The Letter to the Editor, Enlarged

Sorry about that people! The blog was being really dumb. here is the text enlarged so EVERYONE can read it!

Peace out!

Hello Sioux City! It's definitely been a while.

 

I have just gotten done reading the article on the Outer Belt extension and I'm writing to, well, voice my opinion.

 

First and foremost, There are several pros and cons about this extension being built. Let's start with the good news. It will shorten the trips between Morningside and the Northside/Leeds area, and will cut down on gas that people use, time consumed by motorists getting from place to place, and will boost business at both intersections where this connector meets, not to mention boost enrollment in Northside area schools, like Unity, Leeds, and the two North schools.

 

The bad news? Are we as a city completely sure that this won't damage business at the Leeds end of Floyd Boulevard? I used to be affiliated with several of the businesses over there, and I know a lot of people from a lot of the establishments. I know that Jitters' relocation has helped boost their business, as it is more accesible to the Leeds area and the people that drive through there. I also know that the old connector between Floyd and Highway 75 where 41st Street is brought a lot of business to the three businesses in that intersection, namely Steinbeck's, Leeds Food and Fuel, and Dollar General. Will these businesses be hurt by the new connector, or will customers still go to these establishments given that they are truly loyal (which won't happen if people can find a cheaper way)?

 

I also realize that building businesses on the connector itself will be problematic for the Leeds area. Yes, this will create jobs, but there is a very strong possibility that it could destroy the jobs that were already created long before the connector was built.

 

In the end, my opinion is this: Why kill what we have already brought to life, when even though this connector will make things simpler and more convenient, it will hurt already existing businesses and possibly destroy jobs that were created long before this connector was a twinkle in ANYONE'S eyes. This seems to me to be conflicting with this 'economic growth' everybody won't shut up about.

 

--Concerned at a college 500+ miles away,

JB

Some Music, Then A Rant

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MzrZj3GZS8o

Watch this before you read on. It also happens to be my SOTD. I know...lame SOTD, but at least I remembered this time haha...

So today was really uneventful. I've had Didn't My Lord Deliver Daniel stuck in my head for God knows how long today. Here is the link to the specific arrangement we are singing at ACDA. It's kind of a big deal! The first song in their performance is a song I sang in high school called Lux Aurumque (pronounced Loox Or/Oom/Qway) by Eric Whitacre. Just give it a listen and you will understand why I think this man (Eric Whitacre) is a god. you can find an SATB line with women in it if you search for it. Good luck finding a good recording. The second song....skip it. I have no idea what it is. The third song is our ACDA opener. If you don't want to listen to Lux Aurumque, forward the video to 7:10. You will not be dissapointed. Oh yeah, when you hear the high screaming stuff, that's my part. Epic.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v4SOj88R1MM&feature=related

Leslie came back today. We hung out for a couple hours before we both decided to take naps in our respective dorms.

And well, I've been slaving over a hot keyboard to get this out to you before midnight. Looks like I'm 25 minutes early. A couple more minutes of screwing around then it's off to bed.

OH WAIT, THERE'S MORE!!!! I wrote a letter to the editor of my hometown's newspaper protesting the connector that was put in to make driving from one part of town to the other more convenient. Here it is for ya:

Hello Sioux City! It's definitely been a while.

I have just gotten done reading the article on the Outer Belt extension and I'm writing to, well, voice my opinion.

First and foremost, There are several pros and cons about this extension being built. Let's start with the good news. It will shorten the trips between Morningside and the Northside/Leeds area, and will cut down on gas that people use, time consumed by motorists getting from place to place, and will boost business at both intersections where this connector meets, not to mention boost enrollment in Northside area schools, like Unity, Leeds, and the two North schools.

The bad news? Are we as a city completely sure that this won't damage business at the Leeds end of Floyd Boulevard? I used to be affiliated with several of the businesses over there, and I know a lot of people from a lot of the establishments. I know that Jitters' relocation has helped boost their business, as it is more accesible to the Leeds area and the people that drive through there. I also know that the old connector between Floyd and Highway 75 where 41st Street is brought a lot of business to the three businesses in that intersection, namely Steinbeck's, Leeds Food and Fuel, and Dollar General. Will these businesses be hurt by the new connector, or will customers still go to these establishments given that they are truly loyal (which won't happen if people can find a cheaper way)?

