My new renter is the blog “Adventures in Everyday Life“. In a recent post, dazed81 confesses that she is an “unshopper”. You know … when you get half way through your shopping and you start putting things back on the shelf? Go read her blog and tell her I sent you.
Just for fun I’m going to start “stealing” horoscopes from The Onion to reprint here. The horoscopes are one of my favorite features over there. If you have never read The Onion, you don’t know what you’re missing. I’ll just pick one at random, you’ll have to read the rest for yourself.
Capricorn December 22 - January 19
After days of panic, you will experience relief again this week, when directors at the Bulletin Of The Atomic Scientists realize their mistake in setting the Doomsday Clock ahead for daylight saving time.
It has been a long week. and it just got started. I usually get about 3 or 4 posts out during the week, but I seem to be slacking a bit this week. Let me tell you what happened.
Monday morning, Bryan and I went to the casino in Grande Ronde. We had to leave town about 8 in the morning because each of us had committments later in the afternoon. The place was surprisingly crowded for that time of day. I’ve never been out there so early, I expected less. We headed straight to the blackjack table as we usually do, but were dissapointed to find that the non smoking tables were not available yet. It seemed to work out for the best though since Bryan and I both walked away quite a bit ahead of where we started. I won $280 over my initial “investment”. Bryan won even more. Nice way to start the day.
Monday afternoon I went to Bend to visit my mentee. Luckily my favorite person was able to come along with me to keep me company on the ride. The young man I am a mentor for wasn’t expecting me. I wish I could use his name here so the relationship didn’t sound so sterile, it really isn’t. It was nice to see him and he was pleasantly surprised. We had lunch together and walked around for a while talking about his plans for the future. He’s making responsible choices for the most part. They aren’t choices that I would make, but they aren’t my choices to make so that’s ok. It’s great to hear him talking about the future with hope.
Tuesday Mel left for a job out of town for 2 days. We had to say goodbye in the morning when she left for work. I hate it when she’s out of town. It’s hard for me to sleep well without her. She comes back today, but leaves again to visit her mother and sister this weekend. I have to remember that one of the things I love about her so much is her independence. I still miss her when she’s gone though.
I also learned that the financial aid applications that I had filled out had to be done again. I spent Tuesday morning trying to get that done as well. It seems silly, but here’s what happened. When I filled out the forms there were two options given on the web site. (I was going to use a semi-colon there, but I remembered Vonnegut’s advice) I was asked to choose between the 2005-2006 school year and the 2006-2007 school year. This is 2006, right? So I chose 2006-2007 and filled out the lengthy application that required me gathering all of our tax information and bank account info for 2005. Have you already figured out where I screwed up? I start school in May. The 2006-2007 school year doesn’t start until June. I would have had to fill out both forms anyway, but it was a bit frustrating. I hate to be in a rush to get things done.
Because of my difficulty sleeping alone combined with the start of allergy season, I haven’t been getting enough rest. That leaves me tired and cranky sometimes. I was able to sleep in a bit this morning until almost 8:30 which is unheard of for me. I think it is just exhaustion rather than being restful. At any rate, I feel a bit better today.
So that’s where I’ve been if you noticed that I was even away. What have you been up to?
Technorati Tags: casino, Grande Ronde, blackjack, mentor, sleep, financial aid, allergy
The problem with IE scrolling slowly and skipping was definately caused by the transparent image that I was using as a background for the posts and sidebars. Eliminating those images and the fixed background image seemed to have resolved the issue for now. If anyone knows why IE doesn’t know how to handle this properly, feel free to leave a comment here for me. Thanks for being patient, and look for more fine tuning on this layout in the next few weeks.
Technorati Tags: scrolling, transparent image, background, transparent, image
I got a letter of acceptance yesterday conditional only on receipt of my tuition. All of my financial aid forms are completed. The only step that is left is for the school to evaluate my transcripts which they assure me they have received. As soon as I know what pre-requisite courses I have to take I can start taking classes.
The entire program is online and is competency based. That means that I can take courses whenever I am ready and take as many as I am able. My study is completely self motivated so how quickly I progress is up to me. The nice thing is that I pay tuition per term rather than per “credit“. I have to take a minimum of 12 credits to be considered a full time student, but there is no maximum. I could complete the whole degree in one term if I was smart enough and crazy enough.
I’ll let you know as soon as I have more information. My first class will start May 1.
Technorati Tags: tuition, school, classes, competency, courses, credit
I promised I would review the book that I read on my vacation. I’m keeping that promise. Kurt Vonnegut promised he would never write another book. He broke his. I win.
No matter what you think about his politics, Kurt Vonnegut is an amazing writer. I remember reading “Galapagos” when I was in high school. I highly recommend that book as well. When I was younger I thought of myself as a writer, I admired people like Vonnegut who could paint a picture in words. I learned a lot from him and others, but alas, I am still a bit of a hack when it comes to writing. Here’s some advice on writing from his latest book, “A Man Without A Country” which has nothing to do with writing.
“Here is a lesson in creative writing.
First rule: Do not use semicolons. They are transvestite hermaphrodites representing absolutely nothing. All they do is show you’ve been to college.
And I realize some of you may be having trouble deciding whether I am kidding or not. So from now on I will tell you when I’m kidding.
For instance, join the National Guard or the Marines and teach democracy. I’m kidding.”
“A Man Without A Country” is Vonnegut’s gift to us. Reading it is like sitting down to have a conversation with him over a cup of coffee. In it he is remarkably transparent and honest about his thoughts on current politics and the planet Earth. Vonnegut is 83 years old. What does he have to lose?
“Can I tell you the truth? I mean this isn’t the TV news is it? Here’s what I think the truth is: We are all addicts of fossil fuels in a state of denial. And like so many addicts about to face cold turkey, our leaders are now committing violent crimes to get what little is left of what we’re hooked on.”
This will not be the best book you ever read, but it may be the most honest. It is a window into the mind of a man who has seen much more than most of us. I read the entire book, all 146 pages, in 2 sittings. There is so much more I would like to quote from the book for you. I’m sure I have not chosen the 2 best excerpts, but you will have to read for yourself. When you do, come back here and tell me what you thought.
Technorati Tags: book, Kurt Vonnegut, Vonnegut, writer, A Man Without A Country, politics, Earth