College Dropouts, College Graduates (Which One Are You)?

Well, people go to college to get a degree and to experience the College Scene. But, there are people who don't graduate. I can name at least six people who did not graduate from college, and they are very successful entrepreneurs. Here is the list:

1. Larry Ellison
2. Bill Gates
3. Michael Dell
4. Paul Allen
5. Steve Jobs
6. Mark Zuckerberg

Surprisingly, these entrepreneurs are all Info. Technology Moguls. You may recognize a few of the names, or all of them. This story is emphasizing that you don't have to graduate from college to be successful. On the other hand, I recommend getting a degree or two because it really helps you when hunting for that first job in the real world. Each one of these entrepreneurs from the list attended a university (like Harvard, University of Chicago, and University of Texas at Austin, etc.), but did not finish their degree. One reason is they had started the business plan for their future venture while in school. One final thought is what might have happened to these people if they did graduate from college. Who knows what "Other Business Ideas" may have come from these great, interesting minds? In case you wanted to know more about Mark Zuckerberg, check the link below. It's a good article.

Year in Review: 2007 recap, & thoughts on 2008

Well, there are only 2 more working weeks left in 2007! It's hard to believe that the year is almost coming to end! Heck, the decade is more than halfway over! It's that time when Time Magazine does their "Time Man of The Year" issue. It's also a time to focus on what took place in 2007. For G. Ripley, it was a year of experiencing some good & bad situations which trained him for the future. The good was mostly working in the IT industry for almost 90% of the year, checking out some cool things (wine tasting in Oregon, seeing Maria Sharapova play tennis in LA county, etc.), and making new & old connections sweeter! The bad was being out of the workforce for a short time, which later turned out to be a blessing in disguise. For 2008, it's about trying to live the Good life! Yet, it depends on what you call "The Good Life." Of course, that's a reference to the great Hip-Hop artist/producer, Kanye West. It's a great track by a renowned musical genius! Here are some final pictures of 2007.



That picture above is Maria Sharapova serving away at the East West Bank Classic. Here's a picture of some stingrays! G. Ripley fed some stingrays!

Two Reviews: American Gangster CD & Movie

Well, G. Ripley has a couple of reviews for his audience. First, G. checked out "American Gangster" at a movie theater. The movie is an incredible combination of great acting, spectacular cinematography, and tons of jaw-dropping action. It's worth the 157 minutes of run time. Second, G. Ripley bought Jay-Z's new cd, American Gangster. Shawn Carter is back with another great album. There are fifteen tracks on the cd, and G. thinks ten of them are solid. It's a must buy!

Great NY Collapses!

Well, this post is about sports teams collapsing in New York. It's not about the Empire State Building falling down or the NYSE crashing. First, let's talk about the NY Yankees. They lost in the AL Division Series to the Cleveland Indians, 3-1.

Heck, Joe Torre may lose his job. But, it's not the right move. Joe Torre should leave on his own accord. Let's hope that the Boss (aka George Steinbrenner) doesn't get rid of the perennial Torre. Next, the Knicks coach Isiah Thomas is found guilty of sexual harassment. David Stern should suspend the coach for the first five games of the year, for his ridiculous comments to a former MSG employee. Finally, the Dallas Cowboys beat the Buffalo Bills tonight in MNF. The bills lost by 1 point. The cowboys came from behind to win the game. The 'Boys were down 24 - 13, and they pulled off an incredible victory. Now, the Romo led Cowboys are undefeated. Romo had a really bad night, yet he shined in the end by throwing 11 out of 14 completions for two late dallas scores. On a side note, G. Ripley hopes that you like the images in this post. Last but not least, the stock market endured its last big crash in October 1987. It'll be 20 years later (at the end of this month), and a lot of financial upheavals have occurred in Wall Street since that day. The market is now past 14,000 on the DJIA, while the Nasdaq has seen some good trading days of late also. Finally, financial enthusiasts should pick up the latest book by Alan Greenspan. In his book, Alan criticizes the current president of the US and it's shocking. Long live Alan and G. Ripley is fortunate to have met you! Good night & Good luck!

Darth Federer wins another US Open title!

Well, the US Open is over as Roger Federer won his 4th consecutive men's title. He beat Novak Djokovic in a whirlwind three sets. In the first two sets, Novak had his chances to win. But, he could not make the most of his opportunities. Even though Maria Sharapova and Robert De Niro were in his corner, Novak could not register the victory. For Federer, it was another day at the office. He was dressed in all black, and his new nickname is "Darth Federer." He was splendid the past 2 weeks. As for the ladies, Justine Henin won her seventh grand slam title by beating Svetlana Kuznetsova. It was a lopsided victory for Justine. Now, with the grand slams done for 2007, the season ending championships is the last major even for both men & women. How quickly 2007 is coming to an end? Too fast for many people including myself.

Venice & Tennis: Two weeks ago

Ah, what would you do in Venice? Well, first let's be specific about which Venice (California or Italy)? Two weeks ago, G. Ripley was in Venice, California for some home buying! No, that's a major joke because I could not afford to buy a home in the venice canals. This home is practically a modern day castle from the canals in venice, california. The canals in venice are awesome. They are located a couple of blocks from venice beach. Besides seeing the homes in venice, G. Ripley checked out some women's tennis matches in carson, california. Maria Sharapova and Elena Dementieva were in the quarterfinals of the East Bank tennis classic. It was great to see this match. Sania Mirza was playing doubles before the battle of russia (sharapova vs. dementieva) began. It was fun to see sania in action. As for the rest of the trip, G. Ripley was doing some karaoke (sung "where the streets have no name" by U2) at dell's bar in west LA. Doing karaoke was a lot of fun.

Mixed Signals!

For all of those people who think they can figure out humans, there is another topic called mixed signals which sets human relationships far apart. Here's an example. A man seeks a woman as a companion, and the woman seeks him as a friend. But, there appears to be chemistry at odd times between the friends. The male and the female agree that they are friends. The male feels that there are times when the friendship goes above & beyond that (into possibly a relationship). The female laughs this off, and thinks that it's friendship only. When the male senses that the female is playing hard to get, it opens up another door of mystery. What is the male to do? Play the game with one female or look at another as a rebound. Why is that males pursue females, and females pursue males? It's a question that has many answers and did it really start with A & E, Romeo & Juliet, etc? The author writes this story from past experiences which his friends have gone through. Also, he speaks from his own experiences. This story reminds one that there is a Carrie Bradshaw in all of us. Props to the ladies of SEX & THE CITY!