I also realize that building businesses on the connector itself will be problematic for the Leeds area. Yes, this will create jobs, but there is a very strong possibility that it could destroy the jobs that were already created long before the connector was built.

In the end, my opinion is this: Why kill what we have already brought to life, when even though this connector will make things simpler and more convenient, it will hurt already existing businesses and possibly destroy jobs that were created long before this connector was a twinkle in ANYONE'S eyes. This seems to me to be conflicting with this 'economic growth' everybody won't shut up about.

--Concerned at a college 500+ miles away,

JB

Cheers, everybody! And have a wonderful Monday!

Well, Can't Say I Never Told Me So

Staying up to my usual sleep time to get my sleeping patterns back in check. I'm a mess right now.

So, I've had a very eventful day....not. I woke up at 6am (a very reasonable time) and instantly went down to the study lounge and used the computers there, seeing as mine is fried, again!

I played around on DailyBooth for a while and then tried and failed at making a flight simulator crash into my dorm room window.....i woulda been fun had it happened. Anyways, I thought that it would be really fun to pick up my trumpet and play again. I've come to the conclusion that although I love my trumpet to death, it was not something that I was planning on doing as a career. And what sucks is that I'm a really good player. Like, crazy good.

I still want to be a choir teacher. I might HAVE to do the band teacher thing as well so that way I am more available to more schools. It's still up in the clouds. I now want to pursue a professional degree in music composition, and a Doctorate in secondary vocal music education (high school choir teacher, for those that don't know major/minor jargon). Actually, I'm not really sure anymore. My first semester screwed everything up inside my head...

I played in the lounge until supper, went there, and came back and got back on the computer, where I now sit. My break is so boring.

I downloaded a new widget to chat on Yahoo! Messenger without having to have Yahoo! Messenger on my computer. All I need to do is have my flash drive with me. Also, I downloaded a new widget on my flash drive to better manage my study time. I never seemed to spend enough time studying, and now I can better manage that. It even tells me how much I should study per day! It's an awesome little piece of work, I'll tell you what!

I'll be doing the same thing tomorrow until my friend Leslie comes back, and then Monday my other friend Kryssiah comes back! I can't wait for both of them, especially considering I left my phone in Kryssiah's room, and she is gone, and the door is locked. Gurf.

My SOTD comes from deep down. For me, it's been something I've been struggling to realize and have now just come to terms with:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RUi54JTgL5s
And my quote for the day by Stephen King:

After his family was killed, his crops destroyed, and his life in shambles, Job looked up to the Heavens and asked God "Why me?" God replied "There's just something about you that pisses me off."

Until tomorrow,

Cheers!!!

SOTD: Song of the Day

Also, I'm starting this new thing called song of the day. And I owe you all a couple quotes.

First, the quotes, both from my favorite author, Stephen King:

"The most important things are the hardest to say. They are the things you get ashamed of because words diminish your feelings: words shrink things that seem timeless when they are in your head to no more than living size when they are brought out."

"You can't deny laughter. When it comes, it plops down in your favorite chair and stays as long as it wants."

And now my SOTD. It kinda describes how I feel right about now:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rEXhAMtbaec

And as I listen to it as I post it, it makes me happy and sad and mixed up all at the same time. Sometimes, music does that to you. That feeling is called emotion. Feel it, and feel it often, because you never know who you are until you know what you feel.

Peace and Cheers!

I Have An Excuse As To Why I Haven't Been Posting....

Asleep at 4pm, awake at 6am.....then asleep at 730pm, wake up at 315am......what the hell is wrong with me?

Stir fry on the grill...can I have Dining Services make my stir fry on the grill from now on? Or is this just some J-Break quirk. Either way, they make it taste so good. I don't wanna leave college now!

Well a couple things have happened since my last update. All of them were major, so this post might be a bit long.

