It's funny how something like a video game can incite extreme emotions in me. I have this uncanny knack to give up 3-run homeruns in baseball games. I never give up grand slams, two-run, or solo shots. Always 3-run. Usually it's with my closer in and I lose. Never been able to explain it, but it makes me punch walls and turn the game off. IT'S A VIDEO GAME!!!!! I didn't punch stuff when we lost games in high school! Well, once, but it was because I fouled out on a bad call.
Well, anyways, I bring this up because yesterday I spent most of the day entering in correct names for the major teams in ESPN College Basketball 2K5. I named every team in the ACC, Big East, Big 10, Big 12, C-USA, Pac-10 and SEC. That's like 80 teams of about 13 players each. I don't have a calculator, but that's like 1040 players (ok I had a calculator.) Everyone knows it's more fun to play those games when the announcers use their names rather than just a number. Well I was finally ready to play, when I went to load my updated rosters and accidentally saved over it with the computer generated names. So instead of Duke having players like JJ Redick, Daniel Ewing, and Shavlik Randolph, they had Phil Arbet, Keyon McKenzie and Armondo Ariza. It was too late to undo it. So now I have to go back through and rename everyone. There were more than a few choice words used.
Tonight is New Years Eve. Not exactly a major holiday. But you know the saying that the way you ring in the new year sets the tone for the entire year? Actually, I don't know if that's a saying, but it sounds good. Anyways, Rachel convinced me to do the "First Run" up in Portland tonight. It's a 5K race starting at Midnight. So I'm gonna spend the first 45 minutes of the new year running. It's gonna be mid 30's and probably raining. And I'm going running. My goal is to run the whole thing, but as I'm not in shape at all, I'll be surprised if I even make it 2 miles. Yay.
I've realized something over the past week....not having a job sucks. I always thought just hanging around the house all day playing video games and watching tv would be great, but it's not. In college it was ok, because there was always a friend or two that didn't have class to hang out with...or if I was really bored I could go to class. But now it's just me. I'm fighting the urge to go to the boys and girls club and hang out in the afternoon just to have something to do. I know that if I do that, they're going to start counting on me to show up and be there more and more, and that's not what I want to do. I definitely want to have a job before I go back in there to visit so I can say, sorry I can't, I've got a job. Sadly, I haven't got so much as a call back for the 8 or 9 jobs I've applied for in the past weeks. I'm hoping they're all waiting til after the holidays to call people back. Guess we'll find out next week. Geez, I need something to do for Pete's sake.
Pete's sake? Who is Pete anyways? I always assumed it referred to Saint Peter, but I don't see any logical reason that it would be him. Wouldn't this be a great link on the MSN homepage? I bet it'd get quite a few clicks. If it said "For Pete's Sake? Find out who Pete is...." I'd click on that bad boy like whoa. Alright I'm out. If you're going to be in the Portland area tonight, please don't drink and drive. I don't want you hitting me while I'm running.
Friday, December 31, 2004
Sunday, December 26, 2004
Christmas remix
Well Christmas 2004 is in the books. And what a Christmas it was. For the most part, I avoided the 3 year curse. I alluded to this curse in an earlier post and now I will explain it for those not in the know.
It all started Christmas 1995. My dad had just purchased a 1995 Mustang Convertible. Coolest thing that could happen to a 16 year old boy. Being the great dad that he is, he let me borrow it to show off to my mom's side of the family. So Grant and I are driving back to mom's house about 12:30 in the morning on Christmas Day. Being that there's nobody on the road and I'm an idiot, I decided to see what it was like to drive 100 mph. I thought it was cool, the cop didn't. He tried to say I was going at least 120, which was bullshit. I told him that I never went over 100, he said 'you callin me a liar? You wanna spend Christmas in jail? That'd be a nice stocking stuffer for your parents.' Real pleasant chap. Thus the curse began.
Christmas 1998: I'm home from school and doing some running around town. Driving Brown Sugar and I roll through a red light on a right hand turn. Nothing major, cop pulls me over. Real pleasant guy, just wants to run my ID then he's gonna let me go. Turns out that due to a misunderstanding between me, the DMV, and my dad, my license has been suspended. Been that way for a year and a half. Who knew? So the truck's gotta be towed, and I have to call my dad to pick me up. It was pouring and the cop offered to let me sit in his car while I waited. I tried to get in the front seat, and apparently that's not cool. So I had to get in the back. Well the rain is really bad, so I shut the door. Pretty soon, here comes my dad. I go to get out of the car, and this is when I realize that you can't open cop doors from the inside. Dad blows a fuse, thinks I'm being hauled to jail and reads the cop the riot act. It was really hilarious to see a cop being intimidated. We finally got dad calmed down, and I was set free. My license was revoked (which proved to be an issue at the party I went to a few days later) and I was given tickets for driving uninsured, driving while suspended and something else I think. Fines came to $500 bucks. I was able to plead my case and court and get it reduced to $90. Then on Christmas eve, Grant beats me in every video and board game in the house and gloats about it. Not only did he win, he dominated me. Never seen anyone get that many 7's in a row in tiddly winks.
Christmas 2001: Just finished classes, happy to be heading home. On the drive home, the temperature gague malfunctions and I have no clue that the car is overheating until it's too late. Melted a few pistons, collapsed the radiator. Engine is worthless......total for a new engine somewhere in the $6500 dollar range.
So that's the curse.....only minor things happened this year...flights delayed a little bit and a pounding headache that made me think I had a brain bleed on Christmas, but that's about it.
Other highlights from the holiday:
*Stupid brother Christmas gift Exchange was a success yet again. I received a VHS cassette of "The Little Polar Bear" from Grant and ankle weights from Colin. I think it was a lighthearted poke at my weight, but that's alright. Grant got a jumbo checkers set from me and night vision goggles from Colin. these weren't fabulous night vision goggles, these were like from the Spy Kids line and basically they were a pair of glasses with flashlights hooked to the sides. Hilarious. Colin got a fish nightlight that was described on the box as a "Seabed underwater light move" or something ridiculous like that. I dont' remember what Grant got him. We inducted Skip with a "male nurse action figure that came with the tag line "doctors prescribe, nurses provide." I'm sure he'll come up with something good next year.
It all started Christmas 1995. My dad had just purchased a 1995 Mustang Convertible. Coolest thing that could happen to a 16 year old boy. Being the great dad that he is, he let me borrow it to show off to my mom's side of the family. So Grant and I are driving back to mom's house about 12:30 in the morning on Christmas Day. Being that there's nobody on the road and I'm an idiot, I decided to see what it was like to drive 100 mph. I thought it was cool, the cop didn't. He tried to say I was going at least 120, which was bullshit. I told him that I never went over 100, he said 'you callin me a liar? You wanna spend Christmas in jail? That'd be a nice stocking stuffer for your parents.' Real pleasant chap. Thus the curse began.
Christmas 1998: I'm home from school and doing some running around town. Driving Brown Sugar and I roll through a red light on a right hand turn. Nothing major, cop pulls me over. Real pleasant guy, just wants to run my ID then he's gonna let me go. Turns out that due to a misunderstanding between me, the DMV, and my dad, my license has been suspended. Been that way for a year and a half. Who knew? So the truck's gotta be towed, and I have to call my dad to pick me up. It was pouring and the cop offered to let me sit in his car while I waited. I tried to get in the front seat, and apparently that's not cool. So I had to get in the back. Well the rain is really bad, so I shut the door. Pretty soon, here comes my dad. I go to get out of the car, and this is when I realize that you can't open cop doors from the inside. Dad blows a fuse, thinks I'm being hauled to jail and reads the cop the riot act. It was really hilarious to see a cop being intimidated. We finally got dad calmed down, and I was set free. My license was revoked (which proved to be an issue at the party I went to a few days later) and I was given tickets for driving uninsured, driving while suspended and something else I think. Fines came to $500 bucks. I was able to plead my case and court and get it reduced to $90. Then on Christmas eve, Grant beats me in every video and board game in the house and gloats about it. Not only did he win, he dominated me. Never seen anyone get that many 7's in a row in tiddly winks.
Christmas 2001: Just finished classes, happy to be heading home. On the drive home, the temperature gague malfunctions and I have no clue that the car is overheating until it's too late. Melted a few pistons, collapsed the radiator. Engine is worthless......total for a new engine somewhere in the $6500 dollar range.
So that's the curse.....only minor things happened this year...flights delayed a little bit and a pounding headache that made me think I had a brain bleed on Christmas, but that's about it.
