HAAAAAAAAAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME!

Semester's almost over...




"Who am I, we both don't know. Time ticks by, where did you go?"

Engineering

I knew Engineers had a lot of work compared to other majors, but I had no idea it'd all be English.

Comp Sci? A half-hour lab every week, easy as pie.
Math? An assignment every week or two. Not too tough.
English? Let's count:
- Three drafts of a six page paper = 3 x 6 pages = 24 pages
- Two page peer reviews on each draft for other two group members = 2 pages x 2 people x 3 drafts/person = 12 pages
- Three page cover letter = 3 pages
- Powerpoint presentation which neither of my group mates decided was important enough to care about = infinity pages

= 39 pages + .ppt presentation

I love being an engineer. I wonder if all my chem work is being outsourced to the English majors.

Bye-bye, Crappy Lappy

Current Laptop: Toshiba Tecra A5. Issued to me September 2005, I was adrift the minute I opened the box. Finally, I had a computer of my own (even better, a laptop), and one that actually booted up on the same day, and could run more than just Solitaire and Windows Explorer. Granted, it's geared towards business environments (word processing, e-mail, not playing video games, etc.), but I was happy to have something that could at least load a webpage in under 20 min (not joking).

But alas, I drove it too hard. I added all kinds of memory-intensive programs, played a lot of graphics-demanding games (which it is not at ALL rated for), used it for resource-munching heavy-duty audio and video converting, digitally beating the shit out of my procesor and hard drive (and virtually everything else) in the process. Now, it's on it's way out. The virtual slowdown is quite noticable after four years of the above, and it never really could keep up with even the most basic of games (aside from RuneScape (which is a whole 'nother story), but even RuneScape HD gave it a run for its money).

Physically, I'm glad to say it held up very very well, considering what it's been through in its four years of servitude. The "a", "s", "f", and "v" keys are no longer attached to the keyboard, but the buttons work fine so it's nothing a spot of Scotch tape didn't quickly fix. About a month after having it, I dropped it RIGHT on top of a wireless USB mouse receiver that was plugged in. The two USB ports in the back that sit on top of each other worked fine for about two years until they got fussy and decided they would randomly switch between being semi-functional and fully dysfunctional. The 3.5mm headphone jack hardly works anymore, but after near-incessant use of it (pulling, tugging, wrapping, biting, mowing, and sandblasting) I figured even the sturdiest of outputs would eventually succumb to failure. The screen shows a few randomly colored vertical lines near the right side due to...something. If I clamp a binder clip to the top of the screen near the right-middle the problem is fixed. The battery would last me about 3-4 full class periods (2 1/2 hours?) in my freshman year, including bootup time; I'm lucky now if I can squeeze 30 minutes out of the thing, and that's if it's on already. These are pretty minor issues considering what COULD have went wrong with my laptop (and probably should have, according to Murphy's Law). But as they say, out with the old, in with the new. I present to you...

Future Laptop (sounds spiffy, huh?): Alienware M15x. Unlike most other laptops where you are given a boxed set and have to deal with any shortcomings you don't like (processor, memory, disk drive size, etc.), Alienware lists the options available for your model and lets you choose 'em. Here's the important stuff that I chose:

Video/Graphics Card: 512MB NVIDIA® GeForce® 9800M GT
Processor: Intel® Core™ 2 Duo T9500 2.6GHz (6MB Cache 800MHz FSB)
Memory: 4GB« Dual Channel DDR2 SO-DIMM at 667MHz – 2 x 2048MB
System Drive: 320GB 7,200RPM (16MB Cache)
Keyboard Options: AlienFX® Illuminated Keyboard

Yes, the keyboard lights up. It's neat-o. Yes, I can change the colors of the lights. It's super neat-o. Yeah, basically all that crap up there equates to a sweet gaming rig. I'm excited. Here's the Alienware page, and here are some shots of the lappy (from Google).

Cost? Yeah, it's up there. Grand total of $2,457.81 (after ~$240 in shipping/tax >.<). Ouch burn. Good thing I've been saving those pennies I earned at the A&P. Actually, after gifts for graduating, a check for working as a stagehand for a week at Yorktown Stage, my two first paychecks from Traffic Works (more about that endeavor later, upon request), and my parents chipping in as a gift for my graduation, that probably more than covers the cost of it. Well, time to go buy all those other things I've been looking at:

Item #1: Kicker ZK500 Zune Speaker Dock
Clicky.VERY nice dock. My friend bought one and the quality is unparalleled, except by maybe an IMAX theater. Plus it looks like Darth Vader. Found it for a steal on Amazon. Greg (or anyone else with a Zune), you should definitely check this thing out, you will be happy you did.

Item #2: Logitech ChillStream
Clicky. I bought one of these for the afforementioned friend as a graduation gift, and he loved it so much that I have to get one for myself.

Item #3: Fantom Drives GF1000EU
Clicky. Finally I found an external 1TB hard drive for around $100. Looks acceptable, got good reviews, and it spins at 7200 rpm like a PROPER HARD DRIVE SHOULD *glares at current external drive*.

Item #4: A FUCKING COOLING PAD FOR THIS NEW GODDAMN LAPTOP
I can't find a good one yet, if anyone has any suggestions please drop a comment. I'm looking for something with a fan that will actively cool, and not just sit there, look ugly, and take up space like most of them that I've seen so far.

Tonight You Could Steal Me Away

I just want to hold you forever.

I'm so close...