First, I never would've thought that this day would come. My J-Term class is over. And although I am uber happy that I get a break for a week, I'm not pleased AT ALL about having to have it end. It was a fun class and we had two Italian desserts for our last class. Panforte, which is a VERY good medieval cake, and Panettera(?), which I'm not a huge fan of, but I like it -ish...it's like a bittersweet raisin bread. I love raisin bread, but give a guy a break lol.

Second, my computer died. Again. And it happened in my sleep. Ok, so the wireless driver, the ethernet driver, both of my sound drivers, my USB ports, and my SD port are all malfunctioning/corrupted. So, I can't access the interwebs on my computer....It blows big chunks. I'm taking it back to Theo (my patron saint) to get it fixed, along with a payment for the LAST time he fixed it (see my first three posts). I'm thinking on just getting a new one. I'm tired of having all used computers I have owned break. I'm done with it. This summer, when I get my job I swear to all that is good that THAT will be my first purchase! A new Dell Inspiron 15. I've had my eye on it for the better part of two months....

Third, my dad found me a job at one of his client's workplaces. He is a janitorail delivery person (uniforms, shop rugs, mops, brooms, shop rags, that kind of stuff) and one of his clients runs a warehouse. My job would be to organize and catalouge EVERYTHING! You have no idea how much fun doing stuff like that is for me!!! I'll have that guy's warehouse running more efficiently than the Secret Service (oh, snap, it already does!!!) Also, I'm getting a second job through my mom's work as a summer cashier. I have to alpha (use her store for extra hours) at her store and use another store in the vicinity as my home store because family members can't share the same home store. But that means I've got two jobs lined up with great hours in each so I'm happy.

Fourth, my grades. I'm pretty sure that I got a C in my J-Term class. Which means I get to stay in school. Anything below a C- will get me kicked out...I DON'T want that to happen.

That's my life these past couple of days, and I can't wait to write my next post. Here is how you can follow me on several different things.

Facebook: Joshua 'Boondoggl' Boone
Twitter: trumpets0111
Skype: TheCollegeFrosh
DailyBooth: TheCollegeFrosh
ALT. DAILYBOOTH ACCOUNT: TheCollegeFrosh2
FormSpring: Joshua Boone
Email: boonjo01@luther.edu
Address: 700 College Drive
                SPO #310
                Decorah, Iowa, USA
                52101
YouTube: copperjosh
Yahoo IM: copperjosh

Until Next Post,
Cheers!

Quickie

Ok, it is 6:29am and the indoor temperature is 57.2 degrees Fahrenheit. Stupid heater just kicked in....Brrr...

Outside temperature is 18 degrees, and the wind chill brings it down to 6 degrees,.....

Cold, Project, Sleep, More Cold, Thoughts

Holy Mother of Pearl it's freezing outside. And I have no one to thank for that except myself....I could've gone to college in a warm place. I could've but did I? No. So I get to put up with it. My room is currently 59 degrees...normally that would be good, but right now its cold...stupid heating system.

I delivered my project today. I did so good, people out in the hallway stopped and stared at this video. (click the link and go to 2:00...turn your speakers down, it's loud and kinda terrifying.) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8iPIXq_jGMQ If you don't shit yourself, Kudos haha.


I slept 14 hours today...I don't know why I did that, but I have been sleeping more and more lately...am I sick? Somebody tell me, please.


I'm still freezing, and 2am doesn't help things.


I think I'll be okay with the whole project thing. I just hope that it's not all in vain...

It's Been a Wee Bit, But I'm Doing O.K.

The sounds of rain hitting the ground, oh how I lamented your auditory embrace.

Hey all, guess what? IT'S RAINING!!! I have always had a thing about the rain and how it just soothes me. I'm the one who will drive to an abandoned pasture, go out into the middle of said pasture, lay down on the wet, muddy ground, and just listen. Or, I'll just tend to sit in the car and listen to the rain hit the roof, depending on the type of day I'm having.

Just chilling at 5am watching...damn, where did the case go?......ah, here it is. Anacondas, the Hunt for the Blood Orchid. Seems decent so far. The one chick is bitchy...eh, all movies have those.

