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20041029
 
Kinda sick, but not of Fridays
Fridays are always good. Mmm, Friday. So good. This Friday's pretty nice. I'm going to take Monday off, just because. Three day weekend! Woo! I'll be all vacationed up, with my two sick days and one floating holiday. I actually have a few things I need to do on Monday, so taking off is the only real way to do it.

But this week has been full of flavor, and coughing, and even some nose-blowing. Oh, and quite a bit of something new that came out. Oh, it's enough to keep me occupied whilst I'm coughing and so forth. Even distracted. NOT a kids' game, this is for sure. It's built like a Spike Lee film, all starting in the 'hood. I'm worried I'm going to start cussing and speaking Ebonics after too much of this. It holds nothing back. And if you've seen any of the previous GTA 3 evolutions, this one just takes all of that and builds further on it, adding lots of little details (little details are good) and a few big ones, too. It's very well done, and the closest thing to an interactive movie I've seen yet. Although it's more like an interactive mini-series. A LOT of freedom to do what you like, be it riding your bicycle, lifting weights, playing basketball, popping a cap in somebody's behind, or going on a date. Yeah, there's a bit more of the cap popping involved, but who needs to focus on that?

And the flood of new titles begins. Yesterday was the release of the latest in the DOA series. I haven't actually played it yet, but I'll be getting my hands on it soon enough. From what I've heard, it's basically the designer's fulfillment of a wish to have all the DOA games on one system. This catches up, since the third installment was on the XBox, so he's released a package of the previous two, with a new game engine, graphics upgrades, and online capability. Too bad my XBox is retarded or I might be able to spank people's attempts at DOA skill all over the world. They are fortunate. For NOW.

Yeah, and a week from Tuesday is the BIG ONE. Halo 2, in case you've been living under a rock, and the rock didn't bother to let you know. Probably the biggest release since the PS2 craziness occurred. We're talking about campouts in front of stores, lines potentially hundreds of feet long, and all that that implies. I'm looking forward to this one quite a bit. Sadly, more for the single player, since I can't play online with a retarded XBox. But the story of the first one is one of the better sci-fi stories I've heard in a long time, and being part of it somehow makes it cooler. I have a feeling the sequel will do the same or better. Maybe I should have saved my vacation/sick days. Oh well!

And one week after that, it's Half-Life 2. This is one not as many people are excited about (probably because they're not sure it'll be released when they say it will), but I think that they SHOULD be. This one will r0x0r your s0x0r5. I think this one may parallel or perhaps eclipse Halo 2's storyline. It reminds me a bit of War of the Worlds (being re-released by two different directors, in two different countries, at the same time, which is soon) crossed with 1984. The only problem with this is that I don't have enough computer to do it. I need to upgrade the video card, and sadly, that's got to wait a bit longer. Oh, but it'll be good. I'll probably be spending part of Thanksgiving break shut away for a while, since I don't really have that much free time outside of work/kung fu.

Oooh, it's all good. So yeah, I'm still recovering from my sickness. I thought it was a sinus infection, and I went to the doctor yesterday to find out, YES, it's a sinus infection. So he gave me some prescription drugs and I should be good to go. It's even starting to seem like it's fading today. I did try cooking some good food Wednesday night, but in my sickness, I must have not been paying attention, because things didn't go so well. I was cooking hot dogs. Right there, you're probably thinking, "How bad can cooking hot dogs be?" Well, let me tell you. To begin with, I like my hot dogs in the oven, because it's closest to grilling them without having a grill. You pop that sucker on BROIL and you're good to go. Just make sure to watch them closely, because they'll cook fast. So I put a cookie sheet (a beat up one) to catch the grease. I guess there was something about these hot dogs (they're all beef, instead of chicken/cow/boot) that made the grease extra cookable. Because when I'd open the oven to check on them (actually it, I only did one at first), SMOKE would come out. I was a little concerned, because smoke in the apartment is not good. So I let it finish cooking, then I got prepared. Put myself into the proper ready stance, grabbed my tongs, put the oven fan on, and got psyched up. I pull the oven door open and grab the hot dog, pulling it out fast and then closing the door. Woosh! This made a few things happen. First, me pulling the hot dog out with such high velocity made some of the residing grease on it fling towards me. BROILed grease. Which landed a nice drop on my arm. So number one, I've burned myself nicely from a hot dog. I wipe that off and go to grab ice, when the second thing happens. Yes, the smoke alarms go off. Not just one, but ALL of them. It's like a little song. Maybe I should have grabbed a guitar and started recording. So I turn on some fans, and hope for the best that the sprinklers don't get excited. And they didn't, so that was good. But ooh, that hot dog was GOOD. Maybe it was from the effort it took to make it. So yeah, I made another one. I like hot dogs.

