Studying
Anxiously climbing the steps every day after work, my eyes watch the summit of the staircase for that first glimpse of the threshold of my apartment. This was how I came home every day after work for a week while I waited for it to arrive. Whenever packages arrive at my house, the postman leaves it right on my doorstep, and I don't see it until I come up about six or seven steps.
Then one day, there it is. A neat cardboard box, about 10x16x2, maybe a little bigger. I feel like a kid at Christmas. Quickly I unlock my door, package under the arm, and step inside my musty apartment. During these summer months, it's usually a few degrees warmer in my apartment than it is outside. The heat doesn't bother me today, as I breeze through to my desk.
I promptly empty my pockets in the usual place, but I keep my keys handy. I choose one at random and use it to score the tape sealing the cardboard delicacy. Anxious fingers rip open the flaps and cast aside the packing slip to reveal the thing I have been dreaming of for months.
I just bought the two volume Actex CAS/SOA Actuary Exam 1 Study Guide. The first booklet has a series of textbook knowledge of high-level Algebra, Calculus, Statistics, and Probability. Each chapter is paired with exercises and solutions. The second volume is a series of practice exams employing all the knowledge of the first book.
This is all in preparation of the first Actuarial exam. Actuaries work for various insurance or financial institutions, or other places where risk and probability are concerned. The work for Actuaries is varied and stable, and it pays well. It is also not a very high-demand job, because not everyone in the world is a math nut. Granted, many people try for Junior positions, but it's harder to go through the ranks and take the higher-level tests to earn the Associate or Fellowship ranks in the Casualty Actuary Society. The rewards show through in the paychecks
I decided to follow this course of career earlier this year. The challenge of making my rent and taking care of my son has given me the desire and drive to improve my job status. Once I start on this path, I know my life-stability will follow closely.
While all this is important and tantalizing, I still enjoy the simple pleasure of pouring over the textbooks, carefully unfolding the functions and equations. Watching the strange symbols and characters bend to my whims is a true delight.
People always try my cooking and tell me that I would make a great chef. I always reply that I would not want to ruin my passion for the kitchen. Having worked as a cook in many kitchens, I know that I get sick of working on it all day. But I know I won't tire of juggling formulae for profit margins at the office. I may tire of sitting at a bloody desk all day, but the payoffs will make it worth the while.
Gingerly, I lift the new texts out of their packaging and immediately open up to the table of contents. My eyes dilate and my mouth waters. I rush to grab a pen and a tablet, where I begin to learn about Set Theory, the basis for study of probability.
Nerds like me need our passions, and we feel as passionate about our strangeness as most ordinary people feel passionate about ordinary things. I have come to embrace my inner nerd with lots of love.
Anxiously climbing the steps every day after work, my eyes watch the summit of the staircase for that first glimpse of the threshold of my apartment. This was how I came home every day after work for a week while I waited for it to arrive. Whenever packages arrive at my house, the postman leaves it right on my doorstep, and I don't see it until I come up about six or seven steps.
Then one day, there it is. A neat cardboard box, about 10x16x2, maybe a little bigger. I feel like a kid at Christmas. Quickly I unlock my door, package under the arm, and step inside my musty apartment. During these summer months, it's usually a few degrees warmer in my apartment than it is outside. The heat doesn't bother me today, as I breeze through to my desk.
I promptly empty my pockets in the usual place, but I keep my keys handy. I choose one at random and use it to score the tape sealing the cardboard delicacy. Anxious fingers rip open the flaps and cast aside the packing slip to reveal the thing I have been dreaming of for months.
I just bought the two volume Actex CAS/SOA Actuary Exam 1 Study Guide. The first booklet has a series of textbook knowledge of high-level Algebra, Calculus, Statistics, and Probability. Each chapter is paired with exercises and solutions. The second volume is a series of practice exams employing all the knowledge of the first book.
This is all in preparation of the first Actuarial exam. Actuaries work for various insurance or financial institutions, or other places where risk and probability are concerned. The work for Actuaries is varied and stable, and it pays well. It is also not a very high-demand job, because not everyone in the world is a math nut. Granted, many people try for Junior positions, but it's harder to go through the ranks and take the higher-level tests to earn the Associate or Fellowship ranks in the Casualty Actuary Society. The rewards show through in the paychecks
I decided to follow this course of career earlier this year. The challenge of making my rent and taking care of my son has given me the desire and drive to improve my job status. Once I start on this path, I know my life-stability will follow closely.
While all this is important and tantalizing, I still enjoy the simple pleasure of pouring over the textbooks, carefully unfolding the functions and equations. Watching the strange symbols and characters bend to my whims is a true delight.
People always try my cooking and tell me that I would make a great chef. I always reply that I would not want to ruin my passion for the kitchen. Having worked as a cook in many kitchens, I know that I get sick of working on it all day. But I know I won't tire of juggling formulae for profit margins at the office. I may tire of sitting at a bloody desk all day, but the payoffs will make it worth the while.
Gingerly, I lift the new texts out of their packaging and immediately open up to the table of contents. My eyes dilate and my mouth waters. I rush to grab a pen and a tablet, where I begin to learn about Set Theory, the basis for study of probability.
Nerds like me need our passions, and we feel as passionate about our strangeness as most ordinary people feel passionate about ordinary things. I have come to embrace my inner nerd with lots of love.
I have yet to try your cooking. Maybe one day when I make it back out to Cali I will have the pleasure.
You are in the same postion as I. I want to change my job situation for my child as well. It's way to hard living in New York trying to just stay afloat. I will be leaving New York soon enough.
I'm calling you later today. Just to harass you. You've been warned.