Mickey Wins the Series!

Who woulda thunk it, I turned Game 6 off after Barry cranked his homer to make it 4-0, but apparently even without my support they came back to win in the late innings 6-5 and capped the series off with a win tonight. Booyah for the Anaheim Angels, 2002 World Series Champs.

Actually kept somewhat busy this weekend, even though I have a midterm tomorrow which I'm about to start cramming away for. Saturday night I went over to IV Theater with some friends to watch Creature From the Black Lagoon in 3D, which was somewhat more interesting than I expected. The 3D that is. The movie was terrible, but what can you expect from a horror flick made in 1954. We'll go with 3 M's just because of the 3D factor, the coolest aspect of which was the fact that after two hours of wearing the glasses when you took them off, your right eye could see red and your left eye could only see blue, which entertained me for quite a while as I winked around tinting the world into different colors.

Today I headed up to Seven Falls to do some hikin with another friend, it was much drier than the last time I was there, so there were no real waterfalls or pools to speak of, in fact the river was pretty much totally dry. That ended up working out though, it was much easier to get to the rock climbing section than it is normally, so we were able to get further up the gorge than I'd been before. Getting down ended up being a lot more interesting, luckily I'm now capable of bench pressing most of my friends, so I was able to assist when it got tricky. Lemme just pop my head real quick...

Footloose just started on VH1, a real classic movie. At least 6 M's. Tons of songs on it that make it impossible to avoid at least tapping your feet, and that's assuming you aren't up and trashing around the room. Gah, I suppose I should actually get my act together and start studying at some point. Maybe after the movie. ;)

Mc Dees and Sleepovers...

All those looking for a good late night deal, I recommend the 99 cent menu over at McDonalds through the 24 hour drive thru. All sorts of yummy things on there (for those who aren't anti-fast food) including the yummy hot fudge sundaes I used to have when I was a kid. Hadn't had one of those in like 10 years before I went the other day. They also have great soft-serve ice cream for just 79 cents, and they pile it up on the cone. Not that any of this is healthy, but when you need a temporary sugar high I highly recommend it. It's really fun rediscovering sights, sounds, tastes, or feelings from your childhood. It's the closest we can come to being a kid again.

Slept pretty terribly last night, it felt like it was 900 degrees in here. This was probably partly due to the fact there were three of us in here, which is definitely two more than normal. The situation started when my friend from upstairs asked if she could have the futon for a night since she was having trouble sleeping upstairs due to a combination of the heat and the light outside that's supposed to be aesthetically pleasing but manages to shine right into her window. Her boyfriend has been living together with her in her single, he graduated recently and is in the grey area between that and getting a job from what I understand. So anyway, we hit the sack shortly after midnight and I'm pretty much gone when someone else comes knockin on the door... Turns out it's her boyfriend, asking if he could sleep down here too, because he can't fall asleep without her. [waits for the groans and vomiting from the peanut gallery to cease] Yeah I know but who am I to make fun, you'll all just say I'm bitter. So I don't really have a choice other than letting him in or kicking them both out, so after making it clear this was a one time thing I relented. Now I know why their room is always so hot, at least partially. I must have woken up at least twice an hour due to either the heat or someone else shifting in their sleep. I tend to prefer total darkness and silence in order to achieve a good night of sleep, and thanks to the morning sun that already gets broken up pretty early on a regular basis.

I don't mind company on a regular basis, but when it comes to being the 5th wheel in a sleeping situation, there's not a whole lot I gain from that. I mean, I can't blame the guy for not wanting his girlfriend to be sleeping alone in some guy's room. But you'd think taking her aside and telling her that before she comes down here would make more sense than joining her. Not like he has anything to worry about from me the only male species on campus choosing to be immune to the opposite gender in general. They seem happy enough, there's enough lovey dovey talk like many couples that has me wanting to vomit on an occasional basis. I personally probably wouldn't be able to handle living with someone in such close quarters on a 24/7 basis, and have no idea how they're managing, but I guess that's testament to the strength of the relationship.

All I gotta say is ever since the brother got kicked out of my room like 10 years ago, I've yet to have a roommate since then, and am in no hurry whatsoever. I guess during the 10 weeks if I do get in I'll have one, but after that it's single only for the rest of my life. Yeah I know the whole wife/girlfriend thing, but I figure they'll be perfectly fine on the futon too! ;) I knew getting more sleeping room in here would bring flocks, this just wasn't the type of flock I was looking for...

3AM Conversations...

Have a strange way of keeping me entertained. Had no intention whatsoever of staying up late last night, I knew I was going to have to get up and write a paper the next day due at 2pm, yet I got involved in multiple conversations that were more entertaining than usual.

First I was jabberin away with a friend of mine from high school, and grovelling for forgiveness about the fact that something I'd been close minded to and given her crap for like a year ago was now something I could see her side of. We ended up having fun with Netmeeting as she showed off her webcam and new pad up at Stanford, and getting the usual giggles out of doing silly things for the camera and making strange noises in the microphones.

