The Last Stride

Wow! I honestly can’t believe this is my last post for the semester, well probably ever. I am a bit sad I won’t be in attendance for our last class session. This week has been a hard one. I have been sick all week and I don’t seem to be doing better, declining for sure though. I have less energy to even walk today. I’m going to push through for these next few days and try to finish up the remaining work I have to do. I know I can, but looking at this screen for only 3 minutes now had really drained me and made my headache worse.

One more thing, congratulations you all we made it through the semester! I hope this summer is amazing for you all! Thank you Mr. Wu for your support an understanding!

Graduation Season

As we come to the end of another semester/ school year we get to see a new graduating class. Though I am not graduating this year, I will be celebrating a graduate in my family. My wife is graduating next Friday from UNLV with a Masters. With that being said, we have many family members coming in to town to celebrate. I am excited but, it is always a bit stressful when having family come to Vegas.

I am beyond proud of her for this accomplishment. She has been working full time as a teacher while also completing her Masters full time. She continues to make time for family and friends on top of it all. She is someone I look up to when it comes to reaching and working towards your goals.

One more week to go! I can't believe the semester is almost over, congratulations to you all!

May 1, 2022

I decided to make this week's post about my day today. I woke up pretty early considering I was awake between 1AM and 5AM. Around 8AM I got up to feed my dogs and start some biology studying. My wife and I enjoyed some chill time together after a late breakfast. We decided to go to one of our favorite local bars, The Garage, to celebrate both of us getting new jobs. They have a 2 for 1 happy hour special from 11AM- 7PM everyday, and they also have a little “grill” area for food open from 3PM to like 2AM. While there we talked about my wife getting her septum pierced so, we went to a shop that was recommended to us. As we sat there waiting for her to get the piercing I decided I would get a tattoo. I had been wanting one for a while now and a friend of ours drew me a butterfly tattoo design over a year ago. 2 hours later here we are finishing up an eventful Sunday. Back to the grind we go, hope you all have a great week!

TD08 PowerPoint Print Options

I learned many new skills in this PowerPoint chapter. One thing, in particular, I had never explored prior to completing this section was the PowerPoint printing options. 6.10.2 is so simple and useful but I never needed to print my presentation so I never needed it. I just like that I am now equipped to prepare and print presentation slides that include note sections and headers and footers.

The Aftermath

I felt inspired to go ahead and detail the concert experience since there was so many well wishes on the last post.

Allegient Stadium is gargantuan to begin with; I think we ended up walking some miles throughout the entire concert. As we walked up to the venue, we saw all of the other ARMYs gathering with their friends, showing off their outfits and lightstick designs, and sharing and swapping their photocards. I received a number of small freebies that other concertgoers had brought to pass out including a photocard and a few stickers.

I pride myself on being a fan while having some sense about me but the scream that I let out when the lights first went down can only be described as ear-piercing, blood-curdling, and everything in between. I actually think I lost my voice right there at the beginning because I was struggling throughout the rest of the concert. It was the most fun I've had in FOREVER.

BTS' ability to tour in general has been greatly affected by the pandemic. My friends and I speculated that there may be a world tour announcement at the end of the concert but didn't want to get our hopes up too much. Finally, after the last song, the lights went down and suddenly displayed was a compilation of clips of them throughout their career, since their debut in 2013. Then at the end it read: "06.10.2022". I used the last bit of voice to scream at this announcement.

Just know after June 10th you can catch me bumping their new album daily!

Turning Vegas Purple

This upcoming Saturday is the BTS concert. BTS is a South Korean music group comprised of 7 members if you haven't heard of them before. 

BTS' group of fans is called "ARMY". I'm particularly excited because I became a fan during the pandemic and have not had the chance to see them live yet before. A few months ago, before the concert was even announced, I purchased an ARMY lightstick for the group. The lightstick is pretty self-explanatory; it's designed to have the group's name and can connect to their music videos to light up in different, ordered sequences. At the concert, I'll be able to connect the lightstick to my concert seat and shapes and designs are displayed throughout the crowd. I cannot wait to be in the middle of the madness and just have the time of my life. 

