About Ruiz Akpan
Revised June 13, 2011
Hello!
My name is Ruiz Hee Akpan. Probably one of the most ironic and weirdest names you have ever heard considering that I am not Hispanic. To make it easier, I give people the option to call me by either “Roo-ez” or “Roo-eece”, I will respond to both. I am supposedly a very sarcastic person with a face that sometimes suggests that I’m angry. The sarcastic part may be true, but I’m not really an angry person. That’s just my face being lazy. I’ll try anything once (no nasty thoughts, please) and I enjoy all types of humor, even crude humor. Funny is funny to me, as long as it’s funny. Kpop, Trance, House, Lounge, Indie, and Hip Hop music are my life. But enough, with the fun facts. I can be one of many things. An avid technology enthusiast. A freelancing photographer. A passion-driven social networker. An excellent student that does not-as-excellent work. Whatever I am though, I always strive to be more and do more.
My Life
I was born, raised, and still currently live in the great state of Texas. Though I am Korean and Black (Blasian, if you will), I was single-handedly raised by my hard-working single parent Korean mother. Usually people who are born of two different races tend to have a stronger influence with one race over the other and I’m no exception. My Korean influence is my ONLY background and that will never change. I have only one parent and only one sister. They are my only real family and I will take care of them to the best of my abilities. (Except for when my sister is lame, which is about all the time.) Growing up as a child, I would consider myself to be the “late bloomer.” My mother did not exactly have a strong grasp on American values or social life in America. We had to learn about them together as I grew older. Because of that, people would claim that I lack common sense and I grew up as a clueless social dummy being controlled by others. It wasn’t until having to attend middle school for a fourth year that I realized it was time for me to change my life around, learn things my own way, and be my own person. Mistakes may have burdened me in the past, but no matter how big they are, they can always be made up for. I am glad to say that not much has changed since then and that I enjoy life for what it is now. Friends appreciate me for who I am and I’m glad to have them in my life. Plus, I’ve had quite a few girlfriends since then, so something must have been done right. ;)
My Education
I graduated from Haynes Elementary School in 1999 and then (some years later) was accepted into Texas A&M University where I am an undergraduate majoring in Computer Science along with a minor in Mathematics. The end.
Only kidding, but in all seriousness, that is probably the best that I can make my educational background sound. Humorous, yes, but pretty sad at the same time. I’m not one to talk about my education because it’s nothing to flaunt about. But fact is still fact and being honest about it is only the best thing to do. Throughout elementary and middle school, I was a straight A-B student. Mother would always scold me if she saw a B on my report card, that was the joy of having an Asian parent. At the end of what was supposed to be my last year of middle school, I let her down. 65, 68, and 69 were the grades that plagued my final report card. It was heart-breaking for me and even more for her. She felt like she failed, but it in reality, it was simply my fault. The only thing I can blame for the incident was my own foolishness. Since then, I refused to let my mom down like that again. I finished off my final year of high school with all A’s and graduated at a higher distinguished level. For a short time, I decided to attended community college while working full-time to help support the family, as well as myself. I applied to Texas A&M University and to University of Texas – San Antonio as a backup choice. I was accepted to both and decided to attend Texas A&M. I’m glad to say that mom never gave up on me and she’s a lot more understanding whenever I get a B.
My Work History
I’ve been legally employed since I was 16, around the end of my freshman year of high school. I spent two years working for a local business mens clothing store that specialized in fancy suits and other types of clothing. It was a very good starting job that helped get my feet wet into retail and drastically helped with my ability to talk to people. My excellent communication skills stemmed from that job and continued grow as I grew older. During that time, I had a second small job where I did work for a real estate office. I was more of a “secretary assistant” rather than an actual secretary. Sometimes, I would have to accompany the boss on the field, work on a few technical things, or manage bills. She passed away recently and deserves to be thanked for the great opportunities that she has given me. Rest in peace, God bless you.
Before becoming a senior in high school, I was hired by Circuit City Stores, Inc. for retail sales. For someone at my age, it was pretty exciting. Definitely something that I could flaunt about at school, considering that if anyone else had a job, it was a lame one. Having retail experience in the past and a great deal of computer knowledge went hand-in-hand. Shortly after working, because of employee unavailability, I voluntarily shifted my focus from computer sales to computer repair. The company took notice officially made me a computer repair technician. I worked for Circuit City for two years before the company declared bankruptcy on my mother’s birthday. It was a really sad and stressful day. I was soon after hired by Best Buy Co., Inc. as a Geek Squad technician and have been with them since then. Working as a Geek Squad agent definitely has it’s ups, downs, and all-arounds, but it’s still a really great job to have. Because of Texas A&M, I decided to keep my employment at my hometown rather than bring it to College Station. I now only work during periods that don’t require me to focus on school, such as holidays and summers.
My Interests
Anybody who knows me well enough will tell you that I’m great with computers. This is true. Even though I may not look like one at first glance, I am a nerd at heart. I love computers and everything about them. Don’t try to out-nerd me either, because I’ll be sure to give you a good run for your money at the very least. I’m the computer dude, the computer nerd, the geek, whatever. A friend has a computer problem, who are they gonna call? Me… yeah… I’m that guy. My main focuses with computers is to keep them healthy and well-maintained, as well as keeping up with advancements and innovations in the technology industry. As an undergraduate in Computer Science, I’m also shifting focuses on programming languages and applications. I’m not one of those lame enthusiasts with no work history that builds one computer out of high-end consumer parts and suddenly thinks they know everything there is to know about computers. Those people are fake and I set myself apart from people like that. Seeing poorly maintained computers is a really big pet-peeve of mine. Working in professional computer repair for over four years contributes to that peeve. 70+ processes running upon Windows bootup is annoying. Dust walls inside of a computer are annoying. Guys! Let’s work to keep our computers healthy. Happy computer = happy you. (And happy me, since I don’t have to do any work on the dreaded thing.)
Another small current interest of mine is photography. I am not a professional photographer by any means, but I love to freelance and make what I can with what I have. Photography is a multiple step process that goes way far beyond the click of the camera, and I always try to keep that into consideration when taking photos. Being an avid Photoshopper for over eight years drastically helps contribute to the quality and visual goals that I try to obtain with my work. Since starting my studies at Texas A&M, I haven’t been able to take as many photos as I used to. The interest has never left though, and I will try to take pictures and edit them whenever I can.
One final small (and obvious) interest is the website you’re currently looking at. helloruiz.com is my personal concept and freelance website and blog built from the ground up by me, myself, and I (with the help of amazing open-source resources, of course). I am not a professional world-class web designer, but a pure freelancing experimentalist who teaches himself. But why? Because I want to share my views, activities, creations to the world and the people around me. And the best part is, it’s all about me (and a lot of other things).
I really appreciate that you took the time to read about me and who I am. If you want to know anything else about me, please feel free to contact me in any way possible. Thanks. ;)