It's a scary weekend! Halloween weekend! I don't know what I'm doing for sure, although since Halloween's on Sunday, I'm very tempted to dress as Jimi Hendrix for choir. Maybe even take an electric guitar. But that's for later. Tonight I'm going to watch SAW, which fits into things for scaryness. There's the Freaker's Ball tomorrow (I think that's right) at Cain's, and I may go check that out. Who knows what the weekend will bring! Hopefully you'll have a good one. Time for random link! This something that can easily kill time, if you need to for whatever reason. And it's a little fun, too. At least I think so. See for yourself.

Comments:
1.you as hendrix would be cool. do it! =)

2.i hope you don't start speaking ebonics lol. although that would be hilarious.....

~!*court*!~
 
Ericus, Ericus!
About the hot dog incident, I just have three words: George Foremann Grill. Twenty bucks, easy plug-in, actual grilling. It's worth it!
Lizicus
P.S. I'm glad you're feeling better! Keep getting better!
 
Hey, there is nothing wrong with a rock. I happen to like living under it (since I know next to nothing about videogames). :) Sorry about the cooking...you'll get better. -A
 
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20041027
 
Bleah, being sick is sucky
Yeah, I'm sick. Sinus infection, again. I seem to get them on a regular basis, on the season change. Maybe influenced by allergies. Who knows. Sore throat, colorful snot, all that good stuff. So I'm home from work! It's okay, though, I have some Grand Theft Auto to keep me company. It's very good, although not for kids in a superlative way. Everything you'd imagine in a movie straight from the 'hood is here. Lots of cussing, drive-bys, that type of thing. At least at the beginning. It's done extraordinarily well, though, and they've probably got another major seller on their hands.

So it's that, some orange juice (with pulp, uck), and some leftover Bill & Ruth's. I think I'll be okay. That, and memories of recent kung fu. I went ahead and went last night, because doing exercise (especially kung fu) always makes me feel a little better. So last night was a standard class, for the most part. I helped a few people get through some points in their forms, made a couple of corrections, it was productive. Plus about fifteen minutes of conditioning with J.R., who loves his conditioning. I think he'll have a couple of really nice bruises, although my arms are pretty much normal today. I'll have to get back to conditioning with Justin, which is the best way for ANYone to get excellent bruises. So we had sparring afterwards, which turned out to be pretty fun. Although I pushed into one of the guys I fought a little harder than I should have. A ridge hand to the side of the head, and I think my thumb knuckle popped him in the temple, just inside his head gear. That has a tendency to happen when people turn towards the attack. So after that I aimed more for the back of his head, and it kept things a little more comfortable. For both of us. Then it was time to spar after class, with J.R., who seems to be masochistic. He got some decent shots on me, and I landed a few very nice hits on him, some of which he would smile at. There seem to be two types of people in sparring - there are the ones who get rather upset when they get hit in the face, and then there are the other ones, who simply smile. I'm on of the latter, as is J.R. It makes sparring fun! I do wonder what it makes the other person think sometimes, when they pop me in the face and my reaction is to smile.

I don't know if all that sparring was better or worse for my health, but I did feel a little better afterwards. But waking up this morning was a different matter. Yeah, I woke up with a torn up throat and a clogged nose and so forth. So I called in sick, and my boss didn't seem to think me calling in sick was a bad idea. Hopefully I'll be better in a day or two at the most.

And I think it's gone to my head, too - my blogspeak seems to be a little... different than usual. Normally I'm jovial and entertaining (at least to ME), but today I'm just kinda... duh. Yeah. Maybe more sleep. I think I shall. But I'll leave a random link. This is one that I found on someone else's blog, but it's definitely a qualifier for random link. It just seems like some people express their faith a little differently than others.

Comments:
What little respect (read: none) that I had for Kirk Cameron has been all washed away.

And you should be staying home and eating chicken soup! Oh yeah and see a doctor if it doesn't get better in 5 days.

-Seanicus
 
Huh, I had no idea Kirk C. was so "involved". I remember hearing on some VH1 special that he would refuse scripts on moral basis. Hope you feel better soon!