The best part is that the concert is only 1 portion of their overall "Permission to Dance" Vegas experience. They are hosting other events around the city and I'm hoping to catch the light/water show at the Bellagio Fountain. 

For fun, if you want to, please look up the 7 members and comment who your favorite would be and why based off first impression! :)

TD07 Microsoft Excel 5.5 Formatting Cells

There were many things in this section that I was aware of because it is used the same way in Word. The number formatting features were the biggest thing I learned from this chapter. I was a stranger when it came to Excel, I would avoid using it at all costs. Someone like me would have taken the time to go cell by cell adding dollar signs, decimals, and hyphens. Being able to use just a click or two to go from just numbers to money or phone numbers. I will be sure to put this to use at work.

Resorts World

My first time going to Resorts World was a few weeks ago and I loved it. I don't usually gamble but, waiting around for people to buy cigars for 15 plus minutes piqued my interest to try gambling. I remembered watching this TikTok a few weeks before and the guy was going around showing how to choose a good slot to sit at. "A winning slot." is what he called it. Watching the video, I thought it was fake and maybe it is fake, and I was just lucky that night. He says to look out for signs like a bowl full of coins on one machine and the machine next to it which is the same game may have barely any coins in the bowl. With nothing left to do but wait on people, I decided to try it out. I put $5 in the machine and my first .88 cent bet hit, I won $27. The total amount I walked away with on that machine was $157 within just 10 minutes. I have never had such an experience; it was very exciting. I didn’t gamble anymore after that because I didn’t want to lose it all but, I have been itching to try this trick out on more machines. If you like to play slots, I recommend trying this trick out and seeing if it works for you.

One of Many Thoughts

Right now I am sitting here thinking about what to write. I am not sure where to even start, so I welcome you to my thoughts.

Well My wife's birthday is coming up and I wanted to surprise her with tickets for RuPaul's Drag Race Live, we have been saying we were going to go since before the shutdown. Which was before we even moved to Nevada. I have made the plan and bought tickets but we now have a problem. My wife came to me yesterday telling me she wanted to go to RuPaul's Drage Race  Live for her birthday. Even though she told me she did not want to do anything but have a nice dinner. She also wants to invite a few friends to come with us. I did not tell her I already bought the tickets and I am not really sure what to do. Do I ruin her surprise and tell her or should I just get a refund for the tickets and buy new ones with seats next to our friends. If I tell her I only have 2 weeks to find something else to surprise her with.

Hell's Kitchen

This Saturday I checked something off my bucket list. I ate lunch at Gordon Ramsey's Hell's Kitchen. I grew up watching the show, never thinking one day I would eat their signature dishes. Walking in immediately you feel like you're on set. Pictures of all the winners framed. Chef Ramsey cookbooks, famous saying mugs, and custom red and blue chef coats on the walls. We got a table that overlooked Cesar's Palace waterfall. Since it was noon the floor-to-ceiling windows filled the dining room with lots of natural sunlight. I ordered the lobster risotto, parmesan caesar salad, baked macaroni and cheese, and the braised short rib. It was truly delicious, and it was worth the wait.

Creating and Formatting Tables

The entire section of 4.8 Creating and Formatting Tables has taught me so much and has been useful in making my job a little easier at work. Not only was I extremely shook when I created a resume from a blank document starting with a table of 3 columns and 4 rows and adding on from there. I have created a table template for inventory items at my job, also a different table for specimen tracking and abnormal final results. I am excited to see what I will accomplish from learning Excel and PowerPoint.

IS101 Introspection

Why am I in this class?

Honestly, I had no intentions of taking this class, and I did not research what the class would be about before registering. I needed an elective prerequisite course for my major and IS101 was the first recommended course that had open seats. This specific session was the best time for my schedule.

What is my proudest moment?

My proudest moment of IS101 so far is applying the information I am learning about Windows OS and Microsoft Office Word. I mean two months ago I was not able to say I am Microsoft Office Word proficient, today I can say that I am a bit more. I am using Word and creating templates, posters, and more for multiple different uses at work. Just being able to play around with Word clicking on every tab inside of a tab to learn yet something else I never knew I needed to know, but now can use.

