This Side of Lost

It's supposedly Dead Week here at IU, but you couldn't tell by looking at me. This will be the busiest week of my semester, judging by the two final project-type assignments due on Thurs and Fri that I effectively haven't started yet. Yikes! Well, I guess it's time to see if I really do do my best work at the last minute... so I'll see you on the other side!

Oh, before I go, here's the rundown of last week:

• I did a lot of puttering on my final projects. So you can't say I didn't try to get started! I did! It just didn't work. :(
• Garlic steak at the Malibu Grill Friday night. Very tasty.
• A glorious vegetarian potluck at Mari's apartment Saturday night (as if to make up for the steak the night before... the juxtaposition of this just struck me... weird). The company was great, and the food was even better. Samantha and I brought a chili cheese soup w/tortilla chips, which was a big hit. Who knew eating without meat could be so good?
• Lots of choir rehearsal -- 2 hours on Tues, Thurs and Fri in preparation for...
• Choral concert last night. Got out the tux for the first time this year. Reports indicate that the Orrego-Salas went off well, despite being a difficult and non-stop bizarre piece. The Bach of course was lovely. :)

Umm... not a whole lot else to report. I guess it sounds like a boring week. But it really wasn't. Part of this may have to do with the fact that it was spent, like much of my life these days, with Samantha, who continues to be absolutely wonderful. Some of you who are in committed relationships may be able to sympathize with me when I say: it seems you can be doing the most mundane things in the world, but when they're with someone you love, they become, at worse, not so mundane, and at best, a lot of fun. That's where I'm at these days. It's awesome.

So. Speaking of mundane, time to do some HTML markup. Peace.

Well, folks, I've lived through the week so far. The pathfinder is in and Reference is over. Not a bad class overall. Lots of work, but worth the effort, I think. The term paper is in and Management is over. That class turned out to be monumentally boring and I won't miss it. I've got one major project left (with deadline extended thanks to a scheduling error), then it's mostly piddly stuff into next Wednesday or so. We're in the home stretch...

It hasn't really been as bad as I thought. The term paper wasn't great, but came together with even less effort than I expected. I haven't really tackled my Sci Info project (bibliography) in earnest yet... that may surprise me. Not in a good way. :( But I'm looking forward to being done for a while and having some free time to spend with Samantha before break. Especially since I'm not going to see her for two and a half weeks... :(

Recent highlights...

• Seeing the first theater performance I've seen here (outside of opera) -- Happy Birthday, Wanda June, Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.'s only play. It was very good, if not a little bizarre and very satirical. In other words, very Vonnegut.
• Actually learning something in 401. The last module is on databases and I know have an elementary grasp of Microsoft Access. Seriously, this may have been a first.
• An excellent free food experience: a couple Cingular employees stopped me in the hall early evening in the Union, ascertained my cell phone allegiances (AT&T -- close enough, apparently), gave me a bag of goodies, and directed me down the hall, where a free buffet of bread, deli meats and potato salad was awaiting my Freegan¹ consumption. I must say, it's definitely worth it for other people to have high cell-phone bills so I can get a free ham sandwich, stress ball and highlighter.
• The recent appearance of gingerbread man cookies at Sugar and Spice and other bakery locations across campus. They're really good, and cheaper than my favorite iced sugar cookies.
• Watching the St. Olaf Christmas Festival on DVD with Samantha. I missed it this year for the first time since before being a student there! So I had to watch. This precipitated Quote of the Week 10 from her: "All those happy boys and girls, being so earnest... I'm not sure I'd make it in Minnesota. I might puke."

It's Friday... I'm off to enjoy some of my weekend, before I have knock out the bibliographies I gotta do. Peace!

_____________________
¹ Freegan is a word stolen from Brad Vifquain, the art teacher at Cooper High School. It is a mutation of the term "Vegan" and refers to people (like Brad and myself) who tend to have an above-average interest in free food.

For those of you who care, this is when I'll be where over the holidays:

Dec 21-27: in Marco Island, FL, for my uncle's 70th birthday and Christmas with the extended family for the first time in years.
Dec 27-Jan 5: in Minnesota, probably staying with my family. Likely the only time I'll be back in Minnesota for a while (summer's looking really iffy). I recommend taking advantage of this.

That is all.

Need a little help silencing the irritating cell phone talker next to you?

Here you go.

"What do you want for Christmas?"

Well, try this. No need to stick to it exactly... if it gives you some other ideas, go for it. I like music/movies/books in general and I'll probably be pleased if you're giving me something and not charging me for it. Note the comments... there are a few items (one in particular, the Olympic Hopefuls CD) that Amazon doesn't sell (yeah, I know, shocker, there are things Amazon doesn't sell) that I'd like too.

Note also that I don't actually condone buying items from Amazon (they're just the only place I know that does online wish lists). Please support your local retailers!

Q: What has two thumbs and is done with his first semester of graduate school?

A: This guy.

