[nabs-l] introduction

[Maria Kristic]

Hi Chris,

It's Maria, from the Blind Students on Facebook group. I'm also from New
York, and am completing my third semester at Western New England College in
Springfield, MA--Computer Science major and Math minor. ^_^ I'm doing a few
gen. ed. requirements myself this semester, but I'll be taking mostly
classes required for my major in the spring, so I'm really happy about that.
Totally blind as well; WNEC's about 2 and a half hours from my house, and
its location is decent in terms of public transportation, unlike the area
where I live in upstate New York which has close to no public transportation
available, so I can relate to your situation. Glad you're finding the list
helpful, and good luck with your studies and decision about your
major/career path.

Cheers,
Maria
Skype: MariaKristic
AIM: MCKristic
Email/MSN: maria6289 at earthlink.net
Google Talk: Maria.Kristic at gmail.com
Yahoo Messenger: mariakristic at yahoo.com

-----Original Message-----
From: nabs-l-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nabs-l-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf
Of Christopher Kchao
Sent: Friday, November 28, 2008 2:23 PM
To: National Association of Blind Students mailing list
Subject: [nabs-l] introduction

Hi all,
I figured I'd finally do the formal thing and introduce myself for the sake
of most of you who probably don't know me. I'm completing my third semester
at Hunter College of the City University of New York. Presently, I'm in the
process of taking care of the rather extensive liberal arts requirements of
my education while exploring different career options. I have a great deal
of interest in working in a technical field; there's just something
extremely appealing about being on the cutting edge. In addition, I'm also
continuing to toy with the idea of going to law school to become an
attorney.
As far as vision is concerned, I am totally blind from birth. Location was a
rather large determining factor when deciding on my school of choice.
Staying at home with my parents would be too easy. Staying in suburban New
York at the mercy of anyone with functioning eyes and a car would be too
inconvenient. As a result of this decision, I am proud to say that I
consider myself to be moderately independent and have lived away from home
for a little bit over a year. I do however plan to attend one of the NFB
training centers in the near future. At the very least, doing so will aid in
reinforcing the skills I currently have and boosting my confidence. I feel
that independence is an absolutely vital skill and definitely aids in
increasing marketability in the workforce.
This mailing list, and the "blind students on facebook" group is the extent
of my involvement in the organized blind movement, if I may give it such a
designation. I hope to change that in the near future. Only recently have I
started to see the value of networking with other blind individuals,
especially when faced with challenges that would seem otherwise
unconventional to my sighted peers. This list definitely has a lot to offer
in terms of being an outlet in which people can share ideas, though
networking on a local level would be ideal.
Anyways, this is starting to sound like bits and pieces of a poorly written
college essay, so I think I'll stop. :-)
Just from being a nearly silent member on the list, I've already learned a
lot in the past few months. Keep it coming.