~Amyloo~
 
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20041024
 
Yes, busy weekend
I did, indeed, have a busy weekend. A busy GOOD weekend. Started on Friday with some kung fu, helping a few guys with their skills, and one to prepare for the tournament. Went pretty well. And after that, Sandra had come back in town, so we hung out for a bit. She hadn't seen the Shawshank Redemption yet, so that had to be remedied. She thought it was a good movie, which is good, because it IS a good movie. I do recommend it for anyone who has yet to see it. I still don't really get tired of watching it.

So then it was time for Saturday. And the tournament! Yes, it started in the morning (not too early, around 10:30 or so). About a mile from my place, so it wasn't too far away. We had a good showing for our academy. It started with some black belt events, so Justin competed in the solo forms competition, and I in the creative forms competition, with a sparring set (with Justin). Justin was first, and he did an excellent job, as always. He ended up tying with a karate guy, so they had to repeat the forms to determine the tie-breaker. Of course, the karate guy won, although his form was much shorter and MUCH less difficult. The problem was that every one of the judges knew his form, and none of them knew Justin's form. So they didn't really realize the difficulty differences. It's pretty standard fare for open tournaments, but just because we have to deal with it every time doesn't make it any easier. It IS frustrating to not be properly recognized. At least one of the judges came up afterwards and told Justin he thought his kata was better than the other guy's, so he judged him accordingly, but he was only one on the panel, and he could only do so much. Grr. Oh well, it happens. In my competition, Justin and I were the only ones competing, so we automatically won, but we went ahead and did the form. The judges all thought it was very good.

So the rest of our guys competed in a variety of competitions. In the forms competition, we had three guys enter for adult intermediate. There was something like six to eight guys total in their competition, and our students won first, second AND third. Yaaay! It made me feel very proud of all of them. We had other competitors that did quite well, including one six year old (about four feet tall) that is ferocious. His name is Robbie, and he annihilated the competitors in the forms competition. They all did the first set for karate/taekwondo, which is basically three moves, put into sets of two at a time, repeated four times each - basically about twelve moves or so. I put the slash in there because I think it might be the same form for both styles. That, and Robbie also took first in sparring, doing the final match against one other student of ours. It was close! It came to Robbie being down 9 to 7 in a best out of ten match. I guess he just found motivation or something, because he threw a flying side kick for his next point and kept it going at that rate until he won. It was great to watch.

And the final bit for forms was the grand champion competition. The first place winners from each category in adult black belt forms competed. Justin and I took the sparring set up for competition, and ended up performing it rather well. As it turns out, we were second to last, and the last was the karate guy who beat Justin. We lost to him by a tenth of a point. And we had a lot of people come up afterwards and tell us they thought we should have won. Even a couple who thought we HAD won, and were surprised when we told them otherwise. The grand champion prize was $300, alas. We did what we could, and that's all you can do sometimes.

Sparring was after all that, and I competed, although Justin did not (still recovering a bit from surgery). I still have issues with point sparring, since I'm used to taking a hit to move in and do more damage. Or grabbing kicks, which usually ends up getting the other guy a point. It happened AGAIN this time. I went up against a guy who had a lot of experience and very quick legs. I pretty much got spanked, although it wasn't a hand to the rear, but a foot to the face. Several times. I did get a nice reminder for it:
Yeah, it happens. I did take him down to the ground once and did a follow up attack, but I think he had already landed a kick (which is how I took him down - silly high kicks) that the judges counted. The thing that made me feel a little better about it is that he took the Grand Champion award in sparring, meaning he beat all other age/weight winners.

It turned out to be not too bad. Oh, and I did get this:
Competing as black belt can be good sometimes.

So that was the tournament. Later that night I hung out with a few kung fu guys, we watched some UFC and played Burnout 3, plus eating hot dogs and drinking Pepsi. A definite guys' night. Mmm, good. Oh, and one of them (Jason) had made a movie with his friends which we watched. Turned out to be pretty good! It was an action sort of movie, with plenty of gunfire and cussing. Fit very well into the guys' night.

So today it's been mainly sleeping and recovering, plus church. Which was quite good, good music tonight. Although I think I might be getting sick with a sinus infection. My throat was irritated during mass, so singing was a bit of a challenge. Thankfully my guitar doesn't seem to mind when my throat gets irritated, and keeps on doing what I ask it to do. Yay, guitar!

And now it's time for some mac and cheese. Always tasty, when done right. Hopefully I'll do it right. And watch Legend! It's one I haven't seen in FOREVER, and it's a Ridley Scott film, which means under the guise of a children's story, there's probably a lot of hidden adult themes. So while I watch that, you can watch this, to be educated for the random link (FYI, adult language and stuff). Now that you've seen that, check this random link out. Apparently if you're weird enough you can get contracted by major companies and make oodles of money. Mental note.


