring (actually, it was more like a "dual-spike" than a "ring" *throws up the horns*) until I take my first Actuarial internship (2004).  I kept the tongue ring until 2007 when I moved to Boston.  Because let's face it, I have a gay roommate, my wife is six hours away, and it's fuckin' BOSTON.  If it weren't the fact that I hate the Wizard of Oz (and that I'm not into dudes, of course) then I'd be a certified homo!!  So, naturally, I lose the tongue ring to avoid the shit the goes with it.  I absolutely loved it though, even though it sounds stupid. 

That's about it.  That should keep you pumped for the next installment, whenever that will be...

Life is pretty busy lately.  I'm hardly ever home!  I do a lot of my studying at the office both before but mostly after work so I don't usually come home until later in the evening.  With my 40 minute commute, it makes it hard for me to come home, eat, relax, and then start studying again.  On the weekends, it's a similar story.  

Otherwise, Boston is a pretty cool place.  The wife and I are already contemplating our next move(s).  We're thinking about a few oversea ventures, but this won't be until I'm credentialled, which is a few years off.  A few places come to mind.  Some exotic, others not so.  Perhaps Bermuda or the UK?  Even Dubai comes to mind.  You'd think I had enough after Boston, eh?  With all of these opportunities, it's hard to imagine going back to places like WI anytime soon. 

I'm still in the process of trying to convert my license over to Massachusetts.  I don't have a lot of the documents that the RMV needs to prove MA residency, since I don't have a lease or utility bills.  So, I'm waiting for my new checks/bank statement to arrive.  After that, I have to go through the ordeal to get a parking pass, as right now I'm using a temp visitor pass.  

That's about it, for now.  I have some grocery shopping to do.  Even menial tasks like that aren't easy to do around here.  Oh well!

Just received word that I passed my fourth (and latest) exam!  "Only" 5 more to go.  When you put it that way, it sounds so depressing! 

Holy shit, I typed up a huge entry, I went to spell check, then it said the server was too busy, so I went "back" and my entry was blanked out.  That's what I get for not taking my usual pre-caution and copying first.

Right.  Well, I've been having car issues for the better part of the week.  First, my check engine light informs me that one of my cylinders is misfiring.  So I swap some plugs, then change the wires, plugs, rotor, and cap for good measure.  I kid you not, 30 minutes later it comes on again.  Now it turns out that my O2 sensor is on the fritz.  This would be about the fourth O2 sensor we've had to replace.  I suppose we've run this JEEP through some tough conditions, but seriously, four times?

Anyway, I just pick up a new sensor and attempt to install it myself.  No dice.  The thing is jammed.  I WD40'd the heck out of it, and put almost enough torque to shoulder the bolt.  I say "forget it" and decide to just have the Midas people put it in when I have my new muffler put on next week.  Since they're already messing with the muffler and have it on the lift it'll be really fast.

On top of this crap, I needed new front tires since they were bald.  I swear, I take a small break after my exam is done and all hell breaks loose.  In the end, I'll just be driving it to Maine to dump it off on Helena.  I guess this means she'll have double the fun registering it and the SAAB at the DMV.  She'll be thrilled when I reminder of that tid-bit.

Anyway, I'm almost ready to move.  I have everything straightened out except hotel and flight reservations.  I believe I just need to get my carpet shampooed and pick up a rental car.  Oh and I should clean out this hovel.  Fun times.  This damn move better be worth it in the long run, that's all I've got to say. 

Work has been a nightmare lately with all of the juggling I've had to do with training and finishing major projects.  What makes matters worse is that no one at the company where I'm at now comes very close to knowing what I know about VBA for Excel. 

I hear you scoffing at "VBA".  For the record, our business function is heavily reliant on massive amounts of data.  Excel, Access, or SAS is good at faciliating these needs.  Using VBA extends my Excel capabilities to an extent that I can become really creative with my spreadsheets.  Unfortunately, any programming language that requires a stand-alone compiler would not add value.  

There is a new Bad Religion album coming out on July 10th.  That is definitely FTW x 2.  

Their song, "Honest Goodbye", on the BR MySpace page is borderline "meh", but it won't deter me from purchasing the album.  It's going to be tough to beat their prior release, in my opinion.  

Based on past experience, I haven't been disappointed with any of the albums.  Well, some of their demos done in the 1980 - 1982 period were sketchy and a little too raw, even for me.  But on the other hand, songs like "Drastic Actions", "Along the Way", and "How Could Hell Be Any Worse" are among some of the better songs.  

Apparently BR is the front-band of the Warped Tour this year.  I'm not sure how I feel about that.  At least the Warped Tour is playing more punkish music again, instead of the psuedo-rap-R&B stint they had going for a little while.  

