Scully's World

This Apple

2005-10-31T13:21:00.000-07:00

I just went to Wild Oats and bought a single, red apple of the organic variety. I think it could be the best apple I've ever had in my life.

That is all.

The Big Picture

2005-09-02T10:01:00.000-06:00

Copied and Pasted from Elsewhere on the Web.

"If you're letting the little things get to you, perhaps the big things aren't compelling enough. When your focus and direction are feeble and ill-defined, the smallest, most trivial distraction -- whether it is positive or negative -- can swirl you around like a feather in the wind.

Where are you headed? What do you intend to accomplish? What undeniable purpose is pushing you forward? Answer these questions with confidence and clarity, and there's almost nothing that can stop you.

It's impossible to be focused, if there's nothing to focus upon. Yet when the goal is clearly visualized and meaningful enough to you, it becomes almost impossible to ignore. With a destination that is clear and compelling enough, you'll do whatever it takes to find your way there."

Round Four

2005-09-01T23:11:00.000-06:00

Two weeks into school now. I'm taking this semester as a challenge to myself. I'm kind of seeing how much I can take on in an effort to maximize my time management and focus.

That being said, my weeks are deadly. Allow me to describe my schedule. I haven't worked all 3 Ice Cream days yet, but will starting the third week in September - and then I think it's actually 4 days a week because I'm working Sundays too. You'll see what I mean.

Monday
8-10:30am: Work at Career Services.
11-1:30pm: Hold office hours at UMC Hillel Office & Eat Lunch.
2:30-10:45pm: Work at Ice Cream shop.

Tuesday
9:30-10:45am: Advertising and Promotions Management.
11-12:15pm: Product Strategy.
12:15-1:59pm: Lunch Break.
2-3:15pm: International Marketing.
3:30-4:45pm: Introduction to Finance.
5-6:15pm: Business Law.

Wednesday
Any time-1:30pm: Hold office hours at UMC Hillel Office & Eat Lunch.
2:30-10:45pm: Work at Ice Cream shop.

Thursday
9:30-10:45am: Advertising and Promotions Management.
11-12:15pm: Product Strategy.
12:15-1:59pm: Lunch Break.
2-3:15pm: International Marketing.
3:30-4:45pm: Introduction to Finance.
5-6:15pm: Business Law.
6:30pm: Hillel Board Meetings (alternate Thursdays).

Friday
9:30-3:30pm: Work at Career Services.

Saturday
2:30-11pm: Work at Ice Cream shop.

Sunday
Day off.

To save you the math. I'm taking 15 credits. Working 8 hours at Career Services, working 24+ at the Ice Cream shop. Involved in Hillel (holding office hours basically 4+ hours during the week - which is generally akin to study-time, since no one shows up). Good times. Can you dig it?

Alas, it is 11:16pm, and time for bed, seeing as I got up at 6:15 this morning to catch up on some reading that I didn't do. TGIweekend. Parents are here so call at your own risk. *hugs*

Round Three

2005-09-01T23:05:00.000-06:00

Schusterman Leaders Assembly. Clayton, GA. August 16th-21st.

OMG. Most amazing week of my life.. so far, I think.

I was there for six days. Tuesday at 2pm to Sunday at Noon. For the entire time I was there, I got a total of 17 hours sleep. That's right folks, I averaged less than 3 hours of sleep per night, for six nights. And school started the next day.

There were some 300 people from all over the world. There was a waterfall. A forest worth of trees. Humidity that gave the feeling you'd just come out of the shower, every time you'd step outside. Bugs of all shapes and sizes that ate indiscriminantly (Did I just make a new word?). It was amazing.

I took home information from 65 different people. 5 guys - you do the math. Including 7 amazing girls from Stanford - excluding the 7 girls I went with (from CU). I went to the waterfall twice. I took 128 pictures (most of which are me holding the camera with my left hand, my right arm around someone - usually a girl - me on the right, them on the left). Email me for links to the pictures.

Just an all around amazing time. I wish I could go again.

Round Two

2005-09-01T22:52:00.000-06:00

I got on the bus the other day and was seated across from one of the local.. how shall I put this.. persons facing challenges in their everyday life. I don't know that the man was homeless. I don't know what problems he has, but he definitely has them, and I shall leave it at that (aside from this).

One time, Mari and I were walking down 28th Street (one of the main North/South roads in Boulder) for whatever reason. It was dark, not quite late at night, but just night time. We were talking and when this man (the same man from the bus) began approaching us, we suddenly got quiet. The man had an angry gait to his step. Like he was marching toward someone he was going to pound the ever-living shit out of. Quiet is the natural reaction, I assure you. As he got within a few steps of us, he took a large one, and shouted at us, "FUCK!" and continued his march onward. Mari had turned towards me, arms covering her chest, hands clenched in fists. I don't know what my reaction was, but I can't imagine it was that much different. Anyway, the moral of this story is that I knew him to be unstable before I sat down on the bus.

So, I was sitting across from this man, attempting to mind my own business. Refraining from making eye contact, and just generally looking elsewhere, for fear of setting him off, because honestly, you never know.

He was looking toward the bus driver and posed a question, innocently enough. I did not hear it, so I can't tell you what it was, or for sure that it was benign even. However, I can tell you that when the bus driver did not acknowledge the man's inquiry he was rather upset. He stood up from his seat on the moving bus, crossed the white line and leaning on a pole began a rant at the driver.

The driver responded with some words of his own, which didn't settle the man any further - quite the opposite really. We came to a stop, and the driver asked the man to get off the bus. The man turned toward the door, seemingly to comply.

It was then that the bus driver chose, for who knows why, to push this man in the back. The man fell forward two feet, toward the ledge of the bus steps before catching himself. He was almost pushed off the bus! He removed himself from the bus, turned around and began taunting the driver, inviting him to step outside and join him on the street for a physical conversation - if you will.

An innocent lady got on the bus between the quarreling men. She took the man's spot, the driver closed the door and began to drive off. Last I saw the exiled man was trying to jot down bus information into his notepad.

At the following stop, the driver asked for those witnessing the events to fill out an "incident report" of what happened. Mine was a more concise version of what happened here. I indicated that the driver pushed the man in the back, almost throwing him from the bus completely. A few stops later I gave my completed card to the driver before getting off.

Somehow, I don't think it got to where he'd hoped it would be going when he asked me to fill it out. And, I think this is further evidence that I shan't engage in polite conversation with this man next time I see him. I'm just sayin' is all.

Round One

2005-09-01T22:37:00.000-06:00

At work the other day, I helped this old guy - probably in his 60s. Made him a smoothie. He paid, I gave him change. I went on to the next person. A woman - probably in her 30s, with a small child - about 5-6? years old. She ordered ice cream. As my back was turned, something took place between them, that pissed the lady off something fierce. The man was like "Whatever," went outside, sat down and started drinking his smoothie. I filled the woman's order. She paid me, I brought her change. As I gave her the money, I noticed she was eating a small purple fruit looking thing.

She took the money, her ice cream, and her now eaten fruit outside. Swinging the door wide open, she stepped into the heat of the Summer sun, shouted some specific words she had chosen inside, cocked back her arm and let the fruit fly. I could scarcely believe my eyes. This 30 year old woman had just thrown food at this old man! Meanwhile, the door was now swinging back on the woman's daughter and almost hit the poor girl. It didn't, but there was a tense moment. The airborne fruit hit the man just inside the left shoulder. He was confused for a moment, and then enraged.

The woman began walking away with her daughter in tow. The man must have shouted some words back as he picked up the fruit, and began a charge toward her - smoothie in one hand, fruit ready to complete its round-trip in the other. When he got within two steps of her, he threw the fruit back at her. The woman, now further incensed, shoved the man old enough to be her father - while she was quite possibly still holding the ice cream she had just purchased from me. The man pushed back, one hand clutching the smoothie I had prepared.

Further words were exchanged, and the scuffle ended as abruptly as it had begun. The woman walked off with her daughter, and the man went back to his chosen seat for further consumption of his smoothie. The End.

Oh wait, no, no it's not. Ten minutes later, the police showed up. That's right, the woman called the cops on the old man. Inside the shop, we were abuzz over the tiff on our doorstep. The bossman wanted to know what happened, and I relayed this version of events to him before walking off to do some dishes. Before I had taken ten steps toward the back, my name was being called. There was a police officer who wanted to hear what I had to say.

I railed off the story to the officer, leaving off the more amusing details. He nodded intently with each sentence, trying to stifle a smirk but failing. When I was done, he thanked me and asked me if I would be around should he need me further. I pointed to the logo on my shirt and nodded, "I won't be going anywhere for a while." The End.

Oh wait, no, no it's not. The police continued to talk to the man for the next fifteen minutes. It was cuh-razy! Finally, they left, and the man went back to staring off into space, sipping from his smoothie.

Shortly thereafter, he came back inside, asked to use the telephone. Did, and then went back to a table outside, sipping from that smoothie I made for him, back when times were easier and life was simple. And then, he disappeared, just as fast as he had come into existence in my world.

I take from this two things; One, I make a damned good smoothie. And two, well, no actually that's it. I make a damned good smoothie.

Best Quote

2005-07-31T23:18:00.000-06:00

At work tonight, I had just filled a woman's order. Handed it to her, and she took this opportunity to ask me a question.

Her: "Do you have a girlfriend?"
My response: "Nope, I do not."
Her: "Boyfriend?"
Me: "No.."
Her: "Well, you're very funny, you should have one!"
Me: "Thanks..."

In other news, since May 26th..(67 days) I've walked 500,000+ steps. For an idea, if you figure 2,500 steps is one mile (rather conservative estimate), I've walked 200 miles now (in 67 days).

The Blockbuster Video

2005-07-31T09:13:00.000-06:00

This happened a few weeks ago, I just haven't got around to posting it. So, it's probably new to you!

First things first, there's a Blockbuster Video next door to our store.

I helped some lady, rang her up, and saw her off. Helped some other lady, rang her up, and saw her off. Then some kid came in, and asked for change. I gave him 40% of what he wanted - since we're really not supposed to do that, and he wasn't buying anything. Mistake #1.

As I had approached the kid, he was leaning on the counter, holding his money over a Blockbuster Video. As the kid ran off, I said, "Hey, don't forget your video." because I had no reason to think it wasn't his. And if it wasn't his, why would he take it?

Naturally, it belonged to the first woman, who a few minutes later came in, looking frantically for her video. Alas, it was gone with the munchkin. She left irate. How could *I* have betrayed her so, and just given away her video like that?

About twenty minutes later, I was in the freezer to swap out some ice cream, and the boss comes over with the phone. "You've got a phone call." I take the phone, "Hello?" It was the lady. Long story short, the lady felt it was an honest mistake, but she needed to talk to my manager about it - because she was so bothered by it.

(We are not responsible for lost or stolen items in our store.)

However, we are responsible for carelessness and negligence. This instance falls somewhere in between. I wouldn't have had a video to give away if not for the fact the woman had "lost" it in our store. I was careless in failing to ask the youngin whether or not the video was his.

The lady came in to talk to the boss the following day. She was that pissed. Meanwhile, the movie hadn't been missing 24 hours yet - and you have two weeks for it to be returned. WTF? -- Anyway, twice during their conversation, he had to say, "Listen lady, if you don't calm down I'm not going to continue this conversation." Ridiculousness.

The conclusion they came to is that if the video was returned, I think I get sacked with the rental fee. If it wasn't, I get sacked with the purchase price. Nice!

Regardless, I'm far more conscientious of people with Blockbuster videos now.
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In the following week, at Safeway, I was given the wrong item at the deli counter. I wanted Maple Turkey, but got Maple Ham (which I wouldn't open, let alone eat). And at Red Robin I was overcharged $2 in tips (I paid with a debit card, and left the tip in cash.. so there shouldn't have been a tip).

I went to both places and straigthened them out. The Turkey cost me $1.60 extra, and I got the $2 back on the same trip. Aside from my lost time, I broke even, no? Weird stuff.

July 4th Edition

2005-07-11T00:35:00.000-06:00

Twas my first Independence Day since turning 21. What did I do having enjoyed my rite of passage, having the world as my oyster? I worked. For ten hours. I just about missed the fireworks at Folsom for the first time since I began my studies in Boulder. I caught it a few minutes after they commenced from a vantage on the corner of 28th and Arapahoe. A locale I might choose to enjoy them from next year, if I remember. The hours at work crawled by, speeding up and slowing down as the stream of customers would ebb and flow. If nothing else it was a productive day for me, if only speaking in monetary terms...

And fireworks aside, that's a pretty good description of my 5th, and 6th of July as well. The 7th, on the other hand, was entirely different. I awoke uncharacteristically early, and readied myself for a day of relaxation and enjoyment. I was to attend a Dodger game for the first time in two? summers. This game, though, was not at Dodger Stadium however. It was, in fact, at Coors Field - my first game there. I went with my friend Arwen. We acquired some seats in the right field bleachers (in the shade) from the ticket office. We found them and went off to buy Denver Cheese Steaks. Lame. It was o-kay.

The game was rather interesting for the first few innings. Dodgers were up 5-0 by the end of the second inning. I might've been more entertained had I been familiar with more than one player from either team who was actually playing. I was looking forward to seeing Jeff Kent, among others, but alas, he had the day off. I only knew Todd Helton (of the Rockies) and Derek Lowe (of the Dodgers, formerly of the Red Sox). I was surprised at how many players on the Dodgers DL (disabled list) I knew. But they weren't playing, now were they?

The Rockies came to life sparked by a pair of Todd Helton home runs. He might be coming out of that slump I almost read about. And the Rockies ended up winning 8-5.

Arwen and I bussed back to Boulder. I finished the book I was reading and dazed in and out of slumber with the straining of my neck - which would wake me up. Back at the Park-and-Ride, we put some gas in Arwen's car, and headed to Happy Hour at The Med with her co-workers. An enjoyable time. I was the youngest person at the table by five days.. which came as quite a surprise to me. Who knew?

After that wrapped, I wandered Pearl Street, killing time before I was to meet up with Deena, Noodle (Ross) and some of his friends (Sam, Justin). Everybody was late. And I was stuck playing the waiting game. Ain't being on time a bitch? Together, we wandered trying to decide what to do. We ended up at Old Chicago, where we the guys split Italian Nachoes, Deena had a Calzone, and the other guys (not me) split a pitcher of beer. From there, Deena split to write a paper, while the rest of us waiting for Hapa's Happy Hour to start. We all got Sushi, while Sam and Justin tried some more alkyhaul. Noodle became the DD, and I wasn't interested in drinking. We met some more of Noodle's friends who come to Sushi on Thursday nights, and had a jolly time. Yada yada yada. Bar. Yada yada. Didn't drink, ran into people I had classes with. Yada yada. Bored, ears hurt. Drunk people. Yada.

Worked Friday.

Saturday I hung around the apartment waiting for time to pass before seeing War of the Worlds with Dalis, Ian, Jay and Troy. In my solitude I caught Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy on HBO and found Steve Carell to be the most entertaining part. Followed a distant second by the slew of cameos. Before the movie I got dinner at Falafel King with them and some girl named Rachel that I think Jay might be dating. While we were eating, Jay turned to me, completely at random and said, "Hey, this is a really un-macho thing to say, but have you lost weight?"

"Since when?" - I have lost weight, but not so much in the last 7 months. Of course, I haven't really seen Jay for more than a few minutes at a time since before March, so whatever.

War of the Worlds was good. I think my quotable quote from it is going to be, "Whaddya mean, like Europe?" A somewhat obscure line, but one I enjoyed nonetheless. We'll see if it gets much use this Fall. (I'll probably forget.)

Worked for six and a half hours today. Came home, went grocery shopping, came home, watched Family Guy, made dinner, and generally sat about, before deciding to write this up.

Next day off: Thursday. Going to eat dinner at Rhumba and see the Fantastic Four with Rachel-who-goes-to-Barnard.

Ten Hours My Ass!

2005-07-03T11:59:00.000-06:00

Lately I've been sleeping about ten hours each night, but have been waking up completely ex-hausted. Straight up, I-don't-want-to-move,-fuck-the-world-tired. Most of my body aches, the only possible reason is because I walk everywhere, all the freakin' time on shitty ass sandals.. and then spend hours upon hours standing to serve ice cream to people (yummy, delicious ice cream. Mmmmm.) It usually goes away with a shower, but seriously people, what the hell is goin' on here?

Boulder is beautiful this time of year. Sunny in the morning, rainy in the afternoon, and then gorgeous once the sun goes down. Lovin' it. Although I have been living a rather solitary life. Between work and running errands I'm finding that I have little free time... but that's not true. It's really because I've been sleeping til noon (which is because I've been going to bed at 2am. Which is because I don't get home until 11, and would rather not go straight to bed. So I watch tv, play games, and generally chat online... because no one is around during the day.) Ah-ha!

The problem is that no one is around when I'm free, and I'm usually busy when the folks I would hang out with are free. That and there are only so many people in Boulder that I even want to hang out with at the moment. Blah.

Tami is coming to sleep on my couch in a little over two weeks. That'll be fun! Although I only have one key to the apartment, so coordination of that should be rather interesting. But I don't think there are all that many people here she wants to hang out with either (other than yours truly, ha!). Good times will be had, until we have to move.. which is a completely different story.

I've been reading Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion by Robert Cialdini - it was suggested by my Marketing prof this past semester, and another book I had been reading. Two recommendations from completely different sources sparked my interest, and I'm about 4/5ths through it. If you've got the time, I'd definitely pick it up. It's insightful, enlightening and just plain useful. And I would almost bet that your local library has a copy.

I'm looking at getting an iPod. Likely by the end of summer. They just released a new version of the 20gig with a color screen, a battery that lasts up to 3 hours longer, and it holds photos. But I'm worried that they're going to release a new generation of the iPod in the fall, and I'll be stuck with this new (now) old (then) iPod. And who wants one that is outdated?! (The new-old (now.. the one they are replacing) is on sale for $30 off the regular price, but it's already outdated, and those 3 hours are definitely worth my $30. To wait, or not to wait. Alas, I will likely buy one from Circuit City before I go to Atlanta, and return it when I get back.. to wait and see if they end up releasing the next generation.

Need to see War of the Worlds and Mr and Mrs Smith.

Fin.

Stood Up.

2005-06-20T22:01:00.000-06:00

I was supposed to go see Mr and Mrs Smith with Tami's friend Shaela tonight. Alas, due to phone problems and who-the-fuck-knows (for the time being), I am still at home. And don't particularly feel like going to the last show alone - as it means busing then walking home around midnight.

Instead, I've opted to stay in ("opted" being the operative word - what the fuck else was I gonna do?), and have had a nice chat about guys and girls with my friend Sarah. We're seeing Batman Begins tomorrow night. Woohoo!

Dreams

2005-06-10T15:45:00.000-06:00

I gotta tell ya, normally, I don't remember my dreams. But, the past few nights I have.

I dreamt about my pre-calc teacher from high school - MRV (Mr. Vordahl). It was really trippy. He's retiring this year, and that's what my dream was about. "Hey MRV, are you retiring?" "Yap."

And then last night, I dreamt I got fired from my job. I wasn't on the schedule past today, and hadn't called up to do anything about it. First, I dreamt I got fired because I got fat off all the ice cream I was eating - and they fired me for that. How ridiculous, eh?! And it was even weirder, because the guy who fired me was sitting behind a desk in business attire - and has nothing to do with the company.

I called up work today to get it straightened out, and the owner (boss-man) gets on the phone and when I tell him I'm calling about hours for the coming week, he's like: "Oh, didn't I tell you, we got a new intern!.. (I'm confused).. Yeah, she's a 10. And has promised everyone sexual favors." Ahh, the stressful environment in which I work. "That's great news! I'm looking forward to meeting her." (She obviously doesn't exist)

In other news, my right eyelid swelled up to 2x the size of my right eyelid for no apparent reason. I got it checked out, and while I think it was preseptal cellulitis, the doc seemed to think it was just clogged tear ducts (from shit in the air). My diagnosis sounds much sexier, so that's what I had. Three uses of the antibiotic eye dropper and it's back to normal. It just sucks that it cost me $25, and I have to use the whole bottle (because that's how antibiotics work). Le sigh.

I caught Episode 3 for the second time on Monday. It's like a train-wreck that I can't help but watch over and over again. I know what happens, I know what has to happen, and I know it can't happen any other way, but still I watch hoping it'll turn out different - knowing it won't. Deliciously dark and violent - just the way I like it.

Also caught Madagascar. It's a cute kids' movie, but as was pointed out by a friend, it lacks a real plot. Although I did like the cast, and enjoyed some of the jokes-for-adults.

Gonna catch Mr. and Mrs. Smith next week (during the week - on a day off). I was going to watch it today (morning showing), but I slept in as a result of watching Identity and Matrix Revolutions back-to-back on HBO (ending at 2am). I just beat Enter the Matrix (computer game) yesterday and it pointed out a lot of stuff that was missing from Reloaded to make Revolutions better - and make more sense. Revolutions still sucks - and makes little sense, but the game is a lot of fun and was worth the $6.44 I spent on it.

On that note, I return you to your life, and promise another update between now and a month from now. (Don't want to put too much pressure on myself, ya know?)

Passover

2005-04-26T10:30:00.000-06:00

Not historically one of my favorite holidays. It usually means getting dressed all fancy to sit at a table full of people who have known me for as long as I've been alive, to eat food prepared by a woman who has prepared the vast majority of food I've consumed. The past two years, it hasn't meant any of those things. In fact, I can't even tell you what I did for the last two.

But I can tell you about the one that passed this weekend. I was more or less invited by Becca to her family's seder, and graciously accepted. I thought, "Hell, this could be fun. The worst that could happen is I get some home-cooked food, and sit through a lousy service." The worst case scenario was blown away. Hell, my best expectations for the weekend were obliterated. I had so. Much. Fun.

The entire weekend was relaxed. I dressed more fancy for a presentation on Monday than at any point over the course of the Pesach weekend. I ate more food this weekend than I will likely eat in any weekend this year, until maybe Thanksgiving - and even then, it'll only be close. I had Steak, Turkey, Brisket and Chicken. I had all the potatoes I could (and did) eat. Matzah Ball soup. Wine. Good times with good folks.

Becca's family was eight kinds of awesome. Her dad was easy-going, and very laid back. Her mom cooked up a storm in the kitchen, and was an incredibly gracious host. I felt like I was at home, only with a different family. Liz, Becca's sister was too cool. Her friend Ashley, awesome. Becca's brother, Ben, who is only 16 was neither a brat, nor a pain in the ass, quite the opposite in fact - he was a welcomed member to all we did. We had fun with shotgun, we played "Nose Goes" (where you put your index finger on your nose to signify "Not It"). I am forced to think, "So this is what it's like to have people your own age at a family gathering?" And truth be known, I felt as though I was in the family for the weekend.

I filled out my summer wardrobe. Watched Empire Records (in its entirety for the first time), got in some When Harry Met Sally action, and played a wicked amount of ping pong. The family friends I got to meet were amazing. I can't wait for next year. Seriously. Best. Passover. Ev-er.

Yesterday, Becca came by my work to drop off the sunglasses I'd forgotten at her parents' home. And with it, her mom had sent Kosher-for-Passover Muffins (I've already had four), and half of a Kosher-for Passover Cake. How cool is that?

T-Minus Nine

2005-04-22T17:05:00.000-06:00

That's right.

Nine days to go before new Family Guy.

Oh, and while we're at it. Shameless plug for "T-Minus 12" which is how many days until I'm 21. And can legally fund public schooling in the state of Nevada through games of chance. And can enter all sorts of happy-fun contests that for some reason, at the age of 20 years, 353 days, I am not old enough to enter. Go figure!

Linguistics Profile

2005-04-19T18:11:00.000-06:00

Because I'm so damned busy:

Your Linguistic Profile:

80% General American English

10% Dixie

10% Yankee

0% Midwestern

0% Upper Midwestern

What Kind of American English Do You Speak?

Speedy Speedy

2005-03-21T22:39:00.000-07:00

Was thinking about how accurate my resume was, stating that I could type 95 wpm. So, I went on over to TypingTest.com and took a 3 minute test with The Wizard of Oz.

Three minutes later I had my results.
Gross Speed: 115 wpm
Errors: 10 words
Net Speed: 112 wpm
Accuracy: 97%

Yeah. There you have it.

Here's a Shocker..

2005-03-20T13:02:00.000-07:00

You scored as Goofy. Your alter ego is Goofy! You are fun and great to be around, and you are always willing to help others. You arn't worried about embarrassing yourself, so you are one who is more willing to try new things.

Goofy

75%

Sleeping Beauty

56%

Peter Pan

56%

Pinocchio

44%

Ariel

44%

Donald Duck

38%

Cinderella

31%

The Beast

31%

Snow White

25%

Cruella De Ville

19%

Which Disney Character is your Alter Ego?
created with QuizFarm.com

Spring Breaaaaak!!!

2005-03-18T21:24:00.000-07:00

I kicked off my, technically, first day of Spring Break by playing some racquetball with Ross (aka The Noodle). We hadn't played in some time (October actually) - checking my old posts, I was able to confirm my massive losing streak, and discover my lifetime record against Ross was 2-11 coming into today. And I think I'd lost 8 or 9 straight - I know, I'm awesome.