Comments:
Congrats on the trophies and the bruise! We all know how much you like your war injuries...;) -A
 
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20041022
 
Busy weekend
Yes, I have a busy weekend ahead of me. I have lots of kung fu! Go figure. Yeah, two hours tonight, and many hours tomorrow. See, there's this tournament at some sort of Champion's building on South Memorial. It's an open tournament, so all styles will be there. We'll be making a showing (hopefully a strong one) to compete. I'll be doing forms and sparring (silly point sparring, not any of the good continuous stuff), so we'll see how that turns out. I get nervous every time when I go to tournaments. Even though a lot of other people are really nervous because it's their first, or second, and I've been to a bazillion by now. Part of it is that I compete in black belt levels, so there's the whole competitive nature thing in me, wanting to be GOOD at what I do, possibly even the best. I think I have some time before I'll be the best, but I'm slowly making my way closer.

So yeah, kung fu lots this weekend. And I had some good kung fu last night! We started with a small class, but then two students showed up later, which made it a little more interesting. Standard class, for the most part, and sparring at the end. I got a lot of good sparring with Justin, with Sifu watching us and giving pointers on techniques and things I SHOULDN'T do. It was very educational. And I think I am definitely starting to give Justin a run for his money. He'll actually have to get better! Woah!

Work's been productive this week. And it's Friday, so a lot of people have already left. I'm considering it myself, since I've finished all my stuff for today. As my co-worker would say, I've really outdone myself. Yeah, I've done some updating of software on a few hundred machines, keeping a manual log of everything. So I'd say that's productive.

Oh I stayed up too late, too. Ever end up in one of those conversations, where you keep talking and forget that you NEED sleep? Yeah. I need sleep. Maybe naptime later. Or something. I need food, too! But I got food. Lots of it! I went to Albertson's and got some cereal and milk and Bomb Pops (ooh, Bomb Pops) and O.J. Dang O.J. I got was moderate pulp. I don't like pulp. I made a booboo when I grabbed it, and I'll be reminded every time I gulp down that pulpy juice. Bleah. It tastes good, but feels weird. Kinda like alcohol - maybe someday I'll know if that's right or not.

Yeah, so I have to get some rest tonight, hopefully, to be prepared for my tournament participation tomorrow. Should be fun! And I'm going to do training tonight. Yay! I got some extra bruises earlier this week, from exerting my frustrations in a conditioning exercise. Since I wasn't around the academy, I used the closest thing I could find - a tree. Yes, yours truly was smashing my arms against a tree, chipping a little bit of bark, and putting some nice marks on my arms. Turned out to be really therapeutic, actually. Although I wouldn't necessarily recommend it.

Anyway, I think I'll finish up here and get going with the weekend. Have a fun one, yourself! And I'll leave you with a random link. You've probably heard of this, but it goes to show that survival of the fittest is still applicable in some cases in today's world. Or at least survival of the not extremely stupid.

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20041019
 
A wee bit of time to kill
Well, maybe not kill, that's such a harsh word. But relinquish of all useful power. And spend it on blogging! So did you like my pictures? I had a few, yes. If you don't believe me, just scroll down. Foolish skeptics. It was fun times. Have to throw some more of those. By "those", I mean parties. Although I could see you thinking pies.

Pies? Why pies? I actually viewed many pies thrown not too long ago. About an hour ago, actually. Pies thrown at people's FACES. And several of them landing. Yes, it was an important meeting. Actually, it was for fund-raising, and some of my co-workers were voluntary victims. There was quite a bit of whipped cream flying. Maybe I'll see about finding some of THOSE pictures. Good stuff.

Not much else going on, except for some church and kung fu. What? Church and kung fu? If only I could find a way to combine the two... but that'll have to wait until another time. Yeah, church was good. I was in a good mood! Me, walking in with my fresh twelve strings. I actually had a few people smile at me as I walked in, and even one lovely lady give me a thumbs up. Now whether that was because she liked what I did in the choir or it was because I had my shirt tucked into my underwear, I'll never know. Hopefully the former. And the music turned out pretty good. I do love fresh strings.

So yeah, there was that, and then kung fu last night. Eventful! Lots of people, I got to lead a group of five guys through some techniques for most of class. Showing them how to properly block and get out of grabs, with appropriate counter-techniques. Plus a little bit of conditioning training. And it ended with more self-defense, some chin-na! I really like chin-na. Joint locking, that type of thing. New technique, and I figured out how to make it more effective, plus I figured out how to get out of it. Mmm, learning every day.

