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Tuesday, April 30, 2002
Midterm week is here once again, leading to fun filled nights of stressful studying and agonizing hours of uncomprehension. At least they are spread out over 3 weeks for me this time, even if I still have one next Tues, Wed and Thurs. Sanity will prevail! I hope. 0 comments Sunday, April 28, 2002
Series of IMs left for me on Friday night by someone we will call "Jon" The screen name has been changed to protect his idendity bfloboy2 (6:54:59 PM): hey, let me know if you're interested in going to see a capella tonight...also, computer is weird again. We'll have to look at it later. bfloboy2 (7:05:51 PM): also...dinner? bfloboy2 (7:24:37 PM): just out of curiosity, where are you? bfloboy2 (7:24:52 PM): you appear to be not there. bfloboy2 (7:25:25 PM): which, I suppose, would make it somewhat difficult for you to answer that question via IM, yet I pose it to you over IM. bfloboy2 (7:25:31 PM): that is odd of me. bfloboy2 (7:25:54 PM): anyhoo, the reason I ask is that if you are interested in a capella, it starts at 8 bfloboy2 (7:26:09 PM): and we may (or may not) want to eat dinner prior to that time Somehow this one sided conversation brings out the essence of "Jon". I know some people might not agree, and I hope I am not the recipient of hate mail for publishing such an obvious private and personal communication online, but it made sense somewhere in my head. 0 comments I learned all about some of the magic times of the day that I never knew before courtousy of Eric, who always likes to be mentioned by name. At 11:34 you are apparently allowed to wish something bad on someone else, especially if that person is going out with the person you want to go out with. Why you may ask, because on a digital clock, it spells "hell" if you look at it upside down. In addition, the following minute is the best time to get rid of merchandise, and one after that is a good time to do ones hair, being "sell" and "gell" respectively. To signify the end of the minutes of meaning as they have been dubbed, a special tone must be sounded, you guessed it, the ringing of a "bell" two minutes later. Now, if only there was something that one could do with the word "lell". I'm open to suggestions. 0 comments While I'm self analyzing I may as well talk about music and me. I don't know how other people react exactly, but listening to almost anything that I like at all leaves my feeling so much better, and motivated to do things. And every song I hear brings back a story of something else, either a relationship in the lyrics or melody, or else something that just occured when the song was playing at another time. That, and I will dance to myself, or else just jump around my room. After all yestarday was national jumping day (observed by at least Janice and I). I know I'm a bit of a nut, but at least I have fun with it. 0 comments Why do I always try and sound philosophical while I write here? I know that no great truths are being discovered, but at the same time, I feel like anyone could be reading this and I think a part of me wants to come off as at least semi-intelligent when talking about relevant issues. It always seems that every time I start to write here a little voice in my head spins whatever I was going to write into some slightly higher pitched voice, where every comment seems like a calculated stance on an issue, even if I just want to just write about nothing at all. I'm pretty sure that I don't come off this way when I am writing a paper for school (granted there have not been that many) but here, in an open forum, where anything I write, or anyone I say something about can come back to me in the days, months, years ahead, I feel compelled to write like a philosopher, even if I have no idea how "a philosopher" should write. And I probably comment on some aspect of this all too often as well, and even when I don't outright say it, I wonder who actually cares about what I am writing, who is reading it, and does it effect them in any way? Or is it just a good exercise for me, to get in the habit of expressing myself after living the first many years of my life like one of those bottles with the ships in it. Somehow the ship gets in, but like my feelings all too often previously, they never come out. Somehow so much just got locked up inside of me, even when I was convincing myself that I was letting them out in some fashion, be they through talking to a therapist or through the use of a "trouble tree" a la one of the many Chicken Soup for the Soul books given to me by my mom. I convinced myself that I wasn't storing feelings away and that they couldn't hurt me as they had others because they were no longer there. But reflecting back now, I think they were, and some still are. It's hard not to always have someone around to talk about everything. Those of you know who you are, or at least have an idea. I think I'm understanding myself better now, and I try hard to just let everything out, and writing certainly helps, but I don't want to have a post like this every day. I would be left with no readership I think : ). Well, I've certainly digressed a little, but I think I am just not always capable of writing a "story" without having to step back and analyze it. This may be a result of a scientific mind, or rather something completely different which I don't understand. 0 comments Saturday, April 27, 2002