Ah, but wait, I am awesome. I beat him in all three games today. 16-14, 15-11(?), 16-14. That last game, I clawed my way to victory from a 14-7 deficit (it only takes 15 to win, and you have to win by 2). He was definitely off his game. And my knees were just this side of searing by the end. They were a bit achey to begin with.

We agreed we'd have to play again soon - hopefully during the coming week, as we won't have much else to do. Unfortunately, he's going home for a large chunk of it.
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Last night there was a St. Patrick's Day thing at Deena's place. When I say place, I mean dorm. She and her visiting boyfriend (Ben, of Chicago) made fajitas for a bunch of folks. It was kind of odd, because it was only Hillel folks.. and it was in the dorms *chill runs down my spine*. After a little over 2 hours, the group, minus Deena and Ben, made up of Ross, Maya, Sarah, Hannah, Meryl, Jay and I headed over to Hapa for happy hour sushi - where we met up with Meryl's brother Seth who had taken off from the party a whee bit early. I ordered Salmon Avocado Rolls, only to discover I don't much like salmon in my sushi. Luckily, Maya was willing to trade her Rock n' Rolls for my Salmon Avocados - I reluctantly agreed, and we were both fat and happy in the end.

Earlier in the afternoon, I took the bus to Downtown Denver to see about this internship thing with Northwestern Mutual Financial Network. It's supposed to be a really good internship, but the crux of it is that you're selling Life and Disability Insurance. *vomits*

Had a Spanish exam at 8am. It either went really well, or kind of bad. We shall soon see.
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I'm getting excited about Episode III. I know, "Scully, you're a dork." I know. But, it's going to be deliciously violent, and dark. Darker than Empire Strikes Back even, which, along with George Lucas not writing it, was one of the things that made it so great.

I'm up for a let down. But at least I'll be 21 when I'm done. So, I've got that going for me. ***This has been a shameless reminder that my birthday is a month and a half away - and closing fast!***

Yup, that's it for now. I know, w-e-a-k.

Complimentary

2005-03-02T22:39:00.000-07:00

Tonight I made dinner for a few friends. We had meatless meat-lasagna, which is to say both my roommate and I wanted meat lasagna but since we were hosting, we had to accomodate our guests - meatless lasagna. It turned out perfect, just like the rest of my lasagnas. The girls I had over were ranting and raving about it. Seriously, they were thanking me for cooking it, and saying how great it was every five minutes. After the lasagna (which was served with a Sparkling Apple Cider, 2004), I cooked up some MilkShakes, you see I concocted a new flavor Monday (I think it was) night, and it has been deemed "the best one (so far)" by the majority of taste-testers. More compliments.

I can take a compliment gracefully, but I honestly don't know what the hell to do with it. It's quite bothersome, actually. Does that mean just keep doing what I'm doing? Is there no room for improvement? Have I reached the pinnacle of this (whatever it may be that I have done)? Am I the best? Where do I go from here? I don't know. Compliments aren't constructive; what the hell? And who, other than me, complains about receiving compliments?

This bugs me at work also. On end-of-the-semester evaluations, I basically rack up perfect scores. But that means jack shit to me. I'd rather get an okay score with some direction on where I can improve instead of having to figure it out on my own. Perfect evaluations usually give me a complacency that leads to poor job performance until I realize I need to shape up because I'm slacking.

Compliments don't even make me feel good anymore. If I'm complimented directly, I feel like I'm being paid lip service, so that I will do what I've done again. Although if I overhear someone saying good things about me to someone else, then I'm like, "I thought I was doing a good job," and my work performance suffers as a result of my re-found complacency. Vicious cycle.

Moral of the story: Compliments can be accepted graciously, but I question the motive and will usually end up taking it for granted even after it no longer applies. So I ask, what am I to do?

My First Oscar Party

2005-03-01T19:41:00.000-07:00

For the first 19 years of my life, the Academy Awards (58th through 76th) have been a relative blight on my evening. The television was dedicated to the event, and the only good thing about it was the opening where the host got to make some funnies. This year was different.

My buddy Arwen decided she was going to throw an Oscar party. People had to dress up, food would be served, friends would gather, and celebrate being together with the Oscars as an excuse. It was a resounding success.

A projector was procured, and set up to do its thing (project) onto a wall (covered with a white sheet, probably of the tablecloth family) in her living room. Food was prepared all day long. The dishes included

Aviator-tilla Black Bean Casserole.
Million Dollar Meatloaf.
Sideways Pineapple Upside-down Cake.
Ray-sin Bread/Muffins.
Peter Pan Pizza (which ended up not being able to attend).

Nicole provided Lemon-y Snicket Bars, which were devoured before I managed to have my second. It's okay, I had more black bean casserole than could possibly have been good for me. A merry time was had by all, and a drinking game was played by the majority.

A drink was to be taken every time...:
1. Halle Berry, Tom Hanks or Jack Nicholson were on screen.
2. A winner thanked their mother.
3. A winner commented on how heavy the Oscar was.
4. A winner walked the wrong way off-stage.
5. A woman fixed her dress.
6. An award was dedicated to the dearly departed.
7. Any time someone made a political joke.
8. Any time someone said the word "peace."

There were also a 9. and 10. but I don't think they saw much use. Halle Berry, thanking one's mother, and the heavy Oscar lead to the inebriation of at the very least Nicole, Tom, Mari, myself, and possibly at some point Arwen. The others participated, but I don't think they were as into it.

Nicole and I alone had three strawberry daiquiris and two pina coladas.. each.

After the party was over, Nicole, Arwen, Tom (sort of) and I watched Grosse Point Blank on the ~100 inch screen. Arwen went to sleep halfway into the movie, and Tom fell asleep early on I think. He was pretty far gone.

Of course, GPB ended after 1am, and I was most definitely stranded at Mari & Arwen's. I ended up sleeping on a love seat which was at least a foot too short for me to sleep on. And was awoken numerous times during the night because I'm a light sleeper outside of my comfort zone. But it wasn't so bad, Arwen made French Toast for breakfast - a delicacy I rarely have the pleasure of enjoying. Then drove Nicole and I home. Tom had taken off at 6am, leaving the big couch vacant - unbeknownst to me (he woke me up too, unbeknownest to him, damnit). Went home, took a shower, and started my week.

But hey, at least now I'm looking forward to the 78th Annual Academy Awards. ;)

What day is it?

2005-02-05T23:30:00.000-07:00

Fuckberries.

My week goes by so fast and so slow at the same time. I don't get it. Tuesdays and Thursdays are neee-uts! Tuesday night, at about 12:15am (yes, I know, technically that makes it Wednesday morning, but remember who's telling the story here - thank you), and I was thinking about what it was I would have to do over the coming day. Immediately, I thought of a paper due Thursday, and a shot of adrenaline ripped through my body. "Oh fuck, that's tomorrow!! and it's barely started!!" And then I asked myself, wait, "What the fuck happened to Wednesday?" Which made me realize that Wednesday hadn't happened yet, I'd just been going so long - since 6:20am, I simply thought Wednesday had come and gone - when in fact, it had barely begun. It happens every Tuesday and Thursday, occasionally Fridays now too. And it sucks.

Went to the rec center on Friday, twas the first time since mid-November. I need to get back into "shape" for intramurals - where I get to run around for about 30 minutes playing basketball. I haven't done any running, outside of catching the bus two Sundays ago, since ... mid-November, so I knew it was going to be rough. The indoor track at the rec is 1/10th of a mile. I did a little stretching and started running. The first two were a cinch, the third was a little harder, and the fifth a little more. Generally when I run I will walk after half of my seventh lap. Unfortunately, this time, I started after my fifth. I walked two, ran two, walked two more, ran two more. Then, walking two more, I was so winded I had to stop. How shitty is that? I barely did a mile and a half, and had to stop from lack of oxygen. Weak. So weak. Omgosh! I did a little stretching, changed and walked the mile-plus back home. That's great for the self-esteem. Of course, today, my legs hurt, my upper back hurts, and fuck, even my nose hurts!! What the hell?!

Last night was fun though. Hannah, Sharon and Jay came over to my place and we hung out. First, Sharon and I made brownies while Jay and Hannah conversed in the "family" room. Then, we made MilkShakes and consumed them. Followed that up with Grilled Cheese samiches. Yum! Watched Life as a House, ate brownies. Hung out and talked. Watched some of the Best of Triumph the Insult Comic Dog. And all of a sudden it was half past two in the morning, and Hannah was half asleep. We started at about six forty-five. I think everyone had a blast, we learned about each other, laughed, came close to crying, and filled our bellies. I can't wait to do it again!

Today, I hung out with Sarah all day. Woke up, took a shower, and then she picked me up. We were going to make challah. About nine hours later, it was done. But I did get to make an omelette, learned how ass-dirty her tap water is, had delicious chicken, okay potatoes with a little Dr Pepper, and made a Target run. Rented Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle, and came back to my apartment where we finished cooking the challah. Laughed our asses off, and enjoyed some delicious MilkShakes. Yum! Best of all, I got to keep the loaf! Muahahahaha!

Tomorrow is the Super Bowl. A day where friends and families come together and sit in front of the television to watch advertisements. Unfortunately, these advertisements are interrupted by an ongoing drama about a bunch of big men wearing pads and helmets trying to score on each other. What-ever. The ads are usually semi-entertaining at least. Last year, Matt and I hit up Arby's afterward. And the year before, we had chinese food. This year, who knows!?!

With that, I wish your Super Bowl Day to be entertaining and that the interruptions are few in number, and short in length. G'day!

My Very First Scam!

2005-01-21T01:05:00.000-07:00

How exciting!

I got a little postcard thing in the mail yesterday, telling me to call this 1-800 number to claim my prize. Although it's in such unclear words that I really haven't won anything. I have a Claim No. to NDI "Prize Redemption Center." Before calling the number, I decided to Google them to see if there was any information I could glean from the internet as to whether or not I should bother wasting my time calling them.

I was pleased, and a little disappointed, to discover it's a scam - kinda. Apparently the deal is that you call up, get told to go to a hotel or somewhere to attend an "informational meeting" where they try and sell you on membership to their buying club (at a fee in excess of $1000). And then, after the 45-minute to (one) hour long presentation, you might be lucky enough to have the Claim Number on your card match one of the (not-all-that-impressive) prizes they're giving away.

Meh. And I was hoping it was a Plasma Screen TV.. Oh well. At least I will get to enjoy the sound the card makes as I toss it down the shredder at work (on Monday)!

Old Drunks

2005-01-16T01:22:00.000-07:00

Today, I did laundry. More notably, I went to a women's basketball game. My ladies lost to Texas Tech by nearly 50 points. It was brutal. But my friends and I, we had a good time. Beforehand, a few of us went to dinner at a place called "The Sink" on what is called "The Hill" (just east of campus).

There, they partook in food, I partook in Arwen's fries (they weren't all that good to her, but I enjoyed them thoroughly, and would go back for more) - I am "po'" at the moment, and so won't be purchasing much for the next few weeks. Anyway, the reason I'm mentioning all this, aside from giving you a running chronicle of my life, which I know, is terribly interesting.. the service was horrendous, but more, there were a bunch of older folk (about 15) eating at a table a few feet away from us, and they were the loudest people in there. In a college eatery!! Astounding, I'd bet most of the loud people were drunk (and that it was only a few) but jeez.

Went back to Arwen & Mari's (they're roommates) and played some Xbox with Arwen, assisted Mari in making cookies and ate my share of them. Also enjoyed a Bacardi Silver: Raz, which was pretty good - and I don't care if I consume what are deemed as "girly" drinks. If it tastes good, I'll drink it. Why drink something that tastes awful? Especially if you're not having enough for alcohol's effects to take place. Simply in the case of liquid refreshment. A tasty beverage is that for which I am looking (yay for not ending sentences on a preposition). . . Preposition is not a preposition, so booyah!

I think I'm going to read and then hit the sack. I'm supposed to help Hannah move in to her place tomorrow. Moving.. how fun. Maybe she'll feed me though. Right on!

An Off Day

2005-01-14T17:00:00.000-07:00

Today was a pretty good day, I'm not yet ready to christen it "The first good day of 2005," but I'm not ready to say it wasn't.

It wasn't so much a culmination of good things happening, so much as well, it being a day off. I got a good night's sleep. My lunch was tasty (what I remember of it anyway, I was multitasking at the time), I got stuff done, I didn't do any school work (yet). I'm going to have delicious lasagna for dinner, and maybe see a movie with friends. Barring the appearance of drama, we have a potential winner.

Although I did spend a little over one hundred dollars today paying off bills (Credit Card & Cable Internet), at least I'll be getting a little back from the roomie (half the Cable) so it's not so bad. By my standards I'm poor, so I'm going to live off of a budget for the next three weeks, which should be interesting. This happens every now and again, it's mostly due to my cash flow being low (I don't get a paycheck for two weeks, and then it's only half of normal).

Productive day at work, took care of stuff that needed to be done. Got my nagging errands done, and even got my hair cut! I still have a few things left to do before next week, but that's why we have "the weekend."

Lots of homework to do, but I've got nothing but time to do it. I plan on procrastinating a bit, but not too much. I might even get some work done tomorrow. I'm going to a (women's) basketball game in the evening, and will have a good time win or lose. Monday I'm supposed to go to the Denver Zoo, which should be fun, I haven't been to a zoo since... I can't even remember one. Although I did see a lion at the MGM over New Year's, that should count for something (not much, but some-thing, damnit).

Now I've got to wash my hair, because I got it cut, and don't want to shed over everything. Hasta lasagna. =)

Warning Labels for Food

2005-01-12T16:24:00.000-07:00

Wouldn't it be something if all food came with a warning label. Specifically the ones they put on toys not all that safe for children 3 and under. Ya know, the simple "Choking Hazard" label. All food. Everywhere. "Choking Hazard" right on the box. I didn't come to this conclusion until dinner-time last night.

Matt and I were enjoying a Tombstone Supreme Pizza fresh out of the oven, with some Sparkling Cider. We sat on the couch in wait, for the food to cool, and "Scrubs" to come on. "The Biggest Loser" was on at the time, and I made a command decision to find something else to watch for the ten minutes we had to kill.

We checked Spike, Sci-Fi, TBS, USA, TNT, and stopped. The women of Blue Crush would be suitable eye-candy until Scrubs was on. The pizza had cooled, and was beckoning to be eaten. Naturally, we indulged. I started from the back, eating the crust while it was fresh, and working my way around. After a few bites, something odd happened.

I took on a little more than I could chew, and a portion of the pizza got knocked back into the back of my throat, basically constricting my airway. I was wheezing, taking what would be seen as overly exaggerated breaths to squeeze air past the pizza. It was maybe two seconds in, when I thought to myself: "Not like this. I am not going to die on a Tombstone pizza, while watching Blue Crush. This is not the way I am going down." A few more breaths came and went. Matt had his pizza on his plate, ready to jump into action. A bad place for the heimlich, but it was far preferable than the alternative.

There we sat, the way we normally do during dinner. The seconds ticking past immeasurably slow, and the TV suddenly irrelevant. My breathing was the focus of our apartment, Matt's may very well have stopped. And then, just as it had happened, the pizza dislodged. I coughed, a hacking cough, on and on. But my breathing and time's passing returned to normal speeds.

I immediately shared my thoughts on the experience with Matt. "No way was I going to die like that" I said. And Matt, laughing it off with me, put himself at the funeral, answering questions to friends and family as to how it happened. Choking back laughter. Probably one of the closer calls I've had, but like everything else, I'm taking it in stride. (Although you have to appreciate the irony of a Tombstone pizza actually making someone need the other kind of tombstone.)

And recounting it today, I think of the what ifs. Can't you see it happening to someone who you've never heard of, from a small town you don't know, in a state you've never been to. And the person went down, no one was there, and they panicked, or the pizza dislodged too late and the person stopped breathing. Can't you see a lawsuit being wrought by the family? And a massive settlement. Can't you just see the resulting fear suffered by all food producers, the need to reduce liability, by perhaps putting a warning label on all their products? Can't you just see it, a hot pink stick with letters in big black typeface that say, "Choking Hazard."

I'll tell you what, I can. And it's both funny and sad. Just like that woman who put the coffee in her lap, had it spill, burned her crotch and subsequently sued McDonalds and received a million dollars as a result. Only worse. I can see the little sticker having to be put on every hamburger wrapper, every box of fries, every package of ground meat, boxes of Wheat Thins and Goldfish, and of course, the Tombstone pizza that I choked on last night.

Ahhh, this crazy world in which we live.

Ay Dios Mio

2005-01-10T19:50:00.000-07:00

Exhausted! What a surprise, eh?

Got out of my 6-8:50pm class early, which looks like it will be the norm. Yay!

I have lots of reading to do, and very little energy to do it. Meh.

I dread tomorrow's arrival. Two Spanish classes (the same class with different teachers) because I know one prof but not the other - and am currently registered with "the other" unless I want to swap into the one's class I know. With foreign languages, the prof makes or breaks the class. It's just that the prof I had last semester's only class is at eight in the morning, and the earliest class I've ever had was nine. Oy. What am I doing to myself, and I'm sleep deprived to begin with!

To work I go..

Sonuva!!

2005-01-10T11:37:00.000-07:00

Today is the first day of classes, and moments ago, I was about to leave my apartment for my first one of the semester when I wondered to myself, where is this class supposed to be anyway. I look at the page I jotted the information down onto, only to focus on the time the class was instead of the locale. The class I thought started at noon starts at 12:30. I have 25 minutes to kill. And could've gotten a half an hour more sleep, while eating my lunch far slower. Sonuva...

Four Hundred and Fifty Dollars Later

2005-01-09T16:36:00.000-07:00

I still have one book to buy for this semester. Although I have to talk to my buddy "the Noodle" about maybe borrowing a book from him (assuming it's the proper edition) and saving $100+ dollars.

Gotta return the leather jacket I bought at Target. Who buys a leather jacket at Target anyway? Even if it was 50% off. Kept the wool one instead, which cost 50% less than the Leather one anyway. Gotta go to the bank too. Oy.

Still exhausted. Enjoyed some Costco purchased Spinach & Mozarella Ravioli last night downed with an experimental, yet delicious, Chocolate-Banana MilkShake, which was deemed delicious by all (three of us) who partook. And dessert included S'mores, of which, I was the only one to enjoy them. Wootah my 36-count of Hershey's Chocolate Bars that will only maybe last me until sometime in mid-March. Watched Independence Day, and discovered there's a nice little scratch on the DVD that will necessitate replacing or annoyance every time I watch it - I'll probably just deal with the annoyance and missing forty-eight and a half seconds of the film. They were mushy moments anyway. I heart my speakers.

I had trouble falling asleep last night. Didn't get to bed until 3am, and then was consumed with thought for a while. Damnit. Woke up at 9am, the room was so bright, I rolled over and made the best of it until Noodle called at 11:15ish, and I remembered I had shit to do today (namely pay further outrageous prices for my edumacation).

Tired just from walking to campus and back. This week is going to be unimaginably long. I pine for the weekend - and this week hasn't even started yet. Whiskey Tango Foxtrot, people (WTF!). My place is full of clutter, that I can't begin to even start organizing due to my sheer lack of sleep. In fact, I should be preparing for tomorrow, assigning notebooks to classes, and writing down times, locations, and teacher's names. Well, maybe not teacher's names.

Click these words for a link to my schedule for this semester, minus most of the time I'm going to be at work (9am-12:15pm on Tuesday/Thursday, and 3:30-5:00pm on Mondays and Wednesdays). It's about 50x better than last semester's bullshit schedule. Much less of an endurance test, although I expect to be equally exhausted Friday night as I was the first Friday of last semester - I looked like shit.

Me looking like shit. A fitting way to wrap this one up. But come back for more tomorrow night (maybe Tuesday early), when you can read about my first day of school!

Oh Sweet Jesus!

2005-01-08T22:40:00.000-07:00

I am so tired.

I haven't had a good night's sleep since before Finals (early December).

My winter break was all kinds of boring, and unbelievably exhausting. I took care of my dog for five days while my folks took care of my neice, and she (the dog) has to take 16 pills a day. 8 pills in the morning, and then 8 more at night for her osteo-arthritis. I don't like the morning. I would be up until 2am, finally fall asleep, then have to get up at 8am to take care of her needs - take her outside (where it was fuggin cold), put her pills in cream cheese and hand feed her, before giving her a bone for breakfast. I'd go back to bed, and actually get up 4 hours later. Broken up sleep is the suck.

My flight out of Vegas was delayed. But I ended up eating lunch with the spare time, which was a bonus, because I didn't get to Boulder until 5 hours after boarding anyway. Then I spent three hours talking to this girl I met at the bus stop, who not only happened to be on the same bus.. not only the same stop, but lived three floors below me in the same building. But it gets better. Her name is Michele, the same name as my ex-girlfriend (if you toss an "L" in there), whom I met as someone else's date at prom. Coincidentally, her ex-boyfriend's name is the same as my first - but better yet, they met the same way. How's that for freakish?!

Other than that, I spent the day moving. Matt and I exchanged rooms for the semester and that was tiring as well. I should probably get to bed soon. Meh. Hannah's came back from her 5 months in Australia today, and we'll get to see each other tomorrow. Wootah!! She will officially become the seventeenth person in as many days to tell me how thin I am, but she may also very well be the last for quite some time. Which is a good thing, because I know.

Over winter break Mari and Erin got engaged.. not to each other. Very, very exciting. Although Mari as of yet doesn't have a ring. And I'll get the scoop on Erin tomorrow. Mari's fiancee currently can't afford one - and I can't remember his name at the moment - but he got her parent's permission to ask, and did it on one knee. Even better, this is the sixth time she's been engaged, so when she told her brother and sister, they, using their sharp wits, made fun of her. "Mari getting engaged is like me ordering a pizza." No big deal.

Yay for people finding people they want to spend the rest of their lives with. In the meantime, I'm working on it, damnit!

I'll leave you with this parting nugget:
"Actually, I've got nothing... Sorry. Uhm, come back later, okay?" - Scully

Going Home

2004-12-16T11:05:00.000-07:00

This morning, I was asked by one of my friends, "Are you excited to be going home?"

And I said, "Not overly so, no."

To which she replied, "It's nice to go home!"

And then I said why I wasn't so excited, "After an hour and a half on a bus, I get to spend two hours at the airport, then I spend almost two hours on a plane probably next to someone who is going to make my life suck (based on the fact that I had decent neighbors last time I went home), and then I have to spend an hour in rush hour traffic with my mother who needs to realize she's not as good a driver as she thinks she is... so, no, I can't get too excited about it."

Yep. Goin' home today.

Donnie Darko

2004-11-21T16:00:00.000-07:00

First off, I’ve got to say, I’d never seen this film before. I’d heard great, great things, but had yet to see it. The opportunity came up a couple times this semester, but I opted to wait and see it in class.
This film was absolutely crazy. About three-quarters of the way through I was thinking of The Usual Suspects, and how the whole thing never really happened. But, it did happen, sort of. After reading the articles, and playing on the Donnie Darko website, I understood that everything that happened took place in a Tangent Universe. Meanwhile, in the film's "real" universe, the only things that happened were Donnie's death and a strange deja vu experienced by the whole town. Bitchin' twist!
The film, by itself, out of the context of the articles and the website, doesn't do as much for me. It's a really neat story. I wasn't very familiar with the Gyllenhaals coming into the film. Jake did an excellent job, and that leaning forward dark-lit eyes thing was put to good use. Molly was underutilized, but my favorite scene between the two of them was definitely the dinner table where they exchange went something like:

Donnie: You are such a fuckass.
Elizabeth: Did you just call me a fuckass? You can go suck a fuck.
Donnie: Oh, please, tell me Elizabeth, how exactly does one suck a fuck?

That was definitely a quote to take from the film. Along with the Smurf thing. I had deja vu with a couple scenes of the film. I might've seen these as clips in other films, or randomly caught part of the movie on tv without knowing what it was. The one where Jake's mom is arguing against the censorship of certain books and the smurf debate. I really liked this exchange, especially since it's a conversation I could see myself having with friends (or being in Jake's position for it) if Smurfs had ever been my thing (unfortunately they weren't). It felt very much like a conversation from a Tarantino film. I really enjoy intertextuality (which as I understand it now is sort of the same thing as pastiche?) - again, I highly recommend checking out Family Guy (it's vulgar like South Park, and makes cultural references all the time - one of my favorite shows on tv, I can't wait for it to come back in '05!).
I was pleasantly surprised to come across Jena Malone, whom I really enjoyed in Life as a House - although it felt like she could've moved straight to Middlesex from the setting of Life as a House (or visa versa - the films were released the same year). She's very good at playing the cute, somewhat odd girl who takes an interest in the outcast teenage/protagonist male bringing about some sort of change (again, Life as a House).
Patrick Swayze seemed desperately out of place. But he pulled it off nicely. His first appearance came just short of making me groan. That said, he grew on me. Pedophilia was a great twist to his character, giving him a vital layer of depth. Without the pedophilia, I think I would feel differently about him. It really rounded him out, gave him a purpose, and when it was revealed in the film, it was a big fat “Oooooh!” with regard to his Fear and Love shtick.

Document 1
Document 2
Philosophy of Time Travel
Spoilers

This movie was pretty crazy. I only get it after reading all the articles.