After that I had some fun with the guitar at home, and it was quite productive, which only a couple of you may know. But maybe I'll share it with the rest of you later, when I'm home. For now, it's time to wrap things up at work and get going! So here's a random link. This one's kind of cool. But it requires you to allow pop-ups for this site for it to work. But that's only if you use a COOL browser like Mozilla Firefox. In that case, just click on the blocked pop-up icon, and allow this site to view the curiosities.

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20041017
 
Stayin busy
Woo and I have lots to talk about. The weekend's not quite over, but I had a moment, so I thought I'd blog! See, it all started on Thursday. Thursday was time for kung fu, which is good stuff. So class progressed as it usually does, I got to work with one of the other newer students, helping him figure out the mechanics of how our stances work, and why they work. And then it was time to spar. Sifu was in a mood to have lots of sparring, I guess, because he brought up two of the newer guys to spar. They don't have gear yet, so Sifu gave them some basic pads to put on, kind of like giant gloves. They're big and blue and have a big foam tip about four inches thick. They cover your whole forearm. I think they both had a lot of fun, and did fairly well for their first time. So it was practice for everyone, then point matches. It began with me and Justin. We had lots of people watching, so hopefully we made it look good. I think we did. It was pretty tight. He hasn't sparred a lot since his surgery, so he's still a little out of it. Ha ha! Too bad! I took advantage, and soon the match was tied, 2 to 2, out of 3 points. So we collide, some attacks thrown and blocked on either side, and then he pulls me close and throws a knee into my chest. It would have been great, but knees aren't allowed in tournament style sparring, so Sifu disqualifies him. And I win! My first real victory against sihing, even if it wasn't a clean victory. But it's a start.

And then after that it was movie night at my pad for a few friends. I hadn't had a chance to break in my copy of the Shawshank Redemption yet, so we viewed it. Two people who had seen it came, and one who hadn't. The two who had both confirmed what I thought they might - they said it was one of (if not the top) their favorite movies EVER. And Courtney, who hadn't seen it, said she understood why we thought she should see it after viewing it. It's a slow movie, and quite serious, but ooh is it good. After that it was time for some Burnout 3, which is always good stuff. Speed and metal! And lack of sleep! Yeah, I was up a little too late.

But Friday is Friday, so it wasn't TOO crazy at work, even though it was quite busy. Got some stuff done, went to a webinar for some anti-spyware stuff, all good. And then went to get some more kung fu in, where I got to talk to both Justins about fun things involving kung fu. Indeed, excellent stuff. After that, time with a friend just hanging, playing some Donkey Konga and watching a BAD movie. It was still fun. Oh, and seeing my sister's new car, which she is quite excited about. A Honda, of course, and actually quite nice. She had to step in on some Donkey Konga, attempting to take down the owner of the game (me) with her supposed marching band rhythm skills. Ha! Maybe next time, Marni.

Saturday was kind of a lazy day, got a few things done (finally restrung the guitar), and ended it excellently. See, this guy named Monte Montgomery came to town. To Cain's, to be specific. Yes, it was smokey with weird smells, but once he took stage, it didn't matter. I tried to get many people to go, but sadly, since they hadn't seen him, they had no idea what they were going to miss. And miss it they did! He's incredible. He gives the best live show I've ever seen (this was my second time), and he's the best guitarist I've personally viewed. I'd rank him up there with any of the greats, seriously. Managed to get a standing position close to the stage, about TEN FEET away from him. My friend Josh was there, had his friend's camera (dangit why'd I forget mine) and got some excellent pictures. When I get some, I'll have to post them. There was a slight ruckus at the intermission with Josh and another guy about positions close to stage, but security came and took care of stuff, and thankfully Josh came back. Afterwards we hang around to say hello to him. I got one of his albums I don't have yet (The Story of Love), got him to sign the disc, sign my ticket, AND got a picture of me and him. Woo! Turned out to be a great night.

So today was more kung fu (go figure), for the instructor students. Had a productive meeting, followed by some good training. I helped one of the senior students with his form, he helped me with mine. People helping people - can't we all do that? It makes things easier. I think I have half of my new sparring set learned, though. Should be cool.

Ah, and for some extra fun, being as I am home at the moment, I'll give you some pictures from the birthday party! Forgive me for any you find that you don't like (most likely if YOU are in it). Here you go!

Ah, Adam and Lerin. Looking lovely.

My man Carlos. Imbibing from the drink of champions.