My parents sent me a DVD player for my birthday and a card that said something very vulgar. I'm still laughing at it. Wanna know what it said? I'll tell ya later.

I've got a huge project on the symbolism of music in Dante's Divine Comedy. I have to make it last 10-12 minutes, and it literally means the difference between me satying in school and getting kicked out. I'm scared to death. I've been working non-stop and the work I do compared to the work I have done doesn't seem to be getting any better. I'm so overwhelmed, I just don't know what the hell I'm going to do. I'm so scared. I....I don't want to fail again....if I do, all of my work will be for nothing. Everything I have put my efforts into will be for broke. Here's to the hurrah that could very well be my last.

Dear Project,
Please net me at least a B-.
Sincerely,
Josh

Alright, now that THAT is out of the way, I need to get back to work. And fast.

God Speed to you all.

Hey All!

Listen, I'm way too tired to type out an entry today, so I'm making up double tomorrow.

Cheers,
Josh

A Schpeil Of Random Thoughts Coursing Through My Head: An Extra Thought or Few

Ah me, the sweet sounds of a guitar as skilled fingers run across each string, producing sounds that I at this point I could never wish to emulate. In this entry, you'll get a few extra thoughts that have been running through my head over the past week.

I have been 19 for a week. Although I have not felt a difference, I now realize that I am no longer a kid. I am no longer someone who can rely on others all the time for what I need to do. I need to learn quickly how things go in the world, or get eaten by the mainstream populous that this world has going for it. I washedmy first set of clothes the first week of campus, now I can do it blindfolded and asleep while hog tied (think rodeo for an image of that). I'm thinking that this year will see me very successful. I read in Stephen King that 19 is the ultimate prime number. I guess it's wishful thinking, but the year is whatever I'm going to make it.

Music seems to have taken on a new aspect of my life. As I think about a career in it, I'm becoming increasingly unsure whether a career in music is where I want to be. I mean, it seemed great in theory but in the end, is it really worth it? I still love it to death: I love performing, I can't go a second without listening to or thinking about or writing music. I love all of this to death, but I'm not sure that this is what will hold my interest for the rest of my life. I'll just have to let the rest of this year and next play itself out.

I now have a sudden urge to travel with nothing but a will to keep going and a camera (I'll bring stuff like clothes and such. Don't be silly). I want to plan a road trip in the summer 2011. If not then, then I want to take it in the summer of 2013 or 2014 (OMG, someone banish me, I'm planning past 2012!). I just want to see what this world has to offer. I want to see for myself that something exists past this bubble I call the Midwest for myself. Like that 90's country song says, "There is no Arizona." And I'll go right on believing it until I see it for myself. I mean, there are people down there for sure, but I wanna see it.

I have also been getting really sentimental lately...could it be that it's just me, or is there considerable outside influence? I have no idea, but it's really starting to bug me. I'm not the kind of touchy-feely guy I'm becoming.

I feel that the song that best describes me right now is a song called "Defying Gravity" from a musical called Wicked. I'm done with stopping where people say, I'm going to keep going, keep pushing, until what I want to achieve becomes reality, even if I have to bend a few rules to get to it (i'll stay on the right side of the law don't worry).

Until tomorrow,
Cheers

LATE! Limewire Being So Awesome, Taking a Sick Day, Musicality and Musicianship, Friendships, Emulators, and Late Nights

Ok, so I'm a couple hours late in getting this to you all. I'm really sorry, but that's what will end up coming of it. I would have done it sooner, but these emulator things are just so addicting......but that is for a later paragraph, not now. I tend to do things chronologically, sorry.

First, I pulled an all-nighter. Should I have done so? No. In the end, was it worth it? No. Did I end up sleeping all day, and therefore missing class? Yes. Did I have a legitimate reason? Yes. I WAS SICK!! WOO-HOO!!!!!! I'M NORMAL!!!!!!!! I was starting to worry that I was a freak because I haven't gotten sick since freshman year of high school. Yeah, I'm that much of a freak....I gotta tell you, I welcome the runny nose. I could do without the coughing however. It's a bother when I'm trying to talk.