Other highlights from the holiday:
*Stupid brother Christmas gift Exchange was a success yet again. I received a VHS cassette of "The Little Polar Bear" from Grant and ankle weights from Colin. I think it was a lighthearted poke at my weight, but that's alright. Grant got a jumbo checkers set from me and night vision goggles from Colin. these weren't fabulous night vision goggles, these were like from the Spy Kids line and basically they were a pair of glasses with flashlights hooked to the sides. Hilarious. Colin got a fish nightlight that was described on the box as a "Seabed underwater light move" or something ridiculous like that. I dont' remember what Grant got him. We inducted Skip with a "male nurse action figure that came with the tag line "doctors prescribe, nurses provide." I'm sure he'll come up with something good next year.
Thursday, December 23, 2004
Merry Christmas everybody, take a picture everybody
I've now been in Wisconsin for a week. A few observations:
*Regardless of where my plane is going or who is sitting in front of me, they will ALWAYS lean their seat as far back as possible as soon as the announcement is made by the captain. This never fails. Pisses me off.
*They need to reduce the size of carry-on luggage. I know that you paranoid people out there are going "I'll never check my bags, they might get lost." I've flown quite a bit over the course of my life, never lost my bag. Neither has anyone else I've known. Hear me out on this one. It takes like 30 minutes for the people in the back of the plane to get off once the plane has pulled up to the gate. This is because everyone has 2 carry-on bags, and they cram them into the overhead bins and it takes the tall strong guy in seat 8A to get it out. This slows down everyone. Then the process is repeated for every passenger. This is also the reason I was standing in the little tunnel to the plane in Minnesota for 10 minutes when we were boarding. Those tunnels aren't heated people! It was 15 degrees. We're all standing there while people block the aisle trying to cram their carry-ons into the bins. My rule is that if you have wheels on your carry-on because it's too heavy to CARRY...it's not a carry-on. People should only get one carry-on.
*To the lady who decided to put frozen bagels and christmas greens in her nylon carry-on bag so it dripped all over Rachel and me, I hate you. You didn't even apologize. You are a bitch. Why you froze bagels for a cross country flight to New York is beyond me. Why you put tree clippings in with the bagels is simply outside the grasp of my understanding. Are there no bagels or trees in New York? I thought that New York was like the bagel and tree capitol of the world! Again: Lady you suck.
*Everyone goes to church in Wisconsin. Very unlike Oregon.
*Roughly 20% of the church going population wears Green Bay Packer gear to church. I would not have believed it unless I saw it. Actually, I was one of the 20%. We were going to a Packer party right after church and as such wore our "Sunday Best" to St. John's Catholic Church in Muscoda (pronounced Mus-co-day). I was told that I wouldn't be allowed in the house without some Packer gear on, so as an early christmas present, Rachel's mom bought me a Packer shirt...very nice.
*It takes less than 10 minutes for piping hot chocolate in a thermos to get cold in sub zero temperatures while grilling burgers in the driveway. I know. I tested it.
*The Three Year Christmas Curse is back. I've already been trounced at dominoes (twice) a game called Shuttles, and Battleship. And I broke the Persinger's garage door. I'll write more about the Three Year Christmas Curse later, when I have more time.
*They eat well in Wisconsin. Very well.
*As I've had a high speed internet connection for the past 4 years, I've often wondered if it was really necessary, if I was wasting a bunch of money I didn't need to, especially since I don't download music anymore. Let me tell you, a week of dial-up here has convinced me that it's well worth the $40 a month.
*The 48 inch HDTV that the Persingers have is AWESOME. I watched most of a crappy football game the other day just because it was in HD. Very cool.
*Snow isn't as fun when it's so cold that you can't pack it.
*Snowplows are a valuable asset to any cold weather community.
That's it for now.....Merry Christmas to each and every one of you!
*Regardless of where my plane is going or who is sitting in front of me, they will ALWAYS lean their seat as far back as possible as soon as the announcement is made by the captain. This never fails. Pisses me off.
*They need to reduce the size of carry-on luggage. I know that you paranoid people out there are going "I'll never check my bags, they might get lost." I've flown quite a bit over the course of my life, never lost my bag. Neither has anyone else I've known. Hear me out on this one. It takes like 30 minutes for the people in the back of the plane to get off once the plane has pulled up to the gate. This is because everyone has 2 carry-on bags, and they cram them into the overhead bins and it takes the tall strong guy in seat 8A to get it out. This slows down everyone. Then the process is repeated for every passenger. This is also the reason I was standing in the little tunnel to the plane in Minnesota for 10 minutes when we were boarding. Those tunnels aren't heated people! It was 15 degrees. We're all standing there while people block the aisle trying to cram their carry-ons into the bins. My rule is that if you have wheels on your carry-on because it's too heavy to CARRY...it's not a carry-on. People should only get one carry-on.
*To the lady who decided to put frozen bagels and christmas greens in her nylon carry-on bag so it dripped all over Rachel and me, I hate you. You didn't even apologize. You are a bitch. Why you froze bagels for a cross country flight to New York is beyond me. Why you put tree clippings in with the bagels is simply outside the grasp of my understanding. Are there no bagels or trees in New York? I thought that New York was like the bagel and tree capitol of the world! Again: Lady you suck.
*Everyone goes to church in Wisconsin. Very unlike Oregon.
*Roughly 20% of the church going population wears Green Bay Packer gear to church. I would not have believed it unless I saw it. Actually, I was one of the 20%. We were going to a Packer party right after church and as such wore our "Sunday Best" to St. John's Catholic Church in Muscoda (pronounced Mus-co-day). I was told that I wouldn't be allowed in the house without some Packer gear on, so as an early christmas present, Rachel's mom bought me a Packer shirt...very nice.
*It takes less than 10 minutes for piping hot chocolate in a thermos to get cold in sub zero temperatures while grilling burgers in the driveway. I know. I tested it.
*The Three Year Christmas Curse is back. I've already been trounced at dominoes (twice) a game called Shuttles, and Battleship. And I broke the Persinger's garage door. I'll write more about the Three Year Christmas Curse later, when I have more time.
*They eat well in Wisconsin. Very well.
*As I've had a high speed internet connection for the past 4 years, I've often wondered if it was really necessary, if I was wasting a bunch of money I didn't need to, especially since I don't download music anymore. Let me tell you, a week of dial-up here has convinced me that it's well worth the $40 a month.
*The 48 inch HDTV that the Persingers have is AWESOME. I watched most of a crappy football game the other day just because it was in HD. Very cool.
*Snow isn't as fun when it's so cold that you can't pack it.
*Snowplows are a valuable asset to any cold weather community.
That's it for now.....Merry Christmas to each and every one of you!
Thursday, December 16, 2004
Are you kidding me?
Just checked the weather forecast for Wisconsin. Here's what it says about Sunday: "Windy and cold. Highs around 8. Wind chills of -10 to -20 degrees." Are you serious? A high of 8? That's like 55 degrees COLDER than it was in Corvallis yesterday. And supposedly we're gonna BBQ that day for the Packers game. How do you even light a fire when it's 8? Doesn't the flame freeze to the match? This is insane. I don't even think people can survive when it's 8. That's a SINGLE DIGIT! I think I will spend a majority of my time trying to convince Rachel's parents to move to like Florida or Hawaii or something. Eight!
Wednesday, December 15, 2004
Now it's time to say goodbye,
Not for good don't worry. Just for now. I'm heading to Wisconsin tomorrow, so this will most likely be my last post for a while. I saw the low there last night was 18 degrees. And people willing live there?
Spending Christmas away from home for the first time. When you get into a routine for 24 straight years and then you decide to do something different, it's a little strange. I'm sure I'll have a great time with Rachel's family, but I'm wondering if Christmas Eve when we're doing things the way they do things if I'm going to get a little sad. I guess we'll find out. And while I think Grant's overreacting a little bit about XMas being moved from Corvallis to Portland for us this year, I do understand his point. It's just not going to be the same. Especially since Mom and Skip replaced all the carpet downstairs with wood flooring. I'm sure it'll look great, but I've always been a carpet guy. You can't wrestle with the dog on a wood floor, or lay down and watch a movie. Plus it's colder on your feet. Not cool. But hey, it's their house, and I still love 'em.
There's been talk of Rachel and I hosting a New Year's Eve party here. Not sure what the likelihood of that happening is, but just the idea that it might be happening is exciting. We don't do much entertaining here. A couple times we had people here on Saturdays for football games, but I usually had to leave to work and didn't get to hang out. Only other time we have people over is when Sammy and Nicole come over to watch The OC. Even if the party is kind of lame and we just listen to some Christmas CD's and drink Pepsi and make small talk with my cousins and whoever else shows up, it'll be good times.