Somewhere in the middle of that conversation I got an IM from my brother's SN, but it was apparently one of his friends. I do tend to get random IMs from strangers somewhat often as they discover my SN through various search methods or this page. Generally the conversations don't last very long, I tend to lose interest in a hurry. I can't really explain what it is that manages to hold my attention for longer than the usual 4.5 seconds. Some people are just more interesting to chat with than others. Sadly I'm generally a busy person, and many people who might get interesting eventually are brushed aside as soon as I get bored with answering open-ended questions. This one though seemed like a halfway-intelligent person, even though she's hanging out with my brother... So I actually play along and converse with this total stranger for well over an hour while I'm multitasking, and become somewhat interested in her as a person.

Then she makes the mistake of telling me she's similar to my brother in the most negative way possible, that being she is also a smoker. Yeah, I've become open minded about many things in the last few years. When it comes to shortening one's lifespan though, I won't ever see the other side of that. Not only are these people hurting themselves, but eventually they will put a financial and emotional burden on everyone around them, hurting everyone who cares about them as well.

There's just nothing else to say about that. I gave her the abridged version, and then went to bed, not expecting to hear from her again.

Two Beds and a Coffee Machine.

For those who have never heard the Savage Garden song with the above title, I highly recommend snagging it. A nice gentle melody, very relaxing. Today started bright and early around 6 as I got up to study for my 9am quiz... Ended up getting a B on the first one after using the same strategy, and judging from how I felt turning it in I figure I got at least the same on this one. This is the class where the quizzes make up 75% of the grade, so I'm in good shape there. Got an exam-paper due Wednesay in another class and a midterm in a third class on Monday, so it'll be a busy week or two.

Hooray to the Angels for holding on last night and guaranteeing there will be another home game in the series. Hm at least I think it's a 2-2-1-1-1 scenario in baseball. Maybe it's 2-3-2 in which case it wouldn't guarantee anything. Ah well all I know is they're gonna be in boooooo PacBell Park for the next couple games... Seeing all the rallies and stuff on T.V. makes me miss Disneyland, can't wait as usual to head back there for New Years Eve. I wonder where I'll be when the clock strikes 2004... Man, 2003 seems like it's right there, but 2004 seems like a good 5 years away.

Found out I'm already at the weight I'm supposed to be at on the leg press, with a medium amount of effort I can do the 320 or so for a few sets of 10 reps. Took it easy still on everything else, just did a couple sets of huge amounts of reps without huge amounts of weight. The pull-ups sure get harder when you lower the amount of weight that's helping you up... I'm not experiencing much soreness but that's probably a good thing, I'll gradually increase the weight over time until I reach a level that I'm getting a good workout at.

This Is The Life.

Every time I get bored or am just sort of blah about life in general, I just go for a walk. Tonight I was greeted with a very close to full moon as I wandered the paths around the outer edges of this housing complex. I eventually made my way down to the cliffs overlooking the beach, and was taken aback. The moon was very high in the sky, so the only strong reflection of the moon was on the curve of the waves as they curled and broke near the shore. It was a really awesome effect, something I'd never seen before. The sound of water has always been soothing to me, and I ended up enjoying it for several minutes before the cold began to set in and I made my way back indoors.

I'm truly lucky that all I have to do is walk outside my living space, take a few steps, and am immediately surrounded by beautiful scenery. Tomorrow is going to be a busy day, got various assignments due early next week and a quiz Monday as well as a multitude of meetings over the next few days as usual.

Oh and two big thumbs down to the Angels and the Air Force Academy for losing their respective important games today. Lame! :(

Twenty Point Nine...

The official numbers are in, and they're not too shabby at all. I went to go sit in the egg yesterday, which was quite a strange experience. It's basically this little capsule thingy somewhat like the cars in Minority Report that zipped along on the sides of the buildings, except much smaller. You sit on the seat in there sort of hunched over, and then shut the door which sounds much like an airlock. It then makes all sorts of air hissing and suction sounds, as if you're going to run out of oxygen any second. Definitely not something I recommend to the claustrophobic. Was fun for me though, it'll be somewhat what a cockpit is like I figure. It ended up saying of my 190.5 pounds, 20.9% is body fat. According to their little chart thingy, under 20 is healthy. So basically, even at the beginning of my weight training schedule, without much effort at all, I'm already at the boundary of not only what's healthy but what will be required. Once I get further into training and the fat to muscle conversion is in full swing, I'm sure I'll have no problem bringing that number down further.