Whew. That's a good feeling. That means that in between 5 pm today (when I get off of work) and 5:15 am on Tuesday, December 21st (when I get on the shuttle to the Indy airport), I have 129 hours to do whatever my little heart desires. I even have all my Christmas shopping done! You can bet that I'll be sleeping quite a bit, eating out in celebration, doing some packing and wrapping of presents, and hanging out with my current favorite person in the world, Samantha, 24/7. 'Twill be grand. Here's how it all finished up:

• The bibliographies for Sci Info came together pretty well. They were not very well balanced, but oh well. They're done.
• Final commentary for Sci Info - done. Access and 4D comparison for 401 - done. "Final paper" (basically an evaluation) for Chem Info - done. Whee!
• Went to Mari's last night for homemade sushi. Many of the diners there are vegetarian, so there wasn't actually much raw fish involved, but lots of nori, rice and fresh veggies. So, so good. Man, I eat well at this girl's place. I need to go there more often.
• Saw the Reverend Horton Heat at the Bluebird after sushi last night. One word for this guy: psychobilly.
• I'm hoping Samantha would like to go out tonight to celebrate (she's done today at 5 pm too). Maybe to see a movie? Has anyone seen Closer or Ocean's Twelve yet? Are either of them any good?

That's it. Thanks for coming along for this first semester. Peace.

For those of you who have been begging to see a picture of Samantha and I (all none of you), here you go. This is the two of us in front of the big shiny thing in Millenium Park in Chicago. Excuse the terrible quality -- the Kodak technology used to digitize this image appears to be as old as the Windows 3.1 operating system. To see the actual analog picture (in which Samantha is even better looking, if you can believe it, and in which I don't look like a pixelated monster), you'll have to actually be in my physical presence.

Speaking of which. In 24 hours, I will be in Florida. (About time, too -- it got cold here in Indiana all of a sudden.) Then soon I will be in Minnesota. (It is also cold there, I'm guessing, but it has other qualities that make it advantageous over Indiana.) All of this maneuvering about means I may not be updating for a while. Tough tacos, as they say. So a Happy Holidays to you and yours, and I'll catch you on the flipside. Peace!

I am nearing the end of my second full day on vacation at Marco Island, Florida. It's been a lot of fun so far. For those of you who didn't know: my uncle John is celebrating his 70th birthday and his 30th anniversary with his wife Marti this year, and invited family to Florida for the holidays.

The last folks arrived today, and there are 15 all total. We are quite a handful. The waitress last night was almost scared to be in between John and my mother, and we had to be spread across three tables tonight. This brings to mind the idea of critical mass for nuclear reactions -- mustn't have too much of a volatile substance in one place. :) We have eaten out a lot and it's been very good. I've had shrimp, grouper and scallops. You don't get seafood like that in Indiana. Go fig.

I wish Samantha were here, though. Everything I've been doing she would enjoy as well -- the seafood, going to used bookstores, and sitting around laughing and telling stories with family. She has been inquired about. I think she would fit in wonderfully. Which bodes well, at least.

In my spare time, I've been reading a little-known children's book called Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. And even if you have heard of it, you probably didn't know that there are sequels as well. Anyway, I've finished it, and it was an enjoyable read. I was impressed by the mention of Nicolas Flamel, one of the most famous alchemists, in very appropriate context. I was confused by the term Sorcerer's Stone itself, however. The object they are referring to in the book is actually called the Philosopher's Stone. I have been informed, though, that the British version uses the correct name. Leave it to the Brits to be historically accurate. I am on to the second one now -- more news on that as events warrant.

Speaking of which, I think I'll get back to that before bedtime. Tomorrow is shopping for the gift exchange we'll be doing and more tomfoolery with the Wick clan. Enjoy your Christmases, friends -- assuredly they're more white than mine. Peace (and joy)!

Suddenly there are a ton of movies I want to see. When did this happen? I hope 1) that there are some folks in MN interested in hitting the cinemas next week and 2) that Samantha will be interested in spending some of her financial aid before classes start. :)

I am in Minnesota now. It is Wednesday. I have until next Wednesday to get my fill of all things Minnesotan for another indeterminate length of time. If you wish to do any of the following things:

1. See me
2. Meet my girlfriend Samantha, who is (to my immense delight, and against all better judgment, fiscally or chronologically) making the trek up here on Friday and will be here until Wednesday as well
3. Have a well-trained soprano and baritone-bass at your service
4. Get help moving into your apartment (Kari?)
5. Go out to dinner or see movies or concerts with company instead just by your lonesome, you antisocial loser
6. See the Olympic Hopefuls at Station 4 in St. Paul on New Year's Eve

... please e-mail, or call this number: 651-430-2464. This is not my cell phone number. Do not call my cell phone, because it is in Indiana somewhere doing me no good. It is the number for my parent's house in Stillwater, where I am staying for the week.

Did I mention that Samantha is coming up to Minnesota?

Samantha is coming up to Minnesota. :) I have this inexplicable urge to squeal like a schoolgirl. It's embarrassing. But very nice.

Anyway! Call me! E-mail me! Let's do this thang!

If you're anything like me, you love signing your name. My signature at this point in my life has degraded from actually representing my name to being line art. Witness:

Signing things, like credit card receipts, always lends an air of authenticity. Apparently, though, I'm wrong. Check out one man's experiment. I was amazed and vaguely frightened.