March 31, 2003
The What Sox?
Jon's been counting down to the Red Sox season opener all weekend. He wants me to be excited, but its difficult. I've never felt passion for baseball like I do for other sports (football for example). I generally avoid watching baseball - its not very agressive, seems rather arbitrary, and is poorly run for a professional sports league. There's not much excitement (at least for me) in watching overpaid men stand around a grass field for three hours playing a game that isn't so often decided by skill, but by chance. Its a gamble. But I'm making an effort because its important to Jon. Just six hours left to become a fan.
If a woman has to choose between catching a fly ball and saving an infant's life, she will choose to save the infant's life without even considering if there is a man on base. [Dave Barry]
Posted by criminal at 11:18 AM | Comments (5)
Too Much
There's just too much to talk about in this little space. Because I've been busy, I haven't really updated lately. To make matters worse, criminalgrace.com has had some connectivity issues. So even when I wanted to post or check email, I couldn't. Oh well. So I'll just leave this gaping hole in my journal and move on.
Posted by criminal at 08:43 AM | Comments (0)
March 25, 2003
Hooray for Interviews
I have a job interview on Thursday and I'm quite excited. Normally, I'd be nervous before an interview, but I feel really good about this one. The position isn't the most glamorous, but it's in a great place doing honest work and that appeals to me a lot more than a fancy title.
Posted by criminal at 04:28 PM | Comments (2)
March 24, 2003
Pbpbpleeease Eddie
Ohmigosh. Who Framed Roger Rabbit is being released on DVD. A fun movie if there ever was one, it was one of my favorites as a kid. I think this one could end up on my wish list...
Posted by criminal at 11:25 PM | Comments (0)
March 22, 2003
Minimalism
Have I ever mentioned that I want less stuff? Well, at least the appearance of less stuff, because honestly I like having things. I just don't like the clutter I live in. I tend to start thinking about this every time I clean because it gets frustrating to pick everything up and still feel like I live in a mess (the common rooms aside).
Posted by criminal at 03:16 PM | Comments (0)
Errands
Jon's off at his parents' house doing his taxes, so I was supposed to take this afternoon to do some little errands. Like laundry and cleaning and crafting. But my super laundromat is jam-packed. And I can't really clean the kitchen unless I break down and do the dishes Sam keeps neglecting to wash. I even tried to get a haircut at the mall, but they're booked until this evening. That leaves crafts, which seem trivial when there are other more productive things I want to do (not to mention more important in the whole scheme of things). So crafts it is, right after i clean up my room.
Posted by criminal at 01:54 PM | Comments (0)
March 21, 2003
Friday Five for March 21, 2003
1. If you had the chance to meet someone you've never met, from the past or present, who would it be? I answer this all the time in those silly Email questionaires: Martha Stewart.
2. If you had to live in a different century, past or future, which would it be? I think I would have enjoyed living in the middle ages (no specific century) and the mid-20th century.
3. If you had to move anywhere else on Earth, where would it be?Alaska or Maine
4. If you had to be a fictional character, who would it be? Can't really think of any that I'd like to be. At least none stand out in my mind.
5. If you had to live with having someone else's face as your own for the rest of your life, whose would it be? Probably Catherine Zeta-Jones's because while it is exceptionally beautiful, it is also quite normal and very expressive.
Wanna do your own Friday Five?
Posted by criminal at 10:38 AM | Comments (0)
Send It Back?
I want French toast for breakfast. And French fries for lunch. And perhaps more urgently, I want the Send Back Liberty people sent to Iraq. They're quite smug about the whole "Freedom Fries" thing and can't just be happy with throwing out French food and wine. The blessed fools think we should ship the Statue of Liberty back to the French. Isn't there something better they could be doing with their time and energy? (OK, I do think changing the name of the French tickler to a Yankee doodle would be neat...)
Posted by criminal at 10:12 AM | Comments (1)
March 20, 2003
Getting Older
I got an invitation to Leah and Seth's wedding in the mail yesterday. Because I already knew about the engagement, it wasn't a surprise, but I think I aged several years as I read it anyway. Its like my cousin Christina being pregnant: the reality of it didn't hit home until I found out about the baby shower she's having this weekend. All of a sudden I feel less like a college kid and more like an adult. My friends are talking about buying houses, opening joint checking accounts, and getting married while I'm still trying to figure out who I am and what I want to do when I grow up. Christina is even starting a family and I've got a cat. Its not that I have to keep up, its just a big reminder that the real life I've always been waiting for has already started.
