Hello world! Remember me? I can’t begin to explain the hours I’ve been putting in at Cbeyond, not that I’m complaining…I’ve been on the other end of that stick and can tell you from first hand experience that being unemployed is a lot worse than you think. I do believe that it has affected my blogging, or rather lack thereof. I tend to leave work mentally exhausted, get home and eat dinner, watch a little TV or possibly a movie, then hit the sack…which recently, I’m ashamed to admit, has been around 8:30 PM (excluding tonight).

The long hours put in at work tends to drain me of any motivation to write. I’ve had a few fleeting ideas, but nothing I felt was worth my time. About the only geek-worthy task I’ve accomplished as of late is updating my server and that requires an active ssh session to my vps and a simple sudo pacman -Syu. I really need to try something new.

That in mind, I decided to type this entry entirely from within the confines of the WordPress Android app on my phone. I actually feel quite liberated writing this from the comfort of my bed, no keyboard or gigantic monitor to fuss with, and my trusty kitten Sox curled up next to me. I like how I can hold my phone in my hands and type up this entry…I don’t believe this would work well on a tablet. I have read about others, however, who have set up their iPad/Android tablet to code on. We’ll see if this new “medium” for blogging takes hold…I guess you’ll know if suddenly I crank out more regular posts!

Till then…

Why hello! It’s been a while! Between the bean counting and taking care of my newest family member, my 3 month old kitten named SOX (yes, for the legislature that effectively guaranteed accountants employment for the next 100+ years – pictures to follow), I’ve been pretty busy. I did, however hear about the SOPA bill that Congress is looking at currently and have to say, I agree with the opposition to it 100%.

If you don’t understand why or if you don’t know what the heck I’m talking about, watch this short video to find out more and decide for yourself where you stand:

Check out this website for more details and find out how you can contact your local congressperson to tell them how you feel: http://americancensorship.org/

So…been a while…moved back to Atlanta, GA after accepting the job offer of a lifetime. Now officially putting my $100,000 piece of paper from RIT that says I know how to account to good use with Cbeyond, Inc. If you don’t know anything about the company, they started out serving small to medium sized businesses in the top 25 markets in the US with managed telecommunications services, including VoIP telephony, and business-class broadband internet. They eventually moved into providing mobile solutions for their clients, and have recently branched out into the cloud arena offering a cloud PBX service (vs. an on-site PBX) and cloud backup data integrity solutions.

Speaking of the cloud, my favorite internet app, CloudFlare sent me and a few other folks out there some sweet laptop stickers! Thanks guys! CloudFlare continues to protect and speed up my website, along with the other websites I help host, and continues to grow and grow and grow.

Other than being super psyched about the new career I’m starting with Cbeyond, relocating to Atlanta and trying to fit in by doing things the natives do like hang out at Piedmont Park or hit up Waffle House (not too much, gotta watch those bad carbs), I’ve been lucky to see some old friends: the Joyces (Kara, Sean, and Kevin), the man – the myth – the legend (in his own mind) Mr. Mark Stoffel, and make some new ones here and there by way of my roommates Daniel and Ben. WE’RE GOING TO SEE TIESTO THIS SUNDAY IN ATHENS! I’ve been stuck in Rochester all these years and haven’t had the chance to see him and finally am getting the chance…stoked!

More to come in the days ahead…I promise!

P.S. Erik Wangenheim, if you ever read this, I am officially challenging you to a Halo 1 head-shots competition with as many of the Russell Hall folks we can scrounge up. Make it happen! Or else!

I have to first and foremost apologize to the select few readers who found my rants entertaining/useful. In the process of searching for and successfully securing new employment and falling absolutely in love with it, I have not updated my blog in months! I am proud to say that I now help regular folks like you and me find the car of their dreams as a Sales Consultant at Doyle Chevrolet Subaru in Webster, NY. I am primarily responsible for selling new Subaru AWD vehicles as well as any of the quality used cars on our lot. If you’re ever in the market for a new or used vehicle, or just looking for advice on buying a car feel free to contact me because I’d love to help you however I can.

In particular, I am working with the Doyle’s and my sales manager to take college campuses by storm, starting with the Rochester, NY area colleges first, then working my way out to schools like Cornell, Colgate, Hobart & William Smith, etc… The college graduate market has largely been ignored by most dealers until now. Subaru Motors Financing has a program that helps recent or future college graduates lease or finance a new Subaru without the need for a cosigner, helping them build credit and stay safe on the road by choosing the brand with the best AWD system, some of the highest safety ratings on the market, and highest resale value the last two years running. If someone in your household or someone you know is a recent or future college graduate that is looking for a great AWD vehicle, please refer them to me and I will be sure to take care of them!

This post should help out any folks who have built a home-brew Boxee Box on Ubuntu (or any other linux variant that uses the latest pulseaudio release). A couple months ago I had my Boxee setup in perfect working order, hooked up to my HDTV and stereo A/V receiver, enjoying 5.1 DTS/Digital sound and my backed up DVD collection all from the comfort of my living room couch. Then I, as I often do, decided to try a different flavor of linux out, ended up being disappointed, and wanted my Boxee setup back…I should have backed up my files! Everything was fine until I couldn’t play files with AC3/5.1 audio.

Here’s how I solved that problem…