Having the frame of the TonyStuff articles, I can see the entire movie as having taken place in a tangent universe. And I can see in the end where everyone wakes up experiencing a deja vu sort of thing from what seems like a collective dream they've all had. The stuff taken from the Donnie Darko website makes it pretty hard to argue against. The entire movie seems to be explained on the website, including a list of characters and what roles they play.

Living Receiver:
Donnie Darko

Manipulated Dead:
Frank Anderson
Gretchen Ross (another ...?)

Manipulated Living:
Edward (Eddie) Darko
Rose Darko
Samantha Darko
Elisabeth Darko
Katherine (Kitty) Farmer
Elisabeth (Beth) Farmer
Jim Cunningham
Kenneth (Ken) Monnitoff
Karen Pomeroy
Principal (Larry) Cole
Cherita Chen
Seth Devlin
Ricky Danforth
Joanie James
Susan (Susie) Bates
Susan (Suzy) Bailey
Sean Smith
Leroy (Jones)
?... Carter
Linda Connie
Roberta Sparrow

In class, you asked a question about why people collect DVDs. I’ll tell you, I have a collection of over seventy movies (that is different titles, I’m not counting bonus discs or anything like that – seventy different movies). I collect for a few reasons.
1) Some movies I want my friends to see. I enjoy watching movies, especially with friends, and exposing them to something they’ve never seen before always holds an excitement to find out what their reaction will be. Will they enjoy it as much as I will? Will they get the same thing that I got from it?
2) Another reason is comfort. When we were younger, and still living at home, any time my sister was too sick to go to school she would slip Ferris Bueller’s Day Off into the VCR and watch it. This happened every time she was sick. I gleaned that from her, and any time I was sick I would turn it into my own personal film festival. My mom would go rent some movies I’d never seen, and I’d spend the day on the couch under a pile of blankets watching them. (Funnily enough, I first watched The Matrix under these settings, and I actually fell asleep! I didn’t watch it again until my mom made it the first DVD in my collection. At which point I immediately ran upstairs and watched it from start to finish again, for the first time, and it instantly became one of my favorites).
3) I hate watching movies that have stuff too “racy” for tv that is important to the essence of the story (the Die Hard series is an excellent example – on network tv the climactic end of Die Hard 2 – which was only an okay movie - has someone doing a crappy impersonation of Bruce Willis, saying “Yippie Kai Yay Mister Falcon,” as opposed to the distinctive “Yippie Kai Yay Mother Fucker” which is sort of an inside joke to fans of the original – I can’t watch it on). If I decide I’m going to watch a film on tv that I own and falls into this category there is a good chance I will get up from my seat, track down the DVD, put it in my player, and queue it up to where I started watching (occasionally I’ll watch from the start). Then I get to enjoy the film with higher quality and the way it was supposed to be watched, with explicit language (or what have you). And I’ll finish faster than the tv-showing anyway.
4) It’s inexpensive and durable. Unlike video, DVDs can be watched over and over without a loss in quality. To boot, these days rental fees are so high and the cost of DVDs is so low that if there is a chance that you’ll want to watch a movie you plan on renting more than two times, it’s in your best interest to just buy the DVD flat out the first time you watch it. I’ve bought a few films sight unseen (Reservoir Dogs, Animal House), and have watched both of them enough times to beat out having rented them.
5) The special features. What could be better than listening to director commentary? Watching how an elaborate scene was actually executed. Trailers. Making of featurettes. Scenes before they got CGI-ed. Interviews with the cast and crew. Everything you could ask for short of a one-on-one session with anyone. – (And since I’ve become disenchanted with collecting cards, this is an enjoyable focus for my disposable income).

While I Was Sleeping

2004-11-20T21:28:00.000-07:00

Somehow, somewhere along the course of my most recent slumber, I did something I shouldn't have. What it was, I don't know. But I know it woke me up, made me say "Ow" before I almost immediately fell back asleep.

Now my left-wrist hurts, and I don't know what the hell I did. I have extremely limited range of movement. Typing isn't painless, but I felt like putting this down somewhere. The bitch is turning on and off faucets (specifically hot water). I wonder what exactly is wrong with it. I doubt it's broken, it doesn't hurt that bad. It's a slight, yet sharp pain when agitated though.

It wasn't too bad until I turned off the hot water while washing my hands earlier today, then it was aching more. I'm still kind of sick. My stomach doesn't hurt any more, but now I have a cough. It sucks. I blame the Film kids for not covering the god damned mouths when coughing during class. Putting shit in the air that I have to breathe. Although my not sleeping but 2.5 hours the other morning probably exacerbated the whole thing. I got 13 last night, despite injuring my wrist.

While being bored today, I tidied up our unused couch - which is covered in papers, clothes, and bags of (full/unopened) potato chips. And I discovered a Comcast bill from nearly a month ago. Payment was due yesterday, and I'm verily upset about this. But I am 80% sure that it was my fault it disappeared. Although I can't take all the blame, I think the mailman mixed it in with junk mail, and it was only a fluke that I discovered it at all. So, Monday I get to make a trip down to the local Comcast office to pay it off. And while I'm out, I can get an up close and personal look at the Home Theater System I've been looking at getting with my $75 gift card. I don't really need one, but I think it would be hella cool. We (I) watch a lot of tv and movies, not so much music though (which apparently makes it more okay). And the room is small, but still, I think it'd be pretty damn cool.

And there's a $20 gift card (by mail) that you get for buying it, which means I can buy the game (I'm such a dork) I want for only the price of tax! Either it costs $180 or it costs $200 and comes with an almost-free game I want - depending how you look at it...

Regardless, I'm semi-giddy.

Meh.

2004-11-19T16:33:00.000-07:00

As was noted in the previous post, I am feeling shitty.

My stomach hurts and I can't discern whether it's just unhappy or if it's needing food. Food will come shortly.

I ended up not going to my Film class. I feel a whee bit bad, but to be honest, I would've slept the same amount in class as I already did in bed. The length of a movie, who woulda thunk it? And I'm enjoying the comforts of home... ya know, my bed.

Wednesday night I had a pretty weird dream. I was anticipating getting my paper back in my 1990s Film class, and finding out what grade I received. Now, I don't know what grade it was I got in my dream, but either I wasn't happy about it, or my professor was pissed and brought it up. He flat out told me, and I think it was in front of the class, that if I set about to write a serious paper and not just turn in a satire, I would've done much better.

You see, when I write papers, I take into account that my reader is going to have to read X-amount of them, and they've all got to be at least Y-long. If I toss in a bit of humor to soften the blow, I feel better about it, and "my writer's voice is heard" - or something.

Come to think of it, I bet this stems from when I turned in my exam last Thursday, and wrote some funny things at the bottom of the last page. Which was: Extra Credit: What does Bill Murray say to Scarlett Johanson at the end of Lost in Translation. The truth is, it's inaudible, but you get to make up a line and if you strike a chord, you get a few extra points. Very subjective, probably pretty easy.

When I handed the exam to the prof, I told him, "I could probably spend the next hour giving answers to the extra credit" and went about grabbing my things. He instantly turned to the last page and started reading... whether he was reading that or the essay, I can't be certain, but I distinctly remember not hearing any laugher, laughing breaths (you know what that is?) or seeing a smirk. Very sad, indeed.

Most of my answers were intertextual - referencing other films. Like...
-"Did you know she (Sofia Coppola, the writer/director) ruined the Godfather trilogy for me?"
-"If you want a part in Ghostbusters III, just say the word."
-"Here's lookin' at you kid... I always wanted to say that."
-"We'll always have Tokyo."
-"This is the end of a beautiful friendship."
And so on. - I know they're cheesey, but at least one should've struck him as remotely funny, I would think.

Odd stuff. There it is, take it or leave it.

Psychology of Being Sick

2004-11-19T09:28:00.000-07:00

I went to bed not feeling too hot this morning (5am).

Two and a half hours later, I woke up feeling even worse.

Called into work, and it took 90 seconds to explain I wasn't feeling too well and be told by my boss to have a great weekend. (I work on campus, and there's a virus "outbreak" thing going around).

I'm forcing myself to go to one of my classes, because there's a quiz today and I'm hella prep'd for the material and could use the good score. And then, since I don't have work, I have a three hour gap in my schedule before my next class. I'm slowly talking myself into an early weekend despite the fact that it is the class in which I'm doing the worst. Then again, it is sitting on your ass for three hours watching a black & white movie you'd probably turn off the tv in favor of reading a book for were it your only option.

I haven't missed either class all semester. In fact, I've not missed a single class since Spring (that's cool because I've done Summer school), and that class I missed to go to a presentation I cleared with my instructor, who agreed he'd rather be there than in class.

The last class I missed before that was early in the prior Spring (which includes another semester of Summer school). I was adjusting to my new schedule, and while at work failed to clock-watch thinking someone would replace me when it was time for me to go to class (as is the norm). And nobody showed up. My co-workers/bosses (what have you) failed to notify me because I was covering the phones while they were in a meeting.

I say I'll play it by ear, but chances are, since I'll be coming back to my apartment before the class, I will say to hell with it, and start my weekend extremely early. Although, that probably just means I'll tidy my apartment, maybe vaccuum, think about doing homework but watching tv instead, and going to bed early.

Of course my streak would end Wednesday anyway, I'm flying home early and will miss a Spanish class.

The lesson to be learned from all of this is not to stay up until 4am playing poker with your friends when the max you anybody could possibly win (if they ended up with all the money) is $15. (I think that means we're all really bad poker players, and of similarly bad skill (that we played for count 'em five and a half hours without anybody getting knocked out.)

Oy, my back!

2004-11-07T17:00:00.000-07:00

For the past few days I've been having a severe, inexplicable discomfort in my upper back. Yesterday, it turned out to be a massive knot (on the inside of my left shoulder blade), which a little bit of massaging all but repaired. Re-fuckin-diculous I tell ya.

Went to the Lady Buffs basketball game last night, and they romped the girls from Ft. Lewis - 99-68. One point shy of 100. That would've been kick-ass, but hey, we wo by 31 points.. so there we are.

Swing dancing later tonight. We'll see how that goes.

Stupid Election

2004-11-02T20:33:00.000-07:00

At this very moment, Missouri is being called for Bush by all major news organizations. Only 20% of precincts have reported, and Bush has 51.1% of the votes there (to Kerry's 48.4%). At the same time (right now), Pennsylvania is not being called for either Bush or Kerry, while (at the same time - right now) 46% of precincts have reported that Kerry (59.2%)leads Bush (40.2%).

Why do I have a problem with this? With 20% of precincts reporting and a 2.7% lead, Bush is given a state. And with more than double the precincts reporting, giving Kerry a 19% lead, it's "still up in the air." What the fuck?

I hate this. I hate this, it needs to end right now. I'm watching Basketball. Go to hell.

Happy Daylight Savings Time

2004-10-31T13:14:00.000-07:00

Today is also Nevada Day, commemorating.. probably the 139th year the state has been in the Union. It will be observed tomorrow, and numerous school-children in the state will be thrilled to stay in and eat their Halloween candy.

Happy Halloween:
It's supposed to snow tonight. I think that's hilarious. Tonight, there will be countless girls running around wearing barely enough clothing to fall into the category of "scantily clad," in below-freezing weather, with snow falling all around them. And the best part, those who know it's supposed to snow won't alter clothing choices one bit.

The question is whether or not I will make it out to laugh at them. Halloween isn't such a big thing for me. I'm not a big party-guy, and I can go buy candy whenever I damn well please. *shrugs* I'm such an old man.

In other news, I went to a Corn Maze yesterday, and made my way through three multi-mile long labyrinths. My legs hurt today, but that's what happens when you walk ~5+ miles on uneven ground. Also discovered an Area 51 machine at Cici's Pizza, and managed the sixth-highest score on a dollar's play *flex*.

This week is going to be very exciting - Basketball season starts up, the election takes place, and maybe we'll get a new President-elect! Jon Stewart's "Prelude to a Recount: Indecision 2004" should be fun. - Amazingly, this is all happening on Tuesday night! I would add "Going to vote for the first time" but I took care of that on Wednesday - I had to wait in line for an hour to Early-Vote! Isn't that crazy?

Meh. I've not had so much to say recently. I've been pretty apathetic, about most everything. Sad. My big plans for today: Tidy up the apartment. Very exciting, I know. I think I'll get a jump on it.

Have a safe and Happy Halloween/Nevada Day/Daylight Savings Day/October 31st. And don't forget to Vote.

Sarah and Scully's Day of Fun!

2004-10-24T13:05:00.000-06:00

A la back in high school, when Monica and Scully had their days of fun.

Sarah came over at 3:35pm, and we enjoyed some Grilled Cheese Sandwiches to the tune of Just One of the Guys. And headed over to the Flatirons mall slightly before four to see a 4:40 showing of Wimbledon. There were about 16 people in the audience, three guys other than myself, mostly elderly. It was a cute romantic comedy - even if neither of them could play Tennis to save their bloody lives, and I still heart Paul Bettany, and say that Kirsten Dunst's face is oddly shaped.

After that, we debated about dinner, but ended up going shopping instead. We wandered in and out of stores for each of us. She ended up buying some boots, and some shirts. While I bought some slacks and very nice khakis at ridiculously reduced prices (upwards of 60% off), and a very nice light blue shirt. I am always quite successful finding good deals on clothes. I spent $60 on what would otherwise have been $130 worth of merchandise. And I can finally wear that really nice black shirt I bought in the spring (because Hannah forbae me from wearing it until I got some khakis and black shoe).

We grabbed an Orange Julius as a pick-us-up as we finished out the clothes shopping portion of the evening. For dinner, we ended up at the California Pizza Kitchen, where Natalie provided me with the best service I've had at a restaurant in some time! We split the Spinach and Artichoke Dip that Sarah insisted we order, and for my entree I had their Sicilian Pizza which was absolutely delicious!

From there, we headed back to Boulder, and hit up Safeway, where I could purchase groceries, including ice cream, so as to make wicked awesome milkshakes for us. And back at the ranch, I did just that to the tune of the 8-through-12th greatest South Parks (so far) as voted on by people other than me.

Sarah went home around 1:40am, concluding an 8 hour "day" of fun.

Attention Span

2004-10-21T06:19:00.000-06:00

Currently, I have the attention span of a knat on speed. It's most unfortunate. My eyes hurt too, from staring at a computer screen for the last six hours. I wrote the paper I needed to for my film class. It was eight-ten pages long, and I think I did some good work. At least.. I hope so.

I'll probably try and get in a power nap around 7am. But that's still 40 minutes away.

I'm trying to read stuff, but I can't get past the first few lines before not caring anymore. Meh.

Sox beat the Yankees. Unbelievable comeback. About the seventh inning, the announcers from Fox showed a graphic that showed "the biggest upsets in sports history" which came completely out of left field because it was... unbelievably random. The Sox weren't massive underdogs going in, so it's not really an upset. Coming back from a 3-0 deficit is virtually unheard of in baseball. That's what we call a "comeback" not an "upset." Jackasses.

Oh well, back to not caring about baseball!

Excited State of Boredom

2004-10-18T15:45:00.000-06:00

I'm "watching" Game 5 of the ALCS (Yankees/Red Sox) at work, on my computer, via ESPN.com. And I'm both stifling jubilation and shocked at how unbelievably bored I am.

We're going into the bottom of the second inning now. BoSox 2, Yankees 1. It's so early yet. If this game is as long as the one played last night, I will be home and finished with dinner before the game is over. Baseball is funny like that.

Sometimes it is over real fast (like the Yankees in the top half of the first two innings), and sometimes it takes forever (like the Sox in the bottom of the first).

The relay of information is both fast and slow too. Driving me nuts. I'm watching it in two different windows, and neither is consistently getting the faster update. It's really hit or miss, requiring a switch between windows at random. If only I could make my screen bigger I could solve this annoyance.

Just imagine what this would be like if I were actually a Yankee or Red Sox fan, instead of just a conscientious objector to the Yankees winning yet another pennant. Besides, the "team everyone loves to hate" that I like is the Lakers.

In my defense, I was brought up in Southern California, loving Chick Hearn calling the Lakers games. I missed most of Magic's hey-day, but I do remember the press conference, and watching him play in the 1992 All-Star Game while at my great-grandfather's house. My favorite role-playing Lakers are Byron Scott, Eddie Jones, Nick Van Exel (despite the ref incident), Derek Fisher, and Kareem Rush. I like three-point shooting. TeeHee. Reggie Miller is such a pimp.

Anyway. While I was writing that, the Sox went down 1-2-3 in the bottom of the 2nd. Continuing my rant.

Vin Scully is a voice of Southern California sports too. THE voice of the Dodgers. At least I think he still is, man wouldn't that be sad? Dodger Dogs, and Foster Farms wouldn't be the same without him. I used to be a Dodger fan. Then they traded Mike Piazza, and I said, "To hell with you guys." I've not forgiven them yet, I'm only slowly letting baseball back into my home. Basketball is A#1 for me at the moment. The season starts up soon, yay! And the Nuggets will be decent this year, so Fox Sports Net won't be a total waste to watch. Melo! Kenyon! Nene! Shorty! and more.

Th-th-that's all folks.

Surreal

2004-10-17T13:43:00.000-06:00

Trying to wrap your mind around the fact that you're communicating with a friend in France or Australia in real-time is like whoa.

Follow-Up to Last Night

2004-10-17T13:33:00.000-06:00

We ended up eating at Lucca Lucca, where we waited in line for what felt like forty minutes, if not more. I think we were supposed to have Sarah's roommate as our server, but that didn't happen, and we got some guy.

First he poured me some water, that as I went to drink, I noticed a fly swimming at the top of, and told him immediately. He grabbed the glass, poured it out, possibly rinsed it and brought me back the same glass. I didn't drink from it the rest of the night (damn I sound prissy). I ordered Sprite.

He took our orders, and as it turned out, 4/5ths of the table (including me) ordered Spinach Ravioli ($8.25). If I hadn't been so fuckin' hungry (having not had anything but Wild Oats samples all day) I would have put in for a Panzini (I'm told it's Calzone-like in nature), but that would've taken 30-40 minutes, and I wasn't going to wait any longer.

Minutes later, we were brought cold bread. A travelling person poured us a plate-ful of oil, which confused most of us, because normally you get oil and vinegar. Where was our vinegar? We flagged someone down and ended up pouring it ourselves because the guy looked dumbfounded when we even suggested it.

We complained amongst ourselves at the cold, unchewability of the bread. And after having finished it off, ordered more. After a few minutes, we ordered bread again. And again, this time being told they were making some fresh bread, and that it would be out shortly. Another table got bread, and so we ordered again. We were brought what we were told was fresh bread, but alas, it too was cold. We hypothesized over their bread-cooking method to hilarious ends - the best was "taking it out of the freezer and microwaving it, before putting it in the fridge to cool off."

Our food came, and the server (this time female) asked if there was anything we wanted. Along with three drink refills and more bread, we asked for cheese. We got all we asked for promptly... except the bread. I think there's a bread conspiracy.

Anyway, we all dug in, only to discover our food sucked. We all quipped about how Chef Boyardee and a microwave make food of this quality. Very disappointing.

In the end, the bill for five people was fifty-one dollars and change. Based on the service I received, and the cost of my meal ($8.25) I put in $9.00, which was a tip of somewhere between eleven and nineteen cents. You may think that's harsh, but one person had to get up from our table, and physically track down our waiter... THREE times. Which is absolutely unacceptable in my book to have to do even once.

The food sucked, which is by no means the waiter's fault. But come on, we had to order bread six times to get it twice. We had to get up to get him to bring us the check. We had to get up to get him to get listen to us tell him how we were paying for it - he left in the middle of us telling him what we were doing.

Again, I felt my money wasn't good enough for a waiter because I was a college student. It was assumed I would leave a shitty tip anyway, so why bother giving me decent service. It's a self-fulfilling prophecy. If you give a college kid shitty service, because you think you're going to get a shitty tip, you're going to get a shitty tip. And of course, this just perpetuates the mindset.

Oddly enough, I haven't had this happen with a waitress yet, only with waiters. And people wonder why I prefer to have waitresses. Go figure.

I shan't be eating at Lucca Lucca again unless I'm forced to go for someone's birthday. Next time, we eat at the Olive Garden, and I give Bentley a piece of my mind, and then switch tables into someone else's section.

After the terrible dining experience, we went back to Sarah's place, and channel surfed until settling upon Child's Play, at which point she decided it was time to take us home. Upon returning to ye olde apartment, I took to reading about Postmodernism immediately, and even got through 12 pages before deciding I needed to go to bed - I was so tired.

Against the odds, I read upon getting home. But didn't finish it. Damn!

Unbloggable

2004-10-16T19:09:00.000-06:00

I've felt simply unbloggable lately. I've been reading my regular blogs, but my posts are just dribble. And if I had a readership to apologize to, I would! But since I don't, what do I care?

Hit up the rec center today with Ross. I added two games to my Racquetball losing streak. And added two games to my Basketball winning streak. I scored 22 points to his 4. This is why I spot him 50% of what we're playing to, and I still win! But I shouldn't be talking because he doesn't play, and, well, I have 7 inches on him. C'est la vie.

Currently: Waiting for Sarah to pick-up Ross and come over here with her visiting-brother in tow so we can go to dinner. Her brother wants The Sink, but Ross wants economical and satisfying - and I want high ceilings, along with those other things. (Self-reflexive in-post-thought: Doesn't it sound like I'm seven-foot-three or something? Ha!) We'll find a happy medium, I hope. Or someone is just going to have to go somewhere they don't want *cough* Sarah's brother *cough*.

Later: I must read Introducing Postmodernism so I can familiarize myself with, err, Postmodernism. I have to pick a paper topic combining a theme from Postmodernism with my choice of 1990s Films that exemplify my idea. After I've decided on a topic, I have to shoot off an email to the class's prof, and immediately commence the research and writing of said paper, which is this Thursday. (I don't procrastinate; oh no, I don't!)

Likelihood of coming home from meal and going straight into Postmodernism: 8.4823106%
Likelihood of doing any reading on Postmodernism reading this evening: 63.2389375%
Likelihood of finishing the book before going to bed: 24.5382916%

Lesson of the Day from Ross: Wild Oats Sampling is a surprisingly good way to fend off hunger for an hour or two. And the food ain't too bad. We enjoyed Apples and Caramel, Apple Cider, Bratwurst, and Kettle Chips (I think that's what they were)! Delicious, and organic. And then we left without buying anything. Oops!

More later, I think I'm getting picked up, and I damn well better be ready!

Villa Incognito

2004-10-16T13:32:00.000-06:00

"Just because you're naked
Doesn't mean you're sexy,
Just because you're cynical
Doesn't mean you're cool.
You may tell the greatest lies
And wear a brilliant disguise
But you can't escape the eyes
Of the one who sees right through you.

In the end what will prevail
Is your passion not your tale,
For love is the Holy Grail,
Even in Cognito.

So better listen to me, sister,
And pay close attention, mister:
It's very good to play the game,
Amuse the gods, avoid the pain,
But don't trust fortune, don't trust fame,
Your real self doesn't know your name
And in that we're all the same:
We're all incognito."

Movies!

2004-10-10T01:22:00.000-06:00

In the past six days I've seen Garden State twice (Sunday was my first time), Taxi (sneak preview), The Truman Show (only movie on this list that isn't a first-time viewing), Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Apocalypse Now, and Fight Club (the beginning of which I hadn't seen before). Along with a couple of silent films, two from Buster Keaton (Cops and Sherlock Jr.) along with Greed.

Buster Keaton's films were comical. Greed was not, but it was a butchered film, so that's at least an excuse for my un-enjoyment of it.

Garden State I adore.

Taxi was quaint, but only worth the matinee price. It shan't find it's way into my DVD collection. And I think Jimmy Fallon has found the character he will be in all of his movies from here to the end of his career.

The Truman Show was "ya know." Although I failed to come up with anyone to play Truman instead of Jim Carrey. Someone in my class said Colin Farrel, and that was just a bad suggestion.

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind was funky-doodle-dandy. I really liked the Hollywood/un-Hollywood ending to it. A great love story.

Apocalypse Now was just a crazy movie. Next time I see it, I'm going to have to watch it in one sitting. We kept getting interrupted and my chair was very uncomfortable.

Fight Club's beginning made the rest of make sense. And I want you to know. "The first rule of Pillow Fight Club, is you do not talk about Pillow Fight Club."

Tastefully Toasted makes some amazing donuts.

Job-Seekers

2004-10-08T22:25:00.000-06:00

The world is infuriating. I realize this. There is a great deal of pressure to get a great job straight out of college. Pressure from parents, financial pressures, societal pressures. Pressures from all around! I get it.

But you need to get this: When people are trying to help you, you need to show them the politeness and respect they deserve.

They could just as soon not help you. And then you'll be all alone, against people who have shown respect and decency to people who are only trying to help them. I ask you, where will you be? And I tell you, at a disadvantage.

So, next time you get a piece of news you don't like, take it in stride. Remember, there are millions of jobs out there. And the person trying to help you is only doing their job. Newsflash: Having an interview rescheduled is not the end of the world. At least you've got an interview. Think about those poor people deemed unworthy of even half an hour with a recruiter.

If you don't treat people who are only trying to help you properly. How are you going to be able to function in a workplace as a cohesive unit with your fellow co-worker.

You're not. Go fuck yourself.

