Where can I find it? I'm curious
What a guy. I'd like to shake his hand.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matthew_Croucher
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Post your greatest achievement in your life
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What a guy. I'd like to shake his hand.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matthew_Croucher
I've lost both a close friend and a family member to cancer. Hats off to you - never give up the fight.
Bravo! The world needs more men like you Matthew. Carry on Sir.
That is an awesome story. It looked like a movie scene when I read it!
standingquiet, you are part of 406 unique men.
Your loyalty inspires me and I double Jon's post: it would be an honor to shake your hand!
Hmm... Probably winning best web design and overall winner from 1st-3rd years in all of ireland!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/lee-loichieng/5269530315/in/set-72157625620629150/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/lee-loichieng/5269530315/in/set-72157625620629150/
What little achievements I have made are quite insignificant compared with that. That is real bravery - you put your life on the line to save others. Much respect to you.
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Although I disagree that such a medal should ever be considered as an accomplishment, my hat is off to you for your extreme act of selflessness.
True the medal itself may not be considered itself as an accomplishment by some, however it reminds me that i accomplished what i had to do when i tripped that wire, to save my friend's life's.
Matt
And my Greatest Accomplishment of 2011 so far was Putting my Blackberry to rest, no im in a crackberry Rehab
+1 I agree - an incredibly brave thing to do.
Just as a side comment - it amazes me how men as yourself - and women - of such bravery, heroism and selflessness coexist in the same context of such a corrupt and illegitimate war that has failed to capture the true 9/11 attackers. How such remarkable soldiers as yourself are part of the same military machine that has assassinated, tortured and humiliated so many innocent civilians - including women and children - while illegally invading their country and cowardly bombing their houses, based on lies and selfish interests beyond our control.
Anyway, c'est la vie...
Congrats!
All I can say is "wow" - having read what you did to earn that George Cross you truly are a hero and an incredibly brave man.
I don't know, I had a hole in one when I was 17 on a 200 yard par 3.
Other than that, I dunno; I grew up around alcoholism and divorce, have worked since I was 14, and worked max part time all through high school (39 hours per week) and was paying the mortgage and all utilities and expenses as a 17 year old kid on $8/hr to support my mom and me. This of course nobody knew, not even my closest friends. I'd go to school, get out at 2:30, mostly honors classes not because I wanted AP credit but because I couldn't stand being dragged down by the lowest common denominator in regular classes, and then I'd go to work from 3-11. Finished high school with a good GPA.
I continued this through my first two years of college at the nation's #1 chemical engineering program. As an undergraduate I was given a graduate student position as a gen. chem. lab T/A, which I did 20 hours per week, running lab for about 20 kids and correcting their stuff and holding office hours and tutor room hours, etc. I did this 20 hours a week, in addition to 20 hours a week conducting historical census research in a demographic office on campus. I was also double majoring not just in chemical engineering at a pressure cooker, but also picking up a B.S. in chem to go with it.
So I was working 40 hours supporting my mom, going through the nation's most rigorous chemical engineering program, and picking up a second degree to boot.
During the summer between my sophomore and junior year, I decided hardcore that I wanted to get the hell out and live in Japan after I was done with school, so I took intensive Japanese, adding a nice chunk to my student loans. It was a year's worth of Japanese, 12 credits, compressed into 10 weeks--Monday to Friday, four hours a day.
On the second day of class, my mom went to the doctor for a headache and came out with a terminal diagnosis for brain and lung cancer. My mom didn't want to tell anyone at all, so I was the sole person to shoulder it silently, throughout her treatment, etc. She had brain surgery a few days later to remove the tumor, which was a success, but a few weeks later she had four more and that was it, it was a matter of time. Still nobody knew. I still remember sitting in the surgery waiting room at about 8 P.M., alone as all other surgeries had finished for the day, and the desk people had gone home, watching the sun trace across the wall as I sat there trying to focus on my Japanese textbook knowing my mom had her head cut open on another floor close by, still reeling from the shock of this out-of-nowhere terminal illness--that was true isolation if it could ever be felt, shouldering it totally alone. I had to wake up at 3 A.M. on school/work days to try and coax her to go to radiation due to all the narcotics; if you've seen what narcotics do to a person you know that what the drugs do to someone's brain functions are extremely vulgar. I can remember how hard it was to get my mom to sign the check to pay the mortgage because of the drugs. So I was doing all that, and going to Japanese class. I got A- grades for both "semesters" limited only by my attendance (no forgiveness on that by the teachers, oh well).
