Turning Pages...

I went to check my e-mail for Oakton and saw that my login had been removed... Now I'm getting used to my new (and incredibly, unnecessarily longer) e-mail for Columbia. So far, 8 messeges. All about TheFaceBook.

"Connections" is tomorrow. Time to turn the page...

Now Playing: Beth Orton - "How Far"

Score...

Orientation came and went like a giant triangular, rainbow balloon caught in an updraft. So I am now an official Columbia student. At first, none of the classes I needed were open because as the nice young lady said; "You're screwed." So I had to sign up for shit courses that would have only counted towards my electives... Still, they would have counted... Which would have been enough for my first semester...

But then classes in new sections opened up and now I've got everything I need except one class. Maybe that'll open up on monday.

Now the REAL problem arises... Do I or don't I sign up for TheFaceBook?

...

Lame.

Now Playing: Magnetic Fields - "With Whom to Dance"

Oh, yeah! A very sweet friend of Joe, EJ, and Ingrid's (Carmen) came into Old Navy tonight... I told her how much I missed all of them...

Maybe Joe will get my messages this time. It'd be nice to see him again.

Idle Moments...

So Sunday marked the second time I hung around with Julie and her crew... This time was 10 times as awkward as the first. Lots of empty silence sandwiched in between odd chit-chat. I was as out of place as intelligence in "Rush Hour 2." We went to Oberweis and sat outside for about an hour as Steve and I exchanged muffled laughs when something funny happened while, at the same time, Julie's friends kept mostly to themselves. Julie, the poor girl, tried in vain to keep the two parties interested in each other, but I feel as though that didn't work out.

Steve said he had fun, but I could tell he was getting bored with this situation all together. After travelling to my park, there was plenty of conversations had all around... Except for the fact that I was not included in any of them. Julie and Steve went off on their own flirtatious way, and I was left to sit outside the conversation being had by whats-her-face seventeen year old and German seventeen year old. Without going into detail, I can tell you the conversation I walked in on after hanging up with Molly (whom I just had to tell how insanely awkward the entire night had been!) was not really my type of conversation. I then decided to walk over to Steve and tell him I was going to Molly's to trampoline in fungerosity. He didn't seem to be expecting me to not have a good time...

Trampoline was... a little strange on Sunday. First there was explanations, then trampoline-ing, then venting, then an intervention, then more trampoline-ing, then an injury to Mollister's widduhl toes. Hope you're feeling better, Molly.

ANYWAY!... IN OTHER NEWS...

Orientation is this thursday, upon which time I will be finding out how much of my future will come to me this semester. Both of my parents are looking forward to it so much that they talked me into bringing them along. (Free transportation...)

ALSO...

I was looking at some pictures (wallet-size) of Erin, Nicole, Christina (Sorry- *ahem* - Kwi-teen-ah), Mariko, etc... No. Wait. First, I was reading notes from 9th, 10th and 11th grade from Nicole and now I'm afraid I'm about to start another period of trying in vain to sum up enough courage to finally get in touch with her after almost two years. I had built up just about enough earlier this summer, but by the time I had, Steve had just been shooed away by her, making the timing, frankly, just terrible. So I dropped it... Until I came upone those damn notes!!! FUCK!!! I'm sorry. It's just that I don't care what has happened, I never had a better, more loyal, and loving friend than Nicole Cullen. This, as I have stated over and over again, may have been why I fell head-over-heels for Sonja...

Sonja...

We've started talking again recently. We plan to hang out soon, and I don't know if this is just a quick catch-up thing, or if it is the start of another close friendship. In either case... good lord is she beautiful...

Now Playing: Grant Green - "Jean De Fleur (Alternate Take)

Born in the Year of My Sister...

So I finally met this girl Julie whom Steve has been talking about for a few weeks now. I had known she was seventeen since the day I heard about her. That fact bothered me then and it bothers me even more now...

Steve was right. She is a really great girl. Eccentric, but not annoying. Caring, but not codependent. If I were able last night to not be bothered by a three year age gap, I wouldn't be writing this now...

But I wasn't, and I am.

Like I said, Steve was right. I had never doubted that this girl was as cool as he said, it was just the fact that he was hanging out with a girl my sister's age that made me raise an eyebrow or two (not three, for this would be hard). However, the problem, I found, was not with him or with her, but with me. The gap in experience during the three years between fourteen and seventeen years old is enormous. The gap between seventeen and twenty is also large, but not nearly as overwhelming. I was unconsciously coming to grips with this very concept last night while I was being awkwardly creepy around them (as well as Julie's very nice friend, Maya).

We are at an age now where age is not nearly the factor it was even in our recent past... Nonetheless, last night was strange for me. Again, it was most likely entirely my fault because I was not only feeling the aforementioned "weirded out" feelings, but I had also had a very, very long day and was extremely tired.

After festivities ended at my house, we took an unnecessary trip to Julie's house for darts and more hanging out. The night should have been over, but for some reason, it continued there for over an hour more. I am glad to have met this girl because she is obviously wonderful and has a lot to offer. Unfortunately though, while the gap between seventeen and twenty is not as huge as seventeen and fourteen, it is large enough to require me to be writing about it.

...

I hope she enjoys the movies I lent her. I also hope I won't be too awkward to get them back.

Now Playing: Jam - "Girl on the Phone"

"You Are Here" Stickers Nowhere to be Found...

Columbia rushes towards me now. Less than 3 weeks before classes start, and I am forced to wait another week until I can even sign up for them. My whole routine is about to change. Obviously, this is fantastic considering that 78% of this blog has been devoted to how much I hated my routine since the end of 2003, but still...