Christina, looking suave.

My friend Courtney and her brother! Staying cool.

Jordan, probably wondering why I'm taking his picture.

A big man at Newman, Steve! Well, a TALL man.

My friend Seanicus! And his fiancee, Liz. Both looking a little lost. But somehow still looking good.

The cake that Adam and Lerin were super kind enough to give to me. And it was red velvet, too.

Oh, there was Karaoke. Fred (in the back, there) DID sing, and somehow I missed that photo op.

People got into it, lots of fun.

Yes, even I got a bit into it. You can see me with my glasses and facial hair experiment here.

So yes, those are the pictures. It was a fun time. I did miss out on taking pics of the DDR and Donkey Konga action. Same on me for missing excellent photo opportunities! But there you go. As for the beard action... what do you guys think? It's been an experiment, but I'm wondering if I should keep it or not. Let me know what you think of it. Yay or nay?

Okay, that's a super long blog. And I now need to get ready, eat some food, clean up from my kung fu madness, and get holy. With fresh strings! Woo! So I'll leave you with a random link. A bit of an artistic random link. This impressed me quite a bit, it probably took a lot of work.


Comments:
HOLY CRAP! You mean Sean and Liz showed up after I left?? Man, totally bad timing on my part!

And hey, that pic of me didn't turn out too bad... if it wasn't for the redeye, I'd be pretty happy with it.
hehe.

- Christina
 
Ericus,
You are SO in trouble for that horrible picture of us! That's why I didn't want you to take one--I knew I looked like that (Sean doesn't look so bad)!
GRRRR! :-)
Lizicus
 
the beard, definitely.
 
hoooooooooooly crap that was a bad movie. i think it should become a tradition, to see super bad movies with me then we make fun of them...or not. i'm so glad i got that for free.
~!*court*!~
 
Well, it might be warmer for winter. And the beard could make an appearance every ONCE in a while...but as for a permanent thing, no way.
 
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20041014
 
Eating is important
Eating IS important. Sadly, I don't have the spare fundage to get something lovely for lunch. Which means, most likely, searching the vending machines for something edible. But I will eat something. Maybe save a little bit to get some Bill and Ruth's later. Bill and Ruth's is very good stuff!

Yeah, I haven't posted pictures yet. Apologies, and so forth. I find myself blogging during lunch at work, so I don't really have access to these so-called pictures here. I'll have to do it some other time, although I still will put up a couple. The good ones, at least. Well, they're ALL good, but maybe the more entertaining ones.

I haven't been able to restring my guitar yet, so practice last night was done with only ten strings, yet again. It's frustrating, let me tell you. At least it's not a six string - four strings out of six isn't quite the same. It's almost like playing a banjo. Sort of. Oh! Speaking of, the best strings out there apparently make string for things like the banjo and mandolin. Isn't that funny? I'll have to find time to restring the twelve, though. And yeah, it takes time. Hopefully they'll last a little longer this time. I guess I shouldn't be TOO crazy when I play.

Kung fu this week has been pretty good. Some of the new students make it worthwhile. When you see someone get really excited when they learn a new technique, it makes it quite rewarding. There's one student in particular that asks a TON of questions, which I think is very cool. And he'll watch someone perform a full form, and then comment, "That's beautiful," with a look of wonder in his eyes. I think he'll do well. Maybe it helps that he's got the same name as my sihing. But he's built like me. He goes crazy on the conditioning and pushing through stances and techniques. He'll probably be one to watch out for when he gets to sparring.

Well, I should actually go find some of this food I've been speaking of. And maybe attempt to eat it. Maybe some more mac 'n' cheese tonight. I like mac 'n' cheese. But for you, now I have a random link! Yes, this is very random. I like it for a variety of reasons, but I'll just say the "tool" involved in the latter half is one that I approve of. Check it out for yourself.

Update: GRRR the machine ate my money. Oh, IT got to eat, but apparently I don't. That makes me unhappy, since I don't have sufficient cash to get any other food item. Bleah. Maybe the karma will swing the other way later today.

Comments:
*bill and ruth's IS very good.

*vending machines like to eat money, haven't you heard?

*"i have mad kung fu skills" ::jumps over controller cord:: hehe.
~!*courtface*!~
 
Woa- yea-- that was random. hmmm.
~Amy~
 
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20041012
 
I'm sleepy and must blog
Yeah, I'm sleepy. I think I tend to get sleepy when I stress about stuff. I stress too much. Because I'm sleepy a lot. At the moment, a few things of stress on my plate. Worrying about silly things. Like one, miscalculating my payments so I actually have less than $10 left for the week. My dinner last night was reheated fries from lunch (which was donated). Kind of sad. It's okay. Free lunch today, and I probably have some ramen available for dinner. Yay!