Fall Break

2004-10-04T02:17:00.000-06:00

Utter disappointment.

I had such high hopes for my "vacation" and it totally sucked.

Thursday I slept in, worked in the afternoon, went to dinner with Sarah and her mom. Watched some of the debate (apparently re-running on channel 12), and went to bed late.

Friday, I woke up at 11am, which is sleeping in, but wasn't enough sleep. I did laundry, worked in the afternoon, and came home. Watched television, and went to bed late.

Saturday, I woke up late. Did nothing productive. Ended up going bowling with Ross, Maya and Shoshana from 10pm until 2am. Went to Denny's after that, where we (minus Shoshana) stayed until a little after 4:30am. Then headed back to my place where I made milkshakes for everyone, and we chatted until a little after 5:30am. Got to bed at 6:00am.

Sunday, I woke up at 2pm. Moved slowly. Saw Garden State with J-Mo (ex-co-worker) - we both loved it, despite the two annoying old women behind us. Came back to my place, ate dinner, watched Fight Club on FX, did a bitty-bit of Spanish homework, and went to bed at 10pm.

I woke up, and couldn't get back to sleep. Got out of bed at 12:30am, and snacked. Watched some tv with the roomie, and am now.. just awake. Damnit!

So, over the entire course of Fall Break, I...
Bowled, Worked, actually ate a meal at Denny's, and finally saw Garden State.

96 hours of freedom, and I didn't do anything. No wonder I don't give myself too much free time, I squander it.

Garden State

2004-10-04T02:05:00.000-06:00

Finally I got around to seeing it "today." If you've not seen it, don't deprive yourself of the movie experience. Just skip the rest of this post. Please, don't read anymore; for the enjoyment of this film! You owe it to yourself.

The more I think about it, the more I like it. There were some beautiful shots. I loved Natalie Portman's character. I loved how real-life the people were. I liked the use of the silent velcro guy living a life devoid of anything. I loved Ditembe's deliciously out of place, tangential existence. I loved the soundtrack. I loved the now-29 graves in Sam's backyard, and the surrounding fence which gives it an air of formality deserving of respect - officially making it a cemetary.

I loved the change that took place within Zach Braff's character. The self-discovery. I loved that he was Jewish; and that he talked about the moving walls in Synagogues for high holidays.

I can't wait to own the DVD, so I can watch the deleted scenes, listen to the commentary, and enjoy all the other goodies. Can't wait!

I'll probably wake up tomorrow and love it even more. Awesome.

Out of Hot Water

2004-09-29T01:39:00.000-06:00

At my place of employment, there is a "water cooler". There are two nozzles from which to get water. One is blue, and it is where you would go for cold water. The other is colored red, and it is where you'd go if you wanted hot water. A common and predictable system as far as I know.

The model of water cooler we have contains a child safety "thing" on the hot water nozzle. Presumably to prevent unsupervised children from scalding themselves with hot water. An excellent safety precaution if I do say so myself.

Unfortunately, the child safety lock prevents a vast majority of adults who are seeking hot water from obtaining it. When this situation arises, one of three things happen.

1) The seeker of hot water bows their head in shame and puts their desire for hot water aside (Or makes use of the microwave). OR
2) The seeker of hot water, knowing what the red nozzle is for, yet incapable of successfully operating it comes to my desk for tutelage on the proper procedure to procure hot water from the simple machine. OR
3) The seeker of hot water, not knowing there is a red nozzle, (and not having color blindness as an excuse,) yet knowing perfectly well where the water dispenser is, comes to my desk seeking a source of hot water. To which I delightfully point them to the red nozzle, and wait upwards of sixty seconds for them to end up going with option number two (seeking my help).

The difficulty with the nozzle, which makes it "child-(and adult)-proof," is that to get water to flow, you have to push in the tap, and then pull it down. A disturbingly small number of people have discovered the trick on their own.

It makes me sad. But I guess I do need to thank them.. for keeping me employed.

iTunes!

2004-09-28T03:18:00.000-06:00

What in the hell?!

I just got my e-bill from iTunes and I was looking it over to make sure everything was in order. And to my shock, amazement and horror, I was charged $0.08 in tax.

That's right, I was charged Sales Tax!

What is the world coming to?! How does sales tax even translate into the peddling of electronic media? Seriously, someone is damned well going to hell for this one!

And the handbasket in which they are burning on their way to hell is made of titanium, so that it won't melt in the 3000 degree heat that is to be endured on the way there.

Pissed

2004-09-27T02:01:00.000-06:00

I made my first ever purchase on a credit card this evening.

I purchased "Yeah!" by Usher from iTunes. After my download was complete, I giddily tracked it down to open it in Windows Media Player, hoping to add it to my Media Library and infrequently-used Playlists.

Quickly it came to my attention that the format the file was in, is Greek to WMP. And I'm forever screwed-over to having to open up iTunes every time I want to listen to the song. Damn you iTunes!!

Since I'm now the owner of a Visa card, I get to make my first official "Priceless Joke." And now you shall bare witness to it (I hope that's the proper "bare").

Downloading a song from iTunes: $0.99 on your credit card.
Sending your payment to Visa via snail-mail: $0.37 stamp.
Having yet another reason to hate Apple and Macs: Priceless.

Flashback to Self-Discovery

2004-09-26T21:00:00.000-06:00

I talked to my good friend Erin today. She called me up to see what was up with me. We've been friends since the very first day of high school. We discussed what was up with ourselves, and our friend Brandon. We've been friends since about a week into high school (because he started late).

Anyway, Erin says he's going through a phase of self-discovery, much like we did when we were in high school. I was confused saying, "wait a minute, I don't remember going through that." She quickly pointed out that I basically went from a smart-ass punk underclassmen to a witty upperclassmen oozing with self-confidence during our high school days.

Apparently I was the keeper of a bitter, sometimes venomous sarcasm which thankfully has dissipated with age. I don't remember this, but I don't deem it beyond the realm of possibility.

Who knew?

The Matrix

2004-09-25T21:00:00.000-06:00

I watched the beginning and end of it, tonight on TNT (sandwiching Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back). And I have to say, upon reaching the conclusion, I have never been more dissatisfied with the other two movies by these guys. Granted, I've seen this movie about a hundred times, I felt a little nauscious at the end knowing what was to come in the trilogy.

I think it's a great movie, but it needs to be looked upon by itself. If you heap Reloaded and Revolutions on it sinks. The Matrix was so provocative; kung fu action meets philosophy meets sci-fi. Win-Win-Win. But Reloaded and Revolutions were pandering to the masses, and it's another case of money fucking over writing skill. Instead of telling an amazing story, we got a garbled ending that capped off three hours of overdone action. The car chase was cool, but a better part of the rest of the film was so blatantly cgi it detracted from the quality. And the story blew! We got an inconclusive conclusion to the fantastical beginning.

I wish it could be redone. I wish it didn't suck. And I wish I had somewhere else to be tonight.

Instead, I will now embark on writing a paper about the mythical creatures residing in the path Dante Pilgrim takes through Hell, and why they are there. Hope you're having a more enjoyable evening than I.

Fall Career Fair

2004-09-24T23:30:00.000-06:00

I worked my first Career Fair today - despite it being the third one held during my tenure.

I spent most of my time people watching, but occasionally I was called upon to assist a student, alumni or employee with something. Naturally, I made a game of it.

"Student, Alumni or Employee?!" is the name of the game. And yes, I am very well aware of how original I am. Thank you! (*takes a bow*)

It wasn't exactly a challenge, given that students/alumni were wearing nametags. And that most employers had polos, nice shirts, or nametags identifying them. The interesting thing stemmed from a person without any of the above. (Yes, she had clothes, but she was basically unidentified)

A fairly attractive young woman walked by the desk without any direct identification as to which group she would fall into. Based on her youth, I deemed her too young to be an alumni. And based on her clothing, I deemed her too unprofessional to be an employer on campus to recruit the "impressionable" young minds. This had to be a student!

She wore a purple sweater-type thing, with a kind of wifebeater-ish-shirt underneath. The sweater-type thing failed to cover her shoulders, so the shirt underneath appeared on her shoulders. She wore some relatively tight-fighting pants, pretty well, the chauvinist in me dares to add (Having looked up chauvinist to double-check my spelling, I discovered that while my use is acceptable to the lay-person, it is technically improper. I just wanted you to know.). So, as I was saying she had a nice tush.

She walked by a couple of times, and then walked up to my desk. After perusing the information layed out on the desk between us, she looked up and asked if there was any information she needed. I asked what exactly she was looking for - a part of me wanted her to respond, "You, later tonight, you sexy beast!" - tossing me her name and phone number. Of course, I would have blushed as red as the shirts the Target recruiters were wearing...

Needless to say, that did not happen. But how cool would that have been? And I know people that would pay good money to see my face that red!

Anyway, fantasy aside. She said she was an employer/recruiter just wondering if she needed any information from the desk I was personing (while I was manning it at the time, it was to be womanned later). After all I was an integral part of the well-oiled machine that helped put this shin-dig on. I told her "Not really." She thanked me for my time and assistance and walked off.

Later on I discovered what company she was representing.

Ambercrombie & Fitch.

I need say no more.

We Don't Need No Stinkin' Licenses!!

2004-09-22T20:25:00.000-06:00

I slept quite well this past evening. Unfortunately, during my bouts with concsiousness, I was forced to endure a high pitched clicking sound every time I moved. And was doubley unfortunate to be too tired to figure out what it was. Last time that happened there was a monster under my bed. No shit! I was more awake for that though. And I'm pretty sure it wasn't a creature because it was linked to my movement. Very annoying.

Anyway. I got my hair cut today, I have sideburns. Terribly odd. Next time will be a change worthy of the prefix "dramatic"! A dramatic change is but six weeks (maybe more) away, as I will alter my hairstyle forever!! Or a week. Maybe six if I like it. And longer if other people give kudos.

The Blendomatic 3000 was uncleanable for a while, but through the combined might of Matt and myself, we managed to disassemble it. Of course, when cleaned and put back together, it was making wierd noises, and failed to really blend ice cream and milk for the nightly South Park viewing. Severely disappointing. But still yummy delicious goodness!

Smallville had the premiere of its fourth season tonight. I had been waiting impatiently for an interminable period of time (three months?) to find out how the season finale panned out. Matt is going to be thrilled; Chloe is still alive!! I was shocked. Shocked I say, shocked to learn she was still alive. Matt recently awoken from slumber, when informed of Chloe's still being alive remarked "Woohoo!" and marched to the kitchen for nourishment. That's thrilled alright.

The media whore is still in the news for her marriage. She has yet to file a marriage license, so we can look forward to another week of her being in the mainstream media. Didn't see that one coming. And we won't count it as something along the lines of divorce/nullification or a sex tape.

Britney Re-Marries

2004-09-20T16:45:00.000-06:00

This just in from CNN - Britney Spears did it again - she got married for the second time this year. You know what that means! She's going to be on the cover of countless magazines, again! For doing nothing again! I'm not bitter, I'm just annoyed. Britney Spears has got to have the second highest ratio of popularity to un-talent in the nation (of course, number one is reserved for Paris Hilton). I wish I had the number of magazine covers Britney's been on during 2004.

This year alone, she has been married twice, had one of them nullified, cancelled a music tour because of a knee injury (that may have been last year) and failed to release any new music. I may be mistaken here, but I think that amounts to a whole lot of nothing. But I'd be willing to put money down (and being from Las Vegas I'm reluctant to wager on anything) that she has been on more American magazine covers than any other person this year. I'm sure Lindsay Lohan comes in a close second, but at least she had a movie to promote!

My point is, why can't we find out about people who are actually doing things, even if it's just their job. Why should I give a flying fuck that Britney Spears got married... for the second time this year? I didn't give a shit when it happened the first time. Or when she got it nullified. In fact, I was annoyed that I had to hear about any of it. Re-fuckin-diculous. By the start of 2005, I bet that Britney is either re-un-married (read: this marriage is nullified or ends in divorce) OR a sex-tape begins circulating. Either of these two things, or something along their lines will happen by the end of 2004 which catapults her back to the covers of magazines and America's consciousness.

This being said, what I want is very simple. I just want to be able to buy groceries without having her person staring back at me.

On that note, I'd like to share a couple of theories with you.
1) Two years ago, Britney's publicist had numerous alterations made to herself so as to look as much like Britney Spears as modern cosmetic surgery would allow. Ten months ago, after the healing was complete, she had Britney killed (use your imagination as to how). The body was disposed of, and the publicist slipped into place. No one, except maybe the deadly assassin hired to take care of the real Britney, was the wiser. I would put forth that their communications were solely over the phone, and so the assassin and the publicists (aka Fake Britney) don't know what each other look like.

After taking her role as Britney, she "injured her knee" so as to be unable to tour musically. That brought the media spotlight directly on her and she loved it. A little too much. She began craving it. She was addicted. After coming down from the publicity high, she wanted more. She needed it. And decided the best way to thrust herself back into it was a quickie Vegas marriage. And it worked! A just-as-quickie nullification kept her there for a while, and she ever-so slowly came down from her high. This most recent marriage is a result of withdrawal. Bam. She's back in business. We won't have to deal with her for a few more months.

But this all begs the question...

What's next for fake Britney? Divorce? Retirement from "Music"? Surgery and the disposal of Lindsay Lohan? Only time will tell.

2) When Lindsay Lohan burst onto the scene in 2003, she was simply Frankie Muniz with a wig on. She turned into an overnight success, but Frankie's schedule was too busy to allow him to keep up with the facade, and he himself was too successful with the Cody Banks franchise to continue. Lucky for him, in the future Delta Burke will have herself cloned and sent back through time. The clone, whose name is in fact Lindsay Lohan managed to be cast in the most recent The Parent Trap remake. She simply had to wait until Frankie Muniz made Lindsay Lohan a household name. Then she slipped into character, as it were. And that's that.

Am I full of it, or do my theories hold water? You be the judge.

Seriously, tell me what you think!

Three Game Losing Streak

2004-09-20T00:01:00.000-06:00

Another exciting night of Hillel basketball came to an end, again, under the mercy rule. The final score was 39-15, a record low twenty-four point margin of defeat! Yours truly scored the first 3 points for his team with eight minutes to go in the first half to make the score 15-3. We had a total of six points at the half, but managed to double that within the first two minutes of the second half. But as I have faith in the reader's ability to do mental math. Yes, we only scored three more points the rest of the game. Meh. I had fun, and we all got a good deal of exercise. Although I dread waking up tomorrow.

For dinner tonight, Matt and I cooked up some steaks. Our recipe included Maple Syrup, Pepper, Garlic and Onion Powders. Now, I know what the reader is thinking. "Did you just say you put Maple Syrup on your steak?" And to you, I say, "Yes, yes we did. And it was exquisite. Thank you very much!" Give it a shot sometime, the only taste that comes through is goood.

We also made brownie-like food in the oven, and topped it with scrumptious vanilla chocolate chip icing, which quite honestly is amazing on its own. Betty Crocker, I am a big fan.

Over dinner, Matt and I enjoyed Gone in Sixty Seconds starring Nicolas Coppola/Cage and the beautiful Angelina Jolie, not to mention Robert Duvall, Chi McBride (previously of Boston Public), Delroy Lindo and even a little Master P - Who knew? (Yeah, I just like linking actor's names, what can I say?

Domestic God

2004-09-19T02:15:00.000-06:00

I drowsily awoke this morning to read my digital clock's display of 11:52. There was no way in hell I was going to make basketball practice, but having stayed up until two in the morning, the chance of accomplishing anything or being anywhere outside the apartment before noon was quite small. Noon came and went. When the clock displayed 12:15 in the pm, I finally had enough resolve to depart the warm sojourn of my blanket. Alas, I have only been able to use one the past few nights, so hot it's been in my room. Anyway, I decided earlier in the week today was going to be the day I finally made Matzah'Brai!

Matzah'Brai, because I'm almost certain you don't know, as I understand it, is quite similar to French Toast. Except instead of using bread, you use matzah. The first two batches I was gaining my bearings, and then I found my groove, churning out a good quantity of high quality egged-matzot. They were consumed hastily and downed with Orange Juice. After that, it was put to a vote, and the overwhelming majority of my limbs reported in that we were going to stay on the couch and watch television for the next few hours - my brain declined a recount.

Around two forty-five, a vote was not held, a dictatorship had formed in my mind, and it demanded satisfaction. By three, I was enjoying When Star Wars Ruled the World as I embarked on a journey to a clean kitchen. And when four fifteen rolled around, my mission was accomplished with the dishwasher being set into motion. I debriefed with the television for the next forty five minutes.

Somewhere within the five o'clock hour, I made it to my bathroom and sanitized the toilet, allowed the mirror to once again be capable of reflecting images, and left the bath tub both spick and span. After which, I dirtified my bathtub by finally cleansing the most mobile thing in my apartment; me! At the conclusion of my shower, it was motioned by the stomach to eat something. Stomach implicated Pasta as the desired food-type. And Brain demanded that Beef Ravioli would be consumed within the hour. So it was deigned, and so it was done. Beef Ravioli was pummelled with Italian Seasoning, Ragu Original Style, Mozarella and Parmesan. Mister Ravioli met with the gastric chamber at 1930 hours.

Hero

2004-09-19T01:38:00.000-06:00

Visually stunning. Saw it Friday night with Matt and a ROTC buddy of his. We went through two large bags of popcorn (got our money's worth there I tell ya!). And I left feeling like my arteries and intestines were filled with styrofoam, which I am sure the reader will be alleviated to note that it did not prevent me from coming home and eating a grilled cheese sandwich. Mmm.

Back to Hero. I really enjoyed this film. Subtitles are always better than Dubbing, and it's a cool story told in a beautiful manner. Jet Li doing his usual ass-kicking, and Zhang Ziyi whom I always enjoy, and some other very skilled martial artists/actors. Just good stuff.

Religion and Politics

2004-09-16T14:50:00.000-06:00

Religion and Politics, woof!

I reserve the right to edit this when I have more time.

Ooooh, the Pain!!

2004-09-13T16:20:00.000-06:00

Sunday, between six and seven o'clock in the pm. I was with Team Hillel at the rec center playing basketball, rekindling the magic we had last season. After twenty minutes of play, we were only down by 36 points... 38 to 2. Luckily, we really turned it on in the second half to round out the game with an invocation of the mercy rule (preventing the final two minutes of play.. being played). Final score: 90-15. Yes, we lost an intramural game by 75 points.

Post-game, back at the ranch, Lasagna was prepared, cooked and consumed voraciously to the tune of Bulworth (1998). A political "comedy" involving Warren Beatty, a 32-year-old, hot as ever Halle Berry, a pre-LotR Sean Astin, that guy from Sports Night, two of my favorites Don Cheadle and Oliver Platt. Watching it on cable tv (Comedy Central) was quite the experience because there were an uncommon number of bleeps. In fact, some complete lines of dialogue were bleeped to bleep and back (they were very liberal with what demanded a bleep).

Summary because I doubt the reader's familiarty with this movie:
A senator in the pocket of the insurance industry takes out a $10 million policy on himself and hires someone to kill him by Monday morning (a day or two before the elections). He returns from DC (where he's made these plans to his home-state of California to make the rounds, do last minute fundraising, and be seen by his contributors. With the threat of death looming, and having been sleepless for more than 4 days, Bulworth things go awry on the campaign trail. Soon he decides he doesn't want to die anymore, but ends up shooting his campaign in the foot (so his assistants think) by, of all things, telling the truth beyond a fault. It really goes over the deep end, and is hilarious and chilling at the same time. The quote I liked best of all, despite the bleep was, "All we need is a voluntary, free-spirited, open-ended program of procreative racial deconstruction. -- Everybody just gotta keep fuckin' everybody 'til they're all the same color." (though I am betting that's not quoted properly, I snagged it off IMDB.com). Check it out if you're in the mood for a political comedy that is strong until just shy of the finish. And if you're unsure, look at that cast!!

Insomnia

2004-09-12T02:09:00.000-06:00

I don't think you qualify as an insomniac if you don't ever try falling asleep.

I did catch the last hour (which as fate would have it is the last half) of The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance and.. while only slightly confused, it didn't seem all that bad. "When the legend becomes fact.. Print the legend." Good quote, at least.

While channel surfing post-midnight this eve, I caught a new VH1 show called Totally Obsessed. And I have to say, dude. A guy who went into debt to make the General Lee (from Dukes of Hazard) fly once more.

It flew, crash landed, and he got the video he wanted. By the way, he's still in debt. Saw some girl completely and utterly obsessed (gee, you don't say?) with the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Some guy with countless holes (whether they were piercings or needles, I'm not sure, I was only semi-in-control of the tv) through his legs and other parts of his body (I think). Due to squeamishness, I shan't ever be an MD. But hey, maybe I'll play one on tv, how cool would that be? Long story short, it's a funky show.

As for Apocalypse Now, that got rescheduled into next week also. I had plans for Friday, Saturday and Sunday, and all of them got cancelled. Either I'm a pariah and I don't know it, or something else is up (pariah sounded cooler than leper).

In other news, I vaccuumed a vast majority of the homestead today, and the vaccuum cleaner is so kickass it is deserving of a name. More on that in the coming week, will have to discuss with the roomie what we will refer to it as, and then you will know! Maybe it'll even have a nifty nametag, and then I'll take a picture and the world can admire it in all its glory. Or none of that happens, and I never mention it again.

vs. and the Blendomatic 3000--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Watched Trading Places today with Sarah. It was a spur-of-the-moment thing. I saw her online and asked what she was doing. After establishing we were both doing nothing, which is of course a lie, I invited her over. She did indeed come over, and after chatting for an hour we watched the movie enjoying delicious milkshakes made in the Blendomatic-3000 (I went ahead and named it, but I need to mark up some tape and slap it on there, making it official. Then I'll take a picture and we'll be in business. Ready, break!). I've had a blender for a week now, and I've used and cleaned it five or six times. That's just for milkshakes, wait until I get creative! But back to what I was going to say, Trading Places always reminds me of how incredible Eddie Murphy was in the 80s. Now, he's been reduced to donkey, but I suppose they call it a peak for a reason, it's surrounded by an incline on the left and a decline on the right. At least he got to be Donkey; twice. Of course, he was Pluto Nash. I guess they call it rock bottom for a reason too (*Zing*). I keed, I keed!

And I will leave you with this thought.

What's worse than sitting through three hours and ten minutes of The Birth of a Nation?
Sitting through a ninety minute quiz answering questions about it.

Oh the humanity. I thought there were rules against cruel and unusual punishment in this country!

The Death of a Nation

2004-09-10T22:24:00.000-06:00

The circle of life continues!

Like you didn't see it coming; "I want my three hours and twelve minutes back." The only good thing to come out of those 192 minutes were an intertitle where Evil_Mulatto_Guy demands Elsie Stoneman's hand in marriage (don't get excited, I had to look up her name), and asks her to, I'm paraphrasing here, but these words were used, "sit beside him as the Queen of his Black Empire."

As I sat there in the second row, I could not help but let slip, "together, we can rule the galaxy!" in a whisper to the guy next to me. He laughed a little. The kicker was the kid sitting in front and to the left of me heard it, and thought it was the funniest thing he'd heard all day. By the way his laugh is utterly contagious, so after the second laugh he let out, the entire class erupted at his laugh. I finished laughing by the time the kid started, but the laughter looped back on me, and I was welling up because 120 people just laughed at a joke they didn't hear, that I told. I'm so funny. (ps. If you didn't get it, it was most definitely a joke you'd needed to have seen the Empire Strikes Back for.. and no I'm really not this nerdy. I'm not, shut up!)

The rest of the movie was an "innocent" smear on "blacks" in the post-Civil War South. Let's talk stereotypes. I got to see an African-American eat fried chicken in the State legislature of South Carolina, at the same location, I saw another member of this same legislature with his feet up on a desk, another sneaking booze during the session. And in the domestic realm, I saw a female eating a watermelon! I know what black people are all about now along with ya know, stealing our women and impregnating them with colored seed. Thank you DW Griffith, I understand the purpose of the KKK now - to protect the Aryan people. As was said in an intertitle. Unfortunately, Aryan people are in extremely short supply in the American South even today! Your wanting to protect them makes perfect sense. Although I don't understand a "Klan" of white guys in white sheets running around to protect Iranians, I get lost on that. Sorry! Or maybe it was the uneducated South run amuck on its own stupidity, and the entire movie was an attempt at irony. I get it now!

If the movie weren't "super ultra feature length film" (feature length is qualified at 40ish minutes, and this was the first ever to break 100 minutes long) we would've only watched it as "the crazy ass stereotypes of the period movie." Or, "the movie about the KKK." Good times!

I had a hard time appreciating anything in this movie. Although, knowing the entire thing was filmed without a script, storyboard, or any of that stuff, makes the 192 minute movie all the more impressive, if no less annoying.

Thanks for nothing Grand Wizard Griffith.

The Birth of a Nation

2004-09-10T13:54:00.000-06:00

(Titles, they're back!!)