I have found a new love in my musical life. LIMEWIRE!!! I can get any song I want online for free (and copyright can shove it, those people make enough money. I'm sick of them flaunting it everywhere.), listen to it, and share music I own as well! I've heard both sides of the copyright argument. And I do have to say that it seems evident which side I support, but if the people making money off of these songs and movies were so concerned about it, they would a) actively try to stop it, and b) wouldn't hoard all their money, but instead donate it or their time to something worthwhile, instead of throwing a fit on Entertainment Weekly or the Today Show for ten minutes about something that no one cares about, like a chipped nail, or scientology.

Next Topic: Musicality and Musicianship. I don't know what to make of this, but being an instrumentalist for going on my ninth year (trumpets are the best by the way. HIGH BRASS KICKS ASS!), and a vocalist for my second, and a pianist for my first, you would think I'd have a little more respect for the field of study. I want to major in choral education. But I'm not showing the discipline enough interest anymore. I seriously need some advice here. I don't know what to do. I mean, music will always be my life, and I really want to teach it, but I can't get motivated enough to practice. If that motivation were there, I'd do it twice, thrice daily or more. I'm slowly losing my trumpet chops, meaning I can't play some of the high notes anymore, and my regular range notes are becoming more difficult to play with a good tone. I just don't know what to do.

Onto another topic that just now started giving me troubles. Friendship, and when it goes too far, or too few. One of my friends is going out with this guy, and I'm friends with both of them. I don't want to get to close to her as not to provoke him, but me distancing myself from her, I think I might be very slowly losing her friendship. What is too far? What is too few? It's really awkward being around them at the same time. I...just...it's...hard...well....help.

Next topic: Emulators. OMFG. I LOVE THESE THINGS!!!! Can't get enough of them! I downloaded the N64 and GBA emulators, and I can't stop playing them. The first game I downloaded? Lylat Wars. I don't know what's up with the name, but it's the Australian version of Starfox 64. Something was wrong with the name...I don't know why,I just know it's my favrotie game of all time.

Well it's 3am. I've got some emulators to play to keep me awake. I'll lt you all go, and ponder my thoughts, apply them, do whatever your mind does. And your quote for the night comes from my second favourite song by the cast of GLEE.

"Keep holding on, cause you know we'll make it through."

Good News, Great News, and Sunday Happenings

Well, today wasn't all that eventful, yet everything seemed to happen at once. Sit down. This might take longer than a short while.

What did I do from 12am to 4am? fuck around on the computers in the study lounge until I got too tired to do any work. What did I do from 4am to 1pm? Slept. It felt good.

O.K., so in my blog title I mentioned good news. The good news: My friend Leslie is back from her Springfield trip. You know, the one I quoted gerf and gurf from? She's back! she took a lot of pictures too, so I'll post those as frequently as I possibly can. They took a trip to go see Abraham Lincoln's house, museum, grave, and other stuff. I'm so envious.

Also in the title of this entry, I mentioned GREAT news. You wanna know what that news is? MY FUCKING COMPUTER IS FIXED!!!!!!! Theo did such a great job with it and I practically owe him my life. THANKS FOR THE GREAT JOB!!!!!!

After that, I went to hang out in Brandt (a first year dorm) with Leslie, Keely, John, Kathleen, and (after he got off work at 11pm) Jake. We did some 'would you rather' questions and some of them were indeed quite intriguing. We went to super, I had stir fry and this thing that looked like a P'Zone.....it was good, but it fell apart on me. That was the end of that...

I think that I may be getting sick. I've had a runny nose, I've been sneezing, sniffling, and I'm getting a pressure headache from the snot....it hurts like a bitch. But I can't miss class, I have an essay due at 11am that is worth a whole letter grade on my final grade, so I HAVE to go to class.

I got LimeWire to work again and I've spent all of this time downloading the Glee soundtrack. I love that show, it's one of the few I ever watch religiously.

I leave you this time with not one, not two, but THREE quotes. Have fun and I'll see you Monday night!