The weekend was an interesting journey. You ever have one of those days you think is going to turn out one way, and then turns out completely differently? Yeah, Friday was one of those days. Just a slow night, really, including kung fu, where I was the instructor of the evening and NOBODY showed up. At least I got some practice in.

Saturday was a little better, though. The Bish Bash! Time with the Bishop and some Catholic crazy youth people. Found out about an engagement (which happened that day) and a major breakup (which happened the day before). And the Bishop gave some nice words of wisdom, as well as free dinner, which was scrumptious. And party time afterwards, which was laid back, but kind of cool. Although I forgot a stick of butter there. That sounds like some sort of analogy, doesn't it? It isn't. I really forgot a stick of butter at the party. Made my mac 'n' cheese go on delay for a day. But I got some more butter on Sunday. And all was good.

Yeah, Sunday. The mac 'n' cheese was good. But church - well, it was probably the worst choir experience yet. Started with another string breaking during practice before we started. My heavy D string. So adjustment of the guitar, but it still didn't sound quite right. Then we start, and for the first song, I somehow skip verse 2 completely. So I finish and think we're done. Lo and behold, I stop, and everyone else is still going. When the guitar cuts out suddenly it is VERY noticeable. Yeah, worst booboo I've made in probably four years. The rest of it wasn't too bad, although I still kind of wish my guitar had had at least one more string. It'll be a ten-string for a little bit longer. Maybe restring it tonight.

And yesterday. Eh, Mondays. I don't like Mondays that much. It could have gone better, and I wish it had. But that's how things go. Since it's no longer Monday, I'm going to move onward. Onward and upward! And twirling, ever twirling!

I've actually been kind of productive today. Got some stuff done, got free lunch at Newman (and met a few new people), been good. So I'm back to the grind. Why is it called a grind? Do most people feel like they're peeling parts of themselves away as they work? Or are sparks flying? What's up? At any rate, time for random linking. I don't have anything huge. Just something rather random, as it should be. Maybe those of you who used to watch cartoons might appreciate it.

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20041007
 
Omigoodness I have to blog
Well, I WAS blogging. And then AIM Express sort of bombed on me, killing IE completely. If I didn't have to use IE, I wouldn't. Sadly, I have to. Anyway, I had put two very nice paragraphs about things. And how I like blogging. And about party pictures, and how I will post some when I get a chance (from home). Let me know if you were there and don't want your picture up, for some silly reason.

From there, my second paragraph was all about how I have been busy lately. Like yesterday! I was gone ALL day long. From work in the morning until eleven at night. Busy can be good, though. I can hang out with all sorts of people. And that's when living alone is very nice. I finish my day and then head back home, and can relax in peace. Without worrying about potential conflicts from roommates, or that type of thing. Anyone who's ever had a roommate knows what I'm talking about. Although the bad thing about being really busy lately is that I haven't had time to work on my music! Which I really want to do. Maybe over the weekend a bit. Who knows. Since I don't have any homework (yay!) I might be able to.

So I've noticed lately a lot of people I know in relationships have been going through some rough times. A least two VERY major relationships I know of have ceased. I myself went through a breakup. I have a theory I came up with a few years back - I really think there's some sort of seasonal relationship-affecting vibe. It seems like there's a moment right around the start of fall where a lot of relationships take hits. I guess the way people respond to those hits determines how well things will work out. I think when spring arrives, the opposite thing happens. That time when a young man's fancy turns to love! Sadly, if you said that nowadays, you'd probably get a response of "What's a young man's fancy? That sounds dirty." Even more sadly, I could see myself saying that. I think it's spring where things are good, but it's winter when things stop being so bad. Probably people being used to the weather change, and then realizing when it's cold it's nice to have someone around. A good reason I think explains the massive number of birthdays in September.

Ah, but now I need to get back to work. Things to do! Oh, one other thing - I went to pick up some food for lunch, and whilst I was at it, I picked up the new version of the Shawshank Redemption. An excellent movie. One you most likely would enjoy very much IF you're a normal person. It was my roommate's favorite movie.

So now, it's time for a random link! Something in the theme of music. Sort of. Just make sure you click on the links, if it seems to have paused for you. Once you do - ooh, well, enjoy.