Hit the weight room for the first time today and discovered a very cool machine... Pull-ups were a huge problem for me growing up as I basically had no arms, and even in college after I did gain a pair of shoulders at some point I was never able to do more than a few, and it always felt like my arms were ripping off. They have this machine in there that allows you to stand on a bar that's at a certain resistance and do pull-ups, so if you put it at a comfortable weight not only can you do a set of 10, but you can do them properly. You can maintain the level of exertion at a constant rate both going up and going down, without the constant jerkiness trying to do pull-ups unassisted brings. I really recommend it to those who can't do a smooth pull-up by themselves, it will make it really easy to build up that muscle and slowly reduce the weight assisting the legs over time, rather than trying to lift 190 pounds with my back and triceps on day 1. Took it real easy for the first day, just figuring out the comfort levels of the different exercise I'll be working, deciding what weight level to start at and so forth. Going to stick with one long set for the first few workouts then add a set later.

So, promising numbers to start with, as my weight is officially a good 6 pounds under the max, and my body fat is only slightly above as I begin weight training.

Frustration...

So yesterday I just did a couple miles around the lagoon island, which involved a bunch of hills. The problem is never running up the hills, it's always running down. The most efficient way to do it is just to let yourself go, basically windmilling your legs as gravity throws you downward. Unfortunately, this seems to be the fastest way to aggravate my legs. The pounding on the pavement especially when running downhill is what always brings back the pain. It's quite frustrating, seems that no matter how long I'm into the running routine, the first day I actually run some hills, or run at a somewhat fast pace, I end up having to stop halfway through due to the pain.

I guess my new strategy is just to focus on other types of exercise. The elliptical trainers at the RecCen, and the pool, are going to end up being the main focus. Interestingly enough, I stumbled upon a set of physical requirements in the Air Force track I'm headed into that I wasn't aware of before. In order to be a part of a fighter aircrew, I'll have to perform F.A.C.T.. on a regular basis, which stands for the Fighter Aircrew Conditioning Test. Unlike the tests I'll have to pass at OTS, this one solely involves weight training. It's based on a percentage of your weight, so just to overestimate things and make sure I'm in the green area I'll probably end up training as if I was trying to reach the amounts needed if I was 200 lbs. That wouldn't happen since the max in the Air Force is in the 190s, and I plan to be around 180, but better safe than sorry. That means I'll have to lift the following amounts of weight:

Bench Press: 160 lbs
Arm Curl: 70 lbs.
Lat Pulldowns: 140 lbs.
Leg Curls: 100 lbs
Leg Press: 320 lbs.

Those numbers don't look insanely impossible, but apparently its not just maxing at that weight, you must actually perform TEN reps of each exercise in one set. For example I wouldn't have a problem benching 160 lbs, but given the length of time since I was actually weight training, something tells me ten reps might be a problem.

I think the first thing I'm going to do is go pay the 6 bucks or whatever it is to go into that new machine on campus that tells you like a berzillion things about your body composition, including your body fat percentage. That will be quite helpful in determining what the best course of action is for my training routine. The problem with switching over to weight training and make sure I'm in the zones needed in that area, is I'll probably build up muscle and thus gain weight, which could put me too close to the max weight.

Might as well explain the whole deal so the numbers make sense when I talk aboutit in the future. The way they do it at the yearly physical is they initially weigh you to see if you're over the maximum allowable weight for your height. I'm technically 5' 10 1/2' at my shortest during the day, so the max weight for me is 196.5. The "desirable weight" for that height is 175. I'd be satisfied with a muscular 180. I'm currently just over 190 at last check. If you end up over the maximum weight, they do a body fat percentage check. This is so that the very muscular officers who are possibly quite a bit over the maximum weight due to muscle mass aren't affected. The maximum body fat percentage for those under 29 years of age is 20%. If you fail both of the tests (>196.5 lbs and >20% body fat) then basically bad things happen. If that was the case at my initial physical I'd be disqualified completely, if it happens when you're already in you go through various stages of reprimands and eventually demotions and a possible discharge. Basically bad news. The last time I checked my body fat percentage was like 7th grade, and I've changed a bit on both the muscle weight and chunk weight since then.

So theoretically if I find out my body fat is a decent amount under 20%, then I can just focus on keeping in shape on a muscular and cardiovascular level, and not worry so much if I gain muscle and it puts me over the max weight. It's much easier to see progress when it comes to muscular work, and ab work, so motivation wouldn't be an issue, although if I do eventually get in, knowing I'm going to have to do it or go home will be motivation enough. So now you know everything about what I'm trying to do physically. Oh one more thing. GETTING A HAWT BOD FER DA WOMENS WOULDN'T BE TOO SHABBY.

Heh.