This post (and me) are probably slightly drunk.  Ignore misspellings and slurs respectively.  

This post is a rant, and I apologize.  It will be long and boring, but to read it, you'll know what my life has become. 

Exam is over.  I have a life, temporarily.  "Temporarly" roughly translates to "a weekend", though =(  

See, we have exams administered through two "societies".  I belong to the side that does Casualty (e.g. Car, Homeowners, Workers Compensation) insurance.  For this particular exam, I have to take the "Life" (e.g. Pensions, health care, etc) exam which is jointly-offered between the two societies.  So, the "Life" exam was given about a month later than the "Casualty" exams.  This means that people that I work with are already studying for the next exam...needless to say I have less time to recover before I have to study again.

The good news is that if I pass, I'm DONE with the math intensive exams.  The exams take a turn for the worst and turn into essays about pseudo-doctoral research papers of actuarial science.  Not fun times. 

The exam was a bitch.  The good news is that I was prepared enough that studying more (by say 50-100 hours) would have added very little benefit.  I was crunched for time, but I felt I was about a high 60 to low 70 percentage points before I started chomping-at-the-bit to bust out problems in the last hour. 

Based on the feedback on the actuarial forums, everyone thinks the pass mark will be at or below 60%.  This puts me in good shape, reasonably. 

I can hear you thinking to yourself:  "You only need a 60% to pass your exams?!"  These are the hardest tests on the planet.  Not only are you responsible for knowing 2000 pages of material, all of which is esoteric mathematical ideas and insurance concepts, but the expecations are just plain unreasonable.  You can know a subject cold, have 500 flash cards and study for 600 hours and they can pull out some of the nastiest shit you've ever seen.  On top of that they pass between 30-45% of the people sitting (depending on the exam).  They do this to keep people out of the profession to keep the salaries high.  It's a fucking guild and it sucks balls!

The good news is that if you can get through the first three exams then you can do it if you work very, very hard.  Words can not describe how much of a bitch exam 3 is.  I still have nightmares about that test.  I've seen people drop the profession completely because of that exam.  More so than exam 1, which only one other person in my college graduating class was able to pass. 

Exam 4 (which I just took) has material that is easier to understand, but the sheer amount of material you need to know is staggering.  In previous journal entries, I've described "what it is I do" for these tests.  This tests assumes a base knowledge of calculus and probability and statistics, so, if I tried to explain what kind of questions they ask I'd sound like an estranged mad-man.  

Each time you take a higher level test you're competing with those who can actually "cut it" in the exam process.  This means that the questions can be off the fucking wall and there will always be a group of people can solve these problems easily, which is frustrating.  The good news is that the "naturally brilliant" are so used to being awesome that they have never had to study much.  These people get weeded out very quickly because you can't cut it with genius alone on these tests.  A friend of mine whose naturally affluence to math is far greater than mine hasn't passed more than one exam in two years because he just can't sit in a room for 300 to 400 hours.  That level of dedication is foreign to him.  

Back tracking to a prior subject.  You don't have to be a math major to be an Actuary.  You can be a geologist if you want, as long as you can pass exams.  With that said, most who go on are mathematicians.  The societies give you four tests that are all math and have almost 10% relevance to your job.  Sounds great, math exams for math majors, right?  I should mention there are 5 exams after exam 4.  They literally start making MATH majors take essay exams.  That's like making an English major take tests in Chemistry.  It's about that twisted.  You're expected to become book-smart in Law, Finance, and Accounting.  Hell, about the only thing they don't test you on is computer-knowledge, which is a shame because we're expected to be "systems" and IT savvy on the job for the most part.

I've got at least 2.5 more years of this crap assuming I can pass each exam on the first try.  I apologize if this sound post comes off as arrogant, but I can assure you any successful Actuary will have the same manifesto.  

At the same time, I love the competition and process.  It's very cut-throat, however, your competition is generally pretty likeable, and everyone wishes each other the best.  We all lament with those who fail, and celebrate with those who pass.  Promotions are very structured and free of corporate drama.  It's also nice to be able to learn something new everyday, even if I have to be tested on it in a very nasty way.  It beats out other professions like a PhD in medicine or Law because I can learn while I earn -- meaning no more formal schooling or loans.  I don't need an MBA to reach the upper-echelons of corporate culture either.  Actually, getting a top B-school MBA (e.g. Harvard, Wharton) probably might not pay off in the long run.  

Anyway, this is my life.  I hope you get a better idea of what my life is about after reading this.  Good times...

I'm this close to hacking out an entry. I will wait until after my exam on Wednesday. 

I will leave you with this: Stiffs Incorporated is an amazing band. Find them on myspace and give a listen.  Let me know what you think.