Take your time, it won't be long now
Till you drag your feet to slow the circles down
And the seasons they go round and round
And the painted ponies go up and down
We're captive on the carousel of time
We can't return we can only look behind
From where we came
And go round and round and round
In the circle game
[Joni Mitchell - The Circle Game]
Posted by criminal at 11:29 PM | Comments (2)
March 19, 2003
Operation Iraq Freedom
This is it: we're officially at war with Iraq. Somehow the whole thing seems anti-climactic. I don't know why, but I was expecting it to start with a bang. If I hadn't turned the television on as background noise, I probably wouldn't have known for days. Or until the "Operation Iraq Freedom" tshirts started popping up everywhere.
Posted by criminal at 11:24 PM | Comments (2)
March 18, 2003
More Account Problems
So yeah, I have an account now. But I don't have a normal shell because I can't change the "one-time" password. It seems as if the password script is broken. Now the shell pukes the moment I login. If this isn't all resolved the the end of the day tomorrow, I'll probably end up asking for an extension on my project.
Posted by criminal at 04:56 PM | Comments (0)
UNIX Account
This is starting to get really frustrating. I don't have a UNIX account at WPI yet. I had one, but it was deactivated while I wasn't in classes. But now that I'm trying to take one again, I need it. Especially since its required to submit the project due Friday afternoon. Even better is that a UNIX account is required to get a myWPI account, and there's an incredible amount of discussion going on there in reguards to the project and help sessions. So until my accounts are activated, which will take at least another 24 hours, I can't fully particpate in the class. Grrr.
UPDATE: I'm once again sthemm@wpi... now if I could just get the myWPI account created I'd be all set.
Posted by criminal at 11:14 AM | Comments (0)
March 17, 2003
Hooray!
Did I mention that Barbie got into MSU's vet school? I'm so proud. Like my mom says, she'll be Dr. Barbie by 2007!
Posted by criminal at 03:52 PM | Comments (0)
Friday Five for March 14, 2003
1. Do you like talking on the phone? Why or why not? Not particularly, but I'm good at it in business situations.
2. Who is the last person you talked to on the phone? My mother - she and my sister called Sunday morning to tell me that Barbie was accepted to the MSU vet school.
3. About how many telephones do you have at home? Just one, my cell.
4. Have you encountered anyone who has really bad phone manners? What happened? Yes. I got aggrivated and tried to ignore it.
5. Would you rather pick up the phone and call someone or write them an e-mail or a letter? Why or why not? It completely depends on the task. Sometimes email is the most efficient method, but the phone definately has its advantages as well.
Answer the Friday Five for youself.
Posted by criminal at 11:25 AM | Comments (1)
Bleh
Stupid me. I just overwrote my entry about how having food poisoning this weekend, meeting Jon's parents anyway, and finally getting over it. I guess the post just wasn't meant to be.
Posted by criminal at 11:25 AM | Comments (0)
Imminent War
The media is now saying that war is imminent: as in some strikes will probably occur within the next 12 hours. That scares me.
Posted by criminal at 11:18 AM | Comments (0)
March 12, 2003
Perl Girl
I've got a 1000 page O'Reilly book all about programming in Perl that I need to devour over the next few days. Ideally, I'd like to have a plan in place for my first project by Friday night, which means I'll need to develop a basic understanding of Perl and regular expressions in the next few days. Ugh.
Posted by criminal at 12:18 PM | Comments (2)
March 11, 2003
Webware
I'm a real student again. Today I went to Webware (CS4241), my first class in nearly a year. It was a bit strange, but felt good. The class should be great - its about Internet programming, which is something I've been wanting to teach myself for a few months now. It will be a tough class with lots of programming, but I'm ready. Not to mention older as wiser, so I'll be capable of asking for more help much sooner.
Posted by criminal at 10:55 PM | Comments (0)
Damned Host
While my site was still up, I had no way of updating it for most of the day. Nor could I check my email or access the control panel. Grr.
Posted by criminal at 10:32 PM | Comments (0)
March 09, 2003
weeeeeeee
aaaaaannnnd.... Weeeeeeeeeeeeee!