Ok off to work for one more day, then two weeks of freedom. I like it. If I don't talk to y'all, have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
Spending Christmas away from home for the first time. When you get into a routine for 24 straight years and then you decide to do something different, it's a little strange. I'm sure I'll have a great time with Rachel's family, but I'm wondering if Christmas Eve when we're doing things the way they do things if I'm going to get a little sad. I guess we'll find out. And while I think Grant's overreacting a little bit about XMas being moved from Corvallis to Portland for us this year, I do understand his point. It's just not going to be the same. Especially since Mom and Skip replaced all the carpet downstairs with wood flooring. I'm sure it'll look great, but I've always been a carpet guy. You can't wrestle with the dog on a wood floor, or lay down and watch a movie. Plus it's colder on your feet. Not cool. But hey, it's their house, and I still love 'em.
There's been talk of Rachel and I hosting a New Year's Eve party here. Not sure what the likelihood of that happening is, but just the idea that it might be happening is exciting. We don't do much entertaining here. A couple times we had people here on Saturdays for football games, but I usually had to leave to work and didn't get to hang out. Only other time we have people over is when Sammy and Nicole come over to watch The OC. Even if the party is kind of lame and we just listen to some Christmas CD's and drink Pepsi and make small talk with my cousins and whoever else shows up, it'll be good times.
Ok off to work for one more day, then two weeks of freedom. I like it. If I don't talk to y'all, have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
Tuesday, December 14, 2004
Early bird gets done up the butt
Are you kidding me? I wake up at 8:30, feelin good. Well rested, I went to bed fairly early. No work today, great. Can't beat that. So I decide to get some stuff done. I've gotta run to the bank to get some quarters to do some laundry. I debated with putting laundry off for a while and working on job applications, but then I realized I could start the laundry and do the job apps and be done with everything by 11:30 or so. So off I go. Hop in the truck and I'm gone. The truck is in some pretty bad shape. If you asked me what was wrong with it, I'd say everything. It's sprung a couple leaks, the ignition switch is tricky, one door doesn't open, there's holes in the floorboards.....it's a wreck. Xzibit really needs to pimp it. I don't need a full size rollerskating rink in the back or an ATM machine in the dash, but it could use some paint and a new interior. Anyways.....the truck is also low on gas. Remembering the last time I let it run out I ended up getting two parking tickets, I figured I better get some gas. However, because of the one way grid downtown, I'm playing tetris trying to maneuver Brown Sugar around downtown to get to the gas station and have the truck pointing towards the bank when I'm done. I failed, thanks to a Jeep Cherokee that was blocking two gas pumps. Asshole. So then I have to go away from the bank before I can go back towards the bank. Yay. I finally get to the bank, and find out it's not open until 10! 10 am! Do people not have banking needs before 10? Is there any logical reason for this? I figured it might be just US Bank, but no, Wells Fargo is the same way. So now I've got 40 minutes until 10 am. So I can either chill downtown for 40 minutes in a sweatshirt and shorts, or I can go home, sit around for half an hour, then drive back. Neither option sounds good. So....laundry is gonna have to wait for a while. Ridiculous. I don't think I can explain on paper how absurd not opening banks until 10 is. Banks should probably have hours from 7-10 in the morning, 11-2 for lunch breaks, then 4-7 so people can hit the bank on the way home. I know this will never happen, but good god.
In other news, I dreamed I was on a road trip with JR's mom. That was scary. She kept making us stop at every convenience store. After 3 days, we still hadn't made it out of Idaho. But then I got arrested and thrown in jail. I can't even remember why. But in jail, no matter what I did, escape situations kept presenting themselves. I'm chained to this one guy, but he picks the lock and my chains fall off. So I'm thrown in the shower to sleep for the night. The showers run all night, so I'm freezing and wet and mad. So I bang on the door.....and it pops open. And I can see across the courtyard into all the cells, and they're all telling me to run, but then a guard would come, and they'd all yell "stop!" Quite funny actually. Imagine an entire cell block yelling go and waving their arms like a third base coach, only to simultaneously hold their hands up and yell "STOP!" If anyone's ever laughed during their sleep, I probably did it last night. So anyways, I'm just about to walk out the door, when the warden walks in and says "I'm leaving my guard dog to watch you." And this dog has a head like a horse. It's huge. Like "The Beast" in the Sandlot. Only not the real dog, the dog in Squints' story. Able to eat people whole, has to sleep in a warehouse. Could give Clifford a run for his money in a fight. But he's a nice dog....in fact, has a thorn in his paw. So I take the thorn out, and the dog starts talking to me! He's all "Thank you my friend. Now you must escape. Once you get out the door go twelve paces east and take the storm drain to freedom. I'll lead the warden astray. Go!" Why is it that talking animals are always very articulate with voices like James Earl Jones or Sean Connery? Or is that just my dreams. Anyways, I escaped, but when I tried to hitchike back home, the lady decided she was going to adopt me and then sell me into slavery. I was a little confused, but this was her plan. So I tried to jump out of the car and tuck and roll to safety, but I don't know if I made it. I woke up mid jump.
In other news, I dreamed I was on a road trip with JR's mom. That was scary. She kept making us stop at every convenience store. After 3 days, we still hadn't made it out of Idaho. But then I got arrested and thrown in jail. I can't even remember why. But in jail, no matter what I did, escape situations kept presenting themselves. I'm chained to this one guy, but he picks the lock and my chains fall off. So I'm thrown in the shower to sleep for the night. The showers run all night, so I'm freezing and wet and mad. So I bang on the door.....and it pops open. And I can see across the courtyard into all the cells, and they're all telling me to run, but then a guard would come, and they'd all yell "stop!" Quite funny actually. Imagine an entire cell block yelling go and waving their arms like a third base coach, only to simultaneously hold their hands up and yell "STOP!" If anyone's ever laughed during their sleep, I probably did it last night. So anyways, I'm just about to walk out the door, when the warden walks in and says "I'm leaving my guard dog to watch you." And this dog has a head like a horse. It's huge. Like "The Beast" in the Sandlot. Only not the real dog, the dog in Squints' story. Able to eat people whole, has to sleep in a warehouse. Could give Clifford a run for his money in a fight. But he's a nice dog....in fact, has a thorn in his paw. So I take the thorn out, and the dog starts talking to me! He's all "Thank you my friend. Now you must escape. Once you get out the door go twelve paces east and take the storm drain to freedom. I'll lead the warden astray. Go!" Why is it that talking animals are always very articulate with voices like James Earl Jones or Sean Connery? Or is that just my dreams. Anyways, I escaped, but when I tried to hitchike back home, the lady decided she was going to adopt me and then sell me into slavery. I was a little confused, but this was her plan. So I tried to jump out of the car and tuck and roll to safety, but I don't know if I made it. I woke up mid jump.
Monday, December 13, 2004
Why Me?
Told you there'd be a few more posts today. I just got a call from a guy who never received his tickets in the mail for a game last week. He's just calling now about this mind you. He ordered a 7 game package and he's calling a week after the first game to see where his tickets are. Apparently, because he ordered less than two weeks prior to the first game, his seats were put at will call. He was under the impression that they would be mailed, a valid assumption. But the tickets don't show up the day before the game, and he still doesn't call. The game passes and he doesn't call. A week later, he complains that he never got his tickets and wants a refund. Now, even though this whole situation seems ridiculous to me and you should never be refunded after the fact, I could still let him get away with this and not blast him on Livejournal. But....this genius lives in town! It would've taken him 10 minutes to drive over here and check and see if his tickets were here. He knew they were paid for from his credit card statement (he told me as much). There's no way he cared about going to that first game. Yet he wants a refund for them. So, in the nicest I possibly could, I asked if there was a reason he didn't call prior to the Colorado game to check on his tickets. He gets mad at me and says "that's not the issue. The issue is I didn't get my tickets on time." So I have to bite my tongue and give this guy free tickets to an upcoming game. This is why anyone who deals with customer service should be paid well and given as much time off as they request. Absolutely insane. I'm in shock that this guy just got away with this.
And another thing.....
I'm sorry, I don't feel I gave the Kobe vs. Karl thing enough comment last night. I was rushed because I wanted to see the start of Desperate Housewives. I'm going to go through my thoughts on the three people involved....Karl, Kobe, and Mrs. Bryant.