Oomph

For those who couldn't translate, that's the sound of plopping down into an amazingly soft and comfy mattress, in this case, one placed on a futon. Finally snagged one on Sunday, and am quite pleased with the purchase. The wood seems like it's very good quality, and the mechanism to shift from a sofa to a bed seems to work very well. I decided to go with a green cover, sort of a darker forest green type, and that seems to complement the wood very nicely. It ended up being a good inch smaller than the gap under my bed, so it basically fits perfectly, while still having a few inch gap on either side of my head and feet when lying down lengthwise. I don't thrash around too much vertically, so that shouldn't be a problem. Best part about it is that it folds out to a full bed rather than a twin, which will certainly please overnight guests. So yeah, any of you friends of mine from far away pleases who want to come see the beautiful place I live in, feel free to drop on by. :)

Feeling much better tonight than last night, gonna give running a shot tomorrow, although it won't be at 7am since the last few days has screwed up my sleeping schedule as I've tried to sleep off the cold. Finally did get a haircut though, so with a lighter head running should be no problem. ;)

Been having to be a lot more organized this year, got a full on calendar goin in my notebook, having to schedule meetings for Neighborhood Council, meetings with my R/A, meetings with my Econ 109EC group, and various other things. Kind of annoying to have to actually check my calendar when someone asks me to fix their computer or invites me to a movie, but I guess it shows I'm actually getting things accomplished with my time rather than just sitting around.

Had my first smoothie of the year after missing out on dinner thanks to the first NC meeting where they were supposedly gonna have mass food but I actually ended up getting only a slice and a half of pizza... Apparently Jamba isn't open as late as I thought, but Blenders out in IV came through for us. I'm not very particular when it comes to smoothies, anything with strawberry and banana in it I'll probably dig. I'd actually be perfectly satisfied with a smoothie as my breakfast, but then I'd be wasting money left and right and that just doesn't work. Hm there's an idea, blenders for the dining commons... They already have the fruit and ice and whatnot, wouldn't be all that difficult to provide blenders... Although I guess washing them would have to be done every time, so you'd actually have to have someone making the smoothies for the students... Hm, maybe I'll bring that up at some point. Gah more later, way past my bedtime.

I Get To Learn A New Word...

Listen up children, today's word is "Fiance." Now before you all faint, let me be a little less vague and inform you that it is not me but is actually my sister who will be using the word the most. She's become engaged to her boyfriend of more than a few years. I haven't gotten a whole lot of details as I was only the first in a long string of people to inform (at least I was first outside the parents, being the eldest sibling does have its advantages...) so I'm sure I'll have much more on this subject later.

Unfortunately not feeling any better today health wise, possibly even on the worse side tonight, so will have get back to this later and hit the sack.

Coed Sleepovers!

Well, at least the ability will be there, as I'm finally gonna be pickin up a futon tomorrow and essentially tripling the comfortable sleeping space in my room. :) Spent the day running errands, pickin up a new headset mic since I'd stepped on the old one too many times... Then I headed over to KMart and snagged a tape measure because I got bored of asking to borrow a ruler (something happened to mine), and took it around to various futon places browsing and measuring... Finally ended up making somewhat of a decision, I'm gonna head back tomorrow to double check some stuff and actually make the purchase, and then tackle the task of trying to fit it in the van to transport it back here. Hm, even better will be trying to get it from the car into the room... Luckily I'm bringing along a friend, although I might need more than one. :P

Also met up with some buddies to see Red Dragon, the latest film in the series surrounding the character of Hannibal Lecter. Chronologically it's actually the first, but there's the usual innuendos and so forth that hint to things from the second and third that make it useful to have seen the others first. I've said it before and I'll say it again, Anthony Hopkins is an amazing actor. When you combine his talent with that of Edward Norton, who is also phenomenal, the movie could be about paint drying and I'd probably still think it was great. Gonna go with 5 M's out of 7 here, there are a few interesting twists in there that keep you guessing. I do recommend seeing Silence of the Lambs and Hannibal first however, there's a lot more character buildup around Hopkins, and Jodie Foster's performance in the former helped bring that film the Best Picture nod at the Oscars.

Feelin a little under the weather today, but still managed to get out and run this morning, apparently gonna be playin some racquetball at some point tomorrow so I'll probably sleep in and save the exercise for later. Also gotta give a big BOOYAH to one of my hometown baseball teams (well technically) the Angels, for kicking some tail in the ALCS. Anyone wanna get me tickets to the World Series if they get that far? :) I haven't been to a baseball game since like 1st grade... That would be so sweet!

Thursdays are Nice.

Well so are Tuesdays, but when it's Thursday the next day is Friday, so that makes it even better. Took my time getting up this morning and eventually got my multi-tasking hat on and dumped in a load of laundry before going for a morning run. Since the beginning of this month I've been on a 2 day on 1 day off running schedule, which I guess is decent enough as a start. I did increase from 2 miles to 3 between the first week and the second, and am now able to cover that distance pretty comfortably. I did feel some soreness today in various areas of my legs, so I'll probably skip tomorrow and do the next two days. I figure as long as I build up slowly and just take days off when I sense any kind of pain, I should be able to avoid getting injured. Running on the wet sand is a really good strategy too, it lessens most of the impact and is a lot better on the legs.