"If you're reading this, congratulations. YOU'RE ALIVE. If that's not something to smile about, that I don't know what is."

"Anyone can be passionate. It takes REAL lovers to be silly."

"There are three keys to happiness: Something to do, something to hope for, and someone to love."

Until next blog!

I Fail At Life Itself, But That's O.K.: Tournament, Computer Breakthrough, Uneventful Day

It's been not too long, and already I feel like I can do this. I can update this every day without having an epic fail and forget. I'm going to stop tagging my posts as well. It's boring and obnoxious.

Anyways, I missed my Fit & Well seminar today. Looks like I'm going to get to spend the two weeks at the end of the semester that I would have gotten off in class. Gurf.

I slept well, though. I woke up at 1 P.M. with about 10-11 hours of sleep. Tell me that doesn't feel good! I woke up, decided it was too late for lunch, and played XBox. I'm really getting back into Star Wars: KOTOR and Halo 2.

Theo called me telling me my computer was almost done, so I went to his dorm and hung out for a couple hours while I waited for the last updates to download and install while I played around with the tablet (YES!!!! IT WORKS!!!!!!!). Then something happened, something sinister and horrible. The computer asked me to restart to install the new updates. So I hit restart. And it went back to being its broken and dumb self (it basically loops through startup procedures.) We both thought that it had something to do with the updates. I had premonitions about the problem being with the hard drive for a long time, which could be part of the problem, because it had trouble saving files from the updates, and now it's having problems looking for a boot file. Theo told me he had one he doesn't use anymore and was willing to put it in. Thank God for Theo, although I'm definitely paying him extra for that.

I then went to supper, and played in a Super Smash Brothers tournament. Yes, the original from the Nintendo 64. Not any of this new shit. We set up brackets and ended up having 30 people participate. I ended up in a 7-way tie for 10th out of 11th place. Yep, I got knocked out in the preliminaries. I probably would have ended up in 11th, if it weren't for one of the guys in our bracket pulling a no-show and forfeiting his position. I'm still happy I placed the way I did.

Afterwards, I got on one of the computers in the study lounge to do what I am doing now. Blogging. Blogging my life away to unsuspecting people. People who choose to read these things, and have a laugh, or comment on how average my life is. Just the usual. Oddly enough, I'm okay with that.

I leave you with a quote:

"Nothing is unachievable. Just set your mind to it. Practice. Re-learn, if necessary. You will eventually get it. Just don't stop. That's when you start falling backwards. That's when failure is inevitable. Persistence will achieve almost anything you want, if done the right way. You just have to have success in your mind."

Peace out, people.

Forgotten Items Remembered, As Well As Gurf and Gerf

Alright, I just have to tell all of you about Norsemen last night. Norsemen is the first-year men's choir I am in here at Luther College. The director is Tim Peter, but he is gone in South Africa teaching a J-Term course, so his wife Sandra is teaching...err...directing us. I hate using the word teaching with musical ensembles, I don't know why. But otherwise, Norsemen's pretty rad, and we get to go perform at ACDA (The American Choir Directors Association) conference in Minneapolis in March. If any of you live close, come check us out live!

Anyways, last night we had Norsemen rehearsal. We are singing two songs as of right now. A Celtic piece entitled 'Fergus and Molly.' I'll try to get a recording of it and post it when we have it finalized and after our recording session in the spring. We're using the Celtic accents and everything, it'll be awesome! The we are singing a barbershop gospel song called 'Didn't My Lord Deliver Daniel?' We are having a lot of fun with that one, and I'm going to make an attempt to try out for any solos or groups in either song! They're going to be so cool when we get done with them. Like I said, I will have recordings of each one up as soon as I get my hands on them!

Now, I have borrowed a couple words from my friend, Leslie. These are words I believe she made up, and they belong to her, but I have been using them more and more frequently. These words are gerf and gurf.

Gerf is a feeling of joy or happiness, whereas gurf is the exact opposite: feelings of depression or sadness. Right now, I am feeling gurf. Very gurf. I'm not sure when I'll be feeling gerf again, but be on the lookout!