Oh my God! I live with this guy and he is my brother and he was like,
"Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!"
Oh my God! I went home and saw my parents and they were like,
"Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!"
That's so funny. Cause I went to work and my boss was like,
"Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!"
Oh my God!, And then there was this guy on Food TV and he goes, "Bamm!!" and I go,
"Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!"
Yo, i went to bed and had a dream about this girl and I was like,
"Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!"
Yo, i talked to Sarah about Monday and she was like,
"Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!"
"Neat!" :-P
[Jon]
Posted by criminal at 09:02 PM | Comments (0)
Dirty Vegas
Happy Birthday Alan!
Just because I could and because he's in Vegas, being a bad boy. Well, probably not a bad boy - he wouldn't take any of my fun suggestions seriously. But I'm sure he's having a good time anyway, even if he is being a good boy.
Posted by criminal at 09:09 AM | Comments (1)
Battle of the Brats
I brought Tia to Maine with me, in the hopes that she'd provide some entertainment for the puppies. Well, she has in a way. She spent most of Friday running from them and them from her. If they got too close, she morphed into a hissing ball of fur with flying claws. By Saturday afternoon, she was comfortable enough with the new surroundings to be a little more sociable. She even started to ignore Zeke and Pete, unless they were playful and getting a little fresh with her. And now that we're getting ready to leave, she's pretty much at home, watching the bird feeders and walking between the puppies' legs. She's even being the sweetie she normally is. Now I'm just hoping that she'll be back to normal after the ride home.
Posted by criminal at 09:03 AM | Comments (0)
March 08, 2003
Awww
Have I mentioned how much I like Jon? Well, I will, just in case you hadn't noticed or heard. I like Jon an awful lot. In fact, I'd say it warrants that "L-word" I'm so reluctant to use. He likes all of me and I love him for that. Gosh, that was easier to say than I thought. And I miss him already.
Posted by criminal at 12:23 AM | Comments (0)
March 07, 2003
Friday Five for March 7, 2003
1. What was the last song you heard? Ben Folds - The Luckiest
2. What were the last two movies you saw? Amelie and Salem Witch Trials
3. What were the last three things you purchased? Bras and Underwear
4. What four things do you need to do this weekend? Write a Check for my share of the bills; Pick up Massachusetts tax forms; Mail Alan's birthday card; Thank Rolf and Sue profusely.
5. Who are the last five people you talked to? Dan, Jon, Liz, Eric, and Aysia (my Doctor's receptionist)
Posted by criminal at 11:15 AM | Comments (0)
Maine Way
I'm headed up to Maine for the weekend with Eric, Jared, and possibly Colin. I should also mention that I'm taking Tia on one of her first real car trips. We'll see how she survives the ride and the dogs before I try to bring her to Michigan. Its kind of strange - I haven't seen the puppies in at least 4 months. I'm looking forward to it although I will miss seeing Jon. I suppose we're going to have to learn to deal with it though. He makes business trips ever couple months, so we need to get used to not having weekends together.
Posted by criminal at 09:44 AM | Comments (1)
Girls' Night
Liz and I had a girls' night last night, complete with pizza and beer. OK. So the pizza had eggplant on it and was accompanied by a large salad. And maybe we only had one beer a piece. There was lots of talking though, and that was the whole point of the evening.
Posted by criminal at 09:13 AM | Comments (0)
March 06, 2003
More Snow
What was predicted to be 1-3" this morning turned into just over 5" tonight. The worst part was that it all fell between noon and 5PM. It came on slowly then dumped on us before pushing out to sea. This of course decreased visibility and made roadways slick. There was a 100 car pileup on I-95, south of Boston, among many other accidents. On my way to Liz's I saw a car spinning its tires trying to get up the other side of John street - it just couldn't make any progress up the hill. It was kind of nice to tromp through the snow though - none of the sidewalks were cleared, but that was ok. Its only a few inches...
Posted by criminal at 11:58 PM | Comments (0)
March 04, 2003
New Photos
I've added new photos of the flowers I received for my birthday in the Flower Gallery. There are also new photos of Tia in the Kitty Gallery, which includes a few of her attacking my new flowers. If she weren't so cute...
Posted by criminal at 03:41 AM | Comments (0)
Font Family
test yourself at fontlover.com!