Last week I finally decided to break down and install an RPG, which is something I'd avoided for several years now. I've just never been into the "neverending" types of games where there are always cooler items to find or bigger bad guys to fight, and in which "experience" is the most important aspect. Most games of this sort allow you to "gain a level" very quickly early on, with Levels 1 to 10 coming all within the first day of playing most likely. However the time it takes to gain a level grows exponentially, so to get from level 40 to 41 might take over a week. I managed to never get sucked into that kind of game, those are the kinds you always read about people losing their lives to. Everquest or "Evercrack" as it has become known as, is the best example. The role playing game of choice is Morrowind, which is actually the third in a series of games of which I hadn't played any. The pluses to it, it's single player rather than multiplayer, so the story does have a beginning and an end. The leveling isn't exponential, you'll eventually get to the highest level of everything. The negatives, the world is just gigantic. This is where people waste their lives away, methodically exploring the entire world would be a lot like trying to explore all of the United States on a bike. Although the main quest is apparently only about 80 hours in length (around four months of playing at five hours a week, which is all I tend to play), there are umpteenmillion side quests and things to do, so you could technically waste away an uncountable amount of time trying to beat the game "completely." Luckily I have no interest in that. After playing on and off for a week I've actually already grown pretty bored with it. As RPGs go, I've heard it's one of the best (I don't have a lot of experience with them myself) but you really have to be the kind of person who wants to get lost in a fantasy world for hours on end. The world is so huge that when tasks require you crossing back and forth, it gets pretty repetitive and boring. It's not a very difficult game, it's just very time consuming. I'll probably come back to it every once in a while, but it just didn't hold my attention like most games do. One game I'd like to snag and install is the third installment of the Myst series, Exile. The first Myst is considered the best selling PC game of all time, and I don't know too many people who missed out on it. It's the type of game where the point of the game is to find out the point of the game, and that's what makes it very different from others. You can spend days or weeks "stuck" someplace, trying to figure out what to do. It's sequel "Riven" was unfortunately so difficult, that I'd estimate about 95% of all players required a walkthrough or "hint" book in order to make it through the storyline. Some of the puzzles required linking concepts from multiple islands, deciphering codes, or making connections between seemingly pointless items. I've heard Exile is in between the two, difficult enough to keep you busy with your noggin for a while, but not so difficult that you're running for a strategy guide before you've gone ten feet.

I have been getting back into Q3F as of late, the mod for Quake 3 that I used to play quite religiously. I've joined up at least temporarily with another group of guys who play regularly, including a few I've known online for literally years now. It's great fun to talk about the good ol days, bust out quotes from years ago, and talk about the best (and worst) matches of the past. Also quite spooky for my visitors to come in and hear voices coming from my computer, following which the sound of someone with a heavy midwest accent saying "Hi SoandSo" (having been informed of the person's name through a chat window of course). I then generally pretend that the person can also see my visitor through a webcam, after which they usually run out of the room. Of course my webcam isn't set up, but it's fun to play with people's minds. :)

Okay you can wake up now, I'm done talking about computer games. :) No poker game tonight, apparently one of the guys had a CS assignment due or something. Ah, the life of hammering away at code at 2 in the morning, how I miss it. OH WAIT, NO I DON'T! ;)

Writing On A Desk.

If you happen to sit in the very back row of Girvetz 1006, on the right side, this is what you'll see.

Power Puff Girls kick ass.
Ninjas are sorry.
I hate boredom.
I hate love.
Do some coke.
You are wasting your youth.
Jesus was just in my taco.

Ah, the creative minds of UCSB's youth.

They Still Fit!

Happened to see one of the guys in my house kickin a soccer ball around out in the quad, so I busted out the old cleats and went to join him. He lives up on the third floor, and is apparently quite the player, trying to get in shape to make it onto the club team here. Was quite fun to be thumpin away at the ball again, hadn't done that since intramurals last year. He's trying to get on a Mens B team for Outdoor, which might have some extra slots, so I might end up tagging along. The quad's really nicely set up for soccer though, and since all the buildings look out onto it I'm sure we'll be able to get a game going now and again. Managing to keep from taking out any windows, now that's the challenging aspect. :)

Had your typical interesting conversation with the guy in the single down the hall, I was in there showing how the sharing on the network worked, and he was sharing his triumphant story of sleeping with three different chicks over the last three nights, a feat he's never before accomplished in college. I remember responding with "impressive" in the most sarcastic tone I have (which is really sarcastic) knowing he wouldn't pick up on it. "Yeah I know, cool huh" was all he said. He then launched into a story about how being an Abercrombie model for 5 years got you stuff that "comes with the territory." I eventually made my escape once my room was done being vacuumed.

My first sorority house experience ended up pretty low key, although it was pretty impossible for me to not be stereotypically thinking when everything around me was your classic example of what you'd expect. The new business plan idea is a 24 hour convenience store in Milan, apparently Italy is lacking those in general for the most part according to those group members who had been there. It's really a structured project, so it should be relatively easy. I volunteered for the Market Analysis portion, knowing that's just a bunch of online research and charts and whatnot, and a lot easier than the actual Marketing plan, or the Implemention or Financial sections. Don't seem to have any real deadbeats in the group, which is logical since we're all 3rd or 4th year and most of the deadbeats are pumping gas by then.