My computer is still getting fixed. The USB Drivers are fried, so the dumb piece of technology won't recognize the flash drive that my operating system is on, Nor does it have a CD or DVD-ROM drive to put a CD of the program into. FML. So Theo is trying to circumvent that and if you have any ideas, please don't hesitate to tell me!

Overall, today was a very lazy day. Went to class as usual, hung out with one of my friends. The usual.

I've got an essay to write that will be determining the parallels between Dante's Inferno and Purgatorio. Should be some fun stuff, although rereading two books that took two weeks in the space of one weekend will be difficult. Wish me luck!

Until next blog!

What do you mean "it's dead"?

Yep. I have to come to terms with it eventually.

Josh, your computer...we did everything we could...it's...well...it's bricked. There's nothing we can do but reinstall the entire operating system. Backing up your files will be difficult, but with some time, I'm sure your computer will make a full recovery.

Well, this is my first Blogger entry and I gotta say I'm pretty stoked. My other blog didn't ever quite take off. I have a lot of plans for this blog, and I will try to make it as everyday as possible. I'm hoping that I will follow through with my plans.

But about my old laptop. Yep, it's deaded. There is a guy on campus fixing it, and I'm paying him in installments (thank God for understanding, compassionate, fellow college students...) but he is (again, understandably) keeping my backed up files as collateral until I pay him the full amount. Gurf.

On the bright side, I should be getting my laptop back tomorrow! YAY!!!!!

I didn't go to class today because I started getting a major headache the night before. When I woke up at 8:45, it was pain on a scale so epic I couldn't focus on anything, but apparently I went to sleep with a piece of gum in my mouth, because that same piece of gum is now residing very resiliently on my shirt. My Luther College shirt. My ONLY Luther College shirt. So much for showing school spirit.

When I felt capable enough of doing regular activities around 3:00 p.m., I went to our college's technology help desk to see what I could get done about fixing my computer cheaply, because I couldn't afford a new computer all at once and everyone was turning me down for payment plans because I have no credit. Yay for being a broke college student.

"Yeah, this message you are getting is a start-up issue. It's telling you that it's having problems with an 'unmountable boot volume.' (At this point, I was thinking to myself thank you Captain Obvious) This usually means that the file is corrupt. I suggest you get your operating system reloaded. We don't fix things like this, but (whips out my new Bible: a list of campus technicians that do things cheap and well...AT THE SAME TIME!!!) here is a list of everyone on campus who you would want to go to for a reload. Keep in mind who does XP and who doesn't you'll waste your time otherwise."

I was jumping with joy and before I left, was referred to a technician named Theo who lived on the other side of the college's Union building, in a building I had never been in before. I went down, figuring out that the ONLY way that I was going to get downstairs was an elevator. WHAT IF A FIRE HAPPENS?!?!?!?! I dropped off my computer and Theo (my new savior) said he would have it back to me within 24 hours. He is a bucket of awesomesauce!!!

Then I went to supper and hung out with Danny, his roommate Adam, Adam's friend Nick, Annie, and some of their friends. Supper was good: we had a pasta line and they had my favorite food of all time. MACARONI AND CHEESE!!!!!!1!!1 Unless it's your favorite food, you cannot fathom the elation I felt as I walked up and asked for a big plate of it, while the smells of Cheddar and American cheese were wafting up from the cheese-smothered pasta. YUM!!!!

Later, I hung out with Leslie, her boyfriend Jake, and her roommate Kathleen, and John. who is all of our friends. We went out to see Sherlock Holmes. It was boss, I will not lie. Although there were some epic 3D animation fails and greenscreen fails. So much for Hollywood. On a scale of 1 to 5 where 5 is the best, a 4.5 out of 5. Great movie, great acting, great plot, mediocre effects, and it seemed as if Watson was the brains of the operation, not Holmes...hmmm.....

Now, I am planning on pulling an all nighter so I can a) get homework done and b) take the consequences of being an asshole and staying up way past the time that I am used to going to bed.

Until tomorrow!!