Today, I will spend three hours and ten minutes sitting on my gluteus maximus watching D.W. Griffith's "classic" The Birth of a Nation (1915) and I can barely hold back my excitement to watch yet another old black and white film, especially a racist one (as I hear it)! Saw Cecil B. Demille's The Cheat on Wednesday, (An hour of my life I want but shall never get back) this lovely tail is full of 1910s stereotypes played to the max. But I would be a shamed if I failed to point out the amazing, ahead-of-its-time lighting, which apparently we don't see again until the 1940s. And while I didn't enjoy the film, and to be quite honest, slept through at least 20 minutes of it, where I didn't quite know exactly what was going on, I did appreciate the lighting - I can't really enjoy lighting. I wasn't sitting there with a shit-eating grin on my face thinking, my god, this is beautiful! I'm sure someone in the room was feelin' it though.

I guarantee after the film that I will need (even more) to go on a grand diatribe about the whole concept of race, but now is not the time, and I need to do some research for it, which means you should expect to be able to read it roughly October 13th of 2016.

And since I passed the date, I want to point out that December 13th-ish 2012 is the end of the Mayan Long Count Calendar, which means something astronomically badass (and uber rare) is going to happen. What it is, I don't remember offhand, but the Sun is going to cross a point that in the sky it hits every 26,000 years. Or something. That'll be cool.

In other news:
This evening, I shall attempt Chicken ~~Parmesan~~ Mozarella for dinner, and I will be watching, for the first time Four Rooms, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance or Big Fish with Mari and James. Always an experience.

With luck, I'll also be seeing Garden State (soooo can't wait) on Saturday, and Apocalypse Now on Sunday. (A Film Major? I'm shocked, shocked I say!)

2004-09-07T09:35:00.000-06:00

Zing

Russian President Vladimir Putin: "Democracy can mean different things in different countries. In Russia, democracy is who shouts the loudest. In the U.S., it's who has the most money."

Can't say I disagree (on the US end, I don't know about Russia, but I think he has a pretty good handle on that).

Speeches start off, "My Fellow Americans" but the sheer class difference between the guy talking and the people listening is astounding. If that man came across an embodiment of the people he was talking to, and he weren't running for political office (read: Had nothing to gain from said person). I'd put money down that the he'd treat that person as sub-human.

I was thinking about this yesterday (despite having read the above quote within the last few minutes). When was the last time we had a poor guy in the White House? Including former War Heroes, have we ever had someone who qualifies as only slightly better off than his fellow Americans?

I guess what I'm saying is from my perspective Putin is right on. Democracy is slow to change (which isn't always a bad thing, but is most of the time).

And on that note, we'll call it enough politics for the week.

2004-09-02T14:34:00.000-06:00

Age of Dante:
Such a funny class. I was a classmate in a Writing class with an Age of Dante classmate, and so we are kind of buds going in. Very nice, because that makes me super-fun-extroverted-me, and everyone has a fun time with him. There is a group of students (including me) that gets to class like a half hour early, presumably because a class lets out at 11:50, and this class starts at 12:30, and we have nowhere else to be in that time period.

Anyway, this girl walked up to the normal group of four people (me, Shannon, Tonya and Allister). She sits down and I start up a conversation. Before long she asks me where I'm from, and I naturally say, "Las Vegas." To which she responds without allowing any time to pass, "I was just in Massachusetts..." I didn't catch what else she said, because at this point, my brain completely stopped. Las Vegas is more than 2,000 miles away from Massachusetts, and I'm thinking "did she hear Boston? What the hell?" And everybody else is looking around like, what the hell just happened? And we're all laughing nervously. We got back on "track" and I said I grew up in Chatsworth, California. And the other person who wasn't part of the group asked me where I went to school.

Apparently he grew up there too. And if I had stayed another year, I likely would've known him at some point. Instead of being passing acquaintances in a college class. Sufficed to say, it wasn't long before I pointed out that Chatsworth is the porn capital of the States. We began discussing how it was a town secret, or that nobody knew about it. The class before us let out, and then someone said something about "parents not wanting their kids to grow up to be a fluffer." We all laughed really hard, and the kids coming out of the class were kind of confused. Too funny.

In class, we were discussing Canto 3, and we got to the first Contrapassos (punishments fits the crime) of the story. The Neutrals who chase a flag, get attacked by wasps, blood drips into their eyes, and down to the ground which is covered in worms. (Doesn't that sound a lot like Fear Factor to anyone else?) All the while, there are incomprehensible moans, groans, and languages being spoken in an incoherent babble.

After a student said "it doesn't sound so bad" the prof was quick to point out that it was quite unappealing to her. And somehow I managed to work in the comment "It's all downhill from here" which is a fantastic pun for the novel. Since the "Inferno" is a downhill trek through the pits of Hell. She (the prof) actually doubled over from laughter. Everybody laughed a little then groaned at the bad joke I made. What can I say? I'm the Prince of Bad Jokes. Great stuff!

2004-08-31T15:10:00.000-06:00

Mid-Day Post
Holy frijoles. I am exhausted. I need a nap.

And I'm leaving work in 5 minutes.. to go spend three and a half hours in a dark room, attempting to watch film. Odds are, I'll get a 90 minute nap along the way.

C'est la vie.

2004-08-30T16:44:00.000-06:00

Movin' On In
Got Matt moved into the apartment last night. Had a "nice, quiet dinner" with him and his aunt. Which is probably one of the only "nice, quiet dinners" we'll ever have in the apartment.

After his Aunt left, we consumed ice cream while basking in the warm glow of the television displaying "The Best of Triumph the Comic Dog" on dvd. About 1/3rd done with it now. Hilarious stuff. . . . . . For me to poop on!! - Yes I know I'm horrible.

Went to bed around midnight, and woke up 4 minutes after my alarm was supposed to wake me up. Oh man, I had weird dreams last night. For you the reader who doesn't know, I am in a class entitled "The Age of Dante" which includes reading the Inferno and Purgatorio. Alas, I haven't read any in almost a week now, but it's the only thing I can point to, to remotely explain this dream.

I Dream of Hell
I spent a better part of last night, dreaming I was in hell. Over and over, I'd be in, and out. It wasn't fire and brimstone, it was pretty devoid actually. The last things I remember before waking up, I, running with a nameless figure jumped into the last mile of the Marathon (in Athens, yes, the Olympics) and sprinted through, finishing without a medal (it was for the sake of running in the marathon, we wouldn't have received medals anyway, I mean, we cheated!) Next thing I know, I'm back in hell (assumedly with the nameless figure) and someone asks death/satan for an Xbox, because they are tired of playing on the PS2. Death/Satan grants the request, along with two controllers. And I woke up thinking to myself, first of all. What in the fuck was that? And second, that we were almost out of hell, and the Xbox was a way of appeasing us, and trying to keep us in hell.

But anyway...
Had Spanish class today, received quite mediocre scores on the first quiz, not quite to my surprise. Then hit up work to swap bags (backpack for gym bag) and went to the rec center. Lifted weights and ran two miles. Go me! Came back to work, had a Turkey/Provolone Samich I'd left in the fridge over the weekend, and went on my merry way to my apartment. Emptied the gym bag, showered and returned to work, the location from which I am typing this.

Tonight for dinner, Quesoburgesas (con Cheddar). Very exciting! I can't wait.

2004-08-28T18:43:00.000-06:00

The Internet
I have it! In my apartment now, yay!!

Exhaustion
Dead-ass tired, again. Got up at 11 this morning, managing to nail almost 12 hours sleep. Maybe tomorrow, I can hope. Showered, surfed the information superhighway (haven't heard that phrase in for-ever), and headed off to the gym.

You see, today, at 1pm I was supposed to meet a fellow student to exchange my old Accounting book for sixty dollars, hard currency. I was fifteen minutes ahead of schedule and opted to hit up the library to acquire a novel I had on hold. Villa Incognito by Tom Robbins - I've had it on hold since July 20th. I shall blame the person who checked it out before me, instead of CU. I can blame them for so much else. Went to the rec center, changed, did some lifting. And came out to the appropriate spot at 1pm. At 1:10pm, after my buyer failed to show up, I called him. Long story short, the exchange was made at 1:50pm. If you're going to be late, call ahead damnit. Instead of me wasting ten minutes of time outside in the hot sun, melting away, and bombarding my epidermis with UV rays that will end up killing me. When I say, "you're killing me." I mean it.

Ran two miles while at the rec, and then went on my merry way back to the apartment. Showered, and laid about, consuming two quesadillas (one with provolone and american, and the other with sharp cheddar) - yes, eclectic tastes, no doubt. Topped with El Pato brand not-hot sauce. And finally headed out on an adventure.

Target
Hit it up to return the "Ducky" Shower Curtain and a soap dispenser too big for my sink. Grand total $19.37. Then went shopping. My first item of interest was "The Best of Triump The Insult Comic Dog" who actually is Robert Smigel (of Saturday Night Live's comics) and has uncanny similarities in his looks to Tony Shalhoub (in my eyes). Picked up notebooks, some pens I will likely return because I'm picky about writing utensils, and tortilla chips with which to consume more "El Pato" brand not-hot sauce. Then I realized I had failed to buy Ben & Jerry's for Matt, like I promised.

Man of His Word
Fortunatelly for Matt, I am a man of my word, and fighting off exhaustion, I hit up Albertson's and purchased a pint of "Everything but the..." Ben & Jerry's ice cream. As well as two pounds of 4% fat Ground Beef, 3/4 pound of Honey Mesquite Smoked Turkey, and 1/4 pound of Provolone. Not to mention some on sale, Pringles. Yay!

Bussed my way back to the apartment. Climbed five flights of stairs, and am now ready for twelve hours of sleep. Unfortunately, it is far too early for that. And I don't have the energy to cook, nor the room in my stomach for such things.

Alas. That is all for now.

2004-08-23T16:21:00.000-06:00

The First Day of Class
Always nerve-wracking. Well, not quite nerve-wracking, but definitely on the side of un-settling. I got to campus at 10:15 this morning, not knowing where my classes were. Didn't really matter.

Spanish was up first. Breezed through that, it wasn't even all in Spanish, which was very, very nice. Most of the class is people who are there because they have to be, I'm not one of them, so I think this class is going to be a breeeeeeeze.

Came back to work for a little bit, covered some lunch hours, and ate my lunch. Nobody called, so basically, I was paid to eat food and read espn.com. Good stuff.

Silly (I hate introducing stories as funny, because there's an expectation I don't want to have to live up to). When I first was copying out my schedule for what my classes were and where they were. I wrote down the wrong location for Film. I was like, oh cool, I have two classes in the same room, and went on my merry way. Wrong. Anyway, after hunting down the room I was looking for in Ramaley (the shittiest numbered building on campus) I sat down and waited for the class before me to let out. Walked in behind some girl, sat down with a seat between us. We shared the awkward smile where you're looking for something to start a conversation, but can't figure out what it's going to be, when I noticed a tattoo on her shoulder. It was hebrew! Bam, the ice was broken. Unfortunately, about fifteen seconds later, as soon as I found out her name (which is what the tattoo was - her name in hebrew), it dawned on me that 1) this class had more than 20 people in it, and 2) the prof had just said something about sociology, and the people didn't look confused. I promptly left and asked the people standing outside the door next to the one I had gone into what class they were waiting on. It was some Communications class. Sonuvabitch! I high-tailed it to the library to double-check my schedule, only to find the Film class was in Humanities. Craziness.

Went to my 16mm Film Class, and decided about 10 minutes in that I was going to be dropping it. But I didn't have the heart to just walk out. Alas, as fate would have it, I was seated as far from the door as I could be, and getting out would be a production. Oy. 110 minutes later, the class finally ended. Came back to work, first order of business was to drop the class. Yay, four more free hours in my schedule, picked up two more work hours, AND I think I know when I'm going to work out now. Jackpot.

2004-08-19T15:45:00.000-06:00

Damn Them!
Again I feel as though the return of students to this city brings bad weather. Shaman Scully says so. If you'll recall Spring Break. The weather was fantabulous. Sunny and in the high 70s, low 80s all week long. And then the students started coming back, and Sunday it snowed. We went from 70-80 degree weather to snow in A DAY!! Seriously. The students at the school bring bad weather and throw off the ecosystem for days at a time.

I say this because we went from pretty decent weather earlier in the week to the current rain-looming-from-clouds-overhead, blocking out the sky state we find ourselves in today. And a co-worker suggested likely until Monday. Argh. YOU BASTARDS!

My Apartment
I'm tired and achey. I have to wait until I get off work to move in, and depending on this shitty weather (really whether or not it rains) whether or not I get to move at all.

At least, worst case scenario I sleep on my own couch tonight. Of course, I haven't slept on a couch since the first night in my summer apartment, and it was technically mine then too. Stating "my own" couch isn't really necessary is it?

My self-criticism of my own grammar results from this blog. Jen Garrett is my hero for the day.

Arby's
I had it again for lunch today. But only after I walked up to Taco Bell, opened the door and saw the 15 person line which was an added annoyance to the five cars waiting in the drive-thru. I figured I'd try my luck at Arby's. There, did you know the #1, Regular Roast Beef meal consists of 3 oz. of Roast Beef on a sesame seed bun for $5.17 (and the standard fries and a drink). The #3, Giant Roast Beef meal consists of 5 oz. of Roast Beef on a sesame seed bun for $5.87 (and the standard fries and a drink). I think you and I both know which I chose. In retrospect, I probably should have gone with the #1. C'est la vie.

WOWI - 2
Yesterday, during the WOWI session with the counselors. We were discussing my organizational skills, and my practice of them.

Sandi: "How tidy is your car?"
Me: "I don't have a car."
Sandi: "Alright, how tidy is your room?"
Me: *with a big, fat, silly grin on my face* "I don't.. uhh.. have a room."
Judith: "Where are you sleeping?!!?"
Me: *laughter*

Maybe you had to be there. None of them knew of my situation, with regard to my sleeping on floors this week.

It's Raining
Right now. Off work in an hour, and it's raining. I can't bloody well move if it's raining. What the hell? Damn kids!

2004-08-18T15:01:00.000-06:00

Comcast
I woke up at 8am. Having slept on the floor, no back pains today, we put some cushioning between my back and the ground which really seems to have done the trick, aside from my having trouble falling asleep - which I tend to want to blame on the Dr Pepper I had at Arby's for lunch. But I'm just being weird.

Anyway, I showered, had an Apple for breakfast and headed off to catch the bus to campus and start my day. Was at the wrong spot at the right time to catch the 225, 15 minute later I caught the 203. No biggy, I wasn't in any hurry.

Got off at Baseline just before Broadway, and walked across to Colorado. Saw the Hop, but couldn't get to the stop in time, so I jaywalked against the light, and sprinted (and I mean sprinted, I think I hit near my top speed on the run) to the bus stop, turned a 180, and the bus stopped for me. *flex*

Got off the bus and walked over to Comcast. They suggest I buy a router. And I can rent the modem and that would make service $45.95 (instead of $55.95) because they consider me a customer. Yay! ($3.00 of that is the modem, which I might buy instead) And their on-going special is the first two months free, which would be quite fine by me, saving Matt and I at least eighty dollars.

Walked back to campus, bought my books and hit up work. I was a little early, so I hung out with my student-co-worker Nagi. Fun was had.

The World of Work Inventory (WOWI)
I had a meeting with all of the Counselors to go over my WOWI, the test I referenced yesterday. As it turns out, I'm a bad-ass. According to this test, everything but my organization skills are above average. Meh.

Long story short, the jobs the test suggested were:
Actor,
Bill and Account Collector,
Bookeeping, Accounting and Auditing Clerk,
Coach and Scout,
Commercial and Industrial Designer,
Copy Writer,
Creative Writer, Poet and Lyricist,
Demonstrator and Product Promoter,
Employment, Recruitment, and Placement Specialist,
Human Resources Assistant,
Illustrator,
Musician and Singer,
Payroll and Timekeeping Clerk,
Professional Photographer,
Purchasing Agent and Buyer,
Purchasing Clerk, Real Estate Broker,
Retail Salesperson,
Sales Representatives,
Wholesale and Manufacturing,
Secretary and Administrative Assistant,
Teller

I thought that was pretty cool. I'm like, go me, "Actor"! Copy Writer could be interesting, as well as Creative Writer. Those would be the cool, creative, love-to-get-paid-to-do jobs.

While most of that other stuff is meh, the dreams are crushed, I will fall back on my formal education to support me jobs. With the exception of Musician and Singer which falls into the category of not ev-er going to happen, being that I have no musical talent, and even less ability to sing.. unbelievably tone deaf, thank you very much.

No real surprises in the test, but I've got it all on paper now. So watch out!

Lunch
Lunch today was a Small One-Topping Pizza from Domino's, half-Pepperoni, half-Sausage. When I ordered I thought it was a dollar more than it should have been, but I wasn't really caring because it's cheap pizza. I've got the box next to me, and apparently, that extra dollar was a delivery fee. Now I ask you, "What the fuck?"

It's Domino's Pizza, the CEO says he's in the delivery business, not in the pizza business. Why would you charge an extra dollar, and so blatantly call it "Delivery Charge" when deliveries are your bloody business?!

Charge me more for my pizza, and tell me the ingredient cost has gone up. Something that makes me feel better about my pizza. Don't give me the same pizza I've been ordering and tell me, "oh, it's a dollar more now because.. it costs more to deliver." Bullshit. You drive the same three miles you did before. And gas has not gone up so far that I wouldn't mind it.

Argh. And yes, I realize he's in the delivery business, he should charge whatever he wants for deliveries. I disagree. Because I can! After all, I'm outraged.. and outadollar.

2004-08-17T16:38:00.000-06:00

Collection of Thoughts:
My back is achey. I don't do so well sleeping on the floor. Hope I'll be on a couch tonight at least. And with luck, in my own bed tomorrow. Wouldn't that be grand?

Unbelievably boring day at work, aside from some excitement - I use the term very, very loosely, when a girl showed up for an appointment she didn't have with a counselor who wasn't here, and I ran around tracking down one who was free, for her.

The campus is coming to life, and I don't like it. It might be because I'm not settled off-campus, and the unsettling-ness of the campus being alive is my world out of whack. Stability now! (a la Seinfeld).

James said I had a couple Seinfeld-esque moments while we were at Target yesterday. Well, he said it when we were driving to Mari's from a Safeway run (without her). The only one he could point out was when I was making a scene, partly out of boredom, partly for the hell of it, and partly, just because why the hell not. I brought up Bentley (Olive Garden) while we were in line (can you tell I'm really annoyed about this?). And Mari asked me why I was still on that. And I raised my voice to get the attention of people around me, saying something along the lines of, "Fine, I don't have a life, is that what you want to hear?! And besides I've spent almost every second since then with you. How is anything new supposed to happen?" And then heads started turning and I stopped. And I went on like nothing happened at all. Too funny.

Meanwhile, counting down to 4:30pm to leave work doesn't .. work .. anymore, because we changed our hours on Monday to close at 5:00pm. Yesterday, the clock hit 4:30 and I got half out of my seat before I realized I had another half hour to go. 4:42 now, and I feel as though I should be walking home. Although, I don't have a home to walk to yet. Recurring theme, no?

I need to hit up the Comcast office at some point, but my morning is booked tomorrow because I have to meet with the Career Counselors to be told what career I should pursue based on this 400 question on-line test I took last week. My only concern is how well I did on the aptitude portion, because I felt really good about it. - How should I feel about what a computerized test, and my co-workers (isn't that bad?) have to say about what I should spend my working life on? I don't even know that my answers (outside of the aptitude portion) were accurate to my true self. What is my true self? OH NO, IDENTITY CRISIS!! As if.

4:45 and a co-worker just walked by, didn't make eye contact, and muttered "how are you." at me. Statement, not a question. She didn't care. She didn't even direct the question at me. I looked at the back of her head as she disappeared from view. Sometimes when asked, instead of a verbal response, a grunt (which technically is a verbal response) I will just look at the person as they walk by. Not as though they were anticipating an answer or anything. Meanwhile, there is another co-worker who asks me, and it's the same answer everytime. Drives me nuts. In other news, we got some new intern-counselors. Which isn't too bad. I don't like the guy based on my first impressions, although the girl is upbeat. Who didn't see that coming though, I like the girl but not the guy. Hold the phone! Stop the presses! Honestly, no news there.

Seriously though, my back is all achey. It's a shame I can't blame lifting bunches of things, because it's not that at all. The same thing happened when I spent a week at my sister's sleeping on the bed my parents normally use. My folks claimed the bed was just too hard for what I'm used to - like the floor. Apparently I usually sleep on a pool of mush. Same exact spot, same exact ache, only a little worse - because it's harder. *fingers crossed for a couch tonight*

USA Basketball is failing to live up to the expectation, but we sent a bunch of NBA stars to play in an International game. They're playing a different game! Rules are different, the three-point line is shorter (and apparently make-or-break when it comes down to it. By the way, we don't have anyone who shoots even 35% from beyond the arc in the NBA - three feet longer than Int'l rules). And besides, apparently we don't play fundamentally sound basketball anyway. Highly stylized garbage.

Knowing what succeeds and doesn't with regard to the International game, you would think we'd put together a team that would accel under those conditions. Instead of a team of names from moderate-to-huge that Americans recognize. I'd rather win with a team of no-names than lose with a team I don't know. Wouldn't you?

2004-08-16T14:26:00.000-06:00

The Move
Spent both Saturday and Sunday moving Mari and myself out of our apartment with the assistance of James. Very helpful was he. When I helped Mari move out of her apartment in May, it took the two of us nearly five hours to move her out by ourselves. That was non-stop moving.

Mari, James and I took six trips to campus, averaging about four-or-five trips to load the vehicle. From the fourth floor of the apartment, taking the stairs every time, I have no problem claiming that I went up/down one hundred flights of stairs this weekend (50 up, 50 down).

For lunch we went to Abo's Pizza down Broadway just south of Table Mesa, behind King Sooper's. While their pizza is pricey, they have my favorite arcade game ev-er. The original Area 51. James played with me a little, and he was terrible. Too funny. I was shooting better than 50%! And just tearing up the game. He shot slightly less than 25%, and gave up after he died. I accidentally continued his game instead of mine, and ended up shooting both guns at the same time. I'd never done it before, and it was absolutely thrilling! I'll do that next time I get the chance, too fun. I even found a secret level I didn't know about, which surprised me verily. Unfortunately, shortly after the game reset itself - the employees of the restaurant warned me it was on the fritz. But I was a man on a mission, my main reason to go to Abo's is to play that game. 50 cents to start, 25 cents to continue. I could probably beat the game in a buck fifty, barring gun malfunctions. I hope they get it fixed, and I can't wait to get Matt to go with me to play. - One day, when I'm a grown up, with a few hundred bucks to spare, I will buy the machine to play in the comfort of my own home. Yes, really I will. - And yes, The Connection has an Area 51 machine also, but it is Site 4, and can not compare to the original. The graphics are better, but the gameplay is piss poor. It's simply not the same - though I will give it another shot next time I go bowling. - Love the Old School Area 51. - Yes, I know, I'm a huge dork. Thank you.

The Olive Garden
Went last night with Mari, James, and Lupe. Our waiter's name was Ben(tley). He introduced himself as Ben, though his name-tag indicated he was some sort of car. I got bad vibes the instant he opened his mouth, he was very, very loud. Mari suggested he might've had a hearing problem, but I think he was just an ass.

Anyway, everyone but James ordered water, he got a Diet Coke. Upon the delivery of beverages we all put in our orders. Mari got Spaghetti and Meat Sauce, James got Three Meat Ravioli which was quite delicious (everyone at the table took at least one bite of his ravioli), while Lupe got Penne and Chicken (I'm not sure of the meal's name). I ordered Fettucini Allfredo with Broccoli tossed on (alas, I am not getting my fill of Vegetables).

Our salad came, and I had him put a ton of cheese on top. So good. By the time he left, I had emptied my first glass of water. He motioned at it, and I indicated I would like a refill. He said he'd be right back with it. I finished my first bowl of salad. My water situation remained unchanged. I was merely annoyed at this point, and continued on into my second bowl of salad. Having seen Bentley twice since he offered to bring me more water, and having finished two bowls of salad while waiting. By this point I was pissed. When he came to take away everyone's salad dishes he refilled the waters around the table.

Our food came, and before long I was in need of another refill. It didn't come. I ended up having to take Mari's water, as she mooched off of James' diet coke. Most upsetting. It was no surprise that his tip was in jeopardy. The check came.

Mari had him split them up into three bills when we were ordering. One for James and her, one for Lupe and one for me. One has to wonder if my poor service was a result of this. His assessing that I, being the youngest of the party, most poorly dressed, and likely most immature, I wouldn't have money to leave him a decent tip. Therefore I was undeserving of good service. Of course, he had know way of knowing that had his service been stellar I could have left him a more than ample tip without issue.

My meal cost a grand total of $10.73. Mari and Lupe each paid with plastic. And I put in $11.00 in cash. I did not get change. And I did not put any more money down - so thoroughly disappointed in the service was I. Had he given me change, I would have been quite tempted to take the quarter and leave him the two pennies, his service was so below par.

And it's not as though he was juggling too many tables either. He was working two other tables, and helping with a party in the back. He noted my drink's status a number of times but simply failed to refill it, or send someone in his stead to do so. The waiter helping the tables near us was around more than enough for Bentley to ask for a little help. Pity.

Suddenly, I'm reminded of the Reservoir Dogs discussion on tipping. Steve Buschemie's - Mister Pink doesn't do it unless his service is exemplary, yet it's almost expected. I think if service is satisfactory I don't have a problem. But when it is so god awful that I spend more time without liquid than with it, we have a problem. Damn you Bentley.