Busiest day tomorrow, including an Econ quiz I guess I'll be studying for at some point tonight, finishing up a couple more chapters worth of reading and workbook work. Took the day off from running after a longer than average day yesterday when I made it all the way down the beach past West Campus to the other point way past the end of DP down there near the Snowy Plover reserve, I'd never even been there before. I figure since I have no problem running on weekends I'll just do a 3 days on 1 day off kind of scenario so there aren't any huge gaps. Alas, the dinner bell is ringing in my head, and I'm starving, having not eaten lunch or breakfast because I was naughty and chowed on Freebirds late last night... I know, shame on me but dang those tacos are good. :)

Another Weekend Fades Away...

Seems like it had barely faded in before it was gone, funny how weekdays plod and weekends zoom. Pretty productive day, got off my ass and managed to run all the way down to Goleta Beach (now a slighter more difficult task than last year since I'm way over on this side of campus) and made it back without any major issues. Then I was off to help a friend move all her furniture from one apartment to another. All sorts of exciting heavy lifting of couches and box springs and desks and fun stuff like that. She ended up being kind enough to treat me to Carrows though, so I can't complain. Not really sure where the middle of the day went, did some more researching online into the WSO track, oh and I forgot I then took like a three hour nap... Dinner was more entertaining than usual as I met up with some friends from two years ago who live across the quad, it's funny how even though you live closer to people you see them less often... I guess we all have lives now. Well, not all of us. ;) Hauled them over to get groceries, and managed to get free McConnell's out of that, the Coldstone's look alike over in Storke Plaza, which is always good. I'm a big french vanilla with white chocolate chip mix in fan, mmmm good. This whole providing chauffeur service for free food thing could work out quite nicely, I have a couple people who owe me Freebirds for various pain in the butt trips involving too many calories being burned. ;)

Heard from my officer recruiter again, turns out my package did in fact get sent off to the October Board, which meets on the 15th-18th. Apparently in order to get the Flight Physical you must have been accepted already, and even the MEPS aspect of the physical doesn't have to be completed and is actually a separate thing. So, supposedly on November 8th, I'll get the good or bad news and find out if my new direction in life is a closer to permanent thing. No stress involved, or anything.

Speaking of stress, had a somewhat heated conversation with a friend of mine tonight, which we'd sort of put off having for a while since a particularly bad day that managed to piss us both off for various reasons... I think I made progress in explaining the true motives behind the things that had pissed her off, but even though she says she understands where I'm coming from regarding the things that made me angry, I still feel like there's something holding her back from truly rusting me, which is quality I hold most important among my close friends. It's interesting, there are times in the past when I've felt we've been really close, I remember even last year telling someone at home she was the best friend I had here, but this year things just seem different. I don't know whether it's my change in priorities, or maybe hers, or just the fact that we're very different people. Before it never was a problem that we had different tastes in music, or different opinions about which "Trading Spaces" episodes had the best looking rooms or whatnot, but now it seems like a gap is widening. Last year, she was the one I went to whenever I needed anything from a friend, and there were a few times I felt like she was doing the same, this year it just seems like that connection has faded away. It might have been my imagination that it was ever there to begin with, when it comes to interpreting the emotions of the opposite gender, I tend to strike out on a regular basis.

As much as I'd like to stew over depressing topics, I'm actually intending to get some Econ reading and workbook pages done tonight and tomorrow morning before class (even though it's optional; I know, I don't know what's wrong with me) and going to sleep early enough to get in another decent length run. So, I believe it's 33 days and counting!

Why Fire Truck Drivers Aren't Paid That Much.

Good thing I was up late last night, because if I wasn't I would have been joyfully awakened by a loud siren, and eventually a big crash and the sound of dragging metal. Turns out that I guess the fire people hadn't quite worked out which route to use to bring fire engines into this new dorm area yet, so they tried to fit a truck in between the light post and the flower/rockbed right outside my window, and discovered it didn't fit. They ended up trampling most of the bed, and finally running over a water main and dragging it with them for about twenty yards before coming to a halt right in the middle of the three quads, lights flashing siren blaring. Quite an interesting thing to see when you randomly look out your window. The trail of dirt and huge ditch the wheels dug is still there a day later, it'll be a lot of fun trying to clean that up I bet.

Hasn't been a whole lot to blog about, I got up on time the last few days and am getting into the exercise schedule I'm shooting for, and thus far no trace of the injury from the summer, although I'm taking it a bit easier to start out. Decided to really focus on how much I eat at meals, you can still get all the great tastes by only having a very small portion of each thing they have. The main problem used to be the eggs/potatoes/sausage etc etc etc I used to cram in for breakfast, and then still have a decent sized lunch and dinner. The breakfast/dinner schedule is what I'll be sticking to, with granola cereal/canteloupe/banana/OJ and milk being the start to the day, and generally the meat of the day over rice and a random side dish being the dinner. The pounds are starting to drop off again, and now that I'm back at school and have multiple choices when it comes to exercise, even if running is eliminated as an option again, I should be able to reach a happier level.