Comments:
post my picture! i know i had my 'dumb' face on that night so i'm not scared of how the photos turned out. i hope they inspire people to laugh. =)
~!*court*!~
 
I think you're right about the relationship thing. However, I've heard that in the spring, everything is newly growing and turning green, and people are more upbeat, positive, and hopeful. And more likely to express their feelings/desires, which turn into relationships. Then comes summer, with all of the "summer flings" that are "sooo much fun". :) Then we head into fall, which causes summer flings to end, but also because it's turning colder, and everything is dying again, so do relationships. That's what I've heard anyway. Just my $0.02.

-A
 
please don't post any pictures of me....you know who i am (:
 
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20041004
 
Na na... na na NA na na na na... Katamari Damacy
Yes, I'm hooked. A game that is splendid. It's unique in a very superlative sense. It is... Katamari Damacy. (There are a few other reviews, too.) I was hooked from the moment it loaded. The opening sequence is awesome. The gameplay is addictive, the music is better than most music albums out, and it's only $20. I think this is one of those games that is released in limited supply, not many people purchase, and then disappears. After which people realize how good it is, and too bad! It's already gone. It comes with my recommendation. What is it, exactly? Rather hard to explain. To really give a full impression, I can't do it justice in words - you'd have to play - but I can give a basic rundown. Remember making snowmen when you were a kid? Or maybe last winter? You start, make a snowball, and roll it around, gathering more and more snow. It ends up getting really big. Maybe HUGE. And there's something satisfying about it. Well, imagine rolling a ball up like that, only not of snow. But of ANYTHING. And you have Katamari Damacy. The graphics aren't great, but the music is, as well as the sense of joy in just having a singular mission. Very basic, very easy to do, and extremely satisfying. You should try it out.

Anyway. Yeah, so I've had the theme song stuck in my head for a few days now. I got it on Friday. I must say, though - Thursday was my birthday, and both Thursday and Friday were excellent days. Friday turned out pretty fun! For all the people who didn't manage to come to my gathering, it was rather enjoyable. A fairly large gathering of people showed, and we had people meeting, talking, an excellent bit of red velvet cake (thanks again, guys!), and a bit of party games. Karaoke was involved. A certain person named Fred gave his shot at karaoke, and somehow broke into laughter in the middle of it. I think everyone that was there will now remember Fred, without a doubt. Karaoke was fun (Karaoke Revolution 2!), and then more musical efforts were poured into Donkey Konga. With four sets of bongos! There's nothing like watching four people all pounding on bongos to make a song. It was pretty funny, and I have to say quite entertaining. We all traded around the bongos, and it turned out pretty good. And as the night came to a close, it ended with a bit of DDRMAX2. With TWO dance pads. (Thanks, Marni!) So there was quite a bit of two player versus sorts of things going on, as well as a few tries at single player two-pad dancing. I gave it a shot, it's pretty cool. Trying to cross back and forth in rhythm. Kung fu helps.

So yeah, the party turned out nicely, it was a lot of fun. Thanks to everyone who came! You made my day. The rest of the weekend was spent a bit leisurely, except for a bit of manual labor I put in to help my mom doing some soil turnover (don't know what the technical garden terminology is) in the backyard so she could plant some grass seed. It was hard work! I did that, and Sandra was in town, so we got to hang a bit and get some Golden Gate, as well as going to church on Sunday. Speaking of which, the choir director had a little gathering at her place for the choir for food, and that was pretty good stuff. Lots of food, and a lot of people. Fun times. And Sunday I actually took a break from choir for the first time in several years. It was kind of weird being on the other side. And it sounded different without any guitars, although I don't really know what it sounds like WITH guitars from the other side, so I can't qualify that remark completely.

Now it's back to the grind, working (or trying to), hoping I don't get too sleepy. I was really sleepy this morning, I think it was partly the big weekend, partly the manual labor thing. Maybe naptime later today. I think for kung fu we have pictures tonight. I need to decide whether or not to shave. Maybe not - I shouldn't be TOO pretty if I'm trying to look tough. At any rate, I think I just have to look a little pretty, then I can come back and go to bed early. Which would be a good thing. Yes.

Time for random link! This may pre-date some of you, but I seem to remember a cartoon based on a toy, in which there were epic battles between American soliders and some bad guys. Did you ever wonder what the life of some of those bad guys was like? Well, wonder no more.

Comments:
Awe, I missed out on Fred singing?! And what- no bday pics on the blog?!
~Amy
 
Here's something you may have already seen, but it'll make a great random link: http://www.mega64.com/

Enjoy!

**Seanicus**
 
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as of 10/23/03

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