Brilliant
An add-on. As I initially tried to publish this post, I remembered the email I lost mid-last week, and copied it before hitting publish. Wouldn't you know, I would have lost it if not for the last minute copy/back-up. A moment which makes me feel absolutely brilliant. Hoo-ah!

2004-08-04T16:30:00.000-06:00

So Productive.

Film class was dull, sat through four films. Wish I could have that time back. I would simply not go, but I need the attendance points to get the grade I need. Meh.

Spent 2.5 hours at work, looking at ESPN's 34-100 Moments of the Past 25 Years. Really, really liked Moment 94 - I'd never even heard about that. I was fighting off tears. And then Moment 51 . I remember watching that on tv. But reading about it evoked more emotion than I had at the time. Maybe it was age, maybe it was ten years hindsight. Just wow. Good stuff.

Also really liked Moment 90 - Reggie Miller's 8 points in 9 seconds vs the Knicks. That was just unbelievable. I think I saw it back in the day. But I also caught it on "Beyond the Glory: Reggie Miller" - I'm just sad I missed the first 5 minutes of that, because apparently Reggie had some sort of debilitating thing, with his legs. And he had knee braces and all kinds of stuff. Amazing.

Waiting on my Math Mods scores to be posted before I go home. I felt pretty confident about what I did today. And on my way to work and the following class, I ran into Kristen. That was odd. Very odd. Stopped and talked for a few minutes, before leaving for class. Grades from Math Mods are in, 9 out of 10. Go me. 11 points to a C in Calc, and I have 25 opportunities to do it. Right on!

More tomorrow as I'll be here longer, with likely nothing to do. Unless I stumble upon something like the ESPN 25 again.

Off to get a haircut and study more Calc.

Adios.

2004-07-27T16:03:00.000-06:00

Saturday
Brandon came down from Ft. Collins on Saturday. He was a little late because of traffic - no biggy. He presented me with my present, a carved wooden-doll-like-thing that I promptly named "Fred." Mari later pointed out that it was female, and I was forced to rename it "Freddie." Damn. We looked at pictures he had from South Africa - if I had a reason to go, I'd think about it. But alas, I don't, so I'm not really gonna try and find one. We were both hungry and decided to hit up Old Chicago for lunch. I'd never been there, and I'd never had a Stromboli. By the end of lunch, neither was true any longer. We walked up and down Pearl St. I was looking for a shop that hasn't been there for at least a year, called Beyond the Wall. We didn't find it. Brandon stopped into Starbucks to get some coffee, and we headed over the UMC.

We bowled two games. I won both. Poor Brandon was having a terrible time, couldn't bowl the ball straight for his life. Although, I was delighted in beating him both games. Muahahaha! After that, we headed over to the movie theater to take in Fahrenheit 9/11.

I could not believe what I saw. Britney Spears was being interviewed by someone and she was chewing gum. Unbelievable. Where is Miss Manners to beat Ms. Spears to an inch of her life for that no-no. Honestly. If no one beats her down, how is she ever going to learn. You just don't do that. For shame.

The other conclusion I drew from this film was that I would likely make a very successful politician. Well, we all know I kick ass, but I'd graduate to kicking political ass. And the country would be that much better for it. Hoo-ah!

After the film we went back to my apartment and hung out. We ended up watching some "Legends of Bartending" from Las Vegas (where both Brandon and I went to high school). It was far more entertaining than it sounds. And I suggested Brandon take notes because they were telling how to make certain drinks, and he agreed it was a good idea, but stopped short of actually doing it. By the time the finalists were announced our tummies were a-rumblin' (what a great, childish phrase) and we decided it was dinner-time. Brandon called for Olive Garden eats and we piled into his car (suddenly I wonder if he has a name for it).

We got to Olive Garden, and double parked next to someone else who had double parked. Grawr. And went in. There were two "groups" of people in front of us. One was a nine person party that had been helped and was waiting for the tables to be set together, and the other was a girl who had walked in before us, representing a party of four. The hostess offered to seat her, but she declined. Then the hostess offered to seat Brandon and I, I was a little disappointed, I wanted to give the name of our party as "Inigo Montoya." So much fun. As I walked by the ten people who were still waiting, I exclaimed in an excited voice "We won!!" and everybody laughed as we were shown to our table.

Brandon had Sausage and something else. I had Chicken con Broccoli.. though I meant to have Chicken Allfredo with Broccoli tossed in. Alas, I made a mistake. Twas fine nonetheless. From there, Brandon and I went back to my apartment again, where we relaxed, digested, and continued to chat away. He left about 9:30 and called slightly before 11:00 to let me know he got home all right. Good times were had.

Sunday
Completely uneventful. Stromboli leftovers for lunch. Chicken con Broccoli leftovers for dinner. I studied Calc, watched tv, and failed to get the tv guide for the week. Played games until bed at 11pm. Meh.

2004-07-19T16:03:00.000-06:00

Meh
Despite a good night's sleep, two and a half hours in my Film class completely drained me. As the critic used to say, "It stinks!" And indeed, it does. I'm muy tired now. A little under an hour left at work.

Post-Movie Tiff
Mari and I had a little bit of a tiff yesterday when I got home from I, Robot. I walked in, she asked how the movie was, I said it was good, I liked it. Washed my hands so I could make myself dinner. Walked back to the kitchen, and saw she had cleaned and used a pan I had left from an omelette I ate before I went to see the movie. I shrugged, and went to grab a clean pan. While she cleaned the pan I had dirtied, she had dirtied it herself. One logical approach would be to clean the mess as if it had been my own. But that wasn't my thinking at the time, when I know there is a perfectly good, clean pan in the cupboard that doesn't get much use, and impart the delaying of one's mess onto another. This, in retrospect, was a bad idea.

She said something to the effect of, "Ya know, you could clean this one and use it, like I did earlier." And I was taken aback. I didn't ask her to clean the pan. I didn't leave it in the kitchen for her to clean, I had every intention of cleaning it to re-use for dinner. And if I had been in her position I would've used the clean pan and left the dirty one for me to clean - like she does with the dishes I dirty. No big deal. I said, "Nah, I don't think so, maybe I'll clean both later. Though, I can't really commit to that." Which is a phrase she doesn't like, I had added it as somewhat of a joke at the end, because I realized, I didn't want to clean a Mari-dirtied pan when she shouldn't have cleaned it in the first place. Immediately I realized it was the wrong thing to have said. I shouldn't have said anything beyond, "Nah." which was still probably not the right answer. I don't know.

She responded with, "I'm going to keep my mouth shut before I get myself into more trouble." - something along those lines. And I said, "Me too."

Now let me say, I don't like doing the dishes but once a day. Usually, at the end of the day, shortly before I go to bed. Thus, everything is clean in the morning, and as I go through the day, I add dishes, utensils and mugs to be cleaned. I don't feel like doing dishes three times a day. And I don't mind having them pile up in the sink over the course of a day. Generally, it gets cleaned up before it gets anywhere near out of hand. - This past week, I'd been too tired at night to do them, so when I was waking up early, I would wash them before I dirtied any new ones - same effect as doing them before bed, just in the morning.

Unfortunately, Mari doesn't approach dirty dishes in quite the same way. She will clean them after every meal - unless time does not permit it. And so, usually, any dirty anything in the kitchen is my responsibility (as it was dirtied by me). She takes out the trash before it breaks my threshold to even be aware that it needs to go out. I think I've done it once or twice without her asking, and I think both of those times she wasn't even in Colorado. Recycling, same deal. I don't let it pile up, but I feel if I'm going to take it out, it should be worth the trip - again, not the way Mari thinks. She usually ends up taking things out alone, unless I'm around to assist, but I won't by any means initiate said procedure. Of course, this leads to what's taking place. She's tired of it.

And being the wonderful Taurus I am. I'm going to continue chugging along the way I have been doing things, consequences be damned. I will continue cleaning my dishes all at once, one time a day - and if hers are there, I may clean them as well - if so inclined. I will take out the trash and/or recycling when I notice that it's time, and not before, unless otherwise requested of me.

But, I could be misreading all of this, and something else is at work. *shrugs* She's going home for the weekend on Thursday, and I'll be left to fend for myself. Hopefully, the time apart will do us some good. And now I wonder, what problem will Matt and I come into during our time together this Fall/Spring. Over the past year, Matt and I never ended up fighting over anything, at all, ever. I wonder what we can attribute that to. We shall see, or hell, maybe we won't. Wouldn't that be something?

Oh. Mari and I haven't said anything to one another since I said "Me too." Which was at about 7pm last night. Mostly because she went into her room afterward, and I didn't have anything to say. And then I was in the shower when she left this morning for campus. We'll see how our dynamic is this evening when I get in. Generally, I hold grudges worse and longer than any of my friends. I think that's "a Taurus thing" too. Or being too stubborn to let go. Something along those lines. But, I will likely just mimic her behavior toward me until I've come to terms with it (which will probably be while she's gone).

2004-07-14T14:56:00.000-06:00

Morning Coffee
Nobody made coffee today. So I'm not going to prep any for tomorrow. Moo Ha Ha! Someone who drinks it should make it, they'll take pride in it, and ya know, be one of the people to consume it. They have to be a better coffee-maker-person than me. I mean, I think they would take more care in the preparation and cleaning, since they're gonna drink it. I'm not, I don't care, just sanitary enough so we don't spread disease, ya know? Meh, it smells terrible.

Quesoburgesas
Far more fun to say in Spanish than in English. Hell, I enjoy saying the word in my head, how cool is that? Tonight I will prepare two patties (what an odd word). I will consume one afterward, in celebration of my victory over the day. And I shall consume the other around lunch time on the morrow.

The Kung Fu Movie
It came out pretty well. I think it was a big hit in class. Everybody laughed, and appreciated at least something about it. It's a shame I don't take this class more seriously. I just don't care. Meh.

Exhaustion
Utterly exhausted the past 24 hours. Three times I've felt like fainting. Very bad. Possibly dehydration, but not necessarily. When I got to bed last night, I was so tired I had trouble falling asleep. All I wanted to do was collapse. And then I did, but I couldn't bloody well sleep. Absolute craziness.

Whoring Myself to Science
As previously mentioned, in less graphic language, I am whoring myself to science. Today, I had the first IV inserted to my arm since I had my wisdom teeth removed (18 months ago). I had saline injected, blood removed, and they were gonna do something with some Nitroglycerine and an ultrasound on my brachial artery, but something was wrong.

They slapped some sticky things on my chest, and hooked them up to a machine to register my heart rate. And what came out looked funny. Or rather, very unhealthy. The women attending me figured there was something wrong with the sticky things, so they ripped them off my chest, and placed three more on. Didn't help at all. Slapped some more on, and tried those. No dice.

About this time, they called in a higher-up lady to assist. She came in, and they ripped the sticky-things off my chest again. Placed some more on. Ripped them off, and then ended up placing 8+ on me all at once. They rolled in another machine and hooked me up to that too. Comparing my heart rate on the machines, we established that my heart was good, and I didn't need to be rushed to the ER as the other machine had been indicating. My heart rate was hovering at 60 bpm (Go me!).

They played around with the thingies, but we couldn't get it to work. I'd like to take this time to say, I don't have much hair on my chest. That being said, I'd like to add, I now have less hair on my chest than when I began the day. And the tearing of them off wasn't what I would call painless. I'll leave it at that.

2004-07-13T11:53:00.000-06:00

The Monster Under My Bed
Went bowling last night with Hannah, Greg and Sarah. We only got one game in because The Connection was closing early. Afterward we headed over to Sarah's and watched the Casa Bonita episode of South Park. Awesome. Greg took Hannah and I home shortly after 11. I was dead-ass tired. I got ready for bed, and was about to conk out when I heard an odd screech coming from somewhere in my room.

There was some sort of live creature inside my room. I turned on the light, and started scanning. The sound had stopped. And at the base of my lamp, I located a set of eyes. At first, judging by the display of limbs, I thought I had myself a baby bat - which genuinely freaked me out. My window had been open all day, but there's a screen there, so I was at a loss for how it could have gotten in. After all, there are no holes. I set out to remove the creature from my room and take it outside. I quickly dressed, put back on my socks and shoes. I slapped on my chemical gloves for film processing and accompanying lab coat for extra protection.

I unlocked the door, and turned on another light. When I returned to my room the creature had moved. Nowhere in sight. I removed the gloves, grabbed a flashlight and searched through my room. Finally, I located the intruder, he (I'm not sure, but we'll use the pronoun anyway) was in the corner of my room, underneath my bed where the heater meets the wall. I pulled my bed out of the corner, after rearranging things in my room, so as to get at him.

Finally, I was able to reach him. I put the gloves back on, and went down to pick him up. At about this point, I came to the realization, I was dealing with a frog, instead of a bat. Of course, that did me little good in picking him up and taking him outside. My degree of freaked-out-ness declined somewhat, but still. There's a frog in my room, on the fourth floor of my apartment. A frog! Four stories high.

Instead of picking him up, he crawled into the heater, likely where he came from, so I couldn't get him. I removed the gloves, and lab coat, which were causing me to perspire, as it was a warm evening, and my apartment lacks air conditioning. I turned off the lights in my room, re-locked up the apartment, and held a stakeout for Mr. the Frog.

Time passed slowly, but all was quiet. I believe he crawled into the next apartment to escape my attempt at his removal. I put my bed back into its original spot, removed my socks, shoes and clothes unnecessary for sleeping, and returned to bed.

At some point this morning, I think I heard him again. I was half asleep at the time, but I'm pretty sure I did. Creepy, creepy. I have an in-room-mate now. Bastard better fork over the rent at the end of the month, or the gloves will come off (and by that, I mean on)!

2004-07-12T15:19:00.000-06:00

AMC Much More Movie
I couldn't stop watching When Harry Met Sally yesterday, when it was on AMC. I love this movie, but I own it, so I can watch it whenever I want. This was different. AMC's Much More Movie gives bunches of trivia and other information you just didn't know about the movie. It sucked me in, and wouldn't release its grip on me (and it wasn't the first time this has happened). Finally, after Sally's (Meg Ryan) fake orgasm, they went to commercial and I was able to move my sorry ass off the couch, do the dishes and round out the evening with Patriot Games.

I think I have a love-hate relationship with Much More Movie.

2004-07-12T11:44:00.000-06:00

Guys Gone Wild!
Yes America, it's happened. Guys Gone Wild is a reality. I am not surprised my male brethren fell for such a devilishly sly trick from the beautiful she-devil pictured in the article. Ah, what some will do in pursuit of .. well, anyway. Guys Gone Wild, coming this Fall!

Shaq is going to Miami
On the one hand, I'm a little sad. On the other hand, Dwyane Wade and Shaq will be funner to watch. The ever-changing face of the Lakers makes me a little nauseated. They'll trade the Glove and sign the Fish if they know what's good for them, damnit. And even if they don't, I heart the Fish wherever he goes.

Mexican Macaroni
I deem it a success. It was good, if a little bland, and I have leftovers for dinner this evening. Definitely something to cook for more than just myself, but I knew that going in.

Boulder Sausage or Cheeseburgers in the evening following the final consumption of leftover Macaroni.

Patriot Games
I love you Tom Clancy! I was doing a little reading before bed, I figured I was safe to read a few chapters, because I wasn't quite halfway through the book (when Clancy novels get really, really, really good). And, it came early this time. I read about 50 more pages than I was planning on, they were well worth it. Likely will get more reading done shortly.

Sequels

2004-07-12T08:33:00.000-06:00

This summer, the motion picture (read: Movie) industry sets a new mark for the release of sequels. I'm sure we've all noticed it. I mean come on:

Legally Blonde 2: Red, White, and Blonde
Charlie's Angles: Full Throttle
The Matrix Reloaded (notable exception, part two of a trilogy)
X-Men 2: X-Men United (semi-excusable because it was good)
Lara Croft-Tomb Raider: Cradle of Life
Bad Boys II (7? years later)
American Wedding (American Pie 3)
T3: Rise of the Machines (I haven't seen it, but I find the concept implausible considering what happened during Judgement Day.. and by that I mean, the whole movie!-falls into this category because it is completely unnecessary, and only capitalizing on the original...from 19? years ago...this is a blog all to itself. Maybe my next one.)
2 Fast 2 Furious (it hurts, someone stop the pain)
Dumb and Dumberer (a prequel even, gah, is it cold in here?)
Spy-Kids 3D: Game Over (with Sylvester Stallone as the uber-villain)

And in the works:
Scooby-Doo 2 (completely unnecessary)
Meet the Fockers (sequel to Meet the Parents)
XXX2 (for the love of god...)
The Whole Ten Yards (yes, a sequel to The Whole Nine Yards)
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Are they necessary to the plot, or are they just capitalizing on an a hit from a year ago? Sometimes its the first choice, but more often than not, it is because of the latter--which breaks the heart. I suppose its mercy that makes us usually not have to deal with a third movie, but... still, some of these sequels are just ridiculous and implausible.

Legally Blonde 2, yes, the first one was okay, but does she really need to go to Washington? Why couldn't she just live in her pink world with Owen Wilson and be happy for the rest of her days. - Money.

Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle, could anyone have come up with a better name? Quite honestly I don't find any of the three all that attractive--Cameron Diaz's face is dominated by her smile, which is more scary than anything else (she was better looking in the Mask, almost a decade ago now). Lucy Liu, she's got a dark side, but I would rank her #1 of the three. Drew Barrymore, baby fat or something, I don't know, her cheeks frighten me. Demi Moore, 40 and hot as ever, but I can't justify seeing a movie because of one beautiful girl I can oggle elsewhere. There is the "thin man" who didn't get any press, because, really, who wants to see the scary thin guy, who played Marty McFly's dad in Back to the Future....20 years later. The plot.. well, its an action flick for the 21st century, who am I to judge? - Money.

The Matrix Reloaded, I think the jury is still out on this one, only because we need Revolutions to fully judge. - Substance.

X2: X-Men United, this was a cash in, but it wasn't for the sake of cashing in. An empire in creation perhaps? It certainly isn't Batman, but Halle Berry may be jumping ship for the next one. Hugh Jackman is getting biiiig. Anyway, there is plot to work with for a third one, and the second was quality, and a thrill to take view. (Although, a few didn't like it, to each his/her own.) - Twould seem to be Substance at this point.

Tomb Raider 2, oy. The first didn't do it for me plot-wise, I can't imagine what this will be like. And it falls into the, I can't justify seeing a movie for one hot chick, category. - Money.

Bad Boys II, I like Will Smith, I don't mind Martin Lawrence, the first one was okay. But honestly, what happened to Tea Leoni? Will they explain it, or she just the hot chick from movie one that mysteriously disappears for a new chick in the next movie (I despise this phenomenon). But, its a big name, big action, blockbuster flick, that is capitalizing on the original. Why should we be surprised? - Money.

American Wedding.. haven't we exhausted this material yet? And they're not even teenagers anymore, they're done with college, they're getting married! I can really relate... no wait, I can't, I'm still in college. I was in high school when the first one was released. Too fast! If you're gonna do it like that, pace yourself (oh wait, the actors/actresses are going to be over the hill if you do that). Still in high school for the second one, and the third one has me entering my second year of college. My eyes, they burn. - Money.

T3: Rise of the Machines... next blog. - Money.

2 Fast 2 Furious, hey, can we sell a movie with cool cars, cute guys, and hot chicks? I don't know, it worked the first time around...what about if we don't have Vin Diesel? Sure, kids will still like it, just toss in a rapper-turned-actor! Huge gross, I didn't see it, I thought the first one was okay, but I'm not all that big into cars, or racing to give two hours of my time away. - Money.

Dumb and Dumberer, my head hurts. - Money.

Spy-Kids 3D: Game Over, please let it be. Make it end, no more movies for them! I've not seen the first two, but these seem rushed, as if the studio was trying to get the movies out before the boy had a growth spurt, and his voice started cracking all the time. And before the girl started dating half the boy bands on the planet, at the same time. - Money.

Coming next year...
Scooby-Doo 2... are you kidding me? Did anybody see the first one? I didn't... I can't fathom anyone seeing another one! - I would say Money, but the first one wasn't all that profitable.

Meet the Fockers... the first one was quaint, and ended with an open ending for a sequel. I look forward to it, and I plan to see it. Maybe even with someone that is my girlfriend.. and not just a girl-friend. (Yet another blog in the making) - Substance.

XXX2... yay for Vin Diesel. Things blowing up. A few lines. Sam Jackson being a B.A.M. (Bad Ass Mofo) and a hot chick with little-to-no-clothing. We've got a hit! I don't get it, of course, I didn't see the first one. - Money.

The Whole Ten Yards.. what kind of a title is this? Honestly! The first was..."witty"?.. because it was a cute phrase, but this isn't one! Unless they're trying to coin a new one to be "a really bad unnecessary sequel." What a concept, there should be a phrase for it. - Money.
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In fact, there it is. The phrase for all bad, unnecessary sequels is "The Whole Ten Yards." It would be used as follows.

"I hope they don't make the Hulk (any movie name) go the whole ten yards on us."

2004-07-11T16:37:00.000-06:00

Casa Bonita
My only knowledge of Casa Bonita came from the South Park episode which saw the boys going there for someone's birthday party. As it turned out, it was truly a haven for children. Unfortunately, our party was a whee bit old to fully appreciate all the Casa had to offer.

Most of us were Casa virgins, or if anyone had gone, it had been years since last they had been. We ended up waiting in a line that started out the door, and an hour later we had food on our trays. We were sat up high overlooking the peons below still waiting to get their food. The menu was short, the food was okay, and best of all there was an all-you-can-eat option. They have little flags at every table your raise to get the attention of your waiter/waitress and we made excessive use of it, much to the chagrin of our waitress. I remarked that we'd better leave her a good tip, and then I looked up, and she was there. We all had a nervous laugh. It was funny. (And she got one from me). I don't think I'm ever going to go back to the Casa, it was too much of a kid's atmosphere. I'd need to have my own kids with me to make it worthwhile. And them's definitely a few years off.

Hannah's Friends
The ones I actually got to talk to ended up being pretty cool. I haven't had many guy friends recently, outside of Matt, Paras, Marshall, and whoever Mari brings home. I generally prefer the company of women (which has been the case all my life.. Muahaha!). But it turned out that the rest of Hannah's guy friends turned out to be pretty good folks, whom I wouldn't mind hanging out with in Hannah's absence. And probably will.

Although I didn't think very highly of the two girls I hadn't previously met. Very snobbish, and uninterested. But that just may have been the circumstances of the meeting. I'll give them another shot in a year, when I see them next.

Brandon
My buddy Brandon from high school woke me up this morning (or was it afternoon) to let me know that he was back in Colorado, and that we'd have to hang out in the coming weeks. And he also told me that he and Emily had already started hanging out again, and she was dying to meet his family. The boy needs to make a move already, before she slips through his fingers. I look forward to our hanging out. Always a good time to be had.

Mari and the Fight
Mari and I had our first fight yesterday. Truly a ridiculous turn of events. We were at Costco, and I was pushing the cart out to the car. Basically, I said something that rubber her the wrong way, and she totally bit my head off about it. I was bloody well pissed about it. I ended up not saying a word to her for the ensuing drive home. She apologize a few minutes in, but I still had nothing to say. About thirty seconds before we got back to the apartment, she screamed my name, as a bug the size of her fist was at the top of her door frame threatening to enter the car. I chuckled, and told her to roll up the window, which she did. We got to the apartment, and the bug was still on her door, so she came out my way, and we took the stuff upstairs. I'm a little upset still, but I'll get over it. We haven't seen much of each other in the 24 hours since. So I think we're cooling off.

Dinner
Very exciting. I'm planning to have Mexican Macaroni tonight! The recipe consists of Macaroni, Mexican Corn, Ground Beef, and some Chiles.. and maybe something else, I don't recall offhand. Three hours away.

Spider-Man 2
I really enjoyed the movie. Totally spotted Stan Lee (wasn't hard) and Phil LaMarr (from Mad TV), he was the guy on the far right (looking at the screen) when Spiderman is trying to stop the train. None of my group caught him. Though I don't know that they know who he is anyway. - Aside from the hokey line straight out of the comic book, it was great.

We saw a preview for a stinker of a movie entitled Anacondas. When it ended I said loudly, "I smell Oscar!" and the guy next to me said, "Sorry, that was me." Everyone in ear shot had a good laugh.

And at dinner before the movie, at Carrabas (overpriced Italian food - with damned good meatballs), Hannah was telling a story that started with her seeing a cop, and.. maybe getting pulled over, I don't remember. I think I interrupted, skipping to the end of the story and asked, "Did you cry to get off?" and Hannah replied, "I don't need to cry to get off." And the entire table had a really good laugh. We never did find out how that story ended.

King Arthur likely next weekend with Mayhem and J-Mo. And maybe some Fahrenheit 9/11 also. Not that my vote is going to change or anything. Which reminds me, I really should register.

And on that note, I think I'll call it a day.

2004-07-09T14:59:00.001-06:00

This Just In...
Wackiness: 50/100
Rationality: 44/100
Constructiveness: 62/100
Leadership: 56/100

You are an SECL--Sober Emotional Constructive Leader. This makes you a politician. You cut deals, you change minds, you make things happen. You would prefer to be liked than respected, but generally people react to you with both. You are very sensitive to criticism, since your entire business is making people happy.
-Interesting, a politician? Maybe later in life. I don't hold strong enough political views yet to be useful.. or does that make me useful. Hmm? Yeah, I guess I'm a bit sensitive to criticism, from time to time, especially if it serves no purpose.