Trader Joe's

I am not sure if you all have been exposed to the hype of the Trader Joe's grocery chain. I know many people who always talk about them going to or what they got from Trader Joe's. My first time hearing of Trader Joe's was back in 2019. However, my first time going to Trader Joe's was this past Monday but only for a short time.

We had stopped there to get a few things to bring to brunch. It didn't take me long to know I would be back. What I did not know was I would be back the next day. I had seen so many things I wanted to purchase the day before that I could not stay away. I came to the store with intentions to browse the entire store. It was pretty crowded when I got there so I decided to grab a few items and leave.

I bought this blueberry goat cheese, pita crackers, spinach dip, frozen orange chicken personal meal, a pancake bread loaf, family size frozen orange chicken, and frozen lo mein. I had previously tried the goat cheese at the brunch I attended on Monday, I had the frozen orange chicken meal for lunch, and it is probably the best personal frozen meal I've had. On Tuesday and Wednesday, my family tried many of the things from Trader Joe's and we have all really enjoyed everything.

I wanted to get some more of the frozen meals to eat at work but I just could not find the time to get there Wednesday or Thursday after work. I decided to go before work yesterday (Friday) because I really wanted to try something else from there. My quick stop at Trader Joe's lasted a bit longer than I expected, and when I walked out I knew that I would be back later that day.

Going Home

I have lived in Las Vegas for almost two years now, and it has been an experience for me. Nevada is the first place that I have lived other than my birthplace. I am from Texas, specifically Arlington, Texas. Arlington is in north Texas and is a part of the Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) Metroplex. I lived there for 22 years of my life. When I was 21 I moved from Arlington to Dallas, it was different than what I was used to even though it was only 40 minutes from my hometown. I went from the suburbs to the city.

Las Vegas has been great to me overall. There are many reasons I love being here including, the weather, mountains, and lack of mosquitoes. I also really enjoy the amount of entertainment I can always find. My absolute favorite part of Las Vegas (coming from a born and raised Texan) is being able to buy liquor/spirits at any time, any day, and almost anywhere. In Texas, they only sell beer and wine at grocery stores and convenience stores and that's after 11 AM. You have to go to the liquor store to buy spirits. Oh yeah, they also close at 9:00 PM, are closed on Sundays.

Over the past month, my wife and I have been discussing moving back to Texas. Our main reason for even thinking about moving back is that we want to start a family. Other than that both of our immediate families live in the DFW, and all of our friends. We have built many meaningful relationships here, and I love that I was able to meet the people I call my friends. Last week, we decided that we are going to move back to Texas. We have many things to do before that is possible but, if everything goes as planned we should be back in Texas by July 1, 2022. I am not sure if I want to move back to the DFW or try somewhere new like Austin or San Antonio. All I know right now is that I need to prepare myself for the year-round mosquitoes, humidity, and bipolar weather.

Las Vegas has been good to me, I know I will miss being here.

I Can Share That?

Something new I learned in chapter 2 was in section 3: File Management specifically 2.3.6 Sharing Storage Facts. First off, I did not know it was possible to share files and folders in the file explorer. I guess I should have known since I share files and folders in Google Drive daily with my traveling friends.

I would like to use the Windows file sharing at work because being able to just have access to files without having to email them to my coworkers or ask for them to be sent to me. It will alleviate issues when finding or accessing files when someone misses a day at work.

I am excited to bring this up to my Office Manager because all the office computers are on a shared network. He is often not in the office but is the only one with certain master copies from many documents we use to print patient paperwork or referrals. I am also the only Medical Assistant in the office and the only one who has access to certain laboratory information and, I now work part-time. If I could just store the lab results in a shared network folder then everyone including our physician will have access if I am not there to send or print out results when the reports are first published.

I am looking forward to being able to manage my workload better even when I am not in the office.

LOOK OUT: Social Engineering Attacks

Most of us know to always be cautious when using the internet to ensure our sensitive information is always safe. The need to use the World Wide Web is only increasing which means we have new internet users all the time, and we aren't always sure of what to look out for. Testout Office Pro LabSim 1.4.8 Internet Safety Facts, provided me with many precaution tips for internet use, specifically:

• Never implicitly trust information from the Internet. This includes web pages, email messages, social media posts, and downloaded files. Always validate such information against reliable sources.