I am about to study film... I have waited years for this. I have been looking forward to the day when I can say my occupation is "Student Filmmaker," but how fast is too fast when your future rushing towards you is concerned?

...

I need to get a computer before school starts... A good one. This will basically empty out my bank account, but it is something I will need. But do I get a desktop PC, or a laptop? Desktops perform better for what I will need but, being dependent upon a desk, they are not portable.

...Empty. Bankaccount.

I will be traveling via "L" again soon. I like this for many reasons.
1. Basically, I will be getting a daily tour of our little planet's greatest city.
2. No gas money required. (U-Pass pays for my transportation)
3. Becoming part of the city again like I was in high school.
4. Walking a few miles a day again also can't hurt.

This is going to be the greatest change of my life up to this point. However, it is a change nonetheless. I have gotten used to the awful parking situation @ Oakton, walking those halls, Lake Oakton, community theater, and being more a part of that school than most students who go there. That was pretty cool. Like high school, I experienced as much as I possibly could and got every little drop of worth out of it in my time there (and managed to keep an honors-worthy-GPA this time).

During my first year @ Oakton, I was always ashamed to say that I went there. I would be in a group of college students who would rattle off their school names and when it came to be my turn, I would hate the fact that I went to a community college... I'm glad that I learned to appreciate what I've been able to accomplish so far.

I hope that what I accomplish @ Columbia will turn out to be just as satisfying in it's own way in the end.

Now Playing - Alarm Will Sound - "4"

Birthday Sonic Visions...

So today was Nicole Mendez's last day providing me with free tokens @ the batting cages... Obviously, I'm going to miss the chatting more than the free tokens that really do nothing but tell me how futile swinging a bat really is.

We talked for a while along with a kid named John who played @ Northside on the sophomore team when I was there. He's a pretty cool kid. Lanky. But cool. Anyway, we pretty much talked about how Steve is really just a big girl when it comes to the way he treats us. I told Nicole that he was probably the closest thing I will ever get to as far as having a girlfriend in the near future is concerned. I told her I don't even think about girls anymore. Hopeless. Then she told the John kid the story about how when she was a freshman (and I was a junior) she and I rode the same bus and she had a crush on me... Aww.

She took my number and we hugged. I'll miss her.

Yesterday, Erin, Lynn, and I went to Norh Ave. beach and basically watched some meatheads play the sandbag game. The one with the shaved head did this little dance whenever he scored... It was funny, yet vomit-inducing at the same time. (?) The water was near to 18,645,300 degrees (F, of course) and beautiful. Again, I cannot go to a beach without having at least one lifeguard yell at me, so I accidently drifted out a bit too far before being yanked back in by the curly haired, boat-sitting lifeguard. I wonder if the gestures they make from hundreds of feet away that scream "I'M BORED, PLEASE GOD MAKE PAY CHECK COME FASTER." are taught or developed after countless hours spent sitting in the sun...

After that, we played UNO on the beach... Thats all I'munna say about that one.

So today is my father's birthday and this year I think I've finally hit the jackpot as far as gifts go...

SONICVISION @ THE ADLER PLANETARIUM.

This... This is going to be amazing. Read for yourself. It's great because not only is it something he will like (@ a place he will like), but it will be with his family, which is what he REALLY wants.

So, yeah. I'm excited about that. Happy Birthday, Dad.

Now Playing: Beth Orton - "Anywhere"

Broken Up Speech = Inspiration. Screaming = Creepy...

I probably should have stuck with Oval... Instead, I thought I was in more of a Sigur Rós mood...

9 minutes & 47 seconds later...

Looking over my shoulder to make absolutely certain the screams are coming from my speakers.

So last night I had 10 people over. It was fun. We sat and watched "Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy." Pretty funny flick. One of the guys over was someone I actually played ball with years ago @ Norwood. Christie and Christina are always a treat to see. I like Christie especially when it is just the two of us or when we are in small company, but this does not change the fact that it was good to see her again.

If I spent anymore time with Christina, I could see myself easily becoming enamored with her. Granted, she is not the strongest-willed of girls, but she is so amazingly lovable and she has always been a good friend to me. Also, the fact that she has finally separated herself from Kahlil is a major plus... However, since during her time spent with him I did not have a firm grasp of all the facts, I cannot judge their relationship based on anymore than what had been told to me (But, again, since what was told to me was consistently stated by over 10 people, I cannot help but feel I was aware of more than enough to make my judgements). Nonetheless, I have known Christina for a long time and we have been extremely close for much of that time. This may be a reason why I could see myself becoming attracted to her. Similar to the way I was enfatuated with Nicole a while back (without even talking to the girl, no less), I find myself regressing to something that is not only familiar, but something to which my life has been deeply affected by...

...

Maybe its just because she is fucking GORGEOUS...

Maybe Jill is right... Maybe I am afraid. (Of course "Myrkur" would come on now...) But frankly, I have every right to be afraid of such things. It took me a long time to build up enough courage to do what I did with Ingrid. It nearly killed me to work myself up enough to tell Sonja how I felt. In both cases, I was kicked in the chest... No. I'm not going to gripe about those experiences simply because I don't have the right to complain about such trivial matters. What I will say is that I simply cannot understand why I can clearly see how fast time moves, and yet I am outwardly content with allowing it to move on ahead of me.

'Outwardly'... Hmm... That word came involuntarily out of my hands. Obviously since I am writing about it, I am bothered by it. However, I know that everyone I know thinks I am as lethargic as I seem. Funny, the few people I can think of that probably don't think that are Erin, Nicole, and Sonja...

What an odd little coincidence...

Now Playing: Sigur Rós - "Hadssól"