Thursday night was the inaugural poker game, with some of the old school players participating. I ended up the big winner, but there was a lot more luck than skill involved. You don't have to worry about bluffing or betting when you know you have the best possible hand, for example. Quite a nice feeling to have. They decided to go in for $10 a piece instead of the usual $5, so who knows maybe that will become the standard. A few other people who saw my away messages are wanting to get in on the action next week, so that might become a Thursday night thing or something. As long as I'm winning, the frequency of the matches doesn't really bother me. :)

Had a friend visit who I hadn't seen in quite some time, she'd spent the summer galavanding around the globe to various countries, apparently having a ball of a time. We had our usual good time as she called me stupid and I made fun of the way she says certain words, including my name. The need for a futon in here became even more evident as she ended up deciding to crash here instead of troop all the way back to her off campus house around 3am. Apparently my Mom is now heavily researching the idea, basically to prevent me from going out and buying the first thing I see. I don't particularly care, but it would be nice if it would be sturdy enough to last through the year and then into the future, as I begin to move around. Sure is easier than moving a full bed and couch around, especially if you can take it apart. Funny thing about the night was she left my playlist on shuffle when she went to sleep (I'd apparently dozed off earlier) because she enjoys background music while she sleeps. Well an elephant stampede could have gone through the room while she was asleep, because after random Metallica and Creed and whatever else had woken me up like six times, she hadn't moved a muscle. I'd gotten a ton of sleep the night before, and ended up getting up at like 7 anyway, so it was no big deal. Always nice to hang out with long-time friends with whom you can completely be yourself, with no worries as to how it will appear to them. Some people are inherently laid back, and regardless of what you say, it'll never be taken the wrong way. Those people make life so much more relaxing.

Other than that not much to report, halfway through a weekend, with a whole list of stuff to take care of tomorrow and especially Monday, so we'll see how that goes.

Oops

Been being a good boy, busy as a bee, will update later today.

Thought I'd Never See The Day...

Well I said I was going to go all out on the whole open minded thing this year, and so far I've kept to it... Got assigned a group for my Business Plan project in Writing 109EC, seems like a pretty electic group, apparently the meeting we're having outside of class to start setting things up is going to be at one of the group member's sorority where she lives, apparently they have a nice big living room they use for a lot of group projects or something. That'll be a new experience, four years later I've never been in a fraternity or sorority. First time for everything. I actually managed to listen to her talk without really stereotyping her immediately, so I think I'm improving.

In other news I turned in my app thingy for House Co-Chair or what-not, that should be interesting. I figure might as well start taking on leadership roles where I have to deal with morons, practice for the future. I'll probably take the reins and be the group organizer for this Business Plan project too, least that way I can be sure of a decent grade. The awesome news is that I don't have a final on the very last day like I thought I did, turns out it's taking place late the prior week. So I'll probably be heading home that weekend instead of having to wait til the Monday. Good deal. Er wait a second, why am I in a hurry to get home again? :/

Are You In Group 1 Or Group 2?

Six weeks behind the times at least, finally joined the crowd in going to see Signs. I'd actually heard a lot of mixed reviews, so it ended up being better than I expected. Not really in your face booyah launch you out of your seat scary, just pretty suspenseful throughout. Logistically, it didn't make much sense at all, but the concept of aliens wandering around isn't exactly realistic in today's day and age either. We'll go with 4 M's, it was creepy enough to make me be glad I don't live in the middle of nowhere. The acting by the children was pretty amazing, really helped set the mood. Not exactly at the caliber of a Hayley Joel Osment, but not too shabby in their own right. Also turned on Panic Room at what appeared to be about a half hour in last night on the RHA channel where they basically just show nonstop movies, which was decent. Only so much you can do with the concept though, there wasn't much depth to it. This one gets 3 M's, although I generally give higher ratings to Jodie Foster's performances, this one fell pretty flat. Some intense slow motion scenes that magnified the height of the action, but it got pretty repetitive.