The junior year of the chemical engineering program is the hardest. Three weeks into the year, she died. I got the phone call while I was in the middle of teaching lab on a Tuesday afternoon. Three months from going to perfectly fine to dead. Being a child of divorce, that also means that there was an entire house to go through, it's not like it just passed to my dad. So I also was still teaching, working, battling the engineering program, and cleaning out an entire house/life and dealing with a largely incompetent probate lawyer. I missed one week of school after she died, the funeral was a Monday, the next day I was teaching again. Missing one week put me well over one month behind in school. I still had to make everything up, even after discussing everything with my teachers and the department, and in one week I had three chemical engineering thermodynamics exams, just to catch up (two make ups and one on schedule for that same timeframe). I had five exams in total over a couple days, and had to make up all the nasty homework. I got caught up one month to the day of her death, despite my own short hospital stay with an ulcer three weeks after the death. Kept up at work and teaching too. Pulled a little over a 3.0 that semester. 40 hours a week worth of teaching/work, chemical engineering and chemistry, and the death of my mom and the whole legal fallout that goes with it, including a funeral and getting the house ready. You may ask, why didn't I simply take the semester off? Well, adding to the pressure cooker, chemE is an extremely rigorous and structured degree--classes are only offered once per year, along a set track, with a set class of people, so I would've had to take a year off. Moreover, I would've lost all the other students I'd forged relationships with and be a fish without a tank the next year trying to find people to work with. Failure was not an option to me.
Fast forward a couple years, I finished my degrees, and moved to Japan, where I've been the last 2.5 years. Been financially independent and then some since I was about 15-16. Perfect credit today, minimal debt aside from a student loan which just sucks.
I applied to graduate school last year for a masters in international relations, for Fall 2010, and was accepted. I applied to two schools, University of California San Diego, and Columbia, both top five programs. I declined admission though, because I hate debt. I wasn't born with a silver spoon, but I've done a fantastic job "keeping up appearances" and I'm sitting in a pretty alright spot today I think; I may not be as well off as most people I know, who's parents have thrown them money for weddings and house down payments and cars, but I'm 100% self made, even if I don't have a lot. Will hopefully be returning home and starting my engineering career in the fall, after three years here in Japan. FTR, I have no doubt that the single strongest asset to getting accepted to graduate school wasn't hard numbers on paper, but rather my writing gift, which is no doubt from my mom. Too many people have told me I should be an author, maybe I should--it was my mom's dream.
Sorry for being so long winded, but I guess my greatest achievement is perseverance/strength.
Other than that, I dunno; I grew up around alcoholism and divorce, have worked since I was 14, and worked max part time all through high school (39 hours per week) and was paying the mortgage and all utilities and expenses as a 17 year old kid on $8/hr to support my mom and me. This of course nobody knew, not even my closest friends. I'd go to school, get out at 2:30, mostly honors classes not because I wanted AP credit but because I couldn't stand being dragged down by the lowest common denominator in regular classes, and then I'd go to work from 3-11. Finished high school with a good GPA.
I continued this through my first two years of college at the nation's #1 chemical engineering program. As an undergraduate I was given a graduate student position as a gen. chem. lab T/A, which I did 20 hours per week, running lab for about 20 kids and correcting their stuff and holding office hours and tutor room hours, etc. I did this 20 hours a week, in addition to 20 hours a week conducting historical census research in a demographic office on campus. I was also double majoring not just in chemical engineering at a pressure cooker, but also picking up a B.S. in chem to go with it.
So I was working 40 hours supporting my mom, going through the nation's most rigorous chemical engineering program, and picking up a second degree to boot.
During the summer between my sophomore and junior year, I decided hardcore that I wanted to get the hell out and live in Japan after I was done with school, so I took intensive Japanese, adding a nice chunk to my student loans. It was a year's worth of Japanese, 12 credits, compressed into 10 weeks--Monday to Friday, four hours a day.