Just finished the latest night laundry that I've ever done. It's now 4:30 and I just carried the last load up the stairs. It came about via a combination of the washing machine being in use earlier in the day, a shopping trip that ran late and caused there to be an immediate departure upon returning for the acapella show this evening, following which we (John and I) watched Dave. Of course I forgot to put the stuff in the dryer till after the movie was over, so that is why it ended up being so late, but its now been over 12 hours since I first brought it down. Yes, this doesn't mean anything to most of you, but it is almost five, and I should be going to bed, but I just thought I'd share to any of you intereseted people. 0 comments Wednesday, April 24, 2002
On the back of an "Instant Win Promotion" card where you have to scratch off the silver coating to see if you've won: "Skill-Testing Question (residents of Canada only) (100*6)/5+138-133 = __________" In the instructions it says "if you are a resident of canada, correctly answer the skill-testing question, unaided, at the bottom of the game card" Maybe for some reason there is a law against just giving something away ina promotion like this, but it was just really funny that they have to solve a math problem to get their prize of a camera if they won. 0 comments Monday, April 22, 2002
All prospied out. It was fun, although tiring, running around all day attending to the needs of the prospies. Starting bright and early this morning I was at Norris stuffing folders with all the cool flyers/info packets that the kids need to have any idea as to what is going on (and even then it doesn't always work). Then I was just walking around answering questions, doing my best to keep the people calm when the lines were long, and sporting an "I know things" button. As usual the parents are frantic, and several broke down in tears about "losing their baby" and that was just for a one night stay. I wouldn't like to be those kids when they actually have to leave for real. I spent the morning answering questions, sometimes from the kids, but more often from the parents, including a bunch "whose kids I just have to meet." I seemed to get that one a lot today. Guess it was just a result of talking to a lot of people who were either from New Jersey, including at least one in tech from Cranford and Chatam at least, and a whole lot of BME's. No sooner had I said that it was the fastest growing field at the school, then I met five more. I ran into them at every turn, and my Connections group, where I led around a small group of prospective techies away from their parents, was a majority of future BME'ers. Connections went well, but it always hard to get a somewhat shy group to just have a normal conversation like I am one of them. Its really helpful to them too, and by the end we were clicking as a group, but it took a little while to break the ice. After that was dinner back at Norris again, and after some people left the 2 or 3 people left and I started to really click better and talk. Its too bad that Connections can't be a little smaller in tech, cause it was much more fun for that hour then in the earlier one where I was pulling teeth sometimes to get a question out of some of them. Afterwards I came back, and did some work, and am now ready to drop asleep. 0 comments Friday, April 19, 2002
"And then I saw cheese grits on the menu. I had to have cheese grits once I saw it on the menu" ~Some guy walking on Sherman Ave. 0 comments Thursday, April 18, 2002
Goldfish Jingle: "The snack, that smiles back. Until you bite their heads off" That was the funniest commercial jingle I've heard in a while. 0 comments Wednesday, April 17, 2002
Just got back from my meeting for Day at NU where I got to see funny little skits on the dos and donts of floaters and connectors. The real fun came afterwards when driving home with Adrienne. First we drove through all the construction areas and went through mini steam sprayers so we couldn't see where we were for like half a second, then after Victors comment of 50 pts per person, Adrienne and I both said "100 points if we hit Bassel" at the same time. Following that I almost had to jump out the window to get out, but luckily the light turned red so I could use the door. Oh yea, and the t-shirts have bottom of the food chain on them which was cool. 0 comments I guess I was wrong- it was an independent contractor, not the fire department doing the actual burning. The firemen were just there for moral support. Thus quoth the university: "To All Concerned: [ed. note: how many people are actually concerned I wonder?] A contractor will be burning the prairie grasses surrounding the lagoon beginning at 1:00 p.m. today, April 17, 2002. This is an annual maintenance procedure administered by Facilities Management. While this procedure will produce some smoke, there is no need for concern. The contractor and Evanston Fire Department are aware of this burn and will be monitoring it closely. Thank you for your cooperation." Its a good thing that the contractor is aware of the burn... since they are the ones doing the burning. 0 comments I thought firemen were supposed to put out fires, not start them. I'm walking to Norris, and on the side of the lagoon there is a firetruck. On the banks are several firemen with a torchlike apparatus lighting the brush on fire. Now I realize that it was just a controlled brush burn, but it was still a little disconcerting to see the guys who are supposed to put them out lighting them up. I guess if it gets out of hand at least they will know what to do. 0 comments Tuesday, April 16, 2002