At times your commitment to the happiness of other people can cut into the happiness of you and your loved ones. This is very demanding on those close to you, who may feel neglected. Slowly, you will learn to set your own agenda--including time to yourself.
You are gregarious, friendly, charming and charismatic. You like animals, sports, and beautiful cars. You wear understated gold jewelry and have secret bad habits, like chewing your fingers and fidgeting.
-I do love makin' people happy. Indeed, I am friendly, yes gregarious (because who am I kidding, I did have to look it up), incredibly charming and yes, charismatic as hell.. when I want to be. (Let's not forget modest, while we're at it!) I do like most animals, puppy dogs are #1 though. I enjoy sports from time to time. Basketball has been big lately. And beautiful cars, but not just for what's on the outside. My car has to have personality too. Wait, what?

-I don't wear jewelery. And my secret bad habits haven't been brought to my attention yet. So the people who know must know I'm sensitive to criticism. Ha! Go me.

You are very difficult to dislike.
-Yep. In the words of Baby Sinclair from "Dinosaurs" (TGIF circa early 1990s) "...gotta love me!"

Surprisingly close for a 20 question quiz.
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Checking out the rest of the site, I came across something Matt (my past/future roommate) and I had discussed previously. A picture is worth more than I can possibly say, so without further ado:

Striking isn't it?

And while we're at it, for kicks, I give you:

Oh how I love Family Guy.

Mean, but true.

Reverend Fozzie.. has a nice ring to it.

And because we did Kerry... We have to do Bush...

Finally, my favorite:

2004-07-09T14:22:00.000-06:00

Kerry Picks Running Mate!
If you haven't yet heard, John Kerry picked his running mate.

Congratulations Dick! - In actuality, as I'm sure you know, he picked John Edwards.. ya know, the schmuck from "Crossing Over with John 'the biggest douchebag in the universe' Edwards." I jest. But it would be odd to have him as VP, just due to the name, ya know? Nobody remembers VPs who don't go on to become Presidents anyway. Only the infamous ones. Spiro - what a great name.

That Feeling
Today is shaping up to be shitty. I spent three hours bored out of my bloody skull watching 16mm films (in my Super 8 class, WTF?) that I would otherwise need to be held at gunpoint to sit through again. Three hours worth, three. If I had been at work I would have been just as productive, and probably learned more (through searching the internet). Alas, I have been robbed of yet another 180 minutes of my life. But that's not the point. My point is today is hovering over a pile of manure. And gravity is pulling it in.

It started with that rude nutritionist lady, and film class just made it worse. Thanks nutrition lady, you're close to ruining a perfectly good day. But I'm not going to let you win. Oh no! Because that's what you want, isn't it?!

Hope
There's hope yet (for the day, that is)! Gonna see Spider-Man 2 later with Hannah and Emma. But now apparently Jay is coming as well. And, while the jury is still out on him, I say "Meh." Jay and Hannah dated for a while back in April and May. They were neighbors and ended up romantically involved.. or some such nonsense. Hannah, if I didn't mention it, is going to Australia for a year.. in about two weeks. So we're doing lots of things before she goes, as sort of a blowout. It'll be fun, if a little draining on the wallet. There's talk of dinner before the movie now, and we're catching an eight o'clock showing. Damn having woken up at 6:00.

Come to think of it, I am far more exhausted than I should be for having slept nine hours. Although it was interrupted and uncomfortable. It's been so hot in Boulder lately, and we haven't got Air Conditioning in the apartment. Oh, and the thermostat has never worked. Meh.

2004-07-09T09:47:00.000-06:00

Oy.. Research
Had another meeting with the research people today. Got my bone density and body fat tested, and met with a nutritionist-type person to discuss my eating habits over the past year.

Upon reflection, I am pretty disgusted. Apparently, I have the bones of an old woman, and am apparently a big fat, fatty - based on the body fat (although this makes me wonder about some of the people I see around me). Worrisome. On the bright side, at the pace I'm going, those numbers will be far more stomach-able (I think I made a new word. Woo!). And they serve as extra motivation to keep exercising.

As for the nutritionist-type-person. I did not like her. I felt she was rude, and the whole, looking at what I've eaten over the past year (10 months of dorm slop, thanks!) thing made me feel worse.

Checks
Hit up the bank again yesterday, as I said I would, to see what the hell happened to my checks. Turns out they were sent to the wrong zip code. I lived in 80310, and they were sent to 80010. Way to go! The bank comp'd my checks, and changed the address so they'd be all proper again. I shall be receiving them in 5-10 business days. Which means the checks I ordered will have only taken 5 months to reach me. Barring any more unforeseen difficulties.

Blazing Saddles
After the bank I hit up Target, and for the first couple minutes I couldn't remember why I had wanted to go. And then it hit me, and I rushed to the back of the store to look for the 30th Anniversary Edition of the Mel Brooks classic, Blazing Saddles. They've been remodeling, moving things around and the like. As a result, I've had a hard time finding things, and after a few minutes of befuddledness (another new word? Perhaps.) I looked for someone to help me. The woman I found actually perked up at my request, which I thought both odd and amusing. I think she's familiar with the movie, otherwise she'd been unsuccessful with helping previous customers. I lean toward the first conclusion.

Blazing Saddles in hand (or cart, as it were) I wandered the store for an addition twenty minutes. Picking up some Gatorade to replenish my inventory, as well as some White Fudge Chocolate Chip Cookies that caught my eye. I really need to stop buying cookies. Or ya know, eating them. Damn the phrase "On Sale!" (they weren't, but damn it anyway!) Back to the point. If you've not seen Blazing Saddles, I highly recommend it (hence it being in the "Favorite Movies" section of my profile.

The Stroganoff
Caught the bus back to my apartment, where Mari and I cooked the Stroganoff. The beef was bueno, the noodles were cooked to perfection (*flex*), and when we combined the two, along with the sauce, it was only okay. A bit of a let down. We'll play with the recipe a bit, and next time they'll be delicious. . . Hopefully.

2004-07-08T15:05:00.000-06:00

Blood Pressure
Good news! My blood pressure is great! I had it taken six times today, three on each arm (as part of the aforementioned study) and I averaged something like 110 over 60. Prehypertension is 120-139 over 80-89. Yay me! I'm healthy-ish.

Despite my blood pressure, I'd likely die of boredom if I didn't have this outlet. Thank you Blogger.

2004-07-08T14:47:00.000-06:00

Unproductive
The non-productivity I've managed to pull off for the last 4 hours is staggering. It rivals my reading of all the Mac Hall Comics in two sittings two weeks back. Or my reading of Theater Hopper in two sittings. Combined there's nearly 600 comics there, so that explains why two instead of one. Today I've managed to give you, the reader, not one, not two, but three (so far) updates!

Not that I have Calculus to teach myself or anything. But I can deal with that later. Although I had been planning to do some writing at some point, but this is so much more fun. Only 90 minutes until I am released to storm down to my local bank to take care of business (unfortunately I won't be working overtime - that's baaaaad). "Hiho Silver, away!"

I salivate over the idea of Beef Stroganoff for dinner this evening. It will be my first ever attempt at it, and I am terribly excited. If all goes well, I'll be having it again sometime next week. Tomorrow evening, I'm supposed to go see Spider-Man 2 with Hannah and her sis, but I'm not sure I'm going to do that. I'm having second thoughts, I'll talk to Hannah about them this evening I think.

Casa Bonita
The following evening (Saturday), is Hannah('s) and Andrea's goodbye party at the now infamous (thanks to South Park) Casa Bonita. Very excited. Hannah is off to Australia for aboot a year, and Andrea is off to her "real" homeland, France for the same amount of time. I'll be sad for a while. August is going to be a lonely month I fear. ROTC-folk will be off at Field Training too. Sad. Not that I'm a ROTC-boy or anything, but I'm going to end up moving into my 'new' apartment without my roommate. Which gives me command decisions for a number of things - not necessarily a good thing.

Dinner Party
Mari asked me how I felt about having a "dinner party" (read: feeding guests and watching a movie with friends). Needless to say, I responded favorably, and it looks like we'll be inviting Hannah, Arwyn, and Guadalupe. Ha! Guadalupe has the biggest crush on me. It's so funny. I wonder if she knows I know. She jokes about visiting Mari just to see me. So cute! But alas, I don't feel the same way about her. Very flattering though. I'm going to die alone, as a result of my pickiness. At least time is on my side.. I guess.

2004-07-08T13:05:00.000-06:00

Peanut Butter Sandwiches
Today, for lunch, I'm having a Peanut Butter on Wheat sandwich. You may be wondering, why I wouldn't be having a Peanut Butter and Jelly sandwich. Lucky for you, I have anticipated this inquiry, and have prepared a response.

I do not like Jelly. It's purple and gooey. Kind of freaky, if you ask me. Foods aren't supposed to be purple, I don't think. In any case, I can say I've never had a PB&J sandwich, which is yet another reason I won't have one. I don't need to, I won't like it. And I'm all for trying new things, but it's kind of like my McDonalds boycott. I've gone so long without having it, why start now?

McDonalds Boycott
In the course of my college career, I've had McDondals four times. August 26th, 2002 in St. George, Utah. I was quite displeased that the Dr. Pepper dispenser was actually loaded with Mr. Pibb. Talk about your rude awakenings, eh? January 1st and 2nd, 2003. I had my wisdom teeth removed on December 31st, 2002. Yay scheduling. And so, my "comfort food" was a (possibly Double, mmm) Quarter Pounder w/ Cheese, or two (no pickles, no onions, thank you very much). And finally, March 29th, 2003. I'm not certain, that's just a (poorly) educated guess (did I just use an adverb as an adjective? Is that correct, or not? Someone, help me out!). It was the first day (Saturday) of Spring. I had walked with Kristen down to Pearl Street, and we were hungry so we decided (stupidly) to walk to 28th Street to have McDonalds. As I'm almost certain you don't know. It's a nice little hike (basically 20 blocks).

I haven't partaken (or is it partook - I looked it up, seems both work) since. And I haven't really been tempted. That's not to say I haven't had fast food in this time span, but I haven't had McDonalds. Quite the streak I have going actually. I wouldn't say I don't enjoy the food, the fries, the grease, or that beep that tells them they've had a car waiting in the drive-thru too long. Actually, that last one, I hate. That's annoying, and they should do something about that. Maybe make it a nice jingle that doesn't pierce the ears of everyone in the dining area. I haven't had their food in so long that I figure I'll just keep avoiding it. And now I've used the excuse that I'm boycotting it, to avoid having to eat there. Which is another benefit. Quite the streak I have going after all. Technically, it's not really a boycott, but it is me making a conscious decision not to eat there, which is half the requirement. I'm not expressing disfavor, protest, or using it as a means of coercion.

How could I forget, that damned phrase. "I'm Loving It." I first heard it last Fall. I instantly hated it. Hey, now it's a boycott. I am expressing disfavor for their slogan! Right on. I figure, they've changed their target market, and I'm no longer in it. So screw 'em. I much preferred "We Love to See You Smile."

Finally, we have Super Size Me "by" Morgan Spurlock. If you haven't heard, he ate nothing but McDonalds for 30 days and got fat and sick (as opposed to fat and happy, like most Americans these days... oooh, cheap shot!). After watching that, I had my final reason to continue my boycott. I'd suggest you see this movie if you frequent the golden arches. Just to, ya know, give you a reason to tone it down a little.

Other Morsels
My disappearing, reappearing, "quote of the day", is from the "Official" 2004-2005 CU Date Book, from the first full week of April (2005), "Record an album, paint a picture, or just do something artistic for Christ's sake." - Neil Truglio, Alum. Bless you Neil. Oh, and get this, last year's date book had too many quotes from alums about partying so they had to pull and edit it before distributing it to students. Apparently one of my coworker's has an old copy. Note to self: Must enquire about it sometime.

I finally decided to look up the difference between "inquire" and "enquire" and they're just variants of each other. That almost pisses me off. Almost. I was totally worried I was incorrectly using these words. Which reminds me I need to read:
AND
So much to read, so little time. Also I need to read Genome by Matt Ridley. Probably won't happen for another few months though. C'est la vie.

2004-07-08T12:23:00.000-06:00

I've come to the conclusion, devoting so much time to updating the blog detracts from the quality. Most unfortunate. But, them's the breaks.

U.S. Bank
I am annoyed with US Bank. I haven't received but (maybe) one statement in the past twelve months. It's almost excuseable because I moved for three months and didn't tell them, but I moved back at the end of that period and was no longer receiving statements. About six months in (very quick, don't you think?) I went and talked to them about it, and changed my old address to... well, the same address. Just so they'd start sending me stuff again. And I ordered 150 checks ($19.95 for those of you keeping score) to boot, because I thought I was running low.

Yesterday, I went and changed my address to where I currently reside. And I also inquired about the checks I ordered (and if I'm not mistaken, was charged for). The lady I spoke to said she'd look into it, and would call me later if it was alright. It was. At 6pm (the bank's closing time) sharp, I received her call. She told me she changed my address and I was all set on that front, but the checks had been signed for(?) on February 22nd. Yes, more than four months ago. Big fat, W-T-F (not Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, either folks). I stopped by my prior living quarters (good ole Willard) and asked some questions at the front desk. Karen, the woman whom I spoke to, looked at me like I was abso-friggin-lutely nuts. After five minutes of trying to get on the same page with her, I determined what I had come for, and tried to jettison (oh yes, I did) myself from the conversation. And ten minutes later, I finally, actually, got to leave.

Wardenburg
I spent a few hours at Wardenburg today, participating, or rather, I should say, being screened to participate in a CardioVascular Study. I go again tomorrow to finish the second part. Today consisted of paperwork, the drawing of blood, a major disappointment, running to test my fitness, and breakfast. The paperwork was a breeze, for some reason I get a kick out of reading "cover your ass" documents.. discussing the lack of liability for screwing up. I wish I could make use of such things in daily life. The drawing of blood was a snap, though it did take a while. I've not much problem with needles as long as I'm not looking at what's going on.

The major disappointment came from the measuring of my height. I came in at 5'10 and 2/3rds". Remarkably lower than the 6'0" so oft-claimed. I do have one excuse for it though; I only got 5 hours sleep last night. And you're shorter when you don't sleep long. So, I'm at least 5'11", and slap some shoes on me and I'm aboot 6'0". So there. Deal with it. The fitness test was interesting. They clothespinned my nose (but ya know, it worked better than a clothespin) and stuck a tube in my mouth to measure the airflow from my breathing. The crappiest thing about this wasn't so much the dry throat that resulted as the requirement that you bite down to hold it in your mouth. Ten minutes later, at 5.7 mph, on a 10 degree incline I was done. My left calf wasn't very happy about all this. And so I believe next time I frequent the gym, my legs will be visiting a treadmill to relive the experience. Finally, breakfast wasn't too bad, I had Florentine Quiche, a Banana, OJ and some water. It was on them, so I figured I'd experiment. Can't blame a guy for trying.

Roommate Discussion
After Wardenburg I headed back to my apartment for a shower. And I ended up chatting it up with my roommate for thirty minutes. We talked about stretching, exercise, and of course, relationships. I asked her when was the last time she was on a date, to illustrate a point. And we ended up on a five minute tangent about what actually constitutes a date. She claimed she hadn't been on a date in three years, but she's "dated" three guys this year alone. The point I was getting at, is that I haven't been on a date in two years. I made myself sad again. Anywho, she was quick to point out what a picky creature I am, and I reflected that I don't ask for numbers enough. And my train of thought continued on to the fact that when I get numbers, I usually call them that evening (soon after my nighttime minutes begin - Yay nighttime minutes!).

That's it... for now.

2004-07-07T14:31:00.000-06:00

I don't know how I should feel about my decision to go ahead and just create my own folders in My Documents and Favorites on my computer at work. Technically, in the Fall and Spring I share it with upwards of eight people, but I've grown weary of typing in the same addresses day after day, and forgetting when the last time was I checked a site. As for the My Documents thing, there are too many files in there, and about one third were mine anyway. But it is a work computer. Perhaps at some point I'll email all the files I want to myself and delete the rest. In the meantime, for the summer, I only share this computer with one other person, and I don't really care. Maybe that's what it's about. I just don't care who see's what.

I went to bed early last night, having exhausted myself from staying up until 2am on consecutive nights and awaking too early thereafter to be functional throughout the day. Although I did hit the gym yesterday after work, and ran into Brian of Hillel - not that there's another Brian, but if ever there should be another one, we've got a naming scheme in place should such an occasion arise. We ended up shooting around a little bit, and my shot is getting better. Funny thing about progress, it takes forever. Though, I haven't anything better to do, so there we are then, aren't we?

Checking Mayhem's Blog, I must quiz myself as to which member of the Deadly Viper Squad I am...
Beatrix Kiddo (Black Mamba)

You're the Bride! Strong and determined, you can do anything once you set your mind to it. You long for vengeance and for a happy ending, and will do anything to achieve them.

Kill Bill: Which Deadly Viper Assassin Are You? (Vol. II spoilers... results with pics)

And now we know. "Vengeance is a dish best served cold." And "today is a good day to die." And now we all know how geeky and nerdy I am.. or do we? Hey, if you know, that makes you geeky and nerdy too, doesn't it? That's right! Think about that, why don'tcha. My roommate (in the Fall/Spring), Matt is a trekkie, but it's not so much an excuse as an explanation. I watched Star Trek before I met him, as well as other Sci-Fi stuff. And now, to quote myself, for you, "You don't know me!"

This morning I got to sleep in (all the way to 8:30!) because I opted not to go to my Math Mods class, and I totally caught an old McGuyver rerun (on Spike TV - yay Cable!). Awesome. The special effects were baaaad, but their awesome badness paled in comparison to the show that followed, entitled "Seven Days." The premise of this show was that there is a secret government facility capable of sending someone seven days into the past. In this particular episode a suicide bomber kills a presidential candidate. And our hero, who was distinctly unmemorable is sent back in time to save him, so that the American people can decide for themselves who they want as their next President instead of the bomber knocking out the one of the two candidates. Of course, after the guy went back in time, and the grenade animation was shown I couldn't stomach any more and turned it off. Although I've made up the ending to this episode for us, because I know you're dying to know how it ended. The saving of the candidate ends up throwing the election in his favor, but since our hero was invited to the fold and learns of the candidate's evil plans, he takes it upon himself to re-go back in time to stop himself from saving the candidate. He succeeds and the trips back through time cancel each other out, having wasted an hour of my life. Of course, it ended up only costing me fifteen minutes. I'll have to live with that.

Friday I'm supposed to see Spider-Man 2 with Hannah and her sister, Emma. I'm excited about it, even though Hannah's sister, if I recall correctly, despises me with many fibers of her being. I declare here and now that this shall not detract from my enjoyment of the second installment in the Spider-Man saga, or Alfred Molina with 8 arms. And I must point out that I'm going to enjoy Alfred Molina with 8 arms more than I'm going to enjoy Kirsten Dunst with red hair (because she is better as a red-head than a blonde) - and no that doesn't make me a hypocrit for generally disliking hair that has been altered from its natural color. A stance which I'm thinking of changing, to specifically deal with bleaching of the hair, or rather, making it blonde. What is the fascination with being blonde? I don't get it. Can I stay on one topic or what?! As I just checked to make sure my spelling of Alfred Molina was correct, I have to point out that I love seeing him at the beginning of Raiders of the Lost Ark, look how young he was! He's the guy who ends up getting killed just before Indy begins running from the huge rolling ball. And I enjoyed him as Angel in Maverick (with Mel Gibson, before we all knew how crazy he was). And as Boris the Butcher! in The Man Who Knew Too Little (Bill Murray). And of course, Chocolat (a movie I recommend).

And to get back on the Kirsten Dunst rant. I do plan on seeing Wimbledon (her next movie), and I will tell you why. Ever since I saw him in a Knight's Tale, I have loved Paul Bettany. I think he's hilarious, and I liked him in a Beautiful Mind too. I think it's the accent, and how goofy he usually is. I don't think I'm supposed to end a sentence on is. Shit, I did it again. Quick, change the subject!

I look fantabulous in the new clothes I got this weekend. Although it's a whee bit preppy for my tastes. What taste? Ha! Oh, I made myself sad. Anywho, I'm a sexy beast. Look out ladies! Actually, don't look out. Be surprised and caught off-guard. Muahaha!

2004-07-06T11:33:00.000-06:00

A new tradition. Constitution Day. I give you...

The 4th of July Rant
Along with Independence Day, why don't we celebrate the anniversary of the implementation of the Consitution. I think it is a far more important holiday than that of the 4th of July - Why you ask? - Let me tell you, since the end of the Cold War we are the undisputed heavyweight champions of the world, and the end of that reign doesn't seem to be on the horizon. So patting ourselves on the back for a close war that took place almost a quarter of a millenium ago, really doesn't do all that much for me - yes, without it, we wouldn't be a country, etc.. but I'm not looking to get rid of Independence Day, but maybe add a little bit of flavor, if you will. Meanwhile, just over a fifth of a millenium ago, we did something never done before, we implemented this great document which afforded its citizens freedoms to a degree never before experimented with; the Constitution. The document that has created the world's only superpower; and ya know, freedom to a lot of things that we take for granted today. Yes, the people who maintained it post-implementation (read: amendments) had a hand in it, but it all started with that little document being ratified. Thus, I propose we make it a national holiday on the scale that all other national holiday's are to be compared up against it. I want parades, I want fireworks, I want a 24-hour news channel to scroll the Constitution twice an hour, every hour at :15 and :45 after the hour. I want PBS sing-alongs of our favorite American songs- the ones that are all about this land that we love, the free, and the home of the brave! I want the History channel to run a special hour-long show that documents the history of the Constitution from conception to present. It would be great! And best of all, no work and no school - Yay national holidays! And we can all get together and have byob bbq's with our friends and neighbors! Think about it, it'll be great. Hell we can just tack it on to Independence Day - wouldn't that be ironic. Combining Independence Day with another national holiday, one which is completely dependent on Independence Day. Mind-blowing, isn't it. -- I digress, but wouldn't it be cool? Write your senator!

Slightly altered from its original form to update it for the times. As will likely happen again next year.

Current Events
I went shopping on Saturday, and spent a sizable sum of money on new clothes. Something I hadn't done in at least a year. Six new shirts (all of which are quite snazzy), two pairs of shorts (one khaki, one jean), two things of socks, and four pairs of boxers. And in the course of the day, completed my shopping experience with an Orange Julius, no shopping experience can becomplete without Orange Julius - and it's a good rejuvenator! On the drive back, Mikey called me to tell me he'd met Gary Payton, which is pretty cool. And it took my focus off the reckless driving of Scott. I shan't be a passenger to his driver ever again. Going down 36 (nobody ever goes up 36, why is that?) at 90mph, weaving in and out of traffic is not something I want to be a party to, thank you very much. Anyway, Gary Payton came into Mikey's shop, and they had to close it, because there were so many people outside trying to get in. Mr. "The Glove" autographed a couple grand of merchandise and did a bit of shopping (all complimentary for the increased value his signature gave to merchandise he wasn't purchasing). Good stuff.

Last night, Mari went with Arwyn to trivia night at O'Callahans (or some similarly named Pub), but it was a bust and so they came back to the flat/ranch/apartment, what have you, and we hung out and talked. Mari invited James over, Arwyn selected Willow as the movie we would be watching. At the pub Mari had a beer, and when she came back she had some wine. During the course of the rest of the evening, she had a total of a glass of wine and two and two-thirds beers. At one hundred and fifteen pounds, her world was spinning. She would fall asleep, wake up a few minutes, and wake up with a loud gasp, grasping for something to stabilize her. Twice she woke up, didn't quite yell my name, and grabbed my hand/arm, which put off James in a number of ways. He text messaged Mari early this morning wishing to remain friends, seeing as things weren't working out so well.

Continuing to read Patriot Games, the pages fly on by. I heart Tom Clancy. Brandon is flying back to Denver this week, and we'll probably hang out sometime this or next weekend. Good times will be had. Erin is moving cross-country later this month, and may have a slight detour to crash at my place and hang out for a bit before she completes her move. After her move, I don't know when I'll see her again next, so sad. We'll talk and email and what not, but we won't have Scully-Erin days for a long, long while, which is terribly sad.

Took care of the collaborative film for my Super-8 class. It was okay, some things I would do differently today than I did yesterday. But hey, them's the breaks. Mari starred as Grasshopper, and gave one of the best "Nooooooooo!" yells of all time. I was Master, and was killed by a poisonous dart. She comes over to my lifeless corpse, is sad for a moment, and yells toward the sky. But it was a shaky no, which was just too damned funny. The corpse chuckled. Oops. And it's a shame we don't capture sound on the film. :(

In the finale, Mari had to kick Dee(sp?) in the balls, and she actually did. She was so embarassed, it was hilarious! She turned red, and was laughing hysterically out of both embarassment and discomfort at having made contact. Beautiful shot though.

2004-07-02T15:50:00.000-06:00

From this week's Onion: "Georgia Adds Swastika, Middle Finger to State Flag"

On to more personal news...