On the second day of class, my mom went to the doctor for a headache and came out with a terminal diagnosis for brain and lung cancer. My mom didn't want to tell anyone at all, so I was the sole person to shoulder it silently, throughout her treatment, etc. She had brain surgery a few days later to remove the tumor, which was a success, but a few weeks later she had four more and that was it, it was a matter of time. Still nobody knew. I still remember sitting in the surgery waiting room at about 8 P.M., alone as all other surgeries had finished for the day, and the desk people had gone home, watching the sun trace across the wall as I sat there trying to focus on my Japanese textbook knowing my mom had her head cut open on another floor close by, still reeling from the shock of this out-of-nowhere terminal illness--that was true isolation if it could ever be felt, shouldering it totally alone. I had to wake up at 3 A.M. on school/work days to try and coax her to go to radiation due to all the narcotics; if you've seen what narcotics do to a person you know that what the drugs do to someone's brain functions are extremely vulgar. I can remember how hard it was to get my mom to sign the check to pay the mortgage because of the drugs. So I was doing all that, and going to Japanese class. I got A- grades for both "semesters" limited only by my attendance (no forgiveness on that by the teachers, oh well).
The junior year of the chemical engineering program is the hardest. Three weeks into the year, she died. I got the phone call while I was in the middle of teaching lab on a Tuesday afternoon. Three months from going to perfectly fine to dead. Being a child of divorce, that also means that there was an entire house to go through, it's not like it just passed to my dad. So I also was still teaching, working, battling the engineering program, and cleaning out an entire house/life and dealing with a largely incompetent probate lawyer. I missed one week of school after she died, the funeral was a Monday, the next day I was teaching again. Missing one week put me well over one month behind in school. I still had to make everything up, even after discussing everything with my teachers and the department, and in one week I had three chemical engineering thermodynamics exams, just to catch up (two make ups and one on schedule for that same timeframe). I had five exams in total over a couple days, and had to make up all the nasty homework. I got caught up one month to the day of her death, despite my own short hospital stay with an ulcer three weeks after the death. Kept up at work and teaching too. Pulled a little over a 3.0 that semester. 40 hours a week worth of teaching/work, chemical engineering and chemistry, and the death of my mom and the whole legal fallout that goes with it, including a funeral and getting the house ready. You may ask, why didn't I simply take the semester off? Well, adding to the pressure cooker, chemE is an extremely rigorous and structured degree--classes are only offered once per year, along a set track, with a set class of people, so I would've had to take a year off. Moreover, I would've lost all the other students I'd forged relationships with and be a fish without a tank the next year trying to find people to work with. Failure was not an option to me.
Fast forward a couple years, I finished my degrees, and moved to Japan, where I've been the last 2.5 years. Been financially independent and then some since I was about 15-16. Perfect credit today, minimal debt aside from a student loan which just sucks.
I applied to graduate school last year for a masters in international relations, for Fall 2010, and was accepted. I applied to two schools, University of California San Diego, and Columbia, both top five programs. I declined admission though, because I hate debt. I wasn't born with a silver spoon, but I've done a fantastic job "keeping up appearances" and I'm sitting in a pretty alright spot today I think; I may not be as well off as most people I know, who's parents have thrown them money for weddings and house down payments and cars, but I'm 100% self made, even if I don't have a lot. Will hopefully be returning home and starting my engineering career in the fall, after three years here in Japan. FTR, I have no doubt that the single strongest asset to getting accepted to graduate school wasn't hard numbers on paper, but rather my writing gift, which is no doubt from my mom. Too many people have told me I should be an author, maybe I should--it was my mom's dream.
Sorry for being so long winded, but I guess my greatest achievement is perseverance/strength.
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Wow.
After reading that, I'd be embarrassed to mention any of my feeble achievements. I haven't had any.
After reading that, I'd be embarrassed to mention any of my feeble achievements. I haven't had any.
@puma: Thanks for sharing that. Don't apologize for it's length. It was quite inspiring to read. Normally I would say I wish you the best, but in your case, that's not necessary. You'll achieve the best through hard work and perseverance, regardless of any obstacles.