Almost there...

I AM HUNGRY.

Fashion Nugget

Heads of state who ride and wrangle
Who look at your face from more than once angle
Can cut you from their bloated budgets
Like sharpened knives to chicken McNuggets.
Now, heads of state who ride and wrangle
Who look at your face from more than one angle
Can cut you from their bloated budgets
Like sharpened knives to chicken McNuggets.
Shut the fuck! Up. Right. Learn to buck up.
Right, shut the fuck up. Now, yeah. Learn to buck up.

Now, nimble fingers that dance on numbers
Will eat your children and steal your thunder
While heavy torsos that heave and hurl
Will crunch like nuts in the mouths of squirrels.
Now, nimble fingers that dance on numbers
Will eat your children and steal your thunder
While heavy torsos that heave and hurl
Will crunch like nuts in the mouths of squirrels.
Shut the fuck! Up. Right. Learn to buck up.
Right, shut the fuck up. Yeah, ooh! Learn to buck, up.

Now, simple feet that flicker like fire
And burn like candles in smoky spires
Do more to turn my joy to sadness
Than somber thoughts of burning planets.
Now, clever feet that flicker like fire
And burn like candles in smoky spires
Do more to turn my joy to sadness
Than somber thoughts of burning planets.
Shut the fuck! Alright. Okay. I don't. Shut the fuck! Wanna. I don't wanna hear it.
That's right.

I Was a King.

If you let him fuck you, there will be no foreplay. Rest assured, he'll screw you complete until your ass is blue and gray.

Yo mama's a pajama!

Bloody Beach Bastard

So. I got the male lead in the school show. Pretty exciting, especially considering I'm not male.

Farewell Letter

Mrs. Colangelo had us write letters to the incoming freshmen as an assignment, but I decided to write mine to Nolan. Why? Dunno. Maybe I see a little of me in him, the way I used to be way back when. Here it is.

My time here at Iona is almost done, and what a feeling it is! Alas, these four years have been far too short a time to spend in the company of such great people. Before I go, I have some words I would like to give you. Sorry, I didn’t have time to wrap them.
Firstly, HAVE FUN. I think that it’s great that you’ve went against the grain and taken up all these afterschool activities. Every day, we see the mad dash to get out the door at 2:41, and I can’t help but pity the poor chaps, and all the things they are missing. Okay, so you aren’t getting the very top scores at forensics tournaments, but hey, guess what; I didn’t either. Hell, I still don’t. But if you keep at it, you’ll be a pro before you know it. You were EPIC in my play, that’s why I altered the role to fit you – so that you could show the world your talent.
Oh, and that’s another thing: the plays. You will hear this again at chapel in my letter from college, but I’ll still say it now. Don’t get caught up in all that drama that goes on before, during, and in-between shows. It will drag you to the bottom, and no one can help you out from there but yourself (trust me, I’ve been down there, it’s quite smelly). Always remember that you’re there to have a good time and be with your friends. Outside my blood-relatives, the Prep Players are the greatest family I’ve known. Also, congratulations on discovering us in your freshman year. It was junior year that brought me to the Players, and even Tochet and Siobhan didn’t come until our sophomore year. And listen, I don’t really care what the other freshman say about you because you act in the plays. If they’re talking down about you, then they obviously don’t know you like we do. No one can tell you what to do; you just need to be yourself, and life will be a thousand times simpler. Well, okay, I lied. Jason can tell you what to do, but only because he’s our director. It’s his job to tell us what to do. When I directed my little show, I realized just how much effort, concentration, and dedication it takes to put on something as small as our half-hour productions. You guys gave me a royal headache (in the most loving sense of phrase), and I can scarcely imagine how Jason can put up with all of us for the big shows, especially the musicals. Never, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, EVER forget how awesome Jason is for all that he does for us. He certainly doesn’t keep coming back for the money (or lack thereof, perhaps).
Let me tell you a little about MY freshman year. It started in mid-August with freshman football. I was told it was a good way to meet friends and have fun, so I gave it a shot. How wrong I was. I couldn’t play for my life, and it really wasn’t too pleasant, getting knocked around all the time. So, after the season I decided to take a different path, namely, forensics. Everyone told me that with a little polishing, I could be really good. However, I never showed up again until senior year. Why? Dunno. Maybe because I was too afraid to commit to something. Maybe because I was afraid of failing. Whatever the case, it is one of my regrets; I could have had a great time, traveling the country, being with friends, doing something enjoyable, but I never did. What I'm trying to say here, Nolan, is to live your life free of regrets. Take that risk. Make the difficult choice. You should not have anything to look back on and say, “Damn, I wish I took that chance. If only I had known then what I know now, things would be different.” You can’t make everyone love you, but you can sure make everyone like you. Don’t strive too hard to impress everyone to the greatest degree. Make a lasting impression, but if you keep giving and giving, then you won’t have anything left for yourself.
Freshman year was difficult. It was a big change from the grammar school I came from – the scale was huge, the classes were intense (that’s STEP for you), and I knew no one coming in. But I came to appreciate how great the school really is. I did my homework, and I got by (I promise it gets easier, especially senior year. I’ll put a good word in for you with your Latin teacher.). And I made more friends than I thought were possible. High school’s a crazy time, full of doubt, fear, and awkwardness, but it’s also filled with laughter, friends, and good times. You will not forget these memories. Make them good ones. Nay, make them the best yet. Good luck, and above all, HAVE FUN!