It's finally here. I'm officially done with my internship today, after three long months. Probably the longest three months of my life. Back in June I didn't know how I was going to make it this far living in a sad town by myself. But it's over, and I'm glad that I went through it. It was an experience I desperately needed at this point. I'm not sure if I learned anything new about my field, other than how I wouldn't be happy with working in the manufacturing industry. But I guess that's what these things are for: to figure out what you don't want to do.

Apart from engineering, I learned quite a few things about myself, my interests, my friends, women, relationships, life in the real world, etc. Well, maybe not women. But I thought I'd share some of the important observations and lessons I learned over the summer:

- Always backup your data
- Always go through a test-run or a simulation before and after making changes to a system
- Pay attention on the road when driving
- Go slow when backing out of a parking space
- BS-ing is a good skill to have
- Curb Your Enthusiasm is one of the greatest TV shows ever
- The Internet can get boring after a while
- Only share your views and thoughts with those that understand you
- Strong communication is an amazing thing
- Mo' money, mo' problems
- Keep your professional life separate from your social life as much as possible
- There is nothing else like being in college it in this world...enjoy it while it lasts!
- You don't have to appease everybody you know
- You'll rarely use all that stuff you learned in college
- Get over it
- Never give up

Obviously a lot of these will change over time. And just like all my posts, it'll be interesting to read back to this a few years from today and laugh at it. But for now, I'm glad that I've understood the value of my freedom and my experiences as a college student. And I never thought I'd say this but I just can't wait to go back to school to live the life of a disarrayed, procrastinating, buckeye donuts-loving, sleep-deprived college boy for one last time!

Modern, Cool Nerd 65 % Nerd, 82% Geek, 26% Dork

For The Record: A Nerd is someone who is passionate about learning/being smart/academia. A Geek is someone who is passionate about some particular area or subject, often an obscure or difficult one. A Dork is someone who has difficulty with common social expectations/interactions. You scored better than half in Nerd and Geek, earning you the title of: Modern, Cool Nerd. Nerds didn't use to be cool, but in the 90's that all changed. It used to be that, if you were a computer expert, you had to wear plaid or a pocket protector or suspenders or something that announced to the world that you couldn't quite fit in. Not anymore. Now, the intelligent and geeky have eked out for themselves a modicum of respect at the very least, and "geek is chic." The Modern, Cool Nerd is intelligent, knowledgable and always the person to call in a crisis (needing computer advice/an arcane bit of trivia knowledge). They are the one you want as your lifeline in Who Wants to Be a Millionaire (or the one up there, winning the million bucks)! My test tracked 3 variables How you compared to other people your age and gender: You scored higher than 99% on nerdiness You scored higher than 99% on geekosity You scored higher than 99% on dork points Link: The Nerd? Geek? or Dork? Test written by donathos on OkCupid Free Online Dating, home of the 32-Type Dating Test