Just know that I'm cheering for you, and am inspired by your story to apply more perseverance in my own life.
Just know that I'm cheering for you, and am inspired by your story to apply more perseverance in my own life.
Most of the things I am glad to have done in my life I regard as the result of luck: one could make exactly the same choices in slightly different circumstances, and everything might go to blazes, and we'd be left telling very different stories..
Puma you've brought tears to my eyes, I'm amazed how you went through everything you've just inspired me to do my best in school, nothing in my life will probably be as great as an accomplishment, im still in shock from reading that, but seriously congratulations man i hope everything works out the best in your life
Not really important like others here, but when I was 18-19 I designed a game that I only made on my small site and posted on a small forum. A year later it was in loads of magazines, took part in loads of interviews, got a university place because of it, had it shown and reviewed on US TV (never actually saw it here ). It took 9 months solid work to make on my own and has (to date) been downloaded 1.2 million times.
Problem was I released it as freeware. But because of it I got to meet some cool people and it did get my name out there.
Aside from that I'm soft and a coward but I'm excessively tenacious.
). It took 9 months solid work to make on my own and has (to date) been downloaded 1.2 million times.Problem was I released it as freeware
. But because of it I got to meet some cool people and it did get my name out there.Aside from that I'm soft and a coward but I'm excessively tenacious.
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I applaud all of you on all your accomplishments no matter what they are!
For me, earning a full-academic scholarship to a top rated business school...Both a personal and financial accomplishment
For me, earning a full-academic scholarship to a top rated business school...Both a personal and financial accomplishment
Thanks guys, it's been a hard road but I'm happy with where I am today, especially when they say if you grow up poor you only have a 5% chance of escaping it.
I may not be nearly as comfortable as most of my friends who have support left and right from their parents and extended family, but I've still got my head above water so I'm ok. Though I can't help but smirk a little bit to myself when I see someone 25 years old whining about having to pay their own bills for the first time in their life on facebook and how much responsibility it takes to remember to pay a couple bills on time...piece of cake. Or when I see someone 25 years old who's never had a loan or even a credit card and is just 100% completely clueless about credit. I may have grown up poor, but my mom was a master with credit and what tiny money we had and she taught me all about the importance of credit and money management. Probably why I've got this far with a 780 credit score (based on actual credit utilization as opposed to just being someone young who hasn't screwed up) and just student loan debt. I think I'll be alright.
My mom always said that everyone seems to go through a really bad part of their life, either the beginning, middle, or end. Unfortunately for my mom I guess the worst was at the end, but maybe the worst for me was at the beginning. I sure hope so, I'll never, ever go back to that if I can help it.
I may not be nearly as comfortable as most of my friends who have support left and right from their parents and extended family, but I've still got my head above water so I'm ok. Though I can't help but smirk a little bit to myself when I see someone 25 years old whining about having to pay their own bills for the first time in their life on facebook and how much responsibility it takes to remember to pay a couple bills on time...piece of cake. Or when I see someone 25 years old who's never had a loan or even a credit card and is just 100% completely clueless about credit. I may have grown up poor, but my mom was a master with credit and what tiny money we had and she taught me all about the importance of credit and money management. Probably why I've got this far with a 780 credit score (based on actual credit utilization as opposed to just being someone young who hasn't screwed up) and just student loan debt. I think I'll be alright.
My mom always said that everyone seems to go through a really bad part of their life, either the beginning, middle, or end. Unfortunately for my mom I guess the worst was at the end, but maybe the worst for me was at the beginning. I sure hope so, I'll never, ever go back to that if I can help it.
Not so sure, Probably making my appearance in the IT world by working at a leading software design company. I get to meet really nice people and learn many things.
Once I can overcome the main problems in life that I am having, then that will become one of my accomplishments.
The only problem with that is when I work on computers (mostly at home) these appear. (This accumulated in less than 3 days >_>)
Once I can overcome the main problems in life that I am having, then that will become one of my accomplishments.
The only problem with that is when I work on computers (mostly at home) these appear. (This accumulated in less than 3 days >_>)