To dive a little deeper into why we should not trust all information on the internet let's discuss common social engineering attacks seen on the internet and examples of how they are used. Four common engineering attacks are Reconnaissance, Pretexting, Email Attacks, and Browser Attacks.

• Reconnaissance passively gathers information about a potential victim. The goal is to identify key information needed to further exploit the victim. Forms include shoulder surfing, eavesdropping, and dumpster diving.
• Pretexting attempts to trick the victim into revealing sensitive information under false pretenses. Some forms of pretexting are Intimidation, social validation, and familiarity.
• Email attacks attempt to exploit a victim using email messages, which include phishing, spear phishing, Nigerian scams, and email hoaxes.
• Browser attacks convince the victim that they are performing a legitimate task within their browser window, when in fact they are being tricked into revealing sensitive information or installing malware on their computer. Some examples are pharming and rogue antivirus attacks.

After reading about these engineering attack types and looking up situation scenarios for each I feel more equipped to spot spam and fraudulent attack attempts more efficiently to ensure I'm keeping my sensitive information internet safe.

My Love For Dogs

For many dog lovers, their love for dogs started at a young age. I am no exception to that statement. Today I am going to tell you a story so old that I have no actual memory of it.

One of my favorite movies as a toddler was 101 dalmatians. It is said that I would watch this movie repeatedly, every day if my family let me. Even at the young age of three, I knew I wanted to be a dog owner, and I didn't hesitate to advocate for my wants. My mom tells me I would mention to everyone we happened to be around that I wanted a dog, specifically a Dalmatian.

One day after my many hours of 101 Dalmatians on repeat my dad came home with "a special gift" just for me. I was excited before I even knew what it was. My dad hands me a gift bag and inside lays a toy dog. It was definitely more like a robot dog with fabric covering. I assume this had to do with the fact that it could bark and walk around. As thoughtful as the gift was three-year-old Jamila wanted no part of this robot dog and went running for the hills screaming when it was turned on. My family makes it seem like I cried about this for days, some say they thought it would never end. What none of us knew was there was light at the end of this toddler tantrum nightmare.

The next Friday, my dad came home with a cardboard box that had a lid with holes. On the top, there was a bow and writing that said, " For Jamila... and the family". He walked directly to me and placed the box down at my feet. He crouched down and began to take the lid of the box and a nose and two paws popped out the little gap where the lid was being lifted. My dad likes to joke and say that once I saw the paws I pushed the lid back so fast he almost lost a finger. Looking inside the box there are four eyes looking back at me, the eyes of two Dalmation puppies.

At that moment my life changed forever and I did not even know it. That moment has impacted my entire life and still is daily. It started with just dogs and now I enjoy most creatures I encounter. Right now I live with three dogs ( Willow, Lincoln "Link", and Maggie), and two cats (Leo, and Hazel), but I know there are more to come.

Starting Over

Deciding to go back to school for a degree is something I have been saying I wanted to do for a while now. My last time being in an actual college course going towards a degree was May of 2016. Life came around and things had to be put aside, unfortunately school was the thing that had to go. I was not able to be as successful as I wanted while working full time and having a full class schedule. Since then I have done many things as a professional, I have even taken courses/programs for certifications.

I decided to apply at CSN in late November 2021, to continue my journey in getting my degree in Animal Science. After being accepted and getting all of the welcoming emails I had true excitement for returning to school. I was proud of myself for taking the first step, anxiety followed soon after the excitement. the fear of being out of school was overwhelming, but I decided to push forward and register for classes. The closer it got to the start of the semester the more anxiety and fear started to creep in my mind. I received an email from Mr. Wu to have a WebEx meeting a few days before the start of classes. As soon as I logged onto the video meeting the energy I felt from Mr. Wu honestly made my anxiety disappear. By the time I was finished with the meeting I felt excited for this new beginning all over again. 

Since the semester has started I have received nothing but encouragement and support from everyone I have encountered here at CSN. I am so glad I took this step to better my future. I am happy to be a CSN Coyote.