I think I can officially say I'm off of caffeine now.

Well, that is to say, I haven't had a sizeable dose since the end of May. I had trouble sleeping while I was at home, and I attributed it to the mass quantities of Dr. Pepper I had been consuming, and decided I would try life without it. Long story short, I'm sleeping better, which is a huge plus, considering how tired I normally am. But, school/work from 9-5 (+homework) takes its toll after a while.

Finished up my management class yesterday. Got an 89% on the Final, which was high enough to earn an "A" for the class. Today we had a review of the final, which was by no means mandatory. I attended for two reasons; 1) I wondered how many people would show up, and 2) I genuinely liked the professor and wondered what he would have to say today. Alas, the grand total showing up to my had-been-eighty-person class was ten (including the prof!).

In Film class today, I showed my film entitled "How to do Laundry" and it was off the unintentional comedy scale. I'd love to redo it with some intentional comedy, and then it will bust a gut. But I'd also like to be able to have a copy to show around, which will become possible next semester. So I will prepare for that. The first comment from my class was that it was "funny in the most boring way possible" and I agree. It was hokey, and hilarious without trying to be. And I think most of it stemmed from my face during the shots. I had a big, silly grin from watching it, and I had this feigned smile upon taking my pre-folded laundry out of the drier. It was great.

Filming "Untitled: Kung Fu Project" on Monday with classmate Marshall. Should be interesting. I surely will end up posting how that shoot goes. And don't call me surely.

Stepford Wives and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind are playing at the Discount Cinema, I may partake during the extended weekend.

I saw Chronicles of Riddick there earlier this week. I really enjoyed the climax when some guy was talking on his phone. I didn't hear him so much as the person he was talking to, which made it very confusing, especially when Riddick and the bad guy are having the words that cap off their final showdown. Argh! After watching it, I was a little disappointed, so I hopped onto IMDB.com and looked into what other people had posted there. And the general consensus was that it was toned down by/for the studio, and that should a director's cut be released, it may be worth the time. I'd give it a shot. Although some of the CGI was bad-bad-bad.

Also, must see Fahrenheit 9/11 by next weekend, and Spiderman 2 by the following weekend. I hate seeing movies in crowded theaters, people bring their infants who don't want to be there and start crying. And then people have the gaul to just let their kid cry instead of taking them outside. Or, there are annoying children talking through the whole thing, or.. maybe some adults for that matter.

Mari's (my roommate for the summer) mom has been staying with us for the past week. She's a pretty cool lady, except she uses the word "okay" as punctuation, and that's not okay with me. She's a teacher, which makes me laugh. I am reminded of Ms. Anderson-Saxton whose Chemistry II class I suffered through in high school. She would go "He He He Okay" which was really weird, and annoying. In fact, she was just generally annoying. And she couldn't teach for squat. I wonder if anybody actually passed the Chem AP exam that year. (I didn't bother) What an odd tangent. I hadn't thought of that lady in years, and probably won't do so again for just as long.

Anyway, the making-fun-of-Mari has been at its all-time high. Her mom laughs, and she throws a punch or two. All in good fun.

2004-07-02T15:44:00.001-06:00

For the past two days, I have been uploading my.. basically.. v1.1 blog onto my v1.0 blog because the archive on the v1.1 blog doesn't go beyond 100 posts. And damnit, I want to be able to look back on what I was thinking in the past, and what I have been through, etc etc etc.

Anyway, that's what the past two days were about, in case you (whoever you may be) were wondering.

Furthermore, I shan't be held accountable for anything you found offensive, rude, insensitive, or otherwise generally assinine. Although I am willing to discuss it. And I am willing to say so, if I was mistaken at the time. Which is sometimes the case.

And the posts were all taken from another blogging community I am/was/have been a part of for the past year.

Any questions? Ask away.

2004-07-02T15:44:00.000-06:00

Awash.

Originally Posted at 04:11 PM on Jun. 14, 2004

Awash in... ha.

I just finished The Bear and the Dragon, another of Tom Clancy's masterpieces. I found myself with 50 pages to go but a few hours ago, and I figured I'd take the time to wisk through it. As usual, I was not disappointed, the pages flew by, I laughed in disbelief, at hilarity and nervous laughter at the possibility of the loss of characters I've grown to know and love. I hit the last page, and was satisfied. I start The Cardinal of the Kremlin tonight, which looking on Amazon seems to be the third book in the Jack Ryan series (if you know, please fill me in). I've read the last four books in the series, and am going back to fill in my blanks. I've read five and a half of the eight books. Yay me, yay reading, yay Tom Clancy.

I had an exam at 9:15 this morning in Management. I studied from post-Laker game til midnight (before satiating my desire to further my extra-curricular-reading). And then woke up at 6:45.. without the assistance of my alarm (which was set for 6:00 and somehow malfunctioned, failing to make any noise at all, let alone that sufficient enough to wake me from slumber). Got my ass in gear, prepared my lunch while tossing Peanut Butter Crunch with Milk down my throat along with some OJ. Got to campus, and started making a "crib sheet" as some people call them, for my exam. I had slightly over an hour to do it, and finished at 9:13am. Luckily, my exam was in the same building, and I breezed through it. I would be seriously surprised if I don't receive an A. And afterward, I got the name of the cute girl with the dyed-blonde hair (dark roots).

Friday night my buddy Paras, also a friend of Matt's, was celebrating his birthday at a restaurant called Lazy Dogs, and as fate would have it Matt was in town. He and I arranged to attend, which turned out to be fun. Aside from Paras, Matt and a girl whom I didn't much enjoy the company of last summer (when I met her) I knew no one at the table of 10. Although I guess 3 of 10 isn't too bad. Anywho, we had two waitresses assigned to us, and I think I made an impression on both. That's just my thing, I like waitresses, you know. Hence my dislike for waiters - just not as fun. I met everyone at the table, and was introduced to the hostess of the establishment, a friend of Paras's. Good times were had, before during and after. Matt and I had one hell of a time finding a parking spot near the restaurant (it's in a Promenade thingy, a Street Mall or something... I don't know how to describe it. We had a blast, as always, and we've discussed forming committees to discuss matters of our nation-state-to-be (the apartment we're living in come Fall). Good times.

Kill Bill Volumes 1 and 2 are playing at the el cheapo cinema along with The Day After Tomorrow. I think I might try and see them at some point during the course of the week. $3.00 is a good price, don'tcha know. Maybe Wednesday and Friday, if timing permits.

When I found out the name of the cute girl in my management class today, it was in a discussion with a fellow student in the class, and it became painfully clear that I had sorely fallen behind in my main-stream-cinema-viewing. Although the releases of late haven't been my cup of tea, so there's an excuse. Meh.

Random Addition:
I woke up from a most fucked up dream on... I think it was Saturday morning. I dreamt I was in a room, and I was being attacked by butterflies. Yes, butterflies. Weirdest thing ever, and I was so disturbed by the onslaught of colorful, winged creatures that I actually woke up from this dream before 6am. Yeah, weird huh?
Ta ta.

2004-07-02T15:43:00.001-06:00

The Pen-Gnaw

Originally Posted at 03:57 PM on Jun. 08, 2004

I was sitting in my Management class this morning paying attention to the Prof talking to (at) us, when I noticed an odd clicky sound. I was bothered but I hoped it would stop after that. Shortly after I heard another one, it was clicky, but not. I looked around me to locate the source of this annoyance. And I determined that it was emanating from the mouth of a student two rows behind me. His mouth was wide open, and a pen was hanging out. He was gnawing on his pen like a teething puppy on a chew toy, completely oblivious to the annoying sound he was producing that filled the room and my ears.

First of all, if you want to put your pen in your mouth that's your business. Okay? But I guarantee you, unless you dip that thing in alcohol every night, I wouldn't bring it near my mouth. Just think for a minute. Where do you keep your pen? A pocket, somewhere on your backpack, maybe if you're really neat in some sort of zip-lock-type bag with other writing utensils. Now think, have you ever, ever, ever dropped that pen? Or hell, put it down directly on a desk? Then it's dirty. Hell, it's dirty from the point you altered the seat so you have something to write on, touching something that hundreds of people, many of whom probably don't wash their hands, have touched. Then you go ahead and grab your pen, and stick their dirty hands right in your mouth. You dirty motherfucker! And he's gnawing on it, dirty, dirty, dirty. Whatever. What really gets me is that I can't tune it out. It's this random annoying noise coming from some random obnoxious kid that doesn't have the manners or cleanliness to keep foreign objects that aren't food out of his mouth (presumably like a mother would tell their child, or you know, someone with common sense would just know). After an hour of this, it finally drowned out, perhaps he finally decided to take notes with it, or perhaps he choked to death. I don't know, I don't care.

For those of you who are friendly with your pens like this savage beast, think of your health before putting that pen in your mouth again. Think of your loved ones, who you share your mouth with (with the kissing and the like). And then, think of those around you, like poor me, distracted in my learning environment. What valuable nugget of information did I miss out on directly because of your filthiness? You mangey beast!
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I missed the Seventh Game of the Stanley Cup Finals because I was doing laundry. However, I did phone-a-friend and find out the score was 2-1 with 3:07 to go in the Third Period. Poor people-who-are-fans-of-Calgary (Calgarians? Calgarites? Flamers? Canadians?)

I'm chugging along through my Tom Clancy novel, just 265 pages to go (out of 1027). If only I could be any-kind-of-productive at work. So much time,so little productivity. It's unbelievable. I have nothing but time, but I can't get myself to do it. Test on Friday and another on Monday. I'm not all that worried.

I've looked at various trivia for a couple of movies on IMDB.com. I've read a multitude of reviews of "The Scout" starring Brendan Fraser and Albert Brooks (Einstein- teehee), which I watched last night with Mari. Or should I say Mari watched with me. I own it on DVD, I was just wondering what random, other, vocal-type people thought. I read all the Lakers-stuff on ESPN.com, along with the things that interested me on Page 2 and 3 (other ESPN things). I emailed my sister three times, in response to one line questions she sent me. I answered a single phone call, and helped one, or was it two? people with job-related stuff. I ate lunch.

Today on Saved by the Bell. The gang are going through Driver's Ed with Mr. Tuttle. Slater is soon to turn 16 and get his license. He goes out and buys a car which the gang-sans-Zach help him fix up. Zach is worried about Slater stealing Kelly away from him.. as usual, so he concocts a plan to get Slater in tons o' trouble so that he will be unable to earn his driver's license before the turn of the century. Zach masterminds a plan utilizing the voice imitation skills of Screech to set a trap for Slater. Zach moves the driver's ed car into position outside Belding's office, in the only hallway in the school. Slater happens by, and ends up behind the wheel as planned. However, Kelly is on her way to Volleyball practice when Slater offers to give her a ride. Zach tries to get her to stay out of the car, so she won't get in trouble with Slater, but as it happens, Slater crashes into the lockers just outside Belding's office. They all run off leaving the crash site. Belding is out for justice and when all is said and done, Screech rats Zach out to the gang and Zach's plan completely backfires as he is removed from the driver's ed class for the year. But, lucky for him, Kelly admires his noblity as he takes responsibility for his action, and remains in their relationship.

More in a bit. Customer! He walked away unsatisfied. Life's tough for Meteorologists I guess.

Saved by the Bell: Where are they now? Because I'm truly that bored.

Elizabeth Berkeley (aka Jessie Spano): In November 2003, she married Ralph Lauren's nephew (Greg Lauren). She's been in a number of under-the-radar movies since Showgirls. And was supposed to start on Broadway in April 2004 in a play with Richard Dreyfuss entitled Sly Fox.

Mark-Paul Gosselaar (aka Zach Morris): He and his wife, Lisa Ann Russell had their first child earlier this year. "Zach" can be seen weekly on NYPD Blue as Detective John Clark Jr. (which is funnnnny if you're a Tom Clancy fan)

Mario Lopez (aka Albert Clifford "A.C." Slater): Was briefly married to Ali Landry (you go AC!!) Mario can currently be seen on the Animal Planet show "Pet Star." He's an amazing dancer and has been in a few movies since the end of Saved by the Bell, as well as "The Other Half" kind of like "The View" for guys.

Lark Voorhies (aka Lisa Turtle): She was once engaged to Martin Lawrence. But is currently married to Miguel Coleman. She currently manages her production company, and has done acting in movies and soaps since her graduation from Bayside.

Dustin Diamond (aka Samuel "Screech" Powers): Last I heard he was working as a stand-up comedian. But apparently he participated in Celebrity Boxing 2, defeating Ron Palillo (Horshack from Welcome Back, Kotter). Screech has spunk! Nothing on marriage, but apparently he dated Candace Cameron (Growing Pains, motherfuckah!)

Tiffany (-Amber) Thiessen (aka Kelly KaPOWski): Was a main character on the tv show Fastlane, had a recurring role on Good Morning, Miami - and is "currently" dating Brady Smith.

Source: http://www.imdb.com - Go me!

2004-07-02T15:43:00.000-06:00

Feet on the Ground Go, Walk Walk Walk

Originally Posted at 04:13 PM on Jun. 07, 2004

Looking in the mirror this morning, I couldn't help but notice much redness around my face, and notedly paleness especially in the area of my eyes. I had a feeling something like that was going to happen.

Over the weekend, I walked somewhere between 5 and 9 miles. I don't exactly have a way of measuring, so it's just a guesstimate. All of which saw me in my sunglasses devoid of suntan lotion.

I got to visit with my favorite second cousins for a few hours. A part of my family I like, that I even arranged to visit without my parents. Kind of nice.

I saw Super Size Me, and finally, finally got my headphones back from Kristen, whom I won't be talking to again until she calls me. And I'm willing to be that'll be at the very least two months from now. This goes back to the, if-I-am-the-one-who-always-calls-you,-and-you-never-call-me,-then-we're-not-really-friends thing (and by the way you can go f*** yourself). My views on friendship are tough but more than fair, I think.

Anyway, I really liked Super Size Me. It's basically a documentary by/about this guy who undertakes to eat McDonalds for 90 straight meals (30 days, 3 meals a day). And the journey he goes through on that path. Consulting with doctors, keeping track of his health, as well as the emotional and psychological effect on his eating that food. It was disturbing yet entertaining. And it's appearance at the Sundance Film Festival last year was a week or two earlier than McDonalds ending of the availability of Super Sizing. Coincidence? That's what McDonalds claims. Ha! If it's playing near you, I'd check it out, it was pretty good.

In other news, I've discovered Dried Apricots. Now, I know what you're thinking, that sounds disgusting, but they are delicious! I'm eating probably more than I should, but they're good. Very juicy, and full of flavor. Try some today!

Did the last two paragraphs kind of feel like advertisements in between blog-commentary? Funky. Whoooa!

Over breakfast for the past few weekdays I have been watching Zach and the Gang's exploits (on Saved by the Bell, duh!) And it's all nostalgic and predictable because I think I'd be hard pressed to find an episode outside of the College Years or one of their movies that I haven't seen. But it's a classic nonetheless. I wonder if any of the kids actually need to work, if they get tons of royalties and stuff, because I recall an E! True Hollywood Story about Saved by the Bell, and it was like, they're syndicated in 39 different countries. Something ridiculous like that. So I wonder if Lisa Turtle needs work. Or if Elizabeth Berkeley really regrets doing Showgirls, other than it killing her career. I mean, monetarily, did it end up mattering? Munchies for thought.

The Lakers dropped Game One in LA last night. It was shameful. Kobe and Shaq combined for 50-something points, and the rest of the team was about worthless. I expect a much better display tomorrow night.

Omgosh! Stanley Cup Playoffs, Game Seven of the Finals tonight on ABC! Tampa Bay vs. Calgary, possibly the last NHL (Hockey) Game you'll see on tv for a while - their agreement dealy thing that let's them play nice is up after.. well, I guess tonight basically. And everybody's greedy and won't share the monies so there won't be any for any one. How's that for a lesson from childhood biting back?

2004-07-02T15:41:00.000-06:00

Lewd and Crude

Originally Posted at 05:22 PM on Jun. 02, 2004

Because it's on my mind:

Whether or not you've heard by now, Miss Australia is this year's Miss Universe. I think she'll really make a difference. What does she do anyway? Regardless, I was flipping channels last night after the Pacers lost to the Pistons (oof, the first half saw a combined total of 60 points scored) and saw pretty girls so naturally, I stopped for a moment to see what all this was about. I was watching with Mari, and we remarked a bit as we saw Miss Puerto Rico, Miss Ecuador and Miss Colombia. Miss Australia walked, and I grinned and said "She can go 'down under' on me any time!" And the only reason it matters today is because that's our new Miss Universe, teehee. Yes, I know, it's a horrible joke but that's my sexual-humor so, ha! The whole thing is weird because I mean how presumptuous is it to say Miss Universe. Why can't she be Miss World?

Speaking of which, does anybody remember those old McWorld commercials for McDonalds, those were the days! Every now and then I reference it, and people respond, "Scully, what the hell are you talkin' about now?" Like it was so long ago people can't remember.

In my Film class today, (Super 8mm) we were becoming familiar with the cameras and stuff, it is the first day after all. And the prof told the class that each cartridge of film was 50 feet long and was able to film 18 frames per second for three minutes and twenty seconds. So, I set about to figure out how many seconds were equivalent to a foot. But before I could finish, he asked how many frames were on a 50 foot roll. And I blurted out 3,600 (200 seconds x 18 frames per second). My prof was simply amazed, asked me quickly to explain how I got that number, and then told everybody that in all his years of teaching (which judging by his age and stories is probably longer than I've been in school myself) nobody had ever known sooo fast. It's simple math. And of course, now, because I managed to do a simple multiplacation problem, any time the class needs some math done, he's going to look to me to bloody well do it. Welcome back to fourth grade. Which, if you aren't Mikey, you know nothing about. But let's just say I caught hell for knowing my multiplacation tables better than anyone else in my class.

And man did Miss Vinik hate me in third grade. Oh, let's see what-ever happened to that lawsuit against her. Didn't find anything... weird. Ten minutes until I go home, more on the morrow.

2004-07-02T15:40:00.001-06:00

Ay Carumba

Originally Posted at 12:42 PM on Jun. 01, 2004

Dial-up internet is the suck. And I don't have access to the internet at all in my new apartment. That'll last until late August. However, I will be at work everyday, Monday-Friday for at least 3 hours a day until early August. Yay!

My three week "vacation" (meaning time where I don't have somewhere to be at a certain time Monday-Friday) was a complete bust. I got may-be two good night's sleep, which is what vacations mean to me. And worst of all, the one for-sure-good-night's-sleep was the first night back in Vegas. I slept from 6:15 in the PM until 11:15 in the AM. I needed it too. Other than that I had trouble sleeping.

I spent a week in Encino, CA at my sister's place. She insisted on waking me up at 9:30 or earlier, despite my only desire while being out there to be to sleep as late as I could handle. And the bed I was stuck on gave me back problems, which made sleeping all-the-more easy. I wouldn't have had such a problem with it, but all we did was things she needed to do, and she'd ask me what I wanted to do, other than sleep.. but that was the only thing I bloody wanted other than watching Lakers games (which I managed to do) - I shan't soon forget The Fish's Shot heard 'round Texas (booyah Spurs fans!)

And the Lakers just wrapped up their series with Minnesota. Kareem Rush went 6/7 from beyond the arc for 18 points as the Lakers propelled themselves into the Finals for the fourth time in five years. In the Eastern Conference, I'm rooting for Indiana, because I heart Reggie Miller.. and the Pistons I don't like so much, mostly because the combined score of games involving them doesn't meet one team's from the 80s. (The Pacers face elimination this evening in Detroit, on ESPN) Yay Playoffs!

Last night for dinner, Mari and I made lasagna... which was a first for me. And I dare say it was delicious. I wonder what we'll have this evening.

I had my first class this morning, Management. Lots of homework, in the way or reading, to be done in that class. I also have a Film class which should be most interesting, but that doesn't start until tomorrow. The school "year" starting on a Tuesday messes everything up (Memorial Day, ya know).

Mari and I are probably going to get a NetFlix account so we can indulge in a ridiculous amount of movie watching for the next two months. I'm working on a list of movies I want to watch/force her to watch. So, if you have any suggestions, run them by me! And don't be too shocked if I've seen them already (or if I haven't). ;) Goodfellas, Swimming with Sharks, El Mariachi, Desperado, Once Upon a Time in Mexico, Four Doors, Taxi Driver, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Next are currently on my list, along with forcing Mari to watch Blazing Saddles.

Blazing Saddles is a Mel Brooks classic. If you haven't yet seen it, you must! I implore you! And the three dollar cinema a stone's throw from our apartment looks to be staying open through the summer. Van Helsing is playing there, and I think I'm willing to be parted from (that small amount of) my money to see Kate Beckinsale - now it's just a matter of not having to go alone.

That's all for now, but I'll probably rant more in about three hours, because hey, I'll still be at work.

2004-07-02T15:40:00.000-06:00

Happy Birthday.

Originally Posted at 11:46 PM on May. 04, 2004

I hate the song. I can't stand it. Anybody who tried singing it to me today did not get past the first "birthday" before I forced them to stop. I don't know why, I don't like being the one the song is focused at. Though, that is not to say that I don't like being the center of attention, that's fine and dandy, but I hate being sung to. Yick. Such a corny song too.

It's Finals week here in Boulder. Started Saturday morning at 7:30 for me. I was actually up at 5:30am to be sure that I was up, and to get a few more minutes of cramming in before the test. I did quite well, I got a 95 out of 100 on the exam, which I am relatively certain gives me an A for the semester (one I really wanted) - Anthropology 2020 was the best class ev-er. I'd take it again if I could, and if you went to CU, I'd highly recommend you take it come next Spring (although none of you do, and nobody I know that goes to CU reads this, so it's moot). That all being said, I am not gonna be an Anthropologist.

Sunday there were no Finals, which was nice, I slept til 11:00ish, watched the Lakers blow a five point lead in the fourth quarter, after having an awesome third quarter. I plan to watch game two tomorrow night. At midnight, my roommate, Marshall and I went to the UMC (student union) for massages and the midnight breakfast held semester-ly (I made a word!) during finals. Alas, the date was wrong, and both were scheduled for Monday night. No matter, I had studying to do for my Monday 7:30am final. I got to work at 12:05, and studied straight through until 7:15. Went to my class, took the final, and didn't do so hot - and it took me more time than any of my other finals have (ever). Suffice it to say, I did not do so hot, and will probably end up with a B-/C+ on the exam barring a showing of mercy on the professor's part - which is highly unlikely. Moving on.

Finally, around 4:15 yesterday afternoon I took a nap, slept on and off until 7:15 at which time my roommate and I went to dinner. We came back, and I did unproductive things until shortly after midnight at which point I went to sleep. I slept on and off until noon-ish today. I was awoken at some point by a text message from Mikey (it arrived on my phone at 2:14am, and beeped something like every 5 minutes for the next 8 hours - much appreciated). Then at 10:30 my dad called and left a voice mail. So much for my unplugging the phone and turning down my answering machine. Sometime later I recall Mari leaving a message on my answering machine, but I was in no position to respond. Finally started the day around noon. Showered, grabbed lunch, went to my writing professor's office hours to pick up my final project and find out my grade for her class. In my final "paper" I was to argue for a grade. I argued for an A- because I felt I had earned a B+, and didn't deserve an A. She liked it, bought it, and gave me the A-. I ran off giddily. The GPA this semester will most likely rest on my Spanish final which is tomorrow at 7:30am.

Now for a minor rant. In my 5 semesters of college, the now 80 credits I have completed, I have had one 9:00am class, and probably four or five 9:30am classes. Not once have I had an 8:30 or dared to attempt an 8:00 class, but somehow, some way, the university feels fine giving me 7:30am finals. Whiskey-Tango-Foxtrot my friends, we have a problem. All three of my finals this semester - and I will stop to say, three finals is waaaay easy, I have lounged on average forty of the forty-eight hours between these finals. They are spread out so perfectly, whee! Ridiculous, 7:30am finals. If you want to do that, give it to the crazies in the 8:00 classes, not those of us who are lucky to get to our 9:30 classes on time, damnit!

The rest of my birthday was spent hanging out with Mari, we went to the Olive Garden, she got what I would call "dressed up," for her anyway. I went in my standard jeans and a uni-color t-shirt. All I really wanted was a female for a waiter/waitress, but alas, my desire went unfulfilled. Of course, as far as things like that go, I fail to be surprised any longer. But on the bright side, I say goodbye to a decade, and hello to a new one. The way I see it, I have three thousand six hundred and fifty one days (including both leap years and subtracting today) ahead of me before I turn thirty to virtually no fanfair. I won't be balding, I won't be in a dead-end job I hate, and perhaps I won't be searching for Miss Right any longer. Maybe I'll even have a little one on the way, wouldn't that be something? At least I can dream.

And no, I am by no means depressed, I'd probably call it a bit of a sobering-type-thing.

As a twenty year old I can now date Mari's friends, if she ever finds any suitable to my tastes, and someone she can stand to see me date. You see in older people's eyes, nineteen isn't twenty - in fact there is a large gap between the two. Interesting isn't it - the psychology of numbers. At least I'm catching up to my level of maturity, that'll be nice - not having to hear about how different I seem from the other guys my age (as I did today while getting my haircut.. that was weird).

Cheers.