Third day of classes today, which is my second longest day of the week. Monday Wednesday and Friday start off with a morning Econ 100A Microeconomics lecture, which so far is just regurgitating stuff I already knew, so I'll probably spend the time reading the book and working on the workbook during lectures, paying more attention if he actually covers something I haven't already learned 3 times in Acadec, Micro/Macro AP, and the Econ 1 and 2 courses. There are pop quizzes in that class though, as well as about scheduled ones every few weeks that end up being 75% of the grade, so you can be sure I'll stay on top of things. Hoping to stick with a 7am wakeup then workout concept, getting me back here around 8:15 in time to shower eat a decent breakfast and get over across campus. My second class of the day is at 2pm, which is my Econ 119 United States Business History lecture. So far looks like it'll be pretty much memorization, more of a history course with lots of reading and so forth than an econ course. That one is 50% Final and 50% exam papers, these two take home little 4 pagers where you get 6 questions and choose to answer one or something. Doesn't look like it'll be too rough either. On Mondays and Wednesdays I then have a two hour lecture from 3 to 5 for my Econ 138A Income Tax class... Yeah, it might be painful, but I figure of all the things that might be useful later in life, knowing how to save yourself money sounds like a pretty good deal. It's actually a two quarter class, think I'm taking 138B in the Spring. Today will be my first day of it since it doesn't meet Fridays, more on that later. Then on Wednesdays I have ANOTHER class, a Econ 100A section from 5 to 6, so that makes 4 straight hours of class on Wednesdays. Will definitly be the least favorite day. The good news is just one class Tuesday and Thursday and two short lectures on Friday, so I should be able to deal.

Gah, now I have to just avoid taking a nap during my 10-2 gap every other day after waking up at 7, haven't missed a class yet, no need to start now. :)

Rain On A Saturday?

I thought there was some sort of unwritten rule about that being an impossible occurence in Santa Barbara. Alas, we are apparently not immune. Today's song plug goes to Sheryl Crow, and the song she performed both at the 9/21/01 Tribute to America concert, and this year's MTV VMA's. It's called "Safe and Sound" and it's been on repetition in my playlist for a while. I tend to put the latest 6 or so songs I've downloaded into the bottom of the playlist, and repeat them til I get bored, by which time I've usually downloaded something new and can bump out the oldest one. This one really displays her vocal talent, quite fun to pretend like I'm capable of singing along. :)

Also have a movie review, last night I finally watched Memento. Luckily even though various plot elements had been blown for me in advance, it ended up not being as detrimental as I thought originally. The plot was carefully contrived, and the way the movie plays out is unlike any other I've seen. Going to go with 5 M's out of 7 here, only because of the amount of thinking that's required. You have to really be paying attention, and remembering how things went earlier in the movie, in order to understand the entire plot as a whole as it all comes together towards the end. The idea of having no short term memory seems to me a worse sentence than being deaf or blind. I would rather be either of the latter, than be incapable of remembering the people who are close to me.

Might actually FINALLY see Signs over the next couple of days, it's playing downtown still and I don't have any real plans.

The First Friday...

You can probably guess what that means around here. Having fun, in just aboute very sense of the word. Unfortunately, being stupid is also synonomous when it comes to most of the freshmen here. There's only really one aspect I dislike about the beginning of each year. I love meeting people, love moving in, love arranging the room, and all this. The only annoying thing is the way you have to basically start from square one when it comes to telling people about yourself. Barely anyone actually knows you, and even when it's people you knew before, that can sometimes cause problems.

Case in point, the infamous "alcohol" topic. It doesn't require a brain surgeon to figure out my opinion on the subject. However in this type of atmosphere, I tend to really be low key about it. Last night the guy in the single down the hall comes in and offers me a drink, and I say something along the lines of "no thanks, early class in the morning" or "I'm more of a weekend kind of guy." Not lying, telling the truth, but out of context. That's sort of the way it's been for the last few years, I never really feel the need to be vocal about my distaste for the beverage. And generally, people offer, I decline, and it goes from there. Then there's unfortunately the situations where that's not the end of it. There's prodding, pressuring, questioning, and eventually I have to be more terse about my opinions on the subject, to prevent that kind of embarrassment from happening again. Sadly, this isn't always a good thing. The most annoying aspect of it is actually when I'm with friends who are aware of my opinion, mixed with friends or acquaintances who are not. At times, the friends I've confided in on the subject feel the need to answer the question of whether or not I'll be drinking for me, and it generally comes off as condescending or ridiculing. This is why I tend to try to avoid such situations by not being so vocal about it. Just because I have a certain opinion, doesn't mean I'm going to force it down everyone else's throat. But when a friend of mine makes a big deal out of it, that's basically what it comes off as. People see me in a negative light, because I'm "raining on their parade" so to speak, even though I didn't personally say anything.

It really doesn't matter how often you tell your friends that your reasons are personal and that you'd rather they keep them to themselves, they'll still leap at the chance to answer the question before you do, pleased that they already know the answer. For some reason they're generally clueless as to the discomfort they cause. I consider myself a grown adult, perfectly capable of handling the usual alcohol related situations on my own terms. It really ticks me off when the scale gets tilted further against me by friends of mine who think they're being helpful and clever, when really they're just making me wish they hadn't been told, either.

Eventually word gets around. Luckily it's generally not when I'm present. Kind of like me and the typical explosion that happens the first time someone brings a lit cigarette into my room, and gets ousted in the most rude manner possible. Word travels, people get the idea, life is more relaxed the rest of the year.

I'm just whining, I'll deal with this type of stuff every time I move in the future, it's just one of the negative aspects I'd rather do without.