I don’t know if anyone saw my previous Wordpress installation like 2 weeks ago, but it’s not here now. When I set it up, I had a mindset that it’d be the blog I’d continue to use for like, ever. However, those plans changed when I learned that the new hard drive I bought for my server arrived dead.

I sent it back to Newegg and the turnaround was really quick; I sent it on a Friday and received a brand new one the following Wednesday. It’s now up happily serving its purpose as…a server. I’m using it for file storage (it has 2 1.5TB HDs), Apache web hosting, and running both Half Life 2 Deathmatch and Garry’s Mod dedicated servers. For now, only Garry’s Mod is open for everyone to use; HL2DM is password-protected, so feel free to join GMod if you’d like (same address as this blog)

A blog post from me, specifically the first one on a new installation, normally wouldn’t be this long. Usually it’s something along the lines of “Oh hey, this is a new installation. Content shall follow.” However, I’m currently sitting in the library of Beaufort County Community College. I’m down in North Carolina visiting friends again on vacation from work, and the person I’m staying with currently has class. Luckily, it’s not a long one; only 55 minutes or so. I still need something to do to pass the time, though.

I took Amtrak down here from Connecticut. To get to NC from there, I have to take a Northeast Regional train at 12:45 AM in Connecticut to Washington, DC, arriving there at 7:00 AM. From there, I have a 2 hour layover, and get on the Palmetto at 9:55 and arrive in NC at 2:22 PM. This time, though, after the Palmetto left Union Station, it was delayed about 1.5 hours due to a disabled freight train on the tracks a few miles from the station. We were told it was blocking train traffic going both north and south. All of the trains coming to the south side of Union Station were delayed, and all trains leaving Union Station on that side were also delayed. We stopped on the Frederick Douglas bridge around 10:10 AM, and didn’t start moving until close to 12:00 PM. At one point, another CSX freight train zoomed past us on the bridge going south on the northbound track, which was supposedly going to help at the scene. After we started up again, since there was a backup of trains ahead of us coming our way, we couldn’t go at full speed until they were all clear, which delayed us another 1.5 hours or so. We were supposed to get to my stop at 2:22 PM, but we didn’t get there until 5:15 PM.
Despite the boring and late train, I’m having a great time. It’s nice to get out of Connecticut again. I was hoping the weather would be a little warmer, but at sunrise yesterday, temperatures were between 15F and 20F. The weather’s supposed to get warmer by the end of the week, close to 60F, so that’ll be a nice change.

The cold weather has given us fun opportunities to have fun with frozen lakes and ponds.

(by the way, that’s not me in the video. I just recorded it.)

I have a constantly updating album of pictures located here.