Posted by criminal at 12:12 AM | Comments (1)
March 03, 2003
Gifted
And what would a birthday be without thoughtful gifts?
Jami, Amy, and Greg made me a gift basket with a set of beautiful hand-painted martini glasses, a large drink shaker, and a small drink guide. It makes me want to throw more dinner parties with a mini martini bar.
Sam gave me a gift certificate to the Gap. I'm pretty sure he did that last year too.
Liz and Jeremy got me flowers - live ones in pots that Liz decorated herself. The dark red Gerbera Daisies and matching pot are so cute and the White Phalaenopsis Orchid is incredibly elegant. Liz also got me a sweet little tiara, which I wore all night. The next time we go out, we'll both have to wear ours.
And Jon. Jon brought me a bouquet of pink Gerbera Daisies - he swears he didn't see my Favorites page - because he thought they were cute, like me. I can't forget the carrot cake either. It was amazing. He also got my lunch and dinner while we were out.
Eric and Jared are apparently making me something, but warned that it wouldn't be ready until sometime this week. I'm expecting some sort of kitty jungle gym, but if anyone has the ability to surprise me, its those two. Any guesses?
Posted by criminal at 07:12 PM | Comments (1)
Birthday Activities
Jon came over on Friday, but got held up at work so we didn't have time to make dinner preparations and go to the afternoon showing of Two Towers. So I just made him dinner: grilled pork in a peach-tomato barbecue sauce with sauteed asparagus, baby potates encrusted in cajun spices, and sangria blanco. He was an excellent sous chef even though he had misgivings about letting me work on my birthday. He did make me an incredible carrot cake with cream cheese frosting, which we convinced ourselves was a perfectly acceptable breakfast food.
Saturday included a trip to the Greendale Mall where I found a super cute Wonder Woman t-shirt for $8 at Hot Topic. I feel compelled to mention that its a youth extra-large, marketed towards women, and that it fits wonderfully. That makes me feel pretty normal, which is always good. After the mall, we headed over to Sakura Tokyo with Eric, Sam, Jared, Greg, Amy, Jami, Jeremy, and Liz. Even though we had reservations, we spent the better part of an hour waiting in the lounge and sharing a few drinks. Liz and I shared two scorpion bowls, although there was no bowling this time. The food was great, as expected, and the chef kept us entertained by throwing food at me. It even snowed. Later, in the small gathering at my apartment, Sam tried to feed his fish to Tiaterimus. Luckily, she wanted nothing to do with them. Unluckily, Jared got her mad and she attacked my face. Needless to say, she got to spend the night with Sam.
All in all, I'd have to say it was one of my best birthdays to date.
Posted by criminal at 06:43 PM | Comments (0)
Brrr...
Its damn cold today. Barely 6 degrees when I went out this morning and not even 60 in my apartment. (I swear I turned the heater closest to my room on low so it would warm up overnight, but Dan must have turned it off.) Even I'll admit that its a bit too cold to be comfortable out of doors. But its nowhere near as bad as in the UP, where temperatures dropped to -30. Ouch.
Posted by criminal at 04:37 PM | Comments (1)
March 02, 2003
Friday Five for February 28, 2003
1. What is your favorite type of literature to read (magazine, newspaper, novels, nonfiction, poetry, etc.)? I love well-written magazines when my mind is distracted. Otherwise, I like novels.
2. What is your favorite novel? Ahab's Wife by Sarena Jeter Naslund
3. Do you have a favorite poem? (Share it!) #8 by e.e. cummings:
it may not always be so; aned i say
that if you lips, which i have loved, should touch
another's, and your dear strong fingers clutch
his heart, as mine in time not far away;
if on another's face your sweet hair lay
in such silence as i know, or such
great writhing words as, uttering overmuch,
stand helplessly before the spirit at bay;
if this should be, i say if this should be-
you of my heart, send me a little word;
that i may go unto him, and take his hands,
saying, Accept all happiness from me.
Then shall I turn my face, and hear one bird
sing terribly afar in the lost lands.
4. What is one thing you've always wanted to read, or wish you had more time to read? Mr. Ferriby's college prep reading list
5. What are you currently reading? Dark Inheritance by C. Michael Gear and Kathleen O'Neal Gear, Welcome to the Monkey House by Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.
How would you answer the Friday Five?
Posted by criminal at 01:54 PM | Comments (0)