We were talking next door earlier, and came to the conclusion that when it gets hot, you always get really drowsy when you are trying to work, but th emoment you try and fall asleep for real, you just can't. Well, I am living proof. And it doesn't help that street cleaning is going on outside either, and that to close the window is not an option. Time to try again... 0 comments Well, I hope everyone remembered to file your taxes. If not, you still have one hour to make it to California to send them from there. 0 comments Saturday, April 13, 2002
"I've been hunting. Gopher Hunting. I killed 59 in one hour" ~Eric, definitely not talking about a Wack-A-Mole experience "If Curling is an olympic sport, then oral sex is adultery" ~Lewis Black "I wanted to blow my beer out, but then I realized it wasn't on fire" ~Brian 0 comments Friday, April 12, 2002
Having class only four days a week makes the whole week seem completely different, especially when two of the days class doesn't start until noon and the day off is Friday. So far I've yet to get up and do something before my noon class (probably because I stay up way too late the night before). And I think I seem to be getting even less done on the intervening days. Oh well, maybe what I need is to start sleepping better and scheduling myself better, but it doesn't help when everyone you want to talk to online doesn't come on until two in the morning. I guess I'll just think about it for a bit and come up with some new way to completely change my life (and improve my typing which has been horrendous this post). 0 comments Sunday, April 07, 2002
Oh, and dont forget to set your clocks ahead and not get up an hour later than you were supposed to and go to Dunkin Donuts cause you think you have plenty of time and have a guy there tell you that you forgot daylight savings time and dashing with a fury to try and make it to Sunday school where you teach for the second hour of class, only to discover that school was cancelled that week because the kids are starting spring break, because that could happen to anyone. 0 comments Sorry to all those loyal readers about the lack of updates. A combination of the first week of school and some minor computer problems have kept me away. I will be back with a fury in the next couple of days though, so don't you go anywhere. Ok, go somewhere, but come back. 0 comments "He looks just like Cameron from 10 things I hate about you, except more like a lumberjack" ~Candace, with a little help from me John and Brian 0 comments Wednesday, April 03, 2002
Well, this quarter should deinitely be interesting. I haven't even started the second day of classes yet and I already have a report due today. Granted, it is only a 3-5 minute presentation on an article given to me, but still, for the first day its a little much, yes? I don't even get to see my other classes today because we had Tuesday replaced with Mondays classes because it ws teh day after easter and I guess they knew people wouldn't be traveling on easter. And one of my Thursday classes was cancelled too, so that won't be till next Tuesday now. Time for a quick bite to eat, and then off to class. 0 comments Tuesday, April 02, 2002
Well, I missed most of April fools day cause I was completely cut off from the world due to a cable outage that hit a good portion of the northern suberbs of chicago- and this is no joke. So I ended up spending the day reading, cleaning up, and then watching the NCAA final game on a fuzzy TV whose reception came in only when the TV stand it was sitting on was tilted at exactly the right angle. Any other angle would give static, but at one location it came in kind of clear, with only a few traces of a ghost image some half TV set to the right. The really strange thing about this is that only channel 2 came in- the channel the game was on. The rumor going around was that they somehow managed to boost the signal or otherwise make a temporary (and tenuous) patch at some level since a number of their customers (especially bars and other such locations) stand to lose a lot of money if the game can't be watched, not to mention infuriating a large number of customers who may have been rooting for the almost local Indiana Hoosiers (who ended up losing to Maryland). Just a frustrating experience overall, and it doesn't help when the only message that you can get from them about the outage is that it is occuring and that we are trying to fix it. No word on the status or predicted time for the network to be up. I'm forced to resort to the archaic, but reliable modem... at least until the phone lines go down. 0 comments |
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