Karl: He's gotta be pissed. I mean, let's recap the last two years of this guys life. He finishes his like 16th season with the Jazz. Only team he's ever played for, and he is the unquestioned all time greatest player in franchise history. So of course, they choose not to re-sign him. So now he's gotta find a new place to play. He gets a call from Gary Payton, who is also looking for a place to play. They both decide to take HUGE paycuts to pay for the Lakers. They made around 10 percent of their salaries the year before. That would be like me getting 71 cents an hour next year to work for the Beavers. That is amazing. All in hopes of winning a championship. Then Kobe, one of the guys he's signed to play with, goes all teenager (surprise!) and cheats on his wife and gets in legal trouble over it. So now there's this cloud. Then....he gets hurt for the first time in his career. Now he's gotta watch games for the first time ever. Then the team self destructs and flops in the finals. So then Shaq and Payton gets traded, Phil Jackson is let go, and it's made completely evident that the new name of the team is the Los Angeles Kobe Bryant's. So then him and Kobe get in this pissing match through the media. Man he's gotta wish he just retired two years ago as the greatest power forward of all time. Now he's the guy who hunts mexican girls. Good one.
Kobe: Dude, grow up. You just threw a temper tantrum so big that you caused FOUR HALL OF FAMERS TO LEAVE THE ORGANIZATION!!! And he expects to win at the same clip he has been? C'mon man. I don't think anyone's been on that big of a power trip ever. What's even more ridiculous is that the owner bought into this. I honestly don't think that Kobe will win another championship with the Lakers. My guess is pulls an A-Rod and gets upset with a situation he created and finds a way out of it. He'll go to a team with (surprise!) a few other legitimate superstars and wins a few more championships. Also, by being the most famous adulterer in the world at the moment, I think he's given up all right to be mad at anyone else for inappropriate comments. This is a guy who admitted to cheating on his wife. That was basically his defense against A RAPE CHARGE. Real stand up guy. You deserve everything you get right now. The losses, the unhappy gold digging wife, the upset teammates, the fan backlash. All of it. You suck.
Mrs. Vanessa Bryant: First off, she's like 20 and I'm calling her Mrs. That's whack in and of itself. Secondly, as much as I hate to admit it, she may be the smartest person in this whole situation. Nobody would know her name had she not married the koab-ster. To borrow a line from Sir Mix-a-lot, she found herself a "big buff dumbass fool with hella money." So now she's rich, never has to go to college and can live off her husband's money for life. I could be wrong about this....but I'm thinking love probably wasn't the deciding factor in her decision to marry Kobe. Just a guess. So now, her husband who she doesn't love cheats on her. Humiliates her by making her sit on stage while he admits to cheating on her. Who has all the power in this relationship now? Kobe can't dump her, he'd be ostracized. So he buys her a $4 million "i'm sorry" gift. And apparently it worked cause she didn't divorce him. Call me crazy, but if my rich wife was charged with raping a towel boy on vacation, then admitted to consensual sex with him, I'd probably get a divorce. It's pretty clear he wasn't thinking about her while he was in this situation. But she probably signed a pre-nup and realized she'd be losing the life she loves. But she also knows that Kobe's now her bitch. So she flirts with Karl. She says 'hey cowboy, what ya huntin?' This is why I hate saing she's the smartest person in the situation. What do cowboys hunt? Cows? Who hunts cows? Malone wasn't wearing a coonskin cap carrying a bear trap. The Mailman was not wearing a bright orange vest and sitting in a tree stand in Wisconsin. He didn't even have a fishing pole (fishing could be considered hunting by some people I guess.) He's wearing a cowboy hat. Amazing. It's a blantant friendly flirting, like saying "hey beautiful, lookin good!" to a close friend of the opposite sex. So when he responds with a comment equally flirtateous (and retarded), that's to be expected right? Well, not if the spotlight on your life is starting to dim. She could've shrugged it off, but instead, she tells Kobe, then probably makes him defend her honor. This is brilliant. Not only does she keep herself in the spotlight, but she gets to boss Kobe around. For someone so dumb, she's pretty smart.
In other news, I'm writing this at work, so you can imagine how busy it is today. I've got to work the game tonight, so it's going to be a loooong day. Might be another post or two before the day is done, so stay posted.
Karl: He's gotta be pissed. I mean, let's recap the last two years of this guys life. He finishes his like 16th season with the Jazz. Only team he's ever played for, and he is the unquestioned all time greatest player in franchise history. So of course, they choose not to re-sign him. So now he's gotta find a new place to play. He gets a call from Gary Payton, who is also looking for a place to play. They both decide to take HUGE paycuts to pay for the Lakers. They made around 10 percent of their salaries the year before. That would be like me getting 71 cents an hour next year to work for the Beavers. That is amazing. All in hopes of winning a championship. Then Kobe, one of the guys he's signed to play with, goes all teenager (surprise!) and cheats on his wife and gets in legal trouble over it. So now there's this cloud. Then....he gets hurt for the first time in his career. Now he's gotta watch games for the first time ever. Then the team self destructs and flops in the finals. So then Shaq and Payton gets traded, Phil Jackson is let go, and it's made completely evident that the new name of the team is the Los Angeles Kobe Bryant's. So then him and Kobe get in this pissing match through the media. Man he's gotta wish he just retired two years ago as the greatest power forward of all time. Now he's the guy who hunts mexican girls. Good one.
Kobe: Dude, grow up. You just threw a temper tantrum so big that you caused FOUR HALL OF FAMERS TO LEAVE THE ORGANIZATION!!! And he expects to win at the same clip he has been? C'mon man. I don't think anyone's been on that big of a power trip ever. What's even more ridiculous is that the owner bought into this. I honestly don't think that Kobe will win another championship with the Lakers. My guess is pulls an A-Rod and gets upset with a situation he created and finds a way out of it. He'll go to a team with (surprise!) a few other legitimate superstars and wins a few more championships. Also, by being the most famous adulterer in the world at the moment, I think he's given up all right to be mad at anyone else for inappropriate comments. This is a guy who admitted to cheating on his wife. That was basically his defense against A RAPE CHARGE. Real stand up guy. You deserve everything you get right now. The losses, the unhappy gold digging wife, the upset teammates, the fan backlash. All of it. You suck.
Mrs. Vanessa Bryant: First off, she's like 20 and I'm calling her Mrs. That's whack in and of itself. Secondly, as much as I hate to admit it, she may be the smartest person in this whole situation. Nobody would know her name had she not married the koab-ster. To borrow a line from Sir Mix-a-lot, she found herself a "big buff dumbass fool with hella money." So now she's rich, never has to go to college and can live off her husband's money for life. I could be wrong about this....but I'm thinking love probably wasn't the deciding factor in her decision to marry Kobe. Just a guess. So now, her husband who she doesn't love cheats on her. Humiliates her by making her sit on stage while he admits to cheating on her. Who has all the power in this relationship now? Kobe can't dump her, he'd be ostracized. So he buys her a $4 million "i'm sorry" gift. And apparently it worked cause she didn't divorce him. Call me crazy, but if my rich wife was charged with raping a towel boy on vacation, then admitted to consensual sex with him, I'd probably get a divorce. It's pretty clear he wasn't thinking about her while he was in this situation. But she probably signed a pre-nup and realized she'd be losing the life she loves. But she also knows that Kobe's now her bitch. So she flirts with Karl. She says 'hey cowboy, what ya huntin?' This is why I hate saing she's the smartest person in the situation. What do cowboys hunt? Cows? Who hunts cows? Malone wasn't wearing a coonskin cap carrying a bear trap. The Mailman was not wearing a bright orange vest and sitting in a tree stand in Wisconsin. He didn't even have a fishing pole (fishing could be considered hunting by some people I guess.) He's wearing a cowboy hat. Amazing. It's a blantant friendly flirting, like saying "hey beautiful, lookin good!" to a close friend of the opposite sex. So when he responds with a comment equally flirtateous (and retarded), that's to be expected right? Well, not if the spotlight on your life is starting to dim. She could've shrugged it off, but instead, she tells Kobe, then probably makes him defend her honor. This is brilliant. Not only does she keep herself in the spotlight, but she gets to boss Kobe around. For someone so dumb, she's pretty smart.
In other news, I'm writing this at work, so you can imagine how busy it is today. I've got to work the game tonight, so it's going to be a loooong day. Might be another post or two before the day is done, so stay posted.
Sunday, December 12, 2004
I'm a-huntin' Mexicans!
For those of you who aren't caught up in the Karl vs. Kobe feud going on, now's a great time to be caught up. If this doesn't scream high school, I don't know what does.
According to a story on ESPN, Kobe says that Malone made a pass at his wife during a recent Lakers game. The Los Angeles Times reported that Kobe's wife asked Karl (who was wearing cowboy boots and a hat) "hey cowboy, what ya hunting?" Karl apparently replied "Little Mexican girls." Are you serious? Who says that? I can't wait 'til Shaq gets asked about this and says that Kobe's wife made a pass at him. Kobe's gotta get all swoll about this thing and challege Karl to a gunfight or something. Maybe they can do it at high noon on the Sunset Strip or something. This is exhibit A for going to college. Grow up a little bit will ya? This cheeseball gets millions before he's old enough to drink, then cheats on his wife and thinks a ring will make it all better. Granted, it's a $4 million purple diamond or whatever, but c'mon. The best part is, apparently it did make it all better. This makes me think his wife is gold digging. In which case, her flirting with another millionaire doesn't surprise me in the least. Kobe needs to check his boo. He's angry at her, but knows he can't say anything about her cause he's still thought of as a cheater. So he's got to attack Karl Malone. I'd really like to see those two in a fight. That's like Mike Tyson versus an 8th grader. Lights out Mr. Bryant. I've provided a link to the story below.
It's time for Desperate Housewives. I'm out.
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=1944994
According to a story on ESPN, Kobe says that Malone made a pass at his wife during a recent Lakers game. The Los Angeles Times reported that Kobe's wife asked Karl (who was wearing cowboy boots and a hat) "hey cowboy, what ya hunting?" Karl apparently replied "Little Mexican girls." Are you serious? Who says that? I can't wait 'til Shaq gets asked about this and says that Kobe's wife made a pass at him. Kobe's gotta get all swoll about this thing and challege Karl to a gunfight or something. Maybe they can do it at high noon on the Sunset Strip or something. This is exhibit A for going to college. Grow up a little bit will ya? This cheeseball gets millions before he's old enough to drink, then cheats on his wife and thinks a ring will make it all better. Granted, it's a $4 million purple diamond or whatever, but c'mon. The best part is, apparently it did make it all better. This makes me think his wife is gold digging. In which case, her flirting with another millionaire doesn't surprise me in the least. Kobe needs to check his boo. He's angry at her, but knows he can't say anything about her cause he's still thought of as a cheater. So he's got to attack Karl Malone. I'd really like to see those two in a fight. That's like Mike Tyson versus an 8th grader. Lights out Mr. Bryant. I've provided a link to the story below.
It's time for Desperate Housewives. I'm out.
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=1944994
Saturday, December 11, 2004
Basking in the afterglow
Thank you to everyone who congratulated me on graduating......This is more for you than me. I mean that seriously. Everyone wants to tell me how great it is that I've graduated and how proud they are of me. I don't think it's an accomplishment to take twice as long to do something as is normal. I feel a sense of relief more than a sense of accomplishment. Woo ha.
Wilsonville High School is on its way to the first football state title in the school's 9 year history history. They sure have come a long way since that first game when we lost 73-7 or whatever it was. 23-7 at the start of the 4th quarter. I probably should be there, but I'm ok with watching it on tv.
Everytime I watch a state championship game in any sport, I get all bitter that I never made it to a state tournament in anything. Little league we probably should've won state with the pitching we had, but we just got unlucky. Plus we had an evil genius coach who though running the basebaths with reckless abandon was the best way to go. Ran us right out of the district tourney. Then my senior year of high school we came within one game of the state tourney in both basketball and baseball. Basketball we were highly favored and nobody showed up. We lost 48-34 or something. Our leading scorer was 0-9 from the field and I ended up scoring half our points. That was probably the most frustrated I've ever been in my life. I felt like I was the only one who gave a crap and was trying to win. Cried a lot that night. In baseball, we were kind of underdogs and made it all the way to the state qualifying game before losing when Derek's grand slam attempt was caught at the wall. About 3 feet from the state tournament. That's the breaks sometimes.
Last night was a bit interesting. Rachel and I tried to go see Ocean's 12, but the theater was pretty packed. We were both kind of tired and decided to just head home. We get home, and Joel calls and invites us up to Portland to watch Ocean's 12 at 11:40 pm with Alexis and him. By this time, I've kind of got my second wind and it sounds kinda fun. Rachel was tired and didn't want to go. It really made no sense to drive all the way to Portland to go see this movie, but it sounded to me like the kind of thing I'd have done a few years ago. Just not think about consequences or situations, just do what sounds good. So I agreed to go. Rach was kind of disappointed in my decision and rightly so. I had to borrow her car cause the truck would never make it, plus she's been helping me out with rent and bills for the last month while I finish up and look for a job. So to me, it was a tank of gas.....to her, it was $20 that I could've used for rent or bills. When she explained why she was disappointed, I realized that I don't just have myself to think about anymore. I know I've been with her for a year and a half, but sometimes I forget that stuff still. And it really made me think. Maybe I'm not the person I thought I was. Maybe I'm not a good boyfriend. I wrote about how "me-centered" my world is, and it's true. I tend to think about how situations will affect me before I think about how they'll affect anyone else. Sometimes I don't even get to the other people, and make up my mind based on my situation. Bad Andy. I'm going to have to work on this going into the future.
On a lighter subject, Joel gave me all his MP3's to put on my computer. I lost all of mine when I wiped out my hard drive last year, and it was great to get some of these songs again. I was getting sick of listening to the same 2Pac and Counting Crows songs over and over. Now I've got over 1,000 songs of joy again. Remember the days of Napster and KaZaa in its heyday when you could download music for free and without fear of legal action? Those really were the days. I don't know if we'll ever realize how incredibly lucky we were to be college students during those few years.
Wilsonville High School is on its way to the first football state title in the school's 9 year history history. They sure have come a long way since that first game when we lost 73-7 or whatever it was. 23-7 at the start of the 4th quarter. I probably should be there, but I'm ok with watching it on tv.
Everytime I watch a state championship game in any sport, I get all bitter that I never made it to a state tournament in anything. Little league we probably should've won state with the pitching we had, but we just got unlucky. Plus we had an evil genius coach who though running the basebaths with reckless abandon was the best way to go. Ran us right out of the district tourney. Then my senior year of high school we came within one game of the state tourney in both basketball and baseball. Basketball we were highly favored and nobody showed up. We lost 48-34 or something. Our leading scorer was 0-9 from the field and I ended up scoring half our points. That was probably the most frustrated I've ever been in my life. I felt like I was the only one who gave a crap and was trying to win. Cried a lot that night. In baseball, we were kind of underdogs and made it all the way to the state qualifying game before losing when Derek's grand slam attempt was caught at the wall. About 3 feet from the state tournament. That's the breaks sometimes.
Last night was a bit interesting. Rachel and I tried to go see Ocean's 12, but the theater was pretty packed. We were both kind of tired and decided to just head home. We get home, and Joel calls and invites us up to Portland to watch Ocean's 12 at 11:40 pm with Alexis and him. By this time, I've kind of got my second wind and it sounds kinda fun. Rachel was tired and didn't want to go. It really made no sense to drive all the way to Portland to go see this movie, but it sounded to me like the kind of thing I'd have done a few years ago. Just not think about consequences or situations, just do what sounds good. So I agreed to go. Rach was kind of disappointed in my decision and rightly so. I had to borrow her car cause the truck would never make it, plus she's been helping me out with rent and bills for the last month while I finish up and look for a job. So to me, it was a tank of gas.....to her, it was $20 that I could've used for rent or bills. When she explained why she was disappointed, I realized that I don't just have myself to think about anymore. I know I've been with her for a year and a half, but sometimes I forget that stuff still. And it really made me think. Maybe I'm not the person I thought I was. Maybe I'm not a good boyfriend. I wrote about how "me-centered" my world is, and it's true. I tend to think about how situations will affect me before I think about how they'll affect anyone else. Sometimes I don't even get to the other people, and make up my mind based on my situation. Bad Andy. I'm going to have to work on this going into the future.
On a lighter subject, Joel gave me all his MP3's to put on my computer. I lost all of mine when I wiped out my hard drive last year, and it was great to get some of these songs again. I was getting sick of listening to the same 2Pac and Counting Crows songs over and over. Now I've got over 1,000 songs of joy again. Remember the days of Napster and KaZaa in its heyday when you could download music for free and without fear of legal action? Those really were the days. I don't know if we'll ever realize how incredibly lucky we were to be college students during those few years.
Friday, December 10, 2004
It's the end of the world as we know it
Despite all my best efforts, it happened.
I graduated from college.
Seven years, three months.
One frat, one house, two dorms and three apartments.
12 different roommates.
4 different majors.
I've been in Corvallis longer than most restaurants.
You'd think I'd be happy to be done. I am. But there's a part of me that knows I'll never have it as good as I've had it these past 7 years again. If my life were a tv show, there'd be a montage of my greatest moments playing to Green Day's "Time of your Life" right now. Rushing the field after OSU ended the losing streak. Watching Dave eat shit on Ralph Miller Court during a contest during a volleyball match. Partying it up at the villa. Trips to the beach, bowl games, and Colorado. Playing hoops at Dixon. The Jankies. "I got a little bit of ID."
There's a few people I'd like to thank:
My Parents for continuing to fund the farce that was my academic career
All the people that told me not to drop out cause I'd regret it
Dominic Nicandri and David Crow for making me laugh so hard I hurt
Steve Cooney and Joel Fowlks for always listening to my ridiculous thoughts.
Anna Weinman for hooking me up with a job in the Athletic Department
JR Janes for just being a true thug and having my back no matter what.
The entire Chi Omega sorority for...well they know.
Sue Kamman for reminding me that there's people like me out there.
Shari's Restaurant for always being open.
My brother Grant for reminding me that it's ok to goof off and still find time to get work done.
Garth Appanaitis for watching every World Cup game with me regardless of time or location.
Colin and Erin for claiming me as a brother in spite of my ridiculousness.
The rest of my family for always supporting me.
Finally, Rachel for righting my ship and getting me back on course. And for loving me too. And for paying for stuff while I'm trying to find for a job. For putting up with me and me-centered world. For all you do. I love you.
And a special thanks to everyone else that I met during college. I'm sure I never would've ended up who or where I am without you.
One last thought.....can I now go to reunions for the classes of '01, '02, '03, '04 and '05?
I graduated from college.
Seven years, three months.
One frat, one house, two dorms and three apartments.
12 different roommates.
4 different majors.
I've been in Corvallis longer than most restaurants.
You'd think I'd be happy to be done. I am. But there's a part of me that knows I'll never have it as good as I've had it these past 7 years again. If my life were a tv show, there'd be a montage of my greatest moments playing to Green Day's "Time of your Life" right now. Rushing the field after OSU ended the losing streak. Watching Dave eat shit on Ralph Miller Court during a contest during a volleyball match. Partying it up at the villa. Trips to the beach, bowl games, and Colorado. Playing hoops at Dixon. The Jankies. "I got a little bit of ID."
There's a few people I'd like to thank:
My Parents for continuing to fund the farce that was my academic career
All the people that told me not to drop out cause I'd regret it
Dominic Nicandri and David Crow for making me laugh so hard I hurt
Steve Cooney and Joel Fowlks for always listening to my ridiculous thoughts.
Anna Weinman for hooking me up with a job in the Athletic Department
JR Janes for just being a true thug and having my back no matter what.
The entire Chi Omega sorority for...well they know.
Sue Kamman for reminding me that there's people like me out there.
Shari's Restaurant for always being open.
My brother Grant for reminding me that it's ok to goof off and still find time to get work done.
Garth Appanaitis for watching every World Cup game with me regardless of time or location.
Colin and Erin for claiming me as a brother in spite of my ridiculousness.
The rest of my family for always supporting me.
Finally, Rachel for righting my ship and getting me back on course. And for loving me too. And for paying for stuff while I'm trying to find for a job. For putting up with me and me-centered world. For all you do. I love you.
And a special thanks to everyone else that I met during college. I'm sure I never would've ended up who or where I am without you.
One last thought.....can I now go to reunions for the classes of '01, '02, '03, '04 and '05?
Wednesday, December 8, 2004
Just one of 'dem days
I guess I should preface this entry by saying this one is more for me than you the reader. It's not terribly exciting, funny, or even good. Just some stuff I wanted to externalize. So it won't hurt my feelings if you guys skip over this one.
Right now it's about 11:41. I had pizza and pop for dinner. Last time I put this combo together, I was up til almost 4 contemplating the rest of my life. Tonight's not that bad, but it is nearing midnight and I'm not really that tired. I am however, bored. Rachel had a rough day at work and called it a night early. Can't really say that I blame her. She puts up with a lot of crap at her job. I wish there was more I could do to make her feel better. I've always felt that one of my talents was the ability to make people feel better when they're bummed out. I know I at least made her feel a little better, but being the heroic boyfriend that I am, I want to solve her problems in one conversation. When you reach the limits of your talent and it still doesn't feel like enough, that's frustrating. I've always felt that when I really buckle down and give something my best shot, I can do it as good or better than most people. Call it ego, call it confidence, call it whatever. And when I give something my best shot and it falls short of my own expectations, that's a tough pill to swallow.
Still bored. I keep hoping that if I stretch this post out long enough, Joel will log on. C'mon Doggy, I'm counting on you. Some of the more enjoyable and meaningful conversations I have are with Joel in the wee hours of the morning online. Bizarre I know, that I have better conversations with my best friend online than I do in person, but that just seems to be how it goes. Probably because it's the one time neither of us are concerned with image or anything, we can just kind of free flow.
Officially, I have one more day of work at the ticket office and one more day of interning at the boys and girls club. I'm gonna help out at the ticket office over the break, and I'll be working some basketball games, but really tomorrow's my last regularly scheduled work day. I have mixed feelings about my time at the ticket office. On one hand, it was a great experience for me. I learned a lot, got some work experience, and met some great people. On the other hand, I felt sometimes unfairly singled out and underappreciated. People say that the only time you are noticed is when you screw up. I never really noticed that before this job. And my biggest beef with that office is the fact that the full time staff would frequently say things were going to happen and never follow through on them. I had to bring up the filing system at 3 consecutive meetings before any action was taken. Keep in mind that we only meet once every 3 weeks. We were told on more than one occasion that we would be implementing a "student employee of the month" competition and nothing ever came of that. I know that on more than one occasion I asked for more responsibility and was never given any. Grrr.
Well 20 minutes later and still no Joel. Guess I'll play a little snood or eavesdrop on other people's livejournals before I head up to bed.
Right now it's about 11:41. I had pizza and pop for dinner. Last time I put this combo together, I was up til almost 4 contemplating the rest of my life. Tonight's not that bad, but it is nearing midnight and I'm not really that tired. I am however, bored. Rachel had a rough day at work and called it a night early. Can't really say that I blame her. She puts up with a lot of crap at her job. I wish there was more I could do to make her feel better. I've always felt that one of my talents was the ability to make people feel better when they're bummed out. I know I at least made her feel a little better, but being the heroic boyfriend that I am, I want to solve her problems in one conversation. When you reach the limits of your talent and it still doesn't feel like enough, that's frustrating. I've always felt that when I really buckle down and give something my best shot, I can do it as good or better than most people. Call it ego, call it confidence, call it whatever. And when I give something my best shot and it falls short of my own expectations, that's a tough pill to swallow.
Still bored. I keep hoping that if I stretch this post out long enough, Joel will log on. C'mon Doggy, I'm counting on you. Some of the more enjoyable and meaningful conversations I have are with Joel in the wee hours of the morning online. Bizarre I know, that I have better conversations with my best friend online than I do in person, but that just seems to be how it goes. Probably because it's the one time neither of us are concerned with image or anything, we can just kind of free flow.
Officially, I have one more day of work at the ticket office and one more day of interning at the boys and girls club. I'm gonna help out at the ticket office over the break, and I'll be working some basketball games, but really tomorrow's my last regularly scheduled work day. I have mixed feelings about my time at the ticket office. On one hand, it was a great experience for me. I learned a lot, got some work experience, and met some great people. On the other hand, I felt sometimes unfairly singled out and underappreciated. People say that the only time you are noticed is when you screw up. I never really noticed that before this job. And my biggest beef with that office is the fact that the full time staff would frequently say things were going to happen and never follow through on them. I had to bring up the filing system at 3 consecutive meetings before any action was taken. Keep in mind that we only meet once every 3 weeks. We were told on more than one occasion that we would be implementing a "student employee of the month" competition and nothing ever came of that. I know that on more than one occasion I asked for more responsibility and was never given any. Grrr.
Well 20 minutes later and still no Joel. Guess I'll play a little snood or eavesdrop on other people's livejournals before I head up to bed.
And another thing.....
what is with livejournal? "your password cannot be based on a real word." How are you supposed to come up with a password that isn't based on a real word? I'll bet the FBI has an easier login on their computers. And how are you supposed to remember a password that's really just a jumble of letters and numbers. I'd imagine most people went with some combination of their initials and birthdate (aside from Joel, who probably used some obscure baseball statistic). My point is....if the whole idea is secrecy, using your initials and birthdate as a password isn't exactly a tough nut to crack. You don't need John Nash or Stephen Hawking to break that code.
Oh and if you're in the central willamette valley, you might want to check out KEZI Channel 9 news tonight at 11. They had a camera crew filming us at the ticket office today. It's hard to do work with a camera literally 3 feet from my face. I'm sitting there trying to look busy and important and ignore the camera, but you try it. The whole time I'm thinking about just looking at the camera and going "Yeah Beavs! #1!" or "I need a job, please call 753-7275 and ask for Andy." And the whole time I kept thinking people were going to be watching tonight going "Jesus, that guy looks like he's in his mid 20's and he's already going gray? Taking bowl applications must be rough." That made me laugh to myself, hope they don't get that on the air. All for now, I'm off the club.
Oh and if you're in the central willamette valley, you might want to check out KEZI Channel 9 news tonight at 11. They had a camera crew filming us at the ticket office today. It's hard to do work with a camera literally 3 feet from my face. I'm sitting there trying to look busy and important and ignore the camera, but you try it. The whole time I'm thinking about just looking at the camera and going "Yeah Beavs! #1!" or "I need a job, please call 753-7275 and ask for Andy." And the whole time I kept thinking people were going to be watching tonight going "Jesus, that guy looks like he's in his mid 20's and he's already going gray? Taking bowl applications must be rough." That made me laugh to myself, hope they don't get that on the air. All for now, I'm off the club.
Tuesday, December 7, 2004
Fear Factor's Freakin' Fabulous
I'm pretty sure last night's fear factor was the best episode ever. Anytime you have a girl with a tattoo of a topless chick on her back, you know you're in for some entertainment.
Oh but this wasn't a nameless topless chick...this was Angelina Jolie. Sort of. She had apparently got the tattoo-ist to "morph" her face and angelina's face together. So this was like the bastard lesbian love child of herself and Angelina Jolie on her back. Somewhere, Billy Bob Thornton is pissed. Well after she failed miserably, she was walking off and said "I know I did terribly, but I don't think this affected my chances of meeting Angelina someday." Are you serious? Let me put it this way...if I had a tattoo of my face morphed together with George Clooney, do you think he'd want to meet me? He'd probably want to have me killed or something. This chick was clearly insane.
The next treat was the stunt they had to do. The goal was to get three presents and carry them across the room and place them under the tree. The catch? Killer Attack Dogs! Each present they got, they released a ferocious dog. The last present was accompanied by a mammoth 140 killing machine named Curly. If dogs wore belts, he'd have the heavyweight championship belt around his waist. Baddest dog on the planet, hands down. He manhandled the guys, who were both over 200 pounds. Then it was the girl's turn. Curly hit her square, and she went down. Didn't even try and pick the package up again. Curly had her pinned on the ground and looked determined to rip her arm off. She tried playing dead, but this dog was possessed. The hilarious thing was that between contestants, Curly would just lie there with a pleased look on his face, like he was enjoying this immensely. Hilarious. Sadly, the second girl was so terrified of Curly that she willed herself to a victory in two packages, meaning she didn't have to face Curly. The first words out of her mouth after getting the second package under the tree were "No Curly, right?" Joy for her, pain for the rest of us.
Work was fine...most people I talked to were happy today. It's great to work in sales when people come to you, rather than you having to go to them. Everyone that calls wants beavers tickets...makes it easier. I love my job with the athletic department, and I'm actually very sad that I have to give it up because I'm graduating. The ladies all threat me like their son, which is nice. They always buy me pop and food. Then they give me well intended but misguided advice. One of them today was singing christmas songs, but when she couldn't remember a word, she'd substitute "hum" as in "oh what fun is to ride in a hum hum hum hum sleigh." Well when she started singing "Winter Wonderland" somehow this came out of her mouth: In the meadow we can hump a snowman" How you forget the word 'build' in that lyric is beyond me. There's not much else you can do with a snowman. Except of course do him, and do him hard. Hilarious. Alright I'm gonna go hoop it up. Hopefully my nemesis will be there. If he is, stay tuned for a journal entry.
Oh but this wasn't a nameless topless chick...this was Angelina Jolie. Sort of. She had apparently got the tattoo-ist to "morph" her face and angelina's face together. So this was like the bastard lesbian love child of herself and Angelina Jolie on her back. Somewhere, Billy Bob Thornton is pissed. Well after she failed miserably, she was walking off and said "I know I did terribly, but I don't think this affected my chances of meeting Angelina someday." Are you serious? Let me put it this way...if I had a tattoo of my face morphed together with George Clooney, do you think he'd want to meet me? He'd probably want to have me killed or something. This chick was clearly insane.
The next treat was the stunt they had to do. The goal was to get three presents and carry them across the room and place them under the tree. The catch? Killer Attack Dogs! Each present they got, they released a ferocious dog. The last present was accompanied by a mammoth 140 killing machine named Curly. If dogs wore belts, he'd have the heavyweight championship belt around his waist. Baddest dog on the planet, hands down. He manhandled the guys, who were both over 200 pounds. Then it was the girl's turn. Curly hit her square, and she went down. Didn't even try and pick the package up again. Curly had her pinned on the ground and looked determined to rip her arm off. She tried playing dead, but this dog was possessed. The hilarious thing was that between contestants, Curly would just lie there with a pleased look on his face, like he was enjoying this immensely. Hilarious. Sadly, the second girl was so terrified of Curly that she willed herself to a victory in two packages, meaning she didn't have to face Curly. The first words out of her mouth after getting the second package under the tree were "No Curly, right?" Joy for her, pain for the rest of us.
Work was fine...most people I talked to were happy today. It's great to work in sales when people come to you, rather than you having to go to them. Everyone that calls wants beavers tickets...makes it easier. I love my job with the athletic department, and I'm actually very sad that I have to give it up because I'm graduating. The ladies all threat me like their son, which is nice. They always buy me pop and food. Then they give me well intended but misguided advice. One of them today was singing christmas songs, but when she couldn't remember a word, she'd substitute "hum" as in "oh what fun is to ride in a hum hum hum hum sleigh." Well when she started singing "Winter Wonderland" somehow this came out of her mouth: In the meadow we can hump a snowman" How you forget the word 'build' in that lyric is beyond me. There's not much else you can do with a snowman. Except of course do him, and do him hard. Hilarious. Alright I'm gonna go hoop it up. Hopefully my nemesis will be there. If he is, stay tuned for a journal entry.
Monday, December 6, 2004
What goes around comes around
Just to update a few things from last week.....
My buddy that felt the need to email the athletic director because of my "boorish behavior" on the phone received his application in the mail, as I expected. I went to work today, and the packet I put together for him to pick up was still sitting there. My boss wouldn't let me call him, so I had a co-worker call him. He chewed her out for not "hand pulling all the local addresses and delivering them to the post office." What happens is that because we are a state institution our mailing services has to send everything to the Salem office before it is sent to the recipient. This guy wanted us to go through each and every one of our 7,000 bowl applications and hand pull all the Corvallis addresses. Not gonna happen, especially when time is the enemy in this situation. He griped about everything, then finished the conversation with "I can't go to a bowl game anyways." Can you believe that? He was all pissed off about not recieving an application he never planned to use! What a dick.
Now to my other nemesis: The Rooster. I saw that bastard today! I was driving home from work, and he's out in the middle of the street with one of his chicken bitches. And he wasn't moving. I can't believe that I had the chance to hit that cocky (get it?) asshole and didn't take it. He just stood there in the middle of the street with his bitch and refused to move. I was in the truck too, would've been no contest. But I couldn't do it. I tried to honk the horn, but he didn't budge. It was like he was showing off his chick's breasts (get it?) trying to make me jealous. So I started inching forward. Then, as if he was intentionally trying to piss me off, he just starts casually strolling out of the way. As far as I'm concerned, that was his free pass. Next time I'm scraping rooster off my tires.
My buddy that felt the need to email the athletic director because of my "boorish behavior" on the phone received his application in the mail, as I expected. I went to work today, and the packet I put together for him to pick up was still sitting there. My boss wouldn't let me call him, so I had a co-worker call him. He chewed her out for not "hand pulling all the local addresses and delivering them to the post office." What happens is that because we are a state institution our mailing services has to send everything to the Salem office before it is sent to the recipient. This guy wanted us to go through each and every one of our 7,000 bowl applications and hand pull all the Corvallis addresses. Not gonna happen, especially when time is the enemy in this situation. He griped about everything, then finished the conversation with "I can't go to a bowl game anyways." Can you believe that? He was all pissed off about not recieving an application he never planned to use! What a dick.
Now to my other nemesis: The Rooster. I saw that bastard today! I was driving home from work, and he's out in the middle of the street with one of his chicken bitches. And he wasn't moving. I can't believe that I had the chance to hit that cocky (get it?) asshole and didn't take it. He just stood there in the middle of the street with his bitch and refused to move. I was in the truck too, would've been no contest. But I couldn't do it. I tried to honk the horn, but he didn't budge. It was like he was showing off his chick's breasts (get it?) trying to make me jealous. So I started inching forward. Then, as if he was intentionally trying to piss me off, he just starts casually strolling out of the way. As far as I'm concerned, that was his free pass. Next time I'm scraping rooster off my tires.
Saturday, December 4, 2004
Sleep's overrated
So I don't know if it's the fact that I just watched the last episode from season one of the OC that's got me all sad (if you haven't seen it, it's sad. Trust me) or just that I ate too much pizza and drank too much coke that's got me all messed up, but I'm freakin out. For the first time, I realized that in a week and a half, there's no part of me that's still a kid. I've actually spent so long trying to stay in college that I've run out of ways not to graduate. It's gonna happen. In a week and a half. And the funny thing is, I'm not ready. Had I done things right the first time around, I'd have graduated two and a half years ago. When I was 22. Scratch that. 3 and a half years ago, when I was 21. I guess realistically speaking, it probably would've taken me 5 years like everyone else, but you get the point. I should've been ready then. I should be ready now. I'm not. I'm scared. Scared that I'm not gonna find a job. Scared that Rachel will have to support me for an extended period of time. Scared that I'll have to ask my family for more money, when they've already given me too much. I've always told everyone else not to worry, that "things always have a way of working out." I can't even convince myself of my own motto right now. The real bitch of it all is that I ended up choosing a major that has no real value. Well monetarily speaking that is. I have no doubt that my major was beneficial to me. I learned how to read people, how to better communicate, and that will help me immensely in the long run. It'll make me a better friend, boyfriend, husband, parent, etc. What it won't do is pay any bills.
A week and a half. To figure out what I want to do with the rest of my life. I know it's not that cut and dry, that there's going to be plenty of time for me to define my life, but right now, all I'm thinking about is that 10 days from now, I'm screwed.
The same thing happened when I left high school though. I thought it was the end of the world. I remember sitting in my car in the Thriftway parking lot, telling Sarah Arzie that this sucked, that I wanted another year of high school. And she got really annoyed and told me I didn't know what I was talking about, that college was gonna be great and I should stop trying to rewind or pause time. I wasn't hearing her though.....I was convinced that right then, that moment, was how I wanted things to be. And I spent the first six months of college wishing that I was still in high school. And then, things got better, and college turned out to be one of the best experiences of my life. So good, that it took me nearly 8 years to move on. So maybe the next few months or the next year will be rough for me, but chances are that 10 years from now, I'll look at where I'm at and say "Right here, right now, I don't want things to ever change. I like where I'm at right here and now."
A week and a half. To figure out what I want to do with the rest of my life. I know it's not that cut and dry, that there's going to be plenty of time for me to define my life, but right now, all I'm thinking about is that 10 days from now, I'm screwed.
The same thing happened when I left high school though. I thought it was the end of the world. I remember sitting in my car in the Thriftway parking lot, telling Sarah Arzie that this sucked, that I wanted another year of high school. And she got really annoyed and told me I didn't know what I was talking about, that college was gonna be great and I should stop trying to rewind or pause time. I wasn't hearing her though.....I was convinced that right then, that moment, was how I wanted things to be. And I spent the first six months of college wishing that I was still in high school. And then, things got better, and college turned out to be one of the best experiences of my life. So good, that it took me nearly 8 years to move on. So maybe the next few months or the next year will be rough for me, but chances are that 10 years from now, I'll look at where I'm at and say "Right here, right now, I don't want things to ever change. I like where I'm at right here and now."
Thursday, December 2, 2004
At least Bobby D knows my name
Today started like any other day of work. Got there early for some reason. Really that meant that there'd be an extra half hour of me doing nothing. But today I actually had something to do. Count unpicked up tickets from last nights game to protect us on the off chance we get audited. While doing that, I noticed that we had way too many tickets for one of the sections. Turns out we'd overprinted student tickets and could've potentially handed out the tickets where the band sits. Good job Andy. Got a pat on the back. Then some guy called and got pissed because he hadn't got his bowl application yet. I was trying to be nice, and explain that it might've been lost in the mail, but it's hard to be nice when the guy already thinks you're wrong. I tried to explain that we mailed out all the bowl applications and that his wasn't being held back. He was sure we were withholding his application. He thought he knew what the problem was (it wasn't the problem) and wouldn't give me a chance to tell him what we could do to rectify his problem. So I stopped trying. It was the first time in a year and a half working there that I had anything close to a dismissive tone with a customer. And wouldn't you know it? This guy's a real crusader for the right of the customer. He emails the athletic director to say how unpleasant his conversation with "Andy from the ticket office" was. He emailed the ticket director, who in turn emailed my supervisor. So I had to have a meeting with my supervisor, where I explained the situation. Thankfully, she was understanding. She knows that I'm never rude to customers, so I was given a talk about "smiling over the phone" and that was it. The guy said he was going to come in and pick up his bowl app in person, but by 2:00 pm he hadn't shown. Given the urgency with which he seemed to need this application, this seemed a bit humorous to me. Whatever. I love my job.
Dis n' Dat
You know, all day yesterday, I heard how Notre Dame just can't compete on the football field anymore because their academic standards are too high. I actually read one column that said something about how with this new "win-first" strategy at ND, we're going to start seeing more athletes of marginal character make their way to Notre Dame. Are you kidding me? At what point did you have to choose between being smart and being good at sports? Is this really the way it is these days? All the "good" players are stupid and moral criminals? I absolutely refuse to believe this. I can't believe more people aren't up in arms about this.
I had a dream last night that I was chewing gum, but I had put too much in my mouth and it was making it hard to breathe/chew/swallow. So I tried taking some out of my mouth, but no matter how much I took out, there was still too much. Then the gum got really sticky and pulled out all the teeth on the left side of my mouth. I have no clue what that means, but I'm only chewing half-pieces of trident for a while.
Last night at the basketball game, Grant and I sat in the student athlete section. Not because I want to feel special, but because I enjoy sitting behind the basket. I remember when that section was a student section. Plus, they sit down the whole game, except when the situation warrants standing, which is how I like to watch a game. However, I always feel weird sitting over there. Most of the male athletes are spending more time macking on the female athletes than watching the games. Plus I'm sure they're all saying "who is this dumpy guy, and why isn't he wearing official issued sweatpants anyways?" I was sitting behind this guy on the football team and a girl on the basketball team. I think he was trying to teach her to rap. She just kept giggling and bobbing her head to his I-Pod. Made it difficult to watch the game. Pretty amusing. Sometimes I wonder what it would be like to be a college athlete, if I'd act the way these people do. I tend to think no. However, if I was myself, I'm not sure I'd have many close friends on the team. That was the biggest reason I didn't put much effort into trying to get a tryout for baseball. Joel will remember me saying "like I want to play with frickin Narv." I'm sure Narv would've said the same thing about me.
That's it for now. Referee-ing a 4th grade game tonight at 7, gotta figure out some way to get home by 8 for the OC. Don't think it'll happen, but maybe I can start the game about 5 minutes early and skip that pesky halftime thing. Peace, and I'm out.
I had a dream last night that I was chewing gum, but I had put too much in my mouth and it was making it hard to breathe/chew/swallow. So I tried taking some out of my mouth, but no matter how much I took out, there was still too much. Then the gum got really sticky and pulled out all the teeth on the left side of my mouth. I have no clue what that means, but I'm only chewing half-pieces of trident for a while.
Last night at the basketball game, Grant and I sat in the student athlete section. Not because I want to feel special, but because I enjoy sitting behind the basket. I remember when that section was a student section. Plus, they sit down the whole game, except when the situation warrants standing, which is how I like to watch a game. However, I always feel weird sitting over there. Most of the male athletes are spending more time macking on the female athletes than watching the games. Plus I'm sure they're all saying "who is this dumpy guy, and why isn't he wearing official issued sweatpants anyways?" I was sitting behind this guy on the football team and a girl on the basketball team. I think he was trying to teach her to rap. She just kept giggling and bobbing her head to his I-Pod. Made it difficult to watch the game. Pretty amusing. Sometimes I wonder what it would be like to be a college athlete, if I'd act the way these people do. I tend to think no. However, if I was myself, I'm not sure I'd have many close friends on the team. That was the biggest reason I didn't put much effort into trying to get a tryout for baseball. Joel will remember me saying "like I want to play with frickin Narv." I'm sure Narv would've said the same thing about me.
That's it for now. Referee-ing a 4th grade game tonight at 7, gotta figure out some way to get home by 8 for the OC. Don't think it'll happen, but maybe I can start the game about 5 minutes early and skip that pesky halftime